TO THE RIGHT HONOURABLE THE LORDS ASSEMBLED IN PARLIAMENT THE HUMBLE PETITION OF PHILIP Earl of Chesterfield, delivered and read in the LORDS House upon Saturday the thirteenth of February, 1646.  
Printed in the Year, 1646.   

To the Right Honourable, the Lords assembled in PARLIAMENT. The humble Petition of Philip Earl of Chesterfield.  
Shows,  
THAT your Petitioner having laboured under several long and grievous sicknesses, in the time he hath continued your Prisoner, (by your honourable favours in 〈…〉 lodgingss) for above three 〈◊〉 and a half now last passed here in 〈…〉 months' in several places in the Country, in ●uch misery and danger of his life, a warrant being given by Sir john Gell to Captain Vermuden to hang him, of which he hath proof here in Town from Vermudens own mouth, contrary to the Law of Arms, and to the agreement upon the surrender of the close in Litch-field, by which both himself & all his there were to have free quarter for themselves to pass away peaceably with bag & baggage, though when by the same agreement they no sooner entered the place, but held all prisoners, rob & spoiled your Petitioner and all the rest, (with in the agreement included) of very wearing, apparel horses, arms, moneys, & what else they had to the full value of at least five thousand pounds, besides in those sad distempers of the time being despoiled of his household stuff with his own, his wife and children's apparel & other things to them belonging, as moneys jewels, & plate in his two several houses, to the full value of at least eighteen thousand pounds, besides the moneys and wearing apparel of about fourscore servants, very many of which were persons of such quality as what they then lost amounted to above fourteen hundred pounds besides your Petitioners stock of beasts, sheep, and horses in three several places taken from him to the value of nineteen or twenty thousand pounds more at least, his demeanes being all fully fraughted and furnished with his own stock, besides also two of his three choice houses, the one whereof being his ancient sea●e & place of his Barony being-plucked down fired, defaced & demolished, which cost above sixteen thousand pounds, not yet fifty years ago, his whole personal Estate within and without doors violently seized and carried away, his wood and timber in several counties waste fully felled, his Parks decayed, his whole real Estate sequestered amounting in these four years to fourteen thousand pounds his Tenants stocks violently driven away, themselves also imprisoned for not paying greater taxes then either their live or estates were able to satisfy, some of them dying, the rest and those that live, their wives and children and selves so●● impoverished, as to turn up their farms and go a begging, whereby much prejudice is come to your Petitioner, their Lands lying wastand their houses for want of tenants fallen down and burnt by other townsmen, and all the fences and bounds betwixt him & other Lords, so defaced as scarce again to be known, whereby great suits and debates are like to arise hereafter; Your Petitioners debts which before these times were four thousand pounds, are now since these times, increased to above five thousand pounds; his friends, tenants and servants engaged for him, imprisoned, and he not able to relieve them, & that nothing of jobs afflictions might be wanting his children slain, one cruelly murdered after he had laid down his arms, and diserted that service, another also most barbarously killed and murdered in one of your Petitioners houses, and with him also about seven score more than s●ine not sparing the kill of some children, slashing & wounding of one Gentlewoman, and other women that could not be in arms, with other unheard of barbarousness, both to the living and dead; yea, such, as were your Petitioner a Turk, Heathen, jew, or Infidel, that had deserved much worse of any State, than he hopes he hath done of this; yet is confident, more severity could not have been exercised, then hath been upon him, but unknown, I am confident, to your Lordships: For all this time of his imprisonment, he hath not been allowed the value of six pence yearly, forth of his own sequestered estate, but hath lived upon credit and borrowing, until these two last years, that some of his Friends and Tenants in Derby shire, farmed divers Lands in those parts; from whence, by extraordinary husbandry in tillage for corn, they gained about eightscore pounds a year for his behoof. But now upon certain votes by the house of Commons only, bearing date the tenth day of Novemb, last passed, but never confirmed by your Lordships can therefore, he thinks be no absolute binding Ordinance: yet none of his Lands can be any more farmed by any to his use or behoof: whereupon the Lady Hoghton, his Daughter, wrote a letter to the Derbyshire Committee, that those lands might still be farmed to your Petitioners benefit, and that those Votes of the house of Commons above specified, were but only Votes and not an Ordinance, without your Lordship's assent and joining, which they took so heinously, as expressed much bitterness and passion thereupon; saying, they should be obeyed as a good Ordinance, by any that had to do with them, with some other high and unfitting language, which he dares not express: So as now, your Petitioner is hopeless of further subsistence, and having now lately suffered a great deal of misery and sickness, which kept him in his bed above nine weeks together: In which time, truly my Lords, he had like to have perished for want of means to pay Physicians, Chirurgeons, and Apothecaries, or to buy necessary meat and drink fit for a sick person; despairing therefore of recovery, he caused his Chaplain to make his sad condition known to the Congregation, and to entreat their prayers for him, which he having done, most miraculously, by heaven's hand, beyond expectation, he was again restored and preserved, by one, whose name he neither knows, nor had formerly seen, or conversed with him, came to him as he was upon his sick bed, & delivered to him a good sum of money, whereby till now, he hath subsisted, with this further message, that they who sent the money, so much pitied his present sad condition, as not to expect repayment, until he were restored again to his rights and estate. But now again, those moneys being spent and gone, your Petitioner is so miserable poor, as to want money to buy him bread, not having clothes to his back, more than what he daily wears, besides, old Scores to Cooks, Woodmongers, Brewers, Bakers, and other Tradesmen, being long and great, without his abilities to pay or satisfy, can therefore have no further credit, but must doubtless perish, unless your Lordships be favourable and noble unto him.  
To your Lordships therefore and to you only, as persons sensible of honour, and tender of the sufferings of men distressed, As also knowing the Laws of the L●nd so well, as that thiefs and robbers men of meaner quality, than himself; and having committed more heinous offences, than he hopes hi● will ever prove, when he may be admitted ●o his apologue and defence, yet must be allowed a fitting subsistence forth of their own estates (if they have any) until there be a conviction & not to be pined and star●ed, which is now this your present petitioners case; whose addresses only are & shall be to your ●ordships not doubting but in abatement of your too ridged censure of his offence he shall make it appear to you that he hath, both whilst he was with the King himself, & since also done eighteen several good offices for the Parliament; yea and preserved the lives and estates of some of the House of Commons who had else suffered much, He cannot therefore doubt of your noble inclinations to favour and commisterate his condition in the mean time he humbly entreats you favourable construction of any thing herein contained, he being so ashamed that any should take notice of his present, miserable condition, that he had not the confidence to advise with any about the better inditing this his Petition, but his sadness of bear't with the sense of his own sufferings were indeed the pressers & inditers of what is herein expressed and desired.  
That your Petitioner in this his sad afflicted condition, if these his already sufferings may not suffice to expiate the offence conceived against him, and move with your Lordships, to restore him again to his liberty and ruined estate, which he humbly beseecheth, being utterly disabled of all means to redeem himself & Estate by the favour vouchsafed to others, in being admitted to their composition whilst they had something wherewith to do the same, (which your Petitioner now hath not) being but bare tenant for life, makes therefore his humble address to your Lordships; that you will be honourably pleased in your nobleness, so far to take into your consideration, your Petitioner, and his present sufferings, and want of livelihood & subsistence, as that some present competency, out of your Petitioners estate, may, by your honourable order be timely allotted and paid unto him out of his sequestered estate, in the Counties of Derby, Nottingham, and Lincoln.  
And your Petitioner shall ever pray, etc. P. CHESTERFIELD.