A Leader of the Lollards: The Trouble and Persecution of the Most Valiant and Worthy Martyr of Christ, Sir John Oldcastl
A LEADER OF THE LOLLARDS: THE TROUBLE AND PERSECUTION OF THE MOST VALIANT AND WORTHY MARTYR OF CHRIST, SIR JOHN OLDCASTLE, KNIGHT, LORD COBHAM
AFTER that the true servant of Jesus Christ, John Wickliff, a man of very excellent life and learning, had, for the space of more than twenty-six years, most valiantly battled with the great Antichrist of Europe, or Pope of Rome, and his diversely disguised host of anointed hypocrites, to restore the Church to the pure estate that Christ left her in at His ascension, he departed hence most Christianly in the hands of God, the year of our Lord 1384, and was buried in his own parish church at Lutterworth, in Leicestershire.
No small number of godly disciples left that good man behind him, to defend the lowliness of the Gospel against the exceeding pride, ambition, simony, avarice, hypocrisy, sacrilege, tyranny, idolatrous worshippings, and other filthy fruits, of those stiffnecked pharisees; against whom Thomas Arundel, the Archbishop of Canterbury (as fierce as ever was Pharaoh, Antiochus, Herod, or Caiaphas) collected, in Paul’s church at London, a universal synod of all the papistical clergy of England, in the year of our Lord 1413 (as he had done divers others before), to withstand their most godly enterprise.
The principal cause of the assembling thereof, was to repress the growing and spreading of the Gospel, and especially to withstand the noble and worthy Lord Cobham, who was then noted to be a principal favourer, receiver, and maintainer of those whom the bishop named Lollards; especially in the dioceses of London, Rochester, and Hereford, setting them up to preach whom the bishops had not licensed, and sending them about to preach: holding also and teaching opinions of the sacraments, of images, of pilgrimage, of the keys and church of Rome, repugnant to the received determination of the Romish Church. It was concluded among them, that, without any further delay, process should be awarded out against him, as against a most pernicious heretic.
Some of that fellowship who were of more crafty experience than the others, thought it not best to have the matter so rashly handled, but by some preparation made thereunto beforehand: considering the said Lord Cobham was a man of great birth, and in favour at that time with the King, their counsel was to know first the King’s mind. This counsel was well accepted, and thereupon the archbishop, Thomas Arundel, with his other bishops, and a great part of the clergy, went straitways unto the King then remaining at Kennington, and there laid forth most grievous complaints against the said Lord Cobham, to his great infamy and blemish: being a man right godly. The King gently heard those blood-thirsty prelates, and far otherwise than became his princely dignity: notwithstanding requiring, and instantly desiring them, that in respect of his noble stock and knighthood, they should yet favourably deal with him; and that they would, if it were possible, without all rigour or extreme handling, reduce him again to the Church’s unity. He promised them also, that in case they were contented to take some deliberation, he himself would seriously commune the matter with him.
Anon after, the King sent for the said Lord Cobham, and as soon as he was come, he called him secretly, admonishing him betwixt him and him, to submit himself to his mother the Holy Church, and, as an obedient child, to acknowledge himself culpable.
Unto whom the Christian knight made this answer: ‘You, most worthy prince,’ saith he, ‘I am always prompt and willing to obey, forasmuch as I know you a Christian king, and the appointed minister of God, bearing the sword to the punishment of evil doers, and for safeguard of them that be virtuous. Unto you, next my eternal God, owe I my whole obedience, and submit thereunto, as I have done ever, all that I have, either of fortune or nature, ready at all times to fulfil whatsoever ye shall in the Lord command me. But, as touching the Pope and his spirituality, I owe them neither suit nor service, forasmuch as I know him, by the Scriptures, to be the great Antichrist, the son of perdition, the open adversary of God, and the abomination standing in the holy place.’
When the King had heard this, with such like sentences more, he would talk no longer with him, but left him so utterly.
And as the archbishop resorted again unto the King for an answer, he gave him his full authority to cite him, examine him, and punish him, according to their devilish decrees, which they called ‘The Laws of Holy Church.’ But forasmuch as the Lord Cobham did not appear at the day appointed, the archbishop condemned him of most deep contumacy. After that, when he had been falsely informed by his hired spies, and other glozing glaverers, that the said Lord Cobham had laughed him to scorn, disdained all his doings, maintained his old opinions, contemned the Church’s power, the dignity of a bishop, and the order of priesthood (for of all these was he then accused), in his moody madness, without just proof, did he openly excommunicate him.
This most constant servant of the Lord, and worthy knight, Sir John Oldcastle, the Lord Cobham, beholding the unpeaceable fury of Antichrist thus kindled against him, perceiving himself compassed on every side with deadly dangers, took paper and pen in hand, and wrote a confession of his faith, both signing and sealing it with his own hand: wherein he answered to the four chief articles that the archbishop laid against him. That done, he took the copy with him, and went therewith to the King, trusting to find mercy and favour at his hand.
The King would in no case receive it, but commanded it to be delivered unto them that should be his judges. Then desired he, in the King’s presence, that a hundred knights and esquires might be suffered to come in upon his purgation, who he knew would clear him of all heresies. Moreover he offered himself, after the law of arms, to fight for life or death with any man living, Christian or heathen, in the quarrel of his faith; the King and the lords of his council excepted. Finally, with all gentleness, he protested before all that were present that he would refuse no manner of correction that should, after the laws of God, be ministered unto him; but that he would at all times, with all meekness, obey it.
Notwithstanding all this the King suffered him to be summoned personally in his own privy chamber. Then said the Lord Cobham to the King, that he had appealed from the archbishop to the Pope of Rome, and therefore he ought, he said, in no case to be his judge. And having his appeal there at hand ready written, he showed it with all reverence to the King; wherewith the King was then much more displeased than afore, and said angrily to him, that he should not pursue his appeal; but rather he should tarry in hold, till such time as it were of the Pope allowed. And then, would he or nild he, the archbishop should be his judge.
Thus was there nothing allowed that the good Lord Cobham had lawfully required; but, forasmuch as he would not be sworn in all things to submit himself to the Church, and so take what penance the archbishop would enjoin him, he was arrested at the King’s commandment, and led forth to the Tower of London.
When the day of examination was come, which was the 23rd day of September, the Saturday after the feast of St Matthew, Thomas Arundel, the Archbishop, sat in Caiaphas’ room, in the chapter-house of Paul’s, with Richard Clifford, Bishop of London, and Henry Bolingbrook, Bishop of Winchester. Sir Robert Morley, knight, and lieutenant of the Tower, brought before him the said Lord Cobham, and there left him for the time; unto whom the archbishop said these words: ‘Sir John, in the last general convocation of the clergy of this our province, ye were detected of certain heresies, and, by sufficient witnesses, found culpable: whereupon ye were, by form of spiritual law, cited, and would in no case appear. Upon your rebellious contumacy ye were both privately and openly excommunicated. Notwithstanding we neither yet showed ourselves unready to have given you absolution (nor yet do to this hour), would ye have meekly asked it.’
Unto whom the Lord Cobham said that he desired no absolution; but he would gladly, before him and his brethren, make rehearsal of that faith which he held and intended always to stand to. And then he took out of his bosom a certain writing concerning the articles whereof he was accused, and read it before them.
‘As for images, I understand that they be not of belief, but that they were ordained since the belief of Christ was given by sufferance of the Church, to represent and bring to mind the passion of our Lord Jesus Christ, and martyrdom and good living of other saints: and that whoso it be, that doth the worship to dead images that is due to God, or putteth such hope or trust in help of them, as he should do to God, or hath affection in one more than in another, he doth in that, the greatest sin of idol worship.
‘Also I suppose this fully, that every man in this earth is a pilgrim toward bliss, or toward pain; and that he that knoweth not, ne will not know, ne keep the holy commandments of God in his living here (albeit that he go on pilgrimages to all the world, and he die so), he shall be damned: he that knoweth the holy commandments of God, and keepeth them to his end, he shall be saved, though he never in his life go on pilgrimage, as men now use, to Canterbury, or to Rome, or to any other place.’
Then counselled the archbishop with the other two bishops and with divers of the doctors, what was to be done; commanding him, for the time, to stand aside. In conclusion, by their assent and information, he said thus unto him: ‘Come hither, Sir John: ye must declare us your mind more plainly. As thus, whether ye hold, affirm, and believe, that in the sacrament of the altar, after the consecration rightly done by a priest, remaineth material bread, or not? Moreover, whether ye do hold, affirm, and believe, that, as concerning the sacrament of penance (where a competent number of priests are), every Christian man is necessarily bound to be confessed of his sins to a priest ordained by the church, or not?’
This was the answer of the good Lord Cobham: that none otherwise would he declare his mind, nor yet answer unto his articles, than was expressly in his writing there contained.
Then said the archbishop again unto him: ‘Sir John, beware what ye do; for if ye answer not clearly to those things that are here objected against you, the law of holy church is that we may openly proclaim you a heretic.’
Unto whom he gave this answer: ‘Do as ye shall think best.’ Wherewith the bishops and prelates were amazed and wonderfully disquieted.
At last the archbishop again declared unto him, what the Holy Church of Rome, following the saying of St Augustine, St Jerome, St Ambrose, and of the holy doctors, had determined in these matters: no manner of mention once made of Christ! ‘which determination,’ saith he, ‘ought all Christian men both to believe and to follow.’
Then said the Lord Cobham unto him, that he would gladly both believe and observe whatsoever holy Church of Christ’s institution had determined, or yet whatsoever God had willed him either to believe or to do: but that the Pope of Rome, with his cardinals, archbishops, bishops, and other prelates of that church, had lawful power to determine such matter as stood not with His word thoroughly; that, would he not (he said) at that time affirm. With this the Archbishop bade him to take good advisement till the Monday next following (which was the twenty-fifth day of September), and then justly to answer, specially unto this point: Whether there remained material bread in the sacrament of the altar after the words of consecration, or not?
The Lord Cobham perceived that their uttermost malice was purposed against him, and therefore he put his life into the hands of God, desiring his only Spirit to assist him in his next answer. When the said twenty-fifth day of September was come Thomas Arundel, the Archbishop of Canterbury, commanded his judicial seat to be removed from the chapter-house of Paul’s to the Dominic friars within Ludgate at London. And as he was there set, with a great sort more of priests, monks, canons, friars, parish-clerks, bell-ringers, and pardoners, Sir Robert Morley, knight, and lieutenant of the Tower, brought the good Lord Cobham, leaving him among them as a lamb among wolves.
Examination of the Lord Cobham.
Then said the archbishop unto him: ‘Sir John, we sent you a writing concerning the faith of the blessed sacrament, clearly determined by the Church of Rome, our mother, and by the holy doctors.’
Then he said unto him: ‘I know none holier than is Christ and His apostles. And as for that determination, I wot it is none of theirs; for it standeth not with the Scriptures, but manifestly against them.’
Then said one of the lawyers: ‘What is your belief concerning Holy Church.’
The Lord Cobham answered: ‘My belief is, that all the Scriptures of the sacred Bible are true. All that is grounded upon them I believe thoroughly, for I know it is God’s pleasure that I should so do; but in your lordly laws and idle determinations have I no belief. For ye be no part of Christ’s Holy Church, as your open deeds do show; but ye are very Antichrists, obstinately set against His holy law and will. The laws that ye have made are nothing to His glory, but only for your vain glory and abominable covetousness. And as for your superiority, were ye of Christ, ye should be meek ministers, and no proud superiors.’
Then said Doctor Walden unto him: ‘Swift judges always are the learned scholars of Wickliff!’
Unto him the Lord Cobham thus answered: ‘As for that virtuous man Wickliff, I shall say here, before God and man, that before I knew that despised doctrine of his, I never abstained from sin. But since I learned therein to fear my Lord God, it hath otherwise, I trust, been with me: so much grace could I never find in all your glorious instructions.’
Then said Dr Walden yet again unto him: ‘It were not well with me (so many virtuous men living, and so many learned men teaching the Scripture, being also so open, and the examples of fathers so plenteous), if I then had no grace to amend my life, till I heard the devil preach!’
The Lord Cobham said: ‘Your fathers, the old Pharisees, ascribed Christ’s miracles to Beelzebub, and His doctrine to the devil; and you, as their children, have still the selfsame judgment concerning His faithful followers. They that rebuke your vicious living must needs be heretics, and that must your doctors prove, when you have no Scripture to do it.’ Then said he to them all: ‘To judge you as you be, we need go no further than to your own proper acts. Where do you find in all God’s law, that ye should thus sit in judgment on any Christian man, or yet give sentence upon any other man unto death, as ye do here daily? No ground have ye in all the Scripture so lordly to take it upon you, but in Annas and Caiaphas, who sat thus upon Christ, and upon His apostles after His ascension. Of them only have ye taken it to judge Christ’s members as ye do; and neither of Peter nor John.’
Then said some of the lawyers: ‘Yes, forsooth, Sir, for Christ judged Judas.’
The Lord Cobham said, ‘No! Christ judged him not, but he judged himself, and thereupon went forth and so did hang himself: but indeed Christ said: “Woe unto him, for that covetous act of his,” as He doth yet still unto many of you. For since the venom of Judas was shed into the Church, ye never followed Christ, neither yet have ye stood in the perfection of God’s law.’
Then the archbishop asked him, What he meant by that venom?
The Lord Cobham said: ‘Your possessions and lordships. For then[1] cried an angel in the air, as your own chronicles mention, Woe, woe, woe, this day is venom shed into the Church of God. Before that time all the bishops of Rome were martyrs, in a manner: and since that time we read of very few. But indeed since that same time, one hath put down another, one hath poisoned another, one hath cursed another, and one hath slain another, and done much more mischief besides, as all the chronicles tell. And let all men consider well this, that Christ was meek and merciful; the Pope is proud and a tyrant: Christ was poor and forgave; the Pope is rich and a malicious manslayer.’
Then a doctor of law, called Master John Kemp, plucked out of his bosom a copy of the bill which they had before sent him into the Tower by the archbishop’s council, thinking thereby to make shorter work with him. ‘My Lord Cobham,’ saith this doctor, ‘we must briefly know your mind concerning these four points here following. The first of them is this’:—and then he read upon the bill: “The faith and determination of Holy Church touching the blessed sacrament of the altar is this; That after the sacramental words be once spoken by a priest in his mass, the material bread, that was before bread, is turned into Christ’s very body, and the material wine is turned into Christ’s blood. And so there remaineth, in the sacrament of the altar, from thenceforth no material bread, nor material wine, which were there before the sacramental words were spoken”: Sir, believe you not this?’
The Lord Cobham said: ‘This is not my belief; but my faith is, as I said to you before, that in the worshipful sacrament of the altar is Christ’s very body in form of bread.’
Then read the doctor again: ‘The second point is this: Holy Church hath determined that every Christian man, living here bodily upon earth, ought to be shriven of a priest ordained by the Church, if he may come to him. Sir, what say you to this?’
The Lord Cobham answered and said: ‘A diseased or sore wounded man hath need to have a sure wise chirurgeon and a true, knowing both the ground and the danger of the same. Most necessary were it, therefore, to be first shriven unto God, who only knoweth our diseases, and can help us.’
Then read the doctor again: ‘The third point is this: Christ ordained St Peter the apostle to be His vicar here in earth, whose see is the Church of Rome, and He granted that the same power which He gave unto Peter should succeed unto all Peter’s successors, whom we now call popes of Rome: by whose special power, in churches particular, be ordained prelates and archbishops, parsons, curates, and other degrees besides, to whom Christian men ought to obey after the laws of the Church of Rome. This is the determination of Holy Church. Sir, believe ye not this?’
To this he answered and said: ‘He that followeth Peter most nigh in pure living, is next unto him in succession; but your lordly order esteemeth not greatly the lowly behaviour of poor Peter, whatsoever ye prate of him, neither care ye greatly for the humble manners of them that succeeded him till the time of Silvester, who, for the more part, were martyrs.’
With that, one of the other doctors asked him: ‘Then what do ye say of the Pope?’
The Lord Cobham answered: ‘He and you together make whole the great Antichrist, of whom he is the great head; you bishops, priests, prelates, and monks, are the body; and the begging friars are the tail.’
Then read the doctor again: ‘The fourth point is this: Holy Church hath determined, that it is meritorious to a Christian man to go on pilgrimage to holy places, and there specially to worship the holy relics and images of saints, apostles, martyrs, confessors, and all other saints besides, approved by the Church of Rome. Sir, what say you to this?’
Whereunto the Lord Cobham answered: ‘I owe them no service by any commandment of God, and therefore I mind not to seek them for your covetousness. It were best ye swept them fair from cobwebs and dust, and so laid them up for catching of scathe, or else to bury them fair in the ground, as ye do other aged people, who are God’s images. It is a wonderful thing that saints now being dead should become so covetous and needy, and thereupon so bitterly beg, who all their life-time hated all covetousness and begging. But this I say unto you, and I would all the world should mark it, that with your shrines and idols, your feigned absolutions and pardons, ye draw unto you the substance, wealth, and chief pleasures of all Christian realms.’
Then said the archbishop unto him: ‘Sir John, ye must either submit yourself to the ordinance of Holy Church, or else throw yourself (no remedy) into most deep danger. We require you to have no other manner of opinion in these matters, than the universal faith and belief of the Holy Church of Rome is. And so, like an obedient child, return again to the unity of your mother.’
The Lord Cobham said expressly before them all: ‘I will no otherwise believe in these points than what I have told you here before. Do with me what you will.’
And with that the archbishop stood up and read a bill of his condemnation, all the clergy and laity vailing their bonnets: ‘Forasmuch as we have found Sir John Oldcastle, knight, and Lord Cobham, not only to be an evident heretic in his own person, but also a mighty maintainer of other heretics against the faith and religion of the holy and universal Church of Rome; and that he, as the child of iniquity and darkness, hath so hardened his heart, that he will in no case attend unto the voice of his pastor; his faults also aggravated or made double through his damnable obstinacy, we commit him to the secular jurisdiction. Furthermore, we excommunicate and denounce accursed, not only this heretic here present, but so many else besides as shall hereafter, in favour of his error, either receive him or defend him, counsel him or help him, or any other way maintain him, as very fautors, receivers, defenders, counsellors, aiders, and maintainers of condemned heretics.
‘And we give straight commandment that ye cause this condemnation and definitive sentence of excommunication concerning both this heretic and his fautors, to be published throughout all dioceses, in cities, towns, and villages, by your curates and parish priests, at such times as they shall have most recourse of people. Let the curate everywhere go into the pulpit, and there open, declare, and expound his process, in the mother-tongue, in an audible and intelligible voice, that it may be perceived of all men: and that upon the fear of this declaration also the people may fall from their evil opinions conceived now of late by seditious preachers.’
After the archbishop had read the bill of his condemnation before the whole multitude, the Lord Cobham said with a most cheerful countenance: ‘Though ye judge my body, which is but a wretched thing, yet am I certain and sure, that ye can do no harm to my soul, no more than could Satan unto the soul of Job. He that created that, will of His infinite mercy and promise save it. I have, therein, no manner of doubt.’
He fell down upon his knees, and before them all prayed for his enemies, holding up both his hands and his eyes towards heaven, and saying, ‘Lord God Eternal! I beseech Thee, of Thy great mercy sake, to forgive my pursuers, if it be Thy blessed will.’
After this, the bishops and priests were in great discredit both with the nobility and commons; for that they had so cruelly handled the good Lord Cobham. The prelates feared this to grow to further inconvenience towards them, wherefore they drew their heads together, and consented to use another practice somewhat contrary to that they had done before. They caused it to be blown abroad by their fee’d servants, friends, and babbling Sir Johns, that the said Lord Cobham was become a good man, and had lowly submitted himself in all things unto Holy Church, utterly changing his opinion concerning the sacrament. And thereupon, they counterfeited an abjuration in his name, that the people should take no hold of his opinion by any thing they had heard of him before, and so to stand the more in awe of them, considering him so great a man, and by them subdued.
When the clergy perceived that policy would not help, but made more and more against them, then sought they out another false practice: they went unto the King with a most grievous complaint, that in every quarter of the realm, by reason of Wickliff’s opinions, and the said Lord Cobham, were wonderful contentions, rumours, tumults, uproars, confederations, dissensions, divisions, differences, discords, harms, slanders, schisms, sects, seditions, perturbations, perils, unlawful assemblies, variances, strifes, fightings, rebellious rufflings, and daily insurrections. The Church, they said, was hated. The diocesans were not obeyed. The ordinaries were not regarded. The spiritual officers, as suffragans, archdeacons, chancellors, doctors, commissaries, officials, deans, lawyers, scribes, and somners, were everywhere despised. The laws and liberties of Holy Church were trodden under foot. The Christian faith was ruinously decayed. God’s service was laughed to scorn. The spiritual jurisdiction, authority, honour, power, policy, laws, rites, ceremonies, curses, keys, censures, and canonical sanctions of the Church, were had in utter contempt, so that all, in a manner, was come to naught.
And the cause of this was, that the heretics and lollards of Wickliff’s opinion were suffered to preach abroad so boldly, to gather conventicles unto them, to keep schools in men’s houses, to make books, compile treatises, and write ballads, to teach privately in angles and corners, as in woods, fields, meadows, pastures, groves, and in caves of the ground.
This would be, said they, a destruction to the commonwealth, a subversion to the land, and an utter decay of the King’s estate royal, if remedy were not sought in time. And this was their policy, to couple the King’s authority with what they had done in their former council, of craft, and so to make it, thereby, the stronger. For they perceived themselves very far too weak else, to follow against their enemies, what they had so largely enterprised. Upon this complaint, the King immediately called a parliament at Leicester. It might not, in those days, be holden at Westminster, for the great favour that the Lord Cobham had, both in London and about the city.
Thus were Christ’s people betrayed every way, and their lives bought and sold. For, in the said parliament, the King made this most blasphemous and cruel act, to be a law for ever: that whatsoever they were that should read the Scriptures in the mother-tongue (which was then called Wickliff’s learning), they should forfeit land, cattle, body, life, and goods, from their heirs for ever, and so be condemned for heretics to God, enemies to the crown, and most arrant traitors to the land. Besides this, it was enacted, that never a sanctuary, nor privileged ground within the realm, should hold them, though they were still permitted both to thieves and murderers. And if, in any case they would not give over, or were, after their pardon, relapsed, they should suffer death in two manner of kinds: that is; they should first be hanged for treason against the King, and then be burned for heresy against God.
Then had the bishops, priests, monks, and friars a world somewhat to their minds. Many were taken in divers quarters, and suffered most cruel death. And many fled out of the land into Germany, Bohemia, France, Spain, Portugal, and into the welds of Scotland, Wales, and Ireland; working there many marvels.
Sentence of death being given, the Lord Cobham was sent away, Sir Robert Morley carrying him again unto the Tower, where, after he had remained a certain space, in the night season (it is not known by what means), he escaped out, and fled into Wales. A great sum of money was proclaimed by the King, to him that could take the said Sir John Oldcastle, either quick or dead: who confederated with the Lord Powis (who was at that time a great governor in Wales), feeding him with lordly gifts and promises. About the end of four years, the Lord Powis, whether for greediness of the money, or for hatred of the true and sincere doctrine of Christ, seeking all manner of ways how to play the part of Judas, and outwardly pretending him great amity and favour, at length obtained his bloody purpose, and most cowardly and wretchedly took him, and brought the Lord Cobham bound, up to London; which was about the year of our Lord 1417, and about the month of December; at which there was a parliament assembled in London. It was adjudged, that he should be taken as a traitor to the King and the realm; that he should be carried to the Tower, and from thence drawn through London, unto the new gallows in St Giles without Temple-Bar, and there to be hanged, and burned hanging.
Upon the day appointed, the Lord Cobham was brought out of the Tower with his arms bound behind him, having a very cheerful countenance. Then was he laid upon a hurdle, as though he had been a most heinous traitor to the crown, and so drawn forth into St Giles’s field. As he was come to the place of execution, and was taken from the hurdle, he fell down devoutly upon his knees, desiring Almighty God to forgive his enemies. Then stood he up and beheld the multitude, exhorting them in most godly manner to follow the laws of God written in the Scriptures, and to beware of such teachers as they see contrary to Christ in their conversation and living. Then was he hanged up by the middle in chains of iron, and so consumed alive in the fire, praising the name of God so long as his life lasted; the people, there present, showing great dolour. And this was done A.D. 1418.
How the priests that time fared, blasphemed, and accursed, requiring the people not to pray for him, but to judge him damned in hell, for that he departed not in the obedience of their Pope, it were too long to write.
Thus resteth this valiant Christian knight, Sir John Oldcastle, under the altar of God, which is Jesus Christ, among that godly company, who, in the kingdom of patience, suffered great tribulation with the death of their bodies, for His faithful word and testimony.