The Parliament complained of the evil-minded persons about the King, called Cavaliers, who had no respect for the laws, and no fear of God or man: that in York nothing less was intended than the dissolution and overthrow of the government of the kingdom. In language of earnest apprehension it warned one and all to aid in averting this pressing danger according to the promise contained in the protest. The Lords at Westminster also, under the influence of a document that reached them, declared it necessary to provide for the safety of the King and the kingdom[337]. Thereupon, in complete contravention of the royal decrees, the militia in the city and neighbouring counties were put under arms, voluntary contributions were collected, and a loan made.
The associated Lords at York declared in reply that it appeared from the parliamentary papers which had reached them, that the sacred person of the King, religion, the liberty of the subject, Parliament and its rights, were all in danger[338]: in order to assist the King in their defence, they proclaimed a levy of cavalry, which all of them promised to raise, and to maintain in the field for a fixed time.
On June 17 the assembly at Westminster, on June 22 that at York, declared the country in danger, each through the other; and they proceeded to arm against each other.
A.D. 1642.
We see now how it came to such an extremity. It is obvious that this idea was eventually entertained through the Queen’s influence, before her departure: but all still depended on whether an accommodation was possible in respect of the military power. The King was willing for the time to admit the participation of Parliament: but the latter claimed not only the recommendation of commanders for that occasion, but also that their removal should be made to depend exclusively on the vote of the House, and required the unconditional obedience of the country to its ordinances. This would have deprived the King for ever of the sword, and made the Parliament master in his stead[339]: the King would not go so far, nor would the majority of the nobility or of the gentry allow it. For they thought that the sword did not belong to Parliament, and that absolute executive authority was not its function: moreover resistance was contrary to the old doctrines of the established Church. The contest was not between absolute power and a democratic republic, though these ideas at times appeared in the background. The one party in fact desired Parliament not without the King, the other the King not without Parliament: but the one sought to maintain the autonomy of the throne and of the Church, and the estates of the realm as hitherto constituted, the other would shake the foundation of the Church, and subject the crown unconditionally to Parliament. On this question a dispute broke out within the legislative body itself: part broke loose from the rest, and joined the King.
As now both sides had formally decided to make preparations for war, the whole country immediately became involved in the hostility between them. In all the counties the Parliamentary ordinance and the full powers conferred by the King on his adherents (commission of array[340]) encountered one another, both couched in the same terms, both directed to the same end, yet diametrically opposed to each other in intention.
A.D. 1642.
In the eastern counties the influence of the capital gained obedience for the ordinance; in the northern, through the influence of York, the commission gained the upper hand; but neither unopposed. In the midland counties the chiefs who had declared for the opposite sides contended together: in Lincoln, Willoughby of Parham and Lord Lindsay; in Leicester, the Earl of Stamford, who had been deputed by the Parliament, and the sheriff appointed by the King, Henry Hastings, son of the Earl of Huntingdon; in Northampton, the Brookes and the Comptons; in Berkshire, the Earl of Holland and Lord Lovelace; and others elsewhere. In Oxfordshire the Earl of Berkshire encountered Hampden, and was arrested by him. As in Derby the Royalists, so in Wiltshire the adherents of the Parliament under Lord Pembroke, preponderated. In Lancashire and Cheshire Lord Stanley mustered in three separate places bodies of 20,000 men, all armed with muskets and pikes, and ready for the King’s service: but this powerful levy, besides awakening jealousy at court, aroused the opposition of the lesser magnates, led by some members of Parliament[341]. William Earl of Hertford, to whom the King had entrusted seven Welsh counties, and ten others bordering on them, made a great figure; but he was not undisputed master of them: in Gloucestershire Parliamentary opinions prevailed, and in Pembroke they were gaining ground.
The leaders of the Parliamentary majority however derived their main strength from their alliance with the capital. Here the Common Council, with the aid of Parliament, had completely thrown off the authority of the chief magistrate. He lost the right which he had hitherto enjoyed, of summoning and dismissing the council, as well as the initiative in its deliberations. His votes were swamped by the great number of the rest; the King’s adherents were ejected: one of the Puritan leaders succeeded to the Royalist lord mayor. A committee was appointed to find means of defence, which controlled the city militia, and in which the Puritans had a A.D. 1642. majority. In the city there were now no preachers except of this persuasion; all others had been removed or silenced. From the pulpits not merely religious but also political opinions were taught: those were counted as the most faithful who were most eager for war with the King, and contributed towards it[342]. Under these circumstances the proposal of the Lords to form a sufficient fund for the maintenance of the army, obtained full approval[343]: and their reasoning was also calculated to make an impression. They observed that the whole kingdom might serve as their security: if Parliament prevailed, every man’s loan would certainly be returned with interest: otherwise not that only, but everything else they possessed would be endangered. The citizens vied with one another in bringing in their gold and silver. The preparations of the city were far in advance of those in the country.
Following the example of the Common Council, Parliament now appointed a committee of safety, as it was called, for the defence of Parliament and of the realm, and to repel all armed opposition. We find among its members Pym, Hampden, Martin, and Fiennes, as well as some more moderate men, such as Hollis and Stapleton: of the Lords there were Essex, Northumberland, Holland, and Say. From this committee proceeded the proposal, which was adopted by a resolution of July 12, that an army of 10,000 men should be raised, and the Earl of Essex placed at the head of it.