THE TRYAL OF THE LORD RUSSEL July 13. 1683. My Lord Russel was set to the Bar within the Bar. Clerk of the Crown William Russel hold up thy hand which he did Then this Indictment was read which is as followeth THe Jurors of our Sovereign Lord the King upon their Oaths present That William Russel late of London Esq together with other false Traitors as a false Traitor against the most Illustrious and Excellent Prince our Soveraign Lord Charles the Second by the Grace of God of England Scotland France and Ireland King his natural Lord not having the Fear of God in his Heart nor weighing the Duty of his Allegiance but being moved and seduced by the Instigation of the Devil and the true Duty and natural Obedience which true and faithful Subjects of our Sovereign Lord the King towards him our said Lord the King do bear and of right ought to bear wholly withdrawing and with his whole Strength intending the Peace and Common Tranquility of this Kingdom of England to disturb and War and Rebellion against our said Lord the King to move and stir up and the Government of our said Lord the King within this Kingdom of England to subvert and our said Lord the King from his Title Honour and Kingly Name of the Imperial Crown of this his Kingdom of England to put down and deprive and our said Lord the King to Death and final Destruction to bring and put the second day of November in the Year of the Reign of our Sovereign Lord Charles the Second King of England c. the 34th and diverse other days and times as well before as after at the Parish of St. Michael Bassishaw in the Ward of Bassishaw London aforesaid maliciously and traiterously with diverse other Traitors to the Jurors aforesaid unknown he did conspire compass imagine and intend our said Lord the King his Supream Lord not only of his Kingly State Title Power and Government of this his Kingdom of England to deprive and throw down but also our said Lord the King to kill and to Death to bring and put and the ancient Government of this his Kingdom of England to change alter and wholly to subvert and a Miserable Slaughter amongst the Subjects of our said Lord the King through his whole Kingdom of England to cause and procure and Insurrection and Rebellion against our said Lord the King to move procure and stir up within this Kingdom of England And to fulfil and perfect the said most horrible Treasons and Traiterous Compassings Imaginations and Purposes aforesaid he the said William Russel together with other false Traytors as a false Traytor then and there and diverse other Days and Times as well before as after Maliciously Trayterously and advisedly between themselves and with diverse other Traytors to the Jurors aforesaid unknown they did meet together consult agree and conclude and every of them then and there did consult agree and conclude Insurrection and Rebellion against our Sovereign Lord the King within this Kingdom of England to move and stir up and the Guards for the Preservation of the Person of our said Lord the King to seize and destroy against the Duty of his Allegiance against the Peace c. And also against the Form of the Statutes c. Cl. of Cr. How saiest thou art thou Guilty or not Guilty L. Russel My Lord may I not have a Copie of the Matter of Fact laid against me that I may know what to answer to it L. Ch. J. My Lord we can grant you nothing till you have pleaded Therefore that which is put to you now is whether you say you are Guilty or not Guilty L. Russel My Lord I am not Guilty Cl. of Cr. Culprit How wilt thou be tryed L. Russel By God and my Country Cl. of Cr. God send thee a good deliverance L. Russel My Lord I thought a Prisoner had never been arraigned and tryed at the same time I have been a close Prisoner L. Ch. Just For Crimes of this Nature My Lord we do it continually L. Russel It is hard my Lord. Mr. Att. Gen. My Lord hath no reason to complain for want of notice for since Monday seven-night he had notice of his Trial and the matters alledged against him he had notice of for Questions were put to him about this matter he hath been fairly dealt with he hath had the liberty of Counsel to advise him there hath been no sort of liberty denied him which becomes any Subject to have in this condition L. Ch. J. My Lord I do not know whether you hear Mr. Attorny He says your Lordship hath had a great deal of Favour shewn you already in that you have been acquainted with the Crimes for which you are now Indicted that you have had a great deal of warning given you that you have had the liberty of Counsel which hath not been known granted to any under your Lordships Circumstances He says he doubts not but your Lordship is prepared for your Defence because you have had so much knowledg and warning of the Time and Matter for which you were to be called in question L. Russel My Lord I am much to seek I only heard some general Questions and I have Witnesses that I believe are not yet in Town nor will be I believe till Night I think it very hard I can't have one day more Mr. Att. Gen. Monday seven-night your Lordship had notice L. Russel I did not know the matter I was charged with Mr. Att. Gen. Yes certainly for I was with you my self my Lord and those Questions you were examined upon were a Favour to you that you might know what the matter was you were accused of L. Ch. J. My Lord without the Kings consent we can't put off the Trial if the Kings Council think not fit to put it off we can't grant your Lordships Request in this Case L. Russel I would desire a Copy of the Pannel of the Jury that I might consider of it for how else can I make any just Challenge I thought the Law had been very favourable to Men upon their Lives and therefore it had allowed people to have some little notice L. Ch. J. Hath not your Lordship had a Copie of the Pannel I think your Lordship was allowed one We gave Order your Lordship should have a Copie of the Pannel Mr. Att. Gen. We did indulge him so far that he might have a Note of all the Men returned L. Russel I never had a Copie of the Pannel L. Ch. J. It was the fault of your Lordships Servants then for I gave Order for it my self 'T is such a favour that in regard a mans life lies at stake we never did deny it to my knowledge And therefore in this Case I gave order to the Secondary to deliver a Copie I know the King did not design to be hard upon my Lord in his Trial but that he should have as fair a Trial as ever any Noble
of Monmouth and he did go away with the Duke of Monmouth as he believes He says there was some Discourse of a Rising or Insurrection that was to be procured within the Kingdom but he does not tell you the particulars of any thing he himself does not My Lord Howard afterwards does come and tell you of a great Discourse he had with my Lord Shaftsbury in order to a Rising in the City of London and my Lord Shaftsbury did value himself mightily upon 10000 Men he hoped to raise and a great deal of Discourse he had with my Lord Shaftsbury This he does by way of Inducement to what he says concerning my Lord Russel The Evidence against him is some Consults that there were by Six of them who took upon them as he says to be a Council for the Management of the Insurrection that was to be procured in this Kingdom He instances in two that were for this purpose the one of them at Mr. Hambdens House the other at my Lord Russels House And he tells you at these Meetings there was some Discourse of providing Treasure and of providing Arms but they came to no Result in these things He tells you that there was a Design to send for some of the Kingdom of Scotland that might join with them in this thing And this is upon the matter the substance of the Evidence that hath been at large declared to you by the Kings Counsel and what you have heard Now Gentlemen I must tell you some things it lies upon us to direct you in My Lord excepts to these Witnesses because they are concern'd by their own shewing in this Design If there were any I did direct some of you might hear me yesterday that that was no sufficient exception against a mans being an Evidence in the case of Treason that he himself was concerned in it they are the most proper persons to be Evidence none being able to detect such Councils but them You have heard my Lord Russels Witnesses that he hath brought concerning them and concerning his own integrity and course of life how it has been sober and civil with a great respect to Religion as these Gentlemen do all testifie Now the Question before you will be whether upon this whole matter you do believe my Lord Russel had any design upon the Kings life to destroy the King or take away his life for that is the material part here 'T is used and given you by the Kings Counsel as an evidence of this That he did conspire to raise an Insurrection and to cause a Rising of the people to make as it were a Rebellion within the Nation and to surprise the Kings Guards which say they can have no other end but to seise and destroy the King and 't is a great evidence if my Lord Russel did design to seise the Kings Guards and make an Insurrection in the Kingdom of a design for to surprise the Kings Person It must be lest to you upon the whole matter You have not evidence in this Case as there was in the other matter that was tried in the morning or yesterday against the Conspirators to Kill the King at the Rye There was a direct evidence of a Consult to Kill the King that is not given you in this Case this is an act of contriving Rebellion and an Insurrection within the Kingdom and to seise his Guards which is urged as an evidence and surely is in it self an evidence to seise and destroy the King Upon this whole matter this is left to you If you believe the Prisoner at the Bar to have conspired the Death of the King and in order to that to have had these Consults that these Witnesses speak of then you must find him Guilty of this Treason that is laid to his Charge Then the Court adjourned till Four of the Clock in the Afternoon when the Jury brought the said Lord Russel in Guilty of the said High Treason Saturday 14th July My Lord Russel was brought to the Barr. Cl. of Cr. WIlliam Russel Esq hold up thy Hand which he did Thou hast been Indicted for High Treason against our Sovereign Lord the King and thereupon hast pleaded Not Guilty and for thy Trial hast put thy self upon the Country which Country has found thee Guilty What canst thou say for thy self why Iudgment of Death should not pass upon thee according to the Law L. Russel Mr. Recorder I should be very glad to hear the Indictment read Mr. Att. Gen. You may read it Cl. of Cr. Will you have it read in Latin or English L. Russel In English The Clerk read to the words of Conspiring the Death of the King L. Russel Hold I thought I had not been charged in the Indictment as it is of Compassing and Conspiring the Death of the King Mr. Att. Gen. Yes my Lord L. Russel But Mr. Recorder If all that the Witnesses swore against me be true I appeal to you and the Court I appeal to you whether I am Guilty within the Statute of 25 E. 3. they having sworn a Conspiracy to levy War but no intention of Killing the King And therefore I think truly Judgment ought not to pass upon me for Conspiring the death of the King of which there was no proof by any one Witness Mr. Att. Gen. That is no Exception Mr. Recorder My Lord that was an Exception proper and as I think you did make it before the Verdict whether the Evidence does amount to prove the Charge that is proper to be observed to the Jury for if the Evidence come short of the Indictment they can't find it to be a true Charge But when the Jury has found it their Verdict does pass for truth We are bound by the Verdict as well as your Lordship we are to go by what the Jury have found not their Evidence L. Russel Without any proof Mr. Recorder The Jury must be governed by their Evidence L. Russel I think it very hard I must be condemned upon a point that there was not one thing of it sworn therefore I think I may very legally demand Arrest of Judgment Mr. Recorder I hope your Lordship will consider 't is not the Court can give a Verdict it must be the Jury I believe their is no body in the Court does delight in giving such Judgments especially against your Lordship The Verdict is found and the Kings Attorney General on behalf of the King does demand it Mr. Att. Gen. I do demand Judgment of the Court against the Prisoner Proclamation was made for silence while Judgment was giving Mr. Recorder My Lord Russel your Lordship hath been Indicted and Tried and found Guilty of High Treason the greatest of Crimes your Quality is great and your Crime is great And I hope and expect that your behaviour and preparation in this Condition will be proportionable My Lord it is the Duty of the Witnesses to give Evidence according to Truth it is the Duty of the Jury to proceed according to Evidence and 't is the Duty of the Court to give Evidence according to the Verdict It is the Kings pleasure signified by his Attorny General to demand Judgment against your Lordship according to this Verdict and therefore my Lord I shall not delay it with any further circumlocution The Judgment the Law hath provided and is the Duty of the Court to give is That you be carried back again to the place from whence you came and from thence be drawn upon an Hurdle to the place of Execution where you shall be hanged by the neck but cut down alive your Entrals and Privy Members cut from your Body and burnt in your sight your Head to be severed from your Body and your Body divided into four Parts and disposed at the Kings pleasure And the Lord have Mercy upon your Soul FINIS London
hath been determined it was resolved by all the Judges in the Case of my Lord Cobham 1 Jac. A Conspiracy to levy War against the Kings Person as this was a Conspiracy to seise the Guards what does that tend to but to seise the King and that always hath been taken to be High Treason But there are some things called Levying of War in Law that are not so directly against the King as if a Number of Men go about to levy Men to overthrow all Inclosures this by the generality of the Intent and because of the Consequences is accounted Levying War against the King A Conspiracy therefore to levy such a War which by construction only is against the King perhaps that may not be such an Overt Act as to testifie the Imagination of the Death of the King but other Conspiracies to raise War against the King have alwaies bin so taken 'T is the Resolution of the Judges in my L. Dyers Reports the Case of Dr. Story A Conspiracie to invite a foreign Prince to make an Invasion though no Invasion follow is an Overt Act to prove conspiring the Death of the King And as it hath bin so taken so it hath bin practised but of late daies In the Kings Bench I take it the Indictment against Plunket that was hanged he was indicted for Conspiring against the Life of the King and his Charge went no farther than for raising of Arms and inviting the French King in and he suffered This is acknowledged by my L. Cook for he himself said in the Paragraph before that out of which this Advice to my L. Russel is extracted That a Conspiracy to invite a foreign Prince to invade the Kingdom is a Conspiracie against the life of the King And in the next Paragraph he saies an Overt Act of one Treason cannot be an Overt Act of another Treason but constant Practice is against him in that For what is more common than to indict a man for Imagining the Death of the King and to assign the Overt Act in a Conspiracie to raise Arms against the King and sometimes they go on and say Did levy War against the King Now by my L. Cooks Rule levying War unless the Indictment be particular for that is not an Overt Act for the compassing the Death of the King but the contrary hath bin resolved by all the Judges in the Case of Sir Hen. Vane and it is the constant Practice to lay it so in Indictments It would be a strange construction if this should not be High Treason 'T is agreed by every body to take the King Prisoner to seise the King that is a compassing the Death of the King and to sit in council to conspire to effect that that is an Overt Act of the Imagination of the Death of the King now no man can distinguish this Case fom that And this Consultation amounted to all this for plainly hither it tended The Consultation was to seise upon the Kings Guards that could have no other stop but to seise upon the Kings Person and bring him into their Power As to the Killing of the King I am apt to think that was below the Honor of the Prisoner at the Bar but this is equal Treason If they designed only to bring the King into their Power till he had consented to such things as should be moved in Parliament 't is equally Treason as if they had agreed directly to assasinate him Therefore I think there is nothing for you to consider but to see that the Fact be fully proved and I see nothing that hath been said by my L. Russel that does invalidate our Evidence He hath produced several Witnesses Persons of Honor my L. Anglesy tells you of a Discourse my L. Howard had with my L. of Bedford That he told my L. of Bedford that he needed not to fear for he had a wife and understanding Son and could not think he should be guilty of any such thing as was laid to his Charge This is brought to invalidate my L. Howards Testimony Gentlemen do but observe My L. Howard was as deep in as any of them and was not then discovered Is it likely that my L. Howard that lay hid should discover to my L. of Bedford that there was a Conspiracy to raise Arms and that he was in it This would have been an aspersion upon my Lord of Bedford that any such thing should have been said Mr. Edw. Howard is the next and he proves That my L. Howard used solemn Protestations that he knew nothing of this Conspiracy I did observe that worthy Gentleman in the beginning of his Discourse for it was pretty long said first That he had been several times tempting my Lord Howard to come over and be serviceable to the King and if he knew any thing that he would come and confess it Why Gen-men Mr. Howard that had come to him upon these Errands formerly and had thought he had gained him I conceive you do not wonder if my Lord Howard did not reveal himself to him who presently would have discovered it for for that arrand he came But if my Lord had had a design to have come in and saved his Life he would have made his Submission voluntarily and made his Discovery But my Lord tells nothing till he is pinched in his Conscience and confounded with the Guilt being then in Custody and then he tells the whole Truth that which you have heard this day Gentlemen this hath been all that hath been objected against the Witnesses except what is said by Dr. Burnet and he saies that my L. Howard declared to him that he believed there was no Plot and laughed at it Why Gentlemen the Doctor would take it ill to be thought a person fit to be intrusted with the discovery of this therefore what he said to him signifies nothing for 't is no more than this that he did not discover it to the Doctor But the last Objection which I see there has been a great many Persons of Honour and Quality called to is That 't is not likely my Lord Russel should be guilty of any thing in this kind being a man of that Honor Vertue and so little blamable in his whole Conversation I do confess Gentlemen this is a thing that hath weight in it But consider on the other hand my Lord Russel is but a man and hath his humane frailties about him Men fall by several temptations some out of revenge some by malice fall into such offences as these are my Lord Russel is not of that temper and therefore may be these are not the ingredients here But Gentlemen there is another great and dangerous temptation that attends people in his circumstances whether it be Pride or Ambition or the cruel snare of Popularity being cried up as a Patron of Liberty This hath been a dangerous temptation to many and many persons of Vertue have fallen into it and 't is the only way to tempt persons
Ferguson that was the person he kept company with the Reverend Dean and the rest of the Clergy of the Church of England they were not fit to be trusted with it but this Independent Person Ferguson he gives notice of the coming of the persons and in pursuance of this notice they all come they come late in the Evening not in the posture and quality they use to go for you find they had not so much as a Coach Is it probable they came to tast Wine Wherefore did they go up into a room Wherefore did they order Mr. Sheppard that none of the Boys should come up but that the Master must fetch the Sugar and Wine himself wherefore you may perceive the Action they were upon there were only to be such persons as had an affection for such a cause You find pursuant to what Col. Romsey says that there was a direction to take a view of the Guards that Sir Tho. Armstrong comes back and makes this Report says he I have taken notice they are in such an idle careless posture that it is not impossible to surprize them This Mr. Sheppard he does not come nor does he appear to you to come here out of any vindictive humor to do the Prisoner at the Bar any hurt In the next place we have my Lord Howard he comes and positively tells you after he had given an account for you observe there were two parts to be acted in this horrid Tragedy there was first the Scoundrel sort of People were to be concerned to take away the Life of the King and the Duke the Great Persons were to head the Party in the Rising they put themselves in proper postures each of them consenting to something of the Surprize in as much as you observe that Sir Thomas Armstrong and some other Persons might not be trusted They come and resolve themselves out of a General Council and they meet in a particular Council of Six looking upon themselves as the Heads of the Party And I must tell you many of them we live not in an age of such obscurity but we know them how fond have they been of the applause of the people As that person encouraged himself yesterday they were Liberatores Patriae that could Murder the King and the Duke My Lord I must take notice that this noble Lord is known to have an intimacy with him you observe with how much tenderness he is pleased to deliver himself how carefully he reports the Debates of the particular Consults of the persons to be intrusted in the management he tells you that Noble Lord the Prisoner at the Bar was pitched upon and Algernoon Sidney a man Famous about the Town for what To call in Parties from some of his Majesties other Dominions persons we know ripe enough for Rebellion to assist Pursuant to this you find persons sent of a Message for some to come over whereof some are in hold So that for all dark and obscure sort of matters nothing can be better brought to light than this of taking all matters together with the concurring Circumstances of Time and Place Gentlemen I must confess this Noble Lord hath given an account by several Honourable persons of his Conversation which is a very easie matter Do you think if any man had a design to raise a Rebellion against the Crown that he would talk of it to the Reverend Divines and the Noble Lords that are known to be of Integrity to the Crown Do you think the Gentleman at the Bar would have so little concern for his own life to make this Discourse his ordinary Conversation No it must be a particular Consult of Six that must be intrusted with this I tell you 't is not the Divines of the Church of England but an Independent Divine that is to be concerned in this they must be persons of their own complexion and humour For Men will apply themselves to proper Instruments Gentlemen I would not labour in this case for far be it from any man to endeavour to take away the Life of the Innocent And whereas that Noble Lord says he hath a vertuous good Lady he hath many Children he hath Vertue and Honour he puts into the Scale Gentlemen I must tell you on the other side you have Consciences Religion you have a Prince and a mercifull one too consider the life of your Prince the life of his Posterity the consequences that would have attended if this Villany had taken effect What would have become of your Lives and Religion what would have become of that Religion we have been so fond of preserving Gentlemen I must put these things home upon your Consciences I know you will remember the horrid Murder of that most pious Prince the Martyr King Charles the First How far the Practices of those persons have influenced the several Punishments since is too great a secret for me to examine But now I say you have the Life of a merciful King you have a Religion that every honest man ought to stand by and I am sure every loyal man will venture his Life and Fortune for You have your Wives and Children Let not the Greatness of any man corrupt you but discharge your Consciences both to God and the King and to your Posterity L. C. J. Gentlemen of the Jury the Prisoner at the Bar stands indicted before you of High Treason in compassing and designing the Death of the King and in declaring of it by Overt Acts endeavouring to raise Insurrections and popular Commotions in the Kingdom here To this he hath pleaded not Guilty You have heard the Evidence that hath been against him it hath been at large repeated by the Kings Counsel which will take off a great deal of my trouble in repeating it to you again I know you cannot but take notice of it and remember it it having been stated twice by two of the Kings Counsel to you 't is long and you see what the parties here have proved There is first of all Col. Romsey he does attest a Meeting at Mr. Sheppards House and you hear to what purpose he says it was the Message that he brought and the Return he had it was to enquire concerning a Rising at Taunton and that he had in Return to my Lord Shaftsbury was that Mr. Trenchard had failed them and my Lord must be contented for it could not be at that time You hear that he does say that they did design a Rising he saith there was a Rising designed in November I think he saith the 17 th upon the day of Qu. Elizabeths Birth You hear he does say There was at that Meeting some Discourse concerning inspecting the Kings Guards and seeing how they kept themselves and whether they might be surprised and this he says was all in order to a Rising He says that at this my Lord Russel was present Mr. Sheppard does say that my Lord Russel was there That he came into this Meeting with the Duke