DEPOSITIONS AND ARTICLES AGAINST THOMAS EARLE OF STRAFFORD Febr. 16. 1640. Printed in the yeare 1640. ARTICLES OF the Commons assembled in Parliament against Thomas Earle of Strafford in maintenance of their accusation whereby he stands charged of High Treason 1. THat he the said Thomas Earle of Strafford hath traiterously endeavoured to subvert the fundamentall lawes and government of the Realmes of England and Ireland and in stead thereof to introduce an arbitrary and tyrannicall government against Law which he hath declared by trayterous words counsells and actions and by giving his Majesty advice by force of armes to compell his loyall Subjects to submit thereunto II. That he hath trayterously assumed to himselfe Regall power over the lives liberties persons lands and goods of his Majesties Subjects in England and Ireland and hath exercised the same tyrannically to the subversion and undoing of many both of Peeres and others of his Majesties liege people III. That the better to inrich and enable himselfe to goe through with his trayterous designes hee hath detained a great part of his Majesties revenue without giving legall account and hath taken great summes out of the Exchequer converting them to his owne use when his Majestie was necessitated for his owne urgent occasions and his Army had beene a long time unpaid IV. That he hath trayterously abused the power and authority of his government to the increasing countenancing and incouraging of Papists that so he might settle a mutuall dependance and confidence betwixt himselfe and that party and by their helpe prosecute and accomplish his malicious and tyrannicall designes V. That he hath maliciously endeavoured to stirre up enmity and hostility betweene his Majesties Subjects of England and those of Scotland VI. That hee hath trayterously broken the great trust reposed in him by his Majesty of Lieutenant generall of his Army by wilfully betraying divers of his Majesties subjects to death his Army to a dishonourable defeat by the Scots at Newborne and the Towne of Newcastle into their hands to the end that by the effusion of blood by dishonour and so great a losse of Newcastle his Majesties Realme of England might be ingaged in a Nationall and irreconsiliable quarrell with the Scots VII That to preserve himselfe from being questioned for these and other his trayterous courses hee laboured to subvert the rites of Parliaments and the ancient course of Parliamentary proceedings and by false and malicious slanders to incense his Majesty against Parliaments By which words counsells and actions hee hath trayterously and contrary to his Allegiance laboured to alienate the hearts of the Kings liege people from his Majestie to set a division betweene them and to ruine and destroy his Majesties Kingdomes for which they impeach him of high Treason against our Soveraigne Lord the King his Crowne and dignity VIII And hee the said Earle of Strafford was Lord Deputy of Ireland and Lieutenant generall of the Army there viz. his most excellent Majestie for his Kingdomes both of England and Ireland and Lord President of the North during the time that all and every the crimes and offences before set forth were done and committed and he the said Earle was Lieutenant generall of all his Majesties Army in the north parts of England during the time that the crimes and offences in the 5. and 6. Articles set forth were done and committed IX And the said Commons by protestations saving to themselves the liberty of exhibiting at any time hereafter any other accusation or impeachment against the said Earle and also of replying to the answers that hee the said Earle shall make unto the said Articles or to any of them and of offering proofes also of the premisses or any of them or any other impeachment or accusation that shall be exhibited by them as the cause shall according to the course of Parliaments require doe pray that the said Earle may bee be put to answer for all and every the premisses that such proceedings examinations tryalls and judgements may be upon every of them had and used as is agreeable to Law and Justice The further impeachment of Thomas Earle of Strafford by the Commons assembled in Parliament 1640. WHereas the said Commons have already exhibited Articles against the said Earle formerly expressed c. Now the said Commons doe further impeach the said Earle as followeth viz. I. That hee the said Earle of Strafford the 21. day of March in the 8. yeare of his now Majesties Reigne was President of the Kings Councell in the Northerne parts of England That he the said Earle being President of the said Councell on the 21. day of March a Commission under the great Scale of England with certaine Schedules of Instructions thereto annexed was directed to the said Earle and others the Commissioners therein named whereby amongst other things power and authoritie is limited to the said Earle and others the Commissioners therein named to heare and determine all offences and misdemeanours suites debates controversies and demands causes things and matters whatsoever therein contained and within certaine precincts in the said Northerne parts therein specified and in such manner as by the said Schedule is limited and appointed That amongst other things in the said Instructions it is directed that the said President and others therein appointed shall heare and determine according to the course of proceedings in the Court of Starchamber divers offences deceits and falsities therein mentioned whether the same bee provided for by the Acts of Parliament or not so that the Fines imposed bee not lesse then by Act or Acts of Parliament provided for by those offences is appointed That also amongst other things in the said Instructions it is directed that the said President and others therein appointed have power to examine hear determine according to the course of proceedings in the court of Chancery all manner of Complaints for any matter within the said Precincts as well concerning lands tenements and hereditaments either Freehold Customary or Copyhold as Leases and other things therein mentioned and to stay proceedings in the Court of Common Law by Injunction or otherwise by all wayes and meanes as is used in the Court of Chancery And although the former Presidents of the said Councell had never put in practice such Instructions nor had they any such Instructions yet the said Earle in the month of May in the said 8. yeare and divers yeares following did put in practice exercise and use and caused to be used and put in practice the said Commission and Instructions and did direct and exercise an exorbitant and unlawfull power and jurisdiction on the persons and estates of his Majesties subjects in those parts and did disinherit divers of his Majesties subjects in those parts of their inheritances sequestred their possessions did fine ransome punish and imprison them and caused them to be fined ransomed punished imprisoned to their ruine and destruction and namely Sir Coniers Darcy Sir Iohn Bourcher and
none should put to sale any Tobacco by whole sale from and after the last day of May then next following but what should bee made up into Rolls and the same sealed with two seales by himselfe appointed one at each end of the Roll. And such as was not so sealed to be seized appointing sixe pence the pound for a reward to such persons as should seize the same and the persons in whose custody the unsealed Tobacco should be found to be committed to Gaole which last Proclamation was covered by a pretence of the restraining of the sale of unwhole some Tobacco but it was truely to advance the said Monopoly Which Proclamation the said Earle did rigorously put in execution by ceazing the goods fining imprisoning whipping and putting the offendors against the same Proclamation on the pillory as namely Barnaby Hubbard Edward Cavena Iohn Tumen and divers others and made the Officers of State and Justices of Peace and other Officers to serve him in compassing and executing these unjust and undue courses By which cruelties and unjust Monopolies the said Earle raised 100000. pounds per annum gaine to himselfe And yet the said Earle though he inhanced the Customes where it concerned the Merchants in generall yet drew downe the impost formerly taken on Tobacco from six pence the pound to three pence the pound it being for his owne profit so to doe And the said Earle by the same and other rigorous and undue meanes raised severall other Monopolies and unlawfull exactions for his owne gaine viz. on Starch Iron pots Glasses Tobacco pipes and severall other commodities XIII That Flax being one of the principall and native Commodities of that Kingdome of Ireland the said Earle having gotten great quantities thereof into his hands and growing on his owne Lands did issue out severall Proclamations viz. one dated the one and twentieth day of May in the eleventh of his Majesties reigne and the other dated the one and thirtieth of January in the same yeare thereby prescribing and injoyning the working of Flax into Yarne and Thread and the ordering of the same in such waies wherein the Natives of that Kingdome were unpractised and unskilfull which Proclamations so issued were by his Commands and Warrants to his Majesties Justices of Peace and other Officers and by other rigorous meanes put in execution and the Flax wrought or ordered in other manner then as the said Proclamation prescribed was ceazed and employed to the use of him and his agents and thereby the said Earle endeavoured to gaine and did gaine in effect the sole sale of that native commodity XIV That the said Earle of Strafford by Proclamation dated the sixteenth day of October in the fourteenth yeare of his Majesties reigne did impose upon the Owners Masters Pursers and Boatswaines of every ship a new and unlawfull oath viz. that they two or more of them immediately after the arivall of any Ship within any Port or Creeke in the said Kingdome of Ireland should give in a true invoyce of the outward bulke of Wares and Merchandises and number of goods and the qualities and condition of the said goods as farre as to them should bee knowne the names of the severall Merchants proprietours of the said goods and the places from whence they were fraughted and whither they were bound to discharge which Proclamation was accordingly put in execution and sundry persons enforced to take the said unlawfull Oath XV. That the said Earle of Strafford trayterously and wickedly devised and contrived by force of Armes in a warlike manner to subdue the Subjects of the said Realme of Ireland to bring them under his tyrannicall power and will and in pursuance of his wicked and trayterous purposes aforesaid the said Earle of Strafford in the eighth yeare of his Majesties reigne did by his owne authority without any warrant or colour of Law tax and impose great summes of money upon the Townes of Baltemore Baudenbridge Talowe and divers other Townes and places in the said Realme of Ireland and did cause the same to be levied upon the inhabitants of those Townes by troopes of Souldiers with force and armes in a warlike manner And on the ninth day of March in the twelfth yeare of his now Majesties reigne trayterously did give authority unto Robert Savile a Serjeant at Armes and to the Captaines of the companies of Souldiers in severall parts of that Realme to send such numbers of Souldiers to lye on the lands and houses of such as would not conforme to his orders untill they should render obedience to his said orders and warrants and after such submission and not before the said Souldiers to returne to their Garrisons And did also issue the like warrants unto divers others which warrants were in warlike manner with force and Armes put in execution accordingly and by such warlike meanes did force divers of his Majesties subjects of that Realm to submit themselves to his unlawfull commands And in the said twelfth yeare of his Majesties reigne the said Earle of Strafford did trayterously cause certaine troopes of horse and foot armed in warlike manner and in warlike array with force and armes to expell Richard Butler from the possession of Castle-Cumber in the Territory of Idough in the said Realme of Ireland and did likewise and in like warlike manner expell divers of his Majesties Subjects from their houses families and possessions as namely Edward Brenman Owen Oberman Patricke Oberman Sir Cyprian Horsfield and divers others to the number of about a hundred families and tooke and imprisoned them and their wives and caried them prisoners to Dublin and there detained them untill they did yeeld up surrender or release their respective estates and rights And the said Earle in like warlike manner hath during his government of the said kingdome of Ireland subdued divers others of his Majesties subjects ease to his will and thereby and by the meanes aforesaid hath levied warre within the said Realme against his Majesty and his liege people of that kingdome XVI That the said Earle of Strafford the two and twentieth of February in the seventh yeare of his now Majesties reigne intending to oppresse the said subjects of Ireland did make a proposition and obtained from his Majesty an allowance that no complaint of injustice or oppression done in Ireland should be received in England against any unlesse it first appeared that the party made first his addresse to him the said Earle and the said Earle having by such usurped tyrannicall and exorbitant power expressed in the former Articles destroyed the Peeres and other subjects of that Kingdome of Ireland in their lives consciences land liberties and estates the said Earle to the intent the better to maintaine and strengthen his power and to bring the people into a disaffection of his Majesty as aforesaid did use his Majesties name in the execution of his said power And to prevent the subjects of that Realme of all means of complaints to his Majesty and
of redresse against him and his agents did issue a Proclamation bearing date the seventeenth day of September in the eleventh yeare of his Majesties reigne thereby commanding all the Nobility undertakers and others who held estates and offices in the said kingdome except such as were employed in his Majesties service or attending in England by his speciall command to make their personall residence in the said Kingdome of Ireland and not to depart thence without licence of himselfe And the said Earle hath since issued other Proclamations to the same purpose by meanes whereof the subjects of the said Realme are restrained from seeking releefe against the oppressions of the said Earle without his licence which Proclamation the said Earle hath by severall rigorous wayes as by fine imprisonment and otherwise put in execution on his Majesties subjects as namely one Parry and others who came over onely to complaine of the exorbitances and oppressions of the said Earle XVII That the said Earle having by such meanes as aforesaid subverted the government and lawes of the Kingdome of Ireland did in March in the sixteenth yeare of his Majesties Reigne in scandall of his Majesty of all his Kingdomes and in further execution of his wicked purposes aforesaid speaking of the Armies in Ireland declare that his Majesty was so well pleased with the Army of Ireland and the consequence thereof that his Majesty would certainly make the same a patterne for all his three Kingdomes XVIII That the said Earle of Strafford for the better effecting of his trayterous designes and wicked purposes did endeavour to draw dependency upon himselfe of the Papists in both Kingdomes of England and Ireland and to that end during the time of his government in Ireland hee restored divers Frieries and Masse-houses which had beene formerly suppressed by the precedent Deputies of that Kingdome two of which houses were in the City of Dublin and had beene assigned to the use of the University there to the pretended owners thereof who have since imployed the same to the exercise of the Popish Religion And in the month of May and June last the said Earle did raise an Army in the said Realme of Ireland consisting of eight thousand foot all of which except one thousand or thereabouts were Papists and the said one thousand were drawne out of the old army there consisting of two thousand foot and in their places there were a thousand Papists or thereabouts put into the said old Army by the said Earle And the more to ingage and tye the new Army of Papists to himselfe and to encourage them and to discourage and weare out the old Army the said Earle did so provide that the said new Army of Papists were duly paid and had all necessaries provided for them and permitted the exercise of their Religion but the said old Army were for the space of one whole yeare and upwards unpaid And the said Earle being appointed a Commissioner within eleven severall Counties in the Northern parts of England for compounding with Recusants for their forfeitures due to his Majesty which commission beareth dare the eight day of Iuly in the fifth yeare of his Majesties Reigne that now is and being also receiver of the composition money thereby arising and of other debts duties and penalties for his Majesties use by Letters Patents dated the ninth day of the said Iuly he to engage the said Recusants to him did compound with them at lowe and under rates and provided that they should be discharged of all proceedings against them in all his Majesties Courts both temporall and ecclesiasticall in manifest breach of and contrary to the Lawes and Statutes of this Realme in that behalfe established XIX That the said Earle having taxed and levied the said impositions and raised the said Monopolies and committed the said oppressions in his Majesties name and as by his Majesties Royall command hee the said Earle in May the fifteenth yeare of his Majesties Reigne did of his owne authority contrive and frame a new and unusuall oath by the purport whereof among many other things the party taking the said oath was to sweare that hee should not protest against any of his Majesties Royall commands but submit themselves in all obedience thereunto Which oath he so contrived to enforce the same on the subjects of the Scottish Nation inhabiting in Ireland and out of a hatred to the said Nation and to put them to a discontent with his Majesty and his government there and compelled divers of his Majesties said subjects there to take the said oath some he grievously fined and imprisoned and others he destroyed and exiled and namely the 10. of October Anno Dom. 1639. he fined Henry Steward and his wife who refused to take the said oath five thousand pounds a peece and their two daughters Iames Gray three thousand pounds a peece and imprisoned them for not paying the said fines The said Henry Stewards wife and daughters Iames Gray being the Kings liege people of the Scottish Nation and divers others he used in the like manner and the said Earle upon that occasion did declare that the said oath did not onely obliege them in point of allegiance to his Majesty and acknowledgement of his Supremacy onely but to the Ceremonies and government of the Church established or to be established by his Majesties royall Authority and said that the refusers to obey he would prosecute to the blood XX. That the said Earle in the 15. and 16. yeeres of his Majesties reigne and divers yeeres past laboured and endeavoured to beget in his Majesty an ill opinion of his Subjects namely those of the Scottish nation and divers and sundry times and especially since the pacification made by his Majesty with his said subjects of Scotland in summer in the fifteenth yeere of his Majesties reigne he the said Earle did labour and endevour to perswade incite and provoke his Majesty to an offensive warre against his said subjects of the Scottish Nation and the said Earle by his counsell actions and endevours hath beene and is a principall and chiefe incendiary of the warre and discord betweene his Majesty and his Subjects of England and the said Subjects of Scotland and hath declared and advised his Majesty that the demands made by the Scots in their Parliament were a sufficient cause of warre against them The said Earle having formerly expressed the height rancor of his minde towards his subjects of the Scottish Nation viz. the tenth day of October in the fifteenth yeere of his Majesties reigne he said that the Nation of the Scots were rebels and traytors and he being then about to come to England he then further said that if it pleased his Master meaning his Majesty to send him backe againe he would root out of the said Kingdome meaning the Kingdome of Ireland the Scottish Nation both root and branch Some Lords and others who had taken the said oath in the precedent Article onely excepted and
the said Earle hath caused divers of the said Ships and goods of the Scots to be stayed seized and molested to the intent to set on the said warre XXI That the said Earle of Strafford shortly after his speeches mentioned in the last precedent Article to wit in the fifteenth yeere of his Majesties reign came into this Realme of England and was made Lord Lievtenant of Ireland and continued his government of that Kingdome by a Deputy At his arrivall here finding that his Majesty with much wisedome and goodnesse had composed the troubles in the North and had made a pacification with his Subjects of Scotland he laboured by all meanes to procure his Majesty to break that pacification incensing his Majesty against his Subjects of that Kingdome and the proceedings of the Parliament there And having incensed his Majesty to an offensive warre against his said Subjects of Scotland by Sea and by Land and by pretext thereof to raise Forces for the maintainance of that warre he councelled his Majesty to cal a Parliament in England yet the said Earle intended if the said proceedings of that Parliament should not be such as would stand with the said Earle of Straffords mischievous designes he would then procure his Majesty to breake the same and by wayes of force and power to raise monies upon the said Subjects of this Kingdome And for the incouragement of his Majesty to hearken to his advice he did before his Majesty and his Privie Councell then sitting in Counsell make a large Declaration that he would serve his Majesty in any other way in case the Parliament should not supply him XXII That in the moneth of March before the beginning of the last Parliament the said Earle of Strafford went into Ireland and procured the Parliament of that Kingdome to declare their assistance in a warre against the Scots And gave directions for the raising of an Army consisting of 8000 foot and 1000 horse being for the most part Papists as aforesaid And confederating with one Sir George Radcliffe did together with him the said Sir George trayterously conspire to imploy the said Army for the ruine and destruction of the kingdome of England and of his Majesties Subjects and of altering and subverting of the fundamentall Lawes of this Kingdome And shortly after the said Earle of Strafford returned into England and to sundry persons declared his opinion to be that his Majesty should first try the Parliament here and if that did not supply him according to his occasions he might then use his Prerogative as he pleased to Levie what he needed and that he should be acquitted both of God and man if he tooke some other courses to supply himselfe though it were against the will of his Subjects XXIII That upon the thirteenth day of Aprill last the Parliament of England met and the Commons house then being the representative Body of all the Commons in the Kingdome did according to the trust reposed in them enter into debate and consideration of the great grievances of this Kingdome both in respect of Religion and the publike Liberty of the Kingdome and his Majesty referring chiefely to the said Earle of Strafford and the Archbishop of Canterbury the ordering and disposing of all matters concerning the Parliament He the said Earle of Strafford with the assistance of the said Archbishop did procure his Majesty by sundry speeches and messages to urge the said Commons house to enter into some resolution for his Majesties supply for maintainance of his warre against his Subjects of Scotland before any course was taken for the reliefe of the great and pressing grievances wherewith this Kingdome was then afflicted Whereupon a demand was then made from his Majesty of twelve Subsidies for the release of Ship-money onely and while the said Commons then assembled with expressions of great affection to his Majesty and his service were in debate and consideration of some supply before resolution by them made He the said Earle of Strafford with the helpe and assistance of the said Archbishop did procure his Majesty to dissolve the last Parliament upon the fifth day of May last and upon the same day the said Earle of Strafford did treacherously falsely and maliciously endeavour to incense his Majesty against his loving and faithful Subjects who had been members of the said house of Commons by telling his Majesty they had denyed to supply him And afterward upon the same did treacherously and wickedly counsell and advise his Majesty to this effect viz. that having tried the affections of his people he was loose and absolved from all Rules of government and was to doe every thing that power would admit and that his Majesty had tryed all wayes and was refused and should be acquittea both of God and man and that hee had an Army in Ireland meaning the Army above mentioned consisting of papists his dependants as is aforesaid which hee might imploy to reduce this Kingdome to obedience XXIV That in the same moneth of May he the said Earl of Strafford falsely treacherously and maliciiously published and declared before others of his Majesties Prive councell that the Parliament of England had forsaken the King and that in denying to supply the King they had given him the advantage to supply himselfe by other waies and divers other times he did maliciously wickedly and falsely publish and declare that seeing the Parliament had refused to supply his Majestie in the ordinary and usuall way the King might provide for the Kingdome in such waies as he should hold fit and that he was not to suffer himselfe to be mastered by the frowardnesse of the people And having so maliciously slandered the said house of Commons he did with the helpe and advice of the said Archbishop of Canterbury and the Lord Finch late Lord Keeper of the great Seale of England cause to be printed and published in his Majesties name a false and scandalous booke entitled His Majesties Declaration of the causes that moved him to dissolve the last Parliament full of bitter and malicious invectives and false and scandalous aspersions against the said house of Commons XXV That not long after the dissolution of the said last Parliament viz. in the moneths of May and Iune he the said Earle of Strafford did advise the King to go on rigorously in leavying of the Ship-mony and did procure the Sheriffes of severall Counties to bee sent for for not levying the shipmony divers of which were threatned by him to be sued in the Starchamber and afterwards by his advice were sued in the Starchamber for not levying the same and divers of his Majesties loving Subjects were sent for and imprisoned by his advice about that and other illegall paiments And a great loane of a hundred thousand pounds was demanded of the City of London and the Lord Maior and the Aldermen and the Sheriffes of the said City were often sent for by his advice to the Councell Table to give an account of their