Page:Catherine of Bragança, infanta of Portugal, & queen-consort of England.djvu/406

364 Catherine's hands in audience, to the violent wagging of tongues, the general impression at Court being that it had been brought about by the Duchess of Portsmouth's mediation.

On New Year's Day, 1683, Waller addressed the following lines to Catherine:

The voice of the courtier was dumb on the subject of the Commons who had desired to convict her of treason, and remove her from the King's side, and of the nation, who, after having lifted her to the throne, would have applauded her end on the scaffold!

In June the Court and the country were thrown into agitation by the discovery of the Rye House Plot to assassinate Charles, and the Duke of York, on their way back to town from Newmarket. The meetings of the conspirators were held at Rye, in Hertfordshire, the country seat of Rumbold, one of their number. By the mere accident of a fire breaking out in the King's house in Newmarket, which forced Charles and his brother to return two days before the time appointed, the plot came to nothing; but it was discovered, and many of the plotters went to the scaffold,