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A29336
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A breviate for the bishops in vindication of the proceedings of the House of Commons, for the settlement of the throne to which is annex'd, a Protestant president, (exact parellel [sic] with the case of England) in the reasons that moved the convention of Sweden, to declare the forfeiture and exclusion of Sigismond the Third / by a person of honour.
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Person of honour.
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1689
(1689)
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Wing B4408; ESTC R27
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2,654
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4
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A BREVIATE FOR THE BISHOPS IN VINDICATION OF THE PROCEEDINGS OF THE House of Commons FOR THE Settlement of the THRONE To which is Annex'd A PROTESTANT President exact Parellel with the Case of England in the Reasons that moved the Convention of Sweden to declare the Forfeiture and Exclusion of Sigismond the Third By a Person of Honour IF Necessity which is a great Branch of the Law of Nature did not press us at this time to come to some speedy and pertinent Determinations as to the business especially of Settling the Government that nicety which seems to be promoted and set afoot in all our Counsels might considering the weightiness of the business in hand rather claim the Just Commendation and Applauses of every good Man than as it seems now fall under their Censure and I may say Indignation If the matter Debated were extraneous and the Kingdom within it self peaceably and firmly settled if the circumstances of our Affairs were ordinary and usual and could admit of an unlimited time for their Decision if we were secure from Injurious Resolutions of our Enemies abroad or from the private Machinations of Dis-affected Persons at home If these things were so it were worthy the Wisdom of those who by their unseasonable Scruples so generally resolv'd against and now again by them started may seem either ignorant of the desperate languishing condition of these Kingdoms at present or prejudic'd and dis-affected to the peace and settlement of them for the future I say it were then worthy the Wisdom of these men to dissect every particular of so Important an Affair before they made any Determination of the General As we all acknowledge the extraordinary circumstances of this juncture so they themselves have not been a little contributing to this Happy Revolution The Princes first Declaration tells us he had the Invitation of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal Was it Justice and agreeable to Conscience then to call for Foreign Arms to assist us against our own King in the recovery of those Rights Liberties and Properties which contrary to Law he had Invaded and taken from us And is it now become a Scruple in those same Consciences to be confirm'd in those Rights c. by the same Arms and Power Is that pretended absolute unlimited Power which in their Prayers and Sermons they have so often nibbled at and endeavoured to retrench now in its just debasement become so Inviolable and Sacred that it must become a Point of Faith entirely to submit to it Has this small fit of fear and discouragement in our implacable Enemies so well secur'd us from any future encroachments that we need not be careful of any further Assurance Has these men's Re-embellish'd Honours so obliterated the memory of the Dangers some of them so lately have escap'd and the rest justly fear'd as to free them from all apprehensions for the future What is it these Gentlemen would be at What do they fear Is it without Reason without Justice without President that we defire to be everlastingly secur'd from POPERY and SLAVERY Not without Reason for when we have seen many of our fairest Branches Lopp'd off many of our Liberties Invaded many of our Laws Perverted and the Axe at last laid to the Root of our Government 't is high time then I say to provide for our Safety and to put a stop to that current which would have quickly over-run and drowned us not without Justice for where my Life and Property is hunted after and Assaulted I may by the Law of God and Man repel the Injury and stand in my own Vindication not without President even in Protestant Kingdoms not to mention the Romanists who both teach and practise the Deposing of Evil and Wicked Magistrates and though in England we may perhaps think the changes we have very lately seen among our selves admit of no President it may easily be prov'd that what hath been done of late in this Nation hath been in great part formerly presented and allowed of upon Foreign Stages yea and not many years out of the memory of some yet living if we would but look into the Actions of other Regions and those too wherein the Reform'd Religion is professed we shall find that they by their publick Records acknowledged that in case of Tyranny and Oppression it was lawful not only to defend their Lives and Liberties against all Assaults but reduce and declare the persons so offending incapable of holding the Government A lively example of this and almost exactly parellel with ours was the Case of Sigismond the III. Hereditary King of Sweden who by a Convention of the States of that Kingdom was Excluded even with his Heirs a severity which both the Honourable Houses of Parliament here have with great Justice and Wisdom declin'd from that Crown for ever Some of the Articles drawn up against him were these first For swerving from their received Christian Religion as also from his Oath and Promise and Solemn Engagement made to his People at his Coronation to Preserve their Rights and Priviledges as also their Holy Reform'd Religion Inviolated for departing the Country without the consent and unwilling to the States and Orders of the Realm for exporting several Acts of great concernment out of the Cancellarie for prosecuting such as would not embrace or favour the Romish Superstition for contemning and endeavouring to Undermine and Annul those laudable Institutions and Laws made for the security of the Realm and the Establishment of the Protestant Reform'd Religion for raising up what Enemies he could against his Native Country thereby to involve his Subjects in a deluge of Blood which he intended and had almost effected for inhumanely designing and suborning Russians and Villains to Murder and Assassinate one of the chief Nobles for no other reason but that out of Conscience and Duty he would have perswaded him from those Irregularities and Notorious Breaches of the known Laws of the Land. For these and many more Causes as the sending his Son out of the Land without the consent of the States and causing him to be brought up and Educated in the Romish Superstition did the Swedes submitting the same to the judgment of all sincere and candid Arbitratours justifie their abdication for ever of King Sigismond III. and his Heirs from the Crown of Sweden c. and proceeded strait to the Constituting and Electing of Charles Duke of Sudermannia vid. Spanheim 's hist of Sweden c. And in conclusion they pray for and doubt not of a sincere and candid Construction a benign and favourable Acceptation from all Christian Emperours Kings Princes States c. of this their Legitimate Defence and to Vindicate them and their most equal Cause from all Calumny or Evil Interpretation whatsoever The Circumstances relating to this present juncture in England bear so near a resemblance almost in all those Grievances objected against the said Sigismond that our late King by a sort of 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 seems to have breath'd his Soul rather than to have Copy'd after him though indeed in some cases he has plainly out-done the Original especially in relation to his supposed Son. And as our King thought sit to Copy a King of Sweden I cannot apprehend how it can lessen our Judgments or Integrity our Piety or our Loyalty to follow the example of the Swedes excepting in the case of the Lawful Heirs whom every good Englishman and Protestant to their utmost Danger and Peril are ready to defend and maintain to take such measures for our future Security and lawful Establishment as shall not by any Humane Art or Endeavour be liable to Interruption LONDON Printed for Joseph Bowers at the Crown in Long-Acre 1688 / 9.