His Majesty's GRACIOUS SPEECH Together with the Lord Keepers, To both Houses of PARLIAMENT, On Wednesday the 13th of October, 1675. Published by His Majesty's special Command. royal blazon or coat of arms C R HONI SOIT QVI MAL Y PENSE DIEV ET MON DROIT LONDON, Printed by the Assigns of John Bill and Christopher Barker, Printers to the Kings most Excellent Majesty, 1675. His Majesty's GRACIOUS SPEECH To both Houses of PARLIAMENT, On Wednesday the 13th of October, 1675. My Lords and Gentlemen, I Meet you now with a more than usual concern for the Event of this Session, And I know it is but what may reasonably be expected from that Care I own to the preservation of the Government. The causes of the last Prorogation, as I for My part do not desire to remember, so I hope no man else will, unless it be to learn from thence, how to avoid the like occasions for the future, And I pray consider how fatal the consequences may be, and how little benefit is like to redound to the People by it: However, if any thing of that kind shall arise, I desire you would defer those debates, till you have brought such public Bills to perfection as may conduce to the good and safety of the Kingdom; And particularly I recommend to you, whatever may tend to the Security of the Protestant Religion as it is now established in the Church of England. I must likewise desire your assistance in some Supplies, as well to take off the Anticipations which are upon my Revenue, as for the building of Ships; and though the War has been the great cause of these Anticipations, yet I find by a late account I have taken of My Expenses, that I have not been altogether so good an husband, as I might have been, and as I resolve to be for the future: Although at the same time I have had the satisfaction to find, that I have been far from such an extravagancy in My own Expense, as some would have the World believe. I am not ignorant, that there are many who would prevent the kindness of My Parliament to Me at this time; but I as well know that your affections have never failed me: And you may remember, it is now above Three years since I have asked you any thing for My Own use. The rest I refer to my Lord Keeper. THE Lord Keeper's SPEECH. My Lords, and you the Knights, Citizens, and Burgesses of the House of Commons, THe Causes of this present Assembly, and the Reasons which have moved His Majesty to command your Attendance upon Him at this Time, are of the highest Importance. The King resolve to enter into Terms of strictest Correspondence and Endearment with His Parliament, To take your Counsel in His most Weighty Affairs, To impart all His Cares to you, To acquaint you with all His Wants and Necessities, To offer you all that can yet be wanting to make you enjoy yourselves, To Establish a right understanding Between Himself and His Three Estates, and Between the Estates themselves, To redress all your Just complaints, and To put all His Subjects at Ease, as far as in Him lies, and can consist with the Honour and the Safety of the Government. And having made all these Advances towards you, He doubts not but you will behave yourselves like those that Deserve to be called the King's Friends, and that you will put Him at Ease too. There is no cause why any Fears of Religion or Liberty should Divert you. For, His Majesty hath so often recommended to you the Considerations of Religion, so very often desired you to Assist Him in His Care and Protection of it, That the Defender of the Faith is become the Advocate for it too, and hath Left all those without Excuse who still remain under any kind of Doubts or Fears. Again, The Care of your Civil Rights and Liberties hath been so much His Majesties, that the more you Reflect upon these Concerns, the more you will find yourselves obliged to acknowledge His Majesty's Tenderness of you, and Indulgence to you. Search your own Annals, the Annals of those Times you Account most Happy, you will scarce find one Year without an Example of something more Severe, and more Extraordinary, than a whole Reign hath yet produced. Peruse the Histories of Foreign Nations, and you shall find, Statues, and Altars too have been Erected to the Memories of those Princes, whose Best Virtues never arrived to half that Moderation, which We Live to See and to Enjoy. No King did ever meet a Parliament with Juster cause of Confidence in their Affections. And therefore His Majesty will not suffer Himself to Doubt, but relies firmly upon it that you will never forsake Him, when He is under any kind of Difficulties. He doth assure Himself that you will now think fit to provide for His Honour and your own Safety, by Helping him to pay some part of His Debts, and to make His Navy as Great and as Considerable, as it ought to be. For the Greatness of a King is the Greatness and the Safety of His People. The Springs and Rivers which pay Tribute to the Ocean, do not lessen but preserve themselves by that contribution. It is impossible that those Affections which Piety and Allegiance first planted, which Persecution could not abate, which the Gracious influences of His Majesty's happy Government have hitherto increased, should now appear to Whither and Decay. But then the best Indication of the Heart is by the Hand. And because it is of infinite moment to the King's affairs that there should be a cheerful concurrence to His Supply, Therefore Let Hand and Heart both join together in the Oblation, for that will make it a Sacrifice Well pleasing indeed. My Lords and Gentlemen, The Happiness of this present Age, and the Fate and Fortune of the Next too, is very much in your Hands and at this Time, All that you would desire to settle and improve, All that you would wish to Secure and transmit to your Posterities, may now be accomplished. Would you Raise the due Estimation and Reverence of the Church of England to its just Height? Would you Provide for the Safety and Establishment of it? Do there want any Laws to secure the Peace and Quiet of the State? Would you at once enrich and adorn this Kingdom, by providing for the Extent and improvement of Trade, by introducing New and useful Manufactures, and by encourageing those we have already? Would you prevent all Frauds and Perjuries, all Delays and Abuses in the Administration of Justice? Would you preserve a famous City from being Depopulated by the Suburbs, Would you Restrain the Excess of those New Buildings which begin to Swarm with Inhabitants unknown? All your Petitions of this Kind will be Grateful to the King, and you may with ease effect all this and much more which your Great wisdoms will suggest to you. A little Time will serve to make many Excellent Laws, and to give you the Honour of being the Repairers of all our Breaches, So as that Time be wholly employed upon the Public, and not taken up by such Considerations as are less Meritorious. If therefore there be any without Doors, that Labour to disunite your Counsels, or to render them ineffectual, If they can hope that the Occasions for this may arise from some Differences within yourselves, or hope by those Differences to Disguise their own disaffections to your good proceedâ–ª 'Tis in your Power to defeat those Hopes, to pull off this Disguise, and to secure a happy Conclusion of this meeting, by Studying to preserve a good Correspondence, and by a Careful avoiding of all such Questions as are Apt to engender Strife. And if ever there were a Time, when the Gravity and the Counsel, the Wisdom, and the good Temper of a Parliament, were necessary to support that Government which only can Support these Assemblies, certainly this is the Hour. You see with what Zeal the King hath recommended to you a good Agreement between yourselves, and that He doth it with all the care and compassion, all the earnestness and importunity, fit for so Great a Prince to express, who would be very sorry that any such misfortune as your Disagreement, should either Deprive Him of your Advice and Assistance, or His People of those good Laws which He is ready to Grant you. There is no Other way Our Enemies can think of, by which 'tis possible for this Sessions to miscarry, For Fears and Jealousies cannot enter here, Calumnies and Slanders will find no place amongst Wise and Good men. They that use these Arts abroad, will quickly be discredited, when the World shall see the Generous effects of your confidence. Men will Despair of Attempting any Disturbance in the State, when they see Every Step that tends that way, serves only to give you fresh Occasions to testify your Loyalty and your Zeal. You have all the Reason in the World to make men see this, For you have the same Monarchy to assert, the same Church to defend, the same Interests of Nobility and Gentry to maintain, the same Excellent King to contend for, and the same Enemies to contend against. And now My Lords and Gentlemen, Since the whole Session of Parliament is in the Judgement and Construction of our Law but as one Day, Let us all endeavour that the morning of it, the first Entrance upon it, may be with such fair and such Auspicious Circumstances as may give the whole Kingdom an assurance of a Bright and Cheerful Day. Let no ill Humours gather into Clouds to darken or obscure it, for this Day is a Critical Day, and more depends upon that Judgement of our Affairs which will be made by it, then can easily be imagined. It imports us therefore to take care that no part of this Time be lost, Let every precious Minute of this Day be spent in receiving such Acts of Grace and Goodness as are ready to flow from the King, and in making such Retributions for them as may become the Grateful Hearts of the Best of Subjects, to the Best of Kings. So shall this Day become a Day of disappointment and discomfort to our Enemies, But to us and all good men a Glorious Day, a Day of Triumph and Deliverance, a Memorable and a Joyful Day to this present and to all future Generations. LONDON, Printed by the Assigns of John Bill and Christopher Barker, Printers to the Kings most Excellent Majesty, 1675.