Still intent, as ever, upon gaining the friendship of England, no matter who reigned over it, the first instructions of the Emperor to his envoys when he heard the good news of Mary’s accession were to urge upon the new Queen the acceptance, at all events at first, of the _status quo_: not to be in a hurry to change anything, to bow to the decisions of Parliament, to practise her own religion only in private, if necessary. “And above all things she should be a good Englishwoman, and let people understand that she has no intention of acting alone and without the advice and co-operation of her nobles and the Parliament.” An assurance might now be given to her of the Emperor’s desire and intention of supporting her—as had always indeed been his intention, he said—and upon her, as formerly upon her brother, was to be urged the first and principal points of all—distrust of the French and the conviction that the real, trustworthy friend of England was the Sovereign of Spain and Flanders. Mary was perfectly well aware that she owed her Crown to her own right and to the boldness of the action she had taken, and she was not inclined to accept to their full the moderating counsels of the Emperor, who had done so little for her in her need. But she also understood that her position was, as yet, far from stable; and with French intrigue against her and in favour of the _régime_ she had supplanted, she turned naturally to her powerful Spanish kinsman for such support as she might need, as well as for counsel. So anxious was Charles to consolidate her position as Queen, that the advice he gave her might rather have come from a Protestant constitutional monarch than from the absolute champion of Catholicism. She was urged to moderate her religious zeal, to abandon her intention of celebrating the obsequies of Edward with Catholic rites, and whilst using severity with the few leaders of the revolt against her, to be clement to the great majority, and not to begin her reign by any vengeful action either of her own or of the friends who had suffered under the rule of her brother. Above all, she was recommended to summon Parliament in the old form and banish most of the foreigners, especially Frenchmen, of course, from her realm. With these sage counsels the Emperor sent Mary a promise that if the French attempted anything against her, she might depend upon the aid of Imperial troops under the Prince of Savoy.