The birth of a son to King Charles and his wife the Queen, was greeted most enthusiastically in the three kingdoms during the beginning of 1668, the boy was named Charles for his father and grandfather, and was created Duke of Cornwall, Duke of Rothesay, Earl of Chest and Earl of Carrick as heir to the kingdom. Having a male heir from his own body greatly improved the King's mood, as it did Parliament's, for when Parliament met in 1668, they were willing to grant the King a rather sizeable sum for that year's worth expenses to go with the life grant that had been granted to him before. Parliament only met for that one meeting, for the King in a rather smart move had called it for that purpose then prorogued it. However, the beginnings of the end of that fractured unit the Cabal, were laid during the year of 1668, for Buckingham and Shaftesbury so often at loggerheads were increasingly clashing over the issues of foreign policy, with Buckingham in favour of pursuing a pro French policy to keep the Dutch at bay, whilst Shaftesbury wanted the Dutch kept on side. Furthermore, the earl's guardianship over the young Duke of Cambridge, was proving to be quite the sticking point between the man and the Duke of York, for the Duke was worried that his son was being exposed to all kinds of heretical and puritannical ideas, that would not be good for his soul.
. Do go on.