Brief Chronicle Concerning Examination and Death of John Oldcastle, Part 6
☞The diffynytyue sentence of his condemnacyon.
IN De…nomine / Amen. Nos Thomas permissione diuina Cantuariensis ecclesie Archiepiscopus / Ex magno processu Thome Arundeli.metropolitanus / totius Anglie primas / & Apostolice fedis legatus / & so fourth in Barberouse Latyne / which I hauehave here translated into Englyshe for a more playne vnderstandynge to ye reader. …
In the name of God. So be yt. Vve Thomas by the sufferaunce of God Archebysshop of Caunterburye / Suffered of god / as a plage.metropolytane / and prymate of all Englande / and legate from the Apostolyque seate of Rome / willeth this to be knowen vntounto all menne. In a certen cause of heresye and vponupon dyuerse artycles / wherevpon syr Iohan Oldecastell knyght and lorde Cobham / after a dilygent inquysycyon made for the same / was detected / An heretyque for confessynge Christ.accused / and presented before vsus in oure last conuocacyon of all oure whole clergye of oure prouince of Caunterburye / holden in the cathedrall churche of Paules at london. At the lawfull denouncement & request of oure vnyuersall clergye in the seyd conuocacyon / we proceded agaynst him accordyng to the lawe (God to wytnesse) with all the fauer possyble. And folowynge Christes example in all that we myght / (which willeth not the death of a synner / but rather that he be conuerted & lyue) we toke vponupon vsus to correct him / Ezec. 18. Ezec. 33.and sought all other wayes possyble to bryng him agayne to the churches vnyte / declarynge vntounto him what the holye and vnyuersall churche of Rome hath sayd / holden / determyned / and taught in that behalfe.The wolfe wolde apere charytable. And though we founde him in the catholyque fayth farre wyde and so styffnecked that he wolde not cō fesse his errour / nor pourge himselfe / nor yet repent him therof. Vve yet pyteynge him of fatherlye compassyon / and inteyrlye desyerynge the helthe of his sowle / appoynted him a competent tyme of delyberacyon / to se yf he wolde repent and seke to be reformed.Se / yf they shewe not themselues. And sens we hauehave founde him worse and worse. Consyderynge therfore that he is incorrygyble / we are dryuen to the verye extremyte of the lawe / and with great heuynesse of hart we now procede to the fynall publycacyon of the sentence diffynytyue agaynst him.
Idyotes / knaues / & b…astes.Than brought he forth an other byll contaynynge the seyd sentence / & that he redde also in his Bauger Latyne. Christi nomine inuocato / ipsum…z solumpre oculie habentes. Quia peracta inactitata / and so forth. VvhichWhich I hauehave also translated into Englyshe that mē ne maye vnderstande yt:
Ex magno processu Thome Arundeli.Christ we take vntounto wytnesse / that nothynge els we seke in this oure whole enterpryse / but his onlye glorye. For as moche as we hauehave founde by diuerse actes done / brought forth / and exhybyted / by sordrye euydences / sygnes / and tokens / and also by manye most manyfest proues / the seyd syr Iohan Oldecastell knyght and lorde Cobham / not onlye an euydent heretyque in his owne persone / but also a myghtye mayntene… of other heretyques agaynst the faythe and relygyon of the holye and vnyuersall churche of Rome / That churche is an whore.namelye abought the two sacramentes of the aultre and of penaunce / besydes the Popes power and pylgrymages. And that he as the chylde of iniquyte and darkenesse / A these is that pastour.hath so hardened his hart that he will in no case attende vntounto the voyce of his pastour. Neyther will he be assured by strayght admonyshmentes / nor yet b… brought in by fauorable wordes. The worthynesse of the cause fyrst wayed on the one syde / and his vnworthynesse agayne consydered on the othe syde / his fawtes also aggrauated / or made double through his damnable obstynacye.A colour of deceyt is this. Vve beynge lothe that he which is nought shuld be woase / and so with his contagyousnesse infect the multytude. By the sage counsell and assent of the verye dyscrete fathers / oure honorable bretherne and lorde Bysshoppes here present / A sort of vnlerned beastes.Rycharde of London / Henrye of Vvynchestre / and Benet of Bangor / and of other great lerned and wyse mē ne here / both doctours of diuynyte and of the lawes canon and ciuyle / seculars and relygyouse / with dyuerse other expert menne assystynge vsus / we sentencyallye and dyffynytyuelye by this present wrytynge / As Cayphas ded Christ.iudge / declare / and condemne the seyd syr Iohan Olde castell knyght and lorde Cobham for a most pernycyouse and detestable heretyque conuicted vponupon the same and refusynge vtterlye to obeye the Churche agayne / commyttynge him here from hens forth as a condemned heretyque to the secular iurisdiccyon / power / and iudgemēt to do him thervpon to death. Forthermore we excommunycate and denounce acursed not onlye this heretyque here present / Christ is comdēned ī his faythfull membre.but so manye els besydes as shall here after in fauer of his errour …yther receyue him or defende him / coū sell him / or helpe him / or anye other waye maynteyne him / as verye fawters receyuer… / defenders / counsellers / ayders / and maynteners of condemned heretyques.
How spirituall these holy fathers are.And that these premysses maye be the better knowen to all faythfull Christen menne / we cōmyt yt here vntounto your charges and geue ye streyght commaū dement thervpon by this wrytynge also / that ye cause this condemnacyon and diffynytyue sentence of excommunycacyon concernynge both this heretyque and his fawtours to be publyshed through out all youre dyoceses in cytees / townes / and vyllages by youre curates and parryshe Prestes / soche tyme as they shall hauehave most recourse of people.antichrist sendeth forth his souldyers And se that yt be done after this sort. As the people are thus gathered deuoutlye togyther / lete the curate euerye where go into the pulpet / and there open / declare / and expounde this processe in the mother tonge in an audyble and intellygyble voyce / that yt maye wele be perseyued of all mēne / No soche voyce for ye Gospelland that vponupon the feare of this declaracyon also / the people maye fall from theyr yll opynyons conceyued now of late by sedycyouse preachers. More ouer we will that after we hauehave delyuered vntounto yche one of yow Bysshoppes (which are here present) a copye herof / Non off yce left vndone / perteynynge to Antichrist.that ye cause the same to be written out agayne into dyuerse copyes / and so to be sent vntounto the other Bysshoppes and Prelates of oure whole prouince / that they maye also se the contentes therof solempnelye publyshed within theyr dyoceses and cures. Fynallye we will that both yow and they signyfye agayne vntounto vsus seryouslye and dystynctlye by youre wrytynges / A craftye knaue in that poynt.as the matter is without fayned colour in euerye poynt perfourmed / the daye wher vponupon ye receyued this processe / the tyme whan yt was of yow executed / and after what sort yt was done in euerye condycyon / accordynge to the tenour herof / that we maye knowe yt to be iustlye the same.Thomas Vvalden. in fasciculo zizaniorum Vvicleui.
A copye of this wrytynge sent Thomas Arundell the Archebysshop of Caū terburye after warde from Maydeston the .x. daye of Octobre within the same yeare of oure Lorde a .M.cccc. and .xiii. vntounto Rycharde Clyfforde the Bysshop of Londō / which thus beginneth / Thomas permissione diuina &c.
The seyd Rycharde Clyfforde sent an other copye therof / enclosed within his owne letters / vntounto Robert Mascall a Carmelyte fryre which was than Bisshop of Herforde in Vvalis / Rycharde Clyffordewrytten from Hadham the .xxiii. daye of Octobre in the same yeare / and the beginnynge therof is this. Reuerende in Christo pater &c.
The seyd Robert Mascall directed an other copye therof from London the xxvii. daye of Nouembre in the same yeare / Robert Mascallenclosed in his owne cōmissyon also / vntounto his Archedeacons and Deanes in Herfforde and Shrewesburye. And this is therof the begynnynge. Venerabilibus & discretis viris &c. In lyke maner ded the other Bysshoppes within theyr dyoceses.
After that the Archebysshop had thus redde the byll of his condempnacyon with most extremyte before the whole multytude / the lorde Cobhā sayd,Ex vtroque exemplari. with a most cherefull coūtenaunce. Though ye iudge my bodye which is but a wretched thynge / Mat. 10. Iob. 1.yet am I certayne and sure that ye can do no harme to my sowle / nomore than coude Sathan vponupon the sowle of Iob.Mat. 10. Iob. 1. He that created that / will of his infynyte mercye and promes saue yt / I hauehave therin no maner of doubt. And as concernynge these artycles before rehersed / A worthye warryour.I will stande to them euē to the verye death by the grace of my eternall God.
And therwith he turned him vntounto ye people / castynge his handes a broode and sayenge with a verye lowde voyce. Good Christen peple / for Gods louelove bewele ware of these mēne.Christenlye warned. Mat. 15. For they will els begyle yow and leade yow blyndelynges into hell with themselues. For Christ sayth playnelye vntounto you. If one blynde manne leadeth an other / they are lyke both to fall into the dytche.
After this he fell downe there vponupon his knees / and thus before them all prayed for his enemyes / holdynge vp both his handes and his eyes towardes heauen / and sayenge:He prayeth for his enemyes. Lorde God eternall / I besyche the for thy great mercyes sake to forgeue my persuers / yf yt be thy blyssed will. And than he was delyuered to syr Robert Morleye / and so ledde forth agayne to the tower of London. And thus was there an ende of that dayes worke.
Ex vetusto exemplari Londinensiū.Vvhyle the lorde Cobham was thus in the tower / he sent out preuylye vntounto his fryndes. And they at his …esyre wrote this lytle byll here folowynge / causynge yt to be set vp in dyuerse quarters of London / that the people shuld not beleue the slaunders and lyes that his enemyes the Bysshoppes seruauntes and Prestes had made on him a brode.Enemyes And this was the lettre.
For as moche as syr Iohan Oldecastell knyght and lorde Cobham / A testimonyall made by his fryndes.is vntruely conuicted and inprosoned / falselye reported and slaundered amonge ye comon people by his aduersaryes / that he shuld otherwyse both fele and speake of the sacramentes of the churche / and specyallye of the blessed sacrament of the aultre / than was written in the confessyon of his beleue / which was indented and taken to the clergye / and so set vp in dyuerse open places in the cyte of London.To stoppe lyenge lyppes. knowen be yt here to all the worlde / that he neuer sens varyed in anye poynt therfro / A rehersall of his beleue.but this is playnelye his beleue / that all the sacramentes of the churche be profytable and expedyent also to all them that shall be saued / takynge them after the intent that Christ and his true churche hath ordayned. Forthermore he beleueth that in the blessed sacramēt of the aultre is ve…lye and truelye Christes bodye in fourme of breade.
After this the Bysshoppes and Prestes were in moche obloquye both of the nobylyte and commōs / The clergye in hate of the peopl….partlye for that they had so cruellye handeled the good lorde Cobham / and partlye agayne bycause his opynyon (as they thought at that tyme) was perfyght concernynge the sacrament. As they feared this to growe to forther inconuenyence towardes them both wayes / they drewe theyr heades togyther and at the last consented to vse an other practyse somwhat cō trarye to that they had done afore.A practyse of false prestes.
They caused yt by and by to be blowne a brode by theyr feed seruauntes / fryndes / & hablynge syr Iohanes / that the seyd lorde Cobham was becomē a good manne / and had lowlye submytted him selfe in all thynges vntounto holye churche vtterlye changynge his opynyon concernynge the sacrament.These are ther common feares. And thervpon they counterfeted an abiuracyon in his name / that the people shuld take no holde of that opynyon by anye thynge they had hearde of him before / and to stande so in the more awe of them consyderynge him so great a manne / & by them subdued.
This is the abiuracyon (saye they) of syr Iohan Oldecastell knyght / somtyme the lorde Cobham.