972Unsolved Historical Ciphers
qht ocα xipm amαhtn → and the your frendes
q = a · α = e · ɧ = n · ε = d · o = t · c = h · n = s · 7 = o · x = y

Greenwich → the Regent of Scotland · letter substitution with a few homophones and name signs, inline with clear English · 20 July 1569

Throckmorton to the Regent Moray, 20 July 1569: the Norfolk marriage letter

Nicholas Throckmorton
fromNicholas Throckmorton
Regent Moray
toRegent Moray

BL Add MS 33531 ff. 79–80 (DECODE R8348; catalogue item 83). DECODE lists it under an unknown sender and dates it 26 July. It is Sir Nicholas Throckmorton's letter to the Regent Moray, "At Grenew. the 20th of July 1569".

A contemporary decipherment was written between the lines, and Bain calendared the letter in 1900. A water stain has faded much of that decipherment. Every cipher passage was decrypted again from the cipher with Tomokiyo's published key, and checked against the gloss where it is legible.

Daniel Bourdeau · posted · updated

Method: read with known key · Extent: complete

Summary. Catalogue item 83 was a DECODE record with no sender, a date of 26 July 1569 and the status "partially decrypted". The letter itself is signed in cipher "N. Throkmorton", dated at Greenwich 20 July 1569, and addressed to the "Lorde Regent of Scotlande". Bain's Calendar of Scottish Papers ii, no. 1103, summarises it as "in cipher deciphered". The Scottish recipients wrote a decipherment over every cipher line, and Satoshi Tomokiyo has reconstructed the key; both were known before this work. What was missing is the text. Bain gives two sentences, and the old decipherment is half washed out by a stain across ff. 79r and 80r. The cipher ink survived, so every cipher passage was deciphered again with Tomokiyo's key and checked against the gloss wherever it can still be read. The letter presses Moray to accept what the English council had "intended and resolved" about the Queen of Scots: her restoration and her marriage, the Norfolk match. It warns him that the "protestants your frendes" here have come round, and that "not one, no, not one" of any moment disallows the plan. It urges him to send Lethington to London at speed, because refusing would leave him "incombred both from hence, from thence, and from all other places". A few name signs and a handful of words stay uncertain.

01 The document

Two leaves, four pages: ff. 79r, 79v and 80r carry the letter, and f. 80v the date, the subscription, the signature in cipher and the address. A later Scottish hand has headed f. 79r "ane Cipher lre from England in ye yeir 1569". The letter is in clear English with cipher phrases dropped into it, and the cipher keeps word division. The interlinear decipherment is in a lighter ink. It is intact on the left of each page and faded to illegibility under the stain on the right.

Top of f. 79r: clear text and cipher words, the interlinear decipherment faded under a brown water stain
f. 79r, opening. "What was intended and resolved here concerning the [Queen of Scots] … for her restauration, as for the disposition of her in marriage". The interlinear gloss fades out under the stain; the cipher does not. Image: British Library, Add MS 33531 f. 79r, via DECODE R8348.

02 The cipher

This is a letter-for-letter substitution that uses Latin-looking letters as cipher signs, so the ciphertext looks like gibberish English. It has homophones for a, b, e, i, o and u (w is written as two u-signs) and single signs for persons: N = the Queen of Scots, W = the Queen of England, L = your Lordship, and a few others (Z, M, La, ⊔) whose referents the gloss does not preserve. Plain → cipher: a q/ħ, b r/K, c B, d ε, e α/ε, f a, g б, h c, i ∂/4, l f, m g, n ɧ, o 7/i, p k, r m, s n, t o, u p/Δ, x y, y x. The key is Tomokiyo's, and it held without change on every word decrypted here.

03 The text

The clear text is in roman type and the deciphered passages in italics. [?] marks a word not securely decrypted, and a sign in brackets is a name sign. The page order is ff. 79r, 79v, 80r, 80v.

f. 79r. What was intended and resolved here concerning the [N, Queen of Scots] [?] for her restauration, as for the disposition of her in marriage, your [L, Lordship] … thoroughly understand by Mr John Woodes narration. Since which time you did hear also by a letter sent from me to the Lord of Liddington in your [?] of the same matter absolutely and breefly … How your frendes which here aforesaid were of a contrarie minde for the whole, were violently constrained and by great necessitie urged to condescend and thereunto. So as now my good Lord the matter is not in state of deliberation, but rather requires expedite [?], having good opportunitie for execution. With further by all convenient means I doe wishe that you should concurre with your frendes [Z] here, who see so far into your case, and are so content for the same, as they desire nothinge so earnestlie as your Lordship's pr[ocuring] in that matter, and that to be donne in suche sorte, both for the [sign] and good affection, as it may not appear after [signs] to the [N] or to such as have interest in her, that you will doe nothinge frendly but compulsorilie, whereby the frendship, good affection borne you and thestimacion of you shalbe changed into worse conceiptes, and so gradatim your happines, tranquillitie, and anie good else, shalbe turned into turmoile, calamitie, and division, and the prosperitie of your neighbours and frendes eyther converted into greate dissention, or into a miserable transformation. Now (as matters have ben used and conducted) the protestants your frendes have credit and meanes to assure all things there and here in good termes. And suche may be your impugninge or [double?] proce[edinge] …

f. 79v. … as yours and ours adversaries shall [sign] possess the instrument [?], and all other circumstances to the ruine of Religion, you, and your countrey also, and to worke the lyke effectes amongest us moost dangerouslye. You may perhaps amongest other perswasions be moved to thinke, that as you find a faction there to impugne their designe, so there shall not want Instrumentes and a party here to runne the same course. My Lorde I will not dissemble with you, and if I would you can gesse at the truthe. Some there be [sign] graunt which will to their [Z] power withstand this matter. Others will geve the lokinge on; and some will cary twoe faces in a hoode, lokinge which way the matter is lyke to wende. [M] Of all these sortes that will the end, to hasten apace, not to be lefte alone, [sign] when they shall see the ablest and the greatest runne and concurre together in the favour of the [N, M, La] for the purposes aforesaid. And albeit you may thinke [W, the Queen of England] will not so hastily favour her promotion, yet youre experience paste dothe teache you that [W] could never accord her overthrow, or be contented to see her lyfe dispossessed of her state. For I graunt, if her majestie would have runne the direct course against her, perhaps the same would have taken good successe, but this neutralitie can not stande as the worlde standeth. Some light you maye see and thereby conjecture the reste by her majesties letter written to you [sign] at that time, whereby also you may be resolved of what affections they

f. 80r. they be in this matter which have the principall credit about her. [signs] I can assure your lordship there is not one, no, not one, which are of moment, that dothe not allow of this case, and maketh hast to shew his gratitude, leste he might be demed slowe. If I could by anye other course espye anye other thinge than your owne overthrowe, I would not write so peremptorilie unto you, neyther perswade you to geve place where peradventure your conscience may be combred, and some question of overprecise objections may arise to calle your honor in dowbte. We see so far to the beginninge, the middeste and the endinge, and doe forsee all dangers and eventes, as I thinke you can not, but [?] yourself to concurre with your frendes. Therefore settinge aside argumentacion, [Z, La, sign] wishe you should with speed [?] send hither the Lord of Liddington, who undoubtedly is both the wysest and the sufficientest man you may send to provide for you and all the reste substancyally and assuredly. And when you shall leave to be advised by him and to truste him, you shall procure unto yourselfe greatteste perill, and to the whole state of your countrey the grettest hazarde. No mans frendship will be more imbraced than yours, no mans estimacion more preserved. [sign] Contrarywise, if you desist or become an adverse party, you will be so incombred both from hence, from thence, and from all other places, your neighbours, as no man can advise you what to doe. Therefore God send you to directe your course for the beste. And so I commit you and all yours

f. 80v. to almighty Gods counsell. At Grenew. the 20th of July 1569. Your L. to use and commande, N. Throkmorton. Address: "Lorde Regent of Scotlande".

04 Method

The record came from the rule-scored DECODE part of the catalogue. Bain was checked first. His no. 1103 matched the shelfmark, the address and "in cipher deciphered", which settled the sender and the date. The four DECODE images, and Tomokiyo's key image filed on the record, were fetched with a DECODE login. The key was first confirmed on about twenty words whose gloss survives (and, the, your, frendes, intended, resolved, concerning, restauration, disposition, aforesaid, condescend, should, Liddington). Each cipher passage was then transcribed from half-line crops of the full-resolution scans and decrypted by hand. Where the gloss is legible it agrees with the decoding.

05 What remains uncertain

06 Sources

Notes, the full reading and the profile are in the repository folder throck1569/.