The Admiral shall impress as many seamen as necessary for the
defense of the realm. This includes mariners, sailors, watermen,
ship carpenters, but no one over the age of 50 or masters or
masters' mates. If one hides, he shall be imprisoned for three
months without bail.
Justices of the Peace shall impress as many soldiers as the king
may order for war in Ireland. This is despite the right of a
citizen to be free from being compelled to go out of his county to
be a soldier because the danger from Ireland is imminent. Excluded
are clergymen, scholars, students, those rated at a subsidy of
land of three pounds or goods of five pounds, esquires or above,
the sons of such or their widows, those under eighteen or over
sixty years of age, mariners, seamen, and fishermen. The penalty
for disobeying is imprisonment, without bail or misprise, and a
fine of ten pounds. If an offender can't pay the fine, he shall be
imprisoned a year more, without bail or misprise.
The right to call out the county militia had been a prerogative of
the Crown, so the King issued a Proclamation ordering the soldiers
to ignore this order and obey him. So Parliament declared this
Proclamation void.
The King accused five leaders of Parliament, including Pym, of
trying to subvert the government of the kingdom, to deprive the
King of his regal power, to alienate the affections of the people
toward their King, forcing the Parliament to their ends by foul
aspersions, and inviting the Scots to invade England.
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