| B.M.
MSS. Add.
28,420. |
608. Document headed—"The present state of the Catholic
religion in Scotland."
The king of Scotland is 25 years old, and has very good parts.
He was reared in the religion of Calvin, and consequently professes
the same, but he is naturally so deceitful and shifty that the
Scottish heretics themselves do not trust him, nor does the queen of
England. The Catholics recognise that he is clever, and hope that
some day he will open the doors to the light of truth.
The cities and coasts are filled with heretics, and the preachers
they call ministers live there. They would like to fortify themselves,
but the nobles will not allow them to do so. The nobles are
in great part favourable to the Catholic religion, and the country
people the same. The nobles all belong of right to the King's
council, and cannot be deprived, except for treason. They have,
therefore, greater power, and the King less, than in other countries.
The ministers meet every Friday ; and amongst themselves they
call this "the Church," which they say is above the King on all
religious questions and ecclesiastical government. This is the
opposite to the same sect in England, which recognises the Queen
as the spiritual head over their Church. The king of Scotland
hates these ministers, and fears the power they have assumed ; but
as the queen of England favours them, they insolently threaten to
excommunicate the King himself, and, in fact, do excommunicate
other gentlemen when they do not obey their orders. These
ministers a few years ago adopted certain heretical articles, nearly
all opposed to our holy faith, and they wished the King and his
subjects to subscribe to them, this being a public profession of
conformity, like that of attending the heretic churches, or taking
the oath of allegiance to the Queen as head of the Church is in
England.
Many persons in Scotland signed the articles to please the King
and ministers, without thinking it was so grave a matter. But
they learnt its gravity on discussing it with the Jesuit fathers sent
by Pope Gregory XIII., and others, now resident in Scotland ;
especially with Father James Gordon, uncle of the earl of Huntly,
and other priests from the English seminaries, who retired to
Scotland against the rigourous edicts published in 1591 in England.
When they learnt how evil it was, those who first declared
against the ministers were Lords Balgarys and Fentry, the latter of
whom was beheaded by the King, dying a glorious martyr, and the
other took up arms and held out against the ministers. He kept in
his house for a long time one of the English priests called Ingram,
who was afterwards martyred in England. This priest said mass,
and Balgarys invited many heretics to hear his sermons, thus
doing much good, and converting many to our holy faith. In view
of this, the ministers obtained the King's permission to arrest
Balgarys for treason, as they had excommunicated him two or three
years before. The King thereupon granted them a signed warrant
in blank, and left to them the choice of a person to execute it.
It must be borne in mind that it is an invariable rule for all
families, especially those of nobles, to support their own people, and
any offence offered to a single member of a family is offered to all.
If blood be shed, not only is the vengeance wreaked on the evil
doer, but upon all his kin without exception.
As Lord Balgarys, Walter Lindsay, is the son of the earl of
Crawford, connected with the royal house and with many noble
families, no person could be found who would venture to execute
the orders of the ministers against him, for fear of the vengeance of
his kinsmen. The ministers after having excommunicated certain
persons who had dined in his house, and threatened to punish them
severely ; were gathered together for the rurpose of choosing a
person to execute the royal warrant, when Balgarys went with
his people to the place where they were holding their meeting, and
made them all beg his pardon and dine with him, they giving for
the purpose the meal prepared for themselves ; which is usually
very splendid.
They had to promise never to molest anyone again on his
account. He had gone thither with the intention of killing them
all, but he contented himself with this submission at the request of
his kinsmen who accompanied him.
Encouraged by his example, other nobles, such as the earls of
Huntly, Errol, and Angus, openly declared themselves Catholics ;
whereupon the ministers appealed to the queen of England for
aid, whilst the Catholic nobles appealed to the king of Spain and
the Pope.
George Carr, who was coming from these gentlemen to Spain,
was, by the tricks of the English ambassador (in Scotland),
captured on board his ship, with the letters which the nobles had
written to his Catholic Majesty asking for aid. The ministers at
once printed these letters, and many others, from the duke of
Parma, &c., which they had previously seized ; and called the
book "Discovery of the treasons of the Scots papists," for the
purpose of making the Catholics hated. They also caused the King
to proclaim them traitors, and by the advice of lord treasurer
Cecil, they passed a law making it high treason to have mass
performed, or to harbour a priest. As, however, the Scots are not
subject to their sovereigns as the English are, this turned out to be
a mistake ; as it caused many more people to rise, declare themselves
Catholics, and collect forces to defend themselves.
The ministers excommunicated the earls of Huntly, Errol, and
Angus, with many other nobles, and the King in parliament
declared them rebels, and their estates confiscate. They are,
however, in arms, and have sufficient force to defend themselves
against the heretrical party in Scotland. They have even entered
the cities, and have caught some of the heretic ministers who were
preaching against them, and soundly flogged them with ropes.
Some of the most insolent and noisy of the ministers have disappeared,
and the heretics say the Catholics have killed them. The
King has threatened these gentlemen, but up to the present has
gone no further. The ministers are much alarmed, and say
nothing, wishing they had not begun to stir in a matter which has
turned out so badly for them. The nobles daily grow in heart and
strength, and the only hope of the heretics is that the queen of
England will help them with an armed force.
Some months ago Pope Clement VIII. wrote to the king of
Scotland exhorting him to embrace the Catholic religion, sending
him 40,000 ducats, and promising him 10,000 every month, if he
would admit and protect the Catholics in Scotland.
A ship arrived in the port of Aberdeen from Flanders with the
persons who brought this money, and the Pope's letters, accompanied
by Father Gordon, who had come from Rome with him. There
were also on board, amongst others, three English priests. The
people of the country did not, for the reasons already stated, dare
to molest Father Gordon or the Scotsmen in his company, but they
arrested the Pope's envoy with the money and letters, and also the
three English priests, this being in pursuance of an order of the
King that no Englishmen are to enter or leave Scotland without a
passport from the English ambassador in Edinburgh.
As soon as they heard of it, the earls of Errol and Angus, with
some of their men, went to induce the people of the place to release
the prisoners, and at the same time closed all the passes to prevent
them from being sent elsewhere. At the end of three days the earl
of Huntly and lord Balgarys came with a strong force and ordered
the suburbs of the town to be sacked, and the town itself to be
fired in four places. The townsmen thereupon, out of fear, released
their prisoners, and promised to aid the Catholic cause.
The Catholic lords, seeing how little they can hope for from their
King, have made use of this money to pay their soldiers, (fn. 3) and they
are now standing on the defensive, publicly exercising the Catholic
faith, and permitting the same to all persons who choose in those
parts, namely, from the city of Dundee to the north ; which comprises
more than a half of Scotland. In addition to this a large
number of Catholics in the other parts of Scotland are now living
peacefully. Several important events, favourable to the Catholics,
have happened in Scotland, as well as some heavy punishments
from the hands of God, which have fallen upon those who were
submissive to the ministers. This has had the effect of converting
many, and causing others, who had feigned to be heretics, publicly
to confess the faith. It is the custom in Scotland for the Catholics
to draw lots to decide which shall be the patron saint for each one
during the ensuing year, to which saint each person pays special
devotion. The earl of Huntly having made preparations to celebrate
the feast of St. Laurence, which saint had fallen to him, and having
confessed and received absolution, very devoutly on the same
morning, whilst he was at the sermon received news that his
enemy, the earl of Argyll, had taken advantage of the plans of the
Ministers and the King's warrant, to enter six or seven leagues into
his (Huntly's) lands, burning and sacking the towns and villages,
and carrying with him great quantities of cattle and other booty.
The earl of Huntly finished his devotions, and then mounted with
36 others who were there at the time, and pursued the enemy. He
caught up with him near some lagoons, and, in order to prevent the
enemy's footmen from gaining with the cattle the soft ground,
where the horsemen might get stuck, he dashed into the enemy's
rearguard and killed them right and left, until his men came up
and joined him, when they miraculously defeated the enemy, who
were 1,500 against their 37. They killed 500, and recaptured all
the booty without the loss of a single one of Huntly's men, only
one being wounded by a harquebuss ball in the shoulder. The
horses were all wounded with arrows and bullets, but they were all
brought home, some, however, dying subsequently. This occurrence
caused the greatest astonishment to the heretics, and the King
caused the story to be repeated to him many times, but even then he
would not believe it until he had spoken with some of the men of
the defeated force. The earl of Huntly says that, never in his life
did he feel to possess such strength ; it seemed as if nothing could
resist him, and his companions say the same. The effect of this
victory was to convert many heretics, and the Earl himself gained
great encouragement in the cause of God, and much respect from
all persons. Many of his vassals who had rebelled against him,
returned to his service.
Another occurrence, no less marvellous, which has also caused
great astonishment, was the following : The earl of Morton is a
Catholic, but on the persuasion of his relatives he was about to
conform with the ministers and sign the afore-mentioned articles
against our holy faith, when at 12 o'clock in the day, he being alone
in his room, an angel appeared to him in the form of a youth, who
said to him "Earl do not as your kinsmen would persuade you, for
if you do you shall lose the hand with which you sign, and your
days shall end with a shameful death." Moved by this appeal
the Earl again put on a gold crucifix, and an "Agnus Dei," which
he used to wear round his neck, but had taken off when he abandoned
his good resolutions. He then told the principal kinsmen
who had persuaded him, how remorseful he was for his error, and
what the angel had told him ; and in order that God's mercy might
be for ever remembered by his house he added to his arms the
figure of an angel. He also declared himself an enemy of the
ministers, and refused to subscribe to their articles. Subsequently,
however, he was greatly persuaded by his kinsmen, and the King
made him many offers, creating him his lieutenant-general, so that
at last the poor gentleman gave way and signed the articles. But
he did not long enjoy either his office or his life ; for shortly afterwards
going to arrest baron Johnstone by the King's warrant, with
5,000 soldiers, he met with the end the angel had foretold for him.
When the earl of Morton came up with baron Johnstone, the latter,
taking advantage of the ground, posted his 600 horsemen in three
squadrons in a triangle, at some little distance from each other.
Morton's vanguard was therefore able to enter in the midst of them,
and Johnstone and his men, who were on one side, threw themselves
upon him with such fury that Morton's men broke, and Johnstone
reaching the Earl, at the first blow smote off his right hand, and at
the second cut off a leg. He then threw him from his horse and he
was cut into a thousand pieces. Morton's men fled, and Johnstone
gained the victory. It was thus clearly seen that it was the work
of God's hand that punished the Earl. Lord Claude Hamilton,
younger son of the duke of Chatelherault, also subscribed the
articles against his conscience, and at the persuasion of his wife and
her brothers, to please the ministers and the King. He was on one
occasion dining, and, as is the custom in some Scottish houses, the
gospel was being read at table during the repast. The reader came
to the words where it says : "He who denies me before men, him
will I deny before my father ;" and as he pronounced the words
Lord Claude rose from the table and attempted with a knife to cut
his wife's throat, crying out that by her persuasion, and that of her
brothers, he had denied the faith, and sacrificed his soul. For
several days after this he remained in a state of delirium, and it
was necessary to bind him. He is still in the care of keepers, not
having yet entirely recovered his reason.
The example of this house of Hamilton is a very remarkable one,
and may well cause men to fear the just judgments of God ; which,
although they may come slowly, yet never fail to fall upon those
who offend Him. The head of the house, the duke of Chatelherault,
was one of the most noble and valiant men the country had produced
for many years ; equally esteemed in Scotland and in France
whilst he served God and the Catholic faith. But the queen of
England beguiled him with hopes that she would marry his son, the
earl of Arran, and he and his son joined the English party to depose
unjustly the Queen, sister of Francis duke of Guise, and widow of
James V., the duke of Chatelherault being made regent. He cast out
the French, seized, with the aid of his accomplices, the ecclesiastical
revenues and property, destroyed churches and monasteries ; and
then, even in the time of his prosperity, he began to feel the hand of
God upon him, and upon his son. Seeing himself tricked by the
queen of England, for whose sake they had offended God and ruined
their country, the earl of Arran went mad with a bestial madness,
and still lives like a brute. As the Duke was of the royal house,
he doubtless thought that the projected marriage and the change of
religion would render him master of Scotland and England, but
instead of this, he shortly afterwards saw himself dispossessed from
his government by the very people whom he had made heretics. He
was deprived of all his property, he and his house declared traitors.
God added to these punishments another from His own hand ; for
the Duke had the bitterness of living to see all his sons go mad
except Lord Claude ; and he afterwards lost his reason, as has been
related. And thus he ended his wretched life, overwhelmed with
shame and trouble and, it is to be feared, accursed both of God and
man. |