through ignorance the true meaning of that word "recluse" was in that age abused: for in pure Latin it signifieth, "one set open,' or "let loose to their own liberty." Quid non ebrietas designat? operta recludit.* Whereas "recluse" was taken in that age for "one close shut up;" so that many monks and friars were "recluses" indeed, not in the common acceptation, but true notation, of that name. XI. ABBOTS WILLINGLY-UNWILLING RESIGNED THEIR MONASTERIES TO THE KING. 1, 2. Monks, persuaded into a Resignation, strive who should be the foremost. SANDERS saith, that king Henry sent a large instrument to every monastery, fairly engrossed in parchment, enjoining them all to subscribe, sign, and seal the same with their seal conventual, upon the pain of his displeasure. It is not probable, that such a formal writing was sent unto them, drawn up beforehand by the king's officers; but most certain it is, (which amounts almost to as much in effect,) a general intimation was given to all Houses, how acceptable such an act would be to the king. It was also pressed upon the said monks, friars, and nuns, that, they, through their viciousness, being obnoxious to the king's anger, this might and would be done without their consent; so that it was better for them, rebus sic stantibus, to make a virtue of necessity; the rather, because this compliment conduced nothing to the king's right, (on whom the parliament had already bestowed those abbey-lands,) but might add much to their own advantage, as being the way whereby their pensions might the more easily be procured, largely allotted, and surely satisfied unto them. The premisses made such impression on the parties concerned therein, that fearing the lag would be looked on with bad eyes, they ran, as it were, a race, in their resignations, who should be first and foremost therein. However, they used several forms therein, some only condemning their lives for superstitious, but not confessing themselves personally vicious; as by the following instrument may appear. The Surrender of the Warden and Friars of St. Francis in Stanford.+ "For as moche as we, the warden, and freers of the howse of Saynt Frances in Stanforde, comenly callyd the Gray Freers in † Out of the records of the Court of Augmentation. • HORATIUS, lib. i. epist. 5. Stanforde, in the countey of Lincolne, doo profoundly consider that the perfeccion of Christian lyving dothe not conciste in the dome ceremonies, werying of the grey cootte, disgeasing owr selffe after straunge fashions, dokyng, and beckyng, in gurding owr selffes wyth a gurdle full of knots, and other like papisticall ceremonies, wherein we have byn moost principally practysed, and misselyd in tymes past; but the very tru waye to please God, and to live a tru Christian man, wythe owte all ypocrasie, and fayned dissimulation, is sinceerly declared unto us by owr Master Christe, his evangelists, and apostles. Being mindyd hereafter to folowe the same; conformyng owr selffe unto the will and pleasure of owr supreme hedde undre God in erthe the kinges Majestye; and not to follow hensforth the superstitious tradicions of ony forincyall potentate, or poore, withe mutuall assent, and consent, doo submytt owr selffes unto the mercye of owr said soverayne lorde. And withe like mutuall assent, and consent, do surrender, and yelde upe unto, the hands of the same, all owr said howse of Saynt Frances in Stanforde, comenly callyd the Gray Freers in Stanforde, withe all lands, tenements, gardens, medowes, waters, pondyards, feedings, pastures, comens, rentes, revershons, and all other our interest, ryghtes, or tytles, aperteying unto the same; mooste humbly beseechyng his mooste noble Grace, to disspose of us, and of the same, as best schall stonde wythe his mooste graciouse pleasure. And farther, freely to graunt unto every one of us his licens undre wretyng and seall, to change our abites into seculer fashion, and to receive such maner of lyvings, as other seculer priestes comenly be preferryd unto. And we all faythfully schall pray unto Almighty God long to preserve his mooste noble Grace, wyth increase of moche felicitie and honor. "And in witnes of all and singular the premisses, we the saide warden, and covent of the Grey Freers in Stanforde, to these presents have put owr covent sceall the yeght day of Octobre, in the thyrtythe yere of the raygne of owr moost soverayne king Henry the yeght. "Factum JOHANNIS SCHEMY, Gardian, 3. A more humble Form of Surrender. Other resignations were far more humble and submissive, with an acknowledgment of their vicious and voluptuous lives. Such was the surrender made by the prior and convent of St. Andrew's in Northampton; which because very tedious, we shall only transcribe so much thereof as concerneth our present purpose. "But as well we as others our predecessors, called religiouse persons within yowr said monastery, taking on us the habite of owtward vesture of the said rule, onely to the intent to lead owr liffes in the ydle quyetnesse, and not in vertuose exercyse, in a stately estimation, and not in obedient humylyte, have undre the shadowe or colour of the saide rule and habite, vaynely, detestably, and also ungodly, employed, yea, rather devowred, the yerely revenues yssuing and comyng of the saide posseshons, in continuall ingurgitations and farcyngs of owr carayne bodyes, and of others, the supportares of owr voluptuose and carnal appetyte, with other vayne and ungodly expensys; to the manyfest subvertion of devocion, and clennes of lyvyng; and to the moost notable slaunder of Christ's holy evangely, which in the forme of owr profeshyon, we did ostentate, and openly devaunt to kepe moost exactly: withdrawyng thereby from the symple and pure myndys of yowr Grace's subjectes, the onely truth and comfort, which they oughte to have by the true faith of Christe. And also the devyne honor, and glory, onely due to the glorious majesty of God Almyghty, steryng them with all perswasions, ingynes, and polyce, to dedd images, and counterfett reliques, for owr dampnable lucre. Which our moost horrible abominacions, and execrable persuacions of yowr Grace's people, to detestable errours, and our long coveryd ipocrysie cloked with fayned sanctite; we revolving dayly, and continually ponderyng in owr sorrowfull harts, and therby perseyving the botomlas gulf of everlasting fyre, redy to devowre us, if, persysting in this state of lyving, we shulde depart from this uncertayn and transytory liffe, constrayned, by the intollerable anguysh of owr conscience, callyd as we trust by the grace of God, who wold have no man to perysh in synne: with harts moost contrite, and repentante, prostrate at the noble feet of yowr moost royall Majestye, most lamentably doo crave of yowr Highnes, of yowr abundant mercy, to grant unto us moost greevous against God, and yowr Highnes, your most gracious perdon, for owr saide sondry offences, omyssyons, and negligences, comytted as before by us is confessed agaynst yowr Highnes, and yowr most noble progenitors. And where[as] yowr Hyghnes, being supreme hedd, immediately aftre Christ, of his Church, in this yowr roialme of England, so consequently generall and onely reformator of all religious persons, there, have full authority to correct or dyssolve, at yowr Grace's pleasure and libertye, all covents and religious companyes abusing the rewles of their profession. And moreover to yowr Highnes, being owr soveraygn lord, and undoubted fownder of yowr said monastery, by dissolucion whereof apperteyneth onely the oryginall title, and propre inherytance, as well of all other goods moveable and unmoveable, to the said monastery in any wyse apperteyning or belonging, to be disposed, and imployed, as to yowr Grace's most excellent wysdeme shall seme expedyent and necessary. "Per me FRANCISCUM, Priorem, Other resignations varying in their words met (for the main) in the matter, and were with all speed presented to the king's visitors. As school-boys hope to escape with the fewer stripes, for being the first in untying their points; those convents promised to themselves the kindest usage, which were forwardest in their resignations, though all (on the matter) fared alike. 4, 5. Betwixt first and last no great Difference. Yea, John de Warboise, so called from the place of his nativity in Huntingdonshire, (where my worthy friend Mr. William Johnson is well beneficed,) though the first,* with his sixty Benedictine monks, who with solemn subscription renounced the pope's supremacy, and now as officious as any in surrendering his convent to the king's visitors, met with no peculiar and extraordinary civility above others of his Order. Such resignations sealed and delivered, the visitors called for the seals themselves, which now had survived their own use, having passed the last effectual act; and these, generally made of silver, were by the king's officers presently broken in pieces. Such material stamps being now abolished, it will be charity to preserve their impressions, and exhibit them to posterity; which here we shall endeavour, • SPEED in his "Description of Huntingdonshire." rendering some probable reason how most of them refer to the founders, or situation, or some remarkable action therein. XII. THE SEAL OF ARMS OF THE MITRED ABBEYS IN 1-28. The Design of the Work. The Arms of Tavistock, of Glastonbury, of Middleton, of Malmesbury, of Abingdon, of Reading, of Hide, of Battle, of St. Augustine, of Gloucester, of Tewkesbury, of Winchcomb, of Cirencester, of St. Alban's, of St. John's of Jerusalem, of Waltham, of Colchester, of Bury, of St. Benet's, of Thorney, of Ramsey, of Peterborough, of Crowland, of Bardney and Evesham, of Shrewsbury, of Selby, of York. IN presenting of them, I will not be confined to the strict terms of blazonry; the rather because some of their arms may be presumed so ancient, as fitter to give rules to, than take them from, our modern heraldry: and what my pen cannot sufficiently describe, therein the reader may satisfy himself by his own eye: to which these coats are presented in the last sheet of this volume after the History of Waltham-Abbey.* I will make a method of my own, beginning (where the sun ends) in the west: Tavistock in Devonshire gave Varrey Or and Azure, on a Chiefe Or, two Mulletts, Gules. Glastonbury gave Vert (as I conjecture the colour) a Crosse Bottone Argent. In the first quarter the woman with a Glory holding a babe (radiated about his head) in her arms; because, forsooth, by the direction of the angel Gabriel their church was first dedicated to the Virgin Mary.t Middleton, in Gloucestershire, gave Sable, three Baskets, Argent, replenished with loaves of bread, Gules. Had the number of the baskets been either seven or twelve, some would interpret therein a reference to the reversions preserved by Christ's command of the loaves miraculously multiplied; whereas now they denote the bounty of that abbey in relieving the poor. What Malmesbury in Wiltshire gave, I cannot yet attain. Abingdon gave a Crosse flurt betwixt Martelletts Sable, much alluding to the arms of our English kings before the Conquest; who, it seems, were great benefactors thereunto. • In the present edition this heraldic plate is here inserted, as most suitable to accompany the description in the text.-EDIT. † See the first century of this "Church History," vol. i. p. 13, paragraph 11. |