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CHAP. moderate income which he was contented to obtain, he indicated an intention to withhold from the Crown those two great means of despotic power, pecuniary independence, and a standing army; to adhere to the principles of limited monarchy, and to support the cause of constitutional freedom.

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To fix the nominal amount of the Revenue was less difficult than to determine the sources from whence it should proceed. According to the Report of the Committee, a portion of the annual revenue of Charles I., estimated at 210,4937. arose," by payments partly not warranted by law, partly expired;" and the remaining available sources then employed were only such as had produced about 600,000l. The revenue of Charles II. was estimated at 819,3987.; but the Committee admitted that from this sum a deduction must be made, which reduced it to 773,700l. They had also included the Court of Wards, which it was in contemplation to abolish, and had exaggerated the amount of the Customs and Crown rents. It was

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"d'engager le Parlement, par le moyen d'une cabale qu'il y avoit, à as"signer à ce Prince, par un décret que l'on feroit passer au loi, deux "millions deux cens milles livres sterlins de subsidé perpetuel, à qui avec "la revenue de l'Excise et de divers autres droits l'auroit rendue un très "riche roi; que Charles avoit agreablement écouté cette proposition, mais qu'en ayant consulté Hyde, ce ministre lui avoit repondu que le plus sûr "bien qu'il pût acquirir etoit le cœur de ses sujets, qu'il s'en falloit reposer sur eux, et qu'il y trouveroit des resources qui ne lui manquer"oient pas au besoin. Si le Chancelier parloit comme il pensoit, la "suite de cette histoire fera voir que les habiles gens ne pensent pas "toujours juste." Orleans, Hist. des Révolutions d'Angleterre, iii.

144.

Welwood's evidence tends to corroborate the preceding statements. See his Memoirs, p. 121.

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1660.

probable, therefore, that after the abolition of the CHAP.! Court of Wards, of which the revenue was estimated at 100,000l. per annum, the available revenue from existing sources, without the imposition of a fresh tax, would not exceed a moiety of the 1,200,000l. which they were about to fix as the revenue of the Crown. *

of Feudal

Wardships,

This difficulty did not deter the Legislature from Abolition effecting a measure, important in other respects Tenures, than as a mere matter of fiscal arrangement. They and Purtook this opportunity of abolishing by commuta- veyance. tion an ancient source of the King's revenue, a cherished attribute of the prerogative, profitable to the Treasury, but galling to the subject, and illsuited to the spirit of the times. It was determined to abolish Feudal Tenures, and all their incidents (except only the honorary services of Grand Sergeantry), the Court of Wards with its oppressive power over the estates of minors, and the vexatious rights of pre-emption and purveyance. In assigning a source of compensation, a tax on lands held in chivalry, and thus to be relieved from the incidents of that tenure, was one of obvious equity, and was originally intended; and an apportionment of the 100,000l. with that view, was brought in by the Committee, and ordered to be read.† But the cupidity of some of the members of the Legislature, in which the landed interest prevailed, promptly suggested an expedient. The Excise which

* Commons' Journals, Sept. 4. 1660. Letters and Papers, vol. iii.

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CHAP. had been considered a war tax, justified only by pressing exigencies, and voted only for short periods, was now proposed as a permanent substitute for the tax on lands in chivalry. For the honour of the Commons it must be said, that this proposal to make the poor pay for the rich, and the many for the few, was stoutly opposed; and the resolution, that a moiety of the Excise should be settled on the King, his heirs and successors, in full satisfaction for all services in capite, and by knight's service, of the court of Wards and Liveries, and Purveyance, was carried only by 151 to 149. Having thus perpetuated a moiety of the Excise, the Commons availed themselves still further of this ready source of income to supply their large deficiencies; and resolved, that the other moiety of the Excise should be settled on the King for his natural life, in full of the income of 1,200,000l. a year.*

In this settlement of the Revenue the Legislature erred, both in fixing a sum inadequate to the expenditure, and in assigning funds from which not even that inadequate sum could be raised. They thus neither discouraged prodigality in the King, nor afforded security and certainty to the subject. By fixing an inadequate income they extinguished the hope of successful economy; and by assigning inadequate funds, they made that income only nominal. Reckless prodigality will too often ensue when there is no prospect of reducing expenses within the prescribed limits of the income. If the

* Commons' Journals, Nov. 27.; Dec. 21, 22.

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line must be broken, it is soon considered imma- CHAP. terial whether the excess be great or small; and when, as in this instance, the settlement of that line was of the nature of a compact, a failure on the one hand to fulfil the conditions of supply produced indifference on the other to the conditions of expenditure.*

It is also to be regretted, that at this time no distinction was made between money allotted to the current service and that which is now called the Civil List; but all was denominated the Revenue of the Crown. A profligate and extravagant monarch was thus tempted to treat the whole as private income, and to divert money from the service of the public for the gratification of his individual tastes. Such a temptation was peculiarly dangerous to a prince like Charles; and to this, and to the pecuniary embarrassments under which he

It was soon found necessary to bring the deficiency of the Revenue under the notice of Parliament. It was referred to the consideration of a Committee, of which Sir Philip Warwick was chairman, and who reported the amount of the deficit to be 265,000l.; and, in consequence of this report, a bill was brought in, "to enable his Majesty to send out Commissioners to receive the free and voluntary contributions of "his people towards the present supply of his Majesty's affairs;" (Commons' Journals, May 30. 1661) a mode of replenishing the Exchequer which, if the contributions were to be in any sense "free and "voluntary," made the Crown a mendicant petitioner in a manner injurious to its dignity; and which, if any compulsion were mingled with the request, was an approach, slight, perhaps, but still highly objectionable, to the old system of forced loans. Sir Philip Warwick told Pepys, in 1664, that "the 1,200,000l., which the Parliament, with so "much ado, did first vote to give to the King, and since hath been "re-examined by several Committees of the present Parliament, is yet "above 300,000l. short of making up really to the King the 1,200,000. "as by particulars he showed me. And in my Lord Treasurer's excel"lent letter to the King upon the subject, he tells the King how it was "the spending more than the Revenue that did give the first occasion of

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CHAP. commenced his reign, many of the political evils of that period may be clearly traced.

1660. Pecuniary

"I must tell you," said the King in his speech embarrass- to the Parliament, on the 29th of August, 1660, "that I am not richer, that is, I have not so much

ments.

money in my purse as when I came to you. "The truth is, I have lived principally ever since upon what I brought with me, which was in"deed your money. You sent it to me, and I "thank you for it. The weekly expense of the " Navy eats up all you have given me by the Bill "of Tonnage and Poundage. Nor have I been "able to give my brother one shilling since I came "to England, nor to keep any table in my house, "but where I eat myself; and that which troubles me most is to see many of you come to me at "Whitehall, and to think you must go somewhere "else to seek a dinner." *

This homely tale of royal penury was followed by a statement of debts. The Committee of Finance, which finished their labours on the 3d of September, embodied in their Report the following alarming list:

Debts yet unsatisfied charged upon the Excise, and payable by virtue of sundry ordinances of 1647 and 1648, 319,9687.

Debts charged upon the Excise since the return of the secluded members, 75,010l.

Debts on account of the Navy, 699,7201.

Further debts, amounting to 529,600l., consisting

* Lords' Journals, Aug. 29. 1660.