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Ghap.XXXVI. from the I. of James I, to the

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I have already observed how readythe Parliament was to grant Cromwellwhatever he desired; But not contentwith that they now endeavour’d to forceupon him, what he did not desire, orwas afraid to own he desired; I meanthe Royal Dignity. After the Matterhad been debated two Days successivelyin the House, a Committee was appoin-ed to acquaint him what had been re-solved tor the Publick Good. Heseemed surprized, that the Parliamentshould have entertained such a Design,and told them he neither believed theHouse ought to make the Osier, northat himself could with any Conscienceaccept of it. He was, however, pre-vailed upon to appoint a Day to heartheir Reasons, after which he absolute-ly refused the Dignity, and was content-ed with having his Protectorship con-firmed, With additional Power, as a Re-ward for his Moderation, (d) This be-ing done, he was a second Time inaugu-rated, with great Pomp, in Wejhninfter-Hall; and then the House adjourned tothe twentieth of January.

This Year, a League offensive anddefensive was concluded with France,on the thirteenth of March. And KingCharles entered into an Alliance withSpain , after which he changed his Re-sidence from Cologne to Bruges, whitherthe Duke of York was obliged likewiseto retire out of France. In Pursuance of

the Treaty with France, Cromwell sent 1657.six Thousand of his best Troops to servethe French, and Mardyke, being, among ™ ard ^other Places, taken from the Spaniards, "delivered fawas delivered, according to Agreement, the Engibh,to the Englijh.

The Beginning of the Year 1658. 1658,

Cromwell, being thereunto authorized,in the last Session of Parliament, made parhamentan Upper-House, to which he would summoned.\gladly have given the Name of a Houseof Peers-, But some of the ancient Peers,whom he would have added to it, re-fusing to take their Seats with such o-ther Members as he had packed toge-ther, he was forced to be contentedwith giving it the Name of the OtherHouse, (?) On the twentieth of Janua- The Parityry the two Houses met, and the first mnt meets ,' .Thing the lower House did was to re-admit the excluded Members, verymuch to the Mortification of Cromwell ;

But he was even with them; For hesoon after dissolved the Parliament.

On the six and twentieth of June, Dunkirk do,Dunkirk was taken by the French, withthe Assistance of the Englijh Troops,and, pursuant to aTreaty, was deliveredinto the Hands of Cromwell, who putan Englijh Garrison into it, under theCommand of Lockhart.

In August following, Cromwell was ^ eath °fseized with a Fever, at Hampton Court, romweof which he died,on the third of Septem -her, at the Age of eight and fifty, (f)

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" Surrender, and kept it some Hours after Prince" Rupert was in the Town, and killed some of" the Soldiers; For which the Prince resolved to" hang him, is some Friends had not interposed" for him, upon his Want of Experience in War," and prevailed with him to quit the Place, by“ very great Importunity and much Difficulty.

After this, having done eminent Service to the“ Parliament , especially at Taunton, at Land, he« then betook himself wholly to the Sea, and,e quickly made himself signal there. He was" the first Man that declined the old Track, and“ made it manifest, that the Science might be at-“ tained in less Time than was imagined, and de*“ spiled those Rules which had been long inPrac-“ tice, to keep his Ship and Men out of Danger,“ which had been held in former Times a Point“ of great Ability and Circumspection; as if thetc principal Art requisite in a Captain of a Ship“ had been to come home safe again. He was the" first Man that brought the Ships to contemn“ Castles on Shoar, which had been thought ever‘‘Ivery formidable, and were discovered by him<c Ao make a Noise only, and to fright those who41 could rarely be hurt by them. He was the“ first that infused that Proportion of Courage" into Seamen, by making them see by Experi-<c ence what mighty Things they could do if4t they were resolved, and taught them to fightSc in Fire as well as upon Water : And tho’ heu had been very well imitated and followed, he

“ was the first that gave the Example of that" Kind of Naval Courage, and bold and resolute" Achievements.

(c) Whitlock , who was Chairman of the Com-mittee, has this Debate at large, in his Memoirs,as he has likewise a particular Account of the In-auguration, which followed,

(d) This Other House consisted of sixty Mem*bers. See a List of them in IVhitlock , who washimself one,

(?) So much good, and so much Evil, has been Clarendon.said of this great Man (for that he certainly was,notwithstanding all that can be said to his Disad-vantage) that I shall not venture to draw his Cha-racter myself, and shall only give a Hint or twofrom others. The Lord Clarendon , who excctlsin Characters, and who cannot be suspected of'speaking too favourably of him ; says, " He was“ one of those Men, £>uos vituperate ne/ inimici“ qitidem pjfent , nijt ut Jhnul laudent, (whom“ his very Enemies would not condemn, without“ commending him at the fameTime.) Without" Doubt (continues he) no Man, with more* c Wickedness, ever attempted any Thing, or" brought to pass what he desired more wicked*

" ly, more in the Face and Contempt of Religion" and moral Honesty, Yet Wickedness, great as" his, could never have accomplished those De*

“ signs, without the,Assistance of a great Spirit,

" an admirable Circumspection and Sagacity, and

" a