WHereas by the Statute made in the 7^th year of Edw. the first, it is Declared; That to the King it belongeth, and his part it is, to defend all Force against his Peace at all times when need shal be, and thereto all his Subjects are bound to ayd him at all seasons. And whereas by other Statutes, made in the 11. year of Henry the 7. the first, & the 19. of the same King, the first, it is declared, That all Sub­jects are by their Allegiance bound to ayd His Majesty a­gainst every Rebellion Power and Might reared against him. And likewise by another Statute made in the 18. year of Richard the 2. the 5. It appeareth, That all the Subiects of this Realm do thereby binde themselves to stand with our Lord the King in all cases that shall be at­tempted agaist Him, His Crown & regality in all poynts, and therein to live and dye, as by relation to the said Statutes it doth, and will more punctually appear. We therefore having taken notice of the said Lawes, and [Page 2]the obligation wherewith We and all other His Ma­jesties Subjects are bound by them, with the useful­nesse of the said Lawes, and the present urgent neces­sities that lye upon us, and the whole Realm, inten­ding to stand fast to the observation of our Lawes, & the laudable Usages and Customes of this Kingdom, in performance of our duties in that behalfe, have thought it convenient to Declare; That upon these Reasons, according to our Allegiance, & by vertue of His Majesties Commissions and gratious directions, granted and signified unto us, of His good pleasure therein, We have done Our best endeavours for the preservation of Our Religion, His Majesties Peace, the Lawes of the Kingdom, and the Liberties of the Sub­ject, for suppressing the hideous and unparalleld Rebellions that have been moved in these Westerne parts of the Kingdom; wherein, with God's blessing, We have so far prevailed, that the Peace of our Coun­try hath been hitherto so preserved and kept, that We have enjoyed the benefit of our Lawes of the King­dom within the said County, & these Armies which have been issued hence to those good ends, with the assistance of such others His Majesties faithfull Sub­jects that have joyned with them, have obtained Vi­ctories over the Rebells, & have quieted the Rebelliō in divers of the Western shires of this Realm, and spe­cially in the Neighbouring County of Devon (excep­ting only the Town of Plimouth, who continue ob­stinately [Page 3]in their Rebellion.) for these great blessings We ascribe as is due, all honour & praise to Almighty God, & We hereby make known to all men our purposes, to proceed, & go on according to the Lawes, and our duties & Allegiance in the same course we have done, by the continuance of supplies of Men, Money, and Armes, with our best abilities, for the subduing that Rebellious Town of Plimouth to their obedience, and for inforcing them to restore His Majesties Fort and Island (traiterously taken and detained from His Ma­jesty with Force, by these Rebells) unto His quiet pos­session again. And We have now made this our De­claration for the satisfaction of all His Majesties Loy­all Subjects, of the legality of our Adions, and the clearnesse of our intentions in the course We have ta­ken, and which we are resolved upon to continue, to be only that which We are in duty bound to do, & to which every good Subject ought to be obedient; wherein if any of this County be hereafter refracto­ry or negligent, they are to expect punishment for the same in a legall way, according to the quality of their offences. And further, in regard some ill disposed sedi­tious persons, under fair shews of Religion, and teach­ing liberty, only to seduce and deceive the people of this County & others to their own ruine, alleadging, that by some other Statutes now in force, the Subjects of this Kingdom, are not bound, nor cannot be drawn or inforced, to go out of their Counties where they [Page 4]dwell, or to arme themselves to that purpose against their wills, by this means endeavouring to move the people to faction & discontent, & with all the power that in them lyeth, to Foster & continue the Rebellion in the Town of Plimouth & elsewhere, though to the disturbance of the Peace of this County, & the whole Realm. And in regard it may be some men that have no evill purposes are deceived in their judgements, that have not fully considered the words and intenti­ons of the said Statutes, which were made only to de­clare, that the Subjects should not be so drawn out of their Counties at His Majesties pleasure or to any for­raign War; but there is nothing contained in any of the said Statutes, against or contrary to the aforemēti­oned Statutes, whereby every Subject is bound to be ayding to His Majesty for the preservation of His Peace; And in the Statute made the first of Ed. the 3. the 5. which We have taken notice of, and doth contain in substance all that is of any effect in any other Statutes, which concern that liberty of the not compel­ling the Subjects to be, by force, against their wills, drawn out of the Counties where they dwell; in the body of that Statute these words are expressed, But where necessity requires & sudden comming of strange E­nemies into the Realm; Whereby it evidētly appeareth, on such occasions they are obliged by their Allegiance, and may lawfully be compelled to serve out of the Counties; And we wish all men to consider that [Page 5]both these things mentioned in that Statute, are most manifest in the case of the Rebellion of Plimouth, where they have now (yet under pretence of Religi­on) and have still had strangers of Forraigne Nations entertained by them, & the Rebellion it selfe, in them­selves is most notorious by the traiterous taking of the Kings own Fort, and Island by force from Him, and so keeping it; their unlawfull making Fortifications, in and about their Town, their violently taking their Neighbours prisoners at their wils, and barbarous u­sage of them, and transporting them by Sea, their ille­gall exactions of Mony, Thefts, Robberies, & Mur­thers of His Majesties Subjects, committed & conti­nued by them, their severall bloody Invasions into this County of Cornwall, their violent and inhumane assaulting Mount-Edgecombe House, their next Neigh­bour in the same County, with other horrid Actiōs of theirs, tedious to relate, hardly to be exampled in their impieties in any story. We therefore herein clearly de­clare our opinions, that it is not the meaning of any of the said Statutes, or of any other Law or Statute to free the Subjects from going out of their County in a­ny case of this nature; when necessity requires, to pre­serve the Peace of the Realm against Rebells, & Trai­tors of this Kingdom, or against any strangers that come into this Kingdom to invade the Land, which if they were so to be construed would be most perni­tious to the Subjects themselves, & for those reasons [Page 6]We beleeve there was ever care had by the Kings of this Realm, & the wisdom of our Ancestors, to have no such thing enacted by them, that any County should be thereby restrained not to be able to ayd their Neighbour Counties, and the whole Realm, & Subjects thereof, from being able to ayd His Majesty for the preservation of His Peace, His Royall Person, and the supportation of His Regality, Crown & dig­nity, and just Prerogative Royall, & their own Liber­ties in all they are interessed; And We are assured the subjects of this, & all other Countries of this Kingdom, are by their Allegiance bound to support and uphold the same. And We do hereby Declare our wills and intentions are, to prosecute the same in all that we are able, and therein as we are confident all the good sub­jects of this County, do & will most cordially conde­scend and agree with us, so we desire and hope all o­thers His Maiesties good subjects will contribute their best ayds and assistance in the lame, against this Intestine wicked Rebellion of Plimouth, & against all other Rebells & Traitors which are in the Kingdom risen up against the Kings Majesty, & against all other Powers or Might, that is, or shall be raised against His Majesty, for the preservation of the Peace, His Royall Person, the supportation of His Crown and Dignity, and for preservation of the Religion here establi­shed in this Kingdom, and the known Lawes and Liberties of the same, according to our, and their Duties and Allegiance.