Declaration of indulgence-Attack of the Smyrna fleet-War declared with Holland-Weakness of the States--Battle of Solebay--Sandwich killed-Progrefs of the French-Confternation of the DutchPrince of Orange Stadtholder-Majacre of the De Wits-Good conduct of the prince-A parliamentDeclaration of indulgence recalled-Sea fight-Another fea fight-Another fea fight-Congress of Cologne-A parliament-Peace with Holland. Page 364 THE THE HISTORY O F GREAT BRITAIN. СНА Р. LVIII. -Bat Invasion of the Scots-Battle of Marstonmoor. Laud. HE king had hitherto, during the courfe of the CHAP. Twar, obtained many advantages over the parliament, LVIII. and had raised himself from that low condition, into which he had at first fallen, to be nearly upon an equal footing 1644. with his adverfaries. Yorkshire, and all the northern counties, were reduced by the marquis of Newcastle; and, excepting Hull, the parliament was mafter of no garrifon in these quarters. In the weft, Plymouth alone, having been in vain befieged by prince Maurice, refifted the king's authority: And had it not been for the disappointment in the enterprize of Glocefter, the royal garrifons had reached, without interruption, from one end of the kingdom to the other; and had occupied a greater extent of ground, than thofe of the parliament. Many of the royalifts flattered themfelves, that the fame vigorous fpirit, which had elevated them to the prefent height of power, would ftill favour their progrefs, and obtain them a final victory over their antagonists: But those who judged more foundly, obferved, that, befides the acceffion of VOL. VII. B the CHA P. the whole Scottish nation to the fide of the parliament; the very principle, on which the royal fucceffes had been founded, was every day acquired, more and more, by the 1644 oppofite party. The king's troops, full of gentry and nobility, had exerted a valour fuperior to their enemies, and had hitherto been fuccessful in almost every rencounter: But in proportion as the whole nation became warlike, by the continuance of civil difcords, this advantage was more equally fhared; and fuperior numbers, it was expected, muft at laft obtain the victory. The king's troops alfo, il paid, and deftitute of every neceffary, could not poffibly be retained in equal difcipline with the parliamentary forces, to whom all fupplies were furnished from unexhausted stores and treasures A. The feverity of manners, fo much affected by these zealous religionists, affifted their military inftitutions; and the rigid inflexibility of character, by which the auftere reformers of church and ftate were distinguished, enabled the parliamentary chiefs to restrain their foldiers within stricter rules and more exact order. And while the king's officers indulged themselves even in greater licences, than thofe to which, during times of peace, they had been accustomed, they were apt, both to neglect their military duty, and to fet a pernicious example of disorder, to the foldiers under their command. At the commencement of the civil war, all Englishmen, who served abroad, were invited over, and treated with extraordinary refpect: And most of them, being defcended of good families, and by reafon of their absence, unacquainted with the new principles, which depressed the dignity of the crown, had inlifted under the royal ftandard. But it is obfervable, that, though the military profeffion requires great genius, and long experience, in the principal commanders, all its fubordinate duties may be discharged by ordinary talents, and from fuperficial practice. Citizens and country-gentlemen foon became excellent officers; and the generals of greatest fame and capacity happened, all of them, to fpring up on the fide of the parliament. The courtiers and great nobility, in the other party, checked the growth of any extraordinary genius among the fubordinate officers; and every man there, as in a regular eftablished government, was con A Rush. vol. vi. p. 560. fined fined to the ftation, in which his birth had placed CHAP. him. LVIII. THE king, that he might make preparations, during winter, for the ensuing campaign, fummoned to Oxford all 1644. the members of either house, who adhered to his interests; and endeavoured to avail himself of the name of parliament, so paffionately cherished by the English nation B. The house of peers was pretty full; and befides the nobitity, employed in different parts of the kingdom, it contained twice as many members as voted at Westminster. The house of commons confifted of about 140; which amounted not to above half of the other house of comons c. So extremely light had government hitherto lain upon the people, that the very name of excife was unknown to them; and among the other evils arifing from these domeftic wars, was the introduction of that impoft into England. The parliament at Westminster having voted an excife on beer, wine, and other commodities; those at Oxford imitated the example, and conferred that revenue on the king. And in order to enable him the better to recruit his army, they granted him the fum of 100,000 pounds, to be levied by way of loan upon the fubject. The king circulated privy feals, counterfigned by the fpeakers of both houses, requiring the loan of particular fums, from fuch persons as lived within his quarters D. Neither party had as yet got above the pedantry of reproaching their antagonists with thefe illegal measures. THE Westminster parliament paffed a whimsical ordinance, commanding all the inhabitants of London and the neighbourhood, to retrench a meal a week, and to pay the value of it for the fupport of the public cause E. Tis eafily imagined, that, provided the money was paid, they troubled themselves very little about the execution of their ordinance. SUCH was the king's fituation, that, in order to restore peace to the nation, he had no occafion to demand any other terms, than the restoring of the laws and constitution; the replacing him in the fame rights which had ever been enjoyed by his predeceffors; and the re-establishing, on its antient bafis, the whole frame of government, civil B 2 B 575. as Rush. vol. vi. p. 559. & Dugdale, p. 119. Rush, vol. vi, P. 748. DIbid. p. 590. E CHAP. as well as ecclefiaftical. And that he might facilitate an end, VIII. feemingly fo defirable, he offered to employ means equally popular, an universal act of oblivion, and a toleration or 1644 indulgence to tender confciences. Nothing therefore could contribute more to his interefts, than every discourse of peace, and every difcuffion of the conditions, upon which that bleffing could be obtained. For this reafon, he folicited a treaty, on all occafions, and defired a conference and mutual examination of pretenfions, even when he entertained no hopes, that any conclufion could poffibly result from it. FOR like reafons, the parliament wifely avoided, as much as they could, all advances towards negociation, and were cautious not to expofe too eafily to censure those high terms, which their apprehenfions or their ambition made them previously demand of the king. Tho' their partizans were blinded with the thickeft veil of religious prejudices, they dreaded to bring their pretenfions to the teft, or lay them open before the whole nation. In oppofition to the facred authority of the laws, to the venerable precedents of many ages, the popular leaders afhamed to plead nothing but fears and jealoufies, which were not avowed by the conftitution, and for which, neither the perfonal character of Charles, fo full of virtue, nor his fituation, fo deprived of all independent authority, feemed to afford any reasonable foundation. Grievances which had been fully redreffed; powers, either legal or illegal, which had been entirely renounced; it feemed unpopular, and invidious, and ungrateful, any farther to infist on. were THE king, that he might abate the universal veneration, paid to the name of parliament, had iffued a declaration, in which he fet forth all the tumults, by which himself and his partizans in both houfes had been driven from London; and he thence inferred, that the affembly at Westminster was no longer a free parliament, and, till its liberty was reftored, was intitled to no authority. As this declaration was an obstacle to all treaty, fome contriVance feemed requifite, in order to elude it. A LETTER was written to the earl of Effex, and fubfcribed by the prince, the duke of York, and forty-three noblemen F. They there exhort him to be an inftrument for FClarendon, vol. iii. p. 442. Rufh. vol. vi. p. 566. Whitlocke, p. 77. |