MASTER 
 NEGA TIVE 
 
 NO. 93-81262 
 
MICROFILMED 1993 
 COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES/NEW YORK 
 
 as part of the 
 "Foundations of Western Civilization Preservation Project" 
 
 Funded bv the 
 NATIONAL ENDOWMENT FOR THE HUMANITIES 
 
 Reproductions may not be made without permission from 
 
 Columbia University Library 
 
COPYRIGHT STATEMENT 
 
 The copyright law of the United States - Title 17, United 
 States Code - concerns the making of photocopies or 
 other reproductions of copyrighted material. 
 
 Under certain conditions specified in the law, libraries and 
 archives are authorized to furnish a photocopy or other 
 reproduction. One of these specified conditions is that the 
 photocopy or other reproduction is not to be "used for any 
 purpose other than private study, scholarship, or 
 research." If a user makes a request for, or later uses, a 
 photocopy or reproduction for purposes in excess of "fair 
 use," that user may be liable for copyright infringement. 
 
 This institution reserves the right to refuse to accept a 
 copy order if, in its judgement, fulfillment of the order 
 would involve violation of the copyright law. 
 
A UTHOR: 
 
 RERESBY, JOHN 
 
 TITLE: 
 
 THE MEMOIRS OF THE 
 HONOURABLE SIR... 
 
 PLA CE: 
 
 LONDON 
 
 DA TE: 
 
 1734 
 
COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES 
 PRESERVATION DEI'ARTMENT 
 
 BIBLIOGRAnilC MirROFORM TARHFT 
 
 ^ 
 
 Master Negative # 
 
 .-?/-?^_?_-__y^ 
 
 Original Material as Filmed - Existing Bibliographic Record 
 
 V ■"■' "li %^ ■ 
 
 *Wi^— m«^*« 
 
 r 
 
 942.066 
 
 R311 '"'-•^''==by' ^ir- Jo))n, M bart., 1634-168" i 
 
 The .^emcirs of the Honourable Sir John Rercsb- ' 
 
 hart, and lnr,t governor of York. ccntainirP " - 
 
 coveral private and rc:.-..rkable transaction^, fro. ' 
 
 .ho restoration to th.e revolution inolus^'vely " 
 
 nardifri'Sl."'''"' '"'"''^'- '"^'•"^' 
 od? p. 
 
 2^ c- 
 
 Restrictions on Use; 
 
 ^. 
 
 TECHNICAL MICROFORM DATA 
 
 REDUCTION RATIO: //v 
 
 FILM SIZE: ^____ 
 
 IMAGE PLACEMENT: lA IIA^ IB IIU 
 
 DATE FILMED: _*!;___/_ INITIALS '9'-^ 
 
 HLMEDBY: RESEARCH PTT BLICATinN.q , TNJC WOOnnRmnp rr' 
 
BIBLIOGIIAPHIC IRREGULARI I IHS 
 
 MAIN 
 ENTRY 
 
 . f^^iid^B^ Si(? J^ H^ 
 
 Pibli Qgraphic Irieguiarities in the Orig inal Document 
 List volumes and pages affected; include name of institution if filming borrowed text. 
 
 Page(8) missing/ not available: 
 
 VolumesCs) missing/not available: 
 
 egible and/ or damaged page(s): 
 
 Page(s) or volumes(s) misn umbered: ^^G ' ^^ ^ DO "PU OVT ?^ 
 Bound out of sequence:. 
 
 Page(s) or illustration(s) filmed from copy borrowed fruin:_ 
 
 Other: 
 
c 
 
 Association for Information and image IManagement 
 
 1100 Wayne Avenue, Suite 1100 
 Silver Spring, Maryland 20910 
 
 301/587-8202 
 
 Centimeter 
 
 1 2 3 
 
 iiiiiii 
 
 liiiiliiiiliiiiliiiil 
 
 8 9 10 
 
 iiiliiiiliiiiliiiiliiiili 
 
 n 12 13 14 15 mm 
 
 liiiiliiiiliiiiliiiiliiiiliiiiliiiiliiiiliiiil 
 
 Inches 
 
 TTT 
 
 1 
 
 1.0 
 
 I.I 
 
 1.25 
 
 I I I I I 
 
 1^ 2.8 
 
 2.5 
 
 ■^ H...0 
 
 
 Ui ||3-2 
 
 2.2 
 
 if Is 
 
 
 ^ ¥■' 
 
 2.0 
 
 Ii. 
 
 
 •i li 
 
 tiii^u. 
 
 
 1.8 
 
 1.4 
 
 1.6 
 
 TTT 
 
 5 
 
 1 
 
 V 
 
 MRNUFRCTURED TO HUM STPINDRRDS 
 BY RPPLIED IMRGE. INC. 
 

 
 
 .'/>^'. 
 
 -«€:" 
 
 ;'^' 
 
 fXl^'f 
 
 Vi/T 
 
 ,■»• 
 
 *e 
 
 4f ! 
 
 •^^ 
 
 ,^- 
 
 ■ - <, ■ 
 
 • «_ , * ■ 
 
 
 •t-- 
 
 
 .oS^ 
 
 
 ^..,. * ■ 
 
 i * ^-^ »*-^ 
 
 uuoeCttpuiikixigark 
 
 LIBRARY 
 
 •t .» .'• 
 
 s. * 
 
 .■jjtf. 
 
 
 
 ><1'^' 
 
 1^7* 
 
 ,1^' v 
 
 
 
 
 
 ''^'t^. 
 
 •;-??:• ^ 
 
 f^j 
 
 «:V 
 
 
 e.- 
 
 i 
 
 I 
 
 A 
 
 
 :T^-'r-r^^**:> 'Vfl/L^*^' 
 
 
 
 
 <L 
 
 ^^'^J 
 
 =?^]^<i^^^^'''^{^':'.' 
 
 
 ^ ^ 
 
 *■ *■ , . « 
 
 
 1^- 
 
 ? V" -^ 
 
 
 u''/' 
 
 "i**i *. .Kr'.-^ -fx, 
 
 .-ii 
 
 :t.^ 
 
 
 
 
 's v: 
 
 •fe. 
 
 
 J* 
 
 f» 
 
 ^ 
 
 vf^vi^^^ .V:^\c 
 
 ''^Hv¥S^!h 
 
 
 '■■^mt^^! 
 
 "^;'/> , 
 ^•^•i.- 
 
 ^-^^^i 
 
 ,v5^;^v 
 
 fji 
 
 
 
 
 V/, 
 
 
 
 M. 
 
 
 
 
 
 % " %■■■ , i « -, S 
 
 i* 
 
 * 
 
 
 
 f ^ 
 
 .«►:»,* 
 
 't V 
 
 f**!^ 
 
 
 
 
 ■'** ^ 
 
 4^ir» 
 
 H^^B^,;?^ 
 
 -. ' 
 
 ■^iSvv 
 
 4^-, 
 
 •f i 
 
 ','.'' "■',-'# «' 
 
 ,J *'..■' ^'. »J ... .i . , 'k..' ■ 
 
 #t ,- 
 
 " . '-*>-r-, .'■ 
 
 ■.«» 
 
 ... !' «... ' ' .' ,.^%' 
 
 \V 
 
 
V * 
 
 THE 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 OfThe Honourable 
 
 Sir JOI/N RERESBT.h^rt. 
 
 And laft Governor oiTO RK. 
 
 Containing feveral 
 
 Private and Remarkable TranfaEiions^ 
 
 From the 
 
 Restoration to the Revolution 
 
 Inclufively. 
 
 Pnblijhed from his Original Maniifcript. 
 
 LONDON: 
 
 Printed for Samuel Harding, Bookfeller on the 
 Pavement in Sc. Martin's Lane^ 1734. 
 * Price 4 s. 6 d. bound. 
 
 

 o 
 
 
 !y' 
 
 i 
 
 
 >^ 
 
 X^ JV XZ^ JL xjl \^ XZ/t 
 
 p 
 
 ^^ 
 
 i 
 
 m 
 
 O hijijl on the Value ofJVorks of 
 this 'Nature^ njohen they com^ 
 
 from Men of real Knowledge 
 and Undefjiandingj were only 
 . to repeat what the wijeji Men have often 
 faidjor us. The Reader ^ we believe^ will 
 he convinced that Sir John was a Perfon 
 very equal to the Task he undertook ; and 
 having fuch Opportunities of pry In gy as It 
 were^ into the Hearts of the great eft Mlni^ 
 fters and Princes of his Tlme^ It had been 
 unpardonable in him to have refrained from 
 communicating the many Important Matters 
 he fo ajjuredly knew. The Reader ^ will^ 
 
 A 2 
 
 i 
 
 we 
 
t» R E FA C E. 
 
 njoe hope ^ Jin d in htm an TmfaHialhyfare^ \ 
 ly met with in fFriters^ njoho have been j \ 
 like him^ of a Party \ for being a Man of 
 the fri^eji Honour^ and nice/i Confiencey 
 he it feems thought it as unjujl 72ot to ap^ 
 plaud an Enemy jor a?iy good he had done^ 
 as <weak not to accuje a Friend njohen^ 
 through humanFrailtyJoe hapned to deferve 
 it. This^ and what goes before^ might be 
 fufficient to befpeak the Reader in his Fa-^ 
 voury even tho he had related no FaSi but 
 fuch as had been an hundred Times repeat-' 
 ed before this y^ppearanceofhis Book ; but 
 as he abounds with Thino-s new jor what is 
 the fame ^ with Matters known to very few 
 livings and which will much ajjif us in 
 forming a right Idea of the Times he lived 
 in J he muji claim a greater Share of At- 
 tention. But we will now leave Sir John to 
 plead his own Caufe^ and /hall only addy 
 that we fatter our fives with the Appro- 
 bation of the Public for our thus retrieving 
 him from the Recejjes of Privacy. 
 
 THE 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 OF 
 
 Sir JOHN RERESBT. 
 
 From the Year 1658 to the Year 168^. 
 
 Sir John having very minutely acquainted us 
 'iiHth his Btrthy Education and Travels^ 
 which could neither ciffcit the Reader^ nor be 
 admitted as Part of what we promife to print 
 ofhim^ we pall fa out from the Tear 1658. 
 
 His Year, fays he, died 
 
 the Prote6tor Oliver Crom- 
 well one of the greateft and 
 braveft Men, had his Caufe 
 
 been good, the World ever 
 
 iaw. His Actions I leave to the Hiftorian - 
 and having been very near his Perfon but 
 once, at an Audience of an Ambalfador at 
 Whitehall^ I can only fay that his Figure 
 did not come up to his Charafter ; he was 
 indeed a likely Perfon, but not handfom, nor 
 had he a very bold look with him. He 
 
 S wad 
 
 ^1 
 
a MEMOIRS 
 
 165S. was plain in his Apparel, and rather negli- 
 Ujiiii-vfiMj g^^^ ^jj^^ ^^^^ Tears he had at will, and 
 
 was doubtlefs, the deepcft Diffembler on 
 Earth. 
 The Duke of Buckingham^ who had at- 
 Au^, 1 2. tended the King in his Exile, had difobliged, 
 ^^' and left his Majefty fome time before, and 
 was now endeavouring to marry the Daugh-^ 
 ter and Heirefs of Thomas Lord Fairfaxy 
 formerly the Parliament's General, and un- 
 to whom had been granted the greateft 
 Part of the faid Duke's Eftate. This 
 Duke was the finefl: Gentleman, both for 
 Perfon and Wit, I think I ever faw j but 
 he knew not how to be long ferious, or 
 mindful of Bufinefs; and had behaved with 
 fome Infolence to the King, which was the 
 Caufe of their Separation. It was now that 
 I firft became acquainted with him, and he 
 from the very firft Moment exprefled a 
 Kindnefs for me. 
 
 It was now eafy to perceive that a way 
 was paved to facilitate the King's Return ; 
 but ftill the Rump kept up fome Face of 
 State ; and I remember to have been pre- 
 fent at a Dinner, given by the City of io«- 
 dony to Lambert and other Officers of the 
 Army, by far more coftly and fplendid, 
 than any I ever faw given afterwards to his 
 
 Majefty; 
 
 Of sir J O H N R E R £ S B r* 
 
 Majefty ; fo much is Awe more prevalent 
 than Love* '^''■ 
 
 Continuing but in an indifferent State of 
 Health, I, partly for that Reafon, and 
 partly for others, returned to Parisy where 
 I had no fooner put my felf into fome "Equi- 
 page, but I endeavoured to be known at 
 our Queen Mother's Court, which ftie then 
 kept at the Palais Royal. Her Majefty had 
 none of her Children with her, but the 
 Princefs Henrietta Maria *^ and few of the 
 Englijh making their Court there, I was the 
 better received* As I fpoke the Language 
 of the Country and danced pretty well, the 
 young Princefs, then about fifteen Years of 
 Age, behaved towards me with all the civil 
 Freedom that might be; flie made me 
 dance with her, played on the Harpficord 
 to me in her Highnefs's Chamber; fuffered 
 me to wait on her as fhe walked in the 
 Garden, and fometimes to tofs her in a 
 Swing between two Trees, and, in fine, to 
 be prefent at all her innocent Diverfions. 
 
 The Queen commanded me to attend as 
 often as I conveniently could ; £he had a 
 great affeftion for England^ notwithftanding 
 the Severity of Ufage ftie and hers had met 
 with there. With the great Men and La- 
 
 B z dies 
 
 0<^. 20* 
 
 m 
 
•*# 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 "dies o£France^ fiie difcourfed much ki Praife 
 of the People and Country, of their Courage, 
 their Generofity, their good Nature, and 
 'would excufe all the late Misfortunes, as 
 brought about by fome defperate Enthuliafts, 
 rather than proceeding from the Genius 
 and Temper of the Nation. To give a lit- 
 tte Inftance of her Inclination for the £»^- 
 Upj I hapned to carry an Englijh Gentle- 
 man with me one Day to Court, and he, 
 to be very fine, had got him a Garniture of 
 rich Ribbon to his Suit, in which was a 
 Mixture of Red and Yellow ; which the 
 Queen obferving, called to me, and bad me 
 advife my Friend to mend his Fancy a lit- 
 tle, as to his Ribbons, the two Colours he 
 had joined, being ridiculous in France^ and 
 might give the French Occafion to laugh at 
 
 him. 
 
 I had three Coufms then in an Engltp. 
 
 Convent at Paris^ one of them an antient 
 Lady, and fince Abbefs of the Houfe : Hi- 
 ther the Queen was wont often to retire for 
 fome Days^ and the Lady would tell me 
 that Lord Jermyn^ fince St. Jlbans^ had the 
 Queen greatly in awe of him, and indeed 
 it was obvious that he had great Intereft 
 with her Concerns ^ but that he was marri- 
 ed to her, or had Children by her, as fome 
 
 have 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresby, 5 
 
 have reported, I did not then believe, tho' '^^o. 
 the Thing was certainly fo. *^ ^ 
 
 The Court of France was very fplendid 
 this Winter ; a grand Mask was danced at 
 the Louvre^ where the King and Princefs 
 Henrictte of England danced to Admiration : 
 But there was nov/ a greater Refort to the 
 Palace than the French Court J the good 
 Humour and Wit of ^ur Queen Mother, 
 and the Beauty of the Princefs her Daugh- 
 ter being more inviting than any thing that 
 appeared in the French Queen, who was a 
 Spaniard. 
 
 The Queen Mother received the News 
 of his Majefty's happy Reftoration, with all 
 imaginable Demonftrations of Joy, and, a- 
 mong other Things, gave a noble Ball at 
 her Court, to which every Body of the 
 greatefl: Quality was invited, and to which 
 all the Englifi Gentlemen, then at PariSy 
 had Admittance. Having been ill fome 
 Time before, I would have been excufed 
 from Dancing, but the Queen commanded 
 me to take out the Cardinal's Niece, I o- 
 beyed. 
 
 I flayed at Paris till Aiigujt^ and received 
 more Honours from the Queen and the 
 Princefs her Daughter than I dcferved, 
 QX could acknowledge, but by the mcft 
 
 B J con,- 
 
 # 
 
^'f- 
 
 1660- 
 
 '^u^. Z. 
 
 M E M O I R S 
 
 conftant Duty and Attendance in my 
 Power. 
 
 On the 2d loftant I fat out for England \ 
 but before my Departure, I waited on the 
 Queen for her Commands ; (he told me fhe 
 would write by me, and ordered me to at-* 
 tend next Morning for her Letter. Haw 
 ing received it and taken my Leave, I de- 
 fired to know if it required Haftc? Her 
 Majefty faid, No, for that it contained but 
 little befides a particular Recommendation 
 of me to her Son the King. 
 
 At London I met my Mother and moft of 
 my Relations, who were come up, as from 
 all Parts of England they did, to fee the 
 King, and was prefented by the Duke oi 
 Ormond^ then but Marquifs, to his Majelty 
 in the privy Chamber at WhitehaU^ and de- 
 livering him the Queen's Letter, he asked 
 me feveral Queftions, both concerning her 
 and my Voyage. 
 
 The Court at Whitehall foon became very 
 magnificent, the Duke of Tork having his 
 Court apart, and the Duke of Gloucejfer his ; 
 The Kingdom was now very rich, and Men 
 were generally fatisfied with the King's 
 Return, tho' fome Malecontents of feveral 
 Sorts there were ^ and how ihould it be o-. 
 flier wife ? But the King did not much ad- 
 
 . ' here 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresby, */ 
 
 hereto Bulinefs: All was calm and eafy, 1660. 
 he had a Parliament ready to yield to any 
 Thing that was reafonable, as the A£ts they 
 made fufficiently declare, and the Earl of 
 Clarendon^ then Chancellor, was at the 
 Helm. The King, who was at an Age and 
 Vigor for it, purfued his Pleafures; and if 
 Love prevailed with him more than any 
 other Paffion, he had this for Excufe, be*^ 
 fides that his Completion w^as of an amp- 
 rous Sort, the Women feemed to be the 
 Aggrelfors^ and I have fince heard the 
 King fay That they would fometimes offer 
 themfelves to his Embraces: Nor were the 
 two Dukes, his Brothers, more averfe to 
 the Sex than his Majefty. 
 
 About this Time the King's Aunt (the Nov. 
 Queen of Bohania) came over from the 
 Baguey as did alfo his Sifter, the Princefs 
 of Orange'^ but they both dyed foon after 
 their Arrival: as did alfo the Duke of Glou-^ 
 cejier. 
 
 The Queen Mother often asked me if th^ 
 King had done any thing for me, and what 
 it was I had fixed my Mind on, that ihe 
 might fpeak a Word for me ; but in truth I 
 did not at that Time purfue my own Advan- 
 tage as I might have done \ and went to 
 Court rather to converfe and look about me, 
 
 3 4 ^^v^ 
 
S MEMOIRS 
 
 1660. than to follicit any Favour : I chiefly relied 
 
 on the Queen's Kindnefs to me, and the 
 Influence flie had over the King ; but all 
 the plea&g SuperllruSture fell to the 
 Ground ; the Queen left E?igland foon after 
 the Death of her Children, taking the Prin- 
 cefs Henrietta aw^ay with her to Paris^ and 
 I was difappointed. 
 ^ofi, 6. At this Time a fmall Rebellion was raif- 
 ed in London by one Venner^ which in its 
 very Rife was defeated by a Party of the 
 Guards 5 but running out of Town they 
 rallied again in Cane^vood near Highgate* 
 Having a mind therefore to fee a little A- 
 clion, I mounted one of my Coach-horfes^ 
 and mounted my Man upon the other, and 
 joined Sir Thomas Sands^ who commanded 
 the Party of the Guards that went in pur-^ 
 fult of the Incendiaries. Having fearch'd 
 the Wood till Midnight, we came to a lit- 
 tle Houfe, where the People told us they 
 had been defiring fome Vicluals but a little 
 while befo and that they could not be 
 far off. Accordingly, about an Hour after 
 this, we found fome of them in the thickeft 
 Part of the Wood. They difcharged their 
 Pieces at us, but the Moon fettiEg they 
 get from us, and hurried back again to Lon- 
 don^ 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresby. 9 
 
 don^ where they met with the Fate every 1661. 
 Body knows. Their Captain and about '^ '^ ^ 
 twenty more were hanged, drawn and quar- 
 tered : About twenty of them were killed in 
 their feveral Skirmifhes, and about as many 
 of the King's Men, one of which was fhot 
 not far from me in Cane-Wood. .^ 
 
 It was this Summer that the Duke of 
 Tor^ firfl: took any particular Notice of me. 
 I hapned to be in Difcourfe with the French 
 Ambaflador, and fome other Gentlemen of 
 his Nation, in the Prefence at Whitehall y and 
 the Duke joined us, he being a great Lover 
 of the Frend) Tongue, and kind to thofe 
 who fpoke it. The next Night he talked 
 with me a long while, as he was at Supper 
 with the King. 
 
 Now it was that the King went to re- 1662. 
 ceive the Infante of Portugal at Portf?nouthy j^j 
 attended by the greatefl: Court I ever faw in 
 any Progrefs. But though, upon this Occa- 
 lion, every thing was gay and fplendid, 
 and profiifely joyful, it was eafy to difcern 
 that the King was not exceflively charmed 
 with his new Brid^, who was a very little 
 Woman with a pretty tolerable Face ; fhe, 
 neither in Perfon nor Manners, had anyone 
 Article to ftand in Competition with the 
 Charms of the Cowntcfs o£ Cajfkmain^ (imce 
 
 Dutchefs 
 
!k664. 
 
 JO MEMOIRS 
 
 1662 Dutchefs o£ CleveJand) the fineft Woman of 
 her Age. It is well known that the Lord 
 Chancellor had the Blame of this unfruitful 
 Match, and that the Queen was faid to have 
 had a conftant Fluor upon her, which ren- 
 dered her incapable of Conception. 
 
 This Year the War broke out between us 
 and the Dutch ; and I refolved to ferve as V o- 
 lunteer in our Fleet, hoping to be on Board 
 the Duke's own Ship. I accordingly equipped 
 my felf with Neceflaries for the Sea,and went 
 to procure the King's Leave to go on board, 
 and to receive his Commands to the Dukej 
 intending to be gone the next Day. The 
 King told me he was willing I Ihould go, 
 but had Letters to write to the Duke, which 
 he would fend by me, and ordered me to 
 Itay for them day after day (expefting, it 
 feems, firft to hear from the Duke) till at 
 laft his Majefty told me he fliould not write, 
 and that I needed not now to go, for that 
 the Duke would be fpeedily on Shore, he 
 not having been able to bring the Dutch to 
 Aftion. 
 
 ^55^. A dreadful Plague raged this Summer in 
 London^ and fwept away 97309 Perfonsv It 
 was ufual for People to drop down in the 
 Streets as they went about their Bulinefs; 
 and a Story is reported for a certain Truth, 
 
 That 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresbt, h 
 
 That a Bagpiper being exceflively overcome 1665. 
 with Liquor, fell down in the Street and 
 there lay afleep. In this Condition he was 
 taken up and thrown into a Cart, betimes 
 the next Morning, and carried away with 
 fome dead Bodies. Mean while he awoke 
 from his Sleep, it being now about Day- 
 break, and riling up began to play a Tune, 
 which fo furpriz'd the Fellows that drove 
 the Cart, who could fee nothing diftinftly, 
 that in a Fright they betook them to their 
 Heels,and would have it that they had taken 
 up the Devil in the Difguife of adead Man. 
 
 But to refume other Things,I married,and 
 was thereby prevented from being an Eye- 
 witnefs of the D//r^)^ War; and fo I fhall 
 only fay that his Highnefs obtained a glori- 
 ous Viftory over that Republick. 
 
 His Royal Highnefs the Duke and his 
 Duchefs came down to Tork^ where it was j^^^ ^^ 
 obferved that Mr. Sydney^ the handfomeft 
 Youth of his Time, and of the Duke's Bed- 
 chamber, was greatly in love with the 
 Duchefs, and indeed he might well be excuf- 
 ed, for the Duchefs Daughter to Chancellor 
 Hidcy was a very handfom Perfonage, and a 
 Woman of fineWit. The Duchefs on her Part 
 feemed kind to him, but very innocently ; 
 But be had the Misfortune to be baniflied 
 
IZ 
 
 0^'S' 
 
 1666. 
 yufy 25. 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 the Court afterwards for another Reafon, as 
 was reported. 
 
 I went to Oxford to put the King in mind 
 of a former Promife, to make me High She- 
 riff of the County of J^ork.^ the Year next 
 enfuing; but hearing that Sir Francis Ccb 
 (who had been at fome extraordinary 
 Charge in receiving and attending the Court 
 at Tork) obtained a Grant to continue in 
 that Office for another Year, at his High- 
 nefs's Intercelfion I waited on the Duke, 
 acquainted him with my Claim, and begged 
 his Affiftance. He told me he wilhed he 
 had known mv Claim in time, that he 
 Ihould have been ready to ferve me, and 
 that I had neverthelefs his Leave to follicit 
 his Majeily's Promife. I thank'd him, but 
 faid I could not appear in any Degree of 
 Oppolition to his Highnefs's Intereft and 
 Pleafure, and would therefore defer my 
 Pretenfions to a better Opportunity. This 
 he took very kindly, went with me to the 
 King, and prefented me to him for the next 
 Year; his Majefty gave me his Hand to 
 kifs, and his Word once more that I fliould 
 be Sheriff as I had delired. 
 
 A great and happy Yidtory was obtained 
 over the Dutch by Prince Rupert and the 
 Puke of Albemarle^ ^nd a fad and difmal 
 
 FirQ 
 
 oa. 2< 
 
 Of Sir John R e r e s b y. 
 
 Fire laid the vaft and noble City oi Lo?i don 
 in Afhes, but thefe being Events that have 
 been of late largely defcribed already, I 
 ihall only obferve of the latter, that the 
 dreadful Deftruftion was not more extraor- 
 dinary than the Speed, Regularity, and 
 Coll wherewith it was ^retrieved, and a new 
 London^ far exceeding the old, erefted; 
 
 I went to London to put the King and 
 Duke in mind of their Promife, that I Ihould 
 be High SherilF for the County oiTork for 
 the Year next enfuing; and no fooner did 
 I appear before the Duke than he faid to me, 
 / remembered yon thd you was not here^ and Tour 
 Bujinefs is done for you. And, to fay the Truth, 
 there was no Prince at that Time obferved to 
 be more punftual to his Word. I found what 
 the Duke told me to be perfeftly true, the 
 King did gracioufly confirm what he had 
 faid, and named me SheriflTor the County 
 oiTork^ tho' I was not of the three prefent- 
 ed to him by the Judges. 
 
 The Duke of Buckingham had been fome 1667. 
 Time in Difgrace at Court ^ and bein^ fuf- 
 peftedoffome evirPradices againft the 
 King, a Proclamation was illued out to ap- 7^/^^^^ g^ 
 prehend him. I confefs I was at a Lofs to 
 know how to aft in this Matter, between 
 the Obligation of my OfHce as Sheriff, and 
 
 the 
 
t 
 
 14 
 
 1667. 
 
 MEMOIRS. 
 
 the Refpeft I had for the Duke : But th^ 
 Judges coming down to the AlTiz.es, advifed 
 me by all means to proclaim it, which I did, 
 and It for ever after leflened me in the E- 
 ftecm of that Lord. 
 
 My Lord Sonthamporty Lord High Trea- 
 furer of England^ being lately dead, the AA* 
 miniftrationof that great Office was tranfaft- 
 ed by four CommilTioners, the Duke ofjlbe-* 
 fjtarkj Lord Jpley Cooper^ afterwards Earl of 
 Shaftsbtiry, Sir William Coventry^ Secretary to 
 the Duke oiTork^ and ^irjohn Dtincomb. It 
 was now that the Parliament fell upon the 
 great Earl of ClarendoHj who having furren- 
 dred the Seals, a few Months afterwards 
 as much as poffible to avoid the Heat of his 
 Enemies, retired privately into France. His 
 greateft Enemy in the Houfe of Lords was 
 the Duke of Buckingham ^ in the Houfe of 
 Commons, Sir Thomas Ofhorne^ fincc Earl of 
 Danhy ; by this Step, and by the help of 
 his Grace the Duke of Buckingham^ who 
 was now abfolute Favourite, it was that Sir 
 Thomas more efpecially rofe to his height of 
 
 Dignity. 
 
 The Duke o£ Buckingham now a&ed as 
 prime Minifter : The King confulted him 
 chiefly in all Concerns of Moment \ the Fo- 
 reign Muufters were to apply to him, be- 
 fore 
 
 <yi» JohnRe res b r, 15 
 
 fore they could be admitted to an Audience. 1667. 
 But he was fuch a Foe to Bufmefs, fuch a ^-"V^ 
 Friend to Pleafure, and fo apt to turn the 
 Day into Night, and the Night into Day 
 that he could neither attend regularly on 
 the King, nor difpatch Bufmefs, as it ought 
 to be, with thofe who had any Thing to 
 negociate with himj fo his Miniftry proved 
 of no long Duration. 
 
 This Spring I carried my Family up to j^gg. 
 Town, where the Court and City were all 
 gay and jovial; for Peace was now con- • 
 eluded with France^ with Spain^ with D^;/- 
 tnarky and the States General Embafladors 
 extraordinary were now fent and received 
 with the greateft Pomp and Splendor. 
 
 And now the Prince of Tnfcany came to ^^£/ -^ 
 LondoHy with a Retinue and Equipage fuita- 1669. * 
 ble to his high ^Quality, and was at firft 
 magnificently entertained by the King; but 
 after fome Time, he kept Houfe at his own 
 Expence, and had Plenty of all the porta- 
 ble Rarities for Food and Drink, Italy had 
 to afford. I dined with him twice; he was 
 very kind to me, as he was to all thofe who 
 had travelled into Italy^ and fpoke the Lan- 
 guage. And this Spring the Prince of Den-^ 
 mark was in London^ the fame who fome 
 
 Years 
 
1670. 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 Years afterwards married the Princefs Amtc 
 
 of England* 
 
 Aug. 10. But all this Jollity was turned into Mourn- 
 ing for the Death of the Queen Mother, 
 who about this Time departed this Life at 
 Paris : She was a great Princefs, and my 
 very good Miftrefs, 
 
 This Summer the Duchefs of Orleans^ the 
 King's Sifter, came over to Dmr, where 
 flie was met by the King, the Duke of Tork^ 
 and the w hole Court. Here it was that Ihe 
 confirmed his Highnefs the Duke in the 
 Popilh Superftition, of which he had as yet 
 been but barely fufpefted; and it is faid to 
 have been his grand Argument, for fuch 
 his Adherence to thofe Tenets, That his 
 Mother had, upon her laft Blefling, com- 
 manded him to be firm and ftedfaft thereto. 
 Before this, it was thought he was rather 
 a Friend to the Presbyterians; for not 
 long before, a Nonconformift Minifter be- 
 ing profecuted at Pomfrcty for preaching in 
 a Conventicle, it was reported that his 
 Highnefs, and the Duke of Buckingham^ 
 then principal Minifter of State, had writ- 
 ten in his Favour to the Juftices : But the 
 Duke as I was one Day attending on him 
 in St. James's Park, called me to him, and 
 difcourfing over the Thing to me, declared 
 
 what 
 
 \ 
 
 Of Sir JOHNRERESBt. 
 
 what was reported to be a Miftake, that he 
 had not concerned himfelf at all with it, 
 tho' he was fo much a Friend to that Sort 
 of People, that he could wilh the Law had 
 not been put in Execution againft him, or 
 to that EtteQ:, and that abfolutely he did 
 not write. At the fame Time he told me 
 to reprefent him, upon Occafion, as no E- 
 nemy to fuch. Hereupon I acquainted his 
 Highnefs, that there wasaKinfmanof mine, 
 one Mr. Vincent^ in Town, who was a lead- 
 ing Man of that Party; his Highnefs or- 
 dered me to bring him to Court, which 
 I did, and the Duke took him aiide, and 
 talked with him a great w^hile. It was ge- 
 nerally believed that the Duke, in this, 
 acled the politician fuitable to the Time ; for 
 it was now rumoured about, the King would 
 be divorced from his Queen, which, by thus 
 courting all Parties, he propofed to prevent. 
 But however this was, our Royal Family 
 loft another of its Number^ for the Duke of 
 Orleans had for fome time before been jea- 
 lous of his Wife, and, if all that is laid be 
 true, not without good Ground: The Count 
 de Giiichc it feems, had been a Favourite 
 with her, and now fhe is faid to have fallen 
 in Love with the Duke of Alonmoutb^ while 
 flie was at Dover \ in fhort, Things were fo 
 
 C repre- 
 
 17 
 
r 
 
 i8 MEMOIRS 
 
 J^^/o- reprefented to the Duke her Husband, that 
 ^'^^^ fhe died very fuddenly after her Return to 
 
 PanSy by Poifon as the Report went. 
 O^oher. This Month the Prince of Orange came 
 to London to pay a Vifit to the King. The 
 Parliament being now met, purfuant to Pro- 
 rogation, it hapned that Sir John Coventry^ 
 in a Speech he made, refle£ted on the King's 
 Wenching; which being reported to the 
 Duke oi Mommutby he ordered Sir Thomas 
 Sands (an Officer of the Guards) and three 
 or four more, to way-lay him as he went 
 late home to his Lodging; which they ac- 
 cordingly did, and, taking him out of his 
 Coach, flit his Nofe. But complaint there- 
 of being made to the Houfe, it caufed fuch 
 a Heat, that thence proceeded the A£t a- 
 gainll malicious Maiming and Wounding. 
 
 The Prince of Orange remaining in Eng^ 
 landj and making his Addrelles to the Lady 
 Mary^ eldeft Daughter to the Duke, the 
 King entertained him with great Splendor, 
 as well on that Account, as becaufe of his 
 Relation to him, and great perfonal Merit. 
 One Night at a Supper, given by the Duke 
 oi Bnckingbainy the King made him drink 
 very hard : the Prince was naturally averfe 
 to it, but being once entered, was more 
 frolic and gay than the reft of the Compa- 
 
 ny; 
 
 « 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresby. 19 
 
 ny ; and now the Mind took him to break i<J;0. 
 the Windows of the Chambers belonging to ^**v*^ 
 the Maids of Honour, and he had got into 
 their Apartments, had they not been timely 
 refcued. His Miftrefs, I fuppofe did not 
 like him the worfe for fuch a notable Indi- 
 cation of his Vigor. 
 
 This Day dyed Jme Duchefs of Tcrk i^-rV 
 with her lall Breath declareing her felf '^^^""''^ l^'- 
 Papift. ^ 
 
 War was declared agalnft the States Ge- jpiUi] 
 neral; and now the City of London had in 
 a great Meafure recovered herfelf out of 
 her A flies, and was fo far rebuilt this Year, 
 that the King was on the Lord Mayor's Day 
 invited to a Dinner, which he accepted. 
 
 The King about this Time ilfued out a 
 Proclamation for the Indulgence of tender 
 Confciences, which caufed great Uneafinefi, 
 not only in the Houfes of Parliament, where 
 It was afterwards reverfed, but throughout 
 the whole Kingdom ; and was the moil vio- 
 lent Blow that had been given to the 
 Church of England from the Day of the Re- 
 ftoration. All Seftaries now publickly re- 
 paired to their Meetings and Conventicles; 
 nor could all the Laws afterwards, and the 
 moll rigorous Execution of them, ever fup- 
 
 C 2 prefs 
 
NMWMMttiH 
 
 May. 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 prefs thefe Separatifts, or bring them to due 
 Conformity. 
 
 This Month the French joined us againft 
 the Diitchj but in the End betrayed us. In 
 the Engagement, uponthe i8^^ of yl<%', the 
 French ftood off, and left us and the Dutch 
 to make the belt we could of it ; whereas if 
 they had affifted his Highnefs o{ Tork, who 
 then commanded in Chief as High Admiral^ 
 we had doubtlefs obtained a fignal Vi6tory ; 
 but as the Cafe wasj we had fo much the 
 better, that, after a Fight of eight Hours, 
 the Dutch made Sail from us. In this En- 
 gagement perifhed Edward Montagucy Earl 
 o£Sand'wichj Vice Admiral. 
 
 It was this Year that my Lord Hallifas 
 firft came into Bufinefs, and was fworn of 
 the Privy Council. He was foon after join- 
 July 21. ed in CommilTion with the Duke of Back" 
 inf^hamj and Lord Arlington as Ambafladors 
 to the States j but to no Purpofe j the War 
 continued. 
 
 I had heard the King intended to ereft a 
 Fort at Bnrhngton^ for the Security of the 
 Colliers and others, trading to the North- 
 ward ; and 1 immediaiely apply ed to the 
 Duke, entreating him to fpeak to the King 
 that I might have the Command of the in- 
 tCiided Place j who accordingly did : But 
 
 whilll: 
 
 16-3. 
 
 I 
 
 Of Sir Jo H N Re RE SB y. 
 
 whilft the Thing was in Agitation, his 
 Highnefs refufed to take the Oaths tender- 
 ed to him as Lord High Admiral, thereby 
 declaring himfelf a Roman Catholic, and 
 reiigning all his Employments, fo that no- 
 thing more was done in my Bulinefs for that 
 Time. 
 
 And now the King having borrowed moll 
 of the ready Money in the Nation, of the 
 Goldfmiths, (at that Time called Bankers,) 
 locked up the Exchequer, to the Bankrupt- 
 cy of the moft confiderable of them, and the 
 Ruin of an infinite People, whofe Money 
 they had borrowed at Intereft : And with 
 this Calamity we conclude this Year. 
 
 Now it was that my Neighbour Sir The- ^^S- '5 
 mas Oshorne rofe to the great Office of High 
 Treafurer of England^ my Lord Clifford re- 
 figning his Staff, and confeffmg himfelf a 
 Papift. The Duke oi Euckmgham was cheifc 
 ly inftrumental in bringing this about for 
 Sir Thomasy by a Bargain he made between 
 Lord Clifford and him, namely, that Sir 
 7'homas ihould officiate and give him half 
 the Salary, and afterwards prevailing on the 
 King to confer the Staff on Sir 'Thomas then 
 created Lord Vifcount Diinhlain^ tho' after- 
 wards Earl ofD^//^j,and had a Patent paffing 
 for Marquifs juil; as he fell into Difgrace. 
 
 C J The 
 

 MEMOIRS 
 
 The War with the Dutch ftill continued, 
 Prince Rupert being Admiral for us, and 
 the Count d'EJlrces for the French. Two 
 Victories we now obtained over them, but 
 they were lellened by the Lofs of that great 
 Seaman Sir Eckjcard Spraig. 
 
 The Parliament of thefe Davs, had from 
 the Beginning, which was loon after the 
 Reftoration, been perfeftiy ^^eIl inclined 
 to the King : They had given him a very 
 great Revenue upon Tonnage and Poundage, 
 as alfo by an Excife upon feveral Sorts of 
 Liquors, Heart h-Money, not to mention 
 Temporary Taxes, the whole amounting to 
 above three times more than had been en- 
 joyed by any King o{ England before. The 
 Country groaned under this Preliure, and 
 began to be diflatisfied ; which having an 
 Influence on fome Gentlemen of both Houfes, 
 gave Birth to two Parties, the one for the 
 Country, the other for the Court. The 
 former pretended in an impartial Manner 
 to efpoufe the Caufe of the People, in their 
 Liberties and Properties, and wjiatever is 
 dear to EngUJhfmn ^ to aifert the Religion 
 and Government by Law eftablilhed : The 
 latter pretended to the fame, but thought 
 the King was to have a competent Income, 
 and be invefted with a due Power for the 
 
 Exercifo 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresby. 
 
 Exercife of his regal OiEce, without having 
 too great a Dependance on the People, a 
 Caufe which had been of fuch pernicious 
 Effefts to his Royal Father.. Hence it was 
 that Gentlemen beftirred themfelves more 
 than ufual to be elefled into a Seat in Par- 
 liament ; (o that great was the Competition 
 between the Candidates, and at great Ex- 
 pences they were, even from One or Two 
 Hundred, to Two Thoufand Pounds. But 
 the Concerns of the Public were not what 
 alone aftuated all Men ; fome wanted to be 
 in the Houfe to be fcreened from their 
 Debts, this Parliament having fat a long 
 v/hile J and fome had obtained great Emo- 
 luments from the Court to ftand up for that 
 Intereft- fo that it is no wonder I had no 
 lefs than five Competitors when I offered 
 myfelf for Jiidboroiigh. And not to drop 
 this Matter here, I muft obferve that Mr. 
 JSt7//^^/ was the molt formidable of the five • a 
 Man of no Birth, but who from a Clerk to 
 a Country Attorney, had raifed himfelf to 
 be Clerk of the Peace at the Old Baileyy 
 Clerk of Affile of the Northern Circuit, as 
 alfo to an Eftate of two thoufand five hun- 
 dred Pounds, tho' not without fome Reflec- 
 tions on his Way of getting it. The Elec- 
 tion was irregularly carried on in Favour of 
 
 2j 
 
Jantiary 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 this Gentleman, and in the JanuciYy follow- 
 ing I moved the Houfe to determine the 
 Merit of the Return ; but before a Hearing 
 came on, a Prorogation intervened, fo that 
 I had the Charge of bringing up Witnefles, 
 to no Manner of Purpofe. 
 
 Towards the latter End of this Year 
 the Duke declared his Marriage with Ma^ 
 rjy Daughter to the Duke of Mcdenaj not 
 long before arrived with the Duchefs her 
 Mother. The Nation was much grieved at 
 this Mitch, the Lady being a Papift of the 
 ftrifteft Clafs, end the whole Affair Manoged 
 
 by the F? cnch Intereft. 
 
 The Duke oi Buckingham was now again 
 in Difgrace, for which he w?>s indebted to 
 the Duchefs of Fortfmouth^ a French Lady, 
 and now the moft abfolute of all the King's 
 Miflrefles; a very fine Woman fhe was, 
 but moft think flie was fent on Purpofe to 
 enfnare the King, who moft readily ran in- 
 to Toils of that Sort. His Grace in vain 
 made Ufe of the Mediation of the Lord 
 Treafurer : And to fay the Truth, his Lord- 
 Ihip was not altogether fo zealous for his 
 Grace as he ought to have been, efpecially 
 if we confider that it was to him he owed 
 the White Staff he bore. In Ihort, the Duke 
 was not the only Perfon that accufed him of 
 liigratitude, The 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresby. 
 
 m The King was at this time particularly 
 difpleafed with his Grace, for that being 
 fummoned by the Houfe of Commons to 
 give an Account offome Malverfations when 
 he was Minifter ; he did not only appear, 
 being a Peer, and that without the King's 
 Leave, but to excufe himfelf reflefted on 
 others, and upon the whole, behaved in 
 that AlTembly in too mean and fubmiffive a 
 Manner; which however was of no avail to 
 him againft the Commons, who addrelfed 
 the King to lay him afide with regard to all 
 Offices of Truft or Profit. His Grace was 
 alfo called to the Bar of the Houfe of Peers, 
 for fcandaloufly living with the Lady ^^^r^c^;/- 
 htiry as Man and Wife, he being a married 
 Man, and for having killed my Lord Shrewf" 
 hury after he had debauch'd his Wife. 
 
 The King prorogued the Parliament to 
 the 13th oi April next enfuing. 
 
 The Time oi the Meeting of Parliament 
 now drawing on, I repaired to London^ and 
 petitioned the Committee of Privileges and 
 EleSlions ; and after all endeavours to the 
 contrary, I was voted the Sitting Member, 
 and conduced into the Houfe by Lord 
 Ru[fellj and Lord Cavendijh. 
 
 Being thus received into the Houfe, I 
 found the two Parties in great Extremes 
 
 againft 
 
 1675. 
 jiprJ, 
 
a6 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 ^^^7S^ againft each other. The Court-lide was 
 very prelTing and urgent for Money for the 
 King's prefent Occafions • the Country Par- 
 ty thought of nothing lefs, except fome 
 Laws were enafted for the better Security 
 of the Proteftant Religion, and the grand 
 Point of Property. But the two were fo 
 equal that nothing more than Words pafled 
 between them; meer Words without any 
 EiTea, for neither dared ftand the Chance 
 >%^5-^of a queftion put. In the midft of this, 
 Do&oT Sbtrky prefers a Petition to the 
 Houfe of Lords againft Sir John F^gy a 
 Member of the Loner Houfe, to appear and 
 anfwer in a Caufehehad brought before the 
 Lords, and a Summons was ient to Sir John^ 
 accordingly ; which the Commons conlider- 
 3ng as a Breach oi Privilege, great Heats 
 arofe among them, and high ExprelFions be- 
 ing, upon this Occalion, mutually \caLed 
 againft each other by both Houfes, the 
 King thought fit to adjourn their l^ime of 
 Sitting for the prefent. 
 
 They no fooner fat again than my Com- 
 petitor Befffou^ and another, Mr, Long^ pe- 
 titioned againft me. They u ould have had 
 a fhort Day, but it was my Bulinefs to get 
 as long a one as I could, and I accordingly 
 did fo. In Ihort, the Bufinefs of the Houle 
 
 was 
 
 Ocioler, 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresby. 
 
 was of fuch Confequence, that the Proro- 
 gation came on before our Caufe could be 
 heard. I took a particular Account of what 
 was tranfafted this Seffion, the moft extra- 
 ordinary Particulars of which were fumma- 
 rily thefe. 
 
 The King had in his Speech acquainted 
 us. That he was four Millions in Debt, ex- 
 clufive of what he owed to the Godfmiths 
 or Bankers, a vaft Sum more, for which he 
 paid neither Principal nor Intereft, to the 
 Ruin of many Families. It being upon this 
 put to the Yote whether Money lliould be 
 given or not. It was carried in the Nega- 
 tive by four Voices, and that, when near 
 four hundred Members were in the Houfe. 
 But it appearing that both the Dutch and 
 French exceeded us in the Proportion and 
 Number of their Shipping, a Sum of Three 
 Hundred Thoufand Pounds was voted to 
 the King for the Building of twenty Ships, 
 namely, One of the Firft Rate, Five of the 
 Second, and Fourteen of the Third. 
 
 Several Ways were debated for the Rai- 
 ding of this Sum, as upon Land, upon the 
 Jewsy by Way of Poll, or upon French 
 Commodities, and laftly upon our own Con- 
 fumption, and upon Merchandife. At length 
 it was to be levied upon Land, and paid in 
 
 eighteen 
 
 27 
 
 1675. 
 

 MEM O I R s 
 
 eighteen Months; to be lodged apart in 
 the Exchequer, and appropriated to that 
 particular Ufe, with very fevere Penalties 
 upon the Officers thatfliould apply it to any 
 other : But the Sum icfelf, the time it was 
 to be raifed in, and other Circumftances, 
 were by no means grateful to the Court. It 
 was farther voted That the Cuftoms having 
 been formerly given to the King for the 
 Maintenance of the Fleet, a Claule to that 
 effeft and purpofe fliould be inferted in this 
 Bill, or a new one prepared to confirm it. 
 
 The State of the Fleet was now given in, 
 whereby it appeared that we had no more 
 than eight Firft Rates, nine Second Rates, 
 and forty Three Third Rates ; while the 
 French exceeded us in the Number of thefe 
 Rates by fi^ and twenty, and the D/ach by 
 fourteen. 
 
 It was moreover voted that the Atheifm, 
 Debauchery, and Impiety of the prefent 
 Age be inferted, as Grievances to beredrefw 
 fed : And it being violently fufpefted that 
 fome Members of the Houfe did receive 
 Gratuities from the Court to Vote on that 
 flde ; it was put that a Committee ihould b^ 
 appointed to form a Kind of Oath or Teft 
 to difcover what Sums of Money and Offices 
 had been given to Parliament Men to gain 
 their Inter eft, 'pj^^ 
 
 i 
 
 Of Sir JoMnReresbt. 
 
 The FrenchliTzdQ alfo was complained of^ 
 as being Thirteen Hundred Thoufand 
 Pounds an overbalance for ours 5 and upon 
 the Matter it appeared, that every Thou- 
 fand Pounds a Year had lince the Reftora- 
 tion paid a Hundred Pounds in Taxes to 
 the Crown. 
 
 It was alfo voted a Grievance, that Jus- 
 tices of the Peace fhould be fummoned to 
 appear before the Council, to account for 
 what they did in their judicial Capacity. 
 
 The Bufinefs alfo of Liizance took up fome ^^^^h 
 time in the Houfe. This Luzance was a 
 French Jefuit, but becoming a Convert to 
 the Church oi England^ inveighed againft the 
 Fallacies of the Church of Rome^ in a Ser- 
 mon he preached in the French Church in 
 the Savoy. This alarmed the Papifts, and 
 particularly one Doftor Burnet^ a Jefuit, 
 and Confeilbr to the Duchefs of Torkj who 
 finding him alone in his Chamber, and poll- 
 ing Three Men at the Door, threatned to 
 murder him if he did not make Satisfaftion 
 for the Injury, eat his Words, and fpeedily 
 return to France. The Man in this def- 
 perate Dilemma promifed faithfully what- 
 ever was required of him, ^till he got his 
 Liberty, when prefently going to Do6lor 
 Erevaly a converted Jefuit as well as him- 
 
 felf, 
 
^o MEMOIRS 
 
 1(^7 5. ^^K he told him the whole Story; Breval 
 the next Day acquainted me with it, and 1 
 communicated it to the Houfe. The Com- 
 mons took Fire at this, and llrait appointed 
 a Committee to examine into the Matte rj 
 and ordered me to produce Luzance the 
 next Day. He appeared accordingly, and 
 averred the Thing for a Truth. This w^as 
 the firft time I prefumed to fpeak in that 
 great Aflembly, or in any Committee ; but 
 the next Day I was obliged to do itfeveral 
 times in what concerned this violent Bufi- 
 nefs. 
 
 Upon the Report made from the Com- 
 mittee to the Houfe, my Lord Cavendip cal- 
 led me up to give an Account of fome other 
 things I had had from Luzance. One was 
 that Two French Proteftants, being Mer- 
 chants of great Subftance and Credit, had 
 been threatned by certain Papifts, that if 
 they were not lefs fevere upon the Ro- 
 manifts, they Ihould ere long fee the Pro- 
 teftant Blood flow in London Streets. A 
 Committee was appointed to enquire into 
 the Truth of this Matter ; and Luzance be- 
 ing fummoned, gave Evidence to the very 
 felf fame Effea:, and gave it under his own 
 Hand. The Parties he had his Information 
 from being fent for, appeared alfo, and de. 
 
 clared 
 
 Of Sir JohnRe Resby. 
 
 dared fuch Threats to have been ufed to- 
 wards them by fome Frefich Papifts j but, to 
 what Caufe it was owing is uncertain, they 
 gave in only fuch Names as were of Perfons 
 either abfent, or of no Eftimation ; fo that 
 little came of this Bulinefs. But thefe and 
 other fuch Informations, concerning the 
 Height and Infolence of the Papifts, did fo 
 exafperate the Houfe, that many Motions 
 were made to humble them. Some were for 
 a fpeedy Confinement of them to the Coun- 
 try, others for Banifliment, and fome again 
 for difarming them, and the like. 
 
 In a fhort time after, the Matter of 
 Doftor Shirk/ s Petition to the Lords againffc 
 Sir John Fag^ was again renewed, tho' it 
 had broke up the Parliament the laft time. 
 There were thofe who thought the King 
 had confented to it, difliking the warm Pro- 
 ceedings of both Houfes: While others 
 were of Opinion that the Lords of the 
 Country Intereft had perfuaded the Do£lor 
 thereto, with a View thereby to kindle fuch 
 a Flamfe between the two Houfes, that the 
 King ihould be obliged either to prorogue, 
 adjourn, or dilTblve them: The faid Lords 
 apprehending that if this Parliament Ihould 
 lit much longer, the Majority might be 
 gained over by Money and Places, fo as to 
 
 become 
 
At 
 
 
 !/ 
 
 r^"; 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 become quite obfequious to the Court j and 
 this My Lord Hallifax (then in the Intereft 
 of Lord Shaftsbury his Uncle, who was upon 
 111 Terms with the Court, being no longer 
 Lord Chancellor) told me was his Opinion. 
 
 But whatever the Caufe was, the Effea 
 was fuch That the Commons refufing to let 
 their Member plead at the Bar of the Lords 
 during a Time of Privilege, it was refolved 
 ihat the Lords by receiving an Appeal 
 trom any Court, either of Law or Equity, 
 agamft a Member of the Lower Houfe, du- 
 ring a Seflion of Parliament, were thereby 
 Infringers of the Privileges of the Commons 
 ot England-^ and that fuch Lawyers as Ihould 
 attend as Counfel to plead in any fuch Caufe 
 at the Lords Bar, Ihould be deemed as Be- 
 trayers of the Rights of the Commons of 
 E«gland; and that die faid Vote be affixed 
 to the Door of the Houfe of Commons, 
 Wefimmjicr-Hall, and the Inns of Court- 
 which was accordingly done : And the 
 lame Day it was voted by the Lords, that 
 the fame was lUegal and Unparliamentary 
 and tended to the Diflblution of the Go- 
 vernment : And upon the whole, that they 
 would not recede from their Right of Ju- 
 dicature by Appeals fiom the Courts of 
 Equity. 
 
 Of^ir JOHls[ ReRESBT. 
 
 It was then put to the Queftion, If the 
 King fliould not be petitioned to diflblve 
 this Parliament, and it was carried in the 
 Negative by no more than Two Votes. 
 
 This Mifunderftanding between the 
 Houfes was very diflatisfaftory to the King. 
 The Lords who had voted for the Diflblu- 
 tion of this Parliament, entered their Pro-* 
 tell in the Journal of theif Houfe, together 
 with their Reafons for fo doing; fo that 
 Things being at this Pafs, the only Expe* 
 dient left, was to difmifs the Parliament, 
 which the King did, by Prorogation to the 
 loth of February next. 
 
 Before I left London^ I, at the Interpo- 
 fition of my Lord Ogky went with his Lord- 
 fl^ip to fee the Duke of Buckingham^ being 
 well aflured that I Ihould be kindly re- 
 ceived. 
 
 I had a fine Black of about Sixteen Years 
 of Age, prefented to me by a Gentleman 
 who brought him over from Bartadoes: This 
 Black lived with me fome Years, and died 
 about this time of an Impofthume in his 
 Head. Six Weeks after he was buried, I O^ob. 2q. 
 received an Account That at London it was 
 credibly reported I had caufed him to be 
 Gelt, and that the Operation had killed him. 
 I laughed at it at firft, confcious it was a 
 
 D Faliehood^ 
 
 (-■ 
 
 j4i6. 
 
.'1 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 Falfehood, and a ridiculous Story, 'till be- 
 ing further informed that it came from the 
 Duke oi Norfolk and his Family, with whom 
 I had had fome Differences at Law, and 
 that he had waited upon the King to beg 
 my Eftate, if it became a Forfeiture by this 
 Felony • I thought it convenient to fend for 
 the Coroner to view the Body with a Jury, 
 before it was too far decayed, that a rot- 
 tennefs of the Part might not be imputed to 
 Incilion. The Coroner accordingly fum- 
 mons a Jury, and does his Office ; but when 
 they came to uncover the Breaft, it was fo 
 putrified they would go no further ^ fo that 
 upon the Examination of Eleven Witnefles, 
 fome that laid him out, and fome that faw 
 him naked, feveral, becaufe of his Colour, 
 having a Curiofity to fee him after he was 
 dead, they gave their Verdift, that he died 
 Ex Vtfitatione Dei^ by the Hand of God. 
 
 This however, was not thought fuffici- 
 ent; for within a few Days after, there 
 came one Bright^ a Lawyer, one Chappely 
 an Attorney, ( both concerned in the Duke's 
 Affairs,) and one Buck^ a Surgeon of She/'- 
 feldj whom I had caufed to be profecuted 
 not long before for having two Wives, to- 
 gether with fome others, with my Lord 
 Chief Juftice's Warrant, direfted to the 
 
 Coroner 
 
 Of Sir JOHNRiRESBT. 
 
 Coroner to take up the Body ; which the 
 Coroner refufed to obey, faying He had 
 done his Office already. Thefe AmbafTa- 
 dors, however, took up the Body, and 
 Bucky under Pretence of viewing the Pare 
 the better, would have taken it up with a 
 Penknife, but it was not fuffered, left by 
 that Inftrument he (hould give the Wound 
 he fought for : But what was not only a 
 Mercy, but a Miracle alfo, the Part proved 
 to be perfeftly found and entire, tho' the 
 Body had been fo long under Ground, and 
 the reft of it was much putrified and decay- 
 ed ; fo that Shame of Face and Confufion 
 came pretty plendfully upon the Aftors in 
 this extraordinary Scene. 
 ^ A black and moft ridiculous Piece of Ma- 
 lice this ; for had their Suggeftion been prov- 
 ed a Fa6l,all their Art could never have fo fix- 
 ed it, astohaveindangered either myPerfon 
 or Eftate. My Lord Chief Juftice Rainsford 
 afted irregularly and illegally in this Bufi- 
 nefs, his Information not being given in to 
 him upon Oath. And indeed he afterwards 
 confefled he was mifled into it, and that 
 the Duke's Solicitor was moft prefling and 
 urgent with him, to grant the Warrant. 
 The Duke of Tork told my Brother, He 
 wondered fuch a ftir was made about a Re- 
 
 D a port 
 
 55 
 
 t 
 
!| 
 
 Ftbr. 
 
 m 
 
 m 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 port which mull certainly be a flat Falfe- 
 hood: And Lord Ogle acquainted me, as 
 did alfo my Lord Treafurer himfelf after- 
 wards, That he, meaning the Treafurer, 
 had taken great Pains to prevent the beg- 
 ging of my Eftate ; and I believed it to be 
 true, but ihrewdly doubt it was with De- 
 lign, had it proved a Forfeiture, to have fe- 
 cured it for himfelf ^ I was told as much 
 afterwards. I endeavoured however to 
 reach the Bottom of this Plot, and to pro- 
 cure niyfelf fome Reparation, as may be 
 obferved hereafter. 
 
 Having kept my Cbrijimafs in the Coun- 
 try, I no fooner returned to London than my 
 Lord Treafurer fent to fpeak with me. I 
 waited on him therefore, and found him 
 very open in his Difcourfe upon feveral Sub- 
 jefts, but for the moft Part lamenting That 
 his Countrymen would not allow him an 
 Opportunity to be of Service to them with 
 the King, and making many Protcftations 
 That the Jealoufies of thofe who called 
 themfelves of the Country Party, were en- 
 tirely groundlefs and without Foundation : 
 That to his certain knowledge, the King 
 meant no other than to preferve the Religion 
 and Government by Law eftablilhed • and, 
 upon the whole, wilhed that neither himfelf 
 
 or 
 
 Of Sir John Reresby- 
 
 or his Pofterity might profper, if he did not 
 fpeak what he really believed : That if the 
 Government was in any Danger, it wa^ 
 moll from thofe who pretended fuch a 
 mighty Zeal for it ^ but who under that 
 Pretence were endeavouring to create fuch 
 Difcontents between the King and the Na- 
 tion, as might produce Confufion in the End i 
 And intreated me to be careful how I im- 
 ^ barked myfelf with that Sort of People. My 
 reply was, That I hoped I was not one to 
 be wilfully milled ; that I Ihould have no 
 Rule to go by in that Houfe but my Rea- 
 fon and Confcience, and that fo I could be 
 of no particular Faflion or Party : That as 
 much as I yet under ftood of the Duty of a 
 Member of the Houfe of Commons at this 
 Time, fuggefted to me a Moderation be- 
 tween the two Extremes, and to have an e- 
 qual Regard for the Prerogative of the King 
 and the Liberty of the Subjeft. 
 
 True it is, till now that the Treafurer ufed 
 fuch folemn Alfeverations, with regard to 
 the King's good Intention, and pretty clear- 
 ly convinced me that fome of the Chiefe oi 
 the Countr||Party had moft at Heart their 
 own private Intereft, whatever they aflcrt- 
 ^4 \^ Favour and Defence of the Pulic, I 
 
 D } h^cl 
 
 37 
 
 16-6. 
 
« 
 
 i 
 
 t 
 
 1616. 
 
 3S MEMOIRS 
 
 had great Notions of the Truth and Since- 
 rity of the Country Party. 
 m I? '^^^ Parliament meeting, the King parti- 
 cularly defired a conliderable Sum for the 
 Building and Rigging of Ships. The Coun- 
 try did every thing poffible to ftint the Sum 
 to four hundred thoufand Pounds ; while the 
 Courtiers were for a Million, or eight hun- 
 dred thoufand Pounds at the leaft ^ but the 
 moderate Men ftept in between with an Offer 
 of fix hundred thoufand Pounds, which Sum 
 was granted, and for this I gave my Vote, 
 a Sum intended for the Building of thirty 
 Men of War of feveral Rates. My Lord 
 Treafmr took it fo kindly that I iided not 
 with thofe, who did all they could to wea- 
 ken and diftrefs the Crown, that ke would 
 needs carry me to kifs his Majelly's Hand, 
 which 1 had not yet done fince I came to 
 Town; and prefented me in the Lobby of 
 the Houfe of Lords, next to the Prince's 
 Lodgings, no Body being prefent but his 
 Majefty, his Lordlhip and my felf He faid 
 much more of me to the King than I de- 
 ferved, but laftly. That as mv Family had 
 been always Loyal, he knew twas perfeft- 
 ly mclmed to tread in their Footfteps; and 
 that the heft way to confirm me in fuch my 
 Dlfpofition, would be to let me underftand 
 
 how 
 
 Of Sir John Reresby. 
 
 how little of Truth there was in the Pre- 
 tences fet on Foot to deceive Gentlemen, 
 and withdraw them from their Duty. " The 
 '' King faid he had known me long, and 
 ^' hoped I knew him fo well as to give no 
 " Ear to fuch Reports of him. 1 know, 
 " fays he, it is faid I aim at the Subverfion 
 *' of the Government and Religion: That I 
 ^' intend to lay afide Parliaments, and to 
 " raife Money another way ; but every 
 " Man, nay thofe who infift the moft there- 
 on, knows the Thing in all its Circum- 
 
 (C 
 
 " fiance, to be falfe. There is not a Sub-» 
 " jeft that lives under me, whofe Safety and 
 *' Welfare I delire lefs than my own : And 
 ^ I fliould be as forry to invade his Liber- 
 " ty and Property, as that another ihould 
 « invade mine. Thofe Members, continu- 
 ^' ed the King, who boaft this mighty 
 ^' Friendlhip for the Public, are of two Sorts 
 " either thofe who would a6tually and irre- 
 ^' trievably fubvert the Government, and re- 
 " duce it to a Common-wealth once more ^ or 
 '' elfe thofe who feem only to join with the 
 t^ former, and talk loud againft the Court, 
 " purely in hopes to have their Mouths llop- 
 i^ ped with Places or Preferments." And 
 to fay the Truth, the Treafurer had named 
 fame of the Chiefe to me, who had defired 
 
 D 4 fo 
 
 \ 
 
 { 
 
 I 
 

 1616. 
 
 « 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 fo and fo of the King, and upon fuch Con^ 
 ditions promifed to come over. 
 
 I made Anfwer to the King, That indeed 
 the Pretences were many, and, to fome I 
 believed, plaufible, that were railed in Op- 
 polition to what others underftood to be for 
 his Majefty's Intereil : But - that they had 
 gained but little on me, who had had the 
 Honour of being fo long known to his Ma- 
 jefty, and had been fo lately confirmed in my 
 Belief by Aflurances from my Lord Trea- 
 furer : That to the beft of my Knowledge I 
 ftould never do any Thing that became not 
 a true and fairhfbl Subject, or Ihould be in- 
 confiftent with the Prcfperity of his JVIaje- 
 ft/s Royal Perfon and Government, The 
 King faid he was very well pleafed that he 
 had feenme, commanded me to wait on him 
 fometimes, and told me I Ihould have Ac- 
 cefsto him when and wherever I defired it. 
 The Condefcenfion of the King, in giving 
 this Satisfa£lion to fo mean a Perfon, con. 
 vinced me very much of the Truth of what 
 he faid ; as did alfo his natural Temper and 
 Conftitution; for hewasnotan aaive, bufy, 
 or ambitious Prince, but perfeftly a Friend 
 to Eafe, and fond of Pleafure ; he feemed 
 
 to be chiefly defirous of Peace and Quiet lor 
 his own Time. 
 
 At 
 
 fi^^»imim^*m'''mm^*^'f^m^'i ss®::-.** 
 
 SL-5«iS-Sii^^EiK^S^ 
 
 of sir JohnReresby. 
 
 At this Time a great Difpute arifing be- 
 tween the Lord Marlhal of Englandy Lord 
 Henry H(mard^ (tho' commonly called Duke 
 of Norfolk) and his younger Brothers, they 
 not only petitioned the Houfe of Commons 
 in behalf of themfelves, but alfo of their eld- 
 eft Brother the Duke, whom the faid Lord 
 Marlhal kept up at Padua as a Lunatic, tho' 
 perfeftly in Pofleffion of his Senfes, praying 
 that the Houfe would be pleafed to move 
 the King to oblige the Marlhal to fend for 
 him into England. Upon this a Debate arofe 
 in the Houfe, every one delivering his Mind 
 according to his Belief, or Prejudices ; till 
 at length the Gentlemen of the Houfe who 
 had been at Padua^ were defired to give 
 their Opinions as to the State and Condition 
 of the Duke. Upon this OccafionI declar- 
 ed that at the Time I faw him, he laboured 
 under all the Symptoms of Lunacy and Di- 
 llraftion. This being carried to the Lord 
 Marlhal, who was very confcious I was in- 
 debted to him for no Obligation, he fent a 
 Gentleman to me the next Day to thank me 
 for my Generofity to a Perfon who had not 
 feemed to have been fo much my Friend as 
 he ought to have been, and touching oblique- 
 ly on the AfFai];; of the Blackamoor, he faid 
 
 be 
 
 41 
 
 1676. 
 
 
 I 
 
 f 
 
I # 
 
 4* 
 
 
 I 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 he intended to wait on nie to give me fome 
 farther Satisfaftion as to that. 
 
 My Anfwer to this Meflage was, That I 
 was furprifed at the Compliment from a Gen- 
 tleman to whom I intended none, what I 
 had faid having been with a due Regard to 
 Truth : That however I was not forry I had 
 happened to oblige his Lordlliip by it; and 
 that fince he had denied all concern in the 
 iniquitous Affair of my dead Servant, I would 
 prevent his Lordihip, and wait on him my 
 felf; as I did two or three Days afterwards. 
 He received me with all the Civility and 
 Kindnefs imaginable, and wifhed that nei-» 
 ther himfelf or Profperity might profper, if 
 he was any way aiding or alfifting in the 
 Plot laid againft me. I told his Lordihip, 
 that I could not but add Faith to his Words • 
 but that if he was not, I was well allured his 
 Servants were; and therefore delired he 
 would give me leave to ufe my beft Endea- 
 vours to find it out : With all his Heart he 
 faid, he did not only confent to it, but would 
 moreover allift me in the Inquiry ; and fo, 
 with all poflible Demonftrations of Friend- 
 Ihip we parted. 
 
 I very often vifited and dined with my 
 Lord Treafurer, and often waited on the 
 King, who, when he fav/ me, would ask 
 
 me 
 
 Of Sir JOHNRERESBYt 43 
 
 me how things went forward; and particu* 16-6- , 
 larly I this Day entertained him a long ^^rT ^ 
 while, in the Dutchefs ofTork's Bedchamr 
 ber, with what had then been tranfafting in 
 the Houfe of Commons. 
 
 This SelEon had gone on fmoothly and 
 fedately enough, in both Houfes, my Lord 
 Treafurer having fo ordered it, that the 
 King's Party cncreafed rather than the o- 
 ther but it was much feared that fome Votes 
 w^ere obtained more by Purchafe than Aife- 
 ftion ; and with this we clofe up the Year. 
 
 The Commons voted a fecond Addrefs 
 to the King, That he would be pleafed to ^^^V' 
 contraft Alliances for the Prefervation of ^ ^^ ^^' 
 Flanders in the Hands of the King of Spain; 
 but with this Reftriaion, That his Majefty 
 ihould not be obliged to return any Anfwer 
 to the Houfe, upon the Subjeft of the faid 
 Addrefs; tho' a Number who would have 
 drawn him into Inconveniencies, would 
 have had him urged to declare his Intenti- 
 ons therein; by which he muft have either 
 difobliged the Nation on the one Hand, 
 or on the other have declared War with 
 France^ before he was prepared to profecute 
 it. 
 
 The King and the Duke had both of ^Wj^, 
 fhem much interefted themfelves in the Af- 
 fair 
 
mm^em»m>am^»^:'^m!S: 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 fair of my Ele6tion. which being to be try- 
 ed veryfoon, his Majefty gave Orders to his 
 Serv^ants that were of the Houfe, to attend 
 the Committee^ and aflift me with their bell 
 Services when it came on. The fame Day 
 the Duke o[ Albemarle came down to engage 
 his Friends to be for me, nor did the Duke 
 of rork forget to concern himfelf very ear- 
 neftly in my Behalf 
 
 The fame Day being alone with the Lord 
 Treafurer, in his Coach as he was going to 
 TVcJirainJiery I told him that fome of the 
 Difcontented had refolved to haften the Mo- 
 ney-Bill as faft as might be, that fo the 
 Houfe might rife before 'Eajier^ and the pubr- 
 iic Bills, that w^ere preparing, be left un- 
 pafled ; hoping thereby to incenfe the Nati- 
 on, and bring about Caufe of Complaint a- 
 gainft the King, as if he called the ParUa" 
 ment together for nothing but to get Money from 
 them. His Lordfliip anfwered. That the 
 King, well aware of the Delign, would pre- 
 vent it by a MefTage, that Day to be deli- 
 vered to the Houfe by Mr. Secretary Coven- 
 try^ to this Effeft, That if ought remained 
 undone, which the Houfe judged neceflary 
 to be done for the good of the Nation, the 
 King would allow them a fufficient Time 
 after Eajiery and that when they were ready^^ 
 
 Hi^ 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresby- 
 
 His Majefty would pafs their Bills ; a Mef- 
 fage that was accordingly delivered. 
 
 My Lord Treafurer fent for me among o- 
 thers, dell ring us to aflift what we could^ 
 towards the Reconciliation of a Difference 
 likely to take place between the two Houfes, 
 about framing the Bill for the fix hundred 
 thoufand Pounds, to be given to the King, 
 which might endanger the Lofsof the fame; 
 For the Commons had made a Claufe there- 
 in, injoining the Officers of the Exchequer 
 to give them an Account of the Disburfment 
 and Diftribution of the faid Sum; while the 
 Lords had afferted they fhould be accounta- 
 ble to both Houfes. This the Commons 
 would not fufler, alledging the Lords could 
 neither add to nor take away from a Mo- 
 ney-Bill ; for that as it was peculiar to them 
 only to give Money, it was to them only 
 that Account was to be given how it was ap- 
 plied. The Lords to this replied, That to de- 
 ny them the Power of calling the Officers of 
 theExchequer to a Reckoning,was to abridge 
 them of the Privilege of Judicature they un- 
 doubtedly had as the fupreme Court ; and by 
 way of Precedent obferved, That when the 
 Convention gave Money for the Disbanding 
 of the Army, an Account of the fame was or- 
 dered to be laid before their Houfe as well 
 
 45 
 
 1677. 
 
 as 
 
*■ ft- 
 
 Ma^ 12, 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 as the other. They both adhered tenaci- 
 oufly to their Point, till the King at length 
 prevailed with the Lords to erafe their- 
 Claufe ; and fo the Conunons got the better 
 of the Day. 
 
 It was not long before this, That the King 
 of France^ having obtained a ViStory over' 
 the Prince oi Orange^ did in his Return by 
 Calais fend over the Duke of Crcqity^ and 
 the Archbiihop of Rheimsy to pay a Com- 
 pliment to our King, who returned it by 
 my Lord Sunderland. This gave juft Caufe 
 to think there would be no War between the 
 two Kings, contrary to what the Parliament 
 had foearneftly advifed. I fawaCopy of the 
 Letter thefe Ambafladors brought with 
 them; beginning with this Stile or Title, 
 Tres hautj tres Excellent^ tres Puijfent Prince^ 
 tres cher tres aime hon Frere Coufm ^ Allie : 
 And in truth our King's Neutrality deferved 
 all this from France^ and much more. 
 
 Not long after, having the Opportunity of 
 a private Converfation with the Treafurer, 
 I complained to him of the Injuftice done 
 me in the foolilh Story of my Black's Callra- 
 tion, as alio of the King's readinefs to grant 
 away my Eftate. He faid he did not be- 
 lieve the King had given it, for that he had 
 begged of him not to be too hafty in that 
 
 parti- 
 
 OfSlr JohnRe resby. 
 
 particular, believing the Report to be a ma- 
 licious Lye : But that he was of Opinion 
 with me, that now was a fit Time to ask his 
 Majelly for fomething by way of Reparati- 
 on, and that he would affift me therein* 
 His Lordfliip was upon this Occafion fo o- 
 pen with me as to tell me. That tho' the 
 King denied fcarce any thing to the Duke, 
 his Brother, he certainly did not love him 
 at his Heart. 
 
 He told me alfo That the King had no 
 mind to fall out with France '^ and that if the 
 Parliament would effeaually engage him in 
 that War, their Way would be to fiirnifti 
 him with Sums of Money to prepare for it 
 and that no lefs than {\^ hundred thoufand 
 Pounds would be abfolutely neceffary for 
 that Purpofe. That if the King accepted 
 of this, he would be obliged to carry on the 
 War i but that if the Parliament would not 
 truft him, he was in the right not to em- 
 bark himfelf, and might juftly argue. How 
 can I depend on my Parliament to furnijh me 
 with regular and equal Supplies to carry on a 
 War^ which they will not fo much as enable me 
 to prepare for ? But I eafily faw through this; 
 I plainly perceived it was all Artifice to get 
 the fingering of Money. 
 
 He 
 
 47 
 
 1677; 
 
n 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 He moreover faid, That the King could 
 not in Honour join the Confederates againft 
 France : That in all the Treaties the King of 
 England had been mentioned as Principal in 
 the War : That in the Beginning he did 
 aftually join with France^ and that for him 
 now to turn his Arms againft that Crown^ 
 would look neither juft nor honourable in 
 the Eye of the World. This his Lordlhip 
 told me was the King's own Way of argu- 
 ing, whenever War hapned to be the Sub- 
 jea of their Difcourfe together ; but that his 
 Anfwer to his Majefty was, That he needed 
 not be fo regardful of that Tranfaclion, the 
 French King having plaid him the very fame 
 Trick when Chancellor Hyde was chief Mi- 
 nifter. To this he replied, That the French 
 King had a Pique againft the Lord Chan- 
 cellor : To which the Treafurer fubjoined, 
 That whatever was the Caufe, the thing was 
 as he had faid. 
 
 He was fo free alfo as to tell me ftill fur- 
 ther, That the Duke was the Grand Promo- 
 ter of the French Intereft, and that he now 
 made his Court to the Seftaries and Fana- 
 ticks, only to give Strength and Vigour to 
 the Popilli Intereft: That his Highnefs was 
 fo very a Bigot, that tho' the Archbilhop of 
 Rheims made no Scruple to go into our 
 
 Churches, 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresbt. 
 
 Churches, and even kneel down during the 
 Time of divine Service, the Duke at the 
 fame time could not be prevailed on fo much 
 as to ftep within the Doors. He obferved 
 that the Duke was particularly unhappy in 
 his Servants, a fenfelefs Packj but that in- 
 deed his Confeflbr was a notable Man,and one 
 that had a great Influence over him j being 
 as well as his Mafter averfe to a War with 
 France^ His Lordlhip however declared 
 himfelf for it. 
 
 The next Day I went to vifit the Duke 
 and Dutchefs of Lantherdaky at their fine 
 Houfe at Ham. After Dinner, her Grace en- 
 tertained me in her Chamber with much Dif- 
 courfe upon Affairs of State. She had been 
 a beautiful Woman, the fuppofed Miftrefs 
 of Oliver Croinifjell^ and at that time a Lady 
 of great Parts. Both her Grace and the 
 Duke her Husband, were entirely in the 
 Treafurer's Intereft. Her chief Complaint 
 was. That the Duke fo adhered to Papifts 
 and Fanaticks, and fo put the King upon 
 changing the Deputies of Irclandj and all 
 purely for the Subfervience of the Romijb 
 Intereft j and in fhort, let me into the Secret 
 of many Things I had never fo much as heard 
 of before ; and particularly acquainted me 
 with the State and Bent o^ Scotland^ which,. 
 
 E as 
 
 49 
 
, i 
 
 50 MEMOIRS 
 
 ^72: ^ as her Husband was Lord Commiffioner, fbe 
 was well able to do. 
 
 The Day after I went to ask Mr. Secreta- 
 ry IVilUamfou^ if any Entry had been made 
 in his Office concerning my Eftate? He an- 
 fwered He durft only own it to ijie in private^ 
 but that upon fome Rumour of a Forfeiture, 
 by fome Aft of mine, it was true that Mr. 
 Felton^ of the Bedchamber, had begged it of 
 the King, and entered a Caveat thereof at 
 his Office. 
 
 Upon this I prevailed with my Lord 
 Treafurer to go with me to the King, of 
 whom I begged two Things, namely, That 
 he would be pleafed to order Mr. Secretary 
 WilliajnfoH toeraz,e a Caveat that had been en- 
 tered with him, upon hisMajefty's granting 
 away my Eftate to Mr. Felton^ reputed to be 
 forfeited by my pretended felonious Pra- 
 .ftices with the Blackamoor that died in my 
 Service : And that alfo he would be pleafed 
 to lay his Commands upon my Lord Chief 
 Juftice Rainsford^ todifcover tome at whofe 
 Sollicitation, orupon what Suggeftion it was 
 his Lordihip iifued out his Warrant to the 
 Coroner to take up the Body after it had 
 been {o long interred. 
 
 To the Firji the King anfwered, he did 
 not remember any Grant he had made of 
 
 my 
 
 Of Sir JohnR£REsbt. 51 
 
 my Eftate to any Perfon whatfoever, but ^^11 - 
 that if any fuch Caveat was entered, he would ^^""^^^^^ 
 fee that it was expunged* As for the Second^ 
 He dire6led my Lord Treafurer to fend one 
 with me to my Lord Chief Juftice, as from 
 him, to do as 1 had defired j which his Lord- 
 ihip did the next Day by his Secretary* 
 When we came to him, he told us the whole 
 Matter, and begged I would excufe him for 
 having been fo very forward in that Affair j 
 and indeed he had good Reafon fo to do, 
 having done more than he could juftifyj for 
 he had granted his Warrant upon a bare 
 Suggeftion, that the Moor had dyed by fuch 
 an Afl:, without taking any Information ei- 
 ther in Writing or upon Oath. 
 
 The Parliament met at Wefiminjier purfu- May i\\ 
 ant to Adjournment; and the King, in his 
 Speech, told the Houfe, He could not make 
 fuch Alliances as they delired, except they 
 gave him Money, to make Preparations for 
 War. The Commons did not approve of 
 this, and voted that no Money Ihould be 
 raifed, till the King had firft entered into a 
 League OiTenfive and Defenlive with Holland^ 
 and the reft ofthe United Provinces, for the 
 Safety of thefe Kingdoms, and the Recovery 
 ofFlanderSy and to abate the Power of the 
 French King. 
 
 E 2 In 
 
3^, 
 
 
 AfayzS 
 
 III 
 
 5^ MEMOIRS 
 
 ^^11: In anfwer to this, the King faid, They 
 had exceeded the Bounds and Methods of 
 Parliament^ That they entrenched on his 
 Prerogative, by not only direfting him to 
 make Alliances, but by pointing out to him 
 what thofe Alliances fhould be, and with 
 whom to be made. That the Power of mak- 
 ing Peace or War refided wholly in himfelf, 
 and that if they took that from him, he 
 Ihould have nothing left but the empty Name 
 of King, and no more, and that in fuch cafe, 
 no Prince or State would enter into Engage- 
 ments with him. Upon the whole, He re- 
 jeaed the Addrefs, but would ufe fuch 
 Means as became him for the Prefervation 
 of his Kingdoms; adjourning them to the 
 i6th Day of July following. 
 
 In the mean time, having heard that my 
 Lord Tarmouth was one that had begged my 
 Eflate, upon the Occafion of the Death of 
 my Black, and underftanding that hisLord- 
 ftip was come to Town, I prefently waited 
 on him at his Houfe, and being with fome 
 Difficulty admitted (for I had never feen 
 him) asked him if the Thing was true? 
 Whereupon he bitterly fwore he never asked 
 it from the King, and that he never knew 
 any thing of it, farther than that one JVriiht 
 Sollicitor to the Lord Henry Ikwardy did 
 
 come 
 
 Of Sir J O H N R E R E S B Y. 53 
 
 come and acquaint him That there was like- ^ i^77« 
 iy to be fuch a Forfeiture, and advifed him 
 to ufe his Intereft with the King for it; but 
 that he abfolutely gave no Ear to the Propo^ 
 fal, faying, He would never be the richer for 
 the Misfortunes of others ; That he believed it 
 was pure Malice againft me, and that he 
 would ferve me all he could to find out th^ 
 Authors of it. In Ihort, I got it from un- 
 der his Hand, That he was neither direftly 
 or indireftly concerned in begging my E-? 
 ftate. 
 
 The very fame Day I found out Mr. Wright^ 
 and threatned to bring my Aftion of Scan- 
 dal againft him, upon the Information I had 
 received from my Lord Tarmouth^ if he did 
 pot let me into the whole Intrigue. He 
 then ingenuoufly confefled. That both Bright 
 and C^^/)/)^/ beforementioned, had given him 
 an Account of the Moor's Death, with all 
 the Circumftances of his pretended Caftrati-s- 
 on, and with all Afliirance of the Truth of 
 what they faid ; and that he telling the Sto- 
 ry to Lord Henry Howard^ his Lordfhip fent 
 him to Lord Tar77iouthy advifing him to beg 
 my Eftate of the King, and that he begged 
 it accordingly. I was now much furprifed 
 that two Noblemen fliould make their Ho- 
 nour fo cheap, and deny a real Fad with 
 
n,4 . 
 
 S r. 
 
 i 
 
 
 54 MEMOIRS 
 
 » <S7.7. fuch Oaths and Afleverations ; but confider- 
 ing with my felf that to make more Stir in 
 the Thing, would be only to make a great 
 deal of Noife about a very foolifh Story, I 
 contented my felf with this Satisfaaion, 
 that as a Sign of th.-ir Shame and Repen- 
 tance, they had both given themfelves the 
 Lye. 
 
 m. 19. ^'^ ^^'^ Time was the Marriage agreed on 
 between the Prince oiOmige, and the La- 
 dy Mary, firft Daughter to his Royal High- 
 nefs, to the great Joy of the Nation • for 
 his Highnefs being a Proteflant Prince, this 
 Match in a great meafure expelled the Fears 
 that the Majority had conceived concerning 
 Popery. Lord Banhy, the Treafurer, was 
 believed to have promoted this Alliance, and 
 got good Reputation by it. 
 
 The Parliament which was to have met 
 t:pon the 3d of December, was by Proclama- 
 tion pr6rogued to the 4th ofjpnl; but ne- 
 verthelefs, the public Bufinefs required it 
 the Day was fliortned, and they were to meet 
 on the loth o{ January, but when the Time 
 came, they were adjourned for 1 5 Days. 
 
 I dined with my Lord Treafurer, who 
 received me very kindly; and the next Day 
 I kifled the King's Hand, and the Duke's. 
 JJis Highnefs, among other Things, told me 
 
 the 
 
 li. 
 
 isxi. z. 
 
 wl 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresby. 55 
 
 the Reafon of this fliort Adjournment was i<^77- 
 becaufe the King could not fo fully acquaint "^ 
 both Houfes why they were called together 
 at this Time, till he had a more perfe£t Ac- 
 count of a Treaty now upon the Carpet with 
 Spain \ and after fome other Difcoufe of pub- 
 lick Concern, I gave him fome Affurances 
 of Duty and Refpeft, which by a former, 
 tho' falfe. Report he had fome Reafon to 
 
 doubt of 
 
 The Parliament met, and the King, in 
 his Speech, informed them That he was en- 
 tered in a ftri& Alliance with the Prince of 
 Oratige^ and the United Provinces, tooppofe 
 the French King, and the Progrefs of his 
 Arms in Flanders ^ and deiired he might 
 have Money to enable him to fulfil his En- 
 gagements. 
 
 The Commons immediately voted an Ad- l<lo^. 2-8, 
 drefs of Thanks to the King, for the Care 
 he had taken of the Proteflant Religion, in 
 nurrying his Niece to the Prince oiOrang^'^ 
 but obferved they could grant no Supplies 
 for the War, if his Majefty and his Al- - 
 ies would not engage to lay down their 
 Arms, till the Treaty of the Pyrem-es was 
 performed, and till the FrenchY^ing was re- 
 duced to the Condition he then was in ; for 
 
 E 4 that 
 
 
%*•' 
 
 r- 
 
 Nqv. 50. 
 
 m 
 
 feh. 4. 
 
 '^: 
 
 T MEMOIRS 
 
 that without this, neither this Kingdom, nor 
 the reft of Chriftendom was fafe. 
 
 They now voted the Sum of feventy thou- 
 fand Pounds, toberaifed for the Royal In- 
 terment of King Charles the Martyr, and for 
 ereaing a Monument to his Memory. 
 
 ;,Supping this Night with my Lord Trea- 
 furer. he told me He fully had intend- 
 ed to folhcit the King to do fomerhing 
 ior me; but, if he had really meant it, I 
 icnew he might have done it long before 
 then. ^ 
 
 The King fent us an Anfwer to our Ad- 
 drefs, and therein prelTed us to raife Money 
 to carry on the War; and to prevail on us 
 the more effeftually, he acquainted us with 
 the Alliances he had made ; which fo wroueht 
 upon the Houfe, That the Queftion bdng 
 put, It was carried by two and forty Voices, 
 to affift his Majefty in the War, and to con- 
 fider of the Way to do it ; but it being late, 
 the Debate was put off till the next Morning 
 
 The next Morning I waited on the Duke 
 otrorky and had a great deal of Difcourfe 
 with him concerning this Matter; and beinc^ 
 the Night before with my Lord Trealure^, 
 the Scheme was laid how to proceed the 
 next Day. 
 
 . Gr^at 
 
 Of Sir J O H-N R E RE S B T. 
 
 Great Debates had arifen upon this Af&ir, 
 and the Reafon of the violent Oppofition it 
 met with, was a Defire in fome to oppofe 
 the Crown, tho' in the very thing they them- 
 felves wilhed for, the Nation being ever de- 
 firous of a War with France ; and a Jealoufy 
 in others, That the King indeed intended 
 to raife an Army, but never defigned to go 
 on with the War, and, to fay the Truth, 
 fome of the King's own Party were not ve- 
 ry fure of the contrary. However, the 
 Commons foon after voted Money for the 
 railing Hk and twenty Regiments of Foot, 
 four of Horfe, and two of Dragoons, toge- 
 ther, with a Navy of ninety Men of War, 
 for a War with France. 
 
 A few Days afterwards, I acquainted the 
 King and the Duke with fome of the Tran- 
 faftions of the Houfe, and of the Doubts 
 fome had there expreiled concerning the 
 Ratification of the Peace betwixt us and iifo/- 
 land. To which the King replyed, '' Thur 
 " the League offenlive and defenfive was 
 ^^ aftually figned by the States, fo that they* 
 *' could not now recede, but that the Rati- 
 ^* fication was not yet fealed, the feveral 
 ^' Provinces not having yet confirnied thb' 
 ^' Aft of their Deputies, and of the Council 
 ^ of Eight who had received it* 
 
 Th^ 
 
 57 
 

 i: 
 
 58 MEMOIRS 
 
 ■^ The great BuJinefs of granting an Aid to 
 fib. iS. ^ ^^^S came on Debate in the Houfe, 
 where it was thoroughly controverted, and 
 many difficulties were ftarted, and many Mi- 
 Itrufts of the King. Among others, I fpoke 
 and attempted to ihew the Neceflity there 
 was for a Trull at this Time, and how im- 
 poffible it was (tho' Ibme Ground might ap- 
 pear for it; to recede at this Hour of the 
 Day. 
 
 The next Day the Commons voted a Mil- 
 lion, to enable the King to make War with 
 France^ for tlie Prefervation oi Flanders. 
 
 We had at this Time News that the French 
 had taken Ghent and Bwges, and that OJicnd 
 was beJieged ; whereupon the King caufed 
 fixteen hundred Men to be immediately 
 drawn out of his Guards and other Force's 
 here, and fent them to Ojhnd^ under the 
 Command of the Duke of Monmouth:^ in 
 Ihort, this News quite alarmed Flanders^ Hoi- 
 land and England. The Commons particu- 
 larly concerned themfelves therein, and now 
 grown warm, they begin to refleft on the 
 King's ill Councils, that had not advifed him 
 to a War before. No Man was named, but 
 they plainly pointed at the Duke of Tork^^ 
 ^nd the Lord Trealuren 
 
 Attends 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresbt. 
 
 Attending the King's Levee, His Maje- 
 lly told me and fome other Members then 
 prefent, ^' That except the Money voted was 
 *^ fpeedily raifed, it would come after the 
 *' French King had done his Work/* His 
 Highnefs alio told me the fame Morning, 
 that his Friends would have a hard Task of 
 it that Day, he being informed that fome of 
 the Houfe had refolved to renew the Debate 
 concerning ill Councellors ; but I afliired him 
 it was not likely, having but the Day before 
 heard a Leader of the anticourt Party fay, 
 It was no Time to raife Difputes at home, 
 now that we were in fuch a Way of being 
 embroiled abroad j and it proved even as I 
 had faid. 
 
 But after all, News came that Ghent and ^^'^^^^ 2. 
 Bruges had not been taken, as had been re- 
 ported \ and moreover, that Monf. Rcuvigny 
 was coming over, on the Part of France^ with 
 Tenders of Peace. The Parliament ftarted 
 at this, and grew jealous the Offers would 
 be accepted j but ftill our Forces marched 
 onwards, in their Way to OJiend\ and two 
 Days afterwards the Bill for raifing Money, 
 by way of Poll, was perfefted, when the 
 King and the Duke talked much of a War, 
 tho' ftill it w^as fufpefted their Hearts were 
 more inclined for Peace, 
 
 His 
 
• '.. 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 HisHighnefs told me, He was informed 
 ofa Defign in the Houfe of Commons, to 
 fall upon him and my Lord Treafurer, and 
 defired me to oppofe it. My Lord Trea- 
 furer affiired me of the fame thing, and that 
 it was to be done that very Day. That, 
 among other Articles, they laid to his Charge 
 a Treaty between the King and the Prince 
 oi Orange j but that in reality there was no 
 fuch Treaty ^ and had it been, he did not 
 think it had been difadvantagious to England, 
 Another of his Crimes, he faid, would be 
 for advilingthe King to make a Peace which 
 he never did ^ tho^ it was not impoffible but 
 fuch a Defign there might be • bnt that if fo 
 it were, it proceeded from nothing but the 
 King's own Judgment, who was that way 
 very much bent, if lawful it were fo to fay. 
 
 Now feveral Speeches were made in (he 
 Houfe, full fraught of Jealqufies and Fears, 
 and particularly with regard to the Army at 
 this time levying ; as if it rather intended 
 to.erea abfolute Monarchy at home, than 
 infeft the Enemy abroad. Complaints were 
 made of evil Council, and of the Councel-- 
 lors, but ftill no Body was named. A long 
 Debate it proved, and in the End produced 
 an Addrefs to the King, That before, they 
 proceeded to give any more Mopey, His 
 
 MaJQlty 
 
 Of Sir John R E r e s b y. 6i 
 
 Majefty would be pleafed to declare War '67 
 with France^ and withdraw his Ambaflador 
 from that Court. It was alfo ftifiy contend- 
 ed, That a Part of this Addrefs fhould be to 
 intreat the King to put away thofe evil 
 Councellors from about him, who had ad- 
 vifed him to adjourn the Parliament in Mctf 
 laft, and prevented a War with France all 
 this Time; but this being put to the Quefti- 
 on, it was carried in the Negative by five 
 Votes only. 
 
 The Commons then refolved, That a Day March 14; 
 fliould be appointed to confider of the State 
 of the Kingdom with regard to Popery : 
 And three Days afterwards my Lord Trea- 
 iiirer fent for feveral Members of the Houfe, 
 and me among others, to the Treafury 
 Chamber. His Lordlhip there told us. It 
 became all good Subjefts to withftand all 
 fuch Motions and Proceedings, which tend- 
 ed only to perplex the Minds of Men, and 
 diflurb the publick Tranquility J in Ihort, to 
 raife Jealoufies againft the Government. 
 The Duke alfo, among other Things, told 
 me. It would be to difarm all Popifh Re- 
 cufants, which he feemed to think a ridicu- 
 lous Thing; and here we put a Period to 
 this Year. 
 
 (/ 
 
 ••• i 
 
 At 
 
62 MEMOIRS 
 
 ^J^^ At this time, many well meaning Men be- 
 gan to fear the Army now raifed, was rather 
 . intended to awe our own Kingdom, than to 
 ^ war againft France, as had at firft been fug- 
 gelled; and now it being put to the Quefti- 
 ^% S. on, whether an Addrefs ihould be made to 
 the King, for laying alide Duke Lanther- 
 daJey^ of the Kingdom of Scotkndy it was 
 carried in the negative by one Vote only. 
 
 The Queftion was put again, and carried. 
 That fuch Councellors as had advifed the 
 King to make fuch Anfwers to the late Ad- 
 drelles from his Parliament, being Betrayers 
 oi the King and Kingdom, or tothatEfiea, 
 an Addrefs fliould be humbly prefented to 
 his Majeily, to lay them afide from his 
 Councils, and remove them from their other 
 Employments. This Addrefs was accord- 
 ingly , and his Majefty's Anfwer was this. 
 That they were fo extravagant in the Con- 
 tents of it, that he was not willing to make 
 fuch Reply to it as it deferv'd. Lautherdak 
 was particularly named. And the fame Day 
 it was carried, tho' but by one Voice in a 
 full Houfe, That the King's Meflage lately 
 fent to them to confider of fome Means for 
 a Supply to his Majefty, for paying off his 
 Fleet, Ihould not be obferved. 
 
 10, 
 
 The 
 
 OfStr JohnReresby. 
 
 The King underftanding the Tide of their 
 Proceedings to run fo very high, prorogued 
 them to the 23d of the fame Month, which 
 put a Stop to their further Proceedings. 
 
 It was, at this Time, generally believed 
 that Peace was concluded between us, the 
 Confederates, and the King o£ France. We 
 blamed the States for their ready Comply- 
 ance ; the States blamed the Spaniard who 
 was full of his Offers, while he had neither 
 Men, Arms, or Money in Flanders to defend 
 it ; and they both fell upon the Parliament 
 of England^ who when they fliould have 
 given Money ; and made other Preparations 
 for the War, were wafting their Time in 
 quarrelling at home with the Government, 
 and with each other. 
 
 The Parliament met, purfuant to adjourn- 
 ment, when the King fpoke to them a little 
 more briskly than ufual. He told them, a 
 Peace was near upon Conclufion between 
 France and the Confederates, at which they 
 were extremely concerned. This Peace 
 with France^ when there was like to be fo 
 ftrong a Union combined to reduce that 
 proud and potent King to a better Senfe of 
 himfelf, was very ungrateful News to Eng- 
 land'^ and theretbre the King, to throw the 
 Blame of it upon the CommonvS, told us, in 
 
 his 
 
m 
 
 64 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 his Speech, it was owing to their Refufal of 
 Money, till fomething was done for the Se- 
 curity of their Religion; their Negligence 
 to direft or advife him concerning the in- 
 tended War, or to affift him till he had 
 changed Councellors, and confequently the 
 little Hopes the Confederates could have of 
 Help from him ; that this, together with 
 the low Condition of ^'Z)^/;/, had prompted 
 them to lend an Ear to the Offers of Peace ; 
 not to fpeak of the fluggilh Motion of the 
 Germans J the Difficulty of getting them to- 
 gether, their Princes being influenced by 
 fuch difcordant Views and Interefts, and 
 the prefent Poverty of the States General, 
 all which had contributed towards the Cef- 
 fation of the War. 
 
 But ftill our King was chiefly condemned 
 in this great Affair, as he fo long deferred 
 to engage in this Alliance ; which, had he 
 fooner done, the Frcuch King had never 
 dared to perfift in the War ; at leaft he could 
 not have made fo great a Progrefs in Flan^ 
 dersy or have been able to make fo good a 
 Market for himfelf, as he did by this Peace. 
 To this our King made Anfwer, He could 
 not have believed the French King would 
 have been able to weather out a War fo well 
 
 as he did, tho' in a manner againft all £rf- 
 
 ropc 
 
 I' 
 
 Of Sir John RERESBt. 
 
 f-ope^ Himfelf and the King of Sweden only 
 excepted, who fat Neuters: And that in 
 cafe this Number of Enemies had humbled 
 that Kingdom, England might well have 
 been fatisfied with the having been an un- 
 concerned Looker'-on, while flie engrolTed 
 all the Commerce of Europe^ and might in 
 the End have reaped an equal Share of Ad- 
 vantage with even the Labourers themfelves, 
 who had been at all the Pains and Expence. 
 
 The Commons voted two hundred thou- 
 fand Pounds, to be given for disbanding the 
 Armyi but under great Refl:ri6tions, fear- 
 ing the King might take the Money, and 
 convert it to other Ufes* Wherefore great 
 Penalties were levelled againft the Officers 
 of the Exchequer, and others,through whofe 
 Hands it was to pafs, to prevent their di- 
 verting it from its right Channel, and this 
 done, the Money was chearfuliy given, the 
 Nation, and its Reprefentatives, dreading 
 nothing fo much, at that Time, as a Hand- 
 ing Army, 
 
 About this Time there was frefh Difcourfe 
 about a War with France^thQ FrenchKing and 
 ours not agreeing concerning the Interell of 
 the King of Sweden j which the French would 
 have to be adjufted, before they would de- 
 liver up the Towns they had taken in FJan- 
 
 F ders : 
 
 yurte 4; 
 
 1%: 
 
(y(^ 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 \ ^ll^ ^^^/ ' ^"^> by what I heard, I thought the 
 
 ^*^^^*"*^ thing had but an unlikely Afpeft, and parti. 
 
 cularly as I had feen the King, Duke, and 
 
 Fre^jc h Amhaihdor (o very often merry, and 
 
 intimate together at the Duchefs of Port- 
 
 fmoNtb's Lodgings, laughing at thofe who 
 
 believed it in earneft. 
 
 Offob. 10. Now came the firfl: News of the Popifh 
 
 Plot, or a Defign of the Papifts to kill the 
 
 King. No Body can conceive, that was not 
 
 a Witnefs thereof, what a Ferment this raifed 
 
 among all Ranks and Degrees. Being at 
 
 this Time in the Country, Lhurried to town 
 
 with my Family. 
 
 The Parliament met, and the King in his 
 Speech told us. He had kept the Army on 
 foot longer than by the Aft for disbanding 
 it was allowed; but that he had done it to 
 preferve the reft oi Flanders, which had prov- 
 ed an expeniive Precaution to him ; That 
 he was deeply in Debt ; That his Revenue 
 would not defray the Charge of the Govern- 
 ment ; That he would fatisty them as to this, 
 by laying the whole Scheme of his Income 
 before them,and that he then doubted not but 
 they would make him a proper Augmentation. 
 That there had been a Defign againft his 
 Life by the Jefuits and their Friends; but 
 that he would not defcend to the Particulars 
 
 of 
 
 21. 
 
 0/ 
 
 i^/V J O H N R E R E S B Y. 
 
 of the Thing, leftfome fhould think he faid 
 too little, and others, that he faid too much : 
 In a word, he left the whole to their DiC 
 covery. 
 
 The two Houfes, (but the Commons efpe- 
 cially) took Fire at this, and immediately 
 voted an Addrefs to the King, That all Pa- 
 pifts Ihould be removed ten Miles from Lon^ 
 don. And now came on the Tragedy of 
 Sir EdmiindburyGodfrey^ and now alfo appear- 
 ed Do£t. Oates^ who, as he pretended, hav- 
 ing fome Jealoufy of what was in Agitation, 
 dilfembled himfelf a Papift, and got Admit- 
 tance of the Jefuits College at St. Omersy 
 where feeing into the whole Matter, he told 
 it to one Doftor Tongue^ an EngUJh Divine, 
 who told it to my Lord Treafurer, who 
 privately told it to the King, in fuch Man- 
 ner that the Thing was ftifled and latent for 
 a whole Month. But being with the King 
 at the Duchefs o£ Port [mo nth' sl.o Agings, my 
 Lord Treafurer alfo being prefent, the King 
 told me, " He took it it to be fome Arti- 
 *^ fice, and that he did not believe one 
 <^ Word of the whole Story. 
 
 Cckmans Affair made alfo a Noife, and 
 feenicd in fome Sort to confirm the other. 
 He made very free with his Highnefs'sName 
 upon feveral importantArticles,tho' theDuke 
 
 F 2 was 
 
 OBoh. 25. 
 
 ^y 
 
Novtmher, 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 was an utter Stranger to his Correfpondence, 
 as he defired his Friends of both Houfes to 
 declare for him. The Commons, however, 
 were very angry with my Lord Treafurcr' 
 for keeping the Plot fo long in the dark, 
 feeing the King might have been made away 
 with in the mean time. This News I firft 
 of any Body communicated to his Lordfhip, 
 in the Prefence of the King, who faid| 
 ^ My Lord was in no Fault as to that ; he 
 *^ he having commanded him to keep it fe- 
 ^^ cret, the better to make Difcovery of 
 " what Truth there might be therein/' 
 
 Now to enter into the Particulars of this 
 Plot, real or pretended, is not the Defign 
 of this Work; the feveral Narratives of the 
 Witnefles before the two Houfes of Parlia- 
 ment, and the Courts of Juftice, upon the 
 Tryals of the Parties accufed, give fufficient 
 Infight and Satisfaaion, as to all that can be 
 faid of it. Thus much we may, however 
 obferve, that tho' a great deal of what was 
 advanced and confidently related, bore the 
 Face of Improbability, yet fuch was the 
 Torrent of the Times, that no Doubt was to 
 be made of all that was heard. 
 
 All the Beginning of this Month was ta- 
 ken up by the Commons, in examining of 
 
 Witnefles concerning the Plot, who came in 
 
 very 
 
 Of Sir John Reresby. 
 
 very plentifully, the King having, at the 
 Requeft of the Commons, granted Indemni- 
 ty to all who Ihould make any Difcovery, 
 tho' ever fo deeply and blackly engaged 
 themfelves,and not only Indemnity,but Sub- 
 fiftence into the Bargain. At length the Com- 
 mons came to this R.efolution,That upon the 
 Evidence which appeared from Coleman s Let- 
 ter»,andthe Informations oiOates and others, 
 it was plain there was a helUih and damna- 
 ble Defign to affaflinate and murder the King, 
 and to fubvert the Religion and Government 
 as by Law eftablilhed. 
 
 The Houfe of Lords now requefted his 
 Royal Highnefs, to withdraw himfelf from 
 the King's Councils, and he complied with 
 the Requeft ; but the Commons went a Step 
 higher, and were for removing him from a- 
 bout the King s Perfon. There were thofe 
 in the Houfe who argued the Danger of this, 
 obferving that his Highnefs might be there- 
 by tempted to put himfelf at the Head of the 
 Popifli Faftion. Some there were alfo, who 
 moved That the Duke Ihould be fent out of 
 England. The King and Duke both, fpoke 
 to\ll their Friends to oppofe this, and it 
 was effeaually done ; for no Refolution be- 
 ing taken that Day, the Debate was adjourn. 
 ed to the 8th Inftant. But tho' it came not 
 
 F J tQ 
 
 69 
 
Nov. 6, 7. 
 
 8. 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 to the Vote, the Houfe was generally of O- 
 pinion, That the Duke's being of that Re- 
 ligion was what principally encouraged the 
 Papifts to fuch wicked Attempts: In fliort, 
 they were, by Proclamation, banilhed to 
 the Dillance often Miles from Lo;ido^. 
 
 While Gjkmaus Letters were under the 
 Confideration of the Houfe, I waited feveral 
 Times on my Lord Treafurer, who had 
 called feveral of us together, to confult us 
 about an Aft to lelfen the Popifh Intereft in 
 Jis Kingdom; when his Lordfhip told us, 
 The King was willing fomething lliould be 
 enafted, T^o pare (as his Expreffion was) the 
 Naih of a Popijh Succejjm-^ but that he would 
 never fufter his Brother to be taken away 
 from him, or the right Line to the Crown 
 to be interrupted ; and to the fame Effeft 
 the King fpoke to the two Houfes the next 
 Day. 
 
 To pafs over other Things more generally 
 known, a Jealoufy now feemed to arife be- 
 tween the Duke and the Lord Treafurer. 
 The Duke thought his LordiWp was within 
 himfelf for his leaving the Court, that fo he 
 might have the King the more abfolutely in 
 his own Power: And my Lord (tho' I be- 
 lieve he endeavoured to ferve the Duke all 
 he could, tho' no Friend to his Religion) 
 
 refented 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresby. 
 
 refented the Duke's Sufpicion. Much was, 
 at this time, done and tranfaSted, in disfa- 
 vour of the Popiih Party \ and particularly 
 it was now that the Lords pafled that great 
 Bill to incapacitate fuch of the Roman Ca- 
 tholic Members as fliould refufe to take the 
 Oath of Allegiance and Supremacy ; tho' my 
 Lord High Treafurer faid in my Hearing, 
 but the Night before, He was fure it would 
 never pafs in that Houfe. 
 
 The Duke of Holjieifis Refident had, it 
 feems, reported the Lord Treafurer to be in 
 the Pay and Penfion of France. Thus, at 
 leaft, had his Lordlhip been informed, and 
 fending for him, he fent for me alfo to be 
 prefent at the Examination ; but the Refi- 
 dent abfolutely denied what was laid to his 
 Charge, To make amends for this, I, a 
 few Days after, acquainted his Lordlhip, 
 That the fame Gentleman had afliired me, 
 the Commons would moll certainly fall up- 
 on him, and that it was in his Power to 
 turn the Edge of one that was moll violent 
 againfl him. I told him alfo, that I had, 
 from other Hands, been informed, that my 
 Coufin Ralph Montague^ fince Lord Montaguey 
 lately recalled from being Ambaflador in 
 France^ and now Member of our Houfe^ 
 would accufe him there. But my Lord gave 
 
 F 4 no 
 
^^ MEMOIRS 
 
 J^ no Ear to either of thefe ; faying, The lat- 
 ter durfl not impeach him, for that he had 
 Letters to fhow from him, whilft Ambaffa. 
 dor, that would prove how officious he was 
 to^ perfuade him, to accept of the French 
 King s Money, tho^ he abfolutely refufed 
 It. The fame Day the Duke told me, He 
 expefted to be attacked by the Commons, 
 and hoped his Friends would ftand firm to 
 him; ^nd Sir jfcfephWt/liamfon, Secretary of 
 Jtate, was, bytheHoufe, committed to the 
 Tower, for paffing the Mufters of fome Po- 
 pift Officers, without tendering them the 
 Oaths, tho' he had his Majeftv's Orders for 
 fo doing. 
 
 JSW21. £ed/oe, the Evidence, went on apace, but 
 being this Day with the King, his Majefty 
 told me, " Be^Ioe was a Rogue, and that he 
 *' was fatisfied he had given fome talfe Evi- 
 ^' dence, concerning the Death of Sir Et^^ 
 ^' ttitmdbiiry Godfrey. 
 
 In preparing the Bill for purging the 
 Houfe of Lords of fuch as refufed the new 
 Teft, it was put to the Queftion, Whether 
 or no his Royal Highnefs Ihould be excufed 
 from taking it, and it was carried in the 
 affirmative, but by no more than two Votes- 
 Had it been carried in the negative, he 
 would, in tbp next Place, have been voted 
 
 away 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresby- 73 
 
 away from the King's Prefence. And now ^^^J .^^ 
 all the popifli Lords, three excepted, were 
 expelled the Houfe of Peers. 
 
 Having proceeded thus far, the Commons B^m, x. 
 voted an Addrefs to the King, from that 
 Houfe, to reprefent the ill State of the Na- 
 tion, and the Danger it was in, by his Ma- 
 jefty's adhering to private Councils rather 
 than to his two Houfes of Parliament : This 
 aimed at my Lord Treafurer, and fome o- 
 thers of the Cabinet Council. This was car- 
 ried by two and twenty Votes, and even 
 fome of the Courtiers were for itj whence 
 it was by fome furmifed. That the Duke, 
 being no longer in Councils, was grown 
 jealous of the Treafurer, and had a mind he 
 ihould be removed. It was now faid the 
 Duke had been perfuaded (butunjuftly) that 
 his Lordihip endeavoured to inlinuate into 
 the King, that there was fomething of Pro- 
 bability in the Accufation againft the Queen^ 
 purely that he might hearken to a Divorce^ 
 and marry another more likely to bring Chil- 
 dren to the Crown. 
 
 The Commons were now intent upon did 
 banding the Army, raifing of Money for 
 that Purpofe, and the Conviftion of Popilh 
 Recafants ; during which the Right of the 
 Lords to interfere in a lyloney-Bill was 
 
 warmly 
 
74 MEMOIRS 
 
 ^^ warmly contefted ; but not to dwell on fo 
 
 . J)e.e^.6. ""'^^^ Jubjea, the King caufed Mr. Afo«- 
 
 t^ues Papers to be feized, and acquainted 
 
 t f T !r°f ^°'"'"°"'' ^^''' having been 
 h s Anibairador at the Frefuh Court, he had 
 taken on him to treat with the Pope's Nun- 
 cio, without any Commiffion from him for 
 lo doing ; and that he had feized his Papers 
 to come at the Purport of the faid Treaty. 
 Hut Montague affiired the Houfe, that this 
 was a mere Artifice, a Contrivance of the 
 
 T '^r'u Tt''^ '^'"^^^^f' but that his 
 Lord/hip had therein failed, for that altho' 
 moft of his Letters were feized, he had by 
 good Look faved the moft material. One 
 of them, dated the 2yth oi March i6-,i, in. 
 Itrufted him to acquaint that Court with the 
 great Difficulties he met withal here in the 
 Altair of i^eace between us and them, and 
 the Fear there was the Parliament Ihould dif- 
 cover It : That however he had Orders from 
 the king to bid him treat with them for a 
 ^eace, as well between them and the Confe- 
 derates, as our felves; upon Condition, the 
 i'rench King would give ours fix hundred 
 thoufmd Livers per Jmnm, for three Years 
 together, after the Conclufion of the Peace • 
 lor that as our King would thereby difgult 
 the Parliament, he could expeft no Money 
 
 from 
 
 Of Sir J O H N R E R E S B Y. 
 
 from them of fo long a time : And finally, 
 That when he wrote back to the Secretary, 
 concerning this Tranfaftlon, he fhould be 
 filent as to the Money, and fo on. Signed, 
 
 Danhy. 
 This put the Houfe into a Flame, and a 
 Motion was inftantly made, that the Trea- 
 furer Ihould be impeach'd of High Treafon ^ 
 for that he had endeavoured to eftrange the 
 King from his Parliament, and make it of 
 no Ufe to him \ and one Mr. J'cfmcl obferv- 
 ed. That this was ufurping a Power to the 
 Exclufion of other Councellors, who had a 
 Right to advife the King as well as himfelf ; 
 the very Treafon that was laid to the Charge 
 of the Spencers, and the Duke of Ireland^ in 
 the Days of Richard the Second. 
 
 But it was anfwered. That it was no fuch 
 great Offence to write this by the King's 
 own Order, as was expreffed in the Letter 
 it felf, and would be owned, as fuppofed, 
 by the King at this Time. That the King 
 had certainly a Power to advife with which 
 of his Councellors he pleafed ^ and that if 
 his Majefty forefaw the Confederates would 
 ftrike up a Peace, which we muft comply 
 with, where was the Harm of making what 
 Advantage we could of it to our felves, and 
 at the fame Timeof fparingthe Purfes of the 
 Subjea ? A fe- 
 
 « 
 
*r^ MEMOIRS 
 
 '<JtS. a fecond Letter was produced, which gave 
 Aflurance of Inclinations for avery fair Un- 
 derftanding between us andhismoll Chriftian 
 Majefty ; togedier with Advice to haften the 
 I'eace; becaufe the Dulce feemed every Day 
 more and more averfe to it ; and mentioned 
 lome Towns to he given up, by the French, 
 as cautionary, to the Confederates, upon the 
 Conclufion of this Peace. Mr. Montague 
 then declared m the Houfe, Thatthe W 
 i^ing was wilhng to deliver up two Towns 
 more than he did by the former Treaty, 
 but that my Lord Treafurer was fo earneft' 
 and prefTingfor Money, that he thereby made 
 the Terms much worfeforthe Confederates- 
 but at the fame Time acknowledged he could 
 not ky he knew of any Money paid either 
 to him or to his Majefty. Other Things 
 «^ere now laid to the Treafurer's Charge, as 
 the Male-adminiftration of his OiBceT and 
 the Lownefs of the Exchequer : But to this 
 u was anfwered, by his Lordflup's Friends, 
 That a Debt offix hundred thoufand Pounds 
 had been paid ofTlince he had been in Office 
 tho no Money had in all that Time been 
 g'ven to the King, but what had been ao- 
 propnated to the Ufes defigned. 
 . He was farther accufed, (this Letter bear- 
 ing Date the 25th oi March ,578, and the 
 
 Aft 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresby. 
 
 Aft which gave .Money to the King to en- 
 ter into a War with France being pafled but 
 the 20th) of deluding the Nation, in advi- 
 fing the King to take Money for raifing an 
 Army for Service abroad, and at the fame 
 Time treating for Money from France to 
 make a Peace, which looked as if a ftanding 
 Army was defigned to humble England^ and 
 not France. In ftiort, the Cipeftion being 
 put, it was refolved. That an Impeachment 
 be drawn up againft the Lord Treafurer, and 
 a Committee was accordingly appointed for 
 
 that Purpofe. 
 
 Mr. Montague was, in this Cafe, juftly 
 cenfured, for difclofing what had pafled 
 through his Hands, when a public Minifter, 
 without the King's Leave. Mean while, ^tc. 7. 
 the Treafurer endeavoured to deftroy the 
 Credit of his Accufer, and produced fome 
 Letter, from him, when in France,^ which 
 were read in the Houfe, and made it appear 
 that Montague had been very guilty of the 
 Offences he threw upon his Lordfhip : But 
 his Enemies were fo many and fo powerfiil, 
 that the whole Edge was bent againft him \ 
 in a Word, the Tide was not to be ftemmed, 
 and fix Articles of Impeachment were drawn 
 up againft him. 
 
 But 
 
MEMO IRS 
 
 78 
 
 ^^^W „ ■^"r t ?^^^^^ ^^°^^> whether, fuppofine 
 
 Srh T « '''^°"» °°"^ °f then: being 
 r n the Statute of£^^^.^ „i. ^t length 
 theQudtion being put, Whether or no^an 
 Impeach of High Treafon, founded up. 
 on the fa.d Articles againft his Lordfhip, 
 fhould be earned up to the Houfe of Lords 
 Z)e..23. ;''^^^f>verex79,andtheA^c'5 1,0. The 
 
 ^Tt'^T '^T ^^' "^"'^'^ "P t" 'he Bar 
 f/nM ??^' °^^°'"^'' ^'here it being pre- 
 lently debated, whether or no his Lo?dlhip 
 Ihould withdraw, it was carried in the ne- 
 gative by 20 Voices ; and then both Houfes 
 
 Sy^oul ^°' ^^"-^''^^' ^^"' '"'^ ^'^"^'""^^ 
 
 '^' (.I\^°f'" ""''' '"^ ''^" Commons heard 
 ^T ^"^^"'^e concerning the Death of Sir 
 Edmundbury Godfrey,^nd quarrelled with the 
 i^ords on account of the Amendment they 
 had made m the Money-BiU for disbanding 
 the Army The fame Day I fpoke both 
 with the king and the Duke, who both de- 
 clared they would adhere to my Lord Trea- 
 lurer. 
 
 ^■- ^ ^^f "^''' ^^y '^^ Lords voted, That he 
 ftQuldnot be committed: And the fame 
 Day the D.fpute between the two Houfes, 
 concerning the Money-Biil, was decided by 
 
 a Con- 
 
 OfSir JohnReResby. 
 
 a Conference^and the Bill paffed bothHoufes, 
 And here I cannot but take Notice, that the 
 King obferving the Lord Stafford to be very 
 violent in the Houfe againft the Lord Dan-- 
 hy^ (which, it feems, took Birth from a 
 perfonal Pique to him, for obftruaing a Pen- 
 fion iie had from the Crown) told me, " He 
 " wondered at it much, feeing his Father 
 " came to the unfortunate End he did, by 
 " the very felf fame Method of Proce- 
 
 " dure. 
 
 And now, when it was leaft expefted, j^ec. 30^ 
 the King prorogued the Parliament to the 
 4th o{ February ; fome faid in favour of the 
 Papifts, others of the Lord Treafurer, and 
 others again in Defence of his Prerogative, 
 which was more than one Way invaded by 
 the Commons : But his Majefty at the fame 
 Time declared he intended to disband the 
 Army, and profecute the Bufinefs of the 
 Plot. Montague was now difcovered in a 
 Difguife at Dover ^ in his Way to France, 
 
 My Lord Treafurer fent for me, and told Jan.zOf 
 me, The King had declared he would dif- 
 folve the Parliament, and advifed me to 
 make Intereft as foon as I could againft the 
 approaching Eleftion, for that another Par- 
 liament would fpeedily be called. This Par- 
 liament w^as, for the moft Part, very Loyal 
 
 both 
 
8o 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 ^ 1^!^^ both to the King and the Church ; which 
 ^» made thofe ofadverfe Sentiments very defi- 
 rous of its Diffolution; and the Way they 
 contrived to bring it about, as was credibly 
 reported, was by perfuading the Treafurer 
 to obtain it of the King, promifing if he 
 Ihould fucceed therein, That there fhould be 
 no farther Profecution againft him in the 
 next Parliament ^ but they deceived him, as 
 he afterwards experienced, 
 Jan. 31. Both the King and the Duke advifed me 
 to iknJ for the next Parliament, and both 
 of themaiTured me, not only of my Govern- 
 ment of Burlington^ but of their Affiftance 
 alfo, if it came to a controverted Ele£kion. 
 Feb. 14. Accordingly a Proclamation coming out 
 for the Ele£lion of a new Parliament, my 
 Lord Treafurer conduced me to his Majefty, 
 and thanked him for his Promife of continu- 
 ing me in my Government; to which the 
 King replied, That I had ferved him faith- 
 fiilly,and that he intended to be kind to me. 
 My Lord Treafurer wrote alfo to the High 
 Sheriff of Torkfhire^ to be favourable to me 
 in the Return \ to conclude, having taken 
 leave of the Duke of Monmouth^ I left the 
 Town to go into the Country. 
 March 6» The Parliament met, but a Difference a- 
 rofe about the Choice of a Speaker, the Houfe 
 
 being 
 
 (yi^/r John Re RE SB Y. 81 
 
 being for one, and the King recommending i^i^. 
 another ; wherefore they refufed to enter ""^ 
 upon Bulinefs, but adjourned to the 7th In- ^^^^^ r 
 ftant, then to the 8th, and fo to the loth. 
 The next Day I met the King in his Royal 
 Robes, and with his Crown upon his Head, 
 as he came out of the Houfe of Lords : 
 He Hopped to ask me If I was elefted ? To 
 which replying Yes, he faid. He was glad 
 of it. Upon my Return to Town, 1, to the 
 furprife of all Men, found that the King had ^ 
 
 commanded the Duke to go into Flanders * 
 Some faid the Treafurer had brought this to 
 pafs, that he might engrofs the King tohim- 
 felf^ others faid it was to divert the Vio- 
 lence of both Houfes againft his Highnefs, 
 from the Sufpicion of lome that he was of 
 the Plot. But I prefume it was chiefly in- 
 tended to extirpate all Jealoulies in the Par- 
 liament, That he was influenced by Popifh 
 Councils, tho' even from his own Brother. 
 
 The Commons began to be angry with 
 the Treafurer, for that the Speaker they had 
 propofed had been rejefted by the King • 
 laying he was the caufe of it, becaufe, truly, 
 the Gentleman was not his Lordfhip's Friend. 
 This Diipute fublilling between the King 
 and the Commons, they at length Addrefs 
 him, Befceching him not to invade their un- 
 
 G doubted 
 
Sz MEMOIRS 
 
 i6'jS. Privilege of chufing their Speaker ; but His 
 Majefty ftill infills on it, That without his 
 Approbation, their Choice is of none ]Lffe£t. 
 Now all the Moderate Men in the Houfe 
 were concerned That fuch Punflilio's Ihould 
 Hand in the Way of Bufinefs^efpecially when 
 Bufinefs of fuch High Importance lay before 
 them ^ but the Angry Party was deaf to all 
 Remonftrance ; and the King, by way of 
 Expedient, prorogued the Parliament to the 
 nth Inftant, and from thence to the 15th, 
 when Serjeant Gregory being elected, both 
 lides were fatisfied. 
 
 The Storm now begins to fall heavy upon 
 the Lord Treafurer, irifomuch that he has 
 Thoughts of delivering up his Staff, and with 
 it his Office, in hopes by fuch Refignation 
 to allay the Heats againft him. I was averfe 
 to this Step, I confefs, and would have had 
 him flood his ground, as long as the King 
 would ftand by him, faying, his Refigna- 
 tion would but expofe him the more to the 
 Power of his Enemies ^ in fhort, that the 
 Lords would fear him the lefs, and the Com- 
 mons not love him a bit the better. Several 
 Perfons had got poflefled of good Employ- 
 ments, not fo much by my Lord's Favour 
 and Kindnefs, as by giving Money to his 
 Lady, who had for fome time driven on a 
 
 private 
 
 Of Sir John R e r e s b y. 
 
 private Trade of this fort, tho' not without 
 his Lordfliip's participation and concurrence. 
 This I knew, but had neither the Face nor 
 the Inclination to come in at that Doorj fo 
 that I was poftponed to many, who, as I 
 thought, deferved as little as my felf » but 
 they had but a bad Bargain, they were now 
 all fwept away with the fame Torrent that 
 began to overwhelm his Lordfhip ; againft 
 whom frefh Matter now appeared, upon the March 1 7 
 Evidence of Be^Ioe^ before the Committee ^ 
 
 appointed to examine into the Plot, he ac- 
 cufing the Treafurer of having tampered 
 with him to fly durihg this Interval of Par- 
 liament. And now every thing went harder 
 and harder with his Lordfhip's Friends ; fo 
 that my Eleftion being controverted, the 
 Committee of Privileges and Ele£lions, in a 
 few Days afterward, gave my Caufe againft 
 me by a fmall Majority of two only • which 
 confidering the Stream of the Times, I rec- 
 koned to be as good as half a Viftory at 
 leaft. 
 
 In the mean time a Mefiage was fent to 
 the Lords, defiring the Treafurer might be 
 committed ; but their Lordfhips had but juft 
 before Voted him Eight Days to prepare his 
 Defence in. The Commons repeated their 22* 
 former Meffage to the Lords ; and the next 
 
 G z Day 
 
 zo. 
 
MEMOIRS 
 
 Day the King coming to the Houfe of 
 Lords, in the ufual State and Formality, in- 
 formed both Houfes, That it was by his par- 
 ticular Order the Lord Treafurer had writ- 
 ten the Two Letters, produced by Mon- 
 tagiic : That it was not the Lord Treafurer 
 who had concealed the Plot, but that it 
 was himfelf who told it his Lord fhip from 
 time to time, as he thought fit. His Maje- 
 fty then declared he had granted the faid 
 Nobleman a full Pardon, and that, if Occa- 
 lion required, he would give it him again 
 Ten times over : That, however, he intended 
 to lay him alide from his Employments, and 
 to forbid him the Court. 
 
 Some would have pefuaded his Lordfhip 
 to take Refuge abroad, as what would ap- 
 peafe both Houfes : And indeed the Lords 
 had a Conference with the Commons about 
 preparing a Bill to banifh him, and the Com- 
 mons delired fome Days to conlider of it, 
 in hopes he would have withdrawn in that 
 March i£^. time. In the midft of this Perplexity I faw 
 his Lordlhip at Midnight, as he came out of 
 hisClofet, from adviling with his Friends 
 what to do. He gave me a great many 
 Thanks and good Words ^ told me he had 
 recommended me to the King as a fit Per- 
 fon to be fent his Envoy into France ; as 
 
 alfo 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresby. 85 
 
 alfo where I was to make Application in his ^^i^- ^ 
 Abfence, if I wanted any thing with the ' ~^~*^ 
 King. 
 
 The next Day the Commons, in a great ^^^]^' 
 Heat, refufed to comply with the Lords, in 
 their Bill of Banifhment ; they faid it was 
 too flight a Punilliment, and fent to demand 
 Juftice of their Lordfliips againft the Trea- 
 furer, declaring. He ought not only to be 
 puniflied in his own Perfon, but in his Po- 
 fterity likewife, as an Example of thofe, 
 who for the future Ihould fucceed him in his 
 Office : But before the Meffage came, the 
 Lords had changed their Minds, and fent 
 the Black Kod for the Treafurer ; too late 
 tho' ; he was gone, and now it was fur- 
 mifed the King was grown cool toward^ 
 him. 
 
 A moll unhappy thing it is to ferve a 
 fickle Prince, which, it mull: be owned, was 
 Part of our Mailer's Charafter. Had the 
 Treafurer conlidered no Body but himfelf 
 he might certainly have fared better ♦ but 
 he refolved rather to fuffer; than to do any 
 thing that might derive any Diihonour on 
 the King, or others about him, as he has 
 fince faid himfelf. This great Change, I 
 mull own, made me ferioully ponder the in- 
 certitude of human Grandeur : It was but a 
 
 G 3 few 
 
MEMOIRS 
 
 few Months before that few things were 
 tranfafted at Court, but with the Privity or 
 Confent of this great Man; the King's Bro- 
 ther, and favourite Miftrefs, were glad to 
 be fair with h; n, and the general AdJrefs 
 of all Men oi jBufinels was to him, who was 
 not only Tr;;afurer, but prime Minifter al- 
 fo ; who not only kept the Purfe, but was 
 the firft and greateft Confident in all Affairs 
 of State. But now he is neglefted of all, 
 forced to hide his Head as a Criminal, and 
 in danger of lofing all he has got, and his 
 Life therewith: His Family raifed from 
 Privacy to the Degree of Marquifs, (a Patent 
 was then aduaily palling, to inveft him with 
 that Dignity) is now on the Brink of fall- 
 ing below the humble limd o( a Yeoman ; 
 nor would almolt the meaneit Subjeft change 
 Conditions with him now, who fo very 
 lately the greateft beheld with Envy. This 
 confirmed me in a Belief, that a Middle 
 State is always the beft; not fo lowly as to 
 be trodden on, nor fo lofty as to fear the 
 Blafts of Envy. A Man fhould not be fo 
 wanting in point of Induftry, as not to en- 
 deavour to diftinguilh himfdfin fome fort 
 from the Bulk of thofe of his Rank • nor yet 
 fo ambitious as to facrifice the Eafe of this 
 Life, and of that to come, by mounting 
 
 over 
 
 Of Sir John Reresby. 
 
 over the Heads of others, to a Greatnefs of 
 uncertain Duration. But to digrefs no far- 
 ther, 
 
 I wrote to his Royal Highnefs, to ac- 
 quaint him with the Pofture of Affairs here 
 at prefent. The Two Houfes of Parliament 
 continued in Divifion, as to what lliould be 
 inflifted on the fallen Treafurer ; the Lords 
 adhering to their Bill to banilh him, and the 
 Commons to their Bill of Attainder, till at 
 laft it came to a free Conference between 
 them. This Bufinefs, and the Plot, engrof- 
 fed the Attention of the Houfes for a long 
 time; during which time it was thought the 
 Lord Da/iby lay concealed at WhitehalL 
 
 The King feemed not at all concerned at 
 thus pardng with his Brother, and his Trea- 
 furer ; nor in any Degree follicitous about 
 the Ufe the Parliament would make there- 
 of; tho' it was fufpefted they would get 
 their own Friends into Power, and obtain 
 a fnip of the Prerogative, in Conlideration 
 of the Money they gave to his Majefty. 
 
 My Lord Danby at length furrendering ^y^j i«; 
 himfelf, was committed Prifoner to the 
 Tower, where going to pay him a Vifit, he 
 feemed to be very little concerned. 
 
 The Privy Council of Fifty I^rds, was 
 now difmilTed, and a new one called, con- 
 
 G 4 fitting 
 
 i^' 
 
MEMOIRS 
 
 fining of Thirty of thofe Lords and Com- 
 moners, who had, in both Houfes, been 
 moft aaive againft the late Court Meafuresi 
 of thefe were Lord RnJIel, Lord Halltfas, 
 Lord Cavmdijh and others. The Admiralty 
 was put inco Commilfion, and fo was the 
 Treafury. The Duke oi Monmouth wasfup. 
 pofed to be at the Bottom of all this ; it is 
 certain it was now that he beean to fet ud 
 for himfelf ^ 
 
 ./^/n/25. My Lord Darihy returned Anfwer to his 
 Impeachment, to the Upper Houfe, pleading 
 the King's Pardon, This was fent down to 
 the Commons, who referred it to a Com- 
 mittee ; and the Refult was, That his Ma- 
 jefty had no Power to grant Pardon in this 
 Cafe : The lame Day both Houfes began to 
 caft Pvcfleftions on the Duchefs oi Portf 
 month. 
 
 The Commons, purfuant to their Refolu- 
 tion the Day before, fat this Day, being 
 Sunday J to confider of the means for the 
 Prefervation of his Majefty's Perfon ^ and 
 Voted, That the beft way would be to pre- 
 vent the Succeflion from falling into the 
 Hands of a Papift, and that the Duke of 
 Tork being fucri, was the Reafonof the late 
 Confpir^cy againft the King^s Perfon and 
 Govern i.enc, and the Religion as by Law 
 eitaulilhed. jyjy 
 
 *7' 
 
 I 
 
 Of Sir JohnRe resby. 
 
 My Lord Vifcount HaUifax being now of 
 the Council, and entering into Buiinefs, he, 
 tho' a great Enemy to the Earl oiDanby^ 
 profefied a Kindnefs for me ; but here I 
 muft obferve, that moft of the other Lords 
 and Gentlemen of the Privy Council, tho' 
 great Patriots before, in the Efteem of both 
 Houfes, began, in fome Meafure, to lofe 
 their Credit with both, fo true it is, That 
 there is no w earing the Court and Country- 
 Livery together. 
 
 The Lords in the Tower moved, that M^yiu 
 Council might be affigned them, in vain * and 
 a Day was appointed to conlider of that part 
 of his Majefty's Speech, where he faid he 
 was willing to concur with his Parliament, 
 in palling a Bill to limit a Popiih Succeflbr, 
 fo that he fliould not be able to alter the 
 Government and Religion as now by Law 
 eftablifhed, tho' he would not fufter the 
 SuccefTion itfelf to be touched : Againft this 
 Day a Committee was appointed to examine 
 into Coleman s Letters, and to make Report 
 to the Houfe of whatever therein related to 
 the Duke of Tork. They reported that by 
 the faid Letters they had difcovered, That 
 his Highnefs had written thrice to the Pope; 
 that his firft Letter mifcarried ; that the fe- 
 cond gave his Holinefs fuch an excefs of 
 
 Joy: 
 
 .V 
 
90 
 
 M E M O I R s 
 
 Joy, that the old Gentleman could not re- 
 frain from Tears; and that the third was to 
 excufe the confent he gave to have his 
 Daughter married to the Prince of Om/;-. 
 and to acquaint him, that the run of the' 
 Times had obliged him to fuch involuntary 
 Compliance. Upon this and fome further 
 intimation of the fame Nature, a Debate a- 
 rofe, whether a Bill Ihould be drawn up in 
 the way his Majefty had fuggefted, or whe- 
 ther they fhould immediately proceed to a 
 total Exclu/ion. The Friends for the Limi- 
 tation argued, that we might be as fafely 
 fecured the one way as the other ; that a 
 imall Revenue might be fettled upon a Po- 
 pift Succeffor while he contined in that Per- 
 fuafion ; that the Militia might be taken 
 out of his Hands; and that a Parliament 
 might be impowered to aflemble, whenever 
 the prefent King fliould die, and to fit for 
 fix Weeks, in order to fettle the Affairs of 
 the Kingdom, to appoint Proteftant Offi- 
 cers, Military and Civil, and to make Choice 
 ofBilhops, which the Succeffor, ifaPapiil, 
 ihould have no Power to nominate. 
 
 To this it was objefted, that fuch a Pro- 
 jea of Procedure were altering the very 
 Frame and Conftitution of our Government 
 and Monarchy, and direftly to reduce it 
 
 to 
 
 * 1 « 
 
 1 • 
 
 m 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresby. 
 
 to a Republic; that it would be quite inef- 
 feftual ; that the King, by the fundamental 
 Laws of the Land, was Head and Supreme 
 of the three Eftates ; that a Parliament fo 
 convened as above, could enaft nothing va- 
 lid without him ; that while he enjoyed the 
 Title of King, he would exercife a Power 
 adequate to his Office ; and that therefore 
 the means propofed were delufory and un- 
 f ife, in comparifon of an utter Exclufion. It 
 was replied, that this Expedient was by far 
 more to be avoided than the former ; that 
 it was depriving the Duke of his Birthright; 
 that if hisHighnefsfurvived, he had as clear 
 a Claim to fucceed the King, if he died 
 Childlefs, as any Man v/hatever had to fuc- 
 ceed to his Father's Pofieffions ; that proba- 
 bly a Prince of his Spirit would not ealily 
 fubmit to be fo difinherited ; that fuch a Di- 
 llurbance of the Succeffion had never, in this 
 Kingdom, been of any lafting Efieft; that 
 Right had always prevailed at laft ; that Ci- 
 vil Wars, upon the like Occafions had been 
 difaftrous to England'^ that Succefs would 
 reverfe all Attainder; and that fhould his 
 Highnefs force his way to the Crown, the 
 overthrow of Religion and Government 
 were more, much more, to be feared, than by 
 his peaceful Acceffion, 
 
 The 
 
 91 
 
 1^79. 
 
X4. 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 The next Day I acquainted the King with 
 my Fate in the Committee, he faid, " He 
 " was very forry for it, but that they fliould 
 '' not ftay long behind me, if they did not 
 " ufe himfelf and his Brother better than 
 ^^ they did '* ; and promifed to condnue me 
 m my Command at Burlirigton^ with a Sala- 
 ry of Two Hundred Pounds, till a Company 
 ftould become vacant, which I fhould have 
 in lieu of mine now to be disbanded with 
 the reft of the Army. 
 
 The King fent a MefTage to the Com- 
 mons, advifing them to think of raifing Mo- 
 ney for the Equipment of a Fleet, and for a 
 frelh Provifion of Naval Stores, very much 
 wanted in all the Yards in England. This 
 Meflage being taken into Coriideration, the 
 Houfe infifted on a Change of the Succef- 
 fion, and a proper Security for Religion, 
 and a Remov al of all Officers they difliked 
 the Kingdom over. Such was the Tenor of 
 the Debate, but no Vote palFed, except to 
 adjourn the farther Coniideration of this 
 Matter for Eight Days. 
 
 Now the Lords who were in the Tower 
 for the Plot, and my Lord Danhy^ being 
 ihortly to take their Trials, an arduous 
 Queftion arofe in the Houfe of Lords, con- 
 cerning the Bilhops, Whether or no they 
 
 ought 
 
 
 X 
 
 . 
 
 Of Sir J O H N R E R E S B Y. 
 
 ought to be prefent in Cafes of Blood. 
 Whereupon the Commons, thinking thefe 
 Spiritual Lords would be of too favourable 
 an Inclination, took the Confideration of the 
 fame into their Houfe, and came to an O- 
 pinion. They ought nut to he "prefent. This was 
 refented by the Lords, as if the Commons 
 interfered with a Branch of their Judica- 
 ture \ in ihort, the Difpute grew to be of 
 great Warmth. 
 
 Mean while the Kingdom in general had 
 a very melancholy Afpe6t ; the King w^as 
 poor* the Officers of the Crown and of the 
 Houfliold were clamorous for their Salaries 
 and Dues, which had not of a long time 
 been paid, and no wonder, when Sir Robert 
 Howard^ one of the chief Officers of the Ex- 
 chequer, declared in the Houfe of Com- 
 mons, that there was not Money fufficient 
 for Bread for the King's Family ; there 
 were no Stores any where, either for the 
 Sea Service or the Land ; the Garrifons 
 were all out of Repair, the Platforms de- 
 cayed, and the Cannon difmounted ; the 
 Army divided, for the Duke oHlrk and a- 
 gainft him, the Officers of State the fame ; 
 the Parliament for the moft part in a fer. 
 ment, and glad of thefe public Mifunder- 
 ftandings, as favoring their Defire of clip- 
 ping 
 
 95 
 
MEMOIRS 
 
 ping the Wings of the Prerogative, redu- 
 cing the height of Monarchy, and furthering 
 their private Defigns j the King alfo and 
 his Brother at variance, and fo kept by thofe 
 who promifed to make his Majefty quite ea- 
 fy, if he would but comply with them fo 
 far as to diiinherit the Duke; fo that he was 
 quite in Sufpence as to what Refolution he 
 fliould or iliould not take. 
 
 The Duke o( Monmouth was certainly ve* 
 ry much in the King's AfTeftions, was evi- 
 dently in Councils againft his Uncle of 
 Tork ; for all his Creatures in the Houfe 
 voted againft his Highnefs, nor were any 
 Men higher in his Eftimation, than the Earls 
 oiShaftsbtiry and £//?x, and other Chiefs of 
 the Cabal. The truth is, tho' the Duke of 
 Monmouth was quite finilhed as to his exte- 
 rior, his infide was by no means of a Piece 
 therewith ; {o that he w^as eafily beguiled 
 by Shaftsbury into the flattering Notion of 
 being, the Duke difinherited, the next Heir 
 to the Crown, either by the King's delaring 
 Marriage with his Mother, or by being 
 made Legitimate by Aft of Parliament. 
 And indeed, tho' at the Inftances of the 
 Duke ofTorkj the King had openly in Coun- 
 cil declared, that the Duke of Monmouth 
 was but his Natural Son, and that he never 
 
 was 
 
 I J' / 
 
 95 
 
 23, 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresbt. 
 
 Was married to his Mother ; there were 
 Numbers ready to aflert his Right, and 
 who pretended that fufficient Witnefs was 
 to be produced of fuch as were aftually at 
 the Wedding, and that a Record of the 
 fame was kept in a Black Box, in cuftody 
 of fome of the Duke oi Monmouth's Friends; 
 but to difmifs this. 
 
 The Lords voted, That the Eifliops May 2 f. 
 
 might be prefent at the Tryal of the Lords^ 
 and the Commons committed the Bill of Ex- 
 clufion, upon a previous Queftion put, the 
 Ay's being 240, the No's 128. 
 
 Two Days afterwards, I was at the King's 
 Couchee, and wondered to fee him quite 
 chearful, amidft fuch an intricacy of Trou- 
 bles ; but it was not his Nature to think or 
 perplex himfelf much about any thing. I 
 had the good Fortune to fay fomething that 
 pleafed his Majefty, and the Duke ofNeW" 
 cajfkj one of the Bedchamber, being in wait- 
 ing, his Grace took the Opportunity of fay- 
 ing fome kind things of me, whereupon his 
 Majefty came to me, and realliired me of a 
 continuance in my Command, and told me, 
 he would ftick by his old Friends. 
 
 But the Lords perfifting in their Opinion, 
 That their Spiritual Members might be pre- 
 fent at the Trial of the Prifoners, and parti- 
 cularly 
 
96 
 
 Jum iz 
 
 'i » 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 cularly of the Farl of Danby% as to the 
 Vahdity of his Pardon, which was his Plea • 
 and on the other Hand, the Commons vot- 
 ing that the faid Lords fhould not be pre- 
 lent, and refolving only to proceed againil 
 that Earl, and not the reft of the Prifoners, 
 tho' the time appointed for the Trial of 
 them all was come ; extraordinary Heats a- 
 rofe between the Two Houfes, infomuch 
 that his Majefty came and told them, That 
 not perceiving which way they were to be 
 reconciled, he prorogued them till the 14th 
 oiAiigHji. The City of Z(?;/^c;/, where the An- 
 ticourt Party was very ftrong, took fo great 
 Offence at this, and werefo angry, that it was 
 thought they would have rifen ^ but all, with 
 much ado, was hulhed and kept quiet. 
 • ^ And now came News of an Infurreftion 
 in Scotland^ to the Number of 7000 Men 
 that they had burnt feveral Afts of Parlia- 
 ment, as the Aa of Uniformity and Epifco- 
 picy, as alfo the Aft which aboliflied and 
 condemned the Covenant. That they had 
 fet forth a Declaration for "Jeftis Chrijl^ the 
 Kirk, and the Covenant ^ in Ihort, fome 
 Troops that were ordered out againft them 
 being defeated, the Duke of Monmouth was 
 fent Poft hatte into Scotland to flop the Pro- 
 grefs of this Infant Rebellion. 
 
 The 
 
 Of Sir jOHNREREgBt. 
 
 The King told me he had an Account 
 that the two Armies were but ten Miles di- 
 ftant from each other, that his conlifted not 
 of above 1200, and that the Rebels were a* 
 bove 6000 ftrong; but notwithftanding this 
 great Odds, News came the next Day that 
 the latter, after a very poor Refiftance, had 
 been utterly routed and difperfed. 
 
 Being foon after in the Country, and un- Juh p» 
 derftanding the Duke oiMomnouth was to be 
 at Boncaficr^ poft out oi Scotland -^ I went to 
 meet him, and fent half a Buck, and fome 
 extraordinary Sorts of Wine to entertain 
 him there. He came not till Midnight, and 
 raifedme out of the Bed defigned for him,his 
 Delay tempting me to think he would hard- 
 ly be in that Night. Sir Thomas Armjimig 
 was with him, and told me the King had 
 heard fome Falfehoods concerning the Duke 
 and had, in all hafte, fent for him out of 
 Scotland. And indeed it hapned to be un- 
 derftood. That after his Viftory he was a- 
 bout laying a Foundation whereon to fuc-^ 
 ceed in that Kingdom, and by the Induftry 
 of his Agents making himfelf popular. 
 
 The Duke oi Tork^ who had been fome- 
 time abroad, fuddenly appeared again in 
 England^ to fee the King, who, as was pre- 
 tended, had not been well. The Duke of 
 
 H Mon^ 
 
MEMOIRS 
 
 Monmouth^ who thought he had the King to 
 himfelf; knew nothing of it, till his High- 
 nefs aftually arrived at Windfor ; nor were 
 there above four Perfons who knew any 
 thing at all of the Matter, fo clofe and re- 
 ferved could the King be, when he con- 
 ceived it to be neceffary. This Revocation 
 of the Duke was principally owing to the 
 Intervention of Lord Fever/ham^ who after- 
 wards told me the whole Story. And now 
 it was thought that the Parliament, being 
 chiefly made up of Exclufionifts, would be 
 but very Ihort-lived. The Duke however 
 went back again, but it was only to fetch 
 his Duchefs, whom he had left behind him, 
 returning prefently, with his whole Court 
 irom Fiandersy and defiring of the King, 
 That if he muft needs be abfent, he might 
 rather remain in fome Part of his Majefty's 
 Dominions, and fo he was fent into Scotland. 
 His Highnefs then proceeded Northward . 
 but Lord Shaftsbury being foon after remov- 
 ed, the Exclufionifts began to difpair of Suc- 
 cefs; nor was that all; for the Duke of 
 Monmouth having been fent into FlanderSy 
 and returning without the King's Leave, 
 drew fuch Difpleafure on him, that he was 
 divefted of all his Employments. Soon after, 
 I heard the Duke had been fen» for, from' 
 
 Scotlandy 
 
 (r 
 
 Of Sir John R e r e s b y. 
 
 Scotland^ by the King ; that the two Bro- 
 thers met very atfeftionately, and that the 
 King particularly fhould Iky, No BodyJIjould 
 aver part them for the future ; and with this 
 we conclude this Year. 
 
 I went to London to follicit fome Bufinefs 
 at Court, but the Application of all Men be- 
 ing to the Duke, who quite engrofled the 
 King to Tiimfelf, his Highnefs had but lit- 
 tle Leifure to give Ear to, or aflift his 
 Friends, for as fuch he feemed to look on 
 me when I attended him at Tork^ the laft 
 Year, as he went down to Scotland • and 
 indeed, there was fmall Hopes of fucceeding 
 in Money Requefts, as mine was, the King 
 every Day retrenching rather than increa- 
 fing his Expences, that fo he might ftand 
 the lefs in need of his Parliament, which he 
 defpaired of finding in any good Humour* 
 
 There were, at this Time, great Meetings 
 of Perfons diflatisfied with the Court, where 
 Confultations were held to diilrefsthe King 
 upon all Occafions, whether in Parliament, 
 or out of it, and thefe Reforts were called 
 Cabals. The Duke of Monmouthy the Earl 
 oi Shaft sbtiry^ and the Lords RuJJely Cavcn^' 
 dijh and others, where the Chiefs of thefe 
 Affemblies, which, for the greater Privacy, 
 Ihifted every Night from Houfe to Houfe j 
 
 H 2 the 
 
 j^priL 
 
loo 
 
 i6So. 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 May 8. 
 
 the public Out-cry pretending Fears of Po- 
 pery, and the Salety of the King. 
 
 Jprilzi, ^'^^ ^^"g ^r»d the Duke being at iVindfor^ 
 came to Town but once a Week, to be pre- 
 fent at Council; and finding the Friends I 
 had with the King were but of little Service 
 to me, I went my felf to Wiridfor^ and ac- 
 quainted the Duke with a Defign, in Agita- 
 tion with fome People, to prove the King's 
 Marriage with the Duke of Monmouth's Mo- 
 ther, and informed him how he might ob- 
 viate it; for which he thanked me, and told 
 me, without my asking it, that he had been 
 mindful of my Bulinefs. The King Ihewed 
 me a great deal of w hat he had done to the 
 Houfe, which was indeed very fine, and 
 acquainted me with what he intended to do 
 more; for then it was he was upon fi- 
 nifhing that mofl majeftic Strufture. He 
 lived quite privately at this Time ; there 
 w as little or no Refort to him, and his 
 Days he palfed in filhing, or walking in 
 the Park ; and certain it is, he was much 
 better pleafed with Retirement, than the 
 Hurry of the gay and bufy World. 
 
 I returned to IVhidfor a few Days after- 
 wards, and had all AfTurances, from the 
 Duke, of conftant Services with the King, 
 in what I foUicited, which w^as to go abroad 
 
 in 
 
 I 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresby. 
 
 in quality of Envoy E3i:traordinary ; and at 
 the jfiime time taking my Leave of his Maje- 
 lly, he laid his Hand upon my Shoulder, 
 and faid, " He was very fenlible of my Ser- 
 ^' vices, and that they Ihould be rewarded. '* 
 I took this Opportunity to put him in mind 
 of his Promife to fend me abroad, and men- 
 tioned a Nobleman who was prefent when 
 he made it; and he faid, " He remembered 
 " it particularly w^ell, and that, upon the 
 <' very firft Occalion, he would be as good 
 « as his Word/' 
 
 It was now again rumoured about, That 0<?.i4,i<j, 
 the Duke oiTork was to depart before the 
 Meeting of the Parliament ; fome faic^in O- 
 bedience to the King's Orders; others, to 
 avoid the Violence of both Houfes: For 
 plain and molt evident it was, that the Pa- 
 pifts lifted up their Crelt with great Arro- 
 gance, prefuming on Support from the Duke, 
 who now reigned abfolute in all the King's 
 Affairs. In Ihort, the Duke and Duchefsfat 
 out once more for Scotland'^ and the next 
 Day the Parliament meeting, the King in 
 his Speech declared, " They were free to 
 <' do whatever they would for the Security 
 <' of theProteftant Religion, provided, they 
 ^' did not offer to divert the direft Line of 
 ^^ the Succcffion/' 
 
 H 3 But 
 
 21. 
 
 22. 
 
I/J8 
 
 loz MEMOIRS 
 
 Butftill the Commons went on, this Month 
 and the next, to frame a Bill to exclude the 
 Duke of }l)rk from the Succeffion, and the 
 Gentlemen and others o( Torkjhircy who had 
 counterpetitioned, and declared their Ab- 
 horrence of the tumultuous Petition for a 
 Meeting of Parliament, were voted Betray- 
 ers of the Liberties of the People, and A- 
 bettors of arbitrary Power. A Committee 
 was alfo appointed to inquire into the Mat- 
 ter, and after the Perfons concerned therein ^ 
 and two Members of the Houfe, both of 
 Jorkpircy who had fet their Haads to the 
 Abhorrence, were convened before them; 
 but?l, who was the Penman of that Inftru- 
 ment, had done it {o cautioufly, that no 
 Hold could be taftened, no Exceptions ta- 
 ken, and fo they got ofti 
 Kovemh '^^^ Parliament purfued the Duke with 
 fuch Violence, and the King was fo tho- 
 roughly diftrefled for Money, that fome now 
 began to be of Opinion, his Majefty would 
 abandon his Brother. Attending, about 
 this Time, at the King's Supper, I told him 
 that I was threatned, by fome of the Houfe 
 of Commons, to be called to an Account 
 for penning the Abhorrence, and ligned it 
 with the reft of the Torkjhin Gentlemen : 
 Tp which his Majefty made Anfwer, " Do 
 
 ^^ not 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresby. 
 
 <^ not trouble your felf ; I will ftick by you 
 " and my old Friends; for if I do not, I 
 " ftiall have no Body to ftick by me." But 
 yet, it was, by a great many, feared he was 
 not quite refolved as to this ProfeiTion ; for 
 Money was fo exceedingly wanting, and 
 the Offers of the Parliament fo very fair, if 
 he would but give up his Brother, that no 
 Body was fafe. What added to the Sufpi- 
 cion was, that many who were well in the 
 King's Efteem, appeared for the Bill of Ex- 
 clufion: Nor was it unknown that the 
 Duchefs of Portfmotith was well inclined to 
 it; whether artfully to infinuate herfelfinto 
 the good Graces of the Party, who had 
 been at greateft Enmity with her, or in Com- 
 plyance with the French^ whofe Tool Ihe 
 was, who was ready to catch at any thing 
 to embroil us at home, is uncertain. 
 
 A few Days afterwards, I hapned to be 
 at the Duchefs of Portfmotith* Sy where the 
 King was quite unreferved, and very opea 
 as to the Witnefles who were making out the 
 Popifti Plot, and proved to a Demonftrati- 
 on, that many Articles they had given in E- 
 vidence, were not only improbable, but 
 quite impoffible. 
 
 This was one of the greateft Days ever }jcy,i^, 
 known in the Houfe ofLords, with Regard 
 
 H 4 to 
 
 j 
 
i.,.^%i=K*WS?raP'i-,? 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 to the Importance of the Bufmefs they had 
 in Hand, which concerned no lefs than the 
 Lineal Succeffion to the Crown, the Bill 
 having paffed the Commons, who fent it up to 
 the Lords. Great was the Debate, and great 
 were the Speakers^ the chief of thofe for 
 the Bill was the Earl oi Shaftsbtiry^ the chief 
 of thofe againft it, Lord Halltf as. It was 
 matter of Surprife, that the latter Ihould ap-^ 
 pear at the Head of an Oppofition to the 
 former, when they were wont always to draw 
 together^ but the Bulinefs in Agitation was 
 againft the Lord HalHfaxs Judgment, and 
 therefore he opposed it with Vigor; andbe-^ 
 ing a Man of the cleareft Head, fineft Wit, 
 and faireft Eloquence, he made fo powerful 
 a Defence, that he alone, fo all confefled, 
 influenced the Houfe, and perfuaded them to 
 throw out the Bill. 
 
 The King was fo highly pleafed with the 
 Tranfaftions of this Day, that he, foon af- 
 ter, took this great Lord into Bufmefs; but, 
 on the other Hand, the Commons were fo 
 angry with him, that though they could re- 
 gularly take no Notice of what any Man 
 faid in the other Houfe, they voted an Ad- 
 drefs to the King to lay him afide, and re- 
 move him from his Councils and Prefence. 
 To thi3 he anfwered, ^' That if Lord Hallh 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresby. 
 
 '< fas had done any Thing contrary to Law, 
 " he was willing he Ihould be profecuted 
 « and puniflied accordingly ; but that not 
 4^ being fatisfied he had done any Thing a- 
 ^^ mifs, he could not part with him," or 
 Words to that EfFea. One would have 
 thought that fo fignal a Piece of Service, 
 Lord Hallifas did to his Highnefs, had been 
 of a Degree and Nature never to be forgot : 
 But when the Duke afterwards came to be 
 King, he, from the Privy Seal, where he 
 found him. removed him to the Prefidency 
 of the Council, purely to make Room for 
 another, and in the End quite laid him a- 
 
 lide. 
 , I was, foon after, a long while in Dif- ^m/. 22. 
 
 coufe with his Majefty, and, among other 
 Things, told him, I doubted whether I 
 ihould be inferted in the Lift, the Lords had 
 voted to be given in to them, of the Milita- 
 ry Officers, there being neither Company 
 nor Gunner at Biirlingtcn^ where I was Go- 
 vernor, to make it appear a Garrifon ; and 
 that if I was, I prefumed I Ihould be of the 
 Number of thofe they intended to petition 
 his Majefty to lay afide : To this the King 
 anfwered, " Let them do what they will, 
 *' I will never part with any Officer at the 
 ^' Requeft of either Houfe i my Father loft 
 
 " his 
 
lo6 
 
 Nev. 2r8. 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 ^^ his Head by fuch Complyance ; but as far 
 '^ me, I intend to dye another way." 
 
 Lord Hallifax^ as we have obferved before, 
 having defeated the Bill of Excluiion, in the 
 Houfe of Lords, was beheld as the rifing 
 Man, and premier Favourite. I waited on 
 him, and the next Day he took me in his 
 Coach to White-hall^ and invited me to dine 
 with him in private; in our Converfation to- 
 gether, he told me it was to be feared feme 
 unhappy Differences might diftradk the Nati- 
 on from thefe Uneafinefles about the Suc- 
 ceffion : And that in cafe Things fhould un- 
 happily ripen to a War, it might be proper 
 to form fomething of a Party in ones own 
 Thoughts. He faid he knew there was but 
 another and my felf that had any confiderable 
 Influence in my Neighbourhood ; in confe- 
 quence of which and fome further Conver- 
 fation this way, I, the next Day, carried 
 him the Names and Chara6lers of all the con- 
 fiderable Men in thofe Parts. And upon 
 the whole, we agreed that the Loyalifts 
 were not only the moft numerous, but alfo 
 the moft aftive and wealthy ; and that thofe 
 who, in Parliament, were againft the Court, 
 were Men of little Account or Eftimation in 
 icheir own Country. 
 
 But 
 
 I 
 
 ;, I 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresby. lof 
 
 But to turn our Eyes upon what juftly 1680. 
 claimed the Attention of all Men, now came '"^'v-**' 
 on the Tryal of Lord Staford by his Peers. Nw. 50. 
 JVc/fmm/er^hall was the Place, and I think 
 it was the deepeft Solemnity I ever law. 
 Great were the Expectations of the Iffue of 
 this Event, it being doubtful whether there 
 were more who believed there was any Plot 
 by the Papifts in reality againft the King's 
 Life, than not. He was impeached by the 
 Commons, and being deemed to be weaker 
 than the other Lords in the Tower, for the 
 fame Crime, and lefs able to labour his De- 
 fence, was purpofely marked out to be the 
 firft brought on ^ but he deceived them fo far 
 as to plead his Caufe to a Miracle. The three 
 chief Evidences againft him, were Dr. OateSj 
 Dugdakymd TurberviUc : The firft fwore that 
 his Lordlhip had brought him a Commiffion 
 figned by the Pope, to be Paymafter of the 
 Army to be raifed againft the King ; the fe- 
 cond. That he had offered him five hundred 
 Pounds to kill the King ; and the third^ 
 That he had offered him a Reward for the 
 4readfiil Deed, but at a different Time. 
 And fo pofitive feemingly were they in this 
 and other dangerous Evidence, that I, who 
 fat and heard moft of the Tryal, had not 
 known what to think, had the Witneffes 
 
 bfea 
 
 t 
 
 if 
 
 I- 
 
 ! 
 
 ! 
 
 i: 
 
il 
 
 io8 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 
 Dtcemler. 
 
 If I 
 
 been but Men of any the leaft Credit; but 
 indeed fuch were the Incoherences, and in- 
 deed Contradiftions which feemed to me to 
 arife towards the latter End, that confider- 
 ing them, and the very evil Name of the 
 People that fwore againfl: this Lord, I was 
 fully fatisfied that all was untruth they laid 
 to his Charge : But the poor Gentleman was 
 condemned by a Majority of 22. He heard 
 his Accufers, and defended himfelf with 
 great Steadinefs and Refolution, and re- 
 ceived his Sentence with great Courage ani 
 Compofure ; nor did he ftoop beneath the 
 Weight of his Doom, till he fubmitted his 
 Head to the Block, with his laft Breath pro- 
 tefting his Innocence, and the cruel Wrong 
 he fullered. My Lord Hallifax was one that 
 gave his Voice for him ; and the King who 
 heard all hisTryal, was extremely concern- 
 ed at the Rigour and Abruptnefs of his 
 Fate. 
 
 Being at my Lord Hallifax*Sy I difcover- 
 ed, what was then generally unknown, that 
 his Lordfhip fat up for firft Minifter ; for I 
 faw the French Ambaflador come privately 
 to him upon Bufinefs. This fame Day the 
 Commons were asked, What they would do 
 for the King after fo long a Sitting to no 
 EfTeft, as to the Matters his Majefty required 
 
 Pf 
 
 I 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresbt. 
 
 of them? They voted this Anfwer, That 
 they would put him into a Condition to de- 
 fend Tangiers ; pay offall his Debts ^ put the 
 Fleet into a Condition, and enable him to 
 affift his Allies; provided he would relin- 
 quilh the Duke his Brother \ pafs an Aft for 
 the more frequent Meeting of Parliament, 
 and change fuch Officers about him as the 
 Houfe Ibould point out. There were many 
 who believed the King would be temfJted 
 to comply ; but, the very next Day, feeing 
 my Lord Hallifax^ he aifured me there was 
 not the leaft probability that he would , for 
 I'hat it was like offering a Man Money to cut off 
 
 his Nofe. 
 
 The fame Day the unfortunate Lord Staf* 
 ford came to the Houfe of Lords, and was 
 admitted, under a Notion That he had fome 
 Difcovery, or ConfefTion to make, concern- 
 ing the Popiih Plot \ but inftead of that, he 
 only protefted his own Innocence, and ac- 
 cufed Lord Shaftsbury of a Correfpondence 
 with the Papifts, and of fending him to the 
 Duke of Torky to defire him to ufe his Inte- 
 reft with the King to diflblve the long Par- 
 liament, as the beft Thing that could be done 
 to favour the Popifh Intereft, and fo he was 
 
 remanded back again. 
 
 I wai 
 
. i'o Memoirs 
 
 J^ I was at the King's Couchk, when there 
 
 TJiil^ °"' '"'^ '°°'^ "P ^^'"e time 
 in difplayingtous the Fallacy and Emptinefe 
 
 of thofe who pretend to a fuller Meafure of 
 Sanftity than their Neighbours, and pro- 
 nounced them to be, for the moll Part, abo- 
 minable Hypocrites, and the moft arrant 
 Knaves; aslnftances of which he mentioned 
 feveral eminent Men of our own Times, nor 
 fpared to mtroduce fome Mitred Heads a- 
 mong the reft, whom he pretended to be 
 none of the beft, tho' their devout exterior 
 gave them the Charafter of Saints with the 
 croud. However, there were of the Men 
 fo pointed out, fome whom the King had 
 no Reafon to love upon a political Account, 
 which may be pleaded in Abatement of the 
 Acrimony of his Cenfure. He was that 
 Night two full Hours in putting off his 
 Cloaths, and it was half an Hour pall One 
 before he went to bed. He feemed to be 
 quite free from Care and Trouble, tho' one 
 would have thought, at this Time, he ftould 
 have been overwhelmed therewith ; for eve 
 ry Body now imagined he mull either difl 
 mifs the Parliament in a few Days, or deli- 
 ver himfelf up to their prcffing Defires; but 
 
 the 
 
 !. 
 
 O/'i'/V Jo HN Re RE SB Y. Ill 
 
 the Straits he was in feemed no ways to em- i6^- 
 barrafs him, as I jull now obferved. 
 
 I dined with that excellent Man Dr. G««- D'f »*• 
 ningy Biihop ofEly: The famous Dr. Oates 
 was of the Company at Table, and flulhedi 
 with the Thoughts of running down the 
 Dukeof ^»'ife,expre{red himfelf of his High- 
 nefs and his Family, in Terms that befpoke 
 him a Fool and fomething worfe j nor con- 
 tented with this, but he muft rail at the 
 Queen, his Mother, and her prefent Maje- 
 fty. In this Strain did he hurry on, while 
 no Soul dared to oppofe him, for fear of be- 
 ing made a Party of the Plot; till, no longer 
 able to bear with the Infolence of the Man, 
 I took him to task to fuch Purpofe, that he 
 flung out of the Room with fome Heat. 
 The Biihop told me that fuch was the gene- 
 ral Drift of his Difcourfe, that he had fome- 
 times checked htm for the indecency of his 
 Talk, but that finding he had done it to no 
 manner of Purpofe, he had defifted from any 
 further Effort to fet bounds to his Viru- 
 lence. 
 
 In the mean Time, Lord Stafford was led 
 to the Scaffold on Tovoer-Hill^ where he per- 
 fifted in the firmeft Denial of what was laid 
 to his Charge, and that in fo cogent, con- 
 vincing, and perfuafive a Manner, that all 
 
 the 
 
 *9- 
 
 W[ 
 
 /■ 
 
i I 
 
 1 I 
 
 Jan, 4. 
 
 I!( 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 the Beholders believed his Words, and 
 grieved his Deftiny. The fame Day I dined 
 with my Lord Hallifax^ who faid to me, 
 Well^ if it comes to a War^ you and I miiji go 
 together. I told his Lordlhip, I ftiould be 
 ready to follow him, happen what would; 
 but that if the King expefted his Friends to 
 be hearty in his Caufe, and fteady to his 
 Perfon, he Ihould confider with himfelf, 
 and encourage them a little ; and thereupon 
 acquainted him with fome of my Difappoint- 
 ments at Court, notwithftanding the moft 
 folemn reiterated Promifes ; and added, that 
 I Ihould be glad his Majefty would fend me 
 his Envoy to fome Part of the World or o- 
 ther. But to return to Things of more pub- 
 lic and general Concern • 
 
 The King fent down an Anfwer to the 
 Houfe of Commons, fignifying. That he ftill 
 perfifted in his Refolution, not to difturb 
 the immediate Succeffion to the Crown • 
 which had fo unhappy an Effeft, as to caufe 
 the pafling of fome very violent Votes againft 
 fuch as were underftood to be the King's 
 chief Advifers in this Matter, namely, the 
 Earls o( Hallifaxy Clarendon^ Feverjhaniy the 
 Marquifs of JVbrce/er, and Mr. Hjdey fince 
 Lord Rochejier. Upon this the Parliament 
 was prorogued from the loth to the 20th of 
 
 Jantiaryj 
 
 
 Of Sir JohnRerESBT. 
 
 January ; fome thought in order for a Diffo- 
 lution, while others perfifted^ That the 
 King would fuffer them to fit nt that Time, 
 and pafs the Bill. Waiting this Day on 
 Lord Hallifaxy he complained much of the 
 Severity of the Commons in their Vote, 
 That he was a Promoter of Popery^ and a Bg- 
 trayer of the P^o/)/^, which, faid he, were a 
 Man ever fo innocent, yet coming from the 
 reprefentative Body of the People, is too 
 heavy for the Shoulders of any one fingle 
 Perfon • that he had therefore fome Thoughts 
 of retiring from Court • but that, however, 
 he would go his own Pace, and not be kicked 
 out at their Pleaiure. That if for the future 
 the King fliould have Occafion for him, in 
 any thing that was juft, he Ihould be ready 
 to ferve him : That if I would repofe a 
 Confidence in him, he would let me know 
 when it was Time to appear for the King'9 
 Service, and that I Ihould Ihare Fortunes 
 with him, andfo on. But, at the fame time^ 
 he complained of the Ficklenefs and Incer- 
 titude of the King's Temper ; and obferved, 
 that while he feemed perfeftly to approve 
 of the Council you gave him, he hearkned 
 to others from a back Door, which made 
 him wavering of Mind, and How to refolve. 
 The next Day I waited on Lord Dmhy in 
 
 I th« 
 
 f 
 
!| 
 
 114 
 
 fmi. 13. 
 
 I 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 the Tower, and he fpoke, of the King's un- 
 iteadinefs, in the very felf fame ftrain ; and 
 particularly obferved, that tho' the Duke of 
 )l)rk had but little Influence with him, as to 
 what purely regarded himfelf, the Minifter 
 would find him an Overmatch with his Ma- 
 jefty, as to any other Ferfon or Concern. 
 The fame Day the Duke of NewcaJHe told 
 me he was to wait on the King the next^ 
 and that he fancied he would offer him fome 
 Employment, but that as his Ma jelly had 
 not done it in better Times, he would ex- 
 cufe himfelf now that they were fo dange- 
 rous j \v hich recalled to my Mind what Lord 
 HalHfax had obfer\^ed a few Days before, 
 That the King's Uncertainty and Silence, 
 as to what he propofed to himfelf, made 
 Men afraid to ferve him. 
 
 In the midft of this, the City of London 
 petitions the King, by their Common Coun- 
 cil, for the fitting of the Parliament, at the 
 Time appointed : To which the King made 
 Anfwer, It was none cf their Bufmefs : And it 
 was the Difcourfe that the Parliament would 
 be difTolved, and a new one called to lit at 
 Osford. My Lord Halifax feemed averfe 
 to this Diffolution, but he only feemed 
 fo ; he could, certainly, have no very cordial 
 Wiihes towards thofc who dealt fb feverely, 
 
 as 
 
 OfSfr JohnReresbT. 
 
 as he thought, with him. My Lord was 
 now jealous, That the Earl oiDa?iby would 
 be uken out of the Tower, and received 
 again into Councils ^ which if it hapned, his 
 Refolution was to retire, and his Advice to 
 me was, not to prefs for Employment, till 
 Things were eftablilhed upon a more folid 
 Foundation* 
 
 In a few Days afterwards, his Lordlhip y^^ ^^^ 
 told me his Thoughts were abfolutely to re- 
 tire, not that he was at all diflatisfied with 
 the King, but that he was afraid the Duke's 
 fuperior Prevalency with him, might perad- 
 venture carry Things too far. In ihort, 
 every thing now, and for fome time to come, 
 was in the moft unfettled, dark, and moll 
 perplexing Sufpence, fo that a Man fcarcQ 
 knew what to think, or how to behave. 
 
 At length a new Parliament was called to 
 fit at Ox/or//, whither, being elefted a Mem- 
 ber, I repaired, and waited on the King^ 
 who received me very kindly. I told him^ 
 I had it in Charge from feveral Gentlemen 
 of our County, to acquaint him. They had 
 no Part in the Petition offered to the 
 Knights of their Shire, to profecute the Bill 
 of Exclufion againft his Highnefs ^ and that 
 the thing had been managed but by fix or 
 feven fadious Perfons, tho' it had been in- 
 
 I 2 duftrioufly 
 
 is; 
 
 I 
 
 ^'--j 
 
MEMOIRS 
 
 duftrioufly reported to be a more general 
 Concern. His Majefty faid, he had alrea- 
 dy received feme fhort Account to the fame 
 Purpofe, and ordered me to return his 
 Thanks to thofc who did not bufy them- 
 lelves therein. 
 March ^r. The Parliament now met. The Court 
 was at Chrift church ; and the Commons fat 
 in the Schools, but were very much ftrait- 
 ned lor Room, there being a very great 
 Concourfe of Members. His Majefty's 
 Speech to both Houfes was very gracious, 
 and calculated to reconcile all Differences, 
 and to difperfe all Jealoufies as to Religion! 
 i3c. but was Itill averfe to, what former Parlia- 
 ments had fo pufhed at, the Exclufion of his 
 Brother from the Name and Power of Kine 
 And yet the firft Point debated was, Whe^ 
 ther or no, notwithftanding the King's 
 Speech, a Bill of Exclufion fhould not be 
 . iramed and brought in ? But for the prefent 
 It was only voted, That the Security of his 
 Majefty's Perfon, and of the ProteftLt Re! 
 ligion fliould be taken into Confideration 
 the 2(5th inftant. 
 
 Not to inliit on the Impeachment oiFitz- 
 hams, which was done not to deftroy, but 
 to ferve h.m in oppoiition to the Court the 
 grand Argument for the Bill of Exclufion 
 
 was. 
 
 I 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresby. 
 
 was, That nothing could preferve us from 
 Popery but that alone. Now the whole 
 Houfe was of Opinion, that Popery was to 
 be kept out, the Difpute was only as to the 
 Means of efFefting it. The King had, in 
 his Speech, offered to agree to any thing 
 that might ferve to quiet the Minds of the 
 People as to that particular, the utter Exclu- 
 fion of his Brother only excepted. It was 
 therefore moved by Sir Thomas LittletoHy 
 That a Bill, to fecure the Proteftant Religi- 
 on, fliould be brought in, and confiftof the 
 following Heads ; That the Duke of Tork 
 Ihould enjoy the Title, and the Princefs of 
 Orange exercife the Power . That if a Par- 
 liament fliould be in Being, when it fliould 
 pleafe God to take away the prefent King, 
 they fliould have Power to fit : That the 
 Judges, and all other Officers of the Crown, 
 fliould be continued, till Liberty and Pro- 
 perty were fecured : That if there was no 
 Parliament fubfifling, one fliould aflimble 
 of Courfe : And that to prevent the 
 Duke's interfering to prevent this, he 
 fliould, by the fame Aft, be baniflied to 
 the Diftance of 500 Miles from England^ not 
 to return as long as the King lived. To 
 this it was objefted, That the Name and 
 Power of King were infeparable by the Laws 
 
 I 3 of 
 
tiS MEMOIRS 
 
 Jf^ Oi England', that the Father would foon find a 
 way to diveft the Daughter of her Power ^ that 
 a Regency was never known but in Cafes of 
 Lunacy and Minority; and that the Duke 
 was not of a turn of Difpoiition tobeeafily 
 governed. But to this it was replyed, That 
 Regencies had been frequently allowed in 
 other Cafes befides Incapacity and Lunacy, 
 as formerly in France^ and now in Portugal y 
 that Princes were feldom fo complaifant as 
 to refign Kingdoms or Powers tho' to a Fa- 
 ther; and that as for the Authority of Par- 
 liament in this Cafe, No Qucftion but the 
 fame Power that could alter the Govern- 
 ment, could alfo modify it. But Exclufion 
 was the Word : Some feven or eight difguft- 
 ed Lawyers, and able Speakers, joined by 
 fome others, who had been fo aftive in this 
 Matter, that they thought, Ihould the Duke 
 ever come to the Crown, he could never 
 forgive them, wrought fo prevalently upon 
 the Members in general, that it was voted a 
 Bill fliould be brought in, To incapacitate 
 James Duke of r^r^, from fucceeding to the 
 Imperial Crown of this Realm; nor during 
 this Debate did fome forbear to refleft on 
 his Highnefs's Courage and Honour. 
 
 ']Hmhi6. Mean while the Lord's refufed to receive 
 BtZ'harm'Q Impeachment j obferving thap 
 
 ' be 
 
 
 Of Sir Jo H N R E R E s B Y. 119 
 
 he being already indiaed at Common Law; ^i<^8 ^ 
 and in a way of Trial by his Peers, as Mag- 
 na Charta direaed, they could not perceive 
 how their Houfe could take Notice of his 
 Offence. The Commons hereupon greWj 
 angry with the Lords, and voted That fuch 
 their Lordfliip's Proceeding was a Delay of , 
 Juftice, a Breach of the Privilege of Parlia-| 
 ment, and a Bar to the further Difcovery of 
 the Popilh Plot : And that for any inferior^ 
 Court to proceed therein, while an Impeach- 
 ment was depending, was an high Breach 
 of the Privilege of Parliament. The Heats 
 grew, in ihort, to an Excefsin bothHoufes^' 
 both as to this, and the Bill of Exclufion. 
 The Commons, however, were of Opinion, 
 That the King would give Way to them, 
 he having already made fuch Advances to- 
 wards their Meafurcs, and being in fuch tho- 
 rough Dillrefs for Money, befides that ma- 
 ny who were near the King, urged them to 
 perfift ftill in their Endeavors. But on the 
 very Day the King had appointed the The- March iZ* 
 atre to be made ready for the Commons to 
 fit in, they having complained of the ftrait- 
 nefs of the Schools i the Black Rod came, 
 ^nd commanded them to attend at the Bar 
 pf the Houfe of Lords, where being come, 
 fl^e King, in his Robes, told them, That 
 
 I 4 obfcrv- 
 
MEMOIRS 
 
 obferving a great Difference to have taken 
 Place between the two Houfes, which, if 
 they fat any longer, might increafe to a per- 
 nicious Degree, it was his Pleafure to dif- 
 lolve that Parliament: A Blow fo little fore- 
 feen, that there were thofe who thought 
 there would have been foitie Stirs or Rilines 
 about It, in London. 
 
 It was now obferved, that many of the 
 difcontented Members, of both Houfes, 
 came Armed, and more than ufually attend- 
 ed ; and it was affirmed There was a Dclign 
 to have feized the King, and to have re-' 
 ftrained him till they had granted their Pe- 
 titions. But if any fuch Defign there was 
 It hapned that the Parties either wanted the 
 Courage, or the Opportunity to put it in Ex- 
 ecution ; the King immediately departed 
 with all Speed for London. 
 
 His Majefty was fo kind as to afford me 
 feveral Opportunities of fpeaking to him 
 while I was at Oxford; and Lord Halltfa'^ 
 taking leave of him, and, in a particular 
 manner, recommending me to his Thoughts 
 his Majefty laid both his Hands upon me* 
 and thanked me for my Conftancy to his In- 
 tereft, and bad me be affured of his Afle- 
 ^ion. 
 
 By 
 
 OfStr JohnReresby. 
 
 By this abrupt Diffblution, and what I 
 had heard from Lord Hallifa^ and others, 
 I concluded the King was determined ne- 
 ver to relinquifti his Brother^ asalfo to call 
 no other Parliament for a long time yet to 
 come. The Truth is, the Queftion now was 
 not fo much, Whether the Duke Ihould fuc- 
 ceed or not, as whether the Government 
 Ihould be Monarchial, or Republican ? Some 
 of theadverfefide, had, in the Houfe, bab- 
 bled out. That the Bill of Exclofion was not 
 the only material Bill they intended to get 
 pafTed this Seffion, in order to fecure the 
 People oi England from falling a Prey to Po- 
 pery, and arbitrary Power : That it was ne- 
 ceflary the Military and Civil Power too 
 fliould be lodged in other Hands, and that 
 the prefent Officers of both Ihould be called 
 to an Account and changed : Whence the 
 King being told. That if he quitted his Bro- 
 ther it would be but an immediate Step 
 taken to ruin all his Friends and Servants, 
 and to become himfelf expofed to the Will 
 and Wifties of thofe, whom he had no Rea^ 
 fon to think were over and above affefted to 
 him, the King dreaded the Confequences, 
 and refolved accordingly. 
 
 1 was at the King's Couchee, as I was 
 
 threQ 
 
112 
 
 i(58i. 
 
 "May I 
 
 M E M O r R S 
 
 three Times in one Week; his Difcourfe ran 
 generally h impoffibilicy of an? Ihing 
 
 ins o?\ f ^ ^^°'' ^"'^ ^^^ Contradiai? 
 c?nd^S''rf f '"''T'^' "P= That he in- 
 Trial t?T' ^°"^^ '^^'"^ "Fn his 
 1 rial immediately : That in all Affdrs, re- 
 
 Sin •^'' '"'^''^'^' whatever his own 
 private Opmion might me, he would govern 
 
 by them, and by them only: A Happineft 
 
 ^ good and fo gracious a Prince! And now 
 ^e begin to have a Profpeft of Halcyon 
 
 the laft Parhament was dilfolved, i Ld out 
 a Declaration fraught with the fairefl Pro 
 m^estphisPeople, and afTuring ti m of h I" 
 
 oUeveral Counties and Corporations in £«.- 
 ,hii •^' .^T'^' ^^'^^-h^-'-"^ is arraigned at 
 
 Parli!2 ^^''"^ ' '''^■^"^'^ l^e flood in 
 
 Parliament impeached for the Crimes he 
 ^J^-e was to be indicled for; tho'Tlm! 
 
 peachmen^ 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresbt^ l^i 
 
 peachment fpecified no particular Treafons, J^^i^ 
 which the Indiament did. The Council 
 for the King faid, his Plea was evafive, it 
 not appearing whether the fame Crimes 
 were intended by the one, as by the other. 
 
 This Point was argued at the Bar, but j^ay 9. 
 the Cafe being quite extraordinary, both in 
 its own Nature, as well as becaufe of the 
 fevere Vote of the Commons at Osfordy the 
 Judges took Time toconfider of it, but two ^^^ 
 Days afterwards pronounced Judgment for 
 the King j and in the End, Fitz-harris re- 
 ceived Sentence of Death, for his Treafon, 
 and was executed accordingly. 
 
 My Lord Shaftshury^ and Lord Howard ^ j^jy ^. 
 were now fent Prifoners to the Tower ; and 
 my Lord HaJlifas told me. There would be 
 enough produced againft them to hang them 
 both. A ihort time afterwards, I was, by . 
 my Lord Hallifas^ prefented to the King, in 
 his Clofet, to take my Leave of him, being 
 fpeedily to fet put for Torkfoin : His Lord- 
 Ihip, who was now become abfolute Favou- 
 rite, prefented me to his Majefly, and fpoke 
 to him very kindly of me, and particularly 
 defired him to confirm to me the Promifehe 
 had fometime ago made to his Lordftiip, 
 That I ihould fucceed in the Government of 
 Tork \ his Majefty did it very willingly, with- 
 
 put 
 
P^. 12. 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 out the leaft Hefitation, and gave me his 
 Hand to Kiis upon the fame; faying, he was 
 convinced how well I deferved of him 
 
 I returned again to London, and the next 
 Day my Lord Halhfa^ told me, That Lord 
 ^haftsbtiry had written to the Kine, that if 
 he would be pleafed to free him from his 
 Confinement, he would engage to go to Ca^ 
 roltna never more to return into England'^ 
 but that the King had rejected his Requeft 
 and determined to leave him to the Law' 
 He alfo told me, That were it not for the 
 Intereft the King oilmncc had here, he did 
 not doubt but he fhould be able to put Enz^ 
 land into a very happy State and Condition 
 in a very fhort Time. That there was no 
 Hopes ofdomg any Thing by way of Par- 
 Lament, except his Majefty ftould make 
 lonie new Attempt upon Flanders, and that 
 ^ch aq Incident might be made ufe of as a 
 Handle whereby to reconcile all Diffe. 
 rences. 
 
 Such an Opportunity offered it felf foon 
 after, that News came the French King had 
 taken Strasburgh ; whereby becoming Ma 
 fter of the Rhine, he might intercept all 
 Communication and Commerce between the 
 Low Countries and Germany j fo that the Ne^ 
 tberknds would be abfolutely obliged to 
 
 bend 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresby. 
 
 bend the Knee to France, if we did not en- 
 ter into a League with them againft the com- 
 mon Adverfary, which they did moft ear- 
 neftly follicit. But our King could lend 
 them no helping Hand, without a Parlia- 
 ment tofupply him with Moneys and what 
 Diftrefs his Majefty laboured under as to that 
 was fufficiently underftood, particularly by 
 France, who determined not to flip the Ad- 
 vantage ; fo that what my Lord HalUfai^ ex- 
 pected, from fuch an Occurrence, proved to 
 te all a Delufion. 
 
 This Evening his Majefty talked to me a 0B(^. 20: 
 great while, in St. James's Park, and at the 
 Duchefs of Portfmoutb*r, his Difcoufe ran 
 chiefly upon the late unequal "N'^erdifts and 
 Proceedings of the Juries of Zo«^o» and Mid'^ 
 dkfes J concerning which he broke out into 
 this ExprefTion, " It is a hard Cafe that I am 
 ^' the laft Man to have Law and Juftice in 
 <^ the whole Nation. 
 
 His Majefty went to fee a new Ship 
 launched at Deptford: He went in his Barge, 
 and I waited on him to the Waterlide, he 
 faw me, and called me in. The Gentleman 
 who was appointed to the Command of her, 
 gave a great Dinner to the King, where his 
 Majefty commanded all the Gentlemen to Ik 
 down at the fame Table. He was more 
 
 than 
 
li^ 
 
 i6Si. 
 
 Nev. 4. 
 
 d. 
 
 MEMOIR S 
 
 than ufually ferious that Day, and feeming-f 
 ly under a greater Weight of Thought, than 
 had been obferved of him on account of the 
 moil important Bulinefs. 
 
 I went to pay a Vifit to Lord Dafih^y ftill 
 a Prifoner in the Tower; who, by the Drift 
 of his Difcourfe, was not in Charity with 
 the then Miniflers, feemingly reflefting on 
 them as too favourable inclined towards 
 Lord Shaftsbtiryy and fo on. Two Days af- 
 terwards I acquainted my Lord Hallif ax with 
 this ; to which his Anfwer was, That Peo- 
 ple were mighty ready with their Judgments 
 and Decifions; but that if the Fad were e- 
 ven as fuggefted, what could the King do 
 better than fet him at Liberty ? That he had 
 as good be enlarged upon Terms, as by a 
 Jury which would mofl: affiiredly acquit him 
 were he brought to a Tryal, tho' ever fo 
 deep in Guilt; and that were he out, he 
 could not do the King fo much harm, as 
 fuch an Aft of Mercy and Popularity would 
 do him good. The fame Day, one of the 
 under Secretaries told me, the King was re- 
 folved to profecute him to the utmoft, and 
 that there was no want of very fufficienc 
 Matter againft him. 
 
 ^ But before we come to the Iflue of fucb 
 his Majeft/sRefolution, it may not be amifs 
 
 to 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresbt. tif 
 
 to obferve by the way, that my Lord Halli^ 16S1, 
 faxj being by no means a Friend to France^ 
 was upon no good footing with the Duchefs 
 of Portfmctith ; which gave the King fome 
 Trouble, as it proved a Hindrance to the 
 Currency of his Affairs; wherefore he fought ^ov. 
 to reconcile them, which he did outwardly 
 this Day ; as for a thorough and hearty Re- 
 conciliation, it was impoflible, their Views 
 being in fuch direft Oppofitionto each other 
 as they were. 
 
 And now purfuant to the King's Refolu- ^l\ 
 tion that Lord Shaftsbury Ihould take his 
 Trial, a Commiflion of Oyer and Terminer 
 was ilfuedout for that Purpofe, and themoft 
 capital Articles of his Accufation having been 
 committed in LondoUj the Jury was there re- 
 turned for the finding of the Bill, and tho' 
 a Paper was produced, containing no lefs 
 than matter of High Treafon, which was 
 fwom to have been found among the Papers 
 in his Clofet, by a Secretary of State, yet 
 fuch were the Times, That the Grand Jury 
 brought in their Verdift Ignoramus.' 
 
 In Confequence of this he was enlarged; ^J. 
 but becaufe the Rabble in the City had 
 lighted Bonfires on the Day the Jury ac- 
 quitted him, the Juftices of London and 
 Middkfex had now ftri6l Orders to prevent 
 
 the 
 
128 
 
 i6Si. 
 
 Nov. 29. 
 
 Dec. 4. 
 
 ?■ 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 the like tumultuous doings. Now there 
 were thofe who, confidering how nearly 
 Lord Hallifax was related to Shaftshury\ ima- 
 gined his Lordfhip was not grieved that the 
 latter was no longer a Prifoner j and indeed 
 what made me, among others, bend a little 
 this Way, was That waiting on his Lord- 
 fhip a little early, I found one of my Lord 
 Shaftsburys Gentlemen with him. But his 
 Lordfhip denied it all very ferioufly to me, 
 and faid he would ere long convince the 
 World of their Miftake. 
 
 It being cuftomary with the King, when 
 he returned from his Walk before Dinner, 
 to difcourfe the foreign Minilters, who ufual- 
 ly attend to meet him in the Antichamber, 
 he did it this Day on the Subject of the hard 
 Meafure dealt to him by Lord Shaftsbury's 
 Jury ; and it fell to my Lot to explain feve- 
 ral Things in French relating to the matter 
 in hand. A few Days afterwards his Maje- 
 fly declared his Difpleafure againft the Duke 
 of Monmouth^ upon feveral Accounts, but 
 efpecially for having offered to be Bail for 
 Shaftsbtiry* The next Day he made the 
 Duke oi Richmond his Mafter of the Horfe, 
 and gave one of the Regiments of Foot 
 Guards to the Duke of Grafton. And now 
 the King to comply with the Nature of the 
 
 Times, 
 
 
 OfSh JGH N RERfiSBt. 
 
 Times, for it was Ihrewdly fufpefted he 
 was not in earneil, fent for the Juftices of 
 Mddlefes to appear before him in Council, 
 where he gave them a fevere Reprimand, for 
 that they were fo remifsin their Inquiry af- 
 ter the Number of Papifts, and fo backward 
 to profecute them* He fpoke not himfelf, 
 but did it by the Lord Chancellor, and or- 
 dered them to be more vigilant, mindful, 
 and a£live for the time to come* 
 
 The fame Day, having been to vifit the 
 Duchefs of Portfmouthj my Lord HalUfas 
 took me home with him from Whitehall. On 
 the Way, I acquainted him that the general 
 Report was. That his Lordlhip oppofed the 
 Duke of rork's Intereft with the King, and 
 his Return from Scotland,^ which his High- 
 nefs raoft urgently prelfed. His Reply was. 
 That it was well if the Duke's overhaftinefs 
 did not turn to his Difad vantage; that his 
 Highnefs had a fort of hungry Servants a- 
 bout him, who were eternally preffing for 
 his Return, nor would ever let him be at 
 reft, till, with a View to their own Intereft, 
 they put their Mafter upon what might prove 
 much to his Prejudice. And true it is that 
 whilft his Highnefs was near the King's 
 Perfon, every Body believed his Majefty to 
 be principally fwayed and actuated by his 
 
 K Advice J 
 
Jm» 4 
 
 J 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 Advice; and confequently That Popifh 
 Councils were then uppermoft ; whereas he 
 did a great deal of good in Scotland^ by 
 keeping a watchful Eye over that mutinous 
 Kingdom. But the Papifts, and others, his 
 Highnefles Creatures, pretended he was 
 kept in Scotland That his Enemies might the 
 more eafily work him out of his Brother's 
 good Opinion ; and that the Minifters might 
 have the King alt to themfelves, and guide 
 him according to their own Will and Plea- 
 sure. Upon this Lord HaUifax obferved 
 There was great Partiality in the Judgment 
 of Men ; for that in common Juftice they 
 ought to take as much Nonce of Things 
 that were managed for the Duke's Advan- 
 tage, as oi what feemed to be otherwife : 
 That, for Inftance, no Body had commend- 
 ed the Minifters for getting the Duke of 
 Richmond to be Mafter of the Horfe in pre- 
 judice to the Duke oiMomnouth ; tho' it muft 
 prove a great Obftacle to his Return to the 
 King's Perfon, and tho' moft evident it was 
 That no greater Service could be done to his 
 Highncfs, than to keep the Duke oi Mon- 
 Sleuth ivomComt. 
 
 About this Time I had a View of going 
 Envoy to Denmark^ but to wave that, I this 
 Day carried a Gentleman, one Mr. Granty a 
 
 Leader 
 
 I 
 
 Of Sir jdtti^REiLESBT. 
 
 Leader of the Fanatic Party, to wait on my 
 Lord Hallifds. He acquainted his Lbrdlhip 
 with the double Dealings of feme great Men 
 at Court againft him,who had been particular- 
 ly inftrumental in exafpcrating the Commons 
 againft him in the late Parliaments ; which 
 my Lord took as a piece of Service done, 
 as it would put him upon his Guard againft 
 the fame Men for the future; At the fame 
 time I conduced a Gentleman to my Lord, 
 to ask his Pardon for fome Things he had 
 been reported to have faid againft his Lord- 
 ftip. In good Policy, we ought to fuffer no 
 Man to be our Enemy, if we can poflibly 
 avoid it • but fuch was his Lordlhip's natural 
 Difpofition, that, in the whole Courfe of my 
 Lite, I never knew a Man more ready, at 
 all Times, to forgive, and lliall never forget 
 his Expreflicn upon this Occalion, Sir^ tf 
 you did not fay the Words I am very glad of ity 
 and even if yott didj I am glad you find Canfe 
 to be of another Mind. In a private Conver- 
 fation I, at the fame time, had with his 
 Lordfhip, he told me, That the People about 
 the Duke oSlork made him mad ^ that there 
 was fcarce one of them that had a Grain ot 
 Senfe; and intimated that a Parliament could 
 not be far ofE 
 
 K t 
 
 The 
 
Jan, II. 
 
 22. 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 The next Day I went to fee Lord Banly 
 in the Tower • he told me Lord Sunderland 
 was ever railing at Lord HalUfax, tho' his 
 Brother-in-Law ; and obferving him to ex- 
 prefs fome Satisfaftion thereat, I prefumed 
 to remonftrate to him, That being a Friend 
 to both, I could wifli, now that he was a 
 Prifoner, he would forget all Occafion of a- 
 nimofity againft a Gentleman in fuch high 
 Power, as my Lord Hallifax ; for that when 
 a Parliament Ihould be called, his Lordfliip 
 might ftand in need of his Affiftance, and 
 the good Offices of his Friends. 
 
 A few- Days afterwards, the King gave 
 Audience to an Ambaflador from Morocco 
 who was admitted with more than ordinary 
 Form, the King being of Opinion that a 
 Coaimerce eftabliihed between that Empire 
 and his Kingdom, might prove of confide- 
 rable Profit to us, efpecially as wehadfo op- 
 portune a Place on that Continent as 27?//- 
 giers. The Ambaflador's Prefent to the 
 King confilled of two Lyons, and thirty 
 Oftriches, at which hisMajefty laughed, and 
 faid, He knew nothing more proper to fend by 
 way of Return than a Flock of Geefe. 
 
 I hapned, this Day, to dine with Lord 
 Lumley^ at Lord Fcverfhams^ when the lor- 
 mer declared he had fpeedy Intentions of 
 
 refign- 
 
 OfSh JohnReresby. 
 
 refigning his Poft of Mafter of the Horfe to 
 the Queen,which he had hitherto enjoyed in- 
 dependantly of the Mafter of the Horfe to 
 the King. But it feems the DucheCs of 
 Portfmouth had prevailed with ^ the King to 
 alter his Patent, and to make him an Officer 
 under the Duke of Richmondy contrary to 
 his Promife. The Duchefs was certainly 
 fometimes to blame, in Things of this Na- 
 ture i for to difplay her Power with the 
 King, which indeed was great, and to ex- 
 prefs her Friendlhip to fome, Ihe would of- 
 ten perfuade the King to break his Engage- 
 ments with others, which was not for his 
 Honour. And yet his Majefty was not, at 
 this Time, thought to be charmed with her 
 Bed, it being generally believed he had not 
 lain with her, lince he was at Newmarket^ 
 at leaft four Months before. I alfo heard, 
 this Day, that one of the three Minifters was 
 endeavouring at a Reconciliation with a 
 great Man who was no Friend to my Lord 
 Hallifax'j and immediately warning his Lord- 
 Ihip thereof, he thanked me, and told me the 
 Information would be of good ufe to him. 
 
 We had now Advice that infinite Damage 
 had been done to O/endj Antwerp^ and the 
 Circumadjacencies, by the moft dreadful In- 
 undation that had ever been known. That 
 
 K 3 HoUani 
 
 Jan, 28. 
 
134 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 jH?/Z^;/^ had fuffered moft prodigiouflyby the 
 Flood, that the greateft Fart of Zealand was 
 under Water, and that feveral Towns and 
 Villages had beenfwept away with all their 
 Inhabitants, and that, according to Computa- 
 tion, it would require an Expence often 
 Millions Sterling to make good the Lofs. 
 The Levels alfo in Torkpire and Lincolnjhire 
 
 were laid under Water by the fame Fate i 
 the inceflant Rains of this Seafon haying 
 been the Caufe thereof. 
 peb'uary. And now the great Point in Expeftation 
 was, Whether there would be a Parliament 
 called or not, the Miniilers of State being 
 divided as to the Thing. My Lord Halli- 
 fas argued, That all Chriftendom was defi- 
 rous of it, Fraficc only excepted, and that 
 nothing could be offered to difcountenance 
 it at home, but the Fear they might touch 
 upon high Points, which if they did, his 
 Majefty might difmifs or diiTolve them, juft 
 as he pleafed, and convince the World that 
 it was their Fault and not his, and evince 
 that he endeavoured to give his People Sa- 
 tisfa£tion by the Means of frequent Parlia- 
 ments. That if the King and the Parliament 
 agreed, his Majefty would thereby gain the 
 grand Points of being united at home, and 
 formidable abroad. But fome, as Seymour 
 
 ^f4 
 
 0/^/r JohnReresby. J35 
 
 and Hyde, were againft the Motion, more j68i^ 
 for their own Sakes, than any Body's elfe. 
 
 At this Time was perpetrated the moft ^'■^^^ 
 barbarous and audacious Murder that had 
 almoft ever been heard of in England. Mr. 
 ?%«», a Gentleman of 9000 /. per Anmmy 
 and lately married to Lady Ogle, who re- 
 penting herfelf of the Match, fled Iromhim 
 into Holland before they were bedded, was 
 fet upon by three Ruffians, who Ihot him as 
 he was going along the Street in his Coach. 
 This unhappy Gentleman being much en- 
 gaged in the Duke of Monmouth' i Caufe, it 
 was feared That Party might put fome vio- 
 lent Conftruaion on this Accident, the Aft- 
 ors therein making their Efcape juft for the 
 time, and being unknown. I hapned to be 
 at Court that Evening, when the King hear- 
 ing the News, feemed greatly concerned ac 
 it, not only for the Horror of the Aftion it 
 felf, which was Ihocking to his natural Dif- 
 pofition, but alfo for fear the Turn the An- 
 ticourt Party might give thereto. I left 
 the Court, and was juft ftepping into Bed, 
 when Mr, Thynn's Gentleman came to me to 
 grant him an Hue and Cry, and immediate- 
 ly at his Heels comes the Duke of Mon-^ 
 mouth's Page, to defire me to come to hinx 
 at Mr. !r/bi»»'s Lodging, fending his Coach 
 
 K4 fo? 
 
MEMOIRS 
 
 forme, which I made Ufe of accordingly, 
 I there found his Grace furrounded with fe- 
 veral Lords and Gentlemen, Mr. Thynns. 
 Friends and Mr. Thynn himfelf mortally 
 wounded with five Shot from a Blunderbufs. 
 I on the Spot granted feveral Warrants a- 
 gainft Perfons fufpefted to have had a Hand 
 therein, and that Night got fome Intelli^ 
 gence concerning the Aaors themfeives. 
 At length, by the Information of a Chair- 
 man, who had carried one of the Ruffians 
 from his Lodging at Wefiminflcrto the Black 
 Bull, there to take Horfe, and by Means 
 of a loofe Woman, who ufed toviiit the fame 
 Perfon, the Conftables found out the Place 
 of his abode, and there took his Man, by 
 Nation a Swcde^ who being brought before 
 me, confefled himfelf a Servant to 2. German 
 Captain, who had told him he had a Quar- 
 rel with Mr. Thymi^ and had often ordered 
 him to watch his Coach; and that particu* 
 larly that Day the Captain no fooner under-, 
 flood the Coach to be gone by, than he 
 booted himfelf, and with two others, a Swc-- 
 dijh Lieutenant and a Pde^ went on Horfe- 
 back, as he fuppofed in queft of Mr. Thymi. 
 Fth. 13. By the fame Servant I alfo underftood where 
 poffibly the Captain and his two Compani- 
 ons wer^ to be found ; and having with the 
 
 Duke 
 
 » - • « 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresby. 
 
 Duke of Monmouth^ Lord Mor daunt and o- 
 thers, fearched feveral Houfes, as he dire£l- 
 ed us, till iix in the Morning, and having 
 been in clofe Purfuit all Night, I perfonally 
 took the Captain in the Houfe of a Swedijh 
 Doftor in LeiceJler-'JieJds. I went firft into his 
 Room, followed by Lord Mor daunt ^ where 
 I found him in Bed, with his Sword at fome 
 Diftance from him on the Table ; his Wea- 
 pon I in the firft place fecured, and then his 
 Perfon, committing him to two Conftables. 
 I wondered he fhould make fo tame a Sub- 
 million, for he was certainly a Man of great 
 Courage, and appeared quite unconcerned 
 from the very Beginning, tho' he was very 
 certain he fhould be found the chief AQror 
 in the Tragedy. This Gentleman had, not 
 long before, commanded the forlorn Hope, 
 at the Siege at Monsy when but two, befides 
 himfelf, of fifty under his Command, efcaped 
 with Life ; and, in confideration of this Ser- 
 vice, the Prince o^ Orange made him a Lieu- 
 tenant of his Guards, and, in Reward for 
 the fame, the King of Sweden gave him a 
 Troop of Horfe : But to infift no farther on 
 this, his two Accomplices alfo were taken, 
 and brought to my Houfe, where before I 
 could finilh the feveral Examinations I had 
 to go through, the King fent for me to at-. 
 
 ten4 
 
 137 
 
 1681. 
 
-I 
 
 ,j3 MEMOIRS 
 
 i68i. tend him in Council, for that Purpofe, with 
 the Prifoners and Papers. His Majefty or-, 
 dered me to give him an Account oJt the 
 Proceedings hitherto, as well with regard to 
 the apprehending of the Prifoners, as their 
 Examination, and then examined them him- 
 felfi and when the Council rofe, ordered 
 me to put every thing into Writing, and in 
 Form, againftthe Trial; which took me up 
 a great: part of the Day, tho' I had got one 
 of the Clerks of the Council, and another 
 Juftice of the Peace to alM me, both for the 
 Sake of Difpatch and my own Security, the 
 nicety of the Affair requiring it, as will, in 
 the Sequel, appear. 
 Fit. 15 The Council met again, among other o^^ 
 ther Things, to examine the Governour ot 
 young Count Comn^fmark, a young Gentle- 
 man then in Mr. Foahert'^ Academy in Lon- 
 (tony and fuppofed to he privy to the Mur-, 
 then Upon this Occafpn, the King fent tor 
 me, to attend in Council, where the faid Go- 
 vernor confeihng, That the eldeft Count 
 Coningfrnark^ who had been in England fome 
 Months before, and made his Addrefles to 
 the Lady who fo unfortunately married Mr. 
 'J^hyntty arrived incognito ten Days before the 
 faid Murther, and lay difguifed till it was 
 committed, gave great Caufc to fufpeft 
 
 That 
 
 - 
 
 ^'fSh JohnRe resby. 
 
 That the Count was at the Bottoni of this 
 bloody Affair ; and his Majelty ordered me 
 thereupon to go and fearch his Lodgings? . 
 which I did with two Conftables, but the 
 Bird was flown j he went away betimes in 
 the Morning of the Day after the Deed was 
 perpetrated; of which I immediately gave 
 the King an Account. 
 
 I feveral Times afterwards attended on 
 the King, both in private and in Council, 
 from time to time to giye him Information, 
 as frelh matter occurred, or appeared ; and 
 upon the whole it was difcovered, partly by 
 the Confeffion of the Parties concerned, and 
 partly by the Information of others, That 
 the German Captain had been for eight Years 
 an Intimate with Count Coningfvtarkj one of 
 the greateft Men in the Kingdom oi Sweden^ 
 his Uncle being at that time Governor of 
 Pomeraniay and near upon marrying the 
 King's Aunt ; and moreover that during the 
 Time he was in England before, he had made 
 his Addrefles to Lady Ogk^ the only Daugh- 
 ter and Heirels of the Earl of Northumher-' 
 landy who had been marryed to the deceased 
 Mr. Thynny^nd that the faid Count had refent- 
 ed fomething as an Afiront from Mr. Tbynn : 
 That the Captain, moved thereto out of pure 
 Fricndlhip to the Count, tho'not at all with 
 
 his 
 
 
 
t 
 
 i f 
 
 ME M O I R s ^ 
 
 his Privity, as pretended, had determined 
 within himfelf to revenge his Caufe, and 
 that in Confequence of fuch his Refolution 
 f he Murther hapned : It appeared alfo that 
 luch biscruel Defign was furthered by theAf- 
 . fiftance of the 4'^ce/.^//2; Lieutenant, and the 
 Pole who had been by him obliged to dif- 
 charge the Blunderbufs into the Coach. I 
 was extremely glad that in this whole Bufi- 
 nefs there was no EngUp Perfon direftly or 
 indireaiy concerned j for the Fanatics had 
 buzzed it about That the Defign was chiefly 
 againft the Duke of Monmouth:, fo that I 
 had the King's Thanks more than once, the 
 Thanks of my Lord Hallifax and feveral o^ 
 thers, for my Diligence in tracing out the 
 true Springs and Motives of this horrid Ac- 
 pon, as well as the Aftors themfelves. The 
 Duke omonmouth had been out of the Coach 
 above aa Hour, and, by the Confeffioa of 
 the Criminals, I found they were not to have 
 made the Attempt if his Grace had been 
 with Mr, Thynn. 
 
 Mean while it was fufpefted that Count 
 Cmngfntark was ftiU in the Kingdom ; and 
 fearch being made after him, he was met 
 with alone in Difguife at Gravefend, by a 
 Servant of the Duke oi Monmouth^ 'J ^, 
 he was ftepping out of a Sculler, intending 
 
 the 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresby. 
 
 the very next Day to embark on Board of 
 a Swedifh Ship. Being brought up to Town, 
 the King immediately called an extraordi- 
 nary Council to examine him. I was pre- 
 fent upon this Occafion, and obferved that 
 he appeared before the King with all the 
 Affiirance imaginable. He was a fine Per- 
 fon of a Man, and I think his Hair was the 
 longeft I ever faw. He was very quick of 
 Parts, but his Examination was very fuperfi- 
 cial, for w^hich Realbn he was by the King 
 and Council ordered to be, the fame Day, 
 examined by the Lord Chief Juftice, the At- 
 torney General, and my felf, but he con- 
 felled nothing of the Murder, pretending^ 
 the Reafon why he lay at this time conceal- 
 ed, to be that he was then under Cure for a 
 fmall V enereal Difafter, and did not care to 
 appear in public, till the Courfe of his Pre- 
 fcription was over 5 and that his going away 
 in Difguife after the Fa£t was committed, 
 was by the Advice of Friends, who told him^ 
 it would reflea on him fliould it be known 
 he was in England^ when an Intimate of his 
 laboured under fo violent a Sufpicion of 
 having committed fo black a Deed ^ and that 
 he endeavoured to make his Efcape, not 
 knowing how far the Laws of this Land 
 might for that very Reafon involve him in 
 
 the 
 
Feb. 21. 
 
 z6. 
 
 t 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 the Guilt, but being at the King's Couchee 
 the Night after, I perceived by his Majefty's 
 Difcourfe^ That he was willing the Count 
 fliould get off 
 
 A few Days afterwards, Monf. Fotdberf 
 who kept the Academy in LondoHy came and 
 deiired me to put him in a way how to fave 
 Count Coningfmark!s Life, infmuating to me> 
 That as he was a Man of vaft Fortune, he 
 could not make a better Ufe of it than to 
 fupport his own Innocence, and ftiield him- 
 felf from the Edge of the Law, in a ftrange 
 Country. I told him. That if the Count 
 was really innocent, the Law would natural- 
 ly acquit him, as much tho' a Foreigner as if 
 he was a Nadve ; but that he ought to be cau- 
 tious how he made any Offers to pervert Ju- 
 ftice J for that it were to make all Men of Ho^ 
 nour his Enemies, inftead of gaining them to 
 be his Friends. This was one of the firft Bribes 
 of Value ever offered to me^ which I might 
 have accepted without any Danger of Difco- 
 very, and without doing much for it : But 
 my Opinion has always been that what is {o 
 acquired is no Addition to our Store, but 
 rather the Caufe of its Wafte, according to 
 the Saying, Male parta mak delahuntur\ 1 
 therefore rejefted this now as I had done o-^ 
 thers before, and as I hope I fliall always do 
 for the time to come. BiHg 
 
 ^43 
 
 i68i. 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresby. 
 
 Bills being found at HkKs Hall againft the 
 three Murderers of Mr. Thynn^ as principal, 
 and againft the Count as Acceffary j they 
 the next Day made their Appearance at the 
 Old Baily, where, after a Trial which laft- 
 ed from nine in the Morning to five in the ' 
 Afternoon, and a very vigorous Profecuti- 
 on on the Part of Mr. fhynns Relations, the 
 three were brought in guilty as Principals^ 
 and the Count by the fame Jury acquitted as 
 not Acceffary ; it being per medietatem LingUie^ 
 according to the Privilege of Strangers. I 
 was the firft that carried the News of this 
 to the King, who feemed to be not at all 
 difpleafed at it \ but the Duke of Monmouth's 
 Party, who all appeared to add Weight to 
 the Profecution, were extremely diffatisfied 
 that the Count had lb efcaped. 
 
 The Captain, and the other two his Ac- ^^^^^^^ ^^ ■ 
 complices in the Murder of Mr. fhynn^ were, 
 purfuant to their Sentence, hanged in the 
 Street where they had perpetrated the 
 Crime* The Captain Died without any the 
 leaft Symptom of Fear, or offering at the 
 leaft glance of Refle£\:ion on Count Coning-- 
 finark • and feeing me in my Coach as he 
 paffed by in the Cart, he made a Bow to me 
 with the moft fteady Countenance, as he did 
 to feveral of the Speftators he knew, before 
 
 he 
 
ie>82. 
 
 May ^. 
 
 12. 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 he was turned off; in Ihort, his whole Car^ 
 riage, from the firft Moment he was appre- 
 hended, to the laft that he refigned his 
 Breath, favoured much of Gallantry, but not 
 at all of Religion* 
 
 Having thus concluded the Hiftory of 
 this remarkable Tranfaftion, I fliall only, by 
 the way, obferve that I was foon after appoint- 
 ed Governor oiTork^ in Oppofition to a ftrong 
 and potent Interelt againft me. About this 
 Time I had a very long Converfation with my 
 good Friend the Earl of Hallifas^ who conti- 
 nued Heady for a Parliament; and expreffed 
 himfelf of Opinion, That the Duke had gain- 
 ed no great Afcendant over the King, by his 
 late Journey into England^ from whence he 
 was now upon his return to Scotland-^ a Jour- 
 ney quite difagreeable even to the King's 
 own Friends ; and indeed he was chiefly 
 perfuaded to it by his Servants, who gained 
 by his being here. 
 
 The next Day came News, That his 
 Highnefs had been in great Danger of being 
 call away in his Voyage back to the North, 
 the Ship he was in having ftruck upon Tar- 
 7nouth Sands, and that a great Number of 
 the Paflengers had been loft, a Piece of 
 News that was at firft contradi£led, but in 
 a Day or two confirmed by a particular Ac- 
 count, 
 
 
 Of 
 
 j-.V John Reresby. i45 
 
 count-; That the G/...>., ^'^"t^,^"'i," -^. 
 which the Duke of Tork had embarked for 
 Scotland, had actually fuftbred Shipwreck upon 
 one of hmoath Sands, called the Zmo« and 
 Oar : and that the Duke, with about an i6o 
 Perfonswerefaved: among thofethatpenlh- 
 ed were the Lords O Rmn, and Ro>^borough, 
 and Mr. Hyde, l^^rd Clarendon sBvozhcr 
 
 Waiting this Day on my Lord Halltjax, ^^^ ^j, 
 he told me that the Day before, being Sun- 
 day, the Duke ofMoumouth came to him at- 
 ter Prayers, and asked him >f ^^^f ,"^« 
 That his Lordftip, as was reported, had ad- 
 vifed the King in Council, to iffue out a 
 Proclamation to forbid every Body from 
 keeping him company : And that he had 
 anfwered. That he was not obliged to fatif- 
 fy him, whether he had fo adviled his Ma- 
 iefty or not^ and that the Duke replyed 
 Ihere would be no need of a l^ocU^^^^on 
 to prevent him from keeping his Lordftiip 
 Company, and that in another Place he 
 would have faid more to him, and fo went 
 
 •'Tmuft be by all confeffed that his Grace 
 in this afted a very imprudent Part for he 
 muft needs have known that his thus que- 
 ftioning a Privy Councellor concerning Ad- 
 vice given by him at the Board, would found 
 
146 
 
 
 MEM c) I R S 
 
 very harfh to the King: And on the other 
 Hand, if his Intentions were really for a 
 Quiirrel, he might have chofen a more pro- 
 per Place, and have faid more, or nothing 
 at all. I offered to ferve his Lordlhip with 
 my Life upon this Occafion ; but he was fo 
 very good as to fay, That if it came to a 
 Neceffity of that fort, he would make ufe of 
 fomebody he did not efteem fo much as he 
 did me ; but that, however, he did not 
 think himfelf obliged to fight upon that Ac- 
 count ; tho' he Ihould ever be ready to de- 
 fend himfelf while he wore a Sword by his 
 Side. 
 
 The next Day a Council was held at 
 Hampton-Court y where, as foon as it was up, 
 his Lordlhip told me an Order had been 
 paffed to this Effeft, " that Whereas the 
 " Duke of Monmouth had been guilty of 
 ^' fome threatning Speeches to a Member of 
 " that Board, in relation to fomething of- 
 *^ fered to his Majefty in Council ; his Ma- 
 ^' jefty confidered the fame as an unmanner- 
 ** ly Infolence towards himfelf; and did 
 ^^ therefore charge all his Servants, and all 
 " fucli as had Dependance on him, not to 
 " keep Company with, or frequent the faid 
 ^* Duice of Monmouth for the time to come." 
 
 I had 
 
 I 
 
 of sir J O H N R E R E S B Y. 147 
 
 I had foon after a Conference with Lord J^ 
 Hallifaxy wherein I obferved to him, That j^„e 5. 
 he was too frank and open with fome in Bu- 
 finefs with him, and with others, who were 
 well in the King's Favor, and that they ge- 
 nerally betrayed him : and dehred him to 
 keep himfelf more to himfelf if poffible. He 
 tolci me he was very fenfible of the Truth 
 and Importance of what I faid, but continu- 
 ed, That he could not avoid the Freedom 
 I condemned in the Courfe of Bufinefs, and 
 hoped his Integrity would fupport him. At 
 this Time he gave me Direftions how to 
 behave in the North, but they were fuch as 
 in common political Prudence muft be here 
 
 fuppreffed. 
 
 And now I retired to my Government of 
 Torky where, tho' many Tranfaftions were 
 pretty remarkable they are of too private 
 and particular a Nature to be here enume- 
 rated ; 1 ftiaU therefore only obferve, Thac 
 the City of Tbrk had been more noted than 
 moft Places in England, for the height and vi- 
 rulence of Faaion,but that after I had been 
 there fome time, finding fome of the Leaders 
 willing to abate of their Warmth, I en- 
 gaged myfelf in fome private Difcourfe with 
 Mr. Alderman Ramfden, one of the moft ex- 
 traordinary of the whole Fraternity, and 
 
 La fo 
 
MEMOIRS 
 
 fo well explained to him the Danger they were 
 in, if they did not fhew fomefpeedy Signs of 
 Remorfe and Repentance for their former 
 Behaviour, That he confefled himfelf fenfi- 
 ble of Errors committed upon feveral Gcca- 
 fions, (viz.) in that they had fo often per- 
 filled in their Choice of fuch Members as 
 rhey knew to be quite ungrateful to the 
 King; in that they had fo handfomely re- 
 ceived the Duke of rork when he palFed 
 through their City, in his way to Scotland \ 
 and in that they had petitioned for a Par- 
 liament, but never addreffed or abhorred : 
 But that after all he was afraid their Offen. 
 ces were too enormous to be pardoned, up- 
 on a ConiiJeration lefs than the furrender of 
 their Charter, which they did not know 
 how to think of I then asked him what 
 he thought the City might be perfuaded to 
 do by way of fome Atonement : To which 
 he anfwered, they might be brought to do 
 three Things if they might be accepted. 
 Firf^^ To lay afide Alderman Thcmpfon^ a 
 peevifli Antimonarchial Fellow, to whom it 
 fell of Courfe to be Lord Mayor the next 
 Year, provided his Majefty would, by Let- 
 ter, command them fo to do. Secondly^ To 
 chufe a new High Steward, and to offer the 
 Honour to his Royal Highnefs, in lieu of 
 
 the 
 
 
 Of Sir John R e r e s b y. 
 
 the Duke of Buckingham^ whom they would 
 put out, or in cafe his Highnefs fhould re- 
 fufe it, to his Lordlliip of HalUfax'^ and 
 Thirdly^ to ele£t better Members for that Ci- 
 ty, when Occafion fliould otter, Thefe 
 three Things, he faid, were feafible, might 
 they be thought fufRcient. 
 
 I immediately gave Notice of this our 
 Converfation to my Lord, now Marquifs of 
 Halltfas^ who in a few Days fent me lor 
 Anfwer, That tho' he approved of thefetting 
 aiide of Tho77ip[on from being Lord Mayor, 
 he could by no means think it fafe to ven- 
 ture the King's Letter upon it, to the Cor- 
 poration ; except theSuccefs of the Attempt 
 were aftually certain ; and efpecially as 
 Things were in fo very fair a way above, 
 particularly with regard to the ^w War-- 
 ranto againfl: the City Charter, which if it 
 fucceeded, every other Corporation would 
 be obliged to truckle ^ and that lliould the 
 King's Letter meet with the propofed Ef- 
 feft, it v\ ould rebound back again upon the 
 Court, and be an Encouragement to the o- 
 ;her Party. That as for their chufing his 
 Highnefs to be their High Steward, he 
 judged it improper and unfit upon many Ac- 
 counts^ and as for himfelf, he was willing 
 Xp put himfelf upon the Illue of what they 
 
 L 5 propofedj 
 
 Aug. 22. 
 
i8. 
 
 Februaty- 
 
 M E M O I R S 
 
 propofed, provided it did not feem to be his 
 mvn Requeft, and that it lliould appear he 
 had a confiderable Number of Friends and 
 Wellwifhers therein, tho' the Event itfell 
 (hould not anfwer : Such was the Subftance 
 of what he returned. 
 Jan, 10. His Lordlhip foon after advifed me to 
 come to London^ where he had fome things 
 to tell me, which it would be more proper 
 to communicate near at hand, than at fuch 
 a Diftance. In coiifequence of which I re- 
 paired to our Capital the Month following^ 
 where being arrived, his Lordfhip was pleaf- 
 ed to acquaint mc with the whole of a late 
 Difpute he had had with my Lord Hyde^ 
 now Earl of Roche fter^ and firil Lord Com- 
 miffioner of the Treafury. His Lordlhip had 
 informed the King of 40000 /. of his Hearth- 
 Money, which had been mifipplied to fome 
 private Ufe or Ufes Lord RQcheJlcr could not 
 but know of, and was much fufpefted to 
 Iharein; together with fome Mifcarriages 
 and Mifmanagement of the Revenue, which 
 it feems, no Body but his Lordlhip had the 
 Courage to expofe to the King. He told 
 me alfo he had lately brought in Lord Suh^ 
 derland to be Secretary of State, by engag- 
 ing the Duke oiTork in his Behalf^ and that 
 now his Highnefs feemed to be kinder to 
 
 that 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresby. 
 
 that Lord, who had laboured all he could 
 againft him in the late Parliaments, than to 
 himfclf, who had done all he could to ferve 
 him, and who had particularly made the 
 moil confiderable Head againft the Bill of 
 Exclulion ^ and touched upon fome hard Re- 
 turns and Difappointments of the lame kind, 
 from the fame Quarter. But ftill his Lord- 
 lhip was well with the King, it was in no 
 Degree in their Power to remove him, tho' 
 they combined their whole Strength to ef- 
 fea it : And indeed 1 had Reafon to^ know- 
 how large an Influence he had over his Ma- 
 jefty i for to him it was wholly owing that 
 I fat ftill in my Government of TorL 
 
 A few Days afterwards, his Lordfhip told 
 me of fome hard Ufage he had met w ith 
 from Lord Rochepry contrary to their mu- 
 tual Engagements, in favor of each other, 
 upon his firft entring into Bufinefs ; and that 
 having obtained a Promife to be Lord Pre- 
 fident, or Lord Privy Seal, as a Vacancy of 
 either Ihould firft fall out, which hapned to 
 be of the Seal, Lord Rochcficr had behind 
 the Curtain done all in his Power for Mr. 
 Seymour'^ that upon thisOccafion he had been 
 raifed to the Dignity of Marquifs, which he 
 had never defired, w ith a View to make him 
 amends for the Seal i but that not declining 
 
 L 4 the 
 
15^ 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 ^ the one or the other he had obtained both ; 
 and that thereupon Seymour had left the 
 Court. That however, the King command- 
 ing it, he was willing to be upon good 
 Terms with his LordlTiip, but that he muft 
 give him fome lufficient Aflurance that he 
 was more a Friend to him than to Sunderland 
 ere he could repofe any Degree of Con- 
 fidence in him. That in the mean Time 
 he would keep in his Corner, and be 
 attentive to whatever might be for the 
 King's Service, and not be afraid to ac- 
 quaint his Majefty with what might be for 
 his Majefty's Difadvantage, whoever were 
 the Aaors or Tranfaftors; and in fine, that 
 when he had Power, he Ihould be careful 
 to diftinguilh thofe who were his Friends, 
 from thofe who were not fo. 
 
 Now the Affiiir of the forty thoufand 
 Pounds, faid to have been loft to the King, 
 upon his Hearth-Money, and charged upon 
 Lord Rochejier^ and the other Lords Com- 
 mifTionersof the Treafury, came to be ar- 
 gued by Counfel on both Sides, before the 
 King; and it plainly appeared that the King 
 was aftually fo much a Lofer ; but fuch was 
 the Intereft that Lord Rochejier^ fupported 
 as he was by the Duke of Tork^ Duchefs of 
 Fortfmouth^ and Lord Sunderland^ had with 
 
 his 
 
 •« 
 
 y 
 
 Of Sir J O H Kf R E R E S B Y. 
 
 his Majefty, that little or no Notice of the 
 Fraud was taken at that Time : Except of 
 fome of that Lord's Friends having taken 
 the Liberty to cenfure Lord HaUifas^ as too 
 bufy in making the Difcovery, the King ju- 
 ftified him fo far as to fay openly that Day, 
 in Court, upon the Trial, That his Lordftiip 
 had done nothing in the whole Affair, but 
 by his Order and Approbation. My Lord 
 Hallifax told me this was not the only Mat- 
 ter that would appear, as to the ill Manage- 
 ment of the Royal Revenue, and obferved 
 That the anticourt Party courted him at fuch 
 a Rate, that he feared it might create a Jea- 
 loufv elfe where. 
 
 A few Days afterwards his Lordihip told 
 me the Duke made it his Bufinefs to clear 
 himfelf from having had any concern on ei- 
 ther Side, for the Fraud on the one Hand, 
 and the Difcovery on the other, were the 
 general Talk of the Town, but that his 
 Highnefs Ihould apply to him, before he 
 would apply to his Highnefs. He told me 
 alfo that he had, the Day before, been with 
 the King, and that he was two Hours in 
 private with him ; and that he had obferved 
 to his Majefty, That a Report was fpread as 
 if Lord Rochejler was to have the Lord 
 High Treafurer's Staff delivered to him ; but 
 
 that 
 
16^1 
 
 154 MEMOIRS 
 
 that he was in Hopes there was no fuch In* 
 tention, for that it would be a great Re- 
 fleaion upon himfelf, and look as if his Ma- 
 jelly thought he had done 'wrong to the 
 Man whom he immediately fo favoured ^ 
 and that his Majelty Ihould fay, The Man 
 jhould not be Lord Treafurer the foonerfor what 
 he had lately done as Lord Rochefter ; and 
 that his Majerty was angry with him for 
 giving Ear to fo groundlefs a Rumour. 
 Feb, 28. 'r^'^ ^^y^ afterv\ards, Lord HalUfax told 
 me The Duke had aflured him, he was not 
 in the ieaft concerned in the Difference be- 
 tween him and Lord Rochejlcr ^ and that he 
 had replyed, he was fure his Highnefs could 
 wilh him no ill, and that if he did, he lliould 
 never do any thing to oppofe him, but that 
 in fuch a Cafe he Ihould not be able to ferve 
 him with that Zeal he could wifh, and that . 
 his Highnefs might poflibly repent he had 
 loll his Service to the Degree he deli red to 
 ufe it for him : That h^ had done no more 
 tlian he had been by the King commanded 
 to do, and that there was no Man in the 
 Kingdom fo great that he could be decently 
 difpleafed with what was done at the King's 
 Command : That he perceived they, mean- 
 ing Rcchejlcry had a mind to rid their Hands 
 of him, and that it was likely they might 
 
 cndea- 
 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresby. 
 
 endeavour to make him uneafy in his Stati- 
 on, but that he would take care they fliould 
 not remove him, Firjl^ becaufe he would 
 Itay with the King to be ready to ferve him, 
 ^rid, Secondly, Becaufe he had a Mind to dif- 
 appoint thole who fo earneilly longed for 
 his Abfence: That his whole View had 
 been to fave the King Money, and that he 
 knew no greater Service that could be done 
 to his Highnefs, if he would but be pletfed 
 to look a little before him into Futurity: 
 That the King indeed had made him a 
 greater Man than he deferved to be, but 
 that he had this to fay for himfelf. He was 
 a Gentleman, and that his Highnefs ought 
 in Jullice to have fome Confideration for 
 thofe that bore Efcutcheons, as well as for 
 thofe that had none; fome of the Duke's 
 Creatures were fcarce Gentlemen ; and that 
 for his Part he Ihould never fay any thing 
 to his Highnefs but Truth, which tho', at 
 firll Sight, it might look a little plain and 
 homely, nothing at the Bottom carryed with 
 it a greater Fund of Refpeftand much more 
 to the fame Effea That to this his High- 
 nefs made Anfwer, That what his Lordlhip 
 had faid fcemed to be very rational, that he 
 was fenlible of great Obligations he had to 
 him, and that he never would forget them, 
 
 but 
 
MEMOIRS 
 
 but ferve him in all he was able, and that Co 
 his Lordfliip fhould find. - 
 
 His Lordlhip ailb told me, the fame Day, 
 That he had been with my Lady Duchefs of 
 Poirtf77tontb^ and that, among other Difcourfe, 
 he told her, He found that in cafe he fhould 
 ftand in need of hisMajefty*s Favor, he was 
 not to expe£t many F'riends on that Side of 
 Whitehall'^ and that Ihe made Anfwer, That 
 fome who had been very much his Friends, 
 meaning Rocbefier^ came thither fometimes, 
 and that ihe hoped they would be as much 
 his Friends again : That to this he replyed, 
 He was in much Doubt as to her Interceffi- 
 on, and good offices, in fuch a ftrait, but 
 hoped he fhould avoid the Danger of mak- 
 ing Ufe thereof^ and took Notice that ihe 
 thereupon blulhed, and feemedto be in fome 
 Confufion. His Lordlhip further faid, That 
 were he quite as young as he had been, he 
 might be as well with her as others ; but 
 upon this I obferved. That his Lordlhip 
 ought to have been furnilhed \^ ith a good 
 Purfe as well as fomething elfe that began 
 with the fame Letter ; for fo. Report faid, 
 Lord Danhy kept Intelligence fo long and 
 fo great with her. 
 
 The Court and the whole Town were in^ 
 finitely divided as to the Difpute between 
 
 the 
 
 Of Sir J O H N R E R E S B Y. 
 
 the two Lords. Thofe who had any De- 
 pendance on Payments out of the Exchequer, 
 durft not but be on the Side of Lord Ro* 
 chefier : But all fober and ferious Perfons, 
 who were independent, and wiflied well to 
 the Government, applauded the Integrity, 
 the Zeal, and the Courage, of the Lord Privy 
 Seal, who would not fee fo great a Sum of the 
 King's Money mifapplyed, and was fo honeft- 
 ly bold as to complain, tho' he was fure he 
 fhould thereby raife a Number of violent E- 
 nemies againft him; and particularly the 
 Whigs, as they now called the anticourt Par- 
 ty, were laviih of their Commendations, not 
 only on account of the Difcovery,but in hopes 
 this greift Man might, by this Quarrel, be 
 brought to a cooler Degree of Moderation. 
 
 In the midft of this, all Chriftendom feem- Mmh 20. 
 ed to be in Danger of being involved in a 
 bloody War, the Rebels of i/////^^r)' having 
 called in the ^urk to aflifl: them againft the 
 Emperor, and, one or two excepted, all the 
 Princes of the Empire, and the King's of 
 S^ain and Sweden^ preparing to defend the 
 Empire againft the 7'ark on the one Hand, 
 and the French King, likely to fall upon 
 Flanders or Ibme of the Princes oi Germany ^ 
 on the other : While we fat at eafe amidft 
 the Bleffings and Plenty of a Peace, which 
 
 it 
 
158 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 [682. ^ it was thought would be lafting. becaufe of 
 'the Death of the bufy andfaftious Shaft sbti^ 
 ryy not long before retired into Holland. 
 
 Going with my Lord Privy Seal, to take 
 the Air, in Hyde Parky he told me he hoped 
 I was forry he prefled me to come up to 
 London^ feeing I could not fo well have been 
 made acquainted with the State of Affairs 
 at fuch a Dillance as Tork : That it was un- 
 certain how long he fhould be able to keep 
 his Station, driven at fo fiercely as he was 
 by fome, but that he imagined he had the 
 King to his Friend, and could not conceive he 
 would part with him for no other Fault than 
 the having obeyed his Commands j but fays he 
 if we fall again under the Influence of French 
 Councils, I Ihall fairly quit, there being 
 greater Endeavours againft me on the other 
 Side of the Water, than on this ; and de- 
 fired me when I got into the Country again 
 to turn the Report of his Difgrace into Rail- 
 lery, till he fhould give me Notice of his 
 Retreat, which he would early do, if he 
 found it unavoidable. 
 
 Two Days afterwards, I went to fee Lord 
 JDanbym the Tower,and found him to exprefs 
 himfelf much more obligingly towards Lord 
 Privy Seal, than he had been ufed to do here- 
 tofore i among other Things,hefaid hisLord- 
 
 ihip 
 
 h 
 
 r 
 
 / ■ 
 
 \ 1 
 
 Of Sir JohnRe resby. 
 
 fliip had taken a prudent and becoming 
 Courfe in declaring himfell for a Parliament, 
 and that he was very glad of it upon a pri- 
 vate Account ; for that he defpaired of be- 
 ing enlarged till there was a Sitting. He 
 faid, Lord Rochejier and his Party might 
 fupport themfelves for a while, but that the 
 Intereft they built upon was no better than 
 a fandy Foundation. 
 
 The next Day I communicated this to 
 Lord Hallifaxy who on his Part feemed al- 
 fo to be more favourably inclined towards 
 Lord Danhy^ than he had for fome time 
 been: He faid he had already Enemies 
 enough, and that what he had to fay a^ 
 gainft that Lord was now out of his Mind j 
 but that however he would not now make 
 himfelf Enemies by being his Friend, as he 
 had formerly done by being otherwife ; fo 
 that I found Lord Privy Seal was making 
 up his Intereft on the one hand, as Lord 
 Rochefier was on the other, for the latter 
 y had fent for Seymour to Court, and pro- 
 mifed to be his Friend. Lord Privy Seal 
 told me that Seymour had made fome Ad- 
 vances to clofe with him, and that a general 
 Reconciliation was endeavouring on the part 
 of Rochejfer's Friends. I told his Lordftiip^ 
 That, in my poor Opinion, he had much 
 
 better 
 
i6o 
 
 1(582. 
 
 i( 
 
 i; 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 better ftand by himfelf, now that he had 
 poffeiTed himfelf of the Intereft of the Na- 
 tion, by the Means of what he had done in 
 Oppofition to Lord Rocheftcr\ that if he 
 clofed in with that Side again, he might run 
 the Hazard of lofing the good Opinion of 
 his Country, which he now fo defervedly 
 enjoyed, whereas if he kept himfelf fepa- 
 rate, he might be Matter of both the one 
 and the other; and that fet the Cafe he 
 fliould fall, the King would foon be fenfi- 
 ble of fuch a want of him, that he could not 
 long be fpared from Court. To this his 
 Lordfhip replyed. It would be matter of 
 great Difficulty for him to ftay there with 
 Men, whofe Intereft it was to remove him. 
 That they would be apt to play him Tricks, 
 knowing that while he was in any Play^ 
 their Carriage and Condu£t would be no 
 Secrets to his Majefty ; but that if they did 
 engrofs the King all to themfelves they 
 would not long keep their Hold \ for that 
 the King had one Quality which would al- 
 ways preferve him from being long in ill 
 Hands, meaning his facility to hear all Per- 
 fons, and to admit of all Informations from 
 a Back-door, while the Favourites did not 
 in the leaft dream of fuch his Atttention. 
 His Lurdlhip then lamented the prodigious 
 
 Influ- 
 
 \ 
 
 Of Sir John R e R e s b y. 
 
 Influence the Duchefs of Portfmoath had o- 
 ver the King, complaining that flie betray- 
 ed him not in his Councils only, but his Bed 
 alfo, and that flie certainly lay with the 
 Grand Prior of France^ who often came over 
 under the Mask of Love, the better and 
 more effeftually to tranfmit Intelligence and 
 Information to his Mafter the French King. 
 He urged it That the King was too pafTive 
 with regard to thefe Things, and obferved 
 it as his greateft Fault, That no Argument 
 could prevail on him torefent what he clear- 
 ly faw he ought to refent, and that he de- 
 fcended too low from the fublime Elevation 
 of his Dignity. His Lordihip then took 
 Notice, that I alfo, in mj^ Station was the 
 Subjeft of much Envy, and advifed me, 
 when I returned again into the Country, to 
 demean my felf fo as to gain as great aMea- 
 fure of Favor and Benevolence as I decent- 
 ly could. 
 
 Upon the whole, I perceived that the 
 Lord Privy Seal had the better and more 
 approved Caufe, and that the Lord Rochejter 
 had the more potent and overuling Intereft ; 
 that the Lord Privy Seal defervedly weigh- 
 ed with the Body of the Nation, and that 
 the Lord Rochejier weighed, tho' undeferv- 
 edly enough, only with the Duke oi Torkj 
 
 M the 
 
i6z 
 
 1682. 
 
 1685. 
 
 April. 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 the Duchefs of Portfmouthy my Lord of Or^ 
 mofjdj and others at Court, who depended 
 upon his Majefty's Purfe, which laboured 
 the Diftribution of Lord Rochefter. In Ihort 
 the Fear was, That the Diligence of thofe 
 fo near the King might prevail on him to a- 
 bandon the Lord Privy Seal, who depended 
 upon himfelf only, upon no Intereft but his 
 own, and upon the Merit, which was cer- 
 tainly great, of the important Services he 
 had already done, and was belt able for the 
 future to do for the Crown ; and here we 
 put a Period to this Year. 
 
 I now returned to Tork^ and heard that 
 City had chofen the Duke of Richnond to 
 be their High Steward, which I was not 
 forry to underftand as their Affairs then 
 flood, my Lord Privy Seal having declined 
 that Honour for the Sake of the Duke of 
 Buckingham^ who was to be put out before 
 another could be admitted. The Duchefs 
 took this very kindly, and upon receiving 
 the Patent for that Office, which the City 
 prefented to the young Duke in a Gold Box, 
 her Grace fent my Lord Mayor a Letter of 
 Thanks, wherein Ihe faid the King was ve- 
 ry well pleafed that thefecond City in Eng-^ 
 land had had that Regard for her Son, and 
 aflured him and the Corporation of her ut- 
 
 moft 
 
 \i 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresby. 
 
 moft Services. But the Duke oi Bucking- 
 ham took it extremely ill of them on the o- 
 ther hand, and wrote them fuch a Letter, 
 as might eafily convince them of it. The 
 Duke of Buckingham being well with the 
 Lord Privy Seal, I was at fome Lofs to 
 know how to fleer between the divided In- 
 terefls, but I hope I did it in fuch a Manner 
 as to give Offence to neither. 
 
 In June following, we were alarmed with a J^^^ ^^'- 
 Report of a dangerous Confpiracy againfl the 
 King, of fuch as had been difappointed of 
 Preferments at Court, and of Proteflant Dif- 
 renters. The fame Confpiracy was alfo againft 
 the Duke of r^r^, and theDefign was to have 
 fhot both his Majefty and his Highnefs as 
 they came from Newmarket, t\\QT>zy of their 
 Return being fixed. This was to have been ex- 
 ecuted by forty Men, who, the Blow given 
 were to have fcoured to London^ and to have 
 reported it to have been done by the Papifls. 
 In London it was faid there were a Body of 
 Men ready to rife, and to take immediate 
 pofTefFion of the City and Tower, and confe- 
 quently of the whole Nation, and that the 
 Duke of Monmouth was ready to head the In- 
 furre6rion. 
 
 This wiis miraculoufly defeated by a fire 
 which burned down a great Part of the 
 
 M 2 Town 
 
MEMOIRS 
 
 Town of Ncjumarketj and caufed the King's 
 Departure from thence ten Days fooner than 
 was atfirtl intended. The Delign thus fru- 
 ftrated, it was afterward renewed to kill the 
 two Royal Brothers as they came from 
 Hampton-Court^ but the King being alone 
 they poftponed it, their View being to de- 
 ftroy both or neither. Thefe and the like 
 Dila^jpointmcnts put it into the Head of one 
 of the melancholy Confpirators, That God 
 to ufe his own Phrafe, was againft them, 
 which wrought on him to difclofe the whole 
 Affair, and he accordingly did. Upon this, 
 many of the Confpirators, and Abettors 
 withdrew ; the Duke of Mcmnontb fled, 
 Lord Grey made his Efcape after he had 
 been^taken, but Sir Tho??ias Armftrong was 
 apprehended and committed to the Tower, 
 together with the Earl of EpXy the Lord 
 Howard oi Eskrick, Lord Rtijjel^ and many 
 others^ and Orders were fcnt down, to us 
 in the North, to keep a watchful Eye, and 
 a ready Hand over all fulpicious Perfons, 
 and particularly to look out for one Mr. 
 Good enough^ and one Mr. Nelthorp^ who were 
 fuppofed to have made their way towards 
 us. By fome Scotchmen w e intercepted and 
 examined, we underftood this Confpiracy 
 to have been general with the Fanatics and 
 
 Difcon- 
 
 Of Sir John R e r e s b y. 
 
 Difcontented in both Kingdoms, and that 
 the Correfpondence was carried on, between 
 them, by the Scotch Pedlars, and other E- 
 miilaries in difguife, which caufed great Scru- 
 tiny and Search to be made and obferved 
 with Regard to all fuch People from the 
 North : But to dwell on the Particulars of 
 this Plot, and the Proofs made out againft 
 i;hofe who fuffered for it, were needlefs, af- 
 ter w hat has been faid and recorded by ma- 
 ny both privately and publickly concern- 
 ing it; fo 1 Ihall only fay, that in the Con- 
 clulion it proved f ital to Lord Rnjfdy the 
 eldeft Son and Heir to the Earl oi Bedford 
 and others of more inferior Note. 
 
 While we w ere labouring under the Ter- 'Jug, 12. 
 rors of the late Confpiracy, uncertain to 
 what Degree it might extend, and what- 
 might be the future Purpole and Refolution 
 of the defperate People concerned, the reft 
 ofChriilendom was in fome feeming Danger 
 of being overfpread by the Turk^ and now 
 more than ever, under the Apprehcnfions of 
 ibch a Catalhophe, the common Enemy 
 having for fome time laid clofe Siege to Vt^ 
 tnria^ and reduced that Capital to great Ex- 
 tremities. But at length it was relieved by 
 the fortunate Valour of the King oi Poland 
 iUfifted principally by the Duke of Lorrawy 
 
 M 3 the 
 
i66 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 the Emperor's General, and partly by the 
 Ele6lor3 of Saxony ^nd Bavaria: But the bare 
 mention of this being as much as can be re- 
 quired at my Hands, I ihall return to the 
 Pofture and Current of our own Affairs. 
 
 In OtJoher^ I b<id a Letter from my Lord 
 Hallifax^ to acqur>int me that I had the King's 
 Leave to come to Town, which I had de- 
 fired, as thinking it to be ncceffary I fliould 
 be near the King's Perfon, at a Time when 
 I thought he would be taking of new Mea- 
 furesand making of new R.egulations, with 
 Regard to Affairs in general, and Officers in 
 particular, for his own and the Nation's 
 greater Security after the late horrid Ma- 
 chinations: accordingly I fat out the latter 
 End of this Month for Lofidofi^ where 1 ar- 
 rived in November, 
 
 I went to vilit my Lord Privy Seal, and 
 found him ftill rooted in the King's good 
 Efteem; but that the Duke was not altoge- 
 ther fo grateful to him as he ought to have 
 been. I found alfo that the Diflerences be- 
 tween his Lordfliip and Lord Rochejhr not 
 only fabfifted ftill, but with more Acrimony 
 and Warmth than before ; and underftood 
 that the Lord Mayor of 7lrk was fent for 
 up, by an Order of Council, on account ot 
 fome Words he had fpoken. The King re- 
 ceived 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresby. 
 
 ceived me very gracioufly, and the Duke 
 feemed kind to me, nor did my Lord Jto- 
 chejicr^ whom I vilited, fcruple to favour me 
 w^ith a decent Reception. 
 
 But I found the Hopes of a Parliament 
 to be ftill at a very great Diftance, tho' 
 Flanders was in Danger offalling next Spring 
 under the Yoke of France^ and tho' the Na- 
 tion was much difliitisfied at the tedious De- 
 lay, that Part of the Nation, I mean, that 
 was in Oppoiition to the French Intereft. 
 And juft now it hapned that the Grand Pri- 
 or of France being in England^ and obferved 
 to be very fond of the Duchefs of Portfriouthy 
 and fhe of him, the King conceived fo great 
 a Jealoufy thereat he fent him away j and 
 it was ftirevvdly fulpefted the Duchefs would 
 not be long behind him, which few People 
 feemed to be very forry for. 
 
 I had heard, from a great Man, that 
 fomething would fliortly happen very much 
 to the Mortification of the Duke of Tor k and 
 his Party, a Myftery which feemed in a few 
 Days afterwards to be explained. The Duke 
 of Monmouth being fufpe£led to have taken 
 Refuge fomewhere abroad, on account of the 
 Confpiracy, fur renders himfelf to Mr. Secre- 
 tary Jenkins^ at Whitehall^ where the Thing 
 being before concerted, the King and Duke 
 
 M 4 went 
 
U E M O I R S 
 
 went to him, and, after an Hour's Difcourfe, 
 fuffered him to go to his Lodgings at the 
 Cockpit, attended by his own Servants, and 
 under no other Reftraint than that of a Ser- 
 jeant at Arms; but what was faid or done 
 at this Interview, may beconjeftured fooner 
 than known. 
 
 This was matter of Surprife to all People, 
 and waiting on Lord Privy Seal, he told 
 me, He doubted not but the Duke of Afo»- 
 moutb's Aliair, his Grace having that Day 
 kifled the King's Hand, the Duke's and the 
 Queen's, would be the Subje£l of great Spe- 
 culation, and that various Guelfes would be 
 made as to the Intercelfion that brought it 
 to pafs. I told him the World faid the 
 Duchefs of PortfmoNthj and Lord Sunderland 
 bad done it, and that it was publickly known 
 That the King had the Day before in Coun- 
 cil faid. It was at the Requeit of the Duke 
 of Tork^ to whom his Grace had made Sub- 
 miffion, and difclaimed all Competition with 
 for the Crown. His Lordlhip anfwered, 
 that the Thing was far from fo, for that the 
 Duke of lork and thofe in his Intereft, had 
 oppofed it to the very lall; and thereupon 
 owned himfelf to have been chiefly inftru- 
 mental therein ^ and gave me feveral Rea- 
 fons both public and private, tho' not pro-, 
 
 per 
 
 III 
 
 Of Sir johnReresby. 
 
 Per to be here enumerated, why he labour- 
 ed to that End. By this it plainly appear- 
 ed to me, That notwithftanding the extra- 
 ordinary Strength of the Intereft combined 
 againft him, this noble Lord had great 
 Power with his Majefly. His Lordfhip 
 moreover gave me to underftand that his 
 Grace had made ConfelTion of the late Plot, 
 but would not give any public Evidence a- 
 gainft the Confpirators. But to difmifs this, 
 certain it is that whoever wrought fo indu- 
 ftrioufly, with the King, in favour of the 
 Duke oi Momnoutb^ his Majefty himfelf may 
 be faid to have had a large Share therein. 
 He had a paternal AffeQiion for him, nor 
 could refrain from the moft open and pub- 
 lic Expreffions of it wherever he faw him j 
 and the Duke on his Part paid all the Re- 
 fpeft and Duty imaginable in attending up- 
 on, and following the King. Mean while, Jug.i"^. 
 the whole Court began to difcover, that tho' 
 his Highnefs of Tork feemed outwardly to a- 
 gree to the Duke of Monmouth's ReadmifTi- 
 on, it was by no Means an kSc of Choice 
 but of Necelfity, the King having declared 
 He would have it fo ; and that he was not 
 made privy to it above two Days before it 
 was effefted. 
 
 The 
 
Decern. 4. 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 The King had now concei\ ed a Difplea- 
 fure againft the City of Tork^ and coming 
 from the Duchefs of Poytfmonth's^ he asked 
 me, leaning upon my Arm, If I knew fuffi- 
 cient Matter for bringing a ^uo Warranto a- 
 gainft their Charter. I told his Majefty, I 
 did not^ but would endeavour to inform my 
 felf, but feared I could not fo well do it at 
 fuch a Diftance as if I was upon the Spot: 
 To which his Majefty replyed, / only recom-- 
 mend it to you. The Lord Mayor it feems 
 had refufed to let a Mountebank ereft his 
 Stage in that City, tho' he was furnilhed with 
 the^King's Recommendation, which the 
 Man complaining of, his Majefty thought 
 himfelf thereby flighted, or injured. 
 
 The Lord Mayor of 7'ork being arrived, 
 came to deiire leave to makeufe of my Name 
 before the Council, fo for as to fay. The 
 Governor knew how ready he was with 
 his AfTiilance upon Occafion oi the late 
 Plot to which 1 gave my Confent. I well 
 knew that the Duke of Tork, who thought 
 him accelTary to his once ill Reception in 
 that City, willied in his Heart the Man might 
 be punilhed ; but I imagined I could not 
 but in Juftice Hand by him in what was right, 
 and that 1 could not do amifs in carrying 
 him to my Lord Privy Seal, who gave him 
 
 his 
 
 
 / 
 
 * K' 
 
 Of Sir John Re resby. 
 
 his Promife to aiTift him at the Board. I 
 knew there was Pique and Malice in the 
 Complaint againll him, and was in Hopes it 
 might be a means of making him a thorough 
 Convert, if he was but mercifully handled 
 in this troublefome Matter. 
 
 Being, the next Day, at Lady Portf mouth' Sy 
 the King told me there was frefh Complaint 
 againft the Lord Mayor oi Tcrk^ and that he 
 was afraid he was but a bad Man. I faid I 
 was obliged to acquaint his Majefty with , 
 this Truth, That he was very ready to give 
 me his Affiftance in Toy% upon the late 
 dreadful Occafion^ but that I could fay no- 
 thing in Defence of what he might have 
 committed lince I left the Place j to have 
 done with this; 
 
 The Duke of Monmouth having obtained j)gc. 6. 
 his Pardon, refufed to iign a publick De- 
 claration of his Knowledge of the late 
 Confpiracy againft the King, for which 
 he was ordered to keep from Whitehall. 
 My Lord Privy Seal told me. The Manner 
 ot doing this, as required, was fome- 
 thing hard, but that his Grace ought in- 
 tirely to have fubmitted himfelf to the 
 King^s Pleafure. His Lordfliip I found was 
 much concerned that the Duke had been fo 
 obftinate, and he had Reafon to be fo, be- 
 ing 
 
Dti 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 ing now deemed, as he was, the chief In- 
 llrument that brought him into Favor. The 
 -next Day Mr. Algernon Sydney was executed 
 upon Tower Hill, as one of the Conipirators, 
 but faid nothing before he futfered. He only 
 left a Paper with the Sheriff, which I heard 
 the King fiy was very treafonable and eva- 
 five, tho' not wholly negative of the Faft 
 laid to his Charge ; but, however, it was 
 not thought proper to be printed. And now 
 I found that the Duke of York was not at all 
 pleafed with the Lord Privy Seal, tho' he 
 made open Ihew of the contrary, for that 
 he was not confulted on the Reftoration of 
 the Duke oi Mcnnwuth 5 and it was his Lord- 
 ihip s own Expreffion, That the Duke would 
 ne^er forgroe it him. But the King having 
 been the chief Promoter of it, it did not ap- 
 pear that his Lordlhip had loft any Ground 
 with him. The Duke of Monmouth would 
 not perform what was expe£ted of him, and 
 how could his Lordlhip help it ? 
 
 The Confederates, Spain^ Holland^ Szve" 
 den, and the reft, who were now preparing 
 to relift the French, and to preferve Flanders, 
 were very angry with us, for that we ftill 
 fupinely perlifted in our Neutrality, and 
 particularly the Spaniard, who faid it was a 
 Breach of our League with him ', but all Re- 
 
 monftranccs 
 
 1 
 
 Of Sir J O H N R E R E S B Y. 
 
 monftrances of this Sort w^ere to none ef- 
 fe6t ; our King pretended his own Affairs 
 were in fo ill a Pofture at Home, that he 
 could not fo much as think of involving him- 
 felf in a War^ which confirmed the jealou- 
 ly of our adhering to the French Intereft, 
 and of a private Commerce kept up with 
 them, by the intervention of the Duchefs of 
 Portfmouth and others. 
 
 The Talk ofthe Town now was. That ^^^-n 
 the Lord Privy Seal was not well with the 
 King, and that at Court he met with Dif- 
 couragements of fuch a Nature, as to make 
 him retire from Bufinefs. I communicated 
 this to his Lordfliip, who told me, He had, 
 indeed, met with Difcouragements from 
 fome, but none at all from the King, for 
 that he was as well there as ever; and that 
 there would be a farther Production of Af- 
 fairs in a little time than was expefted, and 
 fo pointed at the Thing that I ealily guefled 
 w4iat he meant. A few Days afterwards I 
 was with the Duke o( ylWej?mrlc, who told me 
 he was forty to find That Lord Privy Seal, 
 purely to out do his Antagonift Roche ft cr^ 
 Ihould have had fo great a Hand in bringing 
 in Monmouth, and thereby have incurred the 
 Duke of Toryfe's Difpleafure, as well as the 
 Diilike of a great Number of the Loyalifts, 
 
 who 
 
Jan. 2. 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 who were before his Friends. That, not 
 many Hours before, the Duke had told himj 
 That if the Lord Privy Seal had had no 
 Friendlhip for him in any other Capacity, 
 yet as being the King's Brother, he might 
 have let him into the Secret, and not have 
 brought in Monmouth quite without his Pri- 
 vity : That indeed he never could forget 
 what the Lord Privy Seal had formerly 
 done to ferve him; but that he took a Way, 
 if poflible, to make him forget it; and that 
 to his Knowledge, his Lordlhip was ftill ex- 
 erting his Labours to reunite the King and 
 Monmouth. The Duke of jllbcmarlc then ob- 
 ferved, That his Highnefs knew his Relati- 
 on to the Lord Privy Seal, but that the Loy- 
 alty and Refpe6l he bore to his Highnefs 
 was more confidered by him than all that, 
 and that he hoped his Lordfhip defigned him 
 no Diflervice in this Affair, with much more 
 to the fame Purpofe; in fhort, his Grace 
 feemed much to lament what his Lordfhip 
 had done in Favor of Monmouth. His Grace 
 added, That if the Privy Seal would but 
 truft him, he would tell him how to be too 
 hard for Kochefter^ without recurring to fuch 
 unpopular Methods. 
 
 1 communicated the Particulars of this 
 Converfation to his Lordfhip, who anfwcr- 
 
 ed, 
 
 < 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresby. 
 
 ed. That he thereby perceived the Duke had 
 a Mind to be upon better Meafures with him ; 
 but that, abfolutely, he had not feen the 
 Duke of Monmouth fince he laft left the 
 Court ; that as to what he had done for his 
 Grace, it was purely in Obedience to the 
 King's Commands ; and that as the King 
 would not allow him, it was impoflible for 
 vhim to have difclofed the Matter to his 
 Highnefs ; and concluded, that he was to 
 dine with the Duke of Albemarkj the Wed- 
 uefday following, and Ihould the better know 
 what to fay to his Grace, if he touched up- 
 on this Affair, lince I had taken Care to 
 apprize him of his Thoughts. 
 
 I learnt from a great Man, that we were 
 in no Way of having a Parliament, there be- 
 ing fome near the King, who advifed him 
 to another Way of ruling the Kingdom. 
 The fame Gentleman, at the fame time, la- 
 mented, That now^ the Fanatics had nothing 
 elfe to fay againll the Government, they 
 mull have fufficient Caufe of Complaint up- 
 on this Account, as well as on Account of 
 feveral other Points now in Ag-ltation. Some 
 Days afterwards, my Lord Privy Seal told 
 me, He had been very earnell with the King 
 to call a Parliament, and had reprefented to 
 him, That tho' he had flipped the Opportu- 
 nity 
 
' \ 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 njty of calling one immediately after the late 
 Plot, when he coyld not poffibly have failed 
 of one according to his Mind, and might 
 tear he fhould meet with no good one now, 
 he would do well to conlider, that the long- 
 er he deferred the Thing, the worfe it woufd 
 be, and indeed fo very bad. That it might 
 be ufed as an Argument never to call one 
 more. That nothing ought to have that 
 Weight with him, as his W^ord given to the 
 People ; that the Law required a Parliament 
 to be called every three Year ; and that, up- 
 on the iaft Dilfolution, his Majefty had pro- 
 mifed a religious Obfervance of the Laws, 
 by a Proclamation fetting forth his Reafons 
 for difmiffing that Parliament : That the ge- 
 neral Conftruaion put upon this was, that 
 he intended to call another within the three 
 Years, and that he feared an ill Ufe might 
 be made of his not doing what it wasib ge- 
 nerally fuppofed he certainly would : That 
 tho' the Antimonarchifts were now at a ve- 
 ry low Ebb, and under great Difcourage- 
 ments, fuch his Majeily's procedure might 
 raife a Spirit of Difcontent where it was leaft 
 expefted, meaning among thofe, who tho' 
 they were Friends to the Crown, were, at 
 the fame time, defirous he Ihould govern 
 according to Law, and net only defired, but 
 
 expelled 
 
 I 
 
 (t 
 
 
 Of Sir J O H N R E R E S B Y. 
 
 expe£led it, lince he had given his Royal 
 Word, thac he would do fo : That if, how- 
 ever, his Majefty thought not well of this, 
 he would be neverthelefs fo far from relin- 
 quifhing his Service, that he would make it 
 his Study to find out Excufes to make him 
 eafy with the People. So then there was no 
 poffibility of feeing a Parliament afTeinbledj 
 but by fome Compullion from a foreign Caufe^ 
 and no Body could tell, but that if the War 
 went on, the Confederates might be pro- 
 voked to declare againft us. 
 
 In Ihort, Aiiairs were now chiefly under 
 the Management of the Duke of }l)rky who 
 carried every Thing with a very lofty handj 
 but, what is very ftrange, the Earl o( Danhy 
 was on the Point of ftepping out of theTower^ 
 tho' againft his Highnefs's Confent. My Lord 
 Privy Seal aflured me his Enlargement was at 
 hand^ that he himfelf had been his Lordfhip's 
 chief Friend, and that the King had made 
 both the Duke and Lord Rochejier feeming- 
 ly fet their Hands to it. The Duke, in- 
 deed, appeared to be hearty in it, and that 
 the King was fo, qhere could be no doubt • 
 but Ruhejter and Sunderlafid did underhand 
 oppofe it with might and main, and fo con- 
 trived that the Judges delayed to bail out 
 his Lordlhip 'till the very Iaft Day of the 
 Term j thofe two Lords dreading, That 
 
 % 
 
!i 
 
 M E M O I R S 
 
 Danby might join with HalUfax to weaken 
 their Intereft. 
 
 And now it was refolved to bring a ^lo 
 Warranto^ if with any Colour of Juftice it 
 could be done, againft the Charter of Tork ; 
 and two Days afterwards. Lord Danby was 
 bailed out of his long Confinement of five 
 Years, as were all the Popifli Lords that had 
 been under Durance ever lince the Time of 
 the firft Plot. Lord Danby came the fame 
 Day to kifs his Majefty's Hand in the Bed- 
 chamber, where I hapned to be prefent. 
 The King received him very kindly, and 
 when the Earl complained of his long In»- 
 prifonment, his Majefty told him, he knew 
 it was againft his Confent, which his Lord- 
 Ihip thankfully acknowleged ^ but they had 
 no Manner of private Difcourfe together. 
 My Lord Privy Seal came into the Prefence 
 prefently after, and the two Lords faluted 
 each other ; but it was very llightly done 
 on both Sides, The next Day, however 
 I went from the Lord Privy Seal, to wait 
 upon the Earl, when his Lordihip delired 
 me to pcefent his Service to him, and to 
 tell him. That he fliould have taken a more 
 particular Sort of Notice of him, but that 
 he thought it would not prove fo much for 
 his Service : And the Earl faid. It was for 
 the very felf fame Reafon he had behaved 
 
 fo 
 
 '-i 
 
 OfSir}oni^ R E R E s b T. 
 
 fo indifferently towards his Lordihip j for 
 there was at that Time great Jealoufy of a 
 Friendfliip between them- Lord Dardy toid 
 me, he would retire to his Houfe out of 
 Town, nor concern himfelf with Bufmefs, 
 tbo' he doubted not but he might if he 
 would, but not upon the national Foundati- 
 on hedefired, and therefore would have no- 
 thing to do with it, declaring his Avexfion 
 to a French or a Popifli Interc-ft. He told 
 me alfo, the Subftance of what had paffed 
 betw^n the Duke and him, at the Vifit he 
 jixade to his Highnefs, after he had been 
 with the King, and I thereby underftood 
 his Lordfliip was upon no very afFeOionate 
 Terms with that Prince- He faid his High- 
 nefs told bim, he had heajd be had fpoken 
 flightingly of him, and that he anfwered, 
 It was true he had often been fo unfortunate 
 ^3 to difiej: with him in Opinion, and couid 
 not help faying, That he had never yet 
 found any Caufe to repent him of it j but 
 that for exprefling himfelf any how againft 
 his Perfon, if he heard fo, they were Whif- 
 pers and Lies, and defired to know who 
 were his Informers ; but the Duke evaded 
 that. lofliort, I found by my Lord Privy 
 Seal, That he and the Earl of DanJ>y had a 
 -good Underftanding together. 
 * N a Th« 
 
March i 
 
 i8o MEMOIRS 
 
 The King went to Neivmarketj and I fol- 
 lowed him a few Days afterwards ; when 
 the Weather being very unfeafonable and 
 dirty, and walking about the Town with his 
 Majefty, he obferved, that my Shoes were 
 but thin, and advifed me to get a ftronger 
 Pair to prevent my catching cold, which, 
 tho' a trivial Remark in it felf, may ferve 
 as an Example of that Prince's great Good- 
 nefs and Care for thofe Perfons that were 
 near him, tho' ever foinconliderable. The 
 Manner of the King's dividing his Time at 
 this Place was thus: He walked in the 
 Morning 'till ten of the Clock ^ then he 
 went to the Cockpit 'till Dinner-time j about 
 three he went to the Horfe-races; at fix he 
 returned to the Cockpit, for an Hour only; 
 then he went to the Play, tho' the A£lors 
 were but of a terrible Sort; from thence to 
 Supper ; then to the Duchefs of Portfmouth's 
 'till Bed-time; and fo to his own Apartment 
 to take his Reft. 
 
 But to have done withthefeDomeftic Di- 
 JUarchz^. yerlions, it may be proper juft to take No- 
 tice, That the War abroad feemed to be in 
 the Way of a very violent Continuance, tho' 
 the Frerjch King had offered either a Truce 
 or a Peace for a certain Term of Years : 
 But then it was upon very hard Conditions^ 
 
 ho 
 
 1684. 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresby. 
 
 he refufing to give up any Thing he had 
 taken, either from Spain or the Empire, fo 
 that there was no Likelihood that the Con- 
 federates would agree thereto. Our King 
 however, feconded the French King's Offers, 
 recommended them to the Allies as reafona- 
 bie, and proffered to be Guarrantee between 
 them in cafe they came to a Point. 
 
 Mean while, Lord Rochejier continued ^^.., 
 powerful enough to advance his Friends, 
 and Mr. Godolphin^ one of the Commiffioners 
 of the Treafury, was made Secretary of 
 State inftead of Sir Lyonel Jenkins^ who had 
 leave, by Reafon of his great Age, to retire ; a 
 Promotion that was not made without thePar- 
 ticipation of the Lady Port/mouth. The Lord 
 Privy Seal, the fame Day, told me, That 
 tho' all thefe combined Interefts were ftill as 
 averfe to him as ever, the King was never- 
 thelefs as kind tp him as he had ufually been; 
 but it was very obvious, That his Lord- 
 fhip was lefs in Bufinefs than before ; His 
 Lordlliip, however, had certainly a very 
 large Portion of the King's Efteem, and 
 what he faid had generally great Weight 
 with his Majefty. And now the Duke of 
 rork is declared Lord High Admiral of "^^^ "' 
 Englandy that is, he was inverted with the 
 Ppwer of that Office, without either the Ti- 
 
 N 5 ' tie 
 
iS2 M E M O T R 
 
 1 684. tie or the Patent, becaufe his Highnefs could 
 ■-v— ^ not difpenfe with the Oaths or the Sacrament, 
 a Circumftance which gave great Offence to 
 Numbers of People. Nor muft we forget 
 another thing, tho' of a private Nature, 
 which hapned this Day ; for the Duchefs of 
 Poftfifiotith, contrary to Cuftom, waiting on 
 the Queen, at Dinner, as Lady of the Bed- 
 chamber, her Majefty was thereby thrown 
 into fuch Diforder, that the Tears flood in 
 her Eyes, while the other laughed at it, and 
 fumed it into a Jeft. 
 .Vay 25. News now came, that the French had pof, 
 fefled themfelves of Liixcmhtirgh, which our 
 ' Court feemed to be not at all difplealed with ; 
 but there were thofe, and fome of them the 
 King's beft Friends, who were extremely 
 forry to hear it, that Place being reckoned 
 to be the Key of Germany, HoHand, and 
 Flanders, and probably too opportune to ad- 
 vance the Grandeur of the common Enemy. 
 A few Days afterwards, 1 went to Windfwy 
 to congratulate the King upon his Birth- 
 Day i the Crowd, upon this Occafion, was 
 great, but as for Gaiety and Gallantry, there 
 was but little of either, efpecially as to Ap^ 
 parel. And now the Duke of York is de- 
 clared of the great Council, commonly called 
 the Privy Council, whence he had been ex- 
 cluded 
 
 
 Of Sir John Reresby. 
 
 eluded ever fince the Statute which required 
 the taking of Oaths, which his Highnefs re- 
 fufing upon this Readmiffion, it became the 
 Subjefk of much Talk, and was deemed to 
 be a Breach of one of the moft folemn and 
 moft explicit A£ls of Parliament. 
 
 Intending for the North, I went to take j^^c 15. 
 leave of the King, who told me, That thofe 
 who had ferved him fo carefully and fo well 
 as I had done, ihould always be in his 
 Thoughts, and that I Ihould find it fo by 
 Experience. I waited alfo on the Duke, 
 and defired his Commands for Tork: He 
 told me, he doubted not but I Ihould do 
 what became me for his Majefty's Service, 
 and that for his own Part, he depended up- 
 on me. I aflured his Highnefs, I ihould 
 never fail in any Part of my Truft ; but beg- 
 ged of him to hearken to no Stories that 
 might be told him to my Prejudice. I told 
 him that every County had its Competitors, 
 and that it was impoflible for me to hope to 
 live without Enemies, and efpecially as I 
 h^d the Honour of ferving the King prefe* 
 rably to many of equal and fome of fuperior 
 Rank, who could not but look upon me, 
 for that Reafon, with an Eye of Envy. A 
 few Days afterwards, I vifited the Lord 
 
 N ^ Danhyy 
 
i84 MEMOIRS 
 
 1684. Danhjy who informed mc, that Lord Roche^ 
 Jiet was doling in with the moderate Men, 
 not I fuppofe out of any Affeftion for them, 
 but to make himfelf the ftronger Rival a*, 
 gainft Lord Privy Seal, who was fufpefted 
 to ftand upon a firmer Bottom than he, and 
 confequently to be better able to ftand the 
 Shock of a Parliament, in cafe the King 
 ihould be prevailed on to call one : But, alas ! 
 Parliaments feemed to be no longer thought 
 . of, and to be quite out of Doors; for, it 
 was Lord Danbys Opinion, There was a 
 very ftrift Conjunfticn between us and 
 France^ tho' they had fo lately taken X//xt 
 emhurgh^ and were likely to fucceed accord- 
 ing to their own Wifhes. 
 
 I returned to the North, and the Augriji 
 following, we had the grateful News that 
 Buda had been taken for the Emperor, by 
 the Duke of Lorrain ; as alfo, that a Truce 
 was made between the Emperor and tb^ 
 King oi France^ which looked as if a gene- 
 ral Peace was at Hand, that the Chriftian 
 Powers might the better exert themfelves a- 
 gainft the prefumptuous Arms of the Infidel. 
 And what ftill added to the good Afpeft of 
 the Thing, we had Advice, There had been 
 great Alterations made with Regard to the 
 Grandees at Court, and that particularly 
 
 Lord 
 
 
 Of Sir JohnRe resby. 
 
 Lord Rcchefter had been removed from the 
 Head of the Treafury Board, to that of the 
 Council ; in which, tho' he w^as advanced • 
 
 in Honour, he was put backward in Profit 
 and Power : It was therefore moft evident- 
 ly what he never fought for, and as plain, 
 that Lord Halltfax had brought it to pafs : 
 Thus it was that Lord Da^iby^ now in the 
 Country, conjeftured ; and it was foon con- 
 firmed to me, by a Letter from my Lord^ 
 Marquifs himfelf, wherein he made Ufe of 
 thefe Words j Ton may believe I am not at all 
 dtff leafed to fee fuch an Adverfary Yem(p:ed from 
 the only Place that could give him Power and 
 Advantage-^ and he bears it with fo little Phi- 
 lofophyy that^ if I had ill Nature enough^ he 
 gives me fufficient Occafton to triumph. Tottfee 
 I cannot hinder myfelffrom imparting my Satis^ 
 faificn^ tofo good a Friend^ But the wonder 
 was. How the Finger of my Lord Privy 
 Seal was able to effe£t this againft the Shoul- 
 der of the Duke oi7m% who ftill continu- 
 ed a Friend to Rochejler as much as ever. 
 
 I w ent to vifit the Duke of Newcafik at 
 his Caftle of Nottingham^ where the Duke Sep. 4, 
 of Buckingham had been not long before, 
 and giving a long Account of Affairs above, 
 which feemed to intimate as if^ notwithftand* 
 jng what had lately hapned, the French In- 
 
 tereft 
 
f86 
 
 1684. 
 
 *^an. ZCi> 
 
 lih. 
 
 A, 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 tMeft was Hill uppermoft at Court. His 
 Grace told me alfo, th^t Buckingham y,'s,SYe^ 
 ry angry with the M^rquifs o( Hallifaxy for 
 refufing to admit of a private Communicati- 
 on with the French Ambaflador, when he 
 offered to bring him to his Lordflup ; and 
 that his Grace fliould fay, his Power would 
 never be confiderable while he continued 
 averfe to that Intereft. But in contradifti- 
 on to this, I, towards the latter End of this 
 fame Month, received a very kind Letter 
 from my Lord Marquifs, and others from 
 very great Pcrfons, which gave me to un- 
 derftand, There would probably be fome 
 farther Change at Court, that his Lordfhip 
 ftood very firm with the King, and that it 
 was believed the Power of the French Inte* 
 reft was fomewhat abated. 
 
 And now a ^40 Wananto^ which had fo 
 long threatned them, was ferved upon the 
 City of Torky and the Refolution thereupon, 
 was to fend up the Charter, and to offer at no 
 Defence againll the King: I endeavoured, 
 as much as I conveniently could, to appear 
 quite indifferent on either Side; but almoft 
 upon the Back of this, I had the fad News, 
 from the Earl of Burlington^ that his Maje»- 
 fty had been taken, upon the ^di oi February 
 with a Fit of an Apoplexy, tho' they called 
 
 It 
 
 
 1/ 
 
 i 
 
 « 
 
 (yi'/V JohnReresby. 
 
 k an Epilepfy; and that he had continued as 
 it were dead almoft three Hours, till he was 
 brought to himfelf again, by bleeding, cup- 
 ping, vomiting, and feveral other Means 
 that had been ufed. His Lordihip fertheiw 
 more, in his Letter, ordered me, fo to dif^ 
 pofe of Things as might beft prevent Di- 
 fturbances and Troubles, in Cafe his Maje- 
 fty Ihould unfortunately fuffer a Relapfe J 
 and all the neceifary Precautions were taken 
 accordingly ; tho' qpon the News that the 
 King was recovered, and in fome Way of 
 continuance, there was nothing but Bonfires 
 and Rejoycings in our Parts; a ftiort lived 
 Mirth; for three Pays afterwards, we had 
 News that his Majefty was fallen into a Re- 
 lapfe, and that his Phyficians were in great 
 Fear he could not recover. At this we 
 doubled our Diligence to fecure Peace and 
 Quietnefs, and to prevent any Obftacle that 
 might ftart up in Prejudice to the Duke of 
 Tvrk. Two Days afterwards came News 
 that my great and good Mafter was depart- 
 ed this Life. The Mail came not in till 
 four in the Morning, when I was fetting up 
 to receive it, refolving to fuffer no Letter 
 to go out till I had been with the Lord 
 Mayor, and the High Sheriff; to whom I 
 immediately delivered their own Letters; by 
 
 which 
 
 187 
 
 1684. 
 
 Feh 7. 
 
i88 
 
 1684- 
 
 F(h. 8. 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 which they had Orders, together with my* 
 fel^ from the Privy Council and the Secre- 
 tary of State^ to proceed immediately and 
 proclaim James the Second. As foon as we 
 had got every thing ready for this Ceremo- 
 ny, which we had before Day, I gave leave 
 for the Delivery of the reft of the Letters J 
 and by feven in the Morning, the High She- 
 liii, met by the Archbilhop and moft ot the 
 Gentlemen in the Town, moved towards 
 the Cafik'^yaYci to proclaim the King there, 
 while I caufed all the Gari ifon, the neceflary 
 Guards excepted, to be drawn together in 
 the Tmirfday Market, 
 
 By nine in the Morning, the King was 
 proclaimed by my Lord Mayor, the High 
 Sheriff and my felf; the ¥irfi did it in the 
 ufual Places in the City; the Second d^id^ it 
 in the Cafih-yard^ for the County ; and I did it 
 in the 7'htirjday Market, to the Garrifon there 
 drawn out together ; I then ordered a dou- 
 ble Difcharge of the Ardllery, and feveral 
 VoUies, according to the Orders I had for 
 that End received from my Lord Sunderland. 
 All this was tranfa£led with all imaginable 
 Tokens of Peace and Joy ; not only \x\Tork^ 
 but afterwards throughout the w hole Coua- 
 ty, and indeed, the whole Kingdom, 
 
 A 
 
 Of Sir J O H N R E R E s B y. 
 
 A ftranee EfTeft of Power it was from Hea- 
 ven it felf,That fo ftrong a Party as had reared 
 its Head in Parliament, and fo pertinacioufly 
 called out for the exclulion of the Duke of 
 y^ork^ fhould now upon his AccelTion acquiefce 
 to him, with fuch Deference and quiet Sub- 
 miffion. But it may be prefumed, they were 
 aware of the Difference there was between 
 the Spirit of the late and the prefent King : 
 The former they thought might, for Peace 
 fake, be fooner brought to abandon his Bro- 
 ther, than the latter tamely to renounce his 
 Right and Title to three Kingdoms, for fear 
 of a War. But what ferved in very great 
 Meafure to quiet the Minds and allay the 
 Palfions of Men, was King James's Decla- 
 ration to the Privy Council immediately af- 
 ter the Breath was out of his Brother's 
 Body, Whereby he promifed to defend the 
 Government of England y both in Church and 
 State, and carefully to tread in the Foot- 
 ftepsof his late Majefty, with regard to his 
 Kindnefs and Lenity towards his People ; 
 and that as on the one Hand, he would de- 
 fend the juft Rights and Prerogatives of the 
 Crown, fo on the other, he would invade 
 no Man's Property. 
 
 I ftayed at york a few Days to keep the 
 Peace, and, in the mean time, had Notice 
 
 from 
 
■fh («««, 
 
 19 
 
 Feh. 16. 
 
 ^prtlli. 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 from the proper Hands, that Iwascontinu- 
 cJ in !Ti\ Command, and that I had leave 
 to let out for London^ as I, indeed had de- 
 fired. But now there began to be great 
 Changes at Courts Lord Rochepr was made 
 Lord High Treafurer of Mgknd'^ Lord 
 Privy Seal was made Lord Prefident of the 
 Council 5 which tho' it was a Step higher as 
 to Place, it was much doubted that it was 
 not at his Lordihip's Defire j the Truft and 
 Profit of the Privy Seal being judged to be 
 an overbalance for the Honour of the other* 
 And now we had the agreeable Profpeft of 
 of a Parliament, which it was faid his Ma- 
 jdly intended ihould meet in May next. 
 
 Tt ¥.a3 now beyond all Doubt that the 
 Kiag was a Papifti for he went publickly 
 to Mafs, tho' he ordered the Chai>pel of 
 iVry;uU:i to be kept in Statu quo '^ whither 
 the Pnncefs o^ Denmark repahred daily, whik 
 the King did the fame to the Queen's pri- 
 vate ChappeL In the Interim, I was cho- 
 fen a Member to fit in the enfuing Parlia- 
 ment for the City of Tork j and with this 
 new Charge, I this Day fat forward for 
 London i where being arrived, my Lord 
 Marquifs of Hallifax told me he and Lord 
 Rochefiery the Treafurer, were now very 
 well together , that he had ufed his conftant 
 
 £nd^a« 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresbt. 
 
 Endeavours to ferve the King, and that he 
 would continue to do the fame; but that he 
 hoped his Majefty would not think of im- 
 poling his Religion on him ; which he feem- 
 ed forrowfufly to apprehend, the moil con^ 
 fiderablc Pofts in the Army in Irclandy being 
 now put into the Hands of Papifts. His 
 Lordlhip then recalled to me fcveral Inftan- 
 ces of the late King's Kindnefs to him, and 
 certainly no Man was deeper in hb Favour, 
 when his Majefty was unfortunately fnatcb- 
 ed away, than my Lord Marquifs. A few ^^.^ 
 Days afterwards, I waited on his Majefty, 
 Idfled his Hand, and at the fame time pre- 
 fcnted him with an Addrefs from the young 
 Men of the City of Torky who had petition- 
 ed me for leave to exercife themfelves at 
 Arms on certain Days of the Year, which 
 the KLing received very kindly. 
 
 The next Day my Lord Hallifax told me 
 fee had had two private Audiences of the 
 Kii^, and that he had in fuch plain Terms 
 told him his Mind, upon the grand Point of 
 Government, that he much wondered the 
 King, confidering his natural Temper, took 
 it with thatCalnanefs and Compoiiire he did. 
 His Lordlhip then obfcrved, It poiHbly might 
 be infifted on, that fome ASs ihould, in the 
 enfuing Parliament, be repealed, which 
 
 would 
 
 22. 
 
1 
 
 li 
 
 192 .MEMOIRS 
 
 1684. would require a weighty and mature Deli-* 
 
 ^^''^r*^ beration ; and touched on fome Things not 
 
 altogether fo fit to be inferted in this Place. 
 
 ^^ The King was crowned and the Queen in 
 
 "^' jr£/??«//^^r--/fZ?/?<?j', with all imaginable Pomp 
 
 and magnificence, except that there was no 
 
 Cavalcade thorough the City, as the Cuftom 
 
 had formerly been. 
 
 Their Majefties went privately to the Pa- 
 lace at Wejiminjler^ where they, the Nobili- 
 ty, and all the Officers of the Crown put on 
 their Robes, Formalities, and Enligns, and 
 thence proceeded thorough Palace-^yard^ rail-- 
 ed in and prepared for that Purpofe, in Pro- 
 ceffion to Wejf minJieY" Abbey ^ whence the Ce- 
 remony being compleated, they all returned 
 to the Hall, to a moll fumptuous Dinner* 
 And now the Gentlemen of the Houfe of 
 Commons began to confider what the Court 
 might demand of them, as well as what 
 might be granted at the approaching Seffi- 
 on, the Parliament confifting of a great 
 Number of Loyal Gentlemen, who were 
 neverthelefs, good Patriots, and true Pro- 
 teftants. The Report went, that there 
 would be more required in Behalf of Pope- 
 ry, than the Laws now in Force would al- 
 low of; and that the King expefted the 
 Settlement of a conftant Revenue upon him, 
 
 fuitable 
 
 Of Sir John Reresby. 
 
 fuitable to that of the late King, befides a 
 Sum of ready Money to fubvene his prefent 
 Occafions. That in favour of Popery it 
 would be propofed to repeal the Habeas Cor^ 
 pus Aft, which I found was much oppofed 
 by fome great ones, in their private Dif- 
 courfe, as well as by fome of us; and to en- 
 aft a general Toleration or Liberty of Con- 
 fcience, which fome feemed willing enough 
 to fubfcribe to ; tho' at the fame time, the 
 Refolution was to admit of no Alteration to 
 capacitate Papills to enjoy any Place or Im- 
 ployment in or under the Government. As 
 for the Affair of Money, Men in general 
 feemed willing to fettle an handfom Reve- 
 nue upon the King, and to give him Mo- 
 ney, but whether their Grant Ihould be per- 
 manent or only temporary, and to be renew- 
 ed from time to time by Parliament, that the 
 Nation might be the oftner confulted, was the 
 Queftion : In all this, I refolved punftually to 
 do my Duty to the Crown, but not to be 
 unmindful of a due Regard for my Country^ 
 and my Religion. 
 
 I had fome Difcourfe with Mr. Hilliard 
 Sir Roger Martin^ and other. Gentlemen of 
 great Conlideriition with the Popifh Party : 
 They told me, The King would expe6t a 
 Repeal of the Sanguinary Laws j that the 
 
 O Papifts 
 
 May/i^ 
 
« 
 
 u 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 Papifts fhould be allowed the private exer- 
 cifcoi their Religion, and that they, at leaft 
 fuch as had ferved the Royal Family in the 
 Wars or otherwife fhould be capable of Em- 
 ployment under him : That the King would, 
 in Parliament, give full Satisfaftion to the 
 Nation, with regard to their Religion and 
 Properties ; but that if Reafon would not 
 ferve his Purpofe, he knew what he had to 
 do. That the King would never divide the 
 regal Power by admitting of that of the 
 Pope; that his Majefty was too fond of 
 Power to be guilty of that Overfight; and 
 that his adhering to the Defence of the 
 Church of England^ would on the other 
 Hand, deter the Pope from prefling him to 
 admit of his Supremacy; in Ihort, That 
 it was but reafonable the King fhould infill 
 on the Repeal of the fcverer penal Laws a- 
 gainft the Papifts ; for that if he fhould die, 
 he would leave them in as ill a plight as he 
 found them : But what Wifdom or Senfe 
 there was in thofe who, at this time, could 
 offer at fuch Arguments, need not be faid. 
 
 I waited on the King in his Barge from 
 Whitehall to Sojnerfet-^hofifey where he went 
 to vifit the Queen Dowager: It was upon this 
 Day,that the noted Do£lor Oates was convi- 
 cted of Perjury,it being proved,that he was at 
 
 ut» 
 
 Of sir John Reresby. 
 
 Sc. 07?2€rs the 24th ofjprily 1678, when he 
 fwore he was at the White-horfe Tavern in 
 the Strandy where Pickerings Groves^ Irelandy 
 and other Jefuits figned the Death of King 
 Charles the Second : This was a grate- 
 ful hearing to the King, who thereupon ob- 
 ferved. That, indeed, there had been a 
 Meeting of the Jefuits that Day, and that all 
 the Scholars of St. Omers knew of it, but 
 that it was well Do6lor Oates knew no bet- 
 ter where it was to be ; for, fays his Maje- 
 fty, they met in St. Jajnes's where I then 
 lived, which if Oates had but known, he 
 would have cut out a fine Spot of Work for 
 me. The King then fubjoined, That Oates 
 being thus convifted, the Popilh Plot was 
 now dead ^ to which I anfwering. That it 
 had been long fince dead, and that now it 
 would be buried; his Majefty fo well ap- 
 proved of the Turn, that going with him 
 afterwards to the Princels of Denmark* Sy I 
 heard him repeat it to her. 
 
 Three or four Days afterwards, we had 
 Advice, That a Store of Arms had been 
 bought up in Holland^ and conveyed into 
 Scotland ; and that Lord Argyle^ Lord Grey^ 
 and fome faid the Duke oi Monmouth ^ were 
 aflually gone with them, or afcer them. 
 
 O a 
 
 Mean 
 
j 
 
 ^il 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 Mean w hile^the Parliament aflembled In the 
 ufual Apartments at W^eftminfter^ but did no- 
 thing this Day but take the Oaths, andchufe 
 their Speaker, Sir John 'Trevor^ who was con- 
 firmed by the King: The two next Days 
 were alfo taken up in fwearing the Members, 
 and taking the Teft. On the twenty fecond, 
 the King made a Speech to both Houfes, and 
 therein afliired them, he would fupport and 
 defend the Church of England^ whofe Mem- 
 bers had ever been moft Loyal in the worft 
 of Times, in the Caufe of his Father, and 
 the Support of his Brother ; as alfo to ad- 
 here to the Government both in Church and 
 State, as by Law eftablilhed ; and that as 
 he never would depart from the juft Rights 
 and Prerogatives of the Crown, fo neither 
 would he attempt to invade any Man's Pro- 
 perty. He defired of us fuitable Returns 
 in fettling the Revenue on him for Life, as 
 in the Days of the late King; and conclud- 
 ed with an Account he had received from 
 Scotland^ that the Earl of Argyle was landed 
 with Men and Arms, on the Weftern Iflands 
 of that Kingdom ; and that the faid Lord 
 had publilhed two Declarations, in both of 
 which he charged him with Tyranny and 
 Ufurpation. 
 
 Of Sir John Reresby. 
 
 The Commons returning to their Houfe, 
 immediately voted, That the King's Speech 
 Ihould be taken into fpeedy Confideration, 
 and were {o well pleafed with the folemn 
 Security the King had given them as to their 
 Religion and Property, That they voted 
 him the very fame Revenue for his Life, as 
 had been enjoyed by the late King for his. 
 They then voted. That the King ihould, 
 by the whole Houfe in a Body, be thanked 
 jEbr his Speech, in which the Lords concur- 
 red, and it was accordingly done the next 
 Day; when they farthermore voted an Ad- 
 drefs to his Majefty, afTuring him. They 
 would ftand by him with their Lives and 
 Fortunes, againft Jrgyk^ his Abettors, and 
 all other Traitors whatfoever ; which being 
 prefented accordingly to the King, he was 
 pleafed to anfwer, That he expecled no 
 lefs from a Parliament fo happily made up 
 of Monarchical and Church-of-Englandmen, 
 and that he fliould fear no Enemy he either 
 had or might have, while he had them on 
 his Side. And now all Things feemed to 
 fmile with a very aufpicious Countenance 
 the King forbearing the leaft Advances to- 
 wards a Change of Religion, and feeming 
 to be bent quite the contrary Way. 
 
 The 
 
 O3 
 
 la 
 
'if 
 
 
 »?• 
 
 j\f E M O I R S 
 
 In the Midft of this, a Motion was made 
 in the Houfe, That fomething now fhould 
 be done to pleafe the People, after fo much 
 had been done to gratify the King ; point- 
 ing at a proper Security for the Proieilant 
 Religion ; upon which a Debate arifing, it 
 was referred to the Committee of Religion. 
 This Committee, the next Day, palled a 
 Vote, That the Houfe Ihould be moved by 
 them, To refolve to ftand by the King, 
 with their Lives and Fortunes, for the De- 
 fence of the Religion of the Church oiEng" 
 land J as by Law eftablifhed: As alfo to pre- 
 fent an Addrefs to the King, to iilue out his 
 Royal Proclamation, for putting the Laws 
 in Execution againft all Diffenters of what 
 Denomination foever ; and thefe Votes, tho' 
 in a very full Committee, pafled Nemhje 
 Contradicente. 
 
 But the next Day, when the fame came 
 to be reported to the Houfe, a Debate took 
 Birth, whether the Houfe fliould concurr 
 with the Committee or not? Againft the 
 Queftion it was argued, That it was remind- 
 ing the King of a Negle£l of his Duty ; that 
 the Juftices of Peace were in Fault that the 
 Laws were not more duly executed * that 
 Votes of this Sort would alarm the King- 
 dom, and might create a Jcaloufy of the 
 
 King;, 
 
 Of Sir John Reresby. 
 
 King, who had fo folemnly declared his 
 Intentions to defend our Religion; that the 
 King had told us. The Way to keep a good 
 Underftanding between him and his Parlia- 
 ment, would be to ufe him well, and that he 
 could not but take this amifs ; and finally, 
 That it might be an Encouragement to the 
 Rebels already in Arms in the Kingd<xn of 
 Scotland^ and fo on. To this it wasanfwer- 
 ed, That it would have but an indifferent 
 Look with the Nation, if we being Mem- 
 bers of the Church of Englandy ihould let 
 fuch commendable Votes in favour of our 
 Religion drop unheeded : At length the 
 previous Queftion being put. Whether to a- 
 gree or not to agree with the Committee, it 
 was carried in the Negative. The whoje 
 Matter then was fummed up in this Vote, 
 That an Addrefs ihould be made to the 
 King, purporting that the Houfe did entire** 
 ly rely on his Royal Declaration, that he 
 would defend and fecure the reformed Reli- 
 gion of the Church oi England^ as by Law e- 
 ftabliflied, by far dearei and nearer to them 
 than their Lives, 
 
 We had now Information, That Argyk ^^y 5o« 
 had penetrated into his own Territories ia 
 the North of Scotlandy with a Body of 3000 
 Men, and that he was fortifying himfelf 
 
 O 4 therQ, 
 
t6S<r. 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 
 there. The next Day, the King came to 
 the Houfe of Lords, and paiTed the Bill for 
 the Continuance of the Revenue of Excife 
 and Cuftonr^s for his own Lite, Having done 
 this, he fpoke to both Houfes, and thanked 
 them for the Chearfulnefs and Alacrity 
 wherewith they had paifed the fame ; he 
 laid, their Difpatch was as pleafing to him 
 as the Bill itfelf ; but at the fame time de- 
 fired fome extraordinary Supply for the Na* 
 vy and Ordnance Stores, for paying off the 
 late King's Debts to his Servants and Fami- 
 ly, and for defraying the Charge he was like 
 to be at in quelling the Rebellion in Scotland'^ 
 he then recommended the Navy to us, as 
 the Strength and Glory of the Nation ^ af- 
 furing us he had a true Etiglip Heart, jea- 
 lous of the Honour of the Nation; and that 
 he pleafed himfelf w ith the Thoughts, by 
 God's Bleffing, and their AfTiftance, to raife 
 the Reputation of it in the World, higher 
 than it had ever yet been in the Days of any 
 of his Anceftors. 
 Jme II. This Speech being taken into Confidera* 
 tion, it was, by a Committee of the whole 
 Houfe, voted that a Supply Ihould be grant- 
 ed to his Majelly for the Ufes therein fpecifi- 
 ed. While Things were going on in this eafy 
 and harmonious Manner, we had News from 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresbt. 
 
 Lyine in Dorfetjhire^ That the Duke of iM&»- 
 nwuth was landed in that Neigbourhood, 
 with Arms for 20,000 Men, together with 
 Officers and Soldiers, to the Number of a* 
 bout 200 ; that many of the People flocked 
 in to him, from that fa6tious Country, and 
 that he had declared himfelf the Proteftor 
 of the Proteftant Religion, againft Popery. 
 With all Speed then the King fent down the 
 Duke of Alhemarky the Lord Lieutenant of 
 that Part, to raife the Militia ; and after 
 him, fome Companies of the Handing Foot, 
 and fix Troops of Horfe and Dragoons. 
 Lyme is naturally a fafe and advantagious 
 Poll, and was in Monmouth's Power j fo that 
 in two or three Days more, we heard he 
 was 300 ftrong; but, at the fame time, that 
 the Duke of Albemarle had raifed the Mili-* 
 tia, and was marching towards him with 
 fome 8000 Men. 
 
 The King no fooner heard that Monmotab 
 was landed, as we have faid, than he com- 
 municated the fame to the Commons; upon 
 which they immediately voted him their 
 Thanks, and refolved, in a Body of the 
 whole Houfe, to wait on his Majelly with 
 their own Addrefs, wherein they promifed 
 to Hand by him with their Lives and For- 
 tunes, againft that ungrateful Rebel James 
 
 Duke 
 
 20i 
 
 1685. 
 
2,02 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 Duke of Mcnmotith^ and all others whofo- 
 ever they might be ; fuch were the promiling 
 Beginnings of this fhort and memorable 
 Reign. Soon after comes Mcmriouth's De- 
 claration, which the King, the next Day, 
 fent to both Houfes, who attended him that 
 very Day, and voted a Reward of 5000/^ 
 to any Body that lliould take him, and bring 
 him to the King, dead or alive. This De- 
 claration charged y^w^j Duke ofTorky forfo 
 it ftiled the King, with the Burning of the 
 City, the Death of Sir Edviutidbtiry Godfrey^ 
 theMurder of J'/Wwj',and Lord RuffcllyWiih the 
 Poifoningof the late King, and tearing his 
 Crown from his Head : It charged him alfo 
 with being a Slave to Popilh Councils, and 
 with packing the prefent Parliament ; and that * 
 therefore he was come to revenge all thefe 
 Things on the pretendedKing \ that he would 
 never hearken to any Terms, or Accommoda- 
 tion 'till his Work was compleated, and that as 
 he was refolved to give no Quarter to thofe 
 that oppofed him, he exhorted all good Peo- 
 ple to co.iie in and afRtl him. To this he 
 fubjoined, that he had a juft Title to the 
 Crown, but that he would lay no Claim to 
 it 'till he had called a free Parliament, to 
 whom he was ready to give full Satisfa£lion 
 as to that Matter ; that Parliaments lliould 
 
 lit 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresby* 
 
 fit every Year, nor he difmifled *v\\ all 
 Grievances were redrelfed, and that he 
 would grant Liberty of Confcience to all 
 Manner of People, not excluding even the 
 Papifts, and much more in the fame Strain. 
 
 Mean w hile, came News that Monmouth 
 having marched out of theTown ofLyme with 
 200 Foot, and 100 Horfe, had met with fome 
 of the Dorfctpire Militia, fallen on them, 
 killed feveral Perfons of Note, and taken 
 fome Prifoners. And now an additional 
 Supply is voted, for defraying the Expence 
 of the War, againft the Duke oi Monmouth. 
 The Houfe upon this Occafion refolved it 
 felf into a Committee of the whole, to con-* 
 fider of the Ways and Means for raifing this 
 new Supply, voted That it Ihonld be levied 
 upon fuch new Foundations, as had been 
 built upon within the Compafs of the Bills 
 of Mortality, fince the Year i6(5o, except- 
 ing the late general Fires in the City of 
 London and Borough of SouthwarL Secondly^ 
 That it ihould be levyed only upon the 
 Rents of the fame Houles for the Term of 
 one Year, Thirdly^ Upon fuch Foundations 
 as were now laid. Fourthly^ That there 
 fhould be a Claufe to prevent any more 
 Buildings within the faid Limits. Fifthly^ 
 That the Houl'e ihould be moved that a Bill 
 
 might 
 
ao4 MEMOIRS 
 
 t^85^ might be brought in for that Intent ; in all 
 which the Houfe concurred with the Com* 
 mittee. 
 June 18. The next Day the King fent to us, to de- 
 lire we would give him Credit upon fome 
 Fund, for fuch a Sum as we Ihould think 
 fit to grant him, towards the Suppreffion of 
 the Rebellion in the Weft j and that we 
 would prepare our Bulinefs fo as to be in a 
 Condition to adjourn for fome time, within 
 a few Days. Upon this we refolved again 
 into a Committee of the whole Houfe, and 
 voted him the Sum of 400,000 /• the Sum 
 agreed on the Day before ^ and at the fame 
 Time appointed a Committee to enquire in- 
 to, and bring in an Eftimate of the yearly 
 Value of the Rents of the new Buildings 
 upon new Foundations, 
 ^9' But notwithftanding all this, the Court 
 
 feemed to be much concerned at the In- 
 creafe of the Duke of Monmouth's Forces 
 which were now reported to confift of 4000 
 Foot, and four Troops of Horfe, with 
 which having marched towards Taunton^ a 
 populous and faSlious Town, he made him^ 
 felf Mafter thereof, two Regiments of the 
 Militia running away, when they heard he 
 was near the Place ; but the Duke of Jlbe^ 
 mark had ftill Orders not to fight 'till the 
 
 {landing 
 
 Of Sir John Reresbt. 205 
 
 fianding Troops had joined him, which it i^^s* 
 was fuppofed they would do upon the 20th 
 Inftant; on which Day alfo fome 2500 of 
 the Guards, Horfe and Foot, marched to 
 reinforce the Troops that had before been 
 fent to the Duke oi AWemark^ commanded 
 by Lord Feverpam. The fame Day, the 
 Commons underftanding it would be a te- 
 dious Task to levy the neceffary Sums upon 
 the new Foundations, proceeded to fhift the 
 .Tax upon French Linnen, Brandies, Calli- 
 coes, ^c. 
 
 But I cannot help obferving, that my 
 Lord Hallifas took it ill of me. That I had 
 been fo earneft for the taxing of the new 
 Buildings, he having a deep Concern there- 
 in^ but I told him it was my Judgment, 
 and that if my Father's Intereft had been 
 ever fo much therein, I fhould have done 
 the fame Thing ; that however, I was very 
 forry He, above all Men in the World 
 Ihould difapprove of any Thing I did j but 
 we prefently underftood each other, and he 
 faid he was very forry he had faid any Thing 
 to difturb me : This, tho' a TranfaSion of 
 quite a private Nature, I could not forbear 
 the mention of, as it was the only Time we 
 ever fo much as feemed to differ ; but to re- 
 turn to Matters of more general Importance. 
 
 This 
 
2.00 
 
 ^1 
 
 5 h 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 This Day his Majelly had Advice from 
 Scotland^ that the Earl oi Dunbar ton ^ com- 
 mander in chief of his Forces in that King- 
 dom, having Notice, that the Rehels had 
 pafTed the River above DiinhartoiSj had 
 marched from Glafgow to Sterlings and over- 
 took them near the Clofe of the Day, but 
 that in the Night the Rebels Hole away from 
 him into Renfrew) ; that the faid Earl then . 
 purfued them with his Horfe and Dragoons, 
 and underftood that they were making away 
 from him in very great Confufion ; that the 
 fame Day three Servants belonging to a 
 Gentleman oi Renfrew j fell upon the Earl of 
 Argyk^ as he was getting away in the Dif- 
 guife of a Countryman, with a blue Bonnet 
 on his Head ; and that they had wounded 
 him in feveral Places of the Head; till at 
 laft, fearing they would kill him, he con- 
 feffed himfelftobe the Earl oi Argyk'^ and 
 that thereupon they had taken him Prilbner, 
 and conduced him to Glafgow^ where he 
 was committed. The King fent an Account 
 of all this to the Commons, who returned 
 their Thanks for the fame, by fuch ot their 
 Members as were of the Privy Council, who 
 came back with this Anfwer, That his Ma- 
 jefty was every Day more and more fatisiied 
 with them for their Zeal and Loyalty to 
 
 his 
 
 Of Sir JohnRe resby. 207 
 
 his Perfon and Government, and that he ^^^^5- 
 gave them his Thanks. ^'~^ 
 
 The next Day the King had Notice, that j^^^ ^^^ 
 Monmouth had fent a Letter to the Duke of 
 Albemarle., under the Stile and Title of his 
 moft trufty and well-beloved Coufin and 
 Councellor, Chrijlopher Duke of Albemarky 
 charging him upon his Allegiance to come 
 into his Aid and AfTiftance ^ in a Word, 
 That he now took upon him to be King j 
 that he was marched from Taunton towards 
 Brijiol with about 5000 Men and Boys, and 
 that Albemarle was at his Heels. 
 
 The next Day I hapned to dine with Sir 24; 
 James Smithy the Lord Mayor of London^ 
 whom I had formerly known intimately 
 well, and who was of a very Loyal Club 
 in the City, where I ufed to go, while the 
 Fanatic Plot was in agitation. This Gen- 
 tleman complained to me. That he enjoyed 
 no more than the bare Title of Lord Mayor, 
 the Lord chief Juftice Jefferies ufurping the 
 Power ; that the City had no Sort of Inter- 
 courfe with the King, but by the Interv ention 
 of that Lord ; that w hatever was well done 
 in the City, w^as attributed to his Influence 
 and ManagemeBt ; and that himfelf and the 
 Aldermen were by the Court looked upon no 
 better than his Tools : That upon all Oc- 
 
 cafions 
 
ao8 
 
 1(585. 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 cafions his Lordfhip was fo forgetful of the 
 high Dignity of the City as to ufe him and 
 his Brethren with Contempt ; in fine, that 
 the Lord Chief Juftice was to be pitied ; 
 that his Haughtinefs would be the ruin of 
 him; and that he aftually intended to let 
 the King into the Myftery of thefe Things ; 
 but that he thought the prefent Time was 
 not altogether fo proper, feeing a Remon- 
 ftrance of this Tendency might be conftrued 
 into Mutiny and DifafTeftion. I anfwered, 
 That the King was too well acquainted with 
 the Lord Mayor's Services and Integrity to 
 fufpeSt him of that, and that, in my Opini- 
 on, now was the fitteft Time for expofing a 
 Man in that Credit at Court ; for that now 
 the greatefl: Notice would be taken of all 
 fuch Grievances. Indeed I was forry at my 
 Heart to fee fuch good Men difTatisfied in 
 any Degree j but I was as glad to find this 
 proud Man feen through ; for he had to my 
 Knowledge ufed the City of Tork as fcurvi- 
 ly as it was poffible for him to ufe the City 
 of London. For at Tork he put out five 
 Aldermen tho' he had folemnly engaged to 
 keep them in, and that, without fo much 
 as allowing them to be heard as to the Crimes 
 they flood accufed of. The Lord Mayor 
 faid the very fame had been frequently pra- 
 
 aifed 
 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresbt. 
 
 fVifed in London^ and that many had been 
 turned out of their Employments without fo 
 much as being fuffered to make their De- 
 fence. In ihort, I was at the very fame 
 Time told by one of the Lieutenancy of the 
 City, That fhould the Duke oi Monmouth 
 give a Blow to the King's Forces, it was 
 much to be feared there would be an Infur- 
 reftion in London. 
 
 This Day, both Houfes attended the King Jt^^y- zl 
 in the Houfe of Lords, and his Majefty 
 having paifed five Bills, ordered the Houfe 
 to be adjourned to the 4th oi AnguJ}-^ which 
 was done accordingly. And now the Fears 
 of thofe who were Friends to the Govern- 
 ment, added to the Hopes of thofe who 
 were averfe to it. The Duke oi Mcnmouth's 
 Army was fwelled to a Body of 12000 Foot, 
 and lyoo Horfe, which moved from Place 
 to Place, in the hilly and inclofed Country 
 of the Weft, where tho' the King's Army 
 kept pretty clofe in with them; they could 
 not offer to give Battle. The King's Army, 
 that was neareft to Monmottth, was command- 
 ed by Lord Fevcrjham^ and did not conlill 
 of above 3000 Foot, and five hundred Horfe, 
 but then they were nioitly of the Guards. 
 In a Day or tw o the King had Advice, that 
 Monmouth had got into Eridgcwatery that he 
 
 P intended 
 
y«/> 6. 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 intended to fortify himfelf there whilft he 
 refreftied his Army, and that Lord Fever- 
 (ham was clofe after him. 
 
 The Duke oi Monmouth being then inform- 
 ed That Lord Feverjham lay incamped at 
 not above three Miles from Brid^ewater^ that 
 his Army was as yet but fmall, that he was 
 in Expeaation of being reinforced by three 
 Enghjh, and three Scotch Regiments trom 
 Holland, and that a Body of Horfe was on 
 its March from Loudon to the fame Purpofe; 
 he fteak out about one in the Morn- 
 ing, with his whole Army, and moves to- 
 wards the Royal Camp, and that with fuch 
 Silence and good Order, That the King's 
 People knew nothing of the Approach 'till 
 alarmed by the Fire of one of their out Sen- 
 tries. The Duke of Monmiith marched at 
 the Head of the Foot, and Lord Grey led up 
 the Horfe, and they brought their Cannon 
 to play within Piftol-lhot. On the other 
 Hand, our People got into Order as fail, 
 and received them as well as could be ex- 
 pefted, but were fo overpowered by Num. 
 bers, that 'till Lord Grey \\ent off with the 
 Horfe, which were frightned at the Cannon, 
 we were in very imminent Danger of lofing 
 the Day : But for the Duke oi Monmouth, he 
 ftood 'till a great Part of his Foot was cut 
 
 to 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresby. 
 
 to Pieces, and then made off; but fo nar- 
 rowly that his Coat, his Papers, and his Se- 
 cretary were taken. Fergufon, that Arch- 
 presbyterian Prieft and Rebel, and Lord 
 Grey was taken in Difguife, three Days af* 
 terwards. 
 
 The Duke of Monmouthh^d, from the ve- 
 ry Beginning of this defperate Attempt, be- 
 haved with the Conduct of a great Captain, 
 as was allowed even by the King, who, in 
 my Hearing, faid he had not made one falfe 
 Step. And thus was this great Storm, Vvhich 
 gathered from a fmall Cloud, the Number 
 that landed with the Duke not exceeding 
 150, thus I fay, was this great Storm for- 
 tunately not to fay furpriiingly allayed. Had 
 Monmouth obtained a Viftory, it was much 
 to be feared, that the Difafte6led would 
 have rifen in fuch Numbers, in the feveral 
 Parts oi England y as to have made the Crown July p^ 
 precarious. But to complete the King's 
 good Fortune, came News, that the Duke 
 himfelf had been taken in Difguife in a 
 Wood, by a Parcel of Country Fellows who 
 were in queft of him, together with one 
 Count Horn, who being firll difcovered in a 
 Buih, told them the Duke himfelf was not 
 far off; and the fame Day the Duchefs of 
 Monmouth and her two Sons were fent to 
 
 P 2 the 
 
 is- 
 
ai2 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 the Tower. The Duke, when he Wiis w- 
 ken, was almoft fpent, not having been in 
 a Bed for three Weeks ^ he was quite un- 
 provided with Arms, nor made any Defence, 
 being deftitute of every thing but a Watch 
 he had in his Pocket, and about three hun- 
 dred Pounds in Gold, which was all the 
 Money he had left. His Majefty, and no 
 wonder, was extremely well plealed at this 
 Mews; but he was of a Temper fo very e- 
 qual, that he never appeared tranfported 
 upon any Occalion ; and furely he never 
 could have a greater Reafon for it than now, 
 that he faw the Rebellion plucked up by the 
 very Roots, and himfelf firmer feated on the 
 Throne, by the Endeavours that had been 
 ufed to Ihake him out of it. 
 
 When his Grace came to Town, the King, 
 at his own Requeft, faw him at Whitehall^ 
 where he exprelied fome Deteftation of his 
 Attempt \ threw the Blame on the Earl of 
 Jrgykj and Fergiifon^ who had ftirred him 
 ^p to it; difcklming all Title to the Crown, 
 and faid he was put upon aifuming the Stile 
 of King, with a V ievv that the Quality would 
 the fooner come in to him ; all this I heard 
 the King fay, but what he farther confeifed, 
 w^as not then known. He concluded with 
 a Defire of Pardon, and, on his Knees^ 
 
 begged 
 
 i 
 
 Of Sir John Reresby. 
 
 begged his Life of the King; and for the 
 fame, he, by Letters, foUicited the two 
 Queens, 'till his Head was at five Blows fe- 
 vered from his Body, on Tower-'hilL When 
 he came to fufter, he fubmitted with great 
 Unconcern, renounced all Pretence to the 
 Crown, and unkindly, to fay no worfe, dif- 
 owned his Duchefs, who to him, who had 
 nothing oi his own, had brought a Fortune 
 often thoufand Pounds a Year ; faying fhe 
 was given to him as his Wife in the Days of 
 his Minority, but that the Wife of his own 
 Choice, was the Lady Henrietta Wentwortby 
 the only Daughter and Heirefs of the Earl 
 o'i Cleveland J whom he had debauched ; with 
 whom he confeifed he had lived according 
 to the Rules of his own Convenience,tho*not 
 according to the Laws of the Land, for two 
 Years paft. He then faid he was forry for 
 the Ettufion of Blood he had caufed, but, 
 throughout his whole Difcourfe, made no 
 mention of a Rebellion ; and out of his 
 Pocket were taken Books, in his own hand 
 Writing, containing Charms or Spells to o- 
 pen the Doors of a Prifon, to obviate the 
 Danger of being wounded in Battle, toge- 
 ther with Songs and Prayers ; fuch was the 
 latter End of the Duke of Monmouth, 
 Towards the Clofe of this Month, I 
 
 P ? returq-! 
 
N(yi. 9. 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 retarned to mv Government, where no- 
 ching occurring of a Nature general enough 
 to be worthy of public Notice, I lliall hur- 
 ry on to the End of Ocioher^ when we had 
 the bad News. That my Lord Marquifs of 
 HalUfas, Lord Prelident of the Privy Coun- 
 cil, was fallen into Difgrace w ith the King, 
 and quite difmiHed from the Board ; he had 
 ever been a true and kind Patron to me ^ 
 but whatw^as more, he was a Man of great 
 Integrity and moil happy Talents, w hich 
 made it feared the Public might feel the 
 want of him as fenffole as his P'riends; but 
 it being the King's Pleafure, it became all 
 good Subjefts to fubmit to it: But two or 
 three Days afterw ards, being with the Arch- 
 bilhop oiTork and S\r Henry Goodericky they 
 told me, It was true the King had laid afide 
 the Lord Prefident, but that he hadafTigned 
 no Caufe for it ^ and exprefled feme Jealou- 
 fy, That the King w ould offer at fomething 
 this Seffion, in favour oi Popery. 
 
 And now the Term of the laft Adjourn- 
 ment being elapfed, I repaired to Lundm\ 
 where I found the Houfe of Commons had 
 deferred the Confideration of the King's 
 Speech, on the Day of their Meeting, which 
 was the 9th, to the 13 th Inftant. The 
 Houfe of Lords had voted their Thanks • 
 
 but 
 
 N 
 
 I 
 
 Of Sir I O H N R E R E S B Y. 
 
 but the Commons being moved to the fame, 
 made Head againft it, as w^e have hinted. 
 The King in this Speech told the Houfes 
 He was glad to meet them in better Times 
 than when he parted with them \ that the 
 Rebellion was now perfeaiy quaftied • but 
 that, however, the Government might be 
 in like Manner attempted for the future, 
 it being experienced, that the Militia of the 
 Kingdom w^as of no Ufe • that therefore as 
 the Handing Force was but fmall, he had 
 raifed it to a confiderable Number, which 
 would be an additional Charge upon him, 
 for the Time to come ^ that, in confideration 
 thereof, he defired a proportionable Aid : 
 That it was true There were fome popilh 
 Officers in this Army, but that he hoped it 
 would make no Difference between him and 
 his Parliament \ for that tho' they were not 
 qualified by Law, they w^ere fuch as had 
 Ihevvn their Principles by their Loyalty \ and 
 that having had Experience of this, he would 
 not expofe them to Shame by parting with 
 them, or to that Effeft \ and that, in fine, 
 he would venture his Life for the true Inte- 
 rell of the Nation. 
 
 The 13 th inftant being come, the Com- -^^ 
 mons voted a Supply to his Majefty, for his 
 prefent Occafions ^ but would neither fpeci- 
 
 p 4 fy 
 
 »5 
 
^i6 
 
 •■t 
 
 "i 
 
 KaV. 14, 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 fy the ^lantam^ nor the particular Ufe it 
 was defigned for. Upon this a long Debate 
 arcfe, and the Queftion being put, they di- 
 vided, the No's being 250, and the Ay's 
 125. They afterwards, the fame Day, came 
 to a Divilion upon the Queilion, Whether 
 that Houfe lliould firft proceed upon the Sup- 
 ply to the King, or upon the fecond Para- 
 graph of his Majefty's Speech, concerning 
 the popifh Officers in the Army ; and it was 
 carryed for poftponing the Supply, by one 
 Voice only; in which Divilion, the King 
 was told That feveral of his Servants, and 
 Officers of the Army, that wtxt of the Houfe, 
 were againft him. The next Day I waited 
 on the King to kifs his Hand, and imme- 
 diately he asked me when I came to Town ? 
 I told him, the night before : He faid, He 
 was forry I had not been here fooner, for 
 that if I had, he Ihould not have loft the 
 Day before, for one lingle Vote, which he 
 faid was hard, and the more fo becaufe it 
 v/as owning to his own Officers \ which I took 
 to be an oblique Piece of AdmiOnition to me. 
 This fame Day, The fecond Part of the 
 King's Speech was taken into Confiderati- 
 on, and the Refult was. That an Addrefs 
 fhould be drawn up and prefented to his 
 Majefty, to reprefent to him, that the Re- 
 ception 
 
 •I 
 
 
 Of Sir John Re resby. 
 
 ception of Popilh Recufants into the Army 
 was quite contrary to Law, and to defire 
 that they might be removed from their 
 Pofts. A Committee was appointed for this 
 Purpofe, and likewife to frame a Bill for the 
 indemnifying the faid Officers, in Confidera- 
 tion that they had entered into the Service 
 at a Time of fuch imminent Danger. Wait- 
 ing this Day on Lord HalUfa)Cy he told me 
 the Particulars of his Difmiffion : He faid 
 he might have continued with greater Ad- 
 vanges than ever, if he could but in Confci- 
 ence have concurred in fome Things which 
 he faw in Embryo ; that the King parted 
 with him with feeming Kindnefs, but would 
 aflign no Caufe for it, and that he would 
 name no Body into his Place. This Lord 
 being generally efteemed a wife Man, and 
 an excellent Subjeft, the Removal of him, 
 efpecially in almoft the Infancy of a Parlia- 
 ment, was Matter of Aftonifhment to great 
 Numbers, and inje£led a Fear, That a Change 
 of Councils was in confequence to enfue a 
 Change of Councellors. 
 
 Now the Debate, concerning the Aid to 
 be granted to his Majefty came on. The 
 Motion was at firft for two hundred thou- 
 fand Pounds, and then four hundred thou- 
 fand Pounds on the Part of the Country ; 
 
 while 
 
 l>[ov. 19. 
 
t 
 
 ai8 MEMOIRS 
 
 while thofe of the Court infilled on twelve 
 hundred thoufand Pounds, for the Payment 
 of the new raifed Forces, for a Term of five 
 Years to come. But the Houfe would give 
 no Ear to fuchan Application of the Money 
 they might give, left it fliould prove a Foun- 
 dation for the Support of a ftanding Army ; 
 they rather chofe to give it to the Kirg to 
 do with it as he would ; and at length fe- 
 ven hundred thoufand Pounds was propofed, 
 and granted. In the Courfe of this Debate, 
 the Ufefulnefs of a ftanding Army, efpeci- 
 ally 'till the Ferment of the Rebellion wa3 
 quite fettled, was much infifted on by the 
 one Side, while the other expofed the Dan- 
 ger of it, the Infolency of the Soldiery, the 
 ill Example they were of to the Country, 
 and the heavy Burthen of free Quarters : 
 But there was a Compromiffion of all this 
 by the Houfes declaring its Intention to 
 make the Milina of more Uk for the Time 
 to come, and 'till then it was agreed on, as 
 a Thing neceflary, that the Army lliould be 
 kept on Foot. 
 
 The Addrefs againft popifli Officers being 
 prepared, was this Day read, and agreed to j 
 but a Debate arofe, Whether the Concur- 
 rence of the Lords Ihould be defired or not : 
 The Courtiers were againft it, that the King 
 
 might 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresbt. 
 
 might have the better Excufe not to comply 
 with it, and the Country Gentlemen were^ 
 for that lUafon, for enforcing it the more; 
 and upon this Occafion I divided with the 
 Country, but we loft it by fome forty Voices- 
 The next Day we confidered of the Ways 
 and Means for raifing the feven hundred 
 thoufand Pounds we had granted, and tha 
 fame Day we went in a Body, with our 
 Addrefs to the King, who had appointed 
 that to be the Time for his receiving it : But 
 his Anfwer was. That he did not expeft fuch 
 an Addrefs from fuch a Houfe of Commons 
 efpecially as he had fo lately offered to our 
 Conlideration the great Advantages of an 
 Union between him and us, the good Eftefts 
 of which had been already experienced: 
 '' I had, faid he, Reafon to hope the Repu- 
 <^ tation God has bleffed me with in the 
 ^' World, might have created and confirm- 
 '^ ed in you, a greater Confidence ot me^ 
 « and of all I fay to you : But however you, 
 " on your Part, proceed, I, on mine, fliall 
 " be fteady to -all the Promifes I have made, 
 <* and be very juft to my Word given in e- 
 i^ very one of my Speeches 5" this he utter- 
 ed with great Warmth. 
 
 The Houfe, the next Day, confulted on Kov. iS- 
 the Means to make the Militia of more ef- 
 
 feOiual 
 
MEMOIRS 
 
 fe8:ual Service for the future, but the De- 
 bate was adjourned to the zift inftant. At 
 the fame time it was moved by Mr. Whartorh 
 eldeft Son to the Lord IVbarton^ That a Day 
 might be appointed for the Confideration of 
 the King's Apivver to our Addrefs^ which 
 wasfeconded by Mr. Ccok^ oi Derbypoire^ a 
 Gentleman of three thoufand Pounds per 
 Annum^ who was fo warm as, upon this Oc- 
 cafion, to fiy, We were all EngJiJhmen^ and 
 that he hoped "jce potild not he fr'tghtned frovi our 
 Dtity^ by a few high Words : But the Houfe 
 refented this as an Expreifion of great In- 
 decency, and, in great Anger, fending their 
 Member to the Tower, deferred the Bufi- 
 nefs Jine Die. 
 
 The next Day, the Lords began to confi- 
 der th:it Part of his Majeity's Speech, relat- 
 ing to popifh Officers, and grew very warm 
 in their Debate, which was adjourned to the 
 23d inftant. The King hapncd to be pre- 
 fent, as he was generally conftant in the 
 Houfe of Lords, and was much concerned 
 at the Freedom which they faid was ufed 
 upon this Subjefl:. And, in truth, it gave 
 great DilTatisfiftion, that the Law in this 
 Point particularly, would be thus invaded 
 and fet at nought ^ and the very beft of the 
 King's Friends, as well as his Officers whe^, 
 
 ther 
 
 i 
 
 i 
 
 Of Sir JohnReResby. 
 
 ther Civil or Military, except fuch as were 
 popiihly inclined, were ftrangely alarmed 
 thereat, and expreffed themfelves with great 
 Freedom whenever it hapned to be the To- 
 pic of their Difcourfe., 
 
 In the midft of this, the King, in the ^,^,, ^^^ 
 ufual State, comes and, by the Lord Chan- 
 cellor, acquaints both Houfes, That forcer- 
 tain weighty Reafons, his Majefty thought 
 fit to prorogue this Parliament untill the 
 loth oi February next, and that it was pro- 
 rogued accordingly. This gave Birth to 
 many Conjeftures: Some faid the King had 
 fo good a Revenue, and was fo good a Ma- 
 nager, that he had it in his Power to fubfift 
 both his Fleet and his Army without more 
 Moneys and that therefore he would fcarce 
 have Occafion for any more Parliaments; 
 that this feemed the more likely as he had, 
 by this Prorogation, refufed the Sum of fe- 
 ven hundred thoufand Pounds, which the 
 Commons were preparing to give him: 
 While others believed the King would cer- 
 tainly meet us again, at the Term prefixed, 
 and that, in the mean Time, he would find 
 out fome Expedient to fatisfy the Houfes as 
 to the only Article they complained of, 
 meaning the Affair of the popifli Officers; 
 which though it was f fid, might be Ihrewd- 
 
a22 
 1685. 
 
 ti 
 
 Pill 
 "1 i 
 
 .1 
 
 ft 
 
 Dec. 1. 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 ly doubted, feeing that fome of the Gentle- 
 men, who had fignalized themfelves for the 
 Addrefs, were forbidden the King's Pre- 
 fence, which was the Cafe of Mr. Fox, Pay- 
 mailer to the Army, Lieutenant Colonel 
 Darcjy Major Webty and others we need not 
 mention. 
 
 To pafs over Lord Brandons Trial and 
 Condemnation, for the Concern he had had 
 with the Duke o( Momnouth, we muft now 
 obferve. That the popifh Party behaved with 
 great Infolence ; which was the more re- 
 marked, as the King of France was now in 
 the Height of perfecuting his Proteftant 
 Subje6:s, who many of them fled as they 
 could, poor and naked • being ftrij^ed of 
 all they had. This fo great and cruel an In- 
 itance of the Spirit that, for the moft part, 
 pofleffes thofe of this delujiive Perfuafion, 
 was now the Talk of all thinking People, 
 who began to be of Opinion, that every 
 thing juft and lawful, ought to be done to 
 obviate the Growth, and abate the prefent 
 Pride of the Papifts in our Dominions. But 
 the King, as if he had a Mind to Ihew us 
 his Difpofition for Clemency, this Day de- 
 clared he had reprieved the Lord Brandony 
 who was to have been executed three Days 
 afterwards j which, it muft be owned, was 
 
 a great 
 
 
 Of Sir ]ohnReresbt. 
 
 a great A£t of Mercy in his Majefty, this 
 Lord having been pardoned in the late 
 Reign, for breaking a Boy's Neck, when 
 he was in his Cups, of which being convict- 
 ed, he was condemned as guilty of Mur- 
 
 ther. 
 
 At this Time the favourites at Court, be- 
 gan to be at Strife with each other; the 
 Lord Sunderland W2LS made Prefident of the 
 Council, and continued Secretary of State ; 
 his LordlHp having artfully infinuated to 
 the Queen (he had then a Mifunderftanding 
 with the Treafurer) That the Friends and 
 Relations of the King's flrft Wife, as Ro^ 
 chefteTy ClarendoHj Dartmcuthj and others, 
 were in greateft Favour, and in Pofleflion of 
 the beft Places, w^hile her Friends, tho' fhe 
 was C^een Confort, were but flenderly pro- 
 vided for; and her Friends being reckoned 
 to be, Lord Sunderland^ the Lord Chancel- 
 lor, and the Lord Churchill^ they began to 
 play their private Batteries againft each ei- 
 ther. 
 
 I, for my Part, had feen fo many Changes 
 backwards and forwards, fo many of both 
 great and fniall removed and fhifted about, 
 that I muft confefs the Thoughts thereof 
 began to damp the Flight oi my Ambition ; 
 and mode me conclude, There was a Time 
 
 when 
 
MEMOIRS 
 
 when every fober Man would chufe to re- 
 tire, and be content with what he had, 
 rather than venture his Subftance and Con- 
 fcience upon the uncertain Hazard of aug- 
 menting his Wealth ; not that I found the 
 King any way altered with regard to my- 
 felf, or that I defpaired of keeping my 
 Ground, tho' my great and good Friend 
 was out ; on the contrary, could I but have 
 ftrained to the Pitch fome did, I am per- 
 fuaded I had a fairer Opportunity of raiiing 
 my felf than ever I had ^ but I preferred a 
 certain Safety to an uncertain Grandeur. 
 
 But Things now, with regard to thofe 
 who enjoyed any Polls under the Govern- 
 ment, feemed to be carried to a very extra- 
 ordinary Length ; for Fi?x, the Paymafter of 
 the Army, whofe Employ was valued at ten 
 thoufand Pounds per Anntim^ and Colonel 
 "'John Darcy^ Grandchild and Heir to the 
 Earl oi Holder nefs^ having offended the King 
 by their Votes in the lower Houfe, and hav- 
 ing been thereupon forbidden the King's 
 Prefence, were now wholly laid alide ; and 
 it was now faid that in Council it had been 
 agreed. That all Perfonj, who for the future, 
 offended in the fame Way, would be ferved 
 in the fame Manner, which llartled a Num- 
 ber of People. And now it w^s obferved, 
 
 that 
 
 ^ 
 
 Of^ir John Reresby. 
 
 that the Lord Treafurer was more lowly and 
 obliging than ufual, whence it was conje- 
 aured that the Odds were againft him, and 
 as much was confelled by fome* even of his 
 his Friends; his Lordfhip now fetting up 
 for the Proteftant Inteteft, and the Queen 
 and her Friends for the Popifli. 
 
 Befides the Gentlemen I have already nam- 
 ed, there were feveral other Members diC. 
 miffed from their Imployments, for not vot- 
 ing as the King expefted they fhould, and 
 particularly fuch as were Officers in the Ar- 
 my, who being not only fo, but alfo great 
 and very eminent for their Families and Ser- 
 vices to the Crown, it was Matter of great 
 wonder to every Body. But what furprifed 
 me as much as any Thing was to hear, from 
 the Archbilhopof ?^ry^. That Lord Marquifs 
 ofHallifas was coming again into play • an 
 agreeable Surprife this, efpecially as the 
 Times feemed to turn ; but the very next 
 Day, I had the Mortification to underftand 
 from the Marquifs's own Mouth, that there 
 was no manner of Foundation for the Re- 
 port. The Duke of JWcmarle now told me 
 feveral Things concerning the State of At 
 fairs, which aftonilhed me very much, Gen- 
 tlemen were now in a moll unprecedented 
 Manner affaulted in the very Streets j one 
 
 Q. had 
 
^^6 MEMOIRS 
 
 1(585- had a Powder thrown into his Eyes, which 
 
 " deprived him of Sight ; another had his 
 
 Throat cut by two Men, tho' neither of 
 thefe Gentlemen had given the leaft vifible 
 Provocation or Offence to the Aggrefforsj 
 and the Duke oi Albemarle was niet by a 
 Gentleman who threatned him as his Grace 
 was going along in his Chair. And now it 
 was whifpered, That the King would ftill 
 farther prorogue the Parliament 'till May i 
 which certainly was the wifeft Courfe he 
 had, at this Time, to take, if he could not 
 refolve to give fome proper Satisfaaion to 
 the Houfes, with regard to the popifli Offi- 
 cers ; but that this was far from his Thoughts, 
 and quite contrary to his Intention, appear- 
 ed by a late Admiffion of feveral others of 
 that Superftition into Military Pofts. In 
 Ihort the King unhappily perfifting in his 
 own Way, difcharged his Anger againftthe 
 Bilhop of London, a moft worthy Prelate, 
 Brother to the late Earl of Northampton, 
 putting him away from the Council Board, 
 on account of a Speech he had, the laftSel- 
 fions, made in the Houfe of Lords, concern- 
 the popifli Officers ; tho' as I was told, by 
 the Archbilhop o^rork, it was fpoken with 
 all the Deference and Refped imaginable- 
 This decent Speech was by fome faid to be 
 
 the 
 
 
 4 
 
 Of Sir JOH^RERESBt. 227 
 
 the Caufe of his Lordfhip's Difrniffion; but i6Zy 
 Others attributed it to his Induftry in keep- ^' "^^ 
 ing the Princcfs oi Denmark within the Pale 
 of the Proteftant Church, in oppofition to 
 fo.re extraordinary Endeavours to get her 
 over to that of the Church of Rome. 
 
 My Lord Delamere was, this Day, tryed „ 
 by a particular Commiflion, dire£ted to the 
 Lord High Steward^ and thirty other Peers. 
 The Crime laid to his Charge was confpir- 
 ing to raife a Rebellion, and to fubvert the 
 Government, in Conjundion with the Duke 
 of Monmouth^ and other falfe Traitors, and 
 fo on. I hapned to fit near the King dur- 
 ing the whole Tryal ; but the only pofitive 
 Evidence againfl: his Lordfliip was one 6'^x- 
 totiy an obfcure Fellow, who fwore that a- 
 boutthe Time of the Duke oi Monmouth's 
 Landing, he was recommended by the Lord 
 Brandon^ to the Lord Delamere^ and difcourf- 
 ed with him at his Houfe in Chepircy upon 
 the 4th oijme^ Sir Robert Cotton^ and ano- 
 ther Gentleman being prefent • that their 
 Converfation was about Affiftance to be gi- 
 ven to the faid Duke, and that his Lord- 
 fliip ihould fayj He was engaged to raife 
 looooMenin his Caufe, but that he could not 
 effed it fo foon as he had promifed, becaufe 
 of a prefeni Want he was under of Money. 
 
 (i a What 
 
MEMOIRS 
 
 What the other Witneffes had to alledge^wa^ 
 all Circumftance and Hearfay : Some faid 
 the Duke of Monmouth had told them, He 
 depended upon Help from Lord Macclesfield^ 
 Lord Brandon^ and Lord Dclamere^ and that 
 they would be ready to rife in Chepire^ as 
 foon as he landed : Others fwore that theDuke 
 had written and fent Meflages to his Friends 
 in Lofidon^ to give Nonce to the Lords to 
 be ready, and that he was preparing for 
 England. In the Courfe of this Tryal, a 
 Point of Law never before heard of, was 
 ftarted, by the Lord High Steward, and 
 the Solicitor General, namely, That tho^ 
 there were but one pofitive Evidence, in a 
 Cafe of High Treafon, if the reft, tho' but 
 circumftantial, concurred therewith, it was 
 fufficient to find a Prifoner guilty ; for Ex- 
 ample, fuppofing one Man Ihould hear ano- 
 ther fay, he intended to kill the King, upon 
 fuch a bay, and that another fwears he faw 
 the Party lie in wait to profecute his Inten- 
 tion, the Evidence is fufficient. But what- 
 ever there might be in this Law, it was by 
 no Means applicable to the Prifoner ; for he 
 moft convincingly difproved the main Evi- 
 dence, Saston^ and, by the cleareft Tefti- 
 mony, made it appear, That neither the 
 two Gentlemen nor himfelf wxre upon the 
 
 Spot 
 
 Of Sir John Reresby. ^29 
 
 Spot upon the 4th oi^une\ that two of them kJSj. 
 were then a6tually in London^ and the other ''"'^ 
 fixteen Miles off: He urged alfo, That if 
 the Man had fworn nothing but Truth a- 
 gainft him, he could be no legal Witnefs> 
 being himfelf a Prifoner, and taken in Re- 
 bellion, when Monmouth w^as routed, and 
 confequently under a Temptation to fwear 
 againft him, to fave his own Life ^ upon the 
 whole he was acquitted, every one of the 
 Peers declaring him not guilty, Ther^ 
 were thofe who condemned the Lawyers 
 who had advifed the King to bring a Peer 
 to Tryal upon fo flender a Foundation i 
 while others obferved, That as the King 
 had committed him to Prifon, it was but fit 
 he Ihould be brought to a public Tryal, left 
 it fhould be faid he had been detained when 
 nothing appeared againft him. But when all 
 was over, I plainly faw the King was in 
 great Rage with Saxton^ and the next Day 
 he declared. He Ihould be firft conviOied for 
 Perjury, and then hanged for High Trea- 
 fon. 
 
 A few Days afterward, I dined with the 
 Lord Chancellor, where the Lord Mayor of •^'^''' ^^' 
 London was a Gueft, and fome other Gentle- 
 men. His Lordfhip having, according to 
 Cuftom, drank deep at Dinner, called for 
 
 0.3 onQ 
 
430 
 
 1685. 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 one Monntfort^ a Gentleman of his, who had 
 been a Comedian, an excellent Mimic; and 
 to divert the Company, as he was pleafed 
 to term it, he made him plead before him 
 in a feigned Caufe, during which he aped 
 all the great Lawyers of the Age, in their 
 Tone of Voice, and in their A&ion ancj 
 Gefture of Body, to the very great Ridicule 
 not only of the Lawyers, but of the Law it- 
 felf, which, tome,did notfeem altogether fo 
 prudent in a Man of his lofty Station in the 
 Law ; diverting it certainly was, but pru- 
 dent in the Lord High Chancellor, I Ihall 
 never think it ; but let us ftep to the King. 
 
 It was now know. That Mrs. Sidky^ who 
 
 had been the King's Miftrefs, and had feve-, 
 
 ral Children by him, when Duke of Tork^ 
 
 but whom he had deferted for a while when 
 
 he came to the Crown, was as much in his 
 
 Favour as ever; for he created her Countefs 
 
 oi Dorchefiery and vifited her frequently, 
 
 which gave the Queen a great deal of Un- 
 
 eafinefs ; but there w^as no Help for it; "till 
 
 at length her Majefty's Party and Prieftsdi4 
 
 fo importune the Kipg, and fo preflingly 
 
 remonftrate to him the Sin of this Amour^ 
 
 and what was worfe, the Difparagcment it 
 
 would throw on their Religion, that it was 
 
 reported he would abandon his Miftrefs, 
 
 ' * andi 
 
 .' 
 
 I 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresby. 
 
 and that he had fent her Word, either to 
 retire into France^ or to expe£t to have her 
 Penfion of four thoufand Pounds a Year 
 withdrawn. 
 
 To refume the Lord Chancellor once 
 agai n, he had now like to have died of 
 a Fit of the Stone, which he virtuoufly 
 brought upon himfelf by a furious Debauch 
 of Wine, at Mn Alderman Dimcomb's^ 
 where he, the Lord Treafurer, and others 
 drank themfelves into that Height of Fren- 
 zy, that, among Friends, it was whifpered 
 They had ftripped into their Shirts, and 
 that, had not an Accident prevented them, 
 they had got up on a Sign-poll, to drink 
 the King's Health ; which was the Subie£t 
 of much Derifion, to fay no worfe. 
 
 The Term, the Parliament was prorogued 
 to, being expired, the Members of the 
 Houfe of Commons, and the Lords, met in 
 their refpeftive Places. The Commons that 
 appeared were to the Number of about i5oi 
 and being fummoned, by the Black Rod, 
 to appear in the Houfe of Lords, a Commif- 
 fion direfted to the Lord Chancellor, Lord 
 Treafurer, and others, impowering them, 
 or any of them, to prorogue the Parliament 
 'till the loth of May next, was read, and 
 d^e Parliament was prorogued accordingly. 
 
 Q^ ^ Though 
 
 If 
 
 n 
 
v/^ 
 
 '^prh 29. 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 Though it could not be as yet laid, That 
 the King had made any notable Invafion on 
 the Rights of the Church oi England^ he re- 
 curred to all the Methods he could contrive 
 and praftice for the Increafe of his own ; by 
 putting more Papifts intoOfRcc in this King- 
 dom, but efpecially m Ireland'^ by caufing 
 or at leaft allowing of Popilli Books to be 
 printed, and fold, and cried about publick- 
 ly ; by publilhing fome Popilli Papers found 
 in the late King's Clofet; by a Declaradon 
 that his late Majelty died a Papill, and in 
 what Manner; by an Account of the Con- 
 ver fation of the late Duchefs oiTcrk^ toge- 
 ther V. ith her Reafons for the fame, as 
 written by her felf; by a Lettter or Order 
 to u\e Archbilhop of Canterbury ^ to dire£l 
 the Clergy of his Province to preach a good 
 Life, but never to meddle with Controver- 
 sies in their Sermons \ by fending the Lord 
 Caftkmain upon a folemn Embaliy to the 
 Pope, and by much more of the fame Na- 
 ture and Tendency; which made itexpefted 
 that more would infallibly follow. 
 
 Accordingly this Day, being the firft of 
 the Term, a great Change was ..uade among 
 the Judges in Wejlininjler-hnl! : There was 
 a new Chief Juftice of the Common-Pleas^ 
 and another new Judge of the fame Bench; 
 
 there 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresby. 
 
 there was a new Chief Baron ; in fine, four 
 new Judges of the feveral Courts. This 
 made a confiderable Noife, as the Gentle- 
 men now difplaced were of great Learning 
 and Loyalty, and whofe only Crime had 
 been, They w ould not give their Opinions, 
 as feveral of their Brethren had done, That 
 the King by his Prerogative might difpenfe 
 with the Tell required of Roman Catholics. 
 The next Day I was informed by Mr. JoneSy 
 Son to the Chief Juftice of that Name, late- 
 ly turned out, that his Father, upon his 
 Difmiflion, obferved to the King, That he 
 was by no Means forry he was laid afide, old 
 and worn out as he was in his Service, but 
 concerned. That his Majefty Ihould expefit 
 fuch a Conftruftion of the Law from him, 
 as he could not honeftly give ; and that 
 none but indigent, ignorant, or ambitious 
 Men would give their Judgment as he ex- 
 pefted ; and that to this his Majefty made 
 Anfwer, It was neceflary his Judges Ihould 
 be all of one Mind. He told me fa-rther, 
 that Sir Robert Sawyer^ the Attorney Gene- 
 ral had been dire£ted by the King, to draw 
 up a Warrant, by virtue of his Prerogative, 
 to invefta Prieft of the Church oi Romeyiixh 
 2l Benefice, and to confirm one Walker^ head 
 of a Houfe in 0;c/(?r^, and fome Fellows of 
 
 the 
 

 34 MEMOIRS 
 
 1686 the fame, who had erred over to the papal 
 Communion, by a ISIon objiante: That the 
 Attorney faid This would not be againft 
 One Statute only, but againft all the Laws 
 fince the Days of Elizabeth ; that he there- 
 fore durft not do it, and defired the King to 
 weigh the Matter a little with bimfelfi for 
 that it ftruck at the very Root of the Pro- 
 teftant Church, quite contrary to his Maje- 
 ily's late gracious Promifes j in fliort, that; 
 the Attorney farther faid, He doubted not 
 but as foon as another could be found to do 
 the Work, he fhould lofe his Place ; fuch 
 a Slave was the King to the Priefthood of 
 Rorae. 
 
 But whatever the Attorney at prefent ex- 
 pefted, the SoUicitor Finch^ was now turn-; 
 ed out, one Powis appointed in his ftead, 
 who was ready and willing to do what the 
 other refufed, which was, to draw up a 
 Warrant for confirming of Walker^ in his 
 Office of Head of Unherfity CoUedge in Ox-- 
 ford^ and three Fellows of the fame ; and 
 another in Behalf of the Parfon of Pntney 
 which afterwards pafled the Great Seal, tho'- 
 the Parties were Papifts as ftrong as could 
 be. And to complete, as it were, all, moft 
 of the Proteftant Officers in the Army in /r^- 
 landy were removed and Papifts fubftituted 
 in their ftead. The 
 
 illay 5 
 
 r 
 
 ! 
 
 OfSirjo hnReRESB ?• ^35 
 
 The Term of Prorogation being elapfed, ^ ^^^^^ 
 it was by Commiffion continued to the 2 2d ^^y ^^^ 
 oi November following. The King faid this 
 Morning, in his Bedchamber, That many of 
 the Politicians of the Houfe of Commons 
 were come up, in Fear he fliould furprife 
 them with doing of Bufinefs, but that he 
 would not do by them, as they had been 
 wont to do with the Crown ; a very extra- 
 ordinary Speech. But three Days after- 
 wards, taking my Leave of the Lord Dovery 
 late Henry Jermin^ Efq; a Papift and great 
 Favourite, he told me the Parliament would 
 certainly meet at the Tirne laft limited, and 
 that if they would not comply with the 
 King, they were to look to the Iliue. In 
 Ihort, the King having lately got him a Je- 
 fuit for his Confelfor, drove on at a great 
 Rate, and feemed by far more intent than 
 before upon promoting and fpreading his 
 own Religion. In a Word, he was now jumzil 
 refolved to proteft thofe of his own implicit 
 Faith at all Adventures, a notable Inftance 
 of which was now exhibited in the Cafe of 
 Sir Edward Haksy a profeft Papift, to whom 
 the King having given a Regiment of Foot, 
 he was, this Term, fued upon the Statute, 
 for five hundred Pounds, he keeping his 
 Employment without the Qualification re- 
 quired. 
 
0^. ij 
 
 i 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 quired. Upon which Occalion it was agreed 
 by all the Judges, Baron Street excepted. 
 That the King had a Power todifpenfe with 
 all penal Statutes, and that his Majefty en- 
 joying alone the Power, w^as the only Judge 
 in the Cafe ; and fo Sir Edward pleading the 
 King's Pardon, obtained the better ot' the 
 Profecution^ aq Event which gave great 
 Surprife, and occalioned much Difcourfe 
 the whole Kingdom over. 
 
 Notwithftandiiig what had been fo confi- 
 dently alliired me concerning the Sitting of 
 Parliament, a Proclamation was at this Time 
 jflued out for the Hill iarther Prorogation of 
 It from the 2 2d oi' November to the 14th of 
 the February following. After this, the 
 King continued his Courfe of difplacing 
 Proteltants in favour of their Enemies the 
 Papifts, and I expected when it was to be 
 my Turn ; for I had frequent Alarms of that 
 Sort ; every Poll brought us Account of Of- 
 ficers both Civil and Military deprived of 
 Employment • of fome who rcfigned their 
 Commiffions and Places; but the moil gene- 
 ral Accounts were of Perfons aftually dif- 
 carded, and that Papifts were, for the moft 
 Part, put in to fucceed them. Lord Cla^ 
 Tendon, Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, \v'ds re- 
 called, and Mr. Talht, a rigid /n/^Papift, a 
 
 littl^ 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresbt. 237 
 
 little before created Earl of Tyrconnel, fent ^^^^ 
 over in his Room ; which made fo dreadful "^"^^ 
 an Impreflion upon many Proteftants of that 
 Kingdom, that they either left or fold their 
 Eftates, as they could, and came over into 
 England. Mr. Saville, Vice-chamberlain to 
 the King, and who had been of his Bed- 
 chamber when Duke of 2V^, and lince then 
 EmbafTador in France, was put out of all 
 Employment. 
 
 Leaving the public Affiiirs, for a while, ji/^rch j; 
 at this untoward Pafs, I would venture to 
 take Notice of a private Occurrence which 
 made fome Noife at Tork. The AlTiz.es be-* 
 ing there held, an old Woman was con- 
 demned for a Witch. Thofe who were 
 more credulous in Points of this Nature than 
 my felf, conceived the Evidence to be very 
 ftrong againft her. The Boy llie was fiid 
 to have bewitched, fell down on a fudden, 
 before all the Court, v/hen he faw her, and 
 would then as fuddenly return to himlelf 
 again, and very diftin£lly relate the leveral 
 Injuries Ihe had done him ', But in all thib ic 
 was obferved, the Boy w^as free from any 
 Diftortion; that he did not foam at tac 
 Mouth, and that his Fits did not leave him 
 gradually but all at once ; fo th u, upon the 
 whole, the Judge thought it proper to re- 
 prieve 
 
43S 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 1686. ^ prieve her ; in which he feemed to a£l th€i 
 Part of a wife Man. But tho' fuch is my 
 own private Opinion, I cannot help conti- 
 nuing my Story : One of my Soldiers being 
 upon Guard about eleven in the Night, at 
 the Gate of Clifford Tawery the very Night 
 after the Witch was arraigned, he heard a 
 great Noife at the Caftle, and going to the 
 Porch, he there faw a Scroll of Paper creep 
 from under the Door, which as he imagin- 
 ed, by Moonlhine, turned firll into the 
 Shape of a Monkey, and thence aflumed the 
 Form of a Turky Cock, which pafled to and 
 fro by him. Surprifed at this, he went to 
 the Prifon, and called the Under-keeper^ 
 who came and faw the Scroll dance up and 
 down and creep under the Door, where 
 there was fcarce an Opening of the Thick- 
 nefs of half a Crown. This extraordinary 
 Story I had from the Mouth of both the one 
 and the other : And now leave it to be be- 
 lieved or disbelieved as the Reader may be 
 inclined this Way or that. 
 
 It is fit we obferve. That the Way of deal- 
 ing with Men, who propofed any Bulinefs to^ 
 themfelves in the Government, and efpecially 
 the Members of both Houfes of Parliamenty 
 that were inPoireffion of Places, and near 
 the King, was thus ; His Majefty took them 
 
 dfide 
 
 Of Sir JohnRe resbt. 
 
 ftlide, and told them The Teft A£t was (nade 
 in the Height of Faction, not fo much in 
 Prejudice to the Roman Catholics in gene- 
 tal, as to himfelf in particular, and to ob- 
 viate his rightful AcceiTion ; that while that, 
 and the penal Laws remained in Force, no 
 Soul of that Perfuafion could be fafe ^ that 
 it was againft all municipal Law, for Free- 
 born Subjects to be excluded the Service of 
 their Prince, or for a Prince to be reftrained 
 from employing fuch Subjefts as he thought 
 for his Service; and that therefore he hop- 
 ed they would be fo loyal as not to refufe 
 him their Voices for annulling fuch unrea- 
 fonable Laws. Every Man that perfifted in 
 a Refufal to comply with this Suggeftion 
 was fure to be outed. 
 
 The Time for the Meeting of the Parlia- 
 ment now drawing near, and feveral of the 
 Members neglecting to repair to London ^ 
 the King ordered the Judges, in their feve- 
 ral Circuits, to feel the Pulfes of the Men j 
 in confequence of which I was, to my great 
 furprife, accofted at Tork by the Judge, who 
 told me, he had Orders to talk with me up- 
 on the Subjefl:. I asked him if his Majefty 
 had made particular Mention of my Name ; 
 to which replying, That he had only re- 
 ceived a general Order from the King, to 
 
 found 
 
 ^39 
 
 1686. 
 
i 
 
 I 
 
 h 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 found the Inclinations of the feveral Gentle-* 
 men who fat in Parliament, and that he had 
 had a particular Inftruftion from the Chan- 
 cellor only, as to my felf by Name ; I de* 
 fired Time to conlider of it, and the next 
 Morning returned for Anfwer, That I per- 
 ceived a Denial would be conftrued into 
 Difloyalty ; That I had fo lately waited on 
 the King, and given fuch Aflurance of my 
 Integrity, that I could not apprehend his 
 Majefty could harbour any Doubt as to 
 me, and the rather as he had not been pleaf- 
 ed to make Ufe of my Name ; That I could 
 not conceive my felf obliged to declare my 
 felf to any Body elfe: But that if his Maje- 
 fty lliould think fit to fay any thing to me 
 farther than he had already, when I had the 
 Honour of waiting on him next, which I 
 intended fhould be fpeedily, I would fo 
 confult my Loyalty and my Confcience, as 
 to give him all the Satisfaction in my Power : 
 The Judge told me he would make Report 
 of what 1 hadfaid; and did not feem to be 
 very forward in preffing a Complyance • he 
 h-id his Orders, and he obeyed them. I 
 deemed this to be the mofl prudent Reply I 
 could at this Time make^ for had I anfwer- 
 ed in the Affirmative, I might have incurred 
 the Difpleafure and Cenfure of the greatelt 
 
 Part 
 
 Of Sir John Reresby. 
 
 Part of the Nation^ if in the Negative, I 
 ihouldhave utterly difobliged the King 5 a 
 Caution the more necellary to be taken, as 
 there was no likelihood there would be any 
 Meeting of Parliament, to control him in 
 his Condu£t. However I believe that in all 
 Cafes of this Nature it is fafeli to unbofom 
 ones felf to the Prince in Perfon, and as 
 much as poffible avoid the Danger that may 
 arife from the Treachery, the Prejudice, or 
 the Ignorance of a Reporter. 
 
 In Confequence of this Examination of 
 the Members, a Number of Vacancies en- 
 fued, and among others that were deprived, 
 Vi^s Herbert, the Vice-Admiral o£ Englandy 
 and Mailer of the Robes ; he, in thofe Days, 
 enjoying Places to the Value of three thou- 
 fand Pounds a Year. The King having 
 threatned, and put his Threats in Executi- 
 on, and alfo made Ufe of the moft plaufible 
 Perfuafions, to draw the Majority of Par- 
 liament into his own Way of Thinking, as 
 to the Tell and penal Laws, and all to no 
 Sort of Purpofe, cared not to fee them a{^ 
 fembled at the Time feemingly appointed ; 
 and therefore, this Day, declared in Coun- Mar. iS. 
 cil. That for divers weighty Confiderations 
 the Parliament flood prorogued to the 2 2d 
 of the November following. His Majefty, 
 
 R. upon 
 
I 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 upon the fame Occafion declared, That ic 
 having been found impraSticable to efte6t 
 an Uniformity in Religion, tho' it had been 
 the great Endeavour of four of his Prede- 
 ceflbrs fucceflively, affifted as much as pof- 
 fible by their Parliament ; and that fuch At- 
 tempts having been experienced to be high- 
 ly prejudicial to the Kingdom, witnefs the 
 Fatality of the Rebellion in his Father's 
 Time ; he was now determined to ifTue out 
 a Declaration in Favour of all Sorts of Dif- 
 fenters, that they might enjoy the free Pra- 
 ctice of their own Religion : Hoping ic 
 might contribute to the general Peace and 
 Quiet of the Kingdom, the Increafe of the 
 People, and the Advancement of Trade. 
 But whatever the Reafons alledged were, It 
 appeared to moft men, that a deep Delign 
 was laid tofap the Foundations of the Church 
 of Engkndy nor could her Sons but dread 
 fome extraordinary Shocks ; tho' fome there 
 were who apprehending no very extraordi- 
 nary Confequence of thefe Machinations, 
 believed fuch a Toleration might be of pub- 
 lic Emolument, if conlidered in a political 
 View ^ which w^as, by much the moft fpeci- 
 ous Side of the Building, which ihall clofe 
 up this Year. 
 
 At 
 
 Of Sir John Reresby. 
 
 At length the Declaration for Liberty of 
 Confcience made its Appearance with us in 
 the North j gilded over with the taking 
 Pretence of Tendernefs, on the Part of his 
 Majefty, towards all his SubjeSs whatfo- 
 ever • containing an Invitation to all Stran- 
 gers of every Se£t to come among us* pre- 
 tending a farther Improvement of our Trade, 
 and promifing Proteftion to the Biihops and 
 Minifters of the Church oi England^ in their 
 Rights, Privileges, and Immunities, as alfo 
 the free and undifturbed Exercife of their 
 Religion in all their Churches. But all this 
 was too well underftood to divide the Pro- 
 teftant Churches, Divide S Impera^ that fo 
 the Papifts might with the more Eafe pof- 
 fefs themfelves of the higheft Place; which 
 the Presbyterians or Calvinifts, who had, 
 moft of them began to conform, feemed to 
 be well aware of; and therefore continued 
 to refort to our Churches, tho' the Anabap- 
 tifts, Quakers, and Independants thought it 
 worth their while to return their Addrelles 
 of Thanks and Acknowledgment. Elated, 
 feemingly, with this, the King goes on in 
 his old Courfe of difplacing Gentlemen that 
 had Pofts, but particularly fuch as were of 
 the Parliament, and obftinate enough to 
 widiftand his Wiflies ; and now the Parlia- 
 
 R 2 ment 
 
 Jfiil 
 
\ 
 
 144 MEMOIRS 
 
 1687. ment being prorogued it was not thought 
 * worth the Trouble to inquire which way 
 any Body Hood inclined, fo that the late 
 Queftion concerning theTeft and penal Laws 
 was dropped, or at leaft fufpended. All 
 this Inequality of Ufage wrought but upon 
 few Proteftants either of Eftate or Quality 
 to change their Faith, little or not at all 
 allured by the Baits thrown in their Way, 
 or terrified by the King's Frowns and im- 
 placable Difpleafure : Honour therefore now 
 was the grand Bulwark of our Religion, 
 Gentlemen difdaining to have thought they 
 could facrifice the Sweets of Confcience to 
 the mercenary Views of a Reward: In the 
 Midft of this, dies the Duke of Buckingham, 
 a Man once of vaft Eftate, and oftentimes in 
 high Favour with the late King, tho' never 
 with the prefent ; a Man of the moft exqui- 
 lite Wit of his Time, the handfomeft, and 
 beft bred ^ but unfortunately given up to 
 Pleafures, unfteady in his Ways, and, in 
 all Refpefts, an Enemy to himfelf 
 
 While Addrefles of Thanks were every 
 Day prefented to the King, on the Part of 
 the various Denominarions of Diflenters^ 
 and from fome even of the Church of JEw^- 
 Jand i I had frequent Alarms that the Papifts 
 
 were in a Way cf perfuading the King to 
 
 grant 
 
 Of Sir John Reresby. 
 
 grant them the Mannor of ^orkj as a Semi- 
 nary for the Inftruftion of Youth in the 
 Principles of their Faith ; and I this Day 
 heard it was granted accordingly to one jfunei^. 
 Lawfon^ a Prieft, for a Term of thirty Years. 
 Surprifed at this, I wrote to the Lord Bel-- 
 laffis, the principal Commiffioner of the 
 Treafury, remonftrating. That I had had 
 it by my Commiflion of Governor, grant- 
 ed to myfelf by the late King, and confirm- 
 ed by this ; that it was worth fixty Pounds 
 a Year to me, and that it had coft me above 
 two hundred Pounds in Repairs, fince I had 
 enjoyed it ; and that as I had been allowed 
 nothing for this Expence, I defired it might 
 be either continiiecj to me, or that his Ma- 
 jefty would be gracioufly pleafed to grant 
 me fuch a Compenfation in lieu thereof, and 
 confider me in my Disburfment, in fuch 
 Manner and Proportion, as in his great Ju-» 
 ftice and Wifdom he fhould think fit. A 
 few Days afterwards, a Proclamation came 
 to hand, bearing Date the 2d ofjtdy^ where- 
 by the King diffolved the Parliament, and 
 ^t once ftunned the main Body of the Nati- 
 on. The next Day, the Pope's Nuncio be-, 
 ing to make his public Entry at Windfor^ the 
 Duke of Sotnerfcty one of the Lords of the 
 Bedchamber in waiting, refufed Attendance 
 
 R 3 ^% 
 
MEMOIRS 
 
 at that Solemnity ; for which he was forbid 
 the Court, and deprived of all his Places ; 
 the fame Fate befel five of the fix Gentle- 
 men of the Privy Chamber, for the very felf 
 fame Caufe; fo that every Hour Things 
 looked worfe and worfe. A while after I 
 had a Letter from Lord Fe^verjbtira to acquaint 
 me that, according to my Deiire, he had 
 fpoke to the King concerning the Man nor 
 of Tork ; but that he had found he had pro- 
 mifed it to Father Laivfon^ for the Ufes 
 above fpecified; that his Majefty told him^ 
 He did not know I lived in it, and that if 
 I had been at any Charge in Repairs I Ihould 
 be confidered for the fame ; but added, for 
 my prefent Comfort, That was I not fo good 
 a Man as he took me to be, he would not 
 have kept a Governor at Tork fo long as he 
 had done : But I Ihortly after had another 
 Letter from the fame Lord, to tell me that 
 the Lords Commiffioners of the Treafury 
 hadfo reprefented the Bufinefs to the King, 
 at Windfor^ that no poffitive Refolution was 
 as yet taken. 
 
 In the midft of the impending Dangers 
 which feemed to threaten us, there was a 
 Nobleman, the Marquifs oiWlncheJfer^ who 
 had by his Condu£l perfuaded fome People 
 to think him mad, tho' he certainly afted 
 
 upon 
 
 I 
 
 ^ 
 
 i 
 
 . 
 
 Of Sir John Reresby. 
 
 upon Principles of great human Prudence. 
 This Gentleman palfmg thro' Torkpirej in 
 his Way to Lofidon^ I went to pay him a 
 Vifit. He had four Coaches and an hun- 
 dred Horfes in his Retinue, and llaid ten 
 Days at a Houfe he borrowed in our Parts. 
 His Cuftom was to dine at Hyi or feven in 
 the Evening, and his Meal alwayj lafted 
 'till fiyi or feven the next Morning ; during 
 which he fometimes drank ; fometimes he 
 liftned to Mufic; fometimes he fell intoDif- 
 courfe ; fometimes he took Tobacco, and 
 fometimes he ate his Viftuals ; w^hiie the 
 Company had free Choice to fit or rife, to 
 go or come, to fleep or not. The Diflies 
 and Bottles were all the Time before them 
 on the Table ^ and when it was Morning 
 he would hunt or Hawk, if the Weather was 
 fair; if not, he would dance, goto Bed at 
 eleven, and repofehimfelf 'till the Evening, 
 Notwithftanding this Irregularity, he was a 
 Man of great Senfe, and though, as I juft 
 now faid, fome took him to be mad, it is cer- 
 tain his Meaning was to keep himfelf out 
 of the Way of more ferious Cenfure in thefe 
 ticklifh Days, and preferve his Eftate, which 
 he took great Care of. 
 
 Rj 
 
 The 
 
14^ 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 1687. ThePrefident oi Magdalen College^ in Ox- 
 Setu^zf fi^^ being dead, the King fent them his 
 Mandamus^ requiring them to chufe the Bi- 
 fliop of that City in his ftead^ but they an- 
 fwered Lccus fkntis eft. The King taking 
 Oxford in his Progrels, and the Mailer and. 
 Fellows of that College waiting on him, He 
 told them the People of the Church oiEng" 
 hnd^ had ufed him ill, that they had behav- 
 ed neither as Gentlemen or good Subjefts, 
 and ordered them to go prefently back to 
 their Eleftion and chufe the Bilhop, or he 
 would let them feel how heavy a Hand a 
 King had. They went, but returned this 
 Anfwer, That they were forry they fhould 
 be fo unfortunate as to fall under his Maje- 
 lly's Difpleafure; but that they could not 
 proceed to a new Choice without aftual 
 Commiffion ofv/ilfiil Perjury, and thereup- 
 on hoped he would excufe them. Now, in 
 this Progrefs, it was an Obfervation gene- 
 rally made, that the King courted the Dif- 
 fenters, and difcountenanced the Church of 
 England : For the Papifts being by no Means 
 a Body of themfelves numerous enough to 
 cope with the national Church, he thought 
 to ftrengthen them by a Jun£lion with the 
 Diflenters, whom he blinded with his Li- 
 berty of Confcience, and with telling them 
 
 thar 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresby^ 
 
 that be delired a Repeal of the Teft and 
 penal Laws, for their Eafe and Security, as 
 much as in Behalf of the Papifts. 
 
 A ftrange Look it had, That the very 
 People, who had lately been fo indefatiga- 
 bly bufy to diveft him of his Right, and 
 even to deprive him of Life, it having been, 
 in one Parliament, attempted to impeach 
 him of High Treafon, upon the Statute a- 
 gainft a Reconciliation with the Church of 
 Rome^ I fay it looked ftrange, that thefe 
 very Men Ihould be preferred to thofe who 
 had preferved him out of their Hands, not 
 in Parliament only, but in the Field alfo; 
 but it feems all Confiderations are of no 
 Worth or Validity with a hearty Zeal for 
 the Priefthood of Rome^ and that Oblivion 
 is fo far from being Ingratitude, that it i^ 
 highly to be commended, a moft falutary 
 Expedient, when for the Advantage of Mo- 
 ther Church. 
 
 In purfuance of this very ill Doftrine, the Sep, 28. 
 King puts out feveral Aldermen, who had 
 ever fignalized themfelves by their Fidelity 
 and Loyalty, who had adhered to him with 
 the greateft Conftancy in the very worft of 
 Times, and what is worfe, they were Al- 
 dermen of the City oi London:, they were 
 Jylembers of the Church of England^ and 
 
 Noncon- 
 
JlH^ev. 
 
 I 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 Nonconformifts filled their Places. Doaor 
 Bbu^by Prefident oi Magdalen College^ is now 
 put out, by certain Vifitors appointed by 
 the King for that Purpofe, for that he was 
 eleaed by the Statutes, in contradiaion to 
 the King's Mandamus'^ but the Doaor ftout- 
 ly refufed to quit, 'till compelled by Force, 
 and then appealed from the Vifitors to the 
 King in 'iVeJim'tnJier-halL 
 
 At this Time it was my Turn to feel a 
 Part of the Storm which had hitherto blown 
 over me, or at fome Diftance on each Side 
 from me. I received a Letter from Father 
 Laivfon^ the Prieft I formerly mentioned, to 
 give me Notice, That the King having 
 made him a Grant of his Houfe, the Man- 
 nor of St. Marys in Tork^ for the Honour 
 of God and the good of his People, he ex- 
 peaed from my ufual Civility, that I would 
 give him free and eafy Polfefiion. To which 
 I anfwered, that I held it by Virtue of a 
 Commiflion that conrtituted me Governor of 
 Tork\ that he could nut think I would diveft 
 my felf of it by my own Aa and Deed • 
 that I had too great a Veneration for the 
 King's Bounty, and was too proud of his 
 Service to do that; but that if his Majefty 
 pofitively commanded it, I fhould have no- 
 thing to do but to obey ; w i^h this Relerve 
 
 ho\\> 
 
 I 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresby. 
 
 however, That if his Majefty gave it away, 
 I hoped, and in Juftice it was a Duty in- 
 cumbent on him to endeavour it, I was to 
 have fome Equivalent for the Lofs. Seve- 
 ral Letters pafled between us, 'till at length 
 the Earl of Veverjham fent me Word, that it 
 was aaually granted ^ while Lawfon flatter- 
 ed me with Expeaations that the King 
 would conlider me one way or other, and 
 informed meof feveral kind Things his Ma- 
 jefty fhould fay of me. 
 
 At length Father Laivfin comes in Per- Dec 7. 
 fon, and claims Polfeflion, it being in vain 
 to conteft with him, I ordered my Houfe- 
 keeperto give him Admittance; but he left 
 it again for the prefent, 'till I could move 
 my Goods. The clear Profits of this Place 
 to me, befides the Ufe of the Houfe for my 
 felf and Friends, and Grafs and Hay for my 
 Horfes while I ftaid in Town, amounted to 
 about forty Pounds a Year. After this, I 
 expeaed the reft would foon follow ; for 
 the King had caufed or ordered the Lord 
 Lieutenants of moft, if not all, of the Coun- 
 ties in England^ to call together their Depu- 
 ties and the Juftices of the Peace, and ask 
 them thefe three Queftions, (i.) If in Cafe 
 the King Ihould call a Parliament, and they 
 ftiould be chofen Members of it, Vt^hether 
 
 or 
 
MEMOIRS 
 
 or no they would Vote to take away the 
 Tell and penal Laws? (2.) Whether or 
 no they would give their Vote for fuch 
 Members as they believed would be for the 
 Repeal for the fame? (3.) Whether or no 
 they would live peaceably, and as Chrifti- 
 ans ought to live, with fuch as differed from 
 them in Religion. Some Lord Lieutenants 
 who refufed to comply with this Order^ 
 were turned out to give Place to Papifts' 
 and the Deputy Lieutenants and Juftices of 
 the Peace who did not return a fatisfaftory 
 Anfwer, were for the moft Part divefted of 
 Office. 
 
 This certainly v/as pulhing the Point by 
 much too far, nor could Men forbear won- 
 dering to what Purpofe it could be meant j 
 for what Anfwer could any Gentleman pre- 
 tend to give 'till he had heard the Reafon- 
 ings and Debates of the Houfe ? And who 
 could pretend to anfwer for the Man he 
 voted to be a Member j or pretend to be fure 
 of what Sort of a Mind he would be when 
 he got to his Seat in the Houfe ? If the ge- 
 neral Inclination had been to deceive the 
 King, how eafy was it for Men to exprefs 
 themfelves one way and refolve another ? 
 Befides it was ftriking at the very Founda- 
 tion of Parliaments, thus to pre-engage the 
 
 Mem*'. 
 
 « 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresbt. 253 
 
 Members, who according as Things, upon ^ ^87. 
 their Meeting, appeared to them,^ are by the 
 Laws of the Land allowed Freedom of 
 Speech, and Freedom of Judgment. But the 
 moft generalAnfwerthat was returned by the 
 Proteftants of the Church of England was, 
 That they, if of the Houfe, would fo Vote 
 as the Reafons of the Debate fhould prevail 
 with them ; that they would vote for fuch 
 as they thought would do the fame; and 
 that they v/ould live quietly with all Men 
 as good Chriftians and loyal Subje£ts. A- 
 bout this Time there were great Removes of 
 Officers, Civil and Military, and moft Cor- 
 porations were purged of their Church of 
 England Aldermen, and Papifts or Diflen- 
 ters appointed to fucceed them. The King, 
 however, foon after feemingly abated of the 
 rigor of this Scrutiny, tho'the Lord Lieute- 
 nants continued the Inquiry in moft Coun- 
 ties, but with very little Succefs. 
 
 While this wastranfafting in England^ the 
 French King was engaged in a high Difpute 
 with his Holinefs of Rome^ concerning the 
 Immunities and Franchifes of Ambafiadors 
 in that City, which tho' all the Princes of 
 the Catholic Religion fubmitted to the Re- 
 gulation of, the King of France would not. 
 His Ambaifador, who would have demand- 
 ed 
 
MEMOIRS 
 
 ed the antient Rights, was denied Audience, 
 and perfifting in the Thing, was declared ex- 
 communicated ; the Cardinals were forbid- 
 den to vifit him as an AmbafTador ; and the 
 Church of St. Lewis^ reputed the parochial 
 Church of the French Nation, whither the 
 Ambaflador and his Ketinue repaired to the 
 midnight Mafs of Chrijlmafs^ was interdi£t- 
 ed, for admitting him to partake of the 
 Devotions of the Seafon. Upon Notice of 
 this, the Parliament of P^m was allembled, 
 and the Attorney General drew up an Ap- 
 peal from Rmne to the next general Council, 
 letting forth that the Pope had no juft Claim 
 to Infallibility ; that he had no Power to 
 excommunicate Princes; that his prieflly 
 Authority was of no Weight in Temporals j 
 and that the Power of the Keys was abufed 
 when fubfervient to evil Ends. That his 
 Holinefs had not only in this a6led contra- 
 diftorily to his Charafter as Vicar, but alfo 
 in refufing Bulls to fuch as his Majefty had 
 nominated and recommended to the vacant 
 Bilhoprics in his own Kingdom, for noRea- 
 fon but becaufe they would not acknowlege 
 him to be infallible, or as the Italian Doftors 
 call him Univerfal Monarch :, that by this 
 Means there were no fewer than thirty Va- 
 cancies unfupplied at this Day ; and that the 
 
 Pope's 
 
 I 
 
 > 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresbt. 
 
 Pope's Obftinacy ought to be controled, as 
 as the Cuftom had formerly been with the 
 Church, by OEcumenic, or National Coun- 
 cils, After this, and much more, the At- 
 torney withdrew, and was by the Parlia- 
 ment admitted as an Appellant in the Cafe ; 
 the Pope's Bull was at the fame Time de- 
 clared void J it was forbidden to difperfe it 
 within any Part of the Kingdom, and or- 
 dered that the King Ihould be humbly en- 
 treated to exert his Authority as to the Im- 
 munities and Franchifes of his Ambaflador 
 at Ro7ne ; and to call fuch Councils, or AC* 
 femblies of great Men, as might apply a Re- 
 medy to the Diforders that had arifen from 
 the long Vacancies of Archbilhoprics and 
 Bilhoprics, and laftly, that he would prohi- 
 bit all Commerce with the Court of Rome^ 
 nor fufter any Money to be fent thither. 
 
 This was a ftrange Sort of a Scene to us 
 m England. It was thought we were moll in- 
 feparably linked together with our neigh-, 
 hour Kingdom^ but while the one is abjed- 
 ly endeavouring to crouch to the Lafti, the 
 other is feemingly refolved to flip her Neck 
 out of the Collar. But now a Proclamation 
 is heard requiring public Thankfgiving to ^'^^^ ^^' 
 be made, for that our C^een found herfelf 
 quick with Child. The Joy on Account of 
 
 this 
 
»l 
 
 ^ril 24- 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 this News, if it created any to fpeak of, was 
 continually interrupted by fome violent oi* 
 unequal A£V or other, on the Part of the 
 King ; among the reft the Earl of Osfordy 
 the firft of his Dignity in the Realm, tho* 
 low in Fortune, being commanded to ufe 
 Intereft in his Lieutenancy for the Repeal 
 of the penal Laws and Teft ; and making 
 Anfwer, in plain Terms, that he could not 
 perfuade others to that, which in his own 
 Confcience he was averfe to, the King took 
 his Regiment of Horfe from him, and gave 
 it to the Duke of Berwick. Some Time af- 
 terwards, the Earl of Burlington refigned his 
 Commilfion for the Lord Lieutenancy of the 
 Weft-Riding oiTorkj into the Hands of the 
 King, who immediately gave it to Lord 
 fthomas Howard^ only Brother to the Duke 
 of Norfolk^ a warm and Zealous Papift, pur- 
 fuant to the Method his Majefty had hither- 
 to tenaciouHy obferved with regard to moft 
 of the Lieutenancies that became vacant in 
 
 England. 
 
 The Weft-Riding of Torkjhire had not 
 been examined as to the Repeal of the Teft 
 and Penal-Laws i and now at the General 
 Quarter Seffions at Pomfret, the Popilh Ju- 
 ftices, in Number fix, and Sir John Bointofty 
 the King's Serjeant, who, as I prefume, 
 
 afpired 
 
 Of Sir John Reresby. 
 
 afpired to be a Judge, moved that an Ad- 
 drefs of Thanks might be ligned and pre- 
 fented to his Majefty for his late Indulgence 
 as to Matters of Confcience, and that not 
 only by all the Juftices, but by the two 
 Grand Juries : But none of the Juftices ex- 
 cept the iix above and one Mr. Bull^ nor ei- 
 ther of the Grand Juries would fet their 
 Hands to this Addrefs ; fo that the Roman 
 Catholics fent it up, figned by themfelves, 
 as the Acl of the whole Selfions. By fuch 
 Tricks and Artifices as thefe the King was 
 deceived in the Opinion his Subjects had of 
 his late Indulgence ; three or four Men, in 
 feveral Places as well as this, pretending to 
 fpeak and anfwer for the whole Corporation, 
 or County. 
 
 A few Days afterwards, a Roman Catho- May 7. 
 lie Juftice told me the King was now con- 
 vinced, that he had been ill advifed in pulh- 
 ing the Queftion concerning the Repeal of 
 the Teft • that he intended to put out fome 
 Juftices and admit others, tho* not by that 
 Method, but by informing himfelf, from 
 fuch as he knew to be true to his Service, 
 how they ftood ariefied as to Liberty of 
 Confcience; and that he had particular Or- 
 ders from the Lord Tlo^nas Howard^ who 
 had the fame from the King, to advife firft 
 
 S with 
 
MEMOIRS 
 
 With me upon that Subjefl:. I told him that 
 the Method lately taken had moft afluredly 
 been of no Advantage to his Majefty, moft 
 of the principal and powerful Gentlemen, in 
 every County, having been thereby thruft 
 out of Employment : But that this new Me- 
 thod would be attended with as great Dif- 
 ficulties, and be fubjeSl to the fame Falla- 
 cy, it being impolTible for one Man to pry 
 into the Recefles of another Man's Heart j 
 nay, that it was even a hard Matter for a 
 Man to promife for himfelf. For according 
 to the Suppofition, he was to be either in 
 Parliament, or out of it; if he himfelf ftiould 
 be elefted, he could not honeftly promife 
 which Way he ihould vote 'till iie came to 
 his Seat, and heard the Debates ; and that 
 if he was not elefted, it would be quite im- 
 polTible in any Degree to anfwer for the 
 Man he Ihould chufe for his Reprefentative j 
 that I believed moft Men thought a Liberty 
 of Confcience might be of Ufe and Advan- 
 tage to the Nation, if fettled upon a proper 
 Foundation, and with true Regard to the 
 Rights and Privileges of the Church of Eng- 
 land. To this he replied, that the King 
 had openly declared the Church of England 
 Ihould have any reafonable Equivalent fte 
 
 could defire for her Security, provided an 
 
 A6t 
 
 Of Sir J 6 li N R E k E s B T. 
 
 Afit might pafs for the Liberty of Confci- 
 ence ; and told me we Ihould meet and talk 
 farther upon this Head, which for the pre* 
 fent I evaded as much as poffible; I cared 
 not to explain myfelf quite, having no In- 
 clination to expofe myfelf any farther than 
 was barely needful, or to give Characters of 
 other Men. 
 
 Having at two feveral Times Obtained 
 Leave to repair to London^ I there found Aft 
 iairs to ftand much in the Pofture I expefted. 
 The popilh Party was very urgent with the 
 King to prefs the Repeal of the Laws againft 
 them, and the other as obftinate and head- 
 ftrong againft it ; and what brought the Di-< 
 fpute to a ftill greater Degree of Warmth^ 
 was owing to what follows : His Majefty 
 had lately renewed his Proclamation for 
 Liberty of Confcience, and given Order to 
 the Bifhops, to caufe it be read in the 
 Churches of their refpeftive Diocefesi The 
 Archbiftiopof C^/^?^r^//r>', and the reft of the 
 Order, remonftrated againft this; fetting 
 forth, in a Petition they prefenred to the 
 King, That they could not pay his Majefty 
 Obedience in what he was pleafed to require 
 of them; that no Bilhop, or Minifter of the 
 Ctixxiizh oi England could aflent to die Pro- 
 clamation, which muft of courfe be implyed 
 
 S 2 by 
 
 ^59 
 1687. 
 
 May\ 
 
%6o 
 
 yum I, 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 by their reading it or caufing it to be read ; 
 that a Declaration of the fame Nature, on 
 the Part of the King, had been in Parlia- 
 ment condemned twice in the late Reign j 
 that therefore they might be liable to be 
 called to an Account hereafter, for doing 
 what had been adjudged contrary to Law ^ 
 that tho' the King of himfelf could do no 
 wrong, hisMinifters or Agents were refpon- 
 lible for whatever was done infra£iory of the 
 Law; and tho* hisMajelty had been pleafed 
 to declare a Liberty of Confcience, it was, 
 neverthelefs, the Duty of the Clergy, as 
 much as in them lay, to perfuade Men into 
 an adherence to their Communion ; that for 
 them to publilli the King's Pleafure, in the 
 Manner required, would be the fame as if 
 they told the People They needed not to 
 come to Church except they pleafed • and 
 that by the famfe Rule he might command 
 them to read Mafs in their Churches, and 
 be found to obey : Thefe and many other 
 Arguments were, upon this Occalion, offer- 
 ed by the Billiops; at which the King con- 
 ceived fo violent a Difpleafure, that they 
 were commanded to appear in Council be- 
 fore him, on the 8th of June. 
 
 In the mean time I kifsed the King's 
 Hand, and met with a gracious Reception : 
 
 I was 
 
 (ffSir John Reresby. 
 
 I was honoured with a Vifit from the Mar- 
 quifs of Halltfaxy who exprefled himfelf 
 pretty well inclined for Liberty of Confci- 
 ence, but averfe to the Teft and penal Laws 
 all at once, tho' he was feemingly not un- 
 willing it Ihould be done gradually, and up- 
 on wife and weighty Conliderations. 
 
 And now feven of the Bilhops made their 
 Appearance before the King in Council, 
 where they were commanded to enter into 
 Recognizances of five hundred Pounds a 
 Man, to anfwer to an Information to be 
 brought againft them the next Term, for 
 Difobedience to the King's Orders. This 
 they refufed to do, faying they were not to 
 engage themfelves under any Security of the 
 Kind, 'till the Information or Indiftment 
 was found, and that by fo doing they fhould 
 not only run counter to the Law, but betray 
 the Liberty of the Peerage^ upon which the 
 Archbifhop of Canterbury and his lix Bre- 
 thren, were committed Prifoners to the 
 Tower, a Severity moft deeply refented by 
 the whole Church. Being then at W^>fe/?^;^^//, 
 I faw the Bifhops going to take Water for 
 the Tower : They all looked v«ry chear- 
 fuUy, and the Biihop of C^/^/?^d;r, in parti- 
 cular, called to me, and asked me how I did. 
 The next Day the Lord Huntingdon^ one of 
 
 S 3 the 
 
 261 
 
 1687. 
 
 June 8. 
 
^262 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 the Privy Council, told me. That had the 
 King known how far the Thing would have 
 gone, he had never laid the Injunftion he did, 
 to have the Declaration read in Churches. 
 June 10. In the rnidfl; of this Ferment, this Day, 
 being Trinity Sunday^ about four Minutes 
 before ten in the Morning, the Queen was 
 delivered of a Prince, to the great Joy ot 
 the Court. But as important as this Event 
 might feem to be, little Notice may befaid 
 to have been taken of it. The Imprifon- 
 ment of the Biihops was now uppermoA in 
 the Minds ofmoft of the People, who flocked 
 to them infuch Numbers, for their Blefling, 
 and to condole their hard Ufage, that great 
 and very extraordinary Remarks were made 
 both of Perfons and Behaviour. Among the 
 rell, ten Nonconformift Minifters went to 
 pay them a Vilit, which the King took fo 
 heinoufly, that he fent for four of them to 
 reprimand them^ but their Anfwer was, 
 That they could not but adhere tothePri- 
 foners, as Men conllanr and hrm to the Pro- 
 teftant Faith, or to that Purpofe. Nay, 
 what is more extraordinary, the very Sol- 
 diers that kept Guard in the Tower, would 
 frequently drink good Health to the Biihops j 
 which being underftood by Sir Edward Haks^ 
 Conftable of the Tower, he fent Orders to 
 
 the 
 
 Of Sir J O H N R E R E S B Y. 265 
 
 the Captain of the Guard, to fee it was done k^S;. 
 no more ; but the Anfwer he received was^ ^ " 
 That they were doing it at the very Inftant, 
 and would drink that, and no other Health, 
 while the Bifhops were there. 
 
 At length the firfl: Day of the Term came Ji*ne 15. 
 about, when the Archbilhop and the reft 
 moving for the Habeas Corpus j twenty- one 
 of the very Prime of the Nobility appeared 
 at the King's Bench to bail them, and they 
 were bailed accordingly. Upon this Occa- 
 fion the Hall and Palace-yards were crouded 
 with thoufands of People, who begging 
 their Blefling as they palTed, the Archbi- 
 lhop freely gave it, and as tireely, at the 
 fame time, exhorted them to be conftant to 
 their Religion. A fortnight afterwards, an 
 Information was exhibited againft their 
 Lordfhips, in the King's Bench, for that 
 they had framed and publilhed a feditious 
 Libel ; of which the Jury would not find 
 them guilty, The Council for the Biihops, 
 the ableft of their Profeflion in all England^ 
 produced fuch Arguments in their Behalf^ 
 that the Judges were divided, two of 
 them declaring that the Proofs did not 
 extend to the making their Petition or Ad- 
 drefs a Libel, and two of them that they 
 did, which coft Sir Richard Hcllcway and 
 Sir John Powell their Seats on the Bench, 
 
 S 4 as 
 
/ 
 
 ■264 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 ^!^^ ^s foon as the Term was over. In the Courfe 
 of this Tryal, the Power of the King to 
 difpenfe with the Laws, that grand Point, 
 was moil exquifitely dilculied by the Bi- 
 ihop's Council, who were fo much an over- 
 match for the King's, that at Court it was 
 moll heartily wiihed this Eufinefs had never 
 been pulhed to fuch a Criiis. Wejiminjier^ 
 hall^ the Palace-yards^ and all the Streets 
 about, were thronged witn an infinite Peo- 
 ple, whofe loud Shouts and joyful Accla- 
 mations upon hearing the Bilhops were ac- 
 quitted, were a very Rebellion in Noife, 
 tho' very far from fo either in Fa£lor Inten- 
 tion. Bonfires were made, not only in the 
 City of London^ but in moll Towns in £//^- 
 land^ as foon 2s the News reached them ; 
 tho' there were llri£l and general Orders 
 given out to prevent all fuch doings* and 
 the Clergy preached more loudly, and more 
 freely than ever againft the Errors of the 
 Lann Church. The next Day I waited on 
 the King to the Camp on Hourijlow-heathy 
 where every Body ohferved him to labour 
 under a very great Diilurbance of Mind • 
 but he fpoke very kindly to me as I rode 
 by him, upon feveral Occafions. 
 July II. I w^s prefent, as a Julllce, at the General 
 Seffions held for the Liberty of Wejiminjiery 
 
 and 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresbt. 
 
 and fome Days afterwards, at the fame held 
 for the County of Middlefes^ at Hicks' s Hally 
 where I found fuch a llrange Revolution 
 among the Juftices of the Peace, fo many 
 Papifts and Fanatics put into the Commifli- 
 on, that I neither fought Bufinefs, norchofe 
 to mix w ith them. At this lall Place there 
 were feveral indifted as Rioters, for that 
 they had been concerned in making of Bon- 
 fires, or contributed thereto; but the Grand 
 Jury would find no Bill, tho' they were fent 
 out no lefs than three Times ; fo generally 
 did the Love of the Bifhops and the Prote- 
 ilant Caufe prevail. And now my Lord 
 Hallifax advifed me to confider with myfelf, 
 Whether as Affairs flood, it were prudent 
 to continue in my Imployments : I anfwer- 
 ed, I had great Obligadons to the King, 
 and would ferve him as well as I could, 
 whilfl he would allow me that Honour, 
 without concerning himfelf with my Reli- 
 gion. 
 
 Lord Sunderland^ who had been long fufl. July lu 
 pefted for a Papift, now openly declared 
 himfelf of that Communion, with the ufual 
 Ceremonies, in the King's Chappel • and 
 ten or eleven Days afterwards, the King 
 went down to the Thames's Mouth, as pre- 
 tended, only to take a View of the Fleet • 
 
 but 
 
^(>6 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 l^ 
 
 1687 but the real Caufe was to appeafe the Sea- 
 ^~^~^ men, who were ready to mutiny, on Ac- 
 count of fome of their Captains, who had 
 publickly celebrated Mais in their Ships. 
 The King flattered them all he could ^ went 
 from Ship to Ship ; called them his Chil- 
 dren ^ faid he had nothing to do with their 
 Religion, and that he granted Liberty of 
 Confcience to all \ but that he expe£led 
 they would behave like Men of Honour and 
 Courage when there ihould be Occalion for 
 their Service • tho' they were fo far grati- 
 fied that all the Priefts were ordered on 
 Shore. Admiral Herherty an able Seaman, 
 who a the King haddifcarded from feveral 
 great Pofts, becaufe he would not promife 
 to vote for the Kepeal, went privately away 
 to Holland^ where he was made Rear-Ad- 
 miral ; which raifed Anger in the King, 
 and the rather, as a great many Seamen 
 went after bim. 
 
 Sometime afterwards, the Duke of iVcr- 
 -^^^fi' j'clk came to vilit me in London :f with whom 
 difcQuriing upon the prefent Situation of 
 the Kingdom, I found him a very firm and 
 fteady Proteftant, to which he had been 
 converted in the late Reign, and by no 
 Means Satisfied with the Court. Some 
 Days afterwards, carrying my Wife and 
 
 Daughter 
 
 Of Sir JohnRere sb.y. %6j 
 
 Daughter to Windfory to wait on the Queen ; 1^87. 
 I perceived the Court to be under fome Con- '"'"^ 
 fternation, and the King in an ill Humour> 
 tho' he was of an Equanimity which made it 
 difficult to difcover, at the News that the 
 Dutch had fitted out a large Fleet as defign- 
 ed againft us; and that the Fr^«^^ and Dutch 
 were on the Brink of a Rupture, and would 
 each of them prefs us loon to know which 
 Side we w ould take. This, confidering the 
 Jealoufies we were under on Account of 
 Religion, the violent Difcontents about the 
 Army, and the ill Time of the Day it was to 
 call a Parliament for frelh Supplies of Mo- 
 ney, did very juftly and reafonably difquiet 
 the Court. And now the firft Thing the -^^- *4» 
 King did, was to declare he would call a 
 Parliament, to meet the 27th of Nc^emhcr 
 following, protefting in Council, that he 
 was moved thereto more for the Good and 
 Satisfaftion of the Nation, than for any Ap* 
 prehenfion he was under oixht Dutch Arma- 
 ment. However, he commanded all Offi- 
 cers in general to their Pofts, and drew the 
 Forces out of other Garrifons and Places to 
 man the Sea Ports. 
 
 Defigning for Toi% I took Leave of his 28. 
 Majefty, but with terrible Apprehenfions 
 that he would put the fame Queltion to me 
 
 he 
 
 I- 
 
•i6R 
 
 E 
 
 268 MEMOIRS 
 
 he had to others, concerning the Repeal ; 
 but he faid nothing at all of it, only enjoyn- 
 ed me to Hand a Candidate, for the next 
 Parliament at Torkj which I would gladly 
 have been excufed, but it could not be ; and 
 fo he wilhed me a good Journey. Tuft at 
 this Time I had News, that the Quellion 
 had been put, the Week before, to all our 
 Juiiices of tne Weft-Riding, and that they 
 had all aniwered in the Negative ; fo that I 
 could not but think I had a lucky efcape. 
 
 I fent Notice to the iMayor and others of 
 Tbrk^ that I intended to ftand for one of 
 their Reprefeniatives, at the enfuing Elefti- 
 on, and ibund the Magiftracy would be for • 
 the moft Part againft me, tho' I had good 
 Encouragement from the other Citizens. 
 The Truth is, I was at fome Lofs to know 
 how to aft in this Mattery I was not deJi- 
 rous to be of this Parliament, not only be- 
 caufe I was grovvn infirm and alnioft unfit 
 to attend the Duty of the Houie, but alfo 
 becaule I was atraid the King would expeft 
 more from me than my Confcience would 
 extend to; for as I was determined not to 
 violate this on the one Side, fo I could hard^ 
 ly refolve to oflendfo good a Mailer on the 
 other. In thefe Straits, I went to the King 
 t Windfor^ and ftiewed him the Letters I 
 
 ha4 
 
 a 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresbt. 
 
 had fent to To)% and thfe Anfwers I had 
 received thereto; defiring his Majefty to 
 indulge me with Replies to three Queries I 
 had to make, (i.) Whether, feeing the 
 Q:)nteft was like to be both chargeable and 
 difficult, and the Succefs extremely doubt- 
 ful, it was his Pleafure I fhould ftand? He 
 replied pofitively, I fhould. (2.) Whether, 
 as the Oppofition was very ftrong againft 
 me, he would impute it to my Remifsnefs if 
 I mifcarried ? He promifed he would not. 
 (3.) Whether he would affift me all he could 
 to prevent my being baffled, and particular- 
 ly by fuch Means as 1 fhould propofe to 
 him? His Anfwer was. Yes; and he gave 
 immediate Orders to the Lords for purging 
 of Corporations, to make whatever Change 
 or Alteration I defired in the Citv of Tork^ 
 and to put in or out, which the King it 
 feems had refer ved to himfelf by the laft 
 Charter, juft as I pleafed. But I was care- 
 ful of what I did in this Regard : I confi- 
 dered that if I put out none, it w^ould look 
 as if I had no Power, and debafe me into 
 Contempt; and that if I difplaced too ma- 
 ny, it might exafperate the City againft me,' 
 make them believe I was too deep in the 
 Court Intereft, and prevent my Succefs on 
 the other Hand ; I therefore only defired 
 
 that 
 
 .1587. 
 
ZJO 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 t6S^ that the Lord Mayor might be difmifled his 
 
 ^**^^ Office, and Sir Thompfon appointed in 
 
 his ftead, which would prevent his being a 
 Member of Parliament J and that too, Mr, 
 Edward Tomfon and Mr. Ramfden, who were 
 my principal Friends in the former Ele£Hon 
 of me for rork^ and were afterwards turned 
 out partly on my Account, might be re- 
 ftored as Aldermen. Then taking leave of 
 the King, and prefented him with fome 
 Roman Medals, which he took very kindly, 
 he again charged me to do what I could to 
 be chofen. 
 
 I afterwards deiired Mr. Brentj the Agent 
 for Corporation Matters, that if he had the 
 Power, I might with fome others I fliould 
 aame, be added to the Bench of Juftices in 
 that City, by a Writ of AMance, which 
 he promifed me Ihould be done. To leave 
 this Af&ir for the prefent, there had at this 
 Time been fifty Irijhmen and Papifts fent for 
 fiom Irelmdy by the Duke of Berwicky in 
 order to be incorporated into his Regiment. 
 Every Captain was to have fome ; but Lieu- 
 tenant Colonel Beaumont y and five Captains 
 more, who were all that were then on the 
 Spot, in Quarters at Portfmouth^ refiifed to 
 take a Man of them, faying their Companies 
 were complete, and that they were not to 
 
 part 
 
 Of Sir John Re resby, 
 
 part with good Soldiers and Englijhmeny to 
 make Room for fuch as were inferior to 
 them and Foreigners ; deliring they might 
 chufe their own Men, or throw up their 
 Commillions. The Duke of Berwick took 
 great Offence at this, and fending an Ac« 
 count of it to the King, he difpatched twen- 
 ty Horfe to bring them up in Cuftody to 
 Windfor Caftle, where they were to be tryed 
 by a Council of War; and they were 
 brought up accordingly. I fpoke to them 
 juft as they arrived, and found they were 
 all refolved to ftand it out ; but they told 
 me the Duke had not offered a Man of the 
 Jrifi to any Company, then in his Grace^B 
 Regiment, which was very kind of him oa 
 his Part, and a miraculous Efcape on mine. 
 
 Meanwhile, the Prince oi Orange and the 
 Dutch Ambaliador had lately given the, King 
 AfTurances that their Preparations were not 
 againft us; but his Majelly, as if he made a 
 Doubt of it, ordered great Things towards 
 a Fleet for the Spi'ing ; and I was poJitively 
 told, by one, that he had aftually twenty 
 five hundred thoufand Pounds in his Cot- 
 fers. 
 
 This Day a Council of War fat upon Co- 
 lonel Beanmontj and the five Captains, and ^^^' ^^ 
 they were all calhiered, tho' with Relu- 
 
 ftance 
 
272. 
 
 US-;. 
 
 i 
 
 - MEMOIRS 
 
 ftance on the Part of the King, who feemed 
 to dread the Confequences of it : They 
 .were offered Forgivenefs if they would but 
 accept of the Men, but they all refufed it ; 
 which caufed a great and general Difcontent 
 throughout the Army, and particularly in 
 that Regiment, moft of which foon after 
 quitted. The fame Day Sir IFa/ter Vavafor^ 
 and Mr. Middkton^ came up to make Report 
 to the King of the Anfwers they had re- 
 ceived from the Weftriding and the Corpo- 
 rations, to the Queries they had put to 
 them J in which I found the Lord Mayor 
 and Aldermen of York were fo faulty, that 
 they would out of Courfe, and that I need- 
 ed not give my felf the Trouble of getting 
 them removed, and more remarkably my 
 greateft Oppofers ; fo I left them to their 
 Stars, and only inlifted on the Commilfion 
 of Aififtance for my felf and Friends I iliould 
 name; but every Poll brought me new Fears 
 I Ihould not be chofen at Tork^ tho' feveral 
 Alterations and Reflriftions from popular 
 Ele6tions to a Mayor and twelve Aldermen, 
 whom the King appointed as he pleafed, 
 were now made by new Charters, for the 
 more certain Eleftion of fuch Members as 
 might be to the King's good Liking. And 
 now Lord Halhfa^^ when I took Leave of 
 
 him. 
 
 i 
 
 Of Sir John R e r e s b t. 173 
 
 him, which was this Day, advifed me not i<^88. 
 to be too much in earneft with my Elefti- ' ju*~l 
 on ; at leafl: not to make too free a Ufe of 
 the Court Affiilance, for many Reafons he 
 then offered to my Conlideration- 
 
 A few Days afterwards, I fat out for 
 l^orkpin^ and being at my Seat in the Coun- 
 try, I received Advice that my Intereft at 
 Tm^k was much leflcned by my Abfence ; 
 and what was ftill worfe, that Lord Montgo- 
 mery 2> Company, being ordered to march 
 from that City, his Lordfhip would, if I 
 did not come fpeedily, be obliged to deli- 
 ver up the Keys into the Hands of the Lord 
 Mayor ; I therefore immediately pofted a- 
 way and received the Keys, and the Com- 
 pany marched. I reprefented it to the 
 King as a great Inconvenience that there 
 fhould not be fo much as one Company in 
 Garrifon at Tork^ and delired to know what 
 I was to do with the Keys; to the firft of 
 which his Majefty anfwered, That upon 
 more mature Deliberation he had recalled 
 the Company, and that as to the Second 
 I might difpofe of the Keys as I faw pro- 
 per. 
 
 I defired the Lord Mayor to call a HalJ, ^^ ^ 
 for that I had fomething to fay to them. 
 A Hall was called j but his Lordlhip, the 
 
 T greateft 
 
'. I 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 greateft Enemy to my Eleftion, not having 
 Patience to itay till I came, difmifs'd it al- 
 moft as foon as affembled, fearing I Ihould 
 make fome Profelytes to my Intereft. Juft 
 on the Back of this comes down a Procla- 
 mation, fetting forth a certain Intention the 
 Prince of Orange had to invade this King- 
 dom, by the Affiilance and with the Con- 
 currence of the States General, both with a 
 ftrong Fleet and a numerous Army ; com- 
 manding all Lord Lieutenants, Deputy Lieu- 
 tenants, and all other his Majefty's Officers> 
 to hold themfelves in Readinefs to defend 
 the King and Kingdom. At this Time 
 Lord Thomas H(yward was Lieutenant of the 
 Weft Riding, a rigid Papift, and now gone 
 AmbalFador to Rmic* He had left but three 
 Deputies behind him, two of which alfo 
 were Papifts, and but two of the three were 
 now in the Country; while moft of the Gen- 
 try of Tvrkjhire were come to the City, ex- 
 pefting to meet with Writs for the Choice 
 of Members. I therefore prefled the High 
 Sheriff to give Notice to lome Gentlemen, 
 while I convened others, for the next Day; 
 when Sir Henry Gcoderick began a Difcourfe, 
 which I feconded, to Ihew how little we 
 were able to ferve the King with the Mili- 
 tia, without another Lord Lieutenant, un- 
 der 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresbt. 
 
 der whom we might lawfully ferve, meaning 
 a Protellant ; and at the fame Time we fub- 
 fcribed a Reprefentation of our Cafe to his 
 Majefty. I was well aware how very un- 
 grateful this would be to him ; but to obvi- 
 ate his Difpleafure, I gave him private In- 
 telligence of the Intention to prepare it, and 
 begged of him to excufe the Concern I had 
 therein, afluring him it was now abfolutely 
 for his Service. 
 
 In the Midft of this comes down a fpecial oaoh. t^i 
 Meffenger to purge the Corporation, to put 
 out the former Lord Mayor and Aldermen, 
 and to appoint others, almoft all Papifts; but 
 the Comniiffion was fo defeftive, and there 
 were fuch Miftakes in the Execution of it 
 as fruftrated the Defign. The next Day I 
 prevailed with the Lord Mayor to call a 
 Hall • upon which Occafion I fpoke to them 
 a full half Hour, and fo convinced them of 
 the evil Arts which had been put in Praftice 
 againft me, and the great Injuftice done me, 
 that they all feemed to be Converts in my 
 Favour; and to add to what I had faid, I 
 gave them up the Keys, but made them own 
 it as a Courtefy, and promife to reftore them 
 to me again, whenever I defired it, for his 
 Majefty's Service. And now Lord Fairfax 
 a Roman Catholic and Lord Lieutenant ot* 
 
 T 2 the 
 
MEMOIRS 
 
 the North Riding, being at Il)rky obferved 
 to me it could be for no good End that the 
 Lords Devonjhire and Danby were come down 
 to the Country ; tbo' the former pretended 
 he was only come to view his Eftate, and 
 the latter to drink the Waters at Knaisbourgh. 
 They were both of them frequently enga- 
 ged in Converfation at Sir Henry Gooderkk'Sj 
 and the firft of them came to Torky where I 
 paid all imaginable Civilities to him, and 
 received the fame from him ; the other I 
 waited on at Sir Henry's^ not once fufpeSt- 
 ing that Men of their high Quality and great 
 Eftate could intend any thing prejudicial to 
 the Government or dangerous to themfelves ; 
 and indeed their outward Behaviour was 
 very decent and innocent. 
 
 Two Days afterwards I had an Exprefs 
 from Lord Prefton^ the new Secretary of 
 State, Sanderlandj who was turned Papift, 
 and had been the Author of great Mifchief 
 fince he had been near the King, being laid 
 afide, to acquaint me that his Majefty had 
 given a very kind Reception to our Repre- 
 fentation on the Part of the County, and 
 that in Compliance therewith he had named 
 the Duke of Newcaftk to be Lord Lieute- 
 nant of all Torkjhire^ and his Grace coniing to 
 town foon after, appointed his Deputies and 
 
 Militia 
 
 Of Sir John Reresbt. 
 
 Militia Officers, both Horfe and Foot. The 
 King began now, tho' fatally too late, to be 
 fenlible of his Error in carrying Matters to 
 fo enormous a Length at the Inftigation of 
 Popifh Councils ; and now reftored feveral 
 Juftices of the Peace in moft Counties, asal- 
 fo the old Charters all England osti\ he now 
 quits his Hold of the Bilhop oi London^ does 
 Juftice to Magdalen College, and begins a- 
 gain to court the Church of England, 
 
 Amidft this hopeful Reform comes News ^^^' ^^• 
 that the Prince of Orange increafed daily, 
 and that his Fleet was ready to fpread Can- 
 vafs for the Sea. Three Days afterwards I 
 had Orders from the King to receive feven 
 hundred Scotch Horfe and Dragoons, on 
 their March from the northern Kingdom j 
 and in two Days they arrived. I was in 
 great Hopes they would have taken up their 
 Quarters in Tork^ for the Security of both 
 the City and Country ^ but the Danger hour- 
 ly approaching, the Apprehenfions of the 
 Prince of Oranges Defcent growing ftronger 
 and ftronger, and the King being willing to 
 have his Army in as numerous a Plight ^s 
 might be, they were ordered to continue 
 their March fouthward, after they had been 
 with «s but three Days. The Duke of iVw- 
 cafiky who kept nothing a Secret from 
 
 vi- 
 
 3 
 
 me, 
 
 i 
 i 
 
^78 MEMOIRS 
 
 ^^^^688^ me, told me he had heard Lord Danby had 
 a great Sum of Money in the Bank of Hol- 
 land^ and that he had been invited up to 
 London by my Lord Bcllaj/is and the King's 
 Order ^ that he had made fome Offers of his 
 Service, but that he had no manner of In- 
 tention to go upj which laft I very well 
 knew from other Hands. 
 
 P5. 15. ^P^" ^^^^ Difcourfe with the Earl of 
 Danby^ at the Dean's Houfe, his Lordfhip 
 broke out into thefe Expreffionsi We are 
 now every Way in an ill Condition in this 
 
 Kingdom.- If the King beats the 
 
 Prince of Or^;^^^, Popery will return upon us 
 with more Violence than ever. — — — If the 
 Prince beats the King, the Crown and the 
 Nation may be in no fmall Danger. The 
 late Lord Mayor being now fuperfeded, 
 tho' it was impolfible to fwear the new one 
 in, becaufe of fome Miftakes with Regard 
 to the new Charter, it may be faid that Tork 
 was now a very remarkable Place j for it 
 was an Archbilhopric without a Bilhop, a 
 City without a Mayor, and a Garrilbn with- 
 • ' out a Soldier. But thefe B^kEis were fooii 
 fupplyedi the old Charter was reftored and 
 ' the old Lord Mayor therewith ; the Bilhop 
 o£Exeter^^ who fled from that City upon the 
 Prince ol Orange's Landing, was made Arch- 
 
 bilhop 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresby. 
 
 bilhop of Tork ; and I had one Company of 
 Foot fent to continue with me. 
 
 Strange it was, and a certain Prefage of 
 the Mifchiefs which attended this Invalion, 
 that neither the Gentry nor the Commona- 
 lity were under any Concern about it ; Said 
 they, the Prince comes only to maintain the- 
 
 Proteftant Religion. . He will do no 
 
 Harm to England : While on the other Hand 
 it was from Court fuggeiled that his Aim 
 was at the Crown, and that the Dutchy who 
 affifted him, grafped at the Trade of £»f- 
 land. In truth, his Highnefles Declaration, 
 when it made its Appearance, which was a 
 little while before he landed, feemed to be 
 dark and ambiguous enough, fetting torth 
 all the Grievances of the Nation, with great 
 Aggravation, and aflerting that the King's 
 Intention was to fubvert the Government 
 both in Church and State; that he defigned 
 to make himfelf abfolute, and to extirpate 
 the Proteftant Religion ; that to this Pur-» 
 pofe he hadinlifted on a difpenfmg Power j 
 that he had moulded and faihioned all the 
 Charters to his Mind, to the End he might 
 have fuch Members of Parliament as he de- x 
 fired; that he had examined and pre-enga-, 
 ged fuch as he intended Ihould be of the 
 Houfe of Commons ; and that what was 
 
 T ^ wQrfe> 
 
:2 8o 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 1588. 
 
 0&. 2p. 
 
 worfe, he had impofed a fuppofitious Prince 
 oi Wales upon the Nation, merely to pro- 
 mote Popery, and to defeat the Prince and 
 
 Princefs of Orange of their Right of Succef- 
 iion. 
 
 The King underftanding there was a 
 great Noife raifed about this Prince of W^^/^j 
 had, a little before the Invafion, called an 
 extraordinary Council, whither all the No- 
 bility, Bilhops, and foreign Minifters were 
 fummoned, before whom the Queen Dow- 
 ager, feveral Lords and Ladies, and the 
 King's and Queen's Servants, to the Num- 
 ber of forty, as well Proteftants as Papifts 
 gave pregnant Evidence concerning the Birth 
 of this Prince, all which was re-examined 
 in Chancery upon Oath, and there record- 
 ed. 
 
 A Report now arrives that the Dutch 
 Fleet had been niiferably fliattered byTem. 
 peft; that Lord Sunderland was certainly, 
 out, and Lord Prepn Secretary of State in 
 his Stead. The King mean while made 
 great Preparations for War, and had fwelled 
 up his Army, as was computed, to fiy. thou- 
 fand Horfe and Dragoons, and thirty eight 
 choufand Foot : The Fleet alfo was out, un- 
 der the Command of Lord Dartmouth^ but 
 much inferior to the Dutch, and did nothing 
 
 to 
 
 OfStr JohnReresbt. 
 
 to the Purpofe. Three Days afterwards the 
 Prince oiOranges Declaration, conveyed by 
 an unknown Hand to a Citizen of ours, was 
 brought to me, and I immediately tranfinit- 
 ted it to the Secretary of State. Orders 
 were at the fame Time fent down to us to 
 fecure the Lord Lumley, then in the North 
 Riding ; but the Gentleman, Colonel John 
 Darcy, who was charged with this Commif- 
 lion, pretended he could not find him, tho* 
 it afterwards appeared his Lordfliip was not 
 far off, and might have been feized at Plea- 
 fure. The next Day I had an Exprefs from 
 the Secretary at War, lignifying that the 
 Dutch Fleet had been feen off Dw^r, fteer- 
 ing their Courfe to the Wellward, which 
 gave us fome Hopes there was no Danger 
 of their landing in the North. In three 
 Days more 1 received by another Exprefs 
 that the Prince was a£lually landed at fTor- 
 t?ay^ in the Weft, (on the 5 th of this Month, 
 November) and that he had marched ftraitto 
 Exeter, attended by Marfhal Schombergy an 
 old and experienced Officer, together with 
 a Number of our own Nobility and Gentry 
 of conliderable Name, and a great Land 
 
 Army. 
 
 I immediately fent the Duke oi Newcajile 
 Word of this Invalion, tho' he had Notice 
 
 of 
 
 1688. 
 
 
 frt 
 
m 
 
 ±Bi MEMOIRS 
 
 tm^ of It from above ^ but he wrote back that 
 ""^'^^ the Prince being landed at fuch a Diftance, 
 his Prefence would be no way neceffiry at 
 Thrk. I thought this a very weak Anfwer, 
 and fent him Word that the Danger was 
 not only from the Invaders, but alfo from 
 their Confederates at home, and that it was 
 impoffible the Prince Ihould dare to attacfc: 
 Eu^/and with an Army of under 20000 Men, 
 if he was not veryfureof Affiftance from our 
 felves. The Deputy Lieutenants, being ten 
 m Number, were now all at Torky and be- 
 mg very follicitous to preferve Peace, Quiet, 
 and good Order, propofed a Meeting of the 
 Gentry and Freeholders of the County, to 
 be held on rbfirfday the ipth inftant, in Or- 
 der to draw up fome Declaration ofunlhaken 
 Loyalty to the King in this Time of Dan- 
 ger ; as alfo to conlult on fuch Matters as 
 might be for the Honour of God, and our 
 own Welfare and Safety. This being a 
 Motion made by Sir Henry Gooderick, I fe^ 
 conded it, and obferved that an Addrefs of 
 fuch a Tenor might give fome Satisfaftion 
 to the Government, and be a Difcourage- 
 raent to its Enemies. Accordingly a Sum^ 
 mons was drawn up, to be difperfed all the 
 Country over; and in the mean Time I wrote 
 up to Lord Prejlori, the Secretary of State, 
 
 to 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresby* a8^ 
 
 to acquaint him with this feemingly intend- 1688/ 
 ed loyal Addrefs from the Gentlemen in ''^~™-' 
 our Parts, and fent a Letter to the Duke of 
 Newcaftkj defiring him to make one of the 
 Company. 
 
 Being this Day at Dinner with Lord fi?;V- l^oy- 15. 
 fasj Sir Henry Gooderickj and others, at a 
 Gentleman's who had invited us, the Clerk 
 of the Peace of the Weft Riding comes in, 
 %o give us Notice of a new Commiffion, in 
 which fome thirty of the principal Gentle- 
 men of the Neighbourhood were left out J 
 and among the reft Sir Henry himfelf. This 
 threw him into fuch a Rage, that he vowed 
 he was forry he had promoted the Meeting 
 he had for the Service of the King; but I 
 heard that at this intended Aflembly there 
 were to have been fome Points difcufled 
 which would not have been of fo grateful a 
 Nature to the Court: For it was at the fame 
 Time the Defign to have petitioned for a 
 fpeedy and a free Parliament, and for other 
 Concellions which were to have been de- 
 manded and infifted upon. But all this was 
 all along denyed to me, and particularly by 
 Sir Henry Goodericky who being an open Man,^ 
 I confefs I added Faith to his Words ; but 
 Friendfliip is too often a Blind to the 
 Eyes. 
 
 Four 
 
 M' 
 
.1 ME M O I R S 
 
 Four Days after this, the Duke of New-^ 
 caftle himfelf came to r^r/^, and faid he 
 heard there was a Defign to petition for a 
 free Parliament, and that he thought ic 
 not fit there Ihould be fo much of the 
 Militia together. I fat that Night with 
 his Grace till it was twelve of the Clock; 
 and we came to a Refolution, That if the 
 Petition or intended Addrefs was not con- 
 ceived in Terms of the ftriaeft Loyalty, 
 we would not fet our Hands to it. The 
 next Day his Grace called together his De- 
 puty Lieutenants, and asked them, If there 
 was any Thing meant by their Affembly on 
 Thurfday^ more than to make a Declaration 
 of Loyalty to his Majefty ? Whereupon Sir 
 Henry Goodcrick^ who was oneof theni, de- 
 clared plainly. That he intended to petition 
 for a free Parliament, and hoped that the 
 reft, who Ihould meet, would concur there- 
 in, after the Example of a late Petition 
 from fome Bifliops, and fome Temporal 
 Lords. The Duke took this {o much amifs 
 that he declared he would not ftay to be afl 
 fronted or overuled by his Deputies, and 
 that he would be gone the next Day. 1 
 made Oppofition to this; obferving that no 
 abfolute Refolution could be taken, till the 
 Gentlemen appeared ; and that if ought elfe 
 
 belides 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresby. 
 
 befides a mere Declaration of Loyalty w^ere 
 thought neceffary, it might be fo penned, 
 and with that Modefty as both to fatisfy 
 here, and not difpleafe above ; in Ihort, that 
 his Grace ought, at all Events, to be on the 
 Spot in a Time of fuch great Trouble and 
 Difficulty. But he went away according to 
 his Word, faying no Body had been of his 
 
 Side but my felf 
 
 And now came the Day of Meeting ; a Kov, zz. 
 fatal one I think. I would not go to them 
 at the Common Hall, which was the Place 
 appointed ; nor indeed was I very well able, 
 by reafon of fome Bruifes I had received by 
 my Horfe's falling upon me: But I heard 
 that in the Midft of about a hundred Gen- 
 tlemen who met. Sir Henry Gooderick deli- 
 vered himfelf to this Effea ; That there 
 having been great Endeavours made by the 
 Government of late Years to bring Popery 
 into the Kingdom, and by many Devices to 
 fet at nought the Laws of the Land, there 
 could be no proper Redrefs of the many 
 Grievances we laboured under, but by a free 
 Parliament \ that now was the only Time 
 to prefer a Petition of the Sort ; and that 
 they could not imitate a better Pattern than 
 had been fet before them by feveral Lords 
 Spiritual and Temporal- There were thofe 
 
 who 
 
 ^ 
 
286 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 I 
 
 l6SS. 
 
 who differed with him in Opinion, and 
 would have had fome Expreflions in the Pa- 
 per moderated and amended j and obferved 
 that at the fame time they petitioned as 
 they defigned, it would be but their Duty 
 to aflure his Majefty, They would ftand 
 firm by him in the midfl of the Dangers 
 which threatned both him and his King- 
 doms, at the Hazard of their Lives and 
 Fortunes ; but this was overuled. When 
 therefore the Draught was completed ac- 
 cording to the Mind of Sir Heriry Gooderick 
 and his Friends, tho' feveral dilliked it and 
 went away, they proceeded to fign- but be- 
 fore a third Man could fubfcribe it, in comes 
 one Mr. fankard with a rueful Story That 
 the Papills were rifen ; and that they had 
 aftually fired upon the Militia Troops. A- 
 larmed at this, the Gentlemen ran out • and 
 thofe that were privy to the Defign betook 
 them to their Horfes, which were conveni- 
 ently at hand for their Purpofe. Lord 
 I>anhy^ mean while in his Lodging, waited 
 for the falfe Alarm, and mounted, with his 
 Son, Lord Lumky^ Lord Horton^ Lord WiU 
 loughby and others, who, together with their 
 Servants, formed a Body of Horfe, con- 
 fifting of a Hundred in Number, well mount- 
 ed, and well accoutred. Thefe rode up to 
 
 the 
 
 Of Sir JohnRe resby. 
 
 the four Militia Troops, drawn out on ano- 
 ther Account, and cryed out A free Parha^ 
 menty the Protejiant Religion^ and no Popery. 
 The Captains of thefe Troops were Lord 
 Fairfaxj Sir Thomas Gower^ Mr. Robtnjony 
 and Captain Tankard^ who being admitted 
 of the Secret the Night before, tho' prompt 
 and ready enough in their Nature for any 
 A£kion of the Kind, immediately cryed out 
 the fanie, and led their Troops over to them. 
 In the firft Place they went to the main 
 Guard of the ftanding Company, which, 
 the Number not exceeding twenty, they 
 furprifed, before I had the leaft Notice or 
 even Jealoufy of what was in Agitation j not 
 thinking it poflible that Men of fuch Qua- 
 lity, fuch Eftates, could give Way to their 
 Difcontent, however great and juft it might 
 be, to the Degree of engaging themfelves 
 in an Attempt fo defperate, and fo contrary 
 to the Laws they boafted, and the Religi- 
 on they profefled. But I had no fooner No- 
 tice of what had been tranfafted, than I 
 fent for the Officers and the Guard, and un- 
 derftood they were Prifoners. I then fent 
 to each Captain of the four Troops, injoin- 
 ing him to bring his Troop to me as the 
 -King's Governor, as alfo to the Main Guard 
 of the Militia Foot J but they would not 
 
 ftir 
 
 •• t 
 
a86 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 i6S8. 
 
 ftir a Step; they would hearken to no Or- 
 ders. I then fent for my own Horfes, and 
 was juft ready to go to the Troops, in 
 hopes, by my Prefence, to regain them to 
 the King's Service, when Sir Henry BelkJpSj 
 who had commanded a Regiment in Holland^ 
 under the Prince, and had lurked about a 
 long while in Torkjhire for his Highnefs's 
 Service, drew up a Party of thirty Horfe 
 before my Door, and prevented myftirring 
 abroad till Lord Banhy^ and his principal 
 Companions, came up to me. 
 
 His Lordlhip told me that to refill were 
 to no manner of End or Purpofe j that him- 
 feli^ and the Gentlemen with him, were in 
 Arms for a free Parliament, and the Prefer- 
 vation of the Proteftant Religion and Go- 
 vernment, as by Law eftablifhed, which the 
 King had almoft brought to nothing, and 
 which the Prince of Or^^^g*^ wascome to re- 
 ftore ; and that he hoped I would join them 
 in fo laudable an Effort. I made Anfwer 
 that I was for a free Parliament and the Pro- 
 teftant Religion as well as they, but that I 
 was alfo for the King : His Lordlhip re- 
 plyed, that he was fo too, and that he hop- 
 ed as we agreed in Principles, we fliould 
 concur in Aftion : I told him tho' we exaft- 
 ly agreed in the Matter, we diflered widely 
 
 as 
 
 Of Sir John Reresbt. 
 
 as to the Manner ; and I could not conceive 
 it lawful to extort any Thing from the Crown 
 by any manner of Force ; and that as I had 
 the Honour of being his Majefty's Gover- 
 nor for Tork^ it was impolTible, whatever the 
 Confequences might be, for me to join in 
 Concert with thofe who openly and avow- 
 edly afted in repugnance to and contempt 
 of his Authority and Commiffion. His Lord- 
 lhip then faid, he muft imprifon mej to 
 which I made Anfwer, that I was naked 
 and deftitute of Friends and Affiftance, and 
 that I acknowledged my felf in his Lord- 
 ihips Power to do with me as he would ; 
 But after fome Ihort Confultation, his Lord- 
 ihip told me, he knew me to be a Man of 
 Honour, and that he ihould think my En- 
 gagement not to ftir, to be as fure and as 
 clofe a Reftraint upon me, as a Guard or a 
 Prifon ; fo that upon the Pledge of my Ho- 
 nour I was to confine my {^Mi^^ my Room J 
 his Lordfhip, however, recommended what 
 he had offered to my farther Confideration, 
 They then feized on all the Gates, pofted 
 ftrong Guards every where, and fuffered 
 none to go in or out; they fecured fuch 
 Perfons as betrayed a Diflike to their Pro- 
 ceedings, and efpecially the Officers of the 
 
 U Com- 
 
 V 
 i. 
 
 .; i 
 
a88 
 1688. 
 
 No'^j. 24. 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 Company ^ but the Company it felf revolt- 
 ed to them the next Day. 
 
 Gathered to this Head, the next Day 
 they vilited the Magazine and Stores, which, 
 God knows, were next to nothing, not- 
 withftanding all my moft prefling Remon- 
 ftrances to the King, both formerly and of 
 late. The Militia Troops then, and fome 
 of the Gentlemen who came in to ferve as 
 Voluntiers, and who were not above fixty, 
 ranfackedthe Houfes of feveral Papifts, for 
 Priefts, Arms, and Horfes, which they took 
 wherever they found them. They feiz.ed 
 alfo on a Company of Foot new raifed, but 
 not yet armed, in their Quarters at TadcaJleYy 
 and a Company of Grenadiers as they were 
 on their March for London^ by the Way of 
 Tork '-y bui; as yet they touched the Property 
 of no Man but the Kings, the Papifts and 
 my felf excepted, for they made very free 
 with my Coals, and other Provilioa I had 
 laid in for the Ufe of the Garrifon. 
 
 The Earl now caufed the Lord Mayor to 
 call a Hall, where his Lordfhip made a 
 Speech, fetting forth the Reafon for their 
 Riiing, and of their Declaration, deliring 
 the City w ould join with them in the latter 
 and they figned it accordingly, as did alfo a 
 Number of Gentlemen. This Declaration 
 
 being 
 
 Of Sir John R e r e s'b y. 
 
 being the next Day printed, there appeared 
 of Hands of Lords to it, lix • of Lords 
 Sons, three ^ of Baronets, five ^ of Knights, 
 fix; of Efquires and Gentlemen, fixty fix ; 
 and of Citizens of Tork^ fifty fix. We had 
 now News from Nottingham^ that the Earl 
 of Devon/hire^ Lord Delatnercj and many 
 more Noblemen and Gentlemen were rifen 
 alfo in thofe Parts, and that great Numbers 
 flocked in to them. 
 
 Mean while the King was on his March 
 to Salisbury^ which he had appointed to be 
 the general Rendezvous of his whole Army, 
 having fent the young Prince, his Son, to 
 PortfmoNthj as the Report was by fome, but 
 to France according to others. In a Day or 
 two, I made it my Requeft to the Earl of 
 Danhy^ that he would give me leave to be a 
 Prifoner at my own Houfe in the Country, 
 where I promifed to aft nothing to his Pre- 
 judice, but to aquiefce, and abide by my 
 Word as a true Prifoner. Hereupon he 
 fent for me to come and dine with himj 
 and at my coming into the Room told me, 
 That to give me the better Stomach to my 
 Meal, I might, upon the Terms I had pro- 
 pofed, depart whenever I pleafed. At Din- 
 ner his Lordlhip told me the Duke of New^ 
 caj-les Abfence had been what principally 
 
 U z favour- 
 
MEMOIRS 
 
 favoured their Defign j and that he doubted 
 not but I had fome Fear or Sufpicion of 
 what was going forward : I anfwered, that 
 I did indeed believe they would go very 
 high in their Petition, but never imagined 
 fo many Gentlemen of their Rank and Qua- 
 lity would have ventured upon fo perilous 
 an Expedient; and that if I had been aware 
 of it, I ihould certainly have made a Refi- 
 ftance, tho' to ever fo little Purpofe, or at 
 leall have made my Efcape out of the Town. 
 I had Difcourfe with feveral of thefe Gen- 
 tlemen, and perceived that they began to 
 reflefl on what they had done, as of more 
 Danger than they at firft thought of, and 
 found they were troubled, that Men come 
 in fo flowly to them. Lord IVilhughby faid 
 it was the firft Time that any Bertie had 
 been concerned againft the Crown ; that it 
 was a Grief to him, but that the Neceffity 
 of the Times was fatally fucj[i, that there had 
 been no avoiding it* To this I obferved, 
 that the flagrant Invafion on our Rights 
 might have been reftrained without a Re- 
 pelling Force, and that a thorough and plain 
 reprefentation of our Injuries, properly urg- 
 ed on the Part of the whole Kingdom, could 
 not have failed to reduce the King to a bet- 
 ter and jufter Senfe of what he was about ; . 
 
 that 
 
 Of Sir John Reresby. 
 
 that the great want of Money, the violent 
 Diftraaion of the Nation, and a plain Dif- 
 covery that Popery could never again be 
 impofed upon us, would have obliged his 
 Majelty, for his own Sake, for his own 
 Safety and Intereft, to have altered the Te- 
 nor of his Condua. Sir Henry Gooderick 
 would then have perfuaded me to fign their 
 Declaration, but I told them I could not 
 poffibly do it; for that tho' I Ihould be of a 
 Mind with them, as to the Matter it con- 
 tained, yet being now in Arms I could not> 
 in my Judgment, conceive but a Concur- 
 rence with them, as to the Contents of their 
 Paper, might be juftly conftrued into a join- 
 ing with them in the Force. Mr. Tankard 
 alfo moft earneftly prefled me to be with 
 them, but I held out. In the midft of this 
 comes the Clerk of th$ Peace to give me No- 
 tice of a new Commiffion that was brought 
 down, which reftored all the Gentlemen of 
 the Weft Riding I have formerly obferved 
 to have been turned out ; but that myfelf 
 and two more were omitted. Lord Danby 
 immediately took up this, and told me it 
 was plain There was a Refentment againft 
 me, and that it was very evident I Ihould 
 meet with worfe Quarter on the other Side 
 than from them^ but all this had no manner 
 
 U 3 of 
 
 m 
 

 .^92 iM E M O I R S 
 
 1^8. of Effe£l upon me. The next Day the Duke 
 of Newcajlk fent Orders to his Captains of 
 Horfe to difmifs the Militia Troops • but 
 -they inftead of obeying his Orders, laughed 
 at him for his ill-timed Melfage. 
 
 This Day I obtained a Pais of their -Ge- 
 .'nerallhips to go to my own Ho ^e, upon my 
 Parole that I would confine my felt there, 
 nor exceed the Bounds of five Miles about 
 and live peaceably and quietly, and abftain 
 . from all Manner of hoftile Aftion. We had 
 , now News as if the Army had voted for a 
 . free Parliament, tho' at the fame Time they 
 declared they would defend his Majefty's 
 Perfon from all Men without Exception • 
 the very Matter I defired to be the Con- 
 tents of our Torkfloirc Pedtion. But on the 
 Heels of this laudable Reibludon, it hap- 
 ned, as v/e were told, that a Number of 
 great Men, Officers of the Army, and par- 
 ticular Confidents of the King, had revolted 
 and gone over to the Prince oi Orange'^ par- 
 ticularly, that on the 19th oi November^ the 
 King having then reached Salishury^ where 
 his Army was rendez.voufed, the Lord 
 Churchill^ one of his Major Generals, under 
 Pretence of fliewing him his Outguards, 
 mifled his Majefty into a- Train which muft 
 have betrayd him to the Hands of a Party 
 
 oi 
 
 Of Sir J O H N R E R E S B T. 
 
 of the Prince oi Oranges Army, had not an 
 immoderate Bleeding at the Nofe prevented 
 the King from proceeding ; and that the 
 faid Lord perceiving his Defign to be thus 
 fruftrated, immediately went over to the. 
 Prince, accompanied by the Duke of Graf* 
 toHj Colonel Berklejy and others; tho*, it 
 muft be obferved, that this Lord Churchill 
 v^as railed. from a Page to the King, to the 
 Degree of a Vifcount oi England^ and in' 
 Poifeffion of a great Eftate therewith, which 
 was entirely owing to his Majelly's Bounty. 
 The Kingaftonilhed, and not knowing who 
 to truft, returned to Andover^ on the 24th, 
 where he fat at Supper with Prince G^org:^ of 
 Denmark^ his Son-in-law, and the Duke of 
 Ormondj bnt to the Surprize of all Men, 
 they both deferted him that very Night, 
 and withdrew to the Prince, together with 
 others of good No^c and Account. The 
 very next Day, the Princefs oi Denmark de^ 
 parted privately from Whitehally in Compa- 
 ny with Lady Churchillj and took Refuge 
 at Nottingham. Now the Number of all 
 that thus forfook the King did not as yet 
 amount to one thoufand, but fuch a mutual 
 Jealoufy now took Birch, that there was no 
 yelying on any one, no know ing who would 
 t)^ true and honeft to the Caufe j wherefore 
 
¥ t 
 
 h'ov-z2. 
 
 MEMOIRS^ 
 
 the Army and Artillery were ordered to re-T 
 tire back towards London^ where his Maje-i 
 fty arrived on the. 26th, his Out-quarters be-^ 
 ing at WrndfcTy Readings and Places round 
 about. 
 
 The next Day he called together all the 
 Lords Spiritual and Temporal then in Town, 
 being about fifty in Number, and purfuant 
 to their Advice, Writs were immediately 
 iffued out for calling a free Parliament, and 
 for removing all Roman Catholics from Coun- 
 cils and Imployments ^ for ifliiing out a ge- 
 neral Pardon to all who were with the Prince 
 and for fending Conmiiffioners to treat with 
 him. The Proclamation accordingly came 
 out, the Parliament was to meet upon the 
 i5th of January ntxt enfuing, and the Lords 
 Hallifas^ Nottingham^ and Godolphm^ were 
 appointed Commiffioners to the Prince. But 
 to return back a little t,o our northern Parts,. 
 Kingjirjn upon Hully or HiM, that confidera. 
 ble Garrifon was at this Time furprifed by 
 Mr. Copley^ the Lieutenant Governor, who 
 gathering a Party to him, feifed the Gover- 
 nor himfelf. Lord Langdaky in the Night, as 
 alfo a Number of Rfwian Catholics who fled 
 for Refuge to that Place ; and the Soldiers 
 joining in the Treachery, they declared for, 
 the King, and the Protectant Religion, and, 
 
 fent 
 
 r . 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresbi. ^295 
 
 fent immediate Notice to Tork of what they i6SS. 
 had done. About the fame Time a Party ^^>^* 
 was difpatched from Tbrk to feife the Duke 
 of Newcajfk's Horfes and Arms, which they 
 did, but no Manner of Attempt or Injury 
 was offered to his Grace's Perfon. In fliort, 
 there were but few Gentlemen in our Parts * 
 of the County that adhered to the King • 
 nor indeed in any Part of the North of Eng^ 
 J and. 
 
 And now Plymouth^ Brijtolj and other Dee, xi. 
 Places, fubmitted themfelves to the Prince^ 
 and the Defeftion began to be general. In 
 the Midft, as it were of this, the Prince of 
 Wales is brought from Portfmouth to London^ 
 when every Soul concluded he was in France : 
 But he made no Continuance ; the Queen the 
 very next Night, being Smday^ carrying 
 him, about twelve of the Clock, down to 
 a VelFel privately prep^ared, which by a fa- 
 vourable Gale was wafted over to Dunksrk. 
 The next Day a Regiment of Scotch Horfe 
 deferted to the Prince, nor was there an 
 Hour fcarce but his Majefty received, like 
 Joby ill News of one Sort or other ; fo that, 
 prompted thereto, by moft fatal Advice, he 
 the next Day, being the nth, withdrew 
 himfelf privately, attended only by two or 
 three Perfons, to follow the Queen, as was 
 
 then 
 
 i: 
 
 '•^•j 
 
*io6 
 
 i6SS. 
 
 I . 
 
 .T M E M O I R S 
 
 then moil commonly believed. This was 
 very extraordinary and quite wonderful j 
 for his Commiflioners having jull before fent 
 him Word, That Affairs might be managed 
 with the Prince to his Majefty's Satisfaction^ 
 be had fummoned his Cabinet Council to 
 meet the next Day, at nine in the Morning; 
 tho' he feems he intended nothing lefs than 
 to be with them y .for he went away that 
 very Night, without fo much as leaving any 
 Order or Direftion behind him. The Lord 
 Chancellor withdrew at the fame Time, and 
 tctok the Broad Seal along with him ; fo 
 that all was now in the utmoft Confulion^ 
 nor is the Confternation to be exprefled. 
 Upon this the Lords, as well Spiritual as 
 Temporal, wrote to his Highnefs oi Orangey 
 to let him know the Kiag was gone from 
 them and to acquaint him, They would en- 
 deavour to keep Things in Order, till they 
 could receive his Directions, and to invite 
 him to Town. 
 
 > The Rabble had been before fufficiently 
 incenfed againft the Papifts, but now appre- 
 hending, and reafonably enough. That the 
 King had withdrawn himfelf by their Ad- 
 vice, or rather at their Inftigation, they grew 
 to that Height of Outrage, that riling in 
 
 prodigious Multitudes, and dividing them- 
 ^^.^iU felves 
 
 . 
 
 Of^tr J O H N R E R E S B T. %^f 
 
 felves into great Parties, they pulled down ^6^, 
 the Chappels of that Worfliip, as well as the 
 Houfes of many of its Profeffors, taking and 
 Ipoiling their Goods^ and imprifoning fuch 
 as they fufpe&ed to be Priefts : Nor did 
 they fpare even the Chappels and Houfes of 
 Ambafladors, and other foreign Minifters ; 
 and particularly the Sfanijh Arabaffador, 
 who, as was generally computed, of his own 
 ^nd others, who fought his Proteftion^ had 
 Goods and Plate to th$ Value of one hun- 
 dred thoufand Pounds taken from, himj 
 what was of lefs Worth, and belonging to 
 that Superftition, wa$ burnt publickly in the 
 Streets. The fame Day, the Lord Chan- 
 cellor, who h^d waited too long for the 
 Tide, tho* in the Difguife of a Seaman and 
 deftitute of his Eye-brows, which he had 
 purpofely cut off, wa3 ftopt at Wapping^ ta- 
 ken, and committed to the Towejf by Or- 
 der of the Lords. He w^ firft brought to 
 the Lord Mayor upon Sufpicion only; hut 
 being foon known, they were obliged to 
 give him a ftrong Guard, or he had cer- 
 tainly been torn to Pieces. Pen^ the great 
 Quaker, a Man of reputed Wit, and much 
 confulted by the King, with regard to the 
 difpenfing Power he would unfbnunately 
 have ufurped, and the Scheme of Liberty of 
 
 Con-* 
 
apS =^ MEMOIRS 
 
 Confcience, was taken alfo ; as was Father 
 Petersj that Incendiary, that Scandal to the 
 Privy Council, where he was the firft of his 
 pernicious Order that had fat for many a 
 Year before. '■' 
 
 The King, however, upon his Departure 
 wrote to the general Officers of his Army, 
 fignifying, That Things being brought to 
 Extremities, and being obliged to fend a- 
 way the C^een and the Prince, he was forced 
 to follow himfelf^ but hoped it might, at 
 fome Time or other, pleafe God to touch the 
 Hearts of this Nation with true Loyalty and 
 Honour. That could he but have trufted to 
 his Troops, he would at leafl: have had one 
 Blow for it; but that tho' there were fome 
 loyal and brave Men among them, both Of- 
 ficers and Soldiers, it was their Advice to 
 him aot to venture himfelf at their Head, 
 or to fight the Prince of Orange with them. 
 He thanked thofe for their Fidelity who 
 had been tr^ae to him ; and added. That 
 tho' he did not expeft they ihould expofe 
 themfelves, by refilling a foreign Army, and 
 a poifoned Nation, he hoped they would 
 preferve themfelves difengaged from Affo- 
 ciations and all fuch evil Doings. In the 
 Poftfcript he told them. That as he bad ever 
 found them Loyal, fo they ever had and e- 
 
 ver 
 
 il 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresbt. 
 
 "^er fhould find in him a kind Mailer. Lord 
 Fe'uerjhamy then commanding as General, 
 difpatched this Letter to the Prince of O- 
 rangey and fent him Word, That having 
 thereby Dire£lions to make no Oppofition, 
 he had, to prevent the Efiufion of Chriftian 
 Blood, given Notice of the fame to his Ar- 
 my, which had thereupon in great Meafure 
 disbanded. 
 
 His Majefty, in the mean Time, endea- 
 vouring to forfake the Kingdom, in a Hoy 
 with few of his Attendance, among whom 
 was Sir Edward Haksy and ftretching over 
 firom an Ifland in Kent^ was boarded by a 
 Boat, with thirty fix armed Men, who were 
 bound, as they called it, a Priefl-codding 
 or catching. They ufed the King, but efpe- 
 cially thofe that were with him, with great 
 Rudenefs and Incivility, and took from his 
 Majefty three hundred Guinea's, all he was 
 at that Time worth, and his Sword : But 
 when they came to underftand who he was, 
 they offered to reftore him both, but he 
 would take back nothing but his Sword. 
 Being brought to Shore, he went to Lord 
 IFhichefea'Sj where he was taken with ano- 
 ther Fit of Bleeding at the Nofe, which 
 made him very weak and very fick. Infor- 
 mation of this being fent up to the Lords at 
 
 1 
 
 V 
 
f. 
 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 Whitehall^ they ordered four Noblemen ^ 
 Aylsbtiry^ Middktonj Tannouth and another, 
 with fome of his Servants to attend him, and 
 carry him Neceflaries j fome of the Guards 
 alfo, and Lord Feverpam^ waited upon hira; 
 but their Orders were to leave it to his Ma- 
 jefty's own Choice, either to go or to re- 
 turn, it being deemed unfit to put any Re- 
 llraint upon him. Much about the fame 
 Time, the Lords Peterborcigb and Salisbury^ 
 who had been lately converted by Father 
 Walker^ Mailer of Univerlity College in Ox- 
 fordj were alfo taken: But the Prince of O- 
 range being invited to London^ had reached 
 Windsor before he knew the King had been 
 intercepted. 
 
 Before his Highnefs came to Town, he 
 fent his own People to poflefs themfelves of 
 the Tower : He quartered them hi and near 
 the Town, and polled them at Whitehall" 
 and at two in the Morning fent his Majelly 
 Notice That he mull remove from thence 
 that Day to fome Place ten or twelve Miles 
 dillant, and be attended by his Highnefs's 
 Guards. His Majelly therefore went to 
 Rochefierj attended by Lord Dunbartofty 
 Lord Aylsbtiry^ and Lord Arran ^ and then 
 the Prince came to St. James's^ where he 
 was complimented by many of the Nobility j 
 
 the 
 
 Of Sir JohnRe resby. 
 
 the Bells rang, Bonfires were lighted up, 
 nor was any public Profeffion of Joy wantr 
 ing among the Rabble ^ while ferious Men 
 in the City feemed to think it hard The 
 King Ihould be fo forced to withdraw him- 
 feJf a fecond Time, 
 
 The Prince, upon his Arrival, feemed 
 more inclined to the Presbyterians than to 
 the Members of the Church, which ftartled 
 the Clergy ; he ordered as many of the 
 King's Forces to be gathered together as 
 poffible, and confined Lord Ye'-oerpam to 
 WindfoY Callle for having disbanded them, 
 and for other Matters laid to his Charge 9 
 nor mufl: we forget. That his Highnefs af- 
 fumed fo much to himfelf, as to make the 
 Duke oi Beaufort wait full four Hours before 
 he would give him Admittance. The King, 
 alarmed at this Proceeding, began to think 
 himfelf in Danger, and fent to the Lords,, 
 lignifying, It was his Defire to go out of 
 the Kingdom. Their Lordlhips took fome 
 Time to confider on the Anfwer they 
 were to make ; but while they were in the 
 mid'fl: of their Deliberation, he gratifyed 
 himfelf in his own Delire, and went private- 
 ly away. And now the Efigli/h Guards and 
 other Troops were, by the Prince, fent to 
 the Diftance of twenty Miles from London^ 
 
 to 
 
a- 
 
 1588. 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 to make Room for the foreign Soldiery'he 
 had brought with him. 
 
 The Lords having for fome Time fat in 
 their Houfe, and finding that his Majefty 
 would not appoint another Chancellor or 
 Keeper, or produce the great Seal, the 
 Lords I fay, being about fixty in Number 
 as well Spiritual as Temporal, Lord Halhfa^ 
 being in the Chair, made an Order to banilh 
 all Papiils that had not kept Houfe for four 
 Years laft paft, to the Diltance of ten Miles 
 from the City. Their Lordlhips ceafed not 
 to fit, tho'it y/^Cbri^mafs'Day:, and among 
 other Things, framed an Addrefs to the 
 Prince, That he would take the Govern- 
 ment on himfelf, till Affairs could be fet- 
 tled ; and the next Day a certain Number 
 of Lords were appointed to wait on him 
 therewith; but his Highnefsfaid, He could 
 give no Anfwer to it, till he had the Opini- 
 on of the Commons j for it was but two Days 
 before that he had ordered the Lord Mayor 
 and fifty of the Aldermen and Common 
 Council, together with all fiach Gentlemen 
 as had been Members of Parliament in the 
 late Reign, and were in Town, to meet to- 
 gether in the Houfe of Commons, to fit 
 there as a Committee, in Imitation of the 
 Lords, They met accordingly, to the Num- 
 ber 
 
 Of Sir John Reresbt. 
 
 ber of about 300, and voted a Concurrence 
 with the Lords in moll Things, and particu- 
 larly in their Addrefs to the Prince to t^ke 
 iJie Government upon him till the 2 2d of 
 January y when a Convention was to befum- 
 moned ; the Writs, it Ihould feem, th^t had 
 been iflued out for the calling of a Parlia- 
 ment, and the Elections that had thereupon 
 been made, becoming void and of none Ef^ 
 fe6t. All this was tranfafted in the midftof 
 almoll a dead Calm, no Mifchief was at- 
 xeoipted, no Diforders raifed or fomented, 
 but all was Peace, Acquiefcence, and Sub- 
 ;mifIion. 
 
 The Prince having received this Addrefs, ^j^c. ^3. 
 replyed, That he would, according to their 
 Advice, endeavour to fecure the Peace of 
 the Nation, till the Meeting of the Conven- 
 tion; and that in order to the faid Meeting, 
 he would ilFue out his Letters to the feve- 
 ral Counties and Towns ; that he would take 
 Care the Revenue Ihould be applied to the 
 moft proper Ufes the Exigencies of Affairs 
 required; that he would do his bell to put 
 Irclofid into fiich a Condition as might bell 
 maintain the Protellant Religion and Eng- 
 lijh Intereft in that Kingdom ; and that he 
 would at all Times hazard himfelf for the 
 Laws and Liberties of thefe Kingdoms, and 
 
 X the 
 
MEMOIRS 
 
 the Prefervation of the Proteftant Faith, It 
 oeing the very End for which he came. 
 
 News now came that the King was fafe 
 arrived in France^ and that he was gone to the 
 ,Queen,who was at Paris. The French King at 
 firft prepared the Caftle of r/>;a^;/w^5 for their 
 Reception and Entertainment ^ but their Ma- 
 iefties afterwards removed to St. Germains. 
 The King thus abfent in a ftrange Land, the 
 Lord Tyrconnel^ Lieutenant of Ireland^ ne- 
 verthekfs remained firm and ftedfilt to his 
 Mcijefty, with a numerous Army of Papifts;^ 
 while Lord Incheqain headed another of 
 Protollants, and had taken Londonderry ^ and 
 lome other ftrong Towns in that Kingdom. 
 Jan, 2.1. And now being at Liberty to go where I 
 pleafed, I repaired to London.^ where being 
 arrived, I w^as prefently fenfible of a great 
 Alteration • the Guards, and other Parts of 
 the x\rmy, which both for their Perfons and 
 Gallantry were an Ornament to the Place, 
 were fent to quarter at a Diftance, while the 
 Streets fwarmed with ill-favoured and ill- 
 accoutred Dutchmen., and other Strangers of 
 the Prince's Armyi and yet the City feem- 
 ed to be mightily pleafed with their Deli- 
 verers, nor perceived their Deformity, or 
 the Oppreffion they laboured under, by far 
 more unfupportable than ever they had fuf- 
 fcred from the Enghjh. Tho' 
 
 Of Sir John Reresby, 
 
 Tho' the Convention met on the 22d, 
 there was nothing confiderable done till the 
 28£h, when the Settlement of the Nation 
 being taken into Conlideration, by the Com- 
 mons, they voted That King James II. hav- 
 ing endeavoured to fubvert the Government 
 of this Kingdom, by breaking the original 
 Contraft between the King and the People; 
 and by the Advice of Jefuits, and other 
 wicked Perfons, having fubverted the fun- 
 damental Laws, and having laltly with- 
 drawn himfelf from the Kingdom, had ab- 
 dicated the Government, and the Throne 
 was thereby vacant. The next Day the j^n, 29; 
 Lords entered upon the Conlideration of the 
 fame • and feveral Motions were made, as 
 there had been the Day before in the Houfe 
 of Commons. Some would have had the 
 King recalled upon Terms, but thefe were 
 fewj others would have had the Govern- 
 ment continued in the King's Name, while 
 the Prince was inveiled with the executive 
 Power by the Stile or Title of Regentj or 
 Prote^or ; fome again were for having it that 
 the King Ihould forfeit the Crown, and the 
 Prince be elc£led thereto; and others again 
 were for having the Prince and Princefs 
 crowned, as in the Cafe oi Philip and Marjy 
 and that the Prince fliould be King by De- 
 
 X 2 fcent 
 
MEMOIRS 
 
 fcent in Right of his Wife, while no No- 
 tice was to be taken of the Prince ofJVales^ 
 who fhould be rendered incapable to fucceed, 
 as a Roman Catholic, he having been baptiz- 
 ed in that Church : At length, their Lord- 
 Dec. 30. fhips voted a Concurrence with the Com- 
 mons as to the main Point, the Vacancy of 
 the Throne, but could not agree with them 
 as to cenain Words, and fo adjourned the 
 Debate till the next Day, tho' it was car- 
 ryed by no more than fo fmall a Majority as 
 three. The fame Day the Commons refolv- 
 ed, Firjty That it had been found inconfi- 
 ftent for a Proteftant Kingdom to be go- 
 verned by a Popilh Prince; Secondly ^ That 
 a Committee fliould be appointed to bring 
 in general Heads of what was abfolutely 
 neceflary for the better Security of our Re- 
 ligion, Laws, and Liberty. This laft Vote 
 or Refolution was of moil high Importance, 
 and wifely intended to give Birth to the 
 Conditions on which the Perfon that next 
 filled the Throne fliould be intitled thereto, 
 and to bind him down to a more itri6l Ob- 
 fervance of what ought to be, than had 
 heretofore been the Cafe. Mean while, the 
 Prince feemed not at all to concern himfelf 
 'with what was going forward ; and only de- 
 fired that, the Circumftanccs of Holland and 
 
 Inland 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresby. 307 
 
 Inland requiring it, they would make all ^ i6 ^S. 
 poffible Difpatch, and come to as early a 
 Conclulion as they could. 
 
 The next Day was appointed a Feftival ^^^ 5^' 
 of Thankfgiving for his Highnefs's Arrival^ 
 as it was worded. To deliver us from Pope- 
 ry and Slavery ; but it was obferved that 
 the public Expreflions of Joy flowed not to 
 the Height expefted ; which, whence it 
 came to pafs, might be in Part accounted for 
 here, but may be better deferred to a little 
 Diftance of Time. The fame Day the 
 Lords fat, and refumed their Debate; but 
 differed with the Commons as to their Term, 
 Abdicatedy and would have had, Defirtedy 
 fubftituted in lieu thereof; nor could they 
 quite agree with them, That the Throne 
 was abfolutely vacant; {o that there wa3ftill 
 Room for the Conflitution of a Regent or Prcj- 
 tciior^ or even for a Revocation of the King 
 himfelf upon Terms. 
 
 In the midll of this I favv Lord Hallifax^ jr^j, i 
 in Company with Mr. Seymour^ the quondam 
 Speaker of the Commons, a Man of great 
 Parts, and much for continuing the Power 
 in the King's Name, and even in his Perfon, 
 could we but be fecured from the Danger of 
 Popery. Dr. Burnet alfo was prefent, who 
 wkh great Violence argued That the Prince 
 
 X 3 was 
 
3o8 
 
 1(588. 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 was to be crowned • and urged, That Eng- 
 land could never be happily fettled till his 
 Highnefs was at the Helm, and this King- 
 dom in fl:ri£V Conjunftion with Holland. 
 Seymour faid his Propofals were impraftica- 
 ble; for that if the Prince was King, he 
 muft maintain himfelf as fuch, by the Means 
 of an Army, which was not to be reived on 
 againft their natural Sovereign. He obl'erv- 
 ed, That as the late Englijh Army would 
 not fight for Popery, they would be as back- 
 ward in fighting againft their King; and 
 that it was impoflible for England and Hoi- 
 land to join heartily in one and the fame In- 
 tereft, being Suitors, as they were, to one 
 and the fame Miftrefs, namely, Trade. That 
 fame Night my Lord Hallifax told me. He 
 was not at firft in the Secret of the Prince's 
 Expedition ; but that as his Highnefs was 
 now with us, and upon fo good an Occafion, 
 he thought we were obliged to ftand by and 
 defend him. I told him, I had heard Lord 
 Danhy expefted to be beforehand with him in 
 the Prince's good Graces ; but he gave me 
 fome Reafons to make me believe otherwife, 
 took Notice that his Lordlhip began to lag 
 in his Zeal ; and concluded that the faid 
 Lord could have no Hopes of being Trea. 
 ftirer, his Highnefs having declared he would 
 
 have 
 
 O/i'/V J O H N R E R E S B Y- 
 
 have CommiiTioners for the Execution of 
 that Office. His Lordlhip then proceeded 
 to tell me he himfelf Ihould be employed, 
 and offered to me fome Arguments to prove 
 the Legality of ferving under the future Go- 
 vernment ; particularly that tho' the King 
 had relinquilhedhisFunaion, the Conftitu- 
 tion was not for that Reafon to be fullered 
 to fall ; that fall it muft, if Men would not 
 aft under thofe to whom it was delegated j 
 in fine, that in our prefent Circumftances 
 the Sahis Popiili was to be the Lex Saprerna* 
 His Lordfliip then connnued, That there 
 were fo many who declined to ferve, and 
 fo few who were fit for it, that if I had ^ 
 Mind to engage myfelf, there would De, 
 doubtlefs. Room fufficient for me ; and that 
 after Things were upon a ftable Founda- 
 tion, I might entertain fome Thoughts of 
 being fent Ambaffador to fome Prince or 
 State, whereby I might be out of the way, 
 till the Clouds which hung over us, were 
 difperfed and blown away. His Lordfhip 
 then offered to carry me the next Morning 
 to the Prince, whom I had not yet feen, ad^ 
 vifed me to be cautious of the Company I 
 kept, and to be very circumfpe6t in all my 
 Anions and Behaviour. 
 
 X 
 
 The 
 
i6SS. 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 The next Day t went to meet the Mar-^ 
 quifs, who was with the Prince in his Bed* 
 chamber ; but coming out to me, he told 
 me his Highnefs could not be publickly feen 
 of two Hours yet to coine ; and advifed me 
 to defer the waiting on him till the next Day. 
 At the fame Time the Lords, who were for 
 conferring the Crown immediately on the 
 Prince, began to apprehend theadverfe Par- 
 ties might prevail againft them^ wherefore 
 they found Means to ftir up the People, who 
 In a tumultuous Manner offered a Petition 
 to the two Houfes of Parliament, That they 
 would crown both the Prince and Princefs 
 of Or^^^^-, and take fpeedy Care of Liberty 
 and Property, as well as for the Defeilce of 
 Ma^td: But the Lords rejefted it, becaufe 
 it was not figned ; and the Commons did 
 the fame, faying, They Would not be ^Wed 
 in their Votes, nor be direfted ; for that 
 they ought to be tree. The very fame t)ay 
 the King fent two Letters, the one to the 
 Lords, the othei* to the Commons ; but the 
 Meflenger not being prefent to teftify they 
 were brought from the King, they were laid 
 by, and the Perfon who brought them was 
 ordered to attend on the Lords the Monday 
 Morning next. At this Very Junfture I was 
 told, by a Court Lady^ That i% was much 
 
 won* 
 
 q/'i'/V JohnReresbt. 311 
 
 wondered my FrieiKl, the Marquifs oiHaU ^J^ 
 Iff ax, had been fo eager for the King's hav- 
 ing abdicated the Government, when he ab- 
 folutely knew his Majefty had never gone^ 
 if he had not been frightned into it. She 
 affured rtiehis Lordftiip had treated with the 
 King to come again into Bufmefs, a few 
 Weeks before the Prince's Intention was 
 certainly known : That Ihe was the very 
 Perfon his Lordfhip fent to the King ^ that 
 the King aaually gave him a Meeting at her 
 Houfe : That they had agreed upon Terms j 
 nay, what is more, that his Lordfhip had 
 treated with fome Priefts for his Return to 
 Court. That upon this Account his Majefty 
 particularly depended upon him, when he 
 named him one of the Commiffioners to go 
 to the Prince ; that after having conferred 
 with his Highnefs, he fent the King a 
 private Letter, intimating an ill Defign a- 
 gainft his Perfon, and that this was the real 
 Caufe of his Majefty's Flight, and the De^ 
 parture of the Queen. That after the King 
 was brought back, Lord Hallifax^ was one 
 of the Peers that came and admonilhed him, 
 on Behalf of the Prince, to leave WhitehaU^ 
 for Rochepr or /few, within the fliort Space 
 of two Hours \ and that his Lordfhip's Rea-i 
 fon for conveying this ungrateful Meffage to 
 
'1 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 his MajeHy, was, That he was affured the 
 Prince's Party had in Council refolved to 
 feize on his Perfon, and imprifon him : That 
 upon the whole it muft be notorioufly known 
 to his Lordlhip that the King had no man- 
 ner of Inclination to withdraw either the 
 firll or the fecond Time • and that he was 
 compelled thereto out of a Principle of mere 
 Selr-pielervation. She firther imparted to 
 me That the the King was fo terribly pof- 
 fefled of his Danger, and fo deeply afflifted 
 when the Princels Jme went away, that it 
 difordered bim in his Underftanding, but 
 that he, recovered pretty well upon his Re-, 
 turn. She continued, That the fecond Time 
 he went away he fo little defigned any fuch 
 Thing, that he knew not which way to fet 
 forward ; one while he refolved to go north- 
 ward, and throw himfelf into the Hands of 
 the Lord jD^;^^j'- another, he had Thoughts 
 pf going to the Archbilhop o{ Canterbury^ or 
 the Biiliop oilVhichefler-^ that Die herfelf was 
 fent to thefe lall, to know if they would re-, 
 ceive and fecure him, and that they neither 
 accepted the Motion, nor rejefted it. She 
 told me moreover. That the Lords intend- 
 ed to make \Jk of the Marquifs for the 
 Prince's Service, but were far from intend- 
 ing him any Advantage thereby : That his 
 - • Lord' 
 
 Of Sir J O H N R E R E S B T. 
 
 Lordlhip having been the firft that advifed 
 the taking away of the Charters, he would 
 be in fome Danger ot being called to an Ac- 
 count for it, as foon as the Government was 
 well fettled ; as well as for other Articles, 
 he having great Enemies among the Party to 
 which he adhered ^ at laft ftie defired me if 
 poflible fo to contrive that flie might fpeak to 
 his Lordlhip, and endeavour to moderate^him 
 fo far as to make him think well of a Regency, 
 and not hurry on fo faft for a Forfeiture or 
 Abdication. I told her I would do what^ I 
 could in it ; but was fenfible his Lordlhip 
 was too far engaged to recede. The fame 
 Lady again told me a great Lord oi Scotland 
 had, but a few Days before, affured her, That 
 in Cafe the two Houfes agreed to make the 
 Government vacant, that Kingdom would 
 chufe for herfelf, be no more a Province to 
 England-^ nor give no longer Attendance at 
 the Door of an Englijh Court. 
 
 The Lords this Day did nothing more 
 than order the 8th oi February^ which ufed 
 to be kept as the Anniverfary of his Ma- 
 jefty's Accellion, to be no longer obferv- 
 ed as a Feftival ^ and fent down their Re- 
 folution to the Commons concerning the 
 Abdication and other Matters thereto re- 
 lating: Which the Commons, the Day af- 
 ter. 
 
II 
 
 Feb. 2. 
 
 «*. 
 
 .1! 
 
 M E M O I R S 
 
 ter, taking into Confideration, they refolv- 
 ed to adhere, (otidevi verbis^ to their firft 
 Vote. 
 
 I faw the Duke ofSonmerfit^the Earl ofBur- 
 hngtotty the Earl oi Scarjdak, and foine other 
 Lords, who had all been aaive in the Prince's 
 Caufe, which they now feemed in feme Mea- 
 fure to repent. Some ol them faid The Thing 
 had run a Length they little expefted ; others 
 That they could never have believed the 
 Prince would have contended for the Crown • 
 but all agreed in Opinion It was to be fet on 
 .the Head of the Princefs, and fo defcend in 
 its right Courfe : And the Earl o{ Scarfdale 
 particularly told me The Princefs of Den- 
 mark was very fenfible of the Error ihe had 
 committed in leaving her Father, to make 
 herfelfof a Party with the Prince, who now 
 in Return was endeavouring to put her by 
 her Right, and to obtain priority of Succef- 
 fion before her. 
 
 The Lords having fent down to the Com- 
 mons their Reafons for abiding by their 
 Word Deferred, and why they thought there 
 was no Vacancy ; the Houfe thereupon di- 
 vided, the Ay's being 1 83, and the No's 
 a5 1. The next Day the Houfes had a free 
 Conference, the Iffue of which was, That 
 the Day after, being the <jth, the Lords 
 
 con? 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresby. 
 
 concurred with the Commons. A Vacancy 
 being thus on all Hands pronounced, the 
 Lords proceeded to confider in what Man- 
 ner the Throne was to be filled, and in the 
 End paired a Vote That the Prbce and Prin- 
 cefs of Orange ftiould be proclaimed by the 
 Style and Title of King Wtlliam and Queen 
 Mary. But the Commons proceeded a Step 
 farther, and voted that all Sanftion of the 
 Laws and the negative Voice Ihould be vett- 
 ed in the King fmgly, declaring it impro- 
 per there ihould be two Negatives: That 
 the Succeffion of the Crown Ihould be to 
 the new King and Queen, and to the Sur- 
 vivor of the two; then to their Iffue, and 
 in default thereof to the Princefs Ame and 
 her Iflue ; and in default of fuch Iffue, to 
 the Iffue of the King in cafe he ihould have 
 any by another Venter, and fo to the right 
 Line, Papifts always excluded. 
 
 The Commons having completed a Scheme 
 of Grievances and Ufurpations on the Rights 
 of the Sub3ea,fent up the fame to the Lords 
 for their Concurrence, intending to lay them 
 before the Prince for Redrefs, at the fame 
 Time they made him a Tender of the 
 Crown of England with all its Dependan- 
 
 Fib. S. 
 
 cies. 
 
 Mcaa 
 
EfW 
 
 316 MEMOIRS 
 
 ^'ss^ Mean while the Marquifs o£ Halltfax de- 
 
 Feb ^^^^^ '"^ ^° ^^^ *^ ^^'^y* I J"ft now men- 
 tioned, to my Houfe, where he gave her a 
 
 Meeting, and was two Hours in Converfa- 
 tion with her. During which, he after- 
 wards told me flie was fo free with him as 
 to fay, She wondered he, of all Men living, 
 fliould contend that the King had abdicat- 
 ed, when he knew himfelf to have been fo 
 direftly inftrumental in forcing him away, 
 by fending him Word, That if he ftaid his 
 Life would be in Danger ; that for this No- 
 tice and Advice the King owned himfelf in- 
 debted to him for his Life now, as before 
 that he was not excluded : That to this his 
 Lordlhip replyed. The King had done ill 
 by him, in fending him a MelTenger to the 
 Prince, and going away before he could re- 
 turn : That to this Ihe returned, his Lord- 
 ihip was not to fay that to her, who aftually 
 knew he firlt fent him away, and was then 
 angry becaufe he went : That then my Lord 
 complained to her of the King's never fend- 
 ing for him till the Prince was landed : That 
 this alfo Ihe contradiSted by obfcrving that 
 his Lordlhip knew her to be privy to fre- 
 quent Invitations he had from the King, 
 and that he might have had his own Terms 
 long before, if he had not flood fo aloof: 
 
 That 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresby. 
 
 That ftie then remonftrated to him that 
 though he was fo deeply at prefent imbark- 
 ed in another Intereft, he could not be well 
 too cautious i for that the Earl of Danhy 
 would moft certainly get the Start of him, 
 and play him the fame Game in this Court, 
 Lord Sunderland had in the other ; that all 
 they were now doing tottered upon an un- 
 certain Foundation; that Scotland would 
 moft affuredly chufe her own King ; that 
 Inland was probably loft and gone, the 
 Lord Deputy "Tynonnel being there at the 
 Head of an Army of 40000 Men ; and that 
 England herfelf was much divided, and in 
 great Diftraaion, with much more to the 
 fame Effefti That hisLordfliip himfelf con- 
 feffed there were but fmall Hopes of a laft- 
 ing Peace from this Settlement, tho' by far 
 the beft that could be formed at this Time 
 of the Day; and that as he was well aware 
 of the great Intereft Ihe had with the King, 
 he hoped ihe would upon Occafion be his 
 Friend, as he would be hers whenever (he 
 might ftand in K eed of him. The Truth is, 
 fhe dealt more roundly with him than any 
 Body elfe could have ventured to do with 
 fo great a Man ; but his Lordlhip knew her 
 well, and was prepared for all Ihe had to fay , 
 ' telhng 
 
 r 
 
5i8 MEMOIRS 
 
 1688 telling me himfelf, it was but Prudence to 
 iend an Ear to every Body. 
 
 There were mofi: certainly great and vio- 
 lent Difcontents at this Time, and the 
 Caufea thereof were thefe ; The Prince had 
 declared he had no Defign upon the Crown, 
 and now fought it all he could j he came to 
 fettle the Proteftant Religion, and yet 
 brought over 4000 Papifts with him in his 
 Army, a Number not far fliort of what the 
 King had in his, but then the former were 
 Foreigners, the latter, for the moft Part, 
 M^glip ; public Declaration had been made 
 that the JBirth of the Prince of Wales was 
 ialfe or fappofitious ; that there was a pri- 
 vate Treaty made with France to inflave 
 England^ that the Murder of the late King 
 and of the Earl of Effix would be amply 
 made oik ; and yet nothing of jail this ap- 
 peared, excepting fome fmall Circumftances 
 relating to the Earl of £^x : Then the 
 Prince kept his Dutch Forces in Town, 
 while the Englifh were marched off to re- 
 mote Quarters ; his Highnefe declared he 
 intended to keep his own Men here, and to 
 fend ours to Holland and Ireland'^ the Prin- 
 cefs Anne of Denmark was poii-poned in the 
 ^&ac«fliQn.i feveral Noblemen were difap- 
 
 pointed 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresbt. 
 
 pointed of Polls and Preferments they de- 
 fervedly expe£ted for joining with his High- 
 nefs, becaufe they would not vote fo readi- 
 ly for him as he imagined ; in fliort, the 
 Letters his Majefty fent to the tvvo Houfes, 
 were not io much as opened ; and Trade, 
 the Dutch being a frugal People, feemed to 
 be much abated in London^ to what it had 
 been in the King's Time : Thefe were the 
 Caufes of the Difcontents that now broke 
 out and appeared. 
 
 The two Houfes having agreed upon a 
 Lift of Grievances and Ufurpations, and 
 the Princefs of Orange being now fafe ar- 
 rived, they both in a Body attended their 
 Highnefs's, who fat in two Chairs of State, 
 in the banquetting Houfe, Whitehall^ where 
 the Speaker of the Houfe of Lords having 
 read their Grievances and defired Redrefs, 
 at the fame Time made them an Offer of 
 the Crowns of England^ France^ and Irelandy 
 with all the Dependancies and Dominions 
 thereunto belonging. The Prince in a ihort 
 Speech told them He did accept of the 
 fame, and would do all he could for the 
 Prefervation of their Liberties ; and then 
 went away with the Princefs- while the 
 Heralds and feveral of the Nobility pro- 
 ceeded to proclaim them King and Queen, 
 
 Y in 
 
 Fib. 1 1; 
 
 12. 
 
\ 
 
 'I 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 in the ufual Form. The Remainder of the 
 Day was fpent in Joy and Acclamation ^ 
 tho' fome there were who had but a forrow- 
 ful Countenance in the midll thereof. 
 
 The chief of the Articles the Convention 
 demanded Redrefs of, were, Sufpenfion ot 
 the Laws, or their Execution by the King, 
 without the Confent of Parliament; the pre- 
 tended Power to difpenfe with Laws; the 
 Court of Ecclefiaftical Commiffioners ; the 
 railing of Money by Prerogative; the keep- 
 ing up a {landing Force in Times of Peace, 
 without the Confent of Parliament ; theOb- 
 ftruftions made to the free Choice of Mem- 
 bers to reprefent the People ; the Bars to 
 Freedom of Speech in Parliament; and the 
 Impofition of exceffive Bail, or Fines. The 
 Houfes then delired the Oaths of Aftegiance 
 and Supremacy might be fupprelfed, and 
 the two following taken in their ftead ; / 
 
 A. B, do ftncerely pro7nife and fw ear that I will 
 he faithful and bear true Jlkgiance to their Ma- 
 jejlies King William and ^iieen Mary, fo 
 help me God. ■ ■ / A. B. do fwear that I 
 
 do from my Heart abhor ^ det-eji^ and abjure as 
 impious and heretical that damnable Doffrine 
 and Po/itim That Princes excommunicated or de- 
 prived by the Pope or any Authority of the See 
 of Rome may be depofed or murdered by their 
 
 Sub- 
 
 4 1 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresby. 
 
 Subjects or any other whatfiever ; and I do de- 
 clare That no foreign Prince^ Perfon^ Prelate 
 or State hath or ought to have any Jurifdiifi" 
 Off. Powerj Superiority^ Pre-eminence^ or Au'^ 
 thority Ecckjiajlical or Civil within this Realmy 
 
 fo help me God. 
 
 The Days following, the Houfes being 
 adjourned for fome Time, were taken up 
 in Congratulations to the new King, whole 
 Numbers, on this Occafion, were unfpeaka- 
 ble ; in naming and fwearing a new privy 
 Council ; by whofe Advice his Majelty be- 
 gan firft with appointing the great Olficers 
 of the Court and the Kingdom ; while the 
 grand Expectation was, who would have 
 the Preference Hallifax or Danby. The 
 latter certainly hoped to be Lord Treafurer ; 
 but the former allured me he was difap- 
 pointed, and obliged to take up with the 
 Prefidency of the Council, a Place of great 
 Honour and Credit, but very fmall Profit; 
 while Hallifax himfelf was made Lord Pri- 
 vy Seal, of his own Choice, an OiKce of 
 great Truft, and worth full three thoufand 
 Pounds a Year. Before this was publickly 
 known, his Lordlhip told me Danby was 
 down in the Mouth, and would not fufFer 
 bis Neighbours to be a little quiet about 
 him, and that for his own Part, as they yet 
 
 Y 2 flood 
 
Feb, 2 
 
 3* 
 
 .28. 
 
 it 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 Hood feemingly fair together, he would 
 give him no jufl Occalion of Offence. 
 
 The King being thus fcated in - the 
 Throne, the great Bulinefs was to procure 
 fuch a Parliament as would confirm what 
 the Convention had done ; and becaufe a 
 new Eleftion might carry fome Hazard 
 with it, or, as was pretended, might be 
 the Lofs of Time, when the Exigencies 
 of the State required fuch immediate Dif- 
 patch, it was, after great Difputes between 
 the Lawyers as to the Legality of the 
 Thing, and warm Debates in both Houfes 
 agreed That the Convention fliould be con- 
 verted into a Parliament; which was ac- 
 cordingly done by a Bill framed for that 
 Purpofe, which having firll palled the 
 Houfe of Lords, was tranfmitted down to 
 the Commons, who having palled the fame, 
 it was at length offered to the Royal Af- 
 fent, which was granted of Courfe. 
 
 And thus was a Parliament obtained, af- 
 ter an extraordinary Manner it muft be 
 confelied, but being thus conftituted they 
 proceeded to prepare feveral Bills, and 
 particularly one for a Comprehenlion, and 
 another for the Toleration of Proteftant Dif- 
 fenters, which being moved by Lord Not^ 
 tingham^ in the Houfe of Peers, was fe- 
 
 conded 
 
 Of Sir John Reresby. 
 
 conded by fome Bifhops, tho' more out of 
 Fear than Inclination ; and a third for the 
 railing of 400,000 Pounds by a Tax upon 
 Land. 
 
 And now Lord Anan^ who had been a 
 little before allaulted in LciceJIcr-Fields by 
 eight Ruffians, and had, at a Meeting of 
 the Scotch Nobility in London^ propoi'ed to 
 recall King Jamesj was committed Prifoner 
 to the Tower, and many ot' the ianje No- 
 bility being on the Point of fetting for- 
 ward for the Convention in their King- 
 dom, were flopped. The fame Day, I 
 dined with the Earl of Danby^ who treated 
 me Vv'ith more Intimacy and Freedom than 
 I expefted^ his Lordftiip faid He had 
 made a fair Report oi me to the King, 
 when he gave him an Account of the Sur- 
 prifal of /M; but I found him extremely 
 cooled with regard to Affairs, as now ma- 
 naged. He faid that being embarked with 
 his All, he was forry to fee Things no bet^ 
 ter conduced ; that Ireland was in a man- 
 ner become invincible by our Negle6l of 
 fending Forces thither before now \ that 
 with regard to this, and other material 
 Points, equally unheeded, he had been 
 prefling with the King to a Degree even 
 of Incivility \ that he had told his Maje- 
 
 y s fty, 
 
 V 
 
 ^1 
 
SM 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 i- > 
 
 ^11 
 
 1688. fty^ He plainly fliw he did all he could to 
 encourage the Presbyterians and to dilhear- 
 ten the Church, which could not but be ab- 
 folutely prejudicial both to himfelf and the 
 Government ^ tho' he at the fame Time ob- 
 ferved that his Majefty interfered but little 
 in Councils, being prevented therefrom 
 partly by Inclination, and partly by want 
 ofHealth. Indeed the King looked but 
 ill, and the Difficulty he laboured under in 
 fwallowing, feemed to forctel him a Man 
 of Ihort Continuance in this World. His 
 Lordihip farther told me He had been ap- 
 pointed Prefident of the Council quite a- 
 gainft his Will, alter the King had declar- 
 ed he could not give him the Stall' of Trea- 
 furer, determined, as he was, that the 
 Treafury fhould be in the Hands of Com- 
 miffioners ^ that he had been offered to be 
 Secretary of State and Preiident both at the 
 fame Time, and that he had declined the 
 firft ; that all he had asked of the King for 
 himfelf, was a Patent to which he had a 
 Right by a former Grant, and that he 
 would alfo be pleafed to gratify fome Gen- 
 tlemen who had, upon this Revolution, 
 joined him in the North ^ in fine, that the 
 King had told him It would be by no Means 
 for his Intereft to be out of all Bulinefs ; and 
 
 that 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresby. 
 
 that he had, in a Manner, forced the Prefi- 
 dentlhip upon him, His Lordihip expreffed 
 himfelf doubtful of the Continuance of At- 
 fliirs, as they now flood, and informed me 
 That King "James had fent down to him in 
 the North, offering to throw himfelf into 
 his Hands before he went away. To this, 
 he faid, his Anfwer was, by Charles Bertie 
 who brought the Meff'age, That his own 
 Force, which he depended upon in the 
 North, W3S not fufficient to truft to ; but 
 that if his Majefty would bring a confidera- 
 ble Party with him, and come without his 
 Papifts, he would fooner lofe his Life than 
 he Ihould fuffer the leaft Injury, but that 
 the King having no Mind to part with his 
 Romans, would not come. His Lordftiip 
 then faid That if the King would but quit 
 his Papifts, it might poffibly not be too late 
 yet for him. He then obferved That the 
 Duke oi Gordon, a Papift, and Governor of 
 Edinbtlrgh Caftle, the only Magazine in 
 Scotland, who was lately ready and willing 
 to furrender it to any Body, now held it 
 out obftinately for King James ; and that 
 the Difcontents in England grew greater 
 daily and greater. He then reflefted on 
 Lord Hallifa:^, the King, and all about him, 
 as moft ftrangely infatuated with Notions 
 
 Y 4 of 
 
 Iri 
 
MEMOIRS 
 
 of their own Security ; and particularly ani- 
 madverted on the laft mentioned Lord for 
 infilling with fuch Violence, in a Speech of 
 his, ^hat the Prince fliould be entitled Le- 
 gal and Rightful King of this Realm, 
 (which Ifuppoiethe Lord HaWfax did v.\th 
 a View of continuing the old Oaths of Alle- 
 giance and Supremacy, and to obviate all 
 Scruple about taking the new) faying it 
 was mere Nonfenfe • for that had the Prince 
 of Wales been made King, he could never 
 have been deemed our lawful Sovereign, 
 while his Father lived. But his Lordihip 
 neverthelefs appeared very feiious and ur- 
 gent about the Legality of taking the new 
 Oaths, and condemned the Bifhops for their 
 Squeamifhnefs in th.it Refpefl, tho' they 
 themfelves had had lo large a Hand in bring- 
 ing about this great and extraordinary 
 Change ; and thereupon quoted Lord JVot- 
 tinghams Speech, who, in the Houfe of 
 Lords, had obferved That cho' he had ne- 
 ver in the leaft confented to this Revoluti- 
 on, but had with all his Might oppofed the 
 Prince's Acceffioii, as, contrary to Law; yet 
 fmce his Highnefs was here, and we muft 
 owe our Protefticn to him as King de fado^ 
 he thought it but juft and legal to fwear Al- 
 legiance to him. I have been the more ex- 
 
 a£t 
 
 OfStr ]ohnReresbt. 
 
 aa in the particulars of this Converfation, 
 to give the better Infight into the Thoughts 
 of the greateft Men upon this Occafion \ tho' 
 I wondered his Lordfhip would venture to 
 be fo very undifguifed with me; but he was 
 fure I would not betray him, tho' even to 
 
 Lord Hallifax. 
 
 The very fame Day, after feveral At- 
 tempts of the Sort, the Marquifs o(Hallifaxy 
 now again Lord Privy Seal, prefented me to 
 the King, having before requefted him that 
 a young Son of mine might have my Com- 
 pany, and that he might be excufed from 
 Duty a Year or two, on Account of his E- 
 ducation ; but his Majefty thought it an ill 
 Precedent, and would give no Ear to it. 
 Having kiffed his Hand, I told him I had 
 had the Honour of a Truft upon me from 
 the late King to the very laft, having been 
 a Stranger to his Defigns till I faw them ia 
 Execution, and that I could not then, in 
 Honour or Juftice, comply with them ; but 
 that I was a firm Proteftant, and had upon 
 that Account been a Sufferer in my Eitate, 
 concluding that I lliould be ftriaiy faithful 
 to mv Duty wherefoever I ferved. My 
 hord HaJltf as then delired I might keep my 
 Company without paying any Attendance, 
 to which I fubjoined, «SVr, Ifjouhaverefohed 
 
 to 
 
3^8 MEMOIRS 
 
 ^-^^^ to take away my fwo Governmnts c/^' York and 
 Burlington, / hope yoa will not expeSi IfrotiJd 
 wait on a fmgle Co-mpany : His Majelty faid, 
 Noy He did not expe^ .Attendance from me i 
 which was all that palled. 
 March I. I was told by a Lady whom King James 
 had trufted with fome Seals and Jewels, that 
 his Majefty had written her Word to put 
 them into the Hands of a certain Perfon he 
 fent for them. She Ihewed me the Letter, 
 which was dated the 17th oi February New- 
 Stile ; whereby I underftood that he was to 
 fet out for Ireland as the very next Day, and 
 that he depended upon his old Friends to 
 affift him in his Caufe. This Lady told me 
 the French King had fupplyed him with 
 a great Treafure of Money, and dooo Swifs 
 Protejiants : That he intended to go through 
 Ireland for Scotland^ there to call a Parlia, 
 ment, inftead of the proposed Convention j 
 and that from thence he would march into 
 Englandy and put himfelf entirely into the 
 Hands of the Protellant Intereft : She add^ 
 ed, That as Ihe had a Friendlhip for the 
 Lord Privy Seal, fhe had a Mind to difclofe 
 herfelf to him, if with any Safety Ihe fo 
 might do. I told her I would fpeak tp his 
 Lordfliip that very Night, and let her know 
 farther.. 
 
 Having 
 
 » 
 
 H ! 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresby. 
 
 Having an Opportunity of fpeaking to 
 him accordingly, I failed not to be as good 
 as my Word ; tho' I muft own, the Topic 
 being of fo nice and tender a Sort, I did it 
 with great Caution. However, I gave him 
 plainly to underftand That the chief Motive 
 which induced the Lady to defire a Meet- 
 ing with him, was to impart to him what 
 might be for his own Good, and the Ser- 
 vice of the Public. Hereupon he began to 
 be more free and open with me than he had 
 hitherto been, on this Chapter ^ and I told 
 him, in general, that great Defigns were 
 on Foot; he faid He believed it, and that 
 tho' Men feemed to be for the prefent Inte- 
 reft, as moft prevalent, it was not altoge- 
 ther difcreet to venture too far ; that if 
 Matters really were as I had faid, it was but 
 fafe to carry it fair with thofe in the Oppo- 
 fition, and to let fome People know He 
 fpoke always with great Refpeft of King 
 James ; that if we came to Blows, it was 
 uncertain who would ftrike hardeft; and 
 that he Ihould be glad to meet the Lady at 
 my Houfe, whenever Ihe pleafed. But his 
 Lordfhip, however, faid all imaginable Care 
 would be taken to ward oiTany Danger that 
 might threaten us ; that an Army of 20000 
 Men would be prefently raifed, that all fuf- 
 
 picious 
 
 168S. 
 
 1 1 
 
 m 
 
 ii 
 
 
m 
 
 flj •;; 
 
 no MEMOIRS 
 
 uX!L P^'^^"' P^^^^"^ ^^^W be fecured, the Par- 
 liament intending to inveft the King with a 
 Power to imprifon whom he pleafed, and to 
 keep them in fafe Cuftody till they came to 
 aTryal; and in fine, that the Parliament 
 would moft plentifully furnilh the King for 
 the Profecution of the War. At this Time 
 leveral Lords and Gentlemen of both 
 Houfes withdrew to their feveral Countries • 
 and I was told That fome who were out-' 
 wardly great Friends to the prefent Go- 
 vernment, were treating for Terms on the 
 J^^^j/ide ; which I communicated to his 
 Lordlhip, and particularly made mention of 
 fome he little fufpefted. Whereupon his 
 Lordfhip faid That if King J^. Jwas a- 
 anally driving on at the Rate reported, the 
 Papiils would certainly contrive fome how 
 or other to affaffinate or kill King mi/sa^^, 
 well knowing what a Task it would be to 
 defend the Crown on the Head of a Woman 
 with much more to the f unc Effca ' 
 
 I waited on Lord Bd/ajis, firft Commif. 
 fioner of the Treafury under the late Kine 
 who told me that tho' he was himfelf a p£ 
 pift, he had been quite averfe to the Mea- 
 fures which had been taken to promote the 
 Catholic Religion ; but that his Council ne- 
 ver had Weight, the Warm-ones having in- 
 
 linuated 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresbt. 
 
 fmuated to the King That it came from a 
 Man old and timerous, who having a great 
 Eftate did not care to run any Hazard of it. 
 He then obferved That as there was fuch a 
 Number of great Men combined In this Re- 
 volt, it was almoft impoffible to think the 
 King, being a Papift as he was, iliould ever 
 again be reftored • but that if he would but 
 be a Proteftant it would certainly happen in 
 a very fliort Time. This Lord was very 
 defervedly efteemed one of the wifeft Men 
 
 of his Party. ^ 
 
 Mean while, the two Houfes were at fome ^'''■' r 
 Stand about the taking of the new Oaths. 
 The Commons made fcarce any Scruple to 
 fwear; but fome of the Lords refufed fo to 
 do, and a greater Number of Bilhops, con- 
 ceiving the^y could not lawfully comply, 
 feeing they had before engaged themfelves 
 under Oaths to King jfames ^ and even thofe 
 who did comply, did it as a local and tem- 
 porary Duty naturally refulting from the 
 Proteftion they owed to King iVtlliam and 
 Queen Mary. This Day Lord HalUfax met 
 the Lady I juft now mentioned to have re- 
 ceived a Letter from King James : She dealt 
 very frankly with him, but durft not tell 
 him all Ihe knew. However he defiredher 
 
 to 
 
 I 
 
 !•«! 
 
MEMOIRS 
 
 to be his Friend if any Alteration of Affairs 
 ftould Dy any Means be brought to pafs. 
 
 Now the two Houfes had, fome Days be- 
 fore, voted to Hand by King m/liam and 
 Queen Mary with their Lives and Fortunes 
 the Commons had completed the Bill for lay-' 
 mg a Tax upon Land, and deliberated on o- 
 ther Ways for levying of Money for the 
 Crown,as well to raife Men, as to fupply the 
 Lofs of that Branch of the Revenue called 
 Hearth-Money, which they were, by an Aft 
 for that Purpofe taking quite away, as trou- 
 blelome to colka and oppreflive in itsNature; 
 while the Fears greatly and greatly increaf- 
 ed That King Jams was aftually in Irelanri 
 and that Scotland would not fail to take his 
 Part; wherefore Commiffions were given 
 out for the railing of loooo Foot, and twenty 
 Shillings Advance allowed to every Man • 
 but notwithftanding this Encouragement' 
 and tho' the Colonels were moil of then' 
 Men of Quality and great Intereft, it was 
 much apprehended the intended Troops 
 would rot be eafily coUefted together. 
 The French King had, for his Irijb Expedi- 
 tion, furniihed King j^amcs with a Squa- 
 dron of 14 Men of War, 6 leffer Frigates, 
 and 3 Firelhips, all well manned and fitted; 
 
 as 
 
 0/i^/V JohnRe res by. 
 
 as alfo with a Sum of 200,000/. in ready 
 Money, and 50,000 Pilloles as a prefent for 
 his Pocket, together with Plate, Tents, and a 
 moft Royal and fplendid Equipage : He affift- 
 ed him alfo with eight experienced Field 
 Officers,one hundred of inferior Note,aGuard 
 of one hundred Smfs^ a Band of skilful Pio- 
 neers, 15000 of his own natural Subjeds, 
 Arms for 40000 Men more, Cannon and 
 Ammunition in a great abundance, and over 
 and above made him an Offer of 15000 of 
 his Fm;t/; Troops i but King James excufed 
 himfelfupon this Head, faying, He would 
 fticceed by the Help of his cnm Subject s^ or perip 
 in the Attempt. In the midft of this threat- 
 ning Danger, Lord Hallifax told me the 
 the Commons were ftill bent upon purfuing 
 him and Lord Danby ; and that fome of 
 them had declared They would give no 
 more Money till the King had difmifled 
 them, and fome other of his Officers j but 
 fays his Lordfhip, The King is not to be 
 wrought upon as they may imagine ^ he is 
 very well able to defend himfelf. They 
 were angry with this Nobleman for adviling^ 
 King Charles II. to take away the Charter of 
 the City of London^ and for oppoling the 
 Bill of Exclufion : But I told him it was 
 quite fooliih for Men who had raifed a new 
 
 Fabric, 
 
MEMOIRS 
 
 Fabric, immediately to pull down the main 
 Support of it. His Lordfliip faid he was 
 very little foUicitous whether they fucceed- 
 -ed in their Attempt or not, and that it 
 would be no great Mortification to him if 
 he did furrender his Place. His Lordlhip 
 then begged of me to endeavour a Recon- 
 ciliation between him and a Lady I had 
 formerly brought to him about fome Bufi- 
 nefs wherein ihe thought herfelf ill ufed, 
 for that flie had a good Intereft with King 
 
 March 13. There feemed now to be great Difcon- 
 tents among all Sorts of Men; Aftiirs look- 
 ed fome what embroiled ; and I heard Lord 
 Privy Seal fay, That in the Pofture the Na- 
 tion now flood, the King \_James'] if but a 
 Proteftant, could not be kept out four 
 Months; nay, Lord Danby went farther, 
 and averred That if he would but give us 
 Satisfafilion as to our Religion, as he eafily 
 might, it would be very hard to make Head 
 againft him; Sayings which I thought very 
 extraordinary to fall from fuch great Men, 
 and of the Times too; a few Days after- 
 wards. Lord 'Dunbartons Regiment, which 
 he had long lince brought out of France^ 
 and was now quartered at Ipfwich^ being all 
 Scotch^ and confifting of 1300 Men, chofe 
 
 rather 
 
 17. 
 
 Of Sir JOHf^RERBSBt. 
 
 rather to march off in a Body with their 
 Arms and four Pieces of Cannon, towards 
 Scotland.^ than obey Orders, which were to 
 embark and fail for Holland. Lord Privy 
 Seal doing me the Honour of a Vifit this 
 JDay, told me The King had fent two Re- 
 giments of Dutch Horfe, and one of Dra- 
 goons, after them ; that if the Scotch Regi- 
 ment had done this without Confederacy 
 they were all loft; but that if any other of 
 our Forces were in the Secret, and under 
 Engagement to join and fupport them, there 
 might be Danger in the Thing. 1 now 
 perceived his Lordlhip to be very uneafy 
 That Danhy^ under Pretence of Illnefs, fo 
 much abfented himfelf from Bulinefs; and 
 very much difpleafed that fome, very little 
 qualifyed, had fo wonderfully, by his Means, 
 got into Fofts of Confequence, and particu- 
 larly That Lord Willoughby^ a very young 
 Man, and quite a Stranger to Buiinefs, 
 Ihould be the Chancellor ot the Exchequer, 
 I told his LordlWp, I wondered much 
 more that Lord Mor daunt y w ho never faw a 
 hundred Pounds together of his own, fhould 
 pretend to be the firft Commillioner of the 
 Trealury ; I then dealt very freely with him 
 as to the apparent Uncertainty of the Times; 
 delired him to be cautious and Circumfpeft, 
 
 Z and 
 
I 
 
 l\ 
 
 jl 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 •and aflured him I wiflied his Safety and his 
 Family's, as much as my own. His Lord- 
 fliip then obferved, among other Things^ 
 That the King ufed no Arts; to which I 
 replied, That, in my Opinion, fome Arts 
 were neceflary in our Government, I 
 think fo too, faid he, w^e a£l a little too 
 plainly. I acquainted his Lordihip with 
 fome Particulars which caufed a Murmuring 
 in the Town, and of fome which caufed 
 the fame in the Country; whereupon he 
 faid, come Sir Jobfiy we have Wives and 
 Children, we mult confider them, and not 
 venture too fir. He then proceeded to in- 
 timate That if a Change fhould happen, 
 there would be a general Pardon ; tho', faid 
 he, I hear there is one which creeps up and 
 down, wherein I am excepted; but faid 
 he, as you know I gave you fome oblique 
 Hints of what w^as likely to be brought a- 
 bout, (tho' fo obfcure that I mult own I did 
 not take them) fo you mull let me know 
 what you hear on the other Side : And in- 
 deed I loved him fo well that I was always 
 ready enough to communicate to him w^hat- 
 ever I heard, relating either to the Public 
 or his own private Service, provided I did 
 thereby no Prejudice to any particular Per- 
 
 fon 
 
 Of Sir John Reresbt. ^^y 
 
 fbn, or incurred the Guilt of betraying what i<^88. 
 was told me in pure Confidence. 
 
 This Day the Lord Privy Seal told me March ii. 
 The Rebels, meaning the Scotch Regiment, 
 had fubmitted themfelves to the King's 
 Mercy; that their Officers would have per- 
 fuaded them to fight, tho' the Dutch were 
 four Times their Number ; and that they 
 were in Confederacy with others, who, as 
 it hapned, did not dare to lift up their 
 Heads. His Lordihip continued That there 
 was now great Hopes o( Scotland '^ and in- 
 deed the Kirk Party, which declared for 
 King jniliawj was by much the itrongeft 
 there. King James appeared too late in 
 Ireland'^ but he had this to plead, the Winds 
 would not permit him to Itir out of Breji 
 fooner than he did. The Church of Eng" 
 land was now furiouily driven at by fome 
 in both Houfes, King Wtlllam being feem- 
 ingly a greater Friend to Calvinifm. In 
 the Houfe of Lords it was Itrongly debated, 
 and particularly by the Lord Privy Seal, 
 which loft him fome Credit, That the Re- 
 ception of the Sacrament Ihould be no 
 longer a Part of the Tell, as required by 
 the Statute oi Charles II. ; and in the Houfe 
 of Commons it was ftitly contended That 
 the King in his Coronation Oath Ihould not 
 
 Z z parti- 
 
 25. 
 
 W 
 
:^ 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 particularly bind himfelf to the Church of 
 England as by Law eftablilhed ; but both 
 thefe Points being carried in Favor of the 
 Church, evinced her Intereft to be ftronger 
 than any other in Parliament, and would, 
 as it was thought, induce the King to court 
 her a little more than he had done. 
 
 I'he Affairs of all Europe were now feem- 
 ingly at a Stand, tho' Preparations were e- 
 very where making for War; the Empire 
 was muftering up all her Quota's againfk 
 France on the one Hand, and the Turk on 
 the other ; Spain betrayed a Willingncfs to 
 fide with the Emperor ; Sweden^ Holland^ and 
 England were ready to do the fame ; while 
 J)enmark feemed to be fixed to a Neutrality. 
 The Pope was ftill in anger with France tho* 
 (he did all fhe could to moUiiy him, pre- 
 tending to blow up the Flames of a religi- 
 ous War ; but this was not to ferve the Pur- 
 pofe at prefent, his Holinefs thinking the 
 King ot France was grown too big for his 
 Neighbours, and that therefore Regard was 
 to be had chiefly now for his Temporals : 
 the Church was out of the Quellion, the 
 World was now uppermoft, and Confcience 
 was Pulilanimity and Indolence, according 
 to the known and avowed Maxims of the 
 Roman Creed. 
 
 It 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresby. 339 
 
 It hapned this Day that I met with the ^Jf^ 
 BilhopofSt. D^i;/ A who asked if I thought ^J^"^^ 
 he might fafely take the Oaths of AUegiance 
 and Supremacy, he being one of the Prelates 
 that had hitherto flood out, and were now 
 cited to appear before the Houfe of Lords. 
 1 told him it were fitteft for me to be advifed 
 hy him in fuch a Cafe, and that certainly 
 his own Confcience could not but dilate 
 to him right : But I found he was already 
 refolved, and accordingly he went the next 
 Day and complyed. Mean while the Arch- 
 bilhop was obilinate in bis Refufal, an4 
 would not fo much as repair to the Houfe 
 of Lords, difowning the Authority either 
 of the King or the Parliament. The Lords 
 fent his Grace a Letter admonifhing him to 
 come to the Houfe ^ but he wrote to excuf^ 
 himfelf, by an Anfwer dire£ted, not to the 
 Lord Privy Seal, or the Speaker of th^ 
 Houfe of Lords, but to the Lord Marquifs 
 of ^Hallifas. The Houfe voted this Anfwer 
 to be not fatisfaftory, but thought it unad- 
 vifable to purfue the Point too far, fenfible 
 of the ill Blood that had beep fet on Float, 
 by the late Severity of Ufage tpward the E- 
 pifcopal Order. A Day or two afterwards, 
 the Church of England carryed a fecond 
 Vote in the Houfe of Commons, an^ indeed 
 
 Z 3 u 
 
 
340 
 
 'JpriJl. 
 
 MEMO I R S 
 
 it was high Time for her Sons to exert 
 themfelves, the Diflenters having not only 
 prevailed that the Oaths meant tor her Se- 
 curity, fome Prayers in the Liturgy, and 
 certain Ceremonies fhould be altered or dif- 
 penfed with, but a Motion had like wife 
 been made that there might be fome Altera-^ 
 tion in the very Creed. In a few Days af- 
 terwards a very extraordinary Debate arofe 
 in both Houfes, between the Dilfenters and 
 the Members of the Churchy the former 
 pulhing their Aft of Comprehenfion and 
 Toleration farther than the latter were wil- 
 ling it Ihould go. They were almoft equally 
 matched, and fometimes one carryed a Y ote 
 in both Houfes, and fometimes the other. 
 
 A Number cf Regiments, tho' many of 
 them were unarmed, uncloathed, and in 
 want of Pay to clear off their Quarters, 
 were now ordered to march Northward; 
 it being paft all Doubt that King James was 
 now in Irelarjdy and intended for Scotland^ 
 tho' the Kirk Party in the Convention of 
 that Kingdom were for oppofing him. Mo- 
 ney was at this Time very fcarce at Court, 
 and yet great Preparations were daily mak- 
 ing for the Coronation of King William and 
 Queen Mary. But tho' Neceffaries were 
 certainly wanting for the Army, the Court, 
 
 and 
 
 OfStr John Reresbt. 
 
 and the due Support of the Government, it 
 was not that the Parliament was backward 
 in giving, but the Money could not be raif- 
 ed foon enough, the City re fufing to ad- 
 vance any Money upon the Afts that were 
 pafTed ; for great Difcontents were viiible 
 to every Eye, which feemed rather to in- 
 creafe daily than to di.i inilh. 
 
 A few Days afterwards, I faw Lord Pri- ^H "• 
 vy Seal, who told me That if the Church 
 oi England was a Sufferer, Die might thank 
 her felffor it, her Pretences being too large ; 
 that the Commons were fo flow in their 
 Proceedings that it locked as if they thought 
 the whole World was confined to Wejimw 
 fter:^ that the King alfo was very dilatory, 
 .to the great Hindrance of Bufinefs, tho* 
 Difpatcli" could at no Time be ever more 
 required i his Lordfliip continued, That 
 there was a Neceifity for afting with fo ma- 
 ny Fools, that they alone were wife who 
 had nothing to do i . and moreover. That he 
 had heard there were fome 7r//& landed in 
 Scotland y that Scotland^ however, would 
 give them but a cool Reception; that King 
 James had nothing to depend on here but 
 the Army, which would be fo difpofed of 
 as to be unable to do any thing for him; and 
 
 Z. 4 that 
 
 
J- - 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 ^ J^ ^^^^ '^^^^ came not vefy foon, he would be 
 difappointed of this his only Hope : He 
 concurred with me That the Earl of Dafp- 
 hy had procured the Government of Hull 
 as a Place of Retreat where he might 
 make his own Terms in Cafe of a Change 
 of the Times; and allured me He was 
 more afraid of the Confequences of King 
 William's Cough, which increafed upon 
 him with great Violence, than of any 
 Thmg elfe. I mull confefs I, upon this Oc- 
 cafion, temporifed a liccle, it being neither 
 fafe nor prudent to be too open with a Prr* 
 yy Councellor, and fo great a Minifter, efpe- 
 cially as I had been guilty of Freedoms 
 with his Lordlhip to little or noPurpofej 
 tho' whenever he asked me my Opinion, J 
 never failed to deal uprightly with him. 
 ^ But now let us take a View of theCorona- 
 
 'Jpril 1 1 ^^^" ^^^^^ "^^' ^^^S and Queen, a fplendid 
 Sight, as ufual, The Procellion to the Ab- 
 by was quite regular, thg' not fo complete 
 in the Number of Nobility, as at the two 
 laft Solemnities of the fame Kind* Parti- 
 cular Care was had of the Houfe of Com- 
 mons, who had a Part prepared for them to 
 fit in, both in the Church and in the Hall. 
 They had Tables fpread for them at the 
 
 3an!» 
 
 O/i'/V JOH N R E R E S B y. 343 
 
 JBanqMet, to which I, among other Friends, jf^ 
 had the Honour of being admitted, as well 
 as to be with them throughout the whole 
 of the Shew i fo that I had a very fair Op- 
 portunity of feeing all that: paft. The Bi- 
 thop of London crowned them both, affifted 
 by the Bifhop oi Salisbury ^ the late Doftot 
 Burnctj who preached the Sermon, and 
 two others. A few Days afterwards, being 
 with Lord Privy Seal, the Bilbop of SaJts^ 
 hury came in, and complained heavily of 
 the flow Proceedings of the Houfe of Com- 
 mons, f-iying the Dutch would clap up a 
 Peace with France if they did not mend 
 their Pace i pbferved that the Church of 
 England was in the Fault, and expreffed 
 himfelf asif he thought they meant ^ Kind* 
 nefs to Kmg James by their Method of Pro- 
 cedure. Lord Privy Seal agreed with him 
 in his Sentiments, and added that the Church 
 People hated the Dutch^ and had rather 
 turn Papifts than receive the Presbyterians 
 among them ; but that on the other Hand 
 thefe were to the full as rank and inveterate 
 againft thofe, and would marr all their Bufi^ 
 nefs, by their Inadvertance with Regard to 
 their Bill of Comprehenfion, and their Ill- 
 timing of other Bills ; in ftiort that they 
 )yould difguft thofe from whom they look^ 
 
 e4 
 
,Y mM E M O I R S ^ 
 
 ed for Indulgence* TThey were both angry 
 with the Commons Addrefs to ^he King 
 the Day before, defiringhim to fupport and 
 defend the Church of England according to 
 his former Declaration, and to call a Con- 
 vocation of the Ckrgy, which the Bifliop 
 faid would be the utter Ruin of the Cpm- 
 prehenfion Sehenfie. Jn fine, thQ Marquifs 
 took Notice, that, at the Rate we proceed- 
 ed, the Gov ef nment f:puld not but be very 
 ihort lived* ■.,^,^^:^ _ ...."' 
 
 • liKing Jatnes. was all this while in Irelandy 
 the Convention of Scotland oppoling him 
 with Might and Main, and declaring the 
 Throne of their Kingdom to be vacant : 
 Prefently after we had Advice that they had 
 \t)ted William and Mary to be King and 
 Queen of Scotland^ converted their Conven-^ 
 tion mto a Parliafnent, and invited the£;;^- 
 lip Forces on their Borders to come into 
 their Kingdom, tQ bn rea4y. to affiil them 
 againft King j^^Wd^j and his Friends, but at 
 the fame Time that they had prepared cer- 
 tain Conditions, and drawn up a Lift of 
 certain Grievances, for the King to redrefs 
 and aflent to \ and particularly that Epifco- 
 pacy Ihould no longer have Being in ScoU 
 landy and that the King lliould, with regard 
 to them, embrace the Presbyteriaa Perfua-r 
 
 Of Sir johnReresbt. 
 
 fion. The Duke of Gordon^ however. Hill 
 kept the Caftie oi Edinburgh 
 
 At home the Parliament was taken up 
 with raifing of Money ; and the Commons 
 addrefs the King to declare War ^NithFrance^ 
 and promife him all the needftil Supplies* 
 But great Heats broke out between the two 
 Houfes about the Oath Bill, the Lords be- 
 ing willing to excufe the Bilhops, convinc- 
 ed that feveral of them would forfeit their 
 Sees rather than comply; while the Com- 
 mons urged that no Soul fnould be excufed. 
 But as widely as they for the prefent differ- 
 ed about this, they concurred in the Bill 
 for the Toleration of all Proteftant Diflen* 
 ters. The next Day the King gave a favor- 
 able Anfwer to the Addrefs which remind- "^^'^ ^^' 
 ed him of his Promifes to the Church of 
 EngJandj and moved him for a Convocation. 
 A Day or two after he returned Anfwer to 
 the Commons Addrefs That he would de- 
 clare War with France^ telling them he com- 
 plyed with their Requeft, and the rather as 
 the French King had in a Manner begun, 
 and aflured them that whatever Money they 
 gave ftiould be faithfully applied to the de- 
 iired End. 
 
 About this Time a very fad Accident 
 hapned, which lor a while was the Difcourfe 
 
 of 
 
 / 
 
 i : \ 
 

 1689. 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 of the whole Town ; Mr. Tmphy Son ta 
 Sir Wtlliam Tempky who had marryed a 
 French Lady with »o,ooo Pi Holes, a fedatc 
 and accomplifhed young Gentleman, who 
 had lately, by King IVhlliam^ been made 
 Secretary of War, took a Pair of Oars, and 
 drawing near the Bridge, leapt into the 
 Thames and drowned himfelf, leaving a Note 
 behind him in the Bou, to tlVis Efteft, My 
 Folly in Undertaking what I could not per- 
 form, whereby fome Misfortunes have be- 
 fallen the King's Service^ is the Caufe of my 
 putting my felf to this fudden End ; I wilh 
 him Succefs in all his Undertakings, and a 
 better Servant. A dangerous Thing it is 
 for fome Conftitutions to give Way to Dif^. 
 content, and imaginary Notion, but not to 
 digrefs on this melancholy Subjeft* 
 
 The Parliament proceeded to raife Mo* 
 ney, but upon Terms and Perfons, that 
 gave great Diflatisfaftion. The Poll was 
 quite ftricl, fcarce a Soul being exempted 
 therefrom, but fuch as received Alms, the 
 Houfe confenting to a Grant of no lefsthan 
 four Millions for one Year only. And now 
 Lord HalUfax told me That the Marquifs of 
 Caenmrthens^ Retirement into the Country, 
 bis Pretences to be fick, and his fo feldom 
 appearing at Court inllilled freih Jealoulies 
 
 of 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresbt. 
 
 t)f him i That he had heard he fliould fay 
 Things could not long condnue thus ^ That 
 his Relations and Friends were very dange- 
 rous in in their Difcourfe, and that he him- 
 felf was very open \ That he found this new 
 Marquifs had no Mind to be inward or inti- 
 mate with him ^ That he fuppofed his Lord- 
 Ihip might imagine he had kept him ataDi- 
 ftance from the Treafurer's Staffj but that 
 imagine what he would, he did not alto- 
 gether deferve it j that, of all Men, in the 
 World, the King never would have inveft- 
 ed him with that Office, nor, indeed, with 
 any other that was very confiderable, as 
 he would find,ifAfFairs but held out till iS*^- 
 tember. Hereupon I acquainted his Lord- 
 fliip with fome Grounds that made it fufpe- 
 fted the Prefident was difcontented. His 
 Lordfhip then continued That for his own 
 Part he found the King very well aire£ted 
 towards himfelf, that his Majefty did not 
 only carry it fair to him, perfonally, but 
 that from third Hands he had it That the 
 King ufed very kind Expreffions of him be- 
 hind his Back ; for that he gave him but ve- 
 ry little Trouble either on account of him- 
 felf, or of other People, while the Lord 
 Prefident knew no End of his Importunities. 
 This urged me to fay, That 1 did not know 
 
 what 
 
 M*7 
 
 l6^. 
 

 MEMOIRS 
 
 what his Lordihip might thereby be a Lofer 
 with the King, but that he gained much 
 with others I was certain ; for that it was a 
 common Saying No Lord ufed his good 
 Offices for his Countrymen but the Lord 
 Prelident ; and this I obferved, becaufe the 
 Lord Privy Seal, tho' other wife very kind 
 and free with me, did not efpoufe my Inte- 
 relt as I expefted he would. But his Lord- 
 ihip farther told me That the King being fo 
 very inacceffible as he was, and confining 
 himfelf fo to Hampton^ when there was fuch 
 abfolute Need of the moll ftirring Aftion, 
 was the Deftruaion of all Bufinefs. That 
 he had defired his Majefty but to lye fome- 
 times in Town, and that his Anfwer was 
 It was not to be done except his Lordihip 
 defired to fee him dead, which, faid my 
 Lord, was a very fliort Anfwer. To con- 
 clude, he proceeded to fay That if the 
 King furvived this Summer, which he 
 thought he fairly might, notwithllanding 
 his confumptive Diforder, or efcaped the 
 murderous Hands of the Papifts, he doubted 
 not but the Government would iland firm 
 tho' it devolved to the Queen lingly • but 
 that however the Concern he had for his Fa- 
 mily would naturally tempt him to aft with 
 all the Moderation that might be j that up- 
 on 
 
 Of Sir JohnReresby. 
 
 on thisConfideration it was he had taken no 
 great or additional Places, no new Honours, 
 no blue Ribbon, as others had done. 
 
 The next Day I was to go to Hampton 
 Court, where his Lordfhip was to meet me 
 and prefent me to the King before I went 
 into the Country. His Lordfhip repeated 
 his Promifes to do for me what he could, 
 but faid It would be but Difcredon to let 
 two or three Months pafs over-head, be- 
 fore I prefled Matters too much, to the End 
 we might the better fee what was likely to 
 become of Things. 
 
 FINIS. 
 
'^ 
 
;jL5ir-"'*ii^s^»«,s mrnb^^. 
 
 
 />C7*^ 
 
 _ *, • r 
 
 . i - 
 
 •/^t^V^x^ 
 
 
 ■i^- 
 
 
 
 
 >t?"i 
 
 '4 ft 
 
 
 « - 
 
 ■ -J 
 
 
 
 .^2' 
 
 
 
 ■'J.-'.-. 
 
 
 'i'- 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 ^r- 
 
 ^nH^' 
 
 
 ^^ 
 
 •V?^', 
 
 
 
 
 ■'t^Cirl^i' 
 
 
 r/a*: I 
 
 - • f > 
 
 v.^-^ 
 
 /.* 
 
 II' 
 
 rii*^^'^';?' 
 
 ¥■■"/ 
 
 1 
 i 
 
 *"i 
 
 
 
 'it' 
 
 \ 1 
 
 t^' 
 
 
 .;.'V^, 
 
 
 
 * 
 
 ^■: 
 
 > V. 
 
 
 
 
 COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY 
 
 
 1 i 
 
 
 
 0032193220 
 
 
 »■" ■ r , 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 'V^\ 
 
 
 ^d>rMMtv:'^Ts 
 
 
 ''>>'^. 
 
 
 
 ■^•-V/' 
 
 i> 
 
 ■ .-■iJ^< 
 
 '={^'' "•**,"-'* '-'''-V 
 
 
 
 
 ^ It/r 
 
 
 
 ^f^'};/' 
 
 :> 
 
 '.\,'i^-. 
 
 » • J 1 '. ^ '■ ^ 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 ^A 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 ft- ■ _, > 
 
 
 -...■ 
 
I 
 
 n 
 
 '% 
 
 It*