Roman Catholic cruelties/Chapter 5
The Persecutions and Cruelties of the Papists upon the
Protestants in Scotland and Ireland.
As most kingdoms in Europe felt the rage and fury of Romish cruelty and persecution, so Scotland, though in the frozen north, was not insensible thereof; for in the year 1579, Mr. Patrick Hamilton, of an ancient and honourable family, and called Abbot of Fern, left Scotland and went into Germany, where conversing with Luther and Melancthon, he greatly increased in godly knowledge and learning, and returning home he publicly preached concerning faith and good works, and against the superstitions and idolatry of the Papists.
This so enraged James Beaton, Archbishop of St. Andrews, that in the absence of the King, Mr. Hamilton was seized upon by the Bishop's officers, and carried to the castle, and the next day he was brought forth to judgment, and condemned to be burned for the testimony of God. The articles charged against him, were about Pilgrimage, Purgatory, Praying to Saints, and for the Dead.
After dinner the fire was prepared, which some thought was only to terrify him, but it pleased God to strengthen him against the fear of death, and so he was tied to the stake. Giving his garments to his servant, and saying thus to him; These will not profit in the fire, they will profit thee; after this thou canst receive no benefit by me, except the example of my death, which I pray thee to remember; for though it be bitter to the flesh, and fearful before men, yet it is the entrance into eternal life, which none shall possess who deny Jesus Christ before this wicked generation. And the fire being kindled, he cried with a loud voice, Lord Jesus receive my spirit. How long shall darkness overwhelm this realm? And how long wilt thou suffer the tyranny of these men? A friar troubling him by crying out, Turn thou heretic, call upon our lady, say Salve Regina, &c. He replied, Depart from me, and trouble me not, thou messenger of Satan: and speaking to one Campbell, the chief among them, he said, Wicked man, thou knowest the contrary, and hast confessed the contrary to me; I appeal thee before the Tribunal Seat of Jesus Christ; after which words he resigned up his spirit to God; and within a few days after the friar died in a frenzy and desperation.
The Archbishop of St. Andrews likewise called before him two gentlemen, David Straton, and Mr. Norman Gomlay. Mr. Straton being accused for heresy was much troubled at it, and thereupon frequented the company of religious men; and hearing that text read, He that denieth me before men, or is ashamed of me in this wicked generation, I will deny him before my Father and his Holy Angels; he stedfastly lifted up his eyes and hands to heaven, and burst forth into these words, O Lord I have been wicked, and justly mayest thou withdraw thy grace from me, but Lord, for thy mercy sake, let me never deny thy truth for fear of death or corporal pain. Being afterwards together with Mr. Norman brought to judgment in Holy-Rood House, where the king himself was present, they were both condemned to the fire, and in the afternoon were first hanged, and then burned, which they cheerfully suffered.
There was likewise one Dean Thomas Foret, who used to preach to his parishioners every Lord's day, out of the Epistles and Gospels, as they came in order, for which being complained of to the Bishop of Dunkeldon, he reproved him for it, telling him that it was too much to preach every Sunday, since the people might think they ought to do so likewise; and said the Bishop, Is it not enough for you when you find a good Epistle and Gospel, to set forth and preach the liberty of the Holy Church, and let the rest alone. Dean Thomas replied, that he had read them all over, and knew no bad ones among them; but, said he, when your lordship shews me any such I will pass them by. The Bishop answered, I thank God I never knew what the Old and New Testament was; but go your ways and repent of these fancies ere it be too late. The Dean answered, My cause is good and just in the presence of God, and therefore I care not what follows thereupon, and so went away, but he was shortly after sent for before Cardinal Beaton, by whom he was condemned and burned for an heretic.
The year after, Jerome Russel, and Alexander Kennedy, who was not above eighteen years old, were brought before the Archbishop and his associates, who railed upon them, and called them heretics. Jerome Russel replied, this is your hour and power of darkness, now sit ye as judges, and we are wrongfully accused, but the day will come, wherein our innocency will appear, and ye shall see your own blindness to your everlasting confusion; go forward and fulfil the measure of your iniquity. A while after they were sentenced to die, and as they went to execution, Jerome comforted Kennedy, saying, Brother, fear not, greater is he that is in us than he that is in the world; the pain we are to suffer is short, and shall be light, but our joy and consolation shall never have an end; let us therefore strive to enter into our Master and Saviour's joy, by the same straight way which he hath taken before us; death cannot hurt us, for it is destroyed by him for whose sake we now suffer. And in this manner they joyfully gave up their souls to God in the flaming fire.
In the year 1543, Cardinal Beaton coming to Edinburgh, caused several religious persons to be brought before him, and when he could prove nothing else against them, he caused four men to be hanged upon suspicion that they had eaten a goose upon a Friday. And a woman, with a child sucking at her breast, was drowned for refusing to pray to the Virgin Mary. Many others were likewise banished, and imprisoned for the gospel; and among the rest John Rogers, a learned and godly minister, whom he caused to be murdered in prison, and then thrown over the wall, giving it out, that by attempting to make his escape he broke his neck.
In the year 1546, Mr. George Wishart, a famous minister, was sent for to appear before Cardinal Beaton, and the other Bishops at St. Andrews; where a Priest was ordered to curse him, who called him runnagate, traitor, thief, &c. Honoured Mr. Wishart gave them an account of his faith and doctrine, but they not being able to answer him, immediately condemned him to be burned; and presently a fire was prepared over against the castle, and velvet cushions were laid in the castle windows for the Cardinal and the rest of the Prelates to see hım suffer; and for fear he should be rescued by his friends, all the castle guns were mounted against the place of his execution, by the Cardinal's order; then with a rope about his neck, and a chain about his middle, he was fastened to the stake, and having earnestly prayed, and exhorted the people, and forgiven his enemies and persecutors, he said thus: I beseech you, brethren, exhort your prelates to learn the Word of God, that they may be ashamed to do evil, and learn to do good, or else there shall come upon them the wrath of God, which they shall not eschew. Then the hangman upon his knees said, Sir, I pray forgive me, for I am not the cause of your death. Mr. Wishart called him to him, and kissing his cheek, said, Lo, here is a token that I forgive thee, my heart do thine office; and so he was tied to the stake, and the fire kindled.
The captain of the castle came to him and bid him be of good courage; to whom Mr. Wishart said, This fire torrents my body, but no whit abates my spirits; then looking towards the Cardinal, he said, He who in such state, from that high place, feeds his eyes with my torments, within few days shall be hanged out at the same window, with as much shame and ignominy as he there leans with pride: then his breath being stopt with the flames he gave up the ghost.
This prophecy was fulfilled in a short time after; for the people being generally discontented at the cruelty used against Mr. Wishart, several person's conspired against him, and killed him in the castle, and the provost raising the town, came to the castle gates, crying, What have you done with my Lord Cardinal? Where is he? To whom they answered from within, Return to your houses, for he hath received his reward, and will trouble the world no more. But they cried, We will never depart till we see him. Then was he hanged out at that very window to satisfy them he was dead, and so the people departed.
Shortly after, one Adam Wallace was burned likewise; and Henry Forest suffered the same cruel death, upon account of heresy. One Walter Mill was accused for heresy, and being bid to recant, he said, I am corn, and not chaff, I will not recant the truth and being thereupon condemned to the fire, and all things made ready to that purpose, they commanded him to go to the stake. No, said he, by the laws of God I am forbidden to lay hands on myself, therefore do you put me in the fire, and you shall see my resolution. Having then made his prayer unto God, he spake thus to the people; Although I have been a great sinner, yet it is not for that, but for God's truth, contained in his Word of the Old and New Testaments, that I now suffer; and God, out of his abundant mercy, doth honour me so far, as to make me among other of his servants, seal his truth with my blood. After he had thus spoke, he was tied to the stake, and the fire being kindled, he quietly slept in the Lord; and was the last person that died for the Protestant religion in Scotland.
In the year of our Lord, 1641, there brake forth a most horrid and bloody rebellion and massacre, committed by the Irish Papists on the English, in Ireland; a nation, famous for the birth of many worthy persons; especially, that learned and religious person, James Usher, late Archbishop of Armagh, and Primate of Ireland; who, amongst many other gifts and graces, was endued with a spirit of prophecy; from which, among other things, he foretold the bloody rebellion, forty years before it came to pass, which prediction proved exactly true.
The Jesuits, Priests and Friars were the chief instigators to this horrid massacre, by continual incensing and stirring up the Popish gentry and commonalty. The clergy, more to engage the deluded Papists to murder the Protestants, everywhere loudly declaimed. That they were heretics, and not fit to be suffered any longer among them; that it was no more sin to kill one of them, than to kill a dog; and that it was an unpardonable sin to relieve or protect them.
All things being in readiness, they proceeded to the execution of this damnable contrivance; but their proceeding therein was various: some of the Irish only stripping the English Protestants, and turning them out of doors naked in frost and snow; others, cruelly murdering, man, woman, and child, without the least compassion. The Popish Priests gave the sacrament to divers of the Irish, upon condition that they should not spare any Protestant; saying, 'That it did them a great deal of good, to wash their hands in their blood.' The Priests excommunicated all that should relieve or harbour any Protestant. Yes, the Monks and Friars, with tears in their eyes, exhorted them to destroy them utterly, and not to leave the memorial of a Protestant under heaven.
The day before this horrid massacre began, the Priests gave the people a dismission at mass, to go out and take possession of all their lands. They further told them, that they might lawfully strip, rob, and despoil them of all their property, the Protestants being worse than dogs; that the killing of such was meritorious, and an excellent preservative against the pains of Purgatory.
At the commencement of this horrid rebellion, several Irish gentlemen pretended great kindness to some of their Protestant neighbours and persuaded them to put their goods and cattle into their hands, in order to secure them from the rage of the rabble; because of former familiarity, the Protestants gave them inventories of all they had; nay, they digged up some of their best things which they had hidden in the ground, and put them into the Papists' hands; by this means they gained vast quantities of goods, and like true Papists cheated them out of them all.
In one place there were no less than twenty-two widows, who were first robbed, and then stripped stark naked; they covered themselves with straw in a house, but the bloody Papists threw in burning straw among them, on purpose to burn them together.
In the castle of Lisgol above an hundred and twenty men, women, and children, were burned together. Another castle was delivered to one of the Popish commanders, upon condition their lives should be saved. but as soon as he entered he cruelly murdered and destroyed them all without mercy. And at Portendown Bridge a thousand men, women, and children, were drowned in the river.
In Queen's county, an Englishman, his wife, five children, and a maid, were all hanged together, and then cut down and put into a hole; the youngest child, though it was hanged, was not quite dead when it was put in, but put up its hand and cried, Mammy, mammy, and yet these villains without mercy buried it alive.
They stripped a Scotchman, and knocked him down for dead, but he afterwards recovering, went into the town naked, whereupon they hewed him all to pieces. They also ripped up his wife's belly, so that the child dropped out. They likewise hanged up divers other women with child, and ripping them up, gave the infants to be devoured by dogs and swine.
In one place they burned two English Bibles, and said it was hell fire they burned. A Papist would have persuaded a man and his wife to have joined with them in the massacre; but they protested, That rather than they would forsake their religion, they would die upon the sword's point; whereupon they were both cruelly murdered.
These barbarous villains caused some children to carry their aged parents to the river, and drown them: some wives were forced to help to hang their husbands; and in one town they caused a young man to murder his own father, and then hanged him up. In another place they forced a woman to kill her husband, then caused the son to kill his mother, and then immediately hanged the son.
By these, and all manner of cruelties which hell itself could invent, the Irish and English Papists murdered and destroyed, in a few months, near three hundred thousand Protestants, as it is commonly computed, without any manner of provocation, but only because they were Protestants; whose deaths the Divine vengeance recompensed upon the chief murderers, many thousands perishing by the sword and the plague.
FINIS.