Isabella, the faithless wife of Edward II., had, indeed, been condemned by "the Lords" to the forfeiture of many of the estates which she had illegally appropriated; but it does not appear that her violation of her marriage vows, or even her probable share or acquiescence in her husband's murder, formed any portion of the grounds of her deprivation.

And the Parliament which attainted Catherine Howard proceeded solely on her confession of ante-nuptial licentiousness, without giving her any opportunity of answering or disproving the other charges which were brought against her.

Unprecedented, therefore, the course now adopted may be admitted to have been.

But it was the only practicable one.

The different minutes of the cabinet, which the Prime-minister laid before the King, established most conclusively the correctness of their opinion that no impeachment for high-treason could lie against her.