TEN TUDOR STATESMEN

HENRY VII.

From a Painting by an unknown Flemish artist, in the NationalPortrait Gallery

TEN TUDOR
STATESMEN
By ARTHUR D. INNES
AUTHOR OF
“ENGLAND UNDER THE TUDORS”

LONDON
EVELEIGH NASH
1906

Printed by Ballantyne & Co. Limited
Tavistock Street, London

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PREFATORY

The series of studies contained in this volume is inno way a history of the Tudor period. My objectin preparing it has been first to form in my own mindand secondly to present to my readers a clear andconsistent conception of the character of sundrypersons, who in their own day either exercised aneffective influence on the course of politics, or embodiedpolitical ideas which have influenced succeedinggenerations. The events narrated are considerednot in the light of their intrinsic importance, butas they bear on the particular character under investigation.

To arrive at a fair estimate of any man’s character,the primary necessity is to endeavour to realise hispoint of view, to appreciate his preconceptions. Ifwe require of him that his preconceptions shallcoincide with our own, we may reconstruct an interestingdramatic figure, but we shall not discoverthe man as he really was. And if we do succeed inplacing ourselves at his point of view, we shall almostinevitably find that the man who ultimately emergesviis different from, and probably somewhat betterthan, the man as we had previously conceived him.

Concerning these ten figures, two curious pointsmay be noted. Eight of them may be described asministers: not one of the eight was actually of noblebirth, two were not even of gentle birth. Thatfact emphasises the change in the political centreof gravity which accompanied the establishment ofthe Tudor Dynasty. Secondly, of those eight, fourperished on the scaffold and one at the stake: asixth was in custody under accusation of treasonwhen death released him. That illustrates not lessemphatically the distance at which we stand fromthe Tudors to-day.

A. D. I.

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CONTENTS