Chapter 70

Did they consult Spain about reopening trade routes in the Netherlands and selling British wool again?

...

The lowlands of the Netherlands were later divided into three regions, more commonly known as the Netherlands, Belgium, and Luxembourg.

In the 16th century, this area was part of the territory of King Philip II of Spain.

As for Spain, it's well known that they had just deployed their army and fought a real battle with Mary, thus forging a deep-seated enmity...

For Philip II, although he had no affection for Elizabeth I, it was a great disgrace that his fiancée, whom he had personally acknowledged, was dragged off the throne by this "despicable, shameless, usurping woman," and then died suddenly from an inexplicable illness without any regard for his reputation. More importantly, it caused him to lose the opportunity to rule the British Isles.

In addition, the new queen secretly wrote to Queen Mother Catherine, urging France to seize the opportunity to attack Spain while the country was vulnerable, and to take back a great deal of benefits. All of these factors combined were enough for him to begin to despise Mary Stuart.

If Philip II does not regain face and make his stance clear, he will lose all prestige in Europe.

It is said that Philip II, far away in Madrid, declared that from then on, "at sea, on the New World, and on any Spanish territory," he would resolutely resist this usurper "Queen of Scotland" in order to uphold "fairness and justice" on the European continent.

Upon hearing this, Mary's only response was a cold laugh.

A few years ago, the King of Spain was extremely close to her, and even discussed his son's marriage to her. Wasn't that just to take the opportunity to obtain the British Isles?

Shamelessness is nothing; we're all the same.

But to shamelessly try to disguise oneself with a facade of fairness and justice is truly disgusting.

In any case, under these circumstances, it would be extremely difficult to reopen Antwerp's doors to Britain.

...

Cecil, who was summoned late at night, agreed with Her Majesty's idea after hearing it.

To compensate for the losses in Antwerp, Britain sent a team northeast and successfully established trade relations with the Grand Duchy of Moscow, enabling them to conduct business in Russia, Central Asia, and Persia.

This barely salvaged some of the losses, but it was still far less convenient than trading nearby in Antwerp. One way was to take goods to sea for a few days and sell them to others, while the other required traveling for almost a month. The difference between the two was not just a waste of time.

In response, Cecil suggested, "We can make appropriate concessions on the interests of goods to appease the King of Spain. In addition, there are many diplomatic means. Perhaps you can follow Elizabeth's example in this regard... Maintaining a peaceful relationship with Spain is very important."

In terms of strength, Spain is currently the dominant power in Europe, with an incredibly powerful navy. In contrast, if the situation in Britain is good, it can barely be considered a first-rate power; if it is not, it can only be considered a second-rate power. As an island nation, it also relies on its naval strength. It would be wise for Britain not to be an enemy of Spain.

Mary, with her keen senses, discerned the unspoken meaning in Cecil's words and looked up at him, a hint of surprise appearing in her deep black eyes.

"You want me to marry someone from Spain?" Mary asked.

“No, no, no, England’s independence is very important. If you are to choose a marriage partner, I sincerely advise you not to choose Spain,” Cecil said.

After the war, Spain's ambitions were now blatantly obvious. Under these circumstances, if England were to form an alliance with Spain, he was very worried that it would be swallowed up by Spain, lose its independent status, and become just another insignificant vassal territory.

"So you mean...?" Mary asked, puzzled.

“Perhaps you could try negotiating a marriage to temporarily ease the king’s hostility,” Cecil said.

This is also a tactic often used by Queen Elizabeth. Negotiations for a marriage often require ambassadors from both countries to spend several years negotiating back and forth. With this buffer time, Cecil was confident that he could use other means to make Antwerp's merchants unable to do without Britain's resources.

"I'm willing to concede some benefits during negotiations, but I don't plan to announce my intention to get married to others..."

Mary shook her head and offered her true thoughts instead.

"...The ambassador from the Netherlands has sent back a message that a noble alliance against Spanish rule is reportedly being formed. Are you aware of this?"

“I know, but in my opinion, their chances of success are slim,” Cecil cautioned.

He had a vague idea of ​​what Queen Mary wanted to do, but he wasn't optimistic about it.

There aren't many forces that privately oppose the rule of a country, but they aren't few either; usually, very few are lucky enough to succeed.

“I think they have a pretty good chance of succeeding. The way Spain treated the Netherlands was exactly the same as how England treated Ireland. They only knew how to take things away without ever thinking about doing anything for the local people. Cruel rule will not win people’s hearts; it will only bring stronger resistance. I’m waiting for the day when the Dutch will break out,” Mary said calmly.

This has been proven in the original history.

The following year, the Dutch Revolution would break out. Although the revolution was quickly suppressed by the Spanish general Arma and the nobles who organized the revolution fled in all directions, the resistance in the Netherlands continued unabated until 1584. Under the leadership of William van Orange, the Netherlands finally broke free from Spanish rule and established its own republic.

When Ireland was mentioned, Cecil, an Englishman from the native country, looked a little embarrassed. He coughed and continued to advise Her Majesty the Queen to abandon this far-fetched idea and that negotiating directly with Spain was the most likely way to achieve her goal.

The Queen of England accepted the Secretary of State's advice, but not entirely.

On the surface, England sent a mission to the Netherlands, led by Foreign Secretary Melville, to negotiate with the Spanish governor of the Netherlands, the Duchess of Parma, in hopes of reopening trade routes between the two countries.

The Netherlands also suffered greatly from the loss of British wool imports. Workshops closed one after another, tens of thousands of workers lost their jobs and income, and were forced to become homeless wanderers.

Privately, Queen Mary of England gave him another task.

He needed to find William van Orange, the Earl of Ogmont, and General Horn, and offer them his selfless assistance…

...

Setting aside matters in the Netherlands and awaiting news from there, Mary busied herself with other matters, such as attending the weddings of her two maids.

In the vibrant season of midsummer, everyone seemed to relax, and two of her four personal maids successfully found their life partners.

Mary Beaton is to marry Alexander Augieford of the Boleyn family, and Mary Livingston is to marry Lord John of Cypril.

Especially the latter one, there was absolutely no time to waste, because this silly girl had actually gotten pregnant out of wedlock.

For a man, this might just be a romantic affair, but for a woman, coupled with Catholic doctrine and the conservative atmosphere of England, it could very well ruin a girl's entire life.

After discovering she was unexpectedly pregnant, Mary Livingston was so terrified that she even considered going to London to find a pharmacist to secretly abort the child with medication in order to cover up the scandal.

Fortunately, before she could do anything, Fleming, who had come to the palace to visit the Queen, discovered her. He slapped away the strange drug of unknown composition from her hand and then dragged the tearful girl, Livingston, to beg the Queen for help.

Forced to stop working, Mary felt a surge of helplessness after hearing this and couldn't help but curse her for being foolish.

Livingston, whose eyes were already red, broke down in tears, choking back sobs and unable to speak.

"Why don't you come and ask me to grant you a marriage?" Mary finally managed to say after a long while.

“He was English, I was Scottish, and my family disagreed with me. They wrote to me to scold me and oppose me. My uncle and two maternal uncles died at the hands of the English…” Livingston sobbed.

“What does it matter if they disagree? My support is enough,” Mary said, silently expressing her support.

However, this also illustrates something from another perspective.

Ireland, England, and Scotland are now under her rule, but the hatred accumulated over the years has not disappeared; it has only been temporarily suppressed.

Behind the scenes, the open and covert struggles between the three parties, from the palace to the common people, continued.

This is not a good sign; it needs to be addressed as soon as possible...

Pregnancy vomiting cannot be hidden. Although Livingston claimed that she had just eaten something bad, rumors had already begun to circulate in the palace, calling Livingston a "slut" who couldn't live without men.

Mary swiftly suppressed the rumors and then personally attended the wedding, preventing the girl from being secretly slandered for the rest of her life, just as she had in her previous life.

The wedding was a lively affair, with the bride and groom, dressed in their finest attire, beaming with undisguised smiles. Their eyes met with an expression of unspoken sweetness.

As the Queen of England, Mary's prolonged presence at the wedding would have made the guests feel uncomfortable, so after a brief appearance, she went to rest in a room specially prepared for her in the castle.

Standing at the window, Mary watched the newlyweds kissing and dancing on the grass, and couldn't help but smile with satisfaction. After a while, she sighed.

“Another one has left,” Mary said.

After marriage, they would leave the palace and go to their husbands' fiefdoms or residences to have children with them and help them manage the household affairs. They would no longer be able to stay in the palace for as long as before.

Fleming was like that, and Livingston and Beaton are doing the same thing now.

All the women who had been by her side since childhood would eventually leave.

Suddenly, Seton asked, "Your Majesty, are you feeling lonely?"

“A little, but it feels good to see loved ones marry their husbands, have children, and live a happy life,” Mary said with a smile.

“Then…you can get married, for example, the Earl of Hertford. He’s a good soldier, handsome, and has good literary talent. He would be a perfect husband,” Seton said cautiously.

Mary's smile vanished.

She wanted to reprimand Seton, but couldn't bring herself to say it, so she said expressionlessly, "I remember warning you back in Ireland not to get involved in my private affairs."

Seton covered his mouth, his expression suddenly turning very sad, but not for himself, but for the Queen.

Only God understands that she spoke boldly not for Mr. Albert, but for Her Majesty the Queen.

She was so lonely.

“But he loves you,” Seton said.