To all sons of Holy Mother Church into whose hands these letters come, Robert, by divine permission Bishop of London, gives greetings. Lord Jesus, our Saviour, when he entered the Temple, predecessor to the Church, and seeing there the Jewish populace more involved in buying and selling than in prayer, and in the uninhibited performance of other abominable acts there, by whipping them with cords ejected the buyers and sellers, and overturned the tables of the money-worshippers .... Now indeed, it has come to our attention through persistent reports made by many credible persons that on an almost daily basis, and particularly on days of worship and festival days, people – both men and women – are getting together at our cathedral church for the purpose of selling merchandize, goods, and other things; so that this place, which was created for the worship of God, has been perverted through the increasing iniquities of the people. At their stations there, as if they were in a public square or marketplace, they show disrespect [for the place] by exposing for sale and selling their merchandize, goods and other things. Not content with this, but as if degenerate and ungrateful sons, neither paying heed nor showing respect to their mother, they defecate next to the entrance and urinate upon the doors of our church, and in the churchyard; which, hardly surprising, is abhorrent and disgusting – not only in appearance but in its stench – to those persons who visit our church to perform their devotions.

There are also others – insolent, idle persons answering to no-one, troublemakers by nature, who would rather cause mischief than make themselves useful – who throw or shoot stones, arrows, and various other missiles at the crows, pigeons and other birds that nest or perch in the walls and recesses of the church. Not only that, but they play ball-games inside and outside the church, and engage in other destructive games, breaking or seriously damaging the glass windows and the stone carvings in the church; which, being of the highest craftsmanship and very expensive, are adornments throughout the church and add refinement to its fabric, giving pleasure to those who gaze upon them. In doing so they offend God, cause us and our church injury, and also expose their souls to grave danger.

With the intent, therefore, of putting a stop to these kinds of wicked, malicious, and injurious activities, insofar as we are able – to avoid the appearance of approval or sanction that would come from tolerating what ought to be suppressed, or letting it go unpunished, or looking the other way – we are by this document issuing a warning [to be proclaimed] three times, requiring that each and every person committing the types of offences mentioned above, within ten days of the publication of this document ... cease and desist from these kinds of wicked acts, on pain of sentence of major excommunication ... By virtue of the sacred obedience [owed us by] each and every rector, vicar, priest, and curate who is ordained in our city of London, we command and enjoin very strictly that they proclaim publicly and with all solemnity – with the ringing of bells, lighting of candles, and holding erect the cross in their hands – that all and any troublemakers who commit such offences after the issuance of our warning have been and are excommunicated. And this is to be proclaimed on the dates and at the times and places which they consider most effective.

Given in our palace at London, 9 November 1385, in the fourth year following our consecration.