John Hart (Jesuit)
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John Hart (died 1586) was an English
Jesuit The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...
, known for his equivocal behaviour on the English mission in the early 1580s.


Early life

John Hart was one of five children of William Hart of
Eynsham Eynsham is a village and civil parish in the West Oxfordshire district, in Oxfordshire, England, about north-west of Oxford and east of Witney. The 2011 Census recorded a parish population of 4,648. It was estimated at 5,087 in 2020. Etymolo ...
, a
recusant Recusancy (from ) was the state of those who remained loyal to the Catholic Church and refused to attend Church of England services after the English Reformation. The 1558 Recusancy Acts passed in the reign of Elizabeth I, and temporarily repea ...
. In February 1569 John Hart enrolled at the University of Leuven and the following year went to the
English College, Douai The English College ( French: ''College des Grands Anglais'') was a Catholic seminary in Douai, France (also previously spelled Douay, and in English Doway), associated with the University of Douai. It was established in 1568, and was suppresse ...
. Around 1574, he left Douai for the
English College, Rome The Venerable English College (), commonly referred to as the English College, is a Catholic seminary in Rome, Italy, for the training of priests for England and Wales. It was founded in 1579 by William Allen on the model of the English Colleg ...
. His younger brother William also attended the English College in Rome, where he died in 1584. His two sisters, Elizabeth and Margaret, became Bridgettine nuns at the Convent of Sion in Rouen.Feingold, Mordechai. "The Reluctant Martyr: John Hart’s English Mission", ''Journal of Jesuit Studies'', Vol. 6: No. 4, 11 October 2019
/ref> John Hart took
Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...
minor orders in 1575 and the degree of B.D. in the university of Douay in 1578. He was ordained priest on 29 March 1578 in
Cambrai Cambrai (, ; ; ), formerly Cambray and historically in English Camerick or Camericke, is a city in the Nord department and in the Hauts-de-France region of France on the Scheldt river, which is known locally as the Escaut river. A sub-pref ...
. Shortly thereafter, the College at Douai relocated to Rheims, as did Hart. In June 1580 Hart was ordered to the English mission to replace
Thomas Goldwell Thomas Goldwell C. R. (15013 April 1585) was an English Catholic clergyman, Bishop of Saint Asaph, the last of those Catholic bishops who had refused to accept the English Reformation. Life Thomas Goldwell was the son of William Goldwell of Gr ...
, and Nicholas Morton, both elderly and well-known in England. Hart,
Thomas Cottam Thomas Cottam (1549 – 30 May 1582) was an English Catholic priest from Lancashire who was executed during the reign of Elizabeth I. He was a member of the Jesuits. Life Cottam was born to Protestant parents, Laurence Cottam of Dilworth and A ...
, and
Humphrey Ely Humphrey Ely, LL.D., (died 1604) was an English Catholic divine. Life Ely was the brother of William Ely, president of St John's College, Oxford, and was a native of Herefordshire. After studying at Brasenose College, Oxford, he was elected a sc ...
set sail from Dunkirk. Unbeknownst to them, the spy Charles Sledd, who had dined with William Allen, had already advised Henry Cobham, English ambassador at Paris, that Allen would soon be sending priests back to England.


Arrest and reprieves

Mistaken for someone else, Hart was arrested as soon as he landed at
Dover Dover ( ) is a town and major ferry port in Kent, southeast England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies southeast of Canterbury and east of Maidstone. ...
. Having identified himself, he was sent in custody to
Nonsuch Palace Nonsuch Palace was a Tudor architecture, Tudor royal family, royal palace, commissioned by Henry VIII of England, Henry VIII in Surrey, England, and on which work began in 1538. Its site lies in what is now Nonsuch Park on the boundary of the ...
and examined by
Francis Walsingham Sir Francis Walsingham ( – 6 April 1590) was principal secretary to Queen Elizabeth I of England from 20 December 1573 until his death and is popularly remembered as her " spymaster". Born to a well-connected family of gentry, Wa ...
. He was paroled on bond for three months, conditioned on his going to Oxford to confer with Protestant theologian
John Rainolds John Rainolds (or Reynolds) (1549 – 21 May 1607) was an English academic and churchman, of Puritan views. He is remembered for his role in the Authorized Version of the Bible, a project of which he was initiator. Life He was born about ...
. He was subsequently placed in the
Marshalsea Prison The Marshalsea (1373–1842) was a notorious prison in Southwark, just south of the River Thames. Although it housed a variety of prisoners—including men accused of crimes at sea and political figures charged with sedition—it became known, ...
, and taken to the
Tower of London The Tower of London, officially His Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress of the Tower of London, is a historic citadel and castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London, England. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamle ...
on 24 December 1580. There, after being shown the rack, a frightened Hart was interrogated and gave information concerning a number of Catholics on the Continent, and Allen's theories of how best the Queen might be deposed. On 21 November 1581, the day after
Edmund Campion Edmund Campion, SJ (25 January 15401 December 1581) was an English Jesuit priest and martyr. While conducting an underground ministry in officially Anglican England, Campion was arrested by priest hunters. Convicted of high treason, he was ...
's condemnation, Hart was tried with other priests and condemned to death. On 1 December 1581 he was to have been executed with Campion, Ralph Sherwin, and
Alexander Briant Alexander Briant, SJ (17 August 1556 – 1 December 1581) was an English Jesuit and martyr, executed at Tyburn. Life He was born in Somerset, and entered Hart Hall, Oxford (now Hertford College), at an early age. While there, he becam ...
, but when placed on the hurdle he promised to recant, and he was taken back to prison. Hart then wrote to Walsingham what was an act of apostasy, a document that has survived. He later retracted it. What Hart agreed with Walsingham at this point is that he would inform on William Allen, using a claim to having been
racked Vox Media, Inc. is an American mass media company founded in Washington, D.C. with operational headquarters in Lower Manhattan, New York City. The company was established in November 2011 by CEO Jim Bankoff and Trei Brundrett to encompass ''SB ...
to add to his credibility. Hart then retracted the offer, was condemned to die on 28 May 1582, and then was reprieved again. It is stated that on 18 March 1582, while in prison, Hart was admitted into the Society of Jesus.


Conference with Rainolds

Walsingham gave Hart leave to go to Oxford for three months on condition that he should confer with
John Rainolds John Rainolds (or Reynolds) (1549 – 21 May 1607) was an English academic and churchman, of Puritan views. He is remembered for his role in the Authorized Version of the Bible, a project of which he was initiator. Life He was born about ...
on the matters in controversy between the English and Roman churches. The conference appears to have taken place during 1582.
William Camden William Camden (2 May 1551 – 9 November 1623) was an English antiquarian, historian, topographer, and herald, best known as author of ''Britannia'', the first chorographical survey of the islands of Great Britain and Ireland that relates la ...
was later complimentary about Hart's learning. ''The Summe of the Conference betwene John Rainoldes and John Hart, touching the Head and Faith of the Church. Penned by John Rainoldes, according to the notes set down in writing by them both; perused by J. Hart'' was published at London in 1584, reprinted in 1588, 1598, and 1609, and translated into Latin (Oxford, 1610) by Henry Parry.
Charles Dodd Hugh Tootell (1671/72 – 27 February 1743) was an English Catholic historian. He is commonly known under his pseudonym Charles Dodd. Life Tootell was born in Lancashire. He was tutored by his uncle, Christopher Tootle, before studying wi ...
argued that the conference was held on unequal terms, as Hart was unprovided with books, and asserted that the details were unfairly given by Rainolds.


Further confinement

Hart returned to Walsingham, and was sent back to the
Tower of London The Tower of London, officially His Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress of the Tower of London, is a historic citadel and castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London, England. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamle ...
. He remained confined for a long period, and was subjected to punishments. The view of Rainolds was that Hart was motivated only by the thought of reprieve.


Later life

On 21 January 1585 Hart and twenty others, including
Jasper Heywood Jasper Heywood (1535 – 9 January 1598) was an English Jesuit priest. He is known as the English translator of three Latin plays of Seneca, the '' Troas'' (1559), the '' Thyestes'' (1560) and '' Hercules Furens'' (1561). Life He was son o ...
, were sent to France, banished from England by royal commission. They were landed on the coast of
Normandy Normandy (; or ) is a geographical and cultural region in northwestern Europe, roughly coextensive with the historical Duchy of Normandy. Normandy comprises Normandy (administrative region), mainland Normandy (a part of France) and insular N ...
, and were sent to
Abbeville Abbeville (; ; ) is a commune in the Somme department and in Hauts-de-France region in northern France. It is the of one of the arrondissements of Somme. Located on the river Somme, it was the capital of Ponthieu. Geography Location A ...
after signing a certificate to the effect that they had been well treated on the voyage. Hart then went to
Verdun Verdun ( , ; ; ; official name before 1970: Verdun-sur-Meuse) is a city in the Meuse (department), Meuse departments of France, department in Grand Est, northeastern France. It is an arrondissement of the department. In 843, the Treaty of V ...
, and on to Rome. His superiors ordered him to Poland, and he died at
Jarosław Jarosław (; , ; ; ) is a town in southeastern Poland, situated on the San (river), San River. The town had 35,475 inhabitants in 2023. It is the capital of Jarosław County in the Subcarpathian Voivodeship. History Jarosław is located in the ...
, on 17 or 19 July 1586.


Journal

Hart's journal from the Tower has been attributed incorrectly to
Edward Rishton Edward Rishton (1550 – 29 June 1585Charles Dodd, followed by Thompson Cooper in the ''Dictionary of National Biography'' and others, erroneously ascribes his death to 1586) was an English Roman Catholic priest. Life He was born in Lancashir ...
. It formed part of the material for the second edition (1586) of the ' of Nicholas Sander. From the third edition it was not used, and the suggestion is that
Robert Persons Robert Persons (24 June 1546 – 15 April 1610), later known as Robert Parsons, was an English Jesuit priest. He was a major figure in establishing the 16th-century "English Mission" of the Society of Jesus. Early life Robert Person ...
by then knew that Hart had offered to become an agent of Walsingham.


Notes

;Attribution {{DEFAULTSORT:Hart, John Year of birth missing 1586 deaths 16th-century English Jesuits