of. His reading of Henry’s character was exactly the same as Wolsey’s. ‘I will,’ he said, ‘so work matters that the King shall be informed of every penny that he hath spent here; and when that great expense is once in his head, it shall never be forgotten; there is one good point. And then I will inform him how he hath given away to one man 700 marks by year, and then will the King swear “By God’s Body, have I spent so much money and have given away my land.” I will find the means to put the matter in the King’s head, after that wise as shall be to his displeasure; and yet shall he not know which way it came.’ Paulet gave Alen a most amusing description of the fashion in which Henry treated the minister to whom he gave such power. ‘The King beknaveth him twice a week and sometimes knocks him well about the pate; and yet when he hath been well pommelled about the head, and shaken up as it were a dog, he will come out into the great chamber shaking of his bush with as merry a countenance as though he might rule all the roast.’ The appointment of the High Commissioners was a ‘flym flawe to stop the imagination of the King and Council’ as to Cromwell’s object in promoting great grants to Lord Butler. The suggestion of course is that Cromwell was bribed by Butler, and the fact that Paulet was not punished shows that there were limitations to the minister’s power. Paulet said as much, or nearly as much, to Grey as to Alen and Aylmer, and Grey repeated it to the King with some softening of the words. Paulet was evidently hostile to the Butlers; so was Grey, and the fact that they had been on friendly terms was thought evidence of their conspiring in the Geraldine interest.218
Charges against Grey. Circuit of the Council in the South, 1539.
Aylmer and Alen were less than two months in London, but they left behind them a mass of accusations against Grey which in time brought forth fruit. Alen soon afterwards received the Great Seal, and during the last days of 1538 proceeded on a tour in the South with the general view of establishing the King’s supremacy, of improving the revenue, and of providing for the administration of justice. Archbishop Browne, Brabazon, and Aylmer accompanied the new Chancellor. At Carlow the party enjoyed Lord Butler’s Christmas hospitalities, and the old Earl treated them well at Kilkenny, where they spent New Year’s day, and where Browne preached to a large congregation. English translations of the Pater Noster, Ave Maria, Articles, and Ten Commandments were published, and copies given to the Bishop and other dignitaries, who were ordered to promulgate them wherever they had jurisdiction. Next morning several felons were hanged, and certain concealed lands sequestrated to the King’s use; neither of which proceedings were calculated to increase his Majesty’s popularity. The councillors then went to Ross, which they found much decayed through the rivalry of Waterford and the disorders of the Kavanaghs. Here the Archbishop preached again. At Wexford there was another sermon, and the Kilkenny ceremonies were repeated, including the execution of divers malefactors. The Councillors were dissatisfied with Saintloo’s conduct as seneschal, and accused him of converting fines and forfeited recognizances to his own use. Badly armed and badly horsed, the soldiers appeared to do the people less good by their protection than they did harm by their extortion. The evils inherent to all palatinate jurisdictions were greatly aggravated by the seneschal’s lax administration. It was doubtful whether he had the right to appoint a deputy at all. He had nevertheless made such an appointment by parole and without any formal record, and his irregular substitute had arrogated all the powers of a Judge of Assize.219
The royal supremacy. The Munster Bishops.
From Wexford Alen and his companions went to Waterford, where Browne preached to a great audience, and where the new formularies were again published. The usual hangings followed. Four felons suffered, ‘accompanied with another thief, a friar, whom, among the residue, we commanded to be hanged in his habit, and so to remain upon the gallows, for a mirror to all other his brethren to live truly.’ The assizes or sessions were attended only by the inhabitants of Lord Power’s portion of the county of Waterford. The other and larger division of the shire belonged to Gerald MacShane of Decies, who pretended to hold of the Desmonds, and altogether ignored his tenure of the royal honour of Dungarvan. The Lord of Decies, James Fitzjohn of Desmond, the White Knight, and Sir Thomas Butler of Cahir were summoned with several others. Butler came to Clonmel and made a favourable impression, but the Geraldines sent only ‘frivolous, false, feigned excuses, not consonant to their allegiance.’ Browne preached again at Clonmel in the presence of two archbishops and eight bishops, all of whom afterwards, before the whole congregation, took the oath of supremacy, and swore to maintain the succession as established by law.220
Taxation of southern counties.
After much pressing, the inhabitants of Wexford, Waterford, Kilkenny, and Tipperary consented to pay a yearly subsidy to the King; 100 marks for Wexford, and 50l. for each of the other three. This source of revenue was quite new, and the Council were very proud of inventing it; but they confessed to doubts as to its substantial value, especially in Waterford, where Sir Gerald MacShane had power to pay or to withhold. From Clonmel the councillors returned to Dublin by Kilkenny, where they hanged one man more and levied some further fines. They had been absent from the capital five weeks.221
Grey in Ulster. The Scots, 1539.
About the time that the Chancellor and his companions were turning homewards, Grey undertook another expedition against O’Neill. Again the ostensible object was to catch young Gerald of Kildare, and in this the Lord Deputy failed. But he very nearly caught O’Neill himself, actually carried off his ‘housewife,’ and ravaged much of his country. O’Donnell was present, or at least some of his people, for the horse which his standard-bearer rode was taken. James Fitzjohn of Desmond was in alliance with the two great northern chiefs to protect the ‘naughty boy,’ as Alen called Gerald, and if possible to force the King to restore him. The bastard Geraldines of the Pale were ready to help their natural leader, who grew more dangerous as he grew older. The Antrim Scots were always available for service against the English Government, and Brabazon wished to cripple them by a naval expedition. O’Neill and O’Donnell now sent Roderick O’Donnell, Bishop of Derry, to Scotland for 6,000 Redshanks. In the meantime they professed themselves ready to treat with Grey, and promised to bring young Gerald to meet him on the last day of April at Carrick Bradagh, near Dundalk. They never came, and Grey penetrated to Armagh in spite of bad weather and foul ways. O’Neill still refused to show himself or to give any hostage, but he professed peaceable intentions. The weather made it impossible to advance further, and Aylmer was sent to Blackwater, where he succeeded in making a truce. Again, Grey says that he had intended to seize his nephew by fair means or foul. ‘If they had kept pointment with me having young Gerald with them, howsoever the thing had chanced by the oath that I have made unto your Grace, they should have left the young Gerald behind them quick or dead. If it were the pleasure of God I would that I might once have a sight of him whom as yet I never saw with my eyes.’222
The O’Tooles.
The O’Tooles had never been punished for their victory over Kelway, and Grey, who had for the moment no worse enemy than a gouty foot, resolved to chastise them. They proposed to parley near Ballymore Eustace, but did not come. Though in great pain, Grey rode to Powerscourt in a day, entered the mountains and penetrated to Glenmalure, cutting the woods on both sides as he went. ‘Before my coming thither,’ he said, ‘I think there never was Deputy with carts there.’ He had some skirmishing with the natives, but took no man of importance, and returned to Maynooth without having improved his gout.223
Intrigues concerning Gerald of Kildare.
A confederacy had at this time been formed in favour of young Gerald. His own claims might not have been enough, in spite of Lady Eleanor O’Donnell’s efforts, but Henry’s ecclesiastical policy
