two years, and to be marked with a red hot iron; an act commonly fuppofed to be levelled against the strolling priests and friars. It was enacted also, that all who denied the king's fupremacy, or afferted the pope's, fhould, for the first offence, forfeit their goods and chattels, and fuffer imprisonment during pleasure; for the fecond offence they were to incur the pain of premunire, and for the third offence to be attainted of treafon. Orders were foon after iffued by the council that candles should no longer be carried about on Candlemas day, afhes on Ash Wednesday, or palms on Palm Sunday. These were ancient fuperftitious practices, which led to immoralities that it was thought proper to reftrain. An order alfo was iffued for the removal of all images from the churches, an innovation which was much defired by the reformers, and which alone, with regard to the populace, amounted almost to a change of the established religion. The people had for fome time been extremely dif tracted by the oppofite opinions of their preachers; and as they were totally incapable of judging the arguments advanced on either fide, and naturally regarded every thing they heard. at church, as of the greatest authority, much confusion and fluctuation refulted from this uncertainty. The council firft endeavoured to remove the inconvenience by laying fome restraints upon preaching; but finding this expedient fail, they imposed a total filence upon preachers, which however, was removed by degrees, in proportion as the reformation gained ground among the people. But these innovations, evidently calculated for the good of the people, were not brought about without fome struggles at home, while the protector was but too bufily employed against the Scotch, who united with, and feconded by France, ftill pushed on their inroads with unremitting animofity. Befides, there was still an enemy that he had yet to fear more than any of the former; and this was his own brother, lord Thomas Seymour, the admiral, a man of uncommon talents, but proud, turbulent, and untractable. This nobleman could not endure the distinction which the king had always made between him and his elder brother; fo that they divided the whole court and the kingdom by their oppofite cabals and pretenfions. By his flattery and addrefs, he had fo infinuated himself into the good graces of the queen dowager, that, forgetting her ufual prudence and decency, the married him immediately upon the decease of the the late king. This match was particularly difpleafing to the elder brother's wife, who now faw that while her husband had the precedency in one place, fhe was obliged to yield it in another. His next ftep was to cabal and make a party among the nobility, who, as they hated his brother, fomented his ambition. He then bribed the king's domeftics to his intereft; and young Edward frequently went to his house, on pretence of vifiting the queen. There he ingratiated himself with his fovereign by the most officious affiduities, particularly by supplying him with money to diftribute among his fervants and favourites, without the knowledge of his governor. In the protector's absence with the army in Scotland, he made it his business to redouble all his arts and infinuations; and thus obtained a new patent for admiral, with an additional appointment. Sir William Paget perceiving the progress he daily made in the king's affection, wrote to the protector on the fubject, who finished the campaign in Scotland with all poffible difpatch, that he might return in time to counter-work his machinations. But before he could arrive in England, the admiral had engaged in his party feveral of the principal nobility, and had even prevailed on the king himself to write a letter to the two houses of parliament with his own hand, defiring that the admiral might be appointed his governor; but the council being apprized of his schemes, fent deputies to affure him, that if he did not defift they would deprive him of his office, fend him prisoner to the Tower, and profecute him on the last act of parliament, by which he was fubject to the penalty of high treason, for attempting to disturb the peace of the government. It was not without some severe struggles within himself, and fome menaces divulged among his creatures, that he thought proper to fubmit, and defired to be reconciled to his brother. Yet he ftill nourished the fame defigns in fecret; and his brother, fufpecting his fincerity, employed fpies to inform him of all his private transactions. But it was not in the power of persuasions or menaces to shake the admiral's unalterable views of ambition. His fpoufe, the queendowager, had died in child-bed; and this accident, far from repreffing his schemes, only seemed to promote them. He made his addreffes to the Princess Elizabeth, afterwards fo revered by the English; and it is said that she liftened to his infinuations, contrary to the will of her father, who had excluded her the fuc, ceffion, ceffion, in cafe fhe married without the confent Somerset being well afcertained of all these alarming circumstances, endeavoured by every expedient that his power or his near connection could fuggeft, to draw him from his defigns. He reasoned, he threatened, he heaped new favours upon him; but all to no purpose. At last he refolved to make use of the last dreadful remedy, and to attaint his own brother of high treason. In consequence of this refolution, and fecretly advised to it by Dudley, earl of Warwick, a wicked ambitious man, A. D. 1548. |