138 GENERAL HISTORY 1 



denounced his censures against him in case of re- 

 fusal. 



Henry knowing that his subjects were entirely 

 at bis command, resolved to separate totally from 

 the church of Rome : in 1534, he was declared 

 head of the church by the parliament ; the authority 

 of the Pope was abolished ; all tributes, formerly 

 paid to the holy see were declared illegal, and th 

 King was intrusted with the collation to all ecclesi- 

 astical benefices. The nation came into the King's 

 measures with joy, and took an oath called the oath 

 of supremacy. As the monks had all along shown 

 the greatest resistance to the King's ecclesiastical 

 character, he resolved at once to deprive them of 

 t he power of injuring him ; he accordingly empow- 

 ered Cromwell, secretary of state^to send commis- 

 sioners into the several counties of England, to 

 inspect the monasteries, and to report with rigour- 

 ous exactness, the conduct of such as vveve found in 

 them. 



The commission was undertaken by Layton, 

 London, Price, Gage, Petre, and Belasis ; who are 

 said to have discovered great disorders in many of 

 the religious houses : whole convents of women 

 abandoned to all manner of lewd ness ; and friars 

 accomplices in their crimes : pious frauds were 

 every where committed, to increase the devotion 

 and liberality of the people ; and cruel and invete- 

 rate factions existed amongst them. The king, 

 therefore, in 1536, suppressed the lesser monaste- 

 ries, amounting to 376 : their revenues, computed 

 at 32,000 a year, were confiscated to the king j 



