NOTES TO VOLUME FIRST.

Note A.

Place of Knox’s Birth, and his Parentage.—Although the question respecting Knox’s birth‑place is not of very great importance, I shall state the authorities for the different opinions which are entertained on the subject.

Beza, who was contemporary, and personally acquainted, with our Reformer, designs him “Joannes Cnoxus, Scotus, Giffordiensis,” evidently meaning that he was a native of the town of Gifford. Icones, seu Imagines Illustrium Virorum, Ee. iij. an. 1580. Spotswood, who was born in 1565, and could receive information from his father, and other persons intimately acquainted with Knox, says that he was “born in Gifford within Lothian.” History, p. 265, edit. 1677. David Buchanan, in his Memoir of Knox, prefixed to the edition of his History, and published in 1644, gives the same account; which has been followed in the Life written by Matthew Crawfurd, and prefixed to the edition of the History, 1732; and by Wodrow, in his MS. Collections, respecting the Scottish Reformers, in Bibl. Coll. Glas. In a Genealogical Account of the Knoxes, which is in the possession of the family of the late Mr James Knox, minister of Scoon, the Reformer’s father is said to have been a brother of the family of Ranferlie, and “proprietor of the estate of Gifford.” Scott’s History of the Scottish Reformers, p. 94.

On the other hand, Archibald Hamilton, who was his countryman, as well as his contemporary and acquaintance, says that Knox was born in the town of Haddington: “Obscuris natus parentibus in Hadintona oppido in Laudonia.” De Confusione Calvinianæ Sectæ apud Scotos Dialogus, fol. 64, a. Parisiis, 1577. Another Scotsman, who wrote in that age, says that he was born near Haddington; “prope Haddintonam.” Laingæus De vita, et moribus, atque rebus gestis Hæreticorum nostri temporis, fol. 113, b. Parisiis, 1581. Dr Barclay, late minister of Haddington, advanced an opinion which reconciles the two last authorities, (although it is probable that he never saw either of them,) by asserting that our Reformer was born in one of the suburbs of Haddington, called the Giffordgate. Transactions of the Society of Antiquaries in Scotland, p. 69, 70.

The testimony of Archibald Hamilton is not altogether without weight; for, although he has retailed a number of gross falsehoods in the work referred to, there does not appear to be any reason for supposing that he would intentionally mislead his readers on such a circumstance as the birth‑place of the Reformer. But I consider Spotswood’s statement as going far to set aside Hamilton’s; for, as the archbishop could scarcely be ignorant of it, and as he fixes Knox’s birth at a different place, it is reasonable to suppose that he had good reasons for varying from a preceding authority. The grounds of Dr Barclay’s opinion are, that, according to the tradition of the place, the Reformer was a native of Haddington; that the house in which he was born is still pointed out in the Giffordgate; and that this house, with some adjoining acres of land, belonged for a number of generations to a family of the name of Knox, who claimed kindred with the Reformer, and who lately sold the property to the earl of Wemyss. I acknowledge that popular tradition may be allowed to determine a point of this nature, provided it is not contradicted by other evidence. In the present case, it is not altogether free from this objection. As the sons of the Reformer died without issue, there is no reason to think that the family which resided in the Giffordgate was lineally descended from him. Still, however, the property might have belonged to his elder brother, which is consistent with the supposition of his being born in the house which tradition has marked out. But I have lately been favoured with extracts from the title‑deeds of that property, now in the possession of the earl of Wemyss, extending from the year 1598 downwards, which are not favourable to that supposition. On the 18th of February, 1598, William Knox in Moreham, and Elizabeth Schortes his wife, were infeft in subjects in Nungate (of Haddington,) by virtue of a crown charter. This charter contains no statement of the warrants on which it proceeded, farther than that the lands formerly belonged to the Abbey of Haddington, and were annexed to the crown. Having communicated the names of the persons mentioned in the first charter and subsequent deeds to the Reverend Mr Scott of Perth, with a request to be informed, if any such names occur in the genealogy of the Knox family which belonged to the late Mr Knox, minister of Scoon, I was favoured with an answer, saying, that neither the name of William Knox at Moreham, nor that of any other person answering to the description in my letter, is to be found in that genealogy. But, farther, the charter expressly states, that the lands in question belonged to the Abbey of Haddington, and, as they must have been annexed to the crown subsequently to the Reformation, they could not be the property of the family at the time of our Reformer’s birth. The tradition of his having been born in the Giffordgate is therefore supported merely by the possibility that his parents might have resided in that house while it was the property of the Abbey. In opposition to this, we have the authorities already mentioned in support of the opinion that he was born in the village of Gifford.

With respect to the parentage of our Reformer, David Buchanan says that his “father was a brother’s son of the house of Ranferlie.” Life, prefixed to History of the Reformation, edit. 1644. In a conversation with the earl of Bothwell, Knox gave the following account of his ancestors: “My lord,” said he, “my great grandfather, gudeschir, and father, have served your Lordchip’s predecessours, and some of them have dyed under their standards; and this is a pairt of the obligatioun of our Scottish kindness.” Historie of the Reformatioun, p. 306, edit. 1732. Matthew Crawfurd says, that “these words seem to import that Mr Knox’s predecessors were in some honourable station under the earls of Bothwell, at that time the most powerful family in East Lothian,” Life of the Author, p. ii. prefixed to Historie, edit. 1732. The only thing which I would infer from his words is, that his ancestors had settled in Lothian as early as the time of his great‑grandfather. I do not wish to represent the Reformer as either of noble or of gentle birth, and cannot place much dependence on the assertion in the preceding note, which makes his father “proprietor of the estate of Gifford.” John Davidson, in the poem written in commendation of him, says,

“First he descendit bot of lineage small,

As commonly God usis for to call

The sempill sort his summoundis til expres.”

At the same time, the statement given by some authors of the meanness and poverty of his parents is not supported by good evidence, and can in part be disproved. Dr Mackenzie says, the Reformer was “the son of a poor countryman, as we are informed by those who knew him very well: his parents, though in a mean condition, put their son to the grammar‑school of Haddington; where, after he had learned his grammar, he served for some time the laird of Langniddrie’s children, who being sent by their parents to the university of St Andrews, he thereby had occasion of learning his philosophy.” Lives of Scottish Writers, vol. iii. p. 111. As his authorities for these assertions, the Doctor has printed on the margin, “Dr Hamilton, Dr Bailie, and many others;” popish writers, who, regardless of their own character, fabricated or retailed such stories as they thought most discreditable to the Reformer, many of which Mackenzie himself is obliged to pronounce “ridiculous stories, that are altogether improbable,” p. 132. “Dr Bailie” was Alexander Bailie, a Benedictine monk in the Scottish monastery of Wirtsburgh; and, as he published the work to which Mackenzie refers in the year 1628, it is ridiculous to talk of his being well acquainted with either the Reformer or his father. Hamilton, (the earliest authority,) instead of supporting Mackenzie’s assertions, informs us, as far as his language is intelligible, that Knox was in priest’s orders before he undertook the care of children: “quo victum sibi pararet magis quam ut deo serviret (Simonis illius magi huc usque sequutus vestigia) presbyter primum fieri de more, quamvis illiteratus, tum in privatis ædibus puerorum in vulgaribus literis formandorum curam capere coactus est.” De Confusione Calv. Sectæ, p. 64. The fact is, that Knox entered into the family of Langniddrie as tutor, after he had finished his education at the university; and so late as 1547, he was employed in teaching the young men their grammar. Historie, p. 67.

Note B.

Of Knox’s Academical Education.—I have been a good deal puzzled on the subject of the academical studies of our Reformer. Depending on the testimony of the earliest and most credible writers, I stated, in the former editions of this work, that he studied, and took the degree of Master of Arts, at St Andrews. After a minute examination, however, I was unable to find his name in the records of that university. Still I did not feel warranted to drop the account which I had given on such respectable authority, and contented myself with mentioning the unsuccessful result of my investigations. But when engaged in examining the records of the university of Glasgow with a view to another work, I accidentally met with evidence which convinces me that the common statement is erroneous. Knox was educated at the university, not of St Andrews, but of Glasgow.

In the “Annales Universitatis Glasguensis,” the name “Johannes Knox” occurs among the Incorporati, or those who were matriculated, in the year 1522. In coming to the conclusion that this was our Reformer, I do not rest simply on his name occurring in the record. This opinion is confirmed by the two following circumstances. 1. The time answers to that at which he might be supposed to have entered the university; for in 1522, he was seventeen years of age. 2. John Major was at that time Principal of the university of Glasgow; and all the ancient accounts agree that Knox studied under that celebrated professor.—This circumstance may perhaps account for the mistake into which the old writers have fallen on this subject. They appear to have been ignorant of the fact that Major taught at that time in Glasgow; and being informed that Knox studied under him, they concluded that he did so at St Andrews, where that professor was known to have resided for many years.

I take this opportunity of filling up a blank in the life of Major. Dempster, Dupin, and other writers, mention that, after being made Doctor of Divinity in 1505, he taught for some years at Glasgow, but that, owing to the confusions in his native country, he removed from it to Paris. I will not take upon me to say that this account is erroneous; but I have not been able to discover the name of Major in the records of the university of Glasgow at that period. Upon Major’s return from France, the above‑mentioned authors represent him as going directly to St Andrews. But from the subsequent extracts it will appear that he went first to Glasgow, and for several years held the situation of Principal and Professor of Divinity in the university of that city.

In the old Register, entitled “Annales Universitatis Glasguensis,” are the following minutes relating to Major. The last of them contains the matriculation of Knox.

“Electio Rectoris.

“Congregatione generali alme Universitatis Glasguen. Citatione previa, &c. Die tertio mensis Novembris anno Dⁿⁱ millesimo quingentesimo decimo octavo, &c.

“Eodem die—Incorporati sub dicto D^no Rectore, Egregius vir Mag^r Johannes Majoris Doctor Parisiensis ac principalis regens Collegie et pedagogii dicte Universitatis, Canonicusque Capelli regie, ac Vicarius de Dunlop, &c.” (43 names follow.)

There is no further mention made of Major until 1521, when the following minute is found:

“Electio Rectoris.

“Congregatione generali, &c. In festo sanctorum Marthirum Crispini et Crispiniani, anno Domⁱ millesimo quingentesimo vicesimo primo. Pro Electione novi Rectoris—In quaquidem Congregatione Electi fuerunt tres Intrantes, viz. Mag^r Mattheus Steward Decanus facultatis, Johannes Majoris Theologie Professor, et nationis Albanie nullus interfuit, et Will^mus Crechtoun Canonicus Glasguensis—Qui remoti, maturaque deliberatione prehabita, unanimi eorum consensu, Venerabilem et egregium Virum Jacobum Steward Prepositum ecclesie Collegiate de Dunbertane, absentem tanquam presentem, in Rectorem eligerunt et electum pronunciarunt. Qui postea inclinatus supplicationibus suppositorum hujus modi onus in se acceptavit. Insuper in eadem Congregatione electi fuerunt quatuor Deputati ad consulendum et assistendum dicto D^no rectori in omnibus et singulis causis per ipsum tractandis, viz. Mag̃ri Johannes Majoris predictus, Willm̃s Chrichtoun, Johannes Reid, Jacobus Neilsoun—Necnon Electus fuit in bursarium discretus vir Mag^r Mattheus Reid, Mag^r schole gramaticalis. Et in promotorem Mag^r Andreas Smytht. Et in Procuratorem Mag^r Nicholaus Witherspuyne.

“Die xxiiij mensis Maij anno Dñi millesimo quingentesimo xxij.

“Congregatione generali Universitatis Glasguen. facta loco Capitulari ecclesie metropolitane ejusdem die xxiiij mensis maij Anno Dñi Millesimo quingentesimo xxij, per Venerabilem Virum Mgr̃m Jacobum Steward Prepositum ecclie Collegiate de Dunbertane ac Rectorem dicte Universitatis, Presentibus Ibidem Honorabilibus Viris, Magistris Johanne Majore, theologie professore, thesaurario Capelle regie Stirlingensis, Vicarioque de Dunlop, ac Principali regente dicte Collegie, Johanne Doby Canonico Glasguensi ac prebendario de Ancrum, Jacobo Neilson Vicario de Colmanel, Johanne Spruele Vicario de Dundonald, Jacobo Lyndesay secundario regente, aliisque patribus, Magistris, Studentibus, ac suppositis, inibi Congregatis—In quaquidem Congregatione Idem Dñus Rector Exposuit et Declaravit, &c.

“Electio Rectoris.

“Congregatione generali alme Universitatis Glass. Citatione previa per edictum publicum in Valvis ecclesie metripolitane affixum, Celebrata loco Capitulari ejusdem, In festo Sanctorum Marthirum Crispini et Crispiniani, Anno Dñi Millesimo quingentesimo Vicesimo secundo, Pro electione novi Rectoris. In quaquidem Congregatione electi fuerunt tres Intrantes, eoquod nullus nationis albanie extunc interfuit, viz. Mg^r Thomas leiss Canonicus Dunblanensis, Johannes Majoris Principalis regens, et Johannes Reid Vicarius de Campsy—Qui remoti, matura et digesta deliberatione prehabita, unanimi eorum Consensu, Venerabilem et egregium Virum Mgr̃m Jacobum Steward Prepositum Ecclesie Collegiate de Dunbertane, absentem tanquam presentem, in rectorem Continuarunt, eligerunt, et pronunciarunt—Qui postea supplicationebus magistrorum inclinatus hujus modi onus en se acceptavit. Insuper in eadem Congregatione electi fuerunt tres Deputati ad assistendum et consulendum dicto Dño Rectori in omnibus et singulis causis dicte Universitatis per eundem tractandis, viz. Prescripti magistri, Johannes Majoris, Johannes Reid, et Mg̃r Mattheus Steward Vicarius de Mayboile, Et Continuatus fuit in bursarium Mg̃r Mattheus Reid. Necnon electus fuit in procuratorem et promotorem Universitatis Mg̃r Nicholaus Vitherspuyne Vicarius de Straithawane—Incorporati sub dicto Dño Rectore,

Andreas Cottis Johannes hereot Nigellus Campbal Will^mus Steward Johannes Hamyltoun Johannes Knox Archibaldus Langsyd

Alex^r Dikke Adam Kyngorne Nigellus forguissone Johannes huntar Jacobus Mosman Dñus Johannes Keyne presbiter Patricius letryg Civis Glass.”

In the records of the university of Glasgow, Major is uniformly called Joannes Majoris. It appears from Dr Lee’s extracts, published in the second edition of Dr Irving’s Memoirs of Buchanan, (p. 373,) that Major was incorporated into the university of St Andrews, on the 9th of June 1523. He is there designed “Doctor Theologus Parisiensis, et Thesaur^ius Capellæ Regiæ;” and in an instrument of seisin, belonging to that seminary, he is styled “Vicarius de Dunloppie Glasg.”—Some may perhaps be inclined to suppose that Knox followed Major to St Andrews, and attended his lectures, though not formally incorporated into that university; and consequently that the old writers had some foundation for their statement on this head. But if this was the case, it is not very probable that the truth of it can be now ascertained. I have only to add, that I cannot perceive, from the records of Glasgow, that Knox took any degree there, which confirms the doubt that I have already expressed on that subject.

Note C.

Of the Early State of Grecian Literature in Scotland.—In this note I shall throw together such facts as I have met with relating to the introduction of the Greek language into Scotland, and the progress which it made during the sixteenth century. They are scanty; but I trust they will not be altogether unacceptable to those who take an interest in the subject.

In the year 1522, Boece mentions George Dundas as a good Greek scholar. He was master of the Knights of St John in Scotland, and had, most probably, acquired the knowledge of the language on the Continent. “Georgius Dundas grecas atq; latinas literas apprime doctus, equitum Hierosolymitanorum intra Scotorum regnum magistratum multo sudore (superatis emulis) postea adeptus.” Boetii Vitæ Episcop. Murth. et Aberdon. fol. xxvii. b. It is reasonable to suppose that some other individuals in the nation acquired it in the same way; but Boece makes no mention of Greek among the branches taught at the universities in his time, although he is minute in his details. Nor do I find any other reference to the subject previous to the year 1534, when Erskine of Dun brought a learned man from France, and employed him to teach Greek in Montrose, as mentioned in that part of the Life to which this note refers. At his school, George Wishart, the martyr, must have obtained the knowledge of the language, and he seems to have been assistant or successor to his master. The bishop of Brechin (William Chisholm), hearing that Wishart taught the Greek New Testament in Montrose, summoned him to appear before him on a charge of heresy, upon which he fled the kingdom. This was in 1538. Petrie, part ii. p. 182. It is likely that Knox was taught Greek by Wishart after the return of the latter from England. Buchanan seems to have acquired the language during his residence on the Continent. Epist. p. 25. Oper. edit. Rudd.

Lesley says, that James V., during his progress through the kingdom in 1540, came to Aberdeen, and among other entertainments which were given him, the students of the university “recited orations in the Greek and Latin tongue, composed with the greatest skill”—“Orationes in Greca Latinaque lingua, summo artificio instructæ.” Leslæus de rebus gestis Scotorum, lib. ix. p. 430. edit. 1675. When we consider the state of learning at that period in Scotland, there is reason for suspecting that the bishop’s description is highly coloured, yet as he entered that university a few years after, we may conclude from it that some attention was at that time paid to the study of Greek in Aberdeen. It might have been introduced by Hector Boece, the learned principal of that university. If the king was entertained with the great learning of the students of Aberdeen, the English ambassador was no less diverted, in the very same year, with the ignorance which our bishops discovered of the Greek tongue. The ambassador, who was a scholar as well as a statesman, had caused his men to wear on their sleeves the following Greek motto, ΜΟΝΩ ΑΝΑΚΤΙ ΔΟΥΛΕΥΩ, “I serve the king only.” This the Scottish bishops, whose knowledge did not extend beyond Latin, read Monachulus, “a little monk,” and thereupon circulated the report that the ambassador’s servants were monks, who had been taken out of the monasteries lately suppressed in England. To counteract this report, Sadler was obliged to furnish a translation of the inscription. “It appeareth (says he) they are no good Grecians. And now the effect of my words is known, and they be well laughed at for their learned interpretation.” Sadler’s Letters, i. 48, 49. Edinburgh, 1809. In a debate which occurred in the Parliament which met in 1543, individuals among the nobility and other lay members discovered more knowledge of Greek than all the ecclesiastical bench. Knox, Historie, 34.

Foreign writers have been amused with the information, that many of the Scottish clergy affirmed, “that Martin Luther had lately composed a wicked book called the New Testament; but that they, for their part, would adhere to the Old Testament.” Perizonii Hist. Seculi xvi. p. 233. Gerdesii Histor. Reform. tom. iv. p. 314. Buchanani Oper. i. 291. Ignorant, however, as our clergy were, they were not more illiterate than many on the Continent. A foreign monk, declaiming one day in the pulpit against Lutherans and Zuinglians, said to his audience: “A new language was invented some time ago, called Greek, which has been the mother of all these heresies. A book is printed in this language, called the New Testament, which contains many dangerous things. Another language is now forming, the Hebrew; whoever learns it immediately becomes a Jew.” No wonder, after this, that the commissioners of the senate of Lucern should have confiscated the works of Aristotle, Plato, and some of the Greek poets, which they found in the library of a friend of Zuinglius, concluding, that every book printed in that language must be infected with Lutheranism. J. von Mullers Schw. Gesch. Hess, Life of Ulrich Zuingle, p. 213.

To return to the seminary at Montrose: it was kept up, by the public spirit of its patron, until the establishment of the Reformation. Some years before that event, the celebrated linguist, Andrew Melville, received his education at this school, under Pierre de Marsiliers, a Frenchman. And he had made such proficiency in Greek, when he entered the university of St Andrews, about the year 1559, that he was able to read Aristotle in the original language, “which even his masters themselves understood not.” Life of Andrew Melville, p. 2, in Wodrow’s MSS. Bibl. Coll. Glas. vol. i. and James Melville’s Diary, p. 32. For, although the logics, ethics, &c. of Aristotle, were then read in the colleges, it was in a Latin translation. “The regent of St Leonard’s,” says James Melville, “tauld me of my uncle Mr Andro Melvill, whom he knew, in the tyme of his cours in the new collag, to use the Greik logicks of Aristotle, quhilk was a wonder to them, he was so fyne a scholar, and of sic expectation.” MS. Diary, p. 25.

By the First Book of Discipline, it was provided, that there should “be a reader of Greek” in one of the colleges of each university, who “shall compleat the grammar thereof in three months,” and “shall interpret some book of Plato, together with some places of the New Testament, and shall compleat his course the same year.” Dunlop’s Confessions, ii. 553. The small number of learned men, the deficiency of funds, and the confusions in which the country was afterwards involved, prevented, in a great degree, the execution of this wise measure. Owing to the last of these circumstances, some learned Scotsmen devoted their talents to the service of foreign seminaries, instead of returning to their native country. Buchanani Epist. p. 7, 9, 10, 33. One of these was Henry Scrimger, celebrated for his Grecian literature. Some particulars respecting him may be seen in Senebier, Hist. Litter. de Geneve, tom. i. art. Scrimger. See also Teissier, Eloges. tom. iii. 383‒385. Leide, 1715. On account of the scarcity of preachers, it was also found necessary to settle several of the learned men in towns which were not the seat of a university. Some of these undertook the instruction of youth, along with the pastoral inspection of their parishes. John Row taught the Greek tongue in Perth. See vol. ii. Note C. The venerable teacher, Andrew Simson, (see p. 5,) does not appear to have been capable of this task; but he was careful that his son Patrick should not labour under the same defect. He was sent to the university of Cambridge, in which he made great proficiency; and after his return to Scotland, taught Greek at Spot, a village in East Lothian, where he was minister for some time. Row’s MS. p. 96 of a copy in the Divinity Lib. Edin. It is reasonable to suppose, that this branch of study would not be neglected at St Andrews during the time that Buchanan was principal of St Leonard’s college, from 1565 to 1570. Patrick Adamson, to whom he demitted this office, and whom he recommended for his “literature and sufficiency,” (Buch. Op. i. 10,) was not then in the kingdom; and the state of education languished for some time in that university. James Melville, who entered it in 1570, gives the following account. “Our regent begoud, and teacheth us the a, b, c, of the Greik, and the simple declinationis, but went no farder.” MS. Diary, p. 26. Græcum est, non legitur, was at this time an adage, even with persons who had received a university education. Row’s MS. ut supra.

The return of Andrew Melville in 1574, gave a new impulse to literature in Scotland. That celebrated scholar had perfected himself in the knowledge of the languages during the nine years which he spent on the Continent, and had astonished the learned at Geneva by the fluency with which he read and spoke Greek. MS. Diary, ut sup. p. 33. He was first made Principal of the university of Glasgow, and afterwards removed to the university of St Andrews. Such was his celebrity, that he attracted students from England and foreign countries, whereas formerly it had been the custom for the Scottish youth to go abroad for their education. Spotswood, with whom he was no favourite, and Calderwood, equally bear testimony to his profound knowledge of this language. Soon after Melville, Thomas Smeton, another Greek scholar, returned to Scotland, and was made Principal of the university of Glasgow.—I may mention here, although it belongs to the subject of typography, that there appear to have been neither Greek nor Hebrew types in this country in 1579, when Smeton’s Answer to Archibald Hamilton was printed; for blanks are left for all the phrases and quotations in these languages, which the author intended to introduce. In my copy of the book, a number of the blanks have been filled up with a pen by the author’s own hand.

Note D.

Of Major’s Political Sentiments.—The following are some of the passages from which the account of these, given in the text, has been drawn. Similar sentiments occur in his History of Scotland; but as it has been insinuated that he, in that work, merely copied Boece, I shall quote from his other writings, which are more rarely consulted.

“Ad policiam regalem non requiritur quod rex sit supra omnes sui regni tam regulariter quam casualiter—sed sat est quod rex sit supra unumquamlibet, et supra totum regnum regulariter, et regnum sit supra eum casualiter et in aliquo eventu.” Again, “Similiter in regno: et in toto populo libero est suprema fontalis potestas inabrogabilis; in rege vero potestas mysterialis [ministerialis?] honesto ministerio. Et sic aliquo modo sunt duo potestates; sed quia una ordinetur propter aliam, potest vocari una effectualiter, et casu quo regnum rex in tyrannidem convertat et etiam incorrigibilis, potest a populo deponi, tanquam a superiore potestate.” Expos. Matth. fol. 71, a. c. Paris. 1518. To the objection urged against this principle from the metaphorical designation of head given to a king, he answers: “Non est omnino simile inter caput verum et corpus verum, et inter caput mysticum et corpus mysticum. Caput verum est supra reliquam partem sui corporis, et tamen nego regem esse majoris potestatis quam reliquam partem sui regni,” &c. Ibid. fol. 62. b. “Rex utilitatem reipublicæ dissipans et evertens incorrigibilis, est deponendus a communitate cui præest. Rex non habet robur et auctoritatem nisi a regno cui libere præest,” Ibid. fol. 69. c. Speaking of the excision of a corrupt member from the human body, in illustration of the treatment of a tyrant, he says: “Cum licentia totius corporis veri tollitur hoc membrum; etiam facultate totius corporis mystici, tu, tamque minister com̃itatis, potes hunc tyrannum occidere, dum est licite condempnatus.” Tert. Sentent. fol. 139, c. d. Paris. 1517.

Note E.

Concerning the Popish Ordination of Knox.—Some have hesitated to admit that Knox was in priest’s orders in the church of Rome: I think it unquestionable. The fact is attested both by protestant and popish writers. Beza says, “Cnoxius, igitur, (ut manifeste appareat totum hoc admirabile Domini opus esse) ad Joannis illius Majoris, celeberrimi inter Sophistas nominis, veluti pedes in Sanctandreæ oppido educatus, atque adeo Sacerdos factus, apertaque celebri schola, quum jam videretur illo suo præceptore nihil inferior Sophista futurus, lucem tamen in tenebris et sibi et aliis accendit.” Icones Illustr. Viror. Ee. iij. Comp. Spotswood’s History, p. 265. Lond. 1677. Ninian Winget, in certain letters sent by him to Knox in the year 1561, says, “Ye renunce and estemis that ordinatioun null or erar wikit, be the quhilk somtyme ye war callit Schir Johne.” And again: “We can persave, be your awin allegiance, na power that ever ye had, except it quhilk was gevin to you in the sacrament of ordination, be auctoritie of priesthed. Quhilk auctoritie give ye esteme as nochtis, be reasoun it was gevin to you (as ye speik) by ane Papist Bishope,” &c. Winzet’s Letteris and Tractatis: Keith, Append. p. 212, 213. Winget’s drift was to prove, that Knox had no lawful call to the ministry: consequently, he would not have mentioned his popish ordination, if the fact had not been well known and undeniable. Nicol Burne, arguing on the same point, allows that Knox had received the order of priesthood from the Romish church. Disputation concerning the Controversit Headdis of Religion, p. 128. Paris, 1581. And in a scurrilous poem against the ministers of Scotland, printed at the end of that book, he calls him,

―――――― that fals apostat priest,

Enemie to Christ, and mannis salvatioun,

Your maister Knox.

The objection of the Roman Catholics to the legality of our Reformer’s vocation, was, that although he had received the power of order, he wanted that of jurisdiction; these two being distinct according to the canon law, “The powere of ordere is not sufficient to ane man to preache, bot he man have also jurisdictione over thame to whom he preaches. Johann Kmnox resavit never sic jurisdictione fra the Roman kirk to preache in the realme of Scotland: thairfoir suppoise he receavit from it the ordere of priestheade, yet he had na pouar to preache, nor to lauchfullie administrat the Sacramentes.” Nicol Burne’s Disputation, p. 128.

Note F.

Number of Scottish Monks.—We have no good Monasticon of Scotland; and it is now impossible to ascertain the exact number of regular clergy, or even religious houses, that were in this country. The best and most particular account of the introduction of the different monastic orders from England and the Continent is contained in the first volume of Mr Chalmers’s Caledonia. Dr Jamieson, in his history of the ancient Culdees, lately published, has traced, with much attention, the measures pursued for suppressing the ancient monks, to make way for the new orders which were immediately dependent upon Rome. In Spotswood’s Account, published at the end of Keith’s Catalogue of Bishops, 170 religious houses are enumerated; but his account is defective. Mr Dalyell, upon the authority of a MS., has stated the number of the monks and nuns in this country as amounting only to 1114, about the period of the Reformation. Cursory remarks prefixed to Scottish Poems of the 16th century, vol. i. p. 38, 39. Edin. 1801. Taking the number of monasteries according to Spotswood’s account, this would allow only seven persons to each house on an average, a number incredibly small. It will be still smaller, if we suppose that there were 260 religious houses, as stated by Mr Dalyell in another publication. Fragments of Scottish History, p. 11, 28. In the year 1542, there were 200 monks in Melrose alone. Ibid. The number in the abbey of Dunfermline seems to have varied from 30 to 50. Dalyell’s Tract on Monastic Antiquities, p. 13. And Paisley, Elgin, and Arbroath, were not inferior to it in their endowments.

In general it may be observed, that the passion for the monastic life appears not to have been on the increase even in the early part of the 16th century. But if we would form an estimate of the number of the monks, we must allow for a great diminution from 1538 to 1559. During that period, many of them, and especially the younger ones, embraced the reformed opinions, and deserted the convents. Cald. MS. i. 97, 100, 151. When the monastery of the Greyfriars at Perth was destroyed in 1559, only eight monks belonged to it. Knox, Historie, p. 128.

Note G.

Of the Corpse‑present.—This was a forced benevolence, not due by any law, or canon of the church, at least in Scotland. It was demanded by the vicar, and seems to have been distinct from the ordinary dues exacted for the interment of the body, and deliverance of the soul from purgatory. This perquisite consisted, in country parishes, of the best cow which belonged to the deceased, and the uppermost cloth or covering of his bed, or the finest of his body‑clothes. It has been suggested, that it was exacted on pretext of dues which the person might have failed to pay during his lifetime. But whatever might afterwards be made the pretext, I think it most probable that the clergy borrowed the hint from the perquisites common in feudal times. The “cors‑presant kow” answers to the “hereyield horse,” which was paid to a landlord on the death of his tenant. The uppermost cloth seems to have been a perquisite belonging to persons occupying different offices. When Bishop Lesley was relieved from the Tower of London, a demand of this kind was made upon him. “The gentleman‑porter of the Tower (says he) retained my satin gown as due to him, because it was my uppermost‑cloth when I entered in the Tower.” Negotiations, in Anderson’s Collections, iii. 247.

The corpse‑present was not confined to Scotland. We find the English House of Commons complaining of it, in 1530. Fox, 907, edit. 1596. It was exacted with great rigour in Scotland; and if any vicar, more humane than the rest, passed from the demand, he gave an unpardonable offence to his brethren. Lindsay of Pitscottie’s Hist. p. 151, folio edit. Edin. 1728. Fox, 1153. It was felt as a very galling oppression, and is often mentioned with indignation in the writings of Sir David Lindsay.

Schir, be quhat law, tell me quharefor, or why,

That ane vickar suld tak fra me three ky?

Ane for my father, and for my wyfe ane uther,

And the third kow he tuke for Mald my mother.

They haif na law, exceptand consuetude,

Quhilk law to them is sufficient and gude.

And als the vicar, as I trow,

He will nocht faill to tak ane kow

And upmaist claith, thocht babis thame ban,

From ane pure selie husbandman;

Quhen that he lyis for til de,

Having small bairnis twa or thre,

And hes thre ky withoutin mo,

The vicar must have ane of tho,

With the gray cloke that happis the bed,

Howbeit that he be purelye cled;

And gif the wyfe de on the morne,

Thocht all the babis suld be forlorne,

The uther kow he cliekis away,

With hir pure cote of roplock gray;

And gif, within twa days or thre,

The eldest chyld hapinis to de,

Of the third kow he will be sure.

Quhen he hes all then under his cure,

And father and mother baith ar deid,

Beg mon the babis, without remeid.

Chalmers’s Lindsay, ii. 7, 8, iii. 105.

When the alarming progress of the new opinions threatened the overthrow of the whole establishment, the clergy professed their willingness to remit, or at least to moderate, this shameful tribute. But they did not make this concession until a remonstrance on the subject was presented by a number of persons who were attached to the Roman catholic faith. This remonstrance was laid before the Provincial Council in 1558‒9, and contains the following article, which serves to corroborate the strong statement which the poet has given of the rigour of the clergy in extorting these benevolences. “Item, Because yat ye corps presentes, kow, and finest claith, and the silver commonlie callit the kirk richts, and Pasch offrands, quhilk is taken at Pasch fra men and women for distribution of ye sacraments of ye blessit body and blud of Jesus Christ, were at ye beginning but as offrands and gifts, at the discretion and benevolence of the givar only; and now be distance of tym, ye kirkmen usis to compell men to ye paying yarof be authority and jurisdiction, sua that yai will not only fulminat yar sentence of cursing, but als stop and debar men and women to cum to ye reddy using of ye sacraments of haly kirk, quhile yai be sattisfiet yarof with all rigor: quhilk thing has na ground of ye law of God, nor halie kirk, and als is veray sclandrous, and gives occasion to the puir to murmur gretymly againes ye state ecclesiastick for the doing of ye premissis; and therefore it is thocht expedient yat ane reformation be maid of ye premissis, and that sic things be na mair usit in tymes to cum within this realm, at ye least yat na man be compellit be authority of haly kirk to pay ye premissis; but yat it shall onlie remane in the free will of the giver to gif and offir sic things be way of almous, and for uphalding of ye priests and ministers of the halie kirk, as his conscience and charitie moves him to: and quhair ye curatis and ministers forsaids, has not eneuch of yar sustentation by the saids kirk richts, that ye ordinaries every man within his awin diocesie take order, that the persons and uplifters of ye uther deutys perteining to the kirk, contributs to yar sustentation effeirindlie.” Wilkins, Concilia Magnæ Britanniæ, tom. iv. p. 208.

Upon this, the council came to the following curious resolution on the subject: That to “take away the murmurs of those who spoke against mortuaries,” when any person died, his goods, after paying his debts, should be divided into due portions (debitas partes), and if the dead’s part (defuncti pars) [see Note X] did not exceed ten pounds Scots, the vicar should compound for his mortuary and uppermost cloth by taking forty shillings; if it was under ten pounds, and not below twenty shillings, that he should compound according to the above proportion, (pro rata quadraginta solidorum de decem libris;) but if it was under twenty shillings, that the vicar should make no demand. With respect to barons and burgesses, and all persons whose portion exceeded ten pounds, the old custom was to remain in force; and the ordinary remedy was to be used against those who should make wrong inventories; i.e. they should be subjected to excommunication and its penalties.—With respect to pasch‑offerings, and small tithes, the council decreed, that “for avoiding popular murmur, especially at the time of Easter,” the vicars should, a little before Lent, in the month of February, settle (or, make an agreement, rationem ineant) with their parishioners for their small tithes, both personal and mixed, and also for other offerings due to the church (aliis quoque oblationibus ecclesiæ debitis); and that there should be no exactions during Easter, although spontaneous oblations might still be received at that time. Can. Concil. 21. and 32: Wilkins, Concil. ut supra, p. 214, 216.

It appears from this, how very cautious the clergy were in their plans of reform, and how eagerly they clung to the most illegal and invidious claims, at the very time when they were in the utmost danger of being deprived of all their usurped prerogatives and possessions. Lord Hailes’s words need explication, when he says that “the 32d canon [of this council] abolishes oblations at Easter.” Provincial Councils, p. 40.

I need scarcely add, that all these exactions were abolished at the establishment of the Reformation. “The uppermost claith, corps‑present, clerk‑maile, the pasche‑offering, teind‑aile, and all handlings upaland, can neither be required nor received of good conscience.” First Book of Discipline, p. 48. Printed Anno 1621. Dunlop’s Confessions, ii. 563.

Note H.

Scottish Martyrs, and Prosecutions for Heresy.—We are indebted to John Fox, the industrious English martyrologist, for a great part of the facts respecting our countrymen who suffered for the reformed doctrine. John Davidson, minister of Prestonpans, composed, in Latin, an account of Scottish martyrs, which, if it had been preserved, would have furnished us with more full information respecting them. Calderwood, however, had the use of it, when he compiled his history. A late author has said, that “most of those martyred seem to have been weak illiterate men; nay, they appear even to have been deficient in intellect.” Cursory Remarks, prefixed to Scottish Poems of 16th century, i. 24. I must take it for granted, that this author had not in his eye Patrick Hamilton, whose vigorous understanding discovered truth in the midst of darkness worse than Cimmerian, who obtained the praises of Luther, Melanchthon, and Lambert of Avignon, and of whom a modern historian has said that he received “the eternal fame of being the proto‑martyr of the freedom of the human mind.” Nor George Wishart, whose learning, fortitude, and mild benevolence, have been celebrated by writers of every description. But even among those who suffered from Hamilton to Wishart, there was scarcely one who was not above the ordinary class, both as to talents and learning.

Henry Forrest, who suffered at St Andrews in 1530, for possessing a copy of the New Testament, and affirming that Patrick Hamilton was a true martyr, had been, though a young man, invested with the orders of Bennet and Colet. Fox, 895. Knox, 19. Spotswood, 65. David Straiton was a gentleman, and brother to the laird of Lauriston. He was instructed in the protestant principles by John Erskine of Dun, who had newly arrived from his travels. In 1534, he was committed to the flames at Greenside, in the neighbourhood of Edinburgh. His fellow‑sufferer, Norman Gourlay, was in secular orders, and “a man of reasonabell eruditioun.” He had been abroad, and had married upon his return, which was the chief offence for which he suffered. “For,” says Pitscottie, “they would thole no priest to marry, but they would punish, and burn him to the dead; but if he had used then ten thousand whores, he had not been burnt.” History, p. 150, 152. Fox, 896. Knox, 21, 22. Spotswood, 66. In 1538, two young men of the most interesting characters suffered, with the greatest heroism, at Glasgow. The one was Jerom Russel, a cordelier friar, “a young man of a meek nature, quick spirit, and of good letteris;” the other was a young gentleman of the name of Kennedy, only eighteen years of age, and “of excellent ingyne for Scottische poetry.” Knox, 22. Spotsw. 67. Keith, 9. During the same year, five persons were burnt on the Castle‑hill of Edinburgh: Robert Forrester was a gentleman; Sir Duncan Simson was a secular priest; Beveridge and Kyllor were friars. The last of these had (according to the custom of the times) composed a tragedy on the crucifixion of Christ, in which he painted, in a very lively manner, the conduct of the popish clergy, under that of the Jewish priests. Ibid.

The other person who suffered at that time was Thomas Forrest, commonly called the Vicar of Dollar. I shall add some particulars respecting this excellent man, which are not to be found in the common histories. He was of the house of Forret, or Forest, in Fife, and his father had been master‑stabler to James IV. After acquiring the rudiments of grammar in Scotland, he was sent abroad by the kindness of a noblewoman, and prosecuted his education at Cologne. Returning to his native country, he was admitted a canon regular in the monastery of St Colm’s Inch. It happened that a dispute arose between the abbot and the canons, respecting the allowance due to them, and the latter got the book of foundation to examine into their rights. With the view of inducing them to part with it, the abbot gave them a volume of Augustine’s works, which was in the monastery. “O, happy and blessed was that book to me,” did Forrest often say, “by which I came to the knowledge of the truth!” Having applied himself to the reading of the Scriptures, he was the means of converting a number of the young canons: “but the old bottles,” he used to say, “would not receive the new wine.” The abbot frequently advised him to keep his mind to himself, else he would incur punishment. “I thank you, my lord,” was his answer, “ye are a friend to my body, but not to my soul.” He was afterwards admitted to the vicarage of Dollar, in which situation he rendered himself obnoxious to his brethren, by his diligence in instructing his parish, and his benevolence in freeing them from oppressive exactions. When the agents of the pope came into his bounds to sell indulgences, he said, “Parishioners, I am bound to speak the truth to you; this is but to deceive you. There is no pardon for our sins that can come to us, either from pope or any other, but only by the blood of Christ.” He composed a short catechism. It was his custom to rise at six o’clock in the morning, and study till midday. He committed three chapters of the bible to memory every day, and made his servant hear him repeat them at night. He was often summoned before the bishops of Dunkeld and St Andrews. These facts were communicated by his servant Andrew Kirkie, in a letter to John Davidson, who inserted them in his account of Scottish martyrs. Cald. MS. i. 99, 100, 151.

An amusing account of the vicar’s examination before the bishop of Dunkeld may be seen in Fox, 1153; and an interesting account of his trial in Pitscottie, 150‒152. But both these authors are wrong as to the time of his martyrdom, the latter placing it in 1530, and the former in 1540, instead of 1538. Fox says, that three or four men of Stirling suffered death at the same time, because they were present at the marriage of “the vicar of Twybode [Tullybody], near Stirling, and did eat flesh in Lent, at the said bridal.” p. 1154.

In consequence of a more diligent search into our ancient records, made since the former editions of this work appeared, I have discovered a number of additional facts respecting those who suffered for the reformed opinions in Scotland. I think it best to give these in the form, and in the order, in which they occur in the several records that I have consulted. It appears that the prosecutions for heresy from 1534 to 1540 were numerous. How many poor persons suffered during that period it is impossible to ascertain, as the names of those only who possessed property have a place in the documents to be quoted.

The following extracts are taken from the books kept by the lord treasurer, and preserved in the Register House, under the title of “Compot. Thesaur.” The dates will be sufficient to guide those who wish to consult the original document.480

Anno 1534. Item, for 16 sergis to thame to turss that was accusit of heresy xs. viiid.

Item, (Sept. 1536.) to James Bissat, m^r, to pas with lettres to the provost and bailies of Dunde and Sanct Johnestoun to serche and seik John Blacat and George Lowett [Lovell?] suspect of hanging of the image of Sanct Francis, and to his wage xxs.

Item, 28. (May, 1537.) to Cudde George, m^r, to pas to summon the men of Aire, to compeir befoir the Lordis, anent the geir of theme quhilk was convict of heresy xxs.

Annis 1537, 1538. Et (onerat se) de iiij li. integre compositionis bonorum eschaetorum quondam Andreæ Alexandersoun, justificat. pro crimine heresis.

Et de xiiii li. vi. s. viii d. integre compositionis bonorum eschaetorum Gilberti Wedderburne, et Johannis Patersoun, burgen. de Dunde, pertinent. domino Regi, ratione quod ipsi convicti fuerint per judicium ecclesiæ, de crimine heresis eiisd. vendit.

Annis 1538, 1539. Et (onerat se) de x li. in completam solutionem compositionis bonorum eschaetorum Thome Kyd, Roberti Patersone, Alexandri Wannand, et Johannis Patersone, commorañ in oppido de Dunde, abiurat. de certis criminibus heresieos eisdem concess. de mandato domini regis.

Et de vj^li xiij^s iiij^d. in completam solutionem bonorum eschaetorum quondam domini Duncani Symsone capellani condamnati et ad mortem justificati pro certis criminibus heresieos concess. Jacobo Menteith.

Et de xx^li in completam solutionem compositionis vinius tenementi jacen. infra burgum de Dunde, pertinen. domino Regi per decessum David Straitoun in Quhitstoun, justificati ad mortem pro certis criminibus heresieos concess. Dauid Garne et Mariote Erskyn.

Et de vj^li xiij^s iiij^d in completam solutionem compositionis bonorum eschaetorum Roberti Cant, abiurati de certis criminibus heresieos concess. dicto Roberto.

Et de xx^li in completam solutionem compositionis bonorum eschaetorum Walteri Cowsland, burgensis de Striueling, abiurati de similibus criminibus concess. dicto Waltero.

Et de iij^li in completam solutionem compositionis bonorum eschaetorum Johannis Robesone, pauperis, abiurati certis criminibus heresios eiidem concess.

Et de xx^li in completam solutionem compositionis unius partis bonorum eschaetorum Jacobi Rollok, burgensis de Dunde, condampnati de certis criminibus heresieos concess. David Rollok, eius fratri.

Et de xl^s in completam solutionem compositionis bonorum eschaetorum magistri Johannis Wedderburn, convict. de certis criminibus heresieos concess. Henrico Wedderburn eius fratri.

Et de, &c. Margarete Jamesone in Tulybody, condampnate de certis criminibus heresieos concess. Jacobo Murray, servitori domini regis.

Et de, &c. Henrici Carnys, incole de Leith, fugitiui et condampnati de certis criminibus heresieos concess. uxori et prolibus eiusdem de mandato domini Regis.

Et de, &c. Willielmi Clerk fugitiui et condampnati de certis criminibus heresieos concess. Alex^ro Urrok de Sillebanke.

Et de, &c. Willielmi Foster abiurati de certis criminibus heresieos concess. Johanni Cowane et Jonete Tenand, eius sponse.

Item, idem onerat se de xl^li in completam solutionem compositionis bonorum eschaetorum domini Thome Coklaw, curati de Tulybody, condampnati de certis criminibus heresieos concess. Jacobo Murray, seruitori domini regis.

Marche (1538‒9). Item, deliuerit to Archibald Heriot, messinger, to pass and serche thair gudis, quhilkis war obiurit and declarit heritikis in Edinbur^t and Striueling vis.

Item, deliuerit to Johnne Patersone pursevant—to pass to Dunde, and serche James Rollokkis gudis, and Maister Johnne Wedderburn xxs.

Annis 1539, 1540. (Non onerat se, &c.) Nec de x^li in completam solutionem compositionis bonorum eschaetorum magistri Henrici Henderson convict. de crimine heresieos ab antiquo concess. Jacobo Bannattyne, ex eo quod dominus rex remisit eandem summam dicto Jacobo, in compensatione suorum laborum in officio thesaurarie.

Anno 1542‒3. Item, the xxi day of Marche, geven to William Champney, messinger, passand with lettres to proclame the act anent the having of the New Testament in Inglis in the Westland xls.

Similar letters to the Magistrates of Dundee, Aberdeen, Elgin, Forres, and Inverness; and to Lanark, Dumfries, Kirkcudbright, Wigton.

Item, the xxviii day of Marche, geven to Johnne Cob, messinger, passand to Dumfermeling and Perth, to proclame twa letteris tuiching the having of the Scripture in Inglis, and with ane clois writting to the erle of Argyle xxiis.

Item, the xx day of Februar, gevin to Carrick pursuivant, passand with lettres to proclame in Sanctandrois and Cowper the act tuiching the doing of devyne service, and lettres raisit thairupon xxiis.

Annis 1543‒1546. Et (onerat se) de ij^{c li} compositionis bonorum eschaetorum Jacobi Huncan et Roberti Cant, convict. pro disputatione in Sacris Scripturis contra tenorem acti parliamenti, concess. Cristine Pipar.

――――― Willielmi Anderson convict. ut supra ob causam suprascriptam, concess. Cristine Kerss, sponse dicti Willielmi.

Et de ij^{c li} compositionis remissionis concess. Johanni Elder,481 burgensis de Perth, pro disputatione in Sacris Scripturis contra tenorem acti parliamenti.

Et de xl^li compositionis remissionis concess. Laurencio Pillour, pro predicta causa.481

Item, the xij day of Januar 1543‒4, after the aggreance maid betwix my lord governour and the saidis lordis, convenit in Leith, aganis his grace hyrit liiij cart hors quhilk past agane to Striviling with the said artalze, and fra Striviling to Sanct Johnstoun, Dunde, for punissing of certane hereticks within the said townes, and paid the saidis hors eight days wages, &c.

January 20. At my lord governoris departing toward Sanct Johnestoun, for punishment as said is.

Item, (16 March 1545‒6), to summons the laird of Ormistoun to underly the law in Edinburgh, the xij day of Aprile nixt to cum, for resetting of Maister George Wischeart, he being at the horne, &c., and for breaking ward.

Item, xxviij May, (1546), to ane boy to pas to my lord Argyle with ane closit writting of my lord governours, to shew the slaughtar of the Cardinal viijs.

November 24, 1546. For copying of the gret cursing raisit upon Normond Leslie, laird of Grange, and their complices, for the slauchter of my lord Cardinall, quhilk copie was sent to thame in the castell vs.

December. For summonding Jonet Monnypennie, dochter of the laird of Pitmilly, for remaining in the castle, and assisting Leslie and his complices.

December 1548. Summons of treason against the laird of Pitmilly, and Mr Henry Balnaves.

January 1551‒2. Item, for the Inglis bukis to my lord governour, viz. ane perraphrasis upoun the Evangelistis, and ane New Testament, and Hopper on the x Commandementes iij^li xvs.

The extracts which follow are from the Register of Privy Seal, and contain grants of property which had been confiscated by sentences of the ecclesiastical courts for heresy, but which was afterwards bestowed on certain individuals upon their paying a composition to the royal treasury.

Ane letter maid to Andro, lord Vchiltre, of the gift of all eschete gudis movabill and vnmovabill, als wele of the byrun malis of parroche clerkschippis, as vtherwais pertenyng to vmq^ll Walter Stewart, sone to the said lord, and pertenis to our souerane lord, be resoun þat the said Walter was abiurit of heresy, etc. At Linlithgow, the xxix day of December, the ȝeir of God I^mv^c. xxxvij ȝeris. xx^li. [Reg. Sec. Sigilli, lib. xi. f. 51.] Per Signaturam.

Ane letter maid to James Annand, George Annand, Robert Andersoun, Johnne Flescheour, and Alexander Flescheour, burges of Dunde, makand mentiouñ that þai ar convict be ane sentence of the spirituale juge of heresy, of the quhilk þai wer dilatit and abiurit, quharthrow all þare gudis, movabill and vnmovabill, pertenis, and suld pertene, to our souerane lord, be resouñ of eschete. And for þair gude, trew, and thankfull seruice, done be þame to his hienes, and compositioun pait be þame to his thesaurer, his grace hes remittit and forgevin to thame the eschete of all þair gudis, movabill and vnmovabill, and hes quitclamit and dischargit þaim þairof, and all þat may follow þairvpouñ, foreuer. And als his grace, of his speciale grace, autorite riall and kinglie power, hes rehabilit the saidis personis to stand in prief and witness, and to vse and exerce all lefull dedis in jugement, and outwith siclik and als frelie in all thingis, as þai my^t haue done befor the tyme þat þai wer convict of the said heresy, and incurrit þairthrow notam infamie. And hes restorit, reponit, and reintegrate þame to þare gude fame, heritage, landis, gudis, and warldie honouris, in all, and be all thingis, as þai wer befor the tyme þai wer convict of the said heresy, without ony reproche, murmur, detractioun, or blasphematiouñ, to be maid, said, or done to þame þairthrow, in word or deid, in onywys in tyme cuming, &c. At Edinburgh, the xvij day of July, the ȝer of God I^mv^c. xxxviij ȝeris, i^cli. [Lib. xij. f. 23.] Per Signaturam.

Ane letter maid to Dauid Wod, in the craig, his airis and assignais, of the gift of all gudis, movable and vnmovable, quhilkis pertenit to James Hay, burges of Dunde. And now ar decernit be ane sentence of the spirituale juge, to pertene to our souerane lord be resoun of eschete for heresy, of the quhilk he wes dilatit, &c. At Edinburgh, the xxvij day of July, the ȝeire of God forsaid (1538). [Lib. xij. f. 3.] Per Signaturam.

Ane letter maid to Maister Laurence Young, his airis and assignais, ane or ma, of the gift of all gudis, movabill and vnmovabill, q^lkis pertenit to vmq^ll Andro Alexandersouñ, and now pertenyng to our souerane lord be resoun of eschete, throw being of the said vmqle Andro convict of heresy, and justifyit to the deid for the samyn, with power, &c. At Stirling, the xxiij day of August, the ȝeir of God I^mv^c. xxxviij. ȝeris iiij^li. [Lib. xij. f. 19.]

Ane letter maid to Gilbert Wedderburñ, and Johne Patersoun, burgesses of Dunde, in forme aboue writtin, &c. At Linlithgow, þe viij day of September, the ȝer forsaid. xiij^li. vi^s. viij^d. [Lib. xij. f. 23.] Per Signaturam.

Ane letter maid to Richart Rollok, burges of Dunde, in forme following: James be the grace of God king of Scottis, to all and sindry our officiaris, liegis, and subditis, quham it efferis, quhais knawlege þir our letters sal cum, greting. fforsamekle as Richart Rollok, burges of our burgh of Dunde, wes dilatit of certane poyntis of heresy, and wes abiurit and convict þ^rof, quharthrow all his landis and gudis, &c. &c. [as above,] in tyme cuming. Quharfore we charge straitlie, and commandis ȝou, all and sindry our officiaris, liegis, and subditis forsaidis, þat nane of ȝou tak apouñ hand to do or attempt ony thing in contrar, violatiouñ, or breking of þis our remit, and discharge, rehabilitatiouñ, restitutiouñ, and reintegratiouñ, in ony wyse in tyme cuming, vnder all the hieast pane, charge, and offence, þat ȝe, and ilk ane of ȝou, may committ and inrin aganis our maiestie in þat part, dischargeing ȝou, all our officiaris present and tocum, of all intrometting, poynding, distrinȝeing, and vptaking of þe said Richartis gudis, as our eschete for þe causs forsaid, and of ȝour offices in þat part, be þir our letteris for euer. Subscriuit with our hand, and vnder our priue sele, at Abirbrothok, the xiij day of October, the ȝere of God I^mv^c. xxxviij ȝeris. [Lib. xij. f. 33, b.] Subscrip^t per Regem.

Ane letter maid to Thomas Kyd, Robert Patersoun, Alexander Vannand, and Johne Duncane, burges of Dunde, in forme of the letter befor writtin, &c. At Linlithgow, the last day of September, the ȝer of God I^mv^c. xxxviij ȝeris. x^li. [Lib. xij. f. 33.] Per Signaturam.

Ane letter maid to maister Johne Porterfeild, his airis and assignais, ane or ma, of the gift of all gudis, movabill and vnmovable, als weile of the birun proffittis of parroche‑clerkschippis, as vtheris quhilkis pertenit to vmq^ll Walter Stewart, sone to Andro, lord Vchiltre, and throw his abiuratiouñ of heresy, pertenyng to our souerane lord be resouñ of eschete, &c. At Edinburgh, the xiij day of December, the ȝeire of God I^mv^c. xxxviij ȝeris. [Lib. xiij. f. 18.] Per Signaturam.

Ane letter maid to the said James (Murray), his airis and assignais, are or ma, of the gift of the gudis, movabill and vnmovabill, quhilkis pertenit to S^r Thomas Coklaw, curat of Tulibody, and now to our souerane lord, throw being of the said S^r Thomas abiurit of heresy, &c. At Linlithgow, the xvij day of Januar, the ȝer of God I^mv^c. xxxviij ȝeris. xl^li. [Lib. xij. f. 94.] Per Signaturam.

Presentatio Alexandri Scott, super prebenda capelle regie Striuilingeñ, nuncupat. are quam Dominus Johannes Lambert prius habuit nunc vacañ ob inhabilitatem ipsius Domini Johannis, ex eo quod ipse de suis ordinibus, sacerdotalibus, degradatus, extitit ad presentationem domini regis, et collationem episcopi Candidecase et capelle regie pleno jure spectañ, &c. Apud Edinburgh, vltimo Februarij, anno predic^t (1538). [Ib. f. 71.] Per Signaturam.

Ane letter maid to James Menteith, his airis and assignais, of the gift of the eschete of all gudis, quhilkis pertenit to vmq^ll Sir Duncane Symsouñ, chaplane, and pertenyng to our souerane lord be resouñ of eschete, throw justifying of the said S^r Duncane to the deid for certane crymes of heresy, imput to him, &c. At Edinburgh, the first day of Marche, the ȝer forsaid (1538.) vj^li. xiij^s. iiij^d. except takis and stedingis. [Lib. xij. f. 76.] Per Signaturam.

Ane letter maid to Robert Cant, burges of Edinburgh, of the gift of his avne eschete guidis pertenyng to the king be resouñ forsaid, &c. At Linlithgow, the vj day of Marche, the ȝer forsaid (1538.) vj^li. xiij^s. iiij^d. [Ib. f. 80.] Per Signaturam.

Ane letter maid to Walter Cowsland, burges of Striuiling, of the gift of his avne gudis, movabill and vnmovabill, pertening to the kingis grace be resouñ of eschete throw being of the said Robert abiurit of heresy, &c. At Linlithgow, the aucht day of Marche, the ȝer forsaid (1538). [Ib. f. 80.] Per Signaturam.

Preceptum carte Davidis Gardin, burgeñ de Dunde, et Mariote Erskin, sue sponse super toto et integro illo tenemento, cum pertineñ jaceñ infra predictum burgum, ex parte boreali vici vulgo Murray gait eiusdem nuncupa^t inter terras heredum quondam Johannis Barie ex parte orientali et terras heredum quondam Roberti Ramsay ex occidentali. Quodquidem terre tenementum quondam Dauid Stratoun perprius hereditarie pertinuit et nunc Regi pertinet ratione eschaete ob heresis punctus per ipsum commiss. de quibus accusatus et ad mortem justificatus extitit, &c. Apud Linlithgow, decimo die mensis Martij, anno domini I^mv^c. xxxviij. [Lib. xiij. f. 26.] Per Signetum.

Ane letter maid to Martyne Ballesky, renunceand to him the eschete of all his gudis, movabill and vnmovabill, and quitclamand and dischargeand him þairof, pertening to our souerane lord throw cumin in will of the said Martyne befor the justice, for breking of our souerane lordis proclamatiouñ, in having and vsing, efter þe making þairof, of certane Inglis bukis contenit in the samyn, &c. At Linlithgow, the xij day of Marche, the ȝer forsaid (1538.) ij^c. l^li. [Lib. xij. f. 81.] Per Signaturam.

Ane letter maid to Maister James Foulis of Colintoun, clerk of register, his airis and assignais, ane or ma, of the gift of all and sindry the gudis, movabill and vnmovabill, landis, rentis, possessionis, reversionis, dettis, obligationis, and contractis, with the advocatioun and donatioun of the chaplanrie foundit at Sanct Francis altar, within the college kirk of Sanct Gele, in Edinburgh, with all richt of the patronage þairof, and all vther richtis quhatsumever quhilkis pertenit to Johne Broun, burges of Edinburgh, and now pertenis to o^r souerane lord, be resoun of eschete throw being of the said Johne dilatit, accusit, and abiurit of certane crymes and poyntis of heresy, as in the proces and sentence led, deducit, and gevin aganis him þairupoun at mair lenth, is contenit, with power, &c. At Linlithgow, the xiij day of Marche, the ȝeire of God I^m.v^c.xxxviij ȝeiris i^c.li. [Ib. f. 83.] Per Signaturam.

Ane letter maid to Andro Cunnynghame, sone to William Cunnynghame, kny^t, maister of Glencarne, remittand and forgevand to the said Andro his eschete goods, movabill and vnmovabill, pertenying to our souerane lord, be resoun of eschete throw being of the said Andro abiurit of heresy before the spirituale juge, as the sentence gevin þairupoun beris, &c. At Linlithgow, the xv day of Marche, the ȝer of God, I^m.v^c.xxxviij. [Lib. xiij. f. 3 b.] Per Signaturam.

Ane letter maid to Dauid Rollok, burges of Dunde, his airis and assignais, ane or ma, of the gift of the eschete of all gudis, movabill and vnmovabill, heretages, dettis, takkis, stedingis, cornis, cattale, money, gold, siluer, jowellis, and vtheris quhatsumever quhilkis pertenit to James Rollok, burges of the said burgh, except the said James part of ane wynd‑myln liand within Dunde, and now pertening to our souerane lord, be resoun of eschete throw being of the said James fugityve fra the law for certane poyntis of heresy imput to him, &c. At Linlithgow, the xxij day of Marche, the ȝer forsaid (1538.) xx^li. [Lib. xij. f. 87 b.] Per Signaturam.

Ane letter maid to Johnne Cowane, burges of Striueling, and Jonet Tennent, his spous, thare airis and assignais, ane or ma, of the gift of all gudis, movabill and vnmovabill, landis, heretages, cornis, catale, takkis, stedingis, dettis, obligationis, jowellis, sovmes of money, and vtheris quhatsumever quhilkis pertenit to William Forester, sone and apperand are to Johne Forester, burges of the said burgh, and now pertenying to our souerane lord, be resoun of eschete throw abiuratioun of the said William for certane poyntis of heresy confessit be him in jugement, &c. At Linlithgow, the xxiiij day of Marche, the ȝer of God I^m.v^c.xxxviij ȝeris. ix^li. [Lib. xiij. f. 40.] Per Signaturam.

Preceptum carte Johannis Domini Erskin super vna domo cum pertineñ jaceñ ex parte australi vici publici burgi de Striueling inter vinellam pretorij eiusdem ex parte orientali etc. Quequidem domus quondam Roberto Forester perprius hereditarie pertinuit, et nunc regi pertinet ratione eschaete ob nonnulla heresis crimina per dictum quondam Roberto commiss., etc. Apud Linlithgow xxiiij^to die mensis Martij, anno, &c. v^c.xxxviij. [Lib. xiij. f. 14.] Per Signetum.

Ane letter maid to Richart Carmichaell, remittand to him his eschete gudis pertenying to our souerane, throw being of the said Richard abiurit of heresy, &c. At Linlithgow, the xxv day of Marche, the ȝer of God I^m.v^c.xxxix ȝeris. [Lib. xij. f. 87.] Per Signaturam.

Ane letter maid to Walter Scrymgeour of Glaswell his airis and assignais, ane or ma, of the gift of all and haile the takkis and assedationis quhilkis James Rollok, burges of Dunde, had of the commoun myln and wynd‑myln of the said burgh of Dunde, now fallin and cumin into our souerane lordis handis, be resoun of eschete for certane crymes of heresis committit be the said James, and he adjugit and condamnit þairintill, as the process led þairupon at mair lenth proportis, with power, &c. At Linlithgow, the xxviij day of Marche, the ȝeir forsaid (1539). [Lib. xij. f. 93.] Per Signaturam.

Ane letter maid to James Murray, maister of aile seller, his airis and assignais, ane or ma, of the gift of all gudis, movable and vnmovabill, dettis, takkis, stedingis, sovmes of money, and vtheris quhatsumever, quhilkis pertenit to Margarete Jamesoun in Tulibody, and now pertenying, or onywis sall happin or may pertene to our souerane lord, be resoun of eschete, throw non fulfilling of certane pennance ordanit to be done be hir be the ordinar, for certane crymes of heresy committit be hir, of the quhilkis scho wes convict in jugement, &c. At Stirling, the aucht day of Aprill, the ȝer forsaid (1539.) vj^li.xiij^s.iiii^d. [Lib. xij. f. 93.] Per Signaturam.

Ane letter maid to Charlis, James, Robert, George, Johnne, Andro, Archibald, Helene, Margaret, Elizabeth, Isabell, and Agnes Carnis, sonis and dochteris to Henry Carnis in Leith, yair airis and assignais, ane or ma, off the gift of all gudis, movabill and vnmovabill, dettis, takkis, schip, obligationis, sovmes of money, and vtheris gudis quhatsumever quhilkis pertenit to the said Henry, and now decernit to pertene to our souerane lord, be resoun of eschete for heresy, of the quhilk the said Henry was abiurit be ane sentence gevin be the spirituale juge aganis him for the samyn, &c. At Stirling, the viij day of Aprile, the ȝer forsaid (1539.) x^li.xij^s. [Lib. xij. f. 94.] Per Signaturam.

Ane letter maid to Alexander Orrok of Silliebawke, his airis and assignais, of the gift of all gudis, movabill and vnmovabill, cornis, catale, dettis, takkis, stedingis, money, gold, siluer, and vtheris gudis quhatsumever quhilkis pertenit to William Clerk, clerk of the schip callit the Barge, and now pertenying to our souerane lord, be resoun of eschete throw being of the said William convict of heresy, &c. At Stirling, the viij day of Aprile, the ȝeire forsaid (1539). x^li. [Lib. xij. f. 94.] Per Signaturam.

Ane letter maid to James Lovell, of the gift of his awne eschete gudis, movabill and vnmovabill, pertenying to our souerane lord throw being of the said James abiurit of heresy, &c. At Sanctandros, the xi day of May, the ȝer forsaid (1539). [Lib. xiij. f. 4.]

Ane letter maid to Johnne Henry, his airis and assignais, ane or ma, of the gift of all gudis, movabill and vnmovabill, quhilkis pertenit to Johnne Cameroun, burges of Perth, and now pertening to our souerane lord, be resoun of eschete throw being of the said Johne declarit heretyke, etc. At Sanctandros, the xxvi day of May, ye ȝer forsaid (1539). [Lib. xiij. f. 26.] Per Signaturam.

Ane letter maid to Johne Stewart, sone to Henry, lord Methven, rehabilland him to stand in preif and witness, and to exerce all lefull dedis in jugement, and outwith, and als frelie, in all thingis as he my^t have done befor the tyme he was convict of heresy, etc. At Edinburgh, the xxij day of Februare, the ȝer forsaid (1539). [Lib. xiij. f. 65, b.] Per Signaturam.

Ane letter maid to Oliuer Sinclar and his assignais, ane or maa, of the gift of all gudis, movable and vnmovable, dettis, takkis, obligationis, sovmes of money, and vtheris gudis quhatsumever quhilkis pertenit to Sir David Huchesone, prouest of Rosling, and now pertening, or ony wise sal happin or may pertene to ws, throw being of the said Sir Dauid abiurit of certane poyntis of heresy, of the quhilkis he was dilatit, and ane sentence of the spirituale juge gevin aganis him þairupoun, as the same proportis, with power to the said Oliuer and his assignais, ane or maa, to intromet and tak vp ye saidis eschete gudis, etc. At Edinbur^t, the xiij day of August, the ȝer foirsaid (1540). [Lib. xiv. f. 8, b.] Per Signaturam.

Ane letter maid to Maister Williame Arthur, citinare of Sanctandross, his airis and assignais, of the gift of the escheit of all gudis, movable and vnmovable, dettis, takkis, steiddingis, rowmes, possessions, teyndis, cornis, catale, actiones, obligationis, sowmes of money, and vtheris gudis quhatsumevir, quhilkis pertenit to George Wynchister, cietinar of the said ciete, and now pertening to oure souerane lady, and being in hir hienes handis be resoun of escheit throw the said Georgeis noncomperance before ane maist reverand fader in God, Johnne, archbishop of Sanctandros, his juge ordner, to haif vnderlyne the law for certane crymes of herisie quhairof he was dilaittit and convict of the samyn, and yairfore declarit heretick, as at mair length is contenit in the sentence and proces led and gevin aganis him þairvpone, with powar, &c. At Edinbur^h, the xiiij day of September, the ȝeir of God, ane thousand, fyve hundreith, and fyfty ȝeiris. [Lib. xxiv. f. 24, b.] Per Signaturam.

Ane letter maid, makand mentioun, That yair was ane pretendit sentence of auld gevin aganis Johnne Boirthwikt of Ciueray, kny^t, declaring him to be ane allegit heretike, as the said sentence beiris, quhilk was gevin aganis him in his absence, without ony defence maid be him, and he yairby allegit to be depriuit of all honour, and dispossessit of all his landes, rowmes, and possessionis; Nochttheles, oure souerane lady, of hir auctorite royal, speciall grace, and fauour, rehabillis the said Johnne, and restoiris him to all his landis, heretages, takkis, stedingis, rowmes, and possessionis, and to all and sindrie his gudis, movable and vnmovable, quhatsumevir, and to his honour, fame, and dignitie; and reponis him agane in the same estait he was in befoir the leding and deduceing of the said pretendit sentence aganis him, sua that he may peceabillie brouk, joys, occupy, labour, and manure his landis, rowmes, takis, stedingis, and possessionis, intromet and vptak the malis, fermes, proffittis, and dewiteis yairof, off all ȝeiris and termes bigane, restand vnpayit sin the geving and deduceing of the said pretendit sentence aganis him, and gif neid be, to convene, call, follow, and persew the detenaris yairof, befoir quhatsumeuir juge or jugeis, spirituale or temporale, vnto the finall end and recovering of the samin vpoun yame, and to stand in jugement, beir witnes, and frelie vse and exerce all maner of offices or vther publict efferis in hir common weill, in jugement, and outwith, and joys and brouk siclike priuilegeis as he did, or my^t have done, befoir the leding and deduceing of the said pretendit proces aganis him, siclike as the samyn had neuer bene gevin or pronunceit, &c. With inhibitioun in the samyn to all and sindrie our souerane lady’s liegis and subdittis baith spirituall and temporall, of quhatsumeuir auctoritie or dignitie yai be of, that nane of thame tak vpoun hand to molest, truble, or invaid the said Johnne in his person, fame, landis, gudis, or possessionis, for quhatsumevir caus or actioun bigane; or to detract, bakbyte, sclander, or defame him, in ony maner of way, vnder all hieast pane, and charge, and offence. That þai and ilk ane of þame may commit and inryn aganis her maiestie, in þat parte, &c. At Sanctandrois, the last day of Februare, the ȝeir of God I^m.v^c.lxij ȝeiris. [Lib. xxxj. f. 79, b.] Per Signaturam.482

Ane letter maid makand mention that thair wes ane pretendit sentence gevin and pronunceit againis James Hamiltoun of Kincavill, of lang tyme begane in his absence, for null defence, declaring him to be ane allegeit heretike, as the pretendit sentence gevin thairupoune buir; be the quhilk, he was allegit to be depryvit of all honoure, fame, and dignitie, and dispossessit of all his landis, heretages, rowmes, possessionis, teyndis, and vtheris pertening to him, quhilk pretended decrete and sentence the said James hes gotten retretit and reducit, with all that followith thairupoune: Thairfore oure said souerane ladie, of her auctorite royall speciale grace and favoure, rehabillis the said James, and restoris him to all his landis, &c. [in similar terms with the preceding.] At Edinburgh, the fift day of Merche, the ȝeir of God, I^m.v^c.lxiij ȝeris. [Lib. xxxi. f. 35, b.] Per Signaturam.

Note I.

Protestant Exiles from Scotland.—I have not reckoned it necessary to insert in this work those particulars respecting Scottish reformers before Patrick Hamilton, which have been repeatedly published in the Life of Andrew Melville. The reader may consult vol. i. p. 8, 418‒421 of the second edition of that work.—In this note, I shall state a few facts respecting those eminent men who were obliged to forsake their native country subsequently to Hamilton’s martyrdom, in consequence of having expressed sentiments favourable to the Reformation.

Gawin Logie, who, in his important station of rector of St Leonard’s College, was so useful in spreading the reformed doctrine, drew upon himself the jealousy of the clergy. More decided in his sentiments, and more avowed in his censure of the prevailing abuses, than the sub‑prior of the abbey, (who maintained his situation until the establishment of the Reformation,) Logie found it necessary to consult his safety by leaving the country in 1533. Cald. MS. i. 82. I have not seen any notice of him after this. Robert Logie, a kinsman of Gawin, was a canon regular of Cambuskenneth, and employed in instructing the novices. Having embraced the reformed sentiments, he, in 1538, fled into England, and became a preacher there. Thomas Cocklaw, parish priest of Tullibody, seems to have accompanied him, and was also employed as a preacher in England. Ibid. p. 97.

Alexander Seaton was confessor to James V. The cause of his flight from Scotland, his letter to the King, and his retiring to England, are recorded in our common histories. Fox (p. 1000) informs us that he was accused of heresy before Gardiner, bishop of Winchester, in 1541, and induced to recant certain articles which he had preached. Spotswood (p. 65) speaks of “the treatises he left behind him,” and, among others, his “Examination by Gardiner and Bonner,” from which it appears that “he never denied any point which formerly he taught.” Fox had not seen this. We learn from another quarter, that, after his trial, he continued to preach the truths for which he had been accused. Bale says that he died in 1542, in the family of Charles Brandon, duke of Suffolk, who retained him as his chaplain. Script. Brytan. Post. Pars. p. 224.

Alexander Aless was a canon of the metropolitan church of St Andrews. His conversion to the protestant faith was very singular. Being a young man of quick parts, and well versed in scholastic theology, and having studied the Lutheran controversy, he undertook to reclaim Patrick Hamilton from heresy, and held several conferences with him for this purpose. But, instead of making a convert of Hamilton, he was himself staggered by the reasoning of that gentleman. His doubts were greatly strengthened by the constancy with which he saw the martyr adhere to his sentiments to the last, amidst the scorn, rage, and cruelty of his enemies. Alesii Præfat. Comment. in Joannem: Jacobi Thomasii Orationes, p. 307, 308. Lipsiæ, 1737. Bayle, Dictionnaire, Art. Ales. A short time after this, he delivered a Latin oration before an ecclesiastical synod, in which he censured the vices of the clergy, and exhorted them to diligence and a godly life. This was enough to bring him under the suspicion of heresy, and he was thrown into prison, from which, after a year’s confinement, he made his escape, and, getting into a vessel which lay on the coast, eluded his persecutors. He escaped in 1532. Cald. MS. i. 76. On leaving his native country, Aless went to Germany, where he was virulently attacked by Cochlæus, whom the Scots bishops hired to abuse him.483 On the invitation of lord Cromwell and archbishop Cranmer, he came to England in 1535, and was appointed Professor of Theology in the university of Cambridge. But he had scarcely commenced his lectures, when the patrons of popery excited such opposition to him that he resolved to relinquish his situation. Having, at a former period of his life, applied to medical studies, he went to Dr Nicol, a celebrated physician in London, and, after remaining with him for some years, commenced practice, not without success. In 1537, lord Cromwell having met him one day accidentally on the street, carried him to the convocation, and persuaded him to engage, without preparation, in a dispute with the bishop of London, on the subject of the sacraments; of which Aless has given a particular account in one of his publications. De Authoritate Verbi Dei Liber Alexandri Alesii, contra Episcopum Lundinensem, p. 13‒31. Argentorati, apud Cratonem Mylium, An. M.D.XLII. Archbishop Parker calls him, “virum in theologia perdoctum.” In 1540, he returned to Germany, was made Professor of Divinity at Leipsic, assisted at several public conferences, and wrote many books, which were much esteemed. Strype’s Cranmer, p. 402, 403. Bayle, Dict. ut supra. He died on the 17th of March, 1565, in the 65th year of his age. (Vita Alex. Alesii, in Observ. Select, vol. v. p. 443. Halæ Magd. 1702.) Bishop Bale was personally acquainted with him, and has enumerated his works. Ut supra, p. 176.

John Fife fled from St Andrews, accompanied Aless to Germany, and shared in his honours at Leipsic. “Francofurti ad Viadrum Scotus quidam, Joannis Fidelis, Theologiæ Doctor et Professor fuit; et anno 1551 rectoratum Academiæ gessit, ut in Actis Lipsiensibus Eruditorum anno 1684, p. 386, notatum est. Sed dubitari vix debet, Fidelem illum eundem fuisse qui Fife, sive Fief, dicebatur, cum ea vox feudum significet, ad quod alludit nomen Fidelis.” Seckendorf. Hist. Luth. lib. iii. sec. 25. Fife returned to Scotland, acted as a minister, and died in St Leonard’s College, soon after the establishment of the Reformation. Cald. MS. i. 78. Knox, 20. Strype’s Cranmer, 403.

John Macbee, known on the continent by the name of Dr Maccabæus, fled to England in 1532, and was entertained by bishop Shaxton. He afterwards retired to Denmark, and was of great use to Christian III. in the settlement of the reformed religion in his dominions. He was made a professor in the university of Copenhagen. Gerdesii Historia Evang. Renovat. iii. 417‒425. The Danish monarch held him in great esteem, and, at his request, wrote to queen Mary of England, in behalf of his brother‑in‑law, Miles Coverdale, bishop of Exeter, and the venerable translator of the bible, who was released from prison through his importunity. Bale, ut supra, p. 226. Fox, 1390. Maccabæus was acquainted with the Danish and German languages, and assisted in the translation of the bible into Danish (according to Luther’s first German translation), which was printed in folio at Copenhagen, in 1550, by Ludov. Diest, accompanied with a marginal index, parallel places, and plates. Maittaire, apud Chalmers’s Lindsay, i. 82. Gerdes. Hist. tom. iii. Præfatio, **3. An edition of Lindsay’s “Monarchie” bears on the title‑page, that it was “imprintit at the command and expensis off Dr Machabæus, in Capmanhouin.” But the editor of Lindsay insists, that this is “a deceptious title‑page.” Ut supra, 80, 81. That Maccabæus was alive in 1557, appears from the following passage of a Danish literary work: “In facultate Theologica, Doctores creati sequentes in Academia Hafniæ Aº. 1557, a D. Joh. Maccabeo, M. Nic. Hemmingius Theolog. Professor,” &c. Albert Thura, Idea Histor. Literar. Danorum, p. 333. Hamburgi, 1723. This writer (p. 274) mentions “Annot. in Matthæum” as written by him, but does not say whether it was a MS. or a printed book. Bale mentions another work of his, entitled, “De vera et falsa Religione.” Ut supra, p. 226. Those who have access to the Bibliotheca Dunica, will find some of his writings inserted in that work, Part v. and viii. Gerdes. iii. 417. Among the MSS. bequeathed by archbishop Parker to Corpus Christi Collegi, is “De conjugio sacerdotum, an liceat sacris initiatis contrahere matrimonium affirmatur autore Johanne Macchabeo Scoto.”

We learn from Bale, that Maccabæus was well born (“præclara familia”); and that, having discovered from his infancy a strong propensity to learning, his parents provided him with the best teachers. But I have an additional piece of information to communicate, which cannot fail to be gratifying to some readers: The proper name of this divine was neither Maccabæus nor Macbee, but Macalpine, and he belonged to the noble and celebrated Clan Alpine. In what degree of kindred he stood to the noted Roderigh Vich Alpine dhu, and whether he was obliged to change his name on account of the outrage which caused that chieftain and his whole clan to be proclaimed rebels, I cannot determine, as I have met with no northern Scald, or Gaelish bard, who has touched on these circumstances. But the following are my authorities for the statement which I have given: “Ad docendas sacras literas accersivit [Danniæ Rex] Johannem Maccabæum, proprio nomine Macalpinum, Scotum, virum doctrina et pietate gravem, Regique ac bonis omnibus modestia longe carissimum.” Vinding. Descript. Acad. Hafniæ, p. 71‒73. “Reliquerat is, qui ex nobili et antiqua Macalpinorum in Scotia familia ortum trahebat, Religionis erga, Scotiam, et migraverat Witebergam, atque ibi cum Luthero et Melanchthone familiaritatem contraxerat, unde Hafniam vocatus Academiæ præfuit per annos sedecim, mortuus d. 6. Decemb. 1557.” Gerdes. iii. p. 417. See also the verses on Maccabæus in Supplement.

Macdowal repaired to Holland, and was so much esteemed, that he was raised, though a stranger, to the chief magistracy in one of its boroughs. Knox, 20.

John Mackbray, or Macbrair, a gentleman of Galloway, fled to England about 1538, and at the death of Edward VI. retired to Frankfort, where he preached to the English congregation. Troubles at Frankford, p. 13, 20, 25. Spotswood, 97. He afterwards became pastor of a congregation in Lower Germany, and wrote an account of the formation and progress of that church. Balei Scriptores M. Brytan, p. 229. On the accession of Elizabeth, he returned to England, and officiated as a preacher in that country. He is called “an eminent exile,” in Strype’s Annals, i. 130. Grindal, p. 26. On the 13th of November, 1568, he was inducted to the vicarage of St Nicholas, in Newcastle, and was buried there on November 16, 1584. Dr Jackson complains that “Mackbray, Knox, and Udale, had sown their tares in Newcastle.” Heylin speaks in the same strain. Brand’s Hist. of Newcastle, p. 303. Bale (p. 229) mentions several works of Mackbray, and says that he “wrote elegantly in Latin.” Spotswood also mentions some of his works. Ut supra.

The causes of Buchanan’s imprisonment and escape from Scotland, and his reception and employments on the continent, may be found in other publications which are accessible to the reader. See Irving’s Memoirs of Buchanan, and Chalmers’s Life of Ruddiman. Some facts which have not been fully stated by his biographers, will be found in a subsequent part of this work.

James Harrison was a native of the south of Scotland, and liberally educated, says Bale. He seems to have gone to England at a period somewhat later than the others mentioned in this note. He wrote a treatise, “De regnorum unione,” in which he warmly recommended to his countrymen the advantages of a union with England. It was dedicated to the duke of Somerset, in 1547. Bale (p. 225) gives the first words of it, “Comminiscens, ut soleo per ocium;” and calls it “elegans ac mellitum opus.”

Robert Richardson was a canon of the monastery of Cambuskenneth, and fled to England in 1538. Cald. MS. i. 97. I suppose he is the person who is called “Sir Robert Richardson, priest,” in Sadler’s Letters. He was sent into Scotland in 1543, by Henry VIII., with a recommendation to the regent Arran, who employed him in preaching through the kingdom, along with Guillaume and Rough. When the regent apostatized from the reformed cause, he withdrew his protection from Richardson, who was obliged to flee a second time into England, to escape the cardinal’s persecution. Sadler’s State Papers, i. 210, 217, 344.

Note K.

Influence of Poetry in promoting the Reformation.—As the influence which the poets and satirists of the age had upon the Reformation, is a subject curious in itself, and to which little attention has been paid, the following illustrations of what has been generally stated in the text, may not be unacceptable to some readers. Dante, Petrarch, Boccacio, and other Italian writers, by descanting on the ambition, luxury, and scandalous manners of the clergy, had contributed greatly to lessen the veneration in which they had been long held, and to produce in the minds of men a conviction of the necessity of a reformation. “There was,” says John Gerson, chancellor of the university of Paris, “one called Johannes Meldinensis, who wrote a book called the Romaunt of the Rose, which book, if I only had, and that there were no more in the world, I would rather burn it than take five hundred pounds for the same; and if I thought the author thereof did not repent of that book before he died, I would no more pray for him, than I would for Judas that betrayed Christ.” Catal. MSS. in Adv. Lib. The writings of Chaucer, and especially those of Langland, had the same effect in England, When the religious struggle had actually commenced, and become hot, a diversion, by no means inconsiderable, was made in favour of the reformers by the satirists and poets of the age. A pantomime, intended to degrade the court of Rome and the clergy, was acted before Charles V. at the Augsburg assembly. Lud. Fabricius de Ludis Scenicis, p. 231. Gerdesii Historia Evangel. Renovat. tom. ii. Docum. No. vii. p. 48. In 1524, a tragedy was acted at Paris, in the presence of Francis I., in which the success of Luther was represented, and the pope and cardinals were ridiculed, by kindling a fire, which all their efforts could not extinguish. Jacob. Burchard. de Vita Ulrici Hutteni, pars ii. 293, pars iii. p. 296. Gerdes. Hist. iv. 315. As late as 1561, the pope’s ambassador complained to the queen mother of France, that the young king, Charles IX., had assisted at a show, in which he had counterfeited a friar. Letters of the cardinal de St Croix, prefixed to Aymons, Synodes Nationaux de France, tom. i. p. 7‒11. In Switzerland, Nic. Manuel wrote certain comedies of this description in the year 1522, which were published under the title of Fastnachts Spielen, at Berne, in 1525. Gerdes. ii. 451. There were similar compositions in Holland. Brand’s Hist. of the Reformation, i. 127, 128. Lond. 1720. And also in England. Burnet’s Hist. of the Reform. i. 318. Nasmith, Catal. Libr. Manuscr. Colleg. Corporis Christi, p. 93.

In Scotland, the same weapons were employed in attacking the church. The first protestant books circulated in Scotland came chiefly from England. Mr Chalmers has mentioned “the very first reforming treatise which was, probably, written in Scotland,” compiled by “Johne Gau,” and printed at Malmoe in Sweden, anno 1533. We would have been still more obliged to the learned author, if he had given us some idea of its contents, instead of dismissing it with the flourish, “Had all been like this!” which, whether he meant to apply to the elegance of the printing, or the orthodoxy of the sentiments, it is difficult to say. Caledonia, ii. 616. Calderwood seems to say that books against popery began to be printed in this country in 1543. MS. ad h. ann. But, previously to that period, the reformed sentiments were diffused by metrical and dramatic writings. The satire of Buchanan against the Franciscan friars, for which he was thrown into prison, was elegant and pungent, but, being written in Latin, it could be felt only by the learned. The same may be said as to his “Baptistes.” But a passion for Scottish poetry had been lately produced in the nation by the compositions of some of our ingenious countrymen, and this now began to be improved by the friends of the Reformation. Kennedy and Kyllor distinguished themselves in this line. See above, p. 354. Kyllor’s Scripture‑drama was exhibited before James V. at Stirling, about the year 1535; and the most simple perceived the resemblance between the Jewish priests and the Scottish clergy, in opposing the truth, and persecuting its friends. Knox, 22. Soon after this, Alexander, Lord Kilmaurs, wrote his Epistle from the Hermit of Lareit to the greyfriars. Ibid. 24, 25. James Stewart, son of Lord Methven, composed poems and ballads in a similar strain, after the death of the vicar of Dollar; and Robert Alexander, advocate, published the earl of Errol’s “Testament,” in Scottish metre, which was printed at Edinburgh, Cald. MS. i. 103. James Wedderburn, son of a merchant in Dundee, converted the history of the beheading of John the Baptist into a dramatic form, and also the history of the tyrant Dionysius, which were acted at Dundee. In both of these, the popish religion was attacked. Cald. MS. ad an. 1540. Dalyell’s Cursory Remarks, p. 31.

But the poet who had the greatest influence in promoting the Reformation was Sir David Lindsay. His “Satyre on the three Estates,” and his “Monarchies,” had this for their principal object. The former was acted at Cupar in Fife, in the year 1535; at Linlithgow, before the king and queen, the court, and country, in 1540; and at Edinburgh, before the queen regent, a great part of the nobility, and a vast number of people, in 1554. Chalmers’s Lindsay, i. 60, 61. Row says, that it was also acted “in the amphitheatre of St Johnstoun.” MS. History of the Kirk, p. 3. It exposed the avarice, luxury, and profligacy, of the religious orders; the temporal power and opulence of the bishops, with their total neglect of preaching; the prohibition of the reading of the Scriptures in the vulgar tongue; the extolling of pardons, relics, &c. In his “Monarchies,” composed by him at a subsequent period, he traced the rise and progress of the papacy, and has discovered a knowledge of history, and of the causes that produced the corruption of Christianity, which would not disgrace any modern author. The poems of Lindsay were read by “every man, woman, and child.” Row has preserved an anecdote, which serves to illustrate their influence, and the manner in which the reformed sentiments were propagated at that period. Some time between 1550 and 1558, a friar was preaching at Perth in the church where the scholars of Andrew Simson attended public worship. In the course of his sermon, after relating some of the miracles wrought at the shrines of the saints, he began to inveigh bitterly against the Lutheran preachers who were going about the country, and endeavouring to withdraw the people from the Catholic faith. When he was in the midst of his invective, a loud hissing arose in that part of the church where the boys, to the number of three hundred, were seated, so that the friar, abashed and affrighted, broke off his discourse, and fled from the pulpit. A complaint having been made to the master, he instituted an enquiry into the cause of the disturbance, and to his astonishment found that it originated with the son of a craftsman in the town, who had a copy of Lindsay’s “Monarchies,” which he had read at intervals to his schoolfellows. When the master was about to administer severe chastisement to him, for the tumult which he had occasioned, and also for retaining in his possession such a heretical book, the boy very spiritedly replied, that the book was not heretical, requested his master to read it, and professed his readiness to submit to punishment, provided any heresy was found in it. This proposal appeared so reasonable to Simson that he perused the work, which he had not formerly seen, and was convinced of the truth of the boy’s statement. He accordingly made the best excuse which he could to the magistrates for the behaviour of his scholars, and advised the friar to abstain in future from extolling miracles, and from abusing the protestant preachers. From that time Simson was friendly to the Reformation. MS. Historie of the Kirk, p. 3, 4.

In every protestant country, a metrical version of the Psalms, in the vernacular language, appeared at a very early period. The French version begun by Clement Marot, and completed by Beza, contributed much to the spread of the Reformation in France. The Psalms were sung by Francis I. and Henry II. and by their courtiers. The catholics flocked for a time to the assemblies of the protestants to listen to their psalmody. Bayle, Dictionnaire, art. Marot, Notes N, O, P. At a later period, cardinal Chastillon proposed to the papal ambassador, as the best method for checking the progress of heresy, that his holiness should authorize some “good and godly” songs to be sung by the French, “cantar alcune cose in lingua Francese, le quali pero fossero parole buono et sante, et prima approvate de sua Beatitudine.” Lettres de St Croix: Aymons, ut supra, tom. i. p. 7, 9, 11. It has been said, that there was a Scottish version of the Psalms at a very early period. Dalyell’s Cursory Remarks, p. 35. It is more certain, that before the year 1546, a number of the Psalms were translated in metre; for George Wishart sung one of them in the house of Ormiston, on the night in which he was apprehended. Knox, Historie, p. 49. The two lines quoted by Knox answer to the beginning of the second stanza of the 51st Psalm, inserted in Scottish Poems of the 16th Century, p. 111. They were commonly sung in the assemblies of the protestants, in the year 1556. Knox, 96. John and Robert Wedderburn, brothers to the poet of that name mentioned above, appear to have been the principal translators of them. Cald. MS. i. 108, 109. The version was not completed; and at the establishment of the Reformation, it was supplanted in the churches, by the version begun by Sternhold and Hopkins, and finished by the English exiles at Geneva.

But the most singular measure adopted for circulating the reformed opinions in Scotland was the composition of “Gude and godly ballates, changed out of prophaine sanges, for avoyding of sinne and harlotrie.” John and Robert Wedderburn were the chief authors of this work also. Cald. ut supra. Row’s Hist. of the Kirk, p. 4. The title sufficiently indicates their nature and design. The air, the measure, the initial line, or the chorus of the ballads most commonly sung by the people at that time, were transferred to hymns of devotion. Unnatural, indelicate, and gross as this association appears to us, these spiritual songs edified multitudes in that age. We must not think that this originated in any peculiar depravation of taste in our reforming countrymen. Spiritual songs constructed upon the same principle were common in Italy. Roscoe’s Lorenzo de Medici, i. 309. 4to. At the beginning of the Reformation, the very same practice was adopted in Holland as in Scotland. “The protestants first sung in their families, and private assemblies, the psalms of the noble lord of Nievelte, which he published in 1540, ut homines ab amatoriis, haud raro obscœnis, aliisque vanis canticis, quibus omnia in urbibus et vicis personabant, avocaret. Sed quia modulationes vanarum cantionum (alias enim homines non tenebant) adhibuerat,” &c. Gisberti Voetii Politica Ecclesiastica, tom. i. p. 534. Amstælod. 1663, 4to. Florimond de Remond objected to the psalms of Marot, that the airs of some of them were borrowed from vulgar ballads. A Roman Catholic version of the Psalms in Flemish verse, printed at Antwerp by Simon Cock, in 1540, has the first line of a ballad printed at the head of every psalm. Bayle, Dict. art. Marot. Note N. The spiritual songs of Colletet, although composed a century after our “Godly Ballates,” were constructed on still more exceptionable models. “Et moy, Monsieur,” says Mons. Jurieu, “je vous feray voir, quand il vous plaira, les cantiques spirituels de Colletet imprimés à Paris, chés Antoine de Raflé, avec privilege du Roy, de l’an 1660. Livre curieux, où vous trouverés des Noëls sur le chant de ce vaudeville infame qui commence, Il faut chanter une histoire de la femme d’un manant, &c. le reste est un conte scandeleux autant qu’il y en ait dans le Satyricon de Petrone. Vous en trouverés un autre sur l’air de ces paroles libertines d’une chanson de l’opera: