Cover of Fox's Book of Martyrs Or A History of the Lives, Sufferings, and Triumphant Deaths of the Primitive Protestant Martyrs — Background and Themes

Fox's Book of Martyrs Or A History of the Lives, Sufferings, and Triumphant Deaths of the Primitive Protestant Martyrs — Background and Themes

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Authors: Foxe, John, 1516-1587 Digital Source: Project Gutenberg Gutenberg Release Year: 2007 First Publication Year: Not confirmed

Key Word: Church history; Persecution; Martyrs Target Reader: Readers of public-domain and historical texts

Book Edition: Project Gutenberg digital edition Book Language: en

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Words 266,092

Reading time 1157 min

Text sections 28

The catalog record for Fox's Book of Martyrs Or A History of the Lives, Sufferings, and Triumphant Deaths of the Primitive Protestant Martyrs — Background and Themes provides practical reading context through 266,092 words, 19 hr 17 min estimated reading time, and 28 detected text sections.

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Project Gutenberg metadata also associates the work with “Church history,” connecting these edition facts with the source record’s subject description.

Source: Project Gutenberg record #22400

This 19th-century compilation expands Foxe's original with later persecutions, including Swiss and West Indian cases. The preface frames persecution as an 'inherent vice' of unsanctified nature, while the trial of Roger Holland shows a condemned man predicting the end of burnings in Smithfield.

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HISTORY OF CHRISTIAN MARTYRS TO THE FIRST GENERAL PERSECUTIONS UNDER NERO.

Martyrdom of St. Stephen, James the Great, and Philip 16 Matthew, James the Less, Matthias, Andrew, St. Mark and Peter 17 Paul, Jude, Bartholomew, Thomas, Luke, Simon, John, and Barnabas 18

THE TEN PRIMITIVE PERSECUTIONS.

The first persecution under Nero, A. D. 67 19 The second persecution under Domitian, A. D. 81 19 The third persecution under Trajan, A. D. 108 20 The fourth persecution under Marcus Aurelius Antoninus, A. D. 162 22 The fifth persecution commencing with Severus, A. D. 192 25 The sixth persecution under Maximinus, A. D. 235 27 The seventh persecution under Decius, A. D. 249 27 The eighth persecution under Valerian, A. D. 257 31 The ninth persecution under Aurelian, A. D. 274 34 The tenth persecution under Diocletian, A. D. 303 36

PERSECUTIONS OF THE CHRISTIANS IN PERSIA.

Persecutions under the Arian heretics 45 Persecution under Julian the Apostate 46 Persecution of the Christians by the Goths and Vandals 47 Persecutions from about the middle of the Fifth, to the conclusion of the Seventh century 48 Persecutions from the early part of the Eighth, to near the conclusion of the Tenth century 49 Persecutions in the Eleventh century 51

Persecution of the Waldenses in France 53 Persecutions of the Albigenses 55 The Bartholomew massacre at Paris, &c. 57 From the Revocation of the Edict of Nantes, to the French Revolution, in 1789 62 Martyrdom of John Calas 65

AN ACCOUNT OF THE INQUISITION.

An account of the cruel handling and burning of Nicholas Burton, an English merchant, in Spain 73 Some private enormities of the Inquisition laid open by a very singular occurrence 76 The persecution of Dr. AEgidio 88 The persecution of Dr. Constantine 89 The life of William Gardiner. 90 An account of the life and sufferings of Mr. Wm. Lithgow, a native of Scotland 92 Croly on the Inquisition 101

AN ACCOUNT OF THE PERSECUTIONS IN ITALY, UNDER THE PAPACY.

An account of the persecutions of Calabria 107 Account of the persecutions in the Valleys of Piedmont 110 Account of the persecutions in Venice 117 An account of several remarkable individuals who were martyred in different parts of Italy, on account of their religion 119 An account of the persecutions in the marquisate of Saluces 122 Persecutions in Piedmont in the Seventeenth century 122 Further persecutions in Piedmont 126 Narrative of the Piedmontese War 134 Persecution of Michael de Molinos, a native of Spain 144

AN ACCOUNT OF THE PERSECUTIONS IN BOHEMIA UNDER THE PAPACY.

Persecution of John Huss 150 Persecution of Jerom of Prague 154 Persecution of Zisca 157

GENERAL PERSECUTIONS IN GERMANY.

An account of the persecutions in the Netherlands 174

AN ACCOUNT OF THE PERSECUTIONS IN LITHUANIA AND POLAND 178

AN ACCOUNT OF THE PERSECUTIONS IN CHINA AND SEVERAL OTHER COUNTRIES.

An account of the persecutions in Japan 181 Persecutions against the Christians in Abyssinia or Ethiopia 182 Persecutions against the Christians in Turkey 182 Persecutions and oppressions in Georgia and Mingrelia 183 An account of the persecutions in the States of Barbary 184 Persecutions in Spanish America 184

AN ACCOUNT OF THE PERSECUTIONS IN GREAT BRITAIN AND IRELAND PRIOR TO THE REIGN OF QUEEN MARY I. 186

AN ACCOUNT OF THE PERSECUTIONS IN SCOTLAND, DURING THE REIGN OF KING HENRY VIII. 194 An account of the Life, Suffering and Death of George Wishart, &c. 197

PERSECUTIONS IN ENGLAND DURING THE REIGN OF QUEEN MARY.

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The preface of this volume immediately announces itself as a compilation, not a direct reprint of Foxe's original work. It freely admits to abridging, modernizing phraseology, and adding material to correct errors discovered by 'modern research.' The stated goal is to trace persecution from Stephen's martyrdom down to 1830, a span far exceeding Foxe's own scope. This editorial stance—simultaneously reverent toward Foxe and willing to revise him—shapes every page that follows.

A Compiler's Preface as a Theological Argument

The preface does more than explain editorial method; it advances a specific argument about persecution. It calls intolerance an 'inherent vice' in 'unsanctified nature' and asserts that only 'renewed and sanctified' hearts can practice true toleration. While acknowledging that nearly all sects have persecuted, it singles out the 'papal hierarchy' as the only denomination that made persecution an article of belief. This framing—linking persecution to popery and contrasting it with genuine Christianity—colors the entire compilation. The reader should note that this is the compiler's voice, not Foxe's, and that it sets up a clear moral binary that the subsequent narratives are meant to illustrate.

The Trial of Roger Holland: Prophecy and Confrontation

The excerpt from Roger Holland's trial in 1558 offers a vivid example of the confrontational drama that characterizes many of these accounts. When Bishop Bonner presses Holland on transubstantiation, Holland's reply pivots on a scriptural detail: Bonner says 'the same body which was born of the Virgin Mary, which was crucified upon the cross, which rose again the third day,' but Holland notes he 'leave[s] out "which ascended into heaven."' This theological precision leads to Holland's condemnation. Most striking is Holland's subsequent speech, in which he predicts that after this day, 'there shall not be any by him put to the trial of fire and fagot' in Smithfield. The compiler frames this as a 'spirit of prophecy' and notes that indeed no further burnings occurred there. Bonner's angry retort—'I will burn all the sort of you'—underscores the personal animosity between persecutor and persecuted.

The Crowd as Witness and Participant

Throughout the Holland narrative, the public plays an active role. After the sentence, a proclamation forbids anyone from speaking to or touching the condemned, on pain of imprisonment. Yet the people cry out, 'God strengthen them!' and pray for the restoration of God's word. This tension between official prohibition and popular sympathy recurs in Foxe's accounts. The compiler records these details not merely as historical fact but as evidence of a faithful remnant. Holland himself, at the stake, prays for 'these, thy people' and asks God to 'save them from idolatry.' The crowd's audible support becomes part of the martyrological testimony, a counterpoint to the authority of the church and state.

Readers should approach this edition aware that it is a layered text: Foxe's original narratives, the compiler's editorial interventions, and the added later persecutions all speak with different voices. The preface's explicit theology of persecution provides a lens through which the subsequent stories are meant to be read. Pay attention to moments where the compiler inserts commentary or corrects Foxe—these reveal the evolving purposes of martyrology in the nineteenth century.

That rain soaked through my coat, so I found a dry corner and opened Fox's Book of Martyrs, where Roger Holland calmly foresaw Smithfield's fires ending. Then I remembered strolling past Coventry's ruined spires last autumn, worn stones holding their own quiet witness—somehow both books felt like the same patient, weathered breath of history. I set one down and picked up The Churches of Coventry: A Short History of the City & Its Medieval Remains — Context and Discussion, following that thread naturally.