whyche is the power of the keies and order in the Ecclesiastical state which is by the authoritie of gods word and examples of the Apostles and of all olde holy fathers from Christ hitherto attributed and geuen to the Apostolike Sea of Rome by speciall prerogatiue From which Sea I am here deputed Legate Ambassadour hauing full and ample commission froÌ„ thence and haue the keyes committed to my handes I confes to you that I haue the keyes not as mine owne keyes but as y e keies of him that sent me and yet cannot open not for wante of power in me to gyue but for certayne impedimentes in you to receaue whiche must be taken awaye before my commission can take effect This I protest vnto you my commyssion is not of preiudice to anye persone I cum not to destroy but to build I cum to reconcyle not to condemne I cum not to compel but to call againe I am not cum to call anything in question alredy done But my commission is of grace and clemencye to suche as will receaue it For touchinge al matters that be past they shal bee as thinges cast into the Sea of forgetfulnes But the meane wherby you shal receaue this benefit is to reuoke and repeale those lawes and statutes whiche be impedymentes blockes and barres to the execution of my coÌ„mission For like as I my self had neyther place nor voice to speake here amonge you but was to all respectes a banished maÌ„ til such time as ye hadde repealed those lawes that laie in my way euenso can not you receaue the benifite and grace offered from the Apostolike Sea vntyll the abrogacion of suche lawes whereby you haue disioyned and disseue red your selues from the vnity of Christes Church it remaineth therfore that you lyke true Christians and prouydente men for the weale of youre soules and bodies ponder what is to be don in this so weightye a cause And so to frame youre actes and procedinges as they may tend first to the glorye of GOD and next to the conseruacion of youre coÌ„mon wealthe suertye and quietnes This was the substaunce of my Lorde Cardinalles oration or rather his tale whiche he pronounsed in such sort as no man coulde iudge it any studyed matter but a thinge spoken Ex tempore Wherof a frende of myne beeinge a Burges of the Parliamente and presente at the same tyme toke the notes and gaue me the same in writing so as I beleue nothinge that he spake in effect is omitted And after that the assemble was broken my lord Cardinal taking leaue of the king and Quenes magesties went to hys house at Lambeth Then shortly after the foresayd thre Estates assembled agayne in the great Chamber of the Court at Westmister where the kyng and quenes magestyes and also my Lorde Cardynal being present they did exhibit syttyng al on their knees a supplicacion to their highnesses Whiche supplicacion beyng read their ma gesties exhibited the same vnto my Lorde Cardinall Whose reuerence perceyuing the effecte therof to be correspoÌ„dyng to his expectacion did not only receiue the same most humbly from their magesties but also after he had in few woordes geuen thankes to GOD and hadde declared what greate cause he had to reioyse aboue al others that his cuÌ„myng from Rome into EnglaÌ„de hadde taken moste happye successe he representyng there the Popes holynes and hauyng the keys and hys full power for the tyme dyd geue them hys Benediccion Whyche beeyng done they all departed The Copie of whyche supplycacion I haue sent here also to your Lordeship in maner fourme and effecte as foloweth woorde by worde We the Lordes Spirituall and temporall and the Commons of thys presente Parlyment assâ—…bled representing the whole body of the Realme of Englande and dominions of the same in oure owne names particulerly and also of the sayde bodye vniuersallye in this supplycacion dyrected to youre Magestyes wyth moste humble suite That it maye by youre gracious intercession and meane bee exhybyted to the moste reuerende father in God the Lorde Cardinall Poole Legate sente speciallye hyther from oure moste holye Father Pope Iulio the thirde and the SEA Apostolyke of Rome dooe declare our selues verye sorye and repenrante of the Scisme and disobedyence commytted in thys Realme and the dominions of the same agaynste the sayd Sea Apostolyke eyther by makynge agreing or executynge any lawes ordynaunces or commaundementes agaynste the Supremacye of the sayed SEA or otherwyse dooynge or speakynge that myghte impugne the same Offeryng our selues and promising by thys oure Supplicacyon that for a token and knowledge of our sayed repentaunce we be and shal be alway readye vnder and with the authorities of youre magesties to the vttermoste of oure power to dooe that shal be in vs for the abrogacyon and repealynge of the sayed lawes and ordinaunces in thys presente Parlyment as well for oure selues as for the whole bodye whom we represente Wherupon we most humblye beseche your maiesties as persons vndetiled in the offence of thys bodye towardes the saide Sea which neuertheles God by hys prouidence hath made subiect to your maiesties so to set fourthe this oure moste humble suit that we maye obtaine from the Sea Apostolike by the saide moste reuerend father aswell particularlye as vniuersallye Absolution Release and discharge from all daunger of suche censures and sentences as by the lawes of the Churche we be fallen in And that we maye as Childeren repentaunte be receaued in to the bosome and vnitye of Christes Churche So as thys noble realme wyth all the membres thereof maye in vnitie and perfecte obedience to the Sea Apostolike and 〈◊〉 for the tyme beinge serue God and your maiesties to the furderance and aduanÌ„cement of hys honoure and glory Amen THen the fyrste Sundaye in Aduent followinge my Lorde Cardinall came at tenne of the clocke from Lambeth by water and landed at Poles wharfe And cuÌ„mynge from thence to Poles Churche with a crosse ii pyllers two pollaxes of Syluer borne before hym he was there receaued by my Lorde Chaunceller wyth Procession Where he taryed vntill the kinges cummynge whose hyghnes came from westmynster by lande and all hys nobles before him to Poles also at a leuen of the clocke And so the kynges maiesty and my lord Cardinall wyth all the lordes of the priuy counsell beinge present with suche an audience of people as was neuer sene in that place before my Lorde Chaunceller entered Poles crosse And after that the people ceased that so much as a whispering could not be hearde emongest them more then emongest those of whome the Poet Virgil speaketh Conticuere omnes intentique or a tenebant But euery manne bente hartelye wyth eares to here eyes to perceaue and handes to wryte hys Lordshyp proceded and tooke to hys theam these wordes of the Epystle of that daye wrytten by Sayncte Paule the holye Apostle in the. xiii Chapter to the Romaynes Fratres scientes quia
wyth manye other noble menne being suspect as adherentes to him in the same opinion Surely thys cruelty was great but that whyche exceded all the rest thys olde lady being at least lx and .x. yeares of age cosin to the king and beyng as it is saied most innocent and giltles was without iudgement or processe of the lawe drawen by the hore heres to y e blocke not knowyng any cause why to dye Many lyke examples of crueltie folowed in Englande by that alteracion whiche are oute of my purpose but this I haue touched by occasion of this Cardinall who nowe by the quenes goodnes is restored to the honour of his house And now of late is arriued in Englande as Ambassadour and legate from the Popes holynes with moste ample commission to receiue the e Ralme of Englande vnto the vnitie of the church wherof your lordship shal ê‘ceue more hereafter He is se meth to be of nature sad graue whose good lyfe maye be an example to the reste of his profession and hys excellent learning is well knowen through all Europe For I assure your lordship that at my beinge in Rome xvi yeares agon I haue hearde out of the mouthes aswel of my couÌ„try men then being in Rome as of the Romaines them selfes no les yea and more then I haue saide For it is commonly sayde of him by lerned men in Rome and in other places where I haue trauayled Polus Cardinalis natione Anglus pietatis et literarum testimonio dignus non qui Polus Anglus sed qui polus Angelus uocetur But nowe passinge ouer the praysinges of thys noble vertuous prelate whome no manne dispraiseth I will procede where I lefte Within fewe daies after hys cumminge to Lambeth a daye was prefixed by appoyntment of the king and Quenes maiesties that the three estates of England being called vnto the parliament shoulde be brought vnto the presence of the Cardinal for the better vnderstanding of his legation This assemble was appointed in the greate Chambre of the court at Westminster where as the king and Quenes maiesties sitting vnder the cloth of estate and al the three estates placed in theyr degrees the Cardinall sytting in a Chaire on y e right haÌ„d out of the cloth of estate my lord Chaunceller of England began in this maner MY lordes of y e vpper house you my masters of the nether house here is present y â— righte reuerend father in god my lord Cardinal Pole come froÌ„ the Apostolike Sea of Rome as ambassadour to the king and Quenes magesties vpon one of the moste weightiest causes that euer happened in thys Realme And whiche perteineth to the glo ry of god and your vniuersall benefit The which ambassage their magesties pleasure is to be signâ—… fied to you all by hys own mouth Trustyng that you will receyue and accepte it in as beneuolent and thankefull wyse as theyr highnesses haue done and that you will geue attente and inclynable eare to hym When hys Lordship had thus made an ende my Lorde Cardinall taking the occasion offred without any studye as it semed spake in effecte as foloweth My lordes all you that are y e coÌ„mons of this preseÌ„t Par liment assembled which 〈◊〉 effect is nothing els but the statâ—… body of the whole Realme As y e cause of my repaire hither hath been both wisely grauely declared by my lord Chaunceller So before y e I entre to y e particularities of my coÌ„missioÌ„ I haue somwhat to say touching my selfe to geue most huÌ„ble harti thaÌ„kes to the king Quenes magesties after theÌ„ to you all whiche of a maÌ„ exiled and banisht froÌ„ this coÌ„ mon wealth haue restored me to a member of the same and of a man hauyng no place nether here or els where within this realme haue admitted me in place where to speake and to be heard Thys I protest vnto you al that though I was exiled my natyue country w tout iust cause as god knoweth yet y â— ingratitude could not pull from me the affeccion and desire that I had to proffit and doe you good Yf the offer of my seruice might haue ben receaued it was neuer to seke where that could not be taken you neuer failed of my prayer nor neuer shall But leauing the rehersall therof and cumming more nere to the matter of my commission I signifie vnto you all that my principall trauayl is for the restitucion of thys noble Realme to the auncient nobilitie and to declare vnto you that the Sea Apostolike froÌ„ whens I come hath a special respect to this Realme aboue al other and not without cause seiÌ„g that god himselfe as it were by prouideÌ„ce hath geueÌ„ this Realme prerogatiue of nobilitie aboue other which to make more playne vnto you it is to be considered that this Iland first of al IlaÌ„des receiued the light of Christes religion For as stories testifie it was prima prouinciarum quae amplexaest fidem Christi For the BrittoÌ„s beiÌ„g first inhabitauÌ„tes of this realme not withstandyng the subieccion of the Emperours heathen Princes dyd receyue Christes fayth from the Apostolike Sea vniuersally not in partes as other countryes nor by one one as clockes encrease their houres by distinction of tymes but al together at ones as it were in a moment But after that their ill merites or forgeatfulnes of god had deserued expulsioÌ„ and that Straungers being infidels had possessed this land yet god of his goodnes not leauing where he ones loued so illumined y â— hartes of the Saxons being heatheÌ„ mâ—… that they forsoke the darknes of heathen errours enbraced the light of Christes religioÌ„ So that within small space Idolatry and heatheÌ„ supersticion was vtterlye abaÌ„doned iÌ„ this IlaÌ„d This was a greate prerogatiue of nobilitie wherof though the benefite be to be ascribed to god yet the meane occasion of the same came from the Church of Rome In y e faithe of whiche churche we haue euer since continued and consented with the rest of the worlde in vnitye of religion And to shew further the feruent deuocion of the inhabitauntes of this Iland towardes the Churche of Rome We rede y â— diuers Princes in the Saxons time with great trauell and expenses went personally to Rome as Offa Adulpbus whiche thought it not inough to shew theÌ„ selfes obedient to the said see vn les y â— in their owne persones they had gon to that same place from whence thei had receued so great a grace benefite In the time of Carolus magnus who first fouÌ„ded the vniuersity of Parys he sent into England for Alcuinus a great learned maÌ„ which first brought learning to that vniuersity Wherby it semeth that the greatest part of y â— world fet the light of religioÌ„ froÌ„ EnglaÌ„d AdriaÌ„ y â— fourth being an English maÌ„ coÌ„uerted norway froÌ„ infidelity which AdriaÌ„ afterwardes vpoÌ„ great
affectiō loue that he bare to thys realme being his natiue coūtry gaue to henry the. ii king of Englād y ◠right seniory of the dominiō of Irelād whiche pertained to y e see of Rome I wil not reherse y ◠manifold benefites y ◠this realme hath receaued frō y ◠Apostolike sea nor how ready the same hath been to reliue vs in all our necessities Nor I wil not re hearse the manifolde miseries and calamities that this Realme hath suffred by swaruing from that vnitie And euen as in thys Realme so in all other countries which refusing the vnitie of the Catholike fayth haue followed fātastical doctryne y ◠like plages haue happened Let Asia and the Empire of Grece be a spectacle vnto y ◠world who by swaruing from the vnitie of the Churche of Rome are broughte into captiuitie and subieccion of the Turke All storyes be full of like examples And to cum vnto latter tyme loke vpō our nie neigh bours of germany who by swarving from this vnitie are miserablye afflicted with diuersitie of sectes deuided in faccions What shal I rehearse vnto you the ◅umultes effusion of blood that hath happened there in late dayes Or trouble you with the rehersal of those plages y ◠haue happened sins this Innouacion of religion wherof you haue felt the bitternes and I haue hearde the reporte Of al which matters I can say nomore but suche was the misery of the tyme. And see how farre forth this furie went For those that liue vnder the Turke may frely liue after their conscience and so was it not lawfull here Yf men examined wel vpon what groundes these Innouations began they shall well finde that the rote of thys as of many other mischieffes was avarice And that the lust Carnal affeccion of one mā confounded all lawes both deuine and humane And notwithstanding all these deuises pollicies practised within thys Realme against the church of Rome they neded not to haue loste you but that they sought rather as frēdes to reconcile you then as enemies to enfeaste you For they wanted not great offers of the most mightie Potentates in all Europe to haue ayded the church in that quarell Then marke the sequel ther semed by these chaun ges to rise a gret face of riches gayne which in profe cam to gret misery and lacke Se howe god then can confounde the wisdome of the wise and turne vniust pollicy to mere folye and that thing that semed to be done for reliefe was cause of playne ruyne and decay Yet see that goodnes of God which at no tyme fayled vs but moste benignlye offered hys grace when it was of our partes leaste soughte and worste deserued And when all lyghte of true religiō seamed vtterly extīcte as the churches defaced the aulters ouerthrowen the ministers corrupted ◅euen lyke as in a lampe the lyghte beyng cou◅red yet it is not quenched euē so in a few remained the confessiō of Christes fayth namely in the brest of the Quenes excellency of whom to speake wythoute adulacyon the saing of the Prophet may be verified Ecce quasi der elicta And see howe miraculouslye GOD of hys goodnes preserued her hyghenes contrarye to the expectacyon of manne That when numbers conspyred agaynste her and pollicies were deuised to disherit hir and armed power prepared to destroye hir yet she being a Uirgin helples naked and vnarmed preuailed had the victorye ouer tyrauntes which is not to be ascribed to any pollici of mā but to the almighty greate goodnes prouidence of God to whome the honoure is to be geuen And therfore it may be sayd Da gloriam deo For in mannes iudgemente on her graces parte was nothinge in apparance but dispayre And yet for all these practises deuises of ill mē here you se hir grace established in hir estate being your lawful Quene and Gouernes borne amonge you whome God hathe appointed to reigne ouer you for the restitucion of true religion and extirpacion of all erroures sectes And to confirme hir grace the more stronglye in thys enterprise Lo howe the prouidence of God hath ioyned her in mariage with a Prince of like religion who beinge a kinge of great might armour and force yet vseth towardes you neyther Armour nor force but seketh you by the waye of loue and amitie in whiche respecte greate cause you haue to gyue thankes to almighty God that hathe sent you suche Catholyke Gouernours It shal be therfore your parte againe to loue obey and serue them And as it was a synguler fauoure of God to conioyue theym in maryage so it is not to be doubted but that he shal sende them yssue for the comforte and suerty of thys common wealthe Of all Prynces in Europe the Emperours hath trauayled most in the cause of religion as it appereth by hys actes in Germany ▪ yet happly by some secret iudgement of god he hath not atchiued the ende with whom in my iourney hetherwardes I had conference touchinge my Legation whereof when he had vnderstandinge he shewed great apperaunce of most ernest ioye and gladnes saying that it reioysed him no les of there concilemēt of this realme vnto christian vnitie then that his sonne was placed by mariage in y ◠king dome And most glad of all that the occasion thereof shuld come by me beinge an English manne borne whiche is as it were to call home oure selues I can wel compare hym to Dauid whiche thoughe he were a manne electe of GOD yet for that he was contaminate with bloode war coulde not builde the temple of I◅rusalem but lefte the finishynge therof to Salomon whiche was Rex pacificus So may it be thoughte that the appeasing of controuersies of religion in Christianity is not appoynted to this Emperour but rather to his sonne who shal perfourme the buildyng that his father hath begun which church cannot be perfitly builded wythout vniuersallye in all Realmes we adhere to one head and do acknowledge hym to be the vica◅ of god and to haue power from a boue For al power is of God accordyng to the saying Non est potestas nisi adeo And therefore I consider that all power being in god yet for the conseruacion of quiet godly life in the world he hath deriued that power from aboue into two partes here in earthe whiche is in the power Imperial and ecclesiasticall And these two powers as they be seuerall and distinct so haue they two seueral effectes and operacions For seculer Princes to whom the Tēporall swerde is committed be ministers of god to execute vengeaunce vpon transgressours ill liuers and to preserue the wel doers and innocentes from iniury and violence Which power is represented in these two most excellence persons the king and Quenes Magesties here preesēt who haue this power committed vnto theim Immediatlye from god wythout any superioure in that behalfe The other power is of ministracyon