Note 314 — Chapter XX · THE SUPREME HOUR!

Historians are very apt to speak of the famous French Ambassador de Noailles, as one person, whereas in reality there were two Ambassadors of this name, the first of whom was Antoine de Noailles, the son of Louis and Catherine de Pierre-Bussiere, who entered diplomacy when he was quite a young man and continued in the service until his death, which took place in his fifty-ninth year. His tomb can still be seen at Noailles, where his ancestors are buried. His wife, Jeanne de Gontault de Biron, is not, however, buried with him, although her heart was placed in his coffin.

The second Ambassador to our Court of this illustrious family was François de Noailles, brother of the last named, who was born on 2nd July 1519. He was a very zealous Catholic and extremely pious. He entered the Church when he was only twelve years of age, to eventually become Bishop of Acqs in 1556. His extraordinary ability for diplomatic intrigue led the King, Henry II, to send him to various countries on sundry diplomatic missions, even at the same time as his brother, and he first appeared in England on the occasion of Mary’s victory over the rebels in 1553. He remained in England altogether about two years, and his dispatches are frequently confounded with those of his brother. François de Noailles died in 1560.

Both brothers were greatly opposed to the policy of Queen Mary, and thought her unnecessarily harsh and cruel. On more than one occasion they were very outspoken to her, especially in the matter of the extraordinary number of executions which took place immediately after the quelling of the Wyatt insurrection; and they both appear to have thought that she made her own unpopularity by her bigotry, and her abject subservience to the wishes of her husband.