Most humbly prostrate before the feet of your most excellent majesty, your most humble, faithful, and obedient subject, which hath so extremely offended your most gracious highness that mine heavy and fearful heart dares not presume to call you father, nor your majesty hath any cause by my deserts, saving the benignity of your most blessed nature doth surmount all evils, offences, and trespasses, and is ever merciful and ready to accept the penitent, calling for grace in any convenient time.

        Having received, this Thursday at night, certain letters from Mr. Secretary, as well advising me to make mine humble submission immediately to yourself (which because I durst not, without your gracious license, presume to do before), I lately sent unto him, as signifying that your most merciful heart and fatherly pity had granted me your blessing, with condition that I should persevere in that I had commenced and begun, and that I should not eftsoons offend your majesty by the denial or refusal of any such articles and commandments as it may please your highness to address unto me, for the perfect trial of mine heart and inward affection.

        For the perfect declaration of the bottom of my heart and stomach, first, I knowledge myself to have most unkindly and unnaturally offended your most excellent highness, in that I have not submitted myself to your most just and virtuous laws; and for mine offence therein, which I must confess were in me a thousand-fold more grievous than they could be in any other living creature, I put myself wholly and entirely to your gracious mercy, at whose hand I cannot receive that punishment for the same that I have deserved. Secondly, to open mine heart to your grace in these things, which I have heretofore refused to condescend unto, and have now written with mine own hand, sending the same to your highness herewith, I shall never beseech your grace to have pity and compassion on me, if ever you shall perceive that I shall privily or apertly vary or alter from one piece of that I have written and subscribed, or refuse to confirm, ratify, or declare the same, where your majesty shall appoint me. Thirdly, as I have and shall, knowing your excellent learning, virtue, wisdom, and knowledge, put my soul into your direction, and by the same have and will in all things, from henceforth, direct my conscience, so my body I do wholly commit to your mercy and fatherly pity, desiring no state, no condition, nor no manner degree of living but such as your grace shall appoint unto me, knowledging and confessing that my state cannot be so vile as either the extremity of justice would appoint unto me, or as mine offences have required and deserved. And whatsoever your grace shall command me to do, touching any of these points (either for things past, present, or to come), I shall as gladly do the same as your majesty can command me.

        Most humbly, therefore, beseeching your mercy, most gracious sovereign lord and benign father, to have pity and compassion of your miserable and sorrowful child, and with the abundance of your inestimable goodness so to overcome mine iniquity towards God, your grace, and your whole realm, as I may feel some sensible token of reconciliation, which, God is my judge, I only desire, without any respect: to whom I shall daily pray for the preservation of your highness, with the queen's grace, and that it may please Him to send you issue.

From Hunsdon, this Thursday,* at eleven of the clock at night.

MARY.

"The confession of me the Lady Mary, made upon certain points and articles under written, in the which as I do now plainly and with all mine heart confess and declare mine inward sentence, belief and judgment, with a due conformity of obedience to the laws of the realm; so minding for ever to persist and continue in this determination, without change, alteration or varyance, I do most humbly beseech the King's Highness, my father, whom I have obstinately and inobediently offended in the denyal of the same heretofore, to forgive mine offences therein, and to take me to his most gracious mercy. First, I confess and knowledge the King's Majesty to be my Soveraign Lord and King, in the imperial Crown of this realme of England, and do submit myself to his Highness, and to all and singular lawes and statutes of this realm, as becometh a true and faithfull subject to do; which I shall also obey, keep, observe, advance and maintain, according to my bounden duty, with all the power, force and qualities that God hath induced me, during my life.

       "Item.— I do recognize, accept, take, repute and knowledge the King's Highness to be supream head in earth under Christ of the Church of England, and do utterly refuse the Bishop of Rome's pretended authority, power and jurisdiction within this Realm heretofore usurped, according to the laws and statutes made in that behalf, and of all the King's true subjects, humbly received, admitted, obeyed, kept and observed. And also do utterly renounce and forsake all manner of remedy, interest and advantage which I may by any means claim by the Bishop of Rome's laws, process, jurisdiction or sentence, at this present time or in any wise hereafter, by any manner, title, colour, mean or case that is, shall, or can be devised for that purpose.

" MARYE.

       " Item.— I do freely, frankly and for the discharge of my duty towards God, the King's Highness and his laws, without other respect, recognize and acknowledge that the marriage heretofore had between his Majesty and my mother, the late Princess dowager, was by God's law and man's law incestuous and unlawfull.

" MARYE."

      Source:

      Stone, J. M. The History of Mary I., Queen of England.
      London: Sands & Co., 1901. 126-127.

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Princess Mary to King Henry VIII.

A.D. 1536.

[COTTON.  MS.   OTHO   C. x.  FOL. 266, Holograph,  much burnt. SUPPLIED  FROM  SMITH  MS. NO. 68, FOL 6.] *** The desired end had at length been accomplished; the king had vouchsafed to send his penitent and submissive daughter some token, or letter, denoting complete reconciliation, which she thus acknowledges.

Most humbly, obediently, and gladly lying at the feet of your most excellent majesty, my most dear and benign father and sovereign lord, I have this day perceived your gracious clemency and merciful pity to have overcome my most unkind and unnatural proceedings towards you and your most just and virtuous laws, the great and inestimable joy whereof I cannot express; nor have any thing worthy to be again presented to your majesty for the same your fatherly pity extended towards me, most ingrately on my part abandoned (as much as in me lay), but my poor heart, which I send unto your highness, to remain in your hand to be for ever used, directed, and framed, whiles God shall suffer life to remain in it, at your own pleasure: most humbly beseeching your grace to accept and receive the same, being all that I have to offer, which shall never alter, vary, or change from that confession and submission which I have made unto your highness in the presence of your council and other attending upon the same; for whose preservation, with my most gracious mother the queen, I shall daily pray to God, whom eftsoons I beseech to send you issue, to his honour and the comfort of your whole realm.

From Hunsdon, the 26th day of June.

Your grace's most humble and obedient
daughter and handmaid,

MARY.

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Source:
Letters of Royal and Illustrious Ladies of Great Britain. Vol 2.
Mary Anne Everett Wood, Ed.
London: Henry Colburn, 1846. 258-259.

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