Gratulatio de Marchionatu. Ad Buckingh. C. A.D. 1619 / To the Earl of Buckingham Congratulations on the Title of Marquis [January 1617/1618]

Gratulatio de Marchionatu. Ad Buckingh. C. A.D. 1619

Illustrissime Domine.

Ecquid inter tot gloriae titulos caput vndique munientes meministi magistrum Te esse Artium? an inter lauros principis hederae nostrae ambitiosae locus est? hunc quidem gradum pignus habes amoris nostri, haec est ansa quâ prehendimus Te, et tanquam Aquilam inter novas honorum nubes e conspectu nostro fugientem revocamus. Tu vicissim abunde compensas nos, gratissimoque Almam Matrem prosequeris animo: proin vt Fluuij quas aquas a Fonte accipiunt non retinent ipsi, sed in mare dimittunt: sic Tu etiam dignitates ab optimo Rege desumptas in vniuersam Rempublicam diffundis: per Te illucet nobis Iacobus noster. Tu aperis ilium populo & cum ipse sis in summa arbore alterâ manu prehendis Regem, alteram nobis ad radices haerentibus porrigis. Quare meritissime Marchio, Tuam gloriam censemus nostram, et in honoribus Tuis nostro bono gratulamur. quanquam¹ quem alium fructum potuimus expectare ab Eo, in quem fauor Regius, nostra vota, virtutes tantae confluxerunt. inter quae etiam certamen oritur et pia contentio, vtrum gratia Principis virtutes tuas, aut nostra vota gratiam Principis, aut Tuae virtutes, et vota nostra, et Principis gratiam superarent. nimirum vt lineae, quamvis diuersa via, omnes tamen ad centrum properant. Sic disparatae foelicitates hinc a populo, illinc a Principe in Te conveniunt, et confabulantur. quare quomodo alij molem hanc laetitiae suae exprimant, ipsi viderint: nos certe precamur, vt neque virtutibus tuis desint honores neque vtrisque vita, vsquedum, postquam omnes honorum gradus hic percurreris; aeternum illud praemium consequare, cui neque addi quicquam potest, neque detrahi.

To the Earl of Buckingham Congratulations on the Title of Marquis [January 1617/1618]

Most Noble Lord.

Do you by any chance recollect that amidst the vast array of glorious titles enwreathing your head on every side You are a Master of the Arts? And is there room for our winding ivy amidst your imperial laurels? This station is yours as a pledge of our love. This is the loop by which we take hold of you. And we call You back like an Eagle disappearing out of sight into new clouds of honors. In turn you amply reward us, and with a most grateful spirit honor Our Nurturing Mother. So then as Rivers that receive waters from a Spring do not themselves hold on to them, but release them to the sea, so you also pour over the whole Commonwealth the distinctions our most excellent King has chosen to bestow upon you. Through You our James shines on us. You reveal him to the people, and insofar as you are at the very top of the tree yourself, with one hand you reach the King, and with the other you reach out to us who cling to the roots.¹ For that reason, most deserving Marquis, we declare Your glory to be our own, and we rejoice in our good fortune at Your honors. But what other joys could we imagine from Him on whom Royal favor, our prayers, and so many virtues converge? Rivalry and an affectionate competition arise between these forces, to see whether the Prince’s grace might exceed your virtues, our prayers exceed the Prince’s grace, or Your virtues exceed both our prayers and the Prince’s grace. There is no doubt that just as straight lines, though in many different directions, still all drive forward to the center, even so a variety of plaudits, on this side from the people, on that side from the Prince, come together in You and converse. So, however others may communicate their mighty joy, we leave their expression to them. As for us, we pray without fail that your honors not fall short of your merits, and that your life not fall short of either your merits or your honors – until, after you have run through all the ranks of honors here, you reach that eternal reward to which nothing can be added nor anything taken away.