rection against the king, as is pretended in the preample before this statute, which were a matter of high treason: How chaunceth then, that the whole body of the statute folowing after the said preface or preamble, runneth in all the parts and braunches thereof both in maner of arrest, of inditement, information, request, alowance of officers, cognisance of ordinaries, of the forefact, &c. vpon cases of heresie and not of treason, as by particular tractation shall be (Christ willing) declared.

MarginaliaInsurrection of the Lollordes against the king not lykely.And for so much as these men be so greuously accused of Alanus Copus, for congregating & rising against their K. & the whole Realme, if I had so much laysure to defend, as he hath pleasure to diffame: Here might be demaunded of him, to keepe him some further pley (touching this mighty insurrection, where as they came in nūber of xx. thousand against the king) in what order of battaile ray they marched, what Captaines, vnder Captaines, and pety Captaines they had to guide the wyngs, and to lead the army? whether they were horsemen, or footemen. If they were horsemen (as is pretensed) what ment they then to resort to the Thicketes neare to S. Gyles field, which was no meet place for horses to stirre? If they were footemen: how standeth that with the author, which reporteth them to be horsemē? Moreouer, is to be demanded, what insignes or flagges, what shot, what pouder, what armour, weapōs, and other furniture of war: also what treasure of money to wage so many, to þ^e nūber of xx. thousand, what trumpets, drommes, & other noise necessary for þ^e purpose they had. All these preparations for such an enterprise is requisite & necessary to be had. And peraduenture, if truth were well sought, it would be found at lēgth, that in stead of armies and weapon, they were comming onely with theyr bookes, and with Beuerlay their preacher, into those thickets. But as I was not there present at the fact (as is before said) so haue I neither certeinely to define vpon theyr case, not yet M. Cope to exclame against them, vnles peraduenture he taking an occasion of the time, will thus argue against them: That because it was the hoate moneth of Ianuary, the 2. day after the Epiphany, therefore it is like, that Sir Iohn Oldcastle with xx. thousand Lollards camped together in the fields in al the heate of the wether, to destroy the king and all the nobles, and to make hymselfe Kegent of England. And why not as well the King, as regent of England, seeing all the nobles should haue bene destroyed, & he onely left alone to reigne by himselfe?

¶ It followeth more in the preamble of þ^e foresaid statute (B)Marginalia(B) to adnull, destroy, and subuert the Christen fayth, and the law of God, & holy Church, &c. MarginaliaA slaūder of the L. Cobham, that he intēded to destroy Christen fayth.He þ^t was the forger & iuuēter of this report (as it appeareth to proceed frō the Prelates) seemeth no cunning Dædalus, nor halfe hys craftes maister in lying for the whetstone. Better he might haue learned of Sinō in Virgill, more artificially to haue framed and conueied his narration. Which although in no case could sound like any truth, yet some colour of probabilitie should haue bene set vpon it, to giue it some countenance of a like tale. As if he had first declared the L. Cobham to haue bin before in secrete cōfederacie with the great Turk, or if he had made him some termagāt or Mahound out of Babylonia, or some Herode of Iudea, or some Antichrist out of Rome, or some grandpanch Epicure of this world: and had shewed, that he had receiued letters from the great Souldan, to fight against the faith of Christ and law of God, then had it appeared somwhat more credible, that the said Sir Iohn Oldcastle with his sect of heresie, went about to adnull, destroie, and subuert the Christian faith, and law of God within the Realme of England, &c.

But now, where will either he or M. Cope finde men so mad to beleeue, or so ingenious þ^t can imagine this to be true: that the Lord Cobham (being a Christian) and so faithfull a Christiā, would or did euer cogitate in his mind to destroy and adnull the faith of Christ in the Realme of England? What soeuer the report of this pursuant or preface saith, I report me vnto the indifferent Reader, how standeth this with any face of truth? That he which before through the reading of Wickliffes works, had bene so earnestly cōuerted to the law of God, who had also approued himselfe such a faithfull seruant of Christ, that for the faith of Christ he being examined and tried before the Prelates, page. 553. not only ventred his life: but stood constant vnto the sentence of death, defined against him: being a cōdemned and a dead man by law, Et qui, quantum ad eius deuotionem pertinet & timorem, passus fit, quicquid pati potuit, who had as much as to deuotion and feare apperteined, suffered already what he might or could suffer, as MarginaliaCyrpian. lib. 4. Epist. 2.Cyprian said by Cornclius. That he (I say) which a little before in the moneth of September, stoode so constant in defence of Christes faith, would now in the moneth of Ianuary riseto destory, adnull, & subuert Christes faith, and the law of God, and holy Church within the Realme of England?

How can it be not like only but possible to be true that he which neuer denied the faith: which euer confessed the faith so constantly, which was for the same faith condemned: yea and at last also burned for the faith, would euer fight against the faith, and law of God, to adnull and to subuert it? Let vs proceed yet further, and see when that he should haue so destroied and adnulled the Christian faith and law of God in England, what faith or law then could he or did he entend to bring into the realme of England? The Turks faith? or the Iewes faith? or the Popes faith? or what faith else, I pray you? For he that will be an enemie to the faith of Christ, and will shew himselfe frend to no other faith beside, I accompt him not out of his right faith, but out of his right wits.

(C)Marginalia(C) And therfore euen as it is true, that sir Iohn Oldcastle with his cōfederates & abettours were vp in armes to subuert, and extinguish the faith of Christ and law of God in þ^e realme of England: so by the like truth it may be estemed, that þ^e same persons rose also to destroy their soueraigne Lord the king and his brethren. First thanks be to God, that neither the king, nor any of his brethren had any hurt by him. MarginaliaThe Lord Cobham falsely slaūdered for intending to destroy the king.But his intent, saith the preface, was to destroy his soueraigne Lord the king. Whereunto I aunswere, with this interrogatorie, whether his intent was priuily to haue destroied him, or by opē force of armes? If priuily, what needeth then such a great army of xx. thousand men to atcheue þ^t secret feate? Rather I would think, that he needed more the help of such as were neare about the king: as some of the kinges priuie chamber, or some of his secrete counsaile: whereof, neither Chronicle nor record doth insinuate any mention. MarginaliaHow vnlyke it is that the L. Cobham did rise against the king.If his intent was openly to inuade the kyng: You must vnderstand (M. Cope) that to withstand a king in his owne Realme, many thinges are required, long time, great preparation, many frendes, great assistance, and ayd of kindred, money, horse, men, armour, and all other things apperteining for the same.

MarginaliaExamples what an heard matter it is to rise against the king.Earle Godwin of Westsaxe, who had maried Canutus daughter being a man both amitious, and as false a traitour, for al his sixe sonnes, and great alliance, yet durst not set vpon king Edward to inuade him within his Realme, although he sought manye occasions so to do, yet neuer durst enterprise openly, that which his ambition so greedely presumed vnto, page 163.

MarginaliaThe nobles against K. Henry. 3.In the time of King Henry the third, Symon Montford Earle of Glocester, Gilbert Clare Earle of Leicester, Humfrey Rone Earle of Ferrence, with a great number of Lords and Barons, thought themselues to haue great right on their sides, yet durst not for all their power openly assaile the King in his Realme, before great debatemēt and talke first had betweene, page 330.

MarginaliaThe nobles against K. Edward. 2.Likewise what murmuring and grudging was in the realme against king Edward the second, among the peres and nobles and also prelates (only Walter Bishop of Couentry except) first for Gaueston, then for the Spensers, at what time Thomas Earle of Lancaster, Guido Earle of Warwike, with the most part of al other Earles and Barons concordly consenting together to the displacing first of Gaueston, then of the Spensers, yet neither rashly, nor without great feare durst stirre vp warre in the land, or disquiet or vexe the king, but first by all meanes of moderate counsaile, and humble petition, though rather to perswade, then to inuade the king, page 308.

MarginaliaThe nobles against K. Rich. 2.In like maner, and with like grudging mindes, in the reigne of King Richard. 2. Thomas Wodstocke Duke of Glocester the kings vncle, with the Earles of Arundell, of Warwike, and Darby, with the power almost of the whole commons, stood vp in armes against the king: And yet notwithstanding all their power ioined together, being so great, and their cause seming to them so reasonable, yet were they not so hardy, straightwayes to flee vpon the king, but by way of Parliament thought to accomplishe that which their purpose had conceiued, and so did, without any warre striking against the king, page. 513.

MarginaliaThe nobles against K. Henry. 4.After King Richard. 2. was deposed, and was in prison yet liuing, diuers noble men were greatly inflamed against K. Henry the fourth, as Sir Iohn Holland Earle of Huntington, Thomas Spenser Earle of Glocester, þ^e Earles likewise of Kent, and of Salisbury, with sir Iohn Cheney & other mo, wherof diuers had beene Dukes before, & now deposed by King Henry. 4. although they had conceiued in their harts great grudge and malice against the said King Henry: yet had they neither hart nor power openly with mans force to assaile the king, but secretly were cōpelled to atchieue their conceiued intēt, which notwithstanding they could not accomplish. Ex hist. D. Alban.