though the empire were paffed to tha parte, wee fhall find, that fhee acknowledged the primacy of the fame Romaine church, but only when fhee was in fchifme. And as for S. Hierome, though he were no Roman, yet did hee in his daies ascribe fo much authoritie and preheminence to the Roman church, as he affirmed, that in matters of great doubt it was fufficient for his faith to bee allowed and approued by the pope of Rome, &c." And he fays further.

"Whereas Luther fo impudently doth affirme, that the pope hath his primacie by no right, neither diuine nor humane, but onlie by force and tyrannie, I doe wonder how the mad fellow could hope to find his readers. fo fimple or blockifh, as to beleiue, that the bishop of Rome, being a prieft, unarmed, alone, without temporall force or right, either diuine or humane (as he fuppofed) fhould bee able to get authoritie ouer fo manie other bishops his equals, throughout fo manie and different nations, so far off from him, and fo little fearing his temporall power; or that fo manie people, citties, kingdomes, commonwealths, prouinces, and nations could bee fo prodigall of their owne libertie, as to fubject themfelues to a forraine priest (as now fo manie ages they haue done) or to give him

fuch

fuch authoritie ouer themfelues, if he had no right thereunto at all."

I cite thefe quotations, not for the fake of the reasoning or argument contained in them, but merely to prove, that the authority of the fee of Rome, in all fpiritual matters, was in fact freely fubmitted to by the community of this realm, before the reformation. For nobody will fufpect King Henry VIII. of fubmitting tamely, and with full reflection, to any ufurped or affumed authority whatsoever.

We are now to examine what this primacy What the fuwas, which was fuppofed to be transferred from Premacy is. the pope to the king, in order to determine what the fupremacy of the king over the church of England is at this hour. Sir Edward Coke, partly from official pomp and rigour, and partly from natural pedantry and pride, has undertaken to reft the title of his sovereign to this prerogative of fpiritual fupremacy upon fuch grounds, as never can ftand the teft of a cool difpaffionate enquiry. * «The kingdom of England being an abfolute empire and monarchy, confisting of one head, which is the king, and of a body politicke divided into two general parts, the clergy and the laity; both of them, next un

prerogative in

der God, must be subject and obedient to the fame head in all causes; for that otherwise he fhould be no perfect monarch, or head of the whole body." If Sir Edward Coke had either understood, or wished well to our constitution, he would never have complained, that the kings of England were not sufficiently abfolute monarchs for all the purposes of our conftitution, without the fuperaddition of fpiThis addition of ritual jurifdiction. How much more truly and more philofophically is this accumulation of ceffes under the prerogative reprefented by the learned bishop of Worcester, as the efficient cause of that excess of prerogative in the Tudors, which had nearly fwelled into arbitrary and abfolute defpotifm. "I brought these gene† ral confiderations only to fhew the reverend opinion, which of course would be entertained of this mixt perfon, the fupreme head of the church, compounded of a king and a pope; and how natural a foundation it was

the king, the

cause of its ex

Tudors.

* I have never met with any writer, who has pretended to deny, that every English clergyman is a fubject of our king, and fubject to all the laws of the realm. If the clergy have in any age claimed indulgences, exemptions, or difpenfations, they claimed them no otherwife, than from the legislative power, which alone could grant them.

+ Dr. Hurd's Moral and Political Dialogues, vol. ii. p. 284, and feq.

for

for the fuperftructure of defpotic power in all its branches. But I now haften to the particulars, which demonftrate, that this use was actually made of that title.

commiffion.

And, first, let me observe, that it gave Court of high birth to that great and formidable court of the high commiffion, which brought so mighty an acceffion of power to the crown, that, as experience afterwards fhewed, no fecurity could be had for the people's liberties, till it was totally abolished. The neceffity of the times was a good plea for the firft inftitution of fo dangerous a tribunal. The restless endeavours of papifts and puritans against the ecclefiaftical establishment gave a colour for the continuance of it. But as all matters, that regarded religion or confcience were fubjected to its fole cognizance and inspection, it was presently feen how wide an entrance it gave to the most tyrannical ufurpations.

chamber.

"It was further natural, that the king's Court of star power in civil caufes fhould keep pace with his authority in spiritual; and fortunately for the advancement of his prerogative, there was already erected within the kingdom another court of the like dangerous nature, of ancient date, and venerable eftimation, under the name of the court of ftar chamber, which brought every thing under the direction of

High notions

of prerogative

the crown, that could not fo properly be determined in the high commiffion. These were the two arms of abfolute dominion, which, at different times, and under different pretences, were ftretched forth to the oppreffion of every man, that prefumed to oppofe himself to the royal will or pleasure. The star chamber had been kept, in former times, within fome tolerable bounds; but the high and arbitrary proceedings of the other court, which were found convenient for the further purpose of reformation, and were therefore conftantly exercifed, and as conftantly connived at by the parliament, gave an eafy pretence for advancing the ftar chamber's jurifdiction fo far, that in the end its tyranny was equally intolerable, as that of the high commiffion.

"Thus the king's authority, in all cafes in our kings. fpiritual and temporal, was fully established, and in the highest fenfe, of which the words are capable. Our kings themfelves fo underftood it; and when, afterwards, their parliaments fhewed a difpofition to interfere in any thing relating either to church or ftate, they were presently reprimanded, and fternly required not to meddle with what concerned their prerogative royal, and their high points of government."

This reverend and learned prelate is cer