laid upon the Kingdom but by the Common-Council of the Kingdom unless it be to redeem the King's Person or to make his eldest Son a Knight or to marry his eldest Daughter once and for these a reasonable Aid shall be given That it be in like manner with respect to Tallages and Aids from the City of London and other Cities that have Priviledges therein And that the City of London may fully enjoy her ancient Liberties and free Customs as well by Water as by Land. That it shall be lawful for any Man to go out of the Kingdom and to return saving his Allegiance to the King unless it be in time of War for a short time for the common profit of the Realm If any borrow Money of a Jew be it more or less and die before the Debt be paid no Interest shall be paid for the same so long as the Heir is under age of whomsoever he hold And if the Debt become due to the King the King shall take no more than what is contain'd in the Charter If any Man die and owe Money to the Jews his Wife shall have her Dower and if he left Children Necessaries shall be provided them according to the quantity of the Freehold and the residue shall go to pay off the Debt saving the Services due to the Lords The like shall be observed in case of other Debts and when the Heir comes of age his Guardian shall restore him his Land as well stockt as he could reasonably afford out of the Profits of the Land coming in by the Plough and the Cart. If any Man hold of any Escheat as of the Honour of Wallingford and Nottingham Bonon and Lancaster or of other Escheats which are in the King's Hand and are Baronies and die his Heir shall pay no other Relief nor perform any other Service then he should have paid and perform'd to the Baron and that the King shall hold such Escheats as the Barons held them That Fines made for Dowers Marriages Inheritances and Amercements wrongfully and contrary to the Law of the Land be freely remitted or ordered by the Judgment of the Five and twenty Barons or of the major part of them together with the Archbishop and such as he shall call to him Provided that if one or more of the Five and twenty have themselves any like complaint that then he or they shall be removed and others put in their rooms by the residue of the Five and twenty That the Hostages and Deeds be restored which were deliver'd to the King for his Security That they that live out of the Forest be not obliged to come before the Justices of the Forest by common Summons unless they be Parties or Pledges And that the Evil Customs of the Forests and Foresters Warrens and Sheriffs and Ponds be redress'd by twelve Knights of each County who shall be chosen by the Good Men of the County That the King remove wholly from their Bayliff-wick the Kindred and whole Dependance of Gerard de Aties that hereafter they have no Bayliffwick to wit Engeland Andr ' Peter ' Gigo de Cances Gigo de Cygon Matthew de Martino and his Brethren and Gelfrid his Nephew and Phillip de Mark. And that the King put away the Foreign Soldiers Stipendaries Slingers and Troopers and their Servants who came with Horses and Arms to the Nusance of the Realm That the King make Justitiars Constables Sheriffs and Bayliffs of Men that know the Law of the Land and will cause it to be well observed That Barons who have founded Abbies for which they have Charters of Kings or ancient Tenure shall have the Custody of them when they are vacant If the King have disseiz'd the Welsh men or esloyn'd them from Lands or Liberties or of other things in England or in Wales let them presently be restored to them without Plea and if they have been disseiz'd or esloin'd from their English Tenements by the King's Father or his Brother without Judgment of their Peers the King shall without delay do them Justice as he does Justice to Englishmen of their English Tenements according to the Law of England and of Welsh Tenements according to the Law of Wales and of Tenements in the Marches according to the Law of the Marches In like manner the Welshman shall do to the King and his Subjects That the King restore Lewelin's Son and all the Welsh Hostages and the Deeds that were delivered to him for security of the Peace That the King do Right to the King of Scotland concerning restoring of Hostages and his Liberties and Right according to the Form of the Agreement with his Barons of England unless it ought to be otherwise by vertue of some Deeds which the King has by the Judgment of the Archbishop and others whom he shall think fit to call to him That all Forests that have been afforested by the King in his own time be disafforested and so of Banks which by the King himself have been put in defence All these Customs and Liberties which the King has granted to the Kingdom to hold and keep for his own part towards his Men all Clerks and Lay-men of the Kingdom shall observe and keep for their parts towards their Men. This is the Form of the security for keeping Peace and the Liberties betwixt the King and the Kingdom The Barons shall chuse Five and twenty Barons of the Realm whom they will themselves upon whom it shall be encumbent that with all their might they observe and keep and cause to be observ'd and kept the Peace and Liberties which the King has granted to them and confirm'd by his Charter to wit That if the King or his Justices or Bayliffs or any of his Ministers offend any Person contrary to any of the said Articles or transgress any Article of this Peace and Security And that such offence be made known to four of the said Five and Twenty Barons those four Barons shall go to the King or to his Justitiar if the King be out of the Realm declaring to him that such an abuse is committed and shall desire him to cause it speedily to be redressed And if the King or if he be out of the Realm his Justitiar do not redress it those four Barons shall within a reasonable time to be limited in the Charter refer the matter to the residue of the Five and twenty Barons And those Five and twenty with the Commonalty of all the Land shall distress the King all the ways they can to wit by seizing his Castles his Lands and Possessions and by what other means they can till it be redrest according to their good likeing saving the Person of our Lord the King and of the Queen and of their Children And when it is redrest they shall be subject to the King as before And whoever will may swear to put these things in Execution viz. To obey the Commands of the said Five and twenty Barons and to distress the King
shall be present or before Stephen Archbishop of Canterbury if he can be there and those that he shall call to him and if he cannot be present Matters shall proceed notwithstanding without him so always that if one or more of the said Five and twenty Barons be concern'd in any such Complaint they shall not give Judgement thereupon but others chosen and sworn shall be put in their room to act in their stead by the residue of the said Five and twenty Barons If we have disseiz'd or esloin'd any Welshmen of Land Franchises or of other things without lawful judgment of their Peers in England or in Wales they shall forthwith be restored unto them and if Suits arise thereupon right shall be done them in the Marches by the Judgment of their Peers of English Tenements according to the Law of England and of Tenements in Wales according to the Law of Wales and Tenements in the Marches according to the Law of the Marches And in like manner shall the Welsh do to us and our Subjects As for all such things whereof any Welshmen have been disseiz'd or esloyn'd without Lawful Judgment of their Peers by King Henry our Father or by King Richard our Brother which we have in our hands or which any others have to whom we are bound to warrant the same we will have respit till the common Term be expir'd of all that crost themselves for the Holy Land those things excepted whereupon Suits were Commenced or Enquests taken by our Order before we took upon us the Cross and when we shall return from our Pilgrimage or if peradventure we forbear going we will presently cause full Right to be done therein according to the Laws of Wales and before the said Parties We will forthwith restore the Son of Lewellyn and all the Hostages of Wales and the Deeds that have been delivered to us for security of the Peace We will deal with Alexander King of Scotland as to the restoring him his Suitors and his Hostages his Franchises and Rights as we do with our other Barons of England unless it ought to be otherwise by vertue of the Charters which we have of his Father William late King of Scotland and this to be by the Judgment of his Peers in our Court. All these Customs and Franchises aforesaid which we have granted to be kept in our Kingdom so far forth as we are concerned towards our Men all Persons of the Kingdom Clerks and Lay must observe for their Parts towards their Men. And whereas we have granted all these things for God's sake and for the amendment of our Government and for the better compremising the discord arisen betwixt us and our Barons We willing that the same be firmly held and established for ever do make and grant to our Barons the scurity underwritten to wit That the Barons shall chuse Five and twenty Barons of the Realm whom they List who shall to their utmost Power keep and hold and cause to be kept the Peace and the Liberties which we have Granted and Confirmed by this our present Charter insomuch that if we or our Justice or our Bayliff or any of our Ministers act contrary to the same in any thing against any Persons or offend against any Article of this Peace and Security and such our Miscarriage be shown to four Barons of the said Five and twenty those four Barons shall come to us or to our Justice if we be out of the Realm and show us our Miscarriage and require us to amend the same without delay and if we do not amend it or if we be out of the Realm our Justice do not amend it within Forty days after the same is shown to us or to our Justice if we be out of the Realm then the said Four Barons shall report the same to the residue of the said Five and twenty Barons and then those Five and twenty Barons with the Commonalty of all England may distress us by all the ways they can to wit by seizing on our Castles Lands and Possessions and by what other means they can till it be amended as they shall adjudge saving our own Person the Person of our Queen and the Persons of our children and when it is amended they shall be subject to us as before And whoever of the Realm will may swear that for the Performance of these things he will obey the Commands of the said Five and twenty Barons and that together with them he will distress us to his Power And we give Publick and free leave to swear to all that will swear and will never hinder any one And for all Persons of the Realm that of their own accord will swear to the said Five and twenty Barons to distress us we will issue our Precept Commanding them to swear as aforesaid And if any of the said Five and twenty Barons die or go out of the Realm or be any way hindred from acting as aforesaid the residue of the said Five and twenty Barons shall chuse another in his room according to their discretion who shall swear as the others do And as to all things which the said Five and twenty Barons are to do if peradventure they be not all present or cannot agree or in case any of those that are Summon'd cannot or will not come whatever shall be determined by the greater number of them that are present shall be good and valid as if all had been present And the said five and twenty Barons shall swear that they will faithfully observe all the matters aforesaid and cause them to be observed to their power And we will not obtain of any one for our selves or for any other any thing whereby any of these Concessions or of these Liberties may be revoked or annihilated and if any such thing be obtained it shall be null and void nor shall ever be made use of by our selves or any other And all ill will disdain and rancour which has been betwixt Us and our Subjects of the Clergy and Laity since the said discord began we do fully release and pardon to them all And moreover all Trespasses that have been committed by occasion of the said discord since Easter in the sixteenth year of our Reign to the restoring of the Peace we have fully released to all Clerks and Lay-men and so far as in us lies we have fully pardoned them And further we have caused Letters Patents to be made to them in testimony hereof witnessed by Stephen Archbishop of Canterbury Henry Archbishop of Dublin and by the aforesaid Bishops and by Mr. Pandulphus upon this Security and these Concessions Whereby we will and strictly Command that the Church of England be free and enjoy all the said Liberties and Rights and Grants well and in Peace freely and quietly fully and entirely to them and their Heirs in all things in all places and for ever as aforesaid And we and our Barons have sworn that all things above written shall be kept on our parts in good Faith without ill design The Witnesses are the Persons above-named and many others This Charter was given at the Meadow called Running-Mead betwixt Windsor and Stanes the 15th day of June in the Seventeenth Year of our Reign JOHN by the Grace of God King of England to the Sheriff of Hampshire and to the Twelve that are chosen in that County to enquire of and put away the evil customs of Sheriffs and of their Ministers of Forests and Foresters of Warrens and Warrenners of Rivers and of guarding them Greeting We command you that without delay you seize into our Hand the Lands and Tenements and the Goods of all those of the County of Southampton that will not swear to the said Five and twenty Barons according to the form exprest in our Charter of Liberties or to such as they shall have thereunto appointed and if they will not swear presently at the end of Fifteen days after their Lands and Tenements and Chattels are seized into our Hands that ye sell all their Goods and keep safely the Money that ye shall receive for the same to be employed for the Relief of the Holy Land of Jerusalem and that yeâ— keep their Lands and Tenements in our Hands till they have sworn or that Stephen Archbishop of Canterbury and the Barons of our Kingdom have given Judgment thereupon In witness whereof we direct unto you these our Letters Patents Witness our Self At Odibaam the Seven and twentieth Day of June in the Seventeenth Year of our Reign FINIS Books lately Printed for Richard Chiswell THE Case of Allegiance in our present Circumstances considered in a Letter from a Minister in the City to a Minister in the Country 4o. A Breviate of the State of Scotland in its Government Supreme Courts Officers of State Inferiour Officers Offices and Inferiour Courts Districts Jurisdictions Burroughs Royal and Free Corporations Fol. Some Considerations touching Succession and Allegiance 4o. Reflections upon the late Great Revolution Written by a Lay-hand in the Country for the satisfaction of some Neighbours The History of the Desertion or an Account of all the Publick Affairs in England from the beginning of September 1688. to the Twelfth of February following With an Answer to a Piece called The Desertion discussed in a Letter to a Country Gentleman By a Person of Quality K. William and K. Lewis wherein is set forth the inevitable necessity these Nations lie under of submitting wholly to one or other of these Kings And that the matter in Controversie is not now between K. William and K. James but between K. William and K. Lewis of France for the Government of these Nations An Examination of the Scruples of those who refuse to take the Oath of Allegiance by a Divine of the Church of England A Dialogue betwixt two Friends a Jacobite and a Williamite occasioned by the late Revolution of Affairs and the Oath of Allegiance The Case of Oaths stated 4o. A Letter from a French Lawyer to an English Gentleman upon the Present Revolution 4o. The Advantages of the Present Settlement and the great danger of a Relapse The Interest of England in the Preservation of Ireland
to the utmost of his Power with them And the King shall give publick and free Liberty for any man to swear that will and shall never pohibit any to swear And all those of the Nation who will voluntarily of their own accord swear to the Five and twenty Barons to distress the King with them the King himself shall issue his Praecept Commanding them to swear as aforesaid Item If any of the said Five and Twenty Barons dye or go out of the Realm or be any other way hindred from performing these things the residue of the Five and twenty shall chuse another whom they think best in his place who shall be sworn as the rest are And in all matters referred to those Five and twenty Barons if they happen to be all present and differ amongst themselves or if any of them being thereto appointed will not or cannot come what the major part of them shall agree upon and enjoyn shall be valid as if all the Five and twenty had agreed in it And the said Five and twenty shall swear that they will faithfully observe and keep the Articles aforesaid and with all theit might cause them to be observed Moreover the King shall give them the Securities of the Archbishop and Bishops and Master Pandulphus that he will not obtain any thing from the Pope whereby any of these Articles of Agreement may be revoked or diminished And if any such thing be obtain'd that it be reputed void and of none effect nor shall ever be made use of THE GREAT CHARTER OF KING JOHN A True Copy from the Original French. JOHN by the Grace of God King of England to the Archbishops Bishops Abbots Earls Barons Justices Foresters Sheriffs Prevosts Ministers and all his Bayliffs and his Lieges Greeting Know ye that We by the Grace of God and for the saving of our Soul and the Souls of all our Ancestors and of our Heirs and for the Honour of God and the safety of Holy Church and for the amendment of our Government By the Advice of Our Honoured Fathers Stephen Archbishop of Canterbury Primate of All England and Cardinal of Rome Henry Archbishop of Dublin William Bishop of London Peter Bishop of Winchester Jocelin Bishop of Bath Hugh Bishop of Lincoln Walter Bishop of Worcester William Bishop of Chester Benedict Bishop of Rochester and Master Pandulph Sub-deacon of our Lord the Apostle and of our Friend and Brother Anner Master of the Order of Knights Templers in England And by the Advice of our Barons William Earl Marshal Earl of Pembroke William Earl of Salisbury William Earl of Warren William Earl of Arundel Alan of Galloway Constable of Scotland Warin Fitz-Gerard Peter Fitz-Herbert Hubert de Burgh Steward of Poictou Hugh Nevill Matthew Fitz-Herbert Thomas Basset Alan Basset Phillip d' Aubenie Robert de Ropelee John Marshall and John Fitz-Hugh and by the Advice of other our Lieges Have in the first place granted to God and confirmed by this our present Charter for us and for our Heirs for ever That the Churches of England shall be free and shall enjoy their Rights and Franchises entirely and fully And this our Purpose is that it be observed as may appear by our having granted of our meer and free Will that Elections should be free which is reputed to be a very great and very necessary Priviledgeâ— of the Churches of England before the difference arose betwixt Us and our Barons and by our having confirm'd the same by our Charter and by our having procur'd it moreover to be confirmed by our Lord the Apostle Innocent the third Which Priviledge We will maintain And our Will is that the same be faithfully maintain'd by our Heirs for ever We have also granted to all the Free-men of our Kingdom for us and our Heirs for ever all the Liberties hereafter mentioned to have and to hold to them and their Heirs of Us and our Heirs If any of our Earls our Barons or others that hold of us in Chief by Knight-Service die and at the time of his death his Heir be of full age and Relief be due he shall have his Inheritance by the ancient Relief to wit the Heir or Heirs of an Earl for an entire Earldom C pounds the Heir or Heirs of a Baron for an entire Barony C Marks the Heir or Heirs of a Knight for a whole Knights Fee C Shillings at most and where less is due less shall be paid according to the ancient Customs of the several Tenures If the Heirs of any such be within Age and in Ward they shall have their Inheritance when they come of Age without Relief and without Fine The Guardians of the Land of such Heirs being within age shall take nothing out of the Land of the Heirs but only the reasonable Profits reasonable Customs and reasonable Services and that without making destruction or wast of Men or Goods And if we shall have committed the Custody of the Land of any such Heir to a Sheriff or any other who is to account to us for the Profits of the Land and that such Committee make destruction or wast We will take of him amends and the Land shall be committed to two lawful and good Men of that Fee who shall account for the Profits to us or to such as we shall appoint And if we shall give or sell to any Person the custody of the Lands of any such Heir and such Donee or Vendee make destruction or wast he shall lose the Custody and it shall be committed to two Lawful Sage and Good Men who shall account to Us for the same as aforesaid And the Guardian whilst he has the Custody of the Heirs Land shall maintain the Houses Ponds Parks Pools Mills and other Appurtenances to the Land out of the Profits of the Land it self and shall restore to the Heir when he shall be of full age his Land well stockt with Ploughs Barns and the like as it was when he receiv'd it and as the Profits will reasonably afford Heirs shall be married without disparagement insomuch that before the Marriage be contracted the Persons that are next of Kin to the Heir shall be made acquainted with it A Widow after the death of her Husband shall presently and without oppression have her Marriage and her Inheritance nor shall give any thing for her Marriage nor for her Dower nor for her Inheritance which she and her Husband were seiz'd of the day of her Husband's death and she shall remain in her Husband's House Forty Days after his death within which time her Dower shall be assign'd her No Widow shall be compelled to marry if she be desirous to live single provided she give Security not to marry without our leave if she hold of us or without the Lord's leave of whom she holds if she hold of any other We nor our Bayliffs will not seize the Lands or Rents of a Debtor for any Debt so long as his Goods are sufficient to pay the
acknowledg that to judg aright of Things the Proceedings of England with respect to James II. have been the most just and lawful that could be The Things I have made out in this Treatise are summarily contain'd in the following Articles 1. That the Constitution and Establishment of any Government is the Effect of the Original Consent of the People though the Authority of the Magistrates be a Thing established by God. 2. That this Establishment supposeth the Subsistence of the Laws which are the End of the Government in the Design of God for indeed Kingdoms without Justice are no better than great Robberies as St. Austin calls them De Civit. Dei Lib. 4. cap. 4. 3. That these Fundamental Laws for the Subsistence of the Society are a Bond which so strictly ties the Soveraigns that nothing is able to dispense with their Obligation to them 4. That when the Soveraigns do violate them they break the Ties whereby their Subjects are bound to their Lawful Authority 5. That the Subjects can never be deprived of their Right to hinder the Ruin of the Society and of the Laws for the conservation of which only they have put their Rights into the Hands of the Prince 6. That there was never any State that subsisted under other conditions than these 7. That England in particular and Scotland have always had this Right Now these Things supposed it is evident 1. That James II. has forfeited all his Rights to the Crown even before his Desertion 2. That the Lords and People justly took up Arms against him to oblige him by Force to reform the Disorders he had caused 3. That the States had Power without any regard had to Him to raise the King and Queen to the Throne 4. That the Subjects are more than enough freed from their Oath of Allegiance to King James 5. That they have Right and are under Obligation to take up Arms and oppose themselves against James II. and to maintain the Authority of the King and Queen 6. That those who oppose themselves to this are declared Enemies of the State and of our Religion and the Authors and Abettors of Tyranny and Popery 7. That those who pretend themselves scrupulous in these Points are the Cause of the Division and consequently of the Ruin of the State and Religion whereby they grievously sin against God and therefore are obliged in Conscience to repent and make amends for the Mischief their Division has caused The thing is very evident and forasmuch as it is of the highest importance for their Salvation I beg of them well to weigh and consider these following Articles and witness their Repentance in all these respects 1. Then they ought to repent for that they making profession to have so strong an Affection for James II. they have made him fall upon the Designs of changing the Government into a Despotical and Arbitrary Power and thus by their Maxims have advanced and precipitated his Ruin. They are the Men who have made him conceive the Design of establishing a Tyranny in England they have given birth to his hope of being able to compass it according to his Hearts desire and his Ruin proceeding from the opposition that was made against these his Designs 't is them he may thank for all the Miseries into which he is plunged and consequently they have great reason to repent for having precipitated his Ruin by their false and deceitful Foundation See what Gerson saith In opusc contr Adulat consid 10. Clericus ille Regem suum aut Principem amaret minimè qui perversas tales vellet dare doctrinas aut toto posse scientia illas non impediret quia non est modus certior quo Rex aut Princeps se perderet in corpore in anima totamque ejus damnationem quam habendo falsas tales opiniones eas opere exequendo Cur Quoniam Dominatio sua in Tyrannidem verteretur in infidelitatem That Clergy-man would be far from loving his King or Prince who should teach him such perverse and false Doctrines or that with all his Power and Skill should not oppose them because there is not a more sure way for a Prince to destroy himself Soul and Body and to procure his total Damnation than by entertaining such false Opinions and reducing them into practice Why so Because his Government by this means would be changed into Tyranny and Perfidiousness 2. They ought to repent for their having contributed so much towards the establishing of Tyranny not only because that would have destroyed the Publick Liberty but because his Design at the same time was to overthrow the Protestant Religion and substitute in the place of it the Idolatry Superstition and Tyranny of Popish Usurpation This was a thing they could not do without imitating the Conduct of the Popish Clergy who since the Popes have undertaken to tread under their Feet the Rules of the Gospel and of the Church have endeavoured to inspire Princes with an indifferency for their Oaths and contempt of the Laws which are a Safeguard and Security of the Civil Society 3. They must repent at least some of them for having obstinately endeavoured to hide and disguise the Conspiracies which were design'd for the Ruin of our Religion and Liberty 4. They must repent for having writ in favour of an Opinion contrary to the Judgment of the Ancient Reformers of England and for having traduc'd as Rebels the Protestant Churches beyond the Sea for their maintaining the Maxims which the first Reformers of England have Asserted and for which they have Writ in defence of their Protestant Brethren 5. They must repent for that by their Sermons and Writings they have insinuated to the People those Maxims which have put them upon betraying the Natural Rights of the Society and in the Sequel upon imprudently exposing themselves to betray the Interest of the Protestant Religion which they were obliged to deliver safe to their Posterity 6. They must repent for having by this means encouraged the Judges to tread underfoot the Authority of the Laws and to dispence with them as having taught them to look upon the Laws as the Concessions of Princes and Acts of their Will and by Consequence revocable at their good Pleasure 7. They must repent at least some of them for having mounted to Ecclesiastical Dignities by publickly appearing in the Lists for defence of these pernicious and tyrannical Maxims directly level'd at the Ruin and Overthrow of our Liberty and Religion 8. They must repent for that their Opinions at this Day are the Causes of the present Conspiracies Rebellions and Treasons against the Government by which God has been pleas'd so graciously to secure our Liberty and Religion from the inevitable Ruin wherewith they were threatned However we have cause to bless God that those who are guilty of these Sins are but inconsiderable in their Numbers And I ardently wish for them they may once seriously enter into themselves