vernor of the king. ed up. ing to keep the place for the parliament, held it indeed for CHAR. I. the king. He received money from both fides, to reinforce 1642. the garrifon and raife new works, the parliament not miftrufting him, and the king relying on his word. At laft, Goring goabout the time the king was before Hull, Goring openly Portsmouth declared for him. This happened in the beginning of Au- declares for guft, but three weeks after the parliament had iffued out Rushworth, orders for levying an army, to be commanded by Robert IV. p. 683. Devereux earl of Effex . This army not being yet ready, Clarendon, T. I. p.551. both houfes, though aftonished at Goring's defection, were not however difcouraged. As it was of the utmost import- He is blockance to recover this place, the ftrongeft in the kingdom," before the king fhould be able to relieve it, they haftily difpatched a committee, whom they impowered to affemble the militia of the neighbouring counties to block up Portfmouth by land, while the earl of Warwick, by their order, blocked it up by fea. Happily for the parliament, Goring, tho' he had received from them three thousand pounds, and the like fum from the king, had neglected to lay in the neceffary provifions for a fiege, and particularly corn and falt; fo that in the very beginning of the blockade, he perceived he could not refift long. This made him refolve to capitulate. He furrendered the place to the committee, only for He capituliberty to retire into Holland, and for his officers to repair lates. to the king. manifefto. tion to at During the blockade of Portsmouth, the king not doubt. The king's ing but Goring was in condition to defend that place, Ruthworth, publifhed at laft a declaration that had long been prepared, IV. p. 765. wherein he fums up all the complaints he had already made against both houfes. As the reader is fufficiently informed, there is no occafion to infert this new declaration. Only it must be remarked, that the king declared both houfes guilty of high-treafon, and forbid all his fubjects to obey them. At the fame time was alfo published a proclama- Proclamation, requiring all men who could bear arms, to repair to tend the him by the 25th of Auguft at Nottingham, where he in- royal standtended to fet up his royal ftandard, which all good fubjects ard. were obliged to attend. The fetting up of the royal stand- Clarendon, ard, was the antient manner of making known to the peo- T. I. p. 553. ple the king's urgent occafion for their aid, and the place to which they were to repair to affift him. The king could not forbear thinking, he was ftill to be confidered as an ordinary y And William Ruffel earl of Bedford, was, on July 14, appointed geVOL. X. neral of the horse. Rufhworth, T. G DorM Id. p. 774. CHAR. I. dinary king, and to have the fame respect and obedience 1642. paid to him, as if he had never given his people any cause The king gives out new com of complaint. He imagined, that the acts of grace he had paffed in this parliament, and his promises to behave better for the future, had effaced all the ill impreffions made by his past government upon his fubjects; and that, though there was a powerful party against him in the parliament, it was otherwise among the people. He thought therefore, the fetting up his ftandard would make a strong impreffion on the people, and induce them to appear in arms at Nottingham. But the prejudices were too deeply rooted in the minds of most of the fubjects, for a bare ceremony to remove them. parts. Whilft the day appointed for the setting up of the standard was expected, the king endeavoured to augment the nummiffions. ber of his forces. He gave out fresh commiffions, and fent Rushworth, the earl of Hertford and fome other lords and gentlemen to IV. p. 685. Clarendon, manage his concerns, and raise troops in the western T. I. p. 556. For himself, he departed from York fome days before the 25th of Auguft, and in his way took Lincoln, from whence Lincoln, and arrives he drew the arms of the trained-bands for his troops; after at Notting- which he came to Nottingham, and the next day reviewed his horse. He takes ham, Coventry gates are fhut against him. Aug. 20. Ibid. Rushworth, The review was no fooner ended, but he was informed that two regiments of foot were marching to Coventry by the earl of Effex's orders. Whereupon he hafted thither with his cavalry, confifting of feven or eight hundred horse, in hopes of preventing the parliament's forces, and poffefIV. p. 783. fing himfelf of that city. Accordingly he arrived there the day before the two regiments: but thé mayor of the city, though without a garrison, fhut the gates against him, and fired upon his men. He was very fenfibly touched with this indignity; but as there was no remedy, he was forced to return to Nottingham, leaving the command of his cavalry to commiffary-general Wilmot. Wilmot The next day, his horse being upon a plain of five or lofes an op- fix miles extent, where nothing incumbered them, had a portunity of defeating a clear view of a body of twelve hundred of the enemies body of the foot, guarded only by one troop of horse. Wilmot, it parliament's feemed, could not have wifhed for a fairer opportunity to Clarendon, attack with advantage this body of foot, who had nothing T.I.p.557. to fecure them. But, for what reafon it is not known, forces. instead of attacking the enemies, he thought only of avoiding them, and even retreated with fome precipitation. This was a bad omen to a war just commenced. At fets his ham. up Is blown Notting At laft, on the 25th of Auguft, the king caused his CHAR. I. ftandard to be erected on a turret of Nottingham caftle, 1642. having with him only fome unarmed trained-bands. His proclamation had produced fo little effect, that few were The king come to attend the royal ftandard. Nay, it happened, the standard at very day the fandard was erected, to grow fo tempestuous, Nottingthat it was blown down, and could not be fixed again in a Clarendon, day or two. This was looked upon by many as a fatal Ibid. prefage of the war. The king had imagined, that the fet- Rushworth, ting up of his ftandard would draw great numbers of people IV. p. 783. to Nottingham, who would come and offer him their fervice: down. but he was very much difappointed. He had with him but Condition of three hundred foot, and fome trained-bands drawn together the king at by Sir John Digby fheriff of the county. His cavalry con- ham. fifted only of eight hundred he.fe, and his artillery was ftill Clarendon, at York, from whence it was difficult to bring it, many &c. things being yet wanted to prepare and form it for marching, and befide there were no foot to guard it. Neverthelefs, as he had given out many commiffions, and ordered his forces to repair to Nottingham, he expected them in that town, though not without danger, the parliament having at Coventry five thousand foot, and fifteen hundred horfe. Thus the king was in a very melancholy state before the war was well begun. He had appointed Robert Bartu earl of Lindfey for general, but had yet no army. T. May. The princes Rupert and Maurice his nephews, brothers of the elector Palatine, being come to offer him their fervice in the beginning of September, he made prince Rupert general of his horfe, quartered at Leicester, whither the prince went and took upon him the command. T. II. p. 1, great dan The king, it is certain, was in extreme danger at Not-He is in tingham. The town was not in condition to make a long ger. refiftance, and the king having scarce any forces, if the par- Clarendon, liament's troops, which were within twenty miles of the T. II. p. 5. place, had marched directly to him, he must have been forced to retire with difhonour to York, unless he would have hazarded his being made prifoner. All those about him faw the danger, it being fo evident; but it was not eafy to avoid it without quitting Nottingham, which could not but be very prejudicial to him. For this reafon it was His cour c ́! moved in the council, to fend a meffage to both houses, with some overture to incline them to a treaty. The intent of this propofition was doubtlefs to intimate to the king, G 2 that z Rushworth fays, it was erected in the open field, on the back-fide of the cafle wall, T. IV. p. 783. advife hun to propofe a peace. CHAR. I. that his affairs were in fuch a fituation, that peace alone · 1642. could free him from the perplexity and danger he was expofed to. But the mover of this advice could hardly think, that a bare offer of peace was able to effect it, after what had paffed before the rupture. Very likely therefore, his defign was that, in propofing a peace, fomething more should be offered, than what had been offered before. The king eafily perceived the intimation, and was fo offended at it, that he broke up the council, that it might not be no longer urged. The king refufes. Clarendon, T. II. p. 5. He is advi fed to propofe a peace upon the its being re jected. Ibid. However, the next day, the fame motion was renewed, but under a different view. As it was doubtless perceived, that what had offended the king, was the plain meaning of likelihood of propofing a peace, namely, that his majesty must depart from fome of his pretenfions, care was taken to remove this odious meaning, and it was advised only to fend a message to both houfes, in order to gain time. The king still oppofed it, alledging, to offer peace in fuch a juncture, would be difcovering his weaknefs: That his enemies would reject the offer with infolence, and nothing but difhonour would thereby reflect on himfelf. But it was represented to Reafons to him, that fuch a meffage might do good, but could do no harm: That indeed, both houfes, very likely, would reject the offer, but they would thereby render themselves odious to the people, who were defirous of peace, and who would be the more inclined to ferve his majefty, for his endeavours to procure it: That if the overture was accepted, the king would have an opportunity of demonftrating, that the war, on his part, was purely defenfive: In fhort, that the bare offer of peace would of course retard the preparations of the parliament, because mens minds would be in fufpenfe, whilft the king's levies might be continued by virtue of the commiffions already fent out. back the advice. He yields to it. The king yielded to these reasons, because the point was not to offer any new conditions, but only to lay a fnare for the parliament, and retard their preparations. This was the fole motive of the meffage, wherein, as we shall fee prefently, the king propofed nothing new, and which, however, he reprefented afterwards as an evident fign of his fincere defire of peace. But though fome pretend, that his majefty's meffage, and the parliament's refufal, contributed very much to facilitate the king's levies, and undeceive the people of their good opinion of the intentions of both houses, I cannot believe that fuch weak reasons were able to produce fo great effects. It is true, if by the people bé meant meant only those who were devoted to the king, is is not CHAR. I. unlikely, that the refufal of peace might render the parlia- 1642. ment odious to them, and promote their taking up arms for Remark on the king. But if by the people, be understood the parlia- the foregoing ment's party, or rather all the people in general and with- reafons. out diftinction, it is not eafy to conceive, how the refufal of a bare propofition, without any thing new in it, could produce fuch an effect. The people, no doubt, wished for peace rather than war. But they would have a folid peace, fupported by other foundations than the king's bare word, and not a peace in general, fuch as his majesty propofed. They had already rejected fuch a peace; and upon this fenfe of the nation it was, that the parliament's whole authority was founded. This was no new thing: it had been long difputed without coming to any conclufion. How therefore could the bare propofal of a treaty, without any particular offer, incline the people fo ftrongly to the king, and render the parliament more odious, if it was rejected? And yet, upon this foundation the king conftantly built, from the beginning of the war, as will appear in the sequel. The fecond reason was wholly founded on the prejudices of the privy-counsellors. For, fuppofing the negotiation had been entered into, by what fresh evidence would the king have been able to demonftrate, that the war was only defenfive on his part, fince he had already alledged all that could be faid on that fubject, and fince his papers were public? The third reason was of no greater force. For if the bare overture of a treaty was capable of keeping people in fufpence, and retarding the parliament's levies, it might alfo have the fame effect with regard to the king's. But the counsellors fuppofed, his majesty's levies would be continued with vigour, whilft the parliament's preparations would be interrupted That is to fay, the parliament's friends would fall into the fnare, whilft care fhould be taken privately to warn the king's to avoid it. Nothing more clearly fhows, with what spirit they adviled the king to fend this meffage to the parliament. G 3 a It is judiciously obferved by a modern author, That thofe on whom the parliament's representations prevailed, were generally people of the midland counties, and the traders in the fouthern parts of the kingdom, who had fmarted moft by the arbitrary acts of power, fach as feizure of goods, profecutions for fhip-money, loans, tunnage, and poundage, illegal imprifon Be ment, &c. Thofe on whom the king's |