the army, where he was taken prisoner, and, after undergoing very severe hardships, was obliged to pay a considerable sum for his liberty.*

A proclamation, issued in this year for prohibiting' certain bookes printed of newes of the prosperous successes of the king's ma'ties arms in Scotland,' carries the date of the first circulation of these vehicles of information to a much earlier period than has generally been assigned to it. Chalmers, in his life of Ruddiman, states the Gallo-Bellicum, a kind of State of Europe, or Annual Register, to have been the first English one, and the Venice Gazette, which is considered as the original, was circulated in manuscript till the end of the sixteenth century, as appears from a collection of them in the Magliabechian library at Florence; these, therefore, appear to have been the first printed newspapers ever circulated.

The proclamation states that, the king's most excellent majestie understanding that certain light persones, not regarding what they reported, wrote, or set forthe, had caused to be imprinted and divulged, certain newes of the prosperous successes of the king's majestie's army in Scotland, wherein, although the effect of the victory be indeed true, yet the circumstances in divers points were in some past over slenderly, in some parte untruly and amisse reported; his highness, therefore, not content to have anie such matters of so greate importance sett forthe to the slaunder of his captaines and ministers, nor to be otherwise reported than the truth was, straightlie chargeth and commandeth all manner of persones into whose hands anie of the said printed books should come, ymmediately after they should hear of this proclamation, to bring the same bookes to the lord mayor of London, or to the recorder, or some of the aldermen of the same, to the intent that they might suppresse and burn them, upon pain that every person keeping anie of the said bookes XXIIII hours after the making of this publication, suffer ymprisonment of his bodye, and be farther punished at the king's majestie's will and pleasure.'

This year the parliament passed an act, in which it was ordained, that every citizen and inhabitant within the city and liberty thereof should, for every ten shillings annual rent, pay the vicars of their respective parishes, one shilling and four-pence; and for every rent of twenty shillings, two shillings and nine-pence, and so on in proIt was also enacted, that every perportion as the rents advanced. son possessed of 400 marks in real and personal estate, was properly qualified to serve on the grand jury.

In the month of August this year, the citizens of London, at their own expense, raised and completely fitted out a regiment of foot, consisting of one thousand men, as a reinforcement to the army in France.

A peace being concluded between England and France, the

* Herbert's Life of Henry VIII.

same was proclaimed in the city with great solemnity, on Whitsunday, 1646. On this occasion a general procession was made, 'before the which,' says Stow, 'was borne all the richest silver crosses in London, to wit, of every church one; then proceeded all the parish clearks, condocts, quiristers, and priests in London, with the quire of Paules, al of them in their richest copes, singing. Then the companies of the citie in their best liveries: the lord mayor, the aldermen, and sheriffs, in scarlet, &c. All these went from Paules church through Cheap and Cornhil, up to Leden hal, and so back again to Paules. And this was the last shew of the rich crosses and copes in London; for shortly after, they, with other church plate. were called into the king's treasury and wardrobe.'

Several persons suffered this year on account of their principles in religion; among whom was Mrs. Anne Askew, or Ascue, a gentle woman of good birth and excellent education, who was well known to many persons at court. This lady, being convicted of denying the real presence in the sacrament, was condemned to the flames, and chose to suffer death rather than purchase pardon at the expense of abjuring her faith. The lord chancellor, who was a zealous papist, imagining that her resolution proceeded from the encouragement given her by persons of distinction about the court, who were friends to the Reformation, caused this poor woma to be put to the rack in prison, though already under sentence of death; and is even said to have assisted with his own hands in administering the torture, which was done in such a merciless manner, that almost all her bones were dislocated. This she bore, however, with amazing fortitude; nor could they extort a syllable from her in accusation of any one. At length, on the 16th of July, she was conveyed to the stake, and suffered with four men, condemned on the same account : Shaxton, bishop of Salisbury, who had been imprisoned for the same offence, but saved his life by recanting, attended them to the place of execution, where he preached a sermon, reproaching them in the harshest terms for their obstinacy and heresy.

On the 21st of August, Claud Annibaut, ambassador extraordinary of France, arrived at London from Dieppe, and landed at the Tower wharf, where he was met by the mayor, aldermen, and citizens, and conducted to the bishop's palace; and on his departure, after having sworn, in the name of his sovereign, to perform the articles of the peace, he was presented by the city with four large silver flagons, richly gilt, valued at one hundred and thirty-six pounds, besides wine and other costly presents.

Towards the end of the year, the duke of Norfolk, and his son, the earl of Surrey, were committed to the Tower, charged with treason; and on the 13th of January, 1547, the earl was brought to trial at Guildhall, before the lord mayor and a common jury; by whom he was found guilty, and received sentence of death: he was beheaded on Tower-hill, on the 19th of January. His father being

a peer, the proceedings against him were obliged to wait the determination of parliament, by whom he was attainted; and the warrant for his execution was signed; but the king's death, which happened on the 28th of January, rendered it of no force; and it was not thought advisable that the commencement of the young king's reign should be followed immediately by the execution of the first nobleman of the land; for which reason his life was spared, but he remained in confinement during all this reign.

The

King Henry VIII. having dissolved the priory and old hospital of St. Bartholomew, in Smithfield, he, a short time before his death, founded it anew, and endowed it with the annual revenue of 500 marks, on condition that the city should pay an equal sum. proposal being accepted, the new foundation was incorporated by the name of 'The hospital of the mayor, commonalty, and citizens of London, governors of the poor, called Little St. Bartholomew's, near West Smithfield.

CHAPTER IX.

History of London from the reign of Edward the Sixth to the accession of Elizabeth.

EDWARD VI. who succeeded to the crown by the demise of his father, was only in the ninth year of his age at his accession to the dominion of England; it was necessary, therefore, to choose a protector, who might exercise the regal power during his minority, to which high station the earl of Hertford, the king's maternal uncle, was chosen, and soon after created duke of Somerset.

On the 6th of February, the lord protector commenced the exercise of his high office, by knighting the young king in the presence of the lord mayor, and many other lords and gentlemen; immediately after which, the king, standing under his canopy of state, took the sword from the lord protector, and conferred the honour of knighthood on Henry Hoblethorn, the lord mayor; which was the first act of sovereignty done by him.

In this year, according to Howell, in his Londinopolis, the price of Malmsey wine, the only sweet wine then imported, and that by the Lombards alone, was but three halfpence the pint; for which he quotes the churchwarden's accounts of St. Andrew Undershaft, from which it appears that they had paid ten shillings for eighty pints of Malmsey, spent in the church.'

From the accession of Edward, the Reformation, which, in his father's life time, was a monstrous medley of Protestantism and Catholicism, proceeded with firm and steady steps. In the Easter

week of this year, the church service began to be read in English, in the king's chapel; and in September, commissioners were assembled in St. Paul's church to reform the superstitions of the old worship, among which the adoration of images held a prominent place. These were ordered to be taken out of the churches, which order was carried into effect in London, in November, by pulling down the rood in St. Paul's cathedral, with all the pictures and statues of saints in the different churches, and supplying their places with texts of Scripture calculated to show the fallacy of image worship. In addition to this, the parliament passed an act for permitting the laity to receive the sacrament in both kinds; the statutes against the Lollards and heresies were repealed; private masses were abolished; and bishops were to be elected by letters patent from the king, and to hold their courts in his name.

The combinations and conspiracies which were daily concerted by the journeymen and labourers, being found very detrimental to trade, the parliament, among other things, enacted, 'That if any artificers, workmen, or labourers, do conspire, covenant, or promise together, that they shall not make or do their work but at a certain price or rate, or shall not enterprise or take upon them to finish that work which another hath begun, or shall do but a certain work in a day, or shall not work but at certain hours or times; that then every person so conspiring, covenanting, or offending, being thereof convicted by witnesses, confession, or otherwise, shall forfeit for the first offence ten pounds, or have twenty days imprisonment; for the second offence, twenty pounds, or pillory; and for the third offence forty pounds, or to sit on the pillory and one ear cut off, besides being rendered infamous, and incapable of giving evidence upon oath.' In this act are included butchers, bakers, brewers, poulterers, cooks, &c. And all justices of the peace, mayors, bailiffs, &c. in their sessions, leets, and courts, have full power and authority to inquire, hear, and determine, all and singular offences against this statute, and to cause offenders to be punished.

In the year 1548, the march of the city watch was revived by sir John Gresham, the mayor. The procession received an additional splendor from three hundred light horsemen, which had been raised by the citizens to reinforce the king's army in Scotland.

On St. Peter's day, Gardiner, bishop of Winchester, a zealous Catholic, preached before the king at Whitehall. He had been warned not to speak of controversial subjects, and the answer he gave was moderate and satisfactory. But when in the pulpit he forgot his promises, and warmly supported the real presence in the sacrament. The effect of this ill-judged conduct was grossly indecent. Each party, although in the church, and before the king, cried out aloud, and with vehemence, to support or to insult the preacher; and, on his leaving the pulpit, the orator was taken to prison.

London was again visited by the plague in the month of July of his year, which carried off a great number of its inhabitants.

From Strype's Ecclesiastical Memorials, we learn, that in this year, wheat sold at six shillings and eight-pence per quarter; barley, malt, and rye, at five shillings; and pease and beans at four shillings. And, by an act of parliament for regulating the purveyors of the king's household, the rate of post horses is fixed at one penny per mile.

In the year 1549, at the instigation of archbishop Cranmer, encouragement was given to persecuted foreign Protestants, to come over and settle in England, where they were allowed the free exercise of their religion; and, in return, enriched the nation by the manufactures they brought with them. They settled principally in London, Southwark, Canterbury, and other great towns in that part of the country.

The protector (the duke of Somerset) having been guilty of some acts of imprudence, his enemies took the advantage of it, and several of the members of the council entered into a cabal against his person. They met at Ely-house, and taking the whole authority into their own hands, acted independent of him. They sent injunctions to the magistrates of London and the lieutenant of the Tower, to obey no orders from the protector, but to keep the city and Tower in a state of defence, and at the same time demanded a supply of five hundred men. The magistrates so far agreed with their request, as to order the several companies to mount guard alternately, but would not proceed any farther without consulting the common-council; for which purpose they were summoned by the lord mayor to attend next day at Guildhall.

The protector, who was at this time with the king at Hamptoncourt, receiving advice of these proceedings, was so intimidated, that he retired with his majesty to Windsor, and began strongly to fortify the castle.

The common-council meeting at the appointed time, a letter was produced from his majesty to the city, wherein he demanded five hundred men, completely armed, to be immediately sent to Windsor. Robert Brook, the recorder, opposed this, and, on the contrary, earnestly requested them to supply the lords with that number, as it would enable them to bring the protector to an account, and thereby redress the grievances of the people. He was heard by the court with great attention, but was interrupted by George Stadlow, a member of the common-council; who, after a very elaborate harangue, in which he recited the bad consequences of the city's joining the barons against king Henry III. concluded thus: Wherefore, as this aid is required of the king's majesty, it is our duty to hearken thereto, for he is our high shepherd, rather than unto the lords; and yet I should not wish the lords to be clearly shaken off; but they with us and we with them may join in suit, and make our most humble petition to the king's majesty, that it would please his majesty to hear such complaint against the government of the lord protector, as may be justly alleged and proved;