TRIAL of MARY, Queen of SCOTS, for a Confpiracy against Queen ELIZABETH, at Fotheringay Castle, in Northamptonshire, October 12, 1586. T HERE having been feveral confpiracies fet on foot by the Roman Catholics against Queen Elizabeth, with a view of advancing the Queen of Scots to the throne, and thereby reftoring their religion, the nation had voluntarily entered into an affociation, for the fafety of the Queen's perfon, obliging themselves, by their oaths, to revenge her Majefty's -death on those who should be authors of it. Which affociation was approved and confirmed, by a ftatute made the twentyfeventh of Elizabeth, anno 1585; and it -was also further enacted, That, if any invafion, or rebellion, fhould happen in any part of her Majefty's dominions; or any attempt fhould be made, to the hurt of the Queen's perfon, by, or for any perfon that VOL, I. fhould pretend a title to the crown, after her Majefty's 'decease; or if any thing fhould be compofed or imagined, tending to the hurt of her Majefty's perfon, with the privity of any one, that might pretend a title to the crown: her Majelty, by her commiffion under the great feal, directed to the Lords, and others, of her Privy-council, and to fuch other Lords as fhould be named by her majefty, amounting to twenty-four, at least, might authorife them to examine all and every fuch of fences, and to give fentence therein, on the evidence that should be produced before them; and the Queen of Scots being fufpected to be at the bottom of Babington's confpiracy, a commiffion was iffued, for the trial of the Scotish Queen, by virtue of the faid act, being directed to the Arch-alfo were read, wherein the declares, That bishop of Canterbury, the Lord Chancellor, the Lord Treasurer, and above forty noblemen more, to whom were added five of the Judges. The Archbishop did not act in this commiflion but the Lord Chancellor, and thirty-fix of the commiffioners, affembling at Fotheringay Castle, the eleventh of October, gave notice to the Scotilh Queen of their arrival, the next day requiring her to appear before them. To which meffage the answered, she was an independent Princefs, and the commiffioners could have no jurifdiction over her: however, having made a proteft, that fhe owed no fubjection to the crown of England, fhe did, at length; agree to appear before them (fhe faid) to manifeft her innocence to the world, and, that he might not lie under fo foul an afperfion, as the confpiracy to affaffinate the Queen of England.. Then the Queen's counfel charged her with being privy to. Babington's confpiracy, and with approving and encouraging it: for proof whereof, they produced copies of Babington's letters, and his examination, wherein he declares, fhe wrote anfwers to them; in one of which, fhe commended and approved his defign: a copy of a letter from the Lord Charles Paget, to her, alfo was read (which Curl, one of her fecretaries, had attested, the received) reciting a conference between the faid Paget, Mendoza, the Spanish ambaffador, and Ballard the prieft, one of the confpirators, importing, that an invafion was intended, in order to fet the Queen of Scots at liberty; the examinations of her feeretaries, Naw and Curl, alfo were read, to prove the letters that paffed between her and Babington, relating to the confpiracy. She was charged alfo, with allowing a penfion to Morgan, who fent over Parry (already mentioned) to kill the Queen. Her letters to the Lord Charles Paget, the Spaniard had no other way to reduce the Netherlands, but by fetting a Prince on the throne of England, that might be ferviceable to him; and intreats Paget to haften the forces that were to invade England: a letter of. Cardinal Allen's to the Queen of Scots, alfo was read, wherein he ftites her, His Dread Sovereign; and acquaints her, that her affairs were committed to the care of the Prince of Parma. Then she was charged with a defign of transferring her right to the fucceffion of the crown to the Spaniard; upon which the Queen's counfel harangued for fome time, obferving how precarious all their honours, liberties and properties, muft be, if fuch a conveyance should take place. To which the Lord Treasurer anfwered, that the kingdom of England could not be fo transferred to a foreigner; but muft. defcend according to the laws of fuc ceffion. To this charge the Scotifh Queen an-fwered, That he knew not Babington, or ever wrote to, or received letters from him; nor had fhe ever plotted the deftruction of the Queen; that they ought to produce fomething under her own hand, to make good the charge; that many letters, indeed, had been fent to her, by people unknown, offering their affiftance; but he had excited no man to commit any offence; and, being fhut up in prifon, could neither know, or prevent, what others attempted; that Babington might have confeffed fuch things, to fave himself; that he had, indeed, done her beft endeavours to recover her liberty, which nature itfelf allowed, and folicited her friends for that end: but that he would not purchafe the kingdoin with the death of the meanest man, much lefs of the Queen; that it was an eafy matter to counterfeit the cyphers and characters of others; and, he feared, this had been done by Walfingham, to deftroy destroy her, who had practifed both against her life, and her fon's, as fhe was informed; whereupon Walfingham protefted, he had no malice against her, but had acted as the duty of his poft required. Then the infifted, that her fecretaries, Naw and Curl, ought to have been produced in court, and given their evidence in her prefence, fince the whole ftrefs of the proof feemed to rest upon their teftimony; they might alfo, fhe obferved, have written what he never dictated, and letters might come to them, which fhe never faw; however, were they produced, fhe was confident they would acquit her of all guilt. As to her allowing a penfion to Morgan, who sent over Parry to kill the Queen, the faid, fhe always forbad him encouraging any fuch attempts, though fhe confeffed fhe had given him a penfion, on account of fome fervices he had done her; and, on the other hand fhe obferved, that the Queen of England made no fcruples of allowing penfions to her enemies in Scotland. She lamented, that the most reasonable conditions he could propofe to Queen Elizabeth, had always been rejected, even when the offered to deliver her own fon, and the Duke of Guife's fon, for hostages and pledges, that neither the kingdom of England, or the Queen, fhould receive any damage from her being at liberty. She complained, that her honour and reputation had been called in queftion, and infulted by foreign lawyers, who, by wretched conclufions, drew every circumftance into a confequence; but, that princes, anointed and confecrated, were not fubject to the laws of any particular country, as. private perfons were. To this the Lord Treasurer replied, That the, or the Scots, were the occafion, that all he had propofed to the Queen failed of fuccefs; for the Scotifh lords abfolutely refused to deliver up her fon, as an hostage; and, while the laft treaty was negotiating, Morgan, a dependant of her's, privately fent over Parry to murder the Queen; and afferted, that the commiffioners had full authority, to call her to an account, for her practises against the Queen and kingdom. Then the Queen of Scots proceeded in her defence, and faid, That as to Cardinal Allen, fhe held him to be a reverend prelate of the church; but in what quality he was esteemed by the Pope, or foreign Princes, the knew not; nor could fhe prevent their ftiling her Queen of England, in their letters; he did not deny her treating with the Spaniard, to convey her right in the kingdom to him; but faid, all her hopes in England being defperate, fhe was fully refolved not to reject foreign aid; and concluded, with requiring the might be heard in full parliament, or, at least, that he might fpeak with the Queert in perfon, not doubting but he would have fome regard to a fovereign princess, her near relation. Then the commiffioners adjourned to the 25th of October, to the Star Chamber in Westminster, when they pronounced the following fentence. That, after the first day of June, in the 27th year of the Queen, and before the date of their commiffion, divers matters had been compaffed, and imagined, by Anthony Babington, with the privity of Mary Queen of Scots, pretending a title to the crown of England, and tending to the hurt, death and deftruction of the royal perfon of the Queen; and, that the faid Mary, pretending a title to the crown of England, had alfo, herfeif, within the time aforefaid, compaffed and imagined divers matters, tending to the hurt, death, and deftruction of the royal perfon of the Queen, contrary to the ftatute of the 27th of Elizabeth. The parliament meeting the 29th of the fentence fame month of October, approved the |