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duke of Buckingham, was born to chear him -on his return from that unlucky voyage.

For thefe fweet pledges, and no lefs for the unquestionable virtues of her perfon and mind, he loved her dearly, and well expreffed his love in an act and time of no fimulation towards his end, bequeathing her all his manfion-houses during her natural life, and a power to difpofe of his whole personal estate, together with a fourth part of his lands in jointure; he left his elder brother of the fame womb a vifcount, and his younger brother an earl; Sir Edward Villiers, his halfbrother on the father's fide, he either preferred or removed (call it how you will) from his ftep-mother's eye to the prefidentthip; where he lived in fingular eftimation for his justice and hospitality; and died with as much grief of the whole province, as ever any governor did (before his religious lady of fweet and noble difpofition) adding much to his honour. The eldest of the brethren, and heir of the name, was made a baronet, but abstained from court, enjoying perhaps the greater greatnefs of felf-fruition.

He left his mother a countefs by patent in her own perfon, which was a new leading example, grown before somewhat rare, fince the days of queen Mary. His fifter of Denbigh (that right character of a good lady) he most humbly recommended to the queen; who after a discharge of fome French in her court G 5

that

that were to return, took her into three feveral places of honour and truft.

In short, not to infift on every particular branch of thofe private preferments, he left all his female kindred, of the entire or half blood, defcending of the name of Villiers or Beaumont, within any near degree, either matched with peers of the realm actually, or hopefully with earls fons and heirs; or at leaft with knights, or doctors of divinity, and of plentiful condition: he did not much ftrengthen his own fubfiftence in court, but flood there on his own feet, for the truth is, the most of his allies rather leaned upon him, than fhoared him up. His familiar fervants, either about his perfon in ordinary attendance, or about his affairs of ftate, as his fecretaries; or of office, as his fteward; or of law, as that worthy knight whom he long ufed to follicit his caufes; he left all, both in good fortune, and, which is more, in good fame.

· THE

THE LIFE OF

THOMAS WENTWORTH.

Τ

HOMAS WENTWORTH was the fon of Sir William Wentworth, baronet, and Anne, daughter and heir to Sir Robert Atkins of Stowell, in the county of Gloucester, knight; and was born on the thirteenth of April 1593, feven minutes after three in the afternoon: the famous Lilly, who calculated his nativity, having laid down astrological reafons for his violent death.

He was a perfon of most extraordinary accomplishments, which raised him to very fig. nal honours and preferments. He at firft diftinguifhed himself amongst the king's oppofers; for which reafon he was, in the year 1625, made fheriff of Yorkshire, to prevent his being chofen member of parliament. In 1626, he was put in confinement for refufing. to contribute to the loan, then exacted by Charles I. In the parliament, in 1627, he fignalized himself as a patriot, upon occafion of the inquiry made into the grievances of the nation by the commons. The abufes which they took into confideration, were billetting of foldiers, loans by benevolence and privy-feals,. imprisonment of gentlemen refufing to lend,, G 6 denial

denial of release upon a habeas corpus; and, amongst many fpeeches made upon this occafion, none were taken more notice of than that made by Sir Thomas Wentworth against the government. But he obferved that those things were not to be imputed to the king, but the minifters, who had formed the defign of tretching the prerogative beyond its due bounds." They have brought the crown into greater want than ever," faid he, " by anticipating the revenues: and can the fhepherd be thus fmitten, and the sheep not scattered? They have introduced a privy-council, ravishing at once the fpheres of all ancient government, imprisoning us without either bail or bond. They have taken from us, what? What fhall I fay? Indeed, what have they left us? All means of fupplying the king, and ingratiating ourselves with him, taking up the root of all property."

As he was one of the greatest geniuses then in England, the king could not but be fenfible that his parts and capacity might be highly ferviceable to him if he could gain him to his fide. He endeavoured it therefore, after, or perhaps before, the diffolution of the parliament, and fucceeded fo well, that Wentworth, before it was ended, became one of the greatest fticklers for the royal authority, or rather for the defpotic power the king had a mind to introduce.

Upon this account the king thought him the fittest perfon to be entrusted with the prefi

dentship

dentship of the council in the north. He was at the fame time created baron Wentworth, of Wentworth-wood-house; and, on the tenth of December following, viscount Wentworth of the fame place, and was made one of the privy council; in all which trufts he acquitted himself much to the fatisfaction of his prince, whofe revenue he greatly improved. His next ftep of preferment was to be lord-deputy of Ireland, where he preferred learned and pious men who were attached to epifcopacy. He moreover raifed eight regiments for the king's fervice, each confifting of one thoufand men; but before he had difpofed of thefe forces into neceffary quarters, he was recalled to England, and made lieutenant-general to the earl of Northumberland, who commanded the arwhich was going to be employed against the Scots, who had then invaded the king

my

dom.

On the twelfth of January, 15 Charles I he was created baron of Raby, and earl of Strafford; and was alfo made knight of the garter, on the twelfth of September 1640; but things not fucceeding well in Ireland under Sir Chriftoper Wandesford, master of the rolls there, whom he had left deputy in his room; and the parliament of England by this time entering into fecret engagements with the Scots, the earl of Strafford's ruin was brought about not long after. He had fo entirely devoted himself to the king, that, in his two great offices of prefident of the court of York, and

lord

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