24.: Petition of Twelve Peers for the summoning of a new Parliament. - Samuel Rawson Gardiner, The Constitutional Documents of the Puritan Revolution, 1625-1660 [1906]
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The Constitutional Documents of the Puritan Revolution, 1625-1660, selected and edited by Samuel Rawson Gardiner (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1906).
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- Preface to the Second Edition
- Introduction
- I.: To the Meeting of the Third Parliament of Charles I. [—— 1628.]
- II.: From the Meeting of the Third Parliament of Charles I to the Meeting of the Long Parliament. [1628-1640.]
- III.: From the Meeting of the Long Parliament to the Outbreak of the Civil War. [1640-1642.]
- IV.: From the Outbreak of the Civil War to the Execution of the King. [1642-1649.]
- V.: The Commonwealth and Protectorate. [1649—1660.]
- Part I: From the Accession of Charles I to the Meeting of the Third Parliament of His Reign.
- 1.: Speech of Sir Nathaniel Rich, Proposing Terms On Which the House of Commons May Be Prepared to Grant Supply.
- 2.: Protestation of the Commons.
- 3.: Documents Relating to the Impeachment of the Duke of Buckingham.
- 4.: The Restraint of the Earls of Arundel and Bristol.
- 5.: The King’s Letter and Instructions For the Collection of a Free Gift.
- 6.: Commission For Raising Tonnage and Poundage With Impositions.
- 7.: The Commission and Instructions For Raising the Forced Loan In Middlesex.
- 8.: The Case of the Five Knights, Before the Court of King’s Bench.
- Part II: From the Meeting of the Third Parliament of Charles I. To the Meeting of the Long Parliament.
- 9.: Notes of a Bill Brought In By Sir Edward Coke to Secure the Liberties of the Subject.
- 10.: The Petition of Right.
- 11.: The Remonstrance Against Tonnage and Poundage.
- 12.: The King’s Speech At the Prorogation of Parliament At the End of the Session of 1628.
- 13.: The King’s Declaration Prefixed to the Articles of Religion.
- 14.: Resolutions On Religion Drawn By a Sub-committee of the House of Commons.
- 15.: Protestation of the House of Commons.
- 16.: The King’s Declaration Showing the Causes of the Late Dissolution.
- 17.: The Declaration of Sports 1 .
- 18.: Act of the Privy Council On the Position of the Communion Table At St. Gregory’s.
- 19.: Specimen of the First Writ of Ship-money.
- 20.: The King’s Case Laid Before the Judges, With Their Answer 2 .
- 21.: Extracts From the Speech of Oliver St. John In the Ship-money Case.
- 22.: Extracts From the Argument of Sir Robert Berkeley, Justice of the King’s Bench.
- 23.: The Scottish National Covenant.
- 24.: Petition of Twelve Peers For the Summoning of a New Parliament.
- 25.: The King’s Writ Summoning the Great Council.
- Part III: From the Meeting of the Long Parliament to the Outbreak of the Civil War.
- 26.: The Root and Branch Petition.
- 27.: The Triennial Act.
- 28.: The Protestation.
- 29.: The Act For the Attainder of the Earl of Strafford.
- 30.: The Act Against Dissolving the Long Parliament Without Its Own Consent.
- 31.: The Tonnage and Poundage Act.
- 32.: The Ten Propositions.
- 33.: Bill On Church Reform Bead Twice In the House of Lords 1 .
- 34.: The Act For the Abolition of the Court of Star Chamber.
- 35.: The Act For the Abolition of the Court of High Commission.
- 36.: Act Declaring the Illegality of Ship-money.
- 37.: Act For the Limitation of Forests.
- 38.: Act Prohibiting the Exaction of Knighthood Fines.
- 39.: Resolutions of the House of Commons On Ecclesiastical Innovations.
- 40.: Order of the House of Lords On the Services of the Church.
- 41.: Extract From the Instructions to the Committee In Scotland, Proposed By the House of Commons.
- 42.: The King’s Speech to the Recorder of the City of London.
- 43.: The Grand Remonstrance, With the Petition Accompanying It.
- 44.: The King’s Proclamation On Religion.
- 45.: The King’s Answer to the Petition Accompanying the Grand Remonstrance.
- 46.: The Impeachment of One Member of the House of Lords, and of Five Members of the House of Commons.
- 47.: A Declaration of the House of Commons Touching a Late Breach of Their Privileges.
- 48.: The Clerical Disabilities Act.
- 49.: The Impressment Act.
- 50.: The Militia Ordinance.
- 51.: The Declaration of the Houses On Church Reform.
- 52.: The King’s Proclamation Condemning the Militia Ordinance.
- 53.: The Nineteen Propositions Sent By the Two Houses of Parliament to the King At York.
- 54.: Declaration of the Houses In Defence of the Militia Ordinance.
- 55.: The King’s Letter Sent With the Commissions of Array to Leicestershire.
- 56.: The Votes of the Houses For Raising an Army.
- Part IV: From the Outbreak of the Civil War to the Execution of the King.
- 57.: The Propositions Presented to the King At the Treaty of Oxford.
- 58.: The Solemn League and Covenant.
- 60.: The Ordinance Appointing the Second Committee of Both Kingdoms.
- 61.: The Propositions of the Houses Presented to the King At Oxford, and Subsequently Discussed At the Treaty of Uxbridge.
- 62.: The King’s Propositions to Be Discussed At Uxbridge.
- 63.: The Self-denying Ordinance.
- 64.: The Negative Oath.
- 65.: Order of the Two Houses For Taking Away the Court of Wards.
- 66.: The Propositions of the Houses Sent to the King At Newcastle.
- 67.: The King’s First Answer to the Propositions Presented At Newcastle.
- 68.: The King’s Second Answer to the Propositions Presented At Newcastle.
- 69.: Suggested Answer to the Propositions Drawn Up For the King By the Leading Presbyterians and a Small Number of the Independents, and Forwarded By the French Ambassador to Cardinal Mazarin to Be Laid Before Queen Henrietta Maria.
- 70.: The King’s Third Answer to the Propositions Presented At Newcastle.
- 71.: The Heads of the Proposals Offered By the Army.
- 72.: The King’s Answer to the Propositions of Parliament.
- 73.: Letter of Charles I to the Speaker of the House of Lords.
- 74.: The Agreement of the People, As Presented to the Council of the Army.
- 75.: The Four Bills, With the Propositions Accompanying Them.
- 76.: The Engagement Between the King and the Scots.
- 77.: Additional Articles of the Engagement.
- 78.: The King’s Reply to the Four Bills and the Accompanying Propositions.
- 79.: The Vote of No Addresses.
- 80.: The Act 1 Erecting a High Court of Justice For the King’s Trial.
- 81.: The Agreement of the People.
- 82.: The Charge Against the King.
- 83.: The King’s Reasons For Declining the Jurisdiction of the High Court of Justice.
- 84.: The Sentence of the High Court of Justice Upon the King.
- 85.: The Death Warrant of Charles I.
- Part V: The Commonwealth and Protectorate
- 86.: Act Appointing a Council of State.
- 87.: Engagement Taken By the Members of the Council of State.
- 88.: The Act Abolishing the Office of King.
- 89.: An Act Abolishing the House of Lords.
- 90.: An Act Declaring England to Be a Commonwealth.
- 91.: An Act Declaring What Offences Shall Be Adjudged Treason.
- 92.: Engagement to Be Taken By All Men of the Age of Eighteen.
- 93.: Act Repealing Several Clauses In Statutes Imposing Penalties For Not Coming to Church.
- 94.: Act For the Settlement of Ireland.
- 95.: Declaration By the Lord General and the Council On the Dissolution of the Long Parliament.
- 96.: Summons to a Member of the So-called Barebones Parliament.
- 97.: The Instrument of Government.
- 98.: An Ordinance By the Protector For the Union of England and Scotland.
- 99.: An Ordinance By the Protector For Elections In Scotland.
- 100.: An Ordinance By the Protector For Elections In Ireland.
- 101.: The Constitutional Bill of the First Parliament of the Protectorate.
- 102.: The Humble Petition and Advice.
- 103.: The Additional Petition and Advice.
- 104.: The Writ Summoning Richard Cromwell to the House of Lords of the Protectorate.
- 105.: The Declaration of Breda.
- Appendix: the Navigation Act.
24.
Petition of Twelve Peers for the summoning of a new Parliament.
[August 28, 1640. State Papers, Charles I, Domestic, cccclxv. 16. See Hist. of Engl. ix. 199.]
To the King’s Most Excellent Majesty.
The humble Petition of your Majesty’s most loyal and obedient subjects, whose names are here underwritten in behalf of themselves and divers others.
Most Gracious Sovereign,
The sense of that duty and service which we owe to your Sacred Majesty, and our earnest affection to the good and welfare of this your realm of England, have moved us in all humility to beseech your Royal Majesty to give us leave to offer unto your princely wisdom the apprehension which we and other your faithful subjects have conceived of the great distempers and dangers now threatening the Church and State and your Royal person, and the fittest means by which they may be removed and prevented.
The evils and dangers whereof your Majesty may be pleased to take notice are these:
That your Majesty’s sacred person is exposed to hazard and danger in the present expedition against the Scottish army, and by occasion of this war your revenue is much wasted, your subjects burdened with coat-and-conduct-money, billeting of soldiers, and other military charges, and divers rapines and disorders committed in several parts in this your realm, by the soldiers raised for that service, and your whole kingdom become full of fear and discontents.
The sundry innovations in matters of religion, the oath and canons lately imposed upon the clergy and other your Majesty’s subjects.
The great increase of Popery, and employing of Popish Recusants, and others ill-affected to the religion by law established in places of power and trust, especially in commanding of men and arms both in the field and in sundry counties of this your realm, whereas by the laws they are not permitted to have arms in their own houses.
The great mischiefs which may fall upon this kingdom if the intentions which have been credibly reported, of bringing in Irish and foreign forces, shall take effect.
The urging of ship-money, and prosecution of some sheriffs in the Star Chamber for not levying of it.
The heavy charges of merchandise to the discouragement of trade, the multitude of monopolies, and other patents, whereby the commodities and manufactures of the kingdom are much burthened, to the great and universal grievance of your people.
The great grief of your subjects by the long intermission of Parliaments, in the late and former dissolving of such as have been called, without the hoped effects which otherwise they might have procured.
For remedy whereof, and prevention of the dangers that may ensue to your royal person and to the whole state, they do in all humility and faithfulness beseech your most Excellent Majesty that you would be pleased to summon a Parliament within some short and convenient time, whereby the causes of these and other great grievances which your people lie under may be taken away, and the authors and counsellors of them may be there brought to such legal trial and condign punishment as the nature of the several offences shall require, and that the present war may be composed by your Majesty’s wisdom without bloodshed, in such manner as may conduce to the honour and safety of your Majesty’s person, the comforts of your people, and the uniting of both of your realms against the common enemies of the reformed religion. And your Majesty’s petitioners shall ever pray, &c.
Rutland.
Fra. Bedford.
W. Hertford.
Rob. Essex.
Exeter.
Warwick.
Bolingbroke.
Mulgrave.
W. Say and Sele.
Rob. Brooke.
E. Mandeville.
Ed. Howard (of Escrick) .
Baron Kimbolton in his own right.
The signatures as here given are no doubt the correct ones, as the copy on which they appear has a note on it in Nicholas’s hand. Other copies with a different set of signatures were in circulation, one of which, containing several errors, appears in Rushworth. As the signatures are scattered about the paper, I have placed them in order of precedence.
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