the rest of the Christen princes; this causyd me, callyng to BOOK my mynd what daunger might follow bothe of his people at home, whose mynds experience showethe cannot be quiettyd wythe this innovations touching opinions in relygion; and also of outward power of those prynces to whose honour yt ys judged to apperteyne to defend the lawes of the church, against all other princes or nations that doyth impugne them, for these considerations to the entent the daunger hereoff now not unknown, I have in the same booke, sometyme in my own person, brought all such reasons wherebye justely either the people, or oughtward prynce might be instigate against his grace, foloweng the dyvers trade from other Chrystian princes that he hath begone. Which reasons and discourses conteynyd in the booke vehemently sett forthe, yf they shuld be redd apart without consyderacyon of my fynall purpose, which by all means entendyd to sett affore hys graces yien, not only the treuthe off that was to be folowed, butt the daungers that were moste lykelye to ensue, both at home and abrode, yf they were not followed, he shall think by what vehemencye and sore reprehension he seyth in the wrytyng, that I am the greatyst adversaraye of his graces honour that ever any hitherto hath bene: but God knoweth my entent, and he that redyth the hoole booke togyther shall knowe the same, how my very purpose and ende was to save him from great dyshonour and peryll both in this world and that to come, which were nothing possyble to examine, not knoweng what they were, and what were lykely to happen to be sayd or done against his grace: which foloweng all probabyly tie the book doth expresse, and for the better understanding of both my opinion and sentence that I follow in the book, touching the declaration of the truthe, and of my utter fynall purpose in the hole matter, thys chifly I wole desyer his grace, by cause of the prolyxitie thereof, which shuld be to muche for his grace to rede hymselfe, that that wole please hym to apoynt some lernyd and sald man to rede over the book, and that done to declare his judgment, bound first wyth an othe off hys fydelytie, first to God, and afterwards to his grace to VOL. III. P. 3. M III. PART show hys judgment without affection of any part: and yf his grace wold gyve this charge to the bishop of Dyrrhum, whome I judge to be the saldyst and most grounded in lernyng, with faythful hart to his grace, above any other that I knowe, puttyng the same charge unto him by another; I think his grace shuld thereby best and most truely be enformed; and so when he hath made his relation, afterward his grace may prove other menes judgments as it shall please him. Furthermore to declare unto his grace how my full purpose and mynd was, touching the hole booke that never no part thereoff shuld a come abrode in any manes hands, afore his grace had seen ytt: and to folow in this booke the same maner off secretnes that I did in the other which I deliveryd to his grace concerning his matrymonye, but by what meanes in one part of this book I have been frustrate of my entent; this you may declare by mouth, knowing the hole mattier. Fynally, With all humbylnes to desyre his grace, in the name of his most faythfull servant, and most tender of his honoure and welthe, that where as by the judgement of all wise men, God of hys mercye and love toward his grace, and for a greate warnyng to retourne to hym, hathe detectyd the iniquitie of her, which hath bene the oryginal cause and occasion of althyse bothe errours and dangers his grace hath cost hymself in, that now his grace will correct himself to take the same, as yt ys a favorable admonition of God, and to follow theyr sentencyes and counsell, which (next unto theyr conscyence toward God) hath had none other cause, butt only pure love and fydelytie to his honour and welth which causyd them, against their owne private welthe, wyth greate daunger besyde, ever to dyssent from that matrymonye; judgeng ever, as ytt was most lykely, both great dishonour, great daungiers and perylls, both spiritually and outwardly, to followe thereoff. And now, yf God hathe manifested the same to the recovery of hys grace welth, allwayes that his grace wyll accept thys warnyng to retourn to the unytie of his church, in that sentence and mynd, that the rest of Christiane prynces BOOK do; wherein I dare be bolde to saye, yf God showe this great benignitie and mercy unto him, for to make him returne; for suerly God's hand that must be; and whensoever that shall be herd, that shall be taken for one of the greatyst myracles that hathe been showed this many agys, with the most certyn sygne of speciall favour that ever was showed from God to any prynce: then furst of all this shall follow, that when as now all Christendome callyng for a generall councell, yf that follow, ether his grace must wyth dyshonour and damage flee to obey thereunto, or wyth more daunger answer there to such causes as wold be layde unto him. Yf he do returne, thys furst shall followe, by that meanys that shuld be founde, that no prynce Chrysten, whosoever he were, shold appere there with more honour then shuld his grace. And wheras it was for the innovation that he hath made in the churche, to be the occasyon of ruyne of one of the feyrest membre of the churche, if God make him torne; the conclusion wyll be brought to this, that hys faull shall be the happyest faull that was unto the churche many yeres; which may be brought to be a redye and highe way to the reformation of the hole, to the more manyfestation of the honour of God: so that fynally, the ende shall be in every man's opinion, that marketh the hole processe, that God suffred his grace to faulle, to make hym ryse wyth more honour, to the greater welth not only of his own realme, but of the hole church besyde. Your faithfull servant, R. Pole. Number 52. A letter to Pole from the bishop of Durham, in his own hand. An original. RYGHT honorable, in my humble maner I recommend me Cotton lib. unto your mastership, advertising the same that I have res- Cleop. E. 6. P. 385. ceived your letter, datyd at Venice on Corpus Christi evyn last; by which I do perceyve, that where of late you sent a III. PART boke with a letter unto the kyng's highnes, concernyng your opinion of the king's title, and the power of the bishop of Rome; and your desire was in your letter, as ye write, that I myght see the boke, to enforme his grace what I thought theroff. And now ye send to me your said letter, to informe me of your meanynge and purpose in your said longe boke, wherin I do perceyve, ye fere lest your vehemency have offended. I do signifie unto you, that I have both well perused your said letter, to comprise well the effect theroff in every point; and also have perused, with odyr your said longe boke, unto the ende theroff. Which made me hevy in my harte, both whylse I was in redinge of it, and allso mych more when I had redde it thorow, seinge the vehemency and egerness of it in all partes, dyd sore byte; and yet the hole thinge ran wyde off the truthe. For in all your boke, your purpose is to bring the king's grace, by pennance, home unto the churche again, as a man clerly seperate from the same alredy. And his recesse from the church, ye proffe not otherwise, than by the fame and comon opinion of those parts; who be farr from the knowlege of the truth of our affairs here, and do conjecture every man as they lyst, (blyndly) of thinges unknowen unto them. And in cause of his retorne, ye promisse to illustrate the king's name, so to bend your lernyng therunto, that all displeasure that may be takyn of your said boke, shuld be clerly therby abolysed and takyn away; and all shold redund unto his glory and honour. And to comprise in few wordes the effecte that is worn off your said boke that makes vehemently many playes, and doth conteyn lyttle or no salve to hole them. And as it semyth to me, ye wer styrred to sore in your spirite in all your writings therof, and wer not quiet in your mynde, whyle ye were in doynge of it. Wold to God ye had rather written to his grace your opinion, brevely comprisyd secretly in a letter, that he shold not have nedyd to have shewed it to other lernyd men of his counsell, than in so longe a boke to have dilatyd all thynges as ye have done, that he must of necessitie be constranyd to commytte that to such trusty persons, as shold please his III. grace to know by them the effecte theroff. What stupidity BOOK was it, to send so longe a boke so longe a way, conteynyng so displesaunt mater, by one man, who myght have myscaryed or peryshed in the way, and therby the boke have comen (as was likely) to the handes of such as wold have published it to the king's slaunder, and the realmes, and most of all to your owne, that shuld be the author of such a boke, made against your prince and countre: wherin all the world shuld repute you to be unkynd unto your prince and countre, who evermore so had lovyd you, and brogt yow up in lernygne, and ye to spend the same to his reproche. So that surely, who so ever not favouryng the king, shold have lykyd the matter, yet must he nedys have myslyked the author thereof, usinge his lernyng against hym, in whose defence he ought to have spent both lyff and lernyng. But laude be to God that the boke came saffe unto the king's handys, wherby that yeperdy ys past. One thinge made me cold at the harte, when I red it in your letter that ye writt of two quares; which be not in your hands to repress. The residue, ye say, ye can make sure not to come abrode; which, yf ye folow myn advyse, ye shall do furthwith; burnyng them, for your owne honour, and the noble house that ye be come of that it never came abrode, that ye exercysed your style or lernyng against him, whom ye ougth in all points (by your wit and conning) to defende and yf any faults wer founde by odyrs, to excuse them by all means, and not to animate them by your penne. And would to God lykewise, that ye wold endevour your self (by all means to you possible) to gett again those two quarys, and lykwise to burn them. For, in all your boke, ther is not one queyre without bytterness, mych more then I wold it were. But to retourne to that thinge that I said before, that methought your hole book ran wyde of the truth. I shall, by your patience, yf ye be contente to here me as your frende, opyn unto you what I mean therby. Ye presuppose for a ground, the king's grace to be swarvyd from the unite of Christ's church, and that in takinge upon him the tytle of supreme hede of the church of Englande, he intendyth to seperate his church : |