STATE OP ENGLAND IN 1685 .

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Charles, however, had, a few months after his Restora-tion, begun to form a small standing army. He felt that, -without some better protection than that of the train-bandsand beef-eaters, his palace and person would hardly be se-cure, in the vicinity of a great city swarming with warlikeFifth Monarchy men who had just been disbanded. He there-,fore, careless and profuse as he was, contrived to spare fromhis pleasures a sum sufficient to keep up a body of guards.With the increase of trade and of public wealth his revenuesincreased; and he was thus enabled, in spite of the occasionalmurmurs of the Commons, to make gradual additions to hisregular forces. One considerable addition was made a fewmonths before the close of his reign. The costly, useless,and pestilential settlement of Tangier was abandoned to thebarbarians who dwelt around it; and the garrison, consistingof one regiment of horse and two regiments of foot, wasbrought to England.

The little army thus formed by Charles the Second wasthe germ of that great and renowned army which has, in thepresent century, marched triumphant into Madrid and Paris,into Canton and Candahar. The Life Guards, who now formtwo regiments, were then distributed into three troops, eachof which consisted of two hundred carabineers , exclusive ofofficers. This corps, to which the safety of the King androyal family was confided, had a very peculiar character.Even the privates were designated as gentlemen of the Guard.Many of them were of good families, and had held commis-sions in the civil war. Their pay was far higher than thatof the most favoured regiment of our time, and would in thatage have been thought a respectable provision for the youngerson of a country squire. Their fine horses, their rich housings,their cuirasses, and their buff coats adorned with ribands,velvet, and gold lace, made a splendid appearance in St.James’s Park. A small body of grenadier dragoons, whoMacaulay, History . 1. 19

CHAP.

III.