CHAPTER VIII.

1549 to 1551.

Learned foreigners in England-Peter Martyr-Bernardine Ochin-Martin Bucer-Paul Fagius-and others-Their appointments-Their opinions-Bucer notices the revenues of the English Church-Cranmer's letter concerning impropriations-John à Lasco's recommendation to Cranmer of more foreigners after the death of Bucer.

In the palace of Lambeth had now been assembled several learned foreigners, of whom some had been invited thither by the archbishop, some had been in pity received as persecuted Protestants, and all were by him generously entertained. Of these guests the earliest appear to have been the celebrated Peter Martyr and Bernardine Ochin, both Italians, highly distinguished at Naples, where the former, with the dignity of an abbot, had been also provost of a college, and the latter the chief director of the friars denominated capuchins. The religious sentiments of both, in favour of the reformed religion, had been expressed with great effect; and "by the blessing of God on the labours of these individuals, a Re

M'Crie's History of the Reformation in Italy, &c. 120.

formed Church was established at Naples, which included persons of the first rank, both male and female." Martyr afterwards was distinguished by his zeal at Lucca, as Ochin was by his preaching at Venice. Of the former, it has been said, that he "excelled as much in judgment and learning, as the latter did in popular eloquence." But soon their efforts were opposed, the papal influence threatened their labours and even their lives, they fled from their native country, took shelter first in Switzerland, and then at Strasburg, where the letters of invitation from Cranmer found them.

An account of expences attending their journey to England has been preserved, which, while it shews their arrival to have been rather later than our historians represent it, affords much curious information both on the manners of the time, and in regard to provisions for the learned. travellers. The charges of their guide commence at Basle, on the 4th of November, continuing "until the 20th of December, that they came to London ;" and amount to one hundred and twenty six pounds, of which a very large proportion is

'M'Crie's History of the Reformation in Italy, &c. 119. 2 Burnet, A. Wood, Ann. Univ. Ox. under 1548.

* Printed in the Archæologia, vol. xxi. 469, seq. communicated by a very acute and diligent antiquary, N. H. Nicolas, Esq.

4 Burnet and others name their arrival in November, 1547: it appears to have been at the latter end of December.

for books, especially for Ochin, the bill for which was delivered to Cranmer, who had probably given directions for these accompaniments; while those for Peter Martyr, were only "the works of St. Augustine, Cyprian, and Epiphanius." The visit of these eminent divines is supposed to have been approved, and the charges of their journey to have been defrayed, by the government.

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For Ochin, who was to exercise his eloquent preaching in London, Cranmer almost immediately obtained from the Crown a prebend of Canterbury; and for Martyr, whose knowledge of Hebrew and Greek was to stand the test of academical approbation, the professorship of divinity at Oxford. The appointment of the latter was greatly resented by the party, who maintained in that University the doctrine of transubstantiation; whose belief in it the new professor, therefore, endeavoured to shake by his primary lectures upon that part of the eleventh chapter of the first Epistle to the Corinthians, which refers to the Lord's Supper. Sanders, the Romish historian, pretends, that Martyr now hesitated between the doctrine of Luther and that of Zuinglius, between consubstantiation and a denial of the corporal presence, as if he waited for instruc

This is not said by Sanders in his first edition of 1585; but in the second of 1586 the fabrication occurs, p. 274.

tions from the archbishop and the government which to advocate. But Martyr, 1 before his arrival in England, had abandoned the tenet of the corporal presence; and before that arrival, Cranmer, with whom we may be sure the Protector concurred, had also abandoned it. Heylin relates, not accurately, upon the authority of Sanders, ' that the professor at this time declared himself so much a Zuinglian, as to have given great offence to Cranmer and other prelates; and yet Cranmer and Ridley at least, if not others of their mitred brethren, had now espoused the doctrine of Zuinglius. But the professor is defended upon this very point by the archbishop himself. "Of M. Peter Martyr's opinion and judgment in this matter," Cranmer says, "no man can better testify than I; forasmuch, as he lodged within my house long before he came to Oxford, and I had with him many conferences in that matter, and know, that he was then of the same mind that he is now, and as he defended after openly in Oxford, and hath written in his book." By the Romanists at Oxford, he was challenged to a public disputation. He accepted it, with the approbation of the Privy Council, by whom, in 1549, delegates of rank and learning were appointed to attend it; and he maintained, 1. That in

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the sacrament of the Eucharist there is no transubstantiation of bread and wine into the body and blood of Christ. 2. That the body and blood of Christ are not corporally or carnally in or under the species of bread and wine. 3. That the body and blood of Christ are united to the bread and wine sacramentally. Four days the disputation continued, the professor contending against three opponents, the doctors Tresham and Chedsey, and Mr. Morgan Philips, usually called Morgan the sophister. Dr. Cox, dean of Christchurch, as moderator, at the close of the business, addressed the several disputants, not without a compliment to the skill of each, but with one more especially gratifying to Martyr " for the numberless testimonies produced by him in behalf of the truth. Such as he is, he must obtain favour and respect from us, and from all good men; first, because he has taken such pains in sustaining even a burden of disputations; for if not Hercules himself could withstand two, what shall we think of Martyr against all? secondly, because he accepted the challenge, and thus stopped the mouths

1 Burnet, Strype, A. Wood, Ann. Univ. Ox. under the year 1548.

That is, as he wrote to Bucer," he meant it in mind and faith."

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3 A. Wood, ut supr.

Strype gives a larger extract from Dr. Cox's oration. Life of Cranm. B. ii. ch. 14.