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Upon these and some other articles that were read, it was demanded of the nobility and of the commons, what they judged both of the truth and desert of these articles, who all agreed that the crimes were notorious, and King Richard was worthy for the same to be deposed from all princely honour and kingly government. The Duke of York who a little before had been governor of the realm for the King, thought it best that King Richard should voluntarily resign, and also be solemnly deposed by consent of all the states of the realm, for resignation only would be imputed to fear, and deprivation to force; and therefore this being concluded on, there came Thomas Archbishop of Canterbury, the Archbishop of York, the Bishop of Hereford, the Duke of Lancaster, and several other lords and abbots to King Richard in the Tower of London.

When all were set in their places, King Richard was brought forth apparelled in his royal robes, the crown on his head and the sceptre in his hand, and was placed among them in a chair of state; never was a prince so georgeous with less glory and greater grief, to whom it was not disgrace sufficient to lose both the honour and ornaments of a king, but he must openly do even in great scorn renounce the one and deliver up the other. After a little pause and expectation, the King rose from his seat, and spake to the assembly these words, or to this effect;

"I assure myself that some at this present, and many hereafter will account my case lamentable, either that I have deserved this dejection if it be just, or if it be wrongful, that I could not avoid it; indeed I do confess that many times I have shewed myself both less provident and less painful for the benefit of the commonwealth than I should, or might, or intended to do hereafter; and have in my actions more respected the satisfying of my own particular humour than either justice to some private persons, or the common good of all, yet I did not at any time omit duty, or commit grievance upon natural dullness, or set malice, but partly by abuse of corrupt councellors, partly by error of my youthful judgment, and now the remembrance of these oversights is not more unpleasant to any man than myself, and the rather, because I have no means left either to recompence the injuries which I have done, or to testify to the world my reformed affections which experience and stayedness of years had already corrected, and would daily have framed to more perfection.

"But whether all the imputations wherewith I am charged be true, either in substance or in such quality as they are laid, or

whether being true, they are so heinous as to force these extremities, or whether any other prince, especially in the heat of youth, and in the space of twenty-two years, the time of my unfortunate reign, doth not sometimes either for advantage, or upon displeasure in as deep manner grieve some particular subject, I will not now examine; it helpeth not to use any defence, neither is it to any purpose to complain, there is left no room for the one nor pity for the other, and therefore I refer it to the judgment of God, and your less distempered considerations.

"I accuse no man, I blame no fortune, I complain of nothing, I have no pleasure in such vain and needless comforts, if I had minded to have stood upon terms, I know I have great favourers abroad, and I hope some friends at home, who would have been ready, yea very forward on my behalf to have begun a bloody and doubtful war; but I esteem not my dignity at so high a rate or value, as to venture the loss of so much English blood, and the wasting and desolation of such a flourishing kingdom as this, might have occasioned; therefore that the commonwealth may rather rise by my fall, than I stand by the ruin thereof, I willingly yield to your desires, and am here come to dispossess myself of all public authority and title, and to make it free and lawful for you to create for your King Henry Duke of Lancaster, my cousin german, whom I know to be as worthy to take that place as I see you are willing to give it to him."

Then he read openly the form of his resignation, which discharged his subjects from all oaths and fealty, &c. to which the King subscribed and was sworn; after which he delivered with his own hands the crown, the sceptre, and the robe to the Duke of Lancaster, wishing him more happiness therewith than ever he enjoyed, desiring him and the rest to permit him to live safely in a private and obscure life, and not altogether forget he had been their King.

Upon October 13 following, the Duke of Lancaster was crowned King by the name of Henry the Fourth, and King Richard was removed to Pomfret Castle, but some of the lords being discontented with Henry used many endeavours to restore Richard again, which caused great wars and rebellions, and occasioned such a melancholy in King Henry, that one time sitting at his table, he sighing said, "Have I no faithful friend who will deliver me from him that would be my death." This speech was especially noted by one Sir Piers of Exton, who presently with eight persons in his company came to Pomfret, commanding the esquire who was taster to King

Richard to be so no more, whereat the King marvelling, asked him the reason: sir, said he, I am otherwise commanded by Sir Piers, of Exton, who is newly come from King Henry; when King Richard heard that word he took the carving-knife in his hand, and struck the esquire lightly on the head, saying, "The Devil take Henry of Lancaster and thee together;" and with that word Sir Piers entered the chamber with eight armed men, every one having a bill in his hand. King Richard perceiving this, put the table from him, and stepping to the foremost man, wrested the bill out of his hands, and slew four of those that thus came to assault him; Sir Piers lept to the chair where King Richard used to sit, whilst the rest chased him about the chamber; at last being forced to the place where Sir Piers was, he, with a stroke of his pole-ax upon his head felled him down, and so ended his miserable life. It is said, that at the point of his death, the King gathered some spirit, and with a faint and feeble voice, groaned forth these words:

"My great grandfather, King Edward the Ild. was in this manner deposed, imprisoned and murdered, by which means my grandfather King Edward the IIld obtained the crown, and now is the punishment of that injury poured upon his next successor; well, this may be just for me to suffer, but not right for you to do. Your King for a time may rejoice at my death, and enjoy his desire, but let him qualify his pleasures with expectation of the same justice; for God, who measureth all our actions by the malice of our minds will not suffer this to go unpunished."

Sir Piers having thus slain the King, wept bitterly, and a great part of this prophetic speech came to pass in a short time after; King Richard thus dead, his body was embalmed and covered with lead, except his face, and then brought to London, where it lay in St. Paul's Church three days unburied, that all might see he was dead. And this was the end of this unfortunate Prince, in which there was a wonderful concurrence of fortune in behalf of King Henry, and against Richard, but when all is done, there is no resisting the Decree of Heaven; but since that is unknown to us, and perhaps but conditional, we shall be manifest traitors to ourselves if we use not our uttermost endeavours to divert it; so that it may be truly said that Richard lost his crown more by his own fault, than by the treason of any other. After this long diversion let us now return to the Tower of London.

In 1458 there were justs and tournaments in the Tower. In 1478, the Duke of Clarence was drowned in a butt of Malmsey within the Tower. Elizabeth, wife to King Henry VII. died in the Tower in

childbed, 1502. In the year 1512, the chapel in the high White Tower was burnt. Queen Ann Bullein was beheaded in the Tower, 1541; and a little after Catherine Howard, both wives to Henry the VIIIth. In 1546, a strange accident happened in the Tower, for one Foxly, who was pot-maker for the mint, falling a sleep could not be awakened by pinching, beating, or burning for fourteen days; at which time he awoke as fresh as the first day he began to sleep.

In King Henry the VIIIth's time the Tower was often full of prisoners, and among others Sir Thomas More, Lord Chancellor of England, who was kept close prisoner, and at last they took from him all his books, whereupon he shut up the prison windows and lived in darkness; and being asked the reason, he answered, it is time to shut up shop when the wares are all gone. At his first entrance into the Tower, the gentleman porter demanded his fee, which is the upper garment, whereupon Sir Thomas pulled off his cap to give it him, but that not sufficing, he pulled out a handful of angels, and gave him a good many, a knight that was in his company telling him, that he was glad to see him have so many angels: yes, answered he, I love to carry my friends always about me. Not long after, the Lady Jane was beheaded there, and upon the scaffold she made a most ingenious speech, full of pity; that she came thither to serve for an example to posterity, that innocence cannot be any protection against greatness; and that she was come thither not for aspiring to a crown, but for refusing one when it was offered her.

In King James's time, there was no blood spilt in the Tower, or upon Tower Hill, only Sir Gervase Elways was hanged there when he was Lieutenant, about the murder of Sir Thomas Overbury, and one remarkable passage there was in his speech upon the ladder, "That being in the low-countries, and much addicted to gaming, he made a serious wish, that if ever he played more above such a sum, he might be hanged, but he violated the oath, and so the just judgment of Heaven fell upon him according to his words." The Earl of Castlehaven in the year 1631, was brought from the Tower to be executed for horrid crimes; and divers others since have been executed there, as the Earl of Strafford, Archbishop Laud, and many more.

This stately Tower serves not only for a goal to detain prisoners, but for many other uses; it is a strong fort, or citadel, which secures both city and river. It is the treasury of the jewels and ornaments of the crown; it conserves all the old records of the courts of justice at Westminster, it is the place for the royal mint, and the coinage of gold and silver, it is the chief magazine and armory of the whole land

for martial engines and provision, and there only is the brabe or rack, usually called the Duke of Exeter's daughter, because he was the first inventor of it, and lastly it is a great ornament, by the situation of it, both to the river and city.

This city hath had divers other towers besides; one at the north end of London Bridge, which is now utterly demolished, and the other at the south end, which hath suffered many accidents of fireing, and otherwise, and was still repaired at the charge of the city. Upon this gate the heads of traitors are commonly placed, and some there are thereon at this day. Historians mention two castles that were built in the west part of the city, one called the Castle of Montfiquet, built by a lord of that name, which is now demolished; and the Black Fryars rose up instead of it; the other called Baynard's Castles from one Baynard, whose family long enjoyed it; and after that Robert Fitz-Walter, who was called Banner-Bearer of the City of London, and had great privileges. This castle fell afterwards to the Earl of March, who was crowned there by the title of Edward the IVth, to whom the city always stuck very close; but in the seventh year of his reign many of the greatest men in London were accused of high treason, and divers aldermen, whereof they were acquited, yet did they forfeit their goods to the value of forty thousand marks, and among them Sir Thomas Cook, formerly Lord Mayor, without Hawkins, were committed to the Tower, neither could be discharged without paying eight thousand marks to the King. Henry the VIIth repaired Baynard's Castle, and rid through the city in state, with all the knights of the garter, from the Tower to St. Paul's Church, where they heard mass, and lodged that night at Baynard's Castle, Queen Mary was likewise proclaimed at Baynard's Castle, though the Lady Jane had been proclaimed a little before.

There was also another tower or castle near Baynard's Castle, but there is now no sign of it remaining; and another in the place where Bridewell now stands, which being demolished; yet there was a royal palace left where the Kings of England kept their courts, and King John summoned a parliament there; and afterward Henry the VIIIth repaired it, and made it much more stately for the entertainment of his nephew, Charles V. Emperor and King of Spain, who in the year 1522, was magnificently treated there.

There was another Tower called the Tower Royal, where King Stephen kept his court. Barbican was likewise another Tower. There was another called Serne's Tower, in Bucklersbury, where we read Edward the IIId kept his court, and gave it afterward to his free chapel of St. Stephen in Westminster, now called Henry the VIlth's

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