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Henry II. $559. Pope

cy by their Friends Intreaties, and both entertained the Evil by their Connivance, and left it Paul IV. unpunished, by ordering penalties after their own will; that fuch was the root of the Evil, and it was in vain to undertake the curing of it, without cutting it from the Root. Therefore it was very expedient, that the King, without any previous Notice, fhould go himself to Parliament affembled on account of the Mercuriale.

Charles VIII. had enacted by his Edict given in Parliament in 1493, that a Cenfure fhould be made in all the Courts of the Kingdom. That Edict was amplified five years after by Lewis XII. and it was ordered that twice, or at least once a Month, the Prefidents of the Parliament, and the Prefidents of the Courts of Inqueft fhould meet together on the Tuesday, or on the Wednefday, which is in Latin Dies Mercurii, in the Afternoon, with two Counsellors of each Order; and that the King's Sollicitor and Attorneys being prefent, fhould take notice of those who by neglect or difobedience, or diffolutenefs, or fomething worfe, fhould have offended against the dignity, and the gravity of a Senator, and to admonifh friendly the Guilty; and if the thing re quired it, that the Matter fhould be brought before the Court, that great Penalties fhould be infflicted upon them, even to the fufpenfion of their Office for a time, nay, to a Degradation, and to draw an Act of all these things to be reported to the King. Francis I. in the year 1539, ordered that fuch Cenfures fhould take place every three Months. Thefe Cenfures were called Mercurials, from the name of the day in which the Court was to be affembled for that purpose.

The King's Sollicitor and Attorney General were ordered to impeach thofe who had done any thing amifs in the difcharge of their Office, and

1559Pope. Paul IV..

to prosecute them without delay; that if they Henry H. were negligent in fo doing, they should lofe themfelves their own Dignity. The other Prefidents of the Court diffented from Le Maitre and others above named, who advised the King to take this Course, about the Penalties to be inflicted on the Sectaries; and Le Maitre, fearing left the King who naturally was of an eafy Nature and indulgent, fhould be moved by the great Reputation of thofe Diffenters, had rendered them fufpicious to his Majefty, as Favourers and Abettors of Hereticks, and had been of opinion, to call them in private and acquaint them with the King's Will, in order to deter them from speaking their real Sentiments in the Court.

Christophorus de Thou, being let into the Secret, fpoke to the King with his ufual Freedom and Integrity, and oppofed with all his might that defign; which, as he forefaw, would be fatal to his Majefty and to the Kingdom, and for which, as long as he lived afterwards, he was so much averfe to the Mercurials, which at firft had been inftituted fo usefully.

Monfieur de Thou's Remonftrances proving ineffectual, the King, without any previous notice, went to the Parliament on the 10th of June, which was affembled in the Austin Fryars House, the Parliament Houfe being taken up for the Wedding of the King's Daughter and Sifter. His Majefty was followed by the Princes of Bourbon, Francis of Lorrain, Duke of Guife, the Conftable Annas Montmorency, and the Cardinals of Lorrain and Guife.

When the King was feated on his Throne, he fpoke about Religion, and the publick Tranquillity, in a manner which plainly difcovered the fecret motions of his Soul, and that he was come thither with a bitter, rather than with a fedate Heart. Then he told them that he had procured peace to

the

1559.

Henry II. the Chriftian World, by the Marriage of his Daughter and of his Sifter, and was in hopes, that Pope Paul IV. it would be advantageous to his People, and a lafting one: But that he was. vexed to his heart, understanding that fome, taking advantage of his Wars, had handled the matters of Religion in fuch a tumultuary and feditious manner, as they had done. Wherefore he defired for the future, to apply himself entirely to the healing of thofe Evils which the Disputes about Religion had occafioned in the Chriftian World; and understanding, that they were affembled for that purpose, he exhorted them to examine and judge of that matter with a perfect integrity; for that it was the Caufe of God, to which there was no doubt but he was prefent himself, and knew perfectly well all their Thoughts and Defigns.

Then the Cardinal Keeper of the Seals, com manded them in the King's Name, to go on with their Votes: And though it was obvious enough to every one that the King was come only on purpofe, to dive into their thoughts, and to restrain the freedom of Votes, nevertheless many of them, though under the King's Eyes, and at the peril of their Lives, fpoke their minds with that Ancient and Senatorian Liberty which was agreeable to their Dignity, and inveighed against the Roman Court's Manners, and bad Ufages, which at laft had degenerated into most pernicious Errors, which had been the occafion of fo many Sects, which multiplied themselves every where; they were of opinion to mitigate the Punishments and to put a stop to the feverity of the Judgments, till the differences in Religion fhould be compofed, and the Difcipline of the Church restored by the Authority of an Oecumenical Council.

Such was the opinion of the beft and more prudent amongst the Senators; and for a greater con

firmation,

firmation, they alledged the Decree of the Coun- Henry II. cils of Bafil and Conftance, by which it was en- 1559. Pop: acted that every tenth year there fhould be a Paul IV. Council.

Arnold du Ferrier was the first who voted for that Opinion, he was followed by Anthony Fumée; Paul Fox, Nicholas Valla, Euftachius la Porte and feveral others. Claudius Viole, and Lewis le Fevre added at laft, that it was certain that Religious Differences afforded occafion for troubles; but then it ought to be confidered, who was truly the Author of these troubles, left what Elias answered to Ahab, who charged him with being the Author of the Troubles in Ifrael, fhould be applicable to the like Cafe: Thou art the Man who troubles Ifrael.

Then Annas du Bourg faid many things about the eternal Providence of God, to whom every thing must be submitted; and when he came to the point in question, he faid, that there were feveral Crimes and wicked Actions condemned by the Laws which deferved the feveret Punishments, as Oaths, Swearing, and Curfing, which were so rife, Adulteries, Debaucheries, Perjuries, which not only went unpunished, but even were fhamefully countenanced, while there were new kinds of Punishments prepared every day against thofe, who had not as yet been found guilty of any Crime. Sould thofe be guilty of High Treafon, who mention the name of their Prince only to pray for him? Should they be guilty of any Violation of the Laws, of having confpired as gainst the Privileges of their Fellow-Subjects, or attempted to raife Rebellion, in the Cities, or to engage the Provinces against their Sovereigns? But no fuch Crimes have been laid to their charge as yet, or at leaft, it had been impoffible to prove any fuch thing against them. Are they not obVOL. I. noxious

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Henry II. noxious to the publick hatred, because they had
fet in a full light, by the means of the holy Scrip-
Pope
Paul IV. tures, the fcandalous and old Vices of the Court of
Rome, and defired they fhould be reformed?

Then the other Prefidents and Counfellors voted in Order, according to their Rank; and Christopher du Harlay, with Peter Seguier, afferted strenuously, though with modefty, that till then the Court had acted rightly in all their proceedings, and it was to be hoped, that for the future they would be always like themselves, to the Glory of God, and in a way agreeable to the King, and the People's Inclination.

But Chriftopher de Thou voted very freely, that the King's Sollicitor and Advocates ought to be taken notice of, for having been fo daring as to caft a blemish upon the Court's Decree, and to call their Authority in Queftion.

René Baillet voted that the Decrees which they complained of, ought to be retracted and examined a-new. Minier voted in a few Words, that the King's Edict ought to be kept.

Laftly, the first Prefident Le Maitre fpoke very violently against the Sectaries. He infifted much upon the example of the Albigenfes, 600 of whom were burnt by King Philip Auguftus's Orders; and upon that of the Waldenfes, who had been choaked with Smoak, fome in their own Houses, fome in Dens, and fome others in Quarries.

When they had delivered their Votes, the Cardinal Keeper of the Seals came near the King, who fat upon his Throne, and they took Council with the Lords which were come with his Majefty. Then being all feated again, the Lord-Keeper called for St. Germain, Notary of the Court, who had fet down in writing the Votes of the Senators, and ordered him to deliver into his hand the

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