ejected for scandal by letters under his hand, dated March 13, 1643. "Whereas I am informed, that Dr. Ed. Martin has been wrongfully put out of his mastership; these are to signify, to all whom it may concern, that I do, by virtue of an authority given to me, by the lords assembled in parliament, restore him to his said mastership, together with all lodgings, &c. appertaining to his place, from henceforth to have and enjoy all profits, rights, privileges, and advantages, belonging thereunto, unless cause be shewn to the contrary within ten days after the date hereof *. This gentleman was accordingly restored, and with him several others; as, In place of heads ejected, Mr. William Moses Mr. J. Worthington Mr. John Sadleir. All the surviving fellows unmarried were restored, as in the other university, by which means most of the Presbyterians were dispossessed, and the education of youth taken out of their hands +. To make way for the filling up these and other vacancies in the church, the honours of the universities were offered to almost any who would declare their aversion to presbytery, and hearty affection for episcopal government ‡. It was his majesty's pleasure, and the chancellor's, that there should be a creation in all faculties of such as had suffered for the royal cause, and had been ejected from the university by the visitors in 1648. Accordingly between seventy and eighty masters of arts were created this year; among whom, says the Oxford historian, some that had not been sufferers thrust themselves into the crowd for their money; others, yet few, were gentlemen, and created by the favour of the chancellor's letters only; eighteen were created bachelors of divinity, seventy doctors of divinity, twenty-two doctors of physic, besides doctors of laws. The creations in the university of Cambridge were yet more numerous. On Midsummer-day, a grace passed in the university in favour of some candidates for degrees §. August 2, the king sent letters to Cambridge for creating nine or ten persons doctors of divinity ; and on the 5th of September there were created, by virtue of his majesty's mandamus, no less than seventy-one doctors of divinity, nine doctors of civil law, five doctors of physic, and five bachelors of divinity. So that within the compass of little more than six months, the universities conferred one hundred and fifty doctors of divinity degrees, and as many more in the other faculties.-Some of these were deserving Kennet's Chron. p. 221, 222. + Fasti, p. 120. Ibid. p. 220, 251. persons, but the names of most of them are no where to be found but in the university-registers. Had the parliament-visitors in 1648, or Oliver Cromwell in his protectorship, made so free with the honours of the universities, they might justly have been supposed to countenance the illiterate, and prostitute the honour of the two great luminaries of this kingdom; but his majesty's promoting such numbers in so short a time by a royal mandamus, without inquiring into their qualifications, or insisting upon their performing any academical exercise, must be covered with a veil, because it was for the service of the church. In the midst of these promotions, the marquis of Hertford, chancellor of the university of Oxford, died, and was succeeded by sir Edward Hyde, now lord-chancellor of England, and created about this time earl of Clarendon. He was installed November 15, and continued in this office till he retired into France in the year 1667. These promotions made way for filling up the vacancies in cathedrals; July 5, Drs. Killigrew, Jones, Doughty, and Busby, were installed prebendaries of Westminster; and within a month or six weeks four more were added *. In the months of July and August, all the dignities in the cathedral of St. Paul's were filled up, being upwards of twenty. July 13, twelve divines were installed prebendaries in the cathedral of Canterbury; and before the end of the year, all the dignities in the cathedrals of Durham, Chester, Litchfield, Bristol, Hereford, Worcester, Gloucester, &c. were supplied with younger divines, who ran violently in the current of the times t.-There were only nine bishops alive at the king's restoration, viz. In order to make way for a new creation, some of the bishops abovementioned were translated to better sees; as, Dr. Juxon, bishop of London, to Canterbury, who was promoted more out of decency, says Bishop Burnet §, as being the eldest and most eminent of the surviving bishops; he never was a great divine, but was now superannuated. Dr. Accepted Frewen was translated to York, September 22, and confirmed October 4. He was the son of a Puritanical minister, and himself inclined that way, till some time after the beginning of the civil wars, when he became a great loyalist, and was promoted in the year 1644 to the see of Litchfield and • Kennet's Chron. p. 199. † Ibid. p. 204. Ibid. p. 252. § Vol. 1. p. 257. Coventry he made no figure in the learned world*, and died in the year 1664. Dr. Bryan Duppa was translated to Winchester, and confirmed October 4. He had been the king's tutor, though no way equal to the service. He was a meek humble man, and much beloved for his good temper, says Bishop Burnett, and would have been more esteemed if he had died before the Restoration, for he made not that use of the great wealth that flowed in upon him as was expected. To make way for the election of new bishops in a regular and canonical manner, it was first necessary to restore to every cathedral a dean and chapter; which being done, Dr. Gilbert Sheldon was advanced to the see of London; he was esteemed a learned man before the civil wars, but had since engaged so deep in politics, says bishop Burnet §, that scarce any prints of what he had been remained; he was a dexterous man in business, and treated all men in an obliging manner, but few depended much on his professions of friendship. He seemed not to have a deep sense of religion, if any at all; and spoke of it most commonly as an engine of government, and a matter of policy, for which reason the king looked upon him as a wise and honest clergyman. He was one of the most powerful and implacable adversaries of the Nonconformists. Dr. Henchman was consecrated bishop of Sarum, and Dr. George Morley bishop of Worcester, October 28. December 2, seven bishops were consecrated together in St. Peter's, Westminster, viz. He Dr. Grey observes, however, on the authority of Wood, that Dr. Frewen, though he published only a Latin oration, with some verses on the death of prince Henry, was esteemed a general scholar and a good orator. He was buried in his cathedral church, and a splendid monument was erected over his grave. bequeathed 10007. to Magdalen-college, Oxon, of which he had been president. Wood's Athenæ Oxon. vol. 2. p. 663, 664. Godwinus de Præsulibus, curâ Richardson, p. 714.-ED. + Page 258. Dr. Grey censures Mr. Neal for adopting this mistake of bishop Burnet, and says that Dr. Duppa's charities were extraordinary. He gave for redeeming of captives, building and endowing alms-houses, with other charitable deeds, in benevolences, repairs, &c., 16,000l. and was so good to his tenants as to abate 30,000l. in fines. Richardson says, that during the two years he lived after his translation to the see of Winchester, he expended great sums in public services; and was meditating more undertakings. He built an alms-house at Richmond, and endowed it by his will with 15007. He bequeathed 2007. to the alms-house at Pembridge in Herts; and, to omit private donations, he left to the church of Salisbury 500. ⚫ of Winchester 2007. of St. Paul's, London, 3007. and of Cirencester, 2007. Grey's Examination, vol. 3. p. 276; and Godwin de Præsulibus, p. 243.—ED. § Page 257. J On the 6th of January following four other bishops were consecrated, viz. Four or five sees were kept vacant for the leading divines among the Presbyterians, if they would conform; but they declined, as will be seen hereafter. In Scotland and Ireland things were not quite so ripe for execution; the Scots parliament disannulled the covenant, but episcopacy was not established in either of the kingdoms till next year. The English hierarchy being restored to its former preeminence, except the peerage of the bishops, it remained only to consider what was to be done with the malecontents; the Independents and Anabaptists petitioned the king only for a toleration; and the English Papists, depending upon their interest at court, offered his majesty 100,000l. before he left Breda, to take off the penal laws, upon which his majesty ordered the chancellor to insert the following clause in his declaration concerning ecclesiastical affairs-That others also be permitted to meet for religious worship, so be it they do it not to the disturbance of the peace; and that no justice of peace offer to disturb them. When this was debated in the king's presence after the Restoration, the bishops wisely held their peace; but Mr. Baxter, who was more zealous than prudent, declared plainly his dislike of a toleration of Papists and Socinians; which his majesty took so very ill, that he said, the Presbyterians were a set of men who were only for setting up themselves. These still flattered themselves with hopes of a comprehension, but the Independents and Baptists were in despair. And here was an end of those distracted times, which our historians have loaded with all the infamy and reproach that the wit of man could invent. The Puritan ministers have been decried as ignorant mechanics, canting preachers, enemies to learning, and no better than public robbers. The universities were said to be reduced to a mere Munster; and that if the Goths and Vandals, and even the Turks, had overrun the nation, they could not have done more to introduce barbarism, disloyalty, and ignorance; and yet in these times, and by the men who then filled the university-chairs, were educated the most learned divines and eloquent preachers of the last age, as the Stillingfleets, Tillotsons, Bulls, Barrows, Whitbys, and others, who retained a high veneration for their learned tutors after they were rejected and displaced. The religious part of the common people have been stigmatized with the character of hypocrites; their looks, their dress, and behaviour, have been represented in the most odious colours; and yet one may venture to challenge these declaimers + Compl. Hist. p. 258. Kennet's Chron. p. 142. to produce any period of time since the Reformation, wherein there was less open profaneness and impiety, and more of the spirit as well as appearance of religion. Perhaps there was too much rigour and preciseness in indifferent matters; but the lusts of men were laid under a visible restraint; and though the legal constitution was unhappily broken, and men were governed by false politics, yet better laws were never made against vice, or more vigorously executed. The dress and conversation of people were sober and virtuous, and their manner of living remarkably frugal: there was hardly a single bankruptcy to be heard of in a year; and in such a case the bankrupt had a mark of infamy set upon him that he could never wipe off. Drunkenness, fornication, profane swearing, and every kind of debauchery, were justly deemed infamous, and universally discountenanced. The clergy were laborious to excess in preaching and praying, and catechising youth, and visiting their parishes. The magistrates did their duty in suppressing all kind of games, stage-plays, and abuses in public-houses. There was not a play acted on any theatre in England for almost twenty years. The Lord's day was observed with unusual reverence: and there were a set of as learned and pious youths training up in the university as had ever been known. So that if such a reformation of manners had obtained under a legal administration, they would have deserved the character of the best of times. But when the legal constitution was restored, there returned with it a torrent of debauchery and wickedness. The times which followed the Restoration were the reverse of those that preceded it; for the laws which had been enacted against vice for the last twenty years being declared null, and the magistrates changed, men set no bounds to their licentiousness. A proclamation indeed was published against those loose and riotous cavaliers, whose loyalty consisted in drinking healths, and railing at those who would not revel with them; but in reality the king was at the head of these disorders; being devoted to his pleasures, and having given himself up to an avowed course of lewdness; his bishops and chaplains said, that he usually came from his mistresses' apartments to church, even on sacramentdays*. There were two play-houses erected in the neighbourhood of the court. Women-actresses were introduced into the theatres, which had not been known till that time; the most lewd and obscene plays were brought on the stage; and the more obscene, the king was the better pleased, who graced every new play with his royal presence. Nothing was to be seen at court but feasting, hard drinking, revelling, and amorous intrigues, which engendered the most enormous vices. From court the contagion spread like wildfire among the people, insomuch that men threw off the very profession of virtue and piety, under * Kennet's Chron. p. 167. |