THE ACCUSATION AND IMPEACHMENT OF JOHN LORD FINCH, BARON OF FORDWICH, LORD KEEPER OF THE GREAT SEAL OF ENGLAND, BY THE House of Commons.  
Printed Anno Dom. 1640. Jan. 14. 1641.   

THE ACCUSATION AND IMPEACHMENT of John, LORD Finch, Baron of Fordwich, LORD KEEPER of the Great Seal of England, by the House of COMMONS.  
IMprimis, That the said john Lord Finch Baron of Fordwich, Lord Keeper, etc. hath traitorously, and wickedly, endeavoured to subvert the fundamental Laws, and established government of the Realm of England, and in stead thereof to introduce an arbitrary tyrannical government against Law, which he hath declared by traitorous and wicked words, counsels, opinions, judgements, practices, and actions.  
II. That in pursuance of those his traitorous and wicked purposes, he did in the third and fourth year of his Majesty's reign, or one of them, being then speaker of the Commons house of Parliament, contrary to the commands of the house then assembled, and sitting, denied and hindered the reading of some things which the said house of Commons required to be read for the safety of King, and Kingdom, and preservation of the religion of this Realm; and did forbid all the members of the house to speak, and said that if any did offer to speak, he would rise and go away, and said nothing should be then done in the house, and did offer to rise and go away, and did thereby and otherwise, in as much as in him lay, endeavour to subvert the ancient and indoubted rights and course of Parliaments.  
III. That he being of his Majesty's Council at the Justice seat held for the County of Essex in the month of October, in the 10. year of his now Majesty's reign, at Strafford Langton in the same County, being then of his Majesty's Council, in that service did practise by unlawful means, to enlarge the Forest of that County, many miles beyond the known bounds thereof, as they had been enjoyed near 300. years, contrary to the Law, and to the Charter of the liberties of the Forest, and other Charters, and divers acts of Parliament, and for effecting the same, did unlawfully cause and procure undue returns to be made of Jurors, and great numbers of other persons who were unsworn to be joined to them of the Jury, and threatened and awed the said Jurors to give a verdict for the King, and by unlawful means did surprise the County that they might not make defence, and did use several menacing wicked speeches, and actions, to the Jury, and others, for obtaining his unjust purpose aforesaid, and after a verdict obtained for the King in the month of April following (at which time the said Justice seat was called by adjornment) the said john Lord Finch then Lord chief Justice of his Majesty's Court of Common Pleas, and was one of the Judge's assistants for them, he continued by further unlawful and unjust practices, to maintain and confirm the said verdict, and did then & there being assistant to the Justice in eyre, advise the refusal of the traverse offered by the County, and all their evidences, but only what they should verbally deliver, which was refused accordingly.  
iv That he about the month of November, 1635. he being then Lord chief Justice of the Court of Common Pleas, and having taken an oath for the due administration of Justice to his Majesty's liege people, according to the Laws and Statutes of the Realm, contrived in opinion in haec verba, (when the good and safety, etc.) and did subscribe his name to that opinion, and by persuasions, threats, and false suggestions, did solicit, & procure Sir john Bramston Knight, then and now Lord chief Justice of England, Sir Humphrey Davenport Kt. Lord chief Baron of his Majesty's Court of Exchequer, Sir Richard Hutton Knight, late one of the Justices of his Majesty's Court of Common Pleas, Sir john Denham Knight, late one of the Barons of his Majesty's Court of Exchequer, Sir William jones Knight, late one of the Justices of the said Court of King's Bench, Sir George Crook then and now one of the Judges of the said Court of King's Bench, Sir Thomas Trevor Knight, then and now one of the Barons of the Exchequer, Sir George Vernor Knight, late one of the Justices of the said Court of Common Pleas: Sir Robert Barkley Knight, then and now one of the Justices of the said Court of King's Bench, Sir Francis Crawly Knight, then and now one of the Justices of the said Court of Common Pleas, Sir Richard Weston Knight, then and now one of the Barons of the said Court of Exchequer, some or one of them to subscribe with their names the said opinion presently, and enjoined themseverally some or one of them secrecy upon their allegiance.  
V That he the day of _____ then being Lord chief Justice of the said Court of Common Pleas, subscribed an extrajudicial opinion in answer to questions in a letter from his Majesty, in haec verba, etc.  
And that he contrived the said questions, and procured the said letter from his Majesty; and whereas the said Justice Hutton and Justice Crook declared to him their opinions to the contrary; yet he required and pressed them to subscribe, upon his promise that he would let his Majesty know the truth of their opinions; notwithstanding such subscriptions which nevertheless he did not make known to his Majesty, but delivered the same to his Majesty as the opinion of all the Judges.  
VI That he being Lord chief Justice of the said Court of Common Pleas, delivered his opinion in the Chequer Chamber against Master Hampden in the case of Shipmoney; that he the said Master Hampden upon the matter and substance of the case was chargeable with the money then in question: a copy of which proceed the Commons will deliver to your Lordships, and did solicit and threaten the said Judges some or one of them to deliver their opinions in like manner against Master Hampden: and after the said Baron Denham had delivered his opinion for Master Hampden, the said Lord Finch repaired purposely to the said Baron Denhams' Chamber in Sergeant's Inn in Fleetstreet, and after the said Master Baron Denham had declared and expressed his opinion, urged him to retract the said opinion, which he refusing, was threatened by the said Lord Finch, because he refused.  
VII. That he then being Lord chief Justice of the Court of Common Pleas, declared and published in the Exchequer Chamber, & western circuit where he went Judge, that the King's right to Shipmoney as aforesaid, was so inherent a right to the Crown, as an Act of Parliament could not take it away; and with divers malicious speeches enveighed against and threatened all such as refused to pay Ship-money; all which opinions contained in the four, five, and sixth Articles, are against the law of the Realm, the subjects right of property, and contrary to former resolutions in Parliament, and to the petition of right: which said resolutions and petition of right, were well known to him and resolved and enacted in Parliament when he was Speaker of the commons house of Parliament.  
VIII. That he being Lord chief Justice of the Court of Common Pleas, did take the general practice of that Court, to his private Chamber; and that he sent warrants into all or many Shires of England to several men, as to Francis Giles of the County of Devon, Robert Benson of the County of York Attorneyes of that Court, and to divers others, to release all persons arrested on any utlawry about 40. shillings fees whereas none by law so arrested, can be bailed or released without supersedeas under seal or reversal.  
IX. That he being Lord chief Justice of the Court of Common Pleas, upon a pretended suit begun in Michaelmas Term in the 11. year of his Majesty's Reign, although there was no plaint or declaration against him, did notoriously and contrary to all law and justice, by threats, menaces and imprisonment, compel Thomas Laurence an executor, to pay 19 pound 12. shillings, and likewise caused Richard Barnard, being only overseer of the last will of that testator, to be arrested for the payment of the said money, contrary to the advice of the rest of the Judges of that Court, and against the known and ordinary course of justice, and his said Oath and knowledge, and denied his Majesty's subjects the common and ordinary justice of this Realm, as to Master Limericke, and others, and for his private benefit endamaged and ruined the estates of very many of his Majesty's subjects, contrary to his oath and knowledge.  
X. That he being Lord Keeper of the great Seal of England, and sworn one of his Majesty's Privy Counsel, did by false and malicious slanders labour to incense his Majesty against Parliaments, and did frame and advise the publishing the declaration after the dissolution of the last Parliament.  
All which Treasons and misdemeanours above mentioned, were done and committed by the said john Lord Finch Baron of Fordwich, Lord Keeper of the great Seal of England, and thereby he the said Lord Finch hath traitorously and contrary to his allegiance laboured to lay imputations & scandals upon his Majesty's government, and to alienate the hearts of his Majesty's liege people from his Majesty, & to set a division between them, and to ruin and destroy his Majesty's Realm of England, for which they do impeach him the said Lord Finch, Baron of Fordwich, Lord Keeper of the great Seal of England, of high Treason against our Sovereign Lord the King, his Crown and dignity, of the misdemeanours above mentioned. And the said Commons by protestation, saving to themselves the liberty of exhibiting at any time hereafter, any other accusation or impeachment against the said Lord Finch, and also of replying to the answer: that the said john Lord Finch shall make unto the said Articles or to any of them, and of offering proof of the premises, or any of their impeachments or accusations that shall be exhibited by them as the case shall according to the course of Parliaments require, do pray that the said john, Lord Finch, Baron of Fordwich, Lord Keeper of the great Seal of England, may be put to answer to all and every the premises, and such proceed, examinations, trials, and judgements, as may be upon every of them, had and used as is agreeable to Law and Justice.  
FINIS.