and Hoogstraeten were the principal members.  This league, of which Orange was the brain and moving spirit, had as its chief aim the removal of Granvelle from office, and then redress of grievances.  It found widespread support.  The cardinal was assailed by a torrent of lampoons and pasquinades of the bitterest description.  But, though Margaret began to see that the unpopularity of the minister was undermining her position, and was rendering for her the task of government more and more difficult, Philip was obdurate and closed his ears.  The long distance between Madrid and Brussels and the procrastinating habits of the Spanish king added immensely to the regent’s perplexities.  She could not act on her own initiative, and her appeals to Philip were either disregarded or after long delay met by evasive replies.

The discontented nobles in vain tried to obtain redress for their grievances.  In the autumn of 1562 Montigny was sent on a special mission to Madrid, but returned without effecting anything.  Orange, Egmont and Hoorn thereupon drew up a joint letter containing a bold demand for the dismissal of Granvelle, as the chief cause of all the troubles in the land.  The king replied by asking that one of them should go in person to Spain to discuss the grievances with him, and suggesting that Egmont should be sent.  Egmont however was averse to the proposal, and another and stronger letter signed by the three leaders was despatched to Madrid.  Finding that both Margaret and Granvelle himself were in agreement with Orange, Egmont and Hoorn in their view of the situation, Margaret advising, with the cardinal’s acquiescence, the necessity of the minister’s removal from his post, Philip determined at last that Granvelle should leave the Netherlands.  But in accordance with the counsel of Alva, who was opposed on principle to any concession, he characteristically employed circuitous and clandestine means to conceal from the world any appearance of yielding to the request of his subjects.  In January, 1564 he sent a letter to the Duchess of Parma expressing his displeasure at the lords’ letter, and saying that they must substantiate their complaints.  The same messenger (Armenteros, the duchess’ secretary) carried another letter for Granvelle headed “secret,” in which the cardinal was told that “owing to the strong feeling that had been aroused against him, he was to ask permission from the regent to go away for a short time to visit his mother.”  About a week after these letters had reached their destination another courier brought a reply to the three nobles, which, though written on the same day as the others, bore a date three weeks later, in which they were bidden to take their places again in the Council of State, and a promise was given that the charges against Granvelle after substantiation should be maturely considered.  This letter was delivered on March 1, after Granvelle had already, in obedience to the king’s orders, asked for leave of absence to visit his mother in Franche-Comte.  The cardinal actually left Brussels on March 13, to the great joy of every class of the people, never to return.