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tempt caft on his name, family, and go

vernment.

upon them; and most of them under the force of tyrannical will, and fear of ruine by difpleasure thereof; fome under the force of feveral factions or titles to the crown: yet the laws made, even by fuch parliaments, have continued, and been received, and be⚫neficial to fucceeding ages. All which, and whatfo< ever hath been done by this parliament, fince fome of their members deferted them, and the late King raised forces against them, and feveral diforders and affronts formerly offered to them (if this objection take place) are wholly vacated. For any breach of privilege of parliament, it will not be charged upon the remaining part, or to have been within their power of prevention or reparation; or that they have not enjoyed the freedom of their own perfons and votes, and are, undoubtedly, by the law of parliaments, far ex⚫ceeding that number which makes a house, authorised for the dispatch of any bufinefs whatsoever and that, which at prefent is called a force upon them, is fome of their best friends, called and appointed by the parliament for their fafety, and for the guard of them against their enemies; who, by this means, being disappointed of their hopes to deftroy the parliament, would, nevertheless, fcandalize their actions, as done ⚫ under a force, who, in truth, are no other than their • own guards of their own army, by themfelves appointed: and, when it fell into confideration, whether the priviledge of parliament, or the fafety of the kingdom, fhould be preferred, it is not hard to judge which ought to fway the ballance; and that the parliament ought to pafs by the breach of priviledge (as had been formerly often done upon much smaller grounds) rather than, by a fullen declining their duty Declara- and truft, to refign up all to the apparent hazard of • ruin and confufion of the nation (a).'-Thefe were the principal reafons at that time given for this most extraordinary action. The reader will judge of their

sion, &c. p. 22.

force,

vernment.

To conciliate men to their pro-
ceedings,

force, and determine whether they answer the objections founded on the illegality and violence of the proceeding. It fhould be observed, however, that the abettors of it gloried that it was performed in the eye of the world, and that an example was fet to pofterity how to act in fimilar circumstances.—

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219

There want not precedents of fome of his predeceffors, faid they, who have been depofed by parliaments, but were afterwards in darkness, and in cor< ners, bafely murthered. This parliament held it more agreeable to honour and juftice, to give the King a • fair and open trial, by above an hundred gentlemen, in the most publick place of juftice, free (if he had fo (6) Declara pleased) to make his defence (b).'—' If the parlia- tion, &c. ment and military council do what they do without P. 14. precedent,' fays Milton, if it appear their duty, it argues the more wisdom, virtue and magnanimity, that they know themselves able to be a precedent to others, who, perhaps, in future ages, if they prove not too degenerate, will look up with honour, and afpire towards thefe exemplary and matchlefs deeds of their ancestors, as to the highest top of their civil glory and emulation; which, heretofore, in the purfuance of fame and foreign dominion, fpent itself vain-gloriously abroad; but, henceforth, may learn a better fortitude, to dare execute higheft juftice on them that fhall, by force of arms, endeavour the oppreffing ⚫ and bereaving of religion and their liberty at home; that no unbridled potentate or tyrant, but to his for• row, for the future, may prefume fuch high and irre⚫ fponfible licence over mankind, to havoc and turn upfide whole kingdoms of men, as though they were no more, in respect of his perverfe will, than a nation of pifmires (c).'— The time was,' faid another () Profe commonwealth advocate, when this nation was wed- i. p. 356, ⚫ded to the vanity of admiring kings, placing them in

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a lofty feat of impunity, like gods, that were not ⚫ bound

Works, vol.

(d) Mercurius Politi

cus, No. 56.

p. 886.

ceedings, and make them fubmit to their rule, they began (11) with fair promises,

and

bound to give men an account of their actions, but had a liberty to thunder at pleasure, and put the world • into combustion, fo that there was no love but lust, • no rule but the prince's will, which so vaffalized the fpirits of this great and mighty people, that they were content to establish the highest piece of injuftice by • fuch maxims of law, as faid, the King can do no • wrong;' as if whatsoever he did could not make him ❝ a delinquent or a traitor; nor was it law only, but thofe antiquated cheats of the clergy made it pafs for divinity alfo ; fo that the commonwealth of England, for almoft fix hundred years, hath been pinioned like a captive with the twofold cord of the law and the gofpel, which the corrupt profeffors have made ufe of after their own inventions. Yet, notwithstanding that this glorious idol of royalty was elevated to fuch a height over the liberties of the parliament, and set upon the very pinacle of the temple, we have lived to fee a noble generation of English hearts, that have ⚫ fetched it down with a vengeance, and cured the land of that idolatry, by one of the most heroic and exemplary acts of justice, that ever was done under the 'fun (d).'

I fhall only add, that, in the year 1651, O. S. the 30th of January was obferved, by the English merchants at Dantzick, in memorial of their deliverance from flavery, and a feaft was made for the whole company, (e) Thurloe, the expence of which was ordered to be repaid by the commonwealth of England (e).

vol. i. p.

554, 555.

(f) Jour

nal, 4th

Jan. 1648.

(11) They began with fair promises, and expressed, at the fame time, much refolution] After it had been determined to bring the King to a trial, the house of commons acted with great spirit and rigour. They declared, that the commons of England, in parliament affembled, being chofen by, and reprefenting, the people, have the fupreme power in the nation (f). They refolved, that

and expreffed, at the fame time, much refolution. Nor were they worse than their words:

a great feal be graven, with the addition of a map of the kingdom of Ireland, and of Ferfey and Guernsey, together with the map of England; and, in fome con enient place on that fide, the arms by which the kingdoms of England and Ireland are differenced from other kingdoms. That, on the map fide of the great feal, the infcription fhall be, The Great Seal of England, 1648.' That the infcription, on the other fide of the feal, on which the fculpture of the house of commons is engraven, fhall be this, «iz. ‘In the first year of freedom by God's blef(g) Journal, fing restored (g, Sixty pounds were charged on the 9th of Jan. revenue towards the charges of this feal.On the 1648. 17th of March, after the King's execution, an act was paffed for abolishing the kingly office,' and it was declared, high treafon in any one to endeavour to set up any of the late King's children, or any other perfon to be King of England and Ireland; and that whofoever should be convicted of the faid offence, should ◄be deemed and adjudged a traitor against the parlia(b) Scobel's ment and people of England (b). And, that no collection, hopes might be given of the reftoration of monarchy, March, care was taken to demolish its great fupport the house 1648. of peers, which was declared to be ufelefs and dangerous to the people of England' and it was enacted, That the lords fhould not from thenceforth meet or fit in the house called the lords houfe, or in any other house or place whatsoever, as a houfe of lords; nor fhould fit, vote, advise, adjudge or determine of any matter or thing whatfoever, as a houfe of lords, in parliament (). They, moreover, pulled down the (i) Id. ib. ftatues of Charies at St. Paul's and in the Royal Exchange, and put in the nich of the latter, Exit Tyrannus regum ultimus: imitating the Syracufians, who, at the invitation of Timoleon, overturned the palaces and mo(*) Plutarch ⚫numents, and whatever elfe might preferve the me-in Timo'mory of former tyrants (k).'These were very icon.

bold

words: for, 'tis very certain, great things

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bold and high acts, and fuch as needed an apology to the nation and the world. Accordingly a declaration was prepared and printed, in which the grounds of their proceedings were laid open in the best manner they were able. And the better to reconcile the people to their actions, and conciliate their efteem to their authority, they spoke them fair, and promised them largely. After having in the declaration vindicated their feveral actions, they proceed in the following manner: The fum of all the parliament's defign and endeavour in the < prefent change of government from tyranny to a free ftate; and which they intend not only to declare in words, but really and speedily endeavour to bring to effect, is this; to prevent a new war, and further expence and effufion of the treasure and blood of England; and to establish a firm and fafe peace, and an oblivion of all rancour and ill will occafioned by the late troubles to provide for the due worship of God, according to his word, the advancement of the true proteftant religion, and for the liberal and certain ⚫ maintenance of godly minifters: to procure a just liberty for the confciences, perfons and estates of all men, conformable to God's glory and their own peace: to endeavour vigorously the punishment of the cruel murtherers in Ireland, and the reftoring of the honeft proteftants, and this commonwealth, to their rights there, and the full fatisfaction of all engagements for this work: to provide for the fettling and juft obferving of treaties and alliances with foreign princes and ftates, for the encouragement of manufactures, for the increafe and flourishing of trades at home, and the maintenance of the poor in all places of the land: to take care for the due reformation and adminiftration of the law and publique juftice, that the evil may be punished and the good rewarded: to order the revenue in fuch a way, that the publ que charges may be defrayed, the foldiers pay juftly and duly fettled, that

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