A HISTORY OF SUSSEX 



The trend of political and religious feeling in Sussex was again 

 clearly shown in 1688, when James II., wishing to repeal the Test and 

 Penal Statutes, and anxious to know whether he cculd obtain the support 

 of Parliament for that purpose, caused three questions to be put to every 

 justice of the peace. These questions were : (i.) If he should be chosen 

 to serve in Parliament would he support the repeal of these statutes ? 

 (ii.) Would he assist in the election of members pledged to their repeal ? 

 (iii.) Will he live friendly with those of all persuasions ? For refusing 

 to put these questions to the Sussex justices the Earl of Dorset was 

 removed from the lieutenancy of the county and replaced by Viscount 

 Montague. The replies must have been very unsatisfactory to the 

 Crown, for although the third question was answered unanimously in 

 the affirmative, only eight justices would assent to the first two, while 

 almost every one in the eastern rapes definitely refused to agree thereto. 

 Those in the western part of the county for the most part gave the 

 politic answers that if elected they would vote as might seem best when 

 the question came to be debated in the House, and that they would 

 assist to elect such members as would best serve the interests of the 

 country.' 



When the news came to Chichester on 17 June 1689 that 'James 

 2nd, the papistical, was cut and runnd to across the sea,' the inhabitants 

 were so delighted that they formed a club in imitation of the corpora- 

 tion, with a mayor, aldermen, town clerk, and so forth, to be called the 

 ' Corporation of St. Pancras,' the one object of which was to meet and 

 feast every 4 November, on the eve of the anniversary of the Gunpowder 

 Plot.'' A few of the county gentlemen remained faithful to James, the 

 most notable being John Caryll of Harting, who accompanied his royal 

 master into exile and was by him given the title of Baron Caryll of 

 Dureford, but as a whole Sussex was strongly in favour of King William. 

 For some little while there was fear of a French landing, and in July 1 690 

 their ships came near enough in to throw a few shot into Hastings, and 

 the militia were called out and several regiments of horse and foot sent 

 into the county.^ In the following January there was a report current 

 that the Earl of Clarendon had drawn up a proclamation to be issued 

 upon the landing of King James in Sussex,* but no such landing was 

 attempted, and things soon settled down. 



The eighteenth century was essentially the period of party govern- 

 ment, and it is therefore during this time that we find most importance 

 attached to the possession of a parliamentary seat, and in consequence a 

 large amount of wire-pulling and manceuvring. The fullest and best 

 account of any Sussex election is the description of that in 1734 compiled 

 by Mr. Basil Williams from the Duke of Newcastle's papers in the 

 British Museum.^ The duke, by virtue of his wealth and the enormous 

 extent of his lands, could practically control the return of about sixty or 



' Suss. Arch. Coll. xxxi. 



^ Ibid. xxiv. 136-8. The corporation still existed at least as late as 1872. 



3 Hist. MSS. Com. Rep. xii. (7), 277. * Ibid. p. 310. 



« Engl. Hist. Rev. xii. 448-88. 



530 



