york00orns

262 YORK.
Archbishop of York, who, in his sermon, boldly expressed
his conviction that the meeting was illegal,
and that the rising was treasonable. His utterances
were so distasteful to some of the men-at-arms who
were present that he was dragged out of the pulpit
by them, and narrowly escaped with his life. The
clergy were unanimously opposed to the views of
their diocesan, and drew up a manifesto condemning
everything that had been done in the way of reformation,
and a similar document was adopted with shouts
of applause by the parliament assembled within the
walls of the castle.
These resolutions were presented to the Duke of
Norfolk and the other commissioners assembled at
Doncaster by Lord Darcy and Aske. Norfolk was
in a position of some difficult}'. The king had
yielded so far to the representations of his Privy
Council as to concede a free pardon and a parliament
at York. Further he would not go, and he had sent
secret instructions to Lord Derby and the Duke of
Suffolk to reinforce Shrewsbury with all speed. Indirectly,
Norfolk seems to have allowed the insurgents
to believe that the whole of their demands had
been granted, and that the object of the Pilgrimage
of Grace had been achieved.
But with regard to the demands for the restoration
of the abbey lands and the replacing of the monks,
Henry was absolutely and determinedly opposed. He
was willing to give a favourable consideration to the
social and economical reforms which their articles suggested,
but not an inch would he recede from the vantage
ground which he had gained for the reformation