LAUD, other subject, provided neither the matter or form was deroAbp. Cant. gatory to his regal authority." Bib. Regia, p: 147. Immediately after the reading this proclamation, the earl of Hume, the lord Lindsey, and others, pursuant to what had been preconcerted, protested against it in form. And now the L'Estrange. party broke out into open defiance: and being resolved to go through with the enterprise, in despite of the government, they posted to Edinburgh; where, after having consulted Hope, the advocate, and some others of that profession, they set up a counter-authority, consisting of four tables. The nobility Guthrie. 780. made one; the barons another; the burgesses a third; and the ministers a fourth. These four were to prepare and digest matter for the general table, formed of several members delegated from the rest. And here the last and binding resolutions were taken. The first business of these tables was renewing the ancient confession of the Kirk already related. To this there was a band annexed, suited to the design in hand. By this band they solemnly engaged for the maintenance of their religion then professed, and the preservation of his majesty's person. But both by the tenor of the instrument, and their own explanation, it is evident their meaning was otherwise. For by the band they obliged themselves to defend each other, against all persons whatsoever, the king himself not being excepted. Whereas the engagements of this kind in the late reign had an express clause for the defence of the king's person and authority. Besides, there was another great disparity between this confession or covenant, and those subscribed in the late reign the former being either signed by the king or by the lords of the council, at the request of the general assembly; whereas this covenant was subscribed, and the subject enjoined to swear it without any face of authority, either in Hammond. Church or State. And further, under the general names of Guthrie. popery, heresy, and superstition, then solemnly renounced, not King's Large only the Common Prayer-book and canons, but episcopal goDeclaration. vernment, and the five articles of Perth, though confirmed by L'Estrange. : parliament, were comprehended. While the covenanters were thus enterprising at Edinburgh, the lords of the council continued at Stirling, and were little regarded. Spotswood, lord chancellor, and archbishop of St. Andrew's, finding the country too troublesome, withdrew to London, 1. where he died the next year. The rest of the bishops, who CHARLES knew themselves most maligned, made for the same shelter; only four of them continued in their country. Three of these, Alexander Ramsey, bishop of Dunkeld, George Graham, bishop of Orkney, and James Fairly, bishop of Argyle, rescued themselves from persecution, by deserting their station, and publicly renouncing their order: but the fourth, John Guthrie, bishop of Murray, endured the storm with great resolution; and notwithstanding he fell under the discipline of the Presbyterians, lost his liberty, and suffered in his fortune, he maintained the lawfulness of episcopacy to his dying day. : Guthrie's and Con the To return to England: the Roman Catholics were not negligent in soliciting the queen, and improving their interest at court. About three years since, Panzani, the pope's agent, Panzani came to London, and made his application to the lord Cotting- agents for ton and secretary Windebank. Part of his business was to England. discover whether the king would permit those of his communion a Catholic bishop of the English nation and to make the motion pass the better, they were contented this bishop should be nominated by his majesty, and not exercise his function but under such limitations as should be set him by the prince. Upon this request a query was put to Panzani, "whether the pope would allow the nominating such a bishop as held the oath of allegiance a lawful engagement: and whether his holiness would give the English of his communion leave to take the oath?" Panzani, finding himself somewhat embarrassed with the question, declared he had no commission to speak to that matter. Upon this disappointment he went lower in his request; and by some correspondence at court, moved the king that the queen might be permitted an agent from the pope for directing her affairs in religion. The king, by the advice of his council, condescended to the motion, upon condition that the person sent should be no priest. in Hammond. Charles 1. This Panzani, after having pursued his instructions in Eng- Hist. King land about two years, tempted some of the court clergy to no purpose, and brought the seculars and regulars to a tolerable accommodation, returned to Rome, and left seignior Con, a Scotchman, in his post. This agent of the pope's arriving in England last summer, brought a great many relics, medals with the pope's effigies, and other recommending curiosities, to be distributed among The arch LAUD, the ladies of that persuasion. And being a person of dexterity Abp. Cant. and address, he worked himself into a conversation with some of the ministry. The king was not displeased with his correspondence; his majesty being not without hopes this Con might prove a serviceable instrument at the court of Rome, and make the restoring the elector palatine more practicable. Con, perceiving the archbishop of Canterbury had no small direction of the public affairs, endeavoured to make an acquaintance with him; but Laud having no good opinion of the man, or his business, kept himself aloof, and would not so much as admit of a visit of ceremony. However, by the king's connivance, and the queen's favour, the Papists came somewhat forward, appeared in greater numbers at court, and frequented their devotions at Somerset-house with more freedom than formerly. This being observed, and probably magnified beyond matter of fact, the blame was chiefly laid upon Laud. Several libels were scattered in London, in which the archbishop was aspersed as an encourager of mass, and little better than the pope's pensioner. It must be confessed Walter Montague, a younger son of the earl of Manchester, and sir Toby Matthews, son to the late archbishop of York, had been very active in their mission; and, amongst other successes, had lately proselyted the countess of Newport, related to the duke of Buckingham. Now, the archbishop finding himself attacked with calumny, took this opportunity to disprove the imputations; and being at the council table, he addressed himself to the king, and in a full discourse acquainted his majesty with the growth of the Roman Catholic interest; that the Papists met frequently at Somerset-house; that Montague and Matthews had taken unsufferable liberties, practised upon his majesty's subjects, and particularly upon those within the verge of the court: humbly beseeching him they might be under some restraint, and either quite barred coming to court, or else obliged to be inoffensive in their behaviour. This speech being well received by the king, Montague and Matthews were ordered to retire. The queen at first was much displeased with this remonstrance, and discovered it in her face whenever the archbishop happened to see her. But within a few months, after some expostulation, she seemed to drop her resentment. bishop remonstrates at the counagainst the cil-table liberties taken by the Roman And now to touch a little upon the archbishop's annual account of his province to the king. He acquaints his majesty, I. archbishop's that "at Biddenham in Kent he suspended one Warren, a CHARLES schoolmaster, for refusing to subscribe the articles, and take the oaths of allegiance and canonical obedience. This precisian Part of the had a strange humorsome conscience. He would read nothing annual aobut divinity to his scholars. He could not so much as reconcile himself to Lillie's Grammar, except Mars, Bacchus, Apollo, Pol, and Ædepol were expunged. "In the diocese of Lincoln, now under the archbishop's care, he complains of a great many Nonconformists in Buckinghamshire and Bedfordshire; and that there were a great number of very poor and miserable vicarages and curateships in this large diocese. "The bishop of Norwich certifieth, that in his diocese several towns are depopulated, no houses left standing but the manor-house and the church, and that turned to the lord's barn, or a worse use. In other towns the churches lie in rubbish; and the inhabitants are thrust upon neighbouring parishes, where they pay few or no duties. "From the diocese of Exeter, it was certified, that several captives in Morocco being ransomed and returned home, the bishop was somewhat at a loss with what penance and form these people, who had renounced Christianity, might be readmitted into the Church; and, having acquainted the archbishop with this deplorable case, they agreed upon a form, which was approved by the bishops of London, Ely, and Norwich, and afterwards confirmed by his majesty. count. 781. See Records, num. 112. Hist. of the Troubles, Laud. "The rest of the dioceses, from whence certificates were returned, came forward in conformity, and were in tolerable good order." Laud, to silence the clamour of his being popishly affected, &c. of procured a proclamation for calling in a popish book, written Archbishop in French, by Francis Sales, bishop of Geneva, translated into English, and entitled "An Introduction to a Devout Life." The translation of This book, brought for a license to Haywood, the archbishop's Sales's "Inchaplain, was returned expunged in several unorthodox pas- &c. called sages. Notwithstanding this precaution, the deletions were in. printed. For this foul practice the printer was apprehended, the translator searched for, the book was called in, and the copies seized and publicly burnt. But that which did the archbishop most service, in his reputation, was his reprinting the conference between him and Fisher, with enlargements. A.D. 1638. This was so considerable a performance, that sir Edward troduction," LAUD, Deering, one of his greatest enemies, had the justice to Abp. Cant. confess, that, in this book, "Laud had muzzled the Jesuit, Deering's and would strike the Papists under the fifth rib when he was dead and gone; and, being dead, that, wheresoever his grave should be, Paul's would be his perpetual monuDeering's ment, and his own book his epitaph." commenda tion of Land. Collection of Speeches, p. 5. the Star chamber for the press. The archbishop was no less solicitous to suppress the growth of heterodoxy of a different complexion, and to prevent the Socinians and Puritans from gaining upon the Church and disturbing her repose. To this purpose he procured a StarA decree of chamber decree for regulating the press. By this order, none but master-printers were allowed to print, under the penalty regulating of being set in the pillory, and suffering such other punishment as the court shall appoint; that none of the master-printers should print any book in divinity, law, physic, philosophy, or poetry, without a licence; and that no person should reprint any book without a new licence; that no merchant, bookseller, or other person, should import any printed books, without giving in a catalogue of them to the archbishop of Canterbury or bishop of London for the time being; and that they should not deliver or expose to sale any imported books till the chaplains of the said archbishop or bishop, or some other learned person appointed by them, together with the master and wardens of the company of stationers, or one of them, shall take a view of the same, with power to seize all schismatical and offensive books; and, lastly, that no merchant, bookseller, &c., should print any English books beyond sea, nor import any such into this kingdom. By the advantage of this order, he prevented the spreading of Socinian and Puritanical books. It had been the custom of people disaffected to the doctrine and discipline of the Church, to print their heterodoxies beyond sea in our language, and import them into England. To stop this mischief, there was a particular provision in the Star-chamber decree. A book entitled "Disquisitio Brevis " was published about this time. Some Socinian tenets were covertly couched in this tract: they were pretended expedients for drawing the controversy between the Churches of Rome and England into a less compass. Hales, of Eton, a man of considerable learning and parts, was supposed the author'. There was likewise 1 Vide "Golden Remains of the ever memorable Mr. John Hales of Eton College." |