Richard Montague, rector from 1613 to 1628, was presented to the living by James 1 and was prominent in the religious turmoil which ultimately led to the Civil War. In 1624, in his own words, “about some 20 months since, some of the Romish limitors had come within my pale and had been tampering with some woman in Stanford Rivers. Understanding thereof, I had blanched them and settled the party.” He attempted to establish a dialogue, but the “party” refused to meet him, sending instead a pamphlet entitled “A Gag for the Newe Gospel.”
His response was to refute Catholic doctrines in a book with the lengthy title “A Gagg for the new Gospell: no, a new Gagg for an old Goose, or an Answer to the late Abridgement of Controversies”. However, this enraged the established church by questioning the Calvinist doctrine of predestination, and, by failing to denounce Roman Catholicism in the usual pungent language of the time, he laid himself open to the charge of popery. James 1, who had been presented with a copy of the book by Montague, said, “if this be popery, then I am a Papist”. Agitated puritans complained to Parliament, but the Archbishop of Canterbury gave only mild rebuke “be of no scandal, or offence; go home, review your book”.
Montague’s response from Stanford Rivers was to write a second book, more succinctly entitled “Appello Caesarem”. Published in 1625, its dedication to the new King Charles 1 angered Parliament, who considered that the appeal to Caesar “put a Jealousie between the king and his well affected Subjects”. Montague was ordered to appear before the House and was duly condemned for insulting King and Parliament, and for sowing the seeds of religious dissension. He was thrown into prison whereupon Charles 1 made him a Royal Chaplain. This appointment exempted him from Parliamentary authority, and he was released, albeit on the hefty bail of £2000.
However, the fat was now in the fire. By appealing to Caesar, Montague was implicitly supporting authoritarian kingship, ultimately one of the causes of the Civil War. He had been clearly rewarded for his views by the King. His suggestion that Catholics were not necessarily beyond redemption was extremely alarming to many who feared a covert return to Rome, an apprehension increased by the fact that the new King’s wife was Catholic. Montague was summoned to appear before Parliament again, failed to attend and was held to be in contempt. Presumably his bail was forfeited.
Far from being intimidated, he published a third book with the distinctly Catholic title of “A Treatise of the Invocation of Saints “. This led, in April 1626, to a further inquiry by Parliament, with charges framed in the vigorous language of the time “divers passages, full of bitterness, railing and injurious speeches, disgraceful and contemptible to many worthy divines... impious and profane in scoffing at preaching, lectures, Bible and all show of religion....” The King intervened again, telling Parliament that matters of religion were no business of theirs, and referred the matter to Convocation. When this met, it was packed with clerics sharing his views who, not surprisingly, endorsed his opinions. Montague was dismissed with the advice “go to his Majesty’s gracious favour”. Calvinism was in retreat, and the stage set for the fatal clash between King and Parliament on matters of religious belief and authority.
In 1628, Montague was appointed bishop of Chichester and his connections with Stanford Rivers ceased. However, his courageously stated views appear to have been very influential at the time, and were central to the rift which opened up between the King and Parliament.