Library
of the
University of Toronto
ir
"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 t g a Q ci 3 O j g /
-, M
A
SEVERAL
TRACTS
, $jj. AGAINST ..r: -
POPERY
Together with
The LIFE of
Don Alvaro de Luna.
WRITTEN BY
MICHAEL GEDDES. LL.D.
J
And Chancellor of the Church of Sarum.
Quid Roma faciam ? mentiri ntjcio
Juven. Satyr. Ill,
LONDON,
Printed by E. J. for BERNARD L i N T o T T
at the Croft-Keys between the two lemple-gates
in Hket-flreet. 1715:.
J A/!
I !
t
r- r c-i:-
%g&*^;3&&3&&^
THE
PUBLISHER
TO T HE
__ -r-v. .fc i -i->v wn -r^
READER.
HE enfuing TRACTS are
the Remains of the late
Learned and Judicious
Dr. G E D D E 3, whole
former Works of this
fort met with fo favourable a Re
ception in the World., as has en-
c&urag d the Publifliing of thefe ;
whichj tis hop dj may in their turn
be no lefs ferviceable in making fu;
A 3 th_
ii The Publifher to
ther Difcoveries of the Cheats and
Abufes of the Roman Church.
J
ji *. * ) ***
i. That Traa called The Grand
Forgery dzfplay^d,, is a moft ufeful
Dilijuifition into and a clear Dete&ion
of thofe Arts.) by which the Roman
Pontif and hrs Bifliops advanced
the Papal } See ,to gfucb fre^minenpe^
JL ; ? f- -, .* s a .3
and exalted themlelves to li> enor
mous a height, as to Lord it over
Cod ? s Heritage^ and to flied the
Blood of a]l thofe Saints ^\\$ 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
arQfe i; 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 Priefts 3
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 d f .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 ow r n 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 faHous 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 5 em 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.
S W>
-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- 37 1
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, p r rajftansiolidos fexcentos^ Maf-
c fa Varia Sardana f 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 triginta 1 , ftades libras centum quinqua
ginta. Poffeffionem Bafilicam praeftantem
folidos quingentos quinquaginta, aromatum
libras quinquaginta 5 olei 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 confervare 3 & 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 5 S})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
The Grand Forgery difplay^d. a 5
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. Peter 9 s 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
The Grand Forgery difylay>d.
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,waslikewife 5 as 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
Latm y 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 tha 1 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, Leo 9 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 Ivo 9 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,
(tho 5 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
them 5 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 y r j^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 Tripudium 9 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 Entrails 5 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~
mus 9 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 Time D 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 Men 9 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. Hierome 9
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/f 9
fpeaking of them in his tenth Epiftle, faith,
that their Pride and Faftus were fo great, that
tho thoy w r ere 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 Vices 5 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 after y 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, tho 5 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 Jiabiis 9 id 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?na y qu& 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 ofubugium, 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 orT 7 ^ 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 is y 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!e 9 s 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 JrirectoB i i 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 oefo)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?mnes y 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, w T ith 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/b 9 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 tho 5 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. 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
(tho 5 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. Jobn 9 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?T e 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 Leo 9 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 3 d 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, tho 1
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, tho 5 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 Houfe 5 and 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 Game y
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 Price 3 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 L f of a Mini-
J}ry 9 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 tho 1 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 Hand D 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. 3 Tis
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 & f ii lol h^ii rioTQ j on39,lt i f>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 i s 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-
$rftition to fay any thing that they judged to
be convenient to their Aims. And that Papal In
dulgences were things not known in the Chri-
fiian Church for many Ages, is acknowledged
both by Cardinal Cajetan y and by tijber Bi-
fliop
Papal Indulgences j Sec.
{hop of Rocbefter, whofe words I (hall here
fet down for the Faffors of Indulgences to
try their Skill upon. De ortu Indulgentia-
ru?n,fi certitude baberi fojjet, writati indagan-
d& of em ferret : verum quia nulls, Sacra Serif-
tur&, mill A frifcorum Dofforum Grecorum aut
Latinorum autoritus Scripta hunc ad noftrarrt
duxerit notitiam 5 fed hoc folum a trecentist
annis Scripture commendatum eft de vetuftisfa-
tribus, quod B. Gregorius Indulgentias Statio-
num inftituit , inquit Cajetarius. " If any
certainty could be had of the Origen of
Indulgences, that would help us to fearch
out the Truth: But neither the Holy
Cc Scriptures, nor the written Authority of
" ancient Dodors Greek nor Latin, has
" brought that to our knowledge : The Story
" of St. Gregorie s having inftituted the Sta-
" tions in Rome not having been committed
ce to Writing, as from the Fathers ? above
<c three Hundred years". Ouum igitur (in-
quit Roffevfis} Pnrgatorium tarn few cognitum,
ac receftum Ecclefi& fuerit iiniverfa 5 quis.
jam de Indulgentiis marari foteft, quod in
frincifio nafcentis Ecclefia nullus Client earum
ufiis. " Wherefore fince Purgatory was fo late-
cc ly known and received by theUniverfal
" Church, who can now wonder at Indulgen-
tc ces not having been in ufe in the firft Ages
" of the Church. In truth, Papal Indulgences
do owe their Birth to three Things, none
of which were known in the Weftern Church
O 2 for
"
"
A View of fane
for many Ages, and are not to this Day be
lieved in the Greek, nor in any other Church.
The i ft was the belief of Purgatory , or
that in the next World there is a Prifon, in
to which moft of the Souls are thrown, that
are to go to Heaven at laft$ 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 Albigenfes y 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
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>%hehwifti-
an Worfbif y 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, faith y
.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 Bafon 9 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
J X 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 Luna 9
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 Caftile y 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 cuftom s
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 Alvaro 9 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 Manrique y
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
jou 9 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 was 5 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
The LIFE of
*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 Caftile y
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
Tbe LIFE of
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 Robres 9 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.
-The LIFE of
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 poffible t 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!e 9
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. Tho 1
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,
The LIFE of
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 Conftable 5 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
The LIFE of
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 Cortes y
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, tho 1
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 ofCaftile y
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
dred 1 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 Samfteva7i i 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
The LIFE of
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
X word.
306 The LIFE of
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 (tho 1 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-
X 2 tick
go.8 The LIFE of
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 wa c
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
X 3 of
3io The LIFE of
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 Caftro y 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
X 4 hear
The LIFE of
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
of
^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 the fc Admiral
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
for
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 tho 3 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
Plots}
The LIFE of
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 P r a!edo!id 9 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 ofCuen r a 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 Cortes y
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 w r ho 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,
There 9 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 Caftik y 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
34 o 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 5 d 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
34 8 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 Caftles 5 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 ErmediUa y
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 Valedolid y
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-
Jitiofi 9 and banifhing above a Million of Jews,
and deftroying many Thoufands ofMorifco 9 s t
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 call s d 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 him f
* 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-
* ta0 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
c are prefent) cannot in truth, with Reve-
c rence 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-
37 1
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 Porto y
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.
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