WHereas certain Informati­on is given from seve­rall parts of the Kingdom, that divers Troops of horse are imployed in sun­dry Counties of the King­dom, and that others have commission to raise both horse and foot, to compell his Majesties Subjects to submit to the illegall Commission of Array, out of a Traiterous intent to subvert the Liberty of [Page 2]the Subject, and the Law of the Kingdom, and for the better strengthning themselves in this wicked attempt, do joyne with the Popish and Jesuiticall faction to put the Kingdom into a combustion and civill War, by leavying forces against the Parliament, and by these forces to alter the Religion, and the ancient Government, and lawfull Libertie of the Kingdom, and to introduce Popery and Idolatry, together with an Arbitrary form of Government: And in pursuance thereof, have Traiterously, and Rebelliously leavy­ed war against the King, and by force rob­bed, spoiled and slain divers of his Majesties good Subjects travelling about their law­full and necessary occasions in the Kings pro­tection according to Law, and namely that for the end and purpose aforesaid, the Earl of Northampton, the Lord Dunsmore, Lord VVil­lowby of Eresby, Son to the Earl of Linsey, Hen­ry Hastings Esquire, and divers other unknown Persons in the Counties of Lincoln, Nottingham, Leicester, VVarwick, Oxfordshire, and other pla­ces, the Marquesse of Hertford, the Lord Pau­let, Lord Seymer, Sir Iohn Stawell, Sir Ralph Hop­ton, [Page 3]Iohn Digby Esquire, and other their Ac­complices, have gotten together great forces in the County of Sommerset.

The Lords and Commons in Parliament duly considering the great dangers which may ensue upon such their wicked and Tray­terous designes, and if by this means the po­wer of the sword should come into the hands of Papists and their Adherents, nothing can be expected but the miserable ruine and de­solation of the Kingdom, and the bloody massacre of the Protestants: They do De­clare and Ordain, that it is, and shall be law­full, for all His Majesties loving Subjects, by force of Arms to resist the said severall par­ties, and their Accomplices, and all other that shall raise or conduct any other forces for the ends aforesaid, and that the Earl of Essex Lord Generall, with all his forces rai­sed by the authoritie of Parliament; as like­wise the Lord Say, Lieutenant of Oxfordshire, Earl of Peterborough, Lieutenant of Northamp­tonshire, Lord Wharton, Lieutenant of Bucking­hamshire, Earl of Stamford, Lieutenant of Leice­stershire, Earl of Pembrook, Lieutenant of Wilt­shire [Page 4]and Hampshire, Earl of Bedford, Lieute­nant of Sommersetshire and Devon, Lord Brook, Lieutenant of VVarwickshire, the Lord Cram­borne, Lieutenant of Dorsetshire, the Lord VVil­loughby of Parham, Lieutenant of Lincolnshire, and all those who are or shall be appointed by Ordinance of both Houses to perform the place of Deputy Lieutenants, and their Deputy-Lieutenants respectively, Densill Hol­lis Esquire, Lieutenant of the Citie and County of Bristoll, and the Majors and She­riffs of the Citie, and Deputy Lieutenants there, and all other Lieutenants of Counties, Sheriffs, Majors, Deputy-Lieutenants, shall raise all their power and forces of their seve­rall Counties, as well Trained Bands as o­thers, and shall have power to conduct, and lead the said forces of the said Counties a­gainst the said Traytors and their adherents, and with them to fight, kill and slay all such as by force shall oppose them, and the Per­sons of the said Traytors, and their Adhe­rents and Accomplices to arrest and impri­son, and them to bring up to the Parliament, to answer this their Trayterous and Rebel­lious [Page 5]attempts according to Law, and the same or any other forces to transport and conduct from one County to another, in ayd and assistance one of another, and of all o­thers that shall joyn with the Lords & Com­mons in Parliament, for the defence of the Religion of Almighty God, and of the Li­berties and Peace of the Kingdom, and in pursuit of those wicked and Rebellious Traytors, their Conspirators, Ayders, and A­bettors and Adherents, requiring all Lieu­tenants of Counties, Sheriffs, Majors, Justi­ces of Peace, and others His Majesties Offi­cers and loving Subjects, to be ayding and assisting to one another in the Execution hereof, and for their so doing, all the parties above mentioned, and all others that shall joyn with them, shall be justified, defended and secured by the Power and Au­thority of Parliament.

AS much experience as We have had of the inveterate rancour and high Insolence of the malignant Party against Vs, We never yet saw any Expression come from them so evidently declaring it, as the Declaration, intituled, A Declaration of the Lords and Commons assembled in Parliament for the raising of all Power and Force, as well Trained Bands, as others in severall Counties of this Kingdom, to lead against all Traitors and their Adherents, &c. In which that Faction hath, as it were distilled [Page 7]and contracted all their Falshood, Insolence, and Malice, there being in it not one Period which is not either Slanderous or Treasonable. And nothing can more grieve Vs, then that by their infinite Arts and Subtilty (imployed by their per­petuall & indefatigable industry) and by that Rab­ble of Brownists and other Schismaticks, decla­redly ready to appear at their call, they should have been able so to draw away some, and drive away others of Our good Subjects from Our Parliament, as to prevail with the major part remaining of both Houses (how much soever that major part be the smaller in comparison of the whole) to suffer that name (whose reverence by all means We desire to preserve) to be so soiled, as to be prefixt to a Paper of this unsufferable na­ture, that tends not onely to the destruction of Our Person, but to the dissolution of this Go­vernment, and of all Societie; If at least this Declaration (which We rather see cause to hope it hath not) have so much as been seen in the Houses, and be not the single work of the same omnipotent Committee, to which is devol­ved the whole power of the Parliament, and which, as We understand, is trusted (with­out acquainting the Houses) to break up any mans House, and take away the Arms and Mo­ney intended to defend and feed him (if they shall see cause to suspect that he meant to assist his So­veraign with them) and may well be as fully and implicitely tri ted to declare, as to Act whatsoever they please. And though We doubt not, but to [Page 8]their utmost they will continue that Injury to Vs, and that Violation of the Subjects Liberty, and of publike Right, to vex and Imprison those who shall publish any of Our Answers to their Declarations (and indeed whilest they affirm against all Truth, and command against all Law, it concerns them to take care, that nothing be heard but what they say) yet Our comfort is, that Our Intentions, and the Dutie of Our Sub­jects are so well and so generally known to Our People, that We cannot fear (from whom soever it come, and though no Answer came out with it) that, either what is there said should be beleeved, or what is there commanded should be obeyed. Who knows not, that Our Commissions for Horse and Foot were not granted out, till not onely Our Prerogative, but Our Proprietie, Our Goods, Arms, Towns, Milita, and Negative Voice were taken from Vs, and all the Kingdom commanded to be in Arms, and invited to bring in Horse, Plate and Money, to frame an Armie against Our Command and Proclamation, and till Horse were raised and Mustered accordingly, and then with no intention (nor hath any Action in any of Our Ministers given the least suspicion of such an Intention) by them to compell Our Subjects to submit to Our Commissions of Ar­ray, or make use of them against the Parliament, but to regain Hull held out in Rebellion against Vs, and to suppresse all such as without Our Au­thoritie and against Our Commands should raise Forces in this Our Kingdom, and leavie War [Page 9]against Vs, under pretence of any Order or Or­dinance of one or both Houses, and such Trai­terous Assemblies and Marches have been the onely lawfull and necessary Occasions of Our good Subjects, which have been so much as in­terrupted by any Troops of Ours; And what is affirmed of the spoiling and killing them, as they were so travelling under Our Protection, and according to Law, is a most malicious Affirma­tion, as well without Trueth, as without In­stance; invented at once to make Our Troops terrible, and Vs odious to Our People.

What care have We taken, that by this means the power of the Sword should not come into the hands of Papists, who have by Our Proclama­tion strictly charged, That no Papist should pre­sume to List himself, either as Officer or Soul­dier in this Our Army, having directed how he should be discovered, if he did presume, and suffer, if he were discovered? What care have We taken to avoid Combustion and civill War, offering to lay down Our Arms when they should have laid down theirs; in whom it was Treason to take them up, and restored Vs those things which could not without Treason, as well as Injustice, be forced away and kept from Vs, Our Arms, Ships, Town, &c. And when We might meet both Our Houses in a safe and secure place to debate freely of all the differences in a Parliamen­tary way. And by whose influences these Propo­sitions were received, and whether the Proposer or Rejecters were most carefull to avoid this ruine [Page 10]and desolation of the Kingdom, We leave all the world to judge; and whether they who divert the Men and Money collected for the reliefe of distres­sed Ireland, to raise Forces against their Prince (who asks them nothing but what is legall, nor will deny them any thing that is) do not joyn with the Popish and Iesuiticall Faction in the bloody massacre of many thousand Protestants in that miserable Kingdom. We propose likewise to every mans judgment, whether the declaring those to be Traitors, who execute Our Commission of Array (issued in so many Kings Reigns, agreed upon by Parliament, and there yeelded to by the King, to be setled as now it is, as a matter of great Grace; and since that time, which was in 5. Hen. 4. in no Parliament complained of) whilest Our good Subjects are vexed and imprisoned, not onely for resisting, but for humbly petitioning, so as may seem but to insinuate something against their most illegall Commands concerning the Militia; (to which power of Commanding no Title can be made by any Statute, or any President, nor can We ever finde by search, nor obtain to be told what those Fundamentall Laws are by which it is pretended; so deep those Foundations are laid beyond all means of discovery) And the declaring that those who raise men by vertue of Our Com­mand and Commission, (the onely Legall way) Traiterously and Rebelliously leavy War against the King; and ordaining it to be Lawfull for all Our Subjects by Force of Arms to resist them, and their Accomplices; and the raising Forces [Page 11]by Authority of Parliament (that is by the remaining part of both Houses) never in the most outragious Times before attempted, and commanding severall Persons, whom they call Lieutenants, to lead, and giving them Power to transport from one County to another the Forces of severall of Our Counties against them; and to kill and slay all such as by Force shall op­pose them, Our Self not excepted; commanding all Our Officers and Subjects to be assisting to them, and undertaking to secure them for so do­ing, by the Power and Authority of Parliament, (which is first to allow, and next to command, and then to pardon Treason) be not to have al­ready subverted, as much as in them lies, the Liberty of the Subject, the Law of the Land, and altered the Ancient Government of the Kingdom, leaving Our Subjects without all Rule to walk by, when the most cleer Laws can­not direct and secure them, and they see all those ancient Bounds past over, which were ever as much known to be the duty of both Houses to observe, as it was evident that there were, and that it was necessary that there should be Two Houses of Parliament; and at once behold the Law (which is to protect and defend the Sub­ject) and Vs (who are to protect and defend the Law) need defence and protection. We doubt not therefore but all Our good Subjects will come in to Our Assistance, and that this wicked Charge of intending to introduce Pope­ry, Idolatry, and Arbitrary Government, laid [Page 12]by Implication upon Vs (because We defend Our Self, and would recover Our Own) will be so far from being a Motive against Vs, that this intolerable Indignity and damnable Scandall (so daily and visibly confuted by all Our Professions and Actions) will increase Our good Subjects zeal towards Vs, and their in­dignation against the Contrivers: And they will esteem themselves obliged by the Religion of Al­mighty God, to oppose this War, so impiously, so treasonably, and so groundlesly made upon Vs, their King, and His Anointed. We therefore require all Our Commissioners of Array, She­riffs, and all Our other Officers and Ministers, to raise all the Power and Forces of their seve­rall Counties, to assist the Marquesse of Hert­ford, the Earl of Northampton, the Lord Wil­loughby of Eresby, the Lord Paulet, the Lord Duns­more, the Lord Seymour, Henry Hastings Esquire, Sir John Stowell, Sir Ralph Hopton, John Digby Esquire, and all other in the Legall and necessary execution of Our Commissions of Array, and in the raising and conducting of such Horse and Foot as shall be raised by Our Commission, and by Force of Arms to oppose the Earl of Essex, the Lord Say, and all other that shall raise or conduct any Forces raised by pretence of Authority of both Houses, and the persons of all such Traitors and their Adherents and Ac­complices to arrest and imprison, to the end they may be brought to a fair and Legall triall by their Peers, and according to the Law: And this We re­quire [Page 13]from them, as they tender the defence of Our Person, The true Religion, The Law of the Land, The Liberty and Property of the Subject, And the true and just Priviledges of Parliament: And for so doing they shall be defended and secured by Vs, and by the Law; with whom, and with which We doubt not but Our Subjects will sooner chuse to live and die, then with the Earl of Essex and his Adherents.