The Pageant of Popes, Book 5 · Part 37
117. Innocentius the thirde.
AFter Celestine was Innocētius ye third, who so boyled in anger agaīst Philip the Emperour, because he was made Emperour by the Germaynes contrary to his will, that he brast out into these wordes: Eyther shall the Pope spoile Philip of his Crowne and Empyre, or els shal Philip take frō the Pope his Apostolical dignitye. After this hee sturred vp against ye Emperour, one Otho a duke both boulde and rashe, so that by this holye fathers helpe there grewe cruell bloudshed and foule slaughter infinite, vntill that this Philip the Emperour was traytecouslye and vilanously slaine by another Otho, and this Otho whom the Pope had set on against Philip poasted to Rome, and of him was made Emperour. But this bloudy league did not last long betwene them: for as sone as Otho began to reclaime & recouer such thinges as of right belōged to the Empyre, (which ye Popes by subtil practises had purloyned many yeres) he was excōmunicated by the Pope himselfe, and spoyled of all his royall estate: furthermore he discharged al his Princes of theyr alledgeaunce, which by oath they ought to Otho, and commaūded vppon payne of his cruell curse, that no man should take Otho to be Emperour, nor call him so, and caused the Princes to make Fredericke king of Sicill Emperour. Also this Innocent Anno 1212. sought to compasse three harde matters, that is the deposing of Otho, a voyage to Hierusalem, and a general councel. Also the same yeare (sayth Vlricus Mutius certaine noble men of Alsatia did condemne this Pope of impietye, because he would not suffer the clergye to keepe their wyues, & the bishops burned an hundred in one daye, because they taught that Christians might lawfullye eate fleshe, and marrye at any time.
This mischeuous Innocent did mischeuouslye contriue many cruell tragedyes against king Iohn of Englande: he euen in despite and defiance of the kinge, did thrust (an enemye to the Realme called Steuen Langton a Cardinall) into the bishopricke of Canterbury, and encouraged threescore and foure monkes to worke seueral treasons against him. Because the king would not suffer these treacheryes, he condemned him to be an ennemy of the Church, excommunicated him from the company of all Christians, interdited his kingdome vi. yeres and three monethes, deposed him from gouernment, toke from him the Crowne and ye Scepter, discharged his subiectes of their allegeaunce, gaue his Realme to Lewes the French kinges sonne, commaunded to spoile him both of goodes and life, with diuers other tyrannous dealinges. Kinge Iohn beinge dismayed with these stormes being otherwise a noble and valiant Prince, yet because he was forsaken of his nobilitye, his bishops and commonaltye, submitted himselfe full sore against his hart to ye Popes obeysaunce: compelled to acknowledge the Pope to be supreame heade ouer all Christendome, and God vppon earth, and bound himselfe with a solempne oath to stande to the Popes arbitrement, and yt his posteritye should do the like, to acknowledge themselues perpetuall tributaryes to the Popes of Rome. Also he kneeling vppon his knees to Pandulphus, yelded vp his Crowne in the presence of all his nobilitye, sayinge: Here I resigne vp the Crowne of Englande to Pope Innocent the thirde &c. Which Pandulphus kept for fiue dayes, during which time the king was as a priuate person: & then being bound to paye the Pope for his Crowne a thousande markes a yeare, with other shamefull conditions, he receiued his Crowne at the handes of Pandulphus, pardoning and restoring to full estate all those that had rebelled, conspired and wroughte treason against him. And yet by the procuremente of Steuen Langton Archbishop of Yorke, & other of the clergye and priestes of Englande, he was myserablye vexed with treasons and rebellions continuallye, for certaine of the nobilitye and priestes, had chosen Lodowicke to be their kinge, sonne to Lewes kinge of Fraunce: who entred the Realme and toke the estate vppon him by theyr maintenaunce against kinge Iohn, to the great hart breaking of the noble Prince, the spoyling of the Realme, and oppression of themselues, while this forren Prince bestowed all thinges vppon his owne countreymen, accomptinge the Englishe nobles that assisted him to be but traytours. In the ende after much miserye and sorrowe a certaine monke (as Caxton sayth) named Simō, of Swinested abbey in Lincolnshire did there temper a cuppe of wyne with the poyson of a toade, & drinking thereof to the kinge both hee and the king were poysoned and dyed: For which doinge the sayde monke had a certaine masse songe for his soule confirmed by the abbots procurement for euer.
This Innocentius vnderunder the colour of recouering Hierusalem, held a councell at Lateran Anno 1215 against the Emperour to excommunicate him, & depose him, because he had inuaded certaine Cityes of ye Popes. In this coū cell the Pope first wrested oute Auricular confession, and robbed the laitye of the Cōmunion cuppe. He condemned one Almericus a learned man for an hereticke, & commaū ded his bones to be burned wt the rest of his sect at Paris: this he did (sayth Dominicus Soto in a certaine Sermon) because he preached that Images should be put out of the Church. Amonge manye other dotinge decrees, he disanulled the mariage of the clergye for euer, he required priuye tithes to be payde, and to maintayne warre in Asia, he commaunded the fourtye part of all reuenues to be paide. He toke from many Partriarkes, archbishops, & bishops, their ordinarye auctoritye in many thinges. He commaunded that the quarels of Princes should be broughte before the Pope to be determined by him: and if the electiō of the Emperour could not be agreed vponupon, then it should belōg onelye to the Pope. He deuised that the Communion cake should be kept in a boxe in the Church, and that when the priest shoulde visit the sicke, he shoulde go with a burninge Taper and a bell before him: He made the Canon of the masse to be equal in auctority with the Scripture, and that the Pope should hauehave power to correct and controll Princes, that none should be Emperour, vnlesse he were crowned by the Pope, finally he dyed Anno 1216. In his time Liuonia first recouered papistrye, & Peter kinge of the Arrogons was inueigled to yeild his kingdome & all his dominions tributarye to Rome, to purchase his saluation. A certaine noble man in England hearing that this Pope had againe condemned priestes mariage in Lateran councel, did make a certaine rime thereof the yeare following, which one Iohn Pullan founde in an olde booke at Oxeforde as followeth.
PRisciani regula penitus cassatur,
Sacerdos per hic & haec olim declinatur:
Sed per hic solum modo nunc articulatur,
Cum per nostrum praesulem haec amoueatur.
Olde Priscians rule doth whollye go to wracke,
Because sacerdos earst declinde with hic and haec,
Must be declined nowe but euen with hic alone,
Our prelat hath compelled nowe haec for to be gone.
Ita quidam presbyter cepit allegare,
Peccat capitaliter qui vult seperare:
Quod Deus coniunxerat foeminam amare
Tales dignum duximus fures appellare.
A certaine priest began in this wyse for to reason,
Against the lawe of God he sinneth in hye treason:
Who parteth that which God hath toynde as wyfe from man,
To call these robbing theeues full well auouch we can.
O quàm dolor anxius, quàm tormentum graue,
Nobis est dimittere, quoniam suaue.
O Romane pontifex, statuisti prauè,
Ne in tanto crimine moriaris, caue.
Alas what paine it is, what torment, and what griefe,
For vsus to leaue our wyues our comfort and reliefe?
Thou Popishe prelat dost this wicked lawe beginne,
Take heede thou do not dye continuing in this sinne.
Non est Innocentius, immò nocens verè,
Qui quod facto docuit, verbo vult delere:
Et quod olimiuuenis voluit habere,
Modò vetus pontifex studet prohibere.
He is not Innocent but nocent may be termed,
That doth condemne by word that he by deede confirmed:
And thoughe that he himselfe, in youthfull yeares did louelove it,
Now he a doting Pope doth labour to impriue it.
Gignere nos praecipit vetus testamentum:
Nouum quod non retinet, nusquam est inuentum.
Praesul qui contrarium donat documentum,
Nullum necessarium his dat argumentum.
Thould Testament sayth multiplye and increase,
Which in the newe Testament is not found to cease:
The prelate that bidding the contrary, seemeth to abhorre it▪
Of this his doing brings no lawfull reason for it.
Dedit enim dominus maledictionem,
Viro qui non fecerit generationem.
Ergo tibi consulo per hanc rationem,
Gignere vt habeas benedictionem.
For by the mouth of God the man is cursed and band,
Which hath not raysed seede and children to the land.
Therefore I do aduise you prouide you may hauehave isseu
Whereby it may be so the Lord our God may blesse you.
Non ne de militibus milites procedunt?
Et reges à regibus, qui sibi succedunt?
Per locum à simili, omnes iura laedunt,
Clericos qui gignere, crimen esse credunt.
Do not men of warre of men of warre procede?
And kinges of kinges, that do vppon their throne succede:
So the similitude houldes, they do offend in dotage,
That thinke it is a fault the clergye should hauehave mariage.
Zacharias habuit prolem & vxorem,
Per virum quem genuit adeptus honorem.
Baptizauit etenim mundi Saluatorem:
Pereat qui teneat nouum hunc errorem.
Zachary had both a wyfe and a sonne,
By him whom he begat great dignitye he wonne:
Baptizing him on whom our soules health doth depend.
Then cursed be hee, that doth this error new defend.
Paulus rapitur ad coelos superiores,
Vbi multas didicit res secretiores.
Ad nos tandem rediens, instruens que mores,
Suas (inquit) habeat quilibet vxores.
Up vntounto the third heauen S. Paule was translated,
Whereas he hard many misteryes debated:
And after comming downe and teaching vsus trade of lyfe,
Let eueryevery man quoth he enioye his proper wyfe.
Propter haec & alia dogmata doctorum,
Reor esse melius, & magis decorum,
Quis que suam habeat, & non proximorum.
Ne incurrat odium vel iram eorum.
For these thinges and diuers doctours decrees,
With right and comlinesse I thincke it more agrees:
Ech should his owne wyfe hauehave, and not his neighbours borrow,
Lest thereby he procure wrath, malice, mischiefe and sorrow.
Proximorum foeminas, filias & neptes,
Violare nefas est, quare nil deceptes.
Verè tuam habeas, in qua delectes,
Diem vt sic vltimum tutius expectes.
It is a deadly sinne therefore be not beguiled,
Thy neighbours wyfe, neice, or doughter, to be of the defiled:
Therefore take thee a wyfe in whom thou maist delight thee,
And at the latter daye more safely to acquite thee.
Ecce iam pro clericis multum allegaui,
Nec non pro prestyteris plura comprobaui,
Pater noster nunc pro me, quoniam peccaui,
Dicat quisque presbyter, cum sua suaui.
Thus for the clergye much I hauehave alleaged,
And also for our priestes largelye hauehave I pleaded:
Now all priestes with your wyues to God for me render,
A Pater noster for that I am an offendour.
FINIS.