MarginaliaAn. 1555. March.receaued their condemnation together the next day after: yet because the time of their execution was then driuen of frō February tyll þ^e next moneth of March, I did therefore deferre the story of them to thys present moneth of March aforesayd, wherein now remayneth seuerally to entreate of the Martyrdome of these. vj. persons, as the order and time of their sufferings seuerally do require. Of the which. vj. forenamed Martyrs, the first was Thomas Tomkins, burned in Smithfield the. xvj. day of March. Anno. 1555.

MarginaliaThe godly lyfe and disposition of Thomas Tomkins.This Tho. Tomkins a Weauer by his occupation, dwelling in Shordich, and of the dioces of Lōdon, was of such conuersation, and disposition so godly, that if any woman had come vnto him with her web, as some time they did three or foure in a day, he would alwayes begin with prayer. Or if any other had come to talke of any matter, he would likewyse first begyn w^t praier. And if any had sought vnto him to borow money, he would shew hym such money as he had in his pursse, & byd him take it. And whē they came to repay it again, so farre of was he frō seeking any vsury at their hād, or frō strait exaction of his due, that he would byd them keepe it longer, while they were better hable. And these were the conditions of Tho. Tomkins, MarginaliaWitnesses to Thomas Tomkins.testified yet to thys present day by the most part of all hys neighbours, and almost of al his parish which knew him, as M. Skinner, M. Leke, and other moe. Of whom mo then halfe a dosen at once came to me, discrete and substantial mē, reporting the same vnto me: recording moreouer as followeth: That D. Boner B. of London kept the sayd Tomkins wyth hym in prison halfe a yeare: Duryng which tyme the sayd bishop was so rigorous vnto hym, that he beat him bitterly about þ^e face, wherby his face was swelled. Whereupon the bishop caused his beard to be shauen, and gaue the Barber. xij. pence.

MarginaliaTomkins maketh the Byshops hay.Touching which shauing of Thomas Tomkins beard,  

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This paragraph was first printed in an appendix at the end of the 1563 edition. It is based on oral sources and was acquired by Foxe as the 1563 edition was being printed.

the bishop setting him downe, said: wel, I like thee wel, for thou labourest well: I trust thou wylt be a good Catholicke. My Lord, sayd he, S. Paule sayth: He that doth not labour, is not worthy to eate. Boner sayd: Ah S. Paule is a *Marginalia* And so should he be with you to, if ye were a right Byshop. great man with thee. And so after such other talke, the bishop inferring moreouer, wished hys beard of, saying that so he would looke like a catholicke. My lord sayd Tomkins, before my beard grew, I was I trust a good Christian, and so I trust to be, my beard being on. But Boner in fine sēt for þ^e Barber, & caused his beard to be shauen of. The very cause was for that Boner had pluckt of a peece of his beard before.  

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Bonner's insistence on shaving Tomkins' beard was obviously an attempt to humiliate and 'break' Tomkins. But it was also an obvious distinction between Tomkins the layman and Bonner the cleric. It is possible that Bonner's action may have been provoked by an anticlerical remark by Tomkins.

The rage of this bishop was not so great agaynst hym, but the constancie of the partie was much greater wyth patience to beare it: who although he had not the learning as other haue, yet was he so endued w^t Gods mighty spirit, and so constantly planted in the perfect knowledge of Gods truth, that by no meanes he could be remoued from the cōfession of truth, to impiety and errour.MarginaliaThe notable constācy in a true Christian souldiour. Whereupon Boner the bishop being greatly vexed against the poore man, when he saw that by no perswasions he could preuayle wyth hym, deuised an other practise not so straunge as cruell, further to try his constancie, to the entent that seing he could not otherwyse conuince hym by doctrine of scriptures, yet hee might ouerthrow hym by some forefeeling and terrour of death. So hauing wyth hym Maister Harpesfield, M. Pendleton, Doct. Chedsey, M. Wyllerton, and other standing by, hee called for Thomas Tomkins, who commyng before the Bishop, and standing as he was wont in defence of his faith, the bishop fell frō beating to burning. Who hauing there a taper or waxe candell of. iij. or iiij. weekes standing vpon the table, thought there to represent vnto vs, as it were, the old image of king MarginaliaB. Boner playeth K. Porsenna in burnng the hand of ScæuolaPorsēna.  

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This is Lars Porsenna, an Etruscan king, who was said to have besieged Rome in an attempt to restore the deposed king Tarquinus Superbus.

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This is Caius Mucius Scaevola, a legendary Roman hero, who attemped to kill Lars Porsenna. Captured and threatened with torture, he thrust his hand into the flame until it was consumed, in order to demonstrate his disdain for the threat.

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This illustration, which is one of those in the first edition that were too wide for the page format, spilling in the margin, is of interest in showing how Foxe's rewriting could undermine the accuracy of his illustrators in translating his words into visual form. The woodcut that accompanies this example of 'bloody' Bonner's remorseless cruelty both adds implied readings to Foxe's text and also ignores one detail, probably owing to additions Foxe was able to make to his text after the cutting of the woodblock. The setting is the hall of the bishop's palace at Fulham, whose character is conveyed by the fine chairs, swag of curtain and covered table. Bonner is labelled, though his fat features became recognisable in the course of the book. In 1570 and later editions, the passage preceding this act of trial by fire (ostensibly to win over the accused through fear of fire) included exchanges between Bonner and Tomkins that resulted in the bishop having Tomkins' beard shaved. The fact that he is depicted here with a beard is presumably due to the fact that Foxe discovered this anecdote too late to be incorporated in the text, and added it to an appendix in the 1563 edition. The actual burning carefully represents the text, showing the bishop holding the candle in his left hand while he pinions Tomkins fingers in the flame with his right. The attitude of the four clergy seems to suggest that it was not only Harpsfield (standing next Bonner) who had reservations about this action, when Tomkins' burnt hand spurted into his face. That was another detail which could not have been represented in 1563 since it was only included in the 1570 edition. At the other end of the table an arresting hand is raised, two heads confer together and the servant turns away. The change of heading to this illustration from 'The sharpe burnyng of Thomas Tomkyns hand, by cruel Boner hym selfe who not long after burnt also hys body' (1563) to 'The burning of Thomas Tomkins hand by Bishop Boner ' (1570) surely reflects some editorial decision rather than any change of heart on Foxe's part. Bonner died between the two editions, on 5 September 1569.

Tomkins thinking no otherwise but there presently to dye, began to commend him selfe vnto the Lord,

saying: O Lord into thy handes I commend my spirit. &c. In the tyme that hys hand was in burnyng, the sayd