The Serious REPRESENTATION OF Col. William Eyre Prisoner in the Castle at Oxford; Tendered to the Consideration of the Parliament, Army, and Kingdom, For the clearing of his Innocency, and manifesting his Integrity toward the Freedom of the Nation, and Establishment of the just Power of Parliaments equally representing the People.  
Gentlemen,  
I Am glad that I have this opportunity to clear myself from those aspersions cast upon me by L. G. Cromwell, and other Officers, saying, That I was rather an Enemy to the Freedom of this Nation, than a Friend: I can speak boldly from a testimony within me, for above these twenty years, my spirit hath been carried forth always to entreat the Lord that he would make me an instrument in the removing the Oppressions from the People of this Nation, that hath been and is exercised over them by the wills of men, and to deliver the Jews from their long captivity: I likewise have been ready to take all opportunities to act in any station for that end, waiting on God for accomplishing of that he hath promised to his People, to set them at liberty. Fifteen years ago, I was forced to leave this my Native Land, for opposing the Service book, and other Traditions of men, and lived in New-England till the sitting of the last Parliament, at which time I returned to my Native Country, with rejoicing, hoping to have seen more done by them for the Freedom of the People, than yet is; and being at Sherborn in the County of Dorset, with my friends, and there denying the Service book to be of Divine Institution, the Lord Digbies Chaplains did preach against Col. Star and myself in the Assembly, and stirred up the people to apprehend us, in so much that we both were forced to flee for our lives: I fled to London, and there was preserved by Major General Skippon, and other friends in Kent, till the Wars begun; seeing that God had given an opportunity for the removing all Tyranny, I freely offered myself a Volunteer in Colonel Hollis his Regiment, as a Sergeant under Captain Lacie, and what was done by me as an instrument when my Captain was wounded, and Captain Parker and other Officers ran away, at Edghill, telling the Soldiers, they were all dead men, and I seeing the Soldiers of the Colonel's Company marching off, I ran beyond them, telling them, I would die before them, if they would not face about: They told me, they had none to lead them: I said, I would; and presently they followed me with cheerfulness: I made them Officers of their File-Leaders; And what other services were done by me, is well known: and at Brainford leading on the first Forlorn-hope; and fight the men at the Brick-kill all the day after; L. G. Cromwell hearing of me, sent for me, and entreated me to accept of the Quarter-masters place in his Troop, and said he would soon make me a Captain of Horse, (for I had deserved much more;) He further desired me to help him to some godly men (for most of his Troop were Rogues) telling me, he would fain see what a Troop of godly men could do; for he said, That, under God, It must be honest men that must deliver the People from their Oppressions: To answer his desires, I sent him many honest men, and went myself, and in a very short time made him as gallant a Troop as ever marched in England; and what was done by me, in bringing in of honest men for the raising of his Regiment and Army for the opposing of the Common Enemy, is well known to most of the Associate Counties, who will think that L. G. Cromwell hath lost the Reason of a man, when they hear of his ungrateful dealing with me, for standing to my first Principles; and he would often (when he was low) struck me on the head, saying, The Nation was bound to bless God for me: But when he saw the Country and Soldiery respect me, he and his Creatures studied how to make me odious in the sight of all honest men: and for the particular wrongs he did me, I never spoke of them till he imprisoned me at Ware, and then I sent him a memorandum of all the particulars: but for my imprisonment at that time I knew no cause, but for saying to them, That God had owned us and our Cause so far, that there was no Enemy in the field to oppose us, and yet there was nothing done for England or Ireland, as to a Settlement; and wishing them to consider it, lest, after all the Blood, Treasure, and Pain, that had been spent, we go back into the wilderness of affliction farther than ever: for the Cavaliers would take the advantage of the Discontents of the People to rise and make a new War, which afterward proved true: For which words many of the Officers would immediately have destroyed me, if God had not prevented them. Moreover, I heard Sir Hardress Waller say to L. G. Cromwell (when they quartered at Kingston) We'll order 10000 men for Ireland, but they shall never go thither: We'll give them quarters, and if we have any occasion to make use of them, they are ready; if not, we'll disband them at Spring, and send them for Venice. Sir Hardress Waller told Lieut. Col. Sadler and myself as much, when their Headquarters were at Putney: My Regiment at their disbanding petitioned to have gone for Ireland, if they would have transported them, and other Regiments would have done the like, but it would not be granted, although they had fasted seven years for to have relieved that Kingdom: and I know many men have been countenanced and ordered to raise men for Ireland, and kept them together till they have undone themselves, and then have been ordered again to disband: I myself have been countenanced twice since the disbanding of my first Regiment: This Spring, I had three Troops that were willing to have engaged in that Service, and L. G. Cromwell gave me orders to quarter them, promising me within few days I should have a settlement for it, in the mean time the General put forth a Declaration, That upon pain of death no man should take quarters without his Commission; upon which I went to L. G. Cromwell again, and told him, I had given Order to those three Troops to quarter according to his appointment, to which he answered, that I should bring in my conditions, for my going to Ireland, to him in Writing, and on Thursday after I should have a Settlement, which accordingly I did, but nothing was done in it; whereupon the General did call me to a Council of War for my giving Order to those Troops to quarter as aforesaid, and then L. G. Cromwell did deny that he gave me any order to do it, and likewise tore his own Order in pieces; and if I had not had good witness to prove it, I had died for it. Again, Commissary Ireton asked me whether I could not go for Ireland without 4, or 500 men at my heels? I told him if it were his own case, that Enemies were in his habitation, he would go with as much strength as he could to remove them; and that my Wife and children's losses were as great as any that came from Ireland, and as yet never received any thing from the Parliament, which augmented my desires for that Service, to prevent their ruin: To which he replied, he would thresh for a living rather than to keep up Forces to burden the Country: I told him that it would be a greater burden to the Country, if they did disband those Forces, and raise other; for it would be time, within a fortnight, to be going, if they did intent to send any Force thither this year: He answered that they must be disbanded: These things being rightly considered, I offer it to all rational men, whether they intended for the Relief of Ireland, or no. And now to add to my afflictions, They have cast me again into prison, for no cause, that I know of, but for owning what we have fought for these seven years; only they pretend for my being in the Party that was betrayed at Burford in May lost; of which I will give you an Account; (viz.) I hearing there was a Warrant from Derby house (who are resolved, as appears, to act what they please) to apprehend me; and knowing by sad experience what it was to fall into their hands, I was loath to expose myself to public view, but withdrew myself into the Country, and being there, I heard of two Regiments that refused to go for IRELAND, and (desiring to be satisfied upon what Grounds they did it) I came to the Party the same day they were betrayed; where, meeting with Cornet Den, he told me that they had no other end in what they did, but to maintain their Engagements made at Triploe Heath, from which many of the Officers had dissented and brought a reproach upon themselves and the whole Army; therefore they are bound in conscience to do their endeavour to take it off before they desert this Nation: To which I answered, If that were their Resolution, than I should be glad to see them continue faithful therein: He said, If I go to their Randezvouz I should know more of the business, for the General had sent Commissioners to them, who are to read their Letters at the head of our Troops, and much of the day was spent therein: as they marched off their Randezvouz, a party of horse appeared in the field, who, they thought to be the Generals, immediately drew up, resolving to stand to their Engagements, saying one to another, It was not the King only they fought against, but to take of Tyranny and Oppression from the People, exercised now more than ever; the party that did appear was Reynolds men, and coming near Newbridg Cornet Den understood they were interceted by Colonel Reynolds, and seemed to be angry with the Commissioners, telling them, they had abused them, for they told them that the General said, That there should be no hostility used against them, till they had sent an Answer, which as yet (they knew) they had no time to write; Major White answered, That he would lose his life if Reynolds had any Order from the General to keep the bridge; but when they came thither, Reynolds affirmed, That he had an Order from the General to keep it, and said, he would lose his life there before they should pass; so they, unwilling to draw their swords against their fellow Soldiers, marched over the River a little above the bridge, then Major White entreated the Officers to draw into some Town to quarter, and to consider of that Answer he had drawn up for them, and did engage his life, that the General should not come near them, nor so much as a hair of their heads be touched by him, until they had returned their Answer; upon which Engagement they went into Quarters, where, before they could finish their Answer, the General fell upon shooting in at every window where they saw light, at which Alarm I wondered, hearing what had passed betwixt the Commissioners and them, for they had not been above an hour and half in their quarters before they fell upon them; as for my own particular I had taken up my Lodging at an Inn upon my own account, having no Command, nor being under any, yet was rob of all I had, and carried before the General, who asked me, What I did there, and who sent me? I answered him, I was able to go about my own business without sending; and for my being there, I was a Volunteer at the first, and I hoped I might be so still, and till that which we fought for were accomplished, if there were but ten men appeared for it, I would make eleven. What need you Col. Eyre, (saith the General) is not all done that we fought for? have we not cut off the King's head, and the Lords heads? I answered, That was not it we fought for, but to remove Oppression and Tyranny, which yet remains? Lieu. Gen. Crumwel said, Hark, my Lord, what an insolent fellow is this, he tells you that Tyranny remains? I told him it was evident. Upon that Lieu. Gen. Crumwel railed at me, saying, I was a wicked fellow: I desired him to name any one particular action he ever knew me commit. But to stop my mouth he bid the Marshal take me away, and after three days I was brought by the General's Warrant to Oxford Goal, a Copy of which I have here inserted. Viz.  

YOu are herewith to receive from the Marshal General the body of Mr Eyres, who was taken the 14; of this instant month with the Mutineers at Burford, in hostility against the Parliament and Army, and him safely keep, until he shall be released by due course of Law, and hereof you are not to fail, as you will answer the contrary.  
Given under my Hand and Seal, May 18. 1649. T. FAIRFAX.  
To the Keepers of the County Prison in the Castle of Oxford.   
For the Charge of being in Arms against a Parliament I utterly abhor and deny it; I know a Representative legally and successively chosen by the People, is the only means under God to preserve the Nation from Slavery, (provided they be not chosen and kept together by the power of the Sword,) and I should rejoice to see such an opportunity offered for all that party in the Nation that have stood up for their Liberty, to elect an equal and free Parliament; and for that party, though they were declared Mutineers, they were not declared Enemies when I was with them, neither were they men that had deserted their Engagements, but such as did desire to be faithful in what they had promised to the People. The Parliament formerly pleaded for their Justification, touching the late War against the King, That Safety was the supreme Law, and that the People were the best Judges of Safety; That although a General had power to command his Army, and to punish with death those that refused to obey his Commands in order to safety, yet if a General should go about to turn his Artillery upon his own Soldiers, they might not only reason the Case with him, but hold his hands also; and that their Act in so doing, being in order to safety, was no resisting of Authority, or transgression of Law, I shall leave it to the judicious Reader to make application. But to proceed; It is a sad thing when those that do rule will not keep Engagements, nor suffer others. I have lived among heathens, who have nothing but the light of nature to be their Rule, yet they abhor men that break their Engagements, or commit any dishonest action, saying, Such men shall go to a bad place when they die. If heathens live thus, let all us that name the name of Christ depart from iniquity. Oh let no man any longer make Religion a cloak for deceit, nor take it upon them to be Christians, when they live and act below the very heathen: For know that God will not be mocked, but will punish for those things, though they prosper for a time, for the Lord saith, Their day is coming wherein they shall fall, and there shall be none to help them.  
Gentlemen, I cannot forget how often you have declared, that you would do your endeavour to make this Nation free; if you intent it, I desire you would declare in your last Act, (wherein you say it shall be Treason for any man to speak against the present Government,) whether you mean the Government we enjoyed under the late King? If so, you all know that the Foundation of that Government was established by Theft and Robbery, when the sixth Duke of Normandy his Bastard took advantage of the Distractions of this Nation, came over with an Army, and persuaded the Britain's to sit still, and he would ease them of all the burdens the Saxons laid upon them, and would preserve them in all their Rights and Privileges, they being willing to be eased hearkened to him, but he had no sooner overcome the Saxons, but broke all his Engagements he had made to the People of the Nation, turning them all out of their possessions, except Kent, and carried most of the Gentry beyond the Sea, and gave the Lands and Possessions of this Realm to his Soldiers, making of them Knights, and Lords, and Freeholders' in every County, and such of the common people that would use their own Land, were to enjoy it from them under the tenure of Knight-Service and Villanage, but since have brought it to Copy and Lease-hold, forcing our Ancestors from generation to generation, to buy their own Lands, or else their children were turned out of doors: to maintain this they banished all the Ministry, and brought Priests from France, and made them Masters of all the Pulpits in the Land, who preached up the Power the Bastard had thus got, to be the Power of God, and to be the Lords anointed: also he erected a Foundation of Laws, summoning the people from all parts of the Land to their new made Courts at Westminster, the people then crying out for a Parliament, which was granted to them, but none suffered to have a Vote in the Election of the Members but Freeholders', which were most of them their own creatures; so to this day most of the People know not their Rights, for the Law is in an unknown tongue, therefore this Government cannot set them free, and there is yet none other established; and if you mean that which remains in your wills, you did ill to cut off the King's head; for going about to rule according to his will. I cannot forget that you have declared and voted the People under God the Fountain and Original of all just Power, I therefore desire you to cast yourselves upon the People, whose Servants ye ought to be, that they might immediately choose a new Representative, who may erect a just Foundation of Government, and proffer it to the People for their assent, that they may choose who they please to see it executed, that for ever there may be a distinction between Law Makers and Law Executors. This I offer as my Judgement, conceiving it to be every Englishman's Birthright; Thus hoping that you that take it upon you to be the Keepers of the Liberties of England, will not keep my liberty from me, but allow me my Birthright, who do remain yours to serve you for the good of the Nation,  
From my unjust Imprisonment in Oxford Goal, June 11. 1649. WIL EYRE.   
FINIS.