Samuel Harsnett
Encyclopedia
Samuel Harsnett (June 1561 – May 1631), born Samuel Halsnoth, was an English writer on religion and Archbishop of York
Archbishop of York
The Archbishop of York is a high-ranking cleric in the Church of England, second only to the Archbishop of Canterbury. He is the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of York and metropolitan of the Province of York, which covers the northern portion of England as well as the Isle of Man...

 from 1629.

Early life

He was born in St. Botolph's parish, Colchester
Colchester
Colchester is an historic town and the largest settlement within the borough of Colchester in Essex, England.At the time of the census in 2001, it had a population of 104,390. However, the population is rapidly increasing, and has been named as one of Britain's fastest growing towns. As the...

, Essex, the son of William Halsnoth, a baker, and his wife Agnes. He was probably educated at Colchester's free school, now Colchester Royal Grammar School
Colchester Royal Grammar School
Colchester Royal Grammar School is a grammar school in Colchester, Essex, founded in AD 1206 and granted two Royal Charters by Henry VIII and by Elizabeth I .-Admissions:...

. After leaving school, he was inducted into King's College, Cambridge
King's College, Cambridge
King's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England. The college's full name is "The King's College of our Lady and Saint Nicholas in Cambridge", but it is usually referred to simply as "King's" within the University....

 on 8 September 1576 and removed into Pembroke College, Cambridge
Pembroke College, Cambridge
Pembroke College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England.The college has over seven hundred students and fellows, and is the third oldest college of the university. Physically, it is one of the university's larger colleges, with buildings from almost every century since its...

 where he gained a BA in 1580/1 and was elected a Fellow
Fellow
A fellow in the broadest sense is someone who is an equal or a comrade. The term fellow is also used to describe a person, particularly by those in the upper social classes. It is most often used in an academic context: a fellow is often part of an elite group of learned people who are awarded...

 on 27 November 1583. In 1583 he was ordained into the Church of England
Church of England
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...

, where he was soon disciplined by Archbishop Whitgift for preaching against predestination
Predestination
Predestination, in theology is the doctrine that all events have been willed by God. John Calvin interpreted biblical predestination to mean that God willed eternal damnation for some people and salvation for others...

 at St Paul's Cross
St Paul's Cross
St Paul's Cross was a preaching cross and open air pulpit in the grounds of Old St Paul's Cathedral, City of London.-History:...

 on 27 October 1584. As Hughson notes, "he was one of those divines who opposed the decrees of the synod of Dort
Synod of Dort
The Synod of Dort was a National Synod held in Dordrecht in 1618-1619, by the Dutch Reformed Church, to settle a divisive controversy initiated by the rise of Arminianism. The first meeting was on November 13, 1618, and the final meeting, the 154th, was on May 9, 1619...

 and he wrote a very learned treatise against absolute predestination". In 1584 he had also gained an MA.

Academic career

In March 1587 he became headmaster of the aforementioned Colchester Royal Grammar School. In recognition of his achievements, the school has had, since 1908, a school house
House system
The house system is a traditional feature of British schools, and schools in the Commonwealth. Historically, it was associated with established public schools, where a 'house' refers to a boarding house or dormitory of a boarding school...

 bearing his name. Preferring his studies at Cambridge University to the position, he resigned his office in November 1588, disliking the "painful trade of teaching", and returned to Pembroke Hall where he studied divinity, gaining his BD
Bachelor of Divinity
In Western universities, a Bachelor of Divinity is usually an undergraduate academic degree awarded for a course taken in the study of divinity or related disciplines, such as theology or, rarely, religious studies....

 c.1590.

He re-entered himself into Pembroke Hall, where he was first a fellow and was elected master on 1 November 1605, remaining in that position until 1616, when he resigned because accusations totalling fifty-seven articles were made against him, by the Fellows of Pembroke to King James I
James I of England
James VI and I was King of Scots as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the English and Scottish crowns on 24 March 1603...

. He was also Vice-Chancellor of Cambridge University for the years 1606, the same year he gained his DD
Doctor of Divinity
Doctor of Divinity is an advanced academic degree in divinity. Historically, it identified one who had been licensed by a university to teach Christian theology or related religious subjects....

, and 1609.

Ministerial career

In 1592 he served the office of Junior Proctor
Proctor
Proctor, a variant of the word procurator, is a person who takes charge of, or acts for, another. The word proctor is frequently used to describe someone who oversees an exam or dormitory.The title is used in England in three principal senses:...

 and five years later became chaplain to Dr Bancroft
Richard Bancroft
Archbishop Richard Bancroft, DD, BD, MA, BA was an English churchman, who became Archbishop of Canterbury and the "chief overseer" of the production of the authorized version of the Bible.-Life:...

, then Bishop of London
Bishop of London
The Bishop of London is the ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of London in the Province of Canterbury.The diocese covers 458 km² of 17 boroughs of Greater London north of the River Thames and a small part of the County of Surrey...

 and shortly to become Archbishop of Canterbury
Archbishop of Canterbury
The Archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and principal leader of the Church of England, the symbolic head of the worldwide Anglican Communion, and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. In his role as head of the Anglican Communion, the archbishop leads the third largest group...

 by whose favour he quickly rose through the ranks. On the authority of Bancroft, he obtained the rectory of St Margaret, New Fish Street
St Margaret, New Fish Street
St Margaret, New Fish Street is a former church in the City of London. The Mortality Bill for the year 1665, published by the Parish Clerks' Company, shows 97 parishes within the City of London. By September 6 the city lay in ruins, 86 churches having been destroyed...

, London which he resigned in 1604 and the vicarage of Chigwell
Chigwell
Chigwell is a civil parish and town in the Epping Forest district of Essex. It is located 11.6 miles north east of Charing Cross. It is served by two London Underground stations and has a London area code.-Etymology:According to P. H...

 in Essex on 14 June 1597 which he resigned in 1605. Whilst at Chigwell, his wife, Thomazine, died in 1601, having given birth in 1600 to a short-lived daughter. Even after 1605 he continued to reside at Chigwell, where he had purchased a house and estate. In 1619 he purchased land in the parish on which he founded both a Latin school (which survives as Chigwell School
Chigwell School
Chigwell School is an English co-educational independent school/public school in Chigwell, in the Epping Forest district of Essex. It was founded in 1629 by Samuel Harsnett, a former Archbishop of York . There are around 730 pupils aged between 7 and 18 years...

) and an English school in 1629.

In 1598 he was promoted, becoming the prebendary
Prebendary
A prebendary is a post connected to an Anglican or Catholic cathedral or collegiate church and is a type of canon. Prebendaries have a role in the administration of the cathedral...

 of Mapesbury on 5 August and on 17 January 1602 the archdeacon
Archdeacon
An archdeacon is a senior clergy position in Anglicanism, Syrian Malabar Nasrani, Chaldean Catholic, and some other Christian denominations, above that of most clergy and below a bishop. In the High Middle Ages it was the most senior diocesan position below a bishop in the Roman Catholic Church...

 of Essex – both posts chosen for him by Bishop Bancroft. On 16 April 1604 Sir Thomas Lucas of Colchester, father of Charles Lucas
Charles Lucas
Sir Charles Lucas was an English soldier, a Royalist commander in the English Civil War.-Biography:Lucas was the son of Sir Thomas Lucas of Colchester, Essex. As a young man Lucas served in the Netherlands under the command of his brother, and in the "Bishops' Wars" he commanded Cheesea troop of...

, installed him in the rectory of Shenfield
Shenfield
Shenfield is a former village and now an outer suburb of Brentwood in the borough of the same name in Essex, England.-History:The name originates from the Anglo-Saxon Chenefield, meaning 'good lands'....

, Essex.

Having been Bishop of Chichester
Bishop of Chichester
The Bishop of Chichester is the Ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Chichester in the Province of Canterbury. The diocese covers the Counties of East and West Sussex. The see is in the City of Chichester where the seat is located at the Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity...

 since 13 November 1609, on 8 August 1619, he became Bishop of Norwich
Bishop of Norwich
The Bishop of Norwich is the Ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Norwich in the Province of Canterbury.The diocese covers most of the County of Norfolk and part of Suffolk. The see is in the City of Norwich where the seat is located at the Cathedral Church of the Holy and Undivided...

, resigning the living of Stisted
Stisted
Stisted is a civil parish, Church of England parish, and former manor near Braintree, Essex, England. Andrew Motion, a former Poet Laureate, was raised there.-History of Stisted:...

 he had held since 1609. He spent most of his time when absent from his city at Ludham, where he built a chapel and consecrated it for divine worship. In May 1624 he was charged before Parliament with high-handedness by the citizens of Norwich and in that same year he also persecuted the Puritans in Great Yarmouth
Great Yarmouth
Great Yarmouth, often known to locals as Yarmouth, is a coastal town in Norfolk, England. It is at the mouth of the River Yare, east of Norwich.It has been a seaside resort since 1760, and is the gateway from the Norfolk Broads to the sea...

, leading to a complaint by them to King Charles I
Charles I of England
Charles I was King of England, King of Scotland, and King of Ireland from 27 March 1625 until his execution in 1649. Charles engaged in a struggle for power with the Parliament of England, attempting to obtain royal revenue whilst Parliament sought to curb his Royal prerogative which Charles...

 in 1627.

On 26 November 1628, he was elected Archbishop of York
Archbishop of York
The Archbishop of York is a high-ranking cleric in the Church of England, second only to the Archbishop of Canterbury. He is the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of York and metropolitan of the Province of York, which covers the northern portion of England as well as the Isle of Man...

, and on 10 November 1629 he was sworn a Privy Councillor.

Death and Commemoration

Towards the end of his life he fell ill, signing his will on 13 February 1631, to which he signed a codicil on 18 May, and taking the waters at Bath in April of that year. He died at Moreton-in-Marsh
Moreton-in-Marsh
Moreton-in-Marsh is a town and civil parish in northeastern Gloucestershire, England. The town is at the crossroads of the Fosse Way Roman road and the A44. The parish and environs are relatively flat and low-lying compared with the surrounding Cotswold Hills...

 while returning from Bath on 25 May 1631 and his body took ten days to return to Chigwell. He was buried at St Mary's Church, Chigwell alongside his wife and daughter, both named Thomasine who had both died in 1601. A brass of Harsnett can be found in St Mary's Church, Chigwell, although it has been moved from its original position over his grave. The image on the brass is believed to be a true representation of him and he most likely sat for it shorty before his death. It has been suggested that it is of Flemish origin but, because of the similarities it bears to the brass of Sir John Filmer in East Sutton, Kent, it is now believed to be by Edward Marshall. His epitaph on the brass reads:

Hic iacet Samuell Hasrsnett quondam vicarius huius ecclesiae primo indignus episcopus Cicestrensis deindignior Norwicencis demum indignissim' archiepiscop' Eboraceñ qui ibijt XXV die maij anno dñi: 1631

Here lies Samuel Harsnett once vicar of this church, first unworthy bishop of Chichester, then more unworthy bishop of Norwich, finally most unworthy archbishop of York; he died on the 25th day in May in the year of our Lord 1631.

There are two changes from the inscription he requested in his will – his name is spelt as "Samuell", not "Samuel" and "deindignior" should have been "dein indignior".

In his home town of Colchester he is commemorated by a statue on the town hall and a stained glass window in St. Botolph's Church. His library of theological works was bequeathed to the borough of Colchester for the use of local clergy; it can now be found in the library of the University of Essex
University of Essex
The University of Essex is a British campus university whose original and largest campus is near the town of Colchester, England. Established in 1963 and receiving its Royal Charter in 1965...

.

Religious views

Harsnett is noted for his sceptical attitude towards demons and witchcraft. As the chaplain to Bishop Bancroft, Harsnett was commissioned to write a treatise condemning the 1590s exorcisms of John Darrell
John Darrell
John Darrell was an Anglican clergyman, noted for his Puritan views and practice as an exorcist.Darrell was a sizar of Queens' College, Cambridge. In 1586 he exorcised a girl in Derbyshire, and published an account of his work. In 1596-7 he conducted further exorcisms, mainly at St. Mary's...

, having sat on the 1598 commissions which investigated his activities. Darrell, curate at St. Mary's Church, Nottingham
St. Mary's Church, Nottingham
The Church of St Mary the Virgin is the oldest religious foundation in the City of Nottingham, England, the largest church after the Roman Catholic Cathedral and the largest mediæval building in Nottingham....

 was a puritan minister who performed a series of public exorcisms in the English Midlands. Eventually, the exorcisms caused such a disturbance that they attracted the attention of Anglican authorities in London. Harsnett's A Survey of Certain Dialogical Discourses was a polemical piece intended to discredit Darrell's puritan agenda. It was drafted as a piece of political propaganda, but it also genuinely questioned the belief in demons. In this way, Harsnett sought natural explanations for supposedly supernatural phenomena.

In 1603, he wrote another book, A Declaration of Egregious Popish Impostures, published by order of the Privy Council
Privy council
A privy council is a body that advises the head of state of a nation, typically, but not always, in the context of a monarchic government. The word "privy" means "private" or "secret"; thus, a privy council was originally a committee of the monarch's closest advisors to give confidential advice on...

, which condemned exorcisms performed by Roman Catholic priests in the 1580s. Shakespeare used this book as a source, pulling words and phrases when writing the play King Lear
King Lear
King Lear is a tragedy by William Shakespeare. The title character descends into madness after foolishly disposing of his estate between two of his three daughters based on their flattery, bringing tragic consequences for all. The play is based on the legend of Leir of Britain, a mythological...

, mainly spoken by Edgar while he feigns madness and John Milton
John Milton
John Milton was an English poet, polemicist, a scholarly man of letters, and a civil servant for the Commonwealth of England under Oliver Cromwell...

 is said to have been influenced by it when writing L'Allegro
L'Allegro
L'Allegro is a pastoral poem by John Milton published in 1645. L'Allegro is invariably paired with the contrasting pastoral poem, Il Penseroso , which depicts a similar day spent in contemplation and thought.-Background:It is uncertain when L'Allegro and Il Penseroso were composed because they do...

.

As a member of England's religious authority, Harsnett's sceptical attitudes, divided equally between puritan
Puritan
The Puritans were a significant grouping of English Protestants in the 16th and 17th centuries. Puritanism in this sense was founded by some Marian exiles from the clergy shortly after the accession of Elizabeth I of England in 1558, as an activist movement within the Church of England...

ism and popery, set important precedents for English policy. For example, by coming close "to denying the reality of witchcraft" he may have contributed to the relative lack of witch hunts in England, compared to other countries.

Writings

Harsnett is known to have written eight works, which are as follows:
  • Nemo necessario damnatur, a treatise written against Calvinism, which may have been his BD thesis;
  • De Necessitate baptismi;
  • Sermon against predestination, on the text of Ezekiel chapter 33, verse 11; preached at St Paul's Cross in 1584;
  • A Discovery of the Fruadulent practises of Iohn Darrel, Bacheler of Artes, in his proceedings concerning the Pretended Possession and dispossession of William Somers at Nottingham; of Thomas Darling, the boy of Burton at Caldwell; and of Katherine Wright at Mansfield, & Whittlington; and of his dealings with one Mary Couper at Nottingham, detecting in some sort the deceitfull trade in these latter dayes of casting out Deuils, London, John Wolfe, 1599;
  • A Declaration of egregious Popish Impostures, to with-draw the harts of her Maiesties Subiects from their allegeance, and from the truth of Christian Religion professed in England, under the pretence of casting out deuils. Pracised by Edmunds, alias Weston a Iesuit, and diuers Romish Priests his wicked associates. Whereunto are annexed the Copies of the Confessions, and Examinations of the parties themselves, taken upon oath before her Maiesties Commissioners, for causes Ecclesiasticall, James Roberts, Barbican, 1603; with a new title pages, London, 1605;
  • Defence of Answer against a certain Reply concerning Usury, dated after 1604;
  • Consideration of the better settling of Church government, presented by Laud to the King, and sent by the King to the Archbishop of Canterbury in December 1629;
  • Instructions concerning certain articles to be observed and put in execution by the several Bishops in his Province, Lambeth Library.
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