from the House of Lords, drawing up a protestation against all laws, orders, votes, resolutions, and determinations, as in themselves null and of none effect, which had passed, or should pass, during their forced absence; desiring their protestation might be entred by the clerk of the House of Peers. Presently after which, at a conference between both Houses, it was agreed, that this protestation of the twelve Bishops, did extend to the deep intrenching upon the fundamental priviledges and being of Parliament; and in a short time they were occused of high treason, seized and brought on their knees at the Lords bar: ten of them were committed to the Tower, and the other two, in regard to their age, to the Black Rod.

The King at this time, thinking himself unsafe without a guard, accepted of the offer of some gentlemen of the Inns of Court to be a guard to him, which instead of security, was by subtil men made more prejudicial to the King, by taking this occasion, to raise the rage and jealousy of the City against him; for at midnight there were cries made in the streets of London, that all people should rise to their defence, for the King, with his papists, were coming to fire the City, and cut their throats in their beds; than which, though nothing were more false, yet it found the effects of truth; and the people by such alarms, being terrified from sleep, the impressions of those night fears lay long upon their spirits in the day, and filled-them almost with madness; of which the King complained to the common council of London.

But the Commons, to obviate this, upon suspicion of some design upon their persons, petition the King for a guard, to be commanded by the Earl of Essex, of whose fidelity to the King and State, no question was ever made. This petition was denied by the King, as not willing to have them too strong, yet promised to take such care for their security from violence, as he would for the preservation of himself and Children; and if this general assurance would not suffice to remove those apprehensions, he would command such a guard to wait upon them, as he would be responsible for to Almighty God.

This answer being unsatisfactory, the City join with them, and in their Common Council drew up a petition, complaining, that the trade of the City was decayed, to the utter ruin of the Protestant Religion, and the lives and liberties of the subjects, by the designs of Papists. Foreigners and Domesticks (more particularly their fomenting the Irish rebellion) by changing the constable of the Tower, and making preparations there, by the fortifying of White-hall, and his Majesty's late invasion of the House of Commons. Whereupon they pray, that by the Parliament's advice the Protestants in Ireland may be relieved, the Tower to be put into hands of persons of trust, a guard appointed

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for the safety of Parliament; and that the five members may not be restrained nor proceeded against but by the priviledges of Parliament. And besides this, the King riding into London, the Citizens in multitudes flocked about his coach, beseeching him, to agree with his Parliament, and not to violate their priviledges.

To their petition the King returned answer, that he could not express a greater sense of Ireland then he had done; that merely to satisfy the City, he had removed a worthy person from the charge of the Tower; and that the late tumults had caused him to fortify White-hall, for the security of his own person, that his going to the House of Commons was to apprehend those five members for treason, to which the priviledges of Parliament could not extend; and that yet he would proceed against them no otherwise than legally.

And now such numbers of ordinary people daily gathered about Westminster and Whitehall, that the King doubting of their intentions, though fit to withdraw to Hampton Court, taking with him the Queen, Prince, and Duke of York; where he and his retinue and guard quickly increased, by accession of divers of the gentry. But the next day the -five members were triumphantly guarded to Westminster by a great number of Citizens and Seamen, with hundreds of boats and barges, with guns in them, shouting and hallowing as they passed by Whitehall, and making large protestations at Westminster of their constant fidelity and adherence to the Parliament. About this time the Parliament had notice the Lord Digby and Colonel Lunsford were raising troops of horse at Kingston, where the county magazine was lodged; whereupon they order, that the County Sheriffs, Justices of Peace, and the trained bands, shall take care to secure the countries and their magazine, and suppress all unlawful assemblies. Lunsford was seized and sent to the Tower, but Digby escaped beyond sea.

The King removed to Royston, at which time Sir Edward Harbert, Attorney General, is questioned at the Lords bar, to answer concerning the articles against the five-members; where it had gone hard with him if the King (at his earnest supplication,) had not taken him off by a letter to the Lord Keeper Littleton (who succeeded Lord Finch) wherein the King clears the Attorney General, and takes the whole business upon himself, yet concludes, that finding cause wholly to desist from proceeding against the persons accused, he had commanded his Attorney General to proceed no further therein, nor to produce nor discover any proof concerning the same: and so this breach between the King and Parliament, seemed at present to be made up.

At this time the Scots having a considerable interest in their British plantations in Ireland, make proposals for transporting 2500 soldiers

thither, which were accepted by both Houses, and afterward consented to by the King; after which the Scotsh commissioners interposed their, meditation for composing the differences between the King and Parliament which were now grown to too great an height, for which Mr. Pym, was ordered by the Commons to give them the thanks of the House.

January 20. The King sends a message to the Parliament, proposing the security of his own just rights and royal authority, and, that since particular grievances and distractions were too many, and would be too great to be presented by themselves, that they would comprize and digest them into one entire body, and send them to him; and it should then appear how, ready he would be to equal or exceed the greatest examples of the most indulgent princes, in their acts of grace, and favour to the people.

After this the Commons move the Lords to join with them in petitioning for the Militia and the command of the Tower, but they not complying, the House of Commons singly of themselves importune the King to put those things into the hands of the Parliament, as the only available means for removal of their fears and jealousies. But the King, not willing to part with the principal jewels of his Crown, signified to them, that he thought the Militia to be lawfully subject to no command but his own, and therefore, would not let it out of his hands, that he had preferred to the Lieutenancy of the Tower, a person of known fortune and unquestionable reputation, and that he would prefer none but such to the command of his forts and castles; yet would not intrust the power of conferring those places and dignities from himself; being derived to him from his ancestors, by the fundamental laws of the Kingdom; yet the Commons would not desist, but again petitioned, and were again refused.

Soon after divers petitions were delivered to the Parliament against the votes of Popish Lords and Bishops in the House of Peers, as one from Suffolk with 1500, and another from the Londoners with 2000 hands, and a third from the City dames; all which were answered, that the Commons had already endeavoured relief from the Lords in their requests, and should so continue till redress were obtained. And shortly after, the Lords passed the bill for disabling all persons in holy orders, to have any place or vote in Parliament, or to exercise any temporal jurisdiction; at the same time they petition the King again for the Malitia, and clearing Kimbolton and the five members, by his answer to both which they understood his resolution, not to intrust the Militia out of himself, nor to clear the members but only by a general pardon; which was unsatisfactory.

The King now at Hampton Court, thought fit to send for all his domestick servants of either House of Parliament, and particularly the Earl of Essex and Holland, but they refused to come, excusing themselves with the necessity of performing their duties in Parliament, and discharging the trust reposed in them: for which they were put from their places at Court.

The Lord Digby about this time sent three letters from Middleburg in Zealand (where he was fled out of England) one to the Queen, and two others to secretary Nicholas, and Sir Lewes Dives; signifying, that if the King would openly declare his mind, and betake himself to some place of security, that he might come freely to him, he doubted not but he should do him some acceptable service: these letters were intercepted by the Parliament, and by them after perusal sent to the King, with their intreaties to him, that he would persuade the Queen not to correspond with Digby or any other whom his great council had pro claimed traitors.

There was a report that the Parliament intended to accuse the Queen of high-treason, as one that had so much power with the King to misadvise him; this rumour the Parliament exused, as a publick scandal upon them; which she seemed satisfied with, yet provides against the danger, and therefore prevails with the King to accompany her daughter Mary Princess of Orange into Holland, carrying with her all the Kings and her own jewels, together with those entailed upon the Crown; intending with those, and some other assistance, to raise a party sufficient to maintain the King and his regalities against the Parliament.

In the mean time Mr. Pym at a conferrence complaining of the general flocking of the papists into Ireland, affirmed, that since the Lieutenant had ordered a stop upon the ports against all Irish papists, many of the chief commanders, now in the head of the rebels, had been licensed to pass thither by his Majesty's immediate warrant, The King was highly offended at this speech, which he signified to the House, who in their answer to his message, justifiy Mr. Pym's words to be the sense of the House, and that they had yet in safe custody the Lord Delvin, Sir George Hamilton, Colonel Butler, brother to the Lord Miniard, now in rebellion, and one of the Lord Nettervil's sons: to which the King replies, that he thought Mr. Pym's speech was not so well grounded as it ought to have been, and that the aforementioned persons had their passes granted before he knew of the Parliaments order of restraint; and therefore expected their declaration for his vindication from that odious calumny of conniving, or underhand favouring that abhorred Irish rebellion.

But this His Majesty's desire proved fruitless, for they next moved the King to turn out Sir John Byron out of the Lieutenancy of the Tower, and at their nomination Sir John Conyers succeeded; they then proceeded to name fit persons for trust of the Militia of the several counties, and by act of Parliament disabled all clergymen from exercising temporal jurisdiction: after which the King by a message offers them, to require by proclamation all statutes concerning popish recusants to be put in execution. That the seven condemned Popish priests shall be banished, and all Romish priests within twenty days shall depart the Kingdom; that he refers the consideration of church government and liturgy wholly to the Houses, and offers to go himself in person against the rebels in Ireland.

But the Commons were now busy about a petition for vindicating their five members, wherein they desire the King to send them the informers against the said members, or otherwise to desert their prosecution would not suffice; because the whole Parliament was concerned in the charge. And then they proceeded to settle the Militia for the defence of the Parliament, Tower, and City of London, under the command of Sergeant Major Gen. Skippon, who had formerly been an experienced soldier in the Low-Countries: the King had deferred his answer to their petition for settling the Militia of the counties, according to their nomination, till his return from Dover, where he took leave of his wife and daughter, and so returned to Greenwich; from whence he sent to Hampton Court for his two eldest sons to come to him, though contrary to the mind of the Parliament, who would have dissuaded him from it.

And now the Parliament thought fit to consider of the reducing of Ireland, and ordered two millions and an half of those acres to be coufiscate, of rebels lands in four provinces shall be allotted to such persons, as will disburse money for carrying on that war, and several other provisions were made for their security, which the King confirms Feb. 26. 1641; and in pursuance thereof a considerable sum of money was raised, the people being generally free in their contributions.

The King being now at Greenwich, sends this answer to the petition about the Militia, that he his willing to condescend to all the proposals concerning the Militia of the counties, and the persons mentioned, but not of London, and other corporations, whose government in that particular, he thought it neither justice nor policy to alter, but would not. consent to divest himself of the power of the county Militia: for an indefinite time, but for some limited space. This answer did not satisfy, so that the breach growing daily wider, the King declined these parts