Chapter IV

REGULATIONS AFFECTING BOOKS, FROM THE BEGINNING
OF PRINTING TO THE DATE OF THE EARLIEST INDEXES
1450–1555

1. General 1450–1560.
2. England 1526–1555.
3. Netherlands 1521–1550.
4. France 1521–1551.
5. Spain 1521–1551.
6. Germany 1521–1555.

=1. General.=--The great impetus given to the distribution of books by the work of the printing-press had as one result a fresh effort at supervision and control on the part of the Church of literary production. The first measures that were put into shape for the enforcement of such control provided for what has been called preventive censorship, that is a requirement, before the printed book could be put into circulation, of an examination and approval by ecclesiastical authorities. It was, however, not until half a century after Gutenberg had printed his first book, that official cognisance was taken of the new art in a papal Bull.

_1479._ _Sixtus V_ authorised the Rector and Dean of the University of Cologne to impose the penalties of the Church upon those printing, selling, or reading heretical works. This authorisation was confirmed by Alexander VI. In 1501, the printers of Cologne sent a representative to Rome to protest against the censorship of the university authorities, which was driving their business out of the city.[38]

_1480._ There was published in Venice a _Nosce te ipsum_ in which are printed four “approvals,”[39] and in the same year, a volume was printed at Heidelberg with a privilege from the Patriarch of Venice.[40]

_1486._ _Berthold, Archbishop of Mayence_, issues an edict prohibiting the printing in his diocese of any translation from Latin or Greek, or of any books in the vernacular, until the same had been approved by the heads of the four faculties in the University of Erfurt.[41] The ground for this prohibition was that a “number of works had recently been disseminated which contained heresies and errors,” or which were printed under false titles, or which presented translations of the liturgies and Mass-books such as “were not fitting for the people.”

The Bull of Innocent VIII, issued in 1487 and directed to the authorities of the University of Cologne, is described by Hilgers as the first general papal censorship regulation. “With the misuse of the printing-press for the distribution of pernicious writings, the regulations of the Church for the protection of the faithful enter of necessity upon a new period. It is certainly the case that the evil influence of a badly conducted printing-press constitutes to-day the greatest danger to society. This new flood is drawn from three chief sources. Theism and unbelief arise from the regions of natural science, of philosophy, and of Protestant theology. Theism is the assured result of what is called ‘scientific liberty.’ Anarchism and nihilism, religious as well as political, may be described as the second source, from which pours out a countless stream of socialistic writings. In substance this is nothing other than a popularised philosophy of liberalism. The third source, the foulest and most pernicious of all, streams forth from the unwholesome romances of the day, romances whose creations rest on the foundations of pornography. If the community is to be protected from demoralisation, the political authorities must unite with the ecclesiastical in securing for such utterances some wise and safe control.”[42]

_1491._ _Niccolo Franco, Bishop of Treviso_, and papal Legate to Venice, puts into print in Venice a “Constitution,” which is described as the first printed regulation of the Church having to do with censorship. It is also noteworthy as containing the earliest prohibition of printed books. The Bishop states that he has evidence that the printers are bringing before the public works, tainted with heresy, which are likely to bring into peril the souls of believers. He feels that the responsibility rests upon him, as the representative of the Church, to withstand this evil. He therefore orders that hereafter no books shall be brought into print, having to do with matters of faith or of the authority of the Church, without the approval and permission of the bishop or vicar-general of the diocese. Whoever disobeys this injunction shall, without further action, come under the penalty of excommunication.[43]

Apart from the general injunction in this “Constitution,” it contains a specific prohibition of the treatise on Monarchy by Antonio Roselli, and of the theses of Pico della Mirandola. Those who have printed or who may hereafter print these works, or who may have bought or come into the possession of copies, are ordered, under penalty of excommunication, to deliver such copies at once for destruction. Roselli was professor of law in Siena and later in Padua. His treatise _De Monarchia_ had been printed in Venice in 1483 and in 1487. His name stands in all the Roman Indexes except in that of Trent, and thereafter with the proviso _donec corrigatur_. Pico escaped official classification as a heretic and no one of his writings finds place in the Index. In 1487, he had brought before the public no less than nine hundred theses which he was prepared to defend against all critics. The pope ordered an examination to be made of these theses (propositions) by a commission of theologians and jurists. The commission found that thirteen of the theses were tainted with heresy. Pico, while maintaining the orthodoxy of his propositions, expressed his readiness to submit himself to the judgment of the pope. Six years later, he was able to secure from Alexander VI a further examination, conducted by three cardinals and the _Magister Palatii_, and on the report of this commission, the pope declared Pico to be free from suspicion of heresy.

_1501._ _Alexander VI_, in a Bull entitled _Inter Multiplices_, addressed to the Archbishop of Magdeburg and to the rulers of the three ecclesiastical principalities, says: “The art of printing can be of great service in so far as it furthers the circulation of useful and tested books; but it can bring about serious evils if it is permitted to widen the influence of pernicious works. It will, therefore, be necessary to maintain full control over the printers so that they may be prevented from bringing into print writings which are antagonistic to the Catholic faith, or which are likely to cause trouble to believers.” The Bull proceeds to state that in the dioceses of Cologne, Mayence, Treves, and Magdeburg many books and tracts are being sent out from the presses which contain pernicious errors, wrong doctrine, and heresies; and prohibits, under pain of the excommunication _latae sententiae_, any further printing of such books, and also the possession or perusal of the same. The bishops and inquisitors are charged with the execution of the decree; and are ordered to enforce its provisions against all persons, whatever their rank or positions, and also against colleges, universities, and associations, with the threat that, in case of opposition or evasion, the penalties shall be sharpened and multiplied. The civil powers are to be invoked if necessary, and in order to strengthen the interest of the local authorities, they are to receive one half the amounts of the penalties collected in money. The above ordinance had to do only with the German provinces specified. Even at this early date, the city of Magdeburg appears to have secured repute for the production of heretical literature.

_1512._ _The Inquisition of the Netherlands_ condemns as a heretic Magistrate Hermann of Ryswick, who is burned at The Hague together with his books. His name stands in the Index in Class I, although not even the titles of his heretical writings have been preserved.

_1513._ _The “Constitution” of Leo X_, issued in December, on the subject of the immortality of the soul, concerns itself with the misuse of the philosophers and poets of classic times for the undermining of faith and morality. The Pope emphasises the importance of purifying the roots or foundations of philosophy and poetry as taught in the universities. In the third part of the Constitution, attention is given to the principles under which must be carried on the education of the young. It is essential that a careful selection be made for their use from classical writings so that only those books shall be brought to their knowledge which are free from immorality.

_1515._ _Albert, Archbishop of Mayence_, appoints Paul, Bishop of Ascalon, to be “Commissary” for the examination and censorship of books submitted for printing privileges. Bishop Paul and Canon Trutfetter were further instructed to act at Erfurt as inquisitors of heresy, and were authorised to prohibit the sale of bad and suspicious books.[44]

_1515._ _Leo X_, in a Lateran council of May 3d, issues the Bull _Inter Solicitudines_, which concerns itself in like manner with the service and the perils of the printing art. In this Bull, it is ordered that no work should be put into print until its text had been examined and approved by the authorities of the Church, in Rome by the papal Vicar or the _Magister Sacri Palatii_, elsewhere by the bishop or the inquisitor-general or by examiners authorised by them. The privilege to print must, however, bear the original signature of one of the higher officials. This signature must, under penalty of excommunication, be given without delay, and without consideration for a work not presenting ground for disapproval. (The Pope knew his officials and evidently realised what would be the risk and the tendency of the working of such a system.) Whoever may attempt to evade the regulation and may print books without a privilege shall forfeit for burning the books so printed, and shall pay 100 ducats to the building fund of St. Peter’s, and his printing office shall be closed for the term of one year. If he remain obstinate and unrepentant, he shall be excommunicated, and shall further be so chastened that others may take warning by the example. Before the issue of this papal Bull, certain local ordinances had been put into effect for the control of the printing-press in the centres where the new art was showing the greatest activity.

One Bishop, Alexius of Melfi, voted against this Bull, with the proviso _placet de novis operibus, non autem de antiquis_.[45]

This Bull of Leo X served as a model for a long series of future similar ecclesiastical orders. The fatherly care for the true faith and for the preservation of the morality of Christendom are, in the wording of this papal utterance, placed in the background, while the main contention is devoted to the assertion of the authority of the pope and of the special responsibility of the pope, as the immediate representative of God, for the maintenance of censorship throughout the world. The single German prince who was willing to confirm this Bull was the Elector Albert of Saxony. The enforcement of the regulations of the papal Bulls proved to be difficult and usually impracticable unless the aid could be secured of the machinery of the civil administration.

In the year 1513, began a series of attacks against Johannes Reuchlin, attacks which continued for seven years. Reuchlin’s treatise _Der Augenspiegel_, which had been printed in 1511, was, in 1513, condemned as heretical by the Universities of Louvain, Cologne, Mayence, and Erfurt. In the year following, the theological faculty of the University of Paris declared the book to be tainted with heresy.

It was ordered that existing copies (presumably those available in France) were to be burned and that the author was to be called upon to recant.

In 1513, at the instance of Jacob Hoogstraten, the Inquisition initiated a “process” against Reuchlin. The decision was adverse to Reuchlin, who appealed to the Pope (Leo X). Leo referred the matter to the Bishop of Speyer, who gave judgment in favour of Reuchlin, declaring that the book was deserving of being read by every one. There followed a series of appeals and of conflicting decisions. In June, 1520, however, Cardinals Accolti and Giacobazzi, whom the Pope had appointed judges, decided that the judgment of the bishop must be revoked, that the book was to be condemned and destroyed, and that Reuchlin was to be ordered to keep silence. While the _Augenspiegel_ was still the text of the proceedings, the contest had now widened its range, and turned upon the whole relations of Reuchlin’s work as a scholar and an instructor, and particularly upon his advocacy of the study of Hebrew. (In the _Augenspiegel_ itself, the wisdom of preserving instead of destroying the _Talmud_ is maintained.) Leo X spoke with approval of Reuchlin’s writings and forbade their condemnation. In the Vatican Index the name of Reuchlin stands in Class I, all of his works being thus placed under condemnation. In the Index of Paul, are entered the _Augenspiegel_, _De Verbo Mirifico_, and _Ars Cabbalistica_, and these titles are repeated in the succeeding Indexes (excepting those of Louvain, 1546, 1550, 1558). In the Index of Benedict XIV (1758), the title of the _Augenspiegel_ is, curiously enough, recorded only in French. The compilers of the Indexes were evidently not influenced by the liberal views of Pope Leo.

_1517._ _Leo X_, in a special brief written by Sadoletus, condemns the _Epistolae Obscurorum Virorum_. The _Epistolae_ first find place, however, in the Index in 1590.

_1521._ When the authorities of the Roman Church and the Catholic princes of Europe had become thoroughly aroused and alarmed by the development of Protestantism, the famous contract was entered into between Leo and the Emperor Charles V which was to repress the Reformation. One of the most important provisions in this contract had to do with the control of the press and placed at the disposal of the ecclesiastical censors the full measure of the imperial authority. With the publication of the Edict of Worms, we have the beginning of a general imperial censorship for Germany. From this time the Church and the State (or at least the Catholic portion of the State,) worked together against the freedom of the press, freedom which involved not only heresy against orthodoxy, but treason against the State.

About 1520, Nicholas Eymeric brought into print in Venice, under the title of _Directorium Inquisitorium_, a list of books classed as heretical. It does not appear under what authority this classification, or condemnation, had been arrived at, but the list proved of importance in the history of the Index, as the titles collected by Eymeric were utilised for the famous catalogue of Lutzenberg, which itself served as the basis for the Louvain Index of 1546. The Lutzenberg titles were also in large part copied by the compiler of the Index of Paul IV. No copy of the original issue of Eymeric’s _Directorium_ appears to have been preserved. The work is known through the reprint issued in Venice in 1607, with the commentary by Franciscus Pegna.

The catalogue of Bernard Lutzenburg was printed in Cologne in 1520, under the title of _Catalogus Haereticorum_.

=2. Regulations in England in Regard to Book-Production and Censorship, 1526–1555.=--During the years covering the reign of Henry VIII, a series of royal edicts were issued for the regulation of heretical publications. The larger part of these edicts were framed in consultation with the convocation of bishops. Regulations issued under the sole authority of the bishops occur only after the rise of Lutheranism.

_1521._ _Wareham, Archbishop of Canterbury_, writes to Cardinal Wolsey asking that the names of the associates of Luther might be sent to the University of Oxford, in order that their writings might be added to the lists of prohibited books, and might also be included among the works the reading of which was to be permitted under special license to the scholars engaged in refuting the Lutheran heresies.[46]

_1526._ _Wareham_ sends to Duvoisey, Bishop of Exeter, a mandate directing him to make search for certain English translations of the New Testament, which are “full of heretical pravity.” The copies secured are to be burned. The mandate includes, in addition to this reference to the New Testament, the titles of certain writings by “Luther, Tyndal, Huss, and Zwingle.”[47]

Fox makes reference to a similar instruction from Tonstal, Bishop of London, to the archdeacons of his diocese. Tonstal specifies the same titles as those given in the list of Wareham.

_1526._ _Henry VIII_ orders the publication of a catalogue of forbidden books which appears to be the first of the English prohibitions and, if to be classed as an Index, would rank with the earliest of Europe. The catalogue contains but eighteen titles, comprising certain of the productions of Luther, Zwingli, and Brenz, the _In Oseam_ of Huss, and four anonymous works. The editions referred to had been imported.[48]

_1529._ _Henry VIII_ authorises the publication of catalogue number two, containing 85 works “imported by the adherents of heretical sects.” The 85 titles include 22 by Luther, 2 by Wyclif, 11 by Zwingli, 9 by Oecolampadius, etc.

_1530._ _King Henry_ forbids the reading of the Scriptures in the vernacular. In the proclamation, the King takes the ground that there is no necessity for the reading of the Bible by the common people. They can secure more safely from their religious instructors all the Scripture teaching that is profitable. When the peril of the spread of heretical opinions has passed, it will be in order to permit translations of the Bible. For the present, however, all copies of the versions in English, French, German, or Dutch are to be delivered to the bishop.[49]

_1530._ _Henry VIII_, in a proclamation, forbids the printing, importation, sale, or possession of books, whether printed or written, which contain doctrines antagonistic to the Catholic faith, or to the authority of the king, or to the laws of the land. The magistrates are instructed to take all measures necessary to root out the heresies. The proclamation enumerates further certain serious heresies in the writings of English authors. The first of these, taken from _The Book of the Wicked Mammon_, is: “Faith oonley doth justifie us.”[50] In a second royal proclamation of the same year, special prohibition is made of books printed abroad, all existing copies of which are to be delivered at once to the bishops.[51]

_1531._ _A royal proclamation_ (_of Henry_), read at St. Paul’s Cross, specifies thirty English works the selling and reading of which is forbidden.

_1534._ _The convocation of Canterbury_ petitions the King to authorise the preparation, by well qualified persons, of an English version of the Bible, and to permit the use of the same by the people. The King took no action in the matter, but after 1535, several more or less complete translations came into publication, and in 1536, the Vicar General, Cromwell, ordered that in each parish church should be placed, securely fastened by a chain, a copy of the Coverdale Bible, in the large form, so that the faithful might become familiar with the text.[52]

_1536._ _King Henry_ (who had been excommunicated in 1535) revokes the prohibition on the use of the Scriptures.[53]

_1538._ _King Henry_, in a proclamation, orders that the selling of books shall be done only under royal permit or privilege. No books shall be printed or imported without being examined and approved by examiners appointed by the Crown. Every printed book must bear the name of the printer and also that of the author, translator, or editor. No English version of the Bible shall be printed without a permit from the King or from the Privy Council. The penalties are imprisonment and confiscation of property.[54]

_1539._ _King Henry_ makes special prohibition, under heavy penalties, of the writings of the Sacramentarians and Anabaptists.

_1543._ _King Henry_ again orders that the Scriptures in the vernacular be permitted only for the higher classes.

During Henry’s reign, were published nine catalogues of books prohibited under the authority of the Crown. These lists have the character of Indexes, but the titles are not arranged alphabetically.

The first edition of Fox’s _Acts and Monuments_, issued in 1539, contains a “list of Condemned Books,” subjoined to certain “Injunctions.” This list is omitted from the subsequent editions and is not included by Wilkins, who reprints the “Injunctions.” The preamble to the list reads as follows:

“Hereafter folow the names of certen bokes, whiche, either after
this injunction, or some other in the said Kinges daies, were
prohibyted, the names of whiche bokes folowe in order expressed:

Miles Coverdale, the whole Bible; George Joy; Theodore Baselle,
alias Thomas Beacon; William Tindall; John Frith; Mels
Coverdalle (bis); William Turner, translated by Fysh; Robert
Barnes; Richard Tracy; John Bale, alias Haryson; John Goughe;
Rederick Mors; Henry Stalbridg, otherwyse Bale; George Joy
(bis); Urb. Regius; Apologia Melanchthonis; Romerani; Sawtrey;
Luther, translated by Tindall.”[55]

_1546._ _Henry VIII_ (in the last year of his reign) issues a royal “Proclamation for abolishing of certain English books.” The list repeats nearly the same names, and is followed by an instrument of the bishops, specifying at length the heresies to be condemned.

_1547._ _Edward VI_ orders the publication of a list of homilies and books of worship, the use of which is made compulsory for church service. Every priest is instructed to make diligent study of the New Testament, both in Latin and in English, and to compare with this the Paraphrases of Erasmus. Bishop Gardiner remonstrated, pointing out that the homilies and the Paraphrases contradicted each other.[56]

_1549._ _King Edward_ orders the exclusive use of the official Communion Book, and the bishops are instructed to cancel, in such manner that they cannot again come into use, the liturgies of Sarum, Lincoln, and York.[57] During Edward’s reign, no royal action was taken in regard to censorship.

_1555._ _Philip and Mary._ In this year was issued a “proclamation by the King and Queen” “for the restraining of all Books and Writings, tending against the Doctrine of the Pope and his Church.” The proclamation grounds itself upon a statute of the second year of Henry IV, and condemns, usually simply with the name of the author, a number of reformers, both foreign and English. Among the English works is included the Chronicle of Hall. The “Proclamation” bears the imprint of John Cawood.

_1556._ _The papal Legate, Cardinal Pole_, publishes a “Reformation-Decree” in which are included the regulations of the _Bulla Coenae_. It is further ordered that the bishops should arrange for the examination of the booksellers’ shops, and for the confiscation and destruction of all heretical writings.[58]

_1557._ _An edict of the convocation of the province of Canterbury_ repeats and confirms the royal condemnation. In 1558 (the last year of the reign of Mary), is issued a further proclamation worded as follows:

“BY THE KING AND QUEEN.

Whereas divers Books, filled with Heresie, Sedition, and
Treason, have of late, and be dayly brought into this Realm out
of foreign Countries and places beyond the seas, and some also
covertly printed within this Realm, and cast abroad in sundry
parts thereof, whereby not only God is dishonoured, but also an
encouragement given to disoby lawfull Princes and Governors;
the King and Queen’s Majesties, for redress hereof, do, by this
present Proclamation, declare and publish to all their subjects,
that whosoever shall, after the proclaiming hereof, be found
to have any of the said wicked and seditious Books, or finding
them, do not forthwith burn the same without shewing or reading
the same to any other person, shall in that case be reputed and
taken for a Rebel, and shall without delay be executed for that
offence, according to the order of martial law.

“Given at our Manor of Saint James the sixth day of June. John
Cawood, Printer.”

_1558._ _Queen Mary_, in a proclamation issued in this (the last) year of her reign, orders put into force the provisions of the _Bulla Coenae_ and of the Fifth Lateran Council, and declares that all persons shall be treated as rebels and punished under the penalties of martial law who distribute or possess copies of godless or heretical books, such as have been wrongfully brought in from foreign lands. With the death of the Queen, later in the same year, these orders were revoked by Elizabeth.

The author whose name appears most frequently in these English Indexes is William Tyndale (alias Hichins). His translation of the New Testament was first printed in Cologne in 1525, and was reissued later in a great number of editions.

In 1563 was issued under the title of _The Acts and Monuments of the Church_ a book generally known as Fox’s _Book of Martyrs_. This work exercised probably a larger influence than any book of the century in completing the conversion of England from Romanism to Protestantism, an influence which continued through the following centuries.

_1564._ _Queen Elizabeth_ instructs the Bishop of London to cause thorough examinations to be made of the cargoes of incoming ships, and to confiscate and destroy copies of slanderous and seditious books.[59]

_1586._ _Whitgift, Archbishop of Canterbury_, authorises a bookseller named Ascanius de Renialme to import copies of certain popish books, with the restriction that these copies are to be carefully reserved for the use of the Archbishop himself and of the members of the Privy Council.

It is to be noted that the censorship control in England over the productions of the press and the importation and sale of books was from the outset exercised under the direct authority of the Crown. The bishops were utilised for counsel and also, through the parish organisation of their dioceses, for the enforcement of the censorship and of the penalties. A little later, the machinery of the Stationers’ Company, to which was given the practical control of the printing-press, was employed for carrying out the policy of the Crown in the restriction of the works printed and for enforcing the regulations against delinquents. It is probable that these censorship regulations of the English Crown were carried out more effectively than was found possible for the similar regulations of the Church in France, in Germany, or in Italy. In Spain alone did the Church succeed in securing and for centuries in maintaining an absolute control over printing, publishing, and book-distribution.

_1588._ _Queen Elizabeth_ issues a proclamation forbidding, under severe penalties, the printing of schismatic, seditious, slanderous, or fantastic works; existing copies of such works (the determination of their character appears to have been left to the bishops) must be delivered to the bishops for destruction.[60] Among the titles specified of seditious books thus to be destroyed is that of a pamphlet entitled _The Gaping Gulf_, which had to do with the scheme for the marriage of the Queen with the Duke of Anjou.

=3. Regulations in the Netherlands for the Supervision of Books, 1521–1550.=--Between the years 1521 and 1550, a series of ordinances for the regulation of the printing-press which were issued under the instructions of Charles V, were published in the form of placards throughout the Provinces. The regulations became each year more severe. These ordinances were confirmed and strengthened by Philip II.

_1522._ _Charles V_ gives a special permit to Franz van der Hulst to possess and to read books by Luther and by other heretics, for the purpose of refuting their heresies. The regulations and orders above specified are, it may be noted, issued under the sole authority of the Emperor. There is no reference to the _Bulla Coenae_ or to any other papal utterances. The prohibitions concerning literature issued by the theological faculty of Louvain are based upon the authority and instructions not of the pope, but of the Emperor. With the introduction into the Netherlands of the Inquisition, however, the pope begins to take part in the supervision of literature.

_1522._ _Charles V_ appoints Van der Hulst as Inquisitor. He is confirmed by Adrian VI with the proviso that, as Van der Hulst is a layman, he must have two ecclesiastics as assessors. The succeeding inquisitors, who were all ecclesiastics, were in like manner appointed by the emperor or by the stadtholder and confirmed by the pope. Several of the edicts of Charles contain prohibitions of special books.

_1524._ An ordinance orders the delivery, for destruction, of copies of heretical books, under penalty of confiscation of goods and corporal punishment. In 1526, was added the penalty of banishment, and in 1529, that of death.

The reports of the time speak of frequent bonfires of masses of confiscated books. In 1526, it was ordered that no book should be printed or imported without a permit from the imperial commissioner. The penalty for delinquents was banishment and confiscation of one third of their property.[61]

_1524,--March._ _An imperial edict_ states that, notwithstanding the previous edicts forbidding the sale of heretical books, certain printers are again bringing before the public reprints of these with the excuse that they do not bear the name of Luther but are issued under such titles as _Evangelium_ or _Summa Theologiae_. Specially forbidden are an edition of the _Gospel of St. Matthew_ with notes by Johann Pelt, and a treatise by the same author called _The Sum of Godliness_.

_1526._ _An imperial edict_ orders to be confiscated and burned all copies of writings of Luther, Pomeranus, Carolostadius, Melanchthon, Oecolampadius, Lambertus, and Jonas, and of versions in the vernacular of the Gospels and Epistles and all books which support the Lutheran doctrine.

_1529._ It was ordered that, while all books required a permit from the Crown, those dealing with matters of faith must also be approved by the bishop. Whoever prints an heretical book is to be exposed on a scaffold and then branded by a hot iron with the mark of the cross, or he is to lose either an eye or a hand.[62]

_1529._ _An imperial edict_ prohibits the printing, distribution, possession, etc., of the writings of Luther, Wyclif, Huss, Marsilius, Oecolampadius, Zwingli, Melanchthon, Lambert, Pomeranus, Brunfels, Jonas, and all other “sectarians”; also the Testaments as printed by de Berghes, von Redmonde, Zell, and others, which had been condemned as heretical by the faculty of Louvain, all books printed during the past ten years which did not bear the name of author and name and address of the printer, and finally all pictures tending to bring dishonour upon the Virgin or the Saints.

_1540._ _An imperial edict_ prohibits a much longer series of books, the list including, in addition to the Lutheran writers, histories of Germany, and editions of certain books of Aristotle, and a number of issues of the Scriptures. The lists in these earlier prohibitions were evidently utilised later in the Indexes of Louvain, as some of the misprints of names are repeated.

Reusch mentions that the city of Antwerp secured as a privilege from the emperor an order forbidding the arrest within its walls of any printer or bookseller. In cases in which the regulations had been disobeyed, the delinquents were safe from arrest unless they could be enticed outside the city.[63]

_1546._ It is ordered that the record of the permit must be printed in each copy of the book, and before copies can be offered for sale the printed text must be compared with that of the manuscript as approved.

_1550._ It is ordered that if a book has been printed without a permit, but is found on examination to contain nothing pernicious, the printer is simply condemned to banishment for life, first making payment of a fine of 300 _caroli_. The possession or the reading of heretical books was in itself sufficient evidence of heresy. A person found guilty of heresy was permitted, for a first offence, to purge himself of his sin by recantation. If the delinquent persisted in his heresy, the penalty, under the edicts of 1529 and 1531, was for men, beheading, for women, burial alive. Heretics who had recanted and later relapsed were burned.[64]

=4. Regulations in France, 1521–1551, concerning the Production and the Use of Books.=--It was the case in France as in England that the control of the supervision of the printing-presses and of the business of book-distribution rested from the outset with the Crown; and that as far as regulations were framed by the theological faculty of the Sorbonne or by the bishops, this was done under the authority and instructions of the king. In France, however, another division of the temporal power, namely, the Parliament of Paris, undertakes from time to time the publication of regulations for the control of the press, or for the prohibition of books already in print; but by the close of the 16th century this independent action on the part of the Parliament comes to an end; Thereafter the orders concerning books are based on the sole authority of the king, and are, as a rule, issued by the royal chamberlain.

_1521._ _Francis I_ issues an edict, framed at the instance of the University of Paris, prohibiting the printing of any new works, either in Latin or in French, having to do with matters of faith or with the Scriptures, until the texts had been examined and approved by the theological faculty.[65]

_1528._ _A Provincial Council, held at Sens_, acting under the instructions of the King (Francis I), issues a decree forbidding the possession of copies of the writings of Luther and his followers. There is also a prohibition of the reading or the circulation of any works on religious subjects which do not bear record of a permit from the bishop.

_1528._ _A Provincial Council at Bourges_ issues a decree which is in its wording precisely identical with the above. It is probable that they were both prepared in Paris.

_1530._ _The King gives_ orders for the appointment of certain inquisitors of literature. The first group comprises two magistrates selected from the Parliament of Paris, and two divines selected by the College of the Sorbonne. This commission bears, in addition to the authority of the Crown and the instructions of the Parliament (which is, it must be borne in mind, a high court of justice), an instruction from the Archbishop of Paris to take measures for the repression of heretical literature. The lists of the prohibited and of the permitted or privileged books were published under the authority of the officials of the Parliament by the guild of printer-publishers. The scholarship of the divines of the Sorbonne was called upon by the Parliament for the determination of questions of heresy in doctrinal and religious works, a course which had the natural result of bringing upon the college an increasing measure of influence in the shaping of the Indexes and in the control of book-production.

_1542._ _The Parliament of Paris_ issues an order prohibiting the printing of any book without the approval of the rector of the university and the deans, and directing the rector to appoint two members of each faculty to conduct the examination of the books submitted. It was added later that, for Bibles and works of religion, the signatures of not less than four doctors of divinity were to be required. In the same year, it was ordered that all bales of books arriving in Paris must be opened in the presence of four of the certified book-dealers (_libraires jurés_) and examined by the divines appointed by the rector. The examiners were to supply to the royal procurator a list of the books the sale of which was authorised. The selling of any books the titles of which were not included in the list, was forbidden under severe penalties.[66]

_1542._ _The Parliament of Paris_ issues an order to the Sorbonne to prepare a catalogue of prohibited books. No copies of this catalogue have been preserved, but the Paris collection contains a copy of the supplement issued in March, 1543. This presents sixty-five titles, put together without any order, chiefly of works by well-known German and French reformers, printed in Latin and in French, together with a few anonymous French books. This catalogue, while the work of scholarly compilers, is described by Reusch as full of blunders.[67]

_1544._ _The Faculty of the Sorbonne_ issues an alphabetical catalogue of all the books which it had thus far condemned.

_1547._ This catalogue is reprinted with a supplement of forty-seven titles, the last Index compiled under the direction of the college.

_1548._ _The Inquisitor of Toulouse, Vidal de Becanis_, places his “privilege” on an Index the names of the compilers of which do not appear. The introduction denounces as heretics the persons who, during the past three years, have read, possessed, bought, sold, bound, or printed the books specified in the following lists; and condemns to excommunication all who, after the publication of the Index, fail to deliver for destruction existing copies, or who protect persons concealing copies. The catalogue contains ninety-two titles, which are in their wording badly confused and misprinted. A few instances are cited by Fréville:

Martini Lutheti (for Luther); Vulpici Zironga (for Zwingli). Of twenty-one authors, the complete works are condemned, etc. For Erasmus, the list covers seventeen titles. The prohibition covers Latin or French Bibles or Testaments, and the possessors of such are to be denounced.[68]

_1551._ _Henry II_, in an edict issued at Chateaubriand and duly recorded in Parliament, prohibits the importation of any books printed in Geneva or in any other towns which had fallen away from the Church. No books recorded in the prohibited lists of the Sorbonne could be printed, sold, or owned. Only those persons were permitted to possess copies to whom had been given canonical permission for the reading of heretical works. The printers must record their names and their work could be carried on only in certain specified places. Bales of books coming in from abroad must be opened in the presence of two deputies from the theological faculty or of two magistrates. Twice a year, these same deputies must inspect the bookshops. In Lyons, which was a great dépôt for imported books, the shops were inspected not less than three times a year, the inspectors including the archbishop and the seneschal. Every bookshop must carry in evidence a copy of the prohibitory catalogue of the Sorbonne, and corrected lists of the books in stock. Colporteurs (_portepanniers_) were not permitted to sell books, their printed stock being restricted to broadsides or single sheets.

_1551._ _The Parliament of Paris_ orders the reprinting, with additions, of the Sorbonne Index of 1544. The compilers of this appear to have done their work without reference to that of the editors of the Louvain Indexes. The Paris lists were utilised both in Venice and in Rome. In the reprint of the supplementary Index of 1547, the introduction speaks of the united efforts of the king, the Parliament, and the faculty of the Sorbonne to protect the realm against the pernicious assaults of heretical literature. Reference is made to the insidious forms in which heretical teachings are presented, in anonymous books, in volumes bearing no name of publisher or printer, or place of imprint, in volumes bearing, falsely, the names of orthodox Catholic writers. A book full of heretical blasphemies had, for example, been issued under the title of _Confessio Fidei per Natalem Bedam_ (possibly meant for the Protestant Doctor Noel Beda). Another “godless treatise” is called _Proverbia Salomonis_, etc.[69]

Among the authors whose works appear in these Paris Indexes may be noted the following: Erasmus, Jo. Ferus, Polydorus Vergil (editions of whom had been issued by Stephanus), Louis de Berquin, Estienne Dolet (who was executed for heresy in 1556), Faber Stapulensis, Beda, François Rabelais, a “Benedictine monk who finally became pastor at Meudon.” One would hardly recognise under this catalogue description the creator of Gargantua and Pantagruel, while it is not at all surprising that the narrative of the doings of these two world’s heroes should have been found deserving of a place on the Index. The book of Pantagruel, which was first printed anonymously in 1533, was reprinted in 1546 with the name of its author. It was placed on the Index of the Sorbonne in 1553, and in the same year was condemned in the official list of the Parliament. In 1554, however, at the instance of the Cardinal de Châtillon, Henry II cancelled the prohibition. In the Roman Index, Rabelais stands in the first class, but is recorded under the term “Rabletius.”[70]

The various editions of the Scriptures brought into print by Robertus Stephanus (Estienne), many of which included notes and commentaries by the scholarly publisher, were all condemned by the Sorbonne as heretical. As long, however, as Francis I lived, the condemnation was not put into force. These Bibles also find place in the Louvain Index of 1546, which was reprinted in Paris in 1548 under the instructions of the Sorbonne. In 1548, the opponents of Stephanus were able to secure from Henry II an order for the enforcement of their censorship of his Bibles. The publisher thereupon migrated to Geneva, and was able in his masterly retreat to carry with him across the frontier his fonts of type and some portions at least of the editions of the Bibles and other offending books which had been ordered to be delivered to the officials of the Sorbonne for their burning.

_1557._ _Francis I_ arranges with the Pope, Paul IV, for the appointment as Inquisitors-General of the Cardinals Lorraine, Bourbon, and Châtillon, to whom was confided the supervision, under royal authority, of the inspection of books.

_1559._ _The Parliament_ orders all those possessing doctor’s degrees to report to the faculty of the college the titles of heretical or suspicious books.

_1562._ _The Parliament_ again orders the college to compile an Index, but the work was never completed.[71] Under royal edicts, the prohibitions in the catalogues of the Sorbonne were made binding on all citizens. A further evidence that the final authority in the matter of censorship was retained by the State, is the order issued in 1546 by Francis I that the Bibles of Robert Estienne were not to be included in the Sorbonne Indexes. Another example is a notice which Espencé had succeeded in having attached to the orders of 1547, directing that the prohibition should not be enforced in the case of two books the titles of which were already on the list of books condemned by the Sorbonne. The Index of 1544 comprises five divisions: _a_, works in Latin, by known authors, arranged alphabetically; _b_, anonymous works in Latin; _c_, works in French by known authors; _d_, anonymous works in French; _e_, French versions of the Scriptures. The lists include no writers of whom all the works are condemned (Class I of the Roman Indexes). Among the better known names may be mentioned: Erasmus, Faber, Ferus, Peter Martyr, Wyclif, Huss, Corvinus, Osiander, etc. An introduction to the fifth part emphasises the peril of placing in the hands of simple and unscholarly readers versions in the vernacular of the Scriptures, and refers to the evil results produced with such heretics as the Waldenses, the Albigenses, and the like.

In 1562, there is record of the seizure at some French port by M. de Bourbon of a collection of wine casks packed with books which had been sent from Germany, and which Bourbon found to be of the “most distressing character.” These books the lieutenant consigned to the flames, having apparently taken the responsibility of himself acting as censor.[72]

_1577._ _Henry III_ issues an edict modifying, in behalf of the Protestants, the regulations of the edict of Chateaubriand. No books are to be sold without the permit of the local magistrates, or as far as concerns the works of the adherents of the so-called reformed religion, without the approval of special commissioners to be appointed by Parliament.

=5. Regulations in Spain, 1521–1551, concerning the Production and the Use of Books.=

_1521. March 20._ _Leo X_, in a brief addressed to the High Constable, the Admiral of Castile, and Cardinal Adrian (who constituted at the time the government of Spain), orders that measures may be taken to prevent the importation into the country of the pernicious writings of Luther and his followers. The cardinal issues an order in the same year for the confiscation and destruction of all such works.

_1522._ _Cardinal Adrian_ issues a second order, calling for the delivery for destruction of all books by the Reformers of Germany, under severe penalties for persons withholding or concealing copies. Before the close of the same year, Adrian becomes pope.

_1530._ _Manrique, Archbishop of Seville_, and Inquisitor General, confirms the ordinance of 1521, with some sharpening of the penalties for non-obedience. He cautions the faithful that certain Lutheran books are being circulated under false titles and that pernicious Lutheran notes have been printed in editions of works by good Catholics. The inquisitors are ordered to search libraries and bookshops. The authority to give permits for the printing of books is placed in the hands of the higher Council of the Inquisition.

_1531._ _The Inquisitor General_ authorises the inquisitors to excommunicate persons who disregard the regulations, who possess or read copies of such books, or who fail to denounce others.

_1541._ _The Inquisitor General_ prohibits the inquisitors from granting permission for the possession or reading of forbidden books. Even the Counsellors of the Inquisition (under whose advice the lists of heretical books were prepared) are forbidden to read the same.[73]

_1543._ _Charles V_ issues an edict for the control of books, etc., in his American possessions. The printing, the importation, and the reading of novels and romances is forbidden.

_1550._ _The Bull of Julius III_, recalling all outstanding permissions for the reading of forbidden books, is published as authoritative for Spain.

_1550._ _Charles V_ orders that the book-dealers in Seville must make registry before a royal official of the titles of all books planned for export to the colonies and must take oath that the schedules contain nothing prohibited.

_1556._ _Philip II_ forbids the printing of any works about America until a permit has been secured from the Indian Council.[74]

6. Regulations in Germany concerning Books, 1521–1555.

_1521, May 8._ _An edict of the Emperor_ (_Charles V_) forbids the printing, selling, buying, owning, copying, or reading any of the writings, already condemned by the pope, of “that stubborn heretic Martin Luther,” and any further works that said Luther may produce. The prohibition is made to cover also all other books, tracts, and pictures which are antagonistic to the Faith of the Church and to good morality, and all writings which are designed to bring into disrepute the pope, or the other dignitaries of the Church, or princes, universities, members of faculties, or other persons of repute. The penalties are those previously ordered by the Church, the ban and the interdict.[75] It is further ordered that thereafter no one shall print or sell books having to do with the Bible, or with matters of faith, without a specific permit from the bishop or from the theological faculty of the proper university. The responsibility for the framing of this imperial ordinance rested with Aleander[76]. This Edict of Worms secured acceptance and enforcement only in certain portions of Germany.

_1523._ _The Imperial Diet of Nuremberg_, in place of making full confirmation of the Edict of Worms, simply orders that no new writings shall be printed or sold until they have been tested and approved by trustworthy men. The printing and selling of libellous books (_libelli famosi_) is forbidden under heavy penalties.[77]

_1530._ _The Diet of Augsburg_ receives, through Campeggio, a brief from Pope Leo ordering strong measures to be taken for the enforcement of the Bull and of the provisions of the Decree of Worms against Lutheran writings. The Pope calls for imperial regulations to secure the destruction of all copies of such books together with the punishment of all persons concealing copies, and the rewarding of those who give information of concealed heretical books. The Diet declines however to do more than to renew the regulations for the examination of books to be printed and the licensing of those that can be approved.[78]

_1549–1550._ _A Provincial Synod held at Cologne_ under the instructions of the Archbishop, Adolphus von Schauenburg, issues an edict for the protection more particularly of “simple and unlearned pastors who are not competent to distinguish pernicious literature from sound teaching,” forbidding all the faithful under penalty of the Anathema, from reading the works of Luther, Bucer, Calvin, Œcolampadius, Bullinger, Lambert, Melanchthon, Corvinus, Sarcerius, Brentius, and some dozen other heretical writers. The edict promises the publication shortly of a comprehensive catalogue of heretical and pernicious literature, but such catalogue was never prepared. This preliminary list may be classed as the first German Index of prohibited books, the next in order of date being that published in 1582, in Munich.

_1555._ _The Augsburger Pact_ provides that the penalties specified in the papal regulations concerning books, etc., are to be enforced only in the territories classed as Catholic.

_1570._ _The Diet of Speyer_ orders that printing offices are to be licensed only in imperial cities, court cities, and university towns and each printer must be duly placed under oath (_vereidet_) to uphold the imperial regulations.[79] The Imperial Police Regulations repeat the instructions of the Diet of Augsburg, with the modification that nothing was to be printed contrary to the Christian religion or to the Religious Pact of Augsburg.