MarginaliaAdmonition to Princes. Thus it may appeare how kyngs and princes haue bene blynded and abused by the false Prelates of the Church, in so much that they haue bene their slaues and butchers, to slay Christes poore innocent members. See therfore what daunger it is for Princes, not to haue knowledge and vnderstanding themselues, but to be led by other mens eyes, & specially trusting to such guides, who through hipocrisie both deceiue them, and through crueltie deuour the people.

MarginaliaK. Hēry the first of English kinges that tormented the Christians wyth fire. As king Henry the fourth who was the deposer of K. Richard, was the first of all Englishe kings that begā the vnmercifull burning of Christes saints, for stāding against the pope: so was thys W. Sautre the true & faythfull martyr of Christ, the first of all them in Wickliffes time, which I finde to be burned in þ^e raigne of the foresayd king, which was in the yeare of our Lord. 1400

After the martyrdome of this godly man, the rest of the same company began to keepe themselues more closely, for feare of the kyng, who was altogether bent to holde wyth the Popes prelacy. Such was the raigne of this Prince, that to the godly he was euer terrible, in hys actions immesurable, to few men hartely beloued, but Princes neuer lacke flatterers about them. Neither was the tyme of his raigne very quiet, but full of trouble, of bloud, and miserie. Such was their desire of K. Richard agayne, in the raigne of this kyng, that many yeares after he was rumored to be alyue (of them which desired belike that to be true, which they knew to be false) for the which, diuers were executed.MarginaliaMuch murder & beheading in K. Henries time the 4. For the space of sixe or vij. yeares together, almost no yeare passed without some conspiracie agaynst the kyng. Long it were here to recite the bloud of all such Nobles and other, which was spilt in the raigne of this kyng, as the Earle of *Marginalia* It is douted. Kent, Earle of Salisbury, Earle of Huntyngton, named Iohn Holland &c. as writeth the story of S. Albans. But the English writers differre somethyng in their names, and make mention of foure Earles, of Surrey, of Execester, of Salisbury, and Lord Spēser Earle of Gloucester. Ex Lib. cui tit. Calendarium Bruti.

And the next yeare followyng, Syr Iohn Clarendon knight, with two of his seruauntes, the Priour of Laund, with 8. Friers, were hāged and quartered. And after these Henry Percy the younger, the Earle ot Worcester, named Thomas Percy his Vncle, L. of Kynderton, and L. Richard de Vernoua.MarginaliaAn. 1403. The Earle of Northumberland scarce escaped with his pardon, an. 1403. In the which yeare, the prison in Cornhil called the tonne, was turned into the conduit, there now standyng.  

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Rebellion against Henry IV

Foxe had mixed feeling about Richard II, largely based on the king's treatment of the Lollards. Foxe saw Richard as more inclined to persecute the Lollards than was his predecessor Edward III (a good king, in Foxe's view), but coming well short of the lethal ferocity of Henry IV. Foxe regards Henry IV as a usurper and an evil king (largely because of the passage of De heretico comburendo in 1401 and the sharp prosecution of heresy in his reign). In Foxe's worldview, such wickedness cried out for providential chastisement and Foxe saw this reflected in the brevity and instability of Henry's reign. This, and the desire to convey the always timely lesson that persecutors of the True Church did not prosper, led Foxe to focus on the conspiracies and rebellions of Henry IV's reign.

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This account of the turmoils of Henry IV's reign was first printed in the 1570 edition and was unchanged in subsequent editions. Foxe cites two sources for two different lists of nobles executed for conspiring against Henry; the 'story of St. Albans', that is College of Arms MS Arundel 7, a version of Thomas of Walsingham's Chronica majora (see Thomas of Walsingham, Historia Anglicana, ed. H. T. Riley, 2 vols., Rolls Series 28, II, 244-45) and a 'lib. cui. tit. Calendarium Bruti', which must be one of the numerous continuations of the Brut in Latin. (The list of nobles in both versions is inaccurate and confusing. John Holland, the earl of Huntingdon and duke of Exeter, conspired with his nephew Thomas Holland, the earl of Kent, and with the earl of Salisbury against Henry IV in 1400. Kent and Salisbury were killed in battle; Exeter was executed). Foxe took his account of the 1403 conspiracy and 1405 rebellion from Arundel 7 (see Historia Anglicana, pp. 269-70 and 279). The libel against Henry IV posted on church doors was taken from a chronicle which Foxe called the 'Scala Mundi'. This actually a 'Compilatio de gestis brittanorum et anglorum' in College of Arms MS Arundel 5 (the libel is on fos. 163r-164v). Foxe called this chronicle the 'Scala Mundi' because Arundel 5 begins with a medieval chronological table entitled the 'Scala Mundi'.

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Thomas S. Freeman
University of Sheffield

To let passe other moe hanged and quartered the same tyme, as Bloūt knight, and Benet Kely knight, and Thomas Wintersel Esquier. Also the same yeare was taken and executed sir Bernard Brokes knight, sir Iohn Shilley knight, Syr Iohn Mandelyn, and William Frierby. After all these L. Henry Earle of Northumberland, and L. Bardolfe conspiring the kynges death, were taken in the North and beheaded, which was in the viij. yeare of this kyng Henry.

This ciuill rebellion of so many nobles & other agaynst the kyng, declared what grudgyng hartes the people then bare toward this kyng Henry.MarginaliaArchb. of Yorke. and L. Moubray against kyng Henry. 4. Amōg whom I cannot pretermit here also the Archbyshop of Yorke named Richard Scrope, who with the L. Moubrey Marshall of Englād, gathered a great company in the North countrey, agaynst the foresayd kyng,MarginaliaL. Bardolfe. Henry Percy. Earle of Northumberland agaynst the kyng. to whom also was adioyned the helpe of L. Bardolfe, and Henry Percy Earle of Northumberlād. Ex Chron. D. Albani. And to styrre vp the people more willingly to take their partes, they collected certaine Articles agaynst the sayd kyng, to the nūber of x. and fastened them vpon the doores of Churches and Monasteries, to be read of all men in English.MarginaliaEx histor. de Scala mundi. Which articles if any be disposed to vnderstand, and for so much as the same also containe a great part of the doynges betwene kyng Henry & kyng Richard aforesayd, I thought for the better openyng of the matter here vnder to insert the same, in such forme as I foūd them in the history of Scala mundi expressed.

MarginaliaArticles set vpō church dores against K. Hen 4.
An. 1405 IN the name of God. Amen. Before the Lord Iesus Christ, iudge of the quicke and dead. &c. We A. B. C. D. &c. not long sithens became bounde by othe vpon the sacred Euangelicall booke, vnto our soueraigne Lord Richard, late kyng of England and Fraunce, in the presence of many Prelates potentates, and nobilitie of the Realme: that we so long as we liued, should beare true allegeance and fidelitie towardes him and his heyres succedyng him in the kingdome by iust title, right, and lyne, accordyng to the statutes and custome of this Realme of England: By vertue wherof, we are boūd to foresee that no vices or haynous offences arise in the common weale, do take effect or wished end, but that we ought to geue our selues and our goodes to withstand the same, without feare of sword or death what soeuer, vpon payne of periurie, which payne is euerlastyng dānation. Wherfore, we seyng and perceauyng diuers horrible crimes, and great enormities dayly without ceassyng to be committed, by the children of the deuil and Sathans souldiours agaynst the supremacy of the Church of Rome, the libertie of the Church of England, & the lawes of þ^e realme, agaynst the person of kyng Richard and his heyres, against the Prelates, noble men, religion, and comminaltie, and finally agaynst the whole weale publike of the realme of England, to the great offence of the maiestie of almightie God, and to the prouocation of his iust wrath and vengeaunce towardes the realme and people of the same. And fearyng also the destruction both of the Church of Rome and England, & the ruine of our countrey to be at hand, hauing before our eyes the iustice & kingdome of God, callyng alwayes on þ^e name of Iesus, hauing an assured confidence in his clemencie, mercy and power: haue here taken vnto vs certaine articles subscribed in forme folowing, to be proponed, tried, and heard before the iust Iudge Iesus Christ, and the whole world, to his honour, the deliuerie of the Church, the Clergy and comminaltie, and to the vtilitie & profite of the weale publicke. But if (which God forbid) by force, feare or violence of wicked persons we shalbe cast in prison, or by violent death preuented, so as in this world we shall not be able to proue the sayd articles as we would wish, then do we appeale to the high celestiall iudge, that he may iudge & discerne the same, in the day of his supreme iudgement.

MarginaliaA bill of Articles set vp agaynst K. Henry 4.1. ¶ First, we depose, say, except, and entend to proue agaynst the Lord Henry Derby, sonne vnto the Lord Iohn of Gaunt late Duke of Lancaster, and commonly called kyng of England (himselfe pretendyng the same, although without all right and title therunto) and agaynst his adherents, fautours, and complices: that euer they haue bene, are, and wilbe, traytours, inuaders, and destroyers of Gods Church in Rome, England, Wales, and Ireland, and of our soueraigne Lord Richard late Kyng of England, his heyres, his kyngdome, and common wealth, as shall hereafter manifestly appeare.

2. Secondarely we depose &c. agaynst the sayd Lord Hēry, for that he had conceaued deuised, & conspired certaine hainous crimes and trayterous offences agaynst his sayd soueraigne Lord Richard his state and dignitie, as manifestly did appeare in the contention betwene the sayd Lord Henry, and the Lord Thomas Duke of Northfolke begon at Couentry, but not finished throughly. Afterwardes he was sent in exile, by sentence of the sayd kyng Richard, by the agreement of his father the Lord Iohn Duke of Lancaster, by the voyce of diuers of the Lordes temporall, & nobilitie of the realme, and also by his owne consent: there to remaine for a certaine tyme appointed vnto him by the sayd Lordes, and withall he was bounde by othe not to returne into Englād before he had obtained fauour and grace of the kyng. Not lōg after, when the kyng was departd into Ireland, for reformation of that countrey apperteinyng to the crowne of England, but as then rebelling agaynst the same: the sayd Lord Henry in the meane tyme contrary to his oth and fidelitie, and long before the time limited vnto him was expired: with all his fautors and inuaders, secretly entred into the Realme, swearyng and protestyng before the face of the people, that his comming into the Realme in the absence of the kyng was for none other cause, but that he might in humble sorte with the loue and fauour of the kyng and all the Lordes spirituall and temporall, haue and enioy his lawfull inheritaūce descēdyng vnto him of right after the death of his father: which thyng as it pleased all men, so cried they: Blessed is he that commeth in the name of the Lord: But how this blessing afterwardes turned into cursing, shall appeare in that which foloweth: MarginaliaK. Henry periured. and also ye shall vnderstand his horrible and wicked conspiracie agaynst his soueraigne Lord kyng Richard, and diuers other Lordes aswell spirituall as temporall, besides that his manifest periurie shall well be knowen, and that he remaineth not onely forsworne and periured, but also excommunicate, for that he conspired agaynst his soueraigne Lord our kyng. Wherfore we pronounce him by these presentes, aswel periured as excommunicate.

3. Thirdly we depose &c. agaynst the sayd Lord Henry, that he the sayd Lord Hēry, immediatly after his entry into England, by crafty and subtile policie: caused to be proclaimed openly throughout the Realme, that no tenthes of