That no misrepresentation of the course which he had been driven into adopting should supply the English Government with a pretext for laying the resumption of hostilities to his charge, Kirkcaldy wrote a full justification of his conduct to Sussex, Leicester, and Burghley. It ran as follows: ‘I have received your letter, dated at Westminster the 7th of this instant, and thereby understand that your Lordships have, upon the sight of my letters and the Marshal of Berwick’s report, rightly conceived my meaning touching the pacification of these inward troubles and continuation of the amity between these two realms, which course I intend still to follow further, so far as I may conveniently. I greatly mislike that a part of this nobility should go about by all means to destroy the other; and would wish that on both parts they should moderate their passions, being content every one of his own rank and degree, and not seek by extraordinary means one to overthrow the other. As to the amity between the realms, if any occasion has fallen out of late time, or shall fall out hereafter, which may disturb, change, or diminish the intelligence happily begun, I protest that I have detested, and shall detest such as are the occasioners thereof; and wish that your Lordships hold hand to remove all such incidents as may breed a misliking on your part; the best whereunto is to procure that the Queen’s Majesty, your sovereign, hold the balance equal to both the sides, showing like favour and good countenance to both, so that neither party may think themselves prejudged till the difference for the title for the Crown may by her means be compounded, or brought to an end. For my own part, the Earl of Lennox (whom I never thought a fit person to bear any rule, for the great imperfections which are known to be in him) has so ungently, unreasonably and unlawfully used me, that he has compelled me to provide for my own security, and of the place which I have in charge, and to stand upon my guard with him. Besides many injuries and wrongs which he before had done, against all good order, to me and my friends, whereat I partly winked, and lightly overlooked them, he has of late charged by open proclamations, that all the soldiers which I keep for the preservation of this place, do depart from me and leave my service, by which doing he has uttered his ill-will and intention he had to denude me of my forces, whereby the place, for lack of men to defend it, might fall as a prey in his hands. And when he saw that his commands in that behalf were not obeyed, his malice has burst out further, to set further false and calumnious proclamations against me, full of injurious language, such as neither he nor any of his faction dare maintain, thinking thereby to have made me odious to the people. But my behaviour in times past, and hazarding of my person and goods, for the liberty of my country and duty to my friends is so well known in Scotland, that I am not afraid that