tired into any part of the three kingdoms, which did not own
the authority of king James, or corresponded with rebels, or were any
ways aiding, abetting, or assisting them, from the first day of August
in the preceding year. The number of protestants attainted by name in
this act amounted to about three thousand, including two archbishops,
one duke, seventeen earls, seven countesses, as many bishops, eighteen
barons, three-and-thirty baronets, one-and-fifty knights, eighty-three
clergymen, who were declared traitors, and adjudged to suffer the pains
of death and forfeiture. The individuals subjected to this dreadful
proscription, were even cut off from all hope of pardon and all benefit
of appeal; for by a clause in the act, the king's pardon was deemed null
unless enrolled before the first day of December. A subsequent law was
enacted, declaring Ireland independent of the English parliament. This
assembly passed another act, granting twenty thousand pounds per annum
out of the forfeited estates to Tyrconnel, in acknowledgment of his
signal services: they imposed a tax of twenty thousand pounds per month
for the service of the king: the royal assent was given to an act for
liberty of conscience; they enacted that the tithes payable by papists
should be delivered to priests of that communion: the maintenance of
the protestant clergy in cities and corporations was taken away; and all
dissenters were exempted from ecclesiastical jurisdictions. So that
the established church was deprived of all power and prerogative,
notwithstanding the express promise of James, who had declared,
immediately after his landing, that he would maintain the clergy in
their rights and privileges.

JAMES COINS BASE MONEY.

Nor was the king less arbitrary in the executive part of his government,
if we suppose that he countenanced the grievous acts of oppression that
were daily committed upon the protestant subjects of Ireland; but the
tyranny of his proceedings may be justly imputed to the temper of
his ministry, consisting of men abandoned to all sense of justice and
humanity, who acted from the dictates of rapacity and revenge, inflamed
with all the acrimony of religious rancour. Soldiers were permitted to
live upon free quarter; the people were robbed and plundered; licenses
and protections were abused in order to extort money from the trading
part of the nation. The king's old stores were ransacked; the shops of
tradesmen and the kitche