291. dencë with him, but also expelled his fubjects from A. C. 1493. the dominions of England. The archduke retorted this animofity upon all the English who refided in Flanders; but their refentment proceeded no farther, because they were afraid of each other.

fons con

and exécut

Mean while the king of England was exactly Divers perinformed by Sir Robert Clifford of the correfpen- victed of a dence which the dutchefs and Perkin maintained confpiracy, with England. In order to crush the confpiracy ed; before it should become too dangerous, he iffued orders privately for arrefting John Ratcliff, lord Fitzwalter, Sir Simon Mountford, Sir Thomas Thwaites, William Daubigney, Robert Ratcliff, Thomas Chreffenor, and Thomas Afhwood, who were apprehended at the fame time, tried, convicted of holding treasonable correfpondence with Perkin, and condemned to die the death of traitors. The lord Fitzwalter was conveyed to Calais; where, in time, he might have obtained his pardón, had not his impatience of confinement prompted him to attempt his escape; in which attempt being discovered, he loft his head. Mountford, Ratcliff, and Daubigney, fuffered the rigour of the faw, but the rest were pardoned; and many others of the clergy, as well as of the laity, arrested on the fame fufpicion, were discharged without trial. The lord chamberlain Stanley was not yet apprehended, either because Sir Robert Clifford had not informed against him, or the king wanted further proof, before he should be brought to his trial.

Sir Edward

The confpiracy being thus quelled in England, A. C. 1494 Henry refolved to convert his attention to the affairs of Ireland, where he understood Perkin had Poynings ftill fome powerful friends and abettors. He ap deputy-goappointed pointed his fecond fon Henry, an infant of two years vernor of of age, viceroy of that kingdom; and Sir Edward Ireland. Poynings, his deputy, with a very extenfive power

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292

A. C. 1494. over the civil as well as the military administration. At his arrival in Ireland he fet on foot a fevere inquiry about thofe who were fufpected of difaffection; and in a particular manner attacked the earls of Defmond and Kildare, to whom Perkin had written, when he firft landed at Cork. The first ftood upon the defenfive, and eluded the power of the deputy; but the earl of Kildare was fent prifoner to England, from whence he was foon difmiffed to his own country, with marks of the king's esteem and favour; Henry judging that, at fuch a juncture, he fhould gain more by acts of clemency and indulgence, than by the exercife of rigour and feverity. In this opinion, he fent a commiflioner to Ireland, with a formal amnefty in favour of the earl of Defmond and all the rebels of that country, refolving, if poffible, by fair means, to ftifle the very feeds of rebellion in an ifland where the house of York had fuch a number of partifans! While Poynings refided in Ireland he convened a parliament, which is famous on record for the acts it paffed to the advantage of England, and the Englifh fettled among the Irish. One of thefe, ftill known by the name of Poynings's Act, decreed, That the parliament of Ireland could not be affembled until the governor and council fhould have made the king acquainted with the caufes of its meeting, and received his majesty's permiffion, under the great feal. Another law imported, That all the ftatutes of England fhould be obferved in Ireland and thefe two acts are in force at this Hift. of Ireday.

land.

sa

Henry's a

extortion.

4

Henry's avarice increased to fuch a degree of varice and rapacity, that he employed all his invention to find out pretences for amaffing fums of money; and trumped up the moft frivolous accufations against wealthy individuals, that he might fill his coffers at their expence. Thefe were the genuine effects

of

of a covetous difpofition, which was altogether in. A. C. 1494. fatiable; for he had no real ufe for the money he thus extorted. He was at peace with all the world. He had obtained from parliament two very confiderable fubfidies, of which he had expended no part but what was repayed with ufury. He had enriched himself with divers confiscations, and received annually fifty thousand livres from the king of France. Thefe refources, added to his ordinary revenues, rendered him the richest king in Europe: yet, not fatisfied, he could not refrain from squeezing money out of his people by forfeitures on penal laws. The first person of note who fuffered in this manner was Sir William Capel, alderman of London, condemned in the fum of seven and twenty hundred pounds, fixteen hundred of which he payed to the king by way of compofition; but no part of Henry's conduct redounded more to his difhonour, than his profecution of the lord chamberlain Stanley, to whom he, in a great measure, owed his elevation to the throne..

fon, and be

We have already obferved that this nobleman Lord cham. favoured the caufe of Perkin Warbeck, on the berlain Stanley cone fuppofition that he was the real fon of Edward IV. victed of and perhaps he was influenced on this occafion by high trea resentment against Henry, from whom he is faid headed. to have fuffered a repulfe, when he asked the earldom of Chefter. The king certainly had reason to dread the ill offices of fuch a powerful nobleman; but in all probability, his greatest crime was his great wealth, which exceeded that of any other English subject, and captivated the heart of Henry; for the charge against him was conftrued into treafon, by a very high-strained interpretation. In order to accomplish his aim, he directed his informer, Clifford, to come over from Flanders; and no fooner understood he was arrived in England, than he took up his refidence in the Tower, that he might U 3

the

A. C. 1494. the more conveniently apprehend the delinquent. Clifford, according to his inftructions, appeared before the council; and throwing himself at the king's feet, implored his clemency, which he faid he would deferve by declaring all he knew of the confpiracy. Henry promised to pardon him, on that condition: then he proceeded to impeach fundry perfons, and among the reft the lord chamberlain. The king affected great furprize at this declaration, bidding him take heed, and threatening him with death, fhould his accufation be found falfe and malicious. Clifford perfifted in the charge; and the chamberlain was immediately put under arreft. Next day, being examined before the council, he owned what was laid to his charge, and was condemned on his own confeffion; though his whole crime amounted to no more than that he had faid, he would never bear arms against Perkin Warbeck, was he certain that the youth was really the fon of Edward IV. Perhaps he thought himself secure in the service he had done the king, and the great credit of his brother, the earl of Derby, who had married Henry's mother. But he fell a facrifice to his great wealth; and all the favour he could obtain was the refpite of a few weeks, that he might prepare himself for death, which he did not suffer till the beginning of the following year; when his poft of chamberlain was filled with Giles lord Dawbeny, a nobleman of approved valour and fufficiency. The king found in Stanley's caftle of Holt forty thousand marks of money, and plate, befides jewels, furniture, cattle, and effects to an immenfe value; and an estate of three thousand pounds a year. With this booty he confoled himself for the fecret curfes of his people, who not only detefted his avarice and ingratitude, but were overwhelmed with confternation at the fate of the chamberlain, who had been condemned for that of which very

1

Bacon,

few

few English fubjects were innocent; namely, for A. C. 1494. preferring the right of the house of York to that of the reigning king. What augmented their fear was their perceiving that Henry maintained spies to watch the conduct of the chamberlain; and, in all probability, followed the fame practice with other noblemen, who durft no longer communicate their fentiments, left those whom they trusted as friends, should turn out informers, and betray their confidence: but, what they durft not impart to their intimates, they vented in fevere libels and fatires against the judges, the council, and the king himself; who was fo provoked by those farcafms, that he ordered five mean perfons detected in difperfing the papers, to be executed as traitors. Ibid. In the courfe of this year, his favourite Richard Fox bishop of Bath and Wells was translated to the fee of Durham; and the king's fon Henry was created duke of York: he was at the fame time made knight of the Bath, and several noblemen and perfons of rank were likewise admitted into that order. Young Henry was afterwards appointed warden of the northern Marches, for defence of which the earl of Surrey began to levy forces, as the king had fome reason to doubt the friendship of James IV. king of Scotland. In the AC- 1495. fummer, king Henry, in order to convince the world, that the proceedings against Sir Williama Stanley had not at all diminished his regard for his brother the earl of Derby, or his affection for his own mother the wife of that nobleman, made an excursion to the earl's houfe at Latham, where he stayed three days, and seemed very well pleased with his entertainment. From thence he made a progrefs through Yorkshire; and while he was abfent from the fouthern parts of this kingdom, Perkin Warbeck refolved to try his fortune in England. Being fupplied with fome troops and veffels U 4

by