Speech 4 December 1648, Appendix
AN APPENDIX. For the Kingdoms better satisfaction of some occurrences since this SPEECH.
THis Speech, uttered with much pathetique seriousnesse, and heard with great attention, gave such a generall satisfaction to the House that many Members, formerly of a contrary opinion, professed, they were both convinced and converted; others who were dubious in the point of satisfaction, that they were now fully confirmed, most of different opinion put to a stand: and the Majority of the House, declared both by their cheerfull Countenances and Speeches [the Speaker going into the withdrawing Room to refresh himself, so soon as the Speech was ended) that they were abundantly satisfied by what had been thus spoken. After which the Speaker resuming the Chair, this Speech was Seconded by many able Gentlemen, and the debate continuing Saturday, and all Munday and Munday night till about nine of the Clock on Tuesday morning; and 244 Members staying quite out to the end, though the House doores were not shut up (a thing never seen or known before in Parliament) the question was at last put, and notwithstanding the Generals and whole Armies march to Westminster, and Menaces against the Members, in case they Voted for the Treaty, and did not utterly eject it as unsatisfactory, carryed in the affirmative by 140 Voyces (with the four Tellers) against 104 that the question should be put, and then without any division of the House it was,
Resolved on the question, That the Answers of the King to the Propositions of both Houses, are a ground for the House to proceed upon for the settlement of the Peace of the Kingdom.
And to give the General Officers and Soldiers satisfaction, and keep a fair correspondency between the house and them, they so far condescended, as likewise further to vote at the same time
That Mr. Peirpoint, Sir John Evelyn of Wilts, Mr. Solicitor, Col. Birch, M. Ashurst, Sir Thomas Witherington, and Mr. Maynard, are appointed to repair to the head-quarters this afternoon, to confer with the Lord General and his Officers, to keep a Right understanding and a good correspondency between the House and the General and the Army.
Which done, the House who sat up all the day and night before, adjourned until Wensday morning; At which time the General and Officers of the Army highly displeased with the vote and those Members who assented to it, sent two or three whole Regiments of Foot and Horse to Westminster; set a strong guard at the Houses doors, in the lobby, stairs, and at every passage leading towards the house, admitting none but Parliament men themselves to enter into Westminster-Hall, or the back stairs leading to the Court of Requests, and excluding their servants who attended them; Col. Pride, Col. Hewson, and Sir Hardress Waller seized upon divers Members of the Commons house, some at the House doors, other in the Lobby, others on the stairs near the House, without any warrant, or reason alleadged, but their sword and power, as they were going to sit and discharge their duties. Among others, Col. Pride, seized upon Mr. Prynne going up the stairs next the house, and told him, Mr. Prynne, you must not go into the House, but must go along with me; M. Prynne returned this answer, That he was a Member of the House and was going into it to discharge his duty, from which no man should or ought to hinder him, whether he would go, and he should not keep him back, and thereupon thrust up a step or two more. Whereupon Pride thrusting him down before, and Sir Hardress Waller, and others laying hands on, and pulling him down forcibly behind to the Court of Requests great door, Mr. Prynne thereupon demanded by what Authority and Commission, and for what cause they did thus violently seize on, and pull him from the house? to which Pride and Waller shewing him their armed Souldiers standing round about him with swords, muskets, and matches lighted, told him that there was their Commission: to which Mr. Pryme answered, that they were no legal commission, nor cause for them to seize upon him being a Member, and openly protested, that it was an high breach of the Priviledges of Parliament and affront to the house, and desired the standers by to bear witnesse of this violence and his Protestation against it, and that they being more and stronger then he, and all armd and he unarmed, they might forcibly carry him whether they pleased, but stirre he would not thence of his own accord, whereupon they forcibly pushed him into the Queens Court, where some other Members a little before seized, were kept Prisoners by them.
The house bein informed by Mr. Dodridge, a member who came along with Mr. Prynne, of this violence upon him and high breach of priviledge in seizing him and other Members, sent the Serjeant of the House, to demand them of the Captain that guarded them, and to command their present attendance in the House: which message though delivered by him, and the prisoners thereupon requiring obedience, that they might accordingly attend the House: was yet slighted and disobeyed, whereupon the House ordered the Serjeant the second time to go with his mace and demand the Members, and bring them unto the house forthwith; the house refusing to do any businesse till their Members were restored, but Pride and his confederates stayed the Serj…ent in the lobby, and would not suffer him to go to the members; whereupon he returning into the House, acquainted them with the contempt, which was entred into the Journall. Thereupon the House concluded, not to proceed till their Members were restored, and sent a Committee to the General to demand them, Mr. Edward Stephens and Colonell Birch being in the house were sent for to the doore by some of the Officers by false tickets, and pulled out from the house doores by violence, Col. Birch putting his head within the doore, and crying out to the Speaker, whether they would suffer their members to be pulled out thus violently before their faces, and yet sit still?
When night approached St. Peters (who now keeps the prison door keyes of hell and Purgatory) released two of the imprisoned Members (Sir Benjamin Ruddiard, and Mr. Nath. Fiennes) by the same power of the Sword (as he said) that had taken and held them captive: belike they were all prisoners of War, and so their marching up to Westminster was a leavying open warre against the Parliament, and so Treason by their own Declarations and Remonstrance, in as high or higher degree, as that for which they demand the King to be brought to speedy justice and execution. Soon after, he and some other other Officers, promised the imprisoned Members, that they should be removed to Wallingford house, where the Generall and Lieutenant Generall would come and conferre with them, and they should have all sitting accommodations, there provided for them; and that Coaches were provided to carry them thither; whereupon they all took Coach to go thither: but coming to Hell back gate, the Coaches were all there stayed, and the Members thrust all prisoners into Hell, where they were kept all that cold night, without either bedding or other needful accommodations, though some of them aged & infirm, & there enforced to lye upon the bare flower and Benches instead of Beds, few of them taking any rest at all that night. The next morning a little before Dinner, they were all carried fasting to White Hall, by the Generalls order garded with foot and horse, before and behind, and on every side, like so many Traytors to attend the General, and his Councell, who desired presently to speak with them, as the Marshall informed them under whose custody they were put. But when they came there, they waited on their more then Royall new Excellencies till six a clock at night, without eating or drinking: and then received this cold Message, without being admitted to the Generalls or Councells presence. That the Generall and Officers were now so busie in consultation about other important affaires, that they could not speak with them that night, but had given order for their accommodation at the Kings Head, and Swan in the Strand, whither they should be carried that night, and the next morning some Officers would wait on them with Propositions: Which done they were guarded every man with his musqueteer at his back, and others by his side, and horse and foot before and behind their persons, like so many Rogues or felons, and so sent on foot through the dirty street, except six who were lame, who got a Coach) to these two Inns; and there kept prisoners severall daies till some were after by degrees without any condition, or cause assigned of their commitment, and others not released, removed elswhere. The next day after those Members were thus violently seised, Mr. Gewen was seised at the House, and Mr. Vahghan at his Lodging, and sent Prisoners to the other Members: Sir William Litten was likewise seized that day, and kept Prisoner in White Hall: but after released by Sir William Constables Order: That day and five or six dayes following, above one hundred and sixty Members more, whose names were listed by the officers and souldiers that stood at the house Doors, who kept back every one that was so listed, were forcibly secluded and driven away from the House, which could hardly get above 45. or 50. (most confederates with the army to carry on their designes) and Vote their Counsells Imperiall Dictates, as the houses votes & not above 3. or 4. Lords at most attended and made up that Honorable house: all of them still sitting under the armies armed violence & over-awing terror. These 45. or 50. only whiles under this horrid force, during the restraint and forcible seclusion of above 200 members by the army, (and so all their Votes, Orders, & proceedings meerely null and void, by their own Ordinance of August 20. 1647. which declared, all Votes, Ordinances and proceedings during the members absence in the army, though not above 40. at most to be nul & void, from Iuly 26. to August six, though the houses were then almost treble the number they are now, and no one member secluded or actually forced away from either house) have assumed to themselves the name & power of the house, and presumed to repeal all Votes concerning the Treaty as dishonorable and destructive: & among others the Vote made upon this solemne and long debate when there were 244 Members present at the Question, and above 340 at the debate when fullest through age & infirmity could not hold out all night til the question put, & some members contrary to the course of all former Parliam. after these Votes passed, have presumed to draw up & enter particular protestations against it: for which other members in former times have bin suspended the house, & sent prisoners to the tower. The list of those who have entred their dissents & protests against it, follow: because the secluded Members & those who concurred in that Vote, being above three times their number, expect they will give the Kingdom and world some solid and satisfactory reasons of this their dissent, against which there is so great reason in the premisses, dissents without reasons to back them, being no wayes satisfactory to any man.
20 December 1648.
Col. Bosvill,
Lord Gray,
Peregrine Pelham,
Col. Jones,
Col. Temple,
Col. Ven,
Sir Tho. Malivory,
Sir John Bouchier,
Col. Peter Temple,
Humphry Edwards, (whose elect. is void,
Mr. Tho. Challoner.
Sir Gregory Norton,
Michael Oldesworth
Augustin Garland,
Sir Iohn Danvers.
Mr. Dove.
Mr. Hen. Smith.
Mr. Fry, (whose election, is long since voted void)
Mr. Serle,
Nicholas Love,
Iohn Lisle.
Col. Rigby,
Cornelius Holland
Col. Ludlow
Gregory Clement
Col. Puretoy
Col. Stapely
Mr. Dunch
Mr. Cawley
Col. Downes
John Carey
John Blackstone
Thomas Scot
December 21
Col. Hutchinson
Sir Henry Mildmay
Sir Jam. Harrington
25 Decemb.
Col. Edward Harvey
Alderman Pennington
Alderman Atkin
Dan. Blagrave (voted out of the house.
Colonel Moor
Gilbert Millington
In a Letter from Paris, writ by an Independent Agent there, to an Independent Member of the House of Commons, a great friend of the Armies, dated Paris Nov. 28. 1648, there is this passage: I am fallen into the acquaintance of three or four Catholicks of great ingenuity, and in their way, of much Religion: undoubtedly, it is an errour to look at all Papists through the same prospective; for they are more to be differenced then English Protestants can be. I finde their opinion of, and dependance upon the Pope, little or nothing what we imagined it to be, and better principled To make Members of a free Common-wealth, then the most English. Their opposition to the King is not to be reconciled.Note. Their hopes now are upon the Army, to whom they wish all prosperity as to the setling of a Representative, being extremely distasted with Regal hereditary Power through the world.
This Letter compared with the close of the fore going Speech, the Armies late force upon both Houses and their Members to dissolve them, their imprisoning and removing the King to bring him to tryall, their voting at their generall Councel of War at White-hall the 23 of December last [carryed by two voyces] That all Papists should have free liberty and toleration of conscience, and all Sequestrations and forfeitures as Papists only, taken off. Their earnest prosecution of the new Jesuiticall Representative, to divide the whole kingdom into bloudy feuds and factions to destroy one another, and make way for the common forraign Popish Enemies, to invade and conquer us in our present low condition, without any opposition, and lose Ireland past all recovery; their casting of the eminent imprisoned Members into hell it self in highest contempt and scorn; their setting up a new Parliament of State, and a Convocation too at White-hall, as the supreme Councel, to vote, settle and determine all affairs of Church and State, and new mould the whole Government of this Kingdom; with the Petition of Robert de Luke to the General within these few dayes, for him and his fellow-Messengers, authorized by the State to apprehend Priests and Jesuits, for his Warrant to apprehend the Jesuits and Priests in his Army and Quarters without any Officers disturbance, where they have discovered many of them since their march to London; their present complyance with Sir Iohn Winter the archest Jesuited Papist (a person excepted in the Propositions) and using him and Sir Toby Matthews that pragmaticall Jesuite, to draw Owen Roh Oneal, and the bloody Popish Rebels in Ireland, to joyn with them against Monarchy and the Princes Title; with their late extraordinary favours to Priests and Papists, of which they boast; the repealing of the Oaths of Supremacy and Allegeance (made principally against the Pope, Papists, and their Jesuiticall Usurpations, Innovations and Antimonarchicall practices of excommunicating, deposing, dis-inheriting and murthering our Protestant Princes; and their manifold Treasons, Conspiracies and attempts upon their Persons, Crowns and Kingdoms.) Their late illegal and treasonable murthering and beheading of the King, and the late Petition of the Army that all imprisoned for their conscience, or Religion, may be released, extending unto Popish Priests and Jesuits, and purposely intended for their benefit, there being none else but such restrained, and but few of them: And their present actings are a cleer evidence to every rational mans conscience, that all the Armies present councels, designes, force, and proceedings against the King, Prince, Parliament, Members and their new pretended Representative, are but the Jesuits and Roman Catholicks Brats Impostures and undermining Projects, to accomplish their own ends; and that they have already got the greatest sway in all their consultations and proceedings, of purpose to work our speedy ruine, if the Officers and Army will neither timely discern nor repent of it, and be no longer spurred on and ridden with a full career by these Jesuiticall Furies, who fear a discovery ere they have completed their work, and therefore make such post haste to accomplish it by the Armies present distempers, uncapable yet of better councel, or timely informations, to recall them from their own approaching speedy ruine, their ears being so deafned, and their brains so intoxicated with their Jesuiticall Enchantments, which all the Kingdom and world will now clearly discover, and I hope the Officers and Army will do so too by this discovery of them, and thereupon repent of all their violence and late proceedings, at which the Papists at ROME and in forraign parts do much rejoyce and triumph.
I shall close up all with these words of both Houses of Parliament in their Ordinance of the 1 of April 1643,*A Collection pag. 1…. That nothing but RUINE AND DESOLATION CAN BE EXPECTED, unlesse God in mercy prevent it, and incline his Majesties heart to the faithfull advice of his great Councel of Parliament (as now he hath done in this Treaty) which hath ever been, and is [under God] the chief support of his royall Dignity, and the security of all we have, or can enjoy.
FINIS.
End of the text · William Prynne, Speech 4 December 1648 (1649)