Selected quad for the lemma: england_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
england_n	edward_n	king_n	prisoner_n	3,115	5	8.4781	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A52753	Christianissimus Christianandus, or, Reason for the reduction of France to a more Christian state in Europ[e]	Nedham, Marchamont, 1620-1678.	1678 (1678)	Wing N383; ESTC R14468	47,167	81

any pretended inconvenience of the delay of entrance But to proceed Moreover If notwithstanding these Reasons any one of those men of Intelligence should yet mischievously Object That last Summers delay hath been the ruine of Flanders and made the recovery of it in a manner impossible and should endeavour to perswade others 't is so because of the loss of some few Towns there since let such consider that the Spaniard by his not closing yet with us in our friendly Inclination seems not to be of their Opinion or that Flanders is yet so near ruine seeing that he himself hath made a further delay by not coming up to our reasonable Demands at this time whenas he hath of late so much pretended it and all men expected he would accordingly have done it out of hand Besides Let those News-and-Mischief-Mongers remember it is not long ago since they themselves in one of the Canary-Clubs were of a mind that the Confederates if we were joyned with them would be able to work Miracles in Flanders against the French but it now seems that the loss of St. Ghislain or of a Town or two more hath in a moment deprived us and the Flemmings of all Power to do what is fit to preserve the Country It hath been told me that very lately the like Discourse being boldly bandied at a certain Cable of Coffee-mongers one that sate smoking hard by in a Corner of the Room stept in and said honestly That he wonder'd there should happen among some men such a sudden Change of Opinion and that it must needs give a suspicion there is some invisible Spring that moves them some Secret Intrigue and Reserve in the Heart when the Tongues go at so rolling a rate and that they are a sort of people tutor'd to this Tune to argue Pro and Con by Turns as their own Occasions alter That they are resolved to dislike whatsoever the King may judge is reason for him next to do in his publick Affairs and that they put on the approbations and disapprovements of a War according as they are influenced and as the WORD is given out by their envious Mal-contented Leaders and as it may serve to please or irritats and to render themselves gracious in their eyes unto whom they are Retainers I do remember said he what Joy the People had and Bonfires as soon as the Marriage of the Prince of Orange was declared and not many days after this sort of frequent Changelings raised I know not how many Scandals about it How far the French have had an influence on such petulant Talkers I cannot say but other men more honest speak broad enough about it Which having been thus roundly utter'd the Gentleman laid down his Pipe paid for his Dish of Coffee and went his way leaving them all in an amaze to guess who this Man should be Now no sooner was this Gentleman gone but another who over-heard the Discourse drew near to them for all are free over a Coffee-dish and sitting down said Gentlemen pardon me if I tell you I was here t'other day and heard some others of you discoursing about Money to carry on the War and methought it was much any among you should think it reasonable and most necessary to have War and others yet be of opinion That the Point of Money should be cumber'd with Delays or Disputes about it What would the Event of this be Would it not render us ridiculous to the French and make them scorn us Would it not dishearten the Confederates and make them jealous that whatsoever Resolutions we take to give them hope of assistance yet as soon as they are taken they will by one Accident or other be made impracticable In time of Necessity and when Hannibal was at the Gates or any other Enemy nigh coming the Romans ever instituted a Temporary Officer whom they called Dictator and to him the Senate and People gave during the publick danger but not longer as full Power as the King of France now enjoys to do and take whatsoever he should judge necessary to secure the Publick State of the Nation by which Policy they avoided all Disputes and Debates about the Concerns of the War and so they generally came off with Success Be it far from me to urge at this time that we should in this occasion of ours imitate them but yet methinks we should so far learn of them as to do all we can to avoid and lay aside disputings especially about the very Life and Sinews of a War constant supply of Moneys and other Necessaries and to come as near the Roman Policy as the publick Constitution convenience and State of our Government can possibly permit if we mean to obtain the like happy Success A trust must be lodged some where therefore 't is best and safest to place it where and in what manner the Law hath placed it The Law obliges the People as well as the King It obliges the King to make War where and when he shall judge it needful And on the other hand it obliges the People readily and cheerfully to give him necessary supplies otherwise this absurdity would be implied in our Law that it should oblige the King and leave the People loose in this matter which can by no means be supposed because then it would oblige him to an Impossibility it being impossible for him to do his part unless they on their part shall sufficiently supply him Which 't is not to be imagined the People can be so mad as to decline because 't is for common Safety The Supreme Law which is a further Tie upon them and if they observe not that it is not only to be wanting to the ends of Gubernation but in effect a Frustrating both of Law and Government it self and at this time an unnatural abandoning of our selves and a giving up of that most noble cause wherein whole Europ is so deeply concerned I thought Gentlemen to have spoken no more at this time but craving your Pardon pray Sirs let me tell you I over-heard also here t'other day what some of your Company said reflecting upon some State-Particulars past the reviving whereof would better become the mouth of a Common Enemy than a true English-man being matters altogether Foreign to the Business of War which is now The Unum Necessarium The one Thing Necessary and till all fit Resolutions upon that be taken why should any matters inferiour that may cause discontent or division of minds be discoursed among you I will not so much as name them to give you cause to over-heat your selves to answer me I resolve to bury them and all that you then said about them For I am no Spy upon you I am a Gentleman and if any other person that is an Informer may have taken notice of what you said and should chance to call me to witness any thing against you know I have a Gentleman's Memory very apt to forget all upon such an occasion This Discourse as I have been told surprised them more than what was said by the other Gentleman insomuch that the Company stared on him with silence being most of them I suppose of Opinion that what he said was Reason but as there is are all Companies some whom no Reason can satisfie so there were it seems among them some few Emissaries Trotters and Mischief-mongers belonging to the Canary Cabals who began to grumble but presently broke up and went to the several places of Caballing and communicated the matter there to their Principals among whom there hapning to be a false Brother or two by that means I got the Story Now for a Conclusion Let me answer one Objection which I hear walks about like a Bugbear to affright us viz. That though our Chronicles tell us that Edw. the Third conquer'd France and his Son Edward called the Black Prince brought their King Prisoner into England and though Henry the 5th made a Second Conquest of them more compleatly being Crowned King at Paris and his Son Henry the 6th also Crowned there and Reigned over them many years yet the Case is alter'd now France is quite another thing it is now one compact Body it in those days was shared by diverse Sovereign Princes which made the French King but little in comparison of what he is in these days being become exceedingly more potent and more difficult to subdue by reason of his present Lordship over all those Sovereignties To balance these Advantages of his note that England also is through God's good Providence become much more powerful than it was in those days For though in those days we had Ireland yet it was but a miserable halfplanted Country alwaies rebellious against us so that it was an extraordinary charge and a clog rather than a help to us but now we have it improved to the height and the Irish in good order with our English also the Accession of the Kingdom of Scotland a numerous and warlike People which then also was another great Clog upon us now united with us To these Considerations add That by addition of the Confederates if they please to be plain with us we may I suppose be contrepoise enough to answer all the French Advantages and no Man that knows what England is at Sea and what an English-Seaman is will doubt especially Holland joyn with us that we may be a Match sufficient for that King and that we over-match him in this that we have a Better Cause and therefore God pardoning our Iniquities in other matters have a better hope of Divine Benediction Which being well weighd we may very aptly invert the old Saying of Cicero Justissimum Bellum iniquissimae Paci antefero That is being a little paraphrased in English I upon the whole matter conclude That a most just War is to be preferred before a most unjust Peace most dangerous to us and all the rest of the European Nations FINIS