Parliament, to meet on the seventeenth of September, 1656; and though, according to Ludlow, "he used his utmost endeavours to disable and incapacitate such men from being chosen, whom be thought most likely to obstruct his designs,"" yet divers were chosen who were known to be no favourers of his usurpation. Under colour, therefore, of a clause in the instrument of govern ment, that none should be admitted to places of power and trust, but such as were men of sincerity and integrity,'t all the elected Members were required to sign an engagement in favor of the Protector's authority, before he would permit them to take their seats. Many refused to comply, and were, in consequence, excluded from the House: among them were Sir Anthony Haselrigge, Sir Harbottle Grimstone, Thomas Scott, Esq. and several others who had sat in the Long Parliament. The excluded Members, to the number of ninety-eight, imme diately drew up a very forcible remonstrance and protest against Cromwell's proceedings, declaring that all his advisers and assistants were capital enemies to the Commonwealth;' and that 'whoever should sit, vote, and act, by the name of the Parliament of England, while to their knowledge many of the chosen Members are by force shut out, ought to be reputed, Betrayers of the Liberties of England, and adherents to the capital Enemies of the Commonwealth.' This strong appeal, however, produced little other effect than a message to Cromwell and his council, from those who had taken their seats, inquiring' wherefore the complainants had been excluded:' to which the Protector replied, that if the persons complaining would address themselves to him, they should be relieved, if there was cause.' The first acts passed by Cromwell's new Parliament, were for the security of his own person,' and for the renouncing and disannulling the pretended title of Charles Stuart. These were quickly followed by a motion from Colonel Jephson, that Cromwell should be made King;' but matters not being thoroughly concerted,' says Ludlow, it had no other effect then to sound the inclinations Memoirs, p. 216. ↑ Ibid. p. 220. Ibid. inclinations of the assembly." In a short time, however, the 'great business of a settlement of the Nation' being again brought forward, a new form of government' was presented to the House by Sir Christopher Pack, an Alderman, and Member for the City of London, "which, though at present a blank was left for the title of a single person, appeared to be a shoe fitted to the foot of a Monarch, who with two Houses was to have the supreme legislative authority." The consideration of this new Instrument was most vehemently contested by the officers of the army, and the few friends of the Commonwealth that still sat in the Parliament, who "fell so furiously upon Pack for his great presumption for bringing a business of that nature into the House in such an unparliamentary way, that they bore him down from the Speaker's chair to the bar of the House of Commons." It was, however, afterwards debated, and though strongly opposed in its different stages, was at length carried, the blank being filled up with the name of King;' and on the fourth of April, 1657, it was presented to the Protector, by the Speaker, under the style of "The Humble Petition and Advice of the Parliament, &c. to his Highness.' Cromwell was now arrived at the very threshold of the accomplishment of his every hope; yet his policy led him to hesitate, and he desired that a Committee might be appointed to confer with him, and to offer him better knowledge and satisfaction in this great cause.' A Committee was accordingly ordered to attend the Protector, and in the conference that ensued, they endeavoured to prevail on him to gratify the desires of the Parliament, chiefly, on the ground of expediency; but Cromwell, in a long reply, in which sophistry and sound reasoning were commingled with no inconsiderable portion of subtle artifice, affected to combat their arguments, and declined his acceptance of the proffered dignity, as he was not convinced' that it was either necessary or expedient.'§ This + Ibid. + Ibid. * Ludlow's Memoirs, p. 222. § The substance of the arguments advanced by the Committee is thus given by Rapin. "That the People of England had for many ages been This answer being reported to the House, it was resolved that, the Committee should again attend the Protector, for the purpose of offering additional arguments in aid of the measure proposed by the Parliament; but all further conference was for some days suspended, through "a plot (discovered by the vigilancy of Thurloe, Cromwell's Secretary) of an intended insurrection by Major General been accustomed to the government of Kings; that, in changing this government, there had necessarily been an abolition of many laws, customs, and formalities, and an establishment of others, which would never be endured by the people on account of their novelty; that, according to the laws of England, there could be no security for any act concerning the government, without the intervention and authority of a King; that those concerned in the war, therefore, and the late changes, could not be safe, but would remain liable to dangerous inquisitions, agreeable to the (ancient) laws of the land; that the daily conspiracies against the present government, clearly shewed the people were inclined to a King, nor would be satisfied without one-in a word, that the kingdom would never be in peace till things were brought back to their ancient channel. That it was very true, the Royal family (of the Stuarts) had been rejected on account of their tyrannies, but this was no objection to the choice of a King of another family; nor could any kingdom be produced, where the like had not happened as well as in England. Hist. Vol. II. p. 596. The prevailing character of Cromwell's reply, may be judged of from the following passage. "That the title of King is not necessary, how long soever it may have been in use, or what regard soever may have been paid to it, is plain from the very nature of language. Words have not their import from the natural power of particular combinations of characters, or from the real efficacy of certain sounds, but from the consent of those that use them, and arbitrarily annex certain ideas to them, which might have been signified with equal propriety by any others. Whoever originally distinguished the chief Magistrate by the name of King, might have assigned him any other denomination, and the power of the people can never be lost or impaired. If that once might have been done, it may be done now; for surely words are of no other value than their significations; and the name of King can have no other use than any other word of the same import.” Rev. of the Life of O. Crom. p. 291. General Harrison, and many of the Fifth-Monarchy Men," who had held several meetings for the purpose, but whose scheme being now interrupted by the inquiries which Cromwell set on foot, was silently relinquished till a more favorable season.t During the examinations into this plot, the Protector endea voured, by "all possible means, to prevail with the officers of the army to approve his design; and knowing that Lieutenant General Fleetwood, and Colonel Desborough, were particularly averse to it, he invited himself to dine personally with the Colonel, and carried the Lieutenant General with him, where he began to droll with them about Monarchy; and speaking slightly of it, said, 'it was but a feather in a man's cap, and therefore wondered that men would not please the children, and permit them to enjoy their rattle.'-But he received from them, as Colonel Desborough since told me, such an answer, as was not at all suitable to his expectations or desires; for they assured him, that there was more in this matter than he perceived; that those who put him upon it, were no enemies to Charles Stewart; and that if he accepted it, he would infallibly draw ruin on himself and friends.' Having thus sounded their inclinations, that he might conclude in the manner he had begun, he told them, they were a couple of scrupulous fellows, and so departed." Still, however, he continued inclined to accept the proffered title; and soon afterwards meeting Desborough in in the great walk of the Park,' acquainted him with his resolution. The Colonel made answer, that he then gave the cause, and Cromwell's family also, for lost;' adding, that though he was resolved never act against him, yet he would not act for him after that time.'§ This determined opposition from his personal friends and relations, made the Protector waver. Though within reach of the prize which had so long pointed his ambition, he begun to perceive VOL. VII. JUNE, 1808. Ff* that that the danger accompanying its attainment cast a gloomy shade upon its splendour; and he was too wary a politician not to feel that even a crown might be purchased at too much price. At length all hesitation fled before the decided, though very unexpected, measure, taken by the chief officers of the army, who, by the management of Desborough and Colonel Pride, presented a petition to the House of Commons, the contents of which, says Ludlow, "were to this purpose: "That they had hazarded their lives against Monarchy, and were still ready so to do, in defence of the liberties of the nation; that having observed in some men great endeavours to bring the nation again under their old servi tude, by pressing their General to take upon him the title and government of a King, in order to destroy him, and weaken the hands of those who were faithful to the public; they therefore humbly desired, that they would discountenance all such persons and endeavours, and continue stedfast to the old cause, for the preservation of which, they, for their parts, were most ready to lay down their lives."* It is difficult, continues Ludlow, "to determine whether the House or Cromwell was more surprised at this unexpected address, but certainly both were infinitely disturbed at it;" and Cromwell immediately coming to a decision, sent a message to the committee to meet him in the Banqueting House at Whitehall, where," with great ostentation of his self-denial, he refused the title of King." This was on the eighth of May, the interme diate time having been principally spent in fruitless exertions to overcome the aversion of the army to his assumption of the regal dignity.t Bishop Ibid. p. 224. This petition was subscribed by two colonels, seven lieutenant colonels, eight majors, and sixteen captains, who, with such officers of the House as were of the same opinion, made up a majority of those belonging to that part of the army about the Metropolis. Ibid. + Whitelocke says, "The Protector was satisfied in his private judgment, that it was fit for him to take upon him the Title of King; and matters were prepared in order thereunto;* but afterwards, by solici tation This sentence may be explained by a line from Welwood,, who says that ‘a Crown was actually made, and brought to Whitehall.' Mem. p. 116. |