He was an active supporter of two important measures which occupied the Parliament simultaneously with Strafford’s impeachment, the Triennial Bill, for securing the convocation of Parliaments, and the bill for excluding bishops from the House of Lords. After the rejection of the latter, he adopted the views of that more violent party who urged the necessity of abolishing episcopacy altogether. But, notwithstanding his recognised position as a leader of his party, and his known weight in determining the line of conduct to be pursued by it, he was not a frequent speaker, and his name therefore occurs less frequently than would be expected in the records of this eventful period. “His practice was usually to reserve himself until near the close of a debate; and then, having watched its progress, to endeavour to moderate the redundancies of his friends, to weaken the impression produced by its opponents, to confirm the timid, and to reconcile the reluctant. And this he did, according to the testimony of his opponents themselves, with a modesty, gentleness, and apparent diffidence in his own judgment, which generally brought men round to his conclusions.”—(Memorials of Hampden, ii. 47.) He was one of the five members accused of treason, and demanded personally by Charles in the House of Commons, January 6, 1642; “and from this time,” says Clarendon, “his nature and carriage seemed much fiercer than it did before.” Unquestionably that ill-advised step was not likely to conciliate those whose life was aimed at, but it is also clear that before that event, the party, with whom he acted, were preparing for a struggle more serious than that in which they were as yet engaged. A Committee of Public Safety was formed, of which Hampden was a member, the power of the sword was claimed by the Ordinance of Militia, the king on his part issued his Commission of Array, and at last raised his standard at Nottingham, August 22.