PART III. 



CONTAINING HIS MORE PUBLIC TRANSACTIONS 

 IN CHURCH AND STATE. 



Hitherto Dr. Sharp has been considered 

 purely in his ecclesiastical or episcopal capacity ; 

 and it would be judged a great omission, if a 

 summary account were not likewise given of 

 his behaviour at Court and in Parliament, during 

 so many years attendance on both; especially 

 since the zeal of contending parties hath been 

 apt to disguise men's real characters, and either 

 give them credit and esteem, or bring them 

 under slanders and evil surmises, according as 

 their conduct seemed to favour the respective 

 principles and interests of this or that side. 

 His situation was something singular, at least 

 for many years in which he served the late 

 queen ; he had constant and free access to her 

 person, and was presumed to have no small 

 share of her confidence and favour during her 

 whole administration, under the conduct of dif- 

 ferent sets of ministers, of different attachments, 

 excepting the last year of her reign, in which 

 he was rendered incapable, through indisposi- 



