blurts out the Bastard in King John. Shakespeare was not above taking a hint from Harrison.—W.
[115] William the Lion, who at Cœur de Lion’s death came into England to do feudal homage for his English lands to the wily John Lackland, a visit which John, after his fashion, turned to account by imposing on William the impossible task of following him across the Channel and making war upon Philip Augustus, and, on King William’s refusal to drag Scotland into a quarrel which was not even English, John declared the English lands of William forfeited, and started a feud which had momentous issue in after years.—W.
[116] Harrison has here shown less than his usual broad-mindedness. All agree in praising John de Stratford as being gentle enough to match his illustrious townsman yet to be, Avon apparently breeding nothing but “sweet swans.” The archbishop’s quarrel with Edward about his friendship for the Spencers has always been his glory, not his disgrace.—W.
[117] The “vain prophecy of Nicholas Hopkins” was not the only outbreak of that soul-stirring century, Harrison here alluding to the great birth of the Puritans, who (contrary to usual belief, and as their historian particularly insisted upon) were a party in the Church of England—its whole life, in fact—for one generation, and not by any means non-conformists or dissenters.—W.
[118] Writing on March 25, 1574, to one Matchet, his chaplain, parson of Thurgarton, in the diocese of Norwich, Archbishop Parker requested him to repair to his ordinary, and to show him how the Queen willd the Archbishop to suppress those vain prophesyings, and requird the ordinary, in her Majesty’s name, to stop them. This not being acceptable to the Bishop of Norwich, an altercation between the Archbishop and the Bishop ensu’d. But eventually the prophesyings were stopt,—the following order being sent by the Bishop of Norwich to his Chancellor on the 7th of June, 1574:—“After my hearty commendations: whereas by the receipt of my Lord of Canterbury’s letter, I am commanded by him, in the Queen her Majesty’s name, that the prophesyings throughout my diocese should be suppressed; these are therefore to will you, that, as conveniently as you may, you give notice to every of my Commissaries, that they, in their several circuits, may suppress the same. And so I leave you to God.”—Strype’s Life of Abp. Parker, vol. ii. p. 362. See more about them in these references to Strype’s Works, from the Index:—“Prophesyings, certain exercises expounding the Scriptures, so called, P. II. 358, A. II. i. 133; orders respecting their use in the church of Northampton, 136, G. 260; this exercise set up at Bury, A. II. i. 325; Bishop Parkhurst’s letter of permission, ii. 494; generally used by the clergy, i. 472; Bishop Cooper’s regulations and allowance for them in Herefordshire, ib. 476; Bishop Parkhurst stops them in the diocese of Norwich, 477-480, P. II. 358-362; some privy counsellors write to him in their favour, ib.; he communicates with Archbishop Parker and some bishops upon the matter, ib.; they are suppressed, ib.; the contentions of the ministers, the occasion thereof, ib.; directions for this exercise in the diocese of Chester, A. II. i. 481, ii. 544; III. i. 476; the permission of Bishop Chaderton, II. ii. 546; III. i. 477; Bishop Cox’s opinion of them, II. ii. 13; the Queen’s letter to the Bishop of Lincoln to stop them in his diocese, 114, 612; abuses of these exercises, G. 326; Archbishop Grindal’s orders for their reformation, 327; the Queen orders the Archbishop to put a stop to them, 328; his expostulations with her on the subject, 329, 558; the Queen’s letter for their suppression, 574, W. I. 163.”—Index to Strype’s Works, vol. ii. p. 208 (1828 edit.). There are frequent allusions to the Prophesyings “in the Bishops’ Injunctions and Questions, the whole of which are printed in the Appendix to the 2nd Report of the Ritual Commission. See page 432, par. 25; p. 435, par. 20; p. 445, par. 26; p. 447, par. 18.”—F.
[119] John Parkhurst, Bishop of Norwich, writing to his friend Henry Bullinger, on April 28, 1562, says:—“And that you might not think I had forgotten you (since I was unable to write through illness), I sent you a small present. Whenever I shall have paid my first fruits, and extricated myself from debt, you shall know who and what kind of a man is your friend Parkhurst.”—Parker Society’s Zürich Letters, i. 107.—F.
[120] The Act of Henry VIII. for restraining pluralities contains a clause making employment at court an excuse for non-residence and pluralities; see Tyndale’s Expositions, etc., 256, 336. Bradford contends that they are hurtful to the Church, Writings, ii. 395; so does Jewel, ii. 984; Whitgift defends them, i. 528, etc. See also Bullinger’s Decades, iv. 144; Hutchinson’s Works, 5; Latimer’s Works, i. 122; Whitgift’s Works, i. 506, etc., Parker Society (Index).—F.
[121] See W. Stafford’s argument against pluralities in his Compendious Examination, 1581, fol. 53. “What reason is it that one man should haue two mens liuinges and two mens charge, when he is able to discharge but one? Then, to haue more, and discharge the cure of neuer a one, is to farre agaynst reason. But some percase will say, ‘there be some of vs worthy a greater preferment then others, and one benefice were to litle for such a one.’ Is there not as many degrees in the variety of benefices as there is in mens qualities? Yes, forsooth, there is yet in this realme (thanked be God) benefices from M. markes to XX. markes a yeare of sundry value to endow euery man with, after his qualities and degree. And if a meane benefice happen to fal, let euery man be contented therewith til a better fal,” etc., etc.—F.
[122] “It would pytye a mans heart to heare that that I heare of the state of Cambridge: what it is in Oxforde I can not tell. Ther be few do study diuinitie, but so many as of necessiti must furnish the Colledges. For their lyuynges be so small, and vytaylee so dere, that they tarry not ther, but go other where to seke lyuynges, and so they go aboute. Nowe there be a fewe gentylmen, and they studye a little diuinitie.... There be none nowe but greate mens sonnes in Colledges, and theyr fathers loke not to haue them preachers, so euerye waye thys offyce of preachynge is pyncht at.”—Latimer’s 5th Sermon before Edward IV., A.D. 1549, p. 140, ed. Arber. The scarcity of preachers in the time of Queen Elizabeth is lamented by Jewel in his Works, ii. 999, 1000, and by Archbp. Sandys, Works, p. 154 (Parker Soc.). He also complains of the ignorance of ministers in Elizabeth’s time, Works, ii. 1012 (Parker Soc).—F.
[123] Here follows a story about the bootless errand of a pope’s legate in 1452.—W.