BOOK II. question, and the great seal was affixed to the same 1693. by the lord keeper Somers, on the 7th of October State of Ireland. 1693. A petition was, however, presented to the house of commons by the indefatigable and persevering antagonists of the company, on the meeting of parliament, containing allegations both against the legality and expediency of the new charter and after vehement debates, in which the friends and foes of the company exerted themselves with alternate success, a resolution of the house passed, amounting to a virtual subversion of the charter, by declaring "that all the subjects of England had an equal right to trade to the East-Indies, unless prohibited by act of parliament." But no censure was passed either on the several charters granted to the company, or the manner of obtaining them: nor was any project adopted for regulating the trade by authority of parliament for the future. Ever since the reduction of Ireland, almost every gale that blew had been freighted with the groans of the miserable inhabitants. The administration of Coningsby and Porter had been rendered odious by such a series of frauds and oppressions as would have disgraced the government of a Turkish pacha. So powerful nevertheless was their interest at court, and with such plausibility did they urge the never-failing pretence of necessity, "the tyrant's plea for devilish BOOK I 1693. Justices and Porter ed. deeds," in extenuation of their measures, that a pardon was ordered to pass the seals in their fa-" vor. But this was arrested in its progress by the representations of lord Bellamont, and James Hamilton, esq. at the council-board, who also petitioned the queen that all proceedings might be suspended till the said petitioners and many others of their majesties' liege subjects of Ireland had produced their proofs against them. Co- The Lords ningsby and Porter on this thought proper to Coningsby wave their privilege of a pardon. And at the impeachensuing meeting of parliament, Bellamont, who was himself a member of the house of commons, exhibited regular articles of impeachment against them, accusing the lords justices of" traitorously abusing the power and authority with which they had been invested, &c." And a solemn hearing being appointed, and vouchers of each article. produced the house seemed greatly impressed, and its indignation strongly excited, by the enormity of the offences proved against them. Nevertheless, a resolution ultimately passed, "that, considering the state of Ireland at the time, they did not think fit to ground an impeachment upon them." This weak and guilty vote was followed by the dismission of Bellamont, and the pardon of the delinquents. If, however, the house was in this instance too lax in its morality, they made what bigotry and BOOK I. Superstition would doubtless deem an ample com1094. pensation in their extravagant display of zeal for Mr. Montague constituted Chancellor chequer. religion, by condemning to be burnt, nearly at the same time, by the hands of the common hangman, a certain Socinian pamphlet called "A Dialogue concerning the Deity," or, "A brief Confutation of the Doctrine of the Trinity:" ordering a prosecution of the author, printer, and publisher: thus deci:ling without knowledge, offering violence in opposition to argument, setting up for judges of abstract truth, arrogating to themselves a papal jurisdiction, and exercising an authority foreign to the very nature of civil government, whose object it is to protect men in the enjoyment of their just rights; of which the free and unrestrained investigation of truth is one of the most sacred and important. The session terminated April 25th, 1694; immediately after which a grand promotion, civil of the Ex- and military, took place. The earls of Shrewsbury, Bedford, and Devonshire were created dukes; also the earl of Clare, and the marquis of Carmarthen, under the new designations of Newcastle and Leeds. The earl of Mulgrave was made marquis of Normanby, with a pension of 30001. per annum. Lord Sydney was appointed master of the ordnance, declared warden of the cinque ports, and created earl of Romney. Mr. Montague, a man of rising talents, and zealously attached to the whig party, was constituted chan- BOOK II. cellor of the exchequer. Two patents of peerage 1694. were at once conferred on lord Charles Butler, brother to the duke of Ormond, by the several titles of lord Butler of Weston in England, and earl of Arran in Ireland. And the duke of Hamilton dying at this period, the blue ribbon worn by him was transferred to the duke of Shrewsbury. inFlanders, Early in May 1694, the king embarked for the Campaign continent; and, after passing a few weeks at the &c. Hague and Loo, took upon him the command of the allied army, which was ordered to rendezvous at Louvaine. Here he was met by the brotherelectors of Bavaria and Cologne; the latter of whom had recently, in opposition to the utmost efforts of the French court, on the demise of prince Clement of Bavaria been chosen bishop of Liege. The army of the confederates, when completely assembled, did not amount to less. than 90,000 men, excellently trained, and amply provided. The French, who were inferior in number, but confident in the abilities of their commander M. Luxemburg, had orders to act on the defensive: The two armies employed several weeks in marches and countermarches; till at length maréchal Luxemburg, crossing the Maese, made a movement with his whole army on the side of Liege and Maestricht The king, know 1094. ful attempt Flanders. BOOK II. ing how well those places were provided for defence, immediately ordered a grand detachment under the elector of Bavaria to march with all expedition and pass the Scheld at Oudenarde and Pont d'Esperries, taking post on the other side in order to facilitate the passage of the whole army over that river, with a view to penetrate into French Flanders. This was generally allowed to be a very judicious and masterly movement; and had maréchal Luxemburg possessed only ordinary talents, it would probably have been attended with decisive success. But the Unsuccess- maréchal was no sooner apprized of the route on French which the confederates had taken, than he detached a numerous corps of his best horse, with each a foot-soldier behind him, to reinforce M. de Valette, who had the command of the French lines at Pont d'Esperries; ordering M. de Villeroy, accompanied by the dauphin with the cavalry and household troops, to follow with all possible expedition. After a prodigious march of seventeen hours without halting, the maréchal formed a junction with M. de Valette on the banks of the Scheld and when the elector of Bavaria, who had also advanced with no ordinary degree of haste, arrived at the destined spot, he perceived to his utter astonishment the French troops entrenching themselves on the opposite side of the river. The king himself, soon after joining |
