THE HISTORY OF ENGLAND. BOOK XXII. T PART II. OLIVER CROMWELL, Protector. HE peace between England and the United Pro- 1654. vinces was at last concluded, and the treaty figned cluded be United Pro the 5th of April 1654. By the treaty Cromwell Peace conmade great advantage of the neceffity the ftates tween Engwere under to make peace. They could not obtain it with- land and the out promifing to pay large fums for the damages done to vinces. the English thirty years fince. They confented to ftrike Collect, of to the hips of the commonwealth, as they had before done treaties, to thofe of the king. They entirely abandoned the inte- Clarendon, protector. Whitelock, p. 588. Col- May 5. 1654. reft of Charles II. and obliged themselves to receive no exile from England into their dominions. They promifed to reftore to the English twenty-two merchant fhips confiscated by the king of Denmark, or to pay their full value. In this treaty I find no mention of the Navigation act, which had been the cause of the war b. It is likely, either that article was adjusted in a private and particular treaty, or the states were contented with a bare promife, that they should not be disturbed on account of that act. Laftly, by a separate article the states bound themselves never to admit the young prince of Orange to be their stadtholder, general, or admiral. But this article was ratified only by the province of Holland, the other provinces refufing it, and Cromwell not judging it proper to continue the war to force them to it. Thus ended a war which had been very warm on both fides, and inexpreffibly destructive to both nations. It is faid, the two provinces of Holland and Zealand loft in it fifteen hundred Thips, which fell into the hands of the English. And this very war, which had been undertaken to ruin Cromwell, ferved to advance him, as it obliged him to diffolve the parliament for his own prefervation. enemies up Cromwell Though the new protector met with a general fubmiffion, draws many it was however with pretty open complaints of his ufurping on himself. the fupreme power by a pretended title conferred on him by Clarendon, men without authority. The royalifts confidered Cromwell's III. p. 363. advancement as a mortal wound to the king. The prefby terians were not much more pleased with it: for though their government ftill fubfifted in the church, they could hardly endure the liberty of confcience enjoyed by all the protertants. Befides, they were excluded from the best posts, which it was Cromwell's care to fill with men of approved fidelity to himself. The prefbyterians were nevertheless careffed by him, because their affiftance was needful to accomplifh his project of being confirmed in his dignity by a free parliament, where he forefaw they would have confiderable influence. But he hated the cavaliers, and kept them very Id. p. 384. low. This occafioned many confpiracies against him, the Confpiracies authors of which were rigorously punifhed, particuand the au- larly mr. Vowell and mr. Gerard, the firft of whom against him, thors fevere ly punished. Id. p. 384. b The author of Cromwell's life, act of navigation," p. 280. c There was a high court of juftice erected on purpose, " to try fuch as "were accused of holding a corref was "pondence with Charles Stuart, and "of having a design against the life of "the protector, &c." Clarendon, t. III. p. 383. d Rapin calls him colonel, but he was a young gentleman, and had been only enfign in the king's army. Ibid. was hanged in London, and the other beheaded in the 1654. 'Tower. baffador Clarendon, At the fame time, and upon the fame fcaffold, Don Pan- The brother taleon Sa, knight of Malta, and brother of the Portuguefe of the amambaffador, loft his head. That gentleman having quar- from Porturelled with the fame mr. Gerard on the New Exchange, gai beheadreturned next day with a strong retinue. Unhappily, heed. fingled out a man in the crowd whom he miftook for Ge-July 10. rard, and entering into a new quarrel, killed him, and others III. p. 385. were wounded by his fervants; after which, he retired to Bates. Whitelock, his brother the amballador's. This tumult drew the people. together, who furrounded the ambaflador's houfe, and threatned to drag the criminals to juftice. Cromwell being informed of it, difpatched an officer, with fome foldiers, to demand the murderers. The ambaffador loudly complained of the infult offered him, and demanded an audience of the protector, but was refufed, and told, that if the criminals. were not delivered, the people would not be easily appeased, nor could the protector anfwer for the confequences: that as a man had been killed, and feveral wounded, juftice muft be fatisfied. In the mean time, the people continued their noife and menaces; fo that the ambaffador, feeing himself too weak to refift, was at laft forced to deliver up his brother, and the reft that were concerned, in expectation of afterwards obtaining their pardon. But Cromwell continuing inflexible, the Portuguese gentleman was beheaded in the Tower, and his accomplices hanged at Tyburn. I pretend not to decide, whether this act of justice could be done, without a violation of the privilege of ammbaffadors, or whether Cromwell had not done better, in conniving at the prifoner's escape. I fhall only fhew very briefly, that the present juncture was not favourable to the ambassador or the king his mafter. gal. Don John IV. king of Portugal, formerly duke of Bra-Occafion of ganza, had, in 1640, feized the crown of Portugal, pre- the embaffy tending, it was unjustly wrefted from his ancestors by Phi- from Portalip II. of Spain. This had engaged him in a fierce war with Spain, during which Charles I. had, in a treaty figned at York, the 22d of May 1642, owned him for king of Portugal. Thus the two crowns of England and Portugal were in peace and alliance, before the war between Charles and the parliament was declared. Upon this foundation, the Clarendon, two princes palatine, Rupert and Maurice, the firft of which III. p. 262, commanded the king's navy, being obliged in 1650, to leave Bates, Ireland, where they could no longer continue in fafety, failed 1654. into the river of Lisbon. They were no fooner there, than a fleet from the parliament arrived in the mouth of the Tagus, and immediately the admiral required of the king of Portugal the delivery of the fhips commanded by prince Ru→ pert, faying, they belonged to the commonwealth of England. This demand extremely embarraffed the king. He had made an alliance with the king of England; but on the other hand, England was the king's enemy, and in that juncture, Don John was under a neceffity of declaring for one or the other. Policy required a declaration for the parliament, but honour and hofpitality demanded a protection for the king's fhips, which were come for refuge to Portugal. Clarendon, This queftion was warmly debated in his council. The maIII. p. 263, jority advised him to relinquifh a king, expelled his domini 264. ons, who could do him neither good nor hurt, and thereby gain the friendship of a powerful commonwealth, from which he might expect great affiftance against Spain: whereas, in declaring against the parliament, he would perhaps engage himself in fresh difficulties, at a time when all his forces were hardly fufficient to refift his enemies. But the king, by his reafons and authority, caufed it to be decided, that the king of England's fhips fhould be protected. Purfuant to this refolution, a fquadron was immediately equipped of thirteen men of war, to join prince Rupert's. The two fquadrons failed together with defign to fight the Englifh, if they were between the two capes. For the Portuguese fquadron had orders to fail no further, that it might appear, the king intended only to fecure the entrance of the Tagus. Upon notice of this junction, the English admiral failed away. But to be revenged for the protection granted to Prince Rupert's, he fell upon a Portuguese fleet returning from Brazil, and took fifteen fhips. The approach of winter obliging him to return to England, the two princes palatine failed to America, after caufing a fort of rupture between England and Portugal. To adjuft this difference, the king of Portugal had fent to London the conde de Penaguaio; his circumftances, during a war with Spain which had now lafted thirteen years, not fuffering him to remain in a state of hoftility with the commonwealth of England. Probably, for the fame reafon he did not think proper to recall his ambaffador, after the execution of Don Pantaleon Sa. I do not know whether this accident did not re e Cape Finisterre, and cape St. Vincent. tard tard the peace between England and Portugal, which was 1654. not figned till two years after in 1656 f. France. Since Charles II's arrival in France, after his miraculous The king's efcape from the battle of Worcester, he had lived in extreme condition in want, not having wherewithal to fubfift. The court of Clarendon, France took no notice of his neceffities, whether in com-III. p. 393. plaifance to Cromwell, or from a defire of making a strict 407: Whitelock, alliance with him, or through dread of his declaring in fa- p. 534. vour of Spain. So, the king was in a melancholy ftate. He had even the mortification to fee Monfieur de Bourdeaux, who till then had been his refident in England, appointed ambaffador by the French court 8, upon Cromwell's being declared protector. This alteration convinced the king, that France defigned an alliance with Cromwell, and he did not doubt but the treaty would be followed with a request to him to depart the kingdom. Wherefore, to prevent this compliment, he let cardinal Mazarin know, that he intended to withdraw, which was welcome news to the cardinal. To Clarendon, facilitate the execution of this defign, the cardinal promifed III. p. 339. him the arrears of a penfion of fix thousand livres a month, which had been granted him, but never regularly paid, and the continuance of the fame, as long as he fhould be out of France. At the fame time, the king received another fmall relief, which enabled him to difcharge his debts. Prince Prince RuRupert arrived fafely at Nantes with the fleet, after having pert arrives loft his brother Maurice in a ftorm. Befides that the fhips The king were extremely damaged, and the king unable to repair them, fells the he was in great want of money, which determined him to hips he fell the ships, with the ordnance and tackling. Cardinal Ma-brought. The prince zarin was the purchaser, though at a very cheap rate, if we withdraws may believe the lord Clarendon, and paid him the money into Germawithout delay. After that, prince Rupert repaired to Paris, king retires and taking leave of the king, withdrew into Germany. The to Cologne. king, as foon as he had received the money, left Paris, Clarendon, and chofe Cologne for his retreat, where he continued many years. 408. in France. ny, and the III. p. 400. -422. The king, before his departure from France, fent Wil- p. 393, 394mot, now earl of Rochester, ambassador to the emperor, and fome other princes of Germany, to procure a fupply of money. He even applied to the pope, by the mediation of p. 246, 247. cardinal de Retz, and it is pretended, that in order to fucVOL. XI. f It was figned July 10, 1654. See Collect. of treaties, tom. III. p. 97. Life of Cromwell, p. 288. g He made his entry into London in F ceed great fate, being attended with no |