An Exact NARRATIVE OF THE ATTEMPTS Made upon the Duke of Gloucester.  
BEING The Extract of divers Letters written out of France to Persons of Quality in England.  
AND Published for the satisfaction of all true Protestants.  
London Printed, and are sold by F. Eglesfield, at the S in S. Paul's Churchyard, 1655.   

A Narrative of an ill favoured attempt to pervert the Duke of Gloucester, extracted out of divers letters from France.  

Paris, Novem. 7. 1654. Sir,  
THere are newly come to my notice some untoward passages, whereby one of our great Pledges hath been exposed to the hazard of his Religion; which my Pen is very loath to impart, were it not for prevention, lest being impossible to be concealed in England, it might be represented by others either more desperate, or more faulty than yet it is in truth.  
The King when he went away from hence was over-entreated by his mother to leave the Duke of Gloucester with her, which to content her in some things, whom he could not please in divers others, he consented to grant her that request, upon promise that she would not force him to change his Religion, and so conditions of liberty of prayers, etc. were established. But of late they do some sayby the French Courts instigation) press it very hard, and even profess an attempt of it. Mr. Mountagu Lord Abbot of Nanteul &c) and his Instruments have gotten him, under pretence of weaning him from young French gallants company (that on occasion of being in the same Academic were indeed grown but too kind to him) to Pomosse, and after a weeks stay there, his Tutor coming on business to Paris for one night, (whether they had designed this absence of his, or only did make use of it, I cannot tell) they all set upon him with motives Spiritual and Temporal to become a Roman Catholic; the Spiritual ones such as the subject would afford, little and many; more trusting on number than weight, he and (his only help then) Mr. Griffin, answered with the best skill they had, and with much more resolution and metal both of them than you can imagine: and rejected the Temporal ones with contempt, and with the danger of incurring the King's displeasure, who had both given him a charge, and engaged his Mother, that there should be no change in Religion laboured for. But to both the Duke added a complaint, that they should offer to assault him, with either of those considerations in the absence of his Tutor, who was fittest to judge of their proposals.  
When he came therefore the shock was renewed, and sustained so firmly, that the stay at Pontoyse was sooner ended than we hoped for. To our great content we see our young Prince again frequent and constant at the same devotions with us, but complaining much he should be troubled by his Fathers and Brothers subjects, especially to become of another Religion, than they and his conscience directed him to keep to.  
But the Queen now must appear to own the thing, and to profess that she cannot but labour to have her son showed the right way to Heaven; and though she promised he should not be forced by her, yet to have that way proposed to him she found requisite: and since Mr. Lovel (his Tutor) had expressed he could not, nor must not see him so assaulted, and therefore pressed the forbearance of such discourses in the Duke's presence, being ready to satisfy any one himself; she would put him into another Governor's hands, for a while at least, and so under Mr. Mountagus wing he is carried to Mr. Crofts house, being contrary to his own earnest entreaty hurried away on Saturday, and not suffered to stay till Monday, though he pleaded hard for it upon want of a warm coat, and there he must tarry till Monday seven-night after. Meanwhile no body with him that might help his resolution save Mr. Griffin of his Bedchamber: a young Gentleman, though an old servant of his (once my Lord of Manchesters' Page) who is indeed zealous against their design, even with resolution to quit the service, if any change should happen; but his years and breeding make him not invincible as to himself, and if he yield any considerable assistance to his Master, must be left behind too, the next remove at least.  
They have sent notice of these straits to the King and Duke of York long since, but 'tis carefully provided that the Duke of York must not come home yet, and when he does prepare to come, if they cannot find themselves Conquerors and secure, they will (rather than hazard the loss of this Prey) not scruple to encloystre him from any Heretics view whatsoever.  
In such a case as this, you cannot presume enough of the zeal and indignation the little Prince has against his Usage here, against the wrong done him by the Council that left him in such dangerous hands, against every obtruded Servant of that pack about him, against his new Governor, himself crossing him in divers things, even of lesser moment, as if he were the only English, whom experience hath taught, how narrowly men ought to watch against Usurpation; in fine, he apprehends his danger seriously, and the honour of resisting most nobly and heroically, both for resolution of Endeavour, and for confidence of Success: that and the odds of the cause, and God's power to perfect praise ex ore infantium, is almost the only hopes we have.  
Let us have yours, and all good Protestants Prayers for this Confessor, who as he sees (unmoved) an evident want of all things fit for a Gentleman of better sort, slighted of the French Court, his Mother's Frown and endless importunity before him, if he be not perverted: So I doubt not is now under the Mew-Discipline, and the Manage of their Spiritual, or rather Ecclesiastical Falconers, who will not ever cease watching & dieting, etc. and whatever else is necessary to bring this young Eaglet to stoop and veil, and to do all things at their Lewre, even to take Hood too, if need be. For they that make such a Court-worke of every little child's, and discontented debauched servants conversion, will spare none of their little or great Arts to get this Noble Bird of so Royal a Wing, as being the only one of that Airay they hope for now, having lost so much pains on the two former, and so fit to awe and dare lesser Birds by; of which there are Wagers laid of no few or mean ones already.  
I foresaw this unmeasured excursion before hand, and was therefore so loath to write at all: and the truth is, I can neither scribere, nor nonscribere, till this Crisis be over Though I foresee what news this will be in Gath, furnishing the Parliament with a ready answer, when the next bold man asks, What have the poor Gentlemen done abroad? And there are sagacious souls that would never understand till now the reason why the Parliament decreed to send him abroad, ere he was out-grown the danger of perversion. But certainly they that pretend to have true Protestant hearts, and will for either fear or love of money, suffer the Defenders of their Faith, to be led into the Wilderness of want, and prepare them with hunger for the Devil's temptations of Turning any stone to get Bread, do deserve the lash of persecution, which in time may justly light upon them, if God and they do not timely prevent it.   

Paris, 25. Novemb. 1654.  
By former Letters you may perceive how they prevailed with the Queen to take the Duke out of his Tutor's hands, hurrying him first to Pontoyse, and then to Mr. Crofts house. During which, as fully as they possessed him, every hour and much less parts of the day, one or other of the Bees ever humming about him; yet at night he had one that lay in his Bedchamber, who entertained him more to his hearts desire, and (like Penelope's Web) unspun (as well as they could two little young things some few years above thirty between them) what ever had passed in public, or the day before.  
And indeed they did well to spend and improve their nights in this manner; for when once they were up (as his Grandfather said of my Lord of Carliste, he was in perpetual torments, Eating, Hunt, Dance, Visits, Journeys, Entertainments of Males and Females; so) our little Duke was continually tortured with Arguments finely embellished with, True Church, Roman Catholic Church; To be of the King of France, his Mother's Religion: Being made a Cardinal, To become that King which must restore what Henry 8. took away, and the appendices.  
However he was not so strictly looked unto at first, but that there might be now and then stolen into his hand a Confortatory Letter from his Friends at Paris; but these shifts were to last but for a while: A terrible Ferule was polished for him, and such a one, as the a we of it kept him from flat rejecting and affronting his new Governor Mountagu, lest he being throughly vexed, might resign him up into the Jesuits hands; to whose College the Duke knew himself destined within few days, even by Violence itself, it relief came not from Germany.  
And now when all his stock of Replies (which my Friend tells me, were hugely ingenious, and indeed solid, such as one would say, could not be in those years but Ex traduce) were spent, and his last refuge of peremptory silence, and upbraiding them for pressing their Sophisms on such a one as he was, while the Dean his Tutor and friends were declined basely, grew stolen helps, behold a grave friend of his Fathers, Sir G. R. comes with a Letter in his pocket from the King; and was indeed admitted to see him, and talk with him before witness, but so far from possibility of privacy, that he was feign to leave the Letter behind him to be conveyed at an opportuner occasion into his hand. That Letter, says my Intelligencer, gins and ends so Brotherlike, so Christianlike, so Kinglike, that he hath set my longing on fire to hear it: 'tis promised me I shall, and when I do, I shall be careful to present you with that Jewel.  
It puts him in mind of the strict command he left with him at parting; of the monstrous injury to his conscience; to his state; to his Family; the vanity of their Motives, the emptiness of their promises; the more Eligibleness of any degree of suffering; God's promises, whose love he must reckon to lose as well as his so loving a Brothers, if he were perverted by any enticings whatsoever: And to make all he said more valuable; that he would reflect on their dead Fathers last charge, which he solemnly gave him, with the entail of his blessing annexed.  
In fine, he closed his instructions with that which would have been severe enough alone; That if he either changed his Religion, or put himself into the Jesuits College, he had the last letter from him, and must never look to see England or his Face again: And that if (which God forbidden) their business miscarried, the whole ruining of their Family, and all the Nations too, must lay the mischief at his door as the great Cause of it.  
Now no sooner had he read this Threatening Comforter, but he hugged it in his Bosom, and with all possible speed transcribed a Copy of it for his Mother, sending it forthwith to her; and begging her leave to come to Paris, both upon those commands of the King, and upon the news of his Brothers being come from the Army. Of this the Answer was, she could not cease wishing his so great and eternal good; but she would not force him; but wished him to hearken to what Mr. Mountagu should further deliver unto him: & that was, that he would be willing to go to the Jesuits College however, where he should have strange freedom in every thing. But all would not persuade on the one side, nor secure on the other, till most welcomely about ten days since, my Lord of Ormond came from Germany with letters, and instructions to boot; to second with a duplicate, and new Charges by word of mouth, the force of the former Letters. His business (namely, the setting free of this young Prince,) was of high concernment, else so great a person would never have been spared from his Master at such a time, in so ill a season of weather, to take so long and dangerous a Voyage, just upon the dissolving of the Armies, who had beset all ways, and robbed all Convoys; and had he stayed but four days longer, he might as well have stayed four years, it would then have been too late to have done any good.  
But now the Duke is returned to his old Prayers, and to old Faces, to whom he tells such Stories of his Adventures, as (he says) has made him almost mad. But others say, have made him much wiser than a longer time and better Tutor could easily have done.   

Nou. 28.  
Since the Duke's return to the Palais-Royal, his Brother's company, and the exercise of his own Religion, he has met with many assaults: obedience to his Mother in all things possible, engaged him not to refuse whom she set over him and sent about him; and though she has promised him some respite for a while at least, in respect to his Brother's strait charge, yet she finds enough that pursue a truceless war. How he answers all their Variety of smooth and sharp Assaults, 'tis very pretty to hear, and did not the Posts interruption give me suspicion that our Letters keep not their days to you, no more than yours to us, I should send you constantly the proceed in the business.  
But if there be not strange unnatural carriage used, we shall enjoy his Concurrence in Communion with us as we do every day, and which will most vex them, on Sunday next at Church at the Residents house: which he is resolved shall not be neglected or omitted upon any persuasion whatsoever: though that be not in the number of those things which he is fortified for by the King's Letter. For he has a serious indignation against them that have with so many wiles hindered him (indeed by plain moral Violence, which no entreaty, no policy of his could either prevent or mollify) so many Sundays from Paris; and at the Reports which were begotten between lying tongues and credulous cares, that he was already turned, upon no other ground of his giving, but bare being away from Church; which could no way be effected but by hurrying him out of Town; nor could that be obtained of him without establishing a new Governor upon him, which thing so indirectly trenching on Religion, he could not have refused without disobeying his Mother: Yet the advantage of that, as it was really great against the poor Youth, produced so great a pledge to the Roman party, that the Curates in divers Churches gave thanks for his Reconciliation a Sunday or two ago; So that they will be now exposed to disrepute of their Parishioners, and mockery of the adversary, the first Sunday of their supposed Proselytes appearing at our Church, which is likely to kindle no small wrath amongst them, and therefore we stand in fear of some shrewd Crisis between this and Sunday morning as near as it is: I do not mean of hazard, but of greater violence of assault.  
He has been on his Visit at the Lovure, and past those pikes already: though both Queen and Cardinal jointly, and both severally, have pressed him, that he is now to obey his Mother since his Father death; and they cannot find any occasion he should have to regard other directions. Here he thought he had most need of his Brother's Letter, which enjoined him silence to any disputes: But manners would not suffer him to say nothing, and much less to say what he could have done, of the inconvenience of preferring Mother's commands before his Sovereigns: But it would have been too hot; and therefore glad he was to come off that brunt, with a general promise of dutifulness to his Mother as much as any Son in the world could or ought to use; and a protestation that it was ever a thing abhorred of him to hearken to any Counsel to the contrary. And besides that the very getting off was a Triumph, he made great prize of their promise, that it was but for his greater good, and the advantage they should have of highlyer doing him good, that they looked upon the hopes of his change of Religion; they knew however that they ought to look on him as a Child of France, of whatsoever religion he was.  
There was besides, a passage which he was not very free of relating, yet it came out; that there had been a promise between the Crowns articled upon at the Marriage-Treaty of his Father and Mother, that the Queen should have the bringing up of all the children till twelve years of age, in lieu and compensation of which being so notoriously violated, it was but reason and great condescension, that the third Son should be entirely committed to her disposal, especially she being in France. You will easily grant it out of the Sphere of his Age to reply to such high assaults: it was highly enough for his honour that he was thought fit to be so pleaded with; but that it wrought not with him, is a sign of God's great vigilancy over him, and a Pledge that he has a Blessing for him.  
In fine, all these Addresses abroad, and other renewed at home, gave such a testimony of his firmness, that the Queen on Saturday morning took him apart from all his and her Servants, and very seriously bemoaned her case with his too, in that the earnest desire of his and the whole Families good met with such difficulties, as should put her to use such severity with him. She could not but pity him, as wearied already with so many persuasions; and truly the tender affection she ever had for him, and had constantly showed to him, could not but make herself weary of such tedious courses: Therefore she was resolved to make a sudden end; and for that cause charged him to retire himself, and give one hearing more to Mr. Mountagu, and afterwards to lay her and his words seriously to his heart, and bring her an answer full and final ere night. What the particular Proposals she made were, may come out hereafter: At the first appearance of this intended privacy with him, he very dexterously contrived an opportunity to speak to his Servant Griffin, to seek out my Lord of Ormond to be ready to speak with him, by than he might come from his Mother; which is a fair Omen: But the Post must not be presumed on, etc.   

Decemb. 2.  
You were left I think at the state of things on Saturday morning, and was come to the charge the Queen had given him to attend her alone. The Duke had in the little Interim of clearing the room, sent Griffin for my Lord of Ormond presently to be with him, or at least so soon as the Queen had done: And it was but Prophetical Providence; for the Queen's business was of so great import as might require it well. She began with all sweetness possible, repeated the manifest signs of her great and tender affection for him, and how much it grieved her that that very love itself should compel her to proceed now with such seeming severity: She presumed he was weary of it, and truly so was she too, therefore for his ease sake, she would shorten his Time of Trial; and therefore proposing all the good she aimed at in this design of hers, and the Duty he owed her, and the disability of the King to maintain him, etc. She wished him to withdraw presently, and sequestering himself from any diversion after he had given Mr. Mountagu the hearing, for a while to ponder seriously what she and he had said, and bring her his final answer ere night.  
The Duke obeyed; for reply than he must not: Goes to his Chamber; Mr. Mountagu comes, presses, is refused: but after an hour's Discourse, retires, begs to be sent for again when my Lord of Ormond was come, within an hour; if not, he must come of himself. But my Lord of Ormond comes, no Mountagu sent for, or comes for two hours. The Marquis and the Duke soon resolved what should be answered: spent the time only in ordering circumstances for the manner.  
After these three Discourses, it was time for a young Prince to have a little breath, and therefore he retires to a Lady's Chamber on the other side, where he might give his ears a little ease, and if he must hear more, that it might be less material discourse, therefore chooses one that would beat no more upon that Theme. No sooner is he gone, but Mr. Montague comes, misses him, hunts up and down for him, chides him for being off his station of pensiveness, for not having sent for him.  
Well Sir says the Duke, my Task is done, I have resolved: what did my Mother bid more? there is time enough to tell. And so it was, as it proved to be; for the answer was such, that the entertainment it had, was a charge to see her face no more. Which Sentence was no sooner pronounced, but executed by French haste: Out he must; and then he that had nothing but amazement to reply with, had now a Cue to speak on, and beg the parting Blessing at least, till he could prevail for her pardon. It will not be; Out he must; and so full of Tears and Astonishment, to find out his Brother he goes, and they share the sorrow till Youth and Night parts them by drowsiness.  
But the Edict, that it may not seem Scenical, or in terrorem, goes forth to all the Officers of the House; neither to provide nor lend any Necessary either to spend, or so much as to use. While the young Innocent slept sound, and upon the advantage sorrow had given, long in the morning; dreaming but of one Task at most, stealing a Blessing of his Mother, either by Sisters or Brother's Intercession; or stealing at least a means of begging it ere she went to her Monastery, or himself to Church, a much longed for (and often wrangled for) contentment. But in stead of a Mother, he is admitted to no converse on her side but of a Step-Tutor, who again solicits, aggravates the peril of his Mother's anger, knowing indeed more than the little Duke did of it (as Causes can prophesy, and Counsellors know all that was already.) Now was the time, if ever, says Mountagu: Get to her this very present instant, (almost Sermon-time,) she has easier Proposals for you, but I cannot name them now. The Duke answers; Then will I; where ere I go, I must have not a quiet only for a while, but the exercise of my Religion; neither her Proposals, and less yours, promise that.  
The Coach went now by with his Mother for the Nunnery: The backside whereof made him warm: Mr. Montague need not aggravate the sadness of the spectacle, which as appeared afterwards, was more like the last remote View, than the child could think of. He answered; Such as it is I may thank you for, Sir; and 'tis but reason, What my Mother says to me, I say to you; I pray be sure I see you no more; and so showed his back. And to the last question, Whither are you going, good Sir? The Duke answered (over the shoulder) To Church. Where he was indeed somewhat sadder than became the chieerfulness of the rest of the Congregation: But ere night we all pardoned him, finding much of its cause the story which we knew not then, and besides that a great deal of Augury which he could expressly then know: for after Sermon he had a (No-Sunday) thought lay on him to find a Dinner: to the Cooks he must send; neither Meat, Wine, Bread, Napkin, nor diet to be had else; so heavy, so general the Proscription.  
Yet after Evening Prayer he hoped one interval of content, by his Mother's absence to go see his Sister. The news of his adventure frights her poor child into Tears and shrieks; and though the visitant was by his servant named a Gentleman only, yet she starts up, and cries out, Oh God, my Brother! Oh me! my Mother! I am undone for ever! What shall I do? Not one among her attendants old or young, could answer her but in Tears and shrieks as impotent. The poor Duke attends; the messenger dissembles their postures till he was got farther off. Ere long home, was the Queen come, and how full by this time she was of his Reply to Mr. Montague, a new advance of the sentence shows; a Groom comes up at 8, or 9, at night to know what he should do with the Duke's two Horses: the comptroller was come with a charge to put them out instantly: The Clown pleaded, To morrow would be time enough; Now 'twas too late: with a great oath or two, the young controller replies, Yes, and I shall be out of my place ere morning.  
The resolutions on Monday of the Duke were to give way to this Passion; and in order to it since his verbal Pass was given him on Saturday night, Dee what you please: only see not my face: he would not be so near his Mother (all the while he was providing necessaries wanting for a Germany journey,) but retire to Mr. Crofts his house a while, a little out of the way, whence he might beg a grant to be admitted to take leave. The Queen hears of this also: checks Crofts for now seeming willing to receive him, whom she has often commanded to invite. The like penalty almost lay on him if he lent him his house: he tells the Duke, and submits however to his pleasure. The Duke thanks him, but would not displease her so much: and so resolves after Dinner, when the Queen of France was to come, (and it would be uncomely for him to be in the house, and not wait on h●r; as in his Mother's lodgings he might not) to go over the water and visit my Lord H. but even in that there would be a danger to the good Lord from London: yet considering there was great odds between his and his Brother's presence, he adventured, though the deliberations made it somewhat over late: but there grew on an occasion, that the next night he was to lie there also, for there was no longer staying in the Palais royal  
The Lord and his Lady cannot refuse (a double exile, for his Fathers and his own Religion, and for his own crime loyalty) to admit such a Guest, while he can provide for his Voyage, for which 'twas presumed he could find but two Horses, and the relics of his new-given 10 l. for the monthly privy purse.  
We were last night in some apprehensions too of danger by reason of the situation of the house, alone in the utmost Fauxbourgs, from either the zealots well-willers to the horribly and notoriously disappointed; or from the disrelish of the Courts that might happen. But all is well to day, saving that his abode there is not yet so known, but that divers of each French Religion think he removed from the Palais to the Jesuits College: all things being there so confidently ready long ago, and the desires of both Queens so concentrally tending to that design, even since the peremptory commands of his Brother from Coloigne triplicated to him, and seconded with divers since.   

December, 5.  
On Monday the Queen had not forgot her severe threat and interdict to the Duke: yet having taken all the courses she could find in her own Sphere, had it seems engaged the Queen of France to try once more her Authority with him. But the expectation of her coming to the Palais was diversely interpreted, some imagined it was to make the Duke's peace; some that she might retract his resolution by fresh assaults; some to show him how little he must look for the favour of their presence: but his Highness could not endure the uncouthenesse of his confinement to his chamber, nor cared much to hazard the sight of the Queen of France, he had been so fearfully assaulted of late.  
But so it was, that so soon as she came, she sent her son the Duke of Anjou to visit him, who returned with news he was not at home: The Queen of France sent then his Governor to inquire where he was, and having heard, sent him immediately over to the Lord H. to labour to bend him to the Queen's resolution for him, and the Jesuits College was vehemently pressed again. To the King's contrary command, the marquis (Duke of Anjou his Governor) replied with the greatest advantage of his own parts, that it belonged to the Queen to dispose of her son since his Father's Death entirely; he disputed whether he was in his Brother's power, only for being his Sovereign: and the discourse growing now somewhat publicker, and the Lords joining in with the Duke, the Marquis had now his match; and the debating that ill favoured nicety of Authority between Queen Mother, and Brother King, was so agitated by the English, that the French Gentleman, a man of huge parts indeed, was put out of hopes of prevailing in his Errand. The Queen, in confidence of her Envoyè, expects he should bring her home entire news of the change of the young Prince his mind, and till almost 8. she tarried for him there; but the report of the Discourse did soon satisfy her, no alteration could be made in his Resolutions.  
The next day therefore a Report is raised how uncivilly the Queen of France her Message was received with affront, & the last step of alienation and distance between the Queen and her Son came to the height: The great Palace of Cardinal Richelieu is not big enough for these two great Hearts extracted from Henry the 4.  
Since his departure all things are better than we imagined, save that the presumption they had of him heretofore is not yet worn away. It lasted to my knowledge till Thursday, in so great a strength of Tumour, that one of the French Ministers assured an Englishman that came to visit him, that the Duke was for certain in the Jesuits College. The Duke had made a Resolution that would have confuted the very Relics of that mistake, by an intention to have come every day to Prayers to us, but because that might perchance have aggravated the heat, and looked like a fresh affront, it was advised to be omitted.  
We begin now, since I began writing, to be assured the Passion gins to abate: The Queen they say, has condescended to give him leave to go with my Lord of Ormond, and it is hoped may admit him to beg her blessing: which makes my Letter somewhat the shorter: and I presume you will be content to go to the burying of past four circumstances as soon as may be with the Vindication of the Duke's sincere and heroic constancy.   
FINIS.