Selected quad for the lemma: england_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
england_n	act_n	parliament_n	power_n	3,251	5	4.9929	4	false

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A29269	A plea for the peoples fundamentall liberties and parliaments, or, Eighteen questions questioned & answered which questions were lateley propounded by Mr. Jeremy Jves, pretending thereby to put the great question between the army and their dissenting brethren in the Parliament of the commonwealth of England out of question / by Capt. William Bray.	Bray, William, 17th cent.; Ives, Jeremiah, fl. 1653-1674. Eighteen questions propounded.	1659 (1659)	Wing B4306; ESTC R158	13,677	22

A PLEA FOR THE Peoples Fundamentall Liberties and Parliaments Or Eighteen QUESTIONS Questioned Answered Which QUESTIONS were lately propounded by Mr. Jeremy Jves pretending thereby to put the great Question between the Army and their dissenting Brethren in the PARLIAMENT of the Common-wealth of England out of question By Capt. WILLIAM BRAY Luke 3.14 And the Souldiers likewise demanded of him saying And what shall we do And he said unto them Do violence to no man neither accuse any falsly but be content with your wages 1 Cor. 11.16 But if ANY MAN seem to be contentious we have no such Custome neither the Churches of God Entred according to Order LONDON Printed by John Clowes for the Author 1659. To the Reader I Have given my thoughts in answer to these ensuing 18 Questions that so I might give some satisfaction to those doubts that may arise in the minds of divers good men affected to their Countreys Rights and safeties in these times of great anxiety dangers and animosities one towards another and that truth may take place and all may endeavour to understand one the other by a faithful approaching to and asserting their Native Rights and may not be withdrawn from them upon any pretences whatsoever without which standing for their Rights there can be no true ground to expect Justice Love and Unity It is true Calamities in Nations do oftentimes fall out to be best discerned when they are desperate and most incurable But however though the difficultie be great to amend a distracted Nation yet it is all our duties to extend our endeavours to save our Countrey and leave the success to the Almighty and in so doing the discharge of a good Conscience will offord great Comfort whatsoever may fall out in this uncertain and transitory Life W. B. Eighteen Questions propounded by Mr. Jeremy Ives Questioned and Answered by Capt. VVilliam Bray Question I. WHether a Free Parliament ought not by the Lawes and Customes of this Nation to be chosen by the Generall Consent of the People Answer I. It is one of the ancient and known general descriptions of a free PARLIAMENT according to the Laws and Customs of this Nation to be elected by the general and free consent of the People who are not legally made uncapable and when it comes to begin its Session by the Ancient Law Right of the Parliament a PROCLAMATION ought to be made in VVestminster That no man upon pain to loose all that he hath shall during the PARLIAMENT in London VVestminster or the Suburbs weare any privy Coat of Plate or go armed or that Games or other Plaies of men women or children or any other Pastimes or strange news should be used during the Parliament and the Reason thereof was that the High Court of Parliament should not be thereby disturbed nor the Members thereof which are to attend the arduous and urgent business of the Common-wealth withdrawn And it is generally known by those whom it hath pleased God to save alive in our sad intestine warrs That the Parliament often declared themselves to be highly affected and displeased with the nature and manner of the late KING CHARLES his demanding of the Lord Kimbolton and the five Members Mr. Pim John Hampden Denzil Hollis Esqrs. Sir Arthur Haslerig Mr. Strood 5 January 1641 It was then Voted and Declared a high breach of the Rights and Priviledges of Parliament and inconsistent to the Liberty and Freedome thereof and by a Declaration they did declare that the Kings Warlike manner therein was against the Fundamentall LIBERTIES of the People and the RIGHTS of PARLIAMENT And another part of Freedome in the Election of Parliaments is That there ought to be no corrupt dealing to give money c to be elected because it was to poyson the Fountaine it self from whom should proceed no Law contrary but suitable to the Fundamentalls Another principle Maxime and end why Parliaments are to be assembled and sit freely by the Fundamentall and righteous Constitution of England is to redress grievances against corrupt and unjust Judges and great or potent oppressors who have subverted the course of Law and Government and destroyed the Peoples ordinary Legall remedyes And no Parliament ought to be ended whilest any Petition remaineth undiscussed or at least to which a determinate answer is not made as may be seen in the fourth part of the Lord Cooks Institutes treating of the high Court of PARLIAMENT Question II. Whether a Parliament so chosen ought not to doe what they think best for the weale of the Nation that so chooseth them without the interruption of any party upon any pretence whatsoever Answer II. It is the Right of the People for their Parliament to be chosen in full Freedome and have also a free Session after a free Election without interruption of any party yet they are bound as most Incomparable Example of Law Justice and Right to the whole Nation and Executive Ministers whatsoever by the Right unalterable Rule the Fundamentall Lawes and Liberties of the People to do impartiall Justice and Right to every party and not to consider parties but the cause which wholly excludes an Arbitrary Power And therefore upon full debate in full and free Parliament of the 42 Ed. 3. cap. 3. If any Statute shall be made against the Charter of our Liberties it shall be voyd as may be seen by the Lord Cooks Institutes the first part his Commentary upon Littleton Lib. 2. cap. 4. Sest. 108. concerning which I have more fully treated in my late Plea for the Peoples good Old Cause or the Fundamentall Lawes and Libertyes of England asserted proved and acknowledged to be our Right before the Conquest and by above thirty Parliaments and by the Declarations and Convictions of Conscience or publique acknowledgements of the late King Charles and by the Parliament and their Army in their severall and particular streights and differences and in answer to Mr. James Harrington his CXX Politicall Aphorismes sold by Francis Smith at the Elephant and Castle neer Temple-Barr wherein you will as I conceive upon your taking into consideration the Authors which I cite for my judgment cleerly see that Acts or Statutes of Parliament that have been against the common Lawes though upon glorious and specious pretences are called illegall and mischievous Acts of Parliament shaking the Fundamentall Law And at a Grand Committee of the Parliament of the Commonwealth of England for the Government Sept. 14. 1659. It was resolved that the Supreame delegated Power residing in the Peoples Trustees is and ought to be limitted in the exercise thereof by some Fundamentalls not to be dispensed with or subjected to alteration Question III. If any shall say a free Parliament ought not to be so elected and so impowred I demand then how they are a free Parliament in the sense that the People of this Nation according to Law and Custome do understand a free Parliament Answer III. I conceive I have answered this

effects of a force of the Army then the Votes and Results of a free Parliament I referr to the rational and unbiased seeing no such Result did ever yet proceed from themselves But yet by this method of yours you acknowledge them friends to the Forcers and you lay a ground though I confess unwillingly by what appears to invalid or weaken the Acts as to any thing you declare and esteem as good because the Law of England is a great enemy to unlawful force and violence Maxime paci sunt contraria vis injuria Force and injury are contraries to peace and it signifieth any thing that a man striketh or hurteth withal as the Lord Cook in the first part of his Institutes his Commentaries upon Littleton And you also by this your doubting questioning way passe a censorious Judgment upon their minds and Consciences upon all the intrinsical considerations they moved in their publick affairs and so you make your self and others Examples or Presidents to devise and lay everlasting methods of private discontent or change to this or any future Parliament upon your and their own accusations and Judgment Quest VII VVhether the Parliament did not Act highest against the interest of the good People of this Nation when there was no force at all upon them Answ VII No good man or a man of good and sincere desires will upon due consideration and entring into the Closet of his heart justifie any action in the Parliament against the Interest of the good people before the force was upon them so the good people ought not to do wrong or injustice to those whom they account evil or worse then themselves And it is very possible that any person or persons who remain alive and were in Parliament may see their error in any thing you can justly charge But however Generals are no method of satisfaction or conviction to any person or charges in Law or Equity against any person by a Fundamental Maxime and Rule of Law and Reason And the force being upon them as you confess and the pretended ground of the force used being publickly declared to try whether things were so yea or no if those persons that were the cause and principle Authors of the force had pleased and if there declared aims and zeal had been for good people they had time to manifest themselves by way of integrity to their pretences But whether they did any thing legally in order thereunto I appeal to God and the World I forbear at present to cite particulars Quest VIII Whether there was not a time when the Army and divers others were accounted the great Assertors of their Countreys Liberties when they refused to comply with the Votes of the then Free and uninterrupted Parliament Col. Rainsborough Lieut. Col. John Lilburn Capt. Bray Cornet Joyce Cornet Thomson Mr. Richard Overton Mr. VVilliam VValwin Thomas Prince c. Answ VIII You need not question whether there was a time or not when the Army or others some of whom you are pleased particularly to name were accounted Assertors of their Countries Liberties But you should have told particularly in what they refused to comply with the then Free and uninterrupted Parliament for it is a Maxime in Law and approved Reason Dolosus versatur in generalibus The crafty man lodges and busies himself in generalls they being vain and insignificant And peradventure if they or any of them did not comply it might have appeared adissent in such thing or things as the whole Parliament may be well satisfied in their Non-compliance And I question not but divers of those Non-compliers as you call them continue to the faithful affectionate asserting those principles and malice it self cannot in any lawful way or means blemish their integrity But if you think that it is their temper disposition or judgment to refuse to comply with the Votes of a Free and uninterrupted Parliament I believe you are much mistaken unlesse you take them in this Legal sense that they might be in these times of division and Faction in their peaceable legal judgment and in Conscience contrary to any thing that was particularly against the Fundamental Laws Rights and Liberties of the People And doubtless or peradventure in the same sense they were and have been LAWFUL NON-COMPLYERS WITH THE ARMY ALSO But I suppose you are deceived by your own heart if you think to make your self a legall or warrantable Accuser in this your apt opportunity and blast them if you could with their Non-compliance as a Crime For if in the daies of MONARCHY an ACT of PARLIAMENT against the Fundamental Lawes and Liberties is VOYD and shall be held for an ERROR and called a MISCHIEVOUS ILLEGAL ACT and be comptrolled by the Peoples COMMON-LAWS and LIBERTIES as I conceive I have proved before much more may Votes which are not drawn to an Act and which may be changed or anulled upon clear conviction of Consciente and Reason and understanding in a Parliament it self upon revising or reminding the Fundamental Lawes and Liberties before it comes to be Enacted be consciensciously scrupled or not complyed with without a blemish but rather justified as a LAVVFUL AND COMMENDABLE NON-COMPLIANCE both before God and man Quest IX VVhether there was not as much the hearts and spirits of all People concurring to their interruption in 1653 as ever was to their Election Answ IX I suppose you presume too highly and too far to imagine that the hearts and spirits of all People did concurr to their Interruption as ever to their Election How can it be supposed you should know the hearts and spirits of all people in this matter Surely you have not conversed with all People that were at the Elections They did never tell you their judgment and acquaint you with their hearts and spirits if you made any such inquisition in the matter And if your meaning by the words all the people must be taken for the major part of the people or the major part of the Electors thereby you would have every man take you according to your meaning and not your saying But however this General Charge doth not accuse or concerne any persons with any triumph or concurrence of hearts or Spirits in the Fact but your own and those that did or you know did concurr it cannot reflect upon any other persons For there were many who had been faithful in the publique Cause who received many and great injuries and oppressions by means of the influence and Power of the then General Crumwell c. yet their hearts did not concur in that violent fact in 1653 not only for that unlawful violence is not good in it self but also because of the inevitable ill consequences thereof they foresaw the sad ensuing evils and dangers which took effect and had its suitable course agreeable to the Cause after the year 1653. And so I shall conclude this my Answer with the saying of Charron in his Book of Wisdom Male cunsta