de corrupto CHAP. Sons whensoever they happened to become void: these II. were commonly called graces expectative and mandates of Nicol. de provision. The pretence for this new and unheard of Clemangis claim was, the better providing for the several vacant Ecclesiæ churches, and instituting pastors in them of purer morals Statu, c.3. and better learning than those elected by the Chapters: but it was soon made appear, that the true meaning of this new attempt was only s getting money and increasing the revenues of the Apostolical Chamber. For not only was there no regard had to either the age, the learning, or the morals of those to whom these bulls of provision were granted, the highest bidder being the surest purchaser, but in process of time the fees of these bulls were so much raised, and become so very extravagant, that it was ob6 Hen. IV. served by one of our English Parliaments, that "no Par"son, Abbot, nor other should have provision of any archbishopric or bishopric, which shall be void, till that he "hath compounded with the Pope's Chamber to pay great " and excessive sums of money, as well for the first fruits "of the same archbishopric or bishopric, as for other ser"vices in the same court, and that the same sums or the "greater part thereof be paid beforehand; which sums c. 1. William LL.D. who died 1451. Of this we have the following instance given us by Dr. Gascoigne. Post mortem Decani Eboracensis, Feltar nomine, canonici ecclesiæ pacifice elegerunt – Bermyngham in decanum suum Eboracensem; et in tempore electionis in capitulo duo mali canonici Eboraci, et prior Sancti Oswaldi elegerunt extra capitulum, juxta imaginem Sancti Christophori, in decanum ecclesiæ Eboracensis, magistrum Richardum Andrew secretarium R. Henrici Sexti. Et, facta appellatione per illos tres canonicos contra electionem veram Bermingham in capitulo, R. Henricus licentiavit illum Richardum, qui fuit pessime et injuste sic a tribus extra capitulum electus, sub sigillo suo acceptare provisionem Papæ ut esset Eboracensis Decanus. Ita quod Papa Nicolaus quintus ipsum Richardum in decanatu ecclesiæ Eboracensis provideret, et electionem Bermyngham factam legitime, cassaret, et revocaret seu adnullaret. Et sic factum fuit Romæ per pecunias prædict. Rich. Et quia capitulum Eboracense ipsum Richardum provisum per Papam recipere in suum decanatum non voluit, idcirco per bullas Papæ Nicholai diversi canonici ecclesiæ cathedralis Eboracensis excommunicati fuerunt, et ecclesia cathedralis exposita interdicto, et suspensa per plures septimanas. Ita quod nec matutinæ, nec aliqua missa fuit in illa ecclesia per plures septimanas, nec vespera. Dict. Theol. MS. 66 II. pass the treble, or the double at least, of that that was CHAP. "accustomed of old time to be paid to the said Chamber, "and otherwise by the occasions of such provisions.” This the complaint of the Commons, on which this act is grounded, calls a damnable custom, which is introduct of new in the Court of Rome. 21. This usurpation of the rights of the several patrons of ecclesiastical benefices, by the Popes, met with a very stout and resolute opposition here in England. One of our historians tells us, that in the reign of King Henry III. Mat. Paris, Hist. Angl. Pope Gregory, desirous to assist a special clerk of his, A. D. 1241. sent his apostolical mandate to the Abbot and convent of Bury, with armed entreaties and terrifying admonitions, that they would confer on the Pope the income of some church in their gift, which was at least of the yearly value of 100 marks. But on the Abbot's notifying this new demand to the King, and asking his advice, and withal intimating to him the ill consequences of yielding to it; the King being sensible that such a precedent would be not only to the prejudice of this church, but of all others in his dominions, on which the same arbitrary demands might be made, he as defender, patron, and governor of the said churches, detesting the hidden snares and the avarice of the court of Rome, very strictly prohibited any such enormous fact any more polluting the air of his kingdom. 66 Christen 22. But the avarice and exactions of the Popes were not soon checked. “ They claimed to have and occupie the The Insti"whole monarchy of the world in their hands, and that tution of a they might thereby lawfully depose kings and princes Man, fol. "from their realms, dominions, and seignories, and so "transfer and give the same suche persons as them liked." This occasioned our poet Chaucer to use this kind admo- Plowman's nition. Tale,part ii. * How much times were altered afterwards may be seen by what Dr. Gascoigne tells us; speaking of Buthe Archbishop of York, he says, confert beneficia et præbendas pessime pueris et juvenibus, fol. 47. b. The like he reports of Kemp, Archbishop of York, and afterwards of Canterbury; malos et extraneos et curtesanos Romanos providit et elegit in magnas dignitates suæ ecclesiæ Eboracensis, et in rectores suæ diocesis. Dict. Theol. MS. 47. b. СНАР. * fellow. Bp. Gib p. 75, 76. 66 The Emperour gafe the Pope sometime, 23. In the very next reign we find petitions drawn up son's Codex, for the estate of the crown of England, by the Earls, Barons, and other great men, and the Commons of the realm; wherein they complained of the various new and intolerable grievances, oppressions, injuries, and extortions done to them by the authority and mandate of the Lord Pope. The first of these mentioned by them is the unbridled multitude of provisions apostolical, "by which," they said, "the patrons of the several benefices are deprived of their " right of collation or presentation, the noble and learned "natives will be wholly excluded from all ecclesiastical "promotion, so that there will be a defect of council as to "those matters that concern the spirituality, and none "will be found fit to be preferred to the ecclesiastical pre"lacies; divine worship will be impaired, hospitalities and "alms will be laid aside, contrary to the primary intention " of the founders of the churches; the rights of the respec❝tive churches will be lost, the church-buildings will all go to ruin, and the devotion of the people will be les"sened." On which representation it was ordered, that the Sheriffs of every county should inquire of these abuses, and attach those who were guilty of them. Accordingly writs were prepared to be sent to the several Sheriffs for this purpose; but after the recess of the Parliament, the King was not only prevailed with by Cardinal Peter Fabines, then in England, to direct his Chancellor to suspend the sealing of the said writs, but did also grant letters of protection to the collectors of the first fruits and Peterpence, under colour of which they proceeded, as they had formerly done, in contempt of the prohibitions enacted in Parliament against their extortions and oppressions. Nay they had the boldness to complain publicly, at the next 66 II. Parliament, that divers of the King's subjects had opposed CHAP. and resisted them, in virtue of those prohibitions. Upon which occasion the prohibitions were enforced in a writ Dated June directed to the Pope's collector William Testa, whereby he 27, 1807. was commanded and strictly inhibited, the any ways attempting by himself or any others, any thing that might be to the hurt of the royal dignity, or to the damage of the peers or people of this realm. But before the King could see this prohibition executed, he died, and nothing Jan. 25, further was done. 1326. 23. Men who were so far lost to all shame, as to complain to the Parliament of the people observing their laws, one may well conceive ready to attempt any thing, so that we need not wonder at these grievances growing worse and worse. Accordingly we find it represented in the Parliament, that met 25 Edward III. that these grievances A. D. 1350. and mischiefs did then daily abound, to the great damage and destruction of all the realm of England, more than ever were before. But now in this reign of King Henry VI. the Popes were so far gone in their encroachments, that whereas before they granted to aliens and Cardinals only rich benefices and dignities in cathedrals, now they granted English bishoprics to foreigners in commendam. Thus one Lewis Lushborough, Archbishop of Roan, was provided by the Pope to the bishopric of Ely, by way of A. D. 1438. commendam. This indeed the Archbishop of Canterbury complained of to the Bishops and Clergy in convocation, as an invidious thing and of ill example, and what might prove to the great loss and detriment of the Church of England; but to no manner of purpose, for the Archbishop held this bishopric till his death, which was a little more than five years after the temporalities of it were assigned to him. 24. When the "exaction of annates or the first fruits Duaren. de Beneficiis, u Statuerunt- -ut quoties aliquem virum ecclesiasticum quacunque foret lib. vi. c. 3. dignitate vel conditione ex ista luce migrare contingeret, aut suum cum altero quovis qualecunque beneficium permutare, totiens * omnis proventus primi anni secuturi certam ad summam, suo arbitratu, taxatos, sua memorata camera * dimidium annui proventus. II. CHAP. of benefices was first invented, is not so certain as to admit of any dispute: some ascribing the imposition of this tax to Pope John XXIII. others to Pope Boniface IX. about the year 1400. But that it could not be so lately introduced is very plain from the several complaints of the great grievance of it, made by our Parliaments from the year 1350 and afterwards, fifty years before this time. This was an arbitrary tax, the sum to be paid being fixed or settled by the mere will and pleasure of the Pope, or the officers of his Chamber: so that though it was pretended to be only the first year's fruits of the bishopric, or half a year's profits of any lesser benefice worth above twentyfour nobles a year, it sometimes proved to be the fruits of three or four years; for let what accidents would happen, as loss of the crop, &c. the sum appointed by the Chamber was to be raised. It is fairly owned by one of the Pope's y collectors of this tax in England, that of all the projects acciperet. Quod si illam fortassis summam annua fructuum collectio, aut ex diminutione fructuum, aut alia calamitate conficere non posset, triennali vel quandoque quadriennali fructuum exactione ad summam ipsam pertingi voluerunt. Nic. de Clemangis de cor. Ecclesiæ Statu. Onus illud Annatarum ab initio omnes generatim populi subire minus recusarunt extra Anglos qui suis minoribus sacerdotiis, quando ea Pontifex dabat, id servitutis imponendum non censuerunt. Nam Pontifex Romanus minorum quoque sacerdotiorum aliarum gentium quæ ipse confert, dimidiam capit vectigalium unius anni partem, si pluries viginti quatuor aureis æstimentur. Pol. Vergil de Invent. lib. viii. cap. 2. x S. Thomas nullos solvit primos fructus seu annata Papæ Romano, quod nullus episcopus in tempore S. Thomæ solvit primos fructus Papæ nec antea. Postea tamen in tempore Papæ Romani, Johannis XXII. primi fructus sive annata Papæ solvi cœperunt, ex cupida ordinatione Papæ Johannis XXII. et sibi adhærentium in curia Romana. Et sic inolevit in Anglia consuetudo quod consensus Papæ Romani et ejus cameræ, et consensus Regis in Anglia, et certa millia pecuniarum constituunt episcopum quemcunque jam in Anglia, ut sit episcopus. Gascoigne, Dict. Theol. MS. y Nullum inventum majores Romano Pontifici cumulavit opes quam annatum (quas vocant) usus, qui omnino multo antiquior est quam recentiores quidam scriptores suspicantur. Et annates, more suo, appellant primos fructus unius anni sacerdotii vacantis, aut dimidiam eorum partem. Sane hoc vectigal jampridem cum Romanus Pontifex non habuerit tot possessiones, quot nunc habet, et eum oportuerit, pro dignitate, pro officio, multos magnosque facere sumptus, paulatim impositum fuit sacerdotiis vacantibus quæ ille conferret, de |