C 400 )

Order to Inni, which he repeats diftindtly; ikying {fiHand on the New T efiament, and afterwards kiffeth the "&*Book. ^

The ancient Oath appointed by the Statutes of Inftitu- 'V*Cion is (hort, and without limitation in all Points, the fame ^with that a Knight-Companion takes at his Perfonal Inftal-lation , vis[. Faithfully to obferve, to the utmofi of hit Posner' 4itfd fthe Statutes of the Order ; but afterwards the Sovereign’s* h f-!and Fellows of thole other Orders of Knighthood, (as the « f> *Golden Fleece, Monfisur St. Michael, &c.) before their ad- jjr,C (million into the Order of the Garter, l'ued for, and obtainedthe allowance of fome relative exceptions or provifo’stobe added to the aforefaid Oath ; which ufually were ftfuch as ftood with the intereft of their Religion, theirgreat State Of Dignity ^ or precedent obligation to the .JimiOrder they had before accepted. Fr

In the Blacl^-Bool{ is a Precedent of the Oath to be takenby an Emperor j whereby he is obliged to promile on his .jinnRoyal Word, and give his Faith on his Honour and theHoly Evangelifts, That he will faithfully and truly, to the a;!i t jutmofi cf his Power, obferve the Statutes in every Branch m lj pjand Article thereof, at leafi fo far as they can or ought tobe obferVed by him, and fo far as they fkall not be con - fay %trary or derogatory to thoje whereunto he hath before given y, j rahis Name and Sworn, and facing all other conditions agreed ^ 0 f t ,on. There are belides this, other Precedents in the An-nals of the Form of the Oath From the Proftor of an Em-peror or King, and of every other inferior Degree, where 1 ' orin are feveral exceptions before agreed on; and when j|’. anPhilip, King of Cafiile and Leon, (Sovereign of the Orderof the Golden Fleece,) was Perfonally mftalled at tVindfir, ^Anno zz Hen.Vll. and took the Oath without Limita- ^tion, yet he foon after obtain’d the Sovereign’s Dilpen- ‘ afation, that the ule of the Collar ard other Enfigns of theOrder might be left to his plealure, and that he might not ;be obliged to be prefer.: at future Chapters. ' J

Other Exceptions have been admitted, but were obtain* fV'ed with great difficulty and much debate, left the Dig 1nity and Reputation of the Order fliould (mftead of being C1kept up) be leffen’d, the forbearance of fome Circum 1fiances that hath been'yeilded to, having fometimes beetl ^ fi

brought into Precedent, to the prejudice of the Order.

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