No More Learning

And upon that and the like occasions he had a just
and necessary opportunity to enlarge, in the pre-
sence of many persons of honour and interest in the
kingdom, upon the sincerity of the king's religion,
and his constant exercise of it when he suffered by
it; giving such instances of many particulars as were
pertinent to the discourse : of which endeavours of
his, and of some fruit thereof, he doubted not but
that many of as considerable persons as are in Eng-
land would be ready to give him their testimony.
And, he said, he might without vanity say, that he
had more than an ordinary part in the framing and
promoting that act of parliament, that hath made
those seditious discourses, " of the king's being a

c c 3



390 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF
J 668. papist in his heart, or popishly affected,*' so very



penal as they are*: and therefore there would be
need of an undoubted and uncontrollable evidence,
that he had so soon run into that crime himself.
Which was all he would for the present say upon
that second article.
The third The third article was, " That he had received

article.

" great sums of money for passing the Canary
" patent, and other illegal patents ; and granted
" several injunctions to stop proceedings at law
" against them, and other illegal patents for-
" merly granted. "

His answer. TO which he said, that he had presumed in his
humble address to the house of peers to assure their
lordships, *' that he had never received one penny
" over and above the just perquisites of his office,
" according to the precedents and practice of the
" best times, which he conceived to be those of the
" lord Coventry and the lord Ellesmere ; and which
" he had made his rule in all that he had receiv-
" ed, excepting only what he had from the imme-
" diate bounty of the king. " And as he had always
done all that was in his power to prevent and stop
all illegal patents, so he did believe that there would
be more patents then found in the office, which had
been stopped by him, than by any of his predeces-
sors in so short a time. He never granted any in-
junctions in the cases mentioned in the charge, nor
in any case, where, by the course of the court and
the rules of justice, it was not warranted. And for
the Canary patent, and the original, and all the pro-
ceedings thereupon, so much is said in the body of

1 they are] it is



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 391

this discourse, according to the time it was trans- ltiC8.
acted in a , that there needs no repetition of it in this
place.

The fourth article was, " That he had advised The fourth

article.

" and procured divers of his majesty's sub-
" jects to be imprisoned against law in remote
" islands, garrisons, and other places ; thereby
" to prevent them from the benefit of the law,
" and to introduce precedents for imprison -
" ing of other of his majesty's subjects in like
" manner. "

To which he said, he knew not what answer to His
make to that article, it being so general, and no
particular person being named : but, he said, it was
generally known, that he had never taken it upon
him to commit any man to prison, but such who,
by the course of the chancery, for matters of con-
tempt are justly and necessarily to be committed. It
was probable that he had been present at the coun-
cil-board, when many persons had been ordered to
be committed, and whose commitment hath by the
wisdom of that board been thought just and neces-
sary ; and therefore he was not to answer apart for
any thing done by them. Only he might say, that
he was frequently of opinion that the commitments
were very necessary : and it was notoriously known,
that by such commitments some rebellions or insur-
rections had been prevented ; and that other per-
sons, who were afterwards attainted and executed
for high treason, had upon their examinations and
at their death confessed, that their purpose had been
to rise in arms at such and such times, if their

a Vol. ii. p. 362. &c.
c c 4



392 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

1(568. friends upon whom they had principally relied had
~~ not been then committed to prison. And, he said,
he did well remember, that it was thought fit that
most of the persons who stand attainted for the
murder of the late king, his majesty's royal father,
should be removed out of the Tower, and dispersed
into several islands and garrisons : and if any other
persons had been likewise sent thither, he presumed
it was upon such reasons, as upon a due examination
thereof would make it appear to be very just.
The fifth ar- The fifth article was, " That he had corruptly

" sold several offices contrary to law. "
His answer. This he positively denied.

The sixth The sixth was, " That he had procured his ma-
" jesty's customs to be farmed at underrates,
" knowing the same ; and great pretended
" debts to be paid by his majesty, to the pay-
" ment whereof his majesty was not in strict-
" ness bound ; and that he had received great
" sums of money for procuring the same. "
Hi answer. To this he said, he had never had any thing to
do in the disposing his majesty's customs or any other
part of his revenue, except for some short time
after his majesty's first arrival in England ; when
he, amongst others of the lords of the council, was a
commissioner for the treasury : during which time
there was no farm let of any of the revenue, and the
customs were put into the hand of commissioners, to
the end that a computation might be made as near
as was possible of the full value of them, before that
it should be put into a farm, which every man con-
ceived would be fit to be done as soon as might be.
The white staff was shortly after given to the earl
of Southampton, (to whom his majesty had de-



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 393

signed it before he returned,) and the chancellorship 1 668.
of the exchequer to the lord Ashley, the lord chan-
cellor having resigned it into his majesty's hands,
which he had been possessed of for many years in
the time of the late king, and retained it till after
his majesty's return : and from the time that those
two officers of the revenue were made, which deter-
mined the former commission, he never intermeddled
in the customs, or in any other branch of the re-
venue ; except when the king commanded him to
be present in some consultations which he had with
the lord treasurer, and when there were other lords
of the council present. That excellent person, the
lord treasurer, always resorted to the king for his di-
rection, in all matters of the least difficulty which
occurred to him in the administration of his office ;
and frequently did desire to confer with the chancel-
lor (with whom he was known to have held a long
and a fast friendship) upon many particulars of his
office, believing that he was not altogether ignorant
in that administration, with which he had been for-
merly so well acquainted. And that he conceived
might be the reason, why he did oftentimes procure
him to be joined with him in . references from the
king, upon matters wholly relating to his own
office. But the chancellor did never then suffer
any particular application to be made to him in
those cases, nor had ever secret conferences with
any persons who were concerned in those preten-
sions.

What was meant " by his having procured his
" majesty's customs to be farmed at underrates,
" knowing the same ; and great pretended debts to
" be paid by his majesty, to the payment whereof



394 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

1068. " his majesty was not in strictness bound ;" he said,
he could not imagine, except it did relate to the
payment of a debt due from his late majesty to
some of the fanners. In which though he had no
more to do, than in giving information and his par-
ticular advice to his majesty, in the presence of the
lord treasurer, the chancellor of the exchequer, and
other of the lords, and so was not himself respons-
ible for what his majesty did thereupon ; yet he
thought himself obliged upon this particular, which
so much concerned the honour and justice of the
late king and of his present majesty, to enlarge, and
relate all he knew of what their majesties did, and
what induced his present majesty to do his part in
it.

He said, it was notoriously known, that before
the late troubles, and in the very first entrance into
them, his majesty was necessitated to borrow very
great sums of money from his then farmers of his
customs, and to oblige them to stand personally
bound for many other great sums of money, which
other men lent to his majesty upon their security.
That thereupon^ and for the repayment of those
sums which the farmers had advanced, and for
securing them from any damage for those monies
which others had lent upon their obligations, his
late majesty, with the advice of the then lord trea-
surer and the chancellor of the exchequer, had grant-
ed a further lease of his customs to those farmers for
three or four years to come, after the expiration of
their former lease ; with a covenant on his majesty's
part, to pay the just interest for all such monies as
were advanced by them, or for which they stood
bound ; and likewise that they should, out of their



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 395

growing rent, deduct such sums of money by the 1668.
year, as they had lent or been bound for, according"
to such proportions yearly as was agreed upon.
That it was as well known, that shortly after the
beginning of the parliament in 1640, and before the
commencement of the second lease, the house of
commons did not only force the said farmers to pay
a very great sum of money for their presumption in
receiving customs and impositions upon merchandise
in the former years, when they pretended such pay-
ments were not due ; but took also from them their
new lease granted to them by the king, and so left
them without any capacity of reimbursing them-
selves of the money they had lent, and likewise at
the mercy of their creditors to whom they stood
bound ; many of whom quickly began to exercise
that severity towards them, that many of the poor
gentlemen had their estates extended upon judg-
ments and recognisances, and their persons taken in
execution and committed to prison ; where some of
them who had been known to have great estates, as
sir Paul Pindar and others, were forced to end their
lives.

There were very few circumstances in the late
king's misfortunes, which gave him more trouble, or
so much afflicted him as the sense he had of the hor-
rid and unjust sufferings those poor gentlemen un-
derwent for him, and their affection for his service ;
which he often publicly mentioned, and as often de-
clared, " that he held himself obliged to make them
" full reparation as soon as God should enable him. "
And he frequently spake to the chancellor, who was
then chancellor of the exchequer, of that affair ; of
the good opinion he had of the men, and of the great



3JK) CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

1668. services they had done for his majesty; and com-
~~ manded him expressly, when it should fall within
his power, he should do them all the right he could.
And of this he had often informed his majesty dur-
ing the time he was abroad, and after his return,
without any other motive than his father's command
and his own honour, having himself never had any
degree of friendship with any of the persons con-
cerned, and a very ordinary acquaintance with
some of them. Upon his majesty's happy return,
those gentlemen who were alive of the old farmers,
who were sir John Jacob, sir Job Harby, sir Ni-
cholas Crispe, and sir John Harrison, applied them-
selves to the king, having lain several years and at
that time remaining in execution in several prisons,
and having had their estates sold, upon the prosecu-
tion of those creditors to whom they were bound for
money lent to his majesty.

As soon as measures were taken for collecting the
revenue, those four gentlemen named before, and
two others who had served his majesty very well,
were appointed his commissioners for the collecting
the customs and duties upon trade ; in which collec-
tion they continued a year or thereabouts ; during
which time many of their creditors, who had gene-
rously forbore to prosecute them whilst they were
in prison and undone, begun now to commence their
actions against them, presuming they were then or
would shortly be able to satisfy them. Whereupon
the king commanded the lord treasurer and the
chancellor, with some other lords, to send for those
creditors, and to declare to them, " that his majesty
" would in a short time enable his farmers to pay
" their just debts, which he well knew were con-



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 397

" tracted for his service ; and that he would take it 1G68.
<c very well from them, if they would for the present
" give no obstruction to his service, by the prosecu-
" tion of those persons at law, whose time was
" solely taken up in the necessary service of his ma-
" jesty. " Whereupon they willingly desisted from
that prosecution ; and many of them finding now,
that by his majesty's favour they were like to re-
cover their debts they before thought to be despe-
rate, they frankly remitted the whole or part of
the interest, that in strictness of law was still due
to them.

His majesty shortly after, finding it best for his
profit to determine the collection by commission,
and to let the whole to farm, gave direction to the
lord treasurer to confer and treat with any fit per-
sons who desired to contract for the same. Many
overtures were made by several persons, and some
applied themselves directly to his majesty. Upon
which, and after a competent time in considering all
that had been proposed, the king appointed a day,
when he would be attended by the lord treasurer
and other of the lords, and when all the pretenders
should likewise be present, and he would then and
there declare his own judgment ; having first de-
clared to the commissioners, whereof four were the
old farmers to whom so much money was due, " that
" whosoever should take the farm, they should be
" obliged to pay them their just debt at such times,
" and by such proportions, as their service could
" bear. But as to the letting the farm itself, he
" would neither consider the debt he owed them,
" nor the sufferings they had undergone, but only
. " the rent they should offer ; which if as much as



398 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

1668. " any Ixxly else would give, he would prefer their
~~ " persons taforc others ; but if any other fit men
" would offer more than they thought fit to give,
" they should be his farmers : and therefore wished
" them well to consider what they would propose to
" him. "

After two days spent by his majesty with the se-
veral pretenders apart, and finding that the proposi-
tions made to him by the old farmers, with whom
the other two were to be joined who had served
with them as commissioners, were at least as much
if not more for his profit than any that had been
made by any of the rest ; he did declare, that the
farm should be let to those who had been his com-
missioners : which at that time was understood to
be so far from being a good bargain, that the two
commissioners, who were not concerned in the great
debt, utterly refused to meddle with the farm at so
great a rent ; the other four publicly declaring at
the same time, " that they would not give the rent
" but in contemplation of their debt, which they
" thought they should sooner and better receive,
" when it should be assigned upon their own collec-
" tions, than when it should be charged upon new
" farmers. " But they were suitors to his majesty,
" that he would oblige the other two (sir John Wol-
'* stenholme and sir John Shaw) to be joint farmers
" with them ;" which his majesty did, by making
a gracious promise to them, " that if they should be
" losers, he would repair them :" and thereupon di-
rections were given to Mr. Attorney General to pre-
pare a grant accordingly. And, he said, he did not
know that there was one dissenting voice from what
his majesty inclined to do upon the whole matter,



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 399

the same appearing to every man to be most just 1G68.
and reasonable.

The farm being thus settled, the old farmers were
directed " to bring their accounts to the lord trea-
" surer and chancellor of the exchequer, by which it
" should manifestly appear how much the king was
" justly and truly indebted to them, and how the
" debts were incurred ; that so upon a just compu-
" tation such satisfaction might be made to them, as
" was consistent with the present state of his ma-
" jesty's affairs and occasions. " Many months, if
not a whole year, were spent in the examination of
those accounts before the auditors : who, besides the
exceptions they took for want of some formalities in
the proof of some money paid, which after twenty
years of license (in which all their books and papers
had been taken, their houses plundered, and their
persons imprisoned ; and in which so many persons
employed by the king to receive and by them to
pay money were dead) could hardly be made with
the usual exactness ; made likewise several certifi-
cates of particular cases, which required further di-
rections. And the lord treasurer would never take
upon himself to give those directions, only declaring
to them, as he had frequently done, " that in regard
" his majesty was not strictly bound in justice to
" pay that debt due from his father, but that his
" present majesty's generous and royal disposition
" had prevailed with him to pay that just debt,
" whereby they might be preserved from ruin, in
" which," he said, " he had fully concurred with his
" majesty ; but that he would never advise him, on
" the contrary he would always dissuade his majesty
" from paying or allowing any interest, though paid



k)0 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

1G68. " by them, which would swell the debt to such a
~ " pro}>ortion, that his majesty could never undertake
" the payment of it. " Which determination, how
great soever their loss appeared to be, seemed to be
so just, at least so necessary for the king, that they
wholly referred it to his majesty ; hoping that it
might prevail with many of their creditors not to
exact it from them, though the sale of their whole
estates had made satisfaction to others for the whole
interest, as well as for the principal.

When the auditors' certificate was ready, and all
the doubts and questions that did arise thereupon
were clearly stated, his majesty vouchsafed again to
be present with the other lords, who. had from the
beginning assisted in the examination of that busi-
ness : and then the lord treasurer declared to his
majesty, what he had before said to the persons
concerned, " that b though he willingly approved his
" majesty's goodness in taking upon himself that
" great debt, yet that he would by no means give
" his advice or consent that he should pay or allow
" any interest for it. "

Upon the whole matter, and upon all the doubts
stated to his majesty, and after the rejection of se-
veral of the sums of money which were demanded
by them, and for the payment whereof such direct
proof is not made as is required by the course of the
exchequer, (though, he said, he thought most per-
sons who were present were in their private con-
sciences well satisfied, that those sums had been in
truth paid to his majesty's use, as had been alleged;)
there appeared to his majesty to be justly due to

l> that] and



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 401

them the sum of two hundred thousand pounds, 1GG8.
principal-money, for almost twenty years, and for
which they had paid the interest for many years
out of their own estates. And his majesty thought
it very just ; and, with many gracious expressions
of his purpose and resolution further to repair them
as he should be able, gave order to the lord trea-
surer, " that the said debt of two hundred thousand
" pounds should be paid to them in five years, that
" is, by forty thousand pounds for every year, out
" of the rent of the farm ; and that all instruments
" necessary for their satisfaction and security should
" be presently given to them, whereby they might
" be able to comply with their creditors, and avoid
" their importunity," wherewith his majesty begun
to be troubled as much as themselves.

He did confess himself to have been present at
those agitations, and to have contributed his humble
advice and opinion to his majesty that he should
pay this debt ; which he thought himself obliged to
da, as well as a faithful counsellor to his present
majesty, as in discharge of his duty and obligation
to his father. And, he said, he had very good rea-
son to believe, that if that two hundred thousand
pounds be paid according to his majesty's direction,
and of which the heirs and executors of those farm-
ers who are dead, as well as the four present farmers,
have their equal proportions ; the said persons have
not at this day half the estates they had in the year
1640, when they entered into those engagements
for his majesty. Nor was there any one person pre-
sent at the agitation of this affair, who seemed in
the least degree to differ in the opinion, or to dis-

VOL. in. D d



402 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

1668. suade his majesty from giving that satisfaction for
~ that debt.

He said, he did likewise very willingly confess,
that he had in the manner aforesaid, and being
called to advise, given his opinion for the payment
of many other considerable debts incurred by his
late majesty, and for which many persons of honour,
who adhered to him during that war, were person-
ally bound for him, and whose estates had been ex-
tended and their persons imprisoned for the same;
many of whom were in execution and in prison for
the same when his majesty returned, and others
were then sued in Westminster-hall, in his ma-
jesty's own courts. His late majesty having granted
under his great seal of England, to several persons
intrusted for the rest, many of his forests, parks, and
other lands, for their security and indemnity who
were or should stand bound for him, for money that
was then borrowed for and applied to the necessary
support of himself and his army, and to no other
purpose ; in c that grant he had been particularly
trusted, as well by the desire of the persons parti-
cularly concerned, as by his majesty's command to
be solicitous for their satisfaction. And he did not
deny, that he was never more glad d , than when he
was able to procure satisfaction for those persons
who were so bound and so secured ; nor more trou-
bled, than that he could do no more, than that there
remained still so many unsatisfied, and almost un-
done, for those debts so contracted ; of which num-
ber he believed there were still too many.

c in] and in d never more glad] very glad



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 403
/

But having made those clear confessions of what 1 608.
was truth, and what he did do in those transactions, ~~
he said, he must as positively deny, that ever he
procured or advised the letting his majesty's cus-
toms, or any other part of his revenue, at underrates:
on the contrary, that he used all the ways he could
to advance the rents, without respect of persons;
and that he was never present at the letting any
farm that any men would have given more for, than
they did to whom it was let, what offers soever
were made afterwards, when his majesty himself
had made a contract, and when a grant was issued
accordingly under the great seal of England. And
he did as positively deny, that ever he received or
expected the least sum of money, or money-worth,
for any lease made by his majesty of his customs, or
any other part of his revenue ; or for the payment
of any one debt made by his majesty, to which he
was or was not bound : he having, he said, never
had any other motive for the performance of those
offices, but the pure and entire consideration of his
majesty's honour, justice, and profit, and his own in-
clination to gratify worthy persons, who in justice
ought to be or might with justice be gratified and
obliged, and who had commonly been such persons
to whom he had had no kind of obligation.

The seventh article was, " That he had received The seventh

article.

" great sums of money from the company of
" vintners, or some of them or their agents, for
" enhancing the prices of wines, and for free-
" ing them from the payment of legal penalties
" which they had incurred. "

He said, if he had been in the least degree guilty His answer.
of that charge, it would very easily have been

D d 2



404 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

1668. proved; and the vintners would very gladly have
~~ helped them in it, being persons who never thought
themselves beholden to him, and so not obliged to
conceal any of his corruptions. They well knew,
that he could never be prevailed with to consent to
the enhancing the prices of their wines, and that
he never had received from them the least sum of
money, or other gratuity from them, in his life.
He said, he did remember, that at a time when his
majesty had refused to grant all their other petitions,
the company of vintners did complain, " that there
" were so many informations against them prose-
" cuted by informers in the exchequer, that they
** must give over their trades, and be likewise un-
" done, if they, should be severely pursued for what
" was past:" and therefore they besought his ma-
jesty in council, " that he would pardon what was
" past ; and that for the future they would trespass
" no more. " Whereupon his majesty thought it
worthy of his mercy to shelter them for the present
from that prosecution ; and thereupon commanded
his attorney general " to call the informers before
" him, and to appoint the vintners to pay them such
" reasonable rewards for their pains as he thought
" fit ; and thereupon he should enter a noli prose-
" qui :" but his majesty charged them " for the fu-
" ture not to run into the same danger. " And as
this grace from his majesty was not upon his pro-
motion, but purely from his own bounty and good-
ness, from which nobody dissuaded him ; so he never
received the least profit from the same.
The eighth The eighth is, " That he had in a short time

article.

" gained to himself a far greater estate than
" can be imagined to be lawfully gained in so



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 405

"short a time; and contrary to his oath he 1668.
" had procured several grants under the great *~
" seal from his majesty, to himself and to his
" relations, of several of his majesty's lands, he-
" reditaments, and leases, to the disprofit of
" his majesty. "

To this he said, that he wished with all his heart His answer.
that the truth of that article (which he presumed
had drawn on all the rest) were clearly known to
all the world : and that they, who in truth do be-
lieve that he hath so great an estate, were well in-
formed what it is ; and they would then clearly
discern that he needed not be ashamed of having
gotten such an estate, nor that he needed to have
any recourse to any ill arts or means for the obtain-
ing thereof. They would know, that he had been
so far from " procuring several grants under the
" great seal of England from his majesty, to himself
" and his relations, of several of his majesty's lands,
" hereditaments, and leases, to the disprofit of his
" majesty ;" that he never moved his majesty in his
life for any one grant to himself or any of his rela-
tions. If his majesty's royal bounty had disposed
him to confer somewhat of benefit and advantage
upon an old servant, who had waited upon his father
and himself near thirty years in some trust and em-
ployment ; he said, he hoped it should not be im-
puted as a crime in him to receive his favours. He
was far from believing or imagining, that the poor
services he had ever done, or could do, were in any
degree proportionable to his majesty's bounty : yet
since his majesty's goodness had thought him fit for
it, he hoped many others would think so too; at
least as fit as some men, who had received greater

D d 3



406 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

1668. marks and proportions of it than he had done, and
~~ who, though they might serve much better, had not
served so long.

He said, he forbore to enlarge upon that charge,
because he conceived that it was now evident to
many, who had been wrought upon by those who
did not believe it themselves, to think his estate to
be very great, that the information they received
was without ground : and whoever considers, that
the first year after the king's return yielded justly
more profit to the great seal than he ever received
in all the years following, and some particular acts
of bounty conferred on him by his majesty, without
the least suit from him, and unthought of by him,
will believe that his fault was greater in having no
better an estate, than that what he hath hath been
gotten by corruption. He said, he hath none of his
majesty's lands, but what he had bought, for as much
as any body would pay for it, of those who had the
same granted to them by his majesty's bounty, and
that grant confirmed to them by act of parliament.
And he presumed that it could not have fallen from
his majesty's memory, and was sure was well known
to some persons of honour yet alive, that when his
majesty was graciously pleased, upon his first coming
over, to offer him some land that had never yielded
any thing to the crown, he absolutely refused to re-
ceive it, because it was generally thought to be of
great value ; and therefore he would not expose him-
self to the envy which naturally attends those dona-
tions, having in truth never had an immoderate
appetite to make haste to be rich ; and had as much
apprehended the being accused of witchcraft or bur-
glary, as of bribery and corruption.



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 407

In a word; he did declare, that, his debts being 1668.
discharged, for which he paid interest, all his estate"
was not worth, being sold, the money that he had
received from his majesty's own royal bounty, and
far from being suitable to the quality he yet held,
and which was never obtained by his own ambition,
as many persons of honour could testify.

The ninth article was, " That he had introduced The ninth

. . . _ article.

" an arbitrary government in his majesty s to*
" reign plantations ; and had caused such as
" complained thereof before his majesty and
" his council, to be long imprisoned for so
" doing. "

To this he said, that though he could not possibly HIS answei
comprehend the full meaning of that article, yet
because he had heard of many discourses made of
the authority that he assumed to himself over the
plantations, and the great advantage and benefit
that he had drawn to himself from thence, he was
very willing to take that occasion to relate all that
he knew, and all that he had done, with reference
to any of his majesty's plantations ; declaring in the
first place, that at his majesty's return, and before,
he had used all the endeavours he could to prepare
and dispose the king to a great esteem of his planta-
tions, and to encourage the improvement of them
by all the ways that could reasonably be proposed
to him. And he had been confirmed in that opinion
and desire, as soon as he had a view of the entries
in the custom-house ; by which lie found what a
great revenue accrued to the king from those planta-
tions, insomuch as the receipts from thence had
upon the matter repaired the decrease and diminu-
tion of the customs, which the late troubles had

D d 4



408 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

1668. brought upon other parts of trade, from what it had
~ formerly yielded.

The first consideration that offered itself before
the king that related to the plantations, was con-
cerning the Barbadoes ; which having been most
discoursed of since, and, as he had heard, with some
reflections upon him of partiality and injustice, he
said, he would in the first place set down all he
knew in that affair, and how he came to meddle

in it.

Before the beginning of the late troubles, the king
had granted the island of the Barbadoes to the earl
of Carlisle and his heirs for ever, upon a supposition
that it had been first discovered, possessed, and
planted at his charge : and the said earl sent a go-
vernor and people thither, and enjoyed it to his
death ; and by his will settled it for the payment of
his debts, which were very great. The troubles fall-
ing out in a short time after, little or no profit had
been drawn from thence towards the satisfaction of
those debts ; and the executors and trustees totally
neglected the taking care of it, or prosecuting the
plantation. But in and after the war many citi-
zens, merchants, and gentlemen, who were willing
or forced to withdraw themselves from England,
transported themselves thither, and planted without
asking any body's leave, and without being opposed
or contradicted by any body.

About the year 1647, or thereabouts, the late
earl of Carlisle, son and heir of the former earl
to whom the inheritance of that island belonged,
treated with the late lord Willoughby of Parham,
how that island might be so husbanded, that the
plantation might be advanced, and profit made by



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 409

it; which would at last redound to himself, when 1668.
the debt should be paid. The late king was then ~~
in the hands of the army : and with his majesty's
approbation and consent, it was agreed between the
said earl and the said lord, " that a lease should be
" made by the earl of Carlisle to the lord Willough-
" by, of all the profits which should arise out of that
" plantation, for the term of twenty-one years or
" thereabouts ; a moiety of the whole profits to be
" received by the lord Willoughby himself for his
" own use, in recompense for his pains and charge.
" And he was likewise to receive a commission from
" the said earl, to be governor of that and the rest
" of the Caribbee islands," (all which were compre-
hended in the charter granted by the king to the
earl of Carlisle;) "and that a commission should be
" likewise procured from the king or the prince of
" Wales, by which the lord Willoughby was to be
" constituted governor of the said islands. "

About that time the fleet in the Downs returned
to their obedience to the king, withdrawing them-
selves to the coast of Holland to offer their service
to the prince of Wales, his majesty that now is ; the
lord Willoughby then likewise coming over to him,
to serve him in any condition his highness would
employ him in. That summer being passed without
any good success, the lord Willoughby then inform-
ed the prince of what had passed between the earl
of Carlisle and him with the king his father's con-
sent ; which his highness had likewise received
from his majesty himself, with much recommenda-
tion of the lord Willoughby. He said, he was then
attending upon the prince in Holland, as one of the
king's council assigned by his majesty for that ser-



410 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

1668. vice. Upon the understanding this whole case, the
" prince, upon the unanimous advice of the council,
thought fit to grant such a commission of governor
of the Barbadoes and the other islands, as he de-
sired : and he had the more reason to desire it, (not-
withstanding the earl of Carlisle's grant and commis-
sion,) because the principal planters upon the Barlm-
does had been officers in the king's army, or of ma-
nifest affections to him, and always looked upon as
of his party.

With this commission the lord Willoughby had,
at his great charge and expense, transported him-
self to the Barbadoes, and was there received as go-
vernor ; and made a contract with the planters,
" that so much should be paid upon the hundred to
" the earl of Carlisle," to whom the propriety of the
whole belonged. But before this agreement could
be well executed, or any profit drawn from thence,
the island was reduced to the obedience of the par-
liament and of Cromwell, and a governor appointed
by them ; the lord Willoughby being sent into Eng-
land, where he remained till the king's return, and
had given unquestionable evidence of his affection
to the king's service, for which he had often been
committed to prison before and after Cromwell's
death.

As soon as the king returned, the lord Willoughby
(who had then eight or nine years to come of his
lease formerly granted to him by the earl of Carlisle,
who was then likewise living, and ready to do any
other act to the lord Willoughby's advantage) re-
solved to return himself to the Barbadoes, and de-
sired the king to renew his commission to him for
the government ; which his majesty was very will-



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 411

ing to do, as to a person he esteemed very much, 1668.
and who had spent very much of his own fortune, as ~
was notoriously known, in that service. But the
Barbadoes and all those other islands were now be-
come of another consideration and value, than they
had been of before the troubles : the Barbadoes it-
self was (by that confluence and resort thither as
was mentioned before) so fully planted, that there
was no room for new comers, and they had sent
very many of their people to the other islands to
plant ; many citizens of London had raised very
great estates there, and every year received a very
great revenue from thence ; and e the king's customs
from that one island came to a very great sum of
money yearly.

All these men, who f had entered upon that plant-
ation as a waste place, and had with great charge
brought it to that perfection, and with great trouble,
begun now to apprehend, that they must depend
upon the good-will of the earl of Carlisle and lord
Willoughby for the enjoyment of their estates there,
which they had hitherto looked upon as their own.
All these men joined together in an appeal to the
king, arid humbly prayed " his protection, and that
" they might not be oppressed by those two lords. "
They pleaded, " that they were the king's subjects ;
" that they had repaired thither as to a desolate
" place, and had by their industry obtained a liveli-
" hood there, when they could not with a good con-
" science stay in England. That if they should be
*' now left to those lords to ransom themselves and
" compound for their estates, they must leave the

e and] Not in MS. f who] Not in MS.



418 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

1668. "country; and the plantation would be destroyed,
~" which yielded his majesty so good a revenue.
** That they could defend themselves by law against
** the earl of Carlisle's title, if his majesty did not
" countenance it by a new grant of the government
" to the lord Willoughby : and therefore they were
" suitors to his majesty, that he would not s destroy
" them by that countenance. "

At the same time, the creditors of the late earl
of Carlisle (whose debts were to be satisfied by the
profits of that plantation, by the will and settlement
of the said earl) petitioned the king, " that they
" might be in the first place provided for : their
" principal-money due to them at the death of the
" earl amounted to no less than fifty thousand
" pounds, of which they had never yet received one
" penny; and therefore that the profits which should
" arise ought in the first place to be applied to them,
" there having been many families utterly ruined for
" want of their monies so due to them. " The king
appointed to hear all their several pretences at the
council-board, where they all attended with their
council : and after his majesty had spent three or four
days himself in hearing the several allegations, find-
ing 11 new pretences and difficulties every day to arise,
(which shall be mentioned anon,) the king appointed
several of the lords of the council " to consider of
" the whole matter, and to confer with the several
" parties, and, if it were possible, to make an end
" between them by their own consent ; otherwise
" to report the several titles to his majesty, with
" such expedients as in their judgments they thought

not] Omitted in MS. h finding] and finding



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 413

" most like to produce a general satisfaction, with-
" out endangering the plantation," the preservation
whereof . his majesty took to heart. The chancellor
was one of that committee, and took very much
pains in reading the charters, grants, and leases, and
many other papers and despatches which concerned
that affair ; and conferred with several of the per-
sons interested ; to the end that he might the bet-
ter discern what could be done, having never under-
stood or heard any thing of the matter, or that con-
cerned that plantation, otherwise than what he hath
before set down upon the despatch of the lord Wil-
loughby to ' Holland ; nor had he the least k inclina-
tion or bias to any party. Upon the hearing all the
allegations before the lords, the several pretences
and titles appeared to them to be these ; which they
afterwards reported to the king.

The lord Willoughby demanded nothing from the
king, but his commission to be governor for the re-
mainder of the years which had been granted to
him by the earl of Carlisle ; to the end that he
might receive one moiety of those profits which
should arise to the earl, and which had been assign-
ed to him with the consent and approbation of the
late king, and of his majesty that now is ; upon
which he had undertaken that voyage, and spent so
much of his estate.

The earl of Carlisle, whilst this contention was
depending, died, and by his will devised his interest
in the Barbadoes to the earl of Kinnoul, who like-
wise petitioned the king for the preservation of his
right : but neither he, nor the person under whom

1 to] in k least] Not in MS.



414 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

1 668. he claimed, had any pretence till all the debts should
be satisfied ; nor did the earl of Kinnoul demand
any thing till then, but believed the profit would
arise yearly to so much, that the debts would
quickly be satisfied, and then the whole was to come
to him.

There was another title that preceded the earl of
Carlisle's, which was that of the earl of Marlbo-
rough, who alleged, and proved it to be true, rt that
" the Barbadoes and those adjacent islands were
" first granted by the king to his grandfather the
" earl of Marlborough, who was then lord high
" treasurer of England, before the earl of Carlisle
" had any pretence thereunto ; and that the lord
" treasurer had afterwards consented that the same
" should be granted to the earl of Carlisle, upon a
" full contract, that he should first receive for ever
" the sum of three hundred pounds by the year out
" of the first profits of the plantations ; which sum
" of three hundred pounds had never been yet paid :
" and therefore the earl of Marlborough desired, as
" heir to his grandfather, to have satisfaction for the
" arrears, and that the growing rent might be se-
" cured to him. "

The creditors were of two kinds : the first, and
who had first petitioned the king, as was said be-
fore, had an assignment made to them by the execu-
tors and trustees of the earl of Carlisle upon his will,
and who at his death owed them the full sum of
fifty thousand pounds or thereabouts. The other
creditors consisted of several tradesmen and ar-
tificers, to whom the said earl was indebted for
wares and goods which they had delivered for his
use; and of several servants for their arrears of



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 415

wages : and all those had, during the late troubles, 1 668.
exhibited their bill in chancery against the executors
and overseers of the late earl, and had obtained a
decree in that court for their satisfaction out of the
profits of those plantations, (which decree stood con-
firmed by the late act of judicial proceedings ;) and,
as he remembered, their debts amounted to thirty
thousand pounds or thereabout. None of the cre-
ditors in general, of one or the other sort, had ever
received one shilling from the time that the earl had
first assigned it.

The planters insisted positively, "that the char-
" ter granted to the earl of Carlisle by the king was
" void in point of law :" for which their council al-
leged many reasons. And having spent much time
upon that argumentation, they concluded with two
humble propositions to the king. 1. " That his ma-
" jesty would give them leave to prosecute in his
" name in the exchequer, and at their own charge,
" to repeal that grant to the earl of Carlisle ; by
" which they should be freed from the arbitrary
" power and oppression which would be exercised
" upon them under the colour of that charter, and
" his majesty might receive a great benefit to him-
" self, by taking the sovereignty into his own hands,
" to which it belonged. And in that case they of-
" fered in their own names, and for the rest of the
" planters who were in the island, to consent to an
" imposition of so much in the hundred, which they
" confidently averred would amount in the year to
" ten thousand pounds at the least ; out of which his
" majesty's governor might be well supported, and
" his majesty dispose of the overplus as he should
" think fit. " 2. " If his majesty would not suffer



416 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

X

1668. " the charter to be repealed, that he would leave
"" " those who claimed under the earl of Carlisle's pa-
" tent to their remedy at law, and leave the planters
" to their own defence ; which they hoped in justice
" could not be denied to them, since they alone had
" been at the charge to settle the plantation, which
" brought every year so great a revenue to the
" crown, when the earl had not been at the least ex-
" pense thereupon : and if his majesty should not 1
" assist their pretences with his royal authority,
" they must all quit the plantation. "

These being the several pretences of the several
persons, and nothing being to be done by agreement
between themselves, their interests being so distinct
and inconsistent with each other ; his majesty
thought fit, in the first place, to refer the considera-
tion of the validity and legality of the patent to his
council at law; who, upon full deliberation and
after the hearing of all parties, returned their opin-
ion, " that their patent was void, and that his ma-
" jesty might take the same into his own power. "
This report was no sooner made to his majesty, but
that he very graciously declared, "that he would
" not receive from hence any benefit or advantage
" to himself, until all their pretences had received
" satisfaction ; and that he would make no further
" use of avoiding the said charter, than to dispose
" the profits of the plantation to those, who in jus-
" tice had any pretence in law or equity to receive
" the same : and therefore that the lord Willoughby
" should proceed in his voyage to the Barbadoes,
" and should receive according to his bargain a

1 not] now



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 417

"moiety of the profits; and that the other part 10(58.
" should he disposed of for the satisfaction of the
" debts and other incumbrances. " In order to
which, his majesty appointed the same committee of
the lords to meet again, and to adjust the several
proportions.

When they met again, they had all the persons
concerned with them, or ready to be called in upon
any occasion ; and they all appeared very glad that
the king had taken the care and protection of the
plantation upon himself, which was all the security
the planters had or could desire. And the lords'
first care was, to make some computation that
might be depended upon, as the yearly revenue that
would arise upon the imposition within the island.
But the planters would not be drawn to any parti-
cular agreement in that point, not so much as to
consent to what should be imposed upon every hun-
dred ; but on the contrary declared, " that too much
" had been undertaken in that kind by one of their
" own number, Mr. Kendall, in his discourse before
" the king in the council," and declared, " that the
" plantation could not bear the imposition he had
" mentioned. That whatsoever was to be done of
" that nature was to be transacted by an assembly
" in the island : and that all that they could pro-
" mise for themselves was, that they would use
" their utmost endeavours with their friends in the
" island, that when the lord Willoughby should ar-
" rive there and call an assembly, they should cou-
" sent to as great an imposition as the 'plantation
" would bear : by which," they said, " a good reve-
" nue would arise to the king for the purposes afore-
" said. "

VOL. III. E e



418 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

1 668. The creditors had great reason to be glad of the
~ resolution his majesty had taken : for though it
would be a long time before they could be fully sa-
tisfied out of a moiety of the profits, though it
should arise to the highest computation, yet in time
they should receive all, and should every year re-
ceive some ; which would lessen their debt, and re-
lieve those who were in the highest necessities, of
which there was a great number. Whereas they
had hitherto in so many years received not one
penny : and it was evident, that without his ma-
jesty's authority they never should, since the planters
were resolved never to consent to any imposition,
nor submit to "any authority that should be exer-
cised under the earl of Carlisle's patent, without a
due course of law ; the way to obtain which would
be very difficult to find out. And they understood
well enough, that, without his majesty's grace and
bounty to them, the repeal or avoiding the earl of
Carlisle's patent would put a quick end to all their
pretences.

The greatest difficulty that did arise was from
the earl of Kinnoul, to whom the last earl of Carlisle
had devised these islands by his will : and he had a
great mind to go thither himself, and take posses-
sion of his right ; and his council had persuaded
him, " that the king's charter granted to the first
" earl of Carlisle was good and valid in law, and
" that they believed they could defend and maintain
" it in any court of justice. " Then his own estate
in Scotland was so totally lost by the iniquity of the
time, and his father's having so frankly declared
himself for the king, when very few of that nation
lost any thing for their loyalty, that he had very lit-



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 419

tie left to support himself; and therefore was willing 1GG8.
to retire into any place abroad, where he might find"
but a bare subsistence. But when he considered
again, that he could have no pretence to any thing-
till after the creditors were fully satisfied, and how
long it was like to be before they could be satisfied,
there remaining still due to the creditors of both
kinds no less than fourscore thousand pounds, prin-
cipal-money ; he did not believe that his insisting
upon the patent would be worth the charge and ha-
zard he must inevitably be put to : and therefore,
upon further deliberation with his friends, he will-
ingly referred himself and all his interest to the
king's gracious determination, as all the rest of the
pretenders and interested persons had done.

The case being thus fully stated to the lords, and
every man's interest and pretence clearly appearing
before them, they considered seriously amongst
themselves what they might reasonably propose to
the several persons, in order to their agreement
amongst themselves ; or, that proving ineffectual,
what advice they might reasonably give his ma-
jesty.
They were unanimously of opinion, " not to
" advise his majesty to cause the patent to be called
" in question : for though they doubted not, upon
" the opinion of his learned council, that the same
" would be judged void and illegal ; yet they did
" not think it a seasonable time, when the nation
" was so active and industrious in foreign plant -
" ations, that they should see a charter or patent
" questioned and avoided, after it hath been so
" many years allowed and countenanced, and under
" which it hath m so long flourished, and was almost

111 hath] had

E e 2



420 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

1668. " grown to perfection. And that since his majesty
""" had declared, that, notwithstanding any right of
" his own, all possible care should be taken for the
" satisfaction of the creditors, as well as for the pre-
" servation and support of the plantation ; it would
" be equally equitable and honourable in his ma-
" jesty, not to leave the earl of Kinnoul the only
" person unconsidered, and bereaved of all his pre-
" tence. But that they would humbly move his
" majesty, that he would graciously vouchsafe to as-
" sign some present maintenance to the said earl,
" which his unhappy condition required, out of the
" revenue that should be there settled, and until the
" debts should be paid ; and that after that time
" such an augmentation might be made to him, as
" his majesty in his royal bounty should think fit :
" in consideration whereof, the earl should procure
" the patent to be brought in and surrendered ;"
which he promised should be done accordingly, as
soon as the settlement should be made of that pro-
portion which should be assigned to him.

" That the lord Willoughby should enjoy the be-
" nefit of his former contract with the earl of Car-
" lisle, and approved by his majesty, during the re-
" mainder of those years which are not yet expired ;
" that he should make what haste he could thither,
" and call an assembly, to the end that such an im-
" position might be agreed upon to be paid to his
" majesty as should be reasonable, in consideration
" of the great benefit they had already and should
" still enjoy, in being continued and secured in their
" several plantations, in which as yet they were as it
" were but tenants at will, having no other pretence
" of right but the possession : and therefore, that



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 421

" those merchants and planters who had petitioned ]6fi8.

" the king should, according to their obligation and

" promise made by them to his majesty, use all their

" credit with those in the island, that the imposition

" might arise to such a proportion, that the revenue

" might answer the ends proposed ; and that one

" moiety of that revenue should be enjoyed by the

" lord Willoughby for his term.

" That the annuity of three hundred pounds by
" the year should be paid to the earl of Marl-
" borough, according to the original contract men-
" tioned before ; and that the assignment, that his
" majesty would likewise be pleased to make to the
" earl of Kinnoul, should be first paid : and then
" that the remainder of that moiety should be re-
" ceived to the use of the creditors. And that
" when the lord Willoughby's term should be ex-
" pired, his majesty should be desired, after the re-
" servation of so milch as he should think fit for the
" support of his governor, that all the remainder
" might be continued towards the creditors, until
" their just debts should be paid. "

These particulars appearing reasonable to the
lords, all persons concerned were called, and the
same communicated to them, who appeared all well
contented : and thereupon the lords resolved to pre-
sent the same to his majesty, which they did accord-
ingly at the board ; and his majesty with a full ap-
probation and advice of the whole council ratified
the same. Whereupon that order was made by the
king in council, which comprehends all the par-
ticulars mentioned before ; which was delivered to
the lord Willoughby, with his majesty's express
command, " that he should see it punctually and

E e 3



422 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

1 668. " precisely executed ;" and the like order was deli-
vered by the clerk of the council to every other per-
son mentioned, who desired the same: to which order
he did for the more certainty refer himself, being
in no degree confident (having then no other help
than his memory) that all was set down with that
exactness as it ought to be. And, he said, as he
had throughout the whole affair taken very great
pains to reduce it to that agreement, which at that
time seemed to be satisfactory to all the persons
concerned, so he had not the least temptation of par-
ticular benefit to himself; and he did still believe it
to be very just, reasonable, and agreeable to his ma-
jesty's justice and goodness, all circumstances being
considered. And though it may be, in strictness of
law, and by the avoiding the grant made to the earl
of Carlisle, his majesty might have possessed him-
self of the whole island, without any tender consider-
ation of the planters or the creditors ; he said, he
was not ashamed that he had never given his ma-
jesty that or the like counsel, in that or any other
matter of the like nature ; and if he had, he was
confident his majesty would have abhorred it, and
not have thought the better of him for giving it.

The other part of that article, " That he had
** caused such as complained of the arbitrary govern-
" ment in the plantations before the king and coun-
" cil, to be long imprisoned for so doing," did refer,
he supposed, to the commitment of one Farmer ;
who, being sent over a prisoner by the lord Wil-
loughby in a ship that came from thence, made his
appearance at Oxford, his majesty being then there
in the sickness time, which, he said, was the first
moment that he had ever heard of the man or the



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 423

matter. And at the same time one of the secreta- 16C8.
lies of state received a letter from the lord Wil-
loughby, which was sent by the same ship, in which
his lordship had sent a direct, full charge of mutiny,
sedition, and treason against the said Farmer ; and
by his letter informed the secretary of all his beha-
viour and carriage, with all the circumstances there-
of; and " that he had, by his seditious practices,
" prevailed so far upon a disaffected party in that
" island, that the lord Willoughby found himself
" obliged in the instant to send him on board the
" ship, without which he did apprehend a general
" revolt in the island from his majesty's obedience :"
and he did therefore desire, " that Farmer might not
" be suffered to return thither before the island
" should be reduced to a better temper. " The man
was called in before the king and council, and the
charge that the lord Willoughby had sent read to
him, the greatest part whereof he could not deny ;
and in his discourse upon it he behaved himself so
peremptorily and insolently before the king, that his
majesty thought it very necessary to commit him ;
nor did any one counsellor then present appear to
think otherwise.

And he did confess, that the discharging him
from his imprisonment was some time afterwards
moved, and that he was always against his dis-
charge ; being of opinion that it would be impossible
for the lord Willoughby, or any other governor in
any of the plantations, to preserve his majesty's
right and to support the government, if he should
be so far discountenanced, that a man, being sent
over by him as a prisoner under so particular and
heinous a charge, should be upon his appearance

E e 4



424 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

1668. here set at liberty. But his opinion was, " that he
~~ " should be sent back a prisoner thither, that he
" might be tried by the law and justice of the
" island, and receive condign punishment for his
" offence :" and, he said, he could not deny but that
he was still of the same opinion ; and, if it were an
error, it proceeded from the weakness of his under-
standing, which was not in his power to reform.

He said, what he had here set down was all that
occurred to his memory with reference to the island
of the Barbadoes, which being not particularly men-
tioned in the article, but comprehended under the
general expression of his majesty's foreign plant-
ations, and secretly and maliciously insinuated in
private discourses, he took himself to be obliged to
give some answer to what, how generally soever,
had been charged. And he hoped it would not be
imputed as a crime to him, if he had taken more
pains than other men in that important service of
his majesty concerning his foreign plantations, which
he did not think had been enough taken to heart :
and if his desire and readiness to take any pains, or
give any assistance to the advancement of that ser-
vice, had induced many persons to apply themselves
to him on those occasions, he hoped it should not be
charged upon him as over-activity, or ambition to
engross more business into his hands than he was
entitled to ; for which he had this excuse to make
for himself, that he found the pains he took to be
acceptable to his majesty. And he was so far from
having any particular design of advantage to him-
self, that he did profess and declare, that from all or
any of his majesty's plantations he never had the
least reward, or least present made to him ; except



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 425
that the now lord Willoughby once told him, "that 1668.



" his brother had sent over some pieces of the speck-
" led wood which grows in Surinam, with direction,
" that if he liked it, he might have what he would
" of it ;" whereupon he had some pieces of it, which
he thought might have been applied to the making
of cabinets or the adorning of wainscot, (but as they
were very small, so the middle of every piece was
wind-shaken and rotten, that they could not be ap-
plied to any considerable use ;) and except some
blocks of walnut-tree which the governor of Virginia
sent to him, and of which he made some table boards
and frames for chairs ; the workmanship whereof
cost much more than the wood was worth. And
these two particulars contained all the rewards and
presents or profit, that ever he received from all his
majesty's plantations, or any body to his use.

The tenth article was, " That he did reject and Thetenth

J article.

" frustrate a proposal and undertaking approved
" by his majesty, for the preservation of Nevis
" and St. Christopher's, and reducing the French
" plantations to his majesty's obedience, after
" the commissions were drawn for that pur-
" pose ; which was the occasion of such great
" losses and damages in those parts. "
To which he answered, that he never did reject His answer.
or frustrate any such proposal or undertaking, never
taking upon him in the least degree to make a judg-
ment of enterprises of that nature ; nor was ever
any such proposition made to him. But he did
very well remember, that his majesty himself did
once deliver to the council a paper, which he said
one of his servants (Mr. Marsh) had presented to
him, containing some propositions for ships and men



426 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

1668. to be sent by his majesty for the recovery of St.
"~ Christopher's, which had been newly taken by the
French. Upon the reading which paper and pro-
positions, the same were referred to the considera-
tion of the general, one of the secretaries of state,
and to the vice-chamberlain, who were to confer
with Mr. Marsh, and such others as joined with
him. And they were at the same time appointed
to consider of another proposition delivered in writ-
ing by the now lord Willoughby, and some mer-
chants of London who were planters in the Barba-
does, for the supplying and better securing that
island, and the rest of those Caribbee islands ; and
for the reducing and recovering any of them which
were or might be taken by the enemy. Upon the
latter of which somewhat was afterwards done : and
if the other concerning Nevis and St. Christopher's
was rejected, of which, he said, he knew nothing,
he presumed it was, because it either appeared un-
practicable, or not consistent with his majesty's
other affairs.

Theeie- The eleventh article was, " That he advised and
tide. " effected the sale of Dunkirk to the French

" king, being part of his majesty's dominions,
" together with the ammunition, artillery, and
" all sorts of stores there ; and for no greater
" value than the said ammunition, artillery,
" and stores were worth. "

This whole transaction of the sale of Dunkirk,
with all the circumstances, is so fully related in this
discourse, in the place and at the time when" this af-
fair was transacted n , that any repetition here is to

" Vol. ii. p. 242, &c.



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 427

no purpose : and whosoever turns back and reads it 1668.
will clearly see, that he had no hand in the counsel ; ~~
though he is far from condemning it, or believing
that it was not necessary, as his majesty's affairs at
that time stood. To which may be added, that the
treatment he received after his coming into France
was an unquestionable evidence, that that king did
never take himself to be beholden to him for that or
any other service ; as in truth he never was.

The twelfth article was, " That he did unduly The twelfth

. , article.

" cause his majesty s letters patents under the
" great seal of England to one Dr. Crowther
" to be altered, and the enrolment thereof to
" be unduly razed. "

To which he said, that when he heard of this His answer,
charge, he could not comprehend what the meaning
thereof was, being most assured that he had never
*' caused any alteration to be made in any of his
" majesty's letters patents under the great seal, or
*' the enrolment thereof to be razed. " But upon
inquiry he was informed, that Dr. Crowther, who
was chaplain to his royal highness the duke of York,
and had attended upon his person during the whole
time that his highness was beyond the seas, upon
his majesty's return into England, had obtained from
the king his royal presentation to the parsonage of
Treddington in the county of Worcester ; which
presentation, according to course, passed under the
great seal of England. That when he brought his
action against the intruder, who refused to give
him possession, and the record was carried down to
the assizes in the county ; when the doctor's coun-

county] country



428 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

1 668. cil were P to open his title, and thereupon to produce
~ the king's presentation, they found, upon perusal
thereof, that either by misinformation or negligence
of the clerk, instead of the county of Worcester,
where the rectory was, the county of Warwick was
inserted : upon which mistake the doctor was ne-
cessitated to be nonsuited. And thereupon he forth-
with made a journey to London to advise with his
council, and the most experienced clerks, how to re-
cover the misfortune that had befallen him, and that
his majesty's right might not be destroyed by such
an oversight in the clerk. And it seems he was by
them advised, as the usual way in cases of that na-
ture, to petition the king, " that in his majesty's
" presence the presentation might be mended, and
*' Worcester inserted instead of Warwick, and that
" thereupon the great seal might be again affixed to
" it ;" all which was done accordingly, as in such
cases is usual.

The thir- The thirteenth article was, " That he had in an
tide. " arbitrary way examined and drawn into

" question divers of his majesty's subjects con-
" cerning their lands, tenements, goods and
" chattels, and properties ; determined thereof
" at the council-table, and stopped proceedings
" at law, and threatened some that pleaded the
" statute of 17 Car. "

Hi. answer. To this he said, he must here again lament his
own misfortunes, that he was exposed to public re-
proach under a general odious charge, without in-
serting any one particular to which he might make
his defence. He had therefore no more to say, but

i 1 were] was



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 429

that he was very innocent as to any crime laid to 1668.
his charge in that article : and that he had been so ~
far from " examining and drawing into question any
" of his majesty's subjects concerning their lands,
" tenements, goods and chattels, and properties, and
" determining the same at the council-table, and
" stopping proceedings at law ;" that he did not
know or believe, that any one case of that nature
had been ever determined there, at least when he had
been present. That he had always discountenanced
such addresses, and procured all petitions of that
kind to be rejected as often as they have been ten-
dered : and, he said, he took himself obliged to say,
for the vindication of his majesty's honour and jus-
tice, that there had not been so many years passed,
since the erection of the council-table, with so little
disturbance or disquiet to the subjects concerning
their lands, tenements, goods, and properties, as
have i been since his majesty's happy return ; nor
hath the ordinary course of proceedings at law been
less obstructed.

The fourteenth article was, " That he had caused'^'* four -

teenth ar-

" quo warrantos to be issued out against most tide.
" of the corporations in England, to the intent
" that he might receive great sums of money
" from them for renewing their charters ; which
" when they complied withal, he caused the
" said quo warrantos to be discharged, and
" prosecution thereon to cease. "

To this he answered, that he never caused any His answer.
quo warranto to issue out against any one corpora-
tion in England, but by his majesty's express com-

". have] hath



430 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

i nani I , or by order of the board ; which was always
upon some miscarriage or misbehaviour in the cor-
poration : and that lie did not remember that he had
ever moved the king against any particular corj>ora-
tion, but that of Woodstock ; and which his duty to
his majesty had obliged him to do, being intrusted
by his majesty with the command of his house and
park there, and being his majesty's steward of his
majesty's honour and manor of Woodstock, upon
which that borough had always depended.

He said, his majesty having conferred that charge
upon him, he was no sooner possessed of it by the
death of the late earl of Lindsey, who enjoyed that
place before, than he received a petition from several
inhabitants and burgesses of the borough of Wood-
stock, who complained, " that the mayor and jus-
" tices had lately procured their charter to be re-
" newed, without the privity or consent of the bo-
" rough ; and that under pretence of renewing it,
" they had procured many new clauses to be in-
" serted, and thereby reduced much of the govern-
" ment, which before depended on the whole cor-
" poration, into their own hands ; and had thereby
" likewise procured a piece of ground, the benefit
" whereof did formerly belong to all the burgesses,
" and was usually applied to the relief of such of
" them who were decayed in their estates, to be
" now granted to the mayor and a select number of
" the justices, and the profits thereof to be at their
" disposal, to the great prejudice of the borough and
" the inhabitants thereof. " He referred this peti-
tion to Mr. Justice Morton, who lived within four
or five miles thereof, and desired him to examine
the truth of those allegations, and to certify him



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 431

whether the complaints were just and reasonable. 1668.
Whereupon he took the pains to go to the town,"
and to confer with the mayor and justices, and heard
the allegations of the petitioners ; and upon the
whole matter certified, " that he found several im-
" portant alterations in the new charter from what
" had been in the old, and some new concessions. "

And at the same time sir William Fleetwood, who
was ranger of the parks, certified him, " that since
" the renewing their charter, the mayor and justices
" were not so good neighbours to his majesty's game
" as they had formerly been, and had withdrawn
" many of those services which they had used to
" perform : and that when any trespasses were com-
" mitted by those of the borough upon his majesty's
" woods or game, which happened very frequently,
" and complaint was thereof made 'to the mayor
" and justices, who had the sole jurisdiction within
" the borough ; there was so slight and perfunctory
" examination thereof, that the prosecutors were
" wearied out, and no justice could be obtained. "

That it was his duty to inform the king of those
proceedings, who was much offended thereat, and
thereupon gave his direction to his attorney general
to bring a quo warranto, and to repeal the charter
which had been so unduly procured, and in which
his majesty had been so grossly deceived and abused :
and he did believe that there was the less vigour
used in the prosecution of that quo warranto be-
cause the mayor and justices for some time had pre-
tended that they would surrender the said charter,
and receive a new one in such a manner as his ma-
jesty thought fit, though they afterwards changed



432 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF
1668. their mind. And this was the only charter, he said,



which he gave direction for the prosecution of.

Nor did he ever give order, upon the receipt of
any money, to discharge any quo warranto, or cause
the prosecution thereupon to cease : nor did he ever
receive the least sum of money for the granting or
renewing any charter, other than the usual fees
received for the same by the clerk of the hanaper,
and accounted to the seal ; which fee, as he did re-
member, did amount to thirteen shillings and four-
pence, or thereabouts.
The fif- The fifteenth article was, " That he procured the

teenth ar-

ticle. " bills of settlement for Ireland, and received

" great sums of money for the same, in a most
" corrupt and unlawful manner. "

His answer. To this article there needs no other answer than
what is contained in two r several places of this dis-
course, in which so full a relation is made of the
whole settlement of Ireland, with all the circum-
stances that accompanied it, that it would be to no
purpose to repeat it in this place. And therein it
appears what money the chancellor received from
Ireland, and how he came to receive 8 any, and by
what injustice he came to receive no more ; all which
was not only well known to the king himself, but to
very many of those, who promoted the accusation
directly contrary to what they knew to be true.
The six. The sixteenth article was, " That he had deluded
" and betrayed his majesty and the nation in
" all foreign treaties and negotiations relating
" to the late war,"

r Vol. i. p. 441 . &c. and vol. ii. to receive] Omitted in MS.
p. 17. &r.






EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 433

To which he said, that he did heartily wish that 1668.
those particular treaties, and the particulars in those Ul3 atlswe
treaties, had been mentioned, wherein it was con-
ceived that he had deluded and betrayed his ma-
jesty, that he might at large have set down what-
soever he had known or done in those treaties ; and
then it would easily have been made appear, how
far he had been from betraying or deluding him.
That it was never any ambition of his own that
brought him to have a part in any treaty : he said,
God knew, that he heartily wished to have meddled
in nothing, but the administration of that great office
the king had thought fit to have trusted him with.
But his majesty had then so good an opinion of him,
that he required and commanded his service in many
of those treaties : and therefore it would be neces-
sary for him, according to the method he had hi-
therto used, to mention every particular treaty that
had been entered into since the time of his majesty's
return into England, and the part that he had in it ;
being as willing to be called to the strictest account
for any other treaty he had been engaged in when
he had been abroad, or for any counsel he had ever
given in his life, public or private ; wherein, he
doubted not, he should be found to have behaved
himself (according to the weak abilities God had
given him) with fidelity to his master, and with all
imaginable affection to his country, how unhappily
soever he had been represented.

The first treaty, he said, was with the crown of
Portugal ; in which he was none of the commis-
sioners who treated, and was only present when any
report was made by the commissioners to the king,

VOL. III. F f



484 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

1668. or to the council-board, where all the articles were
~~ debated ; and he did not remember that there had
been any difference of opinion upon any of them :
and that treaty had been generally held the best
that hath been made with any crown, the merchants
having thereby greater advantages in trade than
they have in any other place, besides many other
great benefits, with a great enlargement of his ma-
jesty's empire.

The second treaty was with the States of the
United Provinces ; in which likewise he was none
of the commissioners who treated : but all that was
by them transacted was still brought to the council-
board, and debated there in his majesty's presence ;
in which the rule by which his majesty guided him-
self was, that he would not remit any of those con-
cessions which had been formerly made by them in
their last treaty with Cromwell ; and their unwill-
ingness to consent to that was the reason that their
ambassadors proceeded so slowly. And his majesty
had the less reason to be solicitous for expedition,
because the king of France had given his royal word,
and proposed it himself, " that the two crowns might
" proceed in the several treaties with the Dutch to-
" gether, that so they might be brought to those
" good conditions, that they might live like good
" neighbours with both the crowns, which," he ob-
served, " they were not naturally inclined to do ;"
and promised positively, " that for his part he would
" not conclude any thing with the Dutch, before
" he had entirely communicated the same to his
" majesty. " Notwithstanding which engagement,
France entered into and finished their treaty ; and



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 435

in it made that secret article, which they declared 1668.
afterwards to be the ground of c their obligation to""
assist the Dutch in the ensuing war. However, his
majesty proceeded not, till the Holland ambassadors
consented to all that had been before granted to
Cromwell : which being done, the peace was made
and ratified on both sides ; and without doubt was
with more advantage and honour to the English,
than ever had been provided by any former treaty
between the crown of England and those States.

From the two crowns of Sweden and Denmark
ambassadors extraordinary arrived at London shortly
after the king's return, and the several treaties were
made with both those crowns before the departure
of the ambassadors : in neither of which treaties the
chancellor was a commissioner, nor knew any thing
that passed in either, but as it was represented at
the council-board, and debated in his majesty's pre-
sence ; nor did he ever hear that either of them was
reckoned a disadvantageous treaty, both of them
containing as much benefit to the English as any
treaties which had been made before with those
crowns. He said, it was very true, that there were
some unusual expressions of kindness and friend-
ship in the treaty with Denmark ; which, in respect
of that king's being at that time in a very low con-
dition, under the disadvantageous conditions of the
treaty at Copenhagen newly submitted to, and under
almost as ill a treaty extorted from that crown by
the Dutch, and yet being in terrible apprehension of
some new oppression from the one and from the
other, the ambassador did very earnestly solicit to

* of] and
F f 2



436 GONTINUAtlON OF THE LIFE OF

1C68. have inserted; and which were upon great deli-
beration allowed and inserted by his majesty's own
particular direction, in consideration of the near al-
liance in blood between his majesty and that king,
and the civilities and obligations his majesty had
received from Denmark, during his being in Holland
after the murder of his father, and during his being
in Scotland, when the king of Denmark sent him
horses, arms, and ammunition. Of which his ma-
jesty had so great a sense, that he was often heard
to say, " that if it had pleased God to have brought
" him home before that disadvantageous peace at
" Copenhagen had been made," (which had been
done by the countenance of the English ships, and
the threats of those who were then ambassadors from
the governing power in England,) " he would have
" done the best he could to have defended and pro-
" tected him :" and therefore he did very readily yield
to that article drawn by the ambassador ; his majesty
declaring at the same time, " that he was very will-
" ing that those princes, who were neighbours to Den-
" mark, and from whom that kingdom apprehended
" new oppressions, should know his majesty's reso-
" lutions to support that king, and to defend him
" from new injuries ;" to which the policy of his go-
vernment, as well as his friendship, inclined and
obliged him ; though it is very true, the king of
Denmark did shortly after make very ill returns to
his majesty for that his so signal affection.

These were all the treaties made by the king be-
fore the war with the Dutch, (for there was very
little progress made either with France or Spain, for
the reasons mentioned before,) except only a short
treaty with the elector of Brandenburgh ; which



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 437

treaty was, for the most part, particular with refer-
ence only to the prince of Orange, his majesty's ne-
phew, and for the better ordering his affairs. In
which treaty his majesty likewise employed five or
six of his council : and the few articles between his
majesty and that elector in point of state were like-
wise transacted by them, and debated and considered
at the council-board, and in which all things were
inserted for his majesty's benefit and service ; and if
they had not been afterwards violated by the elector,
the king would have reaped much fruit and advan-
tage even from that treaty.

After the war was entered into with Holland, his
majesty sent Mr. Coventry to Sweden, and sir Gil-
bert Talbot to Denmark, to dispose those two crowns
to a confidence in each other, and then to dispose
them both to adhere to his majesty, or at least not
to assist or favour the Dutch. The treaty with
Sweden succeeded to his majesty's wish, and was
concluded in a league defensive, very much to the
king's satisfaction, and with the full approbation of
the whole board ; that crown having manifested so
much affection, and such an inclination to an entire
conjunction with him, that upon very reasonable
conditions they would have been induced to have
entered into a league offensive, and even into the
present war against the Dutch : in order to which,
they sent their ambassadors to the king at the same
time when Mr. Coventry returned, and they became
the mediators for the peace ; having first declared
to his majesty, " that if the treaty should prove in-
" effectual, the crown of Sweden would immediately
" join with his majesty against the Dutch. " What
became of the other treaty with Denmark is publicly

F f 3



438 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

1668. known, his majesty having declared to all the world
~" how perfidiously he was treated by the Dane.

There remains only one other treaty to be men-
tioned, which is the last with the Dutch, upon which
the peace was made : and therefore it will be neces-
sary to set down the inducements to that treaty, the
whole progress and conclusion of it ; by all which it
will easily appear that his majesty was neither be-
trayed nor deluded in it, or, if he were, that it was
not done by him.

After so many encounters and various successes
in the war, which had been carried on with a much
greater expense than his majesty at his first en-
trance into it was persuaded it would cost him ;
when he saw the strength and power of the Dutch
so much increased by the conjunction of France and
Denmark, who supplied them with money, ships,
and, what they more wanted, with men as many as
they desired ; and that all the propositions he could
make to Spain could not induce them to enter into
such an alliance with him, as might embark them
against France, notwithstanding it was evident to
all but themselves, that the French resolved to break
the peace with them, having at that time published
those declarations which they afterwards made the
ground of the war: his majesty clearly discerned,
that the Dutch grew less weary of the war than
they had before seemed to have been ; and that they
would be able, with that assistance and conjunction,
to continue the war with less inconvenience than
his majesty was like to do.

He had found it necessary for straitening the trade
of the enemy, (the depriving them of which could
only induce them to desire a peace, and which he



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 439

could not do by the strength of his own ships, IfiGS.
which were still kept together to encounter their"
fleet,) to grant commissions upon letters of marque
to as many private men of war as desired the same,
and with such strict orders and limitations as are
necessary in those cases ; and he found indeed the
advantage very great, in the damage those men of
war did to the enemy, which was considerable, and
gave them great trouble. On the other side, the
common seamen chose much rather to go on board
those men of war, where their profit out of their
shares of the booty was greater, and their hazards
much less, than in the king's ships, where they got
only blows without booty, though their pay and pro-
visions were much greater than they had been in
any former time : so that when the royal fleet was
to be set out, there was greater difficulty in procur-
ing seamen and mariners to man it.

And then, whereas the advancement of trade was
made the great end of the war, it was now found
necessary to suppress all trade, that there might be
mariners enough to furnish the ships for the carry-
ing on the war. And this inconvenience produced
another mischief: for by the great diminution and
even suppression of trade, there was likewise so great
a fall in the customs, excise, and all other branches
of the king's revenue, that it was evident enough
that his majesty would have little to carry on the
war, but what should arise by imposition in parlia-
ment upon the people; who already complained
loudly of the decay of their rents, of the small and
low prices which their commodities yielded by the
cessation of trade, and especially by the carrying all
the money in specie from the several counties to

F f 4



440 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

1 668. London for the carrying on the war. And the par-
liament itself appeared so weary of it, that, instead
of granting a new supply proportionable to the
charge, they fell upon expedients to raise money by
the sale of part of the king's revenue, which was al-
ready too small to support the ordinary and necessary
expense of the crown.

But above all, his majesty was most discouraged
by the extreme license of the seamen in general ;
but especially of those who were called privateers,
set out in the particular ships of war upon adven-
ture, who made no distinction between friends and
foes; but, as if the sea had been their own quar-
ters, they seized upon all ships which passed within
their view, and either pillaged them entirely, and so
dismissed them, (which they usually did to those
which they foresaw would be delivered by the course
of justice,) or else brought them into the harbours,
after they had taken from them what they best
liked. And then the formal proceedings in the
court of admiralty were so dilatory, and involved in
so many appeals,that the prosecution of justice for in-
juries received grew as grievous as the injury itself;
which drew an universal clamour from all nations,
" that without being parties to the war they were
" all treated as enemies. "

France had made the damage they had this way
received, and the interruption of their trade, a great
part of their quarrel, and one ground of their con-
junction with the Dutch. From Spain, which really
wished better to us than to our enemies, the com-
plaints were as great ; " that their whole trade was
" destroyed ; their ships of Flanders,, which supplied
" Spain with what they wanted for themselves, and



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 441

" with what was necessary for their trade and inter- 1668.
" course with the Indies, were all taken as Dutch,"
" because it was very hard to distinguish them by
" their language :" which was likewise the case of
all the Hanse-towns, which made grievous com-
plaints, and had without doubt received great da-
mage. Those princes of Italy whose dominions
reached to the sea, as the two republics of Venice
and Genoa, and the duke of Florence, expostulated
very grievously for their ships taken by those free-
booters of Scotland and of Ireland, both which na-
tions enriched themselves very much upon such de-
predations. And how much soever the royal navy
was weakened every day, the number of those men
of war wonderfully increased ; so that those kind of
ships, of England, Scotland, and Ireland, covered the
whole ocean : and of those ships which were taken
and carried into Scotland or Ireland, (in England
there were many redeliveries,) it was observed,
that there were vestigia nulla retrorsum. Even
Sweden itself, with whom a new stricter alliance
was entered into at that time, with as severe restric-
tions to that license of the men of war as could be
contrived for the liberty and security of the trade of
that crown, complained exceedingly of the violation
of all those concessions and provisions, and that their
ships were every day taken and plundered. And
this universal complaint began to awaken all princes
to a jealousy, that the English endeavoured to re-
strain all trade, till they could make themselves the
entire masters of it, and by their naval power put
some imposition upon the whole traffick of Europe.
It is very true, at the first entrance into the war
there had been many unskilful expressions even in



442 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

1668. the parliament itself, as well as in the frequent dis-
~~ courses of parliament-men, " that by this war, and
" by suppressing the power of the Dutch at sea,"
(of which they made not the least doubt,) " the king
" would be able to give the law to all the trade of
" the world, and that no ships should pass the sea
" without paying some tribute to England :" which
liberty and rashness of discourse made great impres-
sion upon those who wished mischief enough to the
Dutch, till they saw what danger might ensue to
themselves by the success of the English ; and
thereupon wished that they might break themselves
upon each other, without advantage to either party.
And this general distemper and complaint made
the deeper impression upon the king, by his dis-
cerning an extreme difficulty, if not an impossi-
bility, to give any just remedy to it ; and conse-
quently, that he should be shortly looked upon as
a common enemy.

He had taken very great pains, upon deliberate
consultations, to suppress that odious irregularity
and destructive license that was practised amongst
the seamen, and had in many particular cases him-
self examined the excess, and caused exemplary jus-
tice to be done upon the offenders, and restitution
to be made of what had been taken, at least of what
was left ; for no justice could preserve the injured
persons from being losers. He had granted such
rules and privileges and protection to the ports in
Flanders, and to others of his allies, as themselves
desired, and looked upon as full security ; but then
he quickly found, that from those very ports and in
those very ships which enjoyed those privileges, the
trade of the Dutch was driven on : so that it was



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 443

evident that by that liberty, which other nations 1668.
thought themselves in justice entitled to, if not re-
strained, the Hollanders themselves would be easily
able to carry on their whole trade in the ships of
Flanders, Hamburgh, and the other free towns, or
in their own ships owned by the other ; and that
the restraint would likewise be impossible, without
a total suppression of those men of war, and a revo-
cation of all commissions granted to them or any of
them, which would likewise be attended with the
freedom and security of trade to all his majesty's
enemies.

In the last encounter at sea, the Prince Royal,
and three other of his majesty's navy, had been
lost ; and another, the London, had been burned in
the river by the negligence of the seamen ; for there
was never any discovery made, that there was any
purpose or malice in it. The French had obliged
themselves, that the duke of Beaufort, admiral of
France, should, with the whole fleet under his com-
mand, amounting to eighteen good ships, join with
the Dutch ; and the king of Denmark was likewise
engaged to send all his great ships, which were ten
or a dozen, in order to the like conjunction : so that
it was evident to his majesty, that the enemy would
be much superior to him in strength and power,
though he had been able to have manned and set
out all his royal navy ; which he well foresaw he
should not be able to do, both for want of money
and want of seamen, who were already in great dis-
order and mutiny for want of their pay, of which
there was indeed a great arrear due to them. And,
which was worse, there was grown such an ani-
mosity amongst the principal officers of the fleet be-



444 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

1668. tween themselves, that the whole discipline was
"" corrupted ; so that it was hard to resolve into what
hands to put the government thereof, if it could
have been made ready.

Upon which, and the whole state of affairs, and
upon deliberation and frequent consultation with
the principal officers of the sea, and such others
whose experience in such matters rendered them
most capable to give advice, the king found it most
counsellable to resolve to make a defensive war the
next year, and to lay up all his great ships, and to
have some squadrons of the lighter vessels to con-
tinue in several quarters assigned to them, which
should be ready to take all advantages which should
be offered ; and that there should be likewise ready
in the river another good squadron of ships against
the end of the summer, which being ready to join
with those which lay out, when the enemy was
weary and their ships foul, would be able to take
many notable advantages upon them ; of which they
who advised it were so confident, that they did be-
lieve this defensive way thus ordered and prosecut-
ed would prove a greater damage to the enemy in
their trade, and all other respects, than they had
ever undergone. And in all this counsel and reso-
lution the chancellor had no other part than being
present ; and, not understanding the subject-matter
of debate, could not be able to answer any of the
reasons that had been alleged.

These considerations, upon a full survey of his ill
condition at home and abroad, induced the king to
wish that there were a good end of the war ; of
which inclination his majesty vouchsafed to inform
the chancellor, well knowing that he would be very



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 445

glad to contribute all he could to it, as a thing he iocs.

desired most in this world, and which he thought

would prove the greatest benefit to the king and
kingdom ; and his majesty likewise told him, " that
" he found all those, who had been most forward
" and impatient to enter into this war, were now
" weary of it, and would be glad of a peace :" so
that there remained now nothing to do, but for his
majesty to advise with those whom he thought fit,
(for there seemed many reasons to conceal both the
inclination to peace, and the resolution not to set
out a summer fleet, from being publicly known,)
what method to observe, and what expedients to
make use of, for the better procuring this wished
for peace, without appearing to be too solicitous or
importunate for it, or so weary of the war as in
truth he was. And to this consultation the king
was pleased to call together with his royal brother,
prince Rupert, the chancellor, the general, the lord
treasurer, and those other honourable persons with
whom he used to advise in his most secret and most
important affairs.

That which occurred first to consider was, whe-
ther there were any hope to divide the French from
the Dutch ; upon which supposition the prospect
was not unpleasant, the war with one of them being
hopefully enough to be pursued ; the conjunction
was only formidable. And to this purpose several
attempts had been made both in France and in Hol-
land ; both sides being equally resolved not to sepa-
rate from each other, till a joint peace should be
made with England, though they both owned a
jealousy of each other : those of Holland having a
terrible apprehension and foresight of the king of



446 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

J668. France's designs upon Flanders, which would make
his greatness too near a neighbour to their territo-
ries ; besides that the logic of his demands upon the
devolution and nullity of the treaty upon the mar-
riage was equally applicable to their whole interest,
as it was to their demands from the king of Spain.
And France, upon all the attacks they had made
both in France with the Dutch ambassador there,
and in Holland by their own ambassador, found
clearly, that they were to expect no assistance from
the Dutch in their designs, and that at least they
wished them ill success, and would probably contri-
bute to it upon the first occasion : and this made
them willing to put an end to their so strict alliance,
which was already very chargeable to them, and not
like to be attended with any notable advantage, ex-
cept in weakening an ally from whom they might
probably receive mucli more advantage.

However, neither the one nor the other would be
induced to enter into any treaty apart, though they
both seemed willing and desirous of a peace; in
order to which, the Dutch, through the Swedes am-
bassadors' hands, had writ to the king, " to offer a
" treaty in any such neutral place as his majesty
" should make choice of;" professing, " that they
" should make no scruple of sending their ambassa-
" dors directly to his majesty, but that their con-
" junction with the other two crowns, who required
" a neutral place, would not admit that condescen-
" sion. " And at the same time they intimated to
the Swedes ambassadors, " that the king of France
" would not send his ambassadors into Flanders, or
" any place of the king of Spain's dominions ;" and
therefore wished, " that his majesty would make



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 447

" choice of Dusseldorp, Cologne, Francfort, or Ham- 1668.
" burgh, or any other place that his majesty should"
" think more convenient than the other, under that
" exception :" all which places, and in truth any
other out of the king of Spain's dominions, were at
such a distance, (the winter being now near over,)
that there could be no reasonable expectation of the
fruit of the treaty in time to prevent more acts of
hostility.

How the treaty came afterwards to be introduced
by overtures from France, and what preliminaries
were first proposed from thence by the earl of St.
Alban's, and how agreed to by his majesty ; how
the place of the treaty came to be adjusted, the am-
bassadors chosen, and the whole progress thereupon,
and the publication of the articles of the peace ; is
so particularly set forth in this narrative before 11 ,
that it needs not to be repeated here. And one of
the ambassadors repairing, as is there said, to the
king, and giving him an account of all that had
passed before any thing was concluded, and every
particular having been debated at the council-board
and consented to ; he said, he could not understand
how his majesty could be deluded or betrayed in
that treaty, which passed with such a full examina-
tion and disquisition, and in all which debates his
majesty himself had taken the pains to discourse
more, and to enlarge in the answer to all objections
which were foreseen, than he had been ever known
to have done upon any other article.

It is very true, that the chancellor had been com-
manded by the king to write most of the letters

11 Page 203, &c. and p. 260, &c. of this volume.



448 CONTINUATION OF THE LIFE OF

1668. which had been sent to the earl of St. Alban's, from
~" the time of his going over concerning the treaty, his
lordship having likewise directed most of his letters
to him ; and most of the despatches to the ambassa-
dors were likewise prepared by him, they being by
their instructions (without his desire or privity) to
transmit all accounts to one of the secretaries or to
himself. But, he said, it was as true, that he never
received a letter from either of them, but it was
read entirely, in his majesty's presence, to those
lords of the council who were assigned for that
service, where directions were given what answer
should be returned ; and he never did return any
answer to either of them, without having first read
it to the council, or having first sent it to one of the
secretaries, to be read to his majesty. And he did
with a very good conscience protest to all the world,
that he never did the least thing, or gave the least
advice, relating to the war, or relating to the peace,
which he would not have done, if he had been to
expire the next minute, and to have given an ac-
count thereof to God Almighty.

And as his majesty prudently, piously, and pas-
sionately desired to put an end to that war, so no
man appeared more delighted with the peace when
it was concluded, than his majesty himself did ,
though, he said, as far as he could make any judg-
ment of public affairs, the publication of that peace
was attended with the most universal joy and accla-
mations of the whole nation, that can be imagined.
Nor is it easy to forget the general consternation
that the city and people of all conditions were in,
when the Dutch came into the river as high as Chat-
ham ; and when the distemper in the court itself



EDWARD EARL OF CLARENDON. 449

was so great, that many persons of quality and title, lOfis.
in the galleries and privy lodgings, very indecently
every day vented their passions in bitter execrations
against those who had first counselled and brought
on the war, wishing x that an end were put to it by
any peace ; some of which persons, within very few
days after, as bitterly inveighed against the peace
itself, and against the promoters of it. But, he
said, he was yet so far from repenting or being
ashamed of the part lie had in it, that he looked
upon it as a great honour, that the last service he
performed for his majesty was the sealing the pro-
clamations, and other instructions, for the conclusion
and perfection of that peace, the great seal of Eng-
land being that very day sent for and taken from
him.

The seventeenth and last article was, " That he The sovcn-
" was a principal author of that fatal counsel c ie. "
" of dividing the fleet about June 1666. "

For answer to this, he set down at large an ac-iiisanswo,
count of all the agitation that was in council upon
that affair, and that the dividing and separation of
the fleet at that time was by the election and advice
of the two generals, and not by the order or direc-
tion of the council : all which hath been at large, in
that part of this discourse which relates to the
transactions of that time*', set down, and therefore
needs not to be again inserted.

He took notice of the prejudice that might befall
him, in the opinion of good men, by his absenting
himself, and thereby declining the full examination
and trial which the public justice would have allow-

x wishing] and wishing > P. 69, &c. of this volume.