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justice_n	common_a	lord_n	sir_n	7,718	5	6.9735	4	true

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A63153	The tryal and condemnation of Sir William Parkyns, kt., for the horrid and execrable conspiracy to assassinate His sacred Majesty King William, in order to a French invasion of this kingdom who upon full evidence was found guilty of high treason, at the sessions-house in the Old-Baily, March 24, 1695/6 : together with a true copy of the papers delivered to the sheriffs of London and Middlesex, by Sir J. Freind [sic] and Sir W. Parkins, at the place of execution.	Parkyns, William, Sir, 1649?-1696, defendant.; Friend, John, Sir, d. 1696.; England and Wales. Court of Oyer and Terminer and Gaol Delivery (London and Middlesex).	1696 (1696)	Wing T2153; ESTC R17270	58,904	40

Look to him he is found Guilty of High-Treason Cl. of Arr. Then hearken to your Verdict as the Court has recorded it You say that Sir William Parkins is Guilty of the High-Treason whereof he stands Indicted but that he had no Goods nor Chattels Lands nor Tenements at the time of the High-Treason committed or at any time since that you know of L. C. J. Holt. Discharge the Jury Cl. of Arr. Gentlemen The Court discharges you and thanks you for your Service L. C. J. Holt. Then we had best Adjourn the Court till five in the Evening Cl. of Arr. Cryer Make Proclamation Sir William Parkins My Lord if you please I desire I may have the liberty of Friends and Relations and a Minister to come to me and that they may be in private with me L. C. J. Holt. You shall have an Order of Court for the same Cryer Oyes Oyes Oyes All manner of Persons that have any thing more to do at this General Sessions of the Peace Sessions of Oyer and Terminer holden for the City of London and Goal-delivery of Newgate holden for the City of London and County of Middlesex may depart from hence for this time and give their Attendance here again at five in the Evening and so God save the KING About Six of the Clock the Lord Mayor Mr. Common Serjant and several Justices of the City of London returned into Court and Proclamation being made for attendance the Prisoner was brought to the Bar. Cl. of Cr. Sir William Parkins Hold up thy Hand Thou standest Convicted of High-Treason for Conspiring the Death of our Sovereign Lord King William III. What hast thou to say for thy self why Judgment should not pass against thee to dye according to Law Sir William Parkins I have nothing more to say Cl. of Cr. All manner of Persons are commanded to keep Silence while Judgment is giving upon pain of Imprisonment Then Sentence was Pronounced againct Sir John Friend and Sir William Parkins together Mr. Com. Serj. You the Prisoners at the Bar Sir John Friend and Sir William Parkins have been Indicted for High-treason in conspiring the Death of the King for Tryal thereof you have put your selves upon your Countrey which Countrey have found you Guilty The Crimes you are Convicted of are the greatest a Man can commit Murder and Robbery are Injuries but to private Persons But to contrive the Destruction of the King is letting in Ruin upon Thousands of People For Robbery and Murder there may be something pleaded for Justification as for private Revenge c. But to Set Conspire and Debate the Destruction of a Prince the best of Men the Father of his Countrey no Man ever had any colour of Excuse for that I would not add to your Unhappiness I am sorry for the severe Judgment that you have brought upon your selves All that remains for me to do is to Pronounce on you the Sentence And the Court doth award THat You and each of You be carried to the Place from whence you came and from thence be drawn on a Hardle to the Place of Execution and be there severally Hanged but cut down while you are alive that your Privy Members be cut off that your Bowels be taken out and burnt before your Faces that your Heads be sever'd from your Bodies and your Bodies be divided into four Quarters and your Quarters to be at the King's Disposal And the Lord have Mercy on your Souls Then the Court Adjourned to the 22d day of April FINIS A True Copy of the Papers delivered by Sir John Freind and Sir William Parkins to the Sheriffs of London and Middlesex at Tyburn the Place of Execution April the Third 1696. Sir JOHN FREIND 's Paper KNowing that I must immediately give Account to God of all my Actions and that I ought to be especially careful of what I say in these Last Hours I do solemnly profess That what I here deliver is from my very Soul with all the Heartiness and Sincerity of a Dying Christian The Cause I am brought hither to suffer for I do firmly believe to be the Cause of God and True Religion and to the best and utmost of my Knowledge and Information agreeable to the Laws of the Land which I have evermore heard do require a firm Duty and Allegiance to our Sovereign and that as no Foreign so neither any Domestick Power can alienate our Allegiance For it is altogether new and unintelligible to me that the King's Subjects can depose and dethrone him on any account or constitute any that have not an immediate Right in his place We ought I think not to do this and surely when it is done to assist him in the Recovery of his Right is justifiable and our Duty And however things may seem at present I do believe I am sure I heartily pray That he shall be one day Restored to his Rightful Throne and Dominions As for any sudden Descent of his Majesty upon these his Dominions in order to the Recovery of them I declare I had no certain knowledge of it nor can I tell what grounds there was to believe it so little reason had I to be in a present Preparation for it I suppose it is not expected I should here endeavour to clear my self of the Assassination which was not the Thing alledg'd against me however it was mention'd through what means I know not As it was insinuated to my disadvantage I forgive such as were therein instrumental And I do also from the very bottom of my Soul freely forgive and beg of God to do so too such as were any ways accessary towards the taking away my Life which I really look upon to be their Misfortune more than mine I profess my self and I thank God I am so a Member of the Church of England though God knows a most unworthy and unprofitable part of it of that Church which suffers so much at present for a strict adherence to Lovalty the Laws and Christian Principles For this I Suffer and for this I Dye Though I have a perfect Charity for people of all Professions and do heartily wish well and would endeavour so to do to all my Fellow-Subjects of what Persuasions soever And indeed I have met with a great deal of Uprightness and Sincerity among some people of very different Opinions in Religious Matters And I hope and desire it may not be taken as an uncharitable Censure or undue Reflection that I objected to the Legality of Popish Evidence being advised so to do for my better Security upon the foundation of a Statute Law Having owned my self a Member of the Church of England I must take this opportunity and I do it for God's Glory to apply my self to you that are Royalists of that Church and of the same Faith and Principles with my self And I beg of you for God's sake and the love of your Souls to be very constant and serious in all Religious Offices and holy Duties

together as they could to meet him upon his Landing And it was agreed that forty Men should be provided of which the Prisoner was one to lie in wait and set upon the King in his Return from Hunting and to Assassinate him Some were to fall upon the Guards while others murdered the King in his Coach The Indictment further charges the Prisoner with providing several Horses and Arms and that he did provide five Horses for them that were to commit the Assassination And the Indictment also does charge the Prisoner with getting together several Arms. To this Indictment the Prisoner has pleaded not Guilty If you do not believe him Guilty of what the Indictment charges him with God forbid but he should be acquitted But if you believe him Guilty the Nation does expect you should do Justice to the King and Kingdom Mr. Att. Gen. My Lord and you Gentlemen of the Jury the Prisoner Sir William Parkins stands indicted of High Treason for compassing and endeavouring the Death of the King and adhering to his Majesty's Enemies The Overt-acts laid in the Indictment to prove this Treason are these That the Prisoner together with several others had several Meetings and Consultations wherein it was agreed to send a Messenger over to invite the French King to invade this Kingdom and to depose the King and subject this Kingdom to the Tyranny of a French Power And further that he entred into a Conspiracy with several Persons to murder his Majesty These are the Overt-acts to prove this Treason against the Prisoner The Evidence to prove this will be in this manner It will appear that the Prisoner had a Commission from the late K. James to raise a Regiment of Horse in England and that in May last the Prisoner had a Meeting with several others at the Old King's-head in Leadenhall-street where there were present the Lord Ailesbury the Lord Montgomery Sir John Friend Sir John Fenwick Sir William Parkyns Mr. Charnock Capt. Porter Mr. Cook and Mr. Goodman came in after Dinner At that Meeting it was consulted among them how they should bring back the late King James and depose his present Majesty King William And in order to that did resolve to send a Messenger Mr. Charnock one of them to the late King James to desire him that he would obtain from the French King about ten thousand Men to invade this Kingdom eight thousand Foot a thousand Horse and a thousand Dragoons And to incourage the late King James to do this they did assure him by their Messenger they would meet him with two thousand Horse upon his Landing They all agreed they would do this and Mr. Charnock did agree to go upon this Errand About a Week after Mr. Charnock not being willing to go without good Assurance from them that sent him did desire there might be another Meeting And accordingly there was another Meeting of the same Persons of which the Prisoner was one and that was at Mrs. Mountjoy's a Tavern in James-street And at that Meeting they did all agree as formerly to continue the Resolution they had taken to send Mr. Charnock over to the late King James to assure him of their Assistance if he would give them notice when and where he would land And they did take notice that that was a very proper time for such an Invasion to be attempted for the King was then gone into Flanders and most of the Forces were drawn thither and the People very much dissatisfied and therefore it would be very easy to accomplish such a Design at that time And they did therefore desire Mr. Charnock to go upon that Errand and to desire that the late King James would be speedy in his Coming After a few days Mr. Charnock did go to France and delivered his Message to the late King James who took it very kindly but said the French King could not spare so many Forces at that time And he came over again and brought that Message to those Gentlemen that sent him This was in May or June last and so the Conspiracy ceased at that time But you will hear last Winter it was revived again and was attempted and carried on very near to a fatal Success You will hear Gentlemen that the Prisoner at the Bar has had as great a hand as any in this barbarous Conspiracy and Treason not only in the Invasion that he and the rest sent the Messenger over to procure but in the blackest part the Assassination of the King About January last Sir G. Berclay Lieutenant of the Guards to the late King James in France was sent over into England to excite Persons to go on in the assassinating of the King and for his Assistance there were sent over before and after him about twenty Troopers of the late King James's Guards in France and Sir G. Berclay to incourage Persons to ingage in this horrid Conspiracy brought over with him a pretended Authority from the late King James to justify them and that was a Commission from the late King James He communicates this Design of his to Mr. Charnock Capt. Porter and others and amongst the rest to the Prisoner at the Bar having a great Confidence in him He did acquaint him he had such a Commission and shewed it him and that the Commission was to levy War against the King's Person which they took as a sufficient Authority to attack his Person In order to the accomplishing this horrid Conspiracy several Meetings there were at which the Prisoner was present and very active sometimes at Capt. Porter's Lodgings at other times at the Nag's-head in Covent-Garden and the Sun-Tavern in the Strand You will hear that at these Meetings they did propose several Ways and Methods to accomplish this Conspiracy and several Persons some of which have suffered the just Punishment of the Law were appointed to go and view the Ground where most conveniently the King's Person might be assaulted King that has been executed for it and Capt. Porter and one Knightly went to view the Ground to see the most convenient Place And the Day before they went there was a Meeting at which was present the Prisoner and several others where it was resolved upon that they should go and view the Ground and Capt. Porter Mr. Knightly and Mr. King accordingly went to see the most convenient Place After that at Brentford they went over to Richmond where his Majesty used to go a hunting to divert himself At last they pitch'd upon a Place a Lane between Brentford and Turnham-green and they thought that a convenient Place for doing this barbarous thing And when they had viewed the Ground they were to come back in the Evening to the Nag's-head-Tavern where the rest were to meet to give them an Account of their Proceedings Accordingly in the Evening they came back and at the said Place were the Prisoner Sir G. Berclay Mr. Charnock and others and there they had an Account of the thing and they

commences in a day or two Let the Act be read L. Ch. Just Holt. A design to depose the King which is manifest by some Overt Act that is an Overt Act to prove the design of deposing the King for he that designs to depose him from his Kingly State and Dignity if that design be manifest that is an Overt Act for designing his Death Sir Will. Parkyns But it must be manifested it must not be by interpretation L. Ch. Just Holt. If that be proved if the next Overt Act be proved that you design the Kings deposition then it is apparent you design his Death Sir Will. Parkyns But they are different things L. Ch. Just Treby Sir Will. Parkyns we have seen a King deposed and yet alive it is very true and yet not the Success that always does it But whenever Persons agree together to bring in Foreign Forces and prepare Arms to meet them and make Insurrection against the King in possession this is reckoned an Overt Act by my Lord Chief Justice Hales and my Lord Cook and yet those Men are reckoned to be the most tender Men in these Cases And the reason is very plain Sir Will. Parkyns If your Lordship please let that be read L. Ch. Just Treby For any Act that has a natural tendency to the destruction of the King that is the expression of an internal thought of compassing and imagining his Death Providing of Arms and making an Insurrection against the King is an Overt Act and an agreeing to shoot him is an Overt Act. Sir Will. Parkyns I desire it may be read and I am satisfyed The new Act was then read J. Rookby I believe in a great Cause in Parliament my L. Stafford's Case it was declared for Law that one Witness to one Overt Act and another to another was declared sufficient in Law Sir Will. Parkyns I believe it has been done But yet if your Lordship please here is a beneficial Law which if your Lordship had pleased to put off my Tryal another day I might have had the benefit of J. Rookby It would have been the same thing as to an Overt Act for this is only indicative of the same Law in several particulars Sir Will. Parkyns No my Lord but I could have had Witnesses to have taken them off but here it turns upon the matter of Sweet and it is manifest he has spoken what cannot be true viz. that I had the Kings word for it J. Rookby If a Man write a Note to you that he will do a thing that might be said to be his word though by a Letter Sir Will. Parkyns If I had it from his own Mouth not else L. Ch. Just Holt. It is not impossible but you might speak with him Sir Will. Parkyns No It is impossible for can I speak from hence to France Mr. Charnock went over but I never went over J. Rookby If any man should have said the latter end of the last Month I believe there is an Assassination intended against K. William meerly because he had his Word for it we might say we had the King's Word for it that is a proper expression if it come by Letter or publick Fame L. Ch. Just Holt. He might send you word so by a Message Sir Will. Parkyns He manifestly contradicts himself backward and forward in his Evidence Captain Porter swears for to save his own Life and the other contradicts himself J. Rookby Captain Porter's Testimony has been sufficiently confirmed by the acknowledgment of dying Persons L. Ch. Just Holt. Sir William have you any more to say Sir Will. Parkyns No my Lord. Then the King 's Learned Counsel summ'd up the Evidence to this Effect Mr. Soll. Gen. May it please your Lordship and you Gentlemen of the Jury I am of Counsel for the King in this matter and it is my turn to sum up the Evidence that has been given against the Prisoner at the Barr. He stands indicted for compassing and imagining the death of the King for designing to depose the King and by an Insurrection incouraging and abetting the King's Enemies and doing what he could to procure an Invasion upon his own Countrey Some of these Crimes run into one another designing the death of the King the Assassinating and deposing of the King amount to the very same thing it is compassing and imagining the death of the King My Lords the Judges have given you their Opinion in that point of Law and it is I think agreeable to all the resolutions since the making of that Statute I think this Statute made in the 25 Edw. 3. was explained in the time of his Successor Rich. 2d but I am sure in the time of Henry 4th when it was designed to set up Richard it was adjudged High-Treason for compassing and designing the death of the King For deposing of him was destroying him in his politick Capacity and Assassinating of him was to destroy him in his natural Capacity The design was to overthrow the present Government establish'd by Law whereby every Man injoys his own Property every Man injoys his own Freedom and those that will be quiet may have their own Liberty as well as at any time they ever had it But some People are very impatient they are not contented to have servitude themselves but would bring it upon their Fellow Subjects And it would not be very ill if those that be in love with it would go where they may fill their Bellies with it in another place where they may have it and not bring it upon those that would be very impatient under it as we all are and I hope shall always be To prove the Invasion we have Captain Porter and he tells you he had seen a Commission from the Late K. James all written with his own hand Sir Will. Parkyns I beg your pardon he does not say such a word I beg my Lord the Witnesses may be called L. Ch. Just Holt. If I remember right Mr. Porter said you had read the Commission and it was writ with K. James's own hand and he said it was because he could not trust his Ministers Sir Will. Parkyns No my Lord he said not so but all I said was that Scudmore was to take one Mr. Soll. Gen. Pray Mr. Porter give my Lord and the Jury an account what Sir Will. Parkyns told you Capt. Porter I askt Capt. Charnock if I might not see the Commission he told me he never saw it himself but that Sir William Parkyns had and that it was written with K. James's own Hand He said Sir Will. Parkyns said it was to raise War against the King's Person Mr. Soll. Gen. By whose Hand was it writ Capt. Porter With the King 's own Hand Mr. Soll. Gen. Did he give you any reason why it was written with his own Hand Capt. Porter Because he would not trust his Ministers Mr. Soll. Gen. I would not do Sir William wrong in any respect I well rember Mr. Charnock

them out of Town upon that Disappointment and sending for them again before the second Saturday when the King was to be Assassinated By his having more Horses than usual and taking care of three Horses that were none of his own brought by a Person unknown And all these Eight Horses carried away that Saturday upon the Disappointment by the King 's not going as they hoped he would a Hunting And my Lord I must observe to you that upon the Message that was sent by Sir William Parkins one of those Horses was brought from Somerset-House and brought by Mr. Lewis who it is apparent was privy to this Design Besides this there is another Circumstance in the Evidence that has not been observed And that was the sending for Mr. Sweet up to Town before the second time that the King was to be Assassinated The first time he came up he was asked in what Condition he had left his Family how they were provided for And he said he had left them without Mony Sir William Parkins then chid him and said he might as well have staid at home And said he had once a Design to have used him in a Matter he had for him to do in Town but he had Compassion on his Family and therefore would not make use of him All these favour of that Design which Captain Porter positively accuses him for But as to the other part of the Indictment which is his Design to meet the French with an Armed Power that is sworn to by two Witnesses Captain Porter tells you he was at the two Consults where that was resolved upon the Old King's head Tavern in Leaden-Hall-street and at Mrs. Mountjoy's in James-street They all agreed to meet the late King with 2000 Horse when he was to Land with a Foreign Power and Sir William Parkins was with them And Mr. Sweet tells you Sir William acquainted him with the Design and said he had a Troop of old Soldiers My Troop in the Present Tense he spoke it He did himself that right to examine into that matter And the Evidence repeated it My Troop consists of all Old Soldiers and he was to have several Gentlemen Voluntiers that were to join him As to the Joining with the French the Raising of Rebellion in England and Deposing the King which is Killing him in his Politick Capacity two Witnesses go home to that And the Evidence as to that is corroborated by several strong Circumstances The Journey that Sir William Parkins said he would undertake into Leicester shire he did go He comes back in February and makes report to Mr. Sweet of the Success of that Journey That the King's Friends by which terms he meant the late King James's Friends were well affected That the King would Land That when he spoke of King William as sometimes he did he called him the Little Gentleman sometimes King William sometimes the Prince of Orange But whenever he spoke of the King by way of Execellency he always meant King James And when he spoke of the King 's Landing it could not be meant of King VVilliam as every body knows The Prisoner has said in his defence that the Man that was sent to Kensington was formerly Mr. Charnock's Servant and that Mr. Charnock desired him to let him go on a Message for him But yet my Lord I must observe that the Evidence swears positively that he was sent by Sir VVilliam Parkins and brought back the Message in his Almanack to the Person that lodged at the Confectioners to whom Sir VVilliam Parkins had directed him to resort to that Person that lodged at the Confectioners over against Grays-Inn Gate who did not remit him to Mr. Charnock but to Sir VVilliam Parkins to tell him that he would be at home till Sir VVilliam Parkins should be ready for him My Lord Sir VVilliam Parkins has complain'd that if he could have had time to get his Evidence he could have proved that these Arms had been at his House two Years and that he sound them at his House But if Sir VVilliam Parkins could prove that he had these Arms in his House two years and that he found them at his house we would confess and avoid it They were recommended by a Letter from Mr. Charnock a very suspicious Person in this matter to be disposed of and they were hid and lay conceal'd at Mr. Heywood's House till this design was disappointed and then carried to Sir VVilliam Parkins's House and were buried in his own Garden for the better securing of them And this on the breaking out of the Plot. Sir VVilliam says they were Rusty But now it appears they were clean and the Hilts off packt up together and all fit for use My Lord in the last place he has recourse to Arguments of Pity which is the most moving of all He has told us of his Age and Family and Education I am very unfit to answer such Arguments and unwilling to extinguish Pity But this we must answer That he did not Pity himself at that time when he might have done it And he should have had Pity upon his Country upon the Best of Kings and Men when they thought they had him in their Power But then they had no Pity on him for it is plain they persisted in their Resolution after one Disappointment they proceeded to a second and so their Design was frustrated My Lord This is the Sum of the Evidence and of his Defence as well as I could recollect it And though these Considerations may not quite extinguish your Pity yet we hope it will incline you to do the King and Kingdom Justice And this is all we shall ask of you Then the Lord Chief Justice Holt directed the Jury to this Effect L. C. Just Holt. Gentlemen of the Jury Sir VVilliam Parkins the Prisoner at the Bar is as you have heard Indicted for High-Treason that is for Compassing Imagining and Designing the Death of the present King There have been several Witnesses produced to make this evident upon his Indictment The first of them is Mr. Porter that has been a Witness heretofore against several upon the like Occasion And he gives you this Account That about the latter end of May or beginning of June last there was a Meeting of divers Persons at the Old Kings head Tavern in Leaden-Hall street in this City where they Dined together There was Sir VVilliam Parkins himself Sir John Femwick and divers others that he has mentioned to you At that Meeting they did Consult together which way the late K. James might be restor'd and it was thought very necessary that there should be a French Force sent over to act here in his behalf towards his Restoration And they did among themselves agree and determin what number might be convenient and did propose 10000 Men and that a Messenger should be sent over to K. James to endeavour to prevail with the French King to furnish him with such a number of