lowed by women, called Sisters, with whom they lived in the most intimate familiarity.* They distributed, among the people, books which contained the substance of their doctrines; held nocturnal assemblies in places remote from public view; and seduced many from frequenting the ordinary institutions of divine worship.

XI. Among these fanatics there were seve ral persons of eminent probity, who had entered into this sect with the most upright intentions, and who extended that liberty of the spirit, which they looked upon as the privilege of true believers, no farther than to an exemption from the duties of external worship, and an immunity from the positive laws of the X. These brethren, who gloried in the free-church. The whole of religion was placed by dom which they pretended to have obtained, this class of men in internal devotion, and through the spirit, from the dominion and obli- they treated with the utmost contempt the gation of the law, adopted a certain rigid and rules of monastic discipline, and all other exter fantastic system of mystic theology, built upon nal rites and institutions, as infinitely beneath pretended philosophical principles, which bore the attention of the perfect. Nor were their a striking resemblance to the impious doc- exhortations and examples without effect; for, trines of the Pantheists. They held, "That about the middle of this century, they perall things flowed by emanation from God, and suaded a considerable number of monks and were finally to return to their divine source; devout persons, in Suabia, "to live without that rational souls were so many portions of any rule, and to serve God in the liberty of the Supreme Deity, and that the universe, the spirit, which was the most acceptable serconsidered as one great whole, was God: vice that could be presented to the Deity."* that every man, by the power of contempla- The inquisitors, however, stopped these poor tion, and by calling off his mind from sensible enthusiasts in the midst of their career, and and terrestrial objects, might be united to the committed several of them to the flames, in Deity in an inexplicable manner, and become which they expired, not only with the most one with the Source and Parent of all things; unclouded serenity, but even with the most and that they, who, by long and assiduous triumphant feelings of cheerfulness and joy. meditation, had plunged themselves, as it were, into the abyss of the Divinity, acquired a most glorious and sublime liberty, and were not only delivered from the violence of sinful lusts, but even from the common instincts of nature." From these and the like doctrines, the brethren drew this impious and horrid conclusion, "That the person who had ascended to God in this manner, and was absorbed by contemplation in the abyss of Deity, became thus a part of the Godhead, commenced God, was the Son of God in the same sense and manner in which Christ was, and was thereby raised to a glorious independence, and freed from the obligation of all laws human and divine." It was in consequence of all this, that they treated with contempt the ordinances of the Gospel, and every external act of religious worship, looking upon prayer, fasting, baptism, and the sacrament of the Lord's supper, as the first elements of piety adapted to the state and capacity of children, and as of no sort of use to the perfect man, whom long meditation had raised above all external things, and carried into the bosom and essence of the Deity.†

*Hence they were styled, in Germany, Schwestriones, as appears by the decrees of several councils.

It may not be improper to introduce a certain number of sentences, translated faithfully from seve. ral of the more secret books of these heretics. The following will be sufficient to give the curious reader a full idea of their impiety.

"Every pious and good man is the only begotten Son of God, whom God engendered from all eternity: (for these heretics maintained, that what the Scriptures taught concerning the distinction of three perzons in the divine nature, is by no means to be understood literally, and therefore explained it according to the principles of their mystical and fantastic system.)

"A created things are non-entities, or nothing: I do not say that they are small or minute, but that they are absolutely nothing.

"There is in the soul of man something that is neither created nor susceptible of creation, and that is, rationality, or the power of reasoning.

"God is neither good, nor better, nor best: whoso ever therefore calls the Deity good, speaks as foolVOL. I-48

But we find among these Brethren of the free spirit another class of fanatics very differ ent from these now mentioned, and much more extravagant, whose system of religion was as dangerous as it was ridiculous and absurd, since it opened a door to the most licentious manners. These wretched enthusiasts maintained, that, by continual contemplation, it was possible to eradicate all the instincts of nature out of the heaven-born mind, and to introduce, into the soul a certain divine stupor, and holy apathy, which they looked upon as the great characteristics of Christian perfection. The persons who adopted these sentiments took strange liberties in consequence of their pretended sanctity, and showed, indeed, by their conduct, that they had little regard to external appearances; for they held their secret assemblies in a state of nudity, and lay in the same beds with their spiritual sisters, or, indiscriminately, with other women, without the smallest scruple or hesitation. This shocking violation

ishly as he who calls an object black which he

knows to be white.

"God still engenders his only begotten son, and begets still the same son, whom he had begotten from eternity: for every operation of the Deity is uniform and one; and therefore he engenders his son without any division.

"What the Scriptures say concerning Christ is true of every good, of every divine man: and every quality of the divine nature belongs equally to every person whose piety is genuine and sincere "

To these horrid passages we may add the following sentences, in which John bishop of Strasbourg (in an edict he published against the Brethren of the free spirit, in 1317) discovers farther the blasphemous doctrine of this impious sect. Deus (says these heretics) est formaliter omne quod est. Quilibet homo perfectus est Christus per naturam. Homo perfectus est liber in totum, nec tenetur ad servan dum præcepta ecclesiæ data a Deo. Multa sunt po. etica in Evangelio, quæ non sunt vera; et homines credere magis debent conceptibus ex anima sua Deo juncta profectis, quam Evangelio,' &c.

*See Mart. Crusius, Annal. Suevicorum, part ini lib. ii. cap. xiv. ad annum 1261.-This author has taken his materials from Felix Faber, an impartial writer

of decency was a consequence of their perni- || cious system. They looked upon decency and modesty as marks of inward corruption, as the characters of a soul that was still under the dominion of the sensual, animal, and lascivious spirit, and that was not, as yet, re-united to the divine nature, its centre and source. And they considered, as at a fatal distance from the Deity, all such as either felt the carnal suggestions of nature, or were penetrated with warm emotions at the view or approach of persons of a different sex, or were incapable of vanquishing and suppressing the rising fervour of lust and intemperance.*

There were, moreover, in this fanatical troop, certain enthusiasts, who far surpassed in impiety the two classes we have been now mentioning, who abused the system and doctrines of the sect, so as to draw from them an apology for all kinds of wickedness, and who audaciously maintained, that the divine man, or the belicver, who was intimately united to God, could not sin, let his conduct be ever so horrible and atrocious. This execrable doctrine was not, indeed, explained in the same manner by all the Brethren of the free spirit who were so outrageous to adopt it. Some held that the motions and actions of the body had no relation at all to the soul, which, by its union with God, was blended with the divine nature: others fell into a notion infinitely injurious to the Supreme Being, and maintained that the propensities and passions that arose in the soul of the divine man after his union with the Deity, were the propensities and affections of God himself, and were therefore, notwithstanding their apparent deformity and opposition to the law, holy and good, since the Supreme Being is infinitely exalted above all law and all obligation. It is necessary to observe, before we

* Certain writers, whose principal zeal is employed in the defence of these heretics, and who have accustomed themselves to entertain a high idea of the sanctity of all those who, in the middle ages, separated themselves from the communion of the church of Rome, suspect the inquisitors of having attributed falsely these impious doctrines to the Brethren of the free spirit, with a view to blacken these pious men, and to render them odious. But this suspicion is entirely groundless; and the account of this matter, which we have given in the text, is conformable to the strictest truth. The inquisitors have been less fabulous in their accusations of these heretics, than many are apt to imagine. They acknowledge that the Beghards, though destitute of shame, were not in general chargeable with a breach of the duties of chastity and abstinence. They were indeed of opinion, that the firmness of mind, and insensibility of heart, which rendered them proof against female charms, and deaf to the voice of nature, were privileges granted to them by the devil; for they adopted the opinion of honest Nieder, (Formicar. lib. iii. cap. v.) and affirmed that it was in the power of that evil spirit to render men cold, and to extinguish the warm and lascivious solicitations of nature; and that Satan wrought this miracle upon his friends and adherents, in order to procure them a high reputation for sanctity, and make them appear superior in virtue to the rest of mankind. "Credo (saith Nieder, who was both a Dominican and an inquisitor) quosdam ex eis dæmonis opera affectos fu isse, ne moverentur ad naturales actus incontinentiæ .. Facillimum enim est dæmonibus infrigidare." This account will be confirmed by the following passage, which is faithfully translated from the famous book of the Nine Rocks, written originally in German: "Moreover the divine man operates and engenders whatever the Deity operates and engenru: for in Gou he produced and formed the heavens

leave this subject, that flagitious and impious impostors mingled themselves sometimes withthis sect, and took the name of Beghards, that by a feigned piety they might impose upon the multitude, and deceive the simple into their snares.*

XII. The famous Amalric, professor of logic and theology at Paris, whose bones were dug up and publicly burned in 1209, (although he

and the earth. He is also the father of the eternal word. Neither could God produce any thing without this divine man, who is therefore obliged to render his will conformable to the will of God, that whatever may be agreeable to the Deity, may be agreeable to him also. If therefore it be the will of God that I should commit sin, my will must be the same, and I must not even desire to abstain from sin. This is true contrition. And although a man, who is well and truly united to God, may have com mitted a thousand mortal sins, he ought not to wish that he had not committed them: he should even be ready to die a thousand deaths rather than omit one brought by the inquisitors against this impious sect, whom they reproach with maintaining that the "sin of a man united to God, is not sin, since God works in him and with him whatever he does." Henry Suso, a Dominican monk, and one of the most celebrated Mystic writers, composed, in the following century, another book concerning the Nine Rocks, which is to be found in the edition of his works pubdifferent from that which was in such high esteem lished by Laurence Surius. But this book is entirely among the Beghards, though it bears the same title. The latter is of much older date, and was in vogue in Germany, among the Brethren of the free spirit, long before Suso was born. There fell some time ago into my hands an ancient manuscript, composed in Alsace during the fifteenth century, containing an account of various revelations and visions of tled, Declaratio Religiosi cujusdam super RevelaIn this manuscript I found a piece enti tione Carthusiano cuidam de Ecclesiæ per gladiur reformatione, Leodii in anno 1453 facta; and, almost in the beginning of this declaration, I met with the following passage relating to the book of the Nine Rocks: "Homo quidam devotissimus, licet laicus, li brum de novem Rupibus conscripsit a Deo compul sus, ubi multa ad præsens pertinentia continentur de Ecclesiæ renovatione et prævia gravi persecu tione." These Nine Rocks signified, according to the fanatical doctrine of this wrong-headed sect, the dif ferent steps by which the divine man ascended to the Deity.

of these mortal sins." Hence arose the accusation

that age.

*The founder of this famous sect, the place of its origin, and the time of its first appearance, are not known with certainty. I have in my possession eighty-nine Sentences of the Beghards, vulgarly called Schwestriones, but who style themselves Brethren of the sect of the free spirit and of voluntary pover ty, with a refutation of the said sentences, written at Worms toward the conclusion of this century by one of the inquisitors. The 79th sentence runs thus "To say that the truth is in Rhetia, is to fall into the heresy of Donatus, who said that God was in Africa, and not elsewhere." From these words it appears evident, that Rhetia was the country where the church of the Brethren of the free spirit was fix. ed and established, and that from this province they passed into Germany. I am not, however, of opinion, that this sect had its origin in that province; but am rather inclined to think, that Italy was its country, and that, being driven thence, it took refuge in Rhetia. Nor is at all improbable, that Italy which saw so many religious factions arise in its bo som, was also the nursing mother of this blasphemous sect. We shall be almost fully confirmed in this opinion, when we consider that, in a long letter from Clement V. to Rainier bishop of Cremona, (pub lished by Odor. Raynaldus, Annal. tom. xv. an 1311,) the zealous pontiff exhorts that prelate to suppress and extirpate, with all his power, the sect of the Brethren of the free spirit, who were settled in several parts of Italy, and particularly in the province of Spoleto and the countries adjacent. Such are the terms of the pontiff's letter: "In nonnullis Italiæ partibus, tam Spoletanæ provinciæ, quam cir cumjacentium regionum."

had abjured his errors before his death,) and a considerable number of whose disciples and followers were committed to the flames on account of their absurd and pernicious doctrine, was undoubtedly of the same way of thinking with the sect whose opinions we have been now considering;* for, though the writers of this barbarous age have given very different and confused accounts of his opinions, and even attributed some doctrines to him which he never maintained, it is nevertheless certain, that he taught, that all things were the parts of one substance, or, in other words, that the universe was God, and that not only the forms of all things, but also their matter or substance, proceed from the Deity, and must return to the source from which they were derived. From these absurd and blasphemous principles he deduced that chimerical system of fanatical devotion, which we have already exposed to the view of the reader, pretended to demonstrate the possibility of incorporating or translating the human nature into the divine, and rejected all kinds of external worship, as insignificant and useless. The disciples of this enthusiast were men of exemplary piety, were distinguished by the gravity and austerity of their lives and manners, and suffered death in|| the most dreadful forms with the utmost resolution and constancy. David of Dinant, a Parisian doctor, was one of the most eminent among these; and he usually expressed the fundamental principle of his master in the following proposition; "God is the primary matter or substance of all things." He composed a work entitled Quaternarii, with several other pinductions, which were chiefly designed to

This did not escape the notice of the enemies of the Beghards or Lrethren of the free spirit in Germany, much less that of the inquisitors, who, in their Refutation of the 89 sentences of the Beghards, mentioned in the preceding note, express themselves thus: (sent. 68.) "Dicere quod omnis creatura est Deus, hæresis Alexandri* est, qui dixit, materiam primam et Deum et hominem, hoc est mentes, esse in substantia, quod postea quidam David de Dinanto sequutus est, qui temporibus nostris de hac hæresi de Francia fugatus est, et punitus fuisset, si deprehensus fuisset."

The account given by Fleury, in his Ecclesiastical History, of the opinions of Amalric, is very different from that which is here given by Dr. Mo. sheim. The former observes, that Amalric, or

·

Amauri, taught that every Christian was obliged to believe himself a member of Jesus Christ, and that without this belief none could be saved;' and he observes also, that his disciples introduced errors still more pernicious, such as the following: "That the power of the Father had continued only during the Mosaic dispensation, that of the Son 1200 years after his entrance upon earth, and that, in the thirteenth century, the age of the Holy Spirit commenced, in which the sacraments and all external worship were to be abolished; that there would be no resurrection; that heaven and hell were mere fictions;" and many more sentiments of that nature, which, as the learned Spanheim imagines, were falsely imputed to Amalric, in order to render his memory odious, because he had opposed the worship of saints and images. See Fleury, Hist. Eccles. livre ixxvi. sect. lix.-Dr. Mosheim considered Amalric as a Pantheist; and many men of eminent learning are of this opinion. See, among others, Joh. Gerson apud Jac. Thomasium, and also Brucker's Hist. Philosoph. tom. iii. p. 688.

*The person here mentioned is Alexander, the Epicurean, of whom Plutarch speaks in his Sympoww

||

affect and gain the multitude; but he was at lengtl. obliged to save himself by flight.* The bishops, assembled in council at Paris, in 1209, considered the philosophy of Aristotle as the source of these impious doctrines, and, on that account, prohibited al. persons from reading or explaining, either in public or private, the metaphysical and other productions of the Grecian sage.‡

XIII. If we may depend upon the accounts given by certain writers, Amalric and his followers received with the utmost docility and faith the predictions, attributed to Joachim, abbot of Flora, concerning the reformation that was soon to be brought about in the church by the power of the sword,—the approaching Age of the Holy Ghost, that was to succeed those of the Father and the Son,and other things of that nature, which raised the hopes and occupied the thoughts of the Spiritual Franciscans. Whether these accounts may be depended upon or not, we shall not determine. To us they appear extremely doubtful. It is, however, true, that certain persons were so far deluded by these pretended prophecies, as to form new sects with a view to their accomplishment, and to declare war against the established church, its system of doctrine, and its forms of worship. Among other fanatical sectaries, there arose one of a most extraordinary kind, a Bohemian woman, named Wilhelmina, who resided in the territory of Milan. This delirious and wrongheaded woman, having studied with attention the predictions concerning the age of the Holy Ghost, was so extravagant as to persuade herself, and (what is still more amazing) had sufficient influence to persuade others, that the Holy Ghost had become incarnate in her person, for the salvation of a great part of mankind. According to her doctrine, "None could be saved by the blood of Jesus, but true and pious Christians; while the Jews, Sara cens, and unworthy Christians, were to obtain salvation through the Holy Spirit which dwelt in her; and, in consequence thereof, all that had happened to Christ, during his appearance upon earth in the human nature, was to be exactly renewed in her person, or rather in that of the Holy Ghost which was united to her ' the most fragrant odour of sanctity; and her This mad woman died at Milan, in 1281, in memory was not only holden in the highest veneration by her numerous followers and the ignorant multitude, but was also honoured with religious worship both in public and in private. Her sect was at length discovered by the curious eye of persecution, in 1300, and fell under the gnizance of the inquisitors, who destroyed the magnificent monument that had been erected to her honour, ordered her the same fire consumed the leaders of this bones to be committed to the flames, and in

* See Martenne's Thesaur. Anecd. tcm. iv. p. 163, where there is an account of the heresies for whick several priests were burned at Paris in 1209.-Natal. Alexander, Hist. Eccl. Sæc. xiii. cap. iii. art. ii. p. 76.-Du Bois, Hist. Eccl. Paris. t. ii. p. 244.-Boulay, Hist. Acad. Paris. t. iii. p. 24, 48, 53.-Jac. Thoma sius, de Exustione Mundi Stoica, p. 199.

† Launoy, de varia Aristo.. fortuna in Acad. Paris.

p. 127.

wretched faction, among whom were persons || according to the custom of his sect. The terof both sexes.*

XV. This famous Joachim, abbot of Flora,

of so many well-meaning people, and excited them to attempt reforming the church by the sword, and to declare open war against tho Roman pontiffs, did not fall under the suspicion of heresy on account of these predictions, but in consequence of a new explication he had given of the doctrine of a Trinity of persons in the Godhead. He had in an elaborate work attacked very warmly Peter Lombard, the master of the sentences, on account of the distinction which this writer had made between the divine essence and the three persons in the Godhead; for Joachim looked upon this doctrine as introducing a fourth object, even an essence, into the Trinity. But the good man was too little versed in metaphysical matters, to carry on a controversy of such a subtle nature; and he was betrayed by his ignorance so far as to advance inconsiderately the most rash and most exceptionable tenets. For he denied that there was any thing, or any essence, that belonged in common to the three persons in the Trinity, or was jointly possessed by them; by which doctrine the substantial union, among the three persons, was taken away, and the union of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, was reduced from a natural, simple, and numeri

rible end of Dulcinus was not immediately XIV. It was upon predictions similar to followed by the extinction of his sect, which those mentioned in the preceding section, that still subsisted in France, Germany, and other the sect of the Apostles founded its discipline. countries, and stood firm against the most ve The members of this sect made little or no al- hement efforts of its enemies, until the begin teration in the doctrinal part of the public re-ning of the 15th century, when, under the ligion; what they principally aimed at, was, to pontificate of Boniface IX., it was totally ex introduce among Christians the simplicity of tirpated.* the primitive times, and more especially the manner of life that was observed by the apos-whose fanatical predictions turned the heads tles. Gerard Sagarelli, the founder of this sect, obliged his followers to go from place to place as the apostles did, to wander about clothed in white, with long beards, dishevelled hair, and bare heads, accompanied with women whom they called their Sisters. They were also obliged to renounce all kinds of property and possessions, and to preach in public the necessity of repentance, while in their more private assemblies they declared the approaching destruction of the corrupt church of Rome, and the establishment of a purer service, and a more glorious church, which, according to the prophecies of the abbot Joachim, would certainly arise from its ruins. No sooner was the ill-fated leader of this faction committed to the flames, than he was succeeded in that character by a bold and enterprising fanatic, named Dulcinus, a native of Novara, who published his predictions with more courage, and maintained them with more zeal, than his predecessor had done, and who did not hesitate to declare that, in a short time, pope Boniface VIII., the corrupt priests, and the licentious monks, were to perish by the hand of the emperor Frederic III., son of Peter, king of Arragon, and that a new and most holy pontiff was to be raised to the head of the church.cal unity, to a more! one only; that is, to such These visionary predictions were, no doubt, drawn from the dreams i Joachim, who is said to have declared, among other things, that an emperor called Frederic III., was to bring to perfection what Frederic II. had left unfinished. Be that as it may, Dulcinus appeared with intrepid assurance at the head of the apostles; and acting, not only in the character of a prophet, but also in that of a general, he assembled an army to maintain his cause, and perhaps to accomplish, at least in part, his predictions. He was opposed by Raynerius, bishop of Vercelli, who defended the interests of the Roman pontiff, and carried on, above two years, a most sanguinary and dreadful war against this chief of the apostles. The issue of this contest was fatal to the latter, who, after several battles fought with obstinate courage, was at length taken prisoner, and put to death at Vercelli in most barbarous manner, in 1307, together with Margaret, whom he had chosen for his spiritual sister, *The Milanese historians, such as Bernardinus Corius, and others, have related the adventures of this odd woman; but their accounts are very differ. ent from those given by the learned Muratori, in his Antiq. Italicæ medii Ævi, tom. v., and which he has drawn from the judicial proceedings of the court, where the extraordinary case of this female fanatic was examined. We are informed by the same excellent author, that a learned writer, named Puricelli, composed a history of Wilhelmina, and of her sect.

This unhappy man was burned alive at Parma,

U 1300

an unity as reigns in the counsels and opinions of different persons, who embrace the same notions, and think and act with one accord. This explication of the Trinity was looked upon by many as very little different from the Arian system; and therefore pope Innocent III. pronounced, in 1215, in the Lateran council, a damnatory sentence against the doctrine of Joachim; not extending, however, to the person or fame of the abbot himself. Notwithstanding this papal sentence, Joachim has at this day a considerable number of adherents and defenders, more especially among those Franciscans who are called Observants. Some of these maintain that the book of this abbot was corrupted and interpolated by his enemies, while the rest are of opinion that his doctrine

*I composed in the German language an accurate history of this famous sect, which is very little known in our times; and I have in my hands materials, that will furnish an interesting addition to that history. That this sect subsisted in Germany, and in some other countries, until the pontificate of Boniface IX., is evident from the Chronicle of Her man Cornerus, published by Jo. George Echard, ir his Corpus Historicum medii Ævi, tom. ii., and may be sufficiently demonstrated by other authentic test. monies. In 1402, a certain member of this apostolic sect, whose name was William, or Wilhelmus, was burned alive at Lubec. The Germans, who were accustomed to distinguish by the name of Beghards all those who pretended to extraordinary piety, and sought, by poverty and begging, an eminent reputation for sanctity and virtue, gave this title also to the sect of the Apostles.

with a view, as was said, to attempt the deli verance of the Christians in Palestine;* but, when he was ready to embark his troops, the apprehension of an invasion from England obliged him to lay aside this weighty enter prise. In 1345, Clement VI., at the request of the Venetians, engaged, by the persuasivo power of indulgences, a prodigious number of

they composed a numerous army under the command of Guido, or Guy, dauphin of Vienne; but the want of provisions soon obliged this army to return with the general into Eu rope. This disappointment did not, however, damp the spirits of the restless pontiffs; for another formidable army was assembled in 1363, in consequence of the, zealous exhortations of Urban V., and was to be employed in a new expedition against the infidels, with John, king of France, at its head; but the unexpected death of that prince blasted the hopes that many had entertained from this grand project, and occasioned the dispersion of that numerous body which had repaired to his standard.

I. SEVERAL attempts were made by the princes of the west, at the instigation of the Roman pontiffs, to renew the war in Palestine against the Turks and Saracens, and to deli- || ver the whole province of Syria from the op-adventurers to embark for Smyrna, where pressive yoke of those despotic infidels. The succession of pontiffs that resided in Avignon, evinced the greatest zeal for the renovation of this religious war, and left no artifice, no methods of persuasion unemployed, that could have the least tendency to engage the kings of England and France in an expedition to the Holy Land. But their success was not answerable to their zeal; and, notwithstanding the powerful influence of their exhortations and remonstrances, something still happened to prevent their producing the desired effect. Clement V. urged the renewal of this holy war with the greatest ardour in the years 1307 and 1308, and set apart a very large sum of money for prosecuting it with alacrity and vigour.* John XXII. ordered ten ships to be fitted out in 1319, to transport an army of pious adventurers into Palestine,† and had recourse to the power of superstition, that is, to the influence of indulgences, for raising the funds necessary to the support of this great enterprise. These indulgences he offered to such as contributed generously to the war, and appointed legates to administer them in all the European countries that were subject to his spiritual jurisdiction. But, under this fair show of piety and zeal, John is supposed to have covered the most selfish and grovelling views; and we find Louis of Bavaria, who was at that time emperor, and several other princes, complaining loudly that this pontiff made use of the holy war as a pretext to disguise his avarice and ambition; and indeed the character of this pope was of such a stamp as tended to accredit such complaints. Under the pontificate of Benedict XII., a formidable army was raised, in 1330, by Philip de Valois, king of France,

*Baluzii Vita Patif. Avenion. tom. i. p. 15, 594; tom. ii. p. 55, 374, &c. Ant. Matthæi Analecta veteris Avi, tom. ii. p. 577.

† Baluzii Vitæ Pontif. Avenion. tom. i. p. 125; tom. ii. p. 515.

Baluzius, tom. i. p. 175, 786. Matthæi Analecta vet. Evi, tom. ii. p. 595.

II. The missionaries who had been sent by the Roman pontiffs into China, Tartary, and the adjacent countries, in the preceding cen tury, found their labours crowned with the de sired success, and established a great number of Christian churches among those unenlightened nations. In 1307, Clement V. erected Cambalu (which at that time was the celebrated metropolis of Cathay, and is, undoubtedly, the same with Pekin, the capital city at present of the Chinese empire,) into an archbi shopric, which he conferred upon John de Monte Corvino, an Italian friar who had been employed in propagating the Gospel in that country for many years. The same pontiff sent soon after, to assist this prelate in hi pious labours, seven other prelates of the Fran ciscan order.§ John XXII. exerted in thi

*Baluzius, tom. i. p. 200.

Ital. medii Ævi, tom. iii. p. 368.
† Fragmenta Histor. Romanæ. in Murator. Antiq

Baluzii Vitæ Pontif. Avenion. t ›m. i. p. 366, 368, 371, 401.

SWadding, Anal. Ordin. Minor. tom vi. ad an. 1305, sect. xii. p. 69. ad an. 1307, p. 91, 368; tom. vii p. 53, 221; tom. viii. p. 235.-J. S. Asseman. Biblioth. Orient. Vatican. tom. iii. sect. ii. p. 521.-J. Echard, Scriptor. Prædicator. tom. i. p. 537.-Acta Sanctor. tom. i. Januarii, p. 984 -Mosheim, Historia Eccles Tartar.