ed to follow their lord, the head of that family, upon any occafion of hofting, into the field; and upon failure thereof the lands were forfeited to their lord." b

From his grace's early application for these grants, it is evident enough what use he intended to make of them; as alfo what were the true motives of his backwardness to conclude the ceffation in 1643; and of his frequent difobedience to his majesty's urgent commands to haften the peace of 1646; of his carrying on, at the fame time, a private correfpondence and treaty with the Scotch covenanters in Ulfter, in oppofition to that peace; and of his hindering the Irish to be included in the general act of indemnity, after the restoration, or to be indulged with the neceffary enlargement of time, for proving their innocence in the court of claims. From all this, I fay, it is manifest that his grace forefaw, that a different conduct in any

of

b"Moft of the Marquis of Ormond's vaffals and tenants, far from performing this condition of their tenure, had engaged in the rebellion and fought against him in the field. And king Charles I. to prevent any interfering of the claim of the crown and the rights of the lord, and any litigation of the Marquis of Ormond's right to thofe forfeited lands, had, in Auguft 1642, conveyed to him all the right, title and interest which the crown had, or might have, in any of those lands. This was now confirmed by king Charles II. &c." Cart. Orm. vol. ii.

fol. 218.

The fame writer, however, tells us, "that his grace had, in the time of the troubles, to raise money for the supply of the army and service of the crown, entered into many judgments, ftatutes, recognizances, mortgages, and other fecurities to Roman catholics, who had forfeited the fame to his majesty. And that all these were firft, by a fpecial grant, and afterwards by the act of fettlement, given to his grace as fully as the crown enjoyed the fame; but that his grace fent directions to pay the perfons who had advanced him the money on thefe fecurities, their full demand in fome cafes, and a just and equal compofition in others." Id. ib. fol. 309. But is it reasonable to believe, that thofe Roman catholics who had freely lent their money to his grace, with a view of enabling him to fubdue the rebels, would afterwards rafhly incur a forfeiture of it by promoting or abetting the rebellion?

с

1642. See Cart. Orm. vol. iii.

of these conjunctures, would have precluded him from fome part of that vaft emolument, which he expected from these grants, and which he knew, was in the end to be proportioned to the extent, duration, and heinoufnefs of the infurrection.

d

"And thus we find his noble friend, the Earl of Anglefey, acknowledging in print, in 1681, "that it was then apparent, that his grace and his family, by the forfeiture and punishment of the Irish, were the greatest gainers of the kingdom, and had added to their inheritance vaft fcopes of land, and a revenue three times greater than what his paternal eftate was

e

before

2 Let. to the Earl of Castlehaven. Caftlehav. Mem. Ift ed.

d When the Duke of Buckingham was endeavouring to fupplant Ormond in the king's favour, and made overtures to the Earl of Anglesey to join him for that purpose, the "earl rejected these overtures with indignation, and gave Ormond notice of the defigns formed against him." Lel. Hift. of Irel. vol. iii. P.453. See Cart. Orm. vol. ii. fol. 482.

A knowing contemporary writer afferts, "that the annual rents of Ormond's eftate before the war, were but seven thoufand pounds sterling (his antient estate being then encumbered with annuities and leafes, which otherwife was worth forty thousand pounds fterling per annum), and at present (1674) it is close upon eighty thoufand. Now the first part of his new great revenues, is the king's grant of all thofe lands of his own eftate which were leafed or mortgaged; the reft were grants of other men's estates, and other gifts of his majesty." His gifts and grants are thought to amount to 630,000l. Unkind Deferter, p. 161-2. See Queries. ib. Appen. p. 168.

The pamphlet containing thefe queries, was published in England foon after the restoration, but feems not to have been anfwered by any of the duke's friends either then or for fome years after. "If his grace (fays a contemporary author in 1676) or any one for him, can answer the faid queries, why is he or they fo long filent? they render his integrity fufpected, they wound his fame and honour. Certainly, if there were any way to answer them, and prove them falfe, Father Walfh would, long before now, have spoken it loudly to the world." Unkind Defert. &c. p. 172.

Nor was this filence of the Duke of Ormond and his friends the effect of contempt or disregard of the supposed calumny.

The

before the rebellion; and that most of his increase was out of their eftates who adhered to the peaces of 1646 and 1648, or ferved under his majefty's enfigns abroad." From whence his lordfhip juftly concluded, that his grace could not have been very fincere, in making either of thefe peaces with the Irish; but that, whatever moved him thereto, whether compaflion, natural, affection, or any thing else, he was in judgment and confcience againft them; and fo," adds he, "he has fince appeared, and hath advantage by their laying afide." f

It is, therefore, no wonder that his grace's noble brother-in-law, Lord Mufkerry, when on his deathbed, declared to himself, " that the heavieft fear that poffeffed his foul, then going into eternity, was for his having confided fo much in his grace, who had deceived them all, and ruined his poor country and countrymen."

993

3 Unkind Deferter, &c.

CHA P.

The printer of the pamphlet was profecuted and imprisoned, and two hundred copies feized in his houfe; and although his poverty and charge of children were very great, yet he would never confefs who fet him to work; fuch a confeffion would have procured him his liberty, but he seemed to flight it, being maintained very well in prifon, where he lay for a long time. very contentedly, without making any application, or ufing any means to be bailed or difcharged." Carte's Orm. vol. ii. fol. 385.

f My Lord Duke of Ormond," fays the Earl of Effex, lord lieutenant of Ireland in 1674-5, "has received above 300,000l. in this kingdom, befides all his great places and employments; and I am fure the loffes in his private eftate have not been equal to those I have fuffered (in the preceding civil war), and yet he is so happy as no exception is taken to it." State Lett p. 213-14.

The Duke of Ormond befriends the Irish.

IN the year 1679," when fo much innocent blood

was fhed in England, by means of the perjuries of Titus Oates, and his flagitious affociates, encouraged. and patronised by the Earl of Shaftsbury," the peace and quietnefs of Ireland was a great difappoint

⚫ Cart. Orm. vol. ii. fol. 494.

ment

a Such was the people's abhorrence of popery at this time in England, and fo light and excufable in their opinion did a person's being a protestant, render any other vice that a perfon might be guilty of," that when Nell Gwin (Charles II.'s mistress) was infulted in her coach at Oxford by the mob, who mistook her for the Duchefs of Portsmouth (another miftrefs of that king's, but a papist), fhe looked out of the window, and faid with her ufual good humour, Pray good people be civil, I am the proteftant w---e. And this laconic fpeech drew upon her the bleffings of the populace, who fuffered her to proceed without further moleftation." Graing. Biograph. Hift. vol. iv. p. 189. note.

"The notorious Titus Oates (fays the Rev. Mr. Grainger) was soon after the acceffion of (king) James, convicted of perjury, upon the evidence of fixty reputable witneffes, of whom nine were proteftants. He was fentenced to pay a fine of two thousand marks, to be ftripped of his canonical habit, to be whipt twice in three days by the common hangman, and to ftand in the pilory at Weftminfter-hall gate, and at the Royal Exchange; he was moreover to be pillored five times every year, and to be imprisoned during life. The hangman performed his office with uncommon rigour. The best thing James ever did was punishing Oates for his perjury; and the greatest thing Oates ever did, was fupporting himself under the most afflictive part of his punishment with the resolution and conftancy of a martyr. A penfion of four hundred pounds a year was conferred upon this mifcreant by king William. He. was, for a clergyman, remarkably illiterate; it is well known that he was the son of an anabaptift; and he probably died in the communion in which he had been educated." Biographic." Hift. of Eng. vol. iv. p. 348.

ment to that earl and his party; and they took all poffible methods to provoke and exafperate the people of that kingdom, already too much difcontented. For that end, they procured orders from the council of Ireland, to tranfmit severe bills against the Irish catholics in matter of religion, in hopes to drive them into a new rebellion. It was now propofed to introduce the test act, and all the English penal-laws, into Ireland; and that a proclamation fhould be forthwith iffued for encouraging all perfons, that could make any further difcoveries of the horrid popifh plot, to come in and declare the fame."

The

"Titus Oates (fays the fame Biographer) was restrained by no principle, human or divine, and like Judas would have done any thing for thirty fhillings; he was one of the most accomplished villains that we read of in hiftory; he had been chaplain on board the fleet, whence he was difmiffed for an unnatural crime, and was known to be guilty of perjury before he fet up the trade of witneffing; he was fuccefsful in it beyond the most fanguine expectation: he was lodged at Whitehall, and had a penfion affigned him of 1200l. a year. The era of Oates's plot was alfo the grand æra of whig and tory." Id. ib. p. 201-2.

Some have concluded from the following paffage in D'Avaux, that the Prince of Orange had a confiderable fhare in framing this moft iniquitous plot: "I prefume to declare," fays that count," that I have omitted nothing to difcover the combinations that the Prince of Orange has engaged in, with the most abandoned of the English. On the 21ft of September, 1679, I fent intelligence that Oates, who has fince that time been fo notorious; Freeman, of whom I have already spoken; and Du Moulin, a man of intrigue and an execrable villain; arrived together in Holland fome years paft, and that the Prince of Orange had been in grand conferences with them." D'Avaux, tom. I. p. 32. See MPherfon's Hift. of Great Britain, vol. i. P. 343. Certain it is, that after that prince became king of England, he attempted to have reversed Oates's fentence; but the commons refufed to gratify him in fo impious an act. That villain, however, was pardoned and penfioned by his majesty, as above-mentioned.

On the first report of the popish plot," Peter Talbot, Archbishop of Dublin, in a dangerous fit of the ftone, was imprisoned in the cattle. Orders were iffued, that all officers should repair to their respective garrifons; that popifh ecclefiaf