Cardinal Wolsey (who was intended by the “mitred Peacock”), in the height of his pride and vastness of his undertakings, intending to erect two colleges, one at Ipswich, where he was born, the other at Oxford, where he was bred; and finding himself unable to endow them at his own charge, he obtained licence of Pope Clement VII. to suppress forty small monasteries in England, and to lay their old lands to his new foundations, which was done accordingly, and the poor people that lived in them were turned out of doors. Many of the clergy were very much against this action of Wolsey, especially John Fisher, Bishop of Rochester, alleging for the same an apologue of Æsop, that “the iron head of the axe craved a handle of the wood of oaks, only to cut off the boughs of the trees: but when it was a complete axe it felled all the wood;” applying it, that the suppressing of those smaller houses would prove destructive to all the rest, which came to pass accordingly; for King Henry, seeing the cardinal’s power to extend so far as to suppress these lower shrubs, he thought his prerogative might stretch so far as to fell down the great trees; and soon after dissolved the priory of Christ Church, near Aldgate, in London (now known by the name of Duke’s Place), the richest in lands and ornaments of the priories in London or Middlesex; which was a forerunner of the dissolution of the rest; and that not long after came to pass.
By the “Great Court,” is meant the Parliament, the supremest court of England; which, in the twenty-seventh year of King Henry’s reign, to support the king’s states, and supply his wants, conferred on the crown all religious houses which were not able clearly to expend above two hundred pounds a year; the great ones not long after following the same fortune of the smaller, which was not done (though attempted) by any king before.
By the dissolution of these houses, many thousands were driven to seek their fortunes in the wide world, and became utterly exposed to want; when monkish profession was without possession, many a young man proved an old beggar, and many forced to fast for want of victuals, who formerly had it provided for them to their hands.
The great riches and pride of the monks and friars, was, no doubt, the main cause of their overthrow; for whatsoever was the pretence, questionless profit was the rope which pulled these religious houses down.
All those things coming to pass before the abbot died, caused him to have a great esteem of Mother Shipton, and to value her prophecies more than ordinary conjectures; though at first he could not tell what to make of her ambiguous lines, which, like the oracles delivered at Delphos, rather brought one into a labyrinth of confused conjectures than satisfied the expectation, until by the clue of time, the riddles were manifest; and that which at first seemed so hard, now appeared to the understanding as easy; however, he at present kindly thanked Mother Shipton, and liberally rewarded her maid, much admiring that she could be so clear-sighted as to see through his counterfeit dress; resolving afterwards to be more informed by her concerning future events, he at that time took his solemn leave of her, and returned home.
Not long had the abbot been at home, but his abbey was visited by some instrument employed by the Lord Cromwell for that purpose. He who knew what was intended by this compliment thought it not safe to strive against the stream, and therefore quietly surrendered his monastery into the king’s hands. And now perceiving Mother Shipton’s prophecies plainly fulfilled in the downfall of those houses, which were judged to be impregnable against all the assaults of malice and time, considering the strange revolution of so short a space, he was very desirous to be more fully informed of the future. In this resolution he repairs again to Mother Shipton, whom he now accosts more familiarly than he did before, making himself plainly known unto her; telling her that as what she had formerly spoken he had found to be true in the event, so his judgment persuaded him she was not ignorant of those things which were in the future to ensue; and therefore desired she would not be nice in imparting her foreknowledge to him; for which great favour, though it were more than his deserts could command, yet should there never in him be wanting a grateful tongue to acknowledge, and a grateful heart to be thankful unto her, for so great a favour.
“Mr. Abbot,” said she, “leave off complimenting, as it is more fit for courtiers and lovers, and not agreeable to an old woman, who will neither flatter nor be flattered by any; and for what you came about, I shall not be squeamish to fulfil your request; let me therefore desire you to lend me your attention;” and thereupon, after some short pause, she thus began—
“A prince that never shall be born,
Shall make the shaved heads forlorn,
Then shall commons rise in arms,
And woman’s malice cause much harms.”
These lines being prophecies of the actions in King Edward’s reign, for the reader’s benefit we will unfold the meaning of them by themselves, that we may not too much burden his memory; but by variety add a pleasure to the reading of them.
By the “Prince that never shall be born,” is meant King Edward VI., of whom all reports agree that he was not naturally delivered into the world, but that his mother’s body was opened for his birth, that she died of the operation the fourth day following: and by “shaved heads,” is understood the monks, friars, etc., who are said to become “forlorn;” the Reformation beginning with the commencement of King Edward’s reign.