be forfeited, and ordering him into custody.Henry, however, granted him a pardon. This memorable event took place in November 1529: in January 1531, the whole ecclesiastical establishment was brought under the same law. It was alleged, that, by submitting to the cardinal's exercise of his legatine authority, the whole national church had offended within the statute of provisors: upon this statute, the attorney general, by his majesty's direction, indicted them. They assembled in convocation, confessed their guilt, and submitted to his majesty's mercy. The king accepted from the clergy of the province of Canterbury, 100,000l; and from the clergy of the province of York, 18,4407.-for a pardon. It was expected that the whole body of the laity would have been considered guilty of the same offence; but, after some demonstrations of anger, the king issued his pardon of them, without requiring any fine: the commons expressed great gratitude to him for his clemency. It is surprising, that the nation should have quietly submitted to a proceeding so manifestly unjust and absurd. On what ground, it could be gravely asserted, that either clergy or laity, had incurred the penalties of the statutes of provisors or præmunire, it is impossible to conceive. The first of these statutes extended to those only, who obtained from the see of Rome, provisional presentations to benefices, that were not vacant; the latter, to those only, who interrupted the proceedings of the king's courts, or prevented the execution of their sentences, by appealing from them to the see of Rome. XIV. 3. Measures preparing the Public Mind for his Majesty's Ecclesiastical Supremacy. AFTER this, it soon became evident, that the king was determined to abolish, in his dominions, the spiritual supremacy of the pope: he was aware, that it would shock the religious principles and feelings of a large proportion of the nation; he therefore proceeded in the execution of his design, with greater caution, than he condescended to use on any other occasion. Great attempts were made to induce the leading ecclesiastics to co-operate with his views: many works were published, to dispose the nation favourably towards them; the convocations of both provinces were brought over to them; and the language of the debates, in both houses of parliament, was calculated to promote them. The king caused the bishops, and all other leading ecclesiastics, to be sounded by his principal courtiers; and and every method was employed that could dispose them to favour his designs; the ordinary means of persuasion and terror were resorted to; frequent sermons were preached, and every other mode of instruction used, to make the new doctrine palatable to the people; and the superiors of religious houses were required to disseminate it among the members of their communi ties. The effect of these measures upon the public mind is remarkable: at first, it was thought suffieient to propound that the council was above the pope; but, "afterwards," says Burnet, "they struck a note higher; and declared to the people, that "the pope had no authority in England*." 66 For the first time, perhaps, in the annals of history, the powerful artillery of the press was now brought forward in aid of a great public measure. Many works, advocating the royal views, and indisposing the nation against the see of Rome, were printed and extensively circulated. The most remarkable of these were, "The Institution for the 66 necessary Erudition of a Christian Man;" the treatise of Fox, bishop of Hereford, “De Verâ dif"ferentiâ Regiæ Potestatis et Ecclesiæ ;" and the work of Gardiner, bishop of Winchester, "De "Verâ Obedientiâ." The most popular, was a Latin oration of doctor Richard Sampson, printed, in 1553, by Berthelet. Henry himself broke a lance against the pope :-" The king," says Strypet, "wrote a book. It was a large and ample treatise "of the tyranny and usurpation of the bishop of "Rome; and bore this title, "De Potestate Chris"tianorum Regum in suis Ecclesiis contra Pontificis 66 Tyrannidem et horribilem impietatem." In the mean time, the advocates of the supremacy of the pope were not idle: its most distinguished champion was cardinal Pole: he addressed to the king a laboured dissertation, "Pro Unitate Ecclesiasticâ;" * History of the Reformation, book ii. and carefully sent it to him by a private hand. It was afterwards published at Strasbourg, and several copies found their way to England. Some replies to it were published: the harsh terms, in which the cardinal expressed himself, respecting the king, were objected to his work; he defended it against this and other charges by his treatise, intituled, Unitatis Ecclesiastica Defensio, published at Strasbourg in 1555, and at Ingolstadt, in 1587: the two works were often printed in one volume. The appendixes to bishop Burnet's History of the Reformation, and Strype's Ecclesiastical Memorials, contain several letters, written by the cardinal, and several, addressed to him: no documents show so well the general tenor of the arguments, by which, at this time, the papal supremacy was attacked and defended; but, it must be admitted, that, in subsequent times, the subject, if not better understood, has certainly been more ably discussed. The next attempt of the advocates for the royal supremacy was, to procure a formal recognition of it by the convocations of the clergy.-While they lay at the mercy of the crown, in consequence of their supposed guilt, in submitting to cardinal Wolsey's legatine authority, it was pressed upon them, as a measure, likely to soothe his majesty's anger, that they should acknowledge his title of supreme head of the church. A petition was accordingly brought into the upper house of convocation of the province of Canterbury. The king was styled in it "the protector and supreme head of the "church." Some opposition to this expression was made, and the consideration of the petition postponed. It was then proposed to qualify the obnoxious words, by adding to them the expression," so far as is permitted by the law of "Christ." With this qualification, the sentence was adopted, and the petition signed by the convocation of each province. For a time, the king appeared to be satisfied: but, to use the words of Strype*," he finally made them buckle to."-In the following year, the parliament passed an act, prohibiting appeals to Rome, and subjecting those who made them, to the penalties of præmunire. The convocations ordered the act to be fixed upon the church door of every parish: and, in March and May 1534, announced, that "a general council "represented the church, and was above the pope, "and all other bishops; and that the bishop of "Rome had no greater jurisdiction, given him by "God in the holy scriptures, within the kingdom of 66 England, than any other foreign bishop." In the convocation of Canterbury, this allegation was opposed by four voices only; one other expressed doubt: in the convocation of York, it passed, without a dissenting voice. Both the universities, all the capitular and all the conventual bodies throughout the realm, followed their example. Compliance with the royal wishes now became the order of the day: the bishops took out new commissions from the crown, and in these, not only their • Eccl. Mem. vol. i. p. 133. |