REIGN OF ELIZABETH. [en. 60. violence. She sent Dr "Wilson to the States, to caution them against listening to the promises which would be made them by Don John. She sent Sir Edward Horsey to Don John, to tell him that she had forbidden the States to renounce their allegiance to Spain. She said generally, that she would help the Provinces to main- tain their liberties. She intimated privately to Schwe- genhem, who was a Catholic, that she had no liking for the Prince of Orange, that peace must not be imperilled by difficulties about liberty of conscience; and that as a condition of her support the States must accept what- ever religion the King of Spain might be pleased to impose on them. 1 On this point she was limpidly clear. She was de- termined that there should be no mistake about it. The creed in which the Hollanders had been brought up would do as well for them as it had done for their fathers. 2 1 ' S a M a te leur a pr este de 1' argent -a condition de se mainteniren F obeis- ance du Roy et de recepvoir telle religion que leur Roy vouldra et non aultre. C'est ce que M. de Schwe- genhem leur a diet de la part de sa Ma te .' Villiers (chaplain to the Prince of Orange) to Walsingham, February 4,1577' MSS. Flanders. 2 Not througl Schwegenhem only, but by other means she had expressed her resolution on the mat- ter. The Prince of Orange found soon after ' Que sa Ma avoit delibere de conseiller Messieurs des Estatz de maintenir la religion Romaine en la quelle ils ont este nez et eslevez, chose qui nous seroit tant preju- diciable que rien ne nous sqauroit venir plus mal a propos en ce temps- cy-' And again later ' Depuis les miennes du jour d'hier j'ay rec,eu ung extraict de 1'article touchant la volunte de sa Mat* en ce qui touche la religion Romaine, lequel a este tire du rap- port de M. de Havrech. Aussi que tant s'en fault qu'ellevouloist ingerer d'y introduire aucune nouvellete que mesmes au contraire desiroit bien sa
