VANE. 



and in confequence of this degradation, he returned privately 

 to England in the year 1639. 



Experience having taught him wifdom, and having pro- 

 duced a change in his principles and temper, he married a 

 lady of good family, and occupied the place of joint-trea- 

 furer of the navy with fir William RuITel. Devoting him- 

 felf to bufinefs, he viras chofen reprefentative for Hull in 

 the parliament of April 1640, and the fubfequent Long 

 parhament. He was alfo fo much in favour with the 

 royal party, that he was knighted by the king. His pub- 

 lic conduft feems at this time to have juftified the character 

 given of him by lord Clarendon, who fays, " he was a man 

 of extraordinary parts, a pleafant wit, a great underftand- 

 iag, which pierced into and difcerned the purpofes of other 

 men with wonderful fagacity, whilft he had himfelf vukum 

 clavfum, that no man could make a guefs of what he in- 

 tended. He was of a temper not to be moved, and of rare 

 diflimulation, and could comply when it was not reafonablc 

 to contradift, without lofing ground by the condefcenfion." 

 A crifis, howe%'er, was approaching, which required his 

 taking a decided part ; and accordingly he enlillcd with 

 thofe who were adverfe to the court. On occafion of the 

 trial of lord Strafford, he produced from his father's papers 

 evidence againlt him, which ferved in no fmall degree to 

 produce his condemnation. He alfo carried up to the 

 lords, the articles of archbifliop Laud's impeachment. In 

 1643, ^^ ^^^ nominated one of the Aflembly of Divines for 

 the fettling of church government : and he was appointed 

 in the fame year one of the parliamentary commiflioners 

 for negociating a treaty with the Scotch. His perfuafion 

 induced the fignature at Edinburgh of the Solemn League 

 and Covenant ; and in accomplirtiing this objetf , he over- 

 reached the Prefbyterians of that country by an article which 

 eilablilhed the exifting form of religion in Scotland, but left 

 ambiguous the nature of the reform in the two other coun- 

 tries. About this time he became fole treafurer of the 

 navy, but without any view to his own emolument : for he 

 gave up his own patent for life from the king, and for an 

 agent whom he fubftituted in his own place, he Obtained a 

 falary of 2000A per annum, the refidue being brought to 

 the public account. Of his religious principles and charac- 

 ter at this time, lord Clarendon fpeaks in the following terms : 

 " Vane was a man not to be defcribed by any charafter of 

 rehgion, in whicii he had fwallowed fome of the fancies 

 and extravagancies of every feft or faftion ; and was be- 

 come (which cannot be expreffed by any other language 

 than was peculiar to that time ) a man above ordinances, un- 

 limited or unreftrained by any rules or bounds prefcribed to 

 other men, by reafon of his perfeAion. He was a perfeft 

 enthufiaft, and without doubt did believe himfelf infpired, 

 which fo far corrupted his reafon and underftanding, that 

 he did at fome time believe he was the perfon deputed to 

 reign over the faints upon earth for 1000 years." In con- 

 neftion with the party denominated Independents he op- 

 pofed terms of peace, when he afted as one of the parlia- 

 ment's commiflioners at the treaty of Uxbridge in 1645, 

 and when he negociated in the Ifle of Wight in 1648. 

 Although he had from artifice or feehng no concern in 

 the king's death, he was one of the council of ftate in- 

 veiled with fnpreme power after that event. He was a 

 fteady adherent to the republican government, under which 

 he occupied an important ilation ; and in 1641 he was 

 one of the commifTioners fent into Scotland for introducing 

 the Englifh government there, and for efFefting an union 

 between the two countries. 



On this occafion he is reprefented by Burnet as having 

 fomented the divifion prevailing between two partiea in the 



kirk, and as having difcouraged all attempts to unile 

 them, with a view of maintaining over them more ealily tem- 

 poral authority, whilft they difagreed among themfelves. 

 To CromweH, in all his attempvs to afTume the fnpreme 

 power, he was a determined adverfary ; and on account of 

 his efforts for this purpofe, he was fummoned before the 

 council by Cromwell in 1656, and ordered to give fecurity 

 that he would not difturb the nation, and for his refufal he 

 was for a (hort time imprifoned at Carifbrook caftle ; and 

 though attempts were made to intimidate him by difputing 

 his title to the Raby eftate, he remained inflexible during 

 the period of the Ufurpation. In Richard's parhament of 

 1659, he was a reprefentative of the borough of Whitchurch 

 in Hampshire, and was aftive in his endeavours for reftoring 

 the republican government, and his fpirited fpeech for this 

 purpofe, on record, is faid to have had no fmall effeA in 

 fubverting the new phantom of fingle authority. After the 

 revival of the Long parliament, he was nominated one of the 

 committee of fafety, and propofed a new model of govern- 

 ment, of which it was a fundamental principle, that in the 

 delegation of the fupreme power from the people to their 

 truftees, there were fome points which could not be affumed 

 by the latter ; and of thefe he fpecified the admiffion of any 

 king or fingle perfon to the legiflative or executive power, 

 and the exercife of compulfion in matters of faith and wor- 

 fliip. Baxter afferts, that Vane's model was that of a 

 " fanatic democracy ;" and his notions have been as much 

 reproached by Prefbyterian writers as by Epifcopalians. 



Vane maintained his adhefion to the republican caufe, and 

 profeculed his efforts for fupporting it, till the conteft was 

 terminated by the Reftoration. His conduft on this occa- 

 fion, though he was not one of the regicides, canfed his 

 name to be inferted in the lift of thofe who were excluded 

 from the acl of indemnity. Apprehending no perfonal 

 danger, he continued in his houfe at Hampftead, till he was 

 taken into cuftody and committed to the Tower, as a perfon 

 whom it was hazardous to permit to be at large. A peti- 

 tion, however, was prefented to the king by the Convention 

 parliament in favour of him and I^ambert, that they (hould 

 be pardoned as to their lives, to which was returned a gra- 

 cious anfwer. Nevcrthelefs in July 1661, in the fucceeding 

 parliament, an order war, id'ued by the houfe of commons, 

 that both Vane and Lambert fiiould be proceeded againft 

 according to law. Upon this order Vane was brought from 

 his prifon in the ifle of Scilly, and committed to the Tower 

 for trial. For his conduft after the death of Charles I., 

 comprehending his aftive efforts in oppofition to the prefent 

 king, as a member of the council of ftate and a perfon in 

 office, he was indifted of high-treafon. In June 1662 he 

 was put to the bar, and is faid to have defended himfelf 

 with abihty and refolution, or, as his enemies fay, with ar- 

 rogance and infolence. Among other pleas, he urged that 

 treafon could only be committed againft a king de faao, and 

 not de jure, which was the fituation of Charles II. till the 

 Reftoration ; and that he had in all changes adhered to the 

 commons, as the fountain of all regal authority : a principle 

 for which he had expofed himfelf to the tyranny of Crom- 

 well, and for which he was now ready to undergo all the 

 rigour of perverted law and juftice. Neverthelefs he was 

 found guilty, and fentenced to fuffer the whole penalty ad- 

 judged to high-treafon, which, however, was commuted for 

 beheading. It has been not unreafonably fuggefted, that 

 though the king could not eafily be defended for breach of 

 his promife to the former parliament on this occafion, his 

 death was a retaliation for the part he had aifled on the im- 

 peachment of lord Strafford. On the 14th of June he was 

 brought to the fcaffold on Tower-hill, and though coiifi- 



dered 



