Acts and Monuments Volume 2 Part 2, Book 11 · Account 18 · Account
The condemnation of the worthy Martyr of God, Iohn Philpot.
THese bookes, Letters, Supplications and other matters being thus read, the bishop demaunded of him, if the booke intituled The true report of the disputation. &c. were of his penning or not? Whereunto Philpot aunswered, that it was a good and true booke, and of hys owne penning and setting forth.
The bishops waxing now weary, and being not able by any sufficient ground, either of Gods worde, or of the true ancient Catholicke fathers,Of this booke of disputation … the Conuocation rea… before pag. 1410. to conuince & ouercome him, fell by fayre and flattering speach, to perswade wyth him, promising that if he would reuoke his opinions, and come home agayne to their Romishe and Babilonicall Church, he should not onelyonly be pardoned that which was past, but also they would with al fauour and chearefulnes of hart, receiue him agayne as a true member therof. Whiche words when Boner saw would take no place: hee demandeth of M. Philpot (and yt with a charitable affection, I warrant you) whether he had any iust cause to alledge, why he shoulde not condemne him as an hereticke.Ah my Lord what needed this question when no reasonable aunswere could be allowed. Sentence of condemnation read agaynst M. Philpot. M. Philpots words in reading the sentēce. Well quoth M. Philpot: your idolatrous sacrament which you hauehave found out, ye would fayne defend, but ye cannot, nor neuer shall.
In the end, the Byshop seeing hys vnmoueable stedfastnes in the trueth, did pronounce openly the sentence of condemnation against him. In the reading wherof, when he came to these words: Teque etiam tanquam haereticum, obstinatum, pertinacem. & impoenitentem. &c. M. Philpot said, I thanke God that I am an hereticke out of your cursed Church: I am no hereticke before God. But God blesse you and geue you once grace to repent youre wicked doinges: and let all men beware of your bloudy church.
Moreouer, whiles Boner was about the middest of the sentence, the bishop of Bath pulled him by the sleeue & sayd: My Lord, my Lord, knowe of him first whether hee will recant or no? Then Boner sayd (full like himselfe) oh let me alone: and so read forth the sentence.
And when he had done, hee deliuered him to the Sheriffes:M. Philpot deliuered to the Sheriffes. M. Philpot to his seruaunt. M. Philpot brought into Newgate, his man permitted to enter with him. and so two officers brought him thorough the Byshops house into Pater noster rowe, & there his seruaunt met him, and when he saw him, he said: Ah deare mayster.
Then M. Philpot sayd to his man: content thy self, I shall do well enough: for thou shalt see me agayne.
And so the Officers thrust him away, & had his mayster to Newgate: And as hee went, he sayde to the people: Ah good people, blessed be God for this day: and so ye Officers deliuered him to the keeper. Then his man thrust to go in after his mayster, and one of the Officers sayd vntounto him: hence fellow what shouldest thou hauehave? And he sayd I would goe speake with my Mayster? M. Philpot then turned him about, and sayde to him, to morow you shall speake with me.
Then ye vnderunder keeper said to Mayster Philpot: is this your man? And he sayd, yea. So he did licence his man to go in with him, and M. Philpot and his mā were turned into a litle chamber on the right hand, and there remained a litle time, vntil Alexander the chief keeper did come vntounto hym: who at his entring, greeted him with these words Ah, sayd he, hast not thou done well to bringe thy selfe hether? Well sayde M. Philpot, I must bee content, for it is Gods appointmēt: & I shal desire you to let me hauehave your gentle fauour:Talke betweene M. Philpot & Alexander the keeper. for you and I hauehave bene of olde acquayntaunce. Well sayd Alexander, I will shew thee gentlenes and fauour, so yu wilt be ruled by me. Then sayd M. Philpot: I pray you shew me what you would hauehave me to do.
He sayd, if you would recāt, I will shew you any pleasure I can. Nay, sayd M. Phil. I wil neuer recant whilest I hauehave my life, that which I hauehave spoken, for it is a most certayne truth, and in witnesse hereof, I will seale it wyth my bloud. Then Alexander sayd: This is the saying of all the whole packe of you heretickes. Whereupon hee commaunded him to be set vponupon the block,Good Philpot l… den with yrons, because he would not recant at Alexanders bidding. Alexander taketh Philpots tokens from his man. Alexander the cruell keeper requireth 4. poundes of M. Philpot for his yrons. and as many irons vponupon his legges as he might beare, for that he would not follow hys wicked minde.
Then the Clarke tolde Alexāder in his eare that maister Philpot hadde geuen hys man money. And Alexander sayd to his man: what money hath thy mayster geuen thee? His man said: my mayster hath geuen me none. No sayd Alexander? hath he geuē thee none? that will I know for I will search thee. Do with me what you list, & search me all that you can, quoth hys s…ruaunt. Hee hath geuen me a tokē or two, to send to hys frends, as to hys brother and sister. Ah sayd Alexander to M. Philpot: Thou art a mayntayner of heretickes. Thy man should hauehave gone to some of thyne affinitie: but he shal be known wel enough. Nay, sayd M. Philpot: I do send it to my frendes. There he is: let him make aunswere to it. But good mayster Alexander, be so much my frend, that these irons may be taken of. Well, sayd Alexander, geue me my fees, and I will take them off: if not, thou shalt weare them still.
Then sayd Mayster Philpot, sir, what is your fees? he sayd, foure pound was his fees, Ah sayd mayster Philpot I hauehave not so muche: I am but a poore man, and I hauehave bene long in prison. What wilt thou geue me then, said Alexander? Syr (sayd he) I will geue you twenty shillings, and that I will send my man for, or elles I will lay my gowne to gage: for the time is not long (I am sure) that I shal be with you: for the bishop sayd vntounto me that I shuld be soone dispatched.
Then sayd Alexander vntounto him, what is that to me? & with that he departed from him, and commaunded hym to be had into Limbo,M. Philpot …. and so his commaundement was fulfilled: but before he could be taken from the blocke, ye clark would hauehave a grote.
Then one Wittrence, Steward of the house, took hym on his backe,… and caryed him downe, hys manne knewe not whether. Wherfore mayster Philpot sayd to his man: go to maister Sheriffe and shew hym how I am vsed, and desire maister Sheriffe to be good vntounto me. And so hys seruaunte went strayghtway, and tooke an honest manne with him.
And when they came to mayster Sheriffe (whiche was Maister Macham) and shewed him howe mayster Phil. was handled in Newgate. The Sheriffe hearyng this, tooke his ring of from his finger, and deliuered it vntounto ye honest man whiche came with M. Philpots man, and bad him go vntounto Alexander ye keeper, & cōmanded him to take of his irons, and to handle him more gentlye, and to geue his man again yt which he had taken from him. And when they came agayn to the sayd Alexāder, & told their message from the Sheriffe, Alexander tooke the ring, and said: Ah, I perceaue that mayster Sheriffe is a bearer with him,Note the … Ph…lpot with much …. M. Philpot warned by the Sheriffes …o prepare him agayn…t the next day to …. Decemb. …. & all such heretickes as he is: therfore to morow I wil shew it to his betters: Yet at x. of the clocke he went into Mayster Philpot where he lay, and tooke of his irons, & gaue him such things as he had taken before from hys seruant.
Upon Tuesday at supper, being ye 17. day of December there came a messenger from the Sheriffes, and bad M. Philpot make him ready, for the next day he should suffer, and be burned at a stake with fire. M. Philpot aunswered and sayd, I am ready: God graunt me strength, and a ioyfull resurrection. And so he went vntounto his chamber, and poured out his spirit vntounto ye Lord God, geuing him most harty thankes that he of his mercy had made hym worthy to suffer for his truth.
In the morning the Sheriffes came according to the order, about viii. of the clocke, and calleth for him, & he most ioyfully came downe vntounto them. And there his man dyd meete him, and sayd: A deare maister, farewell. His mayster sayd vntounto him, serue God and he will helpe thee.M. Philpot brought to the place of Martyrdome. And so he went with the Sheriffes vntounto the place of execution: and when he was entring into Smithfield, the way was foule, & two officers tooke him vp to beare him to ye stake. Then he sayd merily, what? will you make me a Pope? I am content to goe to my iourneys end on foote.M. Philpot… words going to the stake. But first comming into Smithfield, he kneeled down there saying these wordes: I will pay my vowes in thee O Smithfield.
And whē he was come to the place of suffering, he kissed the stake & saide:M. Philpot… prayers. shall I disdayne to suffer at this stake seeing my redeemer did not refuse to suffer most vile death vponupon the Crosse for me? And then with an obedient hart full meekely he sayd the Cvi.Cvii. and Cviii. Psalms: and when he had made an end of all hys prayers,Iohn Philpot geueth▪ the Officers money. he said to the officers: What hauehave you done for me? & eueryevery one of thē declared what they had don: & he gaue to eueryevery of thē mony.
Then they bound hym vntounto the stake, and set fire vntounto that constant martyr: Who the xviii. day of December, in the middest of the fiery flames, yelded his soule into the handes of ye almighty God, and full like a lambe gaue vp his breath his body being consumed into ashes.
Thus hast thou (gentle reader) the lyfe and doyngs of this learned and worthy souldiour of ye Lord,The writinges & examinations of M. Iohn Philpot by the prouidēce of almighty God preserued. Iohn Philpot: wt all his examinations that came to our handes: first penned and written with his owne hand, beyng meruaylously reserued from the sight and hands of hys enemies: who by all maner meanes sought not onelyonly to stop hym from al writing, but also to spoyle and depriue him of that which he had written. For the which cause he was manye tymes stripped and searched in the prison of his keeper: but yet so happily these his writinges were conueyed and hid in places about him or els hys keepers eies so blinded that notwithstanding all this malicious purpose of the Bishops, they are yet remayning and come to light.