INTRODUCTION
Mr. President and. Gentlemen: My subject was the Parliamentary Revolution, and it was my original intention to cover the period between the opening of the Long Parliament ana. the ena of the Civil Wars. I soon found, however, that three hundred pa&es, rather
than thirty, would be required for even a CULULI treatment of a tine so crowded with events ana personages and I have contented myself tonight with covering the first portion only of my alloted subject, November ii, 1640, to March 2&, lo^l, from the opening of the Long Parliament to the beginning of tho Earl of otraffora's trial.
InAevery instance I have inaioatea my authorities in footnotes, but, as references are dry reading, I have hoped that a mention of them in this fore-word would suffice. I have, among others, con sulted, and in many instances quoted from, the following: "The Journal of oir oymonds D'Ewes" edited oy Kotestein; "The History of England from the Accession of James I to the Outbreak of the Civil War" arid "The First Two Stuarts ana the Puritan Revolution", both by S. R. Gardiner, as well as the same scholar's compilation of "The Constitutional Documents of the Puritan Revolution, 1625- luuO"; "The Political History of England", edited by Hunt ana Poole, in particular volume VII; the "Diaries" of John Evelyn and Jamuel Pepys; "The Life of Montrose" by John Buchan; ana the "History of The English People" by John Richard Green.
M0338 Box24 Folder24 1933-12-18 001 A MEMOIR OB THE EARLY PAYS OF THE
LONG PARLIAMENT
t>y J Francis H. Insley
An essay read before the Indianapolis Literary Club, December 18, 1933.
M0338 Box24 Folder24 1933-12-18 002 (1)
A IIE1L0IR OF 'rKE E&RLY Di.YS OF THE LONG PARLIAMENT
On November 3, 1640, there opened the first session of what John Evelyn has called that "ungrateful, fatal and foolish Parliament". In some form or other this Parliament persisted until April, 1653, when Oliver Cromwell locked the doors, put the key in his pocket and went home to dinner. It has become known in history as the Long Parliament and it is famous, not only for its vitality but for the constitutional changes that either were brought about or first became appar ent during its term of pover. It enforced the responsibility of ministers of state; it asserted the supremacy of law; it declared and made effective the political independence of jfche Commons as the corporate voic£ of the citizens and subjects of England; it reaffirmed,the doctrine that is the corner- j- • • ^
stone of all was laboring. Qwlw* wr$ 1AEIY DAYS OF TIN; LONG PARLIAMENT 0lWM i*swL, "Menynad very generally come to believe that there was a conspiracy on foot to overthrow their religion ana their freedom and to establish the Roman Catholic religion and arbi trary power. The pious fiction that whatever a king does amiss is done by the crafty suggestion of evil counselors still pro tected Charles, but against his ministers and against the pre lates the public feeling v/as unquestionably bitter and revenge ful. . . . Parliament was therefore to be insured against un timely dissolution and the ill-advisors of the crown were to be, not merely removed, but punished. ... In this temper the fifth parliament of Charles I met on November 3."^ Thomas Wentworth, Earl of Strafford, a champion of the people in the early parliaments of the reign, was a sincere patriot, an able administrator, that rarest of all living creatures an honest politician, but his very virtues rendered him dangerous. He had adopted the .extremes* viev/s of the extent of the Royal prerogative ana his administration of Ireland.had give;ivenn thtne people o01f Englanj&ngianda a tasttaste of what they might expect y j * yon Ikm^n hn to hnV 4ntirwr^fi 1 ri~-p<™OP • WiVherefor e Thomas, Earl of Strafford was impeached and was to die, for "that hee endeav- oredJ;to subvert the lawes and government of England and Ireland and to introduce tirannical and arbitrarie government and giving advise to the King by armes to (compell his loyal Subjects) to submitt thereunto. Which he hath declared by traiterous words, 1. Political History of England - ed. Hunt & Poole - v. VII - p.22*> M0338 Box24 Folder24 1933-12-18 004 (3) EARLY DAYS OF THE LONG PARLIAMENT counsel and actions, and giving advise to use force .... hee hath laboured .... to alienate the hearts of people i*nd des- troie the kingdome." ® William Laud, Archbishop of Canter but' y, v/as another able, sincere, laborious, honest (albeit narrow), statesman, the man in whom, after Strafford, Charles placed his greatest trust. He v/as zealous for the >e£formation of the Church of England, a firm believer in ceremony, em& the authority of the clergy and the frdrvjirirljy uf~H;ih^^u!iyr.u^vy^ of Kings and Bishops, ZBEX or perhaps, a-s he would have saidi^ of Bishops and Kings. The nation could not contemplate v/ith equanimity the possibil- ity that his labors might be crowned with success. He -"wasjj "engaged in the completion of an instrument which would out live himself. The forces of Calvinism once expelled, the Church would, as he hoped, .... stand forth clothed in the author ity of a pious king, as the enlightened guide in all spiritual matters of a willing and submissive people It was indeed a formidable thing that such a man as Laud should have in his hands the whole teaching power of England and be able to bend too his will those who were sure to inculcate the duty of obeying the King at least as loudly as they inculcated the duty of serving God." And so presently the Lords sent down a message to the commons to say "That theyr Lordships have con sidered of the Accusation of High Treason against William Lav/d, 1. D'Ewes, pp 60-61, note #8 2. History of England from the Accession of James I to the Out- break of the Civil War, S.R. Gardiner - v. IX * w%as£Mte&&xx MCfcks p. a49. M0338 Box24 Folder24 1933-12-18 005 (4) EARLY D^YJ OF aT'E LONG P^NLI^ENT ^rchbishop of Canterburie and have according to vour desires commit- ted him to the custody of the gentleman Usheryr From thence he was to be taken to the Tower, to watch Strafford go down to the place of execution, to stand his own trial, at last to lo^e his own life. It is very difficult for those who are afraid to be merciful. John, Baron Finch, Lord Keeper of the Privy jeal, was to suffer for bullying the judges into their decision on ship-money; Francis Y/indebank for his too eager compliance with the desire, both of the King and of the tjieen, to relax the pressure of the penal acts directed against the catholics; the Bishops for innovations in reli gion and insolence in administration; the judges for subservience; and many and all manner of men for crimes against the commonality of England. Parliament opened with a blast of invective against these prelates, statesmen, courtiers anc judges, against the King's evil counselors and his illegal taxes and levies, against his attempt, so perilously near success, at absolute rule, against the notions of divine right that he had inherited from King James, his father. So far it differed not a whit from many of its predecessors. Parliaments had been angry before, had sometimes even been able to make the King and his ministers feel the weight of the popular jaage*'. Indeed the "Merciless Parliament" under Richard II in 1388 hanged Chief Justice Tresilian, deprived the Archbishop of York of his see, exiled ouffolk and Robert de Vere and placed the King under the tutelage of a "Con- tinual Council'*; .always, However, once the parliament was out of the way, the King and his government had reverted to the old customs and had enjoyed an ample revenge for the momentary humiliation. With the Long Parliament it was not so, for the Commons were in position to enforce their will. They had an army at their backs. The Scots were in the EskfoerH: Northern / 1. D'Ewes pp 169-17 0 2. "History of the English People" - J.R'. Green; v. I, p 503 M0338 Box24 Folder24 1933-12-18 006 (5) EARLY DAYo OF THE LONG PARLIAMENT counties', they had beaten the Royal commander, Conway, at . Newburn, near Newcastle and were negotiating a settlement with the King. As he could obtain money only from Parliament, as the Scots were running a board bill of 5.25,000 per mpnth, and as there was no armed force in existence capable of opposing them, Charles ,was helpless. "It was not now, m> MOM- J (Jifidh S^JUA ij^J^i^fi^f; "as'it nad been in 1625, in 1626, in 1629, or even in the spring of 1640. His former quarrels with Parliament had brought to him disordered finances, ana had frustrated his cherished plans. A dissolution now would bring him face to face with absolute ruin."(p Charles was helpless, and as usual he had brought his troubles upon himself. KeAattempt^a. to re-mold the Kirk on the lines of the C&urch of England, to strengthen the Scottish Bishops who had been set up by King James againt the bitter opposition of the people, to enhance the power of these bishops at the expense of the nobles ana generally to brin-LUgg, ScotlanOUUU1UHdU withiVvJL UXJ.JLXn1 thL-XLeC scopt> M0338 Box24 Folder24 1933-12-18 007 (6) EARIY DAYS OF THE LONG PARLIAMENT CA^Short Parliament H<*b~j> kx*%%) d< That they;/< "who se^ances tours had treated for the ransom of Kings should now consider for the supplie of an Army that had invaded the land"greatly troubled the Lords, but the Commons were moved by no such fine-spun point of honor. For them it was enough, and indeed a bargain at L25,000 per month, to have an armed and disciplined force at their backs ana to be in position to dictate their wishes. They were assembled (It © -&$&< \HV«r>7 I^LAJ ^rtOUMY OV^UA^A^HJ / to repairM"the pressing miseries ana disorders which had . . . . . overwhelmed and extinguished the liberty, peace and prosperity of this kingdom"^ USSL £or that they required power, time and securitye^lfo the King they could no longer find eJJ^s=e==^s^^=x^==QQ nf-i dune^ ^T ^ %** ^L/u^& - Charles was pious, sincere, conscientious, utterly honest in his convictions - and wholly untrustworthy, a liar of the first water, when acting in defence of anything that he considered sacred. As a private gentleman he would have been an ornament to the kingcom; as a king he was a futile 1. D'Ewes, p. 4 0 2. The Grand Remonstrance - Const. Doc. - p.206 M0338_Box24_Folder24J 933-12-18 008 (V) EARLY DAYS OF THE LONG P,JILIAMENT and gentlemanly failure. He never acknowledged defeat ana he never realised his limitations. Even when all was over and he was brought to trial he could say, in all sincerity, "no earthly pov/er can csixzisE justly call me (who am your King) in question O as a delinquent". During his imprisonment he could write, sgus. speaking of the beginning of his troubles, in words that re veal no slightest hint of any consciousness of fault or wrong j trt JoU- /W IriA UAA>* j doing. "I cared not", he said^ "to lessen myself in some things of my wontec prerogative, since I knew I could be no loser if I might gain but a recompense in my subjects' affections. . ... I resolved to reform what I should, by free ana full advise in Parliament, be convinced of to be amiss, and to grant whatever my reason anc conscience told me was fit to be desired.,fs"y[t is not probable that Charles otuart wrote the Eikon Basilike from which the above quotation is taken, but had he been the author scarcely a comma would have been altered. It v/as to be the part of Parliament to advise, of the King to reform whatever "was fit to be desired". It was a part that Parliament had no wish to play. Justice was corrupt; were the treasury was empty; the people KXX "marked and sealed from © head to foot" by monopolies; the Church fcHEXiexx was turned upside down by Laud's new dogma and rigorous discipline; the o army was defeated and unpaid; the navy, despite the illegal and unrelenting collection of shipmoney, was reduced to a few l.The King's Reasons for Declining the Jurisdiction of the High Court of Justice - Const. Doc. - p. 374. 2.Gard. v. IX, pp 216-217 (Eikon Basilike, ch I) 3. Gard. v. IX, pp 238-239 (Rushworth) M0338 Box24 Folder24 1933-12-18 009 (8) E^RLY DAYS OF THE LONG PARLIAMEFT rotting hulks; the Royal pov er v;as wielded by one who, after having stuffed the Tower with soldiers and munitions, was heard to remark openly that "he hoped the city would be subdued 0 in a sort time"; and the King who had brought all this evil to pass presumed to choose what was fit to be desire di Considering the power that they ibuna in their handt, ana the provocation under which they laboured, the Commons were, at first, neither unreasonable mor discourteous. It was a revolution that they intended, no less, yet the condi tion of affairs demanded either a revolution or chaos. The Commons picked their way v/ith care, every step of it buttressed and approved, so far as was possible , by precedent ana example from the overflowing store of that sober antiquary, uir Simonds D'Ewes, to whose Journal we are indebted for a great portion of our knowledge of the proceedings of the Long Parliament,&£ whir'n fre—jtiffirsr-^-iueuihe3i. Charles was blind to the necessity for change and a saw only xk& threat to his Crown that no amount of parliamentary antiquarianism availed to soften. He busied himself with wide-flung, finely spun plots to overthrow tho^e whoiihe con ceived to be his persecutors. Now it v/as to be with the aid of troops from Hollana, whose btadholder, Frederick Henry, was marrying his daughter - but the Stadholder died. Now it v/as to be with gold from the Pope on return for promises to relieve the lot of the Catholics in the Kingdom - but the Pope 1. D'Ewes, p. 24 M0338 Box24 Folder24 1933-12-18 010 (9) S^RLY DiOfo OF THE LONG PARLIAMENT assayed Charles' promises at their true value ana refused to move unless the King announced his conversion to Cathol icism. Now, and perrenially, it was to be with force and in terest from France, whose King was the Queen of England's brother - but Richlieu's cold-blooded diplomacy saw more profit in a distracted England than in a war for purely dynastic None interests and Richelieu ruined France. x±± of these plans, so clear, so effective^ in Charles' imagination, ever came to fruition. The Earl of Bristol gave voice to the common feeling of the day^ when, on being asked his opinion, he replied bluntly, "Sire, you will be forced to ao what you do not wish."£) It was the King's ancient privilege to nominate the Speaker of the House, but even there Charles v/as thwarted. The Recorder of London, Sir Thomas Gardiner, a noted Royalist, had been destined for the post, but , in defiance of all precedent, he failed of election to Parliament. The City chose a wholly Puritan delegation and the King was forced to name William Lenthall, a well known barrister of moderate opinions, as Speaker. Of what went on in the assembly over which Lenthall presided we have SJKX unusually full knov/lcdge. Sir uimonds D'Ewes v/as a membe#;a**t he keid"*a full Journal of everything that he observed^ and he observed a great deal. He=-W6es-_ominont^--sujr4£fc£o=dai:o-^ta-sjr. Careful, discerning, a great antiquary, learned in parliamentary lore and precedent, 1. Gard. v. IX, p. 25 2 M0338 Box24 Folder24 1933-12-18 Oil (10) E^RLY DAYO OF THE LONG PARLIAMENT the historian and chief authority for the Parliaments of Elizabeth, he was eminently suited to his self-appointed taslc, and all students of his perioe owe him a debt of gratitude. The obligation, however, does not extend to the reading of his speeches. "He had," says his editor, Prof essor Notestein; "a gift for saying over again in more words what had been briefly expressed by someone else" He was a great scholar - ana a great bore. "Then I stood up ana spake", he writes, ana we heave a sigh ana run over the pages to where "Mr. Pymme reported the articles with ahich the Earle of ;tatK&fesgss Strafford Leiftenant of Ireland was charged ana stood guilty of high treason." Thomas, Earl of Strafford, was the Great Grievance, as none knew better than he. "I am tomorrow to Lonaon," he wrote, two days after the opening of Parliament; "with more dangers beset, I believe, than ever any man went with out of Yorkshire ; yet my heart is good, and I find nothing cold in me. It is not to be believed how great the malice is, and how intent they are about it. Little less care there is taken to ruin me than to save their own souls. " ^—' On the next day the House voted a "Committee of the Whole House for a Committee for Irish affairs" (on Pym's motion) and promptly proceeded to consider "My Lord Mountnorris his petitions, praying for relief from alleged enormities practised on him by Strafford during his administration in Ireland. "^ 1. Strafford to Radcliffe, Nov.5, lo40 - Gard. v. IX, p. 221 M0338 Box24 Folder24 1933-12-18 012 (11) EARLY DAYS OF THE LONG PARLIAM^TT man would think," said Pym; "we lived rather in Turkie than in Christendome ." The Commons were determined that this alleged likeness to Turkey should not continue. Indeed, during the early days of the session and before their organization had been completed, they were hot upon the scent of so many grievances at once as to make it rather difficult to follow the thread of their deliberations. In the interval between the preparing of charges against Strafford and his trial the victims of the Court of otar Chamber petitioned for redress (ana obtained it, pressed down and running over); the House found time to work itself into a very pretty rage against those men whom the King had gratified with monopolies of various necessities; it v/as voted that every member who "aid . . . talke soe loua as to hinder the business of the Howse from being heard should pay Is to bee diceded betweene the (P Serjeant and the poore"; and Oliver Cromwell made his first speech oa the session, his second in any Parliament. It was a plea on behalf of that John Lilburne whom he was later to persecute afc the leader of the "Levellers" - and, incidentally, as an intolerable nuisance. It v/as as true tjien as now that the great pari or-game of politicians was corporation-baiting. The House ordered the expul- sion of all "proiectors, monopolizers, Promoters or Advisers of them^ and one doughty parliamentarian, rising to his feet, was moved to declare that "these men, liemthe frogs of Egypt, have gotten possessi on of our dwellings, and we have scarce room free fiom them . . . they have marked / 1. D'Ewes, p 12 2. D'EWes, p lu3 3. D'Ewes,pgQt M0338 Box24 Folder24 1933-12-18 013 (12) EARLY D^YS OF THE LONG PARLIAMENT and sealed us from head to foot ... . they shelter themselves under the name of a Corporation" and "make bye-laws which serve their turns to squeeze us and fill their purses." C/ It was nojjl poor indication of the spirit of the times that;when "Sir William Witherington called the Scotts Rebells ® and invading Rebells'] he was rebuked in full Parliament for abusing the King's subjects i . "It v/as ordered", writes Sir Simonds D'Ewes; "that v/e should accuse my Lord Leiutenant of high Treason, and desire the Lords that he might be committed and sequestrated from the Parliament; that a Procloination should be sent to give notice to all that v/i 11 come in to accuse and give testimony against that great Lord." @/ "I will go," said Strafford, when he heard of the action of the House; "and look my accusers in the face". He entered the House of Lords while they were in session and attempted to speak. He was shouted down, ordered to withdraw and committed to the Tower. "What is the matter?" asked someone in the crowd. "A small matter, I warrant you", replied the fallen minister. "Yes indeed", v/as the sardonic rejoinded; "high treason is a small matter."^ Mr. Pym moved for a committee to "consider of the articles against my Lord Lieutenant"; the Commons reau^^£s& /> M0338 Box24 Folder24 1933-12-18 014 (13) SxiRLY DAYS OF THE LONG PARLIAMMT 0 oaths and privileges; Sir Harry ^nderson moved "many articles of most high and dangerous crime against the Lord Leiftenant of Ireland"; the members assured themselves of a continuance of military support by engaging individually as sureties in amounts of £1,000 to secure a loan of LlOOl^OOO from the City to pay the jcotts army; and, Earl utrafford being at last safely in prison ana his indictment in process of drawing, the House finally found leisure to trouble itself with mat ters of religion. re The/was a rumor of a great Catholic conspiracy, and Mr. Hollis stood one of a thousand such rejpor&s, Qfzi'fexiiiExaxzHHiix up in the stated House and EEP&K±B± that "the fear now is a general assasin- 0 ation". The only wonder is that he was incorrect. I do not believe that history records a more long-suffering religious community than that composed of the English Catholics from the accesion of Elizabeth to the time of the final removal of their legal disabilities in, I think, 1851. In the Grand Remonstnance they are termed xk "the Jesuited Papists, who hate the laws"; the Commons directed that "order should be sent into all Counties of England ana Wales to indict and convict papists at the next sessions"; yet nowadays it all seems a ridiculous, though tragic enough, pother about nothing. Francis Windebank, one of the King's Secretaries of otate, had been especially active in protecting the Catholics and in 1. D'Ewes, p 44, #8. 2. D'Ewes, p 51. 3. D'Ewes, pp 51-52 4. D*Ewes, p 57. 5. The Grand Remonstrance - Const. Doc. - p 206. 6. D'Ewes, p 112. M0338 Box24 Folder24 1933-12-18 015 EARLY DAYS OF THE LONG PARLIAMENT (14) interfering with the execution of the penal laws. The Queen, Henrietla Maria, v/as a Catholic princess; she v/as eager to improve the lot of her co-religionists; and she was as active ana imprudent as she was eager. The result, the only possible result, was that she fell into deep disfavor with the people and was suspected of being behind every variety of hare-brained plot of which an inflamed ana hysterical pop ular imagination could conceive. Of course, when she was powerful, her unpopularity made little difference , but her strength v/as derived directly from the King and the time had come when he coould no longer offer her support. Her adherents were few but zealous, and it is no more than justice to say that they were in all probability actuated quite as much by sincere conviction as by motives of personal interest, V/indebank was not the least of these adherents, v/ho formed v/hat may termed, be fc3£rBBS3§: for convenience, the Catholic party, and when he was sum moned by the Commons to give an account of his actions he at first feigned sickness and then, when that excuse was worn threadbare, took counsel with his Royal master and mistress and, it is charged, with their connivance and bearing letters of introduction from the Queen herself, fled to France. (D However mistaken may have been the system of penal lav/s directed against the catholics it v/as firmly imbedded in the law and custom of the time, and the King's attempts to nullify it met with the universal and vehement disapproval of all shades of Protestant opinion. He might, in the en(Lt have survived the storm and had his own way - if he had not been Charles otuart. Unfortunately, however, he interefered with trade, taxed the nation without its consent and, worst of all, made English foreign policy the laughing stock of Europe, The score against him had grown too heavy to bear the added weight of an accusation of Romish tendencies. It may, indeed, be said, that the successful impeachment of Strafford (together v/ith all that v/as implied by the fall of that minister) v/as the direct result of the abortive proceedings against Buckingham earlier in the reign. /. h'&^ M> ri- EARLY DAYS CF THE LONG PARLIAMENT The entire attention of the Commons, however, was no more directed toward serious ends that is th.L.t of a modern legislative assembly. They indulged in burlesque, in humor - and sometimes in that unconscious humor which, to modern e^e^s at least, is the fnFn-mranTfr mnct incongruous of all. a .ections •.s were constantly coming up for investigation, and though the thread of these negotiations is almost en tirely lost, due to the shifting and uncertain character of the political parties of the day, it is reasonable to sup pose that there v/as involved at least as much log-rolling The franchise as actual fraud. 5±/was eternally debated and there was great diii=a?m£e as to whetherJA "th e ^poore should have voice «® or noe". In the coursecourse, o01f one of these discussions which became inextricably entangled with the petition of a dis senting school-master who had been dispossessed "Sir Walter Earle moved that it was proved that mechanick men's children should not be brought up in learning but this hee spake" - apparently not greatly to the point - "as Mr. Mainard ansv/eared upon the schoolemasters ov. ne complaint that hee was troubled with 20 poor children."(D On another occasion Lord Grey propounded as suffi cient reason to refuse a claimant his place in Parliament that the unfortunate pretender was "no gentleman, that in the memory of divers he kept hogs."The noble lord's Ian- 1. D'Ewes, p 43 2. D'Ewes, pp 98-99 3. D'Ewes, p 95 #8 M0338 Box24 Folder24 1933-12-18 017 (16) M EARIY DAYS OF THE LONG PARLIAMENT guage, parliamentarily sjxeakxi^: considered, v/as on a par with that employed by Mr. Bagshaw when, in discussing the right of €hnvocation to make canons binding on both clergy and laity, he "spake long and concluded to damme all the new canons and & the wicl-ced oath with them." The ,oath. in question v/as the that Laud^ attempte d famous "Etcetera Oath" EDeEH±23eaz±DxkEz±3ck3£ii to cram aovn the throats of the people, requiring them to acknowledge the 0ULJQAAAAAAAJ divine right of Bishops to rule the church, lay aov/n rulos- g£ ceremony articles of belief "et ceteru". It, was the "and so forth" that aroused opposition..Englishmen to a blank check, especially when that check CfV«2.- was to be placed in the hands of whom they di-^bke^. as heartliy as they aid Laud and his policy of "thorough". The scene was well set for the so-called "Root and Branch M dim*'" &fii&ujft.£$j'rifflouJhZ^ Petition" for the abolishment^ of ^"the government of arch bishops and lord bishops, deans and archdeans v/ith all its dependencies, roots and branches" ii^ This was a petition bearing many names obtained by circulating it about the City of London. There was."a roule of 15000 names sent in with the petition, and ther came about 1500 men v/ith it into Westminister hall.^On this matter of episcopacy there was the first serious divergence e #***? of opinion in the COU&2& ^fi5M^g2£i|^^ fifarnh^n^e ® many against and many for the same". The House v/as accustomed 1. D'Ewes, p 126 2. The Root and Branch Petition, Const. Doc. - pp 137-138 3. D'Ewes, p 138. 4. Gard. v IX, p 247 #2, The Scottish Commissioners in London to the Committee in Newcastle. M0338 Box24Folder24 1933-12-18 018 (17) EARIY DAYS OF THE LONG PARLIAMENT to dealing with the public at a respectful distance and did not at all relish its enforced contact with its consti- tuents. They solved tjac• dif f ioul$y, by.fegasegabttg to consider the petition "on Thursday next", but when Thursday next came around they werej too busy. The subject was, indeed, highly controversial and one which the leaders of the House were desirous of keeping in the background as long as pos sible - ana at the very least until otrafford's impeachment was out of the way. Some idea of the scope of the petition wuyf <3sgBrbe gained from B-iunni ntj—s=¥e-r the main heads of complaint, itemised by the petitioners under the title of "A Particular of the manifold evils, pressures, and grievances caused, practised and occasioned by the Prelates and their dependents. zAmsngx Among other things they complained of: "1. Ministers not daring to speake truth or preach for predestination, free grace . 2. Ministers d<.pending on them ./ (a=3*eV, unauly de- pendent on the prelates) 3. Contempt of gentrie and nobilitie. 4. &oxMkE Goalie Ministers thrust out. 5. The suppressing of buiing in Impropriations^^ 6. The swarming of wicked ministers. 7. The printing hereticall bookes. 8. The swarming of vitious and wicked pamphlets. 1. D'Ewes, p 140 - Gard. v IX, p 248 2. The Root and Branch Petition - Const. Doc. p 138 M0338 Box24 Folder24 1933-12-18 019 (18) EARLY DAYS OF THE LONG PARLI*.M3 9* The restraining of godlie bookes to be printed, etc. 10. The broaching of wicked tenets against the subjects proprieties." G/ / /- 2?h©^Commons were also much perturbed because "they /A' weere tenn shippes of Turkish Pyrates nov. lay upon the West erne coasts; and the Committee desired that his Majestie might be humblie moved to send two of his shipps of warre into those parts to scowre the seas.K The request seems somewhat iron ical in view of a resolution, only a few days before, nullo contradicente, "That .... the assessments .... commonly called Ship-money; are against the lav/s of the realm, the subjects right of property, ana contrary to former resolutions in Parliament.'^ The House, it is true, considered the making of "reparation for Monopolies shipp-monie and other things taken away", but Sir Simonds D'Ewes wanted to see a balance sheet first . The latest that could be found was five years old, and it was alleged that a current balance "could not be prepared in 2 months". The House, indeed, v/ith many protesta tions of loyalty, promisee to look into the matter of the provision of "a high subsistence for his Majesty", but;even u^r ft -**- | had they been sincere it v/as unxeaijj^nab-l^--4ye- supposed that Charles could be mollified by attention to his material interests when all his trusted ministers were subject to attack 1. D'Ewes, p 139. 2. D'Ewes, p 142. 3. D'Ewes, p (011 6 fZS. 4an. d D'Ewesall hi, s jh cherishe146 d5 . planD'Ewess throw, p n192 int. o the discard.^ 6. Gard. v IX, p 250 M0338 Box24 Folder24 1933-12-18 020 (19) EARLY DAYS OF rJTTE LONG P_.RLI.dNrT Of all the allegedly illegal exactions of the Crown perhaps none aroused more opposition than the so-called "ship- money", tezginailx Originating in the right assumed by the Plantagenet kings of "requiring the maritime towns and count- Q of money, ies to furnish ships in time of war", it grew into a levy/ always, however, on the maritime portion of the kingdom. James I laid and collecteu such a tax on at least one occasion with- out arousing either comment or opposition^ /Cnarles carried the matter a step -EsEwaxax further and levied the tax on the whole kingdom so that v/hat had originated as a means for rais ing ships in an emergency bade fair to develope into a full- fledged e^^§P=^«?iism^3at2^y system of^taxation. The Commons, as we have just seen, minced no words in declaring the whole contrivance to be illegal. They were particularly annoyed by the means that had been employed to extract an opinion from the judges fav oring the king's position. Each judge had been solicited privately and, holding office at the King's pleasure, it had proved impossible for a majority to differ from the King, at least in private. The combination ana publication of these opinions as an official judger.ient of the whole b^nch had been viewed with consternation. In this solicitation John Finch played a leading part in this solicitation and,, y though he spoke in his own defence before the Commons,;no "rather A M0338 Box24 Folder24 1933-12-18 021 (20) r EARP DAYS OF THE LONG PARLIAMENT aggravated than mitigated his crimes". It was moved in the House as to whether his actions constituted high Treason and the impeachment v/as voted almost unanimously. Finch, however, "got up earlier, gave them the slip, and escaped into Holland rO> Lord Falkland made "a notable speech" on the subject which, according to Peyton's summary, v/as to the effect "that the Judges have beene the authors of all our oppressions in giv ing wrong judgements contray to their oaths. That the king hath beene miserably abused in it. His Judges telling him t'is lawe, His Divines t'is conscience, His ministers of state that t'is policie. If we take away grievances, let us take away the grievours. That my Lord Strafford i$ accused of high Treason for being supposed to have endeavored to supplant the fundarnentall lav/es of this kingaome; these have done it openly " .(3> The grievours were in full repeat; the grievances were in process of formulation; and the House now began to give its attention to actual constitutional changes. On the 24th of December there was introduced "a Bill about the sseybling of a Parliament yearlie though the King aid not assemble it by writt" - on the motion of William Strode, or, according to some athorities, William Pierrepont. "This I misliked, "-^said Sir Sinonds D'Ewes ,V,but he did not express the opinion of the majority. On December 30th Oliver Cromwell 1. D'Ewes, p 175. " 2. D'Ewes, p 17b fb (Rushworth) 3. D'Ewes, p 117 #28 (Peyton) 4. D'Ewes, p IBS M0338 Box24 Folder24 1933-12-18 022 (ai) EARIY DAYS OF THE LONG PARLIAMENT moved the second reading of the Hill and D'Ewes again objected. " . . . ther we ere," he saia: "fundamentall rights of the crowne which weere to be preserved as well as the fundamentall rights of the subject," but he v/as voted down. The action of the Commons was inevitable. Charles had indicated only too clearly his intention of ruling without Parliament and it was necessary that some means be found to hinder him. annual meetings of Parliament were at last concluded to be too freguent ,,.and the Bill, as it was finally presented to the King for approval, election and provided for the $riennial/&ssembly of both houses in case they were not previously summanasa summoned by the King. It bore the title of "An Act for the preventing of inconveniences (y? happening by the long intermission of Parliaments." On Feb ruary 16, 1640/41 King Charles passed the Bill, "yielding up to us," says D'Ewes in reporting the King's speech, "one of the fairest flowers in his garlanded Charles askea the Commons to be satisfied with this concession, to leave off meddling with episcopacy and consider his wants. He reminded them that they had taken his government apart like a watch and he ex pressed the hope that, like good workmen, they would put it together again "v/ithout diminishing one piece of it7" His hope v/as not destined to be fulfilled. The Root and Branch Petition, tterft—^ia,L alrvau^ be_en Bte333z±ed±efl, others of like tenor from Kent, Essex and Suffolk 1. D'Ewes (note illegible). Z. Const. Doc. p144 3. D'Ewes, pp 364-365 M0338 Box24 Folder24 1933-12-18 023 (22) EARLY DAYS OF THE LONG PARLIAMENT praying "for ther ease and deliverance from the tyrannicall power of the Bishops and the abolishing of the verie Hierarchic 0 it selfe", were before the House and the time had come when it was necessary that some action be taken in the matter. A date for consideration v/as at last set ana the ensuing dis cussion has become famous as the Great Ecclesiastical Debate. The almost complete uniformity of opinion in the House could not withstand the strain of religious controversy and the xxxx± divison into the great parties of the Revolution, Round head and CavSukier, those against and those in favor of episcopacy and the gkuxa3azH^xEHgxaHK Prayer Book, Republican H and Royalist, began to be apparent for the first time. "The heat in the Lov/er House increases," wrote ^ir John Coke the Younger, and February 8, the day that saw the opening of the Debate, v/as, according to Gardiner, "... the first day on v/hich two parties stood opposed to one another .... on a great principle of action.'tRuayerd, Digby and Falkland rose to the defense of episcopacy ana the aristocrat ic principle. Their argument v/as eloquent but indefinite, and they persuaded none save those who v/e re already of their own way of thinking. After all was said the fact remained that the bishops were the King's nominees and that, scs long as he fryrrfrd uw- I *gffl=WJ trusted, episcopacy and church government in its then condition was an 3b£igia&id4rr3^ty that the nation would not toler- 1. D'Ewes, p 249 2. D'Ewes, p 315 #13 (Sir John Coke the Younger to Sir J. Coke) 3. Gard. v IX, p 281 M0338 Box24 Folder24 1933-12-18 024 (23) EARLY DAYS OF THE LONG PARLIAMENT ate. Perhaps, however, the true motivation of the upnhl rirjgjj of t3f*c-i?jiTa»eit^a:o± nj~fttumTI H nf episcopal government of the church was to be found in p. fear, not wholly unjustified, that any attakk levelled against the bishops was apt to continue until it had broken the influence of the nobility and the great landed proprietors. • "If wee made a paritie in the Church," shouted ^ir John strangeways; "wee must at last come to a paritie in the Q Commonwealth", and then he continued, in a calmer tone, to demonstrate the folly of attempting to overthrow the bishpps who "weere one of the three estates of the Kingdome and had voice in Parliament."Indeed, according to the good knight, this attack and these petitions were nothing Jnort of sacrilegious, a statement that so provoked Oliver Cromwell as to cause him to forget the proprieties of debate. The various petitions were at last, with the "dissent of manye", referred to committee and Charles gained a respite of which he made use only for the further embroiling of himself in useless and harmful plots. On the 25th of February Straffdra entered a "general denial " to the charges of the Commons, a proceeding that angered them strangely. Had they not witnesses? Would they have accused hin lightly? If he were not guilty of treason, then he ought to be ... . and so on. It was even moved, after the Lords had granted him a week's delay in which to perfect his defence, that T T 1.D'Ewes, pp 339-340. 2. D'Ewes, p 342 M0338 Box24 Folder24 1933-12-18 025 (24) EARLY DAY- OF THE LONG PARLIAMENT Commons should adjourn until the opening of the trial, but v/iser counsel prevailed. Indeed, as Falkland £Eia2£rke& reminded them, they "could not doe a better curtesie to the Earle of Strafforde then to iarre with the Upper Howse."^ During the intervening time the House amused and occupied itself with many and various proposals. During the reading of the Subsidy Bill (for the provision of money to pay the armies) when the Clerk "came to the place v/heere the universitie of Cambridge was placed before that of Oxford .... then the Oxford men cried out to have that ranked in the first place." Sir Simonds D'Ewes was a Cantabridgian and rose to the defense of his ^lma Mater, (t^/3 , * /? The contruction of &sat S&"t Paul's £fe3*3h came into question, and a petition v/as handed in to Parliament complain ing of the pulling down of "St. Gregorie's church", which seems to have been located in the path of the proposed new construction. "Mr. Inigo Jones hee was a man unknown to mee",C^/ said Sir Simonds D(Ewes, and advised that he be punished for pulling down the church. There is much agitation nov-a-days relative to the freedom of the press, but in the time of the Long Parliament, when Sine Henry Overton ventured to print a report of a meeting of the Committee for Scandalous Ministers, he was brought to the bar of the House and there reprimanded for "that he had 1. D'Ewes p 371 (j. D'Ewe's (note illegible] 3- D'Ewes p 223 M0338 Box24 Folder24 1933-12-18 026 (25) EARLY Dx,Yo OF THE LONG P^RLI^M^T greivouslie offended by printing and act or order of this Howse in print without the knowledge or leave of the Howse, and in adding new matters to,, it of,his 9V'^ kjg ad." cW4 out ^-\ w dti> grievous complaint v?d€fe«a&»' against a certain Dr. Skinner, alleging that when he preached he "called his parishioners hoggs% and that "hee walked ordinarilie with 0) a rapier staff and sometimes v ith a pistol charged.'" It /ylfiAM UMPyT ft&A>* AjCOM 0L ^H^J The reforming instinct, present in all legislatures, made its appearance in this one also, when Sir oimonas D'Ev/es "moved that two shorte actes might bee gaac&psxesbc prepared, the one to abolish Idolatrie, Superstition, prophanecies and heresies." The pAj^afelent.aiMLaai lias sterns possessed a touching faith in the collective power of thefassembly to which he.bel ong^, k&tfythe last the Commas were even reduced to passing an "act .... for the preservation of the liberties of the plummers of London", and "an act for the better suppressing of ale hov/ses and tipling hov/ses, and for avoiding of drunkenes, and for the better restraint of the unnecessarie number of Mault hov/ses."^ Before v/e leave this discussion of the activities of the Long Parliament during these early months of its existence 1. D'Ewes, p 286. 2. D'Ewes, p 201 3. D'Ewes, p 204 4. D'Ewes, p 356 5. D'Ev/es, p 418 M0338 Box24 Folder24 1933-12-18 027 (26) EARLY DAYS OF THE LONG PARLIAMENT v/e >ea£, perhaps, a^gfee •$© a clearer understanding of the scope of its interests and the relative importance of the matters before it by reference to the list of committees Cjrcufyrmresbcxx whose existence and powers were confirmed by jgaaMrn jjin. order of the House on the 2nd of January. There were five Grand Committees, those of Religion, Trade, Grievances, Irish affairs and Courts of Justice, and there were sixteen sub-committees, as follows: "1. That of my Lord Canterbury. a. That of My Lord Strafford. 3. That of Mr. secretary Windiebank and the Recusants. v 4. That for my Lord Keeper, the Judges and Ship-money. 5. That of the Bishop of Bath and Wells* 6. That of the Bishop of Elie . 7. That for Elections and other Privileges of the house. 8. That for the breache of Privileges of former Parl iaments . 9. That concerning the Starre Chamber and Proclamation Lawe, and the High Commission, and undue proceedings at the Counsell Table . 10. That of the 24 persons to drav/e a Remonstrance of all the present Evills and Grievances of the ICingdome, to pre sent to the King. 11. That for the frequent holding of Parliaments. 12. That for my Lorde Marshall's Courte. 13. That for the Northerne parts. M0338 Box24 Folder24 1933-12-18 028 (247) EARLY DAYS OF THE LONG PARLIAMENT 14. That for the rigorous levying of ship-money. 15. That for the abuses of Lord-Lieutenants and Deputy Lieutenants, and for drawing a Bill for restrayning their power. 16. That for Salt, Sope and Leather. " Q The trial of the Earl of Strafford opened on March 22, 1641, a^a.y that marked the. end of the King's civil power. ^It is a period of nucn interest, but &»t one that f t>Ilp w&4w the scope of this essay. I have of necessity -gyMrcn- but v the Firstj'irst, butbut".Jr^daksnoj^=boc.j^hhs_nolb=boen.n , infn vaivalna if A.fr-ha-v1 hnvno 11hai h re n n ab 1 r• to bring back to you ^ss&e recognizable picture of the "mother of Parliaments" in the days of its youth when it first came of age and began to speak with authority. the end 1. D'Ewes pp 242-243-244, corrected by reports from other Journals listed in notes #4-24 incl. M0338 Box24 Folder24 1933-12-18 029 EARLY DAYS OF THE LONG PARLLdlEKT Authorities quoted***//^ c^^J^y • # "The Journal of Sir Simonds D'Ewes" - Prof. Notestein B> "Diary of John Evelyn" ( 1 \Ji) h "The Political History of England" - edited by Hunt fej . ) and Poole - in particular Volume VII by Montague. Q^f^w "History of England from the Accession of James I to the Outbreak of the Civil War." - S. R. Gardiner syyj/*$(iody & "The Constitutional Documents of the Puritan Revo lution, 1625-16 60" - S. R. Gardiner (ec.) + "Life of Montrose" - John Buehan "The First Two Stuarts and the Puritan Revolution" S. R. Gardiner. * Ul^ecL CAJI) LOU X&J?IC*J?*-Q ^ I •/Vt, # 7J~ /WovJ^y M0338 Box24 Folder24 1933-12-18 030