charge vpon them. This was in the euenyng, and because they should go throughe rough and cumberous places, and hard to passe by, they all thought it most expedient for their safegard to leaue behinde them, all the wemen and children, with a few other, and among thē also, certeine Ministers of the Churche: the residue were appointed to go to the towne of Mussie. And this did they vpon hope that the enemy would shew mercy to the multitude of wemen and children, beyng destitute of all succour. MarginaliaA lamentable seperation of the Merindolians from their wiues and children.No tounge can expresse, what sorrow, what teares, what sighyng, what lamentation, there was at that wofull departyng, when they were compelled to be thus separated a sunder, the husband from his deare wife, the father from his swete babes and tender infantes, the one neuer like to see the other agayne a lyue. Notwithstandyng, after the Ministers had ended their ordinary Sermōs, with euening prayers and exhortations, the men departed that night, to auoyde a greater inconuenience.

When they had gone all the night long, and had passed ouer the great hill of Libron, they might see many villages and fermes set on fire. Miniers in the meane tyme, had deuided his armey into two partes, marchyng hym selfe with the one, towardes the towne of Merindoll, and hauyng knowledge by espiall whether the Merindolians were fledde, he sendeth the other part to set vpon them, and to shewe their accustomed crueltie vpō them. Yet before they came to the place where they were, some of Miniers armey, either of good will, or moued with pitie, priuely conueyed them selues away, and came vnto them, to geue them warning that their enemies were comming: and one from the toppe of an hyghe rocke, where he though that the Merindolians were vnderneath, casteth downe ij. stones, and afterward, although he could not see thē, he calleth vnto them, that they should immediatly flye from thence. MarginaliaThe Merindolians ouertaken of their enemies.But the enemyes suddenly came vpon them, findyng them all assembled together at prayers, and spoyled them of all that they had, pullyng of their garmentes from their backes: some they rauished: some they whypped and scourged: some they sold away like cattell, practisyng what crueltie and vilany so euer they could deuise agaynst them. The wemen were in number about v. hundreth.

In the meane tyme Miniers came to Merindoll, where he founde none but a yong man named Maurice Blanc, who had yelded him selfe to a souldier, promising hym for his raūsome, two French crownes. Miniers would haue had him awaye by force, but it was aunswered that the souldier ought not to lose his prisoner. MarginaliaVile crueltie shewed vpon a young man of Merindoll.Miniers therfore paying the two crownes him selfe, tooke the young man, and caused hym to bee tyed to an Olyue tree, and shot throughe with harquebushes, and most cruellie martyred. Many Gentlemen whiche accompanied Miniers agaynst their willes, seyng this cruell spectacle, were moued with great compassion, & could not forbeare teares. For albeit this young man was not yet very well instructed, neither had before dwelt at Merindoll, yet in all his tormentes hauyng alwayes his eyes lifted vp to heauen, with a loude voyce, he ceased not still to call vpon God: and the last wordes that he spake, were these: Lord God, these men take awaye my lyfe full of miserie, but thou wilt giue vnto me lyfe euerlastyng, by thy sonne Iesus Christ: to whom be glorie. MarginaliaThe towne of Merindoll destroyed of the Papistes.So was Merindoll without any resistance, valiantly taken, ransackt, burnt, rased & layed euen with the grounde. And albeit there was no man to resiste, yet this valiant Captaine of Opede armed from toppe to toe, trembled for feare, and was sene to chaunge his colour very much.

MarginaliaThe towne of Cabriers flasely taken.When hee had destroyed Merindoll, hee layd siege to Cabriers, and battred it with his ordinaūce, but when he could not wynne it by force, he with the Lord of the town, & Poulin his chiefe Captaine, persuaded with the inhabitantes, to open their gates, solemnly promising that if they would so do, they would lay downe their armour, & also þ^t their cause should be heard in iudgement with all equitie & iustice, & no violence or iniurie should be shewed against thē. Vpon this, they opened their gates and let in Miniers with hys Captaines and all his armey. MarginaliaOthe & promise brokē of the Papistes.But the Tyrant when he was once entred, falsified his promise and raged like a beast. MarginaliaXxx. men, Martyrs.For first of all he picked out about xxx. men, causyng them to bee bounde and caryed into a medowe neare to the towne, and there to bee miserably cut and hewen inMarginaliaXl. wemen, Martyrs.peeces of his souldiers. Then, because he would leaue no kind of crueltie vnattempted, he also exercised his outrage & fury vpon the poore sely wemen, and caused 40. of them to be takē, of whō diuers were great with child, and put them into a barne full of straw and hey, and caused it to be set on fire at iiij. corners. And when the sely wemen runnyng to the great wyndow, where the hey is wont to be cast into the barne, would haue leaped out, they were kepte in with pikes and halberdes. Then there was a souldier which moued with pitie at the crying out & lamentation of the wemē, opened a doore to let them out, but as they were cōmyng out, the Tyranne caused them to bee slayne and cut in peeces, openyng their belyes that their children fell out, whom they trode vnder their feete. MarginaliaCrueltie Neronicall or rather furye diabolicall.Many were fledde into the wyne seller of the Castle, and many hyd thē selues in caues, whereof some were caried into the medowe and there stripped naked, were slayne: other some were boūd ii. and ii. together, and caried into the hall of the Castle, where they were slayne by the Captaynes, reioysing in their bloudy butchery and horrible slaughter. That done, this Tyranne, more cruell then euer was Herode, commaunded Captaine Iohn de Gay with a bande of ruffians, to go into the Churche (where was a great number of wemen, children and young infantes) to kill all that he founde there. Which the Captaine refused at the firste, to do, saying: that were a crueltie vnused among men of warre. Whereat Miniers beyng displeased, charged hym vpon payne of rebellion and disobedience to the king, to do as he had commaunded him. The Captaine fearyng that myght ensue, entred with his mē, and destroyed them all, sparyng neither young nor old. In this meane while certeine souldiers went to ransackt the houses for the spoyle: where they founde many poore men that had there hydden them selues in sellers and other priuie places, flying vpon them and crying out: kill kill. The other souldiers that were without the towne, killed all that they could meete with. MarginaliaAboue a 1000. Martyrs of Cabriers.The number of those that were so vnmercifully murdered, were about a thousand persons of mē, wemen, and children. The infantes that escaped their fury, were baptised agayne of their enemyes.

In token of this ioly victorie, the Popes Officers caused a piller to be erected in the said place of Cabriers, in the whiche was engrauen the yeare and the daye of the takyng and sackyng of this towne, by Iohn Miniers Lord of Opede and chief President of the Parlament of Prouince, for a memorial for euer, of þ^e barbarous crueltie, þ^e like wherof was yet neuer heard of. MarginaliaThe argumētes wherupon the doctrine of the Popes church standeth.Wherupō we withall our posteritie, haue to vnderstand what be the reasons and arguments wherewith the Antichrist of Rome, is wōt to vphold the impious Seat of his abominatiō: Who now is come to such excesse and profunditie of all kyndes of iniquitie, that all iustice, equitie and veritie beyng set a side, he seketh the defence of his cause, by no other thyng, then onely by force and violence, terrour and oppression, and shedyng of bloud.

In this meane while the inhabitātes of Merindoll & other places therabout, were among the mountaines and rockes, in great necessitie of victualles, and much affliction: who had procured certein men, which were in some fauour and authoritie with Miniers, to make request for thē vnto him, that they might depart safely, whether it should please God to lead them, with their wiues and children, althoughe they had no more but their shyrtes to couer their nakednes. Whereunto Miniers made this aunswere: MarginaliaAntichrist here playeth the deuill.I know what I haue to do: not one of them shall escape my handes. I will sende them to dwell in hell among the deuils.

MarginaliaThe towne of Cost, destroyed.After this there was a power sent vnto Costa, whiche lykewise they ouercame, and committed there great slaughter. Many of the inhabitātes fledde away & ranne into an orchard, where the souldiers rauished the wemē and maidens, and when they had kept them there inclosed a day and a night, they handled them so beastly, that those which had great belies, and the yonger maydens, dyed shortly after. MarginaliaMartyrs of Costa.It were impossible to comprehend all the lamentable and sorrowfull exāples of this cruell persecution agaynst the Merindolians and their felowes: In so much that no kynde of cruell tyranny was vnpractised. For they whiche escaped by woodes, and went wandryng by mountaynes, were taken and set in Galyes, or els were slayne out ryght. Many whiche did hyde thē selues in rockes and darke