Chapter 16 Summary

The cardinal stirs up the king's jealousy to the point that he demands the queen's personal papers to see whether or not there is proof among them of some kind of conspiracy with Buckingham. The cardinal focuses on hinting at political conspiracy, but knows the king will assume it's an affair. The king sends his chancellor with orders not only to search her rooms, but also her person in case she has hidden a letter to Buckingham in her clothes.

The queen is horrified by the orders when the chancellor comes to carry them out, and since he finds nothing in her belongings, he advances to search her person so she voluntarily gives up the letter she had hidden in her dress. It's a letter to the queen's brother, who is the King of Spain, asking them to press the king to dismiss...