before the world knew, for a cordial alliance, of which Inore will be said presently.
Meanwhile the Queen had given birth in February to a daughter named Mary, who was afterwards Queen of England; and in May Margaret, Queen of Scotland, came to her brother's Court at Greenwich. Her stay in England gave Henry very great power in dealing with the Northern kingdom. Even at Harbottle and Morpeth she had fallen under the power of Lord Dacre, a great master of intrigue, who understood the King's general objects and first induced her to prefer demands which were refused by the Scotch lords; then, later, to sign a bill of complaints against Albany, in which it was even insinuated that the King was not safe in his hands, and that the death of the King's younger brother was probably due to the Duke. This, however, was only a State-paper to be used when convenient; for she was at that very time corresponding with Albany, who at her request liberated her friends from prison, agreed to give up her dowry, and showed every desire to satisfy her. Yet, on June 1, 1516, Henry wrote to the Scotch lords a formal demand for Albany's removal; but he was met by an absolute refusal on July 4. Albany, however, was really desirous to revisit France, and to this end he made a treaty with Wolsey on July 24, arranged for a prolongation of the truce and a settlement of Margaret's demands, and proposed to pass through England on his way, and there conclude a perpetual peace. At a later date, he obtained an unwilling permission from the Scotch Parliament to return to France for a time; but the visit to England had to be abandoned.
He returned to France in June, 1517, and in the course of the same month Margaret re-entered Scotland, having left London on May 16. Little more than a fortnight before her departure occurred the formidable riot of the London apprentices called Evil Mayday. It arose out of a conspiracy against foreigners, on whose houses a general attack was made during the night of April 30. This outbreak was not unexpected; but the civic authorities, in spite of a serious warning from Wolsey, who had to protect his own house at Westminster with a guard and artillery, failed to take adequate steps to prevent it. Troops were despatched into the City by various routes, and cannon were used to quell the disturbance. Two hundred and seventy-eight citizens were taken prisoners, of whom sixty were hanged in different parts of the City, and some beheaded and quartered, the offence being counted treason on account of the King's amity with foreign princes. The rest were pardoned at the intercession of the Queen and Wolsey.
Another public calamity which speedily followed was a severe outbreak of the Sweating Sickness-an epidemic which first made notable ravages in England immediately after the accession of Henry VII (1485). Wolsey was dangerously ill of it, and the Court was obliged, both this year and, in the year following (1518), to withdraw from the neighbourhood of London for fear of the infection.
