the Generall and Captaines for the safety and peace of his land and people against any forraigne foes or domesticke traiterous enemies But this is to be understood when his Majestie with his owne prospective eye and watchfulnesse or by the advise of his privie Councell before parliament or great councell in parliament hath or doth discover the plots or purposes of forraigne enemies intending mischiefe assault or ruine by invasion forraigne or of domestick traitors by Insurrection and rebellion at home For in truth it is a flower of the Kings crowne and an incident of his Regalitie as hee is a King to have Liberam absolutam potestatem or Ius Bellum indicendi gerendi to or against any forraigne Prince or potentate and againe Ius potestatem pacis contrahendae paciscendae with any of them and thus all the learned Authours writing of Law and policie by the titles of their Bookes de lege Regia have averred and maintained and it is not to be denyed because the King is the head of the body politicke which compared to the naturall body wherein the five senses are operative and do their Offices by their Organa rite disposita yet the naturallists doe affirme that the communis sensus is in the braine or in Occipite and that per discursum practicum it judgeth and resolveth of the other senses their pleasing or being usefull and profitable to the whole body or offending and annoying it And so the King hath the Ius militiae or power and command of Armes at home throughout his Kingdome for he hath potestatem vitae necis astâ—e Civilians terme it And in our Law the death of any is to be accounted for to the King and the taking away of any Liege subjects life is in the indictment said to be contra Coronam Dignitatem Regis But all this notwithstanding the generall position of the jus principis or Lex Regia placing the power of Armes and Militia in the Crowne yet his Majestie cannot otherwise levie the militia but by lawfull meanes and not by Commission of Array as lately hath beene for that is an undue charge not warranted by law And in case of particular accidents that the King the head be misinformed of his and the Common-wealths enemies conceiving them to be friends which are secret and desperate adversaries complotting clandestine ruine and destruction to the body and refuse to afford aid for the prevention of imminent danger will any judicious man doubt but the eyes of the body being the great Councell of Common-wealth discerning the mischiefe and danger doe well and providently if they call he armes and hands to strike and fights the loynes to joyne in strength and leggs and feet to goe and run to helpe to defend the totall that so the head being disquieted with ache and paines may be preserved in rest and quiet repose Wherefore in such case as now it is here in England the representative body hath and in all reason Pro salute Regis Populi ought to have and to use and command the Militia throughout the land untill such time as the King be better informed and the Common-wealth and body be setled againe in peace and safetie and that then some provident Law concerning the Militia be made for time to come to prevent such like accidents as this hath beene And hereupon it may be considered whether the two houses of Peeres and Commons had not cause to demand the approbation of some Officers of State The Milttia not consisting meerely in the having of armes but also in the power of force to defend against invasion or the fiercenesse of an enemy wherein if such Officers as should be intrusted with the dower and force of the armes and with the custodie of the forts and other places of strength within the kingdome should not bewell and truly affected to the government of this land how easily may it be perceived those strong holds which alreadie are or at least are intended by the wisedome of the parliament shortly to be fortified for the greatest defence will or may become the reatest offence and those bands of military forces which are to bee supposed for the safetie of the Kingdome turne to the ruine and destruction of the Common wealth These then being the true and genuine causes or motives of the wofull severance betweene the king and the Parliament whereat all true hearts have grieved What presumption shall it bee deemed in a true English heart bleeding with compassionate sorrow for the head and body politike so miserably indangered of utter perditron by unnaturall and civill broyles which Lucan writing of lamenteth and describâ—th in these words and lines Bella per Ema heos plusquam Civilia Campos Iusque datum sceleri canimus populemque potentem In sua victâ—iâ—i conversum visâ—â—ra dextra Cognitasque acies c If I say such a true hearted Englishman doe propose these Soveraign Salves for so deadly a sore and these present remedies for so desperate a sicknesse to prevent the instant death and desolation of this famous and renowned Kingdome and Nation whose people were of old time surnamed Angli quasi Angeli or ab Angulo dicti as being in an angle or corner of the world and severed from the rest according to that of the Poet Et penitus toto diversos orbe Britannos And which some Divines terme one of the beloved Isles of the Gentles wherein the Gospell of Christ was soonely Preached after his Ascention 1. First then may it please his most excellent Majestie piously and religiously to turne his Royall heart and gracious affection toward hiâ— great Councell of Parliament who doe represent all his deare people and be advised by them no more to respect or give eare to those Syrene hallucinations of flattering seducers the papists and Iesuite priests the papally inclined Bishops who stand so much for thsir Hierarchy as that they with Demas have forsaken the puritie of the Gospell and neglect the preaching of the holy Word of God and hâ—ve imbraced this present world making themselves Lords over Gods heritage not true Shepheards to seed his flock as they ought to doe in Season and out of Season and to wait upon the alseeing eye of Gods providence for his beloved spouse the Church to bee purged and cleansed of her late inbred and inbrought corruptions 2 Secondly that his Majestie will abandon and quite put away the thought or imagination of any Tyrannicall or Imperiall Government over this land which the papall Bishops and Hierarchicall prelates and priests and other Lay Flatterers did presume to use daily and insinuate and inculcate to his Sacred eares under the pretence of telling his Maiestie that he is an absolute imperiall Monarch free and above and without all Lawes to rule his people ad arbitrium Principis and that he being Gods Anointed is responsall only to God if he doe tyrannize or grieve his subiects whereas they are or make themselves utterly
Questions resolved and propositions tending to accommodation and agreement betweene the King being the Royall head and both Houses of Parliament being the representative body of the Kingdome of ENGLAND The first Question 1. Whether a King be ordained of God for the welfare of the people or the people appointed subjects to the King for the honour and pleasure of a King THis must needs be resolved that the King is instituted of God by his divine Ordinance but by subordinate meanes of the people their first and primary Election or by their approbation of his precedent Title or allowed merits wherein though it be an hereditary successive right of a Crown Yet is that inheritance or succession either originally and immediately given or subsequently and mediately approved and allowed to him and his posterity by the people And by and with the meanes of the Lawes Customes or constitutions of the Nation whereof he becommeth the head and Governour To the end that he may and shall Rule guide and governe and protect the people under his charge and care in the true worship and service of God with love and faithfulnesse and with such tendernesse as a Lord and Master ought to use toward his family a shepheard towards his flock and a father towards his deare beloved children Not that he should in any wife like a domineering master cruelly beate and evill intreate his servants or an hired no true shepheard neglect or peele his flocke or be carelesse of their protection and safety from ravening Wolves and biting Curs Nor as an unnaturall and hard hearted father grieve and afflict his Children with overmuch chastisement or give them stones instead of bread And although it cannot be denied that the Kings of Israel were annointed by the holy Prophets of their time by the immediate appointment of God their proper King and heavenly father who miraculously ruled guided and protected them from the beginning before they had any earthly King like other Nations Yet when they desired a King like as other Nations had the Lord then told them what such Kings did and would take upon them and use to do Not that God did appoint or assigne or allow them so to do for God did not tell any King by the mouth of his Prophets that he would give him a people to use at his pleasure but he granted the people a King to guide and command them as he Muse long before And when Saul that first King was chosen being the tallest man among the people and annoynted by the Prophet to be King over Israel which height of stature did onely note that the people should remarke the height of his dignity when he was set over them The Declaration of Gods divine grace and holy Spirit infused by the word of the Prophet made him fit and worthy to Rule yea even to prophecy among the Prophets and so was he accepted by the Acclamation of the people For no sooner that Divine Spirit of grace had left him but he became an Apostate from God and his religious duty of well governing as a King and was thenceforth relict of God and neither the haughtinesse of his stature nor the dignity of his Thron availed him any longer but the youngest and least of Ishai his sons was chosen from the sheepfolds to be King and to Rule and governe Gods people which after his anointment by the Prophet and the time of his exaltation to the Crowne he governed with a faithfull and true heart and ruled them prudently with all his power And in after ages the Chronicles of the Kings doe shew how often the good Kings that maintained the true Worship of God did long continue in their States and Throns and flourisht but such as were evill and set up Idols and hill Altars and caused or suffered the people to sin against their God God did rend and divide and utterly take away their kingdomes from them Only it is specially remarkeable of the good King Hezekiah who had slipped and erred but repented and recollected himselfe that the mercifull God quickly heard his prayers and saw his teares and added to his dayes and happy Raigne fifteene yeares which number if it be added to our good King Hezekiah his Raigne will exceed the time of many of his progenitors But God may please to adde fifty in steed of fifteene and then the yeares both of his life and Raigne will exceed all his noble Progenitors The like is to bee observed of Christian Kings and Emperours after our Saviour his Incarnation and that the Christian faith was established they had their Annointment from God by the hand of the Bishops but their acceptance was by the people And it is manifest that both the ancient Kings of Israel before the Incarnation of our Saviour as also all Christian Kings since were bound by Oath taken or by Royall obligation to Rule and Raigne by and according to the Lawes of the Land For Bartolus saith a King is Solutus legibus but obligatus vinculo pietatis to rule secundum loges Of all which it followeth that Kings Raignes are provided by God for the welfare of the people and their honour and dignity prolonged in reward of their righteousnesse ingovernment according to the Etymologies of the termes or titles Quia Reges 〈◊〉 a regendo in pace secundum Râ—gâ—lâ—â— normam Justuiae Imperaiores autem ab imperando in belle Ty auni 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Quod est saevire in popâ—lum The second Question 2. Whether a King maketh or imposeth the Lawes upon the people or the Lawes and ancient native nationall Customes of the Land doe erect and establish the Throne and Crowne of the King It is usuall indeed amonst the flattering Courtiers and Royalists in this Kingdome to terme the Lawes the Kings Lawes Quasi dicerent the King doth imponere leges'populo But that is their ignorance For the Lawes of England are most ancient right and rites and Customes of the Land Non Jura data neâ— leges impâ—siâ—e sed usu â—ongae vitate temporum inductae tanquam innatae For if it â—e as truely as vulgarly said Consuetudo est altera Natura Then are our Customary Lawes the most naturall Laws of this Land whereby also appeares the Levity of their conceipts or judgements who having stepped a little over the Seas in a Flie boate and parled 2 little French in Paris or Orleance doe peremptorily assume upon them to define and pronounce that ouâ— Lawes are illiterall and imperfect and that the Civill and Impertiall Law in other parts of Christendom are the most excellent absolute and best Lawes for all and for this Common-wealth Forgetting in meane while that even in those Forraign Lands where the Civill Law Romane or Imperiall hath place and Rule the Naturall and Nationall or provinciall usages and Customes there do abridge and restraine the Generall Rules Theses or Hypotheses of that generall Law And for our Statutory Lawes called Ius stratutorium
misled His Majesty whereupon the fourth question ensueth The fourth Question 4. What power or priviledge the High Court of Parliament hath when they are assembled together and are become the representative Body of the Kingdome IT is resolved that they with the Kings assent may as cause shall require make new Lawes or abrogate any former Statutes but the maine common Law and the Ancient Rites Vsages and Native Customes of the Land they themselves cannot alter For as the Lawyers phrase is to say it is Oppositum in objecto that they that sit by the Common Lawes and by the ancient Rites Vsages and Customes of the Land should alter and change that which gave them their Authority to be a representative body Also the two Houses of Peeres and Commons Rege absente non consentiente may declare the Common Law in Cases where doubt is or ambiguity or difficulty but they can make no Law without the King to stand as a Law and Statute Onely they can make temporary Ordinances of Parliament like Orders or Sentences interlocutory seden e Parliamento and they may censure and and punish Delinquents But in case the King will not call a Parliament as in Richard the second his time when the urgent occasions of the Common-wealth required it The Peeres called the Parliament Then the Peeres and Commons can doe all things as a compleate Parliament without the King And at this time the Kings Majesty having called a Parliament and so far proceeded as he hath done already in making some good and wholesome Lawes for Reformation of the greatest errors and abuses that ever were in this Common-wealth And especially having condescended to a Trienniall Parliament to be for ever hereafter and neither this present Parliament nor any Parliament hereafter assembled to be dissolved without the consent of both Houses Yet now his Majesty being seduced by evill instruments doth dissever himselfe from his Parliament and by his absence doth as they say hinder their proceedings to the making of good and wholesome Lawes for the kingdom and Common-wealth What in this case may be done is not to be resolved by any wit or judgement but by the absolute Wisedom and Authority of that high Court consisting of both Houses to whom in all humblenesse the Writer hereof leaveth it Neverthelesse with the like humility and awfull feare of offence against the Publike and with a faithfull zeale to the Common-wealth he offereth these considerations scrutative of the matter or cause of the variances betweene his Majesty and his great Councell of Parliament viz. What is the very true cause of his Majesties absence and severance from his Parliament sitting at Westminster whither they were first summoned and which is the most convenient place of their assembly and sitting The King alledgeth that it was the tumultuous riot of the disordered Londoners rash and young Prentices and of furious and fanaticke Brownists Anabaptists and Sectaries of the City and Suburbes pretending to cry out against Bishops but intending and offering affront and disloyalty to His Majesty His Regall authority whereby His Royall Person was indangered at Whitehall had he not had a Guard about him and so His Majestie saith they were like to do again if he were at LONDON The Parliament saith it was a malignant party of Cavaliers and others not well affected to peace and enemies to the Common wealth who by flattery and false insinuations did disswade His Majesty from concurring with the grave advise of his great Councell And the Papists and papall affected Bishops dreading that their plots were discovered and like to bee prevented and the delinquents punished by the more severe Lawes or Orders of the Parliament did incite his Majesty to proceed in that ill advised Course And further that such the Malignant party seducing his Majesty endevoured to bring in imperiall power and arbitrary rule for his Majesty to over rule the laws and ancient usages and customs of Eng and the priviledges of Parliament and abridge the liberty and property of the Subjects The evidence whereof hath beene partly shewne forth by some Declarations divulged and Printed by Order of both Houses of Parliament expressing the precedent attempts of forraign force and domestick and coercive power of Armes which late before the Parliament was plotted and put in way of constraint upon the Common-wealth And that moved the Parliament to carve and assume to themselves the Militia at home for the securing of the Coasts of the Sea and of guarding and fortifying the Ports and other places at land That though his Majestie were seduced and misled by the malignant partie and their complices yet his royall Person Crown and dignitie should be preserved in peace and safety and the Common-wealth and people should be defended and kept in peace and prosperitie maugre the divellish plots abroad and within the bowels of the Land by papists priests papall Bishops bloody and rapinous military men Captaines and Cavaliers whose disposition was and is properly bent to war and bloodshed and to rapine and spoil and to make their pray on the wealth of the rich Citizens and other the quiet people of the Land The King contrariwise taking high displeasure at that part or point of the Parliaments Demand for and touching the Militia Alledged that the right of militia or Command of Armes within the Land belongeth properly to his Regalitie and as a flower of his Crowne not to bee assayed or attempted by any Subject no not the high Court of Parliament though they bee the Representative body of the people no more then it could be lawfull for the people themselves to rise and take Armes against their Soveraigne King Wherein as by some Written and Printed discourse or Declaration It hath beene already avowed and maintained that the Militia was not improperly desired of and from his Majestie nor unlawfully assumed by them for a certaine convenient time They perceiving more than the King or people doe know of the eminent danger both of his Royall person Crowne and dignitie and to the priviledges of Parliament and to the Lawes of the Land and liberties of the people like to beene subverted and most especially the whole honour and true worship of God and true protestant Religion to be overthrowne may and will by and through Gods grace and and assistance prevent and pervert or quell and subdue the evill and wicked attempts of all the malignant opposites It is therefore by all true and sound reason of all lawes Divine Lawes of Nature and nations Civill policy and the provinciall rites Vsages and Custome which are the Lawes of his land resoâ—ved that the Militia is to be distinguisht of and the point defined and determined thus viz. The King of this Land no lesse but as muâ—h and as amply as any other forraigne Christian King hath in himselfe and pertaining to his Regaltie Crown and Dignitie the Ius militiae at all times to use and to lead and to command by his Lievtenant