peragendo poenam eis pro eorum demeritis iniuâ—gendam iuratos absoluit in forma iuris nunciata eis eorum cuilibet pro modo culpae poena salutari videlicet quòd die dominica tunc proximè sequente praedicti poeniteÌ„tes nudi capita pedes processionem apud ecclesiam collegiatam de Wengham faciendam cum singulis saccis super humeris suis palam portantes plenis videlicet foeno stramine ita quòd stramen foenum huiusmodi ad ora saccorum patentium intuentibus prominerent lentis incessibus procederent humiliter deuote In English IGnorance the mother of error so much hath blinded and deceiued certaine persons to witte Hugh Penny Iohn Forstall Iohn Boy Ihon Wanderton Will. Haywarde and Iohn White tenaunts of the Lord of Wengham that against the comming of the aforesayde Archbishop to hys palace of Canterbury on Palmes Sonday euen the yeare of our Lord 1390 Where they being warned by the baillife to conuey and cary hay strawe and other littour to the aforesayd palace as they were bounde by the tenor of theyr landes which they hold of the sea of Canterbury refusing and disdaining to doe their due seruice as they were accustomed brought their straw and other littor not in cartes and waines openly sufficiently but by peece meale and closely in bagges or sackes in contempt of their Lord and derogation of the right and title of the sea of Canterbury Wherupon they being ascited presented before the archb sitting in iudgement at hys manour of Statewood yelded and submitted themselues to hys Lordshyppes pleasure humbly crauing pardon of their trespasse Then the aforesayd archbishop absolued the aboue named Hugh Penny c. they swearing to obey the lawes and ordinance of holy church and to do the punishment that shuld be appoynted them for their desertes that is that they going laysurely before the procession euery one of them should cary openly on hys shoulder his bagge stuffed with hay and strawe so that the sayd hay and strawe should appeare hanging out the mouthes of the sackes being open * Notes of certaine Parliament matters passed in this kings dayes To proceede now further in the raigne of this king to intreat also some thing of his parliamentes as we haue done of other before first we wil beginne with the Parliament holden in the first yere of hys comming in Moreouer forsomuch as our Catholike papistes will not beleue yet the coÌ„trary but that the iurisdiction of their father the pope hath euer extended throughout all the world as well here in England as in other places here therefore speaking of the Parliaments holden in this kings dayes concerning thys matter I refer them to the Parliament of the sayd king Henry in his first yere holden and to the 27. article of the same Where they may reade in the 10. obiection laid against K. Richard in plaine words how that for asmuch as the crowne of this realme of England and the iurisdiction belonging to the same as also the whole realme it selfe at all times lately past hath ben at such libertie and enioyed such prerogatiue that neyther the Pope nor any other out of the same kingdome ought to intrude himselfe nor intermedle therein it was therefore obiected vnto the forenamed king Richarde the 2. for procuring the letters Apostolical from the Pope to the confirming and coroborating of certaine statutes of hys and that hys censures myght be prosecuted against the breakers thereof Whyche seemed then to the Parliament to tend against the crowne and regall dignitie as also against the statutes liberties of the said thys our realme of England Act. Parl. An. 1. Reg. Henrici 4. Act 27. Furthermore in the second yeare of the saide king thys was in the Parliament required that all such persones as shal be arested by force of the statute made against the Lollardes in the 2. yeare of Henry 4. may be bailed and freely make their purgation That they be arested by none other then by the Sheriffes or such like officers neither that any hauocke be made of their goods The king granted to take aduise therein In the 8. yeare moreouer of thys kings raigne it was likewise propounded in the Parliament that all suche persons as shall procure or sue in the court of Rome any processe touching any benefice collation or presentation of the same shal incurre the paine of the statute of prouisors made in the 13. yeare of Richard 2. whereunto the king granted that the statutes herefore prouided should be obserued Item in the sayde Parliament there it was put vp by petition that the king might enioy halfe the profits of euery parsons benefice who is not resident thereon Therunto the king aunswered that the ordinaries should do theyr duties therein or els he would prouide further remedie to stay their pluralities Item in the sayde Parliament it was required that none do sue to the court of Rome for any benefice but only in the kings courtes ¶ In the next yere folowing which was the 9. of this Kyng an other petition of the Commons was put vp in Parliament against the court of Rome whych I thought good here to expresse as foloweth The Commons do beseeche that forasmuch as diuers prouisors of the benefices of holy Church dwelling in the Court of Rome through their singular couetounes now newly imagined to destroy those that haue bene long time incumbents in diuers their benefics of holy church peaceably some of them by the title of the king some by title ordinary and by the title of other true patroÌ„s therof by coulor of prouisions collations and other grauntes made to the sayd prouisors by the Apostoil of the sayd benefices do pursue processes in the said court by citation made beyond the sea without any citations made within the Realme in deede against the same incumbents whereby many of the said incumbents through such priuy crafty processes and sentences of priuation and inhabilitation haue lost theyr benefices and others put in the places of the saide incumbents before the publication of the same senteÌ„ces they not knowing any thing and many are in great hassarde to lose theyr benefices through such processes to theyr perpetuall destruction and mischiefe and forasmuch as thys mischiefe cannot be holpen wythout an especiall remedy be had by parliament Pleaseth it the king to consider the great mischiefe and daunger that may so come vnto diuers hys subiects without their knowledge through such citations out of the realme and therupon to ordaine by the aduise of the Lords of this present Parliament that none presented be receiued by any ordinarie vnto any benefice of any such incumbent for any cause of priuation or inhabilitation wherof the processe is not founded vpon citation made wythin the realme and also that such incumbents may remaine in all theyr benefices vntil it be prooued by due enquest in the court of the
day wast shall haue lyuery therof out of the hands of the king of the landes tenements aforesayde so of them holden as hath bene vsed in case of attaynder of felonies except the lands and tenements which be holden of the ordinaries or their commissaries before whom anye such empeached of heresye be conuict which landes and tenements shall wholy remaine to the king as forfeit And moreouer that all the goodes and cattels of such conuicted be forfayt to our right soueraigne Lord the king so that no person conuict of heresye left vnto the secular power according to the lawes of holy Church do forfeit his landes before that he be dead And if any such person so conuicted becuse offed whether it be by fine or by deede or without deed in landes and tenements rentes or seruices in fee or otherwise in whatsoeuer maner or haue any other possessions or cattels by gift or graunt of any person or persons to the vse of any other then only to the vse of such conuits That the same landes tenementes rentes nor seruices nor other such possessions nor cattelles shall not be forfeite vnto our soueraigne Lord the king in no maner wise And moreouer that the Iustices or the kinges bench the Iustices of peace Iustices of Assise haue full power to inquire of all such which hold any errors or heresies as Lolards and who be their mayntayners receiuers fautors and susteiners common writers of such bookes as well of their sermons as scholes conuenticles congregations and confederacies that this clause be put in the cōmissions of the Iustices of peace And if any persons be indited of any of the points aboue said that the sayd Iustices haue power to award agaynst them a Capias and that the Shriffe be bound to arest the person or persons so indited as soone as he can finde them either by himselfe or by his officers And for so much as the cognisance of heresies errors or Lolardies appertain to the Iudges of holy church and not vnto the secular Iudges that such persons indited be deliuered vnto the Ordinaries of the places or to theyr Commissaryes by Indentures betwene them to be made within x. dayes after their arest or sooner if it may be done to be therof acquited or conuict by the lawes of holy church in case such persōs be not indited of any other thing the cognisaunce whereof appertayneth to the Iudges secular officers in which case after they shal be acquited or deliuered before the secular iudges of such thinges as apperteineth to the secular Iudges they shal be sent in safe custody vnto the said Ordinaries or their commissaries to thē to be deliuered by Indentures as is aforesayd to be acquited or cōuicted of the same heresyes errors and Lolardies as is aforesaid according to the lawes of holy church that with in the terme abouesayde Prouided that the saide indightments be not taken in euidence but onely for information before the Iudges spirituall agaynst such persons indighted but that the Ordinaries begin their proces against such persōs indited in the same maner as though no such iudgement were hauing no regard to such inditementes And if any be indited of heresy error or Lolardy and takē by the Shiriffe or any other officer of the king he may be let to mayneprise within the sayde x. dayes by good surety for whō the said Shriffes or other officers wil answer so that the person so indighted be readye to be deliuered vnto the sayd Ordinaries or to their Commissaryes before the end of the tenth day aboue recited if he may be any meanes for sicknes And that euery Ordinary haue sufficiēt Commissaries or Commissary abiding in euery Countye in place notable so that if any such person indited be taken that the sayd Commissaryes or Commissary may be warned in the notable place of his abiding by the Shiriffe or any of hys officers to come vnto the Kinges Bayle within the sayd Countye there to receiue the same person so indighted by Indenture as is aforesayd And that in the Inquestes in this case takē the Shiriffes and other officers vnto whom it apperteineth do impanell good and sufficient persōs not suspected nor procured that is to say suche as haue at the least euery one of thē that shal be so impanelled in such inquestes within the Realme a hundred shyllinges by the yere of lands tenements or of rent vpon payne to leese to the kings vse xx poūd And that those which shal be impanelled vpon such enquestes at sessions and gayles haue euery one of them to the value of xi shillings by the yeare And if any such person arested whether it be by the Ordinaries or the officers of the king either escape or break prison before he be therof acquit before the Ordinary that then all his goods and cattelles which he had at the day of such arest shall be forfeite to the king And his landes and tenementes which he had the same day be seised also into the kings handes and that the king haue the profites therof from the same day vntill he render himselfe to the sayde prison from whence he escaped And that the aforesaid Iustices haue full power to enquire of all suche escapes and breaking of prisons and also of the lands tenements goods and cattels of such persons indighted Prouided that if any such person endighted doe not returne vnto the sayde prison and dyeth not being conuict that then it shall bee lawfull for his heyres to enter into the landes and tenements of his or their aūcester without any other sute made vnto the king for this cause And that all those which haue liberties or franchises royall in England as the coūty of Chester the county and liberty of Durham and other like And also al the Lordes which haue iurisdictions and franchises royall in Wales where the kings writs do not run haue like power to execute and put in execution in al pointes these articles by them or by their officers in like maner as doe the Iustices and other the kinges officers aboue declared ¶ Notes touching the statute prefixed Thus hauing recited the wordes of the statute nowe let vs consider the reasons obiections of this aduersary who grounding peraduēture vpon the preface or preamble of this foresaid statute will proue thereby the L. Cobham and Sir Roger Acton with the rest of their abettours to haue bin traitors to their king and their countrey Wherunto I answere first in generall that although the face or preface prefixed before the statute may shew and declare the cause occasion originall why the statute was made yet the making of the statute importeth no necessary probatiō of the preface alwaies to be true that goeth before which being but a colour to induce the making therof geueth no force materiall therunto nor is any necessary part of the body of the said statute But onely adhereth as a declaration
  Ocha or Octha   Emenricus or Emericus 26   Ethelbertus the first of the Saxon kings that receyued the fayth by Aug. an reg 35.56 This Ethelbert first of all the Saxons receiued the fayth and subdued all the other vj. kings except onely the king of Northumberland  Edbaldus 24   Ercombertus 24 Ercombert commaunded Lent first to be fasted in his dominion The kings of Kent Egebertus or Edbrieth slayne 9 Egebert killed two Sonnes of his Uncle  Lotharias slayne 12  Eadrichus 6 Unto the time of Eadrick all the bishops of Canterbury were Italians  Nidredus 7 Some Chronicles doe place these two Nidredus and Wilhardus after Edricke and geue to them seuen yeares some agayne do omit them  Wilhardus 7  Withredus 33  Egfertus or Edbert 23  Ethelbert 11   Alricus 34 Betweene the raygne of Alricke and Cuthred some Stories do insert the raigne of Eadbert which raigned two yeares  Eadbertus surnamed Pren. 2  Cuthredus 18  Baldredus expulsed 81  In the raigne of this Baldred the kingdom of Kent was translated to Egbertus otherwise called Egbrict king of the WestsaxoÌ„s who subduing the foresaid Baldred an 832. gaue the said kingdome to Athelstan his younger sonne After whose decease it came to Ethelwolfe the elder sonne of Egbrict and so was vnited to the Westsaxons who then began to be the Monarch of the whole land This kingdom began nere about the yeare of our Lord 456. and continued 342. yeares and had xv kings 478. ¶ The Kings of Southsaxe with the yeares of their raigne Southsaxe Elle or Alle. 31 Cissa Of this Cissa came Cicester which he builded and where he raigned Now called Sussex Nancanleus or Nancanleodus This Nathanleod seemeth by some old stories to be a Britaine the chief Marshall of king Vter whome Porth the Saxon slew  Porth This Porth a Saxon came in at the hauen which now is called of him Porthmouth  Ethelwelfus Because I find but little mention of these two I thinke it rather like to bee the same Ethelwold or Ethelwaldus which after followeth The kings of Sussex Redwallus Condebertus Of Condebertus and Ethelred I find no mention but in one table only supposing therfore that the true names of these were Ercombertus and Egebertus which were kings of Kent the same tyme and peraduenture might then rule in Sussex  Ethelredus or Ethereus  Adelwood or Ethelwaldus slayne This Adelwold was the first kyng of Sussex Christened and as Fabian saith the iiij king of the SouthsaxoÌ„s as other say the vij so vncertain be the histories of this kingdom  Adelbrich or Berethunus slayne 5  Adhumus 15 ¶ This kingdome endured the shortest season of all other and soonest passed into other kingdoms in the dayes as some write of Iue king of Westsaxe and so endured not aboue an hundred twelue yeres vnder seuen or at most xj kings beginning first in the yeare of the Lord 47â— and about the 30. yeare of the first comming of the Saxons Westsaxe 522. ¶ The principall kingdome of the Westsaxons and of their raignes Cerdicus or Credicus 17 This kingdome contained Sommersetshire Barkshire Dorsetshire Deuonshire Cornewall c.  Kenricus 26  Chelingus 30.33 lib. cycl   Celricus or Ceolfricus 5   Celwulfus or Ceolulfus 14   Kynigilsus Quicelinus 32 This Kynigilsus was first Kyng Christened in that prouince conuerted by Birinus after made Monke  Kinewalkins 31   Sexburga â— Â Â Escwynus Ascwynus or Elkwinus 2  The kings of Westsaxe Centwinus dyed at Rome 7  Cedwalla 3 Cedwalla went to Rome and there was Christened and dyed Ina or Iue 35  Edelardus or Athelardus 14 Ina also went to Rome and was made Monke  Cuthredus or Cuthbert 16   Sigebertus or Sigherus slayne 1 Sigebert for his pride and crueltie was deposed of his people And as he had killed before one of hys faythfull counsel geuing him wholesome counsaile so after was he slayne of the same counsellers Swynard as he hid him selfe in a wood  Kynulfus or Kynewlfus slayne 31  Brithricus 13  Egbertus or Egbrichtus otherwise Athelbertê° or Athelbrich c. 37 This Egbert was first expelled by Brithricus who after returning againe and raigning was much deryded and scorned with mocking runes for a coward of Bernulfus king of Mercia At leÌ„gth the sayd Egbert subdued hym first then all the rest to his kingdomeâ— causing the whole land to be called no more Britayne but Anglia Concerning the other kings after him in that Lordship hereafter followeth ¶ This Egebert subdued all the other seuen kingdomes and first began the Monarchie of all the Saxones which after by Alured was perfected as hereafter followeth the lord willing to be declared This kingdom of the Westsaxons began the yere of grace 522. as it subdued all the other so it did the longest continue til about the comming of William Conqueror which is about the tyme of 554. yeares 547. NorthumberlaÌ„d ¶ The Kings of Northumberland with the yeares of their raigne Ida. 12 This Ida of his wife had vj. children Adda Elricus Osmerus Theodledus of concubines other 6. After Ida the kingdome of Northumberland was deuided into two prouinces Deyra and Bernicia  Alle or Elle Deirorum 30 This Alle was the sonne of Iffe raigned in Deyra 30.  Adda Bernicorum 7   Some Chronicles set vnder Adda to raigne in Bernicia these kings Glappa or Claspa Theonulfus or Hussa or Theowalnus Frihulfus Theodoricus  Alricus or Alfricus Deirorum 5 This Alfricus was the sonne of Ida and raigned fiue yeares   This Ethelfridus was he that slew the monkes of Bangor to the number of 2200. whyche came to praye for the good successe of the Britaynes and by hys wife Accan the daughter of Elle had vij sonnes Eaufridus Osualdus Oswius Oslacus Osmundus Osâ— Ofâ—a Flor. Histor.  Ethelfridus BernicoruÌ„  Edwinus Northumberland slaine 17 Thys Edwinus was the first of the Northumberland kings whych was conuerted and Christened by Paulinus Byshop of London  Osricus Deirorum slaine These two are put out of the rase of kings because they reuolted froÌ„ the Christian faith and were both slayne miserablye by Cedwalla a Brittayne which then raigned in Northumberland and in Mercia  Eaufridus Bernicia slaine The kings of NorthuÌ„berland Oswaldus Northumberland slaine This Oswaldus called S. Oswald fought with Cedwalla Penda with a small army and by strength of prayer vanquished theÌ„ in the field He sent for Aedanus into ScotlaÌ„d to preach in hys couÌ„try as he preached in Scottish the king expouÌ„ded in English He was a great geuer of almes to the poore Of his other actes more appeareth hereafter  Oswius Northumberland 28 This Oswius lighting against Penda vowed to make his daughter Elfred
onely of them but of their forefathers also before them who falsely breaking the faith and promise made wyth the Britanes did crueliye murther their nobles wickedly oppressed their coÌ„mons impiously persecuted the innocent Christians miliciously possessed their land and habitation chasing the inhabitaunts out of house and country besides the violent murther of the Monkes of Bangor and diuers soule slaughters against the poore Brytaines who sent for them to be their helpers Wherefore Gods iust recompence fallyng vpon them from that time neuer suffered them to be quiet from forreine enimies till the comming of William the Normande c. Moreouer concerning the outward occasioÌ„s giueÌ„ of the Englishmens parts mouing the Danes first to inuade the Realme I find in certain stories two most especially assigned The one â—â—iustly giue iustly takeÌ„ The other not giuen iustly and 〈◊〉 taken Of the which two the first was giuen in Northumberland by meanes of Osbryght reigning vnder king of Westsaxons in the North partes This Osbright vppon a time iourneyng by the way turned into the house of one of his nobles called Bruer Who hauing at home a wife of great beautie he beyng absent abrod the king after his dinner allured wyth the excellency of her beautie tooke her to a secret chamber where he forceablye contrarye to her will did rauishe her whereupon she being greatly dismaied and vexed in her minde made her mooue to her husband returning of thys violence and iniury receaued Bruer consulting with his frindes first went to the king resigning to his hands all suche seruice and possessions which he did hold of him that done tooke shipping and sailed into Denmarke where he had great friends and had his bringing vp before There making his mone to Codrinus the king desired his aide in reuenging of the great vilany of Osbryght against him and his wife Codrinus hearing this and glad to haue some iust quarell to enter that land leuied an army with al spede preparing all things necessary for the same sendeth foorth Inguar and Hubba two brethren his chief Captaines with an innumerable multitude of Danes into England who first arriuing at Holdernesse there brent vp the country killed without mercy both men women and chidreÌ„ whoÌ„ they could lay haÌ„ds vpon Then marching toward York entred their battaile with the foresayde Osbryght where he with the most part of his armye was slaine And so the Danes entred the possession of the Citie of Yorke Some other say and is by the most part of storye writers recorded that the chiefe cause of the comming of Inguar Hubba with the Danes was to reuenge king Edmund reygnyng vnder the Westsaxons ouer the Eastangles in Nothfolke and Southfolk for the murdering of a certaine Dane being father to Inguar and Hubba which was falselye imputed to king Edmund The story is thus told A certaine noble man of the Danes of the kings stock called Lothebrocus father to Inguar and Hubba entring vppon a time with his hauke into a certaine schaffe or cockebote alone by chaunce through tempest was driuen with his hauke to the coast of Nothfolke named RodhaÌ„ where he being found and detained was presented vnto the king The king vnderstanding his parentage seing his case entertained him in his court accordingly And euery daye more and more perceiued his actiuities and great dexteritie in hunting hauking bare speciall fauour vnto him In so much that the kinges faukener or maister of game bearing priuy enuy against him secretly as they were huÌ„ting together in a woode did murther him threw him in a bush This Lothebroke being murthered within two or three daies began to be missed in the kinges house of whoÌ„ no tidings could be heard but onely by a dogge or spaniel of his which continuing in the wood with the corps of his maister at sondry times came and fauned vpon the king so long that at length they folowing the trase of the hound were brought to the place where Lothebroke laye WherevpoÌ„ inquisition made at length by certeine circumstances of words and other euidences it was knowne how by whom he was murthered that was by the kings huntesman nameâ— Berike Who thereupon being conuicted was set into the same bote of Lothebroke alone and without any takeling to driue by seas either to be saued by the weather or to be drowned in the deepe And as it chaunced Lothebroke from Dennemarke to be driued to Northfolke so it happened that from Northfolke he was caried into Denmarke Where the bote of Lothebroke being well knowen hands were laid vpon him inquisition made of the party In sine in his torments to saue himselfe he vttered an vntruth of king Egmund saying that the king had put him to death in the country of Northfolke Wherupon grudge first was conceiued theÌ„ an army appointed great multitude sent into England to reuenge that fact where first they arriuing in Northumberland destroyed as is sayd those parties first From thence sayling into Northfolke they exercised the like tyranny there vpon the inhabitauÌ„ts therof especially vpon the innocent prince blessed matter of God king Edmund CoÌ„cerning the farther declaration wherof hereafter shal follow Christ our Lord so permitting more to be spoken as place and obseruation of time and yeares shall require In the meane seasoÌ„ king Ethelwulphe in this chapiter here presently touched when he had chased the foresaid Daues as is aboue rehearsed from place to place causing theÌ„ to take the Sea he in the meane while departeth him selfe both from land and life leauing behinde him foure sons which reigned euery one in his order after the discease of their father The names of whom were Ethelbaldus Ethelbrightus Ethelredus and Aluredus ¶ King Ethelbalde KIng Ethelbald the eldest sonne of Ethelwulfe succeeding his father in the prouince of Westsaxe and Ethelbright in the prouince of Kent reigned both togither the terme of v. yeares one with the other Of the which two Ethelbald the first leâ—t this infamie behinde him in storyes for marrying and lying with his stepmother wife to hys owne father named Iudith After these two succeded Ethelred the thirde sonne who is his time was so encombred with the Danes brusting in on euery side especiallye about Yorke which Citie they then spoyled and brent vp that he in one yeare stoode in ix battailes against them with the helpe of Alured his brother In the beginning of thys Kinges reigne the Danes landed in East Englande or Northfolke Southfolke But as Fabian writeth they were compelled to forsake that country and so toke again shipping and sayled Northward and landed in NorthuÌ„berlande where they were met of the Kinges then there reigning called Osbright and Ella which gaue to them a strong light But notwithstanding the Danes with help of such as inhabited the country wanne the City of York and helde it a certaine season as is aboue foretouched
some they slew and some they left for dead There was amongst this number of the Iewes one which was called the blessed Iew of Yorke which was so fore wounded and beaten with the rest that for feare of his lyfe-he sayd he would become a christian and was in deed of Williā the Prior of the church of S. Mary of York baptised whereby he escaped the great perill of death he was in and the persecutors hands In the meane whyle there was a great tumor spred throughout all the City of London that the king had cōmaunded to destroy all the Iewes Whereupon as well the Citizens as innumerable people more being assembled to see the kings coronation armed themselues and came together The Iewes thus being for the most part stayn the rest fled into their houses where for a time through the strōg and sure building of them they were defēded But at length theyr houses were set on fire and they destroyed therein These thinges being declared to the king whilest he with his nobles and Barons were at dinner he sendeth immediately Ranulph de Glanuile the Lord high Stuard of England with diuers other noble men to accompany him that they might fray and restrayne these so bold enterprises of the Londiners but all was in vayne For in this so great a tumult none there was that either regarded what the nobility sayd or els any whit reuerēced theyr personages but rather with sterue looks and threatning wordes aduised them and that quickely to depart Whereupon they with good deliberation thinking it the best so to do departed the tumult and insurrection continuing till the next daye At which time also the king sending certayne of his officers into the Citty gaue them in commaundement to apprehend and present some such as were the chiefest of the malefactours of the which three were condemned to be hanged and so were The one for that he had robbed a Christiās house in this tumult and the other two for that they fired the houses to the greate daunger of the City After this the king sent for him that from a Iew was conuerted to Christiannitye and in the presēce of those that saw where he was baptised the king asked him whether he was become a Christian or not He aunswering the king sayd no but to the intent he might escape death he promised to do whatsoeuer the christians would haue him Then the king asked the Archbishop of Caunterbury other Archbishops and Byshoppes being present what were best to be done with him who vnaduisedly aunswering said If he will not be a man of God let him be a man of the deuill and so reuolted he agayne to Iewdaisme Then the king sent his writs to the shiriffes of euery country to enquire for the authors stirrers of this outrage Of whom 3 were hanged diuers were imprisoned So great was thē the hatred of Englishmen agaynst the Iewes that as soone as they began to be repulsed in the court the Londiners taking example thereof fell vpon them set theyr houses on fyre and spoyled theyr gooddes The country agayne following the example of the Londiners semblably did the like And thus the yeare which the Iewes tooke to be theyr Iubily was to them a yeare of confusion In so much as in the city of Yorke the Iewes obtayning the occupying of a certayne Castle for theyr preseruation and afterward not willing to restore it to the Christians agayne when they saw no other remedye but by force to be vanquished first they offered much mony for theyr liues when that would not be taken by the counsell of an olde Iew among them euery one with a sharpe razer cut an others throate whereby a thousand fiue hundred of them were at that present destroyd Neither was this plague of theyrs vndeserued For euerye yeare commonly theyr custome was to get some christen mans childe from the parentes and on good Fridaye to crucify him in despite of our religion Ex chron Westm. King Richard after the death of his father comming to remembraunce of himselfe and of his rebellion against hys father sought for absolution of his trespasse and in part of satisfaction for the same agreed with Phillipp the French King about Easter next ensuing to take his voyage with him for the recouerye of Christes patrimonye which they called the holy land Whereupon the sayd king Richard immediatly after his coronation to prepare him selfe the better toward his iourny set to sale diuers of his manors Wherof Godfrey Lucy then B. of Wint. bought a couple for 2. M. markes to witee Wergraue and Melenge The Abbot of Bury bought another for a M. markes called Middlesaie Hugh Pusaz B. of Durhā bought the Lordship of Seggesfield or Sedberga with the wapintake and all the appertenaunce thereto belonging He bought also the Earledome of Northumberland Whome When the king should solemnize after the maner of secular Earles merily with a mocking iest loe sayd he of an olde Byshop I haue made a young Earle And because the sayd Bishop had professed before by a solemme vow to visite the holy land to be released of his vow he compoūded with the Pope for a great summe of mony therefore and moreouer gaue to the King a thousand Marks to remayne at home as chiefe Iustice of England Ouer and besides the King set out all that he had to sale wooddes castles townships Lordships Earledoms Baronages c. ordayning also diuers new Byshops not without some aduantage as appeared to his purse fayning moreouer his olde seale to be lost that they which had landes to hold might be driuen to renew their writinges agayne by the new seale wherby great substaunce of mony was gayned Aboue all this by the commaundement of Pope Clement 3. a tenth also was enacted of the whole Realm in such sort as the Christians should make to the king 70000 pound the Iewes 6000. Ex Geruas fol. 134. King Richard after his coronation sent certayne Earles and Barons to Phillip the French King in the tyme of his parliament at S. Denis desiring him to remember his promise made for the recouery of Christes holy patrimony out of the saracens handes Unto whom he sent word agayne in the moneth of December certifying him how he had bound himself by solemne othe deposing vpon the Euangelists that he the next yeare following about the time of Easter had certaynly perfixed to addresse himselfe toward that iourney requiring him likewise not to fayle but to be redy at the terme aboue limitted appoynting also the place where both the Kinges should meet together The next yeare then ensued which was 1190 in the beginning of which yere vpon I welfe euen fel a foule northren brawle which turned welnere to a fray betweene the Archbyshop new elected of the Church of Yorke and his company on the one side and Henrye Deane of the sayd Church with his Catholicke partakers on
The yeare of our Lorde 1307. and the last yeare of the king the foresayde king Edwarde in his iourney marching towarde Scotland in the North fel sicke of the flixe which increased so ferueÌ„tly vpon hym that he dispaired of life Wherfore calling before him his Earles and Barons caused them to be sworne that they should crowne his sonne Edward in such conuenient time after his death as they might kepe the land to his vse til he were crowned That done he called before him his sonne Edwarde informing and lessoning him wyth wholesome preceptes charged him also with diuers poynts vpon his blessing first that he should be couâ—teous gentle vpright in iudgement faire spoken to all men constant in deede and word familiar with the good and especially to the miserable to be merciful After this he gaue him also in charge not to be to hastie in taking his crowne before he had reuenged his fathers iniuries stoutly against the Scots but that he shuld remaine in those parties to take with him hys fathers bones being well boiled from the flesh and so inclosed in some fit vessel shoulde carie them with him til he conquered all the Scots saying that so long as he had his fathers bones with him none should ouercome him Moreouer he willed and required him to loue his brother Thomas and Edmund also to cherish tender his mother Margaret the Quene Ouer besides he straitly charged him vpon his blessing as he would auoide his curse that he should in no case cal to him againe or sende for Peter Gaueston whych Peter Gaueston the king before had banished the realme for his naughty and wicked familiarity with hys sonne Edward and for his seducing of him with sinister counsaile For the which cause he banished both Peter Gaueston vtterly out of the realme and also put the sayd Edwarde hys sonne in prison And therefore so straitly charged hys sonne in no wise to sende for this Gaueston or to haue him in any case about him And finally because he had coÌ„ceined in himselfe a vow to haue returned hys owne person to the holy land which for his manifold warres wyth the Scots he could not performe therefore he had prepared 32000. poundes of siluer for the sending of certaine souldiours with hys hart vnto the holy laÌ„d Which thing he required of hys sonne to see accomplished So that the foresayde money vnder hys curse malediction be not employed to other vses But these iniunctions and preceptes the disobedient sonne did nothing obserue or keepe after the decease of his father Who forsaking and leauing of the warre with the Scots wyth all speede hasted him to his coronation Also contrary to the minde of his nobles against the precept of hys father he sent for the foresayde Peter Gaueston prodigally bestowed vpon him al that treasure which his father had bequested to the holy land He was moreouer a proud despiser of his peeres nobles And therefore raigned infortunately as by the sequele of the story heere folowing by the grace of Christ shal be declared Thus king Edwarde first of that name leauing behinde him 3. sonnes Thomas and Edmund by his third wife and Edward by his first wife whome he had sufficiently thus with precepts instructed departed this mortall life An. 1307. after hee had raigned neare 39. yeres Of whom this Epitaph was wrytten Dum viguit rex valuit tua magna potestas Fraus latuit pax magna fuit regnauit honestas In the time and raigne of thys king many other things happened which here I omit to speake of as the long discorde and strife betweene the Prior of Cant. and the Prior of Douer which continued aboue 4. yeres together with much wrangling vnquietnes betweene them Likewyse an other lyke coÌ„tention growing betwene Iohn Romain Archb. of York and the Archb. of Cant. vpon the occasion that when Iohn Archb. of York after his consecration returned from the Pope and comming to Douer contrary to the inhibition of Cant. passed through the middle of Kent with his crosse borne vp although the story reporteth that he had the kings consent therunto An. 1286. Item betwene Thomas Bishop of Hereford Iohn Pecham Archb. of Cant. fell an other wrangling matter in the time of thys king Which Byshop of Hereforde appealing from the Archb. to the Pope went vp to Rome and in his iourney died Who with lesse cost might haue taryed at home 1282. King Edward the second EDwarde the second of that name and sonne of Edward the first borne as is aforesaid at Carnaruan in Wales after the departure of his father entred the gouernment of the lande An. 1307. But was crowned not before the yeare next folowing An. 1308. by reason of the absence of Rob. Winchelsey who was banished by king Edward the first Wherupon the king thys present yere wryteth to the pope for the restitution of the sayd Archb. for that by an auncient law of the realme the coronation of the king coulde not otherwise proceede without the Archb. of Cant. Which Edward as he was personable in body and outwarde shape so in conditions and euill disposition much deformed As vnstedfast of woorde and light to disclose secretes of great counsaile Also refusing the companie of hys Lords men of honoure hee much haunted among villaines and vile personnages Geuen moreouer to ouermuche drinking and such vices as thereuppon be woont to ensue And as of his owne nature he was to the sayd vices disposed so was hee much worse by the counsaile and familiarity of certaine euill disposed persones as first of Peter or Pierse Gaueston before touched Then after hym of the two Spensers and other whose wanton counsaile hee followyng gaue hymselfe to the appetite and pleasure of his body nothing ordering hys common weale by sadnesse discretion and iustice which thyng caused first great variance betweene hym and his nobles so that shortly hee became to them odible and in ende was depriued of his kingdome In the first yeare hee tooke to wife Isabel daughter of Phillippe king of Fraunce wyth whome the yeare after hee was crowned at Westminster by the bishop of Winchester for that Robert Winchelsey Archbishop of Canterbury was yet in exile not returned home Notwithstanding the Barons and Lords made first their request to the king to put Peter Gaueston from hym or els they would not consent to his coronation Whereupon he was enforced to graunt them at the next parliament to haue their requests accomplished and so was crowned In the meane season the foresayd Peter or Pierse bearing himselfe of the kings fauour bolde continued triumphing and setting at light all other states and nobles of the Realme so that hee ruled both the King and the Realme and all things went as he woulde Neither had the king any delight els or kept company with any but with him with him onely he brake all his minde
suffer them secretly to talke with vs for the safegard of our honor The intention of your hart to make the foresayd peace complayning and bewayling therein the death of Christen men the losse of their goodes the perill of their soules the lamentable waylings of the poore of orphanes the widowes and destruction of other pittyfull persons the pillage and robberies of Churches and other mischiefes innumerable and namely the diminishing of Christen sayth in the East partes which by the warre betwene our aduersary of Fraūce and vs is sore decayed as the said letters playnely do import And that forasmuch as God hath geuen you triumphant fortune that so much the more we ought to abase and humble our hart and to be the readyer to make and incline to a peace As touching these thinges holy Father we geue your holynesse to vnderstand that aswell vnto your foresayd Legates as other messengers sent from you vnto vs we haue offered vnto euerye of them reasonable wayes of peace and euery day declare the same and that not secretly but openly For we doubt not to let our purpose be vnderstoode for he that is the high Iudge both of him and vs in whose disposition all thing lyeth hath geuen vnto vs the crowne of Fraunce to our right and proper heritage The which right our foresayd aduersary hath by force of long time deteyned from vs we seeking to obtayne the same in peaceable wise and yet do if we might obtayne the same in any good maner rather for the benefit of christen men and that the foresayd euilles might cease which by his wrongfull meanes onely haue increased growne Yet notwithstanding as before this time you know we assented to a truce with certayne Articles conteined in the same writing all this he hath infringed Neither doth the wrong suffice him which he offereth vs in our foresayd heritage but endeuoureth himselfe during the sayd truce to inuade our realme of England and other our landes and further maynteineth the Scottes aydeth them to the vtter destructiō of vs our people lands aforesayd whereby we were inforced for the safegarde of our people and landes by such lawfull meanes we may to defend our selues and put him from his wicked purpose And furthermore for the same our quarell being in the handes of God haue we commen against him to conquere our inheritaunce of Fraūce ouer whom God hath geuen vs diuers victories as we haue trusted he would by his rightwise iudgement and power whiche thing he hath shewed vpon vs all chaunce of fortune set a part in respect of our rightfull title therein and without our desertes Wherefore with all humility of hart we geue him thanks alwaies therefore most deuoutly night and day praysing his holy name for we acknowledge the same commeth not by our strength and force Wherefore most holy Father we desire your holynesse and somuch as in vs lyeth require the same that you that supplye the place of the sonne of God in earth and hath the gouernement of the soules of all Christen men and ought to be vpright and equall towardes all men without exception of persons that ye will receiue good information and true of the obiections aboue sayd and will put to your holy helping hand as much as in you is that our sayed aduersarye of Fraunce may acknowledge his wrong whiche he hath done to vs herein and may be by your ayde redressed and that he in this his wrong haue no mainteynance and ayde at your hand For if it be so we then appeale vnto the iudge of iudges which suffereth for a time wronges to be donne for the sinnefull default of man but in the end redresseth the same leauing no good deed vnrewarded nor euill vnpunished most humbly requiring him to be to vs a true and vpright iudge of all our controuersyes for his mercies sake as in the meane time we repose our full trust and confidence in him The holy spirit of God c. Moreouer during yet the siege of Calis the French king had sent certayn offers to the men of Flaunders that if they would relinquish the king of England and adhere to him First he would remitte all their former transgressions Secondly he would vnburdē them of their interdict Thirdly he would send vnto them such plēty of corne that what was sold for 12.5 with them should be sold for 4.5 and that for 6. yeares Fourthly he would store them with plenty of French woll to make cloth for a small price that they might sell the sayd clothes both in Flaunders and in Fraunce that the Frēch men should vse the same cloth for so much as al other maner of cloth should be forbid in Fraunce so long as any of that made of French woll might be found Fiftly he would restore them to these three Cities Insulam Rowocum and Betony Sixtly he would defend them from all their aduersaries And in pledge of the same would sēd them mony before hand Seuenthly such as were able and forward men amōg them he would reteine and promote them c. But these offers seming to proceed more of faire words to serue the presēt turne then or any harty truth were not receiued Thē the L. Iohn Prince heyre to the French king during the foresayd siege of Calis aboue mentioned comming with a mighty army of French men set vpon y◠men of Flaūders and English men in the towne of Cassels In the which conflict during from morning to noone the Frenchmē were vanquished and the young Dolphin driuen backe from whence he came Of whose number diuers were slaine and taken prisoners Where on the other side through the Lordes defence not one is reported to be grieuously wounded As this passed on not long after about y◠7. day of Iune an 1347 king Edward continuing still his siege agaynst Calis Philip the French king came downe with a mighty army purposing to remoue the siege where not farre of from the English host he incamped himselfe Which done 2. Cardinals Ambaldus Stephanus procured for the same purpose going betwene the two kinges gaue to the king of England thus to vnderstand that if he would cōdescend to any reasonable way of peace the French king was ready to offer such honest prosers vnto him as to reason to his contentation should seme agreeable But in cōclusion when it came to talke the nobles could not agree vpon y◠conditions Wherefore the french king seing no other remedy did it to be signified to king Edward that betwene that present Teusday the next friday if he would come forth into the field he should haue battell geuē him Thus the place being vewed of foure Captaines of either host for the battaile to be fought it so fell that the French K. on Wednesday at night before the battell should ioyne secretly by night setting his pauilions on fire returned backe with his army out of the sight of
Item in the same Parliament was put vp by publike petion that the popes collector should be commaunded to auoyd the Realme within 40. dayes or els to be taken as the kinges enemy and that euery such collector from henceforth may be an Englishman and sworn to execute the statutes made in this Parliament Moreouer in the sayd Parliament the yere abouesayd of the king the 26. of Ianuary M. Iohn Mandour Clark was charged openly in the parliament that he should not passe ne send ouer to Rome ne attempt or doe any thinge there touching the Archdeaconry of Durham in preiudice of the king or of hys lawes or of the party presented thereto by the king on perill that might ensue The next yeare following whiche was the 14. of thys kinges raigne it was enacted first touching the staplers that after the feast of the Epiphany next ensuing that the staple should be remoued from Calice into England in suche places as are contayned in the statute made in 27. Edw. 3. the which statute should be fully executed and further that euery Alien that bringeth merchaundise into the Realme should finde sufficient surety to buy and cary awaye commodities of the Realme to halfe the value of his sayd merchaundise Item in the same parliament petition was made that agaynst the horrible vice of vsury then termed shifts practised as well by the clergie as laitie the order made by Iohn Notte late Mayor of Londō might be executed throughout the Realme Moreouer in the 15. yeare of the raigne of the foresayde king it was accorded for that syr W. Brian knight had purchased from Rome a Bull directed from the Archbshop of Cant and Yorke to excommunicate suche as had broken vp his house and had taken away diuers letters priuilegies and charters The same Bull being red in the parliament house was adiudged preiudicial to the kings crown and in derogation of the lawes for the whiche hee was by the king and assent of the Lordes committed to the Tower there to remayne at the kinges will and pleasure In the sayd Parliament also W. Archb. of Canterbury maketh his protestation in the open parliament saying that the pope ought not to excommunicate any bishop or to entermeddle for or touching anye presentment to anye ecclesiasticall dignitie recorded in any the kinges courtes He further protested that the pope ought to make no translation to any Byshopricke within the realme against the kinges will for that the same was to the destruction of the realme and crowne of England whiche hath alway bene so free as the same hath had none earthly soueraigne but onely subiecte to God in all thinges touching regalties and to none other The which protestation he prayd might be entred In the 17. yeare of the raygne of the king aforesayd it was desired that remedy might be had agaynst suche religious persons as caused their villains or vnderlinges to mary free women inheritable wherby the lands came to those religious mens handes by collusion Item that sufficient persons might be presented to benefices who may dwell on the same so as theyr stocke for want therof do not perish Item that remedy might be had agaynst the Abbotes of Colchester and Abinton who in the townes of Colchester and Colnham clayme to haue sanctuary To come to the parliament holden in the 20. yeare of this kinges raigne we finde moreouer in the sayd rolles how that the Archb. of Cant. and York for themselues and the clergy of their prouinces declared to the king in open parliamēt that forasmuch as they were sworn to the pope and see of Rome if any thing were in the parliament attempted in restraynt of the same they woulde in no wise assent therto but verily withstand the same the which theyr protestation they require to be enrolled Upon the petition of the begging Friers there at large it was enacted that none of that order shoulde passe ouer the seas without licence of his soueraigne nor that he shoulde take vppon him no order of M. of Diuinitie vnlesse he were first apposed in his Chapter prouinciall on payne to be put out of the kinges protection Item that the kings officers for making arests or attachementes in Churchyardes are therefore excommunicated wherof remedy was required In the yeare of the same kinges raygne 21. the Parliment being holden at Westminster we find how the commons in full Parliament accused Thomas Arundell archbishop of Caunterbury for that he as Chauncellor procured and as chiefe doer executed the same commission made trayterously in the tenth yeare of the king And also that he the sayd Archbishop procured the Duke of Gloucester and the Earles of Arundell and Warwicke to encroth to themselues royall power and to iudge to death Simon de Burley and sir Iohn Berners without the kings assent Wheron the Commons required that the same archbish might rest vnder safe keeping wherunto for that the same impeachementes touched so great a person they would be aduised Item the 25. day of September the Commons prayed the king to geue iudgement agaynst the sayd Archbishop according to his desertes The king aunswered that priuately the sayd Archbishop had confessed to him howe he mistooke himselfe in the sayd Commission and therefore submitted himselfe to the kings mercy Wherfore the king Lordes and sir Thomas Percy proctor for the clergie adiudged the facte of the sayd Archbishop to be treason and hymselfe a traytour and therfore it was ordered that the sayd Archbishoppe shoulde be banished his temporalties seased his landes and goodes forfeyted as well in vse as in possession The king further prescribed that the sayd Archbishop shoulde take hys passing on Friday within 6. weekes of Michaelmas at Douer towardes the parts of Fraunce Thus hauing hitherto sufficiently touched and comprehended such thinges as haue happened in the raygne of this king necessary for the Church to knowe by course of story we come nowe to the 22. yeare of King Richardes raygne which is the yeare of our Lord 1399. In the which yeare happened the strange and also lamentable deposing of this king Richard the second aforesayd from hys kingly scepter Straunge for that the like example hathe not often bene seene in seates royall Lamentable for that it cannot be but grieuous to any good mans hart to see him eyther so to deserue if he were iustly deposed or if he were vuiustly depriued to see the kingly title there not able to hold his right wher by force it is compelled to geue place to might As concerning the order and processe of whose deposing for that it neither is greatly pertinent to my argument and is sufficiently contayned in Robert Fabian and in the kinges recordes in the Chronicle of S. Albons and in other histories at large it were here tedious and superfluous to entermedle with repeting therof What were the conditions and properties of this king partly before hath bene
space subdued and expugned Albeit he long enioied not the same for Tahames king of the Persians sodaynly comming vpon the Turks vnprepared slue of them 20. thousand and tooke hys concubines to the great foyle and reproch of the Turke Two yeare after this which was the yere of our Lord 1537. Solymannus who coulde not be quyet at home nor rest in peace returning agayne out of Asia into Europe with 270. ships great and little set vppon Corcyra an other Iland belonging to the Uenetians which he besieged x. daies wasting and burning the Townes and fieldes as he went beside the destruction of much people therein whom partly he slue partly led away captiues From thence he sayled to Zacynthus and Cythara an other Ilande not farre off from Corcyra bordering neare to the coastes of Epyrus and Grecia Where he sodaynly by night inuading the husband men in villages and fields sleeping and mistrusting no harme drew them out of theyr houses and possessions men and women besides children to the number of ix huÌ„dreth whom he made hys bondslaues burning moreouer theyr houses and carying away all the goodes and cattell beyng without the sayd Citties of Zazinthus and Cythara Ex. Ioan. Crispo From thence these helhoundes turned theyr course to that siege and spoyle of Egina a rich and populous Iland lying betweene Grecia and Asia Where first the Egenians did manfully in battaile resist them and were like to haue preuayled but being weryed at length and oppressed with innumerable thousandes of fresh Turkes which stil were sent in to rescue the other whiche were ouercome before were compelled to flye into the Cittie of Egina Which city the cruell Turkes or rather Deuils on earth with muche labour violence of their great ordinaunce fet out of their shippes subdued and cast downe to the ground the Cittizens and inhabitauntes whereof the Turke after he had burned their houses and ransackt theyr goodes commanded to be slayne and killed euery one The weomen both noble and vnnoble with their infantes were geuen to the mariners to be abused and from thence being shipped vnto Constantinople were led away to perpetuall misery slauery which was in the yeare of our Lord. 1537. In the same iourny Solyman also tooke the I le in the sayd sea of Eugeum called Parum also the Ile adioyning to the same named Naxus and made them to him tributaries The duke wherof was he which wrote the story both of these Ilandes aforesayd and also of the other Ilandes called Cyclades and other Dukes Ex Ioan Crispo Duce Naxi c. Thys done Solymannus directed his Nauy vnto Apulia where he set on land x. thousand footmen 2000. horsemen which spoiled likewise and wasted those parties while the Emperour the pope and the Uenetians were together in warre and dissension Furthermore the next yere folowing an 1538. great attemptes began in Stiria but by the resistance of the inhabitantes the force of the barbarous turks was repulsed notwithstanding great spoyles of men cattell were caryed from thence and the country miserable spoyled In the which yeare also the Turk turning into Hungary gaue battaile vnto the Christians in Sauia where through the fraudulent falshood of the Captayne Cassianerus Wolfegangus nameth him Calcianus beyng as they say corrupted with money our men were put to the worse an 1538. After that the Turkes had inuaded the Ilande of Corcyra abouesayd the Uenetians with Solyman the Turke had ioyned truce for a certayne time for the which they gaue the turke 300. thousand crownes with the city of Neapolis and Maâ—uasia in the borders of Macedonia But with in 4. or 5. yeares the Turke to get a newe stipend of the Uenetians brake hys league and inuaded theyr dominions whereby they were enforced to enter new conditions agayn with him In the yeare of our Lord 1540. the restles Turke making hys return toward Hungary by the way passing by Dalmatia lay against the towne called Newcastle beyng defended by the Spanyardes In the which town because they refused to yeld themselues all the inhabitauntes and souldiours were put to the sword slain euery one This Nouum Castellum or Newcastle was a strong fort of that Christians whiche being nowe in the Turkes power he had great aduauntage ouer all those quarters of Dalmatia Stiria Carinthia and Hungaria From thence he proceeded further keeping his course into Hungary where he planted his power against the City of Buda This Buda was a principall city in Hungary about which great contention had bene as ye heard before betweene Ioannes Uaiuoda and Ferdinandus By reason wherof the Turke occasioned by Uaiuoda came into HuÌ„gary and deliuered the City to Uaiuoda This Uaiuoda liuing not long after left behinde him a sonne whome being an infant he committed to the gouernance of one Georgius Monachus who being left tutour vnto the infant reduced all Transiluania Buda Pesta with other parties of Hungary which belonged to Uaiuoda before to the subiection of the child Ferdinandus hearing therof in a great hast and anger leuyed an armye to recouer his landes in Hungarie and so laid siege to Buda Monachus seing his part weake first sent his legate to Ferdinandus desiring him to talke and conferre with him vppon matter as he pretended pertaynign to the behoofe of them both Wherupon both the parties being agreed the place and manner of their conuention was appoynted and also the day and tyme assigned Thus the partyes according to the agreement conuenting together with their armyes with drawing a little aside as they were entred in communication sodenly among Ferdinandus men happened a dagg to be heard which by the heate of the day as is thought loosing of hys own accord gaue a cracke The sound wherof comming to the eares of Monachus he supposing the same to haue bene discharged agaynst him in great anger drewe out his sworde bidding Ferdinandus auant with his doubling dissimmulation saying that he would neuer any more trust the promises of Christians and immediatelye vppe on the same sent to Solymannus the Turke for ayde agaynst the Christians promising that he would surrender to him free possession of Hungary if he woulde come and vanquish the army of Ferdinandus lying about the siege of Buda The Turke maketh no long tarying but taketh the occasion and with a mighty power flieth into Hungary and eftsoones discharging the host of Ferdinandus and putting them of from the siege of Buda getteth the Citty into his own handes commaunding the sonne of Uaiuoda with his mother to follow after his camp In the history of Ioannes Ramus it followeth that when Solyman the Turk had thus preuayled against the Cittie of Buda aforesayd agaynst other parties more of HuÌ„gary by the asset of the Empyre one Ioachimus duke of Brandeberg prince Electour was assigned with a puissant army of chosen souldiours of all nations collected to recouer the City of Buda from
Israell so that the fishes of the Sea the foules of the heauen the beastes of the field and all that mooue and creepe vpon the earth and all the men that are vpon the earth shall tremble at my presence the mountaines shall be ouerthrowne the starres shall fall and euery wall shall fall to the ground c. ¶ The Prophesies of Methodius Hildegardis and other concerning the reygne and ruyne of the Turkes VNto these testimonies aboue excerped out of the holy Scriptures let vs adde also the propheticall reuelatious of Methodius Hildegardis Sybilla and others This Methodius is thought of some to be the same Methodius of whome Hierome and Suidas make mention which was Bishop first of Olympus in Lycia then of Tyrus and suffred martyrdome in the last persecution of the primitiue Church vnder Diocletian Unto whome also Trithemius attributeth the booke intituled De Quatuor nouissimis temporibus But that can not be forasmuch as the said Methodius doth cite and alleadge the Maister of Sentence namely in his second booke and sixe distinc Which Maister of Sentence followed more then a thousand yeare after Christ besides certaine other fabulous matter conteined in the same booke Albeit because he speaketh there of many things coÌ„cerning the state of the Church vnder Antichrist and the reformation of Religion as secmeth rightly to come to passe and more is like to follow I thought not to defraude the Reader thereof leauing the credite of the Authour to his arbitrement to esteeme and iudge of him as he seeth cause Among diuers other places of Methodius prophesieng of the latter time these words do follow After that the children of Ismaell haue had multiplied in their generations to an infinite and innumerable multitude in the desert aforesayd they came out of the wildernesse of Arabie and entred into the habitable land and fought with the Kings of the Gentiles which were in the land of promise and the â—â—â—d was filled with them And after 70. weekes and halfe of their power wherewith they haue subdued all the kingdome of the Gentiles their hart was exalted seeing themselues so to haue preuailed and to haue conquered all things c. And afterward it followeth of the same matter in this sort It shall come to passe that the sayde seede of Ismaell shall issue out and obteine the whole world with the regions thereof in the entring of peace from the land of Aegypt vnto Ethiopia from the floud Euphrates vnto India and from the riuer Tigris to the entring of Nabaot the kingdome of Ionithus the sonne of Noe and from the North vnto Rome and Illyricum Aegypt and Thessalonica and Albania and so foorth to the sea Ponticum whych deuideth the sayd kingdomes from Germanie and Fraunce and their yoke shall be double vpon the neckes of all nations and Gentiles neither shall there be nation or kingdome vnder heauen which shall be able to stand against them in battaile vntill the number of eyght weekes of yeares c. Briefly as in a grosse somme this shall suffice to admonish the reader touching the meaning and methode of Methodius Prophesies which Methodius first describing the long and tedious afflictions of Christes Church maketh mention of the seede of Ismaell which comming out of the partes and deserts of Arabie shall destroy saith he and vanquish the whole earth So that the Christians shall be giueÌ„ of God to the hands of the filthy Barbarians to be slain polluted and captiued Persia Armenia Capadocia Cilicia Syria Aegypt the East partes Asia Spaine all Grecia Fraunce Germania Agathonia Sicilia The Romanes also shall be slaine and put to flight also the Ilands of the Seas shall be brought to desolation and to captiuitie and put to the sword The which tribulation of the Christians shall be without mercy or measure the raunsome of gold and siluer and other exactions intolerable but especially the dwellers of Aegypt and Syria shall be most in the affliction of those times And Hierusalem shall be filled with multitudes of people brought thether in captiuitie from the foure windes which are vnder heauen So that beastes also and foules and fish in the water and the waters of the Sea shall be to them obedient Cities and Townes which were before full of people shall be layde waste Women with child shall be ript their children sticked infantes taken from the mothers and cast in the streates and none shall burie them The rulers and sage of the people shall be slaine and throwne out to the beastes Churches shall be spoiled the Priests destroyed virgines defloured and men coÌ„pelled to sell their children and the comming of them shall bee chastisement without mercy and with them shall go these foure plagues captiuitie destruction perdition and desolation wyth much more which for breuitie I ouerpasse And this affliction sayeth hee shall last eight weekes or Sabbates of yeares which I take to signifie eight hundreth yeares c. Secondly after these terrible plagues thus described by Methodius vpon the Christians which he sayth shall fall vpon them for their wicked abhominations recited in the first and second chapter of S. Paule to the Romaines the saide Methodius afterwarde in this great distresse of the Christians being out of all hope and comfort of reliefe declareth and speaketh of a certaine King of the Greekes or Romains which shall restore peace againe to the ChristiaÌ„s In which peace they shal reedify their cities mansions againe the Priests shal be deliuered from their greuances men at that time shall rest from their tribulations and then shall the King of the Romaines dwell in the Citie of Hierusalem a weeke or sabbate and a halfe of times c. Thirdly during the time of this peace the said Methodius saith the men shal fal into licentious securitie carelesse life and then according to the word of the Apostle saying WheÌ„ they shal say peace peace sodeine destruction shal fall vpon them then sayth he shal be opened the gates of the North the beastly people shal breake in which King Alexander the great did close vp within 2. mountaines making his prayer vnto the Lorde God that he would bind vp that bestial execrable people least with their filthy detestable pollutions they shuld come out and pollute the holy land Whose intercession being heard the Lord coÌ„manded them to be inclosed within 2. mountains in the North parts to the depenes of 12. cubits which signifieth peraduenture 12. C. yeres so that neither by witchcraft nor by any means they could get out or any might come vnto them vntill the time of the Lord apointed which are saith he the latter times then according to the prophecie of Ezechiel in the latter time of the coÌ„summation of the world Gog Magog out froÌ„ the north shal come forth into the land of Israel shal work al this mischiefe against the christiaÌ„s aboue recited And then saith Method
stoupe and should tread vpon the necke of Emperors and make them to kisse his feet Moreouer where the Apostle sayth that he shall sit in the temple of God thereby is ment not the personall sitting of the Pope in the Citty onely of Rome but the authority and iurisdiction of his sea exalted in the whol vniuersall Church equall with God himselfe For let men geue to the Pope that which he in his lawes decrees and in his pontificall requireth and what difference is there betweene God and the Pope If God sette lawes and ordinaunces so doth he If God haue his creatures so hath he if God require obedience so doth he If the breach of Gods commaundementes be punished much more be his God hath his Religion the Pope also hath his yea for Gods one Religion he hath an hundreth God hath set vppe one Aduocate he hath an hundreth God hath instituted but a few holydayes for Gods one he hath instituted xl And if the holy day that God hath appoynted be simplex the feaste that the Pope appoynteth is duplex triplex Christ is the head of the Church so is the Pope Christ geueth influence to his body so doth the Pope Christ forgeueth sinne the Pope doth no lesse Christ expelleth euil spirites by his power so pretendeth the Pope by his holy water Furthermore where Christ went barefoote vpon the bare ground he with his golden shoes is caried on mennes shoulders And where Christ was called Sanctus Sanctorum he is called Sanctorum Sanctissimus Christ neuer practised but onely the spirituall sworde he claymeth both spirituall and temporal Christ bought the Church he both buieth and selleth the Church And if it be necessary to beleue Christ to be the Sauiour of the world so is it necessary to beleue the Pope to be the head of the Church Christ payd tribute to Cesar he maketh Cesar to pay tribute vnto him Finally the crowne of Christ was of sharp thorne the Pope hath three crownes of golde vpon his head so farre exceeding Christ the sonne of God in glory of this world as Christ excedeth him in the glory of heauen The Image and Paterne of whose intollerable pride and exaltation according as S. Paule doth describe him in his epistle aforesayde we haue here set forth not onely in these Tables to be seene and by hys owne factes to be noted but also his owne wordes and Registers Clementines Extrauagantes and Pontificals expressed as in order the Lord willing shall folow Byshops of Rome aduanced by Emperours Constantinus Theodosius c. ¶ The exaltation of popes aboue Kinges and Emperours out of historyes FIrst after that Italy and the Citty of Rome were ouerrunne by the Gothes and Vandales so that the seate of the Empire was remoued to Constantinople then began Ioannes Patriarch of Constantinople to put forth hymselfe and would needes be called vniuersall Bishop of the world but the Bishoppe of Rome in no case would suffer that and stopped it After this came the Emperours deputy and Exarch of Rauenna to rule Italy but the Byshop of Rome through ayde of the King of Lombardes soone quayled him Not long after about the yeare of our Lord 500. came Phocas the murderer who slue the Emperor of Constantinople his maister Mauritius and his children By which Phocas the bishops of old Rome aspired first to their preheminēce to be coūted the headbishops ouer the whole church and so together with the Lombardes began to rule the city of Rome Afterward when the Lombardes would not yeld vnto him in accomplishing his ambitious desire but would needs requyre of the Bishop the said city of Rome he styrred vppe Pipinus but first deposed Childiricus the king of Fraunce and so thrusting him into an Abbay sette vp in his place Pipinus and his sonne Carolus Magnus to put downe the sayde king of Lombardes called Aistulphus And so translated the Empyre from Constantinople into Fraunce deuiding the spoyle betwene him and them so that the kinges of Fraunce had all the possessions and landes which before belonged to the Empyre and he to receiue of them the quiet possession of the city of Rome with such donations and Lordships which now they challenge vnto thē vnder the name of S. Peters patrimony which they falsly ascribe to the donatiō of Constantinus the great It foloweth then in proces of tyme after the dayes of Pipinus Carolus and Ludouicus who had indued these Bishops of Rome called now Popes with large possessions when the kinges of Fraunce were not so applyable to theyr becke to aide and maynteine thē agaynst the Princes of Italy who began then to pynch the sayde Byshops for theyr wrongful vsurped goodes they practised with the Germanes to reduce the Empyre to Otho first of that name Duke of spayne referring the election thereof to 7. Princes Electours of Germany which was aboute ann 1002. notwithstanding reseruing still in his handes the negatiue voyce thinking thereby to enioy that they had in quietnes and security and so did for a good space At length when some of these Germane Emperours also after Otho began a litle to spurne agaynst the sayd bishops and Popes of Rome some of thē they accursed some they subdued and brought to the kissing of theyr feet some they deposed and placed other in theyr possessions So was Henricus 4. by these Byshoppes accursed the Emperour himselfe forced with his wife and child to wait attendaunce vppon the Popes pleasure three dayes and three nightes in winter at the gates of Canossus Reade before pag. 179. Besides all this the sayd Pope raysed vp Rodulphus to be Emperor against him who being slaine in warre then the sayde Pope Gregorye vij not restyng thus styrred vppe his owne sonne Henricus 5. to fight agaynst his owne naturall father and to depose him whiche Henricus the 5. was also himselfe afterwarde accursed and excommunicated and the Saxons at last set vp by the Byshops to fight agaynst him After this the Emperours began to be somewhat calmed and more quyet suffering the Byshops to reigne as they listed till Fridericke the first called Barbarossa came and began to styrre coales agaynst thē Howbeit they hampered both him and his sonne Henry in such sort that they brought first the necke of Fridericke in the Church of Venice vnder theyr feet to tread vpon and after that the sayde bishops crowning Henricus his sonne in the church of S. Peter set his crown on his head with theyr feet and with theyr feet spurned it of agayne to make him know that the Popes of Rome had power both to crowne Emperours and to depose them agayne Whereof read before pag. 784. Then folowed Philippus brother to Henry aforesaid whome also the Popes accursed aboute the yeare of our Lord. 1198. and set vp Otho Duke of Saxonye But when the sayd Otho beganne to be so laucy to dispossesse the Byshops of theyr Cittyes and landes whiche they had encroched into
in person saith Cope but with his mind and with his counsell he was present and addeth this reason saying And therfore he being brought agayn after his escape was conuice both of treason and heresye therfore susteining a double punishmēt was both hanged and burnt for the same c. And how is al this proued By Robert Fabian he sayth whereunto briefly I aunswere that Rob. Fabian in that place maketh no such mention of the Lord Cobham assisting or consenting to them either in mind or in counsell His wordes be these That certaine adherentes of Sir Iohn Oldcastle assembled in the fielde neare to S. Biles in great number of whom was sir Roger Acton sir Iohn Browne and Iohn Beuerley The which with 36. mo in number were after conuict of heresy and treason and for the same were hanged and burnt wein the sayd field of S. Byles c. Thus much in Fabian touching the commotion condemnation of these mē but that the Lorde Cobham was there present with thē inany parte either of consent or counsell as Alanus Copus Anglus pretendeth that is not found in Fabian but is added of his liberall cornu copiae wherof he is so copious and plentifull that he may keep an open shop of such vnwrittē vntruethes whiche he maye aforde verye good cheape I thinke being such a plentifull artificer But here will bee obiected agaynst mee the wordes of the statute made the seconde yeare of king Henry the fifte wherupon this aduersary triumphing with no litle glory 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 thinketh himselfe to haue double vauntage against me first in prouinge these foresayd complices adherents of the Lord Cobham to haue made insurrection agaynst the king and so to be traytors Secondly in conuicting that to be vntrue where as in my former booke of Actes and Monumentes I doe reporte how that after the death of sir Roger Acton of Browne Beuerley a Parliament was holden at Leicester where a statute was made to this effect that all and singular suche as wer of Wickliffes learning if they would not geue ouer as in case of felony and other trespasses loosing all theyr goodes to the king shoulde suffer death in two manner of kinds that is they should first be hanged for treasō against the king and then be burned for heresy agaynst God c. Wherupon remaineth now in examining this obiectiō and aunswering to the same that I purge both them of treason and my selfe of vntruth so farre as truth and fidelity in Gods cause shal assist me herin Albeit in beginning first my history of Ecclesiastical matters wherin I hauing nothing to do with abatement of causes iudiciall but onely folowing the simple narration of things done and executed neuer suspected that euer any would be so captious with me or so nise nosed as to presse me with such narrow points of the law in trying and discussing euery cause and matter so exactly straining as ye woulde say the bowels of the statute lawe so rigorously agaynst me Yet for so much as I am therunto constrained now by this aduersary I wil first lay open all the whole statute made the second yeare of this foresayd Henry the fift after the death of the foresayd sir Roger Acton and his fellowes at the Parliament holden at Leycester an 1415. That done I will note vpon the words therof so as by the circumstaunces of the same may appeare what is to be cōcluded either for the defence of theyr innocencye or for the accusation of this aduersary The tenour and purport of the statute here vnder ensueth ¶ The wordes and contentes of the statute made an 2. Henrici 5. cap. 7. FOrasmuch as great rumors congregations and insurrections here in England by diuers of that king his maiesties seege people haue bene made here of late as well by those which were of the sect of heresy called Lolardy as by others of their cōfederatiō excitatiōs abetmēt to the intēt to adnulle subuert the christian fayth the law of God within the same Realme as also to destroy our soueraigne Lord the king himselfe and all maner of estates of the same his Realme as well spirituall as temporall and also all maner pollicy the lawes of the land Finally the same our Lord the king to the honor of God in conseruation and fortification of the Christian fayth also in saluation of his royall estate of the estate of all his realme willing to prouide a more open more due punishmēt agaynst the malice of such heretickes Lolardes then hath bene had or vsed in that case heretofore so that for the feare of the same lawes and punishment such heresyes and Lolardies may the rather cause in time to come By the aduise and assēt aforesayd at the prayer of the sayd commons hath ordeined established that especially the Chaūcellor the Treasurer the Iustices of the one bēch and of the other Iustices of Assise Iustices of peace Shiriffes Maiors and Bailiffes of Cityes and Townes and all other officers hauing the gouernement of people either now present or which for the time shal be do make an othe in taking of their charge and offices to extend their whole payne and diligence to put out to do to put out cease destroy all maner of heresyes and errors commonly called Lolardies within the places in which they exercise their charges and offices from time to time with all their power and that they assist fauor and maintaine the ordinaries and their commissaries so often as they or any of them shal be therunto required by the said ordinaries or their cōmissaryes So that the sayd officers and ministers when they trauell or ride to arest any Lolard or to make any assistēce at the instance and request of the ordinaries or their cōmissaryes by vertue of this statute that the same ordinaries commissaryes do pay for their costs reasonably And that the seruices of the king vnto whō the officers be first sworne be preferred before al other statutes for the liberty of holy Church the ministers of the same And especially for the correction and punishment of hereticks Lolards made before these dayes not repealed but being in theyr force And also that all persons conuict of heresy of whatsoeuer estate condition or degree they be by the sayd ordinaries or their cōmissaries left vnto the secular power according to the lawes of holy Church shall leese forfayte all theyr lands and tenements which they haue in fee simple in maner and forme as followeth That is to say that the king shall haue all the landes tenementes which the sayd conuictes haue in fee simple which be immediatlye holden of him as forfayted And that the other Lordes of whom the lands tenements of such conuictes be holden immediatly after that the king is therof seised answered of the yeare