was brought to St. Mary's before the queen's commiffioners, and refufing to subscribe the Popish articles, he was pronounced an Heretic and fentence of condemnation was paffed upon him. Upon which he told them, that he appealed from their unjuft fentence, to that of the Almighty: and that he trufted to be received into His prefence in heaven, for maintaining the truth of whofe fpiritual prefence at the altar, he was there condemned. After this his fervants were difmiffed from their attendance, and himfelf clofely confined in the prifon of Oxford.—But this fentence being void in law as the Pope's authority was wanting, a new commiflion was fent from Rome in 1555-and in St. Mary's Church, at the high altar, the court fat and tried the already condemned Cranmer. He was here well nigh too ftrong, for his judges; and if reason and truth could have prevailed, there would have been no doubt, who fhould have been acquitted, and who condemned.-The February following a new commiffion was given to Bishops Bonner and Thirlby, for the degradation of the archbishop. When they came down to Oxford he was brought before them: and after they had read their commiffion from the pope-Bonner, in a fcurrilous oration, infulted over him in the most unchristian manner, for which he was often rebuked by Thirlby, who wept and declared it the most forrowful scene in his whole life. In the commiffion it was declared, that the caufe had been impartially heard at Rome; the witneffes on both fides examined, and the archbishop's council allowed to make the best defence for him they could: at the reading this, the archbishop could not help crying out, "Good God, what lies are thefe; that I, being continually in prifon, and not fuffered to have council or advocate at home, thould produce witneffes and appoint my council at Rome! God muft needs punish this fhameless and open lying!" When Bonner had finished his invective, they proceeded to degrade him; and that they might make him as ridiculous as they could, the epifcopal habit which they put on him, was made of canvas and old clouts: Bonner, mean time, by way of triumph and mockery, calling him Mr. Canterbury and the like. He bore all with his wonted fortitude and patience; told them," the degradation gave him no concern, but when, they came to take away his crofier, he held it fast, and delivered his appeal to Thirlby, faying, "I appeal to the next general council." When they had stript him of all his habits, they put upon him, a poor yeoman-beadle's gown, and a townfman's cap; and fo delivered him to the fecular power, to be carried back to prifon, where he was kept intirely deftitute of money, and totally fecluded from his friends. Nay fuch was the iniquity of the times, that a gentleman was taken into cuftody by Bonner, and nearly escaped a trial for giving the poor archbifhop fome money to buy him a dinner! He had been imprifoned now almoft three years; and death fhould have immediately followed his fentence and degradation; but his cruel enemies referved him for greater mifery and infult. Every engine that could be thought of was employed to thake his conftancy. But in vain : he held faft the profeffion of his faith without wavering. Nay, even when he faw the martyrdom of his dear companions Ridley and Latimer, he was fo far from fhrinking, that he not only prayed to God to strengthen them; but alfo by their example to animate him to a patient expectation and endurance of the fame fiery trial. But at length the Papifts determined to try what gentle treatment would effect: they removed him from prifon to the lodgings of the dean of Chrift Church; Church; urged every perfuafive motive: and too much melted his gentle nature by the falfe funthine of pretended civility. Yet this availed not, till they again changed their conduct, and, with severity enough, confined him to a loathfome prifon. This was more than the infirmities of fo old a man could fupport: the frailty of human nature prevailed: he began to waver: he fell: fell but to rife with fuperior luftre; and was induced to fign fix different recantations, drawn from him by the malice of his enemies; who, notwithstanding, determined not to fpare his life: for nothing lefs than his death could fatiate the gloomy queen, who faid, that "as he had been the great promoter of Herefy, which had corrupted the whole nation, the abjuration which was fufficient in other cafes, fhould not ferve for the was refolved he thould be burnt." his turn; The archbishop had no fufpicion of fuch a fate, after what he had done: the Papifts defigned that he thould foon read his recantation publicly at St. Mary's; upon which they propofed to have triumphed in his death. Accordingly on the day appointed, Cole mounted the pulpit, and the archbishop was placed oppofite to it on a low fcaffold, a fpectacle of contempt and fcorn to the people! Cole magnified his converfion as the work of God's infpiration; exhorted him to bear with refolution the terrors of death; and by the example of the thief on the crofs, encouraged him not to defpair, fince he was returned, though late, into the bofom of the church; and affured him, that dirges and maffes fhould be faid for his foul in all the churches of Oxford. As foon as the archbishop perceived from Cole's fermon what was the bloody decree, ftruck with horror at the inhumanity of thefe proceedings, he gave, by all his geftures, a full proof of the deep anguish of his foul. And at length being called upon by Cole, to declare his faith and reconciliation with the Catholic Church; he rose with all poffible dignity--and while the audience was wrapt in the most profound expectation-he kneeled down and repeated the following prayer-" O, Father of Heaven, O Son of God, Redeemer of the world, O Holy Ghoft, proceeding from them both; three perfons and one God, have mercy upon me, moft wretched and miferable finner! I who have offended both Heaven and earth, and more grievoufly than any tongue can exprefs, whither then may I go, or where fhall I fly for fuccour?-To Heaven Í may be afbamed to lift up mine eyes, and in earth I find no refuge: what fhall I then do: fhall I defpair? God forbid! O good God thou art merciful, and refuseft none that come to thee for fuccour: to thee therefore do I run: to thee do I humble myfelf, faying, O Lord God, my fins be great, but yet have mercy upon me, for thy great mercy! O God the Son, thou.. waft not made man, this great mystery was not wrought, for few or fmall offences: nor thou didft not give thy Son unto death, O God the Father, for our little and fmall fins only, but for all the greatest fins of the world: fo that the finner return unto thee with a penitent heart, as I do here at this prefent; wherefore have mercy upon me, O Lord, whofe property is always to have mercy: for although my fins be great, yet thy mercy is greater! I crave nothing, O Lord, for my own merits, but for thy Name's fake, that it may be glorified thereby, and for thy dear Son Jefus Chrift's fake. And now therefore, Our Father, &c." He then rofe up: exhorted the people to a contempt of this world; to obedience to their fovereign, to mutual love and charity; he told them that being now on the brink of eternity, he would declare unto them his faith without referve or diffimulation. Then he repeated the Apoftle's Creed, Creed, and profeffed his belief thereof, and of all things contained in the Old and New Teftament. By fpeaking thus in general terms, the attention of the audience was kept up; but amazement continued that attention, when they heard him, instead of reading his recantation, declare his unfeigned repentance for having been induced to fubfcribe the Popish errors: he lamented with many tears his grievous fall, and declared that the hand, which had fo offended, fhould be burnt before the reft of his body. He then renounced the pope in moft exprefs terms, and profeffed his belief concerning the eucharift to be the fame, with what he had afferted in his book against Gardiner. This was a great difappointment to the Papifts; they made loud clamours, and charged him with hypocrify: to which he meekly replied, "that he was a plain man, and never had acted the hypocrite, but when he was feduced by them to a recantation." He would have gone on further, but Cole cried, "ftop the Heretic's mouth, and take him away." Upon which the monks and friars rudely pulled him from the fcaffold, and hurried him away to the stake; (where Ridley and Latimer had before been offered up:) which was at the north fide of the city, in the ditch oppofite Baliol college. But if his enemies were disappointed by his behaviour in the church, they were doubly fo by that at the ftake. He approached it with a chearful countenance; prayed and undressed himself; his thirt was made long down to his feet, which were bare, as was his head, where a hair could not be feen. His beard was fo long and thick, that it covered his face with wonderful gravity: and his reverend countenance moved the hearts both of friends and enemies. The friars tormented him with their admonitions; while Cranmer gave his hand to several old men, who stood by, bidding them farewel. When he was tied to the stake and the fire kindled, he feemed fuperior to all fenfation, but of piety. He ftretched out the offending hand to the flame, which was feen burning for fome time before the fire came to any other part of his body; nor did he draw it back, but once to wipe his face, till it was entirely confumed: faying often, "this unworthy hand, this hand hath offended:" and raifing up his eyes to heaven, he expired with the dying prayer of St. Stephen, Lord Jefus receive my fpirit! He burnt to all appearance without pain or motion and feemed to repel the torture by mere ftrength of mind: thewing a repentance and a fortitude, which ought to cancel all reproach of timidity in his life. Thus died Archbishop Cranmer in the 67th year of his age, and the 23d of his primacy; leaving an only fon of his own name behind him. He was a man naturally of a mild and gentle temper; not foon provoked, and yet fo eafy to forgive, that it became a kind of proverb concerning him, "Do my Lord of Canterbury a threwd turn, and he will be your friend as long as you live." His candour and fincerity, meeknefs and humility, were admired by all who converfed with him: but the queen could not forgive his zeal for the reformation, nor his divorce of her mother, though he had been the inftrument of faving her own life: and therefore the brought him to the stake; which has juftly numbered him amongst the nobleft martyrs of Jefus Chrift: thus crowning his character; for he may well be esteemed the Apoftle of the reformed Church of England, and as fuch must ever be dear to every Proteftant. He may truly be ranked with the greatest primitive bithops and the fathers of the very firft clafs, who were. men as well as himself and therefore if, in a fcrutiny of theirs or of his character, : character, fome infirmities and imperfections may appear, we may learn to make a wife and moral improvement by them. His learning was great, and his endeavour to encourage it, greater. To him, under God, we are indebted for the great bleffing we enjoy of reformation, of which he was the pillar and the ornament: and while we repeat the Liturgy, and hear the Bible in our congregations, fo long fhall we venerate the name of Archbishop Cranmer. Cranmer's labours (as a writer observes) were well feconded by Ridley, Latimer, and Hooper, who were his fellow martyrs in the cause of reformation: but the characters of this illuftrious quadrumvirate differed one from the other. Cranmer was most respected; Latimer was moft followed; Ridley best esteemed, and Hooper moft beloved. The art and address of Cranmer proved a happy balance to the zeal of Latimer: while the relaxed notions of Hooper, were tempered by the wisdom and virtue of Ridley. ADDITION TO THE CATALOGUE OF BISHOPS TO THE YEAR 1608; Being a Character and Hiftory of the Bishops during the Reigns of Queen ELIZABETH, and King JAMES; and an additional Supply to Dr. GODWIN'S Catalogue. By Sir JOHN HARRINGTON, Kt. Written for the private Ufe of Prince Henry. NUMBER VIII.- -BATH AND WELLS. Doctor OLIVER KING. CONCERNING Bath I have fuch plenty of matter to entertaine your highneffe with (I meane variety of difcourfe) as I ftudy rather how to abbreviate it, then how to amplifie it: I fhould have begunne at Bishop Barlow, but I respect so much the very name of King, as I could not let him paffe without fome homage; and because the chiefe Bath of which the towne hath the name is called the King's Bath, I fhall add fomewhat alfo, either omitted, or but fleightly touched in the precedent bookę by mine author, but fomewhat more largely handled in the Latin treatise mentioned by him page 307, in the Life of Stillington, out of which I will cite a paffage or two as occafion fhall ferve. Firft therefore for the city of Bath, to omit all the antiquities noted by Mr. Cambden and other good authors, as also seen by my self, I observe this, that amongst all our old traditions and legends thereof, that feemeth as it were purpofely left in fufpence and not yet fully determined, whether the crowne or the miter have more claime to the vertue that all men fee and fay to be in thefe waters. Some affirme that King Bladud a learned king, brought up at Athens long before Chrift's time, either by his cunning in magick did frame it, or rather by his fearch did find it, or at leaft with his coft did first found it: others believe that King Arthur's uncle St. David a bishop of Wales, that lived longer with leekes then we doe now with larkes and quailes, by his prayer procured this vertue to thefe fprings; but this is manifeft by moft credible hiftories, that Oila King of Mereia built a goodly Vol. III. Churchm. Mag. July, 1802. B abbey abbey there, where before had been a temple of Minerva and Hercules, whom they feined to be prefidents of hot bathes. This monaftery built by Offa 775 was destroyed by the Danes being then no Chriftians about the yeere 900. Then it was re-edified by Elphegus a bishop of Canterbury 1010, and continued in great eftimation for a place of holy and ftrickt life, but had not yet the title of a bifhoprick, till John de Villula, a French man borne and a phyfician by profeffion, being made bifhop of Wells, which was in Latin de Fontibus, admiring the vertue of thefe bathes and the cures they wrought, for which it had been long before by the Saxons furnamed Akmanchejter, that is fick man's towne. This John de Villula thinking this place de Fontibus, more honourable then the other called Wells, bought this city of King William Rufus, and tranflated his feat thither. And finding that both that towne and abbey had beene late before defaced with fire, he new built both about the yeare 1122 and was the firft bishop was buried there. Then was that again burned in the yeere 1132 and repaired againe by Bishop Robert, and remained still the bifhop's feat and inheritance, till that bankrout Bishop Savaricus, for covetoufneffe of Glaftenbury, In mercedem hujus unionis (to use my author's word) for recompence of this union of Glaftenbury to Wells, gave Bath againe to King Richard the First, and yet notwithstanding these two fo huge revenues, he spent so prodigally and unprovidently in his many journeys to the emperour, that it is written he had a legion of creditors, and for his wandring humours he had this written for an epitaph, though not fet on his tombe at Bath. Hofpes eras Mundo, per Mundum femper eundo, Thus Bath againe after 100 yeeres, became the kings, and ever may it be fo. But the church was not fo fufficiently repaired as it ought, in fo much that in Henry the sevenths time it was ready to fall, what time that Oliver King about 100 yeeres fince built it againe with fo goodly a fabrick as the ftone work ftands yet so firme, notwithstanding the injuries of men, timē and tempefts upon it. Here I may by no meanes omit, yet I can fcarce tell how to relate the pretty tales that are told of this Bishop King, by what vifions, predictions he was encouraged and difcouraged in the building of this church, whether fome cunning woman had foretold him of the spoyle that followed, as Paulus Jovius writes how a witch deceived his next fuc ceffor Hadrian bishop of Bath, or whether his own minde running of it gave him occafion to dreame fleeping of that he thought waking, but this goes fo currant and confirmed with pretty probabilities. That lying at Bath and mufing or meditating one night late after his devotions and prayers for the profperity of Henry the feventh and his children (who were then all or moft part living) to which king he was principall fecretary and by him preferred to this bishoprick; he faw or fuppofed he faw a vifion of the holy Trinity with angels afcending and defcending by a ladder, neere to thẻ which there was a faire olive tree fupporting a crowne, and a voice faid let an Olive establish the crowne and let a King reftore the church. Of this dreame or vifion he took exceeding great comfort, and told it to divers of his friends, applying it to the king his mafter in part, and fome part to himfelf. To his Mr. because the olive, being the emblem or hieroglyphic of peace |