THE REIGN OF QUEEN ELIZABETH (1558-1603)
See bibliography, chap. ii., iii. /Publications of the English
Catholic Record Society/, 1904-14. Strype, /Annals of the
Reformation/, 1708-9 (a complete edition of Strype's Works
published, Oxford, 1812-24, 25 vols.; Index Vol., 1828). Birt,
O.S.B., /The Elizabethan Religious Settlement/, 1907. Meyer,
/England und Die Katholische Kirche unter Elisabeth und Den
Stuarts/. Gee, /The Elizabethan Clergy and the Settlement of
Religion/, 1898. Lee, /The Church under Queen Elizabeth/, 2 vols.,
2nd edition, 1893. Bridgett, /The True Story of the Catholic
Hierarchy/, 1889. Phillips, /The Extinction of the Catholic
Hierarchy/, 1905. Gillow, /Literary and Biographical History of
English Catholics/. Foley, /Records of the English Province of the
Society of Jesus/, 7 vols., 1880. Challoner, /Memoirs of
Missionary Priests/, etc. (1577-1684), 2 vols., 1803. Camm, /Lives
of the English Martyrs/ (1583-88), 1914. Guilday, /The English
Catholic Refugees on the Continent/ (1558-1795), 1914. Husenbeth,
/Notices of the English Colleges and Convents on the Continent
after the Dissolution of the Religious Houses in England/, 1849.
Knox, /Records of the English Catholics under the Penal Laws/.
/The Month/ (1900-2).
A few hours after Mary's death Elizabeth was proclaimed queen
according to the terms of her father's will, and messengers were
dispatched to Hatfield to announce her accession and to escort her to
the capital. During the reign of her brother her relations with Thomas
Seymour nearly led to a secret marriage and the loss of her rights to
the throne, while during the lifetime of her sister the disclosures of
Wyatt and his followers and the correspondence of the French
ambassador brought her to the Tower on suspicion of treason. Mary was,
however, averse to severe measures, more especially as Elizabeth
expressed her devotion to the Catholic religion and her willingness to
accept the new religious settlement. But in secret she treasured other
views, not because she was hostile to the Catholic religion, but
because opposition to Catholicism seemed to be the best means of
maintaining her claim to the crown and of resisting Mary Queen of
Scots, who from the Catholic point of view was the nearest legitimate
heir to the throne. Already, before the death of Mary, Elizabeth was
in close correspondence with those who were unfriendly to Catholicism
and to the Spanish connexion, and she had selected William Cecil,
whose religious views and practices during Mary's reign coincided with
her own, to be her secretary. Her accession was hailed with joy
throughout England, for Englishmen were glad to have a ruler of their
own so as to be rid of the Spanish domination, that had led to
taxation at home and disaster abroad. The official announcement of
Elizabeth's accession was as welcome to Philip II., who was still
England's ally, as it was distasteful to France, which regarded Mary
Queen of Scots as the lawful claimant to England's throne. It is
noteworthy, as affording a clue to Elizabeth's future policy, that no
official notice of her accession was forwarded to the Pope, nor were
the credentials of the English ambassador at Rome either confirmed or
revoked. Paul IV., notwithstanding the efforts of the French, was
unwilling to create any difficulties for England's new ruler by
declaring her illegitimate or by treating her otherwise than as a
rightful sovereign.[1]
Though many of Mary's old councillors were retained it is remarked by
many interested observers that the new members selected by the queen
belonged to the party likely to favour religious innovations, and that
her real advisers were not the privy council but a select coterie, the
principal of which were William Cecil, Secretary of State, and his
brother-in-law, Nicholas Bacon, appointed Lord Keeper of the Seal,
both of whom, while outwardly professing their devotion to the old
religion under Queen Mary, were well known to sympathise with the
Edwardian régime. The men who had fled to Frankfurt or Geneva began to
return and to preach their doctrines to the crowd, and the Italian
church in London was attacked by a mob. Outwardly no change took place
in the religious ceremonial. A royal proclamation was issued (27th
Dec., 1558) forbidding preaching or the use of other public prayers,
rites, or ceremonies save those approved by law until Parliament
should have determined otherwise, except in regard to the recitation
in English, of the Litany, the Commandments, the Creed, together with
the Epistles and Gospels.[2] Still the anti-Catholic party boasted
that the new ruler was on their side. The queen's own inclinations
were soon made clear by her prohibition addressed to Bishop Oglethorp
of Carlisle against the elevation of the Host in the Mass celebrated
in her presence on Christmas Day (1558), and by her withdrawal from
the church when he refused to obey her instructions. Bishop
Christopherson of Chichester was arrested for his sermon preached on
the occasion of the late queen's funeral, and Archbishop Heath of York
resigned the Chancellorship.
The coronation of the queen was fixed for the 25th January (1559), and
as her title to the throne might be questioned on so many points, it
was obviously of the greatest importance that the ceremony should be
carried out in the orthodox fashion so as to elude all the objections
of her rivals. The Archbishop of York and the bishops generally, well
aware of the religious changes that were in contemplation, refused to
take part in the coronation, though in the end Bishop Oglethorp of
Carlisle was induced to undertake the task, probably in the hope of
averting still greater evil. The bishops attended at Westminster to
welcome the queen on her arrival and to take the oath of allegiance,
but declined to be present at the Mass, as did also the Spanish
ambassador. The rite was carried out with punctilious attention to the
old rubrics, and the sermon was preached by Dr. Cox, a Frankfurt
exile, who regaled his hearers with a wild tirade against the monks,
clergy, and the existing idolatry.[3]
Parliament was summoned to meet in January 1559. In the House of Lords
the government was confronted with the fact that the bishops to a man
would oppose the religious changes that were to be introduced, but it
was hoped that by careful directions to the sheriffs a House of
Commons might be returned that could be trusted.[4] There was no
difficulty in procuring acts confirming Elizabeth's title to the
throne, more especially as the legitimacy of her mother's marriage
though implied was not directly affirmed, but the bill for the
restoration of First Fruits to the crown met with considerable
opposition and delay, especially at the hands of the spiritual peers,
and another for the restoration of those clergymen who had been
deprived in the previous reign on account of their non-observance of
celibacy was abandoned. The two great measures however on which
Elizabeth's ministers had set their hearts were royal supremacy and
the re-introduction of the Book of Common Prayer in place of the Latin
Mass, but from the first the bishops offered to these measures the
most determined opposition, and though the bishops were not supported
by a very large number of the lay peers, the idea of forcing such
momentous changes on the country against the wishes of the united
episcopate was so repugnant to the religious instincts of the nation
that the ministers found themselves again and again compelled to
withdraw or modify their proposals.
To add to their confusion Convocation met in February (1559) and
forwarded to the bishops for presentation to the queen a strong
document, in which the clergy without a dissentient voice affirmed
their belief in the Real Presence, Transubstantiation, the sacrificial
character of the Mass, Roman supremacy and the inability of laymen to
legislate regarding the doctrines, discipline, or sacraments of the
Church.[5] This judgment of Convocation though hardly unexpected was a
deadly blow struck against the government measures, showing as it did
that if Parliament undertook a new religious settlement it must do so
on its own responsibility and against the wishes of the ecclesiastical
authorities. The difficulties against the two bills were so great that
when Easter arrived the work upon which the queen and her advisers had
set their hearts was still incomplete. The Bill of Uniformity of
belief had been rejected, and though the Royal Supremacy Bill had
passed the two Houses in modified form it had not yet reached the
statute book. The inconvenience of according the title of supreme head
of the Church to a woman was disliked by many, and was distasteful
even to Elizabeth herself.
Parliament was prorogued for a few weeks at Easter, and recourse was
had to a clever expedient to win popular sympathy for the measures. A
disputation was arranged to take place between the bishops and the
Protestant exiles. Cecil took care that both in regard to the subjects
to be discussed and the manner of procedure the latter party should
have every advantage. The questions were the use of English or Latin
in the religious services, the authority of particular churches to
change their rites and ceremonies, and the propitiatory character of
the Mass. The Catholic representatives were to open the discussion
each day, but the last word was always reserved for the Reformers.
From the very beginning it was clear that the dice had been loaded
against the defenders of the old faith, and on the second day the
Catholic party refused to continue the discussion.[6] Their refusal,
however justified it may have been in the circumstances, could not
fail to make a bad impression. It was seized upon by their opponents
to show that the supporters of Rome had disobeyed the queen, had
quailed before the apostles of the new religion, and that, therefore,
even though they were bishops, they could not be regarded as
trustworthy guides in matters of religion. The Bishops of Winchester
and Lincoln were arrested because they refused to continue the
disputation, and by their arrest the Catholic peers were deprived of
two votes in the House of Lords at a time when the fate of the old
religion was trembling in the balance.
When Parliament re-assembled the queen announced her intention of
refusing the title of supreme head of the Church, and requested the
House "would devise some other form with regard to the primacy or
supremacy." A new bill conceding to the sovereign the title "supreme
governor" was introduced, but met with as strong opposition from the
bishops as its predecessors, and was passed against their unanimous
wishes. The Act of Uniformity, commanding the use of the Second Book
of Common Prayer with a few alterations, met with even a worse
reception, as several of the laymen joined the bishops in their
resistance, and in the end it was carried only by a majority of three.
Had the imprisoned bishops been free to cast their votes against the
measure, or had the lay peers who disliked it had the courage to be
present in their places at the division the whole course of English
history might have been altered.[7] As it was a religious revolution
had been effected. The Mass, Transubstantiation, the Real Presence and
Roman supremacy, all of which had been accepted without contradiction
from the days of St. Augustine till the reign of Henry VIII., were
abolished and a new church established that bore but a faint
resemblance to the old. And what was more extraordinary still, all
this was done solely by an assembly of laymen, against the wishes and
appeals of the united episcopate and against the practically unanimous
judgment of Convocation. "The Church of England as by law established"
is a parliamentary institution set up and shaped by Parliament in the
beginning, and dependent upon Parliament ever since for guidance and
protection.
By the Act of Supremacy the queen was declared to be supreme governor
of the Church in England; all foreign jurisdiction was abolished; a
body of commissioners was to be appointed to administer the oath of
supremacy and to carry on ecclesiastical functions in the name of the
queen; officials who refused to take the oath were to be deprived, and
penalties varying from fines to death were to be imposed on those who
were unwilling to accept the law. By the Act of Uniformity the English
service, as contained in the Second Book of Common Prayer with some
slight alterations, was made obligatory on all clergymen, as was
attendance at this service on all laymen. The Act was to be enforced
by the spiritual authorities under threat of excommunication against
offenders, and by the civil authorities by the infliction of fines or
imprisonment.
A royal commission was appointed (1559) to administer the oath of
supremacy to the clergy, and to enforce the provisions of the Act of
Uniformity. As was to be expected, the attention of the commissioners
was directed immediately to the bishops. If some of them could be
induced to submit--and the government was not without hope in this
direction--their submission would produce a good impression on the
country; but if on the contrary they persisted in their attachment to
the Mass and their obedience to the Pope, they must be removed to make
way for more trustworthy men. To their credit be it said, when the
oath of supremacy was tendered to the bishops they refused with one
exception to abandon the views they had defended with such skill and
bravery in the House of Lords, and preferred to suffer imprisonment
and deprivation rather than lead their people into error by
submission. Bishop Kitchin of Llandaff had opposed royal supremacy for
a time. The Spanish ambassador reported to his master that he was
about to follow the example of his brethren, but in the end he
submitted and consented to administer the oath to his clergy.[8] The
religious communities, the Observants, the Carthusians, the
Dominicans, the Benedictines, and the few communities of nuns that had
re-established houses in England during the reign of Queen Mary, were
suppressed; their property was seized according to an Act passed in
the late Parliament, and many of the monks and nuns were obliged to
depart from the kingdom. The commissioners proceeded through England
administering the oath to the clergy, a large percentage of whom seems
to have submitted. From the returns preserved it is difficult to
estimate accurately what number of the clergy consented to acknowledge
the supremacy of the queen or to abandon the Mass, but it is certainly
not true to say that out of 9,000 beneficed clergymen in England at
the time only about 200 refused the oath. On the one hand, the
disturbances during the reigns of Henry VIII. and Edward VI. had
reduced considerably the number of priests in England, while on the
other, the fact that several clergymen did not put in an appearance
before the commission, that others were allowed time to reconsider
their views, and that not even all those who obstinately refused the
oath were deprived, shows clearly that the lists of deprivations
afford no sure clue to the number of those who were unwilling to
accept the change. It is noteworthy that the greatest number of
refusals were met with amongst the higher officials or dignitaries of
the Church, the deans, archdeacons, and canons, who might be expected
to represent the best educated and most exemplary of the clergy of
their time in England. In the universities, too, the commissioners met
with the strongest resistance. Several of the heads of the colleges,
both in Cambridge and Oxford, the fellows and the office-bearers,
either were deprived or fled, and men of the new school were appointed
to take their places. But notwithstanding all the government could do,
the universities, and particularly Oxford, continued during the
greater part of the reign of Elizabeth to be centres of
disaffection.[9]
The complete extinction of the old hierarchy by death, deprivation and
imprisonment, left the way open for the appointment of bishops
favourable to the religion. Matthew Parker, who had been chaplain to
Anne Boleyn and who had lived privately since he was removed from the
deanship of Lincoln on account of his marriage, was selected to fill
the Archbishopric of Canterbury, left vacant since the death of
Cardinal Pole. The royal letters of approval were issued in September,
and the mandate for his consecration was addressed to Tunstall of
Durham, Bourne of Bath and Wells, Poole of Peterborough, Kitchin of
Llandaff, together with Barlow and Scory. The three former, however,
refused to act, and apparently even Kitchin was unwilling to take any
part in the ceremony. New men were then sought, and found in the
persons of Barlow, Coverdale, Scory, and Hodgkin. But even still grave
legal difficulties barred the way. The conditions for the consecration
of an archbishop laid down by the 25th of Henry VIII., which had not
been repealed, could not be complied with owing to the refusal of the
old bishops, and besides the use of the new Ordinal of Edward VI.
without a special Act of Parliament for its revival was distinctly
illegal; but the situation was so serious that Elizabeth's advisers
urged her to make good the illegalities by an exercise of her royal
authority. In the end the consecration of Parker was carried out in
the chapel of Lambeth Palace on the morning of the 17th December,
1559. The story of the Nag's Head is a pure legend used by
controversialists for impugning the validity of Anglican Orders. As a
matter of fact the main argument against these Orders is drawn neither
from the fable of the Nag's Head nor from the want of episcopal orders
in the case of Barlow, the consecrator of Parker, though his
consecration has not been proved, but from the use of a corrupt form,
which was then as it is now rejected as insufficient by the Catholic
Church, and from the want of the proper intention implied both by the
corruption of the form and by the teaching of those who corrupted
it.[10] Once the difficulty about Parker's consecration had been
settled other bishops were appointed by the queen, and consecrated by
the new archbishop, so that before March 1560 good progress had been
made in the establishment of the new hierarchy in England.
With the establishment of the ecclesiastical commission (1559) to
search out and punish heresy and generally to carry out the provisions
of the Supremacy Act, and with the appointment of new bishops (1559-
60) the work of reforming the faith of England was well under way.
Still the new bishops were confronted with grave difficulties. From
the reports of the Spanish ambassador, who had exceptional
opportunities of knowing the facts but whose opinions for obvious
reasons cannot always be accepted, the great majority of the people
outside London were still Catholic, and even in London itself the
adherents of the old faith could not be despised. Quite apart,
however, from his reports, sufficient evidence can be adduced from the
episcopal and official letters and documents to show that the change
was not welcomed by a great body in the country. As the best means of
enforcing the Act of Supremacy and the Act of Uniformity a visitation
of both provinces was arranged. In London Masses were still
celebrated, and attended by great multitudes; in Canterbury itself
within sight of the archiepiscopal palace public religious processions
were carried out. In Winchester, where the memory of Gardiner was
still cherished, many of the clergy refused to attend the visitation;
the laymen were discreetly absent when their assent was required; the
churches were deserted and even the people attending the cathedral
"were corrupted by the clergy." In Hereford Bishop Scory described his
cathedral, "as a very nest of blasphemy, whoredom, pride,
superstition, and ignorance;" the justices threw every obstacle in the
way of his reforms; fasts and feasts were observed as of old; and even
the very butchers seemed leagued against him, for they refused to sell
meat on Thursdays. In Bath and Wells many of the justices were openly
disobedient, and even the people who conformed outwardly could not be
relied upon. In Norwich, Ely, Salisbury and Chichester "Popery" was
still strong amongst the clergy, people, and officials. At Eton it was
necessary to expel the provost and all the teachers except three
before the college could be reduced to subjection, and at Oxford the
visitors were driven to admit, that if they expelled the fellows who
refused to subscribe, and the students who would have no religious
service except the Mass, the houses would be deserted. In the northern
provinces where the visitation did not begin till some time later it
was discovered that matters were still worse. The principal noblemen
were openly Catholic, and many of the magistrates denied that they had
ever heard of the Act of Supremacy, while others of them "winked and
looked through their fingers." In York the diocese was in a state of
anarchy; in Carlisle the bishop confessed that he could not prevent
the public celebration of the Mass; in Durham the bishop wrote that he
found himself engaged in a conflict with wild beasts even more savage
than those which had confronted St. Paul at Ephesus. To make matters
worse it was reported that public sympathy was on the side of the
recusants, and that hopes were being expressed by many that the
present advisers of her Majesty might soon be displaced, even though
it were necessary to have recourse to France or Spain.[11]
Nor was it merely from the side of the Catholics that the bishops and
the government anticipated serious danger. The men, who, like Hooper,
objected to the Edwardine settlement as not being sufficiently
extreme, had approached more closely to Calvinism in doctrine and in
ritual during their enforced sojourn at Frankfurt and Geneva. They
were enthusiastic in their praise of Elizabeth for her attacks upon
Rome, but they found fault with her religious programme as flavouring
too much of idolatry and papistry. They objected to crosses, candles,
vestments, copes, blessings, and much of the old ritual that had been
retained in the Book of Common prayer, and insisted that, until
religion had been brought back to a state of scriptural purity, the
English people should not rest satisfied. Whatever sympathy some of
the English political advisers may have had with the Puritans in
theory they had no intention of yielding to their demands, as such a
policy would have stirred up all the latent Catholicity in the
country. The official church "as by law established" was to be a
church for the nation, standing midway between Rome and Puritanism, a
kind of compromise between both extremes. Elizabeth was determined to
put down Puritanism, irreverence, and unlicensed preaching with a
heavy hand. As a foretaste of what the champions of innovation might
expect, much to the disgust of the archbishop, she struck a blow at
the married clergy by ordering the removal of women and children from
the enclosures of colleges and cathedrals (1561).
It cannot be said that it was the opposition of Rome to her accession
that forced Elizabeth to establish a national church. Paul IV., whose
undiplomatic and imprudent proceedings had caused such grave
embarrassment to her predecessor, made no protest against the
recognition of Elizabeth's claims, although he was urged to do so by
France. The same attitude of friendly reserve was maintained by his
successor Pius IV. (1559-65).[12] Shortly after his consecration he
addressed a kindly letter to Elizabeth exhorting her to return to the
bosom of the Church.[13] His envoy was not allowed, however, to enter
England, nor had another envoy, dispatched in 1561 to invite the queen
and the English bishops to take part in the Council of Trent, any
better success. Though Elizabeth discussed the matter with the Spanish
ambassador and even made preparations for the reception of the papal
envoy, the necessary safe conducts were not forwarded to Flanders, and
in the end a notification was sent that the papal messenger could not
be received, nor would the English bishops attend the Council of
Trent. Possibly owing to the friendly attitude of the Pope, rumours
were put in circulation that he was not unwilling to accept the new
English Book of Common Prayer if Elizabeth would consent to
acknowledge the supremacy of Rome. That there was never the least
foundation for such a statement is now generally admitted, but at the
time it helped to confirm many Catholics in the view that to escape
fines and punishment it was lawful for them to attend the English
service, particularly as they took care to assist at Mass in secret
and made it clear both by their actions and demeanour that their
presence at the new religious rite was not voluntary. Others, however,
refused to follow this opinion, and in order to put an end to the
dissensions that had arisen a petition was drawn up and forwarded to
the Pope requesting him for permission to attend Common Prayer, but,
though the request was supported by the Spanish ambassador, the
permission was refused (1562).
Elizabeth's second Parliament (1563) met at a time when the downfall
of the Huguenots to whom England had furnished assistance, the failure
of a plot entered into by the nephews of Cardinal Pole for the
overthrow of Elizabeth's government, and the reports from the
ecclesiastical commissioners and the bishops, showing as they did that
contempt for the Acts of Supremacy and Uniformity was still strong,
made it necessary to undertake more repressive measures against the
Catholics. An Act was passed entitled, "an Act for the assurance of
the queen's royal power" commanding that the oath of supremacy should
be administered to members of the House of Commons, schoolmasters,
tutors, attorneys, and all who had held any ecclesiastical office
during the reigns of Elizabeth, Mary, Edward VI. or Henry VIII., and
to all who manifested their hostility to the established religion by
celebrating Mass or assisting at its celebration. Refusal to take the
oath when first tendered was to be punished by forfeiture and life
imprisonment, and on the second refusal the penalty was to be a
traitor's death. Had such an Act been enforced strictly it would have
meant the complete extirpation of the Catholics of England, but
Elizabeth, having secured a weapon by which she might terrorise them,
took care to prevent her bishops from driving them to extremes by a
close investigation of their opinions regarding royal supremacy. Fines
and imprisonment were at this stage deemed more expedient than death.
Convocation met at the same time, but Convocation had changed much
since 1559 when it declared bravely in favour of the Real Presence,
Transubstantiation, the Mass, Papal supremacy, and the independence of
the Church. The effects of the deprivation of the bishops, deans,
archdeacons, canons, and clergy, and of the wholesale ordinations "of
artificers unlearned and some even of base occupations" by Parker and
Grindal and others were plainly visible.[14] Convocation was no longer
Catholic in tone. It was distinctly Puritan. A proposal was made that
all holidays and feasts should be abolished except Sundays and "the
principal feasts of Christ," that there should be no kneeling at
Communion, no vestments in the celebration of Common Service except
the surplice, no organs in the churches, no sign of the cross in
baptism, and that the minister should be compelled to read divine
service facing the people. The proposal was debated warmly and in the
end was defeated only by one vote.[15] One of the principal objects
for which Convocation had been called was to draft a new dogmatic
creed for the Church "as by law established." This was a matter of
supreme importance. But as it was necessary to affirm nothing that
would offend the Huguenots of France and the theologians of
Switzerland and Germany, or rouse the latent Catholic sentiments of
the English people, it was also a work of supreme difficulty. In other
words the creed of the established Church must be in the nature of a
compromise, and a compromise it really was. The Forty Two Articles of
Edward VI. were taken as the basis of discussion. As a result of the
deliberations they were reduced to Thirty Nine,[16] in which form they
were signed by the bishops and clergy, before being presented to
Elizabeth and her ministers for approval. As an indication to the
clergy that the office of supreme governor was no sinecure Elizabeth
would not authorise the publication of the Articles until a very
important one dealing with the Eucharist had been omitted, and until
another one regarding the authority of the Church to change rites and
ceremonies had been modified. That influences other than doctrinal
were at work in shaping the Thirty Nine Articles is evident from the
fact that the particular Eucharistic Article referred to was omitted
in 1563 lest it should drive away Catholics who were wavering, and
inserted again in 1570 when the government, then in open war with
Rome, was determined to give back blow for blow. The catechism drawn
up by Convocation for the use of the laity was promptly suppressed by
Cecil.
By the adoption of the Thirty Nine Articles as its official creed the
English Church "by law established," cut itself adrift from the
Catholic Church and from the faith that had been delivered to the
Anglo-Saxon people by Rome's great missionary St. Augustine. However
ambiguous might be the wording to which the authors of the Articles
had recourse in order to win followers, there could be no longer any
doubt that on some of the principal points of doctrine the new creed
stood in flagrant contradiction to the doctrines received by the
Catholic world. The Pope, whose spiritual powers had never been called
into question till the days of Henry VIII., was declared to have no
jurisdiction in England. The Sacrifices of the Masses (as it is put)
were denounced as blasphemous fables and dangerous deceits;
Transubstantiation was regarded as unscriptural and opening the way to
superstition; the doctrine of the Real Objective Presence of Christ
was implicitly condemned; the summoning of a General Council was made
dependent on the will of the secular princes; the fact that such
assemblies could err and did err in the past was emphasised; five of
the Sacraments, namely, Confirmation, Penance, Holy Orders, Matrimony
and Extreme Unction were declared not to be Sacraments of the Gospel,
and the Roman doctrine concerning Purgatory, Indulgences, the
invocation of saints, and veneration of images and relics was
pronounced to be a foolish and vain invention, contradictory to the
Word of God.[17]
The new repressive legislation, at least in regard to fines and
imprisonment, was enforced strictly against Catholics who were still a
strong body, especially in the north. On the accession of Pius V.
(1566-72) the friendly attitude hitherto maintained by Rome was
changed. There could no longer be any hope that Elizabeth would modify
her religious policy, as even her former ally and supporter Philip II.
was forced to admit, and there was grave danger that the opinion
entertained by some, that Catholics should be permitted to attend
Common Prayer was a purely legal function, might do considerable harm.
Hence a strong condemnation of the English service was published by
the Pope, and a commission was granted to two English priests, Sanders
and Harding, empowering them to absolve all those who had incurred the
guilt of schism (1566). As even this was not sufficient to put an end
to all doubts, and as the authority of the papal agent Laurence Vaux
was questioned by certain individuals, a formal Bull of reconciliation
was issued in 1567, authorising the absolution of those who had
incurred the guilt of heresy or schism by their obedience to the Acts
of Supremacy and Uniformity.
Apart from other considerations, this clear and definite statement of
the attitude of the Pope towards attendance at the English service
helped to stiffen the backs of the English Catholics, and to determine
even the waverers to stand firm; but in addition to this the question
of the succession to the throne raised considerable discussion.
Elizabeth was still without a husband, and for reasons probably best
known to herself she refused to allow her Parliament to drive her into
marriage, although partly through vanity, partly through motives of
policy she was not unwilling to dally with the advances of several
suitors both native and foreign. In the eyes of Catholics Elizabeth
was illegitimate, and except for her father's will and the
parliamentary confirmation of that will, as an illegitimate she had no
right to the throne. Mary Queen of Scotland, the grand-daughter of
Henry VIII.'s eldest sister Margaret, was from the legal point of view
the lawful heir; but as she was the wife of the Dauphin of France at
the time of Elizabeth's accession, Englishmen generally did not wish
to recognise her claim for precisely the same reasons that drove them
to oppose Queen Mary's marriage with Philip II. of Spain. After the
death of her French husband and her return to Scotland opinion began
to change in her favour, and this grew stronger in Catholic circles,
when she fled into England to claim the support of her cousin Queen
Elizabeth against the Scottish rebels (1568). A strong body even in
the council favoured the plan of a marriage between Mary and the Duke
of Norfolk, and the recognition of their rights and the rights of
their children to the throne on the death of Elizabeth, as the best
means of avoiding civil war and of escaping from the delicate position
created by the presence of Scotland's Queen in England. Norfolk was
regarded as a kind of Protestant and was backed by a very considerable
body of the council, but his communications with Philip II. of Spain,
who favoured the marriage, and with the Catholic lords of the north,
who, driven to extremes by religious persecution and by the treatment
accorded to Mary in England, were not unwilling to depose Elizabeth,
he professed his intention of becoming a Catholic. Elizabeth, however,
was strong against the marriage, and Cecil, though he pretended to
favour it, supported the views of his sovereign. Rumours of
conspiracies especially in the north were afloat. The noblemen of
Lancashire had met and pledged themselves not to attend the English
service; the Earls of Northumberland and Westmoreland declared openly
their attachment to the Catholic Church; the attitude of Wales and
Cornwall was more than doubtful, and the Spanish ambassador was well
known to be moving heaven and earth to induce his master to lend his
aid.[18]
Elizabeth determined to strike at once before the plans of the
conspirators could be matured. The Duke of Norfolk was commanded to
appear at court and was soon lodged safely in the Tower (11th Oct.,
1569). A peremptory order was issued to the Earls of Northumberland
and Westmoreland to come immediately to London, and as they knew well
the fate that was in store for them they determined to stake their
fortunes on the chance of a successful rising. They appealed to the
Catholic lords of Scotland, to the Duke of Alva, and to Spain for
support, and mustered their forces for war. They entered Durham (10th
Nov. 1569), where they swept out from the cathedral both the Book of
Common Prayer and the communion table, set up the altar once more, and
had Mass celebrated publicly. They marched southwards with the object
of getting possession of the Queen of Scotland who was imprisoned at
Tutbury, but their design having been suspected Mary was removed
suddenly to Coventry. A strong force was sent to prevent their march
southward, while Moray, the regent of Scotland and Elizabeth's
faithful ally, assembled his troops on the border to prevent the
Scottish Catholic lords from rallying to the assistance of their
co-religionists. The insurgents, caught between the two fires, were
routed completely, and the leaders hastened to make their escape.
Westmoreland to the Netherlands, where he lived for thirty years in
exile, and Northumberland to Scotland only to be sold again to
Elizabeth for £2,000 and executed. Martial law was proclaimed and
hundreds "of the poorer sort" were put to death. The trouble seemed to
be over for the time, but suddenly in January 1570, encouraged by the
assassination of Moray and by the raids of the Catholic borderers,
Lord Dacre rose in revolt, and threw himself upon the queen's forces
on their march from Naworth to Carlisle. He was defeated and barely
succeeded in escaping with his life. All resistance was now at an end,
and more than eight hundred of the insurgents were executed. The
failure of the Northern Rebellion served only to strengthen
Elizabeth's power, and to secure for Protestantism a firm footing in
England.
While preparations were being made in England for the rebellion,
Catholic representatives in Rome, both lay and clerical, pressed Pius
V. to issue a decree of excommunication and of deposition against
Elizabeth. Such a decree, it was thought, would strengthen the hands
of those who were working in the interests of Mary Queen of Scotland,
and would open the eyes of a large body of Catholics who stood firmly
by Elizabeth solely from motives of extreme loyalty. Philip II. was
not acquainted with the step that was in contemplation, though
apparently the French authorities were warned that Rome was about to
take action.[19] Had the advice of the King of Spain been sought he
might have warned the Pope against proceeding to extremes with
Elizabeth, and in doing so he would have had the support of those at
home who were acquainted most intimately with English affairs. In
February (1570) the process against Elizabeth was begun in Rome, and
on the 25th of the same month the Bull, /Regnans in Excelsis/,[20]
announcing the excommunication and deposition of Elizabeth was given
to the world. Had it come five or six months earlier, and had there
been an able leader capable of uniting the English Catholic body, a
work that could not be accomplished either by the Duke of Norfolk or
the Northern Earls, the result might have been at least doubtful; but
its publication, at a time when the northern rebellion had been
suppressed, and when Spain, France, and the Netherlands were unwilling
to execute it, served only to make wider the breach between England
and Rome, and to expose the English Catholics to still fiercer
persecution.[21] For so far Catholics had been free to combine with
moderate Protestants to secure the peaceful succession of Mary Queen
of Scotland without any suspicion of disloyalty to Elizabeth, but from
this time forward they were placed in the cruel position of being
traitors either to the Pope or to Elizabeth, and every move made by
them in favour of Mary Queen of Scotland must necessarily be construed
as disloyalty to their sovereign. Copies of the Bull were smuggled
into England, and one man, John Fenton, was found brave enough to risk
his life by affixing a copy to the gates of the palace of the Bishop
of London. He was taken prisoner immediately, and subjected to the
terrible death reserved for traitors (8th August 1570).
While anti-Catholic feeling was running high, Elizabeth summoned
Parliament to meet in April 1571. As danger was to be feared both from
the Catholics and the Puritans special care was taken to ensure that
reliable men should be returned. Several measures were introduced
against the Catholic recusants, who had few sympathisers in the House
of Commons, but in the House of Lords, where the Duke of Norfolk, who
had been released, pleaded for moderation, and was supported by a
small but determined body of the Lords, the feeling was less violent.
Bills were both framed and passed making it treason to obtain Bulls,
briefs, or documents from Rome. The penalty of Praemunire was levelled
against all aiders and abettors of those offenders mentioned above,
together with all who received beads, crosses, pictures, etc., blessed
by the Bishop of Rome, or by any one acting with his authority;[22]
while those who had fled from the kingdom were commanded to return
within six months under penalty of forfeiture of their goods and
property. It was proposed too that all adults should be forced to
attend the Protestant service and to receive Communion at stated
times, but the latter portion was dropped probably at the request of
the Catholic lords. However subservient Parliament might be in regard
to the Catholics it was not inclined to strengthen the hands of the
bishops against the Puritans. Notwithstanding Elizabeth's refusal to
allow discussion of the Thirty Nine Articles, or to permit them to be
published under parliamentary sanction, the members succeeded in
attaining their object indirectly by imposing them on recusants.
Elizabeth was determined, however, to show her faithful Commons that
she and not the Parliament was the supreme governor of the Church.[23]
She took Convocation and the bishops under her protection and
empowered them to issue the Articles in a revised form, so that there
were then really two versions of the Thirty Nine Articles in force,
one imposed by Convocation and the queen and the other by Parliament.
To secure aid against Spain as well as to draw away the French from
supporting the Queen of Scotland Elizabeth made overtures for marriage
to the Duke of Anjou, and at the same time the party in favour of Mary
determined to make a new effort to bring about a marriage between Mary
and the Duke of Norfolk. Ridolfi[24] was the life and soul of the
conspiracy, assisted by the Duke of Norfolk and by the Bishop of Ross,
Mary's ambassador in London. It was hoped to enlist the sympathy of
the Duke of Alva, Philip II. and the Pope, none of whom were unwilling
to aid in overthrowing Elizabeth's rule, but before anything definite
could be done Cecil's spies brought him news of the steps that were
being taken. The Duke of Norfolk was arrested in September 1571, and
placed on his trial in the following January. He was condemned to
death, but as Elizabeth did not wish to take the responsibility of his
execution on herself she waited until it had been confirmed by
Parliament, after which he was led to the block (2nd June 1572).
Parliament also petitioned for the execution of the Queen of Scotland,
but for various reasons Elizabeth refused to accede to their request.
Though the new laws were enforced strictly it is clear from the
episcopal reports that in London itself, in Norwich, Winchester, Ely,
Worcester, in the diocese and province of York, and indeed throughout
the entire country Catholicism had still a strong hold.[25] The old
Marian priests were, however, dying out rapidly. The monasteries and
universities, that had supplied priests for the English mission, were
either destroyed or passed into other hands, so that it became clear
to both friends and foes that unless something could be done to keep
up the supply of clergy the Catholic religion was doomed ultimately to
extinction. This difficulty had occurred to the minds of many of the
English scholars who had fled from Oxford to the Continent, but it was
reserved for Dr. William Allen,[26] formerly a Fellow of Oriel
College, and Principal of St. Mary's Hall, Oxford, and later in 1587 a
Cardinal of the Roman Church, to take practical measures to meet the
wants of his co-religionists in England. He determined to found a
college on the Continent for the education of priests for the English
mission, and as Douay had a new university, in which many of the
former Oxford men had found a home, he opened a college at Douay in
1568.[27] Depending on his own private resources, the contributions of
his friends, and the pensions guaranteed by the King of Spain and the
Pope, he succeeded beyond expectation. Students flocked from England
to the new college, whence they returned on the completion of their
studies to strengthen and console their co-religionists at home. Could
Douay College boast only of the 160 martyrs whom it trained and sent
into England Cardinal Allen would have had good reason to be proud of
his work, but in addition to this the numerous controversial tracts of
real merit that were issued from the Douay printing-press, and
scattered throughout England, helped to keep alive Catholic sentiment
in the country. In Douay too was begun the translation of the
Scriptures into English, the New Testament being published at Rheims
(1582) whither the college had been removed in 1578, and the old
Testament in 1609. In 1576 Allen visited Rome and persuaded Gregory
XIII. to found a college in Rome for the education of English
priests.[28] Students were sent in 1576 and 1577, and a hospice was
granted in 1578 as an English seminary, over which the Jesuits were
placed in the following year. A college was established at Valladolid
by Father Persons (1589), another at Seville in 1592, and one at St.
Omers in 1594.
The failure of the northern rebellion, the repressive measures adopted
by Parliament in 1571, and the betrayal of Ridolfi's fantastic
schemes, did not mean the extinction of Catholicism in England. On the
contrary there was a distinct reaction in its favour, partly through
the failure of the Protestant bishops and clergy to maintain a
consistent religious service such as that which they had overthrown,
partly to the revulsion created by the fanatical vapourings of the
Puritans, but above all to the efforts of the "seminary priests," as
the men who returned from Douay and the other colleges abroad were
called. The older generation of clergy who had been deprived on
Elizabeth's accession were content to minister to their flocks in
secret, and were happy so long as they could escape the meshes of the
law; but the new men who returned from Douay were determined to make
the country Catholic once more or to die in the attempt. They went
boldly from place to place exhorting the Catholics to stand firm, and
they seemed to have no dread of imprisonment, exile or death. Many of
them were arrested and kept in close confinement, while others, like
Thomas Woodhouse (1573), Cuthbert Mayne (1577), John Nelson, and
Thomas Sherwood (1578), gloried in being thought worthy of dying as
their Master had died.[29]
Nor did their fate deter others from following in their footsteps. It
was reported in 1579 that a hundred students had been ordained and
sent into England from Rome and Rheims. The result of the labours of
these apostolic men was soon evident. The government, alarmed at the
sudden resurrection of Popery, urged the bishops and officials to make
new efforts for its suppression. Throughout the various dioceses
inquiries were begun which served only to show that recusancy was no
longer confined to Lancashire or the north. The bishops were obliged
to admit (1577) with sorrow that papists "did increase in numbers and
in obstinacy." They recommended the infliction of fines, and furnished
the authorities with a list of recusants and the value of their
property. In York the archbishop reported that "a more stiff-necked or
wilful people I never knew or heard of, doubtless they are reconciled
with Rome and sworn to the Pope," and what was worse they preferred to
be imprisoned than to listen to the archbishop's harangues. From
Hereford it was announced that "rebellion is rampant, attendance at
church is contemptuous, and John Hareley read so loudly on his latin
popish primer (that he understands not) that he troubles both minister
and people." In Oxford and amongst the lawyers in the Inns of Court
and in the Inns of Chancery popery and superstition were still
flourishing.[30]
To make matters worse it was soon bruited about that the Jesuits,
whose very name was sufficient to instil terror, were preparing for an
invasion of England. The invading force it was true was small, but it
was select. Persons and Campion,[31] both Oxford men, who having gone
into exile joined themselves to the Society of St. Ignatius, were
entrusted with the difficult undertaking. The government, warned by
its spies of their mission, had the ports watched to capture them on
their arrival, but the two priests contrived to elude the vigilance of
their enemies, and succeeded in arriving safely in London (1580). The
news of their arrival could not be kept a secret, and hence they
determined to leave London. Before they separated for the different
fields they had selected, to prevent future misrepresentation of their
aims, Campion wrote an open letter addressed to the lords of the privy
council in defence of his views, which letter having been published
was known as "Campion's challenge." Persons went through the country
from Northampton to Gloucester, while Campion preached from Oxford to
Northampton. They took pains to set up a small printing press, which
was removed from place to place, and from which was issued sufficient
literature to disconcert their opponents. Probably the most remarkable
volume published from the Jesuit printing-press was Campion's /Ten
Reasons/,[32] addressed particularly to the Oxford students amongst
whom it created a great sensation. At last after many hair-breadth
escapes Campion was captured at Lyford and committed to the Tower. He
had challenged his opponents to meet him in a public disputation, and
now that he was in their hands, worn out by his labours and
imprisonment, they determined to take up the challenge in the hope
that by overthrowing him they might shake the faith of his followers.
But despite his weakness and infirmity they found in him so dangerous
and so learned an adversary that the government thought it wiser to
bring the controversy to an end, or rather to transfer it to the law
courts. Even here the captive Jesuit showed that he was quite able to
hold his own with the lawyers. He had been guilty of no treason, he
averred; he acknowledged the queen to be his lawful sovereign; but he
refused to disown the Bull of Deposition. He was found guilty,
condemned to death as a traitor, and was executed with two other
priests in December 1581.[33]
During the wild start of alarm and vexation caused by the reports of
the rising strength of the recusants, the invasion of seminary priests
and of Jesuits, and the help given by Gregory XIII. to the Desmond
rebellion, Parliament met (Jan. 1581). An Act was passed immediately
making it high treason to possess or to exercise the power of
absolving or withdrawing anybody from the established church, and a
similar penalty was levelled against those who permitted themselves to
be reconciled or withdrawn, together with all aiders or abettors. The
punishment decreed for celebrating or assisting at Mass was a fine of
100 marks and one year's imprisonment. Fines of £20 per lunar month
were to be inflicted upon all those who absented themselves from
Common Prayer, and if their absence lasted for an entire year the
delinquents should be obliged to provide heavy securities for their
good behaviour. All schoolmasters or tutors not licensed by the bishop
of the diocese were declared liable to a year's imprisonment, and the
person who employed them to a fine of not less than £10 per month. The
Act was enforced with merciless severity. Fathers Campion, Sherwin,
and Briant were hanged, drawn and quartered at Tyburn (Dec. 1581);
eleven other priests met a similar fate before the end of the
following year, and two priests and two school-masters were hanged,
drawn and quartered in 1583.[34] The news of the execution of Campion
and his fellow labourers created a profound impression on the country.
In reply to the protests that were raised Elizabeth thought at first
of issuing an official statement, but in the end the idea was
abandoned and Cecil, now Lord Burghley, published anonymously two
pamphlets to justify the action of the government. The jails were so
filled with popish recusants that in order to escape the expense of
supporting them, a plan was formed to convey them to North America,
but it could not be executed owing to the opposition of the Spanish
Government. The seminary priests did not, however, allow themselves to
be drawn away from their work either by the terrors of treason or by
the echoes of the wordy war, that was being carried on between Lord
Burghley and his friends on one side, and Dr. Allen and his friends on
the other. A catechism introduced by them was bought up so rapidly
that in a few months it was out of print. A great body of the English
noblemen still held the old faith. In the north Catholics were
numerous and active, and even in the southern and western counties and
in Wales opinion was veering rapidly towards Rome. Had the seminary
priests been left free to continue their work, unimpeded by foreign or
English political plots on the Continent, it is difficult to say what
might have been the result. Unfortunately new plots were hatched under
the protection of France or Spain for the release of Mary Queen of
Scotland, and for her proclamation as Queen of England. Throckmorton,
who had taken the principal part in this affair, was arrested and put
to death; the principal conspirators, men like the Earl of
Northumberland and the Earl of Arundel were sent to the Tower; the
jails were filled with Catholics, and five priests were put to death
at Tyburn (1584).[35]
Parliament met (1585) at a time when the discovery of the plot against
Elizabeth and the news of the assassination of William of Orange had
created great excitement through the country. An association that had
been formed to defend the life of the queen or to revenge her death
was granted statutory powers by Parliament. The queen was authorised
to create a special commission with authority to deal with all
plotters and to exclude from succession to the throne everyone in
whose interest she herself might be assassinated. An Act was passed by
which all Jesuits and seminary priests were commanded to leave England
within forty days under penalty of treason; all persons not in holy
orders studying in any foreign seminary or college were ordered to
return within six months and to take the oath of supremacy within two
days of their arrival if they did not wish to be punished as traitors;
all persons harbouring or assisting a priest were to be adjudged
guilty of felony; all who sent their children abroad except by special
permission were to be fined £100 for each offence, and all who had
knowledge of the presence of a priest in England, and who did not
report it to a magistrate within twelve days were liable to be fined
and imprisoned at the queen's pleasure.[36] This Act was designed to
secure the banishment or death of all the seminary priests, and if any
of them survived it was due neither to the want of vigilance nor to
the mildness of the government. Spies were let loose into every part
of England to report the doings of the clergy and laity. Wholesale
arrests were effected, and great numbers of the clergy put to death
merely because they were priests, and of the laymen merely because
they harboured priests. Three were executed in 1585, thirteen in 1586,
and seven in 1587. To secure the conviction of the prisoners, though
the law had made the conviction sufficiently certain, but more
especially to create popular prejudice against them in the minds of
loyal Englishmen, a series of questions were administered to them
known as the "bloody" or "cut-throat" questions, as for example,
"whose part would you take if the Pope or any other by his authority
should make war on the queen."[37]
The dismissal of the Spanish ambassador after the discovery of the
Throckmorton plot and the assistance given by England to the rebels in
the Netherlands helped to increase the hostility between England and
Spain, and to induce Philip II. to make renewed efforts for the
overthrow of Elizabeth's government, while at the same time the
merciless persecution of the Catholics in England drove many of them
who wished to remain loyal to co-operate with their brethren abroad
and to assist Philip's schemes. This unfortunate combination of
English Catholics with Spanish politicians did more to mar the work of
the seminary priests, and to set back the rising Catholic tide than
all that could have been accomplished by Elizabeth's penal laws or
merciless persecution. The large and increasing body of English people
who began to look with a friendly eye towards the old faith were
shocked by the adoption of such means, and when they found themselves
face to face with the necessity of selecting between an Anglo-Spanish
party and Elizabeth, they decided to throw in their lot with the
latter. The discovery of the Babington plot for the rescue of
Scotland's queen led to the death of its author and the execution of
the lady in whose favour it had been planned (1587). The news of
Mary's execution created a great sensation both at home and abroad. To
prevent hostilities on the part of Mary's son, James VI. of Scotland,
or of the Catholic sovereigns on the Continent, Elizabeth, pretending
to be displeased with her ministers for carrying out the sentence,
ordered the arrest of Davison the secretary to the council, and had
him punished by a fine of £10,000 and imprisonment in the Tower.
Philip II. was not, however, deceived by such conduct, or influenced
by the overtures made for peace. Elizabeth's interference in the
affairs of the Netherlands, the attacks made by her sailors on Spanish
territories and Spanish treasure-ships, and the execution of Mary
Queen of Scotland determined him to make a final effort for the
overthrow of the English government. The great Armada was got ready
for the invasion of England (1588). But the Spanish ships were not
destined to reach the English harbours, nor the Spanish soldiers whom
they carried on board to test their bravery and skill in conflict with
Elizabeth's forces on English soil.
Though there is no evidence either from English or Spanish reports
that Catholics in England welcomed the Armada, since both Lord
Burghley[38] and Philip II. were convinced that Spain could not rely
on their co-operation, and though in many parts of the country
Catholics volunteered for service to fight the invader, the government
determined to wreak its vengeance on the helpless victims in prison.
Within three days six priests and eight laymen were executed near
London (August); nine priests and three laymen were put to death in
October, and before the end of the year thirty-one had suffered the
terrible punishment reserved for traitors, merely because they refused
to conform. The prisons were so full of recusants that new houses were
opened for their detention. The government reaped a rich harvest by
the heavy fines inflicted on the wealthy Catholics and took pains,
besides, to annoy them at every turn by domiciliary visits in search
of concealed priests. Yet the reports from the country, especially
from such places as Lancashire and Cheshire, showed that the Papists
were still dangerously strong. A new proclamation was issued against
seminary priests and Jesuits (1591). Nine priests and two laymen had
been put to death in the previous year (1590), and in 1591 fifteen
were martyred, seven of whom were priests and the rest laymen.
Throughout the remainder of Queen Elizabeth's reign Catholics in
England were not allowed to enjoy peace or respite. If priests, they
were by that very fact liable to be hunted down and condemned as
traitors; if they were laymen of substance, they were beggared by
heavy fines imposed for non-attendance at the English service, or
punished by imprisonment, and if they were too poor to pay a fine they
could be driven from the kingdom for refusing to conform. Apart
altogether from the immense sums levied on Catholics by fines and
forfeitures, and from the number of people who died in prison either
from confinement or torture, one hundred and eighty-nine were put to
death for the faith under Elizabeth, one hundred and twenty-eight of
whom were priests; and yet, notwithstanding this persecution,
Catholics were still comparatively strong at the death of Elizabeth,
and the supply of clergy showed no signs of being exhausted. Over
three hundred and sixty priests were in England attending to the wants
of their co-religionists in 1603.
Unfortunately the dissensions among the Catholic party in England and
on the Continent did more harm to their cause than Elizabeth's
persecutions. The close co-operation of Allen and Persons with Spanish
political designs for the overthrow of Elizabeth and the invasion of
England was as distasteful to a large body of the lay Catholics in
England as it was to many of the clergy.[39] Though serious disputes
had broken out long before, it was only after the death of Cardinal
Allen in 1594 that the crisis reached a head. Many of the secular
clergy objected warmly to the influence of the Jesuits, and ugly
controversies broke out in England and in the English colleges abroad.
Persons and his friends were supposed to be plotting in favour of the
succession of a Catholic to the throne on the death of Elizabeth,
while most of their opponents favoured the succession of James VI. of
Scotland, from whom they expected at least toleration. To put an end
to what the latter regarded as the excessive authority of the Jesuits
they insisted on the appointment of a bishop who would take charge of
English affairs, but for various reasons the Holy See refused to yield
to their request. As a compromise, however, George Blackwell was
appointed archpriest (1598) with secret instructions, it was said, to
consult Garnet, the Jesuit superior in England. The selection was
singularly unfortunate, as neither from the point of view of prudence
nor of reliability was Blackwell fitted for the extremely delicate
position which he was called upon to fill. The seculars refused at
first to obey his authority and appealed again to the Pope, who
confirmed the appointment. As many of the seculars were still
unwilling to yield some of the leaders were censured by the
archpriest. A new appeal was forwarded to Rome. In 1602 Clement VIII.
issued a document upholding the authority of the archpriest, and,
while firmly defending the Jesuits against the charges that had been
made against them, warned Blackwell that he should not take his
instructions from any person except from the Pope or the Cardinal
Protector of England.[40] This controversy could not be kept a secret.
It was known to the entire Catholic body, and it was used with great
force and success by their opponents. The government took sides with
the secular clergy and offered them facilities for carrying their
appeals to Rome, but news of the secret negotiations between the
seculars and the authorities having been divulged Elizabeth issued a
new proclamation (1602) in which she announced that she had never any
intention of tolerating two religions in England.[41] The Jesuits and
their adherents were commanded to quit the kingdom within thirty days,
and their opponents within three months under penalty of treason. To
give effect to this proclamation a new commission with extraordinary
powers was appointed to secure the banishment of the Catholic clergy.
The seculars, who had opposed the archpriest, encouraged by the
distinction drawn in the proclamation between the two classes of
English priests, the loyal and the disloyal, determined to draw up an
address to the queen proclaiming their civil allegiance,[42] but
before it was considered Elizabeth had passed away, and the fate in
store for them was to be determined by a new ruler.
----------
[1] Cf. F. W. Maitland in /Eng. Hist. Review/ (April, 1900). Father
Pollen, S.J., in /The Month/ (Oct., 1900). Id., /Papal
Negotiations with Mary Queen of Scots/, xxvi.
[2] Wilkins, /Concilia/, iv. 180.
[3] Birt, /The Elizabethan Religious Settlement/, 36-8.
[4] On the constitution of the House of Commons, cf. Froude, /Hist. of
Eng./, vii., 40-41.
[5] Wilkins, /Concilia/, iv., 179.
[6] For an account of this Conference, cf. /English Catholic Record
Society/, vol. i. Foxe, /Acts and Monuments/, 1839, viii., 679
sqq.
[7] Birt, op. cit., 91-2.
[8] Phillips, /The Extinction of the Ancient Hierarchy/, 112-114.
[9] For a full treatment of the attitude of the clergy, cf. Blirt, op.
cit., chap. iv. The best history of the resistance and sufferings
of the Marian Bishops is to be found in Phillips' /Extinction of
the Ancient Hierarchy/, 1905.
[10] Cf. Estcourt, /The Question of Anglican Orders/, 1873. Barnes,
/The Pope and the Ordinal/, 1898. Smith, S.J., /Reasons for
Rejecting Anglican Orders/, 1896. Moyes (in the /Tablet/, 1895,
Feb.-May, Sept.-Dec., also 1897).
[11] Cf. Birt, op. cit., chaps. iv., v., xii. Kennedy, /Parish Life
under Queen Elizabeth/, 1914, chap. vii. Frere, /History of the
English Church in the reigns of Elizabeth and James I./, 1904,
61-7.
[12] Pollen, /Papal Negotiations/, etc., xlvi-vii.
[13] Dodd-Tierney, op. cit., iii., app. cccxi.
[14] Frere, op. cit., 60.
[15] Id., op. cit., 99.
[16] Hardwick, /Articles of Religion/, 1859. Gibson, /Thirty-nine
Articles/, 2nd edition, 1898.
[17] Cf. Newman, /Tract 90/ (/Tracts for the Times/). Duchesne,
/Églises Séparées/, 1896. Lingard, vii., 384 sqq. Moyes, /A Talk
on Continuity/ (C. T. Society, authorities cited). /Tablet/ (1911-
12).
[18] /Political History of England/, vi., chap. xv. (The Crisis of
Elizabeth's Reign).
[19] Meyer, /England und die Katholische Kirche/, 64.
[20] Printed in Dodd-Tierney, iii., app. ii.
[21] Meyer, op. cit., 70 sqq.
[22] /Statutes/, 13 Eliz., c. 2.
[23] /Political History of England/, vi., 363.
[24] Rev. J. H. Pollen, S.J., /The Month/, Feb., 1902.
[25] Kennedy, /Parish Life under Queen Elizabeth/, chap. vii., viii.
[26] Haile, /An Elizabethan Cardinal/, 1914. Knox, /Letters and
Memorials of William Cardinal Allen/, 1882. /Allen's Defence of
Eng. Catholics/, 1913 (The Cath. Library, ii.).
[27] Cf. /The English Cath. Refugees on the Continent/, i., 1914.
Lechat, /Les Refugiés anglais dans les Pays-Bas espagnols durant
le règne d'Elisabeth/, 1914. Bellesheim, /Wilhelm Cardinal Allen
und die Engl. Seminare auf dem Festlande/, 1885.
[28] Foley, /Records of the English Province of the Society of Jesus/,
ii. /Cath. Record Society of Engl./, ii., 1906.
[29] Bede-Camm, /Lives of the Eng. Martyrs/, ii., 204-49.
[30] Frere, op. cit., 206-15.
[31] Persons, /Memoirs Cath. Rec. Society of Eng./, ii., iv., 1906-7.
Simpson, /Edmund Campion/, 1896.
[32] Published in Cath. Library Series, vol. 6, 1914.
[33] Allen, /Martyrdom of Edmund Campion, and his Companions/, edited,
Father Pollen, 1908.
[34] Bede-Camm, op. cit., 249 sqq.
[35] Burton-Pollen, /Lives of English Martyrs/, vol. i., 1583-88,
1914.
[36] /Statutes/, 27 Eliz., c. 2.
[37] Burton-Pollen, op. cit., xvi. sqq.
[38] Burton-Pollen, op. cit., xxiv. sqq.
[39] Pollen, /Politics of the English Catholics during the reign of
Elizabeth/ (/Month/, 1902-4). Law, /Jesuits and Seculars in the
reign of Elizabeth/, etc., 1889. Id., /The Archpriest Controversy
Documents/, etc., 1896 (Camden Society). /Eng. Catholic Record
Society/, vol. ii.
[40] Dodd-Tierney, iii., app. xxxiv.
[41] Dodd-Tierney, app. xxxv.
[42] Id., app. no. xxxvi.