No More Learning

cess. And there is great reason to believe, that the
very men, who laboured so much for the alterations

a without] with



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 123

which were made, and professed to receive so much 1661.
satisfaction in them, did it for no other end, but to~
procure more opportunity to continue and enlarge
the contentions ; and to gain excuse and credit to
the ill things they had done, by the redress and re-
paration that was given them in the amendment of
many particulars, against which they had always
complained. There was not one of them who had
used that importunity and made that profession,
who afterwards was conformable to the government
of the church, or frequented those churches where
or when the Liturgy was used.

Whilst the clergy was busy and solicitous to pre- 1662.
pare this remedy for the present distempers, the preachers
people of all the several factions in religion assumed much* H-
more license than ever they had done. The pres- cense -
byterians in all their pulpits inveighed against the
Book of Common Prayer that they expected, and
took the same liberty to inveigh against the govern-
ment of the church, as they had been accustomed
to before the return of the king ; with reflections b
upon the persons of the bishops, as if they assumed
a jurisdiction that was yet at least suspended. And
the other factions in religion, as if by concert, took
the same liberty in their several congregations.
The anabaptists and the quakers made more noise
than ever, and assembled together in greater num-
bers, and talked what reformations they expected in
all particulars. These insolences offended the par-
liament very much : and the house of commons
expressed much impatience, that the Liturgy was so
long in preparation, that the act of uniformity might

b reflections] reflection



124 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

1662. without delay be passed and published; not with-
~ out some insinuations and reflections, that his ma-
jesty's candour, and admission of all persons to resort
to his presence, and his condescension to confer with
them, had raised their spirits to an insolence insup-
portable ; and that nothing could reduce them to the
temper of good subjects, but the highest severity.

It is very true, from the time of his majesty's
coming into England, he had not been reserved in
the admission of those who had been his greatest
enemies, to his presence. The presbyterian ministers
he received with grace ; and did believe that he
should work upon them by persuasions, having been
well acquainted with their common arguments by
the conversation he had had in Scotland, and was
very able to confute them. The independents had
as free access, both that he might hinder any con-
junction between the other factions, and because
they seemed wholly to depend upon his majesty's
will and pleasure, without resorting to the parlia-
ment, in which they had no confidence; and had
rather that episcopacy should flourish again, than
that the presbyterians should govern. The king
had always admitted the quakers for his divertise-
ment and mirth, because he thought, that of all the
factions they were the most innocent, and had least
of malice in their natures against his person and his
government : and it was now too late, though he
had a worse opinion of them all, to restrain them
from coming to him, till there should be some law
made to punish them; and therefore he still called
upon the bishops, to cause the Liturgy to be expe-
dited in the convocation. And finding that those
distempers had that influence upon the house of



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 125

commons, that the displeasure and jealousy which ifi62.
they conceived from thence did retard their coun-~~
sels, and made them less solicitous to advance his
service in the settling his revenue, they having sat
near three months after their coming together again
upon their adjournment, without making any con-
siderable progress in it; he sent for the speaker and The king
the house of commons to attend him at Whitehall, the house of
where he spake unto them, though very graciously, Jo "ttend
in a style that seemed to have more of expostulation w '," {J ha)1
and reprehension than they had been accustomed to. March '
He said, " he spake his heart to them when he His s P eech

'to them.

" told them, that he did believe, that from the first
" institution of parliaments to that hour, there had
" never been a house of commons fuller of affection
" and duty to their king, than they were to him ;
" never any that was more desirous and solicitous
" to gratify their king, than they were to oblige
" him ; never a house of commons, in which there
" were fewer persons without a full measure of zeal
" for the honour and welfare of the king and coun-
" try, than there are in this : in a word," he said,
" he knew most of their persons and names, and
" could never hope to find better men in their places.
" Yet after all this, he could not but lament, and
" even complain, that he and they and the kingdom
" were yet without that present fruit and advantage,
" which they might reasonably promise themselves
" from such a harmony of affections, and unity in
" resolutions to advance the public service, and to
" provide for the peace and security of the kingdom ;
" that they did not expedite those good counsels,
" which were most necessary for both. He knew
" not how it came to pass, but for many weeks past,



126 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

1 662. even since their last adjournment, private and par-
" ticular business had almost thrust the considera-
" tion of the public out of doors ; and he did not
" know that they were nearer the settling his re-
" venue, than they had been at Christmas. He was
" sure he had communicated his condition to them
" without reserve ; what he had coming in, and
" what his necessary disbursements were. And," he
said, " he was exceedingly deceived, if whatever
" they gave him were any otherwise given to him,
" than to be issued out for their own use and be-
" nefit ; and if they considered it well, they would
" find that they were the richer by what they gave,
" since it was all to be laid out that they might en-
" joy the rest in peace and security. "

He said, " he need not put them in mind of the
" miserable effects, that had attended the wants and
" necessities of the crown ; that he needed not to
" tell them, that there was a republican party still
" in the kingdom, which had the courage still to
" promise themselves another revolution : and he
" thought he had as little need to tell them, that
" the only way, with God's blessing, to disappoint
" their hopes, and indeed to reduce them from
" those extravagant hopes and desires, was, to let
" them see that they had so provided for the crown,
<( that it had wherewithal to support itself, and
" to secure his people ; which he was sure was all
" he desired, and desired only for their preserva-
" tion. Therefore he conjured them, by all the pro-
" fessions of affection which they had made to him,
" by all the kindness which he knew they had for
" him, that they would, after all their deliberations,
" betake themselves to some speedy resolutions, and



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 127

" settle such a real and substantial revenue upon 16G2.
" him, as might hold some proportion with the ne-~~
" cessary expenses he was at for the peace and be-
" nefit and honour of the kingdom ; that they who
" looked for troubles at home might despair of their
" wishes ; and that our neighbours abroad, by seeing
" that all is well at home, might have that esteem
" and value of his majesty, as might secure the ho-
" nour and interest of the nation, and make the
" happiness of the kingdom and of that city once
" more the admiration and envy of the world. " _

He tpld them, " that he heard that they were
" very zealous for the church, and very solicitous
" and even jealous that there was not expedition
" enough used in that affair : he thanked them for
" it, since he presumed that it proceeded from a
" good root of piety and devotion. But,", he said,
" that he must tell them, that he had the worst luck
" in the world, if after all the reproaches of being a
" papist while he was abroad, he was suspected to
" be a presbyterian now he was come home. He
" knew they would not take it unkindly, if he told
" them, that he was as zealous for the church of
" England as any of them could be, and was enough
" acquainted with the enemies of it on all sides ; that
" he was as much in love with the Book of Common
" Prayer as they could wish, and had prejudice
" enough to those who did not love it, who he hoped
" in time would be better informed, and so change
" their minds ; and they might be confident, he did
" as much desire to have an uniformity settled, as
" any man amongst them. He prayed them to trust
" him in that affair, and promised them to hasten
" the despatch of it with all convenient speed ; they



128 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

1662. " might rely upon him in it. " He said, " he had
~~" transmitted the Book of Common Prayer, with
" those alterations and additions which had been
" presented to him by the convocation, to the house
" of peers with his approbation, that the act of uni-
" formity might relate to it ; so that he presumed
" that it would shortly be despatched there : and
" that when they had done all they could," he said,
" the well settling that affair would require great
" prudence and discretion, and the absence of all
" passion and precipitation. "

His majesty concluded with assuring them, " that
" he did promise himself great fruits from that con-
" versation he had with them, and that they would
"justify the confidence he had in their affections,
" by letting the world see, that they took his con-
" cernments to heart, and were ready to do what-
" soever he desired for the peace and welfare of the
. " kingdom. "

The Liturgy When the Book of Common Prayer was, by the
king's command, presented to the house of lords by
* ne * w archbishops (for it had been approved c by



king's cou- th e convocation of the province of York, as well as

nriuation;

by d that of Canterbury) confirmed by his majesty
under the great seal of England ; the book itself
took up no debate : only the earl of Northumberland
proposed, " that the old Book of Common Prayer
" might be confirmed without any alteration or ad-*
" dition, and then the same act of uniformity,
" that had been in the time of queen Elizabeth,
" would be likewise applied to it ; whereas a new
" act of uniformity might take up much time and

c approved] approved as well. ' by] of



. EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 129

*' raise much debate, all which would be avoided by 1 662.
" adhering to the old. "

Whatever that lord's opinion was, he was known
to be of the presbyterian party. And it was answer-
ed, " that if that proposition had been heartily made
" when the king came into England, it would have
" met with a general approbation, and prevented
" much sharpness and animosity, which had since
" risen by those who opposed that excellent form.
" But after the clergy had so bitterly inveighed
" against many parts thereof, and prevailed with
" his majesty to suspend the use of it till it might
" be revised, as by his declaration of the five and
" twentieth of October he had done, and thereupon
" had granted his commission under the great seal
" of England to several bishops and other divines,
" to review the Book of Common Prayer, and to
" prepare such alterations and additions as they
" thought fit to offer;, and that afterwards his ma-
" jesty had been pleased to authorize the convoca-
" tions of both the provinces of Canterbury and
" York, called and assembled by his majesty's au-
" thority, to review the said Book of Prayer, and
" the Book of the Form and Manner of the making
" and consecrating of Bishops, Priests, and Deacons ;
" and that now after the bishops and clergy of both
" provinces had, upon great deliberation and upon
" reviewing those books, prepared and consented to
" some alterations, and to the addition of several
" prayers to be used upon emergent occasions, all
" which his majesty had already ratified and con-
" firmed ; it could not but be understood matter of
" great levity and offence, to reject this book, that
" was now with all this ceremony and solemnity

VOL. II. K



130 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

16G2. " presented, for no other reason but because they

~ " liked better the old book, which had been for

" twenty years discontinued and rejected. " And

therefore it was moved, " that there might not be

" such an affront put upon the convocation, and

And con- " upon the king himself. " And so with little more

by n them! public contest the book itself was consented and

submitted to.

But then the act of uniformity depended long,
and took up much debate in both houses. In the
house of peers, where the act first began, there were
many things inserted, which had not been con-
tained in the former act of uniformity, and so seemed
Debates to carry somewhat of novelty in them d . It admitted
the f act oT " no person to have any cure of souls or any eccle-
(( siastical dignity in the church of England, but
" such who had been or should be ordained priest
" or deacon by some bishop, that is, who had not
" episcopal ordination ; excepting only the ministers
" or pastors of the French and Dutch churches in
" London and other places, allowed by the king,
" who should enjoy the privileges they had. "

This was new ; for there had been many, and at
present there were some, who possessed benefices
with cure of souls, and other ecclesiastical promo-v
tions, who had never received orders but in France
or in Holland; and these men must now receive
new ordination, which had been always held unlaw-
ful in the church, or by this act of parliament must
be deprived of their livelihood, which they enjoyed
in the most flourishing and peaceable time of the
church. And therefore it was said, " that this had

d in them] in it



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 131

" not been the opinion of the church of England ; iGG2.
" and that it would lay a great reproach upon all v on the
" other protestant churches who had no bishops, as clau f e re -

* . quiring

" if they had no ministers, and consequently were episcopal
" no churches : for that it was well known the church r<
" of England did not allow reordination, as the an-
" cient church never admitted it ; insomuch as if
" any priest of the church of Rome renounces the
" communion thereof, his ordination is not ques-
" tioned, but he is as capable of any preferment in
" this church, as if he had been ordained in it. And
" therefore the not admitting the ministers of other
" protestants to have the same privilege, can proceed
" from no other ground, than that they looked not
" upon them as ministers, having no ordination ;
" which is a judgment the church of England had
" not ever owned : and that it would be very im-
" prudent to do it now. "

To this it was answered, " that the church of
" England judged none but her own children, nor
" did f determine that other protestant churches
" were without ordination. It is a thing without
" her 8 cognizance : and most of the learned men of
" those churches had made necessity the chief pillar
" to support that ordination of theirs. That neces-
" sity cannot be pleaded here, where ordination is
" given according to the unquestionable practice of
" the church of Christ : if they who pretend foreign
" ordination are his majesty's subjects, they have no
" excuse of necessity, for they might in all times
" have received episcopal ordination, and so they
" did upon the matter renounce their own church ;

f did] did not * her] their

K 2



132 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

1662. " if they are strangers, and pretend to preferment in
~~ " this church, they ought to conform and to be sub-
'* ject to the laws of the kingdom, which concern
*' only those who desire to live under the protection
" thereof 11 . For the argument of reordination, there
" is no such thing required. Rebaptization is not
" allowed in or by any church : yet in all churches
" where it is doubted, as it may be often with very
" good reason, whether the person hath been bap-
" tized or no, or if it hath been baptized by a mid-
" wife or lay person ; without determining the vali-
" dity or invalidity of such baptism, there is an hy-
" pothetical form, ' If thou hast not been already
" baptized, I do baptize,' &c. So in this case of or-
" dination, the form may be the same, * If thou hast
" not been already ordained, then I do ordain,' &c.
" If his former ordination were good, this is void ; if
" the other was invalid or defective, he hath reason
" to be glad that it be thus supplied. " After much
debate, that clause remained still in the act : and
very many, who had received presbyterian orders in
the late times, came very willingly to be ordained
in the manner aforesaid by a bishop ; and very few
chose to quit or lose a parsonage or vicarage of any
value upon that scruple.
A clamour There was another clause in the bill, that made

afterwards

raised about very much more noise afterwards, though for the
present it took not up so much time, and in truth
was little taken notice of: that is, a form of sub-
scription that every man was to make, who had ' re-
ceived, or before he received, any benefice or prefer-
ment in the church ; which comprehended all the

h thereof] Omitted in MS. * had] Not in MS.



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON.

governors, superiors, and fellows, in all the col- 1662.
leges and halls of either university, and all school-""
masters and the like, who are subservient towards
learning. Every such person was to declare " his
" unfeigned assent and consent to all and every
" thing contained and prescribed in and by the book
" entitled The Book of Common Prayer," &c. The
subscription was generally thought so reasonable,
that it scarce met with any opposition in either
house. But when it came abroad, and was to be
submitted to, all the dissenting brethren cried out,
" that it was a snare to catch them, to say that
" which could not consist w T ith their consciences k . "
They took great pains to distinguish and to make
great difference between assent and consent : " they
" could be content to read the book in the manner
" they were obliged to do, which shewed their con-
" sent ; but declaring their unfeigned assent to every
" thing contained and prescribed therein would im-
" ply, that they were so fully convinced in their
" judgments, as to think that it was so perfect, that
" nothing therein could be amended, which for their
" part they thought there might. That there were
" many expressions in the rubric, which they were
" not bound to read ; yet by this assent they de-
" clared their approbation thereof. " But after many
tedious discourses of this tyrannical imposition, they
grew by degrees ashamed of it ; and were persuaded
to think, that assent and consent had so near the
same signification, that they could hardly consent to
do what they did not assent to : so * that the chiefest

k consciences] conscience ' so] Not in MS,

K 3



134 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

1662. amongst them, to avoid a very little inconvenience,



subscribed the same.

The bin But there was shortly after another clause added,
the lords, that gave them trouble indeed. When the bill had
passed the lords' house, it was sent of course to the
commons ; where though all the factions in religion
had too many friends, for the most contrary and op-
posite one to another always were united and recon-
ciled against the church, yet they who were zealous
for the government, and who hated all the other fac-
tions at least enough, were very much superior in
number and in reputation. And the bill was no sooner
read there, than every man according to his passion
thought of adding somewhat to it, that might make
it more grievous to somebody whom he did not
love ; which made the discourses tedious and vehe-
ment and full of animosity. And at last they agreed



meats made , i i , t ,1 i ,

by the upon a clause, which contained another subscription

commons.





an( ^ declaration, which every man m was to make
before he could n be admitted into any benefice or
ecclesiastical promotion, or to be a governor or fellow
in either of the universities. He must first declare,
'* that it is not lawful, upon any pretence whatsoever,
" to take arms against the king ; and that he doth
" abhor that traitorous position of taking arms by
" his authority against his person, or against those
" that are commissioned by him ; and that he will
" conform to the Liturgy of the church of England,
" as it is now by law established. " And he doth
declare, " that he doth hold there v lies no obligation
" upon him, or on any other person, from the oath

m man] Omitted in MS. or] of

" could] can P there] that there



v EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 135

" commonly called The solemn League and Covenant, 1 662.
" to endeavour any change or alteration of govern-""
" ment, either in church or state ; and that the same
" was in itself an unlawful oath, and imposed upon
" the subjects of this realm against the known laws
" and liberties of the kingdom ;" with some other
clauses, which need not be mentioned, because they
were afterwards left out. And with this addition, The bin re-
and some other alterations, they returned the bill the lords.
again to the lords for their approbation.

The framing and forming this clause had taken
up very much time, and raised no less passion in the
house of commons ; and now it came among the
lords, it was not less troublesome. It added to the
displeasure and jealousy against the bishops, by
whom it was thought to be prepared, and com-
mended to their party in the lower house. Many
lords, who had taken the covenant, were not so
much concerned that the clergy (for whom only this
act was prepared) should be obliged to make this
declaration ; but apprehended more, that when such
a clause should be once passed in one act of parlia-
ment, it could not after be disputed, and so would
be inserted into all other acts which related to the
. function of any other offices, and so would in a short
time be required of themselves. And therefore they Debates

. . . , upon the

opposed it warmly, " as a thing unnecessary, and amend-
" which would widen the breach, instead of closing y e " h s n
" up the wounds that had been made ; which the
" king had made it his business to do, and the par-
" liament had hitherto concurred with his majesty
" in that endeavour. That many men would believe
" or fear, (which in such a case is the same,) that
" this clause might prove a breach of the act of in-

K 4



e com-
mons.



136 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

1662. " demnity, which had not only provided against in-
"~" dictments and suits at law and penalties, but
" against reproaches for what was past, which this
" clause would be understood to give new life to.
" For what concerned the conformity to the Liturgy
" of the church as it is now established, it is pro-
" vided for as fully in the former subscription in this
" act, and therefore is impertinent in this place.
" That the covenant contained many good things
" in it, as defending the king's person, and main-
" taining the protestant religion : and therefore to
" say that there lies no obligation from ^ it, would
" neither be for the service of the king or the in-
" terest of the church ; especially since it was well
" known, that it had wrought upon the conscience
" of many to serve the king in the late revolution,
tf from which his majesty had received great advan-
" tage. However it was now dead, all men were
" absolved from taking it, nor could it be imposed
" or offered to any man without punishment ; and
" they, who had in the ill times been forced to take
" it, did now inviolably and cheerfully perform 11
" the duties of allegiance and fidelity to his majesty.
" If it had at any time produced any good, that was
" an excuse for the irregularity of it : it could do
" no mischief for the future ; and therefore that it
" was time to bury it in oblivion. "

Many men believed, that though they insisted
principally on that part which related to the cove-
nant, they r were in truth more afflicted with the
first part ; in which it was declared, " that it was
" not lawful, upon any pretence whatsoever, to take

i from] upon r they] that they



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 137

"arms against the king; and that he doth abhor 1662.
" that traitorous position s of taking arms by his au- ~~
" thority against his person :" which conclusions
had been the principles which supported their rebel-
lion, and by which they had imposed upon the peo-
ple, and got their concurrence. They r durst not
oppose this, because the parliament had already by
a former act declared the law to be so in those par-
ticulars : yet this went much nearer to them, that
by their own particular declaration (for they looked
upon it as that which in a short time must be their
own) they should upon the matter confess them-
selves to have been traitors, which they had not yet
been declared to have been ; and no man could now
justify the calling them so.

They who were most solicitous that the house
should concur with the commons in this addition,
had fieldroom enough to expatiate upon the gross
iniquity of the covenant. They made themselves
very merry with the allegation, " that the king's
" safety and the interest of the church were provided
" for by the covenant, when it had been therefore
" entered into, to fight against the king and to de-
" stroy the church. That there was no one lawful
" or honest clause in the covenant, that was not
" destroyed or made of no signification by the next
" that succeeded ; and if it were not, the same obli-
" gation was better provided for by some other
" oaths, which the same men had or ought to have
" taken, and which ought to have restrained them
" from taking the covenant : and therefore it may
" justly be pronounced, that there is no obligation

i
s position] proposition



138 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

1662. " upon any man from thence. That there was no
~~ " breach of the act of indemnity, nor any reproach
" upon any man for having taken it, except what
" would result from his own conscience. But that
" it was most absolutely necessary, for the safety of
" the king's person, and the peace of the kingdom,
" that they who had taken it should declare, that
" they do not believe themselves to be bound by it :
" otherwise they may still think, that they may
" fight against the king, and must conspire the de-
" struction of the church. And they cannot take
" too much care, or use too much diligence, to dis-
" cover who are of that opinion ; that they may be
" strictly looked unto, and restrained from doing
" that which they take themselves obliged to do.
" That the covenant is not dead, as was alleged, but
" still retains great vigour ; was still the idol to
" which the presbyterians sacrificed : and that there
" must and would always be a general jealousy of
" all those who had taken it, until they had de-
" clared that it did not bind them ; especially of the
4< clergy, who had so often enlarged in their pulpits,
** how absolutely and indispensably all men were fc
" obliged to prosecute the end u of it, which is to de-
" stroy the church, whatever danger it brings the
" king's person to. And therefore they of all men
" ought to be glad of this opportunity that was of-
" fered, to vindicate their loyalty and obedience ;
" and if they were not ready to do so, they were
" not fit to be trusted with the charge and care of
" the souls of the king's subjects. "

And in truth there were not any more importu-

1 were] are " end] ends



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 139

nate for the enjoining this declaration, than many 1662.
who had taken the covenant. Many who had never Thelcrds
taken it, and had always detested it, and paid consen * to

* most of llic

soundly for being known to do so, were yet very amend -

. nients.

sorry that it was inserted at this time and in this
place ; for they foresaw it would make divisions,
and keep up the several factions, which would have
been much weakened, and in a short time brought
to nothing, if the presbyterians had been separated
from the rest, who did perfectly hate and were as
perfectly hated by all the rest. But since it was
brought upon the stage, and it had been the subject
of so much debate, they believed the house of lords
could not now refuse to concur with the commons,
"without undergoing some reproach and scandal of
not x having an ill opinion enough of the covenant ;
of which as they were in no degree guilty, so they
thought it to be of mischievous consequence to be
suspected to be so. And therefore, after they had
expunged some other parts of that subscription
which had been annexed to it, and mended some
other expressions in other places, which might ra-
ther irritate than compose those humours which al-
ready boiled too much, they returned the bill to the
house of commons ; which submitted to all that they The com-
had done : and so it was presented to the king, who JriuTthT*
could not well refuse his royal assent, nor did in his lords '

. . . The king

own judgment or inclination dislike what was offered confirms

, . the bill.

to him.

By this act of uniformity there was an end put to
all the liberty and license, which had been practised
in all churches from the time of his majesty's re-

* not] Not in MS.



140 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

1662. turn, and by his declaration that he had emitted
~~ afterwards. The Common Prayer must now be con-
stantly read in all churches, and no other form ad-
mitted : and what clergyman soever did not fully
conform to whatsoever was contained in that book,
or enjoined by the act of uniformity, by or before
St. Bartholomew-day, which was about three months
after the act was published ; he was ipso facto de-
prived of his benefice, or any other spiritual promo-
tion of which he stood possessed, and the patron was
to present another in his place, as if he were dead:
so that it was not in the king's power to give any
dispensation to any man, that could preserve him
against the penalty in the act of uniformity.

This act was no sooner published, (for I am will-
ing to continue this relation to the execution of it,
because there were some intervening accidents that
were not understood,) than all the presbyterian min-
isters expressed their disapprobation of it with all
The presby. the passion imaginable. They complained, " that

terian min- r J r

isters com- " the king had violated his promise made to them
" in his declaration from Breda," which was urged
with great uningenuity, and without any shadow of

ration. right; for his majesty had thereby referred the
whole settlement of all things relating to religion, to
the wisdom of parliament ; and declared, " in the
" mean time, that nobody should be punished or
" questioned, for continuing the exercise of his re-
" ligion in the way he had been accustomed to in the
" late confusions. " And his majesty had continued
this indulgence by his declaration after his return,
and thereby fully complied witji his promise from
Breda ; which he should indeed have violated, if he
had now refused to concur in the settlement the



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 141

parliament had agreed upon, being in truth no less 1662.
obliged to concur with the parliament in the settle- ~~
ment that the parliament should propose to him,
than he was not to cause any man to be punished
for not obeying the former laws, till a new settle-
ment should be made. But how evident soever this
truth is, they would not acknowledge it ; but armed
their proselytes with confident assertions, and un-
natural interpretations of the words in the king's
declaration, as if the king were bound to grant li-
berty of conscience, whatever the parliament should
or should not desire, that is, to leave all men to live
according to their own humours and appetites, let
what laws soever be made to the contrary. They
declared, " that they could not with a good con-
" science either subscribe the one or the other de-
" claration : they could not say that they did assent
" or consent in the first, nor declare in the second
f< that there remained no obligation from the cove-
" nant ; and therefore that they were all resolved to
" quit their livings, and to depend upon Providence
" for their subsistence. "

There cannot be a better evidence of the general The act '"

general well

affection of the kingdom, than that this act of par- received,
liament had so concurrent an approbation of the
two houses of parliament, after a suppression of that
form of devotion for near twenty years, and the
highest discountenance and oppression of all those
who were known to be devoted or affected to it. And
from the time of the king's return, when it was law-
ful to use it, though it was not enjoined, persons of
all conditions flocked to those churches where it
was used. And it was by very many sober men be-
lieved, that if the presbyterians and the other fac-



142 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

1662. tions in religion had been only permitted to exercise

~ their own ways, without y any countenance from the

court, the heart of all the factions against the church

would have been broken, before the parliament did

so fully declare itself.

Reflections And there cannot be a greater manifestation of

on the be- D

of the distemper and license of the time, than the pre-
- sumption of those presbyterian ministers, in the
opposing and contradicting an act of parliament;
when there was scarce a man in that number, who
had not. been so great a promoter of the rebellion,
or contributed so much to it, that they had no
other title to their lives but by the king's mercy ;
and there z were very few amongst them, who had
not come into the possession of the churches they
now held, by the expulsion of the orthodox min-
isters who were lawfully possessed of them, and who
being by their imprisonment, poverty, and other
kinds of oppression and contempt during so many
years, departed this life, the usurpers remained un-
disturbed in their livings, and thought it now the
highest tyranny to be removed from them, though
for offending the law, and disobedience to the go-
vernment. That those men should give themselves
an act of oblivion of all their transgressions and
wickedness, and take upon them again to pretend a
liberty of conscience against the government, which
they had once overthrown upon their pretences ;
was such an impudence, as could not have fallen
into the hearts even of those men from the stock of
their own malice, without some great defect in the
government, and encouragement or countenance

v "without] with 7 there] that there



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 143

from the highest powers. The king's too gracious 1662.
disposition and easiness of access, as hath been said ~~
before, had from the beginning raised their hopes
and dispelled their fears ; whilst his majesty pro-
mised himself a great harvest in their conversion, by
his gentleness and affability. And they insinuated
themselves by a profession, " that it was more the
" regard of his service, than any obstinacy in them-
" selves, which kept them from conformity to what
" the law had enjoined ; that they might still pre-
" serve their credit with their parishioners, and by
" degrees bring them to a perfect obedience :" where-
as indeed all the corruption was in the clergy ; and
where a prudent and orthodox man was in the pul-
pit, the people very willingly heard the Common
Prayer.

Nor did this confidence leave them, after the pass- They have
ing and publishing this act of uniformity : but the access^
London ministers, who had the government of those th
in the country, prevailed with the general (who
without any violent inclinations of his own was al-
ways ready for his wife's sake) to bring them to the
king, who always received them with too much cle-
mency, and dismissed them with too much hope.
They lamented " the sadness of their condition,
" which (after having done so much service to his
" majesty, and been so graciously promised by him
" his protection) must now be exposed to all misery
" and famine. " They told him " what a vast num-
" ber of churches" (five times more than was true)
" would become void by this act, which would not
" prove for his service ; and that they much feared,
" the people would not continue as quiet and peace-
" able as they had been under their oversight. " They



144 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

1662. used all the arguments they thought might work
~~ upon him ; and he seemed to be the more moved,
because he knew that it was not in his power to
help them. He told them, " he had great compas-
" sion for them ; and was heartily sorry that the
" parliament had been so severe towards them,
" which he would remit, if it were in his power ;
" and therefore that they should advise with their
" friends, and that if they found that it would be in
" his power to give them any ease, they should find
" him inclined to gratify them in whatsoever they
" desired :" which gracious expressions raised their
spirits as high as ever ; and they reported to their
friends much more than in truth the king had said
to them, (which was no new artifice with them,)
and advised their friends in all parts " to be firm to
" their principles," and assured them, " that the ri-
" gour of the act of parliament should not be pressed
" against them. "

It cannot be denied, that the king was too irre-
solute, and apt to be shaken in those counsels which
with the greatest . deliberation a he had concluded,
by too easily permitting, or at least not restraining,
any men who waited upon him, or were present
with him in his recesses, to examine and censure
what was resolved ; an infirmity that brought him
many troubles, and exposed his ministers to ruin :
though in his nature, judgment, and inclinations, he
did detest the presbyterians ; and by the experience
he had of their faculties, pride, and insolence in
Scotland, had brought from thence such an abhor-
rence of them, that for their sakes he thought

a deliberation] declaration



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 145

better of any of the other factions. Nor had he any ] 662.

kindness for any person whom he suspected to ad-

here to them : for the lord Lautherdale took all
pains to be thought no presby terian ; . and pleased
himself better with no humour, than laughing at
that people, and telling ridiculous stories of their
folly and fold corruptions. Yet the king, from the
opinion he had of their great power to do him good
or harm, which was oftentimes unskilfully insinuated
to him by men who he knew were not of their*
party, but were really deceived themselves by a
wrong computation and estimate of their interest,
was not willing to be thought an enemy to them.
And there were too many bold speakers about the
court, too often admitted into his presence, who be-
ing without any sense of religion, thought all rather
ought to be permitted, than to undergo any trouble
and disturbance on the behalf of any one.

The continued address and importunity of these
ministers, as St. Bartholomew's day approached
nearer, more disquieted the king. They enlarged
with many words " on the great joy that they and
" all their friends had received, from the compas-
" sion his majesty so graciously had expressed on
" their behalf, which they would never forget, or
" forfeit by any undutiful carriage. " They confessed
" that they found, upon conference with their friends
" who wished them well, and upon perusal of the
" act of parliament, that it was not in his majesty's
" power to give them so much protection against
" the penalty of the act of parliament, as they had
" hoped, and as his great goodness was inclined to
" give them. But that it would be an unspeakable
" comfort to them, if his majesty's grace towards

VOL. II. L



146 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

1662. " them were so manifested, that the people might
" discern that this extreme rigour was not grateful
" to him, but that he could be well content if it
" were for some time suspended ; and therefore they
" were humble suitors to him, that he would by his
" letters to the bishops, or by a proclamation, or an
" act of council, or any other way his majesty should
" think fit, publish his desire that the execution of
" the act of uniformity, as to all but the reading of
" the Liturgy, which they would conform to, might
" be suspended for three months ; and that he would
" take it well from the bishops or any of the pa-
" trons, who would so far comply with his desire, as
" not to take any advantage of those clauses in the
" statute, which gave them authority to present as
" in a vacancy. They doubted not there would be
" many, who would willingly submit to his majesty's
" pleasure : but whatever the effect should be, they
" would pay the same humble acknowledgments to
" his majesty, as if it had produced all that they
" desired. "

Whether his majesty thought it would do them
no good, and therefore that it was no matter if he
granted it; or that he thought it no prejudice to
the church, if the act were suspended for three
months ; or that he was willing to redeem himself
from the present importunity, (an infirmity he was
too often guilty of;) true it is, he did make them a
The king positive promise, " that he would do what they de-
" sired ;" with which they were abundantly satis-

d, and renewed their encouragement to their
friends " to persevere to the end. " And this pro-
mise was solemnly given to them in the presence of
the general, who was to solicit the king's despatch,



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 147

that his pleasure might be known in due time. It 1662.
was now the long vacation, and few of the council
were then in town, or of the bishops, with whom
his majesty too late thought it necessary to confer,
that such an instrument might be prepared as was
fit for the affair. Hereupon the king told the chan-
cellor (who was not thought friend enough to the
presbyterians to be sooner communicated with) all
that had passed, what the ministers had desired,
and what he had promised ; and bade him " to
" think of the best way of doing it. "

The chancellor was one of those, who would have
been glad that the act had not been clogged with
many of those clauses, which he foresaw might pro-
duce some inconveniences; but when it was passed, he
thought it absolutely necessary to see obedience paid
to it without any connivance : and therefore, as he
had always dissuaded the king from giving so much
countenance to those applications, which he always
knew published more to be said than in truth was
ever spoken, and was the more troubled for this
progress they had made with the king ; he told his
majesty, " that it was not in his power to preserve
" those men, who did not submit to do all that was
" to be done by the act, from deprivation. " He
gave many reasons which occurred, why " such a
" declaration as was desired would prove ineffectual
" to the end for which it was desired,, and what
" inconveniences would result from attempting it. "
His majesty alleged many reasons for the doing it,
which he had received from those who desired it,
and seemed sorry that they were no better ; how-
ever concluded, " that he had engaged his word, and
" that he would perform what he had promised ;"

L 2



148 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

1662. and required him not to oppose it. The chancellor
~~ had always been very tender of his honour ; and ad-
vised him " to be very wary in making any promise,
" but when he had made it, to perform it, though
" to his disadvantage :" and it was no new thing to
him, to be reproached for opposing the resolving to
do such or such a thing, and then to be reproached
again for pursuing the resolution.

The king was at Hampton-court, and sent for
the archbishop of Canterbury, the bishops of London
and of Winchester, to attend him, with the chief
justice Bridgman, and the attorney general : there
were likewise the chancellor, the general, the duke
of Ormond, and the secretaries. His majesty ac-
quainteol them with " the importunities used by the
" London ministers, and the. reasons they had of-
" fered why a further time should be given to them
" to consider of what was so new to them ; and
" what answer he had given to them ; and how they
" had renewed their importunity with a desire of
" such a declaration from him as is mentioned be-
" fore, in which he thought there was no inconve-
HC endea- " nience, and therefore had promised to do it, and

vours to

fulfil his " called them now together to advise of the best
" way of doing it. " The bishops were very much
troubled, that those fellows should still presume to
give his majesty so much vexation, and that they
should have such access to him. They gave such
arguments against the doing what was desired, as
could not be answered; and for themselves, they
desired " to be excused for not conniving in any
" degree at the breach of the act of parliament,
" either by . not presenting a clerk where themselves
" were patrons, or deferring to give institution upon



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON.
149

" the presentation of others b : and that his majesty's 1 662.
" giving such a declaration or recommendation would ~~
" be the greatest wound to the church, and to the
" government thereof, that it could receive. "

The chancellor, who did really believe that the
king and his service would suffer more by the breach
of his word and promise, than either could do from
doing the thing desired, confessed " that he believed
" it would do them little good, which would not be
" imputed to his majesty, when he had done all he
" could do ; and that it would be a greater conform-
" ity, if the ministers generally performed what they
" offered to do, in reading all the service of the
" church, than had been these many years ; and that
" once having done what was known to be so con-
" trary to their inclinations, would be an engage-
" ment upon them in a short time to comply with
" the rest of their obligations : and therefore," he
said, " he should not dissuade his majesty from do-
" ing what he had promised ;" which indeed he had
good reason to think he was resolved to do, what-
ever he was advised to the contrary. The king de-
manded the judgment of the lawyers, " whether he
" could legally dispense with the observation of the
" act for three months;" who answered, " that not- But finds it
" withstanding any thing he could do in their fa-pwer.
" vour, the patrons might present their clerk as if
" the incumbents were dead, upon their not-perform-
" ance of what they were enjoined. " Upon the
whole matter the king was converted; and with
great bitterness against that people in general, and
against the particular persons whom he had always

b of others] Not in MS.
L 3



150 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

1662. received too graciously, concluded that he would not
~" do what was desired, and that the connivance should
not be given to any of them.

The bishops departed full of satisfaction with the
king's resolution, and as unsatisfied with their friend
the chancellor's inclination to gratify that people,
not knowing the engagement that was upon him.
And this jealousy produced a greater coldness from
some of them towards him, and a greater resent-
ment from him, who thought he had deserved better
from their function and their persons, than was in
a long time, if ever, perfectly reconciled. Yet he
never declined in the least degree his zeal for the
government of the church, or the interest of those
The great persons ; nor thought they could be blamed for their
uuiTy ofthe sever *ty against those ministers, who were surely
presbyte- ^he proudest malefactors, and the most incapable of

nan mm- i

isters. being gently treated, of any men living. For if any
of the bishops used them kindly, and endeavoured
to persuade them to conformity, they reported " that
" they had been caressed and flattered by the bishops,
" and offered great preferments, which they had
" bravely refused to accept for the preservation of a
" good conscience :" and in reports of this kind, few
of them ever observed any rules of ingenuity or
sincerity.

They en- When they saw that they were to expect and
ndsedis- undergo the worst, they agreed upon a method to
the people! ^ observed by them in the leaving and parting with
their pulpits : and the last Sunday they were to
preach, they endeavoured to infuse murmur, jealousy,
and sedition, into the hearts of their several audito-
ries ; and to prepare them " to expect and bear with
" patience and courage all the persecutions which



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 151

** were like to follow, now the light of the gospel 1662.
" was so near being extinguished. " And all those""
sermons they called their farewell sermons, and
caused to be printed together, with every one of the
preachers' pictures before their sermons ; which in
truth contained all the vanity and ostentation with
reference to themselves, and all the insinuations to
mutiny and rebellion, that could be warily couched
in words which could not be brought within penalty
of law, though their meaning was well understood.

When the time was expired, better men were put
into their churches, though with much murmuring
of some of their parishes for a time, increased by
their loud clamour, " that they had been betrayed
" by the king's promise that they should have three
" months longer time :" which drew the like clamour
upon them by those, who had hearkened to their
advice in continuing their obstinacy in confidence of
a dispensation ; whereas otherwise they would have
conformed, as very many of their party did. And
many of the other who were cozened by them, and
so lost the livings they had, made all the haste they
could to make themselves capable of getting others,
by as full subscriptions and conformity as the act of
uniformity required. And the greatest of them, At length
after some time, and after they found that the pri-JJ^ "on-
vate bounty and donatives, which at first flowed in form -
upon them in compassion of their sufferings and to .
keep up their courages, every day begun to slacken,
and would in the end expire, subscribed to those
very declarations, which they had urged as the
greatest motives to their nonconformity. And the
number was very small, and of very weak and in-
considerable men, that continued refractory, and

L 4



152 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

1662. received no charge in the church: though it may
""without breach of charity be believed, that many
who did subscribe had the same malignity to the
church, and to the government of it ; and it may be
did more harm, than if they had continued in their
inconformity.

Great ani- The long time spent in both houses upon the act
of uniformity had made the progress of all other
public business much the slower; or rather, the
multitude of private bills which depended there,
(and with which former parliaments had been very
rarely troubled,) and the bitterness and animosities
which arose from thence, exceedingly disquieted and
discomposed the house ; every man being so much
concerned for the interest of his friends or allies,
that he was more solicitous for the despatch of those,
than of any which related to the king and the pub-
lic, which he knew would by a general concurrence
be all passed before the session should be made;
whereas if the other should be deferred, the session
would quickly follow, (which the king by frequent
messages desired to hasten, having received news
already of the queen's having been at sea many
days,) and the benefit of those pretences would be
lost, and with greater difficulty be recovered in a
succeeding session. Then as those private bills were
for the particular benefit and advantage of some per-
sons, which engaged all their friends to be very so-
licitous for their despatch ; so for the most part they
were to the loss and damage of other persons, who
likewise called in aid of all their friends to prevent
the houses' consent: and by this means so many
factions were kindled in both houses, between those
who drove on the interest of their own or of their



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 153

relations, who mutually looked upon one another as 1662.
enemies, and against those who for justice and the""
dignity of parliament would have rejected all or most
of the addresses of that kind ; that in most debates
which related to neither, the custom of contradic-
tion, and the aversion to persons, very much dis-
turbed and prolonged all despatch.

It cannot be denied, that after a civil war of so
many years, prosecuted with that height of malice
and revenge ; so many houses plundered and so
many burned, in which the evidences of many estates
were totally destroyed, and as many by the unskil-
ful providence of others, who in order to preserve
them had buried their writings so unwarily under
ground, that they were taken up so defaced or rotted,
that they could not be pleaded in any court of jus-
tice ; many who had followed the king in the war,
and so made themselves liable to those penalties
which the parliament had prepared for them and
subjected them to, had made many feigned convey-
ances, with such limitations and so absolutely, (that
no trust might be discovered by those who had power
to avoid it,) that they were indeed too absolute to
be avoided by themselves, and their estates become
so much out of their own disposal, that they could
neither apply them to the payment of their just
debts, or to the provision for their children ; I say,
there were many such cases, which could be no other
way provided for but by an act of parliament, and
to which an act of parliament, without too much
severity and rigour, could not be denied. And
against any of those there appeared none or very
little opposition to be made.

But the example and precedent of such drew



154 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF -

1662. with them a world of unreasonable pretences ; and
"they, who were not in a condition to receive relief
in any court of justice, thought they had a ground
to appeal to parliament. They who had been com-
pelled, for raising the money they were forced to pay
for their delinquency, to sell land, and could not
sell it but at a very low value, (for it was one spe-
cies of the oppression of that time, that when a
powerful man had an aspect upon the land of any
man who was to compound, and so in view like to
sell it, no other man would offer any money for it,
so that he was sure at last to have it upon his own
price ;) now all that monstrous power was vanished,
they who had made those unthrifty bargains and
sales, though with all the formalities of law, by fines
and recoveries and the like, (which is all the secu-
rity that can be given upon a purchase,) especially
if the purchaser was of an ill name, came with all
imaginable confidence to the parliament, to have
their land restored to them c . Every man had
raised an equity in his own imagination, that he
thought ought to prevail against any descent, testa-
ment, or act of law ; and that whatever any man
had been brought to do, which common reason
would make manifest that he would never have
done if he could have chosen, was argument suf-
ficient of such a force, and ought to find relief in
parliament, from the unbounded equity they were
masters of and could dispense, whatever formalities
of law had preceded or accompanied the transaction.
And whoever opposed those extravagant notions,
which sometimes deprived men of the benefit of the

c them] him



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 155

act of oblivion, was thought to be without justice, 1662.
or which to them was worse, to be without any""
kindness to the king's party. And without ques-
tion, upon those motives, or others as unreasonable,
many acts were passed of very ill example, and
which many men were scandalized at in the pre-
sent, and posterity will more censure hereafter,
when infants who were then unborn shall find
themselves disinherited of those estates, which their
ancestors had carefully provided should descend to
them ; upon which irregularities the king made re-
flection when he made the session.

But notwithstanding all these incongruities, and The pariia-

, . ,. . . -i i 111 i ment pro-

the indispositions which attended them, they per- ceeds with
formed all those respects towards the king, which
he did or could expect from them ; there being king
scarce a man, who opposed the granting any thing
that was proposed for the benefit of his majesty, or
the greatness of the crown : and though some of
the particulars mentioned before did sometimes in-
tervene, to hinder and defer the present resolutions
and conclusions in those counsels, the resolutions
and conclusions in a short time after succeeded ac-
cording to the king's wish. The militia and many
other regalities were declared and settled according
to the original sense of the law, and the authority
of the crown vindicated to the height it had been at
upon the heads of the greatest kings who had ever
reigned in the nation. Monies were raised by seve-
ral bills, sufficient as they conceived to have paid
all the debts the king or the kingdom owed ; for in
their computations they comprehended the debts
that were owing before his majesty's return, and for
which the public faith had been engaged : and if as



156 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

1662. much had been paid as they conceived they had
""given, probably it might have been enough to have
discharged all those. They settled a constant re-
venue upon the crown, which according to the esti-
mate they made would amount to the yearly re-
venue of twelve hundred thousand pounds, a pro-
portion double to what it was in the reign of queen
Elizabeth, and it may be of any king preceding ;
and declared, " that if it did not amount to that full
" value, they would supply it at another meeting. "
And though it hath not in truth amounted to that
sum in his majesty's receipts, the parliament hath
imputed it rather to ill managery, and letting farms
at too easy rates, than to an error in their computa-
tion. For the present, it was looked upon by the
king and by his ministers as answerable to his ex-
pectation. And so, upon notice of the queen's
being upon the coast, and afterwards of her arrival
at Portsmouth, the king appointed the houses to
present all their bills to him upon the nineteenth of
May for his royal assent, it being few days above a
year from the time of their being first convened.

When the king came to the parliament, and they
had presented the great number of bills which they
had prepared, and after he had given his royal as-
The king's sent to most of them, his majesty told them, " that
" h tnou ght there had been very few sessions of
parliament, in which there had been so many bills,
" as he had passed that day : he was confident.
" never so many private bills, which he hoped they
" would not draw into example. It was true," he
said, " the late ill times had driven men into great
" straits, and might have obliged them to make
" conveyances colourably, to avoid inconveniences,



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 157

" and yet not afterwards to be avoided ; and men j 662.
" had gotten estates by new and greater frauds than
" had been heretofore practised ; and therefore in
" this conjuncture extraordinary remedies might be
" necessary; which had induced him to comply
" with their advice in passing those bills : but he
" prayed them that this should be rarely done here-
" after : that the good old rules of the law are the
" best security ; and he wished that men might not
" have too much cause to fear, that the settlements
" which they make of their estates shall be too ea-
" sily unsettled when they are dead by the power
" of parliament. "

He said, " they had too much obliged him, not
" only in the matter of those bills which concerned
" his revenue, but in the manner of passing them,
" with so great affection and kindness, that he knew
" not how to thank them enough. He did assure
" them, and prayed them to assure their friends in
*' the country, that he would apply all that they had
" given to him, to the utmost improvement of the
" peace and happiness of the kingdom ; and that he
" would, with the best advice and good husbandry
" he could, bring his own expenses within a nar-
" rower compass. " And he said, " now he was
" speaking to them of his own good husbandry, he
" must tell them, that would not be enough ; he
" could not but observe, that the whole nation
" seemed to him a little corrupted in their excess
" of living. All men spend much more in their
" clothes, in their diet, in all their expenses, than
" they had used to do. He hoped it had only been
" the excess of joy after so long sufferings, that had
" transported him and them to those other ex-



158 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

1662. " cesses; but," he desired them, "vthat they might
~ " all take heed that the continuance of them did not
" indeed corrupt their natures. He did believe that
" he had been that way very faulty himself: he
" promised that he would reform, and that if they
"would join with him in their several capacities,
" they would by their examples do more good, both
" in city and country, than any new laws would
" do. " He said many other good things that pleased
them, and no doubt he intended all he said ; but the
ways and expedients towards good husbandry were
no where pursued.
The chan. The chancellor, by the king's command, enlarged

cellor's "

speech. upon " the general murmurs upon the expense, and
" that it should so much exceed all former times. "
He put them in mind, " how the crown had been
" used since those times, how the king had found it
" at his blessed return : that as soon as he came hi-
" ther, besides the infinite sums that he forgave, he
" gave more money to the people than he had since
" received from them," (he meant, I suppose, the
release of all the rents, debts, and receipts which
were due to him ;) " that at least two parts of three
" that they had since given him had issued for the
" disbanding of armies never raised by him, and for
" payment of fleets never sent out by him, and of
" debts never incurred by him. " He put them in
mind " of the vast disparity between the former
" times and these in which they now lived, and
" consequently of d the disproportion in the expense
" the crown was now at, for the protection and be-
" nefit of the subject, to what it formerly under-

' of] in



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 159

" went. How great a difference there was in the 15(52.

" present greatness and power of the two crowns,

" and what they had been then possessed of, was
" evident to all men ; and if the greatness and power
" of the crown of England should not be in some
" proportion improved too, it might be liable to in-
" conveniences it would not undergo alone. How
" our neighbours and our rivals, who court one and
" the same mistress, trade and commerce, with all
" the world, are advanced in shipping, power, and
" an immoderate desire to engross the whole traffick
" of the universe, was notorious enough ; and that
" this unruly appetite would not be restrained or
" disappointed, nor the trade of the nation be sup-
" ported and maintained, with the same fleets and
tf forces which had been maintained in the happy
" times of queen Elizabeth. He needed not speak
" of the naval power of the Turks, who, instead of
" sculking abroad in poor single ships as they were
" wont to do, domineer now on the ocean in strong
" fleets, make naval fights, and had brought some
" Christians to a better correspondence, and another
" kind of commerce and traffick with them, than was
" expected," (for at that time the Dutch had made a
low and dishonourable peace with the pirates of Al-
giers and Tunis :) " insomuch as they apprehend no
" enemy upon the sea, but what they find in the
" king of England's ships, which had indeed brought
*' no small damage upon them, with no small charge
" to the king, but a great reputation to the nation.

" He did assure them, that the charge the crown
" was then at, by sea and land, for the peace and
" security and wealth and honour of the nation,
" amounted to no less than eight hundred thousand



160 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

1 662. " pounds in the year ; all which did not cost the
~ " crown before the late troubles fourscore thousand
" pounds the year : and therefore that nobody could
" blame them for any supply they had given, or
" addition they had made to the revenue of the
" crown. " He told them, " that the new acquisi-
" tions of Dunkirk, Mardike, Tangier, Jamaica, and
" Bombayne, ought to be looked upon as jewels of
" an immense magnitude in the royal diadem ; and
" though they were of present expense, they were
" like in a short time, with God's blessing, to bring
" vast advantages to the trade, navigation, wealth.
" and honour of the king and kingdom. His ma-
" jesty had enough expressed his desire to live in a
" perfect peace and amity with all his neighbours ;
" nor was it an ill ingredient towards the firmness
" and stability of that peace and amity which his
" royal ancestors had held with them, that he hath
" some advantages in case of a war, which they were
The pariia- " without. " The same day the parliament was pro-
rogued P . r ~ rogued to the eighteenth day of February following.
It was about the end of May, when the queen
came to Hampton-court. The earl of Sandwich,
after he had reduced those of Algiers and Tunis to
good conditions, went to Tangier, which was to be
delivered to him before he was to go to Lisbon for
The eari of the reception of the queen : and delivered to him it

Sandwich . .

takes pos- was, though by an accident that might have caused
Tangier! it to be delivered into another hand. There was
never the least doubt, but that the queen regent did
resolve religiously to perform all the conditions on
the part of Portugal ; and the government was yet
in her hands. But the king growing towards his
majority, and of a nature not like to comply long



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 161

with his mother's advice; factions began likewise to 1G62.
grow in that court. The delivery of Tangier, and "~
into the hands of heretics, was much murmured at ;
as like more to irritate the pope, who did already
carry himself towards them very unlike a common
father, notwithstanding the powerful interposition
of France, which, upon the peace lately made be-
tween the two crowns, was already ceased : so that
they now apprehended, that this new provocation
would give some excuse to the court of Rome, to
comply more severely with the importunities from
Spain, which likewise upon this occasion they were
sure would be renewed with all possible instance.
And though the queen had lately sent a governor
to Tangier, whom she therefore made choice of, as
a man devoted to her, and who would obey her
commands in the delivery of this place ; yet it is
certain, he went thither with a contrary resolution.

Very few days before the earl of Sandwich came A desi s n of

. not giving

thither, the governor marched out with all the it up to him.
horse and above half the foot of the garrison into
the country, and fell into an ambush of the Moors,
who being much more numerous cut off the whole
party : and so the governor with so many of the
chief officers and soldiers being killed, the town was
left so weak, that if the Moors had pursued their
advantage with such numbers as they might, and
did intend within few days to bring with them, they
would have been able to have made little resistance.
And the earl of Sandwich coming happily thither
in that conjuncture, it e was delivered into his hands,
who convoyed the remainder of the garrison into

e it] Omitted in MS.
VOL. II. M



162 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

1662. Portugal, where they were like to be stoned by the
~ people ; and then, having put a good garrison of
horse and foot which were sent from England into
it, he delivered it up to the earl of Peterborough,
who had a commission from the king to be governor
thereof; and himself with the fleet sailed to Lisbon,
where he had been long expected, and found his
house and equipage ready, he being then to appear
in the quality of extraordinary ambassador to de-
mand the queen.
He comes His arrival there happened likewise in a very

to Lisbon in , . _ .

a critical happy conjuncture ; for the Spanish army, stronger
ture. un than it had been before, was upon its march to be-
siege a seaport town, which lay so near Lisbon, that
being in the enemy's hands it f would very much
have infested their whole trade, and was not strong
enough long to have resisted so powerful an enemy.
But upon the fame of the English fleet's arrival,
the Spaniard gave over that design, and retired :
since as it was impossible that they should be able
to take that place, which the fleet was so ready to
relieve ; so they knew not but that the English
might make a descent into their own quarters,
which kept them from engaging before any other
town. But the alarum the march of that army had
given had so much disturbed Portugal, which never
keep their whole forces on foot, but draw them to-
gether upon such emergent occasions; that they
were compelled to make use of most of that money,
which they said had been laid up and should be kept
for the payment of the queen's portion, which was
to be transported with her into England.

1 it] Not in MS.



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 163

Whereupon, after the ambassador had been re- 1662.
ceived with all possible demonstration of respect and ~
public joy, and had had his solemn audience from
the king and from the queen regent and the queen
his mistress ; and some English gentlemen of quality,
who were sent by the king, were admitted to those
places of attendance about the queen, to which his
majesty had assigned them : the queen mother, with
infinite apologies, told the ambassador, " that the The Portu.
" straits and poverty of the kingdom were & so great
" upon the late advance of the Spanish army, that
" there could at this present be only paid one half
" of the queen's portion, and that the other half
" should infallibly be paid within a year, with which
" she hoped the king her brother would be satisfied;
" and that for the better doing it, she resolved to
" send back the same ambassador, who had brought
" so good a work with God's blessing to so good an
" end, with her daughter to the king. "

The earl of Sandwich was much perplexed, nor
did easily resolve what he was to do. His instruc-
tions were to receive the whole portion, which he
knew the king expected, and which they were not
able to pay. He had already received Tangier, and
left a strong garrison in it, and had neither author-
ity to restore it, nor wherewithal to carry back the
men. And at last, after he had used all the means
to have the whole paid, and was so fully informed,
that he did in truth believe that they could do no
more, he resolved that he would receive the queen
aboard the fleet. That which they were ready to
deliver for half the portion was not in money, but

^ were] was
M 2



CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

1662. to be made up by jewels, sugar, and other commo-
""dities, which should not be overvalued. The am-
bassador was contented to give his receipt for the
several species of the money they would deliver,
leaving the value to be computed in England ; but
expressly refused to accept the jewels, sugar, and
merchandises at any rates or prices ; but was con-
tented to receive them on board the ships, and to
deliver them in specie at London to any person who
should be appointed by them to receive them, who
should be obliged to pay the money they were va-
lued at h , and to make up the whole sum that should
be paid to the king for the moiety. In conclusion,
all things were delivered on board the ships ; and
Diego Silvas, a Jew of great wealth and full credit
at Amsterdam, was sent with it, and obliged to
make even the account with the king's ministers at
London, and to pay what should remain due. And
a new obligation was entered into by the crown of
Portugal, for the payment of the other moiety with-
in the space of a year. And the queen with all her
court and retinue were embarked on board the fleet ;
and without any ill accidents her majesty arrived
The queen safely at Portsmouth : and having rested only three
England" or four days there, to recover the indisposition con-
tracted in so long a voyage at sea, her majesty/to-
gether with the king, came to Hampton-court at
the time mentioned before, the twenty-ninth of
May, the king's birthday, full two years after his
majesty's return and entering London.
Endeavours However the public joy of the kingdom was very

used to all- J . J J

enate the manifest upon this conjunction, yet in a short time

11 at] Not in MS.



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 165

there appeared not that serenity in the court that 1662.
was expected. They who had formerly endeavoured king , s affec .
to prevent it. used ever after all the ill arts they t ! ons from

* the queen.

could to make it disagreeable, and to alienate the
king's affection from the queen to such a degree,
that it might never be in her power to prevail with
him to their disadvantage ; an effect they had reason
to expect from any notable interest she might gain in
his affections, since she could not be uninformed by
the ambassador of the disservice they had formerly
endeavoured to do her.

There was a lady of youth and beauty, with Somecir -

. . . cumstances

whom the king had lived in great and notonous fa-thatcontri-
miliarity from the time of his coming into England,
and who, at the time of the queen's coming, or a
little before, had been delivered of a son whom the them
king owned. And as that amour had been generally
taken notice of, to the lessening of the good reputa-
tion the king had with the people ; so it underwent
the less reproach from the king's being young, vi-
gorous, and in his full strength ; and upon a full
presumption that when he should be married, he
would contain himself within the strict bounds of
virtue and conscience. And that his majesty him-
self had that firm resolution, there want not many
arguments, as well from the excellent temper and
justice of his own nature, as from the professions he
had made with some solemnity to persons who were
believed to have much credit, and who had not failed
to do their, duty, in putting him in mind " of the
" infinite obligations he had to God Almighty, and
" that he expected another kind of return from him,
" in the purity of mind and integrity of life :" of
which his majesty was piously sensible, albeit there

M 3



166 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

1662. was all possible pains taken by that company which
~ were admitted to his hours of pleasure, to divert
and corrupt all those impressions and principles,
which his own conscience and reverent esteem of
Providence did suggest to him ; turning all discourse
and mention of religion into ridicule, as if it were
only an invention of divines to impose upon men of
parts, and to restrain them from the Liberty and use
of those faculties which God and nature had given
them, that they might be subject to their reproofs
and determinations ; which kind of license was not
grateful to the king, and therefore warily and acci-
dentally used by those who had pleasant wit, and in
whose company he took too much delight.

The queen had beauty and wit enough to make
herself very agreeable to him ; and it is very cer-
tain, that at their first meeting, and for some time
after, the king had very good satisfaction in her, and
without doubt made very good resolutions within
himself, and promised himself a happy and an in-
nocent life in her company, without any such uxori-
ousness, as might draw the reputation upon him of
being governed by his wife, of which he had ob-
served or been too largely informed of some incon-
venient effects in the fortune of some of his nearest
friends, and had long protested against such a re-
signation ; though they who knew him well, did
not think him so much superior to such a conde-
scension, but that if the queen had had that craft
and address and dexterity that some former queens
had, she might have prevailed as far by degrees as
they had done. But the truth is, though she was
of years enough to have had more experience of the
world, and of as much wit as could be wished, and



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 167

of a humour very agreeable at some seasons; yet 1662.
she had been bred, according to the mode and dis-~
cipline of her country, in a monastery, where she
had only seen the women who attended her, and
conversed with the religious who resided there, and
without doubt in her inclinations was enough dis-
posed to have been one of that number. And from
this restraint she was called out to be a great queen,
and to a free conversation in a court that was to be
upon the matter new formed, and reduced from the
manners of a licentious age to the old rules and
limits which had been observed in better times ; and
to which regular and decent conformity the present
disposition of men or women was not enough in-
clined to, submit, nor the king enough disposed to
exact.

There was a numerous family of men and wo-
men that were sent from Portugal, the most improper
to promote that conformity in the queen that was
necessary for her condition and future happiness,
that could be chosen : the women for the most part
old and ugly and proud, incapable of any conversa-
tion with persons of quality and a liberal education.
And they desired 'and indeed had conspired so far
to possess the queen themselves, that she should nei-
ther learn the English language, nor use their habit,
nor depart from the manners and fashions of her
own country in any particulars ; " which resolution,"
they told her, " would be for the dignity of Portu-
" gal, and would quickly induce the English ladies
" to conform to her majesty's practice :" and this
imagination had made that impression, that the
tailor who had been sent into Portugal to make her
clothes, could never be admitted to see her or re-

M 4



168 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

1662. ceive any employment. Nor when she came to
~~ Portsmouth, and found there several ladies of honour
and prime quality to attend her in the places to
which they were assigned by the king, did she re-
ceive any of them, till the king himself came ; nor
then with any grace, or the liberty that belonged to
their places and offices. She could not be persuaded
to be dressed out of the wardrobe that the king had
sent to her, but would wear the clothes which she
had brought, until she found that the king was dis-
pleased, and would be obeyed : whereupon she con-
formed against the advice of her women, who con-
tinued their opiniatrety, without any one of them
receding from their own mode, which exposed them
the more to reproach.

When the queen came to Hampton-court, she
brought with her a formed resolution, that she would
never suffer the lady who was so much spoken of to
be in her presence : and afterwards to those she
would trust she said, *' her mother had enjoined her
" so to do. " On the other hand, the king thought
that he had so well prepared her to give her a civil
reception, that within a day or two after her ma-
jesty's being there, himself led her into her cham-
ber, and presented her to the queen, who received
her with the same grace as she had done the rest ;
there being many lords and other ladies at the same
time there. But whether her majesty in the in-
stant knew who she was, or upon recollection found
it afterwards, she was no sooner sat in her chair, but
her colour changed, and tears gushed out of her
eyes, and her nose bled, and she fainted ; so that
she was forthwith removed into another room, and
all the company retired out of that where she was



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 169

before. And this falling out so notoriously when so 1 662.
many persons were present, the king looked upon it~~
with wonderful indignation, and as an earnest of de-
fiance for the decision of the supremacy and who
should govern, upon which point he was the most
jealous and the most resolute of any man ; and the
answer he received from the queen, which kept up
the obstinacy, displeased him more. Now the
breach of the conditions grew matter of reproach ;
the payment of but half the portion was objected to
the ambassador, who would have been very glad
that the quarrel had been upon no other point. He
knew not what to say or do; the king being of-
fended with him for having said so much in Portu-
gal to provoke the queen, and not instructing her
enough to make her unconcerned in what had been
before her time, and in which she could not reason-
ably be concerned ; and the queen with more indig-
nation reproaching him with the character he had
given of the king, of his virtue and good-nature :
whilst the poor man, not able to endure the tempest
of so much injustice from both, thought it best to
satisfy both by dying ; and from the extreme afflic-
tion of mind which he underwent, he sustained such
a fever as brought him to the brink of his grave, till
some grace from both their majesties contributed
much to the recovery of his spirits.

In the mean time the king forbore her majesty's
company, and sought ease and refreshment in that
jolly company, to which in the evenings he grew
every day more indulgent, and in which there were
some, who desired rather to inflame than pacify his
discontent. And they found an expedient to vindi-
cate his royal jurisdiction, and to make it manifest



170 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

1 662. to the world, that he would not be governed ; which
could never without much artifice have got entrance
into his princely breast, which always entertained
the most tender affections ; nor was ever any man's
nature more remote from thoughts of roughness or
hardheartedness. They magnified the temper and
constitution of his grandfather, who indeed to all
other purposes was a glorious example : " that
" when he was enamoured, and found a return an-
" swerable to his merit, he did not dissemble his
" passion, nor suffered it to be matter of reproach
" to the persons whom he loved ; but made all
" others pay them that respect which he thought
" them worthy of: brought them to the court, and
" obliged his own wife the queen to treat them with
" grace and favour ; gave them the highest titles of
" honour, to draw reverence and application to them
" from all the court and all the kingdom ; raised
" the children he had by them to the reputation,
" state, and degree of princes of the blood, and con-
" ferred fortunes and offices upon them accordingly.
" That his majesty, who inherited the same pas-
" sionSj was without the gratitude and noble incli-
" nation to make returns proportionable to the obli-
" gations he received. That he had, by the charms
" of his person and of his professions, prevailed
" upon the affections and heart of a young and
" beautiful lady of a noble extraction, whose father
" had lost his life in the service of the crown. That
" she had provoked the jealousy and rage of her
" husband to that degree, that he had separated
" himself from her : and now the queen's indigna-
" tion had made the matter so notorious to the
" world, that the disconsolate lady had no place of



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 171

" retreat left, but must be made an object of infamy 1 662.

" and contempt to all her sex, and to the whole

" world. "

Those discourses, together with a little boo"k
newly printed at Paris, according to the license of
that nation, of the amours of Henry IV. which was
by them presented to him, and too concernedly read
by him, made that impression upon his mind, that
he resolved to raise the quality and degree of that
lady, who was married to a private gentleman of a
competent fortune, that had not the ambition to be
a better man than he was born. And that he might
do so, he made her husband an earl of Ireland, who
knew too well the consideration that he paid for it,
and abhorred the brand of such a nobility, and did
not in a long time assume the title. The lady thus
qualified was now made fit for higher preferment :
and the king resolved, for the vindication of her ho-
nour and innocence, that she should be admitted of
the bedchamber of the queen, as the only means to
convince the world, that all aspersions upon her
had been without ground. The king used all the
ways he could, by treating the queen with all ca-
resses, to dispose her to gratify him in this particu-
lar, as a matter in which his honour was concerned
and engaged ; and protested unto her, which at that
time he did intend to observe, " that he had not had
" the least familiarity with her since her majesty's
" arrival, nor would ever after be guilty of it again,
" but would live always with her majesty in all fide-
" lity for conscience sake. " The queen, who was
naturally more transported with choler than her
countenance declared her to be, had not the temper
to entertain him with those discourses, which the



172 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

1662. vivacity of her wit could very plentifully have sug-
~~ gested to her ; but brake out into a torrent of rage,
which increased the former prejudice, confirmed the
king in the resolution he had taken, gave ill people
more credit to mention her disrespectfully, and
more increased his aversion from her company, and,
which was worse, his delight in those, who meant 1
that he should neither love his wife or his business,
or any thing but their conversation.

These domestic indispositions and distempers, and
the impression they made of several kinds upon the
king's spirit and his humour, exceedingly discom-
posed the minds of the gravest and most serious
men ; gave the people generally occasion of speak-
ing loudly, and with a license that the magistrates
knew not how to punish, for the publication of the
scandal : and the wisest men despaired of finding
remedies to apply to the dissoluteness and de-
bauchery of the time, which visibly increased. No
man appeared to suffer or likely to suffer more than
the chancellor, against whom though no particular
person owned a malignity, the congregation of the
witty men for the evening conversation were enough
united against his interest; and thought his in-
fluence upon the king's actions and counsels would
be too much augmented, if the queen came to have
any power, who had a very good opinion of him :
and it is very probable, that even that apprehension
increased the combination against her majesty.

The lady had reason to hate him mortally, well
knowing that there had been an inviolable friend-
ship between her father and him to his death, which

1 who meant] Omitted in MS,



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 173

had been notorious to all men ; and that he was an 1 GG2.
implacable enemy to the power and interest she had
with the king, and had used all the endeavours he
could to destroy it. Yet neither she nor any of the
other adventured to speak ill of him to the king,
who at that time would not have borne it ; except
for wit's sake they sometimes reflected upon some-
what he had said, or acted some of his postures and
manner of speaking, (the skill in mimicry being the
best faculty in wit many of them had;) which
license they practised often towards the king him-
self, and therefore his majesty thought it to be the
more free from malice. But by these liberties,
which at first only raised laughter, they by degrees
got the hardiness to censure both the persons, coun-
sels, and actions of those who were nearest his ma-
jesty's trust, with the highest malice and presump-
tion ; and too often suspended or totally disap-
pointed some resolutions, which had been taken
upon very mature deliberation, and which ought to
have been pursued. But (as hath been said before)
this presumption had not yet come to this length.

The king imparted the trouble and unquietness
of his mind to nobody with equal freedom, as he did
to the chancellor : to him he complained of all the
queen's perverseness and ill humours, and informed
him of all that passed between them, and obliged
him to confer and advise the queen, who, he knew,
looked upon him as a man devoted to her service,
and that he would speak very confidently to her
whatsoever he thought; and therefore gave him
leave to take notice to her of any thing he had told
him. It was too delicate a province for so plain- The chan-
dealing a man as he was to undertake : and yet



174 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

1662. knew not how to refuse it, nor indeed did despair

reconcile totally of being able to do some good, since the

|! ^ ir ma J es - queen was not yet more acquainted with any man

than with him, nor spake so much with any man as

with him ; and he believed, that he might hereby

have opportunity to speak sometimes to the king of

some particulars with more freedom, than otherwise

he could well do, at least more effectually.

He had never heard before of the honour the
king had done that lady, nor of the purpose he had
to make her of his wife's bedchamber. He spake
with great boldness to him upon both ; and did not
believe that the first was proceeded in beyond revo-
cation, because it had not come to the great seal,
and gave him many arguments against it, which he
thought of weight. But upon the other point he
took more liberty, and spake " of the hardhearted-
" ness and cruelty in laying such a command upon
" the queen, which flesh and blood could not comply
" with. " He put him in mind of what he heard
his majesty himself say, upon the like excess which
a neighbour king had lately used, in making his
mistress to live in the court, and in the presence of
the queen : that his majesty had then said, " that it
" was such a piece of ill-nature, that he could never
" be guilty of; and if ever he should be guilty of
" having a mistress after he had a wife, which he
" hoped he should never be, she should never come
" where his wife was ; he would never add that to
" the vexation, of which she would have enough
" without it. " And yet he told him, " that such
" friendships were not new in that other court, nor
" scandalous in that kingdom ; whereas in this it
" was so unheard of and so odious, that a woman



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 175

" who prostituted herself to the king was equally 1662.
" infamous to all women of honour, and must expect ~~
" the same contempt from them, as if she were com-
" mon to mankind : and that no enemy he had
" could advise him a more sure way to lose the
" hearts and affections of the people, of which he
" was now so abundantly possessed, than the in-
" dulging to himself that liberty, now it had pleased
" God to give him a wife worthy of him. That
" the excess he had already used in that and other
" ways had lost him some ground ; but that the con-
" tinuance in them would break the hearts of all his
" friends, and be only grateful to those who wished
" the destruction of monarchy:" and concluded with
" asking his pardon for speaking so plainly," and
besought his majesty to remember " the wonderful
"things which God had done for him, and for which
" he expected other returns than he had yet re-
" ceived. "

The king heard him with patience enough, yet
with those little interruptions which were natural to
him, especially to that part where he had levelled
the mistresses of kings and princes with other lewd
women, at which he expressed some indignation,
being an argument often debated before him by
those, who would have them looked upon above any
other men's k wives. He did not appear displeased
with the liberty he had taken, but said, " he knew it
" proceeded from the affection he had for him ;"
and then proceeded upon the several parts of what
he had said, more volubly than he used to do, as

k men's] Omitted in MS.



176 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

1662. upon points in which he was conversant, and had
~ heard well debated.

To the first, he began with the story of an acci-
dent that had fallen out the day before; he said,
" the lady had then told him, that she did hope
" that the chancellor was not so much her enemy,
" as he was generally reported to be, for she was
" sure he was not guilty of one discourtesy of
" which he had been accused to her, and therefore
" might be as innocent in others ; and then told his
" majesty, that the day before, the earl of Bristol"
(who was never without some reason to engage
himself in such intrigues, and had been a principal
promoter of all those late resolutions) " came to her,
" and asked her whether the patent was not yet
" passed. She answerd, No. He asked if she knew
" the reason ; which she seeming not to do, he told
" her that he came in confidence to tell her, and
" that if she did not quickly curb and overrule such
" presumption, she would often meet it to her pre-
" judice ; then told her a long relation, how the pa-
" tent had been carried to the chancellor prepared
" for the seal, and that he according to his custom
" had superciliously said, that he would first speak
" with the king of it, and that in the mean time it
" should not pass ; and that if she did not make the
" king very sensible of this his insolence, his majesty
" should never be judge of his own bounty. And
" then the lady laughed, and made sharp reflections
" upon the principles of the earl of Bristol," (who had
throughout his life the rare good fortune of being
exceedingly beloved and exceedingly hated by the
same persons, in the space of one month ; and now



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 177

finding that there was a stop of the patent, made a 1662.
very natural guess where it must be, and gratified ~~
his own appetite in the conclusion,) " and pulled
" the warrant out of her pocket, where she said it
" had remained ever since it was signed, and she
" believed the chancellor had never heard of it : she
" was sure there was no patent prepared, and there-
" fore he could not stop it at the seal.