was first heard in this island, Monk returned
to England, partly desirous of promotion in his native country, partly
disgusted with some ill usage from the states, of which he found reason
to complain. Upon the Scottish pacification, he was employed by the earl
of Leicester against the Irish rebels; and having obtained a regiment,
was soon taken notice of for his military skill, and for his calm and
deliberate valor. Without ostentation, expense, or caresses, merely by
his humane and equal temper, he gained the good will of the soldiery;
who, with a mixture of familiarity and affection, usually called
him "honest George Monk," an honorable appellation, which they still
continued to him even during his greatest elevation. He was remarkable
for his moderation in party; and while all around him were inflamed
into rage against the opposite faction, he fell under suspicion from the
candor and tranquillity of his behavior. When the Irish army was called
over into England, surmises of this kind had been so far credited, that
he had even been suspended from his command, and ordered to Oxford, that
he might answer the charge laid against him. His established character
for truth and sincerity here stood him in great stead; and upon his
earnest protestations and declarations, he was soon restored to his
regiment, which he joined at the siege of Nantwich. The day after his
arrival, Fairfax attacked and defeated the royalists commanded by Biron,
and took Colonel Monk prisoner. He was sent to the Tower, where he
endured, above two years, all the rigors of poverty and confinement. The
king, however, was so mindful as to send him, notwithstanding his own
difficulties, a present of one hundred guineas; but it was not till
after the royalists were totally subdued that he recovered his liberty.
Monk, however distressed, had always refused the most inviting offers
from the parliament: but Cromwell, sensible of his merit, having
solicited him to engage in the wars against the Irish, who were
considered as rebels both by king and parliament, he was not unwilling
to repair his broken fortunes by accepting a command which, he flattered
himself, was reconcilable to the strictest principles of honor. Having
once engaged with the parliament, he was obliged to obey orders; and
found himself necessitated to fight both against the marquis of Ormond
in Ireland, and against the king himself in Scotland. Upon the reduction
of the latter kingdom, Monk was