Page:History of England (Froude) Vol 5.djvu/161

light when opportunity permitted. His unpopularity in the country was a present fact, which every day became more embarrassing; and he had no friends except among the incapable or the dreamers. Wolsey, Cromwell, Somerset, had fallen successively from the same height to which Northumberland had climbed; and the Nemesis which haunts political supremacy irregularly obtained, would not have failed to overtake one whose administration had been scandalous to the empire, whose errors had arisen, not from generous weakness, not from large purposes too unscrupulously followed, but from a littleness of mind rarely combined with talents and with courage so considerable as those with which the Duke must be credited. His overthrow could not but at times have seemed likely to him, unless he could by some means rest his power on a harder foundation; and therefore it was that, as Sir Richard Morryson said, he never moved forward directly upon any subject without looking to the possible consequences to himself. He had played a double game with the Emperor. After risking the peace of the kingdom on the question of Mary's mass, he had contrived that in private she should not further be interfered with. He affected extreme Protestant opinions to keep his place with the Reformers. He was Imperialist, he was French, he had an anchor thrown out in all quarters from which a wind might blow. However events might turn, he had done something, or he had affected something, which would provide him a resource should he be driven to shift his colours.