that they never attempted to cover their actions from public censure by any pardon or indemnity, though they had very good reason to believe that, had they judged or imagined themselves to have wanted such security, it might, through the goodness of the queen, have easily been obtained; nor can he think it an observa

they were communicated to the parliament, and with their concurrence agreed on; that the peace, thus concluded, was afterwards highly approved by both Houses: that solemn thanks | was rendered to God for it in all our churches, as well as in the churches of the United Provinces: and that her majesty ceived on this subject the hearty and unfeigned congratulation unfit to be made, that, in few of the articles tions of her people from all parts of her dominious. These being the real effects, and this a true representation, of her majesty's conduct in the affairs both of war and peace; the said earl sees not how he or any others then in her majesty's service can be justly charged with betraying the interest of their own country and of the allies, by negociating and promoting that peace, which then was, and (as he hath good grounds to believe) still continues to be, very acceptable and advantageous to these kingdoms and if the peace itself be not condemned; and if it be not even charged upon the said earl as a crime, that he advised her majesty to conclude that peace; neither of which appear to him from the articles; he humbly conceives, it is a particular and extraordinary hardship upon him, that rough draughts and essays towards a peace, with other prelimi nary steps in a negotiation, all leading to an end which he looks upon to be just and profitable, and which is not in any of the articles alledged to be otherwise, should be branched into so many distinct heads of accusation against him; for, supposing that in the process of so nice and difficult an affair, subject to divers unforeseen obstructions and events, any improper steps had been taken (which the said earl doth not admit, but altogether on his part denies); yet, if things were at last conducted to a right issue, and ended in an honourable and advantageous peace, there can be (as he conceives) no just ground to find fault with the measures made use of to compass it, because they seemed before the accomplishment to have a different tendency; especially if it be considered, that scarce any peace hath been made by a confederacy, where less occasion was administered for jealousy among the several parties, and less reason given to complain that every nicety required by the letter of such an alliance was not strictly observed: and therefore he humbly hopes, that no steps taken for obtaining a peace approved by the wisdom of former Parliaments, shall by any succeeding Parliament be accounted criminal, unless it can be made appear that those steps were taken contrary to the queen's orders, or upon corrupt views of private advan-jesty any part of those vast sums she had altage: but that no charge of this nature can be made good against him, he presumes to affirm with great assurance: nor does he know of any other persons justly chargeable upon either of these accounts. And, as a further proof that those who had the honour to serve her majesty in the negotiations of peace acted with ppright views and intentions, and without being conscious to themselves of any failure in their duty either to their queen or their country; the said earl craves leave to obser ve to your lordships,

which concern the negotiations of peace, the charge is founded on any breach of the laws of Great Britain; but it is in most of them built chiefly on the supposed infraction of certain treaties and alliances with foreign princes and states; and he conceives, that such infractions of public treaties, where they do not particularly affect the interests of Great Britain, being cognizable by the laws of nations only and not by those of the realm, are not wont to be examined into here at home, and prosecuted as criminal; but upon the complaint of some prince or state pretending by that means to be injured, and lodging sucli complaint, in some reasonable time, with the prince by the advice of whose ministers and servants such injury is supposed to have been done: but he knows not that any such steps have been taken, since the peace, by any of the powers concerned; on the contrary, he believes, that all the alles, excepc the emperor and empire, made their peace with the enemy at the same time the queen did; and that none of them did afterwards complain to her majesty (who survived the said peace a year and almost four months) of any hardships imposed upon them in it: that the princes of the empire, who contributed very little to the war, might have concluded their peace upon reasonable terms, at the same time the other allies did; and would probably have done it, if the emperor, on his part, had been willing to sign together with them; which, he is informed, at the conclusion of any general peace, has been seldom done; and particularly, at the several conclusions of the peace of Munster, that of Nimeghen, and that of Reswick, was not prac tised. And he submits it to your lordships consideration, whether the emperor, having had all reasonable and equitable satisfaction made him for his pretensions to the succession of the Spanish monarchy, according to the terms of the grand alliance, could have any just reason to complain of the queen's ministers, or those of her allies, for concluding a peace without insisting, on his account, upon impossible coaditions; especially when no provision was made, or offered to be made, to reimburse to her ma

ready expended in support of his pretensions; whilst he failed of supplying his quota almost in every part of the war, notwithstanding his new and great acquisitions: but whether the emperor, or any other of the allies, had any just ground of complaint or not, still the said Earl presumes to insist, that it ought to have been signified to the queen; who upon such complaint, had she found any of her servants justly blameable, as disobeying her orders, or misleading her by their advice into unjustifiable and

Spanish West Indies; one of those advantages which France had discovered its willingness should be allowed previously and entirely to England.

These few general observations the said earl has thought fit to add in the close of his Answer to the several Articles of his Impeachment; not only in his own necessary vindication, but also in defence of her late majesty's conduct in the negociating and concluding a peace, the perfecting of which she esteemed the

Tournay to France, and so deprive the States of that intended part of their barrier; and for procuring Spain and the West Indies to the duke of Anjou upon his renunciation of the crown of France: referring himself to what he has said in his answer to both these articles, he here further assures your lordships, (and thinks it sufficiently known both at home and abroad) that his opinion and endeavour, as occasion offered, always were for Tournay's remaining (as it now does) to the States General; and as to the latter, he doubts not but that what has lately happened in France, is a convincing proof to your lordships, and to all the world, that the renunciation was the best expedient that could have been proposed, towards hindering the two kingdonis from being united under one and the same monarch; that that branch of the treaty which relates to this expedient has fully answered its end, and made good the character given of it by the queen "that it would execute itself;" and therefore, that whoever advised this method of separating the two crowns, was so far from being guilty of any traiterous design, that he eminently promoted the welfare of Great Britain and the good of Christendom.

radishonourable measures, might have punished | them forthwith, as their offences deserved: but, nothing of this kind having been done, he humbly leaves it to be considered by your lordships, whether the silence of the powers concerned doth not carry in it a strong presumption, either that they had no real and just ground of complaint in relation to the terms of the peace itself, or at least did not look upon the ministers of the queen as any ways liable to blanie an that account: and therefore he must again beg leave to express to your lord-greatest happiness of her reign. ships his concern, that he should be charged as "Upon the review of the Two and Twenty a criminal, by the laws of this land, for sup- | Articles with which he is charged; as he is posed breaches of treaties with foreign states; not conscious of any offence committed by him which never were complained of as such, by with respect to any one of them, so it is with those states themselves, during the life of her a particular concern and surprize that he remajesty. He desires further to observe to your flects on those two wherein he is accused of lordships, that wherever he is charged with car-high treason, for endeavouring to procure rying on a private and separate negotiation, it is all along understood with regard only to the States of the United Provinces: no step that was communicated to them being censured upon this account; whereas all the other allies had, by virtue of their treaties with the queen, a like right to a communication of counsels: and her majesty was under no stipulations to act more in concert with any one, than with all of them. He doth indeed allow it to have been most agreeable to reason, and to the interests of state, that the queen should act in a closer conjunction with Holland than with any other of her allies, because that, next to Great Britain, Holland bore the greatest share in the charge of the war; but then he hopes it will be allowed also, that the States being more interested in the success of the war than England, and that England having submitted to a greater share of the burthen, in order to procure, not only a fitting security for the States, but such as brought great advantages to them, though no benefit to England, it was very reasonable for the queen to take care of the interest of her own kingdoms some other way; and, since the advantages she demanded from the enemy were such as she might obtain without prejudice to the States, it was as lawful for her to negotiate this matter, without communicating it originally and in the first rise of it, to them, as it was for her and the States to concert their mutual interests together, without the immediate and express participation of the other allies, which, being known to be done without a design to defeat any of the main ends of the alliance, was never complained of by any of the confederates: and as for the matters concerted previously with France for the particular interest of England, without the original intervention of Holland, the States were so far from protesting against her majesty's measures, and condemning her conduct in this respect, that their minister proffered several times, in their name, to have led the way in the most difficult part of the whole negotiation, and to have done his utmost to facilitate the conclusion of it, provided his masters might have a share in the Assiento contract and trade to the VOL. VII.

"The said Earl, with all the assurances of an innocent man, begs leave to repeat, that, as well in this, as in all other affairs of state, in which he had the honour to be employed by her late majesty, he ever acted, according to the best of his skill and judgment, with sincere desires and intentions to serve the public, and without any view to his own private advantage. As he was in several great stations under her majesty, he came into all of them by her own special command, without his seeking or desiring them; and he served her in all with the utmost respect, zeal, and faithfulness; and while he continued in those stations, for many years, it was with great wonder and pleasure that he observed how her majesty's whole thoughts, endeavours, and time, were divided between her duty to God and her love to ber people, whose good and security she preferred always to her own ease, and often bazarded her health and life itself to procure it; he P

knew, that the most effectual way for any one to recommend himself to her good opinion, was to act upon the same principles of justice and love to his country that she did: and as she abhorred the thoughts of any thing burthensome or injurious to her people; so she often expressed herself with the greatest satisfaction and delight, when she reflected on the advantages obtained by her for her own subjects, and the quiet and repose she had gained for Europe, by that just and honourable peace, for which, as the present age doth, so generations to come will, bless the memory of that excellent and renowned queen.

Oxford."

Debate in the Commons on the Earl of Orford's Answer to the Articles of Impeachment.] September 7. The Lords sent a message to acquaint the Commons, that the earl of Oxford and earl Mortimer had put in his Answer to the Articles of Impeachment; and also to deliver to the House of Commons a true copy thereof. Hereupon the Commons ordered that the said Answer be read on the Monday following, and the said Answer being then read accordingly, there arose a small debate.

Mr. Robert Walpole, among other things, said, He had not yet had time to peruse and examine that Answer, but that he now heard it read with a great deal of attention, and, in his opinion, it contained little more than what had been suggested in vindication of the late measures, in a pamphlet intituled, "The Conduct of the Allies," and repeated over and over in the papers called, "The Examiner." That the main drift of this answer seemed to prove these two assertions, 1. That the earl of Oxford had no share in the advising and managing the matters mentioned in the articles against him, but that the late queen did every thing; and 2. That the late queen was a wise, good, and pious princess. That if the second proposition were not better grounded than the first, the reputation of that excellent princess would be very precarious: but as every body must own her to have been a good and pious queen, so it was notorious that the earl of Oxford, as prime minister, was the chief adviser, promoter and manager, of the matters charged upon him in the articles: and therefore his answer was a false and malicious libel, laying upon his royal mistress the blame of all the pernicious measures he had led her into, against her own honour and the good of his country that he hoped the earl's endeavouring to screen himself behind the queen's name, would avail him nothing; That it is indeed, a fundamental maxim of our constitution, That Kings can do no wrong; but that, at the same time, 'tis no less certain, that ministers of state are accountable for their actions; otherwise a parliament would be but an empty name; the Commons would have no business in that place; and the government would be absolute and arbitrary. That though the earl had the assurance to aver, that he had no share in the management of affairs that were transacted while he

was at the helm, yet he pretended to justify the late measures: and therefore, in that respect, his answer ought to be looked upon as a libel on the proceedings of the Commons, since he endeavoured to clear those persons, who had already confessed their guilt by their flight.

Mr. Shippen could not be altogether silent on this occasion: He said, That it would not become him to defend the earl's Answer, since, as a member of that honourable assembly, he was become one of his accusers: But that he could not forbear wishing, that this prosecution might be dropt, and that the House would be satisfied with the two late acts of attainder. That this wish of his was the stronger, because one of the principal reasons that induced the Commons to impeach the earl of Oxford, subsisted no longer, the affairs of Europe having received a sudden turn from the death of the French king; whereby the renunciation of king Philip began to take place, in the advancement of the duke of Orleans to the absolute regency of France.

Mr. Aislaby answered, That he hoped it was to little purpose the gentleman who spoke last, endeavoured to move the pity and compassion of the House, and persuade then to drop this prosecution. That this was not a proper time to examine and reply to the earl of Oxford's Answer; and therefore he would content himself with saying, in general, that it was a contexture of the shifts, evasions, and false representations, contained in the three parts of "The History of the White-Staff." That as to what had been suggested concerning the event which seemed to have strengthened the renun ciation, he did not deny, there might be something in it; which was manifest from the great joy the well-affected to the government had shewn, on this occasion, and from the mortifi cation and despair that appeared in the faces of a certain party: But that, after all, it could not yet be ascertained, that the renunciation was in force; that there was a vast difference between the regency and the crown; that time only would decide that matter; but that even supposing that, by the concurrence of unfore. seen events, king Philip's renunciation should, at last, take place, yet the same would not justify the ministers who proposed and laid it as the foundation of the late peace, since they with whom they treated, were so frank and so sincere as to tell them, that it could never be valid, by the fundamental laws of France.

After some other speeches, it was ordered, That the Answer of Robert earl of Oxford and earl Mortimer, be referred to the Committee appointed to draw up Articles of Impeachment and prepare evidence against the impeached lords; and that the said Committee do prepare a Replication to the said Answer. Accordingly on Sept. 16, Mr. Robert Walpole, from the Committee, reported the said Replication, which he read in his place, and afterwards delivered in at the table, where the same was read, agreed unto, and ordered to be engrossed. The Monday after the engrossed Re

Replication of the Commons to the Earl of Oxford's Answer to the Articles of Impeach-lingbroke, attainted by act of parliament of ment.] The said Replication was as follows:

stances of his confinement; the report which they had directed him to make to the House; which he read in his place, and afterwards delivered in at the table; Where the same was read and is as followeth: viz.

haviour has so far merited the favour and mercy of the House, as to make that confinement more easy to him, which his contempt of the Commons of Great Britain, and his notorious prevarication, most justly brought him into: And it seems worthy of consideration, how far it may be thought advisable for the House of Commons to set at liberty a person in their custody, and committed, according to the aucient methods and practice of parliament, who is a material evidence against high of

Great Britain; and who, there is great reason to apprehend, would immediately withdraw himself, and as far as in him lay, defeat the justice of the nation."

Ordered, That the Committee appointed to draw up Articles of Impeachment, and to prepare evidence, against the impeached lords, be impowered to sit, notwithstanding any adjourn ment of the House.

"That in the perusal and examination of the several books and papers referred to the Committee of Secrecy, Mr. Prior appeared, through the whole progress of the separate and pernicious negociations carried on between the ministers of Great Britain and France, to have been principally concerned, as an agent and in-fenders, under prosecution of the Commons of strument of those evil and traiterous counsellors, some of which are already attainted, and others stand impeached, of high treason, and other high crimes and misdemeanors: and the Committee conceiving there were matters contained in the first general report, from which crimes of a very high nature might be justly charged and imputed to the said Mr. Prior, whenever the House should think proper to enter into that consideration; as likewise, that Mr. Prior was able to give great lights into all those dark and secret transactions, when he should be called upon by the great council of the nation, or any committee appointed by them, to give an account of the negociations in which he was concerned as a public minister; the House, upon a motion from the committee for that purpose, was pleased to order, before the report was made, That Mr. Prior should be taken into custody of the serjeant at arms, to prevent his making his escape upon notice of what was contained in the report;

"That this method of confining Mr. Prior is not only agreeable to former precedents upon the like occasions, but necessary, and essential to that great duty and privilege of the House of Commons of redressing grievances, and bringing great offenders to justice.

That the committee did, some time after, pursuant to the powers given them by the House, proceed to examine Mr. Prior concerning several matters, of which there can be no doubt but he was fully apprised, and acquainted with, in which examination, Mr. Prior did behave himself with such contempt of the authority of parliament, and prevaricate in so gross a manner, as most justly to deserve the highest displeasure of the House:

"But finding at last, after an examination of several hours, that it was impossible for him to disguise, or conceal, some facts that were before the committee, he was induced to declare upon oath, some truths, which will be very material evidence upon the trials of the impeached lords:

"And the committee, having notice, that Mr. Prior had, during his first confinement, met, and conferred with the earl of Oxford, and his nearest relations and dependents, which Mr. Prior confessed to be true, thought it their duty to move the House, that Mr. Prior might be committed to closer custody.

"From this short state of the proceedings relating to Mr. Prior, the Committee submits it to the wisdom of the House, whether his be

Sir W. Wyndham, sir John Packington, Mr Ed. Harvey, Mr. Foster, Mr. Anstis,and Mr. C. Kynaston, ordered at the King's request, to be apprehended.] Sept. 21. Mr. Secretary Stanhope acquainted the Commons, That he was commanded by the King to com-, municate to the House, That his majesty having just cause to suspect, that sir William Wyndham, sir John Packington, Mr. Edward Harvey, Mr. Foster, Mr. Anstis and Mr. Corbet Kynaston, are engaged in a design to support the intended Invasion of this kingdom, bath given order for apprehending them; and his majesty desires the consent of this House to his causing them to be committed and detained, if he shall judge it necessary so to do, in pursuance of the late act of parliament for impowering his majesty to commit and detain such persons as his majesty shall suspect are conspiring against his person and government. Hereupon it was resolved, nem. con." That an humble Address be presented to his majesty, returning the thanks of this House for his gracious message this day, and for his tender regard to the privileges of this House; and to desire, that he will be pleased to give orders for the committing and detaining the several members named in the said message, pursuant to the act of this sessions of parliament for that purpose."*

*« Upon this, warrants were issued out for apprehending the six members, two of whom, Harvey and Anstis, happening to be in town, were immediately secured. Mr. Harvey stabbed himself some few days after with a knife, in two or three places of his breast; but the wounds proved not mortal. As to the rest, Mr. Forster stood out in defiance of justice, and with two Romish lords raised a rebellion in Northumberland. Sir Joha Packington was brought up to London from his house in Worcestershire, and being examined before the council, and nothing appearing against him, was honourably discharged. Mr. Kynaston