that above 3000 innocent claimants remained to be 1665. tried, and were as severely punished, as if they had upon trial been found nocent. "But these," says Carte, were left to be ruined, merely for the want of that common justice of being heard, which is by all nations allowed to the worst of malefactors." That Ormond was conscious of the impossibility of going through all the claims in so short a time as was allowed by the act, is manifest from his own avowal to Clarendon. He boasted of his assiduous endeavours to secure a true protestant English interest. He desired the speaker of the house of commons to consider how the council and parliament were composed of his religious convictions to his temporal interests, and drowned reason, uprightness, and honour, in voluptuousness, hypocrisy, and ingratitude. * Car. Orm. Vol. III. Vide antea, p. 425. The publication of statesmen's letters, though at a remote period, is often productive of great historical justice to the parties, who suffer unjustly from the passion, prejudice, or corruption of men in office, who for the time disguise those personal defects under the impression of official authority. Ormond's own words are the fairest comment upon his conduct. He had written these sentiments to his confidant Claren. don, who unquestionably and most perfidiously sympathized with him in distressing and oppressing the Irish, But Clarendon had more humanity and more hypocrisy than Ormond; who, on the soJemn occasion of passing the Explanatory Act, told the parliament, "that it might seem liable to some objections; that whilst he declaimed against the proceedings of these men, yet he undertook to see them ratified;" he added with brutal raillery and insult, "To this I shall only for the present say, that unjust persons may sometimes do justice; and for instance, I will assure you, that Ireton at Limerick, caused some to be hanged that deserved it almost well as himself." 1665. whom the army consisted: who filled the benches and magistracies, and who were appointed to execute the Acts of Settlement. They were to a man promoters or abettors of the late usurpation*. Mischievous effects settlement, nation. General discontent was the natural effect of the acts of the act of of settlement and explanation. The despoiled cathoand expla- lics attempted no redress beyond complaint, that wretched privilege of sufferers. The deprived or disappointed Cromwellians acquiesced not so tamely. In the year 1662, they openly attempted to seize the Castle of Dublin: but their efforts were foiled by Ormond. In 1065, their conspiracy was much more extensive and alarming. Under pretence of the gross injustice done to the protestant army and adventurers by the acts of settlement and explanation, a general design was concerted in the three kingdoms to rise at one time, and to set up the long parliament, in which about forty members were engaged. The disbanded soldiers of Cromwell's army were summoned and engaged to serve under their old general Ludlow. The rising was to be on one night, and the bloody resolve was formed to spare none, who should refuse to join in the design of putting down the king, lords, and bishops, and setting up a sober and peaceful ministry. By the vigilance of Ormond† this design was seasonably detected. Several * Ormond's Letter to the Speaker, of 9th of March, 1668. II. Journ. Com. 299. "Ormond," says Carte, vol. II. "had spics and intelligencers in every part of Ireland, who served him so well, that there was not the least motion amongst them but it came to bis knowledge." catholics. puritan ministers were engaged in it; some of whom were committed to prison, and seven of the members were ignominiously expelled the House of Commons*. During all the reign of Charles II. the Irish catho- Persevering loyalty of lics remained determinately dutiful and loyal; not in- the Irish deed from any call of gratitude to that monarch, who had so profligately abandoned their interests, but from principle. Their enemies, however, were determined to implicate them right or wrong in some new conspiracy. In this age of plots, when so much innocent blood was spilt in England by means of the perjuries of the notorious Titus Oates and his flagitious associates patronized by Buckingham and Shaftesbury, two of the noted cabalt, the tranquillity of Ireland disappointed and thwarted their views. The utmost severity was intended to be exercised against the Irish catholics, and fresh bills were transmitted by the Irish council for introducing the Test Law, and other penal acts, against them. Here Ormond, who was then in England, for the first time interposed in favour of his country. He had sickened at the rigorous treatment of the Irish on account of their religion: and knowing that any additional severity was disagreeable to Charles, he assumed and boasted of his merit in having pre "Vast sums of money," says Lord Orrery, (Sta. vol. I. 225) "were levied for carrying on this confederacy. They had corrupted the most part of the soldiers, who were to put all that opposed them to the sword." The word cabal took its origin from the initials of the five men, who formed that administration, viz. Clifford, Ashley, Buckingham, Arlington, and Lauderdale. 1670. vented these lavs from passing. The cabal administra tion. He was a rival and a political enemy of Buckingham and Shaftes bury. Having nearly doubled the value of his patrimonial property from the releases of his debts, gifts of money from Cromwell and the parliament, and grants of fresh lands from the beginning of the troubles in 1641, he became more than ever sensible of the necessity of preventing any causes of disturbance, which might again put in hazard that princely fortune, which he had so improved and increased from the late troubles *. The plans, projects, and conduct of Charles and his cabal administration, perhaps never will be fully * Whilst the earl of Essex was 'o:d-lieutenant in 1674, he thus expressed himself upon the subject of Ormond's gains by the re bellions; "My Lord Duke of O mond has received above three liundred thousand pounds in this kingdom, besides all his great places and emoluments, and I am sure the losses of his private estates have not been equal to those have suffered in the preceding civil war,) and yet he is so happy as no exception is taken to it." (St. Let. p. 21.5 A list of the lands in the several counties of Galway, Kildare, Meath, Dublin, Wa erford, Catherlogh. Kilkenny, and Tipperary, with the names of the old proprietors, amounting to 54, of whom 14 were of his own family, of the name of Butler, is to be seen in the App. to Car. Orm. vol. II. P. 132 The like charge was made against Lord Clarendon by Sir Charles Wogan, a nephew of the Duke of Tyrconnel, in a letter written in 1723 to Dean Swift. Swift's Works, vol. XII. p 315. Lond, ed 1808. Though thousands of loyal families had been undone by the rebellion, C'arendon, by imposing on his master's indolence and facility, ordered matters so, that he was the only considerable gainer by the restoration, and made his fortune by perpetuating the distress and u accountable hard fate of the Cavaliers after the return of their prince." and fairly disclosed. It appears upon the whole, that 1679. there was in agitation a very extensive design concerted with the French monarch for altering the constitutional system of the British government. The prompt and undoubted fidelity of the Irish catholics was, without their knowing it, to have been rendered auxiliary to the execution of the main plan. It was most probably defeated by the discordant principles of the members of the cabal amongst themselves, no' less than by the excessive insincerity of the sovereign both to his ministers and to the public. Ormon l's wards his men. Ormond was not a fit tool for the purposes of the Change in cabal and no other motive could perhaps have insti- conduct togated him to advocate the cause of his catholic coun- co intrytrymen, but opposition to his political rivals. Now for the first time, he could discover the injustice and impolicy of forcing conscience by sanguinary laws in matters of religion *. He reprobated and resisted the attempts of others to throw fresh severity upon the catholics, whom he had till then, with unrelenting asperity, maltreated, persecuted, and oppressed. cmaged Cabal. During the remainder of the reign of Charles II. Plots enmany deep and malicious attempts were set on foot to by the fix the Irish with fresh plots and insurrections. Plots are the most wicked engines of the worst of ministers. This was the reign of plotst, and plotters were encou * See his Letter upon this subject to his son the Ear1 of Arran, which contains very liberal sentiments, which Ormond had uniformly acted against up to that time. Car Orm. vol. 535, Oates had a pension of 12001. and apartments at Whitehall. |