The Year 1592

WILLIAM PATENSON, or PATTESON, Priest.¹

WILLIAM PATENSON, or PATTESON, was a native of the bishopric of Durham, an alumnus and priest of Doway College during its residence at Rhemes. He was ordained in 1587, and sent upon the English mission in 1589. Falling into the hands of the persecutors, he was prosecuted and condemned to die as in cases of high treason, merely upon account of his priestly character and functions. This holy man, the night before his execution, was put down into the condemned hole with seven malefactors, who were all to suffer on the next day; and being more concerned for their eternal salvation than his own temporal life, he so movingly preached to them repentance for their sins, and a sincere conversion to God and His Church, that six of the seven were reconciled by him, and on the next morning professed themselves determined to die in the Catholic faith, as they did, with great marks of repentance for their past crimes, and a willingness to suffer that ignominious death in satisfaction for them. The persecutors were so enraged at this, that they treated Air. Patenson on this account with more than ordinary cruelty, causing him to be cut down immediately, and butchered whilst he was alive and in his perfect senses.

He suffered at Tyburn^ January 22, 159 1-2.

THOMAS PORMORT, or PORTMORE, Priest.²

Thomas PORMORT, or PORTMORE, was bom in Lincoln-shire, of a gentleman’s family. He performed his studies abroad, partly in the College of Rhemes, and partly in that of Rome, to which he was sent from Rhemes in 1581. At Rome he W'as made priest, and from thence he was sent upon the English mission. He fell into the hands of the persecutors in August, 1591, and was committed to the Tower, where he was several times cruelly racked to extort from him, by force of torments, the names of those who had harboured or relieved him. But his constancy was proof against all their torments, although by the violence of them, his body was all disjointed and his belly broken. So they proceeded to his trial and condemned him to die as in cases of high treason. The crimes for which he was sentenced to death and afterwards executed are thus set down by Air. Stow in his Chronicle, 1591: —

‘ The 8th of February, Thomas Pormort was convicted of two several high treasons, the one for being a Seminary priest, and the other for reconciling John Barwys, haberdasher. John Barwys was also convicted of high treason for being reconciled, and of felony for relieving the said priest contrary to the statute. Thomas Pormort was executed in Paul’s Churchyard, February 20.’

This year, 1592, on the 23d of June, Robert Ashton, gentleman, born at Croston, in Lancashire, was executed at Tyburn for procuring a dispensation from Rome to marry his second cousin {Catalog. Chalced., &c.), and in the same month, Thomas Metham, one of the first missioners from Doway, afterwards a Jesuit, died a prisoner for his faith in Wisbeach Castle.

EDWARD WATERSON

Footnotes

1. Ven. William Patenson. — From the Douay Catalogues; Manuscript History of Dr. Champney; and Father Ribadeneira in his Appendix; see also Lives of E. M.; Acts of E. M.; Foley, Records, iii. ↩

2. Ven. Thomas Pormort, or Portmore. — From the Douay Diary and Catalogues; from Ribadeneira; and Dr. Champney’s Manuscript; see also Lives of E. M.; Acts of E. M.; C.R.S., v. ↩