214 CHAP. LXXX. The King estranged from Clarendon. Question of "In a good sum of money. Aske the advice of the Board in an affayre of this moment." Clarendon strove hard to make a good pecuniary bargain, and probably could not have got a higher price from any other customer, although Louis boasted of having overreached him by pretending that he had no ready money, and then discounting his own acceptances.* The proceeds were thrown into the lap of the Countess of Castlemaine, and the Chancellor's splendid new mansion now rising in Piccadilly, received from the multitude the name of "DUNKIRK HOUSE." Hitherto the King had been entirely under the guidance of Clarendon; but at length a schism took place between them, and though it was only by slow degrees that the pupil could get rid of his master, all cordiality between them was gone. Charles, while in exile, had been secretly reconciled to the Catholic Church, and, in general, very little subject to religious impressions, yet at times he was desirous of making atonement for his immoralities by doing what might be agreeable to his spiritual guides. The Act of Uniformity, if strictly enforced, would operate most oppressively against the Roman Catholics. He was very willing dulgence." to give them some relief, but could here expect no assist. ance from the Chancellor. Nicholas was removed from the office of Secretary of State, and was replaced by Sir Henry Bennet, afterwards Earl of Arlington, who "had the art of managing the temper of the King beyond all other men of that time t," and, to please him, had himself become a Papist. The question of indulgence was now brought forward before the Council, when Bennet maintained that the King, as Head of the Church, possessed the right of suspending all penal laws in matters of religion,-a doctrine which Clarendon now controverted. In spite of his opinion, and, as he asserts, without his being consulted on the propriety of such a step, a royal Declaration, drawn by Bennet, came out, in which his Majesty was made to say, "as for Dec. 6. 1662. * Euvres de Louis XIV. i. 175. D'Estrades, i, 286. 343. LXXX. what concerns the penalties upon those who, living peaceably, CHAP. do not conform themselves to the discipline and government of the Church of England through scruple and tenderness of misguided conscience, but modestly and without scandal perform their devotions in their own way, he should make it his special care, so far as in him lay, without invading the freedom of parliament, to incline their wisdom next approaching session to concur with him in making such act for that purpose as may enable him to exercise, with a more universal satisfaction, that power of dispensing which he conceived to be inherent in the Crown." 1663. tion to and dis blished When Parliament met, Clarendon was confined by illness, Feb. 18. and the King opened the session with a speech expressing Bill to dishis zeal for Protestantism, but caused a bill to be introduced pense with in the House of Lords, by the Lord Privy Seal, to enable subs him to dispense with all laws requiring subscription or obe- doctrine dience to the doctrine and discipline of the established cipline of Church. In the first day's debate on this bill, in the ab- estasence of Clarendon, it was stoutly opposed by Lord South- Church ampton and the Bishops, but boldly supported by Lord Ashley, Lord Robartes, and other Peers, who wished to pay court to the Sovereign. The debate was adjourned, and the result considered doubtful. Under these circumstances the Chancellor, next morning, left his sick bed, came down to the House, and made such an uncompromising and powerful speech against the bill, that the second reading was postponed, and it was never again resumed. But his favour with the King was gone; and this being very visible, there was a general disposition among the courtiers to annoy him, which induced him to write to his friend Ormond, "I have had so unpleasant a life as that, for my own ease and content, I rather wished myself at Breda, and have hardly been able to restrain myself from making that suit." the Court. Pepys gives us a most lively description of the state of the State of Court at this time. "It seems the present favourites now are my Lord Bristol, Duke of Buckingham, Sir H. Bennet, April 11. 1663. CHAP. LXXX. Clarendon by the Earl my Lord Ashley, and Sir Charles Berkeley; who, amongst them, have cast my Lord Chancellor on his back past ever getting up again, there being now little for him to do; and he waits at Court, attending to speak to the King, as others do. The King do mind nothing but pleasure. If any of the counsellors give him good advice, and move him to any thing that is to his good and honour, the other part, which are his counsellors of pleasure, take him when he is with my Lady Castlemaine, and in a humour of delight, and then persuade him that he ought not to listen to the advice of those old dotards or counsellors that were heretofore his enemies, when, God knows! it is they that, now-a-days, do most study his honour." 66 Clarendon was saved from the impending peril, and enimpeached abled to continue some years longer in office, by the rash of Bristol. attempt of an enemy to precipitate his fall. On the 10th of July, to the astonishment of all, except a very few who were in the secret, the Earl of Bristol rose in his place in the House of Lords, and produced a paper in his own handwriting, and signed with his name, containing " Articles of impeachment for high treason and other misdemeanours against the Lord High Chancellor." He told the Lords, "that he could not but observe that, after so glorious a return with which God had blessed the King and the nation, so that all the world had expected that the prosperity of the kingdom would have far exceeded the misery and adversity that it had for many years endured, and after the parliament had contributed more to it than ever parliament had done: notwithstanding all which it was evident to all men, and 'lamented by those who wished well to his Majesty, that his affairs grew every day worse and worse; the King himself lost much of his honour and the affection he had in the hearts of the people that, for his part, he looked upon it with as much sadness as any man, and had made inquiry, as well as he could, from whence this great misfortune, which every body was sensible of, could proceed; and that he was satis * Pepys, ii. 38. fied, in his own conscience, that it proceeded principally from the power and credit of the Chancellor; and therefore he was resolved, for the good of his country, to accuse the Lord Chancellor of high treason." He concluded by desiring that the articles might be read. They charged that the Chancellor had arrogated to himself the direction of all his Majesty's affairs, both at home and abroad; that he had applied to the Pope for a Cardinal's cap for Lord Aubigny; that some of his friends had said, "Were it not for my Lord Chancellor standing in the gap, Popery would be introduced;" that he had concluded the King's marriage without due agreement how it should be solemnised; that he and his adherents had uttered gross scandals against the King's course of life; that he had advised and effected the sale of Dunkirk; that he had told the King the House of Lords was weak and inconsiderable; and that he had enriched himself and his creatures by the sale of offices. CHAP. LXXX. The Chancellor, leaving the woolsack, made a pointed and His deanimated defence, contending that all the charges which were fence. not quite frivolous were false; that none of them amounted to treason; and that an impeachment for treason could not thus be commenced by one Peer against another, upon which points he desired that the Judges might be consulted. The Judges being summoned, pronounced their unanimous opinion by the mouth of Lord Chief Justice Bridgeman, that the prosecution was not duly commenced, and that if the charges were all admitted to be true, there was nothing of treason in them. The King, seeing the result, very irregularly sent a message to the Lords telling them that in the articles he finds many matters of fact charged, which upon his own certain knowledge are untrue. The Lords resolved, nemine dissentiente, that they concurred with the Judges, and they dismissed the prosecution, with a strong censure of the Earl of Bristol for the manner in which he had brought it forward. Warrants were issued for his apprehension, and he was obliged to remain in concealment for some years.' CHAP. LXXX. being ac Clarendon's enemies were completely disheartened and confounded by this failure, and he seemed again firmly seated Clarendon in power; but although the King still yielded to him the chief direction of affairs, the former friendship between them was never restored, and Charles watched impatiently for a favourable opportunity entirely to emancipate himself from his minister. quitted, again in power. * Life, ii. 256. Burnet, i. 358. |