ABSTRACT
The racking of Edmund Campion and the violent torture of Alexander Briant remain disgraceful episodes in the history of English law and government. The Queen's Counsel, Edmund Anderson, did not mention the torture at the trial, and studies have focused on the moments when Campion was allowed to speak in public: at the disputations, the trial and on the gallows. Under this repeated, excruciating pressure, an ordeal he had always dreaded, we know that Campion did reveal information, but not how much. The torture revealed only the names of those with whom Campion had stayed, but failed to make him reveal the secrets of the confessional, clearly not matters of state. Campion admitted to the damage done by his confession of the names of his hosts, while defending his right never to disclose sacramental secrets. The most exciting contribution to Campion studies has encouraged to see the state and Campion struggling for control of the narrative in the public sphere.
