POLE
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POLE
kin;; Ilarrv determined upon lii- divorce from Catha- tbe troubles consequent upon this, and how he must needs be involved in them, to withdraw, and obtained leave of his majesty I iuued in quiet till the
fl iir ol iIh- divorce, and Bending (ll ii,,. mosi noted universities in Europe for their opin- .. j of his marriage, commanded in procuring the approval from the faculty of the Hni- l. fi the affair to the commis- ..• himself to the king as unfil for the . studies had lain another way. Henrj ry, upon which Pole returned to England in order to pacify him; but failing in this, and unwilling i tool "l himself to the king in his questiona- :;-, Pole n turned to She< n, where he continued two pears. I: has been asserted thai scruples of con- science and of religion were nol his only motive: that, i priest, he was nol without hope of marrying the princess Mary Tudor, and that it was nol withoul men views thai Catharine of Aragon had committed
ition of her daughter t" bis her, the count-
isbury. Henry ;n length perceiving thai the courl of B to oppose the affair of the di-
iceived a resolution i" shake off their author- ity, an I to rely upon bis own subjects. Pole was again pressed, bul as steadfastly refused as before, even under
the temptati f being made archbishop of York if he
should comply with 1 1 » • - king's demands. The king ismissed Pole in anger, he consulted his safi ty by leaving the kingdom, and rejoined the company of tin- distinguished men he had known abroad. The firsl -;»'iit at Avignon; bul ;is his health declined there he went to Padua, making now and thru excur- sions to his friends at Venice, The literary circle in which be moved was formed by Caraffa (Paul l\ . Sa- . archbishop of Salerno, Bembo, urini. These men even embraced the doctrine of justification, and in their social meetings discussed the means of reforming the papacy thi ir great princi- ple being to pn serve the unity of the < Ihurcb under the ■ rmii" nt. In Italy, during the reign of Henry VIII. i;. ginald P real distinction, and on
■ Paul III in 1534 was raised to the ear- as wen- his friends just mentioned. Thus the tbly in Italy, while fresh troubles were rising in England. Henry had not only divorced Catharine, but married Anne Boleyn, and resolved to throw off the papal yoke and assert his right to the su- , with the tide of Supreme Head of the ( Ihurch.
To this end lie procured a I k t" be written in defence
of thai title l>y Sampson, bishop ol Chichester, which Pole for In- confirmation. Pole, taking courage from the security of the pope's protec- tion, i Iv disapproved the king's divorce and sepa- ration from the apostolic Bee, bul Bhortly after drew up , entitled /'• unitaU eccleticutica, in which he rtcd the pretensions of Henry to the hi ad- ship of the Church, and compared him to Nebucbad- i rwarded a copy of it to the king, who, I with Pole, under pretence of wanting some :plained, senl for him to England; bnl I il to deny the king's supremacy was Ii ring the fati bey the call. The king there- with him i bis pension was withdrawn, be was s tripped ol :ili In- dignities in England, and an act of attaind< i him.
by the bountj i fthe pope and em| i
,l" -•' •'■'■ PaulIH.havii i , em ral council
f..r the reform of the < burch, called to Komi - v< ral per-
wned for their learning, and among them Pole,
to represent England. In vain his mother, brothers,
and friends tried to dissuade him from going to Rome.
wavering, the exhortations of Ids friend Contarini prevailed ov< r the fears of his family, and he wenl to Rome in 1536. There he was, against his ear- not wish, created cardinal. Dec, '-"-'. 1636. Two months afterwards (February, 1537) Paul appointed him his legate on the other side of the Alps, and senl him on a most delicate and dangerous errand. The rebellion of
hern Catholics against Henry Ylll seemed to the pope a favorable occasion to attempt the reconcil- iation of England with the Roman see. Tin legate's instructions were to promote a good understan tween the emperor and the king of France, to estab- lish himself in the Netherlands, and if circumstances allowed of such a course tn pa— over to England. Scarcely had he pul his fool on the French territory mwi II. hi- personal foe, claimed him in virtue of an article of a treaty concluded between Francis and Henry: but, secretly pul on his guard by the king him- self, he pursued his journey with the utmost speed, and Btopped only al Cambrai. The regent here refused to allow him t" enter the Netherlands; and. after a short Btay with the prince-bishop of Liege, he was obliged to make his way hack to Rome (August, 1537). Al the same time Henry VIII Bel a price of fifty thousand crowns on his head, and promised to the emperor a Bub- sidy of four thousand men in his war againsl Francis tor his extradition, [fthe pope bad up to that time shrunk from extreme measures against the schism of England, it was because be fell powerless to put them into execution. Having succeeded in restoring peace between the two great rulers of the Continent, he at last published his bull of excommunication. l'ole was senl in secret mission to the courts of Spain and France; but, forestalled by the English agents, he could only gel evasive answer-. Charles, al Toledo, declared that he had more urgent business to attend to, bul that he was ready to fulfil the promises made by him to the pope if Francis assisted him without afterthought. Francis, in his turn, protested his good-will, bul be- sought the legate nol to enter his states if he did not bring some positive proof of the emperor's sincerity. After carrying on negotiations for several months. Pole came to the conclusion that he was being deluded on both side-, and advised the pope to wait patiently for a better opportunity to turn up in the course of political events. His share in these negotiations proved fatal to his relations. Henry wreaked hi- savage vengeance on him by sending to execution lii- brother, lord Mon- tague, and his aged mother, lady Salisbury, who was dragged to the scaffold May 17. 1541. The -croud brother of the cardinal. Sir Geoffrey, saved his life by revealing the secrets of his relations and friends. In 1539 cardinal Pole was sent to Viterbo, where, in the exercise of his functions, until 1542, he distinguished himself bj his piety, the encouragement he gave to let- ters, and his toll ranee towards the Protestants. In 1545 he repaired to Trent, under strong escort, to superintend the works preparatory to the council. After the death ol Henry 1 1547 |, he wrote to the Privy Council in favor