Tixall Poetry

Front matter

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Ruins of Tixall

Wilson sculpt.

Preface

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I. In the year 1809, I published, with the assistance of Mr Walter Scott, a work, in two volumes quarto, entitled "The State Papers and Letters of , Knight Banneret;" to which I prefixed an advertisement, informing the reader, that the original manuscripts, from a copy of which those volumes were printed, had been preserved at Tixall, in Staffordshire, the seat of Thomas Clifford, Esq. my eldest brother. That work has put the public in possession of many very curious, and interesting State Papers; and has rescued from partial obscurity, and restored to its just celebrity, the name of a man, who was one of the wisest, and bravest, one of the most active, and most able, among the many eminent characters in the reigns of Henry VIII. and of Queen Elizabeth. At the con of a "Memoir of the Life of Sir Ralph Sadler," prefixed to the work, there is an extract from Lloyd's "Worthies;" in which that writer asserts, that Sir Ralph Sadler "bequeathed three things to such as may have the honour to succeed him:

1. All letters that concerned him, since of years, filed.

2. All occurrences, since he was capable of observation, registred.

3. All expences since he lived, of himself, booked."

Of the first of these bequests, the public now enjoys the benefit, by means of the above-mentioned publication; but the two others have unfortunately perished. How these manuscripts of Sir Ralph Sadler were dispersed, and lost, amid the revolution of property, and the succession of families, which have taken place among his descendants, during the two last centuries, it would be now useless to enquire, and impossible to discover. The loss of both, but particularly of the second, is certainly much to be regretted.

Sir Ralph Sadler died at the age of 80, in 1587.

II. Sir Walter Aston, of Tixall, near Stafford, married, about the year 1607, Gertrude Sadler, the grand-daughter, and finally the heiress of Sir Ralph Sadler. In the year 1627, he was raised to the dignity of the peerage, by the title of Lord Aston, Baron of Forfar, in Scotland, and died in 1639. His widow, Lady Aston, had an only brother, Ralph Sadler, Esq. of Standon Lordship, near Ware, in Hertfordshire; an estate, which was granted to Sir Ralph Sadler, by King Henry VIII. and on which he erected a stately mansion. Ralph Sadler, Esq. his grandson, married a daughter of the famous Sir Edward Coke, but dying without issue in 1660, Walter, second Lord Aston, succeeded, in right of his mother, to the inheritance of the Sadler property.

From this period, it appears, that the Aston family were in the habit of residing alternately, at Standon, and Tixall. James, fifth Lord Aston, my grandfather, died at Tixall, in the year 1750, leaving only two daughters, among whom his property was equally divided. On this occasion, it was thought advisable, to sell the estate, and house of Standon Lordship; but the pictures, books, papers, and other valuable effects, were transferred to Tixall, where Sir Ralph Sadler's State Papers, and Letters, were carefully preserved, till they were at length transcribed by the Reverend John Kirk, of Lichfield, and finally given to the public, in the year 1809, as above stated.

III. Soon after the publication of Sir Ralph Sadler's State Papers, I happened to make a visit at Tixall. For some time before, I had been strongly impressed with an idea, that some valuable manuscripts were still concealed at that place; and, in particular, as I knew that Sir Walter Aston had been twice ambsssador in Spain during the reigns of James I. and his son, Charles I. and that a volume of his manuscripts, relating to his second embassy, was actually in the library, I naturally hoped at least, that his other State Papers might still be in existence, and that by a diligent search in the library, and other repositories at Tixall, they might still be found.

Actuated by these considerations, animated by these hopes, I determined to make every enquiry which might lead to the discovery of any hidden manuscripts, and to leave no place unsearched, in which there was the smallest probability of such treasures being concealed. My enquiries, and searches, were crowned with complete success. Besides an additional packet of letters, which had belonged to Sir Ralph Sadler, and which contain some further particulars, respecting the confinement of the Queen of Scotland, in Tutbury Castle, I discovered, 1. All the poems which I now offer to the public, under the title of Tixall Poetry; 2. A large quantity of letters, and other papers, relating to the Aston family; 3. A complete collection of the state papers, and letters, of Sir Walter Aston, during his two embassies in Spain.

Of the manner in which these manuscripts were discovered, and of the state in which they were found, I shall now give a particular relation.

On my arrival at Tixall, I began my search by enquiring after an old oaken box, covered with variegated gilt leather, and ornamented with brass nails, which, according to the tradition of the family, had belonged to Sir Ralph Sadler. It is certain, that Sir Ralph Sadler's State Papers had been preserved in that box, both at Standon Lord , and Tixall, but they had been removed out of it, many years ago; partly, perhaps, for the purpose of depositing them in a still safer place, and probably, also with the intention of showing them to such visitors at Tixall, as might feel a curiosity to examine such ancient manuscripts. The box, however, at that time, was not very closely examined, or many papers were purposely left in it, as the reader will be informed hereafter. I had often heard my eldest sister, Mrs Wolseley, relate, that my father, (who, when he was first married, lived in the old house, now a ruin,) determined, on some occasion or other, to make a great bonfire in the court; and to throw into it a large quantity of old boxes, lumber, and rubbish, which had been accumulating in the ancient mansion, perhaps for more than two centuries. Among the rest, this venerable diplomatic chest, which had contained the laborious negociations, and important treaties of so many ambassadors, and such various countries, was also destined to the flames; but that my mother, and all the female part of the family, strongly interceded for it; struck, perhaps, with the exterior beauty of its gilded leather, and hobnails; and still more, because my mother declared, that she had heard her father, Lord Aston, say, that that very box had belonged to Sir Ralph Sadler; and that therefore, it would be a kind of sacrilege, to destroy a venerable relic of such an illustrious ancestor. The ladies prevailed, and the box was saved.

On enquiring for it, I was soon informed by the old housekeeper, who has been in the family near fifty years, that it was deposited in the lumber-room; but that, only a short time since, as she happened to be passing by it, she lifted up the lid, and perceived that the bottom of it was strewed over with dirt, and dust, and with little bits of paper, which appeared to have been nibbled into pieces by the mice; and she added, that she was pretty sure I should find nothing in it worth looking after. This information was sufficiently discouraging. I, however, desired the box to be brought to my apartment, and on opening it, I perceived, that most probably, it was originally constructed for the express purpose of preserving papers; for the entire cavity of the inside was filled up with two rows of deep drawers, three in each row, which could only be opened, by drawing them perpendicularly upwards. One of the drawers had been taken out, and never replaced; and, as the lid did not shut close, the mice had got into the place of that drawer, and had nibbled away some papers, which had probably been left there, and also the margins, and part of the writing, of some of the manuscripts, which protruded a little from the other drawers. The inside of the box was so contrived, that, if all the drawers had been in, this could never have happened. After having given a few moments to grief, and lamentation, for the loss of the manuscripts, which I thus saw irretrievably destroyed, I began, with no little agitation, to pull out the other drawers, and was delighted to find, that none of them were entirely empty. At last I came to one quite full, which, with the others, contained an additional parcel of Sir Ralph Sadler's Papers, and all the "State Papers and Letters of Sir Walter Aston," carefully tied up in small bundles; and, in short, in the same state exactly, in which, some years before, I had received the manuscripts of Sir Ralph Sadler. My satisfaction was now complete, and I hardly thought of searching, or enquiring any further. However, having communicated my discoveries to the old housekeeper, she informed me, that, if I considered the papers I had found to be of any value, and was fond of such things, she had a large trunk, and some boxes, quite full of old papers. The reader will readily believe, that I lost no time in desiring them to be brought to me; and, in fact, in about an hour afterwards, I beheld two men arrive, bending under the weight of an immense travelling trunk, and a third behind, with two small wooden boxes. These I examined first, and found them to contain chiefly, some books of travelling, and household expences, of my grandmother Lady Clifford, while she was in France, and at Paris, about the year 1740. Along with these, were some French almanacks, passports, play-bills, army lists, and other papers and letters, both printed and manuscript; some of which, though interesting enough as family papers, were possessed of no further value. These, therefore, I soon dispatched; but when I came to open the great trunk,

Visions of glory, spare my aching sight!

I there beheld, what might have thrown a real, genuine antiquary, into extasies, and raptures. For my own part, I confess, I was at first, appalled, and daunted. It was a bumper, brimful, and overflowing; while the enormous mass appeared to consist of papers, of every sort, and size: the surface of which was most respectably defended, by a deep, and venerable layer of literary dust. Summoning up resolution,

6I bent Each corporal agent to this terrible feat;

and, drawing a chair to the side of the trunk, I sat down, with a full determination of thoroughly exploring its contents; and resolved, not to let a single scrap of paper pass without examination, and without satisfying myself, as to the nature of the manuscript in contained. The papers which I first met with, were generally bills, and receipts, bonds, leases, and parchment deeds; then, perhaps, a single letter, then the back of a letter, or other morsel of paper, with verses scrawled on it; mixed with these, single printed sheets, proclamations, pamphlets, and small volumes; till at last I came to whole packets of letters, and entire volumes of manuscript poetry; but the whole tumbled, and thrown together, and mixed with so much dirt and dust, as if the trunk had been destined to be the repository of all the rubbish, sweepings, and clearings of the library, the study, the steward's room, and every cabinet, and writing desk in the house.

Thus pursuing my way "through strait, rough, dense, or rare;" whenever I met with a bill, a bond, or the like, I threw it on one side, the printed papers and books on another; while I carefully collected the manuscript poems, and letters, and every thing which appeared to be of a literary nature, or to have any relation to the Aston family, into a heap by themselves. When I had got completely through the contents of the trunk, I returned into it, all that I considered as useless, at least for my purpose. I carried the books, and printed papers, to the library, and put by the rest for further examination. The reader will judge of the vast mass of papers I bad to wade through, and of the extent of my labour, and perseverance, when I inform him, that I was almost continually occupied for about ten days, from breakfast to dinner, and frequently an hour or more before breakfast, and another in the evening, before I beheld the bottom of the trunk. Such is the history of my search after manuscripts at Tixall, and such was the success with which that search Was attended.

IV. The whole of the manuscripts thus discovered, naturally fell into three classes: 1. The State Papers of Sir Walter Aston; 2. The Poetry; 3. the Letters, and other papers, which seemed to have any relation to the private history of the Aston family. My attention was first, and principally attracted, to the poems, and letters. They were altogether an unexpected discovery; they were likely to be more interesting in themselves, and were more suited to the bent of my genius, and to the train of my favourite studies, than a diplomatic correspondence, or a collection of state papers. On examining the poetry, I found, as it was natural to expect, that it was of very unequal merit; but I still thought, on a more attentive perusal, that there were many pieces worthy of preservation. My first business, therefore, was to select these, and then to transcribe them. After this operation, I had the pleasure to find that I still had a sufficient number of poems to form a volume; and it then became my study to arrange these in a suitable order. After many trials, and alterations, I at last determined on the order in which they appear in this volume. My reasons for this arrangement I shall now endeavour to explain to the reader.

When I came to select, and arrange the poems which I had thus discovered, I found that they might be conveniently classed in four divisions:—1. A small thin quarto, stitched, but without a cover, on the outermost leaf of which is written, "Her. Aston, 1658;" 2. A still smaller quarto, which has no cover, but opens with a little poem with this title, "Mrs Thimelby on the Death of her only Child 3. A small, but thick folio, covered with yellowish parchment, much discoloured; on the outside of which is written, "William Turner his booke, 1662 and on the inside of the under part of the cover, over which the last leaf had been pasted, "Catherin Gage's book;" 4. A large quantity of loose scraps of paper, sheets, half-sheets, backs of letters, and the like, scribbled over with verses.

Having classed the poetry into the four divisions, just enumerated, I determined, after some consideration, that, that also should be the order of their appearance in print. The first quarto has a name, and date upon it; and I have every reason to believe, that the poems, of which it is composed, were written full as early, and perhaps earlier, than any others in the whole collection. Though the name "Her. Aston" is on the back of it, yet, as I have no proof that any one of the poems contained in it was composed by that person, but, on the contrary, have positive evidence, that some of them were the production of another, I have therefore thought fit to entitle the First Division, "Poems collected by the Honourable Herbert Aston, 1658.

The two first poems in the second quarto, are declared, in their titles, to be the production of "Mrs Thimelby while the titles of some of the others, together with the general resemblance of sentiment, and style, throughout the whole, seem to point her out as the author of them all. I have therefore ventured to entitle the Second Division, "Poems by the Honourable Mrs Henry Thimelby."

With respect to the Third Division, I feel it necessary to offer some explanation to the reader. I candidly confess, that, with the exception of the first, and perhaps three, or four more pieces, I do not believe there is one poem in the whole Third Division, but what has been in print before. Of this fact, however, I was not aware, till the whole plan of the publication had been arranged, and a considerable portion of the Third Division had been printed.

When I first began to peruse these manuscript poems, and to transcribe them, I took the precaution to consult some learned friends about them, who are well acquainted with ancient English poetry; and I also carefully examined the principal collections of poetry in our language. I looked over the early volumes of the edition of the "British Poets," by my friend Dr Anderson; I searched the poetical miscellanies of Dryden, Pope, Dodsley, and others; I examined the collections of Percy, Headley, Ellis, and Ritson; and finding but two or three, out of my manuscript, among them, I fairly concluded at first, that they were original poems, composed, like those in the First, and Second Divisions, by some of the Aston family, or their friends. On further investigation, I have discovered Several of them, in the numerous little volumes of poetry, which were published during the latter part of the 17th century; though they are mostly without any author's name, and the poems they contain, are frequently said to be written, "By a Person of Quality." As I knew that the family at Tixall, and their friends, were persons of quality, and that they were also writers of poetry, I saw no reason to suppose but that they might have been the authors of some of these poems. Such therefore I retained, but in the Notes, I have taken care to point out the volumes where they are to be found. I also discovered, that a few of these poems are extracted from some of our dramatic authors, from Beaumont, and Fletcher, Lee, Dryden, and others. I was induced to retain these, partly from a consideration of the following passage, with which Headley has concluded the preface to his "Select Beauties of Ancient English Poetry." "Had I given way to the temptation of enriching my work with specimens from older dramatic authors, I must infallibly have enlarged my plan for their admission. They afford a field for selection, sufficiently wide of themselves, to form a complete work. I have therefore, with the exception of two or three instances, totally avoided them." Such a selection, as is here alluded to, has, I believe, never been attempted, and I therefore felt no reluctance to publish such pieces from dramatic authors, as I found in my folio manuscript. I considered, moreover, that the whole of these poems must, to the generality of readers, be perfectly new; and that besides, it would be a matter of some curiosity, to preserve entire a poetical miscellany, formed by a lady of rank, and fashion, in the 17th century. "Catherine Gage's Booke" is written at the end of the manuscript, and the first poem in it, is inscribed to her. She was the daughter of Sir Thomas Gage, Bart, of Firle, in Sussex, and the second wife of the third Lord Aston. I have therefore entitled this Third Division, "Poems collected by the Right Honourable Lady Aston."

The poems in the Fourth, and Last Division, consist of such pieces, as I found totally unconnected with each other, and written on backs of letters, or other scraps of paper. These, for want of a better designation, I have entitled "Miscellaneous Poems." I have prefixed to them, a "Pindaric Ode," by Dryden; two small poems, by Sir Richard Fanshawe; one, by Sidney Godolphin; and one by Waller: all of which I found in the old trunk, and which, I believe, are now published for the first time. Of these "Miscellaneous Poems," it is evident, that many were written by individuals of the Aston family, and their friends; while others have been collected from a variety of volumes. Wherever I have been able to discover them, I have pointed it out in the Notes.

With regard to the internal arrangement of the poems, in each Division, I have endeavoured to dispose them in such a manner, as that too many of the same sort, and cast, should not occur together; but that the reader should be led, by a pleasing interchange of subject, and style,

3happily to steer From grave to gay, from lively to severe.

Having thus related in what manner these poems were discovered, and explained the order which I have thought proper to adopt, in the arrangement of them, I should now proceed, to lay before the reader, some information concerning their respective authors. But before I enter on this topic, I think it necessary to declare the motives, which have induced me to give to this work the title of "Tixall Poetry." In the first place, All the poems in this collection were preserved and discovered at Tixall. 2dly, There is great reason to believe, that some of them were written there, and it is certain, that many of them were composed by persons, either born there, or closely connected with it. Sdly, Many of the poems I can ascribe to no author whatever; while of those, whom I have ascertained, none is so predominant, as to be entitled to give his name to the whole collection. Lastly, In addition to these reasons, I have the authority of Drayton, one of the most eminent poets of his time, for asserting, that Tixall has often been the favourite resort, and retreat of the muses. What more appropriate title, therefore, or rather, what other title, could I have chosen for this collection of poems, than that of Tixall Poetry?

V. In proceeding to give an account of the authors, and collectors of the Tixall Poetry, I must begin, by requesting the reader, to recal to his recollection the name of Sir Walter Aston.

Sir Walter Aston, afterwards Lord Aston, Baron of Forfar, in Scotland, was descended from a long line of ancestors, of the same name, who had flourished at Tixall, and in the immediate neighbourhood, for several centuries. Camden calls them, a family of great consideration: "Near the confluence of the Sow and Trent," says he, "stands Ticks-Hall, the seat of the family of Aston, of great eminence in these parts, for its antiquity, and alliances." And Fuller, in his "Worthies," has also noticed them, in the following remarkable expressions: "I have not met with a more noble family, measuring on the level of flat, and unadvantaged antiquity. They have ever borne a good respect to the church, and to learned men."

Sir Walter Aston, eldest son and heir of Sir Edward Aston, Kt. by Anne Lucy, only daughter of Sir Thomas Lucy, Kt. of Charlecote, in the county of Warwick, was born at Tixall, about the year 1580. Being a minor at the time of his father's death, in 1597, he was given in wardship, by Queen Elizabeth, to the famous Sir Edward Coke, afterwards Lord Chief Justice of the court of King's Bench. Soon after he came of age, he was made a Knight of the Bath, at the coronation of King James I. He was created a Baronet in 1611, with the first who were promoted to that dignity; and in 1619, was sent joint-ambassador with Sir John Digby, Earl-of Bristol, into Spain, to manage the nice and difficult proposal of a marriage, between Charles, Prince of Wales, and the Infanta, daughter of Philip III. in which, says his grandson, "he proceeded with great prudence and warynesse, and with a sincere zeale to have served his prince, yet was a true and fast friend to the then Duke of Buckingham." He returned to England, just after the death of King James, and

was created by letters patent, dated 28th Nov. 1627, Baron Aston, of Forfar, in the kingdom of Scotland, with all the privileges belonging to a peer of that realm. In 1635, he was again sent sole ambassador into Spain, where he continued about three years. He returned to England in 1638, and dying the year following, was buried in St Mary's church, at Stafford.

"Hee was seised at the time of his going into Spaine, of divers manors and lordships, lying in the countyes of Stafford, Warwick, Derby, and Leicestre, to ye no lesse value than of L. 10,000 per an. the greatest part of which he lost and dispended in that service."

Lord Aston married Gertrude Sadler, only daughter of Sir Thomas Sadler of Standon Lordship, near Ware, in Hertfordshire, and granddaughter of Sir Ralph Sadler, Knight Banneret. By this lady, he had five sons, and five daughters. Those who survived him, were, 1. Walter, second Lord Aston, who married, in 1629, Lady Mary Weston, daughter of Richard, Earl of Portland, Lord High Treasurer of England. 2. Herbert, who married Catherine, sister of Sir John Thimelby, of Irnham, Knt. in the county of Lincoln. 3. Frances, married Sir William Persall, Kt. of Canwell, near Lichfield. 4. Gertrude, married Henry Thimelby, Esq. third brother of Sir John Thimelby, above mentioned. 5. Constantia, married Walter Fowler, Esq. of St Thomas Priory, near Stafford.

Sir Walter Aston, and these his children; Lady Aston, second wife of his grandson, the third lord; and Edward Thimelby, second brother of Sir John Thimelby, of Irnham—these persons were the authors, and collectors of the poetry, now published in this volume.

We will now proceed to a more particular consideration of some of the individuals here enumerated.

(1.) All the biographers of Drayton, (who was one of the most eminent poets in the golden reign of Queen Elizabeth, and in that of her successor,) take notice of the liberal patronage which he enjoyed, from Sir Walter Aston of Tixall, in Staffordshire. This, Drayton himself very gratefully acknowledges, in the prefaces, and dedications, to many of his works. As these, from their voluminousness, and antiquity, are but little in the hands of the generality of modern readers, I have thought it an act of justice, to the memory of Sir Walter Aston, and to the honour of his descendants, to collect together these testimonies of Drayton, which the reader will find in the Appendix. From an attentive perusal of them, together with the lines in the title-page of this work, as well as from the long and cordial intimacy which subsisted between the poet and his patron, I am induced to think, that Drayton composed several of his poems at Tixall. Sir Walter Aston appears to have imbibed, at an early age, a decided taste for literature and poetry; for we find, that Drayton dedicated to him, his "Epistle of the Black Prince," in his collection of "Heroical Epistles," in 1598; most of which appear to have been published separately, some years before. At this time, Sir Walter Aston was about eighteen years old. In another dedication of his collected poems, published about the year 1619, he calls them "the workes of that maiden reigne, in the spring of our acquaintance, as it pleased you then to patronize, as I singly set them forth." It is observable, equally to the credit of the patron, and the poet, that in these dedications, there is no appearance of servile, or abject adulation, but that Drayton addresses Sir Walter Aston throughout, as an affectionate friend, as the companion of his studies, and an enlightened judge of his productions; which, by their immortality, would confer equal honour on his patron and himself. I have no ground, however, to assert, that Sir Walter Aston was the author of any of the pieces in this volume; but that he sometimes employed himself in poetical attempts, at least in his latter years, is evident, from a letter written in 1636, by Mrs Fowler, his youngest daughter, to her brother Herbert Aston, then at Madrid, with his father. In this letter she says, "I have receaved another from you some five dayes agoe, which you writ to my sister and mee together, and in it sent us most admirable verses of my lord's translateing, which are justly admired by all here." Though I cannot, therefore, point out with certainty, any poetical production by Sir Walter Aston, yet, when we consider his early, and constant patronage of Drayton, who, in return, has helped to immortalize the name of Tixall, and, when we reflect, that he most probably gave to his family that poetic impulse, to which we are indebted for the poems in this collection: we must, in justice, and gratitude, assign him a high place of honour and distinction, at the head of the authors, and collectors, of the Tixall Poetry.

Dignum laude virum Musa vetat mori.

(2.) I find no reason to suppose, that Sir Walter Aston's son and heir, the second Lord Aston, had any particular turn for literature, and poetry. I have found a letter of consolation from him, to his brother Herbert, on the death of his wife, in 1658, which is tender, and affectionate; and also, three very interesting letters to his wife, Lady Aston, dated from Lichfield; of which he was governor, when it was besieged by the parliamentary forces, in 1646. These letters prove him to have been a man of high honour, magnanimity, and courage.

(3.) I now proceed therefore to Herbert Aston, Sir Walter's third son. Herbert Aston was horn at Chelsea, in the year 1614. In 1635, he accompanied his father, on his second embassy to Madrid; before which time, he appears to have formed a strong attachment for Catherine Thimelby, sister of Sir John Thimelby, of Irnham, whom he afterwards married. During his absence from England, his youngest sister, Constantia, or Constance Aston, (Mrs Fowler,) who was tenderly attached to him, did all in her power to promote this union. Herbert Aston seems to have felt, very early, the inspirations of the muse. Perhaps, the passion of love, as has happened to many other poets, first warmed his breast to poetic raptures; and he might say with Propertius,