



Produced by Bryan Ness and the Online Distributed
Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was
produced from images generously made available by The
Internet Archive/Canadian Libraries.)









BOOKS LATELY PUBLISHED BY

ADAM BLACK, EDINBURGH, AND LONGMAN, REES, ORME, BROWN, & GREEN LONDON.

A SYSTEM of UNIVERSAL GEOGRAPHY, by M. MALTE-BRUN, Editor of the "Annales
des Voyages," &c. Parts I. to XII. price 7s. 6d. each. To be completed in
Fourteen Parts.

The Publishers are extremely happy to be able to state, that,
notwithstanding the lamented death of M. Malte-Brun, the remainder of this
great work, comprising the description of WESTERN EUROPE, will be
completed in a style every way worthy of what has been already executed.
The papers and collections of M. Malte-Brun have been placed in the hands
of M. Valcknaer, with whose numerous and valuable contributions to
geographical science the scientific portion of the public have been long
and familiarly acquainted. M. Balbi, the celebrated author of the _Essai
Statistique sur le Royaume de Portugal_, has undertaken to superintend and
complete that portion of the work which relates to Italy, Spain, and
Portugal. There can, therefore, be no doubt, that the high and established
character of the Original Work will be maintained to its close; and the
British Public may be assured, that no efforts will be spared to render
the Translation, now in course of publication, not only equal, but even
superior, to the original. The account of the British Empire will be
carefully revised, and, if necessary, re-written by gentlemen who are
extremely well versed in statistical inquiries. The reports and papers
printed by order of the House of Commons will be referred to for every
fact of importance; and the Publishers believe that they may venture to
say, that the account which will be given in this work of the
Agriculture, Manufactures, and Commerce of Great Britain, will be
decidedly superior to any that has hitherto appeared.

The account of the United States, given in the Translation, is an entirely
_original composition_; and it is admitted by the Americans themselves, to
contain the most able, comprehensive, and luminous account of that
powerful confederacy that has ever been published.

    "M. MALTE-BRUN is probably known to most of our readers as the author
    of a systematic work on Geography. He is, besides, the editor of a
    periodical digest, under the title of _Nouvelles Annales des Voyages
    de la Geographie et de l'Histoire_; the first as much superior to the
    compilations of our Guthries and Pinkertons, as the other is to the
    garbled productions of our Truslers and Mavors."--_Quarterly Review_,
    No. 52.

    "But however highly we may estimate this publication, which is, in our
    opinion, infinitely superior to anything of its class which has ever
    appeared, it is not of a kind which we can illustrate by extracts. We
    can merely state, that it is admirable in its original form,--that it
    is well translated,--that it is printed in a fair style, so as to fit
    it not only for libraries, but for families and schools,--and that, in
    fine, it is a work that neither library, family, nor school, should be
    without."--_Literary Gazette_, No. 405.

JOURNAL of a SOLDIER of the 71st REGIMENT, HIGHLAND LIGHT INFANTRY, from
1806 to 1815. Including particulars of the Battles of Vimeira, Corunna,
Vittoria, the Pyrenees, Toulouse, and Waterloo. Third Edition. 1 vol.
12mo, 5s.

    "The Journal of a Soldier of the 71st Regiment, first gave the public
    a taste for narratives of the personal adventures, and the sufferings,
    and 'hair-breadth escapes,' of military men. That Journal excited a
    very considerable degree of interest. It was written with ease and
    simplicity, and indicated no small powers of description and
    observation. There was a romantic interest, too, attached to the
    history of the writer, as developed in his own modest and unvarnished
    tale. But moreover, as disclosing the mode of life, and the hardships
    and privations of the common soldier, it let in a new light on the
    commonly received notions of warlike expeditions."--_Saturday Post._

The EDINBURGH MEDICAL and SURGICAL JOURNAL. Vols. 27 and 28; being those
for 1827. Published in Numbers, Quarterly, price 6s.

The EDINBURGH NEW PHILOSOPHICAL JOURNAL; exhibiting a View of the
Progressive Discoveries and Improvements in the SCIENCES and the ARTS.
Conducted by ROBERT JAMESON, F.R.S.L. & E. Regius Professor of Natural
History, Lecturer on Mineralogy, and Keeper of the Museum of the
University of Edinburgh, &c. &c. Published Quarterly, price 7s. 6d.

MEMOIRS of the LIFE of JOHN LAW of LAURISTON, Projector of the Mississippi
Scheme; containing a Detailed Account of the Rise and Progress of this
extraordinary Joint Stock Company, with many curious Anecdotes of the rage
for speculating in its Funds, and the disastrous consequences of its
Failure. By JOHN PHILIP WOOD, Esq. 1 vol. 12mo, 6s. boards.

    "It is worth the while of those multitudes of all classes, who are
    engaging so eagerly, and often so heedlessly, in joint stock and
    funding speculations, to read the story of the most stupendous scheme
    of the kind ever conceived; a scheme which absorbed the resources of a
    powerful kingdom in its vortex, infected a nation with temporary
    madness, confounded all conditions, raising beggars to boundless
    wealth, and casting down princes to penury."--_Scotsman._

LION HUNTING; or, A SUMMER'S RAMBLE through Parts of FLANDERS, GERMANY,
and SWITZERLAND, in 1825. With some Remarks on Men, Manners, and Things,
at Home and Abroad. 1 vol. 12mo, 6s.

An ESSAY on NAVAL TACTICS, Systematical and Historical, with upwards of
Fifty Explanatory Plates; in Four Parts. By JOHN CLERK, Esq. of Eldin,
Fellow of the Society of Scottish Antiquaries, and of the Royal Society of
Edinburgh: Third Edition, with Notes by Lord Rodney, and an Introduction
by a Naval Officer. 8vo, price L.1, 5s. bds.

BIBLIOTHECA BIBLICA, a Select List of Books on Sacred Literature; with
Notices, Biographical, Critical, and Bibliographical. Intended as a Guide
to the consultation of the most useful Writers on Biblical Subjects. By
WILLIAM ORME, Author of the "Life of John Owen, D.D." 1 vol. 8vo, 12s.
boards.

This publication contains some account of nearly one thousand books,
including editions of the original Scriptures, Concordances to the Hebrew,
Greek, Latin, and English Bibles; Hebrew and Greek Lexicon; British and
Foreign Commentators on the Scriptures, Books on Sacred Chronology,
Geography, and Antiquities; Ecclesiastical Historians; and numerous works
of a miscellaneous nature, adapted to the illustration of the Word of God;
it also furnishes short notices of the age, country, and profession of the
authors.

    "The theological student cannot fail to derive much advantage from it;
    and the more learned divine will find it an excellent supplement to
    the Bibliotheca Theologica Selecta of the laborious Walchius, or to
    the erudite Bibliotheca Sacra of Le Long."--_British Critic for
    November 1824._

ACADEMICAL EXAMINATIONS on the PRINCIPLES of CHEMISTRY; being an
Introduction to the Study of that Science. By DAVID BOSWELL REID. In 2
vols. 12mo, 15s. boards.

ELEMENTS of CHEMISTRY. By ANDREW FYFE, M.D. F.R.S.E. &c. &c. Illustrated
by numerous Engravings on Wood. In 2 vols. 8vo, 21s. boards.

A MANUAL of ANATOMY, arranged so as to afford a concise and accurate
Description of the different parts of the Human Body. From the French of
A. L. J. BAYLE. Revised and improved by WILLIAM BENNET, M.D. In one
closely printed volume, 18mo, 7s. 6d. boards.

A MANUAL of CHEMISTRY, illustrated by upwards of 130 Engravings on Wood.
By ANDREW FYFE, M.D. F.R.S.E. Lecturer on Chemistry to the Edinburgh
School of Arts. 12mo, 7s. boards.

The NATURAL and AGRICULTURAL HISTORY of PEAT-MOSS or TURF-BOG: to which
are annexed, Corroborative Writings, Correspondence, and Observations on
the Qualities of Peat or Fen Earth as a Soil and Manure, and on the
Methods used in Scotland for converting Moss-soils into Arable and Pasture
Grounds, Plantations of Trees, &c. By ANDREW STEELE, Esq. of
Crosswoodhill, Member of the Natural History and Agricultural Societies of
Edinburgh. 8vo, 10s. 6d. boards.

A SYSTEM of MATERIA MEDICA and PHARMACY, including Translations of the
Edinburgh, London, and Dublin Pharmacopoeias. By JOHN MURRAY, M.D.
Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians, &c. &c. Fifth Edition. Adapted
to the present State of Chemical and Medical Science by JOHN MURRAY,
Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons, and Lecturer on Chemistry. 2
vols. 8vo, 24s. boards.

ELEMENTS of CHEMISTRY. By JOHN MURRAY, M.D. Fellow of the Royal College of
Physicians, &c. &c. Sixth Edition, including all the recent Discoveries,
and adapted to the present State of the Science, by JOHN MURRAY, Fellow of
the Royal College of Surgeons, and Lecturer on Chemistry, Edinburgh. 2
thick vols. 8vo, with Plates, 25s. boards.

A POPULAR DOMESTIC MEDICAL DICTIONARY. By ALEXANDER MACAULAY, M.D. Fellow
of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh, and Physician-Accoucheur to
the Edinburgh New Town Dispensary. In 1 thick vol. 8vo, price 14s.

    It is the design of this work to give an account of the Diseases of
    various climates, and their remedies; to notice the more ordinary
    accidents, with their cures, and the treatment of those who have
    swallowed poisons; to give a full list of the common medicines,
    mentioning in what cases they may be administered, and in what
    quantities, according to varying circumstances. It embraces all the
    ordinary articles of food, stating in what cases each may be used, and
    when they should be used sparingly, or avoided altogether. The work is
    arranged in the form of a Dictionary, in order that persons in quest
    of information on any subject affecting health, may easily obtain it,
    by means of the alphabetical arrangement. Medical discussion has been
    avoided; technical words are introduced as sparingly as possible; and
    the various medical terms which have found their way into common use
    are carefully explained. The precepts respecting diet are practical
    and useful; and great care has been taken to give such directions for
    the management of infants and children, as, it is hoped, will render
    the work of much utility to the nursery.

THE ADVANCEMENT of SOCIETY in KNOWLEDGE and RELIGION. By JA. DOUGLAS, Esq.
Second edition. In 1 vol. 8vo, price 9s. boards.

In a few days will be published, in 2 vols. 8vo, price L.1, 4s.

THE PHILOSOPHY of the ACTIVE and MORAL POWERS of MAN. By DUGALD STEWART,
formerly Professor of Moral Philosophy in the University of Edinburgh.




LIFE OF MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS.




[Illustration: MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS

Engraved by A. Wilson

PAINTED FROM THE ORIGINAL BY JOHN WATSON GORDON R.I.A.]




  CONSTABLE'S MISCELLANY OF
  Original and Selected Publications
  IN THE VARIOUS DEPARTMENTS OF
  LITERATURE SCIENCE, & THE ARTS.

  VOL. XXIV.

  LIFE OF MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS, VOL. I.

  [Illustration: LINLITHGOW PALACE

  Drawn by W. Brown     Engraved by W. Miller]

  EDINBURGH:
  PRINTED FOR CONSTABLE & CO. EDINBURGH:
  AND HURST, CHANCE & CO. LONDON.

  1828.




  LIFE OF
  MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS.

  BY HENRY GLASSFORD BELL, ESQ.

  IN TWO VOLUMES.

  VOL. I.


  "AYEZ MEMOIRE DE L'AME ET DE L'HONNEUR DE
  CELLE QUI A ESTE VOTRE ROYNE."
                          _Mary's own Words._


  EDINBURGH:
  PRINTED FOR CONSTABLE & CO. EDINBURGH;
  AND HURST, CHANCE & CO. LONDON.

  1828.




PREFACE.


A new work on the subject of Mary Queen of Scots runs an eminent risk of
being considered a work of supererogation. No period of British history
has been more elaborately illustrated than that of her life and reign. She
ascended the Scottish throne at a time replete with interest; when the
country had awakened from the lethargy of ages, and when the gray dawn of
civilization, heralding the full sunshine of coming years, threw its light
and shade on many a bold and prominent figure, standing confessed in
rugged grandeur as the darkness gradually rolled away. It was a time when
national and individual character were alike strongly marked,--a time when
Knox preached, Buchanan wrote, Murray plotted, and Bothwell murdered. The
mailed feudal barons,--the unshrinking Reformers, founders of the
Presbyterian Church, and mailed in mind, if not in body,--the discomfited,
but the still rich and haughty ecclesiastics of the Romish faith, the
contemporaries and followers of the stern Cardinal Beaton,--all start
forth so vividly before the mind's eye, that they seem subjects better
suited for the inspired pencil of a Salvator Rosa, than for the soberer
pen of History. Mary herself, with her beauty and her misfortunes, shining
among the rest like the creation of a softer age and clime, fills up the
picture, and rivets the interest. She becomes the centre round which the
others revolve; and their importance is measured only by the influence
they exercised over her fate, and the share they had in that strange
concatenation of circumstances, which, as if in mockery of the nobility of
her birth, and the splendour of her expectations, rendered her life
miserable, and her death ignominious.

There is little wonder if such a theme, though in itself inexhaustible,
should have exhausted the energies of many. Yet the leading events of
Mary's reign still give rise to frequent doubts and discussions; and the
question regarding her character, which has so long agitated and divided
the literary world, remains undetermined. It is indeed only they who have
time and inclination to dismantle the shelves of a library, and pore over
many a contradictory volume,--examine many a perplexing hypothesis,--and
endeavour to reconcile many an inconsistent and distracting
statement,--who are entitled to pronounce upon her guilt or innocence.

Not that it is meant to be asserted, that unpublished manuscripts and
documents, calculated to throw new light upon the subject, slumber in the
archives of Government, or among the collections of the learned, which
have hitherto escaped the notice of the antiquarian and the scholar. On
the contrary, there is every reason to believe, that all the papers of
value which exist, have already been found, and given to the world. After
the voluminous publications of Anderson, Jebb, Goodall, Haynes, Hardwicke,
Strype, Sadler, and Murdin, it is by no means probable, that future
historians will discover additional materials to guide them in their
narrative of facts. But few are disposed to wade through works like
these; and they who are, find, that though they indicate the ground on
which the superstructure of truth may be raised, they at the same time,
from the diffuseness and often contradictory nature of their contents,
afford every excuse to those who wander into error. The consequence is,
that almost no two writers have given exactly the same account of the
principal occurrences of Mary's life. And it is this fact which would lead
to the belief, that there is still an opening for an author, who would
endeavour, with impartiality, candour, and decision, to draw the due line
of distinction between the prejudices of the one side, and the
prepossessions of the other,--who would expose the wilful
misrepresentations of party-spirit, and correct the involuntary errors of
ignorance,--who would aim at being scrupulously just, but not
unnecessarily severe--steadily consistent, but not tamely
indifferent--boldly independent, but not unphilosophically violent.

It seems to be a principle of our common nature, to be ever anxious to
wage an honourable warfare against doubt; and no one is more likely to fix
the attention, than he who undertakes to prove what has been previously