At thys tyme, I am to trye my friendes: amonge whiche consideringe owre owlde aquayntance, familiarite heertofore, & alliance of houses, (then whiche can be noo streyghter) as of my Broother, I presume especiallye. Whearfore at thys tyme, whearas sume good fortune (yf yt be backed by friendes) doothe in a manner presente yt selfe. I moost ernestlye crave yowre furtherance soo fare as the place and fauoure yow howlde may admite. And that ys as I conceyve: that yf her Magestie be willinge, to confer the Praecidentcie of Waales to me, that I may assure my selfe of yowre voice in Councell rather then a stranger. Not that I
desyre yow showlde bee a mover, but a furtherer. for as the tyme ys yt weare nott reasone. But yf yt shall pleas her Magestie in regard of my yowthe tyme & fortune spent in her Courte, addinge therto her magesties fauours, & promises, whiche drue me one wythe ought any mistruste, the moore to praesume in myne owne expences, to confer soo good a turne to me. that then wythe yowre good woorde, and brotherlye friendshipe, yow will incorage her forwarde, and further yt as yow may. for I know her Magestie ys of that princlye dispositione that they shall nott be deceyved whiche put there truste in her. Whiche good office in yow, I will never forgett; and
alwayes to my powre acknowlege in loue & kyndnes.
hoopinge that as wee bee knytt neare in alliance: so hearafter moore nearer by
good and friendly offices. Thus most ernestlye desyringe yow to haue me in
friendlye remembrance, when tyme servethe: I take my leaue. thys 2d of
Februarie.
Yowre assured and louinge
Brother.
(signed) Edward
Addressed (in Oxford’s hand): To
the ryght honorable and my very good Broother Sir Robert Cecil of her Magesties
priuie counsel, principle Secretarie & Master of the wardes. [seal]
Endorsed: 1600 february 2; Erl of
Oxford to my master.
Also at Virtual Grub Street:
- A 1572 Oxford Letter and the Player’s Speech in Hamlet. August 11, 2020. “The player’s speech has been a source of consternation among Shakespeare scholars for above 200 years. Why was Aeneas’ tale chosen as the subject?”
- Gutenberg, proto-Hack Writers and Shakespeare. May 26, 2020. “A less well known effect of the Reformation was that many young Catholic men who had taken religious orders in order to receive an education began to lead lives at large from monastic discipline. Like Erasmus and Rabelais they took up the pen.”
- Shakespeare’s Funeral Meats. May 13, 2020. “Famous as this has been since its discovery, it has been willfully misread more often than not. No mainstream scholar had any use for a reference to Hamlet years before it was supposed to have been written.”
- Shakespeare Scholarship in the Internet Age. August 12, 2018. “I love to be presented with a legitimate challenge to any of my work. This does not change the fact that such challenges are followed by an unpleasant sinking feeling. Had I missed something?”
- 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 Letters Index: Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of Oxford for many letters from this fascinating time, some related to the Shakespeare Authorship Question.
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