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THE

HARLEIAN MISCELLANY.

A TRUE COPY

OF THE

INSTRUMENT OF ASSOCIATION,

THAT THE

PROTESTANTS OF ENGLAND ENTERED INTO

In the Twenty-seventh Year of Queen Elisabeth,

AGAINST A

POPISH CONSPIRACY;

With an Act made upon the same for Security of the Queen's most Royal Person. Printed for John Everingham, and sold by E. Whitlocke, near Stationers'-hall. 1695. Quarto, containing eight pages.

FORASMUCH as Almighty God hath ordained kings, queens, and

princes, to have dominion and rule over all their subjects, and to preserve them in the possession and observation of the true Christiau religion, according to his holy word and commandment: and, in like sort, that all subjects should love, fear, and obey their sovereign princes, being kings or queens, to the utmost of their power; at all times, to withstand, pursue, and suppress, all manner of persons, that shall by any means intend and attempt any thing dangerous or hurtful to the honour, states, or persons of their sovereigns.

Therefore, we whose names are or shall be subscribed to this writing, being natural-born subjects of this realm of England, and having so gracious a lady our Sovereign Elisabeth, by the ordinance of God, our most rightful Queen, reigning over us these many years with great felicity, to our inestimable comfort: and finding lately by divers depositions, confessions, and sundry advertisements, out of foreign parts, from credible persons, well known to her Majesty's council, and to divers others; that, for the furtherance and advancement of some pre

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tended title to the crown, it hath been manifested, that the life of our gracious sovereign lady, Queen Elisabeth, hath been most dangerously exposed to the peril of her person, if Almighty God, her perpetual defender, of his mercy, had not revealed and withstood the same: by whose life we, and all other her Majesty's true and loyal subjects, do enjoy air inestimable benefit of peace in this land; do, for the reasons and causes before alledged, not only acknowledged ourselves most justly bound with our lives and goods for her defence, in her safety, to prosecute, suppress, and withstand, all such pretenders, and all other her enemies, of what nation, condition, and degree whatsoever they shall be, or by what council or title they shall pretend to be her enemies, or to attempt any harm upon her person; but do further think it our bounden duties, for the great benefit of peace and wealth, and godly government, we have more plentifully received these many years, under her Majesty's government, than any of our fore-fathers have done in any longer time of any other progenitors, kings of this realm:

Do declare, and by this writing make manifest, our bounden duties to our said Sovereign Lady for her safety: and, to that end, we, and every of us, first calling to witness the name of Almighty God, do voluntarily and most willingly bind ourselves, every one of us to the other, jointly and severally, in the band of one firm and loyal society; and do hereby vow and promise by the Majesty of Almighty God, that with our whole powers, bodies, lives, and goods, and with our children and servants, we, and every of us, will faithfully serve and humbly obey our said Sovereign Lady Queen Elisabeth, against all states, dignities, and earthly powers whatsoever; and will, as well with our joint and particular forces, during our lives, withstand, offend, and pursue, as well by force of arms, as by all other means of revenge, all manner of persons, of what state soever they shall be, and their abettors, that shall attempt any act, council, or consent, to any thing that shall tend to the harm of her Majesty's royal person, and will never desist from all manner of forcible pursuit against such persons, to the utter extermination of them, their counsellors, aiders, and abettors.

And if any such wicked attempt against her most royal person shall be taken in hand and procured, whereby any that have, may, or shall pretend title to come to this crown, by the untimely death of her Majesty, so wickedly procured (which God for his mercy sake forbid) may be avenged: we do not only bind ourselves, both jointly and severally, never to allow, accept, or favour any such pretended successor, by whom, or for whom, any such detestable act shall be attempted or committed, as unworthy of all government in any Christian realm or civil state:

But do also further vow and protest, as we are most bound, and that in the presence of the eternal and everlasting God, to prosecute such person and persons to death with our joint and practical forces, and to ask the utmost revenge upon them, that by any means we or any of us can devise or do, or cause to be devised and done, for their utter overthrow and extirpation.

And, to the better corroboration of this our royal bond and association, we do also testify by this writing, that we do confirm the contents

hereof by our oaths corporally taken upon the Holy Evangelists, with this express condition: that no one of us shall for any respect of persons or causes, or for fear or reward, separate ourselves from this association, or fail in the prosecution thereof, during our lives, upon pain of being by the rest of us prosecuted, and suppressed as perjured persons, and publick enemies to God, our Queen, and our native country. To which punishments and pains we do voluntarily submit ourselves, and every of us, without benefit of any colour and pretence:

In witness of all which promises to be inviolably kept, we do to this writing put our hands and seals; and shall be most ready to accept and admit any others, hereafter, to this society and association.

An Act for Provision to be made for the Surety of the Queen's Majesty's most Royal Person, and the Continuance of the Realm in Peace; enacted in the twenty-seventh Year of the Reign of Queen Elisabeth.

FORASMUCH as the good, felicity, and comfort of the whole estate of this realm consisteth, only next under God, in the surety and preservation of the Queen's most excellent Majesty and for that it hath manifestly appeared, that sundry wicked plots and means have of late been devised and laid, as well in foreign parts beyond the seas, as also within this realm, to the great endangering of her Highness's most royal person, and to the utter ruin of the whole common-wealth, if by God's merciful providence the same had not been revealed: therefore for preventing of such great perils, as might hereafter otherwise grow, by the like detestable and devilish practices, at the humble suit and carnest petition and desire of the lords spiritual and temporal, and the commons in this present parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same parliament; be it enacted and ordained, if, at any time after the end of this present session of parliament, any open invasion or rebellion shall be had or made into or within any of her Majesty's realms ad dominions, or any act attempted, tending to the hurt of her Majesty's most royal person, by or for any person that shall or may pretend any title to the crown of this realm after her Majesty's decease: or if any thing shall be compassed or imagined, tending to the hurt of her Majesty's royal person, by any person, or with the privity of any person, that shall or may pretend title to the crown of this realm: that then, by her Majesty's commission under her great seal, the lords and others of her highness's privy council, and such other lords of parliament, to be named by her Majesty, as with the said privy council shall make up the number of twenty-four at the least, having with them for their assistance in that behalf such of the judges of the courts of record at Westminster, as her Highness shall for that purpose assign and appoint, or the more part of the same council, lords and judges, shall by virtue of this act have authority to examine all and every the offences aforesaid, and all circumstances thereof, and thereupon to give sentence or judgement as, upon good proof, the matter shall appear unto them: and that, after such sentence or judgment given, and de

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The Catholick Cause; or, the horrid practice of murdering Kings justified
and commended by the Pope, in a speech to his cardinals, upon the bar-
barous assassination of Henry the Third of France, who was stabbed
by Jaques Clement, a Dominican Friar. The true copy of which speech,
both in Latin, and also faithfully rendered into English, you have in the
following pages. London, printed for Walter Kettilby, at the Bishop's
Head, in St. Paul's Churchyard, 1678. 4to, containing twenty-four pages 130
The whole and true Discourse of the Enterprises and secrete Conspiracies,
that have been made against the person of Henry de Valois, most Christian
King of Fraunce and Poland: wherupon followed his death, by the hand
of a young Jacobin Frier, the first day of August, 1589; whereby the
enemies of the crown thought to haue reduced and brought all Fraunce to
their will and deuotion. Together with the assembly that the King, be-
fore his death, made of the princes of the blood, lordes, and gentlemen,
that were in his armie, with the heads of the straungers, to whom he de-
clared his last will. Englished out of the French copie printed at Caan,
in Normandie. Imprinted by Thomas Purfoote, and are to bee soulde at
his shoppe, without New-gate, ouer against S. Sepulcher's Church, 1589.
In black letter, svo. containing twelve pages

A Discourse concerning the Spanish Fleet invading England in the year 1588,
and overthrown by her Majesty's navy, under the conduct of the Right
Hon. the Lord Charles Howard, High Admiral of England; written in
Italian, by Petruccio Ubaldine, citizen of Florence, 1590, 4to, containing
thirty-two pages

The English Romayne Life: discouering the Liues of the Englishmen at
Rome; the orders of the English seminarie; the dissention between the
Englishmen and the Welchmen; the banishing of the Englishmen out of
Rome;
the Pope's sending for them agame; a reporte of many of the
paltrie reliques in Rome; theyr vautes under the ground; their holy pilgri-
mages; and a number of other matters, woorthie to be read and regarded
of euery one. There vnto is added, the cruell tiranny vsed on an English-
man at Rome; his Christian suffering, and notable martirdome, for the
gospel of Jesus Christ, in anno 1581. Written by A. M. sometime the
Pope's scholler in the seminarie among them.

Honos alit artes.

Seene and allowed: imprinted at London by Iohn Charlwoode, for Nicholas Ling, dwelling in Paule's Church-yarde, anno 1590. In black letter. Quarto, containing seventy-two pages Declaration of great Troubles pretended against the Realme, by a number of Seminarie Priests and Iesuits, sent and very secretly dispersed in the same, to worke great treasous vnder a false pretence of religion. With a provision very necessarie for Remedie thereof. Published by this her Maiesties proclamation. Imprinted at London, by the deputies of Christopher Barker, printer to the Queenes most excellent Maiestie, MDXCI, 4to, containing fourteen pages

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A Qvip for an vpstart Courtier: or, a quaint Dispute between Veluet-breeches
and Cloth-breeches. Wherein is plainely set downe the disorders in all
estates and trades. London: imprinted by John Wolfe, and are to bee
sold at his shop, at Poules Chaine, 1592. In black letter, quarto, contain-
ing forty-eight pages
Some Observations on the Trial of Spencer Cowper, J. Marson, E. Stevens,
and W. Rogers, that were tried at Hertford, about the murder of Sarah
Stout, together with other things relating thereunto. Quarto, containing
twenty pages

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A Speech made by Queen Elisabeth (of famous memory) in Parliament, anno 1593; and in the thirty-fifth year of her reign, concerning the Spanish Invasion, folio, one page

142

148

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