Eustace Chapuys to Emperor Charles V., September 10, 1533.

Chapuys, ambassador to the Holy Roman Emperor, Charles V, reports back the birth to Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn of a daughter. He and his master being a staunch Catholics, he refers to Boleyn not as wife and queen but as “the king’s mistress”. The disappointment is sure to have been properly described up to the point where the English Court  is said to have consulted “wizards, and witches”.  The reference was meant to point up the fact that English clergy did not accept the Pope as the head of the English church. This reduced them to the status of wizards and witches in the eyes of the Imperial Court. The claim that they consulted their god on the gender of the child and their prophesy proved false further highlights their god is false.

The opening reference to the diplomatic courier raises a minor question. The endorsement of three letters, dated over two weeks apart, on the bottom of the letter[1], likely refers to three letters arriving in a regularly scheduled diplomatic mail pouch.  The courier would, then, have left no earlier than September 27.  It is possible that the birth merited a special delivery but was held for further processing at the Imperial seat before being collected together with others to send on to Monçon.

London, September 10, 1533.[2]

Having received no notice of the departure of this courier till just as he was about to start on his journey, and moreover, having no important news to communicate just now, I will be brief. On Sunday last, on the eve of Lady Day, about 3 o'clock in the afternoon, the King's mistress was delivered of a girl, to the great disappointment and sorrow of the King, of the Lady herself, and of others of her party, and to the great shame and confusion of physicians, astrologers, wizards, and witches, all of whom affirmed that it would be a boy. The people in general have rejoiced at the discomfiture of those who attach faith to such divinations, and who, whatever face they may put on the present occasion, are nevertheless exceedingly affected and ashamed.

The Lord Mayor and aldermen of this city, the heads of guilds, and other citizens of note have been invited to the christening, as well as the two French ambassadors. The new born is to be christened at Greenwich. The godmothers will be the mother-in-law to the Duke of Norfolk and the Marchioness of Exeter; the Archbishop of Canterbury to hold the child at the font, and the Bishop of London to christen her. She is to be called Mary as the Princess: which title, as I have been informed from various quarters, will be taken away from its true and legitimate owner, and given to this spurious daughter of the King. If so we shall soon hear.

It must, therefore, be concluded that God has entirely abandoned this King, and left him a prey to his own misfortune, and to his obstinate blindness that he may be punished and completely ruined. Indeed there is already every appearance of this, for if we consider the almost general indignation which this, the King's second marriage, and consequent acts have produced among the people, both high and low, which is likely to be increased should he, as I am assured he will, defraud the Princess of her title, for the Princess is adored, as she well deserves it, by the whole nation. I am aware that this indignation against the King and his mistress, like all other sentiments and affections of the popular masses, will subside and cool down unless taken up in time and fostered at the proper moment; but so deeply rooted is it in people's minds, and so just the cause of it, that it will take a long time before the nation, or at least the great majority, forgets it.

It has been settled that to-morrow morning I am to go to Court to meet the Privy Councillors and fix upon the best means of recovering the property taken on board of the Spanish ships by the Lubeckians. I shall not fail to acquaint Your Majesty with the result of the conference; in the meantime I have considered it my duty to inform you of the above facts. — London, 10th September 1533.

Signed: "Eustace Chapuys."

Addressed: "To the Emperor."

Indorsed: "From the Emperor's ambassador in England, of the 10th, 12th, and 27th of September. Received on the 1st of October at Monçon."

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[1] It is possible that the endorsement is not fully described and that it was attested on a separate sheet of paper.

[2] Calendar of State Papers,… Spain… Vol. 4 Part 2 continuation (1882), 789.

Also at Virtual Grub Street:

A Model for Lady Macbeth.  July 12, 2020.  “In Macbeth, the Lady of the castle would also seem to be her Lord’s indomitable will.  She will see the deeds done that need be done in order for him to pass the daunting tests and wear the crown.”

A Most Curious Account of the Funeral of Queen Elizabeth I: April 28, 1603.  April 28, 2019.  “Once it was clear that James I would face no serious challenges, Cecil and the others could begin to give attention to the matter of the Queen’s funeral.”

Queen Elizabeth I’s Heart and the French Ambassador.  April 3, 2019.  “…the Queen of England, with the permission of her physicians, has been able to come out of her private chamber, she has permitted me… to see her…”

Gossip as History: The Murder of Amy Robsart. February 17, 2020. "The first sudden death Leicester was rumored to have caused was that of his wife, Amy Robsart, in 1560. In that year, it was still not clear whether the Queen would marry. But certainly not her beloved Leicester if he were married."

Check out the English Renaissance Article Index for many more articles and reviews about this fascinating time and about the Shakespeare Authorship Question.

Check out the English Renaissance Letter Index for many letters from this fascinating time, some related to the Shakespeare Authorship Question.