What a Good English Princess Knows about Protestant Dissenters

Whereas the Papists would have the King become the puppet of Cousin Louis and his Pope, the dissenting Nonconformists would have him beheaded and replaced with another Cromwell. When a man wishes to cast a slur on a Catholic – or indeed any king of any denomination, or one of his Tory supporters – he might accuse him of the promotion of tyranny; if he seeks instead to blacken the name of a man who professes Nonconformist beliefs, or Whig ideas, or both, then he calls him Republican.

It is now the summer of 1682, and nobody gives any credence to the Popish Plots anymore: in these times the greatest threat to Crown, Church and Country comes from the wrong sort of Protestant. Any Whig who is not an outright Republican must necessarily be of Monmouth’s party: in either case he will not recognise the succession that God has ordained – he would certainly have away with the Church too, if he could.

Thank heaven that Shaftesbury is in the Tower. Then thank God that, through His grace and guidance, the King has found a way to pack the Commons with Tories. And when you are done with your thanksgiving, remember to ask God to speak to the Duke in his heart, so that he will be moved to keep his promises, and always stand as Defender of the Faith, even if the Faith is not his.