It is certain only that this
title was not intended to imply what it implied when, four years later, it
was conferred by act Of parliament, and when virtually England was severed
by it from the Roman communion.
But whatever may have been the king's motive, he was serious in requiring
that the title should be granted to him. Only by acknowledging Henry as
Head of the Church should the clergy receive their pardon, and the longer
they hesitated, the more peremptorily he insisted on their obedience. The
clergy had defied the lion, and the lion held them in his grasp; and they
could but struggle helplessly, supplicate and submit. Archbishop Warham,
just drawing his life to a close, presided for the last time in the
miserable scene, imagining that the clouds were gathering for the storms of
the latter day, and that Antichrist was coming in his power.
There had been a debate of three days, whether they should or should not
consent, when, on the 9th of February, a deputation of the judges appeared
in Convocation, to ask whether the Houses were agreed, and to inform them
finally that the king had determined to allow no qualifications. The clergy
begged for one more day, and the following morning the bishops held a
private meeting among themselves, to discuss some plan to turn aside the
blow. They desired to see Cromwell, to learn, perhaps, if there was a
chance of melting the hard heart of Henry; and after an interview with the
minister which could not have been encouraging, they sent two of their
number, the Bishops of Exeter and Lincoln, to attempt the unpromising task.
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