Simon Renard al Emperor

London,

Sire: As it is your Majesty's pleasure that I should remain here for a time, I will say no more, though I am as good as useless because of frequent attacks of my malady. My desire is to serve your Majesty to the best of my ability all my life long; but had you been pleased to hear my motives I believe you would have changed your mind and granted my request to be relieved of this charge. I have sought to do my duty by constantly supplying all the information I possessed to the King, the Duke of Alva and Ruy Gómez, both verbally and in writing, setting forth all I knew that might contribute to his personal security and the prosperity of his affairs, which will certainly not suffer from lack of a thorough-going explanation of the situation. Nevertheless, since the King left this place matters have so changed for the worse that even here in England the people have never been known to be so licentious in word and deed, so eager to outrage foreigners. Nor has it ever seemed more likely that the people would make common cause with the nobility. No attention is paid to the law; the Queen and her Council are neither respected, obeyed nor feared; and each man speaks his mind unashamed.

The nobility have gone off to the country, entirely disposed to take up arms as they know the people are harbouring evil intentions. When I ask the reasons of all this, I am told that the people say the King will not be served by Englishmen although this point was settled by the articles, and it amounts to the beginning of a rupture of the treaties, for Browne has already been turned out of his post. They assert that the King is sending for 10,000 Germans and 10,000 Spaniards to land in this country; that it is intended to set up the monastaries again, especially the one that used to be at Greenwich, for the sermon preached at Court on the Nativity of Our Lady by de Castro, the Franciscan friar, made no secret of it; and the Bishop of Rome is going to command in religious matters. The foreigners, they complain, are making Englishmen feel strangers in their own homes, and have taken to managing everything since they landed. The people have derived no profit from their coming, and over two thousand artisans have entered London, in defiance of the city's privileges, since the King arrived. They proclaim loudly that they see they are going to be enslaved, for the Queen is a Spanish woman at heart and thinks nothing of Englishmen, but only of Spaniards and bishops. Her idea, they say, is to have the King crowned by force and deprive the Lady Elizabeth of her right, making the operation of the law subject to her own will. Seven citizens of London are unrightfully being kept in prison for destruction (i.e. of images?). The split in the Council, in their eyes, is caused by the fact that the Chancellor is trying to subject the realm and the lords are standing up for freedom.

The people sound the praises of the King of France, harp on the openhandedness and affability of the French and contrast the mission of MM. d'Annebault, Marshal de St. André, Vidame of Chartres, Admiral de Châtillon and others with the present state of affairs. And so they work themselves up into a violent hatred of foreigners and especially of Spaniards, though the Spaniards are as peaceable and quiet as could be hoped.

At the slightest alarm, all the townsmen come forth arms in hand and fall upon them without stopping to enquire where the blame lies, and are forever looking for opportunities to annoy them. Only three days ago, a servant of the Privy Seal, called Close, tried to beat two Spaniards in the street at three o'clock in the afternoon, but seeing that he was not getting the best of it he pulled out a pistol from under his cloak, aimed it at one of them and then, when he was seven or eight houses off, fired it into the air to show what a brave man he was; a very bad precedent; and the English, when they go on a journey, are already beginning to take harquebuses with them. The London townsfolk flatly refuse to lodge Spaniards, which creates great trouble.

The heretics who left the country last year are rapidly returning. There is not much intercourse between Englishmen and Spaniards, nor do the Spaniards seek out the English; and Fitzwalter said the other day to one of the King's household that far from being able to learn to speak Spanish he would soon be forgetting what little he learned on his journey, because the two nations were being kept apart, by which he meant that the Spaniards did not seek English society. These are all trifling matters, and some of them untrue; but these insular and barbarous people are ready to seize upon the flimsiest pretexts for a disturbance. Indeed, Sire, many of my friends have warned me that unless God remedies it or the coming winter cools their heads there will probably be an outburst, for there is too much disaffection abroad. It seemed to me that it would be well to send away the artisans who follow the Court without having any post in it, for no one has a right to follow a trade here unless he is a denizen. I take it your Majesty realises that as long as the French and Venetian ambassadors remain here we must expect them to perform evil offices. And there are countless Italians here, as violent partisans as the French themselves, who go about talking as evilly as they know how in merchant circles. The worst of it is that the Council does nothing to correct these abuses because its members are at variance and the Chancellor is slow and timorous. I thought it right to tell your Majesty of this, in order that you might understand the movements that are constantly taking place here.

As for the French ambassador's audience of the King, several persons think that as an opportunity for bringing about his recall was being sought it would have been better to have ordered the Chancellor to ask him whether he had letters or instructions from his master, and whether the audience he was asking for was to be a private one or not. Thus, when it had been found out that he had no instructions, he might have been sent on to the Queen and Council; for no ambassador has ever taken it upon himself here to demand a private audience of a new king to discuss matters of state without orders from his master, and it was nothing but a fancy of his own, as he showed clearly enough by his words and looks. Had he been so handled it could have done no harm, but might have contributed to the desired end. However, as it was thought fit to comply with his demand, some other means of getting rid of him will have to be found.

I have spoken to the High Treasurer in accordance with your Majesty's letter of the Ist instant, and have mentioned the leave to export the 100,000 ducats in terms that will prevent him from making any such demands in the future.

The King has granted the pensions specified in the enclosed list, and I hear he has shown some liberality to other persons, but as I do not know to whom nor how nor why, I cannot enlighten your Majesty on the subject.

I wrote so fully about Cardinal Pole in my last letter that I have nothing more to add except that opinion is in such a state in this country that it will be well to handle this matter with great precaution. I hear that some people think that Parliament might as well not be convoked at once in order to avoid expenditure; but I am of the opposite opinion, and believe that it ought to meet immediately after All Saints, so that it may be over before spring, indeed in January if possible. If the lords do not attend, and send their proxies as they are in the habit of doing, there will be less discussion and dispute. But if it is put off until the end of the winter it will not rise without giving trouble. Your Majesty is aware how advisable it is to transact important business in this country in the winter and not in summer; and the coronation too had better take place before spring, if the English will allow it, which is by no means certain as they will say they have a crowned Queen already. If the Queen were to be with child, however, there would be an end to dispute.

The Queen spoke with the Earls of Pembroke and Arundel before Pembroke went away, in order to disabuse them of the lies they had been told. They seemed satisfied, but there is a bitterness between Arundel and the Chancellor that will never disappear until one or the other has been discredited.

Paget went away professing himself to be delighted (extremement tres content) and proclaiming that he would mend his ways. Events may soon show whether he was sincere or not.

One of the Queen's physicians has told me that she is very probably with child; and if it is true everything will calm down and go smoothly here. As soon as I know for certain I will inform your Majesty, and I have already caused a rumour to be started for the purpose of keeping the malcontents within bounds.

he Queen will soon have to make an annual payment on account of a loan, and has asked the London merchants to advance her the money, as they often have to kings of England. She was met with, a flat refusal, which the merchants would not have ventured upon in the past, especially under the late Duke of Northumberland.

The above-mentioned servant of the Lord Privy Seal has just been killed near Hampton Court by some Spaniards whom he had attacked.

I hear that the King will be here by the end of the month, and that there will be rejoicing and tournaments on that occasion.

Signed. French.