haue ben added, incident in the raigne of this prince, which we haue for breuitie pretermitted.  

For he that studyeth to comprehend in storie all thynges, whiche the common course and vse of life may offer to the writer, may sooner finde matter to occupie himselfe, then to profite other. Otherwise I might haue inferred mention of the seditious tumult of Perkin Werbecke,MarginaliaPerkin Werbecke which fained himselfe to be K. Edwardes sonne. with his retinue, ann. 1494. also ofMarginaliaBlackheath field. Blackheath field by the Blackesmyth. an. 1496. I might also haue recited the glorious commendation of Georgius Lilius in his Latine Chronicle testifiyng of kyng Henry 7. howe he sent three solemne Oratours to Pope Iulius 2. to yeelde his obedience to the sea of Rome, an. 1506. and likewise howe Pope Alexander. 9. Pius 3. and Iulius. 2. sent to the sayd kyng Henry. 7. three sundry famous Ambassadours with three swordes, and three cappes of maintenaunce, electyng and admittyng hym to be the chiefe defendour of the fayth. The commendation of whiche fact, howe glorious it is in the eyes of Georgius Lilius, and Fabian, that I leaue to them.   This I suppose, that when king Henry sent to Pope Iulius three orators with obedience, if he had sent hym thre thousande harquebuziers to furnish his field agaynst þ^e Frēch king fighting at Rauenna, he had pleased pope Iulius much better. If Georgius Lilius had bene disposed to illustrate his story with notes, this had bene more worthy the notyng,MarginaliaEx Masseo lib. 20. howe Ludouike. 12. French king calling his Parliament, moued this question against Pope Iulius: whether a Pope might inuade any prince by warlike force, without cause, & whether the prince might withdrawe his obedience from that Pope, or not? And it was concluded in the same Parliament with the kyng, agaynst the Pope.   Also it was concluded the same tyme (which was in the raigne of this kyng Henry. 7. that theMarginalia* Pragmatica sanctio, was a practising or a determination of a certaine parlament in Fraunce against the Byshop of Rome, in defence of certaine matters of religion concluded in the Councell of Basill. * Pragmaticall sanction   shoulde be receyued in ful force and effect, through all the Realme of Fraunce.

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And for so muche as we are fallen in to the mention of Georgius Lilius, this in hym is to be founde not vnworthy noting, how after þ^e burning of Thomas Norice, aboue mentioned, pag. 751. at the citie of Norwiche,MarginaliaA note of Gods plagues folowing the burning of his people. that the same yeare folowed suche a fire in Norwiche, that the whole citie, welneare, was therewith consumed.  

Ex Geor. Lilio. Like as also after the burnyng of the foresayde good aged father in Smythfield, the same yeare (which was. 1500.) we reade in the Chronicle of Fabian a great plague to fall vpon the citie of London, to the great destruction of the inhabitants therof. Wherin againe is to be noted (as is aforesaid) that accordyng to the state of the church, the dispostitiō of the common wealth cōmonly is guided, either to be with aduersitie afflicted, or els in prosperitie to florish.   But after these notes of kyng Henry. 7. nowe to the storie of kyng Henry. 8.

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MarginaliaThe children & ofspring of king Henry. 7. This kyng Henry. 7. finishyng his course in the yeare abouesayd, which was. 1509. had by Elizabeth his wyfe aboue named, foure men children, and of wemen children as many. Of whom three onely suruiued: to wyt prince Henry, Lady Margaret, and Lady Marye. Of whom king Henry the eyght after his father succeded.MarginaliaLady Margaret maried to king Iames 4. of Scotland Lady Margaret was maryed to Iames the fourth king of Scots.MarginaliaLady Margaret maried to the king of Castile Lady Mary was affied to Charles king of Castile.

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MarginaliaPrince Arthur maried to Lady Catherin daughter to the Spanish kyng. Not long before the death of king Henry, prince Arthur his elder sonne had espoused Lady Katherine daughter to Ferdinandus, beyng of the age of. xv. yeares, and shee about the age of. xvij.MarginaliaThe death of Prince Arthur. and shortly after his mariage, within fiue monethes, departed at Ludlow, and was buryed at worceter. After whose decease the succession of the Crowne fell next to kyng Henry the viij. beyng of the age of. xviij. yeres, who entred his raigne the yere of our Lord. 1509.MarginaliaK. Henry marieth Lady Catherin hys brothers wyfe. and shortly after maryed with the foresayd Katherine, his late brother Prince Arthurs wyfe, to the end, that her dowry beyng great should not be transported out of the land.MarginaliaBlynd dispensations of the pope. In the which his mariage beyng more politique, then Scripture like, he was dispēsed with by Pope Iulius, at the request of Ferdinandus her father. The raigne of this kyng continued with great noblenes and fame, the space of. 38. yeares. Duryng whose tyme and raigne was great alteration of thynges, as wel to the ciuile state of the Realme, as especially to the state ecclesiastical, and matters of the church apperteynyng. For by hym was exiled and abolished out of the Realme the vsurped power of the Bish. of Rome, Idolatrie and superstition somewhat repressed, Images & pilgrimages defaced, Abbyes & monasteries pulled downe, sectes of religion rooted out, Scriptures reduced to þ^e knowledge of the vulgare tongue, & the state of the church & religion redressed. Concerning al which things, in the proces of this volume here folowyng, we wyll endeuour (Christe willyng) particulerly & in order to discourse: after that first we shal comprehend a few matters, which within the beginnyng of his raigne are to be noted and collected. Where, leauing of to write of Empson & Dudley, who in the tyme of king Henry. vij. being great doers in executing the penall lawes ouer the people at that tyme, and purchasing thereby more malice then landes, with that which they had gotten, were shortly after the entryng of this kyng beheaded, the one a knight, the other an esquir: leauing also to intermeddle with his warres, triumphes, & other temporal affayres,  

we meane in this volume principally to bestowe our trauaile in declaration of matters concernyng most chiefly the state of the churche and of religion, as wel in this church of England, as also of the whole church of Rome.

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Wherein first commeth to our handes a turbulent tragedie, and a fierce contention,  

whiche long before had troubled the Church, and nowe this present yeare. 1509. was renued afreshe betweene two certayne orders of beggyng fryers, to wyt, the Dominike fryers, & the Fraunciscanes, about the Conception of the virgin Marye, the mother of Christe.

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MarginaliaFranciscane Friers. The Frþ^eciscanes were they, whiche dyd holde of saint Fraunces and folowed the rule of his Testament cōmonly called Graye fryers, or Minorites. Their opinion was this: that the virgin Mary preuented by the grace of the holy Gost was so sanctified, that she was neuer subiect one moment in her conception, to Original sinne.MarginaliaDominicke Friers. The Dominike fryers were they, which holdyng of Dominike, were commonly called Blacke fryers, or preachyng fryers. Their opinion was, that the virgin Mary was conceiued, as all other children of Adam be: so that this priuilege only belongeth to Christe, to be conceayed without Originall sinne: notwithstanding the said blessed virgin was sanctified in her mothers wombe, and purged from her Originall sinne, so as was Iohn Baptist, Ieremie, or any other priuileged person.MarginaliaA troblous dissension in the church for the conception of the Virgin Mary. This friuolous question kindling and gendryng betweene these two sectes of fryers, brast out in such a flame of partes and sides takyng, that it occupyed the heads and wyttes, scholes, and vniuersities almost through the whole Churche,  

some holdyng one part with Scotus, some the other part with Thom. Aquine.MarginaliaWhether the Virgin Mary was conceaued without orygynall sinne. The Minorites holdyng with Scotus their maister, disputed and concluded, that she was conceiued without all spot or note of Original sinne, and therupon caused the feast and seruice of the conception of saint Mary the virgin to be celebrate and solemnised in the Church. Contrarye, the Dominike fryers takyng side with Aquinas, preached that it was heresie to affirme that the blessed virgin was conceyued without the gylt of Original sinne: and that they whiche dyd celebrate the feast of her Conception, or sayd any Masses therof, dyd sinne greeuously and mortally.

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In the meane time as this phantasie waxed hote in the church, the one side preachyng agaynst the other, came pope Sixtus. iiij. ann. 1476. who ioynyng side with the Minorites or Franciscanes, first sent forth his decree  

by the authoritie Apostolique,MarginaliaA new found faast of the conception of the virgin Mary. wyllyng, ordeyning, and commaundyng all men to solemnise this newe found feast of the conception in holy Church for euermore: offering to al men and women, which deuoutly frequentyng the church, would heare masse and seruice from the first euensong of the sayde feast, to the Octaues of the same, as many dayes of pardon, as Pope Vrban the. iiij. and Pope Martine the. v. dyd graunt for hearyng the seruice of Corpus Christi day. &c. and this decree was geuen and dated at Rome. ann. 1476.

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Moreouer the same Pope, to the entent that the deuotion of the people might be the more encouraged to the celebration of this conceptiō, he added a clause more to theMarginaliaA new Aue Maria of the Popes making. Aue Maria, graunting great indulgence & release of sinnes to all suche as woulde inuocate the blessed virgin, with the same addition, saying thus: Aue Maria gratia plena, dominus tecum, benedicta tu in mulieribus, & benedictus fructus ventris tui Iesus Christus, & benedicta sit Anna Mater tua, de qua sine macula, tua processit caro virginea, Amen.MarginaliaThe Pope addeth to the wordes of the scripture. That is, Hayle mary full of grace, the Lord is with thee, blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruite of thy wombe, Iesus Christ: and blessed is Anna thy mother, of whom thy virgines fleshe hath proceeded without blot of original sinne. Amen.

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Marginalia3. absurdities to be noted in this decree of the Pope.Wherin thou maist note (gentle reader) for thy learning three things: First how the Pope turneth that vnproperly into a prayer, whiche properly was sent of God for a message or tydynges. Secondly howe the Pope addeth to the wordes of the Scripture, contrarye to the expresse precept of the Lord. Thirdly how the Pope exempteth Mary the blessed virgine, not onely from the seede of Abraham and Adam, but also from the cōdition of a mortal creature. For if there be in her no original sinne, then shee beareth not the Image of Adam, neither doth shee descend of that seede, of whose seede euyl procedeth vpon al men and women to condemnation, as S. Paul doth teach,MarginaliaRom. 5. Rom. 5. Wherfore if she descende of that seede, then the infection of Originall euyl must necessaryly proceede vnto her. If she descend not

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