England under HENRY VIII, Детальна інформація
England under HENRY VIII
***
There now arose at Wittemberg****, in Germany, the great leader of the mighty change in England which is called The Reformation*****, and which set the people free from their slavery to the priests. This was a learned Doctor, named Martin Luther******, who knew all about them, for he had been a priest, and even a monk, himself. The preaching and writing of Wickliffe******* had set a number of men thinking on this subject, and Luther, finding one day to his great surprise, that there really was a book called the New Testament which the priests did not allow to be read, and which contained truths that they suppressed, began to be very vigorous agains the whole body, from the Pope downward. It happened, while he was yet only beginning his work or awakening the nation, that a friar named Tetzel came into his neighbourhood selling what were called Indulgences, by wholesale, to raise money for beautifying the St. Peter's Cathidral at Rome. Those who bought an Indulgence of the Pope were supposed to buy themselves from the punishment of Heaven for their offences. Luther told the people that Indulgences were worthless bits of paper.
The King and the Cardinal were mightly indignant at this presumption; and the King (with the help of Sir Thomas More********, a wise man, whom the afterwards repaid by striking off
his head) even wrote a book about it, with
which the Pope was so well pleased that he
gave the King the title of Defender of the
Faith. The King and Cardinal also issued
flaming warnings to the people not to read
Luther's books, on pain of excommunica-
tion. But they did read them for all that; and
the rumour of what was in them spread far
and wide.
When this great change was thus going
on, the King began to show himself in his
truest and worst colours. Anne Boleyn, the pretty little girl who had gone abroad to France with her sister, was by this time grown up to be very
beautiful, and was one of the ladies in attendance on Queen Catherine. Queen Catherine was no longer young or pretty, and it is likely that she was not particularly good-tempered, having been always rather melan-choly, and having been made more so by deaths of four of her children when they were very young. So, the King fell in love with the fair Anne Boleyn. He wanted to get rid of his wife and marry Anne.
Queen Catherine had been the wife of
Henry's brother Arthur. So the King called
his favourite priests about him, and said
that he thought that it had not been lawful
for him to marry the Queen.
They answered that it was a serious busi-
ness, and perhaps the best way to make it
right, would be for His Majesty to be de-
vorced. That was the answer the King was
pleased with; so they all went to work.
Many intrigues and plots took place to
get this devorce. Finally, the Pope issued
a commission to Cardinal Wolsey and Cardinal Campeggio (whom he sent over from Italy for the purpose), to try the whole case in England. It is supposed that Wolsey was the Queen's enemy, because she had reproved him for his manner of life. But, he did not at first know that the King wanted to marry Anne Boleyn, and when he did know it, he even went down on his knees, in the endeavour to dissuade him.
The Cardinals opened their court in the Convent of the Black friars, in
There now arose at Wittemberg****, in Germany, the great leader of the mighty change in England which is called The Reformation*****, and which set the people free from their slavery to the priests. This was a learned Doctor, named Martin Luther******, who knew all about them, for he had been a priest, and even a monk, himself. The preaching and writing of Wickliffe******* had set a number of men thinking on this subject, and Luther, finding one day to his great surprise, that there really was a book called the New Testament which the priests did not allow to be read, and which contained truths that they suppressed, began to be very vigorous agains the whole body, from the Pope downward. It happened, while he was yet only beginning his work or awakening the nation, that a friar named Tetzel came into his neighbourhood selling what were called Indulgences, by wholesale, to raise money for beautifying the St. Peter's Cathidral at Rome. Those who bought an Indulgence of the Pope were supposed to buy themselves from the punishment of Heaven for their offences. Luther told the people that Indulgences were worthless bits of paper.
The King and the Cardinal were mightly indignant at this presumption; and the King (with the help of Sir Thomas More********, a wise man, whom the afterwards repaid by striking off
his head) even wrote a book about it, with
which the Pope was so well pleased that he
gave the King the title of Defender of the
Faith. The King and Cardinal also issued
flaming warnings to the people not to read
Luther's books, on pain of excommunica-
tion. But they did read them for all that; and
the rumour of what was in them spread far
and wide.
When this great change was thus going
on, the King began to show himself in his
truest and worst colours. Anne Boleyn, the pretty little girl who had gone abroad to France with her sister, was by this time grown up to be very
beautiful, and was one of the ladies in attendance on Queen Catherine. Queen Catherine was no longer young or pretty, and it is likely that she was not particularly good-tempered, having been always rather melan-choly, and having been made more so by deaths of four of her children when they were very young. So, the King fell in love with the fair Anne Boleyn. He wanted to get rid of his wife and marry Anne.
Queen Catherine had been the wife of
Henry's brother Arthur. So the King called
his favourite priests about him, and said
that he thought that it had not been lawful
for him to marry the Queen.
They answered that it was a serious busi-
ness, and perhaps the best way to make it
right, would be for His Majesty to be de-
vorced. That was the answer the King was
pleased with; so they all went to work.
Many intrigues and plots took place to
get this devorce. Finally, the Pope issued
a commission to Cardinal Wolsey and Cardinal Campeggio (whom he sent over from Italy for the purpose), to try the whole case in England. It is supposed that Wolsey was the Queen's enemy, because she had reproved him for his manner of life. But, he did not at first know that the King wanted to marry Anne Boleyn, and when he did know it, he even went down on his knees, in the endeavour to dissuade him.
The Cardinals opened their court in the Convent of the Black friars, in
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