nt. The king arrested the men
whom they appointed as managers of the impeachment, and imprisoned
them. The Commons remonstrated, and insisted that Buckingham should be
dismissed from the king's service. The king, instead of dismissing
him, took measures to have him appointed, in addition to all his other
offices, Chancellor of the University of Cambridge, a very exalted
station. Parliament remonstrated. The king, in retaliation, dissolved
the Parliament.

Thus things went on from bad to worse, and from worse to worse again;
the chief cause of the difficulties, in almost all cases, being
traceable to Buckingham's reckless and arbitrary conduct. He was
continually doing something in the pursuit of his own ends, by the
rash and heedless exercise of the vast powers committed to him, to
make extensive and irreparable mischief. At one time he ordered a part
of the fleet over to the coast of France, to enter the French service,
the sailors expecting that they were to be employed against the
Spaniards. They found, however, that, instead of going against the
Spaniards, they were to be sent to Rochelle. Rochelle was a town in
France in possession of the Protestants, and the King of France
wished to subdue them. The sailors sent a remonstrance to their
commander, begging not to be forced to fight against their brother
Protestants. This remonstrance was, in form, what is called a _Round
Robin_.

In a Round Robin a circle is drawn, the petition or remonstrance is
written within it, and the names are written all around it, to prevent
any one's having to take the responsibility of being the first signer.
When the commander of the fleet received the Round Robin, instead of
being offended, he inquired into the facts, and finding that the case
was really as the Round Robin represented it, he broke away from the
French command and returned to England. He said he would rather be
hanged in England for disobeying orders than to fight against the
Protestants of France.

Buckingham might have known that such a spirit as this in Englishmen
was not to be trifled with. But he knew nothing, and thought of
nothing, except that he wished to please and gratify the French
government. When the fleet, therefore, arrived in England, he
peremptorily ordered it back, and he resorted to all sorts of pretexts
and misrepresentations of the facts to persuade the officers and men
that they were not to be employed against the Protestants. The fleet
accordin