History of the Catholic Church from the Renaissance to the French Revolution Volume II Part 14

But as Leverous was well known to be not only a Geraldine but also a strong Papist the Deputy's recommendation was set at nought, and the See of Ossory was conferred on John Bale. The latter was an ex-Carmelite friar, who, according to himself, was won from the ignorance and blindness of papistry by a temporal lord, although according to others, "his wife Dorothy had as great a hand in that happy work as the Lord." On account of his violent and seditious sermons he was thrown into prison, from which he was released by Cromwell, with whom he gained great favour by his scurrilous and abusive plays directed against the doctrines and practices of the Church. On the fall of his patron in 1540 Bale found it necessary to escape with his wife and children to Germany, whence he returned to England after the death of Henry VIII. He was a man of considerable ability, "with little regard for truth if he could but increase the enemies of Popery," and so coa.r.s.e and vulgar in his language and ideas that his works have been justly described by one whose Protestantism cannot be questioned as a "dunghill."[93]

The consecration of Goodacre and Bale was fixed for February 1553, and the consecrating prelates were to be Browne, Lancaster, who had been intruded by the king into Kildare, and Eugene Magennis of Down. At the consecration ceremony itself a peculiar difficulty arose. Although the First Book of Common Prayer had been legalised in Ireland by royal proclamation, the Ordinal and the Second Book of Common Prayer had never been enforced by similar warrant, and their use was neither obligatory nor lawful. Bale demanded, however, that they should be followed. When the dean of Christ's Church insisted on the use of the Roman Ordinal, he was denounced by the bishop-elect as "an a.s.s-headed dean and a blockhead who cared only for his belly," and when Browne ventured to suggest that the ceremony should be delayed until a decision could be sought, he was attacked as "an apicure," whose only object was "to take up the proxies of any bishopric to his own gluttonous use." The violence of Bale carried all before it even to the concession of common bread for the Communion Service.[94]

Goodacre was by English law the Archbishop of Armagh, but the threatening att.i.tude of Shane O'Neill prevented him from ever having the pleasure of seeing his own cathedral. Bale was, however, more fortunate. He made his way to Kilkenny where he proceeded to destroy the images and pictures in St. Canice's, and to rail against the Ma.s.s and the Blessed Eucharist, but only to find that his own chapter, the clergy, and the vast majority of the people were united in their opposition to him.

[1] /State Papers Hen. VIII./, ii., 9.

[2] /State Papers/, ii., 197.

[3] Gasquet, /Henry VIII. and the English Monasteries/, p. 51.

[4] /State Papers/, ii., 465, 539; iii., 1, 5, 8, 29, 35, 65. Bagwell, i., 379 sqq.

[5] This account of the Parliament, 1536-7, is taken from Brewer's /Letters and Papers, Foreign and Domestic, Henry VIII./, vols. x., xi., xii. The references can be found under the respective dates.

[6] For the account of the proceedings of this Commission, cf.

/Letters and Papers of Henry VIII./ xii., pt. ii., pp. 294-316.

[7] /Letters and Papers Hen. VIII./, xii., pt. i., no. 1447; pt. ii., 159.

[8] /State Papers/, ii., 465-6.

[9] /Letter of Browne to Cromwell/, Id., 539-41.

[10] /Letters and Papers Henry VIII./, xiii., pt. i., no. 961.

[11] /State Papers/, ii., 570.

[12] Id., iii., 6.

[13] Id., ii., 516. /Letters/, etc., xii., pt. 1, 159, 658, 769; xiii., pt. 1, 1420.

[14] /State Papers/, iii., 1-3.

[15] /State Papers/, iii., 8, 29, 31.

[16] /Letters and Papers/, xii., pt. 2, no. 64.

[17] /State Papers/, ii., 560.

[18] Grey to Henry VIII., 26 July, 1538. Id. iii., 57 sqq.

[19] Browne to Cromwell, iii., 122-4.

[20] Id., 63-65.

[21] /State Papers/, ii., 570.

[22] /State Papers/, iii., 110.

[23] Id., iii., 18.

[24] /State Papers/, iii., 122.

[25] /State Papers/, iii., 35.

[26] Id., iii., 95.

[27] Id., iii., 103.

[28] /Annals of F. M./, 1537; /of Loch Ce/, 1538 (correct date, 1538-9).

[29] /Hib. Dominiciana/, pp. 726-52.

[30] /Letters and Papers Hen. VIII./, vol. xi., no. 1416.

[31] /Irish Statutes/, i., 127-32.

[32] /State Papers/, ii., 438.

[33] /Calendar of Patent Rolls, Ireland/, i., 55.

[34] /Calendar of Patent Rolls, Ireland/, i., 54-55.

[35] /State Papers/, iii., 130.

[36] /Letters and Papers/, xiv., 1st pt., no. 1006.

[37] /State Papers/, iii., 142-3.

[38] /Letters and Papers/, xiv., pt. 1, no. 1021.

[39] For surrenders, cf. /Calendar of Patent Rolls/, i., 53-9.

/Calendar of State Papers, Ireland (1509-73)/, 56-58.

[40] For the pensions granted to the religious, cf. /Fiants of Henry VIII./ (App. Seventh Report Public Rec. Office). /Calendar of Patent Rolls, Ireland/, i., 59 sqq.

[41] For these grants, cf. /Fiants of Henry VIII. Seventh Report of D.

Keeper of P. R., Ireland./

[42] /Letters and Papers/, xvi., no. 775.

[43] Under year 1537. The date is not correct.

[44] Mant, /Church History of Ireland/, 1846, ii., 713.

[45] /State Papers/, iii., 56-7, 136-7, 147, 175-6.