Selected quad for the lemma: war_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
war_n	king_n	law_n	treason_n	4,260	5	9.4113	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A48484	To the right honourable the Commons of England, in Parliament assembled The humble petition of thousands wel-affected persons inhabiting the City of London, Westminster, the borough of Southwark, hamlets and places adjacent.		1648 (1648)	Wing L2188; Wing H3587; ESTC R210908	6,046	1

TO THE RIGHT HONOVRABLE THE COMMONS OF ENGLAND in Parliament assembled The humble Petition of Thousands wel ●ffected persons inhabiting the City of London Westminster the Borough of Southwark Hamlets and places adjacent Sheweth THat although we are as earnestly desirous of a ●…e and well-grounded-Peace and that a finall end were put to all the troubles and miseries of the Common-wealth as any sort of men whatsoever Yet considering upon what-gro●nds we ingaged on your Part in the late and present Wars and how far by our so doing we apprehend our selves concerned Give us leave before you conclude us by the Treaty i●…and to acquaint you first with the ground and reason which induced us to aid you against the King and his Adherents Secondly What our Apprehensions are of this Treaty Thirdly what we expected from you and do still most earnestly desire Be pleased therefore to understand that we h●…d not ingaged on your part but that we judged this honorable House to be the supreme Authority of England as chosen by and representing the People and intrusted with absolute power for ●…dresse of Grievances and provision for Safety and that the King was but at the most the chief publike Officer of this Kingdom and accomptable to this House the Representative of the People from whom all just Authority is or ought to be derived for discharge of his Office And if we had not bin confident hereof we had not bin desperately mad to have taken up Armes or to have ●…in aiding and assisting in maintaining a War against Him the Laws of the Land making it expresly a crime no lesse than Treason for any to raise War against the King But when we considered the manifold oppressions brough● upon the Nation by the King his Lords and Bishops and that this Honourable House declared their deep sense thereof and that for continuance of that power which had so opprest us it was evident the King intended to raise Forces and to make War and that if he did set up his Standard it tended to the dissolution of the Government upon this knowing the safety of the People to be above Law and that to judge thereof appertained to the supreme Authority and not to the supreme Magistrate and being satisfied in our Consciences that the publike safety and freedom was in imminent danger we concluded we had not onely a just cause to maintain but the supreme Authority of the Nation to justifie defend and indempnifie us in time to come in what we should perform by direction thereof though the highest And as this our understanding was begotten in us by princ●ples of right reason so were we confirmed therein by your own proceedings as by your condemning those Judges who in the case of Ship money had declared the King to be Judge of Safety and by your denying him to have a Negative voice in the making of Lawes where you wholly exclude the King from having any share in the supreme Authority Then by your casting the Bishop out of the House of Lords who by tradition also had bin accounted an essentiall part of the supreme Authority and by your declaring to the Lords That if they would not joyn with you in s●…ling the Militia which they long refused you would settle it without them which you could not justly have done had they had any reall share in the supreme Authority These things we took for reall Demonstrations that you indoubtedly knew your selves to be the supreme Authority ever weighing down in us all other your indulgent Expressions concerning the King or Lords it being indeed impossible for us to believ●… that it can consist either with the safety or freedom of the Nation to be governed either by three or two Supremes especially where experience hath proved them so apt to differ in their Judgme●ts concerning freedom or safety that the one hath bin known to punish what the other hath judged worthy of reward when not only the freedom of the people is directly opposite to the Progatives of the King and Lords but the open enemies of the one have bin declared friends by the other as the Scots were by the House of Lords And when as most of the oppressions of the Common-wea●th have in all times bin brought upon the people by the King and Lords who nevertheless would be so equal in the supreme Authority as that there could be no redress of Grievances no prov●sion for safety but at their pleasure For our parts we prosess ourselves to be so far from judging this to be consistent with freedom or safety that we know no greater cause wherefore we assist●d you in the late Wars but in hope to be delivered by you from so intolerable so destructive a bondage so soon as you should through Gods blessing upon the Armies raised by you be in●…led But to our exceeding griefe we have observed that no soo●er God vouchsafeth you victory and blesseth you with success and thereby inableth you to put us and the whole Nation into an absolute condition of Freedom and Safety but according as ●e have been accustomed passing by the ruine of the Nation and all the blood that hath been spilt by the King and his Party ye betake your selves to a Treaty with him thereby putting him that is but one single person and a publike Officer of the Common-wealth in competition with the whole Body of the People whom ye represent not considering that it is impossible fo● you to erect any Authority equall to your selves and declared to all the world that you will not alter the ancient Government from that of King Lords and Commons not once mentioning in case of difference which of them is supreme but leaving that point which was the chiefest cause of all our publike differences 〈◊〉 disturbances wars and miseries as uncertain as ever In so much as we who upon these grounds have laid out or ●…es every way to the uttermost of our abilities and all others throughout the Land Souldiers and others who have done the like in defence of your supreme Authority and in opposition to ●he King cannot but deem our selves in the most dangerous condition of all others left without all plea of indempnity for what we have done as already many have found by losse of their live and liberties either for things done or said against the King the law of the land frequently taking place and precedency against and before your Authoritie which we esteemed supreme and ag●inst which no law ought to be pleaded Nor can we possibly conceive how any that have any waies assisted you can be exempt from the guilt of murderers and robbers by the present law● in force if you persist to disclaim the supreme authoritie though their own consciences do acquit them as having opposed none but manifest Tyrants Oppressors and their adherents And whereas a Personall Treaty or any Treaty with the King hath been long time held forth as the onely means of a safe and wel-grounded