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Dec. 19.
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524. MR. WILKES'S INSTRUCTIONS.
Declaration by the Queen of England, sent to the King of
Spain, containing a defence of her Majesty's dealings with
the Estates of the Low Countries.
Whereas the Queen has heard that many false rumours have
been spread, putting a wrong meaning on the steps taken by her
to compose the troubles in the Low Countries, some of which
calumnies she fears may gain credit with the King, the only
object of their invention being to put an end to the ancient
friendship between them, her Majesty has thought it good, for the
King's satisfaction, to set down in writing this present declaration,
which will testify on how upright a footing she has proceeded with
the Belgian Estates, in the desire that all suspicion may be removed
from the King's mind.
This declaration will not merely contain her defence, but will
in friendly wise set forth to the King the course that she thinks
should be followed, and also what she proposes to do in the matter
of the Low Countries if the King should not think her advice
desirable to follow.
First ; if the King will please to recall to his mind how many
embassies have been sent by her to himself in Spain and to his
governors in the Low Countries since the beginning of the troubles,
foretelling the evils that would grow from them, and advising him
to take steps betimes, he cannot be ignorant that she has played
the part of a well-wisher and a good ally. If he had listened to her
faithful warnings, the affairs of the Low Countries, now threatened
with imminent ruin, would have been set straight, the people would
have been spared an internecine war, opulent cities would not have
been sacked, the country itself would now be free from the desire
of a new ruler to which it inclines. If the Queen feels that her
honour is not sufficiently vindicated by these good offices, backed
by the word of a prince, at least it ought to be of avail as evidence
to all of her good disposition towards the King that by her good
dealing the whole of the Low Countries still recognise the King
as their prince. She has not drawn any part of them to herself,
when she easily could ; if other princes could have done it with
as little trouble, it may be that the King would by this time have
been turned out of a great part of the country, and the people
would not be labouring so hard for their own safety. If the King
does not repay these good deeds with more gratitude, every one
knows that the Queen will have a fair cause of complaint. Did
she not use her offices with the Prince of Orange and the Estates
not only by advising them to lay down their arms, but exhorting
them with all the strength of her authority to keep like good
subjects in their duty to their King ; having learnt on good
authority that some people were urging them to shake off the
King's yoke, and set up for themselves? When things looked
like peace, and the treaty was to be concluded under which, if had
held, Belgium would have flourished, as by its collapse it has
been ruined, did she not allow them a sum of money, both to
serve them for the 'speedy execution of the pacification and
to keep them from putting themselves into the hands of
other princes? If she had not, it would not have been
concluded, nor would the country have been saved for the
King. She records this the more gladly, because she
understands that some interpret her most sincere offices
in a bad sense. It has been the same in nearly all the offices
done by her to the King. This appears clearly enough from
a certain letter fathered on Don John, to be found in a book
called the States' justification, in which it is plainly stated that
her Majesty had dealt with the Prince of Orange not to acquiesce
in the pacification, and promised him all the help he might ask
for the breaking of it. If she did not answer this shameless
calumny, at any rate her dealing with the Prince when the
Viscount of Ghent accused him, by Don John's instructions, of
violating the edict, might be evidence of her abundant good faith.
For immediately upon hearing the charge, before the viscount left
England, she urged the Prince, through her ambassador, by the
good faith which he publicly professed, to stand forth as a guardian
of the edict. The same she ceased not to do with the Estates, being
no less refreshed by the conclusion of peace among them than she
expected to gain by it even more advantage than the King and
the Low Countries.
Such being the state of affairs, she leaves it to the King, of
whose honour she has no doubt, and to all whose minds are not
so turned from the truth as to suffer them easily to be deceived, to
judge what could have been accomplished more to his honour and
profit. Nor can she easily persuade herself that any other Prince
whose benefits had been so ungratefully received would have been
willing to be so constant in doing good offices to the King.
Nevertheless, though benefits which bring hatred instead of
thanks and convert ancient friendship into suspicion may seem
badly placed, she will not refuse, for her own and the King's
honour, as well as for the sake of the treaties of old between the
Kings of England and the Dukes of Burgundy, to follow the same
course, advising the King what method she finds convenient for
abating these civil strifes, and making the subjects willingly keep
within what befits themselves and is in agreement with an earnest
desire of loyal obedience.
First, it is certain, and the Queen is grieved to see it, that the
pacification has been infringed with great bitterness on either
side, and expectation of a more disastrous war than the former
one. Nor can anyone doubt what will be the end of this civil
war ; either the ruin of the Low Countries or the abolition of the
old rule. Either will be to be regretted ; one or the other is
unavoidable. To prevent these evils, let them be received back
into favour, let their ancient privileges be restored, let their public
buildings be preserved, let terms of peace be made and strictly
adhered to, let a governor be given them of the Royal house,
agreeable to all classes. If these favours be granted, they will
honourably comply, they will make no change in religion but what
is allowed by the pacification, and will loyally keep all its provisions,
which, owing to the ill-feeling between Don John and
the Estates, it is hopeless to expect will now be attended to. For
they seem resolved to try all extremities before submitting to him,
expecting from him every sort of ill-treatment ; and not wishing
to perish, they will throw themselves for protection into the arms
of any new Prince. They say that Don John has violated the
edict ; he brings the same charge against them. The Queen has
heard envoys from both sides ; not with any wish to set herself
up as a judge, or to throw blame on either side, but solely to see
if by any means she could restore them to favour and mutual
confidence, which is more than necessary in every well-constituted
government. She sees no hope of this ; and therefore thinks the
only way will be to appoint another governor acceptable to the
people.
If these measures, agreeable to humanity, be taken, there is
hope that these dissensions will be allayed, the effusion of blood
stopped, and the countries retained at the King's obedience ; for
at present there is great danger of their slipping from his hands.
If he approves this advice, there can be no doubt that the Estates
will remain at his devotion and faithfully maintain the edict.
Not only, however, is the recall of Don John asked for with
a view to the benefit of the Estates ; for her own convenience also,
and for the conservation of the ancient amity her Majesty must
entreat the King to remove so bitter an enemy of herself and her
realm to some place where he will not find it so easy to injure her.
Not that she is afraid of him ; but she does not wish knowingly
to foster a serpent in her bosom. If the King asks for proof, let
him read Escovedo's letters set down in the book above-mentioned,
and consider his practices through his agents with her enemy the
Queen of Scots, whereof this bearer will tell him, as of all else
contained herein. [This paragraph is somewhat different in the
English version.]
For this cause she earnestly beseeches the King to recall Don
John as the only way of maintaining the amity between them,
and as a prop and support to the ancient treaties, which must
break down if a neighbour of so doubtful faith is settled near her.
What ought to be done and what she earnestly hopes will be done
is to appoint officers on either side whose efforts will be devoted to
increasing not diminishing the friendship between the realms.
In the case of distant possessions, it is most important to employ
good ministers. It is one of the misfortunes of sovereigns that,
being unable to see what goes on in every corner, they do and
allow to be done many things that their own sense of justice or
mercy would not have allowed them to do.
Lest however the States should be compelled by the great forces
which Don John is collecting, and summoning from France, either
to leave their homes to new lords, or lose their old liberties, or
fearing these misfortunes, ask the aid of another prince, any of
which courses may be inconvenient now to the King, and dangerous
in future to her Majesty, and wholly ruinous to the
countries, she has, on their promise to maintain their obedience
to the King, to make no alterations in religion, and to observe the
Pacification of Ghent, thought good to promise them aid in men
and money.
If the King does not approve this, thereby testifying that he
has it in mind after subduing the Low Countries, to put an end to
their ancient privileges and make the country a military station,
with the same intention it may be conjectured, as is expressed in
Escovedo's letters, in which it is asserted that the business of
subduing England would be far easier than that of taking the
islands, whence it may be seen what a benevolent and propitious
neighbour she will have—her Majesty is determined to try all ways
and means to provide for the safety of her neighbours, and for
driving so great a disaster away from herself and her realm. But
if he will lend an ear to the just request of the States, and appoint
a more acceptable governor, and they still continue obstinate and
refuse the King's rule, she will turn her sword against them, and
aid the King with her forces ; nor will it be any fault of hers if
they are not obsequious to his rule. In the meantime, while awaiting
the King's reply, she has thought it not impertinent to call
upon Don John and the Estates to make a truce for a few days.
If they consent and he refuses, she will continue in the way of
sending aids and supplies, with a view solely to the King's honour
and the good of the country ; testifying how she abhors the striving
of her neighbours and allies, and how unwilling she is to see the
King turned out of his ancestral possessions, through the passion
of one princelet (unius reguli) for reigning against all law and
right, and how she will not endure to be thought negligent of her
own safety and that of her realm. [Last clause not in English
version.]
Endd. by L. Tomson : Declaratio Regi : Hispaniam missa per
D. Thomam Wilkes, 19 Dec. 1577. Latin. 9½ pp. [Holl.and
Fland. IV. 42.]
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