Selected quad for the lemma: authority_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
authority_n	absolute_a	king_n	power_n	3,604	5	5.4121	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A56322	A declaration of the grievances of the Kingdom delivered in Parliament by John Pym.	Pym, John, 1584-1643.	1641 (1641)	Wing P4263; ESTC R33928	22,220	24

and unexpected danger as would not indure so much delay as assembling the great Councell of the Kingdome This which is one of the most Glorious beames of Majestie rigorous in commanding Reverence and subjection to our unspeakeable For the erecting of Monopolies griefe hath been often exercised for the enjoyning and maintaining sundry Monopolies and other grants exceeding burdensome and prejudiciall to the people The Twelfth Although hee was come as high as he could upon The word and truth of God earth yet the presumption of evill men did leade him one step higher even as high as Heaven as high as the Throne of God It was now hee said growne common for ambitious and corrupt men of the Clergie to abuse the truth of God and the bond of Conscience preaching downe the Lawes and liberties of the kingdome pretending Divine authority for an absolute power in the King to doe what he would with our persons and goods this hath Pretended for the absolute power of Kings been often published in Sermons and Printed books and is now the high way to preferment The last Parliament we had a sentence for an offence of this kinde against one Mannering then a Doctor now a Bishop concerning whom hee said hee would say no more but this that when he saw him at his Barre in the most humble dejected posture The offence of D. Mannering that ever hee observed hee thought hee would not so soone have leapt into a Bishops Chaire but his successe hath emboldened others therefore hee said this may well bee noted as a double Now practised by others To the great hurt and grievance of the people grievance that such doctrine should bee allowed that such men should be preferred yea as a roote of grievances whereby they indeavour to corrupt the Kings Conscience and as much as in them lyes to deprive the people of that Royall protection to which his Majestie is bound by the fundamentall Lawes of the Kingdom and his own personall Oath The thirteenth The long intermission of the Parliaments contrary The Intermission of Parliaments to the two statutes yet in force whereby it is appointed there should bee Parliaments once a yeare at the least and most contrary to the publike good of the Kingdome for this being well remedied would produce remedies for all the rest Having put through the severall heads of grievances hee came The subjects grievances hurtfull to the King to the second maine branch propounded in the beginning That the disorders from whence these grievances issued were as hurtfull to the King as to the people of which hee gave diverse reasons 1 The interruption of the sweet communion which ought to B. interrupt their communion bee betwixt the King and His People in matters of grace and supply They have need of him by His generall pardon to bee secured from projectors and informers to bee freed from obsolete Lawes from the subtle devices of such as seeke to restraine the Prerogative to their own private advantage and the publike hurt and he hath need of them for counsell and support in great and extraordinary occasions This mutuall entercourse would so weane the affections and interests of His Subjects into his actions and designes that their wealth and their persons would bee his his owne estate would bee managed to most advantage and publike undertakings would bee prosecuted at the charge and adventure of the Subject The Victorious attempts in Queene ELIZABETHS time upon Portugall Spaine and the Indies were for the greatest part made upon the poore Subjects purses and not upon the Queenes though the Honour and profit of the successe did most accrew to her 2 Those often breaches and discontentments betwixt the King By domestical breaches discontents and the people are very apt to diminish his reputation abroad and disadvantage his treaties and alliances 3 The apprehension of the favour and incouragement given to By weakning his partie abroad Popery hath much weakned his Majesties party beyond the Sea and impared that advantage which Queen Elizabeth and His Royall Father hath heretofore made of being heads of the Protestant union 4 The innovations in Religion and rigour of Ecclesiasticall Courts have forced a great many of his Majesties Subjects to forsake By forcing his subjects to leave the Kingdome the Land whereby not only their persons and their posterity but their wealth and their industry are lost to this Kingdome much to the demolishing of His Majesties Customes and Subsidies Amongst other inconveniences this was especially to bee observed that diverse Clothiers driven out of the Countrey had set up the manufacture of Cloth beyond the Seas whereby this State is like to suffer much by abatement of the price of Woolls and by want of imployment for the poore both which likewise tend to his Majesties particular losse 5 It puts the King upon unproper wayes of supply which being By unproper wayes of supply not warranted by Law are much more burdensome to the subject than advantagious to his Majesty In France not long since upon a survey of the Kings Revenue it was found that two parts in three never came to the Kings purse but were diverted to the profit of the officers or Ministers of the Crowne and it was thought a very good service and reformation to reduce two parts to the King leaving still a third part to the Instruments as were imployed about getting it in It may well be doubted that the King may have the like or worse successe in England which appeares already in some particulars The King hath reserved upon this Monopoly of Wines 30 thousand Pound Rent a yeere the Vintner paies 40. Shillings a Tun which comes to Ninty thousand pounds the price upon the Subject by retaile is increased Two pence a Quart which comes to Eight pound a Tunne and for 45000. Tunne brought in yeerely amounts to 3. hundred 60. thousand pounds which is 3. hundred and 30. thousand pounds losse to the Kingdome above the Kings Rent other Monopolies as that of Soape have been very chargeable to the kingdome and brought very little Treasure into his Majesties Coffers The Law provides for that revenue of the Crowne which is Naturall and proper that it may be safely collected and brought to Account but this illegall Revenue being without any such provision is left to hazard and much uncertainty either not to be retained or not duly accounted of 6 It is apt to weaken the Industry and Courage of the Subject if By weakning the industry and courage of the subject they be left uncertain whether they shall reap the benefit of their own paines and hazard those who are brought into the Condition of slaves will easily grow to a slavish disposition who having nothing to lose doe commonly shew more boldnesse in disturbing than in defending a kingdome 7 These irregular Courses do give opportunity to ill Instruments By introducing ill Instruments into the

A Declaration of the Grievances of the Kingdome delivered in Parliament by Iohn Pym ESQUIER NEver Parliament had greater businesses to The precedent consideration of grievances will further the supply dispatch nor more difficulties to encounter therfore wee have reason to take all advantages of order and addresse and hereby wee shall not only doe our owne worke but dispose and inable our selves for the better satisfaction of His Majesties desire of supply The grievances being removed our affections will carry us with speed and cheerefulnesse to give His Majestie that which may be sufficient both for his honour and support Those that in first place shal endeavour to redresse the grievances will be found not to hinder but to be the furtherers of his Majesties service hee that takes away weights doth as much advantage motion as hee that addeth wings Diverse pieces of this maine work have bin already propounded Great works are first to be considered in the modell his endeavour should bee to present to the House a modell of the whole In the Creation God made the world according to that Idea or form which was eternally preexistent in the divine mind Moses was commanded to frame the Tabernacle after the patterne shewed him in the Mount Those actions are seldome well perfected in the execution which are not first well moulded in the designe and proposition He said he would labour to contract those manifold affaires both of the Church and State which did so earnestly require the wisdom A double method compounded of grievances cures and faithfulnesse of this House into a double method of grievances and cures and because there wanted not some who pretended that these things wherewith the Common-Wealth is now grieved are much for the advantage of the King and that the redresse of them will be to His Majesties great disadvantage and losse hee said hee Publike grievances disadvantagious to the King doubted not but to make it appeare that in discovering the present great distempers and disorders and procuring remedy for them we should be no lesse serviceable to his Majestie who hath summoned us to this great Councell than usefull to those whom wee doe here represent for the better effecting whereof he propounded three The first generall division maine branches of his discourse In the first hee said hee would offer them the severall heads of some principall grievances under which the Kingdome groaned In the second he undertooke to prove that the disorders from whence those grievances issued were as hurtfull to the King as to the people In the third he would advise such a way of healing and removing those grievances as might be equally effectual to maintaine the honour and greatnesse of the King and to procure the prosperity and contentment of the people In the handling whereof he promised to use such expressions as might mitigate the sharpenes and bitternes of those things whereof Sharp matters to bee mitigated in the expression The K. can do no wrōg he was to speak so far as his duty faithfulnesse would allow It is a great Prerogative to the K. and a great honour attributed to him in a Maxime of our Law that he can doe no wrong he is the fountaine of Iustice and if there be any injustice in the execution of his Commands the Law casts it upon the Ministers and frees the King Activity life and vigour are conveied into the sublunary creatures by the influence of Heaven but the malignity and distemper the cause of so many Epidemicall diseases do proceed from the noysome vapours of the earth or some ill affected qualities of the aire without any infection or alteration of those pure celestiall and incorruptible bodies In the like manner he said the authority the power and countenance of Princes may concurre in the actions of evill men without partaking in the injustice and obliquitie of them Hurtfull projects presented to the King under plausible notions These matters whereof we complaine have bin presented to his Majestie either under the pretence of Royall Prerogatives which he is bound to maintaine or of publike good which is the most honourable object of Regall wisdome But the covetous and ambitious designes of others have interposed betwixt his Royall intentions and the happines of his people making those things pernicious and hurtfull which his Majestie apprehended as just and profitable He said the things which he was to propound were of a various A promise of moderation nature many of them such as required a very tender and exquisite consideration In handling of which as he would be bold to use the liberty of the place and relation wherein he stood so hee would bee carefull to expresse that Modestie and humilitie which might be expected by those of whose actions he was to speake And if his judgment or his tongue should slip into a particular mistake hee would Submission to reformation not thinke it so great a shame to faile by his owne weaknesse as hee should esteem it an honour and advantage to be corrected by the wisdom of that house to wc h he submitted himselfe with this protestation that he desired no reformation so much as to reforme himselfe The greatest liberty of the kingdom is Religion thereby we are Religion freed from spiritual evils and no impositions are so grievous as those Iustice that are laid upon the soule The next great liberty is Justice wherby we are preserved from injurie in our persons and estates from this is derived into the Common-wealth peace and order and safety and when this is interrupted confusion and danger are ready to overwhelme all The third great liberty consists in the power and priviledge Priviledge of Parliament of Parliaments this is the fountaine of law the great Councell of the kingdom the highest Court this is inabled by the Legislative and Conciliary power to prevent evils to come by the Judiciary power to suppresse and remove evils present If you consider these three great liberties in the order of dignitie this last is inferiour to the other two as meanes are inferour to the end but if you consider them in the order of necessity and use this may justly claime the The order propounded in handling these three great liberties first place in our care because the end cannot be obtained without the means if we do not preserve this we cannot long hope to enjoy either of the other Therefore he said being to speak of those grievances which lye upon the kingdome he would observe this order 1. To mention those which were against the priviledge of Parliaments 2. Those which were prejudiciall to the Religion established in the Kingdome 3. Those which did interrupt the justice of the Realme in the liberty of our persons and propriety of our estates The priviledges of Parliament were not given for the ornament The necessitie importance of the priviledge of Parliament or advantage of