The new proclamation, when read in Edinburgh…
February 1638 CE
The new proclamation, when read in Edinburgh on February 22, is greeted with derision, not reverence.
The Tables, in responding to yet another example of royal blindness, take one of the most important steps in Scottish history.
Answer is to be given to the king in the form of an extended address to be known as the National Covenant.
Based on the Negative Confession of 1581, it is also widely known at the time as the 'Nobleman's Covenant', providing some insight into the driving force behind the whole movement.
The task of compiling the document had been delegated to Alexander Henderson, the minister of Leuchars in Fife, and a young lawyer by the name of Archibald Johnston of Warriston.
Both men had gone about the task with considerable care.
It could not be seen as too radical as there are still many ministers, for example, who are not convinced that Episcopacy is contrary to divine law.
At its heart lies one simple yet profoundly revolutionary principle, perhaps not sufficiently recognized at the time: there should be no innovations in church and state that had not first been tested by free Parliaments and General Assemblies.
The process of signing the new Covenant begins on February 28 at Greyfriars Kirk; it is the death warrant of the Divine Right of Kings.
Charles's enemies now acquire a new name: the Covenanters.
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