MARIE R.Trusty and well beloved, we greet you well; haveing received the humble petition of our colony of
Connecticut, in New England, praying that our comission unto our Governour or comander in chief, of our
Province of New York, for command of the Militia of our said colony, may receive such explanation and
restriction, as in our royall justice and wisdome we shall think fit, we have referred the consideration
of the said petition to the Lords of our privy councill, appointed comittee of Trade and Forreigne
Plantations, who haveing consulted our Attorney and Solicitor Generall, what may be legally don by us
for the uniting the strength of our said colony of Connecticutt, and the adjacent colonys, for the defence
and security of our subjects in those parts, against the French, and haveing presented to us the opinion of
our said Attorney and Solicitor Generall, that we may constitute a chief commander, with authority to
comand or order such proportion of the forces of each colony as we shall think fitt, and further in time
of invasion and approach of the enemy, with the advice and assistance of the Governours of the colonies,
to conduct and command the rest of the forces for the preservation and defence of such of our said
colonies as shall most stand in need thereof, as by our order in our councill, dated the nineteenth
day of Aprill last, upon the report of our said Attorney and Solicitor Generall in this matter, which
order, or a duplicate thereof you will herewith receive, is more at large sett forth, our will and
pleasure is, that in the execution of the powers of your said commission for the command of our said
Militia of Connecticutt, you do not take upon you any more then in time of warr to command a Quota,
or part of the Militia of our said colony of Connecticutt, not exceeding the number of one hundred and
twenty men, which we have thought fitt to signifie our pleasure to the Governour and Magistrates
of our colony of Connecticut, to be the measure of the assistance to be given to our said colony, and you
are not to command or draw out any more of the said Quota of the Militia of our s'd colony of Connecticut,
then you shall in proportion command or draw out from the respective Militias of the adjacent colonys,
except in cases of iminent danger of an actual invasion of the enemy, in which case our will and pleasure
is, that with the advice of the Governour of our said colony of Connecticut, you conduct and command the
rest of the forces of that our colony for the preservation of our said colony, or of such other of our
adjacent colonies, as shall most stand in need thereof, you takeing care that you do not leave our said
colony of Connecticut unprovided of a competent force, for the defence and safety thereof. And we not
doubting of the ready and carefull obedience of our good subjects in our colony of Connecticutt, to our
Royall determination, in a matter wherein the security and preservation of all our good subjects within
our said colony, and the parts adjacent, is so much concerned, we have signified our pleasure to the
Governour and Magistrates of our said colony, that as occasion shall require, they give obedience to
our said comission and the powers and authorities thereof, to be executed in such manner as is herein
directed. And so we bid you farewell. Given at our Court att White Hall, this twenty-first day of
June, 1694, in the sixth year of our Reigne.
J. TRENCHARD. |