Wriothesley's Chronicle 1540. 30 Jul 1540. This yeare, the thirtith daie of Julie, 1540,^g were drawen from the Tower of London into Smythfield theise persons follwinge, that is to saie: Doctor Barnes,^h Richard Fetherston, William Jerome, Vicar of Stepney, Doctor Edward Powell, Thomas Jerrard, Parson of Honi Lane, and Thomas Abell,^a priestes, of which three of them, that is to say, Barnes, Jherome, and Garrarde, were brent for heresie,^b condemned by the whole bodie of the Perliament,^c and Fetherston, Powell, and Abell were hanged, their bowells brenned, headed and quartered, in the said place of Smythfield, for treason against the Kinges Majestie,^d and condemned of the same by the whole Perliament.

Note g. The King's councils being at this time directed by Norfolk and Gardiner, the law of the Six Articles was enforced with rigour against the Protestants.

Note h. Robert Barnes, D.D. who had been the cause of Lambert's execution. He had drawn upon himself the resentment of Bishop Gardiner by his sermon at Paul's Cross, in which he had bitterlj inreighed against that prelate as a bigoted Roman Catholic.

Note a. Thomas Abley in Fuller's Church History.

Note b. A stranger, standing by, did wonder, as well he might, of what religion the King was, his sword cutting on both sides, Protestants being burnt for heretics, and Papists hanged for traitors.— Fuller's Church History, p. 285.

Note c. They were condemned by a bill of attainder in parliament, without trial.

Note d. For denying the King's supremacy, and affirming his marriage with Queen Katharine to be good, of the which argument Dr. Powell wrote a book, printed in quarto, and I'have seen it. — Stow.

Pepy's Diary. 05 Apr 1668. Lord's Day. Up, and to my chamber, and there to the writing fair some of my late musique notions, and so to church, where I have not been a good while, and thence home, and dined at home, with W. Hewer (age 26) with me; and after dinner, he and I a great deal of good talk touching this Office, how it is spoiled by having so many persons in it, and so much work that is not made the work of any one man, but of all, and so is never done; and that the best way to have it well done, were to have the whole trust in one, as myself, to set whom I pleased to work in the several businesses of the Office, and me to be accountable for the whole, and that would do it, as I would find instruments: but this is not to be compassed; but something I am resolved to do about Sir J. Minnes (age 69) before it be long. Then to my chamber again, to my musique, and so to church; and then home, and thither comes Captain Silas Taylor (age 43) to me, the Storekeeper of Harwich [Map], where much talk, and most of it against Captain Deane (age 34), whom I do believe to be a high, proud fellow; but he is an active man, and able in his way, and so I love him. He gone, I to my musique again, and to read a little, and to sing with Mr. Pelling, who come to see me, and so spent the evening, and then to supper and to bed. I hear that eight of the ringleaders in the late tumults of the 'prentices at Easter are condemned to die¹.

Note 1. Four were executed on May 9th, namely, Thomas Limmerick, Edward Cotton, Peter Massenger, and Richard Beasley. They were drawn, hanged, and quartered at Tyburn [Map], and two of their heads fixed upon London Bridge [Map] ("The London Gazette", No. 259). See "The Tryals of such persons as under the notion of London Apprentices were tumultuously assembled in Moore Fields [Map], under colour of pulling down bawdy-houses", 4to., London, 1668. "It is to be observed", says "The London Gazette", "to the just vindication of the City, that none of the persons apprehended upon the said tumult were found to be apprentices, as was given out, but some idle persons, many of them nursed in the late Rebellion, too readily embracing any opportunity of making their own advantages to the disturbance of the peace, and injury of others".

Old and New London Volume 6 Chaper XIX The Old Kent Road. St. Thomas à Watering [Map] was once the boundary of the City liberties, and in the "olden time," when the lord mayor and sheriffs "in great state" crossed the water to open Southwark Fair and to inspect the City boundaries, the City magistrates continued either to St. George's Church, Newington Bridge, or "to the stones pointing out the City liberties at St. Thomas à Watering." The precise situation was as near as possible that part of the Old Kent Road which is intersected by the Albany Road, and the memory of the place is still kept alive by St. Thomas's Road, close by, and by the tavern-signs in the neighbourhood. "At the commencement of the present century," writes Mr. Blanch, in his history of "Ye Parishe of Cam[b]erwell," "there was a stream here which served as a common sewer, across which a bridge was built; and in going from Camberwell into Newington or Southwark, it was not unusual for people to say they were going over the water. The current from the Peckham hills was at times so strong as to overflow at least two acres of ground."

St. Thomas à Waterings was situated close to the second milestone on the Old Kent Road, and was so called from a brook or spring, dedicated to St. Thomas à Becket. Chaucer's pilgrims, as we have seen in a previous chapter, passed it on their way to the shrine of St. Thomas à Becket at Canterbury:-

"And forth we riden a litel more than pas,

Unto the watering of Seint Thomàs,

And then our host began his hors arrest."

Ben Jonson, in The New Inn, makes mention of the spot in the following lines:-

"These are the arts

Or seven liberal deadly sciences,

Of pagery, or rather paganism,

Note A. the tides run! to which if he apply him,

He may perhaps take a degree at Tyburn

A year the earlier; come to read a lecture

Upon Aquinas at St. Thomas à Waterings."

This spot was in the old Tudor days the place of execution for the northern parts of Surrey; and here the Vicar of Wandsworth, his chaplain, and two other persons of his household, were hung, drawn, and quartered in 1539 for denying the supremacy of Henry VIII. in matters of faith.

In 1553 (January 3rd) "was caried from the Marshalleshe [Map] unto Saynt Thomas of Wateryng [Map] a talman, and went thedur with the rope a-bowt ys neke, and so he hanggd a whylle, and the rope burst, and a whylle after and then they went for a-nodur rope, and so lyke-wyss he burst ytt and fell to the ground, and so he skapyd with his lyffe."

Gunpowder Plot The Verdicts. Note. All eight Conspirators were to be hanged, drawn and quartered. The narrative provides the rationale for why this particlar punishment was applied.

The Conclusion shall be from the admirable Clemency and Moderation of the King, in that howsoever these Traitors have exceeded all others their Predecessors in Mischief, and so Crescente Malitia crescere debuit et Pæna; yet neither will the King exceed the usual Punishment of Law, nor invent any new Torture or Torment for them; but is graciously pleased to afford them as well an ordinary Course of Trial, as an ordinary Punishment, much inferior to their Offence.

And surely worthy of Observation is the Punishment by Law provided and appointed for High-Treason, which we call Crimen læsæ Majestatis. For first, after a Traitor hath had his just Trial, and is convicted and attainted, he shall have his Judgement to be drawn to the place of Execution from his Prison, as being not worthy any more to tread upon the Face of the Earth whereof he was made:

Also for that he hath been retrograde to Nature, therefore is he drawn backward at a Horse-Tail. And whereas God hath made the Head of Man the highest and most supreme Part, as being his chief Grace and Ornament, Pronaque cum spectent Animalia cætera terram, Os homini sublime dedit; he must be drawn with his Head declining downward, and lying so near the Ground as may be, being thought unfit to take benefit of the common Air. For which Cause also he shall be strangled, being hanged up by the Neck between Heaven and Earth, as deemed unworthy of both, or either; as likewise, that the Eyes of Men may behold, and their Hearts contemn him. Then he is to be cut down alive, and to have his Privy Parts cut off and burnt before his Face, as being unworthily begotten, and unfit to leave any Generation after him. His Bowels and inlay'd Parts taken out and burnt, who inwardly had conceived and harboured in his heart such horrible Treason. After, to have his Head cut off, which had imagined the Mischief. And lastly, his Body to be quartered, and the Quarters set up in some high and eminent Place, to the View and Detestation of Men, and to become a Prey for the Fowls of the Air.

And this is a Reward due to Traitors, whose Hearts be hardened: For that it is Physic of State and Government, to let out corrupt Blood from the Heart. But, Pænitentia vera numquam, sera sed pænitentia sera raro vera: True Repentance is indeed never too late; but late Repentance is seldom found true: Which yet I pray the merciful Lord to grant unto them, that having a Sense of their Offences, they may make a true and sincere ConFession both for their Souls Health, and for the Good and Safety of the King and this State. And for the rest that are not yet apprehended, my Prayer to God is, Ut aut convertantur ne pereant, aut confundantur ne noceant; that either they may be converted, to the End they perish not, or else confounded, that they hurt not.

After this by the Direction of Master Attorney-General, were their several Examinations (subscribed by themselves) shewed particularly unto them, and acknowledged by them to be their own, and true, wherein every one had confessed the Treason. Then did Master Attorney desire, That albeit that which had been already done and confessed at the Bar, might be all-sufficient for the Declaration and Justification of the Course of Justice then held, especially seeing we have Reos confitentes, the Traitors own voluntary ConFessions at the Bar; yet for further Satisfaction to so great a Presence and Audience, and their better Memory of the Carriage of these Treasons, the voluntary and free ConFessions of all the said several Traitors in writing subscribed with their own proper Hands, and acknowledged at the Bar, by themselves to be true, were openly and distinctly read; By which, amongst other things, it appeared that Bates was absolved for what he undertook concerning the Powder-Treason, and being therein warranted by the Jesuits. Also it appeared, that Hammond the Jesuit, after that he knew the Powder-Treason was discovered, and that these Traitors had been in actual Rebellion, confessed them, and gave them Absolution: And this was on Thursday the 7th of November.

Here also was Mention made by Master Attorney of the ConFessions of Watson and Clarke, Seminary Priests, upon their Apprehension; who affirmed, that there was some Treason intended by the Jesuits, and then in Hand; as might appear.

Note 1 By their continual negotiating at that Time with Spain, which they assured themsleves tended to nothing but a preparation for a foreign Commotion.

Note 2 By their collecting and gathering together such great Sums of Money, as then they had done, therewith to levy an Army when Time should serve.

Note 3 For that sundry of the Jesuits had been tampering with Catholicks, as well to dissuade them from Acceptance of the King at his first coming, saying, That they ought rather to Die, than to admit of any Heretick (as they continually termed his Majesty) to the Crown; and that they might not, under pain of Excommunication, accept of any but a Catholick for their Sovereign; as also to dissuade Catholicks from their Loyalty after the State was settled.

Lastly, In that they had both bought up store of great Horses throughout the Country, and conveyed Powder and Shot, and Artillery secretly to their Friends; wishing them not stir, but keep themselves quiet until they heard from them.

After the reading of their several Examinations, ConFessions, and voluntary Declaration as well of themselves, as of some of their dead Confederates, they were all by the Verdict of the Jury found guilty of the Treasons contained in their Indictment.