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Show I JIO OJ,forvation.t Hpon a Libell, publijhed, In Anno I 59~· theEnglijhchronicles, a King, th~~hath, inallre~pects, laid together raigned with fuch Fehctty, as her.lUaJe.ftY hath done. for as for the Firft 3.Henries; The Firft)came m, too_foon, aft~r a Conque.ft: The second, too {oon, after an Vforpatlon ;. J\nd ~he I Third' too foon, after a League, or Barons War; To ra1gn, with security and Contentation. King H. I. alfo, haq unnatnrall War~, with hi~ Broth'er Robert, wherein much Nobility was confu~ed: He had therewithall, tedious Wars1 in Walu; And was not~wtthout fome other Seditions, and Troubles; As ~amely ~ th~ great Contefi:ation, ofhis Prelates. King Henry 2. hts Ht~ppznejfe, was much deformed, by the Revolt of his fo_n Henry, after he ha? aifo ... cia ted him, and of his other Sonnes. Kutg Hen. 3,_ befides ht~ continuall Wars· in Wales was after 44· years ratgn, Ulilqmeted, with lntricat'e Commo~ions, of his (Barons; As may appear, by the Mad Parliament, held at oxford, and the A_[/s. ther:upon en-· fuing. His Son, King Ed. 1. had a mon.:flour.tfiung Ttme, t~en any oft he other; Came to ~is KingdoiJ?, at npe years, an~ wtth great Reputation after his voyage, tnto the Holy Land, And was much lovedJ 'and obeyed; contrived his Wars:> with great Judgement; Firfr,having reclaimed.»:ales~ to a fetle~ Allegeance; And being, upon the point, ofVnztmg ~cot/and. ~ut yet,. I fup· pofe~ it. was more honour~ for her Ma;efty, to have, fo.Impor ... tant a ptece of scotland, In he! hand; And the fatr\e, w.I~h fuch Juftice, to render up; Then It was, for that worthy Ktng, to have advanced, in fuch Forwar~nefi~, the Co'fquefl, o~that Nation. And for King Edward 3· h1 s Ratgn was v1fit~d, . With much sick._nej]e, and Mortality, S? as they reckoned, tn hts ~ayes, 3· feverall Mortalities : One tn the 2 2. year: Another In the 3 5· year: And the lafr, in the 4:3· year,. o~ his Rai(>n: And being otherwife· Victorious and 10 Profpertty, was by that onely croJJf~, mo:e afHifred, :hen he wasJ by the other.Projperities,.comforted. Befides; he entred hardly : And agatn , according to the Verfe; Cedebant ultima. primi!: His Latter Times, were not fo proJPerOJu. And fo: Ki~g Henry~. as his.Succ.effe was wondcrfulJ, fo he wanted Continuance ; Bemg exttngudbed, after I o. years Rai gn in the Prime, of his For tuner • . ' No'w for her Ma.jefly, we will, firlt '· fpeak, oft~~ Bleffing of , I.Connnuance Continuance as that which wanted Jn the Ha.ppteft' of thefe Ki11gi : An' d is not' onlY, a great fav'o Hr o f Go d, unto t he J- r,z·n ce, but alfo, a fin gular Beneflf, un~o the ~ eople: .Fo~ tha~ S~n_te~ce of the Scripture: Miflra NatJ(J, cum multi font prmczpes e11u_. JS !nterprcted, not only, to exte~d, to Divifions, and DiflralJtons) tn Go' lJeNWJelJt but alfo , to Fr~quent changes, in Succeffion : Confide· ring, tha~ the Change of :a Prince, btingeth in, many. Charger, which are Harfh, and Vnpleafant, to a great part of Sub;elJs. It appeareth then, that of the Line, of Five hundred, and fo~re_ fcore years, and more, containing theNumber of'22.Kzng1, God hath already prolonged, her Maje.ftieJ Raign, to exceed fix-teen ObforvationJupon aLibeH, publijbed, ln Anno J 592. r 1 1 teen, of the faid. Two and Twenty : Asd, by the end, of this pre- Cent year, (wh.tch Go~profp.er,) UJe fball attain, to be equalJ, with • two more: Dunng which_ ttme, th~re have deceafed, [o11r EmperoHrs; AsmanyF~enchK~ngs; Tw1cefo many Bi[hops of Rome• Yea, every State, tn Chri.ftendome, except sp11in, have received ~undry Sncceffiopr: And, f?r the King of spai11, he is waxed fo Infirm, and thereby fo Retued,as the Report of his Death,[erveth for every_years Ne_ws: whereas her Afajefty,(Tbanks be given to God,) betng nothmg decayed, in vigor of Health, and.ftrength was~everm~:>reable, tofupply, and fufrain, the~eight of (.he; ~~:nrs~And Is, as far as .fiandeth, with the Djgnity, ofher llfa- JeftteJ Royall State, cont.r.oually to be Seen, to the great comfort and Hearty Eafe, of her People. ' Secondly, we will ment.ion, the BlejJi~g of Health: I mean,ge- 2. Health; nerally, of the ~eople, w~1ch was wannng, in the Raign,of ctno-ther o~ thefe !<tng/: W~Ic~ elfe deferved, to have the fecond place, In Happmejfe; which 1s one, of tlJe great Favours of cod towards any Nation. For, as there be three Scourges of God Ita/ Famine, and PeflileNCe; fo are there three L'e~ediCiienr reat:e ;lenty' ~n~ Health. W~ereas there~ore, this R.ealm, hath been ~ifited: In Urnes paft, wtth fundry k1nds of Mortalities; (as Peflilences S~eats? and ot~r Cont~t!)ous Di{eafes;) it is fo, that in J1er ffifaje~ ftzes Tunes, betng of the contmuance, aforefaid, there was only, towards the Be~inning ?f her R.aign, ~ome Sic~nej{e, betwec!Pl 'june, and Febru~try, In the Cuty, but not d1fpcrfed, into any other pat • of the Realm, as was not~d; which we call yet, the Great Pl~~rgue; B.ecaufe,_ that though It was n~thing fo Grievous, and fo Sweepm~, as It hath been, fun dry tunes heretofore; yet it was ~reat, tn refpefr of the Health, which hath followed fince; Wh~ch hath been fuch, ( efp.ecially 0f late years,) as we began to dtfpute, an.d move <zyelbons, of the Caufes, whereunto it fhould be afcnbed; Unttl.l fu~h time, as it pleafed God to teach ~s, that w.e ought~ to afcnbe tt, on ely to his .lvfercy; By touchIng us, a It ttl~, thts prefent y~r; but with a very Gentle Hand; ~~d fuch~ as It hath pleafed htm, fince, to remove. But certain tt ts? for fo many years together, notwithfranding, the great Pe-ertng of pe~ple, In Houfes; The gre~t .lvlultitude ofstrangerr, and the ftt»dry f'lt~ges by Seas; (All which, have been noted, to be Caufes of Pe{idence.) The Health Vniverfall, of the People, was nc. ver fo good. . The third BleJfi..ng is that, which all the Politick, and Fortunate 3· Peace. Ktng~, before re~tted, have wanted ; That is, Peace: For there was never Forremer, fince her Ma.jefties Raign, by Invajlon or Inrur. Jio'! of .Aflomen~, that took any footing, within theR~a/n~ of England. One Rebellfon? there hath been ondy, but fuch an one, as was repreffed, With1n the f pace, of feven weeks; And did not ~afr, the Realm, fo much, as by the Defiruction, or Depo· pulatton, of one po#r Towa. And for war.r abroad, taking in thofe |
