Madrill, that they were all traytors against God and himself. At Utrecht he beheaded a widow, that was eighty-four years old, because she had before lodged a preacher one night, whose living was worth four-thousand guldens yearly. And, at Macstricht, a father, for lodg ing his son that he had not seen in a long time, who was fled for religion, was put to death. And at that place there was another put to death, for giving a widow a peck of corn for an alms, whose husband this bloody court had put to death. And many women were put to death, because they received their husbands in the night, that were fled for religion; yea, they have killed women great with child, and ripped up their bellies, and taken out the child and killed it; and some they have flayed alive, and covered drums heads with their skins; and some they have tied to a post, and made a small fire round about them, and so roasted them to death. At Naerden they received the Spaniards friendly into the town, who promised them both their lives and goods; and, as soon as they came in, they commanded them to come to the state house without their arms; the which they did, and the Spaniards gave fire upon them, and murdered them all; and then they ran about in the town, and ravished the women, and after killed them and fired the town. The young children that lay in the cradle, they quartered them, and took them upon their pikes, and so went up and down rejoicing in their cruelty. Such savage cruelty is scarcely to be found in any history: What Christian heart can hear it, and not be affected with deep sorrow? Yet, behold, some monsters herein have been found, that have been so far from humanity herein (for he, that hath humanity in him, will commiserate others calamities) that they have applauded it, as if he had, in all these outrages, done God good service, Amongst the rest, I shall content myself, at this present, but to name the holy father the pope, and one of his chief sons in this business. The pope sends his legate to commend these so rare exploits, and calls this cruel Duke d'Alva his beloved son; sends him a costly sword, the hilts whereof were of gold, and a hat wrought with gold and beset with rich and costly stones, thanking him for his good service in maintaining the Roman religion, and subverting of hereticks. Howbeit, that his chief son I mentioned (exceeding this man of sin in the sin of cruelty, as if he would verify himself to be ten-fold more the child of Satan, than his father the pope) thinks not so well of it; his name is Vergas, the president of this bloody inquisition; for, going shortly after into Spain, he told the King, that he and Duke d'Alva did mar all in the Netherlands, by shewing so much mercy to those people. Concerning this Duke d'Alva, of whose outrage and cruelty so many have felt, and perfidious dealing, which many have found by lament able experience, whereby may easily appear of what stamp his excessive mercies are, even such as the wise man speaks of, Prov. xii. 19. The tender mercies of the wicked are cruel:" In which he prides himself, boasting he had slaughtered eighteen-thousand and six-hundred, in The like cruelty they did at Oudwater. form of justice, in six years time; and ten times so many he and his soldiers murdered otherways. And many more would he, doubtless, have murdered, had not the Lord restrained and limited him, for his desire herein was as hell, that cannot be satisfied: Witness the purpose of his proceeding against the magistrates of Brussels, because they did not collect the tenth penny, so as he desired. He swore that he would have it, and, before he would let it fall, or remit it, the sun and moon should leave their shining: So he went to Brussels, and commanded the executioner to prepare ladders and ropes, to hang up that night, in their doors, seventy of the citizens, and gave them his warrant in writing, what they should be: But God in providence prevented this his cruel purpose, in that there came news, that the grave of Mark had taken in the Brill +: So the tyrant did not go forward with his. bloody enterprises.. Thus, having given you a taste of some of those many things I have observed, concerning the intolerable oppression, and worse than savage cruelty of the Spaniards, exercised upon the people, which they endured and laboured under, the space of sixteen yearst, I will now leave these cruel tyrants to the Lord for judgment, and address myself to speak somewhat further concerning this Earl of Mark, who had those gentlemen with him, that fled. Before this, he had lain with his shipping in England; but, the King of Spain sending his ambassador to our queen (who was then in peace with him) to desire her, that she would not suffer his subjects to have their harbour in her land, and that she would not give them, or suffer them to have any relief, whereby they should make head against him: And hereupon the queen sent and commanded them out of her harbour, and she commanded, that they should not be suffered to have any provision in her coasts; so that now they had no other means, but only God, who did, in his mercy, provide for them better than they expected. For they were purposed to have gone for the Tassel, and to have taken some town about that part; but, when they came near that part, they had the wind contrary, that they could not come there; so they went for the Maese, and came with their ships before the Brill, and there they went presently and took it: Yet the Duke of Alva had his forces in the town, near so many as they were, whom they killed, and chaced out of the town, and out of the Island. The Prince of Orange being in France, and hearing what had happened, he sent them soldiers, with as much speed as could be, out of France. And, within one month after, Duke d'Alva sent certain companies to Ulishing, to keep that place strong for himself; and many of the commanders were come into the town. So the magistrates commanded the citizens to come presently upon the state-house; so they told them they must lodge Spaniards in their houses; and they, knowing how they had used the citizens in all places where they came, told the magistrates they would not have the Spaniards in their town. The magistrates asked them, Which of them it was, that did refuse to receive These words he spake at a banquet, as he sat at the table, rejoicing he had done the King 80 good service. + Anno 1573, April 1. I have instanced but four or five towns; but there were scarce any towns escaped their eruel pillaging, except they had bribed their commanders with exceeding large gifts. them. They said, All of them. So, the magistrates seeing them so earnest against the Spaniards, they jointly took their arms, and killed and took prisoners all them that were in the town, and with their ordnance they shot at his ships, where the Spaniards were, and they made away. And, of those that were taken, there were the names of about eighty, that they had in writing from Duke d'Alva, that dwelt in the Island, that they should put to death +. So those of the Brill sent their soldiers with speed to help them. And shortly the Prince of Orange came with forces, and defended them; and some other towns, seeing the cruelty of the Spaniards, forsook the Spaniard, and joined with them, and took the Prince of Orange to be their Protector; yet the states, notwithstanding, did remain in obedience to the king some seven years after. Again, it is further worthy to be noted, that these provinces did three times send to the king their noblemen, but could obtain no mercy; and many more times they went to the Princess of Parina, and made their humble petition for redress of their oppression, but could not obtain any favour; then they made friends to the renowned Queen of England, and to the Princes of Germany, and to the Emperor, who did earnestly intreat, by their ambassadors, for them. The King of Spain answered their ambassadors with these words; he bade them tell their masters, That they should meddle with their own subjects, and not with his, for he knew well enough how to rule his subjects, without their counsel.' Now, when our Queen's majesty found his unreasonableness and cruelty, then, and not before, she assisted them with arms. His own son, Prince Charles, did intreat for them, that he would please to let them have their laws and privileges, and that they might not be so oppressed; and, withal, he told his father, that those countries did belong to him, and that they were given him at his baptism; for the which, his father sent him to prison, and he never came out again. If the Lord would not have forgot what Amalek did, long after, for smiting the weakest and hindmost of his people, how may we, in equity, forget the infinite murders and spoils, this cruel tyrant bath executed, where ever he hath prevailed? And who can forget, in special, that bloody attempt against ourselves, in the year 1588. If I should trace this tyrant from place to place, I should run in infinitum, having made the name of Christianity hateful, by his cruelty, amongst the Heathens, that know not God further than the light of nature; for it is confessed by the Spaniards themselves, that some of the chief of the Indians, who were to be burnt to death, being told of heaven and hell, they asked, Whither the Spaniards went when they died ? It was answered, To heaven: 'Oh, then,' said they, we will never come, where the Spaniards are.' But, not to run so far, I will rest content to keep within the hounds I chiefly intended concerning these countries. When the citizens of Leyden were in great extremity, by reason of a long siege, the Spaniards proffering conditions of peace, if so be they would yield up the city and themselves to them, they re +He had appointed those to be executed, because they were the chief that stood against the payment of the tenth penny. + Anno 1575. Marplam, in his Chronicle, Anuo 1567. turned answer, Nor while they had a right-hand to hold a sword, or a left to eat; but, if they should be driven to fall into their hands, they would rather burn the city, and drown themselves, than to submit to them, of whose perfidiousness they had had so lamentable experience: And, when some of the citizens pressed a yielding, in respect of the extremity of famine, a burgo-master, called Peter Adrianson, said, Loving friends, I confess the famine is great, and that some die for want of food; yet rather let us agree to eat up one another, as it shall fall by lot; begin with me first, and divide me amongst you. At Antwerp, the Spaniards, by the appointment of their governor, did come into the city in battle order, and marched up and down their streets, and shot into their houses, and made a tumultuous noise, as if they had been so many devils, for one day and two nights, and took the keys from the magistrates, and set watch at the ports; whereby they put the citizens in so great fear, that many women with child fell in travel, and some died with fear: And they went, by twelve or twenty, into the best houses, and commanded them to prepare them the best chear, as boiled and rost, and other dainty dishes, as they list to call for; and, besides beer, they would have at least two sorts of wine. And all the chiefest citizens houses had at least ten of these guests. And they all cried out for money, and said, that they would have fifteen months pay, before they went out of the city, of them; and the magistrates told them, that they would procure them, in cloth, and apparel, and money, the sum; but they all cried out for money, and that money they would have, before they went away; so at the last the magistrates got the money, which did amount to four-hundred thousand guldens. And the charge they were at, which these companions did cost the citizens, was six-hundred pounds sterling the day: and thus they were oppressed with them twenty-eight days; in which time they had made them all rich sutes, some of sattin and velvet, and some of cloth of gold; and one of them had a cushion of velvet, with these words in letters of gold, 'I am the Dutchman's Bridewell-master.' And thus they got rid of them, for the present. And about two years after they came again, and then they used the citizens much more cruelly; for these devils did bring straw, and set it on fire, and put it into the houses; whereby they set nine rich streets on fire, and burnt them, with many rich and costly goods, and rifled the citizens of all their rich and costly jewels, and silverworks, with their money; and three days did they torment the inhabitants for money; and in this time there were murdered of the citizens above four thousand. The money they took at that time is reckoned for more than forty tons of gold, beside the jewels; and the loss they had by fire was as much as the rest. And thus was the best city of merchants in Europe ruinated. Divers things being manifested of the Spaniards cruelty, I will add one instance of their treachery, and that of a famous person to his nearest familiars, yea, when he pretended sweetest familiarity and friendship: Pope Alexander the Sixth, a Spaniard by birth, invited divers nobles and cardinals to a banquet, with a purpose to poison them all. The meetest instrument he made choice of, to effect this, was a Spaniard, one Cæsar Borgia, his sworn servant. The pope shewed himself wonderful pleasant, to avoid suspicion, and drank a carouse to them all, willing his trusty servant to fill from such a bottle. he knew well; which he did very effectually to the pope himself, as well as to the rest. After the company was departed, the pope, perceiving an alteration in himself, what was done, and that he must die now also, said to Borgia, This is a right Spanish trick. It is written of them, that they are so expert in these exploits, that, if Judas himself were alive, he might go to them to school. THE STRANGLING AND DEATH OF THE GREAT TURK, AND HIS TWO SONS; With the strange Preservation and Deliverance of his Uncle Mustapha from perishing in prison, with hunger and thirst, the young Emperor, not three days before, having so commanded. A WONDERFUL STORY, And the like never heard of in our modern times; and yet all to manifest the glory and providence of God, IN THE PRESERVATION OF CHRISTENDOM IN THESE TROUBLESOME TIMES. Printed this Fifteenth of July. Printed at London, by J. D. for Nicholas Bourne and Thomas Archer, and are to be sold at their shops at the Exchange, and in Pope's-head palace. 1642. Octavo, containing seventeen pages. Haud sic magni conditor orbis, Huic ex alto cuncta tuenti, Quæ sint, Quæ fuerint, Veniantque, Uno mentis cernit in ictu, Quem, quia respicit omnia solus, Verum possis dicere solem. Boetius Metro. 3 Lib. 5. |