Acts and Monuments Volume 2 Part 2, Book 12 · Account 63
The order and occasion of taking certayn godly men and women praying together in the fieldes about Islington, of whom 13. were condemned by Boner, & after suffered in the fire for the truthes sake, as in the story here following may appeare.
Iune. 27.22. men taken. …3. Martyrs burned.SEcretly in a backe close in the fielde by the Towne of Islington were collected and assembled together a certayne companye of Godly and innocent persons, to the number of fourty, men and women. Who there sitting together at prayer, and vertuously occupied in the meditation of Gods holy worde, first commeth a certayne man to them vnknowne: who looking ouer vntounto them, so stayed & saluted them, saying that they looked like men yt meant no hurt. Then one of the sayd company asked the man, if he could tel whose close that was, and whether they might be so bold there to sit. Yes sayd he, for that yee seeme vntounto me such persons as entende no harme, and so departed.King Con…stable of Is…ington. Within a quarter of an houre after, commeth the constable of Islington, named king, warded with sixe or seuē other, accompanying him in the same busines, one wyth a bow, an other with a Bill, and other with theyr weapons likewise. The which sixe or seuen persons the sayde Constable left a little behinde hym in a close place, there to bee ready if need should be while he with one with him shuld go and view them before. Who so doyng, came throughe them, looking and viewing what they were doyng, and what bookes they had: and so going a little forward, and returning backe agayne, bad them deliuer theyr bookes. They vnderstanding that he was Constable, refused not so to do. With that cōmeth forth the residue of his fellowes aboue touched, who bad them stande and not to departe. They aunswered agayne, they would be obedient & ready to go whether so euer they would hauehave them: & so were they first caryed to a bruehouse but a little way of, whyle y• some of the sayd souldiers ran to the Iustice next at hand. But the Iustice was not at home: Whereupon they were had to sir Roger Cholmley. In the meane tyme some of ye women being of the same number of the foresayde xl. persons, escaped away from thē, some in y• close, some before they came to the bruehouse. For so they were caryed .x. wt one man, 8. with an other, and with some moe, with some lesse, in such sorte that it was not hard for thē to escape that would. In fine, they yt were caryed to Sir Roger Cholmley,Syr Roger Cholmley, and Recorder of London, persecutours. 22. sent to Newgate. were 27. which Sir Roger Cholmley & the Recorder taking their names in a Bill, & calling them one by one so many as answered to theyr names, they sēt to Newgate. In the whiche number of them that answered, and yt were sent to Newgate, were 22.
These 22. were in the sayde prison of Newgate seuen weekes before they were examined, to whome word was sent by Alexander the keeper, that if they woulde heare a Masse, they should all be deliuered. Of these foresayd xxii. were burned 13. In Smithfield 7. at Braynford 6.
Confesso…IN prison 2. dyed in Whitson weeke, the names of whō were Mathew Wythers, T. Taylar.
Seuen of them which remayned, escaped with theyr liues hardly, although not without much trouble, yet (as GOD woulde) without burning. Whose names were these.
Iohn Milles.
Thomas Hinshaw.
R. Baily, wolpacker.
Robert Willeys.
Hudleys.Persecuted Christians.
T. Coast, haberdash.
Roger Sandey.
The first seuen were brought forth to examination before Boner, and so hauing their condēnation, were burnt (as is sayd) in Smithfield. The other 6. followed not long after, and suffered at Brayneford, whereof specially here followeth now in order of story to be seene.