as a diplomatist. Ferdinand always
found some fresh subject to be wrangled over: the style to be given to the
King of England, the number of servants to come in the train of Katharine,
Henry desiring that they should be few and Ferdinand many, and one of the
demands of the English king was, "that the ladies who came from Spain with
the Princess should all be beautiful, or at least none of them should be
ugly."

In the summer of 1500 there was a sudden panic in Ferdinand's court that
Henry had broken off the match. He had gone to Calais to meet for the
first time the young Archduke Philip, Ferdinand's son-in-law, and it was
rumoured that the distrusted Fleming had persuaded Henry to marry the
Prince of Wales to his sister the Arch duchess Margaret, the recently
widowed daughter in-law of Ferdinand. It was not true, though it made
Ferdinand very cordial for a time, and soon the relations between England
and Spain resumed their usual course of smooth-tongued distrust and
tergiversation. Still another ambassador was sent to England, and
reported that people were saying they believed the Princess would never
come, though great preparations for her reception continued to be made,
and the English nobles were already arranging jousts and tournaments for
her entertainment. Ferdinand, on the other hand, continued to send
reassuring messages. He was, he said, probably with truth now, more
desirous than ever that the marriage should take place when the bridegroom
had completed his fourteenth year; but it was necessary that the marriage
should be performed again by proxy in Spain before the bride embarked.
Then there was a delay in obtaining the ships necessary for the passage,
and the Spanish sovereigns changed their minds again, and preferred that
the second marriage, after Arthur had attained his fifteenth year, should
be performed in England. The stormy weather of August was then an excuse
for another delay on the voyage, and a fresh quibble was raised about the
value of the Princess's jewels being considered as part of the _first_
instalment of the dowry. In December 1500 the marriage was once more
performed at Ludlow, Arthur being again present and pledging himself as
before to Puebla.

Whilst delaying the voyage of Katharine as much as possible, now probably
in consequence of her youth, her parents took the greatest of care to
convince Henry of the indissoluble character of the marriage as it stood.
Knowing the King of Engla