ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY 



deacon of Winchester. 1 The .centres of the visitation were Basingstoke, 

 Alton, Martyr Worthy, Andover, Romsey, St. Cross Southampton, 

 Southwick, the chapel of Newport, Lymington and St. Mary Calender 

 Winchester. To this visitation were summoned all impropriators, 

 rectors, vicars, curates, chaplains and laymen (churchwardens) of, the 

 respective deaneries. Their names are all entered in the rough minutes 

 of the visitation under their respective parishes. Several of the curates 

 who had neglected to bring with them their letters of orders were 

 warned to produce them at Winchester on a given day. The rector of 

 St. Peter's Cheesehill (Winchester) being in default with his induction 

 fees was threatened with the sequestration of his benefice. The wardens 

 of Alverstoke, Niton, King's Somborne and Whitwell were ordered to 

 repair their church windows ; those of Holybourne, Froyle, Steventon 

 and Fordingbridge to repair the churchyard walls ; those of Carisbrooke 

 the church walls ; and those of Andover the roof of the church. The 

 wardens of Bighton were warned to procure a font ; those of Hurst- 

 bourne Tarrant to procure a portifer or breviary ; and those of Amport 

 to provide by Whitsuntide a clerk (aquce-bajulus) at the cost of the 

 parish, under pain of the church being interdicted. A particular day 

 was named within which the work ordered was to be done, it being 

 in most cases the nativity of St. John the Baptist. 



At the funeral of Henry VIII. the Bishop of Winchester was the 

 celebrant ; but with the accession of Edward VI. Gardiner was excluded 

 from the council, and protested against having to accept a renewal of 

 his episcopate at the boy king's hands. The Duke of Somerset as 

 Protector was determined to push on a religious revolution, and paid 

 no heed to Gardiner's protests. On 25 September, 1547, the council 

 sent Stephen Gardiner, the ex-chancellor, as a prisoner to the Fleet, 

 on the charge of having ' spoken impertinent thinges of the Kinges 

 Majeste's Visitacion and refused to set forth and receyve the injunctions 

 and Homelyes for that as he sayd they contayned thinges dissident with 

 the Word of God.' On 8 January, 1 548, the bishop was sent for from 

 the Fleet prison, and was told by the council that he had remission of 

 his offences under the general pardon of the previous month, ' where- 

 upon having minstred to him a good lesson and admonition, he was 

 discharged of emprisonment.' He returned to his diocese, making 

 Winchester his headquarters, but was not long permitted to exercise 

 any episcopal functions in Hampshire. Somerset was determined to 

 overthrow him, and adopted the not unusual but none the less 

 ignoble expedient of summoning him to London in May (1548) to 

 preach before the council. His sermon on St. Peter's day at Paul's 

 Cross naturally failed to satisfy his censors, and on the morrow he was 

 summoned before Somerset, the archbishop, and three other of the 

 privy council, and committed to the Tower. In the statement set forth 

 in 'the council's act book it is alleged that on his return to his diocese 

 in January the bishop ' began forthewith to sett foorth siche mattiers 



1 4<U.MSS. 12,483. 

 63 



