THE HUMBLE PETITION OF THE Lord Major, Aldermen, and Commons of the City of LONDON, IN Common-Councell ASSEMBLED, Presented to the Right Honourable THE LORDS and COMMONS in Parliament Assembled: WITH The Answers of both Houses to the said PETITION.

Printed by RICHARD COTES, Printer to the honorable City of London, October 17. 1648.

TO THE RIGHT HONOVRABLE THE Lords and Commons In Parliament Assembled; The humble Petition of the Lord Major, Aldermen, and Commons of the City of London in Com­mon-Councell assembled.

SHEWETH,

THat the Petitioners with all thankful­nesse do acknowledg, that by the bles­sing of God upon the great and pious endeavours of the Honorable Houses, much good hath been obtained; as unto the Kingdome in generall, so par­ticularly unto this City, in the removal of many scandalous and ill-affected Ministers, and giving [Page 2]opportunity thereby for the placing godly, learned, and painfull and orthodoxall in their roomes; who by their con­stant preaching and endeavours, have laboured against the errors, heresies, schisms, superstition, profanenesse, and ma­lignity of the times, and have been (under God) very in­strumentally serviceable, since the beginning of these trou­bles, to raise and stirre up the hearts and affections of the people of this City, to join with, and effectually to assist bo [...]h with their Lives and Estates, the Honorable Houses of Parliament, in their undertakings, for the suppressing of the adverse power raised against them; that so Religion, Li­berties, and the work of Reformation might be carryed on to a happy settlement in Church and Common-wealth: But your Petitioners have for a long time (to the great grief of their souls) foreseen and bewailed the sad condition this City was then comming into, and which since is come upon it, by reason of the want of competent maintenance, to uphold and cherish therein, their said godly and painfull Ministers, and have by many indeavours for divers yeares past, been considering, how a comfortable livelihood for the said Ministers might be obtained, but could by no means of themselves effect so great a worke, without the help and assistance of this Honorable House; unto whom therefore your Petitioners thought fit to have made their addresses, and humbly prayed your help and assistance therein: But fin­ding then the other great and weighty affairs of the King­dome so pressing, wee did forbear untill some seasonable time might be found for this so pious a work. But in the mean while the thing we feared is come to pass. Our Mi­nisters for want are necessitated to leave this City, and ma­ny have already removed themselves and families into o­ther parts of the Kingdome, and divers others likewise go­ing; [Page 3]whereby the City is like to bee rendred in a very sad condition for their soules; finding by a representation late­ly presented to the Common-councell, from the Provinci­all Assembly of London, that there are at present about 40. parish Churches in the said Province, that have no allowed or setled Minister belonging to them; and your Petitioners to their grief do see divers Churches shut up, and have none to officiate in them, giving thereby opportunity to scanda­lous and il-affected Ministers to creep in, and seduce the peo­ple, and many more will be in short time, if not timely pre­vented; and how great dishonour that will be to God and misery to this City, we need not expresse to this Honora­ble House, whose religious constant care and endeavours is and hath been to nourish and support a godly and faithfull Ministery in the whole Kingdome, and are confidently as­sured, will not be wanting to doe the like for this great and populous City, and the rest of the Province (the affections and service whereof, this Honorable house hath been pleased so oft to signifie their good acceptance of) there be­ing above one third part of the Parishes within the Province where the maintenance for the Ministers are not more then from 16 l. to 60. l. per annum, many others little more, and thereof a great part cannot bee received, partly through the disaffection of many to the Refor­mation and Government now established; and partly through the poverty of others in these hard times.

Your Petitioners therefore for preventing of the said miseries, and for the future incouragement, and setling of a godly, painfull and Orthodoxall Ministery within the said Province, to the glory of God, the honour of the Par­liament, good of this Province, and gayning many souls unto God, Doe humbly pray,

That this Honorable House will bee pleased to take the premises into your most pious and serious consideration, And to grant that the Impropriations of the late Archbishops and Bishops, the Houses and Lands now or late belonging to Deans, Chapiters, and Prebends, within the said Province, and the Rents and Revenues thereof, may be setled for an augmentation of maintenance of the Ministery of the said Province, with such further addition as the greatnesse of the Petitioners necessity doe require, and the Honorable Houses in their Wisdomes shall see meet.

And the Petitioners shall pray, &c.

Die Lunae, 16. Octobr. 1648.

AFter the Petition of the Lord Major, Aldermen, and Commons of the City of London, was this day read in the House, The Petitioners being called in again, they were answered as followeth;

That the House gives them thankes for the care they have for a faithfull Ministery within the Diocesse of Lon­don, And that the Lords will doe what lyeth in them, for the furthering of their good desires therein according to their Petition.

Jo. Brown, Cler. Parliamentorum.

Die Lunae, 16. Octob. 1648.

THe House being informed that the Sheriffs and Alder­men of London were at door, they were called in, and af­ter a short preamble made by Sheriffe Viner, he deliver­ed his message: That the Lord Major, Aldermen, and Common-councell of the City of London commanded him to de­liver this their humble Petition, which he did humbly present, and desired the same might be read, which after the Petitioners were withdrawn was read.

Ordered by the House of Commons that the said Petition be committed to

  • Mr. Knightley
  • Mr. Bows
  • Mr. Trenchard
  • Col. Copley
  • Sir Martin Lumbley
  • Mr. Gourden
  • The Citizens and Burgesses of the City of London,
  • Mr. Gesson
  • Mr. Wheeler
  • Mr. Vassall
  • Mr. Solwey
  • Mr. Preistley
  • Mr. Sheriffe Brown
  • Sir Robert Harley
  • Alder. Hoyle
  • Mr. Got
  • Mr. Whitaker
  • Col. Stroud
  • Col. Rigby
  • Mr. Tate
  • Sir Thomas Dacre
  • Sir Will. Lister
  • Col. Brich
  • Mr. Edward Stephens
  • Sir John Boucher,

Or any five of them, and all that will come are to have voices.

The said Committee to have power to confer with the Com­mon-councel of the City of London, or such as they shall appoint, how an expedient may be found out for setling maintenance up­on a Preaching Ministery within the said City, and are to consi­der the Ordinance touching the late Dean, and Chapiter of Pauls, and how the same hath been discharged and to find out the cause why the said Churches stand empty and unserved; with power also to consider of an expedient how a Preaching Mini­stery may be maintained in al other Cities within this Kingdom. The said Committee is to fit at two a clock this afternoon in the Exchequer Chamber, and so de die in diem, and for what con­cerns the City of London, to make report to the House thereof forthwith.

The Petitioners being again called in, Mr. Speaker by command of the House gave them this answer; Gentlemen, The House hath considered of your Petition, and findes it a thing of very great consequence, and have referred the same to a Committee who are to sit this afternoon, and are to confer with you how an expe­dient may be found out for maintenance of a Preaching Mini­stery within the City, and to report the same forthwith.

H. Elsynge, Cler. Parl. D. Com.

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