Page:Cassell's Illustrated History of England vol 3.djvu/364

350 headed, and strong-hearted, and strong-handed man, a life which was environed with perils. They deemed these dangers would be diminished by altering the form of government, and returning to a house of lords and a monarchy—but not to the corrupt and murder-seeking Stuarts. Had they their honest and earnest protector converted into a king, and the succession settled on his family, the nation would jealously guard his life, and the hopes of the exiled family be diminished by the prospect of a successor of his own blood, even if he fell.

On the 23rd of February, 1657, suddenly Sir Christopher Pack, late lord mayor of London, craved leave to read a paper, which turned out to be drawn up in the form of a remonstrance from parliament to the protector on the state of the country, and proposing a new form of government, including a house of lords and himself as king. No sooner did the officers of the army, who had just lost their proconsular dignity, and the other republicans hear the proposition, than they rose, seized Pack, and hurried him from his seat to the bar of the house as a traitor. But those who were friendly to the proposition, rose also in his defence, and after much commotion, the paper was not only read, but debated. From this moment this subject occupied the house, with little intermission, till the 9th of May, or between two and three months. The title of the paper was changed from "A humble Address and Remonstrance," to " The humble Petition and Advice of the Parliament of England, Scotland, and Ireland." Its classes were debated and carried seriatim by a majority of one hundred to forty-four, and on the last day of the debate, March 26th, the blank left for the word king, was. filled in by a majority of one hundred and twenty-three to sixty-two; and on the 31st of March an address was carried to the protector at Whitehall by the speaker and the house, praying that his highness would be pleased to adopt their resolutions, and take upon him the state and title of king.

Unquestionably, this was the greatest temptation which had ever been thrown in the way of Cromwell. To have made his way by his energy and talent from the simple condition of a gentleman-farmer to the dictatorship of the nation, and now to have the crown and succession of these great kingdoms offered to him and his family by the parliament, was a matter which would not have been much opposed by an ordinary man. But Cromwell was not of a character lightly to accept even a crown. He showed clearly that he had a strong inclination to place himself and his posterity in that august position, but he knew too well that the honour had also its dangers and its dark side. His acceptance would would at once darken his fair fame by setting it in the conviction of three-fourths of the kingdom that he had only fought and put down the Stuarts to set up himself. There was, moreover, a formidable party opposed to kingship, and especially decided against it were his generals and the army. A deputation of a hundred of them had waited on him on the 27th, with an address on the subject, on which they assured him that such a thing would be "a scandal to the people, would prove more than hazardous to his person, and would pave the way for the return of Charles Stuart." That once accustiom the nation to the name of king again, and it would recall, on the first opportunity, the ancient race.

Cromwell felt too well the truth of these representations, and therefore he gave an answer to the house, requiring time to reflect on their important offer, though he had watched carefully the progress of the debate. He desired that a committee might be appointed to confer with him on all the articles of the new instrument of government proposed to him. A committee of ninety-nine persons was accordingly appointed, amongst them "Whitelock, Glynn, the lord chief justice, lord Broghill, Nathaniel Fiennes, one of the keepers of the great seal, &c. They had many meetings, but Cromwell, instead of giving his opinion upon the subject, desired to know their reasons for recommending this change. The chief reasons advanced were, the ancient habits of the nation; that the people were proud of the honour of their monarchs; that that form of government had prevailed from the most ancient period, and what no doubt weighed greatly with them was, that by the 9th of Edward IV. and the 3rd of Henry VII. it was enacted that all who took up arms for or obeyed the king de facto, were held guiltless; but not so they who served a protector de facto.

Cromwell admitted that this was a matter of precaution which demanded serious consideration, and that he regarded the proposal to him as "a very singular honour and favour," and would return such an answer as God should give him, or as he should arrive at through discussion with them; but that his conscience yet was not clear upon the subject, and they must examine the grounds for it further. Whitelock says the protector often advised about this matter of the kingship, and other great basinesses, with a select number of the committee—lord Broghill, Mr. Pierpoint, brother of the earl of Kingston, Thurloe, Whitelock, and Sir Charles Wolseley, and would be shut up three or four hours together, and none else were admitted to come to him. He would sometimes be very cheerful with them, and, laying aside his greatness, would be exceedingly familiar; and, by way of diversion, would make verses, play at crambo with them, and every one must try his fancy. He commonly called for tobacco, pipes, and a candle, and would now and then take tobacco himself. Then he would fall again to his serious and great business of the kingship. They were interrupted, however, in their colloquies, by a fresh outbreak of the fifth-monarchy men. These religionists, who admitted the idea of no king but Christ, were especially separated at this attempt to set up an earthly king, and determined to rise and prevent it. They fixed Thursday, the 9th of April, for the rising. They issued a proclamation called " A Standard set up," ordered Mile End as the place of rendezvous, and headed by one Venner, a wine merchant, and other persons of the city, calculated on introducing the reign of the Millennium. They encouraged each other, says Thurloe, with the exhortation that though they were but worms, yet they should be made instrumental to thresh mountains. They spoke, he says, great words of the reign of the saints, and the beautiful kingdom of holies which they were to erect, and talked of taking away all taxes, excise, customs, and tithes. They bad banners painted with the device of the lion of the tribe of Judah, and the motto, "Who shall raise him up?"