177 



Master "Walter Ramesbury, precentor of the church ofj,. . fArtarl 



^^^ °^ ' (Bachelor of theology 



Master John Malune. ) 



The discussion and arguments continued " for all that day and the two 

 days following (that is to say, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, Oct. 3rd, 4th, and 

 5th)," and so cleverly and well did Master Brut hold his own in this trying 

 ordeal that from his declarations and writings "the monks did gather and draw 

 out certain articles to the number of thirty-seven," which were taken to the 

 University of Cambridge to be confuted by those two learned men Master 

 Colvyll and Master Newton, who sat upon the commission, and they did 

 both labour in the matter to the uttermost of their cunning." These articles 

 are copied into the Register and marked all of them as "heresy" or "error." 



Walter Brut, on his part, agreed to make a publick submission to the 

 Church in the following general terms, which are mild as compared with the 

 extreme views of Swynderby : — 



" Y, "Walter Brut, submtte me pfncipaly to the evangely of Jhu 

 criste, and to the determinacion of holy chyrch and to ye general consayles 

 of holy chyrche, and to ye sentence and determinacion of ye four doctors on 

 holy wryt ; that ys, Austya, Ambrose, Jerom, and GG (Gregory). And y 

 meklyilie submtte me to your correction as a sojet ougte to ye byshop." 



He read out this scroll ' ' with a loud intelhgable voice at the cross in the 

 churchyard, on Monday, that is to say, the sixth of the said month of October, 

 in the presence of the Bishop and his assistants, as also other barons, knights, 

 and noblemen, and clergy, and also a great multitude of people," and imme- 

 diately afterwards a certain Thomas Cranley, master of divinity, a member of 

 the Commission, made a sermon unto the people, taking the 2nd chapter of 

 Romans for his subject, " Be not over-wise in your own conceits," &c. (Reg. 

 Trefnant. 



The following curious contemporary notice of "Walter Brut occurs in the 



" "Vision of Piers Plouhman" (page 489) : — 



" Behold upon "Walter Brut 

 "Whom bisiUche thei pursueden 

 For he said hem the sothe." 



Two very singular anonymous letters appear also in the Episcopal Register 

 of our Cathedral, and that they should have been allowed to do so, certainly 

 gays much for the candour of the notary. The first is entitled "a copy of a 

 letter sent to Master Nicholas Hereford, by a Lollard," and is very severe upon 

 that learned divine for deserting the ranks of the "Wycliffites. The other is a 

 letter written in the name of " Lucifer, Prince of Darkness, to the persecuting 

 prelates of the Popish Clergy." This is a highly satirical attack on the Pope 

 and the Romish Church. An earlier copy is to be found at Paris of the date of 

 138.5, six years before the examination of "Walter Brut. They are noticed here 

 because, although the real authors are unknown, amongst others they have been 

 attributed to Swynderby and Brut. 



The Bishop of Hereford, though he condemned and excommunicated the 

 Lollards in Deerfold, felt himself powerless against them. They set at naught 



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