The proceedings then went on without her; Fisher Bishop of Rochester,
made a courageous defence of the validity of the marriage, to which
Henry drew up a bitter reply in the form of a speech addressed to the
legates.[625] The speed with which the procedure was hurried on was
little to Campeggio's taste. He had not prejudged the case; he was
still in doubt as to which way the sentence would go; and he entered a
dignified protest against the orders he received from Rome to give
sentence, if it came to that point, against Henry.[626] He would
pronounce what judgment seemed to him just, but he shrank from the
ordeal, and he did his best to follow out Clement's injunctions to
procrastinate.[627] In this he succeeded completely. It seemed that
judgment could no longer be deferred; it was to be delivered on the
23rd of July.[628] On that day the King himself, and the chief men of
his Court, were present; his proctor demanded sentence. Campeggio
stood up, and instead of giving sentence, adjourned the Court till
October.[629] "By the mass!" burst out Suffolk, giving the table (p. 223)
a great blow with his hand, "now I see that the old-said saw is true,
that there was never a legate nor cardinal that did good in England."
The Court never met again; and except during the transient reaction,
under Mary, it was the last legatine Court ever held in England. They
might assure the Pope, Wolsey had written to the English envoys at
Rome a month before, that if he granted the revocation he would lose
the devotion of the King and of England to the See Apostolic, and
utterly destroy Wolsey for ever.[630]
[Footnote 625: _Ibid._, iv., Introd., p. cccclxxix.]
[Footnote 626: _Ibid._, iv., 5732, 5734.]
[Footnote 627: _Ibid._, iv., 3604.]
[Footnote 628: _Ibid._, iv., 5789.]
[Footnote 629: It was alleged that this adjournment
was only the usual practice of the curia; but it is
worth noting that in 1530 Charles V. asserted that
it was usual to carry on matters so important as
the divorce during vacation (_ibid._, iv., 6452),
and that Clement had repeatedly ordered Campeggio
to prolong the suit as much as possible and above
all to pronounce no sentence.]
[Footnote 630: _L. and P._, iv., 5703, 5715, 5780.]
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