The fall of Lathom House and other strongholds of the king and the surrender of Charles himself to the Scotch army of Puritans, brought the contests for a time to a close in 1647, and Sir Thomas Tyldesley, with several more, received instructions to disband the troops under his command. During the foregoing struggles parliament, in order to provide the necessary funds for the increased expenditure, had allowed “delinquents, papists, spies, and intelligencers” to compound for their sequestered estates, and amongst those connected with this locality who had taken advantage of the permission were:—
| Brown, Edward, of Plumpton, | compounded for | £127 | 8s. | 0d. |
| Breres, Alexander, of Marton, gent., | ” | £82 | 4s. | 5d. |
| Bate, John, of Warbreck, | ” | £11 | 0s. | 0d. |
| Leckonby, Richard, of Elswick, esq., | ” | £58 | 6s. | 0d. |
| Nicholson, Francis, of Poulton, yeoman | ” | £133 | 3s. | 4d. |
| Rigby, Alexander, of Layton, esq., | ” | £381 | 3s. | 4d. |
| Walker, William, of Kirkham, gent., | ” | £175 | 0s. | 0d. |
| Westby, John, of Mowbreck, esq., | ” | £1,000 | 0s. | 0d. |
Presbyterianism became the national, or at least, the state religion, and for the regulation of ecclesiastical matters the Assembly of Divines, at Westminster, suggested that the country should be divided into provinces, whose representatives should hold annual conferences at the larger towns. The county of Lancaster was divided into nine Classical Presbyteries, and the seventh Classis, embracing the parishes of Preston, Kirkham, Garstang, and Poulton, consisted of—
- Mr. Isaac Ambrose, of Preston, minister.
- Mr. Robert Yates, of Preston, minister.
- Mr. Ed. Fleetwood, of Kirkham, minister.
- Mr. Thos. Cranage, of Goosnargh, minister.
- Mr. Chr. Edmondson, of Garstang, minister.
- Mr. John Sumner, of Poulton, minister.
Laymen.
- Alexander Rigby, of Preston, Esq.
- William Langton, Esq.
- Alderman Matt. Addison, of Preston, gent.
- Alderman Wm. Sudall, of Preston, gent.
- Alderman Wm. Cottam, of Preston, gent.
- Edward Downes, of Wesham, gent.
- Edmund Turner, of Goosnargh, yeoman.
- Thomas Nickson, of Plumpton, gent.
- Robt. Crane, of Layton, gent.
- Wm. Latewise, of Catterall, gent.
- Wm. Whitehead, of Garstang, gent.
- Edward Veale, of Layton, Esq.
- Rd. Wilkins, of Kirkham, yeoman.
One of the duties of these Classes was to examine, ordain, and appoint ministers, or presbyters, as they were called, whenever vacancies occurred in the district over which, respectively, they had jurisdiction; subjoined is the certificate given in the case of Cuthbert Harrison, B.A., when selected and appointed presbyter of Singleton chapel:—
“Whereas Cuthbert Harrison, B.A., aged 30 years, hath addressed himself to us, authorised by ordinance of parliament of 22 Aug. 1646, for ordination of ministers, desiring to be ordained a presbyter, being chosen by the inhabitants within the chapelry of Singleton to officiate there; and having been examined by us the ministers of the Seventh Classis, and found sufficiently qualified for the ministerial functions, according to the rules preserved in the said ordinance, and thereupon approved—we have this day solemnly set him apart to the office of presbyter and work of the ministry of the gospel, by laying on of hands by us present, with fasting and prayer, by virtue whereof we declare him to be a lawful and sufficiently authorised minister of Jesus Christ. In testimony whereof we have hereunto put our hands the 27th Nov., 1651.”
(Here follow the signatures.)
In 1648 General Langdale, a royalist officer, appealed to the loyalty of the northern counties to attempt a rescue of the imprisoned monarch from the hands of his enemies. Many rushed to his standard, and the parliamentarians of the Fylde shared the general consternation which pervaded Lancashire at the success of his effort to rekindle the still smouldering embers of civil war. There is no necessity to trace the steps of this ill-judged enterprise to its disastrous issue, but suffice it to say that the defeat and routing of the little army was followed at a very short interval by the execution of Charles I., after a formal trial in which he disclaimed the jurisdiction of the court.