A straunge and terrible wunder wrought very late in the the parish church of Bongay, a tovvn of no great distance from the citie of Norwich, namely the fourth of this August, in ye yeere of our Lord 1577 in a great tempest of violent raine, lightning, and thunder, the like wherof hath been seldome seene. With the appeerance of an horrible shaped thing, sensibly perceiued of the the people then and there assembled. Drawen into a plain method according to the written copye. by Abraham Fleming.

A straunge and terrible wunder wrought very late in the the parish church of Bongay, a tovvn of no great distance from the citie of Norwich, namely the fourth of this August, in ye yeere of our Lord 1577 in a great tempest of violent raine, lightning, and thunder, the like wherof hath been seldome seene. With the appeerance of an horrible shaped thing, sensibly perceiued of the the people then and there assembled. Drawen into a plain method according to the written copye. by Abraham Fleming.

Table of contents

Title page

The Preface to the Reader.

¶ The reporte of a straunge and wonderful Spectacle.

A necessary Prayer.

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A straunge and terrible Wunder wrought very late in the parish Church of Bongay, a Tovvn of no great distance from the citie of Norwich, namely the fourth of this August, in ye yeere of our Lord 1577. in a great tempest of violent raine, lightning, and thunder, the like wherof hath béen seldome seene.

With the appeerance of an horrible shaped thing, sensibly perceiued of the people then and there assembled.

Drawen into a plain method according to the written copye. by Abraham Fleming.

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The Preface to the Reader.

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AMong men it is growen in custome, to haue forwarnīgs of afterclaps, as beacons built vpon hilles, which then are set on fier when daunger is imminent and at hand: Alarum belles seruing to the same purpose, and other inuentions of men proceedīg & prouided of policie, to preuent or else to prepare agaynst that which is perilous. Euery man canne arme himself, when hazard is at hand to saue him and his as hee is able: for the preseruing [Page] of temporall thinges, Iesus how painefull and venterous wee bee: and no sooner shall a premonishment bee giuen, but wee are furnished I warrant you to the proofe. God warneth vs by signes frō heauen, by fierie apparaunces in the aire moste terrible, by wonders wrought on earthe, straūge & vnusiall, by exinundations of waters beyond their appointed limits, by the remouīg of senselesse trees from the naturall place where they were planted, by the great power which the Prince of darknesse through Gods permission and sufferaunce bath recouered, by [Page] many late moste misserable murthers not to be named, much lesse to be committed among Christians, by insurrections full of daunger and detestable treason on this side the seas, by tumults and vprores between Princes of forreigne nations, and what should I say more? by the trump of his sweet and heauenly Gospell, sounded vnto vs out of the mouth of his messengers. But wee will not be warned, wee will tumble still vpon the bedde of wantonnesse, and drincke our selues drunck with the wine of sensualitie, that whiles wee lye wallowing in the sinck of our Sodomiticall sīne, [Page] wee may bee consumed with a Sodomiticall or a Babylonicall destruction.

God open the eyes of our hartes, that wee may see in what VVildernesses, among what wilde Beastes and deuouring Serpents wee doo wander: and giue vs mindes mollified and made soft, that at his woorkes we may feare and bee astonished.

The occasion that I haue wrote this warning (which I would to God I had the grace to followe) was a wonder lately wrought in Norfolke, and so lately wrought, that the terrour of the same is at this instant [Page] freshe in memorie. A Spectacle no doubt of Gods iudgement, which as the fire of our iniquities hath kindled, so by none other meanes then by the teares of repentance it may bee quenched. The order of the thing as I receiued the sāe I haue committed to paper, for the present viewe and perusing of those that are disposed. It is grounded vppon trueth, and therfore not only worthie the writing and publishing, but also the hearing and considering.

¶ The reporte of a straunge and wonderful Spectacle.

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SUnday, béeing the fourth of this August, in ye yéer of our Lord 1577. to the amasing and singular astonishment of the present beholders, and absent hearers, at a certein towne called Bongay, not past tenne miles distant from the Citie of Norwiche, there fell from heauen an excéeding great and terrible tempest; sodein and violent, betwéen nine of the clock in the morning and tenne of the day aforsaid.

This tempest took beginning with a rain, which fel with a wonderful force and with no lesse violence then abundance, which made the storme so much the more extream and terrible.

This tempest was not simply of rain, but also of lightning and thunder, the flashing of the one wherof was so rare, and vehement, and the roaring noise of the other so forceable and violent, that it made not onely people perplexed in minde and at their wits end, [Page] but ministred such straunge and vnaccustomed cause of feare to be cōceiued, that dumb creatures with ye horrour of that which fortuned, were exceedingly disquieted, and senselesse things void of all life and féeling, shook and trembled.

There were assembled at the same season, to hear diuine seruice and common prayer, according to order, in the parish church of the said towne of Bongay, the people therabouts inhabiting, who were witnesses of the straungenes, the rarenesse and sodenesse of the storm, consisting of raine violently falling, fearful flashes of lightning, and terrible cracks of thūder, which came with such vnwonted force and power, that to the perceiuing of the people, at the time and in the place aboue named, assembled, the Church did as it were quake and staggar, which struck into the harts of those that were present, such a sore and sodain feare, that they were in a manner robbed of their right wits.

Immediatly héerupō, there appéered in a moste horrible similitude and likenesse to the congregation then & there [Page] present, a dog as they might discerne it, of a black colour: at the sight wherof, togither with the fearful flashes of fire which then were séene, moued such admiration in the mindes of the assemblie, that they thought doomes day was already come.

This black dog, or the diuel in such a likenesse (God hée knoweth al who worketh all) runing all along down the body of the Church with great swiftnesse, and incredible haste, among the people, in a visible fourm and shape, passed betwéen two persons, as they were knéeling vppon their knées, and occupied in prayer as it séemed, wrung the necks of them bothe at one instant clene backward, in somuch that euen at a momēt where they kneeled, they strāgely dyed.

This is a wōderful example of Godꝭ wrath, no dout to terifie vs, that we might feare him for his iustice, or puling back our footsteps from the pathes of sinne, to loue him for his mercy.

To our matter again. There was at ye same time another wonder wrought: for the same black dog, stil continuing and remaining in one and the self same [Page] shape, passing by an other man of the congregation in the Church, gaue him such a gripe on the back, that therwithall he was presently drawen togither and shrunk vp, as it were a péece of lether scorched in a hot fire: or as the mouth of a purse or bag, drawen togither with a string. The man, albeit hée was in so straunge a taking, dyed not, but as it is thought is yet aliue: whiche thing is meruelous in the eyes of men, and offereth muche matter of amasing the minde.

Moreouer, and beside this, the Clark of the said Church béeing occupied in cleansing of the gutter of the Church, with a violent clap of thunder was smitten downe, and beside his fall had no further harme: vnto whom béeing all amased this straunge shape, wherof we haue before spoken, appeared, howbeit he escaped without daunger: which might paraduenture séem to sound against trueth, and to be a thing incredible: but, let vs leaue thus or thus to iudge, and cry out with the Prophet.

O Domine! &c. O Lord, how wonderful art thou in thy woorks!

[Page]At the time that these things in this order happened, the Rector, or Curate of the Church, béeing partaker of the peoples perplexitie, séeing what was séen, and done, comforted the people, and exhorted them to prayer, whose counsell, in such extreme distresse they folowed, and prayed to God as they were assemled togither.

Now for the verifying of this report, (which to sōe wil seem absurd, although the sensiblenesse of the thing it self confirmeth it to be a trueth) as testimonies and witnesses of the force which rested in this strange shaped thing, there are remaining in the stones of the Church, and likewise in the Church dore which are meruelously rēten & torne, ye marks as it were of his clawes or talans. Beside, that all the wires, the whéeles, and other things belonging to the Clock, were wrung in sunder, and broken in peces.

And (which I should haue tolde you in the begining of this report, if I had regarded the obseruing of order) at the time that this tempest lasted, and while these stormes endured, ye whole Church [Page] was so darkned, yea with such a palpable darknesse, that one persone could not perceiue another, neither yet might discern any light at all, though it were leser thē the least, but onely when ye great flashing of fire and lightning appéered.

These things are not lightly with silence to be ouer passed, but precisely and throughly to be considered.

On the self same day, in like maner, into the parish church of another town called Blibery, not aboue seuē miles distant from Bongay aboue said, the like thing entred, in the same shape and similitude, where placing him self vppon a maine balke or beam, wheron sometime ye Rood did stand, sodainly he gaue a swinge downe through ye Church, and there also, as before, slew two men and a lad, and burned the hand of another person that was there among the rest of the company, of whom diuers were blasted.

This mischief thus wrought, he flew with wonderful force to no litle feare of the assembly, out of the Church in a hideous and hellish likenes.

These things are reported to be true, [Page] yea, by the mouthes of them that were eye witnesses of the same, and therfore dare with so much the more boldenesse verifie what soeuer is reported.

Let vs pray vnto GOD, as it is the dutie of Christians, to woork all things to the best, to turne our flintie harts into fleshie hartes, that we may féele the fire of Gods mercy, and flée from the scourge of his iustice.

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A necessary Prayer.

O GOD which hast promised to be a shield to such as flee to thee for succoure in their necessities, & wt thy wings to ouer shadow thē that they feele not the scorching heat of afflictions & miseries: we beseech thee, that although we, through the infinite and vnmeasurable sinnes whiche we commit, prouoke thee to smite vs with the Iron rod of thy wrath and iudgement: yet that it would please thee to remember that we are but fraile flesh, subiect to sinne, and to too prone to offend: that it would please thee to cast thy gratious countenance vppon vs, and to stretch out thy siluered scepter of peace vnto vs, that beeing restored [Page] [...] [Page] [...] [Page] into thy fauoure, from which our offēces haue separated vs, we may shrowd our selues vnder the shield of thy safegarde agaist all māner of anoyances whatsoeuer, through Christ Jesus our onely sauior & redeemer, in whose name, as hee hath taught vs, we say and pray. Ab omni malo libera nos Domine: Deliuer vs from all euil, good Lord. Amen.

Tibi laus honor & gloria, in aeuum.

Amen.

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Imprinted at London by Frauncis Godly dwelling at the west end of Paules.

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Information about this book

Title statement

A straunge and terrible wunder wrought very late in the the parish church of Bongay, a tovvn of no great distance from the citie of Norwich, namely the fourth of this August, in ye yeere of our Lord 1577 in a great tempest of violent raine, lightning, and thunder, the like wherof hath been seldome seene. With the appeerance of an horrible shaped thing, sensibly perceiued of the the people then and there assembled. Drawen into a plain method according to the written copye. by Abraham Fleming.

Fleming, Abraham, 1552?-1607.

Edition statement

1577

Publication

Publisher

Text Creation Partnership,

Place of publication

Ann Arbor, MI ; Oxford (UK) :

Date

2005-12 (EEBO-TCP Phase 1).

ID [DLPS]

A00943

ID [STC]

STC 11050

ID [STC]

ESTC S119672

ID [EEBO-CITATION]

99854879

ID [PROQUEST]

99854879

ID [VID]

20334

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Early English books online.

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(EEBO-TCP ; phase 1, no. A00943)

Transcribed from: (Early English Books Online ; image set 20334)

Images scanned from microfilm: (Early English books, 1475-1640 ; 567:04)

Source

— A straunge and terrible wunder wrought very late in the the parish church of Bongay, a tovvn of no great distance from the citie of Norwich, namely the fourth of this August, in ye yeere of our Lord 1577 in a great tempest of violent raine, lightning, and thunder, the like wherof hath been seldome seene. With the appeerance of an horrible shaped thing, sensibly perceiued of the the people then and there assembled. Drawen into a plain method according to the written copye. by Abraham Fleming., Fleming, Abraham, 1552?-1607..

Extent

[16] p.

By [J. Allde?] Frauncis Godly dwelling at the west end of Paules],. Imprinted at London :: [1577]. (Imprint from colophon. Suggested printer's name and publication date from STC.) (On 2 September 1577, the bishop of London was ordered to investigate the unlicensed printing of this, and to enforce licensing more strictly--Cf. STC.) (Running title reads: A terrible tempest in Norfolke.) (Signatures: A.) (Reproduction of the original in the British Library.)

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