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<DATE>2014-09-05</DATE>
<RESPSTMT>
<NAME>Mona Logarbo</NAME>
<RESP>MURP</RESP>
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<ITEM>Proofed and reviewed as part of batch B140712.pdcc.</ITEM>
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<IDG S="marc" R="UM" ID="B43933">
<STC T="W">S1598</STC>
<BIBNO T="oclc">[ocn]297427064</BIBNO>
<VID>208161</VID>
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<DIV1 TYPE="royal proclamation">
<PB REF="1">
<PB REF="2">
<HEAD><FIGURE>
<HEAD>C R</HEAD>
<Q LANG="frm">HONI SOIT QUI MAL Y PENSE</Q>
<FIGDESC>royal blazon surmounted by a crown</FIGDESC>
</FIGURE></HEAD>
<HEAD>A PROCLAMATION Again&s;t per&s;ons being in Arms at Field-Conventicles,</HEAD>
<OPENER><DATELINE>Super&s;cribed by His Maje&s;ty at <HI>Whitehall,</HI> <DATE>the 6th. day of <HI>May,</HI> 1679.</DATE></DATELINE><LB>
<SALUTE>_CHARLES, by the Grace of God, King of Great <HI>Britain, France</HI> and <HI>Ireland,</HI> Defender of the Faith, To <GAP DESC="blank" EXTENT="1 span"> Macers, or Me&s;&s;engers at Arms, Our Sheriffs in that part, conjunctly and &s;everally, &s;pecially con|&s;titute, Greeting;</SALUTE></OPENER>
<P>Fora&s;much, as albeit by the Fundamental Laws of all Monarchies, the power of Arms is Lodged in the King, and the ri&s;ing in Arms be puni&s;hable as Trea|&s;on; and that the E&s;tates of Parliament of this Kingdom, reflecting with horror upon the great confu&s;ions and di&s;tempers, and the execrable rebellion of the la&s;t Age, occa&s;i|oned by the unwarrantable ri&s;ing in Arms again&s;t Our Royal Father of ble&s;&s;ed Memory, whereby, not only the Royal Government was endeavoured to be overturned, but the Properties and Liberties of the Subjects de&s;troyed, under the &s;pecious, but fal&s;e pretext of Religion and Con&s;cience; Did by the fir&s;t <HI>Act</HI> of Our fir&s;t <HI>Parliament,</HI> Declare, that it &s;hould be high Trea&s;on to the Subjects of this Kingdom, or any number of them, more or le&s;s, upon any ground or pretext what&s;oever, to ri&s;e or continue in Arms, without Our &s;pecial Warrant and Authority fir&s;t interpon'd thereto; and by the &s;econd <HI>Act</HI> of the &s;econd <HI>Se&s;&s;ion</HI> of that &s;ame <HI>Parlia|ment,</HI> they likewi&s;e Declar'd, that if any Per&s;on or Per&s;ons, &s;hould Levy, Warr, or take up any Arms again&s;t Us, or any Commi&s;&s;ionated by Us, they &s;hould be declared and adjudged Traitors, and &s;hould &s;uffer forefeiture of Life, Honour, Lands and Goods, as in ca&s;es of High-Trea&s;on: Yet We being always mo&s;t de&s;irous to e&s;&s;ay all means of Clemency, for correcting &s;uch of Our Subjects as could be any ways reclaimable, Have not hitherto put tho&s;e Acts into &s;uch execution as the di&s;orders and irregularities of &s;ome of Our Subjects did require, hoping their going to Field-meetings, tho&s;e <HI>Rende|vouzes</HI> of Rebellion with Arms, might have proceeded meerly from Cu&s;tome, or mi&s;take; But now finding by the fre|quent oppo&s;ition made in Arms to Our Forces, acting in Our Name, the invading of Our Officers, and the exciting others to go to &s;uch Meetings in Arms, upon de&s;ign to oppo&s;e Our Forces, that &s;uch as frequent the&s;e Meetings, do go there in Arms upon a criminal and treacherous de&s;ign, which grows to that &s;ame proportion that We u&s;e Clemency: And We being de&s;irous that none of Our Subjects &s;hould be led in a &s;nare by Our former Lenity, and to the end their condign puni&s;hment according to the&s;e Laws, may be the more ju&s;tly chargeable upon the obduredne&s;s, and ob&s;tinacy of the Offen|ders; Have therefore, with advice of the Lords of Our Privy Council, after mature deliberation, thought fit to De|clare, that We will hereafter order the Judges of Our re&s;pective Judicatures, and the Officers of all Our Forces, to pro|ceed again&s;t all &s;uch who go with any Arms to tho&s;e Field-meetings, as Traitors. And lea&s;t that any of Our Subjects may pretend, by the ju&s;t rigor We will u&s;e again&s;t &s;uch as do go to Conventicles in Arms, that We re&s;olve to &s;lacken Our pro&s;ecution of other Field Conventicles; We have therefore thought fit, to require all Our Judges and Officers to put Our Laws and former Commands in vigorous Execution, even again&s;t tho&s;e who frequent the&s;e Field-meetings without Arms; We being fully convinced both by rea&s;on and experience, that tho&s;e meetings do certainly tend to the ruine and reproach of the Chri&s;tian Religion and Di&s;cipline, to the introduction of Popery and Here&s;ie, the &s;ubver&s;ion of Monarchy, and the contempt of all Laws and Government. Our Will is herefore, and We charge you &s;traitly, and Command, that incontinent, the&s;e Our Letters &s;een, ye pa&s;s to the Mercat Cro&s;s of <HI>Edinburgh,</HI> and other Head-Burghs of the &s;everal Shires of this Kingdom, and thereat, in Our Name and Authority, by open Proclamation, make publication of the Premi&s;&s;es, that none pretend ignorance.</P>
<CLOSER><DATELINE>Given under Our Signet, at <HI>Edinburgh,</HI> <DATE>the thretteenth day of <HI>May,</HI> 1679. and of Our Reign the one and threttieth Year.</DATE></DATELINE>
<SIGNED>Per actum Dominorum Secreti Concilij, <HI>Al. Gib&s;on,</HI> Cl. Sti. Concilii</SIGNED><LB> God &s;ave the King.</CLOSER>
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