Page:William Blackstone, Commentaries on the Laws of England (3rd ed, 1768, vol I).djvu/230

214 contitution was kept intire; which upon every ound principle of government mut otherwie have fallen to pieces, had o principal and contituent a part as the royal authority been abolihed, or even upended. ingle potulatum, the vacancy of the throne, being once etablihed, the ret that was then done followed almot of coure. For, if the throne be at any time vacant (which may happen by other means beides that of abdication; as if all the blood royal hould fail, without any ucceor appointed by parliament;) if, I ay, a vacancy by any means whatoever hould happen, the right of dipoing of this vacancy eems naturally to reult to the lords and commons, the trutees and repreentatives of the nation. For there are no other hands in which it can o properly be intruted; and there is a neceity of it’s being intruted omewhere, ele the whole frame of government mut be diolved and perih. The lords and commons having therefore determined this main fundamental article, that there was a vacancy of the throne, they proceeded to fill up that vacancy in uch manner as they judged the mot proper. And this was done by their declaration of 12 February 1688 in the following manner: “that William and Mary, prince and princes of Orange, be, and be declared king and queen, to hold the crown and royal dignity during their lives, and the life of the urvivor of them; and that the ole and full exercie of the regal power be only in, and executed by, the aid prince of Orange, in the names of the aid prince and princes, during their joint lives; and after their deceaes the aid crown and royal dignity to be to the heirs of the body of the aid princes; and for default of uch iue to the princes Anne of Denmark and the heirs of her body; and for default of uch iue to the heirs of the body of the aid prince of Orange.", upon the principles before etablihed, the convention might (if they pleaed) have veted the regal dignity in a fa- mily