It may be thought that because the king had promised to take no step without the advice of these three counsellors, they are in a great degree responsible for his conduct; but this is not the case : Charles sometimes acted without their consent end without their knowledge on the most important occasions. For instance, in the attempt to seize the five members, his advisers were wholly ignorant of his intention, and so displeased and dejected by its perfidy, and ruhuese, that Clarendon writes (' Hist. Iteb., vol. ii. p. 133), "They were inclined never more to take upon them the care of anything to be transacted in the house; finding already that they could not avoid being looked upon as the authors of those counsels to which they were eo absolute strangers, and which they so perfectly detested." The queen quitted England in 1642, and Charles—as it would seem against Clarendon 's advice, who was for the making of moderate com pliances with the popular will—left London, not again to reside there until he was a prieoncr. But although Hyde was suspected of framing the king's papers and the answers which ho sent to the messages of the parliament, and danger wee to be apprehended in case of discovery, ho continued to write them. lie used more moderation than the king would have used, and Indeed more than was pleasing to many Royalists.
It will be seen by oomparison that hie papers were drawn with an ability far superior both so argument and eloquence to that which was evinced in the manifestoes of tho parliament. So necessary were hie services to the king that he received a summons to repair to York, whither the kiug bad retired (1642), as soon as ha could be spared from Loudon. He escaped from the parliament with difficulty, and reached York by circuitous •and unnenel routes, and coutlunod to act as the king's adviser until the civil war broke out.
In the spring of 1643 ? considerable change took place in the for tunes and condition of Hyde; instead of the secret counsellor of the king, he became his avowed and responsible servant. After he had declined the office of secretary of state, the chancellorship of the exchequer was accepted by him, end ho was knighted and sworn a member of the privy council In this disastrous year ho vainly endea voured to compromise the differences of the conteudiug parties neither the summons of a parliament at Oxford, nor his subsequent negociations with the parliamentary leaders and commissioners, was of any avail to arrest the rapid decline of the royal cause. In 1645 the king thought fit to send the Prince of Wales into the west, and to name Hyde ono of the counoillors to attend open and direct him. On the 6th of March he had an interview with the king, the last time that ho over saw him, and afterwards repaired to Bristol to enter on the functions which he had undertaken. Disputes and difficulties arose;
the prince's army was disorganised; and his situation daily became more hazardous, on account of the many defeats which the king sus tained during the autumn. In December letters were received from the king urging the prince's speedy removal either to Denmark, France, or Holland. His advisers hesitated about his departure, because there were differences of opinion as to where he should be sent : at length danger compelled his flight ; and Hyde and others of his suite sailed with him, first to Scilly, and thence to Jersey, where he landed on the 16th of April ]646. After a short residence in this island, the prince, persuaded by the queen, who desired to have him in her power, joined her in Franco. Hyde remained in Jersey. His situation at this time was most painful; he could not return to England because of the enmity of the parliament; he even feared an attempt upon Jersey from the parliament; and impressed with a sense of imminent danger on that account, made his will, and wrote letters to be delivered to the king and the priuce after his death. It might be expected that under such adverse circumstances his spirits would have failed, but constant occupation sustained them ; he collected all tho materials that ho was able, and commenced his ' History of the Rebellion.' After the eeizure of the king his cause appeared to be desperate; there were however occasionally revulsions in his favour which spread a faint gleam of hope upon the minds of his adherents. Among these was the desertion of 17 ships of war from the parliament to the priuce. This event had an influence upon the procoediuge of Sir Edward Hyde, who received orders to join Prince Charles. After some fruitless travelling in quest of him, Hyde heard that he had sailed for the Thames, and procured a small vessel in order to join him. Ill-fortune awaited him ; he was becalmed, and seized by several pirates from Ostend, who took him prisoner, and plundering him of all his money and goods, landed him at Ostend. In September 1648 Hydo rejoined the prince at the Hague; and there he heard of the execution of the king.
The disposition of the Spanish court towards the youthful Charles II. disposed him to send an embassy to Madrid, and Hyde and Cottington were fixed upon for the ambassadors. In May 1649 the two ambas sadors left the Hague: Hyde established his wife and children at Antwerp, and after some delay landed in Spain. During fifteen months negociations were carried on, until it became evident that none of the desired objects would result from the embassy. At length the ambassadors received the command of the king of Spalu to retire, having suffered mortification from neglect, and iucouvo.