Foxe - The Book of Martyrs

Foxe’s Book of Martyrs
Anthony Guigo, a Protestant, of a wavering disposition, went to Periero, with an intent
to renounce his religion and embrace popery. This design he communicated to some priests,
who highly commended it, and a day was fixed upon for his public recantation. In the
meantime, Anthony grew fully sensible of his perfidy, and his conscience tormented him so
much night and day that he determined not to recant, but to make his escape. This he effected,
but being soon missed and pursued, he was taken. The troops on the way did all they could
to bring him back to his design of recantation; but finding their endeavors ineffectual, they
beat him violently on the road. When coming near a precipice, he took an opportunity of
leaping down it and was dashed to pieces.
A Protestant gentleman, of considerable fortune, at Bobbio, being nightly provoked by
the insolence of a priest, retorted with great severity; and among other things, said, that the
pope was Antichrist, Mass idolatry, purgatory a farce, and absolution a cheat. To be
revenged, the priest hired five desperate ruffians, who, the same evening, broke into the
gentleman's house, and seized upon him in a violent manner. The gentleman was terribly
frightened, fell on his knees, and implored mercy; but the desperate ruffians despatched him
without the least hesitation.
A Narrative of the Piedmontese War
The massacres and murders already mentioned to have been committed in the valleys of
Piedmont, nearly depopulated most of the towns and villages. One place only had not been
assaulted, and that was owing to the difficulty of approaching it; this was the little
commonalty of Roras, which was situated upon a rock.
As the work of blood grew slack in other places, the earl of Christople, one of the duke
of Savoy's officers, determined, if possible, to make himself master of it; and, with that view,
detached three hundred men to surprise it secretly.
The inhabitants of Roras, however, had intelligence of the approach of these troops,
when captain Joshua Gianavel, a brave Protestant officer, put himself at the head of a small
body of the citizens, and waited in ambush to attack the enemy in a small defile.
When the troops appeared, and had entered the defile, which was the only place by which
the town could be approached, the Protestants kept up a smart and well-directed fire against
them, and still kept themselves concealed behind bushes from the sight of the enemy. A great
number of the soldiers were killed, and the remainder receiving a continued fire, and not
seeing any to whom they might return it, thought proper to retreat.
The members of this little community then sent a memorial to the marquis of Pianessa,
one of the duke's general officers, setting forth, 'That they were sorry, upon any occasion, to
be under the necessity of taking up arms; but that the secret approach of a body of troops,
without any reason assigned, or any previous notice sent of the purpose of their coming, had
greatly alarmed them; that as it was their custom never to suffer any of the military to enter
their little community, they had repelled force by force, and should do so again; but in all
other respects, they professed themselves dutiful, obedient, and loyal subjects to their
sovereign, the duke of Savoy.'
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