question was cleared, and the difficulty got over in the JAMES I. fourth year of this reign, as has been already related. This parliament sat till the 7th of July, and was then prorogued till the 7th February following.

cation meets.

To say something of the convocation, which met the next The convoday after the parliament. The see of Canterbury being now vacant, the dean and chapter of that Church gave a commission to Bancroft, bishop of London, to preside in the synod. In the eleventh session the president delivered the prolocutor a book of canons, which passed both houses, and were afterwards ratified by the king's letters-patent. These canons, being a hundred and forty-one, were collected by Bishop Bancroft out of the articles, injunctions, and synodical acts passed and published in the reigns of king Edward VI. and queen Elizabeth.

To proceed a petition for reforming the Book of Common-prayer was brought into the house by Edgerton, Fleetwood, and Wotton, clerks, together with some others. This motion, it is likely, was coldly received: that it miscarried. is certain all that appears upon record is, that the president, Abstract of and the rest of the bishops, admonished the petitioners and the Contheir adherents to acquiesce and conform. The convocation Journal. was on the 9th of July prorogued by the king's writ to the 8th of February next following, and afterwards to the 6th of November, 1605.

Vocation

This summer the corporation of Ripon, in Yorkshire, petitioned queen Anne for a better maintenance for the incumbent of that parish. There had formerly been founded a fair collegiate church, but at the dissolution of the abbeys the lands were seized by the crown, and no tolerable remainder left for the parish priest. There was little need of the queen's interest in soliciting on the petitioners' behalf: for the king was always disposed for the benefit of learning and religion. In short, his bounty was considerably large The colleupon this occasion: for he founded a dean and chapter of gate church at Ripon seven prebendaries, and settled two hundred and forty-seven founded by pounds per annum of crown lands for their maintenance. A. D. 1604. This year the Family of Love presented a petition to the The Family king. The design of their address is to clear themselves of address to some imputations, which as they pretend, lay unjustly on

the king.

of Love's the king.

BANCROFT,

their persuasion. They complain of their being misrepre Abp Cant. sented in his majesty's Barikov Apov. They disclaim the Puritans, such as Brown, Penry, &c. and all erroneous sects of the Anabaptists, and make fair pretensions of obedi ence to Church and State. They take the distinction of their belief from one Henry Nicholas, confess some dark passages in that author's work, and offer to explain them As for learning, they declared themselves unfurnished. They take notice of their lying under the reproach of licentious doctrine, but disown the charge. And, lastly, they solicit for indulgence and common protection, and desire their principles may be interpreted by their practice. What effect this petition had, does not appear: it is possible the inconsiderableness of the number and condition of these sectaries might make them overlooked.

Fuller's

Church

book 10.

After a vacancy of about nine months in the see of Canterbury, Bancroft, bishop of London, was translated thither. London This prelate governed with great vigour, and pressed a strict conformity to the rubric and canons, without the least allowance of latitude and different persuasion. This management was interpreted to rigour by those who favoured the Nonconformists. The author of the "Altar of DamascusTM reports, that three hundred preaching ministers were either silenced or deprived for refusing to pass this test. But this narrative swells the prosecution to a romantic bulk: for, by the rolls delivered in by Bancroft, not long before his death, it is evident there were but forty-nine deprived upon any account whatever. Now this in a kingdom of about nine thousand parishes, was no very tragical number. However, by animadverting upon some few of the principals, he struck a terror into the rest, and made their scruples give way.

In short, Bancroft's unrelenting strictness gave a new Rice to religion: the liturgy was more solemnly officiated; the fasts and festivals were better observed: the use of copes was revived, the surplice generally worn, and all things ma manner recovered to the first settlement under queen Phzabeth. Some who had formerly subscribed in a loose reserved sense, were now called upon to sign their conRormity in more close unevasive terms. For now the thirtyxth canon obhged them to declare that they did “willingly,

et ex animo subscribe the three articles, and all things JAMESI. contained in the same:" so that now there was no room left for scruples and different persuasion. And thus some ministers of consideration lost their livings to preserve their conscience: I say, to preserve their conscience; for it is a hard matter to bring every body's understanding to the common standard, and make all honest men of the same mind.

Amongst the more eminent Nonconformists who were laid aside upon this score, we may reckon Dr. Burgess, beneficed in Lincoln diocese. This divine, for some exceptionable passages in a sermon of his preached before the king this summer was first committed; and afterwards being pressed to subscribe the three articles, resigned his benefice. He wrote the reasons of his conduct to Chatterton, his diocesan. He likewise endeavoured to purge himself from sinister construction to the king, and addressed his majesty for favour and his former post. The king, pleased with the manner of his application, did him the honour of a personal conference. And here the matters in question being discussed, Burgess was gained to an entire conformity, and returned to his station. After this he signalized himself against the Dissenters, and became a champion for the government and ceremonies of the established Church.

But the loss of this divine did not dishearten his former brethren for soon after a warm pamphlet, entitled the "Abridgment," was published by the Lincolnshire ministers. The book rallied all the former objections, and reinforced them with new ones: and in fine, made an attack upon the 688. doctrine, ceremonies, and government of the Church. Dr. Answer rejoined Burgess, in his answer, complains the state of the questions to the Applauded was much altered: that Cartwright and the old Noncon- Pamphlet, formists drew up a gentler charge against the ceremonies, The Nonand quarrelled with them only upon the score of their being conformists multiply inconvenient that in consequence of this opinion they their er advised the ministers to conform, rather than quit their ceptions flocks and exhorted the people to receive the communion Church of England. kneeling rather than lose the benefit of that sacrament. But the authors of the "Abridgment," and other pamphlets in this reign, carried their exceptions much further, pro

VOL. VII.

Y

&c.

against the

CROFT Aug. Cart

BAN nounced the ceremonies ahogether unlawful, and looked a it as a distinguishing mark of piery to lay the surplice aside And thus by widening the breach, enlarging the heads of their remonstrance, and pushing their disaffection furder than formerly, they lost the good opinion of the bishops, who otherwise, probably, would have managed with more lerity, and not drawn the canons so close upon them.

In Scotland a general assembly was to have met at Aberdeen, in July the last year; but the king being who taken up with the project of the union, the church meeting was a journed for a twelve-month. The court being now settled in England, the Presbyterian ministers, relying upo the juncture, formed a design to break the king's measures, and recover the ground they had lost. The king, apprized of their motions, commanded the assembly should be put of till further order. His majesty was generally obeyed; for, of the fifty presbyteries, only nine sent their commissioners to Aberdeen. And thus, when the day came, their meeting consisted at the most but of one-and-twenty. However, these members were all men of resolution, and prepared to stand the shock. Sir Alexander Straiton, laird Lowreston commissioner for his majesty in Church affairs, commanded them to retire, and break up that unlawful assembly. They told him their meeting was allowed by the laws of the realm: and that they ought not to betray the liberties of the Church theby giving way to so illegal a discharge. The commissioner argued against their plea, asserted the king's prerogative in calling and dissolving Church assemblies. But being re quested to withdraw, and give them some little time for further deliberation, he complied with the motion. Being thus left to themselves, they immediately chose one Forbes w's for their moderator, and adjourned the assembly to the last of September following.

Lowreston, finding himself ill used, complained to the commeil, and proclaimed them rebels. Forbes and Welsh, two of the principal malcontents, are summoned to appear before the board, and, persisting in their stiffness, sent prisoners to the castle of Blackness. On the 3rd of October the rest were ordered to appear before the lords of the council. And now thirteen of their number owned their

misbehaviour, and intreated their lordships would intercede JAMES I. with the king for their pardon. The rest, which were but eight, justifying their braving the government, were committed to several prisons. As for the thirteen, who confessed their fault, they were dismissed, and had the liberty of returning to their respective charges.

These proceedings of the council were censured in the pulpit by several preachers; and to draw a greater odium upon the administration, it was given out that the suppressing assemblies and the established discipline was the bottom design and that the ceremonies of the Church of England were to be forced upon them. The king published a declara- 1605. tion to satisfy the people, and disable these false reports; intimating withal that another assembly should meet at Dundee in July following.

Sept. 26,

Oct. 24.

scribe a

This declaration making no impression upon the disaffected ministers, they were summoned to appear at the council-table, to be further punished for their misbehaviour. When they came, they exhibited an instrument subscribed They subby fourteen of them. The substance of this paper, called a declinator declinator, was, that "the meeting or discharge of a general of the temporul courts, assembly was a matter of spiritual cognizance, and belonged and appeal to the decision of the Church; that therefore they must be assembly. forced to plead in bar to their lordships' jurisdiction, and

to a general

submit themselves to the trial of a general assembly, who Idem. are the only competent judges of the cause."

The king, receiving advice of the declinator, ordered their They are prosecuted prosecution. Accordingly six of them were indicted upon and fisund the statute made in the year 1584, found guilty of treason, treason. guilty of and returned to their prisons till his majesty's pleasure was further known.

Bancroft

against the

To go back to England. In Michaelmas term, this year, Archbishop archbishop Bancroft exhibited articles to the lords of the exhibits privy council, in the name of the whole clergy, against the articles judges. They are called "Certain Articles of Abuses judges. which are desired to be reformed in granting Prohibitions." To this remonstrance, in Easter term following, all the judges of England gave in their answers signed to the council-board. This unanimous resolution Sir Edward Coke Coke's calls "the highest authority in law." But this case being fol. 601.

Instit. pt. 2.