King ly, would hearken to no propofition for marrying a Proteftant., But when the Duke of Guife was killed at Blois, James in and that Henry the third was murdered foon after, the inter- fo that Henry the fourth came in his room, King eft of EngJames was no more in a French management: So land. presently after he married a Daughter of Denmark, and ever after that he was wholly managed by Queen Elizabeth and her Minifters. I have seen many letters among Walfingham's papers that difcover the commerce between the Houfe of Guife and him*: But the most valuable of thefe is a long paper of inftructions to one Sir Richard Wigmore, a great man for hunting, and for all fuch sports, to which King James was out of measure addicted. The Queen affronted him publickly: Upon which he pretended he could live no longer in England, and therefore withdrew to Scotland. But all this was a contrivance of Walfingham's, who thought him a fit perfon to get into that King's favour: So that affront was defigned to give him the more credit. He was very particularly inftructed in all the proper methods to gain upon the King's confidence, and to obferve and give an account of all he faw in him, which he did very faithfully. By these instructions it appears that Walfingham thought that King was either inclined to turn Papift, or to be of no religion. And when the court of England faw that they could not depend on him, they raised all poffible opposition to him in Scotland, infufing ftrong jealoufies into those who were enough inclined to receive them. A cenfure This is the great defect that runs thro' Archbiof Spotf- fhop Spotfwood's history, where much of the rude oppofition that King met with, particularly from history. the Affemblies of the Kirk, is fet forth; but the wood's truc ground of all the jealoufies they were poffeffed with is fuppreffed by him. After his marriage they ftudied to remove these fufpicions all That is, between the Hoafe of Guife and King James. that King that was poffible; and he granted the Kirk all the laws they desired, and got his temporal authority to be better established than it was before: Yet as the jealoufies of his ficklenefs in religion were never quite removed, fo they gave him many new difgufts: They wrought in him a moft inveterate hatred of prefbytery, and of the power of the Kirk; and he fearing an oppofition in his fucceeding to the Crown of England, from the Papift: party, which, tho' it had little ftrength in the Houfe of Commons, yet was very great in the House of Lords, and was very confiderable in all. the northern parts, and among the body of the people, employed feveral perfons who were known' to be Papifts tho' they complied outwardly. The chief of these were Elphinfton, Secretary of State,: whom he made Lord Balmerinoch; and Seaton, afterwards Chancellour and Earl of Dunfermling. James tuBy their means he ftudied to affure the Papifts that died to he would connive at them. A letter was alfo writ gain the to the pope by him giving affuránce of this, which aids. when it came to be published by Bellarmin, upon the prosecution of the recufants after the discovery of the Gunpowder Plot, Balmerinoch did affirm, that he out of zeal to the king's fervice got his hand to it, having put it in the bundle of papers. that were figned in courfe, without the King's knowing any thing of it. Yet when that difcocovery drew no other feverity but the turning him out of office, and the paffing a sentence condemning him to die for it (which was prefently pardoned, and he was after a fhort confinement reftored to his liberty,) all men believed that the King knew of the letter, and that the pretended confeffion of the Secretary was only.collufion, to lay the jealoufies of the King's favouring Popery, which ftill hung upon him notwithstanding his writing on the Revelation, and his affecting to enter on all occafions into controverfy, afferting in particular that the Pope was Antichrift. As And to fecure the fucceffion to the As he took thefe methods to manage the Popish party, he was much more careful to fecure to himfelf the body of the English nation. Cecill, afCrown of terwards Earl of Salisbury, Secretary to Queen England. Elizabeth, entred into a particular confidence with him And this was managed by his Ambaffador Bruce, a younger brother of a noble family in Scotland, who carried the matter with fuch address and fecrecy, that all the great Men of England, without knowing of one another's doing it, and without the Queen's fufpecting any thing concerning it, figned in writing an engagement to affert and stand by the King of Scots right of fucceffion. This great fervice was rewarded by making him Master of the Rolls, and a Peer of Scotland: And as the king did raife Cecil and his friends to the greatest posts and dignities, fo he raised Bruce's family here in England. That róurs in ment. When that king came to the Crown of England King's er- he discovered his hatred to the Scotifh Kirk on maGovern- ny occafions, in which he gratified his refentment without confulting his interests. He ought to have put his utmost strength to the finishing what he but faintly begun for the union of both Kingdoms, which was loft by his unreasonable partiality in pretending that Scotland ought to be confidered in this union as the third part of the Isle of Great Britain, if not more. So high a demand ruined the defign. But when that failed, he fhould then have studied to keep the affections of that Nation firm to him: And certainly he, being fecure of that Kingdom, might have fo managed matters, as to have prevented that disjointing which happened afterwards both in his own reign, and more tragically in his fon's. He thought to effect this by his profufe bounty to many of the Nobility of that Kingdom, and to his domeftick fervants : But as most of these fettling in England were of no further use to him in that defign, fo his fetting up Epifcopacy in Scotland, and his conftant aver fion to the Kirk, how right foever it might be in it felf, was a great errour in policy; for the poor-] er that Kingdom was, it was both the more eafy. to gain them, and the more dangerous to offend. them. So the terrour which the affections of the. Scotch Nation might have juftly given the English was foon loft, by his engaging the whole govern-. ment to fupport that, which was then very contrary to the bent and genius of the Nation. 4 land. But tho' he fet up Bifhops, he had no revenues He fet up to give them, but what he was to purchafe for Epifcopathem. During his minority all the tithes and the cyn Scotchurch lands were vefted in the Crown: But this was only in order to the granting them away to the men that bore the chief fway. It is true, when he came of age he according to the law of Scotland paft a general revocation of all that had been; done in his infancy: And by this he could have refumed all thofe grants. He, and after him his fon, fucceeded in one part of his defign: For by act of Parliament a Court was erected that was to examine and fequefter a third part of the tithes in every parish, and fo make a competent provision out of them to those who served the cure; which had been referved in the great alienation for the fervice of the church. This was carried at firft to a proportion of about thirty pounds a year, and was afterwards in his fon's time raised to about fifty pounds a year; which confidering the plenty and way of living in that country is a very liberal provifion, and is equal in value to thrice that fum. in the fouthern parts of England. In this he had both the clergy and the body of the people on his fide. But he could not fo eafily provide for the Bishops: They were at firft forced to hold their former cures with fome fmall addition. But as they affumed at their first setting up little With a demore authority than that of a conftant prefident of fign to car the prefbyters, fo they met with much rough op- ry matters, pofition. The King intended to carry on a con formity farther. the Bishops. formity in matters of religion with England, and he begun to buy in from the Grantees many of the eftates that belonged to the Bishopricks. It was alfo enacted, that a form of prayer fhould be drawn for Scotland: And the King was authorized to appoint the habits in which the divine offices were to be performed. Some of the chief holy-days were ordered to be obferv'd. The Sacrament was to be received kneeling, and to be given to the fick. Confirmation was enacted; as alfo the use of the Cross in Baptism. These things were first past in general assemblies, which were composed of Bishops and the deputies chofen by the Clergy, who fat all in one houfe: And in it they reckoned the Bishops only as fingle votes. Great oppofition was made to all these steps: And the whole force of the Government was ftrained to carry elections to thofe meetings, or to take off those who were chofen; in which it was thought that no fort of practice was omitted. It was pretended, that some were frighted, and others were corrupted. Errours of The Bishops themselves did their part very ill. They generally grew haughty: They neglected their functions, and were often at Court, and loft all efteem with the people. Some few that were stricter and more learned did lean fo grofly to Popery, that the heat and violence of the Reformation became the main fubject of their fermons and difcourfes. King James grew weary of this oppofition, or was fo apprehenfive of the ill effects that it might have, that, what through floth or fear, and what by reafon of the great disorder into which his ill conduct brought his affairs in England in his latter years, he went no further in his defigns on Scotland. Prince He had three children. His eldeft, Prince Henry Henry, was a Prince of great hopes; but fo very little like his father, that he was rather feared than loved by him. He was fo zealous a Proteftant, was be lieved to be poison ed. that, |