CHAPTER II The Great Marquis HE Somerset family was at the height of its THE prosperity when Charles I. came to the throne. Heiresses, royal grants and the spoils of monasteries had made them rich. Their royal descent was acknowledged. They had steered safely through the perils of the Reformation, and they had retained the confidence of king and people while still holding fast to the ancient faith. This steadfastness gave them a just sense of dignity and stability amid changes and chances of troubled times. It is difficult to realize in our more tolerant, possibly more indifferent age, how many of the plots and adventures of the time of Henry and Elizabeth came from the troubled or restless consciences of men who had changed their church without changing their faith. Even gentle sceptics like Erasmus were not happy. Thinkers realized that it is impossible to attribute Divine origin to a compromise. But, while many of the nobles and statesmen eased a troubled conscience by restless politics and extreme Calvinistic opinions, |