But if we ask what views Charles I really cherished, it is plain that he would never have consented to engage in direct hostilities against the strong places in the Netherlands. He might possibly have allowed an attack to be made by the Dutch and French, supposing that he were to have a share in the government of the conquered places, but he would never have taken part in such an attack. In the summer of 1637, whilst he was acceding to the preliminary stipulations with France, the Spaniards made advances to him on the other side, and, to say the least, he did not reject their overtures. He treated the Spanish court at all times with the greatest respect. In 1638 the Elector Palatine had been placed in a position to appear in some force in Westphalia: the King of England had assurances given to the Spaniards that this was not his doing, although on the other hand he was not opposed to it; but that he looked upon it as an exclusively German affair, which had no reference to the Spanish crown. He assured them that his wishes were only directed to the restoration of general peace in Christendom, in which every one should again enjoy his own. Cardinal Richelieu may have been quite right in his opinion that the main object of the King of England in his stipulations with France was to compel the Spaniards to show greater compliance in the affair of the Palatinate than had been displayed at the time of Arundel’s [A.D. 1638.] mission[129]. But that however was not the only reason why the projected agreement could not be executed. During the negotiations of the allies as to the agreement on proposals to be made to the house of Austria, England, as it had intimated to the Spaniards, expressed the opinion that each one ought to have his own, and therefore that not only the Palatinate, but everything else which had been taken from its rightful owner, must be given up. Cardinal Richelieu was agitated by this proposal, for he thought that the house of Austria might well accede to it, but that it was impossible for France and for Sweden to do so; and that the consequence of the negotiations would be that they would lose England as their ally, whom they had hoped to gain[130].