doing whereof, we require you to open the foresaid considera- Given under our signet, at our palace of West minster, the 24. day of November, the fourth E. Somerset, Thomas Cant., W. Wiltsher, Jhon Foxe, Acts, &c. p. 1563. XL. Letter from the Council to the Princess Mary 8. AFTER our due commendations to your Grace. By your letters to us, as an answer to ours, touching certain process against two of your chaplains, for saying mass against the law and statute of the realm, we perceive both the offence of your chaplains is otherwise excused than the matter may bear, and also our good wills otherwise misconstrued than we looked for. And for the first part, where your greatest reason to excuse the offence of a law, is a promise made to the Emperor's Majesty, whereof you write, that first some of us be witnesses, next that the ambassador for the Emperor declared the same unto you, and lastly, that the same promise was affirmed to you before the King's Majesty at your last being with him: we have thought convenient to repeat the matter from the beginning, as it hath hitherto proceeded; whereupon it shall appear how evidently your chaplains hath offended the law, and you also mistaken the promise. The promise is but one in itself, but by times thrice as you say repeated. Of which times, the first is chiefly to be considered, for upon that do the other two depend. It is very [Strype supposes that" this excellent letter was drawn by the pen of "Archbishop Cranmer;" but he gives no reason for his opinion. Memorials, vol. ii. p. 251. Burnet observes, that, “being in the style of a churchman, "it seems to have been penned either by Cranmer or Ridley." Ref. vol. ii. p. 357. For the remainder of the correspondence, see Foxe, Acts, &c. vol. ii. p. 702, &c.] ! true the Emperor made request to the King's Majesty, that you might have liberty to use the mass in your house, and to be as it were exempted from the danger of the statute. To which request divers good reasons were made, containing the discommodities that should follow the grant thereof, and means devised, rather to persuade you to obey and receive the general and godly reformation of the whole realm, than by a private fancy to prejudice a common order. But yet, upon earnest desire and entreaty made in the Emperor's name, thus much was granted, that for his sake and your own also it should be suffered and winked at, if you had the private mass used in your own closet for a season, until you might be better informed, (whereof there was some hope,) having only with you a few of your own chamber, so that for all the rest of your household the service of the realm should be used, and none other; further than this the promise exceeded not. And truly such a matter it then seemed to some of us, as indeed it was, that well might the Emperor have required of the King's Majesty a matter of more profit, but of more weight or difficulty to be granted his Majesty could not. After this grant in words, there was by the ambassador now dead, oftentimes desired some writing, as a testimony of the same. But that was ever denied, not because we meant to break the promise, as it was made, but because there was a daily hope of your reformation. Now to the second time, you say the Emperor's ambassadors' declaration made mention of a promise to you. It might well so be, but we think no otherwise than as it appeareth before written. If it were, his fault it was to declare more than he heard; ours it may not be, that deny not what we have said. As for the last time when you were with the King's Majesty, the same some of us (whom by these words your letter noteth) do well remember, that no other thing was granted to you in this matter, but as the first promise was made to the Emperor ; at which time you had too many arguments made to approve the proceedings of the King's Majesty, and to condemn the abuse of the mass, to think that where the private mass was judged ungodly, there you should have authority and ground to use it. About the same time, the ambassador made means to have some testimony of the promise under the Great Seal; and that not heard, to have it but by a letter; and that also was not only denied, but divers good reasons alleged, that he should think it denied with reason, and so to be contented with an answer. It was told him, in reducing that which was commonly called the mass to the order of the primitive Church, and the institution of Christ, the King's Majesty and his whole realm had their consciences well quieted, against the which if any thing should be willingly committed, the same should be taken as an offence to God, and a very sin against a truth known. Wherefore to license by open act such a deed, in the conscience of the King's Majesty and his realm, were even a sin against God. The most that might herein be borne, was, that the King's Majesty might, upon hope of your Grace's reconciliation, suspend the execution of his law, so that you would use the license as it was first granted. Whatsoever the ambassador hath said to others, he had no other manner grant from us; nor having it thus granted, could allege any reason against it. And where in your letter your Grace noteth us as breakers of the promise made to the Emperor, it shall appear who hath broken the promise; whether we that have suffered more than we licensed, or you that have transgressed that was granted. Now therefore we pray your Grace confer the doings of your chaplains with every point of the premises; and if the same cannot be excused, then think also how long the law hath been spared. If it prick our consciences somewhat, that so much should be used as by the promise you may claim, how much more should it grieve us to license more than you can claim? And yet could we be content to bear a great burden to satisfy your Grace, if the burden pressed not our consciences: whereof we must say as the Apostle said, Gloriatio nostra est hæc, testimonium conscientiæ nostræ. For the other part of your Grace's letter, by the which we see you misconstrue our good wills in writing to you, howsoever the law had proceeded against your chaplains, our order in sending to you was to be liked, and therein truly had we special regard of your Grace's degree and estate. And because the law of itself respecteth not persons, we thought to give respect to you, first signifying to you what the law required, before it should be executed; that being warned, your Grace might either think no strangeness in the execution, or for an example of obedience cause it to be executed yourself. Others we see perplexed with suddenness of matters; your Grace we would not have unwarned, to think any thing done on a sudden. Truly we thought it more commendable for your Grace to help the execution of a law, than to help the offence of one condemned by law. And in giving you knowledge what the King's laws required, we looked for help in the execution. by you the King's Majesty's sister. The greater personage your Grace is, the nigher to the King, so much more ought your example to further the laws. For which cause it hath been called a good commonwealth where the people obeyed the higher estates, and they obeyed the laws. As nature hath joined your Grace to the King's Majesty to love him most entirely, so hath reason and law subdued you to obey him willingly. The one and the other we doubt not but your Grace remembereth: and as they both be joined together in you his Majesty's sister, so we trust you will not sever them; for indeed your Grace cannot love him as your brother, but you must obey his Majesty as his subject. Example of your obedience and reverence of his Majesty's laws is instead of a good preacher to a great number of his Majesty's subjects, who, if they may see in you negligence of his Majesty or his laws, will not fail but follow on hardly, and then their fault is not their own but yours, by example; and so may the King's Majesty, when he shall come to further judgment, impute the fault of divers evil people (which thing God forbid) to the sufferance of your Grace's doings. And therefore we most earnestly from the depth of our hearts desire it, that as nature hath set your Grace nigh his Majesty by blood, so your love and zeal to his Majesty will further his estate by obedience. In the end of your letter two things be touched which we cannot pretermit; the one is, you seem to charge us with permission of men to break laws and statutes. We think indeed it is too true, that laws and proclamations be broken daily, the more pity it is; but that we permit them, we would be sorry to have it so proved. The other is, that we have suffered bruits to be spoken of you; and that also must be answered as the other. It is pity to see men so evil, as whom they may touch with tales and infamies they care not, so they miss not the best. Such is the boldness of people, that neither we can fully bridle them to raise tales of you, nor of ourselves. And yet whensoever any certain person may be gotten, to be charged with any such, we never leave them unpunished. Indeed the best way is, both 1 for your Grace, and also us, that when we cannot find and punish the offender, let us say as he said that was evil spoken of; Yet will I so live, as no credit shall be given to my backbiters. Certainly, if we had credited any evil tale of your Grace, we would friendly have admonished you thereof, and so also proceeded, as either the tale-tellers should have been punished, or else to have proved their tales. And therefore we pray your Grace to think no unkindness in us, that any evil bruits have been spread by evil men; but think rather well of us, that howsoever they were spread, we believed them not. Hitherto your Grace seeth we have written somewhat at length of the promise made to you, and our meanings in our former writings. And now for the latter part of our letter, we will, as briefly as we can, remember to you two special matters, whereof the one might suffice to reform your proceedings, and both together, well considered, we trust shall do your Grace much good. The one is, the truth of that you be desired to follow; the other is, the commodity that thereby shall ensue. They both make a just commandment, and because of the first the latter followeth, that shall be first entreated. We hear say, your Grace refuseth to hear any thing reasoned contrary to your old determination, wherein you make your opinion suspicious, as that you are afraid to be dissuaded. If your faith in things be of God, it may abide any storm or weather; if it be but of sand, you do best to eschew the weather. That which we profess, hath the foundation in Scriptures, upon plain texts and no glosses, the confirmation thereof by the use in the primitive Church, not in this latter corrupted. And indeed our greatest change is not in the substance of our faith, no, not in any one article of our Creed. Only the difference is, that we use the ceremonies, observations, and sacraments of our religion, as the Apostles and first Fathers in the primitive Church did you use the same that corruption of time brought in, and very barbary and ignorance nourished, and seem to be bold for custom against truth, and we for truth against custom. Your Grace in one or two places of your letter seemeth to speak earnestly in the maintenance of your faith, and therein, so that your faith be according to the Scriptures, we must have the like opinion. The saying is very good, if the faith be sound. But if every opinion your Grace hath, we cannot tell how conceived, shall be your faith, you may be much better instructed. St. : |