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and determined, and the parliament had as good generals as the king. Lord Essex, and sir Thomas, afterwards lord Fairfax, had the chief command; they were both honest and well-intentioned men, and began by seeking to restrain the power of the crown, not to destroy it. But they found themselves hurried on at last by the fever of the times, to adopt measures which they would have shrunk from in the beginning.

Richard. Who were the king's best generals? Mrs. M. Prince Rupert was, perhaps, one of the best, though he was in some respects inferior to the marquess of Newcastle, who, from a sense of duty, tore himself from the tranquil enjoyment of a literary and domestic life to serve his master in the hour of need. Newcastle was a man of great powers, as well in council as in war. His high character, both public and private, induced many persons to join the king's army, and while he held the command of it, the royal cause prospered. Seymour lord Hertford was another nobleman, who, although he never, I believe, had any high command in the army, was yet a great accession to it. It was he who, when he was Mr. Seymour, had been imprisoned for marrying lady Arabella Stuart, and had escaped abroad. I rather think he returned to England on lady Arabella's death. At all events, wherever he lived, he devoted himself, till the breaking out of the civil war, to a literary and retired life. He was universally looked up to as a

man of exalted character and abilities. Though he had no cause to love the house of Stuart, yet, in the time of its necessities, he stood forward in its service, and exchanged his happy seclusion for the turmoil of Charles's court. He was made governor to the prince of Wales, and employed his fortune and influence in procuring soldiers for the royal army.

CHAPTER XXXIV.

CHARLES I.

(IN CONTINUATION.)

[Years after Christ, 1642-1648.]

A sea captain of the time of Charles the First.

ON th 25th of August, 1642, on the evening of a very stormy day, the king set up his royal standard on the Castle Hill at Nottingham. It was soon blown down by the violence of the wind, and could not be raised again for some days. This trifling circumstance added to the gloom and sad

ness felt at that moment by all the king's friends. Yet many roused themselves to exertion, and prepared with alacrity for the hard and bloody conflict which lay before them.

The character of Charles seemed in many respects to have changed with the times. He now displayed a vigour and address which astonished those who knew his former studious and inactive habits. The stateliness and formality of his manner was relaxed into a more free and engaging deportment. Even the hastiness of his temper was abated; and he who had formerly shown an extreme impatience of injury or opposition, now submitted with exemplary resignation and cheerfulness to the necessities of his hard condition. One fault, however, still remained unchanged; a fault which had already involved him in many difficulties, and which proved in the end the chief cause of his destruction;-I mean the wavering indecision of his mind, which led him to a continual change of measures, according to the last opinion he heard.

His greatest difficulty was to raise money; and what he could obtain was chiefly by voluntary contributions. The queen fourd mens to get to Holland with her own and the crown jewels, which she disposed of in that country; and she purchased with the money thus obtained a small supply of arms and ammunition. The fleet having taken the side of the parliament, the little ship that conveyed this supply to England had great difficulty in get

ting safely over, and escaped being taken only by being run aground on the Yorkshire coast, in a place too shallow for the larger ships that were in pursuit of her to be able to follow. The cargo was sent with all haste to the king at York; who, mustering his forces, appointed lord Lindsey general in chief, and prince Rupert general of the horse. The parliament's armies were already in the field. Lord Essex commanded in the south; and lord Fairfax, and his son, sir Thomas, were generals in the north. From this time, for the next six years, our now peaceful country suffered all the horrors of a civil war. Garrisons were placed in all the towns, and the people thought of little else but sieges and battles. There was scarcely any part of the kingdom that was not, at one time or other, the scene of some memorable action.

The first battle was fought Oct. 3, at Edgehill in Warwickshire. At the onset prince Rupert bore down every thing before him; but before the day was ended, his rash imprudence lost all that his courage had gained. The two armies, after fighting all day, remained under arms during the night: but the next morning, after facing each other again, they retired from the field without renewing the fight. The loss on each side was equal, and neither gained a victory; though the parliamentarians considered themselves as somewhat entitled to claim it, because the king's general, lord Lindsey, was among the slain..

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