CHAR.I. The declaration or remonftrance of the lords and commons in parliament affembled, May 19, 1642.

1642.

Rushworth, 66

T'God hath been abundantly manifefted fince the beIV. p. 691. ginning of this parliament, in great variety of protections "and bleffings, whereby he hath not only delivered us from "many wicked plots and defigns, which, if they had taken "effect, would have brought ruin and deftruction upon this "kingdom; but out of thofe attempts hath produced divers "evident and remarkable advantages to the furtherance of

HE infinite mercy and providence of the Almighty

thofe fervices, which we have been defirous to perform to "our fovereign lord the king, and to this church and ftate, "in providing for the public peace and prosperity of his "majefty, and all his realms, which in the prefence of the "fame all-feeing Deity, we proteft to have been, and still "to be, the only end of all our counfels and endeavours, "wherein we have refolved to continue freed and enlarged "from all private aims, perfonal refpects or paffions what"foever (1).

REMARK (1.). It may be prefumed, there were in both houses, many members who acted with fincerity, and believed, they really ferved the public in whatever they did against the king. But it is hard to conceive, how both houses, confifting of fo many members, who were ignorant of one another's inward fentiments, could call God to witnefs, that they acted only by just motives, free from paffion and private views.

"In which refolution we are nothing difcouraged, al"though the heads of the malignant party, disappointed "of that prey, the religion and liberty of this kingdom, "which they were ready to feize upon and devour before "the beginning of this parliament, have ftill perfifted, by "new practices, both of force and fubtilty, to recover the "fame again; for which purpose they have made feveral at"tempts for the bringing up of the army; they afterwards. "projected the falfe accufation of the lord Kimbolton and "the five members of the house of commons, which being "in itself of an odious nature, they yet fo far prevailed with "his majefty, as to procure him to take it upon himself; "but when the unchangeable duty and faithfulness of the "parliament could not be wrought upon by fuch a fact as "that, to withdraw any part of their reverence and obedi

ence from his majefty, they have, with much art and in"duftry, advised his majefty, to fuffer divers unjuft fcandals

and

and imputations upon the parliament, to be published in CHAR.I. "his name, whereby they might make it odious to the peo- 1642. "ple, and by their help to deftroy that which hath hitherto

been the only means of their own prefervation.

"For this purpose, they have drawn his majefty into the "northern parts, far from the parliament, that fo falfe ru"mours might have time to get credit, and the just defences "of the parliament find a more tedious, difficult, and difadvantageous accefs, after thofe falle imputations and flan ders had been firft rooted in the apprehenfion of his ma jesty, and his fubjects; which the more fpeedily to effect, they have caufed a prefs to be transported to York, from "whence feveral papers and writings of that kind are conveyed to all parts of the kingdom, without the authority "of the great feal, in an unusual and illegal manner, and "without the advice of his majefty's privy-council; from

the greater and better part whereof having withdrawn. himself, as well as from his great council of parliament, "he is thereby expofed to the wicked and unfaithful coun"fels of fuch as have made the wifdom and juftice of the "parliament dangerous to themselves; and this danger they "labour to prevent, by hiding their own guilt under the "name and shadow of the king, infufing into him their "own fears, and as much as in them lies, afperfing his royal "perfon and honour with their own infamy, from both "which it hath always been as much the care, as it is the "duty, of the parliament, to preferve his majefty, and fix "the guilt of all evil actions and counfels, upon those who "have been the authors of them.

"Amongst divers writings of this kind, we the lords and "commons in parliament, have taken into our confidera❝tion two printed papers; the first containing a declara❝tion, which they received from his majesty, in answer of "that which was prefented to his majefty from both houfes ❝of parliament at Newmarket, the 9th of March 1641. "The other, his majefty's anfwer to the petition of both "houses, prefented to his majefty at York, the 26th of "March 1642, both which are filled with harsh cenfures, "and caufelefs charges upon the parliament; concerning "which, we hold it neceffary to give fatisfaction to the "kingdom, seeing we find it very difficult to fatisfy his ma

jefty, whom, to our great grief, we have found to be fo "engaged to, and poffeffed by thofe mifapprehenfions, "which evil counfellors have wrought in him, that our "moft humble and faithful remonftrances have rather irri

❝tated

CHAR.I."tated and imbittered, than any thing allayed or mitigated 1642, "the sharp expreffions, which his majesty hath been pleased “to make in answer to them; for the manifeftation where" of, and of our own innocency, we defire that all his majefty's loving fubjects may take notice of thefe parti❝culars.

"We know no occafion given by us, which might move "his majesty to tell us, That in our declaration prefented "at Newmarket, there were fome expreffions different from "the usual language to princes.

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"Neither did we tell his majefty, either in words or in "effect, That if he did not join with us in an act, which "his majesty conceived might prove prejudicial and dange❝rous to himself and the whole kingdom, we could make "a law without him, and impofe it upon the people. That "which we defired was, That in regard of the imminent "danger of the kingdom, the militia, for the fecurity of his "majesty and his people, might be put under the command "of fuch noble and faithful perfons, as they had all cause to "confide in and fuch was the neceffity of this preferva❝tion, that we declare, That if his majesty should refuse to "join with us therein, the two houfes of parliament, being "the fupreme court, and highest council of the kingdom, 66 were enabled, by their own authority, to provide for the "repulfing of fuch imminent and evident danger, not by "any new law of their own making, as hath been untruly "fuggefted to his majefty, but by the moft ancient law of "this kingdom, even that which is fundamental and effen"tial to the constitution and fubfiftence of it.

"Although we never defired to encourage his majefty to "fuch replies, as might produce any conteftation betwixt "him and his parliament, of which we never found better "effect than lofs of time, and hindrance of the public af-"fairs; yet we have been far from telling him, of how lit"tle value his words would be with us, much less when "they are accompanied with actions of love and justice. "His majefty hath more reafon to find fault with those "wicked counsellors, who have fo often bereaved him of "the honour, and his people of the fruit, of many gracious "fpeeches which he made to them, fuch as thofe in the end "of the last parliament; That on the word of a king, and as "he was a gentleman, he would redress the grievances of his people, as well out of parliament as in it. Were the fearch❝ing the ftudies and chambers, yea, the pockets of fome, "both of the nobility and commons, the very next day;

"the

"the commitment of Mr. Bellafis, Sir John Hotham, and CHAR.I. "Mr. Crew; the continued oppreffions by fhip-money, coat 1642. "and conduct-money; with the manifold imprisonments, "and other vexations thereupon, and other ensuing viola"tions of the laws and liberties of the kingdom, (all which were the effects of evil counfel, and abundantly declared our general remonftrance of the ftate of the kingdom) "actions of love and justice, fuitable to fuch words as those? "As gracious was his majefty's fpeech in the beginning "of this parliament: That he was refolved to put himself "freely and clearly upon the love and affection of his English "fubjects. Whether his caufelefs complaints and jealoufy,

the unjuft imputations fo often caft upon his parliament, "his denial of their neceffary defence by the ordinance of "the militia, his dangerous abfenting himself from his "great council, like to produce fuch a mifchievous divifion "in the kingdom, have not been more fuitable to other "mens evil counfels, than to his own words, will eafily ap-' "pear to any indifferent judgment.

"Neither have his latter fpeeches been better ufed and "preferved by thefe evil and wicked counsellors. Could 66 any words be fuller of love and juftice, than thofe in his "answer to the meffage fent the houfe of commons, the 31st of December 1641? We do engage unto you folemnly, "on the word of a king, that the fecurity of all, and every one "of you, from violence, is, and ever shall be as much our care, "as the prefervation of us and our children. And could any "actions be fuller of injuftice and violence than that of the "attorney-general, in falfly accufing the fix members of "parliament, and the other proceedings thereupon, within "three or four days after that meffage? For the full view "whereof let the declaration made of thofe proceedings be "perufed; and by thofe inftances (we could add many "more) let all the world judge, who deferves to be taxed "with disvaluing his majefty's words, they, who have as "much as in them lies ftained and fullied them with fuch "foul counfels; or the parliament, who have ever mani"fested, with joy and delight, their humble thankfulness "for those gracious words and actions of love and justice "which have been conformable thereunto.

"The king is pleafed to difavow the having any fuch "evil council or counsellors, as are mentioned in our de"claration, to his knowledge; and we hold it our duty, "humbly to avow there are fuch, or else we must say, that "all the ill things done of late in his majefty's name, have

"been

CHAR.I." been done by himself, wherein we fhould neither follow 1642. "the direction of the law, nor the affection of our own

"hearts, which is, as much as may be, to clear his ma"jefty from all imputation of mif-government, and to lay "the fault upon his minifters; the falfe accufing of fix "members of parliament; the juftifying af mafter attorney "in that falfe accufation; the violent coming to the house "of commons; the denial of the militia; the fharp meffa"ges to both houfes, contrary to the customs of former "kings; the long and remote absence of his majefty from "parliament; the heavy and wrongful taxes upon both "houses; the cherishing and countenancing a discontented

party in the kingdom against them: thefe certainly are "the fruits of very ill counfel, apt to put the kingdom in"to a combuftion, to hinder the fupplies of Ireland, and "to countenance the proceedings and pretenfions of the

rebels there; and the authors of thofe evil counfels, we "conceive, muft needs be known to his majefty. And we "hope our labouring with his majefty to have thefe difco

vered and brought to a juft cenfure, will not so much "wound his honour, in the opinion of his good fubjects, "as his labouring to preferve and conceal them.

"And whereas his majefty faith, he could with that his "own immediate actions, which he avows on his own ho"nour, might not be fo roughly cenfured under that comc mon stile of evil counfellors: we could alfo heartily wish, "that we had not cause to make that ftile fo common: but "how often and undutiful foever these wicked counsellors "fix their dishonour upon the king, by making his majesty "the author of those evil actions, which are the effects of "their own evil counfels, we his majefty's loyal and duti"ful fubjects can ufe no other ftile, according to that "maxim in the law, The king can do no wrong; but if any "ill be committed in matter of ftate, the council; if in "matter of juftice, the judges muft anfwer for it.

"We lay no charge upon his majefty, which fhould put "him upon that apology, concerning his faithful and zea"lous affection of the proteftant profession: neither doth "his majesty endeavour to clear thofe in greatest authority "about him, by whom (we fay) that defign hath been po"tently carried on for divers years; and we rather wish, "that the mercies of heaven, than the judgments, may "be manifefted upon them; but that there hath been fuch, "there are so plentiful and frequent evidences, that we be "lieve there is none, either proteftant or papift, who hath

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