The first Prophesie by Ignatius.
The lines (I confesse impartially) are very mysterious, and withall they are involved in a stupendious obscurity. They seem as aenigmaticall as Sphynx his hidden Riddle yet I doubt not but that your judicious minds will prove as auspicious unto this, as Oedipus did to his.
You may enucleate the genuine sence, and signification of the words, if you doe but seriously, revolve them.
When the formidable Armado was dessipated in Eighty eight, this Kingdome did flourish a long time in peace and prosperous tranquillitie, unto one thousand six hundred and thrirty foure or five: After Queene Elizabeth died, King Iames came out of Scotland, and inherited the imperiall Crown after her.
A plot all men know was most nefariously hatched in his Reign, to wit, the Gunpowder Treason: which not preventing him, hee swayed the Scepter very peacefully in a great succession of future time.
Prince Henry the Ninth of that name died young, and king Charles the first of that name reigned next in Majesty (whom God long preserve, and protect from the wicked plots of his enemies.) The beginning of these petrilous times, began in 1639, The next foure verses I wll leave to the exposition of the Reader hereof.
The Philosophers have given their unite a stipulation, & with all the Astrologians have affirmed in their solid assertions, that when Saturne hath any conjunction with Iupiter, great wars and bloody times shall ensue, and I am sure their opinions have not proved falliblem this respect. Many false Prophets are now risen amongst us, and doe Prophesie false things to the people, who dare presume to preach in Tubs to their Schismaticall Auditors: whom they delude and suggest vaine imaginations unto them, that they are sent from Heaven, and have the Spirit of God, when they have nothing but the Spirit of [Page]errour and false-hood. Mahomet hath shewn indeed his prize sufficiently amongst us, for too many (I suppose) in our times rather Mahometans, than true Christians. The alteration of Religion hath been very great, and tossed to and fro by the various winde of every ones opinion.
The last two Verses I refer to the judgement of the Reader: for I will nominate no man particularly.
This Prophesie is stupendious, and as it includes a mstyery, so it includes verity withall: as by the former it is involved in obscurity, so by the latter it is illuminated in apparent truth.
The demonstration of Prophetick Divinations predictates the future estate of a Kingdome, and whatsoever hath been expressed in this lately mentioned, is already fulfilled in exemplary relations.
But the distracted opinions of most men are still so promiscuous, that wee want Prophets enough to exclaime against them; for some they will not bear, others they neglect, others they in a despicable detestation do contemne.
But God of his infinite mercy grant, that we may hereafter all make true use of the sincere Prophesie of him, and his Gospell that these various mists of errours may be expelled, these roaring waves of Schisme may be calmed, and the distempers of the whole Realme cured perfectly.
The second Prophesie of Mother Shipton.
WHen she heard King Henrie the Eight should be King, and Cardinall Wolsey should be at York, she said that Cardinall Wolsey should never come to York with the King, and the Cardinall hearing being angry, sent the Duke of Suffolke, and the Lord Darcy to her, who came with their men disguised to the Kings House neere York, where leaving their men, they went to Master Besley to Yorke, and desired him to goe with them to Mother Shiptons house, where when they came they knocked at the doore, she said, Come in Master Besley, and those honourable Lords with you, and Master Besley would have put in the Lords before him, but she said, come in Master Besley you know the way, but they do not. This they thought strange that shee should know them, and never saw them; then they went into the house, where there was a great fire, and she bade them welcome, calling them all by their names, and sent for some Cakes and Ale, and they drunk and were very mery. Mother Shipton said the Duke, if you knew what we came about, you would not make us so welcome, and she said the messenger should not bee hang'd; Mother Shipton, said the Duke, you said the Cardinall should never see Yorke; yea, said she, I said he might see Yorke, but never come at it, But [Page]said the Duke when he comes to York thou shalt bee burnt; Wee shall see that said she, and plucking her Handkerchieffe off her head she threw it into the fire, and it would not burne; then she tooke her staffe and turned it into the fire, and it would not burne, then shee tooke it and put it on againe; Now (said she) I might have burned. Mother Shipton (quoth the Duke) what thinke you of me? my Love said shee, the time will come you will be as low as I am, and that is a low one indeed. My Lord Piercy said, and what say you of me? My Lord (said she) shooe your horse in the quick, and you will doe well, but your body will be buried in York pavement and your head shall be stoln from the Bar and carried into France. Then said the Lord Darcy, and what thinke you of me? Shee said, you have made a great Gun, shoot it off, for it will doe you no good, you are going to warre, you will paine many a man, but you will kill none; so they went away.
Not long after the Cardinall came to Cawood, and going to the top of the Tower, he asked where Yorke was and how far it was thither, and said that one said hee should never see York; Nay, said one, shee said you might see Yorke, but never come at it. He vowed to burne her when he came to Yorke. Then they shewed him York, & told him it was but eight miles thence? he said that he would soone be there: but being sent for by the King, he dyed in the way to London, at Leicester, of a Lask; And Shiptons wife said to Master Besley, yonder is a fine stall built for the Cardinall in the Minster, of Gold Pearle, and precious stones, goe and present one of the pillars to King Henry and he did so.
Master Besley seeing these things fall out as shee had foretold, desired her to tell him some more of her Prophesies: Master, said shee, before that Owes Bridge and Trinitie Church meet, they shall build on the day, and it shal fall in the night, untill they get the highest stone of Trinitie Church to be the lowest stone of Owes Bridge; then the day will come when the North shall rue it wondrous sore, but the South shall rue it for evermore; When Hares kindle on cold hearth stones, and Lads shall marry Ladies, and bring them home, then shall you have a yeare of pining hunger and then a Dearth without corn; A wofull day shall be seene in England, a King and Queene, the first comming of the King of Scots shall be at Holgate Towne, but hee shall not come through the Barie, and when the King of the North shall be at London Bridg, his Tayle shall be at Edenborough; After this shall water come over Owes Bridge, and a Windmill shall be set on a tower, and an Elm-tree shall lye at every mans door, at that ti [...]e women shall weare great Hats and great bands, and when there is a Lord Major at Yorke, let him beware of a stab; When two Knights shall fall out in the Castle yard, they shall never be kindly all their lives after; When all Colton Hag hath borne Crops of Corne, seven yeares after you shall heare newes, there shall two Judges goe in and out at Mungate Barre.
Then best for them that have the least, and worst for them that have the most, you shall not know of the war over night, yet you shall have it in the morning, and when it comes it shall last three yeers, betweene Cadron and Ayre shall be great warfare, when all the World is as lost, it shall bee called Christs Crost. when the Battel begins, it shall be where Crookback Richard made his fray▪ they shall say, to warfare for your King for halfe a crown a day, but stir not (shee will say) to warfare for your King on paine of hanging, but stir not, for he that goes to complaine, shall not come back againe. The time will come when England shall tremble and quake for feare of a dead man that shall be heard to speake, then will the Dragon give the Bull a great snap, and when the one is downe they will goe to London Towne; Then there will be a great Battell betweene England and Scotland, and they will be pacified for a time, and when they come to Brammamore, they fight and are againe pacified for a time, then there will be a great Battell between England and Scotland at Stoknmore; Then will Ravens sit on the Crosse and drinke as much blood of Nobles, as of the Commons, then woe is me, for London shall be destroyed for ever after, Then there will come a woman with one eye and she shall tread in many mens bloud to the knee, and a man leaning on a staffe by her and she shall say to him, what art thou? and he shall say, I am the King of Scots, and shee shall say goe with me to my house, for there are three Knights, and he will goe with her, and stay there three dayes and three nights, then will England be lost; and they will cry twice a day England is lost, Then there will be three Knights in Petergate in Yorke, and the one shall not know of the other; there shall be a childe borne in Pomfret with three thumbs, and those three Knights will give him three horses to hold, while they win England, and all Noble bloud shall be gone but one; and they shall carry him to Sheriffe Nuttons Castle sixe miles from Yorke, and he shall dye there, and they shall chuse there an Earle in the field, and hanging their horses on a thorne. And rue the time that ever they were borne, to see so much blood shed, Then they will come to Yorke to besiege it, and they sha [...]l keepe them out three dayes and three nights, and a penny loafe shall be within the Bar at halfe a Crown, and withou [...] the Bar at a penny; And they will sweare if they will not yeeld to blow up the Town Walls. Then they will let them in, and they will hang up the Major Sheriff's and Aldermen, and they will goe into Crouch Church, there will three Knights goe in and but one come out againe and he will cause Proclamation to be made, that any man may take House, Tower, or Bower [Page]for twenty one yeares, and whilst the World endureth, there shall never bee warfare againe, nor any more Kings or Queens, but the Kingdome shall bee governed by three Lords, and then Yorke shall be London. And after this shall be a white harvest of Corne gotten in by women. Then shall bee in the North that one woman shall say unto another, Mother I have seene a man to day, and for one man there shall be a thousand women, there shall be a man sitting upon St. Iames Church hill weeping his fill; And after that a Ship come sayling up the Thames till it come against London, and the Master of the Ship shall weepe, and the Marriners shall aske him why he weepeth, being he hath made so good a voyage, and he shal say; Ah what a goodly Citie this was, none in the world comparable to it, and now there is scarce left any house that can let us have drinke for our money.