59S 



'Britain. 



Proceed- 

 ings re- 

 specting a 

 free pailia 

 n-.ent. 



Monk re- 

 veals his 

 design of 

 restoring 

 .rharles. 



Parliament 

 meets, 



and re. 

 ceives a 

 letter from 

 the king. 



Entry of 



'Charles 

 into Lon- 



May 29. 



conduct, and promised for the future to co-operate 

 with the lord mayor and common council, in such 

 schemes as they should approve. 



The commons used every effort in vain to detach 

 Monk from his new alliance with the citizens ; some 

 of them even promised to support his usurpation of 

 supreme power; but his resolution was to make them 

 restore the secluded members. These, when they 

 took their seats, proved the majority, and the rump 

 party thought propel- in their turn to withdraw. The 

 victorious restored party, after enlarging and confirm- 

 ing Monk's commission, and voting support for the 

 fleet and army, dissolved themselves, and gave orders 

 for a new election. Monk, in the mean time, expel- 

 kd from the army all the officers who would not en- 

 gage to obey implicitly the orders of the ensuing par- 

 liament ; and dispatching Colonel Ingoldsby against 

 Lambert, who had escaped from the Tower, and was 

 drawing together the malcontents, made that general 

 surrender prisoner, and dispersed his few followers. 

 Though the calling a free parliament, and restoring 

 royalty, were regarded, from the known temper of 

 the nation, to be the same measure, yet Monk had 

 not hitherto declared his specific purpose. Morrice, 

 a gentleman of Devonshire, a man of studious and 

 sedentary habits, was his only confident. Sir John 

 Granville, who had a commission from the king, hav- 

 ing applied to Morrice for access to Monk, and hav- 

 ing twice refused to deliver his message to any but 

 the general himself, was at last entrusted with a ver- 

 bal answer to the king, revealing the general's design 

 of the restoration, and giving advices for his journey 

 to England. By this advice Charles escaped rapidly 

 to Breda : had he protracted his journey a few hours, 

 it was thought the Spaniards would have detained 

 him as a pledge for the restoration of Jamaica. 



The elections for the new parliament went every 

 where in favour of the king's party. The Presby- 

 terians had the kingdom almost entirely in their 

 hands ; some of their leading men, it is true, began 

 to speak of severe restrictions, but the general opinion 

 was, for admitting the monarch on easy terms. 

 When Parliament met, however, the caution uf Monk, 

 and the fear of undetermined events, kept the mem- 

 bers in such awe, that for several days no one dared 

 to make mention of the king's name. At last, Monk 

 directed Annesly, president of the council, to in- 

 form them, that one Sir John Granville, a servant of 

 the king's, was at the door with a letter from his 

 majesty. The loudest acclamation followed, Gran- 

 ville was called in. The letter, accompanied with a 

 declaration, was greedily read. Without delay or 

 dispute, a committee was appointed to answer it. It 

 was voted, that the letter and declaration should 

 ( be immediately published. 



From Breda Charles proceeded to Scheveling, 

 where Admiral Montague coming in sight with his 

 fleet, without waiting for orders from parliament, 

 tendered his loyalty to the king. When he disem- 

 "barked at Dover, he was received by Monk, whom 

 he cordially embraced ; and lie entered London 

 amidst the loudest acclamations on the 29th of May, 

 which was the birth-day of his 30th year. 



The temper and manners of Charles were easy and 

 familiar ; and his character, which experience dis- 



BRITAIN. 



covered to be perfectly worthless, was at first appear- 

 ance popular and respected. To this delusion, the 

 reflux of public opinion from republicanism to loy- 

 ally, certainly contributed. The parliament was de- 

 voted to him, although -composed of many members 

 who had torn the crown from the head of his father. 

 Yet these once popular leaders might now be strictly 

 styled loyalists, since they implored pardon in the 

 name of the nation for the guilt of the late rebellion. 

 Several of those apostate republicans were brought 

 into office; three of thetnost noted were Hollis, An- 

 nesly, and Cooper, afterwards Lord Shaftesbury. To 

 conciliate the most numerous body of the dissenters, 

 the king chose two Presbyterian ministers for his 

 chaplains. The forts were dismantled, and the army 

 reduced to a few thousands. Men of abilities filled the 

 important offices of state. The treasurer's staff was 

 given to the virtuous Southampton ; Sir Edward 

 Nicholas was made secretary of state ; and Lord 

 Clarendon, a wise and able, though in religious mat- 

 ters a narrow-mir.dcd statesman, was his chancellor 

 and prime minister. 



Much praise has been given to Charles for promo- 

 ting the bill of indemnity, which was passed by this 

 first parliament, respecting those concerned in the 

 late regicide ; a bill from which so few were excepted, 

 and of those few a still smaller number were consign. 

 ed to punishment. But the truth is, that the most 

 of the exceptions from this indemnity were illegal and 

 disgraceful. The king published a proclamation, or- 

 dering the late king's judges to surrender within nine- 

 teen days, otherwise they should receive no pardon. 

 Scrope, who surrendered on the faith of this procla- 

 mation, which certainly implied a promise of mercy, 

 was put to death. The execution of the military of- 

 ficers who attended the execution of Charles I. was 

 an act equally abhorrent to law and justice. The 

 estates of Cromwell, Ireton, and.other dead regicides, 

 were confiscated, and their bodies, by a weak and in- 

 decent act of revenge, were hung upon a gallows. 

 This vindictive spirit extended even to the memory 

 of the gallant Blake, whose remains were insulted. 

 After the bill of indemnity, the next business that 

 came before parliament, was the settlement of the 

 king's revenue, which was fixed at L. 1 ,200,000 ; a 

 sum greater than any English monarch had before 

 enjoyed. There was not, indeed, time to settle the 

 funds from which this revenue was to be raised for 

 the parliament was dissolved in December 1660, af- 

 ter having sat for seven months since the Restoration. 

 The ministry of Clarendon exhibits by far the least 

 exceptionable part of Charles's reign, yet the reli- 

 gious views of that minister were narrow and uncha- 

 ritable ; and while the king, in a public declaration, 

 promised entire toleration, and even some share in ec- 

 clesiastical benefices, to the Presbyterians, it was far 

 from the intentions of the ministry to preserve such 

 regard for them. The madness of the Millenarians 

 afforded them a pretext for confounding all the en- 

 thusiastic and dangerous sectaries with the Presbyte- 

 rians, who were truly loyal. One Venner, an insane 

 enthusiast, at the head of 60 armed followers lik,> him- 

 self, who believed themselves invincible and invulnera- 

 ble, proclaimed Jesus King, and terrifying all London, 

 committed an unprovoked murder. They retreated 



6 



B r ; t au 



Bill of ii 

 demnity 

 passed w 

 a few 

 cepiior 



