tyme I leaue the commemoration of the blessed supper of the Lorde. And thabominable Idoll the masse, whiche is it, that Daniel meaneth by the God Maysin. Reade the seconde & last chapters of Daniel. the ii. to the Tess. the seconde Epistle. Where as they resyte thabomination of desolation whiche Mathew saith, standeth in the holye placeMarginaliaMath. 24. whiche is the consciences of men, Marke sayeth, where it ought not to stande,MarginaliaMark. 13. whiche is a playne deniall of all the inuentions of men. Further Luke sayeth, the tyme is at hande.MarginaliaLuke. 21. Paule sayth, the mistery of iniquitie worketh already, yea, and shal continue tyll the appearaunce of Christe, whiche in my iudgement is at hande.

Now for the supper of the Lorde, I do proteste to take it, as reuerently as Christ left it, & as his Apostles did vse it, accordyng to the testimonies of the Prophetes, the Apostles and our blessed sauiour Christe, whiche accodynge to S. Paule to the Ephesians doth resyte.

Nowe with quietnes I committe the whole worlde to their pastor and heardman Iesus Christ the only sauiour and trewe Messias. And I commit my soueraigne Lord & maister the kynges maiestie, Kyng Henry the viii. to God the father and to our Lord Iesus Christ. The Quene and my Lorde prynce, With this whole dominion, euer to the innocent and immaculate lambe, and that his bloud may wash and purifie their hartes and soules from al iniquitie and synne, to Gods glorie and to the saluation of their soules. I do protest the inward parte of my harte dothe grone for this, and I doubt not but to enter into the holy tabernacle, whiche is aboue, yea and there to be with God for euer, Farewell in Christe Iesu.

Iohn Lasselles seruaunt late to the kyng,
and nowe I truste to serue the euerlasting
God with the testimonie of my bloude in
Smythfielde.

ANd thus much concerninge the death of these innocent Martirs, after whose marterdom, not lōg after within halfe a yere deceased kinge Henry. But before we come to his death, there commeth to our hands a certein streight and hard proclamation, autorised by him, and deuised by the prelates and certein of his counsel, for the auoydinge and abolishinge of certeine english bookes in the viii day of the same moneth, when Anne Askew was burnt in the xxxviii. yere of his reigne. The copye and tenor whereof here foloweth.  

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Proclamation of 1546

Henry VIII's 'streight & cruell proclamation…' had been issued on 8 July 1546 and printed by Berthelet as A proclamation deuised by the kinges hyghnes, with thaduise of his most honorable counsell, to auoide and abolish suche englishe bookes, as conteine pernicious and detestable errours and heresies made the .viii. daye of Iuly, the .xxxviii. yere of the kynges maiesties most gracious reigne (London, 1546) - STC 7809). The circular letter abolishing holy days was not notices by the editors of the Letters and Papers, and may well have been taken from one or other of the bishop's registers to which Foxe had access. Anne Askew's story is taken mainly from John Bale, The lattre examinacyon of Anne Askewe latelye martyred in Smythfelde, by the wycked Synagoge of Antichrist, with the Elucydacyon of Iohan Bale. ('Imprented at Marpurg in the lande of Hessen' - i.e. Wesel, n.d. [1546]) - STC 850. The source of the 'publicke instrument' issued in the name of William Warham is Warham's register (full publication details….p. 188 et seq), from whence it was printed by David Wilkins (Concilia Magnæ Britanniæ et Hiberniæ : a synodo verolamiensi A.D. CCCC XLVI. ad londinensem A.D. M DCCXVII. Accedunt constitutiones et alia [London, 1737], p. 727). The list of heresies gathered out of Tyndale's works appears to be Foxe's own composition from a variety of sources. William Tyndale, The parable of the wycked mammon Compiled in the yere of our lorde .M.d.xxxvi (London: John Daye, 1547) - STC 24457 had been published by the publisher of the Acts and Monuments itself. William Tyndale's The obedie[n]ce of a Christen man and how Christe[n] rulers ought to governe, where in also (if thou marke diligently) thou shalt fynde eyes to perceave the crafty conveyance of all iugglers ('At Marlborow in the la[n]de of Hesse' [i.e. Antwerp], n.d. [1528]) - STC 24446 is also readily identifiable. John Frith's A pistle to the Christen reader The revelation of Antichrist. Antithesis, wherin are compared to geder Christes actes and oure holye father the Popes ('At Marlborow in the lande of Hesse' [i.e. Antwerp]: 'Hans Luft' [i.e. Johannes Hoochstraten], n.d. [1529]) - STC 11394 was a literal and unsophisticated translation by John Frith of Martin Luther's tract Ad Librum Magistri Nostri Magistri Ambrosii Catharine…..Responsio…cum exposita Visione Danielis viii. De Antichristo of 1521, omitting Luther's address and valediction but introducing a commentary on Daniel 8 in the preface by Frith in which theantithesis of the ways of Antichrist and Christ (as indicated in the title) is a summary of the exegesis. Foxe's marginal note 'Ex Gil Genebrardo' is something of a mystery. For Foxe's sources for the history of the early reformation in Scotland, see Thomas S. Freeman, 'Foxe, Winram and the Martyrs of the Scottish Reformation' in Sixteenth Century Journal 27 (1996), pp. 23-46. King Henry VIII's brief to Bonner appears to be taken from his register, although there is also a copy of it in BL Add MS 38656 at fol 3b.

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David LoadesHonorary Research Fellow,
University of Sheffield

THe kinges moste excellet maiesty vnderstanding, howe vnder pretence of expoundinge and declaring the truth of Gods scripture, diuers lewd and euil disposed persones haue taken occasion to vtter and sow abroad by books imprinted in the english tongue, sondry pernicious and detestable erroures and heresies not only contrary to the lawes of this realme, but also repugnant to þ^e true sence of goddes lawe and his worde, by reson wherof certain men of late, to þ^e distructiō of their owne bodies and soules, & to the euel example of others, haue attempted arrogantly and maliciously to impugne the truth, and therewith trouble the sober, quiet and godlye religiō vnited & established, vnder the kinges maiesty in this his realme, his highnes minding to fore se the daungers that might ensew thereof, and tendringe therewith (like a moste christien prince) the conseruation of the true religiō in his maiesties dominions, from such corrupt and pestilent teachinge, as hath of late secretly crept in by such printed bookes, hath thought it necessarily requisit to deuise by his proclamation and autoryty of the same, howe to auoyde and eschew the saide daungers and inconuenience, and to purg his commō welth of such pernicious doctrine, as by bookes in þ^e english tongue hath bene of late diuulged abroad in this his graces realme, for which consideration, hauinge the deuill so tempered, the settinge abroade of his falshoode, as hee many times annexed truthes therevnto, whereby to induce and deceaue the simple people, so as now the purginge of that which is noysome and hurtefull, cannot with out takinge awaye some part of that beinge tollerable, be put in execution, being the bookes increased to an infinite nomber and vnknowen diuersities of titles and names, whereby specially to reuok or condempne the same. The kinges maiesty is enforced to vse his generall prohibition cōmaundement and proclamation as followeth First that from henceforth no man woman or other person, of what estate, condicion, or degre, so euer he or thei be, shal after the last day of August next ensuinge, receaue, haue take or kepe in his or there possession. The text of the new testament of Tindalls or Couerdals translation in english, nor any other then is permitted by the act of parliament, made in þ^e cession of the parliament, holden, at Westminster in þ^e. xxxiiii. or. xxxv. yere of his maiesties most noble reigne, nor after the said day, shall receiue, haue take or kepe in his or their possession, any manner of booke printed, or written in the english tongue, which be or shallbe sett forth in the names of Frith, Tindal, Wicclef, Ioy, Roy, Basile, Bale, Barnes Couerdal, Tourner, Tracy, or by any of them or any other booke or bookes conteyninge matter con-