THE DECLARATION OF HIS excellency the Lord general Fairfax, AND HIS general council OF OFFICERS: showing the Grounds of the Armies Advance towards the City of LONDON.  
By the Appointment of His Excellency the Lord FAIRFAX Lord general, and his general council of Officers held at Windsor, November 30. 1648.  
Signed, John Rushworth, Secretary.  
LONDON, Printed for John Partridge. 1648.   

The Declaration of his Excellency the Lord General Fairfax, and his general council of Officers, showing the Grounds of the Armies advance towards the City of London.  
BEing full of sad Apprehensions concerning the danger and evil of the Treaty with the King, and of any Accommodation with Him, or Restitution of him thereupon, we did by our late Remonstrance, upon the Reasons and Grounds therein expressed, make our Application thereby, unto the present House of Commons, that the dangerous evil of that way might be avoided, and the Peace of the Kingdom settled upon more righteous, safe, and hopeful grounds, viz. a more equal dispensing of Justice and Mercy in relation to things done or suffered in the late Wars, and the establishing of the future Government of this Kingdom upon a safe Succession and equal Constitution of Parliaments, and that (for the ending of present, and avoiding of future differences) to be ratified by an Agreement and Subscription of the people thereunto.  
This course we took, out of our tender care and earnest desire, that all ways of Extremity might be avoided, and that those matters of highest concernment, to the public Interest of this Nation, might be pursued, and provided for, (if possible) by those whose proper Work and Trust it was. And herein we were willing to hope that the persons so trusted, or the Majority of them, might possibly have been either driven into that destructive way, by forcible Impulsions, or lapsed thereinto through some Inconsideration, or Misapprehensions and conceived Jealousies: And therefore we did carefully decline the insisting upon any thing that might continue or renew any former Jealousies or Animosities, and kept only to such things as were of necessity or advantage to the common Cause, and of common and equal Concernment to those that have engaged in it: Which things we pressed in the way of Reason and persuasion only, that they might be duly and timely considered. But to our grief we find, in stead of any Satisfaction or a reasonable reasonable Answer thereto, they are wholly rejected, without any consideration of what ever Reason or Justice might be in the things set forth or propounded therein; for what less can be understood, when the things propounded were mainly for the avoidance of evils appearing in the Treaty with the King: And yet they put off the consideration of them, till there should be no place left for any consideration at all: First, laying it aside till Monday last, by which time the Treaty (as then supposed) would have been concluded; but that failing, and two days more being added to the Treaty, the consideration of our Remonstrance, on the day appointed, was waved and laid aside; the Treaty, the mean while, going on in the former way and terms, and like to be concluded the very next day.  
Now, though we are far from that presumption, that the things should therefore be answered or considered, because propounded by us, save for the Reason, Justice, or public Concernment therein; yet, having no Answer, or any thing showed us to the contrary, we cannot but upon the grounds Remonstrated (and many more which might be added) remain confident in our former Apprehensions concerning them. And seeing the prevailing part of those, to whom we did apply, to have, as it we, their eyes wilfully shut, and ears stopped, against any thing of Light or Reason offered to them, we find no place left for our former charitable or hopeful Apprehensions, concerning their error in such evil ways; but remainng fully assured of the danger and destructiveness thereof, as to all those public ends for which they were entrusted, and also of the just advantage and necessity which lie in the things we have popounded and insist on, we now see nothing left, to which their engaging and persisting in such ways and rejection of these better things propounded, can rationally be attributed less than a treacherous or corrupt neglect of, and apostasy from the public Trust-reposed in them; although we could wish from our sons, we might yet find the contrary. Nevertheless, we do not in these things assume a standing Power of Judgement (as of Right or Trust) to conclude others thereby, acknowledging that to lie most properly in those whom the people duly choose and trust to Judge for them: But considering that such power, where it is, is committed but in Trust, and that neither this, nor any other people, did ever give up their Natural capacities of common sense or Reason, as to the ends and fundamentals of that Trust, and that as to the breach of such Trust, there is no higher formal power of man in being to Appeal unto for Judgement, in such case (as all others concerned in such breaches of Trust will) so as we cannot but exercise that Common Judgement which in our Natural Capacity is left to us: And though in smaller failers of such Trust, which might be born, without hazard of Destruction to that Interest, and those People, for which especially the Trust is, or where the trusties were of an indifferent equal constitution, in reference to the whole, or where we had an orderly and open way left for a just succession of another formal and proper Judicature to be appealed unto in due time; we should not oppose or hold forth our private judgements to the least disturbance of that orderly and peaceable course of judgement so established; yet in our present case we are so fully convinced of the greatness and distructiveness of those evils we have declared against, and of the necesito and esentiallity of those better things we have desired and propounded, and how inconsistent it is with the public Trust, and fundamental ends of it, still to pursue the one, and reject the other, as that we dare with confidence appeal therein to the common judgements of indifferent and uncorrupted men, and to the more righteous judgement of God above all.  
And as the incompetency of this Parliament, in its present constitution to give an absolute and conclusive judgement for the whole, (especially to be the sole Judges of their own performance, or breach of Trust,) doth make the juster way for such an Appeal, so indeed we see no other way left for remedy, in regard the present unlimited, continuance of this Parliament doth exclude the orderly succession of any other more equal, formal Judicature of men, to which we might hope in due time other ways to appeal.  
Thus than we appreehend ourselves in the present case, both necessitated to, and justified in an Appeal in this Parliament, in the present Constitution as it stands, unto the extraordinary judgement of God, and good people; and yet in the prosecution of this Appeal, as we shall drive it on, but to the speedy obtaining of a more orderly and equal Judicature of men, in a just Representive, according to our remonstrance, (wherein to acquiesce,) so in the present procuring of Justice with the people's ease and quiet, and in the settling of the Kingdom upon a due, safe and hopeful succession of Parliaments: It is our hearts desire, and shall be our endeavour, that so much, both of the matter and form of the present Parliamentary Authority may be preserved, as can be safe, or will be useful to these ends, until a just and full Constitution thereof, both for matter and form (suitable to the public ends it serves for) can be introduced.  
And therefore▪ first, It should be our great rejoicing, (if God saw it good,) that the Majority of the present House of Commons were become sensible of the evil and destructiveness of their late way, and would resolvedly and vigorously apply themselves to the speedy execution of Justice, with the righting and easing of the oppressed people, and to a just and safe settlement of the Kingdom upon such foundations as have been propounded by us, and others, for that purpose, and would for the speedier and surer prosecution of these things exclude from Communication in their counsels all such corrupt and apostatised Members as have appeared hitherto, but to obstruct and hinder such matter of Justice, Safety, and public Interest, and to pervert their councels a contrary way, and have therein so shamefully both falsified and forfeited their Trust.  
But how ever (if God shall not see it good to vouchsafe that mercy to them and the Kingdom,) we shall, secondly, desire, that so many of them as God hath kept upright, and shall touch with a just sense of those things, would by Protestation, or otherwise, acquit themselves from such breach of Trust, and approve their faithfulness by withdrawing from those that persist in the guilt thereof, and would apply themselves to such a posture, whereby they may speedily and effectually▪ prosecute those necessary and public ends, without such Interruptions, Diversions, or Depravations of their counsels from the rest, to their endless trouble, oppression and hazard of the Kingdom as formerly, and for so many of them, whose hearts God shall stir up thus to do; we shall therein, in this case of extremity, look upon them as persons having materially the chief Trust of the Kingdom remaining in them, and though not a formal standing power to be continued in them, or drawn into ordinary precedents; yet the best and most rightful that can be had, as the present state and exigence of Affairs now stand; And we shall accordingly own them, adhere to them, and be guided by them in their faithful prosecution of that Trust, in order unto, and until the introducing of a more full and formal power in a just Repressntative to be speedily endeavoured.  
Now yet farther to take away all Jealousies in relation to ourselves, which might withhold or discourage any honest Members from this course, as we have the witness of God in our hearts, that in these proceedings we do not seek, but even resolve we will nor take advantages to ourselves, either in point of Profit or Power; and that if God did open to us a way, wherein with honesty and faithfulness to the public Interest, and good people engaged for us, we might presently be discharged, so as we might not in our present Employments look on, and be accessary to, yea supporters of the Parliament, in the present corrupt, oppressive and destructive proceedings, we should with rejoicing, and without more ado, embrace such a discharge, rather than interpose in these things to our own vast trouble and hazard; so if we could but obtain a rational assurance for the effectual prosecution of these things, we shall give any proportionable assurance on our parts, concerning, our laying down of Arms, when, and as we should be required: But for the present, as the case stands, we apprehend ourselves obliged in duty to God, this Kingdom, and good men therein, to improve our utmost abilities in all honest ways, for the avoiding of these great evils we have Remonstrated, and for prosecution of the good things we have propounded, and also that such persons who were the Inviters of the late Invasion from Scotland, the Instigaters and encouragers of the late Insurrections within this Kingdom, and (those forcible ways failing) have still pursued the same wicked Designs by treacherous and corrupt counsels, may be brought to public Justice, according to their several demerits. For all these ends we are now drawing up with the Army to London, there to follow Providence as God shall clear our way.  
By the Appointment of His Excellency, the Lord Fairfax, Lord General, and his General council of Officers held at Windsor, Nov. 30. 1648. Signed, JOHN Rushworth Secr'.   

For the Right honourable▪ The Lord Major, Aldermen, and common-council of the City of LONDON.  
My Lord and Gentlemen,  
BEing upon an immediate Advance with the Army towards London, we thought good hereby to give you notice thereof. For the ground, and necessity leading us hereunto we refer you to our late Remonstrance, and to our later Declaration concerning the same. We have only this further to add, That as we are far from the least thought of Plunder or other wrong to your City, or any the places adjoining (which we hope your former experiences of us will give you cause enough to credit us in) so for the better prevention of any disorder in the soldiery, or of any abuse or inconvenience to the inhabitants in the Quartering of the soldiery at private Houses: We earnestly Desire, That you would take a present course for the supply of Money to pay these Forces while we shall be necessitated to stay there: upon which we assure you we shall so dispose of them into great and void Houses about the City as much as may be possible as that few or none of th' inhabitants shall be troubled with Quartering of any soldiers at all. And for this purpose, We desire that forty thousand pound may be forthwith provided upon the security of your Arrears to be ready to be paid out to the Forces to morrow night if possible. And we shall be ready to receive from you any intimations for the further prevention of hurt or inconvenience to the City in this insinesse, I remain,  
Your most assured Friend and Servant, T. FAIRFAX. Windsor, 30 Nov. 1648.  
FINIS.