1571, July 28. Fetter Lane.— Th'Erle of Oxenforde hathe
gotten hym a wyffe—or at the leste a wyffe hathe caught hym—that is Mrs. Anne
Cycille, whearunto the Queen hathe gyven her consent, the which hathe causyd
great [weeping], waling, and sorowfull chere, of those that hoped to have hade
that golden daye. Thus you may see whylst that some triumphe with [olive]
branchis, others folowe the chariot with wyllowe garlands.[1]
St. John may have known Rutland to have a personal interest
in the matter. Like Edward de Vere, the Earl of Oxford, he, too, had been a
Royal Ward under the care of Anne Cecil’s father, William.
By law, William Cecil had every right to marry his daughter
off to Oxford, Rutland or any other of the wards committed to his care, so long
as the Queen consented. Instead he was actively negotiating with the father of
Philip Sidney. Cecil not being a nobleman, it likely
seemed to be the best that was within reach.
A subsequent letter from Cecil himself to Rutland makes
clear that he understands the confusion he may be causing.
1571, August 15. Hatfield. — I thynk it doth seme strange to
your Lordship to here of a purposed determination in my Lord of Oxford to marry
with my doughter, and so before his Lordship moved it to me might I have
thought it, if any other had moved it to me than hymself. For at his own motion
I cold not well imagyne what to thynk, consideryng I never ment to seke it, nor
hoped of it. And yet reason moved me to thynk well of my Lord, and to knolledg
my self gretly beholdyng to hym, as in dede I doo. Truly, my Lord, after I was
acquainted of the formar intention of a mariadg with Mr. Phillipp Sydney, whom
allweiss I loved and estemed, I was fully determined to have of my self moved
no mariadg for my doughter untill she shuld have bene nere xvjth [16
years old], that with moving [the match]
I might also conclude [the match]. And yet I thought it not inconvenient in the
meane tyme, being free to herken to any motion made by such others as I shuld
have cause to lyke. Truly, my Lord, my good will served me to have moved such a
matter as this in an other [direction than this] is, but having some occasion
to dout of the issew of the matter, I did forbeare, and in myn own concept I
cold have as well have lyked [there] as in any other place in England. Percase
your Lordship may gess wher I meane, and so shall I, for I will name nobody.
Now that the matter is determyned betwixt my Lord of Oxford
and me, I confess to your Lordship I do honor hym as much as I can any subject,
and I love hym so derely from my hart as I do myn own sonne, and in any case
that may touch hym for his honor and weale, I shall thynk myn own interest
therin. And suerly, my Lord, by dealyng with hym I fynd that which I often hard
of your Lordship that ther is much more in hym of understandyng than any
stranger to hym wold thynk. And for myn own part, I fynde that wherof I take
comfort in his wytt and knolledg groven by good observation.[2]
What Cecil doesn’t mention is surely the operative point. On
the 25th of February, 1571 [N.S.], the Queen had created him Baron of Burghley.
Philip’s father, Sir Henry Sidney, and mere Sir William
Cecil had been negotiating for some two years in preparation for Anne reaching
the marriageable age of 16. In a letter from Sir Henry dated Feb. 24, 1570
[1571 N.S.], just short of the goal, we find the following:
I am sorry, that you find coldness anywhere in proceeding
where such good liking appeared in the beginning, but for my part I never was
more ready to perfect that matter than presently I am, assuring you for my part
if I might have the greatest Prince's daughter in Christendom for him, the
match spoken of between us on my part should not be broken.[3]
About to become a nobleman, and his daughter the daughter of
a nobleman, Cecil detects a “coldness” in Sir Henry. The negotiations are
suspended.
It is difficult to believe that the timing of the Queen’s
gift of noble status could have been a coincidence. Nor Cecil’s finding “coldness”
in Sir Henry and breaking off negotiations.
Edward de Vere, the Earl of Oxford, was as proud and
headstrong as any young Earl. He would likely have answered a demand from the
Queen to marry Anne with the same words Shakespeare puts in Bertram’s mouth in
his All’s Well that Ends Well.
Bertram. But follows it, my
lord, to bring me down
Must answer for your raising? I know
her well;
She had her breeding at my father's
charge.
A poor physician's daughter my wife!
Disdain
Rather corrupt me ever!
And the Queen would have appeared to answer in much the same
words of the King in the play.
King. 'T is only title thou
disdain'st in her, the which
I can build up.
No. Surely it could not have been a coincidence that all
revolved around Elizabeth having created her most valued servant Baron of Burghley.
[1] Manuscripts
of his Grace the Duke of Rutland (1888). I.94.
[2]
Rutland. I.80-1.
[3]
Wallace, Malcolm William. The Life of Sir Philip Sidney (1915). 92.
Also at Virtual Grub Street:
- Mr. Prechter’s Accidents. June 27, 2022. “Another Peele signature exists on a receipt for the production of a play acted at Oxford before Albertus de Lasco, Palatine of Siradia, in Poland, in 1583.”
- The Character Montano, in Hamlet, and Polonius’ Famous Advice. May 25, 2022. “The reader may recall that Polonius calls upon Reynaldo to suggest to Laertes’ friends that he is privy to minor misbehaviors, at which he winks,…”
- The Death of Sir Edward Vere, son of the 17th Earl of Oxford and Anne Vavasour. May 8, 2022. “Mr. Sedgwick wrote to me for a prayer for Sir Edward Vere.”
- How Shakespeare gave Ben Jonson the Infamous Purge. November 7, 2021. “Of course, De Vere could not openly accuse Jonson of having outed him as Shakespeare.”
- A 1572 Oxford Letter and the Player’s Speech in Hamlet. August 11, 2020. “The player’s speech has been a source of consternation among Shakespeare scholars for above 200 years. Why was Aeneas’ tale chosen as the subject?”
- Check out the Shakespeare Authorship Article Index for many more articles and reviews about this fascinating time and about the Shakespeare Authorship Question.
- Check out the Letters Index: Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of Oxford for many letters from this fascinating time, some related to the Shakespeare Authorship Question.
No comments:
Post a Comment