Malice c. for he was so far acquainted with himself as that he knew himself to be the humblest Man alive I 'll try that presently says the Duke and so as a Testimony of his great Humility orders him Spaniel-like to take several Turns over and under the Bed his Grace and his Whore all the while lying in it which he did to Content and when 't was over Well says the Duke now I believe you and you shall have the Bishoprick of St. Davids Williams who knew the Disposal of the Seal was as Buckingham pleased durst do no otherwise than become Laud's Advocate to the King but the King was at first utterly averse from it giving Laud's Marriage of the Lady Rich and his urging the King not to rest at the five Articles of Perth for some Reasons but the Keeper persisting and alledging how sorry Laud was for these the King at last said And is there no hoe but you will carry it then take him to you but on my Soul you will repent it and so went away in Anger using other fierce and ominous Words which were divulged in Court and are too tart to be repeated as you may read fol. 64. tit 75. in the Life of Archbishop Williams It 's observable that Benefits conferred upon Ambitious Men never create any Obligation of Gratitude on the contrary ill Men generally turn the Benefits received to the Ruin and Overthrow of their Benefactors More likely Instances hereof are rarely to be found than in Laud and Buckingham this having received his first Admission into the King's Favour by the Mediation of the Archbishop to the Queen Ann none else being able to perswade her to it yet before the Arch-bishop could bring the Queen to it she often told him My Lord You and the rest of your Friends know not what you do I know your Master the King better than you all for if this young Man be once brought in the first Persons that he will plague must be you that labour for him yea I shall have my part also the King will teach him to despise and hardly intreat us all that he may be beholden to none but himself as you may read in his own Narrative in Rushworth from fol. 438 to fol. 461. But Laud's Contrivance to ruin Williams after Bishop of Lincoln takes up almost a Volume reported by the Bishop of Litchfield and by what villanous Instruments Perjuries Subornation and keeping back of Witnesses expunging and razing Records and by displacing Sir Robert Heath from being Lord Chief Justice because he would not do Laud's Drudgery and bringing in Sir John Finch who would jurare in Verba Magistri as well as throw down the Bounds of the Forests to make the King's Subjects Inheritances to be a Prey to wild Beasts yet after Laud had perpetrated all these he confest he never read the Commission by which he acted See the second Part of the Bishop of Lincoln's Life However Laud could make no great Progress of his Malice against the Keeper in the Shortness of the Reign of King James after he became Bishop for the King had the Keeper's Parts and Learning in high Esteem tho Buckingham both hated and feared the Keeper for them no great sign of a wise Statesman see the Bishop of Litchfield's Life of Arch-bishop Williams Part 1. fol. 148. tit 156. and had so little Wit as to say so Yet Laud now a Bishop from a Stickler and Informer against those who opposed the Arminian Tenets now becomes a Patron and Promoter of them all Court-Favour now looked that way and the Opposers of them were discountenanced and ranked in the Degree of Puritans all the Youth generally ran that way and the Schools in both Universities rung loud upon those Tenets and from thence were dispersed into all Parts of the Kingdom The King having spent the two Subsidies granted in Parliament and the Benevolence which he had by his own Authority raised all over England for the Recovery of the Palatinate upon the Prince's Expedition into Spain Buckingham to his Project of getting the Dean and Chapters Lands propounds the Sale of all the Crown-Lands but this meeting with many Difficulties and being disswaded from the farther Prosecution of it by the powerful Reasons of my Lord Keeper Williams there was now no other means left to get Money but by calling a Parliament And now Buckingham courts the popular Humour and appears most forward for to make appear in Parliament the Reasons which induced him to perswade the Prince to break off from the Match with Spain which tho it took at present yet it was but short-lived for the Treaty of the Marriage between the Prince and Daughter of France spoil'd all But this was not known during the sitting of the Parliament which met upon the 16th of February 1623-24 We hear of no Proclamation now against talking of State-Affairs the debating of them in Parliament is not Sutor ultra crepidam on the contrary the King in his first Speech to them the 19th of February tells them He craves their Advice and that he would advise with them in Matters concerning his Estate and Dignity and that he had ever endeavoured by this and the like ways to procure and cherish the Love of his People towards him So he does hope and his Hope exceeded by Faith that never any King was more beloved by his People c. Let any Man compare this with what the King said and did last Parliament and after and judg of the Sincerity of this part of the King's Speech especially when he remembred himself better when in his last Speech to this Parliament he boasted he had broken the Necks of three Parliaments which were all that were in his Reign but this But these were but Generals of which he complains afterwards having learn'd it of his Scholar Buckingham in particular he asks their free Counsels in the Match of his Son the debating of which last Parliament gave him so great Offence Now at this time the King had broke off the Match in Spain and was treating another with France which was greedily entertained in the French Court and some Progress made in it of which the King never that I can find or do believe mentioned one word to the Parliament The next Particular which the King communicated to them was of his Scholar but now his Master Buckingham in whom he the King ever reposed the most Trust of his Person that he should be ever present with the Prince in Spain and never leave him till he returned again safely to him which he did tho not with that Effect of the Business expected yet not without Profit for it taught him the King this point of Wisdom Qui versatur in generalibus is easily deceived and that Generality brings nothing to good Issue but that before any Matter can be fully finished it must be brought to Particulars for when he thought the Affair had been before their going reduced to
revoke those Powers more than by the Clause De non revocando procuratore inserted in the Instrument it self and then he conceived the Clause to be matter of Form and tho essentially of no binding Power yet usually thrust into every such Instrument and that the Civilians hold That it is lawful by the Civil and Canon Law for any Man to revoke his Proxy of Marriage notwithstanding it hath the Clause De non revocando procuratore inserted in it Therefore the Duke concluded as to this point That the Earl of Bristol in charging this Matter so highly upon the Prince had much forget himself Can any Man believe that when the Prince made the Procuration to the King of Spain and his Brother to his Espousals with the Infanta in his Name and left it in the Earl of Bristol's hands with the Clause De non revocando procuratore that he then had consulted with the Civilians that he might revoke it when he pleased or that this Marriage nine Years in treating was not founded upon the Honour and Oaths of the Kings the Prince and of Buckingham himself but upon the Niceties and Quirks of the Civilians Or did it become the Prince or the Duke either who when he parted from the King of Spain at the Escurial solemnly to swear the Treaty of Marriage and the Furtherance of it by all that was in his Power in the presence of the Earl of Bristol and Sir Walter Ashton as you may read in Rushworth fol. 285. and now in the face of the King and Parliament to plead a Nicety of the Civilians to absolve the Prince and himself Now let us see what the Earl of Bristol says for himself for the Duke's Charge upon him for Proceedings upon this Match His Reasons were 1. For that he had a Warrant under the Prince's hand for his Proceedings to consummate the Match 2. It was the main Scope of his Embassy 3. He was enjoined by the King and Prince's Commission under the Great Seal 4. He had positive Orders under his Majesty's hand King James since 5. It was agreed by Capitulation that it should be within so many days after the coming of the Dispensation 6. The King James and Prince signified by their Letters to him at the same time when they discharged him of his Commandment touching the Infanta's entring into Religion that they intended to proceed in the Marriage which Letters bear date the 8th of October 1623. 7. The Proxies were to that end left in his hands and after again renewed after the Prince's return into England 8. That he the Earl had overthrown the Marriage without Order for tho Sir Walter Aston and himself had used all possible means for gaining time and deferring the Desponsories yet the King of Spain caused it to be protested that in case the Earl should insist upon the deferring the Desponsories he would free himself from the Treaty by the Earl's infringing the Capitulations And in truth altho the King of Spain should have condescended to have prolonged the Desponsories until one of the Days of Christmas as by the Letter was required yet the Prince's Proxies had been before that time expired and he durst not without a precise Warrant put such a Scorn upon so noble a Lady whom he then conceived was like to have been the Prince's Wife as to nominate a Day of Marriage when the Proxies were out of date and he himself had sworn to the Treaty 9. He the Earl could not in Honour and Honesty but endeavour to perform that publick Trust reposed in him when the Proxies were deposited in his hands with publick and legal Declaration with an Instrument by a Secretary of State to the King of Spain leading and directing the Use of them and the same being then Instrumentum Stipulatum wherein as well the King of Spain was interested by the Acceptation of the Substitution as the Prince by granting the Proxies he could not in Honesty fail the publick Trust without clear and undoubted Warrant which so soon as he had he obeyed See Rushworth fol. 301 302. The Duke 's stating the Question super totam materiam was Whether this being the full Effect and Product of this Negotiation he had opened to them the Parliament be sufficient super totam materiam for his Majest to rely upon with any Safety as well for the Marriage of his only Son as for the Relief of his only Daughter Or that these Treaties set aside his Majesty were best to trust in his own Strength and to stand upon his own Feet So the Duke ended That if the bringing us from Darkness to Light did deserve any Thanks we must wholly ascribe it to his Highness the Prince Here is a Tale finely told parte inaudita altera but the Duke shall hear more of it and indeed it was a Net so spread in the sight of every Bird that it was a wonder it should catch any for at this time the Match was quite broke off with Spain and another entered upon with France when it must be suposed forsooth the Spanish Match was in Treaty and now must be broken off by Advice in Parliament which was before such a Mystery of State as not to be meddled with in Parliament But while the Prince and Duke were wrapt up in security of the Parliament as well as the King's Affections and that now the Duke was become as well the Peoples as the King's Favourite a new Accident happened out of which if the Prince and Duke had not been extricated by the matchless Wit and lively Industry of the Keeper in all appearance it would have put both Prince and Duke out of the King's Favour and Affections dissolved this beloved Parliament and have brought such a train of mischievous Consequences as could not have been foreseen or prevented I desire to be excused if I do not cite the Bishop of Litchfield's words in the Life of the Lord Keeper for I think the Case will more clearly appear without his Paraphrases and Glosses While the Marriage between the Prince and Infanta was in Treaty the King of Spain sent Don John Marquess Inoiosa his Ambassador to be resident in England a Man of true Spanish Gravity and Severity and a most rigid Promoter of the Popish Interest in England so that he was taken notice of to be the most surly and unpleasing Man that ever came to the Keeper about any Business If this Man were thus during the Treaty it could not be expected he would become better natur'd upon the breaking of it and the Duke of Buckingham was as jealous of him that he should spoil the Narrative he had made of the Proceedings in the Spanish Match as he was of the Earl of Bristol and therefore would never admit the Marquess to have any private Audience of the King in the Duke's Absence so that Sir Walter Aston wrote from Spain that it was complained of that Marquess Inoiosa had advertised thither he had not been able
that rather than forsake their Seats in Parliament they 'll lose their Places at Court You have heard how my Lord Privy-Seal became Lord Chief-Justice of the King's-Bench after which the King made him Earl of Manchester Lord Privy-Seal and President of the Council my Lord-Keeper Coventry was upright in all his Decrees but my Lord Privy-Seal sets up the Court of Requests to have a concurring Jurisdiction with the Chancery and Men whom my Lord Coventry did not please brought their Causes into the Court of Requests so that in a short time the Practice of this Court swell'd so much that my Lord Privy-Seal made more Clerks and Attorneys than ever was known before King Charles sent to the Bishop of Ely that he the King would have Hatton-House in Holborn for Prince Charles his Court and that the King would be at the Charges for maintaining the Bishop's Title tho the Bishop told me it cost him many a Pound so in the Bishop's Name a Suit was commenced in the Court of Requests for Hatton-House Before the new Buildings were built Hatton-Garden was the â—â—nest and greatest in or about London and my Lady Hatton had planted it with the best Fruit Vines and Flowers which could be got but upon commencing this Suit she destroy'd all the Plantations yet defended her Cause with all Opposition imaginable But at last in 1639 notice was given to my Lady to hear Judgment and at the day my Lady appear'd in Court when my Lord Privy-Seal demanded of my Lady's Counsel If they had any more to say otherwise upon his Honour he must decree against my Lady Hereupon my Lady stood up and said Good my Lord be tender of your Honour for 't is very young and for your Decree I value it not a Rush for your Court is no Court of Record And the Troubles in Scotland growing higher the King had no Benefit of the Decree nor my Lord any Credit in his Court ever after Nor were the Descendants of many of the King's Favourites more faithful to the King than their Fathers as the Lord Kimbolton Sir Henry Vane jun. Sir John Cooke Henry Martin c. Now when it was too late like a Man who begins his Business the last day of the Term the King seems to alter his Countenance and indulge another sort of Men in Church and State who were opposite to the Principles in Bishop Laud's Regency Dr. Williams censured and imprisoned in the Tower has all the Proceedings against him in the Star-Chamber and High-Commission revers'd and taken off the File and Mountague Bishop of Norwich dying in the beginning of the Parliament Dr. Hall is translated from Exeter to Norwich and Dr. Brownrig a most learned and zealous Anti-Arminian is made Bishop of Exeter c. my Lord Chamberlain Pembroke is removed and the Earl of Essex put in his place Sir Robert Holborn made Attorney-General and Oliver St. John Solicitor both which were Mr. Hambden's Counsel against the Legality of Ship-Money But neither these Actions nor the King 's repeated Royal Word could gain Credit with the Parliament I mean the Houses who tho at another time they would have dreaded a standing Army now resolve to maintain two till their Grievances were redrest And sure now it was a lamentable State the King was reduced to he that before rather than hear of what he had done did not care what he did and therefore dissolved four Parliaments now every day hears of what he had done yet cannot help it His Judges which before had refused to bail his Subjects committed by the King without Cause are themselves now committed against the King's Pleasure and no Bail to be taken for them The King's Customers who by the King's Order seized and sold the Merchants Goods for non-payment of Duties not legally imposed are themselves seized and fined more than they are worth Herein the King was only passive but the Houses would not stay here but tho the Commons at first impeached the Earl of Strafford before the Lords in their Judicial Capacity wherein the King's Consent was not actually necessary yet they after proceeded against him by Bill wherein the Attainder must be actually assented to by the King personally or by Commission which the King did my Lord Privy-Seal and the Earl of Arundel I believe very unwillingly being Commissioners and the same day passed an Act That the Parliament should not be Prorogued Adjourned nor Dissolved without their own Consent which proved as great a Grievance as the King 's proroguing and dissolving them at Pleasure And the passing these Laws so frightned my Lord Treasurer Juxton the Master of the Court of Wards and the Governor of the Prince that they all resign'd their Places Besides these the King passed an Act for a Triennial Parliament to meet if not by usual means then by others whether the King would or not And an Act for the utter abolishing the Star-Chamber and High-Commission Courts And to make it a Praemunire in every one of the Privy-Council to determine any Causes cognisable at Common Law An Act to abolish the Court of the Council and President of the North and an Act to rescind the Jurisdiction of the Court of Stanneries An Act to repeal the Branch of a Statute made the first of Eliz. cap. 1. to authorize Ecclesiastical Persons natural born Subjects of England to reform Errors Heresies Schisms c. An Act for declaring Ship-Money and all Proceedings therein void An Act for ascertaining the Bounds and Limits of the Forests as they were in the 20th Year of King James And an Act to prevent the vexatious Proceedings touching the Order of Knighthood These Acts thus passed the Houses thought themselves secure enough and so paid off and disbanded the English and Irish Armies and sent the Scots into their Country again The much greater part of the Gentry and also of the Members of both Houses would have been content to have staid here and many believed if the Parliament had met at York or Oxford they would but this could not be without disgusting the City of London from which only the Loan of 200000 l. could be raised for Payment of the Armies till Provision could be made by Parliament But it was decreed that things should not rest here and that the Faction in the House of Commons might get a Majority at one Vote as they order'd it they voted all those who had been instrumental in Monopolies or in Ship-Money or Collectors of the Customs out of the House and others to be chosen in their Places And the Rabble in the City in Tumults exclaim'd against the Bishops and Popish Lords Votes hereupon the Bishops enter their Protestations against all Proceedings till they might sit and vote freely whereupon they are committed to the Tower and a Law was passed to disable the whole Hierarchy for the future to have any Place in Parliament As the Scots began their Reformation with a Covenant so the Commons began theirs with a
ensue upon such tumultuous Concourse of Men. And why was not this a reasonable Excuse for the King to leave the Parliament and City when they countenanced these Tumults and the King had not Power to suppress them Mr. May goes on and says Vpon this ground twelve Bishops at that time absenting themselves entred a Protestation against all Laws Votes and Orders as Null which in their Absence should pass by reason they durst not for fear of their Lives come to perform their Duties in the House having been rudely menaced and assaulted And why might not the Bishops enter such Protestation for if it be a Maxim in all Assemblies that Plus valet contemptus unius quam consensus omnium then does the Contempt and Affront of a whole Order of Men who have a Right of Suffrage much more render the Actions of the rest invalid However Mr. May goes on and says Whereupon it was agreed by both Lords and Commons that this Protestation of the Bishops was of dangerous Consequence and deeply entrenched upon the Privilege and Being of Parliaments they were therefore accused of High-Treason apprehended and committed Prisoners to the Tower And I say a time shall come when in Parliament these Men who run thus high against the Bishops and established Church of England shall be prosecuted by a contrary Extream and the Church by Law exalted higher than it was before Mr. May goes on and says Thus was the Parliament daily troubled with ill Work whereby the Relief of Ireland was hindred If they were thus troubled they may thank themselves for beginning these Troubles as well by the Commons Remonstrance against the King and Lords as by their countenancing the Tumults By this time things were so envenom'd as would admit of no Lenitives especially by the Commons and the King went from London to Hampton-Court and sent a Message to the Parliament and advises them To digest into one Body all the Grievances of the Kingdom and send them to him promising his favourable Assent to those Means which should be found most effectual for Redress wherein he would not only equal but excel the most indulgent Princes The Parliament thank'd him but nothing but having the Militia at their Disposal would secure their Fears and Jealousies This was as new in England as the perpetuating the sitting of the Parliament and if the King should grant it it would be a total Subversion of the Monarchy For the Parliament being perpetual and having the Power of the Militia the Government must be either a Commonwealth or an Oligarchy and the King insignificant in it yet have it the Parliament would notwithstanding other Grievances and the deplorable State of Ireland And therefore upon the 26th of February they tell the King plainly That the settling the Business of the Militia will admit no more Delay and if his Majesty shall still refuse to agree with his two Houses of Parliament in that Business and shall not be pleased upon their humble Advice to do what they desire therein that then for the Safety of his Majesty of Themselves and the whole Kingdom and to preserve the Peace thereof and to prevent future Fears and Jealousies they shall be constrained of themselves without his Majesty to settle that necessary Business of the Militia See Whit. M. f. 54. a. Here 't is observable That as the King feigned a Necessity to raise Ship-money for the Good and Safety of the Kingdom in general when the whole Kingdom is in danger the Judges gave their Opinion That the King may by his Writ under the Broad Seal of England command all his Subjects of this Kingdom to provide and furnish such Number of Ships with Men Victuals and Ammunition and for such time as the King shall think fit for the Defence and Safeguard of the Kingdom from such Peril and Danger and that by Law the King may compel the doing thereof in Case of Refusal and Refractoriness and that in such Case the King is sole Judg both of the Danger and when and how the same may be prevented and avoided So now the Parliament pretending a Necessity for the Safety of the King and of Themselves and the whole Kingdom and to preserve the Peace thereof will tear the Militia from him In this State things could not stand long at a Stay Mr. May p. 47. will have the Queen 's going into Holland with her Daughter and carrying with her the Crown-Jewels of England and pawning them there whereby she bought Arms for the War which ensued that it was then designed by the King against the Parliament but if Mr. May had been sincere he should have told too as Mr. Whitlock does f. 59. a. how the Parliament took 100000 l. of the 400000 l. they voted to be raised for Ireland and whether this was not for the War which ensued in England Mr. May p. 48. recites three Votes of Parliament 1. That the King's Absence so far remote being then at York from his Parliament is not only an Obstruction but may be a Destruction to the Affairs in Ireland 2. That when the Lords and Commons in Parliament shall declare what the Law of the Land is to have this not only questioned and controverted but contradicted and a Command that it should not be obeyed is a high Breach of the Privilege of Parliament 3. That they who advised the King to absent himself from the Parliament are Enemies to the Peace of this Kingdom and justly to be suspected to be Favourites of the Rebellion in Ireland But Mr. May should have added that it is not the King's Presence in London or any other Place but his assenting to Bills presented to him which he may do by Commission as well as Personally that enacts them into Laws and that the King after he went from London passed the Bill for taking away the Bishops Votes in Parliament and that no Clergy-Man should exercise any Temporal Jurisdiction which the King did with remorse enough and only to humour and appease the Temporal Lords and Commons in Parliament and the Bishops in Parliament are one of the 3 States of England The King moreover in his Absence upon a Motion by the Parliament put Sir John Byron from being Lieutenant of the Tower and Sir John Conniers to succeed him and refers the Consideration of the Government and Liturgy of the Church wholly to the two Houses see Whitlock's M. f. 53. b. But nothing less than the King 's parting with the Militia would satisfy the Parliament which the King would not part from so now it 's left fair for indifferent Men to judg whether the King or Parliament or both designed the ensuing War And to proceed to set forth who began it I have said in the first Page of this King's Reign or p. 153 That the first Fifteen Years of it were perfectly French and such as were never before seen or heard of in the English Nation this brought on a miserable War in all the Three
Contentions not only in civil but religious Affairs Having given an Account of the Reasons of the Ruine of the Roman Western Empire and how like our Case is to that of the Empire in its Declension It 's time to take a view of the State of the Goths and Vandals after they had planted themselves in Spain and herein I observe that though the Romans as well as Grecians esteem all other Nations barbarous but themselves yet the Government of them was equal if not better than either for it was a Regular Monarchy wherein the King did not govern by an absolute despotick Power but by established Laws nor could they make new nor alter the old or raise Money without the Consent of the States of their Kingdoms and this continued for many Hundred Years after how many of the Kingdoms in Spain lost these Privileges is too long to be inserted here yet at this Day the Kingdom of Arragon retains them So that the King of Spain never speaks to them as King of Castile In the Reign of Honorius and Arcadius Ann. 408. about five Years before Gundericus entred Spain Attila King of the Huns over-run the Empire and pierced into Gaul with a huge Army against whom Honorius sent Ecius the greatest General of his time with an Imperial Army which was raised in all parts of the Empire so as Ecius was forced to withdraw the Roman Legions in Britain to oppose Attila nor did they ever return more so that the poor Britains being enured to no warlike Discipline but only to serve their imperious Masters easily became a Prey to the Picts and Scots and so were in a more servile State than when they were under the Romans To redeem themselves from which they called the English Saxons to their Assistance who used them worst of all and expelled the whole Race of them out of that part of Britain now called England But this is observable That as in these Times the rest of the Roman Empire was over-spread with Arianism so was that part of Britain subject to the Roman Empire over-spread with Pelagianism and here observe the Justice of God upon them that these Men who ascribed to themselves a Power of Salvation without God's special Grace and Favour to them should not be able to save themselves from their Enemies but be either slaughtered by them or expelled their Native Country upon the Earth The Saxons which conquered the Britains were Heathen yet was their Government as well as that of the Goths a Regular Monarchy and so continued in all the Dynasties of their Kings and yet is continued notwithstanding the several Attempts of many of the Kings of the Norman and the Scotish Race to the contrary About ten Years after Ecius recalled the Roman Legions out of Britain viz. in 418. Pharamond entred Gaul and conquered some part of it which he called France after the Name of the Franks and Pharamond was Heathen and so was Meroveus his Successor and Childerick his Son and so continued till about the Year 490 when Clovis was converted to Christianity of whom Messeray glories that he was the only King in the World which was not Infidel or Heretick However the Government of the Franks as well as the Goths and Saxons was a Regular Monarchy till the Reign of Charles the 7th about the Year 1430. which was above a thousand Years after the Franks planted themselves in Gaul If we look back into the Reign of Henry the 2d of England we shall find him it may be the greatest of all the Western Kings and Lord if not of the greatest yet best part of France as he was Duke of Normandy and Aquitain in Right of his Wife Eleanor Aquitain having the Ocean on the West and Normandy the British Sea on the North. But this Dominion did not last long for King Henry's Son and John's Son Henry the 3d endeavouring to usurp a more than Legal Authority over their Subjects caused such a Ferment and Discord in the Kingdom and this lasted near 70 Years that the Kings of France in the mean time took all Normandy and the greatest part of Aquitain from the English When King James became King of England Henry the 4th was French King having composed by Force and Clemency the Civil Wars which had raged near 40 Years all over France and in the Year 1597 made Peace with Spain which was about 5 Years before King James became King of England and here let 's take a view of Spain Though Spain were 1 3 greater than France when King James came to the Crown of England yet France was I believe fivefold better peopled and generally a more fruitful Country How this came to pass it's fit to look back upon the Cause of the Sterility of Men in Spain and their abounding in France Ferdinand and Isabella King and Queen of Castile and Arragon about the Year 1490 having conquered the Kingdoms of Granada and Murcia and against their Faith given to the Moors brought in the Inquisition upon them the greatest part of the Moors forsook their Country and thereby left the Kingdoms of Granada and Murcia so much less peopled and Ferdinand and Isabella being addicted to the Roman Religion established manifold Bishopricks and Religious Houses in these Kingdoms of both Sexes and the Pope though he pleases to make Marriage a Sacrament yet forbids it to the Clergy and other of both Sexes who take upon them a Religious Life whereby as the Moors leaving Spain unpeopled it at present so future Generations became so much less replenished by how much more People took upon them a Religious Habit. But this Mischief did not stop here for Philip the 2d great Grand-Son of Ferdinand and Isabella and a most bigotted Prince to the Romish Superstition brought the Inquisition upon the Converted Moors which drove them out of Spain to the farther unpeopling of it and my Lord Bacon says that many of these poor converted Moors became as persecuted in their Exile for their Religion as if they had continued in Spain And this Mischief further followed not only to Spain but to Christendom for the exiled Moors having no other Habitation and Means of Living set up their Trade of Piracy in Algiers Tunis and Tripoli within the Straits and in Sally without whereby they have been a Plague to all other Christians as well as Spaniards who trade into the Straits and Affrick and other Southern Countries ever since About the time that Ferdinand and Isabel conquered Spain Columbus discovered the West-Indies and Hornando Cortez siding with one part of the Indians which were at War against the other and thereby becoming Conqueror of those he fought against he got incredible Wealth with a Discovery of the Rich Mines in Mexico The Blaze of this quickly flew all over Spain so that the Spaniards expected Mountains of Gold in running out of Spain into America and therefore near half Spain ran into America to seek new Adventures there the covetous
Countess and Mrs. Turner to be Under-keeper to Sir Thomas and had a Promise of 200 l. Reward when Sir Thomas should be dispatched and that he might with more Secrecy work his Design the Lieutenant had Orders from Northampton and Rochester that no Man else should come at Sir Thomas and Turner only to wait upon him at Table and to give Order for his Diet and Drinks Sir Thomas thus mew'd up and excluded from the Sight of his nearest Relations and Servants upon the 9th of May was begun the Practice of poisoning Sir Thomas in his Broth which Weston brought him and this was continued with many Varieties of Poisoning till the 14th of September when by a Glyster for which the Administer had 20 l. Reward he was dispatched but the Malice against Sir Thomas did not end with his Death for the Blanes and Blisters which the Poison had caused upon his Body were interpreted to be the Effects of the French-Pox and his Body was irreverently buried in a Pit digged in a very mean Place Here we may see the unhappy Fate of Princes above other Men who neglecting their Duty give themselves up to be governed by Minions and Favourites for private Men are accountable only for their own Actions whereas Princes are accountable to God and Fame for all the ill Actions of their Ministers and how many ways was the King's Name used and abused in perpetrating this black and horrid Murder First in getting the King to send Sir Thomas on the Embassage to Russia Secondly in committing him to the Tower for refusal Thirdly in keeping him close Prisoner there which was a Practice never known before for a Contempt that any Man should be close confined from all his Relations and Servants and 't was a greater Villany to practise Sir Thomas his Death while he was the King's Prisoner than if he had been at large as being more immediately under the King's Protection These Considerations little affected the Court and Sir Overbury's Destruction went but half way towards the designed Marriage between Rochester and the Countess of Essex but a Commission of Delegates under the Broad Seal is issued out to the Arch-Bishop of Canterbury Dr. Abbot the Bishops of London Winchester Ely Litchfield and Coventry and Rochester Sir Julius Caesar Sir Thomas Parrey Sir Daniel Danne Sir John Bennet Francis James and Thomas Edwards Doctors of the Civil Law at the Suit of the Countess for a Divorce from the Earl of Essex Here you may see the Ascendant Rochester and Northampton had over the King not only in getting this Commission wherein the King's Name and Authority was abused but they procured the King in the hearing of the Countess's Cause to be her Advocate in answering the Objections which the Arch-Bishop made against the Divorce so as this Matter was managed the Bishops of Winchester Dr. Bilson of Ely Dr. Andrews of Litchfield and Coventry and Rochester with Sir Julius Caesar Sir Thomas Parrey and Sir Daniel Dunne were for the Divorce and that the Countess was Virgo non vitiata and that there was Frigidity in the Earl and the Marriage a Nullity and decreed the Earl to repay the Countess her Portion but the ABp the Bp of London and Bennet James and Edwards Doctors of the Civil-Law were against it Thus far was the King's Name and Authority abused in the attaining the Murder of Sir Thomas Overbury and the designed Marriage between Rochester and the Countess of Essex for Overbury being dead and the Divorce obtained the Countess must not lose the Title by this Marriage and thereupon the 4th of November Rochester is created Earl of Somerset All things are now prepared for the hopeful Marriage and that the Solemnity at the ending of it might out-vie that of the Palsgrave and the Lady Elizabeth upon the 6th of December the Earl and Countess were married at White-hall in the Presence of the King and Queen Prince and a great confluence of the Bishopâ— and Temporal Nobility the Bishop of Bath and Wells married them and Dr. Mountaine Dean of Westminster preached the Nuptial Sermon and that Night there was a gallant Masque of Lords but upon the Wednesday following the 29th there was another of the Prince's Gentlemen which quite out-did this and pleased the King so well that he caused it to be acted again on the Monday following being the 3d of January But White-hall was too narrow to contain the Triumphs for this Marriage they must be extended into the City and upon the 4th of January the Bride and Bridegroom accompanied by the Duke of Lenox my Lord Privy Seal Northampton the Lord Chamberlain the Earls of Worcester Pembroke and Montgomery with a numerous Train of Nobility and Gentry were invited to a Treat in the City at Merchant-Taylors Hall where my Lord Mayor and Aldermen entertained them in their Scarlet Gowns At their Entry they were accosted by a gratulatory Speech and Musick the Feast which was most sumptuous served by the choicest Citizens selected out of the 12 Companies in their Gowns and rich Foines After Supper they were entertained with a Wassaile two pleasant Masques a Play and Dancing and after all the Bride and Bridegroom with all this Noble Crew were invited to a Princely Banquet and at three in the Morning the Bride and Bridegroom returned to Whitehall and before this Surfeit of Pleasure and Excess was well digested the Gentlemen of Grays-Inn upon Twelfth-Day invited the Bride and Bridegroom to a Masque Thus these Gaieties though they out-lived the Year yet ended in the Holy-days of Christmas as they began with them being the next Day after Christmas But before the end of this Year these Joys shall turn sharp and sower This Year 1614 as it was the Meridian of the King's Reign in England so was it of his Pleasures the King was excessively addicted to Hunting and Drinking not ordinary French and Spanish Wines but strong Greek Wines and though he would divide his Hunting from drinking these Wines yet he would compound his Hunting with drinking these Wines and to that purpose he was attended with a special Officer who was as much as could be always at hand to fill the King's Cup in his Hunting when he called for it I have heard my Father say that being hunting with the King after the King had drank of the Wine he also drank of it and though he was young and of an healthful Constitution it so disordered his Head that it spoiled his Pleasure and disordered him for three Days after Whether it were drinking these Wines or from some other Cause the King became so lazy and unweildy that he was treist on Horse-back and as he was set so would he ride without otherwise poising himself on his Saddle Nay when his Hat was set on his Head he would not take the pains to alter it but it sate as it was put on And as he thus gave himself up to Pleasure so he did to Favourites and Flatterers and scarce
more but to tell me who is your Ingineer that struck these Sparks out of the Flint to light the Candle to find the Groat which was lost The Prince stood mute and the Duke vowed he knew not the Author Well said the King I have a good Nostril and will answer mine own Question my Keeper had the main finger in it I dare swear he bolted the Flower and made it up into Past Sir said the Prince I was precluded by my Promise not to reveal him but I never promised to tell a Lie for him your Majesty has hit the Man And God do him good for it says the King I need not tell you both what you owe him for this Service he has done himself this Right with me that I discern his Sufficiency more and more This you may read in the Keeper's Life Part 1. from fol. 195 to fol. 200. and much more of the Bishop but I think but little more of the Keeper And tho the Spanish Ambassador received a sore Rebuke here and was sent back into Spain the Bishop says he received no Frown nor Disfavour there Now let 's see how the Duke requited the Keeper for his Service which was but in May In the beginning of Michaelmas-Term following the Duke perswaded my Lord Chief Justice Hobart to tell the King or give it under his hand that my Lord Keeper was not fit for the Place and he would undertake to cast the Keeper out and put my Lord Hobart into his place but my Lord Hobart said Somewhat might have been said at first but he should do my Lord Keeper great wrong that said so now See fol. 201. However such was the Temper of the Times that both Houses chimed in with the Duke in his Narrative and justified him against the Spanish Ambassador who took great Offence at the Duke's Relation as reflecting upon his Master's Honour and demanded his Head for Satisfaction The King was so pleased with the Parliament's Justification of the Duke as we have shewed before that as he had been his Favourite Somerset's Advocate to plead his Cause against the Opinion of Archbishop Abbot to make the Countess of Essex to be virgo intacta and so a fit Wife for Somerset so now he becomes his Disciple Buckingham's Advocate to make him a Favourite to the Nation and because of the Excellency and veracity of his Speech which should dispose the Nation to it we 'll give it you verbatim as it is to be seen in Rushworth fol. 127. My Lords and Gentlemen I Might have nothing to speak in regard of the Person whereof you spake but in regard of your Motion it were not civil for if I be silent I shall neither wrong my self nor that Noble Man which you now spake of because he is well known to be such an one as stands in no need of a Prolocutor or Fideâ—ussor to undertake for his Fidelity or well carrying of the Business And indeed to send a Man upon so great an Errand whom I was not to trust for the Carriage thereof were a Fault in my Discretion scarce compatible to the Love and Trust I bear him It is an old Saying That he is a happy Man that serves a good Master and it is no less true That he is a happy Master that enjoys a faithful Servant The greatest Fault if it be a Fault or at leastwise the greatest Error I hope he shall ever commit against me was his desiring this Justification from you as if he had need of any Justification from others towards me and that for these Reasons First Because he being my Disciple and Scholar he may be assured he will trust his own Relation Secondly Because he made the same Relation to me which he did afterwards to both Houses so as I was formerly acquainted with the Matter and Manner thereof and if I should not trust him in the Carriage I was altogether unworthy of such a Servant He hath no Interest of his own in the Business He had ill Thoughts at home for his going thither with my Son altho it was my Command as I told you before and now he hath as little Thanks for his Relation on the other part he has the Thanks of the Parliament yet he that serves God and a good Master cannot miscarry for all this I have noted in the Negotiation these three remarkable things Faith Diligence and Discretion whereof my Son has born Record unto me yet I cannot deny That as he thought to do good Service to his Master he has given an ill Example to Ambassadors in time to come because he went this long Journey upon his own Charge This will prove an ill Example if many of my Ambassadors should take it for a Precedent He run his Head into the Yoke with the People here for undertaking the Journey and when he had spent there 40 or 50000 l. where should he have this Money never offered his Account nor made any Demand for the same nor ever will I hope other Ambassadors will do so no more I am a good Master that never doubted him for I know him to be so good a Scholar of mine that I say without Vanity he will not exceed his Master's Dictates and I trust the Report not the worst he made because it is approved by you all and I am glad he hath so well satisfied you and thank you heartily for taking it in so good part as I find you have done Did ever any old experienced King as he stiles himself so dote upon a young raw and unexperienced Gentleman bred up in no sort of Learning or Business and scarce before he became a Courtier unless in his Infancy breathed any other than French Air as in the face of the Nation to magnify an invidious Tale told by the Duke to the Offence not only of the Spanish Ambassador conversant in the whole Affair but also without hearing the Earl of Bristol who was the greatest Statesman of England if not in Europe and who had so honourably performed several Embassies to the Honour of the King so far as the thing would bear and so manifoldly owned by the King That this Scholar of the King 's unacquainted with the Treaty should break in upon the Earl and not only unravel all but quarrel with him and in another King's Court with the prime Minister of State by whom he might best have attained his End if he designed any However the Parliament address themselves to the King and represent to him That he cannot in Honour proceed in the Treaty of the Match with Spain nor the Palatinate and the Commons offer the King three Subsidies and three Fifteenths for carrying on the War for the Recovery of the Palatinate in case the King will break off the Treaties which the King accepted protesting to God a Penny of this Money should not be bestowed but upon this Work and by their own Committees and the Commons took him at his Word and appointed
thereupon referred this Business to my Lord Keeper Williams my Lord Treasurer Cranfield the Duke of Richmond Marquess Hamilton the Earl of Arundel the Lord Carew and the Lord Belfast who all agreed that they could not say that the King of Spain had done the part of a Friend in the Recovery of the Palatinate as he had professed nor could find that he had acted the Part of an Enemy declaredly as the Duke objected and indeed my Lord Keeper's Reasons against the War governed all the rest that saw no Expediency for War upon the Grounds communicated by Buckingham And 't was more observable that during the whole Treaty while Buckingham was in Spain the Business of the Palatinate was never mentioned and now he is come out of it it must be the Cause of a War with the King of Spain The Keeper's Reasons were Vpon whom shall we fall Either upon the Emperor or King of Spain the Emperor had in a sort offered the King his Son-in-law's Country again for Payment of a great Sum of Money in recompence of Disbursments but where was the Money to be had yet it might be cheaper bought than conquered before a War was ended For the King of Spain he saw no Cause to assault him with Arms He had held us indeed in a long Treaty to our Loss but he held nothing from us and was more likely to continue the State of things in a State of Possibility of Accommodation because he disliked the Duke of Bavaria's Ambition and had rather stop the Enlargement of his Territories The King embraced this Advice nor did he stay here yet did not stay long but spake hardly of Buckingham who would have put him upon making War upon the King of Spain and the King's Censure upon him was so bitter Cabal Page 92. that it was fit to be cast over-board in Silence says the Bishop of Litchfield f. 169 170. tit 175. This Resolution of the Council was so little to the Duke's Satisfaction that the Bishop says in the same Tit. that it made the Duke rise up and chafe against them from Room to Room as a Hen that had lost her Brood and clucks up and down when she has none to follow her Nor did the Duke stop here but notwithstanding the fierce Anger of the King and his not answering one of the Keeper's Reasons he appealed from the Judgment of the Council to the Parliament Sure he durst not have done this if he had not been sure of the Prince to second him against the Opinion and Anger of his Father This was the third inexpiable Crime the Keeper had committed against the Duke the first was his Advice to the Duke when he was in Spain to hold a good Correspondence with the Earl of Bristol and Olivares but finding the contrary by a Letter to the Duke of the 28th of June which you may read in the Bishop of Litchfield's Life of Bishop Williams fol. 136. tit 146. and another of the 22d of July tit 155. fol. 147. where he in gentle manner informed the Duke as from the King himself how zealous the King was not only of fair Terms between the Duke and Earl but of a nearer Alliance This was such a piece of Impudence in the Keeper that the Bishop says in the next tit that it removed the Duke's Affections from the Keeper for ever nor could this State-Minister contain his Displeasure but wrote to my Lord Mandevile that the first Action he would imbarque himself in when he came home should be to remove the Keeper out of his Place And the next Crime of the Keeper was The Duke was afraid of his Wit See the Bishop tit 156. However this Counsel took such Effect with King James and he was so satisfied that he had no Colour of Title to make War against the King of Spain that when the Parliament after gave him three Subsidies and three Fifteens for the Recovery of the Palatinate and when he had raised an Army of 10000 Foot and 2000 Horse to be commanded by Count Mansfield the King not only made it a Condition that Mansfield with the Army should not commit any Hostility against any of the Dominions which by Right appertained to the King of Spain or the Infanta Isabella Princess of the Low Countries or the Spanish Netherlands and in case he did so from that time the King was not longer to continue Payment of the Army but also took an Oath of Mansfield to observe the Conditions So that how powerful soever the Duke was over King James yet in none of these Particulars could he obtain his End viz. in not prevailing upon the King to make War upon the King of Spain nor in removing the Lord Keeper nor in having the Earl of Bristol committed to the Tower After the breaking of the Spanish Match it was observed that King James's Temper was quite so altered that he forgot his Recreations of Hunting and Hawking at New-Market but whilst he was there he remained as in an Infirmary and in a Fit of Melancholy told the Earl of Carlisle that if he had sent Williams into Spain with his Son he had kept Hearts-ease and Honour both which he wanted See the Bishop of Litchfield lib. 1. tit 174. King James then began to look back upon his former Actions in having lost the Affections of his Subjects and now intangled in the Difficulties which he saw inevitably coming upon him charged the Prince often in the hearing of the Lord Keeper Williams to call Parliaments often and to continue them tho their Rashness sometimes did offend him That in his own Experience he never got any Good by falling out with them See the Bishop of Litchfield lib. 2. f. 16. tit 16. How well King Charles observed his Father's Advice in any of these nay how diametrically he went contrary and contrary to all good Advice given him in the very first Year of his Reign will soon appear and the miserable Effects which followed I have heard my Father tho not a Courtier yet acquainted with many Courtiers say that they would oft pray to God that the Prince might be in the right Way where he set for if he were in the wrong he would prove the most wilful of any King that ever reigned Tho all must stoop to mighty Buckingham yet that he might stand surer who must be his only Support but Laud Bishop of Saint Davids who from picking Quarrels in Lectures at Oxford and being an Informer before now is become Vice-gerent to Buckingham A List of all the eminent Men for Promotion in the Church is given in those whom Laud would have promoted were noted O for Orthodox and whom he liked not were marked P for Puritans these two stopt up both the King's Ears from any other Doctrines in Church or State but what was infused by them so early did King James's Prophecy to my Lord Keeper Williams when he was so importunate to have Laud preferred begin to be fulfilled
hasty in it that the King's Promise that the Bishop of Lincoln now no more Lord-Keeper should enjoy the King's Favour was scarce three Months old when they put not only the King out of mind of his Promise but the Bishop out of the Duty of his Place but that Laud should perform it whether the Bishop would or not It has been said with what Difficulty the Bishop of Lincoln for so we must now call him procured Laud the Bishoprick of St. David's and the Bishop staid not there but retained him in his Prebendary at Westminster and so after gave him a Living in the Diocess of St. David's of 120 l. per Annum to help his Revenue These two last being Additions to Laud's Preferment coming from the Bishop of Lincoln voluntarily and unsought for by Laud he by Mr. Winn returned his Thanks to the Bishop with this Expression His Life would be too short to requite his Lordship's Goodness But these Favours were not eighteen Months planted when Laud became the Bishop's sharpest Enemy as you may read in the first Part of his Life f. 108. and his Malice grew so high that the Countess of Buckingham the Duke's Mother took notice of it which the Arch-bishop Abbot takes notice of Rushw f. 144. as well as the Bishop of Litchfield As Acts of Grace and Favour usually were accompany'd by our Kings at their Coronation so in this King's Reign the quite contrary must be practised not only to the Earl of Bristol but much more to the Bishop of Lincoln for he was not only denied to do his Homage to the King with the rest of the Spiritual Lords at the Coronation but his Office as Dean of Westminster in assisting the Arch-bishop in the Solemnity of it and yet this too must be done by Laud as the Bishop's Substitute whether he would or not This was the first noble Favour the King extended to the Bishop according to his reiterated Promise when they parted The second was he was denied his Writ of Summons as a Peer in Parliament which met in four days after the Coronation viz. Feb. 6. which was due ex debito Justitiae and which was never denied to Prisoners or condemned Persons even in his Father's time and at last when he obtained it yet he must not presume to sit in Parliament and had much ado to have his Proxy left with the Bishop of Winchester Dr. Andrews as you may read in the second Part of his Life f. 69. But tho the Privilege of Peers a little eclipsed the Power of the mighty Buckingham yet he was resolved to keep Sir Edward Coke Sir Robert Phillips and Sir Thomas Wentworth out of the Commons House by the King's Prerogative as it has been of late used in making them Sheriffs whether they be returned by the Coroner's Inquest of the Counties or not and by this Prerogative Sir Edward Coke was made Sheriff of the County of Bucks Sir Robert Phillips of Somerset and Sir Thomas Wentworth of Yorkshire It made a mighty Noise and an Inquiry which otherwise would not have been that Sir Edward Coke in his extream Age now 77 Years old and who had been Chief Justice of both Benches and Privy-Counsellor should be made a Sheriff of the County and the more for that Sir Edward Coke took Exceptions to the Oath of a Sheriff whereupon it was altered These were the Counsels which govern'd this King in the Infancy of his Reign Now let us see the Success The Commons were so far from granting Subsidies now as in the last Parliament before Grievances were redrest that upon their first Meeting they fell upon Examination of Grievances and the Miscarriage of the Fleet at Cadiz the evil Counsellors about the King's Misgovernment and Misimployment of the King's Revenue and an Account of the three Subsidies and three Fifteenths granted the 21st of King James That new Impositions and Monopolies were multiplied and settled to continue by Grants Customs enhanced by the new Book of Rates and that Tunnage and Poundage was levied tho by no Act of Parliament and the Guard of the Seas neglected However these were Generals but the first Particular fell upon Mountague in five particular Articles wherein he had broken the Laws and Statutes of the Realm and disturbed the Peace both of the Church and Commonwealth 1. Whereas by the Articles of the Convocation holden in the Year 1â—62 it is determined That the Church of Rome is at present and has been for above 900 Years past so far wide from the Nature of a true Church that nothing can be more he the said Mountague in several places of the Book called The Answer to the Gagg and his other Book called The Appeal advisedly affirms and maintains That the Church of Rome is and ever was a true Church since it was a Church 2. Whereas in the 16th Homily of the second Book of Homilies it is declared that the Church of Rome is not built upon the Foundation of the Prophets and Apostles and in the 23d Article that Transubstantiation overthrows the Nature of a Sacrament and in the 25th Article that the five other Sacraments are not to be accounted Sacraments yet he the said Mountague maintains in his Book called The Answer to the Gagg That the Church of Rome hath ever remained firm upon the same Foundation of Sacraments and Doctrine instituted by God 3. In the 19th of the same Article it is maintained That the Church of Rome hath erred not only in their Living and Matters of Faith and Ceremonies he in his Book called The Gagg does maintain that none of these are controverted in their Points between the Papists and Protestants and tho in the 35th Article it is resolved that the Sacrifice of Masses in which it is commonly said the Priest did offer Christ for the Quick and the Dead to have Remission of Pain and Guilt too is a blasphemous Fable and dangerous Deceit this being one of the controverted Points between the Church of England and the Church of Rome he in his Book called The Gagg does maintain That these controverted Points are of a less and inferiour Nature of which a Man may be ignorant without any danger of his Soul at all and a Man may oppose this or that without peril of perishing for ever 4. Whereas in the second Homily entituled Against the Peril of Idolatry and approved by the 37th Article it is declared That Images teach no good Lesson neither of God or Godliness but all Error and Wickedness he the said Mountague does maintain Images may be used for the Instruction of the Ignorant and Excitation of Devotion 5. That in the same Homily it is plainly expressed That the attributing certain Countries to Saints is a spoiling God of his Honour and that such Saints are but Dii tutelares of the Gentile Idolaters yet the said Mountague in his Book entituled A Treatise concerning the Invocation of Saints affirmed and maintained That the Saints have not only a
Answer in Writing and that the Witnesses on both sides be examined and Evidences on both sides heard by such Course and manner of Proceedings as shall be thought fit by the House And if upon a full Hearing the House shall find it Treason then to proceed by way of Indictment if doubtful in point of Law to have the Opinion of the Judges to clear it if doubtful in Matter of Fact then to refer it to a legal Trial at Law and that the rather for that 1. It appears that the Earl in the space of two Years till now he complained has not so much as been questioned for Matter of Treason 2. He has been examined upon twenty Interrogatories and the Commissioners satisfied that his Answer would admit of no Reply 3. The Lord Conway by several Letters hath intimated that there is nothing against him but what was pardoned by the Parliament of the 21st of Jac. and signified his Majesty's Pleasure that he might rest in that Security and sit still 4. That his Majesty had often declared to the Countess of Bristol and others that there was neither Treason nor Felony against the Earl nor ought else but what a small Acknowledgment would expiate The Earl in Conformity to this Order answered every Particular of the King's Charge against him without any Reply but it would be a wonderful Discovery to find an Answer to any one Particular of the Earl's Charge either against the Duke or my Lord Conway The Commons at the same time impeached the Duke of high Misdemeanours in a Charge of thirteen Articles whereof that of the Death of King James was one but to the Displeasure of the King so far as to commit Sir Dudley Diggs and Sir John Elliot to the Tower for it and the Commons sent a Message to the Lords by Sir Nathaniel Rich by an unanimous Vote to commit the Duke to safe Custody which I do not find the Lords did nor did the imprisoned Members lie long in the Tower for the King signified to the House that Sir Dudley Diggs did not speak the Words for which the King committed him and soon after Sir John Elliot was discharged However the Commons ran high against the Duke with a Protestation That till he were removed from meddling with State-Affairs they were out of all hopes of any good Success and did fear that any Money which they shall or can give will through his Misemployment rather he turned to the Hurt and Prejudice of this Kingdom than otherwise as by lamentable Experience they have lately found in those large Supplies they had formerly and lately given But the Duke thus doubly stormed both by the Earl and Commons and utterly unprovided to defend himself against either and the King rather than receive the Remonstrance the Commons had prepared to present him against the Duke resolved to part with the Parliament rather than the Duke and thereby lost four Subsidies and three Fifteenths tho the House of Peers petitioned to the contrary This was upon the 15th of June 1626. The King having sent the Parliament home again sends a long Declaration after them wherein he magnifies his Power of Calling Adjourning Proroguing and Dissolving Parliaments peculiarly belonging to himself by an undoubted Prerogative inseparably united to his Imperial Crown of which as of all his other Royal Actions he is not to give any Account but to God only whose immediate Lieutenant and Vicegerent he is in these his Realms and Dominions by Divine Providence committed to his Charge yet his Purpose is so to order himself and all his Actions concerning the Weal of his Kingdoms as may justify themselves not only to his own Conscience and to his own People but to the whole World He thought fit to make a true plain and clear Declaration of the Reasons that enforced him to dissolve these two last Parliaments so that the Mouth of Malice it self might be stopt and the deserved Blame of so unhappy Accidents may justly fall upon the Authors thereof The King says That when he came first to the Crown he found himself engaged in a War against a potent Enemy Who was that Enemy Or at what time was any Declaration of any War made either against his Father or him Which after the best Search I could ever make I could never find any yet this I find that the next day after his Father's Death he and his Favourite the Duke were so eager to make a War against the King of Spain that a day must not be lost but Writs must be issued out to summon a Parliament to give Subsidies to make War against Spain See the second Part of the Keeper Williams ' s Life fol. 4. tit 2. This War the King says was not undertaken rashly nor without just and honourable Grounds but enforced for the necessary Defence of himself and his Dominions If this War were for the necessary Defence of the King and his Dominions there must be some Body that did thus offend the King and his Dominions but who this is the King neither says nor can I find For the Support of his Friends and Allies This is general so no particular Answer can be given to it but who these Friends and Allies were which were to be supported the King neither says nor can I find For redeeming the antient Honour of this Nation It had need for it was never so blasted as in his Father's and his own Reign For the Recovery of the Patrimony of his dear Sister her Consort and their Children injuriously and under colour of Treaties of Friendship taken from them The King's Father to make good the Narrative which this King and Buckingham made of the Spanish Treaty told the Parliament he was deceived by Generals and that dolosus versatur in generalibus If the King would have satisfied the World how his Brother-in-law's Patrimony was taken from him by Colour of Treaties and Friendship he should have set forth the Treaties and Friendship and by whom and when sought and by whom and when broken but of this the King says not one word and therefore that which he says stands for nothing And for the Maintenance of the true Religion Were the Ships which he and Buckingham last Year sent to subdue the Rochellers who had never given him or his Father any Offence for the Defence of the true Religion If this was not what was it this King did for the Defence of the true Religion And invited thereunto and encouraged therein by the humble Advice of both Houses of Parliament What! all this by the Advice of both Houses of Parliament I cannot find the Parliament 21 Jac. ever invited his Father to any more than to break off the Treaties of the Prince's Match with Spain and the Palatinate But what if upon the Misinformation of the Duke ex parte the Parliament had done all this yet whenas the Earl of Bristol had twice blasted the Duke's Narrative in every particular without any Reply Why
am not when Buckingham came out of France with the Queen of England he left or soon after sent Sir Balthazer Gerbier to hold secret Correspondence between the Queen and himself and tho Richlieu watch'd Gerbier narrowly yet he brought the Queen's Garter and an exceeding rich Jewel to Buckingham from her Upon the breaking out of the Feuds in the Queen's Family which began almost as soon if not before it was settled Buckingham prevails with the King to be sent into France to compose them which was granted But Nani says the true Motive of Buckingham's Journey being ascribed to Love contracted in that Court Richlieu perswaded the King to refuse him Entrance into the Kingdom The Rage hereupon of the other was inflamed to extremity and sware since he was forbidden to enter in a peaceable manner into France he would make his Passage with an Army Here you see the Duke was under a double Obligation of Love and Honour and since he could not attain his End in Love it 's remarkable by what Steps he proceeded to make good his Oath and Honour of entering into France with an Army which will be better observed if they be look'd upon in their Circumstances It was the 16th of August 1625 in the first Year of the King's Reign as you may see in Rushworth fol. 335. that Buckingham caused the Captains of the Fleet under the Command of Vice-Admiral Pennington to deliver it into the French Power to fight against the Rochellers and while the Fleet was thus in the French Power and after the Duke had received the horrible Affront of being denied Entrance into France in a peaceable and loving manner about Michaelmas following viz. about six Weeks after the delivery of the Fleet the Duke as Lord High Admiral of England by an extraordinary Commission seized the St. Peter of New-haven John Mallerow Master laden with Goods Merchandize and Money to the value of 40000 l. upon the account of Monsieur Villiers Governor of New-haven and other French Merchants as Prize and the Duke took out of the said Ship sixteen Barrels of Cochineal eight Bags of Gold three and twenty Bags of Silver two Boxes of Pearl and Emeralds a Chain of Gold and Monies and Commodities to the value of 20000 l. and delivered them to Gabriel Marsh his Servant Whereupon there was an Arrest of two English Merchant Ships in New-haven upon the 7th of December following viz. 1625. whereupon by a Petitionâ— from the Merchants the King ordered December the 28th that the Ship and Goods belonging to the French should be re-delivered to the French upon this the Court of Admiralty decreed upon the 16th of January following that the Ship with all the Goods except three hundred Mexico Hides sixteen Sacks of Ginger one Box of gilded Beads and five Sacks of Ginger should be released from further Detention and delivered to the Master yet the Duke not only detained to his own use the said Gold Silver Pearl Emeralds Jewels and Money but upon the 6th of February following without any legal Proceedings caused the sid Ship to be again arrested and detained as you may see in Rushw f. 312. And here began the seizing of our English Ships in France which the Duke makes one of the Causes of the War Object But this is but a Charge of the Commons upon the Duke and therefore no direct Proof Answ It is not to be presumed the Commons would have charged these things thus particularly and positively without Proof and I say moreover they are to be taken for Truth since the King did dissolve the Parliament rather than the Duke should come to his Trial upon the Commons impeaching him hereupon and 't is worth Observation to see how without Counsel and by contrary Extreams the King and Duke engaged in both the Wars against Spain and France The Bishop of Litchfield in the second Part of the Life of the Lord Keeper Williams f. 4. tit 2. says The next day after King James's Death the King and Duke were busied in many Cares but the chief was for the Continuation of the Parliament at King James's Death the Keeper shewed that the Parliament determined with the Death of the King then the King said Since Necessity required a new Parliament his Will was that Writs forthwith be issued out of Chancery for a new Choice and not a day lost The Keeper hereupon craved leave to be heard and said It was usual in times before that the King's Servants and Friends did deal with Counties Cities and Boroughs where they were known to procure a Promise for their Elections before the precise time of any insequent Parliament was published and that the same Forecast would be good at this time which would not speed if the Summons were divulged before they look'd about them The King answered It was high time to have Subsidies granted for the War with the King of Spain and the Fleet must go forth for that purpose this Summer To which the Keeper replied in few words and with so cold a Consent that the King turned away and gave him leave to be gone whereas the King dissolved this Parliament and lost four Subsidies and three Fifteenths to save the Duke and make War upon France Concealing the true Reason for this War with France the Duke in his Declaration gives two other Reasons of it the first was the refusal of Mansfield to land his Army at Calais according to Agreement whereby the Design for the recovery of the Palatinate was frustrate But why must this be a Reason at this time of day for this was done in the Reign of King James and when the Treaty of the Marriage with France was in being Why was not then the Treaty broke off upon it And why after this in King Charles's Reign was the English Fleet put into the Power of the French to subdue the Rochellers and this Business of Mansfield's not so much as taken notice of The second Reason was The French seizing our English Merchants Ships in their Ports But this was after the Duke had seized and made Prize of the St. Peter of Newhaven so here the Duke begins making Prize upon the French and makes War upon them for doing so by the English However we have here a Declaration and Reason of a War against the French such as 't was tho none could be had for the War with Spain Here you may see the unhappy Fate of Princes who treat their Subjects as Enemies and their Flatterers and Favourites as their only Friends and Confidents for notwithstanding the King 's ill Success last Year to Cadiz and the King's Complaint for want of Money in the Exchequer and the ill terms he was at with his Subjects not only to be put upon making a War against the King of Spain and the Emperor but now also against the King of France and to have none but Buckingham Laud c. and their Paraâ—ices to support him in all these Wars and what
leaving a Horse alive still in hopes of the Relief promised from England they held out so long till but 4000 of 15000 were left alive most of them died of Famine and when they began to be pinch'd with Extremity of Hunger they died so fast that they usually carried their Coffins into the Church-yard and other Places and therein laid themselves and died great Numbers of them being unburied and many Corps eaten with Vermin Ravens and Birds when the French Army entred the Town The Outrages committed against the Reformed Churches in France were so high as constrained them to implore King Charles his Aid in these Expressions That what they wrote was with their Tears and Blood But how unhappy soever this Prince's Fate was in War abroad yet it had been happy for him if he had not made his Fate worse at home and now let us see what Steps he made towards it even in this short Recess of the Parliament's Meeting Upon the 15th of July the King made Sir Richard Weston who died a declared Papist Lord Treasurer of England and the same Day translated Laud the Firebrand of the Arminian Faction to the Bishoprick of London whose next Step was Arch-bishop of Canterbury who that he might testify his Zeal to this Cause which after set all these Nations on Fire got Richard Mountague to be consecrated Bishop of Chichester the 24th of August following This Mountague was fierce for Arminianism and wrote a Book call'd A new Gag for an old Goose for which he was questioned in the Parliament of 23 Jac. and the Cause was committed to Arch-bishop Abbot which then ended in an Admonition and though the Arch-bishop disallowed the Book and sought to suppress it yet it was reprinted and dedicated to King Charles under the Title of Appello Caesarem Hereupon the Commons 1 Car. questioned Mountague for this and gave Thanks to the Arch-bishop for what he had done but this displeased the King who took the Business out of the Commons Hands but they had taken Bond of Mountague to appear I desire to be more particular herein because Arminianism was not only turn'd up Trump for the flattering Clergy to play their Game but for the Popish Party to undermine the Church of England as it was established by Law and the Canons Doctrine and Homilies of it and now Mountague's Cause was recommended to the Duke of Buckingham by the Bishops of Rochester Oxford and Laud Bishop of St. Davids as the Cause of the Church of England Thus this Cause stood when the King dissolved the first Parliament the 12th of August 1625. But the King's Necessities as he managed Business forcing him to call another before assembled Laud procured the Duke to sound the King whether he would leave Mountague to a Trial in Parliament which the King intended to do whereupon this pious Man Laud said I seem to see a Cloud arising and threatning the Church of England God of his Mercy dissipate it Note that all those who were not of this Faction of Arminianism were stiled by them Puritans these Mountague treats with bitter Railing and injurious Speeches and inserts divers passages in his Appeal dishonourable to King James the Commons therefore prayed that the said Mountague might be exemplarily punished and his Books supprest and burnt Yet this is the Saint that Laud in the first Act of his Regency as it may be called after he became Bishop of London must have made Bishop of Chichester and after Bishop of Norwich But this is observable that while Neal and Laud were consecrating Mountague News came of the Duke's being stabb'd This was the first step after Laud's Preferment the next was a Pardon for Mountague and Manwaring of all Errors by speaking writing and printing and you cannot believe that Laud would be less kind to Manwaring than to Mountague and therefore notwithstanding Manwaring's Censure he procured Manwaring the fat Rectory of Stamford Rivers in Essex and a Dispensation to hold it with the Rectory of St. Giles in the Fields That you may see the Kindness of this Bishop of London to our Laws in the very Infancy of his Power When Felton was brought before the Lords of the Council for murdering the Duke Laud threatned Felton with the Rack unless he would confess his Inducement for murdering the Duke but the King then in Council refused till the Judges were consulted and said if it could be done by Law he would not use his Prerogative but though the Judges determined he could not be put to the Rack by Law the King was graciously pleased not to use his Prerogative yet this was no thanks to the Bishop of London Now let 's see the Fruits of the Petition of Right and the manifold-Declarations of the King for maintaining the Laws of the Land and the just Rights and Liberties of the Subject but here you may understand that though he had taken the Customs not granted by Parliament yet by virtue of his Prerogative Royal he had enhanced the Rates such as were never granted by any Parliament and declared it his absolute Will and Pleasure besides that of Wines that the 2 s. and 2 d. Duties upon every Hundred of Currants by the Book of Rates should be advanced to 5 s. and 6 d. in the Hundred The first that suffer'd under the King 's absolute Will and Pleasure was Mr. Chambers who was committed by the Lords of the Council this Michaelmass-Term and was bailed by the Court of King's-Bench for which the Judges were check'd having done it without due Respect to the Privy-Council Next Mr. Vassal's Goods were seized for not paying the 5 s. 6 d. upon every hundred pound Weight of Currants upon which the Attorney General Sir Robert Heath exhibited an Information against him in the Exchequer to which Mr. Vassal pleaded the Statute De Tallagio non concedendo and that this was neither Antiqua seu Recta Consuetudo to which the Attorney demurred and Mr. Vassal joined in the Demurrer but the Court would not hear Mr. Vassal's Counsel and said the King was in Possession and they would keep him so and imprisoned Mr. Vassal for not paying the Duty thus imposed About the same time the said Mr. Chambers's Goods were seized by the Customers for not paying such Customs as were demanded by the Farmers Mr. Chambers sues a Writ of Replevin the Barons grant an Injunction against it Mr. Chambers offers to give Security for Payment of such Duties as the Court should direct which the Court refused unless he should pay such Customs as demanded by the Farmers which Chambers refusing the Court ordered the Officers to detain double the Value of Chambers's Goods demanded by them The same Course was taken with Mr. Rolls's Goods though a Parliament-Man one of the Commissioners saying Privilege of Parliament extended only to Persons not Goods another more boldly told Mr. Rolls if all the Parliament were in you we would take your Goods These Proceedings so ill sorting with the Petition
resolve that Religion shall have the Precedency in their Debates and make this Vow WE the Commons in Parliament assembled do claim protest and avow for Truth the Sense of the Articles of Religion which were established by Parliament in the 13th Year of the Reign of Queen Elizabeth which by the Publick Acts of the Church of England and by the general and currant Exposition of the Writers of our Church have been delivered unto Vs And we Reject the Sense of the Jesuits and Arminians and all others wherein they differ from us But the true Reason why the King would not take the Duties of Tunnage and Poundage from the Commons was for fear the Commons should not grant the Duties imposed by his Father and taken by him which he was resolved to continue whether the Parliament would or not The House had a Petition from the Printers and Booksellers in London complaining that Laud Bishop of London who had been so but from the 15th of July last had restrained Books written against Popery and Arminianism and the contrary allowed of only by him and had sent Pursevants for many Printers and Booksellers who had printed Books against Popery and that Licensing Books was only restrained to the Bishop of London and his Chaplains This is the Patron and Saint-like Martyr of the Church of England And all this Ado in the House of Commons was upon Sir Elliot's Speech against Neal Bishop of Winchester a zealous Promoter of Arminianism and Weston Lord Treasurer a Papist in whose Person he said All Evil is contracted acting and building upon those Grounds laid by his great Master the Duke and that his Spirit is moving to these Interruptions and they for fear break Parliaments lest the Parliament should break them That he finds him the Head of all the great Party That Papists Jesuits and Priests derive from him their Shelter and Protection c. But the Speaker upon Motion of the House refused to put the Question being he said otherwise commanded by the King Whereupon the House adjourn'd till Wednesday the 25th and from thence to the 2d of March when the Speaker again refused to put the Question the Success whereof was said before What now was the Crime of the House It was their Endeavour to preserve the Religion of the Church of England and the Laws and Liberties of the Subjects of England and since the Speaker refusing to do his Office they could not represent their Duty to the King they made their Protestation in the Defence of the Church and State And Masters oft-times upon Disobedience of their Servants do that which at other times they would not have done The King having made Peace abroad was resolved now to prosecute a vigorous â—ar at home against those Noble Gentlemen who in a Parliamentary Way had asserted the established Religion and Laws of England The Duke of Buckingham who was stabb'd the 23d of August before you need not fear had furnished the King with Judges Privy-Counsellors and Star-Chamber-Men who should do the King's Work and now let 's see the Order and Method by which it was carried on Upon this very Day viz. the 2d of March a Proclamation was drawn for the Dissolution of the Parliament but not proclaimed the King afterwards doing it himself in Person upon the 10th But next Day Warrants were directed from the Privy-Council for Denzil Hollis Sir Miles Hobert Sir John Elliot Sir Peter Hayman John Selden William Coriton Walter Long William Stroud and Benjamin Valentine Esquires to appear before the Council next day Mr. Hollis Sir John Elliot Mr. Valentine and Mr. Coriton appeared and for refusing to answer out of Parliament for what was said or done in Parliament were committed close Prisoners to the Tower and Warrants were given for sealing up the Studies of Mr. Hollis Mr. Selden Sir John Elliot Mr. Long and Mr. Stroud who not then appearing a Proclamation was issued out for apprehending of them The 10th of March the King comes into the House of Lords and tells the Reasons of his Dissolution of the Parliament that it was the undutiful and seditious Carriage in the lower House but says not wherein calls them Vipers who must look for their Reward and Punishment but promises the Lords the Favour and Protection that a good King oweth to his loving and faithful Nobility and then the Lord Keeper dissolved the Parliament CHAP. II. This Reign detected to the Second Parliament in 1640. JUstice like Truth is one and consists in entire Parts and will not admit of more or less but Injustice like Falshood and Error is distracted into infinite Discord and Confusion King James upon the Dissolution of the Parliament of the 12th and 18th Years of his Reign without any Trial but only by the Prerogative of his own Will commits several Members of Parliament to Prison for presuming to represent the Grievances of the Nation to him for Redress without Bail or Main-prize But this King puts a face of Justice upon his fining and imprisoning the Members of Parliament for their Debates and Transactions in it which was so much worse than his Father's Actions by how much the affixing a sacred Character to a bad Act and Justice is sacred renders the Act so much worse as Perjury is a greater Crime than simple Falshood and to murder a Man under pretence of Justice a greater Crime than simple Murder The Members thus close imprisoned after the Dissolution of the Parliament viz. in Trinity-Term following Mr. Selden was brought by Habeas Corpus to the King's-Bench with the Cause of his Detainer and also the same day Sir Miles Hobert Mr. Benjamin Valentine and Mr. Hollis appeared by Habeas Corpus directed to their several Prisons with their Counsel to argue their several Cases But when the Court were prepared to give their Opinions the Prisoners were not brought according to the Rule of Court Then Proclamation was made to the Keepers of the several Prisons to bring their Prisoners but none appeared But the Marshal of the King's-Bench said that Mr. Stroud was removed out of his Custody the day before to the Tower by the King 's own Warrant and so it was done by the other Prisoners But in the Evening the Judges received a Letter from the King containing Reasons why he would not suffer the Prisoners to appear yet that Selden and Valentine should appear the next day and about three Hours after the Judges received other Letters that upon mature Deliberation neither Selden nor Valentine should appear And the same Term four Constables of Hertfordshire pray'd Corpus's to several Pursevants to whom they were committed by the Lords of the Privy-Council which were granted but then they are committed to other Pursevants and so they were upon every other Habeas Corpus so that the Constables could have no benefit of them The Members as well as the Constables being thus shifted from one Prison to others to prevent the Returns of their Corpus's by special Order from
told them that the King of his Grace and Favour upon their granting 12 Subsidies to be paid in three Years would forbear levying Ship-Money and abolish it and for their Grievances they should rely upon his Royal Promise and give as much time now as may be and after at Michaelmas next and that the King expected a positive Answer Hereupon the House was turned into a grand Committee and spent the whole Day upon the Message but came to no Resolution and desired Sir Henry Vane to acquaint the King that the House would next day proceed upon the King's Supply But next Morning early Secretary Windebank in actual Correspondence and Conspiracy with Richlieu's Chaplain for subverting our Religion and introducing Popery commanded the Speaker to Whitehall and the same Day the King dissolved the Parliament and the next Day the Lord Brook's Study Cabinet and Pockets were searched for Papers and Mr. Bellasis and Sir John Hotham were convened before the Council to answer concerning Passages in Parliament and giving no satisfactory Answer were committed Prisoners to the Fleet till further Order from the King and Council and Mr. Crew was committed close Prisoner to the Tower till further Order from the Council and no Cause shewed in either of these Warrants The greatest Objection against Hereditary Monarchy is that Princes Ears are always open to Minions Flatterers and Sycophants whereby they rarely understand the state of their own Affairs or of their Subjects To attemper this the Wisdom of our Constitution ordains That Parliaments be frequently held to represent to the King the state of the Nation and so to inform him of Grievances that they may be redressed And so inviolably has this mutual Correspondence between the King and Parliament been observed in all Ages that I do not believe any King or Queen of England and of the English Race since Henry 3. ever dissolved one Parliament in Displeasure before King James whereas of eight Parliaments these two Kings of the Scotish Race dissolved seven in Displeasure Yet never did Parliaments in any Reign demean themselves more chearfully to any King than to these two and I challenge any one to shew that in any one respect they intrenched upon any just Prerogative of either of these Kings or did any Act not warranted by former Precedents It 's true Queen Elizabeth would not endure to have the Parliament to meddle with the state of the Church as 't was established nor hear of declaring a Successor and when either of these were moved contrary to her express Order she would commit the Members but easily dismiss them otherwise I believe in no Age any Member of Parliament was ever committed or censured by any King of England before King James for debating or reasoning of the state of the Nation or Church In the 20th of Edward 3. John of Gaunt the King's Son the Lords Latimer and Nevil were accused in Parliament for misadvising the King and were sent to the Tower for it and Henry 4. Rot. Parl. 5. upon the Complaint of the Commons against four of his Servants and Counsellors that they might be removed declared openly That tho he knew nothing against them in particular yet he was assured that what the Lords and Commons required of him was for the Good of himself and Kingdom and therefore he banish'd them and at the same time declared he would do so by any other who should be near his Royal Person if they were so unhappy as to fall under the Hatred of his People Whereas this King tho the Duke of Buckingham were accused of more Crimes in Parliament than is recorded of Pierce Gaveston and the Spencers in 2d's time and of the Duke of Ireland Tresilian and Belknap in 2d's time and of the Death of this King's Father to boot yet rather than the Duke shall be brought to Trial the King dissolves the second Parliament of his Reign And in his Declaration for dissolving the three Parliaments calls the questioning his Ministers an Invasion upon his Prerogative and that through them they endeavoured to wound their Soveraign's Honour and Government Since the Statute De Tallagio non Concedendo in the Reign of Edward the I I think no mention has been made that ever any King of England taxed the Subject before this King and his Father except Edward the IV by Benevolence for which his Memory is bitterly stained in the Parliament-Roll of the second Chapter of Richard the III tho it be not in the printed Statutes and by a Loan demanded in the Reign of Henry the VIII by Cardinal Wolsey the raising of which had near raised a Rebellion which when it came to the King's Ear he laid the Blame upon the Cardinal and said he would not rend his Subjects from the Law and forbid further proceeding in it Arch-bishop Abbot excepts against his Licensing Sybthorp's Sermons for that the King 's taxing Loans by his own Authority was neither by the Laws nor Customs of England the King in his Answer says He did not stand upon the Laws and Customs of England for he had a Precedent for it and would insist upon it The Arch-bishop replied He thought it was a Mistake and feared there was no such Precedent and that Henry the VIII desired but the sixth part of Mens Estates but the King required the full six Parts so much as the Men are set at in the Subsidy-Book And when the Commons in the third Year of his Reign made a Remonstrance against the King's taking Tunnage and Poundage not granted by Parliament the King calls this a detracting from their Soveraign and commands all who have or shall have any Copies of it to burn them upon Pain of his Indignation and high Displeasure The King for Causes of dissolving this Parliament the last he shall ever dissolve begins with the usual Stile That he well knows that the Calling Adjourning Proroguing and Dissolving Parliaments are undoubted Prerogatives inseparably annexed to his Imperial Crown of which he is not bound to give any Account but to God alone no more than of his other Regal Actions But quid gloriaris Did ever any King of England say this before his Father and himself Or in what common-Law or Acts of Parliament is this to be found Or if he had such Power Why does the King so often boast of it Sure it had been better done by another than himself Is this a time of day when this Prince had lost all his Honour abroad to magnify himself that he has Power to dissolve Parliaments at home and thereby obstruct those Ways by which he might unite himself to his Subjects and then glory that he is only accountable to God for all his Actions Nebuchadnezzar's Boast Is not this the Babel which I have built was but a Bauble to this He said this but once and God sent him seven Years among Wild Beasts and he saw his Pride and he repented This King upon all Occasions makes his Boasts but I do not
and before his Answer made to it which came forth shortly after to all the Heads of it Now let any shew a Precedent when one State in Parliament appealed to the People and arraigned the King and the other two States unheard and against the King's express Desire and he shall be my great Apollo And if the End be first consider'd in every Action what could be the End of publishing this Remonstrance Or how could it tend to the settling the Distractions of the Kingdom I make this difference between Reproof and Reproach Reproof is privately to admonish another of such Speeches and Actions as tend to the hurt of his Reputation and Fortune so as this other may avoid them for the future Reproach is to divulge the Speeches and Actions of another to the lessening of the Fame and Credit of that other Reproof is the Act of a Friend Reproach of an Enemy And was this a time of day for the Commons thus to reproach the King for his past Actions after he had redressed all their Grievances and given up his Evil Counsellors to their Justice Or was it ever known before that when the King had redressed Grievances they should be after rip'd up to reproach him The first Effects of this Remonstrance Mr. Whitlock mentions is That during this time and taking the opportunity from these Differences between the King and Parliament divers of the City of the meaner sort came in great Numbers and Tumults to Whitehall where with many unseemly and insolent Words and Actions they incensed the King and went from thence in like Posture to Westminster behaving themselves with extream Rudeness towards some of the Members of both Houses and tho the King sent to the Lord Mayor to call a Common Council to prevent these riotous Assemblies yet I do not find the Commons took any Care herein and how these Actions of the Commons tended to settle the Distractions of the Nation or the Relief of Ireland let any impartial Man judg But of all this Mr. May takes no notice yet does of the Parliament's petitioning the King for a Guard for the Security of their Persons being informed of a Plot contrived against them such another as that of Scotland and the Earl of Essex to command it which tho the King denied he promised to take care for their Safety Since Mr. May had no better luck with his Scotish Plot he 'll be sure of one now by the King 's entring into the House of Commons attended by 300 Gentlemen and seated in the Speaker's Chair and demanded five Members viz. Mr. Hollis Sir Arthur Haslerig Mr. Pym Mr. Hambden and Mr. Stroud to a fair Trial and would be as careful of their Privileges as ever any King of England was But in regard Mr. May is so short and partial in this we 'll state the Case as reported by Mr. Whitlock f. 50. a. The King being informed that some Members of Parliament had private Meeting and Correspondence with the Scots and countenanced the late Tumults from the City he gave a Warrant to repair to their Lodgings and to seal up the Trunks Studies and Chambers of the Lord Kimbolton Mr. Pym Mr. Hambden Mr. Hollis Sir Arthur Haslerig and Mr. Stroud which was done but their Persons were not met with The King caused then Articles of High Treason and other Misdemeanours against those five Members to be exhibited 1. For endeavouring to subvert the Fundamental Laws and Government and deprive the King of his Legal Power and to place on Subjects an Arbitrary and Tyrannical Power by foul Aspersions on his Majesty and Government to alienate the Affections of his People and 〈◊〉 make him odious 2. To draw his Army to Disobedience and to side with them i◠their Traiterous Designs 3. That they traiterously invited and encouraged a Foreign Power t◠invade England 4. That they traiterously endeavoured to subvert the very Right and Being of Parliament 5. For endeavouring to compel the Parliament to join with them 〈◊〉 their Traiterous Designs and to that end have actually raised and countenanced Tumults against the King and Parliament This great Breach of Parliament-Privilege Mr. May says happened in a strange time to divert the Kingdom from relieving Ireland And did not the Commons Remonstrance against the King and House of Lords do so too And when Men especially Princes are reproached and defamed regular Actions are not always consequent The Censures of the King's Act was variously scanned by Men of different Affections The Royalists said Privilege of Parliament extends not to Treason Felony or so much as Breach of the Peace And the Commons frame and publish a Declaration That there was never such an unparallell'd Action of any King to the Breach of all Freedom not only in the Accusation of their Members ransacking and searching their Studies and Papers and seeking to apprehend their Persons but now in a Hostile Way He the King threatned the whole Body of the House This was Jan. 5. 1641. And after the Commons published another Vote That if any arrest a Member of Parliament by Warrant from the King only it is a Breach of Privilege and that the coming of Papists and Souldiers to the number of 500 armed Men Mr. May says but 300 and Mr. Whitlock says with his Guard of Pensioners and follow'd by about 200 of his Courtiers with the King to the House was a traiterous Design against the King and Parliament They vindicate the five Members and declare That a Paper issued out for apprehending them was false scandalous and illegal How could they tell before they heard both Parties and they ought to attend the Service of the House and require the Names of those who advised the King to issue out that Paper and the Articles against the five Members Which if the King had done they would have been exposed to more Violences of the Rabble than those which befel the Bishops and other Members of Parliament by a great Number of Persons which came from the City to Westminster where they offered many Affronts to the Bishops and others in a tumultuous manner See Whit. Mem. f. 51. a. But of this no notice was taken by the Commons or Lords that I can find so that as the Temper of the Times then went it was a notorious Breach of Privilege in the King to demand five Members to answer Articles of High-Treason but none in the Rabble in a tumultuous manner to affront and use Violence to the Bishops and others who were coming to do their Duties and Service in Parliament These Actions Mr. May p. 41. calls petitioning by the Rabble and many times to utter rude Speeches against some Lords whom they conceived to be evil Advisers of the King which however it was meant produced ill Consequences to the Commonwealth and did not so much move the King to be sensible of his grieving the People as arm him with an Excuse of leaving the Parliament and City for fear of what might
Kingdoms of England Scotland and Ireland and Destruction upon the King when is was not in the Power of those which first raised the War against him to save his Life which they would have done I am told that the last Part of this Paragraph is an unjust Charge upon the Parliament in that they acted defensively in this War and that the King first raised Arms and this by the Authority of Mr. May. If I be mistaken I have the Authority of him who could best know I mean the King at his Death who declared That he never did begin the War with the two Houses of Parliament as all the World knows that they began with him it was the Militia they began upon they confest that to be his but they thought fit to have it from him and to be short if any body will look into the Dates of those Commissions theirs and his and likewise to the Declarations they will see clearly that they began these unhappy Troubles not he See Whit. Mem. f. 369. a. and all the Writers of those times If this be not Authority sufficient to shew the Parliament began the War the first Scuffle between the King and Parliament was about the Business of Hull where the Parliament had committed the Charge of the Town and Magazine to Sir John Hotham one of the Members of the Commons who was sent down thither to remove the Magazine to London but the Country of York petitioned it might still remain at Hull for securing the Northern Parts especially the King residing there Hereupon the King taking a Guard of his Servants and some Neighbouring Gentry upon the 23d of April went to Hull but contrary to Expectation found the Gates shut and the Bridges drawn up by Sir John and his Entrance denied though but with 20 Horse which so moved the King that he proclaimed Hotham a Traitor and sends to the Parliament for Justice against him To this the Parliament return no Answer but justify Sir John Hotham and order that the Sheriffs and Justices of the Peace do suppress all Forces which shall be raised or gathered together against Hull or to disturb the Peace nor did they stay here but put the Power of the Militia in Persons nominated by them excluding the King in ordering any thing together with them and authorized Hotham by his Warrants to raise the trained Bands in Yorkshire to march with their Arms into Hull where he disarmed them and turned them home again See Whit. Mem. f. 55 56. So I submit this to Judgment whether this was not raising Arms against the King being done by Subjects and contrary to the King's Command and if the King did encrease his Guards yet this was subsequent to the excluding the King from having Power in the Militia and Hotham's Raising Arms and Disarming the Trained Bands of Yorkshire Mr. May says p. 55. the Parliament being then intent upon settling the Militia by Land took care also to seize the Navy into their Hands and ordered the Earl of Warwick to be Admiral to put this in Execution but the King had chosen Sir John Pennington to that place instead of the Earl of Northumberland and sent a Command to the Earl of Warwick to resign the Place to him Pennington But the Earl chose rather to obey the Ordinance of Parliament and with great Courage and Policy got the Fleet into his Hands tho many of the Captains stood out against him but the Earl deprived them of their Commands and possest himself of the Ships taking shortly after another Ship called the Lyon of great Import coming out of Holland and laden with Gun-power which proved a great Addition to his Strength So here was a double Beginning of the War by the Parliament both in seizing the Fleet and taking the Lyon and this before the King committed any Act of Hostility And for the carrying on this War which Mr. May calls the Cause the Parliament upon the 10th of June made an Order for bringing in Money and Plate to raise Arms for the Cause and the Publick Faith for Repayment to them which brought it in So here the Parliament raised Money as well as Forces for carrying on the War before the King levied any And so I leave it to Judgment who first began the War Objection The Parliament raised Arms for their own Defence and Security of the Nation Answer This is said but of no kin to Truth or Reason for Men defend what they are possest of and the King was possest of the Militia and Fleet when the Parliament ravish'd both from him nor did the King use either against the Parliament when they invaded them Besides the King at least as he declared endeavoured to defend the established Religion and Laws of the Land whereas the Parliament contended to abolish the Established Religion and to exalt themselves above the Laws of the Land Objection 2. That the King had so often violated the Laws and Constitutions of the Nation and governed so Arbitrarily that the Parliament could have no Security for the future to prevent his so doing again so long as the King was possest of the Militia Answer The Case was not the same then when the King resolved to have no more Parliaments as now when the King had made this Parliament perpetual and had passed the Triennial Bill for Parliaments to meet whether he would or no And tho Favourites and Flatterers instill'd those things into the King when they were without any Fear or Apprehension of being questioned by a Parliament yet now the Parliament had so severely prosecuted and punished such Men and being perpetual or at least to meet Three Years after every Dissolution none would presume to advise the King in things derogatory to his Honour and the Interest of the Nation And now we proceed to the ensuing War The Parliament before the King set up his Standard at Nottingham Aug. 22 Voted That an Army should be raised for the Defence of the King and Parliament that the Earl of Essex should be Captain General of the Army and the Earl of Bedford General of the Horse The War began first between the Marquess of Hartford for the King in the West and the Earl of Bedford for the Parliament the Earl being worsted by the Marquess at Sherborn-Castle Goring got into Portsmouth and held it for the King but could not hold it long for the Country joining with Sir John Meyrick forced him to surrender who thereupon went into Holland and my Lord Say St. Johns and Weemen with Colonel Whitlock enter Oxford and keep it for the Parliament But the Face of Affairs soon changed for the King having made the Earl of Lindsey his General and the Parliament the Earl of Essex upon the 23d of October the Armies met and fought at Edghil with uncertain Victory which both sides claimed the Earl of Lindsey was mortally wounded and taken Prisoner the Right Wing of the King's Horse commanded by Prince Rupert brake the Left
What Thanks now had Sir Philip Stapleton Sir William Waller and Major General Massey for all their valiant Services to the Parliament whilst Oliver was whistling to his Cambridg Teem of Committee-Men a new Tune of the way of Ordinances Dispensations Righteousness and Providence and whereto can they go to find Relief Glyn had so little Wit as to believe the Law would be his Protection and so did abide a Trial but he was mistaken in his Measures for tho he defended himself with much Prudence yet he was discharged from being a Member of the House and committed to the Tower during their Pleasure But the House proceeded higher against Sir John Maynard and order'd an Impeachment of High Treason to be drawn up against him and ordered Nichols to be taken into Custody but he escaped from the Messenger The English Covenanters could not be so purblind as not to see whereto this tended and were madded that they which had begun the War and by the Aid of their Brethren of Scotland were in a fair Possibility of bringing it to their Desires against the King should not only be outed of their conceived Glory and Reward by these Upstarts of the Army but also the principal of them to be persecuted and destroyed for continuing firm to their Gude-Cause The Militia of London was setled upon the 4th of May in the Management of the Presbyterians who were very industrious in compleating their Companies both of the Trained-Bands and Militia but this was counter to the Design of the Army and judged to be a Conspiracy against it whereupon Fairfax who bore the Name tho Cromwel rul'd all upon the 10th of June sent a Letter to the Parliament That the Militia of the City of London might be put into the Hands of Persons that were better affected to the Army Which the Commons tamely submitted to and upon the 23d of July repealed the Ordinance of the 4th of May. Hereupon the City met in Common-Council and resolved to petition the Commons against it which they did and upon the 26th by the Sheriffs and some of the Common-Council delivered their Petition to the Commons And about an Hour after about 1000 Apprentices delivered another Petition complaining That to order the City's Militia was the City's Birth-right belonging to them by Charters confirmed in Parliament for Defence whereof they had adventured their Lives as far as the Army And desired that the Militia might be put again into the same Hands in which it was put with the Parliament's and City's Consent by the Ordinance of the 4th of May. Upon the reading of this Petition the Lords revoked the Ordinance of the 23d of July and renewed that of the 4th of May and sent it down to the Commons for their Consent and kept back some of the Commons till the Members within agreed with the Lords and then they returned And after some time they or some others upon the rising of the House took the Speaker and thrust him back into the Chair and there kept him and the Members till they enforced them to pass a Vote That the King should come to London And then both Houses adjourned for four Days In this Interval the Members which favoured the Army and the Speakers of both Houses went to the Army and there complained of the Violences upon the Parliament tho none were done to the Lords And after the four Days Adjournment the Houses met and the Lords chose my Lord Hunsdon their Speaker and the Commons Mr. Henry Pelham and passed these Votes 1. That the King should come to London 2. That the Militia of London should be authorized to raise Forces for the Defence of the City 3. That Power be given to the same Militia to choose a General And 4. That the 11 Members impeached by the Army should take their Seats in Parliament This was upon the 30th of July The Citizens armed with these Powers proceed to raise Forces under the Command of Sir William Waller Major-General Massey and Colonel Pointz but these tho numerous being suddenly raised so as the Soldiers not being well listed 't was like no great Opposition could be made against an old experienc'd and victorious Army Besides the Borough of Southwark were generally for the Army and a Party of the Army seized upon the Block-house at Gravesend and block'd up the City by Water towards the East and the Army towards the West The Aldermen and Common-Council of the City now desert their three Generals Waller Massey and Pointz and sent to Fairfax for a Pacification which he granted them upon these Terms 1. That they should desert the Parliament then sitting and the 11 Members 2. That they should recal their Declaration lately divulged 3. That they should relinquish their present Militia 4. That they should deliver up to the General all their Forts and the Tower of London 5. That they should disband all the Forces they had lately â—aised and do all things else which were necessary for the Publick Tranquillity All which the City submitted to So the Speakers and Members which had run to the Army returned again and annulled all the Acts and Orders which had passed since the 26th of July last Here observe That the Members which did not run to the Army but met in Time and Place according to that Adjournment were as much a Parliament as those which continued at Westminster after the King left them and the Members which met at Oxford were as much a Parliament as those which met after they were restored by the Army When the Members were returned the Commons voted an Impeachment of High Treason against the Earls of Suffolk Lincoln and Middlesex and the Lords Berkley Hunsdon Willoughby of Parham and Maynard such a Stalking-Horse was Treason now made and the Crime no more than what themselves had done after the King left them And Sir John Gage the Lord-Mayor Alderman Bunce Langham Cullam and Adams were committed to the Tower for High-Treason for Forcing the Parliament But if this were Treason in them before the next Year goes round you 'll see Cromwel out-treason this a Bar and half And as Sir Phil. Gurney Sir Henry Garoway and Sir George Whitmore were committed to the Tower for adhering to the King against the Parliament so now the Mayor and Aldermen were committed to the Tower for adhering to the Parliament against the Army During these Discords and Confusions the Scots were in great Grumble that the Work of Reformation which united both Kingdoms in Adherence to their Solemn League and Covenant was in danger to be overthrown by the over-spreading of Heresy and Schism which was so much more lamented by how much after their Bargain and Sale of the King both Houses voted That if the King refused to pass Propositions for Peace they will do nothing which may break the Vnion and Affection of both Kingdoms but to preserve the same This was the 28th of December 1646. Now both Factions Parliament and Army
being 12 a Clock at Night it could not then be reduced to Writing but he promised it should next Morning when the King gave them a Paper quite contrary whereupon the Treaty broke off See Whitlock's Memoirs f. 65. a. b. For in the next Treaty at Vxbridg which was in December 1644 the Parliament not only insisted that the King's Nephews Rupert and Maurice though Princes Foreign born and so no Subjects to the King of England but many of the principal Lords and Gentry who assisted the King in this War and who by the 11 Hen. 7. 18. were protected for assisting the King should be excepted out of Pardon by an Act of Indempnity which if they had had no Law to have protected them yet the King could not in Conscience have offered them up a Sacrifice for assisting him But another Difficulty arose in this Treaty which the Parliament would have imposed upon the King contrary to the Laws and Constitutions of the Nation viz. To extirpate Episcopacy and to impose the Scots Covenant and Directory upon the Nation though the Bishops were excluded their Sitting in the House of Lords by an Act in 1641 and none in Orders to exercise any Civil Office So that the Houses not content with what had been already granted but grasping at more they lost all for in the first Parliament Car. 2. they were restored to their Seats in Parliament again Objection But if Episcopacy were Jure Divino as the King was informed by his English Bishops and therefore the King could not in Conscience submit to the abolishing of it then it is Jure Divino in Scotland as well as England and if the King of his own Accord could go out of England to abolish it in Scotland Why should the King against the Advice of both Nations not do the same in England Answer He that shall answer for all the Actions of this Prince shall have a great Task Nor can I give any other Answer to it than that because a Man has done an ill Act it shall be a Precedent to him to do it again But if the King should have consented to abolish Episcopacy in England and set up Presbytery I do not see any Benefit the King could have reaped by it according to the Covenanters Practice and Principles For if the Scots after the King had abolished Episcopacy in Scotland and set up Presbytery there and that the Scots had thereupon promised all Obedience to the King in time to come and declared by Act of Parliament That it was detestable and damnable Treason in the highest Degree for any of the Scots Nation either conjunctly or singly to levy Arms or any Military Forces upon any Pretence whatsoever without the King's Command could raise Arms unprovoked by the King and against his express Command and invade England why should the English Covenanters after the King should have abolished Episcopacy in England be more obliged to perform any Agreement they made with the King in England then the Scots Covenanters were in Scotland When the King desired the Scots Parliament upon the breaking out of the Irish Massacre and Rebellion to assist him against the Irish they refused because Ireland was not subject to Scotland and tho England be not subject to Scotland yet the Scots against the King's Command can assist by Arms the Parliament against him So that if the Covenant could entitle the Scots to be so false perfidious and treacherous to the King after he had abolished Episcopacy in Scotland Why should not this be a Precedent for the English Covenanters to be so in England after the King should abolish Episcopacy in it and establish Presbytery The Overtures for a Treaty at Oxford in November 1644 preceded that at Vxbridg whence upon the King's Desire it was adjourned and Passes reciprocally of safe Conduct were granted to Commissioners on both sides to meet the 29th of January wherein the Commissioners from Scotland were included The Scots Commissioners being included in this Treaty you need not doubt but their principal Care shall be to establish their Solemn League and Covenant and the Presbyterian Government as firm in England as in Scotland and to this end the three first days were set apart for Religion three other Days for the Militia and three other days for the Settlement of Ireland How humble soever the Scots were if you 'll take their Word yet the first Debate arose between the English and Scots Commissioners concerning Precedence which you may read in Whitlock's Memoirs f. 122. a. b. But when the Business concerning Religion came to be debated nothing less than that Presbytery was Jure Divino would down with the Scots nor was Episcopacy less Jure Divino by the English Commissioners for Religion But both these Assertions are false and blasphemous for Jus Divinum is so inseparably inherent in God as cannot be communicated to any Creature and though God by Divine Law or Institution did impower Bishops and Priests with Episcopal and Priestly Power to perform their Offices designed by God for the planting and continuing the Gospel yet the Jus Divinum from whence these Institutions were derived remains the same in God as before As God by the Law of Nature gives Parents a Dominion over their Children and Husbands over their Wives yet the Divine Right which gives these Powers is the same as before and Parents and Husbands have no Divine Right hereby but a Temporal Right by Nature or the Law of Nature so Bishops and Priests have no Divine Right to exercise their Ghostly Powers but a Spiritual Right given them by God's Law or Institution supernaturally or extraordinarily given If Bishops and Priests had a Divine Right they might create Divine Laws which in Terminis I believe none of them will affirm However you may see how the Theologues as they call themselves impose by this Cant upon the World and what endless Discords Factions and Wars have been raised hereby no Man conversant in History can be ignorant of The Principal whereof was Dr. Steward and Mr. Henderson and Marshall for Presbytery but the Zeal on both Parts being so obstinate as well as contradictory would have taken up more than all their Time in these Broils if a Stop had not been put to them upon the Motion of the Marquess of Hartford on the King's Part and the Earl of Pembrook Mr. Hollis and other Commissioners on the Parliament's that they might proceed upon the other Points of the Militia and Ireland In both these there was as little Agreement as in that of Religion not any one Point being agreed to by the King's Commissioners so the Treaty ended and nothing concluded The other Treaties at New-Castle Hampton-Court and the Isle of Wight we have taken notice of before So that the King was as unsuccessful in his Treaties as in his Arms. The Catastrophe of this Tragedy resolves into the King himself for this Juncto after called the Rump-Parliament having thus purged the House
the Lords during their Absence and soon after the King passed a Bill for taking away the Bishops Votes in Parliament so little Success had the Clergy in their Convocation-Oath As the Clergy without Consent in Parliament imposed the Convocation-Oath upon the rest of the Clergy So the Parliament I mean the Lords and Commons without the Consent of the King imposed upon the Subjects a Vow and Protestation to maintain and defend so far as lawfully may be the true Reformed Protestant Religion expressed in the Doctrine of the Church of England and according to the Duty of the Allegiance to his Majesty's Royal Person Honour and Estate to defend the Privileges of Parliament and Liberties of the Subject and by all just and honourable Ways endeavour to preserve the Union and Peace of the Three Kingdoms and neither for fear nor other respect relinquish the Promise Vow and Protestation See Baker's History fol. 508. b. But the Lords and Commons were not constant to their Vow for within less than two Years after they impose their Solemn League and Covenant being basely imposed upon them by the Scots upon the rest of their Fellow-Subjects with all the Scotish Cant and c. too and this is observable that the Presbyterians who so bitterly inveighed against the c. in the Convocation-Oath without any scruple swallowed the c. in their Solemn League and Covenant It 's scarce credible by what Severity this Covenant was after the Scots Temper imposed upon all other sorts of Men as well Dissenters from the Church of England as those of the Church This Temper was too hot to last long for about three Years after the Independents outed the Presbyterians and set up the Engagement to be true to the Rump without King or House of Lords nor did this Engagement last five Years but was outed when Cromwel set up himself and imposed the Recognition for establishing himself Now let any shew how in any Nation since the Creation in less than 13 Years time Men so often swear and forswear Governments which were so often changed and he shall be my great Apoâ—â—â— The Secluded Members and the Rump if you 'll take their Words were the Representatives of the People but without a Head and could not be dissolved by the King without their Consent yet O. Cromwel and his Myrmidons without their Consent dissolved them both And as these were Bodies without a Head so Cromwel and his Army like that of the Egyptian Mamalukes were a Monstrous Head without any Body of the Nation yet with this Difference the Mamalukes chose their Sultan but Cromwel exalted himself without the Army's Choice The first Manifesto that Cromwel made known to the Nation was this I Oliver Cromwel Captain General and Commander in Chief of all the Armies and Forces raised and to be raised within this Commonwealth c. So here Cromwel by his own Authority makes the Army perpetual having deposed the Parliament which were made perpetual by Act of Parliament I have often admired upon what Bottom Cromwel stood when he presumed to do these things for the Sectaries and Monarchy-Men who were the Creatures whom he at first most relied upon when they perceived his Ambition then became his utter Enemies the Presbyterians and Independents hated him for the Violences he put upon them and the Royalists both dreaded and hated him All Kings of England in their Coronation-Oath before sware to govern by the received Laws and Constitutions of the Nation but Cromwel having subverted these neither says nor swears by what Laws or Rules he 'll govern and tho both in the Saxon and Nâ—rman Dynasties the Hereditary Succession of the Kings was often changed yet none succeeded which was not of the Royal Blood which cannot be said of the Caroline and Capusian Lines of France nor in the Succession of the Race of the Kings of Spain yet Cromwel without Law or being of the Royal Blood made himself more absolute than any of our Kings before him Now Terras I am sure Britannias Astraea reliquit Justice Truth and Plain-dealing is fled the Land and Dissimulation Hypocrisy Intriguing and Designs rove all England over and Cromwel to support his ill-establish'd Greatness sets all his Agents and Sycophants on work to congratulate and approve his Actions and to stand by and assist him One of the first of these was from the Officers of the English Army in Scotland no doubt but excited by Monk in the State he stood then with Cromwel So that as from Scotland our Civil Wars first began and from thence their solemn League and Covenant was so rigidly imposed in England so from thence now come Congratulatory Addresses to Cromwel for overturning all they had done and a time shall come when a Storm shall come from Scotland which shall disperse and unravel all that the Covenanters Rump and Cromwel had done thus you 'll see how lame-footed Vengeance shall overtake them all Having seen how Cromwel established himself we 'll proceed to see the Success The Dutch above all things dreading the Rump animated Cromwel to dissolve them promising greater things to him than they had done to the Rump in case he would do it which being done the Dutch not unreasonably hoped by the Disorders which would arise in England by it they should be better able to deal with Cromwel than the Rump and notwithstanding their calling God to witness of their sincere Love and Affection to the English Nation and desire of propagating the true Reformed Protestant Religion with all imaginable Diligence set out a greater Fleet to Sea than they had done before and Trump gave out he would fire the English Ships in their Harbours and the Downs before the English Fleet should get out But the Rump who well understood what Faith or Credit was to be given to the Dutch Protestations were not behind-hand with the Dutch in their Naval Preparations which Cromwel found ready to fight with the Dutch and sooner than the Dutch look'd for the English Fleet commanded by Monk and Dean Penn Vice-Admiral and Lawson Rear-Admiral upon the second of June engaged the Dutch and at the beginning Dean was kill'd by a Cannon-Ball but the Dutch sore pressed upon by the English bore away and made a running Fight having a Ship of 42 Guns sunk by Lawson and 140 Men in her but the Winds blowing cross the English could not that day do much more Execution Next day Monk engaged the Dutch Fleet again and sunk six of their best Ships two were blown up and eleven taken one Vice-Admiral and two Rear-Admirals with two of their Hoys and thirteen hundred and fifty Prisoners and of the English not one Ship was lost or disabled and besides Admiral Dean but one Captain killed The Dutch thus balk'd of their Expectation of firing the English Ships in their Harbours and in the Downs send Beverning Newport Vande Parro and Jonstal to Cromwel and the new Council of State for Cromwel had discharged
the Thames threatning the Committee of Safety That unless they restored the Rump not one of them should escape In this violent Motion or Commotion the Lord Willoughby Alderman Robinson after Sir John Major-General Brown after Sir Richard and some others came to Mr. Whitlock then one of the Commissioners of the Broad Seal and propounded to him to go to Fleetwood to advise him to send to the King at Breda it should have been to Brussels for the King came not to Breda before he was advised to it by Monk and to offer to bring him in upon good Terms and thereby prevent Monk's Designs which Whitlock did as at the Desire of them and Sir William Fleetwood his elder Brother and shewed Fleetwood unless he did it he and all the Parliament-Party would be left at the Mercy of the King whom Monk would bring in without any Terms as he after did Whitlock therefore propounded to Fleetwood one of these two things Either to give Order to all his Forces to draw together and himself and Friends to appear at the Head of them and so get what Strength they could that would stand by them and accordingly to take further Resolutions if they found their Strength but small which he doubted then with those few which he had to go to the Tower and take Possession of it and to send to the Mayor and Common-Council that he would join with them to declare for a Free Parliament which he thought the City would willingly do and furnish him with Money for his Souldiers which would encrease their Numbers Fleetwood asked him If he would go with him into the Field and to the Tower Whitlock said He would Then Fleetwood asked him What was the other Way he had to propound to him in this Exigency he said it was That Fleetwood should immediately send away some Person of Trust to the King at Breda Brussels to offer to him his and his Friends Service to the restoring the King to his Right and that upon such Terms as the King should agree upon and for this purpose to give Instructions to the Party whom he should send upon this Affair Fleetwood asked him If he would be willing to go himself upon this Employment who answered He would if Fleetwood thought good to send him With this and some other Discourse Fleetwood seemed fully satisfied to send Whitlock to the King and desired him to go and prepare himself forthwith for the Journey and that he and his Friends would prepare Instructions for him so that he might begin his Journey this Evening or early next Morning Whitlock going away met Vane Desborow and Berry coming to speak with Fleetwood and about a quarter of an Hour after Fleetwood returned and in much Passion told Whitlock I cannot do it I cannot do it who desir'd his Reasons Fleetwood answered I am engaged not to do any such thing without my Lord Lambert's Consent then Whitlock told him You will ruin your self and Friends See his Memoirs fol. 692. Thus you see how Man proposes but God disposes Monk that made the Scotish Nobility abjure the King and his Interest brought him in and Fleetwood who would have done it could not do it Fleetwood and his Committee of Safety seeing all things now desperate sent a humble Message to Lenthal to beseech him and the Rump to take upon them the Supream Government again which they graciously accepted but came staggering into the House being miserably shaken by their Convulsion tho it lasted not 2 Months a shrewd Sign they were not long liv'd The first thing the Rump did now they were out of their Fit was to recal Lambert's and Fleetwood's Commissions tho they needed not have done it for their Souldiers which before would not fight for them now would not keep them Company but deserted them so that their Conditions were right lamentable Lambert had no body to fight for him nor Fleetwood scarce any to condole with him in his present Solitudes However the Rump committed Lambert to the Tower Monk now having broken off the Treaty of Accommodation with the Committee of Safety marches on and is every day addressed to That the Nation might have a full and free Parliament yet every one understood what was intended by it and at Morpeth he met with a Letter from the Lord Mayor and Aldermen of London by their Sword-bearer promising the Concurrence and Assistance of the City in it And that the End for which a Free Parliament was to be called was interpreted by hanging out the King's Picture which was no less gazed at by them than by the Welch-men at King Taffy's Effigies at the Welch-Gate at Shrewsbury When Monk came into Yorkshire at North-Allerton he was met by the Sheriff of the County and at York he was magnificently treated by the City and caressed by my Lord Fairfax and a numerous Gentry and here he received into his Service some of Lambert's Regiments and sent back Major-General Morgan into Scotland to keep all quiet there The Rump were scarce recovered out of their Convulsion when they fell into a terrible Quotidian Ague which shaked them grievously and yet could get no Physician which could administer any Comfort They were sure they were no way concerned in the Nation 's and City's Addresses to Monk for a Full and Free Parliament they could not trust the English Army nor would the Army trust them all their Hopes were in Monk and his Army yet were afraid of them and tho they were so yet could not tell to whom they should complain However not to be utterly wanting to themselves they sent Luke Robison and Scot to congratulate Monk's coming and thank him for the Rump's Recovery but not to speak one Word of the Ague the Rump were fallen into These met Monk at Leicester and did their Errand but Monk understood their Meaning as well as they and was as close in concealing his Intentions as they were of their Errand which was to observe and to be a Spy upon him in all his Motions And Monk so far complied as at Northampton he made the Officers of the Irish Brigade abjure the King and his Interest When Monk came to St. Albans he sent to the Rump to turn all those treacherous Souldiers who had been so unfaithful to them out of the City and Lines of Communication which the Rump consented to and the Day after the 3d of February in a Military Pomp led his Army through London and lodg'd in White-hall But the Rump's Frights were without end for now they dreaded the Return of Charles Stuart so they call'd the King more than Sir Booth's Insurrection or the Officers Rebellion and since they could not fight him unless Monk help them they 'll try to swear him out and see if Monk will join with them in it And therefore the Council of State next Day after Monk came to White-hall tender'd him the Oath of Abjuring the King and Royal Family which Monk thought not fit then to
sustained by the Depredations upon the Ships and Lading taken from Sir Paul Pindar and Sir William Courten c. In this Interval of the Parliament's Recess the King took the Seals from my Lord Chancellour Ashley now made Earl of Shaftsbury and gave them to Sir Heneage Finch a Person of singular Integrity Eloquence and Veracity who to those insite Excellencies which were natural to him improved them by the great Example of his Uncle John Finch likewise Keeper of the Great Seal in the King's Father's Reign yet with a different Fate for the Temper of the Times would not bear his Uncle's Integrity Eloquence and Veracity whenas the Nephew with prosperous Gales continued his Course till he arrived at Lord Chancellour Lord Daventry and Earl of Nottingham and kept the Seals to his dying Day which not one of his three Predecessors could do And Sir Thomas Osburn succeeded Lord Treasurer So C. and A. are out we shall soon see what became of B. A. and L. At last the 20th of October came and the Parliament met again when at the opening of the Session the new Lord Keeper with admired Eloquence and Veracity which he retained to his dying Day made a large Deduction of the Dutch Averseness to Peace their uncivil Demeanour to the King 's Plenipotentiaries at Cologn and how indirectly they dealt with the King in all the Overtures of Peace and therefore a necessary Supply proportionable to the Greatness of the King's Affairs was not only demanded but Care to be taken for Payment of the Bankers Debt otherways Multitudes of the King 's Loyal Subjects would be undone But neither the Keeper's Eloquence nor his Veracity would down with the Commons for during this Recess the Terror of the French Progress had alarm'd the Nation as well as the rest of Christendom The French Legerdemain at Sea was so much more taken notice of as our Loss was more by their looking on whilst the English and Dutch destroyed one another The Commons were frighted at the standing Army in England commanded by a Foreigner and an Irish Papist taking all Military Liberty as in Time of War It was more than whisper'd the Conditions proposed by the King 's Plenipotentiaries at Cologn were impossible which tho granted yet no Peace was to be had unless the French King was answer'd in his Demands nor were the Commons content with their Prorogation till the Marriage with the Princess of Modena was past Cure Hereupon the Commons on the 31st of October bound themselves by a Vote That considering the present Condition of the Nation they will not take into further Consideration any Aids or Charges upon the Subject except it shall appear that the Obstinacy of the Dutch shall render it necessary nor before this Kingdom be effectually secured from Popery and Popish Counsels and other Grievances redressed This early Vote of the Commons was so much more surprizing to the Band of Pensioners who as yet had not earned their Bread by how much they expected Mountains of Gold should fall from my Lord Keeper's Eloquence and Veracity And now is the King like his Father when he went to York to fight the Scots reduced to a fine state all the Monies received from the French King like Water spilt upon the Ground never to be collected Besides the Band of Pensioners he had a Land Army to maintain and a Fleet at Sea which the French Subsidies would not one fourth maintain He could not avoid the Clamours of his Subjects whose Monies were shut up in the Exchequer nor the Merchants who had supplied his Navy in this and the former Dutch War yet their Graces the Dutchesses of Cleveland and Portsmouth must be maintained sutable to their Qualities so must the Dukes of M G S N R St. A and Earl of P besides Portions to be provided for many of his Off-spring of the other Sex He had already provided Titles for the Cabal except Buckingham who could not be greater However you 'll see this Vote of the Commons will work powerfully notwithstanding the Agreement at Vtrecht that the King shall not make a separate Peace without the French King nor any Peace with the Dutch unless the French King shall be satisfied in his Particulars at Cologn Nor did the Commons stay here but C. and A. being gone one dead the other turned to t'other side they fell upon B. A. and L. and addressed themselves to the King that they might be removed from his Councils Presence and all publick Employment and upon the 4th of November moved 1. That the Alliance with France was a Grievance 2. That the evil Counsel about the King was a Grievance to the Nation 3. That the Lord Lauderdale was a Person grievous to the Nation and not fit to be trusted in any Office or Trust but to be removed The Rump of the Cabal thus used frighted the whole Band of Pensioners into a Fear their Turn would be next at least their Pensions not paid and therefore to undo all that was done in a Hurry the Parliament was prorogued to the 7th of January following not having sat eight Days But the Commons needed not to have been so fierce upon B. A. and L. for B. was now going off and A. being the King's Brother-in-law was spited that he was twice balked in being Lord Treasurer and if he did not turn to t'other side yet he would never be reconciled with my Lord Treasurer Only L. now remained to be quit with the Commons to get an Act of Parliament in Scotland to raise 20000 Foot and 2000 Horse to serve the King upon all Occasions The King having so hastily begun this War by two such Acts as were without Precedent viz. The shutting up the Exchequer and the Attempt upon the Dutch Smyrna Fleet was now as forward to make a Peace with the Dutch even upon any Terms tho but last Year his Plenipotentiaries had agreed at Vtrecht with the French King not to make Peace with the Dutch without him and this Year at Cologn to grant no Peace unless the French King be satisfied in his Particulars By this time the CABAL was degenerated into a Juncto and this was compounded too of five viz. My Lord Keeper F L Lauderdale Arlington and Secretary Coventry in room of Secretary Trevor now dead It was agreed by the whole Juncto That Sir William Temple was the most proper Agent for making this Peace not only for his Abilities and great Reputation he had acquired in concluding the Triple League but for the Honour and Esteem the King of Spain and States of Holland held of his Integrity and Conduct And in order hereunto my Lord Arlington from the King and Juncto complimented Sir William and told him He would not pretend the Merit of having named him Sir William upon this Occasion or whether the King or my Lord Treasurer did it first but that the whole Committee joined in it and concluded That since a Peace was to be made no
Offices he was capable of and that the Duke was fully convinced that their Interests were one and the Parliament was not only unuseful but dangerous both to England and France and that it was the Duke's Opinion That if his most Christian Majesty would write his Thoughts freely to the King upon this Subject and make the same Offer of his Purse to dissolve this Parliament as he made to the Duke to call another he did believe it very possible for him to succeed and from this time to the breaking out of the Popish Plot you shall see the Parliament call'd prorogu'd and adjourn'd by Order from France or French Ministers and Pensioners That this Design may be carried on in Masquerade the whole Band of Pensioners make it their Business to possess whom they could perswade that the Church is in danger truly said but untruly intended and that the Nation was running into Forty One All Countenance and Hopes of Preferment were promised to those who would support the Church from the Danger of Forty One This was blaz'd abroad and encouraged by all sorts of printed Pamphlets and if they met with Opposition the Authors and Printers were persecuted for publishing unlicensed Pamphlets Mr. Roger L'Estrange was the Champion and Pensioner of the Cause Never did Man fight so to force the Whig into the Church and when he was there made a Trimmer of him and would have him out again Forty One was his Retreat against all who durst contend against him and the Government This was the Licenser of the Press but never was there such a Press Rifler For propagating this holy Cause Sir Francis North is made Chief Justice of the Common-Pleas Sir Richard Rainsford Chief Justice of the King's-Bench William Mountague Chief Baron Vere Bartue a Baron of the Exchequer Sir William Scrogs a Justice of the Common-Pleas and Sir Thomas Jones of the King's-Bench Men all durante bene placito You need not fear the Chancery for at this time there were four Chancellors and Lord-Keepers alive The Parliament was to have met the 10th of November 1674 but the Instructions from France were not yet sufficiently ripened so 't was put off till the 13th of April 1675. At the opening of this Session my Lord-keeper told the Houses No Influence of the Stars no Configurations of the Heavens are to be feared so long as these two Houses stand in good Disposition to each other and both in a happy Conjunction with their Lord and Soveraign but they ought not quieta movere nor res parvas magnis motibus agere The House of Commons had been sullen these two last Sessions and proceeded contrary to the Humour and Design of the Court and therefore a Bill was brought into the House of Lords eâ—tituled An Act to prevent the Danger that may arise from Persons disaffected to the Government which was the same imposed upon the dissenting Clergy by the Oxford five-Mile-Act this my Lord-keeper said was a moderate Security to the Church and Crown which no honest Man could refuse and who did gave great suspicion of dangerous and Antimonarchical Principles This Oath or Abhorrence or Test is mentioned before and is now set on foot to be taken by all who enjoy'd any Beneficial Offices Ecclesiastical Civil or Military to which were added Privy-Counsellors Justices of the Peace and Parliament-Men It 's strange to me that Princes or indeed other Men who have any Piety or Fear of God should think to be secure in unjust Actions by Mens swearing to observe them For tho Human Actions be voluntary yet the End and Design by them is not in Human Power Paul may plant and Apollos water but only God can give the Blessing with what reason then can Man expect a Blessing from God because his Name is profaned and made as a stalking-Horse to attain it What Security had the Presbyterians by their Covenant or the Rump Parliament by their Engagement or Oliver or his Son by their Recognition And more I think the King could not expect hereby Whereas Princes whose Thrones are establish'd by Justice and Righteousness have a nobler Security than can be hoped for by Mens previous swearing to get Offices and Employments so that Trajan who was truly called the Just put his Sword into the Prefect's Hands and bid him draw it against him whenever he should attempt any thing against the Publick Good This King had a way never gone by any of his Predecessors to be present in the House of Lords at Debates and would solicit Lords for their Votes This was first declaimed against by my Lord Lucas as an Awe upon the Peers in their Debates and Votes This Oath being the Gap to let in the Popish Designs you cannot think the King would now be away but give all Countenance to the passing of it the Bishops to a Man were for passing of it so were all the court-Court-Lords or those who hoped for Preferment so as these were the much greater Part Yet the Country Lords when they debated it in Paragraphs made it inconsistent with the present Constitution of the Nation vain and superfluous and inconsistent in it self which held for seventeen days together But the Debates were laid aside by the Commons Votes against the Jurisdiction of the Lords in Appeals from Chancery These Debates you may read at large in Print in a Tract intituled A Letter from a Person of Quality to his Friend in the Country But because my Lord-keeper will have an ill-meant Distinction between the King 's Natural and Politick Capacity I 'll put one Case which I do not find in all these Debates The one Part of the Oath is I declare That it is not lawful upon any Pretence whatsoever to take up Arms against the King and that I do abhor that Traiterous Position of taking Arms by his Authority against his Person or against those who are commissionated by him in pursuance of such Commission Suppose Duke Lauderdale should have a Commission from the King to bring his twenty two thousand Scots into England and you cannot believe the Scots Law to do it was made to no purpose and plunder and dispossess the English of their Estates and the Sheriffs of the Counties should raise the Posse to suppress them and compel them to keep the Peace as the Sheriff by his Commission and Oath is bound to do On which side does the Abhorrence of the Traiterous Position of taking up Arms against those commissionated by the King lie But you 'll say this cannot be imagined and I say the Design of imposing this Oath makes this not only imaginable but believed to be intended In the Debates the Commons raise a Storm against the Lords Jurisdiction in Appeals from Chancery upon which the King prorogued the Parliament to the 13th of October 1675. Tho the Duke lost Ground in the House of Commons and was disappointed in carrying the abhorring Test in the House of Lords yet he gained so much upon the French King
positive Refusal that the Blow came to be eluded which could not otherwise be avoided as Sir William Temple says tho I believe it was intended even when the Prince went out of England However about the latter end of December 1677 the King sent to Sir William Temple to the Foreign Committee and told him he could get no positive Answer from France and therefore resolved to send him into Holland to make a League there with the States for forcing France and Spain into a Peace upon the Terms proposed if either refused To which Sir William told the King what he had agreed was to enter into a War with all the Confederates in case of no direct and immediate Answer from France That this perhaps would satisfy the Prince and Confederates abroad and the People at home But to make such a League with Holland only would satisfy none of them and disoblige both France and Spain Besides it would not have such an Effect or Force as the Triple Alliance had being a great Original of which this seemed an ill Copy And therefore excused himself from going And so the King sent Mr. Thyn with a Draught of the Treaty to Mr. Hide who was then come from Nimeguen to the Hague upon a Visit to the Princess which was done and the Treaty signed the 16th of January tho not without great Dissatisfaction to the Prince This Tergiversation of the Court set fire to the Jealousies in Holland especially at Amsterdam that the Prince by this Marriage had taken Measures with the King as dangerous to the Liberties of Holland and make it there believed that by this Match the King and Duke had wholly drawn the Prince into their Interests and Sentiments The French hereupon proposed other Terms of Peace to the Dutch far short of the King 's and less safe for Flanders restoring only six Towns to the Spaniard and mentioning Lorain but ambiguously which would not have gone down in Holland but for the Suspicions raised by the Prince's Marriage among the People there who had an incurable Jealousy of our Court and thereupon not that Confidence in the Prince that he deserved If we take this Reign as one thing you 'll find it made up of almost infinite Confusions and Disorders and scarce one regular Act in it and now we are come to one which is without any Precedent which was this You heard before how the King to gratify the French Ambassador for not acquainting him with the Marriage with the Prince had prorogued the Parliament to the 8th of April next viz. 1678. And now Mr. Thyn had made this League with the States the King thought this a good occasion to get Money from the Parliament upon it and was loth to stay till the 8th of April for it and therefore by his Proclamation commands the Parliament to meet upon the 15th of January before the 8th of April Prorogations of Parliaments are new and I think were never heard of in England before the Reign of Henry VIII and are said to be the Acts of the King but Adjournments the Acts of the House to a certain Time and Place and both Houses must be sitting and in being when they are either so prorogued or adjourned I remember upon the discovery of Câ—leman's Letters the Court were mightily surprized at it and the Parliament was to have met some few days after upon a Prorogation which the King in that Surprize unwilling they should did therefore call a Council to advise whether he might not prorogue them to a further day without the Houses meeting and 't was said my Lord Chancellor Finch was of Opinion he might and thereupon Sir Edward Seymour Speaker of the House of Commons having Occasions in the Country went out of Town but some body acquainted the King of the Doubtfulness of the Chancellor's Opinion and desired the King to advise with old John Brown who had been Clerk of the Parliament for near forty Years the King did so and John Brown was positive that in case the Houses did not meet at the Time and Place appointed the King by his Proclamation could not prorogue them but it would be a Dissolution of the Parliament Whereupon the Speaker was sent for back again and so many of both Houses met as would make a Parliament which it 's said is forty Commoners and seven Lords and then the King prorogued them But this Consideration was not that I find taken notice of by either House tho both met according to the King's Proclamation The Houses thus met the King acquainted them with the League he had made with Holland and demanded Money of them to carry on the War against France in case France did not comply with the League whereupon the Parliament granted him a Tex by Poll and otherways which amounted to 1200000 l. not for Peace but to enter into an actual War with France But this Tax shall only beget another to disband an Army raised upon that Pretence tho no War was entred into against France But so far was the French King from giving up any Towns notwithstanding the Agreement the King had made with the Prince or the League he had made with Holland that about the latter end of January he had made an Attempt upon Ipre and threatned Ostend and in March following by open Force takes both Ipre and Gaunt yet the French Ambassador here continued his Court and Treaty with all the Fairness that might be The French having now taken Ipre and Gaunt were so far from proceeding in any Treaty either with England the Confederates or Holland or in the Treaty at Nimeguen that about the first of April the French King made publick Declaration of the Terms upon which he resolved to make Peace which tho very different from those agreed upon between the King and Holland and more from the Pretensions of the Allies yet this way of treating the French pursued in the whole Negotiation afterwards declaring such and such were the Conditions which they would admit and no other and upon which the Enemies might chuse either War or Peace and to which France would not be tied longer than the 10th of May after which they would be at Liberty to change or restrain as they should think fit But how imperious soever the French were abroad yet they dreaded a Conjunction of England either with the Dutch or Confederates and therefore thought fit to wheedle our Court till the Affairs of the Confederates should become so desperate as to submit to what Terms the French King should impose upon them And to this purpose Mr. Mountague now Earl sent a Pacquet to my Lord Treasurer giving an account of a large Conference Monsieur Louvoy the French King 's grand Minister of State had with him by the King his Master's Order wherein he represented the Measures they had already taken for a Peace in Holland upon the French Terms and that since they were agreed there they hoped his Majesty would not be
January and the same Day issued out Writs for a new one to meet at Westminster the 6th of March following which was just 40 Days between the Test and Return In this Interval the Blaze of the Parliament's Vote of their Apprehensions of a damnable and hellish Popish Plot had taken deep Impressions in the Minds of Men in general and the Whigs taking Advantage of it in this short Interval run down the Tories without Opposition nay even the King himself apprehended there could be no Hopes of attaining his Ends in the next Parliament but by seeming zealous in the prosecuting the Discovery of the Popish Plot and that he would not longer be governed by Favourites and single Councils There had been several Debates in the House of Commons of the dangerous Consequences in reference to the Duke of York's Succession to the Crown and that the Bottom of the Popish Plot centred in the Duke's being a Papist and the presumptive Heir to the Crown but I do not find they came to any Vote upon it yet resolved upon the 8th of November to make an Address to the King That the Duke might withdraw himself from his Person and Councils and in Conformity therewith the Duke went or was sent into Holland and upon the meeting of the Parliament the King acquainted them how great things he had already done for the preventing the Progress of the Popish Plot as the Exclusion of the Popish Lords from their Seats in Parliament and the Execution of several Men upon the Score of the Plot as well as the Murder of Sir Edmundbury Godfrey but above all that he had commanded his Brother from him because he would not leave malicious Men room to say he had not removed all Causes which could be pretended to influence him toward Popish Counsels and tells That as he had not been slack in putting the present Laws in Execution against Papists so he was ready to join in making such further Laws as may be necessary for the securing the Kingdom against Popery and then demands a Supply and concludes with his Desires to have this a healing Parliament The House chose Mr. Seymour the Speaker of the last Parliament to be their Speaker in this but the King rejected him which was no good Presage of a healing Parliament and so the Commons chose Mr. Serjeant Gregory and the King accepted him The Commons began where the last Parliament left in prosecuting their Impeachments against the Earl of Danby and the Popish Lords in the Tower but who should be first tried and what were the Jurisdiction of the Bishops Right of Voting in their Impeachments and their Judgments in Cases of Blood run quite through this Sessions wherein the Lords and Commons seldom agreed There were two things which made the Earl of Danby's Case more favourably spoken of one That tho he was prosecuted several Weeks after the Popish Lords were committed yet the Commons would not proceed in their Impeachments against the Popish Lords before the Lords had given their Judgments upon the Earl's Plea The other was a Vote of the Commons upon the 9th of May That no Commoner whatsoever should presume to maintain the Validity of the Earl of Danby ' s Pardon without Leave of the House first obtained and that the Persons so doing shall be accounted Betrayers of England and there was no Nobleman a profest Lawyer so that tho the Earl's Plea upon his Pardon was Matter of Law yet no Commoner must presume to plead his Cause The King besides his sending the Duke of York beyond Sea that the World might now see how otherways he was become a new Man for the future upon the 20th of April 1679 made this Declaration in Council and in Parliament and after publish'd it to the whole Nation how sensible he was of the ill Posture of his Affairs and the great Dissatisfaction and Jealousies of his good Subjects whereby the Crown and Government were become too weak to preserve it self which proceeded from his use of a single Ministry and of private Advices and therefore professed his Resolution to lay them aside for the future and be advised by those whom he had then chosen for his Council in all his weighty and important Affairs together with the frequent Advice of his great Council in Parliament and indeed in this Council were many worthy Members my Lord of Shaftsbury was President of it and the then Sir Henry Capel and Sir William Temple Members of it But this Declaration of the King 's added to the sending the Duke of York into Holland had not the King 's desired Effect the Commons besides the Dread of the Popish Plot as well at present but more in consequence after the King had declared he would not alter the Succession of the Crown in the right Line were no ways satisfied with the Disbursements of the Money nor the disbanding the Army yet were resolved it should be done and voted another Sum of 26462 l. for it but it was not carried without some Difficulty that these Monies should be paid into the Exchequer but Chamber of London however the Commons carried That the Money so raised should be appropriated to that Use and to that End appointed Commissioners to disband the new-rais'd Army and so voted That the Continuance of any standing Forces in this Nation other than the Militia to be illegal and a great Grievance and Vexation to the People hereby meaning the King's Guards They also ordered a Bill to be brought in for annexing Tangier to the Imperial Crown of England and voted That those who did advise the King to part with Tangier to any foreign Prince or State or were instrumental therein ought to be accounted Enemies to the King and Kingdom But how jealous soever the Commons were of the King yet they conceived it was his Life which secured them from the Fears they dreaded of the Duke's coming to the Crown and therefore upon the 11th of May voted Nemine contradicente That in Defence of the King's Person and the Protestant Religion this House does declare that they will stand by his Majesty with their Lives and Fortunes and that if his Majesty shall come to an untimely End which God forbid they will revenge it upon the Papists It seems the Commons had more Care of the King than he had of himself for he not only countenanced the Plotters but ridiculed the Plot. In his Speech at the opening this Parliament he told them he had not been idle in discovering the Plot and in the last he told Sir William Temple he was displeased with the Earl of Danby for bringing the Popish Plot into Parliament against his absolute Command Oliver's Professions and Actions never appeared so hypocritical and deceitful as this King 's and all this after the Parliament had voted there was a hellish Conspiracy by the Papists against his Life and this proved by a Cloud of Witnesses agreeing in the Manner and Circumstances of it as Oates
Design to bring Trouble upon a Handful of poor Catholicks that would live peaceably however they were used but that it should light upon others Now the Design appears barefac'd for would you think it the Earl having delivered the Explanation of his taking the Test by the Duke 's peremptory Command this is interpreted a publishing of it and upon Tuesday the eighth of November a Council was called without calling the Earl to it and an Order was sent by one of the Clerks of the Council to the Earl that before 12 a Clock next Day he should enter himself a Prisoner in the Castle of Edinburgh and a Warrant was sent to the Deputy Governour to keep him Prisoner wherein the Word Sure firmance tho fairly writ was struck out The Earl obeyed and by himself alone in a Hackney Coach rendred himself a Prisoner accordingly And now you 'll see how absolutely in this deputed Authority the Duke demeaned himself without Reserve what then might be expected from him in Case he should become King The Earl some Days after he had rendred himself Prisoner wrote to the Duke telling him how he had obeyed his Highness and Council's Order in rendring himself a Prisoner and how that he wrote no sooner lest he might be thought too impatient of Imprisonment which appeared to be the Effects of high Displeasure which he hoped he no ways deserved and was resolved to continue all Duty and Obedience to his Majesty and Highness and begg'd to know what Satisfaction was expected where and how he might live in his Highness's Favour to which no Answer was returned but a Summons charging the Earl with leasing making and depraving of Laws And after another Summons came out and published with Sound of Trumpet charging the Earl with Perjury and Treason but when it was told the Duke that such a Process threatned the Earl's Life and Fortune the Duke said Life and Fortune God forbid The very Day November the eighth that the Council ordered the Earl to render himself a Prisoner the Council sent a Letter to the King wherein they sent the Earl's Explanation of his taking the Test and how they had commanded his Majesty's Advocate to raise a Pursuit against the Earl upon it yet expecting his Majesty's Commands for their further Prosecution of it But the King might command what he pleased his Commissioner and Council would do what they would with it for before any Return of their Letter they caused the King's Advocate to exhibit an Indictment against the Earl upon the Points of slandering and depraving And after the Return of the King's Letter they ordered a new Indictment against the Earl containing besides the former Points the Crimes of Treason and Perjury before they acquainted the King with it The Earl thus mewed up that he might not give any Offence twice petitions the Duke and Council that Sir George Lockhart might be his Advocate to plead his Defence yet both times refused the Reason of these Petitions were that without Leave none would dare to plead the Earl's Cause for fear of the King's Displeasure However by the Act 11 Jac. 6. Cap. 90. It is the undeniable Privilege of all Subjects accused for any Crimes to provide themselves Advocates to defend their Lives Honours and Lands against whatsoever Accusation So by the 11 Jac. 6. c. 90. it is declared That in case Advocates refuse the Judges may compel them Hereupon the Earl drew up a Letter of Attorney constituting Alexander Dunbar to require Sir George Lockhart to plead for him which the Duke no sooner heard but said If Sir George Lockhart plead for the Earl he shall never plead for my Brother nor me But the Earl might set his Heart at rest for whatever Counsel he had his Case was fore-judged before heard However for forms sake upon the Twelfth of December 1681 the Earl was brought by a Guard of Soldiers before the Justice Court where the Earl of Queensberry was Chief Justice General and the Lords Narin Collingtoun Newtoun and Hirkhouse Lords Justiciary sitting in Judgment It is inconsistent with the Design of this Treatise to set down the Earl's Speech at large and the long and learned Pleadings of Sir George Lockhart and Sir John Dalrymple for the Earl's Defence and the King's Advocates pleading against the Earl and their Doubling's and Tripling's yet it 's fit to say something of them and leave the Reader at Liberty to read them at large in the Earl's Case which is printed The Earl in his Defence only claims the Privilege of the meanest Subject tho under an ill Character to explain his own Words in the most benign Sense and how strange and impossible it would be to believe he intended any thing but what was sutable to the Principles of his Religion and Loyalty though he did not express himself at all Then he enlarged how from his Youth he had made it his Business to serve his Majesty faithfully constantly and to his Power especially in all times of Difficulty and never joined or complied with any Interest or Party contrary to his Majesty's Authority and so that he never received a Frown from his Majesty these thirty Years and that even in this Parliament how he had shewed his Readiness to serve the King and Royal Family in so vigorously asserting the Lineal Succession of the Crown and in offering Supplies to his Majesty and Successor and that he had always kept his Tenants in Obedience to his Majesty How strange then is it that Words spoken for the clearing his own Conscience should be wrested into Treason especially where the same was done before by many Orthodox Clergy whole Presbyteries Synods and some Bishops so that an eminent Bishop took the Pains to write a Treatise that was read over in Council and allowed to be printed and a Copy given to him which contains all the Expressions he is charged for and many more may be stretched to a worse Sense and having wished all Happiness to the King and a Continuance of the Lineal Succession left his Defence to his Advocates Sir George Lockhart and Sir John Dalrymple then several Letters from General Middleton and the Earl of Glencarn were read testifying the Earl's Loyalty and Services to the King The Treason charged upon the Earl in the Indictment consists of these six Heads 1. That the Earl considered the Test and was desirous to give Obedience to it as far as he could clearly insinuating thereby he was not able to give full Obedience 2. That he was confident the Parliament never intended contradictory Oaths therebâ— to insinuate to the People that the Parliament did impose contradictory Oaths 3. That every Man must explain for himself and take it in his own Sense whereby that excellent Law lost its Obligations 4. That he took the Test so far as it was consistent with it self and the Protestant Religion which depraved the Test and misrepresented the King's Parliament's Proceedings in the highest Degree 5. That he did
presumed to take Cognizance of Cases which were in the Jurisdiction of or depending in Parliament for this was to depose the Parliament and usurp their Jurisdiction nor do we read that ever any other Court assumed this Authority but in the Reigns of Kings affecting Tyranny and Arbitrary Power The first Judges which I think gave their Opinion That the Courts in Westminster Hall might take Cognizance of Causes determinable in Parliament were Tresilian and Belknap in 11 Rich. II. for which they were impeached by the Commons in Parliament of no less than High Treason and for which by Judgment of the Lords in Parliament Tresilian was hanged and Belknap banished Mr. Williams in his Pleadings for Fitz-Harris cites another Case in 20 Rich. II. of a Person who exhibited a Petition in Parliament which suggested something which amounted to High Treason which it may be was determinable by Common Law This Person was after indicted at Common Law found guilty and pardoned but because the Business was depending in Parliament the Prosecution and Judgment were made void in Parliament The next Case I think but of an higher Nature for Tresilian and Belknap only gave their Opinion was that of Sir John Elliot my Lord Hollis c. 5 Car. I. when an Information was exhibited against them in the King's Bench they pleaded to the Jurisdiction of the Court being for Matters transacted in Parliament the Court over-ruled their Plea and gave Judgment against them and Reasons such as they were for their Judgment but in the 19 Car. I. upon a solemn Debate in the Commons House and upon their Reasons given at a Conference with the Lords the Judgment of the King's Bench Reasons and all were reversed by a Writ of Error in the Lords House and after the Judges who gave the Judgment were impeach'd of High-Treason by the Commons for endeavouring to subvert the fundamental Laws and Constitutions of the Kingdom This Case of Fitz-Harris I take to be the fourth of this kind yet shall open a Gap for a fifth but that this Case may be better understood it will be necessary to distinguish between an Indictment or Information and an Indictment by the Commons in Parliament An Indictment or Information is at the Suit of the King and the Judges and Jury are tied up to some single Issue as in this Case of Fitz-Harris the Trial was whether he was guilty or not of the Treason whereof he was indicted But an Impeachment of the Commons is at their Suit and of all the Commons of England nor are they tied up to one single Issue but impeach for Treason and other Crimes and Misdemeanours in the same Impeachment they assume to themselves That all the Commons in England have a Right in the King and all the Laws and Constitutions of the Nation and therefore can impeach where none of the Courts of Westminster-hall can take any Cognizance at the Suit of the King either by Indictment or Information After Fitz-Harris was committed to Newgate he was examined by the Earls of Essex and Shaftsbury Sir Robert Clayton and Sheriff Cornish who found in him a Disposition to discover the bottom of the Popish Plot and also to make a further Discovery of the Murder of Sir Edmundbury Godfrey but the next Day Fitz-Harris was carried to the Tower and kept close Prisoner and out of their Power to whom Fitz-Harris promised to make a Discovery The Commons conceiving themselves and all the Commons of England concerned in this Plot wherein the French Ambassador his Confessor my Lord H the Dutchess of Portsmouth and her Woman Wall and even the King himself for Fitz-Harris had several times acquainted the King with it and the King gave him Money and countenanced it were Agents impeached Fitz-Harris thereby to enquire into the Bottom of this Business which no Court in Westminster-Hall could do and this I take to be the Reason of the Commons Vote of the 27th of March 1681 That if any inferiour Courts shall proceed upon Fitz-Harris and he be found Guilty the House will declare them guilty of Murder and Betrayers of the Rights of the Commons of England And so it fell out that Fitz-Harris being indicted upon the single Issue of contriving and publishing the Libel was convicted and executed upon it tho he desired to proceed upon the Discovery of this Plot to the Earls of Essex Shaftsbury and to Sir Robert Clayton and to make an End of his Evidence against my Lord H which was denied So that whether Fitz-Harris was murder'd in his Person or not it 's no Question but his Evidence for further Discovery of this and the Popish Plot was murder'd by this Trial. I will make these Remarks more upon this Trial that in the Case of Tresilian and Belknap the Nation was in no other Danger than the Courts of Westminster-Hall's invading the Jurisdiction of Parliament and the Case of my Lord Hollis Sir John Elliot Mr. Selden c. was only for Misdemeanour whereas the King's Person and the Safety of the Nation were concerned in the Discovery which Fitz-Harris might have made see Mr. Hawles's fine Remarks upon the Practices and Illegalities of the Judgment of the Court not warranted by the Common or any Statute Law and that the Consequences of this Trial were manifoldly more mischievous to the Nation than if Fitz-Harris's Design had taken Effect The Fright of Fitz-Harris's Discovery of this new Popish Plot being seemingly allayed by his Death Revenge with winged Haste pursues the Discoverers of the old It was in Trinity-Term that Fitz-Harris was tried and executed and after this Term an Indictment of High Treason was exhibited to the Grand Jury of London against Stephen Colledge a mean Fellow but a great Talker against the Popish Plot who was more known by the Name of Protestant Joiner than Stephen Colledge The Fore-man was one Wilmer This Indictment would not down but the Grand Jury returned an Ignoramus upon it for which Wilmer was forced to fly his Country The Design not succeeding in London the Scene against Colledge is laid at Oxford the Judges were Chief Justice North Justice Jones Justice Raimond and Justice Levins To make sure of a Bill to be found there against Colledge the King's Counsel had prepared Witnesses at the Assizes to post thither and there to make sure Work the King's Counsel are privately shut up with the Jury till they had found the Bill which Mr. Hawles says was a most unjustifiable and unsufferable Practice Whilst these things were contriving Colledge had the Honour as well as Fitz-Harris to be committed and continued a close Prisoner in the Tower yet the Lords impeached in Parliament had the Liberty of it and free Access was permitted to them it 's true indeed Colledge was permitted to have a Solicitor and Counsel which was Mr. West I think a Plotter or Setter in the Rye-Plot as dark as Fitz-Harris's and as like it as two Apples are one to the other But this was
Doctrine of Passive Obedience had made a plain and easy Passage for the Popish Faction to take Possession of this Power The Bishop of London therefore after the Lords had voted an Address of Thanks to the King's Speech moved in the name of himself and all his Brethren that the House would debate the King's Speech which as it was extraordinary and unusual in the House so was it not less surprizing to the King and Court who now dreaded the Lords would concur with the Commons in their Address to prevent which the King first prorogued and then dissolved the Parliament and never called another in all his Reign And thus the King made good to the Parliament in his Speech to them the 28th of May That the best Way to engage him to meet them often was to use him well and did expect that they would comply with him in what he desired and that they would do it speedily that it might be a short Sessions and that he and the Parliament might meet again to all their Satisfactions and for the Bishop of London the King shall remember his Motion in due time when he shall plead no Privilege of Parliament The King having so ill performed his Promise to the Parliament of often meeting of them where he might hear of it again which by no means he would endure after he had dissolved them had a fair Field without any Rub to do what he pleased and to petition him or represent the Grievances of the Nation out of Parliament shall be a great Crime next to High Treason And now 't is time to observe the Steps the King proceeded by to maintain the Church and State of England as by Law established His Brother had laid the Foundation of making a Parliament felo de se by hectoring and making Bargains with Corporations to surrender their Charters and taking new ones from him whereby he reserved a Power that if they did not send such Members as pleased him he would resume the Charters he granted them and herein he made a great Progress till his Keeper and Attorney General refused to grant Patents to such poor Corporations as could not pay their Fees so as a new Keeper or Chancellor and Attorney-General must be had who would grant Patents gratis or a Stop would be made in the Progress of so noble a Design In a lucky Hour my Lord Keeper N died at Astrop-Wells I think when Jeffries was in his March to the West and for a Reward of my Lord Jeffries's Clemency that he shewed had the Seals given him with the Title of Lord Chancellour but the Attorney was not so lucky but lived to be turned out and another put in his Place which would perform his Office more charitably to these indigent Corporations which could not pay their Fees in taking new Patents after they had perfidiously betrayed their old But this was but one Step towards this Holy Work the King to make a thorow Reformation will make the Judges in Westminster-Hall to murder the Common Law as well as the King and his Brother designed to murder the Parliament by it self and to this end the King before he would make any Judges would make a Bargain with them that they should declare the King's Power of dispensing with the Penal Laws and Tests made against Recusants out of Parliament However herein the King stumbled at the Threshold for it 's said he began with Sir Thomas Jones who had merited so much in Mr. Cornish his Trial and in the West yet Sir Thomas bogled at this and told the King He could not do it to which the K. answered He would have Twelve Judges of his Opinion and Sir Thomas replied He might have Twelve Judges of his Opinion but would scarce find Twelve Lawyers of his Opinion The Truth of this I have only from Fame but I 'm sure the King's Practice in reforming the Judges whereof all except my Lord Chief Baron Atkins and Justice Powel were such a Pack as never before sat in Westminster-Hall gave credit to it But if the Lord Chief Justice Thorp for taking a Bribe of 100 l. was adjudged to be hanged and all his Lands and Goods forfeited in the Reign of Edward the 3d because thereby as much as in him lay he had broken the King's Oath made unto the People which the King had intrusted him withal and if Justice Tresilian was hanged drawn and quartered for giving his Judgment that the King might act contrary to one Act of Parliament and if Blake the King's Counsel Vsk the Under-Sheriff of Middlesex and five more of Quality were hanged in the Reign of Henry the 4th for but assisting in Tresilian's Judgment What then did these Judges deserve which made Bargains with the King before-hand to break the King's Oath he had made to the People and entituled the King to a Power to subvert the Laws and gave Judgment before-hand to act contrary to them Andrew Horn in his Mirror of Justice tells us That King Alfred the Mirror of Kings hanged Darling Segnor Cadwine Cole and 40 Judges more because they judged in particular Causes contrary to Law But sure this was not more to Alfred's Honour than it was to the Dishonour of King James to make Bargains before-hand with Judges to give Judgment contrary to the Laws themselves and unless they would break the King's Oath to his People they should not be his Judges The Laws and Constitutions of this Nation as has been already noted make it a Kingdom whereof the King is Head and the Nation the Body so that if you take away the Laws and Constitutions of the Kingdom there is neither King nor Kingdom Did not the King then descend from his Majesty in rending himself from his Kingdom by breaking Laws whereby he ceases to be a King and the Nation to be a Kingdom And what was it for that the King would not be content with the Soveraignty he had over the Nation wherein his Majesty consisted but would strain it into a Tyranny over the Nation It was to introduce a foreign exploded Dominion of the Pope denied by our Saviour and asserted by the Devil whereby how absolute soever the King would be over his Subjects yet himself and Kingdom must be at the Pope's Disposal to be deposed and destroyed as the Pope pleased Bishop King in the State of the Protestants in Ireland fol. 18. gives this Account of one Moore a Romish Priest who preached before the King at Christ's Church in Dublin in the Beginning of the Year 1690 where he told him to his Face that he did not do Justice to the Church and Churchmen and amongst other things said That Kings ought to consult Churchmen in Temporal Affairs the Clergy having a Temporal as well as Spiritual Right in the Kingdom but Kings had nothing to do in the Management of Spiritual Affairs but were to obey the Orders of the Church Thinking Men could not conceive this dispensing with the Penal Laws
and Tests against Dissenters was any ways intended in favour of the Protestants for notwithstanding the Slaughter Jeffries had made of them in the West the rest all over England were imprisoned and forced to give Security for their good Behaviour Nay my Lord D. of Albermarle who had done the K. so signal Service in keeping the Devonshire Men from joining with the D. of Monmouth must be sent out of England to Jamaica and the Earl of Pembroke and others who had been so active in suppressing Monmouth were scarce thanked and but coldly entertained at Court If things were acted with this indeed bare-fac'd dissimulation in England they were not less in Ireland for the King having revoked the Duke of Ormond from his Lieutenancy and given Talbot an independent Commission to make such a reform of the Army there as is aforesaid made my Lord Clarendon Deputy-Lieutenant and Sir Charles Porter Chancellour who arrived there the 10th of January 1685-86 with a Charge to declare that the King would preserve the Acts of Settlement and Explanation inviolable and to assure all his Subjects he would preserve these Acts as the Magna Charta of Ireland but this Declaration compared with Talbot's reforming the Army in Ireland seemed as strange as that the King 's dispensing with the Penal Laws and Tests was in favour of the Protestant Dissenters in England In Scotland the King had so settled Affairs there when he was Commissioner that after the cutting off the Earl of Argyle he did not doubt to carry on his Designs more bare-fac'd there than in England or Ireland and therefore tho he did not call a Parliament till April 1686 yet in his Letter to them of the 12th he takes no Notice of the Protestant Dissenters but recommends to them his innocent Roman Catholick Subjects Who had with their Lives and Fortunes been always assistant to the Crown in the worst of Rebellions and Vsurpations tho they lay under Discouragements hardly to be named These he heartily recommended to their Care to the end that as they have given good Experience of their true Loyalty and peaceable Behaviour so by their Assistance they may have the Protection of his Laws and that Security under his Government which others of his Subjects had not suffering them to lie under Obligations which their Religion cannot admit of by doing whereof they will give a Demonstration of the Duty and Affection they had to him and do him most acceptable Service This Love he expected they would shew to their Brethren as they saw he was an indulgent Father to them all The King having settled his Prerogative in Westminster-Hall by dispensing with the Penal Laws and Tests in the Beginning of the Year 1686 granted a Commission of Ecclesiastical Affairs but it was not opened to act till the 3d of August following why it lay so long dormant I do not find but only guess that the King might the better settle his Dispensing Power in the Country by such Judges as he had made as well as in Westminster-Hall and that he might be more at leisure to carry on the Design for surrender of Charters wherein one Robert Brent a Roman Catholick was a prime Agent and great Care was taken that the beggarly Corporations might surrender their Charters and take new ones without paying Fees and if any should be so honest as to insist upon their Oaths and Trust reposed in them for Preservation of their Charters to be prosecuted as riotous and seditious Persons But in regard the Commission of Ecclesiastical Affairs was not printed that I can find nor is in the State Tracts I thought fit to insert it here as I had it in Manuscript from a learned Hand JAMES the Second by the Grace of God King of England Scotland France and Ireland Defender of the Faith c. To the most Reverend Father in God our Right Trusty and Right well-beloved Counsellor William Lord Arch-Bishop of Canterbury Primate of all England and Metropolitan and to Our Right Trusty and Right well-beloved Counsellor George Lord Jeffries Lord Chancellour of England and to Our Right Trusty and Right well-beloved Cousin and Counsellor Lawrence Earl of Rochester Lord High Treasurer of England and to Our Right Trusty and Right well-beloved Cousin and Counsellor Robert Earl of Sunderland President of Our Council and Our Principal Secretary of State and to the Right Reverend Father in God and Our Right Trusty and well-beloved Counsellor Nathaniel Lord Bishop of Duresme and to the Right Reverend Father in God Our Right Trusty and well-beloved Thomas Lord Bishop of Rochester and to our Right Trusty and well-beloved Counsellor Sir Edward Herbert Knight Chief Justice of the Pleas before us to be holden assigned Greeting We for divers good weighty and necessary Causes and Considerations Us hereunto especially moving of our meer Motion and certain Knowledg by force and virtue of Our Supream Authority and Prerogative Royal do assign name and authorize by these our Letters Patents under the Great Seal of England you the said Arch Bp of Canterbury Lord Chancellor of England Lord High Treasurer of England Lord President of Our Council Lord Bishop of Duresme Lord Bishop of Rochester and our Chief Justice aforesaid or any three or more of you whereof you the said Lord Chancellor to be one from time to time and at all times during our Pleasure to exercise use occupy and execute under us all manner of Jurisdiction Privileges and Preheminences in any wise touching or concerning any Spiritual or Ecclesiastical Jurisdictions within this our Realm of England and Dominion of Wales and to visit reform redress order correct and amend all such Abuses Offences Contempts and Enormities whatsoever which by the Spiritual or Ecclesiastical Laws of this Realm can or may be lawfully reformed ordered redressed corrected restrained or amended to the Pleasure of Almighty God and encrease of Vertue and the Conservation of the Peace and Unity of this Realm And we do hereby give and grant unto you or any three or more of you as is aforesaid whereof you the said Lord Chancellor to be one thus by Us named assigned authorized and appointed by force of Our Supream Authority and Prerogative Royal full Power and Authority from time to time and at all times during Our Pleasure under us to exercise use and execute all the Premises according to the Tenour and Effect of these our Letters Patents any Matter or Cause to the contrary in any wise notwithstanding And We do by these Presents give full Power and Authority unto you or any three or more of you as is aforesaid whereof you the Lord Chancellor to be one by all lawful Ways or Means from time to time hereafter during Our Pleasure to enquire of all Offences Contempts Transgressions and Misdemeanours done and commited contrary to the Ecclesiastical Laws of this Our Realm in any County City Borough or other Place or Places exempt or not exempt within this our Realm of England
have a Commission but by Law is utterly disabled and disarmed Will you exchange your Birth-right of English Laws and Liberties for Martial and Club-Law and help to destroy all others only to be eaten up at last your selves If I know you well as you are English Men you hate and scorn these things And therefore be not unequally yoked with idolatrous and bloody Papists Be valiant for the Truth and shew your selves Men. The same Considerations are likewise humbly offered to all English Seamen who have been the Bulwark of this Nation against Popery and Slavery ever since 88. The first Lightning which the dormant Commission of Ecclesiastical Affairs produced fell upon the Bishop of London a Person of Exemplary Vertue and Loyalty and who besides the Nobility of his Birth had his Father slain in the late Civil Wars in defence of the King's Father's Cause and had himself and all his Brothers freely and valiantly exposed their Lives in defence of it The Crime alledged against him was that by the King's Letter he did not suspend Doctor Sharp then Dean of Norwich now Archbishop of York for preaching a Sermon against the Frauds and Corruptions of the Church of Rome by a Power as Arbitrary as that by which the Commissioners acted and for this these Commissioners suspended the Bishop tho every one understood the true Cause was the Bishop's Motion in the House of Lords to have debated the King's Speech Tantum Religio potuit swadere malorum I 'm perswaded King Charles the II. to make a Roman Hierarchy in Scotland made the Bishops out of the most obnoxious of the Clergy who besides their profligate Lives run the King's Prerogative there to a higher pitch than Laud in the King's Father's time did in England And that towards the latter end of his Reign he laid the same design here for the Bishopricks of Oxford York St. David's and Chester becoming void about the latter end of his Reign or beginning of King James's I 'll not name the Bishoprick of Litchfield and Coventry for the Petticoat governed in that Election Dr. Samuel Parker whom Mr. Marvel in his Rehearsal transposed calls Bays a Man of a virulent Disposition and who by railing against the Church got into Preferment and when he was in became a zealous Railer against them without was made Bishop of Oxford Dr. Cartright as high for the Prerogative as Parker was made Bishop of Chester and the Succession to these two Bishopricks was the more observable because Parker succeeded Dr. Fell and Cartright Dr. Peirson Men of Piety and Learning equal to any in their time and one Watson an obscure Man was made Bishop of St. David's but the Archbishoprick of York was reserved for a Person of another Temper whom these Bishops were making way for The Presidentship of Magdalen College in Oxford becoming void and the Fellows fearing a Mandamus would be imposed upon them for some Person not qualified by the Statutes and whom by their Oaths they could not submit to chose Dr. Hough for President a Person qualified by their Statutes for that Place As the Fellows feared so it came to pass for the King sent them a peremptory Mandamus to chuse the Bishop of Oxford Bays their President but he being a Person not qualified by the Statutes of their College which the Fellows were sworn to observe they in a humble Answer excused themselves as being otherways obliged as well by their Oath as Statutes I will not repeat the Anger the King express'd hereupon 't is in Print but sure such Language was never used by any Prince before But if the King 's harsh Language will not work the Fellows to his Will he will send the Commissioners of Ecclesiastical Affairs among them to turn them out of their Fellowships wherein they had as much Property as any other had to any real or personal Estate nor shall these Commissioners stay here but by a new strain of Tyranny never practised but by Absolute Tyrants they make the Fellows uncapable of any other Ecclesiastical Preferments The Fellows thus expelled the Statutes of the College are thrown out of Doors to make room for a Seminary of Jesuits and Popish Priests as much tending to the Subversion of the established Church of England as the Statutes of the College But see how God in his Providence blasted these things for the Bishop of Oxford had scarce taken possession of his thus new-acquired Presidentship when he died and you 'll soon see the Fellows restored again in spite of these Commissioners and Dr. Hough made Bishop of Oxford as well as President of Magdalen College If the King were zealous in advancing his Prerogative Royal both in the Church and State of England he will not be less in Scotland whereupon the 12th of February 1686-87 he issues out his Proclamation for Toleration of Religion which you may read in the State Tracts wherein he asserts his Absolute Power which he says his Subjects ought to obey without reserve But the Toleration which the King allows his Roman Catholick Subjects in Scotland he 'll scarce permit to his Protestant Subjects in Ireland for Tyrconnel for so has Talbot merited for his Service in Reforming the Army is not only made an Earl but Lord Lieutenant of Ireland in the room of my Lord Clarendon and one Fitton made Sir Alexander an infamous Person detected for Forgery not only at Westminster but at Chester and fined in the House of Lords was brought out of the King's Bench in England to be Chancellor and Keeper of the King's Conscience in Ireland in place of Sir Charles Porter The first Proclamation which Tyrconnel issued out was dated Feb. 21. 1687. wherein he promised to defend the Laws Liberties and established Religion but leaves out the preservation of the Acts of Settlement and Explanation But tho at first he only left out the Acts of Settlement and Explanation being resolved first to out the Protestants and let the Irish into their forfeited Estates yet did he not stay here and Bishop King in his Treatise of the State of the Protestants in Ireland gives so particular and methodical an Account how he proceeded in the destroying the Church and State of Ireland as by Law established that I refer the Reader to it not intending to lessen it by taking parts of it When the Judges had been above a Year propagating the King's Power in Westminster-Hall and in their Circuits of dispensing with the Penal Laws and Tests against Dissenters from the Church upon the 25th of April 1687 out comes the King's Declaration to all his Subjects for Liberty of Conscience wherein the King declares That it had been a long time his constant Sense and Opinion that Conscience ought not to be restrained nor People forced in Matters of meer Religion and that it was contrary to his Inclination as he thought it to be the disinterest of the Government by spoiling Trade and depopulating Countries c. Sure no Prince ever acted
so in Extreams yet his Actions so diametrically opposite to his Profession Here you see a Jesuited Prince pleading for Liberty of Conscience to the breaking down the â—aws which before he had so often professed to maintain and for such a sort of Men whom but little before he had slaughter'd banished and imprisoned as if he had designed to extirpate the whole Race of them If to reconcile these to Truth or Reality be not as great a Miracle as is in any of the Popish Legends I 'll believe them all and be reconciled to the Roman Catholick Church how inconsistible soever the Terms be The generality of the Protestant Dissenters having for near seven years together been so severely treated by the Tories were as forward to congratulate the King for his Indulgence in manifold Addresses as the Tories were in King Charles his time in their Addresses of Abhorrence to petition the King to call a Parliament to settle the Grievances of the Nation However this Declaration was so drawn in the sight of every Bird that of my knowledg many of the sober thinking Men of the Dissenters did both dread and detest it That this Declaration might be more passable Popish Judges were made in Westminster-Hall and Popish Justices of the Peace and Deputy-Lieutenants all England over the Privy Council was replenished with Popish Privy Counsellors the Savoy was laid open to instruct Youth in the Romish Religion and Popish Principles and Schools for that purpose were encouraged in London and all other Places in England Four Foreign Popish Bishops as Vicars Apostolical were allowed in Ecclesiastical Jurisdiction all England and Wales over From instructing the St. Omers Boys how to behave themselves in their Evidence to prove Oates was at St. Omers all April and May in 1678 my Lord Castlemain is sent Ambassador to the Pope to render the King's Obedience to the Holy and Apostolical See with great hopes of extirpating the Northern pestilent Heresy In return whereof the Pope sent his Nuncio to give the King his Holy Benediction yet I do not find that he beforehand sent for Leave to enter the Kingdom as was observed by Queen Mary Henry VIII and before The Judges in their Circuits had their private Instructions to know how Men were affected with the King 's Dispensing Power and those who were disaffected to it were turned out from the Lieutenancy and Commission of the Peace Justice Judgment and Righteousness support the Thrones of Princes but these were Strangers to this King's ways other Means must be found out to support and carry them through a standing Army is judged the best Expedient and as the King told the Parliament at their second Meeting he had encreased his Army to double what it was before so he made his Word good that he would employ Men in it not qualified by the late Tests and to this end Tyrconnel having disbanded the English Army in Ireland qualified by the Tests sends over an Army of Irish not qualified by the Tests to encrease the Army in England This Army thus raised against Law committed all manner of lawless Insolences though the King by several Orders would have had their Quarters restrained to Victualling-Houses Houses of publick Entertainments and such as had Licences to sell Wine and other Liquors the Officers too when they pleased would be exempt from the Civil Power And though the King had no other Wars but against the Laws and Constitutions of the Nation yet he would have the Act of the 1 2 Edw. 6. 2. which makes it Felony without Benefit of the Clergy for any Souldier taking Pay in the King's Service in his Wars beyond Sea or upon Sea or in Scotland to desert from his Officer to extend to this Army thus raised by the King And because the Recorder of London Sir J. H. would not expound this Law to the King's Design he was put out of his Place and so was Sir Edward Herbert from being Chief Justice of the King's Bench to make room for Sir Robert Wright to hang a poor Souldier upon this Statute and afterward this Statute did the Work without any further dispute Thus this Prince did not only assume a Power to controul the Laws of the Nation at his pleasure in Civil Affairs but when he pleased made them bend to his Will to establish an illegal Army and countenance the Effusion of Christian Blood but you 'll soon see God will blast these ungodly Ways and that not the Arm of Flesh but Judgment Justice and Righteousness establish the Thrones of Princes Thus Affairs stood in England Scotland and Ireland in the year 1687. wherein I suppose no History mentions so great and violent Alterations in so little time as in this King's Reign all tending to introduce a Foreign Power and to enslave the Nation yet so patiently endured by it but the Dangers of these Designs were not circumscribed within the bounds of this Nation but extended into France where for above twenty years a Conspiracy was carried on for promoting these Designs thus far advanced so that the Year 1688 had a much more terrible Aspect upon England than the Year 1588 had when Philip the II. designed the Conquest of it for then the Nation was firm and intire for its own Interest whereas this Year it was not only torn in pieces by internal Discords but had an Army and Fleet designed to join with the French King in propagating his boundless Ambition not only upon England but upon the Empire of Germany Spain Holland the Duke of Savoy and other Princes of Italy About the beginning of the year 1688 a Gentleman of High Jesuited Principles told me The States of Holland were Rebels against the King of Spain and that I should soon see the King of France would call them to an Account for it and humble them and that the French King would assist our King with Men of War I took more heed to this because I knew that he was frequently visited by several Jesuits in whose Counsels I believe the French King's Designs this Year were locked up for my Lord of Sunderland in his Letter recited in the History of the Desertion fol. 32. protests he knew nothing of a League between the King yet you will see it come out another way But my Lord of Sunderland says that French Ships were offered to join with our Fleet which was refused however this shews there was a Design contriving by these Princes yet at present the Affairs of France seemed to look another way and a French Fleet and Souldiers in them are sent to Canada the Design and Success you will soon hear of The King having thus as he thought laid a Foundation tho it proved a very Sandy one of his Designs and to shew how Absolute he would be in them upon the 4th of May passed an Order in Council that his Declaration of Indulgence should be read in all Churches and Chappels in England and Wales in time of Divine
Service and that all the Bishops in their respective Diocesses should take care to have this done accordingly The Bishops who knew the Declaration of Indulgence was designed to conjoin the Protestant Dissenters with the Popish to ruin the Established Church easily foresaw that the Order to them was to pick a Quarrel with them for the King might have ordered it to be read without as well as by them And besides the Injustice of it it was deemed an undecent thing that the Fathers of the Church in time of Divine Setvice should be the Instruments to give a Liberty to all whether they should come to Divine Service or not Besides the Bishop of London who stood suspended thes Bishops viz. the Archbishop of Canterbury the Bishops of Bath and Wells Ely Peterborough Chichester St. Asaph and Bristol were in or about the Town and this Order of Reading the Declaration in Churches was served upon them The Bishops in a humble Petition to the King gave their Reasons in Writing but so cautiously that after it was drawn up they would let no other Man see it before they presented it why they could not comply with the Order of Council The Chancellor tho he thought his Commission big enough to suspend the Bishop of London and Vice-Chancellor of Cambridg and expel the Master and Fellows of Magalen College in Oxford yet it seems did not think it sufficient to suspend these Bishops and therefore advised the King 't was said to try them upon an Information of High Misdemeanour in the King's Bench and in order to it they were committed Prisoners to the Tower Accordingly the Bishops were tried in the King's Bench in Trinty Term following upon an Information of High Misdemeanour for their Petition to the King but how secure soever the King and Chancellor thought themselves of the Judges and tho Sir Robert Wright who was Chief Justice and Sir Richard Allibone a known Papist were two of them yet they were not all of a Piece for Mr. Justice Powel both learnedly and stoutly defended the Bishops Cause If we look down to the Bar we shall see as strange a mixture as in the Bench for the late Attorney-General Sawyer and Solicitor Finch who were so zealous to find my Lord Russel Colonel Sidney and Mr. Cornish c. guilty of High Treason and for Surrender of Charters now they are turned out are as zealous for the acquittal of the Bishops and the then Solicitor-General of a most zealous Prosecutor of Abhorrers and Searcher into the bottom of the Popish Plot as zealous for finding their Misdemeanour However the Jury acquitted the Bishops Unless it were when Monk came into the City the 12th of February 1659-60 and Colonel Cloberry told the Citizens at Guild-Hall they should have a free Parliament or when King Charles came into London the 29th of May following never were such loud Acclamations of Joy exprest as upon the Acquittal of the Bishops nor did the Bounds of the City terminate this Joy but it flew like Lightning to Hounslow Heath where the King would be present to see the Army exercised wherein he trusted more than in Justice and Righteousness to accomplish his Design It seems the King was treated that Day by my Lord of Feversham General of the Army in his Tent when the News of the Bishops Acquittal arrived at the Army which entertained it with a general Shout the King 't was said was startled at it and sent the Earl to enquire the Cause the Earl in return told the King 't was nothing but the Souldiers Joy for the Acquittal of the Bishops And call you that nothing replied the King who was much discomposed upon it and well he might for now he saw how little Confidence was to be imposed in the Army he so much relied upon It 's a Duty incumbent upon Mankind to honour and worship God and give him Thanks for the Benefits received from him and to petition and pray to him for continuance of them Next after God it 's the Duty of all Subjects to honour the King for the Benefits they receive by his Justice and Protection and to petition and pray Relief from him for Oppressions and Injuries which cannot be redressed by the ordinary Course of Law or where the Ministers of the Law either cannot or refuse to do Justice It 's therefore the Wisdom of our Constitution that Parliaments frequently meet not only to receive Petitions against Oppressions or Injuries received which were not or could not be redressed by the King's Ministers of the Law but also to correct and punish the King's Ministers themselves if they transgressed or neglected their Duty But tho frequent Parliaments are the most proper Expedients for the Subjects herein yet oftentimes Accidents may be which will not stay for relief by Parliament as in Case of the Bishops In May they are ordered to have the King's Declaration of Indulgence read in all Churches and Chappels of their respective Diocesses and to do it and to give no Reasons why they could not do it would have been a manifest Contempt of the King's Authority they could not do it either in Honour or Conscience and by an humble Petition and Address represent this to the King and for ought appeared then the King never intended to call another Parliament till he had modelled them as much to his Will as Cromwel did Barebone's Parliament This Petition is made a High Misdemeanour and the Bishops committed upon it and Father Petre the Club of Jesuits the Attorney and Solicitor-General Graham Burton c. are all plotting how to make it so So as now the Kingdom is without all hopes of a free Parliament and yet it is a High Misdemeanour to address to or petition the King And that this Order upon the Bishops to enjoin the Reading of the King's Declaration for Indulgence was a Design upon their Persons as well as upon the Church is apparent for after their Acquittal Orders from the Commissioners of Ecclesiastical Affairs were sent into all parts of England to return an Account to the Lord Chancellor of those that refused to read the Declaration of Indulgence that they might be proceeded against for their Contempt but the Reign and Rage of these Commissioners was too hot to last long and now let 's see what return of Praises and Thanksgivings the Bishops can make to God for their Deliverance God requires Truth in the inward Parts and that it should govern all the Intentions Speech and Actions of every Man in his Conversation with Man yet more in his Prayers and Petitions to God and if it be an High Crime of Hypocrisy to speak or act contrary to a Man's Knowledg or Belief for the end designed thereby is to deceive another though God cannot be deceived it 's a greater Crime to approach his Omniscience with Prayers and Petitions contrary to a Man's certain Knowledg or firm Belief I take it for granted that the Bishops understood the King's Declaration
and shaken that the Legions which governed Britain were recalled by Ecius the Roman General under Honorius and Valentinian the 3d to make Head against Attila the poor Britains disarmed and only made use of to serve their imperious Masters and so utterly destitute of Martial Discipline easily became a Prey to the Picts and Scots not subject to the Romans who treated them more intolerably and tyrannically than the Romans had done For Redress whereof the Britains sought Succours from the English Saxons who came to their Relief in the Year 409 as Bede says lib. 1. cap. 15. of the Ecclesiastical History of the English Nation but these Saxons used the poor Britains worst of all and expelled the whole Race of them out of that part of the Island now called England Tho the Saxons had their Wills of the Britains they were before the Heptarchy at continual Variance among themselves and so after that it is almost as unaccountable to give a History of the Succession of their Kings as it was of the Britains before Julius Caesar Egbert about the Year 800 viz. 391 Years after the Saxon Invasion was called the first of the Saxon Monarchs tho the Kingdom of the Mercians was not united to his Monarchy who by Merit as well as Birth obtained the Dignity and succeeded Brithric Ethelwolph succeeded Egbert in the Kingdom of Westsax but not to those of Kent Sussex and Eastsax or Essex these being given by Egbert to Egbert's younger Son Ethelwolph by his Will divided his Kingdoms between his two eldest Sons Ethelbald and Ethelbert to Ethelbald he gave the Kingdom of the West Saxons to Ethelbert the Kingdom of Kent and the Eastern Southern and middle Angles But there were two other Sons Ethelred and Alfred Ethelbert after the Death of Ethelbald succeeded him in the Kingdom of the West Saxons and after the Death of Ethelbert Ethelred succeeded in the whole viz. of the West Saxons and of the Kingdoms of Kent the Eastern Southern and Middle Angles Alfred after the Death of Ethelred by universal Applause the famous the youngest Son of Ethelwolph succeeded Edward Son of Alfred was chosen by the Nobles on Whit-sunday in 901. Athelstan after the Death of Alfred tho a Bastard was elected by the Nobles of whom 't was said there was nothing ignoble in him But Athelstan dying without Issue his younger Brother Edmund succeeded him without any Opposition and tho he left two Sons Edwy and Edgar yet Edmund's younger Brother succeeded him Edwy after Edred's Death Edred's elder Brother 's elder Son succeeded but being a vicious Prince the Mercians and Northumbrians chose Edgar his younger Brother King in the Life of Edwy and Edgar after the Death of Edwy became King of the whole Nation Edward Son of Edgar after his Death was chosen by the Bishops and Nobles by the Command of his Father Edgar but he being murdered by his Step-mother Edward's younger Brother Ethelred succeeded And after his Death the Saxon Monarchy being rent in pieces by the Danes and Saxons Edmund Ironside Son of Etheldred by an obscure mean Woman tho he had two half-legitimate younger Brothers Edward and Alfred born of Etheldred's Wife was chosen King by one part of the Nobility and Canutus the Dane by another Thus the whole legitimate Race of the Saxon Kings were excluded one part chusing Ironside a Bastard the other Canutus a Stranger to the Saxon Royal Race Edmund Ironside being treacherously murdered by his Brother-in-law Edric Edmund leaving two Sons Edwy and Edward Canutus the Dane became sole Monarch of the Saxon Monarchy So that this was the beginning of the Danish Dynasty which lasted not long Harold Son of Canutus succeeded him and Hardicanute his Brother succeeded Harold neither the Issue of Etheldred Edward or Alfred nor Edwy or Edward the Sons of Edmund Ironside so much as taken notice of with this Hardicanute ended the Danish Rule with the Slaughter and Expulsion of the Danes Edward Son of Etheldred called the Confessor Uncle to Edwy and Edward Sons of Edmund Ironside after Hardicanute was advanced to the Royal Dignity principally by means of Earl Goodwin a powerful and imperious Lord upon the account of Edward's marrying the Earl's Daughter so little was the Hereditary Succession of the Saxon Kings regarded And that Edward's Reign might be more secure this Earl Goodwin caused the Eyes of Alfred the King's Brother to be put out and some say took away his Life Edward the Confessor growing old having no Issue and the Family of the wicked Earl Goodwin growing not only insolent but intolerable to him declared Edward the Son of Edmund Ironside his Cousin his Heir And to the end he might better succeed the King sent to the King of Hungary to return his Nephew Edward whom the King of Hungary had married to his Niece Agatha Daughter to Henry Emperor of Germany which the King of Hungary did and upon Edward's return the Confessor declared that he or his Sons should succeed in his Hereditary Kingdom of England But the Confessor did not long hold in this Mind for his Nephew Edward soon after dying and leaving a Son Edgar unfit for Government either as to his Body or Courage he decreed that his Kinsman William Duke of Normandy tho a Bastard should succeed him in the Kingdom of England which came to pass and so a new Race of Kings have succeeded in England of the Norman Race whose original Title was from a Grant of a King of the Saxon Race and so the beginning creates little Title to an Hereditary Succession in the Norman Race And now we 'll see how an Hereditary Succession was observed in it yet as in the Saxon so in the Norman Kings none succeeded who was not of the Royal Blood as all the Kings of Judah were of the Family or Tribe of Judah William Rufus the second Son of the Conqueror succeeded his elder Brother Robert then alive So did Henry the First his elder Brother Robert living Stephen the Son of the Conqueror's Sister succeeded Henry tho Henry left a Daughter Maud or Matilda Henry the Second succeeded Henry's Mother yet living so his Succession was not Hereditary for Haeres non est viventis Richard the First succeeded Henry the Second John succeeded Richard Arthur the Son of John's elder Brother then alive Henry the Third succeeded Arthur's Sister then alive who was Heir before him So that of seven Successions after the Conqueror but one Richard the First succeeded as Heir to his Father or the Conqueror Admit Edward the First succeeded as Heir to Henry the 3d and Edward the 2d as Heir to Edward the First yet Edward the 3d did not succeed as Heir to Edward the 2d he being then alive Admit Richard the 2d was Heir to Edward the Black Prince eldest Son to Edward the 3d yet neither Henry the 4th 5th or 6th were Heirs from Edward the 3d but the Descendants of Phillippa the Daughter of Lionel Duke of Clarence John of
one the 4th of Edw. the 3d c. 14. the other 36 Edward 3. c. 10. and when Parliaments thus frequently met Grievances were nipt in the Bud the Courts of Law kept to the Administration of Justice uprightly the Ambition of great Men restrained Factions and Innovations suppressed and when the Parliament met thus frequently the King had an Account of the State of the Nation and upon Redress of Grievances if any were the Parliament in acknowledgment of their Duty gave the King a Gratuity sometimes a Fifteenth other times a Subsidy and at other times a Subsidy and a Fifteenth and sometimes a Subsidy and two Fifteenths but never more before the 35 of Eliz. and the King in return granted a general Pardon to his Subjects with such Exceptions as the Parliament pleased and thus a mutual Love and Understanding between the King and his Subjects was nourished and encreased Whereas by the long discontinuance of Parliaments Grievances multiply and take Root so as they become so much more difficult to be redressed by how much longer the Discontinuances last The Favourites by their flattering the Prince not only keep him in Ignorance of the State of his Subjects but fix the Prince so to their Will that it becomes so habitual in him that the Prince prefers them before his Subjects and their Flatteries before the Advice of his Parliament and often takes their parts before that of the Parliament and Nation These long Intervals of Parliaments you 'll see will beget long Parliaments and the Members get to be chosen by the Favour of great Men and vast Expence so that the Grievances with the Parliament should redress become diffused into the Body of the Parliament than which nothing can be more dangerous to the Constitution of Parliament Besides that the publick Business may not be interrupted during the Sessions of Parliament the Members of both Houses have Privileges whereof they are the only Judges both in their own Persons and of their Servants whereby they are exempted from Arrests or any Process at Law which is not only grievous to the Subjects but oft the Ruine of them But now it 's time to see what the King's Proclamation for calling his first Parliament tended to Before King James his coming to the Crown of England the Election of Members in the House of Commons was so free that the Letters of the King or any Noble Man to chuse a Member was judged Cause sufficient to render the Election void but the King by this Proclamation gives order what Sorts of Men and how Qualified should be chosen by the Commons and concludes We Notify by these Presents That all Returns and Certificates of Knights Citizens and Burgesses ought and are to be brought to the Court of Chancery and there to be filed upon Record and if any be found to be made contrary to this Proclamation the same is to be rejected as unlawful and insufficient and the City or Borough to be fined for the same and if it be found that they have committed any gross or wilful Default or Contempt in the Election Return or Certificate that then their Liberties according to the Law are to be seized as forfeited And if any Person take upon him the Place of a Knight Citizen or Burgess not being duly elected and sworn according to the Laws and Statutes in that behalf provided and according to the Purport Effect and true Meaning of this our Proclamation then every Person so offending to be fined and imprisoned for the same Never was such a Prelude to the Meeting of a Parliament by any of the Kings of England either of the Saxon Danish Norman or British Race and if the King in the Beginning thus extends his first Note above ELA to what Pitch will he strain his Prerogative hereafter However since Forfeitures of Charters Fining and Imprisoning of Members not elected and returned according to this Proclamation were the Penalties imposed by it for the better Execution it might have been declared who should judg of these Elections and Returns or by what Law It fell out unluckily I think I may say designedly that upon the opening of the Parliament several of the House of Commons one of which was Sir Herbert Crofts coming to hear the King's Speech in the House of Lords had the Door shut upon them and were repulsed by a Yeoman of the Guard one Bryant Cash with the uncivil and contemptible Terms of Goodman Burgess you come not here The King in a long and tedious Speech which you may read at large in Stow's Chronicle after he had expressed his Thanks to the whole Nation for their Universal Acclamations in receiving him for their undoubted Sovereign which so much conduced to their Happiness in the Union of all Claims in his Person being the undoubted Heir of Hen. 7 and Elizabeth the Eldest Daughter of Edward the 4th wherein the Titles of the Houses of York and Lancaster were reconciled He tells them the Wonders which he will do both in reference to the inward and outward Peace of the Kingdom which how well he performed you will hear hereafter But as to the Glory which he ascribes to himself of being King by inherent Birthright from Hen. 7. and his Queen I think he could not have taken a worse Topick for what he so much gloried in For no hereditary Monarch has a better Title to his Crown than the Ancestor from whom he first claims had and it is evident Henry the 7th had no Colour of Title to the Crown of England by Inheritance being only descended from John of Gaunt by Katherine Swinford his Concubine when John of Gaunt's Wife was alive nor could the King claim any Title from the Wife of Henry the 7th for Henry himself would never own she had any reigning not only during her Life without naming her in the Coins Proclamations or Laws but after her Death and was not only crowned without her but called a Parliament without her ere he was married to her and had the Crown entailed upon him and the Heirs of his Body before he married her Besides there is no Averment against an Act of Parliament and the Act of the first of Richard the 3d declares all the Issue of Edward the 4th by the Lady Grey the Mother of Henry the 7th's Wife to be Illegitimate and so uncapable of any Inheritance to the Crown of England But how edified soever the Commons were with the King's Speech they were little pleased with the Yeomen of the Guards usage of their Members which in due time the King shall hear of However the King who since his coming in had been acquainted only with Flatteries introduced with the Epithet of most sacred which I find rarely applied to any of his Predecessors and how properly applied to him giving himself up to a dissolute and prophane Life let another judg was buoyed up with a mighty Expectation of the Success of his Proclamation and Speech which did not succeed
accordingly The Parliament met on Monday March the 19th and a Debate hapning in the House of Commons about the Return of the Election of Sir Francis Goodwin and Sir John Fortescue for Knight of the Shire for the County of Bucks the Commons Friday the 23d upon a full hearing determined Sir Francis to be lawfully elected and returned An. Reg. 2. An. Dom. 1604. Tuesday March the 26th The Lords by Sir Edward Coke and Dr. Hone sent a Message to the Commons that the former Committees may in a second Conference to be had have Authority to treat touching the Case of Sir Francis Goodwin the Knight of Bucks first of all before any other Matters were proceeded in The Commons returned Answer that they do conceive that it did not stand with the Honour of this House to give an Account of their Proceedings and Doings but if their Lordships have any Purpose to confer for the Reâ—due that then they will be ready at such time and place and such number as their Lordships shall think meet Sir Edward Coke c. delivered from the Lords that their Lordships taking notice in particular of the Return of the Sheriff of Bucks and acquainting his Majesty with it his Highness conceived himself engaged and touched in Honour that there might this be some Conference of it between the two Houses and to that end signified his Pleasure unto them and by them to House The Commons by their Speaker give their Reasons to the King why they cannot confer with the Lords The King in return charges the Commons to admit a Conference with the Judges the Commons give Reason and answer Objections why they cannot confer with the Judges and the 3d of April deliver them at the Council-Chamber by Sir Francis Bacon desiring that their Lordships would be Mediators in behalf of the House for his Majesty's satisfaction the King in return commanded as an Absolute King that there might be a Conference between the House and Judges The House upon return hereof resolved to confer with the King in presence of the King and Council and named a select Committee for the Conference but the Success being doubtful Sir Francis Goodwin fearing this might cause a Rupture between the King and the House and to remove all Impediments to the worthy and weighty Causes which might by this time have been in a good furtherance desired another Writ of Election for a Member in his stead Hereupon and other Accidents succeeding wherein the Commons supposing themselves aggrieved the Commons upon the 16th of June in an humble Apology to his Majesty represent their Privileges and wherein they conceive themselves aggrieved The Stubborness of the Commons for so the King would have it so dissonant from the Flatteries he had constantly sounding in his Ears and of being an Absolute King by Inherent Birth-right put the King so out of Conceit with Parliaments that in all his Life till the last Parliament of his Reign when necessity brought him to it he was never reconciled to them But that we may more clearly see what followed we will look back into the Reign of Queen Elizabeth There were three things which the Queen was impatient of being debated in Parliament the Succession of the Crown after her Death her Marriage and the making any Alterations in the Church as it was established in the first Year of her Reign But the Commons having a fearful Eye of a Relapse into Popery after the Nation had been freed from it and the Queen of Scots being zealously addicted to the Romish Religion and having not only assumed the Arms of England as next Heir to Queen Elizabeth but upon her Return from France into Scotland by many Embassies solicited Queen Elizabeth that she might be declared her Successor in case Queen Elizabeth died without Heirs of her Body To prevent this the Commons in manifold Addresses to the Queen petitioned her to marry and declare her Successor and after the Duke of Norfolk's Conspiracy and the Rebellion in the North under the Earls of Northumberland and Westmoreland wherein it appeared the Queen of Scots was privy and consenting in all the Parliaments I think from the 9th of Elizabeth to the Queen of Scotland's Death the Commons were importunate with the Queen to cut her off which you may read at large in the Journals of the Parliaments of Queen Elizabeth set forth by Sir Simon D' Ewes The Queen fixed in these Resolutions did often forbid the Parliament upon their Allegiance to enter into Debates upon them yet some zealous Members the principal of which was one Mr. Peter Wentworth as well in the case of the Queen of Scots as for some Reformation in the Church did several times endeavour to have them debated upon which the Queen committed them to the Tower tho soon after they were discharged This the Commons in their Apology to the King take notice of and pray that this be no Precedent for the future but that their Debates in Parliament may be free but they shall find that this King 's little Finger and his Son 's after him shall be heavier upon them than Queen Elizabeth's Loins However this Apology of the Commons tended to a Rupture between the King and them within yet the King was resolved to have Peace without the Kingdom how inconsistible soever the Terms were and to that end upon the 18th of August following being the second Year of his Reign he concluded a firm Peace with Philip the 3d of Spain and Albert and Isabel Arch-Dukes of Austria c. and also a Treaty of Commerce which as it was the most beneficial to the English Nation so it was difficult if not impossible to observe the Peace the King as he had managed it made the Treaty of Commerce to be but little beneficial to the Nation For the Year before the King had renewed the Treaty of Alliance which Queen Elizabeth had made with the Dutch States where tho the King was not obliged to maintain such a number of Men for the Dutch Support against the Spaniards to be repaid at the end of the War whereby the Treaty with the Queen Anno 1598. the Dutch were not only to pay but to repay the Queen yearly 100000 l. till a Peace was made with Spain when they were to pay her two Millions of Money with the Interest of 10 per Cent. deducting the 100000 l. per Annum they were to pay yet by the fourth Article of the said Treaty it was agreed That neither the Kings of England nor Spain shall themselves give or shall consent to be given by any of their Vassals Subjects or Inhabitants Aid Favour or Counsel directly or indirectly on Sea Land or fresh Waters nor shall supply or minister or consent to be supplied or ministred by their said Vassals Inhabitants or Subjects unto the Enemies or Rebels of either Part of what Nature or Condition soever they be whether they shall invade the Countries and Dominions of either of them
unanswerable Reasons of a National Interest and the manifold Inconveniences the incorporating those Trades in a Company brought to the Navigation of the Nation both in the Foreign Vent of our Manufactures and in their Returns to the Ruin of infinite Artificers Sea-men and Shipwrights and to the Diminution of the King's Revenue Whereupon these Trades were declared free and have ever since continued so to the inestimable Benefit of this Nation But tho the Reasons in this Act extend to all other Beneficial Trades as to Turkey the East-Country and Hamburgh Trades and to Africa and the East-Indies yet all these Trades are monopolized into Companies exclusive to other Men as much to the Prejudice of the Nation as the making the Spanish Trade free was beneficial to it About this time the Clergy at least a Faction which stiled themselves the Clergy made an Attempt to try how far their Doctrine of Absolute Power in the King had taken root in him they had gained their Point so far as the King had declared his Command to the Commons as Absolute King and now they 'll see whether the King would assert it and the Case was this Arch-bishop Whitgift a Prelate of singular Piety and Humility died the last day of February in the first Year of the King and Doctor Richard Bancroft a Man of a rough Temper a stout Foot-ball-player as zealous an Assertor of the Rights of the Church of England or rather a Faction of Church-men who arrogated to themselves the Title as Julius the 2d was of the Papacy exhibited to the King and Council 25 Articles in the Name of all the Clergy of England called Articuli Cleri which were desired to be reformed in granting Prohibitions tho there were a Parliament and Convocation then sitting which I do not find had any hand in it This Exhibition as it ascribed an Absolute Power to the King so it struck directly at the Constitution of Parliaments the principal End of which is to redress Grievances and Abuses in the Nation and if the King's Council during the sitting of a Parliament shall ascribe to themselves this Power then the great End of Parliaments redressing Grievances and Abuses is in vain However Bancroft herein not only makes the King's Council to have a concurring Power with the Parliament but paramount to it by exhibiting these Articles in the sitting of a Parliament and Convocation but the Judges gave so clear and distinct an Answer to them all that the King did not think fit to meddle in them yet did not Bancroft rest here as you will hear hereafter The Articles and the Judges Answer to them you may read at large in Sir Coke's second Institute tit Articuli Cleri Whilst Bancroft was thus ascribing to the King this Absolute Power and exalting a Faction of Church-men above the true State of the Clergy which is one of the three States of the Nation and above the Nobility and Commonalty which are the other two The Popish Faction were plotting a Design not only to destroy the Church of England but the very Person of the King with the Nobility and Commons convened in Parliament which was to have been executed upon the fifth of November following the day on which the Parliament were to meet The Popish Party hoped and it may be not unreasonably that the King in regard of his Mother's Religion was not averse to theirs so that if he became not of their Church which in his Speech at the opening the Parliament he owns our Mother-Church at least hoped to have their Religion tolerated whereas finding the King in his Speech after he had declaimed against the Heresies and Abuses crept into their Church and the Pope's having arrogated an Imperial Civil Power over Kings and Emperors by dethroning and decrowning them with his Foot and disposing of their Kingdoms and the Jesuits Practice of assassinating and murdering Kings if they be cursed by the Pope That so long as they maintained these they were not sufferable in the Kingdom From this time forward and it may be before a Popish Crew contrived how to bring in their Catholick Religion they cared not which way so it might be done At last it was agreed upon the opening of the Session of Parliament upon the 5th of November one part of the Conspirators should blow up the Lords House while the King Prince with the Nobility and Commons were in it having prepared all things in a readiness whilst another part should seize upon the Lady Elizabeth after Queen of Bohemia and proclaim her Queen But the Plot being discovered the Conspirators were defeated of both their Designs The Horror and Terror of this Conspiracy the Discovery whereof was industriously divulged and believed to be by the King 's great Wisdom and Care reconciled for a time all Differences between him and his Parliament and the Parliament to gratify the King the Clergy gave him four Subsidies at four Shillings in the Pound and the Temporality three Subsidies and â—ix Fifteenths which was threefold more than any Parliament in one Session gave Queen Elizabeth before that of the 35 Eliz. notwithstanding the Payment of her Father's Brother's and Sister's Debts her expelling the French out of Scotland the building and repairing the Navy Royal the Support of the Reformed in France the subduing the Rebellion in the North the Support of the Dutch in the Netherlands the Irish War and the Overthrow of the Spanish Armada in 88. The Parliament enacted the Oath of Allegiance which Bellarmine under the Name of Tortus wrote against and Andrews Bishop of Winton under the Name of Tortura Torti defended it The Parliament too ordained the Anniversary of the Fifth of November to be celebrated for a perpetual Thanksgiving-Day for the King and Kingdom 's Delivery from this Conspiracy All Heats about Prerogative and Privilege were now laid aside the Pulpits and our Universities rang with Declamations against the Heresies and Usurpations of the Church of Rome and now the King gave himself wholly to Hunting Plays Masques Balls and writing against Bellarmine and the Pope's Supremacy in arrogating a Power over Kings and disposing of their Kingdoms and thus the Case stood for four Years after wherein I scarce find any thing worth mentioning This and the next Year was almost wholly spent in Debates concerning the Uniting of the Kingdoms of England and Scotland which the King eanestly solicited and which ended only in Contests and Arguments for the House of Parliament refused to join with the King in it however the King obtained a Judgment in Westminster-Hall in a Case called Calvin's Case that the Post Nati in Scotland after the King's Assumption to the Crown of England were free to purchase and inherit in England But whilst the King was thus wallowing in Pleasure he wholly gave himself up to be governed by Favourites to whom he was above any other King of England except Henry the 8th excessively prodigal not only in Honours and Offices but of
the Revenues of the Crown and Aids given in Parliament and these being of both Nations Scotch as well as English made them to be the more intolerable All things being at Peace Abroad Publick Affairs were neglected or scarce thought of whilst the Dutch still grew more powerful at Sea and without any Aid from the King were Matches for the King of Spain by Land and Henry the 4th of France was accumulating incredible Treasure at Home and laying the Foundation of vast Designs Abroad whereof the King took no notice his Genius lying another way In these Debates at Home and Lethargy of State of Foreign Affairs the Prerogative-Clergy swelled the High Commission to such an height that it was complained of as a Grievance in Parliament as you may read in Wilson's History of Great Britain â—ol 46. Nay Bancroft this Year notwithstanding the Judges Answer to the Articles exhibited to the King against granting Prohibitions and that the Parliament was still sitting repeated his Exhibitions But however the King inclined to favour Bancroft he had not Courage enough to over-rule the Judges Answer to them it may be for fear the Parliament should interpose or indispose them to grant him more Money whereof already he stood in great need But the Parliament however they gratified the King for their Deliverance from the Popish Conspiracy did not think fit to pour it forth so plentifully now in times of Peace to be profusely thrown upon Favourites and Minions who were no more Friends to them than they to the established Church of England To supply the King's Necessities as he made them one Doctor Cowell no doubt set upon by Bancroft and those called the Church the next Year after published his Interpreter wherein he premises these three Principles First That the King was Solutus a Legibus not bound by his Coronation-Oath Secondly That it was not ex Necessitate that the King should call a Parliament to make Laws but might do it by his Absolute Power Thirdly It was a Favour to admit the Consent of the Subjects in giving Subsidies Cowell's Interpeter approved by the King as the Civil Law was highly extolled by the King See Wilson fol. 46. was not only printed but publickly sold without Impunity and this gave Encouragement to the publishing many others to the same purpose among which one Blackwood published one which concluded that we were all Slaves by reason of the Conquest The Commons tho they took no notice of Bancroft and his Articles against Prohibitions took Fire at these and intended to have proceeded severely against him but the King interposed and promised to call in these Books by Proclamation as he did but they were out and the Proclamation could not call them in but only served to make them more taken notice of But this had not the desired Effect of getting more Money than one Subâ—dy and one Tenth whereupon the King by Proclamation dissolved them the 31st of December 1609 after they had sat near seven Years wherein the King set forth that he had proposed many things far differing and surpassing the Graces and Favours of former times both in Nature and Value 〈◊〉 â—â—pectation of a good Conclusion of some weighty Cause which had been there in Deliberation not only for the Supply of the Necessities of his Majesty's Estate but for the Ease and Freedom of his Subjects but these being the two last Sessions little taken notice of and that the Members by reason of the length of the Parliament were debarred from the Hospitality they kept in the Country and that divers Shires Cities and Boroughs had been burdened with Expence of maintaining their Members for these Reasons he dissolved them so that they should not need to meet at the Day set by their Prorogation CHAP. II. A Continuation of this Reign to the Dissolution of the Second Parliament 1614. BUT how precarious soever the King was to get Money of the Parliament he had not Courage enough to demand the 100000 l. per Annum by the Treaty between Queen Elizabeth and the Dutch States in 1598 whereby Eleven hundred thousand Pounds was due to him much less to demand the principal Debt viz. two Millions and also two Millions and two hundred thousand Pounds due for eleven Years Interest at 10 l. per Cent. Now by the Mediation of several Princes but especially by King James this Year a Truce or Peace for twelve Years was concluded between the King of Spain and the Arch-Dukes Albert and Isabel and the Dutch wherein the Dutch were declared Free States and independent upon the Crown of Spain or Arch-Dukes But tho the King had not Courage enough to demand the Monies due to him from the Dutch by the Treaty with Queen Elizabeth he had so much as to enter into a Treaty with the Dutch for a Tribute to be paid to him for License to fish upon the Coasts of England and Scotland but the Dutch observed this no better than that with the Queen and the King got less by it Long Parliaments beget long Intervals in which Grievances become so multiplied and fixed that they become so much more difficult to be redressed by how much longer the Intervals are And since the King could not get Money of the Parliament and was afraid to demand any of the Dutch let 's see what Courses he took to get Money during the Interval from this Parliament to the meeting of the next which was five Years and how the Case stood with them In the opening of the first Parliament the King tells them that he was so far from encreasing their Burden with Rehoboam as that he had so much as either Time Occasion or Law could permit lightned them and at that time had been careful to revise and consider deeply upon the Laws made against them that some Overture may be proposed in Parliament for clearing those Laws by Reason which is the Soul of the Law in case they have been in times past further or more rigorously executed by Judges than the meaning of the Law was or might tend to the Hurt as well of the innocent as guilty Persons At the Dissolution of the Parliament the King 's principal Favourites were Henry Howard Brother to the Duke of Norfolk whom Queen Elizabeth beheaded tho a Papist yet Lord Privy-Seal Robert Cecil Earl of Salisbury Lord Treasurer Philip Earl of Mountgomery for a certain Reason Thomas Lord Walden Son of the Duke of Norfolk after created Earl of Suffolk and Sir Henry Rich after Earl of Holland English the Earl of Dunbar Sir Alexander Hay and Sir Robert Carr who in a short time shall overtop them all Scotish There was a Story current in those Times which I have heard from some credible Persons which did live in that time That King James having given Sir Robert Carr a Boon of 20000 l. my Lord Treasurer Salisbury that he might make the King sensible of what he had done invited the King to an Entertainment and so
ordered it that before the King should come at it he should pass through a Room wherein he had placed four Tables and upon each Table lay 5000 l. in Silver when the King came into the Passage he started and was amazed at the sight having never before seen such a Sum he asked the Treasurer the meaning of it who told the King It was the Boon he had given Sir Robert Carr Swounds Man the Oath he usually swore but five thousand should serve his turn and so for that time the Treasurer saved the King the other fifteen thousand Pounds To support these Favourites and other of the King's Country-men of less Note was all the King's Care notwithstanding his Foreign Affairs or his Proclamation at his first coming to London against Monopolies or his Speech at the opening of the Parliament But since Money cannot be had by Parliament other means must be found out There were many ways used for raising Monies during this Interval of Parliament First Monopolies which swarmed more than in any King's Reign before Secondly Payments for new invented Knighthoods never before heard of in England in Times of Peace called Baronets the Prince was 1000 l. and the King to quicken the Market promised to make but 200 of them tho when this Market was done he kept it up all his Life-time after Thirdly Tho the Baronets paid for their Honours yet the King issued our Commissions for reviving the old Obsolete Laws for making Men which could expend 40 l. per Annum to compound for not being Knighted Fourthly Payments for being made Knights of Nova Scotia Fifthly The purchasing of English Honours at certain set Prices a Baron at 10000 l. a Viscount at 15000 l. an Earl at 20000 l. Sixthly Payments for Scotish and Irish Honours I do not find set Prices of these Scotish Honours of the same Title to have the Precedence of an Irish as a Scotish Baron Viscount or Earl to have the Precedence of an Irish and tho an English Honour of like Degree had the Precedence of either of the other yet if either of the other had a higher Title he should precede an English Peer under a less as a Scotish or Irish Viscount shall precede an English Baron so such an Earl shall precede an English Viscount Seventhly Compositions upon defective Titles Eighthly Compositions for Assart Lands Ninthly Monies for making Prince Henry Knight Tenthly Monies to marry the Lady Elizabeth to the Palsgrave Eleventhly A Benevolence Twelfthly Monies borrowed upon Privy-Seals and never repaid besides Sales of Lands Woods and Fee-farm Rents c. During this Interval of Parliament was perpetrated a most horrible Murder upon the Person of Sir Thomas Overbury which is the more remarkable if it be considered how far tho the King detested the Fact Favourites had the Ascendant over the King and how the King influenced the Causes of this Murder and that the Story may more intirely consist it will be necessary to borrow a little of common Fame Sir Robert Carr was made Viscount Rochester the 25th of March 1610 and upon the 22d of April following was made one of the King's Privy-Council and having the Ascendant above all other Favourites over the King he chose a Council of some Persons how to advance himself in this great Power Of these Sir Thomas Overbury a Gentleman of brisk and lively Parts was the chief who had as much an Ascendant over the Lord Rochester as he had over the King and as Rochester was a Favourite so was Thomas Earl of Suffolk who had a Daughter named Frances married to Robert Earl of Essex Son of Robert cut off in the last Year of Queen Elizabeth who after was General of the Army raised by the Parliament in the late Civil Wars Tho of disagreeing Humours the Earl and Countess were of agreeable Years when they were married both about the Age of twelve Years and now had lived above ten Years without any Carnal Knowledg of one with the other as both confessed when the Countess sued for a Divorce whereto the Countess was intolerably bent and if publick Fame may be credited and which is attested by a Writer of the first 14 Years of King James his Life chap. 7. she entred into a Conspiracy with one Ann Turner to have poisoned the Earl But how cold soever the Countess was in her Affections to the Earl they were not less on fire to my Lord of Rochester and that these Flames might soar in an equal height the Countess by the help of Mrs. Turner procures one Doctor Foreman as he was called to bewitch Rochester into equal Desires of mutual Love with the Countess and now Familiarity between the Countess and Rochester becomes publickly scandalous However the Earl continued his Love to the Countess but withal acquainted her with the Dishonour she brought upon him and more upon her self by her loose Life which was now become so publickly taken notice of this was so far from reclaiming the Countess that it stung her to the quick and instead of Reformation she by Letters to Mrs. Turner who the Countess says is all her hopes of Good in this World and by her to Dr. Foreman whom she calls sweet Father and subscribes her self his Affectionate Daughter Frances Essex endeavours to procure the Doctor to bewitch the Earl to Frigidity towards her Sir Francis Bacon in his Charge against my Lord Rochester after Earl of Somerset at his Trial for the Murder of Sir Thomas Overbury gives Sir Thomas hard words as That there was little in him that was solid for Religion or Moral Vertue but was wholly possest with Ambition and vain Glory and was loth to have any Partners in my Lord of Rochester's Favour and that to flatter my Lord in his unlawful Love with the Countess of Essex Sir Thomas had made his Brags that he had won Rochester the Love of the Countess by his Letters and Industry But these stoln Pleasures could not satisfy the Countess's Desires and that she might enjoy them to be compleat she endeavours since the Design of poisoning the Earl did not succeed to make way to her Desires of marrying Rochester by suing out a Divorce against the said Earl which she acquaints Rochester with and Rochester and the Countess acquaint the Earl of Northampton who before was privy and consenting to the Familiarity between them and was easily induced to join in procuring a Divorce Tho this was agreed between them yet the Viscount would not proceed further till he had consulted Sir Thomas Overbury protesting he the Viscount would do nothing without his Advice Sir Thomas told him The marrying the Countess would not be only hurtful to his Preferment but helpful to subvert and overthrow him and who would being possest of so great Possibilities as he was so great Honours and large Revenues and daily in expectation of others cast all away upon a Woman noted for her Injury and Immodesty and pull upon himself the Hatred and Contempt
of great Personages for so small a matter Then he willed the Viscount to consider with himself the Condition of the Countess the manner of her Carriage from her Youth her present Conversation the many Envies Dishonours and Dislikes which attend upon her and besides which is the Opinion of the Vulgar and he should find it so many Evils to attend his Subversion and Overthrow That it was not the Nature of a wise Man to make her his Wife whom he had made his Whore Lastly Sir Thomas advised him that he should expect no better Requital from her than such as she had shewed to her former Husband and withal to weigh the present Condition he is in and compare it with the future and much more to this purpose and that Honour is not attended by Voluptuousness nor the Ruines of a rotten Branch to be cherished upon a new planted Tree but if he the Viscount meant to be made famous and to continue that with him which he now freely enjoyed Sir Thomas his Opinion was That he should utterly leave and forsake the Countess's Company and hold her both hurtful and hateful Rochester was surprised at Overbury's Advice and the more by how much less he expected it and falls out with Overbury and gives him harsh Language but Overbury retorts again and persists in his Advice and demands his Portion due to him of Rochester and so leaves him to his own Fortunes If Rochester was surprized at Overbury's Advice the Countess was enraged at it so as nothing less than Overbury's Blood could appease her Revenge but how to compass it would be a work of time and required deep Consideration Secrecy and Resolution But we leave this Affair here to take a view of other Occurrences which happened this Year 1610. To the King 's former Monopolies he this Year added another which caused many Commotions here and endangered a Rupture with the Dutch and this was the Case The English at this time were not skilled in the Art of dressing and dying English Woollen Manufactures but after they were made here they were vented into Holland where they were dressed and dyed Alderman Cockaine and some rich Citizens having as was said promised Rochester Northampton and the Lord Treasurer great Sums of Money to procure them a Patent for dressing and dying of Cloths and that the King would seize into his Hands the Charter of the Merchant-Adventurers for transporting of white undressed Cloths Cockaine pretending that besides the enriching the Nation multitudes of poor People might be employed to the Benefit of the Nation which now were a Burden to it Hereupon the King seizes upon the Merchant-Adventurers Patent and grants to Cockaine and others a new Patent for dressing and dying Cloths But Cockaine's Project succeeded both ways quite contrary for the Dutch prohibited the Importation of English drest and dyed Cloths from England and Cockaine and his Company not only dyed and dressed the Cloths worse and dearer which are ever the Consequences of Monopolies than they were in Holland but these being restrained to a Company they could not near dress and dye the Cloths made in England Whereupon the making Cloths stood at a stand and infinite Numbers of poor People which were imploy'd in making Cloths lay idle and were reduced to a starving Condition this raised great Clamours which arrived at the Council which to pacify the Council permitted some quantities of white Cloths to be transported but this did at present but skin the Soar not cure it as you will soon hear This Year was wounded up in a mournful Catastrophe for upon the 6th of November Prince Henry died in the beginning of the Blossom of his Youth being 18 Years 8 Months and 17 Days old A Prince adorned with Wisdom and Piety above his Years Strength and Ability of Body equal to any Man of a Noble and Heroick Disposition and an hater of Flatteries and Flatterers and therefore fell flat at odds with Rochester not once giving him any Countenance or vouchasafing him his Company I have heard my Father who was about the Prince's Age tell several Stories of him Once when the Prince was hunting the Stag it chanced the Stag being spent crossed the Road where a Butcher and his Dog were travelling the Dog killed the Stag which was so great that the Butcher could not carry him off When the Huntsmen and Company came up they fell at odds with the Butcher and endeavoured to incense the Prince against him to whom the Prince soberly answered What if the Butcher's Dog killed the Stag what could the Butcher help it They replied If his Father had been served so he would have sworn so as no Man could have endured it Away replied the Prince all the Pleasure in the World is not worth an Oath Another time when the French Ambassador came to take his leave of the Prince the Ambassador asked him What Service he would command him to his Master the Prince bid him tell his Master what he was a doing being then tossing 〈◊〉 Pike The Prince had an high Esteem for Sir Walter Rawleigh and would say No other King but his Father would keep such a Maâ—â— as Sir Walter in such a Cage meaning the Tower His Court was more frequented than the King 's and by another sort of Men so that the King was heard to say Will he bury 〈◊〉 alive And the high Church-Favourites tax'd him for being a Patriot to the Puritans Never was any Prince's Death more universally and cordially lamented and the more by how much the Suddenness of his Death being known before his Sickness was scarce heard of was surprizing As Mens Humours flowed they vented their Passions some said A French Physician killed him others He was poisoned and it was observed that poisoning was never more in fashioâ— than at this time others That he was bewitched c. Whether it were to appease these Clamours or out of Curiosity I cannot tell but Dr. Mayerne Dr. Atkins Dr. Hammond Dr. Palmer Dr. Gifford and Dr. Butler were ordered to dissect the Prince's Body the next day after his Death and to give their Opinions of it which were First They found his Liver paler than ordinary in certain place somewhat wan his Gall without any Choler in it and distendeâ— with Wind. Secondly His Spleen in divers places more than ordinarily black Thirdly His Stomach was in no part offended Fourthly His Midriff in divers places black Fifthly His Lungs were very black and in divers places spotted and of a thin watry Blood Sixthly That the Veins of the hinder part of his Head were fullâ— than ordinary but the Ventricles and Hollowness of the Brain 〈◊〉 full of clear Water However Prince Henry died Henry the 4th of France died by 〈◊〉 violent Death being stabb'd by Raviliac the 4th of May thâ— Year his Predecessor Henry the 3d being about 22 Years before stabb'd by James Clement a Jacobite Friar At Henry the 4th his Death there was an universal Peace
the Occasion Somerset gave of Villiers's Rise and of his own Fall Somerset was of mean and scarce known Parents and as he was endued with no natural Parts so neither had he acquired any being brought up and bred a Page at Court hereby he became as little capable of demeaning himself in Prosperity as Adversity After Sir Overbury's Confinement he gave himself up wholly to be govern'd by Northampton and soon after his Marriage he fell into an universal Solitariness and Sadness so that it was much taken notice of which Northampton observing and judging not unlikely that the Cares of Somerset did arise from his Fears of the Discovery of Overbury's Death wherein they were both deeply ingaged which if it should come to pass they had no other means to secure themselves but by making themselves so great as to oppose all who should charge them with it or else by being Catholicks they might draw all that Party to assist them and in these they both agreed and to make Matters more perplext Northampton by one Hamon did encourage the Irish to continue firm in their Religion assuring them that God would one way or other protect his Church and that now the greatest Favourite in England would stand firm to them and also give Incouragement to the Papists in the North to meet openly at Mass and foment the Feuds between the English and Scots the English murmuring at the King's Favours more to the Scots than them If I have erred herein the Writer of the historical Narration of the first fourteen Years of King James's Reign cap. 30. led me into it This sullen Humour of Somerset's little suted with the King 's liking being before better pleased with Somerset's Gaiety in humouring him in all his Pleasures After Northampton's Death he was left alone to himself and all Northampton's Designs died with him and then Somerset having forsaken all Men and being forsaken by them appeared in his own Nature without any Disguise wretchedly penurious and intolerably covetous There was no coming at the King's Ear but by him nor any coming at him but by excessive Bribes and as the King began to loath him so all Men detested and hated him So it was every Bodies business to out Somerset and bring young Villiers into the King's Favour All the Court took notice of the King's Affection to young Villiers and the Queen observed it and Villiers not to be wanting to himself daily appeared at Court There was but one Obstacle to be removed and the Way was plain and easy for Villiers to be the King's Favourite the King would receive none into Favour but who was first recommended to him by the Queen and the Queen had observed something in young Villiers which she utterly disliked and how to get the Queen to recommend young Villiers to the King was the only business to be done The Queen a Princess of rare Piety Prudence Temperance and Chastity had a great Veneration for the Arch-Bishop of Canterbury Abbot and the Arch-Bishop as much an Aversion to Somerset not only for his Marriage with the Countess of Essex but for his other detestable Qualities so that the Arch-Bishop was the only Instrument which was judged could move the Queen to recommend young Villiers to the King It was no great difficulty to persuade the Arch-Bishop to undertake this Business being of himself disposed to it but when he propounded it to the Queen she was utterly averse from it having before been stung with Favourites but by her Observation of Villiers she told the Arch-Bishop she saw that in that young Villiers that if he became a Favourite he would become more intolerable than any that were before him Hereupon the Arch-Bishop declined the Business but Somerset declining daily from bad to worse the Arch-Bishop was again prevailed upon to move the Queen to recommend young Villiers to the King which he did with more Importunity than before urging Somerset's intolerable Pride and Covetousness and that he observed a good Nature and gentle Disposition in Villiers so that some Good might be hoped from him which could never be expected from the other at last the Queen assented to it but withal told the Arch-Bishop he among the rest would live to repent it After Villiers was recommended by the Queen it became out of her Power and the Power of the Kingdom to get him out of the King's Favour or his Son 's after him and the Arch-Bishop himself shall find the Queen to have been a true Prophetess however at first Villiers acknowledg'd his Favour with the King to have its Original from the Arch-Bishop called him Father and protested to be governed by him before all other Men and the Arch-Bishop gave him some Lessons to observe towards the King and Queen which Villiers repeated to him and promised to observe which you may read at large in the first part of Mr. Rushworth's Collections in the second Year of King Charles the First written by the Arch-Bishop In the beginning of Mr. Villiers's coming into Favour he was affable and courteous and seemed to court all Men as they courted him he promoted Mens Suits to the King gratis which Somerset would not do but for great Sums of Money and hereby Villiers stole all the Hearts of the Courtiers and Petitioners to the King from Somerset who was now wholly forsaken by God and all Men. Somerset thus forsaken of all Men and stung in Conscience for the Death of Overbury and finding a Rival in the King's Favour seeks by that small Portion which he had left to procure a general Pardon from the King to secure him in his Life and Estate which was far the greatest of any Subject in the King's Dominions and to that purpose applies himself to Sir Robert Cotton to draw one as large and general as could be which Sir Robert did wherein the King should declare That of his own Motion and special Favour he did pardon all and all manner of Treasons Misprisions of Treasons Murders Felonies and Outrages whatsoever by the Earl of Somerset had been committed or hereafter should be committed and this Pardon the King signed But Somerset grasping at too much lost all for my Lord Chancellor Egerton refused to seal the Pardon Somerset asked him the Reason which the Chancellor told him was because if he did it he should incur a Praemunire and this the Chancellor told the King who was not displeased with it So that now all Hopes of Pardon for Sir Overbury's Murder failing he had recourse to other Artifices of suppressing all Letters which passed between him the Countess and Northampton either to Sir Thomas the Lieutenant or any of the Prisoners and to make away Franklin the Apothecary who was fled into France and had given Sir Thomas the Glister which dispatcht him but that which Somerset design'd for his preservation 't was thought proved his Overthrow but this was the Product of next Year 1615 being the 13th of the King Tho Villiers
next Year gave Reputation to these Rumours and here we end this Year 1615. being the thirteenth Year of King James his Reign Tho Turner Weston Elvis and Franklin were convicted and hanged last Year for the poisoning of Sir Thomas Overbury yet the Trial of the Earl of Somerset and the Countess was put off till the 24th of May this Year yet the Earl being a Prisoner and utterly cast out of the King's Favour the young Favourite Villiers having now no Competitor rose as fast upon the Earl's Ruin as he fell and began to appear in his own Colours from being Sir George and of the Bed-Chamber to the King in the beginning of the Month of January to be made Master of the Horse and upon the Conviction of the Earl and Countess the King seized upon the huge Estate of the Earl only allowing him 4000 l. per Annum during his Life as was said for the King reprieved the Earl and Countess too not only from Death but Imprisonment and the Earl 24 Years after saw his Daughter married to the now Duke of Bedford who proved to be the Mother of many Children whereof my Lord Russel cut off by King Charles the Second was one and a Lady of great Honour and Vertue The seizing of Somerset's Estate at present afforded a plentiful Harvest to our young Favourite and that proportionable Honours which were no burden to him might attend him upon the 17th of August he is created Viscount Villiers and Baron of Whaddon We will stay a little here and look abroad and see what Dishonour the King by his Prodigality to his Favourites and his ill Terms with his Subjects brought upon himself This Year seven of the twelve Years Truce made between the King of Spain the Arch-Dukes and the Dutch States in 1609. were worn out and now the Dutch hugely swelled their Tradeâ— not only in Europe and Africa but in the East-Indies and to Turkey but they could never be truly esteemed High and Mighty so long as the English possest the Brill Rammekins and Flushing which were the Keys of their Country and opened the Passages into and out of the Maese Rhine and Scheld They could not now pretend Poverty as they did to Queen Elizabeth for not payment of the Money with Interest upon Interest at 10 per Cent. which being two Millions when upon the Account stated between the Queen and them due Anno 1598. besides the Payment of the English in Garison in the Cautionary Towns this Year did amount to above six Millions of Money and how to get rid of this Debt and get the English out of the Cautionary Towns was the Design of Barnevelt and the States Barnevelt had his Eyes in every corner of the Court he observed the King was wholly intent upon his Pleasures exalting his Favourites and writing against Bellarmine and Peron against their King-killing and Deposing Doctrines and otherwise utterly neglected his Affairs both at Home and Abroad and by how much longer the King continued these Courses so much better might the States make a Bargain with him about restoring their Cautionary Towns but not as Merchants but Bankrupts The Truce between the Spaniard and them was above half expired and if the English should keep their Towns till the War broke out again the King might impose what Terms he pleased upon them Barnevelt also observed the ill Terms which the King was upon with his Subjects upon the Dissolution of the last Parliament about 14 Months before and imprisoning the Members for representing the Subjects Grievances which the King made worse by a Proclamation forbidding Men to talk of State-Affairs and that he doted upon and was wholly governed by Viscount Villiers a raw and unexperienced Gentleman in State-Affairs scarce of Age Upon these Considerations Barnevelt advised the States not to pay the English in Garison in their Cautionary Towns tho this was expresly contrary to the Agreement they made with Queen Elizabeth in 1598. The English debarred of their Pay apply themselves to the King for Relief the King was incensed at the Dutch and talked high what he would do but upon Repose he advised what to do the Lord Treasurer Suffolk told him there was no Money in the Exchequer to call a Parliament would be a work of Time and in the mean while the Souldiers in Garison in the Cautionary Towns must either starve or revolt besides the Wounds which the imprisoned Members had were so green that the Parliament in all likelihood would rather seek to cure them than supply the King's Necessities and starve or revolt the Souldiers might rather than the King would abate any thing of his Bounty to his Favourites Hereupon it was agreed That the King should enter into a Treaty with the Dutch concerning the Delivery of their Cautionary-Towns the Dutch expected it and had given Orders to their Ambassador here called the Lord Caroon to treat about it and what they would give the King must take and Caroon's Instructions were to give two hundred and forty eight thousand Pounds in full Satisfaction of the whole Debt which was scarce Twelve Pence in the Pound but was greedily accepted of by the King and his Favourites But how well this Agreement did sort with the Treaty made with the King of Spain and Arch-Dukes in August 1604 where in the 7th Article the King swears and promises in the Word of a King That in a competent time he would assign a Treaty with the Dutch States to acccept and receive Conditions agreeable to Justice and Equity for a Pacification to be had with the renowned Princes his dear Brethren which if the States shall refâ—se to accept his Majesty from thenceforward as being freed from former Conventions will determine of those Towns according as he shall judg it to be Just and Honourable wherein the said Princes his loving Brethren shall find there shall be no want of these good Offices which can be expected from a friendly Prince let the World judg Tho the Bargain were agreed yet the King and Courtiers were in fear the Money should not be paid accordingly and therefore the King wrote to the States in a Stile far differing from that he used to the Parliament for says my Author William de Britain fol. 12. the King told them He knew the States of Holland to be his good Friends and Confederates both in Point of Religion and Policy one as true as the other for the Religion of the Dutch was Presbytery which the King hated nor did he ever imitate their Policy therefore he apprehended not the least fear of Difference between them In Contemplation whereof if they would have their Towns again he would willingly surrender them So tho the Dutch got their Towns again yet the King got not all the Money for my Lord Treasurer Suffolk kept back so much of it as he was fined 30000 l. in the Star-Chamber for it and had not scaped so if Sir Francis Bacon then Lord Chancellor had
not been his Friend After the Sale of the Towns was agreed on the next Debate was What should become of the Souldiers in Garison But let them look to that for the King being Rex Pacificus had no need of them they might go where they pleased all the Care the Favourites had was how to share the Money among themselves The dishonourable Delivery of the Dutch Towns made no Allay in his Affections to his new Favourite tho wholly unacquainted with State-Affairs who was as much given up to the Pleasures of Venus as the King was to those of Bacchus neither the Sale of the Dutch Towns nor the seizing Somerset's Estate would answer the Expence of his Pleasures and Bounty the disposing of all Places and Offices Ecclesiastical and Civil all waved as he nodded and herein his Venality was as profuse as his Venery One of the first that felt the Effects of his Power herein was Sir Edward Coke who at this time sat very loose and uneasy he had highly disgusted the Court and high-Church-Party in opposing Arch-bishop Bancroft's Articles against granting Prohibitions at Common-Law He opposed my Lord Chancellor Egerton taking notice of a Cause in the King's-Bench after Judgment given contrary to the Act 4 Hen. 4. 23. and refused to give any Opinion in the Case of Commendums being a Judg before it came judicially before him And however my Lord Chancellor Egerton upon the swearing Sir Henry Mountague when he succeeded Sir Edward Coke in the Office of Chief Justice declared Sir Edward's deposing was for being so popular yet I have it from one of Sir Edward's Sons that the Cause of his Removal was That Sir Nicholas Tufton being very aged and having a Patent for Life of the Green-wax-Office in the King's-Bench the Viscount Villiers by his Agents dealt with Sir Nicholas that if he would surrender his Patent the King would make him Earl of Thanet and in the mean time Sir Francis Bacon treated with Sir Edward to know whether in case Sir Nicholas surrendred his Patent the Viscount should prefer another to the Office Sir Edward would give Sir Francis no other Answer than this That he was old and could not wrestle with my Lord. However after Sir Nicholas had surrendred Sir Edward refused to admit of a Clerk by Villiers's Nomination but stood upon his Right and that the Judges of the King's-Bench served the King to their Loss and therefore he would so dispose of the Office that the other Judges of the King's-Bench's Salaries should be advanced and that hereupon he was turned out of his Place and Sir Henry Mountague put in who disposed the Office as the Favourite pleased But tho the Favourite's Displeasure began here with Sir Edward it did not end so nor the Titles of our new Favourite for upon the 5th of January following he was created Earl of Buckingham however Sir Edward might have been restored again to the place of Chief Justice if he would have given a Bribe but he answered A Judg ought not to take a Bribe nor give a Bribe See the second Part of the Bishop of Lincoln's Life fol. 120. Tit. 116. We begin this Year 1617 after the King had created the Earl Marquess of Buckingham on the first of January with the Story of Sir Raleigh's Voyage to Guiana which was the Cause of his Death tho upon another score being condemned in the first Year of the King for High-Treason in Cobham's Conspiracy for endeavouring to have hindered the King's coming to the Crown But before we proceed we 'll stay a little and take a view of him Sir Walter was of an antient Family but a younger Brother and as he was a Person of admirable Parts excellently adorned with Learning not Pedantick but of a nobler Strain so he had a Mind far above his Fortune and accounted Poverty the greatest of Misfortunes and to advance his Fortune he became a Courtier to Queen Elizabeth who was as great a Discerner of Men and their Qualities as any Prince in her time or perhaps before or since and as such and not as imposed by Favourites she esteemed and preferred them and upon this account she entertained and favoured Sir Walter The Queen made him Captain of her Guards Lieutenant-General of Cornwall and Lord Warden of the Stanneries but these were rather Honorary Titles than much profitable and being at Enmity with the Earl of Essex the Queen's greatest Favourite and the whole Family of the Cecils who governed all in State-Affairs these put a full stop to Sir Walter 's further Rise at Court Sir Walter thus balk'd at Court seeks Adventures abroad to raise his Fortunes thence and the Wars continuing between the Queen and the King of Spain in the Year 1595 he mans out a Ship to Guiana in the West-Indies and by the Intelligence which he had with some of the Indians and some Spanish Prisoners he had taken believed he had made a Discovery of several rich Mines and had certain Marks whereby to discover them again if occasion should happen But if he got nothing else by his Voyage he got this Advantage by it that adding Experience to his excellent Theory in Navigation he justly merited the Applause of the best Director of Sea-Affairs of his time After Queen Elizabeth's Death he was kept 12 Years a Prisoner in the Tower where he compiled his History of the World a Design so vast that no other Man of less Parts both of Body and Mind could have accomplished And while he was thus confined he was the first which made publick the Growth by Sea of the Dutch and the Riches they derived by their fishing upon the Coasts of England and Scotland and the Consequences which would necessarily follow not only to the loss of the King's Soveraignty of the British Seas but to the Trade and Navigation of England otherwise After that one Tobias Gentleman set forth another Treatise of this Nature and how this Fishery might be carried on from the Ports of England and dedicated it to the King but the King wholly giving himself up to Pleasure neither minded the one nor regarded the other Sir Walter had been discharged out of the Tower about two Years and an half before but by what means I do not find and then Poverty stared him in the Face for Somerset had begg'd his Estate which to him was more intolerable than his Imprisonment and how to extricate himself out of it was all his Business There was a new face of Court to what was in Queen Elizabeth ' days and Sir Walter unknown to any of them His being freed out of Prison was such a Favour as any further was not to be hoped for Happy had Sir Walter been if he had been still confined where in the restraint of his Person he enlarged the Faculties of his Mind to nobler Pleasures than can be found in Sensuality or any Temporal Greatness where by his Freedom pursuing these besides other concomitant Calamities he brought
Ancre's Fate did not end with his Life for the next day after he was buried the Lacquies of the Court and Rabble of the City digged up his Coffin tore his Winding-Sheet and dragged his Body through the Gutters and hanged it upon the Gibbet he had prepared for others where they cut off his Nose Ears and Genitors which they sent to the Duke of Main Head of the Popish League the great Favourite of the Parisians and nailed his Ears to the Gates of Paris and burned the rest of his Body and hurled part of the Ashes into the River and part into the Air and his Wife soon after was condemned by the Parliament of Paris for a Witch for which she was beheaded In the Year 1618 a Blazon Comet appeared and the Marquess of Buckingham by the removal of my Lord Admiral Nottingham who was so in the famous Overthrow of the Spanish Armado in 1588. was made Lord Admiral being as well qualified for that Office as he was for being Prime Minister in State-Affairs It was no wonder that Lewis XIII th after the Death of the Marquess d' Ancre and his Wife should remove his Mother from State-Affairs and confine her to Blois to make room for Luynes to govern him more absolutely than the Marquess and his Wife had done his Mother for Lewis as he was of a feeble Constitution both of Body and Mind so Luynes was a kind of Governor to him appointed so by his Father Henry the 4th to humour him in all his Childish Toys and Pleasures So tho Rehoboam when forty Years old was governed by young Men not in Years but Understanding so neither was it any great wonder that Edward the 2d a young Man should be governed by Pierce Gaveston a Person of far more accomplished Parts than Buckingham for Gaveston was bred up with Edward and had so far by his Flatteries prevailed upon him that Edward could not enjoy any Pleasure in his Life without him But for an old King having been so for above fifty one Years to dote so upon a young Favourite scarce of Age yet younger in Understanding tho as old in Vices as any in his time and to commit the whole Ship of the Common-wealth both by Sea and Land to such a Phaeton is a Precedent without any Example But how much soever the Safety of the English Nation was endangered hereby yet the but mentioning any thing hereof was an Invasion of the King's Prerogative and meddling with State-Affairs which was above the Capacity of the Vulgar and even of the Parliament as you will soon hear But how absolute soever the King was at Home the face of Affairs Abroad stood quite contrary for the Dutch having retrieved their Cautionary Towns out of his Possession had the King in such Contempt that they neither regarded him nor his new Lord High Admiral and this Year says the Author of the Address to the Free-men and Free-holders of the Nation in his second Preface f. 13 14. The Dutch never before fished upon the Coast of England till they had begged leave of the King or Governour of Scarborough Castle but this was now thought beneath the Magnificence of the Hogan Mogans and therefore they refused it They had been formerly limited by our Kings both for the Number of their Vessels they should fish with and the time Now they resolve to be their own Carvers and in order to that denied the English the Sovereignty of the British Seas and as if this had not been enough drew nearer and nearer upon the English Shores Year by Year than they did in preceding Times without leaving any Bounds for the Country-People or Natives to fish upon their Princes Coasts and oppressed some of his Subjects with intent to continue their pretended Possession and had driven some of their great Vessels through their Nets to deter others by like Violence from fishing near them c. as Secretary Nanton January 21 1618. told Carleton the Dutch Ambassador And to justify all this they set out Men of War with their Fishermen to maintain all this by Force But it was not Fish our new Lord Admiral cared for nor did he care for the King's Soveraignty of the British Seas so as he might be Lord High Admiral in Name The Sails of Buckingham's Ambition were not full swelled till to the Title of Lord High Admiral the Lord Warden of the Cinque-Ports was added to it tho he regarded the guarding the Coasts of England as little as he did the Soveraignty of the British Seas Nor did the accumulated Honours to himself alone satisfy his Ambition but a new Strain his Mother tho a professed Papist must be pullied up with him in a concurring Title of the same Honour by being created Countess of Buckingham And being thus exalted she forsook her Husband's Bed which she sanctified by being converted to the Church of Rome and as her Son governed the King so she governed her Son so that as Mr. Wilson observes fol. 149. tho her Son acted in appearance in all Removes and Advancements yet she wrought them in effect for her Hand was in all Actions both in Church and State and she must needs know the Disposition of all things when she had a feeling of every Man's Pulse for all Addresses were made to her first and by her conveyed to her Son for he looked more after Pleasure than Profit which made Gundamor who was well skill'd in Court Holy-Water among his other witty Pranks write merrily in his Dispatches to Spain that there were never more hopes of England ' s Conversion to Rome than now For there were more Oblations offered here to the Mother than to the Son Then he tells the Marquess's Behaviour to attain his Ends of Ladies how he married the Earl of Rutland's only Daughter the greatest Fortune in England but being a Papist how she was converted by Dr. White tho the Bishop of Litchfield attributes her Conversion to Dr. Williams Dean of Westminster but was brought back to the Church of Rome by the Countess of Buckingkam The next Year if you begin at January Queen Ann died the 22d of March but this is but a beginning of the King's Sorrows at least of his Troubles But this no way troubled our young Favourite but to encrease the Honour of his Family by Sir George's second Brood in June following he had his eldest Brother John created Baron Stroke and Viscount Purbeck tho I do not find he ever gave him one Penny to maintain these Titles Such disgust the King had taken at the Commons representing the Grievances to him in the last Parliament that in his Cups and among his Familiars upon all Occasions he would inveigh against Parliaments saying God is my Judg I can have no Joy of any Parliament in England and that he was but one King and there were alove five hundred in the House of Commons So as if he could have helped it he never would have been troubled with another but
Angely Gergeau Sancerre and Saumur which were all the Cautionary Places which the Reformed had upon the Loire and also Suilly Merac and Caumont King James that he might as much appear for the Reformed as he had done for his Son-in-law sent Sir Edward Herbert after Baron Herbert of Cherberry his Ambassadour into France to mediate a Peace between the King and the Reformed and in Case of Refusal to use Menaces which Sir Edward bravely performed to Luynes and after to the French King himself which being misrepresented to King James Sir Edward was recalled and the Earl of Carlisle was sent Ambassadour into France in his room and the Earl finding the Truth to be otherwise than was represented by Luynes acquainted the King with it Hereupon Sir Edward kneeled to the King and humbly besought him that since the Business between Luynes and him was become publick that a Trumpeter if not an Herald on Sir Edward's Part might be sent to Luynes to tell him That he had made a false Relation to the King of the Passages between them and that Sir Edward would demand Reasons of him with Sword in Hand on that Point but the King was not pleased to grant it and here began the Downfal of the Power of the Reformed in France and the Rise of the French Grandeur by Land In this rotten and teachy State of Affairs before the Meeting of the Parliament the King issued out a Proclamation of which he was as prodigal as bountiful to his Favourites forbidding Men to talk of State-Affairs as if his Favourite Buckingham who governed all was so mindful of them nor was the King less jealous of the Parliament's meddling with State-Affairs than of the Peoples talking of them out of Parliament so that the King upon the opening of the Parliament the 30th of January told them of the Constituting Parts of a Parliament and how it was twelve Years since he had received any Aids from Parliaments and how that though he had prosecuted a Treaty of Marriage between the Prince and Infanta of Spain which if it were not for the Benefit of the Established Religion in England and of the Reformed abroad he was not worthy to be their King and though he had refused to assist his Son-in-law in his Election to the Kingdom of Bohemia being a matter of Religion contrary to what he had wrote against the Jesuits yet that he could not sit still and see the Patrimony of his Children torn from them by the Emperor and therefore was resolved to raise an Army next Summer and that he would engage his Crown his Blood and Soul for the Recovery of the Palatinate And having before told the Commons of their Duty to petition the King and acquaint him with their Grievances but not to meddle with his Prerogative he after tells them that who shall hasten after Grievances and desire to make himself popular has the Spirit of Satan The Parliament notwithstanding the violation of their Privileges the last Parliament by the King 's imprisoning their Members yet being zealous to assist the King against the Emperor and King of Spain in favour of the Palsgrave and though the Nation at no time before so much abounded in Corruption and Grievances yet to humour the King inverted the Methods of Proceedings in Parliament and the Commons granted the King two entire Subsidies and the Clergy three before they entred upon Grievances which so pleased the King that in a Speech in the House of Lords he declared it was more acceptable to him than Millions it shewing he reigned in the Love and Affections of his Subjects but he did not long hold in this Mind At this Sessions of Parliament if it may be called so no Act but that of the Subsidies passing Sir Giles Mompesson and Sir Francis Michel were sentenced and degraded for erecting new Inns and Ale-houses and exacting great Sums of Money by pretence of Letters Patents granted for that purpose Sir Giles fled and so escaped a farther Punishment but Sir Francis was condemned to perpetual Imprisonment in Finsbury Goal Sir Francis Bacon Viscount Verulam and Lord Chancellor was likewise censured deposed fined and committed Prisoner to the Tower for Bribery and Bacon's Fall was Doctor Williams's Rise Dean of Westminster to be Lord Keeper of the Great Seal But the Commons debating the Growth of Popery and the dangerous Consequences of the Spanish Match contrary to the King's Speech and Inclinations he upon the Fourth of June which the Commons took to be an Invasion upon their Privileges by Commission adjourned them to the 14th of November and by a Proclamation forbid the talking of State-Affairs In this recess the Spaniards took Stein in the lower Palatinate and the Duke of Bavaria all the Upper Palatinate and the Arms of Lewis prevailed more upon the Reformed in France yet none of these prevailed upon the King further than to mediate a Suspension of Arms in order to treat an Accommodation between the Emperor and his Son-in-law and the French King and the Reformed which had no other Effect but to make the King contemptible in Germany as well as France his Power and Authority being bounded up only in Words and Messages which the King's ill-Willers blazing abroad cost the King more than would have recovered the Palatinate However the King abated nothing of his Pleasure and dissolute Life but according to the usual Methods of his Life in the Autumn went to New-Market to divert himself with Hunting from the trouble of Affairs either foreign or domestick leaving his Favourite Buckingham Dictator of all his Affairs when the Parliament met again But how remiss soever the King was of his Affairs the Commons were not perhaps heated by their Adjournment and alarmed at the Progress of Lewis against the Reformed in France and of the Emperor and King of Spain not only in the Palatinate but all over the Empire against the Protestants and also with the Liberty which the Popish Party took upon the hopes they conceived would accrue to them by the Spanish Match still as fervently pursued by the King and Prince as ever the King being encouraged hereto by the Earl of Bristol the King's Ambassador in Spain but more by the Spanish Ambassador Gundamor here A Person as Nâ—ni observes who with a stupendous Acuteness of Wit so confounded pleasant things with serious that it was not easy to be discerned when he spoke of Business and when he rallied he had so insinuated himself into the Mind of the King that he need not take any further care of restoring his Son-in-law to the Palatinate but by Prince Charles his marrying with the Infanta the Treaty whereof now is 8 Years old being brought to Maturity and Perfection so soon as the Pope should grant a Dispensation The House of Commons hereupon being ill satisfied with the Distribution of the Subsidies before granted to the King resolve to proceed upon Grievance before they granted more Supplies and to that end drew up
Molestation other than by Censure of the House it self for or concerning any speaking reasoning or declaring any Matter or Matters touching the Parliament or Parliament-business And that if any of the said Members be complained of and questioned for any thing done or said in Parliament the same is to be shewed to the King by the Advice and Consent of all the Commons assembled in Parliament before the King give Credence to any private Information If the King was alarmed at the Commons Remonstrance this Protestation of the Commons was such an Invasion upon his Sacred Prerogative Royal that neglecting his Pleasures and Health which he took such care to preserve by retiring into the Country up he now comes to London and upon the 30th of December and in a full Assembly of Council and in the Presence of the Judges declares the said Protestation invalid annull'd and void and of none effect Manu sua propria takes the said Protestation out of the Journal-Book of the Clerk of the Commons House of Parliament and commanded an Act of Council to be made thereupon and this Act to be entred in the Register of the Council-Causes And on the 6th of January the King by his Proclamation dissolved the Parliament Shewing that the meeting continuing and dissolving of Parliaments does so peculiarly belong to him that he needs not give any account thereof to any other yet he thought fit to declare that in the Dissolution of this Parliament he had the Advice and Vniform Consent of his whole Council and that some particular Members of the Commons took inordinate Liberty not only to treat of his High Prerogatives and sundry things not fit to be argued in Parliament but also to speak with less respect of Foreign Princes That they spent their time in disputing Privileges and descanting upon the Words and Syllables of his Letters and Messages and that these evil-temper'd Spirits sowed Tares among the Corn and by their Carriage have imposed upon him a necessity of discontinuing this present Parliament without putting to it the Name or Period of a Session And lastly he declared That tho the Parliament were broken off yet he intended to govern well and shall be glad to lay hold on the first occasion to call another CHAP. IV. A Continuation of this Reign to King James his Death THE first Act the King did to make good his Promise in his Proclamation to govern well was his Commitment of Sir Edward Coke and Sir Robert Philips to the Tower and Mr. Selden Mr. Pym and Mr. Mallery to other Prisons and Sir Dudley Diggs Sir Thomas Crew Sir Nathaniel Rich and Sir James Parrot into Ireland Sir Thomas Overbury had a Cause assigned for his Commitment to the Tower but yet it was observed an Hardship upon him without any Precedent that he should be confined a close Prisoner for a Contempt whereas these were not only confined but close Prisoners for ought I can find I am well assured Sir Edward Coke was not only without any Cause shewed but for performing a publick Trust reposed in them Nor did the Commons only suffer under this Fury of the King for performing their Duty but the Noble Earl of Southampton was imprisoned for his freedom of Speech and for rebuking Buckingham for his disorderly speaking in the House of Lords as you may see in the first Part of Keeper Williams's Life fol. 62. tit 8. But of all others this Storm fell most severely upon Sir Edward Coke and by several ways his Ruin was contrived First By sealing up the Locks and Doors of his Chambers in London and in the Temple Secondly By seizing his Papers by virtue whereof they took away his several Securities for Money as a learned Lawyer Mr. Hawles hath observed Thirdly It was debated in Council when the King would have brought in the General Pardon containing such Points as he should think fittest by what ways they might exclude him from the benefit of it either by preferring a Bill against him before the Publication of it or by excepting him by Name Fourthly If the King's Name were used by Northampton and Somerset to confine Sir Thomas Overbury so close that neither his Father nor Servants should come at him so was the King's Name used here that none of Sir Coke's Children or Servants should come at him and of this I am assured from one of Sir Edward's Sons and his Wife Fifthly In this Confinement the King sued him in the King's-Bench for 30000 l. 2 s. 6 d. for an old Debt pretended to be due from Sir William Hatton to Queen Elizabeth and this was prosecuted by Sir Henry Yelverton with all Severity imaginable but herein the King's Counsel were not all of one piece for when a Brief against Sir Edward was brought to Sir John Walter I think then Attorney-General he returned it again with this Expression Let my Tongue cleave to the Roof of my Mouth whenever I open it against Sir Edward Coke however after the Trial the Verdict was against the King Mr. Selden got his Liberty by the favour of my Lord Keeper Williams but the rest must abide by it till the breaking of the Spanish Match necessitated the King to call another Parliament But lest the King's Word in his Proclamation for governing well should not pass currant and without dispute the King ordered the Judges in their Circuits to give this in their Charges That the King taking notice of the Peoples liberal speaking of Matters far above their reach and also taking notice of their licentious undutiful Speeches touching State and Government notwithstanding several Proclamations to the contrary the King was resolved no longer to pass it without severest Punishment and thereupon to do exemplary Justice where they find any such Offenders The King having in the ninth Year of his Reign borrowed 111046 l. upon Privy-Seals which the Writer of the Historical Narration of the first 14 Years of King James his Reign Tit. Monies raised by him fol. 14. says were unrepay'd Now since he could receive no more Money in Parliament orders the Privy-Council to issue out an Order for raising Money out of Parliament for the Defence of the Palatinate and also sent Letters to the Justices of the Courts in Westminster-Hall and Barons of the Exchequer to move them and perswade others to a liberal Contribution for the Recovery of the Palatinate according to their Qualities and Abilities Nevertheless if any Person shall out of Obstinacy or Disaffection refuse to contribute thereto proportionably to their Estates and Means they are to certify their Names to the Council-Board Letters to the same effect were directed to the High-Sheriffs of Counties and Justices of Peace and to the Mayors and Bayliffs of every City and Corporation within the Kingdom requiring them to summon all before them of known Abilities within their Jurisdictions and to move them to a chearful Contribution according to their Means and Fortunes in some good measure answerable to what others well
to do it Yet this Adventure must be run because Buckingham would have it so so pur-blind nay stark-blind does Poverty and Covetousness make Man's Understanding and Reason But that we may take all before us let 's see in what Esteem King James was with the Spaniards which might encourage him to pursue this Adventure In their Comedies in Flanders they imitated Messengers bringing News in haste that the Palatinate was likely to have a numerous Army shortly on foot For the King of Denmark would shortly furnish them with a thousand Pickled-Herrings the Hollanders with one hundred thousand Butter-Boxes and England with one hundred thousand Ambassadors They pictured King James in one place with a Scabbard without a Sword in another with a Sword which no body could draw out tho divers Persons stood pulling at it In Brussels they painted him with his Pockets hanging out and not one Penny in them and his Purse turned upside down In Antwerp they pictured the Queen of Bohemia like a poor Irish Mantler with her Hair hanging about her Ears with her Child at her Back and the King James carrying the Cradle after her and every one of the Pictures had several Motto's expressing their Malice Such Scorns and Contempts were put upon the King James and in him the whole Nation See the Preface to the History of the first 14 Years of the Reign of King James and Wilson fol. 192. But tho Buckingham pursued this Match with such Eagerness yet when it came to his Management in Spain where the King's Proclamations forbidding Men to talk of State-Affairs had no effect he proceeded wrong in every step of it and to gratify his Ambition and Personal Disgusts was the first and principal Instrument to break it off but that we may not insist upon Generals 1. The Prince's coming to Spain and thereby putting himself into the King of Spain's Power brake all the Earl of Bristol's Measures whereupon the Negotiation and all the Particulars of the Marriage was settled and the Negotiation was put into a new Form See Rushw Collect. fol. 286. Objection This was but a Charge by the Earl of Bristol against the Duke who prosecuted the Earl of High Misdemeanors and therefore no Proof against the Duke Answer Yet the Honour of so great a Statesman and faithful a Counsellor as the Earl was who had so honourably served the King in seven foreign Embassies and had by the Expence of 10000 l. saved Heidelburg from falling into the Hands of the Spaniard and having upon the Dissolution of the last Parliament given the King 500 l. upon the Benevolence and never received a Check from the King in all his Negotiations but always honourable Testimonies from him for his faithful Services before Buckingham broke in upon him may go a great way But it seems to me to be a clear Proof upon Buckingham for Bristol twice answered Articles preferred against him without any Reply whereas rather than Buckingham should answer Bristol's Charge King Charles dissolved his second Parliament 2. Buckingham had not learned the Verse which is taught to every School-boy Quum fueris Romae Romano vivito more for being French bred he appeared in a French Garb most hateful to the Spaniards and by his Familiarity with the Prince he seemed rather the Prince's Guardian and Companion than Follower which disrelished the Court of Spain and the Spaniards in general who are grave sober and wary 3. He by contrary Methods opposed all the Earl of Bristol's Methods nay fell at odds with him tho without Comparison he was the ablest Statesman in all King James his Councils 4. Whereas all other Ambassadors and Statesmen in all great Affairs make their Court to the King's Council and prime Ministers of State to attain their Ends Buckingham fell at open Defiance with Olivares prime Minister of State in Spain and 't was generally said made his Court to the Countess which she acquainted her Husband with and instead of the Countess put a tainted Whore to Bed with him 5. The Earl of Bristol in the 9th Article of his Charge against him shews what a Scandal Buckingham gave by his Personal Behaviour in Spain and also employing his Power with the King of Spain for procuring Favours and Offices which he bestowed upon base and unworthy Persons for the Recompence and Hire of his Lust These things as fit neither for the Earl of Bristol to speak nor the Lords to hear he left to their Lordships Wisdom how far they please to have them examined It having been a great Infamy to this Nation that a Person of the Duke 's great Quality and Employments a Privy-Counsellor and Ambassador eminent in his Majesty's Favour and solely in Trust with the Prince should leave behind him in a Foreign Court so much Scandal as he did by his ill Behaviour 6. The Earl of Bristol's sixth Article against Buckingham is That his Behaviour in Spain was such that he thereby so incensed the King of Spain and his Ministers that they would admit of no Reconciliation nor farther Dealings with him Whereupon he seeing the said Match would be to his Prejudice he endeavoured to break it not for any Service to the Kingdom nor of the Match it self nor for that he had found as since he pretended the Spaniards did not really intend the said Match but out of his particular Ends and Indignation And the 7th Article says 7. That after he intended to cross the said Match he put in practice divers undue Courses as making use of the Prince's Letters to his own Ends and not as they were intended as likewise of concealing things of high Importance to the King James and thereby to overthrow the King's Purposes and advance his own Ends. Nor had my Lord Keeper Williams any better luck in this Adventure of Buckingham's than the Earl of Bristol or Olivares for tho the Prince's going into Spain was concealed from the Keeper as well as Council yet after the Duke was gone the Keeper's Letters followed him to Madrid wherein the Keeper advised him to be circumspect in all his Actions that no Offence might be taken at any of them by the King and Ministers of Spain and to be advised by the Earl of Bristol not only as a most able Statesman but above all others the most experienced in the Manners of the Spaniards and Court of Spain but this Buckingham took as ill Manners in the Keeper and was an occasion of his quarrelling with him as you may read in the Life of the Lord Keeper written by the Bishop of Litchfield and Coventry But neither the danger of the Prince in Spain nor the cross-grain'd going of the Match any way abated the King's Favour to his beloved Scholar and Disciple Buckingham but he sent after him the Patent of being created a Duke there being not another of England So that now he is become Duke Marquess and Earl of Buckingham Earl of Coventry Viscount Villiers Baron of Whaddon Great Admiral of
the Kingdoms of England and Ireland and the Principality of Wales and of the Dominions and Islands of the same of the Town of Calais and of the Marches of the same and of Normandy Gascoign and Guienne General Governor of the Seas and Ships of the Kingdom Master of the Horse to the King Lord Warden Chancellor and Admiral of the Cinque Ports and of the Members of the same Constable of Dover-Castle Justice in Eyre of all the Forests and Chases on this side of Trent Constable of the Castle of Windsor Gentleman of his Majesty's Bed-Chamber one of his Majesty's most Honourable Privy-Council in his Realms of England Scotland and Ireland and Knight of the most Honourable Order of the Garter But tho all others worshipped this prodigious Favourite yet Arch-bishop Abbot a Prelate of Primitive Sanctity and Integrity would not flatter neither the King nor his Favourite in their Courses so dangerous to the Church and State and dishonourable to the King and tho in Disgrace he wrote this following Letter to the King which you may read in Rushworth fol. 85. May it please your Majesty M I Have been too long silent and am afraid by my Silence I have neglected the Duty of the Place it has pleased God to call me unto and your Majesty to place me in But now I humbly crave leave I may discharge my Conscience towards God and my Duty to your Majesty and therefore freely to give me leave to deliver my self and then let your Majesty do what you please Your Majesty hath propounded a Toleration of Religion I beseech you to take into your Consideration what that Act is what the Consequence may be By your Act you labour to set up the most Damnable and Heretical Doctrine of the Church of Rome the Whore of Babylon How hateful will it be to God and grievous to your Subjects the Professors of the Gospel that your Majesty who hath so often and learnedly disputed and written against those Heresies should now shew your self a Patron of those wicked Doctrines which your Pen hath to the World and your Conscience tells your self are superstitious idolatrous and detestable and hereto I add what you have done by sending the Prince into Spain without the Consent of your Council the Privity or Approbation of your People and altho you have a Charge and Interest in the Prince as the Son of your Flesh yet the People have a greater as Son of the Kingdom upon whom next after your Majesty are their Eyes fixed and their Welfare depends and so tenderly is his going apprehended as I believe however his Return may be safe yet the Drawers of him into this Action so dangerous to himself so desperate to the Kingdom will not pass away unquestion'd and unpunished Besides the Toleration which you endeavour to set up by your Proclamation cannot be without a Parliament unless your Majesty will let your Subjects see that you will take to your self the Ability to throw down the Laws of the Land at your Pleasure What dread Consequence these things may draw afterwards I beseech your Majesty to consider and above all lest by this Toleration and discountenancing the true Profession of the Gospel wherewith God hath blest us and this Kingdom hath so long flourished under it your Majesty doth not draw upon this Kingdom in general and your self in particular God's Wrath and Indignation I have heard my Father say that King James kept a Fool called Archy if he were not more Knave whom the Courtiers when the King was at any time thoughtful or serious would bring in with his antick Gestures and Sayings to put him out of it In one of these Modes of the King in comes Archy and tells the King he must change Caps with him Why says the King Why who replies Archy sent the Prince into Spain But what said the King wilt thou say if the Prince comes back again Why then said Archy I will take my Cap from thy Head and send it to the King of Spain which was said troubled the King sore But if we look back into Spain we shall see things of another Complection than when Buckingham came into it For now he is disgusted he put the Prince quite out of the Match as that tho all things were agreed upon the coming of the Dispensation from Rome so as King James said all the Devils in Hell could not break the Match yet his Disciple and Scholar could tho the Duke had certified the King the Match was brought to a happy Conclusion and the Match publickly declar'd in Spain and the Prince permitted Access to the Infanta in the Presence of the King and the Infanta was generally stiled the Princess of England and in England a Chappel was building for her at St. James's and the King had prepared a Fleet to fetch her into England which only proved to bring back his Son How things especially actuated by Love should stay here may seem strange yet such an Ascendant had Buckingham over the Prince that the Affront put upon him Buckingham must quite deface the Prince's vowed Love and Affection to the Infanta but how to prevail with King James to comply might have an appearance of some Difficulty since the King had set his Rest upon it and had quarelled with the Parliament and dissolv'd them in great Anger and Fury for but mentioning it After the Duke had gained the Prince to break or at least not to observe the Conditions of the Treaty of the Marriage with the Infanta so solemnly sworn to by both the Kings and the Prince let 's now see how he behaved himself to King James afterwards but this will be better understood if we look back and see how things stood before the Prince's and Duke's Arrival in Spain The Prince's going into Spain was not only kept secret from King James ' s Council but from my Lord Keeper Williams tho the King confided in his Abilities above all the other of his Council but when it had taken vent the King asked the Keeper what he thought Whether the Knight Errant's Pilgrimage meaning the Prince's would prove lucky to win the Spanish Lady and to convey her shortly into England Sir answered my Lord Keeper If my Lord Marquess will give Honour to Conde Duke Olivares and remember he is the Favourite of Spain or if Olivares will shew honourable Civility to my Lord Marquess remembring he is a Favourite of England the Wooing may be prosperous but if my Lord Marquess should forget where he is and not stoop to Olivares or if Olivares forgetting what Guest he hath received with the Prince bear himself haughtily and like a Castilian to my Lord Marquess the Provocation may be dangerous to cross your Majesty's good Intentions and I pray God that either one or both do not run into that Error The Answer of the Keeper took such Impression upon the King that he asked the Keeper if he had wrote to his Son and the
in Parchment for to perswade and encourage him in the Perversion of the Prince But how steady soever the Duke was in his French Garb in Spain and of Compliance with the Spaniard in the Popish Religion yet he was not so when he returned into England for then he turns quite contrary and assumes a popular Way and joins with the Prince and thereby over-ruled the King as they pleased and closed with the Nobility and Puritan Party opposite to Spain As you may read in Rushworth fol. 107. Nor was the Duke's Covetousness and sacrilegious Desires of robbing the Church's Patrimony less than his Hypocrisy in Religion for whilst he was in this Godly Fit he treats with Dr. John Preston Head of the Puritan Party how the King might seize the Dean and Chapter Lands as you may read in the Bishop of Litchfield's Life of Doctor Williams 1st Part fol. 202. After the Return of the Prince and Duke into England and Bristol left in Spain both contrive how to ruin the Earl of Bristol bound up with contrary Instructions and to dissolve the Prince's Match with the Infanta so solemnly sworn by both Kings and the Prince and could find no other Pretence to do it but by the King's Letter to the Earl of Bristol before he delivered the Powers for consummating the Marriage to procure from the King of Spain either by publick Act or under his Hand and Seal a direct Engagement for the Restitution of the Palatinate and Electoral Dignity by Mediation or Assistance of Arms but in regard this must be now insisted upon let 's see how this stood during the Treaty In all the Treaty for this Match the Restitution of the Palatinate was laid aside as Rushworth observes fol. 91. and my Lord of Bristol in his Defence against the Duke's or King's Charge fol. 302. says that his Instructions from King James the 14th of March 1621 were express that he should not make the Business of the Palatinate a Condition of the Marriage and that of the King 's of the 30th of December 1623 I think it was 1622 were fully to the same Effect But now the whole Treaty which was so solemnly agreed upon and sworn to by both Kings and the Prince and that the Marriage should be consummate within 10 days after the Dispensation came from Rome which it did about the beginning of December 1623 must be all dasht without the Restitution of the Palatine to his Country and Electoral Dignity which being perplext with such Variety of Interests as the Duke of Bavaria's having possest himself of the upper Palatinate and the Restitution of the Palsgrave being an Act of the Emperor and Empire was not in the King of Spain's Power Nay the Proxies left with the Earl would not admit of a Treaty in this Case for the Marriage was to be consummate within ten Days after the Arrival of the Dispensation from Rome The Earl of Bristol for not obtaining these new impossible and inconsistible Conditions is recalled from his Embassy and a new Treaty of Marriage between the Prince and the Princess Henrietta Maria youngest Daughter of Henry the Fourth of France is as suddenly set on Foot as that of Spain abruptly broke off and that by this time the King of Spain and the Earl had frequent Advice of the Prince and Duke's Designs to ruin the Earl The King of Spain therefore made a threefold Proffer to the Earl either to write to the King James and if need were to send a particular Ambassador to mediate for him to satisfy the Earl's Fidelity and Exactness in all the Treaty or to make him a Blank wherein the Earl should set down his own Conditions both in Title and Honour in Spain whereunto the Earl answered He was sorry and afflicted to hear such Language and desir'd they should understand that neither the King nor Spain were beholden to him For whatever he had done he thought fit to do for his Master's Service and his own Honour having no Relation to Spain and that he served a Master from whom he was assured both of Justice and due Reward nothing doubting but his own Innocence would prevail against the Wrong intended by his powerful Adversaries and were he sure to run into eminent Danger he had rather go home and cast himself at his Majesty's Feet and Mercy and therein comply with the Duty and Honour of a faithful Subject though it should cost him his Head than be Duke or Infantado of Spain and that with this Resolution he would employ the utmost of his Power to maintain the Amity of the two Crowns and to serve his Catholick Majesty and thirdly the King of Spain desired him in private to take 10000 Crowns to bear his Charges but the Earl answered one would know it viz. the Earl of Bristol who would reveal it to his Majesty King James Now if any Man can shew in any Authority antient or modern wherein a Treaty of this Nature was thus begun thus managed and thus broken off wherein a Noble Lady of highest Birth and noblest Fortune adorned with all the Excellencies of Beauty in her Person and the more excelling Virtues of her Mind in all the Perfections requisite in her Sex was thus baulkt and see her self made a Stale to advance the Avarice and covetous Desires of others he shall be my great Apollo So we 'll leave this Affair here and see what Comfort King James had of his Affairs elsewhere In the Year 1619 King James and the Dutch States entred into and concluded a Treaty of Trade between the English and Dutch in the East-Indies at this time and for many Years before the English had at Amboyna one of the Scyndae or Setibe Islands lying near Seran which had several smaller Islands depending upon it five several Factories two at Hitto and Lerico and two at Latro and Cambello in the Island of Seran but the principal of them was at Amboyna Amboyna was and is the principal Place in all the East-Indies where Nutmegs Mace Cinamon Cloves and Spice grow and from these Factories the English supplied not only England and Europe with Spice but Persia Japan and other Countries in the East-Indies The Treaty of Commerce between the King and the Dutch States was scarce three Years old when the Dutch in the East-Indies contrive how they may dispossess the English of the Spice-Trade which above all others is the best in the East-Indies at least which was then or now is known It seems says my Author William de Britain in his Treatise of the Dutch Usurpation fol. 14. that the English in all these Islands were better beloved than the Dutch and had built a Fortress in Amboyna for the Safety of Trade which the Dutch having two Hundred Soldiers there forced from the English and thereupon feigning a Plot between the English and Japonesses I think he means the Natives of Amboyna to betray the Fortress again to the English the Dutch with Fire and Water in an
horrible manner massacred many English and seized upon the English Factories there to the Value of four hundred thousand Pounds and made the rest of the English Slaves and sent them into other Islands which the Dutch had possessed themselves of This was in the Year 1622. Nor did the Dutch stay here but seized upon the English Factories in Seran Nero Waire Rosingen Latro Cambello Hitto Larica Lantare and Poloroone possessing themselves of their Goods and Factories there and took 1800 English which they sent into other Islands and Plantations which they had forced from the Indians Let 's see now how highly King James resented these things he only sent to the Dutch Ambassador and told him He never heard nor read a more cruel and impious Act than that of Amboyna But I do forgive them and I hope God will but my Son's Son shall revenge this Blood and punish this horrid Massacre nor never further vindicated his own Honour or his Subjects Blood and loss of their Goods and Trade herein Whereas about a Year before when he heard of the Commons horrid Invasion upon his Prerogative by asserting their Rights and Privileges in a Fury he dissolves the Parliament and sick as he was or seemed to be to the indangering of his Health he came in a hurry from Theobalds called his Council and Judges about him and propria Manu cut the Commons Protestation out of their Journal-Book and committed many of their Members close Prisoners without Bail or Main-prize and banished others That we may take a better View of the latter end of this Reign and the following one of King Charles it will be convenient to look into Holland and herein observe That Barnevelt and the Dutch States after they had retrieved their Cautionary Towns from King James Barnevelt assisted by Hugo Grotius nourished a Faction in Holland called the Arminian from Arminius who maintained 5 Heads contrary to what Calvin had taught in his Institutions which was the Doctrine of the Church set up in Holland and the other Vnited Provinces By this Faction thus countenanced by Barnevelt and Grotius they endeavoured to have deposed Maurice Prince of Orange State-holder tho he and his Father and Uncles were the principal Instruments whereby the Dutch became States But Maurice proved too hard for them and cut off Barnevelt's Head and had hanged Grotius if his Wife had not conveyed him away in a great Chest pretending it contained Arminian Books This was in the Year 1620. Tho Barnevelt and Grotius propagated the Arminian Tenets to have deposed the Prince of Orange and advanced their Democratical Government yet the Church-men of England who preached the King's absolute Power and exalted his divided Will from the Laws and Constitutions of the Nation above his Royal Will in Governing by them promoted these Tenets and those that opposed them were stiled Puritans The principal Stickler herein was Dr. William Laud a Man of a most turbulent and aspiring Disposition and one of the first Acts for which he was taken notice of was to marry the Earl of Devonshire to the Lady Rich Mother to Robert Earl of Warwick and Henry Earl of Holland when her Husband was alive but this was so far from advancing him that the King was highly incensed against him for it Yet Laud's aspiring Humour could not contain him in a private State but follow the Court he would yet could never arrive higher than to be one of the King's Chaplains by means whereof he sometimes got the King's Ear. The King hated the Presbyterian Government and had got the Bishops in Scotland to be re-ordained by three of the English Bishops as a distinct Order which the Kirk in Scotland took for an abominable Usurpation over them and also in the Year 1618 got the five Articles commonly called The five Articles of Perth to be settled as more agreeable to the Doctrine and Discipline of the Church of England but this was to the further Indignation of the Kirk-party and herein King James set up his rest as having gained an high Point but tho the King hated the Presbyterian Government yet he opposed the Arminian Tenets Arch-bishop Abbot observed of him when he was at Court he was Buckingham's only inward Counsellor sitting sometimes with him privately whole hours and feeding his Humour with Malice and Spite and when he was at Oxford his Business was to pick Quarrels in the Lectures of publick Readers and to advertise them to the Bishop of Durham Neal the great Countenancer of the Arminian Tenets and Promoter of the King's Prerogative that he might fill the Ears of King James with Discontents against the honest Men that took pains in their Places and settled the Truth which he called Puritanism in their Auditors As you may read in Rush fol. 444. Nor could Laud forbear when he could get the King's Ear but he urged him more than once to promote the Doctrine and Discipline of the Church of England in Scotland after the obtaining the passing of the five Articles at Perth this frighted King James who better knew the Temper of his Country-men and how difficultly he had got the Articles of Perth to pass that Laud ignorant of the Temper of the Scotish Nation should be so audacious to put the King upon this which might as it after did embroil all Scotland in Tumults and Wars and now becomes more averse to Laua's Promotion than before But this was no Consideration to Buckingham whether the King would or nor Laud should rise And soon after Williams was made Lord Keeper the Bishoprick of St. Davids fell and Buckingham resolved Laud should have it and the Keeper must be the Man to propound it to the King and receive no Denial But it 's fit to observe here in what an humbling manner this Promotion was accomplish'd on the part of Laud and take it as it was sent me by a Gentleman with the Attestation of Col. L. and R. L. Esq who often heard Mr. Francis Osburn speak of it as a certain Truth and who had taken notice of it in some of his Works not made publick As soon as Laud had Information that the foresaid Bishoprick was vacant he hastens to wait upon the Duke of Buckingham for that Preferment but found the Duke was not stirring but being impatient of Delay prevails upon one of the Duke's Gentlemen to acquaint him he had earnest Business with his Grace and begged immediate Admittance which being granted the Doctor enters his Grace's Chamber and finds him a-bed with a Whore the Duke asks his Business Laud told him the Bishop of St. Davids was dead and that he came to beg his Grace to recommend him to the King for the vacant See The Duke told him that he had been represented to him as the proudest Man alive and therefore he could not in Honour recommend him to the King Laud assures his Grace that what had been said of him upon that Head was utterly false and the effect of
a narrow point but there is no point in Generalities relying upon their general Propositions of which I do not find neither the King nor the Prince or Buckingham after him named one he found when they came there the Matter proved so raw as if it had never been treated of they generally giving them easy way to evade and affording them means to avoid the effecting any thing But it seems there were Particulars which the King would not then discover but left them to the Prince and Buckingham to relate As for a Toleration of the Roman Religion As God shall judg him he said he never thought nor meant nor never in word expressed any thing that savoured of it How was Arch-bishop Abbot mistaken when he wrote his disswasive Letter against the King's Proclamation for the Toleration of Religion to Roman Catholicks See Rushworth fol. 85. And how was my Lord Keeper Williams mistaken after the King had directed him and other Commissioners to draw up a Pardon for all Offences past by Roman Catholicks with a Dispensation for those to come obnoxious to any Laws against Recusants and then to issue forth two general Commands under the Great Seal the one to all Judges and Justices of Peace and the other to all Bishops Chancellors and Commissaries not to execute any Statute against them and tho the Keeper past the Pardon as fully and amply as the Papists could desire to pen it yet the Keeper put some stop to the vast Prohibition to the Judges and Bishops for the Reasons he gave First Because the publishing of this General Indulgence at one push may beget a general Discontent if not a Mutiny but the instilling thereof into the Peoples knowledg by little and little by the Favours done to Catholicks might indeed loosen the Tongues of a few particular Persons who might hear of their Neighbours Pardon and having vented their Dislike would afterward cool again and so his Majesty might by degrees with more convenience enlarge his Favours Secondly Because to sorbid the Judges against their Oaths and the Justices of Peace who are likewise sworn to execute the Laws of the Land is a thing unprecedented in this Kingdom and would be a harsh and bitter Pill to be digested without some Preparative But this Delay disgusted the Spanish Ambassador which you may read in Rushworth fol. 101. And as God was his Judg he never thought nor meant nor ever in Word expressed any thing that savoured of a Toleration of the Popish Religion So God was his Judg and he spake as a Christian King Never any wayfaring Man that was in the Desarts of Arabia and in danger of Death for want of Water to quench his Thirst more desired Water than he did thirst and desire the good and comfortable Success of his Parliament and Blessing upon their Counsels that the good Issue of this may expiate and acquit the fruitless Issue of the former and prayed God their Counsels may advance Religion and the publick Weal and they of him and his Children You may read the Speech at large in Rushworth fol. 115 116 117. But tho the King gloried that he had ever endeavoured to procure and cherish the Love of his People to him which the Lords and Commons did represent yet the Commons could remember a time not out of mind with the King for they chose that honourable Gentleman Sir Thomas Crew newly returned from his Exile into Ireland whither the King had sent him as one of the ill-tempered Spirits who advised him against the Spanish Match and presumed to assert the Privileges of the Commons for their Speaker After the Ceremonies of Opening the Parliament and the Choice of a Speaker was over the first thing that appeared upon the Stage of Affairs was the Narrative of the Proceedings in the Spanish Match made by the Duke of Buckingham and assisted by the Prince Which you may read at large in Rushworth from fol. 119 to 125. I shall not descant upon this long Narrative but leave the Answering of it to the Earl of Bristol but only take notice of the Preamble of the third Article of the Duke 's Narrative and the latter part of the fourth The Preamble of the third Article is It is fit to observe this Passage which is the thing whereupon all his Highness's the Prince's subsequent Actions did depend He had never staid a Sennight longer in Spain he had never left any Proxy with Bristol he had never taken the Oath at the Escurial or ever so much as have written a Letter of Compliment to the Lady but that he had still before his Eyes as his Cynosure the Promise made by the Conde I think the Duke meant Olivares for the Restitution of the Palatinate Why was this Treaty between King James and the Conde Or if the Restitution of the Palatinate were the Foundation upon which the whole Treaty moved Why was it not so much as mentioned in all the Treaty so solemnly sworn to by both Kings the Prince and Buckingham himself Nay King James himself by two several Expresses to the Earl of Bristol the first of the 14th of May 1621. and the other of the 30th of December 1623. commanded him That he should not make the Business of the Palatinate a Condition of the Marriage as you may read in Rushworth fol. 302. For the better understanding of Buckingham's Narrative in the fourth Article it is fit to take notice That the Reason in the Instrument for not pursuing the Proxies of the Marriage so solemnly sworn to by the Prince and Buckingham himself was not for the Restitution of the Palatinate but forsooth for fear the Infanta might retire into a Cloister and so deprive the Prince of a Wife tho the Infanta so far as the Gravity of the Spaniards would permit ever expressed an entire Affection to the Prince so that when the Prince took leave of the Infanta she seemed to deliver up her Heart to him in as high Expressions as that Language and her Learning could with her Honour set forth for when the Prince told her His Heart would never be out of Anxiety till she had passed the intended Voyage and were safe on the British Land she answered with a modest Blush That if she were in danger upon the Ocean or discomposed with the rolling brackish Waves she should chear up her self and remember all the way to whom she was going As you may read in the Life of Williams Lord Keeper fol. 161. tit 168. And Mr. Rushworth fol. 104. says She caused many divine Duties to be performed for the Prince's Return In the Proxies left with the Earl of Bristol there was a Clause inserted De non revocando procuratore as much as to say irrevocable And because the Earl did in his Letter to the Prince of the First of November in 1623 press this vehemently to the Prince the Prince vowed openly before both Houses that he had never by Oath nor Honour engaged himself not to
to procure a private Audience of the King tho he often desired it but what the Duke assisted at Inoiosa impatient of any longer Delay about the latter end of April 1624 contrived this Expedient to put the following Paper into the King's Hand he and Don Carlo de Colonna came adventurously to White-Hall and whilst Don Carlo held the Prince and Duke in earnest Discourse Inoiosa put this Paper into the King's Hand with a Wink that the King should put it into his Pocket wherein 1. He terrifies the King that he was not or could not be acquainted with the Passages either of his own Court or of the Parliament for he was kept from all faithful Servants that would inform him by the Ministers of the Prince and Duke and that he was a Prisoner as much as King John of France in England or King Francis at Madrid and could not be spoken with but before such as watched him 2. That there was a strong and violent Machination in hand which had turned the Prince a most obedient Son to a quite contrary Course to his Majesty's Intentions 3. That the Council began last Summer at Madrid but was lately resolved on in England to restrain his Majesty from the Exercise of the Government of his Kingdoms and that the Prince and Duke had designed such Commissioners under themselves as should intend great Affairs and the Publick Good 4. That this should be effected by beginning of a War and keeping some Companies on foot in this Land whereby to constrain his Majesty to yield to any thing chiefly being brought into Straits for want of Monies to pay the Souldiers 5. That the Prince and Duke's inclosing his Majesty from the said Ambassador and other of his own Loyal People that they might not come near in private did argue in them a fear and distrust of a good Conscience 6. That the Emissaries of the Duke had brought his Majesty into Contempt with the potent Men of this Realm traducing him for slothful and unactive for addiction to an inglorious Peace while the Inheritance of his Daughter and her Children is in the Hands of his Foes and this appear'd by a Letter which the Duke had writ into Holland and they had intercepted 7. That his Majesty's Honour nay his Crown and Safety did depend upon a sudden Dissolution of the Parliament 8. They loaded the Duke with sundry Misdemeanours in Spain and his violent Opposition to the Match 9. That the Duke had divulged the King's Secrets and the close Designs between his Majesty and their Master King Philip about the States of Holland and their Provinces and laboured to put his Majesty out of the good Opinion of the Hollanders 10. That the Duke was guilty of most corrupt dealing with the Ambassadors of divers Princes 11. That all these things were carried on in the Parliament with an head-strong Violence and that the Duke was the cause of it who courted them only that were of troubled Humours 12. That such Bitterness and Ignominies were vented in Parliament against the King of Spain as were against all good Manners and Honour of the English Nation The 13th is a flat Contradiction to the Precedents wherein they made the Prince privy to dangerous things yet in this they say That the Puritans of whom the Duke was Head did wish they could bring it about that the Succession of the Kingdom might come to the Prince Palatine and his Children in right of the Lady Elizabeth In a Postscript the Paper prayed the King That Don Francisco Carondelet Secretary to the Marquess Inoiosa might be brought to the King when the Prince and Duke were sitting in the Lords House to satisfy such Doubts as the King might raise which was performed by the Earl of Kelly who watch'd a fit Season at one time for Francisco and for Padre Maestro a Jesuit at another time who told their Errand so spitefully that the King was troubled at their Relations How far the Spanish Ambassador Carondelet and the Jesuit Maestro could make good this Paper I cannot tell nor does the Bishop say however the King was apprehensive that the Parliament was solicitous to engage him in a War for the Palatinate which he so dreaded that as the Bishop says he thought scarce any Mischief was so great as was worth a War to mend it wherein the Prince did deviate from him as likewise in his Affection to the Spanish Alliance But he stuck at the Duke more whom â—e defended in one part to one of the Spanish Ministers yet at the same time complaining That he had noted in him a turbuleâ—â— Spirit of late and knew not how to mitigate it so that casting up the Sum he doubted it might come to his turn to pay the Reckoning These Thoughts so wrought upon the King that his Countenance fell suddenly that he mused much in Silence and that he entertained the Prince and Duke with mystical and broken Speeches this nettled them both and enquiring the Reason they could not go further than that they heard the Spanish Secretary and the Jesuit Maestro had been with the King and understood that some in the Ambassador's House had vaunted that they had nettled the Duke and that a Train would take fire shortly to blow up the Parliament In this Perplexity the King prepared to take Coach for Windsor to shift Ground for some better Rest in this Unrest and took Coach at St. James's Gate and the Prince with him and found a slight Errand to leave Buckingham behind as the King was putting his Foot into the Coach the Duke besought him with Tears in his Eyes and humble Prayer that his Majesty would let him know what could be laid to his Charge to offend so good and gracious a Master and vowed by the Name of his Saviour he would purge it or confess it The King did not satisfy him but breathed out his Disgust that he was the unhappiest alive to be forsaken of them that were dearest to him which was uttered and received with Tears from his own Eyes as well as the Prince's and Duke's and made haste to Windsor leaving the Duke behind this was upon Saturday at the end of April The Duke forlorn retires to Wallingford-House and was in such Confusion and Distraction that when my Lord Keeper who had notice of all these things and was more careful of the Duke than he could be of himself came to him he found the Duke lying upon his Couch in that immoveable Posture that he would neither rise up nor speak tho the Keeper invited him to it twice or thrice by courteous Questions The Keeper told him by the Faith of a deep Protestation that he came purposely to prevent more Harm and to bring him out of that Sorrow into the Light of the King's Favour That he verily believ'd God's directing Hand was in it to stir up his Grace to advance him to those Favours which he possessed to do him Service at this Pinch of Extremity
Treasurers to receive the Money and a Council of War to disburse the same But the Commons having granted these Subsidies drew up a Petition against the Licence the Popish Party had taken during the Treaty with Spain He was so nettled at it that he called it a Stinging One and hearing the Commons were entring upon Grievances he could not endure it and upon the 29th of May adjourned the Parliament to the 2d of November 1624 and from thence to the 7th of April lest the King should hear of another stinging Petition or a Disturbance in the French Treaty but at this Adjournment he told them at their next Meeting they might handle Grievances so as they did not hunt after them nor present any but those of Importance yet I do not find the Parliament ever met again at least never did any thing However the King passed a General Pardon and the Parliament censured Lionel Earl of Middlesex Lord Treasurer for Corruption in his Office 50000 l. to the King and to be imprisoned in the Tower during the King's Pleasure which was but three days after the Adjournment of the Parliament for upon the first of June he was set free Whilst these things were doing in Parliament the Earl of Bristol was recalled from his Embassy but before his Arrival the Duke dealt by all means that the Earl might be committed to the Tower before he should be admitted to the King's Presence But fearing the Marquiss Hamilton and my Lord Chamberlain would oppose him herein the Duke pressed them that they would concur in it vowing as Somerset did to Sir Thomas Overbury he intended the Earl no hurt but only feared that if he should be admitted to the King's Presence he would cross and disturb the Course of Affairs but neither of these Lords would condescend thereunto This was attested by my Lord Chamberlain before the House of Lords This Deâ—â—gn of the Duke's failing the Duke to terrify the Earl from returning into England writ to him that if he kept not himself where he was in Spain and laid hold of the great Offers which he heard were made unto him the Earl it should be the worse for him At Bourdeaux the Earl heard of the Aspersions cast upon him by the Duke in Parliament of which the Earl did boldly afterward in the House of Lords in the second Parliament of Car. 1. and in the Presence of the Duke affirm That there was scarce any one thing concerning him in the Declaration which was not contrary to or different from Truth From Bourdeaux the Earl took Post to get into England to vindicate himself from the Asperâ—ons which the Duke had cast upon him in Parliament but when he came to Calais tho he sent over to have one of the King's Ships allowed him and for which publick Orders were given and tho the King James had Ships which lay at Boloign which might have every day been with him in three Hours and the Wind fair yet none came tho the Earl waited for one eight Days so that he was forced to pass the Sea to Dover in a Boat and six Oars When the Earl was landed at Dover he was by a Letter from my Lord Conway a Creature of the Duke's commanded in the King's Name to retire to his House and not to come to Court or the King's Presence until he had answered to certain Questions which his Majesty would appoint some of the Council to ask him but this was not out of any ill meaning to him but for fear the Parliament should fall too violently upon him and this the Duke said to some of his Friends was the Reason of the Earl's Restraint Hereupon the Earl humbly petitioned the King he might be exposed to Parliament and that if he had not served the King honestly in all things he deserved no Favour but to be proceeded against with all Severity but received Answer from the King That there should be but few days past before he would put an end to his Affairs but the Parliament was adjourned before the few days passed nor did he ever put an end to them You may read the further Contrivances against him by the Duke in Rushw from fol. 259 to 265. After the Adjournment of the Parliament or if you will the Dissolution of it tho the Earl of Bristol could not obtain Admission into the King's Presence yet he obtained Leave to answer to all the Duke had in his Absence charged upon him in Parliament and withal wrote to the Duke that if he or any Man living was able to make Reply he would submit himself to any thing which should be demanded which tho the Duke presumptuously said That it is not an Assertion to be granted that the Earl of Bristol by his Answer had satisfied the King the Prince or himself of his Innocence yet it so satisfied the King that when the Duke after pressed the King that the Earl might submit and acknowledg his Fault the King answered I were to be accounted a Tyrant to engage an innocent Man to confess Faults of which he was not guilty Tho the Earl said he could prove this upon Oath yet the Duke wrote to him that the Conclusion of all that had been treated with his Majesty was that he the Earl should make the Acknowledgment as was set down in that Paper tho at that time the King sent him word that he would hear him against the Duke as well as he had heard the Duke concerning him and soon after the King died which Promise of the King 's the Earl prayed God did the King no hurt however the Earl obtained Leave of the King to come to London to follow his private Affairs Mr. Rushworth therefore errs a little in point of time where he says fol. 149. the Earl was committed to the Tower in King James his time for he was not committed till the 15th of January 1625. in the first Year of King Charles as you may see in Stow's Life of King Charles fol. 1042. We have now done with the Spanish Match at least during this King's Reign yet the King's Desires of seeing his Son married which he shall never see were as impatient as those of getting the Infanta's huge Portion and to that end before the Meeting of the Parliament and while the Treaty with the Infanta was yet breathing the King sent my Lord Kensington after Earl of Holland to feel the Pulse of the French Court how it beat towards an Alliance between the Prince and Princess Henrietta Maria youngest Daughter of Henry IV. of France A serene Heaven appeared in France upon the Motion not a Cloud to be seen in all the French Horizon Lewis the King telling my Lord Kensington he took it for an Honour that he sought his Sister for the sole Son of so Illustrious a King his Neighbour and Ally only he desired he might send to Rome to have the Pope's Consent for the better Satisfaction of his Conscience And now you
shall see how a little French Artifice could work upon the Conscience of our wise and pacifick King which we will give verbatim as the King says it in return to the French King and which you may read in Mr. Howel's Life of Lewis XIII fol. 63. Most High most Excellent and most Puissant Prince OUR dear and most beloved good Brother Cousin and antient Ally Altho the deceased King of happy Memory was justly called Henry the Great for having reconquer'd by Arms his Kingdom of France tho it appertained to him as his proper Inheritance so here King James determined his Title to France yet you have made a greater Conquest for the Kingdom of France though it was regained by the victorious Arms of your dead Father it was his de Jure and so he got nothing but his own but you have lately carried away a greater Victory having by your two last Letters so full of cordial Courtesies overcome your good Brother and antient Ally and all the Kingdoms appertaining to him for we acknowledg our Self so conquered by your more than brotherly Affection that we cannot return you the like only we can promise and assure you upon the Faith of an honest Man that you shall always have Power not only to dispose of our Forces and Kingdoms but of our Heart and Person and also of the Person of our Son if you have need which God prevent praying you to rest assured that we shall not only be so far from cherishing or giving the least Countenance to any of your Subjects of what Profession soever of Religion who have forgot their natural Allegiance to you but if we hear the least inkling thereof we shall send you very faithful Advertisement and you may promise your self that upon such Occasion or any other which may tend to the Honour of your Crown you shall always have Power to dispose of our Assistance as if the Cause were our own So upon Assurances that our Interests shall be always common we pray God most High most Excellent most Puissant Prince our most dear and most beloved Brother and Ally to have you always in his most holy Protection Newmarket the 9th of February 1624. Your most affectionate Brother Cousin and antient Ally James K. So prodigal was King James of his Promises and so negligent in their Performance whether they were in his power or not Now let 's see what became of this bluster of Words and how the Interest of King James was common in this very Treaty with the most High most Excellent and most Puissant Prince his most dear and most beloved Brother Cousin and Ally Lewis Lewis whilst King James was intent upon his Pleasures and pursuing the Spanish and French Matches had taken almost all the In-land Cautionary Towns which the Reformed held in France and about the Beginning of this Treaty by the Interposition of his Mother had made Cardinal Richlieu prime Minister of State who shall serve her as Buckingham shall serve the Arch-bishop of Canterbury and Laud his Patron Williams Lord Keeper and to Richlieu did Lewis commit the Management of this Treaty another-guess Minister of State than Olivares was in Spain and shall pay Buckingham his own again with Interest Nani lib. 5. fol. 205. observes of Richlieu that the King had no Inclination to him there being a certain natural secret Aversion to those who with an Ascendant of Wit exceed Sure it is the Cardinal possessed rather the Power of Favour than the Favour it self nevertheless he had the Great Art how to fix the mutable and suspicious Genius of the King and the inconstant Nature of the People governing as with a supream Dictatorship the one and the other even to his Death Richlieu had his Eyes in all the Corners of the Court of England and was throughly informed of the King's Fondness of this Match and of the Insufficiency of Buckingham to encounter him in the Transactions of it and therefore how sweetly and desiredly soever the Proposition was embraced in France yet in the Treaty Richlieu stood upon his Tip-toes now that of Spain was broke off In the first place he would not abate one Iota of the Articles of Religion and Liberty to the Popish Recusants which was agreed upon in Spain nay he raised them higher for it was but sit he said His Master who was the eldest Son of the Church should not abate any thing of what was granted to the Catholick King if there had been nothing else this would have caused another stinging Petition from the Commons as the King called it if ever they had met again And though her Portion was but 800000 Crowns not one tenth of the Infanta's yet the Consideration of it must be 18000 l. per Ann. Jointure which her Son encreased to 40000 l. and besides the King James shall give her 50000 l. in Jewels whereof she shall have the Property as of those she has already and also of what she shall have hereafter The King also James shall be obliged to maintain her and her House and in case she come to be a Widow she shall enjoy her Dowry and Jointure which shall be assigned in Lands Castles and Houses whereof one shall be furnished and fit for Habitation and the said Jointure be paid her wheresoever she shall desire to reside she shall also have the free Disposal of all the Benefices and Offices belonging to the said Lands whereof one to be a Dutchy or County And in case she survive her Husband her Dowry shall be returned to her entirely whether she live in England or not and in case she die before her Husband without Children the Moiety of her Portion to be returned yet this Portion must one half be paid the Year after the Contract the other half the Year after that Having taken a view of the Temporal Articles of this Treaty let 's see what was agreed to in those which referred to Religion The Articles of Marriage of the King of Great Britain with Madam Henrietta Maria of France THIS Negotiation was so happy that it caused the King to consent to all the Articles which were demanded for the Catholicks and that his Majesty gave Charge to his Ambassadors to agree to them they signed them with the Cardinal at Paris the 10th of November 1624 with these Considerations That Madame the King's Sister should have all sort of Liberty in Exercise of the Catholick Apostolick and Roman Religion and all her Officers and her Children and that they should have for this Purpose a Chappel in all the Royal Houses and a Bishop with 28 Priests to administer the Sacraments and the Word of God and to do all their Offices That the Children which should be born of that Marriage should be nourished and brought up by Madame in the Catholick Religion until the Age of 13 Years That all the Domesticks which she should carry into England should be French Catholicks chosen by the Most Christian King and when they died
she should take other French Catholicks in their Places but nevertheless by the Consent of the King of Great Britain That the King of Great Britain and the Prince of Wales his Son should oblige themselves by Oath not to attempt by any means whatsoever to make her change her Religion or to force her to any thing that might be contrary thereto and should promise by writing in the Faith and Word of a King and Prince to give Order that the Catholicks as well Ecclesiastical as Secular who have been imprisoned since the last Edict against them should be set at Liberty That the English Catholicks should be no more enquired after for their Religion nor constrained to take the Oath which contains something contrary to the Catholick Religion That their Goods that have been seized since the last Edict should be restored to them And generally that they should receive more Graces and Liberty in Favour of the Alliance with France than had been promised them in consideration of that of Spain The Deputation of Father Berule Superior General of the Fathers of the Oratory to his Holiness to obtain the Dispensation for the aforesaid Marriage THE Instructions which were given to Father de Berule were to render himself with all Diligence at Rome to obtain the Pope's Dispensation and to this Effect to represent to his Holiness That the King of Great Britain having demanded of the King his Sister Madame Henrietta Maria for a Wife for the Prince of Wales his Son his Majesty hearken'd the more willingly to this Proposition in that he esteem'd it very profitable towards the Conversion of the English as heretofore a French Princess married into England had induced them to embrace Christianity but the Honour which he had vowed to the Holy See and particularly to his Holiness who baptized him in the Name of Pope Clement VIII did not permit him to execute the Treaty without having obtained his Dispensations That this Marriage ought to be look'd upon not only for the Benefit of the English Catholicks but of all Christendom who would thereby receive great Advantage That there was nothing to be hazarded for in Madame seeing that she was as firm in the Faith and in Piety as he could desire That she had a Bishop and 28 Priests to do their Duties That she had not a Domestick that was not Catholick and that the King of Great Britain and the Prince of Wales would oblige themselves by Writing and by Oath not to solicit her directly or indirectly neither by themselves or by Persons interposed to change her Religion On the contrary having nothing to fear for her he had great Cause to hope that she being dearly beloved of the King who was already well enough disposed to be a Catholick and of the Prince of Wales she might by so much the more contribute to their Conversion as Women have wonderful Power over their Husbands and their Fathers-in-law when Love hath given them the Ascendant over their Spirits That she was so zealous in Religion that there was no doubt but she would employ in this pious Design all that depended upon her Industry and that if God should not bless Intentions in the Person of King James and of the Prince of Wales it was apparent that their Children would be the Restorers of the Faith which their Ancestors had destroyed seeing she would have the Charge to educate them in the Belief and in the Exercises of the Catholick Religion till the Age of 13 Years and that these first Seeds of Piety being laid in their Souls cultivated with Care at the time when they should be more susceptible of Instructions would infallibly produce stable and permanent Fruits that is to say a Faith so firm that it may not be shaken by Heresy in a riper Age. That after all the Catholicks of England would receive no small Profit at present since the King of Great Britain and the Prince of Wales would both oblige themselves upon their Faith and by Writing no more to enquire after them nor punish them when they should be discovered to enlarge all those that had been imprisoned and to make them Restitution of Money and of other Goods that had been taken from them since the last Edict if they were yet in being and generally to treat them with more Favour than they could have expected from the Alliance with Spain And further He had Orders to let the Pope understand that to render more Respect to the Church it had been agreed that Madame should be affianced and married according to the Catholick Form and agreeable to that which was followed at the Marriage which Charles IX made of Madam Margaret of France with the late King Henry IV. then King of Navarre All these things spoke themselves and appeared so visibly that they would admit of no doubt so this Father that wanted neither Spirit nor Fire represented them dexterously to the Pope and his Holiness made him hope for a speedy and favourable Answer c. See the Life of Cardinal Richlieu printed at Paris 1650. fol. 14 15. How does this agree with the King's Speech at the opening of the Parliament in the 18th Year of his Reign That if the Treaty of the Match between his Son and the Infanta of Spain were not for the Benefit of the Established Religion at home and of the Reformed abroad he was not worthy to be their King And how does this agree with that part of the King's Speech at the opening of this Parliament That as for the Toleration of the Roman Religion as God shall surely judg him he said he never thought nor meant nor never in Words expressed any thing that savoured of it Do not Religion Truth and Justice support the Thrones of Princes and Hypocrisy Falshood and Injustice undermine and overthrow them What future Happiness then could either the King or Prince hope to succeed this Treaty sworn to by them both so diametrically contrary to the Laws and Constitutions of this Nation wherein the Majesty of the King as well as the Safety of the Nation is founded and to govern by these and observe this Treaty will be impossible What Peace could the Prince find at home even in his Bed when an imperious French Wife shall be ever instigating him to break his Coronation-Oath to truckle to that imposed upon him by her Brother of France These Pills how bitter soever must be swallowed by the King rather than his Son shall be baulk'd a second time nay it seems they were very sweet to him For Mr. Howel in the Life of Lewis III. says fol. 66. that King James said passionately to the Lords of the Council of the King of France My Lords the King of France has wrote unto me That he is so far my Friend that if ever I have need of him he will render me Offices in Person whensoever I shall desire him the Truth of this you will see by and by Truly he hath gained upon
me more than any of his Predecessors and he may believe me that in any thing that shall concern him I will employ not only my Peoples Lives but my own Bravely spoken and like K. James and whosoever of his Subjects Lewis's shall rise against him either Catholicks or others shall find him James a Party for him Lewis 'T is true if he be provoked to infringe his Edicts he shall impart as much as in him lies by Counsel and Advice to prevent the Inconveniencies Who ever expected he should do more or ever did But Venus must not have the only Ascendant in this Treaty for the Cardinal will have Mars to be in Conjunction with her and 't was high time for at this time Monsieur Sobiez had provided a great Fleet of Men of War as Times went then with the French and had entered and surprised the Fort of Blavet in Bretaign and took and carried away six of the French great Men of War out of it and also taken the Isles of Rhe and Oleron which he began to fortify and being absolute Master of the Sea triumphantly with a Fleet of 75 Men of War of all sorts landed a considerable Force at Medoc near Bourdeaux The Court of France was never so alarmed as at this notwithstanding all the King's Victories over the Reformed by Land and therefore the Cardinal threw another Article into the Treaty That King James should lend the French a Fleet of Ships to repress Soubiez and in lieu thereof the French should permit Mansfield who had raised an Army of 10000 Foot and 2000 Horse in England to land at Calais where the French should join him with another Body of Horse and Foot for the Recovery of the Palatinate But see the French Faith and how well Lewis made good his Promise to King James to render him all Offices in his own Person whensoever King James should desire him for at this time the Army being shipt at Dover and put over to Calais where being denied Entrance and having no other Instructions and wanting Provisions they lay neglected at Sea and in this Distress a Pestilence raged among them so that they were forced to sail to Zealand where having no Orders they were denied Landing there and this being the most terrible Season of the Year in December what by Hunger Cold and Pestilence above two thirds of them perished before Leave could be obtained to land them in Holland so that they never did the King of Spain near so much Hurt as they had done in England before they were shipt living upon Plunder and Free-Quarter These were sad Presages of future Happiness from the designed Marriage yet these things no ways discomposed the quiet Repose of our pacifick King so as he might see his only Son married to a Daughter of France was all his Business no matter how The Thirst which God was his Judg and as he was a Christian King he had contracted equal to that of the wayfaring Man in the Desarts of Arabia and in danger of Death for want of Water for the good Success of the Parliament is now asswaged by the granting of three Subsidies and three Fifteenths Here 's no mention of marrying his only Son with the Tears of his only Daughter and he is still ready with the Lives of his Subjects and his own to assist the most High most Excellent and most Puissant Prince his most dear and most beloved Brother Cousin and antient Ally Lewis The Managers of this Treaty were Hay a Scots-man created Earl of Carlisle and the Lord Kensington for the more Honour of it created Earl of Holland two of the King's Favourites of the second Rate but who bare no proportion to the Sagacity Wisdom and Integrity of the Earl of Bristol Bristol was all Heare of Oak and would not bend to Buckingham's Pride and Ambition but they were Willows that were liable to every Nod and Wind of Buckingham's Breath But how comes Buckingham who must have an Oar in every Boat to be absent from this Treaty The Reason was tho he were not wise yet he was jealous lest King James in his Absence should hear Bristol against him as the King had promised as well as he had heard Buckingham against him which was so dangerous a Rock as our Land-Admiral would not venture to run against Notwithstanding all this Haste for consummating this desired Marriage the Thread of the King's Life was spun out before for upon the 27th of March Ann. 1625. he died at Theobalds in the 58th Year of his Age having reigned twenty two Years compleat Having had an Ague the Duke of Buckingham did upon Monday the 21st before when in the Judgment of the Physicians the Ague was in its Declination apply Plaisters to the Wrists and Belly of the King and also did deliver several quantities of Drink to the King tho some of the King's Physicians did disallow thereof and refused to meddle further with the King until the said Plaisters were removed and that the King found himself worse hereupon and that Droughts Raving Fainting and an intermitting Pulse followed hereupon and that the Drink was twice given by the Duke 's own hands and a third time refused and the Physicians to comfort him telling him that this second Impairment was from Cold taken or some other Cause No no said the King it is that which I had from Buckingham I confess this was but a Charge upon the Duke upon the Impeachment of the Commons as you may read in Rushworth fol. 355 356. yet it was next to positive Proof for King Charles rather than this Charge should come to an Issue dissolved the Parliament which was a Failure of Justice tho the Commons had voted him four Subsidies and four Fifteenths before it was passed into an Act. The Character of King James He was the first of that Name King of England and the first King of the whole Isle of Britain and the first King since Henry the first that was born out of the Allegiance to the King of England and was the first at least since Rich. 2. that affected and endeavoured to introduce an Arbitrary Power in England foreign to the Laws and Constitutions of it and in all his Reign was more governed by Flatterres and Favourites than by the Advice of his Parliament or a wise Council His Flatterers and Favourites seldom spake of him but under the Appellation of Most Sacred rarely I think or never before used to any of the Kings of England and of the Solomon of the Age though never were two Kings more unlike unless it were in their Sons Charles and Rehoboam for Solomon died the richest of all the Kings of the World King James the poorest Solomon was inspired above all other Kings with Wisdom and his Proverbs Divine Sentences for Improvement of Vertue and Morality whereas this King's Learning wherein he and his Flatterers so much boasted was a Scandal to his Crown for all his Writings against Bellarmine and
Before a Year goes about you shall see Buckingham set the King at odds with the Parliament and yet engage him in a War against Spain and before another goes about engage the King in another against France to satiate his Spight and Revenge against Richlieu for crossing him in his Lust and after 13 Years Laud shall be the Fire-brand to set all the three Nations in the Flame of a Civil War as King James had foretold But it 's time to come to Particulars The first Enterprise which the Duke engaged the King in was not for the Recovery of the Palatinate as he pretended when he would have engaged King James in a War against the King of Spain but to express his Hatred against Olivares and therefore a Fleet must be rigged up to make War in Spain even when King James's Corps lay unburied and at so unseasonable a time when the Charges of King James's Funeral were so fast approaching and when the Charges of the King's Ambassadors the Earls of Carlisle and Holland ran so high at Paris to outvy the French Splendor for solemnizing the Marriage between the King and the Queen and these so much more augmented by the Duke's Preparations to fetch the Queen over which when the Duke shall come to Paris must outshine not only the Bravery of the English Ambassadors but all that Cardinal Richlieu could do From the Unseasonableness of this Expedition let 's see by what Counsels Buckingham managed this designed Expedition and herein take Light from a Letter which my Lord Cromwel wrote to the Duke and which you may read in Rushworth's Collections fol. 199. after the Fleet had lain so long that the Season of the Year was past and most dangerous for Ships to put to Sea The Letter is Verbatim THey offer to lay Wagers the Fleet goes not this Year and that of necessity shortly a Parliament must be which when it comes sure it will much discontent you It 's wonder'd at that since the King did give such great Gifts to the Dutchess of Chevereux and those that went how now a small Sum in the Parliament should be called for at such a time and let the Parliament sit when it will begin they will where they ended They say the Lords of the Council knew nothing of Mansfield's Journey or this Fleet which discontents even the best sort if not all They say it is a very great Burden your Grace takes upon you since none know any thing but you It 's conceived that not letting others bear part of the Burden you now bear it may ruin you which Heavens forbid Much Discourse there is of your Lordship here and there as I passed home and back and nothing is more wonder'd at than that one grave Man is not known to have your ear except my Good and Noble Lord Conway All Men say if you go not with the Fleet you will suffer in it because if it prosper it will be thought no Act of yours and if it succeed ill it might have been better if you had not guided the King They say your Vndertakings in this Kingdom will much prejudice your Grace and if God bless you not with Goodness to accept kindly what in Duty and Love I offer questionless my Freedom of letting you know the Discourse of the World may prejudice me But if I must lose your Favour I had rather lose it for striving to do you good in letting you know the Talk of the wicked World than for any thing else so much I heartily desire your Prosperity and to see you trample the ignorant Multitude under foot All I have said is the Discourse of this World and when I am able to judg of Actions I will freely tell your Lordship my Mind which when it shall not always incline to serve you may all my noble Thoughts forsake me The Success of this Expedition you will hear soon Thus was the King of Spain required for all the noble Favours he had shewn the King when he was in Spain This was the Return of Buckingham's Protestation to the King of Spain when they parted at the Escurial That he would be an everlasting Servant to the King of Spain the Queen and the Infanta and would do the best Offices he could for concluding the Business the Match between the Prince and Infanta and strengthen the Amity between the two Kingdoms to have War made upon him without any Declaration of it by King Charles so soon as it came in his Power to do it After Buckingham became Lord Admiral the English Navy lay at Road unarmed and fit for Ruin as you may see in Rushworth fol. 3. This was before the Treaty of the Spanish Match and after the breaking of the Spanish Match the Duke not only neglected the guarding of the Seas whereby the Trade of the Nation not only decayed but the Seas became ignominiously infested by Pyrates and Enemies to the Loss of very many of the Merchants and Subjects of England as you may read in the Fourth Article of the Charge of the Commons against him in Rushworth fol. 312. Objection But this was but an Accusation and therefore it does not amount to a Proof It ought not to be presumed the Commons would have charged this upon him without Proof and I say it is strong Proof upon the Duke since the King dissolved the Parliament rather than the Duke should come to a Trial upon it However the Navy lay thus neglected and Seas unguarded and tho the French had broken the Treaty of Marriage with France by not suffering Mansfield to land his Army at Calais yet the supplying the French with a Fleet to subdue the Rochellers must be performed And to this end even whilst King James lay unburied great Consultation between the Duke and the Marquiss of Efsiat was had how this might be done The King had no Men of War ready but the Vaunt-Guard and the French Necessities were urgent for all this while Sobiez rode triumphant at Sea the French not being able to encounter him and thereby Rochel upon all Occasions was relieved by Sea However the French must be gratified or this hopeful Marriage with France might be disturbed The Duke therefore by his Power of Lord Admiral besides the Vaunt-Guard pressed 7 Ships of the Merchants of England into the King's Service viz. The Great Neptune whereof Sir Ferdinando Gorge was Captain the Industry of 450 Tuns whereof James Moyer was Captain the Pearl of 540 Tuns whereof Anthony Tench was Captain the Marigold of 300 Tuns whereof Thomas Davis was Captain the Loyalty of 300 Tuns Jasper Dare Captain the Peter and John of 300 Tuns John Davis Captain and 7thly the Gift of God Henry Lewen Captain The Duke tho the Navy were unprovided with Stores and Ammunition could find Stores and Ammunition sufficient for furnishing this Fleet and upon the 8th of May caused a Warrant under the Great Seal to be issued to call the Companies aboard which had been raised
for the French Service with the first Opportunity to go to such a Port as the French Ambassador should direct and there to expect Directions But see the Dissimulation and Hypocrisy of the Duke and French Ambassador d'Efsiat for all this while they gave out that this Fleet should not be employed against the Rochellers but against Genoua which it seems took part with the King of Spain against the French King's Allies in Italy and that Vice-Admiral Pennington should not take in any more French into any of the Ships of this Fleet than the English could master These were the Instructions which the Duke communicated to the Council and with these Pennington sailed to Diep But when the Fleet arrived at Diep the Duke of Momerancy Admiral of France would have put 200 Men into the Industry and offered the like to every one of the other Ships in the Fleet telling them they were to fight against the City and Inhabitants of Rochel with a Proffer of Chains of Gold and other Rewards to all those Captains Masters and Owners which should go in this Service which they all with one Consent rejected and subscribed their Names to a Petition to Pennington against it whereupon on Pennington with the whole Fleet returned into the Downs and from the Downs Pennington wrote a Letter to the Duke by one Ingram who saw the Duke read it together with the last Petition and by Ingram Pennington became a Suitor to the Duke to be discharged of this Employment This put the Duke and French Agents to their Trumps how to retrieve their Game and tho all these Transactions were concealed from the King and Council yet the Protestants in France had got Knowledg of this Design and the Duke of Rohan and Protestants of France by Monsieur de la Touche solicited the King and Council against this Design and had good Words and Hopes from both But Buckingham told de la Touche the King his Master was obliged and so the Ships must and should go But there was another Obstacle to be removed or this worthy Design was at a full Stop The Duke had imprest and hired the seven Merchants Ships upon the King of England's Account and for his Service and so they could not be passed into the French Hands without a new Agreement with the Owners Hereupon his Grace was pleased to take a Journey to Rochester to settle the Agreement which must be as the French Ambassadors would whether the Owners of the Ships would or not I will be particular herein not only to shew what a Minister of State Buckingham was or what Reliance there was upon his Word or Honour but more especially for that the Ruin not only of the whole Interest of the Reformed of France was a Consequence of this Action wherein the Mercenary Dutch State conspired also with the Duke but it was the Foundation upon which the French Naval Grandeur was built as well to the Terror of Christendom as of England at this very Day My Lord Conway was the Duke's Nanny and tho principal Minister of State by the Duke's Promotion yet made the Office to bend which way soever the Duke nodded This Lord Conway directed a Letter upon the 10th of July 1625. as from the King to Vice-Admiral Pennington whereby he took upon him to express and signify to him that his Master had left the Command of the Ships to the French King and that Pennington should receive into them so many Men as the French King pleased for the time contracted for viz. six Months but not to exceed eighteen and recommended his Letter should be his sufficient Warrant This Letter was delivered by one Parker to Pennington in the Downs and the English Merchants had constituted one James Moyer and Anthony Touchin to treat with the French Ambassadors which were the Duke of Chevereux Monsieur Vollocleer and the Marquiss of Efsiat and at Rochester the Duke sent back a Letter to Moyer and Touchin to come and treat with the French Ambassadors to settle Business about the Delivery up of their Ships and Fraights into the Power of the French King The Propositions which the French Ambassadors made to Moyer and Touchin were 1. That the English Captains and their Companies should consent and promise to serve the French King against all none excepted but the King of Great Britain in Conformity to the Contract formerly passed between D'Efsiat and them 2. That they should consent and agree in consideration of the Assurance given them by the Ambassadors to the Articles of the 25th of March before which you may read in Rushworth fol. 328. whereby the French King should be Master of the said Ships by indifferent Inventory and that they by him should be warranted against all Hazards and Sea-fights and if they miscarried then the Value of them to be paid by the French King who would also confirm this new Proposition within 15 Days after the Ships should be delivered to his Use by good Caution in London 3. That if the French King would take any Men out of the Ships he might but without any Diminution to the Fraight for or in respect thereof To these Moyer in the behalf of the Merchants answered 1. That their Ships should not go to serve against Rochel 2. That they would not send their Ships without good Warrants 3. Nor without sufficient Security to their liking for the Payment of their Fraight and Rendition of their Ships or the Value thereof for the Ambassadors Security was by them taken not to be sufficient and they protested against it and utterly refused the peraffetted Instrument Hereupon Sir John Epstey and Sir Tho. Dove disswaded the Duke from this Enterprize telling him he could not justify nor answer the Delivery of the Ships However Buckingham's Dictatorship would not admit of Justice or Reason but he commanded Moyer and the rest that they should obey the Lord Conway's Letter and return to Diep to serve the French and that so was the King's Pleasure tho the King told the Duke of Rohan's Agent de la Touche otherwise yet privately at the same time the Duke told them that the Security offered by the Ambassadors was sufficient and that tho they went to Diep they might and then should keep their Ships in their own Power till they had made their own Conditions Hereupon the Duke of Chevereux and Vollocleer constituted D'Efsiat their Deputy to treat with the Merchants at Diep for the Delivery of their Ships into the French Power but with him the Duke sent Mr. Edward Nicholas his Secretary with Instructions by word of Mouth to execute the King's Pleasure by my Lord Conway's Letter for putting the Merchants Ships into the French Power upon the Conditions peraffetted at Rochester by the three French Ambassadors But the Captains of the Ships refused to submit to the Conditions tho Mr. Nicholas in the King's Name from Day to Day threatned them and vehemently pressed them to deliver up their Ships upon the
two Treaties which were for the Spanish Match and Recovery of the Palatinate and that his Father being thereby engaged in a War for the Recovery of the Palatinate they would now assist him in the carrying of it on The Speech you may read in Rushworth fol. 175 176. But Mr. Rushworth is mistaken and I wonder Nalson and Franklin took no notice of it that my Lord Keeper Coventry did second it for it was my Lord Keeper Williams whose quaint and learned Speech you may read in the second Book of the Life of the Keeper by the Bishop of Litchfield fol. 9 10. Nor was Williams displaced till the 23d of October following as you may see fol. 27. The Commons before they enter'd upon Grievances Sir Edward Coke moving it to ingratiate themselves with the King voted him two entire Subsidies and the last Parliament but the Summer before gave his Father three Subsidies and three Fifteens which were more than ever any Parliament granted the King in threefold the time before But that we may better look forward look a little back King James upon the Rreach of the Spanish Match put forth a Proclamation for putting the Laws in Execution against Popish Recusants but upon the first of May King Charles sent this Warrant to my Lord Keeper Williams Charles Rex RIght Reverend and Right Trusty c. Whereas we have been moved in Contemplation of our Marriage with the Lady Mary Sister of Our dear Brother the Most Christian King to grant to Our Subjects Roman Catholicks a Cessation of all and singular Pains and Penalties as well Corporal as Pecuniary whereunto they be subject or any ways may be liable by any Laws Statutes Ordinances or any thing whatsoever or for or by reason of their Recusancy or Religion in every Matter or thing concerning the same Our Will and Pleasure is and we do by these Presents authorize and require you upon the Receipt hereof That immediately you do give Warrants Order and Directions as well unto all our Commissioners Judges and Justices of the Peace as also unto all other our Officers and Ministers as well Spiritualas Temporal respectively to whom it may appertain that they and every of them do forbear all and all manner and cause to be forborn all manner of Proceedings against our said Subjects Rom. Catholicks and every of them as well by Information Presentment Indictment Conviction Process Seizure Distress or Imprisonment or any other Ways and Means whatsoever whereby they may be molested for the Causes aforesaid And further also That for time to come you take notice of and speedily redress all Causes and Complaints for or by reason of any thing done contrary to this our Will and this shall be unto you and to all to whom you shall give such Warrant Order or Direction sufficient Warrant and Discharge in that Behalf And this is so much more remarkable that this Warrant was granted when Buckingham was so busy in setting out the Fleet against the Rochellers Here was a Suspension of the Laws with a Witness by the King 's absolute Will and Pleasure notwithstanding all the Officers by Law were under the Obligations of their Oaths to the contrary and for the first-Fruits of this Warrant the King granted upon the 10th of May a special Pardon to twenty Roman Priests of all Offences committed by them against the Laws Can any Man now believe that the Parliament 18th Jac. should be so jealous that the Spanish Match would be a Door to let in a Toleration of Popery and therefore advised the King to break off the Match with Spain and yet this Parliament should be so purblind as not to see this put in Execution at the Instance of the French in this King's Reign especially whenas the Spaniards unless in the Reign of Queen Elizabeth were the English Friends and Allies and with whom the English had a most beneficial and gainful Trade for 22 Years in King James's Reign whereby they became doubly more enriched than in the 44 Years Reign of Queen Elizabeth whereas the French as they were a Neighbouring Nation were ever faithless and Enemies to the English Nation and with whom it always had a Trade to the English Loss as much to the enriching France as to the impoverishing the English Hereupon the Commons sent Sir Edward Coke with a Message to the Lords to desire their Concurrence in a Petition to the King against Recusants which was agreed to and presented to the King who answered That he was glad the Parliament were so forward for Religion and assured them they should find him as forward that their Petition being long could not be presently answered Nor were the Commons less alarmed at the countenancing the Arminian Sect whose Tenets next to Laud Mr. Richard Mountague propagated and about the latter end of King James his Reign published a Book entituled A new Gag for an old Goose which the Parliament took notice of and referred it to the Archbishop of Canterbury who disallowed it and sought to suppress it and ended in an Admonition given to Mountague but after King James his Death who was an Enemy to these Tenets Mountague then printed it again and dedicated it to King Charles now Buckingham and Laud ruled all Hereupon the Commons brought Mountague to the Bar of their House and appointed a Committee to examine the Errors therein and gave Thanks to the Arch-bishop for the Admonition to Mountague whose Books they voted to be contrary to the Articles established in the Parliament to tend to the King's Dishonour and Disturbance of the Church and State and took Bond of Mountague for his Appearance But the King intimated to the House that the things determined concerning Mountague without his Privity did not please him for he was his Servant and Chaplain in ordinary and that he had taken the Business into his own Hands whereat the Commons seemed much displeased This was the first Breach between the King and Commons and here let 's see what hasty Steps Laud took to fulfil King James his Prophecy of him in making Dissensions and to be a Fire-brand to set the Nation on fire by fomenting and exasperating the Factions in it In this Act of Mountague you may observe a twofold Crime First his Contempt and Disobedience to the Church of England which Laud pretended so much to exalt and to the Parliament that his Book being questioned in Parliament and by the Commons committed to the Arch-bishop who not only disallowed and suppressed it but Mountague being admonished against it he should upon King James his Death presume to reprint it in Defiance to the Metropolitan of England contrary to his Canonical Obedience and to the Commons thereby to make a Dissension between the King and them And secondly his being so audacious as to dedicate it to the King thereby to engage the King in defence of his Arrogance and Disobedience and for a Reward of this special Piece of Service before King James was two
Months dead to be made the King's Chaplain in Ordinary to be thereby protected from Justice But if it be asked how it does appear that Laud was concerned in this Act and Promotion of Mountague I answer there is a threefold Reason to induce the Belief of it First the end for which this Book was wrote for Promotion of Arminian Tenets whereof Laud was so great a Stickler Secondly none else but Laud could have such an Ascendant in things of this kind and to cause to early a Promotion for such a piece of Service but Thirdly which clears the Question when the King's Necessities caused him to call another Parliament about six or seven Months after Laud fearing the Commons falling again upon Mountague as they did Laud sounded the King by Buckingham whether the King would leave Mountague to the Parliament and finding the King determined to do it in great Zeal said I seem to see a Cloud arising and threatning the Church of England God in his Mercy dissipate it as you may read in Rush f. 203. as if the questioning a seditious and a disobedient Fellow to his Superiour in the Church were a Cloud to threaten the Church of England If Laud was the first that sowed Dissension between the King and Parliament upon the Pretence of the Church of England Buckingham shall be the second upon the Account of the Church of Rome and herein you 'll see the Temper of Buckingham to any which should presume to give him good Counsel The Dissension between the King and Commons began with Mountague at London where the Plague than raged and all England over so that most of the Members shrunk away to flee the Danger of it and those that staid were in danger of their Lives This put the King into a marvellous Strait what to do for his Necessities as Buckingham managed Affairs and his being imbroiled in the Spanish War were such as the Subsidies granted the King his Father the last Year and those granted the King now could not support Hereupon the King calling a Council at Hampton-Court what to do the King proposed upon the 10th of July to adjourn the Parliament to Oxford which was mainly favoured by the Duke my Lord Keeper Williams opposed the Proposition for two Reasons First That the Infection had overspread the whole Land so that no Man that travelled from his own Home knew where to lodg in Safety that the Lords and Gentlemen would be so distasted to be carried abroad in so mortal a time that it 's likely when they came together they would vote out of Discontent and Displeasure that his Majesty was ill counselled to give Offences in the Bud of his Reign tho small ones Secondly the Parliament had given two Subsidies at Westminster tho they removed to Oxford it is yet the same Sessions and if they alledg it is not the Use of the House to give twice in a Sessions tho I wish heartily they would yet how shall we plead them out of Custom if they be stiff to maintain it It is not fit for the Reputation of the King to fall upon a probable Hazard of a Denial The Duke which heard this with Impatience said That publick Necessity must sway more than one Man's Jealousy The Keeper hereupon besought the King to hear him in private and acquainted the King That the Duke had Enemies in the House of Commons who had contrived Complaints and made them ready to be preferred and would spend time at Oxford about them And what Folly were it to continue a Sessions that had no other Aim but to bring the Duke upon the Stage But if your Majesty think that this is like an Hectick quickly known but hardly cured my humble Opinion is That the Malady or Malice call it what you will may sleep awhile after Christmas there is no time lost in whetting the Sithe well I hope to give an Account by that time by undertaking with the chief Sticklers that they shall supersede their Bitterness against your great Servant and that Passage to your weighty Counsels may be made smooth and peaceable But why said the King do you conceal this from Buckingham Good Sir said the Keeper fain would I begin at that End but he will not hear me with Moderation And because it was the Mishap of the Keeper to give the first Notice of this Storm that was gathering the Duke in Defiance bid him and his Confederates do their worst and besought the King that the Parliament might be continued and he would confront the Faction tho he looked upon himself in that Innocency that he presumed they durst not question him Buckingham's Will must be a Law so on the 10th of July the Parliament was adjourned to Oxford to meet the first of August But to sweeten them the Keeper in the Presence of both Houses in the King's Name promised them That the Rigour of the Law against Popish Priests should not be deluded Here see the Levity of the King and the Dominion Buckingham had over him for upon the 12th of July the King caused a Warrant to be sealed to pardon six Roman Priests When the Parliament met at Oxford the Speaker had no sooner taken his Chair but a Western Knight enlarges the Sense of his Sorrow that he had seen a Pardon for six Priests bearing test July 12th whereas but the Day before it when they were to part from Westminster the Lord Keeper had promised in the King's Name before them all that the Rigour against the Priests should not be deluded Hereupon the Members were in such a Heat that they strived who should blame it most What! their Hope 's blasted in one Night But for the Lord Keeper that brought the King's Message and knew it best and for a Bishop to set the Seal to such a Warrant for him to do wrong to Religion it was enormous Hereupon Mr. Bembo a Servant to the Clerk of the Crown confess'd he brought the Writ to the Keeper to be sealed but it was stopt Mr. Devike Servant to Sir Edward Conway brought it from his Master but it could not speed It was my Lord of Buckingham's hard Hap to move the King to command the Warrant to be sealed in his Sight at Hampton-Court the Sunday following The Commons hereupon turned about to clear the Keeper and commend him but what pleased the Parliament at Oxford did not please the Court at Woodstock where this had not pleased the King The Commons in this Heat desired a Conference with the Lords in Christ-Church-Hall in the Afternoon where Sir Edward Coke open'd the Complaint sharply against my Lord Conway and like an Orator did slide away with a short Animadversion upon the Duke the Commons enlarged hereon that the Duke that put the King upon this was the highest in the King's Favour and that all the important Places of Honour and Offices by Sea and Land were in his Disposal which you may read at large in the Life of the
Lord Keeper par 2. fol. 14 15. tit 14 15. The Lord Keeper at Woodstock was censured by the Duke and his Creatures for this the Keeper therefore unsent for comes to Woodstoock and thus applies himself to the Duke My Lord I am come unsent for and I fear to displease you yet because your Grace made me I must and will serve you though you are one that will destroy that which you made let me perish yet I deserve to perish ten times if I were not as earnest as any Friend your Grace hath to save you from perishing The Sword is the Cause of a Wound but the Buckler is in fault if it do not defend the Body You brought the two Houses hither my Lord against my Counsel my Suspicion is confirmed that your Grace will suffer for it What 's now to be done but to wind up a Session quickly The Occasion is for you because two Colleges in the Vniversity and eight Houses in the Town are visited with the Plague Let the Members be promised fairly and friendly that they may meet again after Christmas requite the Injuries done to you with Benefits not Revenge for no Man that is wise will shew himself angry with the People of England I have more to say but no more than I have said to your Grace above a Year past at White-hall confer one or two of your great Places upon your fastest Friends so shall you go less in Envy and not less in Power Great Necessities will excuse hard Proposals and horrid Counsels St. Austin says it was a Punick Proverb in his Country Ut habeas quietum tempus perde aliquid At the Close of the Sessions declare your self to be forwardest to serve the King and Commonwealth and to give the Parliament Satisfaction Fear them not when they meet again in the same Body whose ill Affections I expect to mitigate but if you proceed trust me with your Cause when it comes into the House of Lords and I will lay my Life upon it I will preserve you from Sentence or the least Dishonour This is my Advice my Lord if you like it not Truth in the end will find an Advocate to defend it The Duke replied no more but I will look to whom I trust and flung out of the Chamber with Menaces in his Countenance Mr. Rushworth fol. 202. says that the Keeper told the Duke in Christ-Church when the Duke rebuked him for siding against him in that he engaged with William Earl of Pembroke to labour the Redress of Grievances That he was resolved to stand upon his own Legs and that the Duke should answer If that be your Resolution look you stand fast Where Mr. Rushworth had this I cannot tell but this being so unlike the Keeper's Carriage to the Duke both in King James's time and after and also to the Narrative before set forth by the Bishop of Litchfield who being the Keeper's Chaplain could have a better Inspection herein than Mr. Rushworth could have had but especially since the Reasons which the Keeper put into the King's hands which you may read in the Life of the Keeper par 2. tit 18. to satisfy the King of his Carriage while the Parliament sate at Oxford being so contrary to what Mr. Rushworth says I incline rather to believe the Bishop However the Commons presuming to enquire into Buckingham's Actions are censured at Woodstock for spiteful and seditious and therefore not fit to continue but to be dissolved which being understood by the Keeper with Tears and Supplications he implored the King to consider there was a time when his Father charged him in the Keeper's Hearing to call Parliaments often and to continue them though their Rashness might sometimes offend him that by his own Experience he never got good by falling out with them But chiefly Sir said he let it never be said that you kept not good correspondence with your first Parliament do not disseminate so much Unkindness through all the Counties and Boroughs of your Realm The Love of your People is the Palladium of your Crown Continue this Assembly together to another Session and expect Alteration for the better if you do not the next Swarm will come out of the same Hive The Lords of the Council did almost all concur with the Keeper but it wanted Buckingham's Suffrage who was secure that the King's Judgment would follow him against all the Table Thus far the Bishop But there was another Cause which the Bishop does not mention but Mr. Rushworth does fol. 336. which caused the hasty Dissolution of this Parliament Captain Pennington was come to Oxford from delivering the Fleet into the French Power to give an Account of the Reason of it but by the Duke's means was drawn to conceal himself and not to publish in due time his Knowledg of the Premises as it shortly after appeared and if this should have been made known it would not have been in the Power of the Keeper to have brought off the Duke from Sentence or the least Dishonour so upon the 12th of August the Parliament was dissolved but before their Dissolution the Commons made this following Declaration WE the Knights Citizens and Burgesses of the Commons House of Parliament being the Representative Body of the whole Commons of this Realm abundantly comforted in his Majesty's late gracious Answer touching our Religion and his Message for the Care of our Health do solemnly vow and protest before God and the World with one Heart and Voice that we are resolved and do hereby declare that we will ever continue most Loyal and Obedient Subjects to our most Gracious Soveraign Lord King Charles and that we will in a convenient time and in a Parliamentary way freely and dutifully do our utmost Endeavours to discover and reform the Abuses and Grievances of this Realm and State and in like sort to afford all necessary Supply to his most excellent Majesty upon his present Occasions and Designs Most humbly beseeching our said dear and dread Soveraign in his Princely Wisdom and Goodness to rest assured of the true and hearty Affections of his poor Commons and to esteem the same to be as we conceive it is indeed the greatest worldly Reputation and Security that a just King can have and to account all such as Slanderers of the Peoples Affections and Enemies to the Commonwealth that shall dare say the contrary But the mighty Buckingham shall not only dare to say but dare to do the contrary so much easier is it in such a Reign for a Favourite to ruine a Nation than for a Nation to have Justice against a Favourite Here let 's stay a little and see what state the King had brought himself to within less than five Months after he became King First he took Mountague to be his Chaplain a virulent seditious ill-natur'd Fellow to protect him from his Contempt against his Metropolitan and the Parliament for publishing new-fangl'd Opinions to the Disturbance of the Peace
of Church and State and when the Commons questioned Mountague for them he took part with him against them alledging he had taken the Business into his own Hands whenas he took Mountague into his Power to protect him from the Justice of them and his Metropolitan but never took other Notice of Mountague's Business Secondly He took upon him in Compliance with a foreign Prince and an Enemy to the Nation to dispense with the Laws against Romish Priests which by the Constitutions of the Nation he could not do Thirdly He broke his Word with the Parliament concerning the Execution of these Laws within a Day or two at most after he gave it Fourthly He made War upon the King of Spain without any Declaration of War whereas just Princes demand Reparations for Wrongs done and endeavour to compound their Differences amicably and in case of Refusal then to proclaim War and this not only against his Father's Counsel but the Advice of his Father's Council Fifthly Without the Advice of his Council he lent the French a Fleet to subdue the Rochellers and the Reformed in France tho they had given him no Offence and the French King had perfidiously broke his Promise with his Father and himself in denying Mansfield's Army to land Sixthly He had against the Advice of his Father broke the Bonds of Amity between him and his Subjects by the Dissolving of the Parliament whereby he lost the only Means to support him in his War against Spain And now Buckingham stood ready primed to engage him in a War against France yet in this deplorable state no free Counsel must enter the King's Ears which must be open to nothing but what Buckingham and Laud infused a sad Presage to what follow'd as well upon Buckingham and Laud as upon the King himself Now let 's see the Success of the War against the Spaniards Besides the Fleet designed against Cales the King fitted up another Fleet in conjunction with the Dutch States to block up Dunkirk as well as he had lent a Fleet in conjunction with the Dutch to subdue the Rochellers but this being sent out to Sea about the middle of October the most perilous Season of all the Year for great Ships to put to Sea a Consideration either not understood or not regarded by our Land-Admiral Buckingham a terrible Storm arose which separated and dispersed both Fleets so as gave the Dunkirkers an Opportunity to put to Sea with 22 Men of War and 4000 Land-Soldiers This alarm'd the Council lest these should land either in England or Ireland whenas in neither any Provision was made to oppose them especially in England where the Earl of Warwick had Orders to dismiss 300 of the Trained-bands of Essex that were to secure Harwich however it 's fit here to mention the noble Act of that Earl in building Langard-Fort on Suffolk side to secure the Entrance into the Port the most famous of all the English Eastern Coast and which is yet continued to this day But the Season of the Year was such as prevented this Fear for I find no other Account of the Design of the Dunkirk Fleet. Nor had the Design upon Cadiz more Success than that upon Dunkirk for a furious Storm arose in their Passage it may be the same which separated the English and Dutch before Dunkirk which so scattered the Fleet that of 80 no less than 50 were missing for 7 Days This was but the Beginning of the Misfortunes of this miserable Expedition for the Confusion of Orders was such as the Officers and Soldiers scarce knew who to command or whom to obey so that when the Fleet arrived at Cadiz a Conquest which would have paid the Charge of the Voyage and to the Honour of the English offered it self for the Spanish Shipping in the Bay of Cadiz lay unprovided of Defence so as the surprising them was both easy and feasible but this was neglected and when the Opportunity was lost the Army landed and Sir John Burroughs took a Fort from the Spaniard but was forced to quit it again for the Soldiers finding therein great store of Spanish Wines so debauched themselves that had the Spaniards known the Condition they were in they might have destroyed them all Hereupon they were put on board again and the General my Lord Wimbleton designed to stay 20 Days to wait for the Spanish Plate-Fleet which was daily expected from the West-Indies but the evil Condition of the Fleet by reason of a general Contagion enforced the General to abandon the Hopes of so great a Prize so having effected nothing he returned home with Dishonour in November following This gave no small Occasion of Clamour that a Fleet so well provided and mann'd should land their Men in an Enemies Country and return without some honourable Action but where the Fault lay could not be found out nor was any punished for failing to perform his Duty Yet the General for some time was not admitted into the King's Presence and some of the Colonels of his Army accused him and some Sea-men aggravated the Accusation Hereupon the General was examined before the Council and he laid the Fault upon others in the Fleet who let the King of Spain's Ships pass without fighting them according to Order and they on the other hand said they had no Order from the General to fight But how miserable soever the Success of this Fleet was yet it must not be in the King's Judgment ascribed to any Improvidence either in the setting forth or Conduct after it But to God's Pleasure who is the Lord of Hosts and unto whose Providence and good Pleasure his Majesty doth and shall submit himself and all his Endeavours not to give that Success as was desired See the King's Declaration for Dissolving his second Parliament which you may read in Rushworth fol. 412. But since the King had no better Success against the King of Spain by open Force upon the Return of the Fleet he gave strict Command That no Subject of the Realm of England should have any Trade or Commerce with any of the Dominions of the King of Spain or of the Arch-Dutchies in Flanders upon pain of Confiscation of both Ships and Goods that should be found upon Voyage of Trade into any of their said Dominions But hereby the Loss manifoldly fell more upon the English than Spaniards for these Trades above all others were the most beneficial and gainful to the English and by the Peace which the King's Father made with Spain and the free Trade which the English thereby enjoyed in Spain and Flanders the Nation became doubly more enriched than in the long Reign of Queen Elizabeth which was double as long as K. James's after he had made this Peace Thus as the King by breaking of the Parliament disabled himself of Means for carrying on the War against Spain so by this Inhibition of the English to trade with Spain he disabled his Subjects from giving him such Assistance as otherwise
they might But these were no Considerations where Buckingham and Laud govern'd all and those worthy and honourable Statesmen the Archbishop of Canterbury the Keeper Williams and the noble Earl of Bristol were not only discountenanc'd but disgrac'd and not permitted to come into the Council How unsuccessful soever the Expedition was yet another Fate attended that Fleet lent to the French for the Dutch joining a Fleet in conjunction with the French Fleet commanded by the Duke of Momerancy fought the Fleet of the Rochellers and utterly subdued it and then reduced the Isles of Rhee and Oleron to the French Power But tho the miserable Fate of the Reformed began here yet the Dishonour of the English Nation shall soon after follow it so that now Richlieu might write florebunt Lilia Ponto Tho the King dissolved the first Parliament to prevent their impeaching Buckingham yet it was not in Buckingham's Power to supply the King's Necessities but they put him upon the Necessity of calling another And here you may see the little Artifices the King 's grand Ministers of State put him upon for the attaining his Ends and how quite contrary they succeeded There were five Persons whom the Duke took to be his Enemies if they were not so he had given them Cause enough to be so two of them were Peers and three of them Commoners the Peers were the Earl of Bristol and Bishop of Lincoln the Commoners were Sir Edward Coke Sir Robert Phillips a Person whose Memory I revere and should be glad I knew any of his Descendants to whom I could acknowledg it and Sir Thomas Wentworth these Persons the Duke feared would be leading Men in both Houses and was resolved that to his Power he would keep them out He was sure the Earl and the Bishop as Peers of Common Right would have their Writs of Summons and was as sure the other three would be chosen Members of the House of Commons In looking a little back you 'll better see forward You have heard how by the Duke's Power in King James's Reign the Earl of Bristol was first kept back from coming into England and after he was come over was kept under Restraint and denied Admission into the King's Presence lest he should have spoiled the Duke's fine Tale in Parliament concerning the Spanish Match and also after he had answer'd every Particular of it without any Reply and that after King James had promised the Earl should be heard in Parliament against the Duke as well as the Duke had been against the Earl King James fell sick and died thereupon before the Parliament met again After King James's Death the Earl wrote a most humble Letter to King Charles imploring his Favour and desiring the Duke's Mediation which the Duke answered the 7th of May 1625 that the Resolution was to proceed against him without a plain and direct Confession of the Point which he the Duke had formerly required him to acknowledg and in a courtly manner told him That he would advise him to bethink himself in time what would be most for his good In the mean time the Earl received his Writ of Summons to the Parliament whereupon the Earl sent to the Duke that he would do nothing but what was most agreeable to his Majesty's Pleasure which the Duke answered I have acquainted his Majesty with your Requests towards him touching your Summons to the Parliament which he taketh very well and would have you rather make your Excuse for your Absence notwithstanding your Writ than to come your self in Person Hereupon the Earl desired a Letter of Leave under the King's Hand for his Warrant but instead thereof he received from the Lord Conway an absolute Prohibition and even to restrain and confine him as he had been in King James's time tho the Earl was freed from it by King James and in this Restraint the Earl continued three Quarters of a Year during which time he was remov'd from all his Offices and Places he held during that King's Life and tho he had laid out the greatest part of his Estate for their Majesties Service and by their particular Appointment he could never be admitted so much as to clear his Accounts yet hereof the Earl never made the least Complaint Upon the King's Coronation when Princes usually confer Acts of Grace and Favour the Earl addressed himself to the Duke and then became an humble Suitor to the King for his Grace and Favour to which he receiv'd an Answer so different from what the King's Father and the King himself had given him since the Earl's Return into England that the Earl knew not what Construction to make of it After the Writs of Summons for the meeting of this Parliament were out the Earl addressed himself to my Lord Keeper Coventry to be a Suitor to the King in his behalf that the Privilege which of right is due to every Peer might not be denied him which not taking effect the Earl petitioned the House of Peers to mediate to the King for his Writ which was granted but accompanied with a Letter from the Keeper not to take his Place in Parliament As Bristol was the worthiest Statesman in either of these King's Reigns and whose Integrity in all these Varieties of Employments none but Buckingham and Conway presumed at least that I can find or ever heard of so much as to carp at so Lincoln's quaint and excellent not pedantick Learning both in Divinity History the Civil and Canon Law and not a Stranger to our English excelled all others These were adorned with a lively and excellent Elocution and with a wonderful promptness and presence of Mind in giving Judgment in the most nice and subtile dark Points of State and accompanied with an indefatigable Industry in Prosecution of them These Parts were so well observed in him by King James that without any Solicitation of Buckingham or any other but whilst he solicited for another the King conferr'd the Lord Keeper's Place upon him as you may read in his Life fol. 52. tit 62. and after unsought for the King promised him the next Avoidance of the Arch-bishoprick of York or any other Ecclesiastical Preferment and so steddy stood he in King James's Favour that Buckingham's Attacks could no ways shake him in it In Chancery he mitigated the Fees and all Petitions from poor Men were granted gratis and was so far from prolonging Suits that in the first Year he ended more than in seven Years before yet with such Caution that he would have some of the Judges but principally Sir Henry Hubbard to be assisting so that notwithstanding his Celerity in Dispatch in all the five Years of his being Lord Keeper not one of his Orders neither by Parliament nor by the Court of Chancery were ever revers'd Cardinal Richlieu is much celebrated for the Speech he made in the Convention of Notables which you may read at large in Howel's Life of Richlieu f. 162 163 164. to excite
the French to carry on the Cardinal 's ambitious and ungodly Designs after the King had so prodigally expended not only his Father's Treasure but doubly more than the ordinary Revenues of France upon his Favourites and the manifold Wars both at home and abroad which Richlieu had entangled him in Let any Man compare the Keeper's Speech at the opening the first Parliament of King Charles which you may read in the Keeper's Life the second Part f. 9 and 10. with that of Richlieu's and judg if the Rhetorick and Elegancy of it comes any way behind that of his after the King's Father and this King had squandered much more than the Revenues of the Crown upon their Favourites and this King had entangled himself in the Articles of the French Match and without Means engaged himself in a War with Spain and that against his Father's and the Keeper's Advice in exciting the Parliament to a Compliance with the King's Will tho with a different Fate for Richlieu attained his Ends by his Speech whereas the Keeper's Downfal was a Consequence of his But above all the Keeper excelled himself if I may be Judg in three things one was in his Speech in the House of Peers about the Peers taking the Oaths the second his Reasons he gave the French Ambassador Vollâ—cleer against dispensing with our Penal Laws against Romish Priests which you may read at large in the first Part of the Keeper's Life fol. 214 215 216 217 218 219 220 221 222. The third Speech was when the Earl of Essex moved the House of Lords in the Year 1640 that the Bishops might be expell'd the House not their Persons but their Order which you may read at large in the second Part of the Keeper's Life from fol. 168 to 176. And sure the History of the Keeper's Life had been a nobler Work if it had been related without the loose and impertinent Glosses of the Bishop of Litchfield whereby he does so often disturb and break the Thread of the Story and by preaching himself more than writing his History makes it confounded so as it is difficult to pursue it See the Speech in the first Part of his Life f. 76 77. After the Parliament was dissolved at Oxford all Heads were set at work to find some fault against the Keeper to out him of his Place but none could be found hereupon they made a Proposition which the Keeper made to King James That the Office of Lord Chancellor or Lord Keeper should be Triennial so that after three Years the King should make another and the Keeper having enjoy'd the Place above four Years to be the Reason that he should surrender the Seal When the Keeper had notice of this in a pathetical Letter to the King which you may read in his Life in the second Part f. 24. he implores his Majesty's Favour that he may retire with an Assurance of his Majesty's Grace and be admitted into his Presence to make some humble Requests to him which the King granted The first of his Requests was for the King's Favour in general which the King granted and gave him his Hand twice to kiss upon it Secondly That the King would take away none of his Church-Preferments as he had graciously promised till he had given him better in lieu of them the King answered It was his Intention Thirdly That the King would remember his Father's Promise seconded by him that he would place him the Keeper in as good a Bishoprick or Arch-bishoprick as he could the King said There was no such place void when any fell it would be then time enough to make his Request Fourthly That his Majesty would dismiss him freely and absolutely without any Command from the Table but to leave it to the Keeper's Discretion to forbear the King said He ever intended it so and never said a word to the contrary but expected he should not offend by voluntary Intrusion Fifthly That the King would declare to the Lords that the Keeper had willingly and readily yielded to his Majesty's Pleasure and that he parted in the King's Favour and good Opinion and was still his Servant the King said He would but that he looked that no Petitions be made for him by any Man at that time but only for his Favour in general Sixthly The Keeper besought the King to make an Atonement with the Duke upon or without Examination of the Information which the Duke received against him the King said It became not him a King to take up Quarrels between his Subjects and that the Duke had never exprest any such Enmity to him against him the Keeper Seventhly The Keeper besought the King that whereas the Keeper had a Pension by Direction of the King's Father and wherewith the King was acquainted of 2000 Marks per Annum to the Viscount Wallingford and had disbursed 3000 l. down upon it either to buy the said Pension or extinguish it or to assign it to be paid out of the Tenths or Subsidies of his Bishoprick as before he had appointed to receive it out of the Exchequer the King said Assignments were naught but he would take Order with his Treasurer to buy it or pay for it as should be most convenient Eighthly The Keeper besought the King to bestow the next Prebendary in Westminster upon his Library-keeper as his Father had promised or that he might resume his Books again the King said It was full of Reason Ninthly The Keeper besought the King to ratify a Grant made by his Father of four Advowsons to St. John's-College in Cambridg whereof two he had bought with his Money and two the King gave him for the good of the Society the King said He would ratify the Grant and give way to amend any Errors in the Form or in passing of it Tenthly The Keeper besought the King that he might retire to a little Lodg which my Lord Sandys lent him where the Lord Conway might receive the Seal which the King granted Lastly The Keeper besought the King that the King would not be offended with him if upon his Discharge Reports were made that he was discontented which he protested he was not giving over so comfortably the King said He would do him that Justice and that he little valued Reports and thereupon gave the Keeper his Hand to kiss at parting which you may read in the second Part of the Keeper's Life Tit. 28. But the Bishop says in the next Tit. the forlorn Keeper felt the Heaviness of this Lightness who thought he had obtained much but excepting the four Advowsons confirmed to St. John's-College he mist all that he sought for and expected nor could he ever get a Farthing of his Pension nor bring it to an Audit to his dying-day nor did the Keeper's Enemies stop here but sought to provoke against him the King's Displeasure with things which were neither consistent with the King's Honour nor scarce to be born by the Temper of Human Nature and were so
at the Duke of Buckingham and wonders what had altered their Affections to him when in the last Parliament of his Father's time he was their Instrument to break the Treaties for which they did so honour and respect him that all the Honour conferred upon him was too little He wot not what had chang'd their Minds but assures them that the Duke had not meddled with or done any thing concerning the Publick but by his special Directions and was so far from gaining any Estate thereby that he verily thinks the Duke rather impaired the fame He would have them hasten the Supplies or it will be the worse for them for if any Ill happens he thinks he shall be the last that shall feel it The Commons had yet fresh in Memory the Dissolution of the Parliament at Oxford about six Months before and what Trust there was to this King's Word for Redress of Grievances so as it was done in a dutiful and mannerly Way after they had given Money and therefore they little altered their Course from what they had done at Oxford yet more than Parliaments heretofore did to have Grievances first redress'd and then to give Supplies for they voted to proceed upon Grievances and to give the King three Subsidies and three Fifteenths This gave the Duke little Satisfaction so that the King himself became the Duke's Advocate and told the Commons in a Speech which you may read in Rushw fol. 225. that he came to inform the Commons of their Errors and unparliamentary Proceedings so that they might amend their Faults which was enlarged by my Lord Keeper Coventry who told them of the King's Necessities and his Patience in Expectation of Supplies and of the King's Promise of Redress of Grievances after Supplies were granted That the Enquiry upon sundry Articles against the Duke upon Câ—nanâ—n Fame was to wound the Honour and Government of his Majesty and of his renowned Father and therefore it was his Majesty's final and express Command that they yield Obedience to those Directions which they formerly receiv'd and cease their unparliamentary Proceedings against the Duke and leave to his Majesty's Care Wisdom and Justice the future Reformation of those things which they supposed to be otherwise than they should be and that the King took notice that they had suffered the greatest Council of State The Duke and Laud to be censured and traduced by Men whose Years and Education cannot attain to that Depth Why then were the old Members kept out of the House which could have better informed them and that the three Subsidies and three Fifteenths were no ways proportionable to supply the King's Necessities c. and concludes that his Majesty doubts not but after this Admonition they will observe and follow it which if they do his Majesty is most ready to forgive all that is past Then the King added that in his Father's time by their Perswasion he was their Instrument to break off those Treaties and that then no Body was in so great Favour with 'em as the Man they seem now to touch but indeed his Father's Government and his and that Parliaments are altogether in his Power for their Calling Sitting and Dissolution and as he finds the Fruits they are to continue or not to be But if the Commons Proceedings against the Duke were erroneous and unparliamentary and through the Duke's Sides wounded not only the King's Government but that of his renowned Father and that the young Men in this House of Commons had censured and traduced the King's highest Council of State you shall now hear of an old Statesman in the House of Lords which shall not only cease the Wonder which caused the Parliament in the 21st of King James so to applaud the Duke but shall wound the whole Story which begat that great Applause to the Duke You have heard before how the Earl of Bristol was stopp'd at Calais from coming over into England after his Return out of Spain and after he came to Dover when the Duke could not prevail upon Marquiss Hamilton and the Earl of Hertford to have the Earl sent to the Tower upon his Arrival in England how he was stopp'd by a Letter from the Lord Conway that he should not come to Court nor to the King's Presence till he had answered to some Queries which his Majesty would appoint some of the Lords of the Council to ask him which was not done till the Parliament was adjourned and never met more and how after King James's Death the Earl was not only kept from his Liberty and the King's Presence but removed from all his Offices and Employments and not suffered to come to an Account for the Moneys expended in the King's Service and not permitted to come to the Parliament which was dissolved at Oxford Upon the King's Summons of this Parliament the Earl petitions the King to have his Writ of Summons which was never denied to any Peer to assist in the House of Peers but he received an Answer by the Lord Conway That the King was no ways satisfied in it and propounded to the Earl Whether he would rather sit still and enjoy the Benefit of the late King's Pardon in Parliament or to wave it and put himself upon Trial for his Negotiation in Spain and one of these he must trust to and give a direct Answer The Earl in Answer said He had been already question'd upon 20 Articles by a Commission of the Lords and had given such Answers that their Lordships never met more about that Business and that he did not wave the Pardon granted by King James in Parliament These Letters you may read at large in Rushworth fol. 138 139 140. Hereupon the Earl petitions the House of Lords shewing that he being a Peer of this Realm had not received his Writ of Summons to Parliament and desires their Lordships to mediate with his Majesty that he may enjoy the Liberty of a Subject and the Privilege of his Peerage after almost two Years Restraint without any Trial brought against him and that if any Charge be brought against him he prays he may be try'd by Parliament Hereupon the Lords petition the King that not only the Earl of Bristol but all such other Lords whose Writs are stopt except such as are made uncapable to sit in Parliament by Judgment of Parliament or some other legal Judgment may be summoned This nettled the Duke to the quick so that he told the House the King had sent the Earl his Writ but withal deliver'd such a Letter which the King sent to the Earl which I care not to transcribe but you may read it in Rushworth fol. 241. wherein this great Statesman Buckingham would have the Earl judged and censured by the King without hearing the Earl and thereby forestal the Judgment of the Lords against the Earl It 's true indeed my Lord Keeper Coventry sent the Earl a Writ of Summons to attend in Parliament but withal signified by a Letter
to the Earl that it was his Majesty's Pleasure withal no doubt but by the Advice of his highest Council of State that the Earl should continue in the same Restraint he was so that he forbear his personal Attendance in Parliament But since the Duke could no longer otherways keep the Earl out of the House of Lords the King by my Lord Keeper signified to the Lords that his Pleasure was they should send for the Earl as a Delinquent to answer Offences committed against him before his going into Spain and since his coming back and his scandalizing the Duke of Buckingham immediately and by Reflection upon himself with whose Privity and Direction the Duke guided his Actions and without which he did nothing And now Sir Robert Heath the King's Attorney-General exhibited eleven Articles against the Earl it was thought fit to leave out the other nine which the Earl had answered to King James without any Reply and in the last of these the Earl is charged with giving the King the Lie in offering to falsify that Relation which his Majesty affirmed and thereunto added many things of his own Remembrance to both Houses of Parliament which you may read at large in Rushworth's Collections from fol. 153 to 158. Hereupon the Earl exhibited a Charge of High Treason and Misdemeanours in twelve Articles against the Duke and another against the Lord Conway of High Misdemeanours which you may read at large in Rushworth from fol. 266 to 270. And upon the Delivery of them the Earl desired a Copy of the King's Charge against him in Writing and time allowed to answer and Counsel assigned him and said there was a great Difference between the Duke and him for the Duke was accused of Treason and at large and in the King's Favour and that he being but accused of that which he had long since answered was a Prisoner and therefore moved the Duke might be put in equal Condition which tho the House did not yet were not satisfied to commit the Earl to the Tower and order'd That the King's Charge against the Earl should be first heard and then the Earl's against the Duke yet so that the Earl's Testimony against the Duke be not prevented prejudiced or impeached The King in a Message to the Lords by my Lord Keeper would have blasted the Earl's Articles against the Duke for two Reasons if they may be called so The first was That the Narrative made in the 21 Jac. in Parliament trenches as far upon him as the Duke for that he went therein as far as the Duke But what then Shall not the Earl be heard in his Defence against that Declaration which was designed to blast the Earl's Honour and Integrity and Justice is no Respecter of Persons The other was That all the Earl's Articles have been closed in his Breast now these two Years contrary to his Duty if he had known any Crime of that nature against the Duke and now he vents it by Recrimination against the Duke whom he knows to be a principal Witness to prove his Charge against the Earl This is strange for his Majesty's Reign was scarce yet a Year old and all this while the Earl was under a Restraint and not permitted to come to the Parliament which ended at Oxford and in his Father's Reign after the Earl had answered all the Duke's Articles against him without any Reply King James promised him he should be heard against the Duke as well as he was against him tho he lived not to make good his Promise Now let 's see the Levity of this Prince the necessary Concomitant of Wilfulness and which he pursued in every step of his Reign without any Remorse that I could ever find for the Lodgment of the King's Charge against the Earl in the House of Lords was scarce cold whenas it was endeavoured to take the Earl's Cause out of the House and to proceed against him in the King's-Bench But why must this be at this time of day and while a Parliament was sitting And why was not this done in the King's Father's Life or in this King's Reign And why must two years pass and this way of charging the Earl never thought of which now must be done in all haste But the Lords put a full stop to this and for these Reasons 1. For that in all Causes of moment the Defendants shall have Copies of all Depositions both pro and contra after Publication in convenient time before hearing to prepare themselves and if the Defendants will demand that of the House in due time they shall have learned Counsel to assist them in their Defence And their Lordships declared they would give their Assents thereto because in all Causes as well Civil as Criminal and Capital they hold that all lawful Help could not before just Judges make one that is guilty avoid Justice and on the other side God defend that an Innocent should be condemned 2. The Earl of Bristol by his Petition to the House complained of his Restraint desiring to be heard here as well in point of his Wrongs as in his Accusations against the Duke whereof his Majesty taking Consideration signified his Pleasure by the Lord Keeper April 20 That his Majesty was resolved to put his Cause upon the Honour and Justice of this House and that the Earl should be sent for as a Delinquent to answer the Offences he committed in his Negotiations before his Majesty's going into Spain whilst his Majesty was there and since his Return and that his Majesty would cause these things to be charged upon him in this House so as the House is fully possessed of the Cause as well by the Earl's Petition as the King's Consent and the Earl brought up to the House as a Delinquent to answer his Offences there and Mr. Attorney hath accordingly delivered the Charge against him in the House and the Earl also his Charge against the Duke And now if the Earl be proceeded withal by way of the Kings-Bench these dangerous Inconveniencies will follow 1. He can have no Counsel 2. He can use no Witness against the King 3. He cannot know what the Evidences against him will be in convenient time to prepare for his Defence and so the Innocent may be condemned which may be the Case of any Peer 4. The Liberty of the House will be thereby infringed the Honour and Justice of it declined contrary to the King's Pleasure expresly signified by my Lord Keeper all which are expresly against the Order 5. The Earl being indicted it will not be in the Power of the House to keep him from Arraignment and so he may be disabled to make good his Charge against the Duke Therefore the way to proceed according to the Directions and true Meaning of the Order and the King's Pleasure signified and preserve the Liberties of the House and protect one from Injury will be To have the Charge delivered into the House in Writing and the Earl to set down his
might not another Parliament upon better Information alter what the Parliament 21 Jac. had done Which neither of these Parliaments did but granted and voted him and his Father greater Supplies than ever before were given to any of his Predecessors in three-fold the time But when the King enter'd into a View of his Treasure he found how ill provided he was to proceed effectually with so great an Action It seems by this one Action the King only designed the War against Spain But why does not the King set forth the Causes why his Treasure was so ill provided It was not ten Months before his Father's Death that the Parliament 21 Jac. which gave his Father three Subsidies and three Fifteenths was adjourned and his first Parliament gave him two Subsidies more within two or three Months after his Father's Death And what came of all this but the raising ten thousand Foot and two thousand Horse under Mansfield the Expedition against the Rochellers and to Cadiz to neither of which latter he was ever invited by his Father or any Parliament The King makes the â—lague to be the Cause of the Dissolution of the Parliament at Oxford yet he might as well have secured the Members by a Prorogation as Dissolution And in this Parliament he tells how the House of Commons voted him three Subsidies and three Fifteenths and after four Subsidies and three Fifteenths and of the Letter he sent them the 9th of June to speed the passing these Supplies and how that the House being abused by the violent and ill-advised Passion of a few Members never so much as admitted one Reading to the Bill of Subsidies but voted a Remonstrance or Declaration which they intended to prefer to him tho palliated with glossing Terms containing many dishonourable Aspersions upon his Majesty and upon the sacred Memory of his deceased Father which his Majesty taking for a Denial of the promised Supplies upon mature Advisement he dissolved them But from whence should this mature Advisement come We do not find the Privy Council had any hand in it and the House of Lords petitioned against it But lest the Credit of this Declaration should not find Faith enough against the Commons Representatives the King sends a Proclamation after it wherein he takes notice of a Remonstrance drawn by a Committee of the late Commons to be presented to him wherein are many things to the Dishonour of himself and his Royal Father of blessed Memory and whereby through the sides of a Peer of this Realm they wound their Soveraign's Honour and to vent their Passions against that Peer and prepossess the World with an ill Opinion of him before his Case was heard who hinder'd it had scatter'd Copies of it Wherefore the King to suppress such an unsufferable Wrong upon pain of his Indignation and high Displeasure commanded all who had Copies thereof to burn them But why was not the Duke's Cause heard and who dissolved the Parliament to prevent it Had not the Earl of Bristol answered every Particular of the King 's and Duke's Charge against him And was there not an Order of the House of Lords the Duke should answer the Earl's Charge against him Where is this Answer to be found and why was it not Now see the Justice of this King and how he made good his Promise in his Declaration that he would so order his Actions as should justify him not only in his own Conscience but to the whole World for the very Day the Parliament was dissolved he committed the Earl of Bristol Prisoner to the Tower and left the Duke free to pursue his ungodly Designs Here I 'll stay a little and add this Augmentation of Honour to the Escutcheon of this noble Earl notwithstanding this Usage For when the Long Parliament in 1640 had put a full Stop to the King 's Absolute Will and Pleasure which if it had not God only knows where it would have ended and after that this King's Flatterers and Favourites his Lord Keeper Finch and Secretary Winde-bank had run into other Countries to save themselves from being hanged in this and that the Earl of Manchester after he had flatter'd this King and his Father in all the Shapes of Earl Viscount Baron Lord Chief Justice Lord Privy Seal Lord Treasurer and Lord President of the Council and his Son and the Earls of Pembroke and Holland and both the Sir Henry Vanes Father and Son and Sir Henry Mildmay c. sided with the Parliament against the King yet this noble Earl followed the King in all his Adversity however he had been persecuted by him in his Prosperity The late Keeper as he gave his Opinion against the War with Spain in King James's Reign so did he against the Expedition against Cales in this King's Reign his Reason was which you may read in the second Part of his Life fol. 65. That the King must make himself sure of the Love of his own People at home before he bid War to such a rich and mighty Nation But the Keeper's Counsels were as much feared and hated by the Duke as Bristol's and the Commons Articles were against him and therefore he resolved to be rid of them all and pursue the King 's and his own Designs without any Controul and the very same Day the Parliament was dissolved he caused the Earl of Bristol to be committed to the Tower as you may see in Stow's Chronicle fol. 1042. Nor would he have his Renown and Valour less known abroad than his Justice at home and France shall now be the Theatre upon which he will act it in spight of Spain or the Parliament and Nation of England without whose Assistance he will act Wonders by his own Power and in Vindication of his own Honour however some Cause must be shewed by others since the Duke concealed the true Cause Rushworth fol. 427. makes the Causes of this War to begin between the Priests of the Queen's Family and the Bishops by Articles of Agreement upon the Marriage and that the Pope had declared them Apostates if they should seek for any Establishment from the King being an Heretick and that the Queen sided herein with the Priests against the King and that Unkindnesses hereupon grew between them so as the King informed his Brother of France he could no longer bear them And much to this purpose has Mr. James Howel in the Life of Lewis XIII fol. 75. But these were but Pretences for this War the Cause was of another Complexion And herein we will cite the Authority of the great Nani who had better Means to enquire into the Causes than either Rushworth or Howel and was not biass'd by Interest Affection or Flattery You have heard before of the Emulation between Richlieu and Buckingham and of their Inclinations for the Queen's Favour and of the Queen 's noble Aversions to them both but I think Nani was therein a little mistaken for if I be not misinformed as I think verily I
could Human Wisdom foresee of any good Success in them being against three the most potent Princes in Christendom For the Charges to maintain these Wars almost against Christendom the King requires a Benevolence of the Subject and the Nobility to lend freely Demands a Loan of 100000 l. from the City of London charges the Ports of England to furnish Ships upon their own Charges issues out Privy-Seals for Benevolences in proportion to the four Subsidies and three Fifteenths voted by the Commons grants a Commission to execute Martial Law billeâ—s Souldiers and makes the Country pay their Quarters the Rich who refuse to pay the Loans are assessed and bound over to answer at the Council-Table and the other press'd for Souldiers These were the Ways this King took to justify his Integrity for the Weal of the Kingdom so as to satisfy not only his own Conscience but his People and the whole World as he promised in his Declaration for Dissolution of the Parliament But lest the King 's Royal Proclamation for these things should be stumbled at or disputed Sibthorp and Manwaring two special Favourites of Laud are set on work to preach that the King is not bound to observe the Laws of the Land in his Government and that his Royal Will in imposing Loans and Taxes does oblige the Subject's Conscience upon Pain of Eternal Damnation Tho these things were settled to the Duke's Heart 's Content yet he had a Jealousy that in his Absence the Arch-bishop of Canterbury might give the King such Counsel as might spoil all the Glories of the Duke's Designs and therefore to remove him not only from the Council-Table but far enough out of the way from coming into the King's Presence is the Design but to put some colour upon it it was resolved That the King by a special Message should order the Arch-bishop to license Sibthorp's Sermon under his own Hand The Arch-bishop at this time was sorely afflicted with the Stone and kept his Bed when Mr. Murray brought the King's Command to him the Bishop could not forbear to take notice of the piece of Drudgery to be put upon him the like whereof was never enjoined to any of his Predecessors yet desired my Lord Conway to leave the Sermon with him some small time to peruse which my Lord did The Bishop instead of licensing the Sermon made Observations upon it how false and inconsistible the Parts of the Sermon were to one another and how contrary to Antiquity and the Authority of the Scripture for one part of the Sermon justified Ahab's taking away Naboth's Vineyard and he desired to be satisfied about his Objections before he licensed the Sermon This gave the desired Offence for upon the Arch-bishop's refusal to license the Sermon the Bishop of London who had allowed John Cosins his Book called The seventh Sacrament with all the Errors which were after expunged gave it a great and stately Allowance and Laud was ordered to answer the Archbishop's Objections and had the Bishops of Durham Oxford and Rochester to be his Assistants in it and to this the Arch-bishop must reply without seeing the Answer which if he might see he said he would batter it all to pieces which being denied you may read in Rushw f. 446 447. how the Arch-bishop did batter it all to pieces upon Mr. Murray his reading it For this special piece of Service in answering the Arch-bishop's Objections the Bishop of Durham and Laud of Bath and Wells are made Privy-Counsellors and for the Arch-bishop's refusal to license Sibthorp's Sermon he was not only banished to his House at Ford five Miles beyond Canterbury a moorish unhealthy Place and that before he could lay in his Provisions for House-keeping but the Office of High-Commission is taken from him and the Exercise of it committed to the Bishops of Durham Oxford Rochester and Bath and Wells which had so well answered the Arch-bishop's Objections to Sibthorp's Sermon And now things are thus settled at home In July the 27th the Duke is commissionated Admiral and General of a Navy Royal of 100 Sail and 6 or 7000 Land Souldiers and when he came before Rochel Sobiez came aboard of him where for several Reasons it was agreed to land the Army on the Isle of Oleron and not on the Isle of Rhee but Sobiez going to perswade the Rochellers to join with the English the Duke before his return lands on the Isle of Rhee in spite of the Opposition made by the French but instead of pursuing the Blow not only neglects to take the Fort la Prie to secure his Retreat and prevent the French from landing Supplies but stays five days whereby Toiras the French Governor encouraged his Men and also got more Force and Provisions into the Cittadel of St. Martins The French were so alarm'd at this Invasion that the King offered the Duke of Rohan and the Rochellers any Terms to join against the English which both refusing caused both their Ruins So that the Duke having made three false Steps viz. his deceiving Sobiez his not marching after landing and not taking in the Fort la Prie now let 's see a fourth The Enemy's Retreat upon the landing of the English was so hasty that they quitted a Well about twenty Paces from the Counterscarp which supplied the Cittadel with Water which not being possest upon the first coming of the Army the French drew a Work about it which the English could not force and without which Well the besieged could not have subsisted however the Duke resolved to take the Fort by Famine We have marked four false Steps the Duke made now observe the fifth which was the loss of the whole Army and ruin of all the Protestant Party in France for instead of the French joining with the English for the recovery of the Palatinate by Land the Spaniards now join the French against the English by Sea to relieve St. Martins and the Duke instead of pressing the Fort by a strait Siege entertains a Treaty of Surrender with Toiras and several Compliments past between them subscribed Your humble Servant Buckingham and Your humble Servant Toiras till Toiras got Relief of Men Victuals and Ammunition and then Toiras broke off the Treaty with the Duke Soon after the French landed Forces by the neglect of the English to suppress them and Orders were given to draw the English out of the Trenches which the French possess whereupon the English were forced to retreat and fight the French to regain the Trenches at last the 6th of November the Duke makes a vain Storm upon the Castle and was beaten off and upon the 8th the Duke retreats the French being now equal to him in Foot and superiour in Horse when the English were intangled in their Retreat the Duke having neglected to take la Prie or build a Fort upon a narrow Lane and Causey to secure their Retreat the French charged the English Horse in the rear and rout them who rout the Foot in
their Prince Notwithstanding the former Abuses of this Reign they proceeded with no Censures and Punishment of the King 's evil Ministers except Dr. Manwaring but only to represent to the King the Grievances of the Nation and did not impeach the Duke of Buckingham as they did in the last Parliament nor proceed upon it but only remonstrated to the King the Evils which the exorbitant Greatness of the Duke brought upon the King and Nation and how unsafe it would be to the Nation to grant Aids to the King which were misemployed for the exalting the Grandeur of the Duke However before they entred upon Grievances they voted the King five entire Subsidies which was the greatest Tax that ever was before given to any King of England at once and to be paid in the shortest time Now let 's see tho but in Epitome how these things were changed and what Returns the King made the Parliament and Nation The Unanimity of the Commons in the Gift was not less than the Gift was great being nemine contradicente which so pleased the King that he sent them word by Secretary Sir John Cooke that he would deny them nothing of their Liberties which any of his Predecessors had granted them Then the Commons fell upon Grievances and voted the Imprisonment of any Free-man by Warrant from the King or Council without a Cause alledged to be a Grievance and that the raising Monies by Loan and imposing an Oath upon the Subject to discover the Value of his Estate the Billeting of Soldiers and exercising Martial Law in time of Peace were Grievances Then several Debates arose in the House how the Subjects should be secured against these in time to come And upon the Motion of Sir Edward Coke the House agreed to sue to the King by Petition the most antient and humble Address in Parliament that his Majesty would give his People Assurance of their Rights by Assent in Parliament as he uses to pass other Acts. And hereupon the House ordered Sir Edward to draw a Petition accordingly The House agreed to the Petition and ordered Sir Edw. Coke Sir Dudley Diggs Mr. Selden and Mr. Littleton to carry it up to the Lords The Duke of Buckingham and his Creatures were zealous to stop the Petition in the House of Lords but he was much fall'n from his Lustre since his dishonourable Expedition to the Isle of Rhee last Summer and his Expedition to Cales So as his Sway in the House of Peers was much abated Besides the Bishops were not at this time all of a piece for Arch-bishop Abbot urged his own Case how he was banished from his Houses at Croydon and Lambeth while the Duke was prosecuting his Voyage to the Isle of Rhee and confined to a moorish Mansion-place at Ford to kill him and debarred from the Management of his Jurisdiction and no Cause given for it And Dr. Williams gave most learned and elegant Arguments for the Petition which you may read at large in the second Part of the History of his Life fol. 77 78 79. But this stuck close to him that neither the King nor Laud ever after forgot it which you may read fol. 96. tit 93. The Lords would not proceed to any determinate Vote before they had heard the King's Counsel against the Petition and the Commons Defence of it wherein no less time was spent than six Weeks The Managers for the Petition were Sir Edward Coke Mr. Selden Sir Dudley Diggs Sergeant Glanvile Sir Henry Martin and Mr. Mason Besides Magna Charta the Commons fortified the Petition of Right with six other Acts of Parliament explanatory of Magna Charta viz. The Statute made in the Reign of Edward I. commonly called Statutum de Tallagio non concedendo the Statute of 25 Edward III. where it is declared That from thenceforth no Person shall be compelled to make any Loans to the King against his Will because such Loans were against Reason and the Fanchise of the Land The third was the Statute of 28 Edward III. That no Man of what Estate or Condition soever should be put out of his Lands or Tenements nor Taken nor Imprisoned nor Disherited nor put to Death without being brought to Answer by due Process of Law The fourth Statute the 25 Edw. III. 9. and the sixth 9 Hen. III. 29. against exercising Martial Law in times of Peace These Statutes were so well managed by the Commons in Defence of the Petition that Sir Robert Heath who was Attorney-General and the rest of the King's Counsel pleading tho eagerly yet impertinently had nothing to say materially against them but submitted to the Judgment of the Peers However the Lords before they would put the Vote entred into a Committee of the whole House when my Lord Say moved That those Lords who stood for the Liberties of the Nation might make their Protestation and that to be upon Record and that the other opposite Party should with the Subscriptions of their Names enter their Reasons to remain upon Record that so Posterity might not be to seek who they were that so ignobly betrayed the Freedom of our Nation and this done they should proceed to Vote This struck such a Daunt upon the other Party that not one of them opposed it The Lords agreed to the Petition of Right but with this Addition or Saving We present this our humble Petition to your Majesty with the Care not only of preserving our Liberties but with due Regard to leave entire that Soveraign Power wherewith your Majesty is trusted for the Protection Safety and Happiness of the People But the Lords did not make any determinate Vote in it but sent it to the Commons to advise upon The Bishop of Lincoln was a great Stickler for this Addition to qualify what he had said before in the Defence of the Petition which did him no good the other sticking alta mente When this Addition or Saving came down to the Commons Mr. Noy said To add a Saving is not safe doubtful Words may beget ill Construction and the Words are not only doubtful and Words unknown to us but never used in any Act or Petition before And Sir Edward Coke said This is the Multum in parvo this is propounded to the Conclusion of our Petition it is a Matter of great weight and to speak plain it will overthrow all our Petition it trenches on all the parts of it it flies at Loans at the Oath at Imprisonment and Billeting of Soldiers this turns all about again Look into all Petitions of former times they never petitioned wherein there was a Saving of the King's Soveraignty I know Prerogative is part of the Law but Soveraign Power is no Parliamentary Word In my Opinion it weakens Magna Charta and all our Statutes for they are absolute without any Saving Power and should we now add it we shall weaken the Foundation of the Law and then the Building must needs fall Take we heed what we yield unto
Magna Charta is such a Fellow that he will have no Soveraign I wonder this Soveraign was not in Magna Charta or in the Confirmations of it If we grant this by Implication we give a Soveraign Power above all these Laws Power in Law is taken for a Power with Force The Sheriff shall take the Power of the County what is meant here only God knows It is repugnant to our Petition grounded on Acts of Parliament Our Predecessors could never endure a Salvo jure suo no more than the Kings of old could endure for the Church Salvo honore Dei Ecclesiae We must not admit this and to qualify it is impossible Let us hold our Privileges according to the Law that Power which is above this is not fit for the King or People to have it disputed further I had rather for my part have the Prerogative acted and I my self lie under it than have it disputed Sir Thomas Wentworth said If we admit of this Addition we leave the Subject worse than we found him and we shall have little Thanks for our Labour when we come home Let us leave all Power to his Majesty to punish Malefactors but these Laws are not acquainted with Soveraign Power We desire no new thing nor do we offer to trench upon his Majesty's Prerogative We may not recede from our Petition neither in part or whole Mr. Selden said Let us not go hastily to the Question if there be any Objections let any propound them and let others answer them as they think good If it the Saving hath no Reference to our Petition what does it here I am sure others will say it hath Reference and so must we how far it does exceed all Examples of former times no Man can shew the like Then he shews the manifold Statutes besides Magna Charta wherein is no such Saving And whereas Mr. Speaker said The King was our Heart and ever shall be but then Mr. Selden said We spake of the King's Prerogative and we are bound to say so but when we speak of our Rights we are not to be imprisoned Saving but by the King 's Soveraign Power Say my Lands without any Title be seized into the King's hand and I bring a Petition of Right and I go to the King and say I do by no means seek your Majesty's Title and after that I bring a Petition or Monstrance de droit setting forth my own Right and Title and withal set down a Saving that I leave entire his Majesty's Right it would be improper Then he cites many Statutes wherein there are Savings but no ways pertinent to this which you may read at large in Rushworth ' s Collections and Franklin ' s Annals And in truth it troubles me I am forced to curtail this not only in Mr. Selden but other Noble Persons by reason the Treatise would swell to a greater Bulk than I designed it The Lords afterwards had a Conference with the Commons to fortify their Addition managed by my Lord Keeper which was answered by Mr. Mason And after that the Commons desired another Conference with the Lords and ordered Serjeant Glanvile to argue the legal part of the Petition and Sir Henry Martin the rational part of it which they did so well that at a Conference May 26. 1628 between both Houses the Lord Keeper from the Lords told the Commons the Lords agreed with them in omnibus of their Petition only in the Alteration of two Words viz. Means for Pretext and for the Word unlawful not warrantable by the Laws and Statutes of the Realm The Houses thus happily accorded the Petition with the foresaid Amendments were read two several times in the House of Commons and then upon the Question voted to be engrossed and read a third time and the House to sit in the Afternoon till it was engrossed and read and ordered to be presented to the King in which there was not one Negative And the Bill for the Subsidies was read a second time and committed and upon Wednesday the 28th the Lords and Commons had a Conference about the Manner of Delivery of the Petition and Sir Edward Coke reported that their Lordships were agreed That no Addition or Preface be used to the King but that the Petition be preferred to his Majesty by the Command of the Lords and Commons and that his Majesty by be desired to the Content of his People he would give his Gracious Answer in full Parliament In all these Transactions the King was very uneasy fain he would have the Money yet was unwilling to answer the Petition The House was aware of this and therefore agreed the Petition before they would pass the Money-Bill Upon the 12th of April the King by Secretary Cook acquainted them of the Necessity of Supply and expected some Fruit of what was so happily begun but finding a Stop beyond all Expectation of so good a Beginning the Secretary was therefore commanded to tell them That without any further or unnecessary Delay they proceed in this Business and bid them therefore take heed that they force him not to make an unpleasing end of that which was so well begun And two Days after the Secretary quickned the Business of this Supply again Upon the 2d of May the King sent a Message by Secretary Cook That as he would rank himself amongst the best of Kings wherein he has no Intention to invade or impeach our lawful Liberties so he would have them to match themselves with the best of Subjects not by encroaching upon that Soveraignty or Prerogative which God had put into his hands for their Good and that this Sessions of Parliament must continue no longer than Tuesday come Seven-night at the farthest and that his Royal Intention is to have another Session at Michaelmas next for the perfecting such things as cannot now be done Now let 's see how unwillingly the King was brought to pass the Petition Upon the 16th of May Secretary Cook pressed the House to rely upon the King's Word and that the King promised to govern them by the Laws and that they shall enjoy as much Freedom as ever and that this might be debated in the House but Sir John Elliot answered that the Proceedings in a Committee is more honourable and advantagious to the King and House with whom the House agreed In the Debate of this Committee some were for the Bill to rest but Sir Edward Coke ' s Reasons prevailed to the contrary Was it ever known said he that General Words were a sufficient Satisfaction to particular Grievances Was ever a Verbal Declaration of the King Verbum Regni When Grievances be the Parliament is to redress them Did ever Parliament rely on Messages They put up Petitions of their Grievances and the King answered them The King's Answer is very gracious but what is the Law of the Realm that 's the Question I put no Diffidence in his Majesty the King must speak by Record and in
Particulars not in General Did you ever know the King's Message to a Bill of Subsidies all succeeding Kings will say You must trust me as well as you did my Predecessors and trust my Messages but Messages never came into a Parliament Let us put up a Petition of â—â—ight not that I distrust the King but that I cannot take his Trust but in a Parliamentary way Hereupon the Commons desired a Conference with the Lords which was managed by Sir Edward Coke who said My Lords it is evident what necessity there is both in respect of your selves and your Posterity to have good Success in this Business we have acquainted your Lordships with the Reasons and Arguments and after we have had some Conference we have received from your Lordships Propositions and it behoves us to give your Lordships some Reasons why you have not heard from us before now for in the mean time as we were consulting this weighty Business we have received divers Messages from our great Soveraign the King and they consisted of five Parts 1. That his Majesty would maintain all his Subjects in their just Freedom both of their Persons and Estates 2. That he will govern according to his Laws and Statutes 3. That we shall find much Confidence in his Royal Word I pray observe that 4. That we shall enjoy all our Rights and Liberties with as much freedom as ever Subjects have done in former times 5. That whether we think fit either by Bill or otherways to go on in this great Business his Majesty would be pleased to give way tâ— it These gracious Messages did so work upon our Affections that we have taken it into deep Consideration My Lords what we had these Messages I deal plainly for so I am commanded by the House of Commons we did consider what way would be our most secure way nay yours We did think it the safest way to go on in a Parliamentary Course for we have a Maxim in the House of Commons and written in the Wall of our House That old Ways are the safest and surest Ways And at last we did fail upon that which we think if your Lordships did consent with us the most antient of all and that is my Lords the Via fausta both to his Majesty to your Lordships and to our selves For my Lords this is the greatest Bond that any Subject can have in open Parliament Verbum Regis That is a high Point of Honour but this must be done by the Lords and Commons and assented to by the King in Parliament This is the greatest Obligation of all and this is for the King's Honour and our Safety Therefore my Lords we have drawn the Form of a Petition desiring your Lordships to concur with us therein for we do come with an unanimous Consent of all the Commons and there is great reason your Lordships should do so for your Lordships be involved in the same Danger and then the Petition was read Upon the 20th of May the King wrote a Letter to the House of Lords wherein he said That as he had given leave to free Debates upon the highest Points of his Prerogative Royal which in the times of his Predecessors were ever restrained as Matters they would not have discussed yet he finds it insisted upon that in no Cause whatsoever he and his Council could commit without Cause shewed which if granted would dissolve the Frame of the Monarchy That as he had made fair Propositions to the Commons which might easily preserve the Liberty of the Subject so he thought good to let their Lordships know that without the overthrow of the Soveraignty he could not suffer his Power to be impeached yet that he will extend it beyond the just Rule of Moderation c. which he thought good to signify the rather to shorten the long Debates upon this great Question the Season of the Year being so far advanced and his great Occasions of State not lending many more days for the continuance of the Session The same day the Lords communicated the Letter to the Commons upon which Sir Thomas Wentworth said it was a Letter of Grace but the People will only like that which is done in a Parliamentary way and the Debate upon it would take up much time neither was it directed to the Commons and the Petition of â—ight would clear all Mistakes for some give out as if the House weâ—â— to pinch the King's Prerogative and so the Letter was laid aside These were while the Petition was in debate and before it was agâ—â—ed to by both Houses but after it was agreed upon the second of June the King came into the House of Lords and having sent for the Commons said Gentlemen I Am come hither to perform my Duty I think no Man can think it long since I have not taken so many days in answering your Petition as you have spent Weeks in framing it I am come hither to shew you that as well in formal Things as in essential I desire to give you as much Content as in me lies Then the Lord Keeper said MY Lords and ye the Knights Citizens and Burgesses of the House of Commons the King hath commanded me to say unto you That he takes it in good part that in Consideration of settling your own Liberties ye have generally professed in both Houses that ye have no intention to lessen or diminish his Majesty's Prerogative wherein as ye have cleared your Intentions so now his Majesty comes to clear his and to subscribe a firm League with his People which is ever likely to be most constant and perpetual when the Conditions are most equal and known to be so These cannot be in a more happy State than when your Liberties shall be an Ornament and Strength of his Majesty's Prerogative and his Prerogative a Defence of your Liberties in which his Majesty doubts not but that both he and you shall take a mutual Comfort hereafter and for his part he is resolved to give an Example in using his Power for the Preservation of your Liberties that hereafter you shall have no cause to complain and that they here read their own Petition and his Majesty's gracious Answer Then the Petition was read to which the King answered The King willeth that Right be done according to the Laws and Customs of the Realm and that the Statutes be put in due Execution that his Subjects may have no cause to complain of any Wrong or Oppressions contrary to their just Rights and Liberties to the Preservation of which he holds himself in Conscience as well obliged as of his Prerogative This Answer no ways satisfied the Commons whereupon Sir John Elliot made a pathetick and lively Representation of the Grievances of the Nation within and of the Danger and Weakness of it by the Mismanagement and Abuse of the King's Ministers and therefore wished that it might so stand with the Wisdom and Judgment of the House that these Dangers and Grievances
may be drawn into the Body of a Remonstrance and therein humbly exprest with a Prayer to his Majesty for the Safety of himself and for the Safety of the Kingdom and for the Safety of Religion that he would be pleased to give the House time to make perfect Inquisitions thereof or to take it into his own Wisdom and there give them such timely Reformation as the necessity of the Cause and his Justice does import Sir Edward Coke seconded Sir John Elliot 's Motion and propounded that a humble Remonstrance be presented to the King touching the Dangers and Means of the Safety of the King and Kingdom which was agreed to by the House and thereupon the House turned themselves into a grand Committee and the Committee for the Bill of Subsidies was ordered to expedite the said Remonstrance But this King rather than hear of what he had done did not care what he did and therefore the Speaker brought a Message from the King That his Majesty having upon the Petition exhibited by both Houses given an Answer so full of Justice and Grace for which we and our Posterity have just cause to bless his Majesty it is now time to draw to a Conclusion of the Session and therefore his Majesty thinks fit to let them know That he does resolve to abide by that Answer without further Change or Alteration and so he will Royally and Really perform unto them what he had thereby promised And further That he resolves to end this Session upon Wednesday the 11th of this Month and that this House should seriously attend those Businesses which may bring the Session to a happy Conclusion without entertaining new Matters and so to husband the time that his Majesty may with more Comfort bring them speedily together again at which time if there be any further Grievances not contained or expressed in the Petition they may be more maturely considered than the time will now permit But this did not disturb the Commons but they proceeded in their Declaration against Dr Manwaring and the same day presented it to the Lords at a Conference which was managed by Mr. Pym. The Commons impeached the Doctor upon these three Points in his Sermons of Allegiance and Religion 1. That he affirmed that the King is not bound to keep and observe the good Laws and Customs of this Realm concerning the Rights and Liberties of the Subjects and that his Royal Will and Command in imposing Loans Taxes and other Aids upon his People without common Consent in Parliament does so far bind the Consciences of the Subjects of this Kingdom that they cannot refuse the same without peril of Eternal Damnation 2. That those of his Majesty's Subjects that refused the Loan did therein offend against the Law of God and against his Majesty's Supream Authority and by so doing became guilty of Impiety Disloyalty Rebellion and Disobedience and liable to many other Taxes and Censures which he in the several Parts of his Book does most falsly and maliciously lay upon them 3. That the Authority of Parliament is not necessary for the raising of Aids and Subsidies that the slow Proceedings of such Assemblies are not fit to supply the urgent Necessities of State but rather apt to produce sundry Impediments to the just Design of Princes and to give them occasion of Displeasure and Discontent Whereupon the Commons demanded Judgment against the Doctor not accounting his Submission with Tears and Grief a Satisfaction for the Offence charged upon him and the Lords gave this Sentence 1. That he should be imprisoned during the Pleasure of the House 2. That he should be fined 1000 l. to the King 3. That he should make such Submission and Acknowledgment of his Offences as shall be set down by a Committee in Writing both at this Bar and the House of Commons 4. That he shall be suspended for the Term of three Years from the Exercise of the Ministry and in the mean time a sufficient preaching Minister shall be provided to serve the Cure out of his Livings this Suspension and Provision to be done by the Ecclesiastical Jurisdiction 5. That he shall be disabled hereafter to have any Ecclesiastical Dignity or Secular Office 6. That he shall be disabled hereafter ever to preach at Court 7. That his Book is worthy to be burnt and that for the better effecting of this his Majesty may be moved to grant a Proclamation to call in the said Books that they may be burnt accordingly in London both the Vniversities and for the inhibiting the printing thereof upon a great Penalty This Censure immediately succeeding Sir Elliot's Representation of Grievances startled Laud as much as Sir John's Representation did the Duke of Buckingham and the King that he might not hear of any more Business of this kind upon the 5th of June commanded the Speaker to let the House know that he will certainly hold to the day fixed for ending the Session viz. the 11th and therefore requires them that they enter not into nor proceed in any new Business which may spend greater time or which may lay any Scandal or Aspersion upon the State-Government or the Ministers thereof This put the House into a fearful Consternation whereupon the House declared That every Member of the House is free from any undutiful Speech from the beginning of the Parliament to that day and ordered the House to be turned into a Committee to consider what was to be done for the Safety of the Kingdom and that no Man go out of the House upon pain of being committed to the Tower But before the Speaker left the Chair he desired leave to go forth which the House granted Then Sir Edward Coke spake freely We have dealt with that Duty and Moderation that never was the like Rebus sic stantibus after such a Violation upon the Liberties of the Subjects let us take this to Heart In 30 Edw. 3. were they then in any doubt to name Men that mislead the King They accused John of Gaunt the King's Son the Lords Latimer and Nevilâ—or â—or misadvising the King and they went to the Tower for it now when there is such a downfal of the State shall we hold our Tongues How shall we answer our Duty to God and Men 7 Hen. 4. Parl. Rot. 31 32. 11 Hen. 4. Numb 13. there the Council are complained of and removed from the King they mewed up the King and disswaded him from the common Good and why are we turned from that way we were in Why may not we name those that are the Cause of all our Evils In the 4 H. 3. 21 E. 3. 13 R. 2. the Parliament moderated the King's Prerogative and nothing grows to Abuse but this House hath Power to treat thereof What shall we do Let us palliate no longer if we do God will not prosper us I think the Duke of Bucks is the Cause of all our Miseries and till the King be informed thereof we shall neither go out with
Honour nor sit with Honour here That Man is the Grievance of Grievances let us set down the Causes of all our Disasters and all will reflect on him As for going to the Lords that is not via Regia our Liberties are now impeached we are concerned it is not via Regia the Lords are not participant with our Liberties Mr. Selden advised That a Declaration be drawn under four Heads First To express the House's dutiful Carriage to the King Secondly To tender the Liberties violated Thirdly To present what the House was to have dealt in Fourthly That that great Person viz. the Duke fearing to be questioned did interpose this Distraction All this time said he we have cast a Mantle on what was done last Parliament But now being driven again to look on that Man let us proceed with that which was then well begun and let the Charge be renewed that was last Parliament against him to which he made an Answer but the Particulars were sufficient that we may demand Judgment upon that Answer only In Conclusion the House agreed upon several Heads concerning Innovations in Religion the Safety of the King and Kingdom Misgovernment Misfortune of our late Designs with the Causes of them and when the Question was putting that it should be instanced that the Duke was the principal and chief Cause of all those Evils the Speaker came in and said that the King commands for the present that the House adjourn till to Morrow and that all Committees cease which was done accordingly And upon the 7th of June the King in Parliament passed the Petition of Right whereupon there was an universal Joy all over the City and the Commons returned to their own House with unspeakable Joy and resolved so to proceed as might express their Thankfulness and order the grand Committees for Religion Trade Grievances and Courts of Justice to sit no longer but that the House proceed only in Consideration of Grievances of most moment which was their Remonstrance to the King of the weak distracted and dangerous State of the Kingdom which was done in the most pathetick and humble manner which could be expressed and presented to the King in the Banqueting-House upon the 17th of June It 's very long and consisted of these six Branches 1. The Danger of the Innovation and Alteration of Religion This occasioned by First The great Esteem and Favour many of the Professors of the Romish Religion receive at Court Secondly Their publick Resort to Mass at Denmark-House contrary to his Majesty's Answer to the Parliament's Petition at Oxford Thirdly Letters to stay Proceedings against them Lastly The daily Growth of the Arminian Faction favoured and protected by Neal Bishop of Winchester and Laud Bishop of Bath and Wells whilst the Orthodox Party are silenced or discountenanced 2. Dangers of Innovation and Alteration in Government occasioned by Billeting Soldiers by Commission of procuring 1000 German Horse and Riders for the Defence of the Kingdom by a standing Commission granted to the Duke to be General at Land in time of Peace 3. Disasters of our Designs as the Expedition to the Isle of Rhee and that lately to Rochel wherein the English have purchased their Dishonour with the waste of a Million of Treasure 4. The Want of Ammunition occasioned by the selling 36 lasts of Gun-powder at low Rates 5. The Decay of Trade by the Loss of 300 Ships taken by the Dunkirkers and other Pirates within the three last Years 6. The not guarding the narrow Seas whereby his Majesty has almost lost the Regality Here note That none of these except Billeting of Soldiers which was yet continued were contained in the Petition of Right Of all which Evil and Dangers the principal Cause is the Duke of Buckingham his excessive Power and Abuse of that Power and therefore humbly submit it to his Majesty's Wisdom whether it can be safe for himself and Kingdom that so great Power should be trusted in the hands of any one Subject whatsoever It 's observable how cross the King set himself against the Commons in this Remonstrance for in the last Parliament when the Commons impeached the Duke and the Earl of Bristol exhibited Articles against him the King ordered the Attorney-General to exhibit an Information against the Duke in the Star-Chamber for the great Misdemeanours and Offences complained of against him by the Commons and Earl thereby to have stopt their Proceeding against the Duke in Parliament as he would have taken the Earl's Cause out of Parliament and proceeded against him by Indictment But the King hearing of this Remonstrance of the Commons against the Duke the Day before the Commons presented it viz. upon the 16th of June caused the Attorney-General to take the said Information and all the Proceedings to be taken off the File for that his Majesty was fully satisfied of the Duke's Innocency in all those things mentioned in the Information as well by his own certain Knowledg as by the Proofs taken in the Cause This was the first Fruit the Parliament and Nation reaped by the Petition of Right Now let 's see the next and whether the Commons deserved such a Censure as the King made upon them at the Prorogation of the Parliament After the Commons had presented a Remonstrance of their other Grievances to the King they then took into Consideration the preparing a Bill for granting his Majesty a Subsidy of Tunnage and Poundage as might uphold the King's Profit and Revenue in as ample a manner as their just Care and Respect of Trade would permit But this being a Work of Time and would require much Time and Conference with Merchants and others and being often interrupted by Messages from the King and the Shortness of Time limited by the King for concluding this Sessions and fearing the King might be misinformed of this Particular they were forced by the Duty which they owed to his Majesty to declare That there ought not any Imposition to be laid upon Goods of Merchants exported or imported without Common Consent by Act of Parliament For Manifestation whereof they desired his Majesty to understand That tho the Kings of this Realm had often Subsidies granted them upon divers Occasions especially for guarding the Seas and Safeguard of Merchants yet the Subjects have been ever careful to use such Cautions and Limitations in these Grants that they did proceed not from Duty but the free Gift of the Subjects and that heretofore they used to limit a time for such Grants and for the most part but short as for a Year or two and at other times it has been granted upon occasion of War with Proviso that if the War ended in the mean time then the Grant should cease and of course it has been sequestred into the hand of some Subject to be employed for Guarding of the Seas very few of the King's Predecessors had it for Life until the Reign of Hen. VII who was so far from conceiving he had any Right
thereunto that altho he granted Commissions for collecting certain Duties and Customs due by Law yet made none for receiving the Subsidies of Tunnage and Poundage till it was granted in Parliament Since his time all Kings and Queens have had such Grants for Life by the free Love and Good-will of the Subjects but whensoever the People have been grieved by laying on any other Imposition or Charges upon their Goods and Merchandise without Authority of Law which has been very seldom yet upon Complaint in Parliament they have been relieved saving in the time of your Royal Father who having through ill Counsel raised the Rates and Charges upon Merchandise to that height at which they now are yet he was pleased so far to yield to the Complaint of his People as to offer That if the Value of such Impositions as he had set might be made good unto him he would bind himself and his Heirs by Act of Parliament never to lay any more which Offer the Commons did not yield to Nevertheless your Loyal Commons in this Parliament out of special Zeal to your Majesty's Service and especial Regard of your pressing Occasions have taken into their Consideration so to frame a Grant of Subsidy of Tunnage and Poundage to your Majesty that both you might have been better enabled for the Defence of your Realm and your Subjects by being more secure from all undue Charges be more encouraged chearfully to proceed in Trade by Encrease whereof your Majesty's Profit and likewise the Strength of the Kingdom would be much augmented But being now not able to accomplish this their Desire there is no Course left to them without manifest Breach of their Duty to his Majesty and Country save only to make this Declaration That the receiving Tunnage and Poundage and other Impositions not granted by Parliament is a Breach of the Fundamental Liberties of this Kingdom and contrary to your Majesty's Royal Answer to the Petition of Right The King who had so unwillingly heard the Commons Remonstrance against the Duke before the Bill of Subsidies was passed both Houses now it was past both Houses was resolved to hear no more of this and therefore when this Remonstrance concerning the Tunnage and Poundage was engrossed and reading in the House the King sent for the Speaker and the House to the House of Lords where the King came so unexpectedly that the Lords had not put on their Robes nor had the Commons given the Speaker any Order or Direction to deliver the Bill of Subsidies neither was it brought down to the Commons again as is usual When the Commons came to the Lords House the King said It may seem strange that I come so suddenly to end this Session before I give my Assent to the Bills I will tell you the Cause tho I must avow that I owe the Account of my Actions to God alone It is known to every one of you that a while ago the House of Commons gave me a Remonstrance how acceptable every Man may judg and for the Merit of it I will not call that in question for I am sure no wise Man can justify it Did ever any King of England but this King's Father and himself treat a Parliament or either House at this rate before At the opening of the Parliament he calls them Fools if they would not do as he would have them and now he tells the Commons No wise Man can justify their Advice to him I 'm sure a wiser Man than this King or his Father says He that wins Souls is wise and if you convert the Proposition He that provokes them is otherwise Heretofore the Kings of England and I believe all prudent and civiliz'd Princes ever forbore to give any Petitioners harsh Language if their Petitions did not please their usual Answer was The King will consider or be advised upon them One great End of the Meeting of Parliaments is truly to represent to the King the State of the Kingdom which is rarely done by Flatterers and Favourites whose Interest is contrary to that of the Kingdom and if any thing be done in Prejudice of the King and Kingdom that both may be redressed in Parliament In the Commons Remonstrance to the King they set forth the weak and dangerous State of the Kingdom equally dangerous to the King and Kingdom in six several Particulars Does the King either answer or deny any one of the Particulars otherwise than that he is sure no wise Man can justify their Remonstrance But tells no Reason for this nor from whom he had this Assurance Was ever any King or Man so great as to be above his Interest or less for being well advised in all his Actions Nay ought not not only every King but other Men be so much more careful and advised in all their Actions by how much greater they are The King goes on and says Now since I am truly informed that a second Remonstrance is preparing for me to take away the Profit of Tunnage and Poundage one of the chief Maintenances of my Crown by alledging I have given away my Right thereto by my Answer to your Petition So that here the King hath true Information of that but says not how he was truly informed which was not in being for the Remonstrance was not passed the Commons when the King came into the House of Lords so that it may more probably be the King is not truly informed of this Remonstrance I 'm sure he is misinformed if the Remonstrance as it is printed in Rushworth and Franklin be true that the Commons alledged that the King had given away his Right to the Customs by his Answer to the Petition of Right For the Commons denied there that either he or any of his Predecessors before him which was long before the Petition of Right had any Right to them before they were granted by the free Gift of the Subject Tho the King would take the Customs to which he had no Right yet would he not permit the Commons to sit till they could perfect a Bill to give him Duties upon Tunnage and Poundage without which no King of England before him claimed any other Right But since the King says in his Declaration for the Dissolution of the Parliament that his Predecessors time out of mind have had these Customs but says not who told him so it 's fit to see when and what Customs of Tunnage and Poundage were taken and for what end and how they were taken Sir Edward Coke in his fourth Institute of the High Court of Parliament fol. 32. out of Records makes thirteen Observations upon the Subsidy of Tunnage and Poundage 1. Of Poundage only at 6 s. in the Pound for two Years upon Condition c. And this was 47 Edw. 3. 2. 6 d. for Poundage 2 s. for Tunnage of Wine hac vice This was 6 Ric. 2. 3. 6 d. of every Pound of Merchandise 2 s. of every Tun of Wine upon Condition
of Right the King as Norton the Printer said commanded the printing of the Petition with other Additions besides the King's Answer and that he had printed 1500 Copies with the King's Answer without the other Additions but these were suppressed by Warrant and the Attorney General commanded no more should be printed and those which were should not be divulged These were the Just and Religious Acts of this pious King and can any Man believe the Parliament at their Meeting should without Breach of a publick Trust sit still and not represent these things to the King The Parliament did meet according to their Prorogation the 23d of January 1628. and debated these Practices against Church and State which hapned since the 26th of June before but now see the Artifice of this little Prince rather than hear of any thing in this kind he commands the Speaker Sir John Finch the late Lord Chancellor Finch's own Uncle to put no Question upon Debates of Grievances So that the House could do nothing but sit still or adjourn and this continued till the 2d of March when the Commons met and urged the Speaker to put the Question concerning Grievances who answered I have a Command from the King to adjourn the House till the 10th of March and put no Question and endeavouring to go out of the House he was held by some Members till the House had made this Protestation 1. Whosoever shall bring in Innovation of Religion or by Favour or Countenance seem to extend or introduce Popery or Arminianism or other Opinions disagreeing from the Truth and Orthodox Church shall be reputed a Capital Enemy to this Kingdom or Common-Wealth 2. Whosoever shall counsel or advise the taking or levying the Subsidies of Tunnage and Poundage not granted by Parliament or shall be an Actor or Instrument therein be likewise reputed an Innovator in the Government and a Capital Enemy to the Kingdom and Common-wealth 3. If any Merchant or Person whatsoever shall voluntarily yield or pay the Subsidies of Tunnage and Poundage not being granted by Parliament he shall likewise be reputed a betrayer of the Liberties of England and an Enemy to the same This Act consisted in two Parts the Speaker and the House the Speaker's of three Parts a Command by the King to put no Question to adjourn till the 10th of March and an endeavour to go out of the House In the former Session of this Parliament Secretary Cook the 10th of April from the King desired the House not to make any Recess those Easter Holy-days that the World may now take notice how earnest his Majesty and We were for the publick Affairs in Christendom which would receive Interruption by this Recess To which Sir Robert Phillips answered that the 12th and 18th Jac. the House resolved it was in their Power to adjourn or sit and that this may be put upon them by Princes of less Piety and that a Committee consider of the House's Right Sir Edward Coke said the King makes a Prorogation the House adjourns it self That a Commission of Adjournment the House never read but say the House adjourns it self yet here the Speaker verbally says I am commanded by the King to adjourn till the 10th of March. His second Command was to put no Question So here was a Speaker which might not speak what did he there then He sits there by the King in his Highest and Regal Capacity under the broad Seal to put the Question and now if you 'll take his Word he says he has a Command from the King to put no Question The third Act was his Endeavour to go out of the House which the House conceiving him to be their Servant would not suffer Here you may understand that the King had privately made Peace with France though not proclaimed at Paris till June following and soon after with Spain so that in his Speech this meeting he did not begin with The Times are for Action and the Eyes of all the World are upon us and therefore demands Supplies in the first place but that without loss of Time they would pass the Bill of Tunnage and Poundage but the House seeing the Dangers of the Church and State in not only pardoning but preferring Mountague and Manwaring and seizing Merchants Goods and imprisoning their Persons even in this Recess they resolve to secure their Religion and redress Grievances before they grant the Customs of Tunnage and Poundage in both they could not but take notice of the Orders of the Star-Chamber Privy-Council Judges and Customers And these were the Invasions upon the King's Perogative Royal which for the future he resolved never to suffer yet he shall live to hear more of them But in regard it may seem strange that Customs of Tunnage and Poundage ever since the Reign of Richard the 3d had been granted to the Kings and Queens of this Realm for securing the Soveraignty of the narrow Seas and of the English Merchants yet was not granted to this King The Reason was this the House of Commons in their Grievances in the two first Parliaments of this King and the former Sessions of this complained that the Duke of Buckingham being Lord High Admiral of England neglected to guard the Seas to the Dishonour of the King and endangering the Trade of England and feared if the Duke were not removed the End designed by the Parliament would be diverted to supply the intolerable Pride and Luxury of the Duke but the King rather than endure this dissolved the two former Parliaments and prorogued this when they were upon settling the Duties of Tunnage and Poundage That the Parliament had Reason for this it appears in their Charge against the Duke in the 2d Year of this King and that in ten Years time he had received of King James and this King 284395 l. besides the Forest of Leyfield the Profits of the third of Strangers Goods and the Profits of the Moiety of the Customs of Ireland besides the Tricks he used to get Money as he was Lord High Admiral of England and Ireland Master of the Horse Lord Warden Chancellor and Admiral of the Cinque Ports and the Members thereof Constable of Dover Castle Justice in Eyre of all his Majesty's Forests and Chases on this side of Trent Constable of Windsor Castle and Gentleman of the King's Bed-Chamber To these might have been added the Duke's Venality in selling all Places in Church and State at least preferring such Men in Church as should propagate Arminianism and such Judges as shall do what the King and he bid them Objection But the Duke was now dead in this Session of Parliament and so the Reason ceasing the Duties of Tunnage and Poundage ought to have been granted Answer The King would not suffer the Commons to come at it neither in the last Sessions nor this for the Religion of the Church of England and the Laws and Liberties of the Subject being so shaken in this Recess the Commons
the King the Attorney-General Sir Robert Heath preferred an Information in the Star-Chamber against Sir John Elliot and others of the Members therein named setting forth their Misdemeanours in the late Parliament and all those Proceedings But Mr. Long ' s Charge was different from those of the other Members viz. Not for Misdemeanours in Parliament but that contrary to his Oath being when he was made Sheriff and was by his Oath to keep within his County yet he did come to Parliament and serve as a Member there and in the time of Parliament resided out of his County To this Mr. Long pleaded that the Oath of a Sheriff to reside in his County does not exempt him from obeying the King's Commands out of the County when the King requires it and that by the King's Command in his highest Capacity he being chosen a Member of Parliament was obliged as well by the King's Command as by a Trust reposed in him by his County to serve as a Member of Parliament Yet by a Sentence in the Star-Chamber he was fined 2000 Marks to the King to be imprisoned in the Tower and to make a Submission But the Attorney-General putting the Question to the Judges upon the Proceedings Ore tenus in the Star-Chamber against the Parliament-Men the Judges held it the juster way not to proceed Ore tenus And Justice Whitlock did often and highly complain against this way of sending to the Judges for their Opinions beforehand and said that if Bishop Laud went on this way he would kindle a Flame in the Kingdom Mr. Hollis Selden Stroud and Valentine having been brought to the King's-Bench Bar by several Corpus's and Cause of their Commitment returned one on a Warrant from the Council another on a Warrant from the King for Sedition and Contempts and whether this was a good Return or not was argued The Judges were perplexed about the Habeas Corpus and wrote a humble and stout Letter to the King That by their Oaths they were to bail the Prisoners but thought fit before they did it or publish their Opinions therein to inform his Majesty thereof and humbly to advise him as had been done by his noble Progenitors in like case to send a Direction to his Justices of his Bench to bail the Prisoners But the Lord Keeper Coventry would not acknowledg to Justice Whitlock who was sent to him from the rest of his Brethren about this Business that he had shewed the Judges Letter to the King but dissembled the matter and told him that he and his Brethren must attend the King at Greenwich at a day appointed Accordingly the Judges attended the King who was not pleased with their Determination but commanded them not to deliver any Opinion in this Case without consulting the rest of the Judges who delayed the Business and would hear Arguments in the Case as well as the Judges of the King's-Bench had done and so the Business was put off to the end of the Term Then the Court of King's-Bench being ready to deliver their Opinions the Prisoners were removed to other prisons and a Letter came from the King to the Judges That this was done because of their insolent Carriage at the Bar and so they did not appear The Judges of the King's-Bench were sent to by the Lord-keeper to be in London on Michaelmas-day and the Chief Justice and Justice Whitlock were sent for to the King at Hampton-Court who advised with them about the imprisoned Members and upon the first day of the Term Mr. Mason moved for the Members to have the Resolution of the Court All the Judges declared that they were contented the Prisoners should be bailed but that they must find Sureties for their good Behaviour If this Addition of finding Sureties for the Members good Behaviour were part of the good Offices which the Judges did as Mr. Whitlock says to bring the King to heal the Breaches the Members had little Reason to thank them for their Pains Mr. Selden pray'd that his Sureties for his Bailment might be taken and the Matter of the good Behaviour omitted as a distinct thing So did the rest of the Members whereupon the Court remanded them to the Tower which I suppose is extraordinary the Court having them in their Power and the Tower no Prison of theirs in such Cases In the same Term the King's Attorney Heath exhibited an Information against Sir John Elliot Mr. Hollis Selden and Valentine in the King's-Bench setting forth the Matters in effect as were in the Information in the Star-Chamber to which the Defendants pleaded to the Jurisdiction of the Court because the Offences are said to be committed in Parliament and ought not to be punished in this or any other Court except the Parliament The King's Attorney moved the Court to over-rule the Plea tho he did not demur to it but the Court would not and gave a day to join in Demurrer and to have the Point argued and in Hillary-Term the Judges over-ruled their Plea and the Defendants were ruled to plead further but they would not whereupon Judgment was given against them upon a Nihil dicit That they should be imprisoned and not delivered till they had given Sureties for their good Behaviour and made a Submission and Acknowledgment of their Offences and they were also fined and what their Fines were you may read in the Appendix of the first Part of Rushworth's Collections But herein the Judges were not all of one piece for that venerable and honourable Gentleman Sir John Walter Chief Baron of the Exchequer and who was no placito-man dissented from the rest of the Judges whereupon the King discharged him from his Place I have heard my Father say that when Sir John received the King's Message he returned Answer that he was intrusted by the King in that Office quam diu bene se gesserit and that the Law was free for any Man to prosecute him if he had ill demeaned himself in it but to forsake his Station any other way implied Guilt which he was not conscious to himself of and therefore tho the King sent him his Quietus yet he retained the Perquisites of his Place to his Death A little before the Members Sentence in the King's Bench the King's Attorney exhibited an Information against one Chambers a Merchant for saying Merchants have more Incouragement and are less screwed up in Turkey than in England Chambers confest the Words but he spake them of the under Officers of the Customs who had much wronged him without reflecting upon the Government yet the Court fined him 2000 l. and to make a Submission which he refused as unjust and false The Fine was estreated into the Exchequer where he pleaded Magna Charta and other Statutes against the Fine it not being by legal Judgment of his Peers nor saving his Merchandise but the Barons would not suffer his Plea to be filed and afterwards he brought his Habeas Corpus but the Judges remanded him Thus you
Provision made for him The 6th is That if a Corporation maintain a Lecturer that he be not permitted to preach till he take care of Souls within the Corporation How this can be I don't understand unless the Lectuâ—er have a concurring or distinct Power from the Incumbent The 7th is That none but Noble-men and Men qualified by law may keep Chaplains Yet in your Religious Care you take no care how otherways they may subsist The 8th is That Emanuel and Sydney Colleges in Cambridg which are the Nurseries of Puritanism may be from time to time furnished with Grave and Orthodox Men for their Governors viz. Such as shall do the Arminian Work without any regard to the Statutes of the College All these Considerations must be taken for Acts of the Church of England and a Neglect or Breach of them sufficient for an Information in the High Commission where he is assured he shall shortly judg and therefore his Majesty in the 9th Consideration 〈◊〉 to countenance the High Commission by the Presence of some of the Privy-Council at least so often as any Cause of Moment is to be settled The 10th Consideration is That Course may be taken that the Judges may not send so many Prohibitions Which if they do from any of his Censures in the High Commission he will proceed against them by Excommunication Thus you see this Icarus is not only content to take a Flight out of his Diocess but over the whole Provinces of York and Canterbury in Ecclesiastical Affairs and extends it as he pleases over the Civil These were the Seeds which this Bishop planted while he was Bishop of London you may be sure he 'll reap a good Crop now he 's become Metropolitan of all England During the time of his being Bishop of London he was look'd upon as the Rising Sun which the flattering Students in both Universities worshipped but after he became Arch-Bishop the Learning of both Universities were Brawls about Arminian Tenents in the Schools and Sermons The Arminians treating their Opponents with all taunting and reproaching Terms and if their Opponents retorted they were had up into the High Commission where the Arch-Bishop presided assisted by his Ecclesiastical Judges and Ministers of the Prerogative Court and some of his Majesty's Privy-Council but I do not read of one cited for maintaining Arminian Tenents It 's scarce credible how the Business of this Court the Star-Chamber and Council-Table swelled and what cruel and unheard of Censures were made especially in the Star-Chamber against all sorts of People who did offend either against the King's Prerogative Royal or the Arch-bishop's Injunctions which must be obeyed as Articles of the Church of England The Thunder of them was not restrained within the Bounds of England but terrified almost all Scotland who were bitter Enemies to Arminianism At this time of day the Court-Bishops disclaimed all Jurisdiction from the King in Bastwick's Censure who was to pay 1000 l. Fine to be excommunicated debarr'd of his Practice of Physick his Books to be burnt and his Person imprisoned till he made a Reclamation and all this for maintaining the King's Prerogative against the Papacy See Whitlock's Memoirs The Bounds of England were too narrow to restrain this Man's Ambition and therefore before he had been two Months Arch-bishop viz. the 8th of October 1633. he advised the King 〈◊〉 make a Reformation in the Church of Scotland not by Confeâ—â— in Parliament but by his Prerogative Royal the Beginning 〈◊〉 this Reformation must begin at the King's Chappel Royal wheâ— the English Service the Surplice and the receiving the Sacramentâ— is enjoined and that the Lords of the Privy Council the Lord of the Sessions and the Advocate Clerks Writers to the Privâ— Signet and Members of the College of Justice be commandeâ— to receive the Sacrament once every Year in the said Chappeâ— and the Dean to report to the King who does or who does 〈◊〉 obey and the Arch-bishop had a Warrant from the King to 〈◊〉 Correspondence with the Bishop of Dunblane and to communicate to him his Majesty's farther Pleasure herein And so we leave the Affairs of the Church here for a while and see how Affairs stood in the State since the Dissolution of the last Parliament In the last Parliament among many famous Members Sir Thomas Wentworth and Mr. Noy excelled Sir Thomas for his admired Parts and natural and easy Elocution Noy as a most profound Lawyer both zealous Patriots for the Rights and Liberties of the Subject And upon the 12th of February 1628. when the Debates for granting Tunnage and Poundage to the King was in the House of Commons Mr. Noy argued We cannot safely give unless we be in Possession and the Proceedings in the Exchequer be nullified as also the Information in the Star-Chamber and the Annexion to the Petition of Right for it will not be a Gift but a Confirmation neither will I give without the Removal of these Interruptions and a Declaration in the Bill that the King has no Right but by our free Gift if it will not be accepted as it is fit for us to give we cannot help it if it be the King 's already we do not give it So that these two must be reckoned among those Vipers which the King declared at the Dissolution of the Parliament and must look for their Reward of Punishment The Reward of Punishment which these two Vipers had was that Sir Thomas Wentworth was made Lord President of the North and Mr. Noy Attorney General Sir Thomas strained the Jurisdiction so high that it proved the Ruin of the Court and the Rise of the Fame of Mr. Edward Hâ—de after Chancellour of England for the Speech he made in 1641 against the Abuses committed in it whilst Sir Thomas was President and Noy now he is become Attorney is become the most intimate Confident of the Arch-bishop and as forward in Informations in the Star-Chamber High Commission and Council-Table as Sir Robert Heath was who is made Chief Justice in the Common Pleas to make room for Noy to be Attorney General But while the King was erecting this new Principality over his Subjects which none of his Ancestors or Predecessors before his Father and himself ever pretended to in England it 's fit to look a little abroad and see how the Case stood there The Dutch the next Year after that his Father had given up the Cautionary Towns which Queen Elizabeth kept and delivered up to him by her Death well knowing the Poverty of King James and the ill Terms between the King and his Subjects took the Boldness to fish upon the Coasts of England and Scotland with their Busses and other Vessels guarded by Men of War in Defiance of him and now Grotius no doubt set on work by some of his Country-men perceiving how intent King Charles was in erecting his new Dominion over his Subjects that he became careless of all his Foreign Affairs took the Impudence to
how to erect a High Commission Court in Scotland by the King's Authority without Consent in Parliament for proceeding against such as would not submit to the Common-Prayer Book and Canons enjoined by the King and Bishops of Scotland and upon the 28th of February the Arch-bishop consecrated Dr. Manwaring Bishop of St. Davids a worthy Successor to so Saint-like and pious a Predecessor for this Bishoprick was Laud's first Preferment You have seen his Grace of Canterbury's Temper towards the King's Subjects now see how it was towards the King His Grace being as high as England could admit viz. Metropolitan and first Peer thereof would visit both Universities by his Metropolitan Right and not by Commission from the King and signified so much to both to which both answered That to admit it without a Warrant from the King was a Wrong to the Vniversities his Grace was Chancellour of Oxford and the Earl of Holland of Cambridg The Cause came to a hearing before the King and Council the 21st of June 1634 where the Attorney General Banks was for his Grace against the King Mr. Gardener the Recorder of London â—or Cambridg and Serjeant Thyn for Oxford the Cause was shortly this Both sides agreed in this that both Universities were of the King's Foundation and so might be visited as they had often been by Commission from the King But this would not do with his Grace he would to use his own Words visit by his own Right Serjeant Thyn urged against this the King's Foundation of the University of Oxford and that never any Arch-bishop so visited But the Recorder could not say so of Cambridg which happened upon this Occasion In the Reign of Richard the Wickliff's Doctrine prevailed much in both Universities and Arundel then Arch-bishop of Canterbury as zealous to suppress the Wicklevites as Laud was the Puritans to suppress them did visit Jure Metropolitano but Oxford opposed him forti Manu Upon this Arundel appeals to the King who being a weak Prince and as zealous for the then Church as King Charles was for Laud's declares the Right to be in the Bishop so did Henry the 4th the Current running against Wickliff which was after confirmed in Parliament but Cambridg was not in it Yet never before did any Arch-bishop visit Oxford nor Cambridg since the Year 1404 Jure Metropolitano as his Grace would do and so the Cause went for the Arch-bishop Plum'd thus in his own Feathers all black and white without one borrowed from Caesar whereby the more he assumes to himself the less he leaves the King he now soars higher the Bishops of the Province of Canterbury in their own Names enjoin the Removal of the Communion Table in the Parish-Churches and Universities from the Body of the Church or Chancel to the East of the Chancel and cause Rails to be set about the Table and refuse to administer the Sacrament to such as shall not come up to the Rails and receive it kneeling that the Book of Sports on Sundays be read in Churches and enjoin Adoration I do not find that Adoration was ever enjoined before nor any of the fore-named Injunctions in any Canon of the Church sure I am they were never publickly put in Execution so that whether these were any of the Canons of the Church or not was not understood by one of 10000 and the Lecturers Chaplains and School-masters who had no Maintenance from the Church being principally struck at by these Injunctions make all the sinister and worst Constructions they could invent against them so that though those Injunctions had been founded in the Canons of the Church yet the contrary was believed and so had the same Effect as if they had not been founded in the Church-Canons Here I cannot omit one Passage That several were deprived by the Bishop's Authority for refusing to read the Book of Sports on Sunday Whereas King James the 2d allowed the seven Bishops a legal Trial for refusing to enjoin the Clergy to read his Declaration for Liberty of Conscience and the Bishops were acquitted That the Legality of these Proceedings might be manifest a Proclamation was issued out that it was the Opinion of the Judges that the Act of the 1 Edw. 6. 2. which ordains that Bishops should hold their Ecclesiastical Courts in the King's Name or by Commission from him was repealed by the 1st of Queen Mary though this Act was repealed by the 1 Jac. 25. and so the Act 1 Edw. 6. 2. was revived and so resolved upon a full Debate in Parliament 7 Jacobi The Thunder of those Canons the terrible and unheard of Execution of them in the Star-Chamber against all Opposers by Speech or Writing so terrified the Puritans which would not submit that incredible Numbers of them left the Kingdom to inhabit in foreign Plantations especially in New-England where these Ecclesiastical Canons could not well play upon them But to restrain the further Evasion of them the King by Proclamation the 30th of April 1638 stops all the Ports of England to keep them in it The Reason was no doubt that they might be better instructed in the Doctrine and Discipline of the Church of England here than elsewhere But Ship-Money notwithstanding my Lord Keeper Coventry's Charge to the Judges last Year that in their Circuits they should give Charge how justly the King required Ship-Money for the common Defence and with what Alacrity and Chearfulness they the Subjects are bound in Duty to contribute yet this did not pass-for true Doctrine with all for Mr. Hambden upon Advice with Holborn St. John and Whitlock denied the Payment whereupon several other Gentlemen refused also Hereupon the King was advised by the Lord Chief Justice Finch to require the Opinion of his Judges which he did in a Letter to them and after much Solicitation by the Chief Justice promising Preferment to some and highly threatning others whom he found doubting he got from them in Answer to the King's Letter and Case their Opinion in these Words We are of Opinion that when the Good and Safety of the Kingdom in general is concerned and the whole Kingdom in danger you may by your Writ under the Great Seal of England command all your Subjects of this your Kingdom at their Charge to provide and furnish such number of Ships with Men Victuals and Ammunition and for such time as your Majesty shall think fit for the Defence and Safeguard of the Kingdom from Peril and Danger And that your Majesty may compel the doing thereof in case of Refusal or Refractoriness And we are also of Opinion that in such Case your Majesty is sole Judg both of the Danger and when and how the same is to be prevented and avoided This Opinion was signed by Davenport Denham Hutton Croke Trevor Bramston Finch Vernon Berkly Crawley and Weston See Whitlock ' s Memoirs f. 24. The King having previously extorted the Judges Opinions exparte gave order for the Proceedings against Mr. Hambden in the
Fleet and an Army in readiness to compel the Covenanters to Obedience but not to consent to the calling of a Parliament or General Assembly till the Covenant be given up that now his Crown and Reputation for ever lies at stake that he had rather suffer the first which time would help than the last which is irreparable that the Explanation of the damnable Covenant makes him to have no more Power than a Duke of Venice which he will rather die than submit to Yet without dying he did submit to the Revocation of the Service-Book Canons High-Commission and the Articles of Perth forsakes the Bishops and by a Proclamation Sept. 22 1638 commands the Covenant to be subscribed by the Privy-Council and all his Scotish Subjects but this would not content the Covenanters because it came not from a General Assembly and because the Band of mutual Defence was not in the Proclamation Having gone thus far there was no going back and the King's Army and Navy was not yet ready the King therefore indicts a General Assembly to be held the 21st of November 1638 at Glasgow and a Parliament to meet at Edinburgh the 15th of May following The General Assembly met accordingly but the Marquess and the Assembly were at Variance about the Elections and Votes of the Lay-Elders and the Bishops sitting in the Assembly and the Votes of the King's Assessors in it But what the Marquess would have the Covenanters would not whereupon the Marquess on the 28th dissolves the Assembly upon Penalty of High-Treason The Covenanters and General Assembly protest against this Dissolution and sit notwithstanding yet profess all Duty and Obedience to the King in its due Line and Course which in plain English is They 'll do what they will and if the King will do what they would have him they will be obedient Subjects And in this Session they depose and excommunicate all the Bishops of Scotland To this State within less than two Years has his Grace of Canterbury brought the Church of Scotland and a terrible Cloud hangs over that of England whereby his Grace will have the Glory of becoming a Martyr in it Weston Earl of Portland died in the Year 1634 and Dr. Juxton Bishop of London was made Lord-Treasurer by whose prudent Management it 's said that in less than five Years he had lodged 900000 l. in the Exchequer and now the King had raised an Army of about 20000 Horse and Foot made the Earl of Arundel General Lord Viscount Wentworth Lieutenant-General and Earl of Holland General of the Horse and had fitted up a Navy with 5000 Land-Men commanded by Marquess Hamilton to compel the Scots to their Obedience and marches at the Head of this Army himself It was time for the Scots were up in Arms too had seized the Regalia at Dalkeith and brought them to Edinburgh taken Dumbarton and routed the Scots who took the King's part at Aberdeen which they likewise took This King 's good Nature never more appeared than in his Necessities so that when he came to York by Proclamation he recall'd 31 Monopolies and Patents formerly granted by him he not before understanding how grievous they were to his Subjects The Scots that the English might have no Jealousy of an Invasion had resolved not to come within ten Miles of the Borders with their Army When the King came to Berwick the Earl of Holland made two vain and inconsiderate Incursions into Scotland and upon the Approach of the Scots retreated and these were the only Actions of this War by the English Upon the Retreat of the Earl the English Army was contemned by the Scots who advanced to the Borders and pitched their Tents in sight of the English before any notice was given of their Motion this raised a Murmur all over the English Army where Provisions were not only scant but their Bread and Biscake mouldy nor was there any prospect of a further Supply However the Scots propose a Treaty of Accommodation which the King's Necessities compell'd him to submit to which being made the Terms you may read in Rushworth's and Franklin's Collections the King disbands his Army and withdraws his Navy this was all the Scots cared for for the Treaty being upon equivocal Terms the Scots were resolved to make their own Interpretation and stand by it and to that purpose hold Correspondence with the French King and stile him Au Roy and also with the discontented in England and buy Arms and Ammunition at Bremen and Hamburg To forment these Jealousies and propagate the Popish Interest Cardinal Richlieu employs one Chamboy or Chamberlain in Scotland and Con or Cunaeus his own Chaplain in England whose chief Confidents were the Earl of Arundel General of the King's Army and his Countess Sir Francis Windebank Principal Secretary of State Sir Toby Mathews Endymion Porter English and one Read and Maxwel Scots See this at large in Rushworth's Collections fol. 1318 1319 1320 1321 to 1326. This Year my Lord-Keeper Coventry died and Sir John Finch Chief-Justice of the Common-Pleas was made Lord-keeper of the Great Seal no doubt for promoting the Legality of Ship-money and enlarging the Bounds of the Forests The Cloud rising so thick in the North presaged a Storm which to dissipate the King summons a Parliament to meet the 23d of April 1640. the Arch-bishop and the Earl of Strafford giving out according to the Advice which Sir Robert Cotton gave the Duke of Buckingham that they were the first Movers of it At the opening of this Parliament the King lays before them his Necessities for Money in the first place as he had done in all the three Parliaments before and that Delay was all one with a Denial and communicates to them the Covenanters Letter to the French King imploring his Assistance But the House of Commons having found the Effects of giving Money before Grievances were redrest both in the 18th of his Father's Reign and in the first of his began at Grievances now multiplied by the Additions of Ship-Money breaking the Bounds of the Forests and Monopolies multiplied without end the Arbitrary Power of the Star-Chamber and High-Commission against those who opposed the Proceedings of the Innovations brought into the Church and the Imprisonment and unheard-of Censures of their Members for their Proceedings in the House last Parliament so that instead of enjoying any Benefit by the Petition of Right the Church and State was in a manifold worse State than before they had now found by Experience that no Laws or Judgments in Parliament could bind the King's Prerogative but that he would act quite contrary as in the Cases of Mountague and Manwaring c. and how could the Parliament rely upon his Royal Word which he would upon all occasions give when they found no Assurance in any Law nor so many Declarations of his observing them However the Commons upon the 2d of May resolved to take care of supplying the King upon the 4th when Sir Henry Vane
find he ever repented of any of them But admit the King had this Power and also that the Opening Adjourning and Proroguing Terms and granting Commissions of Oyer and Terminer and times of their Sitting and Continuance for Executing Justice be Prerogatives inseparable to the Imperial Crown of which he is accountable to God only Yet if he shall not open the Terms or grant Commissions of Oyer and Terminer or if he does refuse to have Justice done between himself and Subjects or between his Subjects but instead thereof prorogue or adjourn Terms and withcall his Commissions of Oyer and Terminer and declare to Him only belongs the Power of opening the Terms and of granting Commissions of Oyer and Terminer and that he is only accountable to God for all his Actions would not this be a Failure of Justice and can any Man believe that he would be God's Vicegerent herein for the Good and Benefit of his Subjects The Act of the 25 of Edward the III determines what Treasons are cognisable by the King's Judges but the other Treasons at Common-Law are only determinable in Parliament and one of the chiefest Ends in calling Parliaments is when the Judges themselves or Ministers of State becoming corrupt and too great for the ordinary Courts of Justice they may be punished in Parliament it is therefore greater Injustice and infinitely more dangerous to the King and Subjects to deny the Nation this Right than to deny Justice to particular Subjects The King is Head of the Common-wealth and the Laws and Constitutions of the Nation unite them into one Body which if they cease there is neither King nor Common-wealth and by the 4 Edw. 3. c. 4. Parliaments shall be holden every Year and by 36 Edw. 3. c. 10. Parliaments shall be holden once a Year and oftner if need be that Grievances and Mischiefs be redrest How then does it become the King to glory that the Calling Adjourning Proroguing and Dissolving Parliaments are undoubted Prerogatives inseparably annexed to the Imperial Crown which in plain English is to say It is a Prerogative inseparable to the Imperial Crown to rend himself from his Subjects and to make himself neither King nor the Nation his Subjects But if the King be accountable only to God for his Actions how comes it that he so often appeals to the People by these Declarations against their Representatives or rather against the People and their Representatives to his own Minions and Flatterers which are worse than any other Rebels and Traitors for these appear barefac'd what they are whereas those steal away the Love and Obedience of his Subjects and provoke them either to be Rebels and Traitors or careless to assist him against such as are And this was the Case of Edward the 2d and Richard the 2d and now it comes fast upon this unhappy King for so hereafter he will ever be In September this Year the Dutch fell upon a Fleet of the Spaniards in the Downs so furiously as being 53 in Number made them cut their Cables and run 23 of them on Shoar whereof 3 were burnt 2 perished on the Shoar the Remainder of the other 23 were deserted by the Spaniards and mann'd by the English to save them from the Dutch the other 30 put to Sea of which only 10 escaped Yet the King however he gloried in being stiled Soveraign of the British Seas took no Care to vindicate this against the Dutch to whom he was now become as contemptible as to his Scotish Subjects Now let 's see how things stood in Scotland After the Pacification between the English and Scots yet full of Jealousy on either Part the King sent for 14 of the principal Covenanters to come to him at Berwick which the Scots refused and only sent Montross Lowden and Lowthian these three Lords seemed much mollified by what the King had granted and promised all Obedience to the King The King urged Hamilton to be his Commissioner which he refusing he made Traquair but tied him up to close Instructions and in August he indicts a General Assembly the Bishops protest against it and the Covenanters supplicate the Commissioners and Council that Episcopacy be declared unlawful and the Covenant subscribed by all the Scotish Nation which the Commissioners verbally consented to Here you must understand that the Covenanters make the Kirk a distinct Table or Body from the Civil of which Christ Jesus is the only Head and that the Parliament is obliged to pass all the Acts of a General Assembly so that though by many Acts of Parliament the Bishops Sitting and Voting in Parliament is ordained and confirmed yet the voting Episcopacy to be unlawful hath rescinded all those Acts of Parliament for Sublata Causa tollitur effectus Upon the 30th of October in 1639 the Parliament met but upon the Difference between the Houses and the Earl of Traquair about naming Lords of the Articles the Earl prorogues them to the 14th of November which the Parliament protest against and declare all Proceedings in Parliament to be as valid as if no Prorogation had been The Parliament hereupon appoint a Committee to represent this to the King and in the mean time to expect the King's Answer and make the Earl of Dumfermling and the Lord Lowden their Deputies to do it who coming without Warrant from the Earl of Traquair were commanded back again without Audience Then the King commands the Commissioner Traquair to prorogue the Parliament to the second of June in 1640 and that Traquair should come and give an account of the Matters proposed in Parliament and Traquair having gotten one of the Letters which the Covenanters had sent to the French King for his Protection and Assistance of the Covenanters subscribed by Rothes Montross Lesley Mountgomery Lowden and Forester brings this with him and delivers it to the King for which the Scots would never forgive the Earl but ever after deemed him an Incendiary This yet being unknown to the Covenanters they petition the King to permit them to send some of their Members to vindicate their Proceedings which the King did and they sent the Earl of Dumfermling and Lowden again The King when they came to London claps Lowden close Prisoner in the Tower and expected that this Confederacy between the Scots and French would be a means to procure the Parliament to assist him more powerfully against the Scots but the King having dissolved the Parliament he as suddenly dismist him as before he had committed him which did the King no good This unhappy King would as easily be excited to give harsh language as be put upon sudden Actions and as soon leave them and often proceed quite contrary And now the King taxes the Scots Proceedings to be Traiterous and Rebellious and causes a Paper published by the Scots after the Pacification to be burnt by the Hand of the common Hangman but the Scots insisted their Proceedings to be according to the Covenant which they could not
start from and that therein they were the King 's most Dutiful Subjects Things could not long stay here but upon the 20th of August in 1640 the Scots enter England with an Army of about 22000 Men commanded by General Lesley to deliver a Petition for Reformation of Religion and State and to justify their Proceedings and begin as the King did at the opening of all his Parliaments with the Necessity of their Proceedings The King the same day the Scots entred England posts to York having made the Earl of Northumberland General of his Army the Earl of Strafford Lieutenant-General and my Lord Marshal the Earl of Arundel General of his Forces on the South-side of Trent When the King came to York his first Care was to stop the Scots from passing the River Tine and commanded the Lord Conway and Sir Jacob Astly to oppose them but the Scots having the advantage of the Ground and sixfold more in number than the English force their Passage at Newborn about five Miles from Newcastle to the West and take Newcastle and after Durham and tax the Counties of Northumberland and Durham at 850 l. a day but the Rents of the Papists and the Church of Durham they take over and above The King instead of fighting the Scots is encountred with Complaints from the Inhabitants of Yorkshire Durham and Northumberland of the Miseries of their Condition then with Petitions from many of the Nobility the City of London and other Places for a free Parliament upon this the King assembles a great Council of the Nobility to advise what to do Now things are brought to the Point Richlieu had designed them The King in these two Expeditions had spent all the 900000 l. he before had lodged in his Exchequer and now had two Armies to maintain in the Bowels of his Kingdom when he not only had no means to pay either but also without doubt the Scotish Army were Pensioners to France The Lords advise a Truce which is accepted and all agreed but how to pay the Armies till a Parliament meet was a Question the Scots coming for all the English Mens Gudes demand but 40000 l. per Mensem but like their Country Pedlars fall to 25000 l. which is agreed which with the Charge of the English Army would amount to 60000 l. per Mensem to save the Country from Free-quarter In this Treaty the King named the Earl of Traquair to be assistant to the English Peers but the Scots excepted against him as an Incendiary and one to be brought to Punishment the King submits and leaves him out But how to provide Money to pay both Armies till the meeting of the Parliament which was to meet the third of November is the Question The King had not Credit it could not be had but from the City of London which was upon ill Terms with the King for Alderman Atkins Sir Nicholas Ranton and Alderman Geere were by Order of the Council in Prisons in London and the Attorney-General had Orders to draw an Information against them in the Star-Chamber for refusing to return the Names of such as were able to lend upon a Loan of 200000 l. demanded by the King The Lords therefore of the Great Council write to the City of London signifying the King 's gracious Resolution of calling a Parliament wherein he promised all Grievances to be redrest the Miseries of the Country if the Armies were not paid and not less than 200000 l. could prevent them and the Lords would give their Bonds for the City's Security whereupon the City lent the Money and then the Treaty was adjourned from Rippon to London But that we may better see how things stood at the opening of the Parliament let us look back a little After the King had dissolved the Parliament May the 5th he left the Convocation sitting who frame an Oath wherein they swear never to consent to alter the Government of the Church by Arch-bishops Bishops Deans and Arch-deacons c. as it stands now established and as by right it ought to stand which was interpreted to be Jure Divino They also made sixteen Canons and Goodman Bishop of Glocester for refusing to subscribe the Oath and Canons was suspended Being encouraged by Mountague Bishop of Norwich and Laud ' s Creature who Goodman said had in his Person visited and held Correspondence with the Pope's Nuncio and received his Letters in behalf of his Son who was then travelling to Rome and by his Letters had extraordinary Entertainment there Nor did the Convocation stay here but granted the King a Benevolence of six Subsidies to be paid in six Years the Refusers to be suspended and excommunicated To such an Extremity did the Clergy push things in this techy and disorderly time But any Man may easily guess the Spring which set all these Wheels in motion And it is observable that the Clergy who now taxed their fellow Subjects without Consent of the Commons shall ever hereafter be taxed by the Commons without the Consent of the Clergy CHAP. III. A Continuation of this Reign to the Death of the King UPon the third of November the Parliament met and the Nation which for above fifteen Years had been ridden by a more than French Government now look upon the Parliament I mean the Houses to become their Redeemers and by how much more Honour the Nation gives them so much less they leave to the King And here again you may see the unhappy Fate of Princes who treat their Subjects as Enemies and Favourites as their only Friends and Confidents For the first that forsook the King and run beyond Sea was Canterbury's old Friend Secretary Windebank next after him flies Finch and after the Earl of Arundel and scarce one of his old Favourites I mean before the Scots Troubles stood by him except my Lord Cottington Secretary Cooke was either really or politickly sick Juxton Bishop of London indifferent and in all the Wars lived in the Parliament Quarters but all the rest sided with the Parliament against him Only Laud and Strafford are laid in Prison and after put to Death Nor were the Factions less pliable to entertain these Minions and Favourites than they were forward to join with them I 'll give you one Instance herein In this Parliament all those who would not join them were called Delinquents and upon a Debate in the House of Commons concerning an Order in the Star-Chamber signed by my Lord Privy-Seal Secretary Cooke and others it was moved to send for Secretary Cooke as a Delinquent Another Member my nearest Relation from whom I had this moved That since Sir John Cooke was aged and infirm and above a hundred Miles off and my Lord Privy-Seal in Town therefore that the House should proceed against my Lord To whom Mr. Pym reply'd That whatever my Lord 's ante Acta Vitae were yet since he now went right that all ought to be forgotten Nay so zealous were these new-converted Minions and Favourites
Protestation wherein they Promise Vow and Protest in the Presence of God to maintain the true Protestant Religion expressed in the Doctrine of the Church of England and according to their Duty and Allegiance to maintain and defend his Majesty's Royal Person and Estate the Power and Privilege of Parliament and Liberties of the Subjects and to preserve the Union and Peace between the Kingdoms of England Scotland and Ireland but herein was the Difference between the Scots and English the Scots would improve their Covenant and establish it in England but the English scarce ever after care for their Protestation However the Commons prevail with the Lords to take it and then impose it upon the Nation upon the Penalty of being deemed Malignants and Disaffected The King little pleased with what he had done and less with what the Houses had done without him follows the Scots into Scotland and there cajoles the Covenanters with all Courtship imaginable makes Lesley the Scots General Earl of Leven and confers other Honours upon the Covenanters calls a Parliament and consents to the Extirpation of the Hierarchy and establishes Presbytery as fully as the Kirk of Scotland could desire The Scots at present promise all Duty and Obedience to him but how well the King found it in a short time will appear Whilst the King was thus busied in Scotland a horrible and hellish Massacre was perpetrated in Ireland by the Irish upon the English wherein it 's computed above 200000 Protestants Men Women and Children were butcher'd after which followed an universal Rebellion excepting in Dublin Londonderry and Inniskillen which was headed by the Pope's Nuncio a most proper Head for such a Body Yet so intent were the Factions in England and Scotland in establishing their Designs that little care was had of the miserable Relicks of the Protestants in Ireland It appears evident to me that Richlieu's Scarlet was deep dy'd in the Blood of the poor English in this Massacre for these Reasons 1. That the Scots who at this time were Pensioners to France were not medled with in their Lives and Fortunes as you may see in Sir Richard Baker f. 315. a b. 2. The King being in Scotland when he heard of the Massacre of the English and Rebellion of the Irish he moved the Parliament of Scotland then sitting for a speedy Relief to the English which they refus'd And it 's strangely observable That tho the Massacre and Rebellion in Ireland brake out the 23d of October yet the King did not proclaim them Rebels till the first of January and then by Proclamation gave a strict Command that no more than forty of them should be printed and that none of them should be published till his Majesty's Pleasure was further signified Upon the King's going into Scotland the Parliament prorogued themselves to a certain Day But the Commons appointed a Committee to prepare Business against their next Meeting yet send Spies to observe all the King's Actions and after the King 's Return to London which was upon the 25th of November 1641 the House of Commons upon the 5th of December make a Remonstrance of all the King's Miscarriages abroad and of the Grievances and Illegalities of his Ministers at home from the beginning of his Reign and that the King might be sure to see it as well as hear of it they print and publish it The King not being used to such Language was stung to the quick by the Commons Declaration and to retaliate it in Act upon the third of January enters the House of Commons and demands five of their Members to be tried for High Treason for holding Correspondence with the Scots Than which he could not have done a more imprudent Act for by it he unravelled all that he had done in Scotland by involving the Scots in the same Crime But the Members had their Agents in the King 's most secret Councils and had notice of the King 's coming before and so the five Members were withdrawn This Act of the King did not only set the House in a Flame and put the City into Tumults but brought Petitions from Buckingham-shire where Mr. Hambden one of the Five Members was Knight that the Privileges of Parliament might be secured and Delinquents brought to condign Punishment All this while poor Ireland lay bleeding The King as unstable in his Resolutions as inconsiderate in his Actions retracts all he had done and promises not to do so again But to no purpose for the Members resolve not to trust his Royal Word Prerogative and absolute Will and Pleasure and therefore will tear the Power of the Militia from him Rather than suffer this tho upon the Pretence of Tumults the King resolves to leave London But before the King left London my Lord Mayor Sir Richard Gurney Sir George Whitmore Sir Henry Garoway and other principal Citizens waited upon the King and engaged if he would stay they would guard him with 10000 Men if occasion were and told him If he went he would leave the City open for the Members to do as they pleased and that they were sure to be first undone the King told them he was resolved Then Sir Henry Garoway said Sir I shall never see you again However his Eldest Son Mr. William Garoway a worthy Gentleman who yet lives went with the King and followed him in all his Wars The worthy Citizens proved true Prophets for soon after the King left London the Members imprisoned my Lord Mayor Sir Henry Garoway Sir George Whitmore and all others whom they suspected would be faithful to the King and then in London began to assume the Power of the Militia After the King left London he went to York and from thence went towards Hull but is shut out of the Town by Sir John Hotham whom the King proclaims Traitor and now before it came to Sword and Pistol Men began a War with their Pens And herein it is observable that the Writers for the King chiefly maintained his Cause out of Sir Coke's Pleas of the Crown which by Order of the King's Council was upon Sir Edward's Death-Bed seized as dangerous and seditious and I do not find any who wrote for the Parliament ever used any one Topick out of it to justify their Cause tho it and Sir Edward's other Books of the Comment upon Magna Charta and Jurisdiction of Courts were printed by Order of the House of Commons and by them petitioned that the King would deliver the Originals to Sir Robert Coke Sir Edward's Heir Whilst things were in this Hurly-burly in England Portugal and Catalonia revolt from the Spaniard which as it was a mighty Blow to Spain so it much conduced to the Advancing the Designs of Cardinal Richlieu in France In England things could not hold long at this Stay but upon the 22d of August the King comes to Nottingham and hastily sets up his Standard there and invites all his loving Subjects to come to his Assistance against the Rebels
should call a Parliament in Ireland Nor does Mr. May give any Reason why they should be so troubled Besides Mr. May says The King at that time had broken up the Parliament in Scotland which the Scots complained of the Business of State depending as a great Breach of their Liberties and against the Laws of that Kingdom So here again Mr. May makes the Scots Parties and Judges in their own Cause and is not ingenuous in thus charging the King at random and not shewing what Business of State was then depending It 's fit therefore to shew what Business of State was then depending before Mr. May's rational Men should be so troubled at the King 's breaking up the Parliament The Scots having as before said violated all the Articles of Pacification on their part and persecuted the Loyal Scots expresly contrary to the Pacification as Incendiaries and Traitors levied Taxes provided Ammunition of War and kept an Army on foot The Parliament over and above these formed these Demands to be made to the King 1. That Coin be not medled with but by Advice in Parliament 2. That no Stranger be to command or inhabit in any Castles of the King 's but by their Advice 3. That no Honour be granted to any Stranger but such as have a competency of Land-Rent in Scotland 4. No Commissioner or Lieutenancy but for a limited time And next they protest against the Precedency of the Lord Treasurer and Lord Privy Seal as not warranted by any positive Law See Baker 408. These were the Businesses of State which Mr. May speaks of which added to what the Scots usurped before I would know what Regality would be left for the King and a Reason why Mr. May's rational Men should be so troubled for the King 's dissolving the Parliament Mr. May drives on and says Upon which they sent some Lords into England to intreat the King for a Redress of such Injuries as they had received since the Pacification which were that the Parliament was broken up before any Business done If they made it their Business to divest the King as they did of his Rightful Regalities the King had reason therefore to break them up That Edinburgh Castle was garison'd with far more Soldiers than was needful So here the Scots are Parties and Judges in their own Cause and you need not doubt but that so many Soldiers as shall be able to defend the Castle shall be judged by the Scots to be more than is needful That Dunbritton Castle was garison'd by English Soldiers And why might not the King do it for the English as well as Scots were his Subjects But I dare say if these had been the honest rational English-men May speaks of neither he nor the Scots would ever have complain'd of it That the Scots which traded to England and Ireland sure they mean Pedlars prohibited by Law were enforced to take new Oaths contrary to their Covenant and altogether contrary to the Articles of Pacification Whereas their Covenant is a new Oath contrary to their Allegiance And if there were any such new Oaths why do neither the Scots nor Mr. May name them or if any such were imposed that was so far from being altogether contrary to the Articles of Pacification that I say they were not contrary to any one Article of the Pacification unless the Scots or Mr. May could make new Articles of Pacification and other than those before mentioned The King Mr. May says imprisoned those Lords sending one of them the Earl of Lowden to the Tower and commanded a Charge of High Treason to be drawn against him concerning a Letter which the Scotish Covenanters had written to the King of France French King had been as well for his Assistance and Lowden had subscribed it But the Accusation was frivolous easily answered and came to nothing because these Letters were not sent at all and besides it was before the Pacification upon which an Oblivion of all things were agreed So here are two impertinent and frivolous Answers to excuse a most treasonable and rebellious Conspiracy to bring in a foreign Power into Scotland for it was subscribed by Rothes Montross Lesley Marre Montgomery Lowden and Forrester under the Title of Au Roy or our King to Lewis 13. The first is That those Letters were not sent at all because they were intercepted by the Earl of Traquair the King's Commissioner in Scotland If Mr. May had not been a Christian yet the very Heathen by the Light of Humane Nature could have informed him that Scelus intra se tacitum qui cogitat ullum Facti Crimen habet And if Conspiracies of Rebellion and Treason against Princes shall be esteemed frivolous unless they evade into Actions Princes and States too would be in a very unsecure state and all Counsel and Endeavours to prevent them would be vain and frivolous and I say here was a double Overt-Act in this Conspiracy one the Conspirators Meeting the other the Subscribing the Paper The other Answer That the Pacification was after the Subscription and so there was an Oblivion upon it But the Pacification was reciprocal between the King and Scots and if the Scots first broke the Pacification as they did let them take all that followed and therefore the King had no Reason to perform his Part nor the Scots to complain if the King had hanged and quartered Lowden The War Mr. May says p. 16. went on the Earl of Strafford commanding in Chief the Earl of Northumberland not being in Health who was appointed General But if Mr. May had been ingenuous and impartial he should have told on which Side the War began which he does not but only says the Scots had not been backward for having been debarred of their Trade and lost their Ships by Seizure they entred England with an Army expressing their Intentions in writing to the English and bringing with them a Petition to the King Admit all this to be true the Scots should first have represented this to the King and what was their Loss by being debarred of their Trade and the Value of their Ships so seized and upon Denial to have granted Letters of Reprizal till they had recovered Satisfaction but of this Mr. May says not one Word nor do I find or believe the Scots ever did demand Satisfaction before they entred England in open Hostility and in Defiance of the King and English Nation and for the Manner of bringing their Petition to the King it was without Precedent or such as never was done by any other People for they entred England and maintained their Army by Plunder and Rapine upon the English and when Lesley came to Newborn upon Tine he craves leave of my Lord Conway ordered by the King to guard the Pass there to pass with his Petition to the King which my Lord Conway granted with a considerable Number but not with his Army Hereupon Lesley who had the Night before planted nine Pieces of Cannon on
Wing of Horse of the Parliament's which Prince Rupert pursued too far tho with great Slaughter but the King 's left Wing of Horse was broken by Sir William Balfour Sir Philip Stapleton and the Lord Fielding However the Victory was uncertain the Success was not so for the King took Banbury Town and Castle and Oxford and Prince Rupert took my Lord Say's House at Brought and made Excursions near London whereupon the Parliament recalled Essex to defend themselves And it was time for the King was marching towards London having taken Reading and Henley and at Brentford both Armies fought Essex being assisted by the Trained Bands and Apprentices of London and the King was forced to retreat and if Essex had followed in all Appearance the King would have lost his Army not having Bullet enough to have maintained one quarter of an Hour's Fight and towards the latter end of the Year Prince Rupert storms Cirencester and puts many of my Lord Stamford's Regiment to the Sword and took 1100 Prisoners which were used with great Barbarity and Colonel Nathaniel Fines in the West was routed by Prince Rupert and in the North Sir John Hotham was beaten by the Forces commanded by the Earl of Cumberland Sir Fran. Worsley Sir Marm. Langdale and Sir Thomas Glenham This Year there was a Treaty of Peace at Oxford the Parliament's Propositions were That the King should disband his Army return to the Parliament leave Delinquents to Trial and Papists to be disbanded That a Bill be brought in for abolishing Episcopacy c. and such other Bills as should be presented for Reformation Recusants to abjure Papacy to remove malignant Counsellors to settle the Militia as the Parliament desired to prefer to Offices such as the Parliament should name and to take in all that were put out of Commissions of the Peace A Bill to vindicate the Lord Kimbolton and five Members to enter into Alliances for the Palatinate and to grant a general Pardon excepting to the Earl of New-Castle Digby and others To restore Parliament-Members to their Offices and to restore their Losses The King proposed That his Revenue Magazines Ships and Forts be restored That what had been done contrary to Law and the King 's Right may be recalled That all illegal Power claimed or acted by Order of Parliament be disclaimed And as the King will consent to the Execution of all Laws concerning Popery and Reformation so he desires a Bill for preserving the Common-Prayer against Sectaries that all Persons excepted against by this Treaty may be tried per Pares with a Cessation of Arms and a free Trade This Treaty began March 4. 1642 and broke off April 15. following viz. 1643. But this is observable in this fickle King that four Days before the Treaty broke off the King said he was fully satisfied and promised to give the Parliament-Commissioners his Answer in Writing according to their Desires but because it was past Midnight he would have it drawn up in Writing and give it them in the Morning but instead thereof the King gave them a Paper quite contrary to what was concluded the Night before Whitlock's Mem. fol. 65. a. The Treaty of Peace thus broke off both sides proceed in War The Queen this Year about the beginning of May landed at Scarborough in Yorkshire from Holland having avoided a Squadron of Men of War designed by the Parliament to intercept her and brought abundance of Arms and about 3000 Soldiers and was proclaimed Traitor by the Parliament and after joined with the King and his Army at Edg-Hill in Warwickshire And if the Parliament prospered so ill last Year they succeeded worse this for the Earl of Northampton enters Litchfield and drives the Parliament's Forces into the Close and after that defeats Sir John Gell and Sir W. Brereton but the Earl was slain at the Head of his Forces and the Earl of New-Castle in the North overthrew the Parliament's Forces commanded by Sir Thomas Fairfax at Bradforth and Sir William Waller is defeated in the West Prince Rupert takes Bristol and Prince Maurice Exeter Biddiford Barnstable Appleford and Dartmouth The great Hambden is routed and mortally wounded at Chalgrave Field by Prince Rupert And now the King had two conquering Armies in the North and West and the Parliament none considerable to oppose either so that if either the King or the Marquess of New-Castle had marched to London in all Appearance either Army would have found little Opposition but instead hereof the King sits down and besieges Glocester and the Marquess of New-Castle comes before Hull This gave the Parliament an Opportunity to recruit Essex's Army and to enter into a Treaty to procure the Scots to bring an Army into England again for to assist the Parliament In this Treaty a double Consideration is remarkable first The Instability of humane Actions which are founded in Passion and Prejudice for there was but one Year between this Treaty and the National Protestation by the Parliament to Maintain the true Protestant Religion expressed in the Doctrine of the Church of England which Passage Mr. Whitlock in his Memoirs fol. 43. has left out and according to their Duty and Allegiance to maintain and defend his Majesty's Royal Person and Estate the Privileges of Parliament and Liberties of the Subjects and to preserve the Union between the Kingdoms of England Scotland and Ireland and this to be taken by all English-men but now the Scots would not stir one Step unless the Parliament of England would join with them in their Covenant which ill agreed with their Protestation which the Parliament submitted to The other was a Discovery of a Spark which soon after broke out into such a Flame as consumed the Covenant Presbytery the Parliament King and Church and State of England for tho during the Prosperity of the King's Affairs this Fire was covered yet when young Sir Henry Vane who was one of the Parliament's Commissioners and one who loved the Presbyterian Government no better than the Episcopal saw that the Parliament would submit to the Scotish Covenant and Discipline he stifly opposed it singly and at last carry'd it that the Nations should join in a Solemn League and the Scots would have Church-Government to be according to the Example of the best Reformed Churches but Sir Henry Vane insisted to have it according to the Word of God only and carried both points Afterwards one of Sir Henry's Fellows expostulated with him why he should put them to so much Trouble about such needless Trifles Sir Henry answer'd He was mistaken and did not see far enough into the matter for a League shewed it was between two Nations and might be broken upon just Reasons but not a Covenant and that Church-Government according to the Word of God by the Difference of Divines and Expositors would be long enough before it were determined for the learnedst held it clearly for Episcopacy so that when all agreed we may take in the Scots Presbytery
See the Life of General Monk p. 23 24. written by his Chaplain Dr. Gumble The Parliament having recruited the Earl of Essex's Army he forced his Passage and relieved Glocester the King's Army retreat to Newbury where it was charged by Essex and worsted and in the Fight the Ornament of the Age the learned and most ingenious Lord Falkland tho weary of his Life and presaging his own Destiny was slain as were the Earls of Sunderland and Carnarven If the King's Army had such bad Success before Glocester my Lord of New-Castle had worse before Hull for lying in a moorish unhealthy place in a sickly season of the Year viz. September and October the whole Army fell into Fluxes and other Distempers so as they were forced to raise the Siege having done nothing considerable in it besides at this time Lyn-Regis in Norfolk a Place near as considerable as Hull was seized by the Gentry of Norfolk and might have been relieved if New-Castle had not been engaged in besieging Hull Tho the English and Scotish Parliament agreed in their Solemn League and Covenant yet so did not Sir John Hotham and his Son with the Preferment of Sir Thomas Fairfax and others in the North so that Sir John Hotham refused to serve under Fairfax Hereupon the Parliament intended to have displaced Hotham which when he heard of both he and his Son treated with the Marquess of New-Castle to deliver Hull to the King and the Parliament suspecting the Design sent Sir Matthew Bromton Sir John's Brother-in-law to seize both Father and Son which Sir John little suspecting till it was too late fled to Beverly where he was seized by his own Soldiers and carried to Hull from whence Sir Matthew sent both Father and Son to London where soon after both lost their Heads When the Parliament sent Commissioners to invite the Scots to come to their Assistance the King sent Letters to disswade them from it urging the manifold Grants he had given to them when he was in Scotland last which compleated all they could ask and their solemn Protestations to be for ever his Majesty's most obedient Subjects See the Act cited by Sir Rich. Baker fol. 514. That it should be detestable Treason in the highest degree for any of the Scots Nation conjunctly or singly to raise Arms or any military Force upon any Cause whatever without the King's Commission But now unprovoked by the King and against his express Command they in open Hostility enter England a second time against him so little Faith or Honour was to be trusted to from these Covenanters for the Scots having made their Market with the King resolve to improve it with the Parliament and besides their Pay or Wages of Iniquity will have the Covenant and Kirk-Government imposed upon the English as well as Scots Nation and tho the King's Letters were signed by 19 Lords the Scots ordered them to be burnt by the common Hangman and in order hereunto General Lesley now Earl of Leven upon the 16th of January enters into England again with an Army of above 20000 Scots The King to add Reputation to his Arms summoned the Members of Parliament which followed him to meet at Oxford upon the 22d of January where they voted the coming of the Scots to be Treason and Rebellion but because they would not come up to the King's Desire in Voting the Members at Westminster to be no Parliament the King in great Displeasure with them and in his Letters to the Queen calls them his mungrel Parliament such was the Kindness the King shewed those Noble Lords and Gentry for sacrificing their Lives and Fortunes for his Service And to oppose the Scots the King makes a Cessation of Arms with the Irish and draws back into England the English which he sent to oppose the Irish but these were every where beaten 1500 of them cast away by Sea and the greatest Body of them commanded by Sir Michael Ernley Major General Gibson Sir Francis Boteler and Colonel Monk who shall unravel all the Parliament and Scots were now weaving were totally routed and dispersed by Sir Thomas Fairfax joining with Sir William Brereton near Nantwich and all these with Colonel Gibs Harmon Sir Ralph Dawns with 14 Captains 26 Ensigns and other inferiour Officers and 1500 common Soldiers taken Prisoners with the loss of their Cannon and Baggage So that as Serjeant Whitlock observes f. 79. a. these Irish never did the King any considerable Service But to sweeten this Prince Rupert at the close of this Year beat Sir John Meldrum a Scot who besieged Newark and his Army surrendred up their Arms Upon which the Parliament-Garisons in Gainsborow Lincoln and Sleford quitted these Places to the King's Forces And here we will end the Year 1643. and take notice how Mr. Serjeant Whitlock f. 64. b. errs in point of Time where he says the Scots passed the Tyne in 1642 under General Lesley to assist the Parliament and f. 67. a. he says the Queen was brought to Bed at Exeter of the Princess Henrietta Maria which for ought appears was before the Queen landed from Holland for she was born the 20th of June 1644. See Sir Baker's Hist f. 434. a. Anno Reg. 20. Dom. 1644. The Wonders which succeeded these two Years in England will better appear if a View be taken of the present Posture of Affairs as they stood in the beginning of this Year England and Scotland are united in one Solemn League and Covenant in January last Lesley or Leven enter'd England with an Army of 18000 Foot and 3500 Horse and Dragoons and soon after the Earl of Calendar enter'd England with an Army of 10000 Scots more these commanded by old and experienced Officers and the English Parliament's Armies were commanded by as brave and resolute Commanders as were to be found in Europe The Fleet wholly at the Parliament's Devotion and so was the City of London So that if you look upon the Superstructure nothing could appear more strong and lasting And all this time you hear little of Oliver Cromwel more than that he was a Captain of Horse and being of a bold and active Spirit secured the Town of Cambridg for the Parliament and was very diligent in obstructing several Levies for the King in Cambridgshire Essex Suffolk and Norfolk For these Services he had a Commission to be a Colonel of Horse and having an insinuating and canting way of preaching and seeming very Godly raised such a Regiment of Horse as was no where to be found the Riders spirited with Zeal to the Cause yet not of the Scots mode and to secure them without Oliver took care to provide them able Horses and to be well arm'd and accoutred so as every one of them beside Sword and Pistol had Pot Back and Breast Musquet-proof He was Nephew to Sir Oliver Cromwel who had a very great Estate but his Father being a younger Brother had not above 300 l. per Annum as was said Their
of Contention and so it is taken in the Accord of the two Kingdoms Whether Lieutenant Gen. Cromwel be such an Incendiary between the two Kingdoms as is meant by this Word cannot be known but by Proofs of his particular Words and Actions tending to the kindling of this Fire of Contention between the two Nations and the raising of Difference between us If it do not appear by Proofs he has done this he is not an Incendiary but if it can be made out by Proofs that he hath done this then he is an Incendiary and to be proceeded against for it by the Parliament upon his being thus accused for those things This I take for a Ground That my Lord General and Lords Commissioners of Scotland being of so great Honour and Authority as you are must not appear in any Business especially of an Accusation but such as you shall see before-hand clearly will be made out and be brought to the Effect intended Otherwise for such Persons as you are to begin a Business of this Weight and not to have it so prepared before-hand as to be certain to carry it but to be put to a doubtful Trial in case it should not succeed as you expect but that you should be foiled in it it would reflect upon your great Honours and Wisdom Next As to the Person who is to be accused as an Incendiary it will be fit in my humble Opinion to consider his present Condition and Parts and Interest wherein Mr. Maynard and my self by our constant Attendance in the House of Commons are the more capable to give an Account to your Lordships and for his Interest in the Army some Honourable Persons here present his Excellency's Officers are best able to inform your Lordships I take Lieutenant General Cromwel to be a Gentleman of Quick and Subtile Parts and one who hath especially of late gained no small Interest in the House of Commons nor is he wanting of Friends in the House of Lords nor of Ability in himself to manage his own Part or Defence to the best Advantage If this be so my Lords it will be more requisite to be well prepared against him before he be brought upon the Stage lest the Issue of the Business be not answerable to your Expectations I have not yet heard any Particulars mentioned by his Excellency nor by my Lord Chancellor or any other nor do I know any in my private Observations which will amount to a clear Proof of such Matters as will satisfy the House of Commons in the Case of Lieut. Gen. Cromwel and according to our Law and the Course of Proceedings in our Parliament that he is an Incendiary and to be punished accordingly However I apprehend it to be doubtful and therefore cannot advise at this time he should be accused for an Incendiary but rather that Direction may be given to collect such particular Passages relating to him by which your Lordships may judg whether they will amount to prove him an Incendiary or not And this being done we may again wait on your Excellence if you please and upon View of those Proofs we shall be better able to advise and your Lordships to judg what will be fit to be done in this Matter Mr. Maynard agreed with Mr. Whitlock in every Particular and only varied that the Word Incendiary is not much conversant in our Law nor often met with in our Books but more a Term of Civil Law and of State and so to be considered in this Case Mr. Hollis and Sir Philip Stapleton and others spake smartly to the Business and mentioned some particular Passages and Words of Cromwel to prove him an Incendiary and that he had not that Interest in the House of Commons as was supposed and would willingly have been upon the Accusation of him but the Scots Commissioners were not so forward to join with them in it So Cromwel escaped But so did not Mr. Hollis and Sir Philip about two Years after upon Cromwel's Accusation of them If it be so strange that Cromwel so bred and having no Correspondence abroad or at home should in two Years time get such an Ascendant over the Parliament's Army in England so commanded and disciplin'd as aforesaid it will appear more admirable by what mean Persons he chiefly atchieved it as by Pride Whaley Hewson Harrison Goff Ven Barkstead Cobbet Okey c. broken Citizens and not before acquainted with any Military Discipline But while this Canker-Worm was breeding in the Bowels of the Parliament and Army the Winds of adverse Fortune blew almost constantly in the Face of the King's Affairs and to tell particularly of all the Battels Sieges and Rencounters which happened in England in these two next Years would swell this Story to a much greater Bulk than I design You may read them at large in Mr. Whitlock's Memoirs and Sir Baker's History of Charles the First And to say nothing of it would be a Gap in this Treatise which would interrupt the Design of it Upon the 29th of March the King's Army commanded by Gen. Forth and Sir Ralph Hopton was totally routed near Winchester by Sir William Waller Sir William Balfour and Sir Arthur Haslerig and 't was observed that two Irish Regiments which served the King in this Fight were the first which broke and run away And soon after Captain Swanley secured Milford-Haven Haverford-West and all Pembrook-shire for the Parliament And upon the 11th of April my Lord Fairfax and his Son Sir Thomas took Selby in Yorkshire by Storm and in it Col. Bellasis Governour with most of the other Officers and 1600 Common Soldiers with all their Guns Arms and Ammunition To qualify these Losses in some measure the King about the latter End of June fights Waller at Cropredy-Bridg and routs him kills 300 of his Men and Weems General of the Ordnance was taken Prisoner with two Lieutenant-Colonels three Captains and several other Officers and 180 Common Soldiers with 14 pieces of Cannon This small Victory bore no Proportion to the irreparable Loss the King sustained in the North for York being besieged by the United Forces of Manchester both the Fairfaxes Father and Son and Leven or Lesley General of the Scots Prince Rupert with all the Powers he could raise marched to the Relief of it after he had relieved Latham-House in Lancashire bravely defended by the Countess of Darby The Parliament Forces hereupon raised their Siege and the Prince fetching a Compass about relieved York and joined with the Marquess of Newcastle so as the Prince's Army was 27000 strong with which he marched to Marston-Moor whither the Parliament's Army was marched before and upon the third of July both Armies fought and the Prince with the Left Wing charged the Parliament's Right Wing and routed and pursued them a great Way so did General Goring Sir Charles Lucas and Major General Porter rout the main Body of the Parliament's Army so that all the three Parliament Generals Fairfax Manchester and
Lesley gave all for lost But the Prince as he did before at Edghill pursuing the Enemy too far gave an Opportunity to Sir Thomas Fairfax to rally his Men and joining with Cromwel's Regiment of Lobsters armed with Pot Back and Brest fell upon the Right Wing of the King's Army and routed them and also the rest of the King's Foot destitute of Horse and obtain'd a compleat Victory In this Fight above 7000 were slain 3000 of the King's part taken Prisoners and 25 Ordnance 47 Colours 10000 Arms two Waggons laden with Carabines and Pistols 130 Barrels of Powder with all the Bag and Baggage After this the Parliament's Generals returned to the Siege of York and summoned it which was delivered up to them by Sir Thomas Glenham and the Marquess of Newcastle went beyond Sea Thus was all the North reduced to the Parliament by the fatal Rashness of the Prince who might have avoided the Fight and joined with the Marquess of Montross and Col. Clavering who were with 6000 Foot within two Days march of him The North thus subdued upon the Matter Essex by the Perswasion of my Lord Roberts marches into the West but a different Fate attended him For the King followed him and joining with Prince Maurice followed Essex into Cornwal where he block'd up all the Avenues so as Essex must either fight or be starv'd but in regard that the King had possest himself of all the Passages Essex could not fight without an apparent Hazard of the Loss of his Army However Sir William Balfour with 2300 Horse brake through the King's Army and got to Salt-Ash and from thence to Plimouth which held for the Parliament Now were the Parliament's Foot in a wretched State the King closely pursuing them and the Countrey People rising upon them Hereupon Essex deserts them and with divers of his Officers by Sea got to Plimouth leaving Skippon to take care of the rest who upon the 2d of September capitulated to deliver up to the King all their Artillery with all the Bag and Baggage no Person under a Corporal to wear any kind of Weapon all Officers above to wear only Sword and Pistol And so Skippon marched to Pool which was in the Parliament's Power The Ill Success of Essex in this Expedition was the Cause of Essex his Fall tho the Parliament at present seemed to be otherwise disposed and of the Rise of Cromwel as we shall observe Whilst these things were doing in the North and West other Actions of less Consequence happened Sir Thomas Middleton having taken Mountgomery-Castle the King's Forces advanced in a much greater Body to retake it whereupon Sir Thomas retreated But being joined with Sir William Brereton Sir John Meldrum a Scot and Sir William Fairfax returned and charged the King's Party and took Prisoner M. G. Broughton Lt. Col. Bludwel M. Williams nine Captains many inferiour Officers and 1500 common Soldiers Of the Parliament's Party Sir William Fairfax was slain with Eleven Wounds Maj. Fitz-Symons and about 40 Souldiers and 60 wounded Monmouth Town and Castle were surprized by Massey with the Loss only of Six Men. Lieut. Gen. Lesley in the North fell upon the Forces commanded by Sir Philip Musgrave kill'd divers upon the Place and took 100 Prisoners My Lord Herbert Son of the Earl of Worcester was beaten by Massey who killed 50 and took 60 Prisoners and Massey fell upon a Party of the King 's near Beachy killed 70 and took 170 Prisoners and Col. Charles Fleetwood took two Troops of the King's Horse near Belvoir Castle From these lesser Actions we now advance to tell of Greater The Parliament's Army every where victorious in the North Lesley had now an Opportunity to return to New-Castle which he summoned to yield which being refused he stormed and took it by Force whereupon Sir John Marlay the Mayor and others fled to the Castle and would have capitulated but were denied and so were forced to surrender at Discretion But how successful soever the Parliament's Forces were in the North after the Fight at Marslon-Moor the King reaped but little after the Parliament's Foot had delivered up their Arms in the West for Essex having joined Manchester and Waller resolved to hinder the King's Return to Oxford and upon the 23d of October rendezvouz'd the Army at Aldermaston-Park and next Night privately passed the Water at a Ford near Padworth and next Morning to Bucklebury-Heath near Newberry where the King then was and about 12 a Clock drew down their whole Army between Thatcham and Shaw and skirmished with the King's Horse Manchester's Troops and the London Train'd-Bands crossed the River Kennet between Newberry and the Hill and forced the King's Party which kept the Pass from thence with some Execution but Sir Bernard Astley Son of Sir Jacob or the Lord Astley coming to their Rescue forced the Parliamentarians back again In the Afternoon 4000 of Essex and Waller's Horse and Dragoons with 500 Foot charged the King's Forces on the West of Newberry and forced them to retreat in some Disorder and some of the King's Field-Pieces were taken Essex followed the Success and charged the King's Life-Guard whom he overpowered and had much more endamaged if the Lord Bernard Stuart had not come to their Assistance and secured their Retreat but the Parliamentarians every way advancing beat the King's Army out of the Field with the Loss of many Colours and two Pieces of Cannon Sir Anthony St. Leger Lieutenant-Colonel Leak Lieutenant-Colonel Topping and Captain Catclyne elder Brother of Sir Nevil Catclyne my worthy Friend were killed and the Earl of Cleveland and some few others taken Prisoners If the King's Affairs succeeded so ill in the West they did worse in the North for Leverpool submitted to the Parliament and Lesley had Tinmouth-Castle a Place which hereafter he shall be better acquainted with tho not in the Quality of a General of an Army but a Prisoner surrender'd upon Articles After this Janus's Temple was shut this Year if you begin it at January And now a Treaty of Peace at Vxbridg is set on foot at the Desire of the King but no Success attended it This Year tho the Princes Rupert and Maurice followed the King in his Wars against the Parliament yet the Elector Palatine Frederick their elder Brother petitioned the Parliament that he might come over and take the Covenant which tho at first they refused yet afterwards they admitted him and allowed him 8000 l. per Annum out of my Lord Petres and other Delinquents Estates and so he continued till after the Treaty at Munster 1648 where he led a Life not becoming a Prince in Adversity The Treaty of Peace at Vxbridg not succeeding the Parliament took the Town of Shrewsbury which as it is one of the most famous of all the Towns of England so it stopt on that part the Entercourse of Wales with the Counties of Salop Chester and Worcester But to throw a little Water into the Wine of the Parliament's
Successes Sir Marmaduke Langdale about the Beginning of March routed a great Body of the Parliamentarians in Yorkshire and defeated the Army commanded by my Lord Fairfax which besieg'd Pomfret-Castle and from thence marched into Leicestershire and defeated a great Body of the Parliament's Forces commanded by Colonel Rossiter Anno Reg. 21. Dom. 1645. We begin this Year with the Self-denying Ordinance tho Mr. Whitlock and Sir Richard Baker differ a little in point of time Sir Richard Baker says it was this Year Mr. Whitlock 1644. But the Lords refused to concur with the Commons herein so as this Ordinance began with a Rupture between the two Houses so you 'll see it shall be the Ruin of the Parliament's as well as the King's Designs Mr. Whitlock made a fine and learned Speech against this Ordinance which you may read at large fol. 114 115. of his Memoirs The pretended Reason for this Ordinance was the Thinness of the House which by Employment in the War would render them much thinner To which Mr. Whitlock answered It might be supplied by filling up the Commons by new Elections He objected against the Ordinance the Examples of the Grecians and Romans who had the greatest Offices both of War and Peace conferred upon their Senators because they having greater Interests than others were more capable to do them the greatest Services and that by passing this Ordinance they would lay aside the General Essex the Earls of Warwick Denbigh and Manchester the Lords Willoughby and Roberts and of their own Members the Lords Grey of Growby and Fairfax Sir William Waller Cromwel Mr. Hollis Sir Philip Stapleton Sir William Brereton and Sir John Meyrick Tho the Commons passed the Self-denying Ordinance yet they dispensed with it in reference to Cromwel Skippon and Ireton and Sir William Waller Hereupon the Earls of Essex Denbigh and Manchester lay down their Commissions Here it 's observable That the Earl of Essex as he was the first which headed an Army against the King and whose Authority was so great that 't was believed if he had not done it the Parliament could not have rais'd an Army is now the first discarded by the Commons without giving any Reason In this new Establishment of the English Army Sir Thomas Fairfax was made General Cromwel Lieutenant-General and Skippon Major-General The Royalists conceived Mountains of Advantages to follow and that not improbably from the Divisions in the Parliament's Army which succeeded quite contrary For upon the 3d of April Fairfax having gathered his Army together at Windsor sent Cromwel with a Brigade of Horse and Dragoons to intercept a Convoy of Horse which Prince Rupert had sent from Worcester to fetch off the King from Oxford with a Train of Artillery to take the Field which Cromwel met at Islip and routed them took divers Prisoners and 200 Horse and from thence Cromwel march'd and took Bletchingdon-House commanded by Colonel Windebank Sir Francis's own Son by Surrender upon the first Summons for which Windebank was sentenced by a Court-Martial and shot to Death But Cromwel had not so good Success at Faringdon which he assaulted and was beaten off with the loss of 200 of his Men. The King understanding that Fairfax had a Design to besiege Oxford sent to Prince Rupert and General Goring to fetch him off which they did about the beginning of May and the King marched towards the Relief of Chester then besieged by the Parliament's Forces and Fairfax lays close Siege to Oxford The King relieved Chester and in his Return takes Leicester by Storm This put Fairfax to his Trumps so that if he continued the Siege of Oxford he would leave all the mid-land parts of England to the Mercy of the King So he raises his Siege and marches to fight the King's Army My Lord Astley was Lieutenant-General of the King's Foot whose Nephew was Sir Isaac Astley my Lord's eldest Brother's eldest Son who married a Cousin-German of mine and after the War was over my Lord Astley being at his Nephew 's in Discourse of the Wars my Lord told him That upon the Approach of the Parliament's Army the King called a Council of War where by the Advice of my Lord Astley it was resolved to march Northwards and destroy the Country Provisions and leave the Parliament's Army at their Election whether they would follow the King or besiege Leicester But next Morning quite contrary to the Order of Council Orders were given to prepare to fight the Parliament's Army when there was little time to draw up the Army so inconstant and irresolute was the King in this as of almost all his other Actions and so forward was the King herein that he marched to meet Fairfax's Army near Naseby in Northamptonshire This was upon Saturday June the 14th And if the Resolution to fight was inconsiderate and rash so was the Fight for Prince Rupert who commanded the right Wing of the King's Horse charged the left Wing of the Parliament's commanded by Ireton and routed them and wounded Ireton in the Thigh and as before at Edg-hill and Marston-Moor he pursued the Enemy so far that he left the rest of the Army exposed to the Assaults of the Enemy so here he followed the Chase almost to Naseby leaving the left Wing of the King's Army commanded by Sir Marmaduke Langdale open to be charged by Cromwel That which compleated the Parliament's Victory and the King 's utter Overthrow in this Fight was the not observing the Orders the Day before of the King's Retreat for Yorkshire being opprest by the Parliament's Forces Sir Marmaduke had Expectation of relieving the King's Party there which being cross'd by the Resolution of this Day 's Fight his Brigade as well as himself grew discontented so as he no ways answered the Gallant Actions which before he had atchieved And Cromwel having forced Sir Marmaduke to retreat joining with Fairfax charged the King's Foot who had beaten the Parliament's and got Possession of their Ordnance and thought themselves certain of the Victory but being in Confusion and out of Order and having no Horse to support them were easily over-born by Fairfax and Cromwel and so Fairfax's Army obtain'd a most absolute Victory over the King 's We hear no more of Prince Rupert in this Fight who 't was believed was the first Mover of it till of his Arrival at Bristol In this Fight the Earl of Lindsey the Lord Astley and Colonel Russel were wounded and 20 Colonels Knights and Officers of Note and 600 common Soldiers were slain on the King's side and 6 Colonels and Lieutenant-Colonels 18 Majors 70 Captains 80 Lieutenants 200 Ensigns and other Officers and 4500 common Soldiers were taken Prisoners 12 Pieces of Cannon 8000 Arms 40 Barrels of Powder 200 Carriages with all their Bag and Baggage with store of rich Pillage 3000 Horse one of the King's Coaches with his Cabinets of Letters and Papers And the King fled towards Wales If the King were unfortunate in the
Success of this Fight he was not less in the Discovery of his secret Counsels with the Queen which were so contrary to those he declared to the Kingdom for in his Letter to the Queen he declared his Intention to make Peace with the Irish and to have 40000 of them over into England to prosecute the War here And in others he complained he could not prevail with his Mungrel Parliament at Oxford to Vote that the Parliament of Westminster were not a Lawful Parliament So little Thanks had these Noble Lords and Gentlemen for their exposing their Lives and Fortunes in Defence of the King in his Adversity What then might they expect if he should prevail by Conquest That he would not make a Peace with the Rebels the Parliament without her Approbation nor go one jot from the Paper she sent him That in the Treaty at Uxbridg he did not positively own the Parliament it being otherwise to be construed tho they were so simple as not to find it out and that it was recorded in the Notes of the King's Council that he did not acknowledg them a Parliament See Whitlock ' s Memoirs fol. 147. a. The Members having got these Papers not only printed and published them but order'd them to be kept upon Record and also made a publick Declaration of them wherein they shew what the Nobility and Gentry which follow'd the King might trust to The King's Army being overthrown the Parliament had two Armies and the King none but that which was commanded by General Goring which at that time besieg'd Taunton and sore distrest it but it being governed by Blake after the famous Admiral for the Rump and Cromwel by Sea it made indeed a wonderful Resistance And now you 'll see the King's Garisons surrender by heaps For two Days after the Fight at Naseby viz. June 14. Fairfax sat down before Leicester where my Lord Loughborough was Governour and made a large Breach towards Newark whereupon the Governour surrendred it After the Surrender of York the Year before the King made that noble Gentleman Sir Thomas Glenham Governour of Carlisle which he defended till the Garison were forced to eat Horse-flesh And the Town being besieged by the English and Scots Sir Thomas to throw a Bone of Dissension between them deliver'd it up to the Scots about a Week after the Surrender of Leicester From Leicester Fairfax marches to the Relief of Taunton whereupon Goring drew off and retreated to Langport where Fairfax routed Goring kill'd 200 of his Men took 1400 Prisoners and pursued the rest to Bridgwater which Fairfax besieg'd and had it surrender'd upon the 23d of July And about that time Pontfract Castle in Yorkshire surrender'd to M. G. Pointz and upon the 25th of July Sir Hugh Cholmly surrender'd Scarborough Castle to Sir Matthew Boynton and upon the 11th of September Fairfax storm'd Bristol and Prince Rupert surrender'd the Castle upon Terms Tho the City of Hereford bravely defended it self against General Lesley and his Scots from the 13th of July to the 1st of September and then forced Lesley to raise the Siege upon pretence of relieving his own Country then over-run by the Marquess of Montross yet it was soon after surprised by Colonel Birch and Colonel Morgan Nor were the King's Forces in the Field more fortunate than those in Garison for the King having got together a Body of about 5000 Men most Welch marched towards the Relief of Chester then besieged by Sir William Brereton and Colonel Jones but in his March he was fought by General Pointz at Routon-Moor within two Miles of Chester where the King was worsted and the Lord Bernard Stewart Brother to the Duke of Richmond kill'd The King's Affairs being thus desperate in England all the Hopes now were of Scotland where Montross had conquer'd it from one End to the other and had no visible Army to oppose him and the King to make Scotland secure commanded my Lord Digby and Sir Marmaduke Langdale to join Montross with their Horse in pursuance whereof they marched to Sherborn in Yorkshire where they surprised 700 of the Parliament's Foot with their Arms and Baggage but staying for Carriages Col. Copley Lilbourn and Alured fell upon them and routed them killing and taking 100 Officers 300 Soldiers and 600 Horse with their Furniture and my Lord Digby's Coach And my Lord Digby marching on with the rest of his Forces was set upon at Carlisle Sands and utterly defeated from whence my Lord and Langdale escaped to the Isle of Man and after into Ireland From Routon-Moor the King got to Newark where Maâ—or-General Gerrard charged the Lord Digby lately defeated at Sherborn with Treason Prince Rupert and Maurice the Lord Hawley and Sir Richard Willis the Governour sided with Gerrard and the Lord Bellasis and many others with Digby and so did the King who displaced Willis and made the Lord Bellasis Governour This caused great Dissension not only in the Garison but in the Officers of the Army which the King brought with him so that the Princes Rupert and Maurice General Gerrard my Lord Hawley and Willis forsook the King and sent to the Parliament for Passes to go beyond Sea In this forlorn state the King left Newark and with 300 Horse got safe to Oxford where the Princes Rupert and Maurice not knowing whither else to go came and were seemingly reconciled to him but upon the Return of the King's Horse Pointz meets and routs them Here the King again sent to the Parliament for a Treaty of Peace which was rejected upon this Occasion Letters were taken in my Lord Digby's Coach after his Rout at Sherborn and also in the Pockets of the Arch-bishop of Tuam who was slain in an Overthrow of the Irish at Sligo in Ireland wherein the King offered the Irish a Toleration of their Religion themselves to choose a Governour of their own and to be entrusted with several Castles and Forts for their Caution upon Condition that they send 10000 Men into England to assist him against his Enemies And with these they found the Copy of the King's Commission to the Earl of Glamorgan impowering him to treat with the Rebels viz. CHARLES by the Grace of God c. To our Trusty and Well-beloved Cousin Edward Earl of Glamorgan We reposing great and especial Trust and Confidence in your approved Wisdom and Fidelity do by these Presents as firmly as under our Great Seal to all Intents and Purposes authorize and give you Power to treat and conclude with the Confederate Roman Catholicks in our Kingdom of Ireland If upon necessity any thing be condescended to wherein our Lieutenant cannot so well be seen as not fit for us for the present publickly to own therefore We charge you to proceed according to this our Warrant with all possible Secrecy and whatever you shall engage your self upon such valuable Considerations as you in your Judgment shall deem fit we promise in the Word of a King and Christian to
seem to court the King and the Parliament sent Propositions of Peace to the King at Hampton-Court the same they sent to the King at New-Castle when he was in the Power of the Scots which you may read in Whitlock's Memoirs fol. 120. b. and 121. a. But now the Mystery of Iniquity works for Cromwel was as fearful the King should agree with the Parliament as the King was unwilling to agree to them and therefore Cromwel gave Instructions to the Commissioners That if the King would assent to Propositions lower than those of the Parliament that the Army would settle him again in his Throne Hereupon the King returned Answer to the Parliament That he waved now the Propositions sent to him or any Treaty upon them and flies to the Proposals of the Army urges a Treaty upon them and such as he shall make professes he will give Satisfaction to settle the Protestant Religion with Liberty to tender Consciences to secure the Laws Liberty and Property and Privileges of Parliament and of those concerning Scotland he will treat apart with the Scots Commissioners See Whitlock ' s Memoirs fol. 271. b. Upon the reading of the King's Answer a Day was appointed by either House to consider of it and that in the mean time it be communicated to the Scots Commissioners There was a Report at that time and so yet continues tho I cannot find the bottom of it yet I am confident in time it will appear that Cromwel made a private Article with the King That if the King closed with the Propositions of the Army Cromwel should be advanced to a Degree higher than any other as Vicar-General of England as Cromwel was in the Reign of Henry 8. But the King was so Uxorious that he would do nothing without communicating it to the Queen and wrote to her That tho he assented to the Army's Proposals yet if by assenting to them he could procure Peace it would be easier then to take off Cromwel than now he was the Head that govern'd the Army Cromwel who had his Spies upon every Motion of the King intercepts these Letters and resolved never to trust the King again yet doubted that he could not manage his Designs if the King were so near the Parliament and City as Hampton-Court therefore Cromwel sent to the King That he was in no Safety at Hampton-Court by reason of the Hatred which the Adjutators had to him and that he would be in more Safety in the Isle of Wight Hereupon the King upon the 11th of November while the Parliament and Scots Commissioners were debating the King's Answer to their Propositions at Night made his Escape having Post-Horses and a Ship provided for him at Southampton accompanied only with Sir John Berkley Colonel Leg and Mr. Ashburnham and came to the Isle of Wight which would morally have been impossible if Cromwel and his Agents had not put the King upon it But how concealedly soever Cromwel and his Son-in-law Ireton had carried the Business of the King's Escape to the Isle of Wight yet the Adjutators had some Jealousy upon them that they designed to have the King establish'd and possest the Soldiers with much Prejudice against them Fairfax doubting the Event of these Practices dismist the Adjutators to their several Regiments and sent most of their Officers to their several Charges and appointed a General Rendezvouz of the Army at Cork-bush-field between Hertford and Ware upon the 14th which the Adjutators endeavour'd to have prevented The next Day many Soldiers of five whole Regiments mutiny'd against their Officers and wore Marks of Distinction to be known from the rest Cromwel Ireton and some other of the Officers struck at by the Adjutators were very active in suppressing them and seized upon some of the principal Mutineers and one or two of them were shot before their Troops were reduced and most of the Mutineers and the Officers which favoured them were tried at Court-Martials and cashier'd and three of them condemned to die And for this Cromwel had the Thanks of the House but it will not be long before they shall find little Joy of it From the Isle of Wight the King upon October the 18th sent to the Members for a personal Treaty of Peace at London which after much Debate was agreed to upon these four Preliminaries 1. An Act For Raising Settling and Maintaining Forces by Sea and Land within the Kingdoms of England and Ireland and the Dominion of Wales 2. An Act For recalling all Declarations Oaths and Proclamations against the Parliament or those who had adhered to them 3. An Act That those Peers who were made after the Great Seal was carried from the Parliament may be made uncapable of Sitting in the House of Peers 4. That Power may be given to the Houses to adjourn as they shall think fit The King it may be not knowing Cromwel had intercepted his Letters to the Queen and so trusting to Cromwel's Promises and the Scots Commissioners flatly protesting against these Preliminaries as opposite to Religion the Crown and Agreement of the Kingdoms refused to sign any Propositions till a Peace was made which might comprehend all Interests Which had no other Effects than that the Lords and Commons Voted 1. That they will make no further Applications or Addresses to the King 2. That no Addresses or Applications be made to the King by any Person whatsoever without Leave from both Houses 3. That the Person or Persons that shall make Breach of this Order shall incur the Penalty of High Treason 4. That they will receive no more Messages from the King and that no Person do presume to bring any Message from the King to both or either Houses of Parliament or any other Person But these Votes were too hot to hold long These Votes were so pleasing to the Army that it was declar'd by a Council of War the 17th of January That they resolved to endeavour to preserve the Peerage and Rights and the Rights of the Peers of England notwithstanding any Scandals upon them to the contrary Yet within little more than a Year the Rump set up by the Army shall turn them out of doors as dangerous and useless Here see what a Labyrinth Men run into when they forsake the Paths of Justice for as Socrates says Plato Eutiphro If Men in Dissension will not submit to some certain Rule which may determine them their Dissensions will be endless and that the Will of the Gods if it be divided cannot be the Rule to determine Justice for Men in obeying one God may disobey another If therefore the Laws and Constitutions of the Nation may not be the Rule which may determine the Controversies between the King the Members the Scots and the Army then nothing can for else what pleased one would displease the other The King would gladly have had the Law to have determined the Controversies for this would have vested him in his Royal Power and by the 18th of Henry
7. would have justified all his Subjects who fought for him But the Members would not submit to this being to divest themselves of the Power they thought they had in their hands nor the Scots because their Solemn League and Covenant was enacted by no Law in England nor least of all would it please the Army who nourished Designs against the King Members and Scots To such a deplorable state is this poor King and Kingdom fall'n past all humane Relief yet it 's admirable to consider how Divine Justice pursued the Causers of it even in the Series by which they were promoted The King who would not have the Laws and Constitutions of the Nation to be the Rules of his Subjects Obedience but his Prerogative and Absolute Will and Pleasure cannot now by it command one Servant He who before against Law committed so many of his best Subjects close Prisoners whereof several died in Prison for asserting his Subjects Rights without any Benefit of Law is now by his Subjects made close Prisoner against Law and without any Benefit of it He who before dissolved four Parliaments because they in all dutiful Ways would have addressed unto him to be reconciled to his Subjects is now denied under Penalty of High Treason to have any Address made to him by any of his Subjects He who before had so many Forests for his Pleasure yet not contented with what the Law and his Ancestors had left but would break the Bounds of them that his Subjects Inheritance might become a Prey to wild Beasts has not now a Horse Hound or Beast to take Pleasure in But these things will not stay here for it is the unhappy Fate of Princes rarely in their declining state to stay till they fall to the bottom And here we end the Year 1647 and hereafter shall observe the Divine Justice overtaking the other Promoters of the Miseries both in England Scotland and Ireland And if I shall ill perform it yet it may be a Ground-work for another to do it better In this Confusion the Nation began to forget the times under the King's Government now they saw no end of these And tho the Essex-Men who had the Bounds of their Forests broke down and were the first who petition'd the Parliament to redress Grievances and bring Delinquents to condign Punishment yet they are now the first who petition the Commons for a Personal Treaty with the King and then the Surrey-Men but were differently received and some of the Surrey-Men kill'd This was in May 1648. The Scots too offended that they and their Solemn League and Covenant were not taken notice of in the Preliminary Treaty with the King call a Parliament and order the Raising an Army to deliver the King out of Prison The rude Entertainment of the Essex and Surrey-Men was so far from quelling them that they rise in Arms in Essex Kent Suffolk Norfolk Wales and the North and declare for the King and People Sir William Batton too who was Vice-Admiral of the English Fleet goes over to Prince Charles with 17 Men of War and declare for the King having set Rainsborough made Admiral by the Army on Shore This was in May and June and soon after viz. in June the Surrey-Men rise being headed by the Duke of Buckingham and his Brother the Lord Francis with the Earl of Holland But it was decreed that this Prince who for 15 Years had violated the Laws and Constitutions of this Nation and without any Law or just Reason had so often imprisoned his best Subjects for endeavouring to reconcile him to his Subjects should now himself being made a Prisoner against Law find no Relief by Law or Endeavours of his Loyal Subjects For Cromwel sends Horton into Wales against Major-General Laughorn and Colonel Poyer who headed the Welch and had seized Pembrook and Tenby-Castles Fairfax marches into Kent and Rainsborough into the North where the Northern-Men had seized Pontfract-Castle and the Members restore the Earl of Warwick to be Admiral and fit out a Fleet under him to suppress that which joined the Prince of Wales Horton beats the Welch and took Laughorn and Poyer Prisoners and besieges and takes Pembrook and Tenby but whilst he besieged these Hamilton who the Year before was released from being a Prisoner in Pendennis-Castle by the King for holding Correspondence with the Covenanters while he was Commissioner now comes into England to discharge the King from his Imprisonment with a numerous Army of Scots which Sir Marmaduke Langdale Major-General Massey and many English join against these Cromwel after the Surrender of Pembrook and Tenby marches and utterly routs them and takes Hamilton Prisoner Nor were the Fate of the Kentish Essex and Suffolk Men better for Fairfax fights and beats the Kentish Men at Maidstone the Remainder under my Lord Goring whom the King had made Earl of Norwich cross the Thames at Greenwich and join the Essex Men headed by Sir Charles Lucas and march to Colchester where my Lord Capel and many Suffolk Men joined them Fairfax pursues them and after a stubborn Siege of 11 Weeks forces it to surrender being reduced to extream Famine and after caused Sir Charles Lucas and Sir George Lisle to be shot to Death Equal to this was the Success of the Surrey-Men for they were routed by Sir Michael Lewesly and my Lord Francis killed near Kingston But the Duke of Buckingham and the Earl of Holland with those which were escaped fled over Kingston-bridg and were pursued by Colonel Scroop and overtaken at St. Neots where Major-General Dolbier is killed the Earl of Holland taken Prisoner but the Duke of Buckingham escaped But the Northern-Men besieged in Pontfract Castle are not so easily subdued on the contrary a Party of about 30 Horse break through the Besiegers and surprize Rainsborough in his Bed at Doncaster about 12 Miles from Pontfract and kill him because he refused to be carried off a Prisoner but Pure Famine at last forced the Besieged to surrender The revolted Fleet now commanded by the Princes Rupert and Maurice partly cajol'd by the Earl of Warwick their former Admiral and unwilling to forsake their Country Wives and Children in great part return to the Parliament the rest were after pursued by Blake and Popham to Ireland from thence to Portugal from whence they were forced by Blake to Carthagena where Blake run the Princes Ships on shore yet the Princes having then but three Ships left and having no Port in Europe to protect them seek for one in the West-Indies where Prince Maurice is lost in a Hurricane and Prince Rupert after got into France and sold the Remainder of this miserable Fleet being two tatter'd Ships to Mazarine to fit out himself for other Adventures Whilst the Army was thus busied abroad the Members having got possession of the Fleet and the City of London being well affected to them they join with the Scotish Commissioners and rescind the Votes of Non-Addresses to the King
assume to themselves the Supream Power of Ordering the English Affairs confirm the Vote of Non-Addresses to the King and raze the Votes of having a Conference with the King and the Declaration that the King's Concessions were a sufficient Ground for a Peace out of the Journals of the House And vote first that all Power resides in the People Secondly That the Power belongs to the Peoples Representatives in the House of Commons Thirdly That the Votes of the Commons have the Force of a Law without the King Fourthly That to take Arms against the Representatives of the People or the Parliament is High-Treason Fifthly That the King himself took up Arms against the Parliament and therefore is guilty of all the Blood shed in this Civil War and ought by his own Blood to expiate it The Nation was astonished at these Votes for the Person of the King of England was ever esteemed Sacred and therefore tho his Ministers were always accountable in Parliament for using or abusing the Name of the King to gratify their Ambition and wicked Designs against the King or Kingdom yet in no time was any King of England arraigned and judged to die by his own Subjects and tho Edward the Second Richard the Second Henry the Sixth and Edward the Fifth were murdered by wicked Men yet none of these suffered upon pretence of Justice But lame-footed Vengeance shall overtake both Rump and Army and as they both joined by Force to impose these upon the King and Nation so both without Force or any Man kill'd in their Defence shall be cashier'd with all imaginable Ignominy and Reproach These Men whom nothing but the King 's and his Loyal Subjects Blood could satiate against Law shall by Law have their own Blood shed in the most terrible manner the Law can inflict these Men who would have the Crown and Church-Lands for their Avarice shall either die or be hang'd as a Company of Beggars Oliver's Heir being undone to pay the Charge of his Father's Funeral or those who had Estates shall forfeit them to encrease the Revenues of the Crown The Regicides to put the best Face they could upon this audacious Act send the Bill for Trial of the King up to the Lords for their Concurrence but so far were the Lords from concurring that they threw the Bill over the Bar Hereupon the Rump vote the Lords dangerous and useless yet Henry Martin said they were useless but not dangerous Then the Rumpers advise with the Judges about the Trial of the King who unanimously declare it against Law and the Scots Commissioners protest against it But neither Authority Law nor Reason would take place with those Men so they erect a new Court never heard of before called a High Court of Justice for the Trial of the King to consist of I think Seventy two thirds of which were Souldiers who by putting the King to Death expected the Reward of the Inheritance both of the Crown and Church If it be Misery to have been happy to what a miserable State have these cursed Minions Flatterers and Sycophants brought one of the greatest and most high-born Princes in the Western World to gratify their Ambition Lust and Avarice for this Prince whom they would have to rend his Subjects from their Laws has now no Subjects who dare protect him by the Laws He who before so often gloried that to him alone belonged the Power of Proroguing Adjourning and Dissolving Parliaments who never did him Wrong but met to assist him against those who wronged him and to have reconciled him to his Subjects has now no Power to dissolve this Rump of a Parliament which will not be reconciled to him He who before so often called his truly Loyal Subjects Undutiful Seditious and Vipers Terms unusual in Princes shall hear himself call'd Tyrant Murderer and Traitor by his implacable Subjects He who before so often gloried he was only accountable to God for all his Actions shall be now called to an Account by a company of Men for Actions whereof they themselves were much more guilty and be sent to God to pass his Accounts there also For upon the 20th of January the King was haled before this Assembly where he was charged of Treason Tyranny and Murder for raising War against the Parliament and People of England Tho it 's evident the Members seiz'd the Militia the Tower of London and Fleet which Powers were inherent in the King and shut him out of Hull and granted Commissions for levying Souldiers before the King set up his Standard at Nottingham But admit the King did first raise Arms to have forced the Parliament and first actually set up his Standard against them and that was a Crime yet was the Regicides Crime greater who had forced the Parliament and set up themselves instead of it The King now too late flies to the Laws of the Land for his Protection protests against the Jurisdiction of the Court as established by no Legal Authority and declares his Life was not so dear to him as his Honour and Conscience and the Laws and Liberties of his People and that he will lose his Life rather than submit to such a Tyrannical Court And at last the King desired to be heard before the Lords and Commons in some things which concerned the Peace of the Kingdom and Liberty of the Subjects but this too was denied And so the 4th day after this Appearance Bradshaw the President gave Sentence upon him to lose his Head all the Court to the number of 67 owning it by standing up Which Sentence was executed the 30th of January The Character of King Charles the First THus fell one of the greatest and most high-born Princes of the Western World In his Person he was somewhat more than ordinarily tall and the Composition of it was framed in most exact natural Proportion of Parts so that he was very active and of a fine Mein in his Motion which was commonly more than ordinarily fast yet he appeared best on Horse-back and excelled in managing his Horse so that when he was in Spain in sight of the King Queen the Infanta's and the Infanta Maria whom he courted or at least seemed to do so and innumerable other Spectators he took the Ring in his first Course His Visage was long and appeared best when he did not speak for he had a natural Impediment in his Speech and would often stutter in it especially when he was in Passion To these Natural Endowments may be added a Temperance in Eating and Drinking and Chastity tho his Enemies unjustly traduced him otherways rarely to be found in Princes He was born in Scotland about two Years before his Father became King of England and being bred from his Infancy in a most luxurious and flattering Court tho he avoided the Luxury of it yet the Flattery of it took such deep Root in him that he would never permit free Counsel to take any Impression in him In his Nature
he was over parsimonious ill becoming so great a Prince He laid the Foundation of an unhappy Reign before he became King not only in his Dissimulation in the Treaty of Marriage with the King and Infanta of Spain to the Displeasure of his Father but much more in the French Treaty not only in submitting to grant a Toleration of the Popish Religion and that his Children should be brought up under their Mother till they were twelve Years old but by engaging to assist the French King with a Fleet against the Reformed in France which he did tho the French broke their Faith in denying Mansfield to land the Army at Calais raised for the Recovery of the Palatinate Unlike his Predecesâ—or Henry the Fifth who so soon as he became King banished all his Flatterers and loose Companions and betaking himself to grave and wise Counsel he became the most Renowned and Victorious of all our English Kings Charles became more wilful and gave himself to be more governed by Favourites after he became King than before So that the insite Piety and Affection which is due to Parents and usually exprest in some mournful Demeanour upon their Death took no Impression in him after his Father's Death but contrary Passions against his Father's Counsel and Will prevailed upon him For next day after his Father's Death only the King and Buckingham present the Keeper Williams coming to wait upon him the King asked him whether the Parliament were dissolved upon his Father's Death Which when the Keeper told him it was the King commanded him to issue out new Summons for calling another and not to stay a day for Subsidies must be had for carrying on a War against Spain and when the Keeper advised him to consider a little hereof and that before Writs were issued out Interest should be made about Elections the King in Displeasure turn'd from him Which you may read in the second Book and second Folio of the Keeper's Life And these two things were observable in this Prince That when any advised him against his Will he would never ask it after or be Friends with him and that in all his Reign as well in Prosperity as in Adversity he would never own any one of his Irregularities to be so but justified them all to his Death As Henry was the most self-denying of all his glorious Actions ascribing them only to God so Charles upon all occasions in all his irregular Actions gloried he was accountable to none but God for them After he was married he became the most uxorious Husband of all our English Kings except Henry the Sixth and being intangled by the Articles of Marriage which the Queen fostered and the Laws and Constitutions of the Nation contrary to them which his Parliaments stedfastly asserted he became both ways uneasy and to reconcile them was impossible But to me it seems how uxorious soever the King was yet during Buckingham's Regency for so it may be truly called he had an Ascendency over the Queen as appears by the French War in the second Year of the King notwithstanding all the Power of the Queen against it He was unaffable in his Conversation and Approaches to him very difficult and those with such strained Submissions as were never required by any of his Predecessors As his Actions were without Counsel sudden and inconsiderate so were his Resolutions as variable and uncertain so that oftentimes he would change them the same day And as his Actions were without Counsel so were his Designs without Secrecy which blasted them as well at Home as Abroad He was so superstitiously addicted to the Arminian Clergy which flatter'd him that I do not find except Juxton Bishop of London that he preferr'd any others in the Church till he fell into Adversity In his adverse Fortune he would betake himself to contrary Extreams yet be as inconstant in them as in his Actions in Prosperity He was only constant in his Affections to the Queen after he had given up his Favourites in his prosperous Fortune to the Parliament and her Counsels fixed stedfast in him tho in his Declarations to the Kingdom and Parliament he profess'd otherwise and herein he was as unhappy as he was before in his Designs in his Prosperity for they whether by Fate or his own Imprudence became known to his Enemies who blaz'd them abroad not only to the Nation but all the World so that the sincerity of his Promises and Declarations became suspected as well by his Friends as Enemies and all Accommodation with them more difficult whereby it came to pass that his Armies being subdued by them and thereby falling into the Hands of his Enemies he became a Sacrifice to them in the 49th Year of his Age having reigned 23 Years ten Months and three Days leaving six Children three Sons Charles Prince of Wales James Duke of York and Henry Duke of Gloucester whereof the two elder were Exiles and three Daughters Mary Princess of Orange and Elizabeth a Virgin who not long survived him and Henrietta Maria born at Exeter So that as King John and his Son Henry the Third lost all Normandy and the greatest part of Aquitain to the French by endeavouring a more than Legal Jurisdiction over their Subjects whereby they lost their Love and Obedience so these two Princes Father and Son by raising and Arbitrary Power over their Subjects not only lost their Honour Abroad but with their own Subjects and for want of whose Assistance this King lost his Life and suffered the French to grow so great as to endanger the Safety of their own Subjects in the Realms of England Scotland and Ireland I 'll conclude this Story with one which a learned Gentleman who liv'd in those Times affirmed When the Duke of Buckingham was stabb'd by Felton 1628 the Earl of Portland was then newly made Lord Treasurer and the King to manifest his Affection to the Duke order'd the Treasurer to issue out of the Exchequer 30000 l. I think for a solemn Funeral for the Duke but the Treasurer unwilling the King should be at so hateful an Expence at a time when the King was at War with France and Spain told the King that the Sum laid out in erecting a stately Tomb for the Duke would be a more lasting Monument of his Favour to the Duke than a Funeral-Expence which would be but the Work of a Day and soon forgot The King assented and several Patterns were brought and what the King lik'd the Treasurer dislik'd till at last the King pitch'd upon one which he said he would have but then the Treasurer said Sir what will the World say that you should be at such an Expence for a Favourite when your Father has not a Stone to cover him which struck the King so as he proceeded no farther in it I remember I think it was in 1669. that the Commons voted 50000 l. for the Charge of taking up this King's Body and the solemn Funeral
and sure never was there such a Generation who so impudently out-braved Truth and all that may be call'd Sacred If you could force a Belief into them they first told you they fought for King and Parliament then they declared for the King and People against the Parliament and now they have taken off the King if you will have any Benefit of their Protection you must engage to their Government without King or House of Lords and be content with a piece of the Commons call'd the Rump Not content with the Death of the King the Rump proceeds to abolish Monarchy and place the original Power of Government in the People whose Representatives they are if you 'll take their Word and voted it High Treason to restore Monarchy or to assist or pray for Charles Stuart or any of that Line overthrow the King's Statue with an Exit tyrannus Regum ultimus Nor are they satiated with the Blood of the King but erect another High Court of Injustice whereof one Lisle an ignorant Fellow was President who condemns the Marquess Hamilton Earl of Holland and Lord Capel for raising Arms against the Parliament which themselves had destroy'd But tho the Rump and Army were establish'd upon these strange Principles yet being the Instruments of Divine Vengeance like a Torrent broke loose from raging Seas in less than five Years time they overwhelm not only England but Ireland and Scotland almost pull'd the Dutch States up by the Roots and made France and Spain tremble But that we may observe what follow'd let 's see what went before The Scots were the first who invaded England against the King to impose their Solemn League and Covenant which was more against the English Laws and Constitutions than Laud's Service-Books Canons and High-Commission were against the Scotish In July last the Scots invaded England commanded by the Marquess Hamilton in August Cromwel routs and utterly overthrows this Army and takes Hamilton Prisoner So the Scots who began these Wars first are the first chastised by this English Army But this is but the Earnest of what shall follow The secluded Members who first join'd the Scots beginning first with an equivocal Protestation but after downright joined with the Scots in their Covenant are now not only turned out of the House by the Rump but kept in nasty Prisons till they became as little dangerous as The House of Lords The horrid Irish Massacre and Rebellion succeeded in the third place And now the Rump having established themselves by subduing of the Scots under Hamilton and deposing the secluded Members are laying Rods in Piss to scourge these abominable Irish But before we proceed let 's see how things stood in Ireland In October 1641. the Irish Massacre was which succeeded in a Rebellion in which Richlieu's Scarlet was as deep dyed as in the Scotish and English Commotions The Head of this accursed Crew was John Baptista Pennuncio the Pope's Nuncio who in his Passage through France threatned he would suffer no Man to live in Ireland that wished well to the King or to the English Affairs Thus you see how all the Factions conspired against the King the Laws and Constitutions of England But for these last seven Years viz. so long as the Distractions were continued in England the War was pursued but by halves in Ireland King Charles in his Life-time had made the Marquess of Ormond Lieutenant of Ireland who in 1643 made a Truce with the Irish that the King might make use of the English in England But the Irish kept their Faith no better in it than the Scots had before with the King in the Peace in 1639. For on a sudden they rise against the Marquess now the English are sent into England and had surprized him if he had not been informed before and escaped into Dublin and being in no Condition to defend it but obliged to deliver it up either to the English sent by the Parliament or to the Irish he gave it up to the English who make Colonel Jones Governour and so Ormond leaves Ireland After the Marquess was withdrawn the Nuncio behaved himself like a Church-Man with such a Despotical Tyranny that he became intolerable even to the Irish themselves who being press'd by Jones Coot and Monk combine in a Body and send to the Queen and to the Prince of Wales for then the King was close Prisoner in the Isle of Wight to return the Marquess of Ormond and they would submit to his Authority and join to expel the Scots and Parliament's Forces The Nuncio taking this for an Affront to his Authority being that of the Apostolick See which is infallible threatens Excommunication to them who should not obey him but neither he nor his Excommunication were obey'd but was forced to Capitulate with the Irish themselves to procure his Departure which was as shameful as his Entrance was proud and insolent Upon the Marquess's Return he enter'd into most dishonourable Articles with the Irish which yet would not please Owen Ro Oneal who join'd with the Parliament's Forces and reliev'd Londonderry then besieg'd by the Lord Ardes After this Pacification with the Irish such as it was Ormond raises a numerous Army and by my Lord Inchiqueen routs a Party of Jones's going to Drogheda who takes the Town and Dundalk Green-Castle Newry and Trim and returns Victorious to the Marquess Hereupon the Marquess besieges Dublin but unfortunately sends my Lord Inchiqueen into Munster with if not the greatest the best part of the Army Jones falls upon the Remainder and utterly routs them This was in August 1649. And the same Month Cromwel lands at Dublin with an Army of 15000 old Soldiers Upon this Disaster the Irish no more to be reconciled to the English than the Scots Covenanters to Episcopacy quarrel with the Marquess which was never after composed So the Marquess left Ireland again leaving the Earl of Clanrickard Deputy Cromwel after his landing first storms Drogheda or Tredah with a most terrible Execution and after in less than one Year all Ireland upon the matter is reduced to the Obedience of the Rump who take dreadful Vengeance upon all the Irish who could be found to have had any hand in the Massacre of the English The King Charles II. having lost England and Ireland with all their Dependencies except the Isles of Guernsey Jersey Man and Scilly and the Plantations in America which shall soon follow set up for Scotland and makes the Marquess of Montross his Commissioner who having got together about 400 Swedes Danes Poles and Germans lands them at the Wick of Cathness in April 1650 and takes Dumbeath But Lesley having sent Major-General Straughan with 300 choice Horse he set upon this ill composed Body of Montross and utterly routs them Montross fled but was betrayed by the Laird of Aston who had formerly served him The Covenanters to shew their Clemency and Humility bind the Marquess in a Chair planted backwards on a Cart that all
Men might see him the Hangman with his Hat on riding before and upon the 28th of May 1650 by a Sentence pronounced the Day before by the Lord Lowden was hanged upon a Gibbet 30 Foot high at the Cross of Edinburg for three Hours after which he was quarter'd and his Head set upon the Talbooth and his Legs and Arms over the Gates of Sterlin Glasgow Dundee and Aberdeen But see the Piety and Commiseration of these humble People They order in the Sentence that if he repented so that his Excommunication should be taken off the Trunk of his Body should be buried in the Grey-Friars otherwise in the Burrough-Moor the Common Burial of Malefactors But Vengeance shall soon overtake these cruel Proceedings For the Kirk sore afflicted for their deposed Brethren in England now in nasty Prisons whereby Heresy Schism and Profaneness raged and the Throne of Presbytery was defaced but being unable of themselves to restore their Brethren before Montross's Death had agreed to have the King proclaimed King of Scotland England France and Ireland yet so as to take the Solemn League and Covenant to give Signs of Sorrow and Repentance for his Father and Mother's Sins and banish and turn out of his Court all who had not taken the Covenant or taken up Arms for his Father But the Kirk could not have found a Plant so unlikely to produce the Fruit of Repentance or to establish the Throne of Presbytery as this King However they 'll try what 's to be done and to this end send Commissioners to treat with the King at Jersey not yet reduced by the Rump and a Treaty is agreed to to be at Breda in Holland The King was perplex'd what to do for to be a King in Fact he desired above all things but to forsake his Mother and Father's Friends was grievous to him and to come to the Stool of Repentance was full sore against his Will Yet to be a King as a Man does for a Wife he forsakes Father Mother and his dearly beloved Friends and comes to Breda There the News comes of Montross's tragical Defeat and Execution which had like to have spoil'd all but over Shooes over Boots on he goes having submitted to all the rigid Terms the Kirk-men imposed upon him And in June 1650 arrives in Scotland to be anew instructed in the Discipline of the Kirk The Rump in the mean while were not idle you must think for having spued up Presbytery in England they scorn'd to chew the Cud of it from Scotland and therefore Fairfax having refused to command an Army against the Scots they send for Cromwel out of Ireland by this time is good as reduced by him and declared him General of all the Forces of England Scotland and Ireland who about the latter end of June 1650 enters Scotland with a well-disciplin'd rather than a numerous Army and having taken many Places of small moment and often beat the Scots in Skirmishes upon the 3d of September utterly overthrows the much more numerous Kirk-Army at Dumbar commanded by their old General Lesley 3000 Scots killed 9000 taken Prisoners all their Baggage and Ammunition and above 200 Colours which as Trophies were hung up in Westminster-Hall where the English and Scots had before taken such Pains and Care to unite both Nations in their Solemn League and Covenant Whilst these things were doing the Kirk at Edinburg were close at their Devotion hourly expecting the Feet of those which should bring the glad Tidings which were at hand when Lesley the same Day brings Tidings of their utter Overthrow Now was all their Joy turned to Lamentation and Wo and the Songs of Sion are like to be sung in a strange Land To augment these Miseries the King who could not submit to the rigid Discipline of the Kirk runs from Schole to the House of the Lord Dippon intending for the Highlands where he might go to School with more Liberty Now all is in a Hurlyburley After the King runs Montgomery from the Kirk promising the King if he would return the Kirk would remit part of their Discipline upon which the King returned to St. Johnstons The King thus returned did not please the Kirk-men for being beaten by the English they rail against those that called the King in too hastily before he had given Marks of his Repentance and Conversion to God and that it was not lawful for any who were truly Godly to take up Arms for him and for the Advancement of the Kirk made Kerr and Straughan Generals of the Kirk-Forces But Straughan runs to Cromwel and Kerr is utterly defeated wounded and taken by Lambert Whilst these things were thus doing in Scotland let 's see what was doing in England In January this Year the Rump erected a High Court of Justice whereof one Keeble an ignorant Petty-fogging Lawyer was President in Norfolk upon pretence of an intended Insurrection for bringing in of the King where 24 were condemned and 20 executed whereof one Mr. Hobbard Brother or near Kinsman to Sir John Hobbard who after married Cromwel's Niece and Widow of Col. Hammond was one And in March following the Rump erected another High Court of Justice which condemned Sir Henry Hide for taking the King's Commission to be his Ambassador at Constantinople The Kirk-Party now lose their Reputation they had nothing left but to preach and pray and rail and now the Parliament and General Assembly take in all who will take the Covenant but all to no purpose For Cromwel having taken Edinburgh Town and Castle Jedworth Reslan and Tantallon Castle sends Overton and Lambert in Boats over the Frith who rout Sir John Brown and Major General Holborn kill 2000 of their Men and take 1200 Prisoners and Brown himself with 42 Colours Now though Scotland were a cold Climate 't was too hot to hold the King and his Army and therefore with them he slips into England by the Way of Carlisle leaving the Kirk in Lamentations and Woes that Heresy and Schism had overspread the Beauty of Holiness now Profaneness and Superstition had left it Harrison and Lambert followed the King and Cromwel soon after who at Worcester that Day Twelve Month after he had routed the Scots at Dunbar utterly again routs the Scots and English kills 3550 with Duke Hamilton and General Forbes and takes 5000 Prisoners with the Earls of Rothes Kanwarth Kelly the Lord Sinclare and Montgomery General of the Ordnance and soon after David Lesley who fought not or but little in the Battel is routed by Lilburn and taken Prisoner with Lauderdale who held Correspondence in England with the Covenanting Scots and the Lords Kenmore and Middleton Yet the King by a Miracle escaped to be restored King Charles II. But the same Fate did not attend the Noble Earl of Derby who coming out of the Isle of Man with about 250 Foot and 60 Horse to have assisted the King which he joined with about 1200 raised Men in Lancashire where he was highly
honoured and beloved was set upon by Col. John's elder Brother and routed the 29th of August where the Lord Widdrington Sir Thomas Tiddersly Col. Boynton Sir Francis Gamul Major Troâ—lop Sir William Throgmorton Col. Leg Col. Ratliff and Col. Gerard with some others were taken Prisoners but the Earl tho wounded escaped to the King at Worcester but it was his hard Fortune to be afterwards taken and tried by a Court Martial upon the 6th of October which consisted of 20 Officers and Captains five Colonels Maj. General Milton and Col. Mackworth President at Chester and upon the 22d was beheaded When Cromwel came into England he left Monk to command in Scotland who besieges and takes Sterlin-Castle by Surrender with all the Guns Ammunition and Arms Money Jewels and the Registers transferred from Edinburgh thither and quite defaced the lofty Inscription Nobis haec invicta dedere Centum sex Proavi About this time old General Lesley was raising an Army in Perth-shire Monk sends Morgan and Alured to prevent it who surprized them and take Lesley the Earls of Crawford and Lindsey the Lord Ogilby and many other Prisoners and after take Dunfrise At this time Monk besieges and takes Dundee by Storm with as terrible an Execution as Cromwel the Year before had done at Tredah Here it was and at Sterlin-Castle the Scots had lodged all their Plunder and Money they had got in England which was so plentiful that the English common Souldiers shared Money by Hatfuls The Terror of this Success frighted Aberdeen and all the other Towns in Scotland into Obedience nor did it stay here but all the Isles of Orcades and Shetland submitted which neither Roman nor English Force could ever accomplish Now the Kirk-Party are all in Yelling and Woes Heresy and Schism had overspread the beauteous Discipline of Reformation Now they cannot persecute other Men they exclaim and cry out they are persecuted themselves Their Nobles except Argile which are not killed are committed to Prison that they might share in the Tribulations as well as Triumphs of their Brethren in England But the Tribulations of the Covenanting Party did not end in Imprisonment only but extended to Life for upon the 22d of August Love and Gibbons two most zealous Covenanters were executed by a Judgment of a High Court of Justice as 't was called for holding Intelligence with their Brethren in Scotland so that this High-Justice or Summum Jus reached the Covenanters as well as the Royalists Now the Rump change the Fabrick of the Scotish Government and make Itinerant Judges part Scots part English and make a Council of State of that medly yet allow them 30 Commissioners to sit and vote in their Parliament at Westminster so that tho the Crown of Scotland were independent upon the Crown of England yet Scotland as well as Ireland and England must depend upon the Rump And that the Scots may be the more tamely ridden they are denied Arms and even Horses unless on necessary Occasions The Victory at Worcester swelled the Sails of Cromwel's Ambition brim full so that he began to entertain Thoughts of Setting up himself yet being a ticklish Point wherein he was sure to be opposed by the Factions as well as Royalists upon the 10th of December he called a Meeting of divers Members of the House and some of the Principal Officers of the Army and proposed to them That now the old King being dead and his Son defeated he held it necessary to come to a Settlement of the Nation and that he requested this Meeting that they might consider and advise what was fit to be done and to present it to the Parliament So much easier is it to destroy a Government than to erect another And now Cromwel and his Adherents had overturned the Government of Three Kingdoms they are to advise and consider how to erect another This was the good Fight which these Men fought to destroy and then knew not what to do However we 'll give the Account of these Mens Opinions verbatim as I find it in Whitlock's Memoirs f. 492. a. b. Lenthal My Lord who made him so This Company were very ready to attend your Excellency and the Business you were pleased to propound to us is very necessary to be considered God hath given marvellous Success to our Forces under your Command and if we do not improve these Mercies Blood Rapine and Murder to some Settlement such as may be to God's Honour and the Good of the Common-wealth we shall be very much blame-worthy Harrison I think that which my Lord General hath propounded as to a Settlement both of our Civil and Spiritual Liberties and so that the Mercies which the Lord hath given in to us may not be cast away how this may be done is the great Question Whitlock It is a great Question indeed and not suddenly to be resolved yet it were pity that a Meeting of so many able and worthy Persons as I see here should be fruitless and I would humbly offer in the first Place whether it be not requisite to be understood in what way this Settlement is desired whether by an Absolute Republick or with any Mixture of Monarchy Cromwel My Lord Commissioner Whitlock hath put us upon the right Point and indeed it is my meaning that we should consider whether a Republick or a mixt Monarchical Government will be best settled and if any thing Monarchical then in whom that Power shall be placed Sir Tho. Widdrington I think a mix'd Monarchical Government will be most sutable to the Laws and People of this Nation and if any Monarchical I suppose we shall hold it most just to place that Power in one of the Sons of the late King Fleetwood I think that Question whether an absolute Republick or a mix'd Monarchy be best to be settled in this Nation will not very easily be determined L. C. J. St. John It will be found that the Government of this Nation without something of Monarchical Power will be very difficult to be so settled as not to shake the Foundation of our Laws and the Liberties of the People Lenthal It will breed a strange Confusion to settle a Government of this Nation without something of Monarchy Desborough I beseech you my Lord why may not this as well as other Nations be governed by a Republick Whitlock The Laws of England are so interwoven with the Power and Practice of Monarchy that to settle a Government without something of Monarchy in it would breed so great an Alteration in the Proceedings of our Law that you will scarce find time to rectify nor can we well foresee the Inconveniencies which will arise thereby Whaley I do not understand Matters of Law but it seems to me the best way not to have any thing of Monarchical Power in the Settlement of our Government and if we should resolve upon any whom should we pitch upon The King 's eldest Son hath been in Arms against us and his second
Coasts of England which they could no ways pretend to after they had rent themselves from their Subjection to the Kings of Spain and their immemorial Prescription to fish in these Seas tho Thousands were then alive who were born before they became States yet they were not so impudent to plead Grotius's Mare Liberum that they had as much Right to fish in these Seas as the English Thus far Cromwel's Council and the Rump went in equal Paces and the Dutch now were in no better state than when Cromwel deposed the Rump But two Accidents which were not in the Dutch Power contributed to their Deliverance from the desperate state they were reduced to one was Oliver's Ambition the other the Frenzy of Barebone's Parliament for Cromwel however he accused the Rump of Selfishness was himself much more selfish for without any regard to the Honour or Interest of the English Nation now makes it his Business to join in a Defensive League with the Dutch against the King and Royal Family to set up himself and his Posterity Barebone's Parliament was contrary to Cromwel's Designs and he knew 't was impossible to alter them and therefore resolv'd one way or other to be rid of them and the Dutch dreaded them and therefore the Dutch Plenipotentiaries told Cromwel that in case he would depose them and assume the Government to himself they would be ready to accord with him upon more moderate Terms and enter into such a Defensive Alliance as should secure him against his foreign and domestick Enemies This was the 7th of December See Stubbe p. 110. The Frenzy of Barebone's Parliament was as intolerable to the Nation as to Cromwel so that no Man could judg of their Designs or where they would end Their Prate was to make way for Christ's Monarchy upon Earth which they were sure was at hand now they were got together therefore they pronounced Priesthood to be Popery paying of Tithes Judaism the Laws of England The Remains of the Roman Yoke Schools and Colleges Heathenish Seminaries of curious and vain Learning and Nobility and Honour contrary to the Law of Nature and Christianity Tho these had sat above five Months yet they made but four Laws one for punishing seditious Sea-men caused by their tumultuous demanding their Tun and Gun-Money taken from the Dutch and granted them by the Rump another For Marrying by Justices of Peace the third For Registring Births and not Christnings and the fourth was an Act brought in by Praise-God Barebone Against Building unless upon old Foundations within ten Miles of London tho his Son designs to build London all the Country over upon new Foundations But tho Cromwel was resolved to be rid of Barebone's Parliament yet he would not proceed in that rude and Ruffian manner as he did against the Rump but wheedled with Rouse the Speaker and some of his Creatures that it should be moved in the House That their sitting longer would not be for the Good of the Common-wealth and that it would be fit for them to resign up their Powers to the Lord-General again Whereupon the Speaker with such Members as would follow him went to White-hall and under their Hands resigned up their Power to Cromwel See Whitlock fol. 551. Dr. Bates in his Elenchus pag. 165. says Cromwel made a shew of Wonder at it denying utterly and rejecting it but at length with much ado was prevail'd upon This was Decemb. 12. The Copy of Cromwel's Countenance was quite contrary to his Actions for tho he seemingly refused to accept of the Resignation made by Rouse and his Followers yet he sent a Party of Souldiers to purge the House of those who stay'd behind whereof Major-General Harrison was one who would have taken Lenthal out of the Chair when Cromwel outed the Rump See Baker's Hist fol. 620. a. There was a Mistake in the former Impression in point of Time That Cromwel accepted of the Protectorate by Barebone's Parliament which he assum'd not till four days after viz. December 16. Before we proceed to see how Cromwel behaved himself after his resuming the Government again it 's fit to see how the Case stood between the English and French at this time as also the Dutch and French in reference to this War Tho there was no declared War between the English and French yet there often happen'd Acts of Hostility between them the French making Prize of the English Ships at Sea and the English much more of the French and upon the 7th of September 1652 the English in the Downs set upon a French Fleet laden with Provisions and Ammunition under the Convoy of so many Men of War as the French could well set out and dispersed the Fleet and took seven of their Men of War whereby the Spaniards were enabled to retake Dunkirk and Graveling taken from them by the French in the Year 1646. The next Year viz. in October 1653 Captain Hayton in the Saphire came up to eight French Men of War and shot twice at their Admiral who returned him a Broad-side and Hayton endeavoured to have boarded her but she got away Hayton with his single Ship engaged the rest and took the French Vice-Admiral and Rear-Admiral and another of their Men of War and many rich Prizes with the Loss but of four Men and some wounded See Whitlock's Memoirs fol. 547. b. So inconsiderable were the French at Sea in those Days However the Dutch held constant Intelligence with the French in all their Negotiations with the English during this War as you may see in Whitlock's Memoirs fol. 568. as appears by Monsieur Chanute's Speech to the States wherein in this low state of the Dutch he gives them the Title of High Puissances and when the Dutch were in their distressed state in the time both of the Rump and Barebone's Parliament the French fearing the Dutch's Ruin or such a Peace as the English should impose upon them proffer'd to be at half Charges with the Dutch in case they would continue their War with England otherwise the French were not able to contribute but little to help them at Sea Now let 's see if Oliver's Government was as arrogant impolitick selfish and dangerous to the Safety of the Nation as his first assuming it was rude and barbarous After the Supream Power of the Nation had been thus tumbled from Post to Pillar from Cromwel to Barebone ' s Parliament and from them to Cromwel again upon the 16th of December Cromwel and his Officers after several Days seeking of God tho it was resolved on before resolved That a Council of Godly Able and Discreet Persons should be named consisting of 21 and that the Lord-General should be chosen Lord Protector for King good Man he would not be but leâ—t he should go too far astray tied himself up to an Instrument of Government which he swore to in these Words I have accepted thereof and do declare my Acceptance thereof accordingly and do promise in the
Male Sex who were a sort of Favourites his Father was not acquainted with nor do I find he ever regarded the Memory of his Father but that he industriously endeavour'd to have it believed the Portraiture of his Father's Sufferings a Book of late so much controverted was none of his However his Mother had a great Ascendant over him so that she being a Daughter of France inclin'd him to embrace the French Interest against his own And she living near ten Years after his Restoration so fixed this into a Habit in him that in all his Life after he could never get rid of it notwithstanding all the Provocations of the French King to the contrary But it 's time now to take a View of this King's Actions The Desires of the King to be restor'd were no less than those of the Nation that he should tho upon any Terms for upon the Dissolution of the secluded Members the King left Brussels as you 'll soon see he left Spain who had harboured and relieved him in the time of his Exile to join with France who had expell'd him to join with Oliver and by its Ambassador Bourdeaux at this time was using all its Endeavours to keep him out and came to Breda from whence he sent Letters by Sir John Greenvile after Earl of Bath to Monk Mountague after Earl of Sandwich and the Mayor of London The Presbyterians who thought to have had the same Power they had when the secluded Members dissolved themselves were shrewdly mistaken for the Body of the Commons were Royalists who chose Sir Harbottle Grimston their Speaker and upon the opening of the Convention the Royalist Lords double more than the Presbyterians entred into the Lords House which the Presbyterians complained of to Monk who answer'd Now they were in he had no Power to turn them out so the Royalists were double to the Factions in both Houses of this Convention so as the King need not fear his Restoration Now half England of all sorts except the Rumpers cross the Seas to Breda to make their Bargains with the King before he should come into England the King promises fair to all which it may be was impossible to perform which caused Murmur afterward And the Convention after they had proclaimed him King by inherent Birth-right sent him 50000 l. 10000 l. to the Duke of York and 5000 l. to the Duke of Glocester and the City of London sent the King and his Brothers 12000 l. Upon the 11th of May both Houses sent Commissioners to Breda to invite the King to return and Admiral Mountague with a Royal Fleet to convoy him over who upon the 25th landed him at Dover where Monk met him upon his Knees the King embracing him and kissing him and next day at Canterbury created him Knight of the Garter the Dukes of York and Glocester putting the George about his Neck 'T was rather a Madness than Jollity all sorts of People expressed in the King's Passage from Dover to White-hall The Nation was never so fine in Cloths even the poor Cavaliers will be as fine as the best tho they never live to pay their Tailors nor shall the King take any care of them his Favourites being of another Stamp than those who served his Father Never were such Pageants Triumphal Arches and sumptuous Feasts seen in the City before for which the poor Orphans Money in the Chamber of London must pay the greatest part When the King was restor'd the Nation was in a Martial Posture and the Manners of the People generally more severe and sober than in his Father's and Grand-father's Reigns The first that made Court to the King were the Dutch when he was at Breda to enter into a League with them but the King by the Advice of Sir Edward Hide it 's said wisely answered That this would look as if 't were done by Restraint the King being in their Power besides he was not yet possest of his Kingdoms nor had established his Privy-Council Yet the Dutch were the first who caress'd him with a most rich and splendid Gilded Yatch to prepare him for a Treaty after his Accession to his Crowns Nor were the rest of the Princes of Europe long after the Dutch in congratulating the King's Restoration the French King being one of the first The Spaniard made not so much haste yet hoped for a better Reception than the French and that the King of Spain might have a better Reception he sent the Prince de Ligny his Ambassador who in the Splendor of his Train much outvied the French It 's true the Prince got a Peace with the King for his Master the King of Spain but he got as little good by it as the King of Spain did by that he made with the King's Grand-father King James the First With better Success came the French Ambassador tho I do not find he made any League with the French against the Spaniard as Oliver did nor was there any need of it the French having made a deceitful Peace with the Spaniard at the Pyrenaean Treaty yet you shall soon see both Kings dealt as ill with the King of Spain as if he had been an open Enemy And the more to endear himself with his Brother of France the King rejected the advantagious Treaty of Commerce which Oliver made with France as done by an Usurper and never after at least that I ever heard of made any other instead of it but left his Subjects to be used even as the French King pleased in their Trades to France Henry the Seventh was the first of our English Kings who used Guards and he set up the Yeomen of the Guard which was followed by all the Kings of England since but tho the Convention had paid off and disbanded the English Armies yet the King besides his Band of Pensioners in imitation of the French must have Guards of Horse and Foot and the Parliament gave him Revenue enough to encrease these to what Number he pleased But it had been better for him if he had imitated the French too in preferring Men who were qualified but few of these were to be found there And tho he gave near double the Pay to these yet was he much worse served than if Men of Merit had been there for half the Pay for scarce one of the Officers but bought their Places and this was so common that the Prices were certain so not he who deserved but he which gave most was preferred and when he was in he owed the King no Service having paid for what he had and so his Business was how to improve his Bargain not serve the King And herein too the poor Cavaliers had the worst they not having so much Money to buy as others had I take it for granted that the first League which the now French King made after he came to Majority I mean after twenty one Years of Age was that of the Pyrenaean Treaty the Breach of all the rest
before we will lay to the Charge of Cardinal Mazarine We will therefore see if the French King was not as little a Slave to his Word in this League as Mazarine was in any before and you 'll see that in all the Leagues this King after made he was as little a Slave to his Word as in this Treaty We have in the former Book set down particularly the Article whereby the French King upon his Honour and the Faith and Word of a King did promise neither directly nor indirectly to assist Portugal against Spain yet at the beginning of the Treaty they secretly conveyed Troops into Portugal in several Bodies And when upon Complaint of the Marquess de la Fuente they sent publick Orders to the Governours of their Ports not to suffer any Souldiers to embark for Portugal they did not abstain by Connivance under-hand to let them pass Nay when Marshal Turene made publick Levies to assist Portugal it being complained of by the Marquess de la Fuente they answered it was a particular Act of the Marshal and the Court of France had no Hand in it And also continually supplied Portugal with Corn and all sorts of Ammunition And France also fomented the Obstinacy of Portugal to continue the War when Spain offered them advantagious Terms of Peace This and much more you may read in the second Article of The Buckler of State and Justice Nor did the French King stay here but being become the dearest Confident with his Brother of England almost as soon as the King was settled the French sent Monsieur Courtin to move the King not to abandon Portugal nor did he yet stay here but Mazarine dying much about the latter end of Summer having a Stone in his Heart so the French Pasquils said in September or beginning of October the Queen-Mother came over seemingly to treat with her Son for a Marriage between Monsieur of France and her fair Daughter Henrietta Maria the King 's beloved Sister Yet it seems to me the Marriage of the King with the Infanta of Portugal was not less designed than that with Monsieur And besides these you will soon hear of something else which brought the Queen-Mother into England As the Designs of the Queen's coming over were dark so I acknowledg I have not seen any of the Treaties or Transactions concerning them but must take Measures by what followed and so far as I had Light from what went before yet in all of them it seems evident to me that the Queen shewed her self to be more affectionate to her Daughter than Son and to be more a Daughter of France than Queen of England But before I proceed it will be convenient to take notice of the deplorable State of Spain which their Ambition in seeking so many Foreign Dominions and a Tyrannical Government had brought it to For before the Accession of their American Dominions which they acquired by unjust War and unheard-of Cruelties in all the ten Years War between Ferdinand and Isabella with the Moors who had seven hundred Years been possessed of the Kingdoms of Granada Murcia and a great part of Andaluzia every Year the Moors and Christians brought near a hundred thousand Men into the Field to fight one with another yet the Kingdoms of Arragon Navar and Portugal were Neutral in all the War Whereas now all the Kingdoms of Spain except that of Portugal were united under this King Philip the Fourth yet out of them all he could not raise an Army to fight the Portuguese but trusting to the French Faith in the Pyrenaean Treaty sent the Army in Flanders under the Command of the Marquess Caracene to do it The King imbraced the Overtures of both Marriages and now the French King doubly if not trebly assured of his Brother of England as well by the Treaties of these Marriages as by his Message by Courtin no longer acts covertly in assisting the Prince Regent of Portugal against Spain but bare-fac'd sent Marshal Schomberg with an Army and Fleet to their Assistance yet this Army was not sufficient to make an Offensive War against Spain but Portugal stood only upon the Defensive The Want of Money a little retarded the Marriage of the Princess with Monsieur but this might be easily help'd if the King would give up Dunkirk to the French whereby he might pay 200000 l. for his Sister's Portion which was more than his Father had with his Mother and also receive 200000 l. more for himself Nor was this all he might save the Charges of maintaining a Garison there yet the Parliament in the Hereditary Excise allowed him 60000 l. per Annum for the Support of it I do not find this mentioned in the Body of the Act yet several Members assured me it was so intended in the passing the Act. All this the King agreed to and so Dunkirk and Mardike Fort were given up to the French against all the Laws of Humanity Justice and Prudence I say it was against all the Laws of Humanity for the Spaniard entertained and relieved the King when the French had expelled him and joined with Oliver the Usurper of all his Dominions It was against Justice for the Soveraignty of Dunkirk was of Right and Justice the Spaniards And against the Rules of Policy and Prudence the French Nation being the Natural Enemies of the English and the next Neighbour to it and of all Nations the most formidable It had been happier for the poor Spaniard and the English Nation if the Unkindness of the King to the Spaniard had ended in his giving up Dunkirk to the French but it ended not here for the King imployed the Army which should have kept Dunkirk against the Spaniard in Portugal and with these and another Band of the disbanded English Army joined to them the French Portuguese and English or rather the English without them routed the whole united Army of the Spaniard at the Fight of Elvas So as now the French had a new Inlet into Flanders and the Spaniard no Army to defend it This was a foul Blot in the Spanish Politicks by their King 's trusting to the Faith of his Brethren of England and France But this will not stay here as hereafter you will see Here I take leave so well as I can to vindicate the Memory of my Lord Chancellor Hide from two Aspersions as I conceive cast upon him one That he was the Adviser of the giving up Dunkirk to the French The other That he was the Procurer of the King's Marriage with the Infanta of Portugal For the first I was assured by a credible Person tho a Confident of my Lord Chancellor's that he was so far from advising the King to give up Dunkirk to the French that only he and my Lord Treasurer Southampton upon whose Honour my Lord Chancellor relied more than any other of all the Council entred their Protestations against it The Truth of this may be resolved by inspecting the Privy-Council's Books It 's true
I cannot prove negatively that my Lord Chancellor did not first propound the King's Marriage with the Infanta of Portugal yet it seems to me reasonable he did not for these Reasons I never heard of any Discourse of this Match before the Arrival of the Queen-Mother in England or if any were it 's probable that Monsieur Courtin had this in his Instructions as well as that of moving the King not to abandon Portugal for both these tend to the same end and the French King all his Reign after sought to attain his Ends by Women as well as other Ways Nor can it be believed that the Prince of Portugal now engaged in War against Spain should pay the Queen's Portion 400000 l. I believe he did what he could give up Tangier and Bombay to the King which last Place he leased to the East-India Company for 10 l. per Annum but the Money was paid by the French King Though the Factions had such ill Success with previous Swearing which every one imposed upon the Nation when it was uppermost and which no Man regarded when another succeeded yet upon the Restoration of the King the Oaths of Allegiance and Supremacy which latter was only imposed upon certain Sorts of Men and as my Lord Verulam says sinks deep into the Conscience and was therefore interpreted by Queen Elizabeth in her Injunctions which were after confirmed by Act of Parliament were imposed upon all sorts of People and the Refusers looked upon as Enemies to the King and Favourers of the late Times And tho the Convention sate but from the 25th of April 1660 to the 29th of December following yet by this time the outward Face of almost all the Nation was quite changed the Cavalier Party under the Persecution of the late times lived quietly upon that part of their Estates which was permitted them after their Compositions and the Governing Factions put on a Countenance of Godliness and Sobriety whereas in the Jollity of the King's Restoration all sorts of Men even the Factions endeavoured to imitate the profuse Prodigality and Luxury of the Court which scarce entertained any but upon those Terms To humour the King the Publick Theaters were stuffed with most Obscene Actions and Interludes and the more Obscene pleased the King the better who graced the opening of them with his Presence at the first Notice of a new Play In this State the Convention was dissolved and a Parliament met the eighth of May 1661. where that they might outvy the Convention in Loyalty in the first Chapter they make Words to compass or imagine any Bodily Harm Imprisonment or Restraint upon the Body of the King or to Depose him or levy War against him to be High-Treason And if any shall any ways affirm the King to be a Heretick or Papist shall be incapacitated to hold any Ecclesiastical Civil or Military Imployment And that it shall be a Premunire in any to say The Long Parliament begun in November 1640 is not dissolved or that there lies any Obligation upon any one from any Oath to endeavour a Change of Government either in Church or State or that one or both Houses of Parliament have a Legislative Power and declare the Oath commonly called The Solemn League and Covenant to be an unlawful Oath and imposed upon the Subject against the Fundamental Laws and Constitutions of the Nation And Chap. 5. declare against Tumultuary petitioning the King or Parliament And Chap. 6. declare the sole Right of the Militia to be in the King This Parliament upon the thirtieth of July was adjourned to the twentieth of November This being but an Adjournment and so the Act of the Houses for as yet the King did not exercise his Prerogative of Proroguing them which hereafter you will see him very prodigal of I do not find that this Adjournment was made that the King might better proceed in his Bargain and Sale of Dunkirk to the French Yet I do say that before the Parliament met it was as I remember in September that the Bargain and Sale was perfected and Dunkirk put into the Power of the French But neither the Sale of Dunkirk without nor the keeping up a standing Army within called the King's Guards after it was disbanded and paid off by the Covention nor the King's Manner of Life could any ways abate the Loyalty of this Parliament to the King and keep him they would whatever came of it And to all the Provisions for Security of his Person and Power they will add that to keep him in which the Rump in its last Breath did to keep him out viz. To swear to keep him out And therefore the Parliament Chap. 2. made the Corporation-Oath to be taken by all the Members of Corporations viz. I A. B. do declare and believe that it is not Lawful upon any Pretence whatsoever to take Arms against the King And that I do abhor that Traiterous Position of taking Arms by his Authority against his Person or against those who are commissioned by him So help me God This I think is one of the first Laws that ever was made to swear to Opinions and Belief And sure if Swearing would determine Controversies and Beliefs all Learning Reasoning and Instruction would be at an end and he that swears most is the best Logician and the Godliest Man We will therefore consider the Nature of an Oath and those who are to take this Oath If we consider Man and other Sensitive Creatures in their Creation and Generation they were all passive and they were created and generated without any Act of their own Will or the Counsel or Concurrence of any Creature but of a Divine and Omnipotent Power and by a Providence and Prescience not less wise and good than the Power was Omnipotent they had Food and other Means for their Continuance in this World provided before they were created or generated But though God without the Act of the Will of any Creature did make Man and other Sensitive Creatures by an inimitable Power which he communicated to no Creature and by an unscrutable Wisdom and Goodness did provide for them before they were made or generated yet did he not in vain make them Organical Bodies endued with Life Sense and Motion so that after they were made they might seek food which God had before provided for them and preserve themselves from other Creatures which might be hurtful to them As Sensation is naturally common to Man and other Sensitive Creatures so are the Passions of Love Fear Hatred and Desire viz. Love of those things which conduce to their Welfare and Preservation Fear of those things which are hurtful to them accompanied with an Hatred of them and a Desire of generating their Like in other Bodies Besides these Attributes common to other Creatures God endued Man with an Intellectual and Reasonable Soul which is proper to Man exclusive to other Creatures and made all things in this our Habitable World for the Use of
are commissionated by him So help me God So that from swearing Negatively to Belief in the first part of this Oath we come to swear Affirmatively in this part of it But this part not being Promissory of Time to come is an Assertory Oath too if any besides the taking God's Name in vain or worse An Assertory Oath is of what a Man knows to be certainly true and what was immediately the Object of Sense Here a Man swears not that he knows but abhors and what does he abhor That Traiterous Position of taking Arms by the King's Authority against his Person or those commissionated by him Is Traiterous Position the Object of Sense and immediate so as the Swearer knows what the meaning of Traiterous Position is Which I believe not one of twenty does Or is not some Inference deduced from some Law or Usage which cannot be the Object of Sense and so not to be sworn to The End of an Assertory Oath is to inform the Judg and Jury so that Justice may be determined by it but here is neither Judg nor Jury to inform What can be the end of this Swearing Why 't is because otherwise the Swearer cannot be a Member of the Corporation but if I cannot take his Word I 'll not take his Oath And he that swears most to get Places is least worthy of them And I dare say he so much less understands his Duty in any Place by how much the more he is ready to swear to get into it And you will see that those Men who are so ready to swear by this Oath which they did not understand to get to be Members of Corporations shall be more ready to forswear themselves in giving up their Charters which they had sworn to maintain and keep and which they understood they ought to do Religion Piety Judgment Justice and Righteousness are the ways by which God is honoured and Peace and Happiness established in Nations and Kingdoms And will God instead of these suffer his Sacred Name to be prostituted by vain Swearing so as to pass unpunished Did not the Prophet Hosea Ch. 4. v. 3. of old complain That the Land mourned because of Oaths And hath not our Land mourned ever since the Convocation after the Dissolution of the Short Parliament 1640 did enjoin the Oath I A. B. swear that I approve the Doctrine and Discipline of the Church of England as containing all things necessary to Salvation and will not consent to alter the Government in the Church by Arch-bishops Bishops Deans and Arch-Deacons c. to be taken by all the Clergy Was God well pleased that his Sacred Name should be affixed to such Stuff Or did this establish this Hierarchy Did not the Parliament about a Year after expel the Bishops out of the Lords House and imprisoned their Persons and made them and all Deans and Arch-Deacons uncapable of Temporal Jurisdiction And did not England and Scotland about two Years after join in a Covenant and swear to extirpate Arch-bishops Bishops Deans and Arch-Deacons Did not the Engagement expel the Covenant and the Recognition to Oliver out the Engagement till Men neither regarded what they had sworn nor cared what they swore to Monk before he came out of Scotland caused the Scots to abjure the King and his Interest So in his coming to London he did by the Officers of the Irish Brigade and the Rump died abjuring the King and Royal Family yet in less than four Months after the King was restor'd Before the Scots would admit the King to land in Scotland the 23d of June 1650 they made him with his Hands lifted up swear in the Presence of Almighty God the Searcher of all Hearts his Allowance and Approbation of the National Covenant and Solemn League and Covenant and Directories of Worship and not only to give his Royal Assent to Acts of Parliament enjoining the same in all his Dominions but to observe them in his private Family And upon his Coronation on the 11th of January 1651 repeated the same Oath Yet how little did this avail him or the Covenanters for in less than eight Months Cromwel drove him and his Covenanters quite out of Scotland And I dare say the King never after made use of them in his private Family nor ever after give his Assent to any Act of Parliament enjoining the Covenants tho he were restored to all his Dominions From swearing the Corporation-Oath the Parliament proceeds That all Members of Corporations declare against the Solemn League and Covenant in these words I A. B. do declare That I hold there lies no Obligation upon me or any other Person from the Oath commonly called the Solemn League and Covenant and that the same was in it self an unlawful Oath and imposed upon the Subjects of this Realm against the known Laws and Liberties of the Kingdom This Declaration is as vain and more wild than the Corporation-Oath for 't is but matter of Belief or Opinion and so no Issue can be taken upon it but if there could in him who declares yet none can be taken upon that part which declares there lies no Obligation upon another and I 'll put it upon this Issue that such a Declaration was never before enjoin'd by any Law And if the Covenant be an unlawful Oath in it self because imposed by no lawful Authority yet I say that no Authority under Heaven can make the taking God's Name in vain lawful much less to take a vain or superfluous Oath From new invented swearing and declaring to keep the King in the Kingdom the Church makes many new invented Prayers for him especially that for the Parliament wherein they tell God that the King is their most Religious and Gracious King as if he were so and God did not know it and if he were not so to perswade God he was so De Jove quid sentis Will God be mock'd Is not he Omniscient and knows the Secrets of every Man's Heart Has he any need to be informed what Man is Or did this King's manner of Life induce the Church to inform God that he was most Gracious or full of Grace Or his devout Behaviour at his seldom Presence in Divine Service declare him to be most Religious This King's Father and Grand-father's Flatterers went no higher than to flatter them that they were bound by no Laws and accountable to none but God for all their Actions and that their Subjects were bound to obey them in all under Penalty of Damnation They never went about to perswade God they were most Religious and Gracious in so doing The Parliament chimed in with the Church and by the Act of Vniformity enjoin That every one who holds an Ecclesiastical Promotion shall publickly declare before his Congregation his unfeigned Assent and Consent to every thing contained and prescribed in the Book entituled The Book of Common-Prayer c. Put these together I. A. B. do declare my unfeigned Assent and Consent That the King
Charles II. is my most Religious and Gracious King If he be so how came you to know it And if you do not know it how came you so unfeignedly to assent and consent that he is so But tho to get your Living you tell the Congregation so when you do not know it I think it 's dreadful for you to tell God Almighty he is so if you be not very well assured he is so But you 'll soon see what Care this King took of the Church of England which took such Care for him Was God well pleased with these things You shall soon see unjust Wars and dishonourable Peace Such Judgments of Plague Fire and Invasion into our Ports as never before were heard of And tho God's Judgments were in the Land the People did not learn Righteousness but continued a divided and factious Nation and a People laden with Iniquity The Honour of the Nation not only lost abroad but a joining with a neighbouring Faithless Boundless and Ambitious Prince to the endangering the Subversion of the Religion Constitutions and Liberties of the English Nation Now let 's see what is doing in Scotland If a Man reads Buchanan's and Drummond's History of Scotland they will better judg of General Monk's prudent Government and Conduct in it for eight Years together For from the Contest between Bruce and Baliol for the Succession to the Crown of Scotland about the Year 1280 till James VI. came to the Crown of England I scarce find five Years Peace together in any of the Reigns between And if for some time the Scots were freed from open War yet scarce at any time were they freed from Feuds among the Nobility or the Nobility at Discord and Variance with their Kings After the Reformation of Religion in Scotland which began in the first Year of Queen Elizabeth by her assisting the Nobility with an Army by Land and a Fleet by Sea whereby the French sent by Henry the Second of France Father of Francis the Dauphin who had married Mary the Scotish Queen to subdue Scotland to a Conformity to the Romish Church were outed the Kirk of Scotland set up a Jurisdiction as independent from the Civil as the Romish was and held it up during the Reign of Mary and after they had expelled her and chosen her Son James King about fourteen Months old in the Regency of Murrey they got their Church-Discipline established by Act of Parliament This was in the Year 1567. The Kirk being possest of this Power during the Minority of King James and several of the Nobility having got a great share of the Crown-Lands of Scotland the King upon his Majority was so poor that he was not in a Condition to keep up the State of a King much less to curb the Insolence of the Kirk the Nobility who had got the Crown-Lands joining with them Tho Queen Elizabeth did not love the Kirk-Party yet was she content to have Scotland in this State for thereby she preserv'd the English Borders free from the Depredations which the Scots usually made upon them and therefore secretly countenanced both the King and Nobility who had got the Crown-Lands However ever she allowed the King a Pension yearly whereby she kept the King as well as Kirk and Nobility depending upon her In this State England and Scotland stood till the Death of Queen Elizabeth but it was ill timed of King Charles I. to grant Commissions to enquire into the Crown-Lands usurped in his Father's Minority and soon after to endeavour to set up Laud's Injunctions and High-Commission in Scotland which made the Nobility as well as Kirk so fierce in opposing them King Charles offended at the Proceedings of the Parliament of England in 1641 goes into Scotland and establishes the Kirk in all their Pretensions and disclaims all Title to the Crown-Lands usurped in his Father's Minority which no ways mollified either But next Year the Scots sent an Army under Lesley made an Earl by the King against him in Aid of the English Parliament But tho the Kirk and Nobility were thus insolent against their Kings they patiently submitted to Monk during his Government in Scotland except some few Disturbances made by General Middleton For neither Cromwel nor the Rump before him trusted to the Scotish Oaths or Solemn League and Covenant but after they had subdued them bridled them with Forts built upon the principal Passages of Scotland and disarm'd all the Nobility and Gentry and thereby kept them in Peace which King Charles by all the Condescensions he submitted to could not procure And hereto that the common sort of Scots lived in more Freedom under Monk than under their Lords and Lairds so that neither the Kirk or Nobility could form the Body of an Army against the English Before the King was restor'd the Army which would have kept him out was dissipated the Year before by Monk and after his Restoration was disbanded and so the English Nation was restored to its former Government But it was not so in Scotland for not only the Forts which bridled them but the Army which conquer'd them was still kept up Nor had the Scots any hopes of being freed from these Fetters but by an intire Submission to the King Upon the King's Restoration many Debates were in the Council in England about the calling a Parliament in Scotland and the demolishing the Forts for keeping the Scots in Subjection but neither were so easily determined for in all Scotland after Montross was butcher'd I do not find there was one of the Nobility except his Son which were not Popish or Presbyterian and the Presbyterian Party had been so rigid against the King when he was in Scotland and intolerable to his Father that above a Year past before any Resolution was taken in either Lauderdale as before said was taken Prisoner after the Fight at Worcester and from that time kept Prisoner in Windsor-Castle from whence he was set free upon the King's Restoration but became so poor that it 's said he could not meet the King for want 〈◊〉 Money to pay for a Pair of Boots This Imprisonment was doubly happy to him for during the Restraint of his Body he enlarged the Faculties of his Mind and being a Man of Parts improved them by Contemplation and Study wherein he met with more Helps than it may be he could have found in Scotland whereby he became of greater Abilitie◠to serve the King than could be found in any other of his Countrymen and being in England found better Opportunities to have them known to the King than any of his absent Country-men could In the late Wars between the King and Parliament he with Sir John Cheesley were ordered Commissioners by the Kirk-Faction to the Parliament in England for propagating the Presbyterian Government But this being most detestable at Court Lauderdale to raise himself set himself with all his Skill to oppose it and by it at first got to be made Principal Secretary
sent a Squadron under Sir John Lawson to that end And the Dutch sent another commanded by De Ruiter seemingly but not designedly for to join Sir John against the Algerines For De Ruiter after he had entred the Straits abandoned Sir John Lawson and sailed to Cape Verd and dispossessed the English of their Factories nor did he stay there but sailing thence he attempted Barbadoes but was beaten off with loss But with better Success he sailed to Long-Island where he made great Depradations This Double-dealing of the Dutch alarm'd the Parliament so as they petitioned the King to make War upon the Dutch and the King was well disposed to it having before designed it as many thought and so took this Occasion for it nor were the City of London less forward than the Parliament for promoting this War and upon that Account furnished the King with several Sums of Money for which both Houses gave the City Thanks upon the Twenty Fifth of November 1665. The King the Day before made this Speech to the Commons Mr. Speaker and you Gentlemen of the House of Commons I know not whether it be worth my Pains to endeavour to remove a vile Jealousy which some ill Men scatter abroad and which I am sure will never sink into the Breast of any Man who is worthy to sit upon your Benches that when you have given me a Noble and Proportionable Supply for the Support of a War I may be induced by some evil Counsellors for they will be thought to think very respectfully of my Person to make a sudden Peace and get all the Money for my own Private Occasions But let me tell you and you may be confident of it That when I am compelled to enter into a War for the Protection Honour and Benefit of my Subjects I will God willing not make a Peace but upon the obtaining and securing those Ends for which the War is entred into and when that can be done no good Man will be sorry for the Determination of it But the War was not declared till the 22d of February following But here I observe that neither my Lord Chancellor Hide nor my Lord Treasurer Southampton were present in Council at it It may seem strange to any Man conversant in our Government that the King in less than four Years and a half after his Restoration should be in such a Necessity of borrowing such Sums of Money of the City for the disbanding of the Army was paid by the Convention and Parliament and the Parliament had settled the Excise on him which was cessed at 500000 l. per Annum and the Customs at 600000 l. and Chimney-Money worth 150000 l. per Annum and 12 Car. 2. c. 26. granted the King the Arrears of twelve Months Assessment commencing the 25th of December 1659 and C. 29. gave the King 70000 l. and C. 34. also the Post-Office worth 50000 l. per Annum and in the 13 Car. 2. cap. 3. vested in the King the Arrears of the Excise and new Imposts and in the second Session Cap. 3. the Parliament gave the King 1270000 l. and Cap. 5. a voluntary Contribution and C. 8. gave the poor Cavaliers 60000 l. that the King might never hear more of them and C. 9. granted a further Relief for the poor and maimed Officers which had served the King's Father and also Cap. 15. four intire Subsidies by the Laity and four by the Clergy besides all the forfeited Estates both in England and Ireland So that the Excise Customs Chimney-Money Post-Office and forfeited Estates at a moderate Computation may be computed at 1600000 l. per Annum a new Addition to the Crown which Queen Elizabeth had not only the Court of Wards was exchanged for part of the Hereditary Excise And if you compute but six Months Arrear of the twelve Months Assessment at 70000 l. per Mensem beginning at Christmass 1659 this will amount to 420000 l. and the Arrears of the Excise and new Impost at 300000 l. and 70000 l. granted the King 12 Car. I. 29. and the 1270000 l. 13 Car. II. 3. and the voluntary Contribution at 300000 l. and the four Subsidies granted by the Clergy and Laity at 400000 l. besides the new added Revenue of 1600000 l. per Annum to the Crown the King in less than four Years and a half received 2860000 l. or two Millions eight hundred and sixty thousand Pounds Yet the King paid no Debts of his Father's nor do I find he built any new Men of War nor made any War except that last Year against the Algerines It 's true he married his Sister but had twice her Portion of the French King for the Sale of Dunkirk and also 400000 l. Portion with the Queen Now let 's see how things stood in Scotland During the Earl of Middleton's Commission the Parliament of Scotland granted the King so great a Revenue that the King signified his Pleasure not to raise any more but tho Middleton in the general Opinion had done more in Scotland than could have been expected yet Lauderdale thought he had not done enough and therefore got the Parliament to be dissolved and a new one to be called in 1663 and the Earl of Rothes the Ring-leader of the Presbyterians in the Reign of Charles the First and was the first that subscribed the Letter to Lewis the XIII th for his Aid by the Appellation of Au Roy to be made Commissioner The King's Supremacy in all Ecclesiastial and Civil Matters and so great a Revenue as the King could ask being settled by Middleton one would have thought no more could be done yet another Law must be passed intituled the Humble Tender Whereby the Kingdom of Scotland is obliged to raise the King twenty thousand Foot and two thousand Horse sufficiently armed and furnished with forty days Provision to be in a readiness at his Majesty's Call And also that all Scots-Men from sixteen to sixty if the King should have further use of them should hazard their Lives and Fortunes as they shall he called by his Majesty for the Safety and Preservation of his Sacred Person Authority and Government to march into any part of Scotland England or Ireland for the suppressing any Foreign Invasion or Intestine Troubles or any other Service wherein his Majesty's Honour c. was concerned And this Law it may be was the Equivalent for which the Forts were demolished Tho Rothes was Commissioner when the Act passed yet Lauderdale assumed to himself the Glory of it and it 's observable this Act passed the same Year and about the same time the King issued out his Declaration of Indulgence to the Dissenters in England Thus you see as the Parliament of Scotland outrun the Parliament of England in Loyalty to the King so at least they went hand in hand with them in grauting the King more Aids than he would ask of the Subjects of his antient Kingdom Never had Kings of England or Scotland their Debts so easily
Dutch in this Peace being to restore all they had taken in the Leeward Islands to the English And now the Steed is stoln the Stable-door is shut for after the Peace thousands of People were pressed in London to finish the Fort at Sheerness and it being a terrible aguish Time in an aguish Place almost all fell sick and it was deemed by many that more died there than in all the Dutch War In this Consternation 't was necessary to do something to appease the Parliament and People and so the King sends for the Seal from my Lord Chancellor Hide which was no sooner done but the Parliament were as fierce upon him as for the Dutch War One of his intimate Friends told me he took Counsel with his Friends whether he should stay or leave the Kingdom they all advised him not to stay and so he left the Kingdom yet fell into more Danger than if he had not for at Diep a Company of rude Sea-men endeavour'd to have assassinated him Thus fell this great Chancellor and Statesman I do not say a Sacrifice for either King or People having followed the King's Father in all his Wars and himself in his Exile yet he lived to see two Lord Chancellors in England and two Lord Keepers alive at the same time no Argument of the Steadiness of Counsels after him Two were deposed as well as he and the third with much ado lived to die in the Place A little before his Deposure as if he had lived long enough that great Standard of Loyalty and true Nobility my Lord Treasurer Southampton died but sure so upright a Chancellor or two such honourable Counsellors and Statesmen for their Integrity to the English Interest and great Understanding in State-Affairs have not since succeeded but they were but two to too many others and the King's Inclinations were towards the other side so as neither he nor my Lord Treasurer Southampton were present at the Council when the War was declared against the Dutch But this Power was in the Wain and the Torrent run t'other way It was time for the Dutch to make Peace with England for this Summer the French King with a mighty Army was fallen into Flanders and like a Torrent had ravaged Artois Hainault and other parts of the Spanish Netherlands and taken Charleroy Oudenard Aeth Courtray and Lisle But that we may take a better View of this War we must look back In the Year 1612 there was a cross Marriage between Lewis XIII of France and Philip IV. of Spain Lewis married Philip's Sister and Philip married Elizabeth Lewis his Sister By Elizabeth Philip had Don Belthazar and the Infanta married to the French King by the Treaty of the Pyrenees In the Year 1649 Elizabeth of France being dead Philip married Ann the Daughter of Ferdinand the Third Emperor Philip's own Niece by whom he had Charles the now King of Spain I do not find whether Don Belthazar was dead before the French King married his Sister but Charles the now King was born about Nine Months after the Pyrenean Treaty By the Pyrenean Treaty the French King by all that they call sacred in the Church of Rome and by all the Clauses the Wit of Man could express to avoid Evasion disclaimed all Right or Title to Spain or any part of it in the Right of the Infanta and Philip dying in the Year 1665 the French King did engage his Faith and Royal Word to the Queen by the Marquess De la Fuente that he would Religiously keep the Peace and continue a faithful Friendship with her and her Son during his Minority nay after the Eruption by the French into Flanders the Arch-Bishop of Ambrun did in Verbo Sacerdotis protest and vow to the Queen that his Master the French King would never break with the King of Spain or invade his Dominions during his Minority By this time the Dauphin I think was about Six Years old and his Father to cover his Hypocrisy and Perfidy pretended that the Women of Brabant by the first Venter inherit before the Males of the second but you shall see Brabant flow over all the Spanish Netherlands and therefore no Act of his could preclude the Dauphin who was born of Philip's first Wife which vain Pretension was throughly confuted by the renowned States-man the Baron de Isola in his excellent Treatise termed The Buckler of State and Justice However about four Days after the Arch-Bishop of Ambrun's Protestation the Queen of Spain had notice of a Manifesto published by the French King that he had so fully proved his Son's Title that he did not think himself obliged to spend any time in unprofitable Contests about it yet not to make War but to take Friendly Possession of what was so justly due to the Dauphin Never was Spain at so low an Ebb and unable to make Opposition to the French as at this time for besides our King 's giving up Dunkirk to the French and the breaking of the Spanish Army at the Fight at Elvas in Portugal which should have defended Flanders the War still continued there where the French by a Treaty with Portugal contrary to the Pyrenean Treaty were to have all the Port Towns taken from the Spaniard The Buchaneers at Jamaica plagued the Spaniard in the Returns of their Plate-Fleet and plundered and fired many of the Spanish Towns upon the firm Land And Don John the King's Bastard Brother and the Queen were at highest Discord about her Confessor Nitard so as Don John refused to accept of the Government of Flanders again to oppose the French Here 't is observable how much the French King's Ambition prevail'd beyond his Zeal to Religion for in 1665 and 1666 the Irish had been treating with him to send an Army into Ireland to assist the Irish in a designed Rebellion against the King which this Year was brought to Maturity and the French King promised to send them Forty Thousand Men to land on St. Lewis's Day in August But he kept his Promise no better with them to assist them than he did his Oath at the Pyrenean Treaty not to assist the Portuguese and to the Queen Regent in Spain not to invade any of the Spanish Dominions during the Minority of the King The King either stung with the Success of his Mother's Assurance that the Dutch would put out no Fleet this Year or at this time angry with his Brother of France for the Ravages he had made upon the English in the West-Indies whereby the King's Customs were much lessened or it may be having some Seeds of the wholsome Counsels which the Chancellor Hide and Treasurer Southampton had infused into him how dangerous it would be to England as well as Holland for the French to make a Conquest in Flanders sent to Sir William Temple his then Resident at Brussels to take joint Measures with the States for restraining the Progress of the French Conquests in Flanders This was in January 1667
sit out a greater Fleet of Men of War than ever any French King did before Nor were the Dutch behind-hand but made proportionable Advances not doubting but the King would make good his Proportion according to the League so lately made between the King and them in case the French King made any Attempt upon them Upon the 24th of October 1670 the Parliament met again and notwithstanding all the Aids granted the King in April before my Lord-Keeper Bridgman told the Parliament the great Care his Majesty had of them and the Kingdom since their last Recess and that besides the triple Alliance he had made many advantagious Alliances both for Security and Profit of Trade with the Swede Dane Spaniard and Duke of Savoy But since the Dutch and French made such vast Naval Preparations it was necessary for the Safety and Honour of the Nation that the King should at least keep equal Pace with them which could not be done without great Supplies which must be speedily granted for the King intended to put an End of this Session before Christmas but the Success of this Speech so ill agreeing with the Premises it was not permitted to be printed yet you may read it at large in Mr. Marvel's Growth of Popery But whatever Treaties of Commerce were made with other Princes the Keeper finds none with France where neither the advantagious Treaty made by Oliver was observed nor any new one made but the French King did use the English with all imaginable Oppressions without any Redress from the King However this Speech wrought so pathetically with the Parliament that they gave the King one Shilling in the Pound of the real Value of all the Lands of England for one Year and an Additional Excise upon Beer and Ale for six Years and the Law-Bill for nine Years which three Bills were computed at two Millions and a half And now this dark Design founded in such deep Dissimulation Hypocrisy and Perfidiousness as Oliver Cromwel would have been ashamed of and blush'd at begins to receive Light For the Parliament having granted the King the Aids were in Consequence prorogued and did not meet to act till the fourth of February 167 1 2. But in regard that not only the extirpating the Protestant Religion but the Subversion of the Western Parts of Europe was now designed which extended as far as the Baltick Sea and the Bounds of the Turkish and Tartar Empires we will be a little particular in it But what is most amazing is that the King in appearance a Protestant and a free independent King so used by the French King in his Exile and since his Restoration should be so forward in joining with a Faithless and Boundless Ambitious Neighbouring Prince which if his Design had succeeded had involved the Kingdoms of England Scotland and Ireland in the same Condition with the rest of Christendom The Vizard-Mask under which the Popish Party covered their Hypocrisy in propagating their Catholick Cause for plain-dealing must never be expected in it in King Charles the First 's time was Arminianism which then had the Ascendant in Laud's Regency but since the King's Restoration the Protestant Dissenters being so fiercely prosecuted by the Parliament it was judged that the dispensing with Penal Laws against Dissenters from the Church of England would conjoin the Protestant Dissenters Interest with the Popish and this not only appeared by Practice but by Design in Coleman's Letters to Father Ferier and La Chaise the French King's Confessors As before the first Dutch War the King issued out his Declaration of Indulgence for dispensing with the Penal Laws in Ecclesiastical Affairs in the Interval of the sitting of the Parliament so did he before the second War It seems to me that the Designers of this War got some secret Oath or Promise from the King that he should not do the like again for the King told the House of Commons he would stand by his Declaration of Indulgence and sure nothing but Queen Money would have got him off However these Conspirators were more zealous than politick for before the King issued out his Declaration of Indulgence in England upon the 26th of February 1671 he issued out his Proclamation in Ireland wherein he granted general Licence to all Papists to live in Corporations exercise Trades there and enjoy the same Privileges as other Subjects ought to do which was a greater Privilege than his Protestant Subjects had for by their Charter all who were not free of the Corporations could not have the Benefit of their Privileges But that the Catholick Design might take deeper Root and Continuance the Duke of York's Sons being dead and the Princesses his Daughters being bred up in the Protestant Religion Care must be taken to establish the Popish for the time to come for which it was expedient the Duke should marry some Popish Princess and to this end the Arch-Dutchess of Inspruck was propounded and a Treaty entred into upon it But tho the Princess's Religion pleased the French King yet the Interest this Marriage would bring with it did not So that tho the Treaty were far advanced yet the French King who ruled all the Roast propounded the Princess of Modena the Daughter of a little Italian Prince and a Dependant of the French King's yet had a great Interest in the Court of Rome and this against all Endeavours of the Parliament and to the Dishonour of the Treaty with the Arch-Dutchess prevailed the French King having adopted her a Daughter of France and given her a Portion But while these Designs are laid in the dark here in England the French King bare-faced by his Ambassador at Vienna in a solemn Speech declared that his Master had undertaken the War against Holland for propagating the Catholick Cause and that all good Christians were bound to join with him to extirpate Heresy and that he would restore all his Conquests to re-establish the true Worship banish'd out of the Holland's meaning the Vnited Netherlands Territories which you may read more at large in Mr. Secretary Trevor's Appeal c. Now let 's see how agreeable these Mens Morals were to their Religious Pretences in laying the Scene for this designed Dutch War The Treasury since the Death of my Lord Treasurer Southampton was managed by Commissioners and if the Aids granted by the Parliament were not sufficient for carrying on the King's Designs the French King is to supply him further but things were not ripe enough yet for these Monies to be returned into the Exchequer lest they might give cause of Suspicion and therefore between six and seven hundred thousand Pounds were received by Mr. Chiffins he to have two Pence in the Pound to be disposed of as the King shall order If you doubt this you may examine Mr. Chiffins's Accounts when he was advised to pass them and take his Quietus out of the Exchequer Tho by the Defensive League between the King and States when the Triple League
was entred into the King and States were mutually engaged to supply each other with a certain Number of Men and Ships in case of any Foreign Invasion upon either yet now the King hath Subsides given him by the French King to join with him against Holland which by the Defensive Alliance the King was obliged to assist The King who was so great in the Love of his Subjects and Parliament for the Triple League and had received such vast Sums for it now at the Instance of the French King sends Mr. Henry Coventry to the Court of Sweden to dissolve it which he did so effectually that that King not only stood Neuter at the beginning of the War with the Dutch but in it joined with the French King against the Confederates and this Success Mr. Coventry had that for this Business which put all Christendom into a Flame he was by the King made principal Secretary of State and it may be presented with his fine Ranger's Place in Enfield-Chase too and that perhaps with thrice more by the French King Whereas Sir William Temple who was the principal Instrument in the Peace at Nimeguen lost 2200 l. by it and his only Recompence was to be Secretary of State in Mr. Conventry's Place if Sir William would give him 10000 l. for it The Triple League thus dissolved all Obstacles which might retard the Progress of this pious Work must be removed And now my Lord-keeper Bridgman having done by his Speech the Conspirators Work for Money has done his own too and is turn'd out of his Place and my Lord Ashley Cooper Chancellor of the Exchequer is made Lord Chancellor of England and Earl of Shaftsbury Mr. Clifford after Lord Clifford Lord High-Treasurer of England and my Lord Arlington Chamberlain to the King's Houshold and Prince Rupert the Duke of Ormond and Secretary Trevor discarded from the Committee of Foreign Affairs so as the CABAL viz. Clifford Ashley Buckingham Arlington and Lauderdale govern all The first Result of this sacred Conclave was the shutting up of the Exchequer wherein the Bankers who formerly had furnished the King with mighty Sums of Money at extorsive Interest had lodged between 13 and 1400000 l. of the Subjects Money this was in January 167 1 2. One would think these Monies added to the Aids granted in the last Session of Parliament with those received from France might have carried on the War against the Dutch on the King's Part but to make sure the Fleet for which the Parliament gave such vast Sums to be equal with the French or Dutch is set out under Sir Robert Holmes to surprize the Smirna-Fleet which he vainly attempted the thirteenth and fourteenth of March 167 1 2 and to sanctify so Herotick an Act at this very time the Declaration of Indulgence was printed and published the fifteenth The French King having gotten the King into his Net let 's see how he used him The French King openly declar'd that 't was none of his Quarrel and that he only engaged in it out of respect to his Person and therefore before any War was declared the King must first break the Peace by the Attempt upon the Smirna-Fleet The Dutch alarm'd at the Attempt upon their Smirna-Fleet and being in no Condition to resist both Kings sent Deputies to both to know upon what Terms they would agree to Peace Those sent to our King were denied Audience and kept at Hampton-Court till it were known what the French King's Pleasure was but those sent to the French King had Answer That what the King had was his own and what he should conquer should be his without an Equivalent and declared the States might deal with England as they pleased and come off as cheap as they could because by their Treaty they were not bound to procure them any Advantages Yet all this the King as patiently submitted to now as before he suffered one Marsilly to be broken on the Wheel at Paris without one word from him in his behalf for being his Agent to the Swiss to invite them to join in the Guaranty of Aix who upon the Scaffold had twenty Questions asked him in relation to his Majesty's Person and a strict Enquiry of the Particulars that passed between the King and him all which you may read at large in Mr. Secretary Trevor's Appeal And this pitiful Story you may find in a little Treatise termed Colbert's Ghost printed at Cologn 1684. I find little difference in the Causes of this War by these two Kings The French King 's was that the Dutch had acted in Diminution to his Glory but says not wherein The King of England's was the Dutch had not yielded him the Honour due to his Flag The Cabal sought for a fourfold Cause of this War the Insults upon the English in the East-India Trade the detaining the Engglish Planters in Surinam against the Treaty at Breda and horrid Pictures in Defamation of his Majesty and his Flag To this purpose the Committee for the East-India Company was summoned to shew Cause who answer'd and gave it under their Hands That since the Treaty at Breda they knew no Cause nor as yet the Dutch could pretend to no more than was granted by it they having not as yet assisted the young King of Bantam against his Father and made use of the young King's Name to expel the English Factories from the Pepper Trade as before they had the Spice Trade For detaining the English Planters in Surinam it was answer'd the Planters were not willing to forsake their Subsistence and be turned into the wild World to seek it and that the Dutch perform'd their Part with Mr. Secretary Trevor and therefore it was no fault of theirs if it were not observ'd nor did they hinder them when they were transplanted to repair the Ruin of the English Plantation in St. Christophers made by the French For the Pictures the Dutch answered they knew of none except one Medal which might be liable to any such Construction but so soon as they knew of it they caused the Stamp to be broken For that of the Flag the Case stood thus the Dutch having fitted up a Fleet of Men of War in jealousy of the French were riding near their own Coast when one of the King's Yachts discharged a Gun at the Admiral to strike Sail which the Admiral not doing was the cause of the Breach for the War tho the States disown'd the Refusal and offer'd to make any Satisfaction the King should require But it is the End which crowns the Work in every Act and therefore the Declaration concludes That notwithstanding this War the King will support the Treaty at Aix la Chapelle according to the Scope and Intent of it and preserve the Ends of it inviolable As if the getting the Swede out of it and joining with the French against the Dutch diametrically contrary to it were the Support of that Treaty or that the subduing Holland so that the French
Queen Regent of Spain upon the French Irruption into the Spanish Netherlands in 1667 having made Peace with Portugal and Col. Fitz-Gerald an Irish Papist Major-General The Business of this Army was as the Vogue went That since the French King could not get that part of Holland which was drencht by Fresh Water to souse it with Salt Water by cutting down their Sea-Banks but Point Homo For the Dutch Mob astonished and confounded with the Loss of their Country by Land and opposed by Two the most Powerful Kings in the whole World by Sea in a Rage assassinated the Two De Witts Cornelius and John as the Betrayers of their Country and the Causers of this War and depose the States who they thought were of the Lovestein or De Witts Faction and restore the Prince of Orange now in the first Year of his coming to age to the Command of his Ancestors and make Monsieur Fagell Pensioner of Holland The Prince being the King's Nephew and having never offended him raised an Expectation in the People and Fear in the French King that the King would not suffer the Prince to fall into a worse State than the De Witts intended by suffering the French to conquer Holland whereby the Prince's Authority must needs be swallowed up This the French King foresaw and therefore to obviate it the French King was the first who made Application to the Prince and proposed to him the making him Soveraign of the Vnited Provinces under the Protection of England and France such a Protection was never heard of before But the French King knew how to deal with his Brother of England It 's admirable to consider that notwithstanding the Conquest by the French of the other Provinces and the Desolation of Holland and the long Prejudices even from his Cradle against him by the Lovestein Faction this Generous Prince in his most florid and ambitious Age should out of his vertuous innate Love to his Country stand so firm to it that his Answers were That he would never betray a Trust reposed in him nor sell the Liberties of his Country which his Ancestors had so long defended and God so blest him herein But out of these Ruins shall this limited Prince arise and put a check to the boundless and arbitrary Ambition of this designing French Universal Monarch as his Ancestors before had to the Spanish The King it seems could not but see that whilst he got nothing but blows by Sea the French got all by Land and therefore sent the Duke of Buckingham my Lords Arlington and Hallifax to the French King keeping his Court at Vtrecht but with Instructions as secret and dark as those of making the War These when they came into Holland were informed of the French Designs and the King's Answer to their Deputies was viz. That the King might treat as he pleased but that what the French King had got was his own and that what he should get he would not restore without an Equivalent Which raised such an Indignation in them that nothing would serve their turn but destroying at least mastering the French Fleet And in this Humour they went to the Prince of Orange and promised the same and engaged to their utmost to bring the French King to be satisfied with Mastricht and of keeping Garisons in the Towns upon the Rhine belonging to the Electors of Brandenburgh and Cologn From Holland Two of these proceed to the French Court at Vtrecht where the French Air changed their Minds they left in Holland and about Four Days after sent word to the Prince of Orange that the States must give Satisfaction to both Kings jointly and that neither would treat separately upon which the Prince desired to know what the Kings joint and respective Demands were and of the new Agreement made by them so contrary to their Promise to the Prince and States Whereupon Mr. Secretary Trevor makes these Queries 1. Whether they were sent to promote the French Conquest If not why by making the Peace impossible as far as in them lay would they force the Dutch to submit to the French Dominion 2. Whether they did not know that the French Demands alone had been rejected by the States and that the granting of them would make it impossible for the Dutch to give the King any Satisfaction 3. Whether having received from the Prince and States all imaginable Assurances of their Designs to return to the King's Amity and to purchase it at any Rate they could they could faithfully neglect these and enter into a new Engagement so prejudicial to England 4. How far those who were joined in Commission did concur in their Judgment and whether these Considerations with many others were not represented to them and urged by some who desired to serve the King faithfully 5. Whether or no it was for that Reason they opposed to fiercely my Lord Viscount Hallifax's whom came a Day or two after them Appearing and Acting jointly with them tho in the same Commission with them in as ample a Manner as themselves 6. Who were those who after my Lord Hallifax could be kept out no longer went privately to the French Camp under Pretences and had Negotiations of their own on foot 7. Whether they had order to call the French King King of France and to name him before their Master as well in the French Demands as of his Majesty's in all their Agreements which they sent to the Prince of Orange 8. Whether they had Instructions to stand in the Behalf of the French upon the Publick Exercise of the Roman Catholick Religion in the Vnited Provinces the Churches to be divided to the Roman Priests to be maintained out of the Publick Revenue And to bind the King's Hands so that the French King may be sure of his Bargain these Plenipotentiaries Two of them agreed with the French that the King should not treat nor conclude a Peace with the Dutch without them But the French King shall find no more Security herein than the Dutch and Spaniard did in the King 's joining in the Triple League For the Support of this holy Catholick Design stood my Lord Treasurer Clifford and a new Band of Parliament-Pensioners never before heard of in England at Board and Wages but these being a kind of Land-Privateers are to tax the Country to pay themselves and to do whatsoever shall be commanded or no Purchase no Pay In this state of Affairs the Parliament met again the 4th of February 1671 â— when the Commons like Men coming out of a drowzy Lethargy began to consider the dangerous state of the Nation and the dangerous Consequences of the severe Prosecution of Protestant Dissenters by provoking them to join with the Popish and therefore tho they question'd the King's Declaration of Indulgence and no Money was like to be had unless he recall'd it yet upon the 14th of February the Commons resolved Nemiâ—â— contradicente That a Bill be brought in for the Ease
of his Majesty's Subjects who are Dissenters in Matters of Religion from the Church of England And a Bill passed the House accordingly but was stopt in the House of Lords Causa patet the dead Weight joining with the Caballing Party But whatever the Commons thought of the King 's Dispensing Power in England Lauderdale the fifth in the Cabal in England was of another Opinion in Scotland for in the second Parliament c. 1. held by him he gets an Act declaring That by Virtue of the King's Supremacy the ordering the Government of the Church does properly belong to his Majesty and Successors as an inherent Right of the Crown and that he may enact and emit such Constitutions Acts and Orders concerning Church-Administrations Persons Meetings and Matters as he in his Royal Wisdom shall think fit c. any Law Act or Custom to the contrary notwithstanding And that he might not be less active in Scotland than his Brother Clifford was in England and Buckingham and Arlington were in Holland being armed with these other Powers he made all sorts of People depose upon Oath their Knowledg of the Persons of Dissenters not Popish Meetings in the Exercise of their Worship upon Penalty of Fining Imprisonment Banishment and Transportation to be sold for Slaves imprisoning all outed Ministers who shall preach out of their Families till they give Security of 5000 Marks Scot not to do the same again every Hearer being a Tenant to pay 25l Scot and Cotter 12 toties quoties they shall offend and that it shall be Death for any to preach in Fields or Houses where any are without doors and 500 Marks Reward for any to secure such dead or alive and gave Orders That every Man for himself and all under him should give Bond not to go to Field-Meetings and to inform against pursue and deliver up all outed Ministers to Judgment The Execution of these Orders was not by legal Officers but by an Army of Highland Robbers who quartered upon the Country so that it may be a Question whether the French King did not take his Measures in his Dragoon-Reformation by the ground-work laid by Lauderdale But his Grace which it seems did work irresistibly did not stay here for his Highland Army which consisted of eight or nine thousand Men not only lived upon Free Quarter upon all sorts of the King 's peaceable Subjects but in most places levied great Sums of Money under the Notion of Dry Quarters they had only regard to the Duke 's private Animosities for the most part of the Places where they quartered and destroyed had not been guilty of Field-Conventicles The King's Subjects were denounced Rebels and Captions issued out for seizing their Persons for not entring into Bond That neither they nor any under them shall go to Field-Conventicles and the Nobility and Gentry were disarmed who had ever been faithful to the King and assisted in suppressing Field-Conventicles Indictments were delivered in by the King's Advocate in the Evening to be answered next Morning upon Oath otherwise they were to be reputed guilty These and many more of this kind in the Matters relating to Lauderdale's Administration of Affairs in Scotland were represented to the King and that by his Command and are in Lauderdale's and his Lady's Impeachment which are all in Print Notwithstanding all this it was this Lauderdale who had procured an Act of Parliament to raise 20000 Foot and 2000 Horse to march into England to serve the King upon all Occasions And tho the Duke to prevent the Fame of his Actions arriving in England had by a Proclamation forbid all Subjects to depart the Kingdom without Licence yet the Noise of his Actions flew every where in England not less than the Censures of the Star-Chamber and High Commission in Laud's Regency did in Scotland and in due time the Duke shall hear of them Can any Man now believe That the King by his Declaration of Indulgence intended any Benefit to the Dissenters in England whilst Lauderdale without doubt by his Order was acting these things in Scotland The House of Commons could not at first step forget all the Loyalty they before profest to the King nor yet would they own the Dutch War and therefore they voted the King 1238750 l. to supply the King 's extraordinary Occasions but before they would let this Bill slip through their Fingers they tack'd a Bill to it by which no Papist should have any publick Employment This Bill catch'd my Lord Treasurer Clifford the first in the Cabal who was forced to resign his Treasurer's Place or renounce Popery which he would not do his Pensioners not being against it hoping thereby to get the Places which the Popish Party held and even my Lord Chancellor Ashley from Delenda Carthago now sets up for the Country Party against the Designs of the Cabal so moultry are all Designs which are not cemented in Justice and Honour The King having got the Bill for the Money the further Sitting of the Parliament became uneasy to him whereupon the Parliament was adjourned till the 20th and after to the 27th of October viz. 1673. During this Recess there were three Sea-Fights between the English French and Dutch Prince Rupert Admiral in all which the French stood aloof looking on whilst the English and Dutch battered one another only Monsieur de Martell for engaging was recalled checked and dismissed As the English thrived no better by Sea so neither did the French by Land for first the Elector of Brandenburg then the Emperour and at last the King or Queen Regent of Spain apprehensive of the Danger common to them all of the French subduing the Dutch Provinces entred into a mutual League for their Defence and by their Conjunction the Prince of Orange recovered many of the Vpland Towns in almost as little Time as the French had taken them In this state the Swede now broke loose from the Triple League whereby he opened the Gap to let in this Confusion and became a Pensioner to France and proposes a Treaty of Peace to be held at Cologn and thither the King the Emperor the French King and the King of Spain send their Plenipotentiaries to treat of it The French King's Propositions were so insolent that if granted our King could have nothing yet the King pudet haec insisted That tho he was contented with such Propositions as he required so as accepted in ten Days yet if granted by the States they should be of no force nor will he enter into any Treaty of Peace unless his most Christian Majesty shall receive Satisfaction from the States in his Particular After the French King should have all the King's Demands were a Regulation of the Trade to the East-Indies a Settlement of the Freedom of Navigation in Europe the Arrears for the Fishing-Trade upon the English Coast to assert a settled Revenue to the Crown for every Buss or Dogger-boat for the future and to make Satisfaction for the Damages
that upon the second of June he offered the Duke his Friendship the use of his Purse to the assisting of him against the Designs of his and the Duke's Enemies and protested their Interests were so close linked together that those who opposed the one should be looked upon as Enemies to the other with much more as you may read in the Duke's Letter to Le Chaise the 29th of June 1675. Tho the French could not fight against the Dutch in Conjunction with the English yet without the English they can fight the Spaniard and Dutch For the Spaniard having block'd up Messina in Sicily by Land which last Year revolted to the French agreed with the Dutch to send a Fleet of Men of War to join the Spanish to block up Messina by Sea which the Dutch this Year did under De Ruyter but were so niggardly in it that the French beat both Dutch and Spanish Fleets and killed De Ruyter This was a just Reward returned to the Dutch for building the French six great Men of War six or seven Years before Just so Richlieu served the Spaniard in 1637 for joining with the French in expelling the English out of the Isle of Rhee Tho the King were the first in the Triple League for the Guaranty of the Treaty of Aix for the Preservation of Flanders and tho the King in his Declaration at the beginning of this War had engaged to support the Peace made at Aix yet the French King this Summer took the City of Limburg being the chief of one of the Spanish Provinces which the King not only takes no notice of but tells Sir William Temple newly commanded out of Holland by the King that some warm Leaders in both Houses had a mind to engage him in a War against France which they should not do because he was sure they would make use of it to the Ruin of his Ministers If the King were unhappy in his Declaration he was not less in saying this to Sir William to whom the Year before he promised to be the Man of his People but is now of his Ministers And sure he was the first Prince that ever profest it Upon the 13th of October the Houses met and the King asked a Supply for building of Ships and to take off the Anticipation upon his Revenue In the Interval of this Recess the Debates of the Abhorring Oath became publick which so nettled the Court and Church-Party being the more numerous that since they could not prevail by Reason they would by Fire and therefore ordered them to be burnt which made the Debates so much more to be enquired into and hereby received a greater Light The Commons had before them several Bills for preventing future Mischief viz. The Habeas Corpus Bill A Bill against sending Men Prisoners beyond Sea Against raising Money without Consent in Parliament Against Papists sitting in either House For more speedy convicting of Papists And for recalling his Majesty's Subjects out of the French Service These Bills being so diametrically contrary to the French and Popish Designs and the Commons now more peremptorily than before opposing the Lords Jurisdiction in Appeals from Chancery so that they voted Whosoever shall solicite or prosecute any Appeal against any Commoner of England from any Court of Equity before the House of Lords shall be deemed and taken a Betrayer of the Rights and Liberties of the Commons of England and shall be proceeded against accordingly And the Commons having commanded the Counsel who pleaded before the Lords to the Tower How much is the case now altered the King took thereby an occasion to prorogue the Parliament from the 22d of November 1675 to the 16th of February 1676 which is above a Year in which time by a Law in Edward the Third's time a Parliament was to be called and as it was without Precedent so it caused new Debates and Heats in both Houses when they met In this long Recess I find but few Motions of the French and Popish Councils more than what appeared in Sir Gascoin's and other Trials For Coleman's last two Years Letters were supprest as was his Book of Entries and the Commotions raised in Britany and Guiene by the Impositions imposed upon the Inhabitants hindred the French this Year from their usually more early opening their Campagn than the Confederates so that every where the Confederates prevailed against the Tureen's Army was distressed by Montecuculi and himself killed yet the Army got on the French side of the Rhine by the Bravery and bold Stands of the English The Dukes of Lunenburg routed Marshal Crequy's Army and after took Triers and made Crequy Prisoner and the Imperialists also took Philipsburg the Elector of Brandenburg routed the Swedes in Pomerland entred into a League with the King of Denmark who took Wismar from the Swede and the Prince of Orange took Binch from the French and rased it But the Progress of all these Victories were stopt by the unaccountable Retreat of Montecuculi out of Alsatia with his whole Army back over the Rhine it was said by express Orders from Vienna thereby leaving Alsatia in the Power of the French to the breaking of the old Duke of Lorain's Heart who at that time had and never before so fair a Prospect of the Recovery of his Country If the Commotions in Britany and Guiene retarded the French opening the Campagn last Year the King shall make amends in this For having provided Stores for Horse and Man in his Frontier Garisons in February 167 6 7 he block'd up Valenciennes and Cambray and committed such Ravages by burning and destroying those Parts of Germany which lay opposite to him on the other side of the Rhine as if he made War not to conquer but to destroy tho this were at a time whilst they were in a Treaty of Peace with the Empire and King of Spain Upon the 17th of March he notwithstanding the extream Coldness of the Season took Valenciennes and from thence marched to Cambray and laid Siege to it and St. Omers and after the opening of his Trenches Cambray surrendred but not the Citadel our King looking on as if he had not been concerned in the Guaranty of the Treaty of Aix Nor could the Prince of Orange prevent this the Spanish Garisons being ill provided and the Confederates being so slow in getting into Bodies to oppose the French or if they had been to be got together they could not have kept the Field for want of Provisions for Horse and Man However tho the Prince could not come time enough to relieve Cambray and Valenciennes yet with the single Forces of the States the Spaniard not so much as supplying him with Guides marched to the Relief of St. Omers but the Duke of Luxemburg joining with the Duke of Oleance met the Prince at Mount-Cassel where at first the Dispute was brave but the first Regiment of the Dutch Infantry breaking and falling into Disorder the Prince rallied them
several times and renewed the Charge but could not prevent their plain Flight yet made so brave a Retreat which wanted little of the Honour of a Victory so both the Citadel of Cambray and St. Omers upon the 20th of April fell into the French Hands and thereby the main Strength of the Frontier to the Dutch Netherlands lost And by these Conquests the French King not only delivered his own Subjects from the Contributions they paid to these Cities but enlarged his upon the Residue of the Spanish Netherlands Upon the 15th of February 167 6 7 the Parliament met again and from the Variance between the Houses about Appeals from Chancery to the Lords they fell at Variance in both Houses whether this long Prorogation were not a Dissolution The Contest was highest in the House of Lords and the Duke of Buckingham the Earls of Salisbury and Shaftsbury and Lord Wharton where committed close Prisoners to the Tower for their Reason alledged yet the Lords who voted their Commitment this Session were as zealous the last to petition the King to dissolve the Parliament when the Commons contested their Jurisdiction in Appeals from Chancery But tho the Commons being in love with their sitting resolved the Parliament not to be dissolved yet they committed none of their Members for debating whether the Parliament were not and granted the King an Additional Duty upon Beer Ale and other Liquors for three Years for now was the time to secure Religion and Property said my Lord Chancellor But whether the Parliament were dissolved or not the Commons were mightily alarm'd at the French Progress in Flanders and therefore upon the 23d of May resolved that an Address be made to the King to enter into a League Offensive and Defensive with the States General of the Vnited Provinces and make such other Alliances as he should think fit against the Growth and Power of the French King and for the Preservation of the Spanish Netherlands It seems the Ministers were as fearful of a War as the Commons were of this Peace wherein the Spanish Netherlands were in such Danger and therefore the King in his Answer upon the Twenty eighth of May told the Commons They had so intrencâ—â— upon so undoubted a Right of the Crown that in no Age it will appear when the Sword was not drawn the Prerogative of making War and Peace had been so dangerously invaded with a great deal more of suâ—â— Stuff and therefore assures them that no Condition shall make him depart from or lessen so essential a Part of the Monarchy A Man I think may swear out of what Quiver this Arrow was shot As if any King were less a King for being well advised especially by those who can best assist him To advise and to act 〈◊〉 different The Commons did not in this Address treat either 〈◊〉 War or Peace but only advised or counselled the King excited to it by their own as well as the King's Danger by the Growâ— of the French And sure Princes have not such a Prerogative a not to take Advice or Counsel in less Actions than of War and Peace If you look upon the King 's former Actions what Glorious Wars and Honourable Peaces he had made you had little reason to think it so dangerous to his Prerogative to advise him For my part I wonder the Commons should make any Address to him about them since they could have no Security in any Answer he should make to their Address For was not the King a Guaranty in the Treaty of Aix for the Preservation of the Spanish Netherlands before the Swede entred into the Triple Alliance And did not the King in the Beginning of this War declare he would observe the Treaty of Aix which he might do tho the Swede were out of it And was not the King by the last Peace with the Dutch obliged to withdraw his Subjects out of the French Service yet did not only continue them but permitted nay pressed his Subjects to recruit and encrease them In the first Dutch War which was designed for the Overthroâ— of the Protestant Interest then the Commons Advice was embraced and thankfully entertained but in this for the restraining the boundless Ambition of the French King is an unheard of Usurpation of the King's Prerogative However by this the Commons might perceive what Thanks they had from this King for their Restoration of him and for the manifold Millions they had poured upon him for the maintenance of his Prodigality and Luxury and how much he preferred the Enjoyment of his Minions and Flatterers above his own Honour the Safety and Welfare of himself the Nation or Christendom The King to shew his further Indignation to the Commons and to take French Counsels for Reparation of their dangerous Invasion of his Prerogative signified to the Commons that they should adjourn till the sixteenth of July following which was so absolutely obeyed by the Speaker then Mr. but now Sir E. S. that without the Consent of the House or so much as putting the Question he adjourned them to the sixteenth of July though Sir John Finch was impeached for the same thing of High Treason in Parliament in 1640. So that if the Parliament were not dissolved by the last long Prorogation another Question may now arise whether it was not so by their Separation without either Prorogation or Adjournment But in this time of War it seems the French King was not at leisure to give Counsel therefore when the Parliament met on the tenth of July Mr. Secretary Coventry signified that it was his Majesty's Pleasure they should be adjourned to the Third of December which Mr. Speaker did again by his own Authority But before the Third of December the King issued out his Proclamation that he expected not the Members Attendance then but that those about the Town might adjourn themselves to the Fourth of April 1678 yet when the House met the third of December Mr. Secretary Coventry delivered the House a Message from the King that the House should be adjourned but to the fifteenth of January 1677 which Mr. Seymor this third time did Thus did the Speaker make a threefold Invasion upon the Privilege of the House for the House's once presuming to invade his Majesty's Prerogative of making War and Peace In this Jumble of Adjournments the Prince of Orange about the End of September came into England and from Harwich rode Post to New-Market where the Court then was his Business was twofold a Wife and a Treaty with the King for the Preservation of the Spanish Netherlands terribly shaken by this last French Campagn Sir William Temple was sent into Holland by the King in July 1674 to mediate a Peace between the French King and States and after that to offer the King's Mediation for a general one between the Confederates and French King The Spaniards were fearful of this and the Prince jealous of it so that the Governour of the Spanish Netherlands
refused Sir William a Guard to go to the Prince and the Prince declined Sir William's coming to him so as Sir William was forced to return to Holland and wait for the Prince there till the Campagn was over After the Prince returned to the Hague Sir William acquainted him with the Powers the King had given him and that the King desired to act in concert with the Prince and therefore desired so soon as might be to understand the Prince's Opinion therein The Prince's Opinion was That the States with any Faith could not make a separate Peace and thereby expose the Confederates who had saved the States to the Mercy of the French King nor could a general Peace be made unless Flanders was left in a Condition to defend it self That it was in the King's Power to induce France to what was just and that the Prince must perform what his own Honour as well as what the States were engaged to for their Allies let it cost what it would This Answer was coldly received by the King so as he made no Reply to it My Lord Arlington possest the King that it was Sir William's ill Management that the Prince was not pliable to the King's Desires but if the King would imploy him in the Affair by the Benefit of his Lady's Relations the Prince might be better disposed So in November following the King sent my Lord Arlington upon this Affair to the Prince and my Lord Ossery who had married Madam Beverwort the Countess of Arlington's Sister My Lord Arlington treated the Prince with that Authority Arrogance and Insolence and so artificially that the Prince who was of a plain and free Disposition could not bear it but said the King never intended he should treat him the Prince after that manner Sir William and my Lord too had Instructions to sift the Prince to a Discovery of Applications made to him by discontented Persons in England and to enter into secret Measures with the Prince to assist the King against Rebels at home and to sweeten all my Lord Ossery gave the Prince Hopes of a Match with the Princess Mary the Duke's eldest Daughter but the Prince would not treat of a separate Peace was obstinate against the second said that the third was a Disrespect to the King to think that he was so ill beloved and that his Fortunes were not in a Condition for him to think of a Wife so that my Lord Arlington every way failed of his Expectation lost much of the King's Favour and utterly dissolved the Friendship and Confidence he believed he had in the Prince On the contrary though my Lord Ossery had above any other more bravely fought against the Prince's Interest by Sea in this last War with the Dutch yet the Sympathy of their noble Natures begot a Friendship which no Power less than Death could dissolve and my Lord became Partaker with the Prince in that glorious Attempt against the Duke of Luxemburg upon the Relief of Mons the Success of which was stopped by the unhappy separate Peace the States made with France and the Proposition which my Lord made of the Match between the Prince and the Princess made such an irresistible Impression in the Prince's Mind that would admit of no other Relief but Enjoyment Though the Prince could not suppress yet he concealed his Desires of matching with the Princess Mary till a little before the opening the Campagn 1676 when he disclosed them to Sir William Temple but before he made any Paces towards the attaining his Desires he desired Sir William's Opinion of the Person and Disposition of the Princess Sir William who was glad to find the Prince's Resolution to marry being a Debt due to his Family and the rather because he was the only one of the Masculine Line of it replied That he knew nothing of his own Knowledg of the Disposition of the Princess but had always heard his Wife and Sister speak with all the Advantage that could be of what they could discern in a Princess so young and more by what had been told them by her Governess Hereupon the Prince resolved to write to the King and Duke and beg their Favours to him in it and that my Lady Temple being to go over into England upon Sir William's private Affairs should deliver his Letters to both and desired that my Lady during her Stay in England would endeavour most particularly to inform her self of all that concerned the Person Humour and Disposition of the young Princess About two or three Days after the Prince brought his Letters to my Lady Temple he went to the Army my Lady Temple into England and about the beginning of July Sir William to Nimeguen to assist with Sir Lionel Jenkins as Mediators for a General Peace The States were desirous of Peace yet durst not break from their Confederacy not trusting England enough nor France at all so as to have Dependency upon either after the Peace made The French knew the States were bent upon Peace but the Prince against any but what was consisting with his Honour and the Preservation of the Spanish Netherlands so as to be a secure Barrier to the States against the Power of France The French Designs under the Covert of the general Peace to be treated at Nimeguen were to break the Confederacy and therefore their Ambassadors the Marshal D'Estrades and Monsieur Colbert accosted Sir William and told him they had express and private Orders from their King to make particular Compliments to him upon the Esteem their King had for his Person They told him they knew that the States were bent for Peace which could not be had unless the Prince of Orange would interpose his Authority which was so great with the Allies that they were sure the Allies would consent to whatever Terms the Prince should propose for a Peace and therefore there was no Way to procure a happy Issue but for the Prince privately to agree with France upon the Conditions in which the Prince might make use of the known Temper of the States to bring it to a separate Peace in case the unreasonable Pretences of the Allies should hinder a general one that the Duke of Bavaria had so acted his part with France at the Treaty 〈◊〉 Munster whereby he owed the Greatness of his House that b◠pursuing the same at Nimeguen it would be in the Prince 〈◊〉 Orange to do the same for himself and his Family and that 〈◊〉 what concerned the Prince's personal Interests their Master had given them Assurance he should have a Carte Blanch to write his own Conditions that tho they had other ways of making these Overtures to the Prince yet their Orders were to do it by none but Sir William if he would charge himself with 〈◊〉 that they knew the Confidence the Prince had in him and how far his Opinion would prevail with the Prince and that 〈◊〉 Sir William would espouse this Affair besides the Glory of having
alone given Peace to Christendom he might reckon upon what he pleased from the Bounty and Generosity of the King their Master Sir William in a well-composed Answer acknowledged his Obligations for their King 's good Opinion of him but that his Instructions were for a general not for a private Peace For the Prince of Orange he assured them it was his Opinion That the Prince had none for his or any Man 's else further than their Arguments prevailed upon his Judgment The Attacks upon Sir William not succeeding Monsieur d'Estrâ—des turned his Battery upon Pensioner Fagel to the same purpose the Ambassadors had done to Sir William of all the Advantage to the Interest of the Prince How these wrought upon the Pensioner Sir William does not say but says all the Offers of Advantages made to the Interest of the Prince met with no other Reception than what the Prince had foretold tho at this time the Prince struggled under great Difficulty by reason of the Frenchâ—â— â—â— great Treasure and great Order of disposing it The French Magazines were always filled in the Winter so as it enabled them to take the Field as they pleased in the Spring without fearing the Weather for their Foot or expecting Grass for their Horse On the other side the Spaniards wanting Money and Order left their Troops in Flanders neither capable to act by themselves nor in Conjunction with others upon any sudden Attempt nor to supply with Provisions either Dutch or Germans that should come to their Relief and their Towns were ill fortified and worse defended so that the French King in April took Conde in four Days and in May the Duke of Orleans took Bouchain and the Prince of Orange besieged Maestricht without Success But neither the good Success of the French this Campagn nor the ill Success the French Ambassadors had upon the Prince of Orange to induce him to a separate Peace retarded the French from pursuing of it for the French by their Emissaries in Holland but especially at Amsterdam offer such a Reglement of Trade as the People could desire the Restitution of Maestricht and all Satisfaction to the Prince of Orange he could pretend to upon his Loss or their Seizures in the War This put the Mob into a Ferment of having a separate Peace nor could any thing have allayed it but the noble Constancy of the Prince of Orange which stood unshaken in opposing it in all these Difficulties However this Campagn the Elector of Brandenburg in several Encounters beat the Swede and was in a hopeful State to have expelled them out of Germany and it had been just they had been so for the King of England and the King of Sweden were Guarantees in the Triple League at Aix la Chapelle for the Preservation of the Spanish Netherlands against the French King whereas the King of England stood still only looking on whilst the French Arms by Piecemeals devoured them and the King of Sweden in Conjunction with the French King assisting him in the War Put not your Trust therefore in such Princes The Prince of Orange however his Constancy in opposing a separate Peace was unshaken yet in the distracted State of the Confederates and the violent Humour of the Peoples running into it saw it was impossible to keep them out of it unless the King of England would interpose his Authority further than by being a bare Mediator and acquainted the King with it But the King in a long Letter under his own hand instead of an Answer complained That the Confederate Ministers in England caballed with Parliament-Men and raised all Mens Spirits against Peace as high as they could so that it was difficult for him to make any Steps with France towards a general Peace unless the Dutch Ambassador Van Beningham would put in a Memorial pressing the King from the States to do it and declared that without it all Flanders would be lost The Prince to comply with the King replied how willing he was that Van Beningham should put in such a Memorial from the States and that if the King pleased to have a sudden Peace the Prince thought it must be done upon the Foot of the Treaty of Aix la Chapelle which he would have the more Ground for because it was a Peace which he both made and warranted Sir William at this time was at the Hague when his Colleague Sir Lionel Jenkins wrote to him That there was a Negotiation of a separate Peace treating between the French Ambassadors and Beverning the Dutch Agent at Nimeguen without any Communication of it to the Mediators upon which Sir Lionel acquainted the Court of England with it Whereupon Orders were dispatched That in case a separate Peace was concluding or concluded the Mediators should publickly protest against it in his Majesty's Name This Sir William Temple wrote to my Lord Treasurer and Secretary Coventry That he could not understand the Reason of such a Protestation for if a separate Peace were thought so dangerous at Court as he knew it was in the Country the King might endeavour to prevent it and had it still in his Power as he had had a great while but if it were once concluded any other Effect of such a Protestation unless it were to irritate both Parties and bind them the faster by our being angry at their Conjunction could not be expected Nor did he know what Ground could be given for such a Protestation for tho the Parties had accepted the King's Mediation for a General Peace yet none of them had obliged themselves to the King not to treat of a separate one without his Mediation or if they had he did not see why the same Interests that could make them break through so many Obligations to their Allies should not make them as bold with a Mediator That as to prevent the thing may be a very wise and necessary Counsel so the King's Resolution in it ought to be signified as early as can be where it is like to be of that moment to France But if the thing should be first done as he could not tell how well to ground any Offence so he could as little how to seek Revenge and it would be to stay till we were struck and then trust to crying out That his Opinion was it were better to anger one of the Parties before a separate Peace than both of them after and if we must strain any Points of Controversy with them to do it rather by making a fair and general Peace than by complaining and protesting against a separate one But our Counsels at Court he says were so in Ballance between the Desires of living at least fair with France and the Fears of too much displeasing the Parliament upon their frequent Sessions that our Paces upon the whole Affair look'd all like cross Purposes which no Man at home or abroad could well understand and were often mistaken by both Parties engaged in the War as well as by both
Parties in the House of Commons till the thing was wrested out of our hands Upon the 5th of January 1676-77 Sir William received Answer from the King to his last Dispatches by the Prince's Direction which consisted of two Parts the first an Offer of the King's Entrance into the strongest Alliance with the States thereby to secure them from all Apprehensions from France after the Peace should be made the second was the King's Remarks rather than Conclusions or Judgment upon the Terms propounded by the Prince for a Peace that he the King believed it might be compassed with France upon the Exchange of Cambray Ayre and St. Omer for Aeth Charleroy Oudenard Conde and Bouchain This Answer was so different from what the Prince proposed so illusive and of so little Security to the Dutch that the Prince told Sir William that he would rather die than make such a Peace and complained that the Offer of Alliance was wrote to him by the King 's own Hand but this about the Terms of Peace from the Secretary's Hand which was in a Stile as if he thought the Prince a Child and to be fed with Whipp'd Cream That since all this had been before the foreign Committee he knew very well it had been with the French Ambassador too and that the Terms were his and were a great deal worse than if they had directly come from France But the French King 's wheedling our King and the Dutch about a separate Peace no ways abated the Vigour of his Prosecution of the War whilst Peace was mediating for in the beginning of the Year he takes the Field with a huge Army and block'd up Cambray and Valenciennes about the End of February and having provided sufficient Magazines for Subsistence of his Forces which neither the Spaniard nor Germans had broke into Flanders and into the Parts of Germany on the other side of the Rhine and with the most cruel Ravages of burning and spoiling those Parts of Germany that could be exercised and such as had not been used on either side since the War began The Allies made Complaints of this new manner of making War to his Majesty as Guarantee to the Treaty at Aix la Chapelle who employed his Offices towards France to hinder such Proceedings but the Things was done and the Point gained which was by an entire Ruin of those Countries from hindring the Imperialists from finding any Subsistence for their Troops if they should march into Alsatia and thereby divert those Forces the French resolved to employ in Flanders before the Dutch could take the Field and march to the Relief of those Places they intended to attack Before any Dutch Spanish or German Army could be brought into the Field the French took Valenciennes and laid Siege to St. Omer and Cambray But before they had taken St. Omer the Prince of Orange with the Forces of the States the Spaniard assisting him with no Forces not so much as Guides resolved to relieve it tho with the hazard of a Battel But the Duke of Orleance leaving a part of his Forces to defend the Trenches and joining with the Duke of Luxemburg with all the Troops the French King could send met the Prince at Mount Cassel where after a sharp Dispute the first Regiment of the Dutch Infantry began to break into Disorder The Prince went immediately to that Place where the Shock began rallied them several times and renewed the Charge but at last was born down by the plain Flight of his Men whom he was forced to resist as Enemies and fall in among them with Sword in hand and cut the first over the Face and cried out aloud Rascal I 'll set a Mark on thee at least that I may hang thee at last But neither Voice Action Threats nor Example would give Courage to Men that had already lost it so he was forced to recoil to those Troops which stood firm and made so brave a Retreat as was near equal to a Victory So as Flanders had only Mons and Namur for a Frontier by Land and Newport and Ostend by Sea However the Prince made an Attempt upon Charleroy which did not succeed Hereupon the Prince seeing all Attempts against the French would be in vain unless the King came in to assist the Confederacy of the Allies sent Monsieur Bentink into England to desire the King's Leave to make a Journey into England so soon as the Campagn was over to which he received this cold Answer That the Prince would first think of making the Peace and rather defer his Journey till that were concluded Could any Man now believe any other Prince should be so supine as not to apprehend the imminent Danger his Nephew stood in and in consequence his own Dominions And tho all the World but he saw and dreaded this yet the King as at the End of the first Dutch War would not This was about the beginning of June and about the middle of it Sir Temple's Son brought him Letters from my Lord Treasurer That he should come over and enter upon the Secretary's Place which Secretary Coventry had offer'd to lay down upon the Payment of 10000 l. and that the King would pay half the Money and the Treasurer must lay down the rest at present but did not doubt but the King would find a way of easing him of that too What could be expected in such a Reign where Secretaries of State who are the Eyes of the King and Kingdom to take Care of all foreign and domestick Affairs which cannot be carried on without Charges should purchase their Places and thereby not only disable them in the Performance of their Office but utterly to neglect it and make it their Business how they may be Gainers by their Purchase they had so dearly bought But Sir William excused it as not being able to raise 5000 l. now his Father was alive And tho Secretary Coventry came cheap enough by the Place it seems he was either unwilling Sir William should succeed him in it or that he would not trust to the 5000 l. to be paid by the King unless he might chuse his Successor who it may be would have given him 15000 l. for it After Sir William came over and the Bargain for the Secretary's Place not succeeding the King had often Conferences with him about the Peace and the Prince's coming into England he had a great Desire for the first but not for the other till the first were done He said his Parliament would never be quiet with him while the War lasted and then leave him in it unless they might have their Terms in removing and filling Places which he should be very loth to be so much at their Mercy and that the longer the War continued the worse it would be for the Confederates and worse for Flanders and therefore would have the Prince make a Peace for them if they would not do it themselves and that if the Prince and he would fall
into Terms about it he was sure it might be done and desired Sir William to make a short Turn to the Prince and try if he could perswade the Prince to it But Sir William excused it and desired Mr. Hide now Earl of Rochester who was then at Nimeguen might do it but I don't find any thing came of it About the latter End of September as before noted the Prince took his Journey for England and landed at Harwich and from thence came to New-Market where the Court then was where he was kindly received by the King and Duke who both invited him often into Discourse of Business which the Prince avoided industriously so as the King bid Sir William ask the Prince the Reason of it the Prince told him he was resolved to see the young Princess before he enter'd into that Affair and get to proceed in that before the other of Peace whereupon the King to humour him left New-market some Days sooner than he intended and came to London The Prince at first sight was so pleased with her Person and all those Signs of such a Humour as had been before described to him that he immediately made his Suit to the King and Duke which was well received and assented to but upon Condition the Terms of Peace abroad might be first agreed to between them The Prince excused himself and said he must end his first Business before the other The King and Duke were both positive otherwise that that of Peace should precede but the Prince continu'd resolute for the former and said His Allies were like to have hard Terms of Peace as things stood and would be apt to believe he had made this Match at their Cost and for his part he would never sell his Honour for a Wife But the King and Duke continued in their Resolution for three or four Days In the Obstinacy of these contrary Resolutions between the King Duke and Prince Sir William Temple chanced to go to the Prince one Evening after Supper and found him in the worst Humour he had ever seen him in and told Sir William he repented he ever came into England and resolved he would stay but two Days longer if the King continued in his Mind of treating upon the Peace before Marriage and that before he went the King must chuse how they must live hereafter for he was sure it must be like either the greatest Friends or the greatest Enemies and pressed Sir William to let the King know so next Morning and give him an Account what he should say upon it Next Morning Sir William told the King all the Prince had said to him and the ill Consequences of a Breach between them considering the ill Humours of so many of his Subjects upon our late Measures with France and the Invitations made to the Prince by several of them during the late War The King heard Sir William with great Attention and when he had done said Well I was never deceived in judging of a Man's Honesty by his Looks and if I am not deceived in the Prince's Face he is the honestest Man in the World and I will trust him and he shall have his Wife and you shall go immediately and tell my Brother so and that 't is a thing I am resolved on Sir William did so and the Duke at first seemed a little surpriz'd but when Sir William had done the Duke said the King shall be obey'd and I would be glad all his Subjects would learn of me to obey him From the Duke Sir William went to the Prince and told him all this Story At first the Prince seem'd diffident but soon embraced Sir William and told him he had made him a very happy Man and that unexpectedly and so he left the Prince to give the King an Account of what passed and in the Prince's Ante-Chamber met my Lord Treasurer who undertook to adjust all the rest between the King and the Prince which he did so well that the Match was declared that Evening at the Committee before any other in the Court knew any thing of it When the Match was known the Nation entertained it with an universal Joy yet the French Ambassador and my Lord Arlington were displeased at it the French Ambassador because he had not given his Master an Account of it and my Lord Arlington because nothing of near such moment had passed and he not acquainted with it and within two or three Days after the Marriage was consummate The Prince having so happily gained the first part of his Design in coming into England the Terms of Peace were agitated immediately and Sir William Temple was admitted to be present at the Debates The Prince insisted upon the Strength and Enlargement of a Frontier on both sides of Flanders otherwise he said France would end this War with the View of beginning another and carrying Flanders in one Campagn The King was content to leave that Business a little looser upon Confidence that France was so weary of the War that if they could get out of it with Honour they would never begin another in this Reign that the King was past his Youth and lazy and would turn to the Pleasures of the Court and Buildings and leave his Neighbours at quiet But the Prince thought France would not make a Peace now but to break the present Confederacy and to begin another War with more Advantage and Surprize that their Ambition would never end till they had all Flanders and Germany to the Rhine and thereby Holland in an absolute Dependance upon them and us in no good one and that Christendom could not be left safe by the Peace without a Frontier as he proposed for Flanders and the Restitution of Lorain as well as what the Emperour had lost in Alsatia Sir William Temple told the King that in the Course of his Life he had never observed Mens Natures alter by Age or Fortune but that a good Boy made a good Man a young Coxcomb an old Fool and a young Fripon an old Knave that quiet Spirits were so and unquiet would be so old as well as young that he believed the French King would have always some Bent or other sometimes War sometimes Love sometimes Building but was of the Prince's Opinion that he would ne'r make Peace but with a Design of a new War after he had fixed his Conquests by the last The King approved of what Sir William had said and the Points of Lorain and Alsatia were easily agreed to by the King and Duke but they would not hear of the Restitution of the County of Burgundy tho it were part of the Spanish Netherlands which the King was obliged to protect against France by the Treaty of Aix as what France would never be brought to yet the Prince insisted much upon it which the King imagined was by reason of the Prince's own Lands in that Country which are greater and more Seignurial than those of the Crown of Spain there
and thereupon the King told the Prince That for his Lands there he would charge himself that the Prince should enjoy them as safe under France as under Spain or if the Prince would part with them the King would undertake to get him what Price he would value them at to which the Prince generously reply'd That he would not trouble himself nor the Peace about that matter and that he would be content to lose all his Lands there to get one good Town more for the Spaniard upon the Frontier of Flanders So here the King and Prince agreed But then another Debate arose between the King and Prince one pretending France would never be brought to this Scheme the other that Spain would never be brought to it but at last it was agreed that the Peace should be made upon these Terms All to be restored by France to the Emperor and Empire that had been taken in the War and the Dutchy of Lorain to the Duke and all on both sides between France and Holland and to Spain the Towns of Aeth Charleroy Oudenard Courtray Tournay Conde Valenciennes St. Gillain and Binch which were nine Towns that the King shall endeavour to procure the Consent of France and the Prince of Spain And to this purpose the King should send some Person immediately over with the Proposition who should be instructed to enter into no Reasoning upon it but demand a positive Answer in two Days and after that term immediately return And then the King ordered Sir William within two Days to make himself ready to go and acquaint the French with it At this Agreement between the King and Prince none were present besides the Duke my Lord Treasurer and Sir William Temple so as the French Ambassador was as much surprized in it as before he was at the Marriage of the Prince but this could not be longer conceal'd from him than when it began to be put in Practice yet it seems to me he was acquainted with it before and that the King had taken other Resolutions than what was agreed upon but the Day before For Sir William having prepared all things in a Readiness to go the Evening before he met the King in the Park St. James's who call'd to him and told him he had been thinking upon Sir William's Errand and how unwelcome he should be in France as well as the Message and that having a Mind to gain Peace he was unwilling to anger them more than needs besides the thing being not to be debated or reasoned any Body else would serve the Turn as well as he whom he had other use of Sir William was very glad of it knowing how ungrateful a Messenger he should be upon this Account Then the King asked Sir William what he thought of my Lord Duras a French-man and a great Favourite of the Duke's and since Earl of Feversham It seems the King asked Sir William's Opinion only for Form and Fashion sake for the thing was the Morning before agreed upon at the Desire of the Duke upon pretence that France would accept of the Terms and that he had a Mind to have the Honour of it by sending a Servant of his own So my Lord Duras went immediately after with the Orders and some few Days after the Prince and Princess embarked for Holland where Affairs pressed his Return beyond the Hopes of my Lord Duras from France the King assuring the Prince he would never part with the least part of the Scheme sent over and would enter into a War with France if they refused it But pudet haec you 'll soon see another Face of Affairs after the Prince was gone nay before he went it was a great Mortification to him to see the Parliament prorogued till the next Spring which the French Ambassador had gained of the King to make up some good Meen with France after the Prince's Marriage and before the Dispatch of the Terms of a Peace to that Court I should not have ventured to say this if that honourable Gentleman Sir William Temple in his second Memoirs which are printed fol. 302. had not said it before But how honourable and sincere soever the Prince's Actions were in the Management of this whole Affair the outward Face of things had another Appearance which caused great Jealousies of him not only among the Amsterdamers and Common People in Holland but even among the Consederates for the Prince sending Monsieur Bentink privately over into England about the beginning of June and Sir William Temple so soon after following and the Prince's raising the Siege before Charlâ—râ—y the next day after my Lord Ossory came to his Camp and the Prince's going in September following into England these things thus concurring passed not without many Reflections not only in Holland but among the Allies as if there were Intelligences between the King and him which were heightned by the Marriage the main Business of the Treaty made by the King and Prince about the Peace being yet in Embrio so as the Prince and Princess were coldly received in Holland upon the Prince's Return and these Jealousies encreased more upon the Transactions between the English Court and France But sacred Truth and the Integrity of the Prince shall vindicate his Honour even among those who most suspected him and were so jealous of his Actions The Noise of a Peace with France so soon after the proroguing the Parliament raised a Ferment in the Nation of some Design of the Court as dangerous to the Nation as the Dutch Jealousies that their Liberties were in by the Prince's Treaty and Marriage with a Daughter of England And now the Prince was gone and out of Sight he was out of Mind too by the King in respect to the Terms of Peace agreed to and the solemn Promise the King made to the Prince upon his Departure that he would never parâ— with the least Point in the Scheme sent into France and make War upon it if it were refused For upon my Lord Duras's Arrival at Paris the Court were surprized at least seemed so both at the thing and more upon the manner of it yet made good Meen upon it took it gently and said The King of England knew very well he might be always Master of the Peace but some few Towns in Flanders seemed very hard especially Tournay upon whose Fortifications such vast Treasure had been expended and that they would take some short time to consider of the Offer But my Lord Duras told them he was tied to two Days stay but when that was out was prevailed upon to stay some few Days longer which he durst not have done without secret Orders from our Court contrary to his Instructions and at last came away without any positive Answer Hereupon the King instead of declaring War against France as he so solemnly promised the Prince entred into a Treaty with the French Ambassador at London which by French Artifice was so spun out in length without any
the King made with the States The French King after he had taken Ipre and Gaunt Luxemburg proceeded to block up Mons and Schomberg threatned to besiege Cologn and thus the Dutch bound Hand and Foot had no body else to complain to or expect any Relief from but the Court of England The Dutch had a little before sent over one Van Lewen who was the chief of the Town of Leyden who Sir William Temple says was a Man of great Honour and Worth to treat with the King to enter into a War against France which the King was obliged to by the League with them and had received 1200000 l. of the Parliament for carrying it on and by Van Lewen the States acquaint the King with the Terms upon which the French King would restore the six Towns in Flanders to the Spaniards the King at first seemed not to believe it but having sent to the French Ambassador Barillon to know the Truth of this which the Ambassador owning he seemed surprized and angry at this proceeding of France and next Morning sent for Sir William Temple to the Foreign Committee and there declar'd his Resolution of sending him immediately into Holland with a Commission to sign a Treaty with the States by which they should carry on the War and the King to enter into it in case France should not consent to evacuate the Towns within a certain time limited and the King took Pains to press Van Lewen to go over with Sir William to perswade the States of the King's Sincereness and Constancy to pursue these Measures to the utmost of his Power Armed with these Powers away goes Sir William and Van Lewen and were received with all imaginable Joy by the Dutch and Sir William by the Prince hoping by his Errand and Success of it either to continue the War or to recover such Conditions of Peace for his Allies as had been forced out of his Hands by force of a Faction begun at Amsterdam and after spread into the rest of the Provinces All the Provinces even those which were so forward for the Peace upon the French Terms were so forward in this Negotiation that in six days the Treaty was concluded by which France was obliged to declare within fourteen days after the Date thereof that they would evacuate the Spanish Towns or in case of Refusal Holland was engaged to go on with the War and England immediately to declare it against France in Conjunction with Holland and the rest of the Confederates Here observe that tho Sir William was one of the Mediators of Peace at Nimeguen yet whilst this Negotiation was perfected his Post was to be at the Hague for a Tale depends upon it The Wisdom as well as the Integrity of the Prince in the whole Negotiation of this Affair was now so conspicuous that the States owned the Prince had made a truer Judgment than they had done of the Measures which they were to expect either from England or France and if it happens that England in this Business shall prove as fickle and loose as before yet this shall never be ascribed to the Prince who was always the same he was before So now all Preparations were made for the Relief of Mons and ten thousand English being arrived in Flanders who were ordered to join the Prince he resolved to relieve Mons or to die in the Attempt After the Treaty concluded and signified to France all Arts that could be were on that side employed to elude it by drawing this Matter into a Treaty or into greater length which had succeeded so well in England that they offered to treat upon it at Quintin's then at Gaunt but the States were firm not to recede from their late Treaty made with the King and so continued till about Five Days before the Term was to expire You heard before how the King had solicited Van Lewen to accompany Sir William Temple to assure and perswade the States to pursue the Measures Sir William and he went upon to their utmost but alas now when Sir William as well as the Prince were out of Sight they were out of Mind too and now Sir William was gone he forgot the Indignation which Barillon had put upon him in the Treaty for the French Money he was to receive for joining in the French Terms with the Dutch which he then said he would never forget so long as he lived But now you shall see how absolute a Dominion the French King had over him and by what Instruments he governed him viz. a French Man a French Woman and a French Monk who had changed his Frock for a Petticoat The French Man was Barillon the French Woman was the Dutchess of Portsmouth and the French Monk was one Du Cross These three met the King in the Dutchess of Portsmouth's Chamber and in one hour's time agreed that Du Cross should carry Sir William Temple a Pacquet wherein the King commanded him to go immediately to Nimeguen and there endeavour all he could to perswade the Swedish Ambassadors as from the King to let the French Ambassadors there know That they would for the Good of Christendom consent and even desire the French King no longer to defer the Evacuation of the Towns and consequently the Peace upon the sole Regard and Interest of the Crown of Sweden and Sir William was likewise commanded to assure the said Ambassadors that after the Peace his Majesty would use all the most effectual Means he could for the Restitution of the Towns and Countries the Swede had lost in the War This was to get Sir William out of the way who spirited the Dutch in the Action that Du Cross might play his Pranks in the rest But before Du Cross had brought his Pacquet to Sir William he had gone about most industriously to the Deputies of the several Towns and acquainted them with it and that the Terms of Peace were absolutely agreed upon between the two Kings That he had brought Sir William Orders straight to get to Nimeguen and that upon his Arrival there he should meet with Letters from my Lord of Sunderland the King's Ambassador at Paris with all the Particulars concluded between them Sir William followed his Instructions and when he came to Nimeguen there were but three Days of the Term fixed by the late Treaty between the King and States at the Hague either for the French Assent to the Evacuation of the Towns or for carrying on the War in Conjunction of Holland with England and consequently with the rest of the Confederates but there found no Letters from my Lord Sunderland of the Particulars of the Peace concluded between the two Kings but on the contrary a Manifesto to the Dutch by the French Ambassadors why their Master could not consent to it without the previous Satisfaction of Sweden whose Interest he esteemed the same with his own but yet declaring he was willing to receive any Expedients the States should offer in this matter
Strangeness of the Discovery of Prance by Bedlow who had never but once seen Prance before and that by Candle-light and in a Peruke should yet upon the first Sight of him know him again without Peruke the other is the Clearness of Sir Godfrey's being murdered and the Body's being in Somerset-house upon Monday after the Murder the Saturday before and from hence it was that Prance became an Evidence in this Discovery Now let 's see how things stood upon the Meeting of the Parliament upon the 21st of October 1678 both abroad and at home And herein both Houses were as warm in Enquiry into them as the Court was cold It was but in January before that the Parliament had given the King 1200000 l. for carrying on a War against France in Conjunction with the Dutch and their Allies and upon their Meeting they found a treacherous separate Peace made by a Faction of the Dutch with the French and upon French Terms wherein the King had taken Money of the French to join with this Dutch Faction in it Besides the King's Guards which he might encrease as he pleased as well as keep up those he had there was now another Army raised which now it was of no further Use abroad they dreaded as much as they did the French Arms now he had subdued the Confederates by the Dutch Disjunction from them and the Discovery of the Popish Plot carried on at home whilst these things were thus agitated abroad was to them a Demonstration the same Councils which governed abroad did so at home And if the Parliament were thus amazed at their Sitting it was no way lessened when as they found that in this very Month no less than 57 Commissions were discovered for raising Soldiers granted to several Romish Recusants with Warrants to muster without taking the Oaths of Allegiance and Supremacy and the Test countersigned by Sir J. W. Secretary of State whereupon the Commons committed him to the Tower yet the King next Day discharged him with a Reprimand to the Commons but upon the Commons Address to the King about it the King as before in his Declarations of Indulgence promised to recal them However the Commons appointed a secret Committee to enquire to the Bottom of the Popish Plot who having made some Progress in it upon Friday the 1st of November came to this Resolution Nemine contradicente That upon the Evidence that has already appeared to this House this House is of Opinion That there hath been and still is a damnable hellish Plot contrived and carried on by Popish Recusants for assassinating and murdering the King subverting the Government and rooting out and destroying the Protestant Religion Which being the same Day communicated to the Lords they unanimously and readily concurred with the Commons in it and upon the 5th the Commons impeached the Earl of Powis the Viscount Stafford and the Lords Arundel of Warder Petre and Bellasis of High Treason The Commons having proceeded thus far in searching into the Popish Plot upon the 27th of November proceeded in their next Fear of the Army raised and now indeed in Flanders where the French Army raged after the Dutch had made their separate Peace without Opposition and the English Army only a Burden to the Country and of no Use to restrain the French Ravages and Voted 1. That it is necessary for the Safety of his Majesty's Person and preserving the Peace of the Government That all the Forces which have been raised since the 29th of September 1677 and all others which have been since that time brought over from beyond Seas from foreign Service be forthwith disbanded 2. It is the humble Opinion of this House That the Forces which are now in Flanders may be immediately called over in order to their disbanding 3. That the House would to Morrow Morning resolve it self into a Committee of the whole House to consider the Manner of disbanding the Army The five Popish Lords had been impeached by the Commons about a Fortnight and no Articles exhibited against them when the King gave the Commons an Account that he had given Order for seizing Mr. Mountague's Papers upon Information that he had held several Correspondences whilst he was Ambassador in France with the Pope's Nuncio without any Direction or Order of his Majesty But Mr. Mountague the same Day produced two Letters from my Lord Treasurer whilst he was Ambassador in France which being read the House resolved to impeach the Treasurer and the same Day ordered a Committee to draw up Articles against him which on Saturday the Committee did and on Monday following impeached the Treasurer upon them whereas the Commons had not yet exhibited any against the Popish Lords This was upon the 23d of December But if the Treasurer was constant to himself I do not understand how the Commons Impeachment of him in the 4th Article could consist with the King's Displeasure against him for the quite contrary viz. That he suppressed the Evidences and reproachfully discountenanced the King's Witnesses in Discovery of the Popish Plot And Sir William Temple says pag. 391. That the Treasurer was fallen into the King's Displeasure for bringing the Popish Plot into Parliament against the King's absolute Command However the Parliament granted the King 693388 l. to disband the Army and also an Additional Duty upon Wines for 3 Years but no more Money being like to come this Sessions upon Monday the 30th of December he prorogued the Parliament to the 4th of February next and then told them That it was with great Vnwillingness that he was come to tell them that he intended to prorogue them that all of them were Witnesses he had not been well used the Particulars of which he would acquaint them with at a more seasonable time but when will that be for he never saw them after In the mean time he would immediately enter upon the disbanding the Army and do what Good he could for the Kingdom and Safety of Religion and that he would prosecute the Discovery of the Popish Plot to find out the Instruments of it and take all the Care that is in his Power to secure the Protestant Religion as it is now established How well this was performed you 'll soon see and before the 4th of February he dissolved this Eighteen-year-old Parliament The Vogue went It was upon the Account of my Lord Treasurer tho I believe upon severer Thoughts it will seem rather to have been done upon the Account of the Popish Lords and Popish Plot. These Feuds in the Nation and Jealousies between the King and Parliament stifled the Apprehensions of the dreadful growing Power of the French King and made fair Weather for him to prosecute his boundless Ambition without any Regard of his Faith or Honour where-ever he could extend it Never did one Parliament succeed another so early as the next did this long Parliament for the King by his Proclamation dissolved the Long Parliament upon the 25th of
Bedlow Prance Dangerfield Bolron and Mowbray many of which had never seen one the other before they gave their Testimonies Objection These were Witnesses of suspected Fame therefore no Credit ought to be given to them But admit this were true which is not for except Dangerfield and while Prance was frighted with Terror there was no Objection against Oates Bedlow Mowbray and Bolron it will admit of a twofold Answer 1. Truth is one and consists in entire parts whereas Error and Falshood is infinite and therefore it had been impossible that Mowbray and Bolron who had never seen Oates or Bedlow before they gave their Testimonies and Bedlow who had never known Mowbray Bolron nor Oates should concur not only in the Design of killing the King but in the Manner Place and Circumstances of it 2. Admit these Mens Evidence might not have been credited in other Cases yet it 's fit to consider Witnesses in civil or criminal Cases in civil Cases Men may make Elections of what Witnesses they please and it is their Fault if they make not use of Men of know Integrity and Repute that more Credit may be given to their Evidence and the End of civil Actions and Contracts is that they may be known but immoral and wicked Actions are Deeds of Darkness and contrived so as that they may not be known so that the Knowledg of them comes to pass either by Accident or from the Conspirators themselves as if only one Man sees a Murderer or a Thief kill or rob another if his Testimony shall not be taken because otherwise an ill Man Multitudes of Murders and Thefts might pass unpunished So if Cicero when Fulvia first discovered Catiline's Conspiracy to him had told her she was a Whore and no Credit could be given to any thing she said Rome might have been in a Flame as London was and all the Senators Throats might have been cut But admit no Credit could be given to any or all these Mens Testimonies who were all Roman Catholicks I would know what Objection could be against Mr. Jenison a Gentleman of Birth and Quality who gave no Evidence at Ireland's Wakeman's Piâ—kering's or Grove's Trials and changed his Religion when he heard that Ireland who was his Father Confessor at his Death denied that he was in Town but in Staffordshire when Oates and Grove's Maid said he was in London in August 1678 and printed it and the Reasons of it and also at my Lord Stafford's Trial in open Parliament deposed That Ireland told him there was but one that stood in the way and that it was an easy thing to poison the King and that Sir George Wakeman might easily and opportunely do it and that in August 1678 when Ireland at his Death declared he was in Staffordshire Ireland told Mr. Jenison in London when he was newly returned from Windsor how easily the King might be taken off and asked Mr. Jenison if he would be one of them who should go to Windsor and assist at the taking off the King and proffered Mr. Jenison to remit 200 l. which he owed Ireland if he would Then Ireland asked if he knew any stout Irish-men who answer'd he knew Captain Levallian Mr. Kerney Brohal and Wilson Ireland told him he knew Levallian and Wilson and then Ireland asked him if he would go with them and assist them in taking off the King after this Ireland told Mr. Jenison he was going to the Club where Mr. Coleman Mr. Lavallian and Kerney would be and he wanted 80 l. which he desired Mr. Jenison to return him Mr. Jenison further deposed That his Brother Mr. Thomas Jenison a Jesuit said If C. R. will not be R. C. which he interpreted to be Si Carolus diuâ—â—ret â—â—ret Rex Carolus and that it was no great Sin to take him off Mr. Jenison desiring a new Commission in the new rais'd Army his Brother told him he would procure him one from the Duke of York and that there was another Army to be raised but this was not to be till the King was taken off and this I say that about this time there was a general Rumour of a Page being kill'd upon a Couch in the Night at Windsor where the King was laid but a little before and that the King upon the Fright of it came next Morning to London and that it was Prince Rupert who with much Importunity got the King having been drinking hard before from the Couch and put him to Bed and that the Page who was killed asleep upon the Couch was wrap'd up in the Cloak the King was in The Commons likewise resolved Nemine contradicente That the Duke of York being a Papist and the Hopes of his coming as such to the Crown have given the greatest Countenance and Encouragement to the present Conspirators and the Designs of the Papists against the King and Protestant Religion But the Designs of the King was how to get Money for providing a Fleet for our common Security now in time of such a Peace as the French King had granted Christendom after the King had taken his Money to join in it and after he had taken the Parliament's Money to enter into an actual War against France and after the Parliament had twice given Money for disbanding this Army which not succeeding the Commons dreading how Monies given at this time of Day might be employed took no more Care in it than the King did in the Discovery of the Popish Plot so he prorogued the Parliament upon the Twenty seventh of May to the Fourteenth of August and upon the Twelfth of July dissolved them We shall better take a View of what followed the Prorogation of the Parliament in England if we take a Step into Scotland and see what 's doing there Upon the 3d of this Month of May John Balfour of Kinlock David Hackston of Rathilelet George Balfour of Gilston James Russel in King's Kittle Robert Dingwall a Farmer 's Son in Caddam Andrew Guillon a Weaver in Balmerinoch Alexander Henderson and Andrew Henderson Sons of John Henderson of Rillbrachment and George Flemming Son to George Flemming of Balbuthy murdered Doctor Sharp Arch-bishop of St. Andrews who before the King's Restoration had held an exalted Place in the Scotish Presbytery and was in high Esteem among them in as vindictive a manner as was that of the Marquess of Montross about twenty one Years before as being a perjured Apostate Prelate a Villain a Persecutor of the Godly a Betrayer of Jesus Christ and his Church and which augmented the Horror of the Fact if my Author of the second Address to the Free-men of England pag. 58. says true Thâ—â— they several times beat down the Arch-bishop's Daughter upon her Knees begging her Father's Life and trampled upon heâ— and wounded her This barbarous Act was a Prelude to what followed for upon the 29th of this Month a Party of about 80 of the Covenanters met at Ragland in Scotland well mounted and well armed and proclaimed
Dangerfield's Evidence and told the Jury that Treason must be proved by two Witnesses and if they doubted upon one it was his Opinion it was but a single Evidence These Prisoners thus discharged the next Design to crown the Work was to make a Precedent That no future Prosecution should be made for convicting Roman Recusants and to that end in Trinity Term 1680 before the Parliament met the Chief Justice Scroggs discharged the great Inquest of Oswaldston before they had given in their Presentments of several Bills of Indictments against the Duke of York and other Roman Catholicks I do not find that in all these Transactions the King made use of the Council which he chose the twentieth of April 1679 where my Lord Shaftsbury was President and Sir Henry Capel Sir William Temple and many other noble Persons were Members of it when he declared in Council and Parliament and to the whole Nation How sensible he was of the ill Posture of his Affairs and the great Dissatisfaction and great Jealousies of his Subjects whereby the Crown and Government was become too weak to preserve it self which proceeded from a single Ministry and of private Advices and therefore profess'd his Resolution to lay them wholly aside for the future and to be advised by those able and worthy Persons whom he had then chosen for his Council and by the frequent Advice of his Parliament in all his weighty Affairs I do not find when he dissolved this Council yet I am confident none of these things were done by their Advice yet this I find that none of these were present when the King in Council the third of March 1679 declared against his Marriage with the Duke of Monmouth's Mother and this was within the Year after the twentieth of April 1679. How the Duke of York carried on the Design of the Discovery of the Popish Plot and endeavoured the Suppression of Popery in Scotland at this time is not yet ripe to be declared but in this Posture things stood in England when the Parliament met the twenty first of October 1680. Upon the opening of the Parliament the King told them The several Prorogations he had made had been very advantagious to our Neighbours and very useful to him for he had employed that time in making and perfecting an Alliance with Spain sutable to that which he had before made with the States of the Vnited Provinces and they also had with Spain consisting of mutual Obligations of Succour anâ— Defence So then it was not for the Transactions aforesaid and the sending the Duke of York High Commissioner into Scotland which no doubt but the Parliament if they had been sitting would have boggled at but for making and perfecting Alliances with the States of Holland and if any such Alliances were making or made what would the sitting of the Parliament have hindred them I 'm sure they might and would have advanced them It was in November 1677 that by the Agreement between the King and Prince of Orange the French should deliver up to the King of Spain the Towns of Aeth Charleroy Oudenard Courtray Tournay Valenciennes St. Gillain and Binch Lorain to that Duke and the Towns which the French had taken in Alsatia to the Emperor and in case of Refusal within two days after by the French King our King was to declare War against the French King and join with the Dutch States and Confederates to compel the French to it and at the Prince's Departure promised him never to depart from the least Point of it It was not two Weeks before the King brake this Promise and to amuse and raise a Jealousy among the Confederates by Mr. Thyâ— Sir William Temple refusing to have any hand in it about the latter end of December following made a separate League with the Dutch States upon the Parliament's giving him 1200000 l. to enter into an actual War against France In May following viz. 1678. the King took French Money to join with a Faction in Holland to make a separate Peace with France upon delivery of six of the nine Towns to the Spaniard whereof two of the three not to be delivered to the Spaniard were Tournay and Valenciennes worth all the rest and the Duke of Lorain and the Emperor left loose and uncertain In July following upon the French refusal to deliver up these six Towns to the Spaniard the King would declare War against France and join with the Dutch and the rest of the Confederates in it Hereupon Sir William was sent to the Hague and in six days time concluded a League with the States that if within fourteen days after the Date of it France did not declare to evacuate these six Towns Holland engaged to proceed in the War against France and Sir William sent over the Conditions to be ratified by the King During these Transactions in Holland and it may be before the League came over to be ratified by the King the King sent Du Cres with Instructions to Sir William Temple to remove from the Hague to Nimeguen and to divulge that the King and French King had absolutely agreed and consented to a Peace and that he had brought Orders to Sir William Temple to go straight to Nimeguen where he should meet with Letters from my Lord of Sunderland the King's Ambassador at Paris with all the Particulars concluded between them The Fourteen Days for the French Agreement to evacuate the Towns running so fast away in the mean time that Beverning and his Faction upon the last of the Fourteen Days pleaded a petty Necessity of huddling up that treacherous Peace which left Christendom to the Mercy of the French Would not one think it strange now that the Dutch and poor Spaniard should have such a mutual Confidence in our King's Faith and to trust to his mutual Obligations of Succour and Defence Or that the King should be so staid in making this League for it was above eighteen Months after the Prorogation of the last Parliament to the Meeting of this and above Fifteen Months from the Dissolution of it and yet so hasty in all his other Leagues After the Benefits which Christendom as well as England may reap by these Alliances if our Divisions at home do not make our Friendship less considerable the King thought fit to renew all Assurance that can be desired for Security of the Protestant Religion which he is resolved to maintain against the Conspiracies of our Enemies Can any Man who reads the Transactions between the Prorogation of the last Parliament and the Meeting of this force a Belief of this And concur with any new Remedies which shall be proposed which may consist with preserving the Succession of the Crown in its due and legal Course of Descent That is Let the Wolf be Shepherd and let the Sheep make what Laws they please for their Preservation Was it not known that the Duke of York was a Jesuited Papist whose Maxims are That no Faith is to
be kept with Hereticks which he esteemed all others in England but those of his own Romish Faction to be Could the King believe that the Duke's Succession could be any Security to the Protestant Religion as the King calls it which the Duke esteemed Heresy and to be rooted out by Fire and Sword or that any other but the Duke's Faction could be protected by him when he esteemed them Hereticks Schismaticks Church-Robbers and no Christians It 's true at this time the King of Portugal was made a Prisoner to restrain him from his immoral and wicked Actions whilst his Brother in his Imprisonment acted as Regent of Portugal in his Brother's Name But upon the Duke's Succession how could a Regent act when the King was not a Minor but of full Age double and at large in the King's Name and contrary to his Will and Pleasure and this to consist with the Security of the Protestant Religion or Laws In the Debates in the House of Commons many Expedients were propounded how the established Government in Church and State could be preserved and none could be found in case the Duke succeeded so the Country Party moved that the Court Party would propound Expedients herein but either they could not or had no Instructions from the Court to warrant such Expedients as they should propound But if the due and legal Descent of the Crown must be preserved though to the Destruction of the Church and State they who advised the King to be so positive herein should have done well to have declared what Law in England declares the Descent of the Crown of England or how this becomes due I am sure the Act of the first of Henry the IV intailed the Crown upon the King and the Heirs of his Body and so did that of the first of Henry VII before he married the Lady Elizabeth Edward the Fourth's Daughter and if Henry the seventh's Title to the Crown had been good by inherent Birth-right yet he had been an Usurper For his Mother under whom he claimed lived all his Reign and so she did some time after Henry the VIII became King as you may read in Stow's History p. 487. And how was the due and Legal Succession of the Crown of England observed in the Reign of Henry the VIII when by his Will he might name what Successor he pleased as has been said or in Queen Elizabeth's Reign when it was in Parliament declared Treason to affirm the Parliament might not dispose of the Succession of the Crown in her Reign and a Premunire at this Day And let any Man shew that ever there were three Kings before these of the Scotish Race in the Saxon Danish or Norman Race which succeeded successively by inherent Birth-right I will submit that all I have said is not true and why then must such a Stress be put for the preserving the Descent of the Crown in its due and legal Course without declaring what is that due and legal Course to endanger the Subversion of the Church and State of England Then the King recommends to the Parliament a Strict Enquiry into the Popish Plot and that the Lords in the Tower be brought to a speedy Trial without which he did not think himself or the Parliament safe The constant Vogue was That the King dissolved the two last Parliaments to preserve the Lords in the Tower from being brought to Trial and I am sure that you will soon hear that the King did not believe his and the Nation 's Safety did consist in the Trial of the Lords in the Tower Then the King tells the Parliament what Danger Tangier was in and what vast Expence he must be at to keep it And the Commons last Parliament drew up an Act to settle it upon the Imperial Crown of England and that they who did advise the King to part with Tangier to any Foreign Prince or State or were instrumental therein ought to be accounted Enemies to the King and Kingdom And what Care the King took to keep it will soon appear tho 't was said the Parliament I think it was out of the Chimney-Bill gave him 40000 l. per Annum towards the Preservation of it to the Crown of England The King goes on and says That above all the Treasure in the World which he was sure would give him greater Strength both at home and abroad than any Treasure can do is a perfect Union among our selves yet says not wherein we should unite Truth and Unity are one and consist in intire Parts but Falshood and Discord are infinite What Truth or Unity could be in the King 's loose and irregular Actions so confounding and every day varying from what he had promised before Or how is it possible for the Nation to unite under Terms which are inconsistible and impossible viz. Unite to preserve the Constitutions of the Kingdom and yet be at no Discord with the King who they were morally certain would make it his Business to subvert them If we should be so unhappy the King says as to fall into such Misunderstanding among our selves as would render our Friendship unsafe to trust to it will not be wondred at if our Allies shall begin to take up new Resolutions and perhaps such as may be fatal to us and advised them not to gratify our Enemies and dishearten our Friends by any unreasonable Disputes viz. to take all by an implicit Faith I do not understand what the King means by Misunderstanding among our selves which may render our Friendship to our or his Allies unsafe nor does he say wherein such Misunderstanding consists I 'm sure the Parliament misunderstood him when they gave him 1200000 l. to enter into an actual War against the French King in the Defence of these Allies and when he had got the Money to make a separate Peace with a Faction of the Dutch to the Ruine of his Allies and take French Money for it and to get the Parliament twice over to disband this Army for fear he should turn it against them and the Nation and now 't was disbanded to give Money to raise another upon Pretence of assisting these Allies now they were forced to such a dishonourable Peace with the French or that our Allies as the King calls them would ever trust to any more of his Alliances If any should so happen the King says the World will see it is no Fault of his for he had done all that was possible for him to do to keep us in Peace while he lived and to leave us so when he died Can any Man believe the King believed himself herein Or that any Man will be his Voucher for it Even my Lord C. F. out of the Field of his sweet lisping Eloquence could not gather one Rhetorical Flower to make a Flourish upon this Speech nor assure the Parliament upon his Veracity that Now Now was the time to secure their Religion and Properties nay the Commons gave so little Credit to this
not foreknown and ordered to be taken into Custody tho in Northumberland and Yorkshire and rarely I think any of them were discharged without paying their Fees but what Fees was what the Serjeant pleased nay the Commons outrun all which was ever thought of before For on Tuesday the 14th of December having voted one Mr. Herbert Herring to be taken into Custody and Mr. Herring absconding from being taken the House resolved That if he did not render himself by a certain Day they would proceed against him by Bill in Parliament for endeavouring by his absconding to avoid the Justice of the House Though I doubt the Lords in the Temper they were in nor the King neither would have passed such a Bill It was strange methought that the Commons should be so zealous against any Arbitrary Power in the King and take such a Latitude to themselves which puts me in mind of a Story I have heard of an old Usurer who had a Nephew who had got a Licence to preach and the Uncle having never done any thing for his Nephew he resolved to be revenged upon his Uncle in a Sermon which he would preach before his Uncle in the Parish where he lived and made a most invective Sermon against Usury and Usurers but after the Sermon was done the Uncle thank'd his Nephew for his good Sermon and gave him 2 Twenty-shilling Pieces the Nephew was confounded at this and begg'd his Uncle's Pardon for what he had done for he thought he had given him great Offence No said the Uncle Nephew go on and preach other Fools out of the Conceit of Vsury and I shall have the better Opportunity of putting out my Money Yet so zealous were the Commons against Popery and Arbitrary Power that upon the 15th of December they resolved that one Mean for the Suppression of Popery is That a Bill be brought in to banish immediately all considerable Papists out of the King's Dominions And that a Bill be brought in for an Association of all his Majesty's Protestant Subjects for the Defence of his Majesty's Person the Defence of the Protestant Religion and for the Preservation of his Majesty's Protestant Subjects against all Invasions and Oppositions whatsoever and for preventing the Duke of York or any other Papist from succeeding to the Crown And upon the 16th of December the Commons read another Bill the first time for exempting his Majesty's Protestant Subjects dissenting from the Church of England from the Penalties imposed upon the Papists and upon the 18th ordered a Bill to be brought in to unite his Majesty's Protestant Subjects In this Ferment of the Commons this Parliament they run counter to the Commons of the last Parliament for then they chose Mr. Edward Seymour to be their Speaker and when the King refused him they were much disgusted but in this Parliament the Commons the 25th of November impeached him upon four Articles and a Motion was made for an Address to be made to remove him from his Majesty's Council and Presence And in the last Parliament the Commons would not proceed to the Trial of the Popish Lords in the Tower before the Lords should give their Judgment upon the Earl of Danby's Plea whereas in this Parliament they proceeded to the Condemnation of my Lord Stafford without taking any notice that I can find of having the Lords Judgment upon the Earl's Plea The Commons took Care also to prosecute and impeach all those that countenanced the Popish Plot or were Abhorrers of petitioning the King for the Meeting of the Parliament in the manifold Prorogations of it and voted That it is and ever hath been the undoubted Right of the Subjects of England to petition the King for the Calling and Sitting of Parliaments and Redress of Grievances And that to traduce such petitioning as a Violation of Duty and to represent it to his Majesty as tumultuous and seditious is to betray the Liberty of the Subject and contributes to the Design of subverting the antient legal Constitutions of this Kingdom and introducing Arbitrary Power The first that fell under these Votes was Sir Francis Withens after made a Judg a Member of the Commons whom they voted to be a Betrayer of the undoubted Rights of the Subjects of England and ordered him to be expelled the House for this high Crime and to receive the Sentence at the Bar of the House kneeling which he submitted to The next was Sir George Jefferies then Recorder of the City and ordered that an humble Address be made to the King to remove him out of all publick Offices and that the Members which served for the City should communicate this Vote to the Court of Aldermen Upon this Account tho the Commons discriminated the Crime they ordered Sir Giles Philips and Mr. Coleman to be sent for into Custody of the Serjeant at Arms for detesting and abhorring the petitioning for sitting of the Parliament and voted it a Breach of Privilege of Parliament the like the Commons did by Captain William Castle Mr. John Hutchinson Mr. Henry Walrond Mr. William Stavel Mr. Thomas Herbert Sir Thomas Holt Serjeant at Law and Mr. Thomas Staples and because Sir Francis North Chief Justice of the Common Pleas advised and was assisting in drawing up a Proclamation against petitioning for the sitting of the Parliament the Commons voted That it was a sufficient Ground for the House to proceed against him for high Crimes and Misdemeanours The like Vote passed against Sir Thomas Jones one of the Judges of the King's Bench and Sir Richard Weston one of the Barons of the Exchequer I do not find these Votes went further but the Commons actually impeached Sir William Scroggs of High Treason for discharging the Grand Jury of Middlesex before they had finished their Presentments and for the Order made in the King's Bench against Care 's Pacquet of Advice from Rome 〈◊〉 the History of Popery that it should be no more printed or published by any Person whatsoever I do not find the Articles particularly recited but they were ingrossed upon the 7th of January and the Impeachment carried up to the Lords by my Lord Cavâ—â—dish and received by the Lords Note in this common Danger the Commons ordered Leave to bring in a Bill for a general Naturalization of all Protestant Aliens giving them Liberty to exercise their Trades in all Corporations Now it 's time to see wherein the Lords and Commons did agree and wherein they ran counter The Lords agreed with the Commons in repealing the Act of 35 Elizabeth viz. for Payment of 20 l. per mensem for every Man who resorted not to his Parish-Church being so terrible a Law that it lay dormant above 80 Years and in the Feuds between the Tories and Whigs it was begun to be put in Execution which the Commons apprehending would make a Breach so wide as to let in Popery which would make no Distinction between Dissenters and the Sons of the Church they brought in a Bill
for repealing the said Act of 35 Eliz. which passed the Commons upon the 26th of November and was sent up to the Lords who agreed to it As the Lords joined with the Commons in passing this Repeal so did the Commons join with the Lords in their Vote the 4th of January viz. Resolved by the Lords Spiritual and Temporal in Parliament assembled That they do declare that they are fully satisfied that there now is and for divers Years last past there hath been an horrid and treasonable Plot and Conspiracy contrived and carried on by those of the Popish Religion in Ireland for massacring the English and subverting the Protestant Religion and antient established Government of that Kingdom To which the Commons added That the Duke of York being a Papist and the Expectation that Party had of his coming to the Crown hath given the greatest Encouragement to the Popish Plot as well in Ireland as here But the Lords ran counter to the Commons in the Bill intituled An Act for securing the Protestant Religion by disabling James Duke of York to inherit the Imperial Crown of England and Dominions and Territories thereunto belonging for after the Reading it the first time in the House of Lords and the Question being put whether it should be read a second time it was resolv'd in the Negative by above a double Majority of Votes If the Lords and Commons ran counter in some things the King and Commons ran counter almost in every thing The King 's main End in calling this Parliament was to get Money for the Preservation of Tangier and in perfecting the Alliance he had made with Spain The Commons would not give any Money upon the Account of Tangier for three Reasons One was For that as the state of the Nation stood it might augment the Strength of the Popish Party and encrease the Danger of the Nation Another was There were several Regiments besides the Guards in pay in England which might be transported to Tangier with little Charge and be maintained there as cheap as here And the third was That that Garison was the Nursery of Popish Officers and Soldiers The Commons would not give Money for the pretended Alliance of mutual Obligations of Succour and Defence with Spain for three Reasons 1. The Jealousy they had of the King's Sincerity in this Alliance and the more because the King did not declare to them what manner of Alliance this was and it might be more to the Prejudice than Benefit of this Kingdom or if it should have been to the Benefit of the Kingdom they could have no more Assurance of the Performance of it than they had of the Triple League that made with the Prince of Orange or that made between the King and States of Holland by Mr. Thyn on the King's Part which were all broken almost as soon as made 2. The Impossibility of any Benefit which could arise to England and Spain by such an Alliance for if all Christendom after the separate Peace which the King joined with the Dutch Faction in could not uphold Spain and the Spanish Netherlands from falling under the Dominion of the French how could the King in the feeble and distracted state of the Nation be in a condition to support it without them 3. The Unreasonableness of giving Money upon this Account for tho oftentimes the Kings of England have demanded Supplies for maintaining vast Wars yet never any King of England before demanded Supplies for making Alliances and not declare what such Alliances were But if any such mutual Alliances of Succour and Defence were made between our King and the King of Spain I 'm sure they were ill observed by the King for two Years after viz. 1682 the French blocked up the City of Luxemburgh and the next Year took Courtray one of the six Towns delivered back to the Spaniard by Beverning's separate Treaty from the Confederates and keeps it to this Day and so the French King does Luxemburgh which he took by plain Force from the Spaniard the next Year after viz. 1684. I wish I could find any mutual Succour of Defence the King gave the King of Spain in any of these either by this Alliance or as the King was Guarantee in the Treaty of Aix la Chapelle which in his Proclamation against the Dutch in the second Dutch War he declared he would maintain Nor did the Commons only run counter to the King's Designs of getting Money but considering the dangerous and weak state of the Kingdom as by the Debt the King had contracted by shutting up the Exchequer and his squandring away almost all the antient Revenues of the Crown and to prevent the like upon the Revenue settled upon the King since his Restoration upon the 7th of January resolved 1. That whosoever shall lend or cause to be lent by way of Advance any Money upon the Branches of the King's Revenue arising by Customs Excise or Hearth-money shall be adjudged a Hinderer of the Sitting of Parliaments and be responsible for the same 2. That whosoever shall accept or buy any Tally or Anticipation upon any part of the King's Revenue or whosoever shall pay such Tally hereafter to be struck shall be adjudged to hinder the Sittings of Parliaments and be responsible therefore in Parliament Now let 's see wherein the King run counter to both Lords and Commons After the Lords had agreed with the Commons in the Repeal of 35 Eliz. the Bill was taken from the Lords Table and never heard of after which no Man durst have done without the King's Command at least Privity Herein you may observe the Insincerity of the King's Indulgences for dispensing with the Penal Laws against Dissenters when he nourished those Ends by them which the Parliament dreaded and now the Parliament would have legally eased them the Bill must be ravished away Here is a greater Wonder yet to be told of this Parliament for notwithstanding all these Discords between the Lords and Commons and the King and the Lords and Commons yet they all reconciled in making the Act against the Importation of Irish Cattel c. perpetual thereby to perpetuate the Discords between the Kingdoms of England and Ireland as much as those between Whig and Tory. And in this posture of Affairs the King prorogu'd the Parliament from the 10th to the 20th of January 1681 and upon the 18th dissolved them This Dissolution caused a great Amazement in the Nation but in some measure to allay it the King summons another to meet the 21st of March following at Oxford This rais'd a Jealousy in the Nation and many of the Nobility that there was some hidden Design nourished in the Court which might have dangerous Influences upon the Nation and the Parliament too Hereupon 16 of the Nobility petitioned the King against the Meeting of the Parliament at Oxford and my Lord of Essex upon the Delivery of it made a short Speech which I believe was not forgotten afterwards The
Lords in their Petition set forth That the King by divers Speeches and Messages to both Houses of Parliament declared to them the Danger which threatned his Person and the whole Kingdom from the mischievous and wicked Plots of the Papists and the sudden Growth of a foreign Power from which no Remedy could be provided unless by Parliament and the uniting the King's Protestant Subjects That upon the 21st of March 1679 his Majesty having chosen a Council of many honourable Persons declared to the Parliament and whole Nation That being sensible of the Evil of a single Ministry or private Advice for the future he would refer all things to that Council with the frequent Advice of his great Council of Parliament That to their unspeakable Grief that Parliament was soon after prorogued and dissolved before it could perfect their intended Relief and Security to the Nation and tho another were called yet they were not permitted to sit till the 21st of October last when his Majesty declared That neither his Person nor the Kingdom could be safe till the Plot was gone through yet upon the 10th of January following it was prorogued whereby all their pious Endeavours to save the Nation were overthrown and the good Bills for uniting his Protestant Subjects brought to nought the Discovery of the Irish Plot stifled and the Witnesses to prove the same discouraged whereby the Strength and Courage of our Enemies both at home and abroad are encreased and our selves and Country left in Danger to be lost and brought to Desolation That in these Extremities under God they had nothing to comfort them but the Hopes of the Parliament's meeting at the Day to which they were prorogued but that not only failed by their Dissolution but to call another at Oxford where neither Lords nor Commons can be in Safety but exposed to the Swords of Papists and their Adherents of whom too many were crept into his Majesty's Guards the Liberty of Speaking destroyed and the Validity of their Acts left disputable That the Straitness of the Place could not admit of the Concourse of People which follow the Parliament That the Witnesses to give Evidence against the Popish Lords and others would be put to great Charges which they cannot bear nor trust themselves under the Protection of the Parliament which it self is under the Power of Guards and Souldiers and therefore pray that the Parliament may meet and sit at Westminster Sir W. J. adds another Reason That the Meeting of the Parliament at Oxford would have the Inconvenience of making use of the Journals of the Houses and other Records I do not find what Answer the King gave the Lords but he expressed his Displeasure by a Frown and how loose soever he was in all his Promises to the Parliament you 'll see him steddy in this of the Parliament's meeting at Oxford yet not forget the Lords that petitioned him whereof the Duke of Monmouth the Earls of Bedford Essex and Shaftsbury were four But before we proceed to discover what was done in this short Interval between the Dissolution of this last Westminster Parliament and the meeting of that at Oxford it will not be amiss to take the Resemblance which was between the Tories and Whigs at this time with the Prerogative-Men and Puritans during Laud's Regency in the Reign of King Charles the First In those Times the Prerogative and high-flown Church-men however they were countenanced and preferred by the Court yet of all Factions were the least considerable in the Nation and had the least Interest in it even less than the Papist and when they had by their Extravagancies and tyrannical Dominion given such a Reputation to the Puritan Party as by Contradiction or Opposition of them to be able to raise a War in the Nation they were not only less assisting the King in it than the Papists but generally ran counter and they and their Sons joined with the Puritans against the King So that the King being assisted in the War by the Nobility and Gentry who desired to preserve the Constitutions of the Church and State and by the Papists the Storm fell upon them without Distinction so that these equally exasperated against the Factions upon King Charles's Restoration were easily reconciled to join against them and thus it continued not only in the Body of the Nation but in the Parliament for the first ten Years after the King's Restoration But then the Popish Designs at Court beginning to appear almost bare-fac'd the Commons began to tack about but so did not the Lords especially the Lords Spiritual who could not forget the Injury done not only to their Persons but their whole Order as well in throwing them out of the Lords House as extirpating Episcopacy and the King having multiplied a Nobility of his Favourites these joined with the Bishops who yet maintained the King's absolute Power under a new Title of Passive Obedience to it had a great Majority opposite to the Commons As Laud's Instruments had the Dominion of the Press whereby they vented all their Spight against the Puritans and persecuted them if they made any Answer so did the Tories and as Laud's Faction stigmatized all others except Papists which were not of their Faction with the Name of Puritans so did the Tories all other but Papists with the Name of Whigs But herein the Tories in this Reign had a great Advantage above the Prerogative-men in King Charles the First 's Reign for this Prince was of a more parsimonious Nature not at all becoming so great a Prince and had not one third of the Revenue which his Son had who profusely scatter'd it amongst his Minions and Favourites and sure it will set an ill Character upon his Memory to have it left upon Record by what strange ways to Honour and Justice he made himself a Drudg to his Favourites to get Money from his Subjects to support them whilst he became a Pensioner to the French King himself and was so loose in all his Leagues which he made with all other Princes and States After the Popish Plot broke out and the King had dissolved the Long Parliament the whole Genius of the Nation became quite altered as plainly appeared in their Election of the Commons in these two succeeding Westminster Parliaments who for their Quality were equal to any House of Commons that ever was before and the Tories have now as little an Interest in the Nation as the Prerogative-men had in King Charles the First 's Reign iâ— Laud's Regency However the Tories were balked of the Expectation of their Pensions by the Commons giving no Money in these two last Parliaments yet they abated nothing of their Impudence in making all but themselves and the Papists to be Whigs and that aâ— was now running back to Forty One and into a Commonwealth In this Disguise since the Meal-Tub Plot had no better Success one Fitz-Harris the Son of Sir Edward Fitz-Harris both Irish and Papists sets up
another like that of the Meal-Tub but was carried on with higher Countenance for the Countess of Powis was the greatest concerned in that but you 'll see a greater concerned in this tho the Design was as dark as secret and the Discoverâ— of it by all Court-ways endeavoured to be suppressed So much as was suffered to come to Light was Edward Fitz-Harris was the Son of Sir Edward Fitz-Harris 〈◊〉 it 's said was an Agent in the Irish Rebellion if not in the Massacre in 1642. and this Edward Fitz-Harris was a great Correspondent with the Dutchess of Portsmouth and her Womâ—n Mrs. Wall and the Confessor of the French Ambassador and the Dutchess had several times supplied Fitz-Harris with Money and at one Time with 250 l. Fitz-Harris became acquainted with one Everard beyond Sea where they were in the French King's Service There was a strange Story of this Everard for after the King's Restoration he was 〈◊〉 about three Years kept in a dark Dungeon in the Tower where 't is said the Nails of his Fingers and Toes grew like the Takeâ— of a Hawk but the Fact for which he was committed was as 〈◊〉 as was Fitz-Harris's Design About the Beginning of February after the Parliament 〈◊〉 dissolved Fitz-Harris renews his Acquaintance with Everard and represented to him the Advantages he might have by forsaking the English Interest and ingratiating himself into the 〈◊〉 and Popish Fitz-Harris told Everard he might be serviceable to this Intereâ—â— if he would make a Pamphlet which might reflect upon the Kingâ— to alienate him from the People and the People from the Kingâ— Everard said he would do any thing for his Interest but did 〈◊〉 understand this to be so yet Fitz-Harris upon the 21st of 〈◊〉 gave some Heads by Word of Mouth to draw such a Pamphlet Everard acquaints several with what Fitz-Harris had said and perswaded one Mr. Smith in a concealed manner to hear the further Discourse between Fitz-Harris and him Everard also perswaded Sir William Waller to be there in like manner Upon the 22d Mr. Smith came to the Place appointed but Sir William Waller did not there Fitz-Harris gave Everard Instructions That the King and all the Royal Family must be traduced to be Popishly and Arbitrarily affected from the Beginning that King Charles the First had a hand in the Irish Rebellion and that King Charles the Second did countenance the same by preferring Fitz-Gerald Fitz-Patrick and Mont-Garret who were in the Irish Rebellion that the Act forbidding the calling the King a Papist was to stop Peoples Mouths when he should encline to further Popery which appeared by his adhering so closely to the Duke of York's Interest and hindering him from being proceeded against in Parliament and hindering the Officers put in by the Duke to be cast out and for that the Privy-Counsellors and Justices of the Peace which were for the Protestant Interest were turned out of all Places of Trust and that it was as much in the Peoples Power to depose a Popish Possessor as a Popish Successor and seeing there were no Hopes the Parliament when they should meet at Oxford could do any Good the People were bound to provide for themselves After this Everard and Fitz-Harris agreed to meet there the next Day and in the mean time Everard sent a Letter to Sir William Waller to meet there and be concealed to take notice of the Passages Sir William came and was secretly placed by Everard but before Sir William was so placed Everard gave him two Copies of the Instructions which Fitz-Harris gave Everard to draw up into a Libel which Sir William marked Soon after Fitz-Harris came and enquired of Everard what he had done who answered he had drawn two Copies of the Business and prayed Fitz-Harris to see how he liked them Fitz-Harris altered one of them yet thought it not full enough but would have it fair wrote out for the French Ambassador's Confessor After that Everard desired Fitz-Harris to give him his Instructions in Writing in which Paper Fitz-Harris wrote That it was in the Peoples Power to depose a Popish Possessor as well as Successor and other treasonable Heads And next Day Fitz-Harris came to Everard for a Copy fair written out which was delivered to Fitz-Harris who promised Everard a Recompence which was to be the Entrance into the Business but Everard should be brought into the Cabal where several Protestants and Parliament-Men were to give an Account to the French Ambassador of what was transacted But before Fitz-Harris was to receive the Libel back he was to go to my Lord H of Escrick Before this Fitz-Harris had received of the Dutchess of Portsmouth 250 l. to bring my Lord H to the King's Interest Mrs. Wall said which Fitz-Harris pursued so well that my Lord waited several times upon the Dutchess and found the King there and the Night before my Lord Stafford's Sentence Fitz-Harris came to my Lord from the King and told him that the King would take it as a great Resignation of my Lord to the King's Will and Pleasure if the next Day my Lord would go vote for my Lord Stafford This Design was to be carried on in the Name of the Nonconformists and put upon them and to be dispersed by the Penny Post to the Protesting Lords and leading Men in the House of Commons who were to be taken and searched so soon as they received it Everard said the Court had a Hand in it and thâ—â— the King had given Fitz-Harris Money and would give him moâ—â— if it had Success and the King told Sheriff Cornish that Fitz-Harris had three Months before his Apprehension been with the King and acquainted him that he was in Pursuit of a Plot which much related to his Majesty's Person and Government which the King did countenance and gave him some Money Sir William Waller acquainted the King with the Particulars he had taken whilst he was concealed the King thank'd Sir William and commanded Secretary Jenkins to issue out a Warrant for apprehending Fitz-Harris and Sir William to take Care for the Execution of it But Sir William was no sooner gone but Sir William said he was informed by two worthy Gentlemen that the King was highly offended with him and the King said he had broken all his Measures and that he would have him taken off one way 〈◊〉 other Sir William was as forward in taking Fitz-Harris as before he was in discovering his Plot and having apprehended him he was committed to Newgate where he was examined by Sir Robert Clayton and Sheriff Cornish to whom Fitz-Harris declared his Willingness to discover the whole Design the next Day after but Fitz-Harris next Day was removed to the Tower which was not done to Sir Thomas Gascoign and the Popish Lords Upon the 21st of March the Parliament met at Oxford the Members of the Commons were generally the same as the last Parliament and those which were not were of the same Kidney 〈◊〉
the others were so that they proceeded where the last Commons left and sat but seven Days wherein they had these foâ—â— Considerations under their Debates first the preparing a 〈◊〉 against the Duke of York's Succession the second the taking the Bill of the Repeal of the Act of 35 Eliz. out of the House of Lords the third an Inquiry into Fitz-Harris's Business the fourth a Prosecution against the impeached Lords in the Tower The Commons spent the three first Days in choosing their Speaker and confirming him and in taking Oaths as the Laws direct so that it was Thursday the twenty fourth of March before they entred upon any Business and being dissolved upon the Monday following they could make but little Progress upon the four Particulars aforesaid and each of them was so green that the Court would not endure much Enquiry into any one of them Upon the Debate of Fitz-Harris's Business one of the Members reported how that one Hubert had confessed that he had fired the City of London upon which the House resolved to examine him next Morning but before the House sat next Morning Hubert was hanged to prevent it and they remembred there was a Design to have tried the Popish Lords in the Tower by Indictment to prevent which the Commons exhibited general Impeachments against them with that Success that the Lords were never tried upon Indictments and the Judges gave their Opinions they could not Hereupon the Commons ordered an Impeachment of Fitz-Harris upon Friday the twenty fifth of March and ordered Sir Lionel Jenkins to carry it up to the Lords who at first refused it saying The sending of me upon this Message reflects upon my Master the King and do what you will I will not go Hereupon seveveral moved to call him to the Bar and several Speeches were made of his Offence but at last he relented and carried up the Impeachment to the Lords but the Lords threw it out But the Lords having thrown out the Impeachment the Commons the next Day being Saturday the twenty sixth ran high in their Debates upon it One said this was to have no further use of a Parliament but to serve a present Purpose Another said Indictments were brought against the Lords in the Tower yet that was no Impediment against their Impeachment in the Lords House and the last Day of the last Sessions of Parliament the Lords accepted an Impeachment of the Lord Chief Justice Scroggs and that this Denial of Justice by the Lords was greater than my Lord Chief Justice Scroggs's Denial of taking Presentments from the Grand Inquest of Middlesex by how much the Commons of Parliament are the great Inquest of the Nation Another said this is a new Plot against the Protestants of which Fitz-Harris is accused and the Commons impeach him and the Lords say We will not hear it and that if it were not for the Lords Fitz-Harris might have discovered all the Conspiracy and the Protestant Religion might have been saved and therefore moved That the denying this Impeachment tends to the Subversion of the Constitution of the Parliament and of the Protestant Religion Another said That this was a Confirmation of the Design to murder the King and the Duke consenting to destroy his own Brother and our King and therefore moved That if any Judg Justice or Jury proceed upon Fitz-Harris and he be found Guilty That the House would declare them guilty of his Murder and Betrayers of the Rights of the Commons of England to which was added upon the Motion of Sir W. J. or that any Inferiour Court shall proceed c. which was passed The Reason of these Votes were That if Fitz-Harris were tried upon an Indictment he must have been tried singly upon the Fact whether he were guilty or not of contriving and dispersing the Libel but upon an Impeachment the Commons might enquire into the whole Conspiracy Sunday March 27. The Houses sat not and the next Day Monday 28 in the Morning the King came suddenly and unexpectedly to the House of Peers and sent for the Commons and dissolved the Parliament and immediately took Coach and drove to Windsor leaving both Houses in an Amaze and the City of Oxford in a Hubbub If it were Sir William Jones who wrote the just and modest Vindication of the two last Parliaments viz. the last Westminster Parliament and this at Oxford pag. 393. he says The Peers at Oxford were so wholly ignorant of the Council that they never thought of a Dissolution till they heard it pronounced yet the Dutchess of Mazarine published the News at St. James ' s many hours before it was done If the Nation as well as the Parliament and City of Oxford were amazed at this Dissolution and Manner of it they were not less with the Declaration that followed it which though the King did not communicate to the Council till Friday the eighth of April yet the next Page says Monsieur Barillon the French Embassador read it to a Gentleman upon the fifth of April before and demanded his Opinion of it which the Embassador might better remember because of the great Liberty the Gentleman took in ridiculing it to his Face It 's observable that that Declaration was printed in French as well as English and many Gallicisms in it and particularly That it was a Matter extreamly sensible to us which was a Form of speaking peculiar to the French and unknown to any other Nation The Substance of the Declaration contained the Dissatisfaction the King took at the two Westminster Parliaments that they gave him no sutable Return to support the Alliances which he had made for the General Peace of Christendom nor for the further Examination into the Plot nor for the Preservation of Tangier and for their Votes That no Man should lend any Money upon any Branches of the Revenue or buy or pay any Tally of Anticipation upon any part of the King's Revenue This was not so for the Commons restrained them to the Custom Excise and Chimney-money given for other Ends see the Votes that they passed a Vote That the prosecuting of Protestant Dissenters was a Grievance to the Subject c. by which they assumed to themselves a Power of suspending Laws So the Commons might do any other Law found by Experience to be grievous and dangerous to the Subject and must do so in order to repeal such Laws and did not the King do so twice before by his Declaration of Indulgence though to a contrary End to what the Commons intended That these Proceedings caused him to dissolve that Parliament and to assemble another at Oxford who had warning given them of the Errors of the former and were required to make the Law of the Land their Rule and adding that he would not depart from what he had formerly declared concerning the Succession yet declared he was ready to hearken to any Expedients by which the Religion established might be preserved yet the Monarchy preserved viz. How
to preserve Fire and Water mingled together and was not the Monarchy of Scotland preserved though his Grandfather reigned twenty Years in Scotland while his Mother was alive without her and so continued after her Death That no Expedient would be entertained but a total Exclusion nor could be nor did the King ever propound any how otherwise the established Religion might be preserved That the Business of Fitz-Harris was carried to that Extremity that there were no hopes of a Reconciliation c. and put the Houses out of a Capacity of transacting Business it was upon Friday the twenty sixth of March the Commons sent up the Impeachment of Fitz-Harris and there were but Saturday and Sunday between this and the Dissolution of the Parliament and the Houses sat not on Sunday so that the King 's no Hopes or indeed Fears of a Reconciliation were very sudden Why might not the Lords if they had been permitted to have sat upon Conferences with the Commons and hearing their Reason have altered their Resolutions which is usual and it seems this Resolution of the Lords was very sudden and admitted of no great Debate to receive the Impeachment of Fitz-Harris and the same Day to throw it out which caused him to put an end to that Parliament However the King says that notwithstanding the Malice of ill Men who laboured to perswade the People that he intended to lay aside the Use of Parliaments he declared that no Irregularity in Parliament should make him out of love with them and that he was resolved to have frequent Parliaments yet lived near four Years after and never called another and in the Intervals would use his utmost endeavours to extirpate Popery and redress the Grievances of his Subjects the truth of this will best appear hereafter This Declaration which carries the Title of his Majesty's Declaration to all his loving Subjects was ordered to be read in all the Churches of England but if the Matter of it were so surprizing and amazing to the Nation the Manner of it was not less For never any King of England before as King no not this King's Father or Grandfather ever spake to his Subjects but either personally in Parliament or under the Broad Seal of England Whereas this Declaration is only Signed Francis Gwyn it might have been as well Edward Coleman and the Subjects as much obliged to have taken notice of the one as of the other And the Reason is twofold one That the Chancellor or Keeper is responsible if he puts the Seal to any Declaration or Proclamation not warranted by Law and therefore my Lord Chancellor Finch's Sagacity in not putting the Seal to this Declaration was as apparent as his Veracity which he would not expose in seconding the King's Speech at the opening the last Westminster Parliament And the other is to avoid all Impostures and Cheats which might otherwise be imposed upon the Nation under the Name of the King That we may take a better View of the rest of this King's Reign if it be worthy to be called so it 's fit we look into Scotland and see what 's doing there for the Discovery of the Popish Plot but it 's fit to look a little back and take notice that the King in his Speech at the opening of the Second Westminster Parliament told them that to take away all room for any Jealousy of his not prosecuting the Discovery of the Popish Plot he had sent his Brother beyond Sea but having by the Duke of Monmouth wholly suppressed the Kirk Party in Scotland he fairly sends for the Duke of York back again and from an Exile made him Vice-Roy or Regent of Scotland where all things lay open for him to prosecute his Designs as he pleased When the Duke came into Scotland the Earl of Argyle was one of the first that waited upon him The Earl's Story will better appear if first you take his Character He was Son of the Earl of Argyle after made Marquess by King Charles the First who so preferred him to take him off from heading the Kirk Party and thereby to oblige him to become of the King's side which had no Effect for the Marquess above any other of the Scotish Nobility was a most zealous Assertor of the Kirk's Power and was the Head of them when Montross took up Arms against them but though the Marquess was most unfortunate in it yet it no ways abated his Zeal to the Kirk nor was he less esteemed by them When Cromwel had overthrown Duke Hamilton and taken him Prisoner who came into England not to establish the National League and Covenant but to deliver King Charles out of Prison The zealous Kirk Party were highly offended at it and the Marquess of Argyle was the principal Agent to call Cromwel into Scotland to suppress the Hamiltonian Faction and to establish the Kirk which Cromwel then did though he undid it soon after and for this the Marquess was the first Year after the King's Restoration condemned and executed for High Treason upon which he lost all his Honours as well as his Estate But in all the Marquess's Actions his Son the Lord Lorn run counter to him and when this King Charles was in Scotland he was of all others the most obsequious to him and afterward when Middleton made some Incursions into Scotland for the King Lorn was most assisting in them Hereupon after the Marquess was attainted and executed King Charles restored his Son to all his Father's Estate and Honours except that of Marquess Afterward the Earl of Argyle continued constant in his Integrity to the King in all his Civil Affairs and was most zealous and forward in suppressing Tumults and Field-Conventicles so that before the Duke came into Scotland the King had so entire a Confidence in the Earl that he gloried that in thirty Years which must be computed from the King 's going into Scotland in 1650 he never received one Frown from the King how he should become such a prejured Traitor after the Duke's coming into Scotland is now to be enquired into The Earl of Argyle was one of the Lords of the Articles and by the Duke made one of the Committee for the Articles of Religion which by the Custom of Scotland and by the King's Instruction was to be the first thing treated of In this Committee an Act was prepared for securing the Protestant Religion which approved the Confession of Faith and also the Act containing the Coronation Oath to be taken by all the Kings and Regents of Scotland before their entry to exercise their Government This Act as drawn was less binding to the Successor of the Crown as to his own Profession yet did oblige as strongly the Maintenance of the Protestant Religion in the publick Profession by all others as before and added a Test to be taken by all in publick Emploiments to exclude the Popish Party out of them and because in case of a Popish Successor all Fines and
Man be asked his Opinion of any Law or Point in Law and he gives it according to the best of his skill shall this be taken for Treason and depraving of the Law and a Man be in danger of his Life for it This was the Earl's Case he was called upon by the Duke to take the Test with his Explanation before he did it and whereas Mackenzy says there was no Force upon the Earl I 'm sure if my Author says true the Earl refused to give in the Paper whereof he is indicted and proffered to lay down his Offices upon it till the Duke peremptorily commanded him to do it if this were not Force I would know what is I 'm sure there was no Force but Corruption and Bribery upon the Advocate to enter into this villanous Conspiracy against this Noble Earl to murder him under the Pretext of Justice which is to be esteemed sacred And let any Man read his whole Harangue and see if there be any thing in it but forced and strained Inferences or any one Proof against the Earl within the Act 60 Parl. 6. Mary or the 9 Act. Par. 20. Jac. 6. which makes it Treason to make false Construction of Laws to others with a Design to raise Sedition and Dissension among the King's Subjects so that some Overt Act or Speech to others with a Design to raise Sedition c. must be proved and not what is said in the Council or any Court of Judicature However as was the Advocate such were the Assizers whereof the Marquess of Montross the Earl's Father's most bitter Enemy was the Fore-Man and the rest of the Pack of the same Stamp who with one Voice found the Earl guilty of Treason Leasing-making and Leasing-telling but like conscientious Men having made the Earl to have forfeited his Life Honour and Estate by a Majority they find the Earl innocent of Perjury which they could get nothing by So that the Noble Lord Lorn is become the Forlorn late Earl of Argyle yet the Earl not to be wanting to himself in this deplorable State next day but one viz. December the 15th by a Friend humbly intreated to speak with the Duke who returned Answer It was not ordinary to speak with Criminals except with Rogues on some Plot where Discoveries might be expected By this you may see what Spirit governed this Prince and what might be expected from him if he became King The next Day after the Earl's Sentence viz. December the 14th the Council gave the King notice of it and expected his further Pleasure now the Work is done to his Hand but it seems his Highness was very impatient till he had the Earl's Blood for he said If the Express from the King came not timously he would take upon himself what was to be done by which you may see what an Ascendency the Duke had over the King However the Earl upon the sixteenth petitioned the Duke that he might send a Petition to the King which was refused Things brought to this Extremity and the Earl hearing that some Troops and a Regiment of Foot were to be brought down from the Castle to the Common Goal from which Criminals were usually brought to Execution he resolved to try to make his Escape and the rather because about seven at Night he had notice that new Orders were given for further securing him and that the Castle Guards were to be doubled and that none were suffered to go out without shewing their Faces and therefore a Friend advised him not to attempt it No said the Earl now is the Time and so he attempted it and it pleased God he escaped Hereupon the Lords of Assize upon the twenty third of December pronounced the Earl guilty of the Crimes of Treason Leasing-making and Leasing-telling for which being detained in the Castle of Edinburgh out of which since the Verdict having made his Escape therefore they adjudged the said Earl to be executed to Death and his Name Memory and Honours to be extinct and his Arms to be riven forth and delete out of the Book of Arms swa that his Posterity may never have Place nor be able hereafter to bruick or joyse any Honour Offices Titles or Dignities within this Realm iâ— time coming and to have forefaulted all his Lands and Tenements c. But tho the Earl be escaped out of Prison whereto shall he flee For Terras I 'am sure Britannicas Astraea reliquit he had some thoughts of casting himself at the King's Feet but those soon vanished for the same Counsel which governed in Scotland raged all England over and so privately he passed into Holland where for some time we leave him and see what 's doing in England Mr. Hawles in his Remarks upon Fitz-Harris's Trial F. 18. out of Tully's Offices lays this down for a Rule That nothing is profitable but what is honest for which Tully gives many Reasons but nothing so convincing as the Examples he brings in publick and private matters and tho the Empire was vast and he bore a great Figure in it and was very knowing in the Greek and Roman Histories yet was he not able to bring a hundredth Part of Examples to prove his Position as had been in this little Island in the space of eight Years And in his Preface gives six Reasons for the Disaffection to the late Government viz. Exorbitant Fines cruel and illegal Prosecutions outragious Damages dispensing with the Test and penal Laws and undue Prosecutions in criminal but more especially in capital Matters But these I take to be the Effects of those Councils which governed in England ever after the King's Restoration tho they did not so manifestly appear till the Duke was sent into Scotland and after the Dissolution of the Parliament at Oxford and for these first six Years after the Dissolution of the Parliament at Oxford the Tories in England as well as in Scotland were the Tools which the Popish Faction made use of for carrying on their Designs then they were laid by and the Whigs set up as they thought to finish the Work The Tories were so far from being suppressed by the Proceedings of the Commons against them last Westminster Parliament that they only so much more irritated them against the Whigs after the Dissolutions of the last Westminster and Oxford Parliaments and this was what the Popish Party desired The King's Declaration signed Francis Gwyn was not only obeyed by the Tories but entertained with unexpressible Joy and celebrated with manifold Returns of Thanks to his Majesty and now nothing but Halcyon Days were expected and an absolute Dominion over the Whigs and the King to gratify the Tories in their Jollity and after the Bill for repealing the Act of 35 Eliz. was taken out of the House of Lords before it was passed which little sorted with the King's Declarations of Indulgence has this Law now put in Force against the Dissenters and prosecuted with that Violence that many thousands of Families
were undone by it yet little of the Money levied upon them was brought into the Exchequer and you may be sure the Prosecutors would take their own share and it was no difficult Matter to get a Grant or at least a Pardon for the King 's Among the rest of the Worthies in this pious Business one Jenner a Lawyer was one who for this and other meritorious Acts was after knighted and made one of the honourable Barons of the Exchequer and Sir Dudly North the Keeper's own Brother was another and though these Men were excepted out of the Act of Indemnity made by this King and Informations against them in the Exchequer and among the rest against this Jenner yet upon pleading their Pardons I do find no great matttr came of them And now since the Meal-Tub Plot and that of Fitz-Harris had no better Effect the Court sets up another to throw the Popish Plot upon the Nonconformists You have heard before how there appeared to be a Popish Plot carried on in Ireland ever since the Year 1665 for establishing the Popish Religion and that several Witnesses were brought out of Ireland to prove it and how that the Lords in Parliament having throughly enquired into it did upon the sixth of January last viz. 1680-81 send this Message to the Commons Resolved by the Lords Spiritual and Temporal in Parliament assembled that they do declare that they are fully satisfied that there now is and for divers Years last past hath been an horrid and treasonable Plot continued and carried on by those of the Popish Religion in Ireland for massacring the English and subverting the Protestant Religion and the antient Government of that Kingdom to which they desire the Concurrence of this House to which the Commons agreed The Evidence by which the Lords discovered this Plot were generally Irish and of the Popish Religion and it 's probable were Partakers of the Design of this Massacre and had not their Pardons or if they had they were poor and had no means to subsist now the Oxford Parliament was dissolved and no Prospect of another especially having now lost their Friends and Dependance for having given their Evidence of the Discovery of the Plot and were in a strange Country In this state the Court imployed a sort of Men partly by Terror and partly by their Necessities to work upon the Irish to pervert their Evidence another way And the Cause being the same it had the same Effect upon others as well as the Irish for the Oxford Parliament being dissolved and all Hopes of Enquiry further into the Popish Plot growing desperate Dugdale Turbervile and Smith not having that I can find gotten their Pardons and having lost their Dependances upon their having given their Evidence and being reduced to the same Necessities the Irish Witnesses were were easily wrought upon to smother the Popish Plot and to swear another upon the principal Inquirers into the Popish nay even my Lord H tho not in the like Circumstances could not procure his Pardon till his Drudgery of Swearing was over The Foundation thus laid now we proceed to shew how the King made good his Declaration for calling frequent Parliaments and in using his utmost Endeavours of extirpating Papacy and it is without any Precedent that ever any King before did truckle to such vile and mean things to invert his Declaration and his manifold repeated Promises to the Parliament The 28th of March the Parliament at Oxford was dissolved and upon the 27th of April following an Indictment of High Treason was preferred against Edward Fitz-Harris to the Grand Jury at Westminster for the Hundred of Oswalst but the Grand Jury having the Vote of the Commons of the 27th of March so fresh in their Memories desired the Opinion of the Court whether they might safely proceed upon it and you need not doubt but the Court gave their Opinion they might So the Grand Jury found the Bill From the time that Fitz-Harris was removed from Newgate to the Tower which was 10 Weeks before this Indictment he was kept so close Prisoner that his Wife nor any others were permitted to come at him whereas the Lords impeached in Parliament had the Liberty of the Tower and for any Man to visit them Yet Fitz-Harris's Wife foreseeing the Design of the Trial of her Husband had gone to Counsel and had a Plea drawn to the Jurisdiction of the Court to which the Attorney-General demurred and Fitz-Harris's Counsel joined in the Demurrer It were Vanity and extream Arrogance in me to judg of the nice Pleadings on both sides concerning the Form and Substance or to give a Reason why the Court over-ruled Fitz-Harris's Plea since the Court did not Yet I say the Reports of Coke Dier Plowden and others would have proved dry Businesses if the Courts of Westminster-Hall had given such Judgments as the King's Bench did in Fitz-Harris's Case And I say also That no Man lives out of Society and Commerce and that in every Country there are Laws for the Preservation of Mens Lives and to protect them in Society and Commerce and that in every Country there is a Power which is loose from these Laws and gives Laws to all the Subjects of those Countries But because all Laws are vain unless they be executed every Country has Judicatories wherein these Laws are executed which differ in different Countries The supreme Power of this Nation resides in a Parliament whereof the King is the Head and the Lords Spiritual and Temporal and the Representatives of the Commons are the Body These Courts of Judicature have their distinct Jurisdictions and are restrained to certain Rules and Methods the highest of these Courts are the Body of the Parliament viz. the Lords Spiritual and Temporal and the Commons which have distinct Jurisdictions but are not bound up in their Judicatories by such strict Rules as other Courts are Other Courts take Cognizance of civil and criminal Cases between particular Men but these Courts of Parliament take Cognizance of the State and Grievances of the Nation where only they find Relief and tho no other Courts take Cognizance of Matters transacted in Parliament yet either of these Courts take Cognizance of all Proceedings in other Courts and not only reverse all illegal Proceedings in them but punish the Judges of all other Courts for any Errors or Abuses committed by them so if any Person or Person shall grow so great as to be dangerous to the Publick tho they be out of the Reach of other Courts yet they are subject to these Courts of Parliament and by these Courts the English Nation have preserved their Liberties and Laws now France and Spain have lost them which before had their Assemblies of the States all one with our Parliaments and in losing them have lost their Liberty and Laws to the Arbitrary Will of their Princes The Jurisdiction of Parliaments hath been in all Ages in England esteemed sacred so that other Courts rarely
purpose 3. Oates said Turbervile said a little before the Witnesses were sworn at the Old-Baily That he was not a Witness against Colledge nor could give any Evidence against him and that after he came to Oxford he had been sworn before the Grand Jury against Colledge and that the Protestant Citizens had deserted him and God damn him he would not starve John Smith swore Colledge's speaking scandalous Words against the King and of his having Armour which he shewed Smith and said These are the things that will destroy the pitiful Guards of Rowley and that he expected the King would seize some of the Members of Parliament at Oxford which if done he would be one should seize the King that Fitz-Gerald had made his Nose bleed but before long he hoped to see a great deal more Blood shed for the Cause that if any nay Rowley himself came to disarm the City he would be the Death of him 4. To confront this Evidence Blake testified that Smith said Haynes's Discovery was a Sham-Plot a Meal-Tub-Plot Bolron said Smith would have had him swore against Sir John Brooke my Lord Shaftsbury and Colledge things of which he knew nothing and told him what he Bolron should swear lest they should disagree in their Evidence Oates testified Smith said God damn him he would have Colledge ' s Blood and Mowbray testified that Smith tempted him to be a Witness against Colledge and Sir John Brooke and said if the Parliament did not give the King Money and stood on the Bill of Exclusion that was Pretence enough to swear a Design to secure the King at Oxford And Everard and others testified Smith said he knew of no Presbyterian or Protestant Plot and said Justice Warcup would have perswaded him to swear against some Lords a Presbyterian Plot but he knew of none These were the material Evidences thus confronted which should prove Colledge's Treason and Misdemeanour for taking away his Life But this Evidence was so baffled that for Shame the King's Counsel never play'd them after against any other but my Lord of Shaftsbury but were forced to set up for new against my Lord Russel Colonel Sidney c. Objection In criminal Cases especially of Treason if Evidence did not arise from the Conspirators who are supposed to be ill Men scarce any other means can be found for preventing or punishing these and that Dangerfield was of an ill Fame and Dugdale Smith and Turbervile were Witnesses in Discovery of the Popish Plot and so their Evidence is to be credited as well in this as in the Popish Plot. Answer Nor would the Popish Plot have been believed if it had no Foundation but the Credit of the Witnesses but Coleman's Letters Sir Godfrey's Murder and Harcourt's Letters of it that Night to Evers my Lord Aston's Confessor c. gave more than sufficient Evidence of the Popish Plot beside the Evidence in the Popish Plot did arise from the Evidence of their own Accord not hired and sought to give it as in this And can any Man believe that Colledge so zealous a Protestant should design the Destruction of the King and contrive it by Papists to whom he was so averse And it were Madness to think Colledge could do this alone for none of all the Evidence swear any other to be concerned with him in it There were other Evidence against Colledge viz. Mr. Mâ—sters Sir William Jennings about Words which Colledge should speak and Atterbury Seywel and Stevens concerning finding Pictures in Colledge's Possession when they seized him but as Mr. Hawles observes these by no Law in England could be made Treason admitting all they said to be true But tho at Colledge this Scene began and he was executed as a Traitor it did not end in him as he prophesied For Colledge's Blood was too mean a Sacrifice to appease the offended Ghosts of the martyred Roman Saints and was but an Inlet to spill nobler Blood therefore upon the 31st of August he was executed and upon the 24th of November following 1681. the Earl of Shaftsbury had a Bill of High Treason at the Sessions of the Old-Baily London preferred against him I will not here curtail any of the Remarks which Mr. Hawles has made upon this Bill or the Trial of my Lord Russel Colonel Sidney's Mr. Cornish's and Wilmer's Trials but leave them entire to the Reader it 's enough for me to shew how well the King by these Trials made good his Declaration of preserving the Protestant Religion and his utmost Endeavour to extirpate Popery yet I shall make some Remarks upon my Lord Shaftsbury's Case which Mr. Hawles either has not or not so fully Upon the 20th of April 1679 the King after he had sent the Duke into Holland dissolved his old Privy Council and chose a new one whereof the Earl of Shaftsbury was President and in Parliament declared the ill Effects he had found of single Councils and Cabals and therefore had made Choice of this Council which next to the Advice of his great Council of Parliament which he would often consult in all his weighty and important Affairs he would be advised by this Privy Council and to take away all Jealousy that he was influenced by Popish Councils he had sent his Brother beyond Sea But now quanto mutatus No more Parliaments so long as this King lives The Council whose Advice next the Parliament he would take is now dissolved and the President 's Life is sought for the Duke of late sent away that he might not influence the King's Councils is now returned and governs all and made High Commissioner of Scotland where at this time he is contriving the Destruction of the noble Earl of Argile whilst his Brother is doing that of my Lord of Shaftsbury and both act their Parts under the Vail of sacred Justice But how to bring the Earl of Shaftsbury upon the Stage was Matter of great Inquiry other Evidence besides Irish and those Colledge had so baffled could scarce be found and this Evidence 't was feared would no more prevail upon a London Grand Jury than before it did when the Bill was preferred against Colledge Captain Henry Wilkinson was a Yorkshire Gentleman who having served King Charles I. in his Wars and been very instrumental in the Restoration of King Charles II. being fall'n into Decay a Fate usually attending the Cavaliers who served either of those Kings was for his Sufferings Integrity and Honesty preferred by the Earls of Craven and Shaftsbury to be Governour of Carolina and one of his Sons to be Surveyor-General of it and another a Register Captain Wilkinson made use of the little Stock he had left and such Credit as he could procure to fit himself upon this Account and hired a Ship called the Abigail of a hundred and thirty Tuns and victualled her for the Master and ten Men and such other Passengers as he should take in In this Number one Mr. John Booth desired that he and his
Family might accompany the Captain to Carolina which was agreed to but the Captain being under several Disappointments and the charges of the Ship of four Months lying in the River insupportable the Captain was arrested and thrown into the Compter from whence he removed himself to the King's Bench. The Captain 's Necessities were equal or more than those of the Irish Evidence but the Captain at least as he supposed had no need of a Pardon for any thing designed against the King or Government as the Irish Evidence had so the first Attempt upon the Captain was to hire him to give Evidence against my Lord of Shaftsbury If Empson and Dudly were so zealous to fill Henry the 7th's Coffers by straining the Penal Laws to utmost Rigour as the Vogue went Graham Baynes and Burton were as zealous to pack Juries and procure Evidence for carrying on this black Design but I do not find Burton was in this upon Captain Wilkinson Upon the eighth of October Baynes made his first Attack upon the Captain and told him that he had been lately with Mr. Graham who had a great Interest with my Lord H. and that the Captain could not but know much of my Lord Shaftsbury's Designs and that he had now a desired Opportunity to discover them and urged the Captain not to deny the proffer and that he need not fear his getting a Pardon but the Captain was constant that he knew nothing of any such Design By this time Booth was a Prisoner in the King's Bench as well as the Captain and upon the eleventh Booth attack'd the Captain and told him he might have 500 l. per annum or 10000 l. if he would discover what he knew of my Lord Shaftsbury's Design against the King and that the Captain should appear at Court and have Assurance of it from Persons of Honour but this wrought not upon the Captain neither Upon the thirteenth Baynes Booth and Graham renewed the Promises Baynes and Booth had made and that he should have the King's Promise for the same and his Royal Word for a Reward for his Sufferings and that Graham was sent by some of the Council to bring the Captain to the King and that he had an Order for it but all would not do for the Captain was resolved not to go to White-Hall if he could help it Upon the fourteenth Booth told the Captain that Mr. Wilson my Shaftsbury's Secretary who was a Prisoner in the Gate-house had sent to the Council that he would come and discover all he knew and therefore he urged the Captain to have the Honour of being the first Discoverer and that to the former Promises the Captain should have 500 l. per Annum settled on him in Ireland by the D. of York but all to no purpose Upon the fifteenth Booth and Baynes attackt the Captain again the Captain asked Baynes why he was so urgent for his Testimony Baynes answered That as yet they had none but Irish Evidence which would not be believed but if the Captain came to it he was not blemished in his Credit and then Baynes told him if he would not go he Baynes had a Habeas Corpus from my Lord Chief Justice Pemberton to carry him to White-Hall In the Afternoon the Captain was carried by his Habeas Corpus to Whitehall and examined in the Secretary's Office by my Lord Conway and Secretary Jenkins and in his Examination in comes the King into the Office as before he had done into the Dutchess of Portsmouth's Chamber when my Lord H came to kiss her Hand and there the King told the Captain he had served his Father and him faithfully and hoped he the Captain would not now decline his Obedience to which the Captain answered he never deserved to be suspected then the King told him he had not the Opportunity to serve his Friends but hoped he might then the King examined him what he knew of my Lord Shaftsbury's having a Design against his Person but the Captain upon his Oath denied he knew any thing so the King left him to the further Examination of Secretary Jenkins But this Business did not stay here for the Captain was carried into another Room where were present the King my Lord Chancellor the Lord Chief Justice Pemberton and several other of the Nobility with Graham Baynes and Booth where my Lord Chancellor was very sharp upon the Captain and put several Questions to the Captain which he could not answer and told the Captain there were two sorts of Advancements and that the Captain was like to come to his Trial before the Lord Shaftsbury The Business was Booth had sworn that the Captain had a Commission from my Lord Shaftsbury for a Troop of fifty Men to be my Lord's Guards against the King and that Booth was listed in it This Booth had sworn but was so unfortunate in it as to swear this was when the Parliament was at Oxford at which time the Captain was making his Preparations for his intended Government of Carolina but whether the King believed the Captain or Booth is unknown but it stop'd here and the Captain was no higher advanced upon Booth's Oath nor could be prevailed upon to be a Witness against my Lord Shaftbury though his Wife was as much tempted to have it so as the Captain was so the Captain 's only Advancement was to be remanded to Prison However it was resolved that my Lord Shaftsbury should be prosecuted and so upon the 24th of November a Bill of High Treason was preferred against him to the great Inquest at the Sessions-House in the Old-Baily and Baines proved a true Prophet though Booth sware to the Captain's Command of Fifty Men to be a Guard to my Lord for the Jury neither believed him nor the Evidence so baffled at Colledge's Trial nor the Irish Evidence added to that and so returned an Ignoramus upon it Suetonius in the Life of Tiberius says he could never have made such Ravages upon the Roman Empire and exercised such Cruelties if he had not been backt by an Officious and flattering Senate which carried the Face of Justice in it and tho it be evident that for near Eighty Years these three Kings of the Scotish Race had been endeavouring to establish an Arbitrary and Tyrannical Government over this Nation yet except King James the First who if his Necessities had not forced him would have never had a Parliament after the first and who by his own Authority created so many Monopolies and Benevolences and in the Parliament of the 12th and 18th Years of his Reign without any Colour of Justice imprisoned so many worthy Gentlemen without the Benefit of Corpus's for their Debates in Parliament yet these other two pretended to raise their Tyrannies under the Form of Justice and therefore Charles the First after he for Fifteen Years together had not only exceeded his Father in granting Monopolies and raising Money by Loans Benevolences Coat and Conduct Money but also
in taking the Customs without Grant of Parliament and such as were never granted by Parliament and in further raising Ship-Money and imprisoning the Members of Parliament without Benefit of their Corpus's yet he thought best to do it by such Judges as he should make So this King in the Executions of Fitz-Harris and Colledge would have the Colour of Justice by a Form of Law for which there was no Law But as the Knights of Malta could make Knights of their Order for eight Pence a-piece yet could not make a Soldier of Sea-man So these Kings tho they could make what Judges they pleased to do their Business yet could not make a Grand-Jury from whom the Judges in all criminal Cases between the King and Subject must take their Measures these Grand-Juries in London are returned by the Sheriffs and the Sheriffs are chosen by the Livery This Difficulty after my Lord Shaftsbury's Case put the Court to their Trumps and at present a Stop to their Proceedings The Assistance of the Duke of York was necessary but at this time he was as busy in Scotland about my Lord of Argyle as his Brother was in England about my Lord Shaftsbury The City upon the Dissolution of the Four last Parliaments were aware of the Designs of the Court and chose Sheriffs accordingly when Colledge's Bill was preferred Mr. Cornish and Bethel were Sheriffs and now another such was preferred against 〈◊〉 Lord of Shaftsbury Sir Thomas Pilkington and Mr. Shute were Sheriffs who tho at other times Sheriffs would rather fine than serve yet at this time none refused to serve so that unless Sheriffs of another Stamp were chosen all would be to no Purpose It 's scarce credible what a Noise the not finding my Lord Shaftsbury's Bill made all Justice now the Tory Party cried was stopped if these Ignoramus Juries were not set aside R. L. S. proclaimed Forty one would inevitably return and this countenanced by the Court flew out of the City all the Country over so that scarce any other thing was to be heard but of Ignoramus Juries and what would follow from them It was the latter End of Michaelmas Term the great Inquest returned an Ignoramus upon the Bill of High Treason preferred against my Lord Shaftsbury and in the Vacation all Wits were set on work how to take the Election of the Sheriffs of London out of the Power of the City and no other Expedient could be found out but by taking away their Charter which if it could be done would not only entitle the Court to making of Sheriffs but open a Gap to their making a House of Commons for near 5 6 of the Commons are Burgesses and Barons of the Cinque Ports who would not dare to contest their Charters if the City of London could not hold theirs So that in Hilary Term following a Quo Warranto was brought against the City for two hainous Crimes viz. That they had made an Address to the King for the Parliament to sit for Redress of Grievances and to settle the Nation yet King Charles the First thought the Parliament's Vote of non-Addresses to him was a Deposing of him and that the City had raised Money towards repairing Cheapside Conduit ruined by the Fire of London The City pleaded their Right and the King replied upon which there was a Demurrer but Judgment was not given upon it till Trinity Term 1683. However the Novelty of the thing caused an Amusement upon the Generality of the City and Nation too whereto this tended In the mean time the Duke having done his Work in Scotland was returned to London and his Zeal for promoting the Catholick Cause outwent his Patience for the Court's Judgment upon the Demurrer to the Quo Warranto so that Courtiers of the First Magnitude appeared barefaced for the next Election of Sheriffs and Sir Dudley North Sir Francis's own Brother and Sir Peter Rich were returned one by a shameless Trick the other by open Force Tho the Court had gained this Point they thought not fit to push it further till the Demurrer to the City Charter were determined in which such Haste was made that only two Arguments were permitted on either Side one in Hilary Term 1682-83 and the other in Easter Term following and so Judgment was given in Trinity Term next after against the City The Judgment against the City was as strange as the Election of the Sheriffs for it was without any Reason and by two Judges only one was Sir Francis Withens who had heard but one Argument and I believe understood but little of that and who after in the Absence of Sir Edward Herbert delivered that for his Opinion which Sir Edward when present disowned and Sir Thomas Jones However they said Justice Raimond was of their Opinion and so was Saunders the Chief Justice tho he was past his Senses and only had Sense enough to expostulate with them for then troubling him when he had lost his Memory But the Court of Kings Bench were not so ripe for this hasty Judgment as that at White-Hall was for Discovery of Plots against the Government and Justice of the Nation of which they set three on Foot viz. A Plot to surprize the Guards the Rye-Plot to murder the King and Duke as they should come from New-Market and the Black-Heath Plot for the People to rise upon a Foot-Ball Match if those Sheriffs would not do the Court's Work you may be sure the next should where the King should have the Nomination but these were as trusty as any the King could make and it was now Graham and Burton's Work to find Good Jury-Men and then the Sheriffs would be sure to return them In all these Plots for ought I can find the Fox was the Finder my Lord H and Rumsey in that of the Guards Lee and Goodenough in that of Black-Heath Keeling and West in that of the Rye-Plot Lee was set to trapan Rouse and Baker in the Black-Heath Plot. Rumball at whose House 't was said the Rye-Plot was to be acted upon his Death denied he ever knew of any But the Great Design was upon my Lord of Essex and my Lord Russel one the most eminent of the Nobility for his great Honour and all eminent Vertues the other of the Commons and both zealous Protestants and Opponents to the Design of introducing Popery and Arbitrary Power I will not again curtail Mr. Hawles's learned Remarks upon my Lord Russel's Trial on the Thirteenth of July 1683. yet I must observe how that that Day whether my Lord of Essex killed himself or was to be killed the King and his Brother were both in the Tower when the Act was done and immediately Notice was sent to the Old-Baily to give Notice of it to the Court that in the worst Sense Use might be made of it by the King's Counsel against my Lord Russel The Blaze of the Earl's having murdered himself having had its designed Effect upon my Lord Russel's Trial
the next Step was to satisfy the Nation the Earl murdered himself and to this Purpose the Coroner's Inquest must necessarily sit and give their Verdict but so the Business was ordered that before the Jury was impannelled the Earl's Body was taken out of the Closet where 't was pretended he murdered himself and stript of his Clothes which were carried away and the Closet washt and when one of the Jury insisted upon seeing my Lord's Clothes in which he died the Coroner was sent for into another Room and upon his Return told the Jury it was my Lord's Body not his Clothes they were to sit upon and when it was moved that the Jury should adjourn and give my Lord's Relations Notice Thaâ— if they had any thing to say on my Lord's Behalf it was answered The King had sent for the Inquisition and would not rise from the Council-Board till it was brought I do not find that when the like Practices were used and wheâ—â— the Coroner's Inquest found Sir Thomas Overbury died a Natural Death in the Tower that two Years after when Reves the Apothecary's Servant made the first Discovery of Sir Thomas his being poisoned that Reves was prosecuted for flying in the Face of the Government and questioning the Justice of the Nation as Mr. Speke and Mr. Braddon were for endeavouring to discover the Murder of my Lord of Essex I 'm sure their Inducement for the Proofs of it were manifoldly more than Reves's were of Sir Overbury's and I wish I understood what their Crimes were more than Reves's but that being for the King and Justice of the Nation they ought to have been encouraged if there had been no foul dealing in the Earl's Death After the Death of these Noble Persons the rest of the Game was plaid without scarce any Rub Colonel Sidney Bateman Walcot Hone and Rouse followed for Treason all and all of different Complexions and where Treason could have no Colour actually to take away the Lives of the Opponents of Popery and Arbitrary Power Misdemeanours are set on foot to take away their Means of living Fines from 10000 to 100000 l. for words against the Duke though by Magna Charta a Salvo Contenemento is reserved for Misdemeanors against the King Graham and Burton would find Juries for all and the Sheriffs would return them to do the Work But the Rage and Tyranny against the Opponents of Popery and Arbitrary Power was not more illegal than the Indulgence to the Lords impeached by Parliament for the King resolving to have no more Parliaments upon the present Constitution made Judges to take Bail for them to appear next Parliament Hereby as much invading the Rights and Jurisdiction of Parliament as the Judgments against Fitz-Harris Colledge my Lord Russel Colonel Sidney c. were illegal which though at Common Law they might have been Treason yet by the Statute of the 25th of Edward the Third the Judges in Westminster-Hall were prohibited to take Cognisance of them and by the Act of 13 Car. 2. c. 51. wherein the Prosecution ought to be within Six Months after the Fact and the Indictment within three Months after Though the City of London and many other Cities in England those their Sheriffs yet the Sheriffs of all the other Shires and Counties of England were named by the King so that the King 's next care was how to subvert the Constitution of Parliament and like Oliver Cromwel have a House of Commons of his own making For the House of Commons is compunded of five hundred and thirteen Members whereof but ninety two are Knights of Shires so that near 5 6 are Burgresses Citizens and Barons of the Cinque Ports The Generality of the Corporations which send these Members are poor decayed places and so not able as the City of London to contest their Charters or if they could they had little hope to keep them now London could not hold theirs Yet this would cost the Court a great deal of time to bring Quo Warranto's against above two hundred Corporations and now all Hands are set at work to prevail upon these poor Inhabitants and mighty Rewards are promised to those who should surrender them but because Money was scarce Bargains were made with Multitudes of them to have Grants of Fairs for surrender of their Charters and those which refused had Quo Warranto's brought against them To humour the Court and in perfect hope that in time the Mountains would bring forth a Multitude of Corporations or rather some loose vain Men who assumed the Names of the Corporations by heaps surrendred their Charters and at excessive Rates I cannot say renewed but took new ones whereby the King reserved to himself the Power of disposing of all Places of Profit and Power which at present was intrusted in their Hands who had betrayed their former Trust nor did these Men care for the expence of purchasing their new Charter tho it were to the starving the Poor of their Corporations who should have been fed with the Monies expended in the Purchase But a Multitude of lewd Fellows who in meaner Corporations were all as willing to betray their Charters as the Richer yet had not Money to purchase new ones and without it nothing could be had and never was King furnished with such a Lord Keeper for by this time North who had drawn the King's Declaration against petitioning for a Parliament and for which he was impeached in Parliament and had so highly merited in Colledge's Trial was made Lord Keeper and Attorney General for taking Money with both Hands though by their Oaths they ought to have to the best of their Skill informed the King of the Justice and Lawfulness of all those things which were to pass the Seals and this put some stop to the hurry of the surrender of Charters But in these Corporations there were some Members who made a Conscience of their Oaths and betraying their Trusts and according to the Obligation to both performed their Duties but these were prosecuted as Rioters and Tumultuous Persons and fined extravagantly even to their undoing and imprisoned till payment and bound to their good Behaviour These things were not carried on with that Security but some Umbrages of fear there were that some Disturbances might arise before they could be brought to Perfection to quell them if they should happen The Duke had secured Scotland and had 20000 Foot and 2000 Horse and a Year's Pay to be assisting upon all Occasions a greater liberty was given to the Irish than ever and to crown the Work Tangier is demolished and the Garison which was a Nursery of Popish Officers and Souldiers is brought over and placed in the most considerable Parts of England Whilst the King is framing this goodly Structure the French King against his Faith at the Treaty of Nimeguen by foul and base Treachery seizes upon Strasburg on the Rhine the most considerable City of Germany and by plain Force took Courtray and the City
Oates was in Town unless he should have the Minutes of his Examination before and so Mr. Page but Mayo and Butler both swore Oates was in Town but unless Sarah Pain could be found 't was impossible for Oates to prove Ireland was in Town in August for Bedlow was dead and Oates could not swear for himself But Ex tempore verum nascitur Ireland was Confessor to Mr. John Jenison Father of Mr. Thomas Jenison a Jesuit in this Conspiracy and who died in Newgate elder Brother of Mr. Robert Jenison This Mr. Jenison having been at Windsor in August 1678 came from thence to Ireland's Chamber the 19th and found him pulling off his Boots on the Frame of a Table being newly come from Staffordshire Ireland ask'd him from whence he came who told him from Windsor Ireland enquired about the Diversions of the Court Jenison said His Majesty's chief Delight was in Hawking and Fishing accompanied only with two or three early in the Morning How easily then might he be taken off answer'd Ireland Then Ireland asked Mr. Jenison if he would be assisting in taking off the King which if he would Ireland said he would forgive him 20 l. which he owed Ireland Afterwards Ireland ask'd him if he knew any Irish-men who were courageous and stout Jenison told him he knew Captain Levallian Kerney Broghall and Wilson then Ireland ask'd him if he would go along with these and assist in taking off the King which he refusing Ireland said he knew Levallian and Kerney and set down the other two Names in writing and said he was going to the Club to Mr. Coleman Mr. Levallian and Kerney and dunn'd Mr. Jenison for the 20 l. which he owed Ireland but Ireland at his Death denying he was in Town from the third of August till the fourteenth of September Mr. Jenison changed his Religion upon it and printed the Reason and after upon his Oath at my Lord Stafford's Trial declared this and a farther Account of the Conspiracy against the King and for introducing the Popish Religion If living Testimonies shall be doubted yet I conceive I shall put it out of doubt that Ireland was in Town when his Staffordshire Witnesses said he was in Staffordshire by a Proof which could not be bribed or corrupted One Mr. Benjamin Hinton a Goldsmith in Lombard-street was Ireland's Cashier and Mr. Hinton going out of Town at that time in Aug. 1678 met Ireland at or about Barnet coming for London when Ireland told him that he had extraordinary Occasions for Money and urged Hinton to go back with him but Hinton told him his Man could do Ireland's Business as well as he and his Occasions would not permit him to go back I asked Mr. Hinton the Truth of this to which he would not give me any Answer but be this true or false it 's entred into Hinton's Book of Accompts paid to Mr. Ireland ' s own Hands whereas the other Entries are paid by his Order and 't is said Mr. Hinton's Man would depose he paid these Monies to Ireland himself Mr. Hinton afterwards failing a Commission of Bankrupt was sued against him and his Book of Accompts was delivered and kept at the Widow Vernon's Coffee-house in Bartholomew Lane on the back side of the Royal Exchange where any Man may see the Truth of this Entry I am assured Mr. Hinton was in Court at Oates his Trial to have testified this but was terrified from it for fear of being undone However Oates was found guilty of Perjury upon both Points in this Trial before Jefferies and his Brethren and his Sentence was to be whipt from Aldgate to Newgate the next Wednesday after and the Friday after but a Day between from Newgate to Tyburn which was put in Execution with the utmost Rigour the Stripes of the first Whipping being so sore and green upon the second that few other Men could have undergone the second to stand in the Pillory five times in the Year and to be a Prisoner during Life which was as close as his Whipping was severe This was the first Act of this King's Clemency and Tenderness to his People in Imitation of his good gracious and kind Brother and this before any general Pardon as is usual upon Kings coming to their Crowns or the Parliament had met but it might be easily presaged whereto this tended and tho it began with Oates yet Dangerfield underwent as severe a Punishment with a worse Fate for discovering the Meal-Tub Plot to have thrown the Popish Plot upon the Presbyterians These were the Preparations which King James made before the Parliament met to demonstrate to the World and them how sincerely he had made good his Promise to his Privy Council That he would never invade any Man's Property and imitate his good and gracious Brother in his great Clemency and Tenderness to his People and make it his Endeavours to preserve the Government both in Church and State as it was established by Law By Law no new Laws can be made nor old ones repealed or the Subject taxed but by Parliament But Flatterers in this King's Father and Grand-father's Reign ascribed these Powers to the King without Consent in Parliament and that Obedience was due to their Absolute Will and Pleasure and the Parasites of this King and his Brother did the same but under a new Doctrine termed Passive Obedience but these Princes not trusting to this would make a Parliament Felo de se and by corrupting them in their Principles ruin the Being of them and so to be at the sole disposing of the Prince The House of Commons is made up of 513 Members whereof 92 are Knights of Shires and Counties the rest are Citizens Burgesses and Barons of the Cinque Ports so as the Knights of the Shires are not near one Fourth of the House of Commons The King creates the Temporal Lords in Parliament and names the Spiritual so that if the King can make the Members of Corporations to give up their Charters and take such as he shall grant it will be in his Power to make above â…˜ of the House of Commons The Parliament at Oxford being dissolved the Contrivance of the Court was to play this Game but because Warranto's against all the Charters in England tho the King had made Judges and the Sheriffs would be sure to return such Juries as should be sure to do the Work would take up so much time as King Charles should never live to enjoy the Fruits of his Design 'T was therefore contrived that after the Court had got North and Rich Sheriffs to return such Juries as should do their Work to begin at the City of London and if the Court could have Judgment against their Charter few or none of the other Corporations would presume to abide the Contest So said so done for in Trinity-Term in 1682 Judgment was given against the City Charter yet there were three remarkable Observations upon it First It was without any Precedent Secondly
It was by two Judges only and but two Arguments upon it and no Reason given of it And Thirdly it was ushered in but two Days before by pretending the discovering of a Plot to amuse the Nation so as no Man presumed to take notice of the Legality of this Judgment for fear of being prosecuted for Arraigning the Justice of the Nation and flying in the Face of the Government Hereupon Swarms of the richer Sort of Corporations surrendred their Charters and took new ones as the King pleased and paid dear for them and the King in return of their Kindness granted them new Fairs and Markets but tho the richer Sort of the Corporations could pay the Keeper North and Attorney Sawyer sound Fees for their Purchase yet a Multitude of the meaner Sort could not come to their Price and without Money no New Charters could be had which put a Rub to the compleating this Work in King Charles his time yet the good Will of the Members of these petty Corporations was not less The King's Care for the Knights of Shires was less than for the Corporations for the Sheriffs Lords and Deputy-Lieutenants and Justices of Peace being of the King's Nomination and the Tory Party having perfectly subdued the Whigs the King by the same Power which made North and Rich Sheriffs could have what Knights of Shires he pleased King James made good his Word he promised his Privy Council that he would never depart from the just Rights and Prerogatives of the Crown of which no Question is to be made but those which his good and gracious Brother had left him possest of were the principal and how hasty soever he was after in his Actions yet he took great Care how to exercise the Prerogative his Brother assumed in modelling Corporations to improve it to his utmost Advantage and therefore though his Brother died upon the 6th of February 1684-85 yet no Parliament met till the 19th of May and then they did not sit to act before the 28th which is much more than threefold the time from the issuing out of the Writs and the 40 Days of their Meeting In the mean time all Hands are set on work to chuse such Members as should do the Court's Work they were sure enough of such Corporations as had surrendred their Charters and bought new ones the beggarly ones which could not come up to the Price of renewing their Charters were graciously promised to have new ones Gratis as they after had if they behaved themselves well in the Choice of their Members The Lords and Deputy-Lieutenants were as imperious in the Choice of Knights of the Shire as my Lord Mayor was in the Choice of North and Rich for Sheriffs But that we may take a better View of the Acts of the Parliament of King James it 's fit to consider how the Case stood with the King King James while he was Duke of York was observed to be constant to his Word and a true Friend which made him more courted than his Brother he had a Revenue of near 150000 l. per An. and was a frugal and careful manager of it and this he brought as an Accession to the Crown when he became King K. Charles had more built and better furnished his Royal Palaces which he had not given away than any King of England before and the Parliament about six Years before his Death had given him 600000 l. for building thirty new Men of War to make his Fleet more formidable than that of the Dutch or French King and the Nation in Peace unless among our selves so that it might have been reasonably expected a much less Revenue than what King Charles had added to that of the Duke's might have supported the ordinary Expence of the Crown if no extraordinary should happen Notwithstanding all this the King upon the 28th of May told the Members such as they were the same things he told his Privy Council that he might not seem to have said it by chance and in return thereof he expected they should settle his Revenue because he had taken it without them during his Life as it was in the time of his Brother for the Well-being of the Government which he must not suffer to be precarious which I believe was the first time any King of England so caressed a Parliament but these if they were worthy to be called a Parliament being made to his Hand the King might do and say to them what he pleased Before the Kings of the Scotish Race came to bear rule over us the Methods of Parliaments were to represent the Grievances of the Nation and upon Redress of them the Parliament gave the King a Gratuity which before the 35th of Queen Elizabeth did never exceed one Subsidy and two Tenths of Fifteenths and the King in return granted an Act of Pardon to his Subjects Thus a mutual Correspondence was entertained between the King and Kingdom But when King James the first came to the Crown the representing the Grievances of the Nation by his disorderly Reign was Language intolerable to him so that of four Parliament which were all he had in his Reign in the last he boasted He had broke the Neck of three of them and his Son broke the neck of the four first Parliaments of his Reign yet such was the Temper of those Times that to humour thâ—se Princes the Parliament of 18 Jac. I. and the 1st Car. I. altered the Methods of Parliament and that of the 18th gave King James two entire Subsidies and that of the 1st Car. I. gave King Charles two entire Subsidies before Grievances were redressed King James I. in return of their kindness not only brake the Neck of the Parliament but committed many of the worthiest Members close Prisoners to the Tower for preâ—â—ming to debate them King Charles did not commit any Members of this Parliament tho he did in his 3d and 4th Parliament but brake the Neck of the Parliament rather than they should enquire into the Duke of Buckingham's Actions and the imbezelling the Monies given by the Parliament for the Support of the Palatinate Heretofore Grievances were in the Nation whereas at the Death of King Charles the II. the whole Nation was in a most grievous and dangerous State which the Parliament of King James if it be worthy to be so called took so little notice of that instead of representing the State of the Nation to King James they without redressing any gave him a Revenue to enable him to ruin Church and State upon the Foundation which his Brother had laid The 1st Act was to settle the Customs and temporary Excise upon the King as it was settled before upon his Brother but the King had little reason to thank them for that for he took both before they gave them and called them by that Title His Revenue The 3d Act was an Imposition upon Wines and Vinegars imported between the 24th of June 1685 until the 24th of June
but so ridiculously cruel as will scarcely be believed for not only those who escaped were excepted but a Company of Girls some of 8 or 9 Years old who had made some Colours and presented them to the Duke of Monmouth while he was at Taunton these were excepted by Name and no Pardon could be purchased for this Treason till the Girls Parents had paid more for it than would have provided a Marriage Portion when they should come of Age. But suppose the King did imitate his good and gracious Brother in his great Clemency and Tenderness to his People and that Justice only looked forward in these Executions yet we will give Instances wherein this King did not imitate his good and gracious Brother in his great Clemency and Tenderness to his People Alderman Cornish tho he had committed two horrible Crimes in the Reign of King Charles one in presuming to examine Fitz-Harris while he was a Prisoner in Newgate before he was hurried from thence to the Tower to prevent his further Examination the other that he testified at Fitz-Harris's Trial that King Charles told Mr. Cornish that the King did countenance Fitz-Harris in his Design and had given him Money yet King Charles was so good and gracious as not to take away Mr. Cornish's Life But the offended Ghosts of Coleman Ireland Harcourt c. were no ways appeased by the Blood which flowed from the Stripes of Oates's Sentence nothing less than a Sacrifice of humane Blood must be offered to them and this to be performed by affixing Sacred Justice to it Upon Tuesday the of October Mr. Cornish having no dread of any Accusation upon him for any Crime but freely following his Profession was clapt up close Prisoner in Newgate without use of Pen Ink or Paper till Saturday Noon when he had notice of an Indictment of High Treason against him on Monday following and could get no Friend to come to him till 8 a clock at Night Next Day Mr. Cornish's Children petitioned the King to have his Trial put off which was referred to the Judges who you may be assured had their Instructions who denied it tho he knew not whether his Trial were for Treason against this or the late King and his most material Witness was above 140 Miles off and was also denied a Copy of the Pannel of his Jury The Charge of High Treason against him was That in the Year 1682 he had promised to be assisting to James late Duke of Monmouth William Russel Esquire and Sir Thomas Armstrong in their Treasons against King Charles II. The only Witness to prove this was Colonel Rumsey who swore That about the latter end of October or beginning of November at Mr. Sheppard's House Ferguson told Mr. Cornish that he had read a Paper to the Duke of Monmouth Lord Russel Lord Grey and Sir Thomas Armstrong which they desired should be read to Mr. Cornish that Mr. Sheppard held the Candle while it was reading and afterward they asked him how he liked it who said he liked it very well He remembred two Points in it very well one was for Liberty of Conscience the other was That all who would assist in that Insurrection who had had Kings Lands or Church Lands should have them restored to them Rumsey did not hear all the Paper but observed only these two Points it was a Declaration on a Rising and when the Rising was to have been it was to have been dispersed abroad there was a Rising intended at that time and Mr. Cornish said He liked the Declaration and what poor Interest he had he would join in it Rumsey had sworn at my Lord Russel's Trial that Mr. Cornish was not at the Reading or the Declaration by Ferguson and being tax'd for it in this said it was out of Compassion to the Prisoner and Mr. Sheppard who was subpoena'd for the King testified Mr. Cornish was not there Richard Goodenough was the other Witness which was about Words foreign to Rumsey's Testimony about seizing the Tower and a Rising in the City which if what Goodenough said had been true yet Mr. Cornish could not have been found Guilty of Treason for tho by the first Act of Parliament after the Convention of King Charles II. Words were made Treason against the King during his Life yet were they to be prosecuted within six Months and the Person to be indicted in three Months after whereas these Words were pretended to be spoken in Easter Term in 1683 which was two Years and a half before Add hereto the Words were imperfectly said by Goodenough and might be applicable to a pretended Riot wherein Mr. Cornish was concerned and that Goodenough was upon ill Terms with Mr. Cornish because he would not trust Goodenough to be his Under-Sheriff You may read the Trial at large with Mr. Hawles his fine and learned Remarks upon it and how rudely Mr. Cornish and his Witnesses were used at his Trial and how notwithstanding his Quality after Conviction he was tied as if he had been a boisterous and dangerous Rogue and that by Order and executed with the utmost Rigour of the Law for this far-fetch'd and ill-proved Treason But these Tories shall soon see they labour for others not for themselves and these whom they now persecute shall have the Ascendant over them And I observed this of Sir Thomas Jones who was Chief Justice of the Common-Pleas and most active in this Trial that he was one of the first if not the first who was turned out of his Place for giving his Opinion the King could not dispense with the Test and Penal Laws The Design thus deep stained in humane Blood first budded in Ireland but whether it was in Affirmance of the King's Promise to his Privy Council and after repeated by him in Parliament that he would make it his Endeavour to preserve the Church and State of England as by Law established let any Man who reads the following Story judg The Book stiled the State of the Protestants in Ireland said to be written by Bishop King fol. 58. says That King James was no sooner settled in his Throne but he began to turn out some Officers who had been most zealous for his Service and had best deserved of him meerly because they had been counted firm to the Protestant Religion and the English Interest such as my Lord Shannon Captain Robert Fitz-Gerald Captain Richard Coote Sir Oliver St. George and put in their places Kerney one of the Russians designed to murder Charles II. Anderson a mean Fellow Sheldon a profest Papist and one Graham and fol. 59. saith the Duke of Ormond was sent for abruptly and divested of the Government and immediately the modelling of the Army was put into the Hands of Colonel Richard Talbot a Man of all others most hated by the Protestants and who had been named by Mr. Oates in his Narrative for this very Employment so that many who believed nothing of the Plot before gave Credit to
intend to make Lord-Lieutenant in Ireland an independent Commission to reform the Army in Ireland and to take the Troopers Horses Pistols Swords and Boots and the Arms and Clothing of the Foot which they had bought and paid for without paying for them I then told you I would endeavour to preserve the Church and State of England as established by Law but now I tell you that I have employed some Officers in the Army not qualified according to the late Tests and will deal plainly with you I will neither expose them to Disgrace nor my self to the want of them The Militia is not sufficient for my Occasions nothing but a good Force of disciplin'd Troops in constant Pay will do it and to that purpose I think it necessary to encrease the Number to the proportion I have done viz. double for which I ask your Assistance in giving me a Supply answerable to the Expence it brings along with it Tho I have disbanded the Army in Ireland which were as true Passive-Obedience-Men as could be got for Love or Money yet were they not fit for my Occasions and tho I have encreased my Army in England to such a Proportion as you now see and officer'd with such Officers as are not qualified by the late Tests yet they are not fit for my Occasions and for which I ask your Assistance in giving me a Supply answerable to the Expence it brings along with it yet let no Man be so wicked as to hope this may put a Difference between you and me but consider what Advantages have arisen to us in a few Months by the good Understanding we have hitherto had and the wonderful Effects it hath already had Now let 's see what Influence this King's Speech had upon the Members The Lords hand over head ordered Thanks to the King for his good and gracious Speech but it did not pass so hastily with the Commons but they debated it Paragraph by Paragraph and because the Militia had not been so forward as the King would have them they voted that they would take into their Consideration how to make it more useful in time to come in case such dangerous Attempts should be made as in Monmouth's Rebellion and upon the 16th of November made this Address to the King Most Gracious Sovereign WE Your Majesty's most Loyal and Faithful Subjects the Commons in Parliament Assembled do in the first place as in Duty bound return Your Majesty most humble and hearty Thanks for your great Care and Conduct in the Suppression of the late Rebellion which threatned the Overthrow of this Government both of Church and State and the uttter Extirpation of our Religion as by Law established which is most dear to Vs and which Your Majesty has been graciously pleased to give Vs repeated Assurances You will always Defend and Support which with all grateful Hearts we shall ever acknowledg We further crave leave to acquaint Your Majesty that we have with all Duty and Readiness taken into our Consideration Your Majesty's gracious Speech to Vs and as to that part of it relating to the Officers in the Army not qualified for their Imployments according to an Act of Parliament made in the 25th Year of the Reign of Your Majesty's Royal Brother of Blessed Memory Intitled An for preventing Dangers which may happen from Popish Recusants We do out of Our bounden Duty humbly represent unto Your Majesty that these Officers by Law be uncapable of their Imployment and that the dangers they bring upon themselves thereby can no ways be taken off but by Act of Parliament Therefore out of the great Deference and Duty we owe unto Your Majesty who has been so graciously pleased to take notice of their Services to you we are preparing a Bill to pass both Houses for Your Royal Assent to Indemnify them from the Penalty they have now incurred and because the continuance of them in their Imployments may be taken to be a Dispensing Power with that Law without Act of Parliament the Consequence of which is of the greatest Concernment to the Rights of all your Majesty's Dutiful and Loyal Subjects and to all the Laws made for security of their Religion We therefore the Knights Citizens and Burgesses of your Majesty's House of Commons do most humbly beseech Your Majesty that You would be graciously pleased to give such Directions therein that no Apprehension or Jealousies may remain in the Hearts of Your Majesty's Good and Faithful Subjects This Address was like the shutting the Stable-door when the Steed was stoln these Commons had no such Apprehensions when they heaped such an exorbitant Revenue upon the King to enable him to maintain an Army of 40000 Men to ride them and the Nation when he pleased and now they see the King drives a Way which tends to the Nations as well as their Destructions they tell the King such Ways may give Apprehensions and Jealousies in the Hearts of His Majesty's good and faithful Subjects Did not the Commons in all the four Parliaments in King Charles the 2d's Reign declare what would be the Consequences of the Duke of York's coming to the Crown and did the Duke's Actions while he was Regent in Scotland any ways alleviate those Parliaments Fears Could this Parliament as 't was called now they were got together again and saw Colonel Talbot with an independent Commission from the Lord Lieutenant so barbarously disbanding the Army in Ireland because guilty only of being Protestants yet believe the King would admit of no Papists in his Army in England Could they believe that once professing of the King who was a Jesuited Papist that he would maintain the Church and State as by Law established would wash out all the Jesuit Principles which had taken such deep root in him that no Faith is to be kept with Hereticks which the King esteemed these who had prostituted him with such a vast Revenue and all the Nation besides who were not of his Faction to be but that by Fire Faggot and all other such means they were to be rooted out and grow no more upon the Face of the Earth The Bishops retained fresh in memory during the Reign of King Charles the 2d the Indignities the Factions in the late times had shewed to their Persons and Revenues so that they were not only opposite to the Commons in passing the Bills which the Commons had prepared for uniting the King's Protestant Subjects when they perceived the Danger the Nation was in by the Popish Designs but stifly opposed the passing The Bill of Exclusion against the Succession of the Duke of York and all along King Charles his Reign countenanced the Doctrine of Passive Obedience as thinking themselves and their Order most secure under it but herein their Politicks failed them For now the Bishops perceived a more terrible Storm coming upon them by a Faction who never shewed Mercy to any opposite to them whenever it came in their Power and the
same to correct amend and alter And also where no Statutes are extant in all or any of the aforesaid Cases to devise and set down such good Orders and Statutes as you or any five or more of you as is aforesaid whereof you the said Lord Chancellor to be one shall think meet and convenient to be by us confirmed ratified allowed and set forth for the better Order and Rule of the said Universities Cathedrals and Collegiate Churches Colleges and Grammar-Schools Erections and Foundations and the Possessions and Revenues of the same as may best tend to the Honour of Almighty God Encrease of Vertue Learning and Unity in the said Places and the publick Weal and Tranquillity of this our Realm Moreover our Will Pleasure and Commandment is That our said Commissioners and every of you shall diligently and faithfully execute this our Commission and every Part and Branch thereof in manner and form aforesaid and according to the true Meaning hereof notwithstanding any Appellation Provocation Privilege or Exemption in that behalf to be made pretended or alledged by any Person or Persons resident or dwelling in any Place or Places exempt or not exempt within this our Realm any Law Statutes Proclamations or Grants Privileges or Ordinances which be or may seem to be contrary to the Premises notwithstanding And for the better Credit and more manifest Notice of your doing in Execution of this our Commission our Pleasure and Commandment is That to your Letters missive Processes Decrees Orders and Judgments for or by you or any three or more of you as is aforesaid to be awarded sent forth had made decreed given or pronounced at such certain publick Places as shall be appointed by you or any three or more of you as is aforesaid for the due Execution of this our Commission you or some three or more of you as is aforesaid whereof you the said Chancellor to be one shall cause to be put and fixt a Seal engraven with the Rose and Crown and the Letter J. and Figure 2. before and the Letter R. after the same with a Ring or Circumference about the same Seal containing as followeth Sigillum Commissiariorum Regiae Majestatis ad Causas Ecclesiasticas Finally We will and command all and singular other our Ministers and Subjects in all and every place and places exempt and not exempt within our Realm of England and Dominion of Wales upon any Knowledg or Request from you or any three or more of you as is aforesaid to them or any of them given or made to be aiding helping and assisting unto you and to your Commandment in and for the due executing your Precepts Letters and other Processes requisite in and for the due executing of this our Commission as they and every of them tender our Pleasure and Will to answer the contrary at their utmost Perils In witness c. Here I make these Remarks upon this Commission First That the Archbishop of Canterbury who was first named in it refused to act in it so the Bishop of Chester was put in tho not in the first place Secondly How unwarily it was drawn for though I believe every one understands the Design of this Commission was to introduce a Roman Hierarchy which assumes a Power over the temporal in order to the spiritual Good yet here this Commission grants the temporal Power viz. the Chancellor and any other two viz. my Lord Treasurer President or Chief Justice a Power of Excommunication which is a pure spiritual Act. But whilst this Commission was thus in Embrio 't is fit to observe what was done before its coming into Act. You have heard how severely Oates was treated for discovering the Popish Plot Dangerfield's turn comes now to be as severely treated but with a worse Fate for discovering the Meal-tub Plot which was to have thrown the Popish Plot upon the Presbyterians Dangerfield in his Depositions before the Parliament had revealed that he was imployed by the Popish Party chiefly by the Lords in the Tower and Countess of Powis to kill the King and was encouraged and promised Impunity and Reward and part of it given him by the Duke of York for that end Upon this he was tried in Westminster-Hall in Trinity I think or Easter-Term in 1686 upon a Scandalum Magnatum and as Juries went was found Guilty and had the same Sentence of Whipping which Oates had and in his return from his Whipping from Tyburn towards Newgate was run into the Eye with a Tuck at the end of a Cane by one Robert Francis a fierce Papist of which with the Agony of his Whipping he soon after died but his Body was so swoln and martyr'd with his Whipping that 't was a question whether he died of the Whipping or Wound in his Eye You may read the Information at large which was ordered to be printed by the Commons Novem. 10. 1680. and after the Speaker Williams was fined 10000 l. for Licensing it tho by Order of the Commons to be printed The same Term I think Mr. Samuel Johnson commonly known by the Name of Julian Johnson was sentenced by the Court of King's Bench Sir Edward Herbert Chief Justice to stand three times in the Pillory and to be whipped from Newgate to Tyburn which was severely executed for making this humble and hearty Address to all the English Protestants in the Army raised by the King Gentlemen NEXT to the Duty we owe to God which ought to be the principal Care of Men of your Profession especially because you carry your Lives in your Hand and often look Death in the Face the second thing which deserves your Consideration is the Service of your Native Country wherein you drew your first Breath and breath a free English Air. Now I desire you to consider how well you comply with these two main Points by engaging in the present Service Is it in the Name of God for his Service that you have joined your selves with Papists who indeed will fight for the Mass Book but burn the Bible and who seek to extirpate the Protestant Religion with your Swords because they cannot do it with their own And will you be aiding and assisting to set up Mass-Houses to erect that Kingdom of Darkness and Desolation amongst us and to train up all our Children in Popery How can you do these things and call your selves Protestants And then what Service can be done your Country by being under the Command of French and Irish Papists and by bringing the Nation under a foreign Yoke Will you help them to make forcible Entry into the Houses of your Countrymen under the Name of Quartering contrary to Magna Charta and Petition of Right Will you be aiding and assisting to all the Murders and Outrages which they shall commit by their void Commissions which were declared Illegal and sufficiently blasted by both Houses of Parliament if there had been any need of it for it was very well known before that a Papist cannot
the Design At this time there was not only a high Ferment in all the Nation against the King's Proceedings but in the Army against its mixture with Irish Officers and Soldiers which put the King into a great Agony which was increased by the Dutch Preparation Whereupon the Marquess d' Albeville the King's Envoy at the Hague upon the 2d of Sept. N. S. 23d of Aug. O. S. put in this Memorial to the States General High and Mighty Lords THE great and surprizing Preparations for War made by your Lordships by Sea and Land in a Season when all Action especially by Sea is laid aside giving just Cause of Surprize and Alarm to all Europe obliges the King my Master who has had nothing so much in his Mind since his Accession to the Crown as a Continuation of the Peace and Correspondence with this State to order the Marquess d' Albeville his Envoy Extraordinary to know your Highnesses Intentions thereby His Majesty as your antient Ally and Confederate believes it just to demand this Knowledg which he hoped with good Reason to have heard from your Ambassador but as he sees this Duty of Alliance and Confederation neglected and that such Power is raising without communicating the Intent in the least to him he finds himself obliged to reinforce his Fleet and to put himself in a Condition to maintain the Peace of Christendom The States paused upon an Answer to this Memorial when upon the 9th of September N. S. or the 30th of Aug. O. S. Monsieur d' Avaux the French Ambassador put in a Memorial to the States wherein he foolishly discovers the Contrivances which had been so long hatching between his Master and King James for after a long Story of his Master's Desire of maintaining the Peace of Europe now he had actually broke it he impertinently tells the States All these Circumstances and many others that I may not here produce perswade the King my Master with reason that this Arming threatens England Wherefore His Majesty hath commanded me to declare to the States on his Part that the Bonds of Friendship and Alliance between him and the King of Great Britain will oblige him the French King not only to assist him the King of Great Britain but also to look on the first Act of Hostility that shall be committed by your Troops and your Fleet against his Majesty of Great Britain as a manifest Rupture of the Peace and a Breach with his Crown Though the Dutch made no Answer to this Memorial yet they made no Bones to make this Answer to the Marquess d' Albeville's That they had armed in Imitation of his Britannick Majesty and other Princes and that they had thereby given no just Cause of Offence by arming when all other Princes were in Motion and that they were long since convinced of the Alliance which the King his Master had treated with France and what had been mentioned to them by Monsieur le Count d' Avaux in his Memorial This Answer King James took all one as if the Dutch had declared War against him and all the Eyes of England are now turned toward Holland as if from thence they expected Deliverance from the Designs of King James and his Popish Crew and the Fathers and Sons too of the Church of England are at as much Variance in their private and publick Prayers to God as Whig and Tory were in their Humours for in their private Prayers they pray for Prosperity to the Prince of Orange and in the Liturgy they pray that God would be King James's Defender and Keeper giving him Victory over all his Enemies God was pleased to prefer the private Prayers of the Church-men before those of the Church and to have granted both had been impossible and to put a hook into the French King's Nose who turned those Forces which he had raised not for the Peace and Tranquillity of Europe as d' Avaux said in his Memorial to the Dutch States upon the Empire where without any Declaration of War or Cause alledged he first fell upon Philipsburg which he took and after Heydelberg and Mainheim and while he was thus engaged he left the Prince of Orange free to vindicate his Cause against King James whereas if the French King had turned those Forces which he employed against the Empire upon the Spanish Netherlands and he might as justly have done this as that the Prince of Orange would have had little Force and less Leasure to have made any Attempt upon King James Thus God is pleased often to turn the Wisdom of the Crafty I will not say Wise into Folly and Destruction You have heard before how the French King in the beginning of the Year had sent out a Fleet to Canada whereupon the Company of Hudsons-Bay represented to the King their Apprehensions it was a Design upon their Factories and Plantations and so it succeeded for the French seized upon a Fort and Plantation of theirs called Fort Charles Towards the latter end of the Summer the King without the Knowledg of Hudsons-Bay Company entred into a Treaty of Commerce with his Brother of France in reference to the Trade of Canada wherein it was concluded that the Forts and Factories should be reciprocally enjoyed in the same state they were at the Conclusion of this Treaty the French having taken the Fort and Factory of Charles about three Months before So little did this King regard the Safety and Welfare of his Subjects wherein his Majesty and Honour was founded for to pleasure and endear his Brother of France from whom he expected mighty things for the Advancement of his Prerogative without reserve in England Scotland and Ireland Thus have I brought down the History of this King's Reign to the History of the Desertion where at large and particularly you may read how by a Wonder equal to King Charles his Coming in King James went out And if no human Prospect could have foreseen where the Tyranny of King Charles the I's Reign would have ended if the Long Parliament in 1640 had not put a full Stop to it so no uninterested Person was so purblind as not to see if the Heroick Magnanimity of this King in his Queen's his own and the Nation 's Right and for the common Safety of Christendom had not put a Stop to King James his Designs but the Popish Superstition and French Tyranny would have been imposed upon these Kingdoms and have overspread Christendom We admit these four Kings of the Scotish Race had an Hereditary Title to have governed England by the Laws and Constitutions of it yet no Hereditary King hath any higher Title nor any Man a Right to do Wrong and for an Hereditary King to govern otherways is a greater Tyranny than if an Usurper does by how much he adds Perfidiousness and Breach of his Trust to it Yet so it was that these four last Kings of the Scotish Race which should have been the Guardians of England in preserving the
been bound Apprentices in them whilst these Free-men by the Prerogative of their Freedom impose what Rates they please upon the poor Artificers and set their own Prizes upon the Nobility Gentry and others who buy of them He that begins any Work labours under manifold more Difficulties and is more subject to Error than another who builds upon his Foundation This is my Case and therefore am more excusable for the Frailties and Errors I may have committed in this Design but upon the Discovery of any I promise to recant it I am sure my Intention is honest herein being for the Good of my Country and those Labours are best which are spent in the Benefit of it FINIS ERRATA PAge 20. line 16. r. as fierce P. 52. l. 16. del this l. 17. r. this House P. 57. l. 16. del the Parentheses P. 100. l. 5. del Comma after not P. 118. l. 28. after drawn add P. 119. l. 41. del the last that P. 132. l. 15. r. Spanish Secretary P. 135. l. 24. r. then went P. 167. l. 30. r. then P. 374. l. 15. del Comma after God P. 378. l. 10. and 379. l. 20. for former r. first P. 398. l. ult after confirmed put Comma P. 530. l. 10. r. they will P. 540. l. 37. r. 20 l. P. 646. l. 1. â— and not to do it and give An Alphabetical TABLE OF THE Principal Matters contain'd in this BOOK A. ABbot Arch-bishop zealous for the Elector Palatine 93. His plain Letter to the King 111 112. Refuses to license Sibthorp's Sermon 197. Is basely dealt with on that account ib. 268. His Character and Death 238. Abhorrers of Petitions for Parliament prosecuted by the Commons 555 556. Act of 35 Eliz. repeal'd by Parliament 557. but not by the King 559. Act of Vniformity 439. Adjutators in the Army 318. Albeville Marquess his Memorial at the Hague 649. Algerines at War with the English and Dutch 452. Alliance with Spain the Commons Votes concerning it 558. Amboyna the Dutch Cruelty there 121. Ancre a French-man his lamentable End 86. Ann K. James's Queen her Character 75. Is averse to Villiers and foretels what he would be ib. 76 124. Her Death 88. Apprentices 663 665 678. Arbitrary Notions see Cowel Archy K. James's Fool 112. Argyle Marquess executed 444. His Character and Story 568 569. Earl his Character c. 568 570 575 578. His Explanation of the Test for which he 's tried and condemned but escapes 578 586. Aristotle's Logick censur'd 22. Arlington Lord rudely treats the Prince of Orange but fails in his Design 508. Arminians severe against their Opponents 242. See Mountague c. Army declares for the King 319. yet draw up a Remonstrance against him march to London and exclude most of the Members 328. Articuli Cleri see Bancroft Ashley Cooper made Lord Chancellor 478. Joins with the Country Party and is turn'd out 492. His Life most unjustly aim'd at 596 598. Is clear'd by the Grand Jury 599. Remarks on his Case ib. Askew Sir George his Success at Sea 353 354. Avaux the French Ambassador discovers his Master's and K. James's Designs 649 650. Audley Palace what it cost 77. Author Story of his Father Brother and Himself in Cromwel's time 392 396. B. BAcon Sir Francis censur'd for Bribery 97. Bancroft ABp for Absolute Power in the King 57 59. Barebone's Parliament 373. Their Thoughts of the Dutch 374 375. Their Articles with them 376. Their Acts resign their Power to Cromwel 377. Barnvelt Head of a Dutch Faction 33 121. Takes Advantage of the ill Posture of K. James's Affairs 80. Loses his Head for opposing the Prince of Orange 121. Batton Sir William joins Prince Charles at Sea 326. Bedlow discovers Godfrey's Murder 534. Bill of Exclusion rejected by the Lords 557. Billeting of Souldiers voted a Grievance 207 217. Bishop of London his Motion to debate the King's Speech 629. Is suspended by the High Commission 639. Bishops in Scotland re-ordained 122 262. In England voted out of Parliament 276. Oppose several good Bills 490 629. Several of 'em both in England and Scotland most profligate Persons 639 640. Seven refuse to read K. James's Declaration are tried and clear'd 644 645. Remarks thereon and on their Prayers for the King 645 647 650. Blake Governour of Taunton 312. Commands at Sea 327 351 353 355. Bohemia History of that Kingdom 89 93 101 102. Chuse Frederick Count Palatine their King 93. Booth Sir George overthrown by Lambert 409. Bridgman Lord Keeper his Speech on K. Charles's Treaties 475. Is turn'd out 478. Bristol see Digby Britain its Situation Bounds c. 12. Justly claims the Soveraignty of the Seas 659 660. See Grotius Buckingham see Villiers C. CAbal in 1671. who they were 478. Their pretended Causes of the Dutch War 479. Another in 1673. 495. Care Henry sentenc'd for writing his Weekly Packet 546. Carr Sir Rob. has an extravagant Boon order'd by K. James 61. Made Viscount Rochester and courted by the Countess of Essex 63. Procures the Ruin of Overbury 64 68 70. Created Earl of Somerset and married in extravagant Splendor 70 71. His Fall 74. His Pardon refus'd to be sign'd 76. His vast Estate 77. which is seiz'd by the King 79. Tried for Overbury's Murder ib. Castlemain sent Ambassador to the Pope 642. Cavaliers slighted by Charles II. 424 426. Cecil Lord Treasurer saves K. James 15000 l. and how 61. Charles I. while Prince his breach of Faith in Spain breaks off his Match 116 117 128. Is proposed to the French King's Daughter 119 125 140. yet her Portion not a tenth of the Infanta's 142. The extravagant Articles of her Marriage 142 143. Berule's Deputation for a Dispensation for it 143 145. First 15 Years of his Reign perfectly French 153. His great Wilfulness and Levity 156 187. Makes War on Spain at Buckingham's Instigation 157. Commands Pennington to deliver up his Ships to the French 162. His Warrant in favour of Papists dispenses with the Laws 165 168. His first Breach with his Parliament 166. His many Mistakes the first five Months 171 172. His ill Success in the War with Spain 172 173. Breaks his Word with the Keeper 179. His peremptory Message to the Commons with their Answer and his threatning Reply 183 184. Reproves his Parliament 184 185. His Reasons for blasting Bristol's Articles against Buckingham 187. The Lords Reasons against his 188 189. His Arbitrary Declarations after dissolving the Parliament in favour of Buckingham descanted on 190 192. Is accountable only to God 190 210 219 236 268. Demands Money of his People out of Parliament 196 228 252. Imprisons the Gentry for refusing to pay and keeps up a Standing Army on free Quarter 199 228 236. His dissembling and threatning Speech at the opening of Parliament with large Remarks upon it 202 206. His Message to the Commons to hasten Supplies 210 211. His Answer to the Petition of Right 213. which he resolves to abide by 214. Passes the Petition 216. His unaccountable
against the Lords Jurisdiction in Appeals from Chancery 502 504. Their Bills to prevent the French Designs c. 503 555. Address the King for a League with the Dutch 505. Their Votes for disbanding the Army 536. for the King's Safety 539. against the Tories c. 552. concerning the Revenue 558 559. Confederates their Success against the French 504. Complain to our King of the French Ravages 513. Exclaim against the separate Peace 529. Convention act hand over head in restoring Charles II. c. 423 424. Sent him 50000 l. 425. Convocation frame an Oath to preserve the Church and grant the King a Benevolence 273 367. Cooke Rob. a Pythagorean his manner of living c. 664. Cornish Alderman his hard Vsage is murder'd 622 624. Corporation-Oath see Oaths Corporations unjust in excluding Foreigners 27 658. Cotton Sir Rob. his Advice to the King 199 200. Covenant see Scots Covenanters rise in Scotland their Proclamations c. 542. Their Actions are routed 543. Coventry Lord-Keeper his Speech on the King's behalf 184. Mr. Henry breaks the Triple-League is made Secretary of State 477 478. Offers to sell his Place 514. Cowel his Interpreter incenses the Commons 59 60. Croke Judg a remarkable Story of him 259. Cromwel Lord his Letter to Buckingham 157. Oliver his Pedigree and Character how he rais'd himself 301 302. Designs against him 303 305. His first Success and Loss 310. Treats with the King his Ambition therein 322 323. Intercepts the King's Letters 323. Storms Drogheda and reduces all Ireland 344. Is declar'd General of all the Forces his Success against the Scots 345 346. and at Worcester 346. Contrives how to set up himself 348 358 361. Summons several great Men about settling the Nation with their Opinions 348 349. Furiously dissolves the Rump with Remarks thereon 362 363. His first Manifesto to the Nation 370. Summons a Council to govern the Nation his Speech to them 372 373. Gets rid of 'em 377 378. Appoints another Council is declar'd Protector his Instrument of Government with Remarks 379 380. Treats with the Dutch his Design against the Pr. of Orange 381 382. His Selfishness c. 383 387. His pretended Parliament and Speech to 'em 385. Is highly disgusted and dissolves 'em 386. Makes an unjust War with Spain with the ill Success of it 387 388. Assists the French against them 389 390 401. His Ways to raise Money 392. Is ill belov'd under great Disquietudes his Misfortune by a Coach 397 402. His third Parliament 398. His House of Lords 399. Is attempted to be kill'd ib. Compar'd with the greatest Tyrants 399 401. His fourth Parliament 401. His ill Success at Ostend 402. His Army of Volunteers and Death 403. His good Deeds 404 405. Rich. declar'd Protector 405. Has 90 Congratulatory Addresses presented him 406. Recogniz'd by his Parliament which he is forc'd to dissolve and thereupon is depos'd 407 408. D. DAnby Earl impeach'd by the Commons 536 538. Dangerfield discovers the Meal-tub-Plot is vilified by the Chief Justice 546. His Trial barbarous Punishment and Death 638. Dean Admiral slain by the Dutch 371. Sir Anth. sent into France to build Ships 497. Delinquents first use of the Word 274. Denbigh Earl sent to relieve Rochel but did not 225. Derby Earl routed and beheaded 347. Deserters hang'd against Law 643. Dewit John his Character and Actions 484 485. He and his Brother assassinated by the Mob 487. Digby Earl of Bristol his noble Character and severe Charges against Buckingham 109 110 118 137 187. His Ruin design'd by the Prince and Buckingham his Defence of himself is recall'd from Spain 119 138 139. Refuses the K. of Spain's generous Offers 120. His Reasons for his Proceedings in Spain 128 129. Is confin'd and petitions the King 139 175 185. Petitions the Lords for his Writ whereon 't is sent him 186. Is accus'd by the King c. ib. Is committed to the Tower 192 193. Follow'd Charles I. in all his Adversity 193. Discords in Religion often arise from Kings 17. Dispensing Power see James II. Dissenters a Bill for their Ease past the Commons but fiting out by the Lords 490. Fierce Laws against them in Scotland ib. Severâ—ly persecuted by the King and Tories 587. Too forward to address K. James 642 647. Dover Treaty 474. Dumbar Fight 345. Dunkirk sold to the French 429. Dutch declar'd Free States 26 61 339. Much in our Debt 32 33 54. Pay Tribute for fishing 32 61. Get their vast Debt remitted and their Cautionary Towns 80 81. What they detain'd from the English 115 121 249 250 338. Dispute the Sovereignty of the Seas with the English 244 c. Refuse a Coalition with England 350 374. Their Engagements at Sea with the Rump 351 354 356 371 372. Their pretended Excuses c. therein 351 352 358 372. Animate Cromwel against the Rump 361 371. Are in great Confusion 374. Their advantageous Theaty with Cromwel 383. Court Charles II. to a League 426. An Account of their former Encroachments c. 450 452. Their double-dealing 452. Their Engagements at Sea with Charles II. 457 461. Enter the River and burn our Ships 468. Get a beneficial Peace with K. Charles 469. yet their Smirna Fleet set upon send Deputies to the English and French Kings 478 479. whose Fleets they rout 481. Recapitulation of their History 482 483. Make a separate Peace with France 523 527. Complain to the English Court of the French 524. Assist the Pr. of Orange in saving these Nations 649. Their Answer to Albeville's Memorial 650. E. EAst-India Company incorporated by Cromwel 338. Edghill Battel there doubtful 296. Education of Youth 23 240 448 665. Egerton Lord Chanc. refuses to sign Somerset's Pardon 76. Eikon Basilike disown'd by Charles II. 425. Elector Palatine see Frederick Elizabeth Queen forbid French and Dutch building Ships 30. Granted the Dutch Licence to fish 32. Her sharp Answer to them 33. Allow'd K. James in Scotland a Pension 34. Elliot Sir John against the Court 189 213 231. Information against him in Star-Chamber 234 235. Essex Earl the Parliament's General 296 297 303. His ill Success 307. Lays down his Commission 310. Essex Earl murder'd in the Tower 601 602. Exchequer shut up by the King and his Cabal 478. F. FAirfax Sir Tho. for the Parliament 298 300 306. Is made General 310. Lord favours Monk 412 414 416. Falkland Lord slain his Character 299. Felton stabs Buckingham 225. Is threatned with the Rack 227. Finch Sir Joh. refuses to put any Question concerning Grievances with Remarks thereon 229 230 232. Is made Chief Justice and complies with the King 's illegal Actions 253. Made Lord-Keeper 266. Sir Heneage made Lord Chancellor c. 492 493. His Veracity Speeches 493 501. Fines excessive granted the Duke of York 602. Fire of London with Notes upon it 461 462. Fishing Trade and fishing on our Coasts 32 61 83 87 243 364 376 390 391 450 653 654 675 676 679. Increases Navigation 390 676. Fitton an infamous
Person made Chancellor of Ireland 641. Fitz-harris his Plot against the Dissenters 562 564. Is committed to Newgate but his Discovery prevented 564 588. Is tried and hang'd against the express Votes of the Commons 591. Five-mile-Act against Dissenters 458. Design'd to be reviv'd by the Lords with Remarks thereon 501 502. Flanders overrun by the French 470. Fleetwood made General 408. Is advis'd to bring in the King 415. Foreigners to be naturaliz'd and otherwise encourag'd 556 607 608 674 675. but kept out of our American Trades 660. France how bounded 11 28. It s Grandure owing to the Stuarts 160 480 496 498 651 652. It s Success against Spain 256. Franche County invaded 473. Frederick the Palsgrave marries the Princess Elizabeth 67. Has no Relief from his Father-in-law 93 94 95. Enters Prague with an Army 93. Totally routed and retires into Holland 95. Goes to his Army in Disguise 107. which is routed 108. Takes the Covenant and has a Pension from our Parliament 309. Free Ports 679 680. French routed at Sea by the English 354 378. Look'd on while the English and Dutch fought 492. Beat Spaniards and Dutch at Messina 503. Endeavour a separate Peace with the Dutch 509 511. Their Imperiousness 521. Wheedle the English and Dutch 522 529. French King breaks the Pyrenean Treaty 427 428 471. Expels the English out of S. Christophers 460. Pretends to join the Dutch 461. Breaks his Word with the Irish 472 533. Procures the Triple League to be broke 474 484. Sets out a Fleet against the Dutch 475. Declares War to propagate the Catholick Cause 477. His Perfidiousness c. 484 498 604. His Success and Ravages on the Rhine Netherlands c. 485 487 505 513 524 530. Makes Prize of English Ships 498. Endeavours to break the Confederacy 509. His Promise to the States reflected on 523. Falls upon the Empire without declaring War 650. and the English Factories at Canada 644 650. Impolitick in his Persecution 657 662. G. GLemham Sir Tho. for the King 313 316. Godfrey Sir Edmundbury murder'd 533 534. Goodman Bp of Glocester suspended at Mountague's Instigat 273. Grievances increas'd by Intervals of Parliament 49 61. Grotius for the Arminians 121. His Mare â—iberum answer'd at large 244 252. Gundamor Spanish Ambassador here his Character 98. Guthry Mr. James imprison'd and beheaded 443 444. H. HAmbden refuses to pay Ship-Money 258. Is prosecuted 259. Is routed 298. Hamilton Marquess sent to quiet the Covenanters 264. Marches into England on behalf of the King and is routed 326. Is executed 342. Harman Sir John his great Danger in the Dutch Fight 459 460. Beats the French Fleet in America and reduces Surinam 468. Haslerig Sir Arthur against the Army 409. Hatton Lady refuses to part with Hatton-House 274 275. Hayton Capt. his noble Act against the French at Sea 378. Hemp and Flax 677. Henry IV. of France his Character 28 29 67. His great Design prevented by his Death 29 66 67. Henry Pr. of Wales his memorable Sayings and noble Character 65 66. Suspected to be poison'd and why 66 79. Herbert Sir Edw. sent Ambassador to France is misrepresented but boldly offers to clear himself 96. Hewet Dr. put to Death by Cromwel 403. Hide Lord Chancellor vindicated concerning the Sale of Dunkirk and the Match with Portugal 429 430. His Fall and Character 470. High Court of Justice see Rump Holland privately seeks a Peace with the Rump with their canting Letter to 'em 356 357. Agree to exclude the Pr. of Orange 382. Holmes Sir Rob. falls upon the Smirna-Fleet 478. Colonel his suffering in the West a remarkable Story 621. Hotham Sir John conven'd before the Council 267. Keeps Hull for the Parliament 279 294. but after endeavours to deliver it up to the King 299. for which he and his Son lose their Heads 300. Hubert hang'd for firing the City to prevent a Discovery 462. Hungary commended its Story 89 90. Huntley Marquess loses his Head 316. I. JAmes I. his Arbitrary Act at Newark 35. Prodigal of Proclamations 35 48. Caress'd by all especially the Dutch ib. Glories in his Birth-right c. 34 38 51. Historical Remarks thereon 38 47. His profane Swearing and Drinking 36 71 151. Hates the Puritans and is highly flatter'd by the Bishops 37. His Arbitrary Proclamation at calling his first Parliament 50. Quarrels with the Commons about deciding an Election 52. Le ts the K. of Spain raise Forces in his Dominions 54. Monopolizes the Trade to Spain and Italy 56. Is excessive prodigal to his Favourites 59 62 77. Afraid to demand what 's due from the Dutch 60 71 121. His Ways of raising Money out of Parliament 62 106. Invades the Privileges of Parliament 72. His loathsom way of kissing his Favourites 78. Much impos'd on by the Dutch 80 81. Treats of a Marriage for his Son with the Infanta 86 98 100. Commits all to Villiers 87 98. Is contemn'd by the Dutch 87. by France and Germany 97. by the Spaniards with Lampoons 109. Hates Parliaments 88. Huffs his Parliament in a Letter to the Speaker 99. His long Invective against them 100 102. Annuls the Commons Protestation and dissolves them by an Arbitrary Proclamation 104. Imprisons several Members and the Earl of Southampton 104 105. His Arbitrary Charge to the Judges 105. His fickle and perplex'd State at breaking off his Son's Match 114 115 156. Resolves to fall in with Parliaments 115 125. Pretends no favour for Papists 126 145. His Speech on behalf of Buckingham and doting on him 136 137. His weak Letter to the French King on account of his Son's Match 140 141. His Speech to the Lords of the French Council 145. His Death which seem'd suspicious 147. His Character 106 107 148 152. Could meet Popery half way 148. Charg'd his Son to call Parliaments often 156. James II. while Duke of York engages the Dutch 457 480 481. His two Sons die 468 476. Is propos'd to the Arch-Dutchess of Inspruck but married to the Princess of Modena 476 477. His Designs against England in conjunction with France 500 502. The Commons Votes against him 541 557. Is sent Commissioner into Scotland 545 568. His Actions there 570. His Designs against the Earl of Argyle 575 c. His rude Answer to him 585. Has 22000 Scots ready to assist him 604. His Declaration to the Privy-Council on his being King 609 610. which he often broke 610 613 617 620 624. Takes the Customs and Excise before given him 610 614. His unparallel'd Cruelty 613 620 623 638. His vast Revenue 615 617 618. His ridiculous Pardon 622. His Proceedings in Ireland 624 625 632 641. His Favour to the Papists 625 626 632. Gets Judges to declare for his Dispensing Power with Reflections thereon 630 632 642. Grants a Commission of Ecclesiastical Affairs 633 c. Toleration in Scotland 641. and Liberty of Conscience in England which is descanted on ib. Keeps a standing Army in time of Peace 642 643. Orders his Declaration of
Indulgence to be read in Churches 644. Jefferies the Commons Votes against him 556. Releases the impeached Lords 611. His savage Cruelty in the West c. 613 620 621. Is made Lord Chancellor 630. Jesuits their Projects in England 200 201. for which some were taken yet releas'd by the King 201. Ignoramus the Play 74. Ingoldsby sent against Lambert 420. Inoiosa Spanish Ambassador presents the King a Paper against the Prince and Buckingham 130 132. which much perplexes him 132 133. Johnson Mr. Samuel whipt for writing an honest Address to the English Army 638 639. Jones Sir Tho. his Thoughts of a Dispensing Power 630. Sir Will. put out and for what 546. Ireland how bounded c. 12. A horrible Massacre there 277 343. Another design'd 448. and a Rebellion in Conjunction with the French 472 533. K. James's Proceedings there 624 625 632 641. Irish Cattle Act to prohibit their Importation with 9 Observations upon it 462 467. Is made perpetual 559. Judges their Opinion for Ship-Money 258. Those made by Char. II. 501. Juries hated by Cromwel 400 401. Are pack'd to murder honest Men 601 602 611. Jurisdiction of Parliaments discust in relation to Fitz-harris 588 590. Jus Divinum 330 332 544. Juxton Bishop of London made Lord-Treasurer 265. K. KIngs their divided Will against Law 5. Never parted with Parliaments in Disgust till the Stuarts 205 267. Not wont to be present at Debates in Parliament 502. Never speak but in Parliament or under the Great-Seal 568. Kirk Maj. General his barbarous Inhumanity at Taunton 622. Kirk-Party strict with James VI. 34. Mind the King of his Covenant 443. See Scots L. LAmbert turns against Cromwel 399. After against his Son 406. Is made Lieutenant-General 408. Petitions the Rump 409. Is turn'd out by them ib. and after turns them out 410. Marches against Monk 412 414. Is sent to the Tower 416. Is routed and taken Prisoner 421. Langdale Sir Marmad his Success for the King 309. Is discontented 311. Laud his Rise and Character 122 123. Puts the King on altering Religion in Scotland 122 123 242 255 256 260. Gets a Bishoprick by playing the Spaniel 123. His ways to ruin Bishop Williams 124 239. Proves a Firebrand c. 157 166 167 226 239 242. Is made Bp of London 226. Favours Popery 231. His great Care of the Church 167 227 241 242. Prosecutes his Injunctions concerning Ceremonies with great Severity 254 255 257 258. Quarrels with the King about visiting the Vniversities 256 257. Procures an Alteration in the Church of Scotland 262 263. Lauderdale some account of him 441 442 454. Is bitter against the Presbyterians in Scotland his Highland Government there 490 491. Laws c. ought to be in the Mother-Tongue 363 404 405 665. Lenthal made General by the Rump 408. Lestrange Roger Champion of the Tory-Cause 500. Is employ'd to ridicule the Popish Plot 545. Levellers in the Army 318. Liberty of Conscience to be continued 662. See Dissenters and James II. Lindsey Earl sent to relieve Rochel but in vain 225. Lisle Lady her unparallel'd Case is basely murder'd 620. London on ill Terms with the King 272. yet lend him Money 273. Raise Souldiers under Waller c. 321. In Confusion 414. Join with Monk for a Free Parliament 419. Is set on fire 461. See Hubert Long Mr. sentenc'd in Star-Chamber 234. Lorain Duke basely dealt with by the French King 474. Lords five impeach'd by the Commons 535. See Jefferies Lowden Chancellor of Scotland his Speech concerning Cromwel 303 304. Ludlow deposes Henry in Ireland 408. M. MAckenzy Sir Geo. pleads against the Earl of Argyle 584 585. Magdalen-College Story 640. Mansfield denied landing at Calais contrary to Agreement 146. Manwaring for the King 's absolute Power 197. Impeach'd by the Commons and sentenc'd by the Lords 214 215. Is promoted by Laud 227 256. Marriage with France see Charles I. Marsilly murder'd at Paris to the Dishonour of K. Charles 479. Marston-Moor Fight 307. Maurice Prince for the King 298. Is lost in the W Indies 327. May Tho. Esq his Treatise of the Civil Wars disprov'd 280 295. Mazarine turns K. Charles c. out of France 383. His Success against the Pr. of Conde 388 389. and Loss at Ostend 402. Opposes K. Charles's Restoration 421 422. Meal-tub-Plot discover'd 546. Militia who shou'd have the Power of it the chief Cause of the War 296. Whether it belongs to King or Parliament ib. 329. Mombas betrays the Dutch 484 486. Monk takes Sterling-Castle and Dundee 347. Complies with Cromwel 359. Engages the Dutch 356 371 372. Is caress'd on his Victory 373. Sent to Scotland 383. His Pedigree and Story 384 385. His Regency in Scotland 410. Is much courâ—ed secures Berwick 411. His ill Success treats with the Committee of Safety but displeas'd with the Agreement with a Story of him 412 413. Sends to Fleetwood summons a great Assembly at Edinburgh abjures K. Charles 413. His Success 412 416. Is declar'd for in Ireland 412. Marches to London is addrest for a Free Parliament 416. Is carest by the Rump his Speech to them 417. Pulls down the Gates of the City sends an angry Message to the Rump 418. Declares for a Free Parliament at Guild-hall and restores the secluded Members 419. Meets the King at Dover and is made Knight of the Garter 426. Monmouth Duke sent against the Covenanters 543. 'T was believ'd his Mother was married to the King and why 544. Is unjustly put to Death 619. Monopolies injurious 55 56 65. Montross for the King 313 315 316. Is routed and executed 344. Morley Col. Herbert secures the Tower for Monk 418. Mountague accus'd by the Commons of Arminianism 166. Is favour'd by the King 166 167 171 226. Impeach'd by the Commons for favouring Popery 180 183 226. Made Bp of Chichester 226. and after of Norwich 227. Holds Correspondence with the Pope 273. Muscovy the Czar revokes the English Privileges on K. Charles's Death 350. N. NAseby Fight 311 312. Navigation-Act made by the Rump 350. Its Inconveniences 364 367 391 455 653 658. Nayloâ— James his Blasphemy 396 Newberry first Fight 299. Second Fight 308. Newfoundland Fishery how the French got it from us 390 391. North Sir Francis a Tool in the late Times 592. Promoted 603. Northampton Earl concern'd in Overbury's Death see Carr and Overbury Yet in favour with the King tho a Papist 72 73 Incourages the Irish Papists 74. November 5. appointed an Anniversary Thanksgiving 58. Noy Mr. against the Court 208. Is taken off by being made Attorney-General 243. His Pretence for Ship-money c. 252. O. OAtes Dr. first discovers the Popish Plot 532. His excessive Fine 610. Indicted of two pretended Perjuries 610 613. His barbarous and illegal Punishment 613. Oaths Remarks on that of the Scots Covenant 368 438. on the Convocation-Oath 369 438. on the Corporation-Oath 431 439. Orange Prince General for the Dutch 486. Declar'd Stadtholder is courted by the French King his noble Answer to his Proposals
488. His Success against the French 492 495. Fights the French at Mount Cassel 505 513. Comes into England 507 515. Opposes a separate Peace 507 508 511. Advises concerning the Lady Mary 509. His brave Resolution against the King's Answer at which he 's much disgusted 515. Is married 516. Treats of a Peace with France 516 517. Is suspected by the Confederates and why 518 520. but afterwards clear'd 525. Routs the French before Mons 528. His generous Design to save these Nations from Ruin 648. Orleans Dutchess see Dover Ormond Marquess makes Peace with the Irish 343. His Design for the Prince defeated 402. Ossery Lord his Friendship with the Prince of Orange 508. Overbury Sir Tho. his Story is destroy'd by the King's Favourites 62 64 68 70. His Advice to Rochester 64. His Murder discover'd and how 77 79. Overton Col. conspires against Monk 396. Oxford Parliament see Parliament Treaty there broke off and why 314. P. PApists to be tolerated 674 675. see Popish Parliaments their Constitution Ends c. 48. Ought to be Annual 49. Vsed to redress Grievances before they gave Money 49 97 616. Never dissolved in Anger till the Stuarts 205 267. Endeavour'd to be overthrown by Char. II. 614 630. Parliament in 1640 redress the Nation 's Grievances 276. Enter into a Protestation 277. Charg'd with beginning the War 280 286 296. Take the Militia from the King 293 294. Seize the Fleet 295. Raise an Army 296. Their ill Success the two first Years 296 298. Treat with the Scots for Assistance 298 Take their Covenant 299. Place no Trust in the King 315. Send an Army into Ireland 317. Their Affairs inverted by the Army 319 320. Order the King to London 321. Send Propositions to him 322. Their warm Votes concerning no further Treaty with him 324. See Commons Parliament of Char. II. their first Acts 430 431 439. Address against the King's Indulgence 447. Their Severity to Dissenters 448 458. Prohibit the Importation of Irish Cattle 462. Grant a Tax for the War against Holland 467. for the Triple League 473. for a War against France 475. Pass a Bill against Papists enjoying Places 491. See Commons at Oxford Lords petition against its meeting there 559 560. Sits but 7 days their Proceedings 564 566. K. James's pack'd one 615 616. Scarce deserv'd the Name 616 617 619. Their Acts 617 618. The Commons Address concerning Popish Recusants 628. Remarks upon it 628 629. Passive Obedience unknown to our Fathers 206. It s Inconsistence 531. Peers Jurisdictions in Appeals question'd by the Commons 502 504. Penruddock Col. beheaded after Articles granted him 386. Pensioners in Parliament 490 500. Pentland Scots rise there but are terribly routed 458. Petition of Right oppos'd by Buckingham c. defended by Williams c. 207. The Lords Saving to it oppos'd by the Commons 208 209. Is passed 210 216. but broken by the King 218 227 228 236. Is printed by the King with his Answer to it 228. Philip III. of Spain his Character 36. Philips Sir Rob. against the Court 174 180 229. Plague a great one in 1 Jac. I. 37. A greater in 1 Car. I. 153. A yet greater in II's Reign 458. Pontfract Castle surrendred to the Parliament 327. Popery some of its Antichristian Doctrines 149 150. Is promoted by K. James 642. Pope's Nuncio heads a Rebellion in Ireland 277 343. His Despotick Tyranny there 343. One arrives in England 642. Popish Party conceive great hopes of England from the Match with Moderna 499 500. Have Commissions for raising Souldiers 535. Are favour'd by K. James see James II. Plot the Parliament's Votes concerning it 535 557 587. The Evidence in it justified 539 540. Some Account of it 540 541. It s Discovery supprest and how 546 547. Ports excellent ones in England 658. Portsmouth surrendred to the Parliament 296. Dutchess who she was 474. Prague see Frederick Presbyterians join with the Royalists 409. Printers petition against Laud 231. Privileges of Parliament discust 552 554. Proclamations against talking of State-Affairs 96 97. Prorogations of Parliament not used till Hen. 8. Account of one in Char. 2d's time 520 521 533. Protestants in France suffer by James I. 96. and by Charles I. see Char. I. and Rochel Puritans increase 154. Oppos'd by Laud c. 122 157 227. Persecuted by him 258. Pyrenean Treaty 421 422. Broke by the French K. 427 428 471. Q. QVeen proclaim'd Traitor by the Parliament 298. Arrives in England on some dark Designs 428. Quo Warranto see Charter R. RAcking Men declar'd to be against Law 227. Raleigh Sir Walter his Story 82 85. Is beheaded the he had been pardoned 85. Rents whence their Fall 463. Republicans conspire against Cromwel 386 399. Restore the Rump 408. Revenue of Q. Elizabeth 32. of James II. which see Richlieu some Account of him 141 142 176. Is parallel'd with Laud 239 240. Promotes the Contentions in England and Scotland 265 272 279. Engag'd in the Irish Massacre 277 343. Rochel Fleet subdued by the French English and Dutch 174. Not reliev'd by the English as promis'd 225. Miserably reduc'd 226. Roman Empire the Causes of its Ruin 17 24. Rothes Earl Commissioner in Scotland 454. Rump Parliament their Votes concerning the King with Remarks 332 333. Erect High Courts of Justice one of which takes off the King 333 346 347. Abolish Monarchy 342. Their prodigious Acts ib. Their Success in Ireland 343 344. in Scotland c. 345 347 350. against the Dutch 351 353 356. Propose a Coalition with them 350. Their Demands of them ib. 353. Their Answer to the Dutch Excuses 352 353. Their Letter to the States of Holland 357. to the States General 358. Are turn'd out by Cromwel 362. Their Character c. 363 364. Are restored by the Republicans 408. Turn out Lambert c. and constitute a Council of War 409. Are turn'd out again 410. and put in again by Fleetwood 416. Send to Monk ib. Rupert Prince lost several Battels by his Rashness 297 307 311. Forc'd into France 327. Saves the King's Life at Windsor 541. Rushworth commended 8. Russel Lord murder'd 601. S. SAndwich Earl affronted by the Duke of York is slain 480 481. Scotland Account of its Church-state 260 263 440 441. It s Alteration endeavour'd see Laud. Great Persecution there see Lauderdale Scots oppose Common-Prayer c. and enter into a solemn Covenant against it 263. Vp in Arms propose an Accommodation 265. Declare against Episcopacy 270. Declar'd Traitors enter England 271. Keep not the Articles of Pacification 280 281. Began the War 280 286. Break their Word with the King and join the Parliament 300 331. Murder in cold Blood 316. Sell the King 317. Their Government not lik'd in England ib. Are routed by Cromwel which see Their Government chang'd by the Rump 347. Have four Citadels built to curb them 410. Their happy State under Monk ib. Parliament appoint May 29. an Anniversary Thanksgiving 443 444. Their other Acts abolish Presbytery 444 447. Grant
the King a great Revenue and pass the humble Tender 454. Scroggs Chief Justice illegally discharges the Grand Inquest 547. Is impeach'd of High-Treason 556. Sea its Dominion maintain'd by Navigation 660. Sea-men refuse to fight against Rochel 159 162. Are increas'd by the Fishing Trade 390 654. Secluded Members restor'd summon a Free Parliament 419 421. Selden Mr. for the Petition of Right 209. His Speech concerning Grievances 216. Self-denying Ordinance 309 310. Seymour Mr. invades the Commons Privilege 507. Is impeach'd by 'em 555. Shaftsbury see Ashley Cooper Sham-plots of the Court for which good Men are murder'd 601 602. Sharp ABp of St. Andrews murder'd 541 542. Sheriffs instrumental to save honest Mens Lives 590 600. Illegally chosen in London 600 611. Siâ—thorp for the King 's absolute Will 197. Slingsby Sir Henry beheaded 403. Sobiez his Success at Sea on behalf of the Reformed 146. Somerset see Carr. Southampton Lord Treasurer his Death and Character 470. Spain how bounded 1 Jac. I. 11 25. It s Barrenness in People and its Causes 25. Never recover'd its great Loss in 1588 c. 28. It s low State 428 471 472 652. Spaniards their Success against France 389. Spanish Trade tho beneficial forbid by Charles I. 174. Standing Army a Grievance 539. Kept up by K. James 642 643. States of England Three not King Lords and Commons 8. but Nobles Commonalty and Clergy 57. Strasburgh treacherously seiz'd by the French 604. Succession to the Crown in England 38 47 550. Surinam taken by the Dutch 467. but regain'd 468. Surrey-Men rise for the King but are routed 326 327. Sweeds join with the French at War against Brandenburg 499 511. T. TAlbot his Barbarity and Falshood in Ireland 624 625. Is made Lord Lieutenant 641. Tangier the Commons Votes concerning it 539 557. Temple Sir William employ'd in the Treaty at Nimeguen 472 478. in the Peace with the Dutch 495. His Conference with the King 498. Treats of a Peace with the French and Confederates 499. Is highly complimented by the French 509 510. His Thoughts of the Protestation against a separate Peace 512. Is admitted to the Debates with the King concerning the Peace 516 517. His going to France prevented 518. Test in England reflected on 501. In Scotl. with Remarks 570 575. Tiddiman Sir Tho. his Neglect at Bergen 457. Tories charge the Whigs with a Design to kill the King 532. Promote the Popish Designs 544 586. Their Impudence 562. Tour De la Count his Heroick Speech to the Bohemians 91 92. Trade in Market-Towns 27. To Spain gainful 165 387 389 463. to France prejudicial 166 389 463 672. In Wool how we lost it 338 339 662. To Greenland Newfoundland Norway c. 653 656. To America Newcastle 661. To Ireland 656 666. In Timber 669. In Companies and to East-India c. 670. Ought to be free 663 670 674 679. Traquair Lord Treasurer in Scotland 264 266. Prorogues the Parliament there which is protested against 267. Treason made a Stalking Horse 322. Treaty at Munster 339 340. Treaties Account of all between the K. and Parliament 328 332. Treâ—or Secretary his Queries concerning Buckingh c. 489. Triple League 472. Trump Van Admiral for the Dutch see Dutch Tunnage and Poundage see Charles I. and Commons V. VAne Sir Henry opposes the Scots Covenant 299. Promotes Lambert's Interest 409. Villiers his Descent comes into favour 73. Advanc'd by Somerset's Fall 74. His affable Carriage at first 76. Is promoted 77 86 111. Marries the greatest Fortune in England 88. His great Titles 111. Disswades the Prince from his Match with the Infanta 113. Sets up to be popular 115 118 125. His base Dissimulation in Spain 116 117 158. Charg'd with being a Papist and endeavouring to seduce the Prince 118. His Narrative of Proceedings in Spain with Remarks 127 129. Loses the King's Favour by means of the Spanish Ambassador 132 133. Restor'd to it again by the Keeper's fine Contrivance 133 134. Eager for a War with Spain 155. His base dealing with the Rochellers and the Merchants whose Ships he hired 159 163. His Behaviour at Paris 157 163. Is impeach'd by the Commons 189 190. Procures a War with France 193 196 198. His false Steps therein 198. Is routed 198 199. Is stabb'd 225. Vsurer a Story of one 555. Utrecht surrendred to the French 487. W. WAgstaff Sir Jos seizes the Judges at Salisbury 386 Wales its pretended Prince 647. Waller Sir William for the Parliament 298 306. See Fitz-harris Walloons persecuted by Laud 254 255. Settle in Holland 255. Come again into England and encourag'd by Char. II. 472 473 607. Walter Sir Joh. dissents from the Judges and is discharged 236. War with Holland projected by the French 450 473 478 484. War and Peace-making claim'd by the King 506. Warwick Earl Admiral for the Parliament 295. Wenthworth Sir Tho. a true Patriot 209 212. but made President of the North to his Ruin 243. and Lieutenant of Ireland 254 260. Weston Sir Rich. made Lord Treasurer tho a Papist 226. Whigs and Tories 531 532. Compar'd with the Prerogative-men and Puritans in Laud's time 560 561. Whitlock Serjeant his Thoughts of Cromwel c. 304 305 348 349 359 361. Advises to bring in the King 415. Wilkinson Capt. his Story his noble Constancy 596 598. Williams Lord-Keeper his Thoughts of the Spanish Match 113. His Ruin intended by Laud c. 124 179 253. Stops the King's Prohibition to the Judges and Bishops 126. His curious Contrivance on Buckingham's behalf 133 c. Is commended by the King for it 135. Ill requited by Buckingham 136 155. His Reasons against a War with Spain 155. His Advices to the King 168 170 302. to Buckingham 169. His Character 176 177. His Requests to the King c. 177 178. Is fin'd and imprisoned by Laud 239. Willis Sir Cromwel's Spy 393 402. Windebank Sir Fr. seizes Sir Coke's Papers favours Popery 253. Woollen Manufactures the Inconveniences they labour under 666. Worcester Fight 346. Workhouses 665 677. FINIS BOOKS sold by Andrew Bell at the Cross-keys and Bible in Cornhil THE General History of England as well Ecclesiastical as Civil from the earliest Accounts of Time to the Reign of his present Majesty King William Taken from the most Antient Records Manuscripts and Historians Containing the Lives of the Kings and Memorials of the most Eminent Persons both in Church and State With the Foundations of the Noted Monasteries and both the Universities Vol. I. By James Tyrrel Esq Fol. A New History of Ecclesiastical Writers Containing an Account of the Authors of the several Books of the Old and New Testament and the Lives and Writings of the Primitive Fathers An Abridgment and Catalogue of all their Works c. To which is added A Compendious History of the Councils c. Written in French by Lewis Ellies du Pin Doctor of the Sorbon In seven Volumes Fol. An Essay concerning the Power of the Magistrate in Matters of Religion wherein all the Arguments for Persecution and against Toleration are examin'd and refuted With the most proper Method of destroying all Schisms Heresies c. A Detection of the Court and State of England during the four last Reigns and the Interregnum Consisting of Private Memoirs c. with Observations and Reflections And an Appendix discovering the present State of the Nation Wherein are many Secrets never before made publick as also a more impartial Account of the Civil Wars in England than has yet been given By Rog. Coke Esq The third Edition much corrected with an Alphabetical Table Scotland's Soveraignty asserted Being a Dispute concerning Homage against those who maintain that Scotland is a Fee Liege of England and that the K. of Scots owes Homage to the K. of England By Sir Tho. Craig Translated from the Latin Manuscript with a Preface containing a Confutation of that Homage said to be performed by Malcom III. to Edward the Confessor and published by Mr. Rymer By Geo. Ridpath Ridpath his Shorthand yet shorter or the Art of Short-writing advanc'd in a more swift easy regular and natural Method than hitherto The second Edition A Discourse on the late Funds of the Million Act Lottery-Act and Bank of England Shewing that they are injurious to the Nobility and Gentry and ruinous to the Trade of the Kingdom By J. Briscoe The third Edition Mr. John Asgil his Plagiarism detected c. Emblems by Fra. Quarles with the Hieroglyphicks All the Cuts being newly illustrated The History of Genesis illustrated with 40 Copper Plates Advice to the Young or the Reasonableness and Advantages of an Early Conversion In three Sermons on Eccles 12. 1. By Joseph Stennett The Groans of a Saint under the Burden of a Mortal Body A Sermon at the Funeral of Mr. John Belcher late Minister of the Gospel from 2 Cor. 5. 4. By the same Author Several Practical Pieces of Mr. Daniel Burgess viz. Rules for hearing the Word of God The Sure Way to Wealth The most difficult Duty made easy Foolish Talking and Jesting describ'd and condemn'd The Christian Decalogue or the Gospel's ten Commandments The Church's Triumph over Death a Funeral Sermon on Mr. Robert Fleming A Funeral Sermon from Job 14. 14. on Mrs. Sarah Bull. Holy Union and Holy Contention describ'd and press'd In single Tracts or bound up together Fleming's Fulfilling of the Scripture Rutherford's Letters An Exposition with Practical Observations on the Book of Ecclesiastes By Alexander Nisbet A Directory of Prayer being a Commentary on the 20th Psalm By R. Campbel Chamberlen's Midwifery the third Edition Artamenes or the Grandâ—Cyrus In 10 Vol. A Birchen Rod for Dr. Birch being an Answer to his Sermon before the Commons Jan. 30. A Defence of the Arch-bishop's Sermon on the Death of the Late Queen and of the Sermons of the late ABp Bp of Lichfield and Coventry Bp of Ely Bp of Salisbury Dr. Sherlock c. on that and other Solemn Occasions against the Aspersions of two Jacobite Pamphlets A Tragedy called the Popish Plot reviv'd Wherein are several Letters c. of Dr. Oates to the Late Kings and other Great Men. The Rye-house Travestie The History of the Late Jacobite Plot in a Letter to the Bp of Rochester by T. Percival * Aesar in the Tuscan Tongue is a God See Suet. c. 97. in the Life of Augustus
Norway for Timber Pitch and Tar and to Liefland and Prussia for rough Hemp and Flax for which Trades the English never built one Ship since this Act and by reason of the Dearness and Inconveniences of our English Ships in these Trades the Norwegians have encreased their Navigation from 6 Ships of about 60 Tun to above 200 of three four five and six hundred Tun and the English pay near double the Price for these they did before the Act. And as the Inhabitants of Liefland and Prussia rarely or never trade with us in rough Hemp and Flax so the Dutch importing these by the Cheapness of their Navigation one third cheaper than the English and when they are made into the Manufactures of Cordage Sails and Nets the Dutch by the Act of Navigation may import them whereby the English in their Fisheries and the Foreign Vent of their Commodities have lost the Manufactures of them and by a Foreign Expence buy them of the Dutch and French as much to their enriching and Employment of their People as to our Impoverishment and the Loss of employing ours It 's fit to give this light Touch of the Mischiefs and Inconveniences this Act has brought upon the Nation but hereafter I shall enlarge upon them when I reply upon Sir Josiah Child and Sir Brewster's Defence of it as before CHAP. II. A Continuation of this Treatise during the Vsurpation of Oliver Cromwel WHEN Men forsake the plain and foreknown Ways of Justice and Righteousness they not only run into Confusion or contrary Extreams but these they endeavour to sanctify by previous swearing to them and imposing them upon other Men. In Scotland 1638 the Scots without the King's Consent made their Covenant wherein they abjure Episcopacy and swear a mutual Defence of one another herein against all Persons whatsoever without excepting the King and imposed this upon all Sorts of People with Violence and Menaces as beating tearing of Clothes drawing of Blood and exposing thousands to Injuries and Reproaches and notwithstanding several Laws to the contrary expelled all Professors of Colleges and Ministers out of their Places who refused to subscribe their Covenant See Baker's Chron. fol. 461. a. To encounter the Scots Covenant by a contrary Extream the English Convocation in the Year 1640 after the King had dissolved the Parliament imposed without Consent in Parliament an Oath wherein they swear That they approve the Doctrine and Discipline of the Church of England as containing all things necessary to Salvation that they will not endeavour to bring in any Popish Doctrine contrary to it That they will not consent to alter the Government of this Church by Arch-Bishops Bishops Deans and Arch-Deacons c. as it now stands and ought by right to stand nor to subject it to the Vsurpations and Supersttitions of Rome That this they do plainly and sincerely acknowledg and swear and do it heartily and willingly Thus was God's Sacred Name exposed to cover their Ambitious Designs on both sides and for which neither gave any Reason Nor did this Convocation stay here but imposed without Consent of Parliament six Subsidies upon the Clergy to be paid in six Years for carrying on a War against the Scots the refusers to be suspended and excommunicated Thus you see now In Nomine Domini on both sides these Feuds began at the Clergy and the King to secure the Convocation set Guards about Westminster Abby Here let 's examine and compare these two Oaths The Covenanters in Scotland swear That according to their Places and Callings they shall endeavour the Preservation of the Reformed Church of Scotland in Doctrine Worship Discipline and Government At this Time there was no Reformed Church in Scotland but the Episcopal unless the Scots Covenanters erected another So here the Scots do not distinguish which Church they swear to endeavour to preserve nor say what the Doctrine Discipline Worship and Government of the Church of Scotland was So that herein in the first part of the Oath they swear equivocally and in the second they swear by Implicit Faith without declaring wherein their Doctrine Discipline Worship and Government does consist That they shall also endeavour the Extirpation of Popery Prelacy Superstition Heresy Schism Prophaneness c. All Oaths are to be taken in Truth viz. of what a Man knows or truly intends Can any Man believe that every Scot which swears the Covenant knows what Popery Prelacy Superstition Schism and Prophaneness are especially when they have an c. joined to them I do not believe that ever the Church of Rome or any other Nation ever imposed such an Equivocal and Canting Oath as this Covenant by a Rout of Men and contrary to the establisht Government in being and against the King's express Will And to make all sure they swear to defend all those that shall enter into this Covenant and shall zealously and constantly all the Days of their Lives continue therein But God shall soon blast this abominable Swearing to the Destruction of these Covenanters The Oath of the Covenant was purely promissory wherein they swear what wondrous Acts they would do in Preservation of their Kirk c. and for the Extirpation of Popery Prelacy c and for the mutual Defence of one another But the first Part of the Convocation-Oath is assertory wherein they swear that they approve the Doctrine and Discipline of the Church of England as containing all things necessary to Salvation so as there is no further need of searching the Scriptures and no Man needs further to seek his Salvation with Fear and Trembling if he be conversant in the Doctrine and Discipline of the Church of England The next part of it is negatively Promissory that they will not bring in any Popish Doctrine contrary to it The third part of it is partly Promissory and partly Assertory Promissory not to give Consent to alter the Government of this Church by Archbishops Bishops Deans Arch-Deacons c. Assertory as it now stands and ought to stand The fourth part is Promissory not to subject it to the Usurpations and Supersitions of Rome without declaring what these were The last part of this Oath is Assertory That this they do plainly and sincerely acknowledg and swear and do it heartily willingly and truly Now let 's see the Success of this jumbled Oath and Grant of these Subsidies first the King never got one Groat of them Secondly The very next Year after viz. March 10th the Commons voted that no Bishop should have any Vote in Parliament nor any judicial Power in the Star-Chamber nor Authority in Temporal Matters and that no Clergy-man shall be in Commission of the Peace and upon the 22d of June the High Commission Court and Star-Chamber wherein Laud and the Prerogative Clergy plaid their Pranks were abolished by Act of Parliament and soon after viz. January 12th Twelve of the Bishops were committed to the Tower for High Treason for protesting against all Votes and Orders of
other Person to be thought so fit for it and therefore the King with many kind Expressions gave order to Sir William to prepare for his Journey and the Secretary to draw up his Instructions But how forward soever the Juncto were for Peace the Dutch out-run them or at least kept equal Pace with them for tho the Prince of Orange were victorious in Holland and with admired Prudence and Conduct like another Scipio carried the War out of his Country and thereby saved it for in the dead of the Year he joined Montecuculi the Emperor 's General and besieged and took Bon the Residence of the Elector of Cologn and thereby cut off the Communication between France and Holland whereby the French were forced not only to quit their conquer'd Towns by heaps but he opened a Passage for the Imperial Forces to join the Dutch and Spanish yet the Dutch having but newly recovered their drowned Country and lost their Trade the Charges of maintaining their Land Army became so great that it was impossible this Year to set out a Fleet by Sea The Dutch States therefore gave the Marquess of Frezno the Spanish Ambassador in England Power to treat and conclude a Peace with the King which came in three Days after the Juncto had sent to Sir William and this by Sir William's Advice stayed his Journey into Holland it being more honourable for the King to be sought to than seek a Peace and that the King's Interest might be better pursued at London than at the Hague The King and Juncto agreed to it and withal added That tho Sir William did not treat the Peace at the Hague he should at London And when Sir William had received his Instructions he at three Meetings with the Marquess concluded the whole Treaty with the Satisfaction of the King Sir William says the Articles being publick need no Place here but the two Points of greatest Difficulty were the Flag and recalling the English Troops out of the French Service But that this last was composed by private Engagements to suffer those to wear out without any Recruits or not to permit new ones to go over yet at the same time to give Leave to the Dutch to raise such Levies as they should think fit in his Majesty's Dominions But this is an odd Equivocation to recal the French Troops which was to let them wear out without Recruits which was not observed neither for Men were not only encouraged but pressed to this Service and to these in the French Service does Sir William and the Germans too ascribe the Glory of all the French Actions who not only in Turenne's Life but at his Death saved the whole French Army But if this be as Sir William says yet the King hereby instead of being the Protector becomes a Murderer of his Subjects in permitting them to kill one another on both sides for it is impossible the War should be just on both sides Nor do I believe the like Precedent can be shewed unless by the King's Grandfather James I. I confess I have not seen the Articles of the Treaty at large but by so much as I have seen I do not find that the Arrears for the Dutch Fishing upon the Coasts of England and Scotland agreed upon in King Charles the First 's Time which was 30000 l. per Annum and a settled Revenue for that Fishery for the Time to come insisted upon at the Treaty of Cologn nor the Damages to the Executors of Sir Paul Pindar and Sir William Courten were so much as mention'd in it It may be the 800000 Patacoons to be paid by the Dutch to the King by this Treaty were intended in Satisfaction of the Executors Demands of which they denied they ever received one Penny This hasty Peace thus huddled up in less than 4 Days viz. between the 5th or 6th and 9th of February would not admit of the Establishment of a Marine Treaty and Regulation of the East-India Trade between the English and Dutch and Treaty at Cologn And therefore it was agreed That Commissioners on both sides were to meet at London to treat of these and determine them in three Months after such Meeting and in case any Differences should not be adjusted these to be referred to the Queen Regent of Spain who should name 11 Commissioners the greater part of whom should determine the Differences in 6 Months after and these to meet in 3 Months after the Queen Regent shall have taken the foresaid Arbitriment upon her self But the States as wise in this Treaty as the English were improvident and hasty got the 7th Article agreed to viz. That the Treaty made at Breda 1667 as also other Treaties renewed by it be confirmed and remain in full Force and Vigour as far as they shall not be contrary to this present Treaty The Marine Treaty was agreed by the Commissioners but the first and fifth Articles ill observed by the Dutch as I have seen made publick but nothing was agreed for the Regulation of the East-India Trade nor any thing concerning it referred to the Queen Regent of Spain This is that honourable Peace to his Majesty's Satisfaction which succeeded this glorious War to the Expence of such vast Treasure and Charge to England and involving Christendom into a War wherein we taught the French to fight by Sea while they encouraged the Dutch and us to destroy one another whereby we got nothing but dry Blows except the 800000 Patacoons for the Flag was ever given by the Dutch to Queen Elizabeth King James and King Charles I. and by the Treaty to Oliver in 1654 and to the King in 1666 and 1667 nor ever desired by the States But the Dutch got confirmed the Islands of Amboyna and Polloroon which they had ravished from the English whereby they not only supply Europe but India and Persia with Spice and Surinam and also got discharged again from the Piracy or Robbery perpetrated upon the Bona Esperanza and Henry Bonadventura in Time of Peace and all the Arrears of 30000 l. per Annum for fishing upon our Coasts since 1636. So little Regard was had in this Treaty either of the King's Honour or of the Good or Interest of the Nation However 't was the Interest of Spain to promote this separate Peace with the Dutch for this Year the French King having brib'd the Swiss to a Compliance took the Franche County from Spain the Swiss keeping Garisons in Dole and Besanzon And this Year Messina revolted from Spain and submitted to the French King CHAP. III. A further Detection of this Reign till the breaking out of the Popish Plot. TO mollify his most Christian Majesty highly exasperated you must think by this Peace the King 't was said and I believe it sent his Ship-Carpenters to instruct the French how to build his Men of War and I say Sir Anthony Dean told me that by Order of the King he built the Model of a Man of War as I
are perceived by the Senses and understood to exist or be yet these are known to be by some and not by others and in Justice and Judgment the end of an assertory Oath is to inform the Judg of the Truth of what a Man knows which otherwise might be concealed and here I say that as God's Name in Religion Piety and Justice is to be invoked when it is not in vain but for God's Honour so otherwise to use or abuse his sacred Name in vain is dishonourable to God and makes it vile and contemptible Now let 's see how the ranting Swearing of this Test agrees with the Religion and Obligation of an Oath and observe it in its Particulars or Confusion It begins I solemnly swear in the Presence of the Eternal God whom I invoke as Judg and Witness of this my sincere Intention of this my Oath that I own and profess the true Protestant Religion contained in the Confession of Faith recorded in the first Year of King James the Sixth So that here is a most horrible Swearing and Invocation of God's sacred Name and yet neither an assertory nor promissory Oath for an assertory Oath is of some Act or Speech in time past which was transient and not when the Oath was taken and a promissory Oath is of time to come whereas in this Oath the Taker swears in the present time he does own the Protestant Religion recorded in the Confession of Faith in the first Year of King James the Sixth I believe there is such a Record intituled The Confession of Faith in the first Year of King James the Sixth because Spotiswood and other Scotish Authors say so but to swear by the Eternal God that it contains the true Protestant Religion when the Name is not in it is such an implicite Faith as can scarce be found in the most superstitious in the Church of Rome Christian Faith is a Belief of God's Revelations in the Scriptures to which if any add or dimniish his Name shall be blotted out of the Book of Life Rev. 22. 18 29. But where the Scots found their Confession of Faith in the first Year of King James Knox no where tells tho he was the Founder of it And I believe the same to be agreeable to the Written Word of God But what need you swear by the Eternal God you do so If you demonstrate or give the Reason of your Belief which you do not this might convince another which your Swearing never will That I will adhere thereto and endeavour to educate my Children therein The more obstinate Man you and so much the worse for your Children And never consent to any Change or Alterations thereto This might have been left out for if you adhere to it you cannot consent to any Change or Alteration And renounce all Popish and Fanatical Doctrines inconsistent with the said Protestant Religion and Confession of Faith I take a Renunciation to be a Disclaimure of what was before so that if you renounce all Popish and Fanatical Doctrines c. it seems before you owned them yet you neither tell what these Popish and Fanatical Doctrines are or wherein they are inconsistent with the Protestant Religion and Confession of Faith or how you come to know so and if you do not it ill becomes you to prostitute God's sacred Name to swear to what you do not know And by this my solemn Oath I swear that King Charles the Second is the only Supream Governour of this Realm over all Persons and in all Causes as well Ecclesiastical as Civil By which of your Senses do you know this by your seeing smelling touching or tasting Or if it be by another's having told you so will you swear to whatever another tells you Or if another should tell you that King Charles the Second is not the only Supream Governour c. will you swear by the Eternal God he is not so or if King Charles should be dead when you are swearing this which he may for ought you know how long will you hold of this Mind And that I renounce what again all foreign Jurisdiction of the Pope or any other Person If I cannot take your Word I 'll not think the better of it for your swearing to it And promise to bear true Allegiance to the King his Heirs and Lawful Successors 'T is well if you hold long in this Mind but before you renounced all foreign Jurisdiction of the Pope suppose and be not affrighted at it King Charles the Second and his Lawful Successor should now be contriving the bringing in this Foreign Jurisdiction how by the Eternal God would you beâ—â— Faith and Allegiance to them herein And to my Power defend all their Rights and Prerogatives c. Yet you neither declare what these Rights and Prerogatives are which you swear to defend and 't is twenty to one you do not know these Rights and Prerogatives and so you solemnly swear to you know not what or suppose the King and his Lawful Successor should say it was one of his Prerogatives to bring in the Papal Jurisdiction how would this consist with your solemn Faith and Allegiance to the King and his Lawful Successors and your renouncing all Foreign Jurisdiction And I judg it unlawful for Subjects upon Pretence of Reformation or any Pretence whatsoever to enter into any Covenants or Leagues or to convene c. in any Council to treat of any Matter Ecclesiastical or Civil without his Majesty's special Command and express Licence or to take up Arms against the King or those commissionated by him So that here you judg without any Reason of your Judgment and must have your Judgment pass for currant because you swear to it and at this rate you may swear and judg as you please and sure never before was ever Religion or Judgment established upon such Foundations That I will never rise in Arms or enter into such Covenants or Assemblies For all your swearing to this yet I believe my Lord Commissioner will not trust to your Oath and the rather because you were so loose to it in observing your solemn League and Covenant which you sware with as servent Affection as you now seem to do to this and with Hands and Heart lifted up to the most high God That there lies no Obligation upon me by the National Covenant 〈◊〉 solemn League and Covenant or any other way to endeavour any Change or Alteration of Government either in Church or State as now established Does there lie no Obligation upon you by the solemn League and Covenant c. to endeavour any Change or Alteration in Church or State why you as solemnly sware that as this and by that you sware to extirpate Prelacy and here you swear never to endeavour any Change of it Or do you think you please his Highness my Lord Commissioner herein whose Business it is not only to make Alterations but to subvert your Church and State And if you will
make no Alterations in either it will not be long before you shall see Alterations made in both without you And I promise and swear to maintain the King's Jurisdictions against all deadly as I shall answer it before God Why this again For before you sware to maintain all the King 's Rights and Prerogatives and what does the King's Jurisdiction add to them However you are very prodigal of your Swearing and if his Highness will not believe you for your Swearing before you 'll try how far he 'll believe you now And that I take this Oath in the plain and genuine Sense and Meaning of the Words without any Equivocation Mental Reservation or Evasion and never to accept of any Dispensation from any Creature So God help me This is well sworn to interpret your Truth and Sincerity especially when the whole Oath is Confusion Equivocation or Contradiction and not one plain and intelligible Sentence in it In the Debates in Parliament for passing this Test the Earl of Argyle declared his Opinion That as few Oaths as could be should be imposed and that the Oath of Allegiance and Declaration had effectually debarred all Fanaticks of getting into any Places of Trust and though some Papists had swallowed the Oath yet a Word or two of Addition to guard against them was all he judged necessary The Earl opposed the dispensing with the King's Sons and Brother's taking the Test for that the King and People were of one Religion and hoped the Parliament would do nothing to loose what was fast nor open a Gap for the Royal Family to differ in Religion for their Example if it once appeared to the People to be honourable would have more Followers than a Thousand others would have and therefore wished if any Exception were it might be particular to his Highness which the Duke opposing the Earl concluded if it did pass it would do more hurt to the Protestant Religion than all the rest of the Acts and many other Acts would do good This Plainness of the Earl was the Cause of all that befel him as he was afterwards told by the Bishop of Edinburgh but the first Appearance of the Duke's Displeasure was two Bills given in against him one by the Earl of Errol the other by the King's Advocate who acknowledged it to be done by Commandment otherwise it was without his Line These struck at the Earl's Estate and Honours only that of Errol was that the Earl's Estate might be liable to pay him and others for the Debts contracted by his Father The Advocate 's Claim was to all his Heritable Offices But the Duke being informed that a Judgment in this Case would have exposed the Marquess of Huntley's Estate who was a zealous Papist the Duke of his own Accord put a full Stop to it for he found he said it did plainly impugn the King's Prerogative and might be of ill Consequence After this the Parliament was adjourned and a new Design was to get a Commission from the King to review all the Earl's Rights and heritable Offices and to charge his Estate for more than 't was worth Hereupon the Earl applied himself to the Duke against such a Commission and intreated him that if any quarreled his Right his Case might be remitted to the ordinary Judicatories according to the established Laws of the Land but this was not granted yet the Duke was pleased to allow the Earl time to go into the Country to bring his Evidence with a Promise no Commission should pass till the Earl's Return But you 'll see something more than the Earl's Estate was designed For the Earl was no sooner gone but he and the President of the Sessions were turned out of it Hereupon the Earl wrote to the Earl of Murray the King's Secretary praying leave to wait upon the King which he was pleased readily to grant and upon his Return to Edinburgh begg'd the same Favour of the Duke who told him he might not kiss the King's Hand till he had taken the Test Here you may observe the Test was not to be taken by any but those who bear Office nor to be imposed upon any before the First of January 1680 and this was about the Beginning of November before and the Earl being acquainted that one of the Clerks of the Council was appointed to summon the Earl to the Council the next Day which he conceived to be to take the Test he asked the Duke if with his Favour he might not have the Allowance by the Act The Duke told him no and the Earl urged it again in vain all the Delay he could obtain was but till Thursday the third of November the next Council-Day of Course Then the Earl said he was the less fond of the Test because he found some who had refused it were still in Favour and others as the Register who had taken it were turned out at which his Highness laught But how comes your Highness said the Earl to press the Test so hastily Sure there are some things in it which your Highness does not overmuch like To which the Duke answered angerly and in a Passion most true that the Test was brought into Parliament without the Confession of Faith but the late President caused put in the Confession which makes it such as no honest Man can take it which is a greater Contravention and depraving the Test than the Perjury and Treason charged upon the Earl for them then the Earl replied he had the more Reason to advise In this Interval the Earl spake with the Bishop of Edinburgh and saw his Explanation of the Test and that of the Bishop of Aberdeen and the Synod's Explanation of the Test and the Explanation of it by the Synod and Clergy of Perth and that of the Earl of Queensberry which as they differ all from one another so were they printed and made publick and which you may read at large in the Earl of Argyle's Case It 's observable that tho by the Test they swear the Confession of Faith recorded in the first of King James the sixth To be founded upon and agreeable to the Word of God and that they will never consent to any Change or Alteration thereto and at last swear they take it in the plain and genuine Sense and Meaning of the Words without any Equivocation yet the Bishop of Aberdeen and the Synod in the 2d Article of their Explanation say We do not hereby prejudg the Churches Right to and Power of making an Alteration in the said Confession as to the Ambiguity and obscure Expressions thereof or of making a more unexceptionable Frame and having made several other Exceptions the Sixth Article concludes When we swear that we take the Test in the plain and genuine Sense of the Words c. we understand it only so far as it does not contradict the Exceptions And the Synod of Perth makes four explanatory Exceptions to the Test and the fifth concludes When we swear in the