.jpg?w=1)
.jpg?w=1)
Details
ELIZABETH I (1533-1603), Queen of England and Ireland. Letter signed (at head, 'Elizabeth R') to the governor of Berwick-upon-Tweed and other officials, a passport for her new ambassador to Mary Queen of Scots, Sir Nicholas Throckmorton, Westminster, 28 April 1565.
In English, one page, 217 x 305mm, integral blank, docketed (signet seal excised from f.1, some staining, wear and soiling). Provenance: sale at Sotheby's, 21 July 1980 – Spiro Family Collection – sale at Christie's, 4 June 2008, lot 80.
Elizabeth attempts to prevent the marriage of Mary Queen of Scots and Lord Darnley. 'Wheras we send p[rese]ntly our trusty and welbilovid S[i]r Nicholas Throkmerton knight in sp[ec]iall message and ambassade unto our deerest sister and Cousyn the Quene of Scotts, Our will and straight commaundement is that youe ... do not only soe him furnyshe for himself and his s[e]rvaunts of hable post horses from place to place between this and Barwyk at our price but also suffre him and his sayd s[e]rvaunts with his money Jewels baggs bagguage and all other his and their utensiles and necessarys quietly to pass by youe ... as ye tendre our pleas[u]r and will answer for the contrary at your perills'. The letter is addressed to the governor of Berwick and all mayors, sheriffs, bailiffs, constables, justices, comptrollers, 'serchours' and other officers whom it may concern.
The proposed marriage between Mary Queen of Scots and the volatile young Anglo-Scots nobleman Henry, Lord Darnley was exceedingly unwelcome to Elizabeth, not least because as descendants of Henry VII they were both in the line of succession for the English crown. Rumours of the couple's courtship must have travelled fast: Darnley had only reached Edinburgh from England on 12 February, and the first sign of the Queen's conspicuous favour was not until the 25th, when having heard a sermon from John Knox Darnley 'danced a galliard with Mary at night' (ODNB). Throckmorton's instructions were not only to prevent the marriage but, if at all possible, to substitute Elizabeth's favourite Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester, as a bridegroom. His mission was a complete failure, and the marriage of Mary and Darnley took place on 29 July. Sir Nicholas Throckmorton (1515/16-1571) was one of Elizabeth's most trusted diplomats, having served from 1559 to 1564 as ambassador to France, where he had first encountered Mary in her short-lived capacity as queen to François II.
In English, one page, 217 x 305mm, integral blank, docketed (signet seal excised from f.1, some staining, wear and soiling). Provenance: sale at Sotheby's, 21 July 1980 – Spiro Family Collection – sale at Christie's, 4 June 2008, lot 80.
Elizabeth attempts to prevent the marriage of Mary Queen of Scots and Lord Darnley. 'Wheras we send p[rese]ntly our trusty and welbilovid S[i]r Nicholas Throkmerton knight in sp[ec]iall message and ambassade unto our deerest sister and Cousyn the Quene of Scotts, Our will and straight commaundement is that youe ... do not only soe him furnyshe for himself and his s[e]rvaunts of hable post horses from place to place between this and Barwyk at our price but also suffre him and his sayd s[e]rvaunts with his money Jewels baggs bagguage and all other his and their utensiles and necessarys quietly to pass by youe ... as ye tendre our pleas[u]r and will answer for the contrary at your perills'. The letter is addressed to the governor of Berwick and all mayors, sheriffs, bailiffs, constables, justices, comptrollers, 'serchours' and other officers whom it may concern.
The proposed marriage between Mary Queen of Scots and the volatile young Anglo-Scots nobleman Henry, Lord Darnley was exceedingly unwelcome to Elizabeth, not least because as descendants of Henry VII they were both in the line of succession for the English crown. Rumours of the couple's courtship must have travelled fast: Darnley had only reached Edinburgh from England on 12 February, and the first sign of the Queen's conspicuous favour was not until the 25th, when having heard a sermon from John Knox Darnley 'danced a galliard with Mary at night' (ODNB). Throckmorton's instructions were not only to prevent the marriage but, if at all possible, to substitute Elizabeth's favourite Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester, as a bridegroom. His mission was a complete failure, and the marriage of Mary and Darnley took place on 29 July. Sir Nicholas Throckmorton (1515/16-1571) was one of Elizabeth's most trusted diplomats, having served from 1559 to 1564 as ambassador to France, where he had first encountered Mary in her short-lived capacity as queen to François II.
Brought to you by
Robert Tyrwhitt