The surviving contemporary accounts by John Moore and Ralph Verney make it possible to reconstruct Pym’s remarks on the morning of 3 rd May, 1641 to a certain extent. He appears to have begun by commenting on the King’s action in taking notice of proceedings in the House of Lords before the Bill of Attainder against the Earl of Strafford had been passed: the House of Commons had voted that Strafford was guilty of treason but Charles’s premature remarks had been a breach of Parliament’s privileges. If, after the Bill had been approved by the Lords, the King was not satisfied, then he should be better informed – presumably by one or other House or by both. Pym did not believe that the King intended to subvert the laws or to bring in an Irish army but Charles had been advised that he was free from the rules of government. The King needed to have good Councillors and to understand that he must maintain the laws. It was the design of the Papiststo overthrow the kingdom, a design...
