Conscience and allegiance in seventeenth century England: the political significance of oaths and engagements

716 Pages·1999·2.02 MB·English

by  David Martin Jones

Conscience and Allegiance in Seventeenth
title: Century England : The Political
Significance of Oaths and Engagements
author: Jones, David Martin.
publisher: University of Rochester
isbn10 | asin: 1580460399
print isbn13: 9781580460392
ebook isbn13: 9780585275598
language: English
Constitutional history--Great Britain, Oaths,
subject
Divine rights of kings.
publication date: 1999
lcc: KD3954.J66 1999eb
ddc: 342.42/029
Constitutional history--Great Britain, Oaths,
subject:
Divine rights of kings.
Page i
Conscience and Allegiance in Seventeenth
Century England
Page ii
A minister and his parishioners take the oath. British Library, TT E. 116(49), fol. 4
Page iii
Conscience and Allegiance in Seventeenth
Century England
The Political Significance of Oaths and Engagements
David Martin Jones
Page iv
Copyright © 1999 David Martin Jones
All Rights Reserved. Except as permitted under current legislation, no
part of this work may be photocopied, stored in a retrieval system,
published, performed in public, adapted, broadcast, transmitted,
recorded or reproduced in any form or by any means, without the
prior permission of the copyright owner.
First published 1999 1-58046-039-9
University of Rochester Press 668 Mt. Hope Avenue Rochester, New
York, 14620, USA and at P.O. Box 9, Woodbridge, Suffolk IP12 3DF,
UK
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Jones, David Martin.
Conscience and allegiance in seventeenth century England : the
political significance of oaths and engagements / by David Martin
Jones.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 1-58046-039-9 (alk. paper)
1. Constitutional historyGreat Britain. 2. Oaths. 3. Divine
rights of kings. I. Title.
KD3954.J66 1999
342.42'029dc21 99-16320
CIP
British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
This publication is printed on acid-free paper
Printed in the United States of America
Designed and typeset by Cornerstone Composition Services

Page v
I GOFIO NAAD JCJ
GYDA DIOLCH
Page vii
Contents
Acknowledgments ix
Introduction 1
Oaths, Conscience, and the Tacit Dimension in Early
Modern English Political Thought
Chapter 1 14
The State Oath in Law and Conscience: A Brief History of
"the Safest Knot of Civil Society"
Chapter 2 63
"Of Oaths, Their Object, Form and Bond"1: The Impact of
Common Law, Casuistry, and Character upon the State
Oath
Chapter 3 104
"Endless Janglings and Perplexities": The English
Experience of the State Oath, 16401660
Chapter 4 170
The Oath Restored: The Problems Raised by the
Imposition of State Oaths between 1660 and 1690
Chapter 5 228
Conscience, Character, the Prostitution of the Oath, and
the Evolution of a Political Disposition
Appendix: The Genealogy of the State Oath
1. The Feudal Oath of Liege Homage or Liegeance 269
2. The Oath to the Succession (1534) 270
3. The Henrician Oath of Supremacy (1536) 270
4. The Elizabethan Oath of Supremacy (1559) 271
5. The Oath of Allegiance (1606) 272
6. The Etcetera Oath (1640) 273
7. The Protestation of May 3rd, 1641 273
8. A Sacred Vow and Covenant Taken by the Lords and 274
Commons Assembled in Parliament (June 9th, 1643)
9. The Solemn League and Covenant (September 275
1643), and the Negative Oath (April 1645)
10. The Engagement (1649) 279
11. Oath-Taking and the Protectorate (1654) 279
1 Christopher White, Of Oaths: Their Object, Form and Bond (London,
1627)
Page viii
12. Oaths and the Restoration (16611665) 279
13. Oaths after the Glorious Revolution (1688) 280
14. The Abjuration Oath (1702) 281
15. Oaths Directed Specifically Against the English 281
Catholic Community
Abbreviations Used in Notes 285
Bibliography 286
Index of Names 330
Index of Subjects 336