hierarchy), superstition, heresy, schism, profaneness, and whatsoever shall be found to be contrary to sound doctrine and the power of godliness, lest we partake in other men's sins, and thereby be in danger to receive their plagues; and that the Lord may be one and his name one in the three kingdoms.

"3. We shall, with the same sincerity, reality, and constancy, in our several vocations, endeavour with our estates and lives mutually to preserve the rights and privileges of the parliaments and the liberties of the kingdoms, and to preserve and defend the king's majesty's person and authority, in the preservation and defence of the true religion and liberties of the kingdoms, that the world may bear witness with our consciences of our loyalty, and that we have no thoughts or intentions to diminish his majesty's just power and greatness.

4. We shall also with all faithfulness endeavour the discovery of all such as have been or shall be incendiaries, malignants, or evil instruments, by hindering the reformation of religion, dividing the king from his people, or one of the kingdoms from another, or making any faction or parties amongst the people, contrary to the league and covenant, that they may be brought to public trial, and receive condign punishment, as the degree of their offences shall require or deserve, or the supreme judicatories of both kingdoms respectively, or others having power from them for that effect, shall judge convenient.

"5. And whereas the happiness of a blessed peace between those kingdoms, denied in former times to our progenitors, is by the good providence of God granted unto us, and hath been lately concluded and settled by both parliaments; we shall each one of us, according to our places and interest, endeavour that they may remain conjoined in a firm peace and union to all posterity, and that justice may be done upon the wilful opposers thereof, in manner expressed in the precedent articles.

"6. We shall also, according to our places and callings, in this common cause of religion, liberty, and peace of the kingdom, assist and defend all those that enter into this league and covenant, in the maintaining and pursuing thereof, and shall not suffer ourselves, directly or indirectly, by whatsoever combination, persuasion, or terror, to be divided and withdrawn from this blessed union and conjunction, whether to make!

defection to the contrary part, or give ourselves to a detestable indifferency or neutrality in this cause, which so much concerneth the glory of God, the good of the kingdoms, and the honour of the king; but shall all the days of our lives zealously and constantly continue therein, against all opposition, and promote the same according to our power, against all lets and impediments whatsoever; and what we are not able ourselves to suppress or overcome, we shall reveal and make known, that it may be timely prevented or removed; all which we shall do as in the sight of God.

"And because these kingdoms are guilty of many sins and provocations against God and his son Jesus Christ, as is too manifest by our present distresses and dangers, the fruits thereof; we profess and declare, before God and the world, our unfeigned desire to be humbled for our own sins, and for the sins of these kingdoms; especially, that we have not as we ought valued the inestimable benefit of the gospel; that we have not laboured for the purity and power thereof; that we have not endeavoured to receive Christ in our hearts, nor to walk worthy of him in our lives; which are the causes of other sins and transgressions, so much abounding amongst us; and our true and unfeigned purpose, desire, and endeavour, for ourselves and all others under our power and charge, both in public and in private, in all duties we owe to God and man, to amend our lives, and each one to go before another in the example of a real reformation, that the Lord may turn away his wrath and heavy indignation, and establish these churches and kingdoms in truth and peace. And this covenant we make in the presence of Almighty God, the teacher of all hearts, with a true intention to perform the same, as we shall answer at that great day, when the secrets of all hearts shall be disclosed; most humbly beseeching the Lord to strengthen us by his holy spirit for this end, and to bless our desires and proceedings with such success as may be a deliverance and safety to his people, ar encouragement to the christian churches groaning under or in danger of the yoke of anti-christian tyranny, to join in the same or like association and covenant, to the glory of God, the enlargement of the kingdom of Jesus Christ, and the peace and tranquillity of christian kingdoms and commonwealths."

It was not till after many meetings of

the commissioners that the form of this ment of England "against the papists and solemn league and covenant was agreed prelatical army." "First," they said, "the upon. The first draft, as drawn up by controversies now in England being betwixt Henderson, was strictly and exclusively the Lord Jesus and antichrist with his folpresbyterian in its character, and displayed lowers, if we would not come under the the intolerance which the presbyterians curse of Meroz, we should come out upon were too much inclined to show towards so clear a call from the representative body all other sects. Sir Harry Vane and Nye, of England to the representative body of on the contrary, who, as independents, Scotland, and help the Lord against the were actuated by a more tolerant spirit, urged that it should be so worded as to comprehend the other divisions or sects of the reformed church, with the abolition only of prelacy. When, however, the document was at length perfected, and delivered to the general assembly, it was received with the most extraordinary marks of approval and satisfaction, and, having been agreed to immediately, was carried in the afternoon of the same day to the convention of the estates, where it met with a similar reception. A select committee, consisting of lord Maitland, Mr. Henderson, and Mr. Gillespie, was immediately appointed to carry the covenant to the English parliament, which accepted it with some very slight alterations, and by an order of the commons, dated the 21st of September, 1643, it was ordered to be printed and published. Next day it was appointed to be taken publicly, in the church of St. Margaret, Westminster, by the members of the house of commons and the assembly of divines. The ceremony commenced with prayers by Mr. John White; Mr. Nye, who had returned from Scotland, then delivered an exhortation; which was followed by prayers by Dr. George. Henderson, as one of the Scottish commissioners, also addressed the congregation. The covenant was then read, and notice was given that each person should immediately, by swearing thereunto, worship the great name of God, and testify so much outwardly by lifting up his hands. When this had been done, they all proceeded into the chancel, and there subscribed their names to a roll of parchment on which the covenant was fairly written. An exhortation was drawn up by the assembly of divines, and published for distribution throughout the kingdom, along with which the covenant was tendered, to be taken generally by the people of England.

The Scottish leaders now acted with decision. A declaration was drawn up and published by the general assembly, setting forth their reasons for assisting the parlia

mighty; being assured that the help that we give to his kirk, in such an exigent, is given to himself, and shall not want a blessed reward." They then proceeded to rehearse various former leagues between the two kingdoms for the defence of the reformed religion, and acts of kindness which they had received from England when their kirk was in danger. The present, they said, was a common danger eminent to both kirks and kingdoms; if either of the two kirks or kingdoms were ruined, the other could not long subsist; for they had the same friends and foes, and the same cause, and must run the same hazard; and, in the sequel, the same advantage would redound to both by their common success. "If," said they, "we forsake England, we forsake our dearest friends, who can best help us in case we be reduced to the like straits hereafter by the common adversary; for the distance and distressed estates of other protestant kirks make them unable to help us in this kind, and if we denude ourselves of the support of England, by suffering them to sink, we do not only betray their safety but our own." They urged that the permanence of their peace with England depended upon their supporting the parliament; and they added, that if they deserted their friends in England, deliverance would come from elsewhere in so just a cause, and they would have lost their title to ask for help in their own adversities. "The only means," they said, "for the procuring of a happy agreement betwixt the king and the parliament, is by putting up of the sword, and saving christian blood from being shed, suppressing of papists, and establishing religion in his dominions; for humble supplications and remonstrances reached out with naked hands will not prevail with our adversaries, who have environed our king, and closed his ears to the cry of his subjects. But it will be objected, seeing our religion and liberties are established, according to our own desires, by act of assembly and parliament with his majesty's consent, and seeing his majesty's declaration to the whole kingdom,

and letters to every nobleman and borough, to his own safe conduct. 3. If the parliato give assurance for preservation of the ment of England that now is be destroyed, same without altering, we have no interest who shall undertake for our safety? As the nor hazard, however business go in England; king's declarations of his own intentions but should keep ourselves in peace and quiet cannot exceed his person, nor secure us at to answer. 1. In all the proceedings of this the hands of his successors, so we may perbusiness we have from time to time declared, ceive in the late discovery of the plots of that neither verbal promises nor fair declara- the Scots, English, and Irish papists, that tions for maintaining religion and liberty these declarations can be no sufficient secucould secure us, because we have so often rity against the surprising of papists and mafound facta verbis contraria (words con- lignants, if they be permitted to carry arms trary to deeds), and that by the power and within any of the kingdoms." means of our adversaries; as, for example, the treaty at Dunce, where we for his majesty's honour confided to verbal gracious expressions of his majesty's, for conditions of the treaty; yet afterwards they were denied, and burnt by the hands of the hangman, and all reversed that then was condescended on for our religion and liberty, and an army levied against us. It was the counsel of monsieur de Thou to the queenregent at St. Andrews for reversing our first reformation, to grant our predecessors in fair promises and declarations all that they craved, and when thereby they should be divided, to interpret these by herself, and to take order with the heads of the opponers; and this policy was used by the king of France for the subverting of the protestant religion; for he fed the one half of them with fair promises of freedoms and privileges, until he had cut off the other half. 2. As we have found by former experience, that the establishment of our first reformation by an act of assembly and parliament, could not secure us from the violent pressing of innovations against both; and in the new remonstrance, 1610, we have fully expressed, that no assembly or parliament, no rotten cable nor slipping anchor of articles, whereunto we had fastened our hopes, can be any road, or harbour of safety for us, so long as our enemies sit at the helm, and govern the king's council and courses, and who make the king's majesty, by extra-judicial declarations, to enervate and evacuate all that is done in assembly and parliament, and to interpret aws contrary to the advice of judicators of kirk and state. And of late one mediation betwixt him and his parliament was rejected, contrary to the advice and judgment of commissioners of the peace, the counsel and hard answer to the commissioners of the kirk, that it was contrary to any article of the treaty and the act of the general assembly, and his stopping of our commissioner to go to London, contrary

In the spirit of these articles, on the 18th of August, the very day that the draft of the league and covenant was sent to England, there came forth a solemn call to the people of Scotland to take up arms in the cause; and so anxious were people to cling to constitutional forms, that the proclamation was issued in the name of the king, who was made to address his Scottish subjects in the following singular language:-"Charles, by the grace of God, king of Great Britain, France, and Ireland, defender of the faith, to our lovits, messengers, or sheriffs in that part conjunctly and severally specially constitute, greeting. Forasmeickle as the estates of the kingdom of Scotland presently convened, taking into their most serious consideration the great and imminent danger of the true protestant reformed religion and of the peace of their own kingdoms from malignants and their adherents, have, after mature deliberation, thought expedient to enter into a solemn and mutual covenant with our brethren of the kingdom of England, for the defence of the true protestant reformed religion in the kirk of Scotland, and the reformation of religion in the kirk of England according to the word of God and the example of the best reformed kirks, and such as may bring the kirk of God in both kingdoms to the nearest conjunction and uniformity in religion and church government; and siclike to preserve and defend the rights and privileges of our parliaments and liberties of our kingdoms respective; and to preserve and defend our person and authority, in the preservation of the said true religion and liberties of our said kingdons; and to observe the articles of the late treaty and peace betwixt the two nations; and to assist and defend all that shall enter into this covenant, in the maintaining and pursuing thereof, as the same more fully purports. Which as it will be a comfort and encouragement to all christians who fear God and love true religion, to all

good loyal subjects who truly honour us, as enemies to religion, us, and our kingand to all true patriots who tender the doms, and their whole goods to be confisiberty of their country; so doubtless it will cate to the use of the public. Given under exasperate and enrage the said papists, pre- our signet at Edinburgh, the 18th of lates, and malignants, and their adherents, August, and of cur reign the nineteenth to practise and execute all the mischief and year, 1643." cruelty they can against kirk and kingdom, as they have done in our kingdoms of England and Ireland. For preventing thereof, the estates of this our kingdom (according to the practice of our council, convention of our estates, and of our parliaments in former times of the like exigence) have resolved to put this our said kingdom with all possible speed in a present posture of defence. And for the better safety and security thereof, have statute and ordained, and hereby statutes and ordains, that immediately after publication hereof, all the feusible persons within this our kingdom of Scotland, betwixt sixty and sixteen years of age, of whatsoever quality, rank, or degree, shall provide themselves with forty days' provision, and with ammunition, arms, and other warlike provision of all sorts, in the most substantial manner, for horse and foot, with tents, and all other furnishing requisite. And that the horsemen be armed with pistols, broad-swords, and steel caps; and where these arms cannot be had, that they provide jacks, or secrets, lances, and steel bonnets. And that the footmen be armed with musket and sword, or pike and sword; and where these cannot be had, that they be furnished with halberts, Lochaber-axes, or Jeddart staves, and swords. Our will is therefore, and we charge you straightly and command, that incontinent these our letters seen, you pass to the market-cross at Edinburgh and several boroughs of this our kingdom and parish kirks thereof, and there by open proclamation make publication hereof, wherethrough none pretend ignorance of the same. And that you command and charge all and sundry our subjects foresaid, being fensible persons betwixt sixty and sixteen years, to provide themselves in manner fore said, and to be in readiness to make their rendezvous thus armed, at the places to be appointed by our said estates or committees having power from them, within eight-andforty hours after they shall be lawfully warned from them to that effect, that as they will testify their affections to the true protestant religion, the liberties of our kingdoms, our own honour, and the peace and safety of that their native country; and under the pain to be esteemed and punished

The king was highly indignant at the use made of his name in this proclamation, and no sooner had he obtained a sight of it, than he wrote a reproachful letter to the privy council, declaring his utter dislike and disallowance of it, and forbidding all his subjects to obey it, or any other papers that should be put forth in his name without his immediate warrant. Nor was his indignation less against the solemn league and covenant, which was now circulated and enforced by the orders of the English parliament. On the 9th of October, a proclamation appeared in the king's name, stating that,— "Whereas there is a printed paper, entitled, 'A solemn league and covenant for reformation and defence of religion, the honour and happiness of the king, and the peace and safety of the three kingdoms of England, Scotland, and Ireland; pretended to be ordered by the commons in parliament on the 21st of September last to be printed and published: which covenant, though it seems to make specious expressions of piety and religion, is in truth nothing else but a traitorous and seditious combination against us and the established religion and laws of this kingdom, in pursuance of a traitorous design and endeavour to bring in foreign force to invade this kingdom. We do therefore straightly charge and command all our loving subjects, of what degree or quality soever, upon their allegiance, that they presume not to take the said seditious and traitorous covenant. And we do likewise hereby forbid and inhibit all our subjects to impose, administer, or tender the said covenant, as they and every of them will answer the contrary at their utmost and extremest perils."

The covenanters, on their part, were urged forward by fear for their own personal safety. Another plot had already been laid for the massacre of their chiefs. It was to have been carried into effect on occasion of the funeral of the countess of Roxburgh, at which all the chiefs of the high royalist party were to assemble in arms, and surprise and destroy the chiefs of the presbyterian party. For some reason or other, either from want of concert or distrust, few came to the place of rendezvous, and as their opponents were on their guard, the plot failed.

Hamilton, Roxburgh, and the other lords of the king's party, who knew of the plot, if they were not participators, applied to the marquis of Newcastle, who commanded for the king in the northern counties of England, for arms and ammunition to be sent to their friends in Scotland, and urging him to seize upon Berwick. But he replied that he had no arms or ammunition to spare, and that to garrison Berwick would be a breach of the treaty of Scotland, not then advisable. To secure it against such a design in future, the English parliament sent some ships to Berwick in September, and, with the concurrence of the Scots, established a garrison there.

stipulated by this treaty,-"That no cessation, nor any pacification or agreement for peace whatsoever, shall be made by either kingdom, or the armies of either kingdom, without the mutual advice and consent of both kingdoms, or their committees in that behalf appointed, who are to have full power for the same, in case the houses of the parliament of England, or the parliament or convention of estates of Scotland, shall not sit. That the public faith of the kingdom of Scotland shall be given to their brethren of England, that neither their entrance into nor their continuance in the kingdom of England shall be made use of to any other Irritated by all these plots and intrigues, ends than are expressed in the covenant the Scottish rulers determined to enforce and in the articles of this treaty; and that the taking of the covenant more rigorously, all matters of difference that shall happen and on the 22nd of October, an act appeared, to arise between the subjects of the two declaring all persons who refused to take the nations, shall be resolved and determined by covenant enemies to religion, the king's the mutual advice and consent of both honour, and the peace of the three kingdoms, kingdoms, or by such committees as for this and denounced against them the punishment purpose shall be by them appointed, with of confiscation and other extreme penalties. the same power as in the precedent article. The lords of the council were summoned to That in the same manner, and upon the attend on the 2nd day of November, for the same conditions, as the kingdom of Scotland purpose of subscribing and taking the oath; is now willing to aid and assist their brethren and Hamilton and his friends refusing obe- of England, the kingdom of England doth dience, their estates were confiscated, and oblige themselves to aid and assist the kingan order was issued for their arrest. Ha-dom of Scotland, in the same or like cases milton and Lanark immediately left Scot- of straits and extremities." land, and repaired to the king at Oxford. About the end of harvest the Scottish Meanwhile, the utmost activity was shown troops began to assemble, and the call to in preparing to render substantial assistance arms was everywhere responded to with to the English parliament, and each side alacrity, except in those districts which seemed equally anxious to bring their nego- lay under the influence of the marquis of tiations to a speedy conclusion. On the Huntley. Soon after the levies began to be 21st of November, the sum of fifty thousand made, a short declaration was set forth to pounds arrived in Edinburgh as the first make known the causes of the armament, instalment of an advance of double that and to answer especially some objections amount, which the Scots were to receive to which had been, or might be, made against assist them in setting forth their expedition; them. This declaration was more especially and on the 29th a treaty was finally con- addressed to the people of England. "As cluded, by which the Scots undertook to for the cause and ground of this undersend into England to the assistance of the taking," the Scots said, "we are not ignoparliament an army of eighteen thousand rant with how much earnestness the sons foot, two thousand horse, and one thousand of slander and perdition (whose custom is dragoons, with a suitable train of artillery. to traduce those proceedings which they This army was to be provisioned for forty know not how to disappoint) do endeavour days; and after it entered England, the Eng-to possess the hearts of our brethren, that lish parliament was to contribute monthly we are coming to fish in the troubled waters thirty thousand pounds for its support. The of England, to seek and take our advanScots also undertook to fit out eight large tages in the midst of your necessities; but ships of war, to serve under the earl of suffer not your ears, much less your hearts, Warwick, or whoever else might be the to be open to any such delusions, whereof commander of the navy of the parliament, we trust your eyes shall shortly witness the and to be maintained at the charge of the falsehood. For as hereafter we doubt not kingdom of England. It was expressly to appeal to our carriages and your con