right of continuing the war for the disposal of the crown of Denmark. That country in the meantime, seeing that its sole chance of safety lay in obtaining a strong and capable leader, elected the Duke of Holstein to the vacant throne, under the title of Christian III.--a severe blow to the pretensions of the Lübeckers, who were now robbed of their best excuse for interference in Danish affairs, namely their professed desire to introduce pure religion there[561]. Lübeck, however, had now gone too far to draw back, and prepared to attack the new King in connexion with England. Henry must have been much annoyed at the complication into which his new alliance had led him--it seemed doubly foolish, in view of his attempts to conciliate the German Protestants, that he should get himself entangled with the enemies of those whom he wished to make his friends. But though the King was advised by Dr. Barnes, the English ambassador at Hamburg, to drop Lübeck and conciliate Christian[562], he was as usual too proud to acknowledge that he had made a mistake. He soon reaped the reward of his obstinacy, as the Lübeckers, in their new attempt to overthrow Christian, were again completely defeated. Henry had aided them with the services of two skilled engineers, and the Danish King sent an embassy to demand an explanation of his conduct[563]. Christian’s envoy was treated with scant courtesy by the King and Cromwell, the latter vainly attempting to conceal his master’s anxiety by several preposterous lies[564]. But still the King was unwilling to consent to a complete reversal of his Lübeck policy, and finally sent the ambassador home with an answer which Chapuys characterizes as ‘obscure and ambiguous.’ Several subsequent victories of Christian, in which certain English ships which had been sent to aid the Lübeckers were captured, were sufficient however to convince Henry that he had unduly despised the power of the new Danish King; and though his relations with Lübeck continued to be friendly, he carefully abstained from any further active measures on her behalf. But he had already done enough at least temporarily to alienate his Lutheran friends, who were shocked at the way in which the King of England attached himself to people whose religious principles were as extreme as those of the Lübeckers, and who had dared to attack one of their own number.