1570 Edition | Book 11 | Page 2001 
MarginaliaAn. 1555. December.to the same that thou there diddest speake, and be iudged by the bishop of London.
Phil. I haue already bene conuented of this matter before my Lord Chauncellor myne Ordinarye, who this long tyme hath kept me in prison: therefore if hys Lordship wyll take away my lyfe, as he hath done my liberty & liuing he may, the which I thinke he cānot do of hys conscience, and therfore hath let me lye this long in prison: MarginaliaIohn Philpot appealeth to his ordinary.wherefore I am content to abyde the ende of hym herein that is myne Ordinary, and do refuse the auditory of the bishop of London, because he is an incompetent Iudge for me, and not myne Ordinary.
[Back to Top]Story. But Syr, MarginaliaM. Philpot hauing publicke leaue, spake in the conuocation: Ergo, he must be committed to Lollards Tower, by D. Storyes Logicke.thou spakest the wordes in the Conuocation house, which is of the bishop of Londons dioces, and therefore thou shalt be caryed to þe Lollards towere to be iudged by him for the wordes thou spakest in hys dioces against the blessed Masse.
[Back to Top]Phil. Syr, you know by the law that I may haue exceptionem fori:
exceptionem fori Not translated. exception of the forum(legal term?) [cf. L & S, p. 676]
Close
Roper. You can not deny, but that you spake agaynst the Masse in the conuocation house.
Story. Doest thou now deny that which thou spakest there, or no?
Phil. I cannot deny that I haue spoken there, and if by þe law you may put me to death therfore, I am here ready to suffer whatsoeuer I shalbe adiudged vnto.
The Scribe. This man is fed of vaine glory.
Cholm. Play the wyse Gentleman, and be conformable, and be not stubborne in your opinions, neyther cast your selfe away. I would be glad to do you good.
Phil. I desire you Syr, with the rest here, that MarginaliaIohn Philpot charged further by the commissioners then the law would beare.I be not charged farther at your handes, then the law chargeth me for that I haue done, since there was then no law against that directly, wherewith I am nowe charged. And you master Doctor (of old acquaintaunce in Oxford) I trust wyll shew me some friendship, and not extremitie.
[Back to Top]Story. I tell thee, if thou wouldest be a good catholike man, I would be thy friend, and spend my gowne to do thee good: but I wyll bee no friend to an hereticke, as thou art, but wyll spend both my gowne and my coate, but I wyll burne thee. MarginaliaNow commeth in the Butchers axe.How sayest thou to the Sacrament of the aultar?
[Back to Top]Phil. Syr, I am not come now to dispute with your mastership, and the time now serueth not therto, but to aunswer to that I may be lawfully charged withall.
Story. Well, since thou wilt not reuoke that thou hast done, thou shalt be had into the Lollards Tower.
Phil. Syr, since you wyll needes shew me this extremity, & charge me with my cōscience, MarginaliaM. Philpot requireth to see their commission.I do desire to see your Commission, whether you haue this authority so to do, and after the vew thereof I shall (accordyng to my duty) make you further aunswer, if you may by the vertue thereof burthen me with my conscience.
[Back to Top]Roper. Let hym see the Commission: is it here?
Story. Shal we let euery vile person see our cōmission?
Cholm. Let hym go from whence hee came, and on Thursday he shall see our Commission.
Story. No, let hym lye in the meane while in the Lollardes Tower: for I will sweepe the Kynges Bench and all other prisons also of these heretickes: they shall not haue that resorte as they haue had, to scatter theyr heresies.
CloseStory was quite correct to worry about heresy sweeping through the King's Bench prison; the fact that many Marian protestants were confined there, combined with the protestant sympathies of the marshal of the King's Bench, Sir William Fitzwilliam, ensured that the prison was a centre of protestant activity.
[Back to Top]Phil. You haue poure to transferre my body from place to place at your pleasure: but you haue no power ouer my soule. And I passe not
CloseI do not care.
CloseSir William Fitzwilliam, the marshal of the King's Bench.
Phil. God hath appoynted a day shortly to come, in the which he will iudge vs with righteousnes, how soeuer you iudge of vs now.
Roper. Be contēt to be ruled by Master Doctour, and
shew your selfe a Catholicke man.
MarginaliaPhilpot will not dissemble against conscience.Phil. Syr, if I should speake otherwise then my conscience is, I should but dissemble with you: and why be you so earnest to haue me shewe my selfe a dissembler both to God and you, which I can not do?
Roper. We do not require you to dissemble with vs, but to be a Catholicke man.
Phil. If I do stand in any thyng against that wherin any man is hable to burthen me with one iote of the Scripture, I shall be content to be counted no Catholicke mā, or an hereticke, as you please.
Story. Haue we Scripture, Scripture? and with that he rose vp, saying: who shalbe iudge, I pray you? This man is lyke his felow Woodman,
CloseRichard Woodman, who would later be martyred, was being held in prison and would be released on a technicality, on 18 December 1555, the day on which Philpot was executed.
CloseThe notes are at the end of the examinations were written Philpot, not by Foxe.
MarginaliaThe secōd Examination of Iohn Philpot before the Commissioners.AT my comming, a man of Algate of myne acquaintaunce sayd vnto me: God haue mercy on you, for you are already condemned in this world: for Doctor Story sayd, that my Lord Chauncellour hath commaunded to do you away. After a litle consultation had betwene them, Maister Cholmley called me vnto him sayng.
[Back to Top]Cholm. Master Philpot, shew your selfe a wyse man, and be not stubburne in your own opinion, but be conformable to the Queenes proceedinges, and lyue, and you shalbe well assured of great fauour and reputation.
Phil. I shal do as it becōmeth a Christian man to do.
Story. This mā is the rankest hereticke that hath ben in all my Lorde Chauncellours dioces, and hath done more hurt then any man els there: therefore his pleasure is, that he should haue the law to proceede agaynst him, and I haue spoken with my Lord herein, and hee willeth him to be cōmitted to the bishop of London, and there to recant or els burne. Hee howled and wept in the Conuocation house, and made such a doe, as neuer man did, as all the heretickes doe when they lacke learning to aunswer. He shall go after hys fellowes. How sayst thou? Wylt thou recant?
[Back to Top]Phil. I know nothing I haue done that I ought to recant.
Story. Well, then I pray you let vs commit him to the Lollards Tower, there to remayne vntill he be further examined before the Bishop of London: for hee is to fine fed in the Kings bench, and he hath to much fauour there.
CloseSir William Fitzwilliam, the marshal of the King's Bench, was a protestant sympathiser and was lenient to the protestant prisoners in his custody. (See Thomas S. Freeman, 'Publish and Perish: The Scribal Culture of the Marian Martyrs' in Julia Crick and Alexandra Walsham (eds.), The Uses of Script and Print, 1300-1700 (Cambridge: 2004), p. 237).
[Back to Top]Cooke. This man hath most stoutly maintayned heresies since the Queenes commyng in, as any that I haue heard of: therfore it is most meete he should be adiudged by the bishop of London for the heresies he hath maintayned.
Phil. I haue maintayned no heresies.
Cooke. No haue? Did ye not openly speake agaynst the sacrament of the altar in the Cōuocation house? Call you that no heresie? Wilt thou recant or not?
Phil. It was the Queenes Maiesties pleasure that we should reason thereof, not by my seeking, but by other mens procuring, in the hearing of the Counsell.
Cooke. Dyd the Queene geue you leaue to be an hereticke? You may be sure her Grace will not so doe. Wel, we wyll not dispute the matter with you, my Lorde of London shall proceede by inquisition vpon thee, and if thou wylt not recant, thou shalt be burned.
Phil. My Lord of London is not mine Ordinary in this behalfe, and I haue already answered vnto mine Ordinary in this matter: and therfore (as I haue said before) you shall do me great wrong to vexe me twyse for one matter, since I haue susteyned this long imprisonment, besides the losse of my liuing.
[Back to Top]Roper. You were a very vnmeete man to be an Archdeacon.
Phil. I know I was as meete a man, as he that hath it now.