Failure to establish a succession threatened to plunge the kingdom into bloody civil war should she die. The prospect hung over their head every day. She was 33 yers old. Life was precarious in Tudor times ─ even a monarch's ─ and her child bearing years were arguably soon to end. It was the monarch's first duty to produce an heir.
The one power that the parliament wielded that the monarch depended upon was the power to allocate monies to the throne. The Queen realized that she was in a difficult situation. She would have avoided calling the body into session otherwise. Without funds, however, she was in dire straits.
As feared, the leaders of the parliament demanded that she name a successor before they would approve the royal subsidy she required. The Ambassador La Mothe Fenelon reported the events to his own monarch as they occurred. The great British scholar, Isaac Disraeli, has provided the following translation of his letter of October 27th on the matter.1
27th October, 1566.
SIRE,
By my last dispatch of the 21st instant, among other matters, I informed your majesty of what was said on Saturday the 19th as well in parliament, as in the chamber of the queen, respecting the circumstance of the succession to this crown; since which I have learned other particulars, which occurred a little before, and which I will not now omit to relate, before I mention what afterwards happened.
On Wednesday, the 16th of the present month, the comptroller of the queen's household moved, in the lower house of parliament, where the deputies of towns and counties meet, to obtain a subsidy; taking into consideration, among other things, that the queen had emptied the exchequer, as well in the late wars, as in the maintenance of her ships at sea, for the protection of her kingdom, and her subjects; and which expenditure has been so excessive, that it could no further be supported without the aid of her good subjects, whose duty it was to offer money to her majesty, even before she required it, in consideration that, hitherto, she had been to them a benignant and courteous mistress.
The comptroller having finished, one of the deputies, a country gentleman, rose in reply. He said, that he saw no occasion, nor any pressing necessity, which ought to move her majesty to ask for money of her subjects. And, hi regard to the wars, which it was said had exhausted her treasury, she had undertaken them from herself, as she had thought proper ; not for the defence of her kingdom, nor for the advantage of her subjects; but there was one thing which seemed to him more urgent, and far more necessary to examine concerning this campaign ; which was, how the money raised by the late subsidy had been spent ; and that everyone who had had the handling of it should produce their accounts, that it might be known if the moneys had been well or ill spent.
On this, rises one named Mr. Basche, purveyor of the marine, and also a member of the said parliament ; who shows that it was most necessary that the commons should vote the said subsidies to her majesty, who had not only been at vast charges, and was so daily, to maintain a great number of ships, but also in building new ones ; repeating what the comptroller of the household had said, that they ought not to wait till the queen asked for supplies, but should make a voluntary offer of their services.
Another country gentleman rises and replies, that the said Basche had certainly his reasons to speak for the queen in the present case, since a great deal of her majesty's moneys for the providing of ships passed through his hands ; and the more he consumed, the greater was his profit. According to his notion, there were but too many purveyors in this kingdom, whose noses had grown so long, that they stretched from London to the west.* It was certainly proper to know if all they levied by their commission for the present campaign was entirely employed to the queen's profit. Nothing further was debated on that day.
The Friday following when the subject of the subsidy was renewed, one of the gentlemen-deputies showed, that the queen having prayed for the last subsidy, had promised, and pledged her faith to her subjects, that after that one she never more would raise a single penny on them ; and promised even to free them from the wine-duty, of which promise they ought to press for the performance ; adding, that it was far more necessary for this kingdom to speak concerning an heir or successor to their crown, and of her marriage, than of a subsidy.
The next day, which was Saturday the 19th, they all began, with the exception of a single voice, a loud outcry for the succession. Amidst these confused voices and cries, one of the council prayed them to have a little patience, and with time they should be satisfied ; but that, at this moment, other matters pressed, it was necessary to satisfy the queen about a subsidy. 'No ! no !' cried the deputies, 'we are expressly charged not to grant anything until the queen resolvedly answers that which we now ask : and we require you to inform her majesty of our intention, which is such as we are commanded to, by all the towns and subjects of this kingdom, whose deputies we are. We further require an act, or acknowledgment, of our having delivered this remonstrance, that we may satisfy our respective towns and counties that we have performed our charge.' They alleged for an excuse, that if they had omitted any part of this, their heads would answer for it. We shall see what will come of this.
Tuesday the 22d, the principal lords, and the bishops of London, York, Winchester, and Durham, went together, after dinner, from the parliament to the queen, whom they found in her private apartment. There, after those who were present had retired, and they remained alone with her, the great treasurer, having the precedence in age, spoke first in the name of all. He opened, by saying, that the commons had required them to unite in one sentiment and agreement, to solicit her majesty to give her answer as she had promised, to appoint a successor to the crown ; declaring it was necessity that compelled them to urge this point, that they might provide against the dangers which might happen to the kingdom, if they continued without the security they asked. This had been the custom of her royal predecessors, to provide long beforehand for the succession, to preserve the peace of the kingdom ; that the commons were all of one opinion, and so resolved to settle the succession before they would speak about a subsidy, or any other matter whatever; that, hitherto, nothing but the most trivial discussions had passed in parliament, and so great an assembly was only wasting their time, and saw themselves entirely useless. They, however, supplicated her majesty, that she would be pleased to declare her will on this point, or at once to put an end to the parliament, so that every one might retire to his home.
The Duke of Norfolk then spoke, and, after him, every one of the other lords, according to his rank, holding the same language in strict conformity with that of the great treasurer.
The queen returned no softer answer than she had on the preceding Saturday, to another party of the same company; saying that, “The commons were very rebellious, and that they had not dared to have attempted such things during the life of her father: that it was not for them to impede her affairs, and that it did not become a subject to compel the sovereign. What they asked was nothing less than wishing her to dig her grave before she was dead.” Addressing herself to the lords, she said, “My lords, do what you will; as for myself, I shall do nothing but according to my pleasure. All the resolutions which you may make can have no force without my consent and authority; besides, what you desire is an affair of much too great importance to be declared to a knot of hare-brains. I will take counsel with men who understand justice and the laws, as I am deliberating to do: I will choose half-a-dozen of the most able I can find in my kingdom for consultation, and after having their advice, I will then discover to you my will.” On this she dismissed them in great anger.
By this, sire, your majesty may perceive that this queen is every day trying new inventions to escape from this passage (that is, on fixing her marriage, or the succession.) She thinks that the Duke of Norfolk is principally the cause of this insisting, which one person and the other stand to; and is so angried against him, that, if she can find any decent pretext to arrest him, I think she will not fail to do it; and he himself, as I understand, has already very little doubt of this. The duke told the earl of Northumberland, that the queen remained steadfast to her own opinion, and would take no other advice than her own, and would do every thing herself.
1 Disraeli, Isaac. Curiosities of Literature (14th Ed., 1881). II.359-63.
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