fpirit and conduct appeared in the beha

viour

ment, made no addrefs to it, but repaired to the King at Oxford, and, after abiding there fix weeks, returned to London 14, 1643. They then prefented A paper to each of the Speakers of the houfes of parliament, ' with a memorandum to that delivered to the house of peers, in thefe words: Delivered by the embaffadors of the lords eftates, unto Mounfier the Baron Grey of Werk, Speaker, to be communicated to the lords ⚫ of the parliament, this 14 day of March, 1643. The other to the Speaker of the house of commons, with " a memorandum in these words; Delivered by the 'embaffadors of the lords eftates, unto Mr. William

Lenthall, Speaker, to be communicated to the Srs commons of parliament this 14 day of March, 1643." To the matter of thefe papers, the lords and commons could give no answer, in refpect they were not addreffed to them in fuch words, either for the matter or manner, as that they could legally, and according to the courfe of parliament, take notice of them as directed to themselves. However, that the ambaffadors might not plead ignorance concerning the form of addrefs, the parliament were willing that fome of their members fhould repair to them, to acquaint them therewith, who did accordingly, and left the fame in writing with them: but this for the present made no alteration in their behaviour. On the 4th of May, 1644, the ambassadors came to the Speaker of the house of commons, and by him prefented their fervice to the parliament, protesting their defires to do good; but that they met with no fuccefs; and fo took their leave for Oxford again. But when they perceived the parliament army to come near to Oxford, where they then were, with the King, they came out with white flags before them, and moved the Earl of Effex, for a treaty: his excellency affured them that it belonged only to the parliament to appoint fuch a treaty. Upon this they returned to Oxford; and from thence they came with their white flags, which were

viour of the new commonwealth, which

..

fur

fill carried before them all the way as they paffed, even into the city of London. Some perfons from Oxford came up in their train, obnoxious to the parliament. After their return hither, about the 19th,of June, fays the parliament, they fent meffages to the houfes, that they had fomething to deliver from your lordships; [the States of Holland, to whom the declaration from whence I tranfcribe this is addreffed] ⚫ whereunto, about two or three days after, this answer was sent them; that the houfes did expect that they fhould make their demand of audience in writing, with which if the houses refted fatisfied, that they would come to them as to the parliament of England, audience fhould be given them in each houfe apart; which they did by their writing dated the 5th of July, whereby they prefented their defires as to the lords and commons affembled in the parliament of England, and thereupon had audience given them in each house the 18th day of the fame month, with a moft honourable and refpective reception. At the fame time they delivered their letters of credence from your lord hips, and offered their interpofition and mediation for the compofing the differences between his Majefty and the parliament, which they left in writing, together with a memorial for reparation of damages fuftained by fome merchants and masters of hips of the United-provinces, in their fhips and course of trading, with defire that commiffioners might be appointed for fettling the things complained of." written to had the femblance of fair dealing.-But the Dutch amthe high and baffadors were far enough from interpoling and mediating impartially. For in their letters to their mafters they cenfured the parliament's proceedings, mifrepresented their defigns, and made applications for peace on terms unfuitable to the fafety and welfare of the parliament (f). With refpect to the damages they pretended to have fufBlacklock, tained in their fhips, it appeared to have been in a good

(f) Declaration of the

Parliament of England,

mighty

Lords, the States-General, &c.

4to. Lond. printed for

Laurence

mea

furprised the nations. The war was commenced

mons of the

dors of the

1645.

monde's

State Pa

meafure redreffed by the parliament, though they were importunately clamorous and troublefome on this head, and at the fame time did the fhips of the parliament da(E) A fecond mage to a very confiderable amount, without making Declaration any fatisfaction (g).—I have the more willingly given of the Lords the account of these matters, because the declarations in and Comwhich they are contained are very little known, and proceeding the memory of the facts like to be loft; the declarations, with the though fome of the finest in the English tongue, in point Ambaffaof compofition, being unaccountably omitted in the Par- States-Geliamentary History, where their importance juftly inti- neral. 4to. tled them to a place. But to return-The fame incli- Sept. 18, nation to the royal caufe was difcovered by the Dutch on other occafions. They interpofed with regard to the execution of Charles I. they made compliments of condolence to Charles II. on the murder, as they called it, of his royal father; acknowledged him to be rightful (6) Orand lawful King of England (b), and afforded him a refuge in their dominions. The minifters in Holland came likewife in a body to the King, and declared p. 223. their deteftation of the faid horrid murder, and the Sunday following preached in most of the churches thereabouts, againft the impiety and wickedness thereof: whereby the people there were very much enraged against all that had favoured or affifted any ways the rebels in England; infomuch that Strickland (their agent there) dared not to go out of his lodging, for fear the people would tear him in pieces (i). This Id. ibid. was the temper and difpofition of the Dutch, as defcribed by Sir G. Radcliff, in a letter written from the Hague, Feb. 13-23, 1648-9. And 'tis well known that Dr. Doriflaus, who was fent over thither to act as a jointagent with Strickland, was affaffinated on the fecond day of May following, and his murtherers permitted to efcape; though it must be confeffed at the fame time, that the States-General offered a reward of a 1000 gilders for apprehending the affeffins, and declared it death

6

for

pers, vol. i.

(i)

menced and carried on in a manner equally ho

for any to harbour them.The following extract from
Wicgefort, will in a good degree confirm what has been
here related. The party of the parliament at Lon-
don was already very confiderable, when it fent Wal-
ter Strickland to the Hague in the month of September,
1642; but as foon as he had demanded audience,
Bofwell, who was there on the part of the King of
• England, opposed it, and reprefented that the parlia
<ment being but a body without a foul, in the abfence,
and without the King's warrantry, had neither the
power to determine any thing within the country, nor
the authority to fet on foot negotiations out of the
kingdom, without the permiffion of its fovereign.
• Strickland feeing that the States-General (to whom he
had fent his letters of credence) returned him no mef-
fage, went one day into one of their ante-rooms, and
⚫ demanded audience. They fent him word by two
deputies, that his letter of credence not being yet
• tranflated out of English, the States defired him to con-
fider if it might not be proper for him to give in his
6 propofals in writing, that they might be tranflated at
the fame time: but he made anfwer, that he had or-
ders to deliver them by word of mouth, and that if
they delayed giving him audience that day, he would
take it as a refufal, and would confider what was pre-
per for him to do. This refolution obliged the States
to fend him a deputy of each Province, to whom he
laid open his commiffion, and left with them his pro-
pofals in writing; however he had no public audience,
notwithstanding the deputies of the province of Hol-
land afked it with as much warmth as himself.
•States-General came to fome refolutions upon his
memorial, and affured him they would always obferve
an exact neutrality between the King and the parlia-
ment. An expreffion that gives to understand, that
the States acknowledged that there were two parties
formed in England, and that, for particular reafons,

The

• (which

d

honourable to thofe who directed and those

་

who

(which cannot be unknown) they had more confide⚫ration for the one than the other. They gave fufficient teftimony thereof the fecond voyage the fame • Strickland made to the Hague, immediately after the death of the late King, which had not removed the difficulties of his admiffion. Doriflaus, his colleague," • had been murthered there; fo that Strickland, not thinking himself safe, made preffing inftances to be admitted, and difpatched The deputies of Holland feconded his inftances, and continually reprefented, that audience could not be refufed him without breaking the neutrality, which the States had promifed to preferve inviolable. But all these good offices were of no ufe, for the deputies of the fix other Provinces < declared, they could come to no refolution in an affair of this nature without the exprefs order of their principals, who did not explain themfelves upon the • matter infomuch that Strickland (who was in continual uneafinefs on the account of the accident which had happened to Dorilaus) seeing the obftinacy of the 'fix provinces, backed by the authority of the prince of Orange, was invincible, went back to England. 6 This proceeding of theirs was the more furprizing, because the States had an ambaffador with the fame parliament, whofe minifter they treated fo unworthily, ' and which not wanting the means to refent it, foon • revenged itself fo cruelly, that there was all the reafon in the world to repent of the little regard had been 'fhewn to a power, which made a great part of Europe (4) Embasa• tremble (k).'

dor and his Functions,

P. 7. Fol.

The parliament, to whom the temper and conduct of the Dutch were not unknown, determined, if pof- Lond. 1716. fible, to alter their difpofition, and bring them into an union with themfelves. For this end it was reported by the Lord Viscount Lifle from the council of ftate, as the opinion of that council, That as the ftate of af'fairs now ftands, a public minister be fent from the < par

S