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he resolved to affume the fovereignty as heir of the AC. 1485. house of Lancaster; and in the mean time to take fuch precautions as would prevent any rivalship. With this view, he fent Sir Robert Willoughby with a detachment of horse, to remove the earl of Warwick to the Tower, from the caftle of SheriffHutton in Yorkshire, in which he had been confined by Richard. As this nobleman, the son of the duke of Clarence, was the only male branch of the houfe of York, fuppofed to be then living, Henry ordered him to be ftrictly guarded in the Tower, and kept from all communication, until the unfortunate prince fell by the hands of the common executioner. The princess Elizabeth had been likewife detained as a prifoner at large by the late king, in the caftle of Sheriff-Hutton; and now fhe received a meffage from Henry, defiring the would repair to London, and live with her mother, until the celebration of their nuptials, which, however, he intended to poftpone, until his own title fhould be recognized by parliament. He himself took the fame route, and chofe to enter the city on a Saturday, because he had obtained the victory at Bosworth on that day of the week, which he ever after accounted propitious to his fortune. The mayor and companies of London received him at Shoreditch, from whence he made his public entry, amidst the acclamations of the people, who looked upon him as their deliverer, and the perfon in whofe union with Elizabeth, all the animofity between the two Roses would be extinguished. Nevertheless, the populace were a little difsatisfied at his paffing through the city in a close chariot, fo as that he could not be feen like their former kings, who had always entered the city on horfeback. He proceeded directly to St. Paul's church, where he offered up the standards he had NUMB. XLVI. R

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A; C. 1485. won; and Te Deum being again celebrated, he repaired to his lodging at the bishop's palace.

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In a few days after his arrival at London, he' affembled a council of all the nobility and perfons of distinction who happened to be at his court, or in the neighbourhood; and folemnly renewed the cath he had formerly taken to wed the princess Elizabeth. He found this ftep abfolutely neceffary, to destroy a report that he was actually engaged to marry Anne daughter and heir of the duke of Brittany. He had always intended to fulfil his firft obligation; but his intention was to defer his marriage until he should have received the crown, left he should be fuppofed to ftrengthen his right The fweat- by that union with the houfe of York. In the ing fickness. month of September, the city of London and fome parts of the kingdom were afflicted with a new dif temper called the fweating ficknefs, a kind of malignant fever, which made great havoc, and of which the patient commonly died in four and twenty hours. This malady, however, did not rage long; and even before it disappeared, the method of cure was pretty well afcertained. Among the first acts of Henry's fovereignty, he beftowed the government of the Tower upon the earl of Ox2 ford, who had been always a zealous partifan for the house of Lancaster. Then he publifhed a proclamation, fpecifying that he had concluded one year's truce with the king of France: a circumftance that operated to his advantage in England, which was the better difpofed to obey his government, on account of his title's being acknowledged: by fuch a prince as Charles, even before it was recognized by his own parliament. His next step was to recompence thofe to whom he lay under the greatest obligations. His uncle Jafper earl of Pembroke, who had acted the part of a father to him in his youth, and more than once delivered

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him from the fnares of his enemies, was created 4, C. 1485. duke of Bedford, The earldom of Derby was conferred upon Thomas lord Stanley his own father-in-law, to whom he owed the victory at Bofworth; and, Edward Courtney was honoured with the title of earl of Devonshire.

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The ceremony of the coronation was performed Coronation, on the thirtieth day of October, by cardinal Bour- ment, atchier archbishop of Canterbury; and that fame day tainders Henry inftituted a body-guard of fifty archers, cations. called yeomen, under the command of a captain, to be in continual attendance on his perfon; which band has been kept up by all his fucceffors. On the feventh day of November, the parliament meeting at Westminster, intailed the crown upon Henry, not by way of recognition or ordinance, but in the manner of fettlement; enacting, That the inheritance of the crown fhould reft, remain, and abide, in him and the heirs of his body; and this ftatute was afterwards confirmed by the pope's bull, in which, however, his titles of descent and conquest were recited. The act of fettlement and fucceffion being paffed, a difficulty arofe about the reverfal of the fentences of attainder, which had been de nounced against Henry's adherents. A good number of these were actually returned to serve in this parliament; and fome members obferved, that they could not with any juftice fit as judges in their own caufe. The king referred this point to the decifion of the judges, who were unanimously of opinion, that the members in queftion fhould abfent. themselves from the parliament, until their attainder should be annulled by a new ftatute. Another debate enfued, touching the king himself, who had been declared traitor and rebel by an authentic act of parliament. This was a more knotty point than the former; because he could not detach himfelf from parliament without its being diffolved:

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A, C, 1485. diffolved: nor was he at all difpofed to fubmit to a parliamentary inquiry. On this occafion the judges declared, that the poffeffion of the throne takes away all defects, and clears the poffeffor from all fentence, crime, or attainder. Thefe affairs being difcuffed, the parliament proceeded to pass a bill of attainder against the late king, under the name of Richard duke of Gloucester, as well as against the duke of Norfolk, the earl of Surrey, lord Lovel, lord Ferrers, lord Zouch, Richard Ratcliffe, William Catefby, and several other adherents of Richard. Thus, he at once gratified his revenge and his avarice; for, the confifcations produced fuch large fums, that he could not with any decency afk a fubfidy from parliament. When he had in this manner taken vengeance on his enemies, and filled his coffers, he published a general amnesty in favour of all those who had taken up arms against him, provided they should make their fubmiffion within a limited time; and imme diately a great number quitted fanctuary, and took the oath of allegiance. Before the parliament broke up, the lord of Chandos, a native of Brittany, was created earl of Bath, Sir Giles D'Aubeny was promoted to the title of a baron, and Sir Robert Willoughby was made lord Brooke at the fame time, the king reftored to Edward Strafford the title of duke of Buckingham, which he had loft by the attainder of his father; and re-established him in poffeffion of the family-eftate, which had been confifcated in the laft reign.

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The feffion being finished about the latter end of November, Henry fent into France Oliver King archdeacon of Oxford, with money to reimburse king Charles, for the fums he had lent towards equipping the armament which had conveyed the earl of Richmond into England; fo that the marquis of Dorfet and Sir John Bourchier, who re

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mained as hoftages, were fet at liberty. Oliver A. C. 1485. was likewise vefted with power to prolong the truce between the two kingdoms, fhould he find Charles inclined to this expedient. In order to discharge the obligation of the loan, Henry attempted to borrow fix thousand marks of the city of London but, it was with great difficulty that they confented to lend him two thousand pounds, which he thankfully received, and punctually repayed. About The bishops this period John Morton and Richard Fox, bishops of Ely and of Ely and Exeter, were admitted into the privy made privy council. The former was, after the death of arch counfellers. bishop Bourchier, promoted to the fee of Canterbury; while Fox was made keeper of the privy feal, and afterwards advanced through the fees of Bath and Durham, to the bishopric of Winchefter. These two prelates, and one Urfewick the king's chaplain, were always employed in the most important commiffions, embaffies, and negotiations. The king chofe ecclefiaftics for his minifters, not only because they were generally better qualified than the laity, but also because it was in his power to recompence their services with church benefices, which faved him the expence of gratifying them from his own private finances: and this" was a very powerful confideration with a prince whose predominant paffion was avarice.

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Although Henry hated the house of York in a. C. 1486. his heart, he found it neceffary to fulfil the pro- Henry marmife he had made to marry the princefs Elizabeth; princefs and the nuptials were folemnized on the eighteenth Elizabeth, day of January, to the inexpreffible joy of the na

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The demonftrations of popular fatisfaction which appeared on this occafion, were extremely mortifying to the king, who confidered them as fo many marks of affection to the house of York, for which he had conceived fuch averfion, that his queen was always treated by him with. the utmost coldness

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