pen, the king seyng that submissiō and humilitie in him, would release him peraduenture of all the rest. To this the archbishop aunsweryng, well, well (sayth he) I perceiue wel inough my Lord, whether you tend and wher about you go. Then spake Winchester, inferryng vpon þ^e same. MarginaliaVvinchester.This forme of coūsel (sayth he) semeth to be very pernitious to the catholike church, tēding to our subuersion, and to the confusion of vs all. For if our archbishop and primate of all England do leane to this exāple, that euery bishop should geue ouer his autority and the charge of the flocke committed to him, at cōmaūdement and threatning of the prince: to what state shal the churche be brought then, but that all should be confoūded after his pleasure and arbitrement, and nothyng to stand certein by any order of law, and so as the priest is, so shall the people be?

MarginaliaChichester.Hilary the byshop of Chichester replyeth agayne to this saying: If it were not þ^t the instance & the greater perturbation of tyme did otherwyse require and force vs, MarginaliaModerate counsell.I would thinke this counsel here geuen were good to be folowed. But now seyng the autority of our canon fayleth, & can not serue vs, I iudge it not best to go so straitly to worke, but so to moderate our procedings: that dispensation with sufferance may win that whiche seuere correction may destroy. Wherfore my counsel and reason is, to geue place to the kynges purpose for a tyme: least (by ouer hasty procedyng, we excede so farre) that both it may redound to our shame, and also can not ryd our selues out agayne when we would.

MarginaliaLincolne.Much to the same end spake Robert the bishop of Lincolne, after this maner: Seyng sayth he, it is manifest that the lyfe and bloud of this mā is sought, one of these ij. must nedes be chosē: that either he must part with his archbishoprike, or els with his life. Now what profit he shall take in this matter of his bishopricke, his life being lost, I do not greatly see.

MarginaliaExceter.Next folowed Barthlemew bishop of Exceter, with his aduise, who (inclining his coūsel to the state of time) confirmed their sayings before, affirmyng how þ^e dayes were euill & perillous: And if they might so escape þ^e violence of that ragyng tempest vnder the couer of bearyng and relenting, it were not to be refused. But that he said could not be, except straight seuerity should geue place to tractability: and so the instance and condition of time then present required no lesse, especially seyng that persecution was not generall, but personall and particular: And thought it more holy and conueniēt, one head to run in some part of daunger, then þ^e whole church of Englād to be subiect and exposed to inconuenience ineuitable.

MarginaliaVVorceter.The aunswere of Roger bishop of Worceter was deuided in a double suspense, neither affirming thone, nor denying thother, whose saying was this: that he would geue no aūswere on neither part. For if I (sayth he) shall say that the pastorall function and cure of soules ought to be relinquished at the kynges will or threatning: then my mouth shall speake agaynst my conscience to the cōdemnation of myne owne head. And if I shall geue againe contrary counsel, to resist the kings sentence: here be they that will here it and report it to his grace, and so I shalbe in daunger to be thrust out of the sinagoge, and for my part, to be accompted amongest the publike rebels (with them to be condemned) wherfore neither do I say this, nor counsel that.

And this was the consultacion of the bishops in that place, assembled together by the kinges cōmaundemēt. MarginaliaBecket the archbyshop replyeth agaynst the bishops.Against these voyces and censures of the bishop, Becket the archbishop replyeth agayne, expostulating and checking them with rebukefull wordes. I perceaue (saith he) and vnderstand ye go about to mayntayne and cherish but your owne cowardnes, vnder the coulorable shadow of sufferaunce: and vnder pretence of dissemblyng softnes, to choke the liberty of Christes churche. Whohath thus bewitched you, O vnsatiable bishops? What meane ye? Why do ye so vnder þ^e impudent title of forbearing: beare a double hart, and cloke your manyfest iniquity. What, call ye this bearing with tyme: the detriment of the church of Christ? Let termes serue the matter, why peruert you the matter that is good wyth vocables and termes vntrue? For that ye say we muste beare with the malice of time, I graunt with you: but yet we must not heape synne to sinne. Is not God able to help the state & condition of his church, but wyth the sinfull dissimulation of the teachers, of the church? Certes God is disposed to tēpt you. And tel me (I pray you) whither shold the gouerners of the church put thēselues to daungers for the church in time of tranquillitie, or in tyme of distres? Ye wil be ashamed to deny the contrary but in distresse. MarginaliaA great distres growen in the church, because that byshops may not be aboue kings and princes.And now thē (the church lying in so great distresse and vexation) why should not the good pastour put himself into peryl therfore? For neither do I think it a greater act or merite for þ^e auncient byshops of the old tyme, to lay þ^e foundatiō of þ^e church than (w^t their blud) thā now for vs to effude our bloud for the liberties of þ^e same. And to tel you playn, I think it not safe for you to swarue frō an exāple, which you haue receiued of your holy elders. After these things were spokē, they sat all in silence a certain space, being locked in together. At lēgth (to finde a shift to cause the doore to bee opened) I wyll, saith the archbishop speake with ij. Earles which are about the king, and named thē whom they were. Whiche (being called) opened the dore & came in with haste, thinking to heare some thyng which should appease þ^e kings mind. To whom the archbishop spake in this maner: As touching and concernyng the matters betwene the king & vs, we haue here conferred together: and for as much as we haue them not present with vs now, which know more in the matter then we do (whose aduise we woold be glad also to follow) therfore we craue so much respite as to the next day folowing, and then to geue vp our answer vnto þ^e king. With this message: two bishops were sent to the kyng, which was the bishop of London, and the bishop of Rochester.

London (to helpe the matter and to set quietnes as I take it, adding something more to the message) sayde to the king: that the archbishop craued a litle delay of time to prepare such writings and instrumentes, wherein he should set forth and declare his mind, in accomplishyng the kynges desire &c. Wherfore, two barons were sente to hym from the kyng, to graūt him that respite or stay, so that he would ratifie that whiche the messengers had signified to the king. To the which þ^e archbishop answereth, þ^t he sent no suche message, as was intimate in his name: but only, that the next day he would come & geue aunswer to the kyng, in that which he had to say. And so the conuocation of the bishops were dissolued, and dimissed home: so that the most part of them that came wyth the archbishop and accompanied hym before, (for feare of the kings displeasure) seuered themselues from hym. MarginaliaBecket destitute and forsaken.The archbishop thus forsaken and destitute (as his story saith) sent about for the poore, the lame, and the halte, to come in and furnishe his house: saying, that by them he might sooner obtayne his victory, thā by the other which had so slipt from him.

On the next day folowing (because it was sonday) nothing was done. So the day after (which was the second fery) the archbishop was cited to appeare. MarginaliaBecket taken wyth sicknesse whā he should appeale.But the night before (beyng taken with a disease called passio iliaca, the collicke) al that day he kept his bed, & was not able (as he said) to rise. Euery mā supposing this to be but a fayned sickenes (as it semed no lesse) certayne of the chiefe nobles were sent to trye the matter, and to cite him to the courte: namely Robert, Earle of Leiceter, and Reginald, earle of Deuenshire. To whom þ^e archbishop aunswered, that as þ^t daie he was so diseased þ^t he could not