XXXI. 2534.

CHA P. fame views; and as he was a man of prudence and abilities, he was able, very effectually, though in a covert manner, to promote the late innovations: Cranmer, archbishop of Canterbury, had fecretly adopted the proteftant tenets; and he had gained Henry's friendship by his candor and fincerity; virtues which he poffeffed in as eminent a degree as thofe times, equally diftracted with faction, and oppreffed by tyranny, could eafily permit. On the other hand, the duke of Norfolk adhered to the ancient faith; and by his high rank, as well as by his talents, both for peace and war, he had great authority in the king's council: Gardiner, lately created bifhop of Winchester, had inlifted himself in the fame party; and the fupplenefs of his character, and dexterity of his conduct, had rendered him extremely useful to it.

ALL these minifters, while they stood in the most irreconcileable oppofition of principles to each other, were obliged to difguife their particular opinions, and to pretend an entire agree ment with the fentiments of their mafter. Cromwel and Cranmer ftill carried the appearance of a conformity to the ancient fpeculative tenets; but they artfully made ufe of Heury's refentment to widen the breach with the fee of Rome. Norfolk and Gardiner feigned an affent to the king's fupremacy, and to his renunciation of the fovereign pontiff; but they encouraged his paffion for the catholic faith, and inftigated him to punish thofe daring heretics, who had prefumed to reject

c

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his theological principles. Both fides hoped, by CHA P. their unlimited compliance, to bring him over to their party: The king meanwhile, who held the balance between the factions, was enabled, by the courtship payed him both by proteftants and catholics, to affume an unbounded authority: And though in all his measures he was really driven by his ungoverned humor, he cafually fteered a courfe, which led more certainly to arbitrary power, than any which the most profound politics could have traced out to him. Artifice, refinement, and hypocrify, in his fituation, would have put both parties on their guard against him, and would have taught them referve in complying with a monarch, whom they could never hope thoroughly to have gained: But while the franknefs, fincerity, and openness of Henry's temper were generally known, as well as the dominion of his furious paffions; each fide dreaded to lofe him by the fmalleft oppofition, and flattered themselves that a blind compliance with his will would throw him, cordially and fully, into their interests.

THE ambiguity of the king's conduct, though it kept the courtiers in awe, ferved in the main, to encourage the proteftant doctrine among his fubjects, and promoted that spirit of innovation, with which the age was generally feized, and which nothing but an entire uniformity, as well as a steady severity in the adminiftration, could be able to reprefs. There were fome Englishinen, Tindal, Joye, Conftantine, and others, who,

1534.

Farther pro

reformation.

CHAP. dreading the exertion of the king's authority, XXXI. had fled to Antwerp'; where the great privileges poffeffed by the Low Country provinces, ferved, during fome time, to give them protection. Thefe men employed themselves in grefs of the writing English books, against the corruptions of the church of Rome; against images, relics, pilgrimages; and they excited the curiofity of men with regard to that question, the most important in theology, the terms of acceptance with the Supreme Being. In conformity to the Lutherans and other proteftants, they afferted, that falvation was obtained by faith alone; and that the most infallible road to perdition * was a reliance on good works; by which terms they understood, as well the moral duties, as the ceremonial and monaftic obfervances. The defenders of the ancient religion, on the other hand, maintained the efficacy of good works; but though they did not exclude from this appellation the focial virtues, it was ftill the fuperftitions, gainful to the church, which they chiefly extolled and recommended. The books, compofed by these fugitives, having ftolen over to England, began. to make converts every where; but it was a tranflation of the fcriptures by Tindal, that was

3

Burnet, vol. i. p. 159.

4

4 Sacrilegium eft et impietas velle placere Deo per opera et non per folam fidem. Luther adverfus regem. Ita vides quam dives fit homo chriftianus five baptizatus, qui etiam volens non poteft perdere falutem fuam quantif cunque peccatis. Nulla enim peccata poffunt eum damnare if incredulitas. Id. de captivitate Babylonica.

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efteemed the most dangerous to the established c A P. faith. The first edition of this work, compofed with little accuracy, was found liable to confiderable objections; and Tindal, who was poor, and could not afford to lose a great part of the impreffion, was longing for an opportunity of correcting his errors, of which he had been made. fenfible. Tonftal, then bishop of London, foon after of Durham, a man of great moderation, being defirous to difcourage, in the gentlest manner, these innovations, gave private orders for buying up all the copies, that could be found at Antwerp; and he burned them publicly in Cheapfide. By this measure, he supplied Tindal with money, enabled him to print a new and correct edition of his work, and gave great fcandal to the people, in thus committing to the flames the word of God.

THE difciples of the reformation met with little feverity during the miniftry of Wolfey, who, though himself a clergyman, bore too small a regard to the ecclefiaftical order, to ferve as an inftrument of their tyranny: It was even an article of impeachment against him, that by his connivance he had encouraged the growth of herefy, and that he had protected and acquitted fome notorious offenders. Sir Thomas More, who Sir Tomas fucceeded Wolfey as Chancellor, is at once an object deferving our compaffion, and an inftance

Hall, fol. 186. Fox, vol. i. p.138. Burnet, vol. i. p.159.

More.

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CHA P. of the usual progress of men's fentiments during that age. This man, whofe elegant genius and familiar acquaintance with the noble fpirit of antiquity, had given him very enlarged fentiments, and who had in his early years advanced principles, which even at prefent would be deemed fomewhat too free, had, in the courfe of events, been fo irritated by polemics, and thrown into fuch a fuperftitious attachment to the ancient faith, that few inquifitors have been guilty of greater violence in their profecution of herefy. Though adorned with the gentleft manners, as well as the pureft integrity, he carried to the utmoft height his averfion to heterodoxy; and James Bainham, in particular, a gentleman of the Temple, experienced from him the greatest severity. Bainham, accused of favoring the new opinions, was carried to More's houfe; and having refused to discover his accomplices, the chancellor ordered him to be whipped in his prefence, and afterwards fent him to the Tower, where he himself faw him put to the torture. The unhappy gentleman, overcome by all these severities, abjured his opinions; but feeling afterwards the deepest compunction for his apoftacy, he openly returned to his former tenets, and even courted the crown of martyrdom. He was condemned as an obftinate and relapfed heretic, and was burned in Smithfield ".

MANY were brought into the bishops' courts for offences, which appear trivial, but which were