YALE UNIVERSITY
LIBRARY

THE LIFE

OF THE FIRST

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. VOL. I.

I ONDON :
PltlNTED BY SAMUEL BENT1.EY,
Dorset Street, Fleet Street.

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THE LIFE

OF THE FIRST

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY,
FROM ORIGINAL DOCUMENTS IN THE POSSESSION
OF THE FAMILY.
BY MR. B. MARTYN AND DR. KIPPIS.
NOW FIRST PUBLISHED.

BY G. WINGROVE COOKE, ESQ.
AUTHOR OF " MEMOIRS OF LORD BOLINGBROKE."
IN TWO VOLUMES.
VOL. I.
LONDON:
RICHARD BENTLEY, NEW BURLINGTON STREET.
$ubluil)«r in ©iBtnarg to ffife ^ajesjtg.
1836.

PREFACE,

I he following work is a history of one of our
most distinguished statesmen and orators. It
was originally written by men of acknowledged
literary merit, who had access to all the private
papers of the Earl, and were assisted by all the
information concerning him which could be ga
thered by his descendants. Although thus derived
from the most authentic sources, and originally
intended to be given to the world, it has hitherto
remained unpublished ; and a short statement of
the history of the work is now necessary to its
identity. Shaftesbury's love of literature was apparent in
his descendants for several generations. The assi
duous care which he bestowed upon the education
of his grandson was, perhaps, the remote cause of

VI PREFACE.
the following vindication of his own memory.
This grandson inherited with the title the genius
of his grandfather ; and is no less known as the
author of the " Characteristics," than the first earl
is as the author of the Habeas Corpus Act and the
Exclusion Bill. The fourth Earl did not derogate
from the honours of his house : like his predeces
sors, he was distinguished as a keen advocate for
popular rights, and as a munificent patron of lite
rature. This patronage, at a time less propitious
than the present, when literature stood in need of
patrons, produced the following work.
It was a natural ambition for the descendant of
so distinguished a character, to be desirous of clear
ing the founder of his family from the clouds of
abuse which the court writers had rolled around his
memory. For this purpose his lordship obtained
the assistance of Mr. Benjamin Martyn, a gentle
man who had achieved a high literary reputation
by the production of a successful tragedy. Mr.
Martyn and the Earl were long engaged upon
their task, and employed great care in the col
lection and examination of materials.

PREFACE. Vll
It happened that Dr. Birch was at the same
time preparing his General Biography, and he
wrote the memoir of the third Earl (the author of
the Characteristics) entirely under the superintend
ence of his son.* A frequent correspondence
was therefore carried on upon literary subjects
between the fourth Earl, Mr. Martyn, and Dr.
* As it has been often supposed that the fourth Earl was the
author of this Memoir, I insert the following letters which point
out exactly the share he had in its composition.
" Mt Lord,
" Mr. Martyn haviug informed me that your lordship was
desirous of perusing again the manuscript of your father's life,
I take this opportunity of returning my humble thanks for the
valuable Memoirs and Papers with which your lordship was
pleased to furnish me. These, with what further additions or
alterations you shall think proper to suggest, will enable me
to give the public a just idea of a character which has been
extremely injured by the misrepresentations of party men and
bigots ; and it will be the highest satisfaction to me to be in any
measure the instrument of removing the prejudices which have
been unjustly raised against a noble writer, whose works alone,
when impartially considered, are a sufficient testimony that he
was not only a friend to morality and virtue, but likewise a
zealous advocate for those principles which are the foundation
of all religion. I am, my Lord,
" Your Lordship's most obliged and
" Most obedient, humble servant,
" St. John's Lane, Clerkenwell, " Tuo. Birch."
" London, July 22, 1738."

VU1 PREFACE.
Birch, great part of which is still extant among
the Birch Manuscripts in the British Museum.
In this correspondence the anxiety with which
original information was sought is very apparent;*
and, from Mr. Martyn's letters, the progress of the
work, which was frequently interrupted by his

.< gIR " St. Giles's, July 26, 1738.
" I take the first opportunity to thank you for your letter,
and for the papers sent me at the same time with it, concerning
my father's life. As soon as I have finished the addition I pro
pose making to it, I will return it to you again to complete what
you have thus far done so judiciously. I am, Sir,
" Your most humble servant,
" Shaftesbury."
The third letter seems to relate to the completion of the
article.
« gIR " Grosvenor Square, May 18, 1752.
" Doctor Hales left me the papers to peruse and forward to
you afterwards, which I herewith send ; and indeed I proposed
to have sent them some time since, but I waited for Mr. Martyn's
recovery, who has been confined a great while, though now he
is pretty well again. As he is so, I take the first opportunity
of desiring the pleasure of your company to meet him here at
dinner next Wednesday, if you are not engaged.
" Your most humble servant,
" Shaftesbury."
* He is particular in his inquiries for some letters said to
exist from Sir Anthony to Henry Cromwell, and also for some
papers which the Duchess of Kent had shown to Dr. Birch
from which it appeared that Shaftesbury had, upon many oc-

PREFACE. IX
illness, may in some measure be traced. In a
letter dated from St. Giles, (the seat of the Shaf
tesbury family,) November 27, 1738, after speak
ing of a recent sickness, Mr. Martyn says, " In
the intervals of my pain I have been much taken
up in looking, with Lord Shaftesbury, over a
great heap of his great-grandfather's papers, among
which I have met with some anecdotes that I
fancy will please you, and a great many rough
undigested hints that only serve to give one an
idea of the extent of his capacity, but are not a
sufficient foundation for forming anything on
them in his life. These are interspersed with
several things in Mr. Locke's hand, and (which
I believe you will wonder at,) some copies of
verses of his writing ; one I shall be able to show
you when I come to town. It is addressed to
Greenhill the painter, upon his drawing Lord
Shaftesbury's picture in 1672, which is hung up
here and very finely done." *

casions, opposed Charles's prodigal grants to the Duchess of
Cleveland. He does not, however, appear to have been successful
in his inquiries, and all trace of these documents is now lost.
* These verses are inserted, post, vol. ii. p. 13.

X PREFACE.
The allusions to the work then growing under
his hands are generally in this strain, either can
vassing the materials before him, inquiring for
other channels of information, or thanking his
correspondent for hints already received. When
Dr. Birch's Memoir of Shaftesbury was com
pleted, this work was also in a state of forward
ness, since he had there mentioned it in very
favourable terms, and spoke of it as imme
diately about to appear. This passage, how
ever, at the instance of Lord Shaftesbury, was
omitted. " I have shown the Life (says Martyn)
to Lord Shaftesbury ; he very much approves
of it, but is of opinion that the following para
graph ('as will be sufficiently shown in an his
tory of his life the public may soon expect, from
the most authentic memoirs,') should be omitted,
and I agree with his lordship, because it may tend
to raise the expectation of the people, and is in
no respect necessary." *
Whether the work was completed by Martyn,
or whether it was broken off by his illness or his
* Aysc. Cat. fol. 1313. 132.

PREFACE. XI
appointment to an office in the customs, I have
no means of knowing. If it was completed, the
original intention of publication was abandon
ed, since at his death, in 1763, it was still in
manuscript. The fourth Earl of Shaftesbury died in 1771,
leaving the work still unprinted, as appears from
the quotations it contains from Sir John Dalrym-
ple's Memoirs, the publication of which, was not
completed until 1773. The work was then taken
under the protection of his son, the late Earl, by
whom it was consigned to Dr. Kippis, the well-
known editor of the Biographia Britannica.
This author has left some account of the work,
and of the share which he had in its composition,
in his notes to the memoir of Shaftesbury in the
Biographia Britannica; which the peculiar faci
lities he enjoyed, enabled him to render one of
the most valuable in his elaborate work.
After mentioning the materials from which this
Life was compiled, and the labours of the ori
ginal author, the Doctor continues, " Notwith
standing the pains that had been taken by Mr.

Xll PREFACE.
Martyn, the late Earl of Shaftesbury did not
think the work sufficiently finished for publica
tion ; and therefore, somewhat more than twenty
years ago,* he put it into the hands of his friend,
Dr. Gregory Sharpe, Master of the Temple. All
however that Dr. Sharpe performed was to re
commend it to the care of a gentleman, still living,
who is distinguished for his accurate acquaintance
with the history of England, and for the asto
nishing precision and extent of his memory with
respect to facts, dates, and persons which occur in
the whole course of that history. This gentleman
examined Mr. Martyn's manuscript with attention,
pointed out its errors, made references, and sug
gested a number of instances in which it might
be improved, but did not proceed much further
in the undertaking. At length the work was con
signed to another person, who spent considerable
labour upon it, enlarged it, and contemplated
availing himself of every degree of information
which might render it a correct history of the
* This volume of Dr. Kippis's edition of the Biog. Brit, was
published in 1789.

PREFACE. xiii
time, as well as a narrative of the life of Lord
Shaftesbury. The reasons (not unfriendly on
either side) which prevented the person now
mentioned from completing his design, and oc
casioned him to return the papers to the noble
family, are not of sufficient consequence to be
here related. Whether the work is likely soon to
appear, it is not in our power to ascertain." *
I have been informed that an edition was soon
after printed off; but that, with the exception of
two copies, the whole impression was immediately
destroyed : one of these copies is in the library of
the present Earl ; from the other copy this edi
tion is printed.
As the present copy has no title-page, it is im
possible to determine its date; but, from various
circumstances, we may conjecture that the work
upon which so much care was originally bestowed,
was at last neglected, and passed through the press
without any further revision.
In preparing this biography for publication, I
* Malone says that Dr. Kippis received 500/. for his labours
upon this work. — Life of Dryden.

XIV PREFACE.
have found it necessary to add many notes, and
supply some important omissions. I have also
subjoined a final chapter upon the character of
the Earl, which will, I hope, remove that appear
ance of indiscriminate eulogy too prominent in
the work.
This work is valuable as the authenticated
record of the acts of one of our greatest states
men : in the hope of rendering it yet more
so by the insertion of the fragments which re
main, I applied to the present Earl for permis
sion to peruse the original papers ; his lordship,
however, declines allowing any one to have access
to them.
I do not of course mention this circumstance
at all in the language of complaint. The public
have no right to require, however much they
may expect, information that can only be ob
tained from private papers. I only wish to guard
myself against the supposition of having neglect
ed an obvious source of information.
The new matter which I have introduced will
be readily distinguished. Where any important

PREFACE. XV
omission was to be supplied, it has been insert
ed into the text ; but the passage is invariably
placed between brackets; and the additional notes
are numbered consecutively throughout.
Temple, March 1836.

CONTENTS

THE FIRST VOLUME.

Introduction  Page 1
CHAPTER I.
Account of Sir Anthony Ashley Cooper's birth, education,
marriage, and first entrance into parliament . . 35
CHAPTER II.
Review ofthe conduct of Charles the First, from his accession
to the throne to the dissolution of the parliament, March 10,
1628-9  49
CHAPTER III.
Review of King Charles's conduct continued, from the disso
lution of the parliament, March 10, 1628-9, to the meeting of
the Long Parliament  85
CHAPTER IV.
Summary view of Charles the First's reign continued, till the
time when Sir Anthony Ashley Cooper began to distinguish
himself in the management of public affairs . .122
b

xviii CONTENTS.

CHAPTER V.

Account of the life of Sir Anthony Ashley Cooper, and of the
concern he had in public affairs, from the year 1643 to the
death of Oliver Cromwell  Page 137

CHAPTER VI.
The conduct of Sir Anthony Ashley Cooper in public affairs
from the death of Oliver Cromwell to the Restoration; and a
particular account of the concern which he had in bringing 176
about that event 

CHAPTER VII.
Sir Anthony made one of the new Privy Council.— Advanced
to the Peerage. — His generosity. — Conduct of Charles.—
Dissolution of Parliament. — [Sir Anthony sits at the trial of
the Regicides.] — The new Parliament assemble. — Their pro
ceedings. — Sale of Dunkirk  2ii

CHAPTER VIII.
Obsequiousness ofthe Parliament. — Effects ofthe Uniformity
Act. — Lord Ashley appointed Chancellor of the Exchequer. —
His zeal and exertions in the execution of the duties of his
new office. — War declared against Holland. — [Bill for granting
Indulgences to Nonconformists.]' — Severe measures against
the Nonconformists. — Five-mile Act. — Policy of France. —
Shaftesbury's perception of character — useful to him as a
Minister.— His Character of the Hon. William Hastings.—
Breach with Hamburgh. — Peace with Holland. . 281

CONTENTS. XIX

CHAPTER IX.

Fall ofthe Earl of Clarendon. — Decline ofthe French interest
at Court. — Domestic measures. — Satisfaction of the Parlia
ment. — Triple Alliance negotiated. — Permanent Committees
of the Privy Council established. — Care for the Navy. —
Peace with Spain. — Conduct of the French King. — Terms of
the Triple Alliance. — State of the English Council. — In
fluence of the Duke of York. — Lord Conway's Letter to Lord
Ashley — Memorial to the King  Page 326
CHAPTER X.
[intrigues with France — The two Secret Treaties. — Corrup
tion of the members of the Cabal Administration.] — Temper of
the Court. — Account of the Cabal. — Lord Ashley's advice to the
King. — Discovers the King's conversion to Popery. — Lord
Rochester. — Proceedings of the Parliament. — Shutting up of
the Exchequer opposed by Lord Ashley. — His reasons against
it, and letter to Mr. Locke. — Declaration of Indulgence. —
War declared against the Dutch. . . . .388

ADDENDA.
Mr. Malone, in his Life of Dryden, is very angry with Stringer
for relating the anecdote inserted in p. 20, and with Martyn for
copying from him. He has clearly proved that it is untrue.
Erasmus-Henry, the poet's youngest son, and the only one edu
cated at the Charter-house, was not admitted until February
5, 1682-3, a few days after Shaftesbury's death. He was ad
mitted upon the nomination of Charles the Second. Malone
only knew this work from the quotations from it in Kippis's
article in the Biographia Britannica. The refutation is equally
honourable to the Earl and the poet : to the Earl, as affording the
highest proof of his judicial integrity, since it drew such admi
ration from an enemy ; to the poet, as releasing him from that
imputation of ingratitude which must have rested upon him had
he written his poem of the Medal against a man from whom he
had received so important an obligation.

The following paragraph was omitted in Vol. I. page 320,
after line 13 :
" The original article has since been published by Lord
John Russell, in his Life of Lord William Russell, and the
treaty at length by Dr. Lingard, in the Appendix to the seventh
volume of his History of England : but although the sums stipu
lated to be paid by Louis were considerably less than those
stated in the draft, the scope of the treaty was precisely the

same.

THE LIFE

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY.

INTRODUCTION.
Histories of former ages are allowed to be useful,
by bringing down their most illustrious persons
to our acquaintance, and giving us the benefit of
their conduct. But the examples of excellent
men of our own country must have a more lively
and extensive influence ; because we are engaged
in the same interest, have the same constitution
to preserve, and, perhaps, ought to pursue the
same measures which they have espoused, and
with steadiness and vigour maintained. The true
spirit of liberty is cultivated by observing the
lives of its assertors ; and an impartial review of
the principles and proceedings of our most emi
nent patriots may probably raise up and animate
new ones. If to oppose a growing arbitrary
VOL. i. b

2 INTRODUCTION.
power in every insidious and artful step of its
progress — to be first in raising, and the chief in
conducting, a legal, constitutional, and spirited
opposition, at the expense of ease, health, and for
tune, at the utmost hazard of life and in the most
critical times, be the characteristic of a patriot, no
man ever had a juster title to it than the first Earl
of Shaftesbury, who seems to have imbibed in
early youth the genuine spirit and love of Eng
lish liberty. Its generous flame he cultivated and
improved in maturer life, and maintained an in
violable attachment to its essential interests to the
very last. The love of liberty was his ruling pas
sion. Neither sickness, sufferings, nor age itself
could weaken its force. His zeal for the public
was as ardent, as the occasion for it was extraor
dinary. The violence of the court measures re
quired a person as active and steady as he was.
A lukewarm zeal had been insufficient, and had
only strengthened the hands of the court against
the people.
If it be considered with how much acrimony
his character was treated in his life-time by venal
writers for a corrupted court, incensed at his con
duct and interested in his destruction, or with
what credulity later authors have taken up all the

INTRODUCTION. 3
aspersions then thrown upon him, and with what
partiality they have misrepresented him, it may
be thought an act of justice to set him in a true
light ; and as this is done in the following work
by a plain narrative of his actions and conduct,
supported by the evidence of authentic vouchers,
I have no doubt but the attempt will be received
with that candour to which truth is always en
titled. It is not only a justice to his memory, but may
be of advantage to the public ; for if fixing igno
miny upon those who interest themselves in a
peculiar manner for their country may discourage
others from an active life, the removal of that ig
nominy may incite them to follow such examples.
The Earl of Shaftesbury had himself written a
history of his own times, and, when he was forced
to fly into Holland to avoid the designs which
the court had formed against him, he intrusted it
to the care of Mr. Locke, with whom he became
acquainted upon the following occasion. When
he was at Oxford, in the year 1666, he was con
fined to his chamber by an illness, which was
owing to an accident he met with at the Restora
tion. He had been sent with other commissioners
from the parliament to Breda, to invite King
b 2

4 INTRODUCTION.
Charles the Second to his dominions, and was
overturned in his passage through a town in
Holland. By his fall he received a great bruise
in his side, which grew by neglect to an abscess.
Mr. Locke, who was a student of Christ Church,
and had a physician's place there, was desired by
Dr. Thomas to wait on him with an excuse for
the doctor's not attending him himself. Lord
Ashley (this was his title at that time) * received
him with his usual civility, and was so pleased
with his behaviour and conversation, that he de
sired his company at supper; and finding Mr.
Locke to be a man of excellent parts, and of a
disposition equal to them, he conceived a very
great friendship for him, which he steadily pre
served to the end of his life. He took him into
his house, made him his secretary, and, when lord
chancellor, preferred him to be secretary of the
presentations. After the seals were taken from
Lord Shaftesbury, he, for a very moderate con-
* "MilordAshleyle recuttres- aux discours de M. Locke, ce
civdement selon sa coutume, dernier fut tout-a-fait charme
et fut sat.sfait de ses excuses, de Milord Ashley, qui etoit un
Comme il voulut se retirer, Mi- homme tres-distingue par son
lord, qui avo.t deja pns beau- esprit et par ses manieres,
coup de p ais.r dans sa con- meme parmi les personnes de
versatile retint a souper: son rang.»_Le clerc BM-
et bi ce seigneur pnt du gout theque Choisie, tom vi' p 253

INTRODUCTION. 5
sideration, gave Mr. Locke an annuity of a hun
dred pounds per annum, which was paid till his
death. As Lord Shaftesbury entered into the
greatest intimacy with him,1 he imparted to him
his most secret thoughts concerning the govern
ment, and all his schemes for the better regula
tion of it ; and by his constant conversation upon
public affairs, he first gave Mr. Locke those ex
cellent notions of government which appear in

1 The friendly freedom which marked the intercourse be
tween these two great men is well exemplified by an anecdote
told by Le Clere.
Locke was one day dining with three or four of Lord Ash
ley's particular friends, men who were all looked up to as the
leading characters of the age. After dinner, cards were intro
duced, and the company were soon intent upon their game.
Locke declined joining the card-party, but occupied himself in
writing with great seriousness in his pocket-book, apparently
absorbed in his pecupation. Lord Ashley at length found lei
sure to look around him, and, noticing his friend's industry, in
sisted upon knowing what he was writing. " My lord," an
swered Locke, at last, " I endeavour to get as much as I can in
your good company ; and having waited with impatience for the
honour of being present at a meeting of the wisest and most
ingenious men of the age, and enjoying at length this happi
ness, I thought it proper to keep a note of your conversation,
and I have accordingly been setting down what has been said
within this hour or two." Locke was immediately called upon
to read, and his report was found highly amusing ; but the com
pany were so little individually satisfied at being thus sketched
in dishabille, that the cards were soon laid down.

6 INTRODUCTION.
his essays upon that subject. In these, Mr. Locke
maintains the same principles which were always
so strenuously asserted by Lord Shaftesbury, at
whose desire he turned his thoughts and study
this way.*
Mr. Locke, soon after the death of Lord Shaftes
bury, was, in the most arbitrary manner, turned
out of his student's place of Christ Church by the
king's absolute command to the dean and chapter
of the college ; and the only reason assigned for it
was, his having belonged to Lord Shaftesbury ; as
may be seen by the king's order, and the Earl of
Sunderland's letters to the dean of the college,
and the dean's answers to them. These letters
have never yet been printed, and therefore the
reader may be pleased to see them :| they carry in
them a full conviction that Lord Shaftesbury

* <<

II voulut qu'il s'applicat f To the Lord Bishop of Oxon.
plutot a l'etude des choses Whitehall, Nov. 6, 1684.
qui concernent l'etat et l'e- My Lord,
glise d'Angleterre, et de ce qui The king being given to un-
peut avoir quelque rapport derstand that one Mr. Locke,
aux soins d'un ministre d'etat ; who belonged to the late Earl
et il devint si habile en cette of Shaftesbury, and has upon
sorte de choses, que Milord several occasions behaved him-
Ashley commenca a le con- self very factiously and undu-
sulter en toutes les occasions tifully to the government, is a
qui s'en presentment."— Biblio- student of Christ Church '; his
theqve Choisie, tom. vi. p. 356. majesty commands me to sig-

INTRODUCTION.

much obstructed the measures of the court, when
they were destructive of the constitution. This
the court could not forgive, and its resentment

nify to your lordship, that he
would have him removed from
being a student ; and that in
order thereunto your lordship
should let me know the me
thod of doing it. I am,
My lord, &c.
Sunderland.
To the Right Hon. the Earl of
Sunderland, Principal Se
cretary of State. Nov. 8, 1684.
Right Hon.
I have received the honour
of your lordship's letter, where
in you are pleased to inquire
concerning Mr. Locke's being
a student of this house ; of
which I have this account to
render, — that he being, as your
lordship is truly informed, a
person who was much trusted
by the late Earl of Shaftes
bury, and who is suspected to
be ill affected to the govern
ment, I have for divers years
had an eye upon him ; but so
close has his guard been on
himself, that, after several strict
inquiries, I may confidently
affirm, there is not any man in
the college, however familiar

with him, who has heard him
speak a word either against or
so much as concerning the
government ; and although
very frequently, both in public
and private, discourses have
been purposely introduced to
the disparagement of his mas
ter the Earl of Shaftesbury,
his party and designs, he could
never be provoked to take any
notice, or discover in word or
look the least concern ; so that
I believe there is not in the
world such a master of taci
turnity and passion. He has
here a physician's place, which
frees him from the exercises of
the college, and the obligation
which others have to residence
in it ; and he is now abroad
upon want of health ; but, not
withstanding, I have summon
ed him to return home, which
is done with this prospect, that
if he comes not back he will
be liable to expulsion for con
tumacy ; and if he does, he will
be answerable to the law for
what he should be found to
have done amiss ; it being pro
bable, that though he may
have been thus cautious here,

g INTRODUCTION.
must have been very great, since even after his
death it could exert itself on an innocent man,
only because he had been Lord Shaftesbury's
closed, containing his com
mand for the immediate ex
pulsion of Mr. Locke.
Sunderland.

where he knew himself to be
suspected, he has laid himself
more open at London, where
a general liberty of speaking
was used, and where the exe
crable designs against his ma
jesty and his government were
managed and pursued. If he
does not return by the first of
January next, which is the time
limited to him, I shall be en
abled of course to proceed
against him to expulsion ; but
if this method seem not effec
tual or speedy enough, and his
majesty, our founder and visi
tor, shall please to command
his immediate remove, upon
the receipt thereof, directed to
the dean and chapter, it shall
accordingly be executed by,
My lord,
Your lordship's most humble
and most obedient servant,
John Oxon.
To the Bishop of Oxon.
Whitehall, Nov. 12, 1684.
My Lord,
Having communicated your
lordship's of the 8th to his
majesty, he has thought fit to
direct me to send you the en-

To the Right Rev. Father in
God John Lord Bishop of
Oxon, Dean of Christ's
Church, and to our trusty
and well-beloved the Chap
ter there.
Right Rev. Father in God,
and trusty and well-beloved,
we greet you well. Whereas
we have received information
of the factious and disloyal
behaviour of Locke, one of the
students of that our college,
we have thought fit hereby to
signify our will and pleasure
to you, that you forthwith re
move him from his student's
place, and deprive him of all
the rights and advantages
thereunto belonging. For
which this shall be your war
rant. And so we bid you
heartily farewell. Given at
our court at Whitehall the
11th day of November 1684.
By his majesty's command,
Sunderland.

INTRODUCTION. 9
friend.2 I do not know any author who has
To the Right Hon. Earl of To the Bishop of Oxon.
Sunderland, Principal Se- My Lord,
cretary of State. I have your lordship's ofthe
Nov. 16, 1684. IGth instant, and have ac-
Right Hon. quainted his majesty there-
I hold myself bound in duty with; who is well satisfied with
to signify to your lordship, the college's ready obedience
that his majesty's command to his commands by the expul-
for the expulsion of Mr. Locke sion of Mr. Locke, &c.
from this college is fully exe- Sunderland.3
cuted. John Oxon.

2 The account of this disgraceful transaction, given by An
thony Wood in his Athena? Oxonienses, is highly characteristic
of that quaint and amusingly bigoted writer. " In 1672," he
says, " Locke became secretary to Anthony Earl of Shaftesbury,
lord chancellor of England, stuck close to him when he was
discarded, took the degree of Bachelor of Physic in 1674, and
afterwards was assisting to the said count in his designs when
the popish plot broke out, and carried on the trade of faction
beyond and within the seas several years after. In 1683, when
the crop-eared plot broke out, he left Oxon, and conveyed away
then with him several letters and writings without being search
ed ; otherwise, had he been a favourer of the papists, he would
have been ransacked to the purpose ; and going beyond the seas
to Holland, he became a great companion with Ford Lord
Grey of Werk, Rob Ferguson, and other factious people at the
Hague. He was complained of by the English resident there
to Charles Earl of Middleton, secretary of state to his majesty
King Charles the Second, who, giving notice of it to Dr. John
Fell, dean of Christ Church, and wondering that he should be
suffered to keep any place of profit there, he was thereupon
deprived of his student's place in Nov. 1684."
3 Le Clere, who wrote with this correspondence before him,

10 INTRODUCTION.
mentioned this circumstance of Mr. Locke's ex
pulsion, except M. Le Clere. He has quoted
some part of the bishop's letter which relates to
Mr. Locke's character. These letters were tran
scribed from Mr. Locke's own copies, and suffi
ciently evince the arbitrary spirit which then
prevailed. Upon the infamous execution of Mr. Algernon
Sydney, for an act of treason supposed to be
proved by papers found in his closet, Mr. Locke

seems to have thought that the bishop (Dr. Fell was bishop of
Oxford as well as dean of Christ Church) was anxious to pre
vent Locke's expulsion. This certainly does not appear from
the documents themselves ; on the contrary, he distinctly de
clares, that he has frequently had recourse to artifice to entrap
him in his conversation. It appears that the bishop was not
left alone to the performance of the honourable office of spy ;
he ventures to speak for " every man in the college, however
familiar with Locke." Lord Grenville, in his tract called " Ox
ford and Locke," endeavours to throw all the odium of this
transaction upon the court. It is, however, but too plain that
the authorities of his college had long been practising schemes
against him, and that it was only upon their failure that the
arbitrary power of the crown was had recourse to. Lord Gren-
ville's defence is, however, written in an excellent and liberal
spirit: he has clearly proved that no blame is imputable to the
university, as a body, from this transaction. In his attempt to
exculpate the college, I cannot think him equally successful.
The original warrant for the deprivation of Locke has the
sign-manual prefixed.

INTRODUCTION. 11
became alarmed ; and as he knew the jealousy the
court had conceived of him, and was afraid of a
like prosecution, he burnt the Earl of Shaftes
bury's history.
The loss of this book is much to be regretted,
since his lordship had, even according to the con
fession of his enemies, so extensive a genius, and
was so intimately acquainted with the secret
springs of all transactions, that no man of his age
was so qualified as himself to transmit them to
posterity. Most writers of history are so far re
moved from the knowledge of these, that their
works must necessarily be very defective : for
being never admitted into the cabinet, or even
near it, they know the motives of very few ac
tions ; yet, being unwilling to appear ignorant
of them, they will either upon hearsay evidence
(which is seldom to be credited), or from their
own conjectures, assign reasons for what they re
late, which may, and probably must, be remote
from the truth : nay, they often give an erroneous
account of the actions themselves.
Some loose papers, part of this work, are yet
remaining: the following passage is transcribed
from them, as it shows the candour with which

12 INTRODUCTION.
he entered upon it. " Whoever considers the
number and the power of those adversaries I have
met with, and how studiously they have, under
the authority of both church and state, dispersed
the most malicious slanders of me, will think it
necessary that in this I follow the French fashion,
and write my own memoirs, that it may appear
to the world on what ground or motives they
came to be my enemies, and with what truth and
justice they have prosecuted their quarrel ; and if
in this whole narration they find me false or par
tial in any particular, I give up the whole to
whatever censure they will make."
He began his history from the Reformation.
He seems to have traced out the springs, and to
have marked the progress, of the several differ
ences between the crown and the people, which
at. last produced the civil war. From hence he
observed what was defective in the constitution,
for securing, in a better manner, the civil and
religious rights of the people. He was parti
cularly excellent in his characters. Some few
are remaining in fragments of his papers ; King
Charles the Second's, the Duke of York's, the
Duchess of Portsmouth's, and the Earl of
Danby's are drawn with great spirit. In the

INTRODUCTION. 13
king's there are proofs of a real affection for
him. He says, that if he had been so happy as to
have been born a private man, he would have
been much beloved; for he had parts, good-nature,
and excellent breeding. But being a prince, by
his pleasures, his indolence, his confidence in a
minister whose abilities were not equal to the
trust, and his complaisance to a brother whose
person he did not love, and whose understanding
and qualities he despised, he brought himself to
such an unhappy state, that no one person could
place dependence on him. Lord Shaftesbury cer
tainly had a love for the king. This appears by
all his speeches, even when he was most at enmity
with the court, and when with great boldness he
censured its proceedings. As this affection to the
king was manifested during his variance with the
court, and he had too much frankness to disguise
his opinion, and to conceal his displeasure with
the measures that had been taken, it cannot be
conceived that he would feign a tenderness which
he did not possess.
Mr. Locke, by way of reparation for burning the
original memoir, intended afterwards to write the
history of this illustrious statesman, and in his
works there are some particular facts which he put

J4 INTRODUCTION.
down as they occurred to his memory.4 The editor
of his posthumous works informs us, that he would
have gone on farther if time and health had
permitted him ; but that he was interrupted by
death before he could make any great progress.
The few particulars which he has written must
give every reader a high idea of his lordship. It
is a great misfortune that Mr. Locke did not
finish his life, as he was so long and so intimately
acquainted with him.
Mr. P. Coste, who lived many years in the
same family with Mr. Locke, in his character of
him has the following passages : —
" Mr. Locke loved to confirm his opinion on
any subject by that of the famous Earl of Shaftes
bury, to whom he took a delight to give the
* These are called " Memoirs relating to the Life of Anthony
first Earl of Shaftesbury," and are printed in the fourth volume
of the 4to edition of Locke's Works : there are also some fur
ther particulars contained in the tract called " A Letter from
a Person of Quality to his Friend in the Country," by the same
author, and printed in the same volume. The court party
ordered this letter to be burnt by the common hangman, and so
it was. " But," says Andrew Marvel, " the sparks of it will
eternally fly in their faces." I mention this tract more particu
larly because it was at the time supposed to have been in
a great measure dictated by Lord Shaftesbury. Wood and
Walpole reckon it among his works.

INTRODUCTION. 15
honour of all the things which he thought he had
learnt from his conversation."
" Nothing ever gave him a more sensible plea
sure than the esteem which that earl conceived
for him, almost the first moment he saw him, and
which he afterwards preserved as long as he hved;
and, indeed, nothing sets Mr. Locke's merit in a
brighter light, than his having had the constant
esteem of my Lord Shaftesbury, the greatest
genius of his age, who was superior to so many
eminent and able men that shone at the same
time in the court of Charles the Second, not only
for his resolution and intrepidity in maintaining
the true interests of his country, but also for his
great abilities in the conduct of the most knotty
affairs. When Mr. Locke studied at Oxford, he
fell by accident into his company in the manner
already mentioned; and one single conversation
with that great man won him his esteem and
confidence to such a degree, that soon afterwards
my Lord Shaftesbury took him to be near his
person, and kept him as long as Mr. Locke's
health or affairs would permit. That earl parti
cularly excelled in the knowledge of men. It
was impossible to catch his esteem by moderate
qualities : this his enemies themselves could never

16 INTRODUCTION.
deny. I wish I could, on the other hand, give a
full notion of the idea which Mr. Locke had of
that nobleman's merit. He lost no opportunity
of speaking of it, and that in a manner which
sufficiently showed he spoke from his heart.
Though my Lord Shaftesbury had not spent
much time in reading, nothing, in Mr. Locke's
opinion, could be more just than the judgment he
passed upon the books which fell into his hands.
He presently saw through the design of a work ;
and without much heeding the words, which he
ran over with vast rapidity, he immediately found
whether the author was master of his subject, and
whether his reasonings were exact. But, above
all, Mr. Locke admired in him that penetration,
that presence of mind, which always prompted
him with the best expedients in the most despe
rate cases ; that noble boldness which appeared in
all his public discourses, — a boldness ever guided
by a solid judgment, which, never allowing him
to say anything but what was proper, regulated
his least word, and baffled the untiring vigilance
of his enemies." 5

5 Coste proceeds to ascribe to the patronage of Lord Shaftes
bury that knowledge of the world and leisure for study which
enabled Locke afterwards to enrich our literature and immor
talize himself.

INTRODUCTION. 17
M. Le Clere, in his eulogium upon Mr. Locke,
says, that "to the end of his life he recollected
with the greatest pleasure the delight which he
had found in the conversation of Lord Shaftes
bury ; and when he spoke of his good qualities,
it was not only with esteem, but even with admi
ration. If those who knew the penetration and
sincerity of Mr. Locke conceived a high idea of
Lord Ashley, those who have had any acquaint
ance with this last cannot doubt but Mr. Locke
was a man of an uncommon genius, when they
think of the esteem which this lord had for him." *
He was, says M. Le Clere, " a nobleman that
had an uncommon vivacity and penetration, a
sohd judgment, an excellent memory, and a
great and generous way of thinking ; and with
all this, a gay and lively temper, which he pre-
* " M. Locke a rappelle pen- la sincerite de M. Locke con-
dant toute sa vie avec beau- coivent par la une haute idee
coup de plaisir la memoire de de Milord Ashley, ceux qui
la satisfaction qu'il avoit eue ont eu quelque commerce avec
dans la conversation de ce ce dernier ne peuvent pas
seigneur; et lorsqu'il parloit douter que M. Locke ne fut
de ses bonnes qualites, non un homme d'un genie peu
seulement il en parloit avec commun, lorsqu'ils pensent a
estime, mais encore avec ad- l'estime que ce seigneur avoit
miration. Si ceux qui ont pour lui." — Le Clere, Biblio-
bien connu la penetration et theque Choisie, tom. vi. p. 355.
VOL. I. C

18 INTRODUCTION.
served in the greatest perplexity of his affairs.
He had read much, but had still more know
ledge of the world; so that he acquired in a
short time a very great experience, and became
the greatest statesman in England, and at an
age in which others only begin their acquaint
ance with public affairs. The posts which he
was in, from the time King Charles the Second
employed him, prevented his application then
to much reading; but he had such an appre
hension, that in a cursory view of a book, he
would discover the strength and weakness of
it, in a better manner than others who read it
at leisure. He was easy and open in his be
haviour, a great enemy to compliments, and had
not the least formality in him ; so that one was
not under any constraint with him, but had all
the liberty to be wished. He could familiarize
himself with all the world, without any mean
ness, or doing anything unworthy of his rank.
He could not bear any servility, not only in him
self, but even in his inferiors." *
Though Lord Shaftesbury was affable in his
temper, and free from pride towards his infe
riors, yet where he entertained contempt for an
* Bibliotheque Choisie, tom. vi.

INTRODUCTION. 19
individual, he was too apt to show it. This,
however, was never founded on any disparity
of fortune, but appeared only when persons as
sumed a merit to which they had no just title,
and when they were too busy in matters beyond
their knowledge. This behaviour undoubtedly
created him many enemies, and gave birth to
most of the slanders which were published of
him. These attacks were very numerous. They
provoked, however, no other feeling in his lord
ship than mere contempt : they could not rouse
him to an answer, or to take any notice of them,
though several occasional discourses were written
by him, or by his direction. They never even
moved him to resentment; for where the au
thors had any real worth, he readily showed his
sense of it, and his forgiveness of their abuses.
An instance of this appears with regard to Dry-
den, whose fortune and spirit were vastly inferior
to his genius. As the greatness of this made
him useful to the court, the want of the other
threw him into its power ; and he was often
forced to prostitute his talents to its pleasure or
revenge. His " Absalom and Achitophel" is one
of the finest satires that had then ever appeared.
c 2

20 INTRODUCTION.
The design of it was to expose several lords and
others who had opposed the measures of the
court. As Lord Shaftesbury for some years
stood the foremost of these, the chief force of
the satire is pointed at him ; yet, after the poem
had been published, when his lordship, as a go
vernor of the Charter-house, had the nomina
tion of a scholar, without any application from
Dry den, or from any person in his favour, he
gave it to one of his sons. Upon this, Dryden,
to be grateful, resolved to show him some jus
tice in this very poem ; and therefore celebrated
his conduct as lord chancellor in the following
lines : In Israel's court ne'er sat an Abethdin
With more discerning eyes, or hands more clean,
Unbrib'd, unsought, the wretched to redress,
Swift of dispatch, and easy of access.
When King Charles read these lines, which
were not in the first edition, he told Dryden
that he had spoiled all which he had said of
Shaftesbury by them.
I shall not in this relation enter into any pub
lic affairs which have been mentioned by other
authors; unless where it may be necessary to
lead the reader into a knowledge of his lordship's

INTRODUCTION. 21
conduct in them. The facts which are told by
Mr. Locke, I have inserted in the order in which
they happened; and likewise a letter of his to
Mr. Stringer, never yet published. This was
written from Oxford during the sitting of the
parliament there, and gives an account of some
transactions in it; and of one particular affair,
viz. the withdrawing of a bill of great conse
quence from the table of the house of lords in
the former parliament, when it was ready for
the royal assent. The few speeches which re
main of Lord Shaftesbury's I have introduced
in those periods of his life in which they were
spoken. The other parts of the relation are
taken chiefly from the loose papers of his lord
ship, or from a manuscript account written by
a gentleman who was many years near his per
son. This was Thomas Stringer, Esq. of Joy-
church, near Salisbury, whom I just now men
tioned, who had an excellent understanding, great
knowledge in the law, and a warm affection for
the interest of his country. He had a remark
able probity and evenness of temper, and was
strictly faithful to his trust.6 These qualifica-

6 This Mr.j Stringer, from the intimacy he enjoyed with the
Shaftesbury family, must have possessed the very best oppor-

22 INTRODUCTION.
tions made him worthy of the confidence of
Lord Shaftesbury, and entitled him to the friend
ship of several persons of the first rank, as the
Duke of Kingston, Earl of Pembroke, Lord
Somers, Lord Lexington, the Earl of Fitzwal
ter, Edward Ash, Esq. Commissioner of Trade,
and others. He was a familiar acquaintance of
Mr. Locke. He died in 1702, being greatly es
teemed by the gentlemen- of the country where
he resided. He had, for some years before, been
chairman of the quarter sessions, when they were
held at Salisbury.
As I have mentioned two very distinguished
names, Mr. Locke and M. Le Clere, who have
spoken favourably of Lord Shaftesbury, it may
not now be improper just to take notice of the
principal authors who have mentioned him to
his disadvantage, and of the particular preju
dices which some of them had against him. It
may be thought too much to attribute all they
say to this motive; but if their prejudices can

tunities for writing the life of his early patron. By a letter
written to that gentleman by the third Earl, while Lord Ashley,
dated 1695, and preserved among the Harleian MSS., it appears
that he then enjoyed the confidence and esteem of the grandson,
as he had formerly that of the grandfather.

INTRODUCTION. 23
be pointed out, and it can be incontestably proved
that their accounts of the many facts which they
relate are erroneous, it is not unfair to suppose
that they wrote under the influence of their pri
vate passions.
Sir Roger L'Estrange, who was continually
publishing against him invectives which gene
rally died with the day, was the noted hireling of
the court. He had, besides this, a particular mo
tive for his spleen against Lord Shaftesbury. His
lordship, as chairman of a committee of the house
of lords, made a report to the house, that Mr. Ro
ger L'Estrange had been several times at mass,
and had owned himself to be of the church of
Rome : Mr. L'Estrange acted in the commission
of peace at this time, notwithstanding the test
act of 1672, which incapacitated every papist.
Their lordships summoned him to attend, which
summons he did not obey ; and they then ordered
that he should not be permitted to hcense the
printing of any more books, and that the lord
chancellor should put him out of the commission.7

7 L'Estrange, however, very solemnly denied this charge.
There is still extant, among the MSS. in the British Museum,
the original of a declaration made by him at St. Giles's church
upon the sacrament, in which he says he never was in a popish

24 INTRODUCTION.
Sir William Temple justly enjoys the character
of a very elegant author ; but in his political con
duct and writings, he carried his notions of pre
rogative and paternal dominion to a very great
height ; and was, therefore, in his public principles
directly opposite to Lord Shaftesbury. When his
lordship was chancellor of the exchequer, he gave
Sir William a private reason for his resentment, by
opposing the king's giving him a present of plate,
which he demanded upon his coming from Hol
land, This Mr. Stringer mentions in his manu
script, as does M. Le Clere in his eulogium upon
Mr. Locke.* To this may be added another
cause of Sir William Temple's anger. Lord
Shaftesbury was very free in his censures of the
* " Cependant le Chevalier vaisselle d' argent, qu'il deman-
Temple a parle desavanta- doit au roi, au retour de son
geusement de lui, dans ses me- ambassade, selon un usage,
moires, et a insinue qu'il etoit que le chancellier jugeoit tres
l'un des auteurs de la guerre prejudiciable aux finances du
de 1672, contre les Provinces roi. Cette raison est assez
Unies. Mais on doit savoir forte pour ne pas se fier a
qu'il n'aimoit pas Milord Shaf- Mons. Temple sur le chapitre
tesbury, parce que ce dernier, de Milord Shaftesbury." — Le
etantchancellierde l'echiquier, Clere, Bibliotheque Choisie, tom.
s'etoit oppose a un present en vi. p. 364.

chapel in England from the year 1660 to that date (the 12th
April 1682); and that he neither was, nor ever had been, nor
ever pretended to be, in the communion ofthe Church of Rome.

INTRODUCTION. 25
treaty of Nimeguen ; he exclaimed against it
openly, as it dissolved the grand alliance, which
a few years before had been formed against the
power of France ; in forming which he had a
great share. I have by me a short state of the
nation which Lord Shaftesbury drew up at the
meeting of the new parliament, March 6, 1668-9.
In this he says, " That this treaty was concluded
by the mediation, or more properly enforced by
the English court : that by this treaty the crown
of England received no honour, nor any visible
advantage ; but was left exposed, as well as the
Emperor, the King of Spain, and the States Gene
ral, to the mercy of the French : that all the arts
imaginable were used to draw off the States from
the confederacy : that notwithstanding the Eng
lish nation in general, and the parliament, desired
a war with France, and our court had made a
league with the States to enter into one, yet
these, seeing the influence which the court of
France had over our councils, and being jealous
of the English forces, which were sent into Flan
ders to amuse the parliament, and draw supplies
from them, by the persuasion of our minister
made a separate peace : that Spain, being thus for
saken by the Dutch, apprehensive of the English

26 INTRODUCTION.
forces, and knowing the ascendant which the
French king had over the Enghsh court, signed
also a dishonourable treaty : that the Emperor
soon followed the example, and made a peace for
himself, leaving the King of Denmark, the Elec
tor of Brandenburgh, and other protestant princes
to provide for themselves : that thus France, with
the assistance of England, assured to herself the
greatest part of the vast conquests and accessions
she had made to her empire; and broke the
strength of her enemies more effectually by the
peace than she could have done by the war ; it
being impossible to form a new association among
princes who could not have any confidence in one
another." Sir William Temple and Sir Leohne
Jenkins were our ministers at this treaty of Nime
guen ; and though Sir William acted under posi
tive orders from his court, yet very probably he
could not easily pardon any reflections upon a
work in which he had been an actor. His anger
appears very plainly whenever he mentions Lord
Shaftesbury ; but the grounds of it are not al
ways so obvious. His disapprobation is always
general; he lays nothing particularly to his
charge ; and though in one place he has insinuated
(as M. Le Clere says) that his lordship was one

INTRODUCTION. 27
of the advisers of the war against the Dutch, he
in other places imputes it wholly to the violent
temper and counsels of Lord Clifford ; as will ap
pear in the following work.
Father Orleans gives this character of Lord
Shaftesbury : " He had a vast genius, was pene
trating, bold, and equally steady both on the right
and wrong side ; a constant friend, but an impla
cable enemy ; and the more dangerous, as, being
void of all religion and conscience, it was the
easier for him to plot, because he was not deter
red by the number or enormity of any crimes,
when he judged them necessary to preserve him
self, or destroy those who had incurred his ha
tred."8 It must be observed, that the learned

8 This passage in the original runs thus : " Antoine Ashley
Cooper, Comte de Shaftsbury, et Grand Chancelier du Roy
aume. Cet acteur, si celebre dans les dernieres scenes que nous
a donnees 1' Angleterre, etoit le plus propre de tous h conduire une
grande entreprise ; aussi etoit-il l'ame de celle-ci ; esprit vaste,
eclair^, audacieux, intriguant, egalement ferme dans un bon et
dans un mauvais parti, pendant que ceux a qui il s'attachoit ne
lui donnoient point sujet de changer ; constant ami, mais ennemi
implacable ; et d'autant plus dangereux, que ne menageant rien
avec la religion et la conscience, il 6toit moins embarrasse a
trouver les moyens de nuire ; n'etant effraye ni de la grandeur
ni de la multitude des crimes, quand il les croyoit necessaires
ou pour se c'onserver, ou pour perdre ceux qui s'etoient attire
sa haine." The enterprise of which the reverend Jesuit thus

28 INTRODUCTION.
Jesuit had no knowledge of Lord Shaftesbury :
he wrote his history from the mouth of King
James the Second after the Revolution, and in
the midst of that king's resentment for the loss of
his crown ; a loss owing to his religion, and to
his perverse and strong attachment to arbitrary
power, both which Lord Shaftesbury so long and
so strenuously opposed in every step of their
progress. This opposition, with his being such a
constant enemy to France, could not entitle him
to Father Orleans's good opinion.
I do not think it very material to mention
Mr. Archdeacon Echard upon this occasion. It is
plain that he did not make much inquiry into the
character of Lord Shaftesbury, since he contented
himself with copying from Father Orleans, whom
he could not but know to be a prejudiced writer.
Bishop Burnet is still less favourable to Lord
Shaftesbury than Father Orleans. He does not
allow him any of the good qualities, and scarce
one of the qualifications, which his greatest ene
mies have acknowledged. The bishop, indeed,
owns that Lord Shaftesbury was angry with him

describes Shaftesbury to have been the soul, had as its object
the rendering Charles an absolute monarch by means of foreign
troops.

INTRODUCTION. 29
for his endeavours to discredit the popish plot;
and upon one occasion he says, Lord Shaftesbury
railed so at him that he went near him no more.
I have by me the manuscript of one Mr. Wyche,*
who had an office under Lord Shaftesbury, where
in he says that Lord Shaftesbury slighted the
bishop to a very great degree, and shunned his
acquaintance. This contempt the bishop might
not deserve, and, perhaps, could not very well
bear. He is exceedingly unhappy in his estimate
of Lord Shaftesbury's character, and mistaken in
almost every fact which he relates of him. This
will be made evident from the journals of parlia
ment, and very authentic vouchers.
* Among the papers belong- He was accordingly trusted by
ing to the Shaftesbury family, Lord Shaftesbury in transcrib-
has been found a character of ing papers of the utmost con-
this Mr. Wyche, drawn up by sequence, from the year 1669
a person well acquainted with or 1670, to the end of Lord
him. It will probably be ac- Shaftesbury's life. He took
ceptable to the reader. down thoughts as they were
" He was a man of the law, dictated by the great men at
and clerk to Mr. Justice Sir Sa- meetings; one in particular
muel Eyre. Mr. Justice Eyre from Lord Holies, near the end
was a standing council concern- of his life. The late Lord
ed in Lord Shaftesbury's af- Chief Justice Eyre, who had
fairs, and he recommended such a thorough knowledge of
him to Lord Shaftesbury as a Mr. Wyche's integrity, used
faithful amanuensis, who might to say of him, that he had, at
be trusted upon any occasion, the latter end of King Charles

30 INTRODUCTION.
Rapin, in his account of the transactions of
those times, had no other guide than the authors
before mentioned ; yet he sees through their pre
judices very plainly, and cautions his readers
against too implicit a belief in them. This he
does merely from a cool consideration of what
they relate, without a knowledge of any private
memoirs to bias him in Lord Shaftesbury's favour.
I cannot help here taking notice of one passage
in Rapin. When he makes his observations on
Father Orleans's character of Lord Shaftesbury,
and hints at the partiality of it, he says, " Mr.
Locke speaks otherwise of him; it is true he
says nothing advantageous of him in respect
of religion." Rapin would not have made this
last observation, if he had considered, that Mr.
Locke's is not a complete and regular account
of Lord Shaftesbury : it is only a memorandum
of some few facts which he wrote down as they
occurred to his memory, and for fear they should
slip out of it. By the style they are plainly bis
the Second's time, written more occasioned his being called
treason than any man in the upon sometimes to give. The
kingdom. He was a man of truth of this is known to se-
slow parts, but scrupulously veral people now living He
exact in matters of testimony, lived at Salisbury till his
which his great length of days death."

INTRODUCTION. 31
rough draught ; and are so indigested, that some
things after the Restoration are set down pre
vious to others which happened before it. Lord
Shaftesbury was, however, very regular in his at
tendance on divine worship; he kept a chaplain
constantly in his house. This gentleman's name
was Highmore. His lordship was the great patron
of the eminent Dr. Whitchcot, who lived very
much with him, and, together with Mr. Locke,
was one of his most constant companions. The
doctor preached most of his sermons that are
printed before him; and the last Lord Shaftes
bury * is said to have published, from a manu
script copy of his grandfather's lady, the first
volume of his works, called Select Discourses.
Bishop Burnet represents Lord Shaftesbury to
have been variable in his principles ; and says,
* It hath been supposed of Stephens, rector of Sutton, in
late, that the Select Discourses Surry, and not by the third
of Dr. Whitchcot were pub- Earl of Shaftesbury .9
lished by the Rev. Mr. William

9 I know not upon what ground this supposition proceeds.
The article " Shaftesbury," in the General Dictionary, which we
have seen was carefully revised by the fourth earl, declares
that " it was under his father's particular inspection that a vo
lume of Dr. Whichcot's select sermons, with a preface, was
published in 1698, from copies of them which had been taken
in short-hand as they were delivered from the pulpit."

32 INTRODUCTION.
that he was not ashamed to reckon up the many
turns he had made ; and that he did this with so
much vanity and little discretion, that he lost
many by it.10 It seems very improbable that so
wise a man, so versed in affairs that required se
crecy, should, for no reason, with no views, lay
himself open to this censure. Besides, the bishop,
in fact, gives an answer to himself, by what he says
in the same sentence, " that Lord Shaftesbury was
to the last much trusted by all the discontented
party." I have some hopes that by the following
sheets he will appear to have acted very consist
ently ; that from the beginning to the end of his
life he maintained the same principles ; and that
the changings and fluctuations, at the time he
lived in, were in the government, but not in his
conduct. As to later writers of the English history, I
shall take no particular notice of them in this

10 In a note upon this passage of Burnet, written by the first
Earl of Dartmouth, but published since this work was originally
printed, his lordship says, " I was told by one that was very
conversant with him, that he had a constant maxim never to
fall out with anybody, let the provocation be never so great,
which he said he had found great benefit by all his life ; and
the reason he gave for it was, that he did not know how soon
it might be necessary to have them again for his best friends."

INTRODUCTION. 33
place ; because most of them have only repeated
the accounts of Lord Shaftesbury which have
been given by the authors already mentioned.
Nothing is more difficult than to root out those
prejudices which have been long growing in our
minds ; yet nothing more deserves the persever
ing attention of a rational creature, who must
otherwise live in a constant subservience to the
httle passions of those who implanted them. In
investigating the character of Shaftesbury, let us
therefore exercise our own reason, and enter into
a calm examination of the facts before us.,
These lie open to every one's understanding, and
are the best, if not the only evidence, we can rely
upon in our judgments of any man's public
character. In his private one we must depend
on the authority of his relations, his friends, and
those who were chiefly about him. And these
have concurred in the same testimony with regard
to Lord Shaftesbury, that he filled up all the
private offices of life, as a master, a friend, a
husband, and a father, with great humanity, in
tegrity, and affection. Some of his letters to his
lady, that are still preserved, are proofs of the
tenderness which he had for her.
Though his engagements in public affairs were
VOL. I. d

34 INTRODUCTION.
so various and incessant, he was strictly careful in
the management of his own estate. He was exact
in this to a surprising degree. He inspected all
his accounts himself; and, as he had great skill
in husbandry, he was as particular in his direc
tions for the cultivation of his lands, as any
country gentleman who had no other employment
of his time or thoughts. He looked on the pre
servation of his estate as the best support of in
dependency, and the best fund for his generosity,
which many persons of worth and learning expe
rienced, some by occasional, others by annual
donations. If any facts mentioned in the present perform
ance are proved to be false, or unfairly stated,
they will be readily retracted. This work is
written only from the love of truth, and to the
lovers of truth it is addressed.

35

CHAPTER I.
count of Sir Anthony Ashley Cooper's birth, education,
marriage, and first entrance into parliament.
:hony Ashley Cooper, Earl of Shaftesbury, a.d. 1621.

was born July 22, 1621, descended from ms Birth.
ancient and considerable families. His fa-
was Sir John Cooper, Bart, of Rockborne,
he county of Hants. His mother was Anne,
only daughter and heiress of Sir Anthony
ley, Bart, of Wimborne St. Giles's, in the
ity of Dorset.
he care of his education was first committed Education.
Ir. Guerdeau, a fellow of Queen's College in
bridge, and afterwards doctor of physic in
don, who was chosen by the grandfather for
strictness of his principles ;* Sir Anthony say-
" Youth could not have too deep a dye of
liter his father's death, the care of a gentleman of
nthony was fdur years Oriel College in Oxford, a
the tuition of a Mr. master of arts.
ter, and one year under
D 2

of his act!
vity.

36 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1621. religion ; for business and conversation in the
world would wear it to a just moderation."
a.d. 1631. By the death of Sir John Cooper, in 1631, he
succeeded to the title of baronet, and an estate
of 8000/. a year ; the greatest part of which had
been entailed on him by his grandfather, who
died in the year 1627-
Early proof The vivacity of his genius was conspicuous in
his youth by the progress which he made in his
studies ; and the activity of his disposition soon
found an opportunity of discovering itself in
the following remarkable occasion. His father
leaving his own estate charged with debts, some
of his relations and neighbours, Sir Francis Ash
ley (his grandfather's brother), Mr. Tregonwell,
Sir William Button, and others, formed a scheme
for getting advantageous purchases, by procuring
an immediate sale of great part of the estate. Sir
Francis was the king's serjeant-at-law. By his
means, and under pretence of being creditors,
they engaged Sir Walter Pye, attorney of the
Court of Wards, a corrupt man, who then had
great influence in that court, to get a decree
for the sale ; and being with some of their friends
made commissioners for this, they disposed of

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 37
estate to one another. Sir Anthony's trus- a.d. i63i.
who were excluded from the commission, de-
time to sell the lands at better rates, and
Sir Anthony (who had an estate from his
ler's father, for which he was not in ward-
i might be allowed to be a purchaser himself.
was pressed in open court, but refused, un-
the purchasers would consent ; which could
ae expected, as they knew the value of their
ains, and had taken such irregular steps to
them.
le trustees, upon this, refused to convey the
s, and were therefore committed by the
rt of Wards to the Fleet, and kept in con-
nent till they consented. But, notwithstand-
their forced conveyance, they preferred a bill
quity against Sir Francis Ashley and the
rs, upon consideration that they had be-
agreed with a purchaser for the lands, for
Anthony's use, at a much greater value.
Francis being sensible that the separate es-
which his brother left to his grandson, en-
I the trustees to make this opposition, im-
iately projected the total ruin of his nephew's
ine ; and desired to be heard in behalf of

38 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1631. the king, to show that the deed by which Sir
Anthony claimed that estate was not sufficient
a.d. 1634. to preserve it from wardship. A day was ap.
pointed for the hearing. Mr. Noy was then attor
ney-general, having been an intimate friend of
old Sir Anthony. He had drawn his will ; but
it was imagined he would not undertake to sup-
port the cause against the crown, and without
him it would be in imminent danger from the
influence which the crown had in that court.
Sir Anthony (then but thirteen years old) went
alone to Mr. Noy, and acquainted him with the
proceedings, saying he had no one to depend
on but him, who had been the friend of his
grandfather. Noy was pleased with his spirit
and behaviour, and told him he would defend
the cause, though he should lose his place ; and
accordingly performed his promise with success,
and without taking any fees.11

11 This gentleman has all the credit of having originated the
claim of the crown to ship-money. The king's orders were
imperative to discover some statutable mode of raising money;
so, in the words of an old law writer of the period, " Away goes
the subtile engineer, and at length from old records bolts out
an ancient president of raising a tax for setting out a navy in
case of danger. The king, glad of the discovery as treature

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 39
Though Sir Anthony carried this cause, his a.d.1634.
tate suffered very much by the hasty and instance of
indestine sale of such a part of it. However, %%e™°~
furnished him with an opportunity, some years
terwards, of showing his generous and recon-
eable temper. Rockborne, which was his fa-
er's seat, was sold to Mr. Tregonwell, who was
such haste for the purchase, that he was not
fficiently careful in examining the title. Sir
nthony discovered that this estate had been
tailed at his father's marriage, and that his

ve, presently issued out writs for providing twenty-seven
ps of so many tons, with guns, gunpowder, tackle, and all
er things necessary. But this business no sooner ripened
n the author of it dyeth." This account is repeated by
ny old authors, and particularly by Heylyn in his Life of
id, who gives a circumstantial account of the manner in
ich Noy had long preserved all the extracts and precedents
"avour of naval aids that he could gather from the old records,
ich formed his favourite study. " He kept them," says
ylyn, " in the coffin of a pye which had been sent him by his
ther, and kept there till the mouldiness and corruption had
ished many of his papers." But notwithstanding this story,
[ notwithstanding the reported remark of Laud, that, of a
man, Noy was the man who had rendered his majesty
iter service than any other in his kingdom, it is impossible
t Noy could have originated this idea, since it was acted
n, although not to the same extent, before Noy had re-
¦ed the attorney-generalship as the price of his desertion,

40 L1¥E OF THE
a.d. 1634. father had not levied any fine to cut off the
entail. He, therefore, immediately commenced
a suit against Mr. Tregonwell, who was grand
son and heir of the purchaser. Mr. Tregon
well, whether from a sense of a defect in his
title, or the injustice of his grandfather, pro
posed to Sir Anthony (who was his relation)
that, if he might be permitted to enjoy that
estate during his life, he would not only con
sent that it should return to Sir Anthony, but
as he had himself no children, he would settle

and while he was yet a keen and able advocate of the popular
cause. His conduct to our young baronet is not the only instance
of kindness related of Noy. He was one day in court when
a case was being tried in which a poor widow was the de
fendant. Three graziers at a fair had left a sum of money
with her, and one of them coming back, received the whole
sum deposited, and ran away. The other two then sued the
woman for delivering what she had received from the three
before the three came and demanded it. The widow's counsel
had abandoned the case in despair, and the jury were about
to return their verdict for the plaintiffs when Noy, who was
not retained, took part in the defence. " The defendant," he
said, " has received the money of the three together ; that
she confesses. She was not to deliver it until the same three
demanded it; that the plantiff's insist. Agreed. Well, the
money is ready ; let the three come together to receive it, and
it shall be paid." This defence soon put an end to the action.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 41
: own estate upon him likewise. Sir Anthony a.d. 1634.
)lied, that he would not consent to Mr. Tre-
nwell's settling his own estate to the preju-
le of his family ; nay more, since Mr. Tregon-
;11 had been so frank in his offer, he should
t only retain Rockborne for his own life, but
3 wife should hold it for her's also, in case she
ould survive; and upon these terms he con-
ided an agreement with Mr. Tregonwell, who
joyed that estate near forty years.
In the year 1636 Sir Anthony went to Exeter a.d. 1636.
)llege at Oxford, under the immediate tuition ofhiscou.
Dr. Prideaux, rector of the college. The
•cumstances of his affairs obliged him to go
London in term-time, and he wras entered of
incoln's Inn. Thus he soon acquired an use-
1 education, by being led into an early know-
Ige of the world. As his reading enlarged
d improved his conversation, this quickened
d strengthened his application to the other.
is wit, affability, and liberal temper, soon dis-
iguished and procured him esteem in the uni-
rsity ; and his courage making him the leader
all the young men of his college, he showed
veral instances of that spirit which he so re-
arkably maintained through the whole course

42 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1636. of his life. Among others, one was in opposing
and breaking a custom extremely absurd, but
of great antiquity in the college, which was called
tucking the fresh-men. On a particular day,
the senior under-graduates, in the evening, called
the fresh-men to the fire, and made them hold
out their chins; whilst one of the seniors, with
the nail of his thumb (which was left long for
that purpose) grated off all the skin from the
lip to the chin, and then obliged him to drink
a beer-glass of water and salt. The time ap
proaching when Sir Anthony was to be used
thus; he, finding the fresh-men a numerous
body, engaged them to stand stoutly in defence
of their chins. Accordingly, they all appearing
at the fire in the hall, one of the seniors (who
was the tyrant of that day) called Sir Anthony ;
when he, according to agreement, gave the signal
to the juniors by striking the senior a box on
the ear, and immediately a skirmish ensued, in
which some of the seniors were severely beaten;
nor was an end put to the combat till Sir An
thony had made proper terms for the juniors.
At this time Dr. Prideaux came in to appease
the mutiny; and the doctor, always favourable
to youth in offences which proceeded from cou-

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 43
rage, granted them a pardon, and an abolition a.d. 1636.
of that ridiculous custom*
Some time after Sir Anthony had been at A;D- 1638-
His mar-
Oxford, several matches were proposed to him; "age.
but, by the advice of his guardian, he made his
addresses to one of the Lord Keeper Coventry's
daughters ;12 and his estate and character carrying
with them a powerful recommendation to the
father, as his youth and behaviour did to the
lady, who was a woman of admirable beauty, ac
complishments, and virtue, he succeeded in his
suit, and was married on the 25th of February
1638-9, being under eighteen years of age.
After his marriage, he lived with his father-in-
law at Durham House and Canbury, till the Lord
Keeper's death, which was in January 1639-40.
During this interval, he accompanied his brother-
in-law, Mr. Coventry, into Worcestershire, where
he was soon distinguished for the gaiety of his
temper. Among the sprightly sallies which gained
him the reputation he then enjoyed, of being an
amusing companion, were some conjuring tricks,
* Stringer.

12 This lady was niece to the Earl of Southampton, who
afterwards held the office of Lord Treasurer to Charles II.

44 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1638. which he accomphshed by means of a confidential
servant. This man, when his master went to any
house, easily gained admittance among the female
servants by his knowledge in the reigning fa
shions; and such opportunitie she always improv
ed to obtain intelligence of the love affairs of the
family. These he conveyed to Sir Anthony, who
never failed to turn them into mirth, by pretend
ing knowledge in palmistry, and telling fortunes.
It is not improbable but some such a trifling story
as this, which was merely a sally of youth and
humor, might be the foundation of Bishop Bur
net's remark, " that he had the dotage of astrology
in him to a high degree." 13

13 The bishop is, however, somewhat circumstantial in what
he says. " He told me," he adds, after the passage quoted in
the text, " that a Dutch doctor had, from the stars, foretold
him the whole series of his life. But that which was before
him when he told me this, proved false, if he told me true, for
he said he was yet to be a greater man than he had been." It
has been said, however, that Shaftesbury was in the habit of
amusing the bishop with these tales to baffle his attempts to
discover his political intrigues. — Seward's Anecdotes.
We find also in an old memoir of Shaftesbury, called Raw-
leigh Redivivus, a similar story. While Sir Anthony was yet a
boy, a German, who had been persecuted in his own country
on account of his Protestant opinions, found a refuge in the
hospitality of the Coopers. The young baronet quickly excited
his attention ; and we are told that he was able, so precocious

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 45
During his stay with Mr. Coventry, the prin- a.d. 1639.
cipal people of the town of Tewkesbury invited °^™ of
their neighbour, the Lord Keeper's son, to a public J^
dinner. All the neighbouring gentry were, upon

was his intellect, to comprehend the most abstruse subjects that
this gentleman proposed to him. Delighted with the ability and
attention of his young pupil, the German, one day, addressed
him thus : " Child ! if thou wilt be religious and keep close
to God, and take care to avoid the vain and destructive allure
ments of profaneness and debauchery, and entertain a fixed
resolution to improve all thy parts and abilities for the advan
cing the Protestant and the prejudice of the Romish religion,
you shall be a man of the largest parts in, Christendom, and
shall be an instrument of doing an extraordinary piece of service
to your prince, which shall be very acceptable to him ; where
upon you shall stand high in his favour, and be promoted to
very great honour; yet shall afterwards lose the prince's favour,
and be as much disrespected as before honoured and admired ;
yet, at the same time, you shall be one of the most popular
men under heaven, &c. And that you may know this will fall
out according to my prediction, pray remember this that I am
now going to tell you, and write it down in your pocket-book
that you may not forget it : — Not long after your coming from
the university, you shall be in extreme danger of drowning,"
telling him the very day when it should happen. The legend
goes on to tell how, upon the day specified, Sir Anthony, who
was then studying for the bar, was induced by his companions
to go by water to Greenwich. As he stepped into the boat, the
prediction and the coincidence occurred to him, and he would
have returned, but his companions refused to allow him. The
boat was upset, but all the party were saved. This prophecy
was, of course, never heard of until long after its fulfilment.

46 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1639. this occasion, likewise invited. At the dinner,
Sir Anthony was placed near the upper end of
the table, opposite to Sir Harry Spiller, one of
the queen's council, a crafty perverse man, and
so extremely vain, that he despised all whom he
thought his inferiors. Sir Harry opened the con
versation with many affronts to the bailiffs and
their entertainment, which provoked and dis
countenanced both them and the rest of the
townsmen who were at the entertainment ; and
the more, as the affront was given in the presence
of the first gentlemen of the county, before whom
they were willing to appear to the best advantage.
When he had discharged abundance of his spleen
and rough raillery, Sir Anthony thought it proper,
as their guest, to encounter him : and being greatly
superior in understanding to Sir Harry, he re
torted his raillery with such wit and success, that
he obtained a complete victory, and silenced him.
This gained Sir Anthony the hearts of the people:
he was made free of the town ; and the next par
liament, (which was called for April 13, 1640,)
though he was absent, was not nineteen years old,
and had no estate in the county, he was, without
any application, or even his knowledge, unani-

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 47
3usly chosen one of their representatives ;* and a.d. 1640.
served them faithfully during the very short
ne in which that parliament sat. His being
us early and honourably introduced into par-
ment, rendered him more emulous to appear
serving of the trust reposed in him. He dili-
ntly attended the house of commons, in order
get an insight into the state of the nation, and
ery day wrote an account of their proceedings.
•om this time he turned his thoughts towards
e service of the public : he cultivated the ac-
laintance and friendship of the principal gentle-
en in Dorsetshire and the adjacent counties:
! estabhshed frequent meetings among them ;
d his temper recommending him to them, the
•portunity of conversation gave him a perfect f
* Stringer. memoirs, and carry in them
[ He drew many of their instances of his regard for
iracters, which are still ex- those gentlemen, and singular
it in the remains of his marks of his vivacity.1*

14 It is much to be regretted, that none of the eminent men,
ough whose hands this work passed previously to its being
it to the press, thought it necessary to incorporate these
gments of the earl's memoirs in the narrative. They would
re furnished a valuable specimen of his literary abilities,
ich were, doubtless, of no mean order. These are, however,
v hopelessly entombed in the record-room at Wimborn
Giles.

48 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1640. knowledge of their characters. It was by his
assiduity in these respects, joined to the supe
riority of his parts, that he gained an early repu
tation in the west of England, and was enabled
very soon to distinguish himself in the conduct of
public affairs, and in the transactions of the civil
war.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 49

"-¦ ¦ -- -':* ¦) .:\

•\V| :?,; ¦*>: a i
CHAPTER II. ^^ -

sview of the conduct of Charles the First, from his accession
to the throne to the dissolution of the parliament, March 10,
1628-9. he causes of this war are not traced so high by a.d. 1624.
ir historians as they certainly ought to be, and SeTausel
ey have been either partially or imperfectly re- war.e<
ted. The grievances of the public are often but
ghtly mentioned, and in general terms, which
ver strike with that force which particular
stances do ; and the proceedings of the parlia-
ent for redressing them are confounded, under
e same name of rebellion, with the transactions of
e presumptuous high court of justice. It may be
oper, therefore, for the vindication of the parlia-
ent's honour, and for the honour of the English,
io do not usually complain till they feel, and
e zealous for the dignity of their prince when
is compatible with their liberties, to trace in a
VOL. I. E

50 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1624. summary way the rise and progress of the dis
union between the king and the people. 15
Hen. viii. Henry the Eighth (a resolute and haughty
prince) began the Reformation in resentment
against the pope. He dissolved the abbeys,
monasteries, and other religious houses, and dis
tributed great part of the church lands among
the nobility and gentry, to secure them in his
interest.
Edwardvi. What he began for political ends, his son,
A D. 1547. Edward the Sixth, nobly carried on for religious
ones.
Q.Mary. The Reformation was scarce settled, when
A D. 1553 Queen Mary succeeded her brother, and made
a hasty and furious return to the Romish church.
The nobility and gentry, however, refused to re
store the church lands ; but Pope Paul the Fifth
declaring it was not in his power to give leave

15 When this preliminary view of the state of Great Britain
at the time of Sir Anthony's appearance as a public character
was written, our country was singularly destitute of able and
impartial historians. It was then necessary to make this re
capitulation ; and although the labours of Hallam, and many
others, have since rendered the minute history of this period
familiar to the majority of readers, I have not thought myself
entitled to mutilate the work by striking out or abridging these
chapters.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 51
they should be alienated, nothing could have a.d. 1553.
secured the laymen in their possessions but
hort reign of Queen Mary, and with her of
aapal power in England.
ueen Elizabeth, her successor, re-established Queen
' Elizabeth.
reformed religion, and an act was passed in a.d. 1558.
first parliament, for restoring to the crown
ancient jurisdiction, as well ecclesiastical as
joral, and for abolishing all foreign power
gnant to it. The interests of the civil go-
ment, and of the national religion, (between
:h, by our constitution, there is such an im-
iate connexion,) were guarded as one; and
queen supported and enlarged the protestant
"est abroad, as the surest means of preserving
balance of Europe.
he favourites at court, however, invaded so
the bishops' lands, that the wiser part both of
smen and churchmen thought it necessary to
k their progress in this respect. l6 A stop,

The frequent changes in the national religion had encou-
the bishops in possession to leave as little as possible to
leretical successors. Two enactments, passed during the
of Elizabeth, had in consequence prohibited them from
ting church lands, except upon leases for three lives or
y-one years. These acts contained, however, an exception
our of the crown, which enabled Elizabeth to continue to
E 2

52 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1558. therefore, was put to the alienation of church
lands. Upon this encouragement, some of the
dignified clergy said, that their predecessors had
gone too far in their concessions, and that they
would have acted better if they had made a stand
like the Spanish bishops at the council of Trent,
who, though they were willing to cast off the
pope's authority, yet insisted that episcopacy was
jure divino. The supporting them in these pre
tensions was represented to the queen to be as
much the concern of the crown as of the clergy ;
for, as they would always be dependent on the
sovereign for their promotion, the power of the
crown would be better and more secretly ad
vanced by their means than by any other.
Though Queen Elizabeth was sufficiently te
nacious of her prerogative, she was not seduced
by this kind of reasoning. But when King
a.d. 1603. James the First came to the throne, terrified and
James 1. prejudiced as he had been by the treatment which
he had received from the presbyterians in Scot-

reward her courtiers at the expense of the church. Some of
the instances of this regal spoliation, and of the impotent at
tempts at resistance by the victims, as they are related in
Strype's Annals, are highly amusing. It was this exception in
favour of the crown which was repealed at the commencement
of James's reign.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 53
he was easily led into such measures as the a.d. 1603.
ified clergy proposed. In his first parliament
ct was passed, that no lands of the church
Id be alienated, but remain firm to the suc-
>rs in their respective dignities. This might
onsidered as requisite for a just preservation
tie order ; but many of the clergy, thinking
a proper time to extend their power, resolved
lace themselves above the reach of the civil
;rnment. The authority of the church, and
sacredness of the hierarchy, were the themes
1 which they were incessantly descanting be-
their listless congregations. King James's
•urite point was an absolute government, and,
btain this, he readily indulged the clergy in
r peculiar opinions ; but this only upon the
lition that they, in return, should preach up
divine right of monarchy as well as episco-
f. This compact, tacit although it might have
1, was religiously acted upon ; and thus a doc-
e, false in its principles, repugnant to reason,
pernicious in its consequences, became disse-
ated among the people. A doctrine equally
licious to the king and the people: to the
y, by creating in him wrong notions of his
piness and power ; to the people, by sowing

54 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1603. the seeds of discord among them, and by making
servility and adulation the road to preferment.
To arrive at their own selfish ends, therefore, the
clergy, in their pulpits and writings, asserted that
the king was not obliged to call parliaments for
the making laws or raising taxes. These doc
trines, and the power which the king and the
clergy assumed and exercised in consequence of
them, worked up a general uneasiness in the
minds of the people, which was still heightened
by every part of the king's conduct. They laid
the foundation of two hostile parties in the king
dom, which have ever since unhappily subsisted,
though under different denominations at different
times. As King James brought with him from Scot
land a secret prejudice against England for the
death of his mother, he had, likewise, an indiffer
ence for the Reformation and the protestant reh
gion. Though he had learning, it was the learn
ing of a pedant : he had not the understanding
necessary for a prince, nor the courage which was
requisite even for a private man. His vanity
rendered him a dupe to his flatterers, and his irre
solution made him one to all Europe. He acted
in every step directly opposite to the interest of

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 55
igland, and the conduct of his predecessor a.d. 1603.
ueen Elizabeth, who understood that interest,
d pursued it in a better manner than almost
y of our princes have done. He fixed his
itions of greatness, not in the greatness of his
ople, but in being independent of them. Stub-
>rn to these notions, he protected his minister
;ainst his subjects. Though imperious and inso-
it to his people, he cringed to every power in
urope, to whom he conceded almost everything
ey demanded. He put to death Sir Walter
aleigh, one of the greatest men of the age, in an
famous manner, to gratify the resentment of
e Spaniards; and he sacrificed the interests of
3 own children to his fear. He neglected the
mour of the nation, and abandoned the pro-
stant interest abroad. As he lived, so he died ;
iving to his son a fund of discontent in the
nds of the people, an arbitrary minister for his
fourite, and in himself the worst example
lich could possibly be followed.17 King

1 This character of King James is not overcharged. The
bable nature of the secret which preserved Somerset, and
facts disclosed by Weldon and by Lord Hailes' Letters, would
oe render the private life of this man the most disgusting
>ode to our history.

56 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1625. Charles the First had courage, and many good
Charles i. qualities which his father wanted; but by his
education, his minister, and the doctrines of an
ambitious and corrupt part of the clergy, he was
led into the same unhappy measures. Flattered
into an opinion that his will was superior to the
law, he soon made that opinion the guide of his
actions. He seemed to think the affections of his
people and the esteem of his parliament conside
rations beneath his regard, and inconsistent with
his dignity.
June is. At the first meeting of his parliament, upon his
coming to the crown, he began to show that he
His treat- would keep them at a greater distance than some
ment of his
parliament, of his predecessors had done. Queen Elizabeth
was accustomed to speak herself to her parlia
ments, to show her regard for them ; and King
James delighted to display to them his learning.
But this did not suit with the haughtiness of
Charles's temper ; and, therefore, he said to them
in the conclusion of his speech: " I mean to
bring up the fashion of my predecessors, to have
my lord keeper speak for me in most things : *
*This fashion, thus intro- his reign, and was carried on
duced or revived by him, was during the whole reign of his
continued through the rest of successor Charles the Second.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 57
erefore, I have commanded him to speak some- a.d. 1625.
ing unto you at this time, which is more for
rmality than any great matter he hath to say
ltO yOU." Public
grievances.
He soon dissolved this parliament, because they
:pressed their dissatisfaction at the conduct of
s minister, and insisted upon a redress of griev-
lces : such as the misspending the public trea-
ire ; the neglect of guarding the seas, which was
' great, that Turkish pirates landed in the west
England, and carried away several captives :
id, what had extremely exasperated the minds
? the people, the lending the Vanguard, a princi-
il ship of the royal navy, and seven merchant
lips, of great burthen and strength, to the
rench, who intended to employ them against
le protestants besieged in Rochelle. Penning-
m, who had the command of these ships, was
ssatisfied with his commission. The captains,
kewise, and the soldiers and mariners in the
her ships, understanding they were to be era-
oyed in blocking up the harbour of Rochelle,
fused the service; and, though they were
inpted with great rewards, declared they would
iher sink or be hanged, than serve against those
' their own religion. They returned again to

58 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1625. the Downs, and, in the mean time, the Duke of
Rohan and the protestants of France solicited the
king against sending the ships ; and applied like
wise to the council, the greatest part of whom
thought they had been destined for another ser
vice. But the king sent an express and strict
order to Pennington, requiring him, without
delay, to put his former command in execution,
and to deliver up the Vanguard, with all her
furniture, into the hands of the French. He
ordered, also, farther, that the seven merchant
ships should enter into the service of the French
monarch, and that, in case of their backwardness,
the admiral should use all means to compel them
to it, even to their sinking, if they refused.
Upon this Pennington obej'ed, returned to
Dieppe, delivered up the Vanguard, and com
manded the rest of the fleet to do the same. But
the companies, unanimously, one man excepted,
who was a gunner, declined the service, and quit
ted the ships.
Dissolution The Duke of Buckingham was complained of
or parlia- ° 1
ment- as the author of these and other grievances. The
commons unanimously drew up a declaration, in
very modest and respectful terms, in which they
expressed their readiness, not only to discover and

*"S": EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 59
m the grievances of the state, but also to a.d. 1625.
all necessary supplies for the king. This
iration was presented to him ; but he, being
mined not to suffer any reflections on his
ster, dissolved the parliament on the 12th of
ust 1625.
fter the dissolution, the king sent letters to Money
raised by
lieutenants of the counties, ordering them to privy seals.
m the names of such persons within their re-
tive counties as might be able to furnish him
i sums of money, and to specify their dwell-
, and what sums the lieutenants thought they
lit spare; for which privy seals were after-
1s issued out. The collectors of the loan were
lired, also, to return the names of such as dis-
¦red a disposition to delay or excuse the pay-
t of the sums imposed.
he king called another parliament, which met Newpar-
ruary the 6th, 1625-6. He treated this as he
done the former ; for in all his speeches he
a style entirely unbecoming an English
ce to an English parliament. He told the
;e of commons, soon after their meeting, that
would not allow any of his servants to be
tioned by them, and that if they did not has-
ais supply, it would be worse for themselves ;

60 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1625. for if any ill happened, he thought he should be
the last that would feel it." Notwithstanding
this, the duke was attacked as the chief cause of
all the public miscarriages ; upon which the king
told them again in a message, that "he would
not allow any of his servants to be questioned
amongst them, much less such as were of eminent
place and near unto him." This could not but
increase the discontents of the people, who saw
that their welfare was considered as inferior to
the duke's, and that their interest was sacrificed
spirited to the humour of a favourite. The spirit of the
conduct of iiii it
the pariia- house, however, was not to be broken by scolding
ment. messages. The grievances were still insisted on ;
the principal of which were new impositions and
monopolies, the demand of loans, levying of ton
nage and poundage without act of parliament,
and the misapplication of the money thus raised :
these were heightened by the loss of the nation's
honour ; the contempts and affronts suffered from
every neighbouring power ; the ill-conducted en-
a.d.1626. deavours on behalf of the Palatinate ; the fruitless
and expensive expedition against Cadiz; and
the reckless carelessness which permitted our
very coasts to be infested by the pirates of
Algiers.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 61
For these and other matters, 18 the Duke of a.d. 1626.
ickingham* was impeached by the commons.
r Dudley Diggs and Sir John Elliot, two of the
anagers, were immediately after the impeach-
ent sent for out of the house by two messen-
?rs of the chamber, who, by the king's com-
and, conveyed them to the Tower ; and the
ng told the house soon after, that " he had been
10 remiss heretofore in punishing such insolent
leeches as concerned himself." The commons,
senting so notorious a violation of their privi-
ges as the imprisonment of their members, re-
)lved to proceed in no other business till they
ere righted in their liberties ; and the judges
iving it as their opinion, that the whole house
* What was said of Louis cause of all the grievances ;
e Eleventh of France, was that the king's council rode
iplied in the house, as the upon one horse.

18 Among these other matters was a charge of having poison-
i James, " with having twice administered a potion to the late
ng a few days before his death, not only of a nature unknown
the physicians, surgeons, and apothecaries, but against a po-
:ive order by the first, that nothing should be given at the
terval he took advantage of ; and further with having applied
plaister to his breast of unknown qualities ; both of which
ition and plaister were accompanied with the worst symptoms,
transcendent presumption of dangerous consequences." This
large is fully discussed by Mr. Brodie, vol. ii. p. 113, et seq.

62 HFE OF THE
a.d. 1626. was under arrest, by the restraint of any of its
members without a proper reason being assigned,
Sir Dudley Diggs and Sir John Elliot were re
leased. The imprisoning of these two patriotic
men was a weak, as well as an arbitrary step.
Violent actions, which a prince cannot justify,
tend to render his government hated ; but his
being reduced to show that he cannot support
them must make it despised.
Regard Notwithstanding the commons were so strenu-
shown to °
the kmg. oug £or a re(jress 0f the public grievances, they
manifested a proper regard to the king's necessi
ties. They voted him an ample supply, and that
the bill for the same should be brought in as soon
as the grievances were presented to and redressed
by the king. They appeared, likewise, extremely
cautious of giving him the most distant offence :
for one Mr. Moor having said in a debate, " We
were born free, and must continue free, if the
king would keep his kingdom ;" adding, however,
these words, " thanks be to God, we have no oc
casion, we having a just and pious king;" he was
committed by them to the Tower> and kept there
till the king declared he had forgiven his offence.
It is evident that it was not any irregular or im
proper method which the commons pursued in

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 63
ler to have the public grievances redressed, but a.d. 1626.
^ design itself of redressing them, which irrita-
1 the court and produced their dissolution : for
e king sent a letter to the speaker, wherein,
long many other things, he said, " We will and Hishaugh-
quire you to signify unto them (the commons)
at we do expect that they forthwith bring in
eir bill of subsidy, to be passed without delay
condition, so as it may fully pass the house by
ie end of the next week at the farthest ; which
they do not, it will force us to take other reso-
tions." The commons returned a dutiful and
ibmissive answer to this, which was delivered by
leir speaker ; but, upon their proceeding to a
monstrance relating to the Duke of Bucking-
am, and concerning tonnage and poundage taken
y the king, since the death of his father, with-
ut consent of parliament, the king threatened
nmediately to dissolve them. Upon this, the
ouse of lords prepared a petition, expressing
their great and universal sorrow for his message
aout the dissolution, and therefore, being his
ereditary great council, they offered him their
iithful advice to continue this parliament ; by
finch the great and apparent dangers at home
nd abroad might be prevented, and his majesty

64 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1626. made happy in the duty and love of his people,
the greatest safety and treasury of a king." The
lords then sent the Earls of Manchester, Pem
broke, Carlisle, and Holland, to entreat the king
to give audience to the whole house of peers.
But the king's ears and heart were open only to
his favourite, whilst they were shut against the
advice of both houses of parliament, and the com
plaints of the people. He therefore returned for
answer, that " his resolution was to hear no mo
tion to that purpose, but he would dissolve the
parliament :" and when they desired him to per
mit the parliament to sit but two days longer, he
answered, in a peremptory manner, " No, not a
minute :" and he accordingly dissolved them on
the 15th day of June 1626.
oppressive The king, after the dissolution, persisted in his
former illegal and oppressive methods of raising
money, notwithstanding the general offence they
had given both to the parliament and the public.
Privy seals were issued out for a general loan.
A loan of a hundred thousand pounds was de
manded of the city of London, but the citizens
refused the payment of it. The port towns and
maritime counties were required to furnish ships
for the king's service. The deputy lieutenants

measures.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 65
d justices of the peace for Dorsetshire petition- A D I626
the council table to be excused, and pleaded ~~
at the case was without precedent ; but the
uncil severely checked them for disputing, in-
?ad of obeying, their king's commands ; and
id that state occasions were not to be guided
r ordinary precedents. The city of London
is likewise required to furnish the king with
renty of the best ships in the river, with all
anner of tackle, ammunition, &c. ; and when
e citizens petitioned for an abatement of the
enty ships rated upon them, they were told
at the charge imposed on them was moderate,
not exceeding the value of many of their pri-
te estates ; that such petitions were not to be
reived; and whereas they mentioned prece-
nts, they ought to know that the precedents
former times were obedience, and that pre-
dents were not wanting for the punishment of
ose that disobeyed the king's command.
The loan * before mentioned was exacted with
ch rigour, that those men of estates who re-
sed to subscribe, were bound over by recog-
1 Sir Randolph Crew, chief sufficient zeal for advancing
tice, was removed from his the loan. — Rushworth.
ce because he did not show
VOL. I. F

Q6 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1626. nizance to appear at the council table; and
Many gen- many of them, as Sir John Elliot, Sir Thomas
tlemen im
prisoned. Wentworth (afterwards Earl of Strafford), Mr.
Hampden, and others, were committed to dif
ferent prisons, and which were far removed from
a.d. 1627. the counties where they lived. Such numbers
were committed, that the council table was as
much employed to provide prisons for those who
refused the loan, as to provide for the king's ne
cessities.
Public com- The clamours which were raised by the exact-
plaints. ing of this loan were increased by the manner
in which it was squandered ; for as the king
entered without due consideration into a war
with France, so the war itself was managed
with the highest imprudence, and ended with
the greatest dishonour. This, with the many
obstructions on trade, the number of ships taken,
the neglect of the merchants to build more, be
cause their ships had been pressed for the king's
service at a low rate and not paid, and other
oppressions beside, made the expectations and
call for a parliament universal.
When the resolution for calling one was taken
rewrn in counci1' warrants were sent to the different
counties to release those gentlemen who had

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 67
en imprisoned on account of the loan ; which a.d. 1627.
is a farther proof of the weakness, as well as
e injustice, of committing them. And to show
w general the sense of this was, the men who
d been imprisoned were most of them (as
ushworth says) elected " to present the peo-
3's grievances, and assert their liberties." A
fficient caution this to the king not to per-
vere in his arbitrary measures, if he had been
se and happy enough to have taken it in
aper time.
The next parliament met March 17, 1627-8, f^Jg1'
th the same dispositions which the former had ;
d unfortunately for the king, he continued*
:ewise, in the same temper. The haughtiness
his spirit, by a strange fatality, seemed to
e as the people's clamours and grievances rose ;
d the greater his necessities were, the greater
is his contempt of his subjects, as if angry
be obliged to depend upon them. At the
5t opening of the parliament, before any step
a taken which could give him any disgust,
spoke to them in a very lofty and improper
ain : " If you," says he, " as God forbid ! should
t do your duties in contributing what the state
this time needs, I must, in discharge of my
F 2

68 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1627. conscience, use those other means which God
hath put into my hands to save that which the
follies of some particular men may otherwise ha
zard to lose. Take not this as a threatening ; for
I scorn to threaten any but my equals." * Not
withstanding the king's manner of speaking to
them, the commons were not diverted from that
duty which they owed to themselves and the
public. On the 22nd of March, they opened
the business of parliament with inquiring into
the state of the nation and the public griev
ances; such as billeting of soldiers, loans by
benevolence and privy seal, and the imprison
ment of persons who refused to lend their money
as demanded, and who, notwithstanding they
brought their habeas corpus, were remanded
to prison. In the debate, Sir Edward Coke
(who had been lord chief justice) quoted a
record of the 25th of Edward the Third, which
he said was worthy to be written in letters of
gold : " That loans against the will of the sub
ject are against reason and the franchises of the
land."
a.d. 1628. The commons, determined to assert the rights
of the people, came to several resolutions with
* Journals.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 69
rd to the freedom of their persons, and the a.d. 1628.
rity of their properties. Among others, they pr0Ceed-
ii mi jy 1 'n£s °^ tne
nimously resolved, " 1 hat no tree man ought parliament.
ae detained or kept in prison, or otherwise
-ained, by the command of the king or the
y council, or any other, unless some cause
he commitment, detainer, or restraint be ex-
sed, for which by law he ought to be corn
ed, detained, or restrained." At the same
?, they showed themselves so disposed to
it the king, that they voted him a very
e supply of five subsidies, the greatest gift April 3.
the king himself acknowledged) that ever
been given in parliament. And as he was
sed with the supply itself, he was no less
sed with the manner of granting it ; for
n Secretary Coke informed him of it, he
;d, " By how many votes it was carried ?" the
etary told him, " But by one." The king
ving a concern at this, " Sir," said he, " the
se was so unanimous that they made but
voice." Before fhe supply was voted, the
r had sent the commons a message, that they
ht secure themselves in their rights and liber-
by bill or otherwise as they thought fit, and
red them that he would give way to it.

70
A.D. 1628,

LIFE OF THE
When the commons had finished their resolu
tions with regard to the liberty of the subject,
they transmitted them to the lords for their con
currence; and several members were appointed
to manage a conference concerning them. When
these resolutions were taken into consideration
by the lords, Sir Francis Ashley,19 the king's
serjeant, said, " The propositions made by the
commons tended rather to an anarchy than a
monarchy, and that they must allow the king
to govern by acts of state;" for which he was
committed to custody till he recanted. How
ever, the lords, at a conference, made some
propositions to be added to the commons' pe
tition of rights ; which the latter looked on as
an artifice to defeat it. To prevent their reso
lutions from being carried into a bill, the king
ordered the lord keeper to acquaint both houses
of parliament (when he himself was present),
" that he held the statute of Magna Charta
and the other six statutes insisted on for the sub
ject's liberty to be all in force; that he would
maintain all his subjects in the just freedom of
J9 We have already had an instance of the private character
of this worthy, which seems admirably to have corresponded
with his public principles.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 71
eir persons, and safety of their estates; and a.d. 1628.
at they should find as much security in his
ajesty's royal word and promise, as in the
¦ength of any law they could make."
The house of commons, however, appointed a
mmittee, consisting of the most eminent law-
rs, to draw up a bill concerning Magna Charta,
id the other statutes relating to the liberty of
e subject. The king, though he had before
oposed to them to secure their liberties by a
11, was so averse to this, that, on May the 1st,
; sent a message by Secretary Coke, to know
hether they would rest on his royal word de-
ired to them by the lord keeper; which mes-
ge, after a long silence among the members,
as taken up with great warmth. In the debate
was said that the subjects had suffered more, in
e violation of their ancient liberties, within a
w years, than in three hundred years before.
r Edward Coke, therefore, proposed, " that they
ould secure their liberties by a bill, which the
ng had promised to give way to;" and Sir
bomas Wentworth said, "that their desire to
ndicate the subjects' rights by bill was no more
an was laid down in former laws, with some
odest provision for instruction, performance,

72 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1628. and execution." In the midst of their delibera
tions, the king sent another message to the former
purpose, and to acquaint them that he would put
an end to the sessions of parliament in less than a
fortnight. Upon this, the house resolved upon
an answer to all his messages, which was delivered
by the speaker, setting forth, "the king's offer
to them of a bill for securing their rights and li
berties; that they had no intention to encroach
on his prerogative; and that the bounds of
their desires extended no farther than to some
necessary explanations of that which was truly
comprehended within the just sense of old
laws." The king returned an answer by the lord
keeper, in which he said, "their greatest trust
and confidence must be in his goodness; with
out which nothing they could frame would be
of safety or avail to them; that he was con
tent a bill should be drawn for a confirmation
of Magna Charta, and the six other statutes
insisted on for the subjects' liberties, but with
out additions, paraphrases, or explanations." At
the same time, his ministers, in the house of
commons, pressed the members not to lose time
by a bill, but to declare their dependence upon

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 73
e king's word : upon which so Sir Edward a.d. 1628.
ake justly said, "that general words never
ere a sufiicient satisfaction for particular griev-
ices; that the king must speak by a record,
id in particulars, and not in general ; that they
>uld not take the king's trust but in a parlia-
entary way; that is, the king sitting on his
rone in his royal robes and his crown on his
?ad in full parliament, both houses being pre-
nt. All these circumstances observed, and his
sent being entered upon record, made his royal
ord the word of a king." Therefore, he moved
at the house should, according to the custom of
eir predecessors, form a petition of right, which, Petition of
right.
:ing confirmed by both houses, and assented to
r the king, would be as valid as any act. This
is resolved on, and completed May the 8th.

0 It would be well for the fame of Sir Edward Coke if his
iduct during this reign were the only part of his political
which descended to us. We see him here as the un-
ching guardian of his country's liberties, the uncompromis-
opponent of a tyrannical court. But if we review his
ly career, his conduct as attorney-general, his cowardly vitu-
ation of Raleigh, and lastly, his quarrel with King James,
inference becomes too plain that Coke became a patriot
n interest, pique, or ambition, but certainly not from prin-

74 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1628. After reciting clauses in Magna Charta, and sta
tutes of the reigns of Edward the Third and other
kings, " that no man should be imprisoned with
out due process of law," and after mentioning
many grievances under which the people laboured,
the petition concluded, " that they do, therefore,
pray that no man hereafter be compelled to make
or yield any gift, loan, benevolence, tax, or such
like charge, without common consent by act of
parliament ; and that none be called to make an
swer, or take such oath, or to give attendance, or
be confined, or otherwise molested, concerning the
same, or for the refusal thereof; and that no free
man, in any such manner as is before mentioned,
be imprisoned or detained." The petition was
sent to the lords for their concurrence, who made
an addition of the following words, viz. " With
due regard to leave entire that sovereign power
wherewith your majesty is trusted for the protec
tion, safety, and happiness of the people." This
being strongly objected to by the commons, and
particularly the most eminent lawyers, as Sir
Edward Coke, Mr. Noy, and Mr. Selden, as like
wise by Sir Thomas Wentworth and Mr. Pym,
the lords did not insist on it, but agreed to the
petition, with two amendments of no great im-

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 75
portance, with which it passed unanimously a.d. 1628.
through the commons. It was then presented to
the king ; but his answer * was not thought full
enough, or satisfactory : and the king for some
time seemed determined not to give any other ;
for he sent a message by the speaker, " that he
resolved to abide by that answer, without further
change or alteration."
The many artifices which the king made use of
to evade the performance of his promise, and of
the offer he had himself made for securing the
people's liberties, were not only unworthy of him,
but were a fatal presage and evident cause of that
disunion which happened afterwards between him
and his subjects. As the biU of subsidies, how
ever, was not entirely completed, he would not
venture to break with the commons ; and as the
lords afterwards joined with them in address
ing the king to give a clear and satisfactory an
swer to the petition in full parliament, he went
* The answer was, " The complain of any wrong or op-
king willeth that right be pressions, contrary to their
done according to the laws just rights and liberties: to
and customs of the realm; the preservation whereof he
and that the statutes be put holds himself in conscience as
in due execution, that his sub- well obliged, as of his preroga-
jects may have no cause to tive."

strances.

76 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1628. on the 7th of June 1628, and gave his assent
As^ntfdt0 to it in these words, "Soit droit fait come il est
desir." The house of commons, upon this, proceeded
to complete the bill of subsidies. At the same
time, however, they took into consideration the
Remon- state of public affairs, and drew up a remon
strance, setting forth, that the excessive power of
Buckingham, and the abuse of that power, was
the cause of great evils and dangers to the king
and kingdom. This remonstrance being com
pleted, was ordered to be presented by the
speaker to the king; whilst, on the other hand,
the king, as if with design to thwart and oppose
the parliament in their proceedings, directed that
an order should be made in the Star-chamber,
" that, whereas an information had been exhibited
against the duke for divers great offences, the
said information, with all proceedings thereupon,
should be taken off the file, that no memory or
record thereof might remain which would tend to
the duke's disgrace;" and the only reason alleged
for this was, because the king was fully satisfied
of the duke's innocence. The commons, how
ever, proceeded to another remonstrance, import
ing that the receiving of tonnage and poundage,

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 77
d other impositions not granted by parliament, a.d. 1628.
ts a breach of the fundamental liberties of the
ngdom, and contrary to his majesty's royal
swer to the petition of rights. Whilst this was
ading in the house, the king went to the par-
ment, June the 26th, and after taking notice of
e first remonstrance and the preparing of the
^ond, and after telling them that he owed the
sount of his actions to God alone, he prorogued
3 parliament till the 20th of October ; and it
ts afterwards prorogued to the 20th of January.
l the 23rd of August, the Duke of Bucking-
m was kiUed by Felton. The same violent
sasures, however, were pursued under other
tnisters, and the same encroachments were made
the liberties of the people.
When the parliament met, January the 20th,
28-9, they immediately proceeded upon an in-
iry into the violation of the liberties of the sub-
it, and the infraction of the petition of rights.
l the other hand, the king, five days after the
ening of the parliament, sent them a pressing
issage to take the affair of tonnage and pound-
i into consideration. But the houses adhered
their original intention. Upon this, the king
teated his messages, which led the commons to

78 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1628. resolve on the following answer to him : " That
those frequent messages were inconvenient ; that
they bred debates and loss of time ; and that ton
nage and poundage arising naturally from the
house, they would in fit time take such a course
therein as they hoped would be to his majesty's
satisfaction and honour." Whilst, with the pro
per spirit of an English parliament, they were in
quiring into the public grievances both religious
and civil, the king interposed in their proceed
ings in an irregular and injudicious manner; for
a.d. when, on the 22nd of February, some ques
tions were proposed to be put by the speaker, *
he refused, saying, " he was otherwise command
ed by the king." Upon this alarming intimation
that their proceedings depended only upon the
sufferance of the crown, the house adjourned in
astonishment. They met again on the 25th,
when they were by the king's command ad
journed to the 2nd of March. At their meet
ing upon this day, the commons urged their
speaker again to put the questions; which he
again refused, saying, " I have a command from
the king to adjourn till March the 10th, and put
no question." A dissolution, however, beino- fore-
* Sir John Finch.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 79
sn, the speaker was held in the chair till a pro- a.d.
-, • 1 ! 1628"9-
station was made in the house : 
" That whosoever should bring in innovation
rehgion, or by favour or countenance seem to
:tend or introduce Popery or Arminianism, or
her opinion disagreeing from the truth and the
thodox church, should be reputed a capital
lemy to this kingdom and commonwealth :
" That whosoever should counsel or advise the
king and levying of the subsidies of tonnage
td poundage, not being granted by parliament:,
should be an actor or instrument therein, should
! likewise reputed an innovator in the govern-
ent, and a capital enemy to the kingdom and
mmonwealth :
" And if any merchant or person whatsoever
ould voluntarily yield or pay the said subsidies
tonnage and poundage, not being granted by
rliament, he should likewise be reputed a be-
lyer of the liberties of England, and an enemy
the same."
The next day after this protestation, warrants
;re directed from the council to Mr. Denzil
ollis, Sir Miles Hobart, Sir John Elliot, Sir
iter Hayman, Mr. Selden, Mr. Coriton, Mr.
mg, Mr. Stroude, and Mr. Valentine, to appear

80 LIFE OF THE
a.d. before the council. Mr. Hollis, who was son to
1628-9.
 the Earl of Clare, was asked, * wherefore, the
morning when the parliament was dissolved, he
placed himself by the chair,j above divers of the
privy counsellors. He answered, " that he took
it to be his due in any place whatsoever, unless at
the council board ; yet, finding his majesty was
now offended with him, he humbly desired that
he might rather be the subject of his mercy than
his power :" upon which the treasurer J said, " You
mean, rather of his majesty's mercy than his jus
tice." Mr. Hollis replied, " I say, of his majesty's
power, my lord." Sir John Elliot, being ques
tioned for what he had said in the house, answer
ed, " that whatsoever was said or done by him in
that place, and at that time, was performed by
him as a public man, and a member of that house;
that he was, and always would be, ready to give
an account of his sayings and doings in that place
whensoever he should be called to it by that
house, where, as he took it, he was only to be
questioned ; and in the mean time, being but a
private man, he would not trouble himself to
* Crew's Debates. who held the speaker in the
t Mr. Hollis and Mr. Va- chair.
lentine were the two members f Lord Weston.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 81
member what he said or did in that place as a a. d.
1628-9.
iblic one." 
Those of the members who appeared were com-
itted close prisoners to the Tower ; and warrants
;re issued out for sealing up the studies of Mr.
ollis, Mr. Selden, and Sir John Elliot.
These members were committed whilst the par-
tment yet was in being ; the proclamation for
ssolving it not being published till six days
ter : and as if so notorious a violation of the
ivileges of parliament, and of the petition of
rhts, so recently and solemnly granted, was not
fficient to exasperate the minds of the people,
e king, at the dissolution, contributed still far-
er towards it ; for he directed his speech only
the lords, and made such a distinction between
e conduct of the houses, and his regard for
em, as could not but be ungrateful to the com-
ans, and to the people whom they represented.
e likewise told the lords, that the other house
is governed by a few vipers among them; "and,"
concluded, " as those vipers must look for their
ward of punishment, so you, my lords, must
stly expect from me that favour and protection
at a good king oweth to his loving and faithful
ibility." VOL. I. G

82 LIFE OF THE
a.d. The king, not contented with committing the

1628-9.

members, carried his severity to a greater length,
by detaining them in prison, contrary to the laws
of the land ; for some of them being brought
upon their habeas corpus to the King's Bench,
applied by their counsel to be discharged upon
bail. The judges, who trembled at the slightest
whisper of royal displeasure, hesitated to grant
what they knew they had no right to refuse.
They remanded back the prisoners till the court
were ready to give judgment. But on the ap
pointed day the prisoners could not be produced,
having been sent to other prisons, the evening be
fore, by the king's particular warrant. The court
were glad of the excuse, and refused to deliver
their opinion in the absence of the prisoners. The
king, the day before, had sent a letter to the
judges of that bench, " that he had resolved none
of the prisoners should be brought before them
until they had given him cause to believe they
would behave themselves better.'* What still
more aggravated this conduct was, that he had
three hours before sent a letter to the judges,
wherein he consented " that Mr. Selden and Mr.
Valentine should appear before them." By these
means the members were still kept in confine
ment. What security could the people depend

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 83
for their liberties, when the king so openly a.d.
erruled the proceedings of the judges, and the  —
dges so servilely submitted to his orders !ei The
torney-general afterwards exhibited an informa-
mi against them in the King's Bench, to which
ey put in a plea to the jurisdiction of the court:
>r their offences being supposed to be done in
.rliament, they ought not to be punished but in
rliament ; and, as they would not put in any
her plea, the court gave judgment " for conti-
ling them in prison during the king's pleasure,"
d for fining some of them, particularly Sir John
lliot, in the sum of two thousand pounds. They
ere kept in prison many years, some of them
1 the writs were issued for a new parliament in
»40 ; and Sir John EUiot, who had proved him- a.d. 1629.
If an active, disinterested, and worthy member
parliament, (and therefore an obnoxious one,)
ed in the Tower*
* During his illness, he pre- severity of his imprisonment
ited several petitions that the might be relaxed ; but though

n " I was soundly chidden by his majesty /or my former vote,
d will not destroy myself for any man's sake," was the cool
)ly of Lord Finch upon the trial of Bishop Williams, when
braided for his inconsistency and ingratitude. — Hacket's Life
Williams. — Finch only avowed a motive which, with a few
ble exceptions, all the others acted upon.
G 2

84 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1629. Upon the dissolution of the parliament, the
public were highly discontented ; which appeared
in the boldness of their speeches, and their uni
versal complaints, that if a parliament were not
presently called again, all things would be un
settled and out of order ; that trading would fail,
and contests would perpetually arise about tonnage
and poundage. Hereupon the king published a
proclamation on the 27th of March, "That he
neither could nor would dispense with the duties
his father had received ; and that he should not
call a new parliament till those who had inter
rupted the last had received their condign punish
ment ; and those who were misled by them should
come to a better understanding of his majesty and
themselves."
his physicians subscribed their imminent danger, they could
opinions that it was absolutely not prevail for obtaining it.22
necessary, and his life was in

22 This case affords us another instance of the extent of that.
moderation and mercy so often attributed to Charles the First.
We learn, from Rushworth, that upon consulting the judges
he was exceedingly disappointed to find that the opposition
of these members could not be tortured into a capital offence.—
Rushworth, vol.i. — Poor Elliot's death should never be forgotten
when we speak of this man's character.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 85

CHAPTER III.
Review of King Charles's conduct continued, from the dissolu
tion ofthe parliament, March 10, 1628-9, to the meeting of
the Long Parliament.
Whilst the king was indulging his anger against a.d. 1629.
the members of the last parliament, he gave up ^ad c°n"
his quarrels with his foreign enemies ; and whilst !^rgsn
intent upon increasing his power at home, he lost
it abroad, and with it his reputation. Having
had no success against the crowns of France and
Spain, he was glad to accept of peace from them
upon any terms ; and instead of supporting the
protestants of France, as he was bound in honour
to do, he sacrificed them to the resentment of their „ ,
French
court. After having engaged them to take up §™ertednts
arms (which they had laid down but a little be
fore), and after having assured them that he would
employ all the power of his kingdom to shield
their churches from the ruin that threatened them,
(in pursuance of which they had bound them
selves by oath never to enter into any treaty
without his consent,) he left them to make the

86 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1629. best terms which they could for themselves ; to
the ruin of the protestant interest in France,
and to the dishonour of England. They had, for
the maintenance of their religion, acted with the
greatest resolution, and suffered the most extreme
hardships that men could bear. They had been
reduced, in Rochelle, during the siege of it, to
such want and misery, that for above fourteen
months they had subsisted on hides and parch
ments, and even the bones of the dead had yielded
them sustenance, until, despairing of that succour
from England which they had so long expected,
they were obliged to surrender the place in Oc
tober 1628. The Duke of Rohan, head of the
protestant party in France, not knowing that
King Charles had dissolved his parliament, im
plored his aid in behalf of the reformed churches
of France, in a letter* dated the 12th of March
* Sir, provinces that courage, or af-
Dukeof The deplorable accident of fection of opposing, by a just
w.ha^'s.i. the loss of Rochelle, which God and vigorous defence, to their
letter to the & ...
king. hath pleased to permit, to hum- unjust designs. This is that
ble us under his hand, hath re- which hath made them take
doubled in the spirit of our up a resolution, and assemble
enemies the passion which themselves together ; and to
they have for our ruin, and stand in a body amidst these
the hopes to obtain thereunto ; commotions, to assist me with
but it hath not taken away their good counsel, and provide
from those churches of the with me means for their deli-

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY.

87

28, being two days after the parliament was a.d. 1629.
ssolved. At the same time, deputies arrived
Dm the churches, to acquaint the king that, in
se he should enter into a treaty with France,
ey humbly prayed him to insist upon the capi-
lation that had been made upon his mediation,
id with regard to which he had passed his word

ranee. And because the most
werful means which God
th raised them upon earth
the aid which our churches
ve received, and do expect,
>m your majesty, the general
sembly have desired that my
[ter (which solely hitherto re-
esented unto your majesty
e interest of the public cause)
ight be joined to the most
imble supplication which they
present. I do it, sir, with so
uch the more affection, be-
.use I am witness that this
ior people breathe after your
sistance, having once laid
iwn their arms, which the
ipression of the enemy made
necessary ; and because they
lew it was your desire, took
em up again, when they
irned that your majesty
)liged them to it by your
mnsel and by your promises.
pon this sole assurance, they
ive exposed themselves to all

dangers, overcome all obstacles,
consumed their goods, and are
still ready to spill their blood,
even unto the last drop. Your
good-will they have found more
dear than their lives; and, not
withstanding the promises and
menaces which their enemies
have made use of to move
them, they have not been in
duced to make any breach of
those oaths by which they
were tied never to hearken to
any treaty but with your ma
jesty's consent. All the churches
of this kingdom, which are
linked together to an unexam
pled fidelity, are glorious ob
jects of your charity and power:
you are, sir, " defender of that
faith which they profess;" do
not suffer it to be unjustly op
pressed : you have stirred up
their affections by your royal
promises, and those sacred
words, ",that your majesty
would employ all the power

88 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1629. that the reformed churches should perform it on
their parts. This they had inviolably done, till
forces were raised and kept in forts against them,
contrary to the capitulation ; so that, at length,
they were necessitated to take up arms in their
own defence.
To the duke's letter, which was as affecting

of your kingdom to shield all
those churches from the ruin
that threatened them ;'' and
have been, next to the favour
of God, the only foundation
of their hopes : they have also
thought it to be one of the
highest crimes they could com
mit, to doubt of the perform
ance thereof. If the beginning
of their miseries hath moved
your compassion, this sad sub
ject hath increased upon them
with so much violence, that
there is nothing but your as
sistance can prevent their ab
solute destruction ; for at this
day the greatest misdemeanours
which our enemies accuse us
of, and publish, that it cannot
be expiated but with our blood,
is the imploring and hoping for
your assistance. Our goods for
this are confiscated and de
stroyed ; our farms desolate
and burnt to ashes ; our heads
exposed to the block ; our fa

milies banished; our temples
demolished ; and everywhere,
where the cruelty of our hei
nous enemies can extend, men
and women are beaten to mass
with staves. In short, the
horror and persecution we en
dure is so great, that our
words are too weak to express
them. Furthermore, we see, even
at our doors, the powerful ar
mies which only wait the time
to destroy those retiring places
that are left, and after that
banish the exercise of religion,
and massacre the faithful
throughout the kingdom. Here
upon, if I should entreat your
majesty not to abandon us, I
fear by these words to offend a
great king, so powerful and so
faithful ; but I will take upon
me the boldness, by reason of
our pressing necessities, to
supplicate your ready assist
ance to hinder our falling

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 89
d pathetic as distress and eloquence could a.d. 1629.
ake it, and to the remonstrance of the de
ities, the king returned an answer to this ef- The king's
answer.
2t : " That his majesty understands there is
intention, by the mediation of some foreign
inces, to propose a peace between the two
awns of England and France, which probably

der the strength of our ene-
ss. Your majesty need not
irch elsewhere but in your
n profound wisdom and ex-
ience to render your sue-
ir redoubtable to those that
ipise it, and advantageous
those people that expect it.
this means you will gain
s greatest glory that can be
iired ; you will free from
i and sword three hundred
msand families, which pray
God continually for your
isperity ; will preserve a
>ple whom God hath pur-
ised by his blood, and that
re kept their faith towards
d and man amidst the
atest distractions and cruel
Ferings ; will place the fide-
of your word, the reputa-
1 of your state and your
lies, in a point worthy of so
ch grandeur; and, in check-
the boldness of those who
lertake to blast it daily with

unworthy reproaches, will add
to your title that of " the re
storer of the most innocent
people in the world, and the
most inhumanly persecuted."
As to my own concerns, sir,
I make no mention to your
majesty of my interests. I
might (having the honour to
be what I am) do it without
blame as to outward appear
ance ; but it is so long since I
had consecrated them to the
use of the public, that I shall
always esteem my condition
happy enough, provided the
church be not miserable ; and
that I may have this advantage,
to be known by such occasions
which your majesty doth not
disprove of, that I am
Your Majesty's most humble
and most obedient servant,
Henry of Rohan.
At Rohan, the 12th of
March, 1628-9. {Rushworth.)

90 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1629. he may incline unto ; and therefore adviseth the
said duke, and those of the reformed religion,
timely to apply themselves to the French king,
and to get as advantageous terms for himself,
and those engaged with him, as he could pro
cure : the king further informing the duke, that
he was constrained to dissolve the parliament
which he had lately reassembled, from whom he
expected further supplies of money ; but, fail
ing thereof, he was not in a condition to con
tribute such further aid and assistance, either
by money or arms, as the Duke of Rohan, and
those that adhered unto him, might expect, and
their present necessities require ; his majesty ex
pressing his sorrow that the condition of his af
fairs were such that he could not answer his and
their expectation."
Puhiic op- Lord Clarendon accuses this last parliament of
pressions ¦*-
making unhappy assaults upon the prerogative;
though, at the same time, he says he does not
know any formed act of either house that was
not agreeable to the wisdom and justice of great
courts upon extraordinary occasions. He says
farther, that after some froward and obstinate
disturbances in trade, (which were seizing mer
chants' goods, and imprisoning their persons, for

continued.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 91
'using to pay duties not granted by parliament), a.d. 1629.
ere quickly followed so excellent a composure
roughout the whole kingdom, that the like
ace, plenty, and universal tranquillity, for ten
ars, were never enjoyed by any nation. During
ese years, however, the king governed in an
isolute manner, without a parliament. By his
vn authority, and by numberless obnoxious
ojects, he raised great sums of money. Not
ily the council and the star-chamber, but even
e courts of justice, were made use of to sup-
>rt the public oppression. Armies were main-
ined, and soldiers billeted on the people, by
der of the privy council; and those who op-
>sed this, on account of its being contrary to
iv, were committed to prison. The oppres- a.d. 1633.
ms of the ecclesiastical courts were likewise
ry great ; and many who had suffered by
ese courts, together with several ministers who
,d been ejected from their livings because they
Duld not read the declaration* for sports on a
mday, were desirous of quitting their native
* An order of session was ales and revels on Sundays.
de in Somersetshire, when Archbishop Laud complained
rd Chief Justice Richardson of this to the king : the chief
i Judge Denham were upon justice was summoned to at-
it circuit, for suppressing tend the council, where he was

92

LIFE OF THE

a.d. 1633. country. But, in order to block up the passage
" of these voluntary exiles, a proclamation23 was
published, forbidding any persons, being subsidy
men, or of their value, to pass to any of the
plantations without a licence. A proclamation
was also published, commanding the nobility,
gentry, and men of substance, except the privy
council, or those who were bound to daily at
tendance on the king, queen, and their chil-
commanded to revoke his or- gentlemen of the greatest dis-
der : the chief justice replied, tinction drew up a petition to
that the order was made at the the king, showing the great in-
request of the justices of the conveniences that would befall
peace in the county, with the the countiy, if these meetings,
general consent of the whole condemned by the law, should
bench, and upon view of divers be set up again ; but before it
ancient precedents. He was could be presented, the king
obliged, however, to go and de- published a declaration war-
clare at the next assizes the ranting sports on Sundays. —
former order revoked ; where- Rushworth.
upon the justices and many

23 This proclamation is dated May 1, 16S8. It is one of the
most important in our history. Cromwell, Hampden, Lords
Say and Brook, and Sir Arthur Haslerig, were about to seek
in America that liberty which they had struggled for in vain at
home. In a happy hour for their country this vindictive mea
sure of Laud restrained their departure. The ship was already
chartered for the voyage. How little did either the archbishop
or his master conceive, the expansive force of the spirit thus
pent up, or that it would so soon shatter their laboured fabric
of absolute power !

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 93
en, to keep their residence in their several a.d. 1633.
unties, and forbidding them to inhabit in Lon-
n, Westminster, and the places adjoining ; and
information was afterwards lodged in the star-
amber against the Earl of Clare, Lord Mohun,
d other peers, the Countess of Oxford, and
any persons of distinction, by which great fines
sre exacted for the use of the crown.
The king, as if not satisfied with having irri- The king's
ted his English parliament, treated with equal Scotland.
ughtiness his parliament in Scotland. He went
ither to be crowned in 1633 ; and when an act
as passed at that time in relation to his royal
erogative, and the apparel of kirkmen, several
the barons and burgesses suspected that, under
is last part, the surplice was intended to be
troduced. The king was asked that question,
it he made no answer. At the same time he
ak a list of the members out of his pocket,
ping, " Gentlemen, I have all your names
re, and I will know the truth this day who
11 do me service and who will not." In his
ogress, likewise, through some parts of Scot-
id, as if studious to be unpopular, he made
great a distinction between churchmen and
esbyterians, and did it in such weak and un-

94 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1633. necessary instances, as could not but give offence
" in a country where so much the greater part of
a.d. 1634. the people were presbyterians. When the pro
vosts of Powis presented plate to him, one of
them was not admitted to kiss his hand, be
cause he was not a churchman; and when the
nobility and gentry at Fife had prepared an enter
tainment for him, he refused to go to it, because
many of them were presbyterians. He after
wards endeavoured by force to establish an hier
archy, and introduce the liturgy among them :
and this drew upon him a war with that nation,
which he was not able to support.
Arbitrary As the discontinuance of parliaments in Eng-
proceedings
in England. lan(j drove the king to any resources for raising
money, it gave encouragement to every kind
stup-mo- of projectors. But of all the inventions for sup-
ney. plying the king, the writs for ship-money gave
the greatest and most general dissatisfaction. A
writ was sent in 1634 to the city of London,*
* By this, dated October 20, following, one man-of-war of
1634, they were commanded nine hundred tons, one of
and enjoined, upon their faith eight hundred, four of five
and allegiance, and under the hundred, and one of three
forfeiture of all which they hundred, furnished with men,
could forfeit, to carry to Ports- victuals, and all warlike pro-
mouth, before the 1st of March visions. — Rushworth.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 95
prepare a certain number of men-of-war for a.d. 1634.
e king's use.24 Writs, likewise, were sent into
e several counties for assessing the people ; and,
r five years together, this scheme produced two
inched thousand pounds a year. The writ was
esented by the grand jury of Northampton as
grievance ; upon which the clerk of the peace
id freemen of the jury were ordered to attend, a.d. 1639.
d give an account of their conduct ; and the
ivy council sent a letter to Sir Christopher
elverton, high sheriff of Northampton, repri-
anding him in very haughty terms for offi-
jusly sending them the petition of the grand
ry, and for representing the difficulties which
found in the execution of the king's writs.
pon the general sense which the people had
the injustice of this tax, Mr. Hampden had Mr. Hamp
den's noble
the year 1637, at his own expense, withstood conduct.
e exaction of it, by which he acquired at that
ne a great and just reputation with the pub-

14 This was only an extension of the demand that had been
de eight years before. The king had then by his own autho-
' called upon the maritime parts of his kingdom to supply
i with a fleet; he now went a step farther, and taxed the
ole of the kingdom for the ostensible purpose of building
1 maintaining one. Precedents are dangerous things in the
id of such a monarch as Charles.

96 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1639. lie; and notwithstanding the opprobrious cha
racter given him by one historian, and the insi
dious attempts of others to detract from the
merit and motives of his conduct, he has trans
mitted his name to posterity as a true asserter
of the liberties of his country, and will be held
in veneration so long as the least spark of Eng
lish freedom is cherished in the breast.
Lord cia- Lord Clarendon, speaking of the tranquillity
rendon's re- . . ... ..
presentation of the nation during this intermission of parlia-
of things,
considered, ment, says, " That for twelve years they enjoyed
the fullest measure of felicity that any people in
any age for so long time together had been bless
ed with ; yet he allows there were extraordinary
grievances. A proclamation, he admits, was pub
lished to inhibit all men to speak of another par
liament ; supplemental acts of state were made to
supply defects of laws ; tonnage and poundage,
and other duties, which the parliament had re
fused, collected by order of council ; new and
, greater impositions laid upon trade ; obsolete laws
revived and rigorously executed ; unjust projects
of all kinds, many ridiculous, many scandalous,
all very grievous, were set on foot ; and, for the
better support of these extraordinary ways, and
to protect the agents, and to discountenance and

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY.

97

ppress all bold inquirers and opposers, the a.d. 1639.
iuncil-table and star-chamber enlarged their
risdiction to a vast extent: that any disre-
iect to acts of state or to the persons * of states-
en was in no time more penal ; and those foun-

* Mr. Bellasis, Lord Fau-
nberg's son, was committed
the Gate-house for not
illing off his hat to Lord
entworth, lord president of
e north. Many instances of
traordinary severity were
own to persons who had
oken even slightly of the
rchbishop of Canterbury,
10 was jealous to the great-
t degree of his dignity, and
jnest for punishing the least
fenders against it. One re.
arkable instance was in the
3v. Mr. Lambert Osbaldston,
prebend and master of West-
inster school. He and the
shop of Lincoln were charged
' information in the star-
amber, February 14, 1638-9,
have plotted together to
vulge false news and lies,
id to breed a difference be-
reen Lord Treasurer Weston
id the archbishop. The
large was grounded upon
me passages in two letters
ritten by Mr. Osbaldston in
muary 1633-4; as for in-
VOL. I.

stance : " The jealousy grows
great and sharp between the
Leviathan and the little med
dling Hocus Pocus." And in
another letter, " My dear lord,
I cannot be quiet but I must
write to your lordship : the
sport is grown tragical ; any
thing would be given for a
sound and thorough charge to
push at, and confound the
little urchin." These letters
were found in a box in the
Bishop of Lincoln's palace at
Bugden, some years after their
being written, and at a time
when he was in the Tower :
there could be no purpose,
therefore, of divulging them.
Mr. Osbaldston denied that he
meant the treasurer and the
archbishop by those words ;
and they were applied to them
only by an innuendo. The sen
tence, however, was, that the
Bishop of Lincoln should be
fined five thousand pounds to
the king, and should pay three
thousand pounds damages to
the archbishop ; should be im-
H

98 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1639. dations of right, by which men valued their
security, to the apprehension of wise men, never
more in danger to be destroyed."
If it is true that the foundations of right were
in such danger, it was necessary for patriots to
exert themselves ; and it is evident that the op
position made by the subsequent parliaments of
a.d. 1640. April and November 1640, proceeded from an
honest zeal and firm resolution to strengthen those
foundations, to prop the bulwarks of the consti-
prisoned during the king's ears nailed to the pillory. Mr.
pleasure, and make his sub- Osbaldston, who stood in a
mission : That Mr. Osbaldston crowd in the court during the
should be fined five thousand trial, when he found what cen-
pounds to the king, should pay sure would be passed upon
five thousand pounds damages him, went away immediately
to the archbishop, should be to his own house, and there
deprived of all spiritual digni- left the following note on a
ties and promotions, should be desk : " If the archbishop in-
imprisoned during the king's quire after me, tell him I am
pleasure, and make his submis- gone beyond Canterbury :"
sion: that he should stand in whereupon messengers were
the pillory in Dean's Yard be- sent to the port towns to ap-
fore his own school, with his prehend him ; but he lay hid

25 Laud had established a most efficient censorship of the
press. Selden was bold enough to publish his elaborate treatise
upon tithes during the archbishop's day of power. In this
work he treats the divine origin claimed for that institution
with very little ceremony; but the high commission court
soon convinced him of his error, and Selden made haste to re
tract his heretical tenet.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 99
tion, and to revive the dying laws of their a.d.1640.
untry. It is as certain that the composure on
rich Lord Clarendon expatiates, was a silent,
oomy submission to the arbitrary power of the
urt, a power which few individuals could ven-
re to withstand.
The king had no better success in his war Meeting of
parliament.
ainst the Scotch than he had in those against
ranee and Spain. He found it necessary to raise
other army ; he was in the greatest distress for
oney, and the revenue of the crown was antici-

a private house till the
rliament met in November
40. 2s — Rushworth.
At a tavern in Chancery-
le, some young gentlemen
Lincoln's Inn were drinking
toast, which a drawer who
;ended them informed the
dibishop was to his confu-
n ; whereupon his grace pro-
red a warrant to a messenger
bring them before the coun-
, A little before the time of
:ir appearance, they applied
jmselves to the Earl of Dor-
; to stand their friend ; and
tnowledged their unadvised-
3s in drinking a rash toast.
e earl asked who was the
;ness against them ; they
swered, one of the drawers :

" where did he stand," said the
earl, "when he heard you drink
the toast ?" they replied, at the
door going out of the room.
"Tush," said he, "the drawer
was mistaken ; you drank to the
confusion of the archbishop's
foes, and he heard only the first
part of the words." This hinted
to the gentlemen a proper ex
cuse, which they did not think
of before. Lord Dorset, how
ever, advised them to carry
themselves with all humility
and respect when they were
called in before the king and
council. They followed his ad
vice, and by this means, and
the favour of Lord Dorset and
others, received only a reproof,
and so were dismissed.
H 2

100 LIFE 0F THE
a.d. 1640. pated. These exigences at last obliged him to
call a new parliament ; though " those meetings,"
Lord Clarendon says, " had been of late attended
with some disorders, the effect of mutinous
spirits."* The parliament met April 13, 1640, in
a disposition, and with a resolution, to set forth
and redress the numerous public grievances that
existed both in church and state. Petitions f
were presented from several counties by the
knights of shires, complaining of ship-money,
projects, monopolies, the star-chamber, high com
mission courts, and other oppressions. Not one
of the members offered to deny or justify these
things. The sense of the house concurred with
the petitioners. The members seemed deter
mined to make a thorough inquiry into the na
tional evils, with regard to the liberty and pro
perty of the subject, the privileges of parliament,
and innovations in matters of religion. The
do""^ bishops, £ at the very beginning of this reign,
the clergy. * These were Mr. Hollis, Sir Lord Capel, was the first who
John Elliot, Mr. Selden, Sir presented a petition, which
Edward Coke, and some of the was from tne county of Hert.
most eminent lawyers of the ford ; and Mr. Grimston opened
kingdom, who had exerted the debates upon the petitions.
themselves in defence of the  Rushworth
liberties of the subject. + jy[,._ Locke.
t Arthur Capel, afterwards

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 101
nied that they held their jurisdiction from the a.d.1640.
ng, declaring that they held it from God alone ;
hilst, at the same time, the divine right of
onarchy, the king's absolute power and inde-
mdence of his parliament, were the avowed and
vourite doctrines of many of the dignified
srgy, not only at court and in the country, but
the universities, where the venom was likely
be yet more fatal by poisoning the minds of
e youth committed to their care. Mr. Pym
ought before the house at this time a paper,
ntaining many scandalous assertions made by
r. Beale, master of St. John's in Cambridge, in
s sermon preached at St. Mary's, March 27,
135, viz.
1st. That the king might constitute laws, when,
lere, and against whom he pleased.
2dly. That parliaments serve kings as men do
es, a bit and a blow ; give him a subsidy, and
ie away two or three of his prerogatives.
3dly. That ministers silenced for not reading
e book of recreation, and the king's declaration,
i advanced, and these calves are worshipped
en from Dan to Beersheba.
4thly. That tonnage and poundage are the
lg's as absolutely as his crown, defend he the

102 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1610. seas or not ; so are also our goods, ourselves, our
wives and children, and he may call for his own
when he will.
5thly. That the king can of himself make laws
to bind the conscience.
Doctrines like these had before been publicly
avowed by Sibthorpe, Manwaring, and others.
Manwaring, in particular, in a sermon preached
before the king soon after his coming to the
crown, and which was afterwards published,
maintained, " That the king's royal will and
pleasure in imposing laws and taxes, without the
consent of parliament, did oblige the subject's
conscience upon pain of eternal damnation; and
that the authority of parliament was not necessary
for raising aids and subsidies." Lord Clarendon
mentions, in a very slight and cursory manner,
these doctrines, and the clamours occasioned by
them. He says, "The indiscretion and folly of one
sermon at Whitehall was more bruited abroad,
and commented upon, than the wisdom, sobriety,
and devotion of an hundred ;" which he imputes,
as he does all the distraction of those times, to the
perverseness of the people, " who wanted a sense,
acknowledgment, and value of their own hap
piness." The true reason, however, why these

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 103
ictrines were so generally exclaimed against, was a.d. 1640.
cause they were patronised by the court, which
mished* those who opposed them, and rewarded")*
ch as maintained them. Add to this, that they
-operated with the many courts of oppression
supporting an absolute power, confirmed the
ng in his arbitrary maxims, and probably had
ggested many of them to him. To these doc-
ines, therefore, and the authors of them, if we

* Archbishop Abbot refused
license a sermon of Dr.
othorpe's, intitled Apostolical
aedience, preached before
e judges at Northampton;
which he had asserted the
ng's power of raising money
r his own authority. The
ng pressed the archbishop,
' several messages, to license
e sermon, and sent him word,
that if he did not despatch it,
: would take another course
th him." The archbishop
irsisting in his refusal, was
questered from his office.
commission was granted to
ishop Laud, and four other
shops, to execute the archi-
liscopal jurisdiction, and the
chbishop died during the se-
lestration. t Dr. Manwaring, upon an

accusation sent up by the
house of commons to the
house of lords, in the parlia
ment of 1628, received judg
ment, that for his offence he
should he suspended for the
term of three years from the
exercise of his function, and
should be disabled from hav
ing thereafter any ecclesias
tical dignity: and the lords
resolved to address the king
to call in the said sermon by
proclamation. A proclamation
was published, but the doctor
immediately after received a
pardon from the king,was made
rector of Stamford Rivers in
Essex, which he had a dispen
sation to hold with the rectory
of St. Giles's in the Fields; and
was soon after made bishop
of St. David's.

104 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1640. trace back events, as we ought to do, to their first
~ causes, must the king's subsequent misfortunes be
chiefly imputed.
Proceed- Whilst the commons directed their attention to
ings of the
parliament, the preservation of their country's liberties and
the redress of public grievances, the king fixed
his only upon his own necessities ; nor did there
appear in him any sincere design of listening to
the nation's complaints. At his desire, the lords
came to a vote, " That his majesty's supply should
have precedency before any other matter in con
sideration whatsoever;" and therefore desired a
conference with the commons, to let them know
their reasons for the same. The commons imme
diately resented this, and resolved, that the lords
proposing a supply, and a time for them to pro
ceed upon it, was a breach of their privileges. At
a conference which ensued upon this occasion,
they insisted upon a reparation, and that the lords
should not, for the future, take notice of any
thing debated by them till they should think
proper to declare it to their house. In the mean
time they proceeded with great spirit and appli
cation upon the great task they had undertaken,
and evinced a serious purpose to repel every en
croachment of the crown. While they were

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 105
bating upon the bringing up of a report made a.d. 1640.
Mr. Maynard concerning ship-money, the
:ds sent to desire another conference : the house
is divided whether to yield to it or no ; and, by
majority of above a hundred votes, the commons
solved not to postpone the consideration of the
and business of ship-money for the conference.
d induce the lords, however, to join with them
a representation of their grievances to the king,
ey came to several resolutions, which a com-
ittee was appointed to offer to the lords . at a
nference. The king, finding this disposition in
e commons, sent a message to them by Sir
enry Vane, to quicken the supply ; which he
peated two days afterwards. He told them,
That upon their granting twelve subsidies, to
presently passed, and to be paid in three years,
•ith a proviso that it should not determine the
ssions,) his majesty would not only for the pre-
nt forbear the levying any ship-money, but
juld give way to the utter abolishing of it
' any course which themselves should like best;
d for their grievances, he would give them as
uch time as might be, now, and the next Mi-
aelmas." Though a proviso was proposed by the king to

106 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1640. be added to the subsidy bill, that this should not
determine the sessions, yet the asking such a sup
ply for three years, before any grievances were re
dressed, was a sufficient intimation that they could
not afterwards depend upon a long continuation
of the present parliament ; nor until the twelve
subsidies were spent, and the three years expired,
could they hope for the meeting of a new one.
The commons immediately took the message into
consideration, and the day was consumed in de
bate. Upon adjourning, they desired Sir Henry
Vane to acquaint the king that they intended
the next day to proceed in the farther considera
tion thereof. They met at the usual hour,26 but
the speaker did not attend ; for Secretary Winde-
bank went early to his house, and, according to
command, carried him to Whitehall ; and about
eleven o'clock that day (the 5th of May) the
commons were sent for to attend the king, and
Parliament the parliament was dissolved. The king affected,
dissolved. as usual, to make a distinction between the houses,
for he addressed himself only to the lords, passing
many encomiums on their conduct, and using

26 The houses then usually met at eight o'clock in the morn
ing, and adjourned at twelve ; but during these debates they
continued sitting until six in the afternoon.— Clarendon.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 107
reproachful language towards the com- a.d. 1640.
s.
ord Clarendon acknowledges, "that it could
;r be hoped that more sober and dispassionate
would ever meet together in that place, or
;r who brought ill purposes with them ;" and
ne could imagine what offence they had given,
:h put the king upon the resolution of dis-
ng them. The leaders of this parliament
i, however, the leaders in the subsequent one;
r conduct was the same, as were likewise
* complaints.* *
Lmong the members of the these, Selden had been in
ment in November 1640, several of the former parlia-
were no eminent ones ments, had exerted himself
cere not in that of April, strenuously for the subject's
t Sir John Clotworthy, liberties, and had been im-
s. Jeoffry Palmer, Selden, prisoned on that account.
w, and Whitlocke; of

t was, however, much doubted by the leaders of the
ir party, whether this house was sufficiently resolute for
lergency. Clarendon says, that, within an hour after the
ution, he met Mr. St. John, " who had naturally a great
in his face, and was very seldom known to smile." St. John
, time, however, appeared remarkably cheerful, and to
yde's lamentations upon the unseasonable dismissal of
ise parliament, replied that " all was well, and it must be
before it could be better ; this parliament could never
lone what was necessary to be done." — Clarendon, vol. i.

108 . LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1640. The king, though he found his necessities so
Arbitrary great, and the nation in convulsion, did not recede
measures °
continued. fYOm any part of his former conduct; but, as
if he made it a point of honour to act in every
instance in defiance of his people, he continued
steadfastly to pursue all those measures against
which the commons had declared themselves.
During their short session the house had come
to several resolutions which they had offered to
the lords at a conference. Among other things
they had resolved, " That one head of the confer
ence should be the complaints that had been made
concerning the punishing of men out of parlia
ment for things done in parliament, in breach of
their privileges." The very next day after the
dissolution, Lord Brooke's study, cabinet, and

p. 218. The gloomy republican was probably right ; it appears
doubtful whether this house would even have had the courage
to enter upon their journals a formal protest against the levying
of ship-money. In their opinions upon the illegality of this
impost, they certainly showed themselves nearly unanimous,
and they proposed it as one of the points of conference with
the lords ; but a distinct resolution upon this subject was what
Clarendon thought the popular leaders would not have had the
confidence to attempt, nor the credit to compass. This histo
rian's praise is certainly a good ground for suspicion. But the
conduct of the king overcame every loyal scruple. The next
parliament lost all awe of the regal spoliator.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 109
ckets were searched for papers : Mr. Bellasis, a.d. 1640.
light of the shire for Yorkshire, and Sir John
otham, were summoned before the council, the
ng being present ; and, having been examined
ncerning some transactions in parliament, they
3re committed to the Fleet. Mr. Crew (after-
irds Lord Crew) was required several times by
e king to deliver up all petitions, papers, and
mplaints which he had received whilst he was
airman in the committee for religion. Mr.
rew, being unwilling to discover the names of
bscribers to petitions complaining of innova-
>ns, refused to deliver them ; and was therefore
mmitted close prisoner to the Tower, where he
ntinued till near the meeting of the parliament
November following.
The commons had likewise resolved, " That,
the conference with the lords, there should be
protestation and saving made to preserve and
:ep entire the rights of the commons not to
t bound by any canons that were or should be
ade upon any commission granted to the con-
•cation, without their consent in parliament."
he convocation, however, which used to end
ith the parliament, was by a new writ continu-
under the name of a synod ; and sat till the

110

LIFE OF THE

a.d.1640. 29th of May. Seventeen new canons were
made by them ; the first of which supported
the doctrines of implicit and passive obedience,
and declared monarchy to be of divine right.
Another of the canons enjoined an oath * to be
taken, which was chiefly intended for the estab
hshment of the hierarchy. These canons were
confirmed by the king under the great seal. The
synod, likewise, granted six subsidies, to be paid
by the clergy in six years, with a penalty to be
imposed upon the refusers, viz. that these should

* Lord Clarendon says, " this
synod gave subsidies out of
parliament, and enjoined oaths,
which certainly it might not
do." Lord Digby, speaking ofthe
convocation, in his speech in
the following parliament, says,
" What good Christian can
think with patience on such an
ensnaring oath as that which
is by the new canons enjoined
to be taken by all ministers,
lawyers, physicians, and gra
duates in the universities ;
where, besides swearing such
an impertinence as that things
necessary to salvation are con
tained in discipline ; besides
swearing those to be of divine
right, which amongst the

learned were never pretended
to as the arch things in our
hierarchy ; besides tbe swear
ing not to consent to the
change of that which the state
may in great reason think fit
to alter ; besides the bottom
less perjury of an etcsetera ; all
this men must swear that they
swear freely and voluntarily,
what they are compelled unto ;
and lastly, that they take
that oath in the literal sense,
whereof no two of the makers
themselves, that I have heard
of, could ever agree in the un
derstanding." Dr. Goodman, bishop of
Gloucester, refusing to sub
scribe this oath, was suspend
ed till he submitted.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. Ill
deprived of their functions, and should be a.d. i64o.
communicated.The commons had resolved, " That the com-
lints which had been made by petitions from
e several counties concerning military charges,
z. coat and conduct money, wages and arms
ken from the owners, forcing the country to
ty and provide, at their charges, horses and carts
way of tax, should be made a branch of the
nference." Two days after the parliament was
ssolved, letters were sent from the privy council
the lords lieutenants of counties, to return the
mes of the principal men of the several counties
10 refused to pay coat and conduct money for
e men to be levied there ; and to commit to
ison those who should refuse to receive prest
>ney. A letter was, likewise, sent to the lord
iyor of London to levy four thousand foot for
2 expedition against the Scotch, and for pro-
ling coat and conduct money for them.
The commons had also resolved, " That the
mplaints which had been made by several peti-
ns from the counties, relating to ship-money,
suld be a subject of the conference." Two days
;er the dissolution, an order was made by the
lg and council, that a round course should be

112 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1640. taken with the high sheriffs of counties who had
been negligent in the execution of the writs for
ship-money ; and the attorney -general was order
ed to proceed in the star-chamber against the lord
mayor, and sheriffs of London and Middlesex, for
not distraining against persons according to the
said writs ; as, likewise, against the high sheriffs
of York, Berks, Surrey, Leicester, Essex, North
ampton, and Suffolk. And letters Avere sent to
the sheriffs of all the other counties, requiring
them to pay in at least one half of the money-
payable by their several counties by the last day
of that month, and the other half by the 24th
of June following; or they must expect to
feel the smart and punishment due to their re
missness.
General The dissolution of the parliament before any-
thegpeopie. thing had been done to satisfy the people, when
nothing had been done to irritate the king, when
the parliament had sat so short a time after so
long an intermission, occasioned an universal con
cern and astonishment; an astonishment which
was immediately converted into anger, when
the public saw the king persist in his former
measures. This spirit soon broke out in com
plaints and murmurs against his ministers. Lord

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 113
larendon, however, observes, " that in less than a.d. 1640.
ree weeks after the dissolution, by the volun- ~
ry loan of the particular lords of the council, and
' other private gentlemen about the city, some
lating to the court, and others strangers to it,
lere was no less than three hundred thousand
)unds paid into the exchequer, to be issued out
his majesty should direct, which was an unan
swerable evidence that the hearts of his subjects
ere not then alienated from their duty to the
ing, or a just jealousy for his honour." This
an was so far from being a voluntary one, that
lere was an order for the lord mayor and all the
dermen of the city of London to meet, and set
awn in writing the names of all such persons,
ihabitants within their respective wards, as they
mceived were able to lend the king upon secu-
ty the sum of two hundred thousand pounds,
id to set down how much, in their opinion,
/ery person was able to lend towards the said
im ; and four of the aldermen who refused to
it down the names of persons as ordered, were,
y warrants dated May the 10th, committed to
ifferent prisons, viz. Alderman Soanes to the
'leet, Alderman Atkyns to the King's Bench,
ir Nicholas Rainten to the Marshalsea, and
VOL. I. I

114 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1640. Alderman Geere to the Gatehouse; and the at
torney-general was ordered to proceed against
them in the star-chamber.
violent The king, to satisfy his necessities, chose to
methods of
raising have recourse to any violent methods rather than
money. recede from his unconstitutional demands, and
receive supplies from his people. The expedients
to which he was now driven were all of them un
justifiable, and some of them contemptible. He
seized the bullion in the mint, which was brought
from abroad to be coined there. This gave a
great alarm to the Spanish merchants and others,
who alleged that it would for ever after prevent
the bringing of bullion into the Tower; and
would prove of great prejudice to the king's
reputation, and to the public, by the loss of the
coinage. To gain a little ready money, he bought
all the pepper lying under the Old Exchange
upon trust, and sold it out at a much less value.
It was proposed in council to debase the coin by
mixing copper with the silver, and to coin three
hundred thousand pounds, of which the fourth
part only should be silver, and the other should
be copper ; and that this should be current money
to pay the army, which was marching to New
castle against the Scotch.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY 115
he Scotch army, at the latter end of August, a.d. i64o.
ired into England, upon a certain knowledge
he general discontent of the people, and upon
pposed invitation from several of the English
ility. Lord Saville, afterwards Earl of Sussex,
written a letter,* which he had subscribed
self, and to which, at the same time, he had
ed the forged names of twelve or fourteen of
most eminent among the Enghsh nobility, to
te and encourage that army to enter into
sdand. This letter was sent into Scotland by
Henry Darleyf, who remained there as
nt from the said English lords, until he had
led his point. When the Enghsh and Scotch
Is met together, the letter caused great dis-
es among them; and at last, Lord Saville,
lg reconciled to the court, confessed to the
% the whole affair. a8
Lord Shaftesbury's manu- mitted close prisoner to the
t- castle at York. — Rushworth.
He was afterwards com-

This accusation against Lord Saville before rested upon the
arity of Nalson (vol. ii. p. 428) and Clarendon (vol. ii. p.
. The former, indeed, gives a very circumstantial account
le discovery ofthe fraud, and ofthe erasure of the forged
;s; and he adds a ridiculous story that, upon discovering the
sry, the Scots were about to retreat tp their own country,
I 2

116 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1640. The English army, which was so expensive to
Temper of tne king, and so burthensome * to the subject,
the English b J '
army. proved of no service. They allowed themselves
to be routed by the Scotch at Newborne upon
Tyne in a dishonourable manner; and openly
imputed their defeat to a dissatisfaction with the
cause for which they fought. Many of the
officers and private soldiers, in their march to the
rendezvous, did not hesitate to declare their dis
like for the war, and that they would not fight
to maintain the pride and power of the bishops;
* A petition, signed by a king's commands about his
great number of the principal military affairs ; and complain-
gentlemen of Yorkshire, as- ing of the oppressions of billet-
sembled at the assizes at York, ing of soldiers upon them.
July 28, 1640, was presented When this petition was taken
to the king, setting forth that, into consideration by the coun-
to their great impoverishment, cil, Lord Strafford said it
they had expended the year seemed to be a mutinous peti-
before a hundred thousand tion.
pounds in the execution of the

and throw themselves upon the king's mercy. Both these
authors were too staunch royalists to canvass very strictly any
story told to the disadvantage of Lord Saville ; and great doubt
was thrown upon their assertion, by the absence of all allusion
to such a letter in any of the published correspondence ofthe
period. The commission and discovery of a fraud of so great
importance appeared to be affairs of too much magnitude to be
passed over in silence. To Lord Shaftesbury, however, the ob
jections made against Nalson and Clarendon do not apply.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 117
solution which, if we may judge from the ill a.d. 1640.
ess that afterwards happened, seems to have
1 seriously formed and acted upon.
his dissatisfaction did not appear only in Petition of
several
army. A petition, * subscribed by the Earls lords.
Bedford, Essex, Hertford, Warwick, Bristol,
Mulgrave, by Lord Say and Seal, Lord Ed-
d Howard, Lord Bolingbroke, Lord Man-
ille, Lord Brooke, and Lord Paget, was sent
he king. The petition f consisted of seven
2les.'irstly. The war with Scotland, whereby the
y's revenue was much wasted, his subjects
thened with coat and conduct money, billeting
oldiers, and other military charges ; and divers
nes and disorders committed by the soldiers,
the whole kingdom become full of fear and
ontent.econdly. The sundry innovations in matters
eligion ; the oath and canons lately imposed
n the clergy, and others his majesty's subjects.
The thanks of the house the honour of the petitioners,
Dmmons, and likewise of their petition should be re-
louse of lords, were order- corded in their journals, and
n the subsequent pariia- should be esteemed as the act
; to be given to these peers of that house.
tiis petition ; and the lords t Whitlocke, p. 34. Parr
irliament resolved that, for. liam. Hist. v. viii. p. 491.

118 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1640. Thirdly. The great increase of popery, and
employing of popish recusants, and others ill
affected to the religion by law established, in
places of power and trust, and especiaUy in the
commanding of men and arms, both in the field
and divers counties in the realm.
Fourthly. The great mischief which might
fall upon this kingdom if the intentions, which
had been credibly reported, of bringing in of Irish
forces should take effect.
Fifthly. The urging of ship-money, and prose
cution of some sheriffs in the star-chamber for not
levying of it.
Sixthly. The heavy charges of merchandise, to
the discouragement of trade; the multitude of
monopolies and other patents, whereby the com
modities and manufactures of the kingdom are
much burthened, to the great and universal griev
ance of the people.
Seventhly. The great grief of the subjects by
the intermission of parliaments ; in the late and
former dissolving of such as had been called ; with
the hopeful effects which, otherwise, they might
have procured.
For a remedy of which grievances, they be
sought the king to summon a parliament within

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 119
>me short and convenient time; whereby the a.d.1640
iuse of these and other great grievances might
i taken away, the authors and counsellers of
lem be brought to such legal trial and condign
unishment as the nature of the offence required,
id the war be composed without bloodshed, in
ich a manner as might conduce to the honour
id safety of his majesty's person, the content of
s people, and the continuance of both his king-
)ms against the common enemy of the reformed
ligion. This petition was dated August the 28th, 1640,
id was presented to the king, at York, by Lord
andeville and Lord Edward Howard. * The
ng immediately called a cabinet council, wherein
e petition was declared to be mutinous, and it
is resolved to proceed against those two lords
r mutiny. When the council was up, and the
ng gone, Duke Hamilton, remaining behind
tth tbe Earl of Strafford, asked him " whether
was sure the army would stand by them ?"
jrd Strafford, in a surprise, answered, " he was
raid not, and protested he did not think of that
fore." The duke replied, " If we are not sure
the army, our heads may be in danger in-
* Lord Shaftesbury's manuscript.

120 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1640. stead of theirs ;" whereupon they both agreed
to go to the king, and the resolution was laid
aside.
cityofLon- The city of London, likewise, resolved to pre-
don sends a •> x
thesam'0 sen^ a petition to the same purpose, which the
purpose. privy council being informed of, wrote a letter,
dated September the 11th, to the lord mayor
and aldermen to prevent it ; but, notwithstand
ing this, the city persisted, and sent some of the
aldermen and common council to the king at
York to present their petition. The wishes of
the nation were as fervent as they were general
for a new parliament, and for putting an end
to the ,*War with the Scotch. When the king
called the Yorkshire gentry together^ Septem
ber the 10th, and proposed to them that they
should pay the train-bands for two months, they
took the proposition into immediate considera
tion ; and the next day delivered an answer,
SuTstlarfre~ ^at tnev nac* agreed to the payment ; but, at the
Yorkshire same time, they beseeched the king to consider
how to compose the difference with the Scotch,
that the country might enjoy peace, and not
run more and more into danger; and they de
sired him to think of summoning a parliament,
the only way to confirm a peace betwixt both

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 121
kingdoms. They proposed to the Earl of Straf- a.d. 1640.
ford to present their answer to the king ; but
he desiring them to leave out their advice
about calling a parliament, they refused to do
this, and therefore delivered their answer them
selves.

122 LIFE OF THE

CHAPTER IV.
Summary view of Charles the First's reign continued, till the
time when Sir Anthony Ashley Cooper began to distinguish
himself in the management of public affairs .
a.d. 1640. The king now laboured under the greatest diffi-
Meetingof culties. He could no longer struggle with or
parliament, supply his wants : his own army was discon
tented, and the Scotch army successful; while
both of them were very burthensome to the
public. He was, therefore, obliged to give way
to the universal call of the nation, and to sum
mon a parliament. This parliament met on the
3rd of November 1640. Petitions relating to
grievances were immediately presented to the
commons from every part of the country ; and
these petitions were so numerous, that the whole
house was divided and subdivided into above
forty committees to hear and examine them.
The canons and constitutions made by the con
vocation were condemned by the unanimous

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 123
ice of the house, as containing in them mat- a.d. 1640
•s repugnant to the king's prerogative, to the Spirited
proceedings
ndamental laws and statutes of the realm, to of the par
liament.
e rights of parliament, to the property and
>erty of the subjects, and tending to sedition.
The writs for ship-money, and the extra-judi-
al opinions of the judges concerning it, were
30 unanimously condemned, as being con-
ary to the laws of the realm, the right of pro-
jrty, the liberty of the subject, to former reso-
tions in parliament, and the petition of rights.
No one was at this time more forward, or ve- zeaiofMr;Hyde.
;ment in representing the public grievances,
ian Mr. Hyde, who was afterwards Earl of
Larendon. In his impeachment of three of the
dges,* he said, " the great resolution in ship-
oney was a crime of a prodigious nature ;"
* Though the judges had manner and by whom, to give
en highly criminal in sup- any opinion or judgment cou
rting the arbitrary conduct cerning ship-money.
the court, those were much It is apparent, likewise, that
ore so who had obliged them the judges had not gone such
it by threats or solicitations, lengths in sacrificing the laws
r. Hyde was one of a com- as had been expected and in-
ttee who were appointed sisted on. For when Felton,
scember the 7th, to go who had stabbed the Duke
rthwith to the judges, to of Buckingham in 1628, was
iow how they were threat- brought before the council,
ed or solicited, and in what and pressed to acknowledge

124 LIFE OF THE
a.d.1640. and he set forth the state of the public in a
" different light from what it appears in his his
tory. Instead of that " plenty and felicity"
which he there describes, he said to the lords,
that " the peace of this island had been shaken
and frightened into tumults and commotions,
into the poverty, though not into the rage, of
war, as a people prepared for destruction and
desolation :" and " it is no marvel than an ir
regular, extravagant, arbitrary power, like a tor
rent, hath broke in upon us, when our banks
and our bulwarks, the laws, were in the custody
of such persons."

who advised him to commit
such a bloody fact, and if the
puritans had no hand therein ;
he denied (as he did to the
last) that they had, or that
any person knew of his inten
tions. Laud (then bishop of
London) told him, " if he would
not confess, he must go to the
rack :'' Felton replied, " if it
must be so, he could not tell
whom he might name in the
extremity of torture ; and if
what he should say then, must
go for truth, he could not tell
whether he might not name
his lordship, or any others of
the council ; for torture might
draw unexpected things from

him." The king, upon this,
ordered the opinion of the
judges to be taken, whether
Felton might be racked ; and,
on November 14, 1628, being
assembled together in Ser
jeants' Inn, they agreed that
no such punishmentwas known
or allowed by the law. When
Felton was sentenced to death,
he offered his hand that did
the fact to be cut off ; but the
court said, they could not in
flict that punishment. The
king, however, sent to the
judges to desire that his hand
might be cut off before execu
tion ; but the court answered,
that it could not be.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 125
The commons, upon the grounds of the peti- a.d. i64o.
>ns presented to them, proceeded with vigour The king's
ministers
an inquiry into the conduct of the ministers. prosecuted.
3rd Keeper Finch, and Sir Francis Windebank,
cretary of state, a noted papist, fled into fe
ign parts ; but the Earl of Strafford, who trust-
, though unwillingly, to the king's power to
otect him, was soon brought to the scaffold. He
,d at first been as loud in complaints, and as
alous for rectifying the disorders of the nation,
any man ; but he afterwards deserted the po-
ilar party, and became as forward a supporter of
e arbitrary proceedings of the crown. Though Earl 0f
'. was prosecuted by the commons, and fell under beheaded.
i act of attainder, he more properly fell a victim
his enemies* at court ; for he might have been
* Though the Earl of Straf- instrument; and he declared
d was the only one that, for afterwards, in a letter from
ne years, suffered death un- France, that, in his protection
r the prosecution of the of popish priests, he had acted
nmons, (for Archbishop by orders. It is remarkable,
ud was not beheaded till also, that Mr. Hyde (Lord Cla-
44,) Lord Clarendon charges rendon) carried up a message
>m, at the beginning of this to the lords after the trial, that
rliament, with having an Lord Strafford intended to
petite for blood. At the escape from the Tower, and
ne time, he intimates that desired his guard might be
cretary Windebank ought to strengthened, and that he
re suffered death likewise ; might be kept in close con-
lugh it is evident that the finement. — Rushworth.
iretary was but an under

Remarks
on the
king's con
duct.

126 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1640. preserved if the king had not been overruled by
these, and if he had strictly adhered to the advice
of Mr: Holies.*
It is an observation frequently made, that
King Charles lost his power by giving up Lord
Strafford to the parliament ; an observation which
appears calculated to ensure the safety of suc
ceeding ministers, by encouraging their masters
to support them at any rate. But the truth of
the case is, that the king had it not in his power
openly to protect the Earl of Strafford, without a
breach with his parliament, which, considering his
necessities, would have been too hazardous an at
tempt. It is evident, that the loss of his power
should be reaUy dated from the period in which
he lost the confidence of his people. It was not
owing to his making concessions, but to his not
making them in time. By the tenacity with
which he clung to every abuse and every usurpa
tion, he showed that each concession was dictated
by a sense of weakness to resist his subjects, not
by a feeling of affection for them.
* Bishop Burnet has given peared) has related the same
a relation of this from Lord with no material alterations,
Holies. Mr. Stringer (who and says, he had often heard
died in 1702, many years be- it from Lord Holies.
fore the bishop's history ap-

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 127
The jealousy and distrust which the people had a.d.1640.
tertained of the king, and which his principles
d conduct had too deeply implanted in their
inds, were the real foundation of his misfor-
nes ; they rendered all his endeavours to satisfy
e nation ineffectual, and they deprived even his
rtues of their efficacy. That adherence to his
inciples, which, in a just cause, would have
>peared firmness of mind, in an unjust one
;served no other name than obstinacy. The
ing believed that he held his crown by a divine
ght, and that the people owed him a passive
aedience. He must, therefore, think that they
>uld not limit his power ; that he was superior
) the laws ; and that he might dispense with
lese as he might think proper. This the clergy
:ught ; and what they maintained he had a right
• do, the king unfortunately showed he was
solved to do. The parliament, however, were
maUy resolved ; besides the acts for the attain-
zr of the Earl of Strafford, they prepared several
ws for redressing the public grievances : to these
le king readily gave his assent ; and, among
;hers, to an act for triennial parliaments, an act
»r granting the king a subsidy of tonnage and
Dundage, and an act for declaring void the late

128 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1640. proceedings touching ship-money. * These acts
had an immediate and universal influence in com
posing the troubles and restoring the quiet of the
nation.29 If the king had properly considered his own
interest, as connected with that of the public ; if
he had not thought himself entitled to an unli
mited authority ; here was a happy opportunity
for him to have concluded all differences with his
parliament : with the exceptions of the act for
Lord Strafford's attainder, (which was owing to a
resentment for his having so shamefully abandoned
•*" Lord Clarendon says, judges for giving the said
" The king's giving his assent judgment ; which, with great
to this bill, was a frank depar- acrimony, he called a crime of
ture from a right vindicated by a prodigious nature, and in par-
a judgment in the exchequer ticular, he said, " the demand-
chamber ;" yet he himself im- ing of ship-money was against
peached, at the bar of the Magna Charta."
house of lords, three of the

z9 The royal assent was not very readily obtained for these
bills. They were presented together with a poll bill, and bills
for the abolition of the court of star-chamber, the high commis
sion, and several other courts. But while Charles gave an im
mediate assent to the poll bill, he affected to pay no attention
whatever to the others. The murmurs, however, which this con
duct excited quickly caused him to pass these also. As usual,
the concession was resisted just long enough to render it un
gracious.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 129
cause of liberty, for which he had origin- a.d. 1640.
been an advocate and sufferer,) and the bill
continuing the parliament, (for which the fre-
nt and abrupt dissolutions had furnished a
,,) none of the laws now passed had the least
jarance of violence, or have been since com-
ned of. They were all just, salutary, and con-
ltional. Though they preserved the rights of
people, they did not interfere with the inter-
af the crown. The parliament had hitherto a.d. i64i.
;eeded with zeal for the constitution, without
jgating from the honour of the king, or offer-
him any personal indignity.
'hat marvellous calm, which, Lord Clarendon
>, ensued, both within doors and without, after
iing these laws, might have been perpetual, and
ild in all probability have continued, if the
y's subsequent conduct had not again raised
the storm. He had declared to his parliament The king's
he would take a journey into Scotland. The i^toScV
;ssity of this did not appear ; and any step so
aordinary, which was not necessary, at so cri-
i a time, must consequently breed suspicions.
parliament could not be free from these : and
irdingly, in an address, they desired him to
aside his design of going ; but without effect.
3L. I. K

130 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1641. They therefore sent a committee of both houses,
" Lord Howard for the lords, Mr. Hampden and
Sir Philip Stapleton for the commons, to attend
him in his journey. 30 Whilst he was in Scotland,
he made it his study to gain over those who had
been most active against him; and particularly
Lesley, general of the Scotch army, whom he at
that time made an earl. He was so liberal of his
favours, that, as Lord Clarendon says, " he seemed
to have made his progress into Scotland only that
he might make a perfect deed of gift of that king
dom." The way to obtain any favours from him
was open ; for the same author says, " that many
of that nation were whispering in his ear, and
assuring him, that, as soon as the troubles of the
late storm could be perfectly calmed, they would
reverse and repeal whatsoever was now unreason
ably extorted from him." Of these insinuations
the committee could not be ignorant : the king's
receiving and encouraging such insinuations, and

30 Besides the members mentioned in the text, this committee
included the Earl of Bedford, Sir William Armyne, and Mr.
Fiennes. For the appointment of this committee, and for other
precautions, the houses sat on Sunday ; but they cautiously
apologized to their constituents for this irregularity, which they
excused by stating that they were engaged upon a work of
necessity.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 131
ing them the steps to his favour, afforded an a.d.1641.
rect declaration of his intentions. The par
ent, knowing this, must know that they could
be secure without proceeding farther ; and
the people could not depend on the enjoy-
it of those laws they had obtained, without
riving the king of the power to break them
n. They saw that his assent to them was but
tnporary compliance, which, indeed, was con-
tnt to the whole tenor of his former conduct.
he king, before his journey into Scotland, had
itenanced a design of some officers to inflame
English army against the parliament ; * a cir-
istance which had revived the distrust the
lie had of his sincerity. This unnecessary
ney into Scotland, and extraordinary liberality
he Scotch general and others, increased this
rust ; and the Irish rebellion, which broke out
ng his stay in Scotland, unhappily confirmed
Above one hundred and fifty thousand pro
mts, according to the general accounts, were Irish mas
sacre.
sacred by the Irish papists, 31 with all the cir-
* Rapin.
Clarendon says, forty or fifty thousand, and the number
doubtless, very much less. Mr. O'Driscol's patriotism is
onspicuous in this part of his history.
K 2

132 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1641. cumstances of cruelty which a superstitious rage
" could inspire. The leaders among the Irish pub
lished in a circular letter, that the English protest
ants, especially the parliament, had been guilty
of divers great and heinous affronts to the king's
person and prerogative ; and that therefore the
king had granted them a commission * to possess
themselves of all places of strength in the king
dom of Ireland. Whether the assertion that the
king had granted such a commission was true or
false, it had a fatal influence upon the minds of
the people of England ; and as the Irish in their
declaration made the English parliament the
great object of their resentment, this document
naturally induced the public to regard the parlia
ment as their principal bulwark against the fury
of the papists.
Affairs were in this fatal situation, and the
people in this unhappy disposition, at the king's
return from Scotland. If the parliament, from
the private views or resentment of any particular
members, had been ever so ill disposed towards
the king, nothing could have enabled them to
* It cannot be thought that parliament, he intended to
the king was privy to the mas- make use of those Irish who
sacre; but it is apparent that, had been actors in the destruc-
in the war which afterwards tion of the protestants.
ensued between him and the

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY.

133

pursue, the extreme measures which they after- a.d. i64i.
wards took, but the assistance and affections of
the public ; and nothing but the king's want of
sincerity, of which he had given the strongest
proofs,* could have so closely united the public

* The following instances,
among others, of the king's
violating his promise were re
markable. March 24, 1641-2, he re
pealed his grant for passing
the bill of tonnage and pound
age. — Whitlocke, p. 55.
March the 4th, 1642-3,
commissioners for a treaty of
peace, the Earl of Northum
berland, Mr. Pierpoiht, Sir
William Armyne, Sir John
Holland, and Bulstrode Whit
locke were sent to Oxford.
Whitlocke, in p. 65, says, up
on one of the most material
points they pressed his ma
jesty with their reasons, and
best arguments they could use,
to grant what they desired.
The king said, " he was fully
satisfied ; and promised to give
them his answer in writing
according to their desire ; but
because it was then past mid
night, and too late to put into
writing, he would have it drawn
up the next morning, and then
he would give them his an
swer in writing, as it was now

agreed upon." They waited
upon him the next morning at
the hour appointed ; but, in
stead of that answer which
they expected, and were pro
mised, the king gave them a
paper quite contrary to what
was concluded the night be
fore, and very much tending
to the breach of the treaty.
They did humbly expostulate
this with his majesty, and
pressed him " upon his royal
word," and the ill consequences
which they feared would follow
upon this his new paper ; but
the king told them " he had
altered his mind," and that the
paper which he now gave
them was his answer, which
he was now resolved to make
upon their last debate; and
they could obtain no other
from him ; which occasioned
much sadness and trouble to
them. Some of his own friends
informed them, that after they
were gone from the king, and
his council were also gone
away, some of his bed-chamber,
(and they went higher,) being

134

LIFE OF THE

a.d. 1641. with the parliament. As the parliament seemed
more and more determined to secure the consti
tution against any future encroachments ; so the
king, after his return, became more violent in his

for the continuance ofthe war,
never left pressing and per
suading the king, till they
prevailed with him to change
his former resolutions, and to
give order for his answer to be
drawn as it was now delivered.
— Whitlocke, p. 65.
Many endeavours were used,
from time to time, to bring
matters to an accommodation
by way of treaty ; but some
one unlucky accident or other
rendered them abortive. At
the treaty of Uxbridge, though
the parliament's demands were
high, and the king showed a
more than ordinary aversion
to comply with them ; yet the
ill posture of his affairs at that
time, and the fatal conse
quences they feared would
follow upon breaking off the
treaty, obliged a great many of
the king's friends, and more
particularly that noble person
the Earl of Southampton, who
had gone post from Uxbridge
to Oxford for that purpose, to
press the king again and again
upon their knees to yield to

the necessity of the times, and,
by giving his assent to some
of the most material proposi
tions that were sent him, to
settle a lasting peace with his
people. The king was, at last,
prevailed with to follow their
counsel ; and the next morn
ing was appointed for signing
a warrant to his commissioners
to that effect : and so sure
were they of a happy end of
all differences, that the king
at supper complaining his wine
was not good, one told him
merrily, he hoped his majesty
would drink better with the
lord mayor at Guildhall before
the week was over. But so it
was, that when they came
early the next morning to wait
on him with the warrant that
had been agreed on over-night,
they found his majesty had
changed his resolution, and
was become inflexible in these
points. What occasioned this
alteration in the king's mind,
was a letter he had just re
ceived from the Marquis of
Montrose out of Scotland, ac-

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 135
oceedings.32 His removing the governor of the a.d. i64i.
ower, and putting in another, who was univer-
Uy obnoxious, and this in the midst of the
;ople's jealousy and apprehensions; his seizing
ie papers of particular members of parliament,
id going to the house in a hostile manner to
;mand their persons ; all these intemperate acts,
a time too when the parliament's credit and
ithority were so great were as weak as they
ere violent.
The point upon which the king ought, in policy,
have made his stand against the parliament,
as the act that they should not be dissolved
ithout their own consent; for this was a change
the constitution, and an invasion of his just
erogative. Upon this point all moderate men
auld have joined him ; and the public would,
linting him with some un- with the parliament. — Well-
jected success ; and, there- wood's Memoirs.
e, desiring him not to treat

,2 The reason generally assigned by the people for the re-
ival of Sir William Balfour from the governorship of the
wer was, that he had refused to connive at the escape of the
rl of Strafford when the court had matured a plot for that
rpose. Colonel Lunsford, who succeeded Balfour, was at the
ie an outlaw ; a sentence he had incurred by an attempt at
assination.

136 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1642. perhaps, have seen the force of his reasons against
- so violent an act. Many, upon seeing the king
ft urged to a compliance with a thing unjust in its
own nature, would have lost sight of the necessity
v« which they thought there was for such a measure,
and have been more slow in justifying or support
ing the parliament in their other proceedings.
But, on the contrary, the king, through a mis
taken pride, was obstinate for his prerogative in
points obnoxious to public liberty and unknown
to our constitution, and this made the commons
the more resolute in their measures. Thus affairs
were carried on till each side was too much in
flamed. The king was full of anger at the pro
ceedings of the parliament; and his anger was
stimulated by the courtiers about him. The
parliament, fully determined to support their
conduct, and pursue the reformation they had
begun, were without confidence in the honour
of the king, and felt it necessary to guard
with watchfulness every success which they ob
tained with so much difficulty. All England
was divided into parties for the king or the
parliament. Every man was engaged, either in
inclination or action, for one or the other.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 137

CHAPTER V.
count of the life of Sir Anthony Ashley Cooper, and of the
concern he had in public affairs, from the year 1643 to the
death of Oliver Cromwell.
ve are now arrived at the period when Sir A-D- 1643-
nthony began to distinguish himself in the con-
ict of public affairs. During the years 1641
id 1642, he resided with his lady and family
different parts of the kingdom, as the circum-
inces of the times rendered it necessary. The
unties he chiefly lived in were those of Norfolk,
ottingham, York, and Durham. He was at
ottingham and Derby when the king was at
ose places, but he only appeared there as a sirAi>tho>iy
1 ^ x j. engages in
ectator. But in 1643 he returned into Dorset- P]^
ire, to his house at St. Giles's Winborne ; and
en it was that his superior talents soon became
nspicuous. He was often meditating on the
imediate mischiefs and the future evil consc
iences of the civil war ; and he justly appre-
nded that the longer it should continue, the

138 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1643. more fatal it would prove. He was sensible that
whichever side should conquer, the other would
be much depressed ; and that the contest, if per
sisted in, must end either in an unlimited mon
archy, if the king prevailed, or an indigested
commonwealth if the parliament succeeded. To
scheme avoid both these evils, he formed a scheme which,
formed by
kim. though not calculated to make his court either to
the king or the parliament, was intended to re
store and establish the nation's peace upon a solid
and happy foundation. When Sir Anthony had
prepared his plan, he went to Oxford, where he
was recommended to the king by his relation
the Marquis of Hertford, and introduced by Lord
fbmSthebe" Falkland. At his audience, he informed the king,
"that he had a proposal to make, which he
hoped might put an end to the war, and terminate
the differences between him and the parliament."
The king, looking earnestly at him, said, " You
are a young man, and talk great things. What
way will you take to compass such an under
taking?" Sir Anthony replied, "that he was
persuaded the men of estates in almost every
part of England were tired of the war, especially
as they had no fairer prospect of its conclusion
than they had at first ; that he knew this was the

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 139
inion of those who resided in his county, and a.d. 1643.
lere he had any concerns. He therefore de
ed the king would authorize him to treat with
e principal garrisons of the parliament, and get
ese delivered into the hands of such persons as
?re men of character, and would act impartially
tween him and the parliament : that these should
clare for calling a new and a free parliament,
ho, perhaps, might be better disposed to accom
odate the differences than those whose minds
ight have been sharpened by some former pro-
edings." He made his proposal appear so prac- Commissioned to
;able, and so much to the king's satisfaction, carry itinto
° execution.
at he was presently commissioned to put it in
cecution. He returned to Dorsetshire, and met with such
ccess in his treaty with the garrisons of Wey-
outh, Poole, Dorchester, and other places, that
e garrison of Weymouth actually admitted the
Tsons recommended by him, and the rest en-
iged to follow their example. But Prince Mau- scheme de.
feated by
ie, who commanded some of the king's forces in Piince
° Maurice.
ose parts, entered the town and pillaged it, after
was agreed to be surrendered ; which made the
Hops of the garrison think themselves to be
itrayed. Sir Anthony not only expressed his

140 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1643. resentment to Prince Maurice, but sent notice to
Poole and the other garrisons to be upon their
guard, as he could not secure his articles to them.
He went immediately afterwards to Oxford, and
gave the king an account of what progress he
had made, and the interruption he had met with
in his undertaking ; at which the king shook his
head with some concern, but said little.
Another This scheme being thus defeated. Sir Anthony
scheme formed by formed another, which was carried farther than
Sir An
thony. tjje former ; for, by his interest and indefatigable
application, he engaged in it a great part of the
independent gentlemen in England. He proposed
to raise the posse comitatus, under the command
of the several high sheriffs. These, upon a
treaty being set on foot between the king and
the parliament, were to declare and join against
that side which should appear immoderate, or
averse to a fair and just accommodation. By the
assistance of Sir Walter Earle, Serjeant Fountain,
and others, he pursued his design with such suc
cess in Dorsetshire and the adjacent counties,
that a considerable body of men was soon raised.
These, who were afterwards called the club-men,
alarmed the armies both of the king and parlia
ment ; and if some, who had undertaken to rise,

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 141
d not failed in their engagement, they might a.d.1643.
ve carried their point, and forced both parties
to a peace. This conduct, however, was misre-
esented to the king ; and those courtiers who
ere for prolonging the war found means to irri-
te him against Sir Anthony, that they might
ppress his active genius, and prevent his farther
hemes. Accordingly, they counselled the king
i invite him to Oxford, and then to proceed
;ainst, or, at least, to confine him. Charles, who
as always too much under the influence of those
>out him ,* wrote Sir Anthony a very obliging
tter, desiring his attendance and advice ; but the
tter being shown to the Marquis of Hertford,
e, out of regard to Sir Anthony, and resentment
mt his friend and relation, and one who had
een recommended by him, should be ill-treated
>r his loyal endeavours for the king's and the
ation's welfare, immediately sent him notice of
ie letter and the court's intentions. Soon after
ie receipt of Lord Hertford's letter, Sir Anthony
jceived the king's; but being forewarned, and
xpecting no safety near the royal forces, he went Quits the
king's
iddenly and privately to London, where the party.
arliament appointed a committee to receive and
* Stringer.

142 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1643. examine him ; but he absolutely refused to make
any discovery, either of persons, or the manage
ment of affairs, whilst he was at Oxford. In
every part of his life he governed himself by this
rule, " That there is a general and tacit trust in
conversation, whereby a man is obliged not to
report anything to the speaker's prejudice, though
no intimation may be given of a desire not to
have it spoken of again."33
His gene- He gave, in 1645, a remarkable instance of his
rous con- °
re^dto1" adherence to this just and generous sentiment,
Mr. Holies. with regar(i to Mr. Holies. There had been, for

33 This account of Sir Anthony's secession from the king's
party differs very materially from that given by Clarendon and
the other royalist historians. This version of the affair is de
rived, through Stringer's MS. and Locke's Memoirs, from
Shaftesbury himself; and exhibits him, not as a sworn partisan
of the king, deserting him from disgust at some personal slight,
but as a sanguine youth, whose inexperience led him to imagine
that he could effect by mediation what older and more influential
men had attempted in vain. Such an assumption of independ
ence must have been highly culpable in the eyes of the arbitrary
Charles; and it is not surprising that he should attempt to im
pose force upon a man on whom he could so little depend. In
this instance, as in so many others, the weakness and tyranny
that made up the Stuart character converted a lukewarm friend
into an active enemy. We must not, however, forget that this
is Shaftesbury's own account of the transaction ; and the same
impartiality that prevents our yielding implicit credence to Cla
rendon, should induce us to receive this with considerable hesi
tation.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 143
me time, a family quarrel* between them; a.d. 1643.
lich Mr. Holies had carried so far, that when
r Anthony was chosen for Downton in Wilts,
it not returned, Mr. Holies, by his interest,
structed the hearing of his petition. In 1644,
r. Holies had^ been joined with Mr. Pierpoint,
ord Wenman, and Mr. Whitlocke, as a com-
ittee from the house of commons, along with
e Earl of Denbigh and Lord Maynard for the
ers, and with three of the Scotch commission-
s, to carry to the king at Oxford propositions
peace. In a visit which Mr. Holies and Mr.
Whitlocke made one day to the Earl of Lindsey,
ey were surprised at the coming in of the
ng ; who, after other conversation, desired
em to write down what they thought would be
proper answer to the parliament's propositions.
his they did ; and Lord Saville, who was there,
cused them afterwards to the commons for
insacting separately with the king. The lead-
s of the independent party in the house being
ilous of Mr. Holies, who was a man of great
fluence and strongly opposed to their designs,
ished on the inquiry against him with extreme
* Mr. Holies married the ruin Sir Anthony in the Court
ughter of Sir Francis Ash- of Wards.
r, who had endeavoured to

144 LIFE OF THE
a.d.1643. animosity; but they wanted some witness who
would give credit to their proceedings. As Mr.
Holles's enmity to Sir Anthony was well known,
they doubted not but Sir Anthony would readily
embrace such an opportunity of avenging himself.
He was accordingly summoned to the house,
and examined whether he knew or had heard of
Mr. Holles's having had any secret transactions
with the king ; but he could not be induced to
make the least discovery,34 though he was threat
ened with being sent to the Tower for his contu
macy. Mr. Holies was so sensibly affected with
Sir Anthony's conduct, that he paid him a visit
to express his gratitude ; but Sir Anthony said,
that he lay under no obhgation to him, for what
he had done was out of regard to his own charac-

3* He told them he could answer nothing at all; for though,
possibly, what he had to say would be to the clearing of Mr.
Holies, yet he could not allow himself to say anything in the
case, since, whatever answer he made, it would be a confession
that if he had known anything to the disadvantage of Mr.
Holies, he would have taken that dishonourable way of doing
him a prejudice, and wreak his revenge on a man that was his
enemy — Locke's Memoirs. The reader will probably be inclined
to admire Sir Anthony's conduct upon this occasion much more
than the reasons by which he defended it. It is not to Lord
Holles's honour that he omits all mention of this circumstance
in his memoirs.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 145
r; though, if Mr. Holies should think him a.d. 1643.
)rthy of his friendship, as he knew his merit,
would with pleasure receive it. Mr. Holies
is struck with this generosity and openness of
haviour; and from that time they lived in un-
terrupted friendship.
This conduct of Sir Anthony towards Mr. Remarks on Sir An-
olles was a proof of that greatness of mind for tho7'3
*¦ ° conduct.
hich he was distinguished through every part of
s life ; and it is very remarkable that, amongst
I the slanders with which venal or prejudiced
riters have aspersed his character, no one has
rer accused him of betraying any confidence
hich was reposed in him, even by those who
ere afterwards his enemies. Now, if it be con-
dered how constantly he was engaged in in-
igues of state, and how various those intrigues
ere, it cannot be doubted but that an after
sco very would often have furnished him with
>undant opportunity either of private advantage
¦ revenge. If, therefore, he had been either
>vetous or vindictive, he would have been
nipted to betray the secrets entrusted with
im ; or, if he had been of a fearful temper, he
ould have been terrified into doing so.
Though he laid himself under the restraint of
VOL. I. L

146 LIFE OF THE
a.d.1643. never revealing anything to the prejudice of
others, or betraying the secrets of conversation,
no man was more observant * of the bias and turn
of men's minds, or had a quicker insight into their
views and designs.

* Mr. Locke says, " that he
never knew any one penetrate
so quick into men's breasts,
and, from a small opening,
survey that dark cabinet." He
gives the following instance of
Sir Anthony's penetration :
" Sir Richard Onslow and
he were invited by Sir J. D. to
dine with him at Chelsea, and
desired to come early, because
he had an affair of concern
ment to communicate to them.
They came at the time, and
being sat, he told them he had
made choice of them both, for
their known abilities, and their
particular friendship to him,
for their advice in a matter of
the greatest moment to him
that could be. He had, he
said, been a widower for many
years, and began to want some
body that might ease him of
the trouble of housekeeping,
and take some care of him
under the growing infirmities
of old age, and to that pur
pose had pitched upon a
woman very well known to

him by the experience of
many years ; in fine, his house
keeper. These gentlemen, who
were not strangers to his fa
mily, and knew the woman
very well, and were, besides,
very great friends to his son
and daughter grown up and
both fit for marriage, to whom
they thought this would be a
very prejudicial match, were
both in their minds to oppose
it ; and, to that purpose, Sir
Richard Onslow began the
discourse; wherein, when he
came to that part he was en
tering upon the description of
the woman, and going to set
her out in her own colours,
which were such as could not
have pleased any man in his
wife, Sir Anthony, seeing
whither he was going, to pre
vent any mischief, begged leave
to interrupt him, by asking Sir
J. a question ; which, in short,
was this, whether he were not
already married ? Sir J. after
a little demur, answered, ' Yes
truly, he was married the day

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 147
r Anthony entered with zeal into the service a.d. 1644.
ie cause which he had now espoused, and his ^^
tence and ability soon procured for him con- t[onsTn the
fable commands. On the 14th of August mentis
i, he wras appointed, by the lords and com-

army.

e.' 'Well then,' replied
nthony, ' there is no more
of our advice : pray let us
the honour to see my lady,
wish her joy; and so to
;r.' As they were return-
3 London in their coach,
a obliged to you,' said Sir
ard, ' for preventing my
ing into a discourse which
1 never have been forgiven
f I had spoke out what I
going to say. But, as for
f. he, methinks, ought to
your throat for your civil
tion. How could it possi-
inter into your head to ask
an who had solemnly in-
. us on purpose to have

our advice about a marriage he
intended, had gravely proposed
the woman to us, and suffered
us seriously to enter into the
debate, whether he was already
married or no V ' The man and
the manner,' replied Sir An
thony, * gave me a suspicion
that, having done a foolish
thing, he was desirous to cover
himself with the authority of
our advice. I thought it good
to be sure before you went
any farther, and you see what
comes of it.' This afforded
them entertainment till they
came to town, and so they
parted." — Locke's Memoirs. 3S

Mr. Locke gives another instance of Shaftesbury's acute-
in drawing conclusions from minute observation. Soon
• the Restoration, he and the Earl of Southampton were
ig with the Earl of Clarendon ; the Lady Anne Hyde, who
been recently privately married to the Duke of York, was
ent. As Shaftesbury and Southampton were returning
ie together, the former remarked, " Yonder Mrs. Anne Hyde
ertainly married to one of the brothers." Southampton,
L 2

148 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1644. mons, one of the committee of the county of
Dorset, &c. for governing the army. He had the
command of a brigade, consisting of Colonel Pop-
ham's and Colonel Cooke's regiments. At the
head of these he marched to Wareham, and,
Takes furiously attacking one of the outworks, drove
the enemy into the town. Intimidated by this
onset, the royalists immediately surrendered, and
Sir Anthony granted them terms, which showed
how little inclined he was to severity. Three
hundred of the garrison undertook to serve the
parliament against the rebels in Ireland.
Corfe Not long after, he was ordered by the parlia
ment to draw together, out of the several garri
sons, a sufficient number of horse and foot to
blockade Corfe Castle, which he successfully per-

Castle.

who was a confidential friend of the chancellor, but who was
quite ignorant of the marriage, thought the idea absurd, and
asked him how so wild a fancy could get into his head. "As
sure yourself," replied Shaftesbury, " it is so ; a concealed re
spect, however suppressed, showed itself so plainly in the looks,
voice, and manner, wherewith her mother carved to. her or
offered her of every dish, that it is impossible but it must be so."
It would appear, from Mr. Locke's manner of telling this story,
that he was present at the conversation. It is equally creditable
to the earl's penetration, whether we attribute his knowledge to
his own observation, or to the accuracy of his private informa
tion, — one of the first requisites to a statesman.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 149
rmed. Corfe soon surrendered, and received a a.d. 1-644.
rang garrison for the parliament ; and, for the
itter preservation of the place, Sir Anthony
rew a troop of horse, with a body of foot, into
ul worth.
On the 25th of October 1644, he was ap- His exploit
¦ at Abbots-
anted commander-in-chief for the county of bury.
orset; and, with a brigade of horse and foot,
hich he drew out from the garrisons of Ware-
im, Poole, and Weymouth, he marched to
bbotsbury, a place at that time of importance,
;uated on the sea-coast. Upon his approach,
slonel Strangeways, who was governor of the
wn, and had a considerable force, garrisoned his
>use. Sir Anthony came before it at night, and
nt a summons to the colonel, who returned a
ghting answer; and the garrison hung out a
oody flag. A party of the garrison having
tered into the church, which flanked the house,
r Anthony ordered a body of musketeers to
tack them. After a smart skirmish, they sur-
tidered, and were all made prisoners. Then Sir
nthony sent a second summons, offering under
3 hand fair quarter to the garrison, which he
clared they must not expect if they should
lige him to storm. They resolved to admit of

150 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1644. no treaty, and added some expressions of con
tempt to the second answer. Upon this, Sir An
thony, who had only fire-arms and hand-grana-
does, but no cannon for a regular siege, and who
was desirous of intimidating other garrisons by
the vigour of his proceedings, began to storm
the house. The action was very hot during six
hours, and he was forced to burn down an out-
gate to a court before he could get up to the
house. His men presently rushed through the
fire close to the hall porch, and plied the windows
so hard with their muskets, that the enemy durst
not appear in the lower rooms ; and whilst, with
his scaling ladders and granadoes, he attacked
the upper apartments, some of his troops wrenched
open the windows of the lower with iron bars,
and, by firing into it, the house was soon in a
flame. He then offered the enemy quarter again,
which they thought proper to accept. Notwith
standing the fire, his men immediately fell to
plundering the house, and could not, either by
commands or entreaties, be induced to leave it ;
though it was represented to them that the
enemy's magazine was near the fire, and, if they
stayed, would prove their destruction. It hap
pened so soon afterwards ; for the powder taking

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 151
e, blew up all who were in the house, and, by a.d. 1644.
e violence of its explosion, threw up fourscore,
ho were in the court, some distance from the
ound ; but of these only two were much hurt.
e lost but fifteen men in the action, and above
cty by this accident ; among others, Captain
eathcock, and two or three officers, who were
nt into the house to get out the soldiers. The
)use was burnt, notwithstanding all Sir An-
ony's endeavours to the contrary. Colonel
;rangeways, the major, and three captains of his
giment, were taken prisoners, with about one
mdred foot and thirty horse. Sir Anthony
nt a letter to the committee of parhament, to
quaint them with his success. He gave great
icomiums to the several officers under him, and
irticularly to some who went as volunteers.
ram hence he marched to Dorchester, to refresh
s men, who were fatigued with the action. But
s active temper not allowing him to continue
le, he successfully attacked the remaining gar-
ons in Dorsetshire, and reduced them to an
edience to the parliament.
Sir Anthony, after this, marched to the relief RelievesTaunton.
Taunton town and castle, where Blake, (whose
me became afterwards so illustrious as an ad-

152 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1644. miral,) was governor. Blake had held it out with
great obstinacy and success, notwithstanding the
great want of ammunition and provisions, and
the weakness of the works. Colonel Wyndham
commanded the siege, and Sir Lewis Dives was
marching with a considerable force to support
him ; but Sir Anthony meeting this body, attacked
and routed it, obliged the colonel to raise the
siege, and immediately acquainted the parliament
with the relief of the town.36
Quits his Sir Anthony acted not long in a military capa-
m™ntey c^ty ' an^ as ne accePted these employments with
no view to private advantage, but from a sense of
honour and the impulse of his courage, he was
guilty of no oppressions on the people of the
country or those under his command. He was
beloved by the soldiers, and respected by the
officers. These were so far from being jealous or
envious of him, that though he was so young,
and had so lately entered into the service, yet the
colonels of those regiments under his command
were afterwards much attached to him ; and one
of them, Colonel Popham, went with him through

36 It appears from Whitlocke that Sir Anthony had in this
expedition fifteen hundred men under his command.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 153
)st of his after attempts to bring about the a.d. 1644.
^storation. In the year l645,3r he was made high sheriff of a.d. 1645.
e county of Norfolk,38 and in the following year
gh sheriff of the county of Wilts, with a parti-
lar ordinance of parliament for liberty to reside
Dorsetshire,* where he lived in retirement;,
ting only as a justice of peace; in which office,
useful at a time when such animosities pre-
iled, he was of great service to the county, as
: was an active magistrate.
About this time, affairs bore a different appear- a.d. 1644.
ice from what they had done at the beginning independ
ents.
' the parliament, and were under other guidance.
* Whitlocke.

37 At this time Whitlocke says of him: "he professed his great
ection to the parliament, and his enmity to the king's party,
m whom he had revolted, and was now in great favour and
ist with the parliament." This was probably a formal decla-
;ion upon receiving some appointment.
38 This is an error: Sir Anthony never was sheriff of Norfolk.
r Jacob Astley held the office during this year, and hence
Dbably has arisen the mistake ; neither was he ever sheriff of
>rsetshire. He has been often spoken of as sheriff of that
unty, but the rolls of Dorsetshire do not contain his name.
tese mistakes have been corrected by a note in Kippis's Bio-
aphia Britannica, tit. Cooper, which article appeared after
e Doctor had completed his labours upon this work.

154 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1644. A new set of men had obtained influence in the
house of commons, and their views seemed to be
not so much a restoration or improvement of the
constitution, as a total change of it. The former
leading members of the parliament, such as the
Earls of Essex, Bedford, and Manchester, among
the lords ; Hampden, Pym, Holies, and others, in
the house of commons, had very sincere intentions
and extensive views for the public good. They
had begun the opposition on account of the griev
ances that were introduced and supported by the
court, and they had prosecuted a redress of these
with great steadiness. When the civil war broke
out, many of them maintained by the sword those
rights and liberties which they had avowed and
supported in parliament. Some of the principal
members of the commons, particularly Hampden
and Pym, died in the beginning of the war;
Others, who grew weary of the service, retired
into their several counties. In their room a new
party had been growing up ; these were the Inde
pendents, who had aU the fire of enthusiasm, who
were more determined in their measures, and
therefore more constant in their attendance. As
they were bent on pushing things to an extremity
between the king and the parliament, they re-

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 155
Ived to lay aside the Earls of Essex, Bedford, a.d. 1644.
d others, who had the command of the army,
d were desirous of an accommodation. For this
irpose they contrived what was called the self- Seif-
denying
nying ordinance, by which no member of either ordinance.
>use of parliament could, during the war, enjoy
execute any office or command, civil or military.
his was strongly opposed by Mr. Holies, Sir a.d.
hilip Stapleton, and others of the Presbyterian
rty; and as strenuously supported by Sir Henry
ane, Oliver Cromwell, and the rest of the Inde-
mdents. Cromwell, who was both a member of
e house of commons and lieutenant-general of
e army, was the principal contriver of it ; and
id at that time formed a scheme for raising
mself, which he afterwards carried on with won-
;rful success, and to a greater extent than he
id probably at first designed. In pursuance of
is ordinance, the Earls of Essex, Denbigh,
id Manchester, Sir William Waller, Sir Philip
apleton, and others, resigned their commissions ;
d Sir Thomas Fairfax, a man of great bravery
Ld conduct, of rigid honour in his principles,
it of too easy a temper, was made general of
I the parliament's forces. Cromwell went down
to the west just before the former officers sur-

156 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1645. rendered their commissions, and so influenced
Fairfax, that he wrote to the parliament, repre
senting the necessity of continuing Cromwell in
his commands; to which, by several ordinances
from time to time, they assented. Cromwell, in
the name of Fairfax, new modelled the army;
which, by putting in officers who were known
only to himself, he entirely governed. This army
carried on the war against the king with greater
vigour and with superior success, until he was at
last so much reduced, his forces being routed in
almost every engagement, and the chief of his
garrisons having surrendered, that he made his
escape privately from Oxford, and threw himself
into the hands of the Scotch army at Newark.
a.d. 1646. The Scotch were then in possession of Newcastle,
Carlisle, and other English garrisons ; but they
TheScotch agreed to deliver up these, and likewise the king,
deliver up
the king, to the parliament, upon the payment of a consi
derable sum of money. The parliament, soon
after the agreement, sent commissioners to the
Scotch army to receive the king ; who was con
ducted, under a safe guard, to Holmby House in
conduct of Northamptonshire. After this, the English army,
the army. having no enemies to encounter, and being elated
with success, began to grow mutinous; forgetting

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 157
eir masters, who raised them, and the principles a.d. 1646.
r which they had fought so long. Absolutely
ider the influence of Cromwell, they became
bservient to all his ambitious designs ; and as-
med the boldness to petition against, and cen-
re, not only the measures of the parliament,
it even any individual members whom he pointed
it to their dislike. They established a council
officers to superintend the affairs of the army ;
hich officers were some of Cromwell's principal
nfidents and agents. This step made his inten- Cromwell's
° *¦ designs.
>ns very evident, and alarmed those members of
ie house of commons who had the welfare of
leir country still in view, and courage to pursue
. Among these, Mr. Holies was one of the most
ninent; he foresaw the coming danger, and de-
rmined to resist it while it might yet be with-
ood. He formed a resolution to attack Cromwell
lbliely in the house of commons. This design
; communicated to his friend Sir Anthony, who
tempted in vain to dissuade him from his pur-
>se. His profound knowledge of the state of
Fairs, and the relative strength of parties, appears
om the following account of this transaction, as
ven by Mr. Locke.*
* Locke's Memoirs relating to. Lord Shaftesbury.

158 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1647. From the time of the reconciliation of Sir An-

sir An- thony and Mr. Holies, they had been very hearty
thony's
advice with friends. " It happened one morning that Sir An-
regard to x -1 °
Cromwell. £hony calling upon Mr. Holies, as he often did,
he found him in a great heat against Cromwell,
who then had the command of the army, and a
great interest in it. The provocation may be read
at large in the pamphlets of that time, for which
Mr. Holies was resolved,* he said, to bring him
to punishment. Sir Anthony dissuaded him, all
he could, from any such attempt, showing him
the danger of it; and told him it would be suffi
cient to remove him out of the way, by sending
him with a command into Ireland. This, Crom
well, as things stood, would be glad to accept;
but this would not satisfy Mr. Holies. When he
came to the house, the matter was brought into
debate ; and it was moved that Cromwell, and
those guilty with him, should be punished. Crom
well, who was in the house, no sooner heard of it
but he stole out, took horse, and rode immediately
to the army, which, as I remember, was at Triploe
Heath. There he acquainted them what the
* Lord Clarendon takes no- escape to the army the next
tice of this design against morning, without going to the
Cromwell, but says that Crom- house.
well hearing of it, made his

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 159
resby terian party was doing in the house ; and a.d. 1647.
ade such use of it to them, that they, who were
fore in the power of the parliament, now united
gether under CromweU, who immediately led
em away to London, giving out menaces
;ainst Holies and his party as they marched,
ho, with Stapleton and some others, were forced
fly; and thereby the Independent party be
aring the stronger, they, as they called it,
irged the house, and turned out all the Presby-
rian party. Cromwell some time after, meeting
r Anthony, told him, ' I am beholden to you for
)ur kindness to me ; for you, I hear, were for
tting me go without punishment; but your
iend, God be thanked ! was not wise enough to
ke your advice.' "
If this advice of Sir Anthony's had been fol-
wed, it might probably have contributed to the
ttling of the nation, and have prevented the fa-
1 catastrophe of the king's death. For immedi-
ely upon Cromwell's going to the army, Cornet
>yce went with a party of horse, took the king
pay by force from the commissioners appointed
r the parliament to attend him, and carried him TheHng
carried to
the army ; which was done without the know- the ara,y-
3ge of Fairfax (as he acquainted the parliament),

160 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1647. and plainly by the direction and artifice of Crom
well.
insolent Cromwell, while with the army, neglected no
proceedings J °
of the army. means to inflame them; and they, when they had
the king in their power, became more violent in
their conduct. A resolution had been taken in
the house of commons to disband them, which
might perhaps have been effected if Cromwell
had been sent into Ireland. To prevent this, the
army sent a petition to the parliament, couched
in high terms, against their disbanding ; and, to
support their petition, they marched directly to
St. Albans in their way towards London. In
order to remove those who were most capable of
obstructing them, and to intimidate others who
might not be well disposed towards them, some
officers'were appointed to present to the commons,
in the name and behalf of the army, an impeach
ment against Mr. Holies and ten other members,
who were the spirit and support of the Presby
terian party in the house. These gentlemen im
mediately withdrew, and several of them retired
into foreign countries.
AnDidn648, The parliament being thus under the command
TOed. of the army' and consequently under the influ
ence of Cromwell, soon proceeded to the trial and

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 161
edition of the king ; who, during his confine- a.d. 1648.
mt and at his death, behaved with great mag-
nimity. After this, Cromwell was appointed by the par- a.d. 1649.
Commands
ment commander-in-chief of the forces in Ire- conferred
upon Crom-
id, a promotion which was highly pleasing to wel1-
m ; and his success there was great, and equal to
s conduct. In the year 1650, on Fairfax's re- a.d.1650.
ming his commission, he was made general of
the forces in England and Ireland.
In the month of June, King Charles the Second Charles the
Second's
rived in Scotland, where he had been proclaim- l™^1^
. by the parliament of that kingdom. He ap-
ied himself chiefly to the Marquis of Argyle,
ho had the greatest influence and credit. To
in his esteem he put on an appearance of de-
tion, and by his advice he for some time re
lated his conduct. He gave a promise under
3 hand and seal to make him a duke, a knight
the garter, and one of his bed-chamber; as like-
se to be influenced by his counsels ; and that,
len restored to his just rights, he would pay to
2 marquis forty thousand pounds,* which was
* The marquis, soon after having acted with Cromwell
Restoration, was tried, and the parliament.
idemned, and executed, for

VOL. I. M

162 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1650. due to him. Great part of this money had been
lent to the king, and the rest expended in his ser
vice. It was principally by the marquis's assist
ance, (after Cromwell's victory at Dunbar, Sep
tember the 3rd, 1650,) that the army was raised
with which the king marched to Worcester, where
he met with a total defeat.
His com- Whilst the king was in Scotland, to ingratiate
pliances ° °
there. himself with the kirk, he complied with all their
fanatical proposals ; and even took the covenant,
which was rudely pressed upon him. This gave
such jealousy to the high church party in Eng
land, that they forgot their principle of the divine
right of sovereigns, and offered, by Dr. Morley,
their interest to the Duke of York to place him
on the throne of England in the room of his
brother. The king's compliance with the covenanters
was, however, only for a short time ; and when he
left Scotland he quitted presbytery, and conceiv-
ed a greater aversion to the professors of it from
the severity of the discipline to which he had
been compelled to submit.
a.d. i65i. The parliament, after the battle at Worcester,
Sir Antho- -.
ny secured having some jealousy of Sir Anthonv, (who had
as a delin- * x
quent. openly declared his dislike to their proceedings

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 163
violent measures,) secured him as a delin- A.D.i65i.
nt; and he continued some time under their
leasure, till they found themselves in danger
eing dispossessed of their power and govern-
lt by the general. Things being in this situa-
, in order to gain his friendship, (as it was
wn that there was a misunderstanding be
en Cromwell and him, who saw early that the
gns of Cromwell were to raise the power of
army, and himself by their means,) on the 17th
starch 1652, it was resolved by the house that a.d. 1652.
Anthony Ashley Cooper should be pardoned
ill delinquency.
>oon after this, Cromwell, being flushed with ^™™u's
cess, gave a loose to his ambition. In the most eonduct-
itrary manner, and in the most insolent terms,
suspended the very being of the parliament,
I assumed to himself the administration of go-
nment. When he had obtained this, he knew
must be supported in it by men of spirit and
lities; and he endeavoured to secure in his
stice and interest such as were distinguished for
m. Among others, he applied himself to Sir Endeavours
to gain
ithony, and in so open a manner, that it was °verhsir
orted he would make him lord chancellor ; but
Anthony was steady against all his arts and
m2

164 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1652. caresses, and never * accepted of any employment
under him.
sir Antho- CromweU summoned a convention to meet on
ducstin°the the 4th of July 1653, in which Sir Anthony was
tne^T nominated for the county of Wilts ; and, during
the time of its sitting, he watched every oppor
tunity to expose Cromwell's designs of enslaving
his country by this establishment. Sir Anthony
well knew that the most effectual method of
establishing an arbitrary power in any nation
where a sense of liberty prevailed, must be by
retaining the old forms of government and a
shadow of the ancient constitution ; by which the
people would insensibly lose the spirit of freedom,
and rivet their own chains. Observing the seve-
rai turns and inclinations of the members, he con
founded the proposals and debates of Oliver's
creatures. By his address he soon gained such an
interest in this pretended parliament, that he pre
vented Cromwell's intentions of rendering it sub
servient to his greatness ; and, on the 12th of
* Through the whole col- is no mention made of Sir
lection of Secretary Thurloe's Anthony but in two letters,
papers, which take in almost wherein he is suspected among
all the material transactions others to be well affected to
and the principal men in office the king, and to have remitted
under the protectorate, there money to him.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 165
ecember, he procured a motion to be made, that a.d. 1653.
e sitting of that parliament any longer, would
)t be for the good of the commonwealth. This
otion was powerfully supported by himself and
veral other members, and carried in the affirma-
ve. Upon the dissolution of this convention,
romwell assumed the protectorship. He called
lother parliament, to sit on the 3rd of September
>54 ; and as Sir Anthony, by the steps which he a.d. 1654
id taken, was highly obnoxious to him, Crom-
ell sent secret directions to prevent his being
turned at the next election. Sir Anthony
awever was, notwithstanding these instructions,
ected for the county of Wilts.
When Cromwell was first invested with the
rotectorship, he made it his study, as it was his
iterest, to soften the violence of his proceedings
f all the arts of popularity. To make the public
lerefore believe that they would be governed by
leir own representatives, he took an oath and
ibscribed an instrument, of which one of the
tides was, " That the parliament then to be
losen, and all succeeding parliaments, were to
t five months from the time of their meeting."
nother article declared in what proportion the
embers should be chosen. They were to be

166 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1654. principally elected from the counties ; a regula
tion well adapted for the security of the con
stitution, inasmuch as it rendered the election of
members more general and more equal, and pro
vided against the venality and dependence of
boroughs. The good effects of it appeared at that
time ; many of the most considerable gentlemen
of their respective counties being returned for
and in the members. Sir Anthony exerted himself as vigo-
parliament of 1654. rously as before, and with such success that the
power and authority of the protector and his new
government began to be called in question.38 The
debates ran so high that Cromwell, being appre
hensive his power would be overthrown, went to
the house, and at the close of a long speech the
members were required to sign a recognition in
these words, viz.
" I, A. B. do hereby freely promise and engage
myself to be true and faithful to the Lord Protec-

38 A division had taken place, whether the house should re
solve itself into committee upon the instrument of government
proposed to them by Cromwell, or whether it should be at once
approved. The protector's creatures were for the latter proposi
tion, but they were defeated by a majority of five, the numbers
being 141 against 136. A defeat that drew from Cromwell
this proof of his extraordinary tenderness for the privileges of
an English parliament.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 167
•, and the Commonwealth of England, Scotland, a.d.1654.
d Ireland ; and shall not (according to the te-
ur of the indenture whereby I am returned to
:ve in this present parliament) propose or give
y consent to alter the government as it is settled
one single person and a parliament."
This being engrossed, was placed upon a table
ar the door of the house of commons, where no
embers were allowed to enter until they had
?ned it ; which was a great breach of the new
institution, and plainly indicated Cromwell's dis
union, and on what foundation he intended to
lild his government. The speaker and about
ie hundred and thirty of the members signed it
ie first day, and others the second ;39 but Sir An-
lony refusing, he was excluded. The resolution
? the excluded members so influenced those who
ere admitted, that, notwithstanding the recogni-
on, Cromwell found the parliament would not
>me into his measures ; and, therefore, neither
is instrument of government nor oath could

39 About one hundred and ninety members signed it upon
is day, but that was in consequence of the liberal construction
lich had been put upon this document by a vote of the
mdred and thirty who were already assembled. — Pari. Hist.
1. iii. col. 1459.

168 LIFE OF THE
a. d. keep him from dissolving it on the 22nd of
1654-5. r °
 January 1654-5, before the five months they
were to sit were expired.
Parliament The dissolution caused such a general discon-
dissolved. tent, that he sat very loose in his protectorship ;
piotagainst and had probably been removed, if a plot, contriv-
Cromwell
defeated, ed between the king's party and the Levellers, had
not been discovered, as it was, by one Manning,
who attended the king at Cologne ; which dis
covery enabled Cromwell to surprise the conspira
tors at their first rising, and prevent their gather
ing into considerable bodies. Several persons, as
Penruddock, Grove, Lucas, and others were exe
cuted ; and (as is the case in all plots that are pre
mature and unsuccessful) this fixed Cromwell so
firmly in his station that he could not easily be
shaken.
c^urte'sir1 Cromwell tried many ways to gain Sir Anthony
Anthony. tQ njg interestj ^ut without success. He named
him one of his council ; yet Sir Anthony never
appeared or acted in it ; and, as he behaved in
private with the utmost circumspection, Crom
well, speaking to his friends, used to say, there was
no one he was more at a loss how to manage than
that Marcus Tullius Cicero, the little man with
three names. But, though Sir Anthony was so re
served in his conduct toward the protector, he lived

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 169
great friendship with his second son, Henry a.d.
1654-5.
omwell, who, when deputy of Ireland, gained a 
neral esteem.
On the 17th of September 1656, another par- ^j^656-
ment met, in which Sir Anthony was again Parhament-
osen. After hearing a sermon at the Abbey
urch at Westminster, and the protector's speech
the Painted Chamber, the members repaired to
e house of commons ; where they found the
jby filled with soldiers, and an officer at the
or, with a list in his hand, refusing entrance to
that had not a certificate* of approbation.*0
* These are to certify, that approved by his highness's
 is returned by in- council, 17th September 1656.
lture one of the knights to Nath. Taylor,
ve in this present pariia- Clerk of the Commonwealth
nt for the said county, and in Chancery.

0 The conduct of this parliament is pregnant with proof that
enthusiasm in favour of liberty, which once pervaded the
pie, was now worn away by the long and exhausting series
livil wars. An act of undisguised tyranny, that would have
led the whole nation against Charles, was submitted to in
nee. So completely was the spirit of the commons tamed,
t, after some discussion, they resolved by one hundred and
nty-five against a minority of only twenty-nine, " That
persons returned from the several counties, cities, and
oughs, who have not been approved, be referred to make
ir application to the council for approbation ; and that the
ise do proceed with the great affairs of the nation." Such
i the liberty England enjoyed under Cromwell.

170 LIFE OF THE
a.d.1656. Sir Anthony, with the other excluded members,
(finding no redress from the house,) drew up a
protestation * by way of appeal to God and the
people, " declaring the great dangers they were
in from the slavery, rapines, oppressions, cruelties,
murders, and confusions comprehended in the
horrid act of the protector, who had now openly
assumed a power to pack an assembly of his con
fidents, parasites, and confederates, and called
them a parliament, that he might thence pretend
that the people had consented to become his slaves,
and to have their persons and estates at his dis
cretion." This remonstrance, after they had sub
scribed their names, they printed and published.4*
* Whitlocke's Memoirs, fol. 640.

41 Mr. Brodie remarks : " It affords a noble proof of the
spirit of Englishmen, that even this measure (that of referring
the secluded members to the council) was only carried by a
majority ; and that sixty members instantly absented themselves,
and joined those who had been excluded when they published
a remonstrance against the present arbitrary government, and a
protestation against the illegal assembly at Westminster." — Bri
tish Empire, vol. iv. p. 402. This passage is totally at variance
with the authorities he quotes in support of it. The remon
strance came from the secluded members alone, and was not
signed by even the whole of these, as appears from the Thurloe
papers. Instead of the measure being carried by only a majo
rity, it was carried by a majority of three to one. There appears

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 171
The members who were admitted, being well a.d.1656.
Ddelled for Cromwell's designs, resolved in the a design to
° make Crom-
st place to fix the crown on his head; but that wel1 kins-
ts highly resented by the army, who had fought
long against the very name and office of a king,
d especially by some of the superior officers,
10 perhaps had a view to succeed Cromwell in
s power. He did not dare, therefore, to indulge
s inclinations and accept the crown. Crom-
?U's junto afterwards framed another instru
ct of government, by the name of " the
imble petition and advice ofthe knights, citizens,
d burgesses assembled in the parliament of the
mmonwealth," whereby they confirmed to him
e name and style of the Lord Protector of the a.d. 1657.
mimonwealth of England, Scotland, and Ire-
id, and the dominions and territories thereunto

have been more indolence than indignation in the conduct
;he other members, since, when a resolution was passed, that
persons who had been returned to serve in that parliament
I had been or might be approved by the council, should give
ir attendance within seven days, the order was not disobey-
I am afraid Mr. Brodie is unwilling to admit the extent of
)mwell's tyranny. But such an admission is far more wor-
¦ of the cause of freedom than any attempt at conceal-
nt. The justification of those who first took arms against
arles can receive no injury from truth, and no colour-
can justify the fanatics who beheaded him.

172 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1657. belonging, ,(into which office he was inaugurated
with great solemnity the 26th day of June 1657) ;
and he was also thereby empowered to declare and
appoint who should succeed him in that office
after his death.
Bishop It is apparent, from the exclusion of Sir Anthony
mistakes from th© parliament, and from the attempt that
corrected. . tip
was immediately afterwards made by the remain
der of the commons to place Cromwell upon the
throne, that there can be no foundation for what
Bishop Burnet says of Sir Anthony, "that he
advised Cromwell to take the kingship." The
excluded members were of course those who
Cromwell thought would oppose this last flight of
his ambition ; and although the bishop says that
Sir Anthony gave the advice with a design to
destroy him, yet this does not make his story
more probable, for, as this design must have been
unknown to Cromwell, he would not surely have
excluded the man who gave him the advice,
and who, by his abilities and power of speaking,
might have contributed greatly to the success of
his project.
It is very probable, likewise, that if Sir Anthony
had made such a proposal to Cromwell, Cromwell

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 173
mid, in return, have made him one of his newly a.d. 1657.
:ated house of peers ; for, though many of them
?re men of low extraction, education, and capa-
ies, yet, to give a dignity to the body, he
ded several of the old lords and gentlemen of
e greatest fortunes and character. Now, as Sir
nthony was distinguished for both, Cromwell
mid not have omitted him ; though, at the same
ne, it may reasonably be believed, from his
nduct in other respects, that if Sir Anthony
d been nominated, he would have disdained a
it amongst them.
There appears as little foundation for another
jry of the bishop's; that Sir Anthony pretended
at Cromwell offered to make him king. Crom-
2II was too fond of power, and too wise, to make
proposal of this nature in earnest to a man of spi-
; and understanding ; and there is as little proba-
lity that he would make the proposal in jest to a
rson so conspicuous for his penetration. That
•omwell ever seriously made such an offer is be
nd the bounds of probability, and it is scarcely less
iprobable, that a man of Sir Anthony's acknow-
Iged sense should expose himself to ridicule by
iulging in what every one must have discovered

174 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1657. to be an absurd boast.42 For this assertion the
bishop does not quote any authority; and it is sur
prising that neither Mr. Locke nor Mr. Stringer
(who have both left some account of Lord Shaf
tesbury) should have taken the least notice of so
extraordinary a circumstance, especially if what
the bishop says of him be true, viz. " that he had
such an extravagant vanity in setting himself out,
as made him very disagreeable :" which observa
tion, likewise, does not seem consistent with the
other parts of his character.
a.d. 1658. On the 3rd of September 1658, Oliver Cromwell
dera°tmIndS died, and soon after him died that power which
his vigour alone had supported. He had an active
courage, an extensive mind, and an unbounded
ambition. He was sagacious in forming, artful in
conducting, and steady in executing his schemes.
To a profound dissimulation, he added an extra
ordinary knowledge of mankind. He was zealous

42 It does appear that Burnet has drawn the character of
Shaftesbury somewhat unfairly. The bishop for some time en
joyed his intimacy ; and the earl, who was ambitious of shining
in conversation, often made remarks which were rather brilliant
than judicious. From these light sallies of an unguarded mo
ment Burnet seems to have sketched those darker features
which predominate in his portrait of his former friend.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 175
¦ the honour of England abroad, where he raised a.d. 1658.
to a great height; but an enemy to her liberties
home, where he entirely depressed them. He
ight out and employed men of abilities, as the
lews of his government. Having acquired this
art and by the sword, he maintained it by the
ne means, and broke through the laws wher-
er they interfered with his will. To his power
. his views were directed, all his principles were
crificed, all his passions were subservient ; and
this were the three kingdoms, at length, en-
ely subjected.

176 LIFE OF THE

CHAPTER VI.
The conduct of Sir Anthony Ashley Cooper in public affairs
from the death of Oliver Cromwell to the Restoration ; and a
particular account of the concern which he had in bringing
about that event.
A-P- 1658. OLIver Cromwell left the protectorship to his
&omweii son Bichard, who, being destitute of his father's
succeedshis aki]itieS5 coui^ not iong supp0rt it. The conse
quence of this was, that the government fell into
great confusions, and in a short time underwent
a variety of changes. In the midst of these, every
man who was a wellwisher to the royal family
thony"s conceived hopes of the Bestoration ; and Sir An
thony, always watchful for advantages, and ever
active to improve them, was in many consultations
with those who had the greatest power and in
terest to bring it about: and, as he had always
kept this in his view, it will appear that he was
the principal person by whom it was effected.
He thought that to divide the counsels of the
government in being would be the surest method
of destroying it, and of opening the door to a

views.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 177
storation ; and, therefore, he soon paved the a.d. 1658.
ay for this division.
Bichard Cromwell, upon his father's death, was Flattering
situation of
a very solemn manner proclaimed protector in Richard's
ondon and Westminster, and afterwards in most
' the chief cities and towns in England: the
ty of London appeared very zealous ; the army
id navy congratulated him, and assured him of
leir fidelity ; addresses were brought up from
ost of the counties in England ; and compli-
ents of condolence and congratulations were
nt to him from several foreign princes, with
fers of renewing their alliances. These things
ittered Bichard with an opinion of his security
i his high station, and gave a melancholy pro-
>ect to the friends of the royal family. He called New par
liament.
parliament, which met January the 27th, 1658-9,
ie upper house consisting of the same persons
hom his father had constituted his house of
rds. Sir Anthony, being chosen a member of
lis parliament, raised and fomented, by his ad-
ress, a disunion among the members in the lower
Duse, a contempt of the upper house, and a re-
ugnance to the protectorate ; which made it im-
racticable to settle Bichard's government by
leir means. The house of commons fell into
vol. i. N

178 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1658. great heats upon the establishing of the house of
Authority peers. Lord Clarendon says, that "upon this
or the upper A J ¦"¦
ed"iD.eCa11 argument they exercised themselves with great
question. ]jcencej as wen upon the creator of those peers,
and power of the late protector, as upon his
creatures the peers ; of whose dignity they were
not tender, but handled them according to the
quality they had been of, not that which they
were now grown to. They put the house in
mind how grievous it had been to the kingdom
that the bishops had sate in the house of peers,
because they were looked upon as so many votes
for the king ; which was a reason much stronger
against these persons, who were all the work of
the protector's own hand, and therefore could
not but be entirely addicted and devoted to his
interest."
Remark- Lord Clarendon probably made this remark in
able speech
of sir An- consequence of the following excellent speech of
Sir Anthony's, which is here inserted at length,
as it discovers the vivacity of his wit and the
freedom of his spirit, and was attended with
extraordinary consequences. The reader will ob
serve, by some little inaccuracies, and the repeti
tion of the words " to conclude," that it was not a
studied speech ; and that Sir Anthony was carried

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 179
i, by the warmth of his imagination, to a greater a.d. 1658.
tigth than he intended.
" Mr. Speaker,
" This day's debate is but too clear a proof that
e Englishmen are right islanders ; variable and
utable, like the air we hve in : for, sir, if that
ere not our temper, we should not be now dis-
iting whether, after all those hazards we have
n, that blood we have spilt, that treasure we
;ve exhausted, we should not now sit down just
here we did begin, and of our own accords
bmit ourselves to that slavery which we have
)t only ventured our estates and lives, but, I
ish I could not say, our souls and consciences,
throw off. What others, sir, think of this
rity, I cannot tell. I mean those who steer
eir consciences by occasions, and cannot lose the
nour they never had: but truly, sir, for my
m part, I dare freely declare it to be my opinion,
at we are this day making good all the reproaches
our enemies, owning ourselves oppressors,
irderers, regicides, subvertors of that which we
not only acknowledge to have been a lawful
vernment, but, by recalling it, confess it now
be the best : which, sir, if it be true, and that;
n 2

180 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1658. we now begin to see aright, I heartily wish our
eyes had been sooner open ; and, for three nations'
sake, that we had purchased our conviction at a
cheaper rate. We might, sir, in forty -two have
been what we thus contend to be in fifty-nine ;
and our consciences would have had much less to
answer for to God, and our reputations to the
world. "But, Mr. Speaker, I wish with all my soul I
did state the case to you amiss ; and that it were
the question, whether we would voluntarily re
lapse into the disease we were formerly possessed
of, and of our own accords take up our old yoke,
that we with wearing and custom had made
habitual and easy, and which (it may be) was
more our wantonness than our pressure, that
made us throw it off. But this, sir, is not now
the question : that which we deliberate is not
whether we will say, we do not care to be free,
we like our old masters, and will be content to
have our ears bored at the door-post of their
house, and to serve them for ever ; but, sir, as if
we were contending for shame as well as servi
tude, we are carrying our ears to be bored at the
doors of another house ; an house, sir, without
a name, and therefore it is but congruous it

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 181
Id consist of members without family; an a.d.1658.
;e that inverts the order of slavery, and sub-
; us to our servants ; and yet, in contradiction
a-ipture, we do not only not think that sub-
on intolerable, but are now pleading for it.
word, sir, it is a house of so incongruous and
us a composition and mixture, that certainly
grand architect would never have so framed
ad it not been his design, as well to show the
Id the contempt he had of us, as to demon-
te the power he had over us.
Sir, that it may appear I intend not to be so
lent (as far as my part is concerned) to make
•luntary resignation of my liberty and honour
his excellent part of his highness's last will
testament, I shall crave leave to declare, in a
particulars, my opinion of this other house ;
rein I cannot but promise myself to be fa-
rably heard by some, and patiently heard by
for those Englishmen who are against that
se will certainly with content hear the reasons
r others are so too ; those courtiers who are
it, give me evidence enough to think that
lature there is nothing which they cannot
ingly endure.
First, sir, as to the author and framer of the

182 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1658. house of peers ; let me put you in mind it was
he who, with reiterated oaths, had often sworn to
be true and faithful to the government without
it ; and not only sworn so himself, but had been
the chief instrument both to draw and compel
others to swear so too. So, sir, the foundation
of that noble structure was laid in perjury, and
was begun with the violation and contempt as
well of the laws of God as of the nation. He
who called monarchy anti-christian in another,
and, indeed, made it so himself; he who voted a
house of lords dangerous and unnecessary, and
too truly made it so in his partisans ; he who
with fraud and force deprived you of your liberty
when living, and entailed slavery on you at his
death : it is he, sir, who has left you these worthy
overseers of that his last will and testament; who,
however they have behaved themselves in other
trusts, we may be confident will faithfully endea
vour to discharge themselves in this. In a word,
had that other house no other fault but its con
stitution and author, I should think that original
sin enough for its condemnation: for I am of
their opinion who think that, for the good of ex
ample, all acts and monuments of tyrants are to
be expunged and erased ; that (if possible) their

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 183
emory may be no longer-lived than their car- a.d.1658.
sses ; and the truth is, their good laws are but
lares for our liberty. But to impute to that
her house no faults but its own, you may please
the first place to consider of the power which
is highness hath left it, according to that ' hum-
e petition and advice,' which he was pleased to
ive order the parliament should present to him.
or as the Bomans had kings, his highness had
jarliaments amongst his instruments of slavery;'
id I hope it will be no offence for me to pray
lat his son may not have so too. But, sir, they
ave a negative voice, and all other circumstances
F that arbitrary power which made the former
ouse intolerable ; only the dignity and quality
? the persons are wanting, that our slavery may
i accompanied with ignominy and affront. And
aw, Mr. Speaker, have we not gloriously vindi-
ited the nation's liberty; have we not worthily
nployed our blood and treasure to abolish that
3 wer which was set over us by law, to have the
ime imposed upon us without law? And after
1 that sound and noise we have made in the
orld, of the people's legislative power, and of
ie supremacy and omnipotency of their repre-
intatives, we now see there is no more power

184 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1658. left them but what is put into the balance, and
equalled by the power of a few retainers of
tyranny, who are so far from being the people's
choice, that the most part of them are only known
to the nation by the mischiefs they have com
mitted in it.
" In the next place, sir, you may please to con
sider that the persons invested with that power
are all of them nominated by the lord protector,
(for to say by him and his council, has in effect
no more distinction than if one should say by
Oliver and Cromwell). By that means, the pro
tector himself, by his own and by his peers' nega
tive, may become in effect two of the three
estates ; and, by consequence, is possessed of two
parts of the legislative power. I think this can
be a doubt to no one who will but take the pains
to read over the catalogue of those noble lords;
for certainly no man who reads their names can
possibly fancy for what virtues or good qualities
such a composition should be made choice of, but
only the certainty of their compliance with what
soever shall be enjoined them by their creator.
Pardon, sir, that name, for it is properly appli
cable where things are made out of nothing. If,
in the former government, increase of nobility

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 185
is a grievance, because the new nobility, having a.d. 1658.
;sh obligations to the crown, were more easily
1 into comphance with it ; and if one of the
ain reasons for exclusion of bishops out of the
>use of lords was because they were of the
ng's making, and were, in effect, so many cer-
in votes for whatever he had a mind to carry
the house ; how much more assured will that
convenience now be, when the protector, who
ants nothing of the king but (in every sense)
e title, shall not only make and nominate a part,
it of himself constitute the whole ? In a word,
r, if our liberty was endangered by the former
:>use, we may give it up for lost in the other
>use: and it is in all respects as secure and
Ivantageous for the liberty of the nation, which
e come hither to redeem, to allow this power
' his highness's officers and chaplains, as to
s other creatures and partisans in this other
)use. "Now, having considered, sir, their author,
)wer, and constitution, give me leave to make
ime few observations (though but in general) on
ie persons themselves who are designed to be
ir lords and masters ; and let us see what either
ie extraordinary quality or qualifications are of

186 LIFE OF THE
a.d.1658. these egregious legislators, which may justify
their choice, and prevail with the people to admit
them at least into equal authority with the
whole representative body of themselves. But
what I shall speak of their quality, or anything
else concerning them, I would be thought to
speak with distinction, and to intend only of the
major part ; for I acknowledge, Mr. Speaker, the
mixture of the other house to be like the compo
sition of apothecaries, who mix something grate
ful to the taste to qualify their bitter drugs, which
else, perhaps, would be immediately spit out and
never swallowed. So, sir, his highness, of de
plorable memory to this nation, to countenance as
well the want of quality as honesty in the rest,
has nominated some against whom there lies no
other reproach but only that nomination ; but not
out of any respect to their quality or regard to
their virtues, but out of regard to the no quality,
the no virtues of the rest ; which truly, Mr.
Speaker, if he had not done, we could easily have
given a more express name to this other house
than he hath been pleased to do ; for we know a
house designed for beggars and malefactors is a
house of correction, and so termed by our law :
but, Mr. Speaker, setting those few persons aside,

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 187
ho (I hope) think the nomination a disgrace, a.d. 1658.
id their ever coming to sit there a much greater,
tn we without indignation think of the rest?
te who is first in their roll, a condemned cow-
¦d ; one that out of fear and baseness did once
hat he could to betray our liberties, and now
jes the same for gain. The second, a person of
little sense as honesty ; preferred for no other
ason but his no worth, his no conscience ; ex-
pt cheating his father of all he had was thought
virtue by him, who, by sad experience we find,
th done as much for his mother, — his country.
ie third, a cavalier, a presbyterian, an indepen-
nt ; for the republic, for a protector, for every-
ing, for nothing, but only that one thing, —
mey. It were endless, sir, to run through
2m all ; to tell you of the lordships of seventeen
unds a-year land of inheritance ; of the farmer
dships, draymen lordships, cobbler lordships,
thout one foot of land but what the blood of
iglishmen have been the price of. These, sir,
to be our rulers, these the judges of our lives
1 fortunes ; to these we are to stand bare whilst
dr pageant lordships deign to give us a confe-
ice on their breeches. Mr. Speaker, we have
?ady had too much experience how insup-

188 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1658. portable servants are when they become our mas
ters. All kinds of slavery are miserable in the
account of generous minds ; but that which comes
accompanied with scorn and contempt stirs up
every man's indignation, and is endured by none
whom nature does not intend for slaves, as well
as fortune.
" I say not this, Mr. Speaker, to revile any man
with his meanness ; for I never thought either
the malignity or indulgence of fortune to be {with
wise or just men) the grounds either of their
good or ill opinion. Mr. Speaker, I blame not in
these men the faults of their fortune any other
wise than as they make them their own : I object
to you their poverty, because it is accompanied
with ambition ; I remind you of their quality,
because they themselves forget it: it is not the
men I am angry with, but their lordships. Sir,
though we easily grant poverty and necessity to
be no faults, yet we must allow them to be great
impediments in the way of honour, and such as
nothing but extraordinary merit and virtue can
remove. The scripture reckons it amongst Jero
boam's great faults, ' that he made priests of the
meanest of the people :' and sure it was none of
the virtues of our Jeroboam (who hath set up his

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 189
Ives too, and would have our tribes come up a.d. 1658.
d worship them) that he observed the same
ethod in making lords.
" One of the few requests the Portuguese made
Philip the Second, King of Spain, when he got
at kingdom (as his late highness did this) by
army, was, that he would not make nobility
ntemptible by advancing such to that degree
hose quality or virtue could be noways thought
deserve it. Nor have we formerly been less
prehensive of such inconveniencies ourselves.
was, in Bichard the First's time, one of the
ishop of Ely's accusations, that castles and forts
' great trust he did (' obscuris et ignotis homini-
is tradere') put in the hands of obscure and un-
lown men. But we, Mr. Speaker, to such a
nd of men are delivering up the power of our
ivs, and, in that, the power of all.
"In the 17th of Edward the Fourth, there
ssed an act of parliament for degrading John
2vil, Marquis Montague and Duke of Bed-
rd : the reason expressed in the act, because he
d not a revenue sufficient for the maintaining
that dignity ; to which was added, when men
mean birth are called to high estate, and have
livelihood to support it, it induceth briberies

190 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1658. and extortions, and all kinds of injustice that are
followed by gain. And in the parliament of
2nd Carol, the peers, in a petition against Scottish
and Irish titles, told the king, that it was a no
velty without precedent that men should possess
honours where they possessed nothing else, and
that they should have a vote in parliament where
they have not a foot of land. But if it had been
added, or have no land but what is the purchase
of their villanies, against how many of our new
peers would this have been an important objec
tion? To conclude: it has been a very just and
reasonable care among all nations, not to render
that despised and contemptible to the people
which is designed for their reverence and awe;
and, sir, an empty title, without quahty or virtue,
never procured any man this, any more than the
image in the fable made the ass adored that car
ried it.
" After their quality, give me leave to speak a
word or two of their qualifications ; which cer
tainly ought, in reason, to carry some proportion
with the employment they design themselves.
The house of lords are the king's great hereditary
council; they are the highest court of judicature;
they have their part in judging and determining

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 191
he reasons for making new laws and abro- a.d.1658.
ng old : from amongst them we take our great
;ers of state ; they are commonly our generals
md, and our admirals at sea. In conclusion,
t are both of the essence and constitution of
old government ; and have, besides, the great-
md noblest share in the administration. Now,
ainly, sir, to judge according to the dictates of
on, one would imagine some small faculties
endowments to be necessary for discharging
1 a calling; and those such as are not usually
lired in shops and warehouses, nor found by
jwing the plough : and what other academies
it of their lordships have been bred in but
r shops, what other arts they have been
ed in, but those which more required good
s and good shoulders than good heads, I think
are yet to be informed. Sir, we commit not
education of our children to ignorant and illi—
te masters ; nay, we trust not our very horses
inskilful grooms. I beseech you, let us think
lelongs to us to have some care into whose
is we commit the management of the com-
iwealth ; and if we cannot have persons of
h and fortune to be our rulers, to whose qua-
we would willingly submit, I beseech you,

192 LIFE OF THE
a.d.1658. sir, for our credit and safety's sake, let us seek
men at least of parts and education, to whose
abilities we may have some reason to give way.
If a patient dies under a physician's hand, the law
esteems not that a felony, but a misfortune, in the
physician : but it has been held by some, if one
who is no physician undertakes the management
of a cure, and the party miscarries, the law makes
the empiric a felon ; and sure, in all men's opinion,
the patient a fool. To conclude, sir, for great
men to govern is ordinary ; for able men it is
natural : knaves many times come to it by force
and necessity, and fools sometimes by chance;
but universal choice and election of fools and
knaves for government was never yet made by
any who were not themselves like those they
chose. " But methinks, Mr. Speaker, I see ready to
rise after me some gentlemen that shaU tell you
the good services their new lordships have done
the commonwealth ; that shall extol their valour,
their godliness, their fidelity to the cause. The
scripture, too, (no doubt,) as it is to all purposes,
shall be brought in to argue for them ; and we
shall hear of ' the wisdom of the poor man that
saved the city ;' of the not many wise, not many

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 193
hty : attributes that I can no way deny to be a.d. i658.
to their lordships. Mr. Speaker, I shall be as
rard as any man to declare their services, and
lowledge them ; though I might tell you that
same honour is not purchased by the blood of
:nemy and of a citizen ; that for victories in
wars, till our armies marched through the
, I have not read that the conquerors have
i so void of shame as to triumph. Caesar, not
h more indulgent to his country than our late
ector, did not so much as write public letters
is victory at Pharsalia ; much less had he days
lanksgiving to his gods, and anniversary feasts,
laving been a prosperous rebel.
But, sir, I leave this argument ; and, to be as
1 as my word, come to put you in mind of
3 of their services, and the obligations you
them for the same. To speak nothing of
of my lords commissioners' valour at Bristol,
of another noble lord's brave adventure at the
¦-Garden, I must tell you, sir, that most of
l have had the courage to do things which,
ay boldly say, few other Christians durst so
adventured their souls to have attempted :
have not only subdued their enemies, but
' masters that raised and maintained them ;
'L. I. O

194 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1658. they have not only conquered Scotland and Ire
land, but rebellious England too, and there sup
pressed a malignant party of magistrates and laws ;
and, that nothing should be wanting to make
them indeed complete conquerors, (without the
help of philosophy) they have even conquered
themselves. All shame they have subdued as
perfectly as all justice ; the oaths they have taken,
they have as easily digested as their old general
could himself; public covenants and engagements
they have trampled under foot. In conclusion,
so entire a victory they have over themselves,
that their consciences are as much their servants,
Mr. Speaker, as we are. But give me leave to
conclude with that which is more admirable than
all this, and shows the confidence they have of
themselves and us : after having many times
trampled on the authority of the house of com
mons, and no less than five times dissolved them,
they hope, for those good services to the house of
commons, to be made a house of lords.
" I have been over long, sir, for which I crave
your pardon ; therefore, in a word, I beseech you
let us think it our duty to have a care of two
things: first, that villanies be not encouraged
with the rewards of virtue ; secondly, that the

, EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 195
lority and majesty of the government of this a.d. loss.
on be not defiled, and exposed to contempt,
committing so considerable a part of it to per-
i of as mean quality as parts. The Thebans
not admit merchants into government till
t had left their traffic ten years : sure it wrould
? been long before cobblers and draymen would
? been allowed. Sir, if the wisdom of this
se shall think we have been hitherto like the
ligal ; and that now, when our necessities per
le us, (i. e. that we are almost brought to herd
ith swine,) it is time to think of a return ; let
without more ado, without this motley mix-
?, even take our rulers as at the first, so that
can but be reasonably secured to avoid our
isellors as at the beginning.
Give me leave, sir, to release your patience
1 a short story. Livy tells us there was a
3 in Italy, an aristocracy, where the nobility
tched the prerogative too high, and presumed
much on the people's liberty and patience;
reupon the discontents were so general and
reat, that they apparently tended to a dissolu-
of government, and the turning of all things
anarchy and confusion. At the same time,
des these distempers at home, there was a
o 2

196 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1658. potent enemy ready to fall on them from abroad,
that had been an over-match for them when
united ; but now, in these disorders, was like to
find them a very ready and easy prey. A wise
man, sir, in the city, who did not at all approve
of the insolence of the nobility, and as litjtle liked
popular tumults, thought of this stratagem, to
cozen his country into safety. Upon a pretence
of counsel, he procured the nobility to meet all
together ; which when they had, done, he found
means to lock the doors upon them, went away
himself, and took the keys: then immediately
summoned the people; told them, by a contriv
ance of his he had taken all the nobility in a
trap ; that now was the time to be revenged on
them for their insolences; that, therefore, they
should immediately go along with him and des
patch them. Sir, the officers of our army, after
a fast, could not be more ready for the villany
than these people were; and accordingly they
made as much haste to the slaughter as their lord
protector could desire. But, sir, this wise man
I told you of was their lord protector indeed.
As soon as he had brought the people where the
parliament was sitting, and when they expected
but the word to fall to the butchery ; ' Gentlemen,'
says he, ' though I would not care how soon this

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 197
r. of reformation were over, yet, in this ship a.d. 1658.
ie commonwealth, we must not throw the
smen overboard till we have provided others
;he helm. Let us consider, before we take
3 men away, in what other hands we may
rely trust our liberty and the management of
commonwealth.' And so he advised them,
re the putting down of the former, to bethink
lselves of constituting another house. He
m and nominated one, a man highly cried up
he popular faction, a confiding man, one of
:h zeal, little sense, and no quality ; you may
jose him, sir, a zealous cobbler. The people, in
fusion, murmured at this, and were loth their
>w mutineer, for no other virtue but mutiny-
should come to be advanced to be their mas-
and by their looks and murmurs sufficiently
'essed the discontent they took at such a mo-
. Then he nominated another, as mean a
hanic as the former ; you may imagine him,
a bustling rude drayman, or the like : he was
ooner named but some burst out a laughing,
;rs grew angry and railed at him, and all de
ed and scorned him. Upon this a third was
led for a lordship, one of the same batch, and
ry way qualified to sit with the other two.
: people then fell into a confused laugh and

198 LIFE OF THE
a.d.1658. noise, and inquired, if such were lords, who (by
all the gods !) would be content to be commoners ?
Sir, let me be bold (by the good leave of the
other house and yours) to ask the same question.
But to conclude this story, and with it the other
house, when this wise man I told you of per
ceived they were now sensible of the inconve
nience and mischief they were running into, and
saw that the pulling down their rulers would
prove in the end but the setting up their ser
vants, he thought them then prepared to hear
reason, and told them, ' You see,' says he, ' as bad
as this government is, we cannot, for anything I
see, agree upon a better : what then if, after this
fright we have put our nobility in, and the de
monstration we have given them of our power,
we try them once more whether they will mend,
and for the future behave themselves with more
moderation?' The people were so wise as to
comply with that wise proposition, and to think
it easier to mend their rulers than make new.
And I wish, Mr. Speaker, we may be so wise as
to think so too." **

« This is by far the best of those speeches which have come
down to us as Shaftesbury's : perhaps it is the best specimen of
the oratory of that period extant. If it was indeed an extempora-

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 199
The boldness of this speech roused a surpris- a.d.1658.
y spirit in the house ; a spirit which terrified
ichard Cromwell, and alarmed the principal offi-
rs of the .army, who met and formed a council
Wallingford House. The parliament passed
yeral votes against the council, who then per-

)us effort, it well justifies what Burnet says ofthe earl, " that
had a wonderful faculty in speaking to a popular assembly,
i could mix both the facetious and serious way of arguing
y agreeably ;" and " that he never knew any man equal to
n in the art of governing parties, and of making himself the
id of them." It contains powerful argument, keen sarcasm,
d happy ridicule : but whether it was spoken as it is reported,
mits of much doubt ; and whether it was either spoken or
itten by Sir Anthony was equally questionable.
This speech is copied from the old Parliamentary History,
I. xxi. p. 297. It was originally published as a pamphlet,
th the title of " A seasonable Speech made by a worthy mem-
r of Parliament in the House of Commons, concerning the
her House, March 1659." This speech, by Anthony Wood, in
3 Athense Oxonienses, and by Horace Walpole, who has
pied from him, is ascribed to Sir Anthony ; but so far were the
ithors ofthe Parliamentary History from attributing this speech
any particular member, that they refuse to vouch its authen-
:ity, declaring that, although it is evidently as old as it pre
sses to be, it is too bold to have been either spoken or pub-
hed at the time. The authorship of this famous oration was
erefore very doubtful. Dr. Kippis, however, found among the
ipers from which this memoir was compiled, proof that Wood
id justly attributed it to Sir Anthony ; and although this de-
sive authority is not adduced here, he notices it in his article
Cooper" in the Biographia Britannica.

200 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1658. siiaded Bichard Cromwell to dissolve the house

Parliament an action that immediately destroyed his govern
ment, which before had seemed so firmly fixed
that the king's condition * had never appeared
equally hopeless and desperate : for though a spi
rit had been raised among many of the members,
the majority were for supporting the protector;
and had carried the question, that they would
confer with the other house as a part of the par
liament. As soon as his proclamation for dissolv-
Richard ing them was issued, from that minute nobody
power. resorted to him ; and thus the son* suffered him
self to be stripped in one moment of all the great
ness and power which the father had acquired in
so many years, with wonderful courage, industry,
and resolution.
Conduct of The government by a protector being broken,
Hogused the Seneral council of officers (called the Walling-
party. ford House party) assumed the administration ;
but they found it easier to destroy than to estab
lish a government. These officers were directed
by Lieutenant-general Fleetwood, Colonel Des-
borough, and Major-general Lambert, but prin
cipally by the last ; who, though he had no em
ployment at that time in the army, was admitted
into the council, and immediately after into his
' Lord Clarendon.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 201
1 commission. He had great reputation and a.d. 1658.
terest in the army, which had induced Oliver
omwell through jealousy to deprive him of his
mmand. The officers not having settled their form of
vernment, and having no foundation for their
wer but the sword, were perplexed with a va-
¦ty of counsels ; and, at the same time, were
irmed with the designs of the cavaliers and
esbyterians at home, and the situation of affairs
road, for France and Spain were negotiating a
ace at the Pyrenees. At length they deter-
ned to restore the old parliament, though they
;re apprehensive that " an opportunity* would
given for more people to come together than
mid be for their benefit ;" for all the surviving
smbers of that parliament would pretend a
le to sit there. In the declaration, therefore, Parliamentof 1653 re-
lich the officers published inviting the old par- stored-
ment to meet again, they not only limited the
ivention to such members who had continued
sit from January 1648-9 to the 20th of April
53, (which was the day that Cromwell with the
istance of these very officers had forced them
t of the house,) but they ordered a guard like-
se to attend to keep out the other members.
* Lord Clarendon.

202 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1659. The next day after the declaration, the speaker
Lenthal, and about forty-three of the members,
went in a body to the house, where they came to
a resolution* to assert, establish, and secure the
property and the liberties of the people both as
men and as Christians, and that without a single
person, kingship, or house of peers ; and to uphold
a godly and faithful magistracy and ministry."
Divers of the members who were formerly se
cluded by the violence of the army, as Mr. An-
nesley, (afterwards Earl of Anglesey,) Sir George
Booth, (afterwards Lord Delamere,) Mr. Pryn,
Mr. Montague, Sir John Evelyn, Mr. Hunger-
ford, and others, offered to take their places ; but,
though they got with some difficulty into the
lobby, and insisted on their privilege, the officers
denied them entrance into the house.
The parliament appointed a council of state,45
consisting of thirty -one persons ; and, to give the
public an opinion of, their impartiality, they in the
first place elected some who were not members of
* Parliam. Hist. vol. xxi. p. 380.

Council of
state.

45 Seven of those who were not members of the house were
immediately chosen by resolution, and among these was Sir
Anthony. The other three non-members and the twenty-one
members were chosen by ballot the next day.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 203
rliament, as Sir Anthony,* Sir Horatio Town- a.d. 1659.
2nd, and some others ; and then chose twenty -
e members to complete the number.
Though Sir Anthony did not sit in the coun- sir Antho-
° J ny creates
, he found means to create and foment a di- ^^"cU.
lion amongst them ; being sensible that they
>uld not be proper instruments for settling the
ace of the nation.
The steps which he had taken to break the
solute governments, first of the protector, and
erwards of the army, were well known; and
2 reputation which he had thus acquired fixed
3 eyes of the public upon him. Those who
:re enemies to the Wallingford House party
' Mr. Stringer says, that Confusion," printed in the year
Anthony did not sit in this 1659, that neither he nor Sir
ncil ; and it appears by a Horatio Townshend ever sat
uphlet called " England's or acted in it.46

5 He is there described as " a gentleman too wise and ho-
t to sit in such company ;" while Sir Horatio Townshend is
I to be " a gentleman of too good estate to be hazarded
i such a crew." Some of the characters of the other mem-
5, as given in this pamphlet, are amusing. Desborough is
ed " a country clown without fear or wit;" Mr. Wallop,
silent Hampshire gentleman much in debt ;" Fairfax, " an
y for Lambert's brittle metal ;" Bury, " the worst of ma-
generals except Butler;" and Josiah Barn ers, "fool of the
?¦"

204 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1659. addressed themselves chiefly to Sir Anthony.
Applied to Among others, General Monk, by a letter,* soli-
by General
Monk- cited his friendship and interest that no alteration
might be made amongst the officers under his
command. Sir Anthony, foreseeing the use which
might be made of Monk to withstand the power

* Honourable Sir,
It is some trouble to me, that
the first time I should have oc
casion to write to you, it must
be to request a favour at your
hands. But I hope you will
please to pardon this my in
civility and boldness, and place
me in the list of your friends ;
for, I can assure you, I shall be
as ready to serve you as any
friend you have. Understand
ing that there is a committee
appointed by parliament for
the presenting of officers, to be
continued in the several regi
ments in England, Scotland,
and Ireland ; and knowing the
officers here were, upon the
first motion, most desirous that
the Long Parliament might be
recalled to return to their for
mer station ; I make it my re
quest unto you, that you will
be assisting that there may be
no alteration amongst the offi
cers belonging to the forces
here : for I shall desire you to

give credit herein, that you
may be confident that there is
not any you can employ will
be more ready to serve the
commonwealth than they. But
in case my request for the
whole cannot be granted, I
shall entreat that the officers
of my own regiment of horse
and foot, and Colonel Talbot's
regiment, (a list whereof I have
sent inclosed) may be conti
nued : they have usually quar
tered nearest me, and so are
best known to me. I shall
also desire you will acquaint
as many members of the house
as you shall think fit to engage
in this business ; by doing
which you will very much
oblige Your humble servant,
George Monk.
Dalkeith, 4 June, 1659.
For the Hon. Sir Anthony
Ashley Cooper, one of
the Council of State, at
Whitehall.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 205
the army in England, engaged his friends in a.d. 1659.
rliament to gratify the general in his request.
lis conduct gave the council of state a jealousy Council of
0. ~, ~ state jea-
Sir Anthony. Mr. Scot, a few days after its ions of sir
Anthony.
;ablishment, accused him of holding a corre-
ondence with the king and Sir Edward Hyde :
it, though he acted with so great zeal, vigour,
d success for the restoration, he never treated
th the king or his minister ; as appears by the
;ter he wrote afterwards to King Charles the
cond, from the Tower.
The parliament had been restored on the 7th insurrec
tions.
May 1659, and, in the latter end of July, they
d intelligence of risings in several counties.
r George Booth raised a great body in Cheshire;
?rd Willoughby of Parham, and Sir Horatio
>wnshend, did the same in Norfolk; and Sir
nthony had a large party engaged with him,
d ready to appear at his summons, in Dorset-
ire. But the undertaking being discovered,
reral persons failing in their engagements, and
mbert having defeated Sir George Booth, Sir
ithony concealed himself, and his friends in
wsetshire dispersed themselves in time. How-
iv, he was soon taken, and brought to a strict
imination before the council of state ; where he

206 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1659. so well defended himself, that they were obliged
to release him : and, on September the 14th, 1659,
it was resolved by the parliament,* "that this
house doth agree with the council of state ; and
doth declare that Sir Anthony Ashley Cooper is
clear from the accusation laid against him, and
that there is not any just ground of jealousy or
imputation upon him."
Lambert's Lambert, after he had defeated Sir George
schemes. Booth, and the other forces under Sir Thomas
Middleton, finding that he had great interest
among the troops, was ambitious of advancing
himself by their assistance. To effect this, he
promoted a petition to the parliament, which was
signed by the inferior officers of the army. In
this they desired that they might be governed,
as all armies used to be, by a general, who might
be amongst them, and other officers, according to
their qualities, subordinate to him ; that Fleet
wood might be their general, and Lambert their
major-general. The address was intitled,f " The
humble petition and proposal of the officers of the
army under tbe command of the right honour
able the Lord Lambert in the late northern
expedition." Lambert knew that he could easily
* Parliam. Hist. vol. xxi. p. 452. f Parliam. Hist.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 207
Vern Fleetwood, and, when necessary, set him a.d. 1659.
de ; by which the army would be at his own
posal. But the parliament was aware of his
signs ; and, to prevent them, passed a vote,* ^fament
hat to have any more general officers in the
ny than are already settled by the parliament,
useless, chargeable, and dangerous to the com-
mwealth." Soon after, they resolved to dis-
arge Lambert, Desborough, Berry, and several
hers; and to appoint Fleetwood, Ludlow, Monk,
aslerigge, Morley, Walton, and Overton, to be
mmissioners to govern all the forces. This ex-
perated Lambert and the other officers, who
ought themselves entitled to more favour from
eir late success against Sir George Booth ; and
,ving the sword, and consequently the power,
their hands, they looked on every check and
iposition to their demands and their interest as
affront to them. On the 13th of October, Prevented
from sitting.
ey filled all the avenues to the house of com
ons with soldiers, and stopped the speaker and
veral members. In this manner they prevented
e parliament's sitting, relying on the general
uncil of officers " to secure by the sword the
)erties of the people and the public peace of
* Parliam. Hist.

208 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1659. the kingdom." They established a council, called
Committee the Committee of Safety, consisting of twenty-
three persons, and invested them with more power
than had been given to the council of state. They
appointed Fleetwood commander-in-chief, and
Lambert major-general, of all the forces in Eng
land and Scotland. Sir Anthony had too much
sagacity to neglect such a crisis.*7 He had lately

47 It will be seen by the note a few pages further on, that
the account of Sir Anthony's conduct at this juncture, which is
given in the text, is taken from a fragment of his own memoirs.
Mr. Locke, in his " Memoirs relating to the Life of Anthony
first Earl of Shaftesbury," has a somewhat more detailed notice
of the same period: he says, " Having reason to apprehend what
tyranny the usurpation of the government by the officers of the
army under the title of the Committee of Safety might end in,
he thought the first step to settlement was the breaking of them,
which could not be done with any pretence of authority but
that of the Long Parliament. Meeting therefore secretly with
Sir Arthur Haslerigge and some others of the members, they
gave commissions in the name of the parliament to be major-
generals ; one, of the forces about London ; another, ofthe west,
&c. ; and this when they had not one soldier. Nay, he often
would tell it laughing, that when he had his commission, his
great care was where to hide it. Before this he had secured
Portsmouth, for the governor of it, Colonel Metham, being his
old acquaintance and friend, he asked him one day, meeting him
by chance in Westminster Hall, whether he would put Ports
mouth into his hands if he should happen to have occasion for
it? Metham promised it should be at his devotion. These
transactions, though no part of them were known in particular,

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 209
liged General Monk in the point on which a.d. 1659-
onk had, by his letter, desired his interest; and,
ion that, had established a correspondence, and
tered into a friendship with him. As he
ought he might depend on Monk's secrecy,
d knew his jealousy with regard to the removal
his officers, he gave him notice that the com-
ittee intended a regulation among them, and

; causing some remote preparations, alarmed Wallingford
mse, where the committee of safety sat, and made them so
entive to all actions and discoveries that might give them
f light, that at last they were fully persuaded there was
nething brewing against them, and that matter for commo
ns in several parts was gathering. They knew the vigour and
tivity of Sir A. Ashley, and how well he stood affectionated
them, and therefore suspected that he was at the bottom of
i matter. To find what they could, and secure the man they
ist apprehended, he was sent for to Wallingford House, where
:etwood examined him according to the suspicions he had of
q, that he was laying designs in the west against them, and
s working the people to an insurrection that he intended to
id there. He told them he knew no obligation he was under
give them an account of his actions, nor to make them any
imises ; but, to show them how ill-grounded their suspicions
re, he promised that he would not go out of town without
ning first and giving them an account of it. Fleetwood
owing his word might be relied on, satisfied with the promise
had made, let him go on his parole. That which deceived
:m in the case was, that knowing his estate and interest lay
the west, they presumed that that was his post, and there
tainly, if any stir was, he would appear; since there lay his
VOL. I. p

210 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1659. advised him to prevent it by marching directly
sir An- w jtn au jjis forces towards the borders of England.
thony s
Monk.'0 Monk, not being one of the committee, was the
more dissatisfied with their proceedings; and,
having this notice of their intentions, resolved to
secure himself in the interest he had acquired.
For this purpose he new modelled his army,
imprisoned some of his officers, and cashiered

great strength, and they had nobody else in view who could
supply his room and manage that part. But they were mis
taken. Haslerigge, upon the knowledge that they would have
Portsmouth, forwardly took that province ; and he, who had in
struments at work in the army quartered about London, and who
knew that must be the place of most business and management,
and where the turn of affairs would be, had chosen that.
" Lambert, who was one of the rulers at Wallingford House,
happened to be away when he was there, and came not in till
he was gone: when they told him that Sir Anthony Ashley had
been there, and what had passed, he blamed Fleetwood for letting
him go, and told him they should have secured him ; for that
certainly there was something in it that they were deceived in,
and they should not have parted so easily with so busy and
dangerous a man as he was. Lambert was of a quicker sight
and a deeper reach than Fleetwood and the rest of that gang,
and knowing of what moment it was to their security to frus
trate the contrivances of that working and able head, was
resolved, if possibly he could, to get him into his clutches.''
The diligent search which was now again made after Sir An
thony furnished him with many opportunities for the exercise
of that remarkable penetration with which he was endowed.
Upon one occasion he was entering his own house, when a

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 211
hers, who were suspected by him to favour the a.d. 1659.
nduct of the committee and the army in Eng-
id. In their places he put creatures of his own,
d advanced towards the borders of England; Monk
begins his
it there he was forced to stop, because Lambert marcl»-
is advancing against him with a stronger army.
ie two generals, unwilling to trust the whole
ccess of their cause to the hazard of a decisive
ttle, agreed to a truce; whilst Monk sent the
>lonels Wilkes, Cloberry, and Knight, to treat

inger stepped up, and, upon some frivolous pretence, held
l for a short time in conversation. He then took his leave,
1 Sir Anthony went into the house. But he had perceived
Ecient in the manner of the stranger to excite his suspicion ;
I as soon as he was out of sight, Sir Anthony left the house
tin, and went over to a barber's which was nearly opposite.
i penetration saved him. He had no sooner got up stairs
n he could see his own door surrounded by a file of soldiers,
h the stranger who had so recently held him in conversation
their head. They searched and re-searched every part of
house with indefatigable perseverance ; the officer declar-
that it was impossible that Sir Anthony, whom he left only
;e minutes before going in at his own door, could be gone
in in so short a time.
"he object of their search watched all their proceedings in
jrity ; but as he had no inclination to undergo a second
es of interrogatories at Wallingford House, he disguised him-
and withdrew into the city, where he remained hid for
e time, and worked his conspiracy in secrecy, until its
:ess enabled him to reappear with safety.
p 2

212 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1659. with Fleetwood and the committee of safety.

Treats with Sir Anthony, apprehensive of an union between
the com
mittee of Monk and the committee, used his utmost endea-
safety. vours to prevent it. After many attempts, he
procured a meeting between Monk's three com
missioners, and himself and Sir Arthur Haslerigge,
at the Fleece Tavern in Covent-Garden. At this
conference they told him they had fully agreed
with Fleetwood the day before, and settled the
terms upon which Monk was to join him and
sir An- support the committee of safetv. Sir Anthony
thony's en- A *- J J
brakXe'0 rePresented to them the instability of such a
treaty. power as the committee of safety had, and the
great danger to which Monk would expose him
self in adhering to them ; that, after having an
swered their views, and strengthened their hands,
he must soon expect to be laid aside, and then
ruined, though with more artifice and by slower
steps than others who were less formidable to
them ; but that, if Monk would declare for the
parliament, he might depend on being general
of all their forces. Sir Anthony showed the
commissioners the probability of success in re
storing the parliament by the interest which he
himself had in the army about London; that
Portsmouth, besides, was at his disposal ; that Sir

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 213
iafles Coote had assured him of six thousand a.d. 1659.

:n from Ireland upon the first notice ; that
ce-admiral Lawson, who commanded the fleet,
;s in the mouth of the river, and was his firm
end ; and that Lord Fairfax, who had so great
influence on the soldiers, utterly abhorred the
aceedings of the council of officers. Colonel
ilkes persisted that they had, in General
onk's name, and by his authority, concluded
reaty, from which Monk ought not to recede :
t Sir Anthony's discourse had such an effect
Cloberry and Knight, that they expressed
eir satisfaction at so fair a prospect ; and pra
ised to use their interest with General Monk to
eak off the treaty, refuse the terms which were
fered him, and declare for restoring the parlia-
snt. Whilst the commissioners were returning sir An
thony's ac-
the general, Sir Anthony was not inactive. He tivity for *e
O ' * parliament.
d engaged Colonel Whetham, the governor of
jrtsmouth, with whom he was intimate, to de-
rer that place to him, or any friends he should
point ; and, accordingly, Sir Arthur Haslerigge
d Colonel Morley, at Sir Anthony's desire, went
d took possession of it in the name of the par-
iment; while Sir Anthony remained behind,
tth a commission which empowered him to take

214 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1659. the command of those forces about London which
were every day expected to revolt from the com
mittee of safety. This was not conducted so se
cretly but that some uncertain and dark notices
sir An- of it were carried tothe committee; upon which
thonyseized and Colonel Cooke was sent by General Fleetwood to
examined. J
seize Sir Anthony, and bring him to be examined.
The colonel and general both treated him, as Sir
Anthony acknowledged, with great civility. He
quickly found, upon discourse with Fleetwood,
that they were in a mistake, and their intelligence
imperfect; that they apprehended he was to com
mand the forces against them in the west, which
he assured them was not true. Then the general
demanded that he would act nothing to their
prejudice; but this he refused, saying, he was a
member of the council of state, and greatly trusted
by the parliament, whom he would do his utmost
to restore; and that they might allow him a
greater laxity of speech, since they must be sen
sible he had no power to injure them : he knew
the committee had a great influence over the
army ; but they could not, perhaps, take a surer
way to lose that influence* than by ill-treating
him, and others their old friends and fellow
commanders : however, if they were apprehensive

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 215
his interest in the west, he would give them a.d. 1659.
5 word not to depart the city without their
ive. This General Fleetwood accepted, and Sir
nthony was released ; but, immediately after he
is gone, they gave orders for re-seizing him ;
d, at ten o'clock at night, a party of soldiers
oke suddenly into his house, which they search-
strictly for him, but were disappointed, he
ving removed some minutes before into the
y. There he continued in secret, until he had
gaged a great body of the citizens for the par-
ment, and had procured the command of the
wver to be delivered to him, and all the army
out London, both horse and foot, to be drawn
> in Lincoln's Inn Fields, though the field offi-
rs had not declared for the parliament.48
These schemes being thus happily concerted Brings
° rr J Admiral
d executed ; in order to complete the great Lawson
x <-> over to the
)rk he had designed, he went down to the fleet, Parliament-
d there entirely fixed Vice-admiral Lawson in

« In this year was printed a pamphlet with the title of " A
ter from Sir Anthony Ashley Cooper, Thomas Scot, J. Ber-
s, and J. Weaver, Esq., delivered to the Lord Fleetwood,
ling their late actions in endeavouring to secure the Tower
London, and expostulating his lordship's defection from his
;agements unto the parliament."

216 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1659. the same interest ; an achievement which is thus
spoken of by Lord Clarendon: " That which broke
the heart of the committee of safety was the
revolt of their favourite, Vice-admiral Lawson ; a
man, at that time, appearing at least as much
a republican as any amongst them, as much an
independent, as much an enemy to the presby
terians and to the covenant as Sir Harry Vane
himself, and a great dependent upon Sir Harry
Vane ; and one whom they had raised to that
command in the fleet, that they might be sure
to have the seamen still at their devotion. This
man, with his whole squadron, came into the
river, and declared for the parliament ; which was
so unexpected that they would not believe it,
but sent Sir Harry Vane, and two others of great
intimacy with Lawson, to confer with him, who,
when they came to the fleet, found Sir Anthony
Ashley Cooper, and two others, members of par
liament, who had so fully prepossessed him, that
he was deaf to all their charms, and told them
' that he would submit to no authority but that
of the parliament.' "
The parliament met again at Westminster,
December 26th, 1659 ; and on the same day ap
pointed Sir Anthony, Colonel Alexander Popham,

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 217
d others, to be commissioners for the command a.d. 1659.
all their forces. This appointment gave Sir
nthony an opportunity to exert, in an extra-
iinary instance, his sagacity and judgment. He Contrives
imediately procured a meeting of the commis- Lam°ert's
J A ° army.
•ners ; and having provided several clerks, these
;re employed the whole day in writing out
iers, which were sent that night to every field
Eicer in Lambert's army, which that general had
\ in order to go to Wallingford House upon
e treaty with Monk's commissioners. In the
eamble to the order, notice was taken of the
storation of the parliament, the power they had
legated to the commissioners, and the return of
e army about London to their duty : the offi-
rs were therefore directed, upon pain of being
shiered, immediately to march with their regi-
mts to such quarters as were assigned them ;
lich were far enough distant from each other,
from the place wherein they lay. Thus Lam-
rt's army vanished in an instant, not one entire
riment disobeying. Orders were likewise des-
tched that night to other places in England
lere any troops were quartered, for these imme-
itely to disband; and proper authorities were
it to such persons of estate and ability as re-

218 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1659. sided near the troops, and could be trusted, to see
the orders put in execution. These measures had
the effect intended; so great was the consternation
which this sudden and unexpected revolution
produced.* On January the 7th, 1659-60, upon a report
from the committee of elections in favour of Sir
Anthony, he was admitted to his seat in the
house of commons ; and on the 13th of the same
* This paragraph is taken sheet of Lord Shaftesbury's
almost verbatim from a loose manuscript.*

A.D.
1659-60.

*9 Mr. Locke's account is very similar : " The first thing he
did was to get from the parliament a commission to himself and
two or three more of the most weighty and popular members of
the house to have the power of general of all the forces in
England, which they were to execute jointly. This was no
sooner done but he got them together, where he had provided
abundance of clerks, who were immediately set to work to tran
scribe a great many copies of the form of a letter, wherein they
reciting that it had pleased God to restore the parliament to
the exercise of their power, and that the parliament had given
them a commission to command the army ; they therefore com
manded him, (viz. the officer to whom the letter was directed,)
immediately with his troop, company, or regiment, as it hap
pened, to march to N. These letters were directed to the chief
officers of any part of the army who had their quarters together
in any part of England. These letters were despatched away
by particular messengers that very night, and coming to the
several officers so peremptorily to march immediately, they had
not time to assemble and debate among themselves what to do ;

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 219
mth he was made colonel of Fleetwood's regi- a.d.
1659-60.
mt of horse, which soon after declared for the 
rliament. It would be needless to detain the reader with Remarks
on Sir An-
ig remarks on Sir Anthony's conduct. It is *°°^t
ident that, from the time of Richard Cromwell's
rliament, at least from the first establishment
the committee of safety, he had framed and
ted upon his scheme for the king's restoration. 50

d having no other intelligence but that the parliament was
tored, and that the city, and Portsmouth, and other parts of
iglaud had declared for them, the officers durst not disobey,
t all, according to their several orders, marched some one way,
d some another ; so that this army, which was the great
ength of the gentlemen of Wallingford House, was by these
:ans quite scattered, and rendered perfectly useless to the
mmittee of safety, who were hereby perfectly reduced under
; power of the parliament, as so many disarmed men to be
posed of as they thought fit."
50 In February of this year, Lady Willoughby writes to Cla-
ldon thdt Sir Anthony is his majesty's fast friend. The king
d before written to Sir Anthony, desiring his assistance. The
ter was conveyed by an agent of the royalists, named Mor-
unt. Sir Anthony refused to treat, because he had heard, he
d, that the king had made a grant of his estate to his lord
ancellor, Hyde. This the chancellor denies. " I have never,"
says, " been corrupted with that appetite in the least degree ;
I if I were, I serve a master that would not satisfy it, and
o, I dare swear, hath not so much in his own secret purposes
signed any one man's estate in England to any third person,
ich less made a promise of it." — Clar. Papers, vol. iii. p. 512.

220 LIFE OF THE
a. d. The nation was now thoroughly wearied of change,
 — and disgusted with the ever varying forms of
government which were daily imposed upon it.
Sir Anthony saw that the first steps to a restora
tion must be dividing and disarming the officers,
restoring the old parliament, and then obtaining a
free one. He had formed his design with great
penetration, and he conducted it with steadiness
and activity. In pursuing it, he adapted himself
to the different views and passions of several sorts
of men, but kept his own intentions secret. It
was owing solely to his interest that Portsmouth
was put into the hands of Sir Arthur Haslerigge,
whose view was only to restore the old parliament.
He engaged the soldiers, and likewise secured
the fleet, to favour this preliminary measure.
He worked up a spirit in the city to declare for
a free parliament; and by his policy broke the
army, or, at least, deprived them of the power of
doing any immediate mischief. With the same
prudence, the same vigour, he pursued the other
part of his design, and exerted the whole of his
influence to procure a free parliament.
sir An- Sir Anthony, soon after his conference with
thony en-
A°ionkStoS Monk's commissioners, sent a letter to persuade
LoTdon. him t0 come t0 London, and assuring him he

Monk'smarch.

EARL. OF SHAFTESBURY. 221
ould meet with no obstruction in his march. a.d.
lis was subscribed, likewise, by some others,  -
tio had been of the council of state ; but in his
rrespondence with Charges, who was hearty for
e restoration, Sir Anthony opened himself more
?ely, and showed him that it was practicable.
onk, upon the invitation which he had received,
arched to Newark ; and the way being cleared
r him by the dispersing of Lambert's forces, he
vanced towards London. On the road he was
dressed by Lord Fairfax and others, who infl
ated their desire of seeing the ancient govern-
ent restored. He received them with civility,
it answered with great reserve. Sir Arthur
haslerigge, Mr. Scot, and others, grew jealous
id apprehensive of him. They resolved to check
e power of one whom they thought so danger-
is ; and therefore offered to make Sir Anthony
:neral of their forces, if he would march against
m. Though Sir Anthony might have promised
mself success in the undertaking, Monk's army
:ing small and his cavalry weak, he refused
eir offer, and told them he had given Monk a
omise of his friendship, which he would not
eak. This reduced him to a worse state with
em than Monk was. They perceived his opi-

222 LIFE OF THE
a.d. nions to be repugnant to theirs, and from that
1659-60. • i i • *i
—  time never consulted with him.01
Monk's Upon Monk's approach, Sir Anthony, to per-
arrival in
London, form his promise and prevent any opposition,
procured an order of parliament that the soldiers
in and about London should march forth, and
make room for Monk ; who immediately entered
the town, and ordered them into distant quarters.

S1 Sir Anthony's great talent is at no period so apparent as in
his conduct of the various and difficult intrigues with which this
time was so rife. We always find him prominent and indefati
gable, and he is generally successful. He overlooked no source
of information, and he was almost always the first to surprise his
friends and confound his opponents by a discovery of the most
secret counsels and the most covert designs. He had under
taken a difficult task when he proposed to direct the conduct
of Monk, a man who was ambitious, yet undecided as to the
object of his ambition ; desirous of power, yet without talent to
acquire or retain it ; and singularly fortunate in obtaining by
conduct, which resulted only from irresolute selfishness, a repu
tation for deep thought and disinterested patriotism. Yet Sir
Anthony, when he had once resolved to make him the instru
ment of a restoration, watched him with unerring caution, and
guided him with the influence of a superior mind. For this
purpose he had gained over the general's wife, who naturally
dreading the result of the dark designs in which she feared her
husband was engaged, confided to Sir Anthony all she either
observed or suspected. This channel of information enabled
him, on several occasions, to give Monk signal proofs that he
had a superior master at intrigue to deal with, — one whom it was
in vain for him to attempt to deceive.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 223
ie iealousy which had been conceived of Monk a. d.
1659-60.
creasing every day amongst those who wished 
establish an oligarchy, they resolved to put him
ion some action that would lessen his interest
the city, and consequently in the country. In
der to this, Sir Arthur Haslerigge and his party
ocured a meeting, in the council-chamber at
rhitehall, of such persons as they thought most
iached to them among the members of the
uncil of war and council of state. Sir Arthur
mself carried the general to this assembly, who
is no sooner entered but the doors were secured,
d a guard placed without, with express orders
at no one whatever should be admitted. Nei-
er Sir Anthony nor any friend of Monk's had
e least notice of this till about an hour after
e assembly had sat ; when an officer of the
my, by accident seeing Sir Anthony and Mr.
reaver in a coach in Fleet-street, acquainted
em with it, apprehending it was upon some very
lportant business, by the locking of the doors,
d the orders that had been given to the guards ;
th which he (being then in the outward room)
w and heard. Upon this, Sir Anthony and
r. Weaver hastened to Whitehall ; where the
lards, out of respect to them, (being both mem-

224 LIFE OF THE
a. d. bers of the council of state,) permitted them to
1 fi^Q fif\
 knock and call at several doors of the room ; but

they could have no admittance. They went im
mediately to Monk's wife, who was apprehensive
of some ill design, because her husband had no
previous knowledge of that meeting ; nor could
she be satisfied till they returned with her to the
council-chamber, where she called aloud that she
had business of great consequence to impart to
her busband ; but no artifice could prevail to have
the door opened, or one word of answer returned
from within. After this second repulse, they re
turned to her lodgings, and stayed there till the
general came home, which was not before two
o'clock in the morning. He appeared more con
fused and disturbed than was usual in a man of
his courage and resolution : and he told them,
council's " that he did not like the proceedings of the
order to j. o
cemfn^the council 5 f°r> taking a pretence from a ridiculous
Clty- attempt of some apprentices and others in the
city some days before, they had expressly ordered
him to pull down, that very morning, the gates,
portcullises, and chains of the city, and to send
ten of the principal citizens prisoners to the
Tower." Sir Anthony laid before him the ill conse-

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 225
quences which must attend such an action ; that a. d.
1659-60.
he would lose the hearts of all the well-meaning 

men in the city and nation, and be at the com
mand of those who evidently hated him. But as
the general was unwilling to come to an open
breach with the council and the parliament, to
whom he had publicly professed his attachment,
and who, by voting him out of his employment,
might have forced him into a rupture with them,
he replied that, be it as it would, he could not He com-
A plies with it.
now do otherwise than obey these orders : and he
put them in execution the next day. The parlia
ment now thought it in their power to use him
as they pleased ; and accordingly, instead of mak
ing him general of all their forces, as they had
promised him, they by an ordinance conferred the
command of the army upon five commissioners
or any three of them. Monk, indeed, was one ;
but Sir Arthur Haslerigge and three more of Sir
Arthur's friends were the rest. The same even
ing General Monk returned to his lodgings at
Whitehall, where Sir Anthony and some others
of his friends represented to him the condition
into which he had brought himself, and the slight
the parliament had put upon him ; so that his
ruin was near if he would not take some vigorous
VOL. I. Q

226 LIFE OF THE
a. d. measures to prevent it. Their remonstrances pre-
1659-60.
 vailed ; and the next morning he marched into the
city, and there wrote a letter to the persons sitting
at Westminster, signed by himself and fourteen
Declares of the principal officers of his Coldstream regiment,
for 3. fr66
parliament, demanding a full and free parliament ; and by
the importunity of Sir Anthony, Colonel Pop-
ham, Sir Edward Harley, and others, he repaired
to Guildhall, where he gave the lord mayor and
court of aldermen an account of what he had
done, making an apology for what he had been
compelled to the day before. The lord mayor
and citizens refused, at first, to put any confi
dence in him, till Sir Anthony, Colonel Popham,
and their friends had prepared them for his re
ception with an assurance that he was sincere in
what he was then prosecuting, of which they
were afterwards so well satisfied, that the merit of
his second action easily atoned for the severity of
the former. He was followed home to his quar
ters in the city with the greatest acclamations
The joy of andwith unusual expressions of joy, which ap-
the citizens. peared by ringing of bells, bonfires, and roasting
of rumps in derision of the parliament.
The people were so unruly in their joy, that, as
Sir Anthony and Colonel Popham were going

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 227
through the streets, the mob surrounded the a.d.
i -i i • i i i 1659-60.
coach, and knowing them to be members, cried 

out with some rudeness, " Down with the rumps !"
Sir Anthony looked out, and, smiling, said to
them, " What, gentlemen, not one good piece in
a rump ?" * The mob, with their usual fickleness,
were taken with the jest, and attended him and
the colonel with loud acclamations.
The spirit of hostility so openly manifested by Parliament
the city intimidated the parliament. Upon the dated-
receipt therefore of the letter f from Monk and
his officers, they presently voted the filling up of
their house ; but they required such strict quali
fications, that none but those who were zealous
men of that party could sit amongst them. By
this they manifested their design of continuing
the legislative power in themselves, their friends,
and their posterities, instead of settling a govern
ment that might be equal and just to the people,
whose security must chiefly lie in having their
representatives accountable to them by frequent
elections. General Monk, likewise, was appre
hensive that the revolution might proceed too
fast for him to preserve the direction of it. He Monk's re
served con-
attached himself, therefore, to no party, but con- duct.
* Stringer. t Whitlocke.
Q 2

228 LIFE OF THE
a.d. versed indiscriminately with men of different
 - principles, that they might all depend upon him
as their leader. He often convened numbers
of them to confer together in his presence on
the posture of affairs, intermixing them as he
thought fit, and keeping the kingdom in great
suspense ; and, if even those who knew him best
were not mistaken, he himself was in equal un
certainty. Sir Anthony saw that the parliament's
intention was to perpetuate their own power, and
Monk's to raise himself by their means ; and be
ing sensible that his design of restoring the king
could only be effected by the dissolution of that
parliament, he pursued with ardour the reinstat
ing of the secluded members.52

£>

a design to About this time, Colonel Markham informed
imprison Sir
Anthony. gir Anthony, " that he had just been with the
genera], and as he was going into his apartment

52 In a pamphlet called " Reply to a second return to the
letter of a noble peer concerning the addresses," published
many years after, and preserved in Lord Somers' Tracts, vol.
viii. p. 333, Shaftesbury is spoken of as " a man who had one
of the chief hands in restoring a prince to his kingdom, as I
know he had ; and without whose courage and dexterity some
men, the most highly rewarded, had done otherwise than they
did." This pamphlet was written either by Shaftesbury or some
other of the chiefs of the party, and the assertion was never
denied.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 229
he met Sir Arthur Haslerigge and Mr. Scot com- a. d.
00 1659-60.
ing out, whom he overheard to say, that they 
would secure Sir Anthony Ashley Cooper before
to-morrow noon ; that he was afraid they had
been tampering with the general and were come
to some agreement." Upon this intelligence, Sir
Anthony went to Monk, told him frankly what
he had heard, and pressed him to be equally un
reserved. Monk, after much importunity and some
dark discourse, owned what had passed between
Sir Arthur Haslerigge, Mr. Scot, and himself; and
that he had engaged to return to his lodgings at
Whitehall the next morning to support their in
terest and obey the parliament's orders. He did
not deny that they had promised to make him
general of all their forces ; but assured Sir An
thony that he would take upon himself to make
them his friends, and would have a particular re
gard to his interest. This was about five o'clock
in the afternoon ; when Sir Anthony left him,
desiring he might at night have a farther confer
ence on that subject. Sir Anthony, before he
went, gave Monk's wife an account of what had
passed, advising her to send for her brother
Clarges, as himself would for Colonel Cloberry
and Colonel Knight, Being met, they united

230 LIFE OF THE
a. d. their efforts to persuade the general to restore the
1659-60.
 secluded members ; to which, after some hours'
debate, he consented, and gave Clarges and Sir
Anthony a commission to summon them together
at the Prince's Lodgings in Whitehall at nine
o'clock the next morning, promising that they
should be conducted to the parliament-house with
honour and safety. A considerable number ac
cordingly assembled at the appointed place. This
Secluded was effected without the least notice being given
members
restored, to the other party : for when Sir Arthur Hasle
rigge came thither, expecting the general was
returned as a friend, and found so many of the
secluded members, with great resentment in his
countenance he said to Sir Anthony, "This is
your doing, but it shall cost blood." Sir Antho
ny replied, "Your own, if you please; but Sir
Anthony Ashley Cooper will not be secured this
morning." General Monk, coming forth at that
instant into the great room, told Sir Arthur, who
reminded him of his promise, that it was neces
sary for the public peace to restore those mem
bers, who had declared they intended no altera
tion of the government, and proposed nothing
farther than to pave the way for a new parlia
ment ; and since there was no method of issuing

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 231
summons but by writs in the name of the keepers a. d.
1659-60.
of the liberty of England by authority of pariia 
ment, it could not be apprehended that any other
government would be introduced. The secluded
members being admitted, the parliament repealed
all the orders by which they had been excluded;
renewed and enlarged the general's commission ;
passed an act to dissolve themselves on the 17th
day of March 1659-60, and to call another pariia- Act to dis
solve the
ment to sit on the 25th day of April following. LongPar-
J L ° liament.
They likewise appointed a new council of state,
consisting of thirty-one persons, viz. General
Monk, Sir Anthony Ashley Cooper, Colonel Pop
ham, William Pierpoint, John Crew, Colonel
Rossiter, Richard Knightly, Colonel Morley,
Lord Fairfax, Sir Gilbert Gerrard, Lord Chief
Justice St. John, Sir John Temple, Lord Com
missioner Widdrington, Sir John Evelyn, Sir
William Waller, Sir Richard Onslow, Sir Wil
liam Lewis, Colonel Edward Montague, Sir Ed
ward Harley, Colonel Norton, Arthur Annesley,
Denzil Holies, esqrs. Colonel George Thompson,
John Trevor, Sir John Holland, Sir John Potts,
Colonel Birch, Sir Harbottle Grimston, John
Swinton, John Weaver, esqrs. and Serjeant May
nard.

232 LIFE OF THE
a. d. These were invested with power to act in all
— ^- matters relating to the government, as well during
the sitting as in the intervals of parliament.
The parliament, about two days before the
dissolution, ordered the following engagement,
viz. " I do declare and promise that I will be
true and faithful to the Commonwealth of Eng
land, as the same is now established without king
or house of lords," to be taken off the file, and
made void.
scheme to Sir Arthur Haslerigge, Mr. Scot, and the chief
make Monk pro- 0f that party, concluded by this step that the
parliament intended to restore the king. There
fore, after they had privately consulted with
several officers of the army, they went to the
general at Whitehall, and told him that many
of his friends were much troubled at what the
parliament had done, as it tended both to the
ruin of himself and the public ; since it was evi
dent, by what had been voted the day before,
that the restoration of the king was designed.
They said, that they found a commonwealth
was disagreeable to the disposition of the peo
ple, who were always bad judges of what was
best for them ; and therefore, since a govern
ment by a single person was necessary, there

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 233
could not be one fitter than himself for that a.d.
office ; and that in this decision they had ground  -
to believe the nation in general would concur.
The next day they went to him again, taking
with them Monsieur Bourdeaux, the French
ambassador ; who, after the others had used all
their arts to persuade Monk to take the govern
ment,* gave him assurances that Cardinal Maza
rine was desirous of his friendship, and would
faithfully assist him. He represented to him
what a glory it would be to dignify his family
with the empire of three kingdoms ; and as
sured him that in the attempt he might de
pend, not only on the cardinal's friendship and
assistance, but on a safe retreat and honourable
support in France in case he should fail of suc
cess. Monk's eyes were dazzled by the prospect,
and at last he consented.
Great part of the night was spent in forming
the scheme; and it was resolved to secure Sir
Anthony, and several others, who were likely
to be most active in opposing the design. The
general's wife, who had overheard part of the
discourse behind the hangings, sent her brother
* Lord Clarendon says, that thority of Cromwell and the
Monk was offered all the au- title of king.

234 LIFE OF THE
a. d. Clarges to acquaint Sir Anthony with what had
1659-60.
 been concluded that night. He commended her

prudence for making the discovery, as it might
save her husband and family; for Monk, he
said, had not quickness enough for such an un
dertaking, and must certainly be ruined in the
attempt.53
Defeated Sir Anthony immediately sent for those mem-
by Sir An
thony and bers of the council of state, who he knew would
his friends. not favour the proceedings of Sir Arthur Hasle
rigge, to meet by eiglit o'clock at the council
chamber at Whitehall.
At this meeting, Sir Anthony told the general
he must be sensible that every trial which had
been made of new forms and methods of govern
ment, instead of providing a settlement or secu
rity for the people, produced only tyranny and
oppression ; that it was impossible for England

53 This lady is called some very hard names in the Thurloe
papers, and these have been lately put prominently forward by
an author who seems to have imbibed a most unreasonable
degree of dislike both for her and her husband. It is not at all
impossible but these tales are mere scandal ; but, if true, why
rake up her early errors to influence our judgment upon her
subsequent conduct ? Was there no womanly merit in refusing
the prospect of a crown, because the struggle for it must com
promise her husband's safety ?

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 235
to be a free nation under the government of an a. d.
1659-60.
army and the power of the sword ; that the 
fluctuations and revolutions must be endless
unless the ancient laws and constitution of the
kingdom were restored, which could not be ef
fected but by restoring the king ; and that, since
there must be a single person, he who had the
best right to it was fittest to be on the throne.
Sir Anthony also told Monk, that though many
persons might think themselves in danger by
the restoration, it would be his fault if there
should be any sufferers ; for he might bring in
the king upon such terms and conditions as
would make every man safe, himself great, and
the nation happy. In this Sir Anthony said
they expected he should assist them, and engage
upon his honour that nothing should divert him
from it. Monk, apprehensive that his designs
were discovered, and being encompassed by a
set of men with whom, at that time, he was
unable to contend, made no scruple to give them
any assurances ; and, as a proof of the sincerity
of his intentions, he consented to change several
commissions in the army.5*

54 This account of one of the most important intrigues in our
history is probably taken from Stringer's MS.: it agrees in every

236 LIFE OF THE
a. d. Sir Anthony made immediate use of this con-
 cession ; for, being well acquainted with the
Commissions in the characters of most of the officers, he drew up
army chan-
sed- an estabhshment of the army,* which reduced
* The rough drafts of this are among his papers, in the
establishment of the army and possession of the present Earl
navy, in his own hand-writing, of Shaftesbury.

material circumstance with that given by Mr. Locke, who doubt
less derived his information from the earl himself. After
speaking of the private understanding which had taken place
between Monk and the French ambassador, and the manner
in which it had been discovered to Sir Anthony by Mrs. Monk'
Mr. Locke describes the scene in the council-chamber, thus :—
" Upon this notice, Sir Anthony caused the council of state,
whereof he was one, to be summoned; and when they were
met, he desired the clerks might withdraw, he having matter
of great importance to communicate to them. The doors of
the council-chamber being locked, and the keys laid upon the
table, he began to charge Monk, not in a direct and open
accusation, but in obscure intimations and doubtful expressions,
giving ground of suspicion that he was playing false with them
and not doing as he promised. This he did so skilfully and
intelligibly to Monk that he perceived he was discovered, and
therefore in his answer to him fumbled and seemed out of
order, so that the rest of the council perceived there was some
thing in it, though they knew not what the matter was ; and
the general at last averring that what had been suggested was
upon groundless suspicions, and that he was true to his prin
ciples and stood firm to what he had professed to them, and
had no secret designs that ought to disturb them, and that
he was ready to give them all manner of satisfaction : where
upon Sir A. Ashley closing with him and making a further

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 237
six regiments of foot and one of horse, and A D
made a reduction in all the garrison companies
not regimented. By this, several officers were
removed, and others, who could be trusted, were

1659-60.

use of what he had said than he intended, for he meant no
more than so far as to get away from them upon this assurance
which he gave them: but Sir A. Ashley told him that if
he was sincere in what he said, he might presently remove all
scruples if he would take away their commissions from such
and such officers in his army, and give them to those whom
he named, and that presently and before he went out of the
room. Monk was in himself no quick man ; he was guilty
alone among a company of men who he knew not what they
would do with him, for they all struck in with Sir A. Ashley,
and plainly perceived that Monk had designed some foul play.
In these straits, being thus close pressed and knowing not
how else to extricate himself, he consented to what was pro
posed ; and so immediately before he stirred, a great part of
the commissions of his officers were changed ; and Sir Edward
Harley among the rest, who was a member of the council and
there present, was made governor of Dunkirk in the room of
Sir William Lockhart, and was sent away immediately to take
possession of it ; by which means the army ceased to be at
Monk's devotion, and was put into hands that would not serve
him in the design he had undertaken. The French ambassador,
who had the night before sent away an express to Mazarine,
positively to assure him that things went here as he desired,
and that Monk was fixed by him in his resolution to take on
himself the government, was not a little astonished the next
day to find things taking another turn. And indeed this so
much disgraced him in the French court, that he was presently
called home, and soon after broke his heart."

navy

238 LIFE OF THE
a.d. put in their places. As he chiefly influenced the
 - council of state, who owed their being to him,
they readily approved of it ; and Monk could
not dissent without renewing their jealousy.
and in the sn- Anthony settled, likewise, with great assi
duity, the establishment of the navy, the list of
ships, and the several captains, with whose cha
racters he was well acquainted. This he sent to
his friend, Admiral Montague, (afterwards Earl
of Sandwich,) for his approbation ; who returned
him the foUowing answer :
"Sir, " This evening I have received your com
mands concerning an establishment for the navy,
which I shall obey as soon as possibly I can. I
suppose it wih necessarily require Monday's and
Tuesday's time to inform myself and consider
about it, after which you shall receive a further
account from " Sir, " Your most humble servant,
" E. Montague.
" Swiftsure, off Greenhive,
" March U, 1659-60."

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 239
Sir Anthony, having taken these steps in rela- a.d. 1660.
tion to the army and the navy, obtained an order 0rders re;
J J lative to the
from the council of state, * that it should be re- Tower-
ferred to himself, Mr. Holies, and five others, or
any three of them, to " inform themselves what
officers, civil or military, in the Tower of London
were dangerous, and not fit to be continued in a
place of so much importance:" and a few days
afterwards, other orders were issued out, giving a
power " to remove from thence all such persons as
were not actually employed in the service of the
state." Sir Anthony, by thus remodelling the army
and the navy, and securing the Tower, provided
against any future relapse of General Monk.
Monk saw this, and how ineffectual it would be Monkfa-
vours the
tor him now to attempt to oppose or obstruct the restoration.
progress of the restoration. When, therefore, he
found the current of affairs turning so strong that
way, he had sufficient sagacity to fall in with it,
and preserve, at least, the appearance of steering
the vessel. The honour of bringing about this
event was naturally enough ascribed to him,
* The original order, signed council, is among Lord Shaftes-
John Rushworth, clerk of the bury's papers.

240 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1660. merely from his command, which made him the
principal object in view.
Farther The council of state took all the necessary steps
steps of the
council of f0r preserving the public peace. They published
a proclamation for preventing tumults and dis
orders. They formed an engagement to be sub
scribed by the officers of the army, whereby these
were to acquiesce in whatsoever should be done
by the succeeding parliament ; and such officers
as refused to sign were immediately displaced, to
make room for others, who were more complying.
They likewise caused the act to be put in exe
cution for electing members for the new parlia
ment ; and the people, being weary of the oppres
sions arising from so many changes of govern
ment, chose such representatives as were thought
to be well inclined toward the restoration. These
measures being taken by the council of state, the
king, watchful to improve so favourable a crisis,
sent Sir John Grenville from Breda with a decla
ration to be delivered to the parliament at their
meeting.
Convention The new parliament met upon the five-and-
rarliament. *¦
twentieth day of April 1660. The lords chose
the Earl of Manchester, and the commons Sir
Harbottle Grimston, for their speakers. On the

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 241
1st of May, Sir John Grenville delivered the de- a.d. 1660.
claration, with a letter from the king to the house
of lords, as likewise to the house of commons.
In these were ample assurances of " a general par
don to all such as would lay hold of it within
forty days, except those who should be excepted
by the parliament; and a liberty was promised to
tender consciences, and that none should be ques
tioned for difference of opinion in matters of reli
gion which did not disturb the peace of the king
dom." The two houses, the same day, voted that
the government ought to be in king, lords, and
commons. A select committee, of which Sir Anthony was
one, was appointed to draw up an answer to the
king's letter ; and this answer was ordered to be
kept by the clerk with such privacy, that no copy
thereof might be taken by any person till it had
been communicated to the king.55 In this an
swer were contained thanks to the king for his
esteem of parliaments, and his character of them,

53 If by this it is intended to be conveyed that the committee
drew up and sent the letter, it is incorrect, as it underwent con
siderable revision by the whole house. The superscription
" To the King's Most Excellent Majesty," could only be placed
by the express order of the house.
VOL. I. R

242 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1660. " that they were so necessary for the government
of the kingdom, that neither prince nor people
could be in any tolerable degree happy without
them." The commons vindicated the honour of
the last parliament, and declared them innocent
of King Charles the First's murder ; which they
said was the act of a few ambitious and bloody
persons. They said, that, after such an universal
shaking of the foundations of government, great
care must be had to repair the breaches; and
much circumspection and industry used to pro
vide things necessary for the strengthening of
those repairs, and preventing whatsoever might
disturb or awaken them: and since the king's
own judgment had prompted to him the necessity
of making the kingdom happy, by the advance
ment of religion, the security of the laws, liber
ties, and estates of the people, and the removing
all jealousies and animosities, they could not
doubt of his effectual performance of those things.
Two days afterwards, the following commission
ers were chosen to be sent to Breda : viz. the Earls
of Warwick, Oxford, and Middlesex, Lord Vis
count Hereford, Lord Berkley, and Lord Brook,
for the peers ; Lord Fairfax, Lord Falkland, Lord
Bruce, Lord Castleton, Lord Herbert, Lord Man-

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 243
deville, Sir Horatio Townshend, Sir Anthony a.d.i66o.
Ashley Cooper, Sir George Booth, Sir John
Holland, Sir Henry Cholmly, and Denzil Holies,
Esq., for the commons. These were ordered to The king
restored.
present the humble invitation and supplication
of the parhament, " That his majesty would be
pleased to return, and take the government of the
kingdom into his hands :" and on the 8th of May,
the king was solemnly proclaimed, the speakers
and members of both houses attending.

11 2

244 LIFE OF THE

CHAPTER VII.
Sir Anthony made one of the new Privy Council  'Advanced
tothe Peerage. — His Generosity. — Conduct of Charles. —
Dissolution of Parliament. — [Sir Anthony sits at the trial of
the Regicides.] — The new Parliament assemble. — Their Pro
ceedings  Sale of Dunkirk.
a.d. 1660. 1 he suddenness with which this restoration was
brought about was surprising to the world, and it
far exceeded the king's hopes ; but, according to
Mr. Locke, Sir Anthony had laid the plan of it
some time before. This plan he had formed when
all the forces who had appeared for the king
were defeated, and when the court abroad and
the royalists at home were totally dispirited.
Sir Anthony's conduct accounts for that uncer
tainty with which Lord Clarendon and other
historians confess Monk to have acted; who, it
is evident, was turned and directed by his po
licy, and fixed by his resolution.
When Sir Anthony attended, with the other

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 245
commissioners, at Breda, 56 the king distinguished a.d. i660.
him in a particular manner ; and told him, " he ^°f^
was very sensible with what zeal and application Sony.
he had laboured for his restoration." As a proof
that the king sincerely thought so, Sir Anthony
was one of the first persons admitted into the
privy council. On the 9th of June 1660, he
was made governor of the Isle of Wight, * and
colonel of a regiment of horse. He was likewise
made chancellor of the exchequer and under-trea-
surer, and was appointed lord-lieutenant of the
county of Dorset. Even whilst the king was at
Canterbury, before the coronation, he was created
a baron, by the title of " Baron Ashley f of Win-
* These two commissions, f He chose this title pur-
which are among Lord Shaftes- suant to an article in the set-
bury's papers, are under the tlement upon his father's mar-
hand and seal of Monk, by riage with the only daughter
virtue of an authority from of Sir Anthony Ashley, " That
the king : the last was proba- if Sir John Cooper or his heirs
bly for the regiment of horse should come to be honoured
which had been Fleetwood's, with the degree of peerage,
and was given to Sir Anthony they should take that for their
by the parliament, March27th. title." — Gibson 's Camden,'\. 17 5.

56 This was an unhappy journey for Sir Anthony. It was
upon this occasion he received that serious injury, which grew
into an abscess, and embittered the rest of his life. This accident
has already been incidentally mentioned in the introduction,
as the remote occasion of the earl's intimacy with Mr. Locke.

246 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1660. burn St. Giles.57 In the preamble to his patent,
the king farther acknowledged "the restoration
to be chiefly owing to him ; and that, after many
endeavours to free the nation from the evils in
which it was involved, he at length, by his wis
dom and counsels, in concert with General Monk,
delivered it from the servitude under which it so
long had groaned." 5S
These employments and honours were con
ferred on him without any application or secret
addresses, and without his endeavouring to obtain
any private articles for himself before the king's
coming over. Nay, from what passed between
Sir Anthony and Monk previous to the Restora
tion, it is plain that he h'ad insisted with Monk,
that the king should be brought in upon proper

57 This is a mistake : his name frequently occurs as Sir A. A.
Cooper after this time, particularly in the commission for the
trial of the regicides. The date of his patent of peerage is
20th April 1661, a few days before the meeting of the new par
liament. * Lord Clarendon attributes Sir Anthony's appointment as
privy counsellor to the special recommendation of Monk, and
adds, that this honour was the rather conferred upon him be
cause, " having lately married the niece of the Earl of Southamp
ton, it was believed that his slippery humour would be easily
restrained and fixed by the uncle." — Life of Clarendon by him
self.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 247
terms. This, however, was prevented by the con- a.d.1660.
flux of those who had little merit but in an abso-
lute resignation to the crown, and who made the
torrent too great to be resisted.
Though Lord Ashley had asked nothing for Lord Ash-
ley's gene-
himself, yet, from the favour to which his services rous con
duct to the
entitled him, he made one request to the king, Wall°pfe-
which was a proof of the disinterestedness of his
friendship and the generosity of his temper.
The great estate of the Wallop family having
been forfeited at the Restoration, Lord Ashley
exerted his interest with the king for a grant of
it ; and, when he might easily have obtained it
for himself and his heirs, he only procured himself
to be made a joint-sharer with three other persons
of distinction, his particular friends, to whom the
estate was granted for their fives, and to the sur
vivor of them for ever. The whole management
of it was left to Lord Ashley, but it was received
and applied for the benefit of the family. On the
25th of June 1668, (one of the sharers being
dead,) * he reconveyed his third part to the fa
mily, and four years afterwards, in July 1672,
prevailed on the other two to follow his example ;
* The deeds of trust and among Lord Shaftesbury's
conveyance are still extant papers.

248 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1660. by which means an ancient and worthy family
was preserved from ruin.
Hedoes He did likewise some considerable service to
service to
the Queen the Queen of Bohemia and her family, who had
ofBohemia. suffered much for the protestant cause. This ap
pears by a letter from the queen's eldest daugh
ter, the Princess Elizabeth (sister to the Princess
Sophia), who was distinguished for her merit and
understanding. What the particular service was,
is not mentioned ; but he had probably exerted
his interest in parliament in the queen's behalf
immediately after the Restoration, when two
sums, of ten thousand pounds each, were voted
to be presented to her.
Contributes Lord Ashley remembered how much he had
to the de- J
the'court^f suffere(l by the court of wards; the corruption
and oppressions of which he perfectly well knew,
the power it threw into the hands of the crown,
and the mischiefs it produced to the liberty of the
subject. The removing of this grievance was one
of the first things taken into consideration, and
chiefly by his interest, 59 before the king came

59 This must rest upon some evidence among the private
papers of the family, for Sir Anthony's name is not found
among those who formed the committee for preparing these
bills. It is indeed remarked in the Parliamentary History, that

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 249
over ; and a bill for that purpose was brought in, a.d. 1660.
and passed into an act, soon after the Restoration.
If this measure had been delayed another year, it
is probable that the king would not have relin
quished such a support of absolute dominion ; for
he soon found the parliament more complying
than his most sanguine hopes could ever have
suggested. Notwithstanding that the house of commons views of
the court.
showed such an eagerness for the king's restora
tion, and gave such proofs of affection to him at
his return, yet it could not be depended on to
promote any extraordinary schemes of power;
for many of the members had been in the parlia
ment of 1640, and, though they were friends to
monarchy, had been active to keep it within pro
per bounds. When, therefore, the first transports
of their zeal and joy should subside, it might be
naturally expected that they would revert to their
old principles, and endeavour to preserve the true
balance of the constitution. The court, it is
plain, suspected this ; but had too much art to
discover the suspicion. The king, in all his

" Sir A. A. Cooper spoke against the court of wards, and for
the excise ;" but he is not at all mentioned as the originator, or
even as an active supporter, of the measure.

250 LIFE OF THE
a.d.1660. speeches, was full of gentleness, mercy, and in
dulgence : he constantly expressed his obligations
to perform his promise in the declaration from
Breda ;" upon which," he said, " the peace and tran
quillity of the kingdom entirely depended; and
which, if he had not made, he was persuaded, he
had not been in England." He declared again,
that no man should be disquieted for differences in
opinion on matters of rehgion which did not dis
turb the peace of the kingdom." He pressed the
forwarding of an act of indemnity and oblivion ;
" which," he said, " he would inviolably observe
himself, and exact an observance of from others."
Parliament Yet, notwithstanding these and many popular
dissolved. expressions, he dissolved the parliament, the 29th
of December, seven months after his restoration.
The court believed that a new house of commons,
chosen under the countenance of the king, would
be more devoted to the crown; and it was not
disappointed. The people, who were charmed
with the king's speeches, generally chose, in the
hurry of their loyalty and zeal, such members as
were in the extreme for prerogative and hier
archy ; and who, at the same time, were ambi
tious of preferment.
["The authors of this work have passed over in

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 251
silence an act that has been severely commented a.d. 1660.
upon by almost all the writers of the period. It
was in October of this year that the trial of the
regicides took place ; and Sir Anthony's name
was upon the commission of oyer and terminer
by which they were tried. Sir John Dalrymple
remarks, in his Review of Events after the Resto
ration, " The most cruel circumstance in the trial
of these persons was, that several of the popular
party, of whom Ashley Cooper was one, sate as
their judges, and doomed them to die for that re
bellion to which they had incited them." This
is hardly true. These men were not doomed to die
for the rebellion in which Sir Anthony had partici
pated, but for the death of Charles, — an act which
was brought about by a party whose violence
Sir Anthony uniformly opposed. He had, how
ever, subsequently acted with several of these men ;
and his conduct in allowing his name to be placed
Upon this commission manifested great want of
delicacy, — to say nothing of the disgrace which
must attach to every man who sat upon these
trials, for the barbarous and unconstitutional
manner in which they were conducted. Sir An
thony seems to have been aware of the impro
priety of his conduct, for he did not, like Mr.

252 LIFE OF THE
a.d.1660. Denzil Holies, take any prominent part in the
proceedings. This might lead us to suppose that
he acted unwiUingly, did we not find proof of his
activity from other sources. It appears from Mr.
Secretary Morrice's evidence upon Hacker's trial,
that Sir Anthony, Mr.Annesley, and himself were
the three who were deputed by the council to
examine that person when he was brought over
from Ireland. Upon their report, he was taken
into custody, and afterwards tried and executed.!*
The want of settling proper terms with the
king before the Restoration, as Lord Ashley had
proposed to Monk, proved of the greatest ill con
sequence to the public, and laid the foundation
for destroying the constitution more securely.
From the king's despair of recovering the throne
by his friends in England, and the neglect with
which France and Spain had treated him, he
would willingly have embraced any offers ; but
his restoration without conditions raised his no
tions of his own power and the weakness of the
people to an exorbitant height. The court now
formed the design of extending and confirming
the power of the crown by means of the parlia
ment, instead of acting, as formerly, contrary to
* State Trials, vol. v. col. 1181.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 253
the sense of it ; and the new house of commons, a.d. 1660.
as was expected, fell blindly and precipitately
into the scheme. The members seemed to act as
if they thought that a negligence of the people's
liberties was honourable to them. They were as
willing to give as the king was to take, and more
ready to strengthen and advance than to weaken
or confine any branch of his prerogative.
The king, who knew their disposition, soon dis- a.d. i66i.
° r New par-
covered his own : for, in his speech at the open- foment.
ing of the parliament, May the 8th, 1661, in
stead of recommending any indulgence to tender
consciences, as promised in the declaration from
Breda, he expressed himself as follows : " In
God's name, provide full remedies for any future
mischiefs. Be as severe as you will against new
offenders, especially if they be so upon old prin
ciples ; and pull up those principles by the roots."*
The house of commons, intent upon obeying Bills unfa-
L jo vourable to
the king's commands, immediately passed several llberty-
bills to enlarge and establish his power : among
others, one for the safety and preservation of the
king's person, by which it was made penal to say
that the king was a papist, or intended to intro
duce popery ; another to empower him to dis-
* Journals.

254 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1661. pose of the land forces : a bill for the well govern
ing and regulating corporations : a bill for the
uniformity of public prayer : a bill declaring the
sole right of the militia to be in the king, and for
the present ordering and governing the same;
another against the quakers : and, to strike, in
deed, at the roots of the principles of liberty, a
bill was passed to restrain unlicensed printing.60
Precipita- These bills went through the house of com-
tion of the
commons, mons with great precipitation. The corporation
bill was carried up to the lords July 6th, and
the uniformity bill July 10th ; and the commons
were so impatient, that, three days afterwards, on
the 13th, they sent a message to the lords,* to put
them in mind of the despatch of these two bills;
and on the 16th another message, for the despatch
of the corporation bill : but the lords acted with
more coolness and consideration than was agree
able either to the commons or the court.
Corpora- By the corporation bill, the king was enabled
tion bill. . S
to appoint such commissioners as he should think
* Lords' Journals.

60 This house of commons began by voting that the solemn
league and covenant should be burned by the common hang
man, and that all their members should receive the sacrament
according to the rites of the Church of England upon a certain
day.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 255
fit, in all cities, corporations, boroughs, and a.d. i66i.
cinque-ports ; and it was enacted, that three or
more of those commissioners should, have proper
power to tender to all mayors, aldermen, &c. and
other persons, bearing any office, trust, or employ
ment in corporations, the oaths of supremacy ;
and this following oath, viz. " I, A. B. do declare,
and believe, that it is not lawful, upon any pre
tence whatsoever, to take up arms against the
king ; and I do also abhor that traitorous posi
tion of taking arms by his authority against his
person, or against those commissioned by him.
So help me God."
The commissioners, any five or more of them,
had a power to remove or displace any such persons
as the major part did not approve of, notwithstand
ing they had taken the oath as the law required.
This bill met with great opposition in the house opposed in
the QOUSG
of lords ; particularly from the Earls of South- of lords.
ampton, Manchester, Bedford, Leicester, and Bo
lingbroke ; Lords HoUes, Townshend, Delamere,
and Ashley ; as it was forcing men to swear to a
belief of what was repugnant to the constitution
and the laws of nature. Lord Ashley set forth
the ill consequences ofthe bill in various instances,
viz. the injustice it might do to the wealthiest,

256 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1661. the most able, and the most conscientious mem
bers of their respective corporations : the fixino-
these in the hands of, perhaps, the most profligate
persons in them ; at least, the dividing of the
people into parties : and he showed that, as it
would be a restraint upon those who had a re
gard to their oaths and their country, it was
the most effectual method which could be con
trived for lodging the executive power of the
government in the hands of such persons as
would make no difficulty of subjecting the whole
nation to an absolute tyranny both of church and
state. The great spirit with which some of these bills
were opposed by so many of the lords in employ
ment, gave uneasiness to the projectors. The
Parliament king, therefore, went to the parliament, on the
adjourned. 30th of July 1661, and told them, that " he
knew they had begun many bills which could not
be finished till their meeting again ; and, that
they might be finished then, he forbore to make
this a sessions ; but was contented they should
adjourn to the 20th of November :" a very un
usual, if not unprecedented adjournment !
During the adjournment, reports were spread

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 257
of a plot* in several counties; and many were a.d.1661.
taken up on these reports, and committed to pri
son. When the house met, on the 20th of No- Meetsagain.
vember 1661, the king told them, that " he
knew the visit he made them that day was not
necessary, was not of course ; yet, if there was no
more in it, it would not seem strange that he
came to see the lords spiritual and temporal f and
the commons of England met together." He
took notice of " the activity of many wicked in
struments to disturb the public peace ;" recom
mending it to the parliament " to find proper
remedies for such diseases, and to oblige all men
to a proper submission ;" and he concluded with
recommending a good correspondence between
the two houses.
* Rapin is evidently mis- framed and sent to the lords
taken here ; for he says, that, before the adjournment, and
upon the sole foundation of before there was any sugges-
this plot, (which he proves to tion of the plot. It is evident,
be a contrivance of the court,) that the rumours of the plot
the corporation act and all the were only to persuade the
proceedings against the non- public that there was a neces-
conformists were built ; and sity of passing those laws, and
that the project of the act of to induce the lords to it.
uniformity was now formed : f These were just restored
whereas it appears by the Jour- to their seats.
nals, that both these acts were
VOL. I. S

258 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1661. Upon the return of the commons to their
Proceed- house, Sir John Packington opened the scene,
ings of the ' da »
parliament. an(j ,jeciare(i that great numbers were taken up
in his county for the plot. Others supported
him, and said, " Some laws must be made, both
to bring the nonconformists under strict obedi
ence or due punishment, and to secure the exe
cutive power of the government in such per-
sons as should not question or dispute the com-
committee mands of the prince." A committee of both
to inquire
into the houses was appointed to examine into the plot;
and they had power to sit during the adjourn
ments of parliament. They made a strict in
quiry, but as there appeared no foundation for
the reports, the public were much alarmed at
their power ; and, therefore, on the 7th of Ja-
a-d^ nuary 1661-2, (the first day of the parliament's
meeting after the Christmas holydays,) Lord
Clarendon reported to the house of lords,* " that
the committee of both houses had met several
times during the adjournment, and considered
of the business referred to them; but, finding
some imaginary jealousies of the end and intent
of the committee's meeting, they had come to
no resolutions, but thought fit to leave the busi-
* Lords' Journals.

1661-2

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 259
ness to both houses." Upon this, the lords im- a.d.
mediately demanded a conference with the com-  '-
mons, and declared the committee dissolved.
The noise of the plot was, however, kept up
for some time ; but it dropped without the pro
secution of one single person, as soon as the uni
formity bill was passed by the lords.
In this was the same oath as in the corporation Uniformity
r bill.
bill. It went very slowly and with great diffi
culty through the house of lords ; which alarm
ed the commons so much that, on the 16th of
December, they sent a message to the lords to
put them in mind of it ; as likewise of the cor
poration bill, the bill concerning quakers, and
the bill concerning printing. The corporation
bill, after a warm debate, was passed, and re
ceived the royal assent the 20th of that month.
On the 28th of January 1661-2, the lords re
ceived another message from the commons, to
remind them of the uniformity bill : but this
bill was warmly debated, and strongly opposed,
as being repugnant to the king's declaration from
Breda. The lords made several amendments to
it, and declared that the king ought to adhere
to his promise of liberty to tender consciences.
But the commons, in a conference with the lords
s 2

260 LIFE OF THE

a.d. upon the amendments, said, that the king
1661-2. , , , ,,
 could not, m that engagement, understand the
misleaders of the people, but the misled; that
it would be very strange to call a schismatical
conscience a tender conscience ; that a tender
conscience denoted an impression from without,
received from another, and that upon which ano
ther strikes." * This was a construction unworthy
of a school, much more of a house of commons ;
and it was made only to support a shameful
elusion of a royal promise, given under a par
liamentary sanction. The Earl of Southampton
and Lord Ashley were remarkably strenuous
against several clauses ; and the former, being
told " that it was believed he had spoken three
hundred times against the bill," answered, " that
he was so firmly persuaded of the fatal conse
quences of it, that he would have spoken three
hundred times more to have prevailed."
Scheme to While this bill was depending in the house
erect a new x °
thestar? °^ lords> an attempt was made in that house
to strengthen the hands of the king, by erect
ing a court like the Star-chamber. This name
was still distasteful to the people, who had not
forgotten the oppressions and injustice of that
* Lords' Journals.

the Star-
chamber.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 26l
court. It was, therefore, thought proper to es- A. d.
° 1661-2.
tablish a new one, and under the authority of 
parliament : for, on the 8th of February 1661-2,
a committee (which had been appointed to con
sider of a bill for repealing all the acts made in
the parliament which began on the 3rd of No
vember 1640) reported to the house, " that they
were of opinion that it was fit for the good of
the nation that there should be a court of like
nature to the court called the Star-chamber ; but
they desired the advice and direction of the house
in the following particulars :
" Firstly. Who should be judges.
" Secondly. What matters they should judge of.
" Thirdly. By what manner of proceedings
they should act." *
But notwithstanding their unreasonable loyalty,
the commons were not prepared to reconstruct
this engine of oppression ; these questions were
never resolved by the house, and the scheme
proved abortive. This parliament was particu
larly distinguished by its bitter hostility against
the nonconformists.
A bill now passed the commons, and was sent Bill to re
gulate the
up to the lords, for regulating the forces in the foices-
* Lords' Journals.

262 LIFE OF THE
a.d. several counties of the kingdom. By this bill,
1661-2.
 the lords lieutenants, deputy lieutenants, &c. were
obliged to take the same oath as mentioned in the
corporation act,61 with the addition of these words :
" In pursuance of such military commissions."
This bill (which, as an author* observes, was to
establish a standing army by law, and swear us
into a military government) was, likewise, vigor
ously opposed by the Earl of Southampton, Lord
Ashley, and other lords. The committee to
whom it was referred, and of which Lord Ash
ley was one, reported their opinion, that the
clause with the oath should be omitted; but it
was carried in the house for the clause by two
votes. The lords had several conferences with
* A Letter from a Person of Country. — Locke's Posthumous
Quality to his Friend in the Works.

61 The oath prescribed by the corporation act was as fol
lows : — " I do swear that it is not lawful, upon any pretence
whatsoever, to take arms against the king; and that I do
abhor that traitorous position of taking arms by his authority
against his person, or against those that are commissioned by
him, in pursuance of such commissions, and that I will not at
any time endeavour any alteration of government either in
church or state."
" The doctrine of non-resistance," observes Mr. Hallam,
" had now crept from homilies into the statute-book."

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 263
the commons upon amendments which had been a. d.
1661-2.
made to this bill : and in these conferences Lord 

Ashley was constantly a manager ; as were the
Earl of Southampton, the Lord Privy Seal, Lord
Wharton, and Lord Holies.
Thus early was the design laid, and carried a.d. 1662.
into execution, for investing the king with un
due power, and restraining the liberty of the
subject. Few laws were passed but what con
veyed an additional strength to the prerogative.
Lord Ashley, in his opposition to these, acted
upon the same principles which he always main
tained ; and if, when he was chancellor of the
exchequer, he opposed the arbitrary designs of
the court in parliament, it cannot be doubted
but that he acted with the same spirit in council.
One instance of this will appear in the following
account of the sale of Dunkirk.
At the close of the session of parliament, May Ai=c°™t0f
19th, 1662, in the speech delivered by Lord Chan- Dunkirk-
cellor Clarendon, the great importance of Dunkirk
was set forth in the following remarkable words :*
" Whoever unskilfully murmurs at the expense
of Dunkirk, and the other new acquisitions,
which ought to be looked upon as jewels of an
* Lords' Journals.

264 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1662. immense magnitude in the royal diadem, does
not enough remember what we have lost by
Dunkirk, and shall always do, if it were in an
enemy's hands."
Lord cia- -phis must have been said only to amuse the
rendon s , '
thafaffai" Pubbe ; for, notwithstanding that Lord Clarendon
expressed so right a sense of the great advantage
of Dunkirk to the crown of England, he soon
after advised the king to sell it to the French ;
and, even in the next month, he sent one Mr.
Sellings,* (in whom he put an entire confidence,)
to the Count d'Estrades, who had lately been am
bassador in England, to open the affair.
On the 27th of July following, the count,
who was at Calais, in his journey on an embassy
* This Mr. Bellings had to Rome.t to solicit a cardi-
been intrusted by Lord Aubig- nal's hat for Lord Aubigny.
ny, two years before the Re
storation, to propose to King Monsleur»
Charles the sending of the Faisant souvent reflection
Duke of Gloucester to Rome,63 sur quelques particularitez des
to be instructed in the Roman conferences que nous avons
catholic religion. After the eues ensemble, et trouvant le
fate of Dunkirk, he was sent roi mon maitre dans la dispo-
t Thurloe's State Papers, vol. i. pp. 740, 744.

62 This mission to the pope formed one of the articles of im
peachment exhibited by the splenetic Earl of Bristol against
Clarendon.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY.

265

to Holland, received a letter * from King Charles, a.d. 1662.
and another from Lord Clarendon, inviting
him to come over without delay into England.
The king told him it was to settle an affair
which the chancellor had proposed, and that he
had ordered his brother's yacht to attend him.
Count d'Estrades immediately came over ; and
Lord Clarendon, without the consent of the
privy council, directly proposed to him the sale
of Dunkirk, with all its artillery, ammunition,
and dependencies. He informed the count that
" the first thought of this treaty came from ?is.nes°-
° •> tiation with
him ; that it proceeded from the necessity of d'Estrades-

sition de donner toutes sortes
de preuves du desir qu'il a
d'etreindre le noeud de I'ami
tie qu'il a avec sa majeste tres
chretienne, je fais entrepren-
dre ce voyage a Mons. Bel-
lings, que vous scavez etre
dans ma confidence, pour vous
communiquer mes sentimens.
Je vous prie de lui aj outer foi,
et de croire que je suis tres
veritablement, Monsieur, &c.
Le Comte de Clarendon.
— Lettre de M. le Comte de
Clarendon a Mons. le Comte
d'Estrades, de Hampton Court,
le 29 Juin 1662, p. 279.
Je dois faire remarquer a

votre majeste, que Mons. Bel-
lings a eu beaucoup de part
dans toute la conduite de cette
negociation, et j'estime qu'elle
trouvera juste quelque marque
desa bonte; si elle jugeoit a
propos d'en charger mon cou
rier, je la lui donnerois devant
que de partir d'ici, et aussi
avant qu'il parte pour Rome,
ou il va soliciter le chapeau
pour M. d'Aubigny, et rendre
1'obedience de la Reine d'An-
gleterre. —Lettres du Comte
d'Estrades au Roi, de Londres,
le 27 Octobre 1662, p. 359.
* D'Estrades' Memoirs, pp-
280, 281.

%66 LIFE OF THE
A-p- 1662- affairs in England ; and that no one else was
of his opinion but the king and the Duke of
York." * Lord Clarendon could only mean the
necessity of the king's private affairs ; for the par
liament had liberally and cheerfully given what
ever the king could expect for his support and
the exigencies of the government. But whether
he alluded to the weakness of the state, or of the
king, it was a discovery highly unjustifiable for
a chancellor and minister to make to a foreign
power, and extremely imprudent in carrying on
a bargain with that power.
When this necessity was urged by Lord Cla
rendon to Monk, (now Duke of Albemarle,) the
Earls of Southampton and Sandwich, as an argu
ment for the council's approving the sale, they
wisely answered, that there was f " an expedient
* A tout cela le chancelier d'Estrades a uRoi, de Londres, le
ajoutoit, que la pensee de ce 17 Aout 1662, p. 286.
traite etoit venue de lui ; qu'il t lis avoient offert un ex-
ne me deguisoit point que la pedient pour la conserver et
necessite des affaires d'Angle- pour soulager le roi de cette
terre la lui avoit donnee : 63 depense, qui etoit de remettre
qu'il etoit seul dans ce senti- cette place sous l'autorit6 du
ment avec le Roi et M. le Due parlement, qui en avoit ete se-
d'York. — Lettre du Comte paree jusqu'a present, parce

63 But he adds, " Mais qu'elle ne pouvoit l'obliger a faire un
mechant marche."

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 267
to keep the place, and ease the king of the ex- a.d. 1662.
pense of maintaining it, which was to put Dun
kirk under the authority of parliament ; by which
the public would always be charged with the ex
penses of supporting it, and the king, neverthe
less, would remain master of it."
Lord Clarendon told the count, (in order to
raise the terms of the sale,) " that if the parlia
ment, at their meeting, should approve of this
expedient, there would be no returning to such a
treaty as had been proposed; for which reason
there was no other time to do it, but during the
recess of parliament." 6i
Lord Clarendon acquainted the count, at ano
ther conference, that* " necessity only obliged the
qu'en ce cas il se chargeroit valle a prendre de la separation
de toutes ses depenses, et le du parlement. — D°- le 17 Aout,
roi n'en seroit pas moins le 1662, p. 286.
maitre : que si cela arrivoit et * II me redit encore, que la
que Ton fut force d'accepter seule necessite oblige oit le roi
cet expedient, il n'y avoit plus son maitre a, cette affaire de
de retour pour un traite comme Dunkerque ; qu'il n'avoit pas
celui qui se proposoit ; pour craint des le commencement
iequel il n'y avoit que I'inter- de me faire cette confidence,

64 Louis seems to have been very little troubled by any ap
prehension of such a course being pursued. He tells D'Estrades,
that Charles had already seen too much of parliaments to think
of making any increase to their power.

268 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1662. king to part with Dunkirk ; that, as from the
beginning he had no fear of putting this confi
dence in him, he would treat with him as a friend
of the King of England, and minister of a great
prince his ally, whom he would not in the least
distrust. That, in one or the other quality, he
would own to him, that he had the choice of four
expedients in this affair: the first was to treat
with Spain, which had already made vast offers
for the place ; the second was to treat with the
Dutch, who would give immense sums for it ; the
third was to put it in the hands of the parliament,
who would charge themselves with the expense,
and leave the government of it in the king;
and the fourth was to agree with the King of
France; which last had appeared to him most
parce qu'il traitoit avec moi donneroient des sommes im-
comme avec un ami du Roi menses. Le troisieme, de la re-
d'Angleterre, et le ministre mettre entre les mains du par-
d'un grand prince son allie, lement, qui se chargeroit de
du quel il ne se mefioit pas ; toutes ses depenses, et qui lais-
qu'en l'une et l'autre qualite il seroit pourtant au roi la meme
m'avoueroit qu'il avoit quatre autorite qu'il ya^ present: et
expediens a prendre sur l'af- le quatrieme,d'accommoder vo-
faire qu'il m'avoit proposee. tre majeste ; que ce dernier Ini
Le premier, de traiter avec les paroissoit plus juste, et plus
Espagnols, qui lui faisoient convenable aux interets du roi
presentement tout offrir pour son maitre. — Lettre du Comte
cette place. Le deuxieme, d' Estrades au Roi, de Londres, le
avec les Hollandois, qui en 21 Aout 1662, p. 302.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 269
just and most for the interest of the king his a.d.1662.
master." He afterwards said,* " it was his opinion, after
all, that a present should be made of it to the
French king, and the reconipense left to his libe
rality ; but, as he had not the sole direction, and
was obliged, for his own sake, to conduct himself
carefully in so delicate an affair, he was under
a necessity of concealing his own sentiments, and
seeming to adhere to those of others, that he
might not be thought the principal promoter of
the treaty."
All the rest of the council, except the Duke of The coun
cil oppose
York, were against the sale. It is evident, there- *e s*!e of
fore, that by Lord Clarendon's care to conceal his
own sentiments, and his seeming to be of theirs,
the king was to be looked on as the great mover
of the treaty, in order to screen the chancellor : an
unworthy artifice in a minister, to put his prince
upon a wrong and unnatural action, and shelter
* Que son sentiment avoit affaire si delicate que celle-ci,
ete apres cela d'en faire un il etoit oblige de cacher ses sen-
present a votre majest6, et de timens, et de paroitre adherer
laisser dependre la recompense a ceux des autres, afin de
de sa liberalite. Mais que n'etre pas pris pour le princi-
comme il n'etoit pas le maitre pal promoteur du traite. — D0,
et qu'il avoit un notable inte- le 21 Aout 1662, p. 303.
ret de se menager dans une

270 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1662. himself, at the same time, under the opinion of
those who opposed it. 6S
Thetreaty Lord Clarendon had before told the Count
carried on. d'Estrades, that "he would not lay any great
stress on the offers made by the King of Spain ;
because the king had rejected them purely from
his ardent desire to enter into a close alliance with
his master." *
The French king, though he was impatient
to be in possession of Dunkirk, and showed the
Count d'Estrades his unwillingness that it should
continue in the hands of England, | affected, as did
his minister likewise, a great coolness in the trans
actions ; whilst, from his knowledge of King
Charles's necessities, he reduced him to very low
* Qu'il ne me vouloit point f Pour mon interet la dite
faire valoir les offres que fai- place seroit mieux entre les
soit 1'Espagne la-dessus, parce mains des Espagnols, ou des
que le roi son maitre les Hollandois, ou demolie, qu'elle
avoient toutes rejettees, dans la n'est presentement, pour plu-
passion qu'il avoit de se lier sieurs raisons qu'il est super-
etroitement avec votre ma- flu de dire.— Lettre du Roi a
jeste. — Lettre du Comte d'Es- Monsieur le Comte d'Estrades,
trades au Roi, de Londres, lel7 de St. Germain en Laye, le 27
Aout 16C2, p. 287. Aout, p. 310.

65 It appears very clearly from Clarendon's writings, particu
larly where he speaks of his own impeachment, that he had no
idea of the responsibility of the ministers of the crown, as we
now understand that responsibility.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 271
terms in the sale. At the same time, he pursued a.d. 1662.
his point every way, by engaging the Duke of
York in his interest, and by presents* to the
duchess, Lord Clarendon's daughter. 66 Lord
Clarendon, being apprehensive, from the seeming
coolness of the French king and Count d'Estrades,
and from the low offers made by them, that they
did not set a just value on Dunkirk, f " endea
voured to make the count sensible of the great
importance of the place, with regard both to its
situation and harbour, by which it had acquired
so great a name ; and he magnified the advantages
* Count d'Estrades' Me- avantages que votre majeste en
moirs, p. 315. pouvoit tirer, s'il arrivoit ja-
f La-dessus il s'etendit en- mais qu'elle eut quelque des-
core a me faire voir ['import- sein a pousser ses conquetes
ance de cette place, par sa dans la Flandre. — Lettre du
situation et ses ports, qui lui Comte d'Estrades au Roi, de
avoient acquis dans les tems Londres, le 21 Aout 1662, p.
passes une si grande reputa- 303.
tion ; et h. m'exaggerer les

66 The corruption of our days, however gross it may be, affords
no parallel to the open and every-day practice of this period.
This present — D'Estrades does not inform us what it was — was
offered to the duchess as she returned from church with her
husband. The duke very much admired it, and the lady exhi
bited it with great satisfaction at court. One of the ordinary
annual items of Charles's expenditure was 10,000Z. in presents to
foreign ambassadors. — Dalrymple.

272 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1662. which the French king would draw from thence,
if he should have any design to push his conquests
in Flanders." It is surprising that any English
man, much more that a minister of state, who
had the least suspicion of the French king's de
signs upon Flanders, should promote such a sale,
and even use that as an argument to induce him
to be a purchaser.
Commis- On the 1st of September, a commission was
sioners ap
pointed, signed by the king, empowering Lord Clarendon
the Earl of Southampton, the Duke of Albe
marie, and the Earl of Sandwich, to adjust, con
elude, and sign the treaty with the Count d'Es
trades for the sale of Dunkirk and its depen
dencies ; but the three last, and the rest of the
council, strenuously opposed the sale, and threw
all the difficulties they could in the way. Count
d'Estrades informed his master, in a letter dated
October 27th, 1662, the day the treaty was signed,
that * " the chancellor had a great deal to bear
with during the contest which had been raised
* Je ne dois pas omettre que le plus travaille a la rompre,
le chancelier est celui de tous et Ton peut dire que les raisons
qui a eu le plus k souffrir pen- alleguees pour cela ont ete si
dant les contestations qui ont fortes, que le Roi d'Angleterre
ete formees par tout le conseil et Monsieur le Due d'York en
sur cette affaire. Les com- auroient ete ebranlez s'il n'a-
missaires sont ceux qui ont voit pris soin de les maintenir

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 273
by all the council, and especially by the three a.d.1662.
commissioners joined with him : that they had
urged such reasons against the treaty, that even
the king and the Duke of York would have been
staggered with them, if the Lord Clarendon had
not taken care to confirm them in the first resolu
tion : that he was now looked upon as the sole au
thor of the treaty : that his enemies and all the
Spanish cabal attacked him upon his conduct in

dans les premieres resolutions.
Cela a paru presque a toute la
cour, et de la je pris mon occa
sion de m'en prendre a lui
comme au seul auteur du traite.
Ses ennemis et toute la cabale
d'Espagne ont attaque la-des-
sus sa conduite, et pron6 haute-
ment que comme elle avoit 6te
mai entendue sur le mariage
du Portugal, en ce qu'il avoit
ete fait sans s'assurer aupara-
vant de la protection de la
France, de meme il paroissoit
imprudent en cette occasion,
parce qu'il abandonnoit Dun-
kerque sans auparavant etre
assure de cette liaison etroite
qu'il se vantoit que devoit pro-
duire ce traite avec votre ma
jeste ; que quand la France se
verroit maitresse de cette place
sans aucune stipulation d'en-
gagement particulier avec l'An-
VOL. I.

gleterre, elle ne se tiendroit
obligee qu'a des bienseances
qui ne l'embarqueroient h, rien ;
que comme son interet seul
1'avoit engage a la premiere
affaire pour se venger du mau-
vais traitement qu'il avoit recti
des Espagnols, et de la crainte
ou il 6toit d'etre supplante par
leur cabale, aussi la seule con
sideration et l'interet qu'il
trouvoit a s'appuyer de la
France lui faisoit oublier les
veritables interets du roi son
maitre, et lui faire sacrifier
pour cela une place qui valoit
plus pour la reputation de l'An-
gleterre, et pour sa considera
tion a l'egard des etrangers,
que toute lTrelande. — Lettre
du Comte d'Estrades au Roi,
de Londres, le 27 Oct. 1662,
p. 352.

274 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1662. this affair ; and talked openly, that, having made
great mistakes in the king's marriage with the
Infanta of Portugal, which had been concluded
without any assurance beforehand of assistance
from France, he had in like manner been as
imprudent on this occasion, because he had aban
doned Dunkirk, without being certain of that
strict alliance he boasted this treaty would pro
duce : that when the French king should become
master of Dunkirk, without any stipulation or
particular engagement with England, he would
not think himself obliged to anything more than
a common show of civility, which would not bind
him to anything : that, as it was the chancellor's
interest which had engaged him in the first affair,
that he might be revenged for the ill treatment he
had received from Spain, and his fear of being
supplanted by the Spanish cabal ; it was likewise
this consideration, and his own advantage, which
made him apply to France, forgetting the true
interest of the king his master, and sacrificing a
place which, with regard to the honour of Eng
land and her foreign concerns, was of more value
than even Ireland."
The Count d'Estrades, in the same letter, told
his master, that " this extraordinary proceeding

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 275
had convinced him that the King of England was a.d. 1662.
absolutely bent upon gaining his friendship ; that
he knew it was useful to him ; that the chancellor
had kept him warm in this opinion, for his own
particular interest ; and that for this reason chiefly,
the Duke of York would visit his majesty at
Dunkirk, to give the more strong assurances of
his regard to him; that he believed the duke
would be intrusted by the chancellor with some
advice, which would not prejudice the designs his
majesty might form in time against Flanders." *
After the treaty was signed, f and publicly Theatt1re^
known, the clamours against it were very great, hked'
not only among the ministry, but the people.
The principal part of the merchants of London
* Ce procede extraordinaire quelques avis, qui ne nuiront
me persuadoit que le Roi pas aux desseins qu'elle pourra
d'Angleterre veut absolument avec le tems former sur la
I'amitie de votre majeste ; qu'il Flandre. — Lettre du Comte
connoit qu'elle lui est utile ; d'Estrades au Roi, de Londres,
que le chancelier rechauffe a 27 Oct. 1662, p. 353.
cela meme pour son interet f Apres que le traite a tite
particulier ; et que c'est pour signe, M. le Chancelier me dit,
cette seule raison principale- que le bruit 6toit plus grand
ment que Monsieur le Due que jamais dans la cour et
d'York vient voir votre ma- parmi le peuple ; que v6tre ma
jeste a Dunkerque, pour lui en jeste oublieroit aisement led6sir
faire de plus fortes protesta- que le Roi d'Angleterre avoit
tions; et je crois qu'il sera eu de l'obliger, quand elle se
charge par le chancelier de verroit en possession de Dun-
T 2

276 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1662. went up to Whitehall with complaints that
it would become a nest of pirates. The chan
cellor told the Count d'Estrades, " that it was
publicly said, that the French king, when once
in possession of Dunkirk, would easily forget the
desire which the King of England had shown
of obliging him : that this had raised great com
plaints against him, which had given him to
understand that the king would neither be sup
ported by the parliament nor his people in case
the affair should produce any commotions ;" and
he told the Count d'Estrades, " that, as he had
the greatest part in the management of it, he
should chiefly bear the blame, and, perhaps, find
his master the first to reproach him : that to
secure himself from this, he should be extreme-
kerque, et que cela avoit deja crainte, il seroit infiniment
excite des murmures contre lui; oblige a votre majeste, si elle
qu'ils lui faisoient meme en- vouloit lui ecrire une lettre,
tendre, qu'il ne recevroit aucun pour lui temoigner un honnete
secours du parlement ni de ses ressentiment de la maniere obli-
peuples en cas que cette affaire geante dont il en avoit use, et
vint a produire quelque des- en meme tems venir a des
ordre en Angleterre ; et que offres civiles sur toutes les
Comme il y avoit plus de part suites facheuses que pourroit
que personne, il en recevroit avoir cette affaire, qui n'en-
aussi le plus grand blame, et gageroient a rien, mais qui ne
peut etre le premier reproche laisseroient pas de produire un
du roi son maitre; que pour bon effet. — D'.le 27 Oc^. 1662,
le mettre a couvert de cette p. 359.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 277
ly obliged to the King of France if he would a.d.1662.
write a letter testifying the kind sense which
he had of his conduct, and if he would send,
at the same time, civil offers of assistance in
case of any unhappy consequences ; offers, which
would not oblige the French king to do any
thing, but could not fail of producing a good
effect." The French king, in compliance with Lord
Clarendon's request, wrote two letters,* to the
King of England and the chancellor, to that
purpose. By this means Charles might have
been plunged in the greatest difficulties; for, if
any commotions had happened in the nation,
he might have been induced to trust to these
offers, and would probably have been deceived.
This transaction was carried on during the The hasty
manner of
interval of parliament, contrary to the opinion carrying it
of the whole councihf and the inclination of
the people. It was begun soon after the recess
of parliament, and hurried into a conclusion be
fore the next meeting; as if purposely to pre-
* Vide D'Estrades' Memoirs, et le chancelier. — Lettre du,
pp. 391,392. Comte d'Estrades au Roi, de
f J 'ai trouve tout le monde a Londres, le 6 Navem. 1662,
combattre pour cela, hormisle p. 366.
Roi, Monsieur le Due d'York,

278 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1662. vent the parliament's obstructing the sale, and
annexing Dunkirk to the crown ; for which a
bill had been resolved on, and carried through
the house of commons. Indeed, as the parlia
ment had given the king money for supporting
it, it could not properly be disposed of without
Lord Ash- their consent during sitting. Lord Ashley op-
ley opposed ° ° * i
Dunkirk °f Posed the sale in the most strenuous manner.
He well knew the high importance of Dunkirk ;
he had already given a proof of the estimation
in which he held it just before the Restoration;
for when Monk, to prevent Lord Ashley's dis
covery of his designs in council, made the con
cessions which we have before mentioned, and
declared his readiness to do anything to show
the sincerity of his intentions, the first care of
Lord Ashley was to provide a proper governor
for Dunkirk ; and he procured his friend, Sir
Edward Harley, to be nominated. Immediately
after the Restoration, upon the king's telhng Sir
Edward Harley, that he had no mind to part
with Dunkirk, and therefore thought proper it
should be annexed to the crown, a bill was
passed in the convention parliament for that pur
pose. When Sir Edward afterwards found that
it was to be sold, he could not, either by en-

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 279
treaties or rewards, be induced to have any con- a.d.1662.
cern in the sale. Another person was there- and sir Ed
ward Har-
fore appointed to succeed him, in order to de- 1<jy-
liver it up, and Sir Edward returned to Eng
land ; where, when he told the king " that the
place was sold for no more than the artillery
and ammunition were worth," the king expressed
his surprise at it.67
This transaction proved, in its consequences, Thepemi-
L x cious effects
of infinite prejudice. Spain and Holland grew of^'^s1'-
jealous that King Charles would be closely at
tached to the interest of France, — and from this
crisis he became so ; whilst England for a trifle,
of no benefit to the public, lost a place which
would have been a great security to her naviga
tion, and which has always been a fatal rock to
her trade, in every war with France.
As soon as the French king was in possession Dunkirkmade a free
of Dunkirk, he made it a free port, and took all port.
imaginable methods for enlarging the trade and
navigation of France ; and, being intent upon
increasing his navy, which before was inconsider-

67 Unfortunately for Sir Edward's fame, it appears from the
Dalrymple Papers, that in 1678, " Harlie, ci-devant gouver-
neur de Dunquerque," received 300 guineas from Barillon,
Louis the Fourteenth's ambassador.

280 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1662. able, he commanded supernumerary seamen to
„v'Vbe put on board the French trading ships, and
jl .'trained up at his own charge, in order to sup-
%'p& his . men-of-war. Thus Lord Clarendon, by
this nasty and unwarrantable sale, contributed
as much to the greatness of France, by making
her a maritime power, as Cromwell had done
before, in supporting her interest against the
crown of Spain.
Lordcia- >jhe sale of Dunkirk iustly exasperated the
rendon loses ** J s-
optmond0f minds of the people, especially the trading part;
t e Pu ic. an(j Lord. Clarendon being known to be the
author of it, soon lost his credit with the pub
lic : and for want of this, in concurrence with
other reasons, he afterwards lost his interest with
the king.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 281

CHAPTER VIII.
Obsequiousness of the Parliament.— Effects of the Uniformity
Act. — Lord Ashley appointed Chancellor of the Exchequer. —
His zeal and exertions in the execution of the duties of his
new office — War declared against Holland. — [Bill for grant
ing Indulgences to Nonconformists.] — Severe Measures
against the Nonconformists. — Five-mile Act. — Policy of
France. — Shaftesbury's perception of character — useful to
him as a Minister. — His Character of the Hon. William
Hastings. — Breach with Hamburgh. — Peace with Holland.
When the parliament met, on the 18th of ^^
February 1662-3, the commons proceeded in the Meeting of
, ,, P . „_. , , parliament.
same steps as in the former session. With the obsequious
same obsequiousness, they received the dictates court.
of the throne for the guide of their actions.
Every sense of liberty was sunk in adulation ;
and, as if the abuse of freedom had rendered
them weary of the blessing, they seemed ready to
make a voluntary surrender of it. To strengthen
the hands of the crown against themselves, a bill
was passed, intitled, " An additional act for order
ing the forces of the kingdom ;" and thereby they

282 LIFE OF THE
a.d. established a military power, under the sanction
1662-3.
 of parliament.
Parliament The parliament of Scotland likewise, as if to
equauyob! vie with them in servility, passed an act called
" the loyal offer ;" whereby that nation engaged
themselves to have twenty thousand foot and
two thousand horse, sufficiently armed and fur
nished with forty days' provision, to be in readi
ness, when called for by the king, to march to
any part of his dominions of Scotland, England,
or Ireland, in case either of foreign invasion or
intestine troubles ; " or for any other service
wherein his majesty's honour, authority, or great
ness might be concerned."
Bad effects In the speech which had been delivered by the
ofthe uni
formity act. lord chancellor, at the king's passing the act of
uniformity, May the 19th, 1662, there were un
usual expressions of asperity against the noncon
formists ; and the houses were told, " it was great
reason that they, upon whom clemency could
not prevail, should feel that severity they had
provoked." Near two thousand ministers were
ejected from their livings the next St. Bartho
lomew's day. The rigour which the presbyterians
suffered in consequence of this act, divided the

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 283
protestant interest, and raised great discontents a. d.
1662-3.
in the kingdom.* The king " had promised the 
° or An attempt
presbyterians, that he would either not pass the ^°^fe",lts
act, or procure a particular exemption for them.
After the act was passed, they addressed the king
and council for a dispensation from the penalties
annexed to it. This petition would doubtless
have been rejected, if the king had not signified
to the council the obligation he was under to
grant the request."
In the beginning of January, he published a
declaration, in which, after an assurance of his
firm adherence to the act of uniformity, he said,
" for the sake of others, he was willing to dis
pense with some matters in it :" and, in his speech
to the parliament, February 18th, 1662-3, he told
them, "he could heartily wish that he had such
a power of indulgence to use upon occasions,
as might not needlessly force the dissenters out
of the kingdom ; or, staying here, give them
cause to conspire against the peace of it." Upon
this encouragement from the king, and to com
pose the minds of the dissenters, whose numbers
made them considerable, Lord Roberts (lord
* Rapin.

284 LIFE OF THE
A. d. privy seal) on the 22nd of February, brought in
1662-3.
—  a bill * concerning the king's power in ecclesiasti-
purpose. ca} affairs ; in which was a clause, " to enable the
king to dispense, by letters patent under the great
seal, with the act of uniformity, or the penalties
in the said law imposed ; or any other laws and
statutes requiring oaths and subscriptions :" and
the attorney-general was ordered to bring in a
list of all those acts and oaths to which the said
enacting clause related.
Upon reading this list, it was found that a
greater latitude would be given in favour of the
papists than was intended ; and, therefore, the
following general words, " or any other laws and
statutes requiring oaths and subscriptions," were
immediately ordered to be omitted. As, when
these words were struck out, the bill could give
relief to none but protestant dissenters, and would
only invest the crown with a legal power of
remitting penalties, (an amiable branch of the
prerogative ! from which the subject could have
nothing to apprehend,) it was supported by the
Earl of Manchester, (lord chamberlain,) Lord
Ashley, and several other lords. The Earl of
* Lords' Journals.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 285
Clarendon was detained from the house, at that a.d.
1662-3.
time, by illness; but on the 13th of March he  rr
J ' Opposed by
appeared there, and warmly opposed the bill, ^°rdd0£la"
which Lord Ashley with as much vigour sup- supported
by Lord
ported. Lord Ashley took notice of the fatal Ashley.
consequences of the act of uniformity : that by
it great numbers of ministers were reduced to
beggary ; that many protestants were running
into other countries, to the prejudice of trade
and the dishonour of the kingdom : that the
reformers in King Edward the Sixth's reign had
acted in a different manner ; for they had, like
wise and good men, contrived the doctrine and
discipline of the church so as to enlarge the terms
of community ; that they had set open the doors,
and, by gentle means, persuaded and invited all
they could into the church, thinking that the
enlargement of their body would redound to the
honour of their religion. Lord Ashley, however,
and the other advocates for the bill, could not
prevail. It was dropped in silence ; which was The bin
n i dropped.
chiefly owing to a resolution of the house of
commons, " that it should be presented to his
majesty, as the humble advice of that house,
that no indulgence be granted to the dissenters

286 LIFE OF THE
a.d. from the act of uniformity." At the same time,
1662-3.
 the king was attended by the speaker and the
whole house, with an address to recall his decla
ration of indulgence, and with reasons why the
dissenters ought not to insist upon his declaration
from Breda, or claim any right from that to an
indulgence.
Lord cia- The commons were under the influence of Lord
rendon's narrow Clarendon, who carried his notions both of the
politics. prerogative of the crown and the power of the
church to a great height. By several laws which
he promoted, he advanced the former to an uncon
stitutional extent ; but by injudicious endeavours
to extend the latter, he considerably weakened
the protestant interest. By his measures those
distinctions were preserved which have been ever
since so prejudicial to the nation, and which the
welfare of the public made necessary to be re
moved. The Restoration gave the king a proper
opportunity of uniting the people both in religion
and politics; and the contending parties would
have settled into temper, if an equal conduct had
been maintained towards them by the crown.
This would certainly have been right in point of
prudence ; and by the declaration from Breda, it
was become as obligatory as it was just. But a

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 287
narrow, ill-judged policy prevailed : every step a.d.
1662-3.
was taken that could divide, inflame, and weaken 
the people; and the interests of the prince and
his subjects were considered as two different and
opposite objects.
Lord Clarendon's apprehensions of danger from
the dissenters rendered him an advocate for all
the penal laws against them, and thus (notwith
standing his being himself a protestant) he open
ed the door for popery, by causing such a wide
breach among the protestants : for the king
(though it was not then known) intended to fa
vour the papists, and to shelter them under the
indulgence which the severity of penal laws might
sometimes make necessary to be granted to non
conformists. Lord Ashley was an enemy to every degree Ld. Ashley
an enemy to
of persecution ; and thought that the distressing persecution.
of the dissenters was an error in politics, as well
as in humanity. He acted, therefore, upon these
points, in a different manner from Lord Clarendon ;
and this opposition in their conduct and princi
ples kept them always at variance.
Clarendon and Ashley were not men who could Lord cla
rendon and
long act together with cordial feeling : they not ,Lord Ash-
00 " ^ ley jealous
only differed in their views of the measures dis- °[heearch

288 LIFE OF THE
a. d. cussed in the council chamber, but each had, in
1662-3.
 addition, private causes to distrust the other.
Lord Clarendon was jealous of Lord Ashley's
friendship with Lord Southampton, and thought
that he had influenced the latter in his conduct
concerning the penal laws against the noncon
formists : Lord Ashley, on the other hand, had
likewise entertained some jealousy of Lord Cla
rendon upon account of his daughter's marriage
with the Duke of York, whose sentiments upon
the subject of religion were now becoming pretty
generally suspected, and whose strong ideas as to
government had never been concealed.
close con- As, both by alliance and a conformity of senti-
nex'on be
tween Lord ments, there was the closest friendship between
Southamp- L
Ld AsHe Lord Southampton and Lord Ashley, they, in
almost all parliamentary transactions, concurred
in the same measures ; and though they held
employments of such profit and distinction,, did
not think themselves under a necessity of support
ing all the designs of the court, but often acted
in opposition to them.
Lord Southampton, who was one of the most
distinguished men of the age for his probity and
public spirit, had been made lord treasurer at
the Restoration. Lord Ashley, at the same time,

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY.

289

was appointed under-treasurer and chanceUor of a.d.
1662-3.
the exchequer; and as Lord Southampton was  —
much afflicted with the stone, and therefore in
capable of supporting the fatigue of that great
office himself, he left the care of it chiefly to Lord
Ashley,* in whom he placed entire confidence.
Upon Lord Ashley's taking upon himself the Lord ^
office of chancellor of the exchequer, he employed ^ncei'ior
himself diligently in obtaining information which exchequer.
might enable him to discharge with fidelity the
duties he had assumed. His first effort was an
accurate inquiry into the state of the department
that had been assigned to him. From the confu-

* Bishop Burnet allows, that
Lord Ashley had more credit
than any one with the Earl of
Southampton, who was his re
lation. From this circumstance
alone, besides his being chan
cellor of the exchequer, it is
natural to believe the business
ofthe treasury must, in a man
ner, entirely devolve on Lord
Ashley during the indisposi
tion of Lord Southampton ;
and it becomes almost need
less to remark on what the
bishop says, that Lord South
ampton left it wholly to the
management of Sir Philip
Warwick. Lord Ashley had

too much knowledge of busi
ness, too great a disposition
for it, and too high a spirit, to
submit to such a neglect of
him ; especially as Sir Philip
was a very weak man, for so,
at the same time, the bishop
describes him. Among the
papers in the possession of the
present Lord Shaftesbury, there
are a great number of petitions
for farming the customs and
the excise, and other things
relating to the revenue, which
are either addressed to Lord
Ashley singly, or to the Earl of
Southampton and him jointly.

VOL. I.

290 LIFE OF THE
a. d. sion of the times, abuses had been accumulating,
1662-3.
 which required a man of sagacity and spirit to
rectify. With incredible pains, he brought the
affairs of the exchequer into a proper economy,
and searched minutely into every branch of the
revenue.* He never depended upon the infor
mation of those who were interested in the
abuses he wished to rectify, and were conse
quently prepared to deceive him : but when he
met with any clerks, or others, who were men
of understanding, and well versed in the affairs
of their offices, he entered freely into conver
sation with them, and, by his affability and
penetration, soon gained the knowledge which
he wanted.
He pro- The important duties of his office necessarily
motes trade *• J
led him to inquire into the trade of the nation ;
and his active mind was constantly employed
upon the improvement of our manufactures and
the enlarging our exportation. Where he found
this last to be decaying in any of its branches, he
sought after the reasons, and consulted the most
eminent merchants about the methods of recover-
* There are still remaining, customs, down to the lowest
among Lord Shaftesbury's pa- offices under the inspection of
pers, a great number of ac- the treasury, with his remarks
counts from the excise and upon them.

and com
merce.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 291
ing it. He gave them queries, to which he de- a. d.
1662-3i
sired their answers in writing ; and, by comparing 
and digesting these, acquired a complete and ge
neral knowledge of trade. This he thought an
essential part of the character of a statesman ; for
France and other countries began to see the
advantages of commerce, and were forming upon
it their schemes of greatness. The merchants,
perceiving this disposition in Lord Ashley, ap
plied to him upon all occasions for his advice
and interest, and always found in him an active
and constant friend.*
Lord Ashley was a great enemy to monopolies, is an ene
my to mo-
and thought that companies were often a preju- n°p°lies-
dice to trade, which would flourish in a better
manner by being more extensive. This was evi
dent, at that time, from the company of mer
chants adventurers, who, by their own imposi
tions, and those which by their conduct they in
duced foreign countries to lay on their cloths,
were often forced to keep them, or, by putting
* Among his papers still of traders to Newfoundland,
extant there are many proofs acknowledging it to be owing
of this, and various letters of to him that the decaying and
thanks from merchants for his dying trade of fishing was re-
protection and care of them, stored there ; which he thought
particularly from a large body the best nursery for seamen.
u 2

292 LIFE OF THE
a.d. off their bad ones, brought them into discredit
1662-3.

abroad. He said, " the restraining a general trade
was like the damming of increasing waters, which
must either swell them to force their boun
daries, or cause them to putrefy where they are
circumscribed."
Favours the He was particularly intent upon increasing the
woollen manufac- exportation of the woollen manufactory, which
was very low, and had been sinking from the
year 1633. At that time, a strict proclamation
had been made for restraining this trade ; and
many of our merchants ceased to traffic in wool
len goods, in consequence of the discouragement
which they met with from the company. The
clothiers were loud in their complaints; the
workmen went into foreign countries ; and wool
was, even by the members of the company, often
exported instead of the manufacture. Lord
Ashley prepared and forwarded a bill for pre
venting the exportation of wool, &c. and, by
other prudent steps which he took to remove the
restraints from the staple of England, the expor
tation of it rose from that time, and continued
rising ; a circumstance of no little consequence to
the wealth and power of the nation. Nor was
his attention confined to the official details of his

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 293
own department: his views were far more ex- a.d.
r 1662-3.
tensive. 
He made an exact search into the state of the
navy. He kept, as appears by his papers, a regu
lar account of our shipping ; the number of ships,
their complement of men and guns ; the officers,
with their names and characters ; as, likewise, the
conditions of their ships : and, as he thought these
the natural strength of England, he was continu
ally anxious to promote their increase ; for which
purpose he inquired into the growth and fitness
of timber in the king's forests, which had been
too much neglected. King Charles the First
had, in his necessity, sold a large part of the
forest of Dean, particularly eighteen thousand
acres, to Sir John Wintour, which were soon dis
forested. Lord Ashley took proper methods for
satisfying the purchasers, and for recovering that
part of the forest for the crown ; and, likewise,
for preserving and increasing the timber in it for
the use of the navy. *
As the king had intimated to the parliament a.d.
his desire of a bill to suppress seditious conven- Bin against
. . „ seditious
tides, the house of commons, soon after their c.°nven-

ticles.

* There are a great number the timber, as, likewise, upon
of his remarks upon the navy the foregoing articles of trade,
and the mismanagement of among his papers.

294

LIFE OF THE

a.d. meeting, on the 16th of March 1663-4, passed a
 bill for that purpose, and sent it up to the lords ;
but there it met with great obstruction from the
persons who had opposed the corporation and
other penal acts. Several amendments were made
by them to the bill, which produced conferences
between the houses; and in these conferences,
Lord Ashley (along with the Earl of Southamp
ton, the Earl of Anglesey, and Lord Mohun) was
a manager for the lords. Whilst the king and
his courtiers were thus weakening the protest
ant interest at home, they entered into measures
which were equally repugnant to it abroad.
Honandh T^^is year *^e war was oegun witn Holland;
the king being inclined to it from his resentment
against the Dutch for their union with the long
parliament. He was likewise instigated to it by
the Duke of York, who, for the sake of the reli
gion he had recently embraced, was entirely at
tached to the French interest. The scene was
opened by Mr. Clifford, who was inflamed with
a.d. 1664. the same principles. On the 22nd of April 1664,
he carried a message from the house of commons,
to desire a free conference with the lords con
cerning some matters relating to foreign trade.*
* Lords' Journals.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 295
In this conference, he represented that the Hoi- a.d. 1664.
landers very much obstructed our foreign trade :
he set forth the complaints of the East-India
Company, the Turkey Company, the Royal Afri
can Company, and the Portugal merchants, with
the amount of the damages they had suffered from
the Dutch, in six articles, to the value of 714,500
pounds; and presented a vote of the house of
commons, that his majesty should be humbly
moved to take some speedy and effectual course
for redress, and that in prosecution thereof they
would assist him with their lives and fortunes.
With this the house of lords concurred, and the
king sent an answer in writing, agreeable to their
vote ; and upon the strength of it he entered into
the war, as indeed he had before determined.
France, by the wisdom of her own counsels,
and by the weakness of the counsels of other
states, was at this time advancing to a greatness
which rendered her formidable to all Europe.
Cromwell had laid the foundation for this great
ness, by joining with and supporting her in her
quarrels with Spain. This was a fatal error in his
politics ; an error into which he was led by pre
ferring his private interest to that of the public.
King Charles, unhappily, followed him in the

296 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1664. same path, and, in so doing, acted from the same
The king's motives, — self-interest, and the establishment of
submission to France. an arbitrary power. Cromwell, however, showed
by the acquisition of Dunkirk that he had some
view to the welfare of England ; while Charles,
though he was sensible of its importance, weakly,
and for a temporary accommodation, sacrificed it
to France. Cromwell, in all his transactions, dic
tated to France with the spirit of a superior ; but
Charles received her commands with the sub
mission of a dependant. Cromwell asserted the
honour of England even in trifles ; whereas the
king was so negligent, that he ordered Lord
Holies, his ambassador, to visit the princes of
the blood, even after Lord Holies had refused it,
had contested it, and had carried his point at the
court of France. *
leytppofnt- At the breaking out of the Dutch war, com-
ofthe^rTzet missioners were appointed for the sale and ma
nagement of the prizes, with a treasurer, cashier-
general, comptroller, and other officers. The
principal commissioners, the treasurer, and comp
troller, consisted of either the nobility, or of
persons of great distinction. Lord Ashley was
* Lord Holles's letter to Secretary Morrice  Shaftesbury
Papers.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 297
treasurer ; and in this office, as in all his public a.d. 1664.
and private affairs, he observed the utmost exact
ness and circumspection. He kept duplicates of
accounts, which are still remaining, of all sums
paid by him, and by what authority ; whether by
tallies into the exchequer, by warrants from the
king under his sign manual and privy signet, or
from the principal commissioners ; which warrants
were entered in the comptroller's office, and copies
of them were preserved by him. In his accounts,
he specified the sums received and paid, to whom
they were paid, and for what uses ; as Greenwich
Hospital, the navy, Tangier, and other services.
This care and exactness proved of advantage to
him ; for the house of commons, some time after,
ordered a bill for appointing commissioners to ex
amine the public accounts : but the king, perhaps
to prevent any reflections that might arise from
tbe parliament's beginning the inquiry, ordered a
commission of the same nature, under the great
seal, in which all the judges, and almost all the
members who had been nominated in the bill,
were made commissioners. Lord Ashley's ac
counts were laid before them ; but, after strict in
spection, there appeared no foundation for any
censure on his conduct.

298 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1664. [in this year Lord Ashley gave another in
stance of his abhorrence of that spirit of persecu
tion which was now so prevalent, and which the
majority of the nation seem to have mistaken for
patriotism. Lord Clarendon, in his history of
himself, says, " The Lord Ashley, out of his in
difference in matters of religion, and the Lord
Arlington, out of his good-wiU to the Roman ca
tholics, had drawn in the lord privy seal, whose
interest was most in the presbyterians, to propose
to the king an indulgence for liberty of con
science." They argued the danger which must
accrue from creating domestic enemies when they
were upon the eve of a formidable foreign war :
and they added an inducement which had much
greater weight with Charles, that a good annual
revenue might be raised by these means ; for the
violence which the commons had lately shown
against all nonconformists had so terrified these
sectaries, that they would gladly compound for
protection in the exercise of their religion by
yearly payments. The bill was covertly prepar
ed, and everything was ready for its introduc
tion into the lords before Clarendon knew any
thing of it. The king at last informed him of it,
and begged his co-operation : but the chancellor,

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 299
as was expected, was violent against it. He was a.d. 1664.
at the time confined by a severe fit of the gout,
and the cabinet councils were consequently held
at his house. But his zealous bigotry and his
dislike of the authors of this biU lent him
strength. " On the day appointed for the second
reading," he says, " with pain and difficulty he
was in his place in the house."
This was upon the second day of debate. The
lord treasurer had already spoken against it, and
the lord privy seal had abandoned it in despair ;
but Ashley was still earnest in its support.
" Lord Ashley," says Clarendon, " adhered firm
ly to his point, spake often and with great sharp
ness of wit, and had a cadence in his words and
pronunciation that drew attention. He said, ' It
was the king's misfortune, that a matter of so
great concernment to him, and in support of such
a prerogative as would be found to be inherent
in him without any declaration of parliament,
should be supported only by such weak men as
himself who served his majesty at a distance,
while the great officers of the crown thought fit
to oppose it.' " By this prerogative Lord Ashley
could only have meant the power to remit penal
ties, which is undoubtedly inherent in the crown,

300 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1664. and which would of course have enabled the king
to attain the same object, but by more circuit
ous and obnoxious means. Clarendon answered
him with a violence of which he was afterwards
ashamed ; and although the bill might possibly
have passed the lords, yet, as it was sure of defeat
in the commons, it was abandoned.
This abortive attempt was of course injurious
to the cause it was intended to support, although
the strenuous opposition offered to it by the Duke
of York might alone have shown the people that
it was favourable neither to the establishment of
popery nor the protection of absolute power.J
a.d. 1665. On the 9th of October 1665, the parliament
Meeting of .
the pariia- met at Oxford, the plague raging at that time in
ment at Ox
ford. London. The king, in his speech, demanded a
new supply for carrying on the war ; and, to en
force the demand, the Lord Chancellor Clarendon
delivered a long speech at the conclusion of the
king's, in which he enumerated the many injuries
and affronts which England had received from
the Dutch.* He called them " an ungrateful
state," and said, " they had a dialect of rudeness
so peculiar to their language, that it was high
time for all kings and princes to oblige them to
* Lords' Journals.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 301
some reformation, if they intended to hold cor- a.d. 1665.
respondence or commerce with them." Lord
Clarendon, however, delivered this speech ex offi
cio ; for he was believed to be averse to the war.
The general scheme of power was still carrying
on at home ; and a design was laid to impose an
oath on the whole nation, " that they would not
endeavour any alteration of government, either in
church or state ; which was tacitly owning the
present form to exist jure divino."*
The nonconformist ministers were looked upon
as the most obnoxious set of men to the public ;
and they might be easily represented as the most
dangerous, in consequence of the power which
the sectaries had lately enjoyed. It was, there
fore, thought that the best method of paving the
way for the general introduction of the oath was
to begin with the dissenting ministers.
Upon some severe expressions in the speech
delivered by Lord Clarendon, October the 9th,
against the nonconformists, the commons immedir
ately passed, and sent up to the lords, the five-mile Five-mileAct.
bill ; by which no nonconformist minister could
dwell in, or come within five miles of, any corpora
tion, or any other place where he had been minister
* A Letter from a Person of Quality.

302 LIFE OF THE
a.d, 1665. or had preached after the act of oblivion, unless he
took the oath, as mentioned in the corporation
act ; to which were added these words : " and
that I will not, at any time, endeavour any alter
ation of government either in church or state."
By this dangerous oath, the king and his admi
nistration were to be left to act without control ;
and the people, being bound to an implicit obedi
ence, must submit with patience.
LorPd°Ashb-y Lord Ashley, and his friend the Earl of South-
otLra? ampton,* opposed the bill in a strenuous manner ;
and showed, that the oath was in itself unjustifi
able, that it sprang from bad designs, and must
produce the most fatal consequences to the liberty
of the subject : but, notwithstanding the opposi
tion made by them, and by some other lords, the
bill passed into an act. After the commons had
despatched it, they brought in another, to oblige
every subject to take the same oath. This bill
was thrown out of the upper house by a majority
of three votes only.68 * Echard.

6s This majority," says Mr. Ralph, " had the merit of saving
their country from the greatest ignominy which could have .be
fallen it, — that of riveting as well as forging its own chains."
Mr. Locke, in his " Letter from a Person of Quality," remarks,

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 303
Lord Ashley, notwithstanding the vigour with a.d. 1665.
which he acted in parliament, was at this time in
a very bad state of health ; for the bruise in his
side, occasioned by his being overturned in Hol
land, 1660, was become an incurable abscess : and,
in the beginning of the summer of 1666, upon
the single advice of Mr. Locke, who was then
accidentally introduced to his acquaintance, he
underwent an hazardous operation, which saved
his life. His breast was opened, the matter dis
charged, and an orifice was ever after kept open
by a silver pipe; an instrument which became
famous in the writings of several authors some
years after, who never failed to reproach him with
this infirmity.
The war with Holland was, in a great measure, Design of
* France
owing to the intrigues and influence of the
French king, who acted his part in this respect
with great sagacity. He had formed a design for

" The providence by which it was thrown out was very remark
able : for Mr. Peregrine Bertie being newly chosen, was that
morning introduced into the house by his brother the now Earl
of Lindsey and Sir Thomas Osborne, now lord treasurer, who
all three gave their votes against the bill ; and the numbers
were so even upon that division, that their three voices carried
the question against it." — Locke's Works, 4to edit. vol. iv
p. 541.

304 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1665. the conquest of the Low Countries;* and, there
fore, he fomented the war, in order to weaken the
maritime powers, and prevent their obstructing
his measures. He followed very closely the ad
vice given in the following paper by the Count
de Lyonne, who had been bred under Cardinal
Richelieu, constantly employed under Mazarine,
and was for many years secretary of state.
" Sire,
oWsietter " ^he Present conjuncture of affairs abroad re-
French quires nothing more from your majesty's pru
dence than to respite for a little time the war
against Spain. That which is already begun be
twixt England and the United Provinces is the
most fortunate occasion that can possibly be wish
ed ; and which the Divine Providence seems to
present your majesty, not only to constitute you
arbiter of the differences between those two na
tions, but by which you may exhaust them at a
little charge, (being the only powers which can,
and are, indeed, obliged to engage for the de-
* By Lord Clarendon's let- ner concerted with the English
ter to Count d'Estrades, Oct. court, at least with the chan-
27, 1662, this conquest seems cellor ; and the war seems to
to have been projected .long have been the consequence of
before — to have been in a man- it.

king.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 305
fence and protection of the Low Countries,) and a.d. 1 666.
reduce them to such a condition, that it shall not
be in their power to remedy it, though they
would; provided, I say, your majesty will but
foment this war, so as it may continue. The
English will find themselves necessitated to im
plore your majesty's alliance and friendship ; and
the United Provinces absolutely depend upon
your will, as having need of your assistance ; and
both will at last be reduced to an impossibility
of opposing your just designs. But if once your
majesty should undertake anything against the
said provinces unseasonably, and with too much
empressement, before your majesty be well as
sured that the strength of both nations is suffi
ciently weakened, your majesty will find the
scene quite changed in a moment ; and the
same powers which are at present at variance,
to the mutual destruction of each other, will
unite themselves together by the motive and
maxim of a stronger interest, the defence of the
common rampart. It would be a stroke of ad
mirable prudence to let them go on and ruin
one another, and to behold the game at a dis
tance, to blow the coals with address, and,
by making a bustle, seem to be much concern-
VOL. I. X

3°6 LIFE OF THE
A-D- 1666- ed to assert and defend the Hollanders your
allies ; from' time to time encouraging them with
some inconsiderable aid, whilst the whole stress
of the war lies still upon their arms; till your
majesty sees them reduced to the point of being
no more able to oppose those conquests which
your majesty has formed in your mind. Sire,
there is only one thing to be apprehended in
this design, namely, a league or confederacy
between England, Sweden, and the house of
Austria; to which, also, the Hollanders may
haply be inclined of themselves, as well as other
princes of the north. Experience, Sire, of for
mer times, and the knowledge of the present,
oblige me in all humility to declare, that there
could nothing happen more fatal to the crown
than such a league and union.
" 1666. De Lyonne.
" To the French King his master.''
Shaftesbury was celebrated for the strong power
he possessed of delineating the characters of those
with whom he was brought in contact. It is
said that the earl was much in the habit of
amusing himself by sketching the characters of his
friends, and that many specimens of his talent

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 307
in this kind of composition yet remain among a.d. 1666.
the papers in the possession of his descendant.
The only one which has ever been published
is the following, which was first printed in the
third volume of the Connoisseur.

" SKETCH OF THE CHARACTER OF THE HON. WM.
HASTINGS, OF WOODLANDS, IN THE COUNTY OF
SOUTHAMPTON." In the year 1638 lived Mr. Hastings, by
his quality, son, brother, and uncle to the Earl
of Huntingdon. He was, peradventure, an ori
ginal in our age, or rather the copy of our an
cient nobility in hunting, not in warlike, times.
He was low, very strong, and very active ; of a
reddish flaxen hair. His clothes always green
cloth, and never all worth (when new) five
pounds. His house was perfectly of the old
fashion, in the midst of a large park well stocked
with deer; and near the house rabbits to serve
his kitchen, many fish-ponds, great store of wood
and timber ; a bowling-green in it, long but nar
row, full of high ridges, it being never levelled
since it was ploughed : they used round sand
bowls: and it had a banquetting-house like a
stand, a large one built in a tree. x 2

308 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1666. " He kept all manner of sport-hounds, that ran
buck, fox, hare, otter, and badger; and hawks
long and short winged. He had all sorts of
nets for fish : he had a walk in the New Forest,
and the manor of Christ's Church ; this last sup
plied him with red deer, sea and river fish ; and,
indeed, all his neighbours' grounds and royalties
were free to him, who bestowed all his time on
these sports, but what he borrowed to caress his
neighbours' wives and daughters ; there being
not a woman in all his walks of the degree of
a yeoman's wife or under, and under the age of
forty, but it was extremely her fault if he was
not intimately acquainted writh her. This made
him very popular; always speaking kindly to
the husband, father, or brother, who was, to boot,
very welcome to his house whenever he came.
There he found beef, pudding, and small beer,
in great plenty; a house not so neatly kept
as to shame him or his dusty shoes ; a great
hall strewed with marrow-bones, full of hawks'
perches, hounds, spaniels, and terriers ; the upper
side of the hall hung with the fox-skins of this
and the last year's killing, here and there a pole
cat intermixed ; gamekeepers' and hunters' poles
in great abundance.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 309
" The parlour was a large long room as properly a.d. 1666.
furnished. On a great hearth, paved with brick,
lay some terriers, and the choicest hounds and
spaniels. Seldom but two of the great chairs had
litters of young cats in them, which were not
to be disturbed, he having always three or four
attending him at dinner, and a little white round
stick, of fourteen inches long, lying by his trencher,
that he might defend such meat as he had no
mind to part with to them. The windows, which
were very large, served for places to lay his ar
rows, cross-bows, stone-bows, and other such like
accoutrements. The corners of the room full of
the best chose hunting and hawking poles ; an
oyster table at the lower end, which was of con
stant use twice a day all the year round, for he
never failed to eat oysters before dinner and sup
per through all seasons : the neighbouring town
of Poole supplied him with them.
" The upper part of the room had two small
tables and a desk, on the one side of which
was a church Bible, and on the other the Book
of Martyrs. On the tables were hawks' hoods,
bells, and such like ; two or three old green hats,
with their crowns thrust in so as to hold ten
or a dozen eggs, which were of a pheasant kind

310 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1666. of poultry he took much care of and fed him
self. Tables, dice, cards, and boxes were not
wanting. In the hole of the desk were store
of tobacco pipes that had been used.
" On one side of this end of the room was the
door of a closet wherein stood the strong beer
and the wine, which never came thence but in
single glasses, that being the rule of the house
exactly observed ; for he never exceeded in drink
or permitted it. On the other side was the door
of an old chapel, not used for devotion. The pul
pit, as the safest place, was never wanting of a
cold chine of beef, venison pasty, gammon of
bacon, or great apple-pie, with thick crust ex
tremely baked.
" His table cost him not much, though it was
good to eat at. His sports supplied all but beef
and mutton ; except Fridays, when he had the
best salt-fish (as well as other fish) he could get,
and was the day his neighbours of best quality
most visited him. He never wanted a Lon
don pudding, and always sung it in with ' my
pert eyes therein «.' He drank a glass or two
of wine at meals; very often syrup of gilli-
flower in his sack ; and had always a tun glass
without feet stood by him holding a pint of

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 311
small beer, which he often stirred with rose- a.d. 1666.
mary. " He was well-natured, but soon angry, call
ing his servants bastards and cuckoldy knaves,
in one of which he often spoke truth of his
own knowledge. He lived to be an hundred;
never lost his eyesight, but always wrote and
read without spectacles, and got on horseback
without help. Until past fourscore he rode to
the death of a stag as well as any."
[Mr. Horace Walpole says of this, that " it is
a curious and well-drawn character of our ancient
English gentry ;" and so it undoubtedly is. There
is a portrait of this veteran sportsman at the Shaf
tesbury family seat at St. Giles'.]
Lord Ashley's accurate perception of. character Lord Ash
ley's atten-
was of singular use to him as a statesman. It tion to fo-
0 reign af-
was applied with great effect to the ministers, fairs-
and the chief persons in most of the foreign
courts. By this and by his foreign correspond
ence he had an early intelligence of their coun
sels. As he saw the designs of France, the in
crease of her shipping, the improvement of her
trade, and observed all the measures tending to
her rising greatness, he was earnest for conclud
ing the war with Holland. He was, likewise,

312 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1666. the principal cause of the king's not running
into another, which would have proved highly
prejudicial to the trade of the nation.
English At the breaking out of the war with Hol-
merchantshipsat- land, Sir William Swann, the English resident
tacked by ' °
in^EiL at Hamburgh, applied to the senate to know
whether they would undertake to keep the river
Elbe in security, and protect the English ships
from any hostilities. The senate answered, that
their city was too weak to make such an en
gagement; but, if the King of Great Britain
would agree to a neutrality in the Elbe, they
would endeavour to persuade the States Gene
ral to acquiesce in it. For the advantage of
the city of Hamburgh, the States consented to
such a neutrality ; but the king would not de
clare his agreement.
In the beginning of the summer, 1666, the
senate deputed Mr. Garmers, their syndic of the
city, and afterwards Mr. Westerman, one of
their body, to give notice to the secretary of
the English company at Hamburgh, that they
had received intelligence of the Dutch having
a design to attack the English ships in the
Elbe; and advised them, therefore, to be cir
cumspect, and bring their ships under the can-

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 313
non of the city. These were lying at a place a.d. 1666.
called New Mill, about a mile distant from the
walls of Hamburgh, but within the jurisdiction
of the King of Denmark. There was no haven
or fort there, but only a wind-mill, and a house
which by the miller was made a victualling-
house. Upon this notice, several ships sailed
down the river to take the benefit of Sir Chris
topher Myng's convoy ; but, being disappointed,
they came back to their former station at New
Mill. On the 24th of August 1666, about
eight o'clock in the evening, four Dutch men-
of-war attacked the English fleet of merchant
men: eleven ships immediately cut their cables,
and saved themselves under the protection of the
eity cannon ; three others, endeavouring to es
cape, were stranded at a place something less
than a mile from the city, but out of its juris
diction, and were burnt, along with a Ham
burgh ship that was laden. As the English
had been firing their cannon all that day and
the former by way of rejoicing, the senate had
no knowledge of their being attacked, till they
saw the flames of the burning ships.
This accident so incensed King Charles, that
he ordered Secretary Morrice to send for the

314 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1666. Hamburgh merchants residing in London, and
The King to acquaint them how highly he resented the
threatens x ° J
war against proceedings of the senate ; and that, if they did
not cause full and ample satisfaction to be made,
within three months, for the losses occasioned
by their permitting the ships to be burnt, he
would take a proper course for the recovery of
them, and the vindication of his honour.
The senate of Hamburgh said, that they ought
not to make this reparation ; and alleged that they
had endeavoured to obtain a neutrality in the
Elbe: that they had given early notice to the
English to be in general upon their guard,
but had themselves no knowledge or expecta
tion of this particular attack : that the place
where the ships were burnt, was under the ju
risdiction of the King of Denmark : that the
Hamburghers were greater sufferers than the
Enghsh company ; and that those ships which
came under the protection of their cannon re
ceived not the least damage : that such goods,
belonging to the English ships, as were plun
dered and brought into their territory, were,
by the assistance and authority of the senate,
restored to the owners : and that, even granting
the attack had been in their territory, as it was

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 315
made by a superior power, no neutral country a.d.1666.
could by any law be obliged to make repara
tion to a third party. The senate presented, in
their justification and maintenance of their rights,
very ample remonstrances, supported by a great
number of authorities from the civil law.*
Upon the refusal of the Hamburghers to make Lord Ash-
r ° ley dis
satisfaction, King Charles resolved to declare war ,sliadf th<5
° king trom it.
against them. Lord Ashley, who had made him
self master of the dispute, and found that the
city was not to be blamed, laid before the king
the ill consequences of such a war ; and parti
cularly represented that it would in a manner
ruin the woollen manufactory, Hamburgh being
almost the only market for it abroad since the
war with Holland ; for the company of mer
chant adventurers permitted their members to
trade only to two towns, viz. Hamburgh and
Rotterdam ; and they had, at that time, a factory
at Hamburgh. He desired the king before his
taking a step of such vast importance, to hear
the opinion of the merchants of London ; to which
the king consented. Upon this, the following
memorial was presented to Lord Ashley, desiring
* These opinions of the civilians are amongst Lord Shaftes
bury's papers.

316 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1666. him to lay before the king their reasons against
the war.
" May it please your Lordship,
Memorial of " Since it has pleased his majesty so far to
the English
merchants, consider the sad condition of his poor subjects
as that, by your lordship's prevailing mediation
and intercession, we may humbly offer our
thoughts before his majesty proceedeth to de
clare war against the city of Hamburgh, we
return our dutiful thanks to his majesty for his
princely care of his subjects ; heartily praying
to God so to bless his counsels, that they may
tend to the peaceable and quiet settlement of
his government over us ; and that thereby trade
and commerce may so flourish as to enable us
to render him not only the tribute of our lips,
but of our purses and estates. With all due
submission, therefore, we conceive, that the just
occasions of offence his majesty may have taken
against the city of Hamburgh are referable to
these two heads; breach of articles with his ma
jesty, or injuries offered to his subjects trading
thither. The first is a point too high for us to
discourse on ; but we beg leave to say, that, in
all treaties made with the town of Hamburgh,

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 317
the kings of England have not thought fit to a.d. 1666.
descend so low as to make themselves parties.
They have always preserved their dignity, and
taken to themselves the controlling power of ar
bitrating differences between the city and com
pany ; so that they have rather been protectors
and guarantees, than principals or accessories in
any of the agreements.
" As, therefore, the first motive for the corre
spondence between the crown of England and the
Hans Towns was the advancement of trade, we
cannot but with grateful hearts acknowledge his
majesty's care, rather to hazard the inconveniences
and uncertainties of war, than suffer his subjects
to be imposed on ; but, if reparation and satisfac
tion may be obtained, together with all probable
obligations and assurances of a future good be
haviour, we cannot so far forget the tender com
passionate zeal which his majesty has always
showed for the welfare of his people, as to dis
trust it now. We, therefore, humbly crave leave
to say,
" First. That the trade of Hamburgh, giving
the most constant and liberal vent to the woollen
manufacture of this nation, and the commodities
returned from thence being of more real use to

318 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1666. the kingdom than those of any other country,
the interruption of that trade will not only preju
dice the vent of that staple commodity, whereby
the revenue of the whole kingdom will be much
abated, and his majesty's customs be greatly les
sened ; but the returns from thence consisting
chiefly in naval stores, the war, if it continues
long, will with difficulty be carried on without a
friendship with Hamburgh. It may not, also, be
unworthy of consideration, that the privileges
and immunities granted to the English mer
chants are not only greater than any factory in
the world hath, but were given in the infancy of
trade, when we were sole masters of the woollen
manufactory ; and should they be once forfeited,
would never be restored again.
" Secondly. As to the affair ofthe burnt ships ;
his majesty being pleased to make himself judge
of it, for the righting of his subjects, in all hu
mility we acknowledge his favour and justice;
whereof, though we have received no benefit, yet
we cannot justly lay that upon the Hamburghers,
the commission for making out many of the
claims not being yet returned from Hamburgh.
" Thirdly. As in the beginning of the war
against the Dutch, the English merchants ex-

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 319
ported vast quantities of cloth to Hamburgh, a.d. 1666.
(that town, in all wars with the Dutch, having
been the magazine for the northern parts of the
world,) it appeareth that tbe English goods now
there, together with the debts owing from the
Hamburghers, upon a just and regular computa
tion, amount to about four hundred thousand
pounds sterling, which in case of a war will cer
tainly be confiscated : a sum that never will be
repaid by the prizes which may be taken ; for that
inconsiderable town, not daring to contend with
his majesty, will immediately abstain from all
trade, and not venture to put out one ship to sea,
their inland trade being what will support them ;
and consequently their mariners, who are very
numerous, will serve the Hollanders for bread :
and besides, the fives of those Englishmen who
are there will be exposed to the violence of an
enraged, ungovernable populace; and then what
remains but that our miserable traders thither
must throw themselves and their families at his
majesty's feet for bread? which would be, also,
the condition of several thousands of clothiers and
artificers of this nation, who are wholly supported
and maintained by that trade. And now, my
lord, we are too sensible of his majesty's goodness,

Lord Ash
ley's aver
sion to the
designs of
France.

320 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1666. to impose upon it longer by our discourse : we
know our concerns are safely lodged when within
his breast, and may esteem our fortunes secure,
when committed to the tender care of the father
of our country."
The war with Holland had been owing to the
intrigues of France, whose instruments for pro
moting and carrying it on were the Duke of
York and his adherents in the court. The chief
persons entrusted by the duke, and promoted by
his influence, were declared or suspected papists;
from whence Lord Ashley soon penetrated the
secret of his being perverted to popery. The
duke's principles made him believe that the crown
ought to be vested with an arbitrary power, and
his temper naturally led him to the practice of it:
France promised him support in all his views,
whether relating to government or religion ; and
for this reason he was always closely attached to
her interest. Lord Ashley had an invincible
aversion both to arbitrary power and to popery. *

* Ce seigneur, quoique d'ail-
leurs tres modere, estoit in-
traitable sur la religion Ro-
maine, pour laquelle il avoit
une aversion invincible. II
n'etoit pas mieux dispose h,
l'egard du pouvoir arbitraire

et ty ran nique, c'est une chose
connue de tous ceux qui ont
eu quelque commerce avec lui,
ou qui en ont oui parler a ceux
qui l'ont connu. — Le Clere,
Bibliotheque Choisie, tom. vi. p.
364.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 321
His opposition, in council, to every step in favour a.d. 1666.
of either of these, and his suspicions of the duke,
which he did not dissemble, gave the latter a dis
taste to him, that settled in an irreconcilable
hatred ; though the duke as yet had not dared to
make any public profession of his religion.
The war evidently tended to weaken the mari- He pro
motes a
time powers, and in them the protestant interest. Peace ™th
The French king's greatness could only be built
on their ruin; and therefore Lord Ashley tried
every art, and used his utmost interest, to for
ward a peace with the Dutch. However, he pro
posed, at the same time, that the nation might
reap some advantage by the war; and for this
purpose he delivered a paper to the king, repre
senting that, in the treaty of peace, one half at The terms
proposed
least of the trade of nutmegs, mace, cloves, and by him-
cinnamon, which were solely in the hands of the
Dutch East-India Company, should be claimed
and insisted on. These claims he grounded on
the Dutch having, by fraud and force, dispos
sessed the English of the spice trade at Amboyna
and Poleroon ; on their keeping possession of it,
contrary to an agreement made with King James
in the year 1619, by which agreement the Eng
lish were to have one third part of the trade ; on
vol. 1. Y

322 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1666. their detaining the island of Poleroon, contrary
to articles lately made ; on their, also, obliging the
King of Macassar to exclude the English by
name from the trade of cloves ; and on their ex
pelling the Portuguese from the island of Ceylon,
and depriving the English likewise of the cinna
mon trade ; by which means, being the sole mas
ters of those commodities, they made the whole
world pay at least four times the price for them
which they formerly did.
He proposed that if this agreement should be
made with the Dutch, the English, for their own
security, should have a military command in those
places ; that caution should be taken at home for
the performance of what was stipulated ; that the
commodities shipped from any of those islands to
Europe, Persia, or other parts of the world, should
be for a joint account of both nations ; and that,
if not the whole, at least half of the goods should
be laden in English ships, and sold at such rates
as should be mutually settled between the two
powers : but this representation had no effect.
The war was neither entered into nor concluded
with any regard to the interest of England. It
was carried on without honour, and ended with
out advantage.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 323
On the 16th of May 1667, Lord Ashley lost a.d. 1667.
his relation and great friend, the Earl of South- Jarl,of
o Southamp-
ampton ; and in him the public was deprived of tons deathi
a true patriot, and the protestant interest of an
eminent support. He, in conjunction with Lord
Ashley, Lord Roberts (lord privy seal), the Earl
of Manchester (lord chamberlain), the Earls of
Northumberland, Leicester, Sandwich, and An
glesey, Lord Holies, and Secretary Morrice, had
given great opposition to the French interest, to
the penal laws, and the schemes of arbitrary
power. After his death the following commissioners
were appointed for executing the office of lord
high treasurer, viz. the Duke of Albemarle,
Lord Ashley (who continued chancellor of the
exchequer), Sir William Coventry, Sir John
Duncombe, and Sir Thomas Clifford.®
On the 23rd of May 1667, a treaty of com-

* Clarendon claims the merit of having recommended Lord
Ashley upon this occasion. He says the king " named SirThomas
Clifford, who was newly of the council and comptroller of the
house, and Sir William Coventry, and said, ' he did not think
there should be many;' and the duke then named Sir John
Duncombe, as a man of whom he had heard well, and every
body knew he was intimate with Sir William Coventry. The
king said, ' he thought they three would be enough, and that
Y 2

324 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1667. merce * was concluded with Spain, the instruc-
Treaty of tions for forming which were drawn up by Lord
commerce °
with Spain. Ashley.
Peace with On the 24th of August in the same year, a
Holland. _ r
peace was proclaimed with Holland. The share
which Lord Ashley had in this transaction was
so well known to the States General, that, when
* The heads of this treaty, and one remarkable article in
in his own handwriting, inter- the instructions was, that no
lined and corrected in some searching of ships should be
places, are among his papers ; allowed.

a greater number would but make the despatch of business the .
more slow.' "
Clarendon, who disapproved of executing offices by commis
sion as a method adapted rather to the genius of a republic
than to that of a monarchy, among other objections " put his
majesty in mind that he must dismiss the Lord Ashley from his
office of chancellor of the exchequer, if he did not make him
commissioner of the treasury, and one of the quorum :" and he
also pressed upon the king that it would be necessary lo have
persons to give some lustre to the others.
The king's answer was, that " he did not care if he added
the general to the others, but the Lord Ashley gave him some
trouble;" and, says Clarendon, "he said enough to make it
manifest that he thought- him not fit to be amongst them, yet
he knew not how to put him out of his place, but gave direction
for preparing the commission for the treasury to the persons
named before, and made the Lord Ashley only one of the com
missioners and a major part to make a quorum ; which would
quickly bring the government of the whole business into the

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 325
they sent over their ambassadors, these had par- a.d. 1667.
ticular orders to wait on him, and delivered
him a letter, in which the States desired the con
tinuance of his friendship.

hands of those three who were designed for it: and Ashley
rather chose to be degraded than to dispute it." — Life of
Clarendon, p. 418.
Clarendon thought Ashley degraded, because it had always
been usual in the choice of commissioners of the treasury, that
the chancellor of the exchequer should be the sole person of
the quorum.

326

LIFE OF THE

CHAPTER IX.
Fall of the Earl of Clarendon. — Decline of the French interest
at Court. — Domestic measures. — Satisfaction of the Parlia
ment. — Triple Alliance negociated. — Permanent Commit
tees of the Privy Council established. — Care for the Navy.
— Peace with Spain. — Conduct of the French King. — Terms
of the Triple Alliance. — State of the English Council.—
Influence of the Duke of York. — Lord Conway's Letter to
Lord Ashley. — Memorial to the King.
a-d. 1667. On the 31st of August the seals were taken
rLendonla" from the Earl of Clarendon, and given to Sir
Orlando Bridgman, with the title of Lord Keeper.
This is a critical part of Charles's reign ; for some
short time before the dismission of Lord Claren
don, and some time after it, the king seemed to
have broken loose from the fetters in which he
had been and was afterwards chained : there was
a general alteration in his conduct, and this short
interval might justly be called the golden age of
his government. It may be proper therefore to
take notice of the many remarkable and truly
national transactions which preceded and attended

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 327
that dismission; of the effects they had in the a.d.1667.
different courts in Europe ; and to point out by
whose counsels they were most probably directed.
Nor can it be amiss to show, at the same time, by Review of
his conduct.
what means Lord Clarendon lost his interest with
the king, and his credit with the public ; and the
apprehensions which France entertained that in
him it was deprived of its principal support in the
court of England.
Lord Clarendon had many powerful enemies
both in the cabinet and throughout the nation :
his haughty behaviour, which even his advocates
have allowed, might occasion the first, and his
ministerial conduct the latter. He had been a
great promoter of the penal laws,* which could
not but render him obnoxious to all the moderate
party in the nation, and might make the friends,
and even the enemies of the king, (if at that time
he had any) look back with just apprehensions on
the violent proceedings of Charles the First. The
marriage of Lord Clarendon's daughter with the
* In his apology, at the be- ish as it might have been made
ginning of the first volume of oppressive ; for from that time
his essays, Lord Clarendon as- (as has been observed by a
sumes the merit of having been great man in the same high
the chief promoter of one penal station) no man ever doubted
law, viz. " that for calling the the king's being one.
king a papist ;" an act as fool-

328 LIFE OF THE
a.d.1667. Duke of York; the marriage of the king with
the Infanta of Portugal subsequent to the former;
the sale of Dunkirk, known at that time to be
the chancellor's act ; his attachment to the court
of France, and his enmity to the court of Spain,
had all contributed to render him very unpopular.
After his dismission, the commons impeached
him at the bar of the house of lords ; and, on the
12th of November, many circumstances, which
have since been brought to light, tend to support
some of the articles alleged against him. In that
relating to the sale of Dunkirk, Count d'Estrades'
letters have evinced him to be the sole author ofthe
sale of that important place ; and these letters are
corroborated by the testimony of Marshal Turenne.
Another article of the impeachment, viz. the
sixth, " that he received great sums of money
from the Company of Vintners, or some of them,
or their agents, for enhancing the prices of wines,
and for freeing them from the payment of legal
penalties which they had incurred," is supported
even by those historians who have been his warm
est advocates ; for in order to exculpate him from
the clamour which at that time was general,
that Clarendon House, (commonly called Dun
kirk House,) was not built with any money he

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 329
received from the sale of Dunkirk, Echard, in a.d. 1667.
particular, says, " it was built chiefly at the charge
of the Vintners' Company, who, designing 'to
monopolize his favour,' made it more large and
magnificent than ever he intended." A severer
charge could not well have been exhibited against
a chancellor and first minister than that which is
thus proved by this unskilful advocate.
Upon the impeachment being carried up to
the lords, a motion was made for sequestering
him from parliament, and committing him. This Lord Ash
ley opposes
Lord Ashley, among others, opposed, * because his being
imprisoned.
no particular treason was assigned in the impeach-
* This the Earl of Roches- and influence, in the absolute
ter (the youngest son of the management of all the great
chancellor) acknowledged to affairs of the realm, hath been
the Earl of Shaftesbury, who so notorious ever since his ma-
was father to the present?0 earl, jesty's happy return into Eng-
It is to be observed that, in land until the great seal was
the protest upon this question, taken from him, that, whilst
which was signed by twenty- he is at liberty, few or none
eight lords, several of whom, of the witnesses will probably
as the Duke of Albemarle and dare to declare in evidence
others, were then, and had all that they know against
been from the restoration, in him."
some of the principal offices This appears evidently in
of the court, there is the fol- Lord Clarendon's History of
lowing remarkable article, viz. his Life, where we find that he
"The Earl of Clarendon's power took upon him to direct all

70 The fourth earl.

330 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1667. ment ; and, in so doing, he showed that he was not
governed by any spleen or resentment ; though he
had usually differed from the chancellor in public
debates, and especially in whatever related to the
penal laws.
Lord Clarendon, upon his impeachment, with
drew, and, some time after, sent to the house of
lords a long memorial tending to justify himself
against the accusation of the commons: but in
this his answer was general ; and as to one of the
chief articles, viz. that relating to the sale of Dun
kirk, he was entirely silent. This memorial,
which was received by the lords on the 3rd of
the proceedings of the house abusive manner the persons
of commons, and that he did whose schemes he disapproved.
not scruple, even in the king's See his behaviour to Sir George
presence, to treat in a very Downing, vol.iii.pp.609,610.71

71 He told him in the presence of his sovereign, " that it was
impossible for the king to be well served whilst fellows of his
condition were admitted to speak as much as they had a mind
to ; and that in the best times such presumptions had been
punished with imprisonment by the lords of the council, with
out the king's taking notice of it." — Clarendon's Life, 321. It is
difficult to find a speech of equal brevity, which combines so
much overbearing insolence and pitiful illiberality ; or which
breathes so much of the true spirit of tyranny. This is the man
who, Hume says, " was always a friend to the liberty and con
stitution of his country," and this was his idea of her best
times.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 331
December, raised a great flame in both houses, a.d.1667.
and exasperated the public against him. The
next day, the king declared in council,* that
Lord Clarendon should be put out of the council,
and from thenceforth be divested of the office of
chancellor ; and on the 13th of the same month, a
bill was sent from the lords to the commons for
banishing the Earl of Clarendon, who afterwards
settled in France, during the remainder of his life.
For a short time before and after Lord Cla- The French
interest
rendon's disgrace, the French interest subsided, declines at
° ' the Eng-
The treaty of peace with Spain filled the court of lish court-
France with apprehensions that our court was
going into too close an union with the Spaniards ;
and these apprehensions were so greatly increased
by Lord Clarendon's disgrace happening very soon
after it, that Monsieur Ruvignif was sent to
England with instructions to sound the disposi
tion of the English court, and to know whether,
upon Clarendon's being turned out, the king had
not been prevailed on to quit the friendship of
France, and enter into a closer alliance with
Spain. * London Gazette. the 11th, eleven days only
f Ruvigni had his first au- after Lord Clarendon was
dience of the king, September turned out.

332 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1667. The peace with Holland, which speedily fol
lowed the treaty with Spain, was another cir
cumstance that gave uneasiness to the court of
France and to the popish interest. This peace
was owing to the same counsels which brought
the king, at this time, into several measures that
were evidently calculated for the public welfare.
Council ^n ^e ~mh of September, an order of coun-
pfpists1."16 cil was published in the Gazette,* taking notice
of the great resort of people to the chapels of the
queen, queen mother, and the foreign ministers;
and notice was given, that if any British subject
(unless those belonging to their families) should
repair thereto, the penalties and punishments
should be inflicted on them which were provided
by the law : " a sure indication that the Duke of
York had not the ascendant in council, and that
the popish interest was forced to give way a little
to an English and national one."
These measures were carried still further; the
king ordered that all papists should be removed
from military employments, and that they should
even be turned out of the guards. He com
manded, at the same time, that the forces which
he had lately raised should be disbanded.
* London Gazette.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 333
Many regulations were made by the council a.d. 1667.
with regard to monopolies and exclusive charters
in trade, which had been obtained during the
ministry of Lord Clarendon. The Canary pa- CanaryCompany
tent,* in particular, was required to be given up ; dissolved-
as it was, on the 18th of September; and the
company was dissolved. On the 25th of the said
month, the surrender was advertised in the Ga
zette, and that " thereby all the liberties of the
company tending to a sole trade into the Canary
Islands were wholly dissolved." On the same
day, the king, in council, ordered a proclamation
to be issued, calling in and revoking a proclama
tion of the 25th of May 1665, which enjoined
the due observance of the charter and privileges
lately granted to the governor and company of
merchants trading to the Canary Islands ; and,
also, all other proclamations and orders whatever
relating to that company, or whereby trade to
these islands was in any wise prohibited or re
strained ; and for granting full and free liberty of
trade to the Canary Islands, as was formerly used
before that charter of incorporation, f
On the 20th of September it was advertised,
* London Gazette. Clarendon was, " that he had
f The third article of the received great sums of money
commons' impeachment of Lord for the procuring of the Canary

334 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1667. likewise, in the Gazette, * that the king, having
Company taken notice of the many and great abuses coni-
ofWood- J °
mongers mitted by the company of woodmongers in the
proceeded J r j o
against. gaje an(j vent Qf £uej Qf ajl kjn(js> fa tne great 0p.
pression of the poorer sort, required them to sur
render their charter. This, however, they re
fused ; f and, therefore, an order of council was
made and published, that the attorney-general
should proceed by a quo warranto against the
charter, and by information in the King's Bench,
against the abuses and exactions of the wood-
mongers, for the misusal of their patent.
Anunpsti- On the 27th of September, the king, by advice
fiable order
of council of the privy council, published a proclamation, J
thereby revoking an order of council, of October
the 25th, 1665, for dispensing with the act of
navigation, and giving liberty to merchants and
others trading to and having goods of Malaga,
Alicant, and other foreign parts, to return and
bring home their effects, notwithstanding the
patent and other illegal pa- don's name was struck out of
tents ; and had granted illegal the council books, the corn-
injunctions to stop proceedings pany of woodmongers, as if
at law against them, and other sensible that they had lost
illegal patents formerly grant- their principal friend and sup-
ed." port, surrendered their charter.
* London Gazette. — London Gazette.
f On the 7th of December, J London Gazette. Journals.
three days after Lord Claren-

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 335
act of navigation. As there was no clause in a.d. 1667.
the act conferring such a power upon the king,
this was the first instance in his reign of such an
extension of the prerogative ; and, though it is
passed over in silence by all our historians, was as
unjustifiable as the dispensing power in the re
laxation of a penal law, which was exerted in the
year 1672. The latter, however, as it related to
ecclesiastical points, and was in favour of tolera
tion, was made a greater subject for clamour.
Upon the 10th of October, the king acquainted The king's
popular lan-
the parliament that, at their last meeting, about guage to
1 ° parliament.
eleven weeks since, he thought fit to prorogue
them to this day ; and that, "in the mean while,
he had given himself time to do something which
he hoped would not be unwelcome to them, but
be a foundation for a greater confidence between
them for the future." The lord keeper, among
other things, said, " that as to the accounts of the
moneys given towards the war, which his majesty
formerly promised should be given them, his
majesty had commanded his officers to make them
ready ; and, since that way of commission wherein
he put the examination of them had been ineffec
tual, he was willing the parliament should follow
their own method, to examine them in what

336 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1667. way and as strictly as they pleased ; assuring
them he would leave every one concerned to
stand or fall according to his own innocence or
guilt ; that if any just grievances had happened,
his majesty would be as willing and ready to
redress them for the future as they to have them
represented; he not doubting but that they would
give healing and moderate counsels, and imprint
that known truth in his subjects' hearts, that
there is no distinct interest between the king and
his people, but that the good of one is the good
of both."
These speeches were received with the general
applause and satisfaction of both houses.* It is
remarkable that the last passage in the foregoing
speech was a favourite maxim of Lord Shaftes
bury, often mentioned by him. He particularly
asserted this constitutional proposition, at the
swearing in of Lord Treasurer Danby; when
he told the treasurer, that none but mountebanks
in politics would think of separating the interests
of the king from those of the people.
Hismea- What Charles said to the houses of parliament
sures highly
approved, was highly agreeable to them, and the measures
which he had taken met with equal approbation.
* London Gazette.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 337
They returned their thanks, in particular, for his A D- 1667
having been pleased to disband the late raised
forces, and to dismiss papists from his guards
and other military employments ; for causing the
Canary patent to be surrendered and vacated ;
and, more especially, for his having displaced the
late lord chanceUor.72
The same honest, the same wise counsels, which Triple
alliance.
had influenced the king to adopt these national
measures, went farther, and laid a foundation for
securing the liberties of Europe against the en
croaching power of France, and for advancing
and fixing the reputation of Charles if he had
been attentive to it himself. A scheme was laid
for entering into a closer alliance with the States
General ; and, for that purpose, in the beginning
of January 1667-8, Sir William Temple was sent
for from his residence in the country, and imme
diately despatched ambassador to Holland. He

72 This vote was not obtained very readily. It was first- moved,
says Clarendon, by " one Tomkins, a man of very contemptible
parts and of worse manners, who used to be encouraged by
men of design to set some motion on foot which they thought
not fit to appear in themselves." It was, however, negatived,
and the king was very much offended. The address was after
wards carried in the lords upon the motion of the Duke of
Buckingham, and the commons concurred.
VOL. I. Z

338 LIFE OF THE
A. d. acted his part with great address, and the States
1667-8. r S
 entered into the alliance without waiting for, or
going through, the usual forms prescribed by the
constitution of Holland.
The whole merit of this alhance has been gene
rally ascribed to Sir Wilham Temple, as if he had
been sent into Holland in that hasty manner,
without any design or scheme previously formed
by the ministry at home : but few, who will be at
the trouble of reflecting, can suppose he did not
carry with him his instructions ; or can imagine,
that the States were not immediately sensible of
the necessity of their taking this step, without
his persuasions. They must have been instantly
struck by the prospect of the great and general
advantages which must result from such an alli
ance, and they must have known that, in order
to be successful the negotiation must be managed
with secrecy and despatch.
On the 19th of January, Sir William Temple
brought from Holland the treaty; and, at the
same time, the Count Dhona, minister from the
King of Sweden, arrived in England. A com
mittee of council * was immediately appointed, to
* By the council books it appears that Lord Ashley was one
of this committee.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 339
settle with the count the articles of a treaty of a. d.
i667-a.
commerce with Sweden ; and these being ad- 
justed, Sweden, by this minister, entered as a
principal into the alliance lately concluded with
Holland, from whence it came to be called the
Triple Alliance. It has, ever since, been comme
morated as the wisest step in politics which was
taken in Charles the Second's reign; the great
end and design of it being to prevent the French
king reducing the Spanish Netherlands,* which
he had invaded in the preceding summer, upon
the pretension of his queen's title to Brabant,
after the death of her father Philip the Fourth ;
though he had made a solemn and formal renun
ciation of the same upon his marriage with her.
The greater part of the miscarriages of this ^e.wrefu-
o r o lations tor
king's reign had been hitherto owing to the affairs p°bfoCting
of administration being conducted principally by
one man, with the sanction, perhaps, but without
the advice of the council. Such was the case in
*This shows that a different king's becoming master of the
scheme of politics prevailed in Netherlands, that he urged it
the cabinet, from what had as an argument with Count
operated there a few years be- D'Estrades to induce his mas-
fore; for Lord Clarendon either ter to become a purchaser of
did not see, or was so negligent Dunkirk, that the possession
of any bad consequences which of this place would favour his
might arise from the French invasion of those countries.
Z2

340 LIFE OF THE
A-D- the sale of Dunkirk, and in several other un-
1667-8.
 popular and impolitic measures. Nothing could
be more acceptable, therefore, to the nation than
showing that, for the future, everything would
have its due consideration at the council-board.
The following regulations were made for this
purpose in the council ; and these were intro
duced with a preamble, which was intended to
convince the public that the king was sensible, or
at least willing to have the people think he was
sensible, of his former error in trusting the ma
nagement of public affairs to the sole direction of
any one man.
The character and employment of a prime
minister was always highly disagreeable to the
English people, and is indeed repugnant to the
English constitution, being more adapted to an
absolute government than to a free and limited
monarchy. On February the 15th, the following
account was published in the Gazette, viz. : " His
majesty, continuing to pursue what he hath so
happily begun for the better regulating his affairs
for the future, and having, amongst other im
portant parts thereof, taken into his princely con
sideration the ways and methods of managing
matters at the council-board, on Friday, January

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 341
the 31st, declared his pleasure to the board, that a.d.
1667-8.
certain standing committees of the council, for  —
several businesses, should be henceforth esta
blished, together with regular days for their
assembling, viz.:
" First. A committee for foreign affairs, to
which is also to be referred the corresponding
with the justices of the peace, and other his ma
jesty's officers and ministers in the several coun
ties, concerning the affairs of the kingdom, &c.
" To meet always on Mondays.
" Secondly. A committee for such matters as
concern the admiralty and navy, as also all mili
tary affairs, fortifications, &c. so far as they are fit
to be brought to the council-board without inter
meddling in what concerns the proper officers,
unless it shall be by them so desired.
" To meet on Wednesdays.
" N. B. The Duke of York did the same day
preside at this committee.
" Thirdly. A committee for the business of
trade, under whose consideration is to fall what
ever concerns the foreign plantations, as also
what relates to the kingdom of Scotland, and Ire
land, with the isles of Guernsey and Jersey.
" To sit on Thursdays.

342 LIFE OF THE
a.d. " Fourthly. A committee to whom are to be
1667-8.

referred all petitions of complaints and grievances,
to whom his majesty hath thought fit particularly
to prescribe that they meddle not with property,
or what relates to meum and luum; to which
committee his majesty is pleased that all matters
which concern acts of state or of council be
referred. " To sit on Fridays.
" For the rendering which constitution the
more effectual, his majesty was pleased to declare,
that, for the future, as nothing is to be resolved
in council till the matter hath been first ex
amined, and hath received the opinion of some
committee or other; so, on the other side, that
nothing be referred to any committee until it
hath been first read at the board; with other
wholesome rules, which are for the future to be
strictly observed." *
Reguia- Immediately after tbe framing of this wise
ceming na- constitution, the king was advised to take another
vigation. step equally agreeable to the people and bene
ficial to the state. The French king had been
very assiduous, and been at a vast expense, in es*
tablishing a navy ; and our court had shown great
* London Gazette, Feb. 6, 1667-8.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY.
complaisance, not only in assisting him with ship
builders, but in permitting the English sailors to
go into his service, for the instruction of his own.
The late invasion of the Netherlands was suffi
cient to alarm the maritime powers ; and upon
this account, as has been already said, the triple
alliance was made. For the same reason, a pro
clamation * was ordered, February the 7th, to be
issued, pubhshing several rules and ordinances
relating to navigation; among which one was,
" that no officer or mariner whatsoever, being his
majesty's subject, should presume to put himself
into the martial service of any foreign prince or
state, or accept of or execute any commission of
war, or letter of marque or reprisal, from any such
prince or state, or go in any merchant or fishing
voyage, in any ship or vessel than such as belong
to his majesty's own subjects, without leave from
his majesty, or his Royal Highness, his majesty's
high admiral, in due form first obtained; and
commanding all officers, mariners, and seafaring
mem in any such service, to leave the same forth
with, and to get their appearance and return to
their native country recorded in the high court
of admiralty, or some offices thereunto empowered,
* London Gazette.

A.D.
1667-8.

344

LIFE OF THE

ad. upon pain of being reputed and punished as
pirates : and such as neglected to return upon this
summons were, when they happened to come
into any port or place of his majesty's dominions,
to be seized and committed to the next gaol till
farther orders ; and the certificates thereof to be
wdth speed returned to the court of admiralty,
that the offender, might be proceeded against."
It is evident, by the defensive alliance entered
into with Holland, that this proclamation could
not be designed to affect the States General : nor,
indeed, could it affect them, as, from the great
extent of their trade, and the long time they had
been in possession of it, they could be in no want
The king's of sailors. Besides this, the king declared to the
declaration °
menf1'51" parliament, five days after, " that he had made a
' 12' league defensive with the States of the United
Provinces ; and, likewise, a league for an effica
cious mediation between France and Spain ; into
which league the King of Sweden, by his ambas
sador, offered to enter as a principal : that the con
sequence of this new alliance would oblige him,
for the public security, to set out a considerable
fleet to sea, and that he proposed building more
great ships : and that, for the settling a firm peace,
as well at home as abroad, one thing more he held

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 345
himself obliged to recommend to them; which a.d.

1667-8.

Particu-

was, seriously to think of some course to beget a
better union and composure among his protestant ^07 f£_
subjects in matters of religion, whereby they might ^"1.
be induced not only to submit quietly to his
government, but also cheerfully give their assist
ance to the support of it."
The king had just entered into a defensive
alliance for the support of the common cause,
and, in consequence of this, proposed to the par
liament the building a greater number of large
ships. It is very evident, therefore, that the pro
clamation for calling home the English sailors
was calculated to obstruct the schemes of France
only, whatever the king's secret disposition
might be in her favour, and however generally
the proclamation might be worded.
The manner in which the king spoke to the Reflections
upon it.
parliament was very remarkable, and plainly
proves that it was suggested by that part of the
council who were friends to a toleration. The
king had before expressed his desire to have a
power of showing an indulgence to dissenters
from the church of England ; but the word, being
general and unlimited, included the papists, as
well as the presbyterians, anabaptists, and other

346 LIFE OF THE
a. d. protestant sectaries : and, indeed, in his speech
 February 18, 1662-3, in which he wished for this
power of indulgences, he said, " he must confess,
there were many of the popish profession, who
having served his father and himself very well, he
might fairly hope for some part of that indulg
ence being shown to them, as he would willingly
afford to others who dissented from the church."73
Most of the other speeches, from the begin-
ning of this parliament, breathed forth a per
secution of the protestant dissenters ; and all at
tempts to relieve them, or to distinguish them
from the papists, with regard to penalties, were
looked on as proofs of enmity to the church;
as if its only foundation could be laid on the
ruins of professors of the same faith. The pro-

73 The speech of 1662-3, ran thus : " The truth is, I am in my
nature an enemy to all severity for religion and conscience, how
mistaken soever it be, when it extends to capital and sanguinary
punishments, which, I am told, were begun in popish times.
Therefore, when I say this, I hope I shall not need to warn any
here, not to infer from thence that I mean to favour popery.
I must confess to you there are many of that profession, who,
having served my father and myself very well, may fairly hope
for some part of that indulgence I would willingly afford to
others who dissent from us.' But he was obliged to qualify
this declaration, by disclaiming all idea of a toleration, and even
by desiring that some new laws might be made to hinder the
growth and progress of the catholic doctrines.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY.
moting an union among protestants was cer- a.d^
tainly the most effectual way of baffling the
designs of the papists, whose security consisted
in the divisions of the former, especially when
these divisions were conducted and enlarged by
the hands of power : for, whilst the protestants
of different denominations were attentive only
to their resentments against each other, the pub-
he enemy of both pursued her points with greater
secrecy and less interruption. This speech, there
fore, from the throne, recommending it to the
parliament to think of some course for beget
ting a better union and composure among the
king's protestant subjects, and those only, shows
that the Duke of York and his adherents in
council had not then the ascendency.7*
On the Same day that the king declared to the ^ce with
j ° Spam pro-
parliament the alliance he had made with the
States, the peace with Spain was proclaimed ; and
the king acquainted the houses,* that articles of
* London Gazette.

claimed.

'* James (or his biographer) says of this period : " After the
chancellor's removal, the ministers disagreed among themselves.
Sir William Coventry was turned out of all his employments by
Bucks ,and Lord Arlington. They all joined to lessen the Duke
of York's interest with the king, lest he should get Clarendon
recalled. — Macpherson's Extracts, vol. i. p. 41.

348 LIFE OF THE
a.d. commerce with Spain had been lately ratified,
1667-8.
 by which the commercial relations of the two
kingdoms were enlarged, and settled upon last
ing foundations.
order with The king was advised, about this time, to
regard to
duelling, take a step which could not but be agreeable
to the sober part of the nation, and wherein the
kings of France had, indeed, set him a good
example ; which was, to suppress, as much as
possible, the fashion of duelling,75 then very pre
valent, and a fashion that called for the power
of the crown to interpose, as it was generally
fatal to the principals, and entailed likewise
great miseries on their families, by perpetuating
75 The Duke of Buckingham now had some influence, and no
one had a greater objection to the practice of duelling, although
few were more frequently engaged in adventures of this descrip
tion. About a twelvemonth before, he had been involved in a
rather unpleasant affair with Lord Ossory. Buckingham in a
debate had said something about Irish understandings, and the
young Irishman at the rising of the house insisted upon immedi
ate satisfaction for the insult offered to his country. Buckingham
tried in vain to accommodate the matter, and Ossory left him
saying, that he should expect to meet him in Chelsea fields
with his sword in his hand, in less than an hour. Chelsea
fields was a spot at that time very well known and not unfre
quently chosen for these encounters, being not far from Buck
ingham honse on the King's private road to Chelsea. But Buck
ingham happily bethought himself that the fields opposite Chel
sea had an equal right to that name, and thither he accordingly
repaired, stayed there some time, and of course returned home

unmolested. As, however, it was highly probable that Ossory
would not allow the matter to rest here, the duke the next
morning went down to the house, and there, with many an
assurance to their lordships of the readiness with which he
was always accustomed to give satisfaction to any one who
chose to quarrel with him, and how " suitable and agreeable
to his nature" this was, he gave his own version of the whole
occurrence. Ossory could only answer, that from the minute
manner in which the spot had been described, it was impossible
that either could have mistaken it. The house of course in
terfered, and Buckingham was sheltered from his fiery oppo
nent. • The duke succeeded better in a pugilistic encounter he
had soon afterwards in the Painted Chamber, during a con
ference between the two houses, with the Marquis of Dorchester.
Buckmgham lost a handful of hair, but he brought off the mar-
quts s pernwig as a trophy. Both these stories are told by Cla
rendon in his Life, who would however, of course, give that
version by which the duke appeared the most ridiculous.

1667-8.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 349
discords between them. Accordingly, on the a.d.
25th of February, 1667-8, he ordered a solemn
declaration to be entered in the council books,*
and public notice to be given, that he was re
solved thenceforth, that upon no pretence what
soever any pardon should be granted to any
person for killing another in a duel or rencoun
ter; but that the course of law should wholly
take place in all such cases.
These transactions in the council, during this
short interval, in which so right and good a dis-
* London Gazette.

the national
measures,

350 LIFE OF THE
a. d. position appeared for the English interest, are
1667-8.
 thrown together, that the reader may form his
judgment from whence they proceeded, and whose
advice most probably prevailed at that time,
inquiry Several of our historians, who have contented
into the
thena^onai themselves with extracting from one another,
and have not duly considered the characters of
those who composed the council, have ascribed
the national measures which were then taken
chiefly to Sir Orlando Bridgeman, who was made
lord keeper when the Earl of Clarendon was dis
missed from the office of lord high chancellor;
as if it must necessarily follow, that, succeeding
Lord Clarendon in the possession of the seals,
though but the keeper of them, he must suc
ceed him likewise in all his interest and poli
tical power. Sir Orlando had never appeared
in a higher hght than as chief baron of the
exchequer, had never been versed in affairs of
state, and was, at the delivering of the seals to
him, so far advanced in years, that the reasons
given in the Gazette for his dismission, five years
after, were his great age and infirmities.76 At the

?6 James the Second says of him, that ,c he was an honest,
but a weak man." — Macpherson, vol. i. p. 48.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 351
same time, there were several in the council, men a. d.
experienced in business and capable of it, and 
among them Lord Ashley, described even by
his enemies, particularly by Father Orleans the
Jesuit, as a man of a vast genius, one of the
greatest England had produced for many years ;
penetrating, bold, and steady: but this merit is
ascribed to him only when any misconduct is
charged upon the ministry, and writers are at
a loss on whom to fix it; and then his charac
ter is raised, as if only to depress it the more.
The spirit which had appeared in the council,
in the foregoing instances, arose and operated
from a full conviction and experience of the
weak and unnational measures in which the
king had been engaged; from the tendency of
these, and of the king and some about him,
towards popery; from the dependence the king
had been brought into, and was himself too
much inclined to, on the King of France ; and
( from the large strides which that monarch was
making in his schemes of depressing the house
, of Austria, and gaining the possession of the
Spanish crown.
i The French king had, agreeably to the advice Condnct of
" . ° J the French
in Mons. de Lyonne's memorial, postponed the Kin&-

352 LIFE OF THE
A. d. war with Spain till England and Holland had
 — weakened each other, though not so much as
he desired ; for the peace was concluded sooner
than he expected. However, before the con
clusion of it, and when he had reason to think
that the two powers were very much exaspe-
June 1667. rated against each other, in the same month in
which Admiral Ruyter, with the Dutch fleet,
sailed into the Thames as far as Chatham, and
burnt several English ships lying there, he en
tered into a war with Spain ; annulled (as is said
before) the queen's renunciation of her title to
the Spanish monarchy ;* and, with a powerful
and unexpected force, invaded the Netherlands
upon his queen's pretensions to Brabant, after
the death of her father Philip the Fourth.
Though the French king took this crisis,
when England and Holland were so warmly
engaged against each other, to attack the Spa-
* Upon the French king's drawn up in the strongest
marriage with the Infanta of terms, and with the most bind-
Spain, the Infanta had made ing clauses imaginable : it was
a renunciation of all her pre- ratified by the French king,
tensions, titles, or claims what- and was the foundation of his
soever to the Spanish monar- marriage, as this was of the
chy and dominions thereof, or Pyrenean treaty, in which the
to any part of the same. To act of renunciation was incor-
prevent any evasions, it was porated.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 353
nish Netherlands, which were unprovided for a a. d.
1667-8.
sufficient defence, he omitted no artifices in or- 
der to make his way smoother to conquest. He
had offered the Dutch to share the Spanish
Netherlands with them, which had been Car
dinal Richelieu's scheme, and which the States
then wisely refused, though the province of Zea
land was for accepting the terms. Wisely did the
States refuse the offer ; because nothing could be
more dangerous to the Dutch than an extensive
dominion, which must require proportionable sup
plies for its defence, and too much divert their
attention from trade to war.
After the peace was proclaimed between Eng
land and Holland, in the month of August 1667,
and the dismission of Lord Clarendon in the same
month, — two blows which the French king did
not expect, — he sent Monsieur Buvigni to Eng
land, as mentioned before, to sound the disposi
tion of the English ministry, and to know whe
ther they were not entering into a closer union
with Spain, which he had reason enough to appre
hend, from the treaty of commerce lately con
cluded.* He exerted likewise his politics, and
tried his utmost arts to engage the English eourt
* Turen ue's Memoirs.
VOL. I. 2 A

354 LIFE OF THE

a.d. as a principal in the war with Spain. He pro-

1667-8.

founded.

posed the securing to England Ostend and New
port, on condition that the English fleet should
join with the French. Besides the offer of these
ports, he represented the advantages of attacking
Spain in the West Indies, which would divide
her forces, and render her incapable of resistance.
Reasons on Some of the ministry were for closing with this
which the J °
uancVwas ProPosai 5 Dut ifc was urged, on the other hand,
that it would be attended with most pernicious
consequences : that our commerce with Spain
would immediately cease, and those advantages
would be lost which she had granted by the
treaty lately ratified at Madrid : that, if England
should gain Ostend and Newport, France would
soon be able to drive her out of them when she
had got possession of the rest of the Netherlands :
that she only wanted to be mistress of the princi
pal ports there to obtain an absolute dominion of
the sea : that the sale of Dunkirk had proved an
irrecoverable misfortune : that, by our connivance,
and even assistance, France had considerably in
creased her shipping ; for whereas, not above three
years before, she had scarce twenty men-of-war,
she had now above treble that number, and was
every day with great application augmenting

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 355
them : that, if she was suffered to become a mari- a. d.
1667-8.
time power, she would soon, by her wealth and 
industry, command the commerce of the Indies
and of Europe, which it would be then too late to
think of preventing : that England would only
become the instrument of aggrandizing France,
by uniting the Low Countries to her dominions ;
and either plunge herself into another war with
the Dutch, who could never consent to see such
ports in the hands of either England or France,
or, at least, would force Spain to offer a carte
blanche to France : that it appeared, by Monsieur
de Lyonne's paper, that upon England's joining
with Spain and the United Provinces, France
would quickly desist from her enterprise ; and
that Sweden, which had been ill-treated by
France, being weary of serving her interest,
' might be easily induced to act a proper part, in
1 concert with England and the United Provinces :
'• and lastly, that such an union with France, and
$ another war with the Dutch, would raise and
ii spread a general discontent throughout the na-
«' tion. These arguments prevailed; and a plan
w of a treaty was immediately formed, which Sir
d> William Temple, as mentioned before, was sent
f to the Hague to execute. 2a2

356 LIFE OF THE
a.d. By this treaty a defensive alliance was made
1667-8.
 between the King of England and the States :
Terms of ° °
the treaty, ^gy obliged themselves to use their utmost en
deavours to induce the French king to stop the
progress of his arms in Flanders, and to leave it
wholly to the allies to procure the ends proposed
in the league. In case the French king should
reject the conditions proposed to him, and pursue
his conquests, it was agreed that the allies should
join their forces with the Spaniards, in order to
oblige him to comply with the terms of the Py-
renean treaty. It was agreed, likewise, that they
should use their endeavours to establish a peace
between Spain and Portugal ; a war having sub
sisted from the time that the Duke of Braganza
had obtained the kingdom of Portugal by the
famous revolution of government which had
taken place in that country. By such a peace
Spain would be at greater liberty to withstand
the encroachments of France in the Netherlands.
Peace be- The Earl of Sandwich was sent ambassador to
tween PPrtu a°d ^e two crowns5 and tne negotiations were so hap
pily carried on, under the guaranty of England,
that, about the same time the defensive alliance
with Holland and the peace with Spain were pro
claimed, Sir Robert Southwell, envoy to the King

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 357
of Portugal, arrived in England, Februarv the a. d.
l n , ! 1667-8-
19th, 1667-8, with the account of a treaty's hav- 
ing been concluded between Spain and Portugal,
on the 13th of February, at Lisbon.
As the court of France had appeared, upon the Treaty of
Aix-la-
first news of the removal of Lord Clarendon, ex- chapeiie.
tremely jealous of England's union with Spain,*
it was justly alarmed at the conclusion of these
several alliances ; and, soon after, struck up a
peace with Spain, which was ratified at Aix-la-
Chapelle, May the 2nd, 1668. The three allies,
England, Holland, and Sweden, were guarantees
of the peace ; and an envoy from England was
sent to several princes of Germany, to invite them
into the guaranty.
France waited for a more favourable opportu
nity to carry her designs into execution ; and, in
the mean time, she retained even by the terms of
the treaty a great part of her conquests. The
maxim upon which she constantly acted was, to |°^of
make no scruple of breaking through any treaties,
and to be the first to enter into a war, as hence
she was sure to take her enemies unprovided, and
to gain conquests at an easy rate ; and then, at a
peace, to affect a moderation in receding from
* Turenne's instructions to Ruvigni.

358 LIFE OF THE
a. d. part of her acquisitions, in order to retain the rest.
~ By a steady adherence to this conduct France has
been extending her dominions ever since the reign
of Louis the Eleventh.
Another maxim which has, likewise, greatly
contributed to the grandeur of France, has been
to enter immediately into a treaty when an union
against her grows formidable. Thus she con
stantly keeps her own interest in view, and con
stantly pursues it; making war without anger,
and peace without friendship.
In'ii°hthe Though France secured some important ac
quisitions by the treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle, the
forcing her, in a manner, into the peace was no
small point gained, considering the inactivity of
the court of Spain, and its inability to maintain a
war, and considering the terms on which Eng
land and Holland at that time stood with regard
to France ; for England and Holland were both
of them weakened by the contest with each
other, and the king and the Duke of York were
secret wellwishers to the French designs.
The end which was, in a certain degree, ob
tained by the treaty, might have been, and pror
bably would have been, farther pursued, if the
opposition to the French interest could have been

Englishcouncil

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 359
longer successful in the English court. The a. d.
° . ° 1C67-8.
committee of council which is first named in the 
regulation lately mentioned was that for foreign
affairs. This came afterwards to be called the
cabinet-council; and the persons that composed
it were the Duke of York, Prince Rupert, the
Duke of Buckingham, Duke of Ormond, Earl
of Lauderdale, Lord Ashley, Lord Arlington,
Sir Thomas Clifford, and Secretary Morrice.
They were soon divided into two parties. Prince
Rupert, the Duke of Buckingham, Lord Ashley,
and Secretary Morrice, endeavoured to draw the
king off from that strict union in which he had
been engaged with the court of France from the
Restoration ; whilst the Duke of York and Sir
Thomas Clifford laboured to carry him back into
his former attachment to France ; and in this they
too quickly prevailed. They were supported by
the counsels and money of France, and the king's
natural bias turned him that way ; a bias which
was not a little strengthened by his secret inclina
tion to popery, and the Duke of York's and
Clifford's impetuous zeal for that rehgion. To
this zeal the king's indolence, and perhaps fear,
made him too ready to submit. What confirms
this last suggestion is, the saying of Sir Thomas

360 LIFE OF THE
a.d. Clifford himself; who, as he came out of the
1667-8.
 house of commons, when the members had been
expressing their joy in the triple alliance, spoke
aloud, " Well, for all this noise, we must have
another war with the Dutch before it be long.""
From whomsoever the first thought of the
triple alliance proceeded, it was undoubtedly a
wise and important scheme for the interests of
this country, and of Europe in general. It is
submitted to the reader whether the following
considerations do not render it somewhat probable
that the design of it might be suggested by Lord
Ashley. He had the principal hand in drawing
instructions for the treaty of commerce with
Spain ; he was, it is evident, in possession of
Monsieur de Lyonne's memorial, and consequent
ly well acquainted with the ambitious designs of

W At this very time Charles was making overtures to the
French court. A correspondence with this view was being
carried on between Buckingham and the Duchess of Orleans.
Charles assured Rouvigny, the French ambassador, that he
would be extremely glad to enter into the strictest union with
Louis, and that he would willingly make a treaty with him as
between gentleman and gentleman, as he preferred his word to
all the parchment in the world.
These attempts were several times renewed during this sum
mer, but Louis stood aloof. He wanted either confidence to
trust, or gold to satisfy, his royal suitor. — Dalrymple.

78 Whatever may be thought of these reasons for transferring
to Lord Ashley part of the honour of the triple alliance, they
cannot be much strengthened by this letter, which is evidently
a mere ordinary letter of compliment. Unless some better evi
dence than this can be produced, Sir William Temple must
remain in possession of the credit which every one has hitherto
ascribed to him.

A.D.
1667-8.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 361
France, of the growing power of which he always
expressed the greatest jealousy : he was, at that
time, high in the favour of the king,* and had a
great influence over him. These considerations
are strengthened by the letter in the note,f which
is inserted here, though out of time, to show the
reputation which Lord Ashley had acquired in
the kingdom of Sweden.
*Some time before the king assure your excellency, that it
had passed several days at is generally believed here, the
Lord Ashley's house in the interest of this and your nation
country. will flourish under the wise
Stockholm, Jan. 1, conduct of such a renowned
+ My Lord, 1672-3. chief minister of state as you
The choice of your excel- are. Wherefore I do find my-
lency's noble person to the self in duty bound heartily to
chancellorship of England wish all" prosperity to your
hath rejoiced this whole king- weighty designs, and to pray,
dom, and especially me, by with all respect imaginable, for
reason ofthe great obligations thecontinuance of your wonted
which your bounty hath laid favour to,
on me during my abode there. My Lord,
/This preferment and dignity Your excellency's most humble
was due long since to your and most obedient servant,
high merits; and I do humbly A. Cronstrom.78

362 LIFE OF THE
a.d. From about this time the Duke of York's
 — power in the court was undoubtedly the prevail-
Dukeof r
York pre- \ng one, and perhaps it was so before, though the
court. king would not permit himself to be carried on
so precipitately as the duke and Clifford wished
to have done. The popish interest was working
secretly and in the dark ; and the most prudent
and effectual way to check and disappoint it,
was by countermining it, and cutting off those
springs from which it received its nourishment
and spirit.
Our historians have said that the whole of
King Charles's revenue was dissipated among his
favourites and mistresses ; but as the king was a
secret papist, it is not improbable that part of it
was employed in promoting the popish religion ;
and the following account may show that the
revenue of Ireland was diverted into that current.
Misappii- There were great abuses in the management of
cation of ° ° „
this revenue. Out of the money appointed for
the civil and military establishment, large sums
had been applied for other purposes, and parti
cularly for supporting in a private manner the
popish interest. This was suspected by a consi
derable man in Ireland, who, being alarmed at it,
thought necessary to communicate his suspicions
to some person in England that would have

the Irish

1667-8.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 363
weight enough to remedy the grievance, and on a. d.
whose abilities, and zeal for the protestant cause,
he might rely. Though unknown to Lord Ashley,
he, by means of Lord Conway, acquainted him
with it. Lord Ashley procured an immediate
and express order for an account of the receipts
and disbursements for seven years, ending the
20th of March 1666 ; and, in the mean time, sent
some queries to Lord Conway, to which he de
sired that proper answers and such farther infor
mation as could be obtained might be conveyed
to him by a private and trusty messenger.
Upon receiving the order from England, the
accounts were huddled up. Great sums, which
had been raised for the year 1667, were antici
pated in order to stop the gaps in the accounts
of the preceding years ; and by these accounts it
appeared that, though vast sums had been paid,
no reference was made to the establishments by
which they had been directed. Large payments
also were set down as made on his majesty's let
ters, the lord lieutenant's orders, concordatums,
and impress warrants, without any notice to whom
they were paid or on what considerations. Thus
the treasury was almost exhausted ; and thir
teen months' arrears were due to the army, which
raised a general discontent among the forces.

364 LIFE OF THE
a.d. This state of things rendered some of the most

1667-8.

considerate men in Ireland very apprehensive for
the public ; especially as they saw that the native
Irish were ready to throw themselves under the
government of France. Nay, the Irish had actu
ally sent, about this time, to France an offer to
deliver up their country into the hands of the
French, upon condition of being assisted with
arms, money, and officers. The Duke of Ormond,
lord lieutenant, was ignorant of the state of the
treasury, and had been kept so ; for he had fre
quently said, "he was in wardship under the
vice-treasurer." This, Lord Conway's friend, the
author of the observations on the accounts, says,
he had often heard the duke declare. The obser
vations are too long to be inserted in this place ;
but the following letter, which Lord Conway sent
with them, is so material that it ought not to be
omitted. " My Lord,
Lord Con- " In transmitting these papers to your lordship,
Ashi°erd wt"ch are to give you information upon those I
had the honour to receive from you, I am obliged,
in the first place, to make my apology for the
neglect which seems to lie upon me in the prose
cution of your commands ; but if your lordship
please to remember what you enjoined me, parti-

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 365
cularly to send them by a private hand, who met a d.
1667-8.
with many delays which the post would have 
escaped, and that they went from me the 10th
of December last, I hope your lordship will
excuse me, as well as the noble author of these
observations, who despatched them in two days.
I doubt not but, as to the substance, your lord
ship will find them sohd, rational, and very satis
factory, though he passes over those smaller things
I formerly observed to you, because the payments
in the accounts are not made explicit. Your
lordship may expect them, and much more to
follow. I should have begged your lordship to
digest every particular of these observations, and
give yourself the trouble of comparing them with
the accounts, but that I know your quickness
of parts will comprehend that at first sight which
others cannot do without labour and pains, nor
with it neither ; and it is with these as with other
mathematical demonstrations, that every line and
angle is to be observed, to make up a demon
stration. " My assurance of your lordship's public and
generous spirit gives me confidence that you
will interest yourself in this affair, both upon ac
count of the king's service, and for the preserva
tion of the protestants in Ireland ; who, we fear,

366 LIFE OF THE
a. d. are designed to be ruined, and that there is more
1667-8.
 intended than a private gain. I wish this may be
carried on, without doing a particular prejudice
to any man. We are now in Ireland full of
apprehensions of the French, and find cause to
believe, that, to divert our assistance from their
enemies, they are creating trouble for us both in
Ireland and Scotland. I cannot, with conveni
ency, wait on your lordship till April next; but if
I knew that my being there would be serviceable
to you, it would hasten me very much.
" I humbly beg to receive a line from your
lordship, to be assured of your receipt of these
papers ; and my next request is, that you would
not show them to any man : for, though they are
not under the author's own hand, yet there are
some words which are easy to be discerned by
those who know him ; and I am sure he would
not entrust them to any man but your lordship.
I wish I had better occasion to serve your lord
ship, that I might with zeal and fidelity obtain
the title I am most ambitious to bear, of,
" My Lord,
" Your lordship's most obedient
" and most devoted servant,
Ragley, Feb. 28, 1667-8. « Conway."

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 367
Lord Ashley was zealous for the preservation a. d.
n t i i a n • 1667-8.
of Ireland. A great reformation was soon made

in the government ; the arrears of the army were tion of the
0 * government
ordered immediately to be paid; another lord ofIreland-
lieutenant (Lord Roberts) was appointed ; and a
new establishment was soon sent thither, with ex
press orders that no part of the revenue should
be applied to other uses than what were express
ed in the instructions drawn up at home. By
these regulations, and by this speedy and critical
inquiry, the protestant interest in Ireland, and
very probably that nation itself, wrere preserved.
The letter from Lord Conway confirms what Remarks on Lord
has been said with regard to the popish interest Conway's
at court, and the secret workings of that faction
in all the dominions of Great Britain ; and shows
that it had long been working before there was
any public appearance of it. It confirms what
has been mentioned with respect to France, and
her views of embroiling and amusing the court of
England, that she might be more at liberty to
pursue her conquests in the Netherlands. It co
incides with the advice in Lyonne's memorial,
and proves how extensively France had laid
her projects, and how indefatigable she was in
the pursuit of them. It shows, also, that Lord

368 LIFE OF THE
a. d. Ashley was esteemed by those who were most
1667-8. _ _ J
 acquainted with his actions, and were, therefore,
the best judges of his conduct, to be a true and
active friend to the protestant and English in
terest, and a strenuous enemy to the schemes and
power of France.
Lord Ash- Among other methods which Lord Ashley
ley s man- ° J
nerofad- t00\ to draw the king off from his attachment to
vising the °
kmg. France, and to keep him steady in the true in
terest of England, were his constant endeavours
to make him acquainted with the state of the na
tion and the disposition of the people. Though
he laid before him his thoughts on all public
affairs with great freedom, yet he did it with a
becoming respect. He did not deliver his advice
in that magisterial way which had been objected
to Lord Clarendon, but with that insinuating ad
dress which could not but be appreciated by a
man who was (as Lord Shaftesbury has said in a
character of him) the best bred of the age.ra
The following excellent paper is a proof that

79 That Charles affected an esteem for Shaftesbury is doubt
less true ; but, in fact, he merely dreaded him as an opponent,
and wished to make him one of the tools of his projected
French alliance. While he was yet apparently in high favour,
Charles told Colbert, that " le chancelier etoit le plus foible et
le plus mechant de tous les hommes."

EARL OF SHAFTKSBURY. 369
Lord Ashley did lay before the king the state of a. d.
his affairs in this manner. It is, likewise, an evi-

Memorial
dence that he was early in his apprehensions of containing
J L L his senti-
the Romish religion, and in providing against its ments-
encroachments ; that he continued in the same
sentiments he had before expressed with regard
to the act of uniformity, when he was for taking
off the penalties with regard only to protestant
dissenters ; that he was for softening the penal
laws which had been made in the beginning of
the king's reign, and particularly the corporation
act ; and that he had already digested, in his
thoughts, a method of keeping the papists from
all employments, civil and military, and which he
found means afterwards, in 1672, of carrying into
a law. The reader will also observe, that Lord
Ashley had the justest notions wherein the pro
sperity of the trade and the true interest of Eng
land must consist; and that he was inflexible in
his sentiments and concern for the religious, as
well as civil rights of the people.
" May it please your Majesty,
" When I had the honour to wait on your
majesty at Windsor, you was pleased to enter
into some discourse of the decay of land rents and
trade, and the remedies of it ; which hath given
VOL. I. 2 B

370 LIFE OF THE
a.d me the confidence to offer your majesty these en-
 — suing considerations of mine on that subject ; and
if your majesty shall find in them but half that
weight of reason which I am sure they have of
honest zeal to your service, I shall not doubt but
you will pardon this my address.
" First. I take it for granted, that the strength
and glory of your majesty, and the wealth of your
kingdoms, depend not so much on anything as on
the multitude of your subjects ; by whose mouths
and backs the fruits and commodities of your
lands may have a liberal consumption, in propor
tion to their growth ; and by whose hands both
your majesty's crown may be defended on all oc
casions, and also the manufactures of both your
native and foreign commodities improved; by
which, trade and your majesty's revenue must
necessarily be increased.
" Secondly. That of late years the lands of
your kingdoms have been exceedingly improved,
as to the production, by inclosing of wastes and
manuring them to tillage and pasture ; and, in
the mean time, the number of your majesty's sub
jects, by the confluence of many unhappy acci
dents, has been extremely lessened ; for the late
plague and war did (by a reasonable calculation)

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 371
sweep away above two hundred and fifty thou- a. d.
r J J 1667-8.
sand persons more than the usual course of mor- 
tality would have done.
" Thirdly. A considerable number of your
majesty's subjects are constantly transported to
the American plantations for servants, and who
transport themselves to those and other parts to
enjoy the liberty of their mistaken consciences ;
and our products of lands thus increasing, and
the persons decreasing who should make the con
sumption of them, it must necessarily follow
that the value of our lands must be reduced to a
disability of maintaining the owners and paying
your majesty's necessary aids ; and our manufac
tures become few, and so costly, that they will
not be tendered to foreign markets at such rates
as our neighbours can afford them ; whereby the
merchant must lose the trade, and your^majesty
the revenue of it.
"If this be admitted to be the cause of the
decay of rents, then, certainly, the recovery must
be by using all rational and just ways and means
to invite persons from foreign parts to supply the
present defect, and stop the drain that carries
away the natives from us.
" In order whereunto, it is humbly offered to
2b2

372 LIFE OF THE
a. d. your majesty, whether any other expedient what-
1667-8.
 soever will be effective to this great and good
end without granting that liberty in their reli
gion which every man is fond of ; and on what
mistakes soever their profession be taken up,
whether in point of blind zeal, or in point of
reputation, they will hardly recede from it for
any consideration, as we find by too sad experi
ence of the many factions which the late unhappy
times have made among us, whom no severity of
law in the execution thereof can reclaim to the
church of England.
" It seems to me, that the late act against con
venticles hath put it out of question that a tole
ration is lawful ; for it tolerates any dissenters
from the church of England to worship God after
a different manner, provided they do not assemble
in a greater number than is limited by the statute,
which limit, I suppose, was set on the single
consideration of preserving the public peace. If
public peace then may be preserved with it, it is
not unlawful to remove that pale so far as may
do the work of the present design, of retaining
those dissenters who are among us, and attracting
others from abroad. And that a toleration may
be made to consist with the public peace and

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 373,
tranquillity ofthe present established government a.d.
both in church and state, it is humbly proposed,  '—
" First. That no person whatsoever shall be
admitted to bear any office, ecclesiastical, military,
or civil, of trust or profit, but such as can, by the
legal test, approve themselves conformists to the
doctrine and discipline of the church of England.
" Secondly. That no person whatsoever shall
enjoy this proposed liberty but such as shall,
without the coercion of law, pay all tithes and
duties due from him to the church, parish, and
poor. " Thirdly. That all persons, of what separate
persuasion soever, who are members of any cor
porate town, shall be eligible to any corporation
office, and required to give legal testimony of
their conformity ; and, upon their refusal thereof,
be declared incapable to execute the office, and
shall pay such fine, and undergo such penalties,
as a conformist is liable to in case of his refusal
of the like office.
" Fourthly. That in regard the laws have de
termined the principles of the Romish religion to
be inconsistent with the safety of your majesty's
person and government ; and that those fanatics
of the fifth monarchy are professed opposers of

374 LIFE OF THE
a. d. all human government ; both of them may be
1667-8.
 — excluded from this proposed liberty.
"And with these limitations and exceptions:
" That all and every other sort of nonconform
ists may have liberty to assemble, for the exercise
of their own manner of worship, in such public
places as the nonconformists can procure; and
that the doors of the meeting places do stand
open to all while they are at their exercise of
prayer or teaching.
" These expedients may, as it is humbly con
ceived, reasonably secure the public peace. But
as, without this proposed liberty, our desired
number of people will not be obtained, So this
alone will not be effectual ; because men do and
may enjoy it in other places, and therefore they
must be invited by other temporal advantages.
In order whereunto, it is humbly proposed,
" First. That a general act of naturalization may
be passed, with this addition, that all and every
artificer or tradesman may freely exercise his art
or trade in any part of the kingdom ; provided
that if they settle themselves in any city or town
corporate, where their trades are put under a re
gulation, they become members of that company
which is or shall be erected for the government

1667-8.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 375
of them ; and either by the usual oath or by bond A. d.
give security for their due observance of the ordi
nances and by-laws of the society ; and that the
society be required to admit them for such rea
sonable fines as the magistrates of the place shall
think fit.
" And as these expedients may probably attract
a multitude of merchants, and other people of
inferior condition and trades ; so there is yet one
other, absolutely necessary to the obtaining the ac
cession of men of estates and money, and that is :
" The making all real estates an infallible
security to the purchaser or lender, which is pro
vided for by a public register in most parts of
Europe ; and if your majesty shall think fit to
establish the like here by your authority in par
liament, it is humbly conceived that such a me
thod may be proposed as in a few years may put
men's estates beyond all scruple of their title,
without prejudice to any honest man, and to the
general good of all your majesty's subjects : and,
no doubt, when such security may be had for the
purchaser or lender, we shall need no other at-
tractives to bring from our neighbours in foreign
parts a great addition of wealthy families to plant
themselves and their posterity among us, when

7g LIFE OF THE

A.D.
1667-8.

they may have a retreat into a well-tempered
government, enjoy all the immunities, rights, and
privileges of it as natives, together with the liberty
of their consciences, and fix themselves in pur
chases of estates in whose title they cannot be
defrauded ; and likewise make a greater interest
of their money than they can where they now
are, on the like security."80
Lord Ashley, by his engaging address and
vivacity in conversation, was highly agreeable to
the king, who became hereby more readily dis
posed to confide in the solidity of his. judgment.
Of this Charles gave a remarkable proof at the
meeting of parliament in February 1667-8. He
then spoke in a different tone from what he had
done before; by which it appeared that Lord
Ashley's remonstrances had made some impression
The king's on him; for, after acquainting the two houses
declaration *¦ °
to pariia- wjth the triple alliance, he added,* " One thing
* Lords' Journals.

so Thus long ago was the necessity of a general registry
pointed out : but Lord Ashley had not taken into consideration
that natural and very pardonable pride which induces our
aristocracy to suffer any inconvenience rather than expose the
incumbrances which extravagance or family settlements have
imposed upon their estates.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 377
more I hold myself obliged to recommend to you a. d.
at this present; which is, that you would seriously 
think of some course to beget a better union and
composure in the minds of my protestant subjects
in matters of religion, whereby they may be in
duced, not only to submit quietly to the govern
ment, but also cheerfully give their assistance to
the support of it."
The commons, however, persevered in their Bigotry of
the com-
animosity against the dissenters ; and, as the act mons against the
against conventicles had been only temporary, dissenters.
and was lately expired, they passed a bill, and
sent it up to the lords, April the 28th, 1668, in-
titled, " An act for the continuance of a former a.d. 1668.
act to prevent and suppress seditious conven
ticles ;" and, on the 4th of May following, they
sent a message to the lords to put them in mind
of it : but, as the penal laws concerning religion
had lost their great advocate in the Earl of Cla
rendon, this bill was dropped in the house of
lords. Lord Ashley thought that a knowledge of LordAsh-
J ° ° ley s repre-
trade was an essential qualification in a statesman, t™/haeu™nsg
and the protection and advancement of it one 3™"'
of his principal duties. He omitted, therefore,
no opportunities of representing to the king its

378 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1668. great importance. Charles had an inquisitive
mind after knowledge where his pleasures did
not interfere. Lord Ashley showed him that the
interest of commerce, though formerly neglected,
was become an express affair of state with France,
as well as with Holland and Sweden : that France
began to find trade of more consequence towards
advancing her power than any army or territory
though ever so great, as it drew such wealth
along with it, and gained such force at sea by
shipping; and, therefore, since the advantages of
commerce were so well understood by our neigh
bours, it required more attention in our govern
ment: that commerce, as an affair of state, was
widely different from the mercantile part ; this
consisting principally in the knowledge of what
goods are fittest to be exported from one place to
another, and what commodities are most conve
nient to make returns in, and the nature and
course of exchange ; but that trade, as a point of
policy and government, consisted of many ar
ticles :
In countenancing our merchants abroad, as the
proper stewards or purveyors of the public stock,
wealth, and interest of the nation :

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 379
In asserting those privileges, immunities, free- a.d. 1668.
doms, and exemptions of any kind, which, by the
wisdom and vigilance of any former age, have
been gained or capitulated for :
In taking care of the just dealings of our
merchants abroad, that the manufactures exported
be without fraud, merchantable, and good ; that
the credit of them may be as current as our coin :
In endeavouring, as much as possible, to exo
nerate our own commodities of and from all such
taxes and impositions abroad as are discouraging
to the trade of them ; and in watching, and vigor
ously opposing, any new tax to be laid on them,
different either from ancient custom, or from the
articles of commerce in force between any respec
tive State and England :
In considering how and by what means we
may, with most prudence, discourage and prevent
any manufactures of our neighbours which may
be a prejudice to England ; especially, if any part
of those manufactures be dependent upon us, or
upon any neighbouring state or prince in amity
with us :
In considering how to increase our own manu
factures, and how to invite or reward the bring-

380 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1668. mg m or inventing of others ; particularly such
as are most necessary for us, or with which we
may supply our neighbours :
In keeping a vigilant and constant correspond
ence abroad for carrying on the aforesaid ends :
Lastly. In giving all encouragement to the
promoting of our fishery and advancing our plan
tations, the increase of our shipping and multi
plying our seamen.
He told the king, that many of these things
did not lie within the prospect of the merchant,
much less within his power, care, or considera
tion ; and, therefore, (the distinction being made
between the magistrate's and the merchant's duty,)
he proposed that, instead of a committee of the
privy council, a select council might be esta
blished, whose • employment should be to take
care of the welfare of our colonies, and the trade
and navigation of the kingdom ; to receive and
consider all propositions offered them for the be
nefit and improvement of commerce and naviga
tion ; and to present their opinion and advice
upon the same to the king: that the council
should consist of such gentlemen as would be
more concerned in the generality of the trade of
the nation, and the right management of it, than

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 381
in the profit of any particular trade, which might a.d. 1668.
possibly have too much sway with private mer
chants : that their commission should be proba
tionary, and that the powers of it should not be
continued above twelve months ; by which the
members might know, that unless they gave
some evidence of their regard to the commission,
and of their prosecuting with dihgence the design
of the trust, they must not expect to be continued.
He drew up many regulations for this council,
and delivered to the king a list * of the persons
whom he thought best qualified for being mem
bers of it. Accordingly, from these persons a council of
choice was made of a president, vice-president, poVted!
and nine other counsellors. Lord Ashley's friend,
the Earl of Sandwich, was appointed president,
with a salary of eight hundred pounds ; the
vice-president had six hundred pounds ; and the
others five hundred pounds each. The commis
sions were renewed from year to year, and the
Earl of Sandwich continued president.
The French ambassador, about this time, de- Memorial
of French
livered a memorial to the king, signed by several merchants.
French merchants, complaining that the custom-
* The list, with the aforesaid reasons, is still remaining among
his papers.

382 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1668. house officers entered their houses, and seized
their silks and other goods for want of having
paid duties at their importation ; and that the
officers were countenanced and protected in their
conduct by Lord Ashley, chancellor of the ex
chequer. The merchants insisted that, when the
goods were once lodged in their houses, they
should be privileged from a search or seizure;
but, this being contrary to the laws, such a par
tiality could not be openly showed them. The
memorial, therefore, had no effect to the prejudice
of Lord Ashley. Whatever secret offence his con
duct might give to the English court, it durst
not openly blame him for enforcing the laws;
especially as the French fashions were becoming
very prevalent, to the great expense of the na-
tion, the increase of luxury, and the prejudice of
our manufactures.
a.d. 1669. It may not be improper here to relate a cir-
LordAsh- J r r
ley's man- cumstance which shows how far Lord Ashley
ner of en- •"
thePrince was ^rom imitating the French customs. In this
ofTuscany. year Qosmo de Medici, the Prince of Tuscany,
came into England. He was received with all
possible marks of distinction, and entertained by
the principal nobility, particularly those who be
longed to the court. As many of them were

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 383
great admirers of the French taste, as well as a.d. 1669.
friends to the interest of France, they had, with
the servile maxims of that country, imbibed its
luxury; and this especially appeared in their
tables. When Lord Ashley invited the prince,
he gave him a splendid, but a truly English en
tertainment. His dinner was dressed entirely in
the English manner, and he told his highness
that he would not trouble him with any apolo
gies : others might treat him like a Frenchman,
his desire was to entertain him like an English
man. The prince politely answered, " it was the
greatest compliment he could make him ;" * and,
after he returned into Italy, he sent Lord Ashley,
every year, a present of wine, as a testimony of
his regard.
In the session of parliament at the latter end Committee
of lords on
ofthe year 1669, Lord Ashley moved the house the state of
J J rents and
of lords to take into consideration the reasons and trade#
grounds of the fall of rents and decay of trade ;
the points upon which he had before delivered
* The prince was so well the British minister there, went
pleased, that he desired Lord to make an excuse for his not
Ashley to give him the bill of going to court, through his ill
fare, which he kept by him so state of health, the prince,
long, that, when the late Lord who was then Great Duke,
Shaftesbury was at Florence showed it to Mr. Molesworth,
in 1711, and Mr. Molesworth, and told him the story.

384 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1669. his sentiments to the king. A committee, of
which he was one, was immediately appointed
for that purpose. After several meetings they
made a report, by the Earl of Essex, who had en
tered into a firm friendship with Lord Ashley,
that they thought the three following things
advisable :
" That the interest of money should be reduced
from six to four per cent. :
" That a bill of registers should be brought in :
" And a bill of general naturalization."
The two last resolutions were readily agreed to ;
but the first being strongly debated, Lord Ash
ley and three other lords were appointed to make
choice of some of the ablest persons they knew,
to give their opinions thereon before a committee
of the whole house. The committee, after the
hearing, were likewise for the reduction, but the
house did not agree to the report.81

81 As the proceedings of this committee do not appear in de
tail upon the Lords' Journals, this account is probably taken
from the earl's private memoranda.
The increased intelligence of the present age has recognised
the wisdom of the lords in rejecting the proposed enactment
with regard to usury. There is now scarcely a difference of
opinion among thinking men as to the impolicy of attempt
ing any legislative interference with money transactions. The

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 385
The Earl of Essex made a subsequent report, a.d. 1669.
from the committee appointed to consider of the
reasons of the decay of trade, " that it was their
opinion that some ease and relaxation in ecclesi
astical matters would be a means of improving
the trade of the nation ;" but, two days after
wards, on the 11th of December, the parliament
was prorogued.
When the parliament met again, on the 14th 1 669-70.
of February, the house of commons, to prevent against se
ditious con-
any steps being taken to relax the laws in ecclesi- venticies.
astical matters, soon passed and sent up to the
lords another bill to suppress seditious conven
ticles. This was debated by the lords for several
days in committees of the whole house ; and in
one of these, on the 21st of March 1669, the king
going unexpectedly into the house, the house was
resumed, till he told them, " he was come to
renew a custom of his predecessors, long disconti
nued, to be present at debates, but not to inter-

absurdity of pretending to lower the rate of interest by placing an
additional risk upon the sum lent, has been frequently exposed.
The usury laws have been recently much broken in upon, and
would doubtless have been long since repealed, but the legal
rate of interest has been for some time so much above the ordi
nary value of money, that, being seldom called into use, the
harm they do is less conspicuous.
VOL. I. 2 C

386 LIFE OF THE
a.d. rupt the freedom thereof;"* and, therefore, he
1669-70.
 desired the lords to sit down, and put on their

hats : and from that time the king, as appears by
the journals, was almost daily in the house, and
a.d. 1670. sat in his chair of state. The bill against con
venticles (probably by the influence of the king's
presence) passed for a year ; but when it was sent
up to the lords the next sessions, it never obtain
ed a second reading. Nay, a motion was made
for rejecting it, but this was prevented by the
previous question.
The lords, at that time, were accustomed, as
they always had been, to sit regularly in their
seats, which undoubtedly added weight to their
proceedings ; but, soon after, they broke through
this decorum so far, that the king himself f took
notice of it, and desired the lords would, for the
future, continue in their places, and not run
about and join in conversation during debates;
which he thought unbecoming the decency and
dignity of the house.
Increase of The Duke of York's influence daily increasing,
the Duke of J
York's in- his favourites, who were all of his own religion,
fluence. were the chief persons promoted. " He had so
powerful a party at court, and so many creatures
* Lords' Journals. f Ibid.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 387
about the king's person, that he was in a manner a.d. i67o.
absolute there, and directed the resolutions of the
council. Sir Thomas Clifford was the chief per
son in the duke's confidence, and was entrusted
with the most secret designs of the court."* When
he made the declaration before mentioned, " that
we must have another war with the Dutch," he
spoke the sentiments and resolutions of the Duke
of York and the popish faction, who now began
to be more open in their proceedings, though
from the very time of the Restoration they had
been engaged in the same pursuit.
* Rapin.

2 C 2

388 LIFE OF THE

CHAPTER X.
[Intrigues with France. — The two Secret Treaties. — Corruption
of the members ofthe Cabal Administration.] - Temper ofthe
Court. — Account of the Cabal. — Lord Ashley's advice to the
King. — Discovers the King's conversion to Popery. — Lord
Rochester. — Proceedings of the Parliament. — Shutting up of
the Exchequer opposed by Lord Ashley. — His reasons against
it, and letter to Mr. Locke. — Declaration of Indulgence.—
War declared against the Dutch.
a.d. 1670. £ 1 hat disgraceful intrigue was now darkly pro
gressing, which has rendered the reign of Charles
the Second the most inglorious in our annals.
Even before the triple alliance, Charles, as ap
pears from a letter from Rouvigny to Louis,
published by Sir John Dalrymple, had solicited
a private treaty with France. The attempt was
now renewed with more success. James the Se
cond, in his autobiography printed in the Mac-
pherson papers, describes it thus : " The Duke
(himself) speaks of religion to the king, and finds
him resolved to be a catholic. The king appoints

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 389
a private meeting with Lord Arundel, Lord Ar- a.d. 1670.
lington, and Sir Thomas Clifford, at the duke's
closet, to advise on the methods to advance the
catholic religion in his kingdoms. They met on
25th of January (1669). The king declared his
mind in matters of religion with great zeal to the
duke and other three persons at this private meet
ing. The result of the consultation was, that the
work should be done in conjunction with France.
The Lord Arundel was accordingly sent to treat
with the French king ; and the treaty was con
cluded the beginning of the year 1670. The
French king was to give two hundred thousand
pounds a year. The Duke of Buckingham seeks
to support himself by favour of Madame, with
whom he manages a treaty with France. He sent
over Sir Ellis Leighton to treat with her. Neither
the duke nor Arlington knew anything of this
treaty. The duke, after Leighton's return, had
an account of it from himself.
" In the mean time, the king kept the secret of
his agreement with France, and suffered a mock
treaty to go on that he might the better cover the
real one ; of which neither Madame nor the Duke
of Buckingham had the least knowledge. Buck
ingham's chief drift was to keep himself at the

390 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1670. head of the ministry. This management of the
mock treaty was kept a secret to the Duke of
York and Arlington." *
Sir John Dalrymple has printed this secret
treaty from the draft in the depot at Versailles.
Charles was to have two hundred thousand pounds
for declaring himself a catholic, and an annual
subsidy of eight hundred thousand pounds dur
ing the projected Dutch war ; and as the fulfil
ment of the articles would naturally excite the
opposition of his subjects, Louis engaged to assist
him with all his forces " till the rebellion should
be ended."f
The infamy of this transaction attaches exclu
sively to Charles, the Duke of York, and Lord
Arlington ; but the subsequent conduct of Buck
ingham, Lauderdale, and Ashley was scarcely less
criminal. The mock treaty, spoken of by James,
was a contrivance by which Charles proposed to
obtain the support of those of his ministers whom
he could not induce to join him in his designs for
the introduction of the catholic religion, for all
the articles of the treaty which did not involve
that object. The result showed that he had not
over-estimated their compliance. The original
* Macpherson, vol. i. p. 51. f Dalrymple, p. 54.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 391
conspirators were delighted by a proposition from a.d. 1670.
Buckingham that he should be sent into France
to try to bring about an alhance between the
French and English courts. The offer was im
mediately accepted, and the duke communicated
his design to Lords Lauderdale and Ashley ; the
former agreed to it, but Ashley asked time to
consider. Lord Ashley's scruples do not seem to have
been very obstinate. A very few days after
Buckingham's first proposition, we find Colbert
writing to his master, that Buckingham had the
direction of Ashley Cooper, who had been raised
by him ; and immediately afterwards the duke
departed on his embassy. Upon his return, Lau
derdale, Ashley, and the Duke of York were ap
pointed commissioners for conducting this traite"
simule, as it is styled by Colbert. The treaty now
concluded differed from the first only by the
omission of the clause by which Charles had en
gaged to declare himself a catholic, and the trans
fer of the price of his conversion to the first
year's subsidy for the Dutch war. The interest
and honour of the country, and the security of
her institutions, were as unhesitatingly sacrificed
by these commissioners as they had been by

392 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1670. Charles himself. Nothing was respected but the
established religion, and the characters of the
parties sufficiently testify, that in this reserva
tion they were actuated by policy rather than prin
ciple. There is but one redeeming circumstance in
Lord Ashley's conduct upon this occasion. We
may infer from the circumstance of an act having
passed, during this year, to enable his son, who was
not yet of age, to levy fines and suffer recoveries
of certain entailed estates, that his circumstances
were somewhat embarrassed ; yet he alone, of all
those concerned in the negotiation of these trea
ties, stands acquitted of having been corrupted
with French gold. Arlington obtained a pension
of ten thousand crowns ; and Buckingham hinted
that he expected two hundred thousand pounds.
The commissioners of the first treaty received
proportionate gratifications, although the amount
is not stated ; and in every instance the mo
ney was paid and received with the sanction of
Charles. The golden shower fell even upon the wives
and mistresses of the conspirators. The Duke of
Buckingham was governed by the Countess of
Shrewsbury, who had inspired in him a moment-

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 393
ary fit of courage of which his contemporaries a.d. 1670.
thought him incapable. It is said, that when the
earl her husband discovered the intrigue, which
she was carrying on with Buckingham, and called {
the duke to account, the countess, disguised as a
page, was present at the combat, and held her pa
ramour's horse.82 The earl fell, and the duke
sought the widow's embraces while yet literally
stained with the blood of her husband.*83
This paragon of feminine tenderness now re
ceived a pension of ten thousand livres, and pro
mised in return to make Buckingham comply
with King Charles in all things.
It is true, that among this mass of corruption
we find Ashley included as one who was to re
ceive a present ; that is to say, was to be offered
one : but Colbert appears pretty accurate in de
tailing to his master every disbursement he had
made in this manner ; and as we nowhere again
find any mention of Lord Ashley in this disgrace
ful catalogue, we may fairly infer that the money,
if offered, was refused.

82 Walpole's Royal and Noble Authors.
83 But there is some doubt thrown upon this story, so current
at the time, by a MS. note of Sir W. Musgrave, in a copy of Count
De Grammont's Memoirs, preserved in the British Museum.

394 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1670. The value of James the Second's testimony, or
rather, perhaps, of that of the person who com
piled his life, (see Fox's History of the early part
of the reign of James II. p. xxvi.) may be esti
mated by his declaration, that he and Arlington
knew nothing of this second treaty."]
It is evident, from all our writers, that the
two favourite points with the court were the esta
blishment of an arbitrary power in the crown, and
The king's the introduction of popery. The king was zea-
arbitrary r r J °
schemes. ]ous for j-]^ gj.,^ anc\ inclined towards the last :
the Duke of York was earnest for both ; and, as
his zeal and industry supplied the want of ca
pacity, the king, from his natural indolence,
trusted his brother chiefly with the manage
ment of these points, by which means he was
himself left more at liberty to follow his plea
sures, and was screened from the resentment of
the nation.
The scheme of arbitrary power was formed
from the politics of France, carried on by her in
structions, and supported by her interest. From

According to the fashion of that age, the seconds fought as well
as the principals ; and there were six combatants upon the
ground. The duke was attended by Sir Robert Holmes and
Captain Jenkins, and the earl by Sir John Talbot and Mr Ber
nard Howard. The countess afterwards married a Mr. Bridges.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 395
her were introduced those two engines of power, a.d. 1570.
luxury and corruption, which mutually support
and increase each other. Though luxury is al
ways represented as the mother of corruption,
this as naturally tends to the improvement of
luxury, which, beginning with the higher ranks
of mankind, soon spreads, by the prevalence of
example, through the body of the people. Each
is sufficient to poison the best constitution ; but
where they co-operate, their influence is as irre
sistible as it is fatal. To promote the scheme
more effectually, the protestants were divided
at home and weakened abroad ; the church was
armed with power against the dissenters, and
the dissenters were afterwards indulged only
with a view to widen the breach ; while every
act which enlarged this breach added strength
to the crown. In imitation of the French court,
the king, soon after the Restoration, throwing off
his confidence in the people, established a large
body of guards, and raised a great army in
Scotland. The interest of France was support
ed abroad, in return for her assistance to the
designs of the court of England. With the
same view, the first Dutch war, in 1664, was
entered into ; as was likewise the second, in

396 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1670. 1672. The last has generally been most ex
claimed against; but they had both of them
the same tendency, and were owing to the same
counsels.
The Cabal. The whole management of affairs has been
generally represented as centering in the five
following persons, Clifford, Arlington, Bucking
ham, Ashley, and Lauderdale ; the initial let
ters of whose names forming the technical word
Cabal, it is probable that the wit, which was
thought to be in this conceit, gave birth to the
The com- opinion. Nothing can be more evident than
mon opini
on of it that the Duke of York had the greatest, if not
the only influence in council; and it should
seem that the Duke of Ormond must have had
some share in the conduct of affairs : for when
the Duke of Buckingham was, three years* after
wards, examined before the house of commons,
and was asked by the speaker " which of the
ministry had got any great sums of money," he
only mentioned the Duke of Ormond and Lord
Arlington, and said of the first, it was upon
record that he had got five hundred thousand
pounds. It will appear, that the members of the com-
* January 14, 1673.

erroneous.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 397
mittee for foreign affairs, which has been com- ad.1670.
monly called the cabinet council, were far from
acting in perfect harmony ; that Lord Ashley
was not acquainted with all their secrets, and
that he opposed many of their designs. Nay,
at the very time in which the cabal is said to
have been formed, the Duke of Buckingham
and Lord Arlington were declared enemies, and
were endeavouring to ruin each other. Bishop
Burnet allows that, in the latter end of the
year 1668, they fell out; and Lord Ashley, in
a letter to his intimate friend Sir William Mor
rice, who had lately resigned the office of secre
tary of state, hints at their disunion in the fol
lowing words : " The Lapland knots are untiedj
and we are in horrid storms : those that hunted
together, now hunt one another; but, at horse
play, -the master of the horse must have the
better.*" On the 19th of May 1670, the Duchess of Duchess of
Orleans's
Orleans, King Charles's sister, came into Eng- visit.
land, and was met by the king at Dover. There
a stricter union was settled between the crowns
* As the Duke of Bucking- enmity between the duke and
ham was at that time master Lord Arlington, who had been
of the horse, it is plain that declared enemies of the Earl
Lord Ashley alluded to the of Clarendon.

398 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1670. of England and France. A treaty was formed
for the breach of the triple alliance, and for de
claring war against the Dutch ; and, to draw
King Charles more readily into the snare, the
French king engaged to assist him with fifty
thousand men, whenever they should be de
manded, for advancing his schemes in favour of
popery and arbitrary power at home.
This treaty, which was so threatening to the
liberties of England, and, indeed, of Europe,
proved more immediately fatal to the duchess
of Orleans herself; for, upon her return to the
Her death. French court, she was poisoned, as it was thought,
in consequence of the jealousy of her husband,
and expired soon after in great torments.
Duke of The Duke of Buckingham, who had hitherto
Buckingham's em- acted in concert with Lord Ashley, was sent
bassy to
France. over to ^e court of France with a compliment
of condolence on the death of the duchess. As
he was always unsteady in his conduct, he was
soon lost in the pleasures, and dazzled with
the honours with which the French court dis
tinguished him ; went without reserve into its
interest; and concluded the treaty with France
which had been entered into at Dover. Lord
Ashley, who was fearful of the duke's conduct,

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 399
and apprehensive of the design of his going, a.d. 1570.
which was kept secret, wrote him a letter* im- Lord Ash
ley's advice
mediately after his arrival in France ; in which t0 him-
he conjured him to remember England, and not
to negotiate a peace with France, as he valued his
honour, his head, and the English nation.
Lord Ashley, with the same openness, ac- Lord Ash
ley's repre-
quainted the king that he found such a treaty sentations
u ° •'to the king.
was in agitation. He represented the fatal con
sequences of it, and laid before him the great
advantages of the triple alliance, the honour
which he had gained by it in the nation and
in most parts of Europe ; it being looked upon
as the best security against the power of France.
The king owned that such a treaty was on foot,
and at the same time declared he was deter
mined not to recede from it. When, therefore,
Lord Ashley found that he could not prevail
to break the treaty, he endeavoured to persuade
the king to make it as consistent as possible
with the interest of England.
He was always apprehensive of the French
growing powerful at sea, and in particular was
fearful of their fleets being acquainted with our
* This letter Mr. Stringer says he transcribed for Lord Ashley
into characters.

400 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1670. seas and harbours, and of their sailors being train
ed up and disciplined in a manner under ours.
He represented to the king the danger of this,
and so far succeeded, that a peremptory instruc
tion was sent to the Duke of Buckingham to
give up the treaty if the French should insist
on sending a fleet to our assistance against the
Dutch : but this, perhaps, was only to amuse
Lord Ashley, and free the king from the un
easiness of hearing counsel which he disliked;
for that point was soon yielded to the French.
Lord Ashley was, likewise, at that time, and
afterwards, very earnest with the king to take
the advice of his parliament before he entered
into a second war with Holland, but could
not succeed.8* This was then so well known,
that, when the Duke of Buckingham, on the

84 It is singular that the authors of this work, with the papers
of Dalrymple before them, have taken no notice of the first
secret treaty, nor of Lord Ashley's formal appointment as com
missioner in the negotiation ofthe second.
Charles, having satisfied his immediate necessities, was now
in no hurry to embark in so desperate an undertaking as the
introduction of the catholic religion. After numerous delays
and evasions, the French court perceived that, if he had ever
entertained any serious intention of declaring his conversion, he
had abandoned it, and they ceased to importune him upon the
subject.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 401
14th of January 1673-4, was examined before a.d. 1670.
the house of commons, he thought he could not
justify himself in a better manner than by say
ing he had joined in the same advice with Lord
Shaftesbury.* Soon after the treaty with France was con- Papists
openly fa-
cluded, the court appeared more openly in fa- voured-
vour of the papists. Many of their priests came
over, and were very assiduous in making con
verts ; the number of whom increased every day.
The queen and the Duke of York publicly sup
ported them, but the king kept himself some
what more reserved.

* The duke spoke as fol
lows : " My Lord Shaftesbury
and myself advised not to be
gin the war without the advice
of the parliament and the af
fections of the people. This
was my Lord Shaftesbury's
opinion and mine, but not my
Lord Arlington's. Then it was
my Lord Shaftesbury's advice
and mine, so to order the war
as that the French should de
liver some towns of their con
quests into our hands ; an use
ful precaution in former times.
My Lord Arlington would have
no towns at all for one year;
and here is the cause of the
condition of our affairs: we
VOL. I.

set out a fleet with intentions
to land men in order to the
taking of towns ; the French
army go on conquering and get
all, and we get nothing, nor
agree for anything.''
The duke, after his speech,
had several questions proposed
to him by the speaker. The
eleventh was, " By what coun
sel was the war begun without
the parliament, and thereupon
the parliament prorogued ?"
The duke's answer to this was,
" My Lord Shaftesbury and I
were for advising with the par
liament, and averse to the pro
rogation."
2 D

402 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1670. About this time, as Lord Ashley, one day,
£°rdisaf" accomPanied by Mr. Stringer, was going to the
king'^reii- treasury chamber at Whitehall, a messenger met
glon" him in the court, and said that the king desired
to speak with him at Lord Arlington's lodgings.
Upon his arrival there, he found that the king
had dined in company with the Duke of Buck
ingham, the Duke of Ormond, and Lord Clif
ford, who all had drunk very freely. The king
was desirous of Lord Ashley's company, as his
knowledge and vivacity in conversation ren
dered him always entertaining. Lord Ashley
thought this a proper opportunity (the king
being heated with wine) to find out what he
had for some time suspected — whether Charles
was inclined to popery : he, therefore, engaged
farther in the debauch than he was used to do,
and artfully introduced discourse and debates
about rehgion. His design succeeded, for he
discovered the king's sentiments; and, the next
morning, expressed to Mr. Stringer his trouble
at the black cloud which, he said, was gather
ing over England. He declared, however, that
he was determined to perform his part to pre
vent the impending danger.
Not long after, the Duke of Buckingham, who,

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 403
by means of the Countess of Shrewsbury, had a.d. 1670.
seen the king at his devotion in the queen's ora- Hisconver-
¦*• satipn with
tory, acquainted Lord Ashley with it, adding, BuCHnk!°f
that the torrent could not be resisted ; and, there- hara'
fore, endeavoured to persuade him to submit,
rather than stand against a flood which must
overwhelm him. Lord Ashley desired the duke
to consider what a dishonour it would be for one
who had professed the protestant religion to
change it, whether from fear, or from worse prin
ciples, for idolatry and superstition. He told
him farther, that if he lived in Spain, and had
there an opportunity of changing popery into
the reformed rehgion, he should not endeavour
it any other way than by bringing the people into
it gradually; because a sudden alteration must
produce the greatest confusions : much less should
he consent in England to change that which he
was satisfied was the true religion, and the best
calculated to support the civil rights of mankind,
for a religion which, in every instance, was as
destructive of these rights as it was false in itself;
nor did he doubt but that such an alteration
would unite the people so closely, that their
weight must sink the greatest men who should
attempt it : that he was determined to end his life
2 d 2

404 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1670. in the protestant religion ; and, if his grace would
heartily join with him, and be steady in the sup
port of it, he should make no question of bring
ing the king back from the fatal path into which
he had entered. The duke, who was warm in
everything at the beginning, but had no principle
of steadiness, went out of the room, and returned
several times, starting so many doubts, that, at
last, Lord Ashley fell into some heat with him,
and so they parted.
and with The Earl of Lauderdale, likewise, informed
the Earl of
Lauder- Lord Ashley of the same ; and urged to him the
dale. discouragement under which any of the king's
servants must act who should thwart him in
point of popery : but whether Lord Lauderdale
did this from his own bias in favour of arbitrary
power, or was set on to bring Lord Ashley into
the designs of the court, did not appear. As
Lord Ashley thought him firmly attached to the
protestant religion, he expatiated * upon the hap
piness and benefits of it, and laid before him the
dreadful consequences which must attend any
attempt to overturn it : but the Earl of Lauder
dale had concerted his measures with the popish
junto and with the Countess of Dysart, from
* Mr. Stringer.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 405
whom he had received his information, and whom a.d. 1670.
he afterwards married. He desired, therefore,
Lord Ashley to be passive at least ; but when he
found he could not prevail, he left him abruptly,
saying, " Well, my lord, you may do as you
please :" and though he did not become a prose
lyte to the Romish religion, yet his attachment to
the court carried him into all its measures, how
ever arbitrary, unjust, and oppressive, and how
ever hurtful to the protestant interest.
Lord Ashley could not now depend on the Lord Ash
ley's con-
assistance of any in the council, except Prince ductin
J council.
Bupert, who was always hearty for the protestant
cause, and Mr. Coventry, who was made secre
tary of state in the room of Sir John Trevor.
He did, notwithstanding, upon all occasions op
pose the counsels which prevailed ; and set forth
their dangerous tendency with such strength and
force of reason, that the rest of the junto could
not inspire the king with courage enough to
put them so boldly in execution as the duke
and his friends desired.
In his zeal to make converts to the principles His advice
1 x to the
be himself advocated, Lord Ashley applied him- young n°-
self to gain the confidence of many of the young
nobility; and if his advice was not always sue-

406 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1670. cessful, his politeness preserved it from being
offensive. Among other persons, he addressed
himself to the Earl of Rochester, whose talents
might have rendered him an ornament of his coun
try. He represented to him, that a misapplica
tion of his powers was an injury to the public;
and that his course of life would be the ruin of
his fortune, health, and reputation. Lord Ro
chester frankly replied, " My lord, it is true, and
I am obliged to you ; but I have really no other
way of making my interest at court."
Lord Ash- Lord Ashley had penetrated the whole design
ley's appli- J r &
cationto 0f the French king, who would be the only
the princes ° J
many! gainer by the late treaty. He saw, likewise, that
his master, King Charles, was going to act a part
dishonourable to himself and fatal to Europe.
When, therefore, he had done his duty, as a sub
ject and a counsellor, in dissuading the king from
concluding the treaty, and in endeavouring after
wards to make it more advantageous, he carried
his views farther; and found means to apprise
several princes abroad of it, and of the danger
which it threatened. This information he gave,
in particular, to the Elector of Brandenburgh, the
Duke of Saxony, and other protestant princes of
the empire. He represented to them the neces-

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 407
sity of their uniting against the power and ambi- a.d.1670.
tion of France; and he showed them that the
French king's intentions were not limited to the
overrunning of Holland and Flanders, but were
plainly to bring all Europe under his subjection,
and to extirpate the protestant religion.
These princes were well acquainted with the
character and abilities of Lord Ashley. The
Elector of Brandenburgh knew that he had the
principal hand in forming a treaty between King
Charles and himself soon after the Restoration.
They all had reason to believe that Lord Ashley
had a perfect knowledge of the designs of the
French and English courts: they were alarmed
at the intelligence which he sent them ; and soon
after engaged the emperor, and other states of
the empire, to enter into a league of common
defence. Having, likewise, negotiated an al
liance with Holland and Spain, who were to sup
ply them with money, a powerful army was
formed in Germany, by which the French king
was checked in the progress of his conquests, and
his affairs were so entangled, that he could not
assist King Charles with the fifty thousand men
which he was engaged to do by the treaty at
Dover. Lord Ashley did not stop here : he took

408 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1670. another method to obstruct the measures of the
court, to prevent a war with the Dutch, and to
render the treaty ineffectual ; of which the jour
nals of the house of lords produce the following
proof. *
^rhamlnt When the parliament met, on the 24th of
October, the lord keeper, by the king's command,
displayed the honour and advantages of the
triple alliance ; and he took notice, " that since
the beginning of the last Dutch war, the French
had increased the number and greatness of their
ships so much, that their strength by sea was
thrice as much as it was before ; and that, since
the end of it, the Dutch had been very diligent
also in augmenting their fleets : and in this
conjuncture, when our neighbours armed so po
tently, even common prudence required that his
majesty should make some suitable preparations,
that he might, at least, keep pace with his neigh
bours, if not outgo them in number and strength
of shipping ; for that, this being an island, both
our safety, our trade, and our being, depended
upon our forces at sea."
The two houses addressed the king, that the
* The articles relating to this affair are among Lord Shaftes
bury's papers.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 409
speech delivered by the keeper might be printed a.d. 1670.
along with his majesty's : but it was not done ;
perhaps, because the court was unwilling to ex
pose the fallaciousness of it to the public, or to be
bound down to act even on the defensive against
France. Though the greatness of France was used as an
argument for getting a larger supply, it is certain
that the English court" had entered into a firm
union with her, and had mutually and privately
resolved upon a war against the Dutch. The
parliament, not penetrating the design, was intent
upon raising such a sum as should answer the
exigencies represented. In order to this, a bill
passed through the house of commons, for "an
additional imposition on several foreign commo
dities, and for the encouragement of several com
modities and manufactures of this kingdom.'' By Bin for
taxing
this, among other things, a tax was to be laid on su§ar.
sugars imported, and a grant of the tax, which, as
it was computed, would amount to near one mil
lion two hundred thousand pounds a-year, was
made to the king for nine years.
Lord Ashley, who knew the secret intentions
of the court, endeavoured to defeat by art what
he could not prevent by his advice. He engaged,

410 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1670. therefore, a friend of his, Sir Peter Colleton, to
Petition to procure a petition from the planters of Barbadoes
the lords r L r
against it. to tne nouse of lords, for an abatement of the tax
upon their chief commodity. They petitioned
accordingly, and represented that the sugars would
hardly yield so much to the planters as by the
bill they should be obliged to pay to the king.
The bill was referred to a committee, in which
Lord Ashley was the chairman, and a very active
one.
a.d. i67i. He made a report* to the house on the 8th of
Report of
*et™m- April 1671, that, having heard merchants and
upon it. 0ther persons concerned, the committee had made
some alterations and amendments in the bill; and,
among others, one was for reducing the tax upon
sugars, to which the house agreed. The commons
resented the lords' intermeddling with any bill for
raising money ; and the lords unanimously re
solved to insist on their privilege of abating any
impositions, though they did not begin them.
Dispute Many conferences passed between the houses;
Ijctwccn tli c
houses. and the disputes were carried to such an height,
that, on the 22nd of April, the king prorogued the
parliament to the 16th of April in the next year;
and thus this supply was lost, which was intended
* Lords' Journals.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 411
as a fund to begin the war. Lord Ashley thought a.d.1671.
that the court would not venture to engage in
one without a proper supply, or the sanction of
parliament; and he knew that the parliament
would not readily enter into a war which was so
generally repugnant to the sense of the nation.
When Lord Ashley made the foregoing report, Address in
favour of
he likewise reported an opinion of the committee EnBli!h
J *• manulac-
that an address should be presented to the king, tures-
that he would be pleased to encourage, by his
example, the constant wearing of the manufac
tures of his own kingdom, and to discountenance
such persons, men or women, in court, as should
wear any manufactures made in foreign countries;
to which the lords agreed, and, at a conference,
desired the commons would join therein. Lord
Ashley thus endeavoured to restrain and prevent,
under the sense and influence of parliament, that
expensive luxury in apparel which had been in
troduced from France, and which was becoming
an epidemical evil. The house of commons joined
with the lords in the address ; to which, some time
afterwards, (the day the parliament was prorogued,)
the king gave an answer, * " that he had, in his
own person, as little used foreign manufactures as
* Lords' Journals.

412 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1671. any; that he would speak to the queen, and wo
men about the court; and would comply with
their desire in discountenancing such persons as
should wear foreign commodities." This answer
showed that he was not perfectly pleased with
the address, and undoubtedly it was disagreeable
to the French faction in the court.
Parliament As by these steps it appeared that Lord Ashley
proroguedL°ntd Ti*" was no* *n ^ne confidence of the ruling party at
ley's advice. court5 the prorogation of the parliament was an
other proof of it; for this was contrary to his
advice,* as was the treaty with France. The
prorogation was from April the 22nd, 1671, to the
16th of April 1672, and afterwards, at several
times, to the 4th of February 1672-3 ; so that it
continued a year and nine months. This long
recess was designed to gain time for entering into
the war with Holland, and that the blow might
be struck before the parliament could take any
measures to prevent it.
The junto imputed the loss of the subsidy bill
to Lord Ashley,83 and represented him to the
* This appears by the an- proposed to him in the house
swer of the Duke of Bucking- of commons.
ham to the eleventh question

83 But not to him alone. When Buckingham soon afterwards

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 413
king as very troublesome to them in their trans- a.d. i67l.
actions. To pursue, however, more effectually
the designs of the French treaty, a method was
found out to supply the loss of that bill ; which
was, by putting a stop to the payments out of shutting up
the exchequer, and securing all the money that iuer>
had been advanced upon the credit of any funds.
This transaction was owing to the same counsels
that promoted the war, and was calculated for the
same destructive purposes.
The declaration for this stop, to which the
great seal was affixed by the Lord Keeper
Bridgeman, was published January the 2nd,
1671-2. The fatal consequences attending this
infamous act of power are too well known to be

complained to the king of the loss of a command that had been
promised him, " the king told him, after having heard him
peaceably, that he saw well he had forgot the millions he had
been the cause of his losing in the last session of parliament,
and that, though the affection he had for him had blotted out
this offence, he could not help sensibly feeling the effects of
it." — Dalrymple.
The new ministers quickly found an alteration in the manners
of their master now that he had induced them to join with him
in his guilt. The secret treaty Charles thought had bound
them as his slaves, and he now began to threaten them when they
hesitated to fulfil his commands. Both Buckingham and Ashley
were severely chidden upon this occasion, and they endured the
reprimand with exemplary meekness. — Ibid.

414 LIFE OF THE
a.d. i67i. mentioned here ; but, as some writers have boldly
and without authority asserted that Lord Ashley
was the author of the advice, it will be necessary
not advised to enlarge upon the subject, and to show that he
Ashley. was not only innocent of the charge, but an
enemy to the transaction.
Sir William Temple does not even surmise his
being accessory to it ; for, in a letter to his brother,
Sir John Temple, dated May the 23rd, 1672, he
writes,* " The counsel of stopping the exchequer
was carried so secret, that I do not hear of any
man at court that had warning enough to call in
his money out of the banker's hands, till Sir
Thomas Clifford proposed the thing in council,
without other circumstances than saying that it
was necessary; the king must have money for
the war with Holland; that he knew no other
way but this; and desired none would speak
against it without proposing some better and
easier way."86 * Temple's Memoirs, vol. ii. fol. 311.

86 Hume, therefore, is wrong when, speaking of this affair,
he says, " The king had declared that the staff of treasurer was
ready for any one that could find an expedient for supplying
the present necessities. Shaftesbury dropped a hint to Clifford,
which the latter immediately seized and carried to the king,

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 415
Sir Thomas Clifford had made the same pro- a.d. i67i.
posal, in council, the Midsummer before; at sir Thomas
r Clifford the
which time Lord Ashley opposed it, and with so ^eh°ro°o-
much vigour that it was then laid aside. Sir sal'
Thomas afterwards renewed it, and with that pre
face mentioned by Sir William Temple; upon
which, Lord Ashley drew up the following rea
sons to convince the king of the hardship, injus
tice, and ill consequences of this step. These
reasons Mr. Stringer transcribed, and went with
him to Whitehall, where he immediately at
tended the king, who took Lord Ashley, with
the Earl of Lauderdale and Sir Thomas Clifford,
into his closet, where they continued about two
hours. Lord Ashley, on his return, told Mr.
Stringer he had once more strenuously opposed
that inconsiderate and oppressive scheme, but
found he could do no good : however, he had left
with the king his objections.
" Reasons against stopping the due course of Lord Ash-
ley's rea-
payment in the exchequer. sons
1 against it.
" First. It is contrary to common justice among

who granted him the promised reward, together with a peerage.
This expedient was the shutting up of the exchequer." It is
not, however, impossible that Shaftesbury was in this instance
outwitted by Clifford, and that he now opposed a design which
had once been his own.

416 LIFE OF THE
a.d. 1671. men, and, also, to the law, and several statutes of
the realm.
" Secondly. It is against your majesty's con
stant promises; and, especially, your declaration
of the 18th of June 1669, which says, that all
funds, present and future, shall be kept sacred
and inviolable.
" Thirdly, lt must amaze mankind, and will
ruin thousands, amongst whom are a multitude
of poor widows and orphans.
" Fourthly. It will immediately cause the great
est damp on trade that hath been known, and so
concerns your majesty's revenue considerably ; all
this money in the exchequer, and a greater sum,
being actually lending to your majesty's several
officers, as the treasurers of the navy and army,
the chamber, cofferer, ordnance, and victuallers.
" Fifthly. This post will carry it all over
Europe, to the great joy of your enemies, who
know the use of credit ; and the crown of Spain
can sufficiently tell what the abuse thereof has
cost, which your majesty hath been pleased often
to mention as a great mistake in that govern
ment, though they never did anything so high
as this ; it being only upon the farmers of the
revenue."

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 417
Lord Ashley made out an exact state of the AD- 1671-
receipts of the revenue, and also of the issues,
both ordinary and extraordinary, for the support
of the government ; and, upon computation, he
found that the advancing of three hundred thou
sand pounds, and the payment of one hundred
thousand pounds monthly, into the exchequer,
would fully answer the public occasions. This
the bankers undertook to do in case the payments
might have continued in their due course ; which
he, likewise, laid before the king : but it did not
agree with Sir Thomas Clifford's designs, who had
too much influence to be baffled.
After the stop, the discontents and clamour of 1671Jj.
the people were as great as they were just. The
popish party at court, who projected this scheme,
endeavoured to fix the infamy of it on Lord ^"J^*
Ashley ; and a pamphlet, some time afterwards, of -t.a v
was published for this purpose, which was sent to
him by one of his friends as soon as it appeared ;
to satisfy whom, and to justify himself, he wrote
the foUowing letter. w

87 This letter was written to Mr. Locke, and was intended by
Lord Shaftesbury to be exhibited as his own justification of his
conduct. It has been since printed in Lord King's Life of
Locke, doubtless from the original. Lord Shaftesbury there
VOL. I. 2 E

418 LIFE OF THE

A.D.
1671-2.

" Sir,

His letter in "You guess very right at the design of the
his own jus- . .
tification. pamphlet you sent me. lt is certainly designed
to throw dirt at me ; but it is, like the great pro
moter of it, foolish as well as false. I am very
well armed to clear myself, being able to prove
what my opinion was of it when it was first pro
posed to the council : and if any man considers
the circumstance of time when it was done, and
that it was the prologue of making Lord Clifford
lord high treasurer, he cannot very justly suspect
me of the counsel for that business ; unless he
thinks me, at the same time, out of my wits.
Besides, if any of the bankers had inquired of the
clerks of the treasury-chamber, with whom they
are well acquainted, they might have found that
Sir John Duncomb and myself were so little sa
tisfied with that way of proceeding, that, from
the time of the stop, we instantly desisted from
paying or borrowing of money. I shall not deny
but that I knew earlier of the counsel, and fore-

says, " The messenger staying for me, I have written it in
haste, and not kept a copy." Yet the letter in the text is evi
dently copied from a transcript of the material parts, which he
must have reserved without any note as to whom the original
had been sent.

1671-2.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 419
saw what necessarily it must produce, perhaps a. d.
sooner than other men ; having the advantage of
being more versed in the king's secret affairs :
but I hope it could not be expected by any who
do in the least know me, that I should have dis
covered the king's secrets, or betrayed his busi
ness, whatever my thoughts were of it.
" The worthy scribbler, if his law be true, or
his quotations to the purpose, should have taken
notice of the combination of the bankers, who
take the protection of the court, and do not take
the remedy of the law against those from whom
they had the assignments ; by which they might
have been enabled to recover their money and
pay their creditors : for it is not to be thought
that the king will put a stop to their legal pro
ceedings in a court of justice. Besides, if the
writer had been really concerned for the bankers,
he would have been freer in his discourse against
the continuing the stop in the time of peace, as
well as against the first stopping of those pay
ments in a time of war ; for, as I remember, there
were some reasons offered for the first stop, which
have a little colour of weight in them, viz. that
the bankers were grown destructive to the nation,
especially to the country gentlemen and farmers,
2 E 2

420 LIFE OF THE
ad. and their interest; that, under the pretence and
1671-2-
 by the advantage of lending the king money
upon very great profit, they got all the ready
money of the kingdom into their hands ; that no
gentlemen, farmers, or merchants could, without
great difficulty, compass any for their occasions,
unless almost at double the rates the law allowed
to be taken ; that, as to the king's affairs, they
were grown to that pass, that twelve per cent, did
not satisfy the bankers, but they bought up all
the king's assignments at twenty or thirty per
cent, profit ; that the king was at a fifth part loss
in all the issues of his whole revenue. Besides,
in support of this counsel, I remember it was al
leged by those that favoured it without doors,
(for I speak only of them,) that the king might,
without any damage to the subject, or unreason
able oppression upon the bankers, pay them six
per cent, interest during the war, and three hun
dred thousand pounds a-year of their principal as
soon as there was peace; which, why it is not
done, the learned writer, I believe, hath friends
that can best tell him. w "I am, &c."

88 The remainder of this letter, after the plea of haste which
I have before quoted, consists of expressions of friendship, and
a warm invitation to St. Giles. There is, also, mention made

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 421
The last paragraph in this letter makes it evi- a. d.
1671-2
dent that Lord Ashley thought the pamphlet  —
was written by a friend of the court, and, perhaps,
by one of the ministry ; which shows that he was
not admitted into their most secret designs, that
there was no harmony between them, and that
they thus early endeavoured to fix upon him the
odium of their unpopular schemes.
What Lord Ashley writes here with regard to
the conduct of the bankers, he might probably
say to several of his friends. The extortion of
the bankers must have been notorious. How
ever, it is plain, from the tenor of this letter,
that he did not look upon it as a justification of
the stop, and that he had condemned and opposed
the proceeding. It is possible he might speak of
the great extortion of the bankers in the same
manner as in his letter ; and this might occasion Remarks
¦n- 1 • r> on Bishop
Bishop Burnet's writing the following account of Bumet.
it, which is very remarkable.

of the annnity which has been already noticed. It seems that
Locke was at this time seeking to invest some money in this
manner ; and Shaftesbury offers, if he cannot elsewhere obtain a
better bargain, to grant him one at seven years' purchase : for,
he says, he would leave him free from care, and would have him
think of living long and at ease. This letter is dated Nov. 23,
1674.

422 LIFE OF THE
a. d. " Lord Shaftesbury was the chief man in this
1671-2.
 advice. He excused it to me, telling me what
advantage the bankers had made, and how just
it was for the king to bring them to an account
for their usury and extortions ; and added, that
he never meant the stop should run beyond the
year. He certainly knew of it beforehand, and
took all his own money out of the bankers' hands,
and warned some of his friends to do the like."
After a positive assertion that Lord Shaftesbury
was the chief man in the advice, the bishop, in
the same sentence, says that he certainly knew of
it beforehand. This is, to say the least of it, a
very incorrect way of writing, and a proof that
the bishop had not the greatest certainty for his
first assertion.
Duke of The Duke of Ormond, some time after, being in
Ormoud's
declaration company where the stop of the exchequer was
m favour of x J 1 x
Lord Ash- f.jje sufojeet of conversation, declared " that he
wondered why people accused Lord Ashley of
giving that advice; for he himself was present
when it was first moved by Lord Clifford in coun
cil, and he heard Lord Ashley passionately op
pose it."
ley's reply Some years after, when Lord Ashley (then
to Lord
chancellor Earl of Shaftesbury) was entirely out of favour,

1671-2.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 423
Lord Chancellor Finch, being attacked by him a. d.
for some of his proceedings, instead of vindicat
ing himself, only answered, by way of recrimina
tion, that he did not advise the breaking of the
triple alhance ; he did not advise the stop of the
exchequer ; nor did he advise the making of the
Dutch war.* Lord Shaftesbury immediately re
plied with great coolness, appealing to the lords
of the council, who were in the house, whether
these transactions were owing to his advice. He
accused nobody, but spoke in such a manner that
the whole house seemed convinced of his inno
cence. Upon this, Lord Arlington, who had no
good understanding with the chancellor, asked
the king, who was then present, which of the two
had acted most respectfully towards him ; since
he knew how open Lord Shaftesbury could have
laid those affairs, and yet, under such provoca
tions, he only cleared himself, and still kept the
secret. Upon this, the king rebuked the chan
cellor for meddling with the secrets of the coun
cil in so public a place ; and told him, he knew
nothing of those matters.
The reader, if he recollects Lord Ashley's con-
* Lord Mohun told this to happened in the house of
Mr. Stringer the day when it lords.

424 LIFE OF THE

a. d. duct with respect to Mr. Holies, when accused
in the house of commons, and what Mr. Locke

1671-2

Farther

vindication says 0f him « that he thought every man was
of Lord J °
Ashley. under an obligation to secrecy in private conver
sation, though not asked to it," will see, by the
caution observed in the foregoing letter, (where
he says, he will speak only of those who favoured
the scheme without doors,) and by his answer to
the lord chancellor, that he steadily adhered to
the same principles in his behaviour here , where,
indeed, he was under a stricter tie, — his oath in
council. Could he have dispensed with this, and the ob
ligation which he thought himself under to se
crecy even on the smallest occasions, he might
easily have cleared himself to the world of the
suspicions raised against him, and have pointed
out the authors of the pernicious counsels which
had been given.
Principles Those who consider the conduct of the court
ofthe
court. car]j however, be at no loss to discover the source
of these counsels. From the beginning of King
Charles the Second's reign, popery was the prin
cipal agent ; and, though its operations were at
first secret, its influence was always great, and
its power constantly increasing. The zealots for
it were inflamed with their design, and were fond

89 It is scarcely necessary to observe that this was Louisa de
Querouaille, the celebrated Duchess of Portsmouth. The arti
cles of impeachment against her, published in the 8th volume of
Lord Somers' Tracts, contain some curious instances of her in
fluence over Charles, and of the manner in which it was exer
cised. Mrs. Jameson, in her " Beauties of the Court of Charles
the Second," has sketched this lady in her usual happy manner.

1671-2.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 425
of the most violent measures. The interest of a. d. .
France was promoted to advance that of Rome.
The penal laws against the dissenters, the division
of the protestants, the wars with Holland and
league with France, the prorogations of parlia
ment and the shutting up of the exchequer, all
came from the same fountain. They had the
same tendency, the same air of violence ; as was,
likewise, the case with regard to the subsequent
actions of this reign. Everything was conducted
with a view to carrying on the scheme of govern
ment begun at the Restoration, and settled by
the treaty at Dover. For the effectually promot
ing of the scheme a French mistress of state89 was
given to King Charles. By this means a door
was opened for a more convenient access of the
emissaries from France ; the secrets of our coun
sels were better known, and discovered to the
French king ; and the severest of his commands
were more softly conveyed.
Sir Thomas Clifford was zealous for bringing in

426 LIFE OF THE
a. d. the popish religion ; and as the Duke of York
1671-2.
 adhered to his interest, and earnestly promoted
him, Sir Thomas made his way to the chief mi
nistry.
Declaration By his avdice, on the 15th of March 1671-2, a
of indul
gence, declaration was published for suspending the ex
ecution of the penal laws against the nonconform
ists and recusants. This, Sir Thomas Clifford,
who was a bold enterprising man, proposed with
a design to favour the papists : his reason for it
was, as he said, that, when the king was engaging
in a foreign war, it was necessary to make all his
subjects easy at home. Lord Ashley, who had as
much boldness as Sir Thomas, but more sagacity,
presently closed in with his proposal, but upon
different views, as being in principles and interest
diametrically opposite to him. Lord Ashley was
acquainted with the secret of the king's religion,
and perceived that numbers of people were turn
ing to it at that time. He knew that great mul
titudes frequented the chapels of the queen, the
Duke of York, and the foreign ministers, as well
as many oratories in other houses ; and that they
had, underhand, sufficient liberty and encourage
ment to profess popery without obstruction from
any magistrates ; so that it was, almost insensibly,

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 427
increasing very fast in the kingdom. He thought a.d.
1671 2
it requisite that the nation should be alarmed in  —
time, and informed who the persons were that
protected the papists. He foresaw the clamours
which the public indulgence of them would raise,
and knew that those clamours would be the
surest foundation for an opposition to the interest
which prevailed at court. His policy succeeded
so well, that the most considerable papists were
soon after much -disturbed at the declaration.
They thought that Lord Clifford had betrayed
them, by setting them so open to view, when
they got nothing by it, having before all the ad
vantages which they could expect without being
observed; whereas this raised a storm in the
kingdom, which they were afraid would fall
heavy upon them. The clergy were angry with Discontent
J x aJ ° J occasioned
regard both to the dissenters and the papists. h^lU
The public saw that it was principally designed
in favour of the last ; a circumstance which, for a
time, united all the protestants, whether members
of the established church or nonconformists, close
ly together. The pulpit exclaimed against the
indulgence, and the parliament afterwards fell
upon it with vehemence.
Among many reasons which Lord Ashley gave

428 LIFE OF THE
a. d. to justify his support of the declaration,* were,
" That it was for the interest of the Church of

Lord Ash
inyfavour°of England : for the narrow bottom they had placed
lt- themselves upon, and the measures they had pro
ceeded by, were so contrary to the properties and
liberties of the nation, that they must needs, in a
short time, prove fatal to them ; whereas this led
them into another way, to live peaceably with the
dissenting and differing protestants both at home
and abroad, and so by necessary and unavoidable
consequences to become the head of them all. —
As to the protestant religion, he said, it was for
the preserving of that, and that only, that he
heartily joined in the declaration ; for besides that
* Bishop Burnet, speaking was not made lord chancellor
of this declaration, says, till eight months after the de-
" Bridgeman refused to put claration was published. The
the seals to it, as judging it following extracts from the
contrary to law; so he was London Gazette will render
dismissed, and the Earl of the matter undeniable.
Shaftesbury was made lord
chancellor." This carries an " Whitehall, March 18, 1671.
insinuation that the seals were " His majesty did, on the
put to it by Lord Shaftesbury, 15th instant, with the advice
and that he was made chan- of his privy council, issue a
cellor for that purpose. What declaration for the maintaining
the bishop says can be taken of the Church of England in
in no other light ; but he was its doctrine, discipline, and go-
mistaken in the fact, for vernment, as it is established,
Bridgeman did affix the seal and for indulging of noncon-
to it, and Lord Shaftesbury formists and dissenting per-

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 429
he thought it his duty to have care, in his place and A- D-

station, of those he was convinced were the people
of God and feared him, though of different per
suasions, he knew nothing else but liberty and
indulgence which could possibly secure the pro
testant religion in England. — As for the tolera
tion of popery, he could confidently say, that the
papists had no advantage in the least by this de
claration that they did not as fully enjoy, and
with less noise, by the favour of all the bishops ;
and that it was the vanity of the lord keeper,*
that they were named at all, for the whole advan
tage was to the dissenting protestants, which were
the only men disturbed before. "f
sons (to which the reader is Shaftesbury, chancellor of the
referred) in matters of religion." exchequer, and one of the
lords commissioners of the
Whitehall, Nov. 17, 1672. treasury, was pleased this day
" His majesty, reflecting up- to give unto him the keeping of
on the age and infirmities of the said great seal, with the
Sir Orlando Bridgeman, lord title of Lord Chancellor of
keeper of the great seal of England."
England, hath thought fit to * By this expression it is
admit of his resignation there- apparent that Sir Orlando
of, with all demonstration, on Bridgeman was not only for
his majesty's part, of his kind- the declaration, but for grant-
ness and esteem of the said ing in it an indulgence to the
lord keeper's merit towards papists.
him ; and his majesty, willing t A Letter from a Person of
to gratify the uninterrupted Quality. — Locke's Posthumous
good services of the Earl of Works.

1671-2.

430 LIFE OF THE

1671-2

:*• d. [^The reasons which Lord Shaftesbury gave to
Mr. Locke for his conduct in this instance are
well worthy of insertion ; they contain much manly
argument and much flimsy sophistry. It was an
object worthy of an enlightened statesman, at-
tempted to be brought about by most unconstitu
tional means. Where he advocates the object, he
delivers sentiments now no longer disputed, but
very far in advance of the age in which he lived ;
where he defends the means, he sinks with his sub
ject, and copies the common-places of the court.
" The Lord Shaftesbury, with whom I had
more freedom, I with great assurance asked,
* what he meant by the declaration? for it seemed
to me (as I then told him) that it assumed a
power to repeal and suspend all our laws, to
destroy the church, to overthrow the protestant
religion, and to tolerate popery.' He replied all
angry, ' that he wondered at my objection, there
not being one of these in the case ; for the king
assumed no power of repealing laws, or suspend
ing them, contrary to the will of his parliament
or people. Not to argue with me at that time
the power of the king's supremacy, which was of
another nature than that he had in civils, and had
been exercised without exception in this very

1671-2.

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 431
case by his father, grandfather, and Queen Eliza- a.d.
beth, under the great seal, to foreign protestants
become subjects of England: not to instance
the suspending the execution of the two acts of
navigation and trade, during both this and the
last Dutch war, in the same words, and upon the
same necessity ; and as yet without clamour that
ever we heard. But to pass by all, that this was cer
tain, a government could not be supposed, whether
monarchical or of any other sort, without a stand
ing supreme executive power fully enabled to mi
tigate or wholly to suspend the execution of any
penal law in the intervals of the legislative power ;
which when assembled, there was no doubt but,
wherever there lies a negative in passing a law,
there the address or sense known of either of
them to the contrary — as, for instance, of either
of our two houses of parliament in England —
ought to determine that indulgence, and restore
the law to its full execution. For, without this,
the laws were to no purpose made if the prince
could annul them at pleasure : and so, on the other
hand, without a power always in being of dis
pensing upon occasion, was to suppose a consti
tution extremely imperfect and impracticable;
and to cure those with a legislative power always

432 LIFE OF THE
a.d. in being is, when considered, no other than a
1671-2.
 perfect tyranny.' "
This reasoning shows that Mr. Locke's view
was perfectly correct. According to it, the king
had only to dissolve his parliament, and he might
repeal every penal lawr in the statute-book. The
earl then applies himself to the object of the
declaration ; and after the passage quoted in the
text, Mr. Locke continues, "And yet he con
fessed to me, that it was his opinion, and always
had been, that the papists ought to have no other
pressure laid upon them but to be made in
capable of office, court, or arms, and to pay so
much as might bring them at least to a balance
with the protestants for those chargeable offices
they were liable unto. And he concluded with
this, that he desired me seriously to weigh whe
ther liberty and property were likely to be main
tained long in a country like ours, where trade
is so absolutely necessary to the very being as
well as prosperity of it ; and, in this age of the
world, if articles of faith and matters of religion
should become the only accessible ways to our civil
rights." Sir Thomas Clifford's remarks in relation to
this indulgence have at least the merit of can-

EARL OF SHAFTESBURY. 433
dour. He told Mr. Locke in express terms, a.d.
" that the king, if he would be firm to himself, ~^-
might settle what religion he pleased, and carry
the government to what height he would." *
This indulgence was agreed to by Charles only
as a means of obtaining money without the aid of
parliament. It was a direct breach of his private
policy. This, however, the opposition of the par
liament remedied for him. Colbert writes to his
master, " I found the King of England, the Duke
of York, and my Lord Arlington, all well dis
posed not to lose any time in the execution of
the things that have been promised. There is
nothing however yet determined for the principal
point, and they don't even pretend to fix it till
they return to London and see what may follow
from the severity with which the king designs
to make the last act of parliament against the
meetings of the sectaries be observed ; and he
hopes that their disobedience will give him the
easier means of increasing the force of his troops,
and coming speedily to the end he proposes." f_] war de-
Cl 3,1*60.
On the 17th of March 1671-24 two days after g^tthe
•* Letter from a Person of J " Lord Clifford's violence
Quality. in beginning the war gave it an
t Dalrymple, vol. ii. p. 61. ill air in general, and a disuse
VOL. I. 2 F

434

A.D.
1671-2.

LIFE OF THE EARL OF SHAFTESBURY.
the appearance of this declaration, the king, by
the same advice, published a declaration of war
against the States General. This war had been
concerted with the French king, who published
his declaration likewise on the same day, and
pursued his conquests with such success, that
Holland was in the utmost danger of being lost.

of parliaments a cruel maim
in the chief sinews of war." —
Sir William Temple's Memoirs,
tom. ii.
" It was so far set on foot

by the Roman Catholic party,
that it was called Lord Clif
ford's war." — Dr. Davenant's
Essay upon the Balance of
Power.

END OF THE FIRST VOLUME.

LONDON :
PltlNTED BY SAMUEL BENTLEY,
Dorset Street, Fleet Street.

0626