Selected quad for the lemma: england_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
england_n	king_n	lord_n	westminster_n	3,206	5	9.6908	5	false

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A88241	Rash oaths unwarrantable: and the breaking of them as inexcusable. Or, A discourse, shewing, that the two Houses of Parliament had little ground to make those oaths they have made, or lesse ground to take, or presse the taking of them, being it is easie to be apprehended, they never intended to keep them, but onely made them for snares, and cloaks for knavery, as it is clearly evinced by their constant arbitrary and tyranicall practices, no justice nor right being to be found amongst them; by meanes of which they have declaratorily, and visibly lost the very soule and essence of true magistracy, (which is, the doing of justice, judgement, equity ... In which is also a true and just declaration of the unspeakable evill of the delay of justice, and the extraordinary sufferings of Lievtenant Colonell John Lilburne, very much occasioned by M. Henry Martins unfriendly and unjust dealing with him, in not making his report to the House. All which with divers other things of very high concernment, are declared in the following discourse, being an epistle, / written by Lievtenant-Colonell John Lilburne, prerogative prisoner in the Tower of London, to Colonell Henry Marten, a member of the House of Commons of England ... May 1647.	Lilburne, John, 1614?-1657.	1647 (1647)	Wing L2167; Thomason E393_39; ESTC R201615	53,968	58

portion if 〈◊〉 everlasting woe and indignation in the world to come But that I may not be sentenced for rashnes in saying this which is not in your Oath● and Covenants I will site your owne words and leave them to your judgement to passe sentence upon them First in your Protestation of the 5 of May 1641 I find you sweare in these words To maintaine and defend the lawfull Rights and Liberties of the Subject and every person that maketh this Protestation in whatsoever he shall doe in the lawfull pursuance of the same And secondly in your Vow and Covenant which you commanded to be taken througho●t the whole Kingdome You vow in the presence of Almighty God the Searcher of all hearts that you doe in your Conscience beleeve that the forces raised by the two Houses of Parliament are raised and continue for their just defence and for the defence of the true Protestant Religion which what that is I thinke never a one of your selves knowes And Lawes and Liberties of the Subject against the Forces raised by the King and a little below you all that tooke that Oath declare vow and covenant to assi●t all persons that shall take this Oath in what they shall doe in pursuance thereof and if so then ●aver it for a truth that all the men of England that have taken this Oath are bound to assist me or any other whatsoever that shall oppose the Lords and Commons sitting at VVestminster for their apparant indeavoring the distruction of the Liberties of the Subject And in the third place in the preamble to the League and Covenant fram'd in Scotland and most basely illegally and unjustly obtruded upon England and the Freemen thereof with an unsupportable penalty I find that amongst the things the Fraimers of it had before their eyes this is one viz. The true publique Liberty safety and Peace of the Kingdome wherein every ones private condition is included And in the third Article of the Covenant you and all those that took it sweare sencerely really and constantly in your severall e●ditions to endeavour with your estates and lives mutually to preserue the Rights and Privileges of the Parliament and the leiberties of the Kingdome and I am sure the Parliament hath often declared though in action they have visablely denied it that they have no Privileges for the destruction of the Kingdome but for the preservation of it nor no Privileges for the over-throwing of good and wholsome Lawes but for the defending and preseruing of them nor no Privileges for the trampling under their feet the Liberties of the Kingdome but to maintaine them in their luster and glory and what they are you may in part read before and in your owne Declaration First part booke Decl. page 6. 7. 38. 39. 77. 123. 201. 202. 209. 277. 278. 458. 459. 548. 660. 720. 845. see the second edition of the out-cryes of oppressed Commons page 8. I shall give you but one notable instance of the most rememberable Vengence of God upon the Hungarians for breaking and violating their Faith and Covenant made with the Turke and it is in the Turkish History made of the Life of Amurath the second the sixt King of the Turkes In which History the fourth edition printed by Adam Islip 1631 I read that the Hungarians were much distressed by inrods and spoyles made by the said Amurath whereupon the States and great men of Hungary chused Vladislaus King of Polonia for their King and Captaine Generall and he made that famous man Huniades his Generall in Transliluania who obtained severall most notable Victories against the Turkes as you may read in the foresaid History folio 267. 269. 273. 277. one of which is extraordinary remarkable that Huniades with 15000. ●ought a pitcht-field with about 80000. Turkes and after five houres there fe●… a feirce and bloody fight totally overthrew the Turkes by ●…aine dint of sword and just about that time Scanderbeg that ●amous Wa●rie● and wonder of his age for gallant achevements revolted from the Turke which with his great losses be the valiant Hungarians so te●…fied old Amurath that in a very great feare of himselfe and his Kingdom● he made a peace to his owne particuler great losse for ten yeares with t●… H●…gar●an● the capulations whereof were First that Amurath withdraw all his forces and garrisons should clearely depart out of Seruia and restore the same unto the p●ssession of George the late Dispot the right Lord and Owner thereof then in armes and confideracy with the Hungarians Delivering also freely unto him his two sonnes Stephen and George who was bereft of their sight he had long time keept in straite prison Also that from henceforth he should make no claime unto the Kingdome of Moldavia nor to that part of Bulgaria which he had in the late Warres lost And finally that he should not invate nor molest the Hungarians nor any part of the kingdome during the whole time of that peace and to paie 40000. Duckats for the Ransome of Carambey one of his Generalls which conditions by solome Oath were confirmed Ki●g Vlad●…aus taking his Oath upon the Holy Evangle●…s and Amurath by his Ambassoders upon their Turkish Alcoron inviolable to observe the ten yeares peace and Amurath forthwith faith fully performed those things that he was presently to doe follo 292. but by the perswadtion of divers Princes but especially of Iulian the Cardinall the Popes Legat who in his large and set speech in a full convention urged that against a perfidious enemie as the Turke was it is lawfull for a man to use all cunning force and deceit deluding craft with craft and fraud with fraud and saith he by craft the Turke first passed into Europe and by little and little he crept into that Kingdome and never kept faith with any It is sometimes lawfull for the common-weale sake neither to stand to our Leauges neither to keepe our faith with them that be themselves faithlesse lawfull saith he it is to breake unlawfull Oaths especially such as are thought to be against right reason and equitie therefore saith he make no conscince of the League you made with the Infidell upon which the King Vladislaus condescended to be absolved by the Cardinall from his Oath and Covenant and prepaires for wars against the Turkes and the Turke with his army met him and pitched battle within Arvarna that fatall place to the Hungarians and when the battle came close to be joyned it was cleare of the Christians sides who had put to flight both the wings of the Turkish armie insomuch that Am●…th dismayed with the flight of his Souldiers was about to have fled himselfe cut of the maine battle had he not bin stayed by a common souldier who laying hands upon the raines of his bridle stayed him by force and sharply reproved him for cowardize And Amurath seeing the great slaughter of his men and all brought into extreame danger beholding the picture of the crucifix in the

may be returned to the custody and disposing of those persons of whose faithfullnesse and wisedome in managing thereof you have had great experience and that none may be put out of Command in the Trained Bands or Auxiliaries who have been and are of known good affection to the Common wealth All which we humbly intreat may be speedily and effectually accomplished according to the great necessity and exigency of these distracted times and as in duty bound we shall pray c. And having presented it in writing a day two or three after they presented it publiquely in print to the members of the House the issue of which as I have it out of your own Diurnall was thus Die Mercuris 2 Junii 1647 A Petition stiled the humble Petition of many thousands of well affected people was this day read The question being put whether an answer shall be given to this Petition at this present the house was devided the yeas went forth Sir John Evelin of Wilts Sir Michael Levisay tellers for the yea with the yea 112. Mr. Hollis Sir William Luis tellers for the no with the no●s 128 so that the qu●stion past with the negative But the Petitioners going up s●me few dayes after for an answer to their petition and being extreamly in base provoking and insufferable language abused by that worshipfull Gentleman Major Generall Massie c. which provoked divers of them to send in a paper to Mr. Speaker as their last farewell the copy of which thus followeth Mr Speaker divers Citizens have been here attending for an answer of a Petition delivered by Sir William Waller on Wednesday last their desire is that the house may be acquainted that the petitioners have seen the Vote of the House and have discharged themselves from further attendance for the present and will notwithstanding still seeke just and equitable meanes for to ease the grievances of this poore distracted Kingdome and comfortably put an end to the groanings of this miserable distressed nation And having sent it in away they came and now in my apprehension have no other course to take but to remonstrate and justly to declare to all the Commons of England and the Army the unpartaleld illegall and tyrannicall dealing of the House of Commons with them and to presse them by force of Armes to root up and destroy these tyrants which without any scruple of conscience they may doe if it were lawfull for the two Houses to levie warre against the King for tyranny declared by them seeing I am sure there is a hundred times greater and more visibler and if it be true as Sir Simon Synod and the John of all Sir Johns now cryes out and sayes that it is not lawfull in any case to fight against the legall Magistrate then I am sure Sir John and Sir Simon are a company of grand Traytors and ought principally to be hanged for being the chiefe Incendiaries in their Pulpets c. to the by past warres against the King who I will justifie it upon the losse of my life by the established law of England the declared government thereof is a thousand times more fenced about and secured so farre as Law can secure then the unjust law and liberty destroying Lords and Commons assembled at Westminster are And secondly I will justifie it that if the principalls or law of reason and nature for preservation take be a sufficient ground to take up Armes against the King and his party as the H●… Parliament have declared they are then the Kingdome and Arm have much more true grounds to take up Armes against them for tyranny visibly avowedly and professedly acted a hundred times more higher and transendent then ever he did that is yet declared And a most reall difference there is betwixt the action of them two in this particular I clearly find by all that J can yet read of either side published to the view of the Kingdome and J thinke that I have read and wayed almost all that is extant that the King by the law of his will did not impose Monopolies and Ship money c. vpon the free men of England but was made to beleeve by his Judges and Counsell at Law being those helpes or assistance that the law of the Kingdom had appointed him to be counselled by out of Parliament that he might impose those things by right or force of the Law of the Kingdome See the dispute in Mr. Hamdens case of Ship-money in the latter end of Judge Huttons Judge Crookes arguments against Ship money pag. 2 3. 4 5 printed by authority of this present Parliament and the Declarations of both sides 1. and 2. part Col. Decl. And indeed to speake according to the declared Law of England the Iudges and his counsell at Law were principally to be blamed and not the King See your own Remonstrance of the 19 May 1642. 1. part book Decl. pag. 199. 304. and the reason in Law is because the Law commands the Judges and Justices of peace and all the rest of the Administrators of it not to delay or disturb common Iustice and right for any command from the King for any other signified by the Great Seale or privie Seale or any other wayes and though such commands doe come the Iudges and Iustices shall not therefore leave to doe right in any point but shall doe common right according to the common Law as though never any such command had been see the 29 chap of Magna Charta and 2. E. 3 8. and 14. E. 3.14 and 11. R. 2.10 And to performe this in every particular every Iudge and Iustice of peace is sworne as appeares by their oathes recorded in Poultons book of Statutes folio 144. and made in the 18. yeare of Edward 3. Anno 1344. which also you may verbatum read in the 29 pag. of a late printed book called Rega● tyranny And it was the duty by law that this Parliament ought to the whole Kingdome to have made all those false and wicked Ship-money Judges examples of terror to future generations As King Alfred before the conquest did for as Andrew Horne in his miror of Iustice pag. 296. saith that Iudges and their Ministers who destroy men by false judgement ought to be destroyed as other murtherers which King Alfred did who hanged in one yeare 44. Iudges as murtherers for their false judg●ments against the Law whose particular crimes and names he specifieth pag. 296. 297 298 299 300. c. But to your everlasting shame be it spoken you took bribes of some of them after the King had surrendred them up to your justice and after that you had impeached them of high Treason and imprisoned them you set them at liberty to sit upon the seat of justice * Which if they had bin made examples of terror you would have got no Iudges to have executed your arbitrary illegall and tirannicall commands to passe sentence upon the lives liberties and properties of the free-men

people for no other end in the world but to provide for their weale and happinesse and to redresse their mischiefs and grievances unfortified at all by the established knowne and declared Law of the Kingdome degenerate from your trust destroy their Liberties and trades overthrow their Lawes and the Bounds that establish meum tuum and tyrannize over their persons ten times worse then ever the King did or his wicked and evill Ministers of Justice the Judges and Patentee Monopolizers especially all of whom you cannot deny but he at the beginning of your Session surrendred up to you to be punished by you according to Law Justice which in them you extreamely perverted and tooke bribes for the acquitting the capitallest of them and otherwise made use of them to do more mischiefe since to the Common-wealth then ever they had done before by assuring any thing for Law that you would propound to them by meanes of which you with your wicked and unbounded Priviledges have dared to exercise the absolutest and grandest tyranny over the lives liberties trades properties and estates of the Freemen of England that ever was I dare positively aver it since it was a Nation governed by an established and declared Law to your eternall and everlasting shame I speake it so that truly if the Freemen of England seriously look upon all your late publike and to us visible actions and compare them with their former enjoyments they may justly take up Miach's lamentation and say with him to you The good man is perished out of the earth and there is none upright amongst you men they or you all lie in waite for blood they or you hunt every man his brother with a net that they or you may do evill with both hands earnestly the Prince asketh and the Judge asketh for a reward and the great man he uttereth his mischievous desire so they wrap it up therefore woe unto the Parliament for the best of them is as a briar the most upright is sharper then a thorne hedge the day of thy watchmen and thy visitation cometh now with a vengeance shall bee their perplexity therefore O all ye understanding Commons of England in reference to your Parliament Trustees trust ye not in a friend put ye no confidence in a guide for your enemies are the men of your owne House Micah 7.2,3,4,5,6 Therefore M. Martin I professe it before you and all the world that were I rationally able I would make no scruple of conscience to help forward with my sword in my hand the distruction of every lawlesse tyrannicall treacherous man amongst you that I should groundedly know to be a ring-leader in the fore-said transcendent vilenesse then I should to help to destroy so many rats or devouring vermin and by your owne fore-mentioned Principles Declarations Protestations Oathes Actions and doings it will undeniably be justified to be lawfull for all the Commons of Englands to do the same towards you But now Sir let us come to some particulars in the first place the 29. Chap and the most excellent Petition of right which I call the English-mans legall treasure doth clearly condemne all the pract●ses amongst you for they expressely say that no Freeman shall be taken and imprisoned or be disseized of his freehold or liberties or free-customes or be out-lawed or exiled or any otherwise destroyed nor we will not passe upon him nor condemne him but by lawfull judgement of his Peers that is to say equalls or men of his owne condition or by the Law of the Land We will sell to no man we will not deny or defer to any man either iustice or right and that no man be imprisoned without cause shewed or expressed in his Warrant of Commitment nor no man refused Habeas Corpus's for any cause whatever nor no man taken by Petition nor suggestion made to our Lord the King nor his Counsell unlesse it be by Indictment or Presentment of his good and lawfull People of the same neighbourhood where such deeds be done 25. E. 3.4 in due manner or by Processe made by Writ Originall at the common Law nor that none be put out of his Franchises nor of hi● Free-holds unlesse he be duly brought in to answer and fore-judged of the same by th● course of the Law and that no man hereafter be compelled to make or yeeld any guift bond benevolence taxe or such like charge without common consent by Act of Parliament Now compare your daily and hourly actions to those good just and unrepealed Laws and blush for shame But to wipe all this off you will it may be say the same that is said in your Declaration of the 17 of Aprill 1645 Booke Decl. 2 part pag. 879. That the end of the Primitive institution of all government is the safty and weale of the people which is above all Lawes and therefore the Kingdome being imbroyled in warre necessitated nacessitie compells you to doe many actions contrary to the knowne Lawes of the Land without the doing of which actions wanting the puntillo of the Kings consent you could not save your selves nor the kingdome will admit all this for a truth I pray then why doe you impose such illegall devilsh impossible to be kept contradicting Oaths and Covenants upon all the Freemen of England upon such sever penalties that all men must be disfranchised or destroyed that will not take them and in them without any provisoes eautions limitations or declared exceptions and reservation tye them to maintaine the Law of the Land and the lawful● rightes and liberties of the Subjects of England is not this to force men to sweare to contradict and oppose to the death all your actions and to destory you for doing those actions because they are contrary to the Law and Liberties of England O yee forsworne men for so I may call you all that have taken these illegall damnable hellish and soule insnaring Oaths because ye do your selves and suffer to be done daily such things as tends to the absolute distruction of the Lawes and the lawfull Liberties of the freemen of England which by all these Oaths you have sworne to maintaine and defend with all your might and yet there is not one just nor righteous man amongst you that dare avowedly and publiquely to the whole Kingdom protest against all the rest but by parsilent patient and constant seting there owne approve of all their actions O ye unworthy forsworne men in the highest degree for this may too justly be the stile and title of all and every one of you without exceptions in the condition of the visablest best of whom for Millions of Gold I would not be for if perjuries swearings and false swearings be so odious abominable and detestable unto God as in Scripture he declares they are read Exod 20.7 Lev. 19.11.12 Num. 30.2 Deut. 23.21.22.23 Psal 15.4 Eccl. 5.4.5 Ezek. 17.13.14.15.16.17.18.19 Jer. 24.10 Zek. 5.3.4.9.8.16.17 Then woe wee and vengance upon earth is your vadoubted

displayed ensignes of the voluntarie Christians pluckt the writing out of his bosome wherein the League was comprised and holding it up in his hand with his eyes cast up to Heaven said Behold thou crucified Christ this is the League thy Christians in thy name made with me which they have without cause violared Now if thou be a God as they say thou art and as we dreame revenge the wrong now done unto thy Name and me and shew thy power upon thy perjurious people who in their deeds deny thee their God Whereupon there began a most cruell and feirce fight the successe of which within alittle while wholy fell to the Turkes who having slaine King Vladislaus and discomforted his Army Huniades that most valiant Captaine was forced to fly for his life and it is observable that in this battle were destroyed all the chi●fe Authors and Actours yea Iulian himselfe in breaking the Oath Covenant and League they had made with the Turke Folio 297. 298. which overthrow proved a fatall and dismall blow to the Hungarians which may be a good warning to all men in the world not rashly to enter into an Oath or Covenant but delibrately and with a resolved resolution enviolably to keepe and observe it which is impossible for any man breathing to do yours For first I read in the 1 Eliz. Chapter 1 that all and every Arch-Bishop Bishop and all and every other Ecclesiasticall Person and other Ecclesiasticall Officer and Minister of what estate dignity preheminence or degree soever he or thay be or shall be and all and every temporall Judge Justice Mayor and other lay or temporall Officer and Minister and every other person having your highnesse sees or wagges within this Realme or any your Highnesse Dominions c. shall take that Oath following viz. THat the King is the onely supreme Governour of this Realme and of all other his Highnesse Dominions and Countries as well in all Spirituall or Ecclesiasticall things or causes as Temporall And a little below all that takes it which all you Parliament men must and ought to doe or else you cannot sit as by the Statute of the 5 Elz. 1. appeares sweares and promises that from henceforth I shall beare faith and true Alleagence to the Kings Highnesse his Heires and lawfull Successors and to my power shall assist and defend all jurisdictions priviledges prehemanencies and authorities granted or belonging to the Kings Highnesse his Heires and Successors vnited and annexed to the imperiall Crowne of this Realme And by the Oath of Allegiance inacted the 3 of Jam. chapter 4. which principally and originally was made for Popish Recusants to take and for such men of England as traviled beyond the Seas to serve any Forraigne State or Prince though of late yeares as I am informed imposed upon all Members of Parliament before they are admitted to sit there in which Oath you and every one that takes it sweares and declares in your Conscience before God and the World that our Soveraigne Lord King Charles is lawfull and rightfull King of this Realme and of all other his Majesties Dominions and Countries and that the Pope neither of himselfe nor by any Authority of the Church on Sea of ●ome or by any other meanes with any other marke the last clause well hath any power or authoritie to despose the King or to dispose any of his Majesties kingdomes or dommious or to authorise any Forraigne Prince to invade or annoy him or his countries or to give lisceuce or leave to any of them to beare Armes raise Tumults or to offer any violence or hurt to his Majesties Royall Person State or Government or to any of his Majesties Subjects within his Dominions And a little below he that takes that Oath sweares I will beare Faith and true Allegiance to his Majestie his Heires and Successors and him and them will defend to the uttermost of my power against all conspiracies and attempts whatsoever marke the word whatseover which shall be made against his or their Persons their Crowne and Dignitie by reason or colour of any such Sentence or Declaration or otherwise make the word otherwise well and will doe to my best endeavour to disclose or make knowne unto his Majesty his Heires and Successors all treasons and treacherous conspiricies which I shall know or heare of to be against him or them And below the Oath saith I do beleeve and in conscience am resolucd that neither the Pope nor any person whatsoever note the foure last words well hath power to absolue me of this Oath nor any part thereof which I acknowledge by good and full authoritie to be lawfully ministred unto me and doe renounce all Pardons and Dispensations to the contrary and all these things I do plainly sincerely acknowledge and sweare according to these expresse words by me spoken according to the plaine and common sence and understanding of the same words without any equevocation or menthall evation or secret reseruati●n whatsoever And I doe make this recogniction and acknowledgemeni heartily willingly and truly upon the true faith of a Christian So helpe me God And adde unto these your fore-mentioned Covenants and upon them all I conclude it is impossible for any man breathing to keepe them Now Sir set aside the evill ingredients of these two Legall or Statute Oaths fore-mentioned which were easie in my judgement to be evinsed especially that clause of the Oath of Supreamicy recorded 1 Eliz. 1 the expresse words of which are That the King is the onely Supreme Governour of this Realme and of all other his Highnesse Dominions and Countries as well in all Spirituall or Ecclesiastiall things or causes as Temporall To say nothing of the Temporal part of it I will desire you to satisfie me in two or three things of the Spirituall First whether or no Jesus Christ by God the Father was not appointed to be the perfect Law-maker and Law-giver unto his visible Church on earth under the Gospell and so to settle it that there should be no roome at all left for Kings Parliaments or any other power on earth to adde to or detract from what he by the eternally and everlasting assigament of his Father was to doe in that particuler Secondly whether or no he hath beene faithfull in executing fully the will of his Father in this particuler Thirdly whether or no to deny his faithfulnesse or to set up in the Spirituall Church House or City of Jesus Christ the dictats lawes or injuntions or commands of Kings Parliaments or any other earthly power whatsoever be not an absolut denyall of the faithfulnesse of Jesus Christ a calling the Scripturea lie and false thing and a Declaration that he that we owne of our annointed Mesias or Seviour is a Theese Deluder and false Prophet and not the true reall and great Prophet professed of old to be sent into the world as the Atoner of man unto God the King of Saints as well as the

of England and if I mistake not one of them continues a Judge in your Commission to this very day by meanes of which base and wicked practises of yours I meane the two Houses this poore Kingdome under the pretence of Law hath bin by you fild ●th more oppression injustice then ever it underwent in so short a time since the Norman Conquest there being neither pure Iustice nor Right to be had according to law at the hands either of your Iudges or Iustices of peace being in every particular as corrupt as either the House of Lords or Commons Tyburne or at least to row at Oares as slaves being the fittest portion for the most part of them there being never such out-cryes in the Kings time against has Judges and Justices as you●s denying dayly the benefit of Magna Charta and the Petition of Right to any free-man that a knavish Parliament man appears against as I could easily enumerate divers instances if it were seasonable but I will keep it in banke for a representation for the Army or the next Parliament where I hope they will take speciall care what ever they doe with the present base Judges and Iustices of peace to provide an act of Parliament that we may have our lawes where they a●e ambigues and doubtfull made as plaine as can be made and all our proceedings in law in English briefe and short in plain English words and quick●y to be discided And that it shall be treason in any Iudge or Iustices by vertue of any command whatsoever to pervert the Common law and the Common Iustice of the Kingdome and without such a law and an Annuall Parliament to see it executed the constitution of which in point of Elections had extraordinary need to be amended for now some Counties chusing about 50. As Cornewell and others none as the County of Durham and their corporations many times made by bribes given to corrupt Courtiers to obtaine the Kings Letters patents which meerly flowes from his will to inable them to chuse two Burgesses for Parliament in divers of which petty and paultery Corporations throughout the Kingdome any base fellow for 20. or 30 I may by so many voices as will make him a Burgesse of Parliament and divers of th●se corporations consisting for a great part of Inns and Ale houses will be sure to chuse no other Parliament men but such as are given to deposednesse expensivenesse wickednesse and drinking or at least some Ninnie and Grose wrictor by a great man that as Dr. Bastwick saith hath no more wit in him then will reach from his nose to his mouth And this is the true reason why our Parliament men in all ages have so little regard to the Common and iust liberties of the Kingdome or to the iustice and equity of the lawes they make And therefore as I said in the 54. pag. of Londons Liberties so I say now to you that it would be more rationall and a great deale fuller of justice and equity to destroy all these illegall Corporations and fix upon them the certain number of Parliament men be they 600. 500. or 400. or more or lesse as by the common consent shall be thought most fit and equally to proportion to every Country to chuse a proportionable number sutable to the rates that each County by their bookes of rates are assessed to pay towards the defraying of the publique charge of the Kingdome and then each County equally and proportionably by the common consent of the people thereof to divide it selfe into Divisions Hundreds or Weapontacks that so all the people without confusion or tumult may meet together in their severall divisions and every free man of England as well poore as rich whose life estate c. is to be taken away by the law may have a Vote in chusing those that are to make the law it being a maxim in nature that no man iustly can be bound without his own consent and care taken that this may be once every yeare without faile and to hold for a certain number of dayes without which this Kingdome will never be free from warres misery and commotions but from this present Parliament I neither looke for good to my particular selfe or the Kingdome in generall the constant and uninterrupted serious of all your visible actions being a visible and cleare demonstartion to the eyes of every unbiosed impartiall and rationall man in England of an absolute violation of the lawes and liberties of England and setting up a perfect tyranny declaring thereby both in the sight of God and man that you have sold and given up your selves to worke and act all manner of wickednesse and impietie admitting no other rule either of reason law or justice to square your actions by but your own perverse and crooked wills being an absolute kind of monsters of the Divells but not of Gods creation who never made any man lawlesse as you avowedly professe your selves to be robbing and poling the poore Kingdome by all manner of illegall taxations Excise c. and then sharing it amongst your selves making nothing of fifty thousand pounds at one breakfast in one morning for ten of your owne Members viz. Mr Denzel Hollis Mr Walter Long c. and for all your Hypocriticall cheating and selfe denying Ordinance within a little while after as I am informed in state Mr. Long as I am told worth five thousand pounds per Annum viz. the Register of the Chancery and make the two Speakers both of whom have been impeched if not of treason yet of high misdemeanors were never yet iustly cleared and acquitted keepers of the great Seale of England to raise up their justly lost repute with the people thereby declaring that it is your study and delight to make use of the corruptest and basest of men amongst you to tyrannize over the people and yet the worst amongst you are so pure and holy that you must not be touched questioned or called to an account for any thing that you say or doe so that your pretence to all our liberties estates trades proprieties and lives is not the law of the kingdome * For Col. Burch a Member of the House of Commons before another Member and the Lieutenant of the Tower did aver before them the other day to iudge Ienkins when he questioned the legality of their proceedings that they did not stand upon the Law nor warrant their actions thereby but saith he we have conquered you by the Sword and by the Sword we will hold it Therefore looke about you Free men of England give the Tyrants their deserts but your owne inherent corrupt lusts and unbounded wills so that the d●fference betwixt you and the King is visible enough and that we have got by our exchange of our former government for your tirannicall domination for I never read not heard that the King in the worst of his raign within it selfe simply considered was I thinke bad enough

and not to be justified and which I my selfe felt as much as any man in England yet compared to yours was glorious and beautifull for did he ever cause to be burnt by the hands of the Common hangman the Petitions of those that he by his Declarations had invited to Petition to him and who in his greatest straites had been most hazardous for him and truest and firmist to him both of which you have done as is before proved Neither in the second place did I ever read that he did proclame and declare such men to be Rebells and Traitors but for going about to make their just and pressing grievances knowne which you have done to the Army yea to such an Army as I thinke I may iustly say in every particular the world never had any as may larger appeare by their Petition and your declaration which as it is printed by themselves or some of their friends thus followeth The Armies Petition TO HIS EXCELLENCY SIR THOMAS Fairfax Generall for the Parliaments Forces The humble Petition of the Officers and Soldiers of the Army under your Command Sheweth THat ever since our first ingagement in the service for the preserving the power of this Kingdome in the hands of the Parliament we have in out severall places served them with all faithfullnesse and although we have laine under many discouragements for want of pay and other necessaryes yet have we not disputed their commands disobeyed their Orders nor disturbed them with petitions nor have there any visible discontents appeared amongst us to the incouragement of the enemie and the impediment of their affaires but have with all cheerfullnesse done Summer service in Winter seasons improving the utmost of our abillities in the advancement of their service and seeing God hath now crowned our indeavours with the end of our desire viz. the dispercing of the pulique Enemie and reducing them to their obedience the King being now brought in our brethren the Scots now satisfied and departed the Kingdome all danger seemingly blown over and peace in all their quarters We imboldned by the many fold promises and Declarations to defend and protect those that appeared and acted in the service doe herewith humbly present to your Excellency the annexed Representation of our desires which we humbly beseech your Excellency to recommend or represent in our behalfe unto the Parliament and your Petitioners shall ever honour and pray for your Excellency c. The humble Representation of the desires of the Officers and Soldiers of the Army under the command of his Excellency Sir Thomas Fairfax presented first ●o his Excellency to be by him presented to the Parliament 1. Whereas the necessity and exigency of the warre hath put us upon many actions which the law would not warrant nor we have acted in a time of setled peace we humbly desire that before our disbanding a full and sufficient provision may be made by Ordinance of Parliament to which the royall affent may be desired * * * In this we desire no more then the City and Parliament have done before us notwithstanding their many notable and home Declarations against the King for our indemnity and security in all such cases 2. That Auditors and Commissioners may be speedily appointed and authorized to repaire to the Head quarters of this Army to audite and state our accompts as well for our former service as for our service in this Army and that before the disbanding of the Army satisfaction may be given to the Petitioners for their Arrears that for the charge trouble and losse of time which we must otherwise necessarily undergoe in attendance for obtaining of them may be prevented we having had experience that many have been reduced to miserable extremity even almost starved for want of reliefe by their tedious attendance and that no Officer may be charged with any thing in his accompts that doth not particularly concerne himselfe 3. That those who have voluntarily served the Parliament in the late war may not hereafter be compelled by presse or otherwise to serve as Soldiers out of this Kingdome nor those who have served as Horse-men may be compelled by presse to serve on foot in any future case 4. That such in this Army as have lost their lives and the wives and children of such as have been slaine in the service and such Officers and Soldiers as have sustained losses or have been preiudiced in their estates by adhering unto the Parliament or in their persons by sicknesse or imprisoment under the Enemy may have such allowance and satisfaction as may be agreeable to iustice and equity 5. That till the Army be disbanded as aforesaid some course may be taken for the supply thereof with money whereby we may be inabled to discharge our quarters that so we may not for necessaries be forced to be beholding to the parliaments Enemies burthensome to their friends or oppressive to the Country whose preservation we have alwayes indeavoured and in whose happinesse we shall still reioyce Courteou-Reader The foregoing is a true copy of the Petition promoting in the Army which the Parliament are too much offended with and therefore let the righteous God and all ingenious men iudge if the desires of this Army be not rationall iust and equitable and let the Lord of Heaven and Earth behold what here is desired to occasion such a Declaration against this innocent Army 〈◊〉 any the Officers thereof as is here unto annexed and let men that love 〈◊〉 ●…edome and hate tyrants looke about and consider if it be not the deug●… of those few men that abuse the Parliament maliciously making odious reports 〈◊〉 the House of the actions of that Army in the worse sence they can devise as Stapleton Hollis Luke and Earle lately did in the like c●… 〈◊〉 abominable act of cōmitting Ma. Tulidah without ever he●ring what a 〈◊〉 say for himselfe an●niurie so much former●y complained of by the●… 〈◊〉 and ●…act of the highest iniustice in the world to condern●… 〈…〉 ●…aring and when both his friends and himselfe did most 〈…〉 ●e might be brought to their barie that the hon●… 〈…〉 ●…tly informed of the demeanor of these Members 〈…〉 ●…ri●g ●hat Ma●or Tulidah should discover them at th●… 〈…〉 ●…emies to the legall and iust liberties of the people which to prevent they became the only instruments to get him his liberty and with ut hearing they forthwith got him released A Declaration of the Lords and Commons assembled in Parliament Die Martis 30. Martii 1647. THat the two Houses of Parliament having received information * * The informers are said to be Col. Rossiter and Col. Harlow both members of the House of Commons and the Army likewise of a dangerous Petition with representations annexed tend●ng to put the Army in a distemper and muteny to put conditions upon the Parliament and obstruct the reliefe of Ireland which hath been contrived and promoted by some persons in the Army