Selected quad for the lemma: act_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
act_n	majesty_n	parliament_n	session_n	4,493	5	10.3217	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A80273	To His Grace His Majesty's High Commissioner, and the Right Honourable the Estates of Parliament. The humble representation and petition of the Council-General of the Company of Scotland, trading to Africa and the Indies	Company of Scotland Trading to Africa and the Indies.	1700 (1700)	Wing C5602; ESTC R171471	8,731	5

To His Grace His Majesty's High Commissioner and the Right Honourable the Estates of Parliament The humble Representation and Petition of the Council-General of the Company of Scotland Trading to Africa and the Indies May it please your Grace and Right Honourable Estates IT is evident by the whole Strain of Three several Acts of Parliament together with His Majesty's Letters Patent under the Great Seal of this Kngdom in favours of the said Company That the Wisdom of the King and Right Honourable Estates did intend that all such Advantages as might arise by the establishing of such a Company should be of as universally a National Concern as possible And in order thereunto were pleased to endow it with large Priviledges and Immunities suteable to the Circumstances of an Infant-Company and the Greatness of its Designs And lest that it should fail in the Execution for want of a sufficient Stock to carry on such an Undertaking all imaginable Parliamentary Encouragement was given to Persons of all Ranks Ages and Sexes both within and without the Kingdom whether Natives or Foreigners to become Partners and Adventurers in the Joint-Stock of the said Company as is singularly manifest by the 42d Act of the 5th Session of this current Parliament specially calculated for that end only Upon the publick Faith of having due Protection in the enjoyment of these unquestionable Priviledges and Immunities as having received their Sanction from His Majesty and the unanimous Suffrage of the Great Council of the Nation as aforesaid many Persons of all Ranks and Degrees were thereby induced to become Adventurers in the Joint-Stock of our said Company in so much that in a very short time a much more considerable Stock was subscrib'd for within this Kingdom than was ever before so much as propos'd here upon any Project whatsoever since we were a Nation ●●ing thus entred into a Society We and our Constituents have pursuant to the intentions of the Acts of Parliament and Letters Patent above-mention'd with much care and trouble and a great Expense of Treasure after having struggled with many unexpected Obstructions and Difficulties setled a Plantation by the Name of Caledonia in one of the most Healthful Fruitful naturally impregnable and every way valuable Places in all America as is universally acknowledged by all Persons of Experience in such Matters as well as by the General Consent of such as have been there And as a manifest proof thereof tho' our said Plantation be settled most strictly in the terms of the Acts of Parliament and Letters patent above mentioned yet it has raised the Jealousy of some and Envy of others of the most knowing and considerable Trading Nations it Europe But to our and the Nations great Surprise and inestimable Loss while we were using all ordinary means and big with the hopes of riveting that Settlement upon a lasting Foundation such was the further continued Chain of unexpected Obstructions and most unaccountable Mal-treatments that we met with by Proclamations of a very strange Nature and otherways that the repeated Misfortunes following thereupon pu● us under an indispensible Necessity of humbly petitioning His Majesty for allowing the Parliament to mee● at the day appointed in November last in full confidence and Expectation of having the most natural and cordial Assistance from those who first established our Company and promised it Protection especiall since all our other Applications have hitherto proved ineffectual But a meeting of the Estates in Parliament at that time not quadrating it would seem with His Majesty's other Affairs a very considerable Body of the Nobility Gentry and Burgesses of this Kingdom thought fit in a most dutiful and humble ma●ner by their late Address to represent to His Majesty how deeply they were affected with the Nation concern in our Company 's repeated Misfortunes and therefore humbly Petitioned for the sitting of th● Parliament as soon as conveniently might be And the King having been most graciously pleased to o●d● the Meeting of the Right Honourable Estates now in Parliament We think our selves in all duty bound 〈◊〉 give His Grace His Majesty's High Commissioner and the Right Honourable Estates a short a●naked Narrative of the several Obstructions and Misfortunes that we have been all along forc'd to graple with in the prosecution of our Company 's Designs to the end that the great Council of the Natio● having a perfect View and full Knowledge of these Difficulties which we now Labour under may be t●● better able to to judge how to apply a Remedy The first attempt for strengthning our Company 's Interest and Stock was at London where a Subscripti●● of 300000 sterl was procured in Nine days time without so much as a publick Advertisement and ma●● knowing Merchants were so far convinc'd of the many Advantages that might probably arise from su●● a Constitution that they signified their willingness to be concerned for Triple the Sum if allowed I not only did the Parliament of England by their Address to His Majesty of the 13th of December 1695. a otherways render that Subscription ineffectual but the House of Commons did also appoint a Committ to examine what Methods were taken for obtaining the Act of Parliament by which our said Company is establish●● who were the Promoters and Advisers thereof and did afterwards impeach the Nominees in the said Act Parliament notwithstanding the absolute Independency of this Kingdom Yet after all this Discouragement we went on with our Subscriptions at home and made our 〈◊〉 Effort for strengthning thereof beyond Sea both in Holland and Hamburgh In the first of which pla● many eminent Merchants declared their positive inclinations to be very considerably interested with us 〈◊〉 gave some signal Proofs thereof till they were made to understand by Threatnings and other Insinuati● that a Higher Power would make them at least very uneasy if they persisted any further in their Resoluti●● of being concerned with our Company And at Hamburgh where we had the most promising Hopes of foreign Assistance the Commercii or Merchant-Company entred into Contract with our Company 's Deputees to joyn at least 200000 l. Sterl to our Company 's Stock but to our great Astonishment His Majesty of Great Britains Ministers there did under pretence of special Warrant from the King put a full stop thereto by giving in A Memorial to the Burgo-Masters and Gentlemen-Councellours of that City wholly dis-owning the Authority of the Acts of Parliament and Letters Patent above-mention'd and intimating that His Majesty would regard their entring into Treaties with our Company as an Affront to His Royal Authority and that he would not fail to resent it as having neither Credential Letters nor being any otherways Authoriz'd by His Majesty Upon notice whereof we did in all humble Duty Address His Majesty in June 1697 for Redress of that open and bold Encroachment upon not only our but also the Nation 's Rights in its most fundamental Constitution by endeavouring to subvert the

Independency of its Parliamentary Laws expresly contrary to the Law of Nations All which His Majesty by His Royal Letter from Flanders in July 1697 Promised to take into Consideration as soon as he would return into England and that in the mean time His Majesty would give Orders to His Ministers at Hamburgh not to obstruct our Company in the prosecution of its Trade with the Inhabitants of that City In the full Confidence of His Majesty's Royal Promise we thought our selves secure and took our Measures accordingly till to our further surprize we found by several Instances that His Majesty's said Ministers were as wickedly bent against us as ever and still denying that they had got any such Orders from His Majesty whereupon the Directors of our Company did by their Letter of the 28 of September 1697 expostulate in the first place with both the then Secretaries of State about that further Dis-appointment but having still no Redress therein we did in most humble and dutiful Manner by our second Address of the 22d day of December 1697. lay the whole Matter again before His Majesty And did likewise at the same time not only humbly Represent the Premisses to His Majesty's most honourable Privy-Council together with the train of ill Consequences that must necessarly attend such Treatment if not prevented by an early Redress but wrote also separatly to both the Secretaries of State and such other Noble Persons of the Government as happen'd to be then at London To use their Joint-Interest for procuring Justice in a Matter of such Universal Concern to the Honour Interest and Independency of the whole Kingdom All the Answer we obtain'd was by a Letter of the 17th of January 1698 from both the Secretaries of State That the King said He had already given Orders to His Resident at Hamburgh in that Matter conform to His Royal Letter from Flanders in July 1697 which was then communicated to the Company By which Answer together with what repeated Advices we had at the same time from Hamburgh that the English Ministers there had still positively disowned their having got any such Orders we were put out of all Hopes of having any Redress until we should have an Opportunity of laying the whole Matter before a Meeting of the Estates of Parliament But in the mean time we proceeded with all the Strength we had tho' extremely weakned by the Treatnent above-narrated to make the best Preparations we could considering the Scarcity of these Years for ●tting out an Equipage of Ships Men Provisions and other Necessaries for settling a Plantation in Ame●ica in the Terms of the Acts of Parliament and Letters Patent above-mention'd And its evident by the ●ery Constitutions of the Colony that they were calculated more for the general Advantage of the Nation ●nd Posterity than for the particular and immediat Benefit of the Adventurers And the Parliament happening to meet the very next Day after our Ships had sail'd we did by our Hum●le Petition of the 22d of July 1698 Represent to his Grace His Majesties then High Commissioner and ●e Right Honourable Estates then assembled in Parliament the Treatment which our Company met with ●t London and Hamburgh as aforesaid the great Prejudices which we had sustain'd thereby and the many ●rther Inconveniencies and evil Consequences that must necessarly have followed thereupon if upon any ●ccount whatsoever the Parliament should happen to neglect the taking immediat Cognizance of such ●sage And the Parliament having thereupon by their Unanimous Address of the 5th of August 1698 to His Ma●●sty thought fit to manifest their own and the whole Nations Concern in that Matter earnestly entreating and ●ost assuredly expecting That His Majesty would in His Royal Wisdom take such Measures as might effectually vin●cat the Undoubted Rights and Priviledges of the said Company and support the Credit and Interest thereof And the Par●●ament likewise by the same Address recommending the Concerns of the said Company to some special Marks of His Majesties Royal Favour as that Branch of the Trade of this Kingdom in which they and the Nation they represented ●●d a more peculiar Interest The Court of Directors of our Company were thereby encourag'd to renew ●●eir Application to His Majesty with relation to the Memorial given in by His Ministers to the Senate of ●amburgh the same being specially mention'd in the Parliaments Address And in Consideration of the ●ammages sustain'd by the Company through Means of that Memorial the Directors humbly Petition'd ●at His Majesty would be pleased for their Encouragement at that time as a Gracious Mark of His Roy●● Favour to bestow upon them the two smallest of the Frigots then and to this Hour lying useless in ●untisland Harbour But our Company having no manner of Answer to either of these and being assured by several Letters ●m Hamburgh That both the English Ministers there had positively denyed their having received any such ●ders as were long before promised and declared to have been given with relation to that Memorial the ●urt of Directors of our Company did by their Letter of the 29th of November 1698 transmit Copies of 〈◊〉 said Letters to the Viscount of Seafield then sole Secretary of State and entreated his Lordship to ●cure some speedy and effectual Answer from His Majesty to the Contents of both that Letter and their ●mer Petition The Secretary by his Letter of the 13th of December 1698 returned for Answer That he would take the first ●enient Opportunity he could have to represent that Matter to the King but that he could not expect to have it for 〈◊〉 time because His Majesty was then very much imployed in the Affairs of His English Parliament ●e thereupon waited a full Month in expectation of some further Answer but getting none our Court of ●ectors did by a Letter of the 13th of January 1699 put the Secretary again in mind of our said Petition of preceeding August and Letter of the 29th of November ●he Secretary by his Letter of the 7th of February 1699 signified That he had presented our Company 's Petito His Majesty and was commanded to let us know that there being Accounts that the Ships belonging to the Company were arriv'd upon the Coast of America and the particular Design not being communicated to His Majesty He therefore delayed to give any Answer until he should receive certain Information of their Settlement Tho' we could not but be surpriz'd to find all our former Addresses and Petitions about Matters of such weighty Concern as are above narrated Answered after so long Delays only with a seeming Charge for not having communicated to His Majesty a thing that was never in the least demanded of us by either the King Parliament Privy Council or Ministers of State we being limited to settle in the Terms of the Acts of Parliament as we should be Answerable Yet upon the very first Advice we had of our Colony's Settlement in Caledonia we by our Letters