"Charles R. BOOK 1660. " Right trusty and right well-beloved cousins, and " right trusty and well-beloved cousins, and trusty His 660 " and right well-beloved; we greet you well. We jesty's let"cannot have a better reason to promise ourself an house of " end of our common sufferings and calamities, and " that our own just power and authority will, with " God's blessing, be restored to us, than that you are " again acknowledged to have that authority and " jurisdiction which hath always belonged to you by 66 66 66 66 your birth, and the fundamental laws of the land : " and we have thought it very fit and safe for us to "call to you for your help, in the composing the confounding distempers and distractions of the kingdom; in which your sufferings are next to " those we have undergone ourself; and therefore you cannot but be the most proper counsellors for removing those mischiefs, and for preventing the " like for the future. How great a trust we repose " in you, for the procuring and establishing a blessed peace and security for the kingdom, will appear to you by our enclosed declaration; which trust we " are most confident you will discharge with that "justice and wisdom that becomes you, and must "always be expected from you; and that, upon your "experience how one violation succeeds another, "when the known relations and rules of justice are " once transgressed, you will be as jealous for the "rights of the crown, and for the honour of your "king, as for yourselves: and then you cannot but " discharge your trust with good success, and provide " for and establish the peace, happiness, and honour " of king, lords, and commons, upon that foundation " which can only support it; and we shall be all ter to the lords. BOOK 1660. His majesty's letter to the fleet. " happy in each other; and as the whole kingdom " will bless God for you all, so we shall hold ourself " obliged in an especial manner to thank you in par" ticular, according to the affection you shall express "towards us. We need the less enlarge to you upon " this subject, because we have likewise writ to the "house of commons; which we suppose they will " communicate to you. And we pray God to bless " your joint endeavours for the good of us all. And " so we bid you very heartily farewell." Given at our court at Breda, this th day of April, 1660, in the twelfth year of our reign. To our trusty and well-beloved general Monk and general Mountague, generals at sea, to be communicated to the fleet. "Charles R. "Trusty and well-beloved, we greet you well. It " is no small comfort to us, after so long and great " troubles and miseries, which the whole nation hath "groaned under; and after so great revolutions, "which have still increased those miseries, to hear " that the fleet and ships, which are the walls of the " kingdom, are put under the command of two per"sons so well disposed to, and concerned in, the " peace and happiness of the kingdom, as we be"lieve you to be; and that the officers and seamen " under your command are more inclined to return " to their duty to us, and put a period to these dis 66 tempers and distractions, which have so impo"verished and dishonoured the nation, than to " widen the breach, and to raise their fortunes by XVI. " rapine and violence; which gives us great encou- BOOK " ragement and hope, that God Almighty will heal "the wounds by the same plaister that made the 1660, "flesh raw; that he will proceed in the same me"thod in pouring his blessings upon us, which he " was pleased to use, when he began to afflict us; " and that the manifestation of the good affection " of the fleet and seamen towards us, and the peace " of the nation, may be the prologue to that peace, "which was first interrupted by the mistake and " misunderstanding of their predecessors; which "would be such a blessing upon us all, that we " should not be less delighted with the manner, than "the matter of it. " In this hope and confidence, we have sent the " enclosed declaration to you; by which you may "discern, how much we are willing to contribute "towards the obtaining the general and public "peace: in which, as no man can be more, or so " much, concerned, so no man can be more solicit" ous for it. And we do earnestly desire you, that 66 you will cause the said declaration to be published " to all the officers and seamen of the fleet; to the " end, that they may plainly discern, how much we "have put it into their power to provide for the 66 peace and happiness of the nation, who have been "always understood by them to be the best and " most proper counsellors for those good ends: and 66 you are likewise farther to declare to them, that " we have the same gracious purpose towards them, "which we have expressed towards the army at " land; and will be as ready to provide for the pay"ment of all arrears due to them, and for reward"ing them according to their several merits, as we BOOK 1660. His majesty's letter to the lord mayor and alder men of the city of Lon don. " have expressed to the other; and we will always " take so particular a care of them and their condi" tion, as shall manifest our kindness towards them. "And so depending upon God's blessing, for infus"ing those good resolutions into your and their " hearts, which are best for us all; we bid you fare" well." Given at our court at Breda, thisth day of April, 1660, in the twelfth year of our reign. To our trusty and well-beloved the lord mayor, aldermen, and common council, of our city of London. "Charles R. "Trusty and well-beloved, we greet you well. In "these great revolutions of late, happened in that " our kingdom, to the wonder and amazement of "all the world, there is none that we have looked 66 upon with more comfort, than the so frequent " and public manifestations of their affections to us " in the city of London; which hath exceedingly " raised our spirits, and which, no doubt, hath pro" ceeded from the Spirit of God, and his extraordi"nary mercy to the nation; which hath been en"couraged by you, and your good example, to as"sert that government under which it hath, so 66 66 66 many hundred years, enjoyed as great felicity as any nation in Europe; and to discountenance the imaginations of those who would subject our sub"jects to a government they have not yet devised, " and, to satisfy the pride and ambition of a few ill XVI. 1660. " rannical power that was ever yet heard of. How BOOK "long we have all suffered under those and the "like devices, all the world takes notice, to the no " small reproach of the English nation; which we "hope is now providing for its own security and " redemption, and will be no longer bewitched by " those inventions. "How desirous we are to contribute to the ob"taining the peace and happiness of our subjects " without effusion of blood; and how far we are from "desiring to recover what belongs to us by a war, " if it can be otherwise done, will appear to you by "the enclosed declaration; which, together with " this our letter, we have intrusted our right trusty " and well-beloved cousin, the lord viscount Mor"daunt, and our trusty and well-beloved servant, "sir John Greenvil, knight, one of the gentlemen " of our bedchamber, to deliver to you; to the end, " that you, and all the rest of our good subjects of "that our city of London, (to whom we desire it " should be published,) may know, how far we are " from the desire of revenge, or that the peace, hap"piness, and security of the kingdom, should be " raised upon any other foundation than the affec" tions and hearts of our subjects, and their own "consents. "We have not the least doubt of your just sense " of these our condescensions, or of your zeal to ad"vance and promote the same good end, by dispos"ing all men to meet us with the same affection " and tenderness, in restoring the fundamental laws " to that reverence that is due to them, and upon "the preservation whereof all our happiness de"pends. And you will have no reason to doubt of |