To one Mr. Towes, who had been schoolfellow with Sir George Villers,
the father of the first Duke of Buckingham, (and was his friend and
neighbour) as he lay in his bed awake, (and it was day-light) came
into his chamber, the phantom of his dear friend Sir George Villers:
said Mr. Towes to him, why, you are dead, what make you here ? said
the Knight, I am dead, but cannot rest in peace for the wickedness and
abomination of my son George, at Court. I do appear to you, to tell
him of it, and to advise and dehort him from his evil ways. Said Mr.
Towes, the Duke will not believe me, but will say that I am mad, or
doat. Said Sir George, go to him from me, and tell him by such a token
(a mole) that he had in some secret place, which none but himself knew
of. Accordingly Mr. Towes went to the Duke, who laughed at his
message. At his return home the phantom appeared again, and told him
that the Duke would be stabbed (he drew out a dagger) a quarter of a
year after: and you shall outlive him half a year; and the warning
that you shall have of your death, will be, that your nose will fall a
bleeding. All which accordingly fell out so. This account I have had
(in the main) from two or three; but Sir William Dugdale affirms what
I have here taken from him to be true, and that the apparition told
him of several things to come, which proved true, e. g. of a prisoner
in the Tower, that shall be honourably delivered. This Mr. Towes had
so often the ghost of his old friend appear to him, that it was not at
all terrible to him. He was surveyor of the works at Windsor, (by the
favour of the Duke) being then sitting in the hall, he cried out, the
Duke of Buckingham is stabbed: he was stabbed that very moment.
This relation Sir William Dugdale had from Mr. Pine, (neighbour to Mr.
Towes without Bishops-gate) they were both great lovers of music, and
sworn brothers. Mr. W. Lilly, astrologer, did print this story false,
which made Sir Edmund Wyndham (who married Mr. Pine's daughter) give
to Sir George Hollis this true account contrary to Mr. Lilly.
Mr. Thomas Ellyot, Groom of the bedchamber, married Sir Edmund
Wyndham's daughter, and had the roll (of near a quire of paper) of the
conferences of the apparition and Mr. Towes. Mr. Ellyot was wont to
say, that Mr. Towes was (not a bigot, or did trouble himself much
about a religion, but was) a man of great morals.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account