Charles by the grace God, King of great Britaine, France, and Ireland, defender of the faith, &c. To Our Lovits, &c.

Our Sheriffes in that part conjunctly and severally, specially constituted, greeting. For as much as Wee out of Our Princely care of maintenance of the true Religion already professed, and for beating downe of all superstition, having ordained a Book of Common prayer to be compiled for the generall use and edification of Our subjects within Our ancient Kingdome of Scotland, the same was accordingly done: In the performing whereof, We took great care and paines; So as nothing past therein but what was seene and approved by Us, before the same was either divulged or printed, assuring all Our loving subjects, that not onely Our intention is, but even the verie Book will be a readie meanes to maintaine the true Religion alreadie professed, and beat out all Superstition; Of which We in Our owne time do not doubt but in a faire course to satisfie Our good subjects. But having seene and considered some Petitions and Declarations given in to Our Councell against the said Book and late Canons of the Church, We find Our Royall Authority much injured thereby, both in the matter and in the carriage thereof; whereby We conceive these of Our Nobility, Gentrie, Burroughs, Ministers, and others, who kept and assisted these meetings and Convocations for contriving and forming the said Petitions, or who have subscribed the same, to deserve and bee liable to Our high censure, both in their persons and fortunes, as having conveened themselves without either Our consent or authoritie; Yet because Wee beleeve that what they have done herein is out of a preposterous zeale, and not out of any disloyaltie or disaffection to Soveraigntie, We are graciously pleased in so farre as concernes these meetings for consulting or subscribing of these Petitions, or presenting the same to any Judge or Judges in Our said Kingdome, to dispense therewith, and with what may bee their fault or errour therein, to all such as upon signification or declaration of Our pleasure shall retire themselves as becometh good and dutifull subjects: To which purpose Our will is, and We charge you straightly, and commands, that incontinent these Letters seene, you passe, and in Our name and authoritie make intimation hereof, to all Our lieges and subjects, by open Proclamation at all places needfull, wherethrough none pretend ignorance thereof; And therewith also, That you in Our name and authoritie discharge all such convocations and meetings in time comming, under the paine of treason: And also that you command, and charge, and inhibit all our lieges and subjects, that none of them presume nor take in hand to resort nor repaire to Our Burgh of Sterling, nor to no other Burgh, where Our Councell and Session sits, till first they declare their cause of comming to our Councell, and procure their warrant to that effect. And further, that you command and charge all and sundrie Provosts, Bailiffes, and Magistrates within Burgh, That they and everie one of them have a speciall care and regard to see this Our Royall will and pleasure really and dutifully obeyed in all points; And that no violation thereof be suffered within their bounds, under all highest paine, crime, and offence that they may commit against Us in that behalfe. As also that you command and charge all and sundrie Noblemen, Barons, Ministers and Burrowes, who are not actuall indwellers within this Our Burgh, and are not of the number of the Lords of our privie Councell and Session, and members thereof, and are already within this Our Burgh, that they, and everie one of them, remove themselves, and depart and passe forth of Our said Burgh, and returne not againe, without the warrant aforesaid, within six houres after the publication hereof, under the said paine of treason. And as concerning any Petitions that hereafter shall be given unto Us, upon this or any other subject, Wee are likewise pleased to declare, that We will not shut Our ears therefrom; so that neither the matter nor forme be prejudiciall to Our Regall Authoritie. The which to do We commit to you, conjunctly and severally, Our full power by these Our Letters, delivering the same by you duely execute and indorsed againe to the bearer. Given under Our Signet at Sterling the nineteenth day of February, And of Our Reigne the thirteenth yeere, 1638.

Per actum Secreti Concilii.

1638.—February 19.
27. Protestation by Lords Hume and Lindsay.[51]

For God and the King.

We Noblemen, Barons, Ministers, Burrowes, appointed to attend his Majesties answer to our humble Petition and complaint, and to preferre new grievances, and to do what else may lawfully conduce to our humble desires; That whereupon the 23. of September last, wee presented a Supplication to your Lordships, and another upon the 18. of October last, and also a new Bill relative to the former upon the 19. of December last, and did therein humbly remonstrate our just exceptions against the Service Book, and Book of Canons; and also against the Archbishops and Bishops of this Kingdome, as the contrivers, maintainers, and urgers therof, and against their sitting as our Judges untill the cause be decided; earnestly supplicating withall to bee freed and delivered from these and all other innovations of that kinde, introduced against the laudable Lawes of this Kingdome; as that of the High Commission, and other evils particularly mentioned, and generally contained in our foresaid supplications and complaints, and that this our partie delinquent against our Religion and Lawes may be taken order with, and these pressing grievances may be taken order with and redressed according to the Lawes of this Kingdome, as by our said supplications and complaints more largely doth appeare: With the which on the 19. of December last, we gave in a Declinator against the Arch-bishops and Bishops as our parties, who by consequence could not be our Judges; whereupon your Lordships declared by your Act at Dalkeith the said 19. of December, that you would present our Petitions to his Majesties Royall consideration, and that without prejudice of the Declinator given in by us the said supplicants; whereupon we should be heard at place and time convenient, And in the mean time should receive no prejudice, as the said Act in it selfe beareth. And whereas we your Lordships supplicants with a great deale of patience, and hope also, grounded on sundry promises, were expecting an answer to these our humble desires, and having learned that upon some directions of His Majesties anent our supplications and complaint unto your Lordships of the Secret Councell, your Lordships admits to the consulting and judging anent our supplications, and His Majesties answere thereunto, the Archbishops and Bishops our direct parties, contrarie to our Declinator first propounded at Dalkeith, and now renewed at Sterling; and contrarie to your Lordships Act aforesaid at Dalkeith, and contrarie to our Religion and Lawes, and humble supplications. Therefore lest our silence be prejudiciall to this so important a cause, as concernes Gods glorie and worship, our Religion, Salvation, the Lawes and Liberties of this Kingdome, or derogatorie to the former supplications and complaints, or unanswerable to the trust of our Commission; out of our bound dutie to our God, our King and native Countrey, we were forced to take instruments in Notaries hands, of your Lordships refusall to admit our Declinator, or remove these our Parties, and to protest in manner following: First, That we may have our immediate recourse to our sacred Soveraign, to present our grievances, and in a legall way to prosecute the same before the ordinarie competent Judges, Civill or Ecclesiasticall, without any offence offered by us, or taken by your Lordships. Secondly, We protest that the said Archbishops and Bishops, our Parties complained upon, cannot be reputed or esteemed lawfull Judges to sit in any Judicatorie in this Kingdome, Civill or Ecclesiasticall, upon any of the supplicants, untill after lawfull tryall judicially they purge themselves of such crimes as we have already laid to their charge, offering to prove the same whensoever His Sacred Majestie shall please to give us audience. Thirdly, We protest that no Act nor Proclamation to follow thereupon, past, or to be past in Councell or out of Councell, in presence of the Archbishops and Bishops, whom we have already declined to be our Judges, shall any wayes be prejudiciall to us the supplicants, our persons, estates, lawfull meetings, proceedings, or pursuits. Fourthly, We protest that neither we nor any whose heart the Lord moveth to joine with us in these our supplications against the foresaid Innovations, shall incurre any danger, in life, lands, or any Politicall or Ecclesiasticall paines, for not observing such Acts, Bookes, Canons, Rites, Judicatories, Proclamations, introduced without or against the Acts of Generall Assemblies, or Acts of Parliament, the Statutes of this Kingdome; But that it shall be lawfull for us or them to use our selves in matters of Religion of the externall worship of God and Policie of the Church, according to the word of God, and laudable Constitutions of this Church and Kingdome, conforme to His Majesties Declaration the ninth of December last. Fifthly, Seeing by the legall and submisse way of our former supplications, all who takes these Innovations to heart, have been kept calme and carried themselves in a quiet manner, in hope of redresse; We protest, that if any inconvenience shall happen to fall out (which we pray the Lord to prevent) upon the pressing of any of the foresaid Innovations of evils, specially or generally contained in our former supplications and complaints, and upon your Lordships refusall to take order thereanent, the same be not imputed to us, who most humbly seeks all things to be reformed by an Order. Sixthly, We protest that these our requests, proceeding from conscience and a due respect to His Majesties honour, doe tend to no other end, but to the preservation of the true reformed Religion, the lawes and liberties of this His Majesties most ancient Kingdome, and satisfaction of our most humble desires contained in our supplication and complaint, according to his Majesties accustomed goodnesse and justice, from which we doe certainly expect that His Sacred Majestie will provide and grant such remedie to our just petitions and complaints, as may be expected from so gracious a King toward most loyall and dutifull subjects, calling for redresse of so pressing grievances, and praying to God that his Majestie may long and prosperously reigne over us.

1638.—March 3.
28. Instructions from his Majesties Council to the Lord Justice-Clerk, whom they have ordained to go to Court for his Majesties service.[52]

In the first, you are to receaue from the clercke of the counsaile all the actes since our meitting one the 1 of Marche instant.