A General Martyrology, Chapter 37
CHAP. XXXVII. The Persecution of the Church of Christ in the Valtoline, Anno Christi, 1620.
THe Grison Lords, who were the Soveraign Magistrates of this Countrey, had by sundry Decrees granted liberty to the Protestants to exercise their Religion freely: But when as the Minister of Tell, with his Congregation,Popish treachery. were met together about the service of God, the bloody Papists rising in arms, set upon them, slew one, and beate others so cruelly with staves, that they were forced to desist from their purpose: Shortly after they murthered some others,Cruelty. and conspiring with some other bloody villaines, they set guards upon all the passages of the valley, that so none of the Protestants should escape them; then ringing their bells, they raised all the Countrey, and if any Protestants stirred out of their houses, they murthered them in the streets: they also brake into the houses of others, drew them out of their beds, and murthered them. Some of the Protestants retired to the houses of Papists that were neer of kin, or otherwise engaged to them, to secure themselves, but there they were betrayed and murthered: Some they strangled; some they shot; Of some they beate out their brains, and others they drowned in the river Alba.
A noble Gentleman that had hid himself in the river,A Noble Gentleman murthered. was found by them, who requested them to spare his life, for his dear childrens sake: But they told him that this was no time for pity, except he would abjure his faith, and swear by the Popes Bull: Nay said he, God forbid, that to save this temporal life, I should deny my Lord Jesus Christ, who with his precious blood upon the Crosse redeemed me at so dear a rate; Christ preferred before all.and having through his grace so long freely and publikely professed him, that I should now hazard the losse of eternal life, to which I was elected before the foundation of the world; I say God forbid. Hereupon in a barbarous and savage manner they murthered him. They brake also into the Palace of the Governour, and murthered him; women and maidens they defloured; and of all the Protestants in that part of the Countrey, there were onelyonly three that escaped over the horrid and vast mountains of the Alps into Rhetia.
These wicked villaines having thus dispatched the Protestants in this place, they marched to another, coming just at the time when the Protestants were at Church hearing a Sermon: They were guided to the place by two Friers; the Protestants seeing them coming, shut the Church doors, barricadoing them up with benches: these villaines laboured to break open the door, but when they could not readily do it, they clambred up into the windows, through which they shot with their musquets at the people, whereby they wounded and killed many: The Minister bei…g▪ a man rarely endued with learning and piety,Protestants murthered at Church. according to the shortnesse of time, exhorted them with lively reasons to persevere in the truth notwithstanding all the danger; but in the mean time these barbarous Papists had forced open the door, where they fell to murthering of all without respect of quality, sex, or age: Some Lords and Gentlemen were here slaine, the Minister was shot to death; divers Ladies and children gate into the Belfree to save themselves; but these hell-hounds set fire to the place, and miserably burnt them all.
At Sondres.These savage wretches having thus glutted themselves with innocent blood in this place, they marched to Sondresse: The Papists in that place hearing of their coming, went to the Justice, protesting that they would guard him from danger, and that they would not suffer such villanies to be committed amongst them: Then did they beat their Drums, ring their Bells, and arme themselves under pretence of securing the Protestants, who trusting to their promises, mixed themselves amongst them to stand for their own defence; These Popelings concealing their mischievous intent, killed now one, then another,Popish treachery. as if it had been by accident, so that though divers of them were slain, yet they found not out the mystery of the practice: yet some, both men and Gentlewomen sought to escape, but all passages being shut up, they were met with and cruelly murthered. Then did they more openly discover their malice, killing the Protestants where ever they met them: hereupon some eighteen of the Protestants, together with some Ladies and young children gat together; and the men being well armed, they marched close together, repulsing their enemies, and at last came to a Church in the mountain of Sondresse, unto which place a Minister, and some others, in all, about seventy three men were gathered together, and after their prayers made unto God, they passed the Valley of Malaneo, which was beset by the enemy on two sides; but such as kept the passages, were by Gods special providence,A special Providence. so astonished that they fled away; and the Protestants, though they were pursued to the tops of the mountains, yet did miraculously escape with safety.
Then did the Pesants joyne with these villaines to rob and plunder the houses of the Protestants, and amongst them, divers Noblemens houses richly furnished with great abundance; They ran up and down also through fields, woods and mountains, searching every bush for the Protestants; and as they found any of them, they presently murthered them.
A noble Lady.There was an honorable Lady that not long before came out of Italy to enjoy her liberty of conscience, whom they exhorted to change her Religion, which she refusing, they advised her that yet at least she would▪ do it out of a care of her young infant which she held in her armes, which otherwise, together with her self should presently be slain: But she with an undaunted courage answered: I have not departed out of Italy,Courage, and constancy. my native countrey, nor forsaken all the estate that I had there, to renounce now the faith which I had wrought in me by the Lord Jesus Christ; yea I will rather suffer, if it were possible, a thousand deaths; And how shall I have regard in this case to my infant, since God my heavenly Father spared not his own Sonne my Lord Jesus Christ, but delivered him up to death for his love to me, and such sinners as I am? and so giving her childe to one, she said, Behold my child, the Lord God, who hath care of the birds of the aire, is much more able to save this poore creature, although by you it should be left to these wild mountains:Faith. Then unlacing her gown, she opened her breast, saying, Here is the body which you have power to kill; but my soul, on which you have no power to lay your hands, that I commend to my God; and so she was presently slain, and hewed in pieces; The infant being a lovely and sweet Child, they spared, and delivered it to a Popish Nurse to be brought up.A special Providence.
These miscreants finding such sweetnesse by the plunder of the Protestants; they spared none, plundering their houses twice or thrice over: Some noble Matrons had their rings pul'd off their fingers; and if they refused presently to draw them off,Horrible cruelties. they would cut off either their hands or fingers from them. Some women with their children were dragged to the tops of high Mountains, and threatned to be thrown down headlong with their children if they would not promise to go to Masse; and though one amongst them was found, that through terrour, promised them to do it, yet did they throw her down with the rest without all pity.
One Dominico Berto of sixteen years old,Dominico Berto▪ Barbarous cruelty. they set upon an Asse with his face to the tayle, and the tayle in his hands for the bridle, and thus with many jears they led him to the Market-place; then they cut off his nose, ears, and cheeks, then burned many holes in several parts of his body with hot irons, continuing these torments till in that barbarous manner they had killed him. Yet through the wonderful goodnesse of God, some Ministers with their wives and children, by great travel, dangers,A special providence. and difficulties amongst the craggy and high mountains, were delivered out of the hands of these bloody persecutors.
Theophilus Messino was shot with a Musket, but being not slain, they set open his mouth with a gag, filled it with gunpowder,Theophilus Messino. and giving fire to it, tore his head miserably; his son was slain with many wounds.
Another being wounded and stripped naked, was carried out and thrown into the woods; yet afterwards he gat up and went home to his own house, where he had mountains of gold profered him if he would turn Papist, yet, through Gods mercy, he continued faithful to the death.Constancy.
A young Gentleman, too much addicted to the vanities of the world▪ being earnestly sollicited to forsake the Protestant Religion, stoutly refused, whereupon they shot him with a Musket,Tentation resisted. and having layn a while, and then raising himself up, he besought them to dispatch him, that he might render his soul to his Creator.
Divers men and women were thrown down from Bridges into the river Adda, and drowned for their constancy in the truth.
Prodigious cruelties.Some had their mouthes s…i… up to their ears, others had the flesh cut from their faces; others were slashed in other parts of their body till they dyed; and others were often put to the strappado, and then hewen in pieces.
A noble Virgin that was come to Sondres for Religion sake, these villains took and carried her through the streets with the greatest shame and disgrace that could be:A noble Virgin. they put a mitre of paper on her head, besmeared her face with dirt, buffeted her on the cheeks, then exhorted her to call upon the Saints; but she smiling thereat, said, My trust and my salvation is only in my Saviour Jesus Christ, and upon him only will I rest; as for the Virgin Mary,An excellent speech. though she be blessed above all women, yet is she not omniscient, and therefore knows not our requests: yea she her self had need of the merits of her own son, without which she could not have been saved, &c. They still continuing to scorn and deride her, she manfully said, I willingly endure all this as it becomes me to do, desiring no better usage, seeing the same was done to my Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, and to his Apostles, and to thousands of the holy Martyrs. Then was she carried away and murthered in the fields.
Some Ministers and many other godly Christians, men and women, noble and ignoble were murthered sundry wayes. Many hid themselves in holes, and caves, and woods, out of which they durst not come, but by night only to get them food; yet were they so watched that many times they were murthered: Others in those places were famished for want of food; Others living upon roots, herbs, grasse, &c. contracted diseases whereof they dyed, so that the mountains and woods lay scattered with dead carcasses everywhere.
Then came there a letter to these blood-suckers from a Governour, that they should with all their power,A wicked Edict. murther, strangle, and massacre without all pity and mercy all the Lutherans wheresoever they were; whereupon these murtherers having slain all in Tyrane, Bruse, Tell, Sondres, and Malen…, they went to Berbenno, where they presently murthered sundry persons of good rank and quality, and that with great cruelty, contrary to their faith and promise given them; the like they did in Caspano and Trahen, and divers other places, shewing neither pity nor favour to any:Popish perfidiousnesse. In one house they slew a man and his wife; and seeing an infant of three years old lying in a Cradle, the child being a girle of a sweet and amiable countenance, and seeming to smile upon them, they took her by the heeles, and dashed out her braines. Then did these villains march to Bra…e, where also they murthered many; shooting some, drowning others, stoning others, burning others, and grinding their very bones to powder: Amongst others, finding an aged Matron of eighty years old, they much sollicited her to hear Masse, wishing her to have respect to her age; to whom she answered with a noble resolution; God forbid that I, who now of a long time have had one foot in the grave, Courage and constancy.should forsake my Lord Jesus Christ, who hath so long time preserved me in the knowledge & profession of his truth, & to put my trust in creatures, and instead of his holy Word to receive the traditions of men, whereupon they instantly slew her.