notice of on this occafion by the people, as a person well affected to the legal constitution of his country. But what made him the most popular, was his oppoli. tion to an undertaking in which the king himself was concerned, for draining the fens in Lincolnshire and the Isle of Ely. At this time, by heading the town's people of Cambridge, he got to be elected

one of their burgesses, to serve in the parliament of 1640, afterwards called the long parliament.

In this parliament he fewed himself a zealous and forward opposer of the publick grievances. The whole fenate, indeed, were earnestly bent on profecuting the affair; and work enough they had on their hands. And as Cromwell's conduct herein was no ways different from that of the representative in general, I thall here, in order to his justification, give a character of that assembly, as drawn by an author who wrote at the request of one of the royal family. I thall also, chiefly from the fame writer, infert a general view of the fate of the nation at that time, and of the causes of the unhappy breach that followed.

$.6.* No age ever produced greater men than those who fat in that parliament: they had fufficient abilities and inclinations to render the king and their country happy, if England had not been, thro' a chain of concurring accidents, ripened for destruction. At their fitting down, a scene of grievances, under which we had long groaned, was laid open, and all topicks made use of to paint them out in the liveliest colours. The many cruelties and illegal practices of the star-chamber and high commission courts, that had alienated peoples minds from the hierarchy, were now infifted on, to throw down those two arbitrary tribunals; and with them, some time after, the bishops out of the house of peers, and at length episcopacy itself out of the church. It was not a few of either house, but indecd all the great patriots, tha: concurred at first to make an en

BS

quiry into the grievances of this reign. Sir Edward Hide, afterwards earl of Clarendon, and lord chancela lor of England; the lord Digby ; the lord Falkland ; the lord Capel; Mr. Grimstone, who was chosen afterwards ípeaker of the house of commons that brought in king Charles the second, and was master of the rolls; Mr. Hollis, afterwards lord Hollis; and in general, most of those who took the king's part in the succeeding war, were the men that appeared with the greatest zeal for the redress of grievances, and made the fharpest speeches upon thofe fubjects. The intentions of those gentlemen were certainly noble and just, and tended to the equal advantage of king and people: but the fate of England urged on its ruin step by Itep, till an open rupture between the king and parliament made the gap too wide ever to be made up again.

Sir Thomas Wentworth, earl of Stafford, and Dr. Laud, archbishop of Canterbury, had too great a share in the ministry, to escape being censured, and they were the first that felt the effects of a popular hatred. These two gentlemen, and James duke of Hamilton, firft advifed king Charles to call this parliament; and all three fell by it, tho' not at the same time. King Charles now, from the necessity of the times, did every thing to satisfy the parliament : he passed the bill for attainting the earl of Strafford, tho' with reluctancy, as believing he deserved not such hard measure: he took away monopolies, that had been a discouragementtorde: he exprefl-d himself to their contentment in the matters of loan, ship-money, tonage and poundage, and other unwarrantable methods that had been used in railing money; and thewed a settled resolution to comply with them, in every thing that might tend to the cafe and security of the subject. As in the preceding pırli ment he had pasied the petition of right, fo in the beginning of this, he had agreed to the acts for triennial parliaments, and for abolishing the star. chamber and high com million courts, which had been great grievances and with chearfulness passed that act which seem'd incontistent with his own just prerogative, “ That that parliament should not be diffolved but by act of parliament; nor prorogued or adjourned but by their own consent.”

The king having, upon these conceffions, received the thanks of both houses, and the loud applauses of his people, took a journey to Scotland in August, 1641, to settle matters there, that required his presence ; that kingdom having just before been at war with England, on account of the grievances there introduced. He left the parliament fitting, which they continued to do for some time, and then adjourned themselves to October following. At the king's going away, affairs had been already settled betwixt the

two kingdoms by an act of pacification, and both armies ordered to be disbanded, the Scots returning home for that purpose.

$. 7. But while the king was in Scotland, the Irish rebellion broke out, which became a new bone of contention between him and the parliaments of both nations. He seemingly took measures in Scotland about fuppreffing that rebellion, and is said to have made haste back to England to concert with the parliament concerning it. He did not act, however, with so much vigour, as to convince every one of his fincerity in the affair: and it appeared that the queen, who very much governed his majesty, kept up a correspondence with lord Antrim, one of the chief agents in that bloodshed. Nevertheless the king was received in London, at his return, with all demonstrations of affection. The lord mayor and aldermen, the nobility, gentry, and train’dbands, met him without the city, and conducted him in great state, amid the acclamations of the people, the city companies lining the streets on each tide, to Guildhall, where he was royally feated, and after dinner conducted with the same pomp to Whitehall. “ What man, says Dr. Wellwood, that had seen a “ prince thus received into his capital city, could have

imagined that within less than seven weeks he should “ be obliged to leave it upon the account of tumults,

never to see it again, but as a prisoner brought thi

" ther to die upon a scaffold ? yet this was king
“ Charles's hard fortune."

The house of commons had begun, fome few days
before his return, to fall into heats about innovations
in religion; the rebellion in Ireland ; plots said to be
laid in Scotland ; the disabling of the clergy to exercise
temporal jurisdiction; and excluding the bishops from
votes in parliament: all which matters, together with
fome reports that were spread about of some designs
against the parliament, led the house into that remark-
able petition and remonftrance of the state of the na-
tion, in which they repeated all the mismanagements
in the government since the king's coming to the
throne, and attributed all to evil counsels and counsela
lors, and a malignant party about the king. The
billetting of soldiers contrary to law, the diffolution and
suspension of parliaments, the severe imprisonment of
feveral members, the raising of money by unparlia-
mentary ways, violent prosecutions for non-payment,
arbitrary proceedings in the courts of law, the late be-
haviour and doctrines of the high-flown clergy, conti-
nuance of those abuses since the late concessions, were
some of the topicks insisted on. This remonftrance
met with great opposition in the house, the debate last-
ing from * three o'clock in the afternoon till ten o'clock
the next morning, when it passed by a small majority.
It was presented to his majesty the eighth day after his
return from Scotland. This petition and remonftrance,
together with the king's answer to them at their deli-
very, and the declaration which he published at large
afterwards to the same purpose, contain the matters of
almost all those fatal differences, that came, within a
very short time after they were drawn up, to be de,
cided by the sword. But they being very long, and to
be met with in most histories of that time, I Thall not
swell this volume with them.

§. 8. Crom

1

* This is Wellwood's account: others say, from nine one morning till three the next, which seems mat probable by what follows.

§. 8. Cromwell was a great promoter of this remonftrance; and we have this remarkable passage concerning him, while it was in agitation. A day having been appointed for retaking it into confideration, upon its not being called for till late, the matter was put off till next morning. Cronwell, hereupon, asked the lord Falkland, why he was for deferring it, fince that day would have put an end to the business. His lordfhip answered, “There will not be time enough; for sure it will take up some debate.” To which the other replied, “A very sorry one :” concluding it would be opposed by very few. But the day after it was over, when upon fo hard a struggle it passed only by a majority of nine, lord Falkland asked Mr. Cromwell if there had been a debate. “ Yes, said he, and and I will take your word another time.” Then'whifpering in the lord Falkland's ear, he added,

" If the remonftrance had not paffed, I would have sold all I had the next morning, and have never seen England more ; and I know many other honest men that were of the same resolution."

Some years before this, indeed, on account of the fevere proceedings of archbishop Laud against the puritans, Cromwell had formed a design, together with several other gentlemen of fortune and worth, to go to the American plantations ; which design they were very near putting in execution, being only prevented by a proclamation and order of council, when they were actually embarked, in order to transport themfelves. This thews, that Cromwell, at that time, as well as the other * excellent persons before mentioned, acted entirely from a principle of conscience in his opposition against the court, which, without dispute, had been guikty of numberless opprefions: and by these means his reputation increased, both in the house and without, as a teady and zealous patriot.

$. 9.

* The famous Mr. John Hampden was one of that number,