Selected quad for the lemma: england_n
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A78646
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His Majesties answer to the XIX propositions of both Houses of Parliament
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England and Wales. Sovereign (1625-1649 : Charles I); Charles I, King of England, 1600-1649.
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1642
(1642)
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Wing C2123; ESTC R25986
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17,539
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16
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advise Vs to call a Nationall Synode which may duely examine such Ceremonies as give just cause of Offence to any We should take it into Consideration and apply Our Self to give due satisfaction therein That We were perswaded in Our Conscience that no church could be found upon the Earth that professeth the true Religion with more purity of Doctrine then the church of England doth nor where the Government and Discipline are joyntly more beautified and free from Superstition then as they are here established by Law which by the grace of God We will with Constancie maintain while We live in their Purity and Glory not onely against all Invasions of Popery but also from the Irreverence of those many Schismaticks and Separatists wherewith of late this Kingdom and Our City of London abounds to the great dishonour and hazard both of Church and State For the suppression of whom We required your timely and active assistance We told you in Our first declaration printed by the advice of Our Privie Councell That for differences amongst our selves for matters indifferent in their own nature concerning Religion We should in tendernesse to any number of Our loving Subjects very willingly comply with the advice of Our Parliament that some Law might be made for the exemption of tender consciences from punishment or prosecution for such Ceremonies and in such cases which by the judgement of most men are held to be matters indifferent and of some to be absolutely unlawfull Provided that this ease should be attempted and pursued with that modestie temper and submission that in the mean time the Peace quiet of the Kingdom be not disturbed the Decencie comelinesse of Gods Service discountenanced nor the Pious Sober Devout actions of those reverend Persons who were the first labourers in the blessed Reformation or of that time be scandaled and defamed And We heartily wish that others whom it concerned had been as ready as their dutie bound them though they had not received it from Us to have pursued this caution as We were and still are willing ready to make good every particular of that Promise Nor did We only appear willing to joyn in so good a Work when it should be brought Us but prest urged you to it by Our Message of the 14. of Feb. in these words And because His Majestie observes great and different troubles to arise in the hearts of His People concerning the Government and Liturgie of the Church His Majestie is willing to declare That He will refer the whole consideration to the wisdom of His Parliament which He desires them to enter into speedily that the present distractions about the same may be composed but desires not to be pressed to any single Act on His part till the whole be so digested and setled by both Houses that His Majestie may cleerly see what is fit to be left as well as what is fit to be taken away Of which We the more hoped of a good successe to the generall satisfaction of Our People because you seem in this Proposition to desire but a Reformation and not as is daily preached for as necessary in those many Conventicles which have within these nineteen moneths begun to swarm and which though their Leaders differ from you in this opinion yet appear to many as countenanced by you by not being punished by you few else by reason of the Order of the House of Commons of the 9 th of September daring to do it a destruction of the present Discipline and Liturgie And We shall most cheerfully give Our best assistance for raising a sufficient maintenance for preaching Ministers in such course as shall be most for the encouragement and advancement of Piety and Learning For the Bills you mention and the Consultation you intimate knowing nothing of the particular matters of the one though We like the Titles well nor of the manner of the other but from an Informer to whom We give little credit and We wish no man did more Commonfame We can say nothing till We see them For the 11 th We would not have the Oath of all Privie Councellors and Iudges straitned to particular Statutes of one or two particular Parliaments but extend to all Statutes of all Parliaments and the whole Law of the Land and shall willingly consent that an enquirie of all the breaches and violations of the Law may be given in charge by the Iustices of the Kings Bench every Terme and by the Iudges of Assize in their Circuits and Iustices of Peace at the Sessions to be presented and punished according to Law For the 17 th We shall ever be most ready and We are sorry it should be thought needfull to move Us to it not onely to joyn with any particularly with the States of the united Provinces of Which We have given a late proof in the Match of Our Daughter for the desence and maintenance of Protestant Religion against all designes and attempts of the Pope and his adherents but singly if need were to oppose with Our life and fortune all such Designes in all other Nations were they joyned And that for Considerations of Conscience far more then any temporall end of obtaining accesse of strength and reputation or any naturall end of restoring Our Royall Sister and her Princely Issue to their Dignities and Dominions though these be likewise much considered by Us. For the 18 th It was not Our fault that an Act was not passed to cleer the Lord Kymbolton and the five Members of the House of Commons but yours who inserted such Clauses into both the Preamble and Act perhaps perswaded to it by some who wish not that you should in any thing receive satisfaction from Vs as by passing the Preamble We must have wounded Our Honour against Our Conscience and by another Clause have admitted a Consequence from which We could never have been secured by declaring That no Member of either House upon any Accusation of Treason could have his Person seized without the Consent of that House of which he is a Member though the known Law be That Priviledge of Parliament extends not to Treason and if it did any Member the House being for a short time adjourned and so their Consent not being so had how treasonable soever his Intentions were how cleerly soever known and how suddenly soever to be executed must have fair leave given him to go on and pursue them no way how Legall soever after the passing such a Clause being left to prevent it To conclude We Conjure you and all men to rest satisfied with the Truth of Our Professions and the Reality of Our Intentions not to ask such things as deny themselves That you Declare against Tumults and punish the Authours That you allow Vs Our Propriety in Our Towns Arms and Goods and Our Share in the Legislative Power which would be counted in Vs not onely breach of Priviledge but Tyranny and Subversion of Parliaments to deny to you And when you shall have given Vs satisfaction upon those Persons who have taken away the One and recalled those Declarations particularly that of the 26 th of May and those in the point of the Militia Our just Rights wherein We will no more part with then with Our Crown lest we inable others by them to take that from Us which would take away the other and declined the beginnings of a War against Vs under pretence of Our Intention of making One against you as We have never opposed the first part of the 13 th Demand so We shall be ready to concur with you in the latter And being then confident that the Credit of those Men who desire a generall Combustion will be so weakned with you that they will not be able to do this Kingdom any more harm We shall be willing to grant our generall Pardon with such Exceptions as shall be thought fit and shall receive much more joy in the hope of a full and constant happinesse of Our People in the true Religion and under the Protection of the Law by a blessed union between Us and Our Parliament so much desired by Vs then in any such increase of Our Own Revenue how much soever beyond former Grants as when Our Subjects were wealthiest Our Parliament could have setled upon Us. FINIS
and the like Propositions for reconciliation of Differences would be then sent to them as they now have joyned to send to Us till all Power being vested in the House of Commons and their number making them incapable of transacting Affairs of State with the necessary Secrecie and Expedition those being retrusted to some close Committee at last the Common people who in the mean time must be flattered and to whom Licence must be given in all their wilde humors how contrary soever to established Law or their own reall Good discover this Arcanum Imperii That all this was done by them but not for them grow weary of Journey-work and set up for themselves call Parity and Independence Liberty Devour that Estate which had devoured the rest Destroy all Rights and Proprieties all distinctions of Families and Merit And by this means this splendid and excellently distinguished Form of Government end in a dark equall Chaos of Confusion and the long Line of Our many noble Ancestors in a Iack Cade or a Wat Tyler For all these Reasons to all these Demands Our Answer is Nolumus Leges Angliae mutari But this We promise that We will be as carefull of preserving the Laws in what is supposed to concern wholly Our Subjects as in what most concerns Our Self For indeed We professe to beleeve That the preservation of every Law concerns Us those of obedience being not secure when those of protection are violated And We being most of any injured in the least viclation of that by which We enjoy the highest Right and greatest Benefits and are therefore obliged to defend no lesse by Our interest then by Our duty and hope that no Jealousies to the contrary shall be any longer nourished in any of Our good People by the subtill insinuations and secret practices of men who for private ends are disaffected to Our Honour and Safety and the Peace and Prosperity of Our People And to shew you that no just indignation at so reproachfull offers shall make Us refuse to grant what is probable to conduce to the good of Our good People because of the ill company it comes in We will search carefully in this heap of unreasonable Demands for so much as We may complying with Our Conscience and the dutie of Our Trust assent unto and shall accordingly agree to it In pursuance of which Search in the 4th Proposition under a Demand which would take from Us that trust which God Nature and the Laws of the Land have placed in Us and of which none of you could endure to be deprived We finde something to which We give this Answer That We have committed the principall places about Our Children to persons of Quality Integrity and Pietie with speciall regard that their tener yeers might be so seasoned with the Principles of the true Protestant Religion as by the blessing of God upon this Our care this whole Kingdom may in due time reap the fruit thereof And as We have been likewise very carefull in the choice of Servants about them that none of them may be such as by ill Principles or by ill Examples to crosse Our endeavours for their Pious and Vertuous Education so if there shall be found for all Our care to prevent it any person about Our Children or about Vs which is more then you ask against whom both Houses shall make appear to Vs any just exception We shall not onely remove them but thank you for the Information Onely We shall expect that you shall be likewise carefull that there be no under-hand dealing by any to seek faults to make room for others to succeed in their places For the 5th Demand as We will not suffer any to share with Vs in Our power of Treaties which are most improper for Parliaments and lest in those Treaties in which We are neerliest concerned not onely as a King but as a Father yet We do such is Our desire to give all reasonable satisfaction assure you by the word of a King that We shall never propose or entertain any Treaty whatsoever for the marriage of any of Our Children without due regard to the true Protestant Profession the good of Our Kingdoms and the Honour of Our Family For the 6th Demand concerning the Laws in force against Iesuites Priests and Popish Recusants We have by many of Our Messages to you by Our voluntary promise to you so solemnly made never to pardon any Popist Priest by Our strict Proclamations lately published in this point and by the publike Examples which We have made in that case since Our Residence at York and before at London sufficiently expressed Our zeal herein Why do you then ask that in which Our own Inclination hath prevented you And if you can yet finde any more effectuall Course to disable them from Disturbing the State or eluding the Law by trusts or otherwise We shall willingly give Our Consent to it For the 7th concerning the Votes of Popish Lords We understand that they in discretion have withdrawn themselves from the service of the House of Peers and had done so when use was publiquely made of their names to asperse the Votes of that house which was then counted as Malignant as those who are called Our unknown and unsworn Counsellours are now neither do We conceive that such a positive Law against the Votes of any whose blood gives them that right is so proper in regard of the Priviledge of Parliament but are content that so long as they shall not be conformable to the Doctrine and Discipline of the Church of England they shall not be admitted to sit in the House of Peers but onely to give their Proxies to such Protestant Lords as they shall chuse who are to dispose of them as they themselves shall think fit without any Reference at all to the Giver As to the desires for a Bill for the Education of the Children of Papists by Protestants in the Protestant Profession many about Us can witnesse with Vs That We have often delivered Our Opinion that such a Course with Gods blessing upon it would be the most effectuall for the rooting out of Popery out of this Kingdom We shall therefore thank you for it and encourage you in it and when it comes unto Vs do Our Dutie And we heartily wish for the publike good that the time you have spent in making Ordinances without Vs had been imployed in preparing this and other good Bills for Vs. For the 8th touching The Reformation to be made of the Church Government and Liturgie We had hoped that what We had formerly declared concerning the same had been so sufficiently understood by you and all good Subjects that We should not need to have expressed Our Self further in it We told you in Our Answers to your Petition presented to Vs at Hampton-Court the first of December That for any illegall Innovations which may have crept in We should willingly concur in the removall of them That if Our Parliament should