Knyghton. William Smith a mechanic, and William de Swin- A. C. 1382. durby a priest, who vented notions of their own, without feeming to have any correspondence with the other. Several tenets of Wickliff had been cenfured by W. de Berton, chancellor of the univerfity, as erroneous, repugnant to the determinations of the church, and contrary to the catholic verity: and now W. Courtney archbishop of Canterbury affembling seven fuffragan prelates, fourteen doctors of the canon and civil law, with feventeen doctors and fix bachelors of divinity, condemned the following positions as heretical: That the substance of the bread and wine remains in the facrament after confecration: That the accidents do not remain without their fubject, after confecration in the facrament That Chrift is not identically and corporeally present in the facrament of the altar: That a bishop or priest in mortal fin, cannot ordain, confecrate, or baptize: That there is no foundation in the gofpel to believe that Chrift inftituted mafs: That God ought to obey the devil: That if the pope be a wicked man, he is a member of the devil, and hath no authority over the faithful, nor any commiffion except from the emperor: That, after the death of Urban VI. no perfon ought to be acknowledged as pope; but chriftians ought to live independently, like the Greek church: That ecclefiaftics ought to have no temporal poffeffions: And that auricular confeffion is unneceffary and fuperfluous. Wickliff's followers, Hereford, Repyingdon, and Ashton, were obliged to recant these tenets; and the archbishop directed all his fuffragans to prevent them from being taught in their respective diocefes. On the thirteenth day of July, the king iffued a writ to the chancellor and proctors of the univerfity of Oxford, to expel all graduates fufpected of favouring thofe tenets, unless they would purge themselves before the archbishop of Canter A. C. 1382 Rymer, A. C. 1388. taken by the bury. They were likewife ordered to fearch for all books written by Wickliff or Hereford, and tranfmit them to the archbishop without alteration. This order was executed by doctor Rigge, who was by this time chancellor, although he himself was fupposed to favour Wickliff: yet no violence was offered to the perfon of this reformer, who lived unmolested at his living of Lutterworth in Leicefterfhire, where he foon after this period died of the palfy; nor were the Lollards much troubled in the fequel of this reign, except by fome writs for feizing their books, difperfing their conventicles, and imprisoning their teachers. The government feemed to be more upon its guard. Measures against the encroachments of Rome; for the king government obliged the pope's collector to take an oath, that againft the he would be true to the king and crown; that he ments of the would do nothing detrimental to the royal preropapal power. gative, or the laws of the kingdom; that he would encroach not publish any letters from the pope, without the permiffion of the king's council, that he would not export money or plate from the kingdom, nor introduce any new cuftoms, without the king's knowledge and particular licence. At the fame time a writ was directed by the king to the archbishop of Canterbury, reminding him of his duty, to prevent all illegal impofitions on the fubject, informing him of the exactions of Rome; the refolution of the commons to hold thofe perfons guilty of treafon, who should bring in papal bulls, or levy impofitions in favour of the pope. Writs of the fame nature were directed to the other prelates, forbidding them to allow the levy of a tenth which the pope had impofed upon the clergy; and Darden the pope's nuncio was prohibited from collecting it on pain of forfeiting life and limb. Notwithstanding thefe precautions, a great number of clergymen ventured to difregard the king's injunctions, and repaired to Rome, Rome, where they perfuaded pope Boniface IX. A, C. 1388, who fucceeded Urban, to declare against the ftatutes of Provisors, Quare impedit, and Premunire: but the government was fo far from repealing those laws, that they were confirmed in parliament, which likewife enacted, that any person within the realm, bringing or fending fummons, cenfure, or fentence of excommunication, against any person whatsoever for his affent to or execution of the faid ftatute of Provisors, fhall be arrested, imprisoned, and forfeit all his lands, tenements, goods, and chattels, and incur the penalty of life and member; and any prelate executing fuch fummons, cenfure, or fentence of excommunication, fhall be deprived of his temporalities; and they fhall remain in the king's hands for due redrefs and correction. bishop of by the com→ The archbishop's fuffragans, and clergy, protefted The archin general terms against this bill; and this proteft Canterbury brought an impeachment by the commons on the impeached archbishop of Canterbury, for obeying the pope in mons. publishing such cenfures, as tended to the open difherifon of the crown, the fubverfion of the royal prerogative of the king's laws and his whole realm; and for aiding and abetting his holiness in a scheme for tranflating English prelates to foreign fees, to the prejudice of the king, the impoverishment of the nation, and contrary to the ftatutes of the realm. The archbishop in his defence acquitted himself intirely of the charge, protefting that he would adhere loyally to the king; and endeavour, as in duty bound, to fupport his majefty in thefe and all other inftances, in which the rights of the crown might be concerned. His anfwers were extremely agreeable to the commons; the parliament enacted a new ftatute of Premunire, more comprehenfive than the former, as it affected not only the procurers, abettors, maintainers, and counsellors, but even the favourers of the papal ufurpation; fo that all application 7 A. C. 1388. plication to a foreign jurifdiction, either in the court of Rome or elsewhere, in prejudice of the king's crown and regality, falls within the penalty of this ftatute. Coke Inftit. A. C. 1393' the Lollards to pariiament, When Richard went over to Ireland, the LolAddrefs of lards, encouraged by his abfence, prefented an extravagant remonftrance to parliament, importing, That faith, hope, and charity, fled from the church of England as foon as fhe began to mifmanage her temporalities: That the English priesthood was not derived from Chrift, but from the pope: That the celibacy of the clergy was a fource of scandalous impurities That Chriftendom had been infected with idolatry by the notion of transubstantiation : That all exorcifms and benedictions, together with the trompery of confecrating churches, altars, and vestments, favoured more of witchcraft and forcery, than of religion: That the conjunction of civil and fpiritual power in the fame perfon, was fubverfive of all order and good government: That in prayers for the dead, one perfon was preferred to another: That pilgrimage, prayers, and offerings to images and croffes, were abfurd and idolatrous: That auricular confeffion furnished the priests with opportunities to debauch their penitents: That, to deprive any person of his life, either in war, or a court of juftice, was a practice contrary to the doctrine of the New Teftament: and, That female vows to lead a fingle life, promoted infamous correfpondence, abortion, and murder: That, feeing St. Paul has commanded us to be contented with food and raiment, mankind ought to moderate their defires, and that goldfmiths, fword-cutlers, and many other kinds of artificers, ought to be fuppreffed, as the inftruments of luxury and homicide. This ftrange addrefs, which concluded with a stanza of monkish Latin verfe, alarmed the clergy to fuch a degree, that the archbishop of York, and the bi fhop fhop of London, fent letters to Richard, complain- A. C. 1395° ing bitterly of the infolence of the Lollards. The king returned to England, boiling with indignation against this troublesome fect of heretics; an oath of fubmiffion, by way of test, against Lollardifm, was impofed by the fecular power, and Richard ordered the chancellor of Oxford to expel all those students or graduates, who were fufpected of holding fuch opinions. Rymer. tween arch the univer Courtney, archbishop of Canterbury, dying about A. C. 1396. this period, was fucceeded by Arundel archbishop Difpute beof York, who called a convocation at London, bishop which condemned eighteen articles extracted from Arundel and Wickliff's Triologus, brought in by the canonifts fity of Oxand civilians of Oxford, who at the fame time re- ford. prefented, that their exemption by a papal bull, from all archiepifcopal vifitation, left them expofed to the tyranny of the chancellor; and therefore, they earnestly befought the metropolitan to refume the power which he antiently poffeffed. The archbishop relifhed the propofal, and refolved to vifit the university; but receiving intimation that he would certainly be oppofed by the chancellor and proctors, he applied to the king, who issued a writ directed to the chancellor and students, requiring them to admit the vifitation of the archbishop, or their ordinary. They ftill pleaded their exemption; but, at length the difpute was compromised, and they complied with the vifitation, pretending that they were vifitable by the crown, though not by the archbishop. translates English bi This prelate being afterwards exiled for high The pope treafon, repaired to Rome, where he was hofpitably received by Boniface IX. who created him archbi- fhops. shop of St. Andrew's in Scotland, and intended to bestow upon him feveral livings in England. Richard, being apprized of his defign, wrote fuch a peremptory letter to the pope, that his holiness thought |