The most bigoted of the papists expected that their cruel proceedings would be stopped; but though it was believed that Elizabeth was favourably disposed to the Reformation, yet she had conformed to the church of Rome, and they hoped that popery would still predomi nate. Her early measures were such as to keep both parties in suspense as to the course she would pursue.

Elizabeth was at Hatfield when her sister died. She was then in her twenty-fifth year, highly gifted with natural abilities, cultivated by study. But the instructions most beneficial, both to her subjects and herself, were the severe sufferings she experienced during her sister's reign. The poet has well said, “Sweet are theuses of adversity;" and the same sentiment has been better expressed by a writer, from Divine authority, who has declared that "it is good for a man that he bear the yoke in his youth." The efforts made for her destruction in the late reign are well described by bishop Aylmer: "What assemblies and councils, what examinations and wrackings of poor men were there, to find out the knife that should cut her throat! What gaping among many lords of the clergy, to see the day wherein they might wash their goodly white rochets in her innocent blood!" But though man may plot, he cannot execute his designs unless the Lord permit. The time was come when popery was to be humbled.

On receiving intelligence of her sister's death, Elizabeth appointed as her councillors thirteen who had been thus employed by the late queen, to whom she joined eight Protestants. Among these was sir William Cecil, who was her principal adviser from the first. He communicated to her the intelligence of her sister's decease; he was employed to prepare the address she delivered to the council, and the first minute of business requiring immediate attention is in Cecil's handwriting.

On November 23, the queen removed to the Charterhouse, near London, attended by more than a thousand nobility and gentry, with many ladies. Robert Dudley. afterwards earl of Leicester, rode next to her as master

of the horse. When approaching the metropolis, she was met by the principal clergy, all of whom she received with much affability, excepting Bonner; from that ecclesiastical butcher she turned with expressions of disgust. Her decided disapproval of persecution was shown on the day after her arrival, when, on learning that sir Ambrose Jermyn, a magistrate of Suffolk, had stopped the proceedings against the Protestants in his neighbourhood, a letter of thanks was sent to him in the queen's name, expressing her wish that others would act in the same manner. But the desire of the popish prelates to continue the persecutions was openly declared. At the funeral of queen Mary, on December 13, bishop White spoke in strong terms against the return of the exiles for religion, declaring that it would be a good deed if any would slay them! His discourse was thoroughly popish, and in strict accordance with his text, "I praised the dead more than the living," Eccles. iv. 2. But he was only directed not to leave his own house for a time.

On November 28, the queen proceeded to the Tower, but with very different sensations from those which oppressed her when last within its gloomy walls. The words of Psalm cvii. are very descriptive of God's merciful dealings with her: He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death, and brake their bands in sunder." A few days afterwards she removed to Westminster to keep the festival of Christmas, on which day she withdrew from the public service when the host, or bread of the communion, was to be worshipped. These removals were made by public processions, in which the people displayed great joy. Elizabeth was of a goodly presence, and conducted herself so as to win and to retain the general favour. On every occasion she endeavoured to act so as to secure popularity, and she succeeded. Selfgratification was not her primary object; or, rather, she was best pleased when she pleased her people.

The position of Elizabeth on her accession was full of difficulty. The nation was at war with France, and

consequently in hostility to Scotland. There was no reason to suppose that Philip of Spain would long continue on good terms with Elizabeth, unless she consented to marry him, which, he having been her sister's husband, would be more objectionable than the union of her father with Catherine of Arragon, while another Spanish match would be hateful to the nation. The pope, and all the European powers under papal influence, would become her open enemies, as soon as she showed a decided inclination to favour the Reformation. Public affairs were in the utmost disorder: the treasury empty; no adequate preparations to meet the attacks of enemies; trade in a languishing state; the people suffering severely from the effects of recent famine and pestilence; and the nation in debt to the amount of four millions, a sum in those days almost incredible.

Nor was Elizabeth free from other and still more serious causes for disquiet. Her subjects who were attached to the Reformation considered her mother's union with Henry VIII. to have been valid, and her title good: upon their principles Henry's marriage with Catherine of Arragon was altogether unlawful, as the pope had no power to do away the laws of God; thus it was void from the beginning, so that no question need be entertained as to the regularity of the divorce. But, on the other hand, the papists, both at home and abroad, considered that Henry's marriage with Catherine was valid, and the divorce unlawful, so that Anne Boleyn's marriage was, in their view, null and void from the beginning; therefore Elizabeth was illegitimate, and had no claim to the English throne. This had also been declared during her father's reign; but though the act had not been repealed, he restored her to the succession, and mentioned her in the will he was empowered to make. Under these circumstances, papists at home, as well as foreign powers, held that Mary, queen of Scots, had the right to be queen of England. Francis 1. of France was the only popish monarch who had recognised the legitimacy of Elizabeth; but his

successors disallowed it. Even her brother had given priority to the family of the duchess of Suffolk, which caused some to consider the surviving sisters of lady Jane Grey as having claims to the throne.

The desire of the most bigoted papists to set aside Elizabeth, and place upon the English throne Mary of Scotland, then married to the dauphin of France, appeared without delay. Some practices of this nature, in which the brothers of cardinal Pole were implicated, were made known to the council as early as November 22. Soon afterwards, the French government gave the title of queen of England to Mary, as well as that of queen of Scotland. Her husband also assumed the royal arms of England as a part of his armorial bearings, in defiance of all the rules of heraldry, but thereby showed his design to claim the English throne. At their marriage, before the death of queen Mary, they did not in any way mention the title of England; but within two months after Mary's decease, a grant to lord Flemming was made by the dauphin and dauphiness of France, under the title of "King and Queen of England, Scotland, and Ireland." Subsequently, the officers of court publicly announced and addressed Mary Stuart as queen of England. It is important to keep these facts in view; for they show that, from the very beginning of her reign, Elizabeth was placed in a situation of danger by the pretensions of Mary. It was impossible for Elizabeth to act in a friendly manner towards such a pretender to her throne. The pope at once showed Elizabeth the danger of her position, by declaring that, as illegitimate, she had no right to the crown of England; that it belonged to him to settle the succession; that if Elizabeth would submit to his decision, he would treat her with fatherly affection and favour! But the queen had tasted that "the tender mercies of the wicked are cruel;" she desired to have no more of the mercies of the pope.

On January 12, 1559, the queen returned to the Tower, preparatory to her coronation; from thence

T

she proceeded on the 14th, in a car richly adorned, in solemn procession to Westminster, the order usually observed before a coronation. On the following day, she was crowned in Westminster Abbey. It was difficult to find a prelate to place the crown upon her head, without which her right to the throne would have been doubted by many. Several sees were vacant by death; the Romish prelates refused to officiate: but, at length, Oglethorpe, bishop of Carlisle, was prevailed upon to perform the ceremony, which was conducted agreeably to the Roman pontifical, except that the elevation of the host at the mass was omitted. The bigoted papists opposed the government of Elizabeth, though as yet she had given no decided proofs of an intention to favour the Reformation. But during the procession from the Tower, she showed her determination that the English Bible should be set forth again. In Cheapside a pageant was exhibited, representing Time leading Truth from a cave where she had been hidden. She had an English Bible in her hand, inscribed "The word of truth," which was presented to the queen. Elizabeth received the book, and pressed it to her heart, returning thanks, and declaring that she would often read over that book. The general character of the pageants of that day was much superior to those usually exhibited. They were comparatively free from heathenism and popish superstition, while many made direct reference to those doctrines of truth, whereby alone monarchs can reign with safety and satisfaction. But the queen would not proceed so rapidly as the Protestants wished. When, on the following day, a gentleman presented a petition, alluding to the liberation of prisoners at a coronation, requesting that some other prisoners, namely, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, with one Paul, might be released, the queen smiled, but answered that it was needful first to inquire whether they wished to be set at liberty.

It would have been far more gratifying to every lover of the truth, had Elizabeth at once decidedly ex