servants, the Commissioners especially, who in their ignorance expressed great trouble of mind, until the Lord Montague opened a letter his Majesty left upon the table, directed to him, giving a hint of what induced him to hasten thence in such a manner, being for self-preservation, yet kindly acknowledging their civility to his person all along, with his good acceptance of their loyalty and service."[1]
So Herbert tells what is really one of the most dramatic episodes of the Rebellion tragedy. When Charles was removed to Hampton Court from Oatlands, the Independents were in a majority in the House, and the power of the army, if "thinly veiled,"[2] was practically supreme. The King, however he might seem to have his state, was a prisoner, "and one more stage had been passed on the road which was to end in the enslavement of Parliament." When Charles was at Hampton Court the head-quarters of the army were at Putney, a convenient point from which both King and Parliament might be controlled. Cromwell, it would appear, was hoping to restore firm government through an alliance with Charles. The position was complicated by the attitude of the Scots Commissioners, who won from Parliament the acceptance of the Presbyterian scheme produced at Newcastle. Parliament was in confusion, and Cromwell and Ireton were urging matters to a crisis, sub-
