ENGLAND. 
ambition of power, and the perfeverance and attention of 
his brother, to his own infinuating and engaging addrefs, 
he might have fecured his reputation with writers, by 
enflaving them with the nation. In his perfon lie was 
tall, and well made. His complexion was dark, the lines 
of his face ftrong and hai'lh, when fmgly traced: but 
when his features were comprehended in one view, they 
appeared dignified and even pleafing. In the motions of 
his perfon he was eafy, graceful, and firm. His confuta¬ 
tion was (irong, and communicated an aftive vigour to all 
his limbs. Though a lover of eafe of mind, he was fond 
of bodily exercife. He rofe early, he walked much, he 
mixed with the meaneft of his fubjefts, and joined in 
their converlation, without diminilhing his own dignity, 
or raifing their prefumption. He was acquainted with 
many perfons in the lower ftations of life. He captivated 
them with fprightly terms of humour, and with a kind 
of good-natured wit, which rendered them pleafed with 
themfelves. His guards only attended him on public oc- 
cafions. He took the air frequently in company with a 
tingle friend ; and though crowds followed him, it was 
more from a wifh to attraft his notice, than from an idle 
curiofity. When evident deligns again!! his life were 
daily exhibited before the courts ot juflice, he changed 
not his manner of appearing in public. It was foon after 
the Rye-houfe plot was difcovered, he is faid to have 
been fevere on his brother’s character, when he exhibited 
a firiking feature of his own. The duke returning from 
hunting with his.guards, found the king one day in Hyde 
Park. He exprefled his furprife how his majefty could 
venture his perfon alone at fuch.a perilous time. “James, 
(replied the king,) take you care of yourfelf, and I am 
fafe. No man in England will kill me, to make you king.” 
When he was oppofed with mod violence in parliament, 
he continued the mod popular man in the kingdom. His 
good-breeding, as a gentleman, overcame the opinion con¬ 
ceived of his faults as-a king. His affability, his eafy 
addrefs, his attention to the very prejudices of his peo¬ 
ple, rendered.him independent of all the arts of his ene¬ 
mies to inflame the vulgar. He is laid, with reafon, to 
have died opportunely for his country. Had his life ex¬ 
tended to.the number of years which the drength of his 
conditution feemed to protnife, the nation would have 
lod all memory of their liberties ; for the refolution he 
finally made of condufting the government without the 
aid of parliament, was nothing lets than to fap the foun¬ 
dation of the conditution, which he had i'o facredly 
bound himfelf to maintain. 
Charles II. had no iffue by his queen ; but his illegiti¬ 
mate offspring w as numerous. At the head of thefe was 
the duke of Monmouth, who made an unfuccefsful ef¬ 
fort for the crown. 
The duke of York, notwithdanding all the druggies 
of the whig party to prevent his fuccedion, afcended the 
throne of his brother, A.D. 1685, by the title of king 
Janies II. His reign began with aits of imprudence. 
All the cudoms, and the greater part of the excife, that 
had been voted to the late king for his life only, were 
levied by Janies, without a new aft for that purpofe. 
He likewife went openly to mat's with all the enligns of 
his dignity, and difpatclied Caryl to Rome, to make fub- 
miffions to the pope, and to pave the way for the re-ad- 
midion of England into the bofoni of the catholic church. 
He had, long before the beginning of his reign, had an 
intrigue with Mrs. Sedley, whom he afterwards created 
countefs of Dorcheder; but being now told that, as he 
was to convert his people, the fanftity of his manners 
ought to correfpond witli his piofeflions, Mrs. Sedley 
was difcarded, and he refigned himfelf to the advice of 
the queen, who was as much governed by prieds as him¬ 
felf. One day, when the Spanilh ambaffador ventured to 
advife his majedy againd placing too much confidence in 
fuch kind of people,—“Is it not the cudom in Spain 
(faid James) for the king to confult with his confeffor?” 
“Yes (anfwered the ambaffador), and that is the reafon 
2 
691 
our affairs fucceed fo very ill.” His fird parliament, 
which was moftly compofed of zealous tories, were 
ftrongly biaffed to comply with the meafures of the 
crown. They voted unanimoufly that they would fettle 
on the prefent king, all the revenue enjoyed by his fa¬ 
ther. For this favour, James-adured them of his refo¬ 
lution to fectire them in the full enjoyment of their 
lavvs ; but no anfwer could be extorted from him with 
regard to the edablifhed religion, he having always de¬ 
clared himfelf a catholic. 
To pave the way for his intended converfion of the 
kingdom, it was necelfary to undeceive the people with 
regard to the late rumour of a popilh plot; and Oates, 
the contriver, was the fird objeft of royal indignation. 
He was tried and convicted of perjury on two indict¬ 
ments. His fentence was to pay a fine of two thoufand 
marks ; to be whipped, on two different days, from Aid- 
gate to Newgate, and from Newgate to Tyburn; to be 
imprifoned during life, and to be pillored five times every 
year. Oates, long accudotued to a life of infamy tyid 
druggie, fupported himfelf under every punifhment that 
judice could inflict. Though the whipping was fo cruel, 
that it appeared evidently the intention of the court to 
put him to death by that dreadful punifhment, yet he 
furvived it all, and lived to king William’s reign, when 
he had a fettled penfion of four hundred pounds a year. 
Thus the memory of Oates cads a dain upon the times in 
every part of his conduft. It is a dain that he was fird 
believed—it is a dain that he was careffed—that he was 
tyrannically punilhed—and that he was afterwards re¬ 
warded for his infamy. 
The duke of Mpnmouth, after the late confpiracy, 
had retired to Holland. Being difmifled from thence by 
the prince of Orange upon James’s acceflion, he went to 
Bruffels, where, finding himfelf dill purfued by the 
king’s feverity, he refolved to retaliate, and make an at¬ 
tempt upon the kingdom. He had ever been regarded 
by the people ; and fome averred that Charles had mar¬ 
ried his mother, and owned Monmouth’s legitimacy at 
his death. The duke of Argyle feconded his views in 
Scotland, and they formed the fcheme of a double infur- 
reftion ; fo that, while Monmouth diould attempt to 
make a dand in the wed, Argyle was to try his drength 
in the north. Argyle was the fird who publilhed his 
manifedoes, put himfelf at the head of two thoufand 
five hundred men, and drove to influence the Scottifh 
people in his caufe. But a formidable body of the king’s 
f'otces coming againd him, his army fell away, and he 
himfelf, after being wounded in attempting to efcape, 
was taken prifoner by a peafant, who found him handing 
up to his neck in a pool of water. He was from thence 
carried to Edinburgh, where, after enduring many indig¬ 
nities with a noble fpirir, he was publicly executed. 
The fate of Argyle was but poor encouragement to the 
unfortunate Monmouth, who was by this time landed in 
Dorfetfhire, with fcarcely a hundred followers. His 
name, however, was fo popular, and fo great was the ha¬ 
tred of the people both for the perfon and religion of 
James, that in four days he alfembled a body of above 
two thoufand men. They were indeed all of them the 
lowed of the people ; and his declarations were fuited en¬ 
tirely to their prejudices. He called the king the dukeof 
York, and denominated him a traitor, a tyrant, a mur¬ 
derer, and a popilh ufitrper. He imputed to him the fire 
of London, the murder of Godfrey and Elfex, and even 
the poifoning the late king. 
The parliament was no fooner informed of Monmouth’s 
landing, than they prefented an addrefs to the king, af- 
furing him of their loyalty, zeal, and aflidance. The 
duke of Albemarle, raifing a body of four thoufand mi¬ 
litia, advanced to block him up in Lyme ; but finding his 
foldiers dilfalfefted to the king, he retreated with preci¬ 
pitation. In the mean time, the duke of Monmouth ad¬ 
vanced to Taunton, where he was reinforced by confi- 
deiable numbers. Twenty young maids of fome rank 
prefented 
