shold perteyne unto my profit, I shold fynde your Highnes good and graciouse lord unto me. So is it now graciouse Soverayne that worldely honor is the thing wherof I have resigned both the possession and the desyre, in the resignation of your moost honorable office; and worldely profit I trust experience proveth, and dayly more and more shall prove, that I never was very gredy thereon. But now is my moost humble suit unto your excellent Highnes, partely to byseche the same some what to tendre my pore honestie, how beit, pryncipally that of your accustomed goodnes no synistre information move your noble Grace to have eny more distrust of my trowth and devotion toward you than I have or shall during my lyfe geve the cause. For in this mater of the wykked woman of Canterbery, I have unto your trusty Counsailor Mr Thomas Cromwell, by my writing, as playnely declared the trowth as I possibly can, which my declaration, of his dewty toward your grace and his goodnes toward me, he hath, I understand, declared unto your grace; in eny parte of all which my dealing, whither eny other man may peradventure put eny dowt, or move eny scruple of suspition, that can I neither tell nor lyeth in my hand to lett; but unto my selfe it is not possible eny parte of my-sayed demeanure to seme evyll: the very clerenes of myn awne conscience knoweth in all the mater my minde an entent so good. Wherfore moost graciouse

VOL. II.

E

Soverayne I neither will, nor it can bycome me, with your Highnes to reason or argue the mater; but in my moost humble maner prostrate at your graciouse feete I ownely besech your Majestie with your awne high prudence, and your accustomed goodnes, consydre and way the mater: and thatt if, in your so doing, your awne vertuouse mynde shall geve yow that notwithstanding the manifold excellent goodnes that your graciouse Highnes hath by so many maner wayes used unto me, I be a wreche of such a monstruouse ingratitude as could with eny of theym all or eny other person lyvinge digresse from my bounden dewtie of allegeaunce toward your good Grace, than desyre I no ferther favor at your graciouse hands than the losse of all that ever I may lese, goods, lands, libertie, and my life with all, whereof the keping of eny parte unto my selfe could never do me penyworth of pleasure. But onely shold my cumforte be, that after my short lyfe and your long (which with continuall prosperitie to Godds pleasure our Lord for his mercy send yow) I shold onys mete your Grace and be mery agayne with yow in hevyn, where amcig myn other pleasures this shold yit be one, that your Grace shold surely se there than, that howsoever yow take me, I am your trew bedisman now, and ever have bene, and will be till I dye, how so ever your pleasure be to do by me. How be it, if in the considering of my cause, your high wisedom and gra

ciouse goodnes perceive, as I veryly trust in God yow shall, that I nowe other wise have demeaned my self than well may stand with my bounden dutie of faithfulnes toward your roiall Maiestie; than ", in my moost humble wise, I beseche your moost noble Grace that the knowledge of your trew graciouse persuation in that byhalfe may releve the turment of my present hevynes, conceived of the drede and fere by that I here such a grevouse byll put by your lerned Counsaille into your high Cort of Parleament agaynst me; leste your Grace myght by some synistre information be moved eny thing to thinke the contrary, which if your Hignes do not (as I trust in God and your great goodnes the mater by your awne high prudence examined and considered ye will not,) than in my moost humble maner I beseche your Highnes ferther, (albe it that in respecte of my formare requeste this other thing is very sleight,) yit sith your Highnes hath here byfore of your mere habundaunt goodnes heped and accumulate uppon me, thowgh I was thereto very far unworthy, fro tyme to tyme, both wurshipp and great honor, to sith I now have left all such things, and nothing seke or desyre but the lyfe to come and pray for your grace the while it may lyke your highnes of your accustumed benignitie some what to tendre my pore honestie, and never suffre by the meane of such a byll put forth agaynst me eny man take occasion hereafter

untrewely to slander me; which thinge shold yit by the perell of theyr own soule, do theym selfe more harme than me which shall I trust settle myn hart with your graciouse favor, to depende uppon the cumfort of the trowth and hope of hevyn, and not uppon the fallible opinion or sone spoken words of lightsome chaungeable peple And thus, most dredd and most dere soverayne Lord, I beseche the blessed Trinitie preserve your moost noble Grace, both body and soule, and all that are your well wyllers, and amend all the contrary; among whom if ever I be or ever have bene I God that he may with myn open one, than pray shame and destruction declare it. At my pore howse in Chelcith the vth day of Marche by the knowen rude hand of your moost humble and moost hevy faithful subjette and bedisman

THO. MORE K

LETTER CXVIII.

Sir William Kingston to Secretary Cromwell, upon Queen Anne's committal to the Tower.

[MS. COTTON. OTHо c. x. fol. 225.]

Six Letters are now presented to the Reader, relating to the ARREST and BEHAVIOUR IN PRISON of Queen Anne Boleyn. They are given as they exist at present; in part mutilated by the ravages of the fire of 1731. Of Anne Boleyn's conviction we know nothing beyond the fact. The judicial documents relating to her Trial are stated to have perished: but whether destroyed by Henry the Eighth or Elizabeth is not known.

Anne Boleyn's last memorable Letter to King Henry the Eighth, "from her doleful prison in the Tower," is omitted in this Collection. It is universally known as one of the finest compositions in the English Language, and is only mentioned here, to obviate a notion which has gone abroad against it as a forgery.

The Original, it is believed, is not remaining now: but the Copy of it preserved among Lord Cromwell's papers together with Sir William Kyngston's Letters, is certainly in a hand-writing of the time of Henry the Eighth and Sir William Kyngston's evidence will show that Anne was too closely guarded to allow of any one concerting such a Letter with her. That it rises in style above Anne Boleyn's other compositions cannot be disputed, but her situation was one which was likely to rouse a cultivated mind; and there is a character of nature in the Letter, a simplicity of expression, and a unity of feeling, which it may be doubted whether Genius itself could have feigned. The pity of posterity has been more fixed upon Anne Boleyn by that Letter, than by all the cruel circumstances related in her Story.

Who was Sir William Kyngston? is a question, which they who peruse the Letters immediately before the reader, will in all probability indignantly ask.

SIR WILLIAM KYNGSTON, as the Letters will show, was the Lieutenant of the Tower; he was also Captain of the King's Guard; and at one time treasurer of his Household. He was in the confidence of the King, and his office of Lieutenant of the Tower gave him access to the royal person at any hour, even of the night. He was evidently a man of a stern unfeeling character. When the Earl of Northumberland had arrested Wolsey upon his last journey, Cavendish named to the Cardinal that the King had sent Mr. Kyngston and twenty four of the guard, to conduct Wolsey to his Highness. Mr. Kyngston, quoth he, rehersing his name once or twice; and with that clapped his hand on his thigh and gave a deep sigh."

Wolsey was not unacquainted with this man, nor with the secrets of his Office. When Kyngston made all those professions of homage and respect which Wolsey had been used to in his better days; he simply said, "Mr. Kingston, all the comfortable words ye have spoken to me, be spoken but for a purpose to bring me into a fool's Paradise: I know what is provided for me.'

"a

THYS ys to advertyse you apon my Lord of Norfolk and the Kyngs Counsell depart from the Towre I went before the Quene in to hyr lodgyng,

■ Cavend. Life of Wolsey, Wordsw. edit. p. 531.