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Milan
 
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Milan

(Mediolanum) [Mediolanensis; Millan; Millaine; Miliane; Millayne; Millen]

Lombardy, Italy

Coordinates: 45° 28' 0" N, 9° 10' 0" E

Cathedral city

438 [414]

K. Edward. 3. The Oration of Armachanus. Notes to be obserued in the same. N. Orem.

MarginaliaWilful beggery not to be promised. Prouerb. 30. saith: O Lord, beggery and riches geue me not, but onely sufficiency to liue vpon: least if I haue to much, I be driuen to deny thee, & say: who is the Lord. Agayne, if I haue to litle, I be forced thereby to steale, and to periure the name of my God, wherfore sayth Eccle. 27. For need many haue offēded. And thefore they that chuse wilfull pouerty, take to them great occasion of tempatiō.

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3. Item, they that take wilfull pouerty vpon them when they need not induce themselues voluntaryly to break the commaundemēt of God: Thou shalt not couet thy neighbours house. ac. Agayne, where it is commaunded, there shalbe no begger among you. &c.

4. Item, he that taketh vpon him needles and wilfully to beg, maketh himselfe vnapt to receiue holy orders, hauing (as is sayd) no sufficient title thereunto, according to the lawes of the Church.

MarginaliaThe 8. conclusion of Armachanus against the Friers.The 8. conclusiō of this matter: That it is not agreing to the rule of the Friers obseruant, to obserue wilfull beggery. Which (saith he) may be proued, for that Frier Frances, both in his rule and in his Testamēt, being left to his Franciscans, doth plainly preferre labor before begging.

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MarginaliaThe 9. conclusion of Armachanus. The 9. and last conclusion of this matter is. That the bull of pope Alexander the 4. which condemneth the booke of the maisters of Paris, MarginaliaTouching this booke of the maisters of Paris condemned, looke pag. 404.impugneth none of these conclusions premised. For the proofe therof, he thus inferred.

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Marginalia Ex Clement. Quia quorundaā. Pope Nicolas the 3. reuoketh the Bul of pope Alexander the fourth. 1. First, that Pope Iohn the 24. in his constitutiō, beginning thus: Quia quorundam, affirmeth expresly, how Pope Nicholas the 3. reuoked and called backe the sayd Bull of Pope Alexander the 4. and all other writings of his: touching all such articles, which in the same foresayd constitution of this Pope Iohn be cōteined and declared. Wherin also is declared, how strayt the pouerty of the friers ought to be, which they call wifull pouerty.

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2. Item, it is manifest and notorious to all men, how the sayd Pope Nicholas the 3. in his declaratiō sheweth, how the friers both ought to labor with their handes and how moreouer the sayd Friers ought not to preach within the dioces of any bishop, wheresoeuer they be resisted. Which being so, the conclusion appereth, that the bull of Pope Alexander the 4. as touching these articles, is voyde and of none effect. Beside the which articles, there is nothing els in the sayd Bull of Alexander (that I remember) which impugneth any of these conclusions premised.

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MarginaliaThe ende and conclusionof this Oration of Armachanus before the pope. Ex defensorio curatorum. Many things mo (sayd he) I had beside these, both to obiect and to aunswere again to the same: and to confirme more surely and firmely these my reasons and assertions premised. But I haue already to much weried your holynesse, and your reuerend Lordships here present. Wherefore I conclude and humbly and deuoutly beseech you, according to my former petetion premised in the beginning of this matter: that you iudge not after the outward face, but iudge ye true iudgement. Iohn. 7. Ex libro Armachani, cui titulus Defensorium Curatorum.

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Notes to be obseued in this former Oration of Armachanus.

MarginaliaNotes to be obserued  

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In these notes, which are entirely his own composition, Foxe's makes it clear why he devoted so much space to Fitzralph and the 'Defensio curatorum': Foxe regarded it as a faithful description of the corruption not only of the mendicant orders but of the entire medieval church.

. BY this Oratiō of Armachanus the learned Prelate, thus made before Pope Innocent and his Cardinals, diuers and sundrye things there be for the vtility of the Church worthy to be obserued. First what troubles and vexations came to the Church of Christ by these Friers. Also what persecution foloweth after by the meanes of them, agaynst so many learned mē & true seruants of Christ. MarginaliaContrarietie among the popes.Furthermore, what repugnance and contrariety was among the Popes, & how they could not agree among themselues about the Friers. Fourthly what pestiferous doctrine, subuerting welneare the testament of Iesus Christ. Fiftly what decay of ministers in Christes church, as appereth pag. 411. Sixtly, what robbing and circumuenting of mens children, as appeareth, pag. 411. Seuenthly, what decay of vniuersities, as appeareth by Oxforde, pag. 411. Eightly, what damage to learning, and lacke of books to students came by these friers, as appeareth pag. 411. Ninthly, to what pride vnder coulour of feined humility to what riches , vnder dissimuled pouerty they grew vnto, here is to be seene. In so much that at length through theyr subtle & most daungerous hipocrisy they crept vp to be Lordes, Archbishops, Cardinals & at last also, Chauncelors of realmes, yea and of most secret counsell with king and queenes, as appeareth pag. 411.

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MarginaliaWhether the Fryers make vp the bodie of Antechrist or not. All these things wel cōsidered, now remaineth in the church to be marked: that forsomuch as these Friers (with theyr new foūd testament of Frier Fraunces) not beeing contented with the testamēt of God in his sonne Christ, began to spring the same time, when as Satan was prophesied to be let loose, by the order of the Scripture, whether therfore it is to be doubted, that these Friers make vp the body of Antechrist, which is prophesied to come in the Church, or not: so much more to be doubted, because who so list to trie shall finde, that of all other enemies of Christ, of whomsome be manifest, some be priuy, all be together cruel: yet is there no such sort of enemies which more sleightly deceiueth the simple christian, or more deepely drowneth him in damnation, then doth this doctrine of the Friers.

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MarginaliaThe death of godly Armachanus. The testimony of a Cardinall vpon Armachanus. But of this Oration of Armachanus enough  

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The remaining biographical material on Fitzralph and the descriptions of those who oppossed him all come from Bale, Catalogus, p. 445.

. Which Oration what successe it had with the Pope, by story it is not certain. By his own life declared, it appereth, that the Lord so wrought, that his enemies did not triumph ouer him. Notwithstāding, this by story appereth, tht he was 7. or 8. yeares in banishment for the same matter  
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Fitzralph died in Avignon (three, not seven or eight years) after he made his final voyage there, but he was not in exile. Rather he was prosecuting his case in the papal court against the mendicant orders.

, & there died in the same at Auiniō, Of whom a certayne Cardinal hearing of his death openly protested, that the same day, a mighty piller of Christes church was fallen.

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MarginaliaEx Chron. reg. Rich. 2. After the death of Armachanus, the Friers had contētion likewise with the monkes of Benedictes order about the same yeare, 1360. and so remoued theyr cause both against the monkes and agaynst the vniuersity of Oxford, vnto the court of Rome, wherin seyth the author, they lacked an other Richard. Ex Botonero. MarginaliaFryers against the vnuiersitie of Oxforde.By this appeareth to be true, which is testified in the first tome of Wald. that lōg debate continued betwene the friers and the vniuersity of Oxford: MarginaliaEnglishe writers against the Friers.Against whom first stood Robert Grosted bishop of Lincolne aboue mentioned: Then Seuallus of Yorke. Afterward Ioannes Bachothorpe, and now this Armachanus, of whom here presently we entreate. And after hym agayne Iohn Wickliffe, of whom (Christ willing) we will speake hereafter. Ex Waldeno. MarginaliaFriers that write against Armachanus.Against this foresayd Armachanus wrote diuers Friers, Roger Conaway a Franciscan, Iohn Heyldeshā Carmelite, Galfridus Hardby frier Augustine. Also frier Engelbert a Dominican, in a booke intituled, Defensorium priuilegiorum, and diuers other. MarginaliaTestified by certayne Englishmen which are yet aliue & haue seene it.I credibly heare of certyane old Irish Bibles translated long since into the Irish toung, which if it true, it is not other like but to be the doing of this Armachanus  

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This information about the Irish Bibles is Foxe's own addition to the account, as is his completely unfounded surmise that Fitzralph had something to do with them.

. And thus much of this learned prelate and Archbishop of Ireland, a man worthy for his christian zeale of immortall cōmendation.

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MarginaliaPope Vrbane. 5. Anno. 1360. After the death  

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Nicholas Oresme

Foxe’s version of the sermon of Nicole Oresme is taken entirely from Matthias Flacius, Catalogus testium veritatis (Strasbourg, 1562), pp. 512-519. Nicole Oresme (c. 1320-1382) was a cleric and scholar, most famous today for his writings on mathematics, astronomy and economics. He was also a protégé of Charles V and John the Good. In preaching this sermon to Urban V, Oresme was preaching to the choir; Urban vigorously tried to reform the abuses Oresme described. Ironically, the more reform-minded medieval clerics denounced ecclesiastical abuses, the more they supplied Foxe and Flacius with material to characterize the papacy and the medieval church as inherently evil.

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Thomas S. Freeman
University of Sheffield

of this Innocent, next was poped in þe sea of Rome, pope Vrbane the fift, who by the fathers side was an englishman  
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Foxe is taking his account of Urban V from Bale, Catalogus, pp. 437-8. Guillaume de Gimoard, who became Urban V, was a Frenchman with a distinguished career as a scholar and a diplomat. Because England, at this time controlled much of what is now south-western France, Guillaume’s father was an English subject, but he was not English.

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. MarginaliaVrbane cōplaineth that no promotiō wold fall vpon him.This Vrbane had bene a long wayter in the court of Rome  
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At this time, the papal court was in Avignon, not Rome.

: and when he saw no promotion would light vpon him, complayning to a certayn frend of his, made to him his mone, saying: That he thought veryly, if all the Churches of the world should fall, yet none would fall in his mouth. MarginaliaAn answere againe to Vrbane being made Pope.The which frend after seing him to be Pope, and inthronifed in his threefold crowne, commeth to him, & putting him in remembrance of his worde to him before, sayth: that where his holynesse had moned his fortune to him, that if all the Churches in the world would fall, none would fall vpō his head: Now (sayth he) god hath otherwise so disposed, that all the churches in the world are fallen vpon your head, &c.

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MarginaliaEx Sabel. Enead 9. lib. 8. This Pope mayntayned  

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This description of the wars of Urban V comes from Sabellicus, in his Enneads (see Sabellicus, Opera omnia [Basel, 1560], cols. 817-21). Bale had referred to this account (Catalogus, p. 438), but he had not provided the details. Foxe felt that the issue of papal territorial aggression was sufficiently important for him to look up Bale’s source for himself.

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and kindled great wars in Italy, sending Egidius his Cardinall and Legate  
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This is Cardinal Gil Álvarez Caurillo de Albornoz, whom Pope Urban V placed in charge of restoring papal control over the papal territories in Italy. While the papacy was in Avignon, its control over central Italy had been lost..

, and after him Arduinus a Burgundian his legate and Abbot with great puissaunce and much money agaynst sundry cities in Italy: By whose meanes, the townes and Cittyes which before had broken frō the bishop of Rome were oppressed: also Bernabes & Galeaceus prices of Millain, vanquished. By whose example other being sore feared, submitted themselues to the Church of Rome. MarginaliaHowe the church of Rome came by their roiall possessions.And thus came vp that wicked church to her great possessiōs, which her patrons would needes father vpon Constantine the godly Empero  
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This description of the wars of Urban V comes from Sabellicus, in his Enneads (see Sabellicus, Opera omnia [Basel, 1560], cols. 817-21). Bale had referred to this account (Catalogus, p. 438), but he had not provided the details. Foxe felt that the issue of papal territorial aggression was sufficiently important for him to look up Bale’s source for himself.

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In the time  

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Everything that follows to the end of Oresme’s sermon is a direct translation of Matthias Flacius, Catalogus testium veritatis (Strasbourg, 1562), pp. 512-519.

of this Pope Vrbane the 5. and in the second yeare of his raign, about the beginning of the yere of our Lord. 1364  
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Actually 1363.

. MarginaliaNicholaus Orem. I finde a certayne Sermon of one Nicholas Orem, made before the Pope and his Cardinalles on Christmas euen. In the which Sermon, the learned man doth worthely rebuke the prelates and priests of his time, declaring their destruction not to be farre of by certayne signes taken of their wicked and corrupt life. All the sayings of the Prophets spoken agaynst the wicked priestes of the Iewes, he doth aptly apply against the clergy of his time, comparing the Church then present to the spirituall strumpet spoken of in the 16. of the Prophet Ezechiel. And proueth in conclusion the clergy of the church then, to be so much worse then the old Synagoge of the Iewes, by how much it is worse to sell þe church & Sacraments, thē to suffer doues to be solde in the church. With no lesse iugement also and learning he answereth to the old and false obiection of the papists: who albeit they be neuer so wicked, yet thinke themselues to be the church which the Lord cannot forsake. All which thinges to þe entent they may the better appeare in his owne words, I haue thought here to tran-

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