Series 5 > Religious Controversy in Scotland 1625-1639

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RELIGIOUS CONTROVERSY IN SCOTLAND
England is this way abused by ane unhappie faction, and no[w] therewith
they promott to such offices, both in kirke and state within Ireland, such as is
fittest to advance tyranie and poprie. For the state, St[r] afford32 is a fitt man; for
the kirke, Downe33 doe all. He has strange puritans in his bounds who wax the
more and grow by his censure. Doctor Bramble34 of that isle must be advanced
not onely to the sea of Derry, bott to the king’s viccarish gennerall. Doctor
Chappell35 must be sent first to the universitie of Dublin to sow that unhapie
seede of Arminianisme there, and then to ane episcopall chaire.The poore old
man Doctor Usher,36 for opposeinge Arminian tenets must always be crossed
and his head borne downe so that he was often tymes hearde say that this factione
of Arminianisme would banish him from his place and make him faine in his old
age to teach lide children for his maintenance.When the anti-Arminian articles
were offered to the parliment in Ireland, they were not onelie re&sed by meanes
of these Brambles but were threatned to be burnt by the hand of the hangman,
and such devilfish privy articles as Bramble of Derrie used to present to divers
who tooke orders fiom his hands was never hearde of in anie Christian church.
Montague,Whyte,Wrea,37 and divers of that stampe wrote so bouldfie, defendinge
to the full all the Arminian tenets, that some remnant whom God had saved
from that pestilence [Qthe undoer of church and state where it comes) hazarded
to write and preach against them, as Prin, Burton, and Bastwicke, which cost
them deare in end. And presses and pulpitts, some ringing for defence, some for
impugninge Arminianisme, it was thoght good to discharge, by oppen procla¬
mations, both parties to put anything to presse in these points, and truely it was
carefuly enough seine to that nothing against Arminianisme should be put to
the presse.38 But after the proclamatione these men preached and printed what
32 Thomas Wentworth, first earl of Strafford, appointed lord deputy oflreland 12Jan. 1632. He was
executed on 12 May 1641.
33 Henry Leslie, bishop of Down and Connor in 1635; to Meath in 1661.
34 John Bramhall, chaplain to Wentworth in 1633; bishop of Derry in 1634; Restoration archbishop
ofArmagh. Robert Bailhe wrote against him; see/I Review of Doctor Bramble (Delft, 1649).
35 William Chappell benefited fiom Laud’s patronage and became bishop of Cork and Ross in 1638;
he was thought by some to be a puritan, by others an Arminian with a great affection for religious
ceremonial.
36 James Ussher, appointed archbishop ofArmagh in 1625. He was friendly toward Scottish puri-
37 The text certainly appears to be ‘Wrea’, but I can find no trace of such a person. Probably the
reference should be to MatthewWren. He made his way by the patronage of Lancelot Andrewes, and
became Prince Charles’s chaplain, going with him to Spain. He went to Scodand with the king in
1633 and in 1634 was appointed bishop of Hereford, then Norwich in 1635, and Ely in 1638. He was
an ardent anti-puritan.
38 Perhaps a reference to the royal proclamation of June 1626. See K. Sharpe, The Personal Rule of
Charles I (New Haven, Conn., 1992), 292-7,647-54.