knowen that he was beside him selfe, and therefore they were not blamed that made no report thereof. But it was not lik in this caas, ffor ye toke not this nunne for a mad woman; for, if ye had, ye wold not have gyven unto her so greate credence as ye dyd.

To the final and vijth cause, where ye lay unto the charge of our soveraine, that he hath unkyndly entreated yow with grevous wordes and terrible letters for shewing his grace trowthe in this greate mater, whereby ye were disafected to shewe unto him the nunnys revelations: I beleve that I know the kinges goodnes and natural gentilnes so well, that his grace wold not so unkyndly handle you as you unkyndly write of him, onles ye gave him other causes than be expressed in your letter. And whatsoever the kinges grace hath sayed or writen unto you heretofore, yet that notwithstonding ye were neverthelesse bounden to utter to him thes pernicious revelations.

Finally, where ye desire for the passion of Christ that ye be no more quykkened in this mater, for if ye be put to that straite ye wyl not lose your soule, but ye wyl speke as your conscience ledeth yow, with many moo wordes of greate curraige: my lord, if ye had taken my counsel sent unto you by your brother, and folowed the same, submitting your selfe by your letter to the kinges grace for your offensis in this behalf, I would have trusted that ye shuld never be quykkened in this mater more. But now, where ye take upon yow to defie the hole mater, as ye were in no default, I can not so far promisse you. And suerly, my lord, if the mater come to triall, your owne confession in thes lettres, besides the wittnes which ar against you, wolbe sufficient to condemne yow; wherefor, my lord, I wol efts ones advise you that, leyng apart al suche excuses as ye have alleged in your letters, whiche in my opinion be of smal effect, as I have declared, ye beseche the kinges grace by your letters to be your gracious lord, and to remitte unto you your negligence, oversight, and offence committed against his highnes in this behalf, and I dare undertake that his highnes shal beningnely accepte yow into his gracious

CAMD. SOC.

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favor, al mater of dyspleasere past affore this tyme forgoten and forgyven.

As towching the speking of your conscience, it is thought that ye have writen and have spoken as muche as ye can, and many thinges (as som right probably beleve) against your owne conscience. And men report that at the last convocation ye spake many thinges whiche ye could not wel defende, and therefor it is not greatly ferede what ye can sey or write in that mater, howsoever ye bee quykkened or strayted, and if ye had taken, etc.

It appears that other of the monks and friars concerned in these plots against the King's marriage were indulged with visions, as well as Elizabeth Barton. The two following letters are curious specimens of their strange revelations. The first is from a monk of the Charter House.

XII.

VISION OF JOHN DARLEY

[From MS. Cotton. Cleop. E. iv. fol. 129.]

Md. That I, John Darlay, monke of the Charterhous besyde London, had in my tyme licence to say service with a ffather of our religion, named ffather Raby, a very old man, in so moch when he ffell seke and lay apon hys deth bed, and after the tyme he was anelede and had recevyd all the sacrament of the church in the presens of all the covent, and whan all they war departed, I sayde unto hym, "good ffather Raby, yff the dede man come to the qwyke, I besuch yow to com to me," and he said, "yea," and mediately he dyed the same nyghte, wich was in the clansyng days last past, anno xvcxxxiiij. An sens that I never dede thynke apon hym to saynt Jhon day Baptist last past.

Item, the same day at v. of the cloke at after none, I beyng in contemplacion in our entre in our ssell, sodanly he appered unto me in a monkes habyt, and said to me, "whhy do ye not ffolow

our ffather?" and I sayd, " qwherffor?" He sayd, "'for he is marter in hevyn next unto angelles." And I said, "wher be all our other fathers wich died as well [as] he?" He answer and said, they be well, but nat so well as he." And than I said to hym, ffather, how do ye?" And he answerd and said, "well enought." And I said, "ffather, shall I pray ffor yow?" and he said, "I am well enowght, but prayer both for yow an other doith good." And so sodanly vanyushd away.

Item, upon Saturday next after, at v. of the clocke in the mornynge, in the same place in our entre, he appered to me agayne with a lange whyte berd, and a whyte staff in his hand, lyftynge it up; wherapon I was affrayd, and than lenynge apon his staff sayd to me, “I am sory that I lived not to I had ben a marter." And I said, "I thinke ye be as well as ye war a marter." And he sayd, Nay, ffor my lord of Rochester and our ffather was next unto angelles in hevyn. And than I said, "ffather, what elles?" And than he answerd and sayd, "the angelles of pease ded lamment and murne withowt mesur;" and so vanyushed away.

Written by me, John Darly, monke of the Carterhows, the xxvijth day off June, the yere of our lord Good as afforsaid.

The date of the following letter is somewhat uncertain; but the bishops of Canter.. bury, Salisbury, and Worcester seem to have been Cranmer, Shaxton, and Latimer; so that it may be placed in the March of 1535 or 1536. It is placed here on account of its connection with the foregoing, by the vision story at the commencement; and it will serve as a curious description of the feelings of the King and the reformers towards the monks just before the dissolution of their houses. Latimer's sermon at St. Paul's Cross is particularly characteristic of the sudden change which had taken place since his preaching at Bristol. The bishop of Rochester, who inhibited confession at the Crutched Friars, was John Hilsey, originally a friar of Bristol, already mentioned. The bishop of London was John Stokesley, who was not one of the reforming bishops, having been appointed to the see as early as 1530.

* Probably he alludes to John Houghton, the prior of the Charter-house, who had been hanged and quartered at Tyburn, on the 27th of April, for refusing to acknowledge the King's supremacy.

XIII.

LETTER OF THOMAS DORSET.

[From MS. Cotton. Cleop. E. IV. fol. 110.]

To the right worshipfull Mr. Horsewell, maiour, Mr. Elyete, Mr. Hawkyns, and William Aishrygh, of Plommourthe, theire bownden and beholdyn Thomas Dorset, curate of S. Margarete in Lothbury in London, sendith gretyng and good helthe in our Lord Jesu Criste. Amen.

On the morowe after that master Hawkins departed from hens, I havyng nothyng to doo, as an idler went to Lambhethe to the byshopis place, to see what newis; and I toke a whery at Pawlis wharffe, wherin also was allredye a doctour, namyd doctour Creukehorne, which was sent for to come to the byshope of Canterbury. And he before the iij. byshopis of Canterbury, of Worcetre, and Salesbury, confessed that he was rapte into heven, where he see the Trinite settyng in a pall, or mantell, or cope (call it what you please), of blew color, and from the midle upward they were thre bodyes, and from the midle were they closid all thre into on bodye, they were but on, havyng also but ij. feete nor but ij. legges; and he spake with our ladye, and she toke hym bye the hande, and bad hym serve her as he had doon in tyme passed, and bad hym to preche aborde that she wold be honorid at Eppiswhiche and at Willisdon* as she hath bee in old tymes, ne forte: this he said he wolde abyde bye. Then my lord of Canterbury apposed hym nerre, and he made but weke aunswer, and was bade to departe and come agayne the second day aftre. So did he; but at the laste he denyed his vision. Then he wold prove purcatory by a certayne vers in the Saulter, but when it was betin well to him he cowld nott byde bye it. The byshope

* At Ipswich and Willesdon there were images of the Virgin, which were objects of great reverence in Popish times. Saunderus, De Schismate Anglicano, mentions them" Sic et populus Christianus in Anglia ad certa loca sacra (in quibus B. Virginis aliæque sanctorum statuæ fuerunt erectæ, et operibus Dei mirandis honorabiles demonstratæ) orationis ergo ascendebat, cujusmodi tunc erant Walsinghamum, Ipsvicus, Vigornia, Vilsedonum, Cantuaria, et alia ejusmodi, quæ omnia Cromvellus disjecit et deformavit."

asked hym what shold move hym to take handefaste bye that place. "Mom," quod he, "My lord of London saide that it made well for it. What place in the Saulter it was, I can nott tell."

Then was there on Lamberte* within a vijth dayes and lesse aftre that, whiche was detecte of herysie to the iij. byshopis; his articles was this, that it was syn to pray to saintis. Then came he to his aunswer, and the thre byshopis cowld nott saye that it was necessari or nedefull, but he myght nott make syn of it; and yf he wolde agree to that, he myght have byn goon bye and bye, but he wold nott. Then was he comaunded to ward in the porter logde, and remayne there from that Monday tyll Frydaye nyght. Then he was sett at large to goo whether he wolde. He came thether backe agayne the morow to knowe the byshopes pleasure, whether he were all free or nott, and then theie apposid hym agayne, and he byde bye it, yet cowde they fynde it bye no scripture that we owght to do it. The byshope of Worcetre was most extreme agaynst hym, so was he sent to ward agayne. And on the next mornyng, which was Sondaye, they sent bothe hym and his articles to my lord chauncellour, and there he remaynyth in prison yet. My lord of Northefolk, the erle of Essex, and the cowntes of Oxfforthe, wrate to this byshopis agaynst hym, and for that cause men suppose they handelid hym so to please theym to geate favor, which thyng hathe within thys litle whyle don great hurt to the truthe, but what shall come of hym God knowith onlye.

Doctour Heyms prechithe before the kyng, as he is appoyntid, every Wedynsday this Lent, and on Wedynsday in the Ymbre he saide in his sermone that God hathe brought the truthe of his worde to light, and princis be the ministeris of it to gyve comaundement that it shold goo forward, and yet is no thynge regarded and make of hym but a Cristmas kyng. On Tewisdaye the same weke the byshope of Rochestre came to the Cruched Fryers, and inhibite a doctour and iij. or iiij. mo to hyre confessionis, and soe in Cardmaker, and oder in their placis. Then came

This Lamberte was afterwards burnt in Smithfield for heresy.

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