MER, CRAN- the king foresaw his reputation would not be risked, nor his Abp. Cant. hands tied by such a conditional promise. As things stood, he had little reason to question the concurrence of the parliament he was sensible the doctrines of the court of Rome were much disrelished; and, besides, if the storm should break over them, and the kingdom be forced upon a war, the parliament would sooner choose to lay the whole charge upon the monasteries, than take part of it themselves. Cromwell And since the reports from the visitation were likely either made visitor- to promote or obstruct the dissolution, the success of the affair general. depended very much upon proper instruments. Now the king thought no person better qualified than secretary Cromwell: he was looked on as disaffected to the monasteries, and somewhat inclined to the Lutheran persuasion. This minister, to qualify him for his function, was made vicar-general. In virtue of this commission, he was constituted general visitor of all the monasteries; not to mention his superintendency over the bishops and secular clergy. 104. Hist. Re Our learned Church historian takes notice of a mistake in confounding this "vicar-generalship with his following dignity of lord vice-gerent in ecclesiastical matters; but they were two different places, and held by two different commissions. By the one he had no authority over the bishops, nor had he any precedence; but the other, as it gave him the precedence next the royal family, so it clothed him with a complete delegation Bp. Burnet, of the king's whole power in ecclesiastical affairs." Thus far form. pt. 1. this learned prelate. But then he is not pleased to give us any proof of this distinction, or the enlargement of power in the latter office. He owns neither of the commissions were enrolled, and charges this defect of evidence upon a supposed rasure of records in the reign of queen Mary. But as it See Records, happens, this commission of Cromwell's is still extant. Now, Vicar-gene- by inspecting this instrument, it appears that Cromwell, by ral and lord- being made vicar-general, had an entire delegation of the p. 181. num. 30. vicegerent the same office. king's supremacy: that he had an authority to visit all the bishops and archbishops in the kingdom and that vicargeneral and vice-gerent were only two names for the same thing. When this learned historian wrote his second part, he Bp. Burnet, met with Cromwell's commission for vicar-general: but then Hist. Re-, he was not so fortunate as to recollect himself, and acquaint the reader with his former mistake. form. pt. 2. p. 341. VIII. To proceed: Cromwell being authorized by the king's letters- HENRY patent, under the broad seal, to constitute deputies for a visitation, made choice of Richard Layton, Thomas Legh, Cromwell William Petre, doctors of the law; doctor John London, dean authorised of Wallingford, &c. for this purpose. to constitute deputies for a general This visitation was suggested by doctor Leighton, or Layton, visitation. who had been in the cardinal's service with Cromwell, who knew him to be a person well qualified for such an employment. This Layton, in a letter addressed to Cromwell, acquaints him that he had discoursed the dean of the arches upon this business that the dean thought the country was not yet prepared for a visitation in the king's name; that they ought to wait two or three years, till the supremacy was better understood; and that he was afraid so early an exercise of discipline might make the clergy more averse to the king's power. But Layton was of a different sentiment: he thought nothing would so much reconcile the people to the supremacy as the proof of its serviceableness, which would easily appear upon a strict visitation: he pretended the religious were now grown remarkable for their misbehaviour; and that the reformation of abuses would be a popular thing. He added, there had been no Biblioth. visitation in the north since the cardinal's time. This Layton, Cotton E. 4. Cleop. in another letter to Cromwell, requested that himself and Id. fol. doctor Legh might be appointed visitors of all monasteries Layton and from the diocese of Lincoln, northward. June 4. Leigh solicit to be made And here, to recommend himself to this minister, he ac- visitors. knowledges that doctor Legh's and his own preferment to the king's service, was wholly owing to Cromwell: that this vicargeneral had been their patron all along, and that they resolved to have no other. He proceeds to suggest, how well qualified doctor Legh and himself were for this business, upon the score of their own knowledge, their acquaintance and relations in the northern counties. He intimates the partiality of former visitors, and that those houses would need a very careful and particular inspection. In short, both by recommending himself and Legh, and declaiming against the disorders of the monks, he seemed very forward for this employment: but this, by the way, is none of the best of circumstances to conclude him a disinterested person. About this time, the archbishop of Canterbury made his bishop takes metropolitical visitation; he did not venture upon this branch from the of jurisdiction without the king's license; for now the bishops visitation. The arch a license king for his MER, CRAN could do little without an authority from the crown. And Abp. Cant. notwithstanding the archbishop took wary steps, and made but a few new demands, yet Stokesly, bishop of London, contested his visitation; and refused to submit till he had entered three protestations for preserving of privileges. Rot. Par. Reign. 27. pt. I. Regist. Stokesly, fol. 44. Cotton. against the But this was not all, for he made a formal appeal to the king for relief against the encroachments of the archbishop. This appeal, drawn up in the name of the bishop, dean, and E.6. fol.124. chapter, sets forth, "First. That the archbishop of CanterBishop Stokesly's bury, in all his monitions and writings sent to the bishops, appeal abbots, &c. called himself 'apostolicæ sedis legatus.' That archbishop's the bishop of London, with the chapter, remonstrated and protested in form against this style, and that they would not receive him as legate, nor obey his visitation under that character; the claiming such an authority being contrary to the prerogative royal, and the statutes of this realm. visitation. A regal inhibition to "Secondly. That the archbishop, in the said monition to the bishop, signified his intention of suspending all the jurisdiction of the bishop, the dean, and archdeacons, during the whole time of his visitation, which he pretended he had the power to continue as long as he pleased: that by so great a stretch of metropolitical privilege, the provincial bishops would be lessened to titulars, and signify nothing: that this would be an intolerable inconvenience, and such as never was claimed by any metropolitan or legate, when the usurpations of the court of Rome were at the greatest height. 66 Thirdly. It is urged in the appeal, that the pushing the metropolitical jurisdiction thus far, is to go counter to the authority of all the learned in the canon law; that such a suspension put upon the bishops, seems to clash with the Holy Scriptures, and to recall the authority given them by God Almighty. "That if there were a precedent of any such strain of the archiepiscopal character upon record, it was supported upon a pretence foreign to their ordinary authority, and put in ure upon the score either of their being legates, or lord chancellors of England.”—The appeal is drawn out into a farther length, but this is the substance. And now the time for the other visitation drawing on, the suspend the king issued out letters of inhibition to the archbishop of Canjurisdiction terbury, charging him and his suffragans not to visit the clergy bishops. or religious, till the regal visitation was over; meaning that of the VIII. which was to be managed under the vicar-general, Cromwell. HENRY And thus all episcopal jurisdiction was laid asleep, and almost struck dead by the regale, during the king's pleasure. The archbishop of Canterbury directed his mandate to the bishop of London, who was to transmit copies of the inhibition to the rest of the provincial bishops. See Records, num. 31. 105. The extent The next month Layton, Legh, London, Souwell, Price, Gage, Bellasis, &c. began their general visitation under Crom- October. well they were furnished, at least some of those first named, of Layton's, with a plenitude of power to visit all archbishops, bishops, commission. Legh's, &c. and the inferior clergy, and to correct and reform, and exercise all manner of discipline which belonged to ecclesiastical jurisdiction; they had likewise an authority to confirm or null the elections of prelates, to order instalments, to give institutions and inductions, to sequester the fruits of livings, to deprive or suspend archbishops, bishops, &c. to convene synods and preside in them, and to make such reformations and orders as they should think expedient. They had likewise an authority for trying all ecclesiastical causes, and exerting the censures of the Church upon those who either refused to appear or abide by the sentence. And as to monasteries, they had, as it were, an unlimited authority, and were impowered to allow pensions to such as were disposed to quit that way of living. Legh and John Apprice, being apprehensive the bishops See Records, would use their interest to get the inhibition of their jurisdiction taken off, wrote to the vicegerent Cromwell to disappoint them in their attempt. In the letter they suggest several reasons why the inhibitions should continue. num. 30. Cotton. E. 4. "First. That the king always looked upon himself as supreme head of the Church, notwithstanding it had been but lately Biblioth. added to the regal style: it is our opinion therefore, that if the king made a temporary seizure of all spiritual jurisdiction, it would confirm the subject in the belief of his right and prove a serviceable precedent. "Secondly. That in case the bishops had always enjoyed this jurisdiction without any interruption, they would (as they now do upon the matter) have presumed they had received their authority from some other fountain than the king's highness. These visitors therefore look upon it as a prudential expedient to suspend their jurisdiction for some time, that by this means fol. 255. MER, CRAN- they may be forced to confess their authority flows from the Abp. Cant. king. They proceed and argue farther upon Erastian principles. If (say they) the bishops have any jurisdiction, they must receive it either by virtue of the law of God, or by the bishop of Rome's authority, or by the king's permission. If they say by the law of God, let them produce their proofs from Scripture, but we think them not so impudent as to say so. Biblioth. "If they say by the bishop of Rome's authority, let them exercise it still, if they think it convenient. "If they say by the king's permission, why should they be disturbed at the inhibition? Why should they be dissatisfied at the king's resuming that authority which was no more than a voluntary grant and proceeded originally from him? They proceed in their argument, and object that possibly the bishops will argue upon the topic of prescription and immemorial custom to this they answer, that though this assertion contradicts the language of the law, yet, in the opinion of these visitors, the bishops might in time have prescribed, if the exercise of their authority had continued; and therefore to cut them off from this plea, they thought it best to put a stop to this jurisdiction, and that this may serve to justify the inhibition. For had not their authority been laid asleep during the king's visitation, their successors might pretend the king was only a titular and nominal head of the Church, but had no right to put his claim in execution. "They urge farther, if the bishops claim authority by divine right, let them show their evidence; but if they pretend only to hold it of the king's favour, let them address his majesty that they may have it returned, that by so doing both themselves and all others may declare the king to be the fountain of all power within the realm, and that all kind of jurisdiction is derived from him; and that during the regal visitation they may execute only the necessary branches of their function, (if they can show any to be such) as the king's commissaries and Cromwell's." To proceed for the visitors' better direction in this new office, they were furnished with instructions to make their inquiry; these were drawn up in eighty-six articles: the substance of them was to examine, "Whether divine service was kept up day and night at the |