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"Instigate to poison" (Re: Cryptic Clues to the Authorship Puzzle)

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Some months ago I attempted a thread on the very PUZZLING
Authorship Mystery.  Assessing probabilities to determine whether
decodings are intentional or chance coincidence seemed like a good task
for r.puzzlers.

I was disappointed to get almost only a single response. And that was on
a tangential topic.

There were more than a million Catholics in England during the reign of
Elizabeth.  Some of these were eager to replace the Protestant Queen with
a Catholic. Ending the life of Elizabeth was an essential feature of such
plots. The Vatican certainly understood this and was implicitly calling
for HM's assassination.  I erred by suggesting this was EXPLICIT.

But just now I came across an interesting letter from an English spy in Italy.

(It is wonderful how much documentation survives from 16th-century England.
In some ways information may exceed what we know of America in more
recent centuries.  Original text of the interesting letter, excerpted in
Hutchinson's bio of Francis Walsingham, appears to be  behind paywall(s).)
  
Phil Carmody <pc+usenet@asdf.org> posted:
> James Dow Allen <user4353@newsgrouper.org.invalid> writes:
> > Do NOT read this post.  It contains NO puzzles for the r.puzzlers.
> 
> However, it leaves me puzzled.
> 
> > Briefly, revealing the secret authorship would have been treason against
> > the person of Elizabetha Dei Gracia Angliae Regina etc. herself.
> > To understand this we must review the politics of Her Majesty's reign.
> >
> > The Pope in Rome had not only excommunicated Queen Elizabeth, but had issued
> > a "fatwa" calling for her to be murderd.
> 
> [Citation needed]

See below.

> 
> "Section 3: [...] we do out of the fullness of our apostolic power
> declare the foresaid Elizabeth to be a heretic and favorer of heretics,
> and her adherents in the matters aforesaid to have incurred the sentence
> of anathema and to be cut off from the unity of the body of Christ."
> 
> Not regicide, just excommunication.
> 
> "Section 4. And moreover, we declare her to be deprived of her pretended
> title to the kingdom aforesaid, and of all dominion, dignity and
> privilege whatsoever;"
> 
> Again, not regicide.
> 
> "Section 6: [...] We charge and command all and singular the nobles,
> subjects, peoples and others aforesaid that they do not dare obey her
> orders, mandates and laws. Those who shall act to the contrary we
> include in the like sentence of excommunication."
> 
> Reinforcement that the above isn't regicide, mere excommunication.
> 
> https://internetshakespeare.uvic.ca/doc/PapalBull1570_M/index.html
> 
> Phil

In a letter to Sir Francis Walsingham, Stephen Paule wrote
>> [Michael Giraldi, a Begomase,] has set sail for England,  pretending to be a merchant.
>> It is thought that for several reasons, [he is] to poison her majesty at the instigation
>> of the Pope [Sixtus V].  The Pope, under pretence of supporting the war against
>> the heretics and for performing some great enterprise, has enriched himself exceedingly.

Not proof beyond reasonable doubt that Sixtus V encouraged murder, but clear evidence that
papal auspices for such murder were assumed by contemporary Italian gossip.

Cheers,
James

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Cryptic Clues to the Authorship Puzzle James Dow Allen <user4353@newsgrouper.org.invalid> - 2026-03-02 06:20 +0000
  Re: Cryptic Clues to the Authorship Puzzle James Dow Allen <user4353@newsgrouper.org.invalid> - 2026-03-03 07:52 +0000
    Re: Cryptic Clues to the Authorship Puzzle Richard Harnden <richard.nospam@gmail.invalid> - 2026-03-03 12:28 +0000
      Re: Cryptic Clues to the Authorship Puzzle James Dow Allen <user4353@newsgrouper.org.invalid> - 2026-03-03 18:45 +0000
      Re: Cryptic Clues to the Authorship Puzzle James Dow Allen <user4353@newsgrouper.org.invalid> - 2026-03-05 04:02 +0000
        Re: Cryptic Clues to the Authorship Puzzle Richard Harnden <richard.nospam@gmail.invalid> - 2026-03-05 06:03 +0000
  Re: Cryptic Clues to the Authorship Puzzle Charlie Roberts <croberts@gmail.com> - 2026-03-03 15:16 -0500
    Re: Cryptic Clues to the Authorship Puzzle James Dow Allen <user4353@newsgrouper.org.invalid> - 2026-03-04 05:15 +0000
      Re: Cryptic Clues to the Authorship Puzzle Charlie Roberts <croberts@gmail.com> - 2026-03-04 17:48 -0500
        Re: Cryptic Clues to the Authorship Puzzle James Dow Allen <user4353@newsgrouper.org.invalid> - 2026-03-05 03:54 +0000
  Re: Cryptic Clues to the Authorship Puzzle James Dow Allen <user4353@newsgrouper.org.invalid> - 2026-03-12 19:22 +0000
    Re: Cryptic Clues to the Authorship Puzzle James Dow Allen <user4353@newsgrouper.org.invalid> - 2026-03-13 05:35 +0000
    Re: Cryptic Clues to the Authorship Puzzle James Dow Allen <user4353@newsgrouper.org.invalid> - 2026-03-25 11:19 +0000
      Re: Cryptic Clues to the Authorship Puzzle Phil Carmody <pc+usenet@asdf.org> - 2026-05-19 18:23 +0300
        Re: Cryptic Clues to the Authorship Puzzle James Dow Allen <user4353@newsgrouper.org.invalid> - 2026-05-19 17:56 +0000
        "Instigate to poison"  (Re: Cryptic Clues to the Authorship Puzzle) James Dow Allen <user4353@newsgrouper.org.invalid> - 2026-08-30 08:35 +0000

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