ENGLAND. 67 7 
Jhia, were committed to ptifon, and the lines about the 
city were razed to the ground. 
It now only remained to difpofe of the king, who had 
been fent. by the army a prifonerto Hampton-court. The 
independent army, at the head of whom was Cromwell, 
and the prefbyterians, in the name of the parliament, 
began feparate treaties with him in private. He had at 
one time well-founded hopes, that, in thefe druggies for 
power, he might have been chofen mediator in the dif- 
pute ; and he expedtcd that the kingdom, at lad fenftble 
of the miferies of anarchy, would, like a froward child, 
fettle into its former tranquil conditution. But thefe 
flattering expeditions too foon fubfided. As the army 
had gained a complete vidlory over the houfe of com¬ 
mons, the independents began to abate of their expref- 
fions of duty and refpedf. The king, therefore, was now 
more dridtly guarded - , and fpies were placed about his 
perfon, to mark all his words and actions. Charles, 
alarmed'for his fafety, determined to make his efcape. 
Early in the evening he retired to his chamber, on pre¬ 
tence of being inrlilpofed ; and about an hour after mid¬ 
night, he went down the back-flairs, attended by Alh- 
burnham and Legge, both gentlemen of his bed-chamber. 
Sir John Berkeley waited for him at the garden-gate with 
horfes, which they inflantly mounted, and, travelling all 
night, arrived at Tichfield, in Hampfhire, the feat of 
the earl of Southampton. Here he deliberated with Iris 
friends, upon his next excurlion, and they advifed him 
to crofs over to the I lie of Wight, where Hammond was 
governor ; who, though a creature of Cromwell’s, was yet 
a nephew of Dr. Hammond, the king’s chaplain. To tHis 
inaufpicious protedlor it was refolved to have recourfe ; 
Afhburnham and Berkeley were fent before to exafl a 
. promife from the governor, that if he would not protect 
the king, he would not detain him. Hammond feemed 
lurprifed at their demand ; expreded his inclination to 
ferve his majefly, but at the fame time alleged his duty 
to his employers. He therefore attended the king’s gen¬ 
tlemen to Tichfield, with a guard of foldiers, and ftaid 
in a lower apartment, while Afhburnham went up to the 
king’s chamber. Charles no fooner underflood that Ham¬ 
mond was in the houfe with a body of troops, titan he 
exclaimed, “O Jack! thou hafl undone me!” Afliburn- 
ham (lied a flood of tears, and offered to go down and dif- 
p>atch the governor, but the king repreifed his ardour. 
When Hammond came into his prefence, he repeated his 
profeflions of cool regard. The king fubmitted to his 
fate ; and, without further delay, attended him to Carif- 
brook caftle, in the Ifle of Wight, where for fome time 
he found himfelf treated with marks of duty and refpect. 
While the king continued in this infulated fituation, 
the parliament, new modelled as it was by the army, was 
every day growing more feeble and factious. Cromwell, 
on the other hand, was (lengthening the army, and 
taking every precaution to mould it to his views, and to 
have it in momentary readinefs to fupport his meafures. 
Among the independents, who were for having no ec- 
cleliadical fubordination, a fet of men fprung up, called 
Levellers, who difallowed all fubordination whatsoever, 
and declared that they would have no other chaplain, 
king, or general, but Chrifl himfelf. They declared 
that all men w ere equal ; that all degrees and ranks Ihould 
be levelled, and an exafl partition of property eftabliflied 
through the nation. This ferment even reached the 
army; and as it was a dodlrine well fuited to the poverty 
of the foldiers, it promifed every day to become more 
dangerous and fatal. 
Cromwell now faw that he was upon the point of lofing 
the fruits of all his former Schemes and dangers, and 
began to dread this new failion the more, as they turned 
his puritanical principles againfl himfelf. Thus finding 
all at flake, he determined, by one refolute blow, either 
to difp.erfe the faction, or peri Hi in the attempt. Slaving 
intimation that the levellers were to meet at a certain 
place, he nnexpetledly appeared in the aflembly, at the 
Voi. VI. No. 382. 
head of his red regiment, which had been hitherto called 
invincible. He demanded, in the name of God, what 
thefe meetings and murmurings meant ; he expoflulated 
with them upon the dangerous confequences of their pre¬ 
cipitate fchemes, and defired them peaceably to depart. 
But indead of obeying, they returned an infolent anfwer; 
wherefore, ruffling on them in a violent fury, he laid, with 
his own hands, two of them dead at his feet. His guards, 
Seizing and difperfing tire red, he caufed feveral of them 
to be hanged upon the fpot; and thus diffipated a faction, 
no otherwife criminal, than having,' in part, followed 
his own example. 
This event ferved dill more to increafe the power of 
Cromwell in the camp and in the parliament; and while 
Fairfax was nominally general of the troops, he was in- 
veded with all the power. But his authority foon be¬ 
came irreddible, in confequence of a new and unexpected 
addition to his fuccedes. The Scots, perhaps, afhamed 
of the reproach of having, like Judas, fold their king, 
and dimulated further by the independents, who took oc- 
cafion to mortify them, raifed an army in his favour, and 
the chief command was given to the duke of Hamilton ; 
while Langdale, who profeded himfelf at the head of 
the more bigoted party, and had taken the covenant, 
marched at the head of his feparate body, to invade the 
north of England. Their two armies amounted to about 
twenty thoufand men. But Cromwell, at the head of 
only eight thoufand of his well-trained veterans, feared 
not to give them battle ; he attacked the Scottifh armies 
one after the other, routed and difperfed them, took Ha¬ 
milton prifoner, and, following his blow, entered Scot¬ 
land, where he fettled tlte government entirely to his fa- 
tisfaftion. Meanwhile an infurre&ion in Kent was quelled 
by Fairfax with the fame eafe; and fuccefs every where 
attended this ufurper’s arms. 
During thefe fanguinary contentions, the king, who 
was kept a prifoner in Carifbrook caftle, continued to ne- 
gociate with the parliament for fettling the unfpeakable 
calamities of the nation. The parliament faw no other 
method of deflroying military power, but to deprefs it 
by the refloration of the king. Frequent propofals for an 
accommodation paffed between the captive king and the 
commons; but the great cbflacle which had all along 
flood in the way, dill kept them apart. This was the 
king’s refuting to abolifh epifcopacy, though he confenred 
to deflroy the liturgy of the church. However, the treaty 
went on with vigour, as the parliament had more to ap¬ 
prehend from the defigns of their generals, than from the 
attempts of the king ; and, for the firfl time, they were 
now in earned to conclude their negociations. But it was 
too late ; the implacable army was returned from the de- 
druClion of their enemies in the north ; and, with intem¬ 
perate zeal, demanded vengeance on the king. They 
advanced to Windfor ; and fending an officer to feize the 
king’s perfon, they conveyed him to Hurd cadle, near 
Lymington, in Hampdiire. It was in vain that the par¬ 
liament complained of this harlh proceeding; it was in 
vain that they began to iffue ordinances to redrain the 
army ; they received a peremptory meffage from Crom¬ 
well, that he intended paying them a vilit the next day, 
and, in the mean time, ordered them to ruife him forty 
thoufand pounds, by a tax upon the city of London. 
The commons, however, though deditute of power, 
had dill courage to refift, and attempted, in the face of 
the whole army, to clofe their treaty with the king. 
They had taken into confideration the whole of the royal 
concedions; and though they had formerly voted them 
unfatisfadlory, they now regarded them in a different 
point of view. After a debate, w hich had laded three 
days, it was carried in the king’s favour by a majority of 
a hundred and twenty-nine againd eighty-three, that his 
majedy’s concedions were a foundation for parliament to 
proceed upon, in the fettlement of the king’s affairs. 
This was the lad druggie for the prefervation of the 
king ; for the next day colonel Pride, at the head of two 
S K regi- 
