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england_n french_a great_a king_n 16,597 5 4.3459 3 true
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ID Title Author Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication) STC Words Pages
A31173 The Case of the people of England in their present circumstances considered shewing how far they are, or are not obliged by the Oath of allegiance. 1689 (1689) Wing C1132; ESTC R36280 14,605 23

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THE CASE OF THE People of England IN THEIR Present Circumstances CONSIDERED SHEWING How far they are or are not Obliged BY THE Oath of Allegiance LONDON Printed and are to be sold by Randall Taylor near Stationers-Hall 1689. THE CASE OF THE People of England IN THEIR Present Circumstances CONSIDERED c. KING James rightful Heir of the Crown by the death of his Brother enters into the full possession has all the Rights Dues and Prerogatives of a King of England and all his Subjects are bound to him by their Oaths of Allegiance He selects and chooses out of his Subjects as many as he pleases He forms them into a regular Army maintains them trusts and depends upon them to preserve and secure to himself all his Rights and Interests The rest of his Subjects neither He nor the Laws of the Land permit to take up Arms to oppose his Enemies without his Commission And some of them freely offering themselves to raise Forces in his Service and for his Defence he rejects and will not Commission them commands them to go home to live quietly there and leave Him to conduct and manage his own Affairs and Interests He gives Just cause of War to a Neighbor Prince by invading his Rights by an Action generally presumed and believed by all his Subjects or at least by nine parts of ten of them most base against the Laws of Nature Nations and of this Land against his own Crown and Dignity and against the plain and most manifest interest of his Nobility and Commonalty or the main Body of his People and that on purpose to subvert the Laws the Rights the Religion of All one onely Party or Faction excepted and thereby to give that Party power to ruine and destroy all the rest which too is a Party laid aside by Law and declared and made in all possible ways uncapable of being trusted in the Government or of such Offices as He by vertue of his Regal Power is to execute by Ministers and that because the designs and interests of that Party have been found by the experience of four preceding Reign 's to have been contrariant to the Crown and Dignity of the Kings of England and against the plain Interest and Rights of the People In this state of Affairs the injured Neighbor Prince invades this Land Declares that He is wronged and desires that Justice may be done him K. James calls together his Army and goes out to oppose and to Fight him The Foreign Prince offers to refer the decision and ultimate determination of the Controversie to K. James 's own Subjects in a Regular Lawful Parliament assembled and desires that such a one might be Called K. James will not do it but trusts to his Soldiers and will not trust to the Body of his People who only can speak their sense Legally in Parliament He is deserted of his Soldiers They will not Fight against but joyn themselves to the Foreign Prince perhaps Judging in their private opinions his Cause right and just Upon this K. James makes his Escape flies to the Old Enemy of the English Nation one who desires nothing more than to destroy and ruine the People to change and subvert their Laws and Religion and by this esertion and Flight leaves his own Liege People in the hands under the Power and at the disposal of that Foreign Prince In this State of Affairs it is matter of Consideration What particular persons who are under Oaths of Allegiance to K. James by Vertue of those Oaths are bound to do I. Here it is plain that they are not bound to take up Arms and oppose that Prince under whose power they were when K. James left them Because they are bound by the Law not to take up Arms or raise Forces either for any Friend or against any Enemy of the Kings without his Commission They have no Commission and so cannot be bound to do this for no man can be bound by a Legal Oath to do that for which the Law condemns them as highly Criminal and adjudges them to the Gallows for so doing II. They are not bound to leave their Houses and Families and follow K. James and tender him their Services because they are not assured that He is able to maintain them or willing to receive them inasmuch as in their absence another Invader may come and seize upon the Country and destroy their Families and make their condition deplorable And that must be presumed to be as much against K James's mind as against their own Besides He is now in the power of the Old Enemy of the Kings and People of England And if great Numbers of the English should go to K. James in France the French King may be jealous of their designs and take opportunity to destroy them at best He may use them as well to flight His quarrells as K. James's as well against him as for him Besides it is notorious that He neither will nor dares trust any Number of Armed Protestants to be in his Country for so small a time as is necessary to fit them for any publick Service III. They are not bound by their Oaths of Allegiance to continue in the same state wherein K. James left them For at that time there was no Government no Justice no benefit of Law They were no longer a People but a confused multitude every one did what he pleased none could command and none could obey But the Mobile the scum and Rabble of the Nation ruled All as K. James himself found by Lamentable experience Now the Oath of Allegiance cannot oblige Men to continue in this State because it was made on purpose to keep Men from such a State to secure Government to support Justice and provide for the Execution of Law for this end the King requires it to be taken and to this end every single Man upon occasion takes it IV. As they are not bound to continue in that State so they are not bound not to endeavour a deliverance from it or to refuse the most likely and perhaps the onely possible way to get out of it because they are bound to seek their own preservation and do what in each Mans power lies to secure the Common good of the Nation If K. James by his own default and ill conduct gives occasion for an Invasion and cannot oppose the force of the Invader but runs away and shifts for himself and provides for his own safety and so leaves his People under the power of and at the mercy of the Invader and in such a condition that they cannot lawfully fight against him nor with reason fly from him and whilst they remain at home they have neither Government nor Justice nor benefit of Law but are obnoxious to the rage and fury of every Villain and Cut-throat in this Case They cannot be bound by the Oath of Allegiance from complying with present necessities and using all for possible means of their own preservation at