Britanniæ speculum, or, A short view of the ancient and modern state of Great Britain, and the adjacent isles, and of all other the dominions and territories, now in the actual possession of His present Sacred Majesty King Charles II the first part, treating of Britain in general.

THE PREFACE.

THis little Treatise is but the first Part of an intended lar∣ger Work, the Design where∣of (as appears in the Title-Page) is to exhibit, as in a Mirror, a view of the ancient and mo∣dern State not only of this our Island of GREAT BRITAIN, but also of Ire∣land, and all other His MAJESTIES Dominions and Territories: not by writing a continued Chronicle or History of all the Kings or Princes, reigning successive∣ly in them; but only by giving an Ac∣count of such signal Mutations, as made any considerable Change in the Admini∣stration of the Government either in Church or State.

In this part (which treats of Britain in general) after a short Description of the Island, and a brief Account of the an∣cient Inhabitants thereof (from whom not only our present Cambro-Britains, but those also of Armorica or little Britain in France are descended) is inserted a Discourse (which, tho it may seem a Digression, is neither long nor imperti∣nent) touching the Original and Excellen∣cy of Monarchical Government, to which and none other, this our Island has been so fortunate, as to have been Subjected from its very first being inhabited to this very Day.

Hereunto I was forced by the audaci∣ous Scribles of certain profligate Wretches, who, that they may the easilier instigate the Ʋulgar to a contempt of the Sacred Authority of their Prince, and thereby make way for the overturning of this famous Monarchy, and the intro∣ducing of Popular Tyranny in its place, endeavour to debase Monarchy it self, affirming the most High and Sacred Order of Kings, which is the Ordi∣nance of GOD himself, founded in the prime Laws of Nature, and clear∣ly established by express Texts both of the Old and New Testaments, to

be a meer human Creature, taking its Original from the Consent of the Peo∣ple, by whom Soveraignty is conveyed unto Kings in trust only, and by Communica∣tion, and consequently that the People may (whensoever they please) resume this Power, and call their Trustees to an account.

These are the pernicious Maxims, which so lately intoxicated the three King∣doms, and are now again for the like purpose taken up by our present Republi∣cans, and daily disperst by the scurri∣lous Pamphleteers of these times, one of which (who insolently presumes to dedi∣cate his treasonable Libels to a most Noble and Loyal Peer) falls foul upon the Learned Sr. Robert Filmer for deriving the Regal Authority from the paternal, instituted by GOD himself; tho this verity be not only expresly deli∣vered in the Holy Scriptures, which declare, that the first Government in the World was Monarchical in the Father of all Flesh, but was by the very glimme∣rings of Natural Reason discovered by Aristotle, who, speaking of the Original of Monarchy, saith: The first Society made of many Houses is a Village, which seems most agreeable to nature,

as being a Colony of Families, which some call Foster-brethren, or Chil∣dren and Childrens Children. There∣fore at first Cities were, and now also Nations are Governed by Kings, be∣cause such came together, as were un∣der Kingly Government. For the el∣dest in every House is King, and so for Kindred sake it is in Colonies, that is, in more Families, which are de∣scended from the same House: whence Homer saith, Every man gives Laws to his Wives and Children. Hence it is by all ancient Writers acknowledged, that the first Commonweals were governed by Monarchs; nor indeed was there any other Government known in the World for above three thousand years, till some ambitious Fellows among the giddy Grecians, a Peo∣ple alwayes delighted in Novelties, rebel∣led against their Soveraigns, and usurped their Authority; as was lately here done by the Rump-Parliament, and is now again aimed at by the Factors for the Good-Old-Cause.

The better to excite my fellow Subjects to a dutiful Submission to our common Fa∣ther the King, I have reminded them, that all those Rights and Priviledges, to the Pre∣servation whereof (tho neither infringed,

nor in danger of being so) the popular De∣magogues pretend to call them forth, when their real design is utterly to destroy and take away both the Regal Prerogative and the Peoples Liberties, are originally the Concessions of their Princes; and there∣fore that, as it is the height of Ingrati∣tude to employ the Favours of their Sove∣raign to the disturbance of his Government: so it is an excess of Folly, to think to se∣cure their Liberties by the pulling down or weakning that Authority, which, as it first gave them, so is alone capable to pro∣tect and maintain them. This, tho it may seem strange to those, that have their Heads filled with the Chimerical Conceits of the natural Freedom and Equality of Mankind, and the first founding of Go∣vernment by the Multitude, upon such Terms and Conditions, as to their Wis∣doms seemed fit, is yet clearly manifest from the Histories and Records of all Ages and Nations, and particularly of this Kingdom of England: of which it was well observed by the late Lord Keep∣er Bridgman, then Lord chief Baron, at the Tryal of the Regicides: It is true we have as great Liberties, as any People have in Christendom, in the World: but let us own them, where they are due.

We have them by the Concessions of our Princes. Our Princes have granted them: and the King now, He in them hath granted them likewise.

After this Account of the Original and Excellency of Monarchy, to which Go∣vernment alone, I briefly shew, that this Island has been alwayes subjected, I proceed to the Conquest thereof by the Romans, and thence to such other Mutations, as hap∣ned therein unto the time of Cadwalladar, who in the Year 689 quitting his King∣dom, of which the Saxons had gotten the best part, a Period was put to the British Monarchy, the very Name of King of Britain not being so much as heard of till the happy Ʋnion of the Kingdoms of England and Scotland by the Succession of His Majesties Grandfather King James of famous Memory to the Crown of England, whose Genealogy from Cadwal∣ladar I have here set down, clearly de∣monstrating his present Sacred Majesty to be the true and undoubted Heir of the said British King, as he is also of the Saxon, Norman, and Scotish Kings, and conse∣quently to have a clearer Right to this Monarchy, than any private man can pre∣tend to his Estate.

After this Relation of such Mutations,

as concern Britain in general, I give a ge∣neral Account of the present Government of this Island. And here according to my Duty, and the Oath of Supremacy, which declaring the King to be the only Supreme Governour, admits neither Equal nor Su∣perior, I assert the Soveraignty of our Lord the King, and shew, that there is not in our (nor can indeed be in any) Mo∣narchy any Authority, but what is de∣rived from the Monarch, in opposition to the pernicious Doctrine of Coordinacy, dai∣ly by the Ringleaders of the Faction dis∣persed amongst the People, and endeavo∣red to be justified by the Author of Plato Redivivus, and T. H. the former of which, speaking of the late Parliamentary Rebellion, saith: This is certain, that whereever two Coordinate Powers do differ, and there be no Power on earth to reconcile them otherwise, nor Um∣pire, they will, de facto, fall together by the ears. And the latter not only tells us in express terms, that the Parlia∣ment derive their Power and Authority from the same Original, the King de∣rives His; but by affirming, that there are Treasons of State other than those, that are declared by the Statutes, and such as the King cannot pardon, would prostitute

the Lives of all his fellow Subjects to the Arbitrary Power of any prevailing Facti∣on, which may at any time happen to be in the two Houses of Parliament, or per∣haps in the House of Commons alone, the onely part (if we will believe the Au∣thor of Plato Redivivus) which is now left intire of the old Constitution.

And because the Heads of the Facti∣on, that they might leave no Stone un∣turn'd, which might be made use of for the battering down of this Hereditary Monarchy, have essayed to subvert it by impeaching the Descent of the Crown in the Right Line, I have treated upon the of late much controverted Point of the Succession, which I have demonstrated to be unalterable by any Statute or Act of Parliament whatever, and as such to have been acknowledged by all our Ancient Par∣liaments, that were neither over-awed by Force, nor seduced by Faction.

Having thus, with what Brevity I could, handled these foregoing matters, I con∣clude this Part with a short account of the present Monarch of Great Britain, Our Soveraign Lord the KING now Reigning (whom GOD long preserve to the Consolation and Happiness of this Is∣land) of his Queen, and the Princes of his Royal Blood.

And because the ill-willers to the Peace of this our Israel have raised in the minds of the unthinking Vulgar terrible Fears and Apprehensions of his Royal Highness, whom, the readilier to stir up against him the Animosity of the people, they have audaciously loaded with all the Calumnies and Scandals, which the Ma∣lice of Men or Devils could invent, I have endeavoured by a true (tho imperfect) Re∣presentation of his Gests and Character to remove that Prejudice, which these horrid and malicious Falsities may have created a∣gainst him in the Spirits of the unwary.

If these my Endeavors shall prove useful for the reducing of any of my deluded Coun∣trymen to that natural Obedience, which we owe to our Soveraign, I shall repute my self abundantly satisfied for my pains, and shall be encouraged to compleat the rest of my designed Work.