MarginaliaExample of good princes.And yet notwithstandyng God hath reserued some good Princes at all tymes, out of the great multitude of such Gyantes, and hath brought them to hys Church, to embrace true doctrine, and to defend hys true worshyp: as Abraham taught Abimelech, Ioseph the Ægyptian kynges, and after them came Dauid, Iosaphat, Ezechias, Iosias excellyng in true godlynes. Daniell conuerted to the knowledge of God the kinges of Chaldea and Persia. Also Brytāny  

brought forth vnto the world the godly prince Constantine. In this number I wishe you rather to bee, then amongest þ^e enemies of Christ, defiled with Idolatrie & spotted with the bloud of the godly: of whō God will take punishmēt, as he doth many tymes forewarne, and many examples do teach.

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Yet agayne therefore I pray and beseche you for our Lord Iesus Christ, that you will correct and mitigate this Decree of the Byshops. In whiche doyng you shall aduaunce the glory of Christ, and prouide as well for the wealth of your owne soule, as the sauegarde of your Churches.

Let the harty desires of so many godly men throughe the whole world, moue you, so earnestly wishyng that some good kynges would extende their authority to the true reformation of the Churche of God, to the abolishyng of all Idolatrous worshyp, and the furtheryng of the course of the Gospell. Regarde also and consider I beseche you, those godly persons, MarginaliaHe meaneth Shaxton, Latimer, Cromer, and others.whiche are with you in bandes for the Gospels sake, beyng the true members of Christ.

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And if that cruell Decree be not altered, the Bishops will neuer cease to rage agaynst the Churche of Christe without mercy or pitie. MarginaliaThe deuills instrumentes by whom he worketh.For them the deuill vseth as instrumentes and ministers of his fury and malice against Christ. These he styrreth vp to slay and kill the members of Christ. Whose wicked and cruell procedynges and subtile sophistications, that you will not preferre before our true and most righteous request, al the godly most humbly and hartly do pray and beseche you. Whiche if they shall obteyne, no doubt but God shall recompēce to you great rewardes for your pietie, and your excellēt vertue shalbe renowmed both by pēne and voyce of all the godly, whiles the world standeth. For Christ shall iudge all them that shall deserue either wel or euill of his Church. And whiles letters shall remaine, the memoriall worthy of such noble desertes, shall neuer dye or be forgottē with the posteritie to come. And seyng we seeke the glory of Christ, & that our Churches are the Churches of Christ, there shall neuer be wantyng such as both shall defende the righteous cause, and magnifie with due commendation such as haue well deserued, and lykewise shall condemne the vniust crueltie of the enemyes.

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Christ goeth about hungry, thyrstie, naked, prisoned, complaynyng of the ragyng fury of the Byshops, and of the wrongfull oppression and cruelty of diuers Kynges and Princes, entreatyng that the members of hys body be not rent in peeces, but that true Churches may be defended and hys Gospell aduaunced. This request of Christ to heare, to receyue, and to embrace, is the office of a godly kyng, and seruice most acceptable vnto God.

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☞ Intreating a little before, pag. 1339. col. 1  

. of certain olde instrumentes for proufe of priestes lawfull maryage in tymes past, I gaue a litle touch of a certain record takē out of an old Martyrologe of the church of Cant. MarginaliaLiuingus Priest, and hys wife.touching Liuing⁹ a priest, and hys wife, in the tyme of Lanfancke. Wherin I touched also of certayne landes and houses restored agayn by the said Lanfrancke to the Church of S. Andrewe. Now forasmuch as the perfecte note therof is more fullye come to my hands, and partly considering the restoring of the sayd landes, to be to Christes Church in Cant. and not S. Andrewe in Rochester: and also for that I haue founde some other presidentes approuyng the lawfull maryage of priestes, and legitimation of their children, I thought good for the more full satisfying of the reader, to enter the same, as followeth.

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MarginaliaEx Archiuis eccles. Cant.OBijt Gullielmus Rex Anglorū. &c. Hic reddidit ecclesiæ Christi omnes ferè terras. &c. That is: After the death of William king of Englād, the sayd Lanfrancke restored agayne to Christes Churche in Cant. all the landes whiche from auncient memory vnto these latter dayes, haue ben taken away frō the right of the sayd Churche. The names of whiche landes bee these: In Kent, Raculfe, Sādwich, Ratburch, Wodetun, the Abbay of Limming, with the landes & customes vnto the same Monastery belonging, Saltwude, &c. (Stocke and Denentun, because they belōged of old tyme to the Churche of S. Andrew, MarginaliaS. Andrewes Church in Rochester.them hee restored to the same Churche.) In Sutherey, Murte-MarginaliaLiuingus priest and maryed man.lac, the Abbay of S. Mary in London, with the landes and houses, whiche Liuingus Priest, and his wife had in London. All these Lanfrancke restored agayne for the health of his owne soule, freely and without money. &c.

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MarginaliaM. 21. H. 7.NOte that in the xix. yeare of this kyng in an Assise at Warwicke, before Syr Guye Fairfax, and Syr Iohn Vaulsour, it was founde by verdite, MarginaliaA Deacon taketh a wife, hath issue & dyeth, the issue adiudged not bastarde.that the father of the tenaunt had taken the order of Deacon, and after marryed a wife, and had issue the tenaunt and died, and the tenaunt did enter. Vpon whom the pleintife dyd enter as next heire collaterall to the father of the tenaunt. Vpon whom he did reenter. &c. and for difficultie the Iustices did adiourne the Assise. And it was debated in the Escheker chamber: If the tenaunt shall bee a bastarde. &c. And here by aduise it was adiudged that hee shall not bee bastard. &c. ¶ Frowicke chief Iustice sayd to me in the xix. yeare of Henry the vij. in the common place  

, that he was of counsaile in this matter, and that it was adiudged as before, whiche Vaulsour did graunt. MarginaliaFrowickes opinion that the issue of a priest shall inherite.¶ And Frowicke sayd that if a Priest marry a wife and hath issue and dieth, his issue shall enherite for that the espousalls be not voyde but voydable. ¶ Vaulsour: if a man take a Nunne to wife this espousall is voyde.

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☞ Note that in the latter impression of Henry the 7. yeares of the lawe, thys worde Priest in thys case aforesayd, in some bookes is lefte out: whether of purpose or by negligence, I leaue it to the Reader to iudge.

D Curiā generalem D. Philippi & D. Maria dei gratia. &c. xvi. die Iulij, An. Reg. dist. Regis & Regina primo & tertio irrotulatur sic. Præsentatū est per totū homagiū quòd Simō Heynes Marginalia* Note that thys Simon Heynes a Doctour and Priest is not called otherwyse here in forme of law then Clericus, as in the Euidences before, other Priestes are called.* Clericus diu antè istam Curiam, vid. per duos annos iā elapsos, fuit sesitus secundum consuetudinē huius Manerij in dominico suo vt de feodo, de & in duabus acris terræ, percellis de xxxv. acris et dimidij terræ, nuper in tenuræ Ioannis Heynes. Ac de & in vno tenemento vocat. Bernardes nuper in tenura Ioannis Cotton. Ac de & in lvij. Acris & iij. rodis terræ & pasturæ, siue plus siue minus, prout iacent in campis de Myldenhall prædicta in diuersis pecijs, vt patet in Curia hic tentæ die Iouis proximo post festū Sācti Lucæ Euangelistæ, Anno regni Regis Henrici viij. xxxviij. Necnon de & in xij. acris terræ natiua iacentibus in Tovvnefield et Tvvamelfielde in diuersis pecijs. Ac de et in quatuor Acris et dimidio terræ iacentibus in Mildenhall prædictæ. Ac de & in quinq; rodis terræ iacentibus in Halyvvelfield. Qua quidē præmissæ, idem Symō nuper habuit ex sursum reditione VVillielmi Heynes prout patet in Curia hic tentæ die Martis proximo post Dominicā in Albis Anno regni Regis Edvvardi vj. primo. Et sic sesitus idem Simon de omnibus supradictis præmißis inde obijt solus sesitus. Et quòd Ioseph Heynes est filius & hæres eius propinquior, et modo atatis quinq; annorū et amplius. Qui quidem Ioseph præsens hic in Curia in propria persona sua, petit se admitti ad omnia supradicta præmißa tāquā ad ius et hæreditatē suā. MarginaliaNote that the opinion of Frowicke hath alway bene taken to be lawe, as may appeare by this president that pased before Syr Clement Heigham being learned in the lawe, & late chiefe Baron of the Exchequer in the tyme of the late Queene Mary.Et D. Rex & D. Regina ex gratia sua speciali, per Clementē Heigham militem Senescallum suū, concesserunt ei inde sesinam tenedā sibi, hæredibus, et aßignatis eius, per virgam ad voluntatem dict. D. Regis & D. Regina secundū consuetudinem huius Manerij, per seruitia & redditus inde debita. etc. Salua iure. &c. Et dat Domino Regi et D. Regina v. lib. de fine pro ingressu suo habendo, et fidelitas inde respectuatur quousq;. &c. Et vlterius cōsideratū est per Curiā quòd dict. Ioseph est infra atatē vt præfertur. Ideo determinatū est & conceßū est per consensum Curia quòd Ioanna Heynes nuper vxor prædicti Simonis, ac mater prædicti Ioseph habebit custodiā eiusdem Ioseph quousq; idem Ioseph peruenerit ad suā legitimam atatem.

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MarginaliaThe penaltie of the vj. Articles declared.Concernyng these vj. Articles passed in this Acte aforesayd in þ^e 21. yeare of kyng Henry, sufficiently hetherto hath bene declared, first what these Articles were: secondly by whom and from whom chiefly they proceded: thirdly how erroneous, pernicious, repugnant and contrarious to true doctrine, Christian Religion, and the worde of God, to nature also it selfe, all reason and honesty, and finally to the auncient lawes, customes, and examples of our forelders duryng the dayes of a thousand yeares after Christ, they were. Fourthly ye haue heard also what vnreasonable and extreme penalty was set vppon the same, that a man may deeme these lawes to be written not with the ynke of Steuen Gardiner, MarginaliaDraconis leges sanquine scripta.but with þ^e bloud of a Dracon, or rather the clause of the deuill. The breach wherof was made no lesse then treason and felony, and no lesse punishment assigned therto then death. Besides all this, the wordes of the Act were so curious and subtile, that no man could speake, write, or Cyphar agaynst them, without present daunger, yea scarcely a man myght speake any worde of Christ & his Religion, but he was

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