Selected quad for the lemma: england_n
Text snippets containing the quad
|
ID |
Title |
Author |
Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication) |
STC |
Words |
Pages |
|
A46139
|
An impartial account of the trial of the Lord Conwallis [sic]
|
Cornwallis of Eye, Charles Cornwallis, Baron, 1655-1698.
|
1679
(1679)
|
Wing I78; ESTC R7670
|
12,727
|
16
|
AN IMPARTIAL ACCOUNT OF THE TRIAL OF THE LORD CONWALLIS LONDON Printed in the Year 1679. AN IMPARTIAL ACCOUNT OF THE TRIAL OF THE LORD CONWALLIS AFTER my Lord High Steward was ascended to the High Chair of State and sate down therein the Commission was delivered by the Clerk of the Crown in the Chancery to my Lord on his Knees who delivered it to Sir Thomas Fanshaw Clerk of the Crown in the Kings Bench Office and he received it kneeling Then Proclamation was made by the Serjeant at Arms who was Cryer for the day Serjeant O Yes O Yes O Yes My Lord High Steward of England strictly chargeth and commandeth all manner of Persons here present upon pain of Imprisonment to keep silence and give Ear to his Majesties Commission To my Lord High Steward of England to his Grace directed The Clerk of the Crown with his Face to my Lord High Steward Reads it thus Clerk of the Crown Charles Rex Carolus Secundus c. All which time my Lord and the Peers stood up bare Serjeant God save the King Cl. Cr. Make Proclamation Serjeant O Yes The King at Arms and the Usher of the Black Rod on their Knees deliver the White Staff to my Lord who re-delivered it to the Usher of the Black Rod who held it up all the time before him Cl. Cr. Make Proclamation Serjeant O Yes My Lord High Steward of England strictly chargeth and commandeth all Justices and Commissioners and all and every person and persons to whom any Writ or Precept have been directed for the certifying of any Indictment or of any other Record before my Lord High Steward of England to certifie and bring the same immediately according to the Tenor of the said Writs and Precepts unto them or any of them directed on Pain and Peril as shall fall thereon The Lord Chief Justice of the Kings Bench return'd his Certiorari and the Record of the Indictment by the Grand Jury of Middlesex which was read by the Clerk of the Crown in haec verba Cl. Cr. Virtute c. L. H. Stew. Call the Constable of the Tower to return his Precept and his Prisoner Cl. Cr. Make Proclamation Serjeant O Yes Constable of the Tower of London return the Precept to thee directed and bring forth the Prisoner Charles Lord Conwallis on Pain and Peril as will fall thereon The Lord Lieutenant of the Tower brought in the Prisoner on his left Hand with the Axe before him born by the Deputy Lieutenant which he held with the Edge from him and returned his Precept in haec verba Cl. Cr. Virtute c. L. H. Stew. Call the Serjeant at Arms to return his Precept Cl. Cr. Make Proclamation Serjeant O Yes Roger Harfnet Esq Serjeant at Arms to our Soveraign Lord the King return the Precept to thee directed with the Names of all the Lords and Noblemen of this Realm Peers of Charles Lord Conwallis by thee summoned to be heard this day on pain and peril as will fall thereon He delivered his Precept return'd with a Schedule annexed thus Cl. Cr. Virtute c. Make Proclamation Serjeant O Yes All Marquesses Earls Vicounts and Barons of this Realm of England Peers of Charles Lord Conwallis which by Commandment of the Lord High Steward of England are summoned to appear this day and to be present in Court and to answer to your Names as you are called every one upon pain and peril as will fall thereon Then the Panel was called over the number of Peers summoned were 35. in order as followeth Thomas Earl of Danby Lord High Treasurer of England c. All that appeared answered to the call standing up bare Then my Lord High Steward made a Speech to the Prisoner at the Bar thus Lord High Steward My Lord Conwallis The violation of the Kings Peace in the chief Sanctuary of it his own Royal Palace and in so high a manner as by the Death of one of his Subjects is a matter that must be accounted for And that it may be so It hath pleased the King to command this High and Honourable Court to Assemble in order to a strict and impartial Enquiry The Wisdom of the Law hath therefore styled it the Kings Peace because it is his Authority that commands it it is his Justice that secures it it is he on whom Men do rely for the safety of their Liberties and their Lives in him they trust that a severe Account shall be taken of all the Violences and Injuries that are offered to them and they that trust in the King can never be deceived It is your Lordships great unhappiness at this time to stand Prisoner at the Bar under the weight of no less a Charge than an Indictment of Murder and it is not to be wondred at if so great a misfortune as this be attended with some kind of confusion of Face when a Man sees himself become a spectacle of Misery in so great a presence and before so Noble and so Illustrious an Assembly But be not yet dismay'd my Lord for all this let not the Fears and Terrors of Justice so amaze and surprise you so as to betray those succours that your reason would afford you or to disarm you of those helps which good discretion may Administer and which are now extreamly necessary It is indeed a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of Justice where the Law is the Rule and a severe and inflexible measure both of Life and Death But yet it ought to be some comfort to your Lordships that you are now to be tried by my Lords your Peers and that now you see the Scales of Justice are held by such Noble hands you may be confident they will put into them all the Grains of allowance either Justice or Honour will bear Hearken therefore to your Indictment with quietness and attention observe what the Witnâ—sses say against you without interruption and reserve what you have to say for your self till it shall come to your turn to make your defence of which I shall be sure to give you notice and when the time comes assure your self you shall be heard not only with Patience but with Candor too And then what Judgement soever my Lords will give you your self will and all the World be forc'd to acknowledge the Justice and Equity of their Judgment and the Righteousness of all their Lordships Proceedings Read the Indictment Cl. Cr. Charles Lord Conwallis Thou standest Indicted in the County of Middlesex by the Name of c. How sayest thou Charles Lord Conwallis Art thou guilty of this Felony and Murder whereof thou standest Indicted Or not guilty Lord Conw Not Guilty Cl. Cr. How wilt thou be tri'd Ld. Con. By God and my Peers Then my Lord High Steward addressed himself to the Lords thus Ld. H. Stew. My Lords Your Lordships have here a Member before you of your Noble Body exposed to the shame of a publick Arraignment and which to a Man of
committed my Lord was not with Mr. Gerrard but that will be no Objection in the Case for if he did partake in the Design of the other I will answer it with the Case of my Lord Dacres of the South who with some other went unlawfully to steal Deer and the Keeper coming some fled among whom my Lord was one the Keeper was killed my Lord Dacres being at that time without the Pales a Mile off from the Place and yet was found guilty of the Murther and left both his Lands and his Life for it But here my Lord Conwallis was present for the Witness swears the Distance was not so great but it might be discerned Now whether he was aiding or assisting is the next thing in question What occasion had they of Malice Revenge or Injury to the Centinel They both swore they would kill him had there been any excuse for the other if one of them had killed the Centinel that could not be well they did not kill the Centinel but at the same time take up a causeless offence against another and kill him I argue that the Malice against the Soldier was diffusive to the Boy and one of the Witnesses proves that one of them swore he would kill some Body now no one speaks to any thing of my Lords reproving Mr. Gerrard Thus stands the Case before your Grace and my Lords It is a Case of Blood and it cries loud how far this Noble Lord and Prisoner at the Bar is guilty thereof you are to enquire and without all doubt will give a clear Verdict according to Justice and Honour Lord High Stew. My Lords you have heard the Evidence of your Lordships Please to go and consider of it you may Then the Prisoner withdrew into his own apartment with the Lieutenant of the Tower The Lords went into a Room behind the Court of Chancery and after a stay of two hours return'd and being all sate the Earl of Danby Lord High Treasurer of England who was the first of the Jury addressed himself to my Lord High Steward and said Earl of Danby My Lord High Steward there is a question in Law of which some of my Lords desire to receive satisfaction before they can give in their full Verdict acd we desire to know of your Grace whether it be proper here to ask the question of your Grace or to propose it to the Judges Lord H. Stew. If your Lordships doubt of any thing whereon a question in Law ariseth the latter opinion and the better for the Prisoner is that it must be stated in the presence of the Prisoner that he may know whether the question be truly put It hath sometimes been practised otherwise and the Peers have sent for the Judges and have asked their opinion in private and have come back and given their Verdict according to that opinion and there is scarce a President of its being otherwise done but there is a latter Authority in Print that doth settle the Point so as I tell you and I do conceive it ought to be followed and it being safer for the Prisoner my humble Opinion to your Lordships is that he ought to be present at the stating of the Question Call the Prisoner to the Bar. Who being come my Lord spake thus to him Lord High Steward My Lord Conwallis My Lords the Peers since they have withdrawn have conceived a doubt in some matter of Law arising upon the matter of Fact in your Case and they have that tender regard of a Prisoner at the Bar that they will not suffer a Case to be put up in his absence lest it should chance to prejudice him by being wrong stated therefore your Lordship will do well to attend the question that is raised and my Lords will you please to propound your doubts It was taken notice of here that by opening the matter by Mr. Solicitor the matter of Murder was explained to be meant by having a prepensed Malice and in that Case it was opened to us that any Persons then present and that had in any sort contributed to the Disorders they were as equally guilty as they whose hand had shed the Blood of the Person killed Now the doubt of some of my Lords is whether if it be found but Man-slaughter those are equally guilty that are present and have proved to contribute to the disturbance of that Crime as they are in Murder because some of them have not the satisfaction that they are the same Lord High Steward My Lords the Judges I take it the doubt proposed to you is this whether or no those that are present and have contributed to the disorders whereby such an accident doth ensue as proves to be Man-slaughter be as culpable as he that doth the immediate Fact as it is in the Case of Murder After a little Pause and Conference the Judges returned this Answer Judges We have had Conference of this Case and our humble Opinion is If sundry Persons be together aiding and assisting to an Action wherein a Man-slaughter doth ensue as in Case of a sudden business without malice prepensed they are equally guilty with the Man-slaughter as they are in the Case of Murder prepensed Earl of Danby The Lords desire to withdraw once more which they did and after a short space returned and being called over answered to their Names and all appearing my Lord High Steward took their Verdict seriatim beginning at the Puisne Lord in the following orders they answering standing bare with their hands on their Breasts Lord High Steward My Lord Duras Is Charles Lord Conwallis guilty of the Felony and Murder whereof he stands Indicted or not guilty Lord Duras not guilty The same question he demanded of each who answered thus My Lord Butler not guilty Lord _____ not guilty Lord Maynard not guilty of Murder but guilty of Man-slaughter Lord Paget not guilty Lord Berkly not guilty of Murder but guilty of Man-slaughter Lord Newport not guilty Lord Hallifax not guilty Lord Viscount Cambden not guilty Lord Guilford not guilty Lord Alisbury not guilty of Murder but guilty of Man-slaughter Lord Craven not guilty Lord Bath not guilty Lord Clarendon not guilty Lord Sunderland not guilty Lord Peterborough not guilty Lord Devonshire not guilty Lord Northampton not guilty Lord Bridgwater not guilty Lord Dorset not guilty Lord Suffolk not guilty Lord Bedford not guilty Lord Derby not guilty Lord Kent not guilty Lord Oxford not guilty Lord Arlington not guilty Lord Brereton not guilty Lord Lindsey not guilty of Murder but of Man-slaughter Lord Dorchester not guilty Lord Anglesey not guilty of Murder but of Man-slaughter Lord Danby not guilty of Murder but of Man-slaughter Lord High Steward Call the Prisoner to the Bar. Then the Prisoner came to the Bar and the Deputy Lieutenant of the Tower held the edge of the Axe towards him while my Lord High Steward spake thus unto him Lord High Steward My Lord Conwallis you have been Indicted for Murder pleaded not guilty put your self upon your Peers and your Peers upon consideration of the whole matter have acquitted you and found you not guilty so you are to be discharged Cl. Cr. Make Proclamation Serj. O Yes my Lord High Steward of England willeth and commandeth all Persons to depart hence in Gods Peace and the Kings for my Lord High Steward of England his Grace doth dissolve his Commission God save the King At which words my Lord High Steward holding the white Staff which was delivered him by the Usher of the Black Rod on his Knees in both hands over his head snapt it in two and the Assembly broke up FINIS Sanders Case in Plowden fol. 473. Anno 33 H. 8. Coke 3 Inst fol. 211. Cooke Inst fol. 3 0. Pasch 20. Hen. Earl of Danby