It may very safely be concluded that the religious observance of Lent was discontinued at Lynn from the time referred to till the restoration, when it seems to have been again revived, both here and throughout the kingdom, among all true churchmen. For it appears to have been one of those choice and invaluable blessings which Charles II, (that most sacred, and most religious sovereign, as his bishops and clergy used to call him,) restored to us at his return from exile. Accordingly, we find, by the public prints and records of that period, that his majesty from the beginning of his reign, or first arrival, was attentive to this point. Among other plain indications of this is a striking passage in the Mercurius Publicus, of February 21, 1661, (a flaming weekly court paper of that time,) which is worded as follows.
“London Feb. 16.—We are commanded to give Notice of a malicious Slander against the good government of the city of London for observation of Lent according to law and his Majesties Proclamation: some malecontents suggesting that the company of Fishmongers have confessed they are not able to supply the market with fish sufficient for this occasion; (and therefore that the late proclamation will be recalled) which is so false and bottomles a fiction that the most vigilant Lord Maior hath assured the Lords of his Majesties Privy Council how the company of fishmongers do not only undertake to furnish the market with plenty and variety of good and wholesome fish, but to sell fish cheaper by twopence in a shilling; which is more than sufficient to stop the mouths of all that are averse to our good and wholesome laws (made upon so long experience, and so necessary for the common good and safety of this Island) which yet deprive none of the benefit of dispensation, whose condition really requires other dyet, such as are aged, or infants, women with child, sick persons, and such whose health and constitution is known to be prejudiced by continuall eating fish; for all whom the Law hath provided Licences and Dispensations to eat Flesh.” [704]
Here Charles appears in the character of a religious king, to which he, of all men living, had, perhaps, the least pretension. Yet his bishops and clergy unblushingly gave him that title, and would frequently mention him, even in their addresses to the Deity himself, under the same appellation, and under one still stronger—“Our most religious king!” So much for the bishops and clergy of those days. But it was in Scotland that his majesty’s religious and reforming character, at least in respect to the strict observance of Lent, was exhibited in the most striking light. This may be inferred from the following curious document in the above mentioned Court-newspaper of Feb. 26. 1662, which, though somewhat extraneous and out of place, the author hopes the reader will excuse his introducing it here, as he knew of no fitter place for its insertion.
“Edinburgh 12. Febr. 1662.—Forasmuch as the not keeping of Lent and Fish days, conform to several Acts of Parliament and late Act of Council of the sixth of February 1662, hath been occasioned by not exacting the penalties therein contained from the contraveeners, who, upon hopes of impunity, may still continue disobey the saids Acts, to the great prejudice of the kingdom: Therefore the Lords of his Majesties Privy Council have thought fit to cause intimat publickly at the Mercat Cross of Edinburgh, that none presume nor take upon hand to contraveen the saids Acts; with certification if they failize, the pains and penalties therein contained shall be exacted with all rigour: and that they will crave an account of all Magistrates and other Ministers of Justice, who are intrusted to procure obedience to the saids Acts, and give notice of the offendors within their respective bounds, as they will be answerable; and for that effect to cause, of new again, intimat the aforesaid Act; whereof the tenor follows—The Lords of His Majesties Privy Councill taking to their consideration the greatest advantage and profit will redound to all the Leiges of this kingdome, by keeping the time of Lent and the weekly Fish dayes, viz. Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday, and discharging of all persons to eat any flesh, during that time and upon the saids dayes; or to kill or sell in the Marcats any sort of Fleshes which are usually brought at other times, whereby the young brood and store will be preserved; so that hereafter the hazard of scarcity and dearth may be prevented, and the fishes, which by the mercy of God, abound in the salt and fresh waters of this kingdome, may be made use of for the food and entertainment of the Lieges, to the profit and encouragment of many poor families who live by fishing; the improvement whereof hath not been looked to these many years by gone, which hath been occasioned by the universal allowance of eating flesh and keeping of Mercats at all ordinary times without any restraint, against which many laudable Laws and Acts of Parliament have been made, prohibiting the eating flesh during the said time of Lent or upon the saids Fishdays, under the pains therein contained. Therefore, Ordains and Commands, that the time of Lent, for this year, and yearly hereafter, shall begin and be kept as before the year of God 1640, and that the saids weekly Fishdays be strictly observed in all time coming. And that no subject of whatsoever rank, quality or degree (except they have a special Licence) presume to eat any flesh during the said time of Lent, or upon the saids three weekly Fishdayes; and that no Butchers, Cooks, or Hostlers, kill, make ready or sell any flesh, either publickly in Mercats or privately in their own houses, during the said time or upon the saids dayes, under the penalties following, to be exacted with all rigour, viz. For the first fault 10l; for the second 20l; and for the third fault 40l; and so to be multiplied according to the oft contraveening of the said Act, to be exacted and payed, the one half to the king’s Majesty, and the other half to the delators. Likeas, for the surer exacting of the said pains, they give power and warrand to all Magistrates within Burghs, and all Sheriffs, Stewards, and Bailies within their several Jurisdictions, to enquire after the contraveeners and to pursue them before the Lords of Privy Council, or such others as shall be appointed or delegat for that effect. And ordains Heraulds, Macers, or Messengers at Arms, to make publication hereof at the Mercat Cross of Edinburgh, and other places needful, and that these presents be printed that none pretend ignorance.
Pet. Wedderburne Cl. Sti. Concillii.”
The above may serve as a sample of the manner in which that father of his people, king Charles II, managed, disciplined, and educated his Caledonian children. It was severe enough; but he sometimes far exceeded this specimen of his paternal attention; especially when he had some of the most obstreperous of those children of his hunted with bloodhounds, like wild beasts. This, as we learn from Laing’s excellent History of Scotland, was sometimes actually the case in that memorable reign. Having been naturally led to these digressions by the circumstance of the strict and religious observance of Lent in this town till near the middle of the 17th century, (which shews the small progress protestantism had made here down to that period,) we shall now resume the thread of our history.
Section IV.
Observations on other occurrences relating to Lynn during the period under consideration.
Lynn appears to have been several times visited, during this period, by the plague and other destructive diseases; and there is great reason to be thankful that it has not in more modern times experienced the like awful visitations. In 1540 the town is said to have been so severely afflicted with hot burning agues, (or intermittent fevers) and fluxes, that no Mart was kept here that year; which shews that the disorder must have raged to a terrible degree, and proved a most severe scourge to the town. The plague also was here three or four different times within this period. The last of them was in 1636, when it raged so violently and dreadfully that the markets were discontinued, and wooden houses or sheds were set up under the town-walk for the reception of the diseased, especially those of the poorer sort. It must have been a most awful season, and the present generation ought to rejoice in having escaped such calamities.—In 1598 also there was here a very great and destructive sickness: but it is not said of what sort or description it was: only we are told, that the mortality was so great, from March to July, that three hundred and twenty persons were buried in St. James’s Church Yard. To whatever cause it is to be ascribed, it seems to be a fact, that this town has been much healthier for the last 140 years than it was during the period of which we are now treating. There is a natural cause, no doubt, for that difference, though it may not be a very easy matter, perhaps, to discover it, or point it out.
It may be here further observed, that it was within this period the parish of All-Hallows, or All Saints, otherwise South Lynn, became a part or member of this Borough; being before a separate parish or hamlet, subject to the jurisdiction of the sheriff of the county. This union, or incorporation was first effected in 1546, by a Licence from the king, and afterwards fully confirmed by the Charter of Philip and Mary, in the fourth year of their reign. From that period it has ever been under the jurisdiction of the mayor, as an integral or indivisible part of the borough. Yet it has been long after, (if not down quite to our time,) treated by the corporation somewhat like a step-daughter, or as regular governments (as they are called,) are too apt to treat ceded or conquered places. Of this some remarkable instances have occurred at different times, and especially in the reign of Charles II, when the South Lynnians were very wrongfully involved in a most vexatious law-suit with the mayor and corporation, about the Long Bridge, which ended unfavourably to the latter, as has been also the case with our corporation law-suits, not unfrequently since that period. The above cause was tried at Thetford in 1672 before Sir Matthew Hale, who was exceedingly severe on the conduct of the mayor and corporation in that affair.
Many events are mentioned as having occurred at Lynn, during this period, of whose circumstances we are left very much in the dark: among them are the following—in 1562, Sir Nicholas Le Strange (according to one old MS.) “began a suit against Lynn for the House of Corpus Christi:” but we are not told either where that house stood, or what was the ground of that knight’s claim to it, or yet how the suit terminated.—In 1567 St. Margaret’s spire is said to have been shot down by a Dutch ship that then lay in the harbour, as were also several little crosses and ornaments on different parts of the church.” But we cannot learn how all this happened; whether designedly, or otherwise, or what was its result. In 1575 Henry Wodehouse, vice admiral of Norfolk is said to have arrested two Fly-Boats at Lynn, by process, which he delivered to the mayor, who refusing to serve them, brought great trouble on himself and several others.” This also is related so baldly, that it is impossible to form any adequate idea of the affair. Of much the same sort is what we read under 1587, “Sir Robert Southwell, being admiral of Norfolk, with several commissioners and justices, sat at Lynn and held a court of admiralty, at which sixteen pirates were condemned, and most of them executed at Gannock.” It is in vain we enquire into the particular case or circumstantial history of those pirates: all we can learn is that there were so many then tried and condemned here, and that Gannock was in the mean time the place of execution.