Selected quad for the lemma: kingdom_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
kingdom_n	enter_v	great_a	king_n	2,493	5	3.5720	3	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A35609	The Case of disbanding the army at present briefly and impartially considered.		1698 (1698)	Wing C902; ESTC R4007	4,003	14

THE CASE OF Disbanding the ARMY AT PRESENT Briefly and Impartially Consider'd Published by John Nutt near Stationer's Hall 1698. THE Case of Disbanding THE ARMY AT PRESENT Briefly and Impartially Consider'd I Shall reduce my Thoughts about this Matter within as small a compass as may be and therefore shall not trouble the Reader with Histostorical Quotations either out of Ancient or Modern Authors as altogether foreign to the Purpose unless they are prov'd to agree with the present Conjuncture of Affairs in every Particular and so far it may be own'd that Men in the same Circumstances will do the same Things for 't is a plain Case that in taking true Measures for the Safety of any Government Men must Examine the present State of Affairs both within and without it and things that may happen hereafter and always to provide against the most evident and likely Dangers I shall take it for granted that an Army in time of Peace is consistent with our Constitution if the Safety of the Realm require it and that it be with the Consent of the Parliament And therefore if it be made appear that the present Government which under God is the best Security we have for our Religion Liberty and Property is in evident Danger without an Army and that in the present State of Affairs our Liberties and Properties cannot be infring'd nor molested by one this I hope will set this great Case in a true Light First That the present Government is in evident Danger without a competent Number of Land Forces for its Defence The Posture of England at present is this in relation to Safety that there are Princes abroad that pretend a Right to wear its Imperial Crown who are Protected and Supported by the most Powerful Monarch in Christendom who is able enough still notwithstanding his late Restitutions to do what he pleases with the Empire Spain and Holland unless England joins with them for the Common Liberty in which its own is certainly involv'd It is very well known that this Powerful Monarch pretends in the behalf of the Princes that are descended from him a Right to the Crown of Spain and all the Dominions thereunto belonging upon the Death of the present King which is a fair Step to Universal Monarchy And it is as plain that if this Monarch can once secure England then he will be able to make good his Pretensions in spight of the rest of the Allies and Portugal too if it joins with them This demonstrates that it is absolutely his Interest to have England at his Devotion which he can hardly expect from the present Government And if the Case be so then the Question is Whether it is Safe and Advisable to lay our selves open to a Neighbour so Powerful both by Sea and Land whose Interest it is to subdue us who wants no Pretence for it and who has seldom fail'd to prosecute his Interest when a fair Opportunity has offer'd for it But they say that a good Fleet and a well Train'd Militia is sufficient to put us out of Danger As to the first it must be own'd that the Honour Glory and Safety of the Nation does chiefly depend upon our Fleet but it is fit to consider at the same time that the French King can put out all his Fleet whenever he pleases and that he can pursue his Designs with more Secrecy and Expedition than the Constitution of this Government can admit But the King of England cannot put out a Fleet without the help of his Parliament which must meet together and settle Funds for the setting out of the Fleet without which the King cannot have a sufficient Credit The Case being so it cannot otherwise be or it is but too probable that it will be so that the French King in time of Peace will put out his whole Fleet sooner than we can put out ours even though His Majesty should immediately call a Parliament and desire Supplies for a Fleet every time the French work in their Docks at Brest Rochefort and Dunkirk as if they design'd to set out their Fleet Or the Parliament must of course allow the King every year a Fund for the setting out a Fleet as in time of War And besides though we could be ready as soon as they yet it is fit to consider whether if they should Arm in these three Places at once and the Hogue we can considering the accidents of Weather hinder their Landing upon us from every one or any one of these Places This seems to demonstrate that it is very necessary to have another Defence ready in case the first should fail which as it appears from what has been said may very well be This Defence therefore must be a Land Force That the Militia is not at present a competent Defence is own'd by those who propose Methods to render it serviceable I would not be thought to undervalue Militia's no doubt they could render Service especially the Foot being interlin'd with Regular Troops or they may be put into the less expos'd Garrisons to draw out from thence the Regular Troops to reinforce an Army But as for Horse the Horse must be Train'd as well as the Man or else the Bravest Men in the World can render no Service upon Horses that are not Train'd But if the Militia can be render'd serviceable for our Defence against the Invasions of Disciplin'd Troops as those very Persons that would Disband the Army must own that it is not at present it is fit to consider that a Militia under such Regulations as are proper to make it Serviceable will then enter into the very Constitutions of the Kingdom that it will be a very great and perpetual Expence upon the Subject and that it must vest as great a Military Power in the King as if he had an Army at his Command or else it cannot be thought to make it Serviceable This is the very Case of Sweden Puffendorf tells us that the King of Sweden pays no other Forces out of his Coffers but the Life-Guard and the Foot-Guards I mean in Sweden the rest is the Militia of the Country maintain'd by Tenures from the Crown which is the very Original of Militia's and kept in constant Duty and Discipline But pray has this Militia preserv'd the Rights and Properties of the People Is not the King of Sweden as Absolute a Monarch as any in Christendom And on the contrary we find a Country in the World not for off call'd Holland where they maintain all the Liberty that can be imagin'd in a Common-wealth with an Army and the King at the Head of it without any such thing as Militia in its Constitution But an Army being requir'd only during the present State of Affairs in Christendom which as Experience tells us have never continued long in the same Posture cannot enter into the Constitution of the Monarchy nor can it be made a Precedent any longer than the Posture of Affairs is the same