"Favourers of God's word?" : John Foxe's Henrician martyrs

Abstract

This thesis studies John Foxe's treatment of the Henrician Reformation in The Acts and Monuments, and the value of this text as a historical source. Although past analyses have shown that Foxe's transcriptions of his documentary evidence are quite reliable, it is suggested that this is very far from the case in his narrative sequences. A close reading of other source material surviving from the period, as well as the evidence in The Acts and Monuments itself, indicates that many of Foxe's stories do not stand up to rigorous examination. The question is raised as to who was responsible for these errors. It is contended that there were occasions when Foxe was `honestly misled'. However, it is also made clear that Foxe was not averse to tampering with the evidence himself, if the nature of the expected disclosures appeared to warrant it. Another facet of this thesis is Foxe's reaction to this evidence. It is shown that many of Foxe's claims about the Henrician Reformation are open to question - even on his own showing. Sometimes this resulted in a number of substantial alterations and `corrections' in the martyrologist's transcriptions of his original material. Elsewhere Foxe reconsidered his claims about his heroes, even so far, as in some cases, to undermine their position as Protestant martyrs.

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