Library
of the
University of Toronto
ir
0 "i
VV - XV
V
Several TRACTS-
.V
AGAINST
POPE R Y,
"-'••'• BY ' "" "":;'
MICHAEL GEDDES, LL.D.
-HT
T 3 K I A D A
•*>>
,Cf .J J tg a Q ci 3 O j g /
-, M
A
SEVERAL
TRACTS
, $jj£. AGAINST ..r: ••-• '
POPERY
Together with
The LIFE of Don Alvaro de Luna.
WRITTEN BY
MICHAEL GEDDES. LL.D.
• J
And Chancellor of the Church of Sarum.
Quid Roma faciam ? mentiri ntjcio
Juven. Satyr. Ill,
LONDON,
Printed by E. J. for BERNARD L i N T o T T at the Croft-Keys between the two lemple-gates in Hket-flreet. 1715:.
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THE
PUBLISHER
TO T HE __ -r-v.'.fc'i -i->v wn -r^
READER.
HE enfuing TRACTS are the Remains of the late Learned and Judicious Dr. G E D D E 3, whole former Works of this fort met with fo favourable a Re ception in the World., as has en- c&urag'd the Publifliing of thefe ; whichj 'tis hop'dj may in their turn be no lefs ferviceable in making fu;
A 3 th_
ii The Publifher to
ther Difcoveries of the Cheats and
Abufes of the Roman Church.
J
ji *. * ) '***
i. That Traa called The Grand Forgery dzfplay^d,, is a moft ufeful Dilijuifition into and a clear Dete&ion of thofe Arts.) by which the Roman Pontif and hrs Bifliops advanced the Papal }See ,to gfucb fre^minenpe^
JL ; ? f- -, .*' • s a .3
and exalted themlelves to li>' enor mous a height, as to Lord it over Cod?s Heritage^ and to flied the Blood of a]l thofe Saints ^\\$ Pro- phets.who woild not bow| the Knee
' * ""y ftMMJL
to Baal.
Q. The Effayan the Roman Pon- iifieatz isjpf the like nature., tracing out thqfe Ufurpatjons and unjuft Claims of Precedency to tljeir Source> fhewing the Spring front whence they arQfei; ai&fjl ,th^|B^fis on wliich they 4$$$< fucceedittg to Rome • Pa&tifex Maxima to ': Author very well ob-
- —• » . ~ ^i - * «/
fervcs and fubftantially proves.5
3. The
Reader. V ill
UJp i/>b'i> 3'J£ . T/je Legend of the Houfe of
^ is one of their moft ridicu lous Fables^ invented to ferve their Ends,, to uphold Superftition., to a- mufe blind and ignorant People., and to cheat them of their Subftance by drawing rich Offerings to that Holy Houfe ^ as they call it, which are there devoted to the Service of their Priefts3 whofe Legerdemain far exceeds the the Hocus Focus of all other Importers whatfoever.
TVV V/W^O i~WHl *luR»*» •< >**.*»IJ
4. Another of thefe Tra&s., call'd A View of Papal Indulgences, carries in it a very melancholy Account of the miferable Slavery to which the Laity of the Church of Rome are fubjeft^ who are annually obliged to deal for this unprofitable Merchandife *^ and A 4 are
* A late Proof of this Trade thus carr 'd on is to be mcc with in the Account of Captain Woods Roger ^ Cruiimg Voy age to the South Sea, &c. where ipeaking of a Ship call'd the Marqiiifs which they took from the Spaniards, he fays ; We found in the Marquis near Five hundred Bales of the Pope's
iv The Tublifher to
are tricked out of their Money (not to fay their Salvation ) by fuch unchri- ftian and burthenfome Impofitions. How little available this Traffick is to promote thofe Ends it pretends to ferve^ the very Thing it felf and the Manner of its Management fuffi- ciently declare. What was faid of old of the Jewifo Priefts and Sacri fices may be very aptly apply'd here. Thefe things can never wake the Comers iherennto perfect ^ nor can thofe Indulgences take away Sm^ or the Conscience from dead Works.
Bulls, Sixteen Reams in a Bale. This took up abundance of •from in the Ship: We throw 'd moft of them overboard, to make mem jor better 'Goods, except what we ufed to burn the Pitch of (.ur Ships when we careen df .them. Thefe Bulls are impofed •upon the People, and fold here by the Clergy from Three Kyals *o Fifty Pieces of Eight a-piece, according to the Ability of the Pur chafers. Once in two Tears they are rated, and all the People obliged to buy them againft 'Lent: They cannot be read, the Print looking worfe than any of our old, Ballads } yet the Vulgar are made to believe ifs a mortal Sin to eat Flefh in Lent, without being Licens'd by one of thefe Bulls, the Negro Slaves not ex- cepted. This is one of the greatefl Branches of Income the King of Spain has in this Country, being a free Gift from the Pope to him) as the Spaniards and Natives told us. Page 227, 228.
' 7* r » • %
|
,rl j moil jfooi 73fij fbaM,i\i»^^>f'. aaj ,\wi H^.n iwpiiM-'w RJ V.! ^
Put
the Reader. v
But the Bufinefs is., the Laity muft be kept dependent upon their Guides^ and muft be obliged to believe,, that the pretended Vicar of Chrift has e- qually with Chrift himfelf all Power given him in Heaven and Earth , and that He of ens and no Man fonts, and /huts and no Man opens. However doubtful it may be., whether thefe miferable People attain that Eternal Inheritance which is ofter'd them by thofe Indul gences., yet this is very certain., that the Pope gains his owrn Ends and en riches himfelf with their Gold and Silver., making them believe that the Gift of God may be purchased with Money, and obliging them to give him their labour for that which does not profit , and their ftrength for that which is not bread.
$. The Account of a Solemn Pontifical Mafs, is a Difcovery of a wonderful Scene of Pageantry , where Pomp and Superftition are interwoven with each other to difguife the Purity of Divine
Wor-
vi The Publifhet to
Worfliipj and the eafie Inftitution of the Commemoration of ChrifPs Love to Mankind is miferably clogg'd with Rites of Human Invention. So that the Law of Mbfes^ fo remarkable for its number of Ceremonies^ and fo un- eafie by reafon of the heavy Yoke it put upon the Necks of its Votaries,, is now fucceeded by another Law of Carnal Ordinances much more burtheir- fomej which is wholly deftitute of the fame Authority to fupport it, and not in the leaft fubfervient to the fame or any other good End or Purpofe. On this Occaiion the Bi/lop of Rome and his Ecclefiajiicks endeavour to magmjie their Office., and fet them- i elves out in Pomp and State., in or der to be admir'd by their iuperftitious Beholders., and to make them think more highly of them than they ought tc think, as if Divine Institutions derived their greatcft Value from them.
'Tis hop'd that the fore-mention'd Trcatife§ may not be unfeafon-
ably
the Reader] vii
ably offered to the Publick,, at a time when all Helps are needful to make feme Men fenfible of the Ufurpa- tions of the Roman Church^ and the Calamities of thofe Congregations that are within her Dominions. It is not long fince the fears of Popery were reprefented as the Notions of fanciful Men, or as the Engines of defigning Politicians • and whoever., out of a good Confcience., preached againft its Corruptions., or about the Dangers of its Return hither,, was very much difcountenanc'd., and bran ded with the name of a fa£Hous and feditious Incendiary. And thp' the TimeSj God be thanked,, are much changed for the better, and the Ad vocates for Popery dare not appear fo bare-facM,, yet it is to be feared that the fame Men have ftill the fame Dif- pofitions., and that their Creatures are ftill poflefs'd with the fame Delulions in its favour, which, without being re&ify'd., may fome time or other occafion the Ruin of our Glorious
Church
viii The Publijher to
Church,, unlefs prevented by the gra cious Interpofition of Divine Provi- dence. To obviate thefe falfe No- tionSj it will not be amifs; to repre- fent in a few general Words how dangerous and terrible a Difpenfa- tion Popery is,, by faying ibmewhat of its great Power., and the indefati- gablenefs of its Votaries to propagate and enlarge it, and by laying before the Reader a fmall Scetch of its Inqni* fit ion from the Author's own Expe rience.
It will be altogether needlefs to look back to its Original., and to trace out the gradual Advances by which Rome Papal ^ \\keRome Heathen^ rofe to fuch an extravagant height of Power : We will only confider it as it is now efta- bliittd in moft Parts of the Chriftian World,, and briefly hint what Pains are taken to make it overfpread the face of the whole Earth. It will be Time mif-ipent to refer the Reader either to Hiftory or Geography to find out thq Extent of Papal Jurifdi-
ti'v n.Kiv.'
Reader. ix
&ioa, or to difcover what mighty Potentates are engaged in its Caufe, fince every Day's Converfation will abundantly furnifh him with too much Knowledge of that kind. Amongft thefe Potentates there is a neighbour* ing Monarch fo full of Zeal for the Papal Caufe^ that he fpares not People of his own Perfwafioiv, if they in any meafure fall (hort of the utmoft Bi- gottry of that Religion., witnefs the great Profecution againft Father Qttefnel and his Favourers,, and his * Declara tion in 1685 lately revived by an Arreft of the Parliament of Bourdeaux againft the New Converts., on the Account of Monfieur Jourgniac^ in order to perfecute 5em ev'n after Death., by confifcating their Eftates and ruining their Pofterity if they are not bury'd according to the
* Vld. The French Kings Declaration dared the nth of December 1685, and Regiftred, the iyth of the fame Month. Vid. The Arreft of the Parliament msMeinx againft Monfieur Jowgnisic in the Abftrdil of the Regifters of Parliament De cember 1 2th, 1714.
Super-
x The Publifher to
Superftitions of Rome. And don't we fee this furious Zealot in a flourifhing Condition again., keeping formidable Armies a-foot to execute his Defigns., and fending abroad great Fleets to bring the Riches of all the known Parts of the World into his Coffers ? And is not this Matter of Grief and Lamentation to all who truly love the Liberty of Mankind and the Purity of the Gofpel ? This fingle Confidera- tion throws frightful Apprehenfions into the Minds of all fincere Pro- tefbnts. But if beyond this we refle& that leveral other mighty Powers are equally zealous for Rome's Religion., and equally attached to its Intereft., we can't poffibly avoid thinking that our Religion is in no finall Peril : And fliould thefe Powers unite to re-fettle Popery in thofe Countries from whence it was baniflVd (which is what were apprehenlive of not long ago) we may too eafily guefs the dire Confequences., confidering the prefent- great Divifions among Proteftants.
It
\_s t* *
Reader.
It is well known that the great pro- grefs of Popery has been chiefly owing to Force ^ and if that has proved fo ferviceable hitherto., we may be fare it will never fail to be us'd when a favourable Opportunity prefents it fel£ But to infift on this no longer, let us now coniider what Endeavours are made ufe of by its Votaries to propa gate and enlarge it. The EmifTaries of Rome are in all Parts of the World., and work without intermif- fion to bring Men to an Obediece to their Church j- but their Endeavours of that kind are moft conftant and moft indefatigable in thofe Countries which have (hook off that heavy Yoke from their Necks. And I think I may /Uftly affirm., that there is not a Part of the World in which they have more fcealoufly laboured than in England. For to pals by all their hel- lifli Plots of feveral forts at feveral times., have they not always a Set of Priefts and Jefuits lurking amongft us^ who lay out themfelves in making
Pro-
xji The PMJher to
Profelytes,, in {owing Seditions and creating Differences amongft us^ in fpreading falfe Reports of our Go vernors,, in traducing the beft Men of the Nation,, in betraying the Se crets of State to foreign Powers,, in abufing our beft Friends., and exalt ing our worft Enemies ? Thefe and many other the like Devices they daily make ufe of to bring us under Bond age to St. Peters pretended Succeflbr j and there is nothing fo mean or fo fcandalous to which they will not ftoop either to carry on his Encroachments^ or to ruin his Oppofers. And if after all this we of this Nation can fancy our felves fo fecure as to appre hend no Danger from that quarter, our Condition is fo much the worfe. Infenfibility in fuch Circumftances is a very bad Symptom,, and may acce lerate our Ruin. Whilft we are folding our Arms to Sleep., and are crying Peace, Peace, the Mif- chief, which is always aiirfd at us^ may come upon us unawares,, and
feize
the Header. xiii
feize us at a time when there will be no poflibility of making an Efcape.
The late worthy Author of thefe Papers very well knew the Juftnefs of thofe Fears which' Proteftants en tertain of Popery : For as he had liv'd long in a Popifh Country., fo he had been a curious Enquirer into that Religion., and a judicious Ob- ferver of all its Maxims and Politicks. He had experienced in his own Perfoa, that no Proteftant fliall be ever fuf- fer'd to enjoy the Exercife of his Re- Religion when it is in the Power of the Papifts to take it from him.
A clear Inftance of this appeared in the Cafe of the Englijb Fa&ory at Lisbon, where he fervM as Chaplain for teiiYears^ from 1678 to 1688. In the Year 1686 he was cited with the Conful of the Merchants to come before the Inqnifition. They went through feveral large Rooms., which were ftill locked behind them as they pafs'd on. The Conful was taken in
xiv The Publijher to
firft^andexaminM^but was not fuffer'd to Ipeak to the Chaplain when he came out again. The Chaplain was then fent for to make his Appearance before thofe Judges., who received him at firft with great Affe&ation of Civility and Courtefy, and defied him to fit down and be CoverM before they proceeded to Examine him. After this piece of Ceremony was over> they fternly de manded of him, how he dard to Preach., or exercife his Fun&ion in that City ? He anfwef d., That he enjoyed that Liberty by virtue of an Article between the two Crowns of England and Portugal , That it was a thing which had never been calPd in que- ftion 5 That he had been there Eight Years, and during that time had ferv'd the Englifb Fa&ory in the capacity of Chaplain., as many others had done before him. They reply M^ That it it was a thing altogether unknown to them., and what they had never heard of before j and if they had known it, they would never have fuffer'd it
This
the Reader. xv
This Declaration of theirs was a moft notorious Falfliood., and was only a cloak to cover the true Reafons of car rying on fuch unjuft Proceedings. The truth is., they had Encouragment fo to do from this tide of the Water • and had not the happy Revolution fucceeded., the whole Protejlant Church might have fain under the fame unlucky Fate.
After they had threatened him^ and ftri&ly forbidden him to minifter any more to his Congregation., he was difmifs'd. * Whereupon a Letter of Complaint was written to the Bifiiop of London^ fubfcrib'd by Mr. Maynard the Conful, and other Merchants of the Fa&ory j a Duplicate of the fame Let ter was afterwards fign'd by every Member of the Faftory ^ and one was written by the Conful himielf to the fame Right Reverend Father , the Copies whereof are exhibited to the Publick View at the latter end of the Appendix. But before thofe Lexers
* Vid. Append, ad fin. We could not find either che Origi nal or a Copy of Dr. Geddes\ Letter which the Confu! men tions.
a a reached
xvi The Publifher to
reached England ., his Lordfliip was Sufpended, and all hopes of Redrefs were removed. They were wholly debarred the Exercife of their Religion till the arrival of Mr. Scarborough the ILnglifh Envoy., under whofe Character as a Publick Minifter they were obliged to skreen themfelves^ altho' they had a Right to the Exercife of their Pro- feflion by the Treaty between the two Nations., and by an exprefs Claufe inferted in the Patent of every Englijb Conful refiding at Lisbon, and Con- finned and Ratify'd by the King of Portugal himfelf. Under this State of Affairs he thought it advifable to re turn to England^ which he did in May 1688., bringing along with him that ;uft Averfion and Abhorrence of of the fefifb Religion,, which all., who love the Purity of Chriftianity., ought to entertain of fo grofs a Depravation of it.
During his refidence at Lisbon he was prefent at an Auto de Fe, or a Jayl- Dclivery of the Prifoners of the
the Reader. xvii
fition, where he faw with Horror and Defeftation Men cruelly burnt., or ra ther roafted alive., becaufe they would not abjure that which they in their Confciences believed to be Truth. One of them continued alive in the Flames about two Hours after he gave over fpeakingj as he could perceive by the motion and lifting up of his Hands. As long as they were able to fpeak^ they incetfantly cry'd out., Mercy, Mercy 3 for the Love of Cod , but no Mercy was to be obtained from their mcrci- lefs Perfecutors., who fport themfelves with burning off their Lips and Nofes with lighted Furzes before the Fire is kindled., and behold their fevereft Agonies in the midft of the Flames with inexpreffible Delight. To fuch de grees of helliih Cruelty can this An- tichriftian Religion excite Men ! The lame People are other wife Good-na- tur'd enough^and cannot but look upon the Sufferings of common Malefactors with great Pity and Compafllon j but in the cafe of thofe whom they call a 3 Hereticks,
xviii The Tublijlier to
Hereticks^ they feem to be devoid of all Humanity., and are poflefs'd with fuch an infernal Fury as to affift at the Executions of the Inqutfition with the utmoft height of Satisfa&ion in their Countenances., and with fuch Acclamations., Exulting and Triumph as cannot be imagined by thole \vho have not feen them.
It is remarkable., that before the time of Execution., thefe poor Wretches are., by hard Ufage and Torments endur-d in Prifon., reduced to fuch Weaknefs and Dccrepidnefs as to be fcarce able to walk., and their Eyes are fo much ftrainM with conftant Dark- Dels., that they cannot bear the Light. This made our Author often fay., when he refle&ed upon thole miferable Creatures , Thai they bad an Afyett fo different from all other People, and their Looks ircre fo pale and ghaftly, that they feevicl rather to be jnch Infernal Shades as the foets of old feigrfdj than the Inhabitants of this Vpper World and the Children of
Men
the Readerl xix
Men in the Land of the Living. And yet all thefe things put together move not the leaft Commiferation. And no wonder., fince the Genius of the Popifh Religion is diametrically oppofite to the Spirit of Chriftianity. The Chriftian Religion enjoins its Vo taries to Love one another., to be Pitiful and Tender-hearted^ to be full of Companion., Kindnefs., Gentlenefs,, Long-fuftering., to put on Bowels of Mercies., forbearing one another,, and forgiving one another. But the Papal Religion excites its Followers to ex treme Hatred and Hard-heartednefs, to outrageous Fury., to unrelenting Ma lice., to barbarous Cruelty., and to all the A&s of Inhumanity and Savagenefs., as is evident from the foregoing In- fiance., as well as from all the Rela tions and Hiftories of their Iriqnifilion : Infomuch that no one can live in quiet or fafety amongft them., who will not bring his Confcience to the Pope's Standard., and let him have dominion over his Faith. And whe*
a 4 ther
xx The Tnblifher to
ther any thing is more to be dreaded by Englifimen and Proteflants ., than to have fuch a Lord to bear rule over them., I leave every one of common Senfe., except bigotted Papijls, to de termine.
-oV •-"'•; r>u,2f! r'/;i'ir&ri-..> -.M •
The laft Work of the Author's in
this Colle&ioiij Intituled,, The Life of Don Alvaro de Lnna^ is of a different nature from the foregoing Pieces., being not a Religious but a Political Trea- tifc. It contains an Account of a Prime Minifter of State in the King dom of Caflile^ who from a bafe Birth and {lender Fortune rofe to the great- eft Eminence in the Government^ and maintained himfelf in that Poft for a long trad of Time., againft all the Attempts of his Rivals., all the Rea- fons of State., and all the juft Reraon- ftrances of his Fellow-Subjcds. The Ways and Means he made ufe of to aggrandize,, enrich and fupport him felf, his Political Maxims and Practices., his Government of his Prince^ and his
Oppref-
xx
Opprefllon of the People,, all the At tacks of his Adverfaries to remove him., their Combinations and Con federacies., their Complaints of Grie vances,, and their repeated Repre- fentations of his Male-adminiftration., make up the bulk of this remarkable Piece of Hiftory. Towards the Con- clufion of it, we fee a Cloud gather ing over his Head^ which feems to threaten his Deftru&ion • but this would have broke without doing him any hurt., if the Avarice of his Prince had not been ftronger than the Efforts of his Oppofers. His vaft Treafure., which was the weapon he chiefly fought with., and the thing he chiefly relyM on , fharpen'd the King his Matter's Appetite., and brought him to that Untimely End which we find related in the latter part of this Hi ftory. Our Author tells us., he chofe to colle& this Account, and to refcue this Favourite fo eminent in his kind from Obfcurity,, that it might ferve for an Admonition to thofe that ftand
in
xxii The Publifher to
in high Places^ to take care left they fall
Before I difmifs this head., it will not be improper to inform the Reader, that the fublifber has laid out more Pains upon this Treatife in Altering,, Correcting and Amending it, than upon any of the preceding ones. He has not at all changed the Mat- ier^ but has only meddled with the Stile y and has endeavoured., as far as was confiftent with the Duty of a Publijher, to take off that Roughnefs and Unevennefs which is vifible in every Page of the other Tra&s. In this Cafe he looks upon himfelf to be in fome meafure in the Condition of an Artificer., who is to brighten and polifli fome va luable Jewel., without any confider- able Diminution of its Subftance : And if he has been fo fortunate as to render this Life as fleajant, or even but as eafie as it is mjiruSiive, he will think his Time and Labour very well beftow^d.
Our
the Reader. xxiii
Our Author had begun to Write the Life of Veronica of Milan, a Female Vifionary., and defignM to have made it a part of this Volume., if he could have brought it into a like compafs with the foregoing Treatifes ; but be fore he had made any great Progrefs in that Piece., it feenfd good to the Wife Difpofer of all Things to take him to himfelf. What he began is now finiihM by the Ingenious Mr. O^cll^ who has tranflated the whole Life from the Original Portuguefe written by John Freiro an Auftin Her mit and Dodor of the Chair in the Univcrfity of Conimbra, and publiifrd by him at Lisbon with feveral pompous Licenfes and Recommendations in the Year 1671. This., as Dr. Geddes ob- fcrves., is one of the greateft Ecclefia- ftical Romances that ever Rome vented to fupport its Credit., and was fent into the World on purpofe to blaft the Reformation, and to fupport the cor rupt Ufages and Do&rines of Papacy
againft
The Publijher, &c;
againft the Reformers., by pretended Vifions and Revelations from Heaven. It is to be/hop'd that this Cnriofity in its kind will in fome fliort time be com municated to the Publick, to {hew how unfaithful Hiftorians and audacious Blaiphemers the Papijts are., and that the Sacred Oracles of God himfelf cannot efcape their Corruptions and Sophiftications., when they can any way wreft them to ferve the Pur- poies of their erroneous Mother- Church.
SW> -•«H w
OB ft'*
ami 3:'r:ii ^y/ La 15 (jibvO ;-• .. .,>..)
mb jh,ld oj sdoqi-LKj.no b! ;/• ;;
THE
THE
CONTENTS^
H E Grand Forgery dif- played, whereby the Ro man See was Exalted and Enriched, Page i
An Effay on the Roman Pontificate, Heathen and Papal, Sec. P- 5 5
The Hiftory of the famous Houfe of Loretto., <&c. P- 99
A View of fome Papal Indulgences, of the Bulk Crufado^ &c. p. i 58
ADe-
The CONTENTS.
A Description of a Solemn Pontifical Ma fa &c. p. 205
The Life of Don Alvaro de Luna^ Prime Favourite and Firft Minijier to Don John II. King of Caftile,,
p
The Appendix p
A Reflexion on Don Alvaro de Luna and his Miniftry, P- 371
V ,
A Letter from Lisbon to the then Lord Eifbop of London ^ P- 374
Another Letter from Lisbon to
of London, p. 378
An Explanation of feme terms in the Treatife of A Solemn Pontifical Mafs., p. 383
THE
THE
Grand FORGERY
D I S P L A Y'D,
Whereby the
ROMAN SEE
WAS Exalted and Enriched.
By MICHAEL GEDDES,, LL.D.
And Chancellor of the Church of S A R u M .
Unde nefas tantum Latiis Paftoribus ? —
Juven.Sacyr.il.
( '
ifi orfj Td
The Grand
.^:
FORGERY
^D I S P L A
WHEREBY
Th
SEE was Enriched.
Exalted and
^Hether the direful Story, which was, I think,firft reported by the Heathens, be true, or not, of Conftantine's the Great having murthered his Wife, his Son, and his Nephew- and of that Emperor's having turned Chriftian, upon his being pro- mifed in that Religion an Expiation of thofe great and unnatural Crimes, after the Hea then Priefts had told him it was not to be had among them, but by Means of a moft inhumane Method : A Story was. after fome
B
2 The Grand Forgery difplay^d.
Ages, built upon that by the Bifhopsof Rome, or their Agents, that is fo palpably falfe, that Cardinal Pool, Baronius, and fome other learned Men coniiiiuing ftill to maintain it, is alone fufficient to demonftrate that they make no Confcience at all of facrificing Truth to the Service of the Papal Intereft 5 which Story, being, Legend like, in the Afts called Pope Silvefter\ a tedious, blundering, and ill told Tale $ I fhall here give the Reader the Subflance of it, as I find it in a Letter of Pope Adrian's, which was writ above Four Hun dred Years aftei; Confianfipe's Death. The Tale is this,
Conjtantine the Great, after he had been a Chriftian for divers Years, fo that he wanted nothing, but to be baptized, to have been en tirely of that Religion, did in the Year 324, of a fudden, raife fo violent aPerfecution againft the Chriftians, that Sihefter, Bifhop of Rome, with his Clergy were chafed by the Fury of the Perfecution into the fubterraneous Caverns of the Mountain SoraSe : And fo abandoned was that Emperor to Wickednefs, that during the Time of that Perfecution, his Wife Fau- fta, who was a Woman of an unblameable Life, and his Son Crifpus, who was a virtu ous and a moft hopeful young Prince, and his Nephew Licinius, were all three barbaroufly murthered by .him 5 and that, having been, foon after he cominitted thofe unnatural Crimes, vifited by Heaven with the Leprofie, he confulted the Heathen Priefts to know of
them
The Grand Forgery difylafd. 5
them, how he might be cured of that loath- fome Difeafe 5 and being told by them, that there was no other Cure for it, but to bath liimfelf in a Pond filled with the frefh Blood of Infants 5 In Compliance with that inhu mane Prescription, vaft Multitudes of Child ren were fnatched from their Mothers Breafts, withwhofe Blood that Pond was to be filled : But on, the Night before that direful Slaughter was to have been, contrary to that Emperor's Inclinations, St. Peter , and St. Paul appeared to Conftantine as he was afleep, and command ed him to fend forthwith for Silvefter, Bifhop of Rome, whom, by his prefent cruel Perfe- cution, he had chafed into the Caverns of the Mountain SoraSe, and he would prefcribe a Bath to him, that would infallibly cure him of his Leprofie ^ charging him, after he was cured of that Difeafe, to throw away all his Idols, and to worfhip the true God only, and to reftore to the Chriftians all their Churches.
-;i; Conftantine being awakened with this Vifi- on, immediately fent fome of his Officers to Mount Sora&e, to fetch Pope Silvefter to him, out of its Caverns : When Silvefter firft heard thofe Officers Voice, concluding, they were come to martyr them all, he cried out to his Clergy that were about him, This i$ the ace eft able Time, thitis the Day of Salva tion $ but when he carfie to fpeak with them,he found that was not their Butinefs, but to invite him to come to the Emperor, which, he did,
B a being
4 The Grand Forgery difflay^d.
being accompanied by three of his Presbiters, and two of his Deacons. He was received by Conjtantine with great Joy $ who ^having given him a Relation of his Vifion, asked him, what Gods Peter and Paul were, that had appeared to him : Silvefter anfwered, they were not Gods, but the worthy Servants of Chrift, and the eled Apoftles he fent to preach his Gofpel to the Gentiles. Conftan- tine asked him, whether he had their Piftures, by which he might know whether they were the two Perfons that he had feen. Silvefter faid he had both their Pidures 3 and having fent one of his Deacons to fetch them , he {hewed them both to Conftantine, who, as foon as he faw them, cried out with a loud Voice, thefe are the very Perfons that appear ed to me 5 the Holy Ghoft muft not there fore delay any longer to fhew me the Pond in which they both promifed me I fhould meet with a Cure for my Leprofie. Silvefter told him, that Pond was the Font of Baptifm, in which his Body and Soul would both be in fallibly cured of their Leprofie: Conftantine was in great Hafte to be baptized 5 but Sil- •vefter would not adminifter that Sacrament to him, until he had firft taught him his Cate- chifm, and had kept him for feven Days in a State of Penitence : After that Conftantine, having laid afide his Sackcloth, and put on his Whites, was baptized by Silvefter with great Solemnity ^ and was, whilft he was in the Font, cured of his Leprofie, by
Chart's
The Grand forgery ctifplay^d. 5
Chrift's having ftretched forth his Hand to him.
The Font Conftantine was baptized in, was all of Porphiry Stone, overlaid within and without with pure Silver, which weighed three thoufand and eight Pounds : in the middle of the Font flood a Porphirj Pillar with a Bafon on its Top, of moft pure Gold, which weighed fifty Pounds, in which two hundred Pounds of Balfam was burnt: On the Labrum of the Font flood a Lamb of the pureft Gold, pouring Water out of his Mouth, that weigh ed thirty Pounds : On the Right Side of the Lamb flood a Statue of Chrift, made of Silver, that weighed an hundred andfeventy Pounds 5 and on the left a Statue of John the Baptift, in Silver too, that weighed an hundred Pounds. There were alfo feven Harts in Silver, pouring out Water, which weighed eighty Pounds apiece, and an Incenfe-pot of moft pure Gold, that weighed ten Pound, and was adorned with two and forty rich Jewels.
To this Font Conftantine made a great Do nation, which I fhall fet down here, as I ihall likewife all his following Donations, in their own Original Latin 5 becaufe they can not poflibly, in any other Language, lookfo like themfelves, as they do in that.
B 3 Donum
6 The Grand Forgery difplafd.
p$$y eirf rfiiot bsrbiS'ift g-rlv;.: p' Domm fan&o Fonti.
ex territorio Praeneftino, prasftans folidos trecentos ^ Maffa Ga^
* ba ex territorio Gabinenfi prasftans folidos c ducentos & duos ^ Maffa Pidas ex territo-
* rio fupradido pr^eftans folidos ducentos quin- 4 que^ Maffa Statiliana ex territorio Sorano
* prasftans folidos trecentos:, Maffa intraSi-
* ciliam, Taurana, ex territorio Parentienfi,
* prajftans folidos quingentos: Intra-urbem
* Romam domus vel horti prseftantes folidos ' bismille trecentos:! Fundus Bafli pr^ftans
* folidos centum viginti 5 Maffa Laninas, ex c territorio Carfiolano praftans folidos ducen
* tos :, FundusfCatulli, ex territorio Nomen- f tano, prasftans folidos quinquaginta 3 Maffa ' Statiana, ex territorio Sabinenfi, prasftans
* folidos trecentos quinquaginta ^ Maffa Mu- c rina,: ex territorio Appiano Albanenfi, prs-
* flails folidos trecentos ^ . Maffa Virginis, ex
* territorio Sorano, prasftans folidos .ducen-
* tos.
•*• Tranfmarina intra pattes Africa: Mafia c Vincis, ex teititorio Mucario, praeftans foli- *! dos oftihgetitos 3 Maffa Capfis, ex territorio c Gapfitario, prrajftansiolidos fexcentos^ Maf- c fa Varia Sardanaf praftans folidos quingen- c tos ^ Mafla Camaras, ex territorio Curta- c lupi, prasftans folidos quadringentos quin- ^•que^ Maffa Numfnas, ex territorio Numi-
* dice, prasftans folidos fexcentos quinqua-
The Grand Forgery difplay'd. j
e ginta 5 MafTa Sulphurata, ex territorio Nu- ' midias, pneftans folidos feptingentos viginti 5 c MafTa Baldarioliaria, ex territorio Numidias, c prasftans folidos odingentos & decem. In * Gratia Mafia Cephalenia prasftans folidos 1 quingentos. In Mengaulo Mafla Amazom ' praftans folidos ducentos viginti duos.
I own that I have not Skill enough in the Legendary Geography, to be able to tranflate this, and the two following Donati- tions, and for that Reafon fhould be glad to fee a learned Commentary upon thefe antient Terriers.
On the Day he was baptized, Conftantine made a Law, that Chrift who had cured him of his Leprofie was the true Lord, and that all the Roman World ought to worfhip him. On the Day after he decreed Puniflunents-a- gainft thofe that ftiould blafpheme or de ride Chrift. On the third Day he made a Law againft all that fhould reproach Chri- ftians. On the fourth Day he adorned the Ro?nan Church with Privileges, which exalt ed it above all other Churches. On the fifth Day he granted the Immunity to Churches, that none that had fled to them Ihould be taken out of them by Force. On the fixth Day he made a Law againft the Building of any Church, without the Bifhop of Rome's Licenfe. On the feventh Day, being ftill in his Whites, he made a Law for Payment of Tithes. On the eighth Day, having put off
B 4 his
8 The Grand Forgery difplay^d.
his Whites, and refumed his Imperial Robes, he went in his Chariot to the Vatican, with Silvefter by his Side, where having alighted, and taken a Spade in his Hand, he opened the Foundations of the Magnificent Church he defigned to build in that Place $ and having done that, he carried, according to the Num ber of the Apoftles, twelve Baskets of Earth upon his own Shoulders.
On this Church, which was dedicated to St. Peter, and was built on the Ground where /(polio's Temple had flood, be fides a vaft Trea- fure of Gold and Silver, he beftowed a very great and honourable Revenue, as appears from the following Rent-Roil.
c In civitate Antiochia domum Datiani c praeftantem folidos ducentos quadragin-
* ta$ Domunculam Nicaenam prasftantem
* folidos viginti 6c tremiffem^ Cellas in
* Afphrodifia prasftantes folidos viginti ^ Bal-
* neum in Cerethea prasftans folidos qua-
* draginta duos • Priftinum ubi fupra praeitans
* folidos viginti tres $ Popinas ubi fupra pras- 1 ftantes folidos decem ^ Hortum Maronis ubi
fupra praeftantem folidos decem 5 Hortum ubi fupra prasftantem folidos undecim 5 fub civitate Antiochena pofleffionem Sibyllinam donatam Augufto praftantem folidos trecen- tos viginti duos, cartadecadas centum quin- quaginta, aromatum libras ducentas, balfami libras triginta quinque 5 fub civitate Alex- andrina pofleflionem Timialicam donatam Augufto Conftantino ab Ambronio praftan-
* tern
The Grand Forgery difplay^ct. 9
tern folidos fexcentos viginti,cartadecadas tre- centas, oleiNardini libras trecentas, balfa- mi fexaginta, aromatum libras centum quin quaginta, ftoracis Ifauricas libras quinqua ginta 5 polTeffionem Eutimi Caduci prasftan- tem folidos quingentos, cartadecadas feptua- ginta^ per ./Egyptumfub civitate Armenia?, poffefiioiiem Agapii, quam donavit Con- ftantino Augufto ^ pofleffionem Panopoliten ; prxftantem folidos odingentos, cartadecadas ; quadringentas, piperis medimnos quinquagin- ' ta, croci libras centum, ftoracis libras centum ' quinquaginta, aromatum cafiae libras ducen- 1 tas, olei Nardini libras trecentas, balfamt ' libras centum., lini faccos centum, caryo-
* phyllorum libras centum quinquaginta, o- 4 lei Cyprini libras centum, papyri cannas
* mundasmille: Poffeflionem, quam donavit
* Couftantino Augufto Ibronius, prasftantera c folidos quadringentos quinquaginta, cartade- ' cadas ducentas, aromatum cafias libras quin- 4 quaginta, balfami libras quinquaginta : In 1 provincia Euphratenfi fub civitate Gyro pot c feflionem Armanazon, praeftantem folidos
* trecentos oftogima ^ fub Tarfo Ciliciag • infu- 4 lam Cordionum prasftantem folidos Non-
* gentos.
I believe it will puzzle the moft current Collector of the Papal Revenues, tho' he could have thefe Rents for fending for, to find out fome of the Countries, much lefs the particu lar Eftates that are charged with them in this Donation, namely the Poffeffionof Arma nazon,
to T* he Grand Forgery difplay^d.
nazon, in the City of Cyrus, in the Province of Euphrates, which ought to pay them year ly three hundred and eighty Shillings 5 a pro digious Rent in Conftantine's Days.
Now Conftantines Hand was in at building of Churches, Sihefter held him to it, and perfuaded him to build and endow a Church likewife to Saint Paul, whofe Body as well as Saint Peters was found by them. The Endow ment of Saint Paul's Church, was as follows. • *. Sub civitate Tyria poffeffionem Comitam
* praeftantem folidos quingentos quinquagin-
* ta 5 Pofleffionem Formimufam penfantem fo-
* lidos feptingentos. PofTeffionem Timiatn e prasftantem folidos ducentos quinquaginta, c olei Nardini libras feptuaginta, aromatum li- ' bras quinquaginta, Cafias libras quinquagin- c ta. Sub civitate ^Egiptia pofleflionem Cyre- ?. os praeftantem feptingentos decem olei Nar dini libras feptuaginta, balfatni libras trigin- ta, aromatum libras feptuaginta, ftoracis li bras triginta1, ftades libras centum quinqua ginta. Poffeffionem Bafilicam praeftantem folidos quingentos quinquaginta, aromatum libras quinquaginta5olei Nardini libras fexa- ginta, balfami libras viginti, croci libras fex-
* aginta. Poffeflionem inful^e Machab^ pr^- c ftantem folidos quingentos decem, papyri -iracanas mundas quingentas, lini faccos tre- c centos.
The fetling of Rents, arifing out of Eftates in Greece, Africa and Afia, on a Font, and on Churches in Rome, cannot but look very
itrange,
The Grand Forgery difylay^d. 1 1
ftrange, until the Defign is perceived, for which that is faid to have been done 5 which was to have perfuaded the World that thefe Payments from thofe remote Regions, were all of the Nature of Tributes, and Homages to the Roman See, as their Mother* Church and Font 5 for tho' the Legendary Advocates were the worft Drawers up of Deeds that were ever employed about that Work ^ they commonly had Craft enough to ferve one In- tereft or another of the Roman Sec by them, in thefe Ages, when their being counterfeit was not difcovered, nor fo much as fufpe&ed* Conftantine is faid to have built likewife at this time a magnificent Church in his Palace of the Lateran, and to have adorned and en dowed it with great Riches $ but thefe remote Rents being all loft long ago, I am quite wea ry of regiftring any more of the old obfcure Rent-Rolls, which are upon Record in Con* ftantines Donations.
Tho' the forementioned Donations were in * themfelves all very confiderable, they were Trifles to the great Donation, which is faid to have been made at this time by Conftantine, to Silvefter, and to all his Succeffors in the Roman See : Which glorious Donation I fliall here fet down, as it lies in a Letter written near feven hundred Years ago, by Pope Leo IX. to Michael Emperor of Conftantinofle 5 becaufe that. Copy of it is infallibly authentick, if that Pope's folemnly affirming it is fuffici* ent to prove it fo.
Con-
1 2 The Grand Forgery difylay^d.
Conftantine'j Donation, as it lies in a Letter of Pope Leo IXV writ about theTear 1050.
T TTile judicavimus una cum omnibus no- c ^JL ftris Satrapis & univerfo Senatu Opti- ' matibus, etiam & cundo populo Romans
* glorias imperio fubjacente, ut ficut B. Petrus
* in terris vicarius filii Dei videtur efle confti- c tutus, ita etiam & Pontifices ipfius principis
* Apoftolorum vice prihcipatus poteftatem, c amplius quam terrenas imperialis noftrx fe- c renitatis manfuetudo habere videtur, con- c ceflam a nobis noftroque imperio obtineant, c eligentes nobis ipfum principem Apoftolo-
* rum vel ejus vicarios firmos apud Deum ejfTe
* patronos. Et ficut noftra eft terrena impe-
* rialis potentia, ita ejus facrofandam Roma-
* nam Ecclefiam decrevimus veneranter hono-
* rare, St amplius quam noftrum imperium
* terrenumq^ thronum fedem facratiflimam B.
* Petri gloriose exaltare 5 tribuentes ei pote-
* ftatem & gloria? dignitatem atq^ vigorem ho- ' norificentiam Imperialem : Atque decernen-
* tes fancimus, ut principatum teneat tarn fu- c pet quatuor fedes Alexandrinam, Antioche- c nam, Hierofolymitanam ac Conftantinopo-
* litanam, quamque etiam fuper omnes in uni- f verfo orbe terrarum Dei Ecclefias 5 & Pon-
* tifex, qui pro tempore ipfius facrofanftas c Romanas Ecclefi^ extiterit, celfior & Prin-
* ceps cunftis Sacerdotibus totius mundi exi- l flat : Et ejus judicio quasque ad cultum Dei,
' vel
The Grand Forgery dijflafd. 1 5
vel fidei Chriftianorum ftabilitatem procu- randa fuerint difponantur. Juftum quippe eft, ut ibi lex fanfta caput teneat principa- tus, ubi fanftarum legum Inftitutor, Salva- tor nofter B. Petrum Apoftolum obtinerc pracepit Cathedram, ubi 8c crucis patibu- lum fuftinens, beats mortis fumpfit pocu- lum fuique inagiftri & domini imitator appa- ruit. Et ibi pro Chrifti nominis confeffio- ne colla fleftant, ubi eorum Doftor B. Pau- lus Apoftolus pro Chrifto extenfo collo mar- tyrio eft coronatus : Et illic ufque ad finem quserant Dodorem ubi fanftorum Doftorum quiefcunt corpora : Et ibi proni <3c humo proftrati, coeleftis Regis Dei & falvatoris no- ftri Jefu Chrifti famulentur officio, ubi fu- perbi terreni Regis ferviebant Imperio. Et fuccinde commemorato fuo ftudio <5c devo- tione in conftruendis aliquot fanftorum Ba- filicis & Imperialium donationum magnifi- centia aburidante ditatis, ait : Concedimus ipfis fandis Apoftolis dominis meis beatifli- mis Petro & Paulo, & per hos etiam B. Sil- veftro patri noftro fummo Pontifici, & u- niverfali urbis Romas Papse, & omnibus ejus fuccefforibus Pontificibus, qui ufque ad finem mundi in fede B. Petri erunt fefTuri, atque de praefenti contradimus palatium Iraperii noftri Lateranenfe, quod omnibus in toto orbe terrarum pr^fertur atque pnecellit pa- latiis. Deinde Diadema, videlicet coronam capitis noftri, fimulque phrygium necnon & fup5rhumerale videlicet Icrum, quod im-
* periale
,14 The Grand Forgery dif flayed.
* periale circundare aflblet collum : Verum *; etiam <3t chlamydem purpuream, atq^ tuni-
* cam coccinam, & omnia imperialia indumen- ' ta? fed & dignitatem Imperialium prsfiden- •Mium equitum*. conferentes ei • etiam Imperi-
* alia Sceptra, fimulque cunda figna atque
* banda etiam & diverfa ornamenta Imperialia, *i $C omnem proceflionem Imperialis culminis,
* 8c gloriam poteftatis noftras. Viros etiam
* reverendiflimos Clericos diverfi ordinis, ei-
* dem facrofands Romans Ecclefias fervientes,
* illud culmen fingularis potently & prsecel-
* lentise habere fancimus, cujus ampliflimus
* noiter Senatus videtur gloria adornari, id eft f Patricios atque Confules effici necnon & cx-
* teris dignitatibus Imperialibus eos promulga-
* mus decorari. Et ficut Imperialis extat de- 1 corata militia ita & Clerum fandas Romans *• Ecclefis ornari decernimus. Et quemad- '-modum Imperialis potentia diverfis ofSciis, ^cubiculariorum, nempe & oftiariorum, at-
* que omnium excubitorum ornatur, ita&
* fandam Romanam Ecclefiam decorari volu-
* mus. Et ut ampliffime Pontificale decus *-' prsefulgeat, decernimus & hoc, ut Clerici
* ejufdem fandas Romans Ecclefis mappulis
* & linteaminibus, id eft, candidiflimo colore ** decoratos equos equitent 6c ficut nofter fena- •f tus calcamentis utitur cum udonibus, id eft,
c candido linteamine illuftratus fie utantur 6c c Clerici, <3c ita coeleftia ficut terrena ad lau-
* dem Dei decorentur. Prs omnibus autem
* licentiam tribuentes, copcedimus ipfi fandif-
* firao
The Grand Forgery difplafd. 1 5
* fimo Patri noftro Silveftro urbis Romse E* c pifcopo & Papse, St omnibus qui poft eum
* in fucceflu, & perpetuis temporibus advene- ' rint beatiffimis Pontificibus pro honore <3c c gloria Chrifti Dei noftri in eadera magna c Dei Catholica & Apoftolica Ecclefia ex no- c ftro indido, quern placatus proprio confilio ' clericare voluerit, & in numero religiofo*
* rum Clericorum connumerare, nullum'!ex c omnibus prsefumentem fuperbe agere. :n »
c Decrevimus itaque&hoc, ut idem vene^- c rabilis pater nofter Silvefter fummus Ponti- c fex, vel omnes ei fuccedentes Pontifices, dia-
* demate (videlicet corona, quam ex capite
* noftro illi conceffimus ) ex auro puriffinao, c 6c gemmis pretiofis uti debeant, 6c in capite 4 ad laudem Dei pro honore B. Petri geftare.
* Ipfe vero beatiffiyaus Papa fuper Coronara
* Clericatus, quam gerit ad gloriam beati Pe-
* tri, omnino ipfa ex auro non eft paflus uti
* corona : Phrygium autem candido nitore, c fplendidam refurre^ionem Dominicam de- 4 fignans ejus facratiflimo vertici manibus no- e ftris impofuimus, 5t tenentes froenum equi c. ipfius pro reverentia beati Petri, ftratoris il- c li officium cxhibuimus : Statuentes eodem 4 phrygio omnes fucxreflbres ejus fingulariter c uti in proceflionibus, ad imitationem Impe- \ f ii noftri. Unde ut Pontificalis apex non 'jV^lefcat ^ fed magis quam terreni Imperil 8 dignitas & glorias potentia decoretur, ecce c tain palatium noftrum, ut prslaturn eft quam * Romanam urbem & omnes Italias, feu occi-
dentatium
1 6 The Grand Forgery difylay^d.
6 dentalium regionum provincias, loca & civi- c tates fepe fato beatifilmo Pontifici & Patri 1 noflro Silveftro, univerfali Papas, contraden- ' tes St relinquentes ei vel fuccefforibus ip- ' fius Pontificibus poteftatem & ditionem fir- 6 mam imperial! cenfurd per hanc noftram c divalem juflionem, <3c pragmaticum confti- 8 tutum decerniitius difpoiienda, atque juri 4 fanftas Romans Eccleliag concedimus per-
* manfura. Unde congruum profpeximus c noftrum Imperium &c Regiii proteftatem O- c rientalibus transferri ac tranfmutari regi- ( onibus, & in Byzantiae provinciag optimo lo-
* co nomini noftro civitatem asdificari, Sc
* noftrum illic conftitui Imperium 5 quoniam
* ubi principatus Sacerdoturn 6c Chriftiana:
* religionis caput ab Imperatore coelefti con-
* ftitutum eft, juftum non eft, ut illic terrenus c Imperator habeat poteftatem. Hasc vero
* omnia, qu« per hanc Imperialem facram &
* per alia divalia decreta ftatuimus, atq^ con-
* firmavimus, ufque ad finem mundi illibata
* & inconcuffa permanfura decernimus. De- € indefafta obteftatione coram Deo vivo, <3t 4 terribili ejus judicio, & imprecatione asternas
* condemnationis temera tori vel contemptori c ipfius fui previlegii, fecutus idem venerabi-
* lis Conftantinus ait : Hujus vero Imperialis c noftri decreti paginarh propriis manibus ro-
* borantes, fuper venerandum corpus B. Petri ' principis Apoftolorum pofuimus, ibique ei-
* dem Dei Apoftolo fpondentes nos cunda in-
* violabiter confervare3 & noftris fuccefforibus
* Impe-
The Grand forgery difylay^d. 1 7
Imperatoribus confervanda in mandatis re- linquere, patri noftro Silveftro fummo Pon- titici, & univerfali Papas, & per cum cun- clis fucceflbribusejus Pontificibus, Domino Deo <3t Salvatore noftro Jefu Chrifto, an- nuenre, tradimus feliciter atque perenniter pofiidenda.
This Donation in Grjtian, and others, bears Date at Rome the third Calends of April^ Domino noftro Flavio Conftantino Augu* /}o quater, & Gallic ano Cofs.
What a noble Gift was this to the See of Rome^ the whole Weftern Empire at a Lump? And how ftrong muft Conftantine's Devotion have been to oblige him, to leave the antient Seat of the Empire, and to build a new Seat for it in the Eaft^ for no other Reafon, but that an earthly Emperor might have no Authority where the Pope was, who was by the Emperor of Heaven conftituted the Head of theChurch? This Reafon for Conftaut'uis's having removed the Seat of the Empire into the Eaft^ is a Cu- riofity no where elfe to be met with, but in this Donation.
Since it might feem to be an Tnjuftice to this great Donation, for to publifli it here out of Leo's Letters, without the Prologue and Epilogue of Recommendation beftowed upon itby that Pope,I(hall for that Reafon, and to let the World fee how infallible a Proof of the Truth of any Thing, a Pope's pofitive and folemn Atteftation to it is, fet them both down here in that Pope's own Words in that Letter. G ' Sed
1 8 The Grand Forgery difflay V.
4 Sed ne forte, inquit Leo Papa, adhuc de terrena ipfius dominatione, aliquis vobis du- bietatis fuperfit fcrupulus ^ neve leviter fu- fpicemini ineptis & anilibus fabulis fanftam Romanam fedem velle fibi inconcufTum ho- norem vendicare & defenfare aliquatenus 3 pauca privilegia ejufdem Conftantint rnanu cum crace aurea fuper coeleftis clavigeri ve- nerabile corpus pofito, ad medium profere- mus 5 quibus fundetur veritas & confunda- tur vanitas, ut omnia Membra Catholics matris cognofcant, nos illius Petri difcipli- nx effe 5 qui fie in epiftola} fua ait de fe, Non emm doftas fabnlas [ecuti, notam vobis fecimus Domini noftri Jefii Chrifti virtutem, fed fpeculatores faffii illius magnitudinis : Et nos vobis inculcare non tarn relatu quo- libet, quam quag ipfo vifu & taftu comperta funt, vel admoniti recognofcite, quia idem gloriofus Princeps in jam dido privilegio poft Chriftiance fidei claram perfeftamque con- feflionem, atque baptifmatis fui enucleatam commendationem, fpecialem fanfe Roma- nas Ecclefia dignitatem fie promulgavit. But left perhaps, faith Leo, fome Scruple may ftill remain with you concerning its earth ly Domination, (that is, the Papacy 5S})and that you may not fo much as lightly fufped, that the holy Roman See feeks to vindicate and de fend its unfhaken Honour with foolifh and old Wives Fables, we will here produce a few Privileges which were confirmed by the Hand of the faid Conftajitine, with a Crofs
of
The Grand Forgery difylayld* 19
of Gold laid upon the venerable Body of the Celeftial Key-bearer, by which Truth will be confirmed, and Vanity will be confounded: And that all the Members of the Catholick Mother may fee thereby that we do obferve the Difcipline of the Saint Ptf*r,'who in his Epiftle faith thus of himfelf 3 we do not follow learned Fables^ but do make manifejt unto you the Power of our Lord Jefus Cbrijf, being made Speculators of bis Greatnefs : So we do inculcate to you Things that are not known fo much by Report, as they are by Sight and Feeling 5 wherefore being told of it, Know ye that the fame glorious Prince in the aforefaid Privilege, did, after a clear and perfeft Confeflion of the Chriftian Faith, and a curious Commendation of his Baptidn, thus promulgate the fpecial Dignity of the Roman Church.
Was there ever any Truth fpoke of with more AfTurancc, or with a greater Air of Devotion, than Conflantines Donation, and the Roman Church's never having made ufe of Fables, are fpoke of here by Leo.
As Leo is, you fee, in his Prologue to this
Donation, very peremptory that it is authen-
tick, fo he triumphs in his Epilogue to it, as
if its being fo were nude indubitable by him,
faying, 'Tot ergoSc talibus, aliifque quam-
c plurimis teftimoniis fubnixa, non erubefcit
h veritas, fed confutatur impudens vanitas:
Wherefore Truth being fupforted by tbefe and
many more fuch Tejlimonies^ does not blufi, but
C 2 impudent
a o The Grand Forgery difplay^d.
impudent Vanity is confounded. If this Pope had had any Shame in him, he would never have ventured on this Occafion to have fpoke either of Blufhing or of Impudence 5 or if he had had any Religion, would he have dar ed to have made fuch a Grimace as this.
For as if he himfelf believed all that he faith here fo pofitively, and with fo great an Air of Religion, concerning thefe Donations being in dubitably authentick, he was certainly the fim- pleft and moft credulous Man that ever put Pen toPaper : So if he did not believe it himfelf, as it is more than probable he did not, he was a raoft prophane and vile Hypocrite to cant a- bout it, as he does. However, what this Pope faith here fo dogmatically of the Inftrument of Conftantines Donation, and its being au thentick, ought to be remembred.
Here I cannot forbear obferving, that this Pope's. andPope Nicholas's, and their Brethrens Letters genuine and fuppofitious, which were written about this Time, to exalt and efta- blifli the Supremacy of the Roman Pontifi cate, are, to the befi of my Knowledge, the very Originals of Canting 5 and if they are fo, Canting, as well as fome other Arts, was plainly in its Perfection, at its Birth :, being no where weaker or more barbarous, as to Reafon or Authority, nor no where ftronger and more impregnable as to Forehead and Pofitivenefs $ for the Truth is, Canting^ En- tbufiafm, and divers other Things, the Papifts do inlult upon in fome Proteftants, are only
Copies
The Grand forgery difplay'd. a 1
Copies of Popifh Originals, as all muft perceive, who, to fatisfie their Curiofity, will undergo the Pennance of reading over thofe Papal Letters.
Silve/ler having obtained this great Donati on from Conftantine, was not fatisfied, until he had the Supremacy granted by it to his See, confirm'd by the Authority of the Church^ and to that End he is faid to have called a Sy nod in Rome, at which were prefent both Conftantine, and his Mother, and above three hundred Biftiops, with a long Train of Pref- byters and Deacons. The twenty Ca nons that are faid to have been enafted by this Council are ftill extant 3 and the laftof them, for whofe Sake all the reft were made, is as followeth.
Nemo enim judicabit Primam Sedem, quomam cmnes Sedes a Prima Sede juftitiam defiderant temferari ^ neque ab Augufto^ neque ab omni Clero^ neque a Regibus, neque a Populo, Judex judicabitur. None fliall fliall judge theFirft See, becaufe all Sees do defire from the Firft See to have Juftice tempered^ neither by Auguftus, nor by the whole Clergy, nor by Kings, nor by the People, (hall the Judge be judged.
This long Story concludes, Farce like, with a Romantick Adventure, of Pope Silveftefs having, with the Sign of theCrofs, lock'dthe brazen Gates of a Cave fo faft, wherein a dreadful Serpent was lodged, that kili'd all that came near that Cave, unlefs they came
C 3 to
22 T&e Grand Forgery display" d.
to wdrfhiphim, with his poifonous Breath $ that thofe brazen Gates were never to be open ed any more before the Day of Judgment, when they will fly open of themfelves : This grim Serpent, according to this Story of him, is ftill alive in that clofe Prifon 5 and where as he had been formerly worfhipped by all the Roma?^, on the Calends of every Month, and ufed to have a frefli Supply of Provifions car ried to him by the Veftal Virgins of Rome. The learned are not agreed about the Place where this Serpent is ftill kept a Prifoner : Some are Opinion, that this Cave with the brazenGates was under the Capitol'^but others are of the Mind that it is rather at the Bot tom of the Palatine Hill 5 had not this Serpent's Mouth, as well as his brazen Gates, been lock'd clofe by Pope Silvefter, he would certainly have difcovered the Place where his Prifon is, long before this Time, and thereby have either prevented, or have put an End to this learned Controverfie. Here it might not perhaps be unworthy the Enquiry of a Legen dary Virtuofo, whether this Serpent's turn ing himfelf in his Cave ( for it is not to be imagined that 'he never changeth his Pofture ,in it ) may not be the Caufe of the frequent Earthquakes that are in Rome $ uncommon and direful Events, being according to their PHilofophy, oftentimes the Efteds of fuch
sccult Gaffes. spe Diii^iflru //cjhol'sr,1..
Before
0* J
The Grand Forgery difplay^d.: 2 £,-
Before I go about the eafie work,, of -de* monftrating this long Tale to be a meer Fable and a very dull one too 3 I will take notice of the ufe the Roman See, for whofe Benefit this Fable was devifed, has made of it • and: how in Fad, Conflantine^ Donation, as fpu- rious as it is, was the Foundation of all that See's Temporal Empire.
Marca, the learned Archbifhop of. Paris, is of opinion, that the Writing called Conftan- tines Donation, was forged by Pope Paul the firft, or for his Ufe, that he might have fome- thing wherewith to flop the Mouths of the Eaftern Emperors, who complained aloud of the Injuftice that had been done them by King Pepiris having given to the Roman See the Exarchate of Ravenna^ with fome other Countries in Italy, which belonged to their Empire. tri^ii
But tho' I do entirely agree with that learn ed Prelate, about the time when, and the end for which that Donation was forged : I do take that counterfeit Deed to be the Work of Pope Stephen, who was both Uncle and immediate Predeceffor to Paul the firft 5 and the Reafon why I think fo, is, becaufe King Pepin's Grant of the Exarchate of Raven- na, <3tc. to the B.oman See, to which he was much difpofed by that forged Deed, was in the time of Stephens Pontificate : - For if what Baronius and others, who if Pefins Grant is in being, muft needs have feen it, do fay of that Grant be true, this matter is put C 4 out
24 The Grand Forgery dij played;
out of all doubt by it : The thing they fay is, that in his Grant, Pepin faith not, that by virtue of it, he did give to the Roman See the Exarchate of Ravenna, Sec. but faith in it ex- prefly, that he Reftored all thofe Countries to to that See $ which proves plainly, that that Prince, before he made that Grant, had been perfuaded by the Pope, that the Roman See had a Right to all thofe Countries antecedent to his Grant of them : And for that Reafon his Grant was no Donation, but only a 'Refti- tution of thofe Countries to the See of Rome, to whom they belonged of right : Neither is it improbable that Pepin, having been impo- fed on by the Pope fo far as to look on the Writing called Conftantine's Donation, as an authentick Inftrument, might be glad to have brought Pope Stephen, who by that Donation, had a right to the whole Weftern Empire, to fo low a Competition, as to be contented with the Countries he had reftored to him. Now fince the Roman See could not derive this fup- pofed antecedent Right to thofe Countries, ei ther from Saint Peter, or from any Conqueft it had ever made of them, it muft therefore have derived that fuppofed Right from one Emperor or another '5 and who fofit as Con- ftantine, who was the firft Chriftian Emperor, and was for that Reafon at the greateft diftance of time of any fuch Emperor, from King Pepin, to be made by the Popes, the Author of that Donation. Thus by vertue of this forged Donation, which as appears, from
Pope
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Pope Leo IX's Proof of it, was maintained to be indubitably an authentick Inftrument, by mere dint of Papal Effrontery, not only the Eaflern Emperors Mouths were ftopt, in the Opinion of the Italians, when thofe Empe rors complained of the Injuftice that had been done them by King Pepin , but King Pefin was likewife difpofed by it to make his Grant of Reftitution $ and the People alfo in the Ex archate of Ravenna , Sec. were prepared by it, to fubmit the more willingly to the Pope, as their Sovereign, who had been fo long kept out of the Poffeflion of his Right.
But tho' I cannot allow Paul the Firft, at leaft, after he was Pope, to have been the Forger of this ufeful Donation of Conftantines $ he contributed neverthelefs to the keeping of that Donation, which was made for Saint Peters Sake, fomething in countenance 5 be. ing the happy Difcoverer of that Apoftle's having had a Daughter buried in Rome $ where he met with the following Infcription on an ancient Monument, made of Silver. Petro- mlla Filia Dulci/ima. Concluding, that the Petronilla mentioned there, muft certainly have been Saint Peter's mofl fweet Daughter, he had both that Silver Monument, and the Body that was in it removed with great Ec- clefiaftical Pomp, from the Appian Way to the Vatican^ where St. Petronilla is worfliip- ped to this Day as St. Peter9s Daughter $ the finding out of whofe Body in Rome, and in a Silver Monument too, was at that Time un doubtedly
2 6 Tike Grand Forgery difplay^d.
doubtedly made Ufe of as a ftrong Evidence of St. Peter's having been Bifliop of that City, to which, for that Apoftle's Sake, Conftan- tinewas fokind.
This Infcription being all the Evidence the Church of Rome has for her St. Petronillas being St. Peter's Daughter, I fhall, notwith- ftanding the true Legend that is writ of that Saint, leave it to Antiquaries to judge, whe ther both the Name Petronilla, and the Words Filia Dukiflima, do not look much more like an Heathen Roma?i than like either a Jewifi or a Chriftian Funeral Infcription. To re turn.
Conftantine^ Donation, for having been thus the Foundation of all the Papal Temporal Empire, as the Decretal Epiftles, which were forged much about the fame Time, were the Foundation of its Ecclefiaftical, was thro' ma ny dark Ages the great Idol of the Roman See 5 which was ftill making Ufe of it, as there was Qccafion^as we have feen Pope Leo IX. did, who was born near three hundred Years after King Pepin's Reftitution had been made upon that Deed 5 I {hall not repeat here what is faid by that Pope of its being undoubtedly an authentick Inftrument.
This Donation is mentioned by Hincmarus Rhemenjis, who flouriflied about the Middle pf the ninth Century, and not long after, in the fame Century, it is publilhed at Length by4do Viennenfis.
Towards
Grand Forgery difflay^d. 27
Towards the middle of the eleventh Centu ry, when the Bifhops of Rome were wreftling fiercely with the Emperors forjurifdidion, the Subftance of this Donation was very feafona- bly produced by the Cardinal Petrus Damia- nus, the great Papal Champion in that Quar rel,' in his Synodical Vifceptation betwixt the Emperors Advocate, and the Defender of the Roman See ^ I lhall here fet down the Cardi nal's own Words, becaufe they fhew plainly, how common and ufeful a Weapon this Do nation was all along in the Hands of the Papal Champions.
c Lege, inquit Damianus, Conftantini Im- c peratoris edidum, ubifedis Apoftolicae con- c ftituit fuper omnes in orbe tenarum Eccle- c fias principatum : Nam poftquam fupra cor- c pus B. Petri Bafilicam fundator erexit, * poftquam Patriarchium Lateranenfe in B. c Salvatoris honore conftruxit, mox per Im- ' perialis Refcripti feriem Romanag Ecclefix c conftkuit dignitatem 5 ubi nimirum B. Sil- veftro, fuisq^ fucceiloribus obtulit, ut rega- li more &aurea corona plederentin capi- te, 6c c^teras regii cultus infulas ufurparent. Verum B. Silvefter ornamenta, quse facer- dotali congruere judicabat officio, in propri- os ufus affumpfit 5 coronam vero & cetera c quae magis ambitiofa, quam myftica videban- 1 tur, omifit. Cui etiam Conftantinus Latera- c nenfe palatium, quod ea tenus aula regalis extiterat, perpetuo jureconceflit, regnumq^ * Italiae iudicandum Jradidit. Nam £ ipfius
! Regis
a 8 The Grand Forgery difplay^d.
Regis h&c verba funt 3 Unde congruum, in- quit, profpeximus noftrum imperium, ®ni poteftatem orientalibus transferri, ac mutan regionibus, & in Byzantina provincia in optimo loconomini noftro civitatem asdifica- ri? & noftrum illic conftitui imperium, quo- niam ubi principatus Sacerdotum, & Chri- ftianas religionis caput, ab Imperatore coele- fti conftitutum eft, juftum non eft, ut illic Imperator terrenus habeat poteftatem. Read, faith Damianus to the Emperor's Ad vocate, the Edift of the Emperor Conftantine, when he conftituted the Principality of the Apoftolical See above all the Churches upon Earth, who, after he had built a Church over the Body of St. Peter, and another to the Ho nour of our blefled Saviour in the Later an, did forthwith, by an Imperial Refcript, con- ftitute the Dignity of the Roman Church $ having offered to the blefled Silvester, and to his Succeflbrs, that they might, after the Ex ample of Kings, wear a Crown of Gold on their Heads, and all the other Royal Orna ments ^ but inftead of them the blefled Sil- vefter did aflume Ornaments which he judg ed to be more congruous to theirOffice,refufing the Crown and the other Ornaments, which feem to have more of the Air of Ambition than any Semblance of Religion. \ To whom alfo Conftantine did give, in full Right, his Palace of the Later an, and with it jhe Kingdom of Italy ^ to be judged by him f that Emperor's own Words were. On which Account we judge
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it to be congruous to tranjlate our E?nfire^ and the Authority of our Kingdom into the Eastern Parts, and to place our Imperial City, cal- Jed after our own Name, in the pleafant Coun try of Byzantium 5 becaufe it is not juft that where the Principality of the Priefts is, and where the Head of the Chriftian Religion is conftituted by the Emperor of Heaven, an earthly Emperor fhould have any Power.
I have not feen the Emperor's Advocate's Anfwer to this Evidence, and fo can only fay, that if it was not fufficient to have made that Monkifh Cardinal blufh, if he was capable of it, that he muft have been either a very weak Lawyer, a Traitor, or a Coward in his Lord's Caufe. This Donation is at length in Anfelmus Luce?ifis, who having been Pope Hildebrand's great Champion, had undoubtedly, as well as Damian, this Donation for his chief Weapon 3 and towards the latter End of the eleventh Century this Donation is in Ivo 3 and in the Beginning of the twelfth Century it is in Gratiaris Decretwn ^ which Book has ever fince it was publifhed, been offo great Authority in the Roman See, that it was never fafe for any to fufped any thing that was in it, of be ing fpurious.
The firft that I read of in the Roman Church that had the Skill and Courage to venture ou queftioning the Authority of this Donation, was Laurentius Valla^ who flouriflied about the Midd^ of the fifteenth Century 5 and who
being
50 The Grand Forgery difylay^d.
being a polite Scholar, and one of the firft that had been in the Weft for fome Ages, he could not help feeing the Spurioufnefs of that Inftrument, which had triumphed fo long, as Indubitably authentick 3 and having feen it, he had the Courage to write a Declamation to prove it to be fpurious $ and tho' I have never feen that Declamation of Dallas, yet up on what is faid by Erafmus of his great Learn ing and Eloquence, 1 doubt not of his hav ing in it fufficiently expofed that fpurious Pa pal Brat in all its true Colours. Valla, not not long after he had made that Declamation, was taken up by the Inquifitors of Naples, and was condemned by them to die as an Heretick : Whether that Declamation was an Article againft him, or not 3 it is not improbable that, at Bottom, it might be one of his chief Here- fies} and fo much Erafmus feems to intimate in the Clofe of Valla's Character, where he faith, "DoBis etiam id fr&ftitit, utfofthac cir- cumjpe&ius loqui cogantur. He likewife afford ed the Learned this Advantage, that they anight learn to fpeak more cautioufly.
Had Silvefter's fpurious Afts never done the Roman See any other Service, befides that of being an Introdudion to Conftantines Donati on, they would have deferved very well of that See 5 but that was not all the Service Uiey did it .-That Palfage in them concerning Saint Peter and Saint Paul's Pictures, having been made great Ufe of by the Popes, , as an unde niable Teftimony of Images having been long
adored
'the Grand Forgery difplay^d. 3 1
adored by the greateft and trueft Chriftians. So Pope Adrian, in his Letter to the Emperor Conflantine^ and his Mother Irene, did, to per- fuade them to confent to the eftablifhing of the Adoration of Images, whofe Adoration had been long zealoufly oppofed by fome for mer Chriftian Emperors, tell them the whole Story at length, as it is above related, of Con- ftantine the Great's Leprofie, Vifion, Baptifm, and of the Pictures of St. Peter and St. Paul, Silvefter had help'd him to: This Paffage out ofSilvefters Afts was not only a Teftimo- ny of Images having been long had in great Veneration by true Chriftians, but it did far ther reproach all the Emperors, who had fo zealoufly oppofed the Introduction of their Adoration, for having degenerated fo much from the Worfhip of the firft Chriftian Empe ror : And for that Reafon this was a very proper Teftimony for Adrian to lay before an Emperor, and whofe Name was Conftantine too : And had this PafTage of St. Peter's and St. IW/'s Pictures been recorded in the Gofpel, Adrian could not have produced it with great er AfTurance than it is produced by him out of Silvefter's Ads. This bold Letter of Pope Adrian's is extant in the fecond Ad of the firft Seflion of the fecond Council of Nice., by which Council the Adoration of Images was eftabliflied ^ and indeed that Letter could not have been any where in Company more fuita- ble to it, all or moft of the Teftimonies pro- ah duced
5 1 The Grand Forgery difytay*d.
duced in that Council, for the Adoration of Images, being of the fame fabulous Stamp with it 5 neither is that any wonder at all, confidering that Idolatry does in all Parts owe both its Birth and its Support to Lies and Forgeries $ for which Reafon Idols or Images in Worfhip are in the Scripures caird a Lie, and God is faid to be worshipped in Truth, when he is not worfliipped by or through them.
Silve/ler's Aft, by furnifliing the Roman See with this, and fome more Teftimonies of that Bifhop, and of the firft Chriftian Empe ror having been much devoted to Images, did that See a great Service in Temporalities 5 for it was not by any one Thing fo much, Conftantine's Donation always excepted, as by their ftickling fiercely againft the Eaftern Em perors for to have the Adoration of Images eftablifhed $ and by their having,with the Help of Silvejler's, and fome other fuch Teftimo nies, carried that Point ^ that the Bifhops of Rome broke the Powers of the Emperors in Italy, to the raifing of the Papal Dominion upon its Ruins.
Gregory II. having excommunicated the Emperor Leo for oppofing the Adoration of Images, did forbid all his Italian Subjefts to pay him Tribute any longer ^ and by reprefent- ing him, and the other Iconoclaft Emperors, for that Reafon, as Apoftates to Judaifm or Mahometifm, alienated from them the Hearts of the Italians, who by their Monks, and their
Lying
The Grand forgery difylafd. 3 3
Lying Miracles, were all charmed into a wonderful Veneration for Images 5 tho* the Popes, for appearing zealous to introduce that Worlhip, might with much more Juftice have been reprefented as Apoflates to Heathenifm 5 but Things work as they are taken, and n<&t as they are in themfelves.
The forementioned Canon, faid to have been made by a great Council in Rome at this time call'd byPopeS27w?/?£r,waslikewife5as if it had been indubitably authentick, inade ufe of by the Bifhops of Rome to advance the Authority of their See • fo Pope Nicholas I. who lived in the middle of the ninth Century, in an an gry Letter to the Emperor Michael, fends that Canon to him in the following Words. Confonat autem huic neceffaria fententia, fan- &w Silvefter, Magni Conftantini Baptizator An- gufti 5 Neque ab Augufto, neque ab omni Clero, Tieque a Regibus, neque a Pofulo Judex judica- bitur. To this neceflary Sentence, to wit, that no Perfon can judge the Bifhop of Rome, St. Sihefter, the Baptizer ofConftantine the Great % does agree 5 whofe Words are, Neither by the Emperor, ncr by all the Clergy, nor by the People^ can the Judge (that is the Pope*) be judged.
In this Letter, but without mending the Matter in it, Nicholas is very angry with the Emperor Michael, for having called the Latin in a former Letter he had wrote to him Bar barous and Scy thick $ and as there is not in any of that Pope's Letters a Paflage that is
D more
34 T*ht Grand Forgery difylay*d.
more Scytbick than the Canon that he quotes out of Silvefters Council, fo Silvefters Ads with all their Appendixes being plainly in that Scy thick Stile, proclaim them all to have been written after the Latin Tongue was corrupt ed in Rome by the Inundation of the Scythian Nations. No Pope, that 1 know of, has ever made any ufe of the Story of Silvefter's impri- foned Serpent to the Advantage of their See 5 and it is very much that they did not, fince great Ufe might have been made of it, if it was univerfally believed, as one would think it might, fince Baronius, for his Part, profefTes that he believed it : For had it been a Part of this Serpent's Story, that his brazen Gates were to fly open, and his poifonous Breath to rufh out, and ftrike dead all that fhould dare to aflault Rome, after Silvefters Succeffors were Lords of it 5 that might perhaps have hinder ed fome Chriftian Captains, by whom it was ftormed, from ever having attack'd it 3 and that Serpent under the Capitol might per haps have proved as great a Security to a Pa pal Rome, as the Palladium was to Rome Hea then. Happy would it be for Sicily, if En- celadus^ with his fiery Breath, would but lye as quiet under Mount £tna, as Silvefter's Serpent with his poifcnous Breath, lyes un der the Capitol, or the Palatine Mountain in Rome.
Having now feen plainly how the Roman See was handed into all its Territories and tem poral Jurifdiftions, by the forementioned In-
ftruments,
The Grand Forgery difylafd. 35
ftruments, as it was into its Ecclefiaftical by the Decretal Epiftles 3 which two Setts of Writings do referable one another fo much, that loiiie nice Judges in Deeds are of the Opinion that they were both drawn up by the fame Papal Lawyer: It is time now for to look into the Merits of thofe important Writ ings.
As to Silveftefs Ads, which are the Foun dation of all the reft, their Conceits, Words, Phrafes, and their whole Compofure, are fo flat, barbarous and Legendary, and do fo much referable the Wejlern Writings in the eighth Century, and are fo unlike thofe of Con/ton tine's Time, that one can fcarce think it p&f- fible for a Man of any Learning or Judgment in Ecclefiaftical Writings, to bring himfelfto fancy them to be genuine, there being fcarce a fingle Sentence in them that has not one Mark or another upon it of its being fpurious. However, fince all the fworn Papal Cham pions, forefeeing of how ill Confequence it muft be to the Roman See, after it had made fo great Ufe of thofe Deeds, to give them all up as a Forgery, do not only pretend that they themfelves do believe thofe Ads to be authentick, but do with great Boldnefs, and an Air of Triumph, maintain that they are ib $ it cannot but be worth any Proteftant's while to fet all thofe Deeds in a true Light $ which I fhall here endeavour to do with great Fidelity, arid all the Exadnefs that I can.
D 2 Now
3 6 The Grand Forgery , difptay^d.
Now the two Fafts of Conftantine^ having had the Lepro/ie, and of his having been cu red of it, by being baptized in Rome, being the two Pillars all the abovementioned Evidences do (land upon 3 if thofe twoFafts are both prov ed to be falfe, and altogether groundlefs, as I think they may, beyond any reafonable Con- tradidion, thofe Evidences muft all tumble down, and appear grofs Forgeries, devifed for the Ufeof the Roman See, fome Hundreds of Years after that Emperor's Death.
Conftantine the Great's Life was, within three Years after his Death, writ and publifh- ed by the learned Eufebius, Bifliop of Cefarea $ in which Life, as there is not one Syllable of that Emperor's ever having had the Leprofie, fo there is in it a folemn Account of that Em peror's having, a little before his Death, been baptized in Nicomedia, a City in Afia. This Account of Conftantine's Baptifm in Afia juft before his Death, which did not happen un til thirteen Years after he is by Silvefter's Ads faid to have been baptized in Rome, did, like other true Hi (lories, pafs current thro' divers fucceeding Ages 5 and as there was Occafion, was related by all the Greek and Latin Wri ters, without any Scruple or Hefitation about it. To begin with the Greeks,
Tbeodoret, who was born within fifty Years of Conftantine's Time, fpeaking of that Em peror, fays, he was baptized a little before the End of his Days in the City of Nicomedia. Sozomw, another Greek, who lived within an
hundred
The Grand Forgery difpltfct. 3 7
hundred Years of Conftantmes Time faith the fame, as do all the other Greek Hiftorians, that fay any Thing of that Emperor's Bap- tifm. It is the fame with all the Latin Wri ters, that fpeak of it in four hundred Years after Conflantine's Death. So the numerous Council of Arminum having Occafion to fpeak of Conftantine, in a Letter to his Son Coriftan- tittf, they fey he was baptized a little before his Death. Now this Council having met within twenty Years after Conftantinis Time, there might be many prefent at it that did re member the Time when he was baptized, as to be fure his Son Conjlantius did, to whom that Letter was directed. St. Hierome, who was eight Years old when Conftantine died, fpeak- ing of that Emperor in his Chronicon., fays, He 'was baptized in Nicomedia, a little before his Death, by Eufebius, Bifiop of that City. St. Ambrofe, who was likewife born in Con- ftantine's Reign, in his Funeral Oration upon the Emperor Theodofius, fays, that Emperor was baptized a little before he died. And fo great a Stranger was the Sfani/b Church, in the feventh Century, to the Story of Con- Jtantines having been baptized in Rome, that IJidore, Archbifhop of Sevil, who flourifhed in that Century, fpeaking of that Emperor in his Chronicon, fays, he was baptized a little before his Death in Nicomedia, by Eufetnv^ Bifliop of that City. What a Cloud of Wit- neffes is here for Conftantine's have been bap tised a little Time before he died, in ///*,
D in
3 8 The Grand Forgery difylay^d.
in the City ofNicorxedia. The firft Writer that I know of, that fays any thing of Con- ftantines having been baptized in Ro?ne, is A- naftajius Bibliotbecarius, who was born near five hundred Years after -Conftantines Time, and about a hundred Years after Silvester's Ads and their Appendixes were forged, out of which he might probably have that News.
Nor is th,e Srory of Coiiftavtinfs Leprofie, and of his being baptized in Rome by PopeSiV- vejler^ thirteen Years before his Death, more groundlefs than is the Story in the fame Ads, of Conftantinis having, the Year before he had called the Council of Nice, and feveral Years after he had profefs'd himfelfa Chrifti an, raifed fo cruel a Perfecution againft the Chriftian Faith, that Silvefter and his Clergy were, by the Fury of it, driven into the Ca verns of the Mount Sora&e : For befides the. natural Incredibility that there is in this Sto ry, there is no Writer;, either Greek or Latmy in forne hundreds of Years after Con* fiantinfe Death, that has one Word of that Perfecution, or of any thing that is like, it. On the contrary, they do all fay that Con/tan- tine, from the firft Day he declared himielf a Friend to the Chriftian Faith, which he had done feveral Years before the Time when this Perfecution is faid to have been, did go on in- that Friendfhip for it, without any In terruption, to the End of his Days: Neither does Silvefter's and his Clergy's having been
chafed
7*f}e Gravel Forgery difplay^cl.
chafed by the Fury of this Perfecution into the Caverns of the Mount Soratte^ which is a part of this Story, give it much Credit : And if there was any fuch Perfecution as this, the Antients were all out in the Number of the Chriftian Perfecutions, which they reckon to have been but ten^ whereas this Story makes them to have been eleven. But not to men tion any more fuch Particulars, in a Story which is from Head to Tail one great Blun der, can any thing be more incredible, or more ridiculous than that Conftantine, after he had been for feveral Years a profeffed Chriftian, fliould ask Sihe/fer very folemnly, What Gods Saint Peter and Saint Paul were ? Or than Silveftefs having the Piftures of thofe two Apoilles fo ready at hand, to fhew to that Emperor, when he asked him whether he had them, or not >
The Donations in Sihefter's Afts, that are faid to have been made by Conftantine to the Font in which he was baptized, and to the Churches that he built in R0me at that Time, are fuch a Jargon, that they that can believe them to be genuine, muft, I think, have got the convenient Faculty of believing whatever they have a Mind to believe.
Conftantinfs grand Donation of the whole Weftern Empire to Pope Silvefter, and his Succeffors, is indeed more intelligible 5 but all that it gets by being fo is, that its being a Forgery is more palpable. Fir/, The whole Stile of that Inftrument is exadly the fame
D 4 with
40 Tbe Grand Forgery difylay'd.
with that of Silvefter's Ads, and of the De- cretal Epiftles, and with that of Pope Nicho las's Letters, which was by the Emperor Mi- chael defervedly call'd Barbarous and Scythick 3 for tha1 'tis true that in Covftantine's Days the Latin in Rome was not Claflical, yet it was far from the Scy thick Barbarities, which fpread themfelves over all that Donation. Second ly, In that Donation a Supremacy is granted to the Bifhops of Rome over four Patriarchs : Now is it not well known that in Conftantine's Time, and in fome Years after it, Patriarch was a Title not known in the ChriftianChurch> Thirdly ^ The Patriarch otConftantinofle is one of thofe Patriarchs : Now can any Thing be more certain than that the Foundations of the City of Canftantinople were not laid, un til fome Years after that Donation is faid to have been made ? fcuribfy. This great Do nation is never once mentioned by any Wri ter, Greek or Latin, in four hundred Years af ter Ccnftantine's Death, no not by any of the Popes that writ during that Time, and fome of them fo zealoufly too for the Advancement of their See, that had they ever heard of it, they would not have fail'd to proclaim it to the World. Fifthly, After the Time that this Donation is faid to have been made, the Em perors continued Lords of Rome, and did ex- ercife all the fame Authority in it, as their Predeceffors had done before ^ and fo far was any Bifliop of Rome, in feveral hundreds of Years after Qmftantimes Time, from complain ing
The Grand forgery difylay^d. 4 1
ing of this as an Injury done to the Roman See, that they did one and all acknowledge the Emperors to be their Lords and lawful Sovereigns. The Date, and feyeral Words and Paflages that are in that Donation, .might be produced here as clear Evidences, that it could not be writ in or near Conftantines Time, but to what Purpofe would it be to multiply Evidences, where there is no need of them.
The Canons of the Council, that is faid to have been called in Rome by Pope Silve/ler, being all extant, we need go no farther than thofe Canons for plain Evidences of the whole Hiftory of that Council's being a fpurious Writing : For befides that their whole Stile is barbarous and Scythick, divers Things are mentioned in them, fuch as the Cardinal Dea cons of Rome^ and the feven Regions of thofe Cardinal Deacons in that City, a Dalmatian Cope, not heard of in Silvefter's Days, nor in many Years after : And had this Council's laft Canon, which conftitutes the Rifhop of Rome an unaccountable Judge, been made in that Pope's Time, Leo9 Zozimus, Gregory, and fome others of his Succeflbrs, who left no Stone unturn'dto advance the Authority of their See, would have made the World to have rung with it, and its ftrange Latin, which is an Original of the Scjtbick of the eighth Century.
Since no Pope that I know of has made any Ufe of the Story of the hideous Serpent, which
after
The Grand Forgery difflafd.
after it had been long worfliiped by all the Romans , and fed by the Veftal Virgins, was imprifoned by Pope Silvefter until the Day of Judgment in its own Cave, and within its own brazen Gates, I fhall not trouble myfelf to mutter up Evidences to prove it to be a Fa ble : Neither would it, tho' the Popes had made never fo much Ufe of that Story, been to any Purpofe to do it ^ fince on all that can believe fuch Tales ( as Baromus for his part profefles he does ) Arguments, let them be ne ver fo ftrong, are but thrown away 5 and how can it be otherwife, fince no Arguments can poflibly expofe their Incredibility fo clearly as fuch Tales themfelves do, having no Co lour of Truth in them, befides that faint Co- Jour that a Thing's not being abfolutely im- poffible can give it >
The Reader of this great Clufter of grofs Forgeries underftanding, that as bad as the Caufe is, it is not without skilful Advocates to defend it, may perhaps be willing to fee what can poflibly be offered in its Defence : \ fhall therefore, to gratifie fo laudable a Cu- jriofity, here honeftly lay before him all that is offered by Baromu*, the moft skilful and moft zealous of all the Papal Advocates.
That Cardinal begins that defence with trimming up a Relation of Silve/ter's Ads to the beft Advantage 5 but tho' ttiat Relation is very fhort, he found it neceffary before he got to the end of it, to break its Thread three or four times, to fweep fome fcurvy Rubs that
are
The Grand Forgery dif played. 43
are in it out of this Reader's way $ and being at laft apprehenfive, that his Reader's Faith, was not able to keep pace with him any lon ger, he turns about to him, and fays, Sed fifte Inc gradum Leffor, quod te videa?/ifub- cunEtanttm fequi. But ftandftill here Reader, for I can perceive, that you begm to grow wea ry of following me. And it is very obfervable, that that AfTurance which carried this Ad vocate boldly thro' fo many bad Caufes, feems plainly to have failed him in this. However, having undertaken the Defence of Silvefter's Afts, he goes on with it as well as he is able, and produces all the Evidences he could fcrape together, to prove them to be genuine. The firft Evidence that he produceth, is, the Au thority of the abovementioned Council, call ed in Rome by Pope Silvefter, in which the Subftance of thofe Ads is fet down. The fe- cond is Pope Gelafiuis having in his Decree approved of Silvefor's Afts.
As to his firft Evidence, it is proved above, that that Council is as plainly fpurious as Sil- vefter's Afts themfelves are 5 there being all the fame Evidences of its having been forged many hundreds of Years after Silvefler was in his Grave. And as to his other Evidence, that Decree, if it were Pope Gelajius\ was made above an hundred and fifty lears after Silvefter's Death 5 but fo far is it from being certain, that that Decree was made by Gela- Jius, under whofe Name it has patted fo long, that it has in its own Bofom many clear Proofs
of
44 T^}C Grand Forgery difplay'd.
of its not having been made by him : And as that Decree is no where mentioned by any Writer, within three hundred Years after Ge- lafms^ fo its being firft mentioned about the time when the Decretal Epiftles were forged, makes it to be more than probable that it was forged about the fame time.
What poor Evidences are thefe Baronius be gins his Defence of Silvefters Afts with ? But there is fomething that is yet worfe, which is, that he ends it with them too, fo that the Reader that will not upon them, be fo courte ous as to believe Sihefter's Ads to be genuine, muft e'en let it alone, for their ableft Advo cate can help them to no more Proofs. Thus the Forgeries of the Roman Church in this, and twenty more Cafes did beget Forgeries 5 the latter being trumpt up to help the former, if it be poflible, to fome Credit.
Baronius makes ftrange Work with ConJIan- tines Donation 3 for notwithftanding he is pofitive, that Conftantine beftowed great Ter ritories upon the Roman See 5 yet being much difpleafed with a certain PafTage in the Inftru- naent of that Donation, he will have it all to be a falfe Deed, and to have been counterfeit ed by the Greeks, out of malice to that See, on purpofe to undermine its Supremacy : And he is fo pofitive in this, that he infults Pro- teftants upon it, and tells them, that by pro ving the Inftrumcnt, called Conftantine's Do nation, a fpurious Writing, they are fo far. from hunting the Roman See, that they do it
the
The Grand Forgery difplay^d. 45
the greateft Service that can be done it. This is great News indeed, and all that I fhall fay to it, is, that there was no Pope nor Canon ift thro' many Ages that thought it to be fo $ and that if to deteft the Forgeries of the Roman Church be fo great a Service to her, may Proteftants always ferve her diligently and faithfully in that Work: But to be ferious, if thefejefts of Baroniufs will allow it.
Was there ever a turn given to any thing fo furprizing as this ? To have an Inftrument that is at length, and with the very PafTage in it, that Baronius is fo much difpleafed with, in a Letter writ by Pope Leo IX. feven hun dred Years ago, to a Greek Emperor 5 and which is likewife at length, with that PafTage ftill in it, in Ivo9 Gratian^ and many more Roman Canonifts, and that has been thro' fo many Ages made ufe of by Popes, Cardinals and Canonifts, with great Succefs, to help the Roman See to all its Territories, to come at laft, to be by the chief Papal Ad- uocate, arraigned of being a falfe Deed, counterfeited by the Enemies of that See, with a very malicious Intention : Had any Ro man Cardinal faid as much in the time of Leo IX's Pontificate, who took fo much cant ing Pains to demonftrate this Writing to be an authentick Inftrument, he would certain ly have felt the Thunder of the Vatican.
The Paifage in that Inftrument Baronius is fo angry with is that, where it is faid, That a Supremacy wer ail other jBifiops
was
4 6 The Grand Forgery
was ly the Emperor Conftantine be/lowed on the Jtifiop of Rome 3 which, faith Baromus, is to take the Ro?nan Supremacy off its divine Bot tom, and to place it on a humane, and to make it the Gift of Man to that See, and not the Gift of God, which is the Thing the Greeks would fain have believed. But what ever the Greeks may believe to be the Foun dation of the Papal Supremacy, there is no Colour for fufpefting them of having had any Hand in the forging of the Inftrument of Conftantine^ Donation, or having foifted that Paflage into it, that is fo odious to Baro?nm 5 fince that Paflage is in all the Copies of that Inftrument that are extant in the Writings of the Popes and of their Canonifts 5 and that without ever having given the leaft Offence to any of them, however it comes to pafs that it gives fo much to Earomus^ who cannot, only upon the Account of that Paflage in it, condemn that Inftrument as a Forgery, with out condemning all thofe Popes and Cano nifts, by whom that Inftrument, with that Paffage in it, was reverenced as the Palladium of the Roman See. Furthermore, the whole Stile of that Inftrument is fo Barbarous and Scythick, and the great Thing it aims at is fo notorious, that they do proclaim it not to be of an Eaftern, but of a true Weftern Manufa- fture, after the Time of the fixth Century. And never was any Malice fo defeated as was this of the Greeks , if there ever was any fuch Malice 3 the Inftrument that is faid to have been
malici-
The Grand Forgery difplay^d. 47
malicioufly forged by them to undermine the Authority of the Roman See, having been in Fad the great Inftrument of railing and efta- bliftiing its Authority.
It is indeed hard to think that a Man of Baroniuis Learning and Penetration could poi- fibly have been in earneft, when he lays the Forging of the inftrument of Conftantine's Donation at the Greeks Door 5 or when he profeffeth that that he believes the Story of Silvefters imprifoned Serpent : But however that may be, I fhall leave it to the Judicious to determine, whether that Cardinal's owning the Inftrument of Conftantines Donation to be a Counterfeit Deed, is not a greater Service to the Proteftant Church, than Proteftants proving it to be fo, is to the Ro?nan.
The Decretal Epiftles, to whofe Help the
Supremacy of the Roman See is more beholden
than it is to all other Writings whatfoever,
are likewife ungratefully given up by this
great Papal Advocate as forged Deeds $ and
are by him likewife very unjuftly denied the
Honour of having done the Roman See fignal
Services 5 and it is very much, after his Hand
was in, that the Forging of thofe Epiftles
were not laid by him at the Greeks Door, as
well as the Forging of the Inftrument of Con-
Jiantine's Donation 3 fince if This was, They
were forged by them too, the whole Thread
and Fafhion being the fame fo much in both,
that none that have any Skill in fuch Stuff,
can help feeing that they were fpun and wove,
if
48 The Grand Forgery
if not by the fame Hand, yet much about the fame Time, and in the fame Country. Now as I have elfewhere obferved, that were all the Wars, MaiTacres, AfMinations, and publick Confufions, that have ever been in the World merely upon the Account of Religion, put to gether, they would not make the hundredth Part of the Wars, &c. for Religion, which have been raifed by the Papacy in the Space of fix hundred Years 5 fo,Imy fay, were all the publick Forgeries that have ever been in the World brought together, they would bear as great a Difproportion to the Forgeries which have been made Ufe of by the foman See to advance its own Authority ^ many of which are fo grofs, that the ableft Papal Advocates, lince the Time that Learning unluckily fhined in upon them, have, we fee, been forced to ac knowledge them to be counterfeited Deeds, judging that to be more for the Honour of the Roman See, than to go on without either Fear or Wit, maintaining them to be genuine : and what it ftiould be that engaged Baromus, after he had upon that fingle Confideration yielded up the Decretal Epiftles and Conftan- tine's Donation as forged Deeds, ftill to ftick by Silve/ter's Afts, and that Pope's Council in Rra£, as Genuine, when their Spurioufnefs is no lefs notorious, cannot be eafily guefs'd : Only in general we are certain that it was his judging the doing of both to be for the Service of the Roman See ^ for there was never any Hiftorian that had not one Thing
come
The Grand forgery difplay^ct. 49
and its Jntereft in his Eye fo conftantly, as Baronius has the Papacy and its Concerns con tinually in his, to the facrificing both of Truth, and of his own exaft Judgment, when ever he thinks the doing of it to be neceffary for their Service ^ and as, if it had not been for that unhappy ftrong Byafs, he would have been one of the tineft Writers of Hiftory that any Age has produced, fo, with that Itrong Byafs, he is one of the worft $ there being no Hiftory, that I know of, fo full of well woven Falfliood, and of artful Mifreprefentations of Perfons and Things, as his Annals are : And confidering how much Mifchief thofe well written Annals have done, it is great Pity that the Work that was begun by the learned Ca* faubon, were not carried on by Proteftants that have Abilities, Leifure, and Conveniences for it.
I lhall conclude this Difplay with obferving with how much eafe Baromus, and the other Papal Advocates, do facrifice the Honour and Intereft of our common Chriftianity to the Interefts of the Roman See, who, notwith- ftanding they do make King Henry VII I's Vices fo great a Difhonour to the Reformation that was begun by him, as to be alone fufficient to prejudice all People againft it eternally 3 yet don't only agree with the Heathens in repre- fenting Conjiantine as another Nero, for having imbrued his Hands fo deep in the innocent Blood of his neareft Relations; but they do
E fticklc
50 The Grand Forgery difplafd.
flickle fo fiercely in the Maintenance of the Truth of that abominable Story, that they re vile the ancient Chriftians that denied it : So Eufebim, for not having charged Conjlantine with thofe unnatural Crimes in his Life of that Emperor, is, by BaronitM charg'd with unpardonable Partiality 5 and that Life is faid by him to be a Romance, like Xenofhorfs Life of Cyrii* 3 and Sozojnen , who lived within an hundred Years of Conftantine, is, for his having vindicated that Emperor againft that Calumny, which he faith was thrown upon his Memory by the enraged Heathens, by Ba- ronius accufed of a Stupidity that is incredible, and cannot be wondred at enough. And Evagrius, who lived within three hundred Years of that Emperor, is, for being angry with the Heathen Hiftorian Zozimus, for reporting that abominable Story, wondred at by that Cardinal, and is told very gravely, that he had no Reafon to be angry with Zozimus for hav ing reported that of Conftantine, for it was cer tainly true.
Now whether this Story be true, or not, (tho5 f am inclined to believe it is not, but was a mere Calumny thrown upon that Emperor, fometime after his Death, by the Heathens, who were to the laft Degree enraged againft his Memory for having forfaken their Wor- fhip, and eftabliflied the Chriftian, ) yet why all this Heat in the Papal Advocates to defend the Truth of that fcandalous Story, foas to
abufe
The Grand Forgery dtfp/ay^d. 5 1
abufe all that have ever called its Truth in Queftion ? None that know the Men can fuf- pe$ that this Heat is raifed in them, contra ry to their Inclinations, purely out of any Love that they have for Truth 5 for it is fo far from that/ that it is vifibly the Effeft of their great Zeal for Sifaefters Ads and their Appendixes, which, were it not for this Story, would not feem to have any Ground to Hand upon ^ to help them therefore to fome Credit, if it bepofilble, this fcandalous Story is with great Heat maintained by them 5 tho' after all thofe Writings have in them fo many plain Marks of their being fpurious, that neither this, nor any thing elfe that can be done for them5 will ever be able to render them credi ble. This is not the only Cafe wfierein Chri- ftianity is facrificed by thofe Men to the Ho nour of the Papacy $ for Example, To help the vain Pretence of the Papal Infallibility to fbme Ground to (land upon, if it. were pofli- ble^ they, will have the High Pried among the Jew to have been infallible in Matters of Religion, tho' at the fame Time they know very well, that one of the High Prieft's De crees was, That whoever fiould fay, thatjefus was the Cbrift or the Mejjias fiouldbe excom municated, and thrown out- of the Synagogue. And to do Oral Tradition fome Honour, they deny that the Ever-blefled Trinity is clearly revealed in the Holy Scriptures, not to men tion any more : Befides the impious Com pa- E 2 rifons
$2 The Grand Forgery difflay^d.
rifons, which they commonly make in Point of Certainty betwixt their own ridiculous and falfe Miracles, and the Miracles which were wrought by Chrift and his Apoftles, to the wounding of Chriftianity in its very Vitals, and the • arraigning the Holy Scriptures of Imperfection, Obfcurity and Ambiguity, in Matters neceflary to Salvation, becaufe niether the Bifhop of Rome, nor any Popifli Do&rines are mentioned in them.
FINIS.
AN
' E S S A
On the ROMAN
PONTIFICATE,
> Heathen and Papa/;
^"i*< SHEWING yrj^j^
The PAPAL with all its Prehemi- nences to have fprung from the HEATHEN.
* -U •<-••! AND '.;;•-;• :;;:';;; ^
That both of them do owe their Pri macy folely to the Civil Primacy of the City of ROME.
By MICHAEL GE DDES., L. L. D.
And Chancellor of the Church
Ante Nic&num Confiliumjibi quifyue vivebat : Et ad Romanam Ecelejiamparvw babebatur refpcfiw. JEneas Sylvius, poftea Pius tt Epiftola 288.
THE
INTRODUCTION.
TH^T tJjf Bijbop o/RomeV fei^- i» jf^K?a c/ ^ Supremacy ever a great Part cf the Chnftian Church , OT^ no longer le vapoured with as a Demonftration, and to flew the Weakness of the Argument^ that that high Authority muft needs have been the imme diate Gift of God to that BiJJjof 5 fmce, if it had not ; JBG?, no more than any other Bijbop, (fay the Papal Champions') would ever have dreamt of putting in a Clai?n to that Privilege : Jjballhere^ without going up to Heaven for a Grant of it, find an Origin for that Supremacy upon 'the Earth, and which was peculiar to the City of Rome, to wit, the high Preeminences of the Heathen Roman Pontificate ^ having fir ft given the Reader a f])ort View of the whole Prieftboad of. Rome Heathen, on Purpofe to let himfee^from the Follies and Dotages which were in the Worfiip of the wifeft Nation in the World, how neceffary the Revelation of God's Will to Me'rfwas, to their Worjbiping him, as became God,
.11 <~Si j-jfloc
A N
A N
A
O N T H
"Roman Pontificate,
HEATHEN and PAPAL,
IT is a known Truth that no Ci ty nor Society can be rightly modelled, that has not Religi on, or a Fear of God for its Foundation ^ nor no Religion can fubfift long, which has not an Order of Men fet apart, and dedicated to minifter in Things Sacred 5 the City of Rome therefore, when it was firft built, had both thofe neceflary Supports to that Degree, that Dyonifius Halicarnejfenfis obferves, That no City wai ever furnified with fo man/ E 4 Pnelts
An Effay on the
Priefts and Sacrificers, as the City of Rome was by Romulus, its Founder ^ who, befides the Priefts they had before, called Luperci, and who were not extinguifhed in Italy until after the five hundredth Year of our Lord, did cre ate fixty new publick Priefts, who were all to be chofen by the City Tribes or Companies. It was ordained by Ro?nulus, that none were to be admitted Priefts under fifty Years of Age, and that they fhould be all Men of good Senfe, without any Blemilh upon their Bo dies, and eminent both for their Birth and Virtues 5 and being exempted by Romulus from being Soldiers, and from all burdenfome City Offices, they were to continue Priefts to the End of their Days.
There were three Augurs likewife inftiituted by Romulus, who did himfelf all his Days of ficiate as an Augur. The Augurs were a Col lege, and had a fourth added to them by Tul- 1ms the fixth King of Rome, when the City was divided by him into fourTribes. The Augurs had their Name from their foreknow ing the Events of Things of a contingent Na ture from the Flying, Singing, Chirping, and the other Motions of Birds , and befides Birds they had divers other fuch Oracles, from whofe Motions and Circumftances they learned that abftrufe Knowledge, which, had not Super- ilition been very ingenious, none could ever have expefted from them. The Augurs con tinued to be but four, and were alJ to be of Patrician Families, until the Year 403 after
the
Roman Pontificate.
the Building of the City, when the People being grown too high to be by their Conditi on or Quality rendered uncapable of any Of fice, their Tribunes never refted until they had five Augurs more created, who were to be Plebeians : The Augurs continued nine till the Days of Sylla, by whom fix more were added to their College, of which the oldeft Augur was always of courfe the Mafter 5 and when an Augur died, the whole College chofe a new one in his Room. The Election of their own Members continued in the Augurs until the Year 651 after the building of the City, when that Privilege was violently taken from them, and given to the People : From whom it was afterwards taken by Sylla, and reftored to the Augurs 5 but was at laft byCafar taken from them, and given to the People again. An Augur was not to be deprived of his Office, but with his Life 5 not that the Romans judg ed their Character to be indelible, butbecaufe they thought it not fafe for the Common wealth, that any who had been once admit ted into the Secret of the Augurs, Ihould ever be releafed from the Obligation they were under, by Vertue of their Office, not to di vulge that Secret : It was upon the Account of this Secret, that onefaid, He wondredhow the Augury when they met, could forbear fmil- ing one upon another.
The PuIIarii do feem to have been a lower Order of Augurs, and were more in Number than their Superiors : I thiqk we are not told
by
An Effay on the
by whom they wereinftituted^ but their Bu- finefs, from which they had their Name, was to obferve the Pullets, from whofe Behaviour at their Breakfaft, they had the certain Know ledge of future Events. The Pullarius, when he was call'd upon to foretel the Event of a Battle, or any other confiderable Adion, did, as foon as it was Day, fcatter Pulfe before the Door of the Place where his Pullets had rooft- ed all Night, commanding a ftrid Silence at the fame Time : if the Pullets made no Hafte down to their Meat, or did not eat when they came to it, or did either wander or fly from it, the Romans .were by the Pullarius forbid to fight upon that Day ^ affuring them that if they did, they would as certainly be beat as it was certain that his Pullets had refufed their Breakfaft 3 But in cafe his Pullets made hafte down, and did fall greedily upon their Pulfe $ and above alljf they eat fo faft,that fomeGrains of it fell from their Mouths, the Pullarius did then (ing a Triumph for the Viftory which the Romans, if they fought upon that Day, were fure to have. The Falling of feme Grains of the Pulfe out of the Pullets Mouths upon the Ground was called a Tripudium9 and was fo lucky an Omen, that the Reafon why the Pulietshad always Pulfe fcattered before them, for their divining Breakfaft, was, becaufe there was no other Grain, if it was eaten greedily, fo apt, as Pulfe was, to fall from their Mouths.
Np Roman Army did ever march any where
without
Roman Pontificate.
without its Pullarius $ and that the facred Per- fon of fo necefTary an Officer might be expos d to as little Danger as it was poffible, his Stati on was always in the middle of the Camp. Now, confidering the Nature of thefe Pre dictions, and how fubjeft they muft needs have been to Miftakes, one would not think that they could have long been depended on as Oracles 3 neither indeed could they, if when ever they proved to be falfe, one Trick or other had not been made Ufe of to fecure the Credit of their Infallibility : The Trick was, that whenever the Romans loft a Battle, it was prefently given out, that either the Pullarius had not made a true Report of the Behaviour of his Pullets at their divining Breakfaft, or that the Generals had fought in Contradiction to his Predictions. So when the Romans were beat by the Sa?nnites^ it was faid the Pullari- us had made a falfe Report of his Pullets Be haviour at their Breakfaft that Morning, (at which Time, faith Livy, the Dodrine of con temning the Gods was not yet known,) and that for his Puniftiment he had been flain in the Battle : And upon the Romans great Lofs in the Battle of Tbrafumenum, it was fprcad abroad, that Fla?mnius had fought upon that Day, not only in Contradi^ion, but in Con tempt of his Pullarius 5 for having asked the Pullarius, when he was told by him that his Pullets would not touch their Breakfaft that Morning, Whether the Romans were never to fight, but when hu Pullets would cat f The
far-
60 An Effay on the
Pullarim anfwered very gravely, That thy were not 5 Flaminius replied fcoffingly, Au guries are rare Things , if the Romans mujl never fight , hit when your Pullets are hungry. The Lofs of a great Battle at Sea in the firft Punic War, was likewife im puted to Claudius the Admirals having fought upon that Day, in Contradiction to the Re- portof the Pullarius^ having commanded the Pullarius, when he told him that his Pullets would not eat their Breakfaft that Morning, to throw his Pullets into the Sea, to try whe ther they would drink., or not: By fuch Stories as thefe the Credit of the Infallibility of the Prediflions of the Pullarii was fupported.
There was another Book, wherein the fu ture Events of Things contingent were as legible as in^ny of the forementioned, into which neither the Augurs nor the Pullarii were fuffer'd to look : It was the Entrails5£5V. of the Beafts that were killed for Sacrifices : For this Service only an Order of Men was inftituted by Romulus^ who were called Arufpices^ at firft they were all Hetrufci^ whofe Country Hetrurla was for many Ages the great A- cademy of that cheating Science 5 their Work was much more laborious than that of the Pul- lar'n 5 for they were firft to obferve all the Motions of the Beafts when they were brought to befacrificed} and after the Beafts were kil led, they were to look narrowly into the Quantity, and all the Qualities of their Blood, and when the Beafts were opened they were
tcr
Roman Pontificate. g !
to obferve whether any of their Vital Parts were wanting $ but above all they were to infpeft the Entrails, in which the future E- vents of Things were reckoned to be more le gible than they were any where elfe. The Reputation of the Infallibility of all thefe Soothfayers was fupported by the fame Acci dents and Arts with that of the other Ora cles, to wit, by their happening fometimes to guefs right, by falfe Stories of ancient Predi- ftions, by Enigmatical and ambiguous An- fwers, capable of being interpreted to contary Purpofes 5 and when they were vifibly falfe, by laying the Blame on any Thing rather than on the Cheat and Fallibility of their boafted Knowledge of Things to come.
There were thirty Priefts more created by Romulus, who were called the Curiones, from the thirty Curia, to which they were Chap lains 5 they were all chofen by their feveral Curia $ their Prefident was ftiled Curio maxi~ mus9 their Services Curionfa, and their Salle- ries Curionatus.
The Flamines, called fo from the Caps they wore, which were the fame with the Caps now wore by their Succe/Tors the Roman Car dinals, were created by Numa, the fecond King of Rome, to perform moft of the Divine Of fices which the King had performed before : At firft the Flamines were but three, but they carne afterwards to be twelve, and at laft fif teen 5 they were no College, every Flamen being confecrated to the Service of one parti cular
An Effay on the
cular God 5 the Flamen Lwlis to Jupiter ', the Flamen Martiatis to .M^rr, and the Flamen Quirinalu to Romulus 5 they were chofen by the People, but were confecrated by the Pon- tifex Maximus, to whom the Flamen Dialis was not much inferior in Dignity : His Robes, as well as his Cap, were very rich 3 neither did he ever ftir out of Doors, but in a fump- tuous Coach, with a LiSor attending him 3 and to beget and preferve a greatVeneration for that Officer, he was on no Occafion to take any Oath 3 neither was his Hair ever to be cut by any Barber that was not a Freeman $ and that the Parings of his facred Nails might never be put to any fordid Ufe, they were al ways to be buried carefully at the Root of a Tree: But there having been fojne Divine Offices, which had always been performed by the Kings, whilft Rome had any 3 after the Expulfion of Kings, a Prieft was ordained to perform thofe Offices, with the Title of the King of Sacreds, or the Royal Prieft $ and that the Title of King might not feem ftill to carry ill it the fupream Authority, to the endangering of the Liberties of the Commonwealth, the King ofSacreds was made inferior totheP0?z- tifex Maximus.
The Salii, who had their Name from their "Dancing much in their Offices, were likewife inftituted by Numa, to attend in the Palace at the Service of Mars, to render that God the more propitious to the Ro?nans 5 they were twelve in Number and a College, and did of ficiate
Roman Pontificate. 6%
ficiate in a military Habit 5 their Head was called Magifter, or Pr&Jul Saliorum.
The Feciaks, who were the Judges of the Juftice of Leagues and War, were inftituted by Numa 5 they were twelve in Number • and had their Authority in their Province been un- controulable, they muft in a Manner have been the Matters of the Government ^ but in truth they as well as the Augurs, Pullarii, <Scc. had only the Name of afupreme Diredion.
The Pontifices, who were an Order fuperior to all other Priefts were likewife inftituted by Numa 3 and one of them having been con- ftituted the Head of all the reft $ he was ftird Pontifex Max'mus, and with fo great Power and Authority, that he was the fupreme Judge of all Matters in Religion, and of all Things elfe that had any Relation to them $ neither the Senate nor the People could call him to an Account for any thing that he did $ for which Reafon he was by Feftus called, Judex atque Arbiter rerum divinarum atq^ bumanarum ^ and on the Account of his direft fupreme Power o- ver all Religious Affairs, and his indireft fu preme Power overall other Matters,in order to them, he with his College is faid by Cicero, To prtfiti) not only over the Religion of the Immor tal Gods, but alfo over the whole Commojiwealtb. The Number of the Pontifices was the fame with that of the Augurs, and for the fame Reafons raifed from four to nine, and from nine to fif teen 5 but the firft four who were always Pa- ) were of a higher Degree than the ele ven
ven who were added to them, who might all be Plebeians.
The Pontifex Maximus was always chofen out of the Pontifical College by the Curia of the People, until the Commonwealth was changed into a Monarchy, when the Empe rors, for the greater Security of their Perfons and Government, did take that Office to them- felves, and with it the Nomination of all the Pontifices, Flamines^ 5tc.
Zozimus, for having faid that the Title of Pontifex Maximus was held by all the Chrifti- an Emperors until Gratian^ was by Baromus, and other Papal Champions, who refented it as an Affront put upon the Bifhop of Rome^ called a malicious ly'wg Heathen. But to the eternal Confufion of all partial and railing Confidences, what Zozimts had faid, was af terwards found to be true beyond all Contra- diftion 5 that Title having been found in the Infcriptions of the Coins of thofe Chriftian Emperors ^ which having been (hewed to Ba- ronius^ he was forced to confefs that he had done wrong to that Heathen : But there was another Title, which was ftranger, that was bore longer by the Chriftian Emperors $ it was that of Divus^ which appears in the Coins of the Chriftan Emperors, until Placidius Valen- tinianus : So backward are Princes or their Parafites to part with any Thing that raifeth their Honour or Authority, tho' the retain ing of it may not be very confiftent with the Religion they prqfefs.
There
Roman Tontificdte. 65
There was another odd Thing of the fame Nature, done by the Chriftian Emperors Va- lens, Gratian, and Valentinus 5 it was the e- reding of one Statue in Rome, and another in Conftantinofle, with a glorious Heathen In fer iption upon them to the Honour of Sy?nma- cbus, who not only lived and died a profeffed Heathen, but was all his Days the Champion of that Religion againft Cllriftianity.
But tho' the Title of Pontifex Maximus was held by all the Chriftian Emperors until Gra*> tian, and by Gratian himfelf for fome Years • the Exercife of that Office was by them com^ mitted to the Prefeds of the City, with the Ti* tie of 'Pontifex Major ; as appears from the fore- mentioned Infcription, in which^affHw^ztfjWho wasPrefedofthe City isfoftil'd^ and who, du ring the Time that the Emperors bore that Ti tle, were for that Reafon always Heathens, to the great Encouragement of thatReligion,which thereby was ftill fed with Hopes of being refto* red again to its former Authority and Splendor : And therefore Gratian's having laid down theTitle of Pontifex Maximus, arid abolifh'd the Office, was by the Heathens looked on as a greater Blow to their Rel igion than any that had ever been given it before : The Lands and Revenues, which belonged to the Ponttfices, Flamines, &c. having likewife been taken from them about the fame TimeD and all the pub- lick Idols and Images in the City pull'ddown and demolifhed by Gracbus the Prastor, the Heathens were fo difturbed, that the Senate,
F faith
66 An Effay on the
faith Symmachus^ the Heathen Part of it only, faith Saint Ambrofe, (which was not a Ma jority ) did complain to the Emperor Gratian of the great Injuries and Indignities which had been put on the ancient Roman Gods, by whofe Favour and Afliftance Rome had been raifed to be the Miftrefs of the World : And a very great Peftilence and Famine having happened at the fame Time, it was by the Heathens proclaimed to be a Plague from Hea ven upon the Ro?nans, for having fuffered the Gods of their Forefathers to be diihonoured, their Images broken, and their Priefts and Virgins robbed of all their Lands and Reve nues by facrilegiousand avaritious Hands. On this Occafion I cannot but obferve, how the Chriftians who extirpated Idolatry, and the Motives that prevailed with them to fet about fo glorious a Work, were by the Heathens mifreprefented in the fame Manner that the Proteftant Reformers were by the Papifts for a Work of the fame Nature. So Eunapius,. an Heathen Orator, who lived at the Time of that great Revolution, fpeakingof the CM- flians, faith of them, Thefe extraordinary and •valiant Men9 having hurled all Things into Con- fujion, glory that they have overcome the Gods, with Hands indeed unbloody, but not undefikd with Covetoufnefs 5 accounting their Sacrilege, and other impious Crimes Matter ofPraife, (g?c. And that great Peftilence and Famine which raged in Rome at this Time, were by Sjmma- chus, the Prefed of ihe City, attributed to the
Sacrilege
Roman Tonlificate. 6y
Sacrilege of thofe who had feized on all the Revenues of the Priefts and Veftal Virgins, and employed them to profane Ufes.
But tho' a fullAnfwer to all thofeComplaints and Calumnies was publiftied by Saint Am- brofe, Bifhop of Milan ^ yet the Heathens hav ing received no fatisfaftory Anfwer to them from Gratian, confpired together to lay him afide, and to raife .Maximum tb the Imperial Dignity 5 who, tho' he was a Chriftian, yet was not fo fierce as Gratian to extirpate Hea- thenifm 5 on which Occafion it was a common Saying among them, that fince Gratian would not be Pontifex Maxi?niM, that Max'vnitf muft bePontifex 5 and accordingly he was foon after proclaimed Emperor in Britain, to the great Joy of the Heathens in Rome, who expeded from him the Eftablifliment of their Worfhip, if he were by their Afliftance fupported in that Dignity : But they foon found themfelves dif- appointed 3 for tho' Gratian was murthered as he was going againft Maximtts, yet Max'mus having been in a fliort Time after vanquiflied by Tbeodofius, (as Eugenius was alfo from whom the Heathens had promifed themfelves the Re- ftauration of their Worfhip) the Heathen Re ligion in Rome received its Death's Wound, being never after able to hold up its Head in Ro?ne any more, until it was in a good Mea- fure reftored in her by the Idolatry of Pope ry $ tho' the Heathens, to keep Life in their Religion, if it had been poffible, did at that Time fetabouta Story of an Oracle's having
F 2 been
68 An Effay on the
been pofitivethat the Chriftian Religion would beat anEndinlefs than twelve Years ^ fuch Prophecies being commonly the laft Cordials that are adminiftred to languiftiing Govern ments and Religions, by their defponding Friends, and fometimes not without Succefs.
Thus fell the Heathen Pontificate of Rome, after it had flood and flourifhed above a thoufand Years 5 and out of its Ruins the Pafal in that City did vifibly arife $ whofe Pretences to a Supremacy in the Chriftian Religion do owe their Birth to that fingle Thought, of its being reafonable, that among Chriftians, the Bifliop of Rome, for being Bi- fliop of that Imperial Metropolis, ought to en joy as great Priviledges and Preheminences as were enjoyed by the Pontifex Maximiis of that City, whilft it was Heathen : That Thought was fo naturally obvious, that nothing could have kept it out of the Bifhops of Rome's Heads, but an extraordinary Humility and Self-deni al in them, as to all the Pomps and Glories of this World 5 Graced which were foon out of Fafhion in Rome Chriftian.
1 will not fay that the proud City of Rome did not, as foon as Chriftians were become numerous in her, infpire-her Bifhops with fomething of the Thought of its being reafo nable, that on her Account, they fhonld be to Chriftians, what her Pontifex Maximus was to the Heathens. ViSor, Bifliop of Rome, who flourifhed about the Beginning of the thirdCen- tury, having made a peremptory Decree about
the
Roman J?ontificate. 69
theTime of keeping Etifter, was Ironically call'd Pojitifex Maximaby Tertullian^ which plainly intimates that ViSor had aded imperioufly, as if for being Bifliop of Rome, he thought he ought to be Pontifex Maximus of the Chriftian Religion : And indeed in Vi& er'sCarriage in the hot Conteft about theTime whenEa/ler was to be obferved, there appears fomething of an Air of that afpiring Thought : But however it lay in the Heads of the Bilhops of Rome before the time of the Emperor Conftantine'sConverfion to Chriftianity, it did never blaze out before that great Revolution : And whereas it was near fixty Years after the Emperors were Chrifti- ans before the Heathen Pontificate was abo- liflied by them $ fo during that Time the Bi fliop and Clergy of Rome , by the Hopes they had entertained of feeing that done quickly, were prepared to receive, if not to fnatch to themfelves, all the Priviledges and Honours that had appertained to it. For if St. Hierome9 and St. Paiilinus, the two moft pious and moft learned Chriftians of that Age in Italy, may be believed 5 Pride, Ambition, Envy, Ava rice, and Luxury, at the Time when the Heathen Pontificate was diffolved, were as craving and rampant in the Bifliop and Clergy of the City of R ome, as they had ever been before in any Order of Men in that proud Ci ty ^ for which Vices Rome Chriftian at that Time, was by St. Hierome called, oftner than once, the Spiritual Babylon $ and St. Paulinus, when he ftiPd Siricius, Bifliop of Rome, Ur-
F bicus
•jro An Ejfay on the
focus Pafa, did both note the Greatnefs of that Prelate's Pontificate, and intimate that the Ma jefty and Grandeur of his City was the Foundation whereon it was built ^ and fo loud did the whole World ring with the Pride of the Clergy of Rome at and about the Time when the Heathen Pontificate was diflblved in her, that Saint Bajil, who lived in the Ea/f9 fpeaking of them in his tenth Epiftle, faith, that their Pride and Faftus were fo great, that tho' thoy wrere ignorant of the Truth, they would not be taught it. So foon after the Em perors were turned Chriftians was the humble and heavenly Spirit of Ch rift's Gofpel van- quifhed in Ro?ne Chriftian, by the haughty and imperious Genius of that immortal and eternal City, as (he had been commonly called by her Idolaters.
Of the early infatiable Avarice of the Ecclefiafticks of the City of Rome, the Law made by the three Chriftian Empe rors Vakntianus, Valens^ and Gratia?i, thir teen Years before the Heathen Pontificate was diffolved, is a flanding Monument, by which Law they were rendered uncapable of having any Goods come to them, either by Gift or by Will : This Law, that . it might come to the Knowledge of all, was, by the Emperor's Order, read in all the Churches of Rome. It was of this Law that St. Hierom fpoke in his fecond Epiftle to Nepotianus, $ his Words are, 'Nee de lege conqueror, fed doleo, cur merueri- mus baiic legem : Cautmum bonwn eft j fed
qiwcl
Roman Pontificate. 71
quod mibi vulnus, ut indigeam Cauterio ? Provide feveraq^ legu cautio, & tamen necfic refr&na- tur avaritia, &c. neither do I complain of the Law, but I am forry that we have deferved it 5 the Cauftick is good, but how came I by the Wound that wants it 5 the Caution of the Law- is provident and fevere, yet Coveteoufnefs is not bridled by it, &c. And that the Luxury of the Ecclefiafticks of that City at that Time was very great, the fame Father witneffeth $ who, fpeaking of them in his own Perfon, that they might be the lefs provoked with what he faid, faith, Natus in paupere domo, &in tugurioru- fticano^ qui vix rniho & cibariopane rugientem faturare ventrem potera?n 5 mine fimilam, & mella faftidio : Novi & genera & nomma pifi cium, in quo litore concha lata jit calleo, fapo- ribus avnim difcerno Provincias, &c. I, who was born in a poor Houfe, or a Country Cottage, and could fcarce have Millet, and Coarfe-bread fufficient to fill my hungry Belly, do now loath Symnels and Honey 5 I know both the Kinds and Names of Fifties, and on what Shore the choiceft Shell-fifli is gathered $ and by the Tafle of Birds, I can tell from what particular Country they came. And the fame Father, fpeaking of the Cler gy of Rome, in his Commentary on the Second Chapter of Micah, faith of them, Sed& Ecckfia, quoque Principes, qui deliciis afflwnt, & inter Epulas atque lafcivias pudicitiam fer- Dare fe credunt, Propbeticus Sermo defcribit, quod ejiciendi font ejpaciofis domihts lautifque
F 4
72 An Effay on the
conviviis, & multo lab ore Epulis conquijltisj&c. The Prophet's Difcourfe points out the Supreme Minifters of the Church, who wal low in Pleafures, and believe they may pre- ferve Chaftity amidft Banquets and Lafci- vioufnefs $ and fpretels that they (hall be thrown out of their fpacious Houfes, and (hatched from their fumptuous Feafts and Banquets, purchas'd with fo much Pains and Labour.
Now from whence could this great Inun dation of Pride, Avarice, and Luxury come, that had overflowed the Bifhop and Clergy of the City of Rome, at a Time when the other Biftops in Italy were, by the Confeffion of an Adverfary, exemplarily devout, humble and heavenly minded, but from the fingular Ma- jefty and Grandeur of the City, and from their thinking, now that fhe was become Chriflian, that they had a Right, for belonging to her, to Privileges equal to thofe which had been enjoyed by her Pontifices, Flamines, &c. when flie was Heathen : Neither could the Chriftian Emperors, if they were not forward to heap the fame Honours on the Clergy of their Me tropolis^ efcape being proclaimed by fuch Men, for that their Backwardnefs, much lefs devoted to the true Cbriflian, than their Hea then Predeceffors had been to their falfe and Idolatrous Worfhip : And if any of the Pon- tifices, Flamines, 6tc. did after the Emperor's Example turn Chriftians, and were admitted into Holy Orders, how loud would they, ;f
they
Roman Pontificate. 73
they did not change their Temper and Views with their Religion, roar againft the Empe ror's Coldnefs, as to their new Worfhip, if under it they enjoyed not as great Honours and Preheminences as they enjoyed before : And accordingly the Emperors were no fooner Chri- ftians, than they began to heap Privileges up on the Clergy of Ro?ne, on the Account of that City's being the Metropolis of their Empire, and that they might not be eclipfed in her, by the great Grandeur of the Heathen Pontifi cate : For it was not forty Years after Con/tan- tine's Converfion to the Chriftian Faith, that the following Law was made by his Son Con- ftantius : Ecclefia urbis Roma clmcis conceffa privilegia firmter pracipimus cuftodiri.
Note, That thefe Privileges were granted only in Confideration of their being the Cler- •gy of the City of Rome.
And in a Law made by the fame Emperor a Year after, fpeaking of the Clergy of the City of Rome, it is faid, Divi Principis, id <?/?, noftri Jlatuta genitoris, ?nultimoda obfervatione caverant, uti idem Clerici privilegm multiplia- bus redundare?it. Neither could the Chriftian Emperors be more forward to heap great Pre rogatives and Privileges on the Clergy of that City, than they were to receive them at their Hands, if not to extort them from them.
Such a Behaviour in fuch Men, in fuch a Juncture, is, I think, too natural for any to doubt of, that have not facrificed their Un-
derftandings
74 An Effay on the
derftandings entirely to the Papal Interefts and Pretenfions to a Supremacy.
This, I think, is a very plain and eafie Ac count, how the pretending to a Primacy in the Chriftian Church might have got into the Head of the Bifliop of the City of Rome, without having been firft put into it by aGrant of that Primacy from Heaven $ without which the Papal Champions will not hear that that Bifliop could ever have dreamt of it, no more than any other Bifliop 5 and for that Reafon they do vapour with the Pope's being in Pof-, feffion of a Supremacy, as a Demonstration of its being the immediate Gift of God to him 5 which it will be Time enough to believe after they have proved, that the City of Rome was not the Metropolis of the Roman Empire 5 and that the Bilhops and Clergy of Rome were Men of too great Humility, Mortification and Self-denial, to accept of any worldly Privi leges, had they not, by being the Gift of Hea ven, been forced to accept of them, not for their ownConveniency, but for the Benefit of the Church 5 which is a Charafter very diffe rent from that which we fee is given of them, by Saint Hierome, Saint Paulinus, and Saint Bafil, who were their Cotemporaries, and knew them well 5 by which three Saints the Church ofRotne was either flandered moft abo minably ,or that Church contributed nothing to the Catholick Church, which Epithet was about this Time added to the Latin or Occidental Creed, having only had the Epithet Holy be-
".- fore
Roman Pontificate.
re^ the Roman Clergy being about that Time ftiled by Saint Hierome, A Senate of Pharifees, without a Scribe, or learned Man, a?no7igft them.
Being fatisfied that this is the true Hiftory of the Origin of all the Papal Pretenfions to a Prmacy in the Chriftian Religion, and not much doubting but that thofe afpiring Pre tenfions, in fuch a Juncture as that of the Dif- folution of the Heathen Pontificate in Rome, muft have made divers clear Discoveries of themfelves : In order to find Proofs it, I di ligently perufed the Books Heathen and Chri ftian, which were written about that Time 5 and having in them met with the following Evidences, I fhall here lay them before the Reader, with a Requeft to him to judge of them impartially.
The firft Proof I met with of this, was, that the Bifliops of Rome, at and about the Time when the Heathen Pontificate was diflblved, did take upon them a good deal of the Stateof the Pontifex Maximus,znd of hisfum- ptuous Way of Living : This is manifeft from the Account that is given of thofe Biftiops by Amrriianus MarceUinusjSL learned Hiftorian,who lived in that Age $ who fpeaking of the Tra gical and bloody Struggle that% was betwixt Damafus and Urficinus for the Bifhoprick of Rome, at the vcry^ Time when the Heathen Pontificate was abolithed in her, faith of them, as followeth.
An Effay on the
"Neque ego, inquit, alnuo^ oftentationem re- rum confiderans urbanarum, hujus rei cupidos ob mpetrandum quod appetunt omni contentions la- terumjurgan debere^ cum idadepti, futurifmt itafecuri^ut dltentur oblationibusmatronaru?n, •frocedantque vebiculis infidentes, circumfpefte veftiti, epulas cur antes profuf as, adeo uteorum cojiv'wia regales fuperent menfas. Qid effepo- terant beati re vera, (i magmtudine Urbis de- fpeffa quam vitiis opponunt, adimitationem An- tiftitum quorundam provincialium viverent 5 quos tenuitas edendi^ potan dique parcijjime^ vilitas e- tia?n indumentorum, & fupercilia humum fpe- ffiantia, perpetuo Numim, verifque ejus Cultori- bus, ut fur os com?nendant & verecundos. i. e. Confidering the Pomp of the City, I do not wonder that they that are covetous of that, fliould ftrive with all their Force to obtain that Office, which having once acquired, they are fecure that they fhallbe enriched with the Oblations of Matrons, ride about in their Coaches, be gorgeoufly apparelleled, and pre pare fuch Banquets and Feafts as exceed thofe of Royal Tables ^ who might be truly happy, if defpifing the Greatnefs of the City with which they skreen and cover their Vices5 they would live after the Example of fome Provincial Bifhops, whofe great Abftinence in eating and drinking, together with the Meannefs of their Cloaths, and the Modefty of their Be haviour, conftantly recommends them as pure and humble in the Sight of God and good Men. According to this Account theBiihop
of
Roman Pontificate. 77
of Rome did in four Things referable the Pon- tifex Maxwms 5 firft, In never going abroad, but in a Littre or Chariot : Secondly, In wear ing rich and coftly Robes : Thirdly, In being very nice in the wearing of them : And Laftly, In large and fuinptuous Banquets.
The Bifhops of Rome riding about in State in their Coaches, fumptuoufly and nicely dreft, and making great Banquets, at the fame Time that the other Bifhops recommended them- felves to God, and all good Chriftians, by their fingular Devotion, Abftinence and Hu mility, is here imputed folely to their being full of the Grandeur of their City • which if they could have been fo happy as to have defpiC- ed, they would have been as Holy as their Bre thren. A?nmiami3 Marcellinus, from whom we have this Account, was, it is true, a Heathen 5 but the Papal Champions are fo far from deny ing its Truth for that Reafon, that they glory in it as a plain Teftimony of the early great Grandeur of the Bifhop of Rome.
And thatthe Refemblancc that there was, ac cording to thisAccount,betwixt theRomanRtih* op and \htRoman PontifexMaximus may appear the plainer, I fhall here fet down what Cicero faith of that Pontifex in his Oration before the Pontifices, where addrefling himfelf to Lentu~ lus, he faith, Te appelh, Lentule, tui $acer- dotii funt Tenfa, Curricula, Pracentio, Ludi, Libationes, Epul&que Ludorum. I appeal to thee, Lentului^ to whofe Pontificate the Lit-
tres.
78 An Effay on the
tres, Coaches, Mufick, Plays, Libations, and the Banquets ufual at Games, belong.
The fecond Proof I met with was, the faying ofPr&textafiis, the Prefeft of the City, to Da- mafus, when he and Urficinus were killing and flaying in the City for the BHhoprick, Facite me Romana Urbis Epifcopum, & ero protinus ChriJKanus. Make me Bifliop of Rome, and I wil 1 forthwith be a Chriftiah. Now what el fe could it be but the State, Plenty and Luxu ry that the Biftiop of Rome lived in at that Time, after the Example of the Heathen Pon- tifices, that put Pr&textatus, who was a great Champion for Heathenifm, upon making that Offer.
Thirdly, At and about the Time when the Heathen Pontificate was diflolved, and never before, there were fierce and bloodyStrugglings for the Bifhoprick of Ro?he: By that which xvas betwixt Damafus and Urpcinus, at the very Time when the Heathen Pontificate was abolifhed, the City of Rome was made a Scene of Blood and Confufion ^ an hundred and thir ty having been flaughtered in a Church on one Day in that Quarrel. And in the Struggle, which was not long aftery for that Biflioprick, betwixt Boniface and Eulahus, the Tumult was fo great and furious, that the Prefeft of the City not being able to fupprefs it, was forced to write to the Emperor Honorius to make ufe of his Authority ^ which that Emperor hav ing done, he commanded both the Candi dates forthwith to leave Rome, and appear
before
Roman Pontificate.
before him at Ravenna, which they both did.
The Ambition of the Roman Clergy being raifed to fuch an exorbitant Height at this Time, that the publick Peace of the City was vifibly in Danger of being difturbed by every Eledion of a new Bifhop^ the Emperor Hono- rius, to bridle that outragious Paflion in them, if it was poffible, did order Pope Boniface to let his Clergy know, that they muft ceafe from Ambition $ and knowing no Courfe fo likely to oblige them to do that, as was the rendring of all the feditious workings of their Ambition unprofitable to them y that Emperor did give them to underftand, That for the future, when- foever two Jbonld be chofen and ordained Biftops of Rome, that neither ofthe?nfiould hold that See, but a third Jbould be eleffed, who had not contended for it.
Whofoever is acquainted with the deplora ble Condition the City of Rome was in at this Time, by reafon of her having been mifera- bly fack'd by the Goths , and laid yet more de- folate by a raging Peftilence and Famine, can not but ftand amazed to find the Ambition of her Clergy fo rampant amidft three fuch great Plagues, as to ftand in need of Imperial Mo nitions to withold it from difturbing the pub- lick Peace, as often as a new Bifhop was chofen by them 5 a fad Proof of the Papal Am bition's having been incurable from its Birth 3 whofe true Date is from the Fall of the Hea then Pontificate, that Ambition having been
"before
8o An Effay on the
before only as an Embryo, ready to be mid- wifed into the World by fo favourable a Jun-- fture.
The fourth Proof I met with was the Em peror's, (upon the Fall of the Heathen Pontifi cated beginning to fpeak of the Biftiopsof Rome, as if they had fucceeded the Pontifex Maxima in many of his Privileges, tho5 not as to his whole Authority, which the Chriftian Empe rors never parted with, tho' in Procefs of Time it was wrefted from them in the We/t^ together with that Part of their Empire. So Sf- ri cius, who fucceeded Damafus, and not without Tumults, is by the Emperor Valentimanus, in a Letter which he writ to Piniams, laid Pra- effe Sacerdotio 3 and the Emperor Maximum, fpeaking of Letters which he had received from thatBifhop, faith of them, Qti&que plane TLomim Sacerdotis & digmtati urbis Jflendijp- m& convener ant , that is, which were agreeable to the Name of the Prieft, and to the Dignity of the moft fplendid City ^ plainly founding that Bifliop's Preheminence upon the Imperi al Dignity of the City of Rome. The Empe ror HonoriiM, above fixty Years after Hea- thenifm was aboliflied in Rome, calls that Ci ty, after the Heathens, Urbs Sacratiffima, and her Bifliops, Efifcopi tfrbis Aterna, and her Biflioprick Sacerdotium Urbis jEterna, which is a Demonftration that the Chriftian Empe rors ftill retained a facred Veneration for the City of Rome, and upon her Account folel/, for the Roman Biflioprick, more than for any other. The
Roman Pontificate* 81
The fifth Proof is the Canon that was made by the third Council of Carthage, within twen ty Years after the DifTolution of the Heathen Pontificate, on purpofe to put a Stop to the growing Ambition and Ufurpations of the Bifliops of Rome 5 that Canon runs thus : Ut frima Sedis Epifcopus non appelletur Princsps Sacerdotum, aut fu?nmus Sacerdos, aut aliquid hujufmodi, fedtantum prim & Sedis Epifcopus. That the Bifhop of thefirft See lhallnot be called the Prince of Priefts, nor the Supreme Prieft, nor any thing like that, but only the Bi fhop of the FirftSee^ plainly fignify ing that the Bifhop of Rome, not having his Primacy by divine Inftitution, ought not, as if he had it fo, to be ftiled Princeps Sacerdotum, or Su?n- mus Sacerdos $ but that having his Primacy purely from the fupreme Dignity of his City, he ought on its Account to be called only the Bifhop of the Firft See, and whofe See was for no other Reafon the Firft, but becaufe Rome was the Firft City of the Empire : AH this was founded on the well known and indubitable Truth in the Primitive Church, That all Bifliopsare, by divine Inftitution, e- qual in all Things whatfoever, of Jurifdiftion as well as Order.
^ Six Years after this Canon, the following Canon was by the Council of Milcvis in A- jnck made with the fame View.
Quod Jiabiis9id eft, vicinis Epifccpis pro-
mcandum futarent, non provocent, nifi ad A- Jncana concilia, vel ad Primates prwinciarivm
fuarum
8-2 An Effay on the
fuarum $ ad tranfmarina autem qui putaverit appellandum, a nullo intra African in commu- monem fufcipiatur.
But if they fhall think fit to appeal from them, i. e. the neighbouring Bifliops, they fhall not appeal to any but to African Coun cils, or to the Primates of their own Provin ces 5 and whofoever fhall think of appealing to any beyond Sea, (hall not be received into Communion.
It is not more certain that there lyes a Sea betwixt Rome and Africk, than 'tis, that all Appeals of Ecclefiafticks from Africk to Rome are forbidden by this Canon, under Pain of Excommunication.
Sixthly, About ten Years after this Canon was made, a Claim was aftually put in by Pope Zozymus to a Right of Appeals from the A- frican Church to the Roman Pontif 5 of which ambitions Claim, and of the Frauds and Arts by which the Bifhops of Rome did feek to fup- port it, I have faid enough in an Eilay on the Canons of the Council of Sardica.
The Seventh Proof is, The early great Infolence and Prefumption of the inferior Cler gy of the City of Ro?ne $ in which the Hea then Pontificate was no fooner diffblved than the Deacons of that City did offer at exalting of themfelves above Presbyters, to whofe Or ders they are both by the Scriptures and by the Canons of the Church ordained to be much inferior : Of this early Prefumption of the Roman Deacons the Author of the Que-
fhons
Roman Pontificate. 83
ftiorts of the Old and New Teftament takes Notice, and afligns a true Reafon of it irj the Words following. Sed quit Romans Ecckfia miniftri funt^ idcirco bonorabiliores -putantur quam afudc&terasEcclefias^ propter magmficen- tiam Urb'u Ro?nayqu& caput effe videtur omnium Cwitatum^ that is, But becaufe they are the Minifters of the Roman Church, they are for that Reafon thought to be more honourable than the Minifters of other Churches, on the Account of the Magnificence of the City of Rom, which feems to be the Head of all Ci ties. And the £ime Author fpeaking of the fame Preemption, faith, Vides quidpariat va- na prefumptio, itnmemores enim elatione mentis^ eo quod vide ant Ro?nan& Ecclefia effeminiftros, wn confiderant quid hi* a Deo decretum eft ^ that is, Toupee the Fruits of their vain Pre- fumption $ for being puffed up becaufe they arc Minifters of the City of Rome, they forget tbe?n- felves, and do not conjider what God bw ordain ed them. And Saint Hierome, in his Letter to Evagrius, beats down the whole Papal Fa- brick erefted in Ro?ne upon the Fall of the Heathen Pontificate in her, at which time that learnedFather lived in thatCity : HisWords are, Nee alter a Ro?nan& Urbis Ecdefia, alter <t to-' tiiu orbis exiftimanda eft 5 & GaUia & Brit an- nia^ & Africa, & Perfis, & Or tens, & India , ; & omnes barbara nationes unum Chnftum ado- rant^ unam observant regulam verit-atis : Si au- toritas quzritur, Orbis- major eft Urfo • ubi^ cunque fucrit Epifcofm, fivd Roma, five Eugu*
G 2 *»
84 An Effay on the
hi, Jive Conftantinopoli, Jive Rhegii, five Alex andria, five Tanis, ejufaem meriti, ejufdem eft & facer dotii : potentia divitiarum^ & pauper- tatis humilitaS) vel fublimiorem vel inferiorem E- pifcopum nonfacit^ caterum omnes Apoftolorum jucceffbres funt $ that is, Neither is the Church of the City 0/Rome to be efteemed different from the Church of the whole World 5 for France and Britain, and Africk, and Perfia, and the Eaft, and India, and all the barbarous Nations do wor- Jlrip one Chrift, and obferve one Rule of Truth .• If any Authority be required for what is here a^erted^thato^ the World is greater than that ofafingle City : Wherefoever there is a Bijhop, whether at Rome or at Eugubium, at Conftan- tinople0r at Rhegium, at Alexandria or at Tanis, he is of equal Dignity, and of the fame Priefthood; Great Riches or extreme Poverty do neither exalt nor diminijl) the Epifcopal Order 3 face all Bifiops are the Apoftles Succejfors.
Here we have laid before us a plain Scheme of the Work which the Bifhop and Clergy of the City of Rome did fet about upon the Fall of the' Heathen Pontificate, at which time this Letter was written by Saint Hierome. Fir/. They were modelling a Church in Rome of a different Form from all other Churches. Secondly. They began to pretend to a Superi ority over all other Churches. Laftly. The Biihopof that City was exalting himfelf a- b.ove all other Bifhops 3 which three ambitious Attempts were all condemned by this learned Father, who is pofitive, that all Churches are
the
Roman Pontificate. 85
the fame, worfhipping the fame Chrift, and having the fame Rule of Truth.
Secondly. From hence we fee, That the Au thority of all other Churches is greater than the Authority of theChurch of theCity of Rome: And that theBiftiop of the fmalleft and poor- eft City, for Example of£ubugium, is equal to one of the greateft, and is the Succeflbr of the Apoftles no lefsthan the Bifhop of the rich and magnificent City of Rome. Many are pofitive that St. Hierome was created a Cardinal by Damfus, firft with the Title of St. Ana- ftafius, and afterwards with the Title of St. Laurentius^ but this Story being plainly a Fable devifed many Years after St. Hierome** Death, to do Honour to the College of Car dinals, I fhall make no ufe of it.
But tho' nothing can be more contrary to the very Inftitution of the Orders of Presbyters and Deacons in the Scriptures, and to the Canons of Councils, particularly that of Nice, and the univerfal Praftice of the whole Church, than the Exaltation of Deacons above Presbyters $ yet, in Defiance to all thofe great and Sacred Authorities, that Prefumption does not only ftill continue in the Church of the City of Rome, but ithasrifen to that Height, that her Cardinals, who are but Deacons, are highly exalted, not only above all Presbyters, but above all BiOiops likewife, who are not by Vertue of their Sees Members of their Col lege : Of fo little Authority in Rome are the Scriptures, the Canons, and the univerfal U-
C 3
8 6 An EJfay on the
fage of the Catholick Church, when they, of fer to fet Bounds to their Ambition ^ which was never more infatiable in her Confuls and Senate than they have now been thro* divers Ages in her Bijbops and College of Cardinals. The eighth Proof is the following Decifion that was made at this Time by a Council af- fembled at Turin, upon a Difpute that there was for Primacy, betwixt the Bifhop of Aries and the Bifhop orT7^ in France, lllud \deinde interEpifcopos urbivm.Anlatenfis & Vienenfn qui depnmatus apud ncs honor ecertabant, a SanSo Synodo definitum efl^ ut qui ex iis comprobaverit
fuam civitatem e/fe Metropolim, u totius provin-
• 7 • i • -/•' • r '
ci& honorem 'pnmatus obtmeat, & ipje, juxta
-pr&cepta Canonum, ordinatio7iu?n bakeat pote- ftatem. It is therefore defined by the Holy Sy nod betwixt the Bijbops of the City of Aries and <?/Vien, who contended be fore us for the frima- cy 5 That he that ft all prove his City to be the Metropolis ( i. e. the Political Metropolis ) of the whole Province^ flail obtain the Honour of the Primacy 5 and ft all ^ according to the Deter mination of 'the Canons, exercife the Power of Ordinations*
Three confiderable Truths may, I think, be plainly gathered from the forementioned Decifion, made by this antient Council: The frft isy That all the Superiorities which any Bifhop had over other Bifhops, were owing folely to the Political Preheminences of their Cities. Thefecondu^ That the Bifhop of the civil Metropolis of a Province, with the Ti tle
Roman Pontificate. 8 7
tie of Metropolitan, had the Primacy, with Authority and Jurifdiftion over all the Bifhops within the Diftrids of that Province. The third is^ That the Metropolitan BHhops, which was at this Time the higheft Title in the Hierarchy, tho' they had Precedency one of another, according to the Political Prec£- dency of their feveral Metropolis's 5 yet out of their feveral Provinces they had not any Au thority or Jurifdidion. So this great Conteft betwixt the Bifhops of Aries and Vun was not, we fee, carried to Rome^ whofe Bifhop was the firft Metropolitan, becaufe his City was the firft Metropolis of the Empire 5 but it was heard and decided by a Council of the Province in which the Dioceffes of thofe two Bifhops were : And could we but certainly learn which were the Suburbicarian Cities to Rome, which we are certain were all in Italy ', we fhould not be at a Lofs for the Bounds of her Province, beyond which her Metropolitan had no Authority or Jurifdidion. And that Aquilea^ tho' in Italy ^ (yet being no Suburbicarian City, no more than Turing) was not then under the Bifhop of Ro?nis Jurif didion, is, I think, very plain, from that Bi- fhop's not being fo much as once mentioned in the famous Council which was held in the City of Aquileia^ in the Year 381, in which two Bilhops and a Presbyter were depofed for Herefy. But all the wile and Primitive Rules of Church Government were violently broke thorough by the Bilhops of Ro?ne^ foon after
G 4 the
88 An Effay on the
the Fall of the Heathen Pontificate.
Innocent the Firft, who was truly the firft Pofe, having not long after laid about him fo with fhamelefsLiesandForgeries, to extend the JurifdidionofhisSee beyond its Metropolitical Province, that the forementioned African Ca nons were made on purpofe to have bridled that Ambition : And in this Innocent was not fingular $ the Bifhops of the other three great Cities of the Empire, to wit, Conjlantinofle, Alexandria, and Antioch, having about the fame Time begun to ufurp a Jurifdidion over the Metropolitans that were about them $ and who having, with the Emperor's Afliftance, fucceeded in that Enterprize, to diftinguifli them from all other Metropolitans, they had given them the Title si Patriarch., with anAu- thority over all the Metropolitans within their ieveral Diflrids, which being bounded out, were called the four Patriarchates : This new Title and Jurifdidion had plainly the fame Grounds with the Metropolitical, which was viiibly the civil Preheminences of the Cities upon which they were conferred , and the fame. is exprefly confirmed in the laft Decree of the General Council of Chalcedon^ where /peaking of the General Council of Conftanti- ?wf!e9s having granted the fame Privileges to that City's Biihop, as had been granted to the Bifhop of the elder Rome, and confirming what that Council had done ^ it is laid,
r° .acrjXetv T -376-
cl iffoCis e/xcrwr J«rirecto£«Bii ra.
Roman Pontificate.
*« '/era
GIOTTO) Hivvfjoi o f v TtrpscrCeux, aTrsvei/jux 5JVa>, ooXofa)? Kg/va/Jsr o-ufxXnV&j r^yjOei^ TiroXiv, )£ T i'cwy
•zrpc o€efo)v TKJI nrpeerfr/llg^ /3<xcriX/e^ POOJUH?, j£ & xXyjcria^DtctV oJr oKeivtw, fxskfcXuju 6w cct ttrpaljjtao'f. i. e.
For *j *fo Fathers juftly granted to the See of the elder Rome diftinguijlring Privileges on Account of its being the Seat of Empire $ fo an hundred and fifty holy Bijhopsfor the famerea- fon granted equal Privileges to the mofl holy See of New Rome, i. e. Conftantinople 3 reafo-
* » '•' • •» • T . >-•• T * 7 1
7z^^ judging that a City which WM become the Seat of Empire, and of fupreme Judicature^ jbould enjoy equal Priviledges with the ancient Imperial City 0/Rome, and have a Pre-eminence as well as the other in Ecclefiaftick Affairs. Note hereHr/, That for the Truth of the Bifliop of Rome's having had all his Privileges conferred on him, folely upon the Confidera- tion of the civil Empire of the City of Rome, we have the exprcfs Teftimony of two Gene ral Councils. Secondly, That the Bifliop of Rome's Vicars or Legates, befides an honorary Precedency, had no morePower in Councils than the Vicars of any other abfent Bifliop 3 the formerDecree having been unanimoufTy enaded by this General Council, in Defiance to the Papal Vicars having protefled againft its being done. Thirdly, That the Quarrel the Roman Vicars and their Matter had with this Decree, was not for its having afligned a falfe Ground for all its Priviledes, but for having poftpoi>
ed
AuEffayon the
ed the Biflbops of Alexandria and Antiocb to the Bifhop of Conjlantinofle 3 being jealous that the Reafon which had carried him over the Heads of thofe two Bifhops, might in time carry him over his Head too, as it was once in a fair Way to have done.
' Lajtly^ The Bifhop of Rome bearing the Ti tle ofPontifex Maximis, and wearing a Crown of Gold, and anciently white linen Shoes, as the Heathen Pontifex Maximus had wore $ and the inferior Clergy of £00^ configuring a Col lege with their PontifexMaximus, as the Hea then inferior Ponti/ices did with theirs 3 and a Cap being the chief Enfign of the Cardinal's Dignity, as it was of the Fla?mnesy are fome E- vidences of the Papal Government in Rome, on which Saint Hierome refleds, as new and iingular 3 having been modelled according to the Pattern fhewed to them on the Mount Pa latine ', to the Subverfion of the Form of ChurcU Government by Bifliops and Metropolitans which before had been in all Places, and fo ere&ed a Tyrrany in the Church of Chrift, under which the Weflern Church did groan for divers Ages 5 and all otherChurches at one time or another have been difturbed by it to oblige them to wear its Yoke.
But tho' the Foundations of the Papal Tyr rany were laid upon the Ruins of the Heathen Pontificate 3 yet Rome Papal, ( like Rome Heathen) was not built in a Day, by Reafon of the Oppofition it met with both from the Emperors and from the Church : The Chri-
itiaq
Roman Pontificate.
flian Emperors, when they dropt the Title of Pontifex Max'unus^ as not confident with their Religion, did, for the fame Reafons that they ailumed the Pontifical Power at firft, (which was for the Prefervation of their Per- fons and Government,) dill hold it, fo as to keep in themfelves the fupreme Authority and Jurifdiftion in all Affairs of Religion, which were not the immediate Exercifes of Holy Orders : So we fee, thro' divers Ages after the Fall of the Heathen Pontificate, many Laws were made by the Emperors a- bout Religion 5 and all the General Councils of the Church were called by them, appoint^ ing the Time and Places when and where they were to meet ^ and they were all aflem- bled by them in the Eaft, notwithftanding the Petitions they had from the Bilhops of Rome to aifemble fome of them in the Weft : The Bifhops of Rome were likewife named by them, and in a Word obeyed their Commands concerning Matters of Religion, tho' their Commands were not agreeable to the Ambi tion that lay lurking in their Hearts, and which waited for an Opportunity to exalt it felf: And having met with one in the ninth Century, when Italy was by the French, at the Papal Inftigation, torn from the Empire, and when that Province was afterwards by the Normans and Germans broke into divers Prin cipalities, It made fo good Ufe of its Time in that great and long Scramble, as, during it, to preft to it felf in Rome an Ecclefiaftical Em pire,
An Effay on the
pire, with confiderable temporal Dominions 5 which Papal Empire was vifibly ereded and fupported by <a longer and viler Train of Frauds, Treafons, and Rebellions, and gain'd through a deeper Sea of Blood, than was ever any other Empire.
All that can be oppofed to the foregoing plain Account of the Rife of the Papal Pre- tenfions to a Supremacy, is the Story of Saint Peter the firft of the Apoftles having been Bifhop of Rome, and fetled a Supremacy there on all his Succeffors$ and. who (if the hardy Pope Innocent the firft, fpeaking as magifteri- ally as if he had fpoke e Cathedra^ is to believed before Saint Luke) was the only Apoftle that ever was at Rome, or did preach Chrift'sGofpel in the Cty, or in any of the Weftern Provinces of the Roman Empire 5 which Story, with all its precarious Confequences, muft appear to all that will fift it impartially to theBottom, to be one of the moft groundlefs Fables that ever had the good Luck to be believed, not ex cepting the Story of Simon Magus being wor- Ihipped in Rome as a God, tho' by Vertue of Saint Peter's Prayers, he was by that whole City feen tumble down from the Air, as he was flying in it, and by that terrible Fall broke both his Hip and his Ancle-bones : And great Pity it was that he had not broke his Neck too, fince that might perhaps have kept the Roman Senate from allowing an Altar to be ereded to him in the Tiburine Ifland, in which a few Years ago an Altar was
found
Roman Tontificate. p^
found with the following Infcription upon it.
Semoni Sango Deo Fidio Sacrum.
i. e. Confecrated to the Half GadSangus, the Son of
Jupiter, i. e. Hercules.
In which very Ifland Simon Magm was by feveral of the ancients faid to be worfliipped. Nor can I except the Story of Pope Joan, which tho' it isridicul'd by the Papifts, is not quite fo improbable as that of Pope Peter.
For a full Satisfaction as to this great Point, I (hall refer the Reader to a moft elaborate Englijb Treatife, Printed in London for Ran dall Tayler, and licenfed by Mr. Needham, Chaplain to the Archbilhop of Canterbury, in the Year 1687, with the following T'tle, A modeft Enquiry, whether Saint Peter were ever at Rome, and Bijbop of that Church : Which Treatife whofoever flial I read, with any Mea- fure of Judgment and Impartiality, will not afterwards find it very eafie for him to deny his Subfcription to the Truth of what that learned Writer faith in his Sum of the State of the whole Matter : His Words are, " Touching which, what need 1 fay more, but briefly fum up the State of the whole Matter? If Saint Peters being Bifhop of Rome, or io much as ever there, be not provable by Scripture, nor any convincing Arguments, but whatever can be faid for it is eafily anfwered, and rendred not fo much as probable : If the Witnefles of the
** Story
Cfj
t( <c
An Effay on the
cc Story are at open Wars and Contradictions " in the Circumftances, yet all pretending to <c a moft punctual Exaftnefe, and the learnedft <c and moft fubtle Advocates of the Party fweat " in vain to invent fo much as Colours to re- " concile them : If from Scripture and Hifto- " ry, and a due Comparifon of all Circum- <6 fiances, it is improbable to the higheft De gree, That ever Peter was at Rome^ much more that he was Biflbop thereof: If the Sto ry depend on counterfeit Authors, or fuch as juftly are of little Credit, and Abundance of fhameful Forgeries have been invented and made ufe of to fupport it : If it be de- rogatory to the Honour of Saint Peters Memory to affert it : In fine, if it be na difficult Task to apprehend and fhew by u what Methods and Degrees it might be " advanced to popular Credit, and for what <c Ends : If, I fay, all this be made appear, c< (and how far this brief Difquifition may be " fatisfadory that Way, is left to the judicious unbigotted Perufer and Pofterity to deter mine.) I conceive the old Out-cry of Great is Diana of the Ephefians, the Noife of St. " Peters Chair, and Peter's Succeffors, will <c henceforth abate fome what of its Influences, or indeed fignifie very little, unlefs it be to expofe their Confidence that ufe it.
However, if any ftiall ftili be amufed and and prevailed upon by thofe empty Sounds and unravelled Charms, I may perhaps ad mire their Faith, or rather pity their weak
« Credulity,
(6
cc cc
46 <C CC
cc
x Roman Pontificate.
" Credulity, but muft crave leave to fay, that " till my Reafon is better fatisfied (which with u the utter moft Diligence and Impartiality I cc have endeavoured) it (hall have no Room '• in my Creed. And fo, Reader ^ farewell.
I lhall only add, that to This, and to all the other Fables and Forgeries, whereby the Papal Empire was ereded and eftablifhed, may very well be applied what Ampbilocbius faith of the Tales that were in the Heathen Religion 3 to wit,
Mu'Osr ysXo/l©' a£/8? Jt, G/\xxpuo)f.
Fables worthy of Laughter and of Tears. Worthy of Laughter for their Improbability and Abfurdity 5 Worthy of their Tears for their being, by means of the Boldnefs of their Demetriua\ believed by many to the : great Coft and Reproach.
1 N I S.
.
lo
.»() m
THE
HISTORY,
jP*':? O F T H E
.v! Famous HOU SE I
; ,;,.;'- O F ,,- ••r~v<>~;-r
LAURETO.
->/'•-' - ' WITH y^u^v;
An Account of its EVIDENCES., RICHES^ MIRACLES., &c*
^ AND - : ,/vvV^V
With fome REMARKS upon them All.
By MICHAEL GE DDES,, L. L. D.
And Chancellor of the Church
SfeSatum admijfi, rifum teneatis amid .<?
Horacius de Arte Poet.
H
THE
PREFACE.
THET that, in all Religious Matters, are refolded to believe whatfoever the Popes fay they believe, and do recommend to them, have a Story upon which they may fafefy exercife their meritorious PopijJ) Faith. The following Story w the Subftance of what was writ con cerning the famous Chapel of Laureto, by the Jefuit Horatius Turfellinus 5 and which having been Pointed at Rome, has Pope Clement Vllf $ Approbation Printed before it : And a* to thofe, who without better Evidence cannot readily believe Things of fo prodigious a Nature, their Reading of this Legend will not, I fuppofe, di- fpofe them much to change their prefent Perfua- jion of things. There is not a Story any where, that I know of, comparable to this, tojlew how far an implicit Faith is capable of being carried by its Oracles, who, either to augment the Me- rit of that Faith, or to triumph in the Greatnefs of their own Authority, do often impofe fuch things upon their Followers, that if they had flu- died to have formed them incredible, they could not have been much tnorefo than they an.
HIS TOR
OF THE
ffi Famous TrLoufe
fi-'v^ -if^' •• ^ F ^•lo'iiL L A U R E T O,
H E Houfe in Nazareth in G^- /ito, in which the blefTed Vir gin was born and bred, after it had flood above thirteen hun dred Years in that City, was, on the ninth of May, in the Year 1291, re moved from thence in the Night by four An gels, and was fet down on a Mountain in Dalmati*, not far from the City Tr if eft um, which is at lead two thoufand Miles from that of Nazareth. That Mountain flood near
H 2 the
loo A Hijlory of the famous
the Adriatick Sea, which before was infamous for frequent and violent Tempefts, but has been much calmer ever fince the Arrival of thatHoufe. In the Morning the Fame of an Houfe's (landing upon a Mountain, where there was no Sign of a Houfe the Night be fore, drew all the Country to fee fo great a Rarity 5 and being wonderfully aftonifli'd when they faw an old Houfe there, whole and entire, with an arched Roof, a Chimney, and a Steeple for Bells, they did all approach it with great Fear and Reverence : But hav ing however ventured to go in, the firft Place they came into was a Chapel of an oblong Figure, it was built with common Stone, but its Roof \vasarched and fretted, and being painted with Blue was full of Stars: Under the Arch were Semicircles, and in the midft of them two Nitches 5 the Walls were near a Cubit thick, and well plaifler'd 5 and on them was painted the Hiftory of all the Myfteries belonging to the Houfe 5 to wards the Top the Painting was fair, but was much defaced near the Bottom : The whole Building was above forty Foot in Length, in Breadth lefs than twenty, and in Heighth twenty five 3 and in the middle of the Front was a Gate with a coarfe Beam over it : On the Left Hand was a Cupboard that had earthen Ware in it, which had be longed to the bleffed Virgin, and had been ufed by her, and to this Day it works Mi racles 5 on trie Right Hand was a fraall Win dow,
Houfe of L A U Pv E T o, lot
dow, and over- againft that Window a Chim ney of poor Work, like the reft : In that Room was a Nitch, with guttered Pillars, and arched with the fame Work 5 and in that Nitch an Image of the bleffcd Virgin, of two Cubits, made of Cedar, with the Child Jefus in her Arms 5 her Face was covered with Amber, which looked like Silver, but was much tarnidi'd with the Smoke of the Lamps: She had a double Crown on her Head, and her Hair, according to the Cuftom of the Nazarenes, was parted, and didievelled over her bare Neck and Shoulders : She was co vered with a Stole of Gold, which reached down to her Feet, and had a blue Mantle about her Shoulders, and a large Girdle. The Child Jefa was in Coats, and had a Girdle about him, holding out the firft Fingers of his Right Hand, in the Pofture of w idling well to one 5 and in his Left Hand he held a Globe of Gold : Before this Image was an Altar built with Square Stone.
The Dahnatians having obferved all thefe Things with a reverential Admiration, and being latisfied that this old Houfe flood fome- where elfe many Years, they were at a great Lofs for the Place it had come from $ how ever, being certain that its Translation was miraculous, they did all worihip it with the profoundeft Proftrations of their Minds and Bodies : Their Minds were thereupon ftrange- ly enlightened, and their Bodies cured of all their Diftempers 3 neither were they long
H 3 without
102 AHiftoryof the famous
without the Satisfaction of knowing certainly the Place from whence this miraculous Houfe had been brought : For the Bifhop ofTrife&um, whofeName was Alexander , being at the Point of Death, when the News of this Rarity came firft to that City, he roufed himfelf up when it was told him, and commanded his Ser vants to make ready his Litter prefently, and carry him to vifit it, that he might worfhip it before he died, and learn the Place from whence it came 5 but having tried to rife, he found he had not Strength to perform that Journey, fo he lay down again, and up on his Sick Bed did offer up his Devotions to it fo fervently, that the bleffed Virgin ap peared to him, wTith a great Company of An gels in her Train $ and having with her Pre- fence filled the Room with a heavenly Light, with a benign Countenance (he faid to him. \
My Son, be of 'good cheer , for being invocated by you, behold I am here prejent to cure you, and to tell you that you are fo felicitous to learn. Ton muft therefore know, That the holy Houfe which is brought into your Neighbourhood is the very Houfe I wot born and bred in : In it I received the Meffage brought to me by the Arch-angel Gabriel : In it, by the Operation of the Holy Ghoft, I conceived the Divine Child, and in it the Word was made Flejb. After our Defartare this Houfe, eminent for fuch Myfte- ries, wa<s ccnfecrated by the Afoftles, who did all celebrate the divine Offces in it $ and on the
Altar
Houfe of L A U R E T O. 103
Altar that is in it Saint Peter didfirjl officiate 5 the Crucifix was placed in it by the Apofttn* and the Image of Cedar is my Pitture drawn by the Hand of Saint Luke the Evangelift, who, for the great Friendflrip that was betwixt us, did draw my PiSure in Colours, 03 far as it is lawful for a Mortal to draw it. This Houfe, beloved of Heaven, was thro* many Ages wor- Jlripped with great Honours :, but that Worjbip having now, together with the Faith, ceafedm tbofe Parts, it did leave Nazareth, and is come into your Country : And that there may remain no Doubt of the Truth of this, it was all per formed by the Almighty, with whom no Word is impojjible : And that you may be both a Pub lifter of this Truth andaWitnefferofit, Ee you whole, that your judden Health, afterfo Ion? a Sick- nefs, may be a Teflimony to this Miracle.
Having faid this, the bleffed Virgin depart ed, and the Bifhop finding himfelf in perfect Health, he leapt out of his Bed, and forget ting his Age, Authority and all Decorum, he did run about the Streets as if he had been light-headed, making a Proclamation all the Way of his Vifion, and of all that had been re vealed to him.
Never were the Contents of any Proclama tion fwallowed more greedily, nor entertained with greater Rejoicings, than this of Bifliop Alexander'^ and fo much tranfported was Ni cholas Frangepani, the great Ban of Dalmatia, that he thought he could never do enough to exprefe his Thankfuluefs to Heaven for fo fin-
H 4 gular
1 04 A Hiftory of the famous
gular an Honour and Bleffing : And to put it out of the Power of fucceeding Generations to doubt of the Truth of Bifhop Alexanders Vifion, he did fend four Men of noted Skill and Probity, to fetch from Nazareth undeni able Evidences of it : Bifhop Alexander was one of the four, and having all got fafe to Nazareth^ they were told by the Chriftians that dwelt there, with an inexpreflible Sorrow, that on a certain Night, not long before, the Houfe that the bleffed Virgin was born and bred in, had left their City, and was gone whole and entire, they did not know whither : And the Dalmatians themfelves having taken the Dimenfions of the Ground whereon the Houfe had flood, and being told by the Na- zarenes of its Fabrick, and of all its Circum- fiances, they did all agree fo exaftly to the Houfe, which on the very fame Night had come into Dalmatia, that they could not o- therwife than conclude it to be the fame indi vidual Houfe, which had been fo long in Na zareth. Of all this the Dalmatians were, to their unfpeakable Joy, certified by Biftiop Alexander, after he returned home, in a Ser mon w^hicli he preached to them at that mi raculous Houfe. But this Joy of the Dalma tians lafted not long 3 for at the end of three Years and feven Months, no body can tell why or wherefore, urilefs it were to go into the Papal Territories, the miraculous Houfe left them, and in a dark and tempefluous Night (for it always travelled only by its own Light)
was
Houfe of L All RE TO. 105
was carried by four Angels over the Adria- tick Sea, which it had made lefs fubjeft to Storms than ever it was before, and was fet down in a Wood in Italy , that was about a Mile from that Sea 3 all the Trees of that Wood having, as it parted by them, bowed themfelves very low, and in that worfhipping Pofture they remained all the Time they flood, which would have been much longer than it was, if they had not been impioufly cut down by the Hands of Peafants, in order to im-% prove the Land. This Wood belonged to a Lady whofe Name was Laureto^ from whom that itinerant Houfe had the Name, which it ftill bears. The Shepherds, who were abroad looking after their Sheep in that ftormy Night, in the beginning of December, beheld a mar vellous Light all over the Wood, and fome of them were very pofitive that they faw the Houfe in the Air, as it was eroding the A- driatick Sea. The Houfe of Laureto, for fo I fhall call it hereafter, was no fooner fet down, than the Shepherds ran to it, and fur- veyed it all over by its own Light $ and in the Morning carried the News of that Rari ty to the City of Ricenetum : It was received there in the fame Manner as it was before at TnffSuM ^ old and young, rich and poor, tho' it was at the Diftance of four Miles from that City, flocked to it, and paid it all the fame Honours which were paid to it in Dalmatia by its firft Vifitors : It did work the fame Miracles on their Minds and Bodies: And
whereas
1 06 A Hiflory of the famous
whereas there was not in that Wood, nor ve ry near it, any Houfe for the Accomodatiou of Pilgrims, they were all forced to lodge upon the cold Ground, expofed to the Incle mency of the Winter Seafon, and the greater Inclemency of the impious Banditti 3 by whom the Pilgrims were robbed and murthered fo faft, that to the great Diminution of that Houfe's Worftiip, People began to be afraid to vifit it. But the Houfe of Laureto, inflead ' of deftroying or reftraining thofe irreligious Banditti, by its miraculous Power, did leave that Wood to them, and was by four Angels carried to a Hill, that was at a Mile's Diftance from it : That Hill was in common betwixt two Brothers, who rejoiced beyond Meafure at their having got fo great a Treafure upon their Land .- At firft they both feemed to wor- fhip it with extraordinary Devotion 5 but be ing at Bottom both extremely covetous, they foon began to quarrel about the dividing of the rich Offerings that were made, which they looked on as their own Goods, each of them pretending that the whole Hill belonged to him 5 and being ready to have decided the Controverfie with their Swords 3 the Houfe of Laureto, that it might no be defiled with Fraternal Blood, did leave their Hill in lefs than four Months after it came upon it, and fetled itfelf upon another Hill, not above a Bow-Shot from it, but which belonged to nei ther of thofe Brothers 5 and on this Jaft Hill it ftands to this Day.
Tho'
Honfe 0/ L A U R E T O. 107
Tho' the Italians were certain that the Houfe flood many Years in another Place, from the Teftimony of the Shepherds who had feen it crofs the Adriatick Sea, and from the Antiquity of its Building 5 yet not having heard any Thing of its having been in Dal- ?natia, (which was very ftrange, confidering how loud a Noife it had made there for a- bove three Years and a half, and the continu al Communication there was betwixt Dalma- tia and Italy} they could never learn from whence it had come to them $ until one Paul, an Hermit in the Wood of Laureto, had the fame Vifion concerning it, that Bifhop Alex ander had four Years before : When the Her mit did firft publifh his Vifion in the City of Picenum,) he was laughed at by every Body, as one that took his own diftempered Dreams for Vifions : But a Rumour foon after having crept about that fuch a Houfe had left Dal- matia about the Time when the Laureto came into Italy , Sixteen Embafladors were fent by the City of Picenum to examine that Part of the Hermit's Vifion $ and in cafe they found that to be true, they were to go on to Na zareth : The fixteen Embafladors being come to TfiftftWf they found that Part of the Hermit's Vifion true to a Tittle 5 and it was the fame at Nazareth, from whence they brought all the fame Evidences, that that Houfe left that City, as were brought fome Years before from thence by the Dalmatian Embaf- fadors. It was in the Year 1396 that iheltalian
EmbaL
1 08 A Hiftory of the famous
Embafladors returned to Italy with that Re port $ and yet, which is very ftrange, in above 1 50 Years after that, the miraculous Tranfla- tions of the Houfe of Laureto are no where mentioned by any Writer. The firft Writer that fpeaks of thofe miraculous Tranflations, was one Terrimannus, who writ about theYear 1460, when he was Provoft of that Houfe, and did never, that I heard of, write any thing befide the Narrative of thofe Tranflati- ons : That Narrative is in a rude and fimple Stile, andfoftiort that a fingle Board holds it all ^ it takes no Notice of the Dalmatian or Italian Embaflies to Nazareth., as it muft cer tainly have done, if Terrimannm had ever heard of them ^ nor does it make ufe of any other Teftimonies to help it felf to Credibility, befides thofe living Teftimonies which were picked up in Italy by Terriman- mts's Diligence : His firft Witnefs was one Rinalduciu^ a Citizen of Picenum, who, upon his corporal Oath, told Terrimannm^ he had beard his Grandfather fay , he Jaw the Houfe of Laureto in the Air, as it was cr offing the A- driatick Sea: Terrimannus's fecond and laft Wit nefs was one Francis a Prior in Picenum, who, upon his corporal Oath, fwore, that he heard his Grandfather, who lived to the ^\ge of 120, and was in his perfeft Senfes, affirm, That he had vifited the Houfe of Laureto, when it flood in the Wood 3 and that it afterwards, to his Knowledge, removed to a Hill, which be longed to two Brothers, and did at laft remove
to
Houfe of L A U R E TO. 1 09
to the Hill it now ftands upon. Upon thefe living Teftimonies Terrimannus's Narrative of the Tranflation of the Houfe of Laureto was foon believed over the whole Roman Catholick World : And that fo authentick a Narrative might be readby all Pilgrims, above IGO Years after it was firft publifhed it was tranflated in to eight Languages, to wit, Greek, Arabick, Spani/b9 French, Dutch, Sclawnick, Latin and Italian, and is writ in all thofe Languages on eight Boards, which are hung up in the Houfe of Laureto 3 and are in truth its higheft An tiquities.
If the Reports of Fads are rendered in dubitably true by their having been related as Truths by ancient People upon their own certain Knowledge, the Truth of the well known Hiftory of the Kingdom of Fairies ought not to be any longer doubted of: there being thoufands alive that may fafely fwear, that they have heard their Grandfathers or Grandmothers, or fome other antient People, tell all the Tales of that Hiftory, upon their own certain Knowledge, and as pofitively as it waspoffible for the Grandfathers of Terrima- mannus's two Witneffes, to tell their Tale of the Tranflations of the Laureto. I can fee no Reafonwhy the Legend vf Romulus sTranJlation fhould not be believed rather than this of the Tranflation of the Laureto, upon Proculus's, who was no obfcure Man, having affirmed upon Oath, that he faw Romulus up in the Air in Armour, and that when he was there he
did
no A Hiflory of the famous
did hear him command his Subjects to call him Quirinus, not Romulus arty more 3 a fin- gle Eye and Ear Witnefs being worth twenty that iwear only to what they were told by their Grandfathers about the Laureto.
That the miraculous Tranflations of the Laureto having either never been heard of, or not believed before the Year 1464, is, I think, pretty plain from thofe Tranflations not being mentioned in a long Infcription on a Cup of Gold, prefented in that Year by Pope Pius II. to the Lady of Laureto, nor in no other Wri tings before, relating to that Place ^ whereas in a few Years after thofe Tranflations are fpoke of in a Decree publiflied by Pope Paul II. and in all the other Papal Inftruments which have ever been fince concerning that Place. But tho5 Pius, when he made that Prefent to the Lady of Laureto, did know nothing of the miraculous Tranflations of her Houfe, yet the Vifit which he made to that Image, tho' he took Laureto only in his Way to Ancona, when he went to that City to concert with the Duke of Venice, and fome other Princes, the Ope rations of the Cruzado he had proclaimed, was the firft thing that did raife and fpread that Houfe's Name 5 which till that Time, tho' it was above 160 Years after that Houfe isfaid to have been brought into Italy, was confined within the Bounds of its own Neighbourhood, as TurfeUmus himfelf acknowledge^. But the Man that the Houfe of Laureto was chief ly beholding to for its high Name, was Pope
Paul
Houfe of L A U R E T O. Hi
Paul II. who being a Cardinal, and at Ancwa* when Pius died there, went with great Speed to the Laureto to pray for two things ^ the one was Health, and the other, that the next might be a good Pope : and the blefled Vir gin, if that Cardinal's Word may be taken for it, having appeared to him, Ihe firft prornif- ed him Health, and did afterwards aflurehim that he fhould be chofen Pope at the next E- led:ion. Upon thofe two Promifes having been fulfilled to him, Paul, in Gratitude, was fo wonderfully devoted to the Lady of Lau- reto, that during the whole Time of his Pon tificate, happy was the Man that could publifh any thing that tended to the advancing of her Worfhip, and that of her Houfe : And where as there was not any thing that could have been thought of that could have advanced that Worfhip fo much as a Report of that Houfe's being the very Houfe the blefled Vir gin was born and bred in at Nazareth 5 fo that was no fooner reported by Terrimannus, than Paul vouched for the Truth of it, by in- ferting it into a Papal Decree 5 tho' no Pope, nor no Man before, befides Ternmannus, had ever fpoke of any fuch Thing : And to fatif- fie the World that Paul himfelf did believe the Story of the miraculous Tranflations of the Houfe of Laureto, he did on their Account grant a plenary Indulgence to all that vifited that Houfe, with Faculties to its Priefts to abfolve People from all the Crimes which are referved to the Pope 5 which alone was enough
to
112 A Hijiory of the famous*
to bring much Company and rich Offerings to any Place. Note, That it was not fafe now for Chriftians to go on Pilgrimage to the Holy Land: To fatisfie that Superftition, and not to lofe the Profits of it, they were allured that the Houfe in the Holy Land that was wor- fliipped the moft, was now brought by Angels to their Doors, where, by vifiting that Houfe, and worfliipping it, they would partake of the fame Indulgences, as if they had gone to Nazareth to worfhip it. And being fenfible that if the Story of the miraculous Tranflati- ons of that Houfe fliould once come to be u- niverfally believed, that it muft become an invaluable Treafure to the Bifhop that it was immediately under 5 Paul did for that Reafon take it from under the Jurifdiftion of the Bi fliop of Ancona, and put it immediately under the Pope, who by that Means became the Ordinary, as well as the Prince of that Place : And for a flan ding Monument of his Grati tude to that Houfe, the Foundations of the magnificent and curioufly worked Church that is there now were laid by this Pope Paul: And tho' he did not live long enough to finifh fo great a Work, he went on with it apace as long as he lived at a prodigious Charge. So that Paul II. may juftly be called the Founder of the Houfe of Laureto, upon the Story of its miraculous Tranilations : For the Truth of which Tranflations, if that Pope had not vouched as foon as they were firft fpoke of, lerrimannufs Narrative of them would have
under-
Honfe 0jf L A U R E T O. 113
undergone the Fate of many fuch Stories, which was, not to outlive their Authors.
Sixtus IV. who fucceeded Paul, and his his Nephew, the Cardinal Bifhop otAncona, did take care to keep up the Fame of the Houfeof Laureto upon the Story of the miraculous Tranflations Paul had fetled it. Sixtus did not only confirm all the Immunities granted by his PredeceiTor to that Houfe, but he did alfo very much enlarge them, and did finifh the Church Paul had begun : And his Ne phew, the Cardinal Bifhop of Ancona, to fa- tisfie the World, that the Houfe of Laureto was certainly brought by Angels from Naza reth , did get the Keeping of that Houfe to be committed to the Carmelite Friars, as their Right 5 thofeFriars having firft proved be fore the Pope, that the Cuftody of that Houfe, when it was in Nazareth, belonged to their Or der. The famous BaptiJlaMantuanus was one of thofe Carmelite Friars, who by writing the Hiftory of that Houfe, and magnifying it in good Latin Verfe, did contribute to the fpread- ing its Fame. But the Carmelites, notwith- ftanding their antient Right to it, kept not that Houfe above feven Years, which was time enough to fill the World with the Fame of their having been the Keepers of it, when it was at Nazareth : Upon their dying very faft there, by reafon of the extraordinary Thick- nefs of its Air, they were commanded by their General to leave it, and remove to Pla ces where the Air *was more healthy. By
I this
114 ^ Hiftory of the famous
this Means the Keeping of the Laureto fell to fome Secular Prie/ts, who, out of the pro found Refpect the Jefuits have for the Secu lar Clergy, are by Tvrfeltmk called Mercena ries, as if the Jefuits that were there fince, did all maintain thernfelves out of their own Patrimonies.
Pope Innocent VIII. prefented the Houfe of Laureto with coftly Sacerdotal Veftraents, loaded with rich Jewels : It is not faid that Alexander VI. ( whofe Son Cafar Borgia could never have too much Money , ) did give any thing to the Laureto : But his Sue- ceffor, Julius II. did make amends for that 3 for having narrowly efcaped being torn to Pieces by a Cannon Bullet, that paffed thro' his Tent before Bonoma, after he had by Force of Arms reduced that, and fome other Cities, to the Papal Obedience, he went to Laureto 5 and having carried the Cannon Bul let, that had miffed him fo narrowly, along with him, he had it hung up there on the left Side of the Altar, where it hangs to this Day : And to give the Laureto a Caft of his Of fice, (for he had great Skill in Fortifications,) he built a ftrong -Wall about it, and did like- wife build feveral Chapels, fo, that if there were Occafion, they would ferve very well for Forts. The ftately Palace which is in the Laiiretofor the accommodating of the Pope and Sovereign Princes, when they come to vifit that Houfe, was likewife begun by Julius : It is built in the Form of a Caftle, and fo fituated
by
Houfe 0/LAURETO. 1 1 5
by that military Pope, as to ferve for a For- rrefs to the Laureto, if it fhould be attacked : And to engrofs the whole Jurifdidion of the Laureto to the Papacy, he did ftrip the City of Ancona of the Authority that City former ly had over it^and to bring it* to be looked on as a Part of thz'Tatican, he made all itsPriefts the Pope's Domeftick Chaplains, allowing them all the fame Privileges ^ and having erecled a great Choir at the Laureto, he beftowed a noble Organ upon it, with many other In- ftruments of Mufick.
Leo X. confirmed and inlarged the Immu nities granted to the Laureto by his Prede- ceffors, and having turned it into a Collegi ate Church, confifting of twelve Canons and twelve Manfionary Priefts, he granted to that Church all the Indulgences that do belong to the Stations of the Churches in Rome : And to draw Merchants from all Parts with rich Prefents to the Laureto, Leo difcharged all Fairs that were about it, and having done that, did fettle a Fair to be kept conftantly at Ancona in September, on the Day of our La dy 's Nativity. Leo would never fuffer the leaft Alteration to be made in the Houle that was brought from Nazareth 5 but, as we ihall fee prefently, his immediate SucceiTor Clement* was forced to take another Courfe with it. The fumptuous Chapel that is in the Lau~ reto was begun by Leo, and was carried up a great way by him at a prodigious Expence.
I 2 Clement
1 1 6 A Hiflory of the famous
Clement VII. who was Leo's Nephew and immediate Succeffor, was not behind his Un cle in Benefadions to the Laureto : The Cha pel Leo had begun there was finiihed by Clement, who having been informed by a fa mous Architect, whofe Name was Nerucius, that theHoufe of theL*wrtf0,if fomething were not done to it fpeedily, could not ftand long ^ and that the Roof of its Chapel, which was made of Wood, was in great Danger of being fet on Fire by the Multitude of Lamps which were continually burning under it : To pre vent thofe two fad Difafters, Nerucius was difpatched to Laureto by Clement, with a ftrift Command to do all that was poffible to keep that old Houfe upon its Legs : When Nerit- cius was come to Laureto, there was not a Mafon nor a Day-labourer to be had for Love or Money, to have any Hand in that Work : And it was no wonder, confidering how loud till that Time it had been rung into all Peo ples Ears, that the Houfe of Laureto, which was vifibly a weak Building, having flood fourteen hundred Years, without having had anything done to it by Men, was. an undeni able Evidence of its being upheld by a Mira cle, and of the Truth of its whole Legend : And fo poileifed were the People in and about Laureto with that Story, that they did all look on the offering it any human Help to .keep it up as a very great Affront to it, implying a Disbelief of the Truth of its Le- Legend. But Nerucws, who underftood Ar-
chitefture
Houfe 0/LAURETO, 117
chitedure well, and the Age of Buildings, having narrowly furf eyed that old Houfe all over, was free from that Superftition 5 and to let the Mafons fee that they might repair that old Houfe as fafely as any other, he took up a Hammer, and gave its Wall a hard Blow with it : That rafli Blow had like to have coft him dear, for he had no fooner given it than his Right Hand was feized with a dead Num- nefs, which got to his Heart fofoon, that he fell down dead upon the Spot, and continued fo for fix Hours $ when, by his devout Wife's Prayers and Vows to the Houfe of Laureto, he was reftored to Life again $ but fo terri fied, that if the Pope would have given him the City of Ro?ne, he would not have med dled any more with repairing that Houfe, which was fo highly provoked by having any human Afliftance offered it: However, the Pope was not it feems fo fuperftitious, who knowing that that old Houfe, let it be as an gry as it would, could not ftand long, if fomething were not done to it, engaged a Prieft who belonged to the Laureto, and was a very good Architeft, to go about re pairing it 5 that Prieft, whofe Name was Ven tura^ would not, after he had undertaken that Work, give any Directions about it, until he had fafted three Days, and made the fol lowing Prayer to the Houfe he was to make fobold with. 0 J "acred Houfe of the Virgin, fpare my Innocency ^ it is not /, but Clement, the Vicar of God, who is to dig up thy Poun-
1 3 dations
1 1 8 A Hijlory of the famous
dations $ he is willing to adorn thee, and make fome Conveniences for thy Worjlrippers $ let that pleafe the Mother of God that pleafeth God's Vicar. Upon this Prayer the Houfe did, in obedience to the Pope's Commands, pa tiently fubmit to all that Ventura ordered to be done about it 5 who, having firft kid open its Foundations, did fcrew it up whole into the Air withEngines 5 and having kept it hang ing there until he had laid a firm Foundation, he afterwards let the Houfe down, and fetled it finely upon thatFoundatiort:, making it as ftrong as Art, that was not ftinted in its Expences, could make it : After that he built an Arch with Marble under the old wooden Roof ^ and finding the old Houfe did bear all thofe Alterations and Shakings patiently, to let more Light into its Chapel, he made the little old Window much bigger than it was before ^ and having flopped up the old Door, which flood very incommodioufly, both for its folemn Ser vice, and its great Numbers of Pilgrims, he made three new Doors in its Walls at con venient Diftances. By thefe great Alterations the Face of the Laureto was ib changed, that the Grandfathers of Terrimannus's two Wit- neffes, if they were alive, would not take it for the Houfe one of them faw coming over the Adriatick, and the other worlhipped in three different Places in Italy.
But tho' theLauretodid fubmit quietly to the Pope's Commands, as to all thefe neceffary Re parations, it would not do fo in all Cafes 5 but,
as
Houfe of L A U R E T O. 119
as we {hall fee hereafter, would mutiny againft the Papal Orders, and chaftife the Perfons fe- verely that came to do any thing to it, which it had no mind to have done.
Now confidering what had been fo confi dently given out of the miraculous immutable Eftate of that old Houfe, and of its having always difdained all human Helps as Affronts to it 5 more than a common Addrefs was ne- ceffary to divert People from having their Faith in its firft Legend fhaken, by feeing that which had been the main Evidence of its Truth falfe in Fad. Of this the Pope and his Architects were fo fenfible, that to molli- fie that Matter, as much as they were able 5 the giving of a new Roof and new Foundati ons, and three new Doors to an old Houfe, were by them not called Repairing but Adorning it : And no fooner were that Houfe's Foundations laid open than loud Reports did bolt out of clearer Evidences having been found under them of that Houfe's having been built at Nazareth, than had ever appeared be fore , that of the old Houfe having continued above fourteen hundred Years without the lead Change not excepted. A Story was likewife fet about of Pope Chmenfs having fent three of the Gentlemen of his Bedcham ber to Dalmatia, and to Nazareth, for far ther Confirmations of that Houfe's having been at boththofe Places 5 and that they being returned had brought with them Stones which they had dug out of a Quarry near Naza-
I 4 retb,
120 A Hi ft or y of tie famous
retb, which did very much referable Brick : It was faid they were the fame with the Stones the Walls of the Laureto were built with, and that there were no fuch Stones any where elfe in the World : Now People having been entertained and amufed with thefe Stories, xvhilft the Laureto was repairing , and which was, and is ftill by all its Creatures, called only the Adorning of it $ this great Con tradiction to what had been formerly report ed and believed concerning the Laureto^ did pafs over with lefs Prejudice to its high Fame than could well have been expeded.
Clement having fucceedcd fo well in this bold, but neceflary Enterprize, he went upon another that was much more difficult, and which had fomething in it likewife that refle- d:ed not a little on the Credit of the Laureto's Legend : It was to mend the Air of that Place, which was fo fickly, that in no Town in Italy People were fubjecl to fo many bad Diflempers 5 and for the Children that were born in it or near it, few or none of them, if they were not removed to a better Air, did outlive their Infancy.
This extraordinary Badnefs of its Air was fome Reflection on the Skill or Kindnefs of its Bearers, who, after they had carried it over many healthy Countries, and were able to have carried it farther, had fixed it at laft in fo unhealthy a Place 5 but it was a much greater Reflection on the Houfe it felf, which could not have employed its miraculousPower,
either
Houfeof LAU R ETC. 12 I
either more ufefully, or more for its own Worfhip, than by making the Air more heal thy both for old and young : However, fince the Laureto feemed not to be difpofed to do it felf that good "Office, Clement did refolve, if it were poflible, to have it done for it 3 and having been informed by the Phyficians, that the Caufes of the Badnefs of that Air were the great Marfhes and Woods that were about it, with the two high Mountains that were near it, he difpatched Orders to the Provoft of that Place to fet all Hands to work to drain the Marfhes, and to cut down the Woods, leaving the removing of the two Mountains, as a great Nuifance to the Laureto's own miraculous Power : But tho' the Provoft was as zealous as the Pope could be to have mend ed the Air, and did employ all the poor Pil grims, that could make no Offerings, and were able to work, in the draining of the Marfh es, he was not able to bring that Work to Perfection :> fo the Air of the Laureto conti nued (till fickly, tho\ by what had been done, it was fomething better than it was before ^ and for the Mountains they continued as they were.
Paul III. who fucceeded Cle?nent, did re- fume the Work of draining the Marfhes, and did alfo level fome fmall Hills 5 and having been informed by fome skilful Architeds, that the old Houfe, Roof, Walls, Steeple, and Chim ney, could not ftand long, with what Ventu ra had done to them : Paul, who was a bold
Man,
122 A Hiflory of the famous
Man, ordered them all to be pulled down at once, and a ftrong new Houfe of the fame Figure amd Dimenfions to be built in the fame Place where the old Houfe flood 5 and that the new Houfe might have the fame miraculous Power the old Houfe had, the Materials of the old Houfe were buried under the Pavements of the new : And as if the old Houfe had been tranfubftantiated into the new Houfe, and it had been the Species, and not the Subjiance of the old Materials that had been buried, all this was by the Pope and his Ar- chitefts called only the Adorning of the old Houfe with new Buildings 5 and had not this great Alteration had the Misfortune to be foon after recorded in Hiftory, before thisTime the World would have been faced down, that the Houfe which is now {landing in the Lau- reto was the very Houfe, without any Alte ration, which was built above fifteen hundred Years before in Nazareth. But by the great Plague of Printing Hiftories, this, and many more ufeful Impositions, which were before very eafie, are now rendered almoft impoffible, if any thing can be too hard for fome- Fore heads. Upon a Complaint of the City of An- cona of the great Injury had been done them by Pope Julius, when he deprived them of the Authority they had over the Laureto, and over the Countrey about it, that Autho rity was reftored to them by Pope Paul, but with an Exception as to the Houfe of Laurtto^ and all that belonged to it $ and with the fol lowing
Honfe of L A U R E T O. 123
lowing; heavy Conditions : Firft, That they fhould be obliged to make the Laureto as ftrong as it was capable of being made : Secondly ,That they (honld conftantly maintain a Garrifon in it, fufficient to defend it againft the Inva- fion of the Turks, who were, by the Fame of the great Riches of the Laureto, made ex tremely defirous to vifit it : Thirdly^ That they fliould guard the Roads fo well, that the Pilgrims might come and go in Safety • and whereas Pope Leo had expended eight thou- fand Aurei on the fortifying of the Laureto >, that Money fliould be paid back by the City of Ancona to the Papal Exchequer : But An cona enjoyed not this dear bought Authority very long, it having been taken from them a- gain by Pope Pius HI, on Pretence that the Fortifications of the Laureto were not kept in good Repair by them 5 and we are not told that they had the eight thoufand Aurei, which they had paid into the Papal Exchequer on that Agreement. The Pope's Palace in the Laureto was finifhed and adorned with noble Gates and Statues by this Pope Paul; and having underftood that Salt was very fcarce in that Place, he afligned to it twenty Sacks of Salt every Year out of the Salt Ponds of Cervia $ and being called twice to Ancona by publick Bufinefs, he vifited the Laureto both the Times.
About this Time a new Channel was opened for the conveying of Offerings to the Laureto, which had not come to it before, or but in
final!
124 A Hiftory of the famous
fmall Quantities $ it was to fend fomething or other, naturally of a fmall intrinfick Va lue, from the Laureto to all that were much devoted to it, but were by Sicknefs, or their great Diftancefrom it, or the Badnefs of its Air, hindered from Vifiting it 5 and as the fame miraculous Cures were wrought by thofe Relids on all that had them, and worshipped them, as the Laureto itfelf would have done, if they had vifited it } fo there was all the Reafon in the World, that they fhould make the fame or greater Offerings than they would have made to that Houfe, if they had been at the Trouble and at the Expence of a Vifit.
JuliM III. did a great Service to the Lau reto, by founding in it a College of Jefuits, who, tho'they were but twelve at firft, did, as foon as they were there, ring the World a louder Peal of the Prodigies and Miracles of the Laureto than they had ever heard be fore : And as it was the frequent Lights which were feen about the Laureto in the Night-time (tho5 that was no fuch great Prodigy in fo fen ny a Country) that firft drew the Eyes of the World upon it , fo for a whole Night toge ther, foon after the Jefuits came to it, great FJafhes of Lightning, which refembled Stars, were feen to dart from the Laureto to the Mountains that were near it, and to return back again to the Laureto $ and one Day when a Jefuit was preaching in the Church, a great Flaih of Lightning was feen in it of an uu-
ufual
Houfe of L A U Pv E TO- 125
ufual Colour by the whole Congregation 5 all which Lightnings were by the Jefuits called Heavenly Illuminations, and publilhed as fuch to the World, to the drawing of a much great er Number of Pilgrims to vifit it than were ever feen at it before • Ten, fometirnes Twenty , fometimes Thirty thoufand Pilgrims having been together at the Laureto, foon after the Jefuits were the Trumpeters of its Miracles 5 fuch Bunglers were the Carmelites and the Se cular Prims, who had been there before, to the Jefuits. And there not being Conf effort e- nough to hear the Confeffions of fuch great Multitudes, and the Jefuits being of all others the beft Confejfors, eight and twenty Jefuits more were added to the twelve, who were before in the Laureto $ and who being compofed of all Chriftian Nations, have by fpeaking the Languages of all the Pil grims, ingrofled the confefling of them all to themfelves.
Pius V. was a great Benefador to the Lau- reto, by giving his infallible Teftimony to the Truth of its miraculous Translations, which he did by Printing the Figure of that Houfe on the Agnw Dei\ which he confecrated, with thislnfcription about them 5 Vera domus florida, qua fuit in Nazareth^ The true fiourijb'nig Houfe, which was in Nazareth : Now unleis they will fay that the old Houfe of the Lan- mewas tranfubftantiated into the new which was buillt by Paul III. this Teftimony of Pi- o/s nauft be falfe. In this Pope's Time the
famous
12 6 A Hiftory of the famous
famous Statues of the twelve Sybils , and ma ny more, were fet up in the Laureto.
Gregory XIV. when he proclaimed a Jubilee in the Year 1575, pafs'd the greateft Com plement upon the Laureto, that was ever paf- fed before by a Pope upon any Place: For, whereas, to draw all devout People to Rome in the Year of the Jubilee, the Indulgences, which have been granted by the Popes to o- ther Places, are all fufpended for that Year 5 Gregory, that the Laureto might not be de- ferted by Pilgrims, did except its Indulgences, which were, during the Time of the Jubilee, to remain in their full Force ^ and by that Means, and by the Pope's having ordered all the Roads to the Laureto to be mended, there was a greater Conflux of Pilgrims to it in that Jubilee Year, than was ever in any Year be fore 5 neither had Rome much Caufe to com plain of this Indulgence to the Laureto, both thofe Places having been vifited that Year by all or moft of the rich Pilgrims $ and for the poor ones that come as Beggars, Rome would not envy them their going to the Lau reto.
Sixtus V. who was born not very far from the Laureto, was very kind to it 5 for by him the Laureto was ereded into a City, and an Epifcopal See, and a Mountain that :was near it, called Mount Royal, was level ed by him, and fpacious Streets built on the Ground where it had flood.
Clement
Houfe of L AUR ETC. 127
Clement VIII. enlarged all the Indulgences granted by his Predeceflbrs to the Laureto on certain Feftivitys, to the whole Year 5 and did order the eighth of December the Day whereon the Houfe of Nazareth was fet down in that Place, to be obferved as a Feftwity all over that Country. It is the Day of our Lady's Conception, which was a Secret till the eleventh Century, when it was revealed to an Englifi Monk at Sea, in a moft dread ful Storm. But as late as the Difcovery of the Day of this Conception was, the Difco very of its being Immaculate ', or without any Stain of Original Sin, was above two hundred Years later ^ Scotus, who lived in the four teenth Century 3 being the firft Man who e- ver affirmed it : By the good Fortune this new Dodrine had in the Roman Church, the World may learn not to wonder at two Things 5 the one is, That a Dodrine which is notori- oufly new fhould become the Idol Dodrine of that Church,^ the other is, That the Popijb Writers, and efpecially the Jefuits, fhould boldly and magifterially affirm a Dodrine, that is palpably new, to have been always the Do drine of the Chriftian Church, and fhould <mifconftrue the Fathers, Greek and Latin, fo as to force them, in Contradidion to their plain Belief, to bear Teftimony to it.
Here we fee what the Popes, in a long Suc- ceflion, have done to impofe on the Cbriftian World the Belief of the miraculous 1 ranflati- ons of the Houfe of the Laureto; tho* at the
fame
1 2 8 A Hijlory of tht famous
fame Time it is not eafie for any one knows the Penetration and Sagacity of thofe Men to think, that there was one among them all that did ever believe one Tittle of thofe Tranflations ^ and tho' fuch Behaviour is not common, it is no Miracle in a Body that be lieves the Devifing and Supporting of Pious Frauds to be not only Lawful, but Merito rious : But have not they, in the mean while, a fine Time of it, who, to their great Coft and Trouble, do implicitly believe all that is told them by Men that are avowedly of that Principle ^ and if fuch an Implicit Faith as this be the Safeft Faith that is, as it is faid by ma ny to be, the fafeft Way to Heaven muft be by the Ways of Lies and Falfliood 5 for pious Frauds, if they be not Lies, are no Frauds at all.
A Sample of the Great Riches of the L A U R E T O.
• V4 I •" f;-
THere was an Image of the bleffed Vir gin in the Laureto, which, with an hundred more in other Places, was faid to have wrought Prodigies many Years before its miraculous Tranflations were ever heard of: The Prodigies that firft caufed it to be taken notice of, were the frequent Lights that were feen about it in the Night, which were fome- thingthe lefs prodigious for itsftuilirn; among
Fens 3
Honfe of L A U R E T o.
Fens: And as no Images had the Name of working Prodigies fooner than Offerings were made to it, fo the Laureto had undoubtedly fome Offerings brought to it before its mira culous Tranflations were eVer dreamt of ^ but they were fo inconfiderable, that there is not one of them remaining, befides the Cup of Gold that was offered to that Image by Pope tius IL in the Year 1464, which was within five pr fix Years of the Time when the Legend of its Tranflations was hatch'd : Whereas ever fince thofe Tranflations were fpoke of and believed, rich Prefents have flowed daily from all Parts to that Houfe, and do remain in it as ftand- ing Teftimonies of its Tranflations having been either never heard of, or not believed be^ fore 5 for if they had, there muft have been Prefents in it of an older Date than any arc to be met with there. It would be an endlefs Work to enumerate all the Prefents that have been made fince that Time to the Liureto, in Money, Lands, rich Clothes andVeftments; and for that reafon I will not mention them here particularly 5 but will only fet down the Prefents which have been made to that Houfe, fince its miraculous Tranflations Were believed, by Popes, Cardinals and Princes of both Sexes, in Jewels, and in Gold and Silver, which, tho' very confiderable, are but a Sample of the Prefents of the fame Sort that have been made to that Houfe.
Julius II. prefented the Laureto with a Sil ver Crofs, curioufly gilt, that weighed forty K Pound*
130 A Hiftory of the famous
Pound, and with a pair of Silver Candlefticks :that weighed fix and twenty.
Leo X. prefented it with a pair of gilt Sil ver Candlefticks that, weighed fifty Pound. The ouftomary Prefents made by Popes to Queens being a Rofe of Gold, Gregory XIII. prefented the Lady of the Laureto as \heQueen of Heaven^ with a Gold Rofe, in a Box of the feme Metal, valued at a thoufand Aurei.
The Cardinal of Tram prefented the Lau- reto with the Image of the blefled Virgin in Silver. The Cardinal of Carpi prefented it with a large Crucifix, with the Images of the Bleffed Virgin and of St. 'Jobn9 with a pair of Candlefticks, and with a Chalice all in Silver. The Cardinal of Auftria prefent the Lady of Laureto with Cloaths made of Cloth of Gold, with a Necklace of an hundred and fifty large Pearls, and a Pendant of Gold fet with rich Diamonds. The Cardinal Quatuor Coronatorum pretented the Laureto with an Head in Silver. The Cardinal of Urbin pre fented it with a large Crofs, and a pair of Can dlefticks in Silver, with a moveable Altar made of Diamonds, with two Chalices of Gold. The Cardinal of Auftria prefented it with a pair of Candlefticks made of folid Ebony, fet thick with Diamonds. The Cardinal Sfon- dorato prefented it with the Image of the Bleffed Virgin in Silver. The Cardinal of Lorrain prefented it with a Crofs of Chriftal, with Chrift upon it in Gold, and with a Gol den Chalice with a Foot of Chriftal, and
with-
ffoitfe 0/'L A U R E T O. 131
with a pair of Candlefticks, two Bafons and a Ewei\ and a Holy Water Pot and Brufli, all made of Gold and Chriftal, valued at three thoufand Aurei. Cardinal Refticuciiis prefent- ed it with the BlefTed Virgin in Silver. The Cardinal Mont alto prefented it with his own and his Brother's Pictures in Silver, which weighed an hundred and forty Pounds. The Cardinal Abalta?nps prefented with the Pifture of a Boy, that was his Kinfman, in Silver. The Cardinal Efte prefented it with a Heart made of Gold. The Cardinal Riariwt pre fented it with a Crofs made of Gold. The Cardinal Madrucius prefented it with a large Button made of Gold, with three Clutters of Diamonds upon it. The Cardinal of Aujtria prefented it with a Crofs made of Gold, {land ing on a Mountain of the fame Metal, adorn* ed with rich Jewels. The Cardinal Sand: A Praxedif prefented it with his own Pifture in Silver.
Ferdinand, King of the Romans prefented the Laureto with the Picture of the Blefled Virgin in Silver, that weighed one and thirty Pound, with the Queen of Bohemia at he** Feet worfhipping her. The Duke of Guife, to make himfelf popular in France, vifitedthe Laureto, and threw eight thoufand Aurei into its Treafury ^ and gave it befides two Silver Lamps of a prodigious Bignefs. King Henry I1L to countermine that Duke, if it were pofiible, did fend a moft noble Prefent to the Laureto, with an humble Supplication to it for a 8:>n$
K a the
132 A Hiflory of the famous
The Prefent was a Cup cut out of a Saphire of a prodigious Bignefs, its Cover was a Chriftal laded with rich Jewels, and on the Cover flood an Angel made of Gold, holding a Flower-de- Luce in his Hand, compofed of three Dia monds, curioufly joined together 5 the Foot of the Cup was an Emerald gilt, thick fet with rich Jewels and Union Pearls 5 but tho' that King never had any Children, the Laureto never reftored that Prefent. The Duke of Bavaria prefented it with a Crofs made of Emeralds Handing on a Mountain of Chriftal, valued at a thoufand Aitrei. Amadeus of Sa voy prefented it with his own Pifture gilt in Silver, and thick fet with Jewels. Filbert: Duke of Savy, to let the World fee that he was a King, prefented it with his own Pifture in Gold and with a Crown and Scepter in Gold, often Pound Weight. Baffanus, Duke of Mantua, prefented it with his own Pifture in Silver. The Duke of Par?na prefented it with a Crofs of Gold. The Duke of Florence prefented it with a Galley and Oars made of Silver. The Duke of Ferrara prefented it with his own Pidure in Silver. Catharine de Medicis, Queen of France, prefented it with a Silver Lamp of a prodigious Bignefs, with a perpetual Endowment to furniih it with Oil. The Queen of Hungary prefented it with her own Pidure in Silver. The Dut- chefs ofLorrain prefented it with a Heart and a Collar of Gold, with a Crown made of Pearl, and a Necklace of Diamonds. Joanna vfAu-
Jlria,
HoufeofL AUR E TO. 133
ftria^ Dutchefs of Florence, prefented it with two Hearts made of 6old, in two Saucers of the fame Metal, with a large Crucifix in Silver, an da large Crofs of Ebony, with four mafTy Silver Candlefticks, and with coftly Clothes richly adorned with Jewels. Margaret of Aujlria, Dutchefs of Parma, did throw a great Sum of Gold into its Cheft 5 and fo did Don John of Auflria, when he vifitcd it, with fo fingular a Devotion, as made him the Idol of Popifh Bigots in all Parts, but chiefly in Eng land, whofe Crown was foon after given him by the Pope. The Princefs of Vaftalla pre fented it with her own and her Prince's Pi- fture in Gold, and with two Hearts in Gold, that weighed fix Pound. The Princefs of Bafmiani prefented it with a Dragon in Gold, curioufly variegated with rich Jewels, valued at feven thoufand Aurei. I fliall mention but one Prefent more, and that for the Managery there was about it. After the miraclous Tran- flations of the Laureto w?Te believed, the neighbouring Cities went once a Year procef- liohally to vifit it :> and to obferve the Eaftern Cuftom towards the Eaftern Objeft of Adora tion, they open'd their Way to it with Crowns 'of Silver, from two to feven Pound Weight 3 this Cuftom continued until there were three- fcore and ten Crowns of Silver in the Lau reto, when its Officers reckoning that the multiplying of fuch Crowns yearly would nei ther be any great Advantage, nor any great Honour to their Houfe, they made a Bargain
K 3 with
134 ^ Hiflory of the famom
with the Cities to lend them one of the beft of the Crowns, which they had given, to offer up yearly to the Lmireto^ paying them a cer tain Sum of current Money for the Loan of it.
Befides the inimenfe dead Treafure in Jew els, Gold and Silver, and coftly Clothes and Veftments that is in the Laureto, there is a great Treafure of .current Money $ for fince the Jefuits were its Faffors, there have been in fome Years ten, in others fixteen, in others twenty thoufand Aurei thrown into its Trea« fury by Pilgrims : Of this Treafure the Pope is Lord no lefs than he would be if it were laid up in the Vatican^ of which they would have the Laureto to be reckoned a Part : Some Money was drawn out of this Treafury by Pope Leo., and by his Nephew PopeCfo^Ttf , who were both {aid to have paid it back again.
Of the Miracles which are fad to have been wrought by the 'LAURETO.
Yv 40 i\^.' Si o , [iH ^ XA , '1 / u
>:A '•',} -: ^">1O 'K'i^^t.^ afij '4*
IF the Laureto's Heralds may be believed, its Miracles are numberlefs : I fhall menti on only a few of the moft remarkable,by which the Reader may be enabled to pafsa true Judg ment on all the reft .The working of Miracleswas at that Time believed to be fo common a Thing that no Popifli Country was without Multi tudes of Images! or Rdicks that wrought them 5
to
of L A U R E T O. 135
but unlefs an Image were believed to have "a/ Power of working, which could be wrought no where elfe, it would not fowell have car ried its Name beyond the narrow Bounds of its Neighbourhood, foas to draw Pilgrims and Offerings to it from Places at any great Dfc- ftance : for which reafon one of the firft Mi racles, that isfaid to have been wrought by the Laureto after the News of its Translations/ had its Eye direftly on the helping that Houfe to the Fame of fo fingular a Power.
The Story was as follows : One Antonia, the Wife of Peter Orgentorix, a rich Citizen of Grenoble, being poffeffed with feven of the word and fturdieft of Devils, tho' flie had been carried by her kind Husband for Help to all the Places in France, famous for mira culous Cures, could meet with none at any of them 5 however, Peter hoping that there might be fome Place in Italy that was more powerful to caft out Devils, he carried his Wife firft to St. Julius in Milan, and after wards to St. Ger?nnnanus in Modeiia, and at Jaft to the holy Pillar in Rome, but to no man ner of Purpofe $ not one of the feven Devils that were in Antonia having ever been in the leaft moved by all the Exorcifms in thofe Places : So poor Peter defpairing of a Cure, was ready to carry his Wife back to France, in as bad a Condition as he brought her out of it : But having, before he left Rome, had the good Luck to meet a Knight of Rhodes, who was much devoted to the Laureto, he was ad-
K 4 vifed
136 A Hi ft or y of the famous
vifed by that Knight to carry his Wife to that Houfe, where he allured him Miracles were wrought which were wrought no where elfe $ upon this welcome Intelligence away went Peter immediately with his Wife to Laureto, where being held in the Chapel by ten Gi- gantick Men, (he was exorcifed by a Pried whofe Name was Stephen 5 with his very firft Exorcifm Stephen carried a great Point, having forced all the feven Devils by it to tell him their Names $ but they were fo ftrangely per tinacious, that tho' he called them all by their Names to come out of Antonia, not one of them would ftir : Stephen's Conftancy in exorcifing did at laft conquer the Obftinacy of four of thofe Devils, who ruihed out of Antonia^ fil ling the Houfe with a moft hideous Noife j The other three, who were ftronger andftur- dier, did not budge, until Stephen began to exorcife Antcnia in Mary's Name only, where as before he had exorcifed her in God and Ma ry's Name together-^ the fifth Devil, whofe Naifae was Heroth, being vanquifhed withthefe Exorcifms, flew out of Antonia, faying to Ste phen at parting, It is not thou, but Mary, that hath caft me out of this Woman. The fixth Devil, whofe Name was Horrible, began to whine, and having in a lamentable Note cried out, Mary, Mary, tbou art too cruel to us. away he went likewife. The feventh Devil, whofe Name was Arfto, began to groan, and having roared out, Mary, thou art too •powerful in tbtirlace to drive-as out of our PoJJef-
HonfeofLkUR E T O. 137
fwns : He would gladly have departed, if Ste phen would have Buffered him 5 but fince Ar- Bo had complained of the fingular Vertue of of that Place, Stephen was refolved before he would let him go, to extort from him the whole Truth of its Legend : So he ask'd ArSo what Place that was ? ArBo, much againft his Will, made Anfwer, In this Chamber the Mother of God received the Menage that was brought to her by the Archangel Gabriel : Stephen being very defirous to know in what Fart of the Chamber Mary flood when fhe received the Angelical Salutation, and where the Angel Hood when hefpoke it : Arfto, much againft the Grain, anfwered, Mary Jloo d in the Corner that is by the Right Side of the holy Chimney ; in which Place, upon this Information, the Bench was fet up, on which the Pilgrims do kneel ;, and that Gabriel, out of the profound Veneration he had for her^ did ftand in the Corner oppofite to it, upon the Right Side of the Window. Stephen overjoyed at his having got all this out of Artto, he difmiffed him, but ArSo did leave Antonia with fo great a Vio lence, that he threw her down dead upon the Pavement $ Antonia being quickly fetched to Life again, fhe and her Husband returned a thoufand Thanks to the Laureto, for a Cure fhe had not been able to meet with any where elfe, neither was (he ever after molefted by any of thofe Devils. A Fad: that raifed the mira culous Power of the Laureto fo high above what was to be met with in any other Place
(Rome
138 A Hiflory of the famous
(Rome itfelf not excepted) diJftand in need of good Vouchers 5 and for that Reafon Man- tuanus faith? that he was an Eye-witnefs of it 5 and being himfelf a Carmelite Friar, he adds, that Ar&o being asked, to whom the keep ing of that Houfe had belonged, when it way in Nazareth? He anfwered, It belonged to the Carmelites: AnAAngelita, who writ theHifto- ry of the Laureto, affirms, that his Father had likewife faid, that he was an Eye-witnefs. of that Miracle ^ which Teftimony, to doit Ju- ftice, is ftronger than thofe of Terrimannus's two WitnelTes, which they had by Hearfay from their two very old Grandfathers.
Another Miracle that is faid to be wrought by the Laureto foon after its miraculous Tran- ilations, was a ftrange Miracle indeed :> but it had one thing in it that was not ftrange, which was its having the Confirmation of the Truth of the Legend of the Laureto direftly in its Eye : That ufeful Miracle was, that a cer tain Dalmatian Prieji having been made a Cap tive by the Turks, and vehemently urged by them to renounce his Faith, was {till calling on the Laureto to ftrengthen him againft that Temptation ^ and being asked by the Turks, where that Laureto was he invocated fo much ? He anfwered, It was in his Bowels, and that it would never fuffer him to change his Religion : If it be there, faid the Turks, it fliall foon be removed 5 and having torn out the Prieft's Bowels, and thrown them upon the Ground, they asked him whereabout the Laureto was
W
Hmfeof L AU RE TO. 139
in them? He anfwer'd nothing.but to their great Confufion, if not Converfion, (looped down, did take all his Bowels up with his Hand, and ran away with them in it over a great Trad of Land, and over the Adriatick Sea 5 and having brought them in his Hand to the Laitreto, and offered them up there with great Devotion, he gave up the Ghoft : Thofe Bowels were hung up near the Chapel of the Laureto, and did hang there till they rotted 5 but that the Memory of fo ftrange and ufeful a Miracle might be preferved, the Pifture of thofe Bowels were drawn upon a Board, and hung up in the Laureto, where they are to this Day (hewed to all Pilgrims. And that it might not be in the Power of fucceeding Ages to doubt of the Truth of this Miracle, Turfellinus writes, that in his Days there were feveral alive, who had fpoke with People that had feen the Bowels themfelves hanging up by the Chapel 5 but that they were removed from thence to another Place of that Houfe, by reafon of the Pilgrims flaring fo much up on them, that they were not fo attentive in their Devotions, as they otherwife would have been.
A certain Genoefe, who, according to what the Italians fay of his Country, had not much Religion, did fay one Day in Difcourfe, as he was on a Journey, that the Laureto was no an cient Monument of the Ueffed Virgin s^ but a new Invention of Superftition and Avarice. On the fame Day that he faid that, he had a FalJ
from
140 A Hiflory of the famous
from his Horfe, and had never rifen again if he had not called on the Laureto for Help ^ but fo defperate an Unbeliever was this Geno- efe, that tho' he was helped by the Laureto up upon his Horfe, he was no fooner upon him than he began to doubt of the Truth of its Legend: Upon that he was immediately ftruck Stone-blind, and deprived of all his other Senfes} but having fate his Horfe however, tho' he knew not how to govern him, his Horfe carried him direftly to the Laureto 3 where having made a folemn Vow never to doubt any more of the Truth of that Houfe's miraculous Tranflations, his Senfes were all perfectly reftored, and he did con tinue all his Days a firm and moft devout Be liever of that Story.
The Carmelites, notwithftanding their an cient Right to the keeping of the Laureto, having left it, on the Account of the Badnefs of its Air 5 the Francifcans, who are com monly a meaner and a hardier Sort of People, and withal fo much more numerous, that for the Advantage of their Order, they can afford to facrifice twenty of their Friars Lives to a bad Air better than the Carmelites can fpare one, do feem to have laid in for the Keeping of that Houfe 3 and to that end, a learned and devout Franciscan friar, being very fickly, went for a Cure to the Laureto, where he had not prayed long for Health, before the bleffed Virgin appeared to him, and bid him pray for fomething elfe, for that was granted
already ;
jffonfe of L A U R E T O. 14*
already : So dull was that Francifcan, that he did not make ufe of that Opportunity to pray that his Order might have the Keeping of the Laureto -j but being contented with his Health's being perfeftly reftored, after having publifhed his Vifion and what had been faid to him in it, and given folemn Thanks to the Laureto for his Recovery, he returned home fo well, that the World could not but fee that the Franciscans, if the Keeping of the Lau reto were committed to their Cuftody, would have no Reafon to leave it, as the Carmelites had done, on the Account of the Sicklinefs of its Air 3 feeing, in defiance of that bad Air, and all its ill Influences, they fhould have their Health reftored and preferved by the miraculous Power of that Houfe : But the Re port of this Vifion and miraculous Cure not having been found fufficient to do that Buft- nefs5 after four Years the fame Friar was fa cruelly perfecuted by Devils, that he was o- bligedto go for Succour to the Laureto again, where the bleffed Virgin appeared to him the fecond Time ^ and having bid him be of good Courage, promifed him an entire Vidory over all the Devils that had tormented him;; but tho' that Viftory was gained as foon as it was promifed, he died fo foon after it, that he fung his Triumph for it in Heaven $ but was neither there nor at the Laureto able to obtain the Keeping of that Houfe for his Order.
A Cur-
A Hiftory of the famous
A Curtefan, who had got a great Eftate in Money and Jewels at Venice^ having refolved to go home to her own Country, (which was Sicily) and to take the.Lauretoin her way 5 as ihe was going thither, fhe fell into the Hands of a Troop of Banditi$ who ha ving cut her Throat from Ear to Ear, robbed her of all her Money and rich Jewels : But flie having with her laft Breath called on the Laureto for help 5 the blelTed Virgin appeared to her, and having with her Hand gently ftroaked her Throat, her Wind-pipe clofed it felf again, and the Wound was perfedly cured : For the Truth of this Miracle, the Officers of the Laureto had not only that Cur- tefarfs own Tale, when (he came to them all in Rags ^ but the Scar that remained upon her Throat, was of a Colour, that demon- ftrated the Cure of the Wound to have been miraculous -
The Duke of Urbin being in a War with Pope Leo9 his Army had refolved to have plundered the Laureto $ and as they were inarching towards it, with that Intention, their Scouts were all worried by a Battalion , of huge dreadful Wolfes, that fallied out of a Wood upon them : But fo defperately was that Army fet on committing that Sacri- ledge, that notwithftanding that great Slaugh ter, they advanced ftill towards the Laureto^ with the fame Intention, until a panick Fear did feize on them, fo that they all ran away from that Houfe with an incredible Precipi tation ;
Hwfc of L AU RE TO. 143
tation : However, Pope Leo did not, it feeins, care to truft the great Treafure of the Laureto any longer, only with a Guaid of Wolves and panick Fears, but did join to them ftrong Bulwarks, and a good Garrifon.
Whereas the old Houfe of the Laureto, af ter the Legend of its miraculous Tranflations was believed, would in a flaort time have been all carried away by Piece-Meal, if its devout Pilgrims had been all gratify 3d 5 to prevent the filching of its Materials, miraculous Pu- nifliments were faid to have been inflided on all that had attempted to do it : The Bifhop of Conimbra, for having hadafmall Stone taken out of its Walls, to carry with him to Portu al, is faid to have been plagued fo, though he ad the Pope's exprefs Order for it, that he was glad to fend that Stone back again to the Laureto, where it was reftored to its Place, with a Solemnity that was fufficient to terrific all others from ever offering to carry away with them any thing that belonged to that Houfe.
A certain Man, whofe name is fpared, (as the Ge?wefe*s, the Dalmatian Prieft's and the Curtefans Names are) had under his own Hand given himfelf to the Devil 3 but, tho1 he was foon after much troubled for what he had done, he was never able to extort that Note from the Devil, until he went to the Laureto, where, as he was praying in the Chapel for it, the Devil dropped it into his and did never after molcft him.
g h
144 ^ Hiftory of the famous
A Spanijb Prieft, who had been all over the Indies, having gone to vifit the Laureto, toldTitrfellinuj, when he was there, thattho' he had vifited the Guadalupe and the Monfer- rat, he had never found the divine Numen, or Divinity, fo fenfibly in them as he had felt it in that Houfe : This Preference of Laureto by a Spanifr Prieft, was fo acceptable to that Houfe, that it beftowed a Miracle on per- fefting the Prefent he made to it : For the rich Damask Hangings, which he gave to its Chapel, being much too fhort for its Walls, when they were put up, were miraculoufly woven to a juft Length by the next Morning, to the great Amazement of all who had feen them the Day before.
This Preference of the Laureto, made by a SpaniJJ) Prieft, to all the Miracle working Places in his own Country, was likely enough to have done that Houfe a new and very great Honour, by bringing the Kings and Queens of Spain, who, to the Wonder of all Men, had never made any Offering to that Houfe, to difpatch rich Prefents to it immediately $ feeing that figularity in the Spanift Princes could be nothing elfe but their Unwillingnefs to do any thing whereby they might acknow ledge the divine Nu?nen, or Divinity, to be any where more powerfully than it was in feveral Places within their Dominions : Whether the Officers of the Laureto's publishing this Story had that Effed or not, I cannot tell $ but one may venture, I think, to fay, that if it had
not,
Honfe of L A U R E T O* 145
not. It was defeated as to its main De- fign.
I (hall not trouble the Reader, whether he believes, or does not believe the Legend of the Lanreto, with any more of its Miracles : The forementioned, if he believes them all, being enough to confirm him in that Belief $ and if he does not believe them, a thoufand more could not make him lefs afhamed of his not believing that Legend : But there is one thing in the Courfe of that Houfe's Miracles fo ftrange, that I cannot but take Notice of it here * it is, that among all the Miracles that that Houfe is faid to have wrought for the Advancement of its own Fame and Worfliip, and the Benefit of its Keepers, it fhould not have beftowed one Miracle on the curing of the extraordinary Sicklinefs of its Air, with out putting its Friends, to the great Expeuce, of trying to drain its Fens with fmall Succefs^ for it cannot but be a Reflexion upon that Houfe, that where one of its Keepers or Neighbours are faid to have had their Health reftored, or their Days prolonged by its mira culous Power, thoufands of them, have had them much impaired and fhortned by the ex traordinary Sicklinefs of its Air. And as no Pope ever went near the Laureto^ that was not called by one publick Bufinefs or another into its Neighbourhood, nor ever made any ftay at it : So fecular Princes, when they had any Bufinefs in Italy which they did not care the World fliould be acquainted with, have
L many
1 46 A Htflory of the famous
many times given out for a Blind, that they went thither only to pay their Devotions to the Laureto 5 to which Conveniency the Lau- reto perhaps in a good Meafure owes the keep ing up of its Fame among Princes that are not Bigots or Superftitious to the lad Degree, of which Bigotry there cannot be a clearer Proof than the believing of the Legend of that Houfe, and the fending Prefents to it purely out of Devotion ^ the Extremity of which Creduli ty is, in my Mind, better exprefled by Credat Papifta Laureto than by Credat Judem Apella • and I think the Credulity of the Heathens, tho' they had believed Ovid's Metamorfbofes to have been all true Stories, would not have exceeded the Credulity of the Papifts in believ ing the Legend of the Laureto.
REMARKS on the Legend of the
LA URETO.
-'>-
REmarks might eafily be made upon an hundred Paffages in that Legend, which are all plain Indications of its being a cunningly devifed, tho' an ill-formed Fable- but I fhall leave thofe PaiTages to be felt by all that read it, and have their feeling about them in fuch Matters 3 and (hall only take Notice of a few Things which do not appear upon the bare reading its Legend,
" Tho'
Houfe of LAURET o. 147
i/?. Tho' from the Rife of the Monkifti Superftition, in placing a great deal of Merit in the vifiting of the Places which our blefled Lord honoured with his bodily Prefence, the City of Nazareth has ftill been vifited as one of the chief of thofe Places $ there is not for all that one Writer that fays, that the fame individual Houfe in which the blefled Virgin was born, bred, and lived in, was remaining ftill in that City ^ which was a Thing, that if it had been believed, (tho* it had not been true,) the World muft, thro* feveral Ages, have heard of with both its Ears, and efpecially after the Holy Land was con quered by the Weftern Chriftians : St. Jero?n indeed calls the City of 'Nazareth Nutriculam Domini^ but he has not a Word of any fuch Houfe's being ftill in that City.
idly. Whereas the Building that was at the Laureto is faid to have been brought from Na zareth to Dalmatia in the Year 1291, and from Dalmatian Italy in the Year 1294, anc^ l° have been, as foon as it was fet down in them, vifited by vaft Multitudes of Pilgrims from all Parts, and to have had great and folemn Embaflies lent from both thofe Countries to Nazareth^ and that by both thofe Embaflies undeniable Evidences were brought into Eu- ropeof the Truth of that Houfe's miraculous Tranflations 5 yet, notwithftanding all this great Noife and Buftle, that is faid to have been on that Occafion, the miraculous Tran- flations of that Houfe are no where mentioned
L 2 by
1 48 A Hiftory of the famous
by any Writer within 160 Years of that Time, tho' during it there were a great ma ny Writers in Italy, and who did write on Subjeds, that if they had but heard any thing of thofe miraculous Tranflations, (tho' they had not believed them) would certainly have fpoke of them, as all Italians have done, that have written on the fame Subjeds, fince the Time of Temmannns's Narrative, which was deviled and publifhed about the Year 1460. So Blondus, who writ about 100 Years after the Time when thofe miraculous Tranflations are faid to have been, tho5 he fpeaks of the Laureto, and of an Image in its Chapel, which, with an hundred more in other Places, was faid to work Miracles, has not one Syllable of thofe Tranflations ., neither does there re main any Offering made to that Chapel dur ing all that Time, that bears Teftimony to any fuch Thing.
3 dly. The Frame of the Building that was in the Laureto, when the Legend of its mira culous Tranflations was firft devifed, was fuch as plainly demonftrated it not to have been built for a Dwell ing- houfe, but for a Cha pel, with a Chimney in it for the Ufe of the Hermit that lived in there to look after it : And as fuch falitary Chapels are, ftill very com mon in all Popifh Countries, fo there never were fo many Arts arid Tricks ufed by any fort of People, as are made ufe of by thofe Her- ?nits to advance the Credit of their lonely Chapels, to bring Pilgrims and Offerings to
Houfe ofL A U R E T o, 1 49
them : And what was it but that old Build ing in the Laureto not having the Face of a Dwelling for a Family, that did oblige fome of that Chapel's firft Advocates for to fay, that it was not Joachvn\ the blefled Virgin's Fa ther's whole Houfe, but only one Room of it.
/^tHy. The old Building that was in the Laureto having had, fince the Time of the Legend of its miraculous Translations, fo much Coft and Skill beftowed upon it to keep ic up, feems to be a Demonftration of that Build ing's not having flood 1300 Years in Nazareth, nor no where elfe, without having had any thing done to it by Men 5 unlefs they will fay that that old Building had loft the miracu lous Power of preferving it felf fince it came into Italy ^ which I fuppofe they will not ac knowledge, fince one would think thatlhould have been the laft miraculous Power that it would have kept : For foon after the Report of that Building's having flood in Nazareth above i goo Years, without having had any thing done to it, it had a flrong brick Wall built to hold it up $ and after that the Pofe having been in formed by skilful Architefts, that if fomething more were not done to it, its old Walls and Roof could not fland long 5 they gave it a new Foundation and a new Stone Roof to fupport its old Roof and Walls : And at laft, when the Pope was told that the old Building could not be kept up much longer by any thing that could be done to it, that old Building was all taken
L down
A Hiftory of the famous
down and buried, and a ftrong new Chapel
was built in the Place where it flood. And
as the Perfons by whom all thofe Buttreffes,
Repairs, andnew Buildings were made, were all
fenfible of their being fcurvyRefledtions on the
Truth of the Legend of that Building, which
is pofitive that it difdained all humane Helps,
fo their Managery of thofe Matters plainly
difcovers, that, tho' they would irapofe that
Legend on the Belief of the World, that they
did not believe a Word of it themfelves. And
when the ftrong Brick Wall was built to hold
up that old Chapel, tho' it was joined to it
as clofe as a new Wall can be to an old, it was
confidently given out that the old Wall difdain-
ing all human Helps had notfufferedthenew
Wall to touch it 5 tho' to the Eye, they were as
clofe together as two Walls could be. And
afterwards when it had new Foundations and
a new Roof given it, to fupport its old Roof
and old Walls, and at laft when it was all taken
down, and a new Chapel built in its Place,
the doing of all this was not, nor is not to this
Day, called the Repairing or New building, but
only Adorning it, as if they would force the
World to believe, that the Subftance of the old
Building was tranjubftatiatedmto the Subftance
of the new. So dangerous aThing it is to ground
miraculous Reports on things which are wit h
Time capable of confuting thofe Reports by
ocular Demonftrations, which is plainly the
Cafe of thtLzureto : And for that Reafon a
much greater Confidence is nece ffary to the
(up*
Houfe 0f L A U R E T O. I $ l
fupporting the Credit of fuch a Legend, than is needful to fupport the Credit of the falfe Reports of a thoufand Miracles which were of a tranfient Nature : But how prodigious foever that Confidence muft be, by the Fate of the Laureto we do fee plainly, that it is not im- poflible for fome Men to be Mafters of it.
Laftly* Tho' it might well be expeded that a Thing of to prodigious a Nature as theTran- ilations of the Laureto fhould, before it was believed, have had indubitable Teftimonies of its Truth : This was fo far from being the Cafe of this Prodigy, that the Teftimonies it was believed upon were fuch as no Man durft offer in any Court of Judicature for Evidences in any Cafe, tho' never fo common: All the Teftimonies this Prodigy was believed upon were the Hear fays of two obfcure Men, who fwore that they had heard their Grandfathers fay, when they were very old, that the Houfe of the Laureto was in their Time miraculouf- ly tranflated from one Place to another : And for thofe two Men's having fworn that Hear- fay from their two doting Grandfathers we have only Terrimanmis's Word, who was the firft Devifer of the miraculous Tranflations of the Laureto $ for their Oaths are not record ed in any Court of Judicature, neither is it faid that thofe Oaths were taken judicially. I fhall clofe theie Remarks, with the Argu- ment, wherewith Barovm triumphs over the Story of Pope ^7*3 teeing, that Argu ment is much ftronger, when apply'd to the
L 4 Story
^i 5 2 ^ Hi ft or y of tie famous
Story of the Laureto. Marianus who lived 230 Years after the Time, when Pope Joxn is faid to have fate in the Roman See, being the firft Writer that fpeaks of her, EarioniM from that Silence peremptorily concludes her Story to be a meer Fable, and will have that Silence to be a greater Prodi gy, than fuch a Pope would have been, and to be more than a Thoufand fworn Wit- Defies to prove it to have been a meer Inven tion. Maju<5 Portentwn videri poteft, inquit Earonius, tale Monftrwti ducentorum & tri- ginta annorum curriculo fotuiffe later e, ignora- ri atque penitw jacuijje fepultum, quam quod aliquando ejje potuerit. i e. tc That fuch a " Monfter as a Female Pope, fhould not be *c heard of, and lie hid and be entirely buried <c in Silence, for the fpace of two hundred and cc thirty Years, may feem to be a greater Pro- c< digy, than that at fome time or other there " fhould have been fuch a Monfter. And fo full is BaroniiM with this Argument, that he repeats it again foon after, in the Words fol lowing. Silentium ipfum tanti temporis, de re tanta^ plus quam ?nille dixeru tefies^ ad cert am exploratamq^ fidem faciendam de fabu- J&vamtate&faljitate. i. e. " Silence about <c fo ftrange a Thing, for fo long a time, may <c be faid to be more than a Thoufand fworn *c Witneffes, to prove the vanity and falfhood <: of that Fable. To apply this Argument to the Laureto ; what is the Silence of 230 Years, about a prodigiQus Thing, to the Silence of
1400,
Houfeof LAU R ETC. 153
1400, about a thing that is much more Pro digious > And if that tirft fliort Silence may be juftly called a greater Prodigy than fuch a Pope would have been, and a ftronger Evi dence of there having never been any fuch Pope, than the Teftimony of a Thoufand fworn Witneflfes 5 how much a greater Pro digy muft this latter Silence be, and an Evidence of the Story of the Laureto's be- being a Fable, beyond the Teftimony of feven thouYand fworn WitneiTes : For though I will not deny, that it is a very (trange thing that a Woman fhould come to be Pope, nor that fo long a Silence about her is a ftrong Argu ment of there having never been any fuch Per- fon : Yet certainly, a weak Building, having flood in the Eye of the World, above thir teen hundred Years, without having had any thing done to it to keep it up 5 and having after that time, been carried whole and entire from the Place where it had flood fo long, through the Air, above a thoufand Miles ^ and foon after over a Sea, that was an hundred Miles broad 5 is a thing yet much more prodigious : And that after all thofe miraculous Tranflations, and Peoples having flocked from all Parts to wor- fhip that Houfe5and having fent twofolemnEm- bafliestothe City from whence it was brought, for Proofs of its having been miraculoufly tran- flated from thence 5 that Tranflation fhould ne ver be mentioned by any Writer, in the fpace of an hundred and fixty Years, though there were a great many during that time, and who
writ
A Hijiory of the famous
writ on Subjects, which led them to have fpoke of it 5 that long Silence about it, muft be an Evidence of its being a Fable, equal to the Teftimony of five hundred fworn Witnefles, to the Confufion of Terrimannuis two fworn Witnefles, who fwore only upon bearfay from their two old Grandfathers.
Now had Baronm but kept conftant to this Argument, whofe Strength was fo fenfibly felt by him as to the Story of Pope Joan., he could not poflibly have believed the Legend of the Laureto, nor of an hundred Stories more, which he faid he believed ^ or whether he did or not, he maintained, in Defiance of this Argument, to the Swelling of his Annals to fo great a Bulk. And had Pope Joans Story been a thing for the Advantage of the Roman See 5 That two hundred and thirty Years Silence about it,would have had but very little Weight with Baromw^ againft the pofi- tive Teftimony of Manama ScotiM, and of all, or moft Ecclefiaftical Hiftorians in four or five hundred Years after him with very little if with any Contradiction $ but it would then have been fo turned and winded by that Cardinal., as to be reprefented by him as no Evidence at all againft fo many pofitive Wit nefles, and who would then have had their Fidelity and Penetration, which are now de cry 'd by him, extolled to the Skies to have given Authority to their Teftimonies : For as no Man did ever give better turns to the worft andfalfeft of things with greater dexteri ty
Houfe of L All RE TO. 155
ty, than are given by Baromus : fo no Man that ever had that Talent, did imploy it more, or to worfe purpofes, than he has done, to ferve his great Idol the Papacy, which was continually in his Eye in the writing of his Annals. I don't make this Reflexion on Baro- muf here, for his having deny'd the Truth of the Story of Pope Joan, notwithftanding it had fo many late Witneffes., (for I do look on that Story as a Fable) but it is for his flighting the Argument wherewith he tri umphs over that Story, in the Cafe of the Laureto^ and of a hundred Stories more, in which it is flronger than it is in that.
I (hall conclude with obferving, what a ftrange Creature Man is, to be capable of be lieving fuch Stories as thefe 5 and what Mon- fters of Men they are, who though they don't believe thofe Fables themfelves, do magifteri- ally impofe them on the Belief of others, and with a fupercilious Air, beftow all the hard Names, and pour out all the Contempt they are able, on all that will not believe them.
FINIS.
p.]
•ifeiauit Lib
firf-lo
"io rfiniT S
. • .
-tOOi Oi> -I
-iri 7Qi ?..: .i r -lit ori dli^rp.l t^iii "io' ofc'J C'Cl
HI -010^7 ??,Di-iOt
ob
10
VIEW
OF SOME
Papal Indulgences,
O F T H E
"Bulla Cmfadv,
The BULL of the Dead, the BULL of Conipofjtion, and the BULL of Milk- Diet, granted by the Pope to the Kings of Spain.
W I T H A
Difcovery of the Cheats and Artifices that are made ufe of to make them more ven dible 5 and how by Plenary Indulgences, the Spa7iifi Cortefes or Parliament have been utterly deftroyed, and loft all the Publick Liberties of Spain.
They deftroy Souls to get: difioneft Gain* Ezek. Cap. 22. t'. 27.
By MICHAEL GE DDES,, L. L. D.
And Chancellor of the Church of Sarum.
'•] O
VIE W
OF SOME
Papal Indulgences,^.
T Hough the cheating of the Wejlern Chriftian World out of its Mony, by the Sale of Papal Indulgences^ was the Abufe that firft ftirred up the Spirit of Dr. Luther againft the Pope by whom that falfeWare was manufaftured and vented, and thelmpie- ty and Moral ill Confequences of that Com merce has been in a very lively manner laid open by many learned Proteftants 5 yet I have no where feen the Cheats that are in the very Body of thofe Bulls of Indulgences fufliciently expofed$ nor the Arts and Tricks that are made ufe of to make thefe Indulgences a Marketable Commodity, enough laid open in
order
A View of fome
order to the deftioying of that Scandalous Traffick. And whereas thofe Indulgences go off no where fo well as they do in Spain, nor do their Faftors any where take lefs Pains to difguife their Craft 5 I fhall here firft fet down theSubftance of thefe Four Bulls oi Indulgen ces y granted by feveral Popes to all the Sub- jeds of that Monarchy ; After that! fhall give fome Account of the great Faftory Eftablifh- ed in that Kingdom by the Pope and the King, for the managing of that Commerce to the beft Advantage 3 I will conclude with the deteftion of fome notorious Cheats in them, and how the publick Liberties of Spain were deftroyed by the Introdudion of thefe Bulls of plenary Indulgence. The four Bulls are the Bull of the Crufado, the Bull of the Dead, the Bull of Compofition, and the Bull of Milk-Diet.
ift. In the Bull ofCrufado, his Holinefs does grant to all the faithful Chriftians of the faid Kingdom and Dominions, either dwelling in them, or coming to them, and who being moved with Zeal for the Glory of the Holy Ca~ thohck Faith, (hall ferve Perfonally in the War, and in the Army, or with the People fent by hisMajefty, during the fpace of one Year, to fight againft the Turks 9 and other Infidels 3 or fhall perform any other Service, or give any perfonal Afliftance in the faid Army, a plenary Indulgence and Remijfion of all his Sins, being contrite of Heart, and having confefs'd them with his Mrath, or not having been able to
confefs
Papal Indulgences, &c. 1 6 r
confefs them, has in his Heart defired to do it 5 which ufed to be granted to thofe, who went to the Conqueft of the Holy Land, or in an Year of Jubilee^ declaring that they fhall gain the fame Indulgence^ who fhall die before the end of that Expedition, or as they are going to the Army, or fhall leave the Army before the time of that Expedition was over, by reafon of fome Infirmity, or other lawful Neceflity.
sdly, They who cannot go in Perfon to that War, if they do according to their Qua lity and Abilities, at their own Charge, fend Soldiers to it 5 or if two,three or four, that are able to do no more, fhall join together to fet out a Soldier 5 or if Convents of Men and Women Mendicant, or not Mendicant, (hall for every ten Perfons that they have in them, fend a Soldier, they (hall all gain that plenary Indulgence, as fhall the Soldiers alfo that are fent if they are poor.
gdly. EcclefiaflicksSVn//jr or Regular^ who fhall with the Licence of the Ordinary or Su per iours, go to the Army to Officiate in it in Divine matters mall have the fame Indul gence.
Laftly, They that do neither go in Perfon, nor fend others to that War, but fliall out of their Goods contribute liberally towards the carrying of it on, by paying the Alms re quired of them by the Commiffary, which muft not be under two Reals de Pitta, (i. e. a Shilling Sterling) {hall gain the fame Indul gences.
M Befiilc*
1 62 A View of -fame
Befides this plenary Indulgence and RemH- fion of all their Sins, a great many Graces and Faculties are granted by this Bull to all that purchafe it.
ift. They may hear Mafs, and receive the Sacrament during the Time of an Interdid: 5 and if they die, they may be interred with Chriftian Burial, with a moderate Funeral Pomp,
salj. With the Approbation of their Con- feffor and Phyfician they may eat Flefli in Lent, and on all Fafting Days $ and when they pleafe they may on Fafts eat Eggs, and what- foever is made of Milk.
%dly. They may chufe their own Confeffor, who fhall have a full Power once in their Life time, and at the Article of their Death, to abfolve them from all Sins and Cenfures what- foever, ( the Crime of Herejy only e# cepted) tho' referved to the ApoftoKcal See, and named in the BuUa Ccena Domini 3 with a Power likewife to abfolve them from all the Vows they are under by a Commutation, except the Vow cfChaftity^ of Religion, and tf Ultramarine, or of going to Jerusalem.
qtbly. If they happen to die fuddenly with out a ConTeffbf, if they die contrite, and had confeffedat the Time appointed by theChurch, and have not been carelefs or negligent, they fhall have a plenary Indulgence and Remit- fion of all their Sins, and Chriftian Bu rial,
yhly. Who-
Papal Indulgences j &c. 163
*)thly. Whofoever fhall purchafe the Bulla, de Cruzado twice in one Year, (hall have all its Indulgences, Graces and Faculties doubled to them ^ and may in their Life-time be twice abfolved by their ConfefTor from all Sins and Cenfures, except the Crime of Herej), tho* referved to the Apoftolical See, and named in the Bulla Ccena Domini.
That this Bull may receive no Prejudice by other Indulgences, Graces, or Faculties that have been granted, they fhall all be fufpended on the Year this Bull is publifhed and preach'd, fo that during that Time no Indulgences nor Graces can be gained by any other Way, but by purchafing of this Bull. If thefe were the true and genuine Effefts of the Butt, here feems to be a great deal for a little Money, viz 4 Plenary Indulgence and Rem'iffton of all Sins, with all the forementioned Graces and Fa culties 5 they that are poor may have it for two Reals de Plata, or a Shilling Sterling 5 but for the rich, they muft make as good a Bar gain as they can with the Commiffary, who muft not take under eight Reals of them, but rhay raife them as high as he can fcrew them. This Bull lafts but for a Year, fo that they that will not be without it, (as ;vho would that believes its Indulgences and Graces to be cur rent in Heaven,) muft buy a new one yearly ^ and as it extends only to the Perfon who pays Mony for it, being applied to him by a Printed Paper that is put into his Hands with his Name in it, which Paper he muft take Care not to
M 3 lofe
A View of fame
lofe$ fo to pay yearly two Reals of Plata for himfelf, and two for his Wife, and two for every one of his Children that are old enough to go to Confeflion, is more than moft poor Spamfi Day-labourers can well fpare without pinching themfelves and their Families. If it happens that they have not the Money to lay down prefently, as it very often happens, the Commiffary will allow them fome Time for the Payment of it 3 but they muft be fure to have it ready before that Time is expired, other- wife their Goods are diftrained and fold to raife it, let them be never fo poor: All the Mercy that is Ihewed them, that 1 can fee, is, that the Officers of the Cruzado are forbid to buy any or thofe Goods, for Fear they fliould help themfelves to great Penyworths out of them. The Men, whofe Hands are fo full of plenary Indulgences and Pardons for all Sins, have none to excufethe Payment of that Mo ney, which muft be paid, if he that owes it has a Bed to lye on, or any Cloaths for his Back 5 neither do they give one of thofe Bulls in Charity to the poor, let it be begged with never fo great Devotion $ for fay the Factors of this Bull, Thefe Indulgences being granted for no other End but either to fupply the In digence •, orfupportthe Caufeof the Church, they cannot be obtained but either by paying the Money they are taxed at, or by perform ing the Service required 5 becaufe a Will to pay, era Will to perform fignifies nothing in the prelent Cafe : For tho' the JFiff, where
the
Papal Indulgences, Sec.
the Deed is not poffible, is accepted, yet it can't, fay they, be admitted in this Cafe, be- caufe doing this would defeat the End for which Indulgences were granted.
ThePafal Bull for the Dead is a wonder ful Help to that of the Cruzado $ which the Living do not purchafe fafter for themfelves than they do for their dead Friends $ and no Wonder, confidering the prefent ineftimable Benefit which that Bull promifeth to the De- ceafed, in whofe Name and for whofe Ufe it is purchafed. The Subftance of the Bull for the Dead is, " That whofoever fhall purchafe Cc a Bull of Cruzado in the Name and for the Benefit of any deceafed Perfon, Man or Wo man, fhall gain for him or her a plenary and total Indulgence and Remiflion of all his or her Sins, to the releafing of their Souls out of " Purgatory. Two Bulls of Cruzado may be, and are often taken together for the Dead as well as for the Living 5 and thofe Bulls muft be put into the Hands of the Perfon that pays for them : It is a Queftion, tho' one would wonder how it ftiould, which is the greater Kindnefs to a Soul in Purgatory, To have a Bull of Cruzado purchafed for it, or a Majs upon a privileged Altar > Mod of the Spani/i Doctors are for the Bull of Cruzado being the greater Kindnefs 5 and their Reafon is, becaufe the Caufe for which that Bull is granted is both more publickand more certain than that is for which an Altar was privileged, to the great Advantage of all the MaJJes that fhall
M 3 be
cc
cc
1 66 A View of fowe
be faid upon it : Tho' after all, if there be any thing of Ttuth in the Popes Grants of Indul gences for the Dead, the one cannot poffibly be a greater Kindnefs than the other, there be>- ingin both of them a folemn Promife from the Pope of a plenary Indulgence and Par don Q£ all Sins, to the Soul in Purgatory, for which they are purchafed.
The Papal Bull of Compofttion, and the Bull of Cruzado, are managed by the fame Office 5 which is authorized by the Pope to help all People, who are poiTeffed of any Goods they came by unjuftly, to an undoubted Right to thofe Goods, upon their having compounded for them with that Office.
The Cafes wherein this Papal Com j* option takes place, are the following.
1. All who have by Extortion, Ufury , or by any other unlawful Way , got any Goods, may, if they know not to whom they ought to make Reftitution for them, com pound for thofe Goods with the Commiffary of the Cruzado.
2. All that have received any Ecclejia- ftick 'Benefits and Rents, to which they had no Right, by reafon of their not having re cited at the Canonical Hours, as they were bound, may compound for thofe Rents and Benefits y and befides the two Reals of Plata which they muft pay for every two thoufand ftlarvedies, they ihall pay two Reals more towards the Fabri^k of the Church where the geuefice i%
Papal Indulgences , Sec. \6j
3. Executors may compound for the half of the Legacies left by one for the exo nerating of his Confcience, if the Legatees, tho* they know them, have for a Year negleft- ed to recover thofe Legacies.
4. All Legacies may be compounded for, if the Legatees, after a due Diligence, are not to be met with.
5. Judges ordinary, or Delegate and Af- fejfors, who have taken Bribes to pafs an unjuft Sentence, or to delay giving Sentence, to the Prejudice of the Party, or to do any fuch unjuft Thing, may and ought to com pound for all that they have received fo, and to make Reftitution to the Perfons whom they have wronged, if they remember who they were.
6. All Lawyers that have knowingly defended an unjuft Caufe, and all Witnejfes that have taken Money to fwear falfly, and all Frofecutors and Accusers, Officers, Scriveners^ Notaries and Secretaries, who have done any unjuft Aft, may compound, having made Sa- tisfaftion to the Perfons they wronged, if they remember them.
7. All Judges Secular or Ecchfiaftical, who in temporal Matters have taken Money, or any other Goods, to do that which they were by their Places bound to have done, may compound for all that they have taken.
_ 8. All Scriveners, Notaries and Secreta ries may compound for all that they have
M 4 taken
1 68 A View of fome
taken above their Legal Fees, and muft, if they remember the Perfons they wrong d, make Reftitution to them.
9. They that have cheated at Gamey and don't remember the Perfons that they cheated, may compound.
10. They v/ho have received any one thing inftead of another, or have got by begging when they were not poor, if they know not whom to make Reftitution, may compound.
11. They that by Hunting, or by any fuch Way, have damnified the Country, but know not to whom they are to make Reftitu tion, may compound for that Damage.
12. All Strumpets, that are not publick, may compound for all the Money or Jew els which they have received for their Lewd- nefs:, as all Men may likewife for all that they have received from Women on the fame Account, if the Women had no Husbands.
13. They that have fold Wine mixed with Water for pure Wine, or that have fold any other mixed and fophifticated Goods, or have ufe&fzlfc Weights and Meafiires, if they know not to whom to make Reftitution, may com pound for thofe Injuftices.
This profitable Bull of Composition ftands vifibly on a Suppofition of the Pope's being the Supreme and Sovereign Lord of all Goods Temporal and Spiritual, by vertue of which high Sovereignty, it is in the Pope's Power to give to all that will compound for them, a Right to Goods, to which they could not o-
therwifp
Papal Indulgences y &c.
therwife ever have had any Right, by reafon of their having got them unjuftly. And tho' it is true, that in all Cafes wherein ,R<?y?i#tfi- on is to be made, this Bull does require the un- juft Poffeffors to make it, if they know cer tainly to whom it is to be made 3 this Bull does neverthelefs in Fad hinder a World of Reftitutions from being made : For whereas Reftitution would fweep away all ill gotten Goods from their PoffeiTors, this Ccmpojition leaves them both the Bulk of thofe Goods, and does give them an unqueftionableRight to what ever that leaves them in PoiTeffion of 5 and for that Reafon the unjuft PoffeiTors of Goods, believing they may exonerate their Consciences by making ihisCompoJition for them, are much difpofed to deceive themfelves fo far as to be lieve, that tho' they may fufped it, yet they cannot tell certainly to whom they ought to reftore them 5 and upon that affeffied Igno rance do quiet their Consciences by compound ing for them according to the Direftions of this Bull. And for the Cafe relating to Strum pets, in which there is to be no Reftitution, there be two things in it that be very fcanda- lous : The one is the giving tofecret Strumpets a Right to the Bulk of all the Money and of of all the Jewels they have got by their Lewd- nefs : The other is, that it fuppofeth fublick Strumpets to have a Right to all the Goods that they have got by their lewdCourfes, and for that reafon they are not call'donby this Bull to com pound for them.
A Li-
1 70 A View of fame
A Liberty to eat Eggs, and whatfoever is made of Milk, when they pleafe, on Fading Days, is granted by the Bull of Cruzado to all the Laicks that do purchafe that Bull 5 but the Ecclefiafticks, if they would have it, muft purchafe another Bull of the fame Price3 in which that Liberty is granted to them.
There arifeth fo great a Revenue out of thefe four Bulls, that the Pope, who is their Lord, and the King of Spain who is Tenant to the Pope for them, and the Officers by whom they are managed, do feem to have done all that is poflible to put them in thebeft Method for raifing of Money. Some fay, but I think without any Grounds, that the Bull of Cru zado was firft granted to Spain by Pope Ju lius II. For by a Lift that I have feen of its Com?mffaries Central, whofe Office is of the fame Handing with the Bull it felf, it appears plainly that it was firft granted by Pope Cle ment VII. to the E?n$eror Charles V. in the Year 1524, on purpofe to raife a Cruzado to have deftroyed all the Proteftants ^ for that reafon the Bull was called the Bulla de fanfta Cruzada, and Herejy is the only Crime that is not pardoned by its plenary Indulgence. I have not been able to learn what Fine the King of Spain pays to the Pope to have his Leafe of the Bull of Cruzado renewed, but confidering how great an Eftate that Bull is to the Tenant, there are undoubtedly great Sums of Money paid upon every renewing, to the Papal Camera, for the difpatching ofitslnjlrttments. Having
met
Papal Indulgences .> &c. 171
met with the Regifier of all the Renewings of rhis Leafefrom the Year 1524, when it was firft granted to Spain, until the Year 1605, I fliall fet them down here, becaufe they do give fome Light into the Miftery of that Bull.
In the Year 1524 the Bull of Cruzadowzs granted to Charles V. for all his Spani/l) Do minions, except Naples, by Pope Clement VII. and was taxed by him in the Indies at a Pound of Gold.
In the Year 1529, it was renewed by the fame Pope, and in the Yean 532 the Sufpenfion Clement had laid that Bull under, whilft he was in a War with the Emperor , was taken off, and the Bull was renewed by him, and extended to the Kingdom of Sicily.
In the Year 1535 that Bull was renewed by Paul III. and in the Year 1537 was renewed by him a fecond Time under the Title of the Fabrick of St. Peter , with an Exception of Si- cify, and in the Indies was taxed by him at a Pound of Gold, being to commence there from the Day it was publilhed in them. It was re newed again by that Pope in the Year 1538 5 and in the Year 1 544 it was prolonged by him until the Year 1 547 5 and from 1 547 to the Year 1551, being taxed by that Pope in Ara- gon at a Florin of Gold, In Caftile at two Reals, and in the Indies at a Pound of Gold 5 which was the loweft Prices it was to be purchafed at: And to make that Bull more vendible, that Pope did fufpend all Graces, Indulgences
and
1 72 A View of fame
and Faculties befides thofe that were granted by it 3 fo that during that Term of Years a Subjeft of Spain could have Grace by no o- ther Way but by the purchafing of that Bull.
In the Year 1551 that Bull was renewed by Julius III. and in the Year 1552 its Indulgen ces were extended by him toSz'a'/y, Sardinia , and to all the I/lands, and the Indies.
In the Year 1559 that Bull was renewed by Pius IV. for all the Spanifi Dominions, except Sicily $ and in the Year 1562 all Graces and Indulgences which might any ways pre judice the Sale of the Cruzado were fufpend- ed by that Pope : But that Term being ex* piredon the Year 1565, Pius V. would not renew that Bull ^ and as it was that Pope's being out of Humour with his Tenant that made him refufe to do it,fp Philip was fo much difpleafed with his Landlord on that Account, that he did two things, which, tho' they were both very reafonable, made the Pope yet more angry with him : The J/?was, That thetfizg- forbad a Conftitution to be publiftied in any of his Territories, which was fet forth by Pius, prohibiting all Ecclefiajlicks to pay any Tribute or Taxes to Laicks, and all Laicks, upon Pain of Excommunication, not to lay any Payments upon Ecclefiafticks : At which Prohibition Pius was fo angry, that it was once in his Thoughts to have laid that King's Dominions under an Interdid:^ but upon fecond Thoughts he judged it was better
not
Papal Indulgences, &c. 175
not to do it : The fecond was, That Philip, together with the Emperor, made a folemn Proteftation in Rome againft Pius's beftowing the Title of the Grand Duke upon Cofmo de Medicis, which both that King and the Empe ror faid was a thing that belonged not to the Pope : But whether it belonged to him, or not, Pius having received a great Sum of Money from Cofmo, which was to be employed in the carrying on of a War againft the Proteftants, did, notwithftanding thofe Proteftations, and without confulting with his Cardinals about it, create Cojmo Grand Duke in Rome with great Solemnities. But that Pope having in the Year 1571 entered into a Confederacy with Philip^ he renewed the Cruzado to him for fix Years, which was a longer Term than had been ever granted before at once : In the Year 1572 he prolonged it from the Advent of that Year to the Advent of the Year 1578, and in the Year 1573 he granted it for fix Years more 5 and in the Year 1576 he added another fix Years 5 and in the Year 1581 he added fix Years more ^ all which fix Years were to commence after the Expiration of all the fix Years which had been granted before them. As Philip had now a long Leafe in the Cruzado, fo for two Reafons he and all his Sue- ceffors have taken care to have a great many Years to come in that Leafe : The firft is, that it might not be in every Pope's Power, that was out of Humour with them, to de prive them of the Profits of that Bull : The
fecond
174 4. View of fame
fecond is, That it might be a good Fund for the raifing of great Sums of Money by An ticipations.
In the Year 1585 fix Years Were added to that Leafe by Sixtus V. and in the Year 1591 fix were granted by Gregory XIV. and fix more by the fame Pope in the Year 1592, and fix Years more were granted by Clement VIII. in the Year 1600.
In the Year 1605 fix Years Were added to that Leafe by Paul V. which is the laft Grapt in my Regifter : All which fix Years being to fucceed one another in Spain, they reached from the Year 1605 to the Year 1625. and in the Indies to the Year 1663.
And as that profitable Bull has been ever fince in Spain and the Indies^ fo it has been undoubtedly continued in them by the fame Methods : The Kings of Sfain, when they had Popes that were well affeded to their Monarchy, have always taken care to have a longer Term in that Leafe. Were not this Branch of that King's Revenue like all the reft, confumed in a great Mealure by the high Interefts of Anticipations, and by aMultitudeof corrupt Officers and Colle&ors, it would yearly bring a vaft Sum of Money into that King's Treafury, which is the Treafury in the World that is moil cheated : And notwithftanding there have been hundreds of Confutations and Juntas to find by what Ways and Means that publick Evil may be remedied, it goes onftill, and will go on until Spain has either a King
of
Papal Indnlgences, &rc.
of greater Application to Bufinefs than fhe has had of late Years, or until the Subje&s Purfe is taken out of the Hands Lfof a Mini- J}ry9 which will always be for enriching it felf, and reftored to a Cortes chofe freely by the People, which from the Foundation of the Monarchy ^ until of late Years, had the keep ing of that Purfe 3 of which, by all that I have read of them, they were very faithful Stewards, both to the People they were en- trufhd by, and to the Publick 5 which in the Days of the Cortefes was never fo indigent and fo feeble as it has been fince with far greater Payments from the Subjefts. And as Princes and their Miniflrys, if Cortefes will not grant them all the Money they demand, (let their Demands be never fo unreafonable,) are too apt to entertain the Thoughts of laying them afide $ fo Charles V. and his Mimflry finding they (hould never be able to obtain the Money from a Cortes that they coveted, nor indeed any at all, without Redrefs of Grievances, they did fet their Brains to work to find out fomeWays by which they might have Money without them 5 and having thought of this of the Cruzado, which they knew would, by the Superftition of their People, quickly be come a great and conftant Revenue, and be a ftanding general Poll, and would alfo be paid cheerfully, they did obtain a Grant of that Bull from the Pope, to the great Prejudice of the Auhorityof the Cortefes, which, fince the Time that that Bull came into Spain, to raife
Money
176 A View of fonte
Money , have been very little confidered in it j Cortefes being Affembties few Princes and few er Minifters are fond of feeing, if they can have Money without them : But however the new Way of drawing Money from the Sub- jeds without Cortefes may have fucceeded in other Nations, iia Spain they have vifibly fuc ceeded very ill 5 where, tho' the Subjed pays much more to the Crown than they did, or than the Cortefes would ever have laid upon them, the Crown is never the richer for it 3 a great part of the Money raifed by thofe new Ways being confumed by the Multitudes of Officers that are employ 'd in the colleding of it. So tho1 it muft needs be a prodigious Sum of Money that theCruzado fetcheth out of iheSpa- mjh Subjeds Pockets 5 yet by that Time that the Pope and his Court have had their Fine for renewing of its Leafe., and all its Officers have had their Salaries and Perquisites out of it, it is well if one half of that great Revenue is ever feen in the King's Treafury.
Charles V. having obtained from Pope Clement VII. the Bull of Cruzado, the cun- ningeft and moft fcandalous Tax that ever was paid by any People, a great Court was forthwith ereded in Spain for no other Purpofe but to manage that and the other three forementioned Bulls.
That Court is called the Court of the Eulla de fanta Cntzada 5 its Prejident, who is ftiled its Commiffary General^ is always an Ecdeji- great Figure 3 and is, after the In-
quifitor
Papal Indulgences , &c. 177 qmfitor General, the greateft Papal Officer in Spain : He has Lodgings in the King's Palace, in which the Court of the Crnzado meets three Days iri a Week $ he hath great Powers both from thePope and from theKing, and with them great Profits : He lias three AJJeJJor-s, the firft is of the Privy Council of Cajlile, the fecond of the Privy Council of Arragon, the third of the Privy Council of the Indies- This Court has likewife a Treafurer, an Attorney- General, two Secretaries^ two Solicitors, and all the other inferior Officers belonging to any Court Spiritual or Temporal.
All that is poffible has been done by this Court to difpofePeople to covet to have itsBulls, whatever they coft them 5 and to beget in Peo ple a moft profound Veneration for this Bull, it is always called the Santa Cruzada, and its Inftrumcnt is carried about, and placed in Churches as if it were an Idol 5 being, on the Day when the Cruzado is preached in any City or Town, carried by its Commiffary as the Hoft is in a folemn Procefllori to the Church where it is to be preached, and is there placed on an Altar very richly adorned, during all the Time of the Mafs and Sermon: Its Proceflion on the Day when it is preached, is one of the greateft, ncheft, and moft fcoifie that is in all Sfain, all the Clergy Secular and Regular that live in or near the Place where it is to be preached, being commanded by its Comwiffa- 37, under Pain of Excommunication, to bepre- fern at that Proceflion, with all their Crojjcs
N and
178 A View of fome
and other Standards, as all the Magiftrates and Inhabitants in and about that Place, are commanded upon Pain of the King's Difplea- fure to come to that Proceffion, and not to fail to hear the Sermon.
On the Morning of the Day when that Bull is to be preached at Madrid, its Commiffary Ge neral comes out of the Palace under a rich Ca nopy, fupported by four Regidors, with one of the King's Chaplains on his Right, and another on his Left HandD and being attended by moft of the Court, the King's own Trumpets, Haut boys and Kettle Drums do all go founding and beating before the Proceflion^ Mafs is faid in the Church where that Bull is to be preach ed by the Dean of the King's Chapel, who has all the Mufick of that Chapel along with him ^ the Preacher is named by the Commiffa ry General, and has an hundred Duetts for his Sermon, be fides divers great Privileges in common with the reft of the Preachers of that Bull $ who, tho' they may not all have fo much given them for their Sermons, they are all very well paid for them. The Preachers of the Cruzado are commonly the warmeft and the moft eloquent Friars that are to be had for Love or Money, whofe Harangues in thePraifes of that Bull are generally fo extravagant, that Mountebanks in their Ha rangues upon the Vertue of their Drugs are but Children to. them: In their Perambula tions, the Commijjary, the Preachers, and all the other Officers of the Cruzado are, where-
ever
Papal Indulgences j &c.
ever they come, by the King's Command, re ceived and entertained by the Magiftrates and by all Perfons of Quality, with as much Cere mony and Refpeft as the King himfelf could well be 5 and the Reverences that are paid every where to the Inftrument of the Bull of Cruzado are but little inferior to thofe which are paid to the Hoft $ and all this for no other End, but to poffefs the People with fo profound a Reverence for that Bui}, and for its great Virtues, as to make them willing to pinch both their Bellies and their Backs to get Money to purchafe it 5 which is in truth the Cafe of many thoufands of its Buyers.
To call Things by their true Names, four grofs Cheats are vifible in this Bull.
The i ft and chief is, That its Promife of a plenary Indulgence is clogg'd with a Conditi on that deftroys it entirely 3 that Condition is, that the Purchafers of that Bull muft be Con trite to have their Sins forgiven by its plenary Indulgence 3 which in plain Englifh is, to promife thofe Purchafers a Pardon of all their Sins, but upon Conditions that they have no Sins to be pardoned, as it is certain the Con trite have not 5 for that all Sins are upon Contrition, or a true Repentance, forgiven in Heaven, is the known Doftrme of the Roman Church, as well as of the Gofpel. 3Tis true, the Pope's Promifes of the Remiflion of all Sins by their plenary Indulgence, do, by their having this Condition annexed to them, appear much lefs impious than they would do
N 2 other-
180 A View of f owe
otherwife 5 but thofe Papal Promifes are at the fame time Time by this Condition made downright Cheats, in pretending to beftow on their Purchafers the moft valuable Blefling in the World, the Remifilon of all their Sins 5 when by reafon of this Limitation they can not poffibly be of any Benefit to them, fince if they be not Contrite, they are not promifed any thing by that Purchafe^ and if they are, they are uncapable of receiving any Benefit by it, having no Sins to be forgiven them. If one fhould promife, upon a Premium in hand, to pay another's Debts, let them be never fo great ^ but upon Condition that he has done fomething whereby he has induced his Credi tors to forgive him all his Debts ^ it would not be a plainer Banter than the Pope's promifing to all that fhall purchafe the Bull ofCruzado a Remiflion of all their Sins, on Condition that they are contrite, and have repented of them all. Now were the Importance of this Con dition butuniverfally underftood and confider- ed, it muft neceflarily deftroy the Pope's Mar kets for their plenary Indulgences ^ fora Spa niard would then fooner throw his two Reals de Plata into a River than be made fuch a Fool of as to throw them away upon a Bull of Cru- zado 3 and would go for a Song to fight as aVo- lunteer a whole year againflHereticks, fooner than for fuch an ufelefs and bantering Scrip of Paper. But as that Bull, with this pernicious Condition to it, is never read by the great Body of its Buyers, who are either never told
of
Papal Indulgences , Sec. 181
of that Condition by its Preachers ^ or if they do venture to mention it, is, before they leave it, diftinguifhed into little or nothing 5 fo the Popes do, by annexing that Condition to their Promifes of a Pardon of all Sins, avoid the the Infamy of promifing to forgive Sins, tho' they are not repented of, without any Preju dice to the Sale of plenary Indulgences, which are brought as briskly as if the purchafing of them were all that is required to their forgiv ing of all Sins 5 which is in Fad what the Generality of all that buy them do exped from them, notwithstanding the loofe Word Contrite is dropt into them for no other End but to flop the Mouths that decry all Papal Indulgences as contraband Goods in Heaven.
The 2d plain Cheat in the Bull of Cru- zado^ is the Promife to double its plenary In dulgence and Remiflion of all Sins to all that (hall purchafe two of thofe Bulls in one Year : But that Bull allows a Year for the fecond Purchafe $ yet fince the buying of thofe two Bulls together is not forbidden by it, they are commonly purchas'd at the fame time .- Now is not the purchafing two plenary Indulgences, and two full Pardons for all Sins together, a thing too abfurd to be juftified by the wife Rule, Abundans cautela non nocet^ fince there can hardly be a plainer Contradiction than the doubling of the Virtue of a thing as to any EfFeft, whofe Virtue aione is plenary as to that Effed ? So that how well foever the two Reals de Plata may be beftowed that is
N 3 laid
1 82 ,'j^d View ;of fome .c\
laid out upon thefirft Bull, the two that are at the fame Time given for the fecond are Money perfedly thrown away by Multitudes that can very ill afford to fpend it after that Manqer. Would not a Mountebank, how pow erful foever his own Oratory, and how di verting foever his Commiifary's Jefts are, be by his gaping Auditors pelted of the Stage, fo as never to dare to mount it any more, who, after he had fold them Papers of his Sovereign Balfam, alluring them, that it will infallibly cure them of all their Difeafes, fliould with the fame Breath tell them, that if they will buy another Paper of that Sovereign Drug, ^o take it together with the former, its Virtue will be doubled by %fr>(j . In the Bull of Cruzado for the Dea d, ,on the Seller's Part two grofs Cheats are vifible, and on the Buyer's a Weakness that looks like the Effed of Witchcraft. .-In this Bull the Pope as the uncontioulable Turnkey of Purgatory, folemnly promifes a Releafe out of that Pri- fo?i, to all the Spuls that fliall have the Bull of Cruzado purchafe4 for them. Were there any Faith in Popes, or did their Chapmen think that their Words might be depended on, after they had once bought that Bull for their Deceafed.. friends Souls, they would no lon ger be in any Pain about them, being as cer tain, as the Pope's Promife can make them, of thofc Souls being all.releafed out of Purga tory from the'fime .that that Purchafe was made : Thus it muft be, if there were in this
Commerce
Papal Indulgences, &c. 183
Commerce no other but the fair and juft Deal ings of the Pope's performing his Promife, upon others having performed all that the Pope required of them 5 but it is fo far from being thus, that on the contrary they that have purchafed thofe Bulls, are to the Pope's great Difhonour, after that no lefs follicitous to help the fame Souls out of Purgatory than they were before $ going on ftill from Day to Day, and from Year to Year, buying more of thofe Bulls, and ufing many more expenfive Methods to procure Releafes for the fame Souls out of that Prifon : This, I fay, is all to the Pope's great Difhonour, his Veracity being reftefted on fo much by fuch open Diftrufts of the Performance of his Promifes, that were any other Merchant or Faftor's Words fo o- penly diftrufted, none would have any more Dealings with him 5 or if any had, they would never believe any Ware not to be counterfeit, only upon that faithlefs Man's faying that it is not fo. I (hall leave it to any one to judge whether this ufual great Queftion among the Roman Cafuifts, An Indulgenti& valeant quan tum fronunciant ? Whether Indulgences do per form all that they do fromife .<? be not the fame as to queftion, Whether the Pope in the vend ing of Indulgences be not a Cheat ?
Now Proteflants being utter Strangers to this myfterious Trade of Plenary Indulgences, may perhaps, by one plain Example, have more Light given them into it, than they can receive by any other Way , I (hall for
N 4 that
184 A View of fome
that Reafon here lay before them a late and ve ry great Example of it.
King John IV. tf Portugal, upon his Death- Bed, hadfo many Relicks, Bulls, -plenary In dulgences, Notes to St. Peter in well known Hands, together with a vaft Treafure of other Peoples Merits, applied to his Soul, that were there any Faith inJPopes Promifes, that Prince's Soul could be in no Danger of going to Pur- gatory, or any where elfe but to Heaven di- reftly. And yet, notwithftanding this great Bundle of Papal Securities, that Prince's Soul had no fooner left his Body than they were hard at Work, faying Maffes for it upon Pn- vikged Altars, that is, on Altars on which the- Pope, on valuable Confiderations, has be- flowed the great Privilege of releafing the Soul out of Purgatory, that has a Mafs faid .upon them for its good Deliverance out of that Prifon. And tho' without fufpeding the Pope to be the falfeft Man alive, after thefe privi leged Mafles were faid for it, none could have the leaft Sufpicion of that Prince's Soul being ftill in that Place of Torment ^ yet, as if they had been fure of its being in it ftill, twenty thoufand Ducats ( at a Time when the Go vernment could very ill have fpared fo great a Sum of Money) were immediately, in Con formity to the King's Will, diftributed among all the poor Convents in the Kingdom, for the faying, with all poflible Expedition, an hun dred rhoufand Maffes fpr the Releafe of his jS$ui put pf Purgatory. More than an hun-
v >. •• «J •/• _
qrea
Pap all Indulgences, &c. 185
dred thoufand $foffes might and would have been purchafed with this great Sum of Money, if the King in his Will had not beenfo kind to the Friars, as to order exprefly, that not above that Number of Maffes fhould be faid for that Sum 3 which Aft of Charity of the King's to the poor Friars, who otherwife might have been obliged to have faid more Maffes for that Money than they could well afford to fay for it, might do his Soul as much good as twenty thoufand MafTes more would have done it, if they had been fere wed up to that Number by the Diftributors of that Money.
After thefe Maffes were over, which gave the Pope the Lie an hundred thoufand Times, the Fears of that Prince's Soul being ftill in Purgatory one would have thought fhould have been quite over 5 but they were fo far from being fo, that an Eftate was immediately fetled on the Mcnaftery, where that King was buried, for to have four Maffes faid for his Soul every Day until Doomfday : So little were the Pope's Promifes in his plenary Indul gences to this King's Soul depended on, either by the King himfelf, or by his furviving Re lations and Friends, who, befides the four daily Maffes, which are to be faid till Doomf- day, for the Releafe of his Soul out of Purga tory, have had many hundreds faid for it fince that Time. This is the Weaknejs in the Buy ers of plenary Indulgences, which I faid look ed like an Effeft of Witchcraft 3 that notwith-
ftanding
•i 86 A View of fome
ftanding by their Adions they openly declare thofe Papal Promifes to be things not to be depended on, do neverthelefs go on from Day to Day, and from Year to Year buying of them, as if they believed them to be infal lible. Now after that is once done for a Soul, a Fear that it may notwithftanding remain ftill in that Place of Torment, can have no Other Ground but a Sufpicion, that the Pope may either be unfaithful to the Dead in hisfo- Jemn Promifes to them, which would be a great Impiety, or that he is not able to perform what he has fo folemnly promifed them 3 which are both vile Reflections on one that will fwear that he is infallible in all the great Concerns of Religion^ and that he has fo ab- folute a Dominion over Purgatory that he can throw all its Gates open when he pleafeth, with a Proclamation of a General Jail Deli- v*ry. But tho' no Death is thought to be bad enough by the Pofe and his Inquijitwns for any thatlhall fufped him of Falfhoodin any of the great Concerns of Religion, or that lhall doubt of his having an abfolute Empire over Purga tory ^ yet in the Cafe of plenary Indulgences they do with great Patience fufferthe one or the other of them to be every where openly fufpeded $ and the Reafon is, becaufe that Su fpicion is the very Foundation the great Mar ket of plenary Indulgences Hands upon, as well as the chief Revenue of Monafteries : For were the Papal Promifes in plenary Indulgen ces for the Dead intirely depended on, a Soul
would
Papal Indulgences y &c. 187
would never have more than one fuch Indul gence for it, and not one Mafs faid for it after that 5 whereas, upon thofe Papal Pro- mifes being diftrufted ( as they are ) Indul gences upon Indulgences are bought, and Maffes. upon Majjes without end, for one and the fame Soul, as may be feen plainly in the foregoing Example. Is it not a Singularity in Traffick to have Drugs fell infinitely the more, and without any Abatement in their Price for their Vertue, when their Merchant's Word is miftrufted by all that buy them ? If there is no Sorcery here, it will not be eafie to find it any where.
The 2d great Cheat in the Bull for the Dead is, An Invitation to all that have pur- chafed one Bull for the Releafe of a Soul out of Purgatory to purchafe another for it for the fame End. Now if a Soul upon its having one plenary Indulgence purchafed for it, is im mediately releafed out of that Place of Tor ment, as it muft be if the Pope is not fo im pious as either not to keep his Word, or as to promife to do more than he is able, muft not the purchafingof a kcondflenary Indul gence be the throwing of Money away, or, which is worfe, the being fooled out of it, fo as ,no Man ever was out of his Money in any other Cafe but in this of plenary Indul gences ? What ftrange Stock-jobbing is this for Souls! in which fince there is nothing of My- ftery naturally, (for its Cheats are palpable,) muft there not be in it a ftrange Myftery of
Iniquity
1 88 A View offome
Iniquity or of Sorcery to uphold it in Nations that in all other Commerce have as much Sa gacity and Penetration as their Neighbours, on whom fuch grofs Cheats cannot poflibly be impofed.
I have by me one of the notableft Bills of Papal Indulgences I did ever fee or hear of any where: It is in Portuguefe, and was within thefe forty Years printed at Lisbon in that Language 5 and tho' its Indulgences have no Virtue in them, but in Conjunction with the Bull of Cruzado, yet being joined with that Bull, they outdo it very much both as to the Dead and as to the Living.
This Bull being a great Original, I fliall publifli it here in Portuguese word for word, as it was printed at Lisbon^ and lhall endea vour to have it printed truer than it is in my Notes on the Synod of Diamfer. -01 & fii lol h^ii'rioTQ'j £on39,ltif>nl viBnskj or;o
Indulgencias Concedidas del Papa |V 2 AdmnoVI. ;^|
Debuena memoria, alas cuentas^o granos, que biendixo a inftansia del illujtrijfimo Carde- nal Laquinaues, Trigermano, Barbantino 5 en el Anno de 1523, y confirmadas for N. S. S. Padre Gregorio XIII. a los 26 de Mayo de 1576, y confirmadas for Clemente VIII. el An no de 1603, y agora confirmadas forN. S.S. P. Paulo Papa V. Anno 1607, y ta?nbien agora confirmadas for N.S. S.P. Pafa Urbano en el quarto anno defu Pontificado.
Prime-
Papal Indulgences, &c.
PrimeramenteyQ^TZ turners una de las cuentas rezando un Pater N y una Ave M. cada dia faca tres animas de-pews de Purgatorio ^ y ft fuer a Domingo, ofiefta,, rezando doblado, Jaca feis.
Item, Cada Viernes, rezando cinco vezes el Pater No/ier, y el Ave Maria a honor de las cinco lagas de Cbriflo N. S. ganafetenta mil annos de ferdon, y remi/Jion de todos fus fee- cados.
Item, En cada un Sabbado, rezando fiete Pa* ter N. y fiete Ave Marias a los fiete gozos de N. Sennora^ gana Indulgencias fin numero.
Item, £7 quene fudiere andar las eftaciones de Roma en la quarefma, rezando cinco Pater Nofter,y cinco Ave Marias, delante de la Imagen de un Crucifixo^ gana las dicbas eftaciones den- tro, y fuer a de los muros de Roma.
Item, Trayendo configo una de las dicbas cu entas^ confejjandoy commulgando, gana Indul- gencia pknaria, y remiffion de todos -jua pec- cados.
Item, El facer dote que le confiefla, y comul- ga, gana Indulgencia flenaria y remiffion de to- dos fas peccados, y de de mas defto, gana tarn- bientodas las Indulgencias y que eftan dentro y fuer a de Ro?na^ y Jerufalem.
Item, Auiendo co?nulgado, quant AS vezes re- zare el Pater Nojler, con el Ave Maria, tantas animas faca del Purgatorio.
Item, Concede ju Santidad que eftas cuentas que fu Santida d ben dixo, puedan tocar a outras^ las quales tocadas, que dan con las wifmas gra-
cias
A View of fame
cias, falvo que eftas tocadas, no put dan tocar otras.
Vada en Roma, a quinza dias del mes de Enero, de 1607.
Nos Juan Ambrofio, Refrendario Apoftolico, fara ganar eftas gracias, ban de tener, la Bulla de la S. Cruzada.
.71
Com todas as licencas neceflarias, Em Lif- boa, por Antonio Alvarez, Impreflbr del Key N.S.
^-^^ iz\ ^^.n^lll^k ' t ?A -n\
" Indulgences granted by Pope Adrian VI. 44 of good Memory, to Beads or Grains " which he blefled at the Inftance of the moft illuftrious Cardinal Laquinaves, Trigermano, ^rte^^intheYear 1523, and have been confirmed by our moft holy Father Grego ry XIII. on the 26th of May 1576, and confirmed by Clement VIII. in the Year 1603, and now confirmed by our moft holy Father Pope Urban , in the fourth Year of his Pon- u tificate.
" Firft,. Whofoever has one of thefe Beads 9 u and fays one Pater Nofter and oneAve Mary, <c ftialhon any Day releafe three Souls out of " the Punifhments of Purgatory 5 and reciting " them twice on a Sunday^ or on any Holiday, <c fhall releafe fix.
Alfo, Reciting five Pater Nofter s and five " Ave Mary's upon a Friday to the Honour of " the five Wounds of Chnftoui: Lord, fhall " gain a Pardon of leventy thoufand Years, and u a Remiflion of all his Sins. Atfo,
"
Papal Indulgences , &c. 191
<c Alfo, Reciting on a Saturday feven Pater " Softer s and feven Ave Marfs to the feven " Joys of our Lady, fhall gain Indulgences " without Number.
" Alfo, Reciting five Pater Nofters and five «« Ave Marfs before the Image of a Crucifix^ «* if he is not able to go to the Stations, he " (hall gain all the Stations within and whh- <c out the Walls of Rome.
" Alfo, Having confefled and communicat- u ed, he (hall gain a plenary Indulgence and " Remiffion of all his Sins.
" Alfo, The Prieft that hears his Confeffi- " on, and gives him the Sacrament, fhall gain cc a plenary Indulgence and Remiffion of all " his Sins 5 and (hall moreover gain all the " Indulgences within and without Ro?7ie and " Jerufalem.
" Alfo, Having communicated, fo many " Pater Nofter's and Ave Marfs as he (hall *c fay, he Ihall releafe fo many Souls out of *c Purgatory.
" Alfo, His Holinefs grants that the jB^^f " which his Holinefs has bleffed may touch " other 5w&, which being touched by them, " fhall have all the fame Graces ^ but with " this Salvo, that they that are touched, can- " not touch others.
" Given in Rome on the i $th Day of the " Month of January, 1607.
" We John Ambrofio, the Apoftolical Re- <c ferendary. To gain thefe Graces People " muft have the Bull of the Santa Cruzada.
" With
I c? 2 ,A View of fame
" With all theLicences nceffary ^ in Lkboil " by Antonio Alvarez, Printer to our Lord « the King. 37il jbru* '•: Ty'u?>, v *oVc* 1 'Tv-i v.; KH \x.
Had I not Reafon for what I faid, that this Bill of Indulgences, both as to the Lead and as to the Living, much outdoes the Bull of the Cauzado: For as to the Dead, it is their Fault that have thofe Beads, if Purgato ry, let it be as full as it will, be not empti ed by them : For befides, that the bare faying of one Pater Nojier and one Ave Mary with them, upon any Day releafeth three Souls out of that Prifon $ and the foying of two Pater Nofters and two Ave Marys on Sunday or any Holi day, releafeth fix Souls out of it 5 a thoufand may be releafed in one Day by him that has confefled and communicated: And confider- ing thatthefe blefled Beads do communicate the fame Graces to all the Beads that they touch 5 fo many Beads might be touched by them, and fo many Pater Nofters and Ave Ma~ rys faid with them, that Purgatory, let it be never fo full, might be emptied by them in a very (bore-Time. Were it believed that there were any thing of Truth and Sincerity in the Papal Promifes of Indulgences, it muft be believed that the Popes, by the great Power they have given to thefe confecrated Beads. have put the Keys of the Gates of Purgatory into the Hands of the Perfons that have them, fo that if they would, they might make a
general
Papal Indulgences j &c.
general Jayl Delivery there $ but as no body feems to truft the Pope's Word in any of his Promifes about Indulgences, tho* they are under fuch an Infatuation as to go on ftill in buy ing of them 5 fo the Popes, being fatisfy'd that their Promifes in fuch Cafes are never depended on, do venture to Promife a Power over Purgatory, which they would not otherwife 5 even at the Inftance of all the Cardinals in the Conclave $ becaufe the Be lief that they are the fole and the uncontrou- lable Keepers of that Jayl, themofl profitable Prerogative of their Triple Crown: And as to the Living, on how much eafier Terms do they gain Plenary Indulgences with thefe Beads than with the Bull of Cruzado with out it ? All that this Bull requires to the gain ing of a Pardon for Seventy Thoufand years and a Remiffion of all their Sins, is barely to fay five Pater-Nofters and five Ave-Maries^ and for faying Seven of them they do gain Indulgences without number : And the Prieft that is fo happy as to hear their Confeffion, and to adminifter the Sacrament to them, over and above a Plenary Indulgence and Par don of all his Sins, does gain all the Indul gences within and without Rome and Je- rufalem. A wonderful Grace indeed, after a Plenary Indulgence and Remiffion of ail Sins.
Was there ever fuch a Jargon in any o- ther fort of Bulls $ as the granting one a Pardon for all his Sins for feventy thoufand
O Years
A View of fome
Years, with the fame breath, that a Remifii- on of all his Sins is given him 5 and the granting one all the Indulgences in and with out Jerufalem, after a Plenary Indulgence of all his Sins. What a Hocus Pocys is this, beyond that of all other Juglers, to whom the whole Legerdemain of their Craft is fo well known, that when they pleafe they can make it all intelligible to others, which is more than the Managers of Indulgences can do, as to twenty Particulars in their My- fleries.
There is nothing that is not faid by the Ad vocates and Preachers of Papal Indulgences, that they think will encourage Buyers to come in 5 and as they will have the Treafury out of which that Ware is taken to be inex- hauftible, they are likewife pofitive that it has always been in Fafhion in the Church, which is fo far from being true, that in twelve hundred Years after Chrift, it was ne ver feen nor heard of in her : The Story of Pope Gregory I. who lived in the latter end of the Sixth Century, having been the InJKtutor of the Stations of Rome, was devifed five .hundred Years after that Pope's Death, and in an Age when Faljebood and Interefl were encouraged by Credulity and Su- $€rftition to fay any thing that they judged to be convenient to their Aims. And that Papal In dulgences were things not known in the Chri- fiian Church for many Ages, is acknowledged both by Cardinal Cajetany and by tijber Bi-
fliop
Papal Indulgences j Sec.
{hop of Rocbefter, whofe words I (hall here fet down for the Faffors of Indulgences to try their Skill upon. De ortu Indulgentia- ru?n,fi certitude baberi fojjet, writati indagan- d& of em ferret : verum quia nulls, Sacra Serif- tur&, mill A frifcorum Dofforum Grecorum aut Latinorum autoritus Scripta hunc ad noftrarrt duxerit notitiam 5 fed hoc folum a trecentist annis Scripture commendatum eft de vetuftisfa- tribus, quod B. Gregorius Indulgentias Statio- num inftituit , inquit Cajetarius. " If any certainty could be had of the Origen of Indulgences, that would help us to fearch out the Truth: But neither the Holy Cc Scriptures, nor the written Authority of " ancient Dodors Greek nor Latin, has " brought that to our knowledge : The Story " of St. Gregorie's having inftituted the Sta- " tions in Rome not having been committed ce to Writing, as from the Fathers? above <c three Hundred years". Ouum igitur (in- quit Roffevfis} Pnrgatorium tarn few cognitum, ac receftum Ecclefi& fuerit iiniverfa 5 quis. jam de Indulgentiis marari foteft, quod in frincifio nafcentis Ecclefia nullus Client earum ufiis. " Wherefore fince Purgatory was fo late- cc ly known and received by theUniverfal " Church, who can now wonder at Indulgen- tc ces not having been in ufe in the firft Ages " of the Church. In truth, Papal Indulgences do owe their Birth to three Things, none of which were known in the Weftern Church
O 2 for
"
"
A View of fane
for many Ages, and are not to this Day be lieved in the Greek, nor in any other Church.
The i ft was the belief of Purgatory , or that in the next World there is a Prifon, in to which moft of the Souls are thrown, that are to go to Heaven at laft$ and that in that Prifon, the Torments the Souls are under, are but little inferior to the Torments of Hell^ this place was firft difcovered by Vifwnary Ro vers^ ar.d were it not for frefli Vifions now and then from thence, the belief of it would foon fink as low as that of Obrafile.
The 2d was, the belief that fome Men were fo Righteous, as to have done more good Works than were necefTary to the Eternal Salvation of their own Souls ^ and that thofe good Works, which their Fa&ors call Works of Supererogation, were all laid up in one great Treajure 5 out of which they might be taken and applied to the faving Benefit of thofe who had not good Works enough of their own to carry them to Heaven.
And the Loft was, the belief, that the Pope had the Key^ both of that Treafury, and of that Prifon, fo as to be the uncontroulabk Lord of both.
The Popes, upon the fuperftitious Belief of their having thofe two Keys, and with them the Keys of Heaven, did fet up a Traf- fick, which as to the Folly of the Buyers, and the Knavery of the Sellers, never had its fellow any where : The Popes with the fingle Commodity of Indulgences, having not
only
Papal Indulgences^ &c.
only many times filled their Coffers, but have brought likewife and kept together vaftArmies of Rakebells for to fight their Battels 5 for of fuch the Armies of the Cruzado's were made up for the moft part • and no wonder, confidering that whatever Refervations or Lf- mitations the Popes clogged their Promifes of Plenary Indulgences with all $ none of thofe Soldiers did in the leaft doubt of their hav ing gained a full Pardon of all their Sins, up on their having lifted themfelves in that Ser vice. For had they not believed that the Popes like other Princes, muft have raifed and maintained Armies, to defend them at their own Coft : And as by fuch cheap Ar mies the Popes deftroyed the Albigenfesy fo they did hope by them to have deftroyed the Protefta?its likewife 5 and for that end did grant the Bull of Cruzado to the King of Spain $ but as Spain with all its People to gether was not able tofurnifli out a Cru- fado, fo with a great part of its People, who were Morifco\ Indulgences would pafs neither for Levy-Money nor for Pay 5 and for that Reafon Charles V. had few or no Soldiers, in any of his Armies upon the Bull of Cruzado's Eftablifhment : It is true, that great Sums of Money were by that Bull raifed for that Service, yet fo much of it was, according to the Spanifh Mode, embezled by its Colle&ors and other Officers, that, to the Pope's great Difap- pointment, it never did the Prot eft ants much
O 3 harm 3
ip8 A View of fome
harm 5 however, Proteftants may fee by it, what the Pope would be at, and that it lies not at his Door that they were not in the Dawning of the Reformation, Cruzadod and Majjacred by him, as the Albigenfes were, i lhall conclude this DiiTertation, with what is faid by the Learned Tbu- anus, a Roman Catholick, in the firft Book of his Hiftory, concerning the Indulgences granted by Pope Leo the Tenth, by which the Spirit of Doftor Luther was firft ftir- red up againft the Pope.
Leo cum alioqui ad omnem licentiam fponte fua ferretur ^ Laurentii Puccii Cardi- walis, hominis turbidi, cui mmium tribuebat^ tmpulfu, ut fecuniam ad immenfos fumptus undi- que corrogaret, mijf/is per omma Chriftiam orbis regna diplomatis^ omnium deliclorum expiatio- mem, ac vitam aternam follicitus eft, conjlituto pretio quod quifque fro feccati gravitate de- fenderet, in eamq^ rem per provincial, jQiia- ftores & jEraria ordinavit, quibus additi Pr&- cones, qui tanti beneficii magnitudinem apud ~t>opuhm commendarent, & orationibus artifi- ciofe compofitis fropofitifque palam libellis, rei ejfficaciam immoderate extollerente : Quod Hcen- tiofe nimis a Pontificiis miniflris pajffim, atque in Germania fr&cipue fiebat, ubi qui redimen- dam fecuniam Roma a Pontifice conduxeranty fer Lujlra & Popinas quotidie fine pudore in aha lufum ufiifque turpijjimos, poteftatem extrahendi Animas Funftorum exigne Expia,- torio profundebant. \. e. " Leo X. being natu-
rally
Papal Indulgences, Sec. 199
" rally inclined to all Manner of Licentiouf-
" nefs, was perfuaded by Cardinal Puccius,
" a Man of a turbulent Spirit, and in great
" Favour with him, to difperfe Evils over all
" Cbriftendom, in order to amafs together a
" vaft Treafure of Money : In thofe Bulls were
" Promifes of Remiffion of all Si?is, and of E-
" verlafting Hapfinefs^ upon paying certain
" Sums proportionable to the Demerits of
" Offenders. To carry on this Trade, he
cc created Qu&ftors, and appointed Treasuries
<c in all Provinces under his Jurifdidion : And
" to make his Projeft more effeftual, he or-
<c daimdPreacbers who fhould extol to the
" People the great Benefit of fuch large In*
" diligences, and immoderately exalt the Ver-
" tue of them in fet artificial Speeches and
" in daily publick Papers. The Pope's Ojjl-
<c cers adted every where without any Guard
" or Caution, but more particularly in Ger-
" many^ where the Farmers of the Revenues
" of the Indulgences publickly proftituted the
" Power of delivering Souls out of Purgatory 9
" openly fpending the Money arifing thence
" in Gaming, and other the vileft Praftices,
*4 without any appearing Shame or Remorfe.
: nor
.
O! .VlV
73,/i ot; io
^'^V^U^ lo WQ s
W ~yi
A
DESCRIPTION
OF A
.H Solemn Pontifical- ft
s s.
Defign'd as a
SPECIMEN
:r£'^: "S°'F T H E?^^rS>J Infupportable Number of Ceremonies^
with which the whole Pofifh Service
iscumberU
By MICHAEL GE DDES,,L. L. D.
And Chancellor of the Church of Sarum.
Now therefore why temft ye God to fut a Tok ufon the Neck of the Difciples, which nei ther our Fathers nor we were able to tear? Ads Ckaf. 15. Ver. 10.
T HE INT&ODU&TION.
THEwercikfs Spirit of Popery, its Idolatry ', in the Adoration 0 Hoft of the Crofs, and of Images, and in fraying to Saints and Angels being ex- ceptedy there is not a -Corruption, that is more Antickriftian, lor mow defttuttive of the Life and* Power of true Religion, than that prodi gious multitude*of CumberfoTqe and Theatrical Ceremonies wTierewith its whole Worjlnp is cppreffed and overwhelmed, JRw tho* the ufe of a few ea/ie Ceremonies, and a Uniformity in them, are not only con/lftent with the Spiritual' lity^ Liberty andReafonableiKfs\)f>%he€hwifti- an Worfbify but likewife conduce very much to 'Decency and Order ^ nevertheless ^ Rites in fo gnat a,7iumb,er^ th^t itit Jlrift Qbfertomce$ them% is afull jEmployment$w the wbdt -wind, are m^eftfy-jnuvnfiftent wttft ifrop- jingular Glories yf>i^^ \ wfofe
Werjbipis t^e^furnedinto aferfeS Bowlage cf Spirit ft^iRjrpWJrr^V not for the incvnfiftency of the numerous Rites of tfie~Mofaical Dtfpen- Jation with that devout AttentionAUd.AfJ^ica'' tion of Spirit which God requires of all that
Worjfnf
The Introduction.
Worjlnp him, ^at that Injiitution was totally laid a fide and abolified ? and accordingly we fee, that inftead of fuch numerous Rites, two only were injiituted by Chrijl in bis Spiritual^ Free and Reafonable WorJInp : And was it not on the Account of the great number of its Ritual Observances, that St. Peter f peaking of that Law in the fifteenth Chapter off be -wk^faitb? It was a Yoke which neither their fathers nor they were able to bear. The Fathers called it, Sarcina innumerabilium Obfervationum. And the New Teftamentwascalledby them, Verbum abbreviatum. St. Auftin, in this Cafe, faithy .Quamvis enim neque hoc inveniri poffit, quo- modo contra fidem fint 5 ipfam tamen Religio- nem, qnam pauciffimis & manifeftiffimis cele- brationum Sacramentis mifericordia deieffeli- beram voluit, fervilibus oneribus premunt : ut tolerabilior fit conditio Judsorum, qui eti- am fi tempus Libertatis non agnoverint, lega- libus tamen, farcinis, non humanis pr^fump- tionibus Subjiciuntur. Tho* we cant find that they are contrary to the Faith 5 yet they cumber and opprefs Religion (which God in his gracious, mercy has made eafy by enjoyning only two plain andfofitive Sacraments} withfuch heavy and fer tile Burdens, that the Condition of the Jews is more tolerable $ who, thd they did not know the time of Liberty, werefubjeSt only to Legal Bur.- dens, and not to Human Preemptions. Now be- fide this mentioned by St. Aufun, the Jewilh Ceremonial Law had another Advantage of the Popilh Rituals 3 which is, that its Rites are not
near
The Introduftion."
near fo many in number $ this, to repeat St. Au- ftin'j words, makes the Condition of the Jews, as to the Ceremonies in their Worjbip, to be more tolerable than that of the Papifts 5 of wbofe Rites, I flail here give a Sample out of one Ser vice only$ by which the Reader may judge of the Immenfity of their number in their whole fublick Worlhip.
A
^^^^i^^^^^l^¥^^^
DESCRIPTION
L ,• " ;,..?'.> OF A 7,^-- ',,,; \;,V!
| Solemn Pontifical ^
MASS
H E Hour being come for the faying of a folemn Pontifical Mafs, the Bifhop enters the Church in a Woollen Pontifi cal Cope, which has its tail carried up by one of the Chap lains ^ and having kneeled to the Altar and Paid the Introibo^ he goes to the place where the far amenta are laid, and fits down in a Chair, that is fet for him there. On his Right Hand he has one Arch-Deacon, and on his Left another, with a Deacon, Sub-Dea- :on, fix Chaplains, and two Afliftants: The firft Affiftant is the chief Prieft in the
Chapter,
1
A Description of a
Chapter, who is expert in Saying of Mattes - and his Bufinefs is, either with his Finger to point to the Bifhop where he is to read 5 or with a low Voice, to tell him what he is to fay. The Second Affiftant's Office is to hold up the Book when the Bifliop (lands up to read. Not far from the Altar there is a Table for the Credentia ^ whereon is a clean Linnen Cloath, a Napkin, two Candle- Jlicks with Candles lighted in them, the Mi tre, the Sandals, the Paftoral Staff, the Cha lice, the Corf oral, the Fall with Napkins, the Hoftery with the Hofl, the Bottles with Wine and Water, the Incenfe Pot with the Navicula and Spoon, >and on the Horns of the Table are two Vejjeh of Silver, a Ve$el for the wafhing of Hands, and Towels. The Minifters at the Credentia, are the three moft honourable Laymen that are prefent, who muft be always upon their Legs, unlefs when they kneel. About the middle of the Altar, is the Ami&us, the Alba, the Girdle, the Pontifical Crofs, the Stole, the Tunicella, the Dalmatica, the Gloves, the Planeta, the Manifulum, ^Pontifical Ring, and the Pall if he that celebrates is an Archbifhop.
The Archdeacons, Deacons, and Chap lains having put on their Copes, or Surplices ; the Bifliop arifeth up, and turning toward the Altar, with his Head uncovered, he faith, the Pater Nofter fecretly 5 and after that, having crofs'd himfelf from his Fore head to his Breaft, he faith, tieus in adjuto*
rium
Solemn Pontifical Mafs, a o 7
rlum meum intends $ and the Choir anfwers; Domine ad adjuvandum mefejlina^ the Hours that are proper for the time are then faid, and in the mean while the Bifliop, turning towards the Altar betwixt two Bearers of Wax-Candles, and having faid Domimts vobif- cum^ and the Prayer proper for the time, he repeats Dominus wbifcum again, and fays Be- nedicamus Domino $ after that, having laid afide his Pluvial, he takes his Planet, and goes to wards the Altar, and having fate down whilft the Pfalm of the Hours is finging, the San dals are brought to him covered with a Tail by a Sub-Deacon with both his Hands lifted up • and at the fame time the Border of the Pontifical Cope being held up quite round by the Chaplains upon their Knees $ the Servant who ufeth to take off the Bifhop's Shooes at his Chamber, kneeling down, does with the Afliftance of the Sub-Deacon that brought them, put on the Sandals 3 after that, the Bi- fliop fays the Prayer, Ne reminifcaris Domine^ &c. with feveral Pfalms and Prayers, and at laft faith, Calcia me Domine caligis jucundita- tis, &c, and that other Prayer, Calcia Domine fedes ?neos in preparotionem Evangelii • and having after that flood up and faid, Ernie me Domine veferem bominem, <3tc. his Cope is tak en off by the Scutiferi, and he prays and fays to his Hands, Da Domine virtutem ?nanibus> meis, &c. and fitting down, the Ewer with the Towel folded, is brought to him in the Right Hand of the moft honourable of the
in
A Defcriftion of a
Laicks that minifters, and the Bafon in his Left ^ who kneeling down before the Bifhop, and having poured a fmall Quantity of the Water upon the Lip of the Bafon9 he taftes it 5 and the Pontifical Ring being taken off by the Arch-Deacon, two of the Chaplains on their Knees do take the folded Napkin from him that brought it, and extend it before the Bifhop's Knees 5 the Water is then poured out by the Lay-Officer, who with the Afli- ftance of the Sub-Deacon, walheth the Bi- fhop's Hands, and having wiped them, he car ries back the Bafon., Ewer and Towel to the Credentia.
The Bifhop's Feet being Ihod with the Pre paration of the Gofpel, by being fhod with a Pair of Sandals 3 and having fut of the old Man with the Lufts thereof \ by having put off his old Woollen Cope ^ and having by wafh- ing his Hands endowed them with the Ver- tue of wiping out all Blots, he arifeth up and prays, faying to the Amiftus, Pone Domine Ga- leam falutis. Sec. In the mean while the Pa- r amenta, are all brought to the Bifhop by his Chaplains in this Order, ift. The AmiEtus, id. The Alba, %d. The Girdle. #h. The Crofs. yh. The PeSoral. 6th. The Stole. 7th. The Tunfyella. 8th. The Dalmatick. $th. The Gloves, icth. The Planet, nth. The Thorns, nth. The Pall, if a Pall is tobeufed. \yb. The Mitre, i^th. The Pontifical Ring. And Lxftly the Gremial. Of all thefe Paramenta the Bifhop kilfeth only
the
Solemti PontijicalMzfa. 209
the AmiSus, the Crofs, the PeSoral, the Stole and the Pall when it is put on and off. The two Arch-Deacons, which are at the Bifhop's Right and Left Hand, with the Deacon that is to read the Gofpel, cloath the Bifhop after they have in order received the Par amenta from the Chaplains.
Firft they take the AmiSus 9 and every one of them having kijjed it on the fide that is next to him, they deliver it to the Bifhop, and after he has faffed it, they put it over his Head, and fitting it exaftly to his Body, they tye it behind his back with Strings. The Bifhop's Head being thus armed with the Shield of Salvation he ftands up, and praying, faith to the Alba, Dealba me Domine, & a deliSto meo munda me, &c. They do then take the Alba, and fit it nicely to his Neck, Wrifts and Shoulders. After that the Bifhop ftands up and praying, fays to the Girdle, Pr&cinge me Do?nine cingulo fidei, <5tc. They do then take the Girdle, and beginning at the Bifhop's back, they carry it about his feody, and Buckle it before, bearing up the Alba fo on all fides that it may hang handfomely : Being girt with the Girdle of ra\tb, the Bi fhop ftands up and praying, faith to the Crofs, Munire digneris me, &c. Then the Deacon takes the Crofs, and having held it out to the Bifhop to fop, he puts it fo about his Neck, that it hangs before his Breaft. When that is over, the Bi(hop praying, faith to the Stole, Redde mibi Dowine obfecro, ftola??i immorta-
P litatu,
2io A Description of a
litatis, Sec. The Deacon and Sub-Deacon do then take the Stole betwixt them, and hav ing held it out to the Bifhop to Kifs, they put it about his Neck very nicely, taking great care, that before it doth not hang a- crofs, and that behind it puffs off fo as not to touch the middle of his Neck : After the Stole has been thus nicely hung, the Bifhop rifeth up, and praying, faith to the Tunicel- la, Tunica jucunditatis & indumenta letitiA induat me Dominus^ &c. They do then put on the Tunicella^ fitting it exaftly to his Neck and Hands ^ then praying, the Bifhop faith to the Dalmatick, Indue me Domine in- dumento Salutis, <3cc. and then the Dalmatick is put on and fitted with the fame Exadnefs. Then praying, the Biihop faith to the Gloves , Circunda Domine manus me a 3 munditia novi ho- minis, Sec. After that the Deacon kijjes the BifhopV Right Hand, and puts his Right Hand Glove upon it, and the Sub-Deacon kijjes his Left Hand, and puts on the Left Hand Glove. When that Ceremony is over, the Bifhop rifeth, and praying, faith to the Planet, Domine qui dixijli, jugum meum fua ve ejl^ &c. Then the Arch- Deacons at each fide put it on, bringing it back, fo that the Bifhop's Arms are not hindred by it : If the Bifhop may ufe a PaH, as foon as the Planet is on, the Pall is brought by a Chaplain with his Hands lifted up ^ the Deacon takes it by the Crofs on the Right Side, and the Sub- Deacon by the Crofs on the Lefr, and hold
forth
Solemn Pontifical Mafs. 1 1 1
forth the Crofs that is in the middle that the Bifhop may kifs it $ which the Bifhop having done, the Deacon holds up that part of the Pall which is to be behind with his Left Hand, and puts it over the Bifhop's Shoulders 5 fo that that part which is on the Left Shoulder lies double, and the whole is fet fo exaftly upon his Shoulders that the Bilhop's Arms are not hindred by it. The Pall being curioufly put on, the three Thorns with Jewels upon them are brought by a Chaplain ^ the Deacon then takes the Thorn that has the faireft Jewel upon it, and puts it into the Crofs that is on the Breaft of the Pall 5 the fecond Thorn he puts into the Crofs on the left Shoulder, and the third into the Crofs that is behind : The Thorns are fixed fo as not to go quite thorow the Crofs, be- caufe they muft by no means touch the Planet 5 and the Jewel that is on the Head of the chief Thorn, muft be on the Right Side to the Deacon that fixeth it. When that is done the Biftiop praying., faith to the Mitre^ Mitram Domine&falutis Gal earn impone capiti meo, Sec. He then fits down, and the Dea con receives the Mitre wrapt up in a Napkin from a Chaplain, and puts it on the Bifhop's Head, the Sub-Deacon holding up the Rib bands that hang down from it. The Bifhop fitting with his Mitre on prays, faying to the Ring, Cordis & Corforis ?nciDomlne dipitos virtute decora : Then the Aflifhnt having 'tirft kifled t he Biihop's Right hand, puts the'jJzwr
P 2 on
1 1 2 A Defcription of a
on the Ring Finger. The Gremial is then laid upon the Bifliop's Lap 5 who prays, and fays to the Manipulum^ Merear preccr Domi- Tie Manipulum portare mente flebili, &c. The Bifliop being thus attired with an extraordi nary Nicenefs, the Thuriferarius advances to wards him, and the Affiftants having firft kifs'd the Spoon, he faith, Benedicite Pater Reverende. The Bifliop having taken the Spoon out of the Navicul*9 throws Incenfe with it upon the Fire in the Incenfe-Pot, fay ing the following Prayer three times over, Ab illo benedicaris, in cujus bonorem cremabe- ris, &c. After that he puts the Spoon into the 'Namcula, making the Sign of the Crofs over it, and the Afliftant having kifs*d the Bifliop's Hand, delivers the Navicula to the Thuriferarius, who rifing off' his Knees fhuts the Incenfe- Pot, and carries it to the Efiftle Corner of the Altar^ and is followed by two Cereferarii with Candlefticks in their Hands, with Candles lighted in them. Next after the Cereferarii the Crofs is carried, if he that officiates is an Archbiihop, otherwife the Sub-Deacon follows, carrying the Book of the Gofpel fhut before his Breaft, with the Manipulum in it. Next comes the Deacon and the Afliftant, and after them the Bifliop between two Arch-Deacons, with his Staff in in his Left Hand, and is followed by the Chaplains and other Clerks. The Bifliop when he comes to the Steps of the Altar, makes a full ftop j where the Deacon takes
off
Solemn PontificalWbits. 213
off the Mitre, delivers it to a Chaplain, and and fmooths down the Bifhop's Hair, with whom they do all prepare themfelves to fay their Confeffion in the following Order. On his Right Hand is his Afliftant, who muft always be near him $ and on his Left Hand a Deacon, and on the Deacons Left Hand a Sub-Deacon, who inuft not kneel till after the Deacon is upon his Knees $ behind the Bifhop ftand the Arch-Deacons, and the other Minifters} the Bilhop, having made a profound Reverence to the Altar, begins the Confeflion 5 and when he comes to the word Indulgentiam, the Sub-Deacon draws out the Mampuhm, and having luffed the Bifliop's Left Hand., goes up to the Altar with the Gofyel open in his Right Hand $ the Bifliop having faid the cuftomary Prayers goes up to the Altar , and kiffeth it firft, and afterwards the Book of the Gofpels, which the Sub-Dea con having Ihut immediately, delivers it to one of the Minifters. The Bifhop having then turned himfelf to the Horn of the Efijlle^ the Incenfe-fot is held out to him by the Deacon of the Gofpel, and the Bifhop having taken it, and put Incenfe into it, In- cenfetb the whole Altar in the form following : Firft having made a profound Reverence to the Crofs or to the Image that is in the middle of the Altar, he incenfeth it all over, whirling the Inccnfe-Pot three times round before it 5 next he incenfetb the Image or Relicks which are on the Right Hand with two round Tof-
P 3 fmgs
d 14 A Defcriptioti of a
fags of the Incenfe-Pot, and Incenfes thofe that are on the Left with the fame number of Tojjes $ after that he goes to the Corner of the Efiftle, and Incenjeth the Image and R.e- licks which are there with three round fwings 5 and hceTjfmg all the way, he returns to the Horn of the Gofpel, which he Incenfeth with the fame number of fwings ^ and having done that, he delivers the Incenfe-Pot to the Dea con, who having luffed the Bifhop's Hand and fmoak'd him three times with the bicenfe- Pot, delivers it to the Thuriferarius. When the Incenfing is over, the Arch-Deacons put the Mitre on the Bifhop's Head, who, as if he were ftruck with Decrepitnefs fo of a fud- den that he were not able to go alone, is fup- ported by the Arms by the Arch-Deacons, and led by them to the middle of the Altar 5 to which having made a profound Reverence with the Mitre on his Head, he reads Introi- tus : The Book being held to him by one Chaplain and a Candle by another, the Afli- ftant finding out the place for the Biftiop, and pointing to it with his Finger, the Bifhop lings the Kyrie Eleefon, &c. which having be gun, he fits down ^ and his Mitre is put on again by the Arch- Deacon, and the Gremial laid upon his Lap by them 5 and the reft of the Minifters do all likewife fit down : The Affiftant, who muft always be clofe to him, fits on his Right Hand, and the Deacon upon the upper Step 3 and the Sub-Deacon upon the lower Step of the Altar. The Choir
having
Solemn Pontifical Mafs. a 1 5
having fung the Kyrie Eleefon, the Deacon rifeth up firft, and taking the Gremial with a low Reverence and the Mitre off his Head, delivers them to their feveral Officers 3 they do then all rife up except the Bifhop, who fits ftill in his Pontifical Chair, and as if he were not able to move without help, is lifted up by the Arms by the Arch- Dea cons $ but after that, as if he had been by a Miracle cured of his fudden Decrepitnefs , ftands fturdily upon his Legs, and lifting up his Hands exadly to the height of his Shoulders, with his Fingers ftretched out, but not feparated, he faith the Gloria Deo in excel/is, joining his Hands before his Breaft at the word Deo : Whilft the Choir is fing- ing that Hymn, the Biflhop fits down and has his Mitre and Gremial brought to him 3 which being taken off again by the Deacon as the Hymn is ended, the Bifhop, as before is help'd up out of his Chair by the Arch- Deacons as ufually, and turning to the Peo ple with his Hands lifted up as before, he faith, Pax vobis, and having faid that, joins his Hands before his Breaft till it is anfwered, Et cum Spiritu tuo. Then turning to the Crofs that is upon the Altar, and joining his Hands, he faith, Oremus, and having parted his Hands and lifted them up again prefently, he goes on with the Prayer, joining his Hands again when he comes near to the end of it.
When the Epiftle is going to be read, the Bifliop fits down, and has his Mitre and Gre-
P 4 ?mal
2 1 6 A Description of a
mid brought to him, and the Sub-Deacon taking the Book, and holding it open againft his Breaft with both Hands under it, bows to the Altar, and afterwards to the Bifliop, his Knee both times touching the Pavement 5 and then one of the Acoliti going before walks to the ufual place, and there Chants the Epi- ftle, and when he has done, makes Obeyfance to the Altar, and returns in the fame manner that he came, excepting that the Book muft be fhut, which when he comes near the Bi- ftop he is to lay in the Bifhop's Lap kneeling 3 and the Bifhop pitting his Right Hand upon It, the Sub-Deacon kiffes his Hand, and there upon receiving the Bifhop's Blefling rifes up, and returning to the Altar tarries there till the reading of the Goffel. Mean while two of the Chaplains approach the Bifliop with a Book and Candle, and holding it before him, as he fits with his Mitre on, he reads out pf it all between the Epiflle and Go/pel, fay- jng fecretly before the Gofpel, the Munda cor yieum, <3cc. ^nd when 'tis the proper time the Deacon taking up the Gofpel-Book holds it be* fore him, as the Sub-Deacon did that of the Epiftle, and making a low Bow to the Bi fhop, and to the Altar, goes to the uppermoft flep of it, and laying the Book upon the middle of the Altar, leaves it there, and comes and kiffes the Bifliop's Hand, and then re turns to the lower moft ftep of the Altar, and there fays tc himfelf the Munda Cor me- urn, 6tc. and then taking up the Book and
holding
Solemn Pontifical Mafs: 217
holding it before him, he goes along to the Epiftle fide of the Altar, and there tarries. When this is done, one of the Acoliti brings to the Bifliop an Incenfe-Pot with the Navi- cula 5 and when the Bifliop has put Incenfe into it, the Acotitus carries both towards the Altar, and delivers them to one of the Chap-, lains who waits there for that purpofe, and when the finging is nigh done, the Jncenfe- bearer, the Taper-bearers, the Sub-Deacon and the Deacon holding the Gofpel-Book fhut before him, make all of them their Obey- fance to the Altar, the Deacon bowing low- eft, and in like manner afterwards to the Bi fliop 3 and then the Deacon with an Atten dant coming near to the Bifliop, and bowing Jow before him, asks his Bleffing, which he accordingly grants, making a Crojfs over him 5 and then the Deacon riling goes in this man ner to the place where he is to Chant the Gofpel. Firft there goes before him the In- cenfe-bearer, followed by the Taper-bearers, the Sub-Deacon next, and then the Deacon holding the Book before him, which the Sub- Deacon takes and holds for him when he comes to read 3 and at the words Dominus vo- bifcum, the Deacon joins his Hands together before his Breaft, and as he is about to read the Gofpel makes a Crofs with his Right Thumb firft upon the Book, and then upon his Forehead, Mouth and Breaft 5 and when they are come to the Refponfe, Gloria tibi Domine, taking the Incenfe-Pot, he Incenfes the Book
three
2 1 8 A Description of a
three times, firft full before it, and after wards on the Right Side and on the Left 5 and then delivering it to the proper Officer, joins his Hands again and goes on with the Service. Aflbon as the Gofpel is begun, the Biftiop (lands up without Gremial or Mitre, and joining his Hands, turns himfelf towards the Gofpeller 5 and xvhen the Gofpel is ended the Sub-Dea con taking the Book carries it back in the fame Order that he brought it, and when he comes to the Bifliop, holding it open at the Gofpel prefents it to him to kifs, while one that ftands by Incenfes the Bifliop, who, if there is to be a Sermon fits down, and putting on his Mitre and Gremial^ the Preacher kneel ing before him kiffes his Hand and asks Blef- fing, which the Bifhop giving him in the form of t)o?ninus fit in corde tuo^&c. makes a Crofs over him, and then the Preacher asks him what Indulgences he'll be pleafed to have publifhed, and then goes into the Pulpit. After Sermon the Deacon bowing before the Bifhop, (landing xvith his Mitre on, fays the Confaeor^nA when he comes to the words, Te Pater , bows again, and after the publifhing of the Indulgences by the Preacher the Bilhop gives his Absolution.
But if there be no Sermon, the Bifliop after kiffing the Gofpel- Book, and being Incen- fed, turns to the Altar and fays the Credo, bowing at the words Incarnatus ejtina pofture between kneeling and fitting, in which he con tinues till they come to Homo faSus eft 5 then he fits again as before, and the Deacon tak
ing
Solemn Pontifical Mzk. a 19
ing from the Credentia the Corporal and the Burfa, and lifting his Hands up even with his Eyes, does Reverence to the Bifhop firft, and then to the Altar $ and after he has taken out the Corporal and unfolded it, goes to the place from whence he came. The Creed be ing ended the Bifhop, having his Gremial and Mitre taken off, rifes, and turning him to the People, fays with lifted up Hands, Dominus vobifcum, and then facing about to the Altar and faying Oremus, goes on with the Offer- torium. After which he fits down, and hav* ing his Mitre put on, and his Rings and Gloves taken off, and a Bafon, and Ewer^ and Towel brought him, he wafhes his Hands with the fame Ceremony as before.
While this is doing, the Chaplain ~who took the Miffal from the Bifliop at the end of the Offertoriwn, goes with it lifted up before his Breaft, with a Cuftiion upon it, and is accompanied by the other Chaplains towards the Altar, where approaching with Reverence, he goes to the Goffel fide, and there lays the Cujbion and the Book open upon it at the place which is to be next read. At the fame time the Sub-Deacon, going to the Credentia , puts on a Vail that is made to hang down longer on the Right fide than on the Left 5 and tak ing the tatin with two fair and choice Hofts upon it, and the Chalice likewife in his Right Hand, and covering them with his Vail, is to go in this manner after the Bilhop to the Altar : After him follows one of the Acoliti with
Wine
A Description of a
Wine and Water for the Sacrament, which muft be firft tafted by one of the Credentiarii before it is delivered. Things being thus prepared, the Bifliop puts on his Eplfcopal Ring, and being Mitred and fupported on each Hand by an Arch-Deacon, goes forward to wards the Altar, and when he comes near it, his Mitre being trfen off by the Deacon of the Gofpel, bows, and going up kiffes the mid dle of the Altar, and then the Priefl AJjiflant (or Matter of the Ceremonies) coming to him, points with his Finger on the Book at what is to be next read. This done, the Deacon taking one of the Hofts and touching the Patin and the Chalice with it within and without, makes the Sub-Deacon or Sacriftan tafte it ^ and offering the other on a Patin to the Bifliop, he receives it with both Hands and holding it up before his Breaft, faysS?^/a- fe San&e Pater ', &c. and at the conclufion making a Crofs with it, places the Hoft al- nioft upon the middle of the Corporal, and the Patin on the Right Hand : Mean while the Deacoq taking from the Sub-Deacon the Pitcher of Wine which is brought to him by one of the Acoliti, pours into the Chalice what is neceflary, and fhews it to the Bifliop, and the Sub-Deacon taking the Pitcher of Water in his Right Hand, and turning to wards the Bifliop, bows and fays, Benedicite -pater Reverende $ upon which the Bifhop mak ing the Sign of the Crofs towards it, fays the Prayer, Deus qui humana Subftantia, See.
Then
Solemn Pontifical Mafs. 221
Then the Sub-Deacon pouring a little Water to the Wine in the Chalice, the Deacon takes and prefents it to the Bifliop, and both he and the Bifhop holding and prefenting it together, they fay the Prayer Offerimus tibi, &c. and afterwards the Bifliop * moving the Chalice fo as to make a Crofs with it, places it upon the Corf oral juft behind the Hoft, and the Deacon covers it with a Napkin. After which the Patin is delivered to the Sub-Dea con, who ftanding behind the Bifliop and the Deacon at a convenient diftance, covers it with the Ftfi/, and holds it lifted up with his Right Hand almoft to the end of the Pater Nofter : Mean while the Biftiop goes through with the Prayer In fpiritu humilitatis, and when he comes to the Benedic hoc Sacrifici- wn, <3cc. the Incenfe Pot is brought to him ^ and the Deacon holding the Navicula, the Bifliop puts in the Incenfe, and ufes the Cere monies before mentioned in Incenjing the Al tar, &c. Then giving it to the Deacon, the Deacon Incenfes the Prelates, Magi/lrates or other considerable Perfons^ whether Civil or Ecclefiaftical then prefent. The Bifliop the mean while having waflied his Hands, as be fore, and wiped them, has his Mitre taken off by the Arch-Deacon, who placing it upon the Left fide of the Altar, the Bifliop bowing before the Altar, fays the Prayer Sufcife Santta Trinatas, and then kifles the Altar near the Hoft, and turning himfelf towards the People fays, Orate fratres, <3tc. and wheel
ing
A Dejcription of a
ing round towards the Altar again with lifted up Hands, fays the Secrete 5 and putting his Hands upon the Altar on each fide of the Corporal, raifes his Voice at the words, Per cmniaS&culafaculorum. At the Surfum cor da he lifts up his Hands, and at the Gratias a- gimus, joins them again and bows his Head 5 and lifting them up again prefently goes on with the Service, lowering his Voice as he comes to the Santtus, <3tc. which he is to whiff er over with the Minifters attending him. While this is doing the Torches for the Sacrament are lighted, and born by the two Chaplains ftanding with the Sub-Deacon be tween them ^ and the Bifliop devoutly reading the Prayer for the Pope, for himfelf, <3cc. as in the Kubrick, when he comes to fay Qui pridie, &c. is to wipe his Thumbs and Fore fingers upon the Corporal, and then taking up the Hojf, and a little elevating it, at the Words Elevatis ocnlis in ccelwn, he is to turn up his Eyes 3 and proceeding to the Words of Confecration, which he is to pronounce di- ftinftly and reverently, falls down afterwards and pays his Adoration to it : Then lifting it upwith both Hands for the People to fee and adore, fets it down again in its Place, and is to bow again to it with his Knee touching the Pavement : His Thumb and Fore-finger muft not be feparated or touch any thing elfe, till after he has communicated ^ and while the Hojl is elevated one of the Acoliti, on the Epiftle fide of the Altar is to Incenfe it on
his
Solemn Pontifical Mafs. 223
Knees. The Bifhop proceeding is to lay both his Hands upon the Altar, while he fays the Per omnia fecula feculorum $ and when he comes to the Pater nofter^ is to raife up both Hands as high as his Shoulders, and to hold them in that Pofture to the End of it. At the Words Sicut & nos, the Sub-Deacon brings the Patin to the Deacon, who, when the Bifhop has end ed the Pater nofter, prefents it to him rever ently, and he takes it between the fore and middle Finger of his right Hand, for Iv&Tbumb and Forefinger are by no means to be fepara- ted, as was before mentioned.
In the Prayer Libera nos, which he is to fay tohimfelf^when he comes to the Words Da profiting pacem, he crofles himfelf with the Patin ; and at the Prayer Domine Jefa Cbrifti qui dixifti Apoftolis tuis^ &c. the Afliftant goes to the left fide of the Altar, and there waits upon his Knees till the Bifhop has kijfed the Altar 5 and then going reverently to the Bi- ihop's right Hand, and kijfing the Altar, the Bilhop lays to him,?*** tecum, To which he an- fwers, Et cum fpiritu tuo. And then the Prieft Af/ijlant gives the Pax tecum to all the Great Men there prefent, and afterwards to the Deacon, who likewiie gives it to the Sub- Deacon ^ and one of the hferiwr Mimfters, carries it to all the Congregation. The Bi lhop in the mean while goes on with the Ser vice, and the Communion being ended, the Deacon having the Mitre brought him from the Altar, puts it on the Bifhop's Head,
who
2 2 4 ^ Description of a.
who {landing on the left fide of the Altar, waflies his Hands again as before, and when he has wiped them, taking off his Mitre fays the Po/f communion^ and then going to the middle of the Altar and Kiffvng it, he turns to the People and fays, Dominus vobifcum, and immediately turning again to the Book fays, Orfmus. And the following Prayers being ended, he returns to the Altar and performs the fame Ceremonies over again, facing about to the Altar on the right Hand, as the Deacon pronounces the Ite miffa eft.
But if the Benedicamus be to be faid, the Bifliop aflbon as he has faid Dofninus vobifcum, turns to the Altar, and bowing before it, after the Refponfe Deo Gratias, fays, flaceat tibi fancta Trinitas^ Sec, which done the Bifliop turning to the Altar with his Mitre on, and crofling himfelf with his right Thumb, fays, Sit nomen Domini, <3tc. and making a great Crofs from his Forehead to his Breaft, and from Shoulder to Shoulder, fays, Adjutonum noftrum in nomine Domini 3 and then lifting up his Hands and faying, Benedicat vobis Omnipo- tens Deus, at the Word Dem joins his Hands before him, and taking his Pajloral Staff m his left Hand turns himfelf with it to the right, and adds, Pater & Film & Spirits Sanftus, making a Crofs towards the People at each of thefe three Words.
If there is no Sermon, the Prieft Affiftant publiflies what Indulgences the Bifliop is pleafed to grant , aflbon as the Bleffmg is given ^
and
Solemn Pontifical Mafs. a a 5
and the Bifhop croffing the Altar, his Fore head, Mouth and Breaft, fays the Evangelium SanBi Jobannis : and after the Benedicite, the Keyrie Eleifon , and a Prayer or two , goes out in Proceflion to the Place where he put his Habit on 5 or if it be near the Altar, he there Undrefles, and the Par amenta are all reverently laid by his Chaplains upon the Altar it felf.
F I
T HE
JX I F E
O F
Don Alvaro de
Prime Favourite and Firft Minifter to Don JOHN II. King ofCajlile :
GIVING AN
Account of his Rife and Fall:
Ultima femper
ExpeBanda dies botnini : dicique beat u Ante obit urn nemo, fufremaque funera debet.
Ovid. Metamorphof. lib. 3. cap. 2,
By MICHAEL GEDDES., L.L.D*
And Chancellor of the Church of Sarum.
THE
INTRODUCTION.
HAving in the following Life of this great Favorite Jet down all that I could learn concerning him from fome an cient Spaniih Chronicles which I have by me 3 and having likewife ?nade all the Remarks upon it that 1 judged to be proper : I have here nothing more to fay of him, but that he was both as to the Greatnefs and the Duration of his Power , the top Favorite / have any-where met with in Hijlwy. And the truth is, it was his having been fo, that induced me to Iring him upon the ftage, after he had lain for fome Ages buried in Oblivion. The great ejf Men in their kind, are the Creatures which al^ that have any flare of Curiofity, defers to know fomewhat of $ and after they have -penetrated fo far, naturally enquire into the Caufes of their ftupendous growth $ which Caufes are many times harder to be difcover- ed in Political Prodigies , than in thofe of Nature.
,v. '•'. 1C :.! 3 .1 3 A K -.; \ v;
H E
|^.l!&$i§**^
:
THE
LIFE!
OF
Alvaro de Lttna, &c.
LvARo JtfLuNA, who was for above thirty Years Firfl Minifter, or rather Gover nor to Don JOHN II. King of Caftile, was born in Ca-
nets a Town in Aragon, in
or about the ¥ear 1388 : He was the Na tural Son of Don Alvaro de Luna Lord of Canete, and Cup-bearer to King Henry III. of Caftile^ by a Common Strumpet, who had three Sons before by unknown Fathers. And as Don Alvaro had taken no notice of a Child that had been laid to him by fo Common a Woman ^ fo neither would he, at his death, have left him any thing, if he had not been rfwaded by one John de Olio to give him ht hundred Florins $ who allured him,
230 The LIFE of
that Alvaro was fo like him, that he was cer tainly his Son. With this Money De'Olio put Alvaro^ who was then feven Years old, in good Cloaths ; and carry'd him to France^ to Pope Benedict XIII. whofe Name was Peter de Luna9 and whp was Uncle to Alvaro's Father. In that Pope's Court, which was kept ztAvignion, Alvaro was nobly educated until he was eighteen Years of Age ^ and then returning to Spain, was, by the intereft of another Peter de Luna ( who was Arch-Bifliop of Toledo, and a near Kinfman of his Father's ) prefer red prefently to be a Gentleman of the Bed chamber to King John II. who at that time wa§ but three Years old.
We are not told by what Arts (unlefs we will believe it was by MagicK) Alvaro came to have fo powerful an Afcendant over his young Mafter, that the Queen Regent found it was neceffary not only to remove him from about her Son's Perfon, but alfo to banifh him the Kingdom. Upon this Dif- grace, Alvaro retir'd into Aragon, where he remained, probably, at Pope Benedi&'s Court, until the death of that Queeu-Motber and Regent, which happen'd in the Year 1418, The King her Son being then of Age, took upon himfelf the Government of his Kiflg- doms, for which he was no ways fit by the Education which his Mother had given him : For She, according to the cuftom of all Re gents that are not willing to part with the exercife of the Royal Authority, confined
him.
Don Alvaro de Luna. 231
him, in great meafure, to the company of her Women, and Indulg'd him in all the Vani ties and Luxuries to which his Youthful In clinations led him.
We are not told how foon after the Queen's death, Don Alvaro returned to the Cajtilian Court 5 but within a Year after we find him there at the Helm of the Government, His two chief Councellors, in the beginning of his Miniftry, were John Hurtado de Men- do$a , whofe Wife was Don Alvaro's Firft Coufin 3 and Fernan Alonfo de Robres , who had been a great Favorite of the late Queen- Mothers, and was look'd on as the Shrewdeft Man about the Court.
The Princes and Grandees being all highly difcontented, to fee their King, entirely in the Hands of this Triumvirate, would quickly have taken him from them, could they but have agreed among themfelves $ but they were divided into two ftrong Parties, the One was headed by Don John, and Don Peter, Infantes otAragon^ and the Other by their Brother the Infante Don Henry 5 and being all fen- fible, that it was in vain to attempt to remove Don Alvaro from about the King, they all made their Court to him, ftriving to out-bid each other, to gain him to their Side, But Don Alvaro being likewife fenfible, that he had no other way to fecure himfelf in his high Port, againft fo many powerful Enemies, but by keeping them at variance among them felves 3 to divide them, and to keep them
divided,
131 The LIFE of
divided, was the Game he play'd all his days 5 and being apprehenfive that they would foon over-top fuch a Mufhroom as he was, if he allowed any of them the leaft lhare of the King's Favour, he took care to reprefent all their Aftions to the King in fuch colours, as made Hun equally jealous of both Parties.
If the Reader fliould here defire to be in form 'd, how fo many of the Princes of the Houfe of Ar agon came to be in Cajlile at this time, and why they Interefted themfelves fo much in its Government 5 I muft acquaint him, that the above-named three Infantes were the Sons of the Infante Don Ferdinand, who was Uncle and likewife Regent to the prefent King of Caftile before He was chofen King ofAragon, and was fo well beloved of the Cajtilans, that they offer'd him the Crown xvhen his Brother died. So th^t the afore named Princes were all born in Caftiley tho' they were Infantes of Aragon, and had great Lands and Offices in it. The Infante Do7i Henry was Matter of the Order of Sr* James y the Queen Confort ofCaftile was their Sifter, and their Mother the Queen Dowager of Aragon lived altogether in Caftile, where (he had a great Dowry, which, after her death, was to go amongft them. After this Account of Don Alvard*$ great Rivals, it may not, I think, be improper here to give a Charader of him, tho' the doing that, is by cuftoms adjourned till after his death.
Don
Don Alvaro de Luna. 233
Don Alvaro was of a low Stature, but had a handfoine Face, fine Limbs, and a Body all over well proportion'd, and in his Mien very polite : He had great Strength and Bra very, and for Horfemanfhip was inferior to none of the Nobles of Caftile : He had a quick and true Judgment, and fpoke extreme ly well. In his younger years he was won derfully civil and affable, but as he advanced in Pofts and Age, he grew Imperious and Haughty. He was kind to all his Relations and Servants, and was fplendid in his Cloaths, Retinue, and Entertainments.
But thefe Vertues in Don Alvaro were blended with greater Vices : He was infatiably Covetous and Ambitious 5 ( the worft mixture any Man is capable of) and was of fo jealous a Temper, that he was always dreaming of Plots either againft the King or himfelf, which many times caufed him to punifii Peo ple feverely, only upon his own fplenetick Surmizes. Being from his Childhood bred up in the Pofis Palace, he feem'd to have little regard for Religion, and no great kind- nefs for the Clergy 5 for as in his Life he was prophane in his talk $ fo when he came to die, he feem'd to affed to go off the Stage with the Honour of an Hero, rather than with that of a fenitent Chriftian. He was very Paf- fionate, and much given to Women, and fo partial to his Relations, that they were pre ferred by him to Pofts much too high for their Merits, as well as for their Birth. In
2 word,
LIFE of
a word, he followed his Uncle Pope Benedict's Example fo clofely, as not to boggle at any thing which he thought would promote his Intereft.
We come now to fee, how One thus qua lify 'd, and in fuch circumftances, was able to maintain himfelf in the high Port of the Firft Minifter above thirty Years againft fo many powerful Enemies.
The Infante Don John being gone to Navar to marty the Princefs of that Kingdom, and with him his Brother Don Peter, and moft of the Grandees of his Party 3 the Infante Don Henry judging this to be a proper time to try to gain Don Alvaro9 apply 'd himfelf to him very warmly, and offer'd him and his two Counfellors all the Advantages and Supports which they could defire, if they would unite themfelves to him. All that he asked for himfelf, was, to have the Infanta Donna Ca- tberina, the King's Sifter, for his Wife, and with her the Marquifate of Vittena , which was at that time in the Crown. DonAlvaro and his two Friends appeared very well pleas'd with the Propofal, and promised Don Henry to do all that was in their power, to help him both to the Wife, and to the Por tion which he defir'd. After feveral Delays, the young Lover prefs'd for a pofitive An- fwer. Robres told him, that they had done all that they were able, to perfwade the Infanta, but could not prevail with her 5 flie being re- folv'd rather to live unmarried all her days,
than
Don Alvaro de Luna.
than to marry in Spain. Don Henry being extremely difcontented with this Anfwer, complain'd of it to his Friends, who there upon came to a refolution to take the King by force into their own hands $ and to make him eafie under Reftraint, to fufter Don Al- varo to remain with him, and then would try, if poflible, to gain him over to their Side. And it being neceffary that this defign fhould be executed before Don John returned from Navar $ Don Henry, for a blind, gave out, that he intended to go and vifit his Mother the Queen Dowager of Aragon ^ and having, un der that pretence, drawn all his Friends, and three hundred Men of Arms, together about TordefiUas, where the Court was at that time, he engag'd Sancbo de Hervas, who was in Waiting upon the King, to leave the Door of the Bed-chamber open ; and having early in the Morning entred the Palace, attended by Don Ruy Lopez d'Avila, Conftable of Ca- ftile, the Adelantado Pero Manrique, the Bi- fliop of Segovia, and Don Fernandez Manriquey with a guard of three hundred Horfe, he caufed the Gates to be flmt behind him, and arrefted Hortado de Mendo^a and Robres, in the King's Name, in their Beds 5 and having fet a ftrong Guard upon them, he went to the King's Bed-chamber, where he found the King in Bed faft afleep, and Don Alvaro afleep at his feet. The King ( being awaked with the Infante's calling to him, Sir , it is time to rife) askd the Infante, in great dif-
order,
the LIFE of
order, Coitfin, what do you mean ? To ferve jou9 Sir, (faid the Infante) and to deliver you out of the Subje&ion you are in : And in order to it, I have, in your Name, and for your Service, Arrefted Mendo^a and Robres. Why did you ? (faid the King.) Becaufe your Kingdoms (anfwer'd the Conftable) mil be ruirfd, if Hortado and Robres, and fucb- like Perfons, be not removed from your Royal Prefence and Council. After the Male- Adminiftration of thofe Minifters had been difplay'd in their proper colours before the King, by the Bifhop of Segovia • Don Henry earneftly fupplicated that thofe Minifters and all their Creatures might be forth with banilh'd the Court, and at the fame time befought the King to keep Don Alvaro always near his Perfon, and to advance him according to his great Merits. Don Henry would admit no denial, and would not be fatisfy'd 'till the King made Don Alvaro one of his Council of State, and promised to fettle on him, for his Life, a Penfion of an Hundred thoufand Maravedeis a Year. A poor pittance for Don Alvaro's iharp appetite, and a flender morfel, in comparifon to what he helped himfelf to when he came to be his own Carver. The King being much fweeten'd by what Don Henry had faid to him in favour of Don Alvaro, commanded all the reft of the Minifters to leave the Court immediately, and repair to their own Coun tries. Don Henry having underftood that Don
Alvaro
Don Alvaro de Luna. 237
Alvaro was not well pleafed with Robris be ing removed from him fo far as Leon, (which was his Country) defir'd the King to order Robres to go no farther than Valedolid, which was but a few Miles diftant from the Court 5 fo willing was Don Henry to have made Don Alvaro his Friend, if it had been poffible. The Palace being thus cleared of all that were believed to be Enemies to Don Henry ^ the Procurators of the Cortes were call'd together, and were commanded by the King to let their Cities and Towns know, that, what had been done by his Coufin the Infante Don Henry and his Friends, at Tordefillas, was for his fervice, and had his approbation.
Don Henry and his Friends being fenfiblc that the Infante Don John would be highly difpleafed with what they had done 3 to fe- fecure themfelves againft that Prince, they perfwaded the King to leave TordefiUas, which was an open Place, and to remove with his whole Court to Abula. But when Orders were fent to the Queen and the two Infanta's, to make themfelves ready for that Journey ^ the Infanta Donna Catberina, who was Don Henrys Miftrefs, defired leave to go firft to a Nunnery, that was near the Palace, for the benefit of the Lady Abbefs's Prayers and Blef- fing : Which being granted, the Infanta went to the Nunnery, and from thence fent the King word, that fhe intended to ftay there, and to take upon her the Habit of a N un.
. } h;l:
Don
238 The LIFE of
Don Henry was extremely difturbed at this 5 and the Infanta Donna Maria was fent to her Sifter, to perfwade her to go along with the Court : But fhe not being able to do it, the the Biftiop of Palencia, in whofe Diocefe that Nunnery was5 and Don Fernandez Manrique, were fent by the King to fetch her out. The Bifhop threatned to lay the Nunnery under an Interdift, if the Infanta came not out of it prefently 5 and Don Fernandez, when he faw that would not do, fwore that he would pull it about the Nuns ears, if they kept the In fanta in it any longer. Upon that, the In fanta began to capitulate, and offer'd to come out and go along with the Court, upon two Conditions : The one was, That fhe (hould not be forced to marry her Coufin the Infante Don Henry : The other was, That her Co ver nefs, Mary Bar da, fliould not be taken from hen This Governefs, being by the Sfanijh Hiftorians ftill call'd Mary, and not Maria, I am apt to think fhe was an Enghjh Lady, who had been placed about her by her Mother, who was Daughter to John si Gaunt Duke of Lancafter $ and if her Governefs was fo, her great aver (ion to marry in Spain was not to be much wonder'd at. But how ever that was,the Infanta's mind chang'd quick ly 5 for fhe was foon after marry'd to her Coufin Don Henry, and for her Portion had the Marquifate tfViUena fettled upon Her and her Heirs , and was to her Husband, in all his Troubles, a kind and moft faithful Wife.
The
Don Alvaro de Luna.
The News of what had been done at Tor- deftUas, came to Pamplona on the fourth day after Don John was married. He left his Bride on the fame day, and rid Poft to Pen- Tiafiel, the firft Town in Caftik that belonged to him. He found there the Arch-Biftiop of Toledo, the Bifhop of Ceuenca, Don Fernan dez Sarmiento, and divers other Nobles, who had all come to that Place, to meet him, that they might confult together, how to dif- mount Don Henry and his Party, who had leaped fo unexpeftedly into the Saddle : and being willing to go upon fure grounds, before they attempted any thing, they writ to Rofyres, to know whether the King defired to be taken out of the hands he was in, Rohres fent them word, that the King defired it above all things in the world. Upon which Don John fummon'd all his Friends and Vaf- fals to meet him at Qlmedo, to fet the King at liberty, tho' in truth it was only to change his Keepers. A Cortes being called by the King to meet at Abula, Don John writ Let ters to all the Cities and Towns of Co/tile, not to fuffer ttyq Procurators to go to Al- bula, where he faid the King was kept a Pri- fbqer, but to feud them to Olmedo, where he and the reft of the King's Friends would meet them, to cpnfult together how the King might be fet at liberty : But in contradidion tothofe Letters of Don John's, the King did, by a new Proclamation, command all the repair to Ahda, alluring them,
that
the LIFE of
that he enjoyed his perfeft Liberty there* and, as if that had not been enough, he did, by an Herald, command Don John and all the Nobles that were with him, forthwith to disband all their Troops, and to fepair in a peaceable manner to the Cortes which he had called. This MefTage fo confounded Don John, that he began to fufpeft the truth ofRobres's Intelligence 3 and fearing that Don Alvaro might poffibly be gone over to Doit Henrys Party, and have carry'd the King with him 5 he fent three Deputies toAbula, with a Letter to the King, which was not to be deliver'd to him but in a full Council. They were likewife to feel Don Alvaro $ Pulfe, and how he flood affedted as td Don Henry and his Party. We are not told what pafled be twixt thofe Deputies and Don Alvaro 3 but the King, after their Letters had been read in a full Council, told them roundly, " That " he did approve of all that had been done by " his Coufin the Infante Don Henry, and his " Friends, at Tordefilias, or any other Place " fince, and that he had let all his Subjefts " know as much $ and that, whatever they " and others might fancy, he had never " been under any manner of Confine- " ment." Neither could the Deputies, at a private Audience which they had of the King, have any other Anfwer from him: And fo zealous did he appear for Don Henry and his Party, that he got the Cortes to make the fame Declaration in their favour, and to
fend
Don Alvaro de Luna. 241
fend it over all his Kingdoms. But at the fame time that the King was making and pro curing all thefe Declarations to juftitie Don Henry and his Party, he was conliilting with Don Alvaro how they might get out of his hands. What was concerted between them;, was, that under pretence of going out early one Morning to Hunt, the King fhould ride to Talavera. When that Morning came, the King did as was agreed :, but finding Ta lavera not to be a Place of fufficient ftrength, he rode on to Mount Alwn, and furprized the Caftle, where he refolved to remain 'till Don John and his Friends came up to his Re lief. Don Henry , when he heard of the Kings being at Mount Alvon, went after him with all his Troops $ and being denied leave to come into the Caftle, he defired that Don Alvaro would come out and fpeak with him : Which being granted, Don Henry asked Don Alvaro, wherein he had ever offended him, that he had perfwaded the King to leave him in fuch a manner? " In nothing, (faid Don " Alvaro, either great or fmall ^ and tho' I <c did wait on the King to this Place, I ne- <c ver advifed him to come to it, or to leave " you as he did. " Don Henry defired him to fpeak to the King to return with him to Abula : but Don Alvaro would not undertake that, pretending he knew it would be to no purpofe. When Don Henry found that there was nothing to be done by Treaty, he laid dofe Siege to the Caftle $ but receiving Intel-
R ligence
The LIFE of
Jigence before an advance was made in the Siege , that his Brother Don John was ap proaching towards him apace with a Force much fuperior to his, he drew off his Men, and retreated to Ocuna $ where he had not been many days, before he received a Com mand from the King to difmifs all his Troops. He told the Meflenger, he could not do that, without facrificing himfelf and all his Friends to their Enemies, who were the King's Ene mies no lefs than theirs. Upon that An- fwer, his Lands and Offices were all laid un der a Sequeftration, the Marquifate ofKil/ena not excepted : DonAharo was the only Man in the Council that fpoke againft that Seque ftration $ but its pafling, created a fufpicion that he was not in earneft : However, Don Henry had fo good an opinion of the Man, that, upon fome fair Promifes from the Court, he disbanded all his Troops } and re ceiving Letters of Security fent to him by the King, he went to wait on him without any Guards, and with but one fingle Noble man Don Fernandez Manrique his infepara- ble Companion. But tho'he was, as foon as he came to Court, introduced to the King by Don Alvaro, who profefs'd a great friendfhip for him, he was receiv'd very coldly ^ and when he began to offer fomething in his own Vindication, the King interrupted him, and bid him go to his Lodgings, telling him, That it (hould not be long before he would hear all that he had to fay for himfelf and
his
Don Alvaro die Luna.
his Confederates. And in this the King was as goood as his Word to him 5 for after a day or two He and his Ffiend Manrique were both- funimoned to appear before the Council. The King order'd him to fit down by him, and addrefs'd himfelf to him after this man ner : Coujrn, When I granted you my Letters of Security , / did not^ when you came hither ', Mend to have reproached you for any thing that was paft : But fince thofe Letters were granted^ and as you were on your way to this Place, Let ters have come to my knowledge, which contain things that cannot be dijfembled but to my great differvice, and the vifible hazard of my Kingdoms $ IJbaU order tboje Letters to be read to you, that I may hear what you have to fay to them. The Letters were eighteen in num ber, and they had been a few days before put into the hands of the Secretary of State by Don Diego Fuenfalida Bifliop of Z amor a: They were all Originals, as was pretended, and were all writ with the Conftable's own Hand 3 divers of them were addrelTed to the King of Granada , to invite him by great Promifes to Invade Murcia with a powerful Army 5 the reft were direded to the Nobles of that Kingdom, to difpole them to aflift that Infidel when he came among them $ but the burden of them all, were grievous Complaints of the Tyrannies and Opprefilons whereby the King had provoked his Subjefts to have recourfe to fo dcfperate a Remedy. After the Letters had been all read aloud, the King
R 2 asked
244 r/* LIFE of
asked Don Henry , what he had to fay? " Sir, What 1 have to fay, (reply'd Don " Henry} is, That thefe Letters have been <c all written by fome Villain or other 5 fo* " as no fuch Defign did ever enter into my " Thoughts, fo I know the Conftable is not ca- " pableoffuch aTreafon: There is- one thing " therefore 1 do humbly beg of your Mercy, tc which is, that you will fuffer this execra- " ble Plot to be fearched to the bottom, and " that the Villain who contriv'd it, being " detefted, may have his juft Reward." Manrique^ having been asked next, What he had to fay , anfwerd, " As fure as God " is Three, thefe Letters have been all for- ged, to ruine fome of your Mercy's beft Subjeds 5 and if any Man in Co/tile, befide your Mercy, had dared to have laid fuch a thing to my charge, his Skin fhould have " paid for it. " Well^ ( faid the King ) fince neither of you mil confefs, my Coufin flail be gratify* d, by having this wicked Plot laid open to the World 5 and in the mean time, the King order 'd them both to be taken into cuftody, and to be kept afunder. The whole Kingdom was ftrangely alarm'd with this Plot ^ and as there was fcarce any body that believ'd it, fo it was univerfally thought to be a Contrivance of DonAlvaro\ to defeat Dow Henrfs Letters of Security, and to ruine the old Conftable. People were much confirm'd in this Sufpi- cion, by Don Alvaro's being made Conftable when the old Conftabk of Caftile
fled
<c
<c
Don Alvaro de Luna. 245
fled into Valencia with Don Henrfs Princefs, foon after (he had receiv'd the News of her Husband's Imprifonment. And tho'DonAl- varo and his Creatures did for fome time make ufe of the Co?iflablis Flight, as an Evidence of his Guilt ;. it was not long before that Evi dence was removed, by a clear deteftion, that thofe Letters were all written by one Garcia de Guadalajara^ who was formerly Secretary to the old Conftable, and knew how to coun terfeit his Hand. The Deteftion of this vil lainous Sham-Plot, was owing chiefly to the bold and unwearied Diligence of the .Commen- dador o{Calatrava,wliok Father had been Ma- pr-Domo to the Conftable, and was thrown into Prifon, for faying, " That whatever it cqft " him, he would find out the Author of this " villainous Plot. " He was offered both his Liberty, and a Reward, if he would talk no more of it ^ but he rejected the Offer with Indignation, and faid, That he would not for the Kingdom ofCaftile make any fuch Promife. His Son was commanded by him to fpare no Coft or Pains to make the Difcovery $ and he at length found out, that all thofe Let ters had been forged by Guadalajara, who, after Examination, confefs'd it, and was hanged out of the way $ but it was never known who it was that fet him to work, nor how the Bifhop ofZamora, who was a Crea ture of Don Aharo\ came by thofe Letters.
One can hardly, at the firft fetting out,
think fo ill of Don Alvaro^ as that he ftovild
R 3 feek
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*eek to deftroy his Enemies, upon the fole Evidence of Letters, which he had caufed, or at leaft knew to be forged. It is not im probable, that the thing that led him to it, was a ftrong conceit that Don Henry and the Co7iftable, in their Diftrefs, might have re- courfe to the King of Granada for Affiftance ; of which, if he had them once in cuftody, he might hope to be able to make fome clear Difcoveries. And as this is the utmoft that can be faid of fuch State-Pra<Sices, fo at beft they are things no Man of Confcience or Ho nour can be guilty of. For befides the cer- great Injuftice of Difcompofing and Imprifon- ing People, upon Surmizes, and known falfe Evidences, fhould not the Difcoveries that were cxpefted happen to be made, thofe known falfe Evidences will be in danger of being carry'd farther than was at firft intend ed, and may come to be made ufe of to finifh the Tragedy which they began, tho' at firft to begin it was all that was defigned by them.
But the King) not contented with having made Don ^/iw<? Conftable ofCaftile, created him at the fame time Conde de Sanefteva, and beftow'd on him more Towns and Lands than had' ever been in the poiTefiion of any Subjed of Caftile before : He alib made his Wife Donna Elviro de fortacarero, Cover- nefs to the Infanta Donna Catbmna his firft- born Child \ at whofe Birth, according to r he cuftom of Cxjtile ever fince that Crown
wai
Don Alvaro de Luna. 247
was Hereditary, were prefent by the King's Command, Don Lewis de Gitfman Mafter of Calafrava, the Bifhop ofZamora, Don Diego Perez Sarmiente Mafter of the Wardrobe, Don Fernandez de Cordova, Donna Joanna de Mendo'a Wife to the Admiral, Donna Maria a Nun of Sanfta Clara and Daughter to King Peter, Donna Elvira Portacarero Wife to Don Alvaro , and Donna Tberyfa de Ayla Abbefs of St. Domingo in Toledo.
The Conjfable ( for fo we muft call Don Alvaro hereafter, till he comes to have a higher Title) being very fenfible, that as the Honours and Wealth the King had heaped upon him, made him the Envy , fo the late Sham- Plot, of which he was univerfally be lieved to have been the Contriver, had made him the Deteftation of the whole Kingdom ^ he could not think of any other way by which it was poflible for him to fecure him- felf from falling a Sacrifice, but by bringing the King to be Arbitrary and Uncontrollable : And fo eager was he to help himfelf to this Security, that tho' he met with many terri ble Shocks and Difappointments in the pro- fecution of it, ( for in thofe days no People in Europe, befides odious and obnoxious Mi- nifters, who had no other way to fecure themfelves,could bear the exalting of the Royal Authority above the Laws made by the King and the States of the Realm ) yet he could never give that defign quite over, but as he had opportunity, was ftill making fome ad-
R 4 vances
248 The LIFE of
vances in that way, until he broke his own neck, and ruin'd his Family in it. And the truth is, confidering how much this Man had fet his heart on railing a great Family, and eftabliftiing it in Caftile, his driving on that defign as he did, looks like a Curfe upon him ^ iince he could not be fo vain as to think that the Poft of the Favorite could be made here ditary in his Family^ no more than it was in jofefhs, who by making the Kings of Egypt Arbitrary and Uncontroulable Lords, did, -we fee, bring his own Pofterity, as well as others, into the wretched condition of be ing Slaves to the Wills of lawlefs Tyrants. Neither have many of the Enemies to the Legal Rights of Subjeds, if they furvived the Deftruftion of them, efcaped feeling on their own backs the unfupportable weight of a Power exalted above the Laws. However, this Man, preferring his own prefent Se curity to all other Confiderations whatfo- ever, made three bold fteps in that way at once.
The firft was, That the Salaries of the Procurators of the Cortees fhould not be paid by the Cities and Towns they reprefented, as ihey had been formerly, but by the Crown.
The fecond was, the . difFolving of the an cient Form of Government of the City of Toledo., which confiffcd in a feleft number of its own Nobles and Citizens., in whofe loom Corrigidors of the King's Nomination \vcrc let over that Citv,
But
Don Alvaro de Luna. 249
But the laft and boldeft ftep was, The rai- fing and eftabiifhing a Thoufand Lances to be the {landing Guard of the King's Body, in the room of a few Halberds, which were all the Guards the Kings of Caftile had before.
I cannot tell whether the Cities and Towns, which fent Procurators to the Cortes, might not at firft be well enough pleafed with their being thus eafed of the Charge of paying a certain Salary to their Procurators for their Attendence, nor whether thofe Salaries have ever fince been paid by the Crown : All that I have met with concerning this matter, is, that in the Wars of the Commons of Caftiley in the Reign of the Emperor Charles V. the Payment of thofe Salaries by the King was reckoned one of the chief Grievances ^ but whether it was redreffed or not, I could ne ver learn.
As to the great Change made by the Con- ftable in the Government of the City of Toledo^ we (hall fee what Effefts that had, in the Sequel of this Story.
As to the new Guard of a Thousand Lances, the whole Kingdom was fo alarm' d by it, that the firft Cortes that met after it was rais'd, pull'd it to pieces, tho' the King ftruggled very hard to have it kept up. When he faw that could not be done, he told the Cortes^ he would be content with five hundred Lances 5 and when he faw that would not be allow ed, he defired he only might have the Three hundred eftablifhed which had been raifed
and
a^o The LIFE of
and were commanded by the Conftable 5 and when the Cortes would not agree to that, he defired he might have One hundred $ which number, tho' a majority gave their confent, was oppofed and protefted againft by a great Party , who declared, that he ought to be contented with the fame old Guards his An- ceftors had before him. And it was fo pal pable, that the Conftable's defign, in raifing fuch new ftrong Guards, was to fecure himfelf at the coft of the Rights and Liberties of the Subjed, that the fpirit of the whole King dom did rife up againft him 3 and Don John and his Friends, finding, that by taking the King out of the hands of Don Henry, they had only exalted the Conftable to an intol- lerable height, but had got nothing for them- felves, petitioned the King to fet Don Henry at liberty $ alledging, that nothing could be more unjuft, than his being kept three Years a Prifoner, after the Letters for which he had been imprifoned, had been legally pro ved Forgeries.
By this Petition, and by the Voice of the whole Kingdom, the King was obliged, much againft his Will, to fet that Prince at liberty : However he forbid him to come to Court, fearing, if he were once there, that he would be caballing with the Nobles againft the Conftable, for whom the King's fond- nefs was fo great, that, tho' he could not but know how odious he was become to the whole Kingdom, he made him at this time
God-
Don Alvaro de Luna. 251
God-father to his eldeft Son the Prince Don Henry.
The Infante Don Henry, after he was at liberty, obeyed the King fo far as not to go to ValedoliJ, where the Court was, but went to Tudela de Deuro, which was within three Leagues of it, accompanied by the Matters ofdlcantra and Calatrava, and divers other Nobles. He had not been long there, be fore his Brother Don John, who, upon the death of his Wife's Father, had the Title of King of Navar (his Wife being Queen of that Kingdom ) went from Valedolid to give him a Vifit 5 and they and all their Friends having conferred together for fome hours, the King of Navar returned to Court, and with much difficulty obtained leave of the King for his Brother Don Henry to come to that City. When he and his Friends came thither, they were forced to lodge with the King of Navar in the Monaftery of St. Paul, becaufe the King had not, according to the cuftom of the Caftilian Court, appointed any Lodgings for them. The King of Navar, his Brother Don Henry, and moft of the Grandees, Bifhops and Nobles of the King dom, ( having for feveral days confulted to gether in that Monaftery) did all agree to petition the King to remove the Conftable from his Prefence and Councils, as a Perfon who for feveral Years had, to the great dif- fervice of his Highnefs, and the irreparable damage of his Kingdoms, aflumed to himfelf
the
i$2 The LIFE of
the whole Royal Authority 3 charging jiim farther, with innumerable Tyrannies, Oppref- ftons, and other great Crimes, of all which, they faid, they were prepared to convid him, if they might be heard. The King, when this Petition was prefented to him, appeared to be much difpleafed 3 however, he told the Princes and Grandees by whom it was brought, That be would confider of it 5 which wafs all he faid to them : and the Council, when it was laid before them by the King, were fo divided in their opinions, that they could not agree about the Anfwer the King was to return to it* The King himfelf being ftrangely di- ftrafted betwixt his fondnefs for the Con- ftable, and his fears of a Civil War, refolved to go to Heaven for Direction 3 and having heard much of one Friar Francis de Soria, and the heavenly Life which he led, fent far him, and acquainted him with his inten^ tion of being directed by him how to put an end to this hot Conteft which was rifen be tween the Nobles and the Conftable. The Friar appear'd very humble, and defired to be excufed ^ but the King told him he muft be his Guide in this matter. Being prevail'd with, he defired to have Time to. prepare him felf, by fame extraordinary Mortifications, for fo great a Work. After which, he told the King, That the way put into his mind by Heaven (tho' it was believed it was in- fus'd into him by the KmgofNavar) to end all theft unhappy Differences, was to refer
then]
Don Alvaro de Luna. 253
them all to four Perfons of Known Wifdom and Probity, and who, if they did not agree, fhould have power to name a fifth Perfon for an Umpire $ that they fhould all take an Oath fo to judge of the things that came be fore them, as they in their Confciences did believe would be moft for God's and his High- nefs's Honour and Service, and the common Good of his Kingdoms, which at prefent, he (aid, were in a lamentable eftate, and that the Nobles and the Conftable fhould promife to acquiefce in their Sentence, whatever it was. This heavenly Friar, after he had given the King this Advice, turn'd Courtier, and was made ConfefTor to the King ofNavar : And : twelve Years after we find him turn'd into a moft bloody Inquifitor ^ for it was at his friftigation chiefly, that thofe multitudes of People whom I have fpoken of in another place, and who were, I fuppofe, of the fame Religion with the rati dots' were Dragoon'd from among the Mountains of Duringo, and were Burnt alive at Valedolid and T)omingo de Calcada, for refuting to the laft to be of the Communion of i\\£ Roman Church.
This Advice of the Friar's was not made publick, till after the Conftable, and Doftor Pyrannez and Doftor Rodriguez, two eminent Lawyers, had been confulted about it. The Conftable faid, He did not know what to think of Advices from Heaven, or of the Perfons that pretended to fetch them thence : But the two DoSors were pofitive, That confidering the
great
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great Ferment the whole Kingdom was in, it was the beft Counfel that could have been given. Upon which it was refolved it fliould be follow'd 5 and four Perfons were, by the two Parties, named to be Judges 3 and in cafe they did not agree, a fifth was named to be Umpire.
The four Judges were, the Admiral o£ Caftile, the Matter of Cafatrava, the Adrian- tado Peter Mamrique, and Fernan Robres$ and the Umpire the Pi ior of the Benedictines in Valedolid, in whofe Monaftery the Judges were to fit, and whofe Commiflion was to laft but ten Days.
The Judges having met in that BenediSme Monaftery, and heard all that the Nobles had to objeft againft the Conftable, and all the Conftable had to offer in his own defence, made an Order, That the King fliould leave Siman- chas, and go to Sigales, and that the Con ftable fliould .remain in that City till they had parted their final Sentence. Which Order ( tho' it treated the King but coarfly) being comply 'd with^ the Judges fell upon the Merits of the main Caufe 5 but differ'd fo much about it, that when the Morning of the laft Day was come, they were not agreed on any one Article. The Prior was then call'd in : At fir ft he exprefs'd a great unwillingnefs to meddle with an Affair of fo high a nature, and to which, he faid, he was altogether a ftranger 5 however, he told them, if they would go to Mafs with him, they fliould know
his
Don Alvaro de Luna.
his mind. The Judges went to Mafs with him 3 and the Prior, who officiated hirnfelf, after he had confecrated the Elements, turtfd about, and holding the Hoft in his hand, feid to the Judges i Tou fee here the true Body c
.-.»••/» V i ' -I • r i T» i ft •»•*„.
'is J acre
and by this facred Body I do admo you all impartially to handle the Matter , and fo to judge of it as you in your Consciences do believe mil be moft for God's and the Kings Honour and Service, and the fublick Good of his Kingdoms, and that you do tell me the whole truth and nothing but the truth, and map Cbrifl reward or funijl) you as you quit your felves in this Matter. After Mafs was ended, the Prior accompanied the Judges to the Room where they had fate, and having taken on him the Perfon of an Umpire, before Night he paffed the following Sentence upon the Con- ftable 5 That he flail within three Days after the intimation of this Sentence to him, leave Simanchas, and Jball, without feeing the Kivg% go to one of his ownHoufes, and fiall wt in a Tear and an half come within fifteen Leagues of the Court^ and that all that have been pla ced by him about the King flail be immediately difmijfed.
The Conftable, ( who had depended on his Friend Fibres to have either totally defeated this Arbitration, or to have turn'd it to his advantage ) when he heard of this Sentence, was much furprized : He did nevertheleis yield obedience to it fo far, as to leave Siman chas, and go to his Caftle ofdylon, to which
he
LIFE of ^
he was attended by fome Nobles, a great train of Servants and two hundred Men of Arms all well mounted and richly accoutred, whom he kept about him as his Guard.
The Princes and Nobles having remov'd the Conftable fo far and for fo long a time from about the King, did not doubt but that they (hould be able to wean the King from him : but they foon found they were under a miftake 3 for befides that the King writ to the Conftable, and the Conftable to him every day, when the King was defired to difmifs the Conftable's Kinfmen and Creatures that were about him, deny'd to do it, pretending they had not been recommended to his Service by the Conftable, but by their own Merits 5 fo that the Sentence did not reach them. There was no Man the King and Conftable were fo angry with at tnis time as with Robres, who, they believed, if he would have fet hisftrength to it, could with eafe have prevented this Sentence. This being obferv'd by the Princes and Nobles, who never lov'd Robres, and were refolved never to truft him, they petitioned the King, that he might be punifhM as a publick Incendiary 5 affirming, that upon the two Parties having cornpar'd Notes, they had plainly difcover 'd, that it was by Robres- that they had been fet and were itill kept at Variance. The King, who was glad of iuch a handle given him to exe cute his Vengeance on Robres, told the No bles, he believ'd the great Crime they accufed
Robres
Don Alvaro de Luna. 357
Robres of to be true, and that he would not fail to punifli him for it as he deferved $ and accordingly he prefently ordered Robres to be Arrefted, and made a clofe Prifoner in the Caftle ofSimancbas, from whence he was re moved to the Caftle ofUzedf, where he died foon after unlamented.
But tho' this ufeful Difcovery of Robres9 s Double-dealing was owing to the two Parties among the Nobles being united, yet this Union was an Obftacle to the Conftable's return to Court with fafety, and therefore the King and the Conftable did fet themfelves to raife Jealoufies amongft them $ and to that end, the King did not only give Don Henry leave to come to Court, but did alfo ihew him much xnore Favour than he (hewed to the King of Navar. Don Henry's frincefs was likewife call'd to Court, and was met by the King fome Miles, and treated with great tenderqefs ^ and to make her eafie, he fettled on her more than an Equivalent for the Marquifate pf Vittena, A Proclamation was likewife ifTued forth, de claring the Letters for which Don Henry had been imprifon'd, to have been all forged by Guadalajara who had fuffered Death for it.
Don Henrfs coming into Favour fo faft,did fo alarm the King ofNavar and his Friends, that they applied themfelves to the Conftable, offering, if he would join with them sgainft Don Henry, to bring him back to Court. So little able is the Publick Good to hold People together to promote it.
§
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We are not told how far this Negotiation proceeded, nor whether the Conftable was brought back by it to Court fo foon as we find him there 5 but if he was, it is certain he quickly forgot all the Engagements he had entred into with the King of Navar and his Friends : But however that was brought about, the Conftable returned to Court feveral Months before the term mention'd in the Sentence of his Banifhment was expired 5 for within that term we find him there enter taining an Infanta of Aragon^ as ihe parted through Caftile to Portugal, ( where flie was to be married to the Prince of that Kingdom) with a moft fplendid Tournament of Fifty againft Fifty White and Coloured 3 on which Feftivity, tho' many acquitted themfelves well, there was not one that came near to the Conftable in any of the Exercifes of good Horfemanihip.
The Conftable being now higher, if it were poffiblet in the King's Favour than be fore, and having brought a ftrong Guard with him, refolved to make ufe of his prefent great Power to difable the Nobles from Caballing any more againft him. And the King, by his Advice, having fummon'd all the Nobles together to tjhat end, told them with an auftere Countenance, " That tho* ct he had, to his own and his Kingdom's " great Diihonour and Differvice, long fuf- " fered them to form Confederacies, and to 4i take Oaths of Fidelity one to aother, he
" would
Don Alvaro de Luna.
" would not endure fuch feditious Practices * any longer, but did expeft to be obeyed " by them in all things, as their Natural cc Lord and Soveraign, commanding them " all immediately in his prefence to releafe one " another from all fuch Oaths of Fidelity, " and to promife never to take any more. " After they had done that, he required them all (except the Arch-Bifhops of Toledo and Comfoftella^ and three or four Nobles whom he named) forthwith to repair to their Houfcs in the Country, and not to aflemble together, nor prefume to arm any of his Subjects with out his Order. And to keep them all at home at their own Houfes, he told them, u The ** Crown fhould not be any longer at the " Charge of Providing and raying for their ** Lodgings, if they came to Court at any " time without his Call. " The Princes and Nobles were ftunn'd with this fevere Speech of the King, or rather of the Conftable, by whom they were fure it was made 5 but the ftrong Guard brought by the Conftable about the Ring, made them hold their tongues, and diffemble their Refentment of it. Thus Par ties, rather than fubmit to one another, or agree about the partition of Favour and Offices, will facrifice both Themfelves and the Publick Good to their Enemies,
The Ring ofNavar having taken no notice
of the Rings Command to all the Nobles to
leave the Court, the Ring fent two Lawyers
f to him, to let him know, That now that
S 2 God
The LIFE of
God had rais'd him to a Crown, it was con venient he fhould go to his Kingdom, which muft needs fuffer much by his abfence 5 and that as to the Concerns which he had in Cafti!e9 he did promife they fhould be carefully look'd after. This Meflage (tho* it was no more than he deferved, if, in oppofition to his Bro ther Don Henry , he was inftrumental in bringing back the Conftable to the King ) did gaul the King ofNavar moft terribly : He therefore bid the Lawyers tell the King, That it was in his thoughts to have gone fpeedily to Navar, tho' he had not been fent by him to it after fo unkind a manner. Tho1 there was nothing the Conftable defir'd fo much as to rid Caftile of that King, yet being unwil ling he fhould go out of it enrag'd againft him, he made his court to him fo effectually, that before he went, he prevailed with him to enter into a League Offenfiue and Defen- five with the King 5 into which he likewife brought his Brother the King of Aragon, by by virtue of forne Powers which he had from him. An Ambaffador was fent intoAragon with this Peace, to have it ratify 'd there 5 and the Conftable fent a Letter by him to that King, in which having lamented the great Differences that were between his two Bro thers, the King of Navar and the Infante Don Henry, he intreated him to ufe his En deavours to make them Friends, offering to aflift him in fo good a work as that would be to all Sfain with his whole Strength. But
as
Don Alvaro de Luna. 16 i
as the King of Aragon refus'd to ratifie that League, fo the Conftable's Complement was receiv'd by him very coldly. Immediately after he wrote to his Brother Don Henry to come to him to Saragoca, where he wanted to fpeak with him concerning fome Affairs of great importance to them both. That Prince obtain'd leave of the King to go to Aragon only for twenty Days ^ but being got fafe out of the Ca/hlian Court, he did not return to it again till after many Years, and great Changes 5 nor did the Conftable, after this, ever fuffer either Him or his Princefs to fettle any more in Caftile.
The Conftable, by the clear Stage he had made to himfelf at Court, had drawn upon his head the Indignation of the whole Houfe of Aragon, which at that time had in Spain two Kings, two Queens, and two Infantes both brisk Princes, befides the Qiieen-Confort of Aragon who was Sifter to the King of Caftile, and was entirely in the Intereft of her Husband's Family. He did therefore, by threatning Embaflies, endeavour to diflipate the great Storm he faw was gathering againft him 5 and having had certain Intelligence that the Kings of Aragon and Navar did intend to enter Caftile with their whole Forces, upon the fingle pretence of removing him from about the King, Ambaffadors were immediately di- fpatched to both thofe Princes, to let them know, that if they came into Caftile upon any pretence whatfoever without the King s S 3 leave,
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leave, they fhould be treated as publick Enemies.
When • this MelTage was delivered to the King of Ndvar^ he told the Ambaflador, c* That confidering the many great Services <c he had done his Mafter, he could not won- " der enough at it $ and that as they had " given him too much caufe to return to ce Caftile, by the Injuries they had done him *c there fince he left it, and by the Affronts cc they had put upon his Sifter the Queen- <c Confort 5 fo if he fhould have a mind to go *' thither, ( confidering he was a Native of <c that Kingdom, and had an Eftate in it ) <c the King's denial of Leave was not only c< an unkind thing, but was contrary to the <c Laws of the Kingdom, for which, he faid, «c fome that were about the King fhewed <c but little regard. He farther faid, He did <c not deny that he was very defirous to go <c into Co/tile to fpeak with the King, if he tc would but be pleafed to grant him an Inter- 4< view, to lay before him the defperate eftate cc his Affairs were in, by the exorbitant <c Power of fome about him 5 That he would cc go to him without fo much as a Guard, " and would leave Caftile the fame Day, if it " was the King's Pleafure that he flhould do *' fo : Not that he was confcious to himfelf of *' his having ever done any thing for which he ^ deferved to be banifh'd his native Country. ?> An Anfwer much of the fame nature was returned to the Meifage fent to the King of dragon* The
Don Alvaro de Luna.
The Princes of the Houfe of Ar agon feeing plainly by thefe MefTages, that the Conftable was fully bent to extirpate them out ofCaftile, the better to eftablifh his own Family in it, enter'd into a Confederacy to deftroy that Mulhroom of Favour who had 'the Confi dence to attempt fo great a thing : And the two Kings having joined their Troops, fent the King word, That if he would have allow ed them an interveiw, at which they might have acquainted him with the bad Pofture his Affairs were in, by reafon of the Conftable's boundlefs Power, they would have met him, not only without Troops, but without any Guard at all } but fince that had been deny'd them by the ftrong influences of that obnoxious Man, they could not fit ftill and fee his Highnefs (who was their own Blood) dif- honour'd as He was^ and his Kingdoms (of which they were Natives and Princes of the Blood) reduced to the brink of Ruin, with out doing all that they were able to remedy it. At the fame time, they gave the King all poffi- ble Affurances, that they had no other Defign in coming into Caftile with an Army, but on ly to refcue him out of the Hands of a Man, who, if he were let alone any longer, would ruin both his Crown and Kingdoms.
But by the Inftigation of the Conftable, who was it feems dearer to the King than all things elfe, a War was proclaim'd againft both thofe Princes, and a Seizure made on all the Eftates belonging to the King of Ntvar, and
S 4 the
LIFE of
the two Infantes his Brothers, who wefe got into Caftile, and were railing Troops, with the popular pretence of pulling down the Con- liable.
The Cdnftable, who was a Man not eafily frighted, having got about him Three thou- fand Lances, and Two hundred Gennets, made long Marches to meet the two Kings, with a Refolution to give them Battle $ and he had done it, if the Queen-Confort of Aragon had not prevented it, by pitching a Tent for her felf in the mid-way between the two Armies as they flood in Array of Battle. She fent to the Conflable to come and fpeak with her, and told him, her Concern on both fides was too great to fuffer them to come to Blows : And having complain'd of the hard Ufage the Houfe of Aragon ( which , flie faid, was one and the fame with the Ring her Brother's own Houfe ) had of late met with in CaftUe, if three Articles were granted, flie faid (he would undertake to perfwade the King her Husband to march back into Aragon with his Army, The ifl was, That the KingofNavar fliould have all his Lands in Caftile reftored to him. The sd was, That the Infante Don Henry fhould have all his Lands and Offices reftored to him. And the Ml was, That the Declaration of War made by the King her Brother againfl her Husband and the King of Navar fliould be revoked. The Conftable faid, It was not in his power to grant any of the things which flie defired.
The
Don Alvaro de Luna.
The Queen reply'd, It might befo$ but how ever, if he would promife upon his Word of Honour to do all that he was able to perfwade the King to grant them, flie would be fatif- jfy'd. The Conftable did promife her he would 5 and upon that Promife, the King of dragon returned with his Army $ notwith- flanding the King of Navar, who knew the Conftable better than either He or his Queen, was vehement not to truft him, but to fight it out with him. And fo little confidence had the Queen in his Word of Honour, that the two Armies had no fooner turned their backs one on another, than fhe went direftly to the Court ofCaJlile, to try what fhe could do with her Brother before the Conftable re- turn'd to him from the Army. She was both kindly and fplendidly entertained by the King 5 but when (he came to propofe fatArtictu to him which theConftable had promifed he would en deavour to perfwade him to grant, he told her, The Differences betwixt him and the Princes of the Houfe of Aragon were of fo high a nature, that he could not give her an Anfwer before he had advifed about it with his Coun cil. This was all the Anfwer fhe could have from him till the Conftable return'd to Court 5 who apprehending that her bufinefs there was to do him ill offices, made all the hafte he could to it. The King being inftru&ed by his Conftable5 told her, That the Kings of Aragon and Navar had put fuch an Affront upon him, by entring his Kingdom in a
hoftile
The LIFE of
hoftile manner, that he was bound in Ho nour to march into Aragon after the fame fame manner to demand Satisfadion : And when he faw his Sifter much difturbed at this Anfwer, to fweeten her a little, he told her, That before he entred Aragon, he would, out of Refpeft to her, fend an Overture of Peace to her Husband, and would never for get that lhe was his Sifter.
The Queen, being a Woman of a Mafcu- line Spirit, fell foul upon the Conftable, whofe Anfwer (he faid this was, and not the King's 5 and having reproach'd him with Perfidiouf- nefs, and given him a great many other hard Words, (he took her leave of her Brother, and returned to Aragon. The King went half a League with her on her Way, and the Con ftable a whole League, to whom at parting ihe gave a thundring Reprimand, and con cluded it with heavy Threatnings, for the freat Difperfion he had made of the Royal amily. Which Threatnings were fo far from terrifying the Conftable, that he got a better Army about him than he had before, and put the King at the Head of it. The King, in compliance with the Promife he made to his Sifter, fent a Propofition to the King of Aragon by the Bifliop of Valencia be fore he entred his Country 3 which was fuch, that if he had made it to his Sifter when flie was at his Court, he knew very well fhe would have reje&ed it with Indignation, and pot have done it the honour to carry it home
with
DonAlvaro de Luna. 16 j
with her. The Propofition was, That he was ready to conclude a Peace with the King of Aragon, if he would fromife not to afford the King of Navar nor the Infante Don Henry any 'manner of Affiftance, but would leave them, as to all their Concerns in Caftile, to the Jufticc of the Laves of that Kingdom.
The King of Aragoris Anfwer to this Pro* pofition was, That feeing his Brothers fo un- juftly and furioujly perfecuted by one that was in great Power about the King, he could not fromife not to affift them, without violating the Laws both of God and Nature ^ and that he hop d the great Services which were done to the Crown and Kingdom of Caftile by Don Ferdi nand their Father, of Glorious Memory, were not fo foon forgot in it, that the Three Eftates of the Realm would fuffer his Sons to be wor ried out of all that He had left them, for no other end, but to gratifie the Avarice of a little Upftart intoxicated with Power : And tbo* he would not for the World for fake his two Brothers in their frefent great Diftrefs, yet be JJjould be glad to fee Matters amicably com- fofed between the King and Them, and flwuld be always ready to lend his helping hand to it.
After this Anfwer, the King marched im mediately with his whole Army to Huerta a Town a League diftant from Aragon. The Conftable advanced five Leagues farther with Fifteen hundred Lances, Gennets, and Armed Men, and plunder'd and laid wafte all the Country as he went 3 which (truck fuch a
Terror
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Terror into the People, that Montreal, a ftrong Town which had a good Garifon in it, opened its Gates to him as foon as he came before it. He afterwards plundered and burnt Cetiva a confiderable Place, and all the Villages about it ^ when he had done that, he returned to Huerta laden with Spoils and the Curfes of the Country, for the great De- vaftations he had made in it : Which Devafta- tions were the more refented, becaufc he was a Native of dragon, and took Sanftuary in it when he was baniflhed Caftile by the Queen- Regent. His fuppos'd Father, and the Pope that gave him his Education, and the Arch- Bifhop of Toledo who firft brought him into the Caftilian Court, were all Aragonefer. " But the ftrongeft Bonds of Gratitude are " weak Cords to hold fuch Samjons of Ambi- c< tion as the Conftable was.
The King, after the Conftable was re turned to him, did in a Bravado fend an Herald at Arms to the Kings of Aragon and Navar, who were about Calatyud, to challenge them to Battle : But thofe Princes returning no Anfwer to that Challenge, the King marched back to Caftile, and having garifon'd all his Frontier Towns with his Foot, the Conftable went with the Horfe a- gainft the two Infantes, who had made them- felves Matters of the Province of Eftrama- dura.
But now that two Kings had not been able to ftand before the Conftable, the two
Infantes^
Don Alvaro de Luna. 2 69
Infantes^ upon the Report of his coming a- gainft them with a great Force, retreated to Alberquerque a ftrong Town near the Borders of Portugal, whither they defigned to retire, if they found themfelves much diftrefled} the King of Portugal being their Uncle or Firft Coufin , and the Princefs of it their Neice. Trugillo, and moft of the other Towns the Infantes had made themfelves Ma- fters of, being retaken by the Conftable, he made no attempt upon Alburquerque , (not being willing to be fo long abfent from the King as he believed he muft be, if he under took the Siege of that ftrong Place ) but went to Court, and foon after brought the King along with him to lay Siege to it. The King fpent fome Days before it, and loft a great many Men 3 and finding that the beft way to take it would be by Famine, he rais'd the Siege, and went to Medina del Campo^ where he had call'd a Meeting of the Cortesy which he hop'd would have join'd with him in the Extirpation of the Princes of Ar agon. But he was miftaken 5 for as the whole Body of the Nobles exprefs'd a great averfion to it, fo the Procurators of the Commons faid, " They " could not enter upon fo great an Affair be- " fore they had fent to their Cities and Towns " to know their Minds about it:" Which is the Anfwer they commonly give, when any thing thing is proposed to them from the Throne that they do not like. But tho' the Cortes would not enter into the Conftable's Mea-
fures,
a;o The LIFE of
fures, yet the King gave the Conftable and his Creatures all the Lands belonging to the King of Navar, and gave moreover to the Conftable the Adminiftration of the Mafter- fhip of the Order of St. James, with which, tho' it was the higheft and richeft Office in Caftile, he held the Conftablefhip.
But as it is a Curfe on Favorites to difregard every Body, and not to know when they have enough, the Conftable gave no check to his avaricious Temper, and made very little account of the Envy he had brought upon himfelf, tho' he was fenfible that there was not a Prince or Princefs in Spain he had not made his Enemy, by his furious Perfecution oftheHoufe of dragon, to which they were all nearly related : Neither did he much re gard the Hatred and Envy of the Nobles and People of Caftile 5 for when a Friend told him, That if he went on accumulating Ho nours and Wealth thus, he would certainly raife fuch a fpirit of Envy as would pull him down ; He anfwer'd fcoffingly , in allufion to our Saviour's Words, Whatsoever comes to me I mil in no wife rejeB ^ which profane Leffon he muft have learnt at the Papal Court where he had his Education, in which Simony and all the bafe and indired ways of getting Money were publickly pradifed.
The King of Navar's Lands in Caftile be ing all taken from him and diftributed a- mongft the Conftable and his Creatures, his Queen's AmbafTadors laid claim to them, in
their
Don Alvaro de Luna. 271
their Miftrefs's and her Eldeft Son the Prince of Vianas Name, on whom with the King's confent they had been all fettled in Marriage. The Ambafiadors complain'd likewife of the prefent War made by the King upon their Miftrefs, as contrary to the Peace that was between them, in which it was fiipulated, That he fhould never make any War upon her Kingdom but with the Confent and Ap probation of the Caftilian Cortes, which had never given its Gonfent to the prefent War. The Anfwer to the firft Complaint, was, That no fucb Marriage-Settlement appeared on any Regifter in Caftile. An Anfwer very un worthy of a King, who having had the chief hand in making that Settlement, could not have fo foon forgot it, tho' it was not re- giftred. I don't find that any Anfwer was returnM to the Allegation, That the War was Unlawful, without the Confent of the Cortes. The true reafon of which was, that the breaking the Power of that Court in all things relating to Peace and War^ was a Woik the Conftable had on the Anvil at that time, and at which he was labouring with all his ftrength. And tho' the fame or a greater Injury was done to Don Henrfs Princefs, by her Brother's feizing all her Husband's Lands and Offices, even her own Portion not ex- cepted, yet (he never made any application to the Court ofCaftile for Relief, well know ing it would be to no purpofe, unlefs (he would cringe to the Conftable; which the
great
272 The LIFE of
great contempt fhe had of him would not permit her to do, and therefore rather than do it, fhe chofe to live in Exile all her days in great Want. Neither did the Queen- Dowager of Aragon, who liv'd altogether in Co/tile, efcape the furious Perfecution of the Conftable 5 for (he was thrult into a Convent in Tordefil/as much againft her Will, and was forc'd to deliver up to the Conftable the Caftles of Mont Alvan, Tiedra* and Uruena, which were her Dowry, and which (he had a Power to difpofe of by her Laft Will.
The King of Portugal being fenfibly touch'd with this violent Perfecution of the Princes of the Houfe of Ar agon, who were all Princes of the Blood ofCaftile, and particularly of the Queen-Dowager, who I think was his Sifter, fent two AmbafTadors to the Caftilian Court to offer his Mediation between the King and thofe Princes : And by the fame Ambafladors the Prince of Portugal and his Brother the Infante Don Peter intreated the EJing not to fuffer the Princes of his own Blood to be worried fo unmercifully, to gra- tifie any Man. The King thanked his Bro ther of Portugal and his two Sons for their good Intentions, but faid, He was certain that when they fhould once underftand the Keafons for which he had treated thofe Princes in that manner, ( with which they fhould in due time be acquainted ) they would not fay a word more in their behalf. However, the Queen-Dpwager of Ar agon was at their In ter?
icefliojj
Don Alvaro de Luna. 273
cefllon fet at liberty, and had all her Lands and Caftles reftor'd to her, after Affurances given that (he would 'not hold any Correr fpondence with her Sons.
The King of Aragon, being unwilling to be further irnbroil a upon his Brother's ac count with a Favourite that was not to be fhaken, and being defirous to go in Perfon to Italy to expedite fome Bufinefs of his own, obliged the King of Navar and his Queen to fend Ambafladors along with his to the Court ofCaJlile, to make a long Truce with that Crown if they could not obtain a Peace. The King, of Aragorfs Ambaffador was the Bifliop of Lerida 5 the King of Navar s, Dorj Guillen deVique $ and his Queen's, the Titular Arch-Bifhop of Tyre. They had an Audience of the King in Council, where the Birtiop of Lerida in a long Harangue difplay'd the great Services which his Matter's Father, the Infante Don Ferdinand, and the King of Navar ', had done to the Crown of Cajtile 5 concluding his Speech with fevere Reflexions on the Man, whoever he was, that, for his own private Ends, hinder'd the King from granting an Interview to thofe two Princes when they defir'd one, and who ofter'd to come to it without any Guards. The Arch-Bifnop of Tyre fpoke much to the fame purpofe, only he added, That the Infante Don Ferdinand might have had the Crown ofCaftile to him- felf and his Heirs, if he would have accepted it, when his Brother the Kind's Father died.
T
a 74 The LIFE of
But Guillen de Vique^ inftead of Haranguing, Challenged the Man to a Duel that hinder'd the Interview and was the Author of all the Evils and Miferies .Sfain had fuffer'd fince that time.
Tho' the Conftable had not been nam'd by any of the Ambafladors, yet it was plain that He was the Perfon they all aini'd at both with their Tongues and Sword. Upon which He flood up in the Council and told them, " That they had been pieas'd to throw the <c whole Blame of all the prefent Evils and " Diflurbances in Ga/lile upon him, as having " hinder'd an Interview which they feem'd " to believe would certainly have prevented " thofe Evils. He did not deny that he was againft the Interview, but faid he would quickly fatisfie all that were prefent, that thofe Princes had very ill Defigns in their Thoughts againft (he King and his King doms, when they defir'd it. To prove what he faid, he produced certain Letters written by the King ofjlrjgon to fome of the Grandees of Caftile^ promifing them great Lands and Offices if they would join with him in an Enterprize he had in hand. He faid further, (C That a certain Man about " th^King had been folicited to enter into that " Confederacy, and had been offer'd great •" Rewards if he would do it. He added, " He.need not tell them who that Man was : " And then asked them what they thought " now of their harmlefs Interview ?
I don't
Don Alvaro de Luna.
I don't find that the Ambaffadors, tho1 they knew the old Conftable had been ruin'd by forged Letters, did objeft any thing a- gainft thefe. The Hiftof ian from whom I had this Account feems to have had fome Sufpi- cion of their having been forged by the Con ftable. The Ambaffadors perceiving that the Conftable was for continuing the War, ap plied themfelves to the other Nobles who were of the Privy Council, telling them, cc That it was a great Load on their Con- " fciences to fuffer fuch an unnatural War " between Princes of the fame Blood, only for " a private and a very bad End. 3? The Nobles being all of the fame mind, a Treaty was fet on foot, which ended in the granting of a Truce for Five Years, in which it was ftipulated, " That the Party that broke that Truce " fhould pay Two Millions of Crowns in " Gold to the other. The main Article in this Truce was, " That the King of Caftik " fhould take an Oath, Not to do any Da>- cc mage nor to fuffer any to be done, during <c the time of this Truce, to the Goods of cc the Infantes Don Henry and Don Peter, " and of his Sifter the Infanta Donna Catbe- 4C rina Don Henry's Wife, provided that cc none of the faid Princes do within the '* faid term come into any of His Highnefs's <c Dominions, nor fend any Ferfon into them, " befides the Receivers of their Rents.
Now that the Publick was at quiet, the
Conftable was at leifure to marry a SeconcJ
T 3 Wife,
276 The LIFE of
Wife Donna Joanna Pimentel Daughter of the Conde Beneventwn. The King was Father and the Queen Mother at the Wedding, and there were to have been fplendid Doings, if they had not been hinder'd by the Death of the Bride's Grand-mother, which happen'd a few Days before. The Conftable, who was a Man of an aftive Spirit, had not been long marry 'd before hedefired leave of the King to make an Incurfion into the Kingdom of Granada $ which being granted, great Levies of Men and Money were made for that Ser vice $ and fo fond was the King of his Con- ftable's Company, tho* he was naturally no friend to Danger, that he went after him, and ftay'd with him during the whole Expe dition, which, by reafon of the Conftable's good Conduft, and great Courage, was very profperous. The Moors were routed by him in feveral Rencounters } and on occafion of thofe Victories, the Conftable entertain'd the King and the whole Court with a fplendid Tournament of Fifteen Tellow againft Fifteen White. The Ring himfelf rode an Adven turer in it, and broke two Lances upon two of the Nobles that were Mainteiners. After the Tournament was over he treated them all with a magnificent Supper $ for tho' he was a Man of infatiable Covetoufnefs, yet that never hinder'd him from being Profufe on all fuch Occafions.
In this height of the Conflable's Glory was brought to Court of the Arch-
BiQiop
Don Alvaro de Luna. 277
Bifhop of Toledo's being dead } and tho' the feveral Prelates of the beft Families in Caftile ftruggled hard for that great Preferment, the Conftable got it from them all for his Uterine Brother John Cerezeula Arch-Bifhop ofSevil, a Man of no Worth, and of a very bafe Birth. But thofe Defefts were abundantly fupply'd by the Conftable's great Power, to whom the King never denied any thing. And that nothing might be wanting to compleat the Happinefs of this great Favourite^ when his Lady was Deliver 'd at Madrid of a Son, the King flood God-father, and gave him his own Name. At this Chriftning, the King, Queen, and the whole Court were enter- tain'd by the Conftable with a fumptuous Dinner, and in the Evening with a Ball, and after the Ball with a noble Collation. The Prefent made by the King to the Conftable's Lady, was a Ruby and a Diamond which coft a Thoufand Dubloons.
The Princes and Princefles of the Blood being all removed out of Caftile by the Con ftable, he began to fall upon the Nobles who were thought to be their Friends, as he reckon'd all thofe to be that were his Ene mies. He began with the Duke ofAriona a near Kinfman of the King's , who be ing kindly invited to Court, was Arrefted and made a clofe Prifoner as foon as he came there. He died foon after in Prifon, and his Eftate was given to Don Fadrique Conde de Luna mAragonefe, who dying in
T 3 a'ihort
278 The LIFE of.
a fhort time after of Poifon, as it wasfufpefted, thofe Eftates came to the Conftable, who had made himfelf his Heir.
Whilft their Enemy was thus triumphant in Caftile, the Kings of Aragon and Navar^ and their Brothers the Infantes Don Henry and Don Peter, with a great train of Nobles, were all taken Prifoners, as they were failing to Italy, by a Fleet of the Genoefes which Was going to the Relief of Gaeta. The Ge- noefe Admiral was unwilling to fight, and defired the King of Aragon to let him pro ceed quietly on his Voyage : but the King imagining that the Admiral's backwardnefs to fight proceeded from Fear, atfack'd the Ge- noefe, and as the Say ing is, caught a Tartar $ for his whole Fleet was either burnt, funk, or taken, and the two Kings, the two Princes and the Nobles were all fettt Prifoners to Genoa, but were prefently fet at liberty by the Duke of Milan under whofe Pro- teftion Genoa was at that time. The Queen* Dowager of Aragon, who was a moft tender Mother, and had long groaned under the Misfortuns of her Children, funk away, and with a deep Sigh gave up her laft Breath, When fhe heard of her four Sons being all taken Prifoners together at Sea. By her Will fhe left the Caftle and Lordfhip of Mont Alvan to -her Daughter the Queen-Confort ofCaftiley hoping She might have Power enough to keep it from the Conftable, who, (lie knew, had a great mind to it :' But the Queen
could
Don Alvaro dc Luna.
could not do it 5 for before fhe was in pot - feflion of that Caftle, the King folicited her to exchange it. The Queen begg'd, not to be compell'd to do a thing that would be fo great a Difrefped to her dear Mother, as the part ing with the laft Token cf her Love to her would be : But the King would not be de ny 'd, and fo compeird her to let it go, and to accept of the Thirds of the Village of Ara bia, which the Conflable call d an Equiva lent, tho' it was very far from being fo ^ thofe Thirds being a Revenue which arifeth out of Papal Indulgences, and which ought not to be apply'd to any other Ufe but to that of the carrying on of a War againft Infidels. And as the Queen had never lov'd the Conftable before, fo (he could hardly bear the fight of him after he had thus wrung her Mother's laft Legacy from her.
The Five Years Truce being now near ex piring, the Queen ofAragon ( whofe Husband was ftill in Italy, and had there got to himfelf the Kingdom of Naples) procur'd a Pro longation of it from her Brother, firft for Three Months, and afterwards for Five Months. And before that term was ex pired a Peace was concluded at Toledo, in the Year 1436, between the three Crowns of Caftile, Aragon, and Navar.
The main Articles of that Peace were as follow.
T 4 iff. " That
ftSb The LIFE of
iff. " That Don Henry Prince vf Afturia* <d and Eldeft Son to the King ofCa/lile fho&ld " marry Donna Elanca Infanta of Navar, " and fhould have fettled upon him the cc Towns of Medina del Campo, Olmeda, A- cc randa, Roa, and the Marquifate of Vil- u leva 5 all which Places fhould return to " the Crown of Caftite, in cafe that Prince cc had no Children by the Infanta 5 and that ct the Rents of all thofe Places (hould be *c paid to the King of Navar for four Years.
'idly. " That the Infante Don Henry Cc fhould have Five Millions of Florins of " Gold, if he would quit all the Offices and ic Eftates which he had in Cafiile : That the 4C Infanta his Wife fhould have Fifty Millions <c for her Portion 5 and till that Sum was paid (which which was never intended) they fhould receive Three Millions of Flo rins Yearly.
%dly. " It fhould not be lawful for the Infaiites Don Henry and Don Peter, or either of them, to come at any time into Caftile without the King's Leave.
Cajlik being thus clear'd of the Conflable's rnoft potent Enemies, he began to ride the Nobles very hard who had joined with him in the Perfecution of thofe Princes 5 and ha ving now, as he thought, nothing to fear but the King's Death, in order to provide againft that Blow, he laid in very early to be Favou rite to the Prince his Godfon, and to that
<• ' *
end
Don Alvaro de Luna. a8i
end he was named by the King to be his Governor. And whereas it was itnpoffible for him, through whofe Hands all the Publick Affairs of the Kingdom went, to have leifurc to difcharge the Duties of that Office, he appointed one Manuel de Lando to be his Deputy, and charg'd his Brother the Arch- Bifhop of Toledo to be continually about the Prince. And as the Conftable was conti nually either obtaining new Grants from the Crown, or changing worfe Lands for better, Pero Manrique Adelantado of Leon, who for fome Years had been his great Familiar, fell under the Conftable's high Difpleafure, for prefuming to contradid the change of Guada lajara and Talavera for fome better Towns. That great Lord, who knew the Conftable's Temper very well, being fenfible that it would not be long before he ihould find the ill Effefts of his great Power, refolv'd to be before-hand with him, and accordingly he told the King freely one day, 4C That the " Conftable's exorbitant Power, and the ill " Ufe he made of it, would, if let alone, <c ruine both His Higbnefs and his King- ct doms. " The King made no Anfwer, but on the next Council-day fpoke to Manrique to go with the Conftable to his Lodgings. They Dined together that Day, and after Dinner the Conftable left his Lodgings to Manrique for his Prifon. The Imprifonment of the Adelantado fo alarmed the whole King dom, that no Body thought himfelf fafe
either
the LIFE of
either in his Perfon or Eftate whilft the'Con- ftable had fo much Power join'd with fo little Confcience. The Nobles who had fate ftill with too great tamenefs, and had been Spe- dators of the illegal Perfecution of the Houfe cf Aragon, feeing now that the Tempeft of Power was ready to break upon their own Heads, began to meet together and confult how a flop might be put to it. And fo fenfible was the King and his Conftable of this univerfaL great Difcontent, that, to allay it, the King fent to the Admiral to come to him to confult how Matters might be accommodated to the Satisfaction of his Family. The Admiral fent back word, u That the Treachery of " fome Men was fo vifible, that he durft not " venture to wait on his Highnefs, unlefs " he would fend him Letters of Security " under his own Hand. " The King fent him fuch Letters, and with them the Admi ral waited upon him 3 and after divers Con ferences it was agreed, tc That the Adelan- " tado fliould be under a Confinement for " two Years, but fhould not be made a clofe <c Prifoner. " And accordingly the Adelan- tado was fent from Burgos to Fonte Duena under a Guard of Two hundred Horfe, but was there, in contradiction to the Agreement, made a clofe Prifoner in the Caftle. It is like he was not forry that it was fo, being by that means more at liberty to make his Efcape, than he would have been under an eafie Confinement, and upon his Parol of Honour
not
DonAlvaro de Luna. 283
to have attempted it. His Lady, who was the King's near Kinfwomau, and his two Daughters, (hut themfelves in with him, and in fhort time help'd him to make his Efcape in the Night by Cords faften'd to his Prifon- Window. The Ladies likewife got out of the Caftle by the fame way, and before it was Light arrriv'd at Enzinas a Fortrefs belong ing to the Conde de Ledefma who was their near Kinfman, and a great Enemy of the Conftable's. From thence they were con veyed the next Day by the Admiral to his ftrong Town of Riofeca, where a great num ber of Nobles and Biftiops met, and fent a Letter to the King, fupplicating him, " As " he defir'd to preferve his Own Grandeur <c and his Kingdoms from Ruine, to remove " the Conftable from his Prefence and Coun- " cils, againft whofe innumerable Tyrannies " and Oppreffions, they, as Grandees and <c Nobles of the Realm, were bound both " by the Laws of Go D and the Laws of the cc Land to Remonftrate, and to endeavour the <c Redrefs of all thofe Grievances. To that " end, they defired that one of two things " might be granted them : Either that the " Conftable and all his Creatures fhould cc leave the Court for fome tiaie, that they " might come thither with Safety, to lay cc all his Tyrannies and Male-adminiftrations " before his Highnefs 5 or if this was not " granted, That He would be pleafed to fend " to them the Condi s of Haro and Cajtro,
w the
-84 $fe LIFE °f
c< the Mafter of Calatrava, and the Bifliop " of Valencia, (who were all kept Prifoners " by the Conftable) to hear all that they " had to objeft againft Him/' The King having about Him Two thoufand Lances, which he had eftablifti'd to be the Standing Guard of his Perfon, and the Conde de Ri- todeo being returned with Three thoufand Veteranes which the Conftable fent him to hire in France, gave no Anfwer to the No bles, being refolved to fight it out with them, lather than part with the Conftable. And to ftrengthen himfelf the more againft the Nobles, he clapt up a new Peace with the King ofAragon and the King o£ Navar, and offer'd to reftore to the King of Navar and to the Infante Don Henry all their Lands and Offices in Co/file 9 if they would join with him againft the Male-contented Nobles. To make fure of that King, the Marriage which iome Years before had been concluded between the Prince of Caftik and that King's Daughter, was now to be confummated.
Upon this Invitation, the King of Navar and his Brother Don Henry entred Cajlile together with a good Body of Troops, but parted when they were within a Day's March of the Court. The King of Navar went to GtettaTj where he was kindly receiv'd both by the Ring and the Conftable 5 and the Infante Don Henry went to Panafiel, being afraid, 'tis probable, to truft the Conftable fo far as to be both together in his Hands. And
tho'
Don Alvaro de Luna.
tho* Don Henry receiv'd an exprefs Command from the King, Not to go near the Nobles, nor to hold any Correfpondence with them ^ yet being invited by them to come to Vakdolid, which was their Head-Quarters, he went thi ther, and join'd with the Nobles to deftroy his old Enemy.
The King of Navar and Don Henry had feveral Conferences, at one of which the King himfelf was prefent, in order to accom modate Matters $ but the King declaring that he would not part with the Conftable, (which was the thing the Nobles chiefly infifted on ) nothing could be done. When no hopes re- main'd of feeing thofe Differences ended by any other way than by the Sword, fome Friars went boldly to the King and told him, " That if He did not comply with the Sup- " plications of the Nobles, he would cer- " tainly ruine both Himfelf and his King- u doms 5 and if he brought it to a War, the " Guilt of all the Blood that was fhed in it " would be charged to his Account at the " Divine Tribunal." This did fo territie the King, who was very fuperftitious, that he told the Friars, He would do any thing they JJwuld direffi him, to co?npofe the prefent Difficulties amicably. The Friars anfwer'd, " They would not take that upon them- " felves.'9 Immediately after they went to Jfaledolid, and acquainted the Nobles with the King's Difpofition to Treat with them. The Nobles faid, " They were glad to hear
"it;
The LIFE of
" it • and as they aim'd at nothing but the " King's Service and the Good of his King- " doms, fo they were ready to fet a Treaty " on foot for the obtaining of thofe Ends. " Which Anfwer being carried by the Friars to the King, he call'd the Conftable to him, and told him all that the Friars had faid and done. The Conftable, who hated Friars mortally as his mofl dangerous Enemies by reafon of the King's great Superftition, faid, c; That for his own part he was ready to <c fubmit to any thing that his Highnefs " would have him do, only he defir'd him " to take care not to be mifled and deceived " by thofe He was to Treat with. " Upon this Anfwer the King call'd a great Council, at which the Queen, the Prince, and the King of Navar were prefent : Where it was agreed, That for the conveniency of Treating, the King, the Queen, the Prince and the Conftable fhould be at Caftro-Nunnes , the Ring of Navar at Val de Fuentes, and Don Henry and the Admiral at Alheios, all which Places were within the compafs of two Leagues, where, after a few Meetings and Conferences, the following Articles were a- greed on.
i/. " That the Conftable fhould leave the ^ Court for Six Months, and during that u time fhould never Write to the King, nor " Treat with any about any thing to the pre<- " judice of the King of Navar or of his " Brother the Infante Don Henry.
idly. "That
Don Alvaro de Luna. 287
" That all the Towns and Villages <4 which were taken from that King and the " Infante fhould be either reftor'd to them, or " they" fhould : have an Equivalent for them 3 *c of which Equivalent, one named by the •"••King, and another by thofe Princes, (hall " be Judges 5 and in cafe they don't agree, " it (hall be determined by the Prior of the " Bemdiftines in Valedolid.
%dty. " That all that are in Arms on both " fides fhall be forthwith Disbanded.
Laftly. " That there fhould be a general " Indemnity ^ ; and all the ProcefTes, which 44 have been againft Don Henry, (hall be de- " clared null and void.
Thefe Articles being fign'd and fworn to by all Parties on the 29th ufO&ober 1439, the Conftable left the Court the fame Day, attended by his Brother the Arch-Bifhop of Toledo, and divers other Perfons of Quality, who reckon'd he would neither be Jong abfent from the King, nor would have the lefs Power with him. He intended to have lodg'd at Tordefittas, but the Gates of that Town were (hut againft him, fo he went on to Sefmveda a Town the King gave him a Grant of at parting as an Equivalent for Cuellar, which was to be reftored to the King of Navar.
The Conftable, before he left the Court, had a fecret Meeting with the Admiral, at which he offer 'd to leave his full Power in the King with him, if he would defert the Princes of Aragon, The Admiral, tho* he
knew
The LIFE of
knew the Conftable could do that, rejeded the Propofition, and faid he would adhere to the Confederates. But what the Admiral had rejected was accepted of by the Arch- Bifhop of Sevil, who foon appeared to be Deputy-Favourite, and within a few Days after the Conftable left the Court, perfwaded the King to fteal away from the Nobles, under pretence of going out one Morning to Hunt. He went firft to Hcrcaro^ from thence to Camtalapidra, and from thence to Salamanca, where he was forced to lodge in a Private Houfe, the Palace being deny'd to him by the Arch-Deacon of that Church, who had fill'd its Tower with Soldiers. The Confederate Nobles being much furpriz'd at the King's leaving them fo foon, and in fo clandeftine a manner , went after him to Salamanca : But the King having notice that they were coming, left the City in the Night, and went to BoniUa with an intention to hare gone on toAbula $ but a Meffage being fent him, That unlefs he return'd to the Confederate Nobles, that City would (hut its Gates againft him, he remain'd at Bonilla, and from thence writ to the Nobles for Let ters of Security for the Arch-Bifliop of Semi and ibme other Deputies he intended to fend to Treat with them. Which Letters being granted, that Arch-Bifliop and-the other Deputies went to Abula, to which the Con federate Nobles were already come. Being a.sk$d by the King's Deputies, What they
had
Don Alvaro de Luna. i%<?
had to objeft againft the Conftable > they put an Impeachment of him into their hands, which they promifed to deliver to the King : Which Impeachment being very long, I have put it in an Appendix ^ becaufe if it were inferted here, it would break the thread of the Story too much. It confifts of twelve long Articles, in which the Conftable is charg'd with all the Male-adminiftrations a Firft Minifter can well be guilty of, and con cludes with the following Supplication.
" We do therefore, moft Powerful Lord, *e fupplicate Your Royal Majefty, with all the <c Reverence and Loyal Intentions of Faithful " Subjeds and Vaffals, that you would be w pleas'd to give Order for the Reftitution of <c ydur own Liberty and Royal Authority, " which has been fo long ufurp'd by your " Conftable.
The Nobles waited feveral Days, and had no Anfwer from the King concerning their Impeachment of the Conftable. They fent fome Deputies to defire him to call a Cortes^ to confider the State of the Kingdom, and to redrefs its great Grievances. The King faid a Cortes fhould be call'd, but fix'd no Time for Calling them ^ and fo far was he from thinking the worfe of his Conftable for the great Tyrannies and Opprejjions he had been charg'd withal by the Nobles, that to fecure him, if it were poflible, he endeavour 'd to make him the young Prince's Idol as much as he was his own : And to that end, the
U Prince's
-
The LIFE of
Prince's Family was fettled at this time, and the Conftable was made his Major-Domo by the King ^ which, it was hop'd would, have fo difhearten'd his Enemies, as to make them give over perfecuting him any longer. But this kind Intention of the King's had not the Succefs that was expeded from it 5 for the Prince had not had a Family long, before he was perfwaded by Don John Pacbeico a young Nobleman plac'd by the Conftable about him, to leave both his Father and his Major- Domo to join with the Nobles. The Queen- Confort did the fame, and join'd heartily with them to pull down her own and her Family's great Enemy. The Nobles feeing plainly there was no coming at the Conftable cither by Treaties or in the way of Law, and being now very ftrong, refolv'd to fall upon him and ruine him by Force : And it being agreed among them, that they Ihould enter his Lands with Fife and Sword, they firft revok'd the Letters of Security which they had granted to his Lands upon the King's Promife to call a Cortes. Afterwards they fent him a Defiance by a Herald : And to prevent the King's giving them a Diverfion by Invading their Lands, at the fame time they fent a Supplication to him not to do it to his own and his Kingdom's great Dishonour and eminent DifTervice $ adding withal, That if he did make fuch an Attempt, they, as Per- fons aggriev'd, fhould be forc'd to make ufe of the Means which the Laws of the Land
allow'd
Don Alvaro de Luna.
allow'd them in fuch Cafes, but fo as not to lay afide the Reverence and Loyalty which are due to his Royal Perfon. All the Anfwer the King return'd to the Deputies, by whom this Meflage was delivered, was, I have heard you 5 being refolv'd to fupport his Conftable if he was attacked. The Conftable being fure of that, accepted the Nobles Defiance 5 and having Intelligence that the Admiral was march'd from Arevalo to enter his Lands, he Writ to his Brother the Arch-Bifliop of Toledo to meet him at Cafarwtvia* a Town be longing to the Admiral. The two Brothers met there, and kept the Field with Six hun dred1 Horfe a whole Day and a Night in very- bad Weather to fight the Admiral if he had come : But the Admiral not appearing, the Conftable return'd home to ftlaqueda with his Troops, and the Arch-Bifhop with his to Tllefcas, triumphing becaufe his Challengers had fail?d to meet him.
The Admiral, when he heard of that Triumph, fent a fecond Herald to the Con ftable, to tell him, " That whereas he had **' publifh'd, That in Anfwer to the Defiance " which was fent him, he had waited a Day '"• and a Night at Cafarruvias to have given cc him a Meeting, ( tho' at the fame time hef ** could not but know that he had not then u left Arevalo ) he did promife, That if he •** would return to Cafarnwias again, he " would order that Place, which belong'd to L to furnifh him and his Company with Vs P "all
The L IFE of
<c all Neceffaries until he came to him. " To this fecond Challenge the following Anfwer was 'returned by the Conftable ^ " That as by the Advices he had receiv'd u of their Motions, he had reafon to believe " they would have been at Cafarruvias when " he flay 'd for them there 5 fo if they were " fo hoc in purfuing their Defiance, they " ought to name the Time and Place where " they fhould meet 3 and when they had done <k that, he did promife they fhould be gra- Cl tified/' In Anfwer to which, the Ad miral fent him Word, " That on Tuefday the <l 2d of March, he would not fail to meet u him in the Fields ofMaqueda." The Con ftable defir'd it might be prorogu'd till the Saturday following ^ which he did, that he might have Time to fend for his Brother to come to him, and to draw his own Men out of his Caftles : But the Admiral would not grant that/ but fent him Word, " That fince *' he had entred his Lands in his Abfence, tc he would on the aforefaid Day enter his <fc in his Prefence 5 and if he came out " of Maqueda^ would break a Lance with " him.
The King, when he faw the Admiral and thq Conftable ready to come to Blows, di- fpatch'd Pero Carillo his Chief Falconer with Letters to them both, forbidding them to rneet, upon pain of his high Difpleafure. Carillo, who was a Creature of the Conftable's, found the Admiral before Maqueda, and
would
Don Alvaro de Luna.
would have been made a Prifoner for coming without Letters of Security , if Pero Quin- nones had not help'd him to make his Efcape.
The Admiral ftay'd four Days before Ma- queda committing great Ravages on the Coun try, and feeing the Conftable did not offer to come out to him, he went toT/lefcas, where the Arch-Bifhop was. When the Arch-Biftiop heard that the Admiral was coming toward him, he left that Place and fled to Madrid. The Admiral entred Tllefcas, and fold every thing he met with there that belonged to the Arch-Bifhop. He did the fame at Complutum and in feveral other of his Towns, and at laft in Toledo ic felf. The Arch-Bifhop writ to his Dean to lay that City under an Inter- did for joining with the Admiral 5 but the Dean refus'd to do it, and appeal'd from the Arch-Bifhop to the Pope. The Conftable finding he was not able alone to grapple with fo many powerful Enemies, left his own Lands and fled to the Court for Sanduary. The King receiv'd him joyfully, and was prefently engag'd by him to fall upon the King of Navar's Towns and Lands, which he knew would fetch the Nobles out of his own. Olmeda and Medina, which belonged to the King of Navar, were both deliver'd up to the King 3 but before he had left the lat ter, it was inverted by the Confederate Troops, which were by Night let into it by their Correfpondents. When the King heard
U 3 that
LIFE of
that the Nobles had entred the Town, he fpokc to the Conftable and his Brother the Arch- Bifhop to fave themfelves, which they both did by flying to Efcalona. The Arch-.Bifhop ofSevil was then fent by the King to the Ad miral to command him to come to him. The Admiral went, and affur'd the King that all his Friends had no other than Loyal Inten tions. The King had the fame AlTurances from the King of Navar^ the Infante Don Henry , and all the reft of the Nobles, who waited upon him and kifs'd his Hand. The Queen whom he had not feen in fome Months before, her Sifter the Queen of Por tugal who was come into Caflile to complain of fome Wrongs that had been done her, and the Prince his Son, did all wait upon him. The King feem'd to be well pleas'd with what they had done, and did not in the leaft oppofe the feizing on all that they met with that belong'd to the Conftable, or to his Brother the Arch-Bifliop, or to any of his Creatures.
The Queen and Prince being now the Heads of the Confederate Nobles, commanded all that were known to be Friends to the Conftable, the Arch-Biflhop of Sevil, and the Bifhop of Segovia, to leave the Court imme diately. And the Differences which were between the Confederated Nobles and the Conftable having being all referr'd to the Queen, the Prince, the Admiral, and the Ccnde de Alva , the following Sentence
againft
"
Don Alvaro de Luna.
againft the Conftable was agreed on by them all :
" We the Queen Donna Maria, and the Prince Don Henry, and Don Fadrique Ad- miral of Caftile, and Don Fernan Alvarez " de Toledo Conde de Alva, being appointed " by our Lord the King Judges of all the <c Differences which have been and are de- " pending between Don John King ofNavar, ** and the Infante Don Henry and the Nobles " on their fide, and the Conftable Don Al- " varo de Luna and his Friends on the other " fide, do, upon a perfedt Information of all " that has ever pafs'd between them, find, <c that we ought to pronounce and accord- " ingly we do pronounce the following Sen- " tence.
" Forafmuch as we do know that it will *e certainly be for the Service of God and of ic the King, and for the Peace and Quiet of " his Kingdoms, We do Ordain, Command a and Pronounce, That Dm Alvaro de Luna " Conftable lhall for Six complete Years, to " commence from the Date hereof, live either " in his Town of St. Martin de Vall^ or in " thztofRiaca, between which and on his " own Lands that are about them he may go " as often as he will 5 and that during the *' faid term of Six Years he fhall not come 44 to the Court of our Lord the King, nor " (hall go to any other Place. And where- " as fliould the faid Conftable, during the 44 faid term of Six Years, write any Letters
U 4 4' or
5 of f
" or fend any Meffengers to our Lord the " King, it may be fufpeded that he has " mov'd Him to fomething that may give " Offence : For the preventing of that, We ce do Declare, Command and Pronounce, ec That the faid Conftable fhall not, during " the term of Six Years, write or fend any cc MefTengers to the King concerning any C5 Matters befide his own or his Friends cc private Affairs ^ and that whatever he : writes to the King, a true Copy of it fhall tc tranfmitted to the Queen and Prince.
We do alfo Supplicate the King, and u Command the Conftable, during the faid ^* term of Years, not to make any Alliances " or Leagues with any Perfon of what De- t€ gree or Quality foever concerning any of 4; the prefent Differences.
4t We do likewife Declare, Pronounce and " Ordain, That all Nobles, Gentlemen and o- u thers, except his own Menial Servants, fhall u leave him and repair to their own Houfes 5 tc and that the faid Conftable and his Brother u the Arch-Bifhop lhall not, after Thirty ** Days from the Notification of this Sentence lc to them, have above Fifty Men in their w Retinue. ^
<c We do farther Command and Prohounce, " That the faid Conftable fhail give and do ** giv^Nine of his Caftles for Security that *' he will obferve this Sentence, to wit, the *c Caftles ^of Samfteva7ii Ayllon, Madervelo^ *l Langa, Rtiast Mont Alvan, and the Caftles
<{ of
Don Alvaro de IjUna.
** of Vayrela, 'Efcalona and Maqueda, to " thofe to whom we (hall Command him to " deliver them.
" And we do farther Command, That the u faid Perfons to whom thefe Caftles fhall "be delivered do take an Oath to keep and <( hold them for the faid Security, and not to 4< deliver any of them back to the faid Con- " ftable : And We do fupplicate our Lord <c the King, Not to demand any of thofe " Caftles from the Perfons who fhall take <l the faid Oath.
" And for further Security, We do Ordain *' and Command the faid Conftable to de- " liver within Thirty Days Don John his " eldeft Legitimate Son to the Conde of Be- Cl nevente, that he may keep him as a Pledge " during the faid Six Years.
There were a great many more Articles in this Sentence which I omit, as either not re lating to the Conftable, or as not being very material.
The two former Sentences againft the Con ftable having been both vifibly defeated by the Divifions which he had fown among thofe that had procured them 5 that This might not have the fame fate, the Queen, the Prince, the King of Navar and his Brother, and all the Nobles of their Party, did take an Oath, Ci That no one of them Cfc fhould feek to have the King's Favour tl more than another, and that they would ** never enter into any Corrcfpondence with
« the
The LIFE of
« the Conftable. " Which Oath was ob- ferv'd as fuch Oaths us'd to be, as we (hall fee hereafter.
The Conde de Cajlro therefore, to link them clofer together than he believM that Oath would do, perfwaded the King ofNavar, who was a Widower, to marry a Daughter of the Admiral's $ and the Infante Don Henrj,who was a Widower likewife, to marry a Daughter of the Conde Benevente's. Tho* this laft Lady was either Sifter or Neece to the Conftable's Wife, yet it was no impolitick Match $ fince I don't find that any of her Great Family were eve? Friends to the Conftable, being difpleas'd, 'tis probable, for mixing her Noble with his Bafe Blood.
Thi^ third Sentence, as it was the fevereft that had been pafs'd on the Conftable, fo it was for many reafons the tnoft likely to hold. Neverthelefs, the Conftable did not defpair fo far of the virtue of his former Method as not to try it once more : And as if the chief place in the Kings Favour had been a thing in his Gift, he offer'd it to the Admiral du ring his abfence from the Court. After he had refus'd it, he offer'd it to the King of Navar ••> and upon his refufal, he offer'd it to the Infante Don Henry ; and gave every one of them all poflible AfTurances, That if they would join with him and fetch him back to Court, he would ferve them faithfully to the utmoft of his Power. Which fecret Nego tiation of the Conftable's was brought to light
by
Don Alvaro de Luna.
by thofe three Princes comparing Notes toge ther. Tho' after all, it was believ'd, that the true reafon of rejecting what was offer'd by the Conftable, was, That they durft not truft him. This unufual firmnefs in his Ene mies wrought fuch a Defpair in the Con ftable of ever being able to weather this Storm, that that he began to have fome thoughts of retiring into Portugal where he had purchas'd fome Friends. And as great Misfortunes do feldom come alone, he receiv'd another great blow at this time by the death of his Bro ther the Arch-Bifhop of Toledo who was a conflderable Support to him.
When the Admiral heard of this Vacancy, he begg'd Toledo of the King for his Nephew Don Gutter de Oforio Bifliop of Palencta 5 to whom the Kin£ not only promis'd it, but alfo writ to the Pope in his favour. But the Arch-Bifhop of Sevil, who had been banifh'd the Court not many Weeks before, for being the Conftable's Creature and Deputy, had fince that time given the King of Navar and his Brother fuch Aflurances of his having left the Conitable and devoted himfelf entire ly to their Interefts, that he prevailed with them to procure for him that Arch-Bifhop- rick 5 and to give the Admiral fome Satisfa- ftion That of Sevil was given to his Nephew. But that Prelate being ftill in his heart a great Friend to the Conftable, he was not long in that high Station before he let the King of Navar and his Brother underftand
how
300 j^Tbe , JL,I FE
how much they had been impos'd on by his Profeflions. The King, to prevent the Con ftable's Friends from defertipg him, upon a conceit of his being out of favour, flood God father to the Conftable's Daughter born at this time at Efcalona, which Place was not yet deliver'd up by the Conftable, tho' the Sentence required it 5 and the King celebrated that Feftivity at his own Expence with ex traordinary Expreflions of Joy.
Don Lope Barrientes Bifhop of Abula, who would have been banifh'd the Court as a Crea ture of the Conftable's if he had not been the Prince's Chaplain, contracted a great Friendfhip with Pacbeico the Prince's Fa vourite, a young Nobleman of great Ambi- hition, and having fcrew'd himfelf into his graces fo far as to be the abfolute Matter of his fpirit, he told him, He could never exped any great Matters from the Prince fo long as he was join'd with the Nobles $ and farther, That his having perfwaded the Prince to leave his Father, could not but be a load upon his Confcience. Pacheico ask'd him what he would have him do ? The Bifhop anfwer'd, I would have you perfwade the Prince to join with the Conftable and his Friends to take his Father out of the hands of the No bles, by whom he was kept as a Prifoner 5 which, he faid, he believ'd might be done with eafe, if he could but perfwade the Prince to go and fpend fome time at Segovia^ under pretence of going thither to Hunt. Pacbeico
promis'd
Don Alvaro de Luna. 301
promis'd that fhould be done $ and fo it was, notwithftanding the King of Navar and the Admiral did all that they were able to hinder it. : They defir'd the Prince, fince he would go, that he would not fuffer the Bifhop of Abula to be there with him. The Prince told them that the Bilhop was to go with him to Segovia^ but that he fhould not ftay with him there, but fhould return to his own Palace in BoniUa. The Bifhop, as he was on his Way to Segovia with the Prince, fent a Friend to the Conftable, to defire him to lay afide all thoughts of retiring into Portugal, fince he did not defpair of making the Prince and him Friends. The Conftable thank'd the Bifhop for his good Intentions, but faid there were three things to be fear'd in entring into any Negotiation with the Prince : i^/?, That the Prince, tho' he were his Friend, would not be able to make head againft the King of Navar and the Confederated Nobles. idly, That the Prince, who was very young, would fcarce have patience to go through withfuch an Enterprize. %dfy, That fuch a Negotiation might under-hand be fet on foot by the Admiral, to whom Pacbeico was nearly Related, on purpofe to deitroy him with the more eafe and difpatch. The Bifhop bid him lay afide all Sufpicions, and reconcile himfelf to the Prince, if he wifli'd well to the King's Service, and to his own and Family's Prefer- vation $ and to encourage him to do it, he told him he was fare of the Arch-Biftiop
of
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of Toledo, and likewife of his Nephew the Conde de Alva, and three or four Condi s more whom he nam'd. The Conftable anfwer'd, That tho' nothing could remove his Jealou- fies, yet his great Zeal to ferve his Mafter would make him overlook them, fo that they fhould not be able to hinder him from join ing with the Prince to fet the King at liberty. The Biftmp upon this went privately to the Conftable, and in the Prince's Name entred into a ftrid Alliance with him to deftroy the great Power of the King of Navar and his Friends, in order to fet the King at liberty, and both Parties took an Oath to obferve this Alliance ftridly.
This Negotiation, tho' manag'd with great Secrecy, had made fuch difcoveries of itfelf, that the King of Navar and his Friends, fufpefting the Prince to be entred into fome Correfpondence with the Conftable, prefs'd him hard to return to Court, that they might, according to the Oaths which he and they had taken, confult together how to deftroy the Conftable as a publick Enemy to the King and Kingdom. The Prince, who was not to do any thing upon the foot of his new Alliance before the King was acquainted with it, (which was very difficult, bccaufe he was continually befieg'd by the King of Navar's Creatures) came to Court accordingly with greater profelfions than ever of an implacable Enmity againft the Conftable, and of his re- folution to deftroy him.
The
Don Alvaro de Luna. 303
The Prince, when he firft vifited his Fa ther, took the Bifliop of Abula along with him 3 and the King, according to the Inftrur- ftions given him, call'd that Prelate afide from the Company* The Bifliop then faid to the King, Sir, Our Difcourfe mufi be very jbort. The King asked him what he thought of his Condition ? The Bifliop anfwer'd, / think it is very bad, but a Remedy mil be found for it. What is it ? faid the King. The Prince, Sir; faid the Bifliop, who has entred into an Alli ance with your Conftable, mil not fail to remedy it quickly. Is that certain ? faid the King. It is, Sir, faid the Bijbop 3 and if your Highnefs mil keep your Bed to morrow, under a pretence of being indifpos'd, the Prince mil wait on you, and ajjure you of its being true. The King accordingly, pretending he had a Cold, kept his Bed the next day, and the Prince, the Bifliop, and Pacheico went together to vifit him. The Bifhop being call'd by the King to his Bed's-fide, did with great fecrecy put a Paper into the King's Hand, whifpering to him, That he was to deliver it to the Prince. The King did fo j and at the fame time the Prince did put an other Paper into the King's Hand ^ by which Writings they promis'd one another to do all that they were able to deftroy the Power of the King of Navar and his Friends, and to bring back the Conftable to Court. This exchange of Papers was made fo dexteroufly that it was not obferv'd by any of the King
of
504 '•'- The L I FE of ofNavar's Creatures that were in the Room : But the King himfelf, by the unufual Joy which fat all day on his Countenance, made a difcovery that Tome fuch things had pafs'd at this Vifit. Upon that the Admiral call'd the Bifhop to him, and ask'd him what it was that had made the King fo Merry? •Nothing that I know of, faid the Biftiop, unlefs it were fome Jefts which the Prince made on pafl t kings , to divert his Father from Mela fa choly. Tmi had beft have a care, faid the Admiral, how you have any more Difcourfe with the King 3 for the King of Navar is fo jealous of you already, that afmall matter more will turn you out of the Place you are in about the Prince. The Bifhop reply'd, He won der d how the King of Navar could be jea+ tous of him, as if he could be capable of do ing an% thing contrary to the Prince's Inte* re/Is or Inclinations. However, fo ftrong were the Jealoufies of the King of Navar and his Friends that fomething was work ing to fave the Conflable, that they were in greater hafte than ever to deftroy the Con- ftable ^ and they wou'd fain have had the Prince to have gone about it immediately, but he told them he would not till he re- turn'd from Segovia, whither he was refolv'd to go at prefent : But to give fome Satisfa- ftion to the King of Navar, in whofe Hands he was, he promis'd to meet Him and his Friends on a certain Day at Arevela, to rid Cajlile of the Cpnftable, with whom he pre tended
Don Alvaro de Luna. 305
tended to be more angry than ever he had been. The Prince having entred into thefe frefli Engagements to deftroy the Conftable, by the Directions of theBifhop ofAbula, ask'd the Biftop, as he was on his Way to Segovia, bow it could be fofflble for hivi, if be met the King 0/Navar and his Friends at Arevela, not to join with them .<? The Bifliop anfwer'd, He would take care of that.
The Bifhop went to Arevela^ and as Lord of that Town, appointed Lodgings for the Prince and all that were to come with him within the Gates. He order'd Lodgings like- wife within the Gates for the King of Navar and all the Nobles that were to come 5 but he quarter'd their Guards and other At tendants without the Gates in the Suburbs, at a confiderable Diftance from them. When the King of Navar's Servants, who had been fent before to lay in Proviiions, complain'd of this as incommodious and dangerous, the Biftiop laid he could not help it , feeing there was not room enough in the Town for their great Retinues. This Diftribution of the Lodgings look'd fo like a Trap fet for the King of Navar, that as foon as he had notice of it, he fent the Prince word, That unlefs their Lodgings were otherwife order'd, He and his Friends could not come todrevela xvith fafety. The Prince took no notice at ail of this Meflage, but came to Arevela on the day appointed 5 and not finding the King of Navar and bis Friends there, he fent them
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word, That he could not but refent their breach of Faith with him, and that he could impute their failure to meet him to nothing elfe but a fecret Inclination in them to fave the Conftable. He told them iikewife, That he look'd on himfelf as re- leas'd from all the Engagements he had ever enter' d into with them to deftroy him. And tho' the Ring ofNavar and his Friends offer'd to come to him todrevela, if the Bifhop would alter the dangerous difpofition of their Lodg ings, or, if that could not be effefted, to meet him at Olmeda, and did withal give him all poffible Affurances of their being for juft Reafons more zealous than ever to have the Conftable deftroy 'd 5 the Prince would not hearken to them, but ftill maintain'd that their failing to meet him at Arevela was a Demonftration of their being willing to fave him, notwithftanding all their Profeflions to the contrary. This ftiff Pretence, which was certainly the moft fenfelefs and fhamelefs that was ever made ufe of by a Prince, or by any body elfe, oblig'd the Admiral to go to Arevela to try if he could make the Prince recede from it. He there repeated all the forementioned Offers and Affurances to the Prince to no purpofe. He asked him where in the King of Navar and the Confederate Nobles had difobliged him, that he fhould make ufe of fuch abfurd Shifts to break with them, in contradiction to the Oath which he had taken to join with them to
deftroy
r*f r-"ir "T Tf '•- **T"* ' f '
Don Alvaro de Luna. 307
deftroy the Conftable ? The Prince anfwer'd, "That that Oath had been obferv'd by him " better than it was by them, as appear'd by their not meeting him at Arevefa in the profecution of it $ and tho' he was ftill for ridding Caftile of the Conftable, he could not go to Olmeda to be fatisfied by theip that they were as much for it as he was '5 iince if he were there, he muft go and wait " upon the King, who was within five " Leagues of it, which was no ways conve- " nient for him to do at that time." The Admiral being much offended with this lhameful Shuffling and Diflimulation of the Prince, ask'd him what the Confederate^ Nobles had done to drive him to fuch Shifts > and offer 'd to procure for him whatever he defir'd, if he would but let him know what it was ? The Prince reply'd, If you will go to tbe Eijbof of Abula, be mil tell you what is ft to be done. The Admiral went to the Bifhop, who, to gain Time, ( knowing the Prince not to be in a Condition as yet to come to an open Rupture) enter'd into a Treaty with the Admiral, and after fome time gave him a Paper which contain'd all that the Prince de- fir'd. One thing requir'd was, That the IKiiigs Royal Pre-eminence JJjouId be fecretly prefervd-j which he reckon'd (tho1 he did not fay fo much at prefent ) cou'd not be, if he were not entirely at liberty to have the Conftable about him. The Admiral was fenlible that this was couch'd under the Ar-
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tide of the King's Pre-eminence, but took no notice of it. He carry 'd the Bifhop's Paper with him to the King of Navar, and it was agreed, That all the Prince had defir'd in it fhould be granted. Garcia de Santa Maria Brother to the Bifhop of Burgos, and a Jew by Nation, was fent to Arevela to let the Prince know fo much : But before that Mef- fenger arrived there, the Bifhop ofAbuIa had gone fecretly to Alma de Tormes, where he met the Arch-Bifhop of Toledo, and brought both him and his Nephew the Conde de Aha into the Alliance which the Prince had en- ter'd into with the Conflable. When Garcia waited on the Prince with the Grant of all that he had defir'd, the Prince knew not what to fay to him, but bad him go and Dine with the Bifhop ofAbula. Garcia went, and after Dinner deliver'd the Grant which he had brought with him. The Bifhop, reckoning that the Prince was now fo ftrong that he might open his mind a little more fully than he had hitherto done, faid, That the Confederated Nobles had done well in being fo juft to the Prince, that there wanted now only Three things to be executed which related to the Article about the King's Pre eminence : iff, That the King fhould be at liberty to go where he pleas'd. idly^ That the King of Navar and his Friends fhould evacuate all the Royal Cities and Fortreffes which they had garifon'd. gd/y, That the Ring fhould be Matter of the Crown-Reve nues.
Don Alvaro de Luna. 309
nues. Garcia faid, Thefe things might do well at another time^ but if the Prince in filled on them at prefent, he had certainly chang'd his mind in relation to the Conftable. From the Bifhop he went to the Prince to hear what he wou'd fay, and had the fame Anfwer from him word for word. Upon which he return'd to the King of Navar and fatisfy'd him, that the Prince was undoubted ly in a Confederacy with the ConftabJe.
The Prince, or rather his Governor the Bifhop of Abula, being certain that after this declaration of his Mind, the King of Navar would be upon him quickly, left Arevela and went to Abula^ having before-hand fummon'd all his Confederates to come to him there. The firft that came to Abula with Troops was the Conftable, who brought Five hun dred Ginnets with him. The next was the Conde Alva, who brought Three hundred 3 and in a few days the Prince was Fifteen hundred ftrong in Horfe : but that not be ing Force enough to go to Tordejillas where the King was, he march'd toward Burgos, and was by the way join'd by the Arch- Biihop of Toledo, and the Condes of Haro, Placentia, and Caftaneda with a Strength in Horfe equal to what he had before. The Conftable being now with the Prince, it wac to no purpofe to wear a Mask any longer, and therefore the Prince threw it off*, and let forth a publick 'Declaration of his Intention to refcue the King his Father out of the Hands
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of the King of tfavar and his Confede rates, and to reflore him to his Royal Pte- e mine nee.
The King of Navar and his Friends being ftrangely allarm'd at the Prince's getting fuch Numbers of Men about him in fo fhort a time, remov'd the King from Tordefillas to Portillo a Caftle belonging to the Ccnde de Caftro, whom they charg'd to watch the King narrowly that he might not get to the Prince 5 and having got together a Body of Two thou- fand Horfe, they march'd towards Burgos with an Intention to give the Prince Battle, which they would certainly have done, if they had not been hinder'd by the News of the King's flipping away from the Conde de Caftroy and of his arrival at Valedolid, under pretence of going out; to Hunt, Upon which Tydings they all difperfed immediately 5 the King of ^xwrfled into Aragon, and the Admiral and other Nobles to their own Caftles, which they promifed to hold out till the King r^turn'd to them with an Army out of dragon. vjol
When the Prince heard of the King's being ttValedolid) hefent the Bifliop ofAbula to him to invite him to come to Duennas. The King went thither, and was met by the Prince, and by his Conftable who was much wel- comer to him : They conduced the King to the Army, and in a fhort time reduc'd Me dina Cueller-, Pennafiel^ and moft of the Towns which belong'd to the King of Navar. The Conftable march'd into Andahtfia with
Twelve
Don Alvaro de Luna. 311
Twelve hundred Horfe, and drove the Infante Don Henry out of it, who retired into Aragon to join his Brother the King of Navar who was making great Levies in that Kingdom.
Whilft the King was at Efpinar raifing Forces to oppofe the King of Navar's entring into Cajlile, he receiv'd the News of his Queen's Death. She was faid to have been Poifpn'd by theConftable's procurement 5 and and if (he was, he did not efcape bein^ fig- nally punifh'd in this Life for fo execrable a Murder 5 the Match which he made a few Months after for the King proving one of the chief Caufes of his Tragical End.
The Arch-Bifhoprick of Comfioftella falling void at this time, was offer'd by the King to the Bifliop of Abula for his late great Ser vices 5 but that Prelate defir'd to be excus'd, and faid he was too old to go into cold Gali- cia^ and at the fame time accepted of the rich Bifhoprick of Cuenca, with which he could ftay about the Court with a better grace than with the other.
The King of Navar and his Brother had not been many Weeks in Aragon before they returned to Caftile with a goal Army : They went to Olmeda, and were met there by the Admiral and the other difcontented Gran dees 5 but before they committed any Ads of Hoftility they fent a Gentleman to the King, to ask leave to lay their Complaints before him. That falfe Man the Bifhop of Cuenca was appointed by the King to go and
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hear what they had to fay. They told him all that they defir'd was, to have their own Eftates, and that they might be fuffer'd to enjoy them quietly 5 and that if this was granted and fecur'd to them, they would lay down their Arms, which they muft otherwife make ufe of. This Propofition had been accepted of, when it was reported by that Bifhop to the King and Council, if it had not been oppos'd by the Conftable. He told the King, That if His Highnefs would but dday returning an Anfwer to it for feven Days, he might then return fuch a one as would be more for his Honour and Service than any Anfwer he could make at prefent. When it was objected, That the King of Navar was much ftronger than the King, and would not wait fo long for an Anfwer $ the Bifhop of Cuen^a undertook to hinder the Prince from committing any Ads of Hoftility for Ten Days, if the King would grant him a Commiflion to treat with him all the while. That Prelate had fuch a Commiflion given him, and went fix Days fucceflively to confer with the King of Navar and the Admiral, and offer'd fuch Things in the King's Name, that at laftthey declar'd they were fatisfy'd. After they had been amus'd for fix Days toge ther with vain Promifes, the Treaty was broke off abruptly on the feventh, when the Majler of Calatrava came to the King's Camp with Five hundred Ginnets 5 by which great Reinforcement the King was enabl'd to return
that
Don Alvaro de Luna. 313
that Anfwer to the King of Navar and the Confederated Lords which the Conftable was for giving them. After they had been fo long deluded by the Bifliop of Cuenca, they perceiv'd that the Conftable was refolv'd to bring it to a Battle, and therefore difpatch'd two Lawyers and a Publick Notary to the King with the following Remo?ijlrance, which they were order 'd to execute in his prefence with all the Formalities of Law.
" We the King of Navar, the Infante Don " Henry * the Admiral of Caftile, &c. do u Supplicate your Highnefs, Not to give <c way to the Deftruftion of your Kingdoms, " but to do them Juftice by Difmifling the <c Conftable Don Alvaro de Luna your Capital <c Enemy, and the Deftroyer of your King- " doms 5 and that you will be pleas'd to go <c to any Place as a Soveraign Prince, and we <c will wait on you there only with ten ic Mules, in order to fettle the Peace of " jour Kingdoms, which have fo long groan'd under the Tyrannical Power of your Con- ftable : This if you will do, it will be what becomes a good King, and the natu- ral Lord of thefe Kingdoms } and we fhall efteem it a great Favour : But in cafe you deny to do it, we here Proteft, That we will camplain of it to our moft holy Father the Pofe, and will defend ourfelves with Arms with our utmoft Force, prefer ving however all that Refped and Reverence which is due to your Royal Perfon. And
" if
"
"
a 1 4 ike LIFE of
<c if any Deaths, Plunders, Burnings and *c Depopulations do enfue upon it, we do tfr hereby acquit ourfelves of them all, and " lay the whole Guilt of them upon your 4C Confcience \ a juft and neceffary Defence cc "being a thing that all Laws Divine and " Hitman do allow.
The Lawyers were brought into the King's prefence before he rofe from Dinner, and firft read the Proteftation to him, and put it after wards into his Hand, and then the Names of all that were prefent were written down by a Publick Notary as Witneffes to its execu tion. All that the King faid to the Lawyers was, He would confider of the Proteftation, and in a fhort time fend an Anfwer to it. Within two Days he returned the Conftable's Anfwer to it, which was a pitch'd Battle, in which the Viftory fell at laft to the King, after it had been doubtful for fome Hours, and was fo entire, that the Army of the Con federated Nobles was totally difperfed. The King ofNavar and the Infante his Brother fled into Aragon^ where the Infante died of the Wounds he had received in the Fight, leaving his young Princefs in Caftile big with Child.
The Conftable was zealous to have the King make ufe of this Vidory to ruin the Power of the Grandees, which at prefent was too great to fuffer a Favourite to be long eafie 5 and to that end he pufti'd him on to kize forthwith on all the Caftles and Eltates
which
Don Alvaro dc Luna. 3 1 5
which belong'd to the King of Navar* the Infante Don Henry, the Admiral^ the Conde de Benevente, and the reft of the Nobles who had been in Arms againft him, and either to annex them to the Crown, or to diftribute them among their Enemies, of which he him- felf was the Chief. This the Conftable faid might be done with eafe, if it were done prefently 5 and it would have been done, if the Prince had not broke all the Conftable's Meafures in a few Days after the Viftory, by Stealing away from Court by Night, at tended only by Pacheico his Favourite and two Pages, and going to Segovia a City that was entirely at his devotion. The Prince was no fooner mifs'd, than the Majler of Calatrava was fent after him to fetch him back 5 but the Prince rode fo hard that the Mafter could not overtake him. Afterwards a Gentleman was fent to Segovia by the King, to know of the Prince what it was that made him leave him fo ? The Prince anfwer'd, It was only to refrefh himielf a little after fo long a Fatigue, and that he did it without Leave, for no other reafon but becaufe he fear'd it wou'd have been deny'd him if he had ask'd it. He defir'd the Gentleman to aflure the King, That he would return to Court after he had diverted himfelf for a few Days at Segovia. But this being look'd upon as a Flam, the Bifhop of Cuencz ( who, when he was Bifhop ofAbula, had taught both the Prince and his Favourite Pacheico the Art
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^6 The LIFE of
of Diffimulation ) was fent to Segovia to fee if he could pump the Secret out of them. He began with Pacheico^ who like a towardly Scholar protefted to his Tutor, by all that was facred, that he knew nothing of the Prince's Intention to leave the Court, before he commanded him to make himfelf ready to go with him to Segovia. The Bifhop faid, That might be true, but that the Prince muft have fince acquainted him with the Caufe of that ftrange and fudden Motion. After fome fencing , the Tutor pumpt out of his Scholar, that the reafon of that Motion was, becaufe the Towns of Vittaneua, Safoa- teira, and Salvaleon were not given him, which had been all promis'd to him, for per- fwading the Prince to join with the Con- jflable to fet the King at Liberty. He further reprefented, That the Cities of Jaen Logrono and Civid Rodrigo, and the Town of Gajfar&s, were not given to the Prince, as was promifed, and that the King and Conftable were about to feize on all the Caftles and Lands which belonged to the Admiral, altho' the Prince had promis'd that Lord to take them all into his own hands.
Thefe Demands of the Prince, the' they were hard, were all granted ^ and to fatisfie the riling young Favourite^ not only the fore- men tion'd Towns were beftow'd on him, but likewife the Title and all the Eftates belonging to the great Marquifae siViUena, and all the Caftles and Lands which belong'd to thefcAdmiral
were
Don Alvaro de Luna. 3 1 j
were delivered up to the Prince, and all that belonged to the Conde of Benevente were deli- ver'd to the Conftable. In one of thofe Towns call'd Mayorga the Conftable of Portugal was fplendidly entertain'd by the King : This Con ftable was Son to the Regent of Portugal, and had been fent into Caftile by his Father with a Body of Twelve hundred Horfe, Four hundred Ginnets, and Two hundred Foot, to the Afliftance of the Conftable a- gainft the King of Navar and his Friends : And tho' thefe Portuguefes came too late to have any (hare in the Honour of the late Vi<3ory, yet they were loaded with Prefents both by the King and the Conftable before they returned Home.
When the calling in of thefe foreign Troops was firft mov'd by the Conftable, it was vio lently oppos'd in Council by the Conde de Haro and moft of the other Nobles that were prefent, as a great Difhonour to the King and Kingdom $ but that did not hinder him from bringing them in 5 and tho' he was fen- fible that it created him a great deal of Ill- will, yet he valu'd it not,i fo long as the King was pleas'd with it, as ne was with every thing that the Conftable faid or did. And to let the Kingdom farther fee that his Con- ftable's Abfence had not at all leffen'd his Affedion for him, he no fooner heard of the Infante Don Henrys Death, than he com manded all the Priors and Commendadors of the Order of St. James to chufe the Conftable
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318 ne LIFE of
for their Majler $ which great Office he held with that of Conftable^ and was the firft and the laft that ever had them both together.
The Conftable's old Enemies being now all either either dead or banifli'd, new ones fprung up in their room 3 which always was and ever will be the lot of Court-Favourites. Of all his new Enemies the moft formidable was Pacbeico, who govern'd the Prince as much as the Conf table did the King, facheico apprehended that the King and the Conftable would eclipfe him and his Matter by Ruling as uncontroulably as ever, if the Admiral and other banifh'd Grandees were ruin'd 5 and therefore advis'd the Prince to oblige the Grandees, by making their Peace with the King. After this was effeded, Pacheico, ac cording to the common Gratitude in Courts, began to treat with them about entring into an Alliance to deftroy the Conftable. The Coriftable faw plainly what Pacheico was driving at, yet durft not attack him violently according to his wonted cuftom, but on the contrary fought to gain him by doing him good Offices with the King : And being well affur'd that nothing would pleafe him fo much as to have his Brother Don Peter G'iron made Mafter of Calatrava, he gave the pre- fent Mailer a great Sum of Money to refign it in Giron's favour. This was taken fo well of the Conftable both by die Prince and Pacbeico^ that they went to Palayas on purpofe to thank hmi for it. The King came thither to his
Conftable
Don Alvaro de Luna. 3 1 p
Conftable before they parted, and all the Lands and Caftles that belonged to the Infante Don Henry were divided between the two Favourites, notwithftanding his Widow was with Child, and that they had all been fettled in Marriage upon his Children : Al- •burqutrque and Azagala were given to the Conftable, and MedeUin to Pacheico.
But tho' Pacheico was deny'd nothing that he defir'd, yet finding that the whole Power of the Government was ftill in the Conftable, his Ambition made him fo uneafie, that he refolv'd, if it waspoflible, to pull him down - and to that end, he told the Prince that He made no Figure in the Court 5 and tho3 he could not deny that he was under great Obli gations to the Conftable^ by whom he was tirft plac'd about his Highnefs, yet the Con- ftable's Tyranny was grown fo infupportable, that he could no longer facrifice the fublick Good of the Kingdom to his own private Gra titude, or to any thing elfe. He foon after began a Treaty between the Prince, the Ad miral and the Conde de Benevente, in order to leffen the exorbitant Power of the Con ftable : Which Treaty was not carry 'd on ib fecretly, but that the Conftable, who had his Spyes in every Corner, had timely notice of it, and law plainly by it that nothing but his Ruin would iatisfie the Ambition of the young Favourite ^ inftead therefore of endeavouring to gain him by procuring him new Favours, he fet himfelf to countermine him in all his
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Plots $ and being fenfible that the Prince would never be able to do him much hurt, without the Afliftance of the Admiral and the Conde de Benevente who were infeparable Friends, he perfwaded the King to take both thofe Nobles out of the hands of the Prince, by beftowing on the Admiral the Town of Tari/fa and a Yearly Penfion of an Hundred thoutand Maravedeis.
This was a Mafter-ftroke of the Conftable's 5 but his next Device is faid to have prov'd fatal to him, tho' at fome Years diftance. It feems he carry 'd on a Treaty of Marriage fofar be tween his Matter the King and an Infanta of Portugal, without making him privy to it, that the King was bound in Honour to Marry that Infanta, tho' he was much more inclin'd to Marry the Princefs of Rogunda a Daughter of the French King. The King is faid to have been fo angry with the Conftable upon this account, that he never forgave him. If this be true, the King muft have been a great Mafter of that Leflbn which a French King faid was alone Learning enough for any Soveraign. This Marriage was celebrated in the Year 1447, and the Conftable did not fall vifibly under the King's Difpleafure till the Year 1453. However that was. It is certainty a dangerous thing for Favourites to imp of e upon their Mafter s either in their Mar riages or Amours, tho' they may govern 'em in all things elfe.
Don Alvaro de Luna. . 321
Pacheico was fo enrag'd againft the Ad miral and the Conde de Benevente, for thus deferting the Prince who had been fo great a Friend to them both, that he was ready to enter into any Meafures whereby he thought he might be reveng'd on them. This was obferv'd by the Bifhop of Abula^ who ear- neftly apply M himfelf to unite the two Fa- vourites, and convinc'd them both that they had no other way whereby they could fecure themfelves in their high Pofts, but by joining to break the great Power of the Grandees. At his Perfwafion they enter'd into a ftrift Alliance to do this^ and did vow a perpetual Fi iendfhip to one another. To compafs their Defign, it was agreed, that the Admiral, the Condes de Benevente^ Aha, and Cajtro, and the Admiral's Brother Don Peter , and Don Suero Quinnones, fhould be all made Prifoners, upon the pretence of keeping a Correfpondence with the King of Navar. In order to Appre hend them all at once, it was agreed, that the King and the Prince ihould have an Interview in the midway betwixt Tordejillas and Villa- verde 5 to which Interview all thofe Nobles were to be invited. The Bilhop of A bit !a went to invite them all to it. I\IQ Admiral and the Conde de Caftro, who knew the Court was not to be trufted with fo many Nobles together, defir'd to be excus'd $ but the reft did all promife the Bifhop to be prefent at it, and did accordingly go to Tordejillas to wait :ipon the King at the time appointed. After
Y they
3*2 The LIFE of
they were on Horfe-back to go to the King, they were told by the Bifhop of Abula, That it had been agreed between the King and the Prince, that none fhould be prefent at this Interview but upon Mules. The Nobles fubrnitted to this, tho' they did not like it very well, and having mounted their Mules they went after the King and the Conftable^ who met the Prince and Pacheico at the Place appointed for the Interview. After the ufual Civilities had pafs'd, thofe four went afide from the Company -5 and returning again after a fhort Conference, the Conde de Bene- vente, the Admirals Brother, and Don Suero de Quinncnes, were all Arrefted at the King's Command, and fent Prifoners to the Caftle of Portillo. The Conde de Aha and Don Peter Qu'nmcnes were Arrefted at the Prince's Command, and fent to the Caftle of Rua $ and at the fame time a Guard was fent by the King to Arreft the Admiral, and another by the Prince to Arrreft the Conde de Caflro ; But the News of what had been done having march'd fafter than the Officers fent by the King and Prince, thofe two Lords left their Houfes before the Officers came to them, and fled into Aragon^ where they complain'd aloud of the Injuftice and Treachery of that Interview 5 which made the whole Kingdom of 'Caftile exclaim more than it had ever done be fore againft any of the Con (table's Aftions* for it was in every Body's mouth, that after fuch illegal and treacherous Aftions as thefe, no
Man
Don Alvaro de Luni.
Man was any longer fafe as to his Life, Li* berty, or Eftate. Atid fo great and univerfal was this Difcontent, that when any Misfor* tune befel the Government, few were forry for it, no, not for the good Succeffes of the Moors, to whom thefe inteftine Divifions gave great Advantage. The truth is, where thofe fore-mention d EleJJlngs are not fecur'd to People by the Government , they have no great reafon to be much concern d for its Prosperity or Prefervation, provided the Profefflon of the True Religion would not Juffer by its Fall, nor a more lajling Slavery Jpring out of its Ruins.
The two Favourites uniting in an Aft which had rendered them io univerfally Odious, muft, if any thing could do it* have link'd them infeparably to each other 5 but they were both too Ambitious to be held long together by that or any other Bond of Iniquity. As the Conftable could not afford Pacheico any great (hare in the Power of the Government, fo nothing lefs than the Whole could fatisfie Pacheico.
In a few Weeks after they had given that treacherous Blow, Pacheico carry 'd his Mafter the Prince ( whom he made a perfed Wea ther-cock) much difcontented from the Court, complaining that all Authority was fo ingrofs'd by the Conltable, that He was a Cypher, tho' Heir of the Crown. To be re- veng'd on the Conftable, and to throw upon him the whole Odium of the late treacherous Y a Inter-
324 The LIFE of
Interview, the Prince gave the Conde and Don Peter Quinnones his two Prifoners their Liberty, and kept them about him to proted them ( as he pretended ) agairift the Violence of the Conftable.
The Prince feeing that there was no Power now left mCaftik that could (hake the Confta ble, fupplicated the King to call a Free Cortes > which he thcught would undoubtedly tear him to pieces, and offer 'd to refer all his own private as well as the Publick Grievances to the Determinations of that AtTembly. The King hoping that in the abfence of the great- eft Grendees a Cortes might be pack'd that would comply with all the Conftable's De- fires, gratify 'd the Prince, and call'daCbrto to meet at Pra!edo!id9 which the King open'd with the following Speech :
* Procurators^ I have call'd you together £C to acquaint you with what I intend to do " at Tordefillas. I do firft intend to come " to an Agreement with the Prince my dear " and moft beloved Son : In the fecond 44 place , I defign to reward thofe that " have ferved me faithfully 5 and to punifli <c thofe which have not, by making a Par- " tition of the Eftates of the Nobles which ** are fled, and of thofe that are in Prifon : 41 And upon this laft Point I defire to have " your Judgments.
From the fhort Account we have of this Cortes I obferve three things : i//, That the Three Eftates did fit. together: 2^,- That
the
Don Alvaro de Luna. 325
the King us'd to be prefent at their Debates : La/My, That the Procurators of the Commons did Sit, Speak, and Vote in Order, accord ing to the Dignity of the Cities and Towns they were fent by. This Order was fo fettl'd either by a Law or Cuftom, that I no where read of any Difpute about Priority between any two Cities or Towns befides Burgos and Toledo, which have long contended about Precedency.
The Procurators oftiurgos, and of all the othqr Cities preceding Cuen^a, approv'd of what had been propos'd by the King : But when it came to the turn of the Procurators of the City ofCuenra to fpeak, the Tide was turn'd by Mofe?i Diego de Valera one of its Procurators, who addrefs'd himfelf to the King in the following manner :
" SIR, I humbly Supplicate your High- a nefs not to be offended with me for difter- " ing from thofe who have fpoke before me. " For with Reverence to your Highnefs's " vertuous and holy Intentions be it fpoke, " I am of Opinion, that the Abfevt as well " the Imfrifon'd Nobles ought to be firft cited " to appear in this your high Council,, either " in Perfon or by their Proftors, in order to " have Caufes Examin'd and Determined in " it : And if upon Tryal they fliall be " found Guilty of Crimes for which the Law " Condemns them to iofe their Eftates,, your " Highnefs may afterwards ufe either Rigour *' or Clemency^ as fliall be judg'd mod con- Y 3 " venient*
The LIFE of
" venient. The taking of this Courfe will " have two great Advantages attending it • " one is, that the Laves of the Land will <c be obferv'd/ which don't allow any Perfon " whatfoever to be Punifh'd before he has <c been firft Heard and Convided ^ the <c other is, that what Seneca faith, That it is " foffible for a Judge to be unjuft in faffing a " jiift Sentence, cannot after that be apply'd " to your Highnefs, as it may be other- " wife.
To prevent the ill Effefts which this bold Speech might have on the Cortes, one Raba- daneira a Procurator and a Creature of the Conftable's, fwore by all that was facred, That it fliould not be long before he would snake Valera repent of what he had faid: But fuch a Spirit was neverthelefs rais'd by it in that Aifembly which before appear'd to have no Spirit, that the King, defpairiqg of a Majority, withdrew, and diflblv'd it foon after, and then went to Tordefdlas and patch'd up a new Peace with the Prince, which, like ail the former, lafted but a (hort time. And fo far was Valera from re penting of what he had faid in the Cortesy that he faid a great deal more in the fame ftrain in a long Letter which he fent to the King at Tordefillas. He fupplicated the King to confider the Obligations of his Royal Office, and to refleft whether He Himfelf had not been fome ways Acceffory to the prefent great and Di/tra&ms of his Kingdoms :
He
Don Alvaro de Luna. 327
He exhorted him, after having try'd Rigors fo long with fo bad fuccefs, once to .try what Clemency would do : He told him, That ac cording to his weak Judgment, four things would reftore Peace to his unhappy King doms, and that without them no fuch thing could be expefted.
i ft, A firm Concord between bis Higbnefs
and the Prince bis Son. 2dly, TJie Calling Home all the Absent
Grandees, and Rejloring all their Eftates
to them. gdly, The fet ting the Grandees that were
in Prifon at Liberty, and givwg them all
their Eftates. And laftly, A General Indemnity.
He concluded his Letter with a paffionate Exhortation to the King to have Pity upon Himfelf and his Kingdoms, and having com- par'd their prefent fad Eftate with the flou- rijbing Condition they were in when He came to the Crown, he befeeched him to dread the thoughts of entailing an Eternal Infamy on his Memory, which, he faid, was the molt cruel thing a Prince could do to Himfelf.
When the King had read this Letter, he gave it to Rabadaneira wrho was made a Mar- flial, for his Heftoring Valera in the Cortes. Rabadaneira carry 'd it to the Conftable, and read it to him. The Conftable was fo enrag'd at it, that he ftfore no Death was Y 4 bad
3^8 The LIFE of
bad enough for Velera. It is probable Valera would not have efcap'd a barbarous Death, if the Conde de Placentia had not fecur'd him by taking him into his Family, in which, as we fhall fee hereafter, he came to be one of the chief Inftruments in pulling down the Conftable. In the mean time the Conftable turn'd him out of all his Offices, and would not fuffer the Salary to be paid that was due to him as a Procurator 5 by which we may learn what theConftable's Defign was in char ging the Crown with thofe Salaries.
Several Incurfions were made into Caftile at this time both by the Moors and the Ara- gonefes. The Conftable went with a good Body of Horfe to Occuna to put a flop to them. He took Toledo in his Way, and re- quir'd the Council of that City to Lend the King a Million of Maravedeis to help to de fray the Charges of this Expedition. The Council, who hated the Conftable mortally for deftroying their Ancient Form of Govern ment, faid, The City was poor, and not able to raife fo great a Sum of Money. The Con ftable told them, The King muft have it, and bid them fend it after him to Cuen$a. But inftead of fending, the Money thither, the Council fent Deputies to let the Con ftable know, that tho' they were able to raife the Money which he required, yet they hop'd he would not infift upon it, fince they could not let him have it, without betraying their own Birthrights, and the Birthrights of all
the
Don Alvaro de Luna. 329
the Cities and Towns of Cajfile. The Con ftable ask'd them what the Birthright was > The Deputies anfwer'd, That Great One of not being oblig'd to raife Money that was not laid on them by a Cortes. The Conftable bid them go Home and fend the Money to him, otherwife it fhould be worfe for them.
The Council, when thofe Threatnings of the Conftable's were reported to them by their Deputies., came to a Refolution, not to advance the Money ^ and that they might not be forc'd to it, unanimoufly agreed to put the City in a pofture of Defence. The whole City was rais'd by ringing out of t\\t Alarm-Bell y and a flout fubftantial Leather- Bottle- Maker took upon him the Command of the Populace. He led his Company firft to the Houfe of Alonfo de Cotto a rich Banker and a great Creature of the Conftable's, and plundered that, and burnt it down to the Ground. He forc'd his way into the Caftle, and fet Guards at all the Gates of the City $ and after all, contrary to the Cuftom of moft Tumultuary Captains, gave way to the Council's inviting one of a higher Quality and of more Expe rience in War to be their Governor. The Perfon invited by the Council was Don Pero Sarmiento, who had been formerly General of the King's Forces, but had been Cafhier'd upon fome Difputes that had arifen between him and the Conftable, for which reafon he was a moft implacable Enemy to the Con ftable, He accepted that Command, in hopes
of
330 The LIFE of
of being able fo to manage this Cotnbu- ftion which the Conftable had rais'd, as to ruin him by it. The Conftable himfelf having the fame Apprehenfions, difpatch'd a Courier to the King, and inttreated him to come to Toledo with all poffible expedition to chaftife the Infolence of that feditious City. The King, who was the moft obe dient Creature in the world to all his Favou rite's Orders, made all the hafte he could to come thither 5 but being told, when he arrived at Fuenfalida, that if he went to Toledo he would find the Gates fliut, he halted there, and call'd a Council to confider whether he fhould go in Perfon before Toledo or not. Whilft this was under Debate, a Meffenger came to the King with the following Propofitions from Sarmiento .• iC i/?, That his Highnefs might come to <c Toledo when he pleas'd, but with a limitted " Number of Men, and without the Con- " ftable. idly, That an Indemnity for all " that was paft fhould be granted. And <c laftlj, That Sarmiento fhould be made Go- " vernor of Toledo.
Thefe Propofitions were rejefted by the King, who march'd forthwith towards Toledo, expefting that the Hearts of the People would have fail'd when he came before it : But he found it otherwife^ for the Gates were not only fhut againft him, but the Sum mons to open them was anfwer'd with a Can* yon-Bullet , becaufe the Conftable was with
him.
Don Alvaro de Luna. 331
him. As the Bullet flew towards the King, the People on the Wall cry'd out aloud, There9 s an Orange for you fro??i the Grange.
Upon this Infolence, the King in Form of Law pronounc'd Sawniento and all that were in Arms with him in Toledo Traitors 5 and having left the City inverted, went to Torijos, where the following Declaration, in the Name of the whole City of Toledo, and of all the other Cities and Towns in Caftiky was put into his Hand.
" SIR, Your Highnefs cannot but know,
<c that for Thirty Years and more your Con-
" ftable Don Alvaro de Luna has ufurp'd
" and does ftill hold the whole Sovereignty
" and Adminijlration of all your Kingdoms,
" and that he has Robb'd, Deftroy'd, and Us'd
c< them Tyrannically at his Pleafure, having
lc either Murder'd, Imprifon'd, or Banifli'd
ct the Grandees, and fown Divifions and Dif-
«c fentions among them in all Cities and
" Towns, on purpofe to bring them under
<c his Subjection $ and that he has alfo
" fold all Offices for Money, by which means
*c they are filFd with Unbelievers and profit-
<c gate Perfons who have robb'd and do ftill
" rob your good Subjefts : In all which pub-
cc lick Robberies the faid Conftable had a great
" (hare, and has thereby amafs'd a moft
u prodigious Treafure. He has likewife al-
*' ways been and is ftill continually requiring
* publickTaxes and Loans of Money ,contrary
tc
*c
*'
332 The LIFE of
to what has been pra&is'd in the Reigns of any of our former Kings, except in Cafes of extreme Neceflity, namely, to defend the Kingdom againft tfaMoors. He haslikewife deftroy'd the Privileges, Immunities, and Francbifes of many Cities, to the great Diminution and Difhonour of your Royal Crown, and to the univerfal Detriment of the Subjed. And notwithftanding your Highnefs has been required by the Prelates and Nobles, and by the Procurators of Cities and Towns, to rule and govern your Kingdoms your Self, as you are in Duty bound, you have always and do ftill deny to do it, fubmitting yourfelf entirely to the Will of the faid Conftable your Enemy and the Enemy of the Publick Welfare of " your Kingdoms. We do therefore once *c more, in our own Name and in the Name c£ of all the Cities and Towns in Caftile, 16 Supplicate, Require and Admonifli your *c Highnefs to Difmifs the faid Conftable, and ** to govern your Kingdoms and adminifter " Juftice to them your Self $ to raife the " Siege which you have laid to this City, " and withdraw the Troops that are about * it at prefent ^ to call the Prince your Son, " and all the Prelates, Nobles, and Procura- " tors of all Cities and Towns, to fome fafe c Place, to hold a Cortes^ in order to fettle " all Publick Affairs as fhall be moft for God's iC Service, your Own and the Publick Good " of your Kingdoms. If your Highnefs do
* this,
Don Alvaro de Lurta. 333
4 this, you will do what you are oblig'd to as our Natural Lord and King 5 but if you ** will not, we will withdraw that Obedience '* and Subjection from you which is due to c you as our King and Natural Lord, and " and will transfer and grant it and the " Royal Juftice and JurifdiBion to the Hlu- " ftrious Prince Don Henry your Son and " Heir, to whom they ought to defcend, " after you have deny'd to adminifter Juftke to your People, and have done them many Wrongs and Injuries, and confented to the doing many more. And we holding oui King fufpefted on account of the Grie- vances he has loaded us withal, we will Appeal from Him, and from his Commands, " to thofe to whom of Right in fuch Cafes we " ought to Appeal^ and will put our felves " under the Maintenance, Prote&ion and De- tc fence of our Lord Cbrift Jefus^ and his Chief J^icar, and of the Jiiftice of our Lord the Prince Don Henry, to whom, upon your Default, the Adminiftrationof the Govern ment does belong.
IWrh 6wl tVd' &*l:^'i.-* ^:*(l
The King, who had never been fpoken to ib plainly before, having returned no Anfwer to this bold Declaration, the City of Tole.do difpatch'd Deputies immediately to the Prince, to defire him to come to them and take upon him the Adminiftrat'wn of the Government. The Prince, who was at variance with the King again, and was at Segovia, promis'd the
Deputies
of
Deputies to make all the hafte he could td Toledo 5 and having drawn together a good Body of Horfe, went to Cajfaruvias, where he was met by feveral Prelates and Nobles that were Enemies to the Conftable. By their Advice he fent to the King to ask Leave to go to Toledo, where, he faid, he had no other bufinefs but to ferve him, Tho* the King knew that the Prince would go thi ther whether he had his Leave or not, yet he would not grant it him, but withdrew his Troops from before Toledo, and retreated to Efcalona a Town belonging to the Con- ilable, which he had made impregnable, becaufe the main of his Treafure was lodg'd there.
The Prince's Way to Toledo being now open, he enter'd into it in great Triumph, and was receiv'd by Sarmiento and that whole City with all the Expreflions of an extra ordinary Joy ; but that Joy lafted not long, having been on a fudden turn'd into Lamen tation by a ftrange Ficklenefs in the Prince's Temper. The Prince had not been many Days in Toledo before he had chas'd Sar- mento out of it, on pretence that he had enter'd into a Correfpondence with the King, and into a Confpiracy to take away his Life. On the fame pretence he Imprifon'd two of the Canons of the Church, and put two of Sarmiento's Friends to Death. Having by thefe Severities incens'd the whole City extremely againft him, he fent to the King
of
Don Alvaro de Luna.
ofNavar and to thebanilh'd Grandees who were on the Frontiers of Aragon, to invite them to come and join with him to deftroy the Conftable : But the King having at the fame time offer'd to reftore to them and the Imprifon'd Nobles their Liberty and all their Eftates if they would join with him againft the Prince 3 the City of Toledo accepted of the King's Propofition, knowing the Prince to be one that could not be depended on. The Prince finding himfelf left alone in Toledo, and much hated there, made his Peace with the King, by delivering it up to him. To mortifie that City the more, the King made the Conftable Governor of it, which was the laft Favour that he received from the King's Hands.
The Grandees, who had been banifli'd and imprifon'd, having now regained all their Eftates, appear 'd to be well difpos'd to live quietly with the Conftable, with whom they had wreftled fo many Years to little purpofe, at the expence of their Liberty and Eftates : But the great Troubles which the Conftabk had given them and their Families, together with his Publick Male-adminiftrations, did flick fo much in their ftomachs that they could not digeft them 5 and therefore to give themfelves fome eafe, they fecretly fet their Sons upon the Conftable, who being young and brisk, would be better able, they thought, to deal with him than they were. The Admiral's Eldeft Son broke the
Ice:
33^ The LIFE of
Ice : He fortify'd himfelf in Placentula, .and began to commit Hoftilities. The King and his Conftable went to reduce that Place. The Conftable very narrowly efcap'd being either kill'd or taken Prifoner by a Servant of the Admiral's, who feeing the King and the Conftable viewing the Town with a fmall Guard, faljy'd out upon them with thirty refolute Men : But the Conftable, whofe Courage nothing could daunt, drew his Sword, arid with a lefTer number drove all that were alive back into the Town, which was furren- der'd to him in a few Days after. This was the Conftable's laft Adion^ and to me it feems probable, that the Fright the King was put into by that defperate Sally, was the firft thing that wean'd him from the Fondnefs of having the Conftable near his Perfon.
The Conftable had for fome Years look'd on the Conde ck Placentia as the moft impla cable and moft dangerous of all his Enemies. This Conde was a Man of a great Eftate and Haughtinefs, and had not for many Years gone near the Court, nor had ever at any time made any SulmiJJlon or duplication to the Conftable : And as his Houfe in Bejar had been long the . Rendezvouze of all the Con ftable's Enemies, lo he had lately taken Valera into it at a time when the Conftable thought no Death was bad enough for him. The Conftable, being very folicitous to have this ftiff Conde broke, perfwaded the King that he was more his Majefly's Enemy than he
was
Don Alvaro de Luna. 337
was his 5 and that it was upon that account necefTary to remove him from Bejar to fome other part of the Kingdom where he would not be fo ftrong and popular, efpecially fince his Eldeft Son was fortify ing himfelf in PzV- drabitto. The King having agreed to this Propofition, the Conftable gave a fecret Or der to the chief Commander of the Troops which were to be fent to Piedrahitto to fall upon Bejar, and to feize the Conde de Pla- centia. But this Plot did not fucceed, tho' it feem'd to be well enough laid : For when the Conde heard that a great Body of Troops were order'd to march into his Neighbour hood, he immediately took the Alarm, and fet all Hands to work to fortifie Bejar : He furnifh'd it with a ftrong Garifon, and re- folv'd to hold it out to the laft againft the Conftable. But that was not try'd 5 for as foon as the Conftable had notice of the Conde's taking the Alarm, he order'd the Troops an other way, where he pretended they were more wanted.
After the Conftable had rouz'd this fleep- ing Lyon without catching him, he would gladly have let him alone, if he would but have returned to his former Quiet : But the Conde would not do that, but declar'd to all the World, that he would never reft till he had either Ruiifd the Conftable, or the Con ftable had Ruirid Him. Being thus at open War with the Conftable, he fent Valera to the Prince, to iheCondees ofHaro and Benewnte,
Z and
338 The LIFE of
and to the Marquis of Santillano, to defire them as they Lov'd their Country, Families, and Perfons, to join with him to pull down the Conftable, who, if let alone, would ruin them all. They all promised to aflift him, and a Plot was laid to take the Conftable either Dead or Alive at Valedolid where he was with the King. It was agreed that Don Alvaro D'Eftuniga Eldeft Son to the Conde de Placentia fhould march with Three hundred Lances towards that City, under pretence of going that Way to afiift the Conde de Traftamara againft the Conde de Benevente, who were making Military Incurfions into one another's Lands 5 and that before he came near to that City, the Marquis of San- tillano's Eldeft Son fhould meet him with Two hundred Lances, and being join'd, they fhould go with all poffible Secrecy and Expedition to Valedolid^ where they would find a Gate open'd to them in the Night, and a Thoufand Men ready to join them. And to prevent the City from being terrify'd by their coming in that manner, they were to have a Cryer go before them in the Streets, making Proclamation, That they had nothing to fay to any Body but only to One Man, on whom they came to execute Juflice% at the Prince's Command. But this Con trivance came to nothing 5 for when the Conftable heard that Don Alvaro D'Eftumga was moving that Way with fo many Lances, he prefently fufpefted that he was fent by
his
Don Alvaro de Luna. 539
his Father upon fome fuch Defign, and there fore fpoke to the King to go to Burgos and leave Vahdolid) where, he faid, his Royal Perfon was in great danger. The King promis'd to do fo 5 but before he left Vakdolid he held a Confultation with the Queen and fome others about removing the Conftable from Court. This great Change in the King's Mind is by fome attributed to a Grudge the King had conceiv'd againft the Conftable five Years before, for obliging him to Marry his prefent Queen, contrary to his Incli nations : By others it is attributed to the King's having Jealoufies infus'd into him, that the Conftable had an Intention to Defile his Royal Bed. But by what I can obferve by the courfe of the Story, it was owing chiefly to the King's being afraid that keeping Conftable about him might expole his own Perfon to fome Danger ^ it being plain that the young Lords, who had now undertaken to hunt down the Conftable, were refolv'd to purfue his Perfon with Fire and Sword where-ever he was. For at this time I don't find that the King was for deftroying the Conftable, but only for removing him from about his Perfon 5 and the Conftable's back- wardnefs to leave the King, feems to argue that he had mov'd the King to go farther with him. But however this was, the King, before he left Valedolid^ fent a Letter by the Condejja de Rabadea to the Conde de Pla- centia her Uncle, concerning the removing
Z 2 the
34o The LIFE of
the Conftable from Court. The ' Gmde, that he might lofe no Time, immediately upon the receipt of the King's Letter, calfd his Eldeft Son Don Alvaro D'EJluniga and communicated the whole Secret to him. At parting he gave him the following brisk Charge :
Alvaro ! If I had theUfe of my Limbs, neither you nor any other fhould have the Glory of this dangerous Enterprize from me : But fince it has pleas'd God to de prive me of my Bodily Strength, I have no better way to fhew my Zeal to ferve the Ring, than to oblige you my Eldeft Son, by the Crofs, to obey his Commands. I enjoin you therefore to ride prefently to Curiel, and to take with you only Diego de Valera my Secretary, and one Page. When you are there, you muft Arm pre- fently as many Men as you think you may have occafion for, leaving an Order for 4C your Servants, Horfes and Arms that are 46 here, to follow you as foon as it is Light. *c May that Star which guided the Wife Kings iC of the Eaft be your Guide. Be fure you " do not fee my Face any more, if you do " not acquit your felf like a Gentleman in " this Enterprize.
Don Alvaro^ who hated the Conftable as much as his Father hated him, took Horfe at Three a Clock in the Morning, and by Twelve he got to Cnriel, which is Thirty Leagues from Bejar.$ and judging that it would be
neceffary
cc cc cc cc cc cc cc
iC
cc
cc
cc cc
Don Alvaro de Luna. 341
necefiary for him to have Two hundred Lances, he order 'd fo many to be brought together. Next Morning, when but Seventy Lances were come in, Don Alvaro receiv'd a Letter from the King written with his own Hand, commanding him to come to Burgos without any Company, and to fteal privately into the Caftle of that City. The King inti mated to him, that when he was there he fhould receive farther Orders from him. Don Alvaro was perfectly confounded at thofe Orders, fufpeding that the King had chang'd his Mind : However, he refolv'd to follow them, and commanded the few Lances he had got together to attend him. He went towards Burgos by By-ways, and when he was within iix Leagues of that City, he left his Lances and Servants there, under the Command of Valera, whom he orderM to remain there till he heard from him. He drefs'd himfelf in the Habit of a Country man, and in that Difguife he rode alone to Burgos upon a Mule : He then ftole into th? Caftle $ but underftanding that the Bifhop of Abula was there, and believing him to be a great Creature of the Conftable's, he hid himfelf for above two Hours in an old Tower $ which he needed not to have done, becaufe that Bifhop was deeper in the Plot againft the Conftable than Don Alvaro him felf. After the Bifliop was gone, Don Alvaro came out of his lurking Hole and made him felf known to the Alcalde, and then irnme-
Z 5 diately
The LIFE of
diately difpatch'd a Courier to Valera to make all the hafte he could to him. He order'd him to tell People who enquir'd who they were, That they belonged to the Conftable, and were calPd by him to Burgos. The Con ftable had Intelligence that a Body of Lances were got into the Caftle, and fent the Bifhop of Abula to the Alcaldes Wife, his Sifter, to learn from her who they were, and what their Bufi- nefs was. The Bifhop brought him word, That they were Sixty or Seventy Lances fent by Don AlvaroD'EJtumga to reinforce the Garifon, upon an Information that he was about to take the Government of that Caftle from him, and that Don Alvaro himfelf was at Cur id. This Anfwer quieted the Mafter much, who was before fufpicious that thofe Lances came upon fome worfe Defign ^ for after their coming to Burgos, the Ring had fpoke to the Conftable to retire to one of his Country- houfes for fome time, and to remain quiet there till he heard from him. The Con ftable being much furpriz'd at this, defir'd the King to let him know the reafon of it. The King faid, It was to fecure him, which might not be in his Power to do if he con- tinu'd at Burgos till the Cortes met, which the Neceflity of his Affairs wou'd oblige him to call fpeedily. The Conftable reply'd, That if it was his Highnefs's Pleafure that hefhould retire, hewou'd do it, but withal defir'd him to call the Arch-Bifhop of Toledo and fome other of his Friends about him,
left
Don Alvaro de Luna. 343
left he fhould be left alone during during his abfence. This had formerly been theCon- ftable's cuftom when the King was forc'd to part with him, but it would not do now 5 for the King told him, That there was no need of calling the Arch-Bifhop of Toledo, nor any of the reft that he hadj nam'd, fince he ftiould have them all about him when the Cortes met. By this the Conftable perceiv'd plainly that the King was alienated from him, and therefore, without faying a word more to the King, returned much difcontented to his Lodgings. He had a ftrong fufpicion in his Head that this ill Office had been done him byAlonzo Perez ^ upon which that Councellor had his Brains beat out the next Night by Don John de Luna who had marry'd a Na tural Daughter of the Conftable's.
The Night after Vakra arriv'd, Don Alvaro fent to feveral of his Friends in the City to come to him, and before it was Day he had in the Caftle Two hundred flout Men, be- fides his own Company, who had ftole in one by one without being obferv'd. The next Morning the King writ to Don Alvaro, That there was no Bufinefs for him at Bur gos, and that he muft go back to Curiel $ which was owing either to the King's Muta bility of Temper, or to an Apprehenfion that Don Alvaro had not Strength enough to Ar- reft the Conftable. This Command threw Don Alvaro into a very great Rage, and mov'd him to write the King word, That if
Z4 he
344 the LIFE of
he would but fit quiet in his Palace and let him alone, he doubted not, with God's Afli- ftance,to do the Work^effedually ^ and added, That fince he was come, he was refolv'd to do it if it coft him his Life. Upon this refolute Anfwer of Don Alvaro's, the King fent him the following Warrant :
The KING.
JM
Don Alvaro D'Eftuniga my Alquazil-Major or High- Sheriff, / Command you to Ar- refl the Body of Don Alvaro de Luna Mafter of Santiago, and to Kill him in cafe he makes any Rejiftance. "'
Don AlvarO) overjoy 5d at this Warrant .told the King by Letter ', That his Com mands ftiould be executed the next Morning by Break-of-Day $ and accordingly he came out of the Caftle before it was Light with Twenty Men in Arms on Horfe-back, and jvith Two hundred Men with Helmets on F oot. As foon as Alvaro de Cartagena faw them, he ran to his Father's Houfe where the Conftable liv'd, and ruflhing into the Conftable's Chamber awak'd him, and told him what he had feen. The Conftable (aid, he believ'd they were coming to Arreft his Father, and bid him fpeak to him to Arm himfelf, and he would come prefently to his Afliftance.
Before Don Alvaro was got half way to the Conftable's Houfe, he was met by the Cofferer
'with
Don Alvaro de Luna. 345
with an Order from the King, not to AiTauIt it, but only to Inveft it. Don Alvaro was out of all patience with thefe Orders, con cluding from them that the King had ftill a mind to fave the Conftable 5 tho' the true reafon of this laft Order was, that the King had a mind to fecure to himfelf the Conftable's Money, Plate, and Jewels, which could not he done if Don Alvaro's Men were fuffer'd to break into the Houfe. Neverthelefs, Don AI- varo obey'd this Order, and when he came before the Conftable's Gate, his Men cry'd out, Caftile! Cajlile ! The King's Liberty !
The Conftable hearing the Shout, went to the Window, and a Bullet from the Street flapt againft the Corner of it, and mifs'd him narrowly. That Bullet was anfwer'd pre- fently with four out of the fame Window : The firft (hot a Gentleman dead that flood between Don Alvaro and Valera 5 the fecond went through a Gentleman's Hand, tho' it had a Gantlet on ^ the third pafs'd through Don Inigo D'Eftuniga's Left-hand, and went two Inches into his Body 3 the fourth glanc'd on Valeras Armour. Don Alvaro being pierc'd to the Heart to fee himfelf expos'd and his Friends thus mauPd, fent Valera to the King to acquaint him that he could no longer endure to fee brave Men ftand to be Birded down out of Windows, and therefore was refolv'd to aflault the Houfe. The King would not give way to this Attack, but com manded Don Alvaro to flicker himfelf and
his
The LIFE of
Iris Men in the Houfes that were there-about, and not to fhoot any more at the Houfe where the Conftable was. This Order was obey'd, tho' with great reludance. During this Ceffation, a Fryar who was Gonfeffor to the Conftable went feveral times be tween the King and him ^ but meeting with no fuccefs, the Attorney-General was fent by the King to Arreft the Conftable. He found the Conftable on Horfe-back, and all his Servants about him, ready to Sally out and to* fight his Way through Burgos. The At torney commanded him in the King's Name to yield himfelf a Prifoner, and told him withal, that as things were at prefent, it was the beft courfe he could take. The Con ftable anfwer'd, He wou'd never do it, but wou'd die fighting with his Sword in his Hand, unlefs the King would give him a Se curity under his Hand and Seal for his Life and Eftate. This Anfwer of the Conftable's was carry'd by the Attorney to the King 5 and fuch a Security was fent him written with the King's own Hand, and was carry 'd to him by the Bifhop of Burgos, and Ruy Dias de Mendoca the King's Ma] or-Domo- Major. After the Conftable had read it, he alighted and furrender'd himfelf a Prifoner to Men- doca, to the great Mortification of Don Alvaro, who expefted to have had that Honour.
The King order 'd his Dinner to be made ready at the Conftabk's Houfe in which he
was
n
DonAlvaro de Luna. 347
was kept a Prifoiier, but for what reafon no one can tell, unlefs it were to fecure to him- felf the Conftable's Treafure at Burgos. As the Conftable flood at the Window he faw the King, and the Bifliop ofAbula talking with him : At the fight of the Bifhop he made the Sign of the Crofs upon his Forehead, and cry'd out in a Paflion, By this Crofs, Don Bifiop, you fiatt fay for this. The Bifliop look'd up and anfwer'd, By God and by my Holy Orders^ I knew no more of this Defign than the King of Granada. The Conftable thought that the King was come to Dine at hisHoufe on purpofe to fpeak with him, and expefted every Minute to be fent for 5 but at laft perceiving that no Meflage came, he fent to the King to defire he might wait on him. The King bid the Meffenger tell the Conftable, That he could not fpeak with him 5 and that he had not forgot the Advice which he had fo often given him, which was, Never to fee one that was Arrefted by his Order.
After Dinner the King call'd for all the Conftable's Keys, notwithftanding the Secu rity which he had given the Conftable but a few Hours before, and went himfelf to fee every Trunk and Cheft in the Houfe open'd. He feiz'd on all the Jewels, Plate, and Money that he found in them. This whetted his Appetite fo much after the reft, that it is not improbable that the Conftable's refufal to difgorgc it all to him, was the chief caufe of
his
348 The LIFE of
his Death : For after the King had got into his hands all that the Conftable had at Burgos, he fent to him to let him know, that if he would write to his Son, and to all the other Govern ors of his Caftles5 to furrender them and all that was in them to him quietly, he fhould find Mercy. The Conftable bid the MefTenger tell the King, That His Highnefs might do what he would, but for his part he would die rather than do what hedefir'd. The King being inform'd that the Conftable had one Treafure in Portillo, and another in ErmediUay and a third in Maqueda, and that the biggeft of all was in Efcalona where the Conftable's Wife and Son were, he flew after all thofe Treafures with an Eagernefs that little be came a Sovereign. At Portillo he found Twenty feven thoufand Doubloons in Money ^ in ErmediUa Nine thoufand : When he came to Maqueda where Rabadaneira was Go vernor, he fliar'd it with Rabadaneira, that he might have his Part of it the more rea dily deliver'd, being in great hafte to get to Efcalona where the chief Prey was. When he came to Efcalona a Town the Conftable had made impregnable, and in which he al ways kept a Garifon of refolute Men, he found the Gates fliut againft him. Upon which he fent a Summons to the Conftable's Lady and Son to caufe them to be open'd. The Lady's Anfwer was, " That flie could ' not do it 3 and that His Highnefs's Hawking " after her Husband's Eftate as he did, was
^ contrary
Don Alvaro de Luna. 349
<€ contrary both to the Security which he " had given him before he would furrender " himfelf, and to the Laws of the Land, her " Husband being Convifted of no Crime for " which he had deferv'd to forfeit his Eflate." The Conftable's Son likewife return 'd an Anfwer to his God-father's Summons, <c That " he would deliver up Efcalona to the King c< of Granada, or the Devil, rather than to " Him 3 and that if he ever had it, he Ihould " have it and all that was in it in Afhes. "
The King loving to fleep in a whole Skin, and perceiving that there was no coming at that Treafure without Blows, withdrew from before that Place $ and to be reveng'd on the Father for the Affront the Son had put upon him, commanded his new-model'd Council of State ( which confifted of the Conftable's worft Enemies ) to advife with fome Lawyers about the Courfe that was to be taken with the Conftable. After they had confulted to gether, they all agreed that the Conftable muft be put to Death, and fent their Opi nion to the King in Writing, as follows :
SIR," The Deeds and Fads which have
" been committed by Don Alvaro de Luna
" Mafter of Santiago , to your Differ vice and
" the Publick Detriment of your Kingdoms,
u have been feen and examin'd by us the
' Nobles and Lawyers of your Council who
1 were prefent, and with whom we doubt
" not but All that are abfent will agree ;
The LIFE of
" We do find, that the faid Mafter has
<c ufurp'd the Royal Crown, and tyranniz'd
ec over the Subjefts, and that according to
" Law he ought to be Beheaded, and to
41 have his Head put upon an Iron Spike on
" the Scaffold for an Example to the Grandees
" of your Kingdoms.
The King being well pleas'd with this Advice, turn'd it into a Sentence, and fign'd a Warrant to have it executed at Valeddid: He immediately fent the Warrant to Don Diego UEftuniga^ commanding him, upon the receipt of it, to remove the Mafter from Portillo, where he had been a Prifoner for ibme Days, and to carry him to Valedolidy there to execute the Sentence upon him.
Tho' this Sentence was contrary both to the Security that the King had given him under his Hand and Seal, and to the Laws of the Land, by which he ought to have had a Publick Tryal, yet it was no more than the Conftable deferv'd $ becaufe, during the whole time of his long Miniftry, he trampl'd upon all the Securities which the Laws gave the Subjeds for their Lives, Liberties, and Eftates. Thus the Arbitrary Principles and Proceedings of Favourites do either come home to themfelves whejiever they fall under Dif- grace, or elfe fall upon their Pofterity after them.
Tho' the Conftable did not like his re moval from Place to Place, yet he entertain'd
no
Don Alvaro de Luna. 351
no fufpicion of the King's Intention to take away his Life till he came near Vakdclid, where he was met by two devout Friars, one of which was Alonzo d^Efpinar the Author of the Book intituled Fonilitium Fidei. As foon as he faw them, he guefs'd what their Bufinefs was, but did not appear to be in the leaft diforder'd, tho' he was fore he had guefs'd right, by their exhorting him to prepare to Die as a true Cbrijtian. The two Friars fpent the whole Night with him, and in the Morning very early he heard Mafs, and received the Sacrament^ and afterwards call'd for fomewhat to drink. They brought him fome Sweet-meats, and a Cup of Wine. He drank off the Wine, and eat a little of the Sweat-meats. When he was told that Don Diego D'Eftuniga waited for him at the Door, he walk'd out and mounted the Mule which was brought to carry him to the Place of Ex ecution. The Publick Cryers of the City went before him all the way, making the following Proclamation :
" This is the Juftice which our Lord the " King commands to be done to this xc Cruel Tyrant^ who with infufferable " Pride and Haughtinefs, with a foolifli " Impudence, and with great Injury <c to Royal Majefty which is in the 4t Place of God on' Earth, made himfelf *c Matter of the Honfiold, Court and ** Palace of our Lord the King, ufurp'd
" that
fc The LIFE of
<c that Place which did net belong to " him, hath done and committed many " and divers Crimes, Exceffes, Faults, tc Mif chiefs and Tyrannies, and hath ta- ct ken Bribes to the DifTervice of our " Lord God, and of our faid Lord the " King, to the Diminution andDifpa- u ragement of his Perfon, Dignity and " Fftate^ to the great Damage and Dif- " fervice of his Crown and Patrimony, " and to the Decreafe and Perturbation " of Jujlice and Judgment. For the " the Punifliment of all which Crimes, " He commands him to be Beheaded, that the Juftice of God and the King may be executed upon him, and that he may be an Example to deter others from daring to do or commit the like things for the future.
<c
ct
When the Conftable was led in this man ner to the Place of Execution, which was the great Placa of the City, twoFryars attended him all the way, exhorting him to Die in the Lord. After he mounted the Scaffold, he kneeled down and worfhipp'd the Crucifix that was upon it 5 and when he rofe off his Knees, he walk'd two turns looking earnettly about him. He then calPd his Page, and gave him his Sig7iet-Riwg and Umbrella, and bid him keep them , for they were the laft Gift he would ever have from him. The Page wept aloud when he receiv'd them, and was
anfwer'd
Don Alvaro de Luna.
anfwerd with loud Lamentations from all the Windows which were crouded with Spe- ftators} few being fo hard-hearted as not to commiferate fallen Grandeur, how much and how juftly foever they hated it whilft it flood. Upon that the Friars defir'd him not to think of his former worldly Greatnefs, but to com- pofe himfelf to Die like a true Chriftian. He told them. They wight be fatisffd that bis Faith was like the Faith of a Martyr. Having 'fpy'd Barrofa who belong'd to the Prince's Stables, he call'd him to him, and faid, Barrofa ! Tou are come here to jee me Die : I charge you to fpeak to your Lord the Prince to give better Rewards to his Servants, than the King my Mafter has order d to be given me for my Services. When he faw thtExecutionsr with a Cord in his Hand, he ask'd him, What he •was to do with that ? To tie your Hands, faid the Executioner. That you flail not do, faid the Conftable 5 and then taking off his Silk- Safh, he bad the Executioner tie his Hands with it 5 and charg'd him to fee that his Knife was fharp, that it might difpatch him quickly. He ask'd the Executioner, What tf}at Spike of Iron on. the top of a Pole was for ? The Executioner anfwer'd, Tour Head is to be ftuck upon it. Is it Jo ? faid theCon- f table ^ After they have cut it off, let them do with it what they wilL He then unbutton 'd the Collar of his Wafte-coat, and turn'd back his Coat himfelf, and without the leaft Diforder or fign of Fear laid his Head down
A a up oa
354 Tb* LIFE of
upon the Block. When his Head was off, it was put upon the Spike, where it remained nine Days, as his Body did three Days upon the Scaffold, with a Bafon ftanding by it to receive the Alms of charitable People to bury him. Tho' a great deal of Money was thrown into the Bafon, his Body neverthelefs was Interr'd in the Common Burial-place of Publick Malefadors 5 but it lay not long there, being taken up a few Days after and Depofited in the Church of the Francifcans in Valedolid. Some Years after it was taken thence and carry'd to Toledo, and laid in the fumptuous Chapel which he had built in that Church when his Brother was Arch- Bifhop of it.
Thus fell Don Alvaro de Lima, the greateft and moft lafting Favourite that we read of in Hiftory. He was Executed on the 4th of June^ in the Year of our Lord 1453, in the 6 5th Year of his Age. His tragical End ought to be a Warning to all Favourites to be moderate in the Exercife of their Power, and to fet fome Bounds to their Appetites after Wealth and Honours ^ but above all, never to feek to raife a Power above the Laws to deftroy any of the Securities which they give to People for their Lives, Liberties and Eftates. For as fuch Attempts cannot but render them Odious to the Subjeds, and make their Matters more Capricious and Untraftable • fo they themfelves do thereby become liable to be facri-
fic'd
Don Alvaro de Luna.
fie 'd, whenever their Mailers are out of Hu mour with them, or are by the neceflity of their Affairs oblig'd to do fomething that is Popular. A lawlefs and uncontroulable Power in a fingle Perfon, not accompany 'd with an unerring Wifdom, and a perfed: Reditude of Nature (as it is in GOD) being the mod mifchievous Engine that ever was invented, and which alone has done and does ftill more hurt to Mankind than all the other Plagues to which they are fubjeft 5 fo that what is faid of Pride, may well be apply'd to Unlimited Power, // was not ?nade for Man.
The Conftable left behind him one Legiti mate Son, and one Legitimate Daughter. The Son, out of all his Father's vaft Eflate, had only the Town of Saint Eftevan of which he was Conde, befides what he might have from his Mother, who brought the King to agree that (he fliould have Half of her Husband's great Treafure which was lodg'd in Efcalona before (he furrender'd it. This Son, whofe Name was Don John de Luna, had but one Daughter, who was marry 'd to the El deft Son of the Marquis de Vilkna^ the next King's favourite : So foon was the Family extinft which the Conftable had been at fo much pains to raife and eftablifli in Caftile. His Daughter Donna Maria de Luna was marry'd to the Duke de Infantada. He had likewife a Natural Son nam'd Don Peter de Luna who was Lord of FuenteDeuna, and a Na- ^A a 2 tural
The LIFE of
tural Daughter marry 'd to Don John de Luna, Governor ofSoria.
The King's Hatred to Don Alvaro de Luna and his Memory feem'd now to be equal to his former Love for him $ and appearing no way fatisfy'd with his Life and Treafttrq he publifli'd a long Writing a few Days after his Death, in which all the Crimes and all the Male-adminiftrations which his greateft Enemies had ever charg'd him with, were extended and exaggerated. In this the King feems not to have much confulted his own Honour, confidering how the Conftable had been fupported by him for many Years at the expence of much Blood and Treafure, after he had been publickly charg'd with all thofe Crimes and Mifdemeanors by the Princes of the Houfe of dragon and the Nobles of Caftile. But that which made the Publication of fuch a Paper the more wonderful, was, that the King was at that time as much go- vern'd by the Bifhop ofCuenca, as he had ever been by the Conftable } and that the fame Prelate, when he was Bifhop ofAbula, brought back the Conftable to Court when he was a third time banifli'd for thofe very Male- adminiftrations. But this Favourite's Power, to which he had rais'd himfelf by a matchlefs Falfhood and Diflimulation, lafted not long 5 for the King Died aboutThirteen Months after : the Conftable was Beheaded : And the Prince had before-hand provided himfelf a Favourite ^ by whom he was govern'd as much as his Fa ther was by the Conftable. Whilft
Don Alvaro de Luna.
Whilft the King was ztEfcalona receiving his Dividend of the Conftable's great Treafure, he wasfeiz'd with a Quartan-Ague, which, after fome Weeks Illnefs, put an end to his Days at Valedohd, in the 49th Year of his Age, and in the 47 th Year of his Reign. In. all this long Reign he did little more than aggrandize Don Alvaro de Luna^ and wreftle with his Subjefts to fupport him. His Unmaking that Creature at laft contributed but little to his Honpur 5 . for it was pretty vifible, that it was not a love for Juftice, or for the Publick Good, that prevail'd with the King to put him to Death.
The King left behind him the Prince born to him by his fir ft Queen, and a Son and a Daughterly a fecond Queen. This younger Son Died before the Ring his Brother. The Daughter ifabella was marry 'd by the Male- contented Nobles to Don Ferdinand Son to the King of Navar by the Admiral of Ca/Iile's Daughter. This Ring of Navar, who made fo great a part of the foregoing Hiftory, came to the Crown of Aragon by the Death of his' eldeft Brother without Legitimate Iffue. His Son the Prince of Viana, and his Daughter Donna Blanca the Divorc'd Queen ofCaftile, both whom he had by his firft Wife the Queen ofNavar, were remov'd by Poifon (as 'tis faid) out of his Son Ferdinand's way to the Crown ofAragcn. The Princekjoanna was remov'd by the Nobles out of her Aunt Ifabella's way to the Crown of Caftile, under pretence that
A a 3 (he
3 $8 The LIFEy&c.
fhe was not begotten by the King. The No bles hated the Queen, and therefore alledg'd, that the King was Impotent, notwithstanding. that the Princefs Joanna had always been oWn'd and treated by the King as his Daughter, and had been proclaim'd and fworn to as the Prefumptive Heir of the Crown, in z Cortes, according to the Cuftom of CaJKle. By thefe Ways the Crowns of Caftile and Aragon came to be united to the Pofterity of Ferdinand and Ifabella 5 and thofe who now claim the Crown of Spain are defcended from thofe two Princes. Tho' Spain was then rais'd to a greater Figure than it had made in many Ages before, yet the Foundation of its remarkable Weaknefs and Poverfy ^as laid oy the aforefaid Princes, by fetting up the Inqui- Jitiofi9 and banifhing above a Million of Jews, and deftroying many Thoufands ofMorifco9st to the Depopulating of their Kingdoms, and the Ruin of Trade. Thefe two National Miferies had the finishing Stroke given them by Philip III. when he expell'd the Morifcos out of Spain. With thofe People and the Jews almoft all Arts and Induftry were ba- nifh'd the Kingdom, for no other End but to maintain about Two or three hundred Inqui- Jitors in State, 2nd to gratifie the bloody and exterminating Spirit of Popery.
APPEN-
[359]
APPENDIX
Being the Impeachment of the Conftable,
(Which was promised in the foregoing Hiftory.)
1 \3I7E the King of Navar, the Infante ' VV Don Henry , and the Admiral, your
* Coufins, and the other Condes and Nobles c affembled in the City of Abula for your f Highnefs's Service, do give you to under- c ftand, that having read your Letters which
* were delivered to us by your Deputies 5
* We do fupplicate your Highnefs to con- ' fider how much both your own Royal Pre-
* eminence and your Kingdoms do fuffer, by ' your fubmitting your whole Power to the c Will of your Gmftable, and to conlider like- ' wife how contrary your doing fo is to the c Laws of this Realm, and to all the Rules of ' Government prefcrib'd by the ancient Sages :
* And we beg leave farther to represent, 4 That as there are two ways of Governing, Jthe one Legal 9 Jit/t and Good, and the
A a 4 * other
360 APPENDIX.
* other Tyrannical, Unjuft and Wicked ; fo all c Princes that Govern their People the firft 4 way, are careful to obferve the following ' Rules.
iy?, c They are Believers and - Catholick c Chriftians, and do above all things love ' and fear God and keep his Command- c ments, and do caufe their Subjeds to do
* the fame.
1 • "\V^ c All their Laws and Conflitutions
* are made for the Good of the Publick 5 and when made and promulgated, are inviolably obferv'd.
€ In all their Adions they do ftill aim 6 at the Welfare of their People, and the
* Honour of their Crowns.
* The Publick Revenues are ex-
* pended by them in Things that are
* honeft, and profitable for God's Ser-
* vice and their own, and for the Com- c mon Good of the People.
y, ' They love and maintain the Three
* Eftates of their Kingdoms, honouring c them all according to their feveral De- 4 grees, and feek to be belov'd rather 6 than fear'd by them 5 knowing that
* Loyalty flows from Love, but not from e Fear and Abhorrence.
APPENDIX.
6tbfy, c They do no Injuftice to any of 4 their Subjects, but leaft of all to the •' Nobles, always remembring that the * King among the Bees has no Sting, ( and that it was not without reafon that c Nature difarm'd him.
* And as the Reverfe of all this is the
* Cuftom of Tyrants^ fo it has been the c Practice of your Conjlable ever fince he ' ufurp'd the Regal Power. For,
i. ' It is manifeft to all both within and
* without your Kingdoms, that your Con-
) ever fince he ufurp'd your Royal
* Power, has made it his Bufinefs to deftroy
* and root out the Grandees and Nobles of
* your Kingdoms, by fowing Tares of DiiTen-
* tion among them, by Banifhing fome and c feizing on their Eftates, and by Imprifoning 'and Murthering others. Neither has he c dealt thus with the Grandees only , but ' likewife with all the Cities and Towns of 4 your Kingdoms. To gratifie his extreme
* Pride and an exorbitant Covetoufnefs, he 4 has labour'd to have Abfolute Power
* not only over your Houfhold and all the ' Officers and Minifters that are in it, but
* even over all the Grandees 5 to the great
* Difparageraent of your Royal Crown, and 1 of the Great Men of Ancient Lineages
4 that
APPENDIX.
that have been and ftill are in thefe King-
* doms. Your Highnefs's Compliance with ' the full Exercife of thefe Abominable, Ty- c rannical and Unlawful Proceedings has been
* the Caufe of great Evils and Inconveniences c in your Kingdoms, as we are ready to prove, c if callsd upon to do it. Among other Ar- 4 tifices to make himfelf Abfolute Matter of c your Kingdoms, he has got all the Publick c Revenues fo entirely into his Hands, that c he difpofeth of them according to his own c Pleafure. All the Officers belonging to *the Revenues have been put in by himf
* and are all at his Command. He has like-
* wife taken all your Royal Mint-houfes into
* into his Pofleffion, and has coin'd great c Quantities of Money much below the Stan-
* dard which was fettled by your Highnefs in € Council : This has been done and wink'd
* at by the Officers of the Mint, who were all 4 plac'd there by him, and intirely depend
* on him $ and to conceal whatever he takes 4 to himfelf out of the Publick Treafures, he c has made his Creatures the chief Officers in
* thofe Places.
2. ' Your Conftable, feigning great Pub-
* lick Necefllties, has put your Highnefs on
* Asking and Borrowing great Sums of Mo-
* ney of your Subjefts, which have been and 'ftill are colleded without juft Caufe, to
* the great Grievance and Damage of your
APPENDIX.
4 Subjefts 5 by which means the Commons are
* reduc'd to fuch an Extremity of Poverty,
* that it will not be pcfLble for them to grant 4 your Highnefs any more Supplies upon any
* Occafion.
5. '. Your Conftable has all along and does 4 ftill take to himfelf vaft Sums of Money
* both out of the Crown-Revenues and the 4 Taxes, with the utmoft Boldnefs and Im- c pudence , believing that none will ever
* gain-fay it, or call him to an Account for 4 it 3 and by thefe means has amafs'd prodi-
* gious Treafures, which are laid up not only
* in this Kingdom , but alfo at Venice and ' Genoa. He has alfo fwept together all the
* Gold and Plate he could meet with, to the 4 great Damage of your Highnefs and your
* Natural Subjects. He has farther laid his
* Hands likewife on the Revenue of the 4 Cruzado of the Town of Marckena, and is
* ready ( as it is believ'd) to lay them on the 4 Rents which belong to the Prelates and
* Clerks of that Place.
4. €The faidConftable, in defiance of God ' and your Highnefs, receives a confiderable 4 Revenue out of the Publick Gaming- Houfes,
* Licens'd by him in the City ofCorduba,
* and other Parts, notwithftanding that Play
* at Dice is prohibited by the Laws of Holy 4 Church, the Laws of this Realm, and your
* Highnefs's late Proclamation*
5- ' Your
364 APPENDIX.
5. c Your Conftable having ufurp'd the Arch-
* Bifhopricks, Bifliopricks, and other Ecclefia-
* ftical Dignities in your Kingdoms, has voided
* many Eleftions that have been CanomcaUy
* made, and when Fit and Worthy Perfons 'have been chofen, has forc'd the Eledors
* to chufe his Brother and others of his c Nomination ^ by which means the Eccle- c fiaftical Dignities have been given to Per- €fons that little deferv'd them, and taken 1 from thofe who were every-way worthy.
* This he has done, not only to augment his ' State, but to have a Share in all their
" * Rents, as is too notorious to be deny'd :
* And we can't but fay, that the fuffering 4 this to be done, muft be a great Load on c your Highnefs's Confcience.
j^rfjist .:•;# ^K .efc[dii?. ktuu>M
6. c He has likewife, by Force or by Bribes,
* prevail'd with feveral Monks to part with ' their Lands to him in exchange for Penfions
* to be paid to the Convents by the Crown 5 c which Pradice has a double Evil in it $ iy?, 4 The ufing of Force 3 and idly, The Leffening 6 the Crown-Revenues, by charging them c with Peniions that can never return to the
* Crown. By this Method he got into his 1 Poffeffion the Town of Saint Martin de 4 Valde, and the Churches and Villages be-
* longing to the Abbey of Pelayos. He has
* likewifc laid new Taxes and Imfojitions on
'fome
APPENDIX.
fome Cities 5 and particularly on the City
* ofSevil he has laid a Tax call'd the Cor-
* ta£0 which is One third of the Alcavala^ c to the wronging and robbing both the 4 Natives and Strangers,
7. *He has had fo great Power with 4 your Highnefs, that no Perfon could have
* any Office or Favour by any other way but by 4 him 5 for which reafon, all Services and
* Thanks are ftill return'd to him, without
* taking any notice of your Highnefs. It c has often happen'd, that Letters both of
* Juftice and of Grace have been Torn, for c no other reafon but becaufe he was not 4 firft /implicated. It is likewife manifeft ' and notorious that he has many Blanks with
* your Highnefs's Name in them, to difpofe 4 of all Offices as they become vacant , 4 and accordingly difpofes of 'em as Occafion 'offers. All which, Moft Powerful Prince^ 4 is a great Injury to thofe who are con- 4 tinually ferving your Highnefs, a great 4 Difparagement to your Royal Crown, and 4 an exceeding Wrong to all your good
* Subjeds 5 for by virtue of fuch Blanks, he
* puts his own Creatures into all Cities and 4 Towns 5 fo that in all of them he has 4 thofe that will do whatfoever he com- 4 mands , and will jujtifie whatfoever he 4 does.
8. 'It
APPENDIX.
8. c It is notorious to your Htghnefs, that c none of your Officers of Council and Court, c nor any of your Lawyers who belong to
* your Council, nor your Attorney-General, « dare do any thing but what your Con- <• ftable orders, and that for the moft part
* they go to him to know his Mind before
* they go to the Council : If any of them do
* otherwife than he would have them, they c are immediately difcharg'd your Court : ' So that what is done in your Council c ( tho' it feems to be the Work of all that care prefent) cannot in truth, with Reve- crence to your Majefty, be faid to be fo, c feeing all that are there do fpeak with the 4 Conftables Mouth* and fay never a word but
* as he would have them. There are indeed ' a great many Perfons in your Council, but
* we may truly fay that it confifts of One c only : Which is a Pradice condemn'd by
* all wife Men, who will have King's and 4 Princes Councils made up of a great many 4 enjoying an entire Liberty to do deliver their
* own Opinions.
9. * To make himfelf ftill more Power- he beftows all the Alcaldijbips, as they
* fall, upon his own Creatures, giving fome c of them to Strangers, contrary to the Laws 4 and Cuftoms of Caftile, and to the great
* Difhonour of its Natives. And feeing it is
* known
APPENDIX.
c known to all how Powerful he is to do
* either Good or Hurt as he pleafeth 5 many, 4 as well Condes as Gentlemen, fubmit them- c felves to him and ferve him, not only to
* receive Favours from his Hands, but to be
* fecur'd from Loffes and Injuries 5 by which ' means the Faith, Hope, and Love which 4 are due to your Majefty, are placM on 4 your Conftable, who is refpefted, ferv'd,
* and honoured $ for as from him all Favours
* and Offices are expefted, fo to him all ' Thanks are returned.
10. * The Conftable, knowing himfelf to be 4 a Foreigner^ and fearing he muft tumble, if 4 your Natural Subjects werefo much in your ' Favour as to have your Royal Ear open to
* their Councils, has with all his Force en- 4 gag'd the Grandees in Feuds and Dijfen- tfwns one with another, and has not fuf- 4 fer'd any of them to have a^ y fhare of 1 your Highnefs's Favour. As from this 4 great Inconveniences have follow'd, fo much
* greater may be fear'd, if your Highnefs 4 does not prevent them by doing Juftice, 4 and by complying with the Obligations of
* your Royal Office.
n. * Your Conftable has caus'd many Per-
* fons to be unjuftly put to Death. It is no- 4 torious that the Duke Don Fadrique your
* near Kinfman, a Perfon of great State and c Grandeur, who did much honour your Roya|
APPENDIX.
'Pre-eminence, was Murther'd by his Or- c der 3 as was alfo the Conde de Luna., whom
* he caus'd to be Poifon'd in Prifon, to whom
* he made himfelf Heir, in defiance of the c Fear of God, the Honour of your High-
* nefs, and the Shame of the World. He
* likewife occafion'd the Death ofFernan A- c lonfo de Robres, for no other reafon, but ' for being one of the four Judges who pafs'd c a juft Sentence upon him. He alfo caus'd
* Sancho Hernandez an Officer of the Trea- 4 fury to be Beheaded at Burgos, for refufing c to enter upon your Books the Grant he had
* obtain'd of the Salt Ponds of Atien^a. Many < others in thefe Kingdoms, tho' not of fo
* great Note , have been Murther'd by his 4 Comman'd ^ others have been Banifh'd 5 c and others have been thrown into Prifons c in order to be put to Death : This was the
* intended Fate both of the Addantado and c his Brother the Admiral when they were
* Impriion'd by him, but they fortunately c efcap'd it. And it is known, that it has
* been his conftant Pradiice to bring all that 1 contradid: any of his wicked and unjuft Deeds
* immediately under your Highnefs's Difplea* c fure, and that he has always labour'd to fet c you againft your Natural Subjeds, and to 4 alienate you from them, by bringing Fo- 4 reigners into their Places both in your
* Houlhold and in your Guards, to the great fc Difgrace and Wrong of the Natives.
12, 'Thofe
APPENDIX. 369
12. * Thofe whom he could neither Im- c prifon nor put to Death he has labour'd to 4 make his Friends, by promifing to aflift
* them with your Highnefs, and by procu-
* ring them great Grants and Honours ^ and
* that he might be fure of them, he has oblig'd c them to make Vows and take Oaths to him 5
* a thing which was never heard of before in ' thefe Kingdoms. After he had perfwaded ' your Highnefs that this was for your Ser-
* vice, feveral have been commanded by you c to make fuch Promifes, and rewarded by you c for having done it 5 not confidering how
* great an Injury is done to thofe that are thus
* forc'd to enter into fuch Engagements.
* And now, Moft Excellent Prince, all that c fee how your Highnefs gives way to fuch
* bainous, intolerable, enormous, and deteflabh
* things, do ( knowing the excellency of your c Vertue and Difcretion ) conclude, that the
* Con/table has by fome Magical and Diabolical ' Incantations, fo bound and ty'd up all your
* Powers Corporeal and Intellectual, that you
* are not able to do any thing but what he
* would have you do. They imagine that
* your Memory can't remember, that your Un- c derftandmg can't underftand, that your Will
* can't love, nor your Mouth fpeak any thing, ' but what he would have them. And ro fay
* the truth, there never was nor ever could
* be a Monk of the ftrifteft Order fo fubmif-
* five to his Superior, as your Royal Perfon
B b ' ' has
370 APPENDIX.
c has been and ftill is to the Will of your Con- ' ft able. For tho' there have been in the 4 World many Privations or Favourites of Kings c and great Princes, yet we no- where read of
* any who dar'd to do things with fo much 4 Contempt, Difdain, and Dtfrefpeffi to their 1 Matters, and with fo little Reverence to their
* Perfons, as your Con/table hath prefum'd to 4 do both in his Words and Deeds. Your 4 Highnefs cannot but remember how he kill'd c a Gentleman in your Prefence at Arevela, 4 and that he lately gave twenty Blows to a 4 Boy as he hung about your Highnefs. Now 4 what King or Lord, who enjoy d his Liberty,
* would endure fuch things from a Subjeff !
* We do therefore, Moft Powerful Lord, * fupplicate your Royal Majefty, with the c Reverence and Loyal Intentions of c Faithful Subjefls and Vaffals, that you 4 would be pleas'd to give Order for the c Reftitution of your own Liberty and c Royal Power, which has been fo long 4 Ufurfd by your Conftable.
A RE-
371
A
E F L E X I O N
O N
Do« Alvaro de Luna and his
Miniftry^ made by Friar John de Santa Maria, in the aoth Chapter of his Book de Repnblica y Foil- cia Cbrijliana.
eat were the Troubles which Don John II.
of Caftile underwent, by allowing this Favourite fo great a Power in all Publick Affairs. When the People faw their King in a perfect Subjection and Thraldom to him, they concluded that he was certainly Bewitch d by him. The King's Will and Underftanding were refigned to him fo entirely^ that he nei ther imderjlood what he gave him, nor durft deny him any thing that he defird. And as the ungrateful Ivy fucks the Sap from the Tree that fupports it $ fo this Favourite
Bb 2 roWd
3/2 A REFLEXION,,
roWd the King of his Revenue and Autho rity , and of little lefs than bis whole King dom. By which means, the Royal Authority was funk fo low, that the Grandees and the Kings own Firft Coufms the Infantes, and the Kings of Aragon and Navar, took up Arms and made War upon him ^ and onfome Qccafwn he was deserted even by the Prince his Son^ and his own Wife. From hence arofe great Civil Broils^ and all under the Title of Jetting the King at Liberty, and rescuing him out of the Bondage he was in 5 and no other reason was ajjlgnd for making War, but only this, That the whole Kingdom faw that the Favourite did all, and the King did nothing. It cannot be dcnyd that this Fa vourite did many things which merited the King's AffeBion : For on many great Occafions he had ferv'd the King valiantly with the hazard of his Life and Perfon. But as his Intereft in the King encreasd, his Ambition and Covetoufnefs grew up with it, and rofe to that height, that they rendered him Odious to the whole Kingdom, and even to the King himfelf at laft* The King turnd againjl him, as he pretended, upon account of the great Damages which he fnftairfd in his Kingdoms ^ mid in his own Credit ajid Authority , by the great Power vcbich that Favourite had ujurfd. Many things had been formerly urg*d to the King on that head, but without effect : That which really prevail'd with him was his Intereft.
Affoon
A REFLEXION,, &c. 373
dffoon as be was told of the prodigious Trea- fure which that Favourite had amafs'd toge ther, and that it would all come into his hands, he was highly fleas 'd with the Difcourfe, and immediately put an end to his Favour it ifm, by making War upon the Conftable with that Treafure, which he relyd on as the beft . Guard to defend, and the fur eft Stay to fup- port himfelf.
Bb 3
To
374
To the Right Honourable
;Jj'";N R Y
tord Bilhop of LONDON,
HUMBLY PRESENT.
T
LISBON, ^..Septemb. 1686.
it Phafe jour L o FV D s H I p,
N all Humility and Gratitude we ac- knowledge your Lordfhip's greate Cha- rity to this Faftory , and all the King's Subjects refiding in this Kingdorae, where God hath hitherto blefs'd us with the Li- berty and Freedome of the Exercife of the Religion into which we were initiated 3 which Happinefle, through the Envy of fome Men, the Inquifitwn endeavours now to deprive us of : About four or five Dayes fince, the Conful and Mr. Giddes were Summon'd to appeare att the Council Boord in the Inquifuion, where they were forbid thePublicke Pradice, and Meeting at Divine 'Service, and Preaching, which yourLord- {hip will know more fully from them, by their peiticular Betters.
1 MY
A Letter to the Bifiop of London. 375
* M Y LORD, There was Provifion * made by the i4th Article of the Treaty of 4 Commerce, celibrated, and concluded be- 4 tweene the two Crownes of England and 4 Portugal], that the King's Subjeds Ihould 4 not bee molefted for Confcience- fake , but 4 that they might freely exercife their Re- 4 ligion, with their Familyes of the fame 4 Nation and Religion, without any In> 4 pediment or Moleftation :> and that it was 4 alwayes foe underftood by the King, will 4 appeare by His Majeflies Grant of ioo/. 4 a Yeare to be paid by the Conful to the 4 Minifter that refides there, and the fame 4 Liberty is granted to the Subjeds of the 4 States of Holland, which can bee noe 1 fmall Griefe to us, to fee our Religion 4 and our Nation foe much flighted by 4 the Inquijition, in being denyed what they 4 enjoy , a Priviledge that we have been 4 pofleft of ever fince the King's happy 4 Reftauration 5 and we hope through 4 God's Blefling, and your Lordfhip's Cha- 4 rity, in bringing the ftate of this Mat- c ter to the King's Cognizance, wee ftial 4 continue foe great a Blefling, to all our 4 Comforts : And wee befeech your Lord- 4 fhip to remember the Fadory of 0 Portoy 4 as well as this, noe way doubting, that
* when his Majeftie is informed of the 4 true ftate of our Agrievances, he will
* proted us hi our pit Rights 3 and that
J3b 4;ia:; ; g^God ?oofi
^Letter to the Bifiop of London.
* God will bleffe your Lordthip with long c Life and Happineffe, fhal ever bee the
* Prayers of,
May it Pleafeyour LORDSHIP,
Your Lordftiip's moft Obedient, Obleidged Servants,
Tho. Maynard, P. Bultee,
Francis Carter, Peter Nefuell,
Anthony Jordan, Willoughby Swift,
John Clarke, John Hickes,
John le Duke, Jofehp Gulfton,
William Languor d, Jofehp Perjivall,
Robert Northleigb, William Brooke,
Henry Jacob, John Perfon,
John Earle, Robert Gijlingham.
The fame LETTER was fent with the following POSTSCRIPT., and Signed by every Mewber of the Fa&ory.
May it Pleafe your LORDSHIP,
€ /-T-^HIS is a Duplicate of a Letter wee * X troubled your Lordftiip with, by the c laftPoft^ but thenhalfe theFaftory atleaft c being abfent, about their neceflary Occa-
4 fions,
Poftfcript to the former. 377
* fions, wee have made bold to give your
* Lordfliip another to read, Signed by every c Member thereof,
Your Lordfliip's moft Obleiged
and moft Obedient Servants,
. Maynard, Jofeph Gul/lon, John Earle, Tho. March, Wm. Langford, Francis Carter, Thomas Hunt, John le Duke, Henry Jacob, Robert Stuckey, Robert fl&rthleigh, Pr. Bultee, Jofeph Hardwick, Peter Nepuell, William Bathurft, John Arlibeare, Will. Birde, Rober. Gi/lingbam,
Ri. Buller, Wm. Brooke,
Humph. Benning) John Perfon, James Bennett, John Clarke, Jofefb Whetham, Jofiah Bateman, Daniel Denny, John Wiggott, Rich. Willford, Jofeph Perfivall, Willoughby Swift, Richard Bullerjun. John Hickes,
TO
37$
TO THE
torn ^irOmoJ iyol Right Reverend rather in GOD,,
HEN R Y
Lord Bifhop of LONDON,
PRESENT.
LISBON, the ^Seft. i6B6.
My LORD!
IT F a good Caufe, and Prefcription had JL been enough to have preferv'd us in our Rights, there had been noe occafion to have troubled your Lordfhip with foe unpleafing a Subjed, as Neeeflity now forces me upon ^ being Silence, and defifting from endeavouring a Remedy, would make all the King's Subjects redding in Portugal! hugely unhappy, and to prevent Prolixity, I will onely give your Lordfliip an Account of the Matter of Fad, and humbly implore your .Charity to Aflift us, that our Agreivances may come to the King's Cognizance, that wee may obtaine fome Re- leife from his Majeftie's Piety and Juftice, which great Charity I hope God will re-
' ward
Mr. MaynardV Letter, &c. 379 ward an hundred-fold upon your Lord-
ftiip.
c Upon Thursday -?f of this Month, I had a Summons from the Inquifition to appeare att their Councill-Boord, where being fett at the lower end of the Table, one of the Inqui- fitorsfaid to me. You have taken a Houfe at Porto de Sanflo Antam, where you have your Meeting Sundays and Holly - day es, and have your publick Prayers and Preachings ^ To which I reply'd 5 'Twas true that the King of England's Subjefls did come there to Divine Service $ and to heare Sermons, then he asked niee, by what Authority I fufferred them to meet att my Houfe ^ I told them by vertue of the Treaty of Peace made betweene the two Crownes of England and Portugal!, in which it is exprefsly pro vided by the 1 4th Article of that Treaty 5 To which the Inquifitor faid, There can be : noe fuch thing granted to you, I anfwer'd, That 'tis exprefsly declared in that Article^ that all Commerce would bee ineffedual, if the King's Subjefts were difquieted for ' Confcience-fake, therefore the King of Por- ' tugall would effectually provide and take ; care, that the King's Subjects fliould not bee difquieted or molefted in their Con- fciences, by any Man, Court, or Tribunal!, but that they might freely in their Houfes* with their Familyes, being of the fame Na tion and Religion, in any part of the King pf Portugall's Dominions, profelfe and ex-
' ercife
380 Mr. MaynardY Letter to
* ercife their Religion, without any Trouble e or Impediment, To which one of the In-
* quifitors faid, It neve came to the Cogni- c zance of the Inquifition, To which I re- c plyed, That I had been Conful here Thirty
Yeares, in which tyme the Kings Subjeds
* Affembled to heare Divine Service and
* Sermons, and 'twas very improbable, that ' in foe many Yeares, it mould not come to c the Cognizance of the Inquifition } And I " farther told them, That many Yeares fince,
* when the Arch-Biftiop of Evora prefided in
* that Court, I was queftioned as I am now, c by what Authority wee Affembled, which
* I made out, as I do now, Wee did it by ' Vertue of the Articles of Peace 5 fince which c wee were never difturbed in our Meetings,
* To which one of the Inquifitors faid, You
* are miftaken in all your Sayings, and you c (hall have noe more Meetings, but att an 4 AmbafTador, or Envoy's Houfe,and you muft c now figne this Paper (written by them- 1 felves) that wee fhould not AfTemble in 6 any other Place, To which I replyed, I
* could figrie noe Paper, that did contradid 4 the Treaty of Peace between the two 1 Crownes, unlefle I had a Command from c my Sovereigne Lord the King to do it, and 4 foe I parted from them.
4 The next Day I went to difcourfe withe
* the Inquifitor-Generall of what had hapned c att the Boord 5 he being abfent from thence
* by fome Indifpofition, and being admitted
c to
the Bifiop of London. 38 £
f to him, I gave him a breife Relation of the 4 Difcourfe wee had at the Boord, To 1 which he told mee, I had noe Reafon, or 6 Juftice to perfift in that Matter, for wee 4 could not expeft wee (hould have Liberty c to AfTemble to our Prayers, but every Man
* might Pray by himfelfe, and that was all 4 that was intended , To which I replyed, 4 That there was noe need of an Article of 4 Peace, to Pray privately in our Clofetts, 4 for noe Man could hinder us from that, c To which he pafllonately replyed, That if 4 he had been att the Boord, neither you, 4 nor the other (meaning the Minifterof the
* Fadory) fhould have gon out of this Houfe, 4 I replyed, That I was not guilty of any Faft 4 that might merritt foe fevere a Senfure, as to 4 be a perpetuall Prifoner in the Inquifition $ 4 foe rifing from the Place, where I was fet-
* ting, to take my Leave of him, he tooke 4 hold of my Arme, and faid, Pray fitt downe
* againe, wee will difcourfe this Bufines a c little more, and he faid, J have knowne c you att leaft this thirty Yeares, and have e never underflood, that you ever wronged, 4 or fcandaliz'd any Man, but are generally 4 well reputed, and beloved of all Men, but 4 this cannot bee granted you, for 'tis too ' great a Scandall to the People, To which 4 I faid, Our Meeting was very private, and it 4 could be noe Scandall to any to ferve God, 4 and if that were the reafon of this Difput, 4 wee would for the future endeavour to meet
4 with
382 Mr. MaynardV Letter, &c.
1 with that privacy, that none fhould bee able to take notice of our Aflcmbling, To which he (aid, I fhould apply my felfe to the Ring his Mafter, and if he pleafed to fend him an Order to fuffer us, wee fhould have Liberty to Affemble togeather to our ' Prayers ^ So I intend to fpeake to the c King, and deliver him a Memoriall fetting * forth our Complaint.
c Mr. Geddis was likewife fummoned to c the Inquifition , who , I am fure , writes c your Lordfhipp of what paft betwixt him c and the Inquifitors. I befeech your Lord- 4 fliipp to continue me in your Grace and c Favour, by the Tytle of,
My LORD,
Your Lord/hip's moft Obedient, Faithfull Servant,
THO. MAYNARD,
An.
An EXPLANATION offom Terms
which occur in the Treatife of A Solemn Pontifical Mafs.
T\Almatick, the Veftment ufed by Deacons
^ at the Altar.
Corporal, the Linen Cloth on which the Hoft is laid.
Mampulwn, what the Prieft puts on his Left- Arm when he goes to fay Mafs.
Acoliti^ they who ferve the Prieft at the Al tar, of the loweft Ecclefiaftical Order.
Credentia^ the Table on which the Wine and Water ftand when the Bifliop fays Mafs.
Par amenta, the Robes and Ornaments.
Pefforal, the Crofs which Bifhops wear upon their Breaft.
Tunicella^ a Veftment worn by Bifhops in Pontificalibus.
Gremial, a rich piece of Silk held by two Priefts between the Bifliop and the People when he fays Mafs.
Pluvial, a Cope.
Sandals^ Slippers.
Surfa, a Purfe.
Alba, the Surplice.
FINIS.
ADVERTISEMENT.
TH E Council of Trent plainly difcover'd not to have been a Free Affembly ^ by a Collection of Letters and Pa pers of the learned Dr. Vargas and other great Minifters, who aflifted at the faid Synod in confiderable Pofts : With Di- reftions concerning the Government of a Council, and alfo the Office of an AmbaiTador, <£rc. Publifti'd from the Original Manufcripts in Spanift, which were procured by the Right Honourable Sir William TrumbulVs Grandfather, Envoy at Bruf- fels in the Reign of King James I. With an Introductory Difcourfe concerning Councils, (hewing how they were brought under Bondage to the Pope. By Michael Geddes,}JL.V. and Chancellor of the Cathedral Church of Sarum.
Thofe two excellent Monuments of ancient Learning and Piety, Minutius Felix's Oflavius^ an&Ter tutti an s Apology for the Primitive Chriftians, rendred into Englifl). Price 2 s. 6d.
Chronological Tables of Eurofe, from the Nativity of our Saviour, to the Year 1714. Engraven on 46 Copper-Plates, and contriv'd in a fmall compafs for the Pocket, being of great ule for the reading of Hiftory, and a ready Help to Difcourfe ^ digefted into fo very eafie and exaft a Method, that any one may immediately find out either Pope, Emperor, or King •, and thereby know" in what Time and Kingdom he reign'd ^ who were his Predeceflors, Contemporaries and Suc- ceiiors -, to what Virtues or Vices he was moft inclinable •, the good or ill Succefs of his Fortune -, the Manner and Time of his Death. By Colonel Par fans. Price Bound 5 s.
Thefe three Printed for and Sold by B. Barker at the White Hart, and C. King at the Judge's Head, both in Weftminder-Hall.
The following is Printed for and Sold by Bernard Lintott, at the Crofs-Kcys between the two Temple-gates in Fleet-ftreet.
A Chronological Hiftory of England : Or, An impartial Ab- ftraft of the moft remarkable Tranfaftions, and the moft confidcrable Publick Occurrences, both Civil and Military, Domeftick and Foreign, that have happened in the feveral Kings Reigns fince the firft Attempt by Julius Ctfar upon this Southern pare of Great-Britain, to the Pacifick Year of her late Majefty Queen Anne, in which a Fublick Peace was con cluded Anni memorabili 1719. Being a Hiitory of bare Mut ters of Faft from the bed and moft authentick Authors, with out the leaft Reflections and Remarks throughout the whole Work. By John Pointer A.M. Chaplain of Merton-CoUtge in Oxford^ andReftor ot'Slapton in Northampton-flrire. Printed in two Vols. inTwek'ts. To which is added a very copious Index to the Whole.
I
1
.i
f