zeal of his parliament; and therefore gave his af- A. C. 1670" fent to this act, which declared an affembly confifting of seventeen diffenters, a conventicle, provided they met to worship God in any other form than that which was practifed in the church of England, even though ten of that number fhould belong to the family in whofe house they might be affembled. Every individual was fined in five fhillings for the first offence, and ten for the fecond. The preacher was condemned in twenty pounds for the first conviction, and in double that fum for the next; and a fine of twenty pounds was decreed against the perfon in whose house they fhould be found affembled.

the cabal.

Hitherto, Charles feems to have ftudied nothing Account of fo much as his own ease and convenience. Without doubt, he inherited high notions of the prerogative, which were cherished by the nature of his education. But his father's fate and his own fufferings had rendered him extremely cautious of quarrelling with his parliament; and his indolent difpofition was an unfurmountable bar to the execution of any defign upon the liberties of the people. He had immerfed himself in pleasure, and would not have facrificed his private enjoyment to the most flattering profpect of arbitrary power, if his revenue had been fufficient to fupply the channels of his prodigality. Though the commons were attached to him from principle, and had been liberal, if we compare their grants with thofe of former parliaments; yet, confidering the late increase of wealth and luxury in almoft every court of Europe, his fupplies were rather fcanty than affluent, and his profufe expence rendered him a beggarly dependent upon the bounty of the commons. His neceffities continually invaded his repofe. He was incefiantly importuned by fuitors whom he could not gratify. He was roused by the

more

A. C. 1670, more active spirit of his brother, who exhorted him

to rife above thofe humble folicitations he had
hitherto practifed to his parliament for daily fub-
fitance. He was befet by fome defperate coun-
fellors, who importuned and encouraged him to
affert his own independence in fubduing that info-
lent ufurpation which the rebellious fubject had
raised on the ruins of regal authority. Prince Ru-
pert, the duke of Ormond, lord-keeper Bridge-
man, and fecretary Trevor, men in whofe honour
and integrity the nation had confidence, were now
feldom or never fummoned to the cabinet-council;
but the king was wholly conducted by the advice
of Clifford, Afhley, Buckingham, Arlington, and
Lauderdale, a junto diftinguished by the appella-
tion of "The cabal," a word formed by the initial
letters of their names.
Sir Thomas Clifford was a
man of an enterprifing genius, rendered the more
dangerous by the talent of eloquence and the fpirit
of intrigue which he poffeffed. Lord Afhley, af-
terwards raised to the earldom of Shaftsbury, had
been a member of the long-parliament, of great
influence among the prefbyterians: he infinuated
himfelf into the confidence of Cromwell; and af-
terwards employed his credit in forwarding the re-
ftoration. By his uncommon talents, he acquired
great, weight with every party he efpoufed. He
was turbulent, restless, ambitious, subtle, and en-
terprifing: he had conquered all fenfe of fhame;
was reftrained by no fears, and influenced by no
principle. The duke of Buckingham was a gay, ca-
pricious nobleman, of fome wit, and great viva-
city; the minister of riot; the flave of intemper-
ance; a pretended atheist, without honour, prin-
ciple, œconomy, or difcretion. Arlington pof-
feffed a very moderate capacity, and was not re-
markable for any vicious habit, though he wanted

integrity and resolution to withstand the tempta- A. C. 1670 tions of his colleagues. Lauderdale was learned, aukward, obftinate, ambitious, paffionate even to frenzy, vindictive, implacable, infolent, and abject. Such were the individuals that conftituted the cabal; and the duke of York affifted at their councils. They represented to the king, that even this parliament, fo remarkably attached to the crown, had already exhibited fome symptoms of discontent; that they had been penurious in their temporary fupplies, and kept his revenue in a very precarious fituation. They obferved, that his father's great error confifted in his having neglected to form alliances with powerful princes who would have fupported him against his rebellious fubjects; that his kinfman, the king of France, if properly cultivated, would enter into fuch engagements with him as would raife him above all fear of revolt; that a war with Holland, undertaken in conjunction with Lewis, would be productive of every advantage he could defire to enjoy that he fhould. be able to ruin the Dutch, whofe power, affluence, and principles encouraged and fupported republicans in England; that he would be enriched with the fpoils of the enemy, as well as by fubfidies: which he might receive from the French monarch: that the war would furnish him with a pretence for raifing forces and equipping a navy that would enable him to retrieve the loft power of the crown, and even extend his prerogative to abfolute dominion. Thefe fuggeftions could not be difagreeable to a prince like Charles, who dreaded or defpifed. more than one half of his subjects, who found himfelf in a very uneafy state of dependence, hated the Dutch as the enemies of monarchy, and felt a strong propenfity to the religion of Rome, which at prefent he durft not avow.

Colbert

A. C. 1670.

vifited by dutchefs of

his fifter the

Orleans.

Colbert de Croiffy, the French ambaffador at

Charles is London, had already founded the inclinations of the king and his cabal, touching an alliance with his mafter; and he found them very favourably difpofed, when he understood the defign of Lewis was to humble the pride of the States-general. After Colbert had thus paved the way for a negotiation, the king of France went to fee his new works at Dunkirk; and was accompanied by the dutchefs of Orleans, who took this opportunity of being in the neighbourhood of England to vifit her brother Charles. She landed in May at Dover, where fhe was received by the king and all his court; and there they enjoyed each other's company for a fortnight, in a continual round of diverfions. She was one of the most amiable princeffes of the age in which the lived, and loved her brother with the warmest affection; but she is supposed to have been vefted with a private commiffion, to affure Charles that the king of France would enable him to shake off the yoke of parliament, and reftore the catholic religion in England, as foon as the Dutch fhould be fufficiently humbled by their joint endeavours. If he retained any fcruples about the execution of this fcheme, Lewis could not have fixed upon more effectual expedients to remove them than those he now practifed. The dutchefs of Orleans was a young lady of the most infinuating addrefs, and had great influence with her brother: befides, the French king refolved to bind him down to his engagements by the bonds of pleasure. For this purpose, he sent over with the dutchefs, mademoiselle de Queroüaille, a young lady of extraordinary beauty and accomplishments, which inftantly captivated the heart of Charles. She accompanied him to London, was created dutchess of Portsmouth, and main

tained her empire over him during the whole courfe A. Č. 1670. of his life. She kept him firm to his connexions with France, and continued to be the reigning favourite, while his former miftrefs, lady Cleveland, was raised to the dignity of dutshefs, as a recom. pence for the influence the had loft.

death of

The good understanding between the kings of Sudden France and England had well nigh been blafted in that printhe bud, by an incident which made a deep im- ceís. preffion on the mind of Charles. The dutchefs of Orleans, immediately after her return to France, happened to swallow a glafs of fuccory-water, by the direction of her phyficians; and was immediately feized with violent agonies, of which the expired. She was fuppofed to have fallen a facrifice to the jealousy of her husband, who feemed to take umbrage at the gaiety of her difpofition, and intimacy of friendship fubfifting between her and his brother Lewis XIV. She certainly believed herfelf poifoned; though she was reftrained by her confeffor from owning her fufpicion to Mr. Montague the English ambaffador in France, who was prefent at her death. She died with great refolution, declaring fhe felt no regret at leaving the world, but that of parting with her brother Charles, whom the loved with the most tender affection. When the news of this tragedy were brought to Whitehall by Sir Thomas Armstrong, who, at the fame time, communicated the fufpicion of her having been poisoned, the king melted in a flood of tears, and expreffed his indignation against the duke of Orleans, in the most bitter terms of reproach, But he foon checked his paffion, and faid, "Thomas, I beg you will not mention a fyllable of this matter." The court of France was in great confufion at this event. The report of the poifon was immediately circulated through the city of Paris, and Lewis was afraid it would de

66

ftroy