John Foxe (1516-1587)
The cruelty of John Bonner
The burning of John Hooper
The burning of William Hunter
The burning of three women with a "sillie" infant
John Foxe (1516-1587) was an English Protestant clergyman and author of The Book of Martyrs. He was born in Boston, Lincolnshire, and educated at the University of Oxford. He was a fellow of Magdalen College, Oxford, from 1539 to1545 and tutor to the children of the English poet and soldier Henry Howard from 1548 to1553.
With the accession to the English throne of the Roman Catholic Mary I, he left the country, remaining on the Continent until 1559, after Elizabeth I became queen of England. Foxe was ordained in 1560. An English translation, Acts and Monuments of These Latter and Perilous Dayes ..., was published in 1563 and became popularly known as The Book of Martyrs.
This work was the source of the popular conception of Roman Catholics for generations of English people. In 1570 the Anglican Convocation ordered this edition to be placed in every collegiate church in England. Foxe's work was considered a good way to incalcate values of observance and devotion to the Church. But it was the gruesome descriptions of the tortures inflicted on the martyrs that made the work very popular with children.(Adapted from Microsoft® Encarta® Online Encyclopedia 2000)
The cruelty of John Bonner
The burning of John Hooper
The burning of William Hunter
The burning of three women with a "sillie" infant