My verye singular good Lord, after my humblest recommendacion, I have receyved your Lettre sent to me by M. Sands, in the whych it hathe pleased your good Lordship to shewe me, that after dyvers comunicacions had by the kinges Grace wyth hys Counsell uppon thestate & condicion of the Toune & Marches of Calis & other Fortryses within the same, & of theyr ruynes, decayes, mutacyons, and alteracions, fro the auncyent estatuz and ordinances, His Grace for remedye in that behalve, by th'advyse of hys said Counsell, hathe determyned to send thidder, with convenyent diligence, certayne hys Comissioners a not only to view the saide ruynes & decayes, and theruppon to advertyse hys Grace what reformacions, reparacions, & fortificacions be necessary to be made in that partye; but also substancyally to examyn th'abuses of the sayde auncient ordinancies, & the insufficienties of the souldiours, wyth all other thyngs that may sounde to the daungier of the sayd Toune, Marches, & Fortryses. And therof to make relacion & reaport to Hys Grace & hys Counsell for spedye remedye to be provyded for the same. And over thys your good Lordship sheweth to me by your sayde Lettre, that forasmuch as I have at sundry tymes taken travayle in the saide maters, & have knowlege of theme, & that the Kynges Grace is also enformed that I have certayne bokes concernyng

a They were, Sir William Fytzwilliam, Thomas Walsh, John Daker, George Poulet, and Antony Sentleger.

H

the sayde maters, Hys Grace therfor willeth, that, all other thyngs set apartt, I doo repaire incontynent to Hys Grace, bryngeng wyth me all such Bokes as I have concerneng the premisses.

My very singular good Lord, in my humblest wyse I beseche you that withowt your displeasor I may frely shewe you the trowble that your saide lettres hathe put my mynde in.

Truely my singular good Lord, syns the Kynges Grace lycenced me to remayne in my chyrche & therabowts uppon my cure, Wherin I have be almost by the space of xxx yeres so negligent, that of iiij severall Chathedrall Chyrches that I have successively had, ther be two, scilicet, Excestre & Wellys, that I never see; and innumerable sawles wherof I never see the bodyes; and specially sens by hys licence I left the kepyng of hys Privy Seale, & most specially sens my last departyng fro your good Lordship & the Counsell, I have determyned, &, bytwixt God & me, utterly renouncyed the medlyng with wordly a maters; specially concernyng the werre or any thyng to it apperteigneng (wherof for the many intollerable enormytes that I have seen ensue by the said werre in tyme past, I have noo littell remorse in my conscience,) thynkeng that if I dyd contynuall penance for it all the dayes of my lyfe, though I shuld lyfe xx yeres longar then I may doo, I cowde not yit make sufficient recompense therfor. And nowe my good lord to be called to forti

a worldly.

ficacions of Townes, & places of Werre, or to any mater concerneng the werre, beyng of the age of lxx yeres & above, & lokyng daily to dye, the whych if I dyd beyng in any such medlyng of the werre, I thynk I shuld dye in dispeyr. No marvayll my Lord, the premisses considered, if thys my present vocacion to such maters, trowble not a littell my spiritts. I fere that I shall not by raison therof be in such quyetnes that I shall dar say masse thies next v. or vi. dayes.

And yet my nowne good Lord, I am not unremembred of my deutye towardes the Kyng my most drad kynde soveraigne Lord, the soon & successor of the Kyng that was my maker & promotor to the dignytie that I unworthely doo occupye; & to all that I have in erthe; and therfor if Hys Grace call or comaunde me to doo that thyng that may become soo old a preest to doo, verely my Lord to spend my lyve & all my pour substance I shall never refuse it; but by licence of your good Lordship the maters for the whych Hys Grace wolleth me to come to the same, be all of a nother sort, qualitie, & nature, it becommeth me noo thyng nowe to medle, neyther by way of counsell nor faict, wyth municions, or fortificacions of Townes & places of Werr.

Also my Lord I had never comission, charge, nor commaundement, by wryteng or worde, to medle wyth the saide fortificacions, neyther of Calys, Hams, nor Guynes; nor never dyd I medle wyth theme in deed.

Trowthe it is, that byfore the Siege of Boleigne, I

and other, to ryght a good noumbre, as ambassadors, met & hade many treaties & communicacions wyth th'ambassadors of France, some tyme at Boleyng, some tyme at Calys, & somtyme at Sandyngfeld; & after all my compaygnye, except Sir John Doon & Sir John Troblevyld, a were retorned into England, they two and I mette at Boleigne dyverse tymes wyth the lord Quardis: all whych season indured frome abowts mychaelmas to it was abowts Candelmas then next ensueng; and in the moyne tyme, besyds the tymes of the said metyngs, I contynued allwayes at Calais; & dureng that tyme, by the kynges ordynance that ded is, whos saule God pardon, I medled wyth the haven of Calice, & in my mynd brought it to that condicion, that if the scluse that I caused to be made hade not be destroyed by Sir John Turbrevyle then thresorier of Calice, it had be nowe a good havyn. And also in the meayne tyme I rode to Hams & Guysnes, to make good chere wyth the capytayns; but farther dyd I never medle in noon of the saide places. And as for the Bokes that it is supposed I shuld have, verely my Lord noon I have, nor never had, nor never see noon, savyng suche as be wont to remaigne in the Counsell House of Calice, and in the handes of th' Officers and the Counsell ther, concernyng the ordre of the retenue, and the rule of the Toune; wherof I never had copye nor noon desired to have.

* Turbervyle.

My singular good Lord, in my most humble wyse I beseche your good lordship favorabely & beningly to interpretate & take the premisses, and, in consideracion of the same, to be soo good lord to me as by your good meanys thys my excuse, grounded uppon resonable causes, may be acceptable to the Kynges Grace, to you my Lord, and all other of the Kynges most honorable Counsell.

Also my Lord, I have not soo sklenderly buyldyd my selve, nor soo weykly estableshed my house in thies parties, that I can honestely or conveniently so sodenly depart hens, nor incontynent come theder. I have also many causes in my handes bothe of correccions & justice, that if I shuld sodenly relinquyshe theme, I shuld unresonabely & inhonestly disapoynt many maters & persons, to my great rebuke & sclaundre. And oonys in xv. dayes I visit my Cathedrall Chyrche, & the Monasterye of Hyde, whych may not soo sodenly be discontenued.

Finally my Lord, I also beseche your good lordship, that in case thies advised fortificacions & municions of Calice and the other places, be ordeyned to be doo for suspicion of Werre or Siege, that then the reparacion and ryggyng of Ships be in lyke wyse avaunced, for if owr enemyes be lordes of the See, Calice may not long hold. In lyke wyse the Isle of Wyght whych hathe no Capitaigne bydyng wythin it, and is full sklendrely inhabit, and wors fortifyed & provyded of artillarye,