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811 [811]

K. Henry. 6. Thomas Bagley. Paule Crawe. Thomas Rhedon. Martyrs.

gree as in the first.

Item, as touchyng the third article, they affirme that it is an heresye.

Vnto the fourth article they aunswered as vnto the fyrst and second.

Item, the doctors affirme the v. article to be an heresy.

MarginaliaAn heresie to doubt whether the sacrament be the perfect body of Christ or no.Item, as touchyng the vi. article, the doctors conclude that if the sayd Nicolas beyng of perfect mynde and remembrance, did doubte whether the sacramente of the altar were the very perfect body of Christ or no, thē that article is simply an heresy.

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MarginaliaNicholas Canon declared an heretique.Wherupon the said Commissary declared & pronounced the sayd Nicolas Canon vpon þe determination of þe foresayd doctors, to be an heretike: and therupon forced the sayd Nicolas to abiure all the sayde articles. MarginaliaPenaunce enioyned to Nicholas Canon.That done, he enioyned the sayd Nicolas penaunce for his offences, three displinges about the cloyster of the cathedral church of Norwich, before a solemne processiō, bare headed and barefoote, carying a Taper of halfe a pound in hys hand, goyng after the maner aforesayde, lyke a mere penitenriarie: the whiche his penaunce, the iudge commaunded should be respited vntill the commyng of the bishoppe into his diocesse, and that in the meane tyme he should be kept in prison, to the ende that he should not infect the flocke wyth his venome and poyson of errours and heresies.

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Thus haue we briefly discoursed vnto you, þe great troubles and afflictions, which hapned in Norfolke and Suffolke by the space of those iiij. yeres before mentioned, hauing drawen out briefly for euery yeare, certain notable examples, sufficient for the declaration of al the rest, forsomuch as their opinions beyng nothyng different, their penaunce and punishment did also nothyng differ, otherwise then by those particuler examples may be plainly seene.

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¶ Thomas Bagley priest.

MarginaliaThomas Bageley priest, Martyr.ANd now to procede as we haue begon, wyth oure former stories generally, we find in Fabians chronicles þt in the same yeare of our Lord, 1431. Thomas Bagley a priest, vicar of Monenden beside Malden, being a valiant disciple & adherent of Wickliffe, was cōdemned by þe bishops of heresie at London about þe middest of Lent, was disgraded & burned in Smithfield.

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¶ Paule Craw a Bohemian.  
Commentary   *   Close
Paul Craw and Thomas of Rennes

Between his account of the persecution of Lollards in the diocese of Norwich in 1428-31 and his account of the council of Basel, Foxe gives the accounts of several diverse individuals punished for heresy during the second and third decades of the fifteenth century. All of Foxe's information on these martyrs came from John Bale in one form or another. Foxe first printed the accounts of Thomas Bagley, Paul Kr?var (or Craw) and Thomas of Rennes in his Commentarii (fos. 83r-90r) and reprinted this material without change in the Rerum (pp. 72-5). Apart from a Latin poem praising Thomas of Rennes, which was dropped, this material was translated and reprinted in every edition of the Acts and Monuments. Each of these accounts was taken, virtually word-for-word, from John Bale's notes in Bodley MS e Musaeo, fos. 63r-v and 293r-v. The list of martyrs burned in German territories in the 1420s was added in the 1570 edition and it was taken entirely from John Bale's Catalogus (p. 564). The brief note on Eugenius IV was also added in 1570 and it was also taken from Bale's Catalogus (p. 548). These brief accounts were of use to Foxe in two respects. In the first place, they served to underline a point dear to Foxe's heart: that the faithful members of the True Church existed throughout Christendom. And, secondly, it allowed Foxe to picture the persecution of these faithful as continuing without let-up through the final centuries of the world.

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Thomas S. Freeman
University of Sheffield

MarginaliaPaule Craw Martyr.
Ex Hector. Boetio.
THe same yeare also was Paule Crawe a Bohemiā taken at S. Andrewes by the bishop Henry, and deliuered ouer to þe seculer power to be burnt for holding contrary opinions vnto the church of Rome touching the sacrament of the Lordes supper, the worshippyng of saincts, auriculer confession, with other of Wickliffs opinions.

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¶ The story of Thomas Rhedon, a French man, and a Carmelite Frier, burnt in Italy for the profession of Christ.

MarginaliaTho. Rhedonensis, Martyr.
Ex Antonin. 3. parte hist. fol. 165.
VVE haue declared before, howe this cruell storme of persecution which first began with vs in Englande, after it had long raged here against many good and godly menne, it brake out and passed into Boheme, and after within a shorte tyme, the fyre of this persecution increasyng by little and little, inuaded Scotland, and from thence nowe with greater force and violence, this furious deuouring flame hath entred Italye, and suffreth not any parte of the worlde to be free from the murther and slaughter of most good and godly men. MarginaliaTho. Rhedonensis cōmeth into Italye.It happened about this tyme, that one Thomas Rhedon, a Frier of that secte which taketh his name of the mount Carmelus, by chaunce came wyth the venetian Ambassadors into Italy. This man althoughe he was of that sorte and sect, whiche insteade of Christians are called Carmelites, yet was he of a farre other religion, and vnderstoode the word of God, iudging that God ought not to be worshipped, neither in that mount, nor at Ierusalem onely, but in spirite & truth. This man being a trueCarmelite, and sauoryng with his whole hart that new sweete muste of Iesu Christ, with earnest study and desyre seeking after a Christian integritye of lyfe, prepared him selfe fyrste to go into Italye, trustinge that he should fynd there, or els in no place, some by whose good lyfe and liuyng he myght be edified and instructed. For where ought more aboundaunce of vertue and good lyuing to be, then in that place, which is counted to be the forte and fountayne of all religion? And howe coulde it otherwyse be, but þt wheras so great holynes is professed, wherupon all mennes eies are bent as vpon a stage, whereas Saint Peters seate is, and is thought to bee the ruler and gouernour of all the church, all thinges should florishe and abound worthy so great expectation in that place? This holy man hauing these things before his eyes, and consideringe the same wyth hym selfe, forsoke his owne countrey and citie, and went vnto Rome, conceiuing a fyrme and sure hope, that by the example of so manye notable and worthy men, he should greatly profyte in godlines and learning: but the successe of the matter did vtterly frustrate his hoope, for all thynges were cleane contrarye. Whatsoeuer he sawe, was nothinge els but mere dissimulation and hipocrysye. MarginaliaThe goldē one of Rome.In stead of golde, he found nothinge but coales: and for to saye the truth, he founde nothing els there but gold and siluer. In stead of heauēly giftes, there raigned amongs them the pompe and pryde of the worlde. In place of godlines, riote. In steade of learning and studye, slouthfulnes and supersticion. Tirāny and hautynes of mind had possessed the place of Apostolike symplicitye: MarginaliaAll things corrupte at Rome.that now there remayned no more any place or libertie for a man to learne þt which he knew not, or to teach þt which he perfectly vnderstode. Finally all thyngs were turned arsye versye, all things happened vnto him contrary to his expectation, where soeuer he went. But nothyng so much offended this good mans minde, as þe intolerable ambition, & pompous pride in thē, whō exāple of humilitie should especially cōmend & prayse to þe whole world. MarginaliaThe wickednes and pride that reigneth at Rome.And albeit þt he saw here nothyng, whiche did accorde & agree with the rule of the Apostles: yet these thinges did so much passe all measure and paciēce, that he could by no meanes refraine his tongue in so great abuse & corruption of the churche, seyng such ambitious pride in theyr buildynges, apparell, in theyr palaces, in their daintye fare, in their greate traynes of seruauntes, in their horse and armour, and finally in all thinges pertainyng vnto them. Whiche thinges, howe much they did vary from the prescript rule of the Gospell, so much the more was this good man forced to speake. Albeit he did well vnderstād how litle he should preuaile by speakyng: for if admonition would profite any thing at all, þe bookes of Wicklieffe & diuers other were not wāting. The famous testimonies of Iohn Hus, and of Hierome of Prage, and their bloud shed for the same, was yet present before their eyes: MarginaliaThe corruption of Rome will admitte no reformation.at whose most effectuall exhortations, they were so litle correct and amended, þt they semed twise more cruell then they were before. Yet all this could not feare this good mā, but that in so necessary & wholesome an office, hee would spende his lyfe if neede should be. So by this meanes, he whiche came to be a scholer vnto others, was now forced to be their teacher. And he which determined to folow other mens liues and maners, had now contrarywise set before them his lyfe to be marked & followed. For he liued so amongest thē, that his life might be a rule vnto them all, and so taught as hee might also bee their schoole maister. MarginaliaPietie rewarded with persecutiō.For euen as Paule had forshewed vnto such as desired to liue godly in Christ, that they should suffer persecution: such like rewarde happened vnto this man. He gaue vnto them the fruite of godlynes, which they should folow: they agayn set vpō his head þe diademe of Martyrdome. He shewed them the waye to saluation, and they for the benefite of

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