All the submyssyons, and recantations of Thomas Cranmer, late Archebyshop of Canterburye truely set forth both in Latyn and Englysh, agreable to the originalles, wrytten and subscribed with his owne hande. Visum [et] examinatum per reuerendum patrem [et] dominum, dominum edmundum episcopum London. Anno, M.D.LVI.

〈◊〉〈◊〉 prayer and sayinge of Thomas Cranmer, a litle before his death, all written with his owne hande as foloweth.

GOod chrysten people, my dere beloued brethren, and my systers in Chryst, I besech you most har∣••ely to praye for me, to almighty god, that he wyl for∣••yue me all my synnes, and offences, whiche be ma∣••y wythout number, and greate aboue measure, but ••et one thinge greuethe my conscience more then all ••he rest, whereof god willing, I intend to speke more ••ereafter, But howe manye and howe greate soeuer ••hey be, I besech you to pray god of hys mercy to par∣don and forgyue me all.

O Father of heauen, o sonne of god redemer of the worlde, o holy ghost, proceding from them both three persones and one God, haue mercye vpon me a most wretched caytife, and miserable synner, I haue offended both heauen and earth, more then my tonge can expresse, whyther than may I go? or whither shal I flye for succoure? To heauen I may be ashamed to lyste vp myne eyes, and in earth I fynde no refuge or succoure, what shall I than doo? shal I dyspayre? god forbyd, O god thou art mercyfull, aud refusest none, that commeth vnto the for succoure. To the therfore do I runne, to the doo I humble my selfe sayinge: O lorde god my synnes be greate, but haue mercy vpon me, for thy greate mercye. God was not made man, for our smal offences. Thou didest not giue thy sonne vnto death, for smale synnes onely, but for all, and the greatest synnes of the worlde, soo that the synner re∣tourne to the in his hart, as I doo here at this presēt: wherefore haue mercy on me o lord, for although my synnes be great, yet thy mercy is greater, I craue no∣thynge, o Lorde for myne owne merytes but for thy name sake, that it may be halowed therby, and for thy

deare sonne Jesus Chryst sake, and nowe therefore, O father that art in heauen, hallowed be thy name▪ Thy kyngdome come. &c.

Euery man desireth good people, at the tyme of their death, to gyue some good exhortation that good fol∣kes maye remember after their death, and be the bet¦ter for the same. So I besech god graunte vnto me, that I may speake some thinge whereby he maye be glorified and you edyfied. Fyrste it is an heauye case, to see how many folkes be so much doted of this pre∣sent worlde, and so carefull of it, that for the world to come they seme to care very litle or nothyng. There∣fore this shalbe my fyrst exhortation, that you set not ouermuch, by this presēt world, but vpon the world to come, and vpon God, and learne to knowe what this lesson meaneth of Saynt Iohn. The loue of this world (saith he) is hatred vnto God. The, ii. exhorta∣tion is, that next vnto God, you obey your kyng, and Quene, willingly and gladly, without murmurynge or grudgynge, not for feare of them, but muche more for feare of God, knowing that they be goddes mini∣sters appoynted by god, for to gouerne and rule you, and therefore they that resist them, resist gods ordy∣naunce. The third exhortation is that you loue toge∣ther, like brethren and systerne. But alas pitie it is to see howe faint this loue is, many taking other not as brother and systers, but rather as straungers, or mor tall enemyes. And yet I pray you learne this one les∣son, to doo good vnto all men, as much as in you ly∣eth, and to hurte no man, no more then you woulde doo to your naturall louinge brother, and syster. For whosoeuer hateth any person, and goeth about mali¦ciously to hurt him, surely withoute doute god is not

with that man, although he thinke himselfe neuer so much in gods fauour. The, iiii, exhrotation shalbe to them that haue substaunce and ryches of the worlde, that they well consyder and remember, iii, sayinges, of the scrypture. One is of our Sauiour Christ hym∣selfe, who sayth, that rych men hardely come into hea uen: a sore saying, and yet spoken of him that knewe the truth. The second is of S. Ihon, who saith thus. He that hath the substaunce of this worlde and seeth his brother in necessitie, and shitteth vppe his mercy from him, howe can he say that he loueth God? The third is of S. Iames, who saythe to couetous ryche men after this maner: Wepe and howle you rich mē for the miserye that shall come vnto you, your riches do rotte, your clothes be moth eaten, your gold & syl∣uer wax cancre, and rustie, and theyr rust shall beare witnes agaynst you, and consume you lyke fyre, you make a hoorde and treasure of goddes indignation agaynst the last day: let thē that be rych ponder well these. iii. sentences, for yf euer they had occasiō to shew theyr charitie, they haue it nowe, the poore people be∣ing so many, and victuells so dere.

Here to declare the Quenes iust title to the crowne.

ANd nowe forasmuche as I am come vnto the last ende of my lyfe wherevpon hangeth all my lyfe passed, and al my life, to come, eyther to liue with my Sauioure Chryste, for euer in ioye, or ells to be in paynes euer, with the wicked deuilles in hell, and I see before my eyes presentlye, eyther heauen redye to receyue me, or ells hell redy to swallowe me vppe, I shall therfore declare vnto you my very fayth, wyth∣out coloure or dissymulation, for nowe is no tyme to dyssemble, whatsoeuer I haue sayde, preached, or

written in tyme past. Fyrst I beleue in God y^e father almyghty, maker of heauen and earth. &c. And I be∣leue euery article of the catholike fayth, euery clause worde, and sentence, taught by our sauiour Chryste, his Apostles and prophetes, in the newe and olde te∣stament, and all articles explicate and set fourth in y^e generall counselles. And nowe I come to the greate thing that soo much troubleth my conscience more thā any other thing y^t euer I did, & that is settinge a∣broad vntrue bokes, & writings, cōtrary to the truth of goddes word, which nowe I renounce and con∣dempne, and refuse them vtterly as erronyous & for none of myne. But you must know also, what bokes they were that you maye beware of them, or ells my conscyence is not dyscharged. For they be the boo•…•… which I wrote agaynst the Sacrament of the Au•…•…tare syth the death of Kynge Henrye the eyghte. But whatsoeuer I wrote than, nowe is tyme and place, to saye truth, wherefore renouncyng al those bo•…•…s, and whatsoeuer in them is conteyned. I say and be∣leue that our Sauiour Chryst Iesu is really and sub stancially conteyned in the blessed Sacramente of y^e Aultare vnder the fourmes of breade and wyne.