The Signal Loyalty and Devotion of Gods True Saints Part 1 and 2, Part 2 · Chapter 6 · Part 6
A PROCLAMATION PROCLAIMING CHARLES Prince of VVales, King of Great Britain, France and Ireland.
WEE the Noblemen, Iudges, Knights, Lawyers, Gentlemen, Free-holders, Marchants, Marchants, Citizens, Yeomen. Seamen, and other freemen of England, doe, according to our Allegiance and Covenant, by these presents heartily, joyfully and unanimously acknowledge and proclaim the Illustrious Charles Prince of Wales, next heir of the Blood Royal to his Father King Charles (whose late wicked and trayterous Murther we doe from our souls abominate, and all parties and consenters thereunto) to be by hereditary Birthright, and lawfull succession, rightfull and undoubted King of Great Britain, France and Ireland, and the Dominions thereunto belonging. And that we will faithfully, constantly and sincerely, in our several places and callings, defend and maintain his Royal Person, Crown and Dignity with our Estates, Lives, and last drop of our Bloods, against all opposers thereof; whom we do hereby declare to be Traytors and Enemies to his Majestie and his Kingdoms. In testimony whereof, we have caused these to be published and proclaimed throughout all Counties and Corporations of this Realm, the first day of February, in the first year of his Majesties Raign .God save KING CHARLES the Second.
This short ejaculatorie Prayer and Acclamation GOD SAUE THE KING, subjoyned to this Proclamation, was not only used at the Corouations, tryumphs, and publiek Receptions in Cities, Colleges, Villages, Corporations, of all our own, & forein Kings, as I have elswhere touched; but constantlie annexed at the end all our Statutes at large, printed after everie Session of Parliament from …9 H. 7. till 1 Caroli, and at the close of all our Kings, & Queens p…blick (dSee the proclamations printed during the Re…gn of King Henry 7. 8. Edw. 6. Queen Mary and Elizabeth, King James & King Charles, The ancienter proclamations are entred in the Dorse of the Clause Rolls in the Tower.) Proclamations, yea ecchoed out by our Sheriffs, Heralds, Cryers, Officers, who proclaimed them, and by the generalitie of the people present at such Proclamations; And it was likewise constantlie used by all Cryers of all publick Courts of Iustice, Assises, Sessions of the peace, Eyres and Gaol Deliveries upon sundrie occasions, yea by everie Malefactor, acquitted or admitted to his Clergie; who usually cry'd, GOD SAUE THE KING; neither could our Kings enter into anie …itie, Town, Village, College, School, or House within their Dominions, but their Ears were filled with the joyfull sound of this Prayer and Loyal Acclamation. Which custom I trust will g… into common practice again, after its over-long Dis-continuance, through the treacherie, and Di…yalty of those who above all others had most obliged themselves to continue it, by their respective old oftreiterated Oaths of Fealty, Homage, Supremacy, Allegiance, Iustices, Maiors, Recorders, Serjeants at Law, Freemen; & their new Protestations, Solemn National League and Covenant, Commissions, Trusts, Offices, Callings; obliging them both in point of Conscience and Dutie to bear Faith and true Allegiance to the Kings Majesty, his Heirs and lawfull Successors, and to maintain and defend his and their Persons, Crowns, and all Jurisdictions Rights, Privileges, and Royal Prerogatives, united, annexed and belonging to the Imperial Crown of their Realms, against all Powers, Persons, Invasions, Plots and Conspiracies whatsoever, without any Apostacy, defection or detestable Neutrality. Which I hope they will now at last remember so far as to expia…e all former violations of them, by their future fincere, cordial, constant, inviolable Observations, by their dailie publick and private fervent Prayers, Supplications, Intercessions, Thanksgivings, to God for his Majesties restitution, long life, and prosperous Reign; and by ecchoing out this usual Acclamation upon all occasions, according to its pristine frequent use throughout our Realms and Dominions.
I have thus at large by Histories, Records and Presidents of all times & sorts, (to which sundrie more might be accumulated) irrefragably evidenced the constant un-interrupted practical loyaltie of our Christian Predecessors, in making publick and private Supplications, Prayers, Intercessions and Thanksgivings for our Christian Kings in this Island, whether of the British, Saxon, English, Danish, Norman, or Scotish Race, and for their Queens, their Royal Posterity, and Kingdoms, in their publick and private Devotions, and in their Epistles, Addresses, and Dedications to them; to the inrent they may now at last excite, encourage, provoke, and enflame our degenerated disloyal, undutifull, Men-fearing, Time-serving Generation conscienciously to revive, and cons…antlie to practise this long neglected Christian Dutie, as being the principal means prescribed by God himself, and pursued by his Saints i… all Ages, to produce that publick peace, unitie, pro peritie and settlement which we have all so long expected and longed for, but could never yet obtain by ani… carnal policies, fastings, humiliations, prayers, since we gave over this enjoyned Duty, and can never probably hope for, much lesse actually enjoy, till we return to the cordial un-interrupted performance thereof, and to our pristine Allegiance, Loyaltie, Obedience and Subjection to our undoubted hereditary Soveraign Lord and King, according to our multiplyed Oaths, Protestations, C…venant, the Laws both of God and the Land, the only rules of our Consciences and Practises, both as Christians and Subjects. And if all these with the precedent and subsequent Presidents, Scriptures, Examples, Authorities, our own present Pressures, Dissentions, Confus…ons, decay of Trade, hopes of settlement, peace and prosperity, will not perswade our whole …. Kingdoms to this their bounden Duty, that black Character which the Apostle gives to the obstinate hard-hearted Jews, upon whom wrath was come to the uttermost, will be ours too, 1 Thes. 2. 15. who both killed the Lord Jesus Christ (their KING) and their own Prophets, and have persecuted us, and they please not God, and are contrary to all men. —* Pudet haec opprobria Nobis, Et dici potuisse, & non potuisse refelli.Ovid.