The Sovereign Power of Parliaments Part 4, Appendix · Part 5 – Part 6
Swethland.
NOt to mention the Kings and Kingdom of Norway, long ſince incorporated into Denmarke, whoſe lives and Catalogue you may reade in*Coſmog. lib. 4. cap. 21, 24, 25. Munſter, Ioannis Magnus, Crantzius, and others:*Gul. Neubrig. lib. 3. cap. 6. in which Realme not one King anciently died of age or diſeaſes in above one hundred yeers, but of violent deaths; there being this cuſtom, That whoſoever ſlew a tyrant King, was thereby made a King. The Kings of Swethland have alwayes been elected upon certaine conditions, and ſubordinate to the power and cenſures of their whole States and Parliament, in ſuch ſort as the Kings of Hungary, Bohemia, Poland, and Denmarke have beene; and oft times this Kingdome hath beene annexed to the Realme of Denmarke, and ſubject to the Daniſh Kings, as they ſaw occaſion: The names and lives of the Swediſh Kings before and ſince their converſion to Chriſtianity, you may reade at large in*Coſmog. lib. 4. cap 28, 29, 30, 31, 32. Heyl. Geogr. pag 430, 431. Chytraeus Chron. Sax. Hermold. Chron. Slauorum. Ioannis Magnus hiſt. Goth. Swedorumque. Guagn. compen. & Chron. Munſter, Joannis Magnus, Crantzius, Olaus Magnus, and others: I ſhall give you a taſte onelyonly of ſome of them out of thoſe Authors. Halſten, and Animander his ſucceſſor were thruſt out of their Thrones and Realms by their Subjects. After whoſe death, the Swedes elected one King of their owne Nation, the Gothes another, not enduring a forraign Prince to reigne over them. King Bugerius ſlaying his brother Ericus, who had impriſoned him at a banquet, his Nobles deteſting this his treacherous act, roſe up in Armes againſt him, expelled him the Realme, and beheaded his Queen and Magnus his ſon, electing Magnus the ſon of Ericus for their King. Magnus the ſeventh, betrothed his ſon Aquin to a kinſwoman of the Earle of Holſtain upon this condition, That unleſſe Aquin ſhould receive her a Virgin, all the Nobles of the Realme ſhould be freed from their Oath of Allegeance to him. The Virgin ſailing into Swethland, was taken priſoner by Waldamer King of Denmarke, who betrothed his daughter Margaret to Aquin: whereupon the Nobles of Sweden denied to yeeld any more obedience to their King, deſerted Magnus and choſe Albert King: Magnus ſeeking to regaine his Realme, was defeated in battell and died in exile. Queen Margaret taking Albert priſoner, and conquering Sweden, left it and two Kingdoms more to Ericus her adopted ſon. But the Swedes weary of a forraigne yoke, by the helpe of Engelbert, denied ſubjection to him, and waged warre ſo long with him, that he was forced to place Swedes in all the Caſtles by agreement, and to receive onelyonly halfe the revenues of the Realme in his abſence, and at laſt (tired out with the wars) deſerted both Crowne and Kingdome. After this the Swedes elected Charles for their King, who after ſeven yeers reigne, perceiving that he grew grievous and diſpleaſing to the States of Sweden, taking his owne private goos onelyonly with him, and leaving the treaſure of the Realm in a ſafe place, left the Kingdome. Whereupon they elected Chriſtierne the firſt, the King of Denmarke and Norway, for their King; againſt whom they took up armes, becauſe he had broken that paction preſcribed to him when he tooke the Crowne; whereupon Anno 1499. Chriſtierne came with a great power to ſubdue the Swedes, but he was eaſily conquered, repulſed thence twice one after another by the Swedes united forces: who elected them a Governour whom they called a Marſhall, which had power to call generall Aſſemblies of the States, and execute the Kings Office, and might have beene elected King upon ſuch conditions as the States propounded, which he refuſed to ſubmit to. King Iohn thinking to ſubdue the Swedes after Chriſtiernes death, was repulſed by them, and his Queen taken priſoner. His ſonne Chriſtierne the ſecond, King of Denmarke, by the treachery of Guſtavus Archbiſhop of Ʋpſalis, after many encounters, upon promiſe to continue their Laws, Liberties, and Priviledges inviolably, and to remit all offences paſt by a ſolemne Oath, was elected by the Swedes for their King: who ſwearing theſe Articles and confirming them by his Charter, was upon this admitted into the Towne and Caſtle of Holme; *Chyt. Chron. Saxo-lib. 10. pag. 311.where feaſting all the Nobles and principall men of Swethland two dayes together, ſuſpecting no treachery, he ſuddenly apprehends them, impriſons, murthers all the Nobles, Gentry, Citizens, Commons, yea Biſhops and Monkes, with extraordinary cruelty, ſpoils their wives and Orphans of all their goods, and exerciſeth more then barbarous tyranny over them; which Guſtavus Erichſon, a noble Swede then in Denmarke hearing of, eſcape thence privily, and comes into Swethland diſguiſed, raiſeth an Army to revenge this butchery, delivers his Country from this Tyrant, and for his noble ſervice was by their unanimous vote elected and crowned King of Sweden in his ſtead; the Swedes in a publike Declaration manifeſting their expulſion and deprivation of Chriſtierne for his treachery and tyranny to be juſt and lawfull.*Chyt. Chron. Saxo. lib. 21, 22. p. 636, 637, 638, 647, 648, 649, &c. Ericus the ſeventeenth King of Sweden, impriſoning his brother, murdering his faithfull Counſellours, warring upon his Subjects, playing the tyrant, and matching himſelfe unworthily to a woman of meane condition, was for theſe his miſdemeanors taken priſoner, with his Queene, depoſed, and his brother made King in his ſtead, Anno 1599. And*Heyl. Georgr. pag. 340. Sigiſmund King of Sweden, taking upon him the Crowne of Poland, after fourteen yeers reigne, was depoſed and diſpoſſeſſed of his Kingdom Anno 1607. and Charles his Uncle made King in his ſtead.
Aſſyria, Cyprus, Lombardy, Naples, Ʋenice.
I Could now acquaint you with many ſuch like paſſages and ſtories in the Kingdomes of Aſſyria; as how effeminate*Munſt. Coſm. lib. 5. cap. 79. Sardanapalus, for his vices and miſ-government was deprived by his Subjects, burned in his Palace, and Arbactus made King in his ſtead. In the Kingdom of*Munſt. Coſm. lib. 5. cap. 30. Cyprus, where King Peter murthering his brother and thoſe of Geneva, was ſoon after taken priſoner and made a tributary Prince. King Iohn governed by Helena his wife, and ſhe by his Nurſe, which made the people weary of the government, had a Regent by conſent of the Nobles (Ioba of Portugall, whom they married to his daughter Carlota) ſet over him and the Realm and all the royall power ſoon after put into his hands, who being ſoon poyſoned by Helena, Lewes ſonne to the Duke of Savoy was ſent for and crowned King by generall aſſent, and John and Iames his ſons put by.*Mach. Hiſt. Heyl. Geogr. p. 193, 154. Clephus the ſecond King of Lombardy was ſo cruell, that after his death they would have no more Kings, but choſe thirty Dukes to governe them, who continued this government eleven yeeres. Deſiderius the laſt King of Lombardy was taken priſoner with all his children in Pavia by Charles the great, and ſo that Kingdome ceaſed, Anno 774.*Heyl Geogr. p. 166, 167. Generall H…ſt. of Spaine, lib. 18 p. 686. Tancred the fourth King of Naples was depoſed by Pope Celeſtine the third with his peoples conſent. Momfrey Baſtard poyſoning Conrade the ſeventh King of Naples, and uſurping the Crown, was depoſed by Charles Earle of Aniou, who enjoyed the Crowne till Aragon ſeaſed on the Realme. Jone Queene of Naples married Andrew ſecond ſonne to Charles King of Hungary, whom ſhe hanged at her window for inſufficiency; after marrying Iames of Tarragou, ſhe beheaded him for lying with another woman, and was at laſt driven out of her Kingdome by Lewes of Hungary, and hanged at the ſame window where ſhe hanged her firſt husband.*Ioan … Legliſe, pag. 277. Peter Duke of Ʋenice was for his tyranny and miſgovernment beſieged in his palace by the people,The Venecian Hiſtory. which they fired, and then taking him his wife and ſonne, dragged them unto the butchery, where they chopped them in pieces and threw him to the dogs to be devoured, notwithſtanding all their ſubmiſſions and intreaties on their knees, Anno 977. So Duke Falier, and many other Dukes, have beene condemned to death and executed by the States of Ʋenice, and that juſtly as *Com. lib. 2. c. 5. pag. 277.Bodine grants. Multitudes of ſuch like preſidents occur, in moſt other Dukedoms and Principalities, which I will not name, becauſe they want the title of Kings, though*4 Distinct. 49. queſt. 1. Art. 3. qu. 5. Aquinas truly holds, That a Kingdome is ſo called from ruling; therefore he who hath others under his government, is ſaid to have a Kingdome; in reality, though not in propriety of ſpeech; and ſo are Kings in verity, though not in title. I might adde to theſe many more examples, manifeſting what miſeries and untimely deaths tyrannicall Kings and Princes have undergone in all ages and States, being commonly depoſed, poyſoned, murthered; but I ſhall for brevity paſſe over theſe examples, remitting the Readers to*Polit. lib. 5. cap. 10, 11. Ariſtotle, *Variae hiſt.Aelian, and Doctor Beard, his Theatre of Gods Judgements, and come nearer home to Scotland, as having neareſt relation to England,