Claren

don's juft

He refolved not to ftretch the prerogative be- 1660 yond what it was before the wars, and would neither fet aside the Petition of Right, nor endeavour to raise the Courts of the Star Chamber or the and moHigh Commiffion again, which could have been derate noeafily done, if he had fet about it: Nor did he tions. think fit to move for the repeal of the act for triennial Parliaments, till other matters were well fettled. He took care indeed to have all the things that were extorted by the long Parliament from King Charles I. to be repealed. And fince the difpute of the power of the Militia was the most important, and the most infifted on, he was very earnest to have that clearly determined for the future. But as to all the acts relating to property, or the juft limitation of the prerogative, fuch as the matter of the fhip-money, the tonnage and poundage, and the Habeas Corpus act, he did not touch on thefe. And as for the standing revenue, 1200000l. a year was all that was asked And, tho' it was much more than any of our Kings had formerly, yet it was readily granted. This was to answer all the ordinary expence of the government. It was believed, that if two millions had been asked, he could have carried it. But he had no mind to put the King out of the neceffity of having recourfe to his Parliament. The King came afterwards to believe, that he could have raised both his authority and revenue much higher, but that he had no mind to carry it farther, or to truft him too much. Whether all these things could have been got at that time, or not, is above my conjecture. But this I know, that all the Earl of Clarendon's enemies after his fall faid, these things had been eafily obtained, if he had taken any pains in the matter, but that he himself had no mind to it: And they infused this into the King, fo that he believed it, and hated him mortally on that account. And in his difficulties afterwards he faid often, all thofe things might

1660 have been prevented, if the Earl of Clarendon had been true to him.

Venner's fury.

The King had not been many days at Whitehall, when one Venner, a violent fifth-monarchy man, who thought it was not enough to believe that Chrift was to reign on earth, and to put the faints in the poffeffion of the Kingdom, (an opinion that they were all unspeakably fond of,) but added to this, that the faints were to take the Kingdom themfelves. He gathered fome of the moft furious of the party to a meeting in Coleman ftreet. There they concerted the day and the manner of their rifing to fet Chrift on his Throne, as they called it. But withal they meant to manage the government in his name; and were fo formal, that they had prepared standards and colours with their devices on them, and furnished themselves with very good arms. But when the day came, there was but a finall appearance, not exceeding twenty. However they refolved to venture out into the streets, and cry out, No King but Chrift. Some of them feemed perfuaded that Chrift would come down, and head them. They fcoured the streets before them, and made a great progrefs. Some were afraid, and all were amazed at this piece of extravagance. They killed a great many, but were at last mastered by numbers: And were all either killed, or taken and executed. Upon this fome troops of guards were raised. And there was a great talk of a defign, as foon as the Army was disbanded, to raife a force that fhould be fo chofen and modelled that the King might depend upon it; and that it fhould be fo confiderable, that there might be no reason to apprehend new tumults any more. The Earl of Southampton looked on a while: And, when he faw how this defign feemed to be entertained and magnified, he entered into a very free expoftulation with the Earl of Clarendon about it. He faid, they had felt the effects of a military government, tho'

fober

fober and religious, in Cromwell's army: He be- 1660. lieved vitious and diffolute troops would be much worfe: The King would grow fond of them: And they would quickly become infolent and ungovernable: And then fuch men as he was must be only inftruments to ferve their ends. He faid, he would not look on, and fee the ruin of his country begun, and be filent: A white staff fhould not bribe him. The Earl of Clarendon was perfuaded he was in the right, and promised he would divert the King from any other force, than what might be decent to make a fhew with, and what might ferve to difperfe unruly multitudes. The Earl of Southampton faid, if it went no farther he could bear it; but it would not be eafy to fix fuch a number, as would please our Princes, and not give jealoufy. The Earl of Clarendon perfuaded the King, that it was neces fary for him to carry himself with great caution, till the old Army fhould be disbanded: For, if an ill humour got among them, they knew both their courage and their principles, which the prefent times had for a while a little fuppreffed: Yet upon any juft jealousy there might be great cause to fear new and more violent diforders. By these means the King was fo wrought on, that there was no great occafion given for jealoufy. The Army was to be disbanded, but in fuch a manner, with fo much refpect, and fo exact an account of arrears, and fuch gratuities, that it looked rather to be the difmiffing them to the next opportunity, and a referving them till there fhould be occafion for their fervice, than a breaking of them. They were certainly the braveft, the best difciplined, and the fobereft Army that had been known in these latter ages: Every foldier was able to do the functions of an officer. The Court was in great quiet, when they got rid of fuch a burden, as lay on them from the fear of fuch a body of men. The guards, and the new troops that were raised, were VOL. I.

made

1660. made up of fuch of the Army as Monk recommended, and anfwered for. And with that his great interest at Court came to a ftand. He was little confidered afterwards.

The trial

In one thing the temper of the nation appeared and exe- to be contrary to fevere proceedings: For, tho' cution of the Regicides were at that time odious beyond all the Regi- expreffion, and the trials and executions of the

cides.

first that fuffered were run to by vaft crouds, and
all people feemed pleased with the fight, yet the
odiousness of the crime grew at last to be so much
flatten'd by the frequent executions, and by moft
of those who fuffered, dying with much firmness
and fhew of piety, juftifying all they had done,
not without a feeming joy for their fuffering on
that account, that the King was advised not to
-proceed farther, at leaft not to have the fcene fo
near the Court as Charing-crofs. It was indeed
remarkable that Peters, a fort of an enthusiastical
buffoon preacher, tho' a very vitious man, who
had been of great ufe to Cromwell, and had been
outragious in preffing the King's death with the
cruelty and rudeness of an Inquifitor, was the
man of them all that was the most funk in his
fpirit, and could not in any fort bear his punishment.
He had neither the honefty to repent of it, nor
the ftrength of mind to fuffer for it as all the reft
of them did. He was obferved all the while to
be drinking fome cordial liquors to keep him
from fainting. Harrifon was the firft that fuffer-
ed. He was a fierce and bloody enthusiast.
it was believed, that while the army was in doubt,
whether it was fitter to kill the King privately, or
to bring him to an open trial, that he offered, if
a private way was fettled on, to be the man that
fhould do it. So he was begun with. But, how-
⚫ever reasonable this might be in itself, it had a
very ill effect: For he was a man of great heat
and refolution, fixed in his principles, and fo per-
fuaded of them, that he never looked after any

And

interefts

interefts of his own, but had oppofed Cromwell 1660. when he fet up for himself. He went thro' all the indignities and severities of his execution, in which the letter of the law in cafes of treafon was punctually obferved, with a calmnefs, or rather a chearfulness, that aftonifhed the fpectators. He spoke very pofitively, that what they had done was the cause and work of God, which he was confident God would own and raife up again, how much foever it fuffered at that time. Upon this a report was fpread, and generally believed, that he faid, he himself should rife again: Tho' the party denied that, and reported the words as I have fet them down. One perfon efcaped, as was reported, merely by his vices: Henry Martin, who had been a most violent enemy to Monarchy. But all that he moved for, was upon Roman or Greek principles. He never entered into matters of Religion, but on defign to laugh both at them and all morality; for he was both an impious and vitious man. And now in his imprisonment he deliver'd himself up to vice and blafphemy. It was faid, that this helped him to fo many friends, that upon that very account he was fpared. John Goodwin and Milton did alfo efcape all cenfure, to the furprize of all people. Goodwin had so often not only juftified, but magnified the putting the King to death, both in his fermons and books, that few thought he could have been either forgot or excufed; for Peters and he were the only preachers that spoke of it in that ftrain. But Goodwin had been fo zealous an Arminian, and had fown such divifion among all the fectaries upon these heads, that it was faid this procured him friends. Upon what account foever it was, he was not cenfured. Milton had appeared fo boldly, tho' with much wit and great purity and elegancy of style, against Salmafius and others, upon that argument of putting the King to death, and had difcovered fuch violence against the late King and all the Royal family, and against Monarchy, that it was thought a ftrange

Q2