TO THE MOSTE HYGHE AND
moste excellent prince, our mooste gracyous, and mooste redouted
Souerayn lord and kynge HENRY the. VIII. by the grace of
god kynge of Englande and of Fraunce, defendour of the faythe,
lorde of Irelande, and supreme heed in erth immediately vnder Christ
of the Churche of Englande, Thomas archbysshop of Canturbury,
Edwarde archebysshop of Yorke, and all other the bishops,
prelates, and Archedeacons of this your realme,
wysshe all grace, peace, and felicitie from almighty
god the father our lorde Iesu Christe.
PLEASETH IT YOVR moste royall maiestie
to vnderstande, that where as of your
mooste godly disposytion and tender zeale,
whiche is impressed in your most noble hart,
towardes the aduauncement of goddis glorie,
& the right instytution and education of
your people in the knoweledge of Christis trewe relygion,
your hyghnesse commaunded vs nowe of late, to assemble
our selfes togyther, and vppon the diligent serche and pervsynge
of holye scripture, to sette forthe a playne and syncere
doctrine, concernynge the hole summe of all those thynges,
whyche appertayne vnto the profession of a Chrysten
man, that by the same all errours, doubtes, superstytions,
and abuses myght be suppressed, remoued, and vtterly taken
away, to the honour of almighty god, and to the perfite establyshyng
of your said subiectes in good vnitie and concord.
and perfyte quietenes bothe in theyr sowles and bodyes.
We co~sidering the godly effect and intent of this your highnes
moste vertuous and gracious commandement, do not
only reioyse and gyue thankes vnto almighty god with all
our hartes, that it hath pleased hym to sende suche a king to
reigne ouer vs, whiche so ernestly myndeth to sette forthe amonge
his subiectes the light of holy scripture, which alone
sheweth men the ryghte pathe to come to god, to se hym, to

a.ii.

knowe hym, to loue hym, to serue hym, and so to serue hym,
as he mooste desyrethe: but haue also, accordynge to oure
moste bounden dueties, endeuoured our selfes, with all our
wytte, lernynge, and power to satisfye your hyghnes sayde
desyred most godly purpose. And thervpon callynge to our
remembraunce, howe the hole pithe and summe of all those
thinges, whiche be at greatte lengthe conteyned in the hole
canon of the Bible, and be of necessitie required to the attaynynge
of euerlastynge lyfe: was sufficiently, exactely, and
therwith shortly and compendiousely comprehended in the
[*ii.] . Articles of the co~mune crede, called the apostels crede, in
the. vii. sacramentes of the church, in the ten co~mandementes,
and in the prayer of our lord, called the Pater noster. And
considering therfore, that if your highnes people were perfitly
instructed and lerned in the right knowlege and vnderstanding
of the same, they shulde not only be hable easily to
perceyue and vnderstand, & also to lerne by harte and beare
away the hole effect and substance of al those thinges, which
do appertayne and be necessarie for a christen man, eyther
to beleue, or to do, but also that all occasyons myght therby
be remoued, whiche by any colour or visage haue caused
any of them to fall or to be offended: we haue after longe &
mature consultation, had amonges vs, compiled a certaine
treatise, wherin we haue employed our hole study, and haue
therin truely & purely set forthe and declared in our mother
tongue, the very sense & meanynge, and the very righte vse,
vertue, and efficacie of all the said foure partes. And forasmoche
as Faith is that singuler gift of god, wherby our hartes,
that is to say, our natural reason and iugement obscured
and almooste extincted by originall and actuall synnes
is lyghtened, puryfyed, and made hable to knowe and discerne,
what thynges be in dede acceptable, and what be displeasant
in the syght of god, and for bicause also that fayth
is the verye fountayne and chiefe grounde of oure Relygion,
and of all goodnes and vertues exercysed in the same,
and is the fyrste gaate, whereby we entre, and be receyued
and admytted, not onely in to the familye or householde of
our lorde god, but also in to the knowledge of his maiestie
and deitie, and of his inestimable power, wysedome, rightuousenes,
mercye, and goodnes: we haue fyrste of all begonne
with the CREDE, and haue declared by waye of a
paraphrasis, that is a kynd, mere, and true exposition of the
right vnderstandyng of euery article of the same. And after
warde we haue entreated of the institution, the vertue, and
right vse of the seuen sacramentes. And thirdly we haue declared
the ten co~mandementes, & what is conteyned in euery
one of theym. And fourthly we haue shewed the interpretation
of the Pater noster, whervnto we haue also added the declaration
of the Aue Maria. And to the intent we wolde omytte
nothyng, conteyned in the boke of articles, deuised and sette
forthe this last yere, by your highnes lyke commandement:
we haue also added in the ende of this treatise, the article of
Iustification, and the article of Purgatorie, as they be in the sayd
boke expressed. And thus hauynge determyned our sentence
in all thynges conteyned in the sayde treatyse, accordynge
to the verye trewe meanynge of scripture, we doo offer the
same here with vnto your mooste excellent maiestie, mooste
humblye besechynge the same, to permytte and suffre it, in
case it shall be so thought mete to your moste excellent wysedome
to be prynted, and soo with your supreme power sette
forthe: and commaunded to be by vs and al other your subiectes
of the clergie of this your moste noble realme, as well
religious as other, taught to your hyghnes people, without
the which power and lycence of your maiestie, we knowlege
and confesse, that we haue none auctorite, eyther to assemble
our selfes togither for any pretence or purpose, or to publishe
any thynge, that myghte be by vs agreed on and compyled.
And albeit moste drade and benigne souerayne lord, we doo
affyrme by our lernynges with one assent, that the said treatise
is in all poyntes soo concordaunt and agreable to holye

a.iii.

scripture, as we truste your maiestie shall receyue the same,
as a thynge moste sincerely and purely handled to the glorye
of god, your graces honour, the vnitie of your people,
the whyche thynges your highnes we may well see and perceyue,
doth chiefly in the same desyre: Yet we do most humbly
submitte it to the mooste excellent wysedome and exacte
iudgement of your maiestie, to be recognysed, ouersene, and
corrected, yf your grace shall fynde any worde or sentence in
it mete to be changed, qualified, or further expounded, for
the playne settynge forthe of your highnes moste vertuous
desyre & purpose in that behalfe. Wherevnto we shal in that
case conforme our selfes, as to our most bounden duitees to
god, and to your highnesse apperteyneth.
Your highnes moste humble subiectes and dayly beadesmen
Thomas Cantuarien. Edouardus Ebor.
Ioannes London. Cuthbertus Dunelmen.
Stephanus winton. Robertus Carliolen.
Ioannes Exon.
Ioannes Lincoln.
Ioannes Bathonien.
Rolandus Couen. et Lich.
Thomas Elien.
Nicolaus Sar.
Ioannes Bangor.
Edouardus Hereforden.
Hugo wigornien.
Ioannes Roffen.
Ricardus Cicestren.
Guihelmus Norwicen.
Guihelmus Meneuen.
Robertus Assauen.
Robertus Landauen.
Ricardus wolman Archidiaconus Sudbur. Gulielmus knyghte Arch.
Richemond. Ioannes Bell Arch. Gloucestr. Edmundus Boner Arch. Laicestr.
Gulielmus Skippe Arch. Dorsett. Nicolaus Heeth Arch. Strafford.
Cuthbertus Marshal Arch. Notingham. Ricardus Curren Arch. Oxon.
Gulielmus Cliffe, Galfridus Downes, Robertus Okyng, Radulphus
Bradford, Ricardus Smith, Symon Mathew, Ioannes Pryn, Gulielmus
Buckmaster, Gulielmus May, Nicolaus wotton, Ricardus Coxe, Ioannes
Edmundes, Thomas Robertson, Ioannes Baker, Thomas Baret, Ioannes
Hase, Ioannes Tyson
Sacrae theologiae, iuris ecclesiastici et
Ciuilis professores.