AN EPISTLE OF THE MOSTE MYGHTY AND REDOUTED PRINCE, HENRY THE VIII. By the Grace of God, Kyng of England, and of Fraunce, Lorde of WRITEN TO THE EMPEROURS MAIESTIE, To all Christen Princes, and to all those that trewly and syncerely professe In this epistle bothe the causes are playnely declared, why the Kynges Hyghenes owght neyther to sende nor go to the councill indicted at Vincence, and also how perylouse a thinge it is for all suche, as professe the trewe doctrine of Christ, to come thether. Herevnto also is annexed the protestation made the last yere, by the Kynges Hyghenes, his holle counsayle and clergye, as touchinge the councille indicted at Mantua, &c. Rede bothe, O Christen reader, truthe is comynge home, longe afore beynge in captyuytye; steppe forth and meete her by the waye: yf thou see her presente, embrace hir, and shewe thy selfe gladde of here retourne. London, printed by John Berthelet 1538. Octavo, containing nineteen pages. As the following small Piece is one, if not the very first publick Declaration of King Henry the Eighth, against the Pope, now extant, I apprehend, that it will be doing great Service to the English History, to preserve it in this Collection. The occasion was the King's being cited by the Pope, in concert with the Emperor, to appear before a general council, as he pretended to be held at Mantua, to answer to such accusations there to be laid against him. The King communicated this summons to the convocation, then sitting, and demanded their advice; who answered in writing, that, before a general council could be called, it was necessary to consider, who had authority to call it. 2dly, whether the reasons for calling it were weighty. 3dly, who should assist as judges. 4thly, what should be the order of proceeding. 5thly, what doctrines were to be discussed. And lastly, that neither the Pope nor any other Prince, without the consent of all the sovereigns in Christendom, had power to call a general council. And, Henry, well knowing that he must lose his cause before such a council, as proposed, be had been unwise to submit to its decisions: therefore, Pursuant to this declaration of his clergy, the King protested against this council, in which protestation he speaks very plainly and freely of the designs and conduct of the Pope; being informed of the council's being moved to Vicenza, he repeatcth the same protestation to the Emperor in this letter following. Henry the VIII. By the Grace of God, Kynge of Englande, and of Fraunce, &c. saluteth the Emperor, Christen Princes, and all true Christen Men, desyringe Peace and Concorde amonges them. W HERE as not long sithens a boke came forth in oure and all oure counsayles names, whyche bothe conteyned many causes, why we refused the councylle, than by the bysshoppe of Romes vsurped power fyrste indycted atte Mantua, to be kepte the xxiii, daye of May, after proroged to Nouembre, noo place appoynted where it shulde be kepte. And where as the same boke doth sufficiently proue, that oure cause coulde take no hurt, neyther with any Thynge doone or decreed in suche a companye of addicte men to one secte, nor in any other councille called by his vsurped power, we thynke it nothynge necessarye so ofte to make new protestations, as the Bysshop of Rome and his courtes, by subtyltye and crafte, doo inuente wayes to mocke the worlde by newe pretensed generall councilles. Yet not withstandynge, bycause that some thynges haue nowe occurred, eyther vppon occasion gyuen vs, by chaunge of the place, or els throughe other consyderations, whyche, nowe beynge knowen to the Worlde, maye do moche good, we thought we shulde do, but euen as that loue enforceth vs, which we owe vnto Christis fayth and relygion, to adde this epistell: and yet we proteste, that we neyther put forth that boke, neyther that we wolde this epistle to be set afore it, that thereby we shulde seme lesse to desyre a Generall Councille, than any other prynce or potentate, but rather more desyrous of it, so it were free for all partes, and vniuersall. And further we desyre all good princes, potentates, and people, to esteeme and thynke that noo prynce wolde more wyllingly be present at suche a councille than we, suche a one, we meane, as we speake of in our protestatyon, made concernynge the councille of Mantua. Trewely as our forefathers inuented nothynge more holyer than generall councils, vsed as they ought to be; so there is almost nothynge, that may do more hurt to the christian common welth, to the faith, to our religion, than generall councils, if they be abused, to luker, to gaynes, to the establyshement of errours. They be called generall, and euen by their name doo admonysshe vs, that all Christen men, which do discent in any opinion, maye in them openly, frankely, and without feare of punysshement or displeasure, say theyr mynde. For seynge suche thinges, as are decreed in generall councils, touche egally all men that gyue assent therevnto, it is mete that euery man maye boldely saye there that he thinketh. And verely we suppose, that it ought not to be called a generall councylle, where alonlye those men are harde, which are determined for euer, in all poyntes, to defend the Popysh part, and to arme theym selfes to fyght in the byshoppe of Rome's quarelle, though it were against God and his scriptures. It is no generall council, neyther it ought to be called generall, where the same men be onely aduocates and aduersaries, the same accused and juges. No it is agaynste the lawe of nature, eyther that we shuld condescende to so vnresonable a lawe against our selfes, eyther that we shuld suffre our selfes to be lefte withoute all defence, and, beynge oppressed with greattest iniuries, to haue no refuge to succour our selfes at. The Byshop of Rome*, and his, be our great ennemyes, as we and all the worlde may well perceyue by his doynges. He desyreth nothinge more than oure hurte, and the destruction of oure realme: do not we then violate the judgement of nature, yf we gyue hym power and auctoritie to be our iudge? his pretended honour fyrste gotten by superstition, after encreased by vyolence, and other wayes, as euylle as that his power sette uppe by pretense of relygyon, in dede, both agaynste relygyon, and also contrary to the worde of God: his Primacye, borne by the ignorancye of the worlde, nourysshed by the ambition of bysshops of Rome, defended by places of scripture, falsely vnderstande. These iii. thynges we saye, which are fallen with vs, and are lyke to fall in other realmes shortly, shall they not be establyshed again, yf he maye decyde our cause as hym lysteth? yf he maye at his pleasure oppresse a cause moste ryghtuouse, and set vp his, moste againe truth? certaynely, he is verye blynde, that seeth not, what ende we maye loke for of our controuersie, if suche our ennemye may gyue the sentence. We desyre, yf it were in any wyse possible, a councill, where some hope maye be, that those thynges shall be restored, which, nowe beinge deprauate, are lyke, if they be not amended, to be the vtter ruine of Christen relygyon. And as we do desyre suche a councyll, and thinke it mete, that all men, in all their prayers, shoulde craue and desyre it of God; euen so we thinke it pertayneth vnto oure office, to prouyde bothe that these popyshe subtylties hurt none of our subiectes, and also to admonysshe other Christen Princis, that the Bysshope of Rome maye not by their consent abuse the auctoritie of kynges, cyther to the extynguyshing of the true preaching of scripture, that now begynneth to spryng. to grow, and spred abrode, cyther to the troublyng of princes liberties, to the dimynishynge of kynges auctorities, and to the great blemysshe of theyr princely maiestie. We dout nothing but a reder, not parciall, wyll soone approue suche thynges, as we write in the treatyse folowynge, not soo moche for oure excuse, as that the worlde maye perceyue both the sondry deceytes, craftes, and subtylties of the Papistes, and also, how moch we desyre, that controuersycs in relygyon maye ones be taken awaye. All that we sayde there of Mantua, maye here well be spoken of Uincence. They do almoste agree in all poyntes. Neyther it is lyke, that there wolle be any more at this councille at Uincence, than were the last yere atte Mantua. Trewelye he is worthy to be deceyued, that, beynge twyse mocked, wolle not beware the thyrde tyme. Yf any this last Published a bull of excommunication against him; and tried to excite all princes of Christen dom, against Henry, and offered his kingdom to the King of Scotland, &c. yere made forth towarde Mantua, and, beynge halfe on their waye, thanne perceyued, that they hadde taken vppon them that iourney in vayne, we do not thynke them so foolysshe, that they wolle hereafter ryde farre oute of towne to be mocked. The tyme also, and the state of thynges is suche, that matters of relygion maye rather nowe be broughte farther in trouble, as other thynges are, than be commodiousely intreated of and decyded. For where as, in maner, the hole worlde is after suche sorte troublyd with warres, so incombred with the great preparations that the Turke maketh, canne there be any manne so agaynste the setlynge of relygyon, that he wolle thynke this tyme mete for a generall councill? Undoubtedlye it is mete that such controuersies, as we haue with the byshoppe of Rome, be taken as they are; that is moch greatter, than that they maye eyther be discussed in this soo troublesome a tyme, or elles be committed vnto proctours, without our greate icoperdie, all be it the tyme were neuer so quiete. What other princes wyll do, we can not tell; but we will neyther leaue our realme at this tyme, neyther we wyll truste any proctour with oure cause, wherein the holle staye and welth of our realme standeth, but rather we wyll be atte the handlynge therof our selfe. For excepte both an other iudge be agreed vppon for those matters, and also a place more commodiouse be prouyded, for the debating of our causes, all be it al other thynges were as we wolde haue them, yet maye we lawfully refuse to come or sende any to his pretended councylle. We wolle in noo case make hym our arbyter, whyche, not many yeres paste, oure cause not harde, gaue sentence agaynste vs. We wolle that suche doctrine, as we, folowynge the scripture, do professe, rytely to be examinyd, discussyd, and to be brought to scripture, as to the onely touche stone of true lernynge. We wyll not suffre them to be abolyshed, ere euer they be discussyd, ne to be oppressed, before they be knowen: moche lesse we wyll suffre theym to be troden downe beinge so clerely trewe. No, as there is no iote in iote in scripture, but we wolle defende it, thoughe it were with ieoperdie of our lyfe, and peryll of this our realme: so is there no thynge, that doeth oppresse this doctrine, or obscure it, but we wolle be at continuall warre therwith. As we haue abrogated all olde Popishe tradicions in this oure realme, which eyther dyd helpe his tyranny or increase his pryde: soo, yf the grace of God forsake vs not, we wyll wel forsee, that no newe naughtye tradicions be made with our consente, to bynde vs or our realme. Yf men wyll not be willyngely blynde, they shall casyly see euen by a due and euident profe in reson, though grace dothe not yet by the worde of Christ enter into theym, howe small thauctorytie of the bysshop of Rome is, by the lawfull deuyall of the Duke of Mantua for the place. For yf the bysshoppe of Rome dydde ernestly intende to kepe a councyll at Mantua, and hath power, by the lawe of God, to calle prynces to what place hym lyketh; why bath he not also auctoritie to chose what place hym lysteth? The Bysshop chose Mantua, the Duke kepte hym oute of it. Yf Paule, the bysshoppe of Romes auctoritye, be so great, as he pretendeth, why coulde not he compel Fredericus, Duke of Mantua, that the councille myghte be kepte there? The Duke wolde not suffre it. No, he forbadde hym his towne. Howe chaunceth it, that here excommunicacyons flye not abrode; Why dothe he not punysshe this duke? Why is his power, that was wonte to be more than fulle, here emptye? wonte to be more than all, here nothynge? Dothe he not calle men in vayne to a councille, yf they, that comme at his callynge, be excluded the place, to the whyche he callethe theym? Maye not kynges iustelye refuse to come at his call, whan the Duke of Mantua maye denye hym the place, that he choseth? Yf other prynces order hym as the Duke of Mantua hath doone, what place shall be lefte hym, where he maye kepe his generall council? Again, if prynces haue gyuen hym this auctoritie, to calle a councille; is hit not necessarye, that they gyue hym allso all those thynges, withoute the whyche he canne not exercyse that his power? Shall he call men, and wolle ye let hym fynde no place to call them unto? Truely he is not wonte to appoynte one of his owne cyties, a place to keepe the councill in. No, the good manne is so faythefull and frendely towarde other, that seldome he desyreth prynces to be his gestis. And admytte he shulde calle vs to one of his cityes, shulde we safely walke within the walles of suche our ennemyes towne? Were it mcte for vs there to dyscusse controuersyes of relygyon, or to kepe vs out of our ennemyes trappes? Mete to studye for the defence of suche doctrine as we professe, or rather howe we myghte in suche a thronge of perylles be in sauegarde of our lyfe? Well, in this one acte the bysshoppe of Rome hathe declared, that he hathe none auctory te vppon places in other mennes domynyons, and therfore, yf he promyse a councille in anye of those, he promyseth a councille in anye of those, he promyseth that that is in an other man to perfourme, and so may he deceyue vs agayne. Nowe, if he calle vs to one of his owne townes, we be afrayde to be at suche an hostes table. We saye, better to ryse a hungred, then to goo thense with oure bellyes fulle. But they saye, the place is founde, we neede noo more seke where the council shall be kepte. As who saythe, that, that chaunced at Mantua, maye not also chaunce at Uyncence. And as thoughe it were very lyke, that the Uenecians, menne of suche wysedome, shoulde not bothe forsee and feare also that, that the wyse Duke of Mantua semed to feare. Certes, whanne we thynke vppon the state, that the Uenecians be in nowe, hit scemeth noo verye lykely thynge that they wolle cyther leaue Uincence, theyr cytye, to so many nations, without some greate garrison of souldyers, or elles that they, beynge elles where so sore charged all redy, wyll nowe norysshe an armye there. And, if they wolde, dothe not Paulus hym selfe graunt, that it shulde be an euyll presydent, and an cuyll exaumple, to haue an armed councille: how so euer it shal be, we most hartely desyre you, that ye wolle vouchesafe to rede those thynges that we wrote this last yere touchynge the Mantuan councille. For we nothynge doubte, but you, of youre equytye, wyll stande on our syde agaynste theyr subtyltye and fraudes, and iudge, excepte we be deceyued, that we, in this busynesse, neyther gaue soo moche to oure affectyons, neyther withoute greatte and mooste juste causes, refused theyr councylles, theyr censures, and decrees. Whyther these oure wrytynges please all menne, or noo, we thynke, we ought not to passe |