VIII. chaplains, answer, and say, that such our laws, by our prede- HENRY cessors within this realm made, as contain any matter contrary to your laws or prerogative, and be not now in use, and do not concern the faith nor reformation of sin; when we shall be advertised of them, we shall right gladly in that part revoke them, and declare them to be void and of none effect: so that your said honourable commons shall now dare execute your laws without Biblioth. any fear, dread, or anger of our said laws, if any such there be." Cleopatra, Cotton. 68. E.6. fol.101. The king thought this answer too artificially drawn; and 1532. that there was too much of ambiguity and subterfuge in it. He therefore ordered a form to be delivered to the almoner, which the convocation were required to sign, and from which his highness was resolved not to depart. It was couched in these terms. "First. That no constitution, or ordinance shall be here- Articles sent by the king after by the clergy enacted, promulged, or put in execution, to the convounless the king's highness do approve the same by his autho- cation. rity and royal assent: and his advice, aid, and favour be also interponed for the execution of every such constitution to be made in time coming among his highness's subjects. "Secondly. That whereas divers of the constitutions provincial, which have been heretofore enacted, be thought not only much prejudicial to the king's prerogative royal, but also much onerous to his highness's subjects, they be committed to the examination and judgment of thirty-two persons; whereof sixteen are to be of the upper and the nether house of the temporality, and other sixteen of the clergy; all to be appointed by the king's highness: so that finally which soever of the said constitutions shall be thought and determined by the most part of the said thirty-two persons worthy to be abrogated and annulled, the same are to be afterwards taken away and to be of no force and strength. "Thirdly. That all other of the said constitutions which stand with God's laws, and the king's, do stand in full strength and power, the king's highness royal assent being given to the same." The convocation were much perplexed at their receiving this message from the king and after some time spent in consultation, it was resolved to send four of the upper, and six WAR- : of the lower house to the bishop of Rochester, by whose advice Abp. Cant. they seemed disposed to govern themselves and to wait for Until Mon- this prelate's resolution they adjourned three days. Now day, May 13. Fisher's principles were not likely to put the clergymen upon The king complains of any measures acceptable to the court. The king therefore, being informed to whom the matter was referred, sends for the speaker of the house of Commons, and complains the clergy were but half his subjects. To justify this imputation, he suggests an inconsistency between the oaths taken by the bishops sistency of and abbots to the pope, and that of allegiance. These two by the clergy. oaths being read by the king's order in parliament, not only overawed the clergy to a closer submission, but also led the Ld. Herbert, way to a full renunciation of the pope's authority. an incon oaths taken p. 335. The bishops' oath to the pope. Hist. Re And that the reader may judge how far this complaint was reasonable, I shall lay them before him. Their Oath to the Pope. "I, John, bishop or abbot of A., from this hour forward shall be faithful and obedient to St. Peter, and to the holy Bp. Burnet, Church of Rome, and to my lord the pope and his successors form. pt. 1. canonically entering. I shall not be of counsel nor consent p. 123, 124. that they shall lose either life or member, or shall be taken or suffer violence or any wrong by any means. Their counsel trusted as a secret to me, their messengers or letters, I shall not willingly discover to any person. The papacy of Rome, the rules of the holy Fathers, and the regalia of St. Peter, I shall support, maintain, and defend against all men. The legate of the see apostolic going and coming I shall honourably treat. The rights, honours, privileges and authorities of the Church of Rome, I shall endeavour to preserve, defend, augment and promote. I shall not be in council, treaty, or in act, in the which any thing shall be contrived against the Church of Rome, their rights, sees, honours or powers. And if I know any such to be moved or compassed, I shall resist it to Bishop Bur- my power, and as soon as I can, I shall advertise him or such net trans- as may acquaint him with it. The rules of the holy Fathers, lates" prothe decrees, ordinances, sentences, dispositions, reservations, provisions and commandments apostolic, to my power I shall keep, and cause to be kept by others. Heretics, schismatics, persecute." and rebels to our holy Father, and his successors, I shall sequar et impugnabo" in the original by VIII. resist and prosecute to my power'. I shall come to the synod HENRY when I am called, unless hindered by a canonical impediment. The thresholds of the apostles I shall visit yearly in person, or by my deputy. I shall not alienate or sell my possessions without the pope's advice. So help me God and the holy evangelists." Their Oath to the King. to the king. "I, John, bishop of A., utterly renounce, and clearly for- Their oath sake, all such clauses, words, sentences, and grants, which I have, or shall have hereafter of the pope's holiness, of and for the bishopric of A. that in any ways have been, are, or hereafter may be hurtful or prejudicial to your highness, your heirs, successors, dignity, privilege or estate royal. And also I do swear, that I will be faithful and true, and faith and truth will bear to you my sovereign lord, and to your heirs, kings of the said realm, of life and limb, and earthly worship, above all creatures, for to live and die with you and yours, against all people. And diligently I shall be attendant on all your affairs and business according to my skill and power; and your counsel I shall keep, acknowledging myself to hold my bishopric of you only, beseeching you for the restitution of the temporalities of the same, promising as before that I shall be Burnet's a faithful, true and obedient subject to your highness, your it is "So help heirs and successors, during life: and the services due to your me God highness for the restitution of the temporalities of the said saints." bishopric, I shall truly and obediently perform. So help God and the holy evangelists." In bishop translation But "all me saints" are not in the original. Cotton. the Libr. Cleop. pro E. 6. fol. 54. Whether any danger ous incon between these I have transcribed bishop Burnet's translation as to main: this learned historian supposes the contradiction between these two oaths was so visible, that it had soon duced a severe censure from the house, if the plague had not sistency hindered, and brought on a prorogation. But then he is not oaths. pleased to give us the proof of this conjecture. And possibly after all, the inconsistency between these oaths may not be so clear as has sometimes been pretended. The most exceptionable clause in the bishops' engagement to the pope, is their swearing to maintain the regalia or royalties of St. Peter. Now why may not these words be restrained to a spiritual 1 Burnet appears not to have recollected the distinction between prosequor and persequor, above noted. 69. WARHAM, Abp. Cant. The clergy reputed loyal in preceding reigns. supremacy? These the bishops promised to maintain against That the clergy did not believe the pope monarch of Christendom, or that they were the king's subjects only during his holiness's pleasure, appears plainly enough by the form of their late submission. For in the first draught of this kind, though they maintain their legislative authority in spiritual matters, yet as to temporal cases and concerns, they make no scruple to profess themselves the king's subjects, and own him their supreme head in the most respectful and comprehensive terms See the imaginable. And that this was the sense of the English clergy's Church in former reigns, appears by the instance of archbishop first address, and bishop Courtney; who solemnly declared, that in case any prelates protestation. were translated to sees in foreign dominions, or the sage lieges of the king's council were forced out of the kingdom against their will, that by this means the wealth and treasure of the nation should be exported: in this case the archbishop declares such translations would be prejudicial to the crown: for which reason he resolves to adhere to the king, and endeavour as bound by his allegiance to support his highness in this and all other instances in which the rights of his crown are concerned; and lastly, he desired this schedule might be entered upon the parliament-roll, which was done accordingly. Tonstal's Cotton's Abridgment, p.348. From this declaration of the archbishop, it is plain he did 16 Rich. 2. not assert the pope's supremacy so far as to weaken his allegiance and make him an ill subject. Farther, this schedule of the archbishop seems to have led the way to the statute of Præmunire, passed in this parliament. For the preamble is but a copy, as it were, of this declaration. The bill was brought in by the commons, who prayed the king to examine the opinions of the lords spiritual and temporal upon the contents. The question being put, the lords temporal promised to stand by the king against the pope's encroachments; neither were the engagements of the lords spiritual less loyal and satisfactory for they concurred wholly with the commons' petition, and renounced the pope in all his HENRY attempts upon the crown. Thus we see the then Church of England was no vassal to the court of Rome: neither do we find the pope exerted any censure upon the prelates, or charged them with the breach of their oaths, for this solemn adherence to the civil magistrate. And that the practice of the clergy was suitable to this declaration, we have the testimony of sir Edward Coke, whose custom is not to flatter that order. This celebrated lawyer having observed that, both before and after the reign of king Henry III. many of the judges and great officers of the realm were of the clergy: having observed this, he gives them the commendation of a general integrity: stating that they were not overborne by any partialities to the court of Rome: that they were true to their office and the constitution: that they constantly maintained the laws of England, so that no encroachment or breach was made upon them by any foreign power. VIII. 16 Rich. 2. cap. 5. Coke's In et deinc. in Westm. fol. 265. Farther, the king, upon the perusing these oaths, complains stitutes, the prelates were but half his subjects. His majesty then Pt. 2. fol.96, grants they were half what he desired: now does it not appear Primer, by things then upon the anvil, that the king was pushing his cap. 51. regale to an unusual extent, and governed by some people mal-intentioned to the Church? In short, it seems not improbable the king was now designing to enlarge his prerogative over the clergy, and annex the papal pretensions to the crown. Now, these things considered, the bishops' engagements to the pope ought to be candidly interpreted. For to strain the oaths to a contradiction without necessity, and make the prelates so constantly forsworn, is neither justice to their memories, nor serviceable to religion. complaint wards com However, this complaint made a strong impression upon the The king's clergy, and brought them to a compliance with the king's draws the terms, upon the first article. And thus they promised "not clergy toto enact, promulge, or put in execution, any constitution made pliance. for the future, unless they had the royal assent for that purpose." This was likewise assented to by the lower house, on condition the promise might bind them for the king's life only. But upon the second article, neither of the houses could be driven any farther, than to refer all the old canons to the king's inspection and judgment; promising withal to qualify |