Such was the state of the negotiation, when the time allotted by the
parliament expired;[a] and a prolongation for twenty days was voted.[1]
The Independents from the very beginning had disapproved of the treaty. In
a petition presented[b] by "thousands of well-affected persons in and near
London," they enumerated the objects for which they had fought, and which
they now claimed as the fruit of their victory. Of these the principal
were, that the supremacy of the people should be established against the
negative voice of the king and of the lords; that to prevent civil wars,
the office of the king and the privileges of the peers should be clearly
defined; that a new parliament, to be elected of course and without writs,
should assemble every year, but never for a longer time than forty or fifty
days; that religious belief and worship should be free from restraint
[Footnote 1: The papers given in during this treaty may be seen in the
Lords' Journals, x. 474-618. The best account is that composed by order of
the king himself, for the use of the prince of Wales.--Clarendon Papers,
ii. 425-449. I should add, that a new subject of discussion arose
incidentally during the conferences. The lord Inchiquin had abandoned the
cause of the parliament in Ireland, and, at his request, Ormond had been
sent from Paris by the queen and the prince, to resume the government, with
a commission to make peace with the Catholic party.
Pages:
295
296
297
298
299
300
301
302
303
304
305
306
307
308
309
310
311
312
313
314
315
316
317
318
319