Simancas: August 1586 | British History Online

Calendar of State Papers, Spain (Simancas), Volume 3, 1580-1586. Originally published by Her Majesty's Stationery Office, London, 1896.

Citation:

'Simancas: August 1586', in Calendar of State Papers, Spain (Simancas), Volume 3, 1580-1586, ed. Martin A S Hume( London, 1896), British History Online https://prod.british-history.ac.uk/cal-state-papers/simancas/vol3/pp597-613 [accessed 27 November 2024].

August 1586



Aug. K. 1564. 22. French.	460. Robert Bruce to Philip II. In the name of the nobles by whom he is sent (Huntley, Morton, and Claude Hamilton) urges upon the King the ease and desirability of bringing Scotland to the Catholic faith. He begs the King's aid thereto, in the form of men and money.—Madrid. No date.
1 Aug. Paris Archives, K. 1564. 138.	461. Charles, Earl Of Westmoreland, to Philip II. After I left Flanders to go and salute your Majesty I arrived here at the French court, and was obliged to remain here for some months at the instance of certain persons whom I could not avoid obeying. During this time I exhausted the scanty resources I had for my journey, and although I have been trying by every possible means to get over the difficulty and proceed on my voyage, I have been unsuccessful, and venture to supplicate your Majesty (since I am of no use in Flanders for certain reasons, and from information that I have from England) to allow the pension I receive from your generosity, of 100 crowns a month in the Netherlands, to be paid to me here or in Italy, or any place where your Majesty may consider I may be most useful to you. There I will live and die.—Paris, 1st August 1586. Note.—The text of the above letter is in the handwriting of Maldonado, the secretary of Mendoza, and is signed by the Earl thus "Carlos de Westmerlande." It is accompanied by another letter from the Earl to a similar effect, addressed to the King's secretary Don Juan de Idiaquez.
2 Aug. Paris Archives, K. 1564. 133. French.	462. The Queen Of Scotland to Bernardino De Mendoza. Just as I was dispatching the enclosed to you I received your letter of 16th July. As this means of communication, thank God, is now as safely established as formerly was the case, you may in future, if you please, write to me on all occasions when necessary. God restore the health of my good brother the king (of Spain), preserve his children, and send him all sorts of happiness and prosperity, which his devoted care for the general good of Christendom so well deserves. He will have my prayers every day, if I can serve him in no other way. I thank you for your kind diligence in communicating to him what I sent you in my letters of May last. As for what concerns me personally, I am entirely assured that you will act according to your promise, and also with regard to those poor English gentlemen, whom I cannot help recommending to you directly, especially the liberation of Morgan, and the granting to him of some pension if you can manage to help him thus. I have already answered about the money you obtained for me. As I leave you and my ambassador to arrange for me to have the rest that is to come sent to me, I need not therefore prolong this letter.— Chartley, 2nd August 1586. This letter and that of 27th July which accompanied it reached Mendoza in Paris on the 8th September 1886. It is printed in Labanoff.
4 Aug. Paris Archives, K. 1564. 140.	463. Bernardino De Mendoza to the King. Relates the storming of Nutz and the massacre of the garrison (1,200 men) with the loss of only three Spaniards. (fn. 1) There was a double plot with the English at Gravelines. They (the English) offered 50,000 florins to the soldiers of the garrison to surrender the place, and the latter, pretending that they were without a leader, agreed to do so. On the 27th ultimo the English came to carry out the arrangement, and thirty of them were allowed to enter the place, and were then asked to pay the money agreed upon. They replied that the money was on board the ships, and that when the place was surrendered the money would be paid. When the soldiers of the garrison heard this and saw they would not be able to get hold of the money, they killed most of the 30 Englishmen who were in the town, and took the rest of them prisoners. At the same time they threw a force out of the town by another gate, and fell upon the English who had landed, killing over 250 of them without counting those who were drowned in attempting to get on their boats.—Paris, 4th August 1586.
6 Aug. Paris Archives, K. 1564. 142.	464. Document headed : Advices from Sampson. There are fresh letters from England saying that the Queen was leaving Greenwich to go for a progress through the country, the object of which was understood to be to ask the people for money. Don Antonio was in London, needy and in want of money. No news had been received of Drake for some time, nor were any ships known to have sailed in numbers to plunder, although individual vessels may have gone. No letters had been received from the earl of Leicester for three weeks. (fn. 2)
7 Aug. Paris Archives, K. 1564. 144.	465. Bernardino De Mendoza to the King. In another letter I reply to your Majesty's other despatches, and limit myself here to the statement of the German captain which your Majesty ordered to be had sent to me on the 18th July. The ships of Richard Grenville, on board of which he says he was pressed at Plymouth, are those which I mentioned to your Majesty as soon as I came to France were being fitted out by Raleigh, the Queen's favourite, to sail for the coast of Florida, which voyage was under discussion for two years before the ships left England, as I informed your Majesty. The ship that this captain says was captured from Captain Domingo with so large a treasure in gold, silver, pearls, cochineal, sugar, ivory, and hides, was one I advised your Majesty of months ago as having arrived in England, and that Raleigh himself had gone down to the port to take possession of her cargo, and not to allow it to be distributed amongst the sailors. I also reported to your Majesty that, as soon as the ships were arrested at Bilbao, the queen of England gave more than 70 letters of marque to merchants, under cover of which they had sailed for the purpose of plundering your Majesty's subjects. I have also written on several occasions of the many captains who were imprisoned in the English ports, they having been brought in on board of the prizes taken by the pirates. Even if I were in England I should be unable to ascertain when, where, or in what number these ships leave, as they sail from many ports, and pursue their voyage as chance or fortune may lead them, sometimes joining others and sailing in company, especially when they sail towards Newfoundland or the Spanish Indies, which is a long and perilous voyage, which they undertake in the hope that the ships they plunder will provide them with victuals, or at least with goods to barter with your Majesty's Indian subjects when they are short of stores. They give in exchange for victuals the merchandise they steal, so that the pirates are thus provided with food. With this assurance, for many years past, the ships have left the coasts of France and England to plunder on the route to the Indies, knowing full well that the traffickers on shore even make fires at night, in the creeks and elsewhere, as a signal for them to come and take victuals in exchange for merchandise, which they give at a fair price. (fn. 3) I learnt this when I was in England, and if it be not remedied by means of the most rigorous punishment, no matter how strong your Majesty's fleets may be, these pirates will never be extirpated. Your Majesty's officers have not in this respect acted with the energy demanded, and this can be gathered by the German captain's statement, as in Porto Rico, Isle of Santo Domingo, he says Richard Grenville was offered victuals for money. This is not legal trade with any foreigner, as your Majesty has prohibited all voyages to the Indies except by ships sailing from Seville. Since the capital town of the island offers victuals at a moderate price, it may well be believed that private traders will sell them as they do for the sake of making a large profit. The statement that General Grenville sailed with 28, and Hawkins with 15, of the Queen's ships is evidently incorrect, as is also that to the effect that they had with them 5,000 men and a large number of nobles, because the Queen has not more than 24 ships of her own, and they, on the 20th ultimo, were in England and not ready for sea, except those which I mentioned in my former letters, and no such force of men could have been shipped without our knowledge here, or my informants reporting the fact. As he says that Drake took 4,000 men, when we know the number did not exceed 1,500, soldiers and all, it is clear that he exaggerates in both cases, besides which any one who knows England will understand that so many men could not be sent out of the country, seeing the demands made for men for the Netherlands. The Queen is making every effort to raise men for there, and yet she cannot send all the troops they want. The ships of Sir Harry Cavendish which he mentions are those which I reported months ago were fitting out with the object of going to Brazil, guided by pilots provided by Don Antonio. Neither these vessels, nor those of the earl of Cumberland, had left on the 20th ultimo, although they were ready to sail. This is confirmed also by the reports furnished to me by Sampson. I doubt the correctness of more ships having joined Drake than those he appeared to have when he was at Bayona, because all the private pirates will have flocked to him there attracted by the fame of his plunder, and knowing that his intention was to go on a thieving expedition. With regard to this I can only refer to what I have written in other letters on the matter, and again assure your Majesty that I strive my very utmost to elucidate what is passing in England in the matter of warlike preparations and designs. All the Hawkinses are born pirates, and when I was in England they fitted out ships to plunder even in sight of land. The strongest pirate always takes the lead, so I do not wonder at the captain's belief that there are other commanders in the Indies besides Drake. A French ship has arrived at Havre de Grace, into which an English vessel had transhipped some Spanish seamen, and one Alvarez, whom the English captured on a ship off Cape St. Vincent on his way from Havana with despatches for your Majesty from the Viceroy of Mexico. This Alvarez came to me and made the statement which I now enclose, saying that he had gone to the island of Havana with a captain named "something" de Acuña, who had served your Majesty in the war of Portugal. Letters from England, dated 20th ultimo, report that a vigilant watch is being kept on all the coast, both on account of the suspicions of your Majesty's fleet, and also to prevent the Catholics from leaving the country, and the English in the Netherlands from returning thereto, which many attempt, although those they catch are hanged.—Paris, 7th August 1586. Note.—The long statement in Latin respecting Drake's voyage, referred to in the above letter, is in the Paris Archives (K. 1564. 135), but it is not reproduced here, as its contents are sufficiently indicated in Mendoza's comments.
7 Aug. Paris Archives, K. 1564.	466. Bernardino De Mendoza to the King. I send your Majesty herewith a book which has come out. It contains many things well worth reading, but whilst it praises the zeal of your Majesty in the preservation and advancement of the holy Catholic faith, it states that the prince Don Carlos was tainted with heresy. The author of the book reminds me of the physicians' description of the action of nature, which out of its very soundness sends to a wound all the humour it finds, oblivious as to whether its presence will do good or otherwise. Although the author had such abundant good material at hand for proving your Majesty's ardent zeal, he has thought necessary to make use of the monstrous lie and fiction, which the heretics have invented. (fn. 4) —Paris, 7th August 1586.
8 Aug. Paris Archives, K. 1564. 148.	467. Advices from England. With regard to our news here, I have to say that Drake has arrived, although, as I hear, with but little treasure, his ships being loaded with merchandise, artillery, and plunder from the churches. The best jewel he brings is a crucifix with figures of our Lady and St. John, covered with precious stones. He has received from the merchants of London, against bills of exchange, the sum of 60,000 sun-crowns to pay his soldiers, and has given to each gentleman who accompanied him 100l. sterling. The booty is divided between the Queen, who has one part, and Drake and the merchants the other, although the Queen's share was the largest. They have decided that Drake, or someone else, shall immediately undertake another voyage, and everything will be very soon ready. A large number of horse, also, are being raised, but I do not know with what object, unless it is to enable the Queen to get money from her subjects. The Treasurer governs the Queen in all things, and Leicester's party is daily declining. Leicester greatly wishes to return, but the Queen will not allow him to do so. He has taken possession of a woman (wife?) of Orange's, and treats her as his own. The earl of Shrewsbury has been reconciled with his wife at the Queen's intercession. (fn. 5) Walsingham frequently shows some particular favour towards the Catholics, whilst the Treasurer, on the contrary, persecutes them more obstinately than formerly. The earl of Rutland has returned from Berwick, having concluded the alliance with the king of Scotland, who is to receive from the Queen an annual pension of 6,000l. The King's life-guard will be maintained by the queen of England out of a portion of this allowance, so that everyone will be devoted to her, and the King, so to speak, her prisoner. It is impossible to imagine the alarm that has come over the whole nation at the idea of an invasion of the country, either from France or Spain. In short, all classes are dissatisfied. The ports are at present open for exit, although four days ago they were closed, and all departure from them prohibited. A French page who had embarked for France, said during the passage that he hoped before two months were over to see the king of France in England, and in consequence of these words he was brought back again. They found upon him a sum of 200l. in gold. I do not know what they did with him. This is all I can report for the present. London, 8th August 1586. Unsigned.
10 Aug. Paris Archives, K. 1564. 149.	468. Sampson's Advices from England. They write that Drake had arrived in England, and Don Antonio's people are hinting in ambiguous words to their friends here that they may keep their spirits up, as they hope shortly to be able to send them some good news. Sampson infers from this that Drake's return may lead Don Antonio to attempt some disturbance by sea, such as making a descent on the coast of Portugal, as he is told by a canon of Coimbra, who went to England from Nantes when Juan Iñiguez was there on his way to your Majesty, that there are not 2,000 Spaniards in all Portugal, and that the Portuguese are very discontented. Although these are lies, yet they encourage Don Antonio's folks.
13 Aug. Paris Archives, K. 1564. 150.	469. Bernardino De Mendoza to the King. Some months since I wrote to your Majesty that some English Catholics had sent a priest to me to learn whether your Majesty would help them if they rose. As he did not descend to further particulars than this, I replied vaguely, instancing the promptitude with which your Majesty had always offered aid whenever an opportunity had occurred of forwarding so righteous a cause as the augmentation of the Catholic church. This, I said, was the motive of your actions, and I was sure that you would again proceed in the same spirit, if they on their part provided you with a worthy opportunity. In order to be able again to submit their intentions to your Majesty, however, I said it would be well for them to come to details with me, and clear up certain points which I considered necessary to convince me that the matter was serious. I told the priest what these points were, so that he might communicate them to his principals and obtain the information desired. The Catholics have now sent to me a gentleman of good family called Master Gifford with proper credentials ; and the substance of his commission is what I have now to lay before your Majesty. My answer sent by the priest so greatly encouraged those who had started the plot, that they decided to sound the principal Catholics and also the Schismatics, (fn. 6) on the pretext that it was not possible for your Majesty to avoid revenging yourself upon the queen of England, for having so shamelessly taken the Netherlands under her protection, and having sent such a multitude of ships to sea not only to rob your subjects, but also to sack and pillage your dominions in Spain and the Indies. These things, they said, could not possibly be overlooked, and if your Majesty did not send a fleet this year to England, you must do so next year, or the year after. For this reason they agreed that it would be well that a unanimous understanding should be arrived at by them, so that they might be ready to receive your Majesty's forces ; the coming of which would be a benefit and not an injury to them. They all adopted the idea most readily, and swore not only to raise their forces respectively, but, if necessary, to call them out whenever was thought convenient, 20 days before the arrival of your Majesty's fleet, and to co-operate therewith as they might be instructed to do. In order the further to prove to me their good faith, they sent me the names of the persons who had agreed to this, and a statement of the way in which they intended to proceed. This was to the effect that the earl of Arundel, (fn. 7) who is now a prisoner in the Tower of London, and with whom they are in communication, and have kept fully informed, undertakes, with the assistance of a few men, to make himself master of the Tower, whilst Lord Harry Howard, his uncle, would raise troops and would be joined by Lord Thomas Howard, the Earl's brother. Lord Thomas is not a Catholic, but desires by any means to avenge his father's death. (fn. 8) Lord William, another brother of the Earl, a strong Catholic and very popular, would also join ; the earl of Northumberland, (fn. 9) son of the Earl that died in the Tower ; Lord Strange, (fn. 10) son of the earl of Derby, a young man with a great following ; Lord Windsor, who has arms sufficient for 1,000 men, and who as he lives near where the queen of Scotland is confined intends to release her ; Lord Morley and Lord Stourton of the province of Lancashire, who have all the nobility of the county on their side, as well as the commonalty ; Lord Dacre (fn. 11) who is a Catholic and wants to be made president of the Northern Province, and revenge himself upon the President, the earl of Huntingdon ; Sir John Constable, a man of influence and large credit in the north, where all the people are Catholics ; Sir William Courtney, a Catholic, who expects to be able in the turmoil to recover the earldom of Devonshire, which is his by right. He is a person of great weight and credit in the west, and promises to ensure the possession of the port of Plymouth ; Sir John Arundel and his son. (fn. 12) The father is a prisoner in the Tower of London since the duke of Norfolk's rising, and has all Cornwall (fn. 13) at his bidding, as his family is much beloved. Lord Compton who is in mid-England ; Sir William Stanley, a soldier of great experience, who has come from Ireland by the Queen's orders with 1,000 troops, mostly Catholics, to pass over to Flanders. They are now quartered in the neighbourhood of London. The Queen herself administered the oath to this colonel three times in one week, that he would be loyal to her ; but as he is a Catholic he has found excuses for not going over quickly with his men to Flanders, in the expectation that your Majesty's fleet will arrive, and he will continue this course until news of the fleet comes. When he is obliged to go to Zeeland he promises to pass over on the first opportunity to the prince of Parma. Lord Montague (fn. 14) and all his house, which is the principal family in Sussex and has a great following. In addition to these there are Lord Vaux, Sir Thomas Tresham, Sir Thomas Fitzherbert, Sir John Southward, Sir William Catesby. (fn. 15) Lord Vaux and those whose names follow his have not been informed of the business, as they are declared Catholics, and are consequently held prisoners by the Queen, and under very heavy money penalties ; but it is confidently assumed that as others far less interested are joining the design they certainly will do so. Lord Gifford, a person of advanced age, is the father of the gentleman they have sent me, and he with the gentlemen whose names follow have agreed in the country where the queen of Scotland is confined. Sir Walter Aston, his brother-in-law, Wolseley Beedle, Ashley Fowler, Dracot, Carswick, Maxfield, and others of the county of Derbyshire ; Babington, Langford Shirley, Fitzherbert, and others of the county of Worcestershire ; Abington, the Throgmortons and Middlemotes, in Shropshire ; Talbot Brooke, Corbet. The captains James Bele and others in Ireland (fn. 16) are also agreed to rise the moment they hear that the movement has begun in England. They have command of the Queen's troops in Ireland. Communications are also established with Claude Hamilton and the other Scots Catholic lords who agree to join the insurgents of the north the moment they rise. Considering the willingness with which those above-named and many others have offered to take up arms immediately they are assured of the period when your Majesty's fleet will arrive to help them ; in case of the Queen's death they would probably do so even more readily, seeing the many evils which may result from the Queen's intimacy with the French. This, and the desire that your Majesty might promptly send them aid in their oppression, in order to take advantage of the present favourable opportunity, now that all France is in turmoil, and so many English heretic soldiers and sailors are in Holland and absent with the pirates ; with discontent ripe, not only amongst Catholic schismatics, but also amongst heretics themselves, owing to the oppressive new taxes for the war and the stoppage of trade, and with the whole country anxious for a change of government, led Babington, who is a strong Catholic, a youth of great spirit and good family, to try to find some secret means of killing the Queen. Six gentlemen, servants of the Queen, who have access to her house, have promised to do this, as I reported to Don Juan de Idiaquez on the 11th of May for your Majesty's information. This gentleman (Gifford) tells me that no person knows of this but Babington, and two of the principal leaders, (fn. 17) and it would already have been effected if they had not had their suspicion aroused by seeing the earl of Leicester armed and with a force in Zeeland, which they feared he might bring over to England quickly enough to attack them before they could gather their own forces or obtain help from your Majesty. This has caused them to delay laying hands upon the Queen, until they had reported matters to me, and received assurance that they would be succoured with troops from the Netherlands the moment they might desire it. As, moreover, they are most of them young men, and none of them soldiers, they desired that the earl of Westmoreland should be ready to embark with some other experienced captains, of any nationality, to help them immediately it might be necessary. The Earl, they say, is so influential a personage that his mere presence will suffice to raise all the north-country as he has the greatest following of any man in England. They will not ask for troops to be sent, unless they are urgently needed, and if I will give them my word that they shall at once have help from the Netherlands in case they want it, and that your Majesty will succour them from Spain, if required, they say that they will immediately put into execution their plan to kill the Queen. They beg me not to doubt this, as those who are to carry it out are resolved to do it, and not to await for a favourable opportunity, but to kill her, even on her throne and under her canopy of State, if I tell them that the time has arrived to put an end to her. As a security for this, they would send hither for me to send as hostages, to any place I pleased, a brother of Lord Windsor, and two other gentlemen, who should be held as prisoners until the business was effected. They would also, if I pleased, give me hostages for their rising against the Queen 15 or 20 days before any time which was signified to them as the date that your Majesty's fleet might be looked for. They said they wished to negotiate this matter with me only, in consequence of the confidence they reposed in my secrecy and safety, and because I had helped them in their troubles in times past, on your Majesty's behalf, at my own great personal risk. They would on no account discover the matter to the French, nor would they appeal to any other Prince but your Majesty, and they concluded by saying that, as they were all so deeply pledged in the business, it was necessary that it should be carried through very promptly, as all of them would be lost if it were discovered ; and they prayed me most earnestly for God's sake to send them an instant answer. I received the gentleman in a way which the importance of his proposal deserved, as it was so Christian, just, and advantageous to the holy Catholic faith, and your Majesty's service, and I wrote them two letters by different routes, one in Italian and the other in Latin, encouraging them in the enterprise, (fn. 18) which I said was worthy of spirits so Catholic, and of the ancient valour of Englishmen. If they succeeded in killing the Queen, they should have the assistance they required from the Netherlands, and assurance that your Majesty would succour them. This I promised them, in accordance with their request, upon my faith and word. I urged them with arguments to hasten the execution, and said that I had already given your Majesty information as to their resolution, and ended by thanking them for the kind opinion and esteem in which they held me, which was deserved, so far as regarded my goodwill towards their prompt liberation from tyranny and oppression. In addition to the letter, I made some other remarks which I thought they should bear in mind. First, that on the day they intended to kill the Queen, they should have a person ready at the moment to arrest Don Antonio and the Portuguese who are with him, and lodge them in the Tower of London, or some other secure place, by which they would greatly oblige your Majesty in a way you would never forget. They should try to delay Colonel Stanley and the 1,000 Irishmen near London, so that when the thing was done he could seize the Queen's ships, (fn. 19) if they were not certain that the commander Lord Howard would embrace the cause of the queen of Scotland. (fn. 20) They should either kill or seize Cecil, Walsingham, Lord Hunsdon, Knollys and Beal, of the Council, (fn. 21) who have great influence with the heretics, as they are terrible heretics themselves, and I gave them other advice of the same sort. I can give your Majesty no further assurance with regard to this business than what I have already written, namely, that which these Englishmen promise, but of all the plots they have hatched these many years past none have been apparently so serious as this. They have never before proposed to make away with the Queen, which now is the first step they intend to take. As her punishment is so richly deserved it may be believed that God has heard the groans of the Catholics, and desires to bring it upon her swiftly, perchance by this means. Let Him dispose as He will, but if for our sins He should decree that it shall not succeed, there will be much Catholic blood spilt in England. (fn. 22) Up to the present your Majesty had in no way been pledged in the business, except the risk of the 100,000 crowns, which have been given to the priests who have been going thither, and if secrecy be kept (fn. 23) there will be no risk in looking on and watching what comes of it. If the Queen falls, the country will submit without the effusion of blood, and the war in the Netherlands will be at an end, which will result in infinite advantage to your Majesty's interests and those of your dominions. If your Majesty sees no objection, you might have the prince of Parma written to immediately, in accordance with what I have said about his sending troops to England. Another dispatch might be written to M. de la Motte, governor of Gravelines, in my credence, so that arrangements may be made to facilitate the passage. These despatches I will retain in my own hands until I see whether the business is going forward, (fn. 24) in which case I will send them on, asking for the troops the Englishmen may require. It will not be advisable, up to that point, that another person should be informed of the affair, besides which it will be unnecessary as his help (i.e. the prince of Parma's) will not be wanted to kill the Queen, and if the English do not do this—and lay the first stone of the edifice—the troops will not need to be sent. The earl of Westmoreland left Flanders with leave of the prince of Parma, in order to go and salute your Majesty ; and the duke of Guise who was passing through Paris, at the time when he was being approached about the English enterprise, detained him in Paris. The poor gentleman in the meanwhile spent all the money he had for his journey, and is suffering great privations, indeed he would starve if he did not dine nearly every day in the house of the Scots ambassador or mine. I promised to send him (to England) but will not say a word to him until it be needful. He has written about his straits to your Majesty, and I have also mentioned the matter in my general letter. Although the English say he is a person of such great influence he is of no ability, but still as your Majesty maintains other Englishmen it will not be unadvisable for you to continue the pension you have allowed him for so many years. I have had the English gentleman who came delayed here (fn. 25) as the French ambassador facilitated his passage across, in the belief that he came to bring money for the Catholics, and if he returned quickly it might give rise to suspicion that he is in some plot. I send herewith a statement of the English counties and their condition. I have drawn this up afresh, both from my own information, and from the intelligence given to me by a priest whom I sent round the country. No names are mentioned, as it would be dangerous to have them pass through many hands. I have had this despatch waiting four days for a passport. This is the way they always hamper me.—Paris, 13th August 1586.
No date. Paris Archives, K. 1564. 14.	470. Enclosure in the aforegoing letter. Document headed : "Statement of the Provinces of England and their present condition." The province called Northumberland is a grazing country, full of cattle and sheep, but with little wheat. There are in it four gentlemen who could raise 3,000 men. The people are all Catholic or schismatics, and adherents of the queen of Scotland. There are six landing quays in this county. In the province of Cumberland there are three gentlemen who are able to raise 2,000 men. Nearly all the people here are Catholics, and all are partizans of the queen of Scotland. There is only one port in this county. The land is much more productive than the aforementioned. Westmoreland is rather mountainous, and not so well supplied with victuals, but still there is sufficient. This county is Catholic and devoted to the queen of Scotland. The earl of Westmoreland, who is here (i.e., in Paris), will be able to raise the people. The bishopric, as they call it, of Durham is extremely fertile in all things. There are six gentlemen able to raise 2,000 men. All the people are strongly Catholic, and attached to the queen of Scotland. The province of Eboracum (York) is extensive and well furnished with victuals. All the gentlemen are Catholics and schismatics, much devoted to the queen of Scotland, except the Lieutenant and six others, who are greatly hated. The principal gentlemen are eight in number, and can raise nearly the whole population of the county, whose number is infinite. I have not been able to ascertain the ports in this county for fear of discovery. The county of Lincolnshire is full of all sorts of victuals, and is well supplied with horses. I only know of five gentlemen able to raise 2,000 men, but there are many well affected to the Catholic religion and of good repute. I have been unable to ascertain the ports for fear of discovery. The province of Norfolk is a very open country, full of sheep and wheat, and abundant in all sorts of food. The majority of the people are attached to the Catholic religion, and there are 12 gentlemen who can raise 3,000 men. There are four ports, two of which are capable of receiving ships of large tonnage. The counties of Cambridge and Huntingdon are full of heretics, but are small. The county of Suffolk is also full of heretics, but, notwithstanding this, there are still gentlemen there who can raise 2,000 men. The county is very rich, but unfit for a fleet. There are four ports, two of which can harbour great ships. The counties of Essex and Kent I have been unable to investigate for fear of discovery. There are some Catholics and schismatics, but the whole population of these counties is infested with heresy. There are some ports, but they are very small and unimportant. In the province of Sussex there are six Catholics of good repute, but I have been unable to discover their strength for fear of discovery. The land is rich and the ports good, but the county is unfit for (the landing of men) from a fleet in consequence of the abundance of forests. The province of Hampshire adjoins and is full of Catholics. There are four gentlemen strongly Catholic and very powerful. The ports are good and victuals very abundant. The province of Dorchester is very rich, and appropriate for the accommodation of a fleet. The common people are well disposed for the greater part, and there are two gentlemen assured who can raise 400 men. There are four good ports in the county. The province of Devonshire is very rich, but rather mountainous and interspersed with woods. There are six schismatics who will be able to raise 2,000 men, and all the people in the county would be willing to follow them. There are many ports on the coast, of which two are very good. The province of Cornwall is narrow and long and very mountainous, and two vessels will be able to blockade it entirely. It has four ports and is very rich. There are three Catholic gentlemen who are able to raise 1,000 men, and the people are very well disposed. There are many heretic gentlemen, but they are greatly hated. The province of Somersetshire is also wealthy. The people are heretical, but, notwithstanding this, there are five Catholics who can raise 1,000 men. The province of Wiltshire is also rich, aud here, too, there are five Catholics who can raise 800 men. The people are favourably inclined to the Catholic religion. In the province of Berkshire there are five Catholics of good repute who are able to raise 2,500 men. The whole population is well disposed, and the county a rich one. In the province of Buckingham there are four Catholics of good repute, but I have been unable to ascertain their strength for fear of discovery. In the province of Hertford there are Catholic gentlemen who will be able to raise 1,500 men, and the whole of the people are well disposed towards the Catholic religion and the queen of Scotland. In South Wales and North Wales the gentry and common people are much attached to the Catholic religion and the queen of Scotland. The land is rather mountainous, but still very rich in cattle and sheep ; there is plenty of wheat, and the ports are numerous and good. The county of Stafford is that in which is situated the prison of the queen of Scotland. The gentry and common people are strong Catholics, and all are devoted to the queen of Scotland. Sir Amyas Paulet, who has the custody of the Queen, is a stranger, and has not the means of raising a single man. He has 40 men of his own with him, drawn from the archers of the guard. The province of Derby is very good for victuals, and the people are well disposed. There are four gentlemen who are able to raise 1,000 men. The county of Nottingham is very fertile, and the people well disposed in religion. I only know of four gentlemen who can raise 1,000 men. The province of Lancaster possesses good ports, and all the gentry and common people are much attached to the Catholic religion and the queen of Scotland.
13 Aug. Paris Archives, K. 1564. 151.	471. Bernardino De Mendoza to the King. The ships which I have mentioned as being fitted out by Sir Harry Cavendish and the earl of Cumberland I am informed sailed from England on the 22nd ultimo. There were seven of them, the tonnage of which I have previously advised. One of them is of 500 tons burden and they are very well equipped with ordnance, stores, and provisions. Their crews fall short of 1,000 men as there is a great lack of seamen in England. I am informed by a person who saw them in Plymouth that the design is to try to get to the Indies by the coast of Brazil and the Straits of Magellan. They are accompanied by seven pirate ships from Flushing, of whose tonnage and armament I am unable to send any account to your Majesty, as my correspondent says they joined the expedition out out at sea. The Queen has ordered all her ships to sail at once fully provisioned for the month of September, but I am informed that they cannot be ready until the 20th instant at the earliest. She has also ordered 20 merchant ships to be got ready and that all pirates and corsairs now at sea should return to her ports. This is an indication of her desire to have at hand a large force of ships, in anticipation of an invasion from your Majesty's fleet, although I am informed that secretly the councillors are saying that they are in no fear of it, as they have intelligence from Spain that the preparations were going on very lukewarmly. News had arrived in England that Richard Grenville with seven ships had been captured by five of those of your Majesty. (fn. 26) They relate the affairs as follows : Your Majesty's forces, seeing that the English were their superiors in numbers, sent all their men below and pretended to take to flight. The English then gave chase and were encountered separately and captured. There is no certainty of this news except that it is sent from England. There are many letters from London dated 3rd instant, giving particulars of Drake's arrival in Plymouth with 32 ships and a great treasure, and this is the news that is being spread all over the country. The merchants are bringing in an enormous number of hides, and they are already encouraged by Drake's return to talk about fresh expeditions. They say the Queen will make him a lord. There is a man here from Havre de Grace who says he saw Drake's ships in Plymouth when he left there. The alliance with Scotland had been concluded, but "saving ancient treaties." A French Catholic who recently came post from Scotland hither through England, asserts that he sees little hope of the king of Scotland's conversion to the Catholic faith. Whilst writing the above I hear that letters from London, dated 7th instant, say nothing about Drake's arrival, which they would certainly do if it were true. This makes me think that they may have invented this news, a common trick of theirs, to divert people's minds from the taking of Nutz and other reverses.—Paris, 13th August 1586.
25 Aug. Paris Archives, K. 1564. 159.	472. Sampson's Advices. Leiton and Escobar went to the German ambassador's house to hand him a letter from Don Antonio by way of congratulation. They found two archers of the King's guard at the door, who would not admit them until they told them who they were, and then called one of the King's stewards who has the care of the lodging and entertainment of the Ambassadors. He came down to the courtyard and asked them what communication Don Antonio had sent them, and how it was that the Ambassador's arrival was already known in England. A secretary of the ambassador's then came up and made a sign for them to be silent and go away, and as they took their leave he had an opportunity of saying to them that they (the German embassy in France) were treated like prisoners, and had no liberty to speak with those who came to see them, as the King's steward was there keeping a strict watch upon them, and taking note of all their actions. This, he said, was because the king (of France) did not trust them, and he (the Ambassador's secretary) requested them (the Portuguese) therefore to give their message and letter to the steward, which they did. When they returned for the answer the steward was not there, and they did not see the Ambassadors, but only the said secretary, who spoke fairly to them and thanked them, but in reply could only say they (the Ambassadors) were sorry for Don Antonio's ill fortune. A French ship had come from Newfoundland and reports that they had fallen in with the Spanish fleet off the Azores lying in wait for Drake, of whom they asked news, letting the French ship pass freely. Don Antonio writes to Leiton and Escobar on the 7th that Drake had arrived off the coast of Scotland, (fn. 27) but gave no particulars. He says that as the Queen had deferred his business until Drake's return, he now confidently expects to be in Portugal by Christmas, because with Drake's ships, and many other ships and men who would join him, he would have a fleet large enough to enable him to land in Portugal easily. With regard to certain news sent to him from here about the queen of England's negotiations for a settlement with the prince of Parma, Don Antonio writes very confidently that he is sure the Queen will never make such an arrangement, because in conversation with him on the subject she said she would rather lose her crown than do so. The English ambassador here has letters from England announcing Drake's arrival, but saying nothing about the booty he brings.—Paris, 25th August 1586.
27 Aug. Paris Archives, K. 1564. 161.	473. Bernardino De Mendoza to the King. I wrote in my last what I had heard of Drake's arrival, and that letters from London, dated the 7th, said that he had been forced to land on the Scotch coast to avoid your Majesty's fleets, whilst the other advices were equally certain that he had arrived at Plymouth. Accounts differ with regard to the number of his ships, but they generally agree that he brought 17 small vessels and two pinnaces, having abandoned or lost his largest ships. I understand that the English ambassador here has letters announcing Drake's arrival at London, and that he (Drake) plumes himself greatly on the fact that, notwithstanding that news was sent to Santo Domingo by your Majesty, warning people there of his coming 18 days before he arrived, and they had plenty of time to prepare for their defence, he still sacked the place, and he says people may judge from that what he will be able to do elsewhere with more ships and men. For some time the English ports had been closed, which has prevented me from getting fresher news than those I now send. Accounts all agree that Drake does not bring any great sum of money, and some people say that the Queen has given orders for money to be supplied to him secretly from the Exchange, in order to encourage the people. This information seems to be confirmed by what Italian merchants write from London on the 4th (which by the new style is the 14th), saying that, although Drake had really arrived there no money was forthcoming.—Paris, 27th August 1586.
29 Aug.	474. Count De Olivares to the King. In accordance with your Majesty's letter of 22nd July, I spoke to the Pope on English affairs, trying to show him that your Majesty was not forced to undertake the enterprise, unless you were well supported, although it is preaching in the desert to enforce such a doctrine in a country where revenge is so deeply implanted in the heart, that it is not forgotten for centuries. They talk so much here of the great and growing excesses of the queen of England towards your Majesty's dominions, that people here cannot believe that you do not thirst for revenge as they would. The Pope is as much touched with this humour as others are. Your Majesty will have learnt what passed with him on the first day, and I sent to Carrafa the summary enclosed. Since then I have not approached the Pope, as according to his temper this is the best way to deal with him in matters that will bear delay. The last clause was written in order to fortify and confirm his Holiness's promise about the succession to the queen of Scotland, although it is fenced around with the limitations and circumlocution, which your Majesty will perceive in the notes. To gild this clause, I inserted the acceptance of the Pope's views, to which I thought your Majesty would raise no difficulty. I told Cardinal Sanzio that your Majesty had ordered me to listen to Martel, or to whom else might be deputed to speak to me on account of the allied princes of France, and to help them in their pretensions. He sent to me the man who represents the duke of Guise here, who opened the matter with me, and promised to let me have a copy of the instructions which were given to Martel for the mission to your Majesty, with other documents relating to the business. The affair will be promptly disposed of by the gracious compliance of your Majesty in the request made to you, which I gather to be your Majesty's intention. This servant of the duke of Guise repeated to me what had passed with the Pope, and his cool reception of this new proposal from Scotland for clerical aid, contrary to what I had previously heard, namely, that the Scotch Catholics desired help either in the form of money, or the certainty that the queen of England would be diverted. Your Majesty will know best, as the person (fn. 28) who came from Scotland is with you.—Rome, 29th August 1586.