e matter worthy of his attention; and
having ordered Elizabeth and her accomplices to be arrested, he brought
them before the star chamber, where they freely, without being put
to the torture made confession of their guilt. The parliament, in the
session held the beginning of this year, passed an act of attainder
against some who were engaged in this treasonable imposture,[*] and
Elizabeth herself, Masters, Bocking, Deering, Rich, Risby, Gold,
suffered for their crime. The bishop of Rochester, Abel, Addison,
Lawrence, and others were condemned for misprision of treason; because
they had not discovered some criminal speeches which they heard from
Elizabeth;[**] and they were thrown into prison. The better to undeceive
the multitude, the forgery of many of the prophetess's miracles was
detected; and even the scandalous prostitution of her manners was
laid open to the public. Those passions which so naturally insinuate
themselves amidst the warm intimacies maintained by the devotees of
different sexes, had taken place between Elizabeth and her confederates;
and it was found that a door to her dormitory, which was said to have
been miraculously opened, in order to give her access to the chapel, for
the sake of frequent converse with Heaven, had been contrived by Bocking
and Masters for less refined purposes.

* 25 Henry VIII. cap. 12. Burnet, vol. i. p. 149. Hall, fol.
220.

** Godwin's Annals, p. 53.

{1535.} The detection of this imposture, attended with so many odious
circumstances, both hurt the credit of the ecclesiastics, particularly
the monks, and instigated the king to take vengeance on them. He
suppressed three monasteries of the Observantine friars; and finding
that little clamor was excited by this act of power, he was the more
encouraged to lay his rapacious hands on the remainder. Meanwhile he
exercised punishment on individuals who were obnoxious to him. The
parliament had made it treason to endeavor depriving the king of his
dignity or titles: they had lately added to his other titles, that of
supreme head of the church: it was inferred, that to deny his supremacy
was treason; and many priors and ecclesiastics lost their lives for this
new species of guilt. It was certainly a high instance of tyranny to
punish the mere delivery of a political opinion, especially one that
nowise affected the king's temporal right, as a capital offence, though
attended with no overt act; and the parliament, i