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THIS Work, which is designed to finish the History of our Reformation, seems reserved to be laid at your Majesty's feet; who, we trust, is designed by God to complete the Reformation itself: to rectify what may be yet amiss, and to supply what is defective among us; to oblige us to live and to labour more suitably to our profession; to unite us more firmly among ourselves; to bury, and for ever to extinguish, the fears of our relapsing again into popery; and to establish a confidence and correspondence with the protestant and reformed churches abroad.

The eminent moderation of the most serene house from which your Majesty is descended, gives us auspicious hopes, that as God has now raised your Majesty, with signal characters of an amazing Providence, to be the head and the chief strength of the Reformation; so your Majesty will, by a wise and noble conduct, form all these churches into one body; so that though they cannot agree to the same opinions and rituals with us in all points, yet they may join in one happy confederacy, for the support

of the whole, and of every particular branch of that sacrep union.

May this be the peculiar glory of your Majesty's reign; and may all the blessings of Heaven and earth rest upon your most august person, and upon all your royal posterity! This is the daily prayer of him, who is, with the profoundest respect,

SIR,

Your Majesty's most loyal, most obedient,

And most devoted subject and servant,

GI. SARUM.

PREFACE.

I HAD in my introduction to this volume, which I published a year ago, said all that then occurred to me in the way of preface but some particulars coming to my knowledge since that time, give me an occasion to add a little to what was then copiously deduced.

I begin with M. Le Grand, who I understand is now in a considerable post in the court of France. He being lately at Geneva, explained himself to my friends in these terms, "that he was young when he wrote against me; and that the heat of youth had carried him to some expressions from which he would abstain if he were to write now he was glad to hear that I was upon the reviewing the history of the Reformation;" and named to them a life that he had seen in Spain, of Bartholomew Caranza, archbishop of Toledo, who was King Philip's confessor, and went with him to England, and was particularly employed in reforming (as they called it) the universities. And, as he said, he died when he was to be delivered out of the prison of the Inquisition. He added, that he had also seen a collection of Cardinal Pole's letters, with an account of what passed in England after the death of King Edward, which he believed I had not seen, and that could inform me of many particulars; but that he himself had other employments than to think of the affairs of England. If I had received this civil message from M. Le Grand before I had published my Introduction, I would have said nothing at all with relation to him; but what is past cannot be recalled: so I hope he will accept of this for all the reparation I can now make him.

As for Anthony Harmer, some have doubted if he could be capable of making three capital errors in one line and since Mr. Strype has suggested to me that, in which I was under some reserve before, as having it from another hand, I am now free to set it down. For capitulum ecclesiæ cathedralis, he has printed, epistolam conventus ecclesiæ catho

lica. If the abbreviations may seem to excuse the reading epistolam for capitulum, and catholica for cathedralis, nothing can excuse the adding the word conventus, which he thought wanting to make a complete title; having read the others as he did so I hope have reason to have no regard to any thing that comes from him upon his bare authority. The weak and ill-natured attempts that some among ourselves have of late made upon me, give me no sort of concern, unless it is to pray for those who have despitefully used me.

There was also a great poem lately prepared, and, I suppose, designed to be published, when that which our enemies hoped was near accomplished should have been effected it was written in imitation of Hudibras, and so was a mock poem on the Reformation, composed by one Thomas Ward, of whom I can give no other account, but that it is said he is a priest. In it, Sanders's work was made the plot of the fable: it was full of impious abuse, put in a strain apt enough to take with those who were disposed to divert themselves with a show of wit and humour, dressed up to make the Reformation appear both odious and ridiculous; not doubting of equal success with Butler's admired performance. It was no wonder, if, upon such a design, my History was treated with all the characters of scorp and contempt. This was what I might justly expect from those of that side, but I was sorry to find so much censure from those from whom I had no reason to expect it; and which seemed to be the effect only of envy and ill nature: God forgive them for it!

I must say a little more, with relation to a learned and copious writer of our Ecclesiastical History, who finds my History often in his way he treats me decently as to his expressions, but designs all through to set such remarks on my work, as, if they were well grounded, must destroy the credit that it has hitherto obtained. I will first give some instances to show what the spirit, the principles, and the design, of that writer must be: I will name but four out of a great many.

When he sets forth King Henry the Eighth's proceedings against the memory of Thomas Becket, he has these words (p. 150, vol. ii, col. 1); "And though his conduct in this dispute was not altogether defensible, he was far however from being guilty of that gross mismanagement with which he is charged." I will leave the judgment that must be passed upon this period to all who are in any sort acquainted with the history of that time.

When he gives the character of King Edward the Sixth,

immediately before he tells of his death, it is in these words (p. 332, col. 2): "His conscience was not always under a serviceable direction;" (the meaning of this dark expression I do not reach) he was tinctured with Erastian principles, and under wrong prepossessions as to church government: he seems to have had no notion of sacrilege and, which is somewhat remarkable, most of the hardships were put upon ecclesiastics in the latter end of his reign, when his judgment was in the best condition :" and without adding one word of his good qualities, or to correct those severe reflections, he concludes with the account of his death.

He gives a very different account of the death of Mary queen of Scots, in these words (p. 601, col. 2); "Her fortitude and devotion were very remarkable. She supported her character with all imaginable decency: she died like a Christian, and like a queen.'

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And, to mention no more, when he comes to Queen Elizabeth's death and character, he runs a parallel between the two sisters, Mary and Elizabeth, in these words (p. 671, col. 2): "The one made martyrs, the other made beggars: the one executed the men, and the other the estates: and, therefore, reserving the honour of the Reformation to Queen Elizabeth, the question will be, Whether the resuming the first-fruits and tenths, putting many vicarages in a deplorable condition, and settling a perpetuity of poverty on the church, was not much more prejudicial than fire and faggot? Whether destroying bishoprics was not a much greater hardship than the destroying bishops? because this severity affects succession, and reaches down to future ages and, lastly, Whether, as the world goes, it is not more easy to recruit bishops, than the revenues to support them?" These words give such an indication of the notion that the author has of the happiness or misery of a church, that they want no commentary.

I will add this one remark of a fact upon a passage that I had writ concerning the book of Ordination, published in the third year of King Edward, which was in these words *: "Another difference between the Ordination book set out at that time, and that we now use, was, that the bishop was to lay his one hand on the priest's head; and with his other to give him a Bible, with a chalice and bread in it, saying the words that are now said at the delivery of the Bible. In the consecration of a bishop, there is nothing more than what is yet in use, save that a staff was put into his hand

* Hist. of the Reformation, vol. ii, p. 189,

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