VIII.

A. D. 1543.

Henry fort him, said, "Fear not; there can no law condemn you for any thing that ye have done; for if ye had written a thousand heresies, so long as they be not your sayings nor your opinions, the law cannot hurt you." And so went they all with the bishop of Sarum to dinner, taking the poor man with them, who dined in the hall, at the comfort- steward's board; and besides that, had wine and meat sent down from the bishop's table.

Dr.

Skips's

able

words untoMar

beck.

When dinner was done, the bishop of Sarum came down into the hall, commanding ink and paper to be given to Marbeck, and the two books to one of his men to go with him; at whose going he demanded of the bishop, what time his lordship would appoint him to do it in ? Against to-morrow this time," quoth the bishop; which was about two of the clock, and so departed.

66

Marbeck, now being in his prison-chamber, fell to his business, and so applied the thing, that by the next day, when the bishop sent for him again, he had written so much, in the same order and form he had done the rest before, as contained three sheets of paper and more: which when he had delivered to the bishop of Sarum, Dr. Oking standing by, he marvelled and said, "Well, Marbeck, thou hast now put me out of all doubt. I assure thee," quoth he, putting up the paper into his bosom," the king shall see this ere I be twenty-four hours older." But he dissembled every word, and dissem- thought nothing less than so; for afterwards, the matter being come to light, and known to his grace, what a book the poor man had begun, which the bishops would not suffer him to finish, the king said he was better occupied than they that took it from him. So Marbeck departed from the bishop of Sarum to prison again, and heard no more of his book.

A false

bling

bishop.

THE

FIFTH EXAMINATION OF MARBECK, BEFORE DR. OKING,
AND MASTER KNIGHT, SECRETARY TO THE BISHOP OF
WINCHESTER, IN ST. MARY OVERY'S CHURCH.

Upon Whitsunday following at afternoon, was Marbeck sent for once again to St. Mary Overy's, where he found Dr. Oking, with another gentleman in a gown of damask, with a chain of gold about his neck (no more in all the church but they two), sitting together in one of the stalls, their backs towards the church door, looking upon an epistle of Master John Calvin's, which Marbeck had written out; and when they saw the prisoner come, they rose and had him up. to a side altar, leaving his keeper in the body of the church alone. Now, as soon as Marbeck saw the face of the gentleman (whom before he knew not, by reason of his apparel), he saw it was the same person that first examined him in the Marshalsea, and did also cause him to write in the bishop's gallery, but never knew his name till now he heard Dr. Oking call him Master Knight. This Master Knight held forth the paper to Marbeck, and said, "Look upon this, and tell me whose hand it is."

When Marbeck had taken the paper and seen what it was, he confessed it to be all his hand, saving the first leaf and the notes in the margin. "Then I perceive," quoth Knight, "thou wilt not go from thine own hand." "No, sir," quoth he, "I will deny nothing that I

have done." "Thou dost well in that," quoth Knight, "for if thou shouldst, we have testimonies enough besides, to try out thy hand by. But I pray thee tell me, whose hand is the first leaf?" "That I cannot tell you," quoth Marbeck. "Then how camest thou by it ?" quoth Knight. "Forsooth I will tell you," quoth he. "There was a priest dwelling with us about five or six years ago, called Marshal, who sent it unto me with the first leaf written; desiring me to write it out with speed, because the copy could not be spared past an hour or twain: and so I wrote it out, and sent him both the copy and it again."

66

Henry

VIII.

A. D.

Dr.

1543.

stancy,

"And how came this hand in the margin," quoth he, "which is a contrary hand to both the others?" "That I will tell you," quoth Marbeck: "When I wrote it out at the first, I made so much haste of it, that I understood not the matter, wherefore I was desirous to' see it again, and to read it with more deliberation; and being sent to me the second time, it was thus quoted in the margin as ye see. And shortly after this, it was his chance to go beyond the seas (where he lived not long), by reason whereof the epistle remaineth with me; but whether the first leaf, or the notes in the margin were his hand, or whose hand else, that I cannot tell." Tush," quoth Dr. Oking surmise to Master Knight, "he knoweth well enough that the notes be against Haynes's own hand." "If you know so much," quoth Marbeck, "ye Haynes. know more than I do; for I tell you truly, I know it not." By my faith, Marbeck," quoth Knight, "if thou wilt not tell by fair means, those fingers of thine shall be made to tell." "By my troth, sir," quoth Marbeck, "if ye do tear the whole body in pieces, I trust in God, ye shall never make me accuse any man wrongfully." "If thou be so stubborn," quoth Dr. Oking," thou wilt die for it." "Die, Incon Master Oking!" quoth he, "wherefore should I die? You told me and little the last day, before the bishops, that as soon as I had made an end of truth in the piece of Concordance they took from me, I should be delivered; and shall I now die? This is a sudden mutation. You seemed then to be my friend; but I know the cause: ye have read the ballet I made of Moses' chair, and that hath set you against me; but whensoever ye shall put me to death, I doubt not to die God's true man and the king's. "How so?" quoth Knight. "How canst thou die a true man unto the king, when thou hast offended his laws? Is not this epistle, and are not most of the notes thou hast written, directly against the six articles ?" "No, sir," quoth Marbeck; " I have not offended the king's laws therein; for since the first time I began with the Concordance (which is almost six years ago), I have been occupied in nothing else: so that both this epistle, and all the notes I have gathered, were written a great while before the six articles came forth, and are clearly remitted by the king's general pardon." "Trust not The to that," quoth Knight, "for it will not help thee." "No, I warrant general him," quoth Dr. Oking. And so going down to the body of the pardon church, they committed him to his keeper, who had him away to prison again.

THE SUIT OF FILMER'S WIFE, TO THE BISHOPS WHO SAT IN
COMMISSION, FOR HER HUSBAND.

In like manner the wife of Filmer, knowing her husband's trouble to be only procured of malice by Simons, his old enemy, made great

papists.

king's

claimed.

1543.

The

words of Filmer's wife to the bi

shops.

Henry suit and labour unto the bishops who were commissioners, desiring VIII. no more of them, but that it would please their goodness to examine A. D. her husband before them, and to hear him make his purgation. This was her only request to every of the bishops from day to day, wheresoever she could find them; insomuch that two of the bishops (Ely and Hereford) were very sorry (considering the importunate and reasonable suit of the woman) that it lay not in them to help her. Thus, travelling long up and down from one to another, to have her husband examined, it was her chance at last to find the bishops all three together in the bishop of Ely's palace; unto whom she said, "O good my lords! for the love of God, let now my poor husband be brought forth before you, while ye be here all together. For truly, my lords, there can nothing be justly laid against him, but that of malicious envy and spite Simons hath wrought him this trouble. And you, my lord of Salisbury," quoth the poor woman, "can testify (if it will please your lordship to say the truth), what malice Simons bare to my husband, when they were both before you at Salisbury, little more than a year ago, for the vicar of Windsor's matter. For, as your lordship knoweth, when my husband had certified you of the priest's sermon, which you said was plain heresy, then came Simons (after the priest himself had confessed it), and would have defended the priest's error before your lordship, and have had my husband punished. At that time it pleased your lordship. to commend and praise my husband for his honesty, and to rebuke Simons for maintaining the priest in his error; and thereupon you commanded the priest to recant his heresy, at his coming home to Windsor. This, my lord, you know to be true. And now, my lords," quoth the woman, "it is most certain, that for this cause only did Simons evermore afterwards threaten my husband to be even with him. Therefore, my good lords, call my husband before you, and hear him speak; and if ye find any other matter against him than this that I have told you, let me suffer death." "Is this so,

my lord ?" quoth the bishops of Ely and Hereford. And the other could not deny it. Then they spake Latin to the bishop of Salisbury, Filmer and he to them, and so departed. For the matter was so wrought come to between Dr. London and Simons, that Filmer could never be suffered to come before the commissioners to be examined.

could not

his an

swer.

Stephen

great

king.

The Martyrdom of Peerson, Testwood, and Filmer;

WITH THE MANNER OF THEIR CONDEMNATIONS, AND HOW
THEY DIED. ALSO THE SPARING OF MARBECK,
AFTER HE WAS SENTENCED TO DEATH.

When the time drew nigh that the king's majesty (who was newly Gardiner married to that good and virtuous lady Katherine Parr) should about the make his progress abroad, the aforesaid Stephen Gardiner, bishop of Winchester, had so compassed his matters, that no man bare so great a swinge about the king as he did: wherewith the gospellers were so quailed, that the best of them all looked every hour to be clapped in the neck; for the saying went abroad, that the bishop had bent his shoot at bow to shoot at some of the head deer. But, in the mean time, three or four of the poor rascals were caught, that is to say, Anthony

His box bent to

the head

decr.

VIII.

Peerson, Henry Filmer, and John Marbeck, and sent to Windsor Henry by the sheriff's men the Saturday before St. James's day, and laid fast in the town jail; and Testwood, who had kept his bed, was A.D. brought out of his house upon crutches, and laid with them. But 1543. as for Bennet, who should have been the fifth man, his chance was Testwood to be sick of the pestilence, and having a great sore upon him, he out on was left behind in the bishop of London's jail, whereby he escaped to prison.

the fire.

brought

crutches

sessions

Now, these men being brought to Windsor, there was a sessions A special specially procured to be holden the Thursday after, which was St. procured. Ann's day: against which sessions (by the counsel of Dr. London, and of Simons) were all the farmers, belonging to the college of Windsor, warned to appear; because they could not pick out papists enough in the town, to go upon the jury. The judges The that day were these: Dr. Capon, bishop of Salisbury; sir William Judges. Essex, knight; sir Thomas Bridges, knight; sir Humfrey Foster, knight; Master Franklen, dean of Windsor; and Master Fachel of Reading.

When these had taken their places, and the prisoners were brought Robert forth before them, then Robert Ockam, occupying for that day the clerk of room of the clerk of the peace, called Anthony Peerson, according the peace. to the manner of the court, and read his indictment, which was this:

The Indictment against Anthony Peerson.

First, that he should preach two years before in a place called Wingfield, and there should say, that like as Christ was hanged between two thieves, even so, when the priest is at mass, and hath consecrated and lifted him up over his head, there he hangeth between two thieves, except he preach the word of God truly, as he hath taken upon him to do.

Also, that he said to the people in the pulpit, Ye shall not eat the body of Christ as it did hang upon the cross, gnawing it with your teeth, that the blood run about your lips; but you shall eat him this day as ye eat him to-morrow, the next day, and every day: for it refresheth not the body, but the soul.'

Also, after he had preached and commended the Scripture, calling it the word of God, he said as followeth: 'This is the word; this is the bread; this is the body of Christ.'

Also he said that Christ, sitting with his disciples, took bread, and blessed, and brake it, and gave it to his disciples, saying, Take and eat; this is my body. What is this to us, but to take the Scripture of God, and to break it to the people?'

answer

ment.

To this Anthony answered and said, "I will be tried by God and Peerson his holy word, and by the true church of Christ, whether this be eth to his heresy or no, whereof ye have indicted me this day. So long as I indictpreached the bishop of Rome, and his filthy traditions, I was never troubled; but since I have taken upon me to preach Christ and his gospel, ye have always sought my life. But it maketh no matter, for when you have taken your pleasure of my body, I trust it shall not lie in your powers to hurt my soul." "Thou callest us thieves," quoth the bishop. "I say," quoth Anthony, "ye are not only thieves, but murderers, except ye preach and teach the word of God purely and sincerely to the people; which ye do not, nor ever did; but have allured them to all idolatry, superstition, and hypocrisy, for your own lucre and glory's sake, through which ye are

replieth

against

Henry become rather bite-sheeps than true bishops, biting and devouring VIII. the poor sheep of Christ, like ravening wolves, never satisfied with A.D. blood; which God will require at your hands one day, doubt it not." 1543. Then spake Simons his accuser, standing within the bar, saying, "It Simons is pity this fellow had not been burned long ago, as he deserved." "In faith," quoth Anthony, "if you had as you have deserved, you were more worthy to stand in this place than I. But I trust, in the last day, when we shall both appear before the tribunal seat of Christ, that then it will be known which of us two hath best deserved this place." "Shall I have so long a day ?" quoth Simons, holding up his finger: Nay then, I care not;" and so the matter was jested out.

Peerson.

Test

dictment.

66

ROBERT TESTWOOD.

Then was Testwood called, and his indictment read, which was, wood's in that he should say, in the time that the priest was lifting up the sacrament, "What, wilt thou lift him so high? what yet higher? Take heed; let him not fall.”

His answer.

Filmer's indictment.

Dr. London setteth

To this Testwood answered, saying, it was but a thing maliciously forged of his enemies to bring him to his death. "Yes," quoth the bishop, "thou hast been seen that when the priest should lift up the sacrament over his head, then wouldst thou look down upon thy book or some other way, because thou wouldst not abide to look upon the blessed sacrament." "I beseech you, my lord," quoth Testwood, "whereon did he look, that marked me so well?" "Marry," quoth Bucklayer, the king's attorney, "he could not be better occupied, than to mark such heretics, that so despised the blessed sacrament."

HENRY FILMER.

Then was Filmer called, and his indictment read; that he should say that the sacrament of the altar is nothing else but a similitude and a ceremony; and also, if God be in the sacrament of the altar, I have eaten twenty Gods in my days.

Here you must understand, that these words were gathered of certain communication which should be between Filmer and his brother. The tale went thus:

66

This Henry Filmer, coming upon a Sunday from Clewer, his parish church, in the company of one or two of his neighbours, chanced, in the way, to meet his brother (who was a very poor labouring man), and asked him whither he went. "To the church," said he. " And what to do?" quoth Filmer. "To do," quoth he, "as other men do." Nay," quoth Filmer, "you go to hear mass, and to see your God." "What if I do so?" quoth he. "If that be God," should Filmer say, "I have eaten twenty Gods in my days. Turn again, fool, and go home with me, and I will read thee a chapter out of the Bible, that shall be better than all that thou shalt see or hear there."

This tale was no sooner brought to Dr. London (by William Simons, Filmer's utter enemy), but he sent for the poor man home to his house, where he cherished him with meat and money, telling brother. him he should never lack, so long as he lived; that the silly poor

brother against