MarginaliaAn. 1555. Ianuary.Maisters (quoth he) what talke ye of these matters? I would haue you take some order for our young maister that is now commyng into the worlde apace, lest he finde vs vnprouided. &c.  

MarginaliaThe wordes of sir Rich. Southwell in the parliament house for his yong master. By the which wordes both of him, and also by the foresayd letters of the Counsell, and the common talke abroad, it may appeare what an assured opinion was then conceaued in mēs heads of Queene Mary to be conceaued and quicke wyth childe: In so much that at the same time, and in the same Parlament, there was eftsoones a byll exhibited, and an Act made vpon the same, the words wherof, for the more euidence, I thought here to exemplificate as vnder followeth.  

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MarginaliaEx Statut. an. 1. & 2. Phil. & Mar. cap. 10. ALbeit we the Lordes spirituall and temporall, and the commōs in this present parlamēt assembled, haue firme hope and cōfidence in the goodnes of almighty god, that lyke as he hath hetherto miraculously preserued the queens maiesty frō many great imminēt perils & daūgers: euē so he wil of his infinite goodnes, geue her highnes strēgth, the rather by our cōtinual prayers, to passe wel the daūger of deliueraūce of childe, wherewith it hath pleased hym (to all our great cōfortes) to blesse her: MarginaliaThe iudgement of the parliamēt deceaued in gods blessing. Yet forasmuch as all thyngs of this world be vncertain, and hauing before our eyes the dolorous experience of this incōstant gouernemēt duryng the time of the reigne of the late K. Edward the sixt: do plainly see the manifold incōueniences, great daūgers & perils that may ensue to this whole realme, if foresight be not vsed to preuent all euil chaunces if they should happen: For the eschewyng hereof we the Lords spirituall & temporall & the cōmons in this present Parliamēt assembled, for and in cōsideratiō of a most special trust and cōfidēce that we haue & repose in the kings maiestie, for and cōcerning the politicke gouernment, order, and administration of this realme in the time of the young yeares of the issue or issues of her Maiesties body to be borne, MarginaliaOrder taken by Parliament for Q. Maries child. if it shoulde please God to call the Queenes highnes out of this present life during the tender yeares of such issue or issues (which God forbid) according to such order & maner as hereafter in this present Acte hys highnes most gracious pleasure is should be declared & set forth: haue made our most humble sute by the assent of the Queenes highnes, that his maiestie would vouchsafe to accept & take vpō him the rule, order, educatiō & gouernmēt of the saide issue or issues to be borne, as is aforesaide, vpon which our sute beyng of his said maiestie most graciously accepted, it hath pleased his highnes not only to declare, that like as for the first part his maiestie verely trusteth that almighty god (who hath hetherto preserued the queenes maiestie) to geue this Realme so good an hope of certaine successiō in the bloud royall of the same realme, will assiste her highnes with his graces & benedictiōs, to see the fruit of her body wel brought forth, liue, and hable to gouerneMarginaliaTrust disapointed. (wherof neither all this Realme, ne all the world besides, shoulde or could receiue more cōfort thē his maiesty should & would) yet if such chaūce should happē, his maiesty at our humble desires is pleased & cōtēted, not onely to accept & take vpon him the cure & charge of the educatiō, rule, order, & gouernment of such issues as of this most happy Mariage shall be borne betwene the queenes highnes & him: but also during the time of such gouernment, would by al wayes & meanes study, trauaile, and employ hymselfe to aduaunce the weale both publicke and priuate of thys Realme and dominions therunto belōging, according to the said trust in his maiestie reposed, with no lesse good will and affection, then if hys highnes had bene naturally borne amongest vs. In cōsideration wherof be it enacted by the king and the queenes most excellent maiesties, by the assent of the Lords spiritual and temporall, and the commons in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authoritie of the same. &c. as it is to be seene in the Acte more at large ratified and confirmed at þ^e same Parliament to the same entent and purpose.

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¶ Thus much out of the Acte and statute I thought to rehearse, to the entent, the reader may vnderstand, not so much how Parliaments may sometymes be deceaued (as by this child of Queene Mary may appeare) as rather what cause we Englishmen haue to render most earnest thanks vnto almighty God, who so mercifully, against the opinion, expectation and working of our aduersaries, hath helped & deliuered vs in this case, whch otherwise might haue opened such a wyndow to the Spanyardes to haue entred and replenished this land, that peraduēture by this time English men should haue enioyed no great quyet in their owne countrey: the Lord therfore make vs perpetually myndfull of his benefites. Amen.

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Thus we see then, how man doth purpose, but God disposeth as pleaseth hym. For all thys great labour, prouision, and order taken in the Parliament house for ther younge maister long looked for, comming so surely into the worlde,

in the ende appeared neither younge Maister, nor younge Maistres, that any man yet to thys day can heare of.

Futhermore, as the labour of the lay sort was herein deluded: so no lesse ridiculous it was to behold what lytle effect the prayers of the Popes Churchmen had with almighty God,MarginaliaThe prayers of the papistes of what litle effecte they are wyth God. who trauayled no lesse wyth their Processions, Masses, and Collectes, for the happy deliueraunce of thys young maister to come, as here followeth to be seene.  

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MarginaliaA prayer for queene Mary and her childe, turned out of Latin into English. O Most righteous lord God, which for the offence of the first woman, hast threatned vnto all women, a commō, sharpe, and ineuitable malediction, and hast enioyned them that they shoulde conceaue in sinne, and being conceiued, should be subiect to many and greuous torments, and finally be delyuered wyth the daūger and ieopardy of their life: We beseech thee, for thine exceding great goodnes & bottomles mercy, to mitigate the straightnes of that lawe. Asswage thine anger for a while: and chearish in the bosome of thy fauour and mercy, our most gracious Q. Mary, beyng now at the point of her deliueraunce. So helpe her, that without daunger of her life she may ouercome the sorow, and in due season bring forth a childe, in body beutifull and comely, in minde noble and valiant. So that afterward shee forgetting the trouble, may with ioy laude and prayse the bountifulnes of thy mercye, and together wyth vs prayse and blesse both thee & thy holy name, world without end. This (O Lord) we desire thee, we beseech thee, and most hartely craue of thee. Heare vs oh Lord, and graunt vs our petition: Let not the enemies of thy faith, and of thy church say: Where is their God? Amen.

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MarginaliaA deuoute prayer made by the Catholickes for Q. Mary being great and quicke wyth childe. O Most mighty lord God, which regardest the prayer of the humble, and despisest not their request, bow downe from thine hie habitation of the heauens, the eyes of thy mercy, vnto vs wretched sinners, bowing the knees of our hartes, and with many and deepe sighes, bewaylinge our sinnes and offences, humbly wyth eyes intent, and handes displayed praying, and beseeching thee, with the shield of thy protection, to defend Mary thy seruaunt, and our Queene who hath none other helper but thee, and whom through thy grace thou hast willed to be conceiued with childe: and at the time of her trauaile graciously with the helpe of thy right hand deliuer her, and from all daunger with the chylde in her conceaued, mercifully preserue.

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It hath seemed good in thy sight, mercifull Father, by thy seruaunt Mary, to worke these wōders, that is to say: in her handes to vanquish and ouerthrow the stout enemy, and to deliuer vs thy people out of the hands of *Marginalia* The Papistes cal the Protestants heretickes & enemies to the crosse of Christ, euen as Achab called Elias the disturber of Israel, whē he was onely the disturber himself. Hereticks, Infidels, enemies to thee, and to the crosse of thy beloued sonne Iesus Christ, that of thy seruaunt thou myghtest speake in farre countreyes. Therefore for these wonderfull workes which thou doest to thy seruauntes, thou art magnified Lord God for euer, and we thy people blesse thee the God of heauen, which hast wrought vpon vs this great mercy, & hast excluded from vs the Hereticke, the enemye of truth, þ^e persecuter of thy church. We know, we know, that we haue greuously (Lord) sinned, that we haue bene deceaued by vanitie, & that we haue forsaken thee our God. Our iniquities bee multiplied on our head, & our sinnes bee increased vp to heauen, and we our selues haue offended, and our Princes, and our priests for these our sinnes haue deserued a Tyraunt to our Gouernour, that should bring our life to bitternes. We be not worthy to haue so gentle & mercifull a Queene, so godly a ruler, and finally so vertuous a prince: at þ^e very beginning of whose raigne, a new light as it were, of Gods religion, seemed to vs for to spring and rise. MarginaliaQ. Mary cōpared of the Papistes to Q. Iudith.The Iewes did blesse the widow Iudith wyth one voyce, saying: Thou art the glory of Ierusalem, thou art the ioye of Israell, thou art the honour of our people, for that thou hast loued chastitie, and thou shalt be be blessed for euer.

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And we the English people, wyth one agreable consent do crye: MarginaliaMarke how forgetting his praier, he falleth to the praysing of Q. Mary.Thou Mary art the glory of Englād, our ioy, the honor of thy people, for that thou hast embraced chastitie: thine hart is strengthened, for the hand of our Lord hath comforted thee, and therfore thou shalt be blessed for euer. But bow downe, O most mercifull Father, thine eare, and open thine eyes, and behold our affliction, and our humble confession. Thou knowest lord, that agaynst Philip, not by humane, but by thy ordinaunce our King, and agaynst thy seruaunt Mary by thy prouidence our Queene, the restorers & maintainers of thy Testament and of the faith, &

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