end and protect
your religion as established by law, and your rights and properties
(which was our design in calling this parliament) against fanatical
contrivances, murderers, and assassins, who having no fear of God,
more than honour for us, have brought you into such difficulties as
only the blessing of God upon the steady resolutions and actings of
our said dearest royal brother, and those employed by him (in
prosecution of the good and wholesome laws, by you heretofore
offered), could have saved you from the most horrid confusions and
inevitable ruin. Nothing has been left unattempted by those wild and
inhuman traitors for endeavouring to overturn your peace; and
therefore we have good reason to hope that nothing will be wanting in
you to secure yourselves and us from their outrages and violence in
time coming, and to take care that such conspirators meet with their
just deservings, so as others may thereby be deterred from courses so
little agreeable to religion, or their duty and allegiance to us.
These things we considered to be of so great importance to our royal,
as well as the universal, interest of that our kingdom, that we were
fully resolved, in person, to have proposed the needful remedies to
you. But things having so fallen out as render this impossible for
us, we have now thought fit to send our right trusty and right
entirely beloved cousin and councillor, William, Duke of Queensbury,
to be our commissioner amongst you, of whose abilities and
qualifications we have reason to be fully satisfied, and of whose
faithfulness to us, and zeal for our interest, we have had signal
proofs in the times of our greatest difficulties. Him we have fully
intrusted in all things relating to our service and your own
prosperity and happiness, and therefore you are to give him entire
trust and credit, as you now see we have done, from whose prudence and
your most dutiful affection to us, we have full confidence of your
entire compliance and assistance in all those matters, wherein he is
instructed as aforesaid. We do, therefore, not only recommend unto
you that such things be done as are necessary in this juncture for
your own peace, and the support of our royal interest, of which we had
so much experience when amongst you, that we cannot doubt of your full
and ample expressing the same on this occasion, by which the