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<DATE>2014-07-28</DATE>
<RESPSTMT>
<NAME>TCP Staff (Michigan)</NAME>
<RESP>MURP</RESP>
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<ITEM>Proofed and reviewed as part of batch B140510.pdcc.</ITEM>
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<BIBNO T="oclc">[ocm]31355307</BIBNO>
<VID>205861</VID>
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<TEXT LANG="eng">
<FRONT>
<DIV1 TYPE="title page">
<PB REF="1" MS="y">
<P>THE HVMBLE PETITION OF THE INHABITANTS of the County of <HI>DORSET,</HI> PRESENTED TO HIS MAIESTY AT RAGLAND THE 8^t^h of JULY, 1645.</P>
<P>WITH <HI>HIS MAJESTIES</HI> Gratious An&s;wer thereunto.</P>
<P><HI>OXFORD,</HI> Printed by <HI>Leonard Lichfield,</HI> Printer to <HI>the Vniver&s;ity.</HI> 1645.</P>
</DIV1>
</FRONT>
<BODY>
<DIV1 TYPE="letter">
<PB REF="2">
<PB N="1" REF="2">
<HEAD>To the KING'S mo&s;t Excellent MAjESTY. The Humble Petition of the di&s;tre&s;&s;ed Prote&s;tant Inhabitants of the County of DORSET,</HEAD>
<OPENER>Sheweth,</OPENER>
<P>_THat the Petitioners, &s;ince the&s;e unhappy Civill Warres, having in a deeper mea&s;ure then other Subjects of this Kingdome, &s;uffered by meanes of the many Garri&s;ons within this little County, (they being tenne in number) and the Armies yearely drawn into the&s;e parts by rea&s;on thereof, did lately hope (while&s;t the Treaty between Your <HI>Maje&s;ty</HI> and the two Hou&s;es of Parliament continued) once again to have been re&s;tored to the ble&s;&s;ing of Peace&punc; by an happy accommodation of the pre&s;ent dif|ferences without further effu&s;ion of Chri&s;tian blood.</P>
<P>But finding &s;uch their great hopes to be fru&s;trate, and having too too ju&s;t cau&s;e to feare that they are not yet brought to the ex|tremity of mi&s;eries, which the continuance of this Warre will in all probability produce; and conceiving that nothing under God can reduce this mi&s;erably divided Nation unto any proportion of it's former happine&s;&s;e &s;ave only an unbloody accommodation,</P>
<P>Doe mo&s;t humbly be&s;eech your mo&s;t Excellent <HI>Maje&s;ty,</HI> to lend your favourable eare to the renewing of a Treaty for Peace, when it &s;hall be propo&s;ed to Your <HI>Maje&s;ty</HI> by the two Hou&s;es of Parliament, (for the propo&s;all whereof, the Petitioners have made their addre&s;&s;es unto them) that before this wretched King|dome, through the divi&s;ions and debility thereof, be made a Prey for a Forraigne Nation, &s;uch a Peace may be e&s;tabli&s;hed therein, as may be for the glory of God, the maintenance of the true refor|med Prote&s;tant Religion, Your <HI>Maje&s;ties</HI> Royall Per&s;on, Honour and E&s;tate, the Power and Priviledges of Parliament, and the Lawfull Rights and Liberties of your Subjects.</P>
<P>And they likewi&s;e humbly be&s;eech Your <HI>Maje&s;ty,</HI> that during &s;uch Treaty, Your Maje&s;ty will be gratiou&s;ly plea&s;ed to con&s;ent
<PB N="2" REF="3"> to a Ce&s;&s;ation of Armes on your Maje&s;ties part, (in ca&s;e the &s;aid two Hou&s;es of Parliament &s;hall doe the &s;ame) that a Treaty ten|ding to Peace may not proceed in Blood.</P>
<P>But if Almighty God hath decreed the farther &s;courging of this Nation (being not hitherto fitted for &s;o great a mercy, as the enjoyment of Peace) by the continuance of the&s;e Civill Warres, and by con&s;equence thereof, a nece&s;&s;ity en&s;ue of keeping &s;ome of the Garri&s;ons within this County for the defence of the &s;ame, Your di&s;tre&s;&s;ed &s;uppliants (who are not able any longer to &s;ub&s;i&s;t un|der the intollerable burthen of contrary Commands of the &s;aid Garri&s;ons, and of the Armies afore&s;aid) who by Contributions, Taxes, Free quarter and Plunder have &s;carcely left Your Pe|titioners &s;u&s;tenance for them&s;elves&punc; much le&s;&s;e any ability of &s;up|plying the Souldiers farther nece&s;&s;ities, or arbitrary demands,</P>
<P>Mo&s;t humbly be&s;eech Your &s;acred <HI>Maje&s;ty,</HI> with your wonted eye of Clemency &s;o to reflect upon the mi&s;eries of the Petitioners Your di&s;tre&s;&s;ed Subjects of this Your County as to conde&s;cend to the intru&s;ting in their hands, &s;o many of Your Garri&s;ons, held by any of Your Maje&s;ties forces therein, as &s;hall be thought nece&s;&s;ary to be continued (in ca&s;e Your &s;aid Two Hou&s;es of Parliament &s;hall upon Your Subjects Petition to them in that behalfe doe the like for the Garri&s;ons in their hands) to be maintained at the charges of the Petitioners, and not by them to be delivered up un|to any Per&s;on or Per&s;ons what&s;oever, but unto &s;uch only as by the joynt con&s;ent of Your Maje&s;ty, and the &s;aid two Hou&s;es of Parliament, &s;hall be authorized to receive the &s;ame.</P>
<P>And they humbly pray that, during their &s;ervice in maintain|ing the &s;aid Garri&s;ons. Your Maje&s;ty will be plea&s;ed gratiou&s;ly to exempt the Petitioners from all manner of Payments, and o|ther Charges towards the&s;e Warres.</P>
<P>And for as much as many wicked and lewd Per&s;ons&punc; taking advantage of tho&s;e times of di&s;temper to the great di&s;honour of Almighty God, and Scandall of Your <HI>Maje&s;ties</HI> Government, doe dayly commit many haynous offences again&s;t God and the e&s;tabli&s;hed Lawes of this Your Realme, and through want of execution of Ju&s;tice e&s;cape unpuni&s;hed.</P>
<P>Your Petitioners farther humbly be&s;eech Your mo&s;t Excellent: <HI>Maje&s;ty,</HI> That the Acts of Parliament which stand unrep<GAP DESC="illegible" EXTENT="4 letters">d may be pre&s;ently put in Execution again&s;t the Offendors, by &s;uch
<PB N="3" REF="3"> Officers as by the &s;ame Acts are enabled thereunto, without di|&s;turbance of tho&s;e Officers in the due execution thereof&punc; and that Your <HI>Maje&s;ty</HI> will be graciou&s;ly plea&s;ed, that all &s;uch Per&s;ons as either are, or have been in Armes, or otherwi&s;e a&s;&s;i&s;tant unto either Party in the&s;e unhappy Warres, may be permitttd (if they &s;halt de&s;ire it) to lay downe their Armes, and to returne to their wonted Habitations, that the like favour to returne may be gran|ted unto all others who for feare of either Party have ab&s;ented them&s;elves from the places of their u&s;uall abode, or which by rea|&s;on of their affection to either Party are impri&s;oned, or other|wi&s;e re&s;trained of their liberty.</P>
<P>And lea&s;t any mi&s;con&s;truction may be made of Your Petitio|ners intents in a&s;&s;embling them&s;elves at &s;everall places of this Your Countie.</P>
<P>They humbly remon&s;trate unto Your Mo&s;t Excellent <HI>Maje|&s;ty,</HI> That their aymes therein have been for no other ends, &s;ave onely to repre&s;ent their great grievances by way of humble Peti|tion to Your Sacred <HI>Maje&s;ty,</HI> and to the two Hou&s;es of Parlia|ment, and to a&s;&s;ociate them&s;elves (as they humbly conceive they lawfully may) for the maintenance of the true Reformed Pro|te&s;tant Religion, the pre&s;ervation of their Lawes, Liberties, and Properties&punc; again&s;t all Plunderers, and all other unlawfull Violence, untill it &s;hall plea&s;e Almighty God to put a period to the&s;e &s;ad Di&s;tractions.</P>
<P>Which that it may &s;peedily be effected, Your <HI>Maje&s;ties</HI> most humble Petitioners with humble hearts and bended knees, &s;hall not be wanting daily to invocate the God of Peace&punc; and to pray for Your <HI>Maje&s;ties</HI> long and prosperous Raigne over &V;s.</P>
<CLOSER><SIGNED>This Petition is &s;ub&s;cribed by above ten Thou&s;and of Your MAjESTIES Loyall Subjects of this County, not in Armes on either Party in the pre&s;ent Warres.</SIGNED>
<POSTSCRIPT>
<P><HI>This is a true Copy, as it was pre&s;ented by us unto His MAjESTY,</HI> <DATE><HI>the 8^t^h day of</HI> July, <HI>1645.</HI></DATE></P>
<CLOSER><SIGNED><LIST>
<ITEM><HI>HENRY GOCHE.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>THO: YONGE.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>PETER HOSKINS.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>THO: <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 word">&punc;</HI></ITEM>
</LIST></SIGNED></CLOSER>
</POSTSCRIPT></CLOSER>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="letter">
<PB N="4" REF="4">
<OPENER><DATELINE>At the Court at <HI>RAGLAND,</HI> <DATE>July the <HI>9^t^h, 1645.</HI></DATE> By His Majesties &s;peciall Directions and Command.</DATELINE></OPENER>
<P>_HIS Maje&s;ty being him&s;elfe &s;o deeply afflicted with the Mi&s;eries and Calamities brought up|on all His poore Subjects in generall by this unnaturall Warre, doth not at all wonder, that the grievous and mo&s;t particular &s;ufferings of the Inhabitants of the County of <HI>Dor&s;et,</HI> &s;hould urge them to &s;eek ea&s;e and reliefe, though by wayes le&s;&s;e regular, and being entirely per&s;waded that their intenti|ons in their late a&s;&s;emblies, and in this their pre&s;ent addre&s;&s;e to His <HI>Maje&s;ty</HI> are full of Duty and Loyalty to His Per&s;on and Government, is &s;o farre from reprehending them, that He is very glad to find &s;o many of His good Subjects united in a joynt and hearty &s;en&s;e of the publick, and that by this particular ap|plication of them&s;elves to His <HI>Majesty</HI> they have afforded him the meanes to informe them more particularly of the Ju&s;tice of His Cau&s;e, and of His &s;incere and con&s;tant de&s;ires and endea|vours for Peace, then appeares by their profe&s;t neutrality hi|therto they have been; which that he may the better doe, and that there may thereby be wrought a perfect Vnion and Con|junction betwixt His <HI>Maje&s;ty</HI> and tho&s;e who profe&s;&s;e to be &s;o &s;incerely affected with the &s;ame Pious de&s;ires of the pub|lick good, His <HI>Maje&s;ty</HI> will very &s;peedily &s;end unto the Petiti|oners, or unto &s;uch as they &s;hall depute within the &s;aid County, Per&s;ons further in&s;tructed in the Cour&s;e of all His <HI>Maje&s;ties</HI> former proceedings, and of His pre&s;ent Re&s;olutions, and in the meane time as an in&s;tance of His Gracious Intentions towards the Petitioners, He is plea&s;ed to give the&s;e particular An&s;wers to their &s;everall de&s;ires.</P>
<P>To the fir&s;t, That when ever Propo&s;itions of Peace &s;hall be made unto His <HI>Maje&s;ty</HI> by tho&s;e at <HI>We&s;tmin&s;ter,</HI> His Eares &s;hall be alwayes open unto them, and He not onely ready to receive them, but even to &s;eek and &s;olicite for them, when ever He can probably Iudge that they will not reject His Overture, whereof the Petitioners need make no doubt, His <HI>Maje&s;ty</HI> having neglected no occa&s;ion to invite them to a Treaty of
<PB N="5" REF="4"> Peace, the ble&s;&s;ing whereof was never more to be implored of Al|mighty God, nor to be more indu&s;triou&s;ly endeavoured by all good men, then at this time, when without it (as the Petitioners well ob&s;erve) this Kingdom is likely to be made the prey of a Forreigne Nation; The <HI>Scots</HI> being at this pre&s;ent advanc't with an Army &s;o farre into the heart of this Kingdome, as already to threaten even the <HI>We&s;terne</HI> parts; And His <HI>Maje&s;ty</HI> doth further promi&s;e in the Word of a King, that if a Treaty may be procured, He will &s;eek no other Conditions of Peace then tho&s;e mentioned by the Petitio|ners, that is, The glory of God in the maintenance of the true Re|formed Prote&s;tant Religion, The Iu&s;t and in&s;eparable Rights of the Crowne, The Iu&s;t Power and Priviledges of Parliament, and the Lawfull Rights and Liberty of the Subject; and all the&s;e, under none of tho&s;e Ambiguous termes, whereby the contrary Party have deluded and mi&s;led &s;o many of his good Subjects, pretending that they fight for the &s;ame, but making the knowne Lawes of the Land (which cannot deceive) the mea&s;ure of each particular.</P>
<P>To the &s;econd His <HI>Maje&s;ty</HI> doth promi&s;e, That, if a Treaty may be procured, He will earne&s;tly de&s;ire a Ce&s;&s;ation of Arms, (as he did in the la&s;t at <HI>&V;xbridge,</HI> though to His great griefe not con&s;ented unto by the other Party) to the end that a Treaty tending to Peace may not proceed in Bloud; And His <HI>Maje&s;ty</HI> de&s;ires the Book of the &s;aid Treaty at <HI>&V;xbridge,</HI> be read to the Petitioners for their &s;atisfaction in this Point, and the manife&s;tation of His &s;incere de|&s;ires of Peace.</P>
<P>To the third, That in Ca&s;e for the &s;innes of the Nation, the ob&s;ti|nacy of the other Party cannot be overcome, but that His <HI>Maje&s;ty</HI> and His People mu&s;t yet be further Scourged by Gods afflicting hand of Warre, that His <HI>Maje&s;ty</HI> is &s;o deeply &s;en&s;ible of his Suppli|ants, and all His other good Subjects Sufferings, by Contributions, Taxes, Free-Quarter, and Plunder, that what&s;oever can be done on His <HI>Maie&s;ties</HI> part in the three fir&s;t by all the moderation that can po&s;&s;ibly be u&s;ed, and to the latter, by the &s;evere&s;t Iu&s;tice, &s;hall be carefully and effectually endeavoured; As for the point of tru&s;t|ing in the Petitioners hands &s;uch of His Forts and Garri&s;ons as &s;hall be thought nece&s;&s;ary to be continued, His <HI>Maie&s;ty</HI> makes no doubt, but if Peace may not be procured, it &s;hall &s;o evidently appeare un|to the Petitioners, who have been the Authors, and are the Contri|vers of their mi&s;eries, that they will prove the heartie&s;t Champi|ons
<PB N="6" REF="5"> of their King's, their owne, and Gods Cau&s;e, and con&s;equently be as fit Per&s;ons as any that His <HI>Maie&s;ty</HI> can Chu&s;e to be entru&s;ted with what nearlie&s;t concernes His Safety, and their Protection&punc; but for this particular, as al&s;o for the future maintaining of the &s;aid Gar|ri&s;ons, His <HI>Maie&s;ty</HI> will by tho&s;e whom he &s;hall employ unto the Petitioners, advi&s;e with them of the time and manner how His Service may be done mo&s;t to their &s;atisfaction.</P>
<P>And to the la&s;t, that the chiefe calamity of Warre is the &s;ilencing of the Lawes, and if it were po&s;&s;ible, to uphold their due and cur|rent execution, the Sword could no longer Rage, but as farre-forth as it is po&s;&s;ible, that Military affaires can be govern'd by Legall in|flictions on offenders, His Maje&s;ty is very de&s;irous to give the Peti|tioners all imaginable &s;atisfaction; but it being a matter of &s;uch in|tricacy, the particular way end Method of it, mu&s;t be ripened by farther debate. As for the point of leave for all His Maje&s;ties mis|led Subjects, to lay down Armes, and returne to their habitations, there to live unque&s;tioned, and unmole&s;ted, It is that whereunto His Maje&s;ty hath already many times given more then a permi&s;&s;i|on, That is, a &s;peciall invitation, by &s;everall gratious Proclamations, which for the Petitioners &s;atisfaction be &s;hall very willingly re|new. As for the other part, which concernes tho&s;e at pre&s;ent enga|ged in His <HI>Maiesties</HI> Service, &amp; tho&s;e under re&s;traint, His <HI>Maie&s;ty</HI> is too confident of the Petitioners affections to His and His King|doms Safety, to beleeve (while His Enemies are &s;o &s;trong, &amp; dayly forcing every man to take up Armes again&s;t Him, and whil'&s;t a For|reigne Nation is in the bowells of the Kingdome ready to devoure it) that they would wi&s;h Him one man le&s;&s;e in His Army, or one man more at Liberty to joyne with them.</P>
<P>As for all &s;uch Per&s;ons as are ab&s;ent from their homes, and not already engaged in His <HI>Maie&s;ties</HI> Service, it &s;hall be very accepta|ble to His <HI>Maie&s;ty,</HI> that they returne to their owne homes, and tend the &s;ervice and quiet of their Countries according to the Petitio|ners de&s;ire. And as for all Acts of Parliament and Lawes unrepea|led in what concernes the Civill Government, as particularly for A&s;&s;ize, Se&s;&s;ions, and the like, The Petitioners undertaking the Protection of His <HI>Maiesties</HI> Mini&s;ters of Iu&s;tice, His <HI>Maie&s;ty</HI> will i&s;&s;ue His Commands unto them all re&s;pectively, to performe their con&s;tant duties, according to the e&s;tabli&s;ht Lawes.</P>
<CLOSER><SIGNED>GEORGE DIGBY.</SIGNED></CLOSER>
<TRAILER>FINIS.</TRAILER>
</DIV1>
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