355 'l'he parliament, after the submission of the annie, had voted that there should no more be a generall over them, but to keepe that power in their owne hands, that all the officers should take their commissions immediately from the speaker. • The conspiracy of the armie, to gett a leader in their rebellion, was layd, that they shou ld petition ior generali s and such like things as might faci litate their intents. Among others that were taken in arms against the parliament Lord Castleton was one of the chiefe heads of the insurrection. Him Lambert brought along with him in his coach, not now as a prisoner, but. unguarded, as one that was to be honour'd. The parliament hearing of this, sent and fetcht him out of his company and committed him to prison, and then the army's sawcy petit ion was deli ver'd , and, upon the insolent carriage of ni ne collonel ls, they were by vote disbanded. Lambert being one of them, came in a hostile manner and pluckt the members out of the house; }'leetewood, whom they t ru sted to guard them, having. confederated with Lambert and betrey'd them.. After that, setting up their armie court at Wallingford-house, they begun their arbi-· trary reigne, to the ioy of all the vanquisht enemies of the parliament, and to the amazement and terror of all men that had any honest interest: and now were they all devizing governments; and some honorable members, I know not through what fatallity of the times, fell in with them.' When Coil. Hutchinson came into the o It was a great oversight that they had ·not taken tHis course from the beginning: for althougH it is very difficult for a republic, wllich has ,need of considerable armies, io maintain its inc!ependencc, which is for ever liable to be invaded by those who have the sword in their hands, ye t the best chance it has-lies in .the keeping the military under the direc tion of the civil power . This .method succeeded a good whi le with the French republic, and might have done still longer if some of the members of the ex e~ cntive power had not leagued with some of the military co!llmanders. P This was that committee of safety, or.counci l of the Stratocracy, among the principal members of which were Sir Henry Vane, Ludlow, and Whitelock, as men.tioned
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