The Rise of the Dutch Republic — Volume 06: 1560-61Motley, John Lothrop
History
The Rise of the Dutch Republic — Volume 06: 1560-61
Motley, John Lothrop
Netherlands -- Church history; Netherlands -- History -- Eighty Years' War, 1568-1648
On Saturday, the day before the wedding, the guests had all arrived at
Leipsic, and the Prince of Orange, with his friends, at Meneburg.
On Sunday, the 24th August, the Elector at the head of his guests and
attendants, in splendid array, rode forth to receive the bridegroom.
His cavalcade numbered four thousand. William of Orange had arrived,
accompanied by one thousand mounted men. The whole troop now entered the
city together, escorting the Prince to the town-house. Here he
dismounted, and was received on the staircase by the Princess Anna,
attended by her ladies. She immediately afterwards withdrew to her
apartments.
It was at this point, between 4 and 5 P.M., that the Elector and
Electress, with the bride and bridegroom, accompanied also by the Dame
Sophia von Miltitz and the Councillors Hans von Ponika and Ubrich
Woltersdorff upon one side, and by Count John of Nassau and Heinrich von
Wiltberg upon the other, as witnesses, appeared before Wolf Seidel,
notary, in a corner room of the upper story of the town-house.
One of the councillors, on the part of the Elector, then addressed
the bridegroom. He observed that his highness would remember, no doubt,
the contents of a memorandum or billet, sent by the Elector on the 14th
April of that year, by the terms of which the Prince was to agree that he
would, neither by threat nor persuasion, prevent his future wife from
continuing in the Augsburg Confession; that he would allow her to go to
places where she might receive the Augsburg sacraments; that in case of
extreme need she should receive them in her chamber; and that the
children who might spring from the marriage should be instructed as to
the Augsburg doctrines. As, however, continued the councillor, his
highness the Prince of Orange has, for various reasons, declined giving
any such agreement in writing, as therefore it had been arranged that
before the marriage ceremony the Prince should, in the presence of the
bride and of the other witnesses, make a verbal promise on the subject,
and as the parties were now to be immediately united in marriage,
therefore the Elector had no doubt that the Prince would make no
objection in presence of those witnesses to give his consent to maintain
the agreements comprised in the memorandum or note. The note was then
read. Thereupon, the Prince answered verbally. "Gracious Elector;
I remember the writing which you sent me on the 14th April. All the
point: just narrated by the Doctor were contained in it. I now state to
your highness that I will keep it all as becomes a prince, and conform to
it." Thereupon he gave the Elector his hand.--
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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