July 19, 1554

The petit bal was a delight. But our trap did not work. I am wondering if Signore is suspicious. Maybe his encounter with Mary Beaton stopped him. I am not sure. We shall continue to watch for more opportunities.

The bagpipers were excellent and Robin MacClean played with them. Signore Marcellini, of course, hated the music. Queen Catherine came for a brief time and arranged her face into a tense smile as they played. I could see that she did not like the music either. But King Henry loved it. He asked me if he might “borrow the pipers” to entertain the Spanish delegation that is expected shortly. There are more rumours that a match is to be arranged between Princess Elizabeth, or perhaps even Princess Claude, and a member of the Spanish royal family. I worry for them both, as we understand that the Spanish court is quite backward. They lack any refinements of the arts or culture that we enjoy here. Their courts are full of intrigue, and their bishops enjoy excessive amounts of power and are known to be cruel and harsh. It seems that the main business of Spain is the Inquisition and the rooting out of Jews. They devote themselves to this task almost exclusively. I do wonder what these envoys from the Spanish court will think of our court’s Jew, the astrologer Michel Nostradamus. Actually there are many Jews here in the court who fled Spain and now serve the King and Queen.