The History of England, Volume IV Elizabeth A parliament
by David Hume
[23d Nov.] Elizabeth, that she might the more discourage malcontents, by shewing them the concurrence of the nation in her favour, summoned a new parliament; and she met with that dutiful attachment, which she expected. The association was confirmed by parliament; and a clause was added, by which the queen was empowered to name commissioners for the trial of any pretender to the crown, who should attempt or imagine any invasion, insurrection, or assassination against her: Upon condemnation, pronounced by these commissioners, the guilty person was excluded from all claim to the succession, and was farther punishable, as her majesty should direct. And for greater security, a council of regency, in case of the queen’s violent death, was appointed to govern the kingdom, to settle the succession, and to take vengeance for that act of treason.i
A severe law was also enacted against jesuits and popish priests: It was ordained, that they should depart the kingdom within forty days; that those who should remain beyond that time, or should afterwards return, should be guilty of treason; that those who harboured or relieved them should be guilty of felony; that those who were educated in seminaries, if they returned not in six months after notice given, and submitted not themselves to the queen, before a bishop or two justices, should be guilty of treason; and that if any, so submitting themselves, should, within ten years, approach the court, or come within ten miles of it, their submission should be void.k By this law, the exercise of the catholic religion, which had formerly been prohibited under lighter penalties, and which was, in many instances, connived at, was totally suppressed. In the subsequent part of the queen’s reign, the law was sometimes executed, by the capital punishment of priests; and though the partizans of that princess asserted, that they were punished for their treason, not their religion, the apology must only be understood in this sense, that the law was enacted on account of the treasonable views and attempts of the sect, not that every individual, who suffered the penalty of the law, was convicted of treason.l
The catholics, therefore, might now with justice complain of a violent persecution; which, we may safely affirm, in spite of the rigid and bigotted maxims of that age, not to be the best method of converting them, or of reconciling them to the established government and religion.
The parliament, besides arming the queen with these powers, granted her a supply of one subsidy and two fifteenths. The only circumstance, in which their proceedings were disagreeable to her, was an application, made by the commons, for a farther reformation in ecclesiastical matters. Yet even in this attempt, which affected her, as well as them, in a delicate point, they discovered how much they were overawed by her authority. The majority of the house were puritans, or inclined to that sect;m but the severe reprimands, which they had already, in former sessions, met with from the throne, deterred them from introducing any bill concerning religion; a proceeding which would have been interpreted as an encroachment on the prerogative: They were content to proceed by way of humble petition, and that not addressed to her majesty, which would have given offence, but to the house of lords, or rather the bishops, who had a seat in that house, and from whom alone they were willing to receive all advances towards reformation:n A strange departure from what we now apprehend to be the dignity of the commons!
The commons desired in their humble petition, that no bishop should exercise his function of ordination but with the consent and concurrence of six presbyters: But this demand, as it really introduced a change of ecclesiastical government, was firmly rejected by the prelates. They desired, that no clergyman should be instituted into any benefice, without previous notice being given to the parish, that they might examine whether there lay any objection to his life or doctrine: An attempt towards a popular model, which naturally met with the same fate. In another article of the petition, they prayed, that the bishops should not insist upon every ceremony, or deprive incumbents for omitting part of the service: As if uniformity in public worship had not been established by law; or as if the prelates had been endowed with a dispensing power. They complained of abuses, which prevailed, in pronouncing the sentence of excommunication, and they entreated the reverend fathers to think of some law for the remedy of these abuses: Implying, that those matters were too high for the commons of themselves to attempt.
But the most material article, which the commons touched upon in their petition, was the court of ecclesiastical commission, and the oath ex officio, as it was called, exacted by that court. This is a subject of such importance as to merit some explanation.
[The ecclesiastical court] The first primate after the queen’s accession, was Parker; a man rigid in exacting conformity to the established worship, and in punishing, by fine or deprivation, all the puritanical clergymen, who attempted to innovate any thing in the habits, ceremonies, or liturgy of the church. He died in 1575; and was succeeded by Grindal, who, as he himself was inclined to the new sect, was with great difficulty brought to execute the laws against them, or to punish the nonconforming clergy. He declined obeying the queen’s orders for the suppression of prophecyings, or the assemblies of the zealots in private houses, which, she apprehended, had become so many academies of fanaticism; and for this offence, she had, by an order of the Star Chamber, sequestered him from his archiepiscopal function, and confined him to his own house. Upon his death, which happened in 1583, she determined not to fall into the same error in her next choice; and she named Whitgift, a zealous churchman, who had already signalized his pen in controversy, and who, having in vain attempted to convince the puritans by argument, was now resolved to open their eyes by power, and by the execution of penal statutes. He informed the queen, that all the spiritual authority, lodged in the prelates, was insignificant without the sanction of the crown; and as there was no ecclesiastical commission at that time in force, he engaged her to issue a new one; more arbitrary than any of the former, and conveying more unlimited authority.o She appointed forty-four commissioners, twelve of whom were ecclesiastics; three commissioners made a quorum; the jurisdiction of the court extended over the whole kingdom, and over all orders of men; and every circumstance of its authority, and all its methods of proceeding, were contrary to the clearest principles of law and natural equity. The commissioners were empowered to visit and reform all errors, heresies, schisms, in a word to regulate all opinions as well as to punish all breach of uniformity in the exercise of public worship. They were directed to make enquiry, not only by the legal methods of juries and witnesses, but by all other means and ways, which they could devise; that is, by the rack, by torture, by inquisition, by imprisonment. Where they found reason to suspect any person, they might administer to him an oath, called ex Officio, by which he was bound to answer all questions, and might thereby be obliged to accuse himself or his most intimate friend. The fines, which they levied, were discretionary, and often occasioned the total ruin of the offender, contrary to the established laws of the kingdom. The imprisonment, to which they condemned any delinquent, was limited by no rule but their own pleasure. They assumed a power of imposing on the clergy what new articles of subscription, and consequently of faith, they thought proper. Though all other spiritual courts were subject, since the reformation, to inhibitions from the supreme courts of law, the ecclesiastical commissioners were exempted from that legal jurisdiction, and were liable to no controul. And the more to enlarge their authority, they were empowered to punish all incests, adulteries, fornications; all outrages, misbehaviours, and disorders in marriage: And the punishments, which they might inflict, were according to their wisdom, conscience, and discretion. In a word, this court was a real inquisition; attended with all the iniquities, as well as cruelties, inseparable from that tribunal. And as the jurisdiction of the ecclesiastical court was destructive of all law, so its erection was deemed by many a mere usurpation of this imperious princess; and had no other foundation than a clause of a statute, restoring the supremacy to the crown, and empowering the sovereign to appoint commissioners for exercising that prerogative. But prerogative in general, especially the supremacy, was supposed in that age to involve powers, which no law, precedent, or reason could limit and determine.
But though the commons, in their humble petition to the prelates, had touched so gently and submissively on the ecclesiastical grievances, the queen, in a speech from the throne at the end of the session, could not forbear taking notice of their presumption, and reproving them for those murmurs, which, for fear of offending her, they had pronounced so low as not directly to reach her royal ears. After giving them some general thanks for their attachment to her, and making professions of affection to her subjects, she told them, that whoever found fault with the church threw a slander upon her, since she was appointed by God supreme ruler over it, and no heresies or schisms could prevail in the kingdom but by her permission and negligence: That some abuses must necessarily have place in every thing; but she warned the prelates to be watchful; for if she found them careless of their charge, she was fully determined to depose them: That she was commonly supposed to have employed herself in many studies, particularly philosophical (by which, I suppose, she meant theological) and she would confess, that few, whose leisure had not allowed them to make profession of science, had read or reflected more: That as she could discern the presumption of many, in curiously canvassing the scriptures, and starting innovations, she would no longer endure this licentiousness; but meant to guide her people, by God’s rule, in the just mean between the corruptions of Rome and the errors of modern sectaries: And that as the Romanists were the inveterate enemies of her person, so the other innovators were dangerous to all kingly government; and under colour of preaching the word of God, presumed to exercise their private judgment, and to censure the actions of the prince.NOTE [Q]
From the whole of this transaction, we may observe, that the commons, in making their general application to the prelates, as well as in some particular articles of their petition, showed themselves wholly ignorant, no less than the queen, of the principles of liberty and a legal constitution. And it may not be unworthy of remark, that Elizabeth, so far from yielding to the displeasure of the parliament against the ecclesiastical commission, granted, before the end of her reign, a new commission; in which she enlarged, rather than restrained, the powers of the commissioners.q
During this session of parliament, there was discovered a conspiracy, which much encreased the general animosity against the catholics, and still farther widened the breach between the religious parties. William Parry, a catholic gentleman, had received the queen’s pardon for a crime, by which he was exposed to capital punishment; and having obtained permission to travel, he retired to Milan, and made open profession of his religion, which he had concealed while he remained in England. He was here persuaded by Palmio, a jesuit, that he could not perform a more meritorious action, than to take away the life of his sovereign and his benefactress; the nuncio, Campeggio, when consulted, approved extremely of this pious undertaking; and Parry, though still agitated with doubts, came to Paris, with an intention of passing over to England, and executing his bloody purpose. He was here encouraged in the design by Thomas Morgan, a gentleman of great credit in the party; and though Watts and some other catholic priests told him, that the enterprise was criminal and impious, he preferred the authority of Raggazzoni, the nuncio at Paris, and determined to persist in his resolution. He here wrote a letter to the pope, which was conveyed to cardinal Como; he communicated his intention to the holy father; and craved his absolution and paternal benediction. He received an answer from the cardinal, by which he found that his purpose was extremely applauded; and he came over to England with a full design of carrying it into execution. So deeply are the sentiments of morality engraved in the human breast, that it is difficult even for the prejudices of false religion totally to efface them; and this bigotted assassin resolved, before he came to extremities, to try every other expedient for alleviating the persecutions, under which the catholics at that time laboured. He found means of being introduced to the queen; assured her that many conspiracies were formed against her; and exhorted her, as she tendered her life, to give the Romanists some more indulgence in the exercise of their religion: But lest he should be tempted by the opportunity to assassinate her, he always came to court unprovided with every offensive weapon. He even found means to be elected member of parliament; and having made a vehement harangue against the severe laws enacted this last session, was committed to custody for his freedom, and sequestered from the house. His failure in these attempts confirmed him the more in his former resolution; and he communicated his intentions to Nevil, who entered zealously into the design, and was determined to have a share in the merits of its execution. A book, newly published by Dr. Allen, afterwards created a cardinal, served farther to efface all their scruples, with regard to the murder of an heretical prince; and having agreed to shoot the queen, while she should be taking the air on horseback, they resolved, if they could not make their escape, to sacrifice their lives, in fulfilling a duty, so agreeable, as they imagined, to the will of God and to true religion. But while they were watching an opportunity for the execution of their purpose, the earl of Westmoreland happened to die in exile; and as Nevil was next heir to that family, he began to entertain hopes, that, by doing some acceptable service to the queen, he might recover the estate and honours, which had been forfeited by the rebellion of the last earl. He betrayed the whole conspiracy to the ministers; and Parry, being thrown into prison, confessed the guilt, both to them, and to the jury who tried him. The letter from cardinal Como, being produced in court, put Parry’s narrative beyond all question; and that criminal, having received sentence of death,r suffered the punishment, which the law appointed for his treasonable conspiracy.NOTE [R]
[i] 27 Eliz. cap. i.
[k] Ibid. cap. 2.
[l] Some even of those who defend the queen’s measures, allow that in ten years fifty priests were executed, and fifty-five banished. Camden, p. 649.
[m] Besides the petition after mentioned, another proof of the prevalency of the puritans among the commons was their passing a bill for the reverent observance of Sunday, which they termed the Sabbath, and the depriving the people of those amusements, which they were accustomed to take on that day. D’Ewes, p. 335. It was a strong symptom of a contrary spirit in the upper house, that they proposed to add Wednesday to the fast days, and to prohibit entirely the eating of flesh on that day. D’Ewes, p. 373.
[n] D’Ewes, p. 357.
[o] Neal’s History of the Puritans, vol. i. p. 410.
[NOTE [Q]] D’Ewes, p. 328. The puritanical sect had indeed gone so far, that a book of discipline was secretly subscribed by above five hundred clergymen; and the presbyterian government thereby established in the midst of the church, notwithstanding the rigour of the prelates and of the high commission. So impossible is it by penal statutes, however severe, to suppress all religious innovation. See Neal’s Hist. of the Puritans, vol. i. p. 483. Strype’s Life of Whitgift, p. 291.
[q] Rymer, vol. xvi. p. 292, 386, 400.
[r] State Trials, vol. i. p. 103, & seq. Strype, vol. iii. p. 255, & seq.
[NOTE [R]] This year, the earl of Northumberland, brother to the earl beheaded some years before, had been engaged in a conspiracy with lord Paget for the deliverance of the queen of Scots. He was thrown into the Tower; and being conscious that his guilt could be proved upon him, at least, that sentence would infallibly be pronounced against him, he freed himself from farther prosecution by a voluntary death. He shot himself in the breast with a pistol. About the same time, the earl of Arundel, son of the unfortunate duke of Norfolk, having entered into some exceptionable measures, and reflecting on the unhappy fate, which had attended his family, endeavoured to depart secretly beyond sea, but was discovered and thrown into the Tower. In 1587 this nobleman was brought to his trial for high treason; chiefly becatise he had dropped some expressions of affection to the Spaniards, and had affirmed that he would have masses said for the success of the Armada. His peers found him guilty of treason: This severe sentence was not executed; but Arundel never recovered his liberty. He died a prisoner in 1595. He carried his religious austerities so far, that they were believed the immediate cause of his death.
