still discord between the Kirk and the Lords, and,
in a long argument with Lethington, Knox maintained the right of the
godly to imitate the slayings of idolaters by Phineas and Jehu: the
doctrine bore blood-red fruits among the later Covenanters. Elizabeth,
in May 1564, in vain asked Mary to withdraw the permission (previously
asked for by her) to allow Lennox to visit Scotland and plead for the
restitution of his lands. The objection to Lennox's appearance had come,
through Randolph, from Knox. "You may cause us to take the Lord
Darnley," wrote Kirkcaldy to Cecil, to stop Elizabeth's systems of
delays; and Sir James Melville, after going on a mission to Elizabeth,
warned Mary that she would never part with her minion, now Earl of
Leicester.

Lennox, in autumn 1564, arrived and was restored to his estates, while
Leicester and Cecil worked for the sending of his son Darnley to
Scotland. Leicester had no desire to desert Elizabeth's Court and his
chance of touching her maiden heart.

The intrigues of Cecil, Leicester, and Elizabeth resemble rather a
chapter in a novel than a page in history. Elizabeth notoriously hated
and, when she could, thwarted all marriages. She desired that Mary
should never marry: a union with a Catholic prince she vetoed,
threatening war; and Leicester she offered merely "to drive time." But
Mary, evasively tempted by hints, later withdrawn, of her recognition as
Elizabeth's successor, was, till the end of March 1565, encouraged by
Randolph, the English ambassador at her Court, to remain in hope of
wedding Leicester.

Randolph himself was not in the secret of the English intrigue, which was
to slip Darnley at Mary. He came (February 1565): Cecil and Leicester
had "used earnest means" to ensure his coming. On March 17 Mary was
informed that she would never be recognised as Elizabeth's successor till
events should occur which never could occur. On receiving this news Mary
wept; she also was indignant at the long and humiliating series of
Elizabeth's treacheries. Her patience broke down; she turned to Darnley,
thereby, as the English intriguers designed, breaking up the concord of
her nobles. To marry Darnley involved the feud of the Hamiltons, and the
return of Murray (whom Darnley had offended), of Chatelherault, Argyll,
and many other nobles to the party of Knox and the preachers. Leicester
would have been welcome to Knox; Darnley was a Catholic, if anything, and
a weak passionat