The secret history of White-Hall, from the restoration of Charles II down to the abdication of the late K. James writ at the request of a noble lord, and conveyed to him in letters, by ̲̲̲late secretary-interpreter to the Marquess of Louvois, who by that means had the perusal of all the private minutes between England and France for many years : the whole consisting of secret memoirs, which have hitherto lain conceal'd, as not being discoverable by any other hand / publish'd from the original papers, by D. Jones, gent.

LETTER XL. (Book 40)

Of General Instructions given to the French Agents in England, to carry on the French Designs upon the Duke of York's Second Mar∣riage.

My Lord,

THo' the French Agents in England have had address enough to get the Match with the Duke effected according to their Desires; yet foreseeing that even this point could not elude the Peace be∣tween England and Holland, they endea∣voured to make the best advantage they could, by making a Counterpoise of it to the said Peace, and to a War we might afterward intend against them; as having thereby linked the Duke faster to them than ever, and laid a sure foundation for such Distractions, both in Church and State, as would give them large oppor∣tunity, if not to compass all the De∣signs they had upon us, yet at least to secure themselves from any great incon∣veniency from us; They were not igno∣rant

what good effects several previous Intreagues of theirs had to our dis∣advantage; they saw plainly the second Dutch War had much more impoverished us than the First; and the ill conduct of it much more sunk the King's Reputation, besides the Divisions in the Fleet, and the Jealousies and Factions in the Parliament, and among the People, about the Duke's Religion, produced him great disgusts e∣very day; That the shutting up of the Exchequer had ruined his Credit; and his Majesty in proclaiming Liberty of Con∣science by Virtue of his own Preroga∣tive, and his levity afterward in flinch∣ing from it so unexpectedly, had so dis∣obliged and wounded with Jealousie the Church of England, and all Patriots in Parliament tender of their Priviledges, who held the Peoples Purse-strings on the one side, and so incensed with a fresh Animosity the baffled Dissenters on the other; that being over-whelmed with Debts, opposed by dangerous and power∣ful Factions, and yet Bankrupt both of Money and Credit too; they fairly con∣cluded he could have no other recourse but to them; which odious remedy, they supposed, would but more and more heighten the mutual Jealousies, and widen the Breaches, till they grew large enough for them to enter by at long-run upon

some part of the English Monarchy, so famous hitherto for checking theirs above any other in Europe, since the Decadency of the Western Empire, from rising to the like exorbitant greatness: And now this more than Magical Dose, these Quacks in Po∣licy had given us, began to work every day more and more violently, and with Symptoms more visible, till almost mortal Convulsions followed; The ablest States∣man we had at the Helm, the Earl of Shaftsbury, was discarded for his vehe∣mency in opposing the said so pernicious Match, (of which I may give your Lord∣ship an account another time) and others of the same Sentiments discountenanced; which by the French Agency, begat the Prorogation of the Parliament, dangerous Factions and pernicious Fractions even among the most zealous Assertors of Mo∣narchy, and best affected Friends to the Royal Family; so that now imagining this Master-experiment of theirs had made way for them to execute what Projects they pleased on our Court and People for the future, to lose no advan∣tage for want of Managers, they began to put their Designs in form, which be∣fore lay somewhat perplext and out of order; to which end they sent over their Instructions to some Domestick A∣gents, whom they had chosen and placed

on purpose about the New Dutchess, and to their other assisting Ministers and E∣missaries, as they thought in that dis∣position of both Head 〈◊〉〈◊〉 Body, of both Princes and People 〈…〉〈…〉 could not but succeed, and produce in due time, the full effects by their Mischief-Brood∣ing, and Ambitious Consultations: And their Instructions in substance were as follows.

They were now to make actual use of the several Parties they had, as I have hinted already, but as yet prepa∣red to make Tools of; and to this purpose they were to influence them part∣ly by French Jesuited Instruments, part∣ly by French Hugonot Agents, and of our own Nation, their Instruments were to be.

I. Atheists and loose principled Men, who yet could act rarely well the Zea∣lots for that Religion or Cause which they were to Espouse.

II. Such Persons as they found to be conceited of their Parts, and of Merce∣nary Spirits.

III. Hotspurs for Prerogative, and the Church of England.

IV. The fiercest Spirits of the other Factions.

V. Some Bigots of the Roman Com∣munion that were English, and particu∣larly those that had been bred up, or had travelled in their Dominions, and were well Jesuited.

VI. The leading Irish Papists in parti∣cular.

VII. Men, Ambitious of Greatness, or Idolizers of Money, and that chiefly in Scotland.

VIII. Men disgustful or disabliged.

IX. Men of desperate Fortunes and lost Reputations.

Of all these they were with great confidence to imploy and highly to ob∣lige and flatter some, while they were for their turn, and disoblige others, and then when they had done with them, vice versa, to disoblige and cast off those whom they had obliged and seemed to

have trusted; and court, oblige, and re∣ceive others who were before disoblig'd, knowing how to work their Ends by those they disobliged as well as by those obliged; But yet none of these, except some of the first sort, were to know the whole of their Designs, nor be infor∣med of any thing that looked black or villanous, or seemed too directly to aim at the detriment or destruction of their Country or Religion, till such time as they had a long trial of their Tem∣pers, and found them fit for such At∣tempts, or that they had got them first into such a Correspondence, which, tho' in the ultimate intention was not mali∣cious, but only an effect of zeal to their several Parties, yet would, if discovered, be construed reasonable, and so keep them under an hank to them; and then they were to put them on such Barba∣rities and Villanies as they thought ne∣cessary for their purpose; which if they then refused, their Business was to aban∣don them, and to imploy such Instru∣ments as were as Bankrupt of Religion and Conscience as of Fortune, and would be desperately determined to venture at any thing for Money; and by these they were to be pretended to be detected as Traytors, and prosecuted as guilty of the Designs which they have been only

tempted to, and so were to serve all People whom they once got within their Toil, as occasions and their Interests did require. But I see I have already past over the just bounds of a Letter, and shall therefore only subscribe my self,

My Lord,

Your Lordship's most devoted Servant

Paris, May 5. 1681. N. S.