of peers, and never to consent to their re-admission." This was called the "Engagement," and still was effective in excluding all royalists, and all such of the presbyterian party as would not consent to violate their favourite covenant. Of the twelve judges, ten had been appointed by the revolutionary party, and the whole of them had quietly continued their functions through the war against the king; yet six of these now resigned, probably having hoped to the last for an accommodation with the king, and not going in their minds the length of a commonwealth. The other six only consented to hold their offices on the condition that an act of the commons should guarantee the non-abolition of the fundamental laws of the kingdom.
With regard to the church, as the present government was decidedly in favour of ample toleration, it satisfied itself with making a slight modification of the existing presbyterian power, and allowing it to remain, at the same time that it deprived its intolerant clergy of all temporal power whatever. No holders of religious opinions were to be molested, provided that they did not attack the fundamental principles of Christianity, and thus the catholics acquired more civil as well as religious liberty, than they had enjoyed since the days of queen Mary.
Cromwell and Milton.
The army remained in the same able hands which had made it the finest array in Europe, and had won with it such wonderful victories. Fairfax still continued commander-in-chief, though he had held aloof from the king's trial, and the navy was put on a more efficient footing by removing the earl of Warwick and appointing Blake, who had shown remarkable skill and courage on land, with Popham and Dean as admirals. These great changes were chiefly effected by the influence of Cromwell, Ireton, Marten, and Bradshaw, assisted by the talents of Vane, and the legal ability of St. John and Whitlock. They also introduced a parliamentary measure, which essentially modified the character of the house. On the 1st of February they carried a vote that all those who, on the 5th of December, assented to the vote that "the king's concessions were a sufficient ground to proceed to a settlement," should be incapable of sitting, but all others who should previously enter on the journal their dissent from that motion, should be admissible By this means they found the number of members raised to one hundred and fifty, and at the same time they were protected from a wearying opposition from the presbyterian section.
They now proceeded to bring to trial each of the royalist prisoners as had engaged in the last insurrection, whom they regarded as disturbers of the kingdom after it had once conquered the king, and might have proceeded to a settlement. They looked on them, in fact, as a species of rebels to the party in power. And yet that party was not constituted even by its own formal enactments, as a fully recognised government, till these trials were over. They terminated on the 6th of March, and the republic was not formally passed till the 19th of that month, in these words:— "Be it declared and enacted by this present parliament,
