THE HISTORY OF ENGLAND
Volume II.
BY DAVID HUME, ESQ.
1688
London: James S. Virtue, City Road and Ivy Lane
New York: 26 John Street
1860
In Three Volumes:
VOLUME ONE: The History Of England From The Invasion Of Julius Cæsar To
The End Of The Reign Of James The Second............ By David Hume, Esq.
VOLUME TWO: Continued from the Reign of William and Mary to the Death of
George II........................................... by Tobias Smollett.
VOLUME THREE: From the Accession of George III. to the Twenty-Third Year
of the Reign of Queen Victoria............... by E. Farr and E.H. Nolan.
VOLUME TWO
CONTINUATION
OF
THE HISTORY OF ENGLAND,
BY TOBIAS SMOLLETT, M.D.
[Illustration: 2-frontis-marlborough.jpg FRONTISPIECE: MARLEBOROUGH]
[Illustration: titlepage11.jpg TITLEPAGE: EXECUTION OF DUDLEY]
MAPS:
[Illustration: map5.jpg MAP OF INDIA]
[Illustration: map6.jpg MAP OF UNITED STATES]
[Illustration: map7.jpg MAP OF SCOTLAND]
[Illustration: map8.jpg MAP OF THE BALTIC]
CHAPTER I.
WILLIAM AND MARY.
_State of the Nation immediately after the Revolution.....
Account of the new Ministry..... The Convention converted
into a Parliament..... Mutiny in the Army..... The
Coronation, and abolition of Hearth-money..... The Commons
vote a Sum of Money to indemnify the Dutch..... William’s
Efforts in Favour of the Dissenters..... Act for a
Toleration..... Violent disputes about the Bill for a
Comprehension..... The Commons address the King to summon a
Convocation of the Clergy..... Settlement of the
Revenue..... The King takes Umbrage at the Proceedings of
the Whig-party..... Heats and Animosities about the Bill of
Indemnity recommended by the King..... Birth of the Duke of
Gloucester..... Affairs of the Continent..... War declared
against France..... Proceedings in the Convention of
Scotland, of which the Duke of Hamilton is chosen
President..... Letters to the Convention from King William
and King James..... They recognise the authority of King
William..... They vote the Crown vacant, and pass an Act of
settlement in favour of William and Mary..... They appoint
Commissioners to make a Tender of the Crown to William, who
receives it on the conditions they propose..... Enumeration
of their Grievances..... The Convention is declared a
Parliament, and the Duke of Hamilton King’s
Commissioner..... Prelacy abolished in that Kingdom..... The
Scots dissatisfied with the King’s Conduct..... Violent
disputes in the Scotch Parliament..... which is
adjourned..... A Remonstrance presented to the King--The
Castle of Edinburgh besieged and taken-The Troops of King
William defeated at Killycrankie..... King James cordially
received by the French King..... Tyrconnel temporizes with
King William..... James arrives in Ireland..... Issues five
Proclamations at Dublin..... Siege of Londonderry..... The
Inhabitants defend themselves with surprising Courage and
Perseverance..... Cruelty of Rosene, the French General.....
The Place is relieved by Kirke..... The Inniskilliners
defeat and take General Maccarty..... Meeting of the Irish
Parliament..... They repeal the Act of Settlement..... Pass
an Act of Attainder against Absentees..... James coins base
Money..... The Protestants of Ireland cruelly oppressed.....
Their Churches are seized by the Catholics, and they are
forbid to assemble on pain of Death..... Admiral Herbert
worsted by the French Fleet in an Engagement near Ban-try-
bay..... Divers Sentences and Attainders reversed in
Parliament..... Inquiry into the Cause of Miscarriages in
Ireland..... Bills passed in this Session of Parliament._
STATE OF THE NATION IMMEDIATELY AFTER THE REVOLUTION.
{1689}
The constitution of England had now assumed a new aspect. The maxim
of hereditary indefeisible right was at length renounced by a free
parliament. The power of the crown was acknowledged to flow from no
other fountain than that of a contract with the people. Allegiance and
protection were declared reciprocal ties depending upon each other. The
representatives of the nation made a regular claim of rights in
behalf of their constituents; and William III. ascended the throne in
consequence of an express capitulation with the people. Yet, on this
occasion, the zeal of the parliament towards their deliverer seems to
have overshot their attachment to their own liberty and privileges: or
at least they neglected the fairest opportunity that ever occurred, to
retrench those prerogatives of the crown to which they imputed all the
late and former calamities of the kingdom. Their new monarch retained
the old regal power over parliaments in its full extent. He was left
at liberty to convoke, adjourn, prorogue, and dissolve them at
his pleasure. He was enabled to influence elections, and oppress
corporations. He possessed the right of choosing his own council; of
nominating all the great officers of the state, and of the household, of
the army, the navy, and the church. He reserved the absolute command
of the militia: so that lie remained master of all the instruments and
engines of corruption and violence, without any other restraint than his
own moderation, and prudent regard to the claim of rights, and principle
of resistance on which the revolution was founded. In a word, the
settlement was finished with some precipitation, before the plan had
been properly digested and matured; and this will be the case in every
establishment formed upon a sudden emergency in the face of opposition.
It was observed, that the king, who was made by the people, had it in
his power to rule without them; to govern _jure divino_ though he was
created _jure humano_: and that, though the change proceeded from a
republican spirit, the settlement was built upon tory maxims; for
the execution of his government continued still independent of his
commission, while his own person remained sacred and inviolable. The
prince of Orange had been invited to England by a coalition of parties,
united by a common sense of danger; but this tie was no sooner broken
than they flew asunder and each resumed its original bias. Their mutual
jealousy and rancour revived, and was heated by dispute into intemperate
zeal and enthusiasm. Those who at first acted from principles of
patriotism were insensibly warmed into partizans; and king William
soon found himself at the head of a faction. As he had been bred, a
Calvinist, and always expressed an abhorrence of spiritual persecution,
the presbyter-ians, and other protestant dissenters, considered him as
their peculiar protector, and entered into his interests with the most
zealous fervour and assiduity. For the same reasons the friends of
the church became jealous of his proceedings, and employed all their
influence, first in opposing his elevation to the throne, and afterwards
in thwarting his measures. Their party was espoused by all the friends
of the lineal succession; by the Roman catholics; by those who were
personally attached to the late king; and by such as were disgusted
by the conduct and personal deportment of William since his arrival
in England. They observed, That, contrary to his declaration, he
had plainly aspired to the crown; and treated his father-in-law with
insolence and rigour; that his army contained a number of foreign
papists, almost equal to that of the English Roman catholics whom James
had employed; that the reports so industriously circulated about the
birth of the prince of Wales, the treaty with France for enslaving
England, and the murder of the earl of Essex-reports countenanced by the
prince of Orange-now appeared to be without foundation; that the Dutch
troops remained in London, while the English forces were distributed in
remote quarters; that the prince declared the first should be kept about
his person, and the latter sent to Ireland; that the two houses out of
complaisance to William, had denied their late sovereign the justice of
being heard in his own defence; and that the Dutch had lately interfered
with the trade of London, which was already sensibly diminished. These
were the sources of discontent, swelled up by the resentment of some
noblemen and other individuals, disappointed in their hopes of profit
and preferment.
ACCOUNT OF THE NEW MINISTRY.
William began his reign with a proclamation, for confirming all
protestants in the offices which they enjoyed on the first day of
December; then he chose the members of his council, who were generally
staunch to his interest, except the archbishop of Canterbury and the
earl of Nottingham, and these were admitted in complaisance to the
church-party, which it was not thought adviseable to provoke. [001]
_[See note A, at the end of this Vol.]_ Nottingham and Shrewsbury were
appointed secretaries of state; the privy-seal was bestowed upon the
marquis of Halifax; the earl of Danby was created president of
the council. These two noblemen enjoyed a good share of the king’s
confidence, and Nottingham was considerable as head of the church-party:
but the chief favourite was Bentinck, first commoner on the list of
privy-counsellors, as well as groom of the stole and privy purse.
D’Averquerque was made master of the horse, Zuylestein of the robes, and
Sehomberg of the ordnance: the treasury, admiralty, and chancery were
put in commission; twelve able judges were chosen;* and the diocese of
Salisbury being vacated by the death of Dr. Ward, the king of his own
free motion filled it with Burnet, who had been a zealous stickler for
his interest; and in a particular manner instrumental in effecting the
revolution. Sancroft, archbishop of Canterbury, refused to consecrate
this ecclesiastic, though the reasons of his refusal are not specified;
but, being afraid of incurring the penalties of a premunire, he granted
a commission to the bishop of London, and three other suffragans, to
perform that ceremony. Burnet was a prelate of some parts, and great
industry; moderate in his notions of church discipline, inquisitive,
meddling, vain, and credulous. In consequence of having incurred the
displeasure of the late king, he had retired to the continent and fixed
his residence in Holland, where he was naturalized, and attached himself
to the interest of the prince of Orange, who consulted him about the
affairs of England. He assisted in drawing up the prince’s manifesto,
and wrote some other papers and pamphlets in defence of his design.
He was demanded of the States by the English ambassador as a British
fugitive, outlawed by king James, and excepted in the act of indemnity.
Nevertheless, he came over with William in quality of his chaplain; and,
by his intrigues, contributed in some measure to the success of that
expedition. The principal individuals that composed this ministry have
been characterized in the history of the preceding reigns. We have had
occasion to mention the fine talents, the vivacity, the flexibility of
Halifax; the plausibility, the enterprising genius, the obstinacy of
Danby; the pompous eloquence, the warmth, and ostentation of Nottingham;
the probity and popularity of Shrewsbury. Godolphin, now brought into
the treasury, was modest, silent, sagacious, and upright. Mordaunt,
appointed first commissioner of that board, and afterwards created earl
of Monmouth, was open, generous, and a republican in his principles.
Delamere, chancellor of the exchequer, promoted in the sequel to the
rank of earl of Warrington, was close and mercenary. Obsequiousness,
fidelity, and attachment to his master, composed the character of
Bentinck, whom the king raised to the dignity of earl of Portland. The
English favourite, Sidney, was a man of wit and pleasure, possessed of
the most engaging talents for conversation and private friendship, but
rendered unfit for public business by indolence and inattention. He
was ennobled, and afterwards created earl of Romney; a title which he
enjoyed with several successive posts of profit and importance. The
stream of honour and preferment ran strong in favour of the whigs, and
this appearance of partiality confirmed the suspicion and resentment of
the opposite party.
* Sir John Holt was appointed lord chief justice of the king’s
bench, and Sir Henry Pollexfen of the common pleas: the
earl of Devonshire was made lord steward of the
household, and the earl of Dorset lord
chamberlain.--_Ralph._
{WILLIAM AND MARY, 1688--1701.}
THE CONVENTION CONVERTED INTO A PARLIAMENT.
The first resolution taken in the new council was to convert the
convention into a parliament, that the new settlement might be
strengthened by a legal sanction, which was now supposed to be wanting,
as the assembly had not been convoked by the king’s writ of summons.
The experiment of a new election was deemed too hazardous; therefore the
council determined that the king should, by virtue of his own authority,
change the convention into a parliament, by going to the house of peers
with the usual state of a sovereign, and pronouncing a speech from the
throne to both houses. This expedient was accordingly practised. [002]
_[See note B, at the end of this Vol.]_ He assured them he should never
take any step that would diminish the good opinion they had conceived
of his integrity. He told them that Holland was in such a situation as
required their immediate attention and assistance; that the posture of
affairs at home likewise demanded their serious consideration; that
a good settlement was necessary, not only for the establishment of
domestic peace, but also for the support of the protestant interest
abroad: that the affairs of Ireland were too critically situated to
admit the least delay in their deliberations; he therefore begged they
would be speedy and effectual in concerting such measures as should
be judged indispensably necessary for the welfare of the nation. The
commons returning to their house, immediately passed a vote of thanks
to his majesty, and made an order that his speech should be taken into
consideration. After the throne had been declared vacant by a small
majority of the peers, those who opposed that measure had gradually
withdrawn themselves from the house, so that very few remained but such
as were devoted to the new monarch. These therefore brought in a bill
for preventing all disputes concerning the present parliament. In the
meantime, Mr. Hambden, in the lower house, put the question, Whether
a king elected by the lords spiritual and temporal, and the commons
assembled at Westminster, coming to and consulting with the said lords
and commons, did not make as complete a parliament and legislative
power and authority as if the said king should cause new elections to
be made by writ? Many members affirmed that the king’s writ was as
necessary as his presence to the being of a legal parliament, and as the
convention was defective in this particular, it could not be vested
with a parliamentary authority by any management whatsoever. The whigs
replied, That the essence of a parliament consisted in the meeting
and co-operation of the king, lords, and commons; and that it was not
material whether they were convoked by writ or by letter: they proved
this assertion by examples deduced from the history of England: they
observed that a new election would be attended with great trouble,
expense, and loss of time; and that such delay might prove fatal to
the protestant interest in Ireland, as well as to the allies on the
continent. In the midst of this debate the bill was brought down from
the lords, and being read, a committee was appointed to make some
amendments. These were no sooner made than the commons sent it back to
the upper house, and it immediately received the royal assent. By this
act the lords and commons assembled at Westminster were declared the two
houses of parliament to all intents and purposes: it likewise ordained,
That the present act, and all other acts to which the royal assent
should be given before the next prorogation, should be understood and
adjudged in law to begin on the thirteenth day of February: that the
members, instead of the old oaths of allegiance and supremacy, should
take the new oath incorporated in this act under the ancient penalty;
and that the present parliament should be dissolved in the usual manner.
Immediately after this transaction a warm debate arose in the house of
commons about the revenue, which the courtiers alleged had devolved with
the crown upon William, at least during the life of James, for which
term the greater part of it had been granted. The members in the
opposition affirmed that these grants were vacated with the throne; and
at length it was voted, That the revenue had expired. Then a motion was
made, That a revenue should be settled on the king and queen; and
the house resolved it should be taken into consideration. While they
deliberated on this affair they received a message from his majesty,
importing that the late king had set sail from Brest with an armament to
invade Ireland. They forthwith resolved to assist his majesty with
their lives and fortunes; they voted a temporary aid of four hundred and
twenty thousand pounds, to be levied by monthly assessments, and both
houses waited on the king to signify this resolution. But this unanimity
did not take place till several lords spiritual as well as temporal had,
rather than take the oaths, absented themselves from parliament. The
nonjuring prelates were Sancroft, archbishop of Canterbury; Turner,
bishop of Ely; Lake, of Chichester; Ken, of Bath and Wells; White, of
Peterborough; Lloyd, of Norwich; Thomas, of Worcester; and Frampton,
of Gloucester. The temporal peers who refused the oath were the duke
of Newcastle; the earls of Clarendon, Litchfield, Exeter, Yarmouth, and
Stafford; the lords Griffin and Stawel. Five of the bishops withdrew
themselves from the house at one time; but before they retired one of
the number moved for a bill of toleration, and another of comprehension,
by which moderate dissenters might be reconciled to the church, and
admitted into ecclesiastical benefices. Such bills were actually
prepared and presented by the earl of Nottingham, who received the
thanks of the house for the pains he had taken. From this period the
party averse to the government of William were distinguished by the
appellation of Nonjurors. They rejected the notion of a king _de facto_,
as well as all other distinctions and limitations; and declared for the
absolute power and divine hereditary indefeisible right of sovereigns.
{WILLIAM AND MARY, 1688--1701.}
MUTINY IN THE ARMY.
This faction had already begun to practise against the new government.
The king having received some intimation of their designs from
intercepted letters, ordered the earl of Arran, sir Robert Hamilton, and
some other gentlemen of the Scottish nation, to be apprehended and sent
prisoners to the Tower. Then he informed the two houses of the step he
had taken, and even craved their advice with regard to his conduct in
such a delicate affair which had compelled him to trespass upon the
law of England. The lords thanked him for the care he took of their
liberties, and desired he would secure all disturbers of the peace: but
the commons empowered him by a bill to dispense with the _habeas-corpus_
act till the seventeenth day of April next ensuing. This was a stretch
of confidence in the crown which had not been made in favour of the late
king, even while Argyle and Monmouth were in open rebellion. A spirit of
discontent had by this time diffused itself through the army, and become
so formidable to the court, that the king resolved to retain the Dutch
troops in England and send over to Holland in their room such regiments
as were most tinctured with disaffection. Of these the Scottish regiment
of Dumbarton, commanded by mareschal Schomberg, mutinied on its march
to Ipswich, seized the military chest, disarmed the officers who opposed
their design, declared for king James, and with four pieces of cannon
began their march for Scotland. William, being informed of this revolt,
ordered general Ginckel to pursue them with three regiments of
Dutch dragoons, and the mutineers surrendered at discretion. As the
delinquents were natives of Scotland, which had not yet submitted in
form to the new government, the king did not think proper to punish
them as rebels, but ordered them to proceed for Holland according to his
first intention. Though this attempt proved abortive, it made a strong
impression upon the ministry, who were divided among themselves and
wavered in their principles. However, they used this opportunity to
bring in a bill for punishing mutiny and desertion, which in a little
time passed both houses and received the royal assent.
CORONATION--ABOLITION OF HEARTH-MONEY.
The coronation oath [003] _[See note C, at the end of this Vol.]_ being
altered and explained, that ceremony was performed on the eleventh day
of April, the bishop of London officiating, at the king’s desire, in the
room of the metropolitan, who was a malcontent; and next day the commons
in a body waited on the king and queen at Whitehall, with an address of
congratulation. William, with a view to conciliate the affections of his
new subjects, and check the progress of clamour and discontent,
signified in a solemn message to the house of commons, his readiness to
acquiesce in any measure they should think proper to take for a new
regulation or total suppression of the hearth-money, which he understood
was a grievous imposition on his subjects; and this tax was afterwards
abolished. He was gratified with an address of thanks, couched in the
warmest expressions of duty, gratitude, and affection, declaring they
would take such measures in support of his crown, as would convince the
world that he reigned in the hearts of his people.
THE COMMONS VOTE MONEY TO INDEMNIFY THE DUTCH.
He had, in his answer to their former address, assured them of his
constant regard to the rights and prosperity of the nation: he had
explained the exhausted state of the Dutch; expatiated upon the zeal of
that republic for the interests of Britain, as well as the maintenance
of the protestant religion; and expressed his hope that the English
parliament would not only repay the sums they had expended in his
expedition, but likewise further support them to the utmost of their
ability against the common enemies of their liberties and religion. He
had observed that a considerable army and fleet would be necessary for
the reduction of Ireland and the protection of Britain, and he desired
they would settle the revenue in such a manner that it might be
collected without difficulty and dispute. The sum total of the money
expended by the states-general in William’s expedition amounted to
seven millions of guilders, and the commons granted six hundred thousand
pounds for the discharge of this debt, incurred for the preservation of
their rights and religion. They voted funds for raising and maintaining
an army of two-and-twenty thousand men, as well as for equipping
a numerous fleet: but they provided for no more than half a year’s
subsistence of the troops, hoping the reduction of Ireland might
be finished in that term; and this instance of frugality the king
considered as a mark of their diffidence of his administration. The
whigs were resolved to supply him gradually, that he might be the more
dependent upon their zeal and attachment; but he was not at all pleased
with their precaution.
WILLIAM’S EFFORTS IN FAVOUR OF DISSENTEES.
William was naturally biassed to Calvinism, and averse to persecution.
Whatever promises he had made, and whatever sentiments of respect he had
entertained for the church of England, he seemed now in a great measure
alienated from it by the opposition he had met with from its members,
particularly from the bishops who had thwarted his measures. By
absenting themselves from parliament, and refusing the oath, they had
plainly disowned his title and renounced his government. He therefore
resolved to mortify the church, and gratify his own friends at the
same time, by removing the obstacles affixed to nonconformity, that
all protestant dissenters should be rendered capable of enjoying and
exercising civil employments. When he gave his assent to the bill for
suspending the _habeas-corpus_ act, he recommended the establishment of
a new oath in lieu of those of allegiance and supremacy: he expressed
his hope that they would leave room for the admission of all his
protestant subjects who should be found qualified for the service;
he said, such a conjunction would unite them the more firmly among
themselves, and strengthen them against their common adversaries.
In consequence of this hint, a clause was inserted in the bill
for abrogating the old and appointing the new oaths, by which the
sacramental test was declared unnecessary in rendering any person
capable of enjoying any office or employment. It was, however, rejected
by a great majority in the house of lords. Another clause for the
same purpose, though in different terms, was proposed by the king’s
direction, and met with the same fate, though in both cases several
noblemen entered a protest against the resolution of the house. These
fruitless efforts in favour of dissenters augmented the prejudice of the
churchmen against king William, who would have willingly compromised
the difference by excusing the clergy from the oaths, provided the
dissenters might be exempted from the sacramental test: but this was
deemed the chief bulwark of the church, and therefore the proposal was
rejected. The church party in the house of lords moved, That instead
of inserting a clause obliging the clergy to take the oaths, the king
should be empowered to tender them; and, in case of their refusal, they
should incur the penalty, because deprivation, or the apprehensions of
it, might make them desperate and excite them to form designs against
the government. This argument had no weight with the commons, who
thought it was indispensably necessary to exact the oaths of the clergy,
as their example influenced the kingdom in general, and the youth of
the nation were formed under their instructions. After a long and
warm debate, all the mitigation that could be obtained was a clause
empowering the king to indulge any twelve clergymen, deprived by virtue
of this act, with a third part of their benefices during pleasure.
Thus the ancient oaths of allegiance and supremacy were abrogated: the
declaration of non-resistance in the act of uniformity was repealed: the
new oath of allegiance was reduced to its primitive simplicity, and the
coronation-oath rendered more explicit. The clergy were enjoined to take
the new oaths before the first day of August, on pain of being suspended
from their office for six months, and of entire deprivation, in case
they should not take them before the expiration of this term. They
generally complied, though with such reservations and distinctions as
were not much for the honour of their sincerity.
ACT FOR A TOLERATION.
The king, though baffled in his design against the sacramental test,
resolved to indulge the dissenters with a toleration; and a bill for
this purpose being prepared by the earl of Nottingham, was, after some
debate, passed into a law, under the title of an act for exempting their
majesties’ protestant subjects, dissenting from the church of England,
from the penalties of certain laws. It enacted, That none of the penal
laws should be construed to extend to those dissenters who should take
the oaths to the present government, and subscribe the declaration of
the thirtieth year of the reign of Charles II. provided that they should
hold no private assemblies or conventicles with the doors shut; that
nothing should be construed to exempt them from the payment of tithes or
other parochial duties: that, in case of being chosen into the office
of constable, churchwarden, overseer, &c. and of scrupling to take the
oaths annexed to such offices, they should be allowed to execute the
employment by deputy: that the preachers and teachers in congregations
of dissenting protestants who should take the oaths, subscribe the
declaration, together with all the articles of religion, except
the thirty-fourth and the two succeeding articles, and part of the
twentieth, should be exempted from the penalties decreed against
non-conformists, as well as from serving upon juries, or acting in
parish offices: yet all justices of the peace were empowered to require
such dissenters to subscribe the declaration and take the oaths; and, in
case of refusal, to commit them to prison without bail or mainprize.
The same indulgence was extended to anabaptists, and even to quakers,
on their solemn promise before God to be faithful to the king and queen,
and their assenting by profession and asseveration to those articles
which the others ratified upon oath: they were likewise required to
profess their belief in the Trinity and the Holy Scriptures. Even the
papists felt the benign influence of William’s moderation in spiritual
matters: he rejected the proposal of some zealots, who exhorted him to
enact severe laws against popish recusants. Such a measure, he observed,
would alienate all the papists of Europe from the interests of England,
and might produce a new Catholic league which would render the war
a religious quarrel; besides, he would not pretend to screen the
protestants of Germany and Hungary, while he himself should persecute
the Catholics of England. He therefore resolved to treat them with
lenity; and though they were not comprehended in the act, they enjoyed
the benefit of the toleration.
{WILLIAM AND MARY, 1688--1701.}
VIOLENT DISPUTES ABOUT THE BILL FOR A COMPREHENSION.
We have observed that, in consequence of the motion made by the bishops
when they withdrew from parliament, a bill was brought into the house
of lords for uniting their majesties’ protestant subjects. This was
extremely agreeable to the king, who had the scheme of comprehension
very much at heart. In the progress of the bill a warm debate arose
about the posture of kneeling at the sacrament, which was given up
in favour of the dissenters. Another no less violent ensued upon the
subsequent question, “Whether there should be an addition of laity in
the commission to be given by the king to the bishops and others of the
clergy, for preparing such a reformation of ecclesiastical affairs as
might be the means of healing divisions, and correcting whatever might
be erroneous or defective in the constitution.” A great number of
the temporal lords insisted warmly on this addition, and when it was
rejected four peers entered a formal protest. Bishop Burnet was a
warm stickler for the exclusion of the laity; and, in all probability,
manifested this warmth in hopes of ingratiating himself with his
brethren, among whom his character was very far from being popular. But
the merit of this sacrifice was destroyed by the arguments he had used
for dispensing with the posture of kneeling at the sacrament; and by his
proposing in another proviso of the bill, that the subscribers, instead
of expressing assent or consent, should only submit with a promise of
conformity.
THE COMMONS ADDRESS THE KING TO SUMMON A CONVOCATION.
The bill was with difficulty passed in the house of lords, but the
commons treated it with neglect. By this time a great number of
malcontent members, who had retired from parliament, were returned with
a view to thwart the administration, though they could not prevent
the settlement. Instead of proceeding with the bill they presented
an address to the king, thanking him for his gracious declaration and
repeated assurances that he would maintain the church of England as by
law established; a church whose doctrine and practice had evinced its
loyalty beyond all contradiction. They likewise humbly besought his
majesty to issue writs for calling a convocation of the clergy, to be
consulted in ecclesiastical matters according to the ancient usage
of parliaments; and they declared they would forthwith take into
consideration proper methods for giving ease to protestant dissenters.
Though the king was displeased at this address, in which the lords also
had concurred, he returned a civil answer by the mouth of the earl
of Nottingham, professing his regard for the church of England, which
should always be his peculiar care, recommending the dissenters to their
protection, and promising to summon a convocation as soon as such a
measure should be convenient. This message produced no effect in favour
of the bill which lay neglected on the table. Those who moved for it
had no other view than that of displaying their moderation: and now they
excited their friends to oppose it with all their interest. Others were
afraid of espousing it lost they should be stigmatized as enemies to the
church; and a great number of the most eminent presbyterians wore
averse to a scheme of comprehension, which diminished their strength and
weakened the importance of the party. Being therefore violently opposed
on one hand, and but faintly supported on the other, no wonder it
miscarried. The king however was so bent upon the execution of his
design, that it was next session revived in another form though with no
better success.
SETTLEMENT OF THE REVENUE.
The next object that engrossed the attention of the parliament was the
settlement of a revenue for the support of the government. Hitherto
there had been no distinction of what was allotted for the king’s
use, and what was assigned for the service of the public; so that the
sovereign was entirely master of the whole supply. As the revenue in the
late reigns had been often embezzled and misapplied, it was now resolved
that a certain sum should be set apart for the maintenance of the king’s
household and the support of his dignity; and that the rest of the
public money should be employed under the inspection of parliament.
Accordingly, since this period, the commons have appropriated the
yearly supplies to certain specified services; and an account of the
application has been constantly submitted to both houses at the next
session. At this juncture the prevailing party, or the whigs, determined
that the revenue should be granted from year to year, or at least for a
small term of years; that the king might find himself dependent upon
the parliament, and merit the renewal of the grant by a just and popular
administration. In pursuance of this maxim, when the revenue fell under
consideration, they, under pretence of charges and anticipations which
they had not time to examine, granted it by a provisional act for one
year only. The civil list was settled at six hundred thousand pounds,
chargeable with the appointments of the queen dowager, the prince and
princess of Denmark, the judges, and mareschal Schomberg, to whom
the parliament had already granted one hundred thousand pounds, in
consideration of his important services to the nation. The commons also
voted that a constant revenue of twelve hundred thousand pounds should
be established for the support of the crown in time of peace.
THE KING TAKES UMBRAGE AT THE PROCEEDINGS OF THE WHIG PARTY.
The king took umbrage at these restraints laid upon the application of
the public money, which were the most salutary fruits of the revolution.
He considered them as marks of diffidence by which he was distinguished
from his predecessors; and thought them an ungrateful return for the
services he had done the nation. The tories perceived his disgust, and
did not fail to foment his jealousy against their adversaries, which
was confirmed by a fresh effort of the whigs in relation to a militia.
A bill was brought into the house for regulating it in such a manner as
would have rendered it in a great measure independent both of the king
and the lords-lieutenants of counties. These being generally peers,
the bill was suffered to lie neglected on the table, but the attempt
confirmed the suspicion of the king, who began to think himself in
danger of being enslaved by a republican party. The tories had, by the
channel of Nottingham, made proffers of service to his majesty; but
complained at the same time that as they were in danger of being
prosecuted for their lives and fortunes, they could not, without an act
of indemnity, exert themselves in favour of the crown, lest they should
incur a persecution from their implacable enemies.
HEATS AND ANIMOSITIES ABOUT THE BILL OF INDEMNITY.
These remonstrances made such an impression on the king, that he sent a
message to the house by Mr. Hambden, recommending a bill of indemnity
as the most effectual means for putting an end to all controversies,
distinctions, and occasions of discord. He desired it might be prepared
with all convenient expedition, and with such exceptions only as should
seem necessary for the vindication of public justice, the safety of
him and his consort, and the settlement and welfare of the nation. An
address of thanks to his majesty was unanimously voted. Nevertheless,
his design was frustrated by the backwardness of the whigs, who
proceeded so slowly on the bill that it could not be brought to maturity
before the end of the session. They wanted to keep the scourge over the
heads of their enemies until they should find a proper opportunity for
revenge; and, in the meantime, restrain them from opposition by the
terror of impending vengeance. They affected to insinuate that the
king’s design was to raise the prerogative as high as it had been in
the preceding reigns; and that he for this purpose pressed an act of
indemnity, by virtue of which he might legally use the instruments of
the late tyranny. The earls of Monmouth and Warrington industrously
infused these jealousies into the minds of their party: on the other
hand, the earl of Nottingham inflamed William’s distrust of his old
friends: both sides succeeded in kindling an animosity, which had like
to have produced confusion, notwithstanding the endeavours used by the
earls of Shrewsbury and Devonshire, to allay those heats and remove the
suspicions that mutually prevailed.
BIRTH OF THE DUKE OF GLOUCESTER.
It was now judged expedient to pass an act for settling the succession
of the crown according to the former resolution of the convention. A
bill for this purpose was brought into the lower house, with a clause
disabling papists from succeeding to the throne: to this the lords
added, “Or such as should marry papists,” absolving the subject in that
case from allegiance, The bishop of Salisbury, by the king’s direction,
proposed that the princess Sophia, duchess of Hanover, and her
posterity, should be nominated in the act of succession as the next
protestant heirs, failing issue of the king and Anne princess of
Denmark. These amendments gave rise to warm debates in the lower house,
where they were vigorously opposed, not only by those who wished well in
secret to the late king and the lineal succession, but likewise by the
republican party, who hoped to see monarchy altogether extinguished in
England by the death of the three persons already named in the bill
of succession. The lords insisted upon their amendments, and several
fruitless conferences were held between the two houses. At length the
bill was dropt for the present in consequence of an event which in a
great measure dissipated the fears of a popish successor. This was the
delivery of the princess Anne, who, on the twenty-seventh day of July,
brought forth a son, christened by the name of William, and afterwards
created duke of Gloucester.
AFFAIRS OF THE CONTINENT.
In the midst of these domestic disputes, William did not neglect the
affairs of the continent. He retained all his former influence in
Holland, as his countrymen had reason to confide in his repeated
assurances of inviolable affection. The great scheme which he had
projected of a confederacy against France began at this period to
take effect. The princes of the empire assembled in the diet, solemnly
exhorted the emperor to declare war against the French king, who had
committed numberless infractions of the treaties of Munster, Osnabruck,
Nimeguen, and the truce, invaded their country without provocation,
and evinced himself an inveterate enemy of the holy Roman empire. They
therefore besought his imperial majesty to conclude a treaty of peace
with the Turks, who had offered advantageous terms, and proceed to an
open rupture with Louis, in which case they would consider it as a war
of the empire, and support their head in the most effectual manner. The
states-general published a declaration against the common enemy, taxing
him with manifold infractions of the treaty of commerce; with having
involved the subjects of the republic in the persecution which he had
raised against the protestants; with having cajoled and insulted them
with deceitful promises and insolent threats; with having plundered and
oppressed the Dutch merchants and traders in France; and, finally, with
having declared war against the states without any plausible reason
assigned. The elector of Brandenburg denounced war against France as
a power whose perfidy, cruelty, and ambition, it was the duty of every
prince to oppose. The marquis de Castanaga, governor of the Spanish
Netherlands, issued a counter declaration to that of Louis, who had
declared against his master. He accused the French king of having laid
waste the empire, without any regard to the obligations of religion and
humanity, or even to the laws of war; of having countenanced the most
barbarous acts of cruelty and oppression; and of having intrigued with
the enemies of Christ for the destruction of the empire. The emperor
negotiated an alliance offensive and defensive with the states-general,
binding the contracting parties to co-operate with their whole power
against France and her allies. It was stipulated that neither side
should engage in a separate treaty on any pretence whatsoever; that no
peace should be admitted until the treaties of Westphalia, Osnabruck,
Minister, and the Pyrenees, should have been vindicated; that, in case
of a negotiation for a peace or truce, the transactions on both sides
should be communicated _bona fide_; and that Spain and England should be
invited to accede to the treaty. In a separate article, the contracting
powers agreed, that, in case of the Spanish king’s dying without issue,
the states-general should assist the emperor with all their forces to
take possession of that monarchy: that they should use their friendly
endeavours with the princes electors, their allies, towards elevating
his son Joseph to the dignity of king of the Romans, and employ their
utmost force against France should she attempt to oppose his elevation.
{WILLIAM AND MARY, 1688--1701.}
WAR DECLARED AGAINST FRANCE.
William, who was the soul of this confederacy, found no difficulty in
persuading the English to undertake a war against their old enemies and
rivals. On the sixteenth day of April, Mr. Hambden made a motion for
taking into consideration the state of the kingdom with respect to
France, and foreign alliances; and the commons unanimously resolved,
that, in case his majesty should think fit to engage in a war with
France, they would, in a parliamentary way, enable him to carry it on
with vigour. An address was immediately drawn up and presented to the
king, desiring that he would seriously consider the destructive methods
taken of late years by the French king against the trade, quiet, and
interest of the nation, particularly his present invasion of Ireland,
and supporting the rebels in that kingdom. They did not doubt but the
alliances already made, and those that might hereafter be concluded by
his majesty, would be sufficient to reduce the French king to such a
condition, that it should not be in his power to violate the peace of
Christendom, nor prejudice the trade and prosperity of England; in the
mean time they assured his majesty he might depend upon the assistance
of his parliament, according to the vote which had passed in the house
of commons. This was a welcome address to king William. He assured them
that no part of the supplies which they might grant for the prosecution
of the war should be misapplied; and, on the seventh day of May, he
declared war against the French monarch. On this occasion, Louis was
charged with having ambitiously invaded the territories of the emperor,
and denounced war against the allies of England, in violation of the
treaties confirmed under the guarantee of the English crown; with
having encroached upon the fishery of Newfoundland, invaded the Caribbee
Islands, taken forcible possession of New-York and Hudson’s-bay, made
depredations on the English at sea, prohibited the importation of
English manufactures, disputed the right of the flag, persecuted many
English subjects on account of religion, contrary to express treaties
and the law of nations, and sent an armament to Ireland, in support of
the rebels of that kingdom.
PROCEEDINGS IN THE CONVENTION.
Having thus described the progress of the revolution in England, we
shall now briefly explain the measures that were prosecuted in Scotland,
towards the establishment of William on the throne of that kingdom. The
meeting of the Scottish convention was fixed for the fourteenth day of
March; and both parties employed all their interest to influence the
election of members. The duke of Hamilton, and all the presbyterians,
declared for William. The duke of Gordon maintained the castle of
Edinburgh for his old master; but, as he had neglected to lay in a store
of provisions, he depended entirely upon the citizens for subsistence.
The partisans of James were headed by the earl of Balcarras, and Graham
viscount Dundee, who employed their endeavours to preserve union among
the individuals of their party; to confirm the duke of Gordon, who
began to waver in his attachment to their sovereign; and to manage their
intrigues in such a manner as to derive some advantage to their cause
from the transactions of the ensuing session. When the lords and commons
assembled at Edinburgh, the bishop of that diocese, who officiated as
chaplain to the convention, prayed for the restoration of king James.
The first dispute turned upon the choice of a president. The friends of
the late king set up the marquis of Athol in opposition to the duke of
Hamilton; but this last was elected by a considerable majority; and
a good number of the other party, finding their cause the weakest,
deserted it from that moment. The earls of Lothian and Tweedale were
sent as deputies, to require the duke of Gordon, in the name of the
estates, to quit the castle in four-and-twenty hours, and leave the
charge of it to the protestant officer next in command. The duke, though
in himself irresolute, was animated by Dundee to demand such conditions
as the convention would not grant. The négociation proving ineffectual,
the states ordered the heralds, in all their formalities, to summon him
to surrender the castle immediately, on pain of incurring the penalties
of high treason; and he refusing to obey their mandate, was proclaimed
a traitor. All persons were forbid, under the same penalties, to aid,
succour, or correspond with him; and the castle was blocked up with the
troops of the city.
LETTERS TO THE CONVENTION FROM KING WILLIAM AND KING JAMES.
Next day an express arrived from London, with a letter from king William
to the estates; and, at the same time, another from James was presented
by one Crane, an English domestic of the abdicated queen. William
observed that he had called a meeting of their estates at the desire of
the nobility and gentry of Scotland assembled at London, who requested
that he would take upon himself the administration of their affairs. He
exhorted them to concert measures for settling the peace of the kingdom
upon a solid foundation; and to lay aside animosities and factions,
which served only to impede that salutary settlement. He professed
himself sensible of the good effects that would arise from an union of
the two kingdoms; and assured them he would use his best endeavours
to promote such a coalition. A committee being appointed to draw up a
respectful answer to these assurances, a debate ensued about the letter
from the late king James. This they resolved to favour with a reading,
after the members should have subscribed an act, declaring that
notwithstanding any thing that might be contained in the letter for
dissolving the convention, or impeding their procedure, they were a free
and lawful meeting of the states; and would continue undissolved until
they should have settled and secured the protestant religion, the
government, laws, and liberties of the kingdom. Having taken this
precaution, they proceeded to examine the letter of the late sovereign,
who conjured them to support his interest as faithful subjects, and
eternize their names by a loyalty suitable to their former professions.
He said he would not fail to give them such a speedy and powerful
assistance as would enable them to defend themselves from any foreign
attempt; and even to assert his right against those enemies who had
depressed it by the blackest usurpations and unnatural attempts, which
the Almighty God would not allow to pass unpunished. He offered pardon
to all those who should return to their duty before the last day of the
month; and threatened to punish rigorously such as should stand out in
rebellion against him and his authority.
THE CONVENTION RECOGNIZE THE AUTHORITY OF KING WILLIAM.
This address produced very little effect in favour of the unfortunate
exile, whose friends were greatly outnumbered in this assembly. His
messenger was ordered into custody, and afterwards dismissed with a
pass instead of an answer. James, foreseeing this contempt, had, by an
instrument dated in Ireland, authorised the archbishop of Glasgow, the
earl of Balcarras, and the viscount Dundee, to call a convention of the
estates at Stirling. These three depended on the interest of the marquis
of Athol and the earl of Mar, who professed the warmest affection
for the late king; and they hoped a secession of their friends would
embarrass the convention, so as to retard the settlement of king
William. Their expectations, however, were disappointed. Athol deserted
their cause; and Mar suffered himself to be intercepted in his retreat.
The rest of their party were, by the vigilance of the duke of Hamilton,
prevented from leaving the convention, except the viscount Dundee, who
retreated to the mountains with about fifty horse, and was pursued
by order of the estates. This design being frustrated, the convention
approved and recognized, by a solemn act, the conduct of the nobility
and gentlemen who had entreated the king of England to take upon him
the administration. They acknowledged their obligation to the prince of
Orange, who had prevented the destruction of their laws, religion, and
fundamental constitution; they besought his highness to assume the reins
of government for that kingdom; they issued a proclamation requiring
all persons, from sixteen to sixty, to be in readiness to take arms
when called upon for that purpose; they conferred the command of their
horse-militia upon sir Patrick Hume, who was formerly attainted for
having been concerned in Argyle’s insurrection; they levied eight
hundred men for a guard to the city of Edinburgh, and constituted the
earl of Leven their commander; they put the militia all over the kingdom
into the hands of those on whom they could rely; they created the earl
of Mar governor of Stirling-castle; they received a reinforcement of
five regiments from England under the command of Mac-kay, whom they
appointed their general; and they issued orders for securing all
disaffected persons. Then they dispatched lord Ross with an answer to
king William’s letter, professing their gratitude to their deliverer,
and congratulating him upon his success. They thanked him for assuming
the administration of their affairs, and assembling a convention of
their estates.
They declared they would take effectual and speedy measures for securing
the protestant religion, as well as for establishing the government,
laws, and liberties of the kingdom. They assured him they would, as much
as lay in their power, avoid disputes and animosities; and desired the
continuance of his majesty’s care and protection.
CROWN VOTED VACANT, AND AN ACT OF SETTLEMENT PASSED.
After the departure of lord Ross, they appointed a committee, consisting
of eight lords, eight knights, and as many burgesses, to prepare the
plan of a new settlement: but this resolution was not taken without
a vigorous opposition from some remaining adherents of the late king,
headed by the archbishop of Glasgow; all the other prelates, except
he of Edinburgh, having already deserted the convention. After warm
debates, the committee agreed in the following vote:--“The estates of
the kingdom of Scotland find and declare, That king James VII. being a
profest papist, did assume the royal power, and act as a king, without
ever taking the oath required by law; and had, by the advice of evil
and wicked counsellors, invaded the fundamental constitution of
this kingdom, and altered it from a legal and limited monarchy to an
arbitrary despotic power, and had governed the same to the subversion of
the protestant religion, and violation of the laws and liberties of the
nation, inverting all the ends of government; whereby he had forfaulted
the right of the crown, and the throne was become vacant.” When this
vote was reported, the bishop of Edinburgh argued strenuously against
it, as containing a charge of which the king was innocent; and he
proposed that his majesty should be invited to return to his Scottish
dominions. All his arguments were defeated or overruled, and the house
confirmed the vote, which was immediately enacted into a law by a great
majority. The lord president declared the throne vacant, and proposed
that it might be filled with William and Mary, king and queen of
England. The committee was ordered to prepare an act for settling the
crown upon their majesties, together with an instrument of government
for securing the subjects from the grievances under which they
laboured.
{WILLIAM AND MARY, 1688--1701.}
THE CROWN TENDERED TO WILLIAM.
On the eleventh day of April, this act, with the conditions of
inheritance, and the instrument, were reported, considered, unanimously
approved, and solemnly proclaimed at the market-cross of Edinburgh,
in presence of the lord president, assisted by the lord provost and
magistracy of the city, the duke of Queensbury, the marquisses of Athol
and Douglas, together with a great number of the nobility and gentry.
At the same time they published another proclamation, forbidding all
persons to acknowledge, obey, assist, or correspond with the late king
James; or by word, writing, or sermon, to dispute or disown the
royal authority of king William and queen Mary; or to misconstrue the
proceedings of the estates, or create jealousies or misapprehensions
with regard to the transactions of the government, on pain of incurring
the most severe penalties. Then, having settled the coronation oath,
they granted a commission to the earl of Argyle for the lords, to sir
James Montgomery for the knights, and to sir John Dalrymple for
the boroughs, empowering them to repair to London, and invest their
majesties with the government. This affair being discussed, the
convention appointed a committee to take care of the public peace, and
adjourned to the twenty-first day of May. On the eleventh day of that
month, the Scottish commissioners being introduced to their majesties at
Whitehall, presented first a preparatory letter from the estates, then
the instrument of government, with a paper containing a recital of the
grievances of the nation; and an address desiring his majesty to convert
the convention into a parliament. The king having graciously promised to
concur with them in all just measures for the interest of the kingdom,
the coronation oath was tendered to their majesties by the earl of
Argyle. As it contained a clause, importing that they should root out
heresy, the king declared, that he did not mean by these words that he
should be under an obligation to act as a persecutor: the commissioners
replying that such was not the meaning or import of the oath, he desired
them, and others present, to bear witness to the exception he had made.
THE CONVENTION STATE THEIR GRIEVANCES.
In the meantime lord Dundee exerted himself with uncommon activity in
behalf of his master. He had been summoned by a trumpet to return to the
convention, refused to obey the citation on pretence that the whigs had
made an attempt upon his life; and that the deliberations of the estates
were influenced by the neighbourhood of English troops, under the
command of Mackay. He was forthwith declared a fugitive, outlaw, and
rebel. He was rancorously hated by the pres-byterians, on whom he had
exercised some cruelties as an officer under the former government:
and for this reason the states resolved to inflict upon him exemplary
punishment. Parties were detached in pursuit of him and Balcarras. This
last fell into their hands, and was committed to a common prison;
but Dundee fought his way through the troops that surrounded him, and
escaped to the Highlands, where he determined to take arms in favour
of James, though that prince had forbid him to make any attempt of this
nature until he should receive a reinforcement from Ireland. While this
officer was employed in assembling the clans of his party, king
William appointed the duke of Hamilton commissioner to the convention
parliament. The post of secretary for Scotland was bestowed upon lord
Melvil, a weak and servile nobleman, who had taken refuge in Holland
from the violence of the late reigns: but the king depended chiefly for
advice upon Dalrymple lord Stair, president of the college of justice,
an old crafty fanatic, who for forty years had complied in all things
with all governments. Though these were rigid pres-byterians, the king,
to humour the opposite party, admitted some individuals of the episcopal
nobility to the council-board; and this intermixture, instead of
allaying animosities, served only to sow the seeds of discord and
confusion. The Scottish convention, in their detail of grievances,
enumerated the lords of the articles; the act of parliament in the reign
of Charles II. by which the king’s supremacy was raised so high that he
could prescribe any mode of religion according to his pleasure; and the
superiority of any office in the church above that of presbyters. The
king in his instructions to the lord commissioner, consented to the
regulation of the lords of the articles, though he would not allow the
institution to be abrogated; he was contented that the act relating to
the king’s supremacy should be rescinded, and that the church government
should be established in such a manner as would be most agreeable to the
inclinations of the people.
PRELACY ABOLISHED IN SCOTLAND.
On the seventeenth day of June, duke Hamilton opened the Scottish
parliament, after the convention had assumed this name, in consequence
of an act passed by his majesty’s direction; but the members in general
were extremely chagrined when they found the commissioners so much
restricted in the affair of the lords of the articles, which they
considered as their chief grievance. [008] _[See note D, at the end of
this Vol.]_ The king permitted that the estates should choose the lords
by their own suffrages, and that they should be at liberty to reconsider
any subject which the said lords might reject. He afterwards indulged
the three estates with the choice of eleven delegates each, for this
committee, to be elected monthly, or oftener if they should think fit:
but even these concessions proved unsatisfactory while the institution
itself remained. Their discontents were not even appeased by the passing
of an act abolishing prelacy. Indeed their resentment was inflamed by
another consideration, namely, that of the king’s having given seats
in the council to some individuals attached to the hierarchy. They
manifested their sentiments on this subject by bringing in a bill
excluding from any public trust, place, or employment under their
majesties, all such as had been concerned in the encroachments of the
late reign, or had discovered disaffection to the late happy change, or
in any way retarded or obstructed the designs of the convention. This
measure was prosecuted with great warmth; and the bill passed through
all the forms of the house, but proved ineffectual for want of the royal
assent.
DISPUTES IN THE PARLIAMENT.
Nor were they less obstinate in the affair of the judges whom the
king had ventured to appoint by virtue of his own prerogative. The
malcontents brought in a bill declaring the bench vacant, as it was at
the restoration; asserting their own right to examine and approve those
who should appointed to fill it; providing that if in time to come any
such total vacancy should occur, the nomination should be in the king or
queen, or regent for the time being, and the parliament retain the right
of approbation; and that all the clauses in the several acts relating to
the admission of the ordinary lords of session, and their qualifications
for that office, should be ratified and confirmed for perpetual
observation. Such was the interest of this party, that the bill was
carried by a great majority, notwithstanding the opposition of the
ministers, who resolved to maintain the king’s nomination even in
defiance of a parliamentary resolution. The majority, exasperated at
this open violation of their privileges, forbade the judges whom the
king had appointed to open their commissions, or hold a session until
his majesty’s further pleasure should be known: on the other hand they
were compelled to act by the menaces of the privy-council. The dispute
was carried on with great acrimony on both sides, and produced such a
ferment, that before the session opened, the ministry thought proper
to draw a great number of forces into the neighbourhood of Edinburgh to
support the judges in the exercise of their functions.
SCOTCH PARLIAMENT ADJOURNED.
The lord commissioner, alarmed at this scene of tumult and confusion,
adjourned the house till the eighth day of October; a step which, added
to the other unpopular measures of the court, incensed the opposition to
a violent degree. They drew up a remonstrance to the king, complaining
of this adjournment while the nation was yet unsettled, recapitulating
the several instances in which they had expressed their zeal and
affection for his majesty; explaining their reasons for dissenting from
the ministry in some articles; beseeching him to consider what they had
represented, to give his royal assent to the acts of parliament which
they had prepared, and take measures for redressing all the other
grievances of the nation. This address was presented to the king at
Hampton-court. William was so touched with the reproaches it implied, as
if he had not fulfilled the conditions on which he accepted the crown of
Scotland, that he, in his own vindication, published his instructions
to the commissioner; and by these it appeared that the duke might have
proceeded to greater lengths in obliging his countrymen. Before the
adjournment, however, the parliament had granted the revenue for life;
and raised money for maintaining a body of forces, as well as for
supporting the incidental expense of the government for some months; yet
part of the troops in that kingdom were supplied and subsisted by the
administration of England. In consequence of these disputes in the
Scottish parliament, their church was left without any settled form of
government; for, though the hierarchy was abolished, the presbyterian
discipline was not yet established, and ecclesiastical affairs were
occasionally regulated by the privy-council, deriving its authority from
that very act of supremacy, which, according to the claim of rights,
ought to have been repealed.
THE CASTLE OF EDINBURGH BESIEGED.
The session was no sooner adjourned than sir John Lanier converted the
blockade of Edinburgh castle into a regular siege, which was prosecuted
with such vigour that in a little time the fortifications were ruined,
and the works advanced at the foot of the walls, in which the besiegers
had made several large breaches. The duke of Gordon, finding his
ammunition expended, his defences destroyed, his intelligence entirely
cut off, and despairing of relief from the adherents of his master,
desired to capitulate, and obtained very favourable terms for his
garrison; but he would not stipulate any conditions for himself,
declaring that he had so much respect for all the princes descended from
king James VI. that he would not affront any of them so far as to insist
upon terms for his own particular: he therefore, on the thirteenth day
of June, surrendered the castle and himself at discretion. All the hopes
of James and his party were now concentred in the viscount Dundee, who
had assembled a body of Highlanders, and resolved to attack Mackay, on
an assurance he had received by message, that the regiment of Scottish
dragoons would desert that officer, and join him in the action. Mackay
having received intimation of this design, decamped immediately, and by
long marches retired before Dundee, until he was reinforced by Ramsey’s
dragoons, and another regiment of English infantry: then he faced about,
and Dundee in his turn retreated into Lochaber. Lord Murray, son of the
marquis of Athol, assembled his vassals, to the number of twelve hundred
men, for the service of the regency; but he was betrayed by one of his
own dependents, who seized the castle of Blair for Dundee, and prevailed
upon the Athol men to disperse, rather than fight against James their
lawful sovereign.
{WILLIAM AND MARY, 1688--1701.}
KING WILLIAM’S TROOPS DEFEATED.
The viscount was by this time reduced to great difficulty and distress.
His men had not for many weeks tasted bread or salt, or any drink but
water: instead of five hundred infantry, three hundred horse, with a
supply of arms, ammunition, and provision, which James had promised to
send from Ireland, he received a reinforcement of three hundred naked
recruits; but the transports with the stores fell into the hands of the
English. Though this was a mortifying disappointment, he bore it without
repining; and, far from abandoning himself to despair, began his march
to the castle of Blair, which was threatened with a seige by general
Mackay. When he reached this fortress, he received intelligence that the
enemy had entered the pass of Killycrankie, and he resolved to give
them battle without delay. He accordingly advanced against them, and
a furious engagement ensued, though it was not of long duration. The
Highlanders having received and returned the fire of the English, fell
in among them sword in hand with such impetuosity, that the foot were
utterly broke in seven minutes. The dragoons fled at the first charge
in the utmost consternation. Dundee’s horse, not exceeding one hundred,
broke through Mackay’s own regiment; the earl of Dumbarton, at the
head of a few volunteers, made himself master of the artillery: twelve
hundred of Mackay’s forces were killed on the spot, five hundred taken
prisoners, and the rest fled with great precipitation for some hours,
until they were rallied by their general, who was an officer of approved
courage, conduct, and experience. Nothing could be more complete or
decisive than the victory which the Highlanders obtained; yet it was
clearly purchased with the death of their beloved chieftain the viscount
Dundee, who fell by a random shot in the engagement, and his fate
produced such confusion in his army as prevented all pursuit. He
possessed an enterprising spirit, undaunted courage, inviolable
fidelity, and was peculiarly qualified to command the people who fought
under his banner. He was the life and soul of that cause which he
espoused, and after his death it daily declined into ruin and disgrace.
He was succeeded in command by colonel Cannon, who landed the
reinforcement from Ireland; but all his designs miscarried; so that the
clans, wearied with repeated misfortunes, laid down their arms by
degrees, and took the benefit of a pardon which king William offered to
those who should submit within the time specified in his proclamation.
KING JAMES CORDIALLY RECEIVED BY THE FRENCH KING.
After this sketch of Scottish affairs, it will be necessary to take
a retrospective view of James, and relate the particulars of his
expedition to Ireland. That unfortunate prince and his queen were
received with the most cordial hospitality by the French monarch, who
assigned the castle of St. Germain for the place of their residence,
supported their household with great magnificence, enriched them with
presents, and undertook to re-establish them on the throne of England.
James, however, conducted himself in such a manner as conveyed no
favourable idea of his spirit and understanding. He seems to have been
emasculated by religion: he was deserted by that courage and magnanimity
for which his youth had been distinguished. He did not discover great
sensibility at the loss of his kingdom. All his faculties were swallowed
up in bigotry. Instead of contriving plans for retrieving his crown, he
held conferences with the Jesuits on topics of religion. The pity which
his misfortunes excited in Louis was mingled with contempt. The pope
supplied him with indulgencies, while the Romans laughed at him in
pasquinades: “There is a pious man, (said the archbishop of Rheims
ironically,) who has sacrificed three crowns for a mass.” In a word, he
subjected himself to the ridicule and raillery of the French nation.
TYRCONNEL TEMPORIZES WITH WILLIAM.
All the hope of re-ascending the British throne depended upon his
friends in Scotland and Ireland. Tyr-connel, who commanded in this last
kingdom, was confirmed in his attachment to James by the persuasions of
Hamilton, who had undertaken for his submission to the prince of Orange.
Nevertheless, he disguised his sentiments, and temporized with William,
until James should be able to supply him with reinforcements from
France, which he earnestly solicited by private messages. In the
meantime, with a view to cajole the protestants of Ireland, and
amuse king William with hope of his submission, he persuaded the lord
Mountjoy, in whom the protestants chiefly confided, and baron Rice, to
go in person with a commission to James, representing the necessity of
yielding to the times, and of waiting a fitter opportunity to make use
of his Irish subjects. Mountjoy, on his arrival at Paris, instead of
being favoured with an audience by James, to explain the reasons which
Tyrconnel had suggested touching the inability of Ireland to restore his
majesty, was committed prisoner to the Bastile, on account of the zeal
with which he had espoused the protestant interest. Although Louis was
sincerely disposed to assist James effectually, his intentions were
obstructed by the disputes of his ministry. Louvois possessed the chief
credit in council; but Seignelai enjoyed a greater share of personal
favour, both with the king and madame de Maintenon, the favourite
concubine. To this nobleman, as secretary for marine affairs, James made
his chief application; and he had promised the command of the troops
destined for his service to Latisun, whom Louvois hated. For these
reasons this minister thwarted his measures, and retarded the assistance
which Louis had promised towards his restoration.
JAMES ARRIVES IN IRELAND.
Yet notwithstanding all his opposition, the succours were prepared and
the fleet ready to put to sea by the latter end of February. The French
king is said to have offered an army of fifteen thousand natives of
France to serve in this expedition; but James replied, that he would
succeed by the help of his own subjects, or perish in the attempt.
Accordingly, he contented himself with about twelve hundred British
subjects, [010] _[See note E, at the end of this Vol.]_ and a good
number of French officers, who were embarked in the fleet at Brest,
consisting of fourteen ships of the line, seven frigates, three
fire-ships, with a good number of transports. The French king also
supplied him with a considerable quantity of arms for the use of his
adherents in Ireland; accommodated him with a large sum of money, superb
equipages, store of plate, and necessaries of all kinds for the camp
and the household. At parting he presented him with his own cuirass, and
embracing him affectionately, “The best thing I can wish you (said he)
is, that I may never see you again.” On the seventh day of March, James
embarked at Brest, together with the count D’Avaux, who accompanied him
in quality of ambassador, and his principal officers. He was detained
in the harbour by contrary winds till the seventeenth day of the month,
when he set sail, and on the twenty-second landed at Kinsale in Ireland.
By this time, king William perceiving himself amused by Tyrconnel, had
published a declaration, requiring the Irish to lay down their arms
and submit to the new government. On the twenty-second day of February,
thirty ships of war had been put in commission, and the command of them
conferred upon admiral Herbert; but the armament was retarded in such
a manner by the disputes of the council and the king’s attention to the
affairs of the continent, that the admiral was not in a condition to
sail till the beginning of April, and then with part of his fleet only.
James was received with open arms at Kinsale, and the whole country
seemed to be at his devotion; for although the protestants in the North
had declared for the new government, their strength and number was
deemed inconsiderable when compared with the power of Tyrconnel. This
minister had disarmed all the other protestant subjects in one day, and
assembled an army of thirty thousand foot, and eight thousand cavalry,
for the service of his master.
ISSUES FIVE PROCLAMATIONS AT DUBLIN.
In the latter end of March, James made his public entry into Dublin,
amidst the acclamations of the inhabitants. He was met at the
castle-gate by a procession of popish bishops and priests in their
pontificals, bearing the host, which he publicly adored. He dismissed
from the council-board the lord Granard, judge Keating, and other
protestants, who had exhorted the lord lieutenant to an accommodation
with the new government. In their room he admitted the French
ambassador, the bishop of Chester, colonel Darrington, and, by degrees,
the principal noblemen who accompanied him in the expedition. On the
second day after his arrival in Dublin, he issued five proclamations:
the first recalled all the subjects of Ireland who had abandoned the
kingdom, by a certain time, on pain of outlawry and confiscation, and
requiring all persons to join him against the prince of Orange. The
second contained expressions of acknowledgement to his catholic subjects
for their vigilance and fidelity, and an injunction to such as were not
actually in his service, to retain and lay up their arms until it
should be found necessary to use them for his advantage. By the third he
invited the subjects to supply his army with provisions; and prohibited
the soldiers to take anything without payment. By the fourth he raised
the value of the current coin; and in the fifth he summoned a parliament
to meet on the seventh day of May, at Dublin. Finally, he created
Tyrconnel a duke, in consideration of his eminent services.
{WILLIAM AND MARY, 1688--1701.}
SIEGE OF LONDONDERRY.
The adherents of James in England pressed him to settle the affairs
of Ireland immediately, and bring over his army either to the north of
England, or the west of Scotland, where it might be joined by his party,
and act without delay against the usurper; but his council dissuaded him
from complying with their solicitations, until Ireland should be totally
reduced to obedience. On the first alarm of an intended massacre, the
protestants of Londonderry had shut their gates against the regiment
commanded by the earl of Antrim, and resolved to defend themselves
against the lord lieutenant. They transmitted this resolution to the
government of England, together with an account of the danger they
incurred by such a vigorous measure, and implored immediate assistance.
They were accordingly supplied with some arms and ammunition, but did
not receive any considerable reinforcement till the middle of April,
when two regiments arrived in Loughfoyl, under the command of Cunningham
and Richards. By this time king James had taken Coleraine, invested
Killmore, and was almost in sight of Londonderry. George Walker,
rector of Donaghmore, who had raised a regiment for the defence of the
protestants, conveyed this intelligence to Lundy the governor. This
officer directed him to join colonel Grafton, and take post at the
Long-causey, which he maintained a whole night against the advanced
guard of the enemy; until being overpowered by numbers, he retreated to
Londonderry and exhorted the governor to take the field, as the army of
king James was not yet completely formed. Lundy assembling a council of
war, at which Cunningham and Richards assisted; they agreed, that as the
place was not tenable, it would be imprudent to land the two regiments,
and that the principal officers should withdraw themselves from
Londonderry, the inhabitants of which would obtain the more favourable
capitulation in consequence of their retreat. An officer was immediately
dispatched to king James with proposals of a negotiation; and
lieutenant-general Hamilton agreed that the army should halt at the
distance of four miles from the town. Notwithstanding this preliminary,
James advanced at the head of his troops; but met with such a warm
reception from the besieged, that he was fain to retire to St. John’s
Town in some disorder. The inhabitants and soldiers in garrison at
Londonderry were so incensed at the members of the council of war,
who had resolved to abandon the place, that they threatened immediate
vengeance. Cunningham and Richards retired to their ships, and Lundy
locked himself in his chamber. In vain did Walker and major Baker exhort
him to maintain his government. Such was his cowardice or treachery,
that he absolutely refused to be concerned in the defence of the place,
and he was suffered to escape in disguise with a load of match upon his
back; but he was afterwards apprehended in Scotland, from whence he was
sent to London to answer for his perfidy or misconduct.
COURAGEOUS DEFENCE.
After his retreat, the townsmen chose Mr. Walker and major Baker for
their governors, with joint authority; but this office they would
not undertake until it had been offered to colonel Cunningham, as the
officer next in command to Lundy. He rejected the proposal, and with
Richards returned to England, where they were immediately cashiered. The
two new governors, thus abandoned to their fate, began to prepare for
a vigorous defence; indeed their courage seems to have transcended
the bounds of discretion, for the place was very ill fortified; their
cannon, which did not exceed twenty pieces, were wretchedly mounted;
they had not one engineer to direct their operations; they had a very
small number of horse; the garrison consisted of people unacquainted
with military discipline; they wore destitute of provisions; they were
besieged by a king in person, at the head of a formidable army, directed
by good officers, and supplied with all the necessary implements for a
siege or battle. This town was invested on the twentieth day of April;
the batteries were soon opened, and several attacks were made with great
impetuosity; but the besiegers were always repulsed with considerable
loss. The townsmen gained divers advantages in repeated sallies, and
would have held their enemies in the utmost contempt, had they not been
afflicted with a contagious distemper, as well as reduced to extremity
by want of provisions. They were even tantalized in their distress;
for they had the mortification to see some ships which had arrived
with supplies from England, prevented from sailing up the river by the
batteries the enemy had raised on both sides, and a boom with which they
had blocked up the channel. At length a reinforcement arrived in the
Lough, under the command of general Kirke, who had deserted his master
and been employed in the service of king William. He found means to
convey intelligence to Walker, that he had troops and provisions on
board for their relief, but found it impracticable to sail up the river:
he promised, however, that he would land a body of forces at the Inch,
and endeavour to make a diversion in their favour-, when joined by the
troops at Inniskilling, which amounted to five thousand men, including
two thousand cavalry. He said he expected six thousand men from England,
where they were embarked before he set sail. He exhorted them to
persevere in their courage and loyalty, and assured them he would come
to their relief at all hazards. These assurances enabled them to bear
their miseries a little longer, though their numbers daily diminished.
Major Baker dying, his place was filled with colonel Michel-burn, who
now acted as colleague to Mr. Walker.
CRUELTY OF ROSENE.
King James having returned to Dublin to be present at the parliament,
the command of his army devolved to the French general Rosene, who was
exasperated at such an obstinate opposition by a handful of half-starved
militia. He threatened to raze the town to its foundations, and destroy
the inhabitants without distinction of age or sex, unless they would
immediately submit themselves to their lawful sovereign. The governors
treated his menaces with contempt, and published an order that no
person, on pain of death, should talk of surrendering. They had now
consumed the last remains of their provisions, and supported life by
eating the flesh of horses, dogs, cats, rats, mice, tallow, starch,
and salted hides, and even this loathsome food began to fail. Rosene,
finding him deaf to all his proposals, threatened to wreak his vengeance
on all the protestants of that country, and drive them under the walls
of Londonderry, where they should be suffered to perish by famine. The
bishop of Meath being informed of this design, complained to king James
of the barbarous intention, entreating his majesty to prevent its being
put in execution. That prince assured him that he had already ordered
Rosene to desist from such proceeding: nevertheless, the Frenchman
executed his threats with the utmost rigour. Parties of dragoons
were detached on this cruel service: after having stripped all the
protestants for thirty miles round, they drove these unhappy people
before them like cattle, without even sparing the enfeebled old men,
nurses with infants at their breasts, tender children, women just
delivered, and some even in the pangs of labour. Above four thousand of
these miserable objects were driven under the walls of Londonderry. This
expedient, far from answering the purpose of Rosene, produced quite
a contrary effect. The besieged were so exasperated at this act of
inhumanity, that they resolved to perish rather than submit to such
a barbarian. They erected a gibbet in sight of the enemy, and sent a
message to the French general, importing that they would hang all the
prisoners they had taken during the siege, unless the protestants whom
they had driven under the walls should be immediately dismissed. This
threat produced a negotiation, in consequence of which the protestants
were released after they had been detained three days without tasting
food. Some hundreds died of famine or fatigue; and those who lived to
return to their own habitations, found them plundered and sacked by the
papists, so that the greater number perished for want, or were murdered
by the straggling parties of the enemy; yet these very people had for
the most part obtained protections from king James, to which no respect
was paid by his general.
THE PLACE IS RELIEVED BY KIRKE
The garrison of Londonderry was now reduced from seven to five thousand
seven hundred men, and these were driven to such extremity of distress,
that they began to talk of killing the popish inhabitants and feeding on
their bodies. In this emergency Kirke, who had hitherto lain inactive,
ordered two ships laden with provisions to sail up the river under
convoy of the Dartmouth frigate. One of them, called the Mountjoy, broke
the enemy’s boom; and all the three, after having sustained a very hot
fire from both sides of the river, arrived in safety at the town to
the inexpressible joy of the inhabitants. The army of James were so
dispirited by the success of this enterprise, that they abandoned the
siege in the night and retired with precipitation, after having
lost about nine thousand men before the place. Kirke no sooner took
possession of the town, than Walker was prevailed upon to embark
for England with an address of thanks from the inhabitants to their
majesties for the seasonable relief they had received.
THE INNISKILLINEES DEFEAT AND TAKE GENERAL MACARTY.
The Inniskilliners were no less remarkable than the people of
Londonderry for the valour and perseverance with which they opposed the
papists. They raised twelve companies, which they regimented under the
command of Gustavus Hamilton, whom they chose for their governor. They
proclaimed William and Mary on the eleventh day of March, and resolved
in a general council to maintain their title against all opposition. The
lord Gilmoy invested the castle of Groin belonging to the protestants
in the neighbourhood of Inniskilling, the inhabitants of which threw
succours into the place, and compelled Gilmoy to retire to Belturbet. A
detachment of the garrison, commanded by lieutenant-colonel Lloyd, took
and demolished the castle of Aughor, and they gained the advantage in
several skirmishes with the enemy. On the day that preceded the relief
of Londonderry, they defeated six thousand Irish papists at a place
called Newton-Butler, and took their commander Macarty, commonly called
lord Moncashel.
MEETING OF THE IRISH PARLIAMENT.
The Irish parliament being assembled at Dublin, according to the
proclamation of king James, he, in a speech from the throne, thanked
them for the zeal, courage, and loyalty they had manifested; extolled
the generosity of the French king, who had enabled him to visit them in
person; insisted upon executing his design of establishing liberty of
conscience as a step equally agreeable to the dictates of humanity and
discretion, and promised to concur with them in enacting such laws as
would contribute to the peace, affluence, and security of his subjects.
Sir Richard Neagle, being chosen speaker of the commons, moved for an
address of thanks to his majesty, and that the count D’Avaux should be
desired to make their acknowledgments to the most christian king for
the generous assistance he had given to their sovereign. These addresses
being drawn up with the concurrence of both houses, a bill was brought
in to recognize the king’s title, to express their abhorence of the
usurpation by the prince of Orange, as well as of the defection of the
English. Next day James published a declaration, complaining of the
calumnies which his enemies had spread to his prejudice; expatiating
upon his own impartiality in preferring his protestant subjects;
his care in protecting them from their enemies, in redressing their
grievances, and in granting liberty of conscience; promising that he
would take no step but with the approbation of parliament; offering a
free pardon to all persons who should desert his enemies and join with
him in four-and-twenty days after his landing in Ireland, and charging
all the blood that might be shed upon those who should continue in
rebellion.
{WILLIAM AND MARY, 1688--1701.}
THE ACT OF SETTLEMENT REPEALED.
His conduct, however, very ill agreed with this declaration; nor can it
be excused on any other supposition but that of his being governed, in
some cases against his own inclination, by the count D’Avaux and the
Irish catholics, on whom his whole dependence was placed. As both houses
were chiefly filled with members of that persuasion, we ought not to
wonder at their bringing in a bill for repealing the act of settlement,
by which the protestants of the kingdom had been secured in the
possession of their estates. These were by this law divested of their
lands, which reverted to the heirs of those catholics to whom they
belonged before the rebellion. This iniquitous bill was framed in such
a manner, that no regard was paid to such protestant owners as had
purchased estates for valuable considerations; no allowance was made for
improvements, nor any provision for protestant widows; the possessor,
and tenants were not even allowed to remove their stock and corn. When
the bill was sent up to the lords, Dr. Dopping, bishop of Meath, opposed
it with equal courage and ability, and an address in behalf of the
purchasers under the act of settlement was presented to the king by the
earl of Granard; but notwithstanding these remonstrances, it received
the royal assent, and the protestants of Ireland were mostly ruined.
THEY PASS AN ACT OF ATTAINDER.
Yet in order to complete their destruction, an act of attainder was
passed against all protestants, whether male or female, whether of high
or low degree, who were absent from the kingdom, as well as against all
those who retired into any part of the three kingdoms, which did not own
the authority of king James, or corresponded with rebels, or were any
ways aiding, abetting, or assisting them, from the first day of August
in the preceding year. The number of protestants attainted by name in
this act amounted to about three thousand, including two archbishops,
one duke, seventeen earls, seven countesses, as many bishops, eighteen
barons, three-and-thirty baronets, one-and-fifty knights, eighty-three
clergymen, who were declared traitors, and adjudged to suffer the pains
of death and forfeiture. The individuals subjected to this dreadful
proscription, were even cut off from all hope of pardon and all benefit
of appeal; for by a clause in the act, the king’s pardon was deemed null
unless enrolled before the first day of December. A subsequent law was
enacted, declaring Ireland independent of the English parliament. This
assembly passed another act, granting twenty thousand pounds per annum
out of the forfeited estates to Tyrconnel, in acknowledgment of his
signal services: they imposed a tax of twenty thousand pounds per month
for the service of the king: the royal assent was given to an act for
liberty of conscience; they enacted that the tithes payable by papists
should be delivered to priests of that communion: the maintenance of
the protestant clergy in cities and corporations was taken away; and all
dissenters were exempted from ecclesiastical jurisdictions. So that
the established church was deprived of all power and prerogative,
notwithstanding the express promise of James, who had declared,
immediately after his landing, that he would maintain the clergy in
their rights and privileges.
JAMES COINS BASE MONEY.
Nor was the king less arbitrary in the executive part of his government,
if we suppose that he countenanced the grievous acts of oppression that
were daily committed upon the protestant subjects of Ireland; but the
tyranny of his proceedings may be justly imputed to the temper of
his ministry, consisting of men abandoned to all sense of justice and
humanity, who acted from the dictates of rapacity and revenge, inflamed
with all the acrimony of religious rancour. Soldiers were permitted to
live upon free quarter; the people were robbed and plundered; licenses
and protections were abused in order to extort money from the trading
part of the nation. The king’s old stores were ransacked; the shops of
tradesmen and the kitchens of burghers were pillaged, to supply the mint
with a quantity of brass, which was converted into current coin for his
majesty’s occasions; an arbitrary value was set upon it, and all persons
were required and commanded to take it in payment under the severest
penalties, though the proportion between its intrinsic worth and
currency was nearly as one to three hundred. A vast sum of this
counterfeit coin was issued in the course of one year, and forced upon
the protestants in payment of merchandize, provision, and necessaries
for the king’s service. James, not content with the supply granted by
parliament, imposed, by his own authority, a tax of twenty thousand
pounds per month on chattels, as the former was laid upon lands. This
seems to have been a temporary expedient during the adjournment of the
two houses, as the term of the assessment was limited to three months;
it was however levied by virtue of a commission under the seals, and
seems to have been a stretch of prerogative the less excusable, as he
might have obtained the money in a parliamentary way. Understanding that
the protestants had laid out all their brass money in purchasing great
quantities of hides, tallow, wool, and corn, he assumed the despotic
power of fixing the prices of these commodities, and then bought them
for his own use. One may see his ministers were bent upon the utter
destruction of those unhappy people.
PROTESTANT CHURCHES SEIZED BY THE CATHOLICS.
All vacancies in public schools were supplied with popish teachers. The
pension allowed from the exchequer to the university of Dublin was
cut off; the vice-provost, fellows, and scholars, were expelled: their
furniture, plate, and public library were seized without the least
shadow or pretence, and in direct violation of a promise the king had
made to preserve their privileges and immunities. His officers converted
the college into a garrison, the chapel into a magazine, and the
apartments into prisons; a popish priest was appointed provost; one
Maccarty, of the same persuasion, was made library-keeper, and the whole
foundation was changed into a catholic seminary. When bishoprics and
benefices in the gift of the crown became vacant, the king ordered the
profits to be lodged in the exchequer, and suffered the cures to be
totally neglected. The revenues were chiefly employed in the maintenance
of Romish bishops and priests, who grew so insolent under this
indulgence, that in several places they forcibly seized the protestant
churches. When complaint was made of this outrage, the king promised
to do justice to the injured, and in some places actually ordered the
churches to be restored; but the popish clergy refused to comply with
this order, alleging, that in spirituals they owed obedience to no
earthly power but the holy see, and James found himself unable to
protect his protestant subjects against a powerful body which he durst
not disoblige. Some ships appearing in the bay of Dublin, a proclamation
was issued forbidding the protestants to assemble in any place of
worship, or elsewhere, on pain of death. By a second, they were
commanded to bring in their arms on pain of being treated as rebels and
traitors. Luttrel, governor of Dublin, published an ordinance by beat
of drum, requiring the farmers to bring in their corn for his majesty’s
horses within a certain day, otherwise he would order them to be hanged
before their own doors. Brigadier Sarsfield commanded all protestants
of a certain district to retire to the distance of ten miles from their
habitations on pain of death; and in order to keep up the credit of the
brass money, the same penalty was denounced, in a proclamation, against
any person who should give more than one pound eighteen shillings for a
guinea.
[Illustration: 2-013-dover.jpg DOVER]
ACTION WITH THE FRENCH FLEET.
All the revenues of Ireland, and all the schemes contrived to bolster up
the credit of the base coin, would have proved insufficient to support
the expenses of the war, had not James received occasional supplies from
the French monarch. After the return of the fleet which had conveyed
him to Ireland, Louis sent another strong squadron, commanded by Chateau
Benault, as a convoy to some transports laden with arms, ammunition, and
a large sum of money for the use of king James. Before they sailed
from Brest, king William, being informed of their destination, detached
admiral Herbert from Spithead with twelve ships of the line, one
fire-ship, and four tenders, in order to intercept the enemy. He was
driven by stress of weather into Mil-ford-haven, from whence he steered
his course to Kin-sale, on the supposition that the French fleet had
sailed from Brest, and that in all probability he should fall in with
them on the coast of Ireland. On the first day of May he discovered them
at anchor in Bantry-bay, and stood in to engage them, though they were
greatly superior to him in number. They no sooner perceived him at
day-break, than they weighed, stood out to windward, formed their line,
bore down, and began the action, which was maintained for two hours
with equal valour on both sides, though the English fleet sustained
considerable damage from the superior fire of the enemy. Herbert tacked
several times in hope of gaining the weather-gage; but the French
admiral kept his wind with uncommon skill and perseverance. At length
the English squadron stood off to sea, and maintained a running fight
till five in the afternoon, when Chateau Renault tacked about and
returned into the bay, content with the honour he had gained. The loss
of men was inconsiderable on both sides; and where the odds were so
great, the victor could not reap much glory. Herbert retired to
the isles of Scilly, where he expected a reinforcement; but being
disappointed in this expectation, he returned to Portsmouth in very
ill humour, with which his officers and men were infected. The common
sailors still retained some attachment to James, who had formerly been
a favourite among them; and the officers complained that they had been
sent upon this service with a force so much inferior to that of the
enemy. King William, in order to appease their discontent, made an
excursion to Portsmouth, where he dined with the admiral on board
the ship Elizabeth, declared his intention of making him an earl in
consideration of his good conduct and services, conferred the honour of
knighthood on the captains Ashby and Shovel, and bestowed a donation of
ten shillings on every private sailor.
DIVERS SENTENCES REVERSED.
The parliament of England thought it incumbent upon them not only to
raise supplies for the maintenance of the war in which the nation was
involved, but also to do justice with respect to those who had been
injured by illegal or oppressive sentences in the late reigns. The
attainders of lord Russel, Algernon Sidney, alderman Cornish, and lady
Lisle, were now reversed. A committee of privileges was appointed by
the lords to examine the case of the earl of Devonshire, who in the
late reign had been fined thirty thousand pounds for assaulting colonel
Culpepper in the presence-chamber. They reported that the court of
king’s bench, in overruling the earl’s plea of privilege of parliament,
had committed a manifest breach of privilege; that the fine was
excessive and exhorbitant, against the great charter, the common right
of the subject, and the law of the realm. The sentence pronounced upon
Samuel Johnson, chaplain to lord Russel, in consequence of which he
had been degraded, fined, scourged, and set in the pillory, was now
annulled, and the commons recommended him to his majesty for some
ecclesiastical preferment. He received one thousand pounds in money,
with a pension of three hundred pounds for his own life and that of his
son, who was moreover gratified with a place of one hundred pounds a
year; but the father never obtained any ecclesiastical benefice. Titus
Oates seized this opportunity of petitioning the house of lords for a
reversal of the judgments given against him on his being convicted of
perjury. The opinions of all the judges and counsel at the bar were
heard on this subject, and a bill of reversal passed the commons; but
the peers having inserted some amendments and a proviso, a conference
was demanded, and violent heats ensued. Oates, however, was released
from confinement, and the lords, with the consent of the commons,
recommended him to his majesty for a pardon, which he obtained, together
with a comfortable pension. The committee appointed to inquire into the
cases of the state-prisoners, found sir Robert Wright, late lord chief
justice, to have been concerned in the cruelties committed in the west
after the insurrection of Monmouth; as also one of the ecclesiastical
commissioners, and guilty of manifold enormities. Death had by this time
delivered Jefferies from the resentment of the nation. Graham and Burton
had acted as solicitors in the illegal prosecutions carried on against
those who opposed the court in the reign of Charles II.; these were now
reported guilty of having been instrumental in taking away the lives and
estates of those who had suffered the loss of either under colour of
law for eight years last past; of having, by malicious indictments,
informations, and prosecutions of _quo warranto_, endeavoured the
subversion of the protestant religion, and the government of the realm;
and of having wasted many thousand pounds of the public revenue in the
course of their infamous practices.
INQUIRY INTO THE CAUSE OF MISCARRIAGES IN IRELAND.
Nor did the misconduct of the present ministry escape the animadversion
of the parliament. The lords having addressed the king to put the
Isle of Wight, Jersey, Guernsey, Scilly, Dover-castle, and the other
fortresses of the kingdom, in a posture of defence, and to disarm the
papists, empowered a committee to inquire into the miscarriages in
Ireland, which were generally imputed to the neglect of the marquisses
of Cærmarthan and Halifax. They presented an address to the king,
desiring the minute-book of the committee for Irish affairs might be
put into their hands; but his majesty declined gratifying them in this
particular: then the commons voted that those persons who had advised
the king to delay this satisfaction were enemies to the kingdom.
William, alarmed at this resolution, allowed them to inspect the book,
in which they found very little for their purpose. The house resolved,
that an address should be presented to his majesty, declaring that the
succour of Ireland had been retarded by unnecessary delays; that the
transports prepared were not sufficient to convey the forces to that
kingdom; and that several ships had been taken by the enemy, for want
of proper convoy. At the same time the question was put, whether or not
they should address the king against the marquis of Halifax. But it was
carried in the negative by a small majority. Before this period, Howe,
vice-chamberlain to the queen, had moved for an address against such
counsellors as had been impeached in parliament, and betrayed the
liberties of the nation. This motion was levelled at Cæmarthen and
Halifax, the first of whom had been formerly impeached of high treason,
under the title of earl of Danby; and the other was charged with all the
misconduct of the present administration. Warm debates ensued, and in
all probability the motion would have been carried in the affirmative,
had not those who spoke warmly in behalf it suddenly cooled in the
course of the dispute. Some letters from king James to his partisans
being intercepted, and containing some hints of an intended invasion,
Mr. Hambden, chairman of the committee of the whole house, enlarged upon
the imminent danger to which the kingdom was exposed, and moved for
a further supply to his majesty. In this unexpected motion he was not
seconded by one member. The house, however, having taken the letters
into consideration, resolved to draw up an address to the king, desiring
him to secure and disarm all papists of note; and they brought in a bill
for attainting several persons in rebellion against their majesties; but
it was not finished during this session.
{WILLIAM AND MARY, 1688--1701.}
BILLS PASSED IN THIS SESSION.
Another bill being prepared in the house of lords, enjoining the
subjects to wear the woollen manufacture at certain seasons of the year,
a petition was presented against it by the silk-weavers of London and
Canterbury, assembled in a tumultuous manner at Westminster. The
lords refused their petition, because this was an unusual manner of
application. They were persuaded to return to their respective places
of abode; precautions were taken against a second riot; and the bill was
unanimously rejected in the upper house. This parliament passed an act,
vesting in the two universities the presentations belonging to papists:
those of the southern counties being given to Oxford; and those of
the northern to Cambridge, on certain specified conditions, Courts of
conscience were erected at Bristol, Gloucester, and Newcastle; and that
of the marches of Wales was abolished as an intolerable oppression. The
protestant clergymen, who had been forced to leave their benefices in
Ireland, were rendered capable of holding any living in England, without
forfeiting their title to their former preferment, with the proviso that
they should resign their English benefices when restored to ‘those
they had been obliged to relinquish. The statute of Henry IV. against
multiplying gold and silver was now repealed; the subjects were allowed
to melt and refine metals and ores, and extract gold and silver from
them, on condition that it should be brought to the Mint, and converted
into money, the owners receiving its full value in current coin. These,
and several other bills of smaller importance being passed, the two
houses adjourned to the twentieth day of September, and afterwards to
the nineteenth day of October.
CHAPTER II.
_Duke of Schomberg lands with an Army in Ireland..... The
Inniskilliners obtain a Victory over the Irish.....
Schomberg censured for his Inactivity..... The French
worsted at Walcourt..... Success of the Confederates in
Germany..... The Turks defeated at Pacochin, Nissa, and
Widen..... Death of Pope Innocent XI..... .King William
becomes unpopular..... A good Number of the Clergy refuse to
take the Oaths..... The King grants a Commission for
reforming Church Discipline..... Meeting of the
Convocation..... Their Session discontinued by repeated
Prorogations..... Proceedings in Parliament..... The Whigs
obstruct the Bill of Indemnity..... The Commons resume the
Inquiry into the Cause of the Miscarriages in Ireland.....
King William irritated against the Whigs..... Plot against
the Government by Sir James Montgomery discovered by Bishop
Burnet..... Warm Debates in Parliament about the Corporation
Bills..... The King resolves to finish the Irish War in
Person ..... General Ludlow arrives in England, but is
obliged to withdraw..... Efforts of the Jacobites in
Scotland..... The Court Interest triumphs over all
Opposition in that Country..... The Tory Interest prevails
in the New Parliament of England..... Bill for recognising
their Majesties..... Another violent Contest about the Bill
of Abjuration..... King William lands in Ireland..... King
James marches to the Boyne..... William resolves to give him
battle..... Battle of the Boyne..... Death and Character of
Schomberg..... James embarks for France..... William enters
Dublin and publishes his Declaration..... The French obtain
a Victory over the English and Dutch Fleets off Beachy-
head..... Torrington committed Prisoner to the Tower.....
Progress of William in Ireland..... He Invests Limerick; but
is obliged to raise the Siege, and returns to England.....
Cork and Kinsale reduced by the Earl of Marlborough .....
Lausun and the French Forces quit Ireland..... The Duke of
Savoy joins the Confederacy..... Prince Waldeck defeated at
Fleurus..... The Archduke Joseph elected King of the
Romans..... Death of the Duke of Lorrain..... Progress of
the War against the Turks..... Meeting of the
Parliament..... The Commons comply with all the King’s
Demands..... Petition of the Tories in the City of
London..... Attempt against the Marquis of Cærmarthen.....
The King’s Voyage to Holland..... He assists at a
Congress..... Returns to England._
{WILLIAM AND MARY, 1688--1701.}
SCHOMBERG LANDS WITH AN ARMY.
Though the affairs of Ireland were extremely pressing, and the
protestants of that country had made repeated application for relief,
the succours were retarded either by disputes among the ministers, or
the neglect of those who had the management of the expedition, in such
a manner that king James had been six months in Ireland before the army
was embarked for that kingdom. At length eighteen regiments of infantry,
and five of dragoons, being raised for that service, a train of
artillery provided, and transports prepared, the duke of Sehomberg, on
whom king William had conferred the chief command of this armament,
set out for Chester, after he had in person thanked the commons for the
uncommon regard they had paid to his services, and received assurances
from the house, that they would pay particular attention to him and his
army. On the thirteenth day of August he landed in the neighbourhood
of Carrickfergus with about ten thousand foot and dragoons, and took
possession of Belfast, from whence the enemy retired at his approach
to Carrickfergus, where they resolved to make a stand. The duke having
refreshed his men, marched thither, and invested the place; the siege
was carried on till the twenty-sixth day of the month, when the
breaches being practicable, the besieged capitulated, on condition of
marching out with their arms, and as much baggage as they could carry on
their backs; and of their being conducted to the next Irish garrison,
which was at Newry. During this siege the duke was joined by the rest of
his army from England; but he had left orders for conveying the greater
part of the artillery and stores from Chester directly to Carlingford.
He now began his march through Lisburne and Hillsborough, and encamped
at Drummore, where the protestants of the north had been lately routed
by Hamilton; thence he proceeded to Loughbrillane, where he was joined
by the horse and dragoons of Inniskilling. Then the enemy abandoned
Newry and Dundalk, in the neighbourhood of which Sehomberg encamped on a
low damp ground, having the town and river on the south, and surrounded
on every other part by hills, bogs, and mountains.
THE INNISKILLINERS OBTAIN A VICTORY.
His army, consisting chiefly of new-raised men little inured to
hardship, began to flag under the fatigue of marching, the inclemency of
the weather, and scarcity of provisions. Here he was reinforced by the
regiments of Kirke, Hanmer, and Stuart; and would have continued his
march to Drogheda, where he understood Rosene lay with about twenty
thousand men, had he not been obliged to wait for the artillery, which
was not yet arrived at Carlingford. King James, having assembled all
his forces, advanced towards Schomberg, and appeared before his
intrenchments in order of battle; but the duke, knowing they were
greatly superior in number of horse, and that his own army was
undisciplined, and weakened by death and sickness, restrained his men
within the lines, and in a little time the enemy retreated. Immediately
after their departure, a conspiracy was discovered in the English camp,
hatched by some French papists, who had insinuated themselves into
the protestant regiments. One of these, whose name was Du Plessis, had
written a letter to the ambassador D’Avaux, promising to desert with
all the papists of the three French regiments in Schomberg’s army. This
letter being found, Du Plessis and five accomplices were tried by a
court-martial, and executed. About two hundred and fifty papists being
discovered in the French regiments, they were sent over to England,
from thence to Holland. While Schomberg remained in this situation, the
Inniskilliners made excursions in the neighbourhood, under the command
of colonel Lloyd; and on the twenty-seventh day of September they
obtained a complete victory over five times their number of the Irish.
They killed seven hundred on the spot, and took O’Kelly their commander,
with about fifty officers, and a considerable booty of cattle. The duke
was so pleased with their behaviour on this occasion, that they received
a very honourable testimony of his approbation.
SCHOMBERG CENSURED.
Meanwhile, the enemy took possession of James-Town, and reduced Sligo,
one of the forts of which was gallantly defended by St. Sauver, a
French captain, and his company of grenadiers, until he was obliged
to capitulate for want of water and provisions. A contagious distemper
still continued to rage in Schomberg’s camp, and swept off a great
number of officers and soldiers; so that in the beginning of next
spring, not above half the number of those who went over with the
general remained alive. He was censured for his inactivity, and the
king, in repeated letters, desired him to hazard an engagement, provided
any opportunity should occur; but he did not think proper to run the
risk of a battle, against an enemy that was above thrice his number,
well disciplined, healthy, and conducted by able officers. Nevertheless,
he was certainly blameable for having chosen such an unwholesome
situation. At the approach of winter he retired into quarters, in hopes
of being reinforced with seven thousand Danes, who had already arrived
in Britain. These auxiliaries were stipulated in a treaty which William
had just concluded with the king of Denmark. The English were not more
successful at sea than they had proved in their operations by land.
Admiral Herbert, now created earl of Torrington, having sailed to
Ireland with the combined squadrons of England and Holland, made a
fruitless attempt upon Cork, and lost a great number of seamen by
sickness, which was imputed to bad provisions. The Dartmouth ship of war
fell into the hands of the enemy, who infested the channel with such
a number of armed ships and privateers, that the trade of England
sustained incredible damage.
THE FRENCH WORSTED AT WALCOURT.
The affairs of France wore but a gloomy aspect on the continent, where
all the powers of Europe seemed to have conspired her destruction. King
William had engaged in a new league with the states-general, in which
former treaties of peace and commerce were confirmed. It was stipulated,
that in case the king of Great Britain should be attacked, the Dutch
should assist him with six thousand infantry, and twenty ships of the
line; and that, provided hostilities should be committed against the
states-general, England should supply them with ten thousand infantry,
and twenty ships of war. This treaty was no sooner ratified, than king
William dispatched the lord Churchill, whom he had by this time created
earl of Marlborough, to Holland, in order to command the British
auxiliaries in that service to the number of eleven thousand, the
greater part of which had been in the army of king James when the prince
of Orange landed in England. The earl forthwith joined the Dutch army,
under the command of prince Waldeck, who had fixed his rendezvous in the
county of Liege, with a view to act against the French army commanded by
the mareschal D’Humieres; while the prince of Vaudemont headed a little
army of observation, consisting of Spaniards, Dutch, and Germans, to
watch the motions of Calvo in another part of the Low-Countries. The
city of Liege was compelled to renounce the neutrality, and declare for
the allies. Mareschal D’Humieres attacked the foragers belonging to the
army of the states at Walcourt, in the month of August; an obstinate
engagement ensued, and the French were obliged to retreat in confusion,
with the loss of two thousand men, and some pieces of artillery. The
army of observation levelled part of the French lines on the side of
Courtray, and raised contributions on the territories of the enemy.
SUCCESS OF THE CONFEDERATES IN GERMANY.
The French were almost entire masters of the three ecclesiastical
electorates of Germany. They possessed Mentz, Triers, Bonne,
Keiserswaert, Philipsburgh, and Landau. They had blown up the castle of
Heildelberg, in the Palatinate, and destroyed Manheim. They had reduced
Worms and Spiers to ashes; and demolished Frankendahl, together
with several other fortresses. These conquests, the fruits of sudden
invasion, were covered with a numerous army, commanded by the mareschal
de Duras; and all his inferior generals were officers of distinguished
courage and ability. Nevertheless, he found it difficult to maintain
his ground against the different princes of the empire. The duke of
Lorraine, who commanded the imperial troops, invested Mentz, and took
it by capitulation; the elector of Brandenburgh, having reduced
Keiserswaert, undertook the siege of Bonne, which the garrison
surrendered after having made a long and vigorous defence. Nothing
contributed more to the union of the German princes than their
resentment of the shocking barbarity with which the French had
plundered, wasted, and depopulated their country. Louis having, by his
intrigues in Poland and at Constantinople, prevented a pacification
between the emperor and the Ottoman Porte, the campaign was opened in
Croatia, where five thousand Turks were defeated by a body of Croates
between Vihitz and Novi. The prince of Baden, who commanded the
imperialists on that side, having thrown a bridge over the Morava at
Passarowitz, crossed that river, and marched in quest of a Turkish
army amounting to fifty thousand men, headed by a seraskier. On the
thirteenth day of August he attacked the enemy in their intrenchments
near Patochin, and forced their lines, routed them with great slaughter,
and took possession of their camp, baggage, and artillery. They returned
to Nissa, where the general finding them still more numerous than the
imperialists, resolved to make a stand, and encamped in a situation that
was inaccessible in every part except the rear, which he left open
for the convenience of a retreat. Through this avenue he was, on the
twenty-fourth day of September, attacked by the prince of Baden,
who, after a desperate resistance, obtained another complete victory,
enriched his troops with the spoil of the enemy, and entered Nissa
without opposition. There he found above three thousand horses and a
vast quantity of provisions. Having reposed his army for a few days in
this place, he resumed his march against the Turks, who had chosen
an advantageous post at Widen, and seemed ambitious of retrieving the
honour they had lost in the two former engagements. The Germans attacked
their lines without hesitation; and though the Musselmen fought with
incredible fury, they were a third time defeated with great slaughter.
This defeat was attended with the loss of Widen, which being surrendered
to the victor, he distributed his troops in winter quarters, and
returned to Vienna covered with laurels.
DEATH OF POPE INNOCENT XI.
The French were likewise baffled in their attempt upon Catalonia, where
the duke de Noailles had taken Campredon in the month of May. Leaving a
garrison in this place, he retreated to the frontiers of France, while
the duke de Villa Hermosa, at the head of a Spanish army, blocked up the
place and laid Rousillon under contribution. He afterwards undertook the
siege in form, and Noailles marched to its relief; but he was so hard
pressed by the Spaniards that he withdrew the garrison, dismantled the
place, and retreated with great precipitation. The French king hoped to
derive some considerable advantage from the death of Pope Innocent XL
which happened on the twelfth day of August. That pontiff had been an
inveterate enemy to Louis ever since the affair of the franchises, and
the seizure of Avignon. [016] _[See note F, at the end of this Vol.]_
Cabals were immediately formed at Eome by the French faction against
the Spanish and Imperial interest. The French cardinals, de Bouillon and
Bonzi, accompanied by Furstemberg, repaired to Eome with a large sum
of money. Peter Ottoboni, a Venetian, was elected pope, and assumed the
name of Alexander VIII. The duke de Chaulnes, ambassador from France,
immediately signified in the name of his master, that Avignon should
be restored to the patrimony of the church; and Louis renounced the
franchises in a letter written by his own hand to the pontiff. Alexander
received these marks of respect with the warmest acknowledgments; but
when the ambassador and Furstemberg besought him to re-examine the
election of the bishop of Cologne, which had been the source of so much
calamity to the empire, he lent a deaf ear to their solicitations.
He even confirmed the dispensations granted by his predecessor to the
prince of Bavaria, who was thus empowered to take possession of the
electorate, though he had not yet attained the age required by the
canons. Furstemberg retired in disgust to Paris, where Louis immediately
gratified him with the abbey of St. Germains.
{WILLIAM AND MARY, 1688--1701.}
KING WILLIAM BECOMES UNPOPULAR.
King William found it an easier task to unite the councils of Europe
against the common enemy than to conciliate and preserve the affections
of his own subjects, among whom he began visibly to decline in point of
popularity. Many were dissatisfied with his measures; and a great number
even of those who exerted themselves for his elevation had conceived a
disgust from his personal deportment, which was very unsuitable to the
manners and disposition of the English people. Instead of mingling
with his nobility in social amusements and familiar conversation, he
maintained a disagreeable reserve which had all the air of sullen pride;
he seldom or never spoke to his courtiers or attendants, he spent his
time chiefly in the closet retired from all communication; or among
his troops in a camp he had formed at Hounslow; or in the exercise of
hunting, to which he was immoderately addicted. This had been prescribed
to him by physicians as necessary to improve his constitution, which was
naturally weak, and by practice had become so habitual that he could not
lay it aside. His ill health co-operating with his natural aversion
to society, produced a peevishness which could not fail of being
displeasing to those who were near his person: this was increased by the
disputes in his cabinet, and the opposition of those who were professed
enemies to his government, as well as by the alienation of his former
friends. As he could not breathe without difficulty in the air of
London, he resided chiefly at Hampton-court, and expended considerable
sums in beautifying and enlarging that palace; he likewise purchased the
house at Kensington of the earl of Nottingham; and such profusion in the
beginning of an expensive war gave umbrage to the nation in general.
Whether he was advised by his counsellors, or his own sagacity pointed
out the expediency of conforming with the English humour, he now seemed
to change his disposition, and in some measure adopt the manners of his
predecessors. In imitation of Charles II. he resorted to the races at
Newmarket; he accepted an invitation to visit Cambridge, where he
behaved himself with remarkable affability to the members of the
university; he afterwards dined with the lord-mayor of London, accepted
the freedom of the city, and condescended so far as to become
sovereign-master of the company of grocers.
A GOOD NUMBER OF THE CLERGY REFUSE TO TAKE THE OATHS.
While William thus endeavoured to remove the prejudices which had been
conceived against his person, the period arrived which the parliament
had prescribed for taking the oaths to the new government. Some
individuals of the clergy sacrificed their benefices to their scruples
of conscience, and absolutely refused to take oaths that were contrary
to those they had already sworn in favour of their late sovereign. These
were distinguished by the epithet of nonjurors: but their number bore
a very small proportion to that of others, who took them with such
reservations and distinctions as redounded very little to the honour of
their integrity. Many of those who had been the warmest advocates for
non-resistance and passive obedience, made no scruple of renouncing
their allegiance to king James, and complying with the present act,
after having declared that they took the oaths in no other sense than
that of a peaceable submission to the powers that were. They even
affirmed that the legislature itself had allowed the distinction between
a king _de facto_ and a king _de jure_, as they had dropped the word
“rightful” when the form was under debate. They alleged that as prudence
obliged them to conform to the letter of the oath, so conscience
required them to give it their own interpretation. Nothing could be more
infamous and of worse tendency than this practice of equivocating in
the most sacred of all obligations. It introduced a general disregard of
oaths, which hath been the source of universal perjury and corruption.
Though this set of temporizers were bitterly upbraided both by the
nonjurors and the papists, they all concurred in representing William as
an enemy to the church; as a prince educated in the doctrines of Calvin,
which he plainly espoused, by limiting his favour and preferment to such
as were latitudinarians in religion, and by his abolishing episcopacy
in Scotland. The presbyterians in that kingdom now tyrannized in their
turn. They were headed by the earl of Crawford, a nobleman of a violent
temper and strong prejudices. He was chosen president of the parliament
by the interest of Melvil, and oppressed the episcopalians in such a
manner that the greater part of them from resentment became well-wishers
to king James. Every circumstance of the hardships they underwent was
reported in England; and the earl of Clarendon, as well as the suspended
bishops, circulated these particulars with great assiduity. The oaths
being rejected by the archbishop of Canterbury, the bishops of Ely,
Chichester, Bath and Wells, Peterborough and Gloucester, they were
suspended from their functions, and threatened with deprivation. Lake
of Chichester, being seized with a dangerous distemper, signed a solemn
declaration, in which he professed his adherence to the doctrine of
non-resistance and passive obedience, which he believed to be the
distinguishing characteristic of the church of England. After his death
this paper was published, industriously circulated, and extolled by the
party as an inspired oracle pronounced by a martyr to religious truth
and sincerity.
THE KING GRANTS A COMMISSION FOR REFORMING CHURCH DISCIPLINE.
All the clamour that was raised against the king could not divert him
from prosecuting the scheme of comprehension. He granted a commission
under the great seal to ten bishops and twenty dignitaries of the
church, authorizing them to meet from time to time in the Jerusalem
chamber, to prepare such alterations of the liturgy and the canons, and
such proposals for the reformation of ecclesiastical courts as might
most conduce to the good order, edification, and uniting of the church,
and tend to reconcile all religious differences among the protestant
subjects of the kingdom. A cry was immediately raised against this
commission, as an ecclesiastical court illegal and dangerous. At their
first meeting the authority of the commission was questioned by Sprat,
bishop of Rochester, who retired in disgust, and was followed by Mew of
Winchester, and the doctors Jane and Aldrich. These were averse to any
alteration of the forms and constitution of the church in favour of an
insolent and obstinate party, which ought to have been satisfied with
the toleration they enjoyed. They observed that an attempt to make such
alteration would divide the clergy, and bring the liturgy into disesteem
with the people, as it would be a plain acknowledgment that it wanted
correction. They thought they should violate the dignity of the church
by condescending to make offers which the dissenters were at liberty to
refuse; and they suspected some of their colleagues of a design to give
up episcopal ordination--a step inconsistent with their honour, duty,
oaths, and subscriptions.
MEETING OF THE CONVOCATION.
The commissioners, notwithstanding this secession, proceeded to debate
with moderation on the abuses of which the dissenters had complained,
and corrected every article that seemed liable to any just objection;
but the opposite party employed all their art and industry to inflame
the minds of the people. The two universities declared against all
alterations, and those who promoted them. The king himself was
branded as an enemy to the hierarchy; and they bestirred themselves so
successfully in the election of members for the convocation, that
they procured a very considerable majority. At their first meeting the
friends of the comprehension scheme proposed Dr. Tillotson, clerk of the
closet to his majesty, as prolocutor; but the other party carried it in
favour of Dr. Jane, who was counted the most violent churchman in the
whole Assembly. In a Latin speech to the bishop of London as president,
he, in the name of the lower house, asserted that the liturgy of England
needed no amendment, and concluded with the old declaration of the
barons, “_Nolumus leges Angliæ mutari_. We will not suffer the laws
of England to be changed.” The bishop, in his reply, exhorted them
to moderation, charity, and indulgence towards their brethren the
dissenters, and to make such abatements in things indifferent as might
serve to open a door of salvation to multitudes of straying christians.
His injunctions, however, produced no favourable effect; the lower house
seemed to be animated by a spirit of opposition. Next day the president
prorogued them, on pretence that the royal commission, by which
they were to act, was defective for want of being sealed, and that a
prorogation was necessary until that sanction should be obtained. In
this interval means were used to mollify their non-compliant tempers,
but all endeavours proved ineffectual. When they met again, the earl of
Nottingham delivered the king’s commission to both houses, with a
speech of his own, and a message from his majesty, importing that he had
summoned them out of a pious zeal to do every thing that might tend to
the best establishment of the church of England, which should always
enjoy his favour and protection. He exhorted them to lay aside all
prejudice, and consider calmly and impartially whatever should be
proposed: he assured them he would offer nothing but what should be for
the honour, peace, and advantage of the protestant religion in general,
and particularly of the church of England.
{WILLIAM AND MARY, 1688--1701.}
THEIR SESSION PROROGUED.
The bishops adjourning to the Jerusalem chamber, prepared a zealous
address of thanks to his majesty, which, being sent to the lower house
for their concurrence, met with violent opposition. Amendments were
proposed; a conference ensued, and, after warm debates, they agreed upon
a cold address, which was accordingly presented. The majority of the
lower house, far from taking any measures in favour of dissenters,
converted all their attention to the relief of their nonjuring brethren.
Zealous speeches were made in behalf of the suspended bishops; and Dr.
Jane proposed that something might be done to qualify them to sit in the
convocation. This, however, was such a dangerous point as they would not
venture to discuss; yet, rather than proceed upon the business for which
they had been assembled, they began to take cognizance of some pamphlets
lately published, which they conceived to be of dangerous consequence
to the christian religion. The president and his party, perceiving
the disposition of the house, did not think proper to communicate any
proposal touching the intended reformation, and the king suffered the
session to be discontinued by repeated prorogations.
PROCEEDINGS IN PARLIAMENT.
The parliament meeting on the nineteenth day of October, the king, in a
speech of his own composing, explained the necessity of a present supply
to carry on the war. He desired that they might be speedy in their
determinations on this subject, for these would in a great measure
influence the deliberations of the princes and states concerned in the
war against France, as a general meeting of them was appointed to be
held next month at the Hague, to settle the operations of the ensuing
campaign. He concluded with recommending the dispatch of a bill of
indemnity, that the minds of his subjects might be quieted, and that
they might unanimously concur in promoting the honour and welfare of the
kingdom. As several inflammatory bills and disputes, which had produced
heats and animosities in the last session, were still depending, the
king, after having consulted both houses, resolved to put an end to
those disputes by a prorogation. He accordingly went to the house of
lords and prorogued the parliament till the twenty-first day of October,
by the mouth of the new speaker, sir Robert Atkins; the marquis of
Halifax having resigned that office. When they re-assembled, the
king referred them to his former speech: then the commons unanimously
resolved to assist his majesty in reducing Ireland, and in joining with
his allies abroad for a vigorous prosecution of the war against France:
for these purposes they voted a supply of two millions.
THE WHIGS OBSTRUCT THE INDEMNITY BILL.
During this session the whigs employed all their influence and intrigues
in obstructing the bill of indemnity, which they knew would open a door
for favour and preferment to the opposite party, which began to gain
ground in the king’s good graces. With this view they revived the
prosecution of the state prisoners. A committee was appointed to prepare
a charge against Burton and Graham. The commons resolved to impeach the
earls of Peterborough, Salisbury, and Castlemain, sir Edward Hales,
and Obadiah Walker, of high treason, for having been reconciled to the
church of Rome, contrary to the laws of the realm. A bill was ordered
to be brought in to declare the estate of the late lord chancellor
Jefferies forfeited to the crown, and attaint his blood; but it met with
such opposition that the measure was dropped: the house however agreed,
that the pecuniary penalties incurred by those persons who had exercised
offices contrary to the laws against popish recusants, should be
speedily levied and applied to the public service. The lord Griffin
being detected in maintaining a correspondence with king James and his
partizans, was committed to the Tower; but as no other evidence appeared
against him than written letters, found in the false bottom of a pewter
bottle, they could not help consenting to his being released upon bail,
as they had lately resolved that Algernon Sidney was unjustly condemned
in the reign of Charles II. because nothing but writings had been
produced against him at his trial. The two houses concurred in
appointing a committee to inquire who were the advisers and prosecutors
in taking away the lives of lord Russel, colonel Sydney, sir Thomas
Armstrong, alderman Cornish, and others; and who were chiefly concerned
in the arbitrary practices touching the writs of _quo warranto_, and
the surrender of charters. This inquiry was levelled at the marquis of
Halifax, who had concurred with the ministry of Charles in all these
severities. Though no proof appeared upon which votes or addresses could
be founded, that nobleman saw it was necessary for him to withdraw
himself from the administration; he therefore resigned the privy-seal,
which was put in commission, and reconciled himself to the tories, of
whom he became the patron and protector.
INQUIRY INTO THE CAUSE OF THE MISCARRIAGES IN IRELAND RESUMED.
The commons likewise resumed the examination of the miscarriages in
Ireland, and desired the king would appoint commissioners to go over
and inquire into the condition of the army in that kingdom. Schomberg,
understanding that he had been blamed in the house of commons for his
inactivity, transmitted to the king a satisfactory vindication of his
own conduct; and it appeared that the miscarriages in Ireland were
wholly owing to John Shales, purveyor-general to the army. The commons
immediately presented an address to his majesty, praying that Shales
might be taken into custody; that all his papers, accounts, and stores,
should be secured; and that duke Schomberg might be empowered to fill
his place with a more able purveyor. The king gave them to understand
that he had already sent orders to the general for that purpose.
Nevertheless, they in another petition requested his majesty to name
those who had recommended Shales to his service, as he had exercised the
same office under king James, and was suspected of treasonable practices
against the government. William declined gratifying their request; but
he afterwards sent a message to the house, desiring them to recommend
a certain number of commissioners to superintend such provisions and
preparations as might be necessary for that service, as well as to
nominate certain persons to go over and examine the state of the army
in Ireland. The commons were so mollified by this instance of his
condescension, that they left the whole affair to his own direction,
and proceeded to examine other branches of misconduct. Instances of
mismanagement appeared so numerous and so flagrant, that they resolved
upon a subsequent address, to explain the ill conduct and success of
his army and navy; to desire he would find out the author of these
miscarriages, and for the future intrust unsuspected persons with the
management of affairs. They ordered the victuallers of the fleet to be
taken into custody, on suspicion of their having furnished the navy with
unwholesome provisions, and new commissioners were appointed. Bitter
reproaches were thrown out against the ministry. Mr. Hambden expressed
his surprise that the administration should consist of those very
persons whom king James had employed, when his affairs were desperate,
to treat with the prince of Orange, and moved that the king should be
petitioned in an address to remove such persons from his presence and
councils. This was a stroke aimed at the earl of Nottingham, whose
office of secretary Hambden desired to possess; but his motion was not
seconded, the court-members observing that James did not depute these
lords to the prince of Orange because they were attached to his own
interest, but for a very different reason, namely, that they were well
known to disapprove of his measures, and therefore would be the more
agreeable to his highness. The house however voted an address to the
king, desiring that the authors of the miscarriages might be brought to
condign punishment.
{WILLIAM AND MARY, 1688--1701.}
WILLIAM IRRITATED AGAINST THE WHIGS.
In the sequel, the question was proposed, Whether a placeman ought to
have a seat in the house? and a very warm debate ensued: but it was
carried in the affirmative, on the supposition that by such exclusion
the commonwealth would be deprived of some of the ablest senators of the
kingdom. But what chiefly irritated William against the whigs was their
backwardness in promoting the public service, and their disregard of the
earnest desire he expressed to see his revenue settled for life. He said
his title was no more than a pageant, and the worst of all governments
was that of a king without treasure. Nevertheless, they would not grant
the civil list for a longer term than one year. They began to think
there was something arbitrary in his disposition. His sullen behaviour
in all probability first infused this opinion, which was strengthened
and confirmed by the insinuations of his enemies. The Scots who had come
up to London to give an account of the proceedings in their parliament,
were infected with the same notion. One Simpson, a presbyterian of that
country, whom the earl of Portland employed as a spy, had insinuated
himself into the confidence of Nevil Payne, an active and intelligent
partisan and agent of king James; by which means he supplied the earl
with such intelligence as raised him to some degree of credit with that
minister. This he used in prepossessing the earl against the king’s best
friends, and infusing jealousies which were soon kindled into mutual
distrust and animosity.
PLOT AGAINST THE GOVERNMENT.
Sir James Montgomery, who had been a warm advocate for the revolution,
received advice that the court suspected him and others of disaffection,
and was employed in seeking evidence by which they might be prosecuted.
They were equally alarmed and incensed at this intimation, and Payne
seized the opportunity of seducing them into a correspondence with the
exiled king. They demanded the settlement of the presbytery in Scotland,
and actually engaged in a treaty for his restoration. They reconciled
themselves to the duke of Queensbury, and the other noblemen of the
episcopal party: they wrote to James for a supply of money, arms, and
ammunition, together with a reinforcement of three thousand men from
Dunkirk. Montgomery had acquired great interest among the whigs of
England, and this he-employed in animating them against the king and
the ministry. He represented them as a set of wicked men, who employed
infamous spies to insnare and ruin the fast friends of the government,
and found means to alienate them so much from William, that they began
to think in earnest of recalling their banished prince The duke of
Bolton and the earl of Monmouth were almost persuaded into a conspiracy
for this purpose; they seemed to think James was now so well convinced
of his former errors, that they might trust him without scruple.
Montgomery and Payne were the chief managers of the scheme, and they
admitted Ferguson into their councils, as a veteran in the arts of
treason. In order to blast William’s credit in the city, they circulated
a report that James would grant a full indemnity, separate himself
entirely from the French interest, and be contented with a secret
connivance in favour of the Roman catholics. Montgomery’s brother
assured the bishop of Salisbury that a treaty with king James was
absolutely concluded, and an invitation subscribed by the whole cabal.
He said this paper would be sent to Ireland by the way of France, as the
direct communication was difficult; and he proposed a method for seizing
it before it should be conveyed out of the kingdom. Williamson, the
supposed bearer of it, had obtained a pass for Flanders, and a messenger
being sent in pursuit of him, secured his clothes and portmanteau; but
after a very strict examination nothing appeared to justify the
intelligence. Williamson had previously delivered the papers to Simpson,
who hired a boat at Deal, and arrived in safety at France. He returned
with large assurances, and twelve thousand pounds were remitted to the
Scottish undertakers. Montgomery the informer seeing his intelligence
falsified, lost his credit with the bishop, and dreading the resentment
of the other party, retired to the continent. The conspirators loudly
complained of the false imputations they had incurred. The pretended
discoveries were looked upon as fictions of the ministry, and the king
on this occasion suffered greatly in the opinion of his subjects.
{WILLIAM AND MARY, 1688--1701.}
DEBATES ABOUT THE CORPORATION BILLS.
The tories still continued to carry on a secret negotiation with the
court. They took advantage of the ill-humour subsisting between the
king and the whigs; and promised large supplies of money provided this
parliament should be dissolved and another immediately convoked. The
opposite party, being apprized of their intention, brought a bill into
the house of commons for restoring corporations to their ancient rights
and privileges. They knew their own strength at elections consisted
in these corporations; and they inserted two additional severe clauses
against those who were in any shape concerned in surrendering charters.
The whole power of the tories was exerted against this clause; and now
the whigs vied with them in making court to his majesty, promising to
manifest the most submissive obedience should this bill be enacted into
a law. The strength of the tories was now become so formidable to
the house, that they out-voted the other party, and the clauses were
rejected; but the bill passed in its original form. The lords debated
upon the point, Whether a corporation could be forfeited or surrendered?
Lord chief justice Holt and two other judges declared their opinion in
the affirmative: the rest thought otherwise, as no precedents could be
produced farther back than the reign of Henry VIII. when the abbeys were
surrendered; and this instance seemed too violent to authorize such a
measure in a regular course of administration. The bill, however, passed
by one voice only. Then both parties quickened their applications to the
king, who found himself so perplexed and distracted between two factions
which he equally feared, that he resolved to leave the government in the
queen’s hands and retire to Holland. He communicated this design to the
marquis of Carmarthen, the earl of Shrewsbury, and some other noblemen,
who pressed him to lay aside his resolution, and even mingled tears with
their remonstrances.
THE KING RESOLVES TO FINISH THE IRISH WAR IN PERSON.
He at length complied with their request, and determined to finish the
Irish war in person. This design was far from being agreeable to the
parliament. His friends dreaded the climate of that country, which might
prove fatal to his weak constitution. The well-wishers of James were
afraid of that prince’s being hard pressed, should William take the
field against him in person.
Both houses, therefore, began to prepare an address against this
expedition. In order to prevent this remonstrance, the king went to the
parliament, and formally signified his resolution. After his speech they
were prorogued to the second day of April. On the sixth day of February
they were dissolved by proclamation, and a new parliament was summoned
to meet on the twentieth day of March. During this session, the commons,
in an address to the king, desired that a revenue of fifty thousand
pounds might be settled upon the prince and princess of Denmark, out of
the civil list; and his majesty gratified them in this particular: yet
the warmth and industry with which the friends of the princess
exerted themselves in promoting the settlement, produced a coldness and
misunderstanding between the two sisters; and the subsequent disgrace of
the earl of Marlborough was imputed to the part which his wife acted on
the occasion. She was lady of the bed-chamber, and chief confidant to
the princess, whom she strenuously advised to insist upon the settlement
rather than depend upon the generosity of the king and queen.
LUDLOW ARRIVES IN ENGLAND, BUT IS OBLIGED TO WITHDRAW.
About this period general Ludlow, who at the restoration had been
excepted from the act of indemnity, as one of those who sat in judgment
upon Charles I. arrived in England, and offered his service in reducing
Ireland, where he had formerly commanded. Though a rigid republican,
he was reputed a conscientious man, and a good officer. He had received
some encouragement to come over, and probably would have been employed
had not the commons interposed. Sir Edward Seymour, who enjoyed by grant
an estate in Wiltshire which had formerly belonged to Ludlow, began to
be in pain for his possession. He observed in the house, that the nation
would be disgraced should one of the J parricides be suffered to live in
the kingdom. An address was immediately presented to the king, desiring
a proclamation might be issued promising a reward for apprehending
general Ludlow. This was accordingly published; but not before he had
landed in Holland, from whence he returned to Vevay in Switzerland,
where he wrote the memoirs of his life, and died after an exile of
thirty years.
EFFORTS OF THE JACOBITES IN SCOTLAND.
While king William fluctuated between two parties in England, his
interest in Scotland had well nigh given way to a coalition between the
original Jacobites and Montgomery’s party of discontented presbyterians.
Colonel Cannon, who succeeded the viscount Dundee in command, after
having made several unsuccessful efforts in favour of the late king’s
interest, retired into Ireland; and the highlanders chose sir Hugh
Cameron for their leader. Under him they renewed their incursions with
the better prospect of success, as several regiments of the regular
troops had been sent to reinforce the army of Schomberg. James assisted
them with clothes, arms, and ammunition, together with some officers,
amongst whom was colonel Bucan, appointed to act as their chief
commander. This officer, at the head of fifteen hundred men, advanced
into the shire of Murray, in hopes of being joined by other malcontents;
but he was surprised and routed by sir Thomas Livingstone, while major
Ferguson destroyed the places they possessed in the Isle of Mull; so
that the highlanders were obliged to retire and conceal themselves among
their hills and fastnesses. The friends of James, despairing of doing
any thing effectual for his service in the field, converted all their
attention to the proceedings in parliament; where they imagined their
interest was much stronger than it appeared to be upon trial. They took
the oaths without hesitation, and hoped, by the assistance of their new
allies, to embroil the government in such a manner that the majority of
the people would declare for a restoration. But the views of these new
cemented parties were altogether incompatible, and their principles
diametrically opposite. Notwithstanding their concurrence in parliament,
the earl of Melvil procured a small majority. The opposition was
immediately discouraged: some individuals retracted, rather than fall
with a sinking cause; and mutual jealousies began to prevail. The
leaders of the coalition treated separately with king James; made
inconsistent demands; reciprocally concealed their negotiations; in a
word, they distrusted and hated one another with the most implacable
resentment.
THE COURT INTEREST PREVAILS.
The earls of Argyle, Annandale, and Breadalbane, withdrew from their
councils and repaired to England. Montgomery, terrified at their
defection, went privately to London, after he had hinted something
of the plot to Melvil, and solicited a pass from the queen, which was
refused. Annandale, having received information that Montgomery had
disclosed all the particulars of the negotiation, threw himself upon the
queen’s mercy, and discovered all he knew of the conspiracy. As lie had
not treated with any of the malcontents in England, they remained secure
from his evidence; but he informed against Nevil Payne, who had been
sent down as their agent to Scotland, where he now resided. He was
immediately apprehended by the council of that kingdom, in consequence
of a letter from the earl of Nottingham; and twice put to the torture,
which he resolutely bore, without discovering his employers. Montgomery
still absconded in London, soliciting a pardon; but finding he could not
obtain it, except on condition of making a full discovery, he
abandoned his country, and chose to die in exile rather than betray his
confederates. This disunion of the conspirators, and discovery of the
plot, left the earl of Melvil in possession of a greater majority;
though even this he was fain to secure by overstraining his instructions
in the articles of patronage, and the supremacy of the crown, which he
yielded up to the fury of the fanatic presbyterians, contrary to the
intention of king William. In lieu of these, however, they indulged him
with the tax of chimney or hearth-money; as well as with a test to be
imposed upon all persons in office or parliament, declaring William and
Mary their lawful sovereigns, and renouncing the pretended title of king
James. All the laws in favour of episcopacy were repealed. Threescore
of the presbyterian ministers, who had been ejected at the restoration,
were still alive; and these the parliament declared the only sound part
of the church. The government of it was lodged in their hands; and
they were empowered to admit such as they should think proper to their
assistance. A few furious fanatics being thus associated, proceeded with
ungovernable violence to persecute the episcopal party, exercising the
very same tyranny against which they themselves had so loudly exclaimed.
THE TORY INTEREST PREVAILS IN THE NEW PARLIAMENT.
While the presbyterian interest thus triumphed in Scotland, the
two parties that divided England employed their whole influence and
attention in managing the elections for a new parliament; and the tories
obtained the victory. The king seemed gradually falling into the arms of
this party. They complained of their having been totally excluded from
the lieutenancy of London at the king’s accession to the crown; and
now a considerable number of the most violent tories in the city were
admitted into the commission by the interest and address of the bishop
of London, the marquis of Carmarthen, and the earl of Nottingham. To
gratify that party, the earls of Monmouth and Warrington were dismissed
from their employments; nay, when the parliament met on the twentieth
day of March, the commons chose for their speaker sir John Trevor, a
violent partisan of that faction, who had been created master of the
rolls by the late king. He was a bold artful man, and undertook to
procure a majority to be at the devotion of the court, provided
he should be supplied with the necessary sums for the purposes of
corruption. William, finding there was no other way of maintaining his
administration in peace, thought proper to countenance the practice of
purchasing votes, and appointed Trevor first commissioner of the great
seal. In his speech to the new parliament, he gave them to understand
that he still persisted in his resolution of going in person to Ireland.
He desired they would make a settlement of the revenue, or establish it
for the present as a fund of credit, upon which the necessary sums for
the service of government might be immediately advanced; he signified
his intention of sending to them an act of grace, with a few exceptions,
that he might manifest his readiness to extend his protection to all his
subjects, and leave no colour of excuse for raising disturbances in
his absence, as he knew how busy some ill-affected men were in their
endeavours to alter the established government; he recommended an union
with Scotland, the parliament of which had appointed commissioners for
that purpose; he told them he should leave the administration in the
hands of the queen, and desired they would prepare an act to confirm her
authority; he exhorted them to dispatch the business for which they were
assembled, to avoid debates, and expressed his hope that they should
soon meet again to finish what might be now left imperfect.
BILL FOR RECOGNISING THEIR MAJESTIES.
The commons, in compliance with his request, voted a supply of twelve
hundred thousand pounds, one million of that sum to be raised by a
clause of credit in the revenue bills; but he could not prevail
upon them to settle the revenue for life. They granted, however, the
hereditary excise for that term, but the customs for four years only.
They considered this short term as the best security the kingdom could
have for frequent parliaments; though this precaution was not at all
agreeable to their sovereign. A poll-bill was likewise passed, other
supplies were granted, and both parties seemed to court his majesty
by advancing money on those funds of credit. The whigs, however, had
another battery in reserve. They produced, in the upper house, a bill
for recognising their majesties as the rightful and lawful sovereign of
these realms, and for declaring all the acts of the last parliament
to be good and valid. The tories were now reduced to a very perplexed
situation. They could not oppose the bill without hazarding the
interest they had so lately acquired, nor assent to it without solemnly
renouncing their former arguments and distinctions. They made no great
objections to the first part, and even proposed to enact, That those
should be deemed good laws for the time to come; but they refused to
declare them valid for that which was past. After a long debate, the
bill was committed; yet the whigs lost their majority on the report;
nevertheless, the bill was recovered, and passed with some alteration in
the words; in consequence of a nervous spirited protest, signed Bolton,
Macclesfield, Stamford, Newport, Bedford, Her bert, Suffolk, Monmouth,
Delamere, and Oxford. The whole interest of the court was thrown into
the scale with this bill, before it would preponderate against the
tories; the chiefs of whom, with the earl of Nottingham at their head,
protested in their turn. The same party in the house of commons were
determined upon a vigorous opposition; and in the mean time some
trifling objections were made, that it might be committed for amendment;
but their design was prematurely discovered by one of their faction,
who chanced to question the legality of the convention, as it was not
summoned by the king’s writ. This insinuation was answered by Somers the
solicitor general, who observed, that if it was not a legal parliament,
they who were then met, and who had taken the oaths enacted by that
parliament, were guilty of high treason; the laws repealed by it were
still in force: it was their duty therefore to return to king James; and
all concerned in collecting and paying the money levied by the acts of
that parliament were highly criminal. The tories were so struck with
these arguments that the bill passed without further opposition, and
immediately received the royal assent. Thus the settlement was confirmed
by those very people who had so loudly exclaimed against it as illegal;
but the whigs, with all their management, would not have gained their
point had not the court been interested in the dispute.
{WILLIAM AND MARY, 1688--1701.}
ANOTHER VIOLENT CONTEST.
There was another violent contest between the two parties, on the import
of a bill requiring all subjects in office to abjure king James on pain
of imprisonment. Though the clergy were at first exempted from this
test, the main body of the tories opposed it with great vehemence; while
the whigs, under countenance of the ministry, supported it with equal
vigour. It produced long and violent debates; and the two factions
seemed pretty equally balanced. At length the tories represented to
the king that a great deal of precious time would be lost in fruitless
altercation; that those who declared against the bill would grow sullen
and intractable, so as to oppose every other motion that might be made
for the king’s service; that, in case of its being carried, his majesty
must fall again into the hands of the whigs, who would renew their
former practices against the prerogative; and many individuals, who
were now either well affected to him, or at least neutral, would become
Jacobites from resentment. These suggestions had such weight with king
William, that he sent an intimation to the commons, desiring they would
drop the debate and proceed to matters that were more pressing. The
whigs in general were disgusted at this interposition; and the earl of
Shrewsbury, who had interested himself warmly in behalf of the bill,
resented it so deeply that he insisted on resigning his office of
secretary of state. The king, who revered his talents and integrity,
employed Dr. Tillotson and others, who were supposed to have credit with
the earl, to dissuade him from quitting his employment; but he continued
deaf to all their remonstrances, and would not even comply with the
request of his majesty, who pressed him to keep the seals until he
should return from Ireland. Long debates were likewise managed in the
house of lords upon the bill of abjuration, or rather an oath of special
fidelity to William, in opposition to James. The tories professed
themselves willing to enter into a negative engagement against the late
king and his adherents; but they opposed the oath of abjuration with all
their might: and the house was so equally divided that neither side was
willing to hazard a decision, so that all the fruit of their debates was
a prolongation of the session.
KING WILLIAM LANDS IN IRELAND.
An act was prepared for investing the queen with the administration
during the king’s absence; another for reversing the judgment on a _quo
warranto_ against the city of London, and restoring it to its ancient
rights and privileges; at length the bill of indemnity so cordially
recommended by the king passed both houses. [021] _[See note G, at the
end of this Vol.]_ On the twenty-first day of May, the king closed the
session with a Short speech, in which he thanked them for the supplies
they had granted, and recommended to them a punctual discharge of their
duties in their respective counties, that the peace of the nation might
not be interrupted in his absence. The houses were adjourned to the
seventh day of July, when the parliament was prorogued and adjourned
successively. As a further security for the peace of the kingdom, the
deputy-lieutenants were authorized to raise the militia in case of
necessity. All papists were prohibited to stir above five miles from
their respective places of abode; a proclamation was published for
apprehending certain disaffected persons; sir John Cochran and Ferguson
were actually arrested on suspicion of treasonable practices. On the
fourth day of June the king set out for Ireland, attended by prince
George of Denmark, the duke of Ormond, the earls of Oxford, Scarborough,
Manchester, and many other persons of distinction: on the fourteenth
day of the month he landed at Carrickfergus, from whence he immediately
proceeded to Belfast, where he was met by the duke of Schomberg, the
prince of Wirtemberg, major-general Kirke, and other officers. By this
time colonel Wolsey, at the head of a thousand men, had defeated a
strong detachment of the enemy near Belturbat; sir John Lanier had
taken Bedloe castle; and that of Charlemont, a strong post of great
importance, together with Balingary near Cavan, had been reduced. King
William having reposed himself for two or three days at Belfast, visited
the duke’s head-quarters at Lis-burne; then advancing to Hillsborough,
published an order against pressing horses, and committing violence on
the country people. When some of his general officers proposed cautious
measures, he declared he did not come to Ireland to let the grass
grow under his feet. He ordered the army to encamp and be reviewed
at Loughbrilland, where he found it amount to six-and-thirty thousand
effective men, well appointed. Then he marched to Dundalk; and
afterwards advanced to Ardee, which the enemy had just abandoned.
JAMES MARCHES TO THE BOYNE.
King James trusted so much to the disputes in the English parliament,
that he did not believe his son-in-law would be able to quit that
kingdom; and William had been six days in Ireland before he received
intimation of his arrival. This was no sooner known than he left
Dublin under the guard of the militia commanded by Luttrel, and with
a reinforcement of six thousand infantry, which he had lately received
from France, joined the rest of his forces, which now almost equalled
William’s army in number, exclusive of about fifteen thousand men who
remained in different garrisons. He occupied a very advantageous post
on the bank of the Boyne, and, contrary to the advice of his general
officers, resolved to stand battle. They proposed to strengthen their
garrisons and retire to the Shannon to wait the effect of the operations
at sea. Louis had promised to equip a powerful armament against the
English fleet, and send over a great number of small frigates to destroy
William’s transports, as soon as their convoy should be returned to
England. The execution of this scheme was not at all difficult, and must
have proved fatal to the English army; for their stores and ammunition
were still on board; the ships sailed along the coast as the troops
advanced in their march; and there was not one secure harbour into
which they could retire on any emergency. James, however, was bent upon
hazarding an engagement; and expressed uncommon confidence and alacrity.
Besides the river which was deep, his front was secured by a morass and
a rising ground, so that the English army could not attack him without
manifest disadvantage.
WILLIAM RESOLVES TO GIVE HIM BATTLE
King William marched up to the opposite bank of the river, and, as
he reconnoitred their situation, was exposed to the fire of some
field-pieces which the enemy purposely planted against his person.
They killed a man and two horses close by him; and the second bullet,
rebounding from the earth, grazed upon his right shoulder so as to carry
off part of his clothes and skin, and produce a considerable contusion.
This accident, which he bore without the least emotion, created some
confusion among his attendants, which the enemy perceiving, concluded
he was killed, and shouted aloud in token of their joy. The whole camp
resounded with acclamation; and several squadrons of their horse
were drawn down towards the river as if they had intended to pass
it immediately and attack the English army. The report was instantly
communicated from place to place until it reached Dublin; from thence
it was conveyed to Paris, where, contrary to the custom of the French
court, the people were encouraged to celebrate the event with bonfires
and illuminations. William rode along the line to show himself to the
army after this narrow escape. At night he called a council of war, and
declared his resolution to attack the enemy in the morning. Schomberg
at first opposed his design; but finding the king determined, he advised
that a strong detachment of horse and foot should that night pass the
Boyne at Slane-bridge, and take post between the enemy and the pass of
Duleck, that the action might be the more decisive. This council
being rejected, the king determined that early in the morning
lieutenant-general Douglas, with the right wing of infantry, and young
Schomberg, with the horse, should pass at Slane-bridge, while the main
body of foot should force their passage at Old-bridge, and the left
at certain fords between the enemy’s camp and Drogheda. The duke,
perceiving his advice was not relished by the Dutch generals, retired to
his tent, where the order of battle being brought to him, he received it
with an air of discontent, saying, It was the first that had ever been
sent him in that manner. The proper dispositions being made, William
rode quite through the army by torchlight, and then retired to his tent,
after having given orders for the soldiers to distinguish themselves
from the enemy by wearing green boughs in their hats during the action.
BATTLE OF THE BOYNE.
At six o’clock in the morning, general Douglas, with young Schomberg,
the earl of Portland, and Auverquerque, marched towards Slane-bridge,
and passed the river with very little opposition. When they reached the
farther bank, they perceived the enemy drawn up in two lines, to a
considerable number of horse and foot, with a morass in their front, so
that Douglas was obliged to wait for a reinforcement. This being
arrived, the infantry was led on to the charge through the morass,
while count Schomberg rode round it with his cavalry to attack the
enemy in flank. The Irish, instead of waiting the assault, faced about
and retreated towards Duleck with some precipitation; yet not so fast
but that Schomberg fell in among their rear and did considerable
execution. King James however soon reinforced his left wing from the
centre; and the count was in his turn obliged to send for assistance.
At this juncture, king William’s main body, consisting of the Dutch
guards, the French regiments, and some battalions of English, passed
the river, which was waist high, under a general discharge of
artillery. King James had imprudently removed his cannon from the other
side; but he had posted a strong body of musqueteers along the bank,
behind hedges, houses, and some works raised for the occasion. These
poured in a close fire upon the English troops before they reached the
shore; but it produced very little effect: then the Irish gave way; and
some battalions landed without further opposition. Yet, before they
could form, they were charged with great impetuosity by a squadron of
the enemy’s horse; and a considerable body of their cavalry and foot,
commanded by general Hamilton, advanced from behind some little
hillocks to attack those that were landed, as well as to prevent the
rest from reaching the shore. His infantry turned their backs and fled
immediately; but the horse charged with incredible fury, both upon the
bank and in the river, so as to put the unformed regiments in
confusion. Then the duke of Schomberg, passing the river in person, put
himself at the head of the French protestants, and pointing to the
enemy, “Gentlemen,” said he, “those are your persecutors;” with these
words he advanced to the attack, where he himself sustained a violent
onset from a party of the Irish horse which had broke through one of
the regiments, and were now on their return. They were mistaken for
English, and allowed to gallop up to the duke, who received two severe
wounds in the head; but the French regiments being now sensible of
their mistake, rashly threw in their fire upon the Irish while they
were engaged with the duke, and instead of saving, shot him dead upon
the spot. The fate of this general had well nigh proved fatal to the
English army, which was immediately involved in tumult and disorder;
while the infantry of king James rallied, and returned to their posts
with a face of resolution. They were just ready to fall upon the
centre, when king William having passed with the left wing, composed of
the Danish, Dutch, and Inniskilling horse, advanced to attack them on
the right. They were struck with such a panic at his appearance that
they made a sudden halt, and then facing about, retreated to the
village of Dunore. There they made such a vigorous stand that the Dutch
and Danish horse, though headed by the king in person, recoiled; even
the Inniskillmers gave way; and the whole wing would have been routed,
had not a detachment of dragoons, belonging to the regiment of
Cunningham and Livison, dismounted, and lined the hedges on each side
of the defile through which the fugitives were driven. There they did
such execution upon the pursuers as soon checked their ardour. The
horse, which were broken, had now time to rally, and returning to the
charge, drove the enemy before them in their turn. In this action
general Hamilton, who had been the life and soul of the Irish during
the whole engagement, was wounded and taken--an incident which
discouraged them to such a degree, that they made no further efforts to
retrieve the advantage they had lost. He was immediately brought to the
king, who asked him if he thought the Irish would make any further
resistance; and he replied, “Upon my honour, I believe they will; for
they have still a good body of horse entire.” William, eyeing him with
a look of disdain, repeated, “Your honour! your honour!” but took no
other notice of his having acted contrary to his engagement, when he
was permitted to go to Ireland on promise of persuading Tyrconnel to
submit to the new government. The Irish now abandoned the field with
precipitation; but the French and Swiss troops, that acted as their
auxiliaries under Lausun, retreated in good order, after having
maintained the battle for some time with intrepidity and perseverance.
DEATH OF SCHOMBERG.
As king William did not think proper to pursue the enemy, the carnage
was not great. The Irish lost fifteen hundred men, and the English
about one-third of that number; though the victory was dearly purchased,
considering the death of the gallant duke of Schomberg, who fell in the
eighty-second year of his age, after having rivalled the best generals
of the time in military reputation. He was descended of a noble family
in the Palatinate, and his mother was an English woman, daughter of lord
Dudley. Being obliged to leave his country on account of the troubles
by which it was agitated, he commenced a soldier of fortune, and served
successively in the armies of Holland, England, France, Portugal, and
Brandenburgh. He attained to the dignities of mareschal in France,
grandee in Portugal, generalissimo in Prussia, and duke in England.
He professed the protestant religion; was courteous and humble in his
deportment; cool, penetrating, resolute, and sagacious; nor was his
probity inferior to his courage. This battle likewise proved fatal
to the brave Caillemote, who had followed the duke’s fortunes, and
commanded one of the protestant regiments. After having received a
mortal wound, he was carried back through the river by four soldiers,
and though almost in the agonies of death, he with a cheerful
countenance encouraged those who were crossing to do their duty,
exclaiming, “_A la gloire, mes enfans; à la gloire_. To glory, my
lads; to glory!” The third remarkable person who lost his life on
this occasion was Walker the clergyman, who had so valiantly defended
Londonderry against the whole army of king James. He had been very
graciously received by king William, who gratified him with a reward of
five thousand pounds, and a promise of further favour; but his military
genius still predominating, he attended his royal patron in this battle,
and being shot in the belly, died in a few minutes. The persons of
distinction who fell on the other side were the lords Dongan and
Carlingford, sir Neile O’Neile, and the marquis of Hoequincourt. James
himself stood aloof during the action on the hill of Dunmore, surrounded
with some squadrons of horse; and seeing victory declare against him,
retired to Dublin without having made the least effort to re-assemble
his broken forces. Had he possessed either spirit or conduct, his army
might have been rallied, and reinforced from his garrisons, so as to be
in a condition to keep the field, and even act upon the offensive; for
his loss was inconsiderable, and the victor did not attempt to molest
his troops in their retreat--an omission which has been charged upon him
as a flagrant instance of misconduct. Indeed, through the whole of this
engagement, William’s personal courage was much more conspicuous than
his military skill.
{WILLIAM AND MARY, 1688--1701.}
JAMES EMBARKS FOR FRANCE.
King James no sooner arrived at Dublin than he assembled the magistrates
and council of the city, and in a short speech resigned them to the
fortune of the victor. He complained of the cowardice of the Irish;
signified his resolution of leaving the kingdom immediately; forbade
them, on their allegiance, to burn or plunder the city after his
departure; and assured them, that, though he was obliged to yield to
force, he would never cease to labour for their deliverance. Next day he
set out for Waterford, attended by the duke of Berwick, Tyrconnel,
and the marquis of Powis. He ordered all the bridges to be broken down
behind him, and embarked in a vessel which had been prepared for his
reception. At sea he fell in with the French squadron, commanded by the
Sieur de Foran, who persuaded him to go on board one of his frigates,
which was a prime sailer. In this he was safely conveyed to France, and
returned to the place of his former residence at St. Germain’s. He had
no sooner quitted Dublin than it was also abandoned by all the papists.
The protestants immediately took possession of the arms belonging to
the militia, under the conduct of the bishops of Meath and Limerick.
A committee was formed to take charge of the administration; and an
account of these transactions was transmitted to king William, together
with a petition that he would honour the city with his presence.
WILLIAM ENTERS DUBLIN.
On the morning after the battle of the Boyne, William sent a detachment
of horse and foot, under the command of M. Mellionere, to Drogheda, the
governor of which surrendered the place without opposition. The king at
the head of the army began his march for Dublin, and halted the first
night at Bally-Breghan; where, having received advice of the enemy’s
retreat from the capital, he sent the duke of Ormond with a body of
horse to take possession. These were immediately followed by the Dutch
guards, who secured the castle. In a few days the king encamped at
Finglas, in the neighbourhood of Dublin, where he was visited by the
bishops of Meath and Limerick, at the head of the protestant clergy,
whom he assured of his favour and protection. Then he published a
declaration of pardon to all the common people who had served against
him, provided they should return to their dwellings and surrender their
arms by the first day of August. Those that rented lands of popish
proprietors who had been concerned in the rebellion, were required to
retain their rents in their own hands until they should have notice
from the commissioners of the revenue to whom they should be paid. The
desperate leaders of the rebellion, who had violated the laws of the
kingdom, called in the French, authorized the depredations which had
been committed upon protestants, and rejected the pardon offered to them
on the king’s first proclamation, were left to the event of war, unless
by evident demonstrations of repentance they should deserve mercy, which
would never be refused to those who were truly penitent. The next step
taken by king William was to issue a proclamation reducing the brass
money to nearly its intrinsic value. In the meantime, the principal
officers in the army of James, after having seen him embark at
Waterford, returned to their troops, determined to prosecute the war as
long as they could be supplied with means to support their operations.
VICTORY GAINED BY THE FRENCH.
During these transactions, the queen, as regent, found herself
surrounded with numberless cares and perplexities. Her council was
pretty equally divided into whigs and tories, who did not always act
with unanimity. She was distracted between her apprehensions for her
father’s safety and her husband’s life: she was threatened with an
invasion by the French from abroad, and with an insurrection by the
Jacobites at home. Nevertheless she disguised her fears, and behaved
with equal prudence and fortitude. Advice being received that a fleet
was ready to sail from Brest, lord Torrington hoisted his flag in the
Downs, and sailed round to St. Helen’s, in order to assemble such a
number of ships as would enable him to give them battle. The enemy
being discovered off Plymouth on the twentieth day of June, the English
admiral, reinforced with a Dutch squadron, stood out to sea with a view
to intercept them at the back of the Isle of Wight, should they presume
to sail up the channel, not that he thought himself strong enough to
cope with them in battle. Their fleet consisted of seventy-eight ships
of war, and two-and-twenty fire-ships; whereas, the combined squadrons
of England and Holland did not exceed six-and-fifty; but he had received
orders to hazard an engagement if he thought it might be done with any
prospect of success. After the hostile fleets had continued five days
in sight of each other, lord Torrington bore down upon the enemy off
Beachy-head, on the thirtieth day of June, at day-break. The Dutch
squadron, which composed the van, began the engagement about nine in
the morning; in about half an hour the blue division of the English were
close engaged with the rear of the French; but the red, which formed
the centre, under the command of Torrington in person, did not fill the
line till ten o’clock, so that the Dutch were almost surrounded by the
enemy, and, though they fought with great valour, sustained considerable
damage. At length the admiral’s division drove between them and the
French, and in that situation the fleet anchored about five in the
afternoon, when the action was interrupted by a calm. The Dutch had
suffered so severely, that Torrington thought it would be imprudent to
renew the battle; he therefore weighed anchor in the night, and with the
tide of flood retired to the eastward. The next day the disabled ships
were destroyed, that they might not be retarded in their retreat.
They were pursued as far as Rye; an English ship of seventy guns being
stranded near Winchelsea, was set on fire and deserted by the captain’s
command. A Dutch ship of sixty-four guns met with the same accident, and
some French frigates attempted to burn her; but the captain defended her
so vigorously that they were obliged to desist, and he afterwards found
means to carry her safe to Holland. In this engagement the English lost
two ships, two sea-captains, and about four hundred men; but the Dutch
were more unfortunate: six of their great ships were destroyed. Dick
and Brackel, rear-admirals, were slain, together with a great number
of inferior officers and seamen. Torrington retreated without further
interruption into the mouth of the Thames; and, having taken precaution
against any attempts of the enemy in that quarter, returned to London,
the inhabitants of which were overwhelmed with consternation.
TORRINGTON COMMITTED TO THE TOWER.
The government was infected with the same panic. The ministry pretended
to believe that the French acted in concert with the malcontents of the
nation; that insurrections in the different parts of the kingdom had
been projected by the Jacobites; and that there would be a general
revolt in Scotland. These insinuations were circulated by the court
agents in order to justify, in the opinion of the public, the measures
that were deemed necessary at this juncture; and they produced the
desired effect. The apprehensions thus artfully raised among the people
inflamed their aversion to nonjurors and Jacobites. Addresses were
presented to the queen by the Cornish tinners, by the lieutenancy of
Middlesex, and by the mayor, aldermen, and lieutenancy of London, filled
with professions of loyalty and promises of supporting their majesties
as their lawful sovereigns, against all opposition. The queen at this
crisis exhibited remarkable proofs of courage, activity, and discretion.
She issued out proper orders and directions for putting the nation in a
posture of defence, as well as for refitting and augmenting the fleet;
she took measures for appeasing the resentment of the states-general,
who exclaimed against the earl of Torrington for his behaviour in the
late action. He was deprived of his command, and sent prisoner to
the Tower; and commissioners were appointed to examine the particular
circumstances of his conduct. A camp was formed in the neighbourhood
of Torbay, where the French seemed to threaten a descent. Their fleet,
which lay at anchor in the bay, cannonaded a small village called
Teign-mouth. About a thousand of their men landed without opposition,
set fire to the place, and burned a few coasting vessels; then they
re-embarked and returned to Brest, so vain of this achievement that they
printed a pompous account of their invasion. Some of the whig partizans
published pamphlets and diffused reports, implying that the suspended
bishops were concerned in the conspiracy against the government; and
these arts proved so inflammatory among the common people, that the
prelates thought it necessary to print a paper, in which they asserted
their innocence in the most solemn protestations. The court seems to
have harboured no suspicion against them, otherwise they would not have
escaped imprisonment. The queen issued a proclamation for apprehending
the earls of Litchfield, Aylesbury, and Castlemain; viscount Preston; the
lords Montgomery and Bellasis; sir Edward Hales, sir Robert Tharold, sir
Robert Hamilton, sir Theophilus Oglethorpe, colonel Edward Sackville,
and some other officers. These were accused of having conspired with
other disaffected persons to disturb and destroy the government, and of
a design to concur with her majesty’s enemies in the intended invasion.
The earl of Torrington continued a prisoner in the Tower till next
session, when he was brought into the house of commons and made a speech
in his own defence. His case produced long debates in the upper house,
where the form of his commitment was judged illegal: at length he
was tried by a court-martial appointed by the commissioners of the
admiralty, though not before an act had passed, declaring the power of
a lord high-admiral vested in those commissioners. The president of the
court was sir Ralph Délavai, who had acted as vice-admiral of the blue
in the engagement. The earl was acquitted, but the king dismissed him
from the service; and the Dutch exclaimed against the partiality of his
judges.
PROGRESS OF WILLIAM IN IRELAND.
William is said to have intercepted all the papers of his father-in-law
and Tyrconnel, and to have learned from them not only the design
projected by the French to burn the English transports, but likewise the
undertaking of one Jones, who engaged to assassinate king William. No
such attempt however was made, and in all probability the whole report
was a fiction, calculated to throw an odium on James’ character. On the
ninth day of July, William detached general Douglas with a considerable
body of horse and foot towards Athlone, while he himself, having left
Trelawny to command at Dublin, advanced with the rest of his army to
Inchiquin in his way to Kilkenny. Colonel Grace, the governor of Athlone
for king James, being summoned to surrender, fired a pistol at the
trumpeter, saying, “These are my terms.” Then Douglas resolved to
undertake the siege of the place, which was naturally very strong, and
defended by a resolute garrison. An inconsiderable breach was made, when
Douglas, receiving intelligence that Sarsfield was on his march to the
relief of the besieged, abandoned the enterprise after having lost above
four hundred men in the attempt. The king continued his march to the
westward; and, by dint of severe examples, established such order and
discipline in his army, that the peasants were secure from the least
violence. At Carlow he detached the duke of Ormond to take possession of
Kilkenny, where that nobleman regaled him in his own castle, which
the enemy had left undamaged. While the army encamped at Carrick,
major-general Kirke was sent to Waterford, the garrison of which,
consisting of two regiments, capitulated upon condition of marching out
with their arms and baggage, and being conducted to Mallow. The fort of
Duncannon was surrendered on the same terms. Here the lord Dover and the
lord George Howard were admitted to the benefit of the king’s mercy and
protection.
HE INVESTS LIMERICK; IS OBLIGED TO RAISE THE SIEGE.
On the first day of August, William being at Chapel-Izard, published a
second declaration of mercy, confirming the former, and even extending
it to persons of superior rank and station, whether natives or
foreigners, provided they would, by the twenty-fifth day of the month,
lay down their arms and submit to certain conditions. This offer of
indemnity produced very little effect, for the Irish were generally
governed by their priests, and the news of the victory which the French
fleet had obtained over the English and Dutch, was circulated with such
exaggerations as elevated their spirits, and effaced all thoughts of
submission. The king had returned to Dublin with a view to embark for
England, but receiving notice that the designs of his domestic enemies
were discovered and frustrated, that the fleet was repaired, and the
French navy retired to Brest, he postponed his voyage and resolved to
reduce Limerick; in which Monsieur Boisseleau commanded as governor, and
the duke of Berwick and colonel Sarsfield acted as inferior officers.
On the ninth day of August, the king having called in his detachment and
advanced into the neighbourhood of the place, summoned the commander to
deliver the town; and Boisseleau answered, that he imagined the best way
to gain the good opinion of the prince of Orange, would be a vigorous
defence of the town which his majesty had committed to his charge.
Before the place was fully invested, colonel Sarsfield, with a body of
horse and dragoons, passed the Shannon in the night, intercepted the
king’s train of artillery on its way to the camp, routed the troops that
guarded it, disabled the cannon, destroyed the carriages, waggons, and
ammunition, and returned in safety to Limerick. Notwithstanding this
disaster, the trenches were opened on the seventeenth day of the month,
and a battery was raised with some cannon brought from Waterford. The
siege was carried on with vigour, and the place defended with great
resolution. At length the king ordered his troops to make a lodgment in
the covered way or counterscarp, which was accordingly assaulted with
great fury; but the assailants met with such a warm reception from the
besieged, that they were repulsed with the loss of twelve hundred men
either killed on the spot or mortally wounded. This disappointment,
concurring with the badness of the weather, which became rainy and
unwholesome, induced the king to renounce his undertaking. The heavy
baggage and cannon being sent away, the army decamped and marched
towards Clonmel. William having constituted the lord Sydney and Thomas
Coningsby lords justices of Ireland, and left the command of the army
with count Solmes, embarked at Duncannon with prince George of Denmark
on the fifth of September, and next day arrived in King road, near
Bristol, from whence he repaired to Windsor.
CORK AND KINSALE REDUCED.
About the latter end of this month the earl of Marlborough arrived in
Ireland with five thousand English troops, to attack Cork and Kinsale in
conjunction with a detachment from the great army, according to a scheme
he had proposed to king William. Having landed his soldiers without much
opposition in the neighbourhood of Cork, he was joined by five thousand
men under the prince of Wirtemberg, between whom and the earl a dispute
arose about the command; but this was compromised by the interposition
of La Mellionere. The place being invested, and the batteries raised,
the besiegers proceeded with such rapidity that a breach was soon
effected. Colonel Mackillicut the governor demanded a parley, and
hostages were exchanged; but he rejected the conditions that were
offered, and hostilities recommenced with redoubled vigour. The duke
of Grafton, who served on this occasion as a volunteer, was mortally
wounded in one of the attacks, and died regretted as a youth of
promising talents. Preparations being made for a general assault,
the besieged thought proper to capitulate, and surrendered themselves
prisoners of war. Besides the governor and colonel Bicaut, the victor
found the earls of Clancarty and Tyrone among the individuals of
the garrison. Marlborough having taken possession of Cork, detached
brigadier Villiers with a body of horse and dragoons to summon the town
and forts of Kinsale, and next day advanced with the rest of the forces.
The old fort was immediately taken by assault; but sir Edward Scott,
who commanded the other, sustained a regular siege until the breach
was practicable, and then obtained an honourable capitulation. These
maritime places being reduced, all communication between France and
the enemy on this side of the island was cut off, and the Irish
were confined to Ulster, where they could not subsist without great
difficulty. The earl of Marlborough having finished this expedition in
thirty days, returned with his prisoners to England, where the fame of
this exploit added greatly to his reputation.
THE FRENCH FORCES QUIT IRELAND.
During these transactions count de Lausan, commander of the French
auxiliaries in Ireland, lay inactive in the neighbourhood of Galway, and
transmitted such a lamentable account of his situation to the court of
France, that transports were sent over to bring home the French forces.
In these he embarked with his troops, and the command of the Irish
forces devolved to the duke of Berwick, though it was afterwards
transferred to M. St. Ruth. Lausan was disgraced at Versailles for
having deserted the cause before it was desperate: Tyrconnel, who
accompanied him in his voyage, solicited the French court for a further
supply of officers, arms, clothes, and ammunition for the Irish army,
which he said would continue firm to the interest of king James if thus
supported. Meanwhile they formed themselves into separate bodies
of freebooters, and plundered the country, under the appellation of
rapparees: while the troops of king William either enjoyed their ease in
quarters, or imitated the rapine of the enemy; so that between both the
poor people were miserably harassed.
SAVOY JOINS THE CONFEDERACY.
The affairs of the continent had not yet undergone any change of
importance, except in the conduct of the duke of Savoy, who renounced
his neutrality, engaged in an alliance with the emperor and king of
Spain; and, in a word, acceded to the grand confederacy. He had no
sooner declared himself, than Catinat the French general entered his
territories at the head of eighteen thousand men, and defeated him in
a pitched battle near Saluces, which immediately surrendered to the
conqueror. Then he reduced Savillana, Villa Franca, with several other
places, pursued the duke to Carignan, surprised Suza, and distributed
his forces in winter quarters, partly in Provence and partly in the
duchy of Savoy, which St. Ruth had lately reduced under the dominion
of France. The duke finding himself disappointed in the succours he
expected from the emperor and the king of Spain, demanded assistance of
the states-general and king William: to this last he sent an ambassador,
to congratulate him upon his accession to the throne of England. The
confederates in their general congress at the Hague, had agreed that
the army of the states under prince Waldeck should oppose the forces
of France, commanded by the duke of Luxembourg in Flanders; while the
elector of Brandenburgh should observe the marquis de Boufflers on
the Moselle: but before the troops of Brandenburgh could be assembled,
Boufflers encamped between the Sambre and the Mouse, and maintained a
free communication with Luxembourg.
PRINCE WALDECK DEFEATED.
Prince Waldeck understanding that this general intended to cross
the Sambre between Namur and Charleroy, in order to lay the Spanish
territories under contribution, decamped from the river Piéton, and
detached the count of Berlo with a great body of horse to observe
the motions of the enemy. He was encountered by the French army near
Fleuras, and slain: and his troops, though supported by two other
detachments, were hardly able to rejoin the main body, which continued
all night in order of battle. Next day they were attacked by the French,
who were greatly superior to them in number: after a very obstinate
engagement the allies gave way, leaving about five thousand men dead
upon the field of battle. The enemy took about four thousand prisoners,
and the greatest part of their artillery; but the victory was dearly
bought. The Dutch infantry fought with surprising resolution and
success. The duke of Luxembourg owned with surprise, that they had
surpassed the Spanish foot at the battle of Rocroy. “Prince Waldeck,
said he, ought always to remember the French horse; and I shall never
forget the Dutch infantry.” The Dutch general exerted himself with
such activity, that the French derived very little advantage from their
victory. The prince being reinforced with the five English regiments,
nine thousand Hanoverians, ten thousand from the bishopric of Liege and
Holland, joined the elector of Brandenburgh; so that the confederate
army amounted to five-and-fifty thousand men, and they marched by
the way of Genap to Bois-Seigneur-Isaac. They were now superior to
Luxembourg, who thought proper to fortify his camp, that he might not
be obliged to fight except with considerable advantage. Nevertheless,
prince Waldeck would have attacked him in his intrenchments, had he not
been prohibited from hazarding another engagement by an express
order of the states-general; and when this restriction was removed, the
elector would not venture a battle.
ARCHDUKE JOSEPH ELECTED KING.
By this time the emperor’s son Joseph was by the electoral college
chosen king of the Romans; but his interest sustained a rude shock in
the death of the gallant duke of Lorraine, who was suddenly seized
with a quin-sey at a small village near Lintz, and expired, not without
suspicion of having fallen a sacrifice to the fears of the French king,
against whom he had formerly declared war as a sovereign prince unjustly
expelled from his territories. He possessed great military talents, and
had threatened to enter Lorraine at the head of forty thousand men, in
the course of the ensuing summer. The court of France, alarmed at this
declaration, is said to have had recourse to poison, for preventing the
execution of the duke’s design. At his death the command of the imperial
army was conferred upon the elector of Bavaria. This prince having
joined the elector of Saxony, advanced against the Dauphin, who had
passed the Rhine at Fort-Louis with a considerable army, and intended to
penetrate into Wirtemberg; but the duke of Bavaria checked his progress,
and he acted on the defensive during the remaining part of the campaign.
The emperor was less fortunate in his efforts against the Turks, who
rejected the conditions of peace he had offered, and took the field
under a new vizier. In the month of August, count Tekeli defeated a
body of imperialists near Cronstadt, in Transylvania; then convoking
the states of that province at Albajulia, he compelled them to elect him
their sovereign; but his reign was of short duration. Prince Louis of
Baden, having taken the command of the Austrian army, detached four
regiments into Belgrade, and advanced against Tekeli, who retired into
Valachia at his approach. Meanwhile the grand vizier invested Belgrade,
and carried on his attacks with surprising resolution. At length a bomb
falling upon a great tower in which the powder magazine of the besieged
was contained, the place blew up with a dreadful explosion. Seventeen
hundred soldiers of the garrison were destroyed; the walls and ramparts
were overthrown; the ditch was filled up, and so large a breach was
opened that the Turks entered by squadrons and battalions, cutting in
pieces all that fell in their way. The fire spread from magazine to
magazine until eleven were destroyed; and in the confusion the
remaining part of the garrison escaped to Peterwaradin. By this time
the imperialists were in possession of Transylvania, and cantoned at
Cronstadt and Clausinburgh. Tekeli undertook to attack the province on
one side, while a body of Turks should invade it on the other: these
last were totally dispersed by prince Louis of Baden; but prince
Augustus of Hanover, whom he had detached against the count, was
slain in a narrow defile, and his troops were obliged to retreat with
precipitation. Tekeli however did not improve this advantage: being
apprized of the fate of his allies, and afraid of seeing his retreat cut
off by the snow that frequently chokes up the passes of the mountains,
he retreated again to Valachia, and prince Louis returned to Vienna.
MEETING OF THE PARLIAMENT.
King William having published a proclamation requiring the attendance of
the members on the second day of October, both houses met accordingly,
and he opened the session with a speech to the usual purport. He
mentioned what he had done towards the reduction of Ireland; commended
the behaviour of the troops; told them the supplies were not equal to
the necessary expense; represented the danger to which the nation would
be exposed unless the war should be prosecuted with vigour; conjured
them to clear his revenue, which was mortgaged for the payment of former
debts, and enable him to pay off the arrears of the army; assured them
that the success of the confederacy abroad would depend upon the vigour
and dispatch of their proceedings; expressed his resentment against
those who had been guilty of misconduct in the management of the fleet;
recommended unanimity and expedition; and declared, that whoever should
attempt to divert their attention from those subjects of importance
which he had proposed, could neither be a friend to him nor a
well-wisher to his country. The late attempt of the French upon the
coast of England, the rumours of a conspiracy by the Jacobites,
the personal valour which William had displayed in Ireland, and the
pusillanimous behavour of James, concurred in warming the resentment of
the nation against the adherents of the late king, and in raising a
tide of loyalty in favour of the new government. Both houses presented
separate addresses of congratulation to the king and queen, upon his
courage and conduct in the field, and her fortitude and sagacity at
the helm in times of danger and disquiet. The commons, pursuant to an
estimate laid before them of the next year’s expenses, voted a supply of
four millions for the maintenance of the army and navy, and settled the
funds for that purpose.
COMMONS COMPLY WITH THE KING’S DEMANDS.
They proposed to raise one million by the sale of forfeited estates in
Ireland: they resolved that a bill should be brought in for confiscating
those estates, with a clause, empowering the king to bestow a third part
of them on those who had served in the war, as well as to grant such
articles and capitulations to those who were in arms, as he should think
proper. This clause was rejected; and a great number of petitions were
offered against the bill, by creditors and heirs who had continued
faithful to the government. These were supposed to have been suggested
by the court, in order to retard the progress of the bill; for
the estates had been already promised to the king’s favourites:
nevertheless, the bill passed the lower house, and was sent up to the
lords, among whom it was purposely delayed by the influence of the
ministry. It was at this juncture that lord Torrington was tried and
acquitted, very much to the dissatisfaction of the king, who not only
dismissed him from the service, but even forbade him to appear in his
presence. When William came to the house of lords to give the royal
assent to a bill for doubling the excise, he told the parliament
that the posture of affairs required his presence at the Hague; that,
therefore, they ought to lose no time in perfecting such other supplies
as were still necessary for the maintenance of the army and navy; and
he reminded them of making some provision for the expense of the civil
government. Two bills were accordingly passed for granting to their
majesties the duties of goods imported, for five years; and these,
together with the mutiny-bill, received the royal assent: upon which
occasion the king observed, that if some annual provision could be made
for augmenting the navy, it would greatly conduce to the honour
and safety of the nation. In consequence of this hint, they voted a
considerable supply for building additional ships of war,* and proceeded
with such alacrity and expedition, as even seemed to anticipate the
king’s desires. This liberality and dispatch were in a great measure
owing to the management of lord Godolphin, who was now placed at the
head of the treasury, and sir John Somers, the solicitor-general.
The place of secretary of state, which had remained vacant since the
resignation of the earl of Shrewsbury, was now filled with lord Sidney;
and sir Charles Porter was appointed one of the justices of Ireland in
the room of this nobleman.
* This supply was raised by the additional duties upon beer,
ale, and other liquors. They also provided in the bill,
that the impositions on wines, vinegar, and tobacco,
should be made a fund of credit: that the surplus of the
grants they had made, after the current service was
provided for, should be applicable to the payment of the
debts contracted by the war: and, that it should be
lawful for their majesties to make use of five hundred
thousand pounds out of the said grants, on condition of
that sum being repaid from the revenue.--_Ralph_.
{WILLIAM AND MARY, 1688--1701.}
PETITION OF THE TORIES.
Notwithstanding the act for reversing the proceedings against the city
charter, the whigs had made shift to keep possession of the magistracy:
Pilkington continued mayor, and Eobinson retained the office of
chamberlain. The tories of the city, presuming upon their late services,
presented a petition to the house of commons, complaining, That the
intent of the late act of parliament, for reversing the judgment on the
quo warranto, was frustrated by some doubtful expression; so that the
old aldermen elected by commission under the late king’s great seal
still acted by virtue of that authority: that sir Thomas Pilkington
was not duly returned as mayor by the common-hall: and, that he and
the aldermen had imposed Mr. Leonard Eobinson upon them as chamberlain,
though another person was duly elected into that office: that divers
members of the common-council were illegally excluded, and others, duly
elected, were refused admittance. They specified other grievances, and
petitioned for relief. Pilkington and his associates undertook to prove
that those allegations were either false or frivolous; and presented the
petition as a contrivance of the Jacobites to disturb the peace of the
city, that the supply might be retarded and the government distressed.
In the late panic which overspread the nation, the whigs had appeared
to be the monied men, and subscribed largely for the security of the
settlement they had made, while the tories kept aloof with a suspicious
caution. For this reason the court now interposed its influence in such
a manner, that little or no regard was paid to their remonstrance.
ATTEMPT AGAINST CARMARTHEN.
The marquis of Cærmarthen, lord president, who was at the head of the
tory interest in the ministry, and had acquired great credit with the
king and queen, now fell under the displeasure of the opposite faction:
and they resolved if possible to revive his old impeachment. The earl of
Shrewsbury, and thirteen other leading men, had engaged in this design.
A committee of lords was appointed to examine precedents, and inquire
whether impeachments continued in statu quo from parliament to
parliament. Several such precedents were reported; and violent
debates ensued: but the marquis eluded the vengeance of his enemies in
consequence of the following question: “Whether the earls of Salisbury
and Peterborough, who had been impeached in the former parliament for
being reconciled to the church of Rome, shall be discharged from their
bail?” The house resolved in the affirmative, and several lords
entered a protest. The commons having finished a bill for appointing
commissioners to take and state the public accounts, and having chosen
the commissioners from among their own members, sent it up to the house
of lords. There the earl of Rochester moved, That they should add some
of their number to those of the commons: they accordingly chose an equal
number by ballot; but Rochester himself being elected, refused to act:
the others followed his example, and the bill passed without alteration.
On the fifth day of January, the king put an end to the session with
a speech, in which he thanked them for the repeated instances they had
exhibited of their affection to his person and government. He told them,
it was high time for him to embark for Holland: recommended unanimity;
and assured them of his particular favour and protection. Then lord
chief baron Atkins signified his majesty’s pleasure, that the two houses
should adjourn themselves to the thirty-first day of March.*
* In this year the English planters repossessed themselves
of part of the inland of St. Christopher, from which they
had been driven by the French.
THE KING’S VOYAGE TO HOLLAND.
William, having settled the affairs of the nation, set out for Margate
on the sixth day of January; but the ship in which he proposed to
embark being detained by an easterly wind and hard frost, he returned to
Kensington. On the sixteenth, however, he embarked at Gravesend with a
numerous retinue, and set sail for Holland under convoy of twelve
ships of war commanded by admiral Rooke. Next day, being informed by a
fisherman that he was within a league and a half of Goree, he quitted
the yacht and went into an open boat, attended by the duke of
Ormond, the earls of Devonshire, Dorset, Portland, and Monmouth, with
Auverquerque and Zuylestcin, Instead of landing immediately, they lost
sight of the fleet, and, night coming on, were exposed in very severe
weather to the danger of the enemy and the sea, which ran very high
for eighteen hours, during which the king and all his attendants were
drenched with sea-water. When the sailors expressed their apprehensions
of perishing, the king asked if they were afraid to die in his company?
At day-break, he landed on the isle of Goree, where he took some
refreshment in a fisherman’s hut; then he committed himself to the
boat again, and was conveyed to the shore in the neighbourhood of
Masslandsluys. A deputation of the states received him at Hounslardyke:
about six in the evening he arrived at the Hague, where he was
immediately complimented by the states-general, the states of Holland,
the council of state, the other colleges, and the foreign ministers.
He afterwards, at the request of the magistrates, made his public entry
with surprising magnificence; and the Dutch celebrated his arrival with
bonfires, illuminations, and other marks of tumultuous joy. He assisted
at their different assemblies; informed them of his successes in England
and Ireland; and assured them of his constant zeal and affection for his
native country.
HE ASSISTS AT A CONGRESS.
At a solemn congress of the confederate princes, he represented in a
set speech the dangers to which they were exposed from the power
and ambition of France; and the necessity of acting with vigour and
dispatch. He declared he would spare neither his credit, forces, nor
person, in concurring with their measures; and that in the spring he
would come at the head of his troops to fulfil his engagements. They
forthwith resolved to employ two hundred and twenty-two thousand men
against France in the ensuing campaign. The proportions of the different
princes and states were regulated; and the king of England agreed to
furnish twenty thousand. He supplied the duke of Savoy so liberally,
that his affairs soon assumed a more promising aspect. The plan of
operations was settled, and they transacted their affairs with such
harmony that no dispute interrupted their deliberations. In the
beginning of March, immediately after the congress broke up, the siege
of Mons was undertaken by the French king in person, accompanied by the
Dauphin, the dukes of Orleans and Chartres. The garrison consisted
of about six thousand men, commanded by the prince of Bergue: but the
besiegers carried on their works with such rapidity as they could
not withstand. King William no sooner understood that the place
was invested, than he ordered prince Waldeck to assemble the army,
determined to march against the enemy in person. Fifty thousand men were
soon collected at Halle, near Brussels: but when he went thither,
he found the Spaniards had neglected to provide carriages, and other
necessaries for the expedition. Meanwhile, the burghers of Mons, seeing
their town in danger of being utterly destroyed by the bombs and cannon
of the enemy, pressed the governor to capitulate, and even threatened to
introduce the besiegers: so that he was forced to comply, and obtained
very honourable conditions. William, being apprized of this event,
returned to the Hague, embarked for England, and arrived at Whitehall on
the thirteenth day of April.*
* A few days before his arrival, great part of the palace of
Whitehall was consumed by fire, through the negligence of
a female servant.
CHAPTER III.
_Conspiracy against the Government by Lord Preston and
others..... The King fills up the vacant Bishoprics.....
Affairs of Scotland..... Campaign in Flanneitt..... Progress
of the Trench in Piedmont..... Election of a New Pope....The
Emperor’s Success against the Turks..... Affairs of
Ireland..... General Ginckel reduces Athlone..... Defeats
the Irish at Aghrim..... Undertakes the Siege of
Limerick..... The French and Irish obtain an honourable
Capitulation..... Twelve Thousand Irish Catholics are
transported to France..... Meeting of the English
Parliament..... Discontent of the Nation..... Transactions
in Parliament..... Disputes concerning the Bill for
regulating Trials in Cases of High Treason..... The English
and Dutch Fleets baffled by the French..... The King
disobliges the Presbyterians of Scotland..... The Earl of
Breadalbane undertakes for the Submission of the
Highlanders..... Massacre of Glencoe..... Preparations for a
Descent upon England..... Declaration of King James.....
Efforts of his Friends in England..... Precautions taken by
the Queen for the Defence of the Nation..... Admiral Russel
puts to Sea..... He obtains a complete Victory over the
French Fleet off La Bogue..... Troops embarked at St.
Helen’s for a Descent upon France..... The Design laid
aside..... The Troops landed at Ostend..... The French King
takes Namur in sight of King William..... The Allies are
defeated at Steenkirk..... Extravagant rejoicings in France
on Account of this Victory..... Conspiracy against the Life
of King William, hatched by the French Ministry.....
Miscarriage of a Design upon Dunkirk..... The Campaign is
inactive on the Rhine and in Hungary..... The Duke of Savoy
invades Dauphiné..... The Duke of Hanover created an Elector
of the Empire._
A CONSPIRACY.
A conspiracy against the government had been lately discovered. In the
latter end of December, the master of a vessel who lived at Barking, in
Essex, informed the marquis of Carmarthen that his wife had let out one
of his boats to carry over some persons to France, and that they would
embark on the thirteenth day of the month. This intelligence being
communicated to the king and council, an order was sent to captain
Billop to watch the motion of the vessel and secure the passengers.
He accordingly boarded her at Gravesend, and found in the hold lord
Preston, Mr. Ashton, a servant of the late queen, and one Elliot.
He likewise seized a bundle of papers, some of which were scarce
intelligible; among the rest, two letters supposed to be written by
Turner, bishop of Ely, to king James and his queen, under fictitious
names. The whole amounted to an invitation to the French king to assist
king James in re-ascending the throne upon certain conditions, while
William should be absent from the kingdom; but the scheme was ill laid,
and countenanced but by a very few persons of consideration, among whom
the chiefs were the earl of Clarendon, the bishop of Ely, lord Preston,
his brother Mr. Graham, and Penn the famous quaker. Notwithstanding
the outcries which had been made against the severities of the late
government, Preston and his accomplice Ashton were tried at the Old
Bailey for compassing the death of their majesties king William and
queen Mary; and their trials were hurried on without any regard to
their petitions for delay. Lord Preston alleged in his defence that the
treasons charged upon him were not committed in the county of Middlesex,
as laid in the indictment; that none of the witnesses declared he had
any concern in hiring the vessel; that the papers were not found upon
him; that there ought to be two credible witnesses to every fact,
whereas the whole proof against him rested on similitude of hands and
mere supposition. He was, nevertheless, found guilty. Ashton behaved
with great intrepidity and composure. He owned his purpose of going to
France in pursuance of a promise he had made to general Worden, who,
on his death-bed, conjured him to go thither and finish some affairs of
consequence which he had left there depending, as well as with a view
to recover a considerable sum of money due to himself. He denied that he
was privy to the contents of the papers found upon him; he complained of
his having been denied time to prepare for his trial; and called several
persons to prove him a protestant of exemplary piety and irreproachable
morals. These circumstances had no weight with the court. He was
brow-beaten by the bench, and found guilty by the jury, as he had the
papers in his custody; yet there was no privity proved; and the whig
party themselves had often expressly declared, that of all sorts of
evidence that of finding papers in a person’s possession is the weakest,
because no man can secure himself from such danger. Ashton suffered with
equal courage and decorum. In a paper which he delivered to the sheriff,
he owned his attachment to king James; he witnessed to the birth of the
prince of Wales; denied his knowledge of the contents of the papers that
were committed to his charge; complained of the hard measure he had
met with from the judges and the jury, but forgave them in the sight of
heaven. This man was celebrated by the nonjurors as a martyr to loyalty;
and they boldly affirmed, that his chief crime in the eyes of the
government was his having among his baggage an account of such evidence
as would have been convincing to all the world concerning the birth
of the prince of Wales, which by a great number of people was believed
supposititious.* Lord Preston obtained a pardon; Elliot was not tried,
because no evidence appeared against him; the earl of Clarendon was
sent to the Tower, where he remained some months, and he was afterwards
confined to his own house in the country--an indulgence which he owed to
his consanguinity with the queen, who was his first cousin. The bishop
of Ely, Graham, and Penn, absconded; and a proclamation was issued for
apprehending them as traitors.
* To one of the pamphlets published on this occasion, is
annexed a petition to the present government in the name of
king James’s adherents, importing, that some grave and
learned person should be authorized to compile a treatise,
showing the grounds of William’s title; and declaring, that
in case the performance should carry conviction along with
it, they would submit to that title, as they had hitherto
opposed it from a principle of conscience. The best answer
that could be made to this summons was Locke’s book upon
government, which appeared at this period.--_Ralph_.
THE KING FILLS UP THE BISHOPRICS.
This prelate’s being concerned in a conspiracy, furnished the king with
a plausible pretence for filling up the vacant bishoprics. The deprived
bishops had been given to understand, that an act of parliament might
be obtained to excuse them from taking the oaths, provided they would
perform their episcopal functions; but as they declined this expedient,
the king resolved to fill up their places at his return from Holland.
Accordingly, the archbishopric of Canterbury was conferred upon
Dr. Tillotson,* one of the most learned, moderate, and virtuous
ecclesiastics of the age, who did not accept of this promotion without
great reluctance, because he foresaw that he should be exposed to the
slander and malevolence of that party which espoused the cause of his
predecessor. The other vacant Sees were given to divines of unblemished
character; and the public in general seemed very well satisfied with
this exertion of the king’s supremacy. The deprived bishops at first
affected all the meekness of resignation. They remembered those
shouts of popular approbation by which they had been animated in the
persecution they suffered under the late government; and they hoped the
same cordial would support them in their present affliction; but finding
the nation cold in their concern, they determined to warm it by argument
and declamation. The press groaned with the efforts of their learning
and resentment, and every essay was answered by their opponents. The
nonjurors affirmed that Christianity was a doctrine of the cross;
that no pretence whatever could justify an insurrection against the
sovereign; that the primitive christians thought it their indispensable
duty to be passive under every invasion of their rights; and that
non-resistance was the doctrine of the English church, confirmed by all
the sanctions that could be derived from the laws of God and man.
The other party not only supported the natural rights of mankind, and
explained the use that might be made of the doctrine of non-resistance
in exciting fresh commotions, but they also argued that if passive
obedience was right in any instance, it was conclusively so with regard
to the present government; for the obedience required by scripture was
indiscriminate. “The powers that be are ordained of God--let every soul
be subject to the higher powers.” From these texts they inferred that
the new oaths ought to be taken without scruple, and that those who
refused them concealed party under the cloak of conscience. On the other
hand, the fallacy and treachery of this argument were demonstrated. They
said, it levelled all distinctions of justice and duty; that those who
taught such doctrines attached themselves solely to possession, however
unjustly acquired; that if twenty different usurpers should succeed one
another, they would recognize the last, notwithstanding the allegiance
they had so solemnly sworn to his predecessor, like the fawning spaniel
that followed the thief who mounted his master’s horse after
having murdered the right owner. They also denied the justice of a
lay-deprivation, and with respect to church government started tire same
distinctions “_De jure and de facto_” which they had formerly made in
the civil administration. They had even recourse to all the bitterness
of invective against Tillotson and the new bishops, whom they reviled as
intruders and usurpers; their acrimony was chiefly directed against Dr.
Sherlock, who had been one of the most violent sticklers against the
revolution, but thought proper to take the oaths upon the retreat
of king James from Ireland. They branded him as an apostate who had
betrayed his cause, and published a review of his whole conduct,
which proved a severe satire upon his character. Their attacks upon
individuals were mingled with their vengeance against the government;
and indeed the great aim of their divines, as well as of their
politicians, was to sap the foundation of the new settlement. In order
to alienate the minds of the people from the interests of the reigning
prince, they ridiculed his character; inveighed against his measures;
they accused him of sacrificing the concerns of England to the advantage
of his native country; and drew invidious comparisons between the
wealth, the trade, the taxes, of the last and of the present reign. To
frustrate these efforts of the malcontents, the court employed
their engines to answer and recriminate; all sorts of informers were
encouraged and caressed; in a proclamation issued against papists and
other disaffected persons, all magistrates were enjoined to make search,
and apprehend those who should, by seditious discourses and libels,
presume to defame the government. Thus the revolutioners commenced the
professed enemies of those very arts and practices which had enabled
them to bring their scheme to perfection.
* Beveridge was promoted to the See of Bath and Wells,
Fowler to that of Gloucester, Cumberland to Peterborough,
Moor to Norwich, Grove to Chicester, and Patrick to Ely.
{WILLIAM AND MARY, 1688--1701.}
AFFAIRS-OF SCOTLAND.
The presbyterians in Scotland acted with such folly, violence, and
tyranny, as rendered them equally odious and contemptible. The
transactions in their general assembly were carried on with such
peevishness, partiality, and injustice, that the king dissolved it by
an act of state, and convoked another for the month of November in the
following year. The episcopal party promised to enter heartily into the
interests of the new government, to keep the highlanders quiet, and
induce the clergy to acknowledge and serve king William, provided he
would balance the power of Melvil and his partisans in such a manner as
would secure them from violence and oppression; provided the episcopal
ministers should be permitted to perform their functions among those
people by whom they were beloved; and’ that such of them as were willing
to mix with the presbyterians in their judicatories should be admitted
without any severe imposition in point of opinion. The king, who was
extremely disgusted at the presbyterians, relished the proposal, and
young Dalrymple, son of lord Stair, was appointed joint secretary
of state with Melvil. He undertook to bring over the majority of the
Jacobites, and a great number of them took the oaths; but at the same
time they maintained a correspondence with the court of St. Germains, by
the connivance of which they submitted to William that they might be in
a condition to serve James the more effectually. The Scottish parliament
was adjourned by proclamation to the sixteenth day of September.
Precautions were taken to prevent any dangerous communication with the
continent; a committee was appointed to put the kingdom in a posture of
defence; to exercise the powers of the regency in securing the enemies
of the government; and the earl of Home, with sir Peter Fraser and sir
Æneas Macpherson, were apprehended and imprisoned.
CAMPAIGN IN FLANDERS.
The king having settled the operations of the ensuing campaign in
Ireland, where general Ginckel exercised the supreme command, manned
his fleet by dint of pressing sailors, to the incredible annoyance of
commerce; then leaving the queen as before at the helm of government in
England, he returned to Holland accompanied by lord Sidney, secretary
of state, the earls of Marlborough and Portland, and began to make
preparations for taking the field in person. On the thirtieth day of
May, the duke of Luxembourg having passed the Scheld at the head of a
large army, took possession of Halle, and gave it up to plunder in sight
of the confederates, who were obliged to throw up intrenchments for
their preservation. At the same time the marquis de Boufflers, with a
considerable body of forces, intrenched himself before Liege with a view
to bombard that city. In the beginning of June, king William took upon
himself the command of the allied army, by this time reinforced in such
a manner as to be superior to the enemy. He forthwith detached the count
de Tilly with ten thousand men to the relief of Liege, which was already
reduced to ruins and desolation by the bombs, bullets, and repeated
attacks of Boufflers, who now thought proper to retreat to Dinant. Tilly
having thus raised the siege, and thrown a body of troops into Huy,
rejoined the confederate army, which had been augmented ever since his
departure with six thousand men from Brandenburgh, and ten thousand
Hessians commanded by the landgrave in person. Such was the vigilance of
Luxembourg, that William could not avail himself of his superiority.
In vain he exhausted his invention in marches, counter-marches, and
stratagems, to bring on a general engagement; the French marshal avoided
it with such dexterity as baffled all his endeavours. In the course of
this campaign the two armies twice confronted each other; but they were
situated in such a manner that neither could begin the attack without a
manifest disadvantage. While the king lay encamped at Court-sur-heure,
a soldier, corrupted by the enemy, set fire to the fusees of several
bombs, the explosion of which might have blown up the whole magazine
and produced infinite confusion in the army, had not the mischief been
prevented by the courage of the men who guarded the artillery; even
while the fusees were burning, they disengaged the waggons from
the line, and overturned them down the side of a hill, so that the
communication of the fire was intercepted. The person who made this
treacherous attempt being discovered, owned he had been employed for
this purpose by the duke of Luxembourg. He was tried by a court-martial
and suffered the death of a traitor. Such perfidious practices not only
fix an indelible share of infamy on the French general, but prove how
much the capacity of William was dreaded by his enemies. King William,
quitting Court-sur-heure, encamped upon the plain of St. Girard, where
he remained till the fourth day of September, consuming the forage and
exhausting the country. Then he passed the Sambre near Jemeppe, while
the French crossed it at La Busiere, and both armies marched towards
Enghien. The enemy, perceiving the confederates were at their heels,
proceeded to Gramont, passed the Lender, and took possession of a
strong camp between Aeth and Oudenarde; William followed the same route,
and encamped between Aeth and Leuse. While he continued in his post, the
Hessian forces and those of Liege, amounting to about eighteen thousand
men, separated from the army and passed the Meuse at Naimir; then the
king returned to the Hague, leaving the command to prince Waldeck, who
forthwith removed to Leuse, and on the twentieth day of the month began
his march to Cambron. Luxembourg, who watched his motions with a curious
eye, found means to attack him in his retreat so suddenly that his rear
was surprised and defeated, though the French were at last obliged to
retire. The prince continued his route to Cambron, and in a little time
both armies retired into winter quarters. In the meantime, the Duke de
Noailles besieged and took Urgel in Catalonia, while a French squadron,
commanded by the count d’Etrées, bombarded Barcelona and Alicant.
The confederates had proposed to act vigorously in Italy against the
French; but the season was far advanced before they were in a condition
to take the field. The emperor and Spain had undertaken to furnish
troops to join the duke of Savoy; and the maritime powers contributed
their proportion in money. The elector of Bavaria was nominated to the
supreme command of the imperial forces in that country; the marquis
de Leganez, governor of the Milanese, acted as trustee for the Spanish
monarch; duke Schomberg, son of that groat general who lost his life
at the Boyne, lately created duke of Leinster, managed the interest of
William, as king of England and stadtholder, and commanded a body of the
Vaudois paid by Great Britain. Before the German auxiliaries arrived,
the French had made great progress in their conquests. Catinat besieged
and took Villa-Franca, Nice, and some other fortifications; then he
reduced Villana and Carmagnola, and detached the marquis de Feuquieres
to invest Coni, a strong fortress garrisoned by the Vaudois and French
refugees. The duke of Savoy was now reduced to the brink of ruin. He saw
almost all his places of strength in the possession of the enemy; Coni
was besieged; and La Hoguette, another French general, had forced the
passes of the valley of Aoste, so that he had free admission into the
Verceillois, and the frontiers of the Milanese. Turin was threatened
with a bombardment; the people were dispirited and clamorous, and their
sovereign lay with his little army encamped on the hill of Montcallier,
from whence he beheld his towns taken, and his palace of Rivoli
destroyed. Duke Schomberg exhorted him to act on the offensive, and give
battle to Catinat while that officer’s army was weakened by detachments,
and prince Eugene* supported his remonstrance; but this proposal was
vehemently opposed by the marquis de Leganez, who foresaw that if the
duke should be defeated, the French would penetrate into the territories
of Milan. The relief of Coni, however, was undertaken by prince
Eugene, who began his march for that place with a convoy guarded by
two-and-twenty hundred horse; at Magliano he was reinforced by five
thousand militia; Bulonde, who commanded at the siege, no sooner heard
of his approach than he retired with the utmost precipitation, leaving
behind some pieces of cannon, mortars, bombs, arms, ammunition, tents,
provisions, utensils, with all his sick and wounded. When he joined
Catinat he was immediately put under arrest, and afterwards cashiered
with disgrace. Hoguette abandoned the valley of Aoste; Feuquieres was
sent with a detachment to change the garrison of Casal; and Catinat
retired with his army towards Villa Nova d’Aste.
* Prince Eugene of Savoy, who in the sequel rivalled the
fame of the greatest warriors of antiquity, was descended on
the father’s side from the house of Savoy, and on the
mother’s from the family of Soissons, a branch of the house
of Bourbon. His father was Eugene Maurice, of Savoy, count
of Soissons, colonel of the Switzers, and governor of
Champagne and Brie: his mother was the celebrated Olimpia de
Mancini, niece of Cardinal Mazarine. Eugene finding himself
neglected at the court of France, engaged as a soldier of
fortune in the service of the emperor, and soon
distinguished himself by his great military talents: he
was, moreover, an accomplished gentleman, learned, liberal,
mild, and courteous; an unshaken friend; a generous enemy;
an invincible captain; a consummate politician.
ELECTION OF A NEW POPE.
The miscarriage of the French before Coni affected Louvois, the minister
of Louis, so deeply, that he could not help shedding tears when he
communicated the event to his master, who told him with great composure
that he was spoiled by good fortune. But the retreat of the French
from Piedmont had a still greater influence over the resolutions of the
conclave at Rome, then sitting for the election of a new pope in
the room of Alexander VIII., who died in the beginning of February.
Notwithstanding the power and intrigues of the French faction headed by
cardinal d’Etrées, the affairs of Piedmont had no sooner taken this turn
than the Italians joined the Spanish and Imperial interest, and cardinal
Pignatelli, a Neapolitan, was elected pontiff. He assumed the name of
Innocent, in honour of the last pope known by that appellation, and
adopted all his maxims against the French monarch. When the German
auxiliaries arrived under the command of the elector of Bavaria, the
confederates resolved to give battle to Catinat; but he repassed the Po,
and sent couriers to Versailles to solicit a reinforcement. Then prince
Eugene invested Carmagnola, and carried on the siege with such vigour
that in eleven days the garrison capitulated. Meanwhile the marquis de
Hoquincourt undertook the conquest of Montmelian, and reduced the town
without much resistance. The castle, however, made such a vigorous
defence that Catinat marched thither in person; and, notwithstanding all
his efforts, the place held out till the second day of December, when it
surrendered on honourable conditions.
THE EMPEROR’S SUCCESS AGAINST THE TURKS.
This summer produced nothing of importance on the Rhine. The French
endeavoured to surprise Mentz, by maintaining a correspondence with one
of the emperor’s commissioners; but this being discovered, their design
was frustrated. The imperial army, under the elector of Saxony, passed
the Rhine in the neighbourhood of Manheim; and the French, crossing
the same river at Philipsburgh, reduced the town of Portzheim in the
marquisate of Baden-Dourlach. The execution of the scheme projected
by the emperor for this campaign, was prevented by the death of his
general, the elector of Saxony, which happened on the second day of
September. His affairs wore a more favourable aspect in Hungary, where
the Turks were totally defeated by prince Louis of Baden on the banks
of the Danube. The imperialists afterwards undertook the siege of Great
Waradin in Translyvania; bitt this was turned into a blockade, and the
place was not surrendered till the following spring. The Turks were so
dispirited by the defeat, by which they had lost the grand vizier, that
the emperor might have made peace upon very advantageous terms; but
his pride and ambition overshot his success. He was weak, vain, and
superstitious; he imagined that now the war of Ireland was almost
extinguished, king William, with the rest of his allies, would be able
to humble the French power, though he himself should not co-operate with
heretics, whom he abhorred; and that, in the meantime, he should not
only make an entire conquest of Transylvania, but also carry his
victorious arms to the gates of Constantinople, according to some
ridiculous prophecy by which his vanity had been flattered. The Spanish
government was become so feeble, that the ministry, rather than be at
the expense of defending the Netherlands, offered to deliver the whole
country to king William, either as monarch of England, or stadtholder of
the United Provinces. He declined this offer, because he knew the people
would never be reconciled to a protestant government; but he proposed
that the Spaniards should confer the administration of Flanders upon the
elector of Bavaria, who was ambitious of signalizing his courage,
and able to defend the country with his own troops and treasure. This
proposal was relished by the court of Spain; the emperor imparted it
to the elector, who accepted the office without hesitation; and he was
immediately declared governor of the Low Countries by the council of
state at Madrid. King William, after his return from the army, continued
some time at the Hague settling the operations of the ensuing campaign.
That affair being discussed, he embarked in the Maese, and landed in
England on the nineteenth day of October.
{WILLIAM AND MARY, 1688--1701.}
AFFAIRS OF IRELAND.
Before we explain the proceedings in parliament, it will be necessary to
give a detail of the late transactions in Ireland. In the beginning
of the season, the French king had sent a large supply of provisions,
clothes, and ammunition, for the use of the Irish at Limerick, under
the conduct of Monsieur St. Ruth, accompanied by a great number of
French officers furnished with commissions from king James, though St.
Ruth issued all his orders in the name of Louis. Tyrconnel had arrived
in January with three frigates and nine vessels, laden with succours of
the same nature; otherwise the Irish could not have been so long kept
together. Nor indeed could these supplies prevent them from forming
separate and independent bands of rapparees, who plundered the country,
and committed the most shocking barbarities. The lords justices, in
conjunction with general Ginckel, had taken every step their prudence
could suggest to quiet the disturbances of the country, and prevent such
violence and rapine, of which the soldiers in king William’s army were
not entirely innocent. The justices had issued proclamations denouncing
severe penalties against those who should countenance or conceal such
acts of cruelty and oppression: they promised to protect all papists who
should live quietly within a certain frontier line; and Ginckel gave the
catholic rebels to understand that he was authorized to treat with them,
if they were inclined to return to their duty. Before the armies took
the field, several skirmishes had been fought between parties; and these
had always turned out so unfortunate to the enemy, that their spirits
were quite depressed, while the confidence of the English rose in the
same proportion.
St. Ruth and Tyrconnel were joined by the rapparees, and general Ginckel
was reinforced by Mackay, with those troops which had reduced the
highlanders in Scotland. Thus strengthened, he, in the beginning of
June, marched from Mullingar to Ballymore, which was garrisoned by a
thousand men under colonel Bourke, who, when summoned to surrender,
returned an evasive answer. But, when a breach was made in the place,
and the besiegers began to make preparations for a general assault, his
men laid down their arms and submitted at discretion. The fortifications
of this place being repaired and augmented, the general left a garrison
for its defence, and advanced to Athlone, situated on the other side of
the Shannon, and supported by the Irish army encamped almost under its
walls. The English town on the hither side of the river was taken
sword in hand, and the enemy broke down an arch of the bridge in their
retreat. Batteries were raised against the Irish town, and several
unsuccessful attempts were made to force the passage of the bridge,
which was defended with great vigour. At length it was resolved, in a
council of war, that a detachment should pass at a ford a little to the
left of the bridge, though the river was deep and rapid, the bottom foul
and stony, and the pass guarded by a ravelin, erected for that purpose.
The forlorn hope consisted of sixty grenadiers in armour, headed by
captain Sandys and two lieutenants. They were seconded by another
detachment, and this was supported by six battalions of infantry. Never
was a more desperate service, nor was ever exploit performed with more
valour and intrepidity. They passed twenty a-breast in the face of the
enemy, through an incessant shower of balls, bullets, and grenades.
Those who followed them took possession of the bridge, and laid planks
over the broken arch. Pontoons were fixed at the same time, that
the troops might pass in different places. The Irish were amazed,
confounded, and abandoned the town in the utmost consternation; so that
in half an hour it was wholly secured by the English, who did not
lose above fifty men in this attack. Mackay, Tetteau, and Ptolemache,
exhibited proofs of the most undaunted courage in passing the river;
and general Ginckel, for his conduct, intrepidity, and success on this
occasion, was created earl of Athlone. When St. Ruth was informed,
by express, that the English had entered the river, he said, it was
impossible they should pretend to take a town which he covered with his
army, and that he would give a thousand pistoles if they would
attempt to force a passage. Sarsfield insisted upon the truth of the
intelligence, and pressed him to send succours to the town; he ridiculed
this officer’s fears, and some warm expostulation passed between them.
Being at length convinced that the English were in possession of the
place, he ordered some detachments to drive them out again; but the
cannon of their own works being turned against them, they found the task
impracticable, and that very night their army decamped. St. Ruth, after
a march of ten miles, took post at Aghrim; and having, by drafts from
garrisons, augmented his army to five-and-twenty thousand men, resolved
to hazard a decisive engagement.
Ginckel, having put Athlone in a posture of defence, passed the Shannon
and marched up to the enemy, determined to give them battle, though his
forces did not exceed eighteen thousand, and the Irish were posted in a
very advantageous situation. St. Ruth had made an admirable disposition,
and taken every precaution that military skill could suggest. His centre
extended along a rising ground, uneven in many places, intersected with
banks and ditches, joined by lines of communication, and fronted by a
large bog almost impassable. His right was fortified with intrenchments,
and his left secured by the castle of Aghrim. He harangued his army
in the most pathetic strain, conjuring them to exert their courage
in defence of their holy religion, in the extirpation of heresy, in
recovering their ancient honours and estates, and in restoring a pious
king to the throne, from whence he had been expelled by an unnatural
usurper. He employed the priests to enforce his exhortations; to assure
the men that they might depend upon the prayers of the church; and that,
in case they should fall in battle, the saints and angels would convey
their souls to heaven. They are said to have sworn upon the sacrament
that they would not desert their colours, and to have received an order
that no quarter should be given to the French heretics in the army of
the prince of Orange. Ginckel had encamped on the Roscommon side of the
river Sue, within three miles of the enemy: after having reconnoitred
their posture, he resolved, with the advice of a council of war, to
attack them on Sunday the twelfth day of July. The necessary orders
being given, the army passed the river at two fords and a stone bridge,
and, advancing to the edge of the great bog, began about twelve o’clock
to force the two passages, in order to possess the ground on the other
side. The enemy fought with surprising fury, and the horse were several
times repulsed; but at length the troops upon the right carried their
point by moans of some field pieces. The day was now so far advanced,
that the general determined to postpone the battle till next morning;
but perceiving some disorder among the enemy, and fearing they would
decamp in the night, he altered his resolution and ordered the attack to
be renewed. At six o’clock in the evening the left wing of the English
advanced to the right of the Irish, from whom they met with such a warm
and obstinate reception, that it was not without the most surprising
efforts of courage and perseverance that they at length obliged them to
give ground; and even then they lost it by inches. St. Ruth, seeing them
in danger of being overpowered, immediately detached succours to them
from his centre and left wing. Mackay no sooner perceived them weakened
by these detachments, then he ordered three battalions to skirt the
bog and attack them on the left, while the centre advanced through the
middle of the morass, the men wading up to the waist in mud and water.
After they had reached the other side, they found themselves obliged
to ascend a rugged hill fenced with hedges and ditches; and these were
lined with musqeteers, supported at proper intervals with squadrons of
cavalry. They made such a desperate resistance, and fought with such
impetuosity, that the assailants were repulsed into the middle of the
bog with great loss, and St. Ruth exclaimed--“Now will I drive the
English to the gates of Dublin.” In this critical conjuncture Ptolemache
came tip with a fresh body to sustain them, rallied the broken troops,
and renewed the charge with such vigour that the Irish gave way in their
turn, and the English recovered the ground they had lost, though they
found it impossible to improve their advantage. Mackay brought a body of
horse and dragoons to the assistance of the left wing, and first turned
the tide of battle in favour of the English. Major-general Rouvigny, who
had behaved with great gallantry during the whole action, advanced
with five regiments of cavalry to support the centre; when St. Ruth,
perceiving his design, resolved to fall upon him in a dangerous hollow
way which he was obliged to pass. For this purpose he began to descend
Kircommodon-hill with his whole reserve of horse; but in his way was
killed by a cannon-ball. His troops immediately halted, and his guards
retreated with his body. His fate dispirited the troops, and produced
such confusion as Sarsfield could not remedy; for though he was next
in command, he had been at variance with St. Ruth since the affair at
Athlone, and was ignorant of the plan he had concerted. Rouvigny having
passed the hollow way without opposition, charged the enemy in flank,
and bore down all before him with surprising impetuosity; the centre
redoubled their efforts and pushed the Irish to the top of the hill,
and then the whole line giving way at once from right to left threw down
their arms. The foot fled towards a bog in their rear, and their horse
took the route by the highway to Loughneagh; both were pursued by the
English cavalry, who for four miles made a terrible slaughter. In the
battle, which lasted two hours, and in the pursuit, above four thousand
of the enemy were slain and six hundred taken, together with all their
baggage, tents, provisions, ammunition, and artillery, nine-and-twenty
pair of colours, twelve standards, and almost all the arms of the
infantry. In a word, the victory was decisive, and not above eight
hundred of the English were killed upon the field of battle. The
vanquished retreated in great confusion to Limerick, where they resolved
to make a final stand in hope of receiving such succours from France as
would either enable them to retrieve their affairs, or obtain good terms
from the court of England. There Tyrconnel died of a broken heart,
after having survived his authority and reputation. He had incurred the
contempt of the French, as well as the hatred of the Irish, whom he
had advised to submit to the new government rather than totally ruin
themselves and their families.
Immediately after the battle detachments were sent to reduce Portumny,
Bonnachar, and Moorcastle, considerable passes on the Shannon, which
were accordingly secured. Then Ginckel advanced to Galway, which he
summoned to surrender; but he received a defiance from lord Dillon
and general D’Ussone who commanded the garrison. The trenches were
immediately opened; a fort which commanded the approaches to the town
was taken by assault; six regiments of foot and four squadrons of horse
passed the river on pontoons, and the place being wholly invested, the
governor thought proper to capitulate. The garrison marched out with
the honours of war, and was allowed safe conduct to Limerick. Ginckel
directed his march to the same town, which was the only post of
consequence that now held out for king James. Within four miles of the
place he halted until the heavy cannon could be brought from Athlone.
Hearing that Luttrel had been seized by the French general D’Ussone, and
sentenced to be shot for having proposed to surrender, he sent a trumpet
to tell the commander that if any person should be put to death for such
a proposal, he would make retaliation on the Irish prisoners. On the
twenty-fifth day of August the enemy were driven from all their advanced
posts: captain Cole, with a squadron of ships, sailed up the Shannon,
and his frigates anchored in sight of the town. On the twenty-sixth day
of the month the batteries were opened, and a line of contra-vallation
was formed; the Irish army lay encamped on the other side of the river,
on the road to Killalow, and the fords were guarded with four regiments
of their dragoons. On the fifth day of September, after the town had
been almost laid in ruins by the bombs, and large breaches made in the
wails by the battering cannon, the guns were dismounted, the out-forts
evacuated, and such other motions made as indicated a resolution to
abandon the siege. The enemy expressed their joy in loud acclamations;
but this was of short continuance. In the night the besiegers began to
throw a bridge of pontoons over the river about a mile higher up than
the camp, and this work was finished before morning. A considerable body
of horse and foot had passed when the alarm was given to the enemy, who
were seized with such consternation, that they threw down their arms and
betook themselves to flight, leaving behind them their tents, baggage,
two pieces of cannon, and one standard. The bridge was immediately
removed nearer the town and fortified; all the fords and passes were
secured, and the batteries continued firing incessantly till the
twenty-second day of the month, when Ginckel passed over with a division
of the army and fourteen pieces of cannon. About four in the afternoon
the grenadiers attacked the forts that commanded Thomond-bridge, and
carried them sword in hand after an obstinate resistance. The garrison
had made a sally from the town to support them; and this detachment was
driven back with such precipitation, that the French officer on command
in that quarter, fearing the English would enter pell-mell with the
fugitives, ordered the bridge to be drawn up, leaving his own men to the
fury of a victorious enemy. Six hundred were killed, two hundred taken
prisoners, including many officers, and a great number were drowned in
the Shannon.
THE FRENCH AND IRISH OBTAIN AN HONOURABLE CAPITULATION.
Then the English made a lodgement within ten paces of the bridge-foot;
and the Irish, seeing themselves surrounded on all sides, determined
to capitulate. General Sarsfield and colonel Wahop signified their
resolution to Scrvenmore and Rouvigny; hostages were exchanged; a
negotiation was immediately begun, and hostilities ceased on both sides
of the river. The lords justices arrived in the camp on the first day of
October, and on the fourth the capitulation was executed, extending to
all the places in the kingdom that were still in the hands of the Irish.
The Roman catholics were restored to the enjoyment of such liberty in
the exercise of religion as was consistent with the laws of Ireland, and
conformable with that which they possessed in the reign of Charles II.
All persons whatever were entitled to the protection of these laws, and
restored to the possession of their estates, privileges, and immunities,
upon their submitting to the present government, and taking the oath
of allegiance to their majesties king William and queen Mary, excepting
however certain persons who were forfeited or exiled. This article even
extended to all merchants of Limerick, or any other garrison possessed
by the Irish, who happened to be abroad, and had not borne arms since
the declaration in the first year of the present reign, provided they
should return within the term of eight months. All the persons comprised
in this and the forgoing article were indulged with a general pardon of
all attainders, outlawries, treasons, misprisons of treason, premunires,
felonies, trespasses, and other crimes and misdemeanors whatsoever,
committed since the beginning of the reign of James II.; and the lords
justices promised to use their best endeavours towards the reversal
of such attainders and outlawries as had passed against any of them
in parliament. In order to allay the violence of party and extinguish
private animosities, it was agreed that no person should be sued or
impleaded on either side for any trespass, or made accountable for the
rents, tenements, lands, or houses he had received or enjoyed since the
beginning of the war. Every nobleman and gentleman comprised in these
articles was authorized to keep a sword, a case of pistols, and a gun,
for his defence or amusement. The inhabitants of Limerick and other
garrisons were permitted to remove their goods and chattels, without
search, visitation, or payment of duty. The lords justices promised
to use their best endeavours that all persons comprehended in this
capitulation should for eight months be protected from all arrests
and executions for debt or damage; they undertook that their majesties
should ratify these articles within the space of eight months, and
use their endeavours that they might be ratified and confirmed in
parliament. The subsequent article was calculated to indemnify colonel
John Brown, whose estate and effects had been seized for the use of the
Irish army by Tyrconnel and Sarsfield, which last had been created Lord
Lucan by king James, and was now mentioned by that title. All persons
were indulged with free leave to remove with their families and effects
to any other country except England and Scotland. All officers and
soldiers in the service of king James, comprehending even the rapparees,
willing to go beyond sea, were at liberty to inarch in bodies to the
places of embarkation, to be conveyed to the continent with the French
officers and troops. They were furnished with passports, convoys, and
carriages by land and water; and general Gluckel engaged to provide
seventy ships, if necessary, for their transportation, with two men of
war for the accommodation of their officers, and to serve as a convoy to
the fleet. It was stipulated, That the provisions and forage for their
subsistence should be paid for on their arrival in France; that hostages
should be given for this indemnification, as well as for the return of
the ships; that all the garrisons should march out of their respective
towns and fortresses with the honours of war; that the Irish should have
liberty to transport nine hundred horses; that those who should choose
to stay behind might dispose of themselves according to their own fancy,
after having surrendered their arms to such commissioners as the general
should appoint; that all prisoners of war should be set at liberty on
both sides; that the general should provide two vessels to carry over
two different persons to France with intimation of this treaty; and that
none of those who were willing to quit the kingdom should be detained on
account of debt, or any other pretence.--This was the substance of the
famous treaty of Limerick, which the Irish Roman catholics considered
as the great charter of their civil and religious liberties. The town of
Limerick was surrendered to Ginckel; but both sides agreed that the two
armies should intrench themselves till the Irish could embark, that no
disorders might arise from a communication.
TWELVE THOUSAND IRISH CATHOLICS ARE TRANSPORTED TO FRANCE.
The protestant subjects of Ireland were extremely disgusted at these
concessions made in favour of vanquished rebels, who had exercised such
acts of cruelty and rapine. They complained, That they themselves, who
had suffered for their loyalty to king William, were neglected, and
obliged to sit down with their losses; while their enemies, who had
shed so much blood in opposing his government, were indemnified by
the articles of the capitulation, and even favoured with particular
indulgencies. They were dismissed with the honours of war; they were
transported at the government’s expense, to fight against the English in
foreign countries; an honourable provision was made for the rapparees,
who were professed banditti; the Roman catholic interest in Ireland
obtained the sanction of regal authority; attainders were overlooked,
forfeitures annulled, pardons extended, and laws set aside, in order to
effect a pacification. Ginckel had received orders to put an end to
the war at any rate, that William might convert his whole influence
and attention to the affairs of the continent. When the articles of
capitulation were ratified, and hostages exchanged for their being duly
executed, about two thousand Irish foot, and three hundred horse, began
their march for Cork, where they proposed to take shipping for France,
under the conduct of Sarsfield; but three regiments refusing to quit
the kingdom, delivered up their arms and dispersed to their former
habitations. Those who remained at Limerick embarked on the seventh day
of November, in French transports; and sailed immediately to France,
under the convoy of a French squadron which had arrived in the bay of
Dangle immediately after the capitulation was signed. Twelve thousand
men chose to undergo exile from their native country rather than submit
to the government of king William. When they arrived in France they were
welcomed by a letter from James, who thanked them for their loyalty,
assured them they should still serve under his commission and command,
and that the king of France had already given orders for their being new
clothed and put into quarters of refreshment.
MEETING OF THE ENGLISH PARLIAMENT.
The reduction of Ireland being thus completed, baron Ginckel returned to
England, where he was solemnly thanked by the house of commons for
his great services, after he had been created earl of Athlone by his
majesty. When the parliament met on the twenty-second day of October,
the king in his speech insisted upon the necessity of sending a strong
fleet to sea early in the season, and of maintaining a considerable army
to annoy the enemy abroad, as well as to protect the kingdom from insult
and invasion; for which purposes, he said, sixty-five thousand men would
be barely sufficient. Each house presented an address of congratulation
upon his majesty’s safe return to England, and on the reduction of
Ireland: they promised to assist him to the utmost of their power,
in prosecuting the war with France; and, at the same time, drew up
addresses to the queen, acknowledging her prudent administration during
his majesty’s absence. Notwithstanding this appearance of cordiality
and complaisance, a spirit of discontent had insinuated itself into both
houses of parliament, and even infected great part of the nation.
A great number of individuals who wished well to their country, could
not, without anxiety and resentment, behold the interest of the nation
sacrificed to foreign connexions, and the king’s favour so partially
bestowed upon Dutchmen in prejudice to his English subjects. They
observed, that the number of forces he demanded was considerably greater
than that of any army which had ever been paid by the public, even when
the nation was in the most imminent danger; that instead of contributing
as allies to the maintenance of the war upon the continent, they had
embarked as principals and bore the greatest part of the burden, though
they had the least share of the profit. They even insinuated that such
a standing army was more calculated to make the king absolute at home,
than to render him formidable abroad; and the secret friends of the
late king did not fail to enforce these insinuations. They renewed their
animadversions upon the disagreeable part of his character; they dwelt
upon his proud reserve, his sullen silence, his imperious disposition,
and his base ingratitude, particularly to the earl of Marlborough, whom
he had dismissed from all his employments immediately after the signal
exploits he had performed in Ireland. The disgrace of this nobleman
was partly ascribed to the freedom with which he had complained of the
king’s undervaluing his services, and partly to the intrigues of his
wife, who had gained an ascendancy over the princess Anne of Denmark,
and is said to have employed her influence in fomenting a jealousy
between the two sisters. The malcontents of the whiggish faction,
enraged to find their credit declining at court, joined in the cry
which the Jacobites had raised against the government. They scrupled not
to say, that the arts of corruption were shamefully practised to secure
a majority in parliament; that the king was as tender of the prerogative
as any of his predecessors had ever been; and that he even ventured
to admit Jacobites into his council, because they were known tools of
arbitrary power. These reflections alluded to the earls of Rochester
and Kanelagh, who, with sir Edward Seymour, had been lately created
privy-counsellors. Rochester entertained very high notions of regal
authority; he proposed severity as one of the best supports of
government; was clear in his understanding, violent in his temper, and
incorrupt in his principles. Ranelagh was a man of parts and pleasure,
who possessed the most plausible and winning address; and was capable
of transacting the most important and intricate affairs, in the midst of
riot and debauchery. He had managed the revenue of Ireland in the reign
of Charles II.; he enjoyed the office of paymaster in the army of King
James, and now maintained the same footing under the government of
William and Mary. Sir Edward Seymour was the proudest commoner in
England, and the boldest orator that ever filled the speaker’s chair. He
was intimately acquainted with the business of the house, and knew every
individual member so exactly, that with one glance of his eye he could
prognosticate the fate of every motion. He had opposed the court with
great acrimony, questioned the king’s title, censured his conduct, and
reflected upon his character. Nevertheless, he now became a proselyte,
and was brought into the treasury.
TRANSACTIONS IN PARLIAMENT.
The commons voted three millions, four hundred and eleven thousand, six
hundred and seventy-five pounds, for the use of the ensuing year: but
the establishment of funds for raising these supplies was retarded,
partly by the ill-humour of the opposition, and partly by intervening
affairs that diverted the attention of the commons. Several eminent
merchants presented a petition to the house against the East-India
company, charging them with manifold abuses; at the same time, a
counter-petition was delivered by the company, and the affair referred
to the examination of a committee appointed for that purpose. After
a minute inquiry into the nature of the complaints, the commons voted
certain regulations with respect to the stock and the traffic;
and resolved to petition his majesty, that, according to the said
regulations, the East-India company should be incorporated by charter.
The committee was ordered to bring in a bill for this establishment; but
divers petitions being presented against it, and the company’s answers
proving unsatisfactory, the house addressed the king to dissolve it,
and grant a charter to a new company. He said it was an affair of great
importance to the trade of the kingdom; therefore, he would consider the
subject, and in a little time return a positive answer. The parliament
was likewise amused by a pretended conspiracy of the papists in
Lancashire, to raise a rebellion and restore James to the throne.
Several persons were seized, and some witnesses examined: but nothing
appeared to justify the information. At length one Fuller, a prisoner
in the king’s bench, offered his evidence, and was brought to the bar of
the house of commons, where he produced some papers. He obtained a blank
pass from the king for two persons, who he said would come from the
continent to give evidence. He was afterwards examined at his own
lodgings, where he affirmed that colonel Thomas Délavai and James Hayes
were the witnesses for whom he had procured the pass and the protection.
Search was made for them according to his direction, but no such persons
were found. Then the house declared Fuller a notorious impostor, cheat,
and false accuser. He was, at the request of the commons, prosecuted by
the attorney-general, and sentenced to stand in the pillory; a disgrace
which he accordingly underwent.
A bill for regulating trials in cases of high treason having been laid
aside by the lords in the preceding session, was now again brought upon
the carpet, and passed the lower house. The design of this bill was to
secure the subject from the rigours to which he had been exposed in the
late reigns: it provided, That the prisoner should be furnished with a
copy of his indictment, as also of the panel, ten days before his trial;
and, that his witnesses should be examined upon oath as well as those of
the crown. The lords, in their own behalf, added a clause enacting,
That upon the trials of any peer or peeress, for treason or misprison of
treason, all the peers who have a right to sit and vote in parliament,
should be duly summoned to assist at the trial; that this notice should
be given twenty days before the trial; and that every peer so summoned,
and appearing, should vote upon the occasion. The commons rejected this
amendment; and a free conference ensued. The point was argued with great
vivacity on both sides, which served only to inflame the dispute, and
render each party the more tenacious of their own opinion. After three
conferences that produced nothing but animosity, the bill was dropped;
for the commons resolved to bear the hardships of which they complained,
rather than be relieved at the expense of purchasing a new privilege to
the lords; and without this advantage, the peers would not contribute to
their relief.
{WILLIAM AND MARY, 1688--1701.}
THE ENGLISH AND DUTCH FLEETS BAFFLED BY THE FRENCH.
The next object that engrossed the attention of the lower house, was the
miscarriage of the fleet during the summer’s expedition. Admiral Russel,
who commanded at sea, having been joined by a Dutch squadron, sailed
in quest of the enemy; but as the French king had received undoubted
intelligence that the combined squadrons were superior to his navy in
number of ships and weight of metal, he ordered Tourville to avoid
an engagement. This officer acted with such vigilance, caution, and
dexterity, as baffled all the endeavours of Russel, who was moreover
perplexed with obscure and contradictory orders. Nevertheless, he
cruised all summer either in the channel or in soundings, for the
protection of the trade, and in particular secured the homeward-bound
Smyrna fleet, in which the English and Dutch had a joint concern
amounting to four millions sterling. Having scoured the channel, and
sailed along great part of the French coast, he returned to Torbay in
the beginning of August, and received fresh orders to put to sea again,
notwithstanding his repeated remonstrances against exposing large
ships to the storms that always blow about the time of the equinox. He
therefore sailed back to soundings, where he continued cruising till
the second day of September, when he was overtaken by a violent tempest,
which drove him into the channel, and obliged him to make for the port
of Plymouth. The weather being hazy, he reached the Sound with great
difficulty: the Coronation, a second-rate, foundered at anchor off the
Ram-head; the Harwich, a third-rate, bulged upon the rocks and perished;
two others ran ashore, but were got off with little damage; but the
whole fleet was scattered and distressed. The nation murmured at the
supposed misconduct of the admiral, and the commons subjected him to an
inquiry: but when they examined his papers, orders, and instructions,
they perceived he had adhered to them with great punctuality, and
thought proper to drop the prosecution out of tenderness to the
ministry. Then the house took into consideration some letters which had
been intercepted in a French ship taken by sir Ralph Delaval. Three of
these are said to have been written by king James, and the rest sealed
with his seal. They related to the plan of an insurrection in Scotland,
and in the northern parts of England: Legge, lord Dartmouth, with one
Crew, being mentioned in them as agents and abettors in the design,
warrants were immediately issued against them; Crew absconded, but lord
Dartmouth was committed to the Tower. Lord Preston was examined touching
some ciphers which they could not explain, and, pretending ignorance,
was imprisoned in Newgate, from whence however he soon obtained
his release. The funds for the supplies of the ensuing year being
established, and several acts* passed relating to domestic regulations,
the king on the twenty-fourth day of February closed the session with
a short speech, thanking the parliament for their demonstrations of
affection in the liberal supplies they had granted, and communicating
his intention of repairing speedily to the continent. Then the two
houses, at his desire, adjourned themselves to the twelfth day of April,
and the parliament was afterwards prorogued to the twenty-ninth day of
May, by proclamation. [035] _[See note H, at the end of this Vol.]_
* The laws enacted in this session were those: an act for
abrogating the oath of supremacy in Ireland, and appointing
other oaths; an act for taking away clergy from some
offenders, and bringing others to punishment; an act against
deer-stealing; an act for repairing the highways, and
settling the rates of carriage of goods; an act for the
relief of creditors against fraudulent devices; an act for
explaining and supplying the defects of former laws for the
settlement of the poor; an act for the encouragement of the
breeding and feeding of cattle; and an act for ascertaining
the tithes of hemp and flax.
THE KING DISOBLIGES THE PRESBYTERIANS OF SCOTLAND.
The king had suffered so much in his reputation by his complaisance to
the presbyterians of Scotland, and was so displeased with the conduct of
that stubborn sect of religionists, that he thought proper to admit some
prelatists into the administration. Johnston, who had been sent envoy to
the elector of Brandenburgh was recalled, and with the master of Stair,
made joint secretary of Scotland; Melvil, who had declined in his
importance, was made lord privy-seal of that kingdom; Tweedale was
constituted lord chancellor; Crawford retained the office of president
of the council; and Lothian was appointed high commissioner to the
general assembly. The parliament was adjourned to the fifteenth day
of April, because it was not yet compliant enough to be assembled with
safety; and the episcopal clergy were admitted to a share of the church
government. These measures, instead of healing the divisions, served
only to inflame the animosity of the two parties. The episcopalians
triumphed in the king’s favour, and began to treat their antagonists
with insolence and scorn: the presbyterians were incensed to see
their friends disgraced, and their enemies distinguished by the royal
indulgence. They insisted upon the authority of the law, which happened
to be upon their side: they became more than ever sour, surly, and
implacable; they refused to concur with the prelatists or abate in
the least circumstances of discipline; and the assembly was dissolved
without any time or place assigned for the next meeting. The
presbyterians pretended an independent right of assembling annually,
even without a call from his majesty; they therefore adjourned
themselves, after having protested against the dissolution. The king
resented this measure as an insolent invasion of the prerogative, and
conceived an aversion to the whole sect, who in their turn began to lose
all respect for his person and government.
As the highlanders were not yet totally reduced, the earl of Breadalbane
undertook to bring them over, by distributing sums of money among their
chiefs; and fifteen thousand pounds were remitted from England for this
purpose. The clans being informed of this remittance, suspected that the
earl’s design was to appropriate to himself the best part of the money,
and when he began to treat with them made such extravagant demands that
he found his scheme impracticable. He was therefore obliged to refund
the sum he had received; and he resolved to wreak his vengeance with
the first opportunity on those who had frustrated his intention. He
who chiefly thwarted his negotiation was Macdonald of Glencoe, whose
opposition rose from a private circumstance which ought to have had
no effect upon a treaty that regarded the public weal. Macdonald had
plundered the lands of Breadalbane during the course of hostilities; and
this nobleman insisted upon being indemnified for his losses, from the
other’s share of the money which he was employed to distribute. The
highlander not only refused to acquiesce in these terms, but, by his
influence among the clans, defeated the whole scheme, and the earl in
revenge devoted him to destruction. King William had by proclamation
offered an indemnity to all those who had been in arms against him,
provided they would submit and take the oaths by a certain day; and this
was prolonged to the close of the present year, with a denunciation of
military execution against those who should hold out after the end of
December. Macdonald, intimidated by this declaration, repaired on the
very last day of the month to Fort-William, and desired that the oaths
might be tendered to him by colonel Hill, governor of that fortress.
As this officer was not vested with the power of a civil magistrate,
he refused to administer them; and Macdonald set out immediately for
Inverary, the county-town of Argyle. Though the ground was covered with
snow, and the weather intensely cold, he travelled with such diligence,
that the term prescribed by the proclamation was but one day elapsed
when he reached the place, and addressed himself to sir John Campbell,
sheriff of the county, who, in consideration of his disappointment at
Fort-William, was prevailed upon to administer the oaths to him and his
adherents. Then they returned to their own habitations in the valley
of Glencoe, in full confidence of being protected by the government to
which they had so solemnly submitted.
MASSACRE OF GLENCOE.
Breadalbane had represented Macdonald at court as an incorrigible rebel,
as a ruffian inured to bloodshed and rapine, who would never be obedient
to the laws of his country, nor live peaceably under any sovereign. He
observed, that he had paid no regard to the proclamation, and proposed
that the government should sacrifice him to the quiet of the kingdom,
in extirpating him with his family and dependents by military execution.
His advice was supported by the suggestions of the other Scottish
ministers; and the king, whose chief virtue was not humanity, signed a
warrant for the destruction of those unhappy people, though it does
not appear that he knew of Macdonald’s submission. An order for this
barbarous execution, signed and countersigned by his majesty’s own hand,
being transmitted to the master of Stair, secretary for Scotland, this
minister sent particular directions to Livingstone, who commanded the
troops in that kingdom, to put the inhabitants of Glencoe to the
sword, charging him to take no prisoners, that the scene might be more
terrible. In the month of February, captain Campbell of Glenlyon, by
virtue of an order from major Duncanson, marched into the valley of
Glencoe with a company of soldiers belonging to Argyle’s regiment, on
pretence of levying the arrears of the land-tax and hearth-money. When
Macdonald demanded whether they came as friends or enemies, he answered,
as friends, and promised upon his honour that neither he nor his people
should sustain the least injury. In consequence of this declaration, he
and his men were received with the most cordial hospitality, and lived
fifteen days with the men of the valley in all the appearance of the
most unreserved friendship. At length the fatal period approached.
Macdonald and Campbell having passed the day together, parted about
seven in the evening, with mutual professions of the warmest affection.
The younger Macdonald, perceiving the guards doubled, began to suspect
some treachery, and communicated his suspicion to his brother; but
neither he nor the father would harbour the least doubt of Campbell’s
sincerity: nevertheless the two young men went forth privately to make
further observations. They overheard the common soldiers say they
liked not the work; that though they would have willingly fought the
Macdonalds of the Glen fairly in the field, they held it base to murder
them in cool blood, but that their officers were answerable for the
treachery. When the youths hastened back to apprize their father of the
impending danger, they saw the house already surrounded; they heard
the discharge of muskets, the shrieks of women and children; and, being
destitute of arms, secured their own lives by immediate flight. The
savage ministers of vengeance had entered the old man’s chamber, and
shot him through the head. He fell down dead in the arms of his wife,
who died next day distracted by the horror of her husband’s fate. The
laird of Auchintrincken, Macdonald’s guest, who had, three months before
this period, submitted to the government, and at this very time had a
protection in his pocket, was put to death without question. A boy of
eight years, who fell at Campbell’s feet imploring mercy, and offering
to serve him for life, was stabbed to the heart by one Drummond a
subaltern officer. Eight-and-thirty persons suffered in this manner,
the greater part of whom were surprised in their beds, and hurried into
eternity before they had time to implore the divine mercy. The design
was to butcher all the males under seventy that lived in the valley, the
number of whom amounted to two hundred; but some of the detachments did
not arrive soon enough to secure the passes; so that one hundred and
sixty escaped. Campbell having perpetrated this cruel massacre, ordered
all the houses to be burned, made a prey of all the cattle and effects
that were found in the valley, and left the helpless women and children,
whose fathers and husbands he had murdered, naked and forlorn, without
covering, food, or shelter, in the midst of the snow that covered the
whole face of the country, at the distance of six long miles from any
inhabited place. Distracted with grief and horror, surrounded with the
shades of night, shivering with cold, and appalled with the apprehension
of immediate death from the swords of those who had sacrificed their
friends and kinsmen, they could not endure such a complication of
calamities, but generally perished in the waste, before they could
receive the least comfort or assistance. This barbarous massacre,
performed under the sanction of king William’s authority, answered the
immediate purpose of the court by striking terror into the hearts of the
Jacobite high-landers; but at the same time excited the horror of all
those who had not renounced every sentiment of humanity, and produced
such an aversion to the government, as all the arts of a ministry could
never totally surmount. A detail of the particulars was published
at Paris, with many exaggerations, and the Jacobites did not fail
to expatiate on every circumstance, in domestic libels and private
conversation. The king, alarmed at the outcry which was raised upon this
occasion, ordered an inquiry to be set on foot, and dismissed the master
of Stair from his employment of secretary: he likewise pretended that he
had subscribed the order amidst a heap of other papers, without knowing
the purport of it; but as he did not severely punish those who had made
his authority subservient to their own cruel revenge, the imputation
stuck fast to his character; and the highlanders, though terrified
into silence and submission, were inspired with the most implacable
resentment against his person and administration.
PREPARATIONS FOR A DESCENT UPON ENGLAND.
A great number in both kingdoms waited impatiently for an opportunity to
declare in behalf of their exiled monarch, who was punctually informed
of all these transactions, and endeavoured to make his advantage of the
growing discontent. King William having settled the domestic affairs
of the nation, and exerted uncommon care and assiduity in equipping a
formidable fleet, embarked for Holland on the fifth day of March, and
was received by the states-general with expressions of the most cordial
regard. While he was here employed in promoting the measures of the
grand confederacy, the French king resolved to invade England in his
absence, and seemed heartily engaged in the interest of James, whose
emissaries in Britain began to bestir themselves with uncommon assiduity
in preparing the nation for his return. One Lant, who was imprisoned on
suspicion of distributing his commissions, had the good fortune to be
released, and the papists of Lancashire dispatched him to the court of
St. Germain’s with an assurance that they were in a condition to receive
their old sovereign. He returned with advice that king James would
certainly land in the spring; and that colonel Parker and other officers
should be sent over with full instructions, touching their conduct at
and before the king’s arrival. Parker accordingly repaired to England,
and made the Jacobites acquainted with the whole scheme of a descent,
which Louis had actually concerted with the late king. He assured them
that their lawful sovereign would once more visit his British dominions,
at the head of thirty thousand effective men, to be embarked at La
Hogue; that the transports were already prepared, and a strong squadron
equipped for their convoy; he therefore exhorted them to be speedy and
secret in their preparation, that they might be in readiness to take
arms and co-operate in effecting his restoration. This officer, and one
Johnson a priest, are said to have undertaken the assassination of king
William; but before they could execute their design his majesty set sail
for Holland.
DECLARATION OF KING JAMES.
Meanwhile James addressed a letter to several lords who had been
formerly members of his council, as well as to divers ladies of quality
and distinction, intimating the pregnancy of his queen, and requiring
them to attend as witnesses at the labour. He took notice of the injury
his family and honour had sustained, from the cruel aspersions of his
enemies concerning the birth of his son, and as Providence had now
favoured him with an opportunity of refuting the calumny of those who
affirmed that the queen was incapable of child-bearing, he assured them
in the name of his brother the French king, as well as upon his own
royal word, that they should have free leave to visit his court and
return after the labour.*
* The letter was directed not only for privy counsellors,
but also to the duchesses of Somerset and Beaufort, the
marchioness of Halifax, the countesses of Derby, Mulgrave,
Rutland, Brooks, Nottingham, Lumley, and Danby, the ladies
Fitzharding and Fretchville, those of sir John Trevor,
speaker of the house of commons, sir Edward Seymour, sir
Christopher Musgrave, the wives of sir Thomas Stamford,
lord-mayor of London, sir William Ashhurst and sir Richard
Levert, the sheriffs, and, lastly, to Dr. Chamberlain, the
famous practitioner in midwifery.
This invitation however no person would venture to accept. He afterwards
employed his emissaries in circulating a printed declaration, importing
that the king of France had enabled him to make another effort to
retrieve his crown; and that although he was furnished with a number of
troops sufficient to untie the hands of his subjects, he did not intend
to deprive them of their share in the glory of restoring their lawful
king and their ancient government. He exhorted the people to join his
standard. He assured them that the foreign auxiliaries should behave
with the most regular discipline, and be sent back immediately after his
re-establishment. He observed, that when such a number of his subjects
were so infatuated as to concur with the unnatural design of the prince
of Orange, he had chosen to rely upon the fidelity of his English army,
and refused considerable succours that were offered to him by his most
christian majesty; that when he was ready to oppose force with force, he
nevertheless offered to give all reasonable satisfaction to his subjects
who had been misled, and endeavoured to open their eyes with respect to
the vain pretences of his adversary, whose aim was not the reformation
but the subversion of the government; that when he saw himself deserted
by his army, betrayed by his ministers, abandoned by his favourites, and
even his own children, and at last rudely driven from his own palace
by a guard of insolent foreigners, he had for his personal safety taken
refuge in France: that his retreat from the malice and cruel designs
of the usurper had been construed into an abdication, and the whole
constitution of the monarchy destroyed by a set of men illegally
assembled, who, in fact, had no power to alter the property of the
meanest subject. He expressed his hope that by this time the nation had
fairly examined the account, and from the losses and enormous expense of
the three last years, were convinced that the remedy was worse than the
disease; that the beginning, like the first years of Nero’s reign, would
in all probability be found the mildest part of the usurpation, and
the instruments of the new establishment live to suffer severely by the
tyranny they had raised; that even though the usurpation should continue
during his life, an indisputable title would survive in his issue,
and expose the kingdom to all the miseries of a civil war. He not only
solicited but commanded his good subjects to join him, according to
their duty and the oaths they had taken. He forbade them to pay taxes
or any part of the revenue to the usurper. He promised pardon, and even
rewards, to all those who should return to their duty, and to procure in
his first parliament an act of indemnity, with an exception of certain
persons * whom he now enumerated.
* Those excepted were the duke of Ormond, the marquis of
Winchester, the earls of Sunderland, Bath, Danhy, and
Nottingham; the lords Newport, Delamere, Wiltshire,
Colchester, Cornhury, Dunblain, and Churchill; the bishops
of London and St. Asaph; sir Robert Howard, sir John Worden,
sir Samuel Grimstone, sir Stephen Fox, sir George Treby, sir
Basil Dixwell, sir James Oxenden; Dr. John Tillotson, Dr.
Gilbert Burnet; Francis Russel, Richard Lovison, John
Trenchard, Charles Duncomb, citizens of London; Edwards,
Stapleton, and Hunt, fishermen, and all others who had
offered personal indignities to him at Feyersham; or had
been concerned in the barbarous murder of John Ashton Cross,
or any other who had suffered death for their loyalty; and
all spies, or such as had betrayed his council during his
late absence from England.
He declared that all soldiers who should quit the service of the usurper
and enlist under his banners, might depend upon receiving their pardon
and arrears; and that the foreign troops, upon laying clown their
arms, should be paid and transported to their respective countries.
He solemnly protested that he would protect and maintain the church
of England, as by law established, in all her rights, privileges, and
possessions: he signified his resolution to use his influence with the
parliament for allowing liberty of conscience to all his subjects, as
an indulgence agreeable to the spirit of the christian religion, and
conducive to the wealth and prosperity of the nation. He said his
principal care should be to heal the wounds of the late distractions; to
restore trade by observing the act of navigation, which had been
lately so much violated in favour of strangers; to put the navy in a
flourishing condition; and to take every step that might contribute
to the greatness of the monarchy and the happiness of the people. He
concluded with professions of resignation to the Divine Will, declaring
that all who should reject his offers of mercy, and appear in arms
against him, would be answerable to Almighty God for all the blood that
should be spilt, and all the miseries in which these kingdoms might be
involved by their desperate and unreasonable opposition.
While this declaration operated variously on the minds of the people,
colonel Parker, with some other officers, enlisted men privately for
the service of James, in the counties of York, Lancaster, and in the
bishopric of Durham: at the same time, Fountaine and Holeman were
employed in raising two regiments of horse at London, that they might
join their master immediately after his landing. His partisans sent
captain Lloyd with an express to lord Melfoot, containing a detail
of these particulars, with an assurance that they had brought over
rear-admiral Carter to the interest of his majesty. They likewise
transmitted a list of the ships that composed the English fleet, and
exhorted James to use his influence with the French king, that the
count do Tourville might be ordered to attack them before they should be
joined by the Dutch squadron. It was in consequence of this advice that
Louis commanded Tourville to fall upon the English fleet, even without
waiting for the Toulon squadron commanded by the marquis D’Etrees. By
this time James had repaired to La Hogue, and was ready to embark with
his army, consisting of a body of French troops, together with
some English and Scotch refugees, and the regiments which had been
transported from Ireland by virtue of the capitulation of Limerick.
PRECAUTIONS TAKEN BY THE QUEEN FOR THE DEFENCE OF THE NATION.
The ministry of England was informed of all these particulars, partly
by some agents of James who betrayed his cause, and partly by admiral
Carter, who gave the queen to understand he had been tampered with; and
was instructed to amuse the Jacobites with a negotiation. King William
no sooner arrived in Holland than he hastened the naval preparations
of the Dutch, so that their fleet was ready for sea sooner than was
expected; and when he received the first intimation of the projected
descent, he detached general Ptolemache with three of the English
regiments from Holland. These, reinforced with other troops remaining in
England, were ordered to encamp in the neighbourhood of Portsmouth.
The queen issued a proclamation, commanding all papists to depart from
London and Westminster: the members of both houses of parliament were
required to meet on the twenty-fourth day of May, that she might avail
herself of their advice in such a perilous conjuncture. Warrants
were expedited for apprehending divers disaffected persons; and
they withdrawing themselves from their respective places of abode, a
proclamation was published for discovering and bringing them to justice.
The earls of Scarsdale, Litchfield, and Newburgh; the lords Griffin,
Forbes, sir John Fenwick, sir Theophilus Oglethorpe, and others, found
means to elude the search. The earls of Huntingdon and Marlborough
were sent to the Tower; Edward Ridley, Knevitt, Hastings, and Robert
Ferguson, were imprisoned in Newgate. The bishop of Rochester was
confined to his own house; the lords Brudenal and Fanshaw were secured;
the earls of Dunmore, Middleton, and sir Andrew Forrester, were
discovered in a quaker’s house, and committed to prison with several
other persons of distinction. The trainbands of London and Westminster
were armed by the queen’s direction, and she reviewed them in person:
admiral Russell was ordered to put to sea with all possible expedition;
and Carter, with a squadron of eighteen sail, continued to cruise along
the French coast to observe the motions of the enemy.
ADMIRAL RUSSEL PUTS TO SEA.
On the eleventh day of May, Russel sailed from Rye to St. Helen’s,
where he was joined by the squadron under Delaval and Carter. There he
received a letter from the earl of Nottingham, intimating that a
report having been spread of the queen’s suspecting the fidelity of the
sea-officers, her majesty had ordered him to declare in her name that
she reposed the most entire confidence in their attachment, and
believed the report was raised by the enemies of the government. The
flag-officers and captains forthwith drew up a very loyal and dutiful
address, which was graciously received by the queen, and published for
the satisfaction of the nation. Russel, being reinforced by the Dutch
squadrons commanded by Allemonde, Callemberg, and Vandergoes, set sail
for the coast of France on the eighteenth day of May, with a fleet of
ninety-nine ships of the line, besides frigates and fire-ships. Next
day, about three o’clock in the morning, he discovered the enemy under
the count de Tour-ville, and threw out the signal for the line of
battle, which by eight o’clock was formed in good order, the Dutch in
the van, the blue division in the rear, and the red in the centre. The
French fleet did not exceed sixty-three ships of the line, and as they
were to windward Tourville might have avoided an engagement; but he had
received a positive order to fight, on the supposition that the Dutch
and English squadrons had not joined. Louis indeed was apprised of their
junction before they were descried by his admiral, to whom he dispatched
a countermanding order by two several vessels; but one of them was taken
by the English, and the other did not arrive till the day after the
engagement.
{WILLIAM AND MARY, 1688--1701.}
[Illustration: 2-038-hogue-battle.jpg BATTLE OF LA HOGUE]
HE OBTAINS A COMPLETE VICTORY OVER THE FRENCH.
Tourville therefore, in obedience to the first mandate, bore down
alongside of Russel’s own ship, which he engaged at a very small
distance. He fought with great fury till one o’clock, when his rigging
and sails being considerably damaged, his ship, the Rising-Sun, which
carried one hundred and four cannon, was towed out of the line in great
disorder. Nevertheless the engagement continued till three, when the
fleets were parted by a thick fog: when this abated, the enemy were
descried flying to the northward, and Russel made the signal for
chasing. Part of the blue squadron came up with the enemy about eight in
the evening, and engaged them half an hour, during which admiral Carter
was mortally wounded. Finding himself in extremity, he exhorted his
captain to fight as long as the ship could swim, and expired with great
composure. At length the French bore away for Conquet road, having lost
four ships in this day’s action. Next day, about eight in the morning,
they were discovered crowding away to the westward, and the combined
fleets chased with all the sail they could carry, until Russel’s
foretopmast came by the board. Though he was retarded by this accident,
the fleet still continued the pursuit, and anchored near Cape La Hogue.
On the twenty-second of the month, about seven in the morning, part
of the French fleet was perceived near the Race of Alderney, some at
anchor, and some driving to the eastward with the tide of flood. Russel
and the ships nearest him immediately slipped their cables and chased.
The Rising Sun having lost her masts, ran ashore near Cherbourg, where
she was burned by sir Ralph Delaval, together with the Admirable,
another first-rate, and the Conquérant of eighty guns. Eighteen other
ships of their fleet ran into La Hogue, where they were attacked by sir
George Rooke, who destroyed them and a great number of transports laden
with ammunition, in the midst of a terrible fire from the enemy, and in
sight of the Irish camp. Sir John Ashby, with his own squadron and some
Dutch ships, pursued the rest of the French fleet, which escaped through
the Race of Alderney by such a dangerous passage as the English could
not attempt without exposing their ships to the most imminent hazard.
This was a very mortifying defeat to the French king, who had been so
long flattered with an uninterrupted series of victories; it reduced
James to the lowest ebb of despondence, as it frustrated the whole
scheme of his embarkation, and overwhelmed his friends in England with
grief and despair. Some historians allege that Russel did not improve
his victory with all advantages that might have been obtained before
the enemy recovered their consternation. They say his affection to the
service was in a great measure cooled by the disgrace of his friend
the earl of Marlborough; that he hated the earl of Nottingham, by whose
channel he received his orders; and that he adhered to the letter
rather than to the spirit of his instructions. But this is a malicious
imputation, and a very ungrateful return for his manifold services to
the nation. He acted in this whole expedition with the genuine spirit
of a British admiral. He plied from the Nore to the Downs with a very
scanty wind through the dangerous sands, contrary to the advice of
all his pilots; and by this bold passage effected a junction of the
different squadrons, which otherwise the French would have attacked
singly and perhaps defeated. He behaved with great gallantry during the
engagement, and destroyed about fifteen of the enemy’s capital ships; in
a word, he obtained such a decisive victory, that during the remaining
part of the war the French would not hazard another battle by sea with
the English.
Russel having ordered Sir John Ashby and the Dutch admiral Callemberg to
steer towards Havre de Grace, and endeavour to destroy the remainder
of the French fleet, sailed back to St. Helen’s that the damaged ships
might be refitted, and the fleet furnished with fresh supplies of
provisions and ammunition; but his principal motive was to take on board
a number of troops provided for a descent upon France, which had been
projected by England and Holland, with a view to alarm and distract the
enemy in their own dominions. The queen was so pleased with the victory
that she ordered thirty thousand pounds to be distributed among the
sailors. She caused medals to be struck in honour of the action; and the
bodies of admiral Carter and captain Hastings, who had been killed in
the battle, to be interred with great funeral pomp. In the latter end of
July seven thousand men, commanded by the duke of Leinster, embarked on
board transports to be landed at St. Maloes, Brest, or Rochefort, and
the nation conceived the most sanguine hopes of this expedition. A
council of war, consisting of land and sea officers, being held on board
the Breda to deliberate upon the scheme of the ministry, the members
unanimously agreed that the season was too far advanced to put it in
execution. Nevertheless, the admiral having detached sir John Ashby with
a squadron to intercept the remains of the French fleet in their passage
from St. Maloes to Brest, set sail for La Hogue with the rest of the
fleet and transports; but in a few days the wind shifting, lie was
obliged to return to St. Helen’s.
The queen immediately dispatched the marquis of Carmarthen, the earls of
Devonshire, Dorset, Nottingham, and Rochester, together with the lords
Sidney and Cornwallis, to consult with the admiral, who demonstrated the
impracticability of making an effectual descent upon the coast of France
at that season of the year. The design was therefore laid aside, and the
forces were transported to Flanders. The higher the hopes of the
nation had been raised by this armament, the deeper they felt their
disappointment. A loud clamour was raised against the ministry as
the authors of this miscarriage. The people complained that they were
plundered and abused; that immense sums were extorted from them by the
most grievous impositions; that, by the infamous expedient of borrowing
upon established funds, their taxes were perpetuated; that their burdens
would daily increase; that their treasure was either squandered away in
chimerical projects or expended in foreign connexions, of which England
was naturally independent. They were the more excusable for exclaiming
in this manner, as their trade had suffered grievously by the French
privateers which swarmed in the Channel. In vain the merchants had
recourse to the Admiralty, which could not spare particular convoys
while large fleets were required for the defence of the nation. The
French king having nothing further to apprehend from the English
armament, withdrew his troops from the coast of Normandy; and James
returned in despair to St. Germain’s, where his queen had been in his
absence delivered of a daughter, who was born in the presence of the
archbishop of Paris, the keeper of the seals, and other persons of
distinction.
THE FRENCH TAKE NAMUR IN SIGHT OF KING WILLIAM.
Louis had taken the field in the latter end of May. On the twentieth day
of that month he arrived at his camp in Flanders with all the effeminate
pomp of an Asiatic emperor, attended by his women and parasites, his
band of music, his dancers, his opera, and, in a word, by all the
ministers of luxury and sensual pleasure. Having reviewed his army,
which amounted to about one hundred and twenty thousand men, he
undertook the siege of Namur, which he invested on both sides of the
Sambre with about one-half of his army, while the other covered the
siege under the command of Luxembourg. Namur is situated on the conflux
of the Meuse and the Sambre. The citadel was deemed one of the strongest
forts in Flanders, strengthened with a new work contrived by the famous
engineer Coehorn, who now defended it in person. The prince de Barbason
commanded the garrison, consisting of nine thousand men. The place was
well supplied, and the governor knew that king William would make strong
efforts for its relief, so that the besieged were animated with many
concurring considerations. Notwithstanding these advantages, the
assailants carried on their attacks with such vigour that in seven days
after the trenches were opened, the town capitulated and the garrison
retired into the citadel. King William, being joined by the troops of
Brandenburgh and Liege, advanced to the Mehaigne at the head of one
hundred thousand effective men, and encamped within cannon shot of
Luxembourg’s army, which lay on the other side of the river. That
general however had taken such precautions, that the king of England
could not interrupt the siege nor attack the French lines without
great disadvantage. The besiegers, encouraged by the presence of
their monarch, and assisted by the superior abilities of Vau-ban their
engineer, repeated their attacks with such impetuosity that the fort
of Cohorn was surrendered after a very obstinate defence, in which
he himself had been dangerously wounded. The citadel being thus left
exposed to the approaches of the enemy, could not long withstand
the violence of their operations; the two covered ways were taken
by assault. On the twentieth of May the governor capitulated, to the
unspeakable mortification of king William, who saw himself obliged to
lie inactive at the head of a powerful army, and be an eye-witness of
the loss of the most important fortress in the Netherlands. Louis having
taken possession of the place, returned in triumph to Versailles,
where he was flattered with all the arts of adulation; while William’s
reputation suffered a little from his miscarriage, and the prince of
Barbason incurred the suspicion of treachery or misconduct.
THE ALLIES DEFEATED AT STEENKIRK.
Luxembourg having placed a strong garrison in Namur, detached Bounders
with a body of troops to La Bassiere, and with the rest of his army
encamped at Soignies. The king of England sent off detachments towards
Liege and Ghent; and on the sixth day of July posted himself at Genap,
resolved to seize the first opportunity of retrieving his honour by
attacking the enemy. Having received intelligence that the French
general was in motion and intended to take post between Steenkirk and
Enghien, he passed the river Senne in order to anticipate his purpose;
but in spite of all his diligence Luxembourg gained his point, and
William encamped at Lembecq, within six miles of the French army.
Here he resolved in a council of war to attack the enemy, and every
disposition was made for that purpose. The heavy baggage he ordered
to be conveyed to the other side of the Senne; and one Millevoix, a
detected spy, was compelled by menaces to mislead Luxembourg with false
intelligence, importing that he need not be alarmed at the motions of
the allies, who intended the next day to make a general forage. On the
twenty-fourth day of July, the army began to move from the left in two
columns, as the ground would not admit of their marching in an extended
front. The prince of Wirtemberg began the attack on the right of the
enemy at the head of ten battalions of English, Danish, and Dutch
infantry; he was supported by a considerable body of British horse and
foot, commanded by lieutenant-general Mackay. Though the ground was
intersected by hedges, ditches, and narrow defiles, the prince marched
with such diligence that he was in a condition to begin the battle about
two in the afternoon, when he charged the French with such impetuosity
that they were driven* from their posts, and their whole camp became a
scene of tumult and confusion. Luxembourg, trusting to the intelligence
he had received, allowed himself to be surprised, and it required the
full exertion of his superior talents to remedy the consequences of his
neglect. He forthwith forgot a severe indisposition under which he then
laboured; he rallied his broken battalions; he drew up his forces in
order of battle, and led them to the charge in person. The duke de
Chartres, who was then in the fifteenth year of his age, the dukes
of Bourbon and Vendôme, the prince of Conti, and a great number of
volunteers of the first quality, put themselves at the head of the
household troops, and fell with great fury upon the English, who were
very ill supported by count Solmes, the officer who commanded the centre
of the allies. The prince of Wirtemberg had taken one of the enemies’
batteries, and actually penetrated into their lines; but finding himself
in danger of being overpowered by numbers, he sent an aidecamp twice to
demand succours from Solmes, who derided his distress, saying, “Let us
see what sport these English bull-dogs will make.” At length, when the
king sent an express order commanding him to sustain the left wing, he
made a motion with his horse, which could not act while his infantry
kept their ground, and the British troops, with a few Dutch and Danes,
bore the whole brunt of the engagement. They fought with surprising
courage and perseverance against dreadful odds; and the event of the
battle continued doubtful, until Bouflîers joined the French army with
a great body of dragoons. The allies could not sustain the additional
weight of this reinforcement, before which they gave way, though the
retreat was made in tolerable order, and the enemy did not think
proper to prosecute the advantage they had gained. In this action the
confederates lost the earl of Angus, general Mackay, sir John Lanier,
sir Robert Douglas, and many other gallant officers, together with about
three thousand men left dead on the spot, the same number wounded or
taken, a great many colours and standards, and several pieces of cannon.
EXTRAVAGANT REJOICINGS IN FRANCE.
The French however reaped no solid advantage from this victory, which
cost them about three thousand men, including the prince of Turenne,
the marquis de Bellefond, Tilladet, and Fernacon, with many officers of
distinction: as for Millevoix the spy, he was hanged on a tree on the
right wing of the allied army. King William retired unmolested to
his own camp; and notwithstanding all his overthrows, continued a
respectable enemy, by dint of invincible fortitude and a genius fruitful
in resources. That he was formidable to the French nation, even in the
midst of his ill success, appears from divers undeniable testimonies,
and from none more than from the extravagance of joy expressed by the
people of France on the occasion of this unimportant victory. When the
princes who served in the battle returned to Paris, the roads through
which they passed were almost blocked up with multitudes; and the
whole air resounded with acclamation. All the ornaments of the fashion
peculiar to both sexes adopted the name of Steenkirk: every individual
who had been personally engaged in the action was revered as a being
of a superior species, and the transports of the women rose almost to a
degree of frenzy.
CONSPIRACY AGAINST THE LIFE OF WILLIAM.
The French ministry did not entirely depend upon the fortune of the war
for the execution of their revenge against king William, They likewise
employed assassins to deprive him of life in the most treacherous
manner.
When Louvois died, his son the marquis de Barbesieux, who succeeded him
in his office of secretary, found among his papers the draft of a scheme
for this purpose, and immediately revived the design by means of the
chevalier de Grandval, a captain of dragoons in the service. He and
colonel Parker engaged one Dumont, who undertook to assassinate king
William. Madame de Maintenon, and Paparel, paymaster to the French army,
were privy to the scheme, which they encouraged: the conspirators are
said to have obtained an audience of king James, who approved of their
undertaking, and assured them of his protection; but that unfortunate
monarch was unjustly charged with the guilt of countenancing the
intended murder, as they communicated nothing to him but an attempt to
seize the person of the prince of Orange. Dumont actually enlisted in
the confederate army, that he might have the better opportunity to shoot
the king of England when he should ride out to visit the linos,
while Grandval and Parker repaired to the French camp, with orders
to Luxembourg to furnish them with a party of horse for the rescue of
Dumont, after the blow should be struck. Whether this man’s heart failed
him, or he could not find the opportunity he desired, after having
resided some weeks in the camp of the allies, he retired to Hanover; but
still corresponded with Grandval and Barbesieux. This last admitted one
Leofdale, a Dutch baron, into the secret, and likewise imparted it
to monsieur Chanlais, quarter-master general of the French army, who
animated Grandval and Leefdale with the promise of a considerable
reward, and promised to cooperate with Parker for bringing off Dumont,
for this assassin still persisted in his undertaking. Leefdale had been
sent from Holland on purpose to dive to the bottom of this conspiracy,
in consequence of advice given by the British envoy at Hanover, where
Dumont had dropped some hints that alarmed his suspicion. The Dutchman
not only insinuated himself into the confidence of the conspirators,
but likewise inveigled Grandval to Eyndhoven, where he was apprehended.
Understanding that Dumont had already discovered the design to the duke
of Zell, and that he himself had been betrayed by Leefdale, he freely
confessed all the particulars without enduring the torture; and, being
found guilty by a court-martial, was executed as a traitor.
About this period the duke of Leinster arrived at Ostend, with the
troops which had been embarked at St. Helen’s. He was furnished with
cannon sent down the Meuse from Maestricht, and reinforced by a large
detachment from the king’s camp at Gramont, under the command of general
Ptolemache. He took possession of Furnes, was joined by the earl of
Portland and M. d’Auverquerque, and a disposition was made for investing
Dunkirk; but on further deliberation the enterprise was thought very
dangerous, and therefore laid aside. Furnes and Dixmuyde, lately reduced
by brigadier Ramsay, were strengthened with new works, and secured by
strong garrisons. The cannon were sent back, and the troops returning to
Ostend, re-embarked for England. This fruitless expedition, added to
the inglorious issue of the campaign, increased the ill humour of the
British nation. They taxed William with having lain inactive at Gramont
with an army of one hundred thousand men, while Luxembourg was posted
at Courtray with half that number. They said, if he had found the French
lines too strong to be forced, he might have passed the Scheld higher
up, and not only laid the enemy’s conquests under contribution, but even
marched into the bowels of France; and they complained that Furnes
and Dixmuyde were not worth the sums expended in maintaining their
garrisons. On the twenty-sixth day of September king William left the
army under the command of the elector of Bavaria, and repaired to his
house at Loo: in two days after his departure the camp at Gramont was
broke up; the infantry marched to Marienkerke, and the horse; to Caure.
On the sixteenth day of October, the king receiving intelligence that
Boufflers had invested Charleroy, and Luxembourg taken post in the
neighbourhood of Condé, ordered the troops to be instantly reassembled
between the village of Ixells and Halle, with design to raise the siege,
and repaired to Brussels, where he held a council of war, in which the
proper measures were concerted. He then returned to Holland, leaving the
command with the elector of Bavaria, who forthwith began his march for
Charleroy. At his approach Boufflers abandoned the siege, and moved
towards Philip-ville. The elector having reinforced the place, and
thrown supplies into Aeth, distributed his forces into winter-quarters.
Then Luxembourg, who had cantoned his army between Condé, Leuzet, and
Tournay, returned to Paris, leaving Boufflers to command in his absence.
THE CAMPAIGN INACTIVE ON THE RHINE AND IN HUNGARY.
The allies had been unsuccessful in Flanders, and they were not
fortunate in Germany. The landgrave of Hesse Cassol undertook the siege
of Eberemburgh, which, however, he was obliged to abandon. The duke
de Lorges, who commanded the French forces on the Rhine, surprised,
defeated, and took the duke of Wirtemberg, who had posted himself with
four thousand horse near Ridelsheim, to check the progress of the enemy.
Count Tallard having invested Rhinefield, the landgrave marched to its
relief with such expedition that the French wore obliged to desist and
retreat with considerable damage. The elector of Saxony had engaged
to bring an army into the field; but he complained that the emperor left
the burden of the war with France upon the princes, and converted his
chief power and attention to the campaign in Hungary. A jealousy and
misunderstanding ensued: Schoning the Saxon general, in his way to the
hot baths at Dablitz in Bohemia, was seized by the emperor’s order on
suspicion of having maintained a private correspondence with the enemy,
and very warm expostulations on this subject passed between the courts
of Vienna and Dresden. Schoning was detained two years in custody; and
at length released on condition that he should never be employed again
in the empire. The war in Hungary produced no event of importance.
The ministry of the Ottoman Porte was distracted by factions, and the
seraglio threatened with tumults. The people were tired of maintaining
an unsuccessful war; the vizier was deposed; and in the midst of this
confusion, the garrison of great Waradin, which had been blocked up by
the imperialists during the whole winter, surrendered on capitulation.
Lord Paget, the English ambassador at Vienna, was sent to Constantinople
with powers to mediate a peace; but the terms offered by the emperor
were rejected at the Porte: the Turkish army lay upon the defensive, and
the season was spent in a fruitless negotiation.
THE DUKE INVADES DAUPHINE.
The prospect of affairs in Piedmont was favourable for the allies; but
the court of France had brought the pope to an accommodation, and began
to tamper with the duke of Savoy. M. Chanlais was sent to Turin with
advantageous proposals, which however the duke would not accept, because
he thought himself entitled to better terms, considering that the
allied army in Piedmont amounted to fifty thousand effective men, while
Catinat’s forces were not sufficient to defend his conquests in that
country. In the month of July the duke marched into Dauphiné, where he
plundered a number of villages, and reduced the fortress of Guillestre;
then passing the river Darance, he invested Ambrun, which, after a siege
of nine days, surrendered on capitulation: he afterwards laid all
the neighbouring J towns under contribution. Here duke Schomberg, who
commanded the auxiliaries in the English pay, published a declaration
in the name of king William, inviting the people to join his standard,
assuring them that his master had no other design in ordering his troops
to invade France, but that of restoring the noblesse to their ancient
splendour, their parliaments to their former authority, and the people
to their just privileges. He even offered his protection to the clergy,
and promised to use his endeavours for reviving the edict of Nantes,
which had been guaranteed by the kings of England. These offers,
however, produced little effect; and the Germans ravaged the whole
country in revenge for the cruelties which the French had committed
in the Palatinate. The allied army advanced from Ambrun to Gap, on the
frontiers of Provence, and this place submitted without opposition. The
inhabitants of Grenoble, the capital of Dauphiné, and even of Lyons,
were overwhelmed with consternation; and a fairer opportunity of
humbling France could never occur, as that part of the kingdom had been
left almost quite defenceless; but this was fatally neglected, either
from the spirit of dissension which began to prevail in the allied army,
or from the indisposition of the duke of Savoy, who was seized with the
small-pox in the midst of this expedition; or, lastly, from his want of
sincerity, which was shrewdly suspected. He is said to have maintained a
constant correspondence with the court of Versailles, in complaisance to
which he retarded the operations of the confederates. Certain it is, he
evacuated all his conquests, and about the middle of September quitted
the French territories, after having pillaged and laid waste the country
through which he had penetrated.* In Catalonia the French attempted
nothing of importance during this campaign, and the Spaniards were
wholly inactive in that province.
* At this period queen Mary, understanding that the
protestant Vaudois were destitute of ministers to preach or
teach the gospel, established a fund from her own privy
purse to maintain ten preachers, and as many schoolmasters,
in the valleys of Piedmont.
THE DUKE OF HANOVER CREATED AN ELECTOR OF THE EMPIRE.
The protestant interest in Germany acquired an accession of strength by
the creation of a ninth electorate in favour of Ernest Augustus, duke of
Hanover. He had by this time renounced all his connexions with France,
and engaged to enter heartily into the interest of the allies, in
consideration of his obtaining the electoral dignity. King William
exerted himself so vigorously in his behalf at the court of Vienna, that
the emperor agreed to the proposal, in case the consent of the other
electors could be procured. This assent, however, was extorted by the
importunities of the king of England, whom he durst not disoblige.
Leopold was blindly bigotted to the religion of Rome, and consequently
averse to a new creation that would weaken the catholic interest in the
electoral college. He therefore employed his emissaries to thwart the
duke’s measures. Some protestant princes opposed him from motives of
jealousy, and the French king used all his artifice and influence
to prevent the elevation of the house of Hanover. When the duke had
surmounted all this opposition, so far as to gain over a majority of
the electors, new objections were started. The emperor suggested that
another popish electorate should be created to balance the advantage
which the Lutherans would reap from that of Hanover; and he proposed
that Austria should be raised to the same dignity; but violent
opposition was made to this expedient, which would have vested the
emperor with a double vote in the electoral college. At length, after
a tedious negotiation, the duke of Hanover, on the nineteenth day of
December, was honoured with the investiture as elector of Brunswick;
created great marshal of the empire, and did homage to the emperor:
nevertheless, he was not yet admitted into the college, because he had
not been able to procure the unanimous consent of all the electors.*
* In the beginning of September the shock of an earthquake
was felt in London, and many other parts of England, as well
as in France, Germany, and the Netherlands. Violent
agitations of the same kind had happened about two months
before in Sicily and Malta; and the town of Port-Royal in
Jamaica was almost totally ruined by the earthquake: the
place was so suddenly overflowed, that about fifteen hundred
persons perished.
CHAPTER IV.
_False Information against the Earl of Marlborough, the
Bishop of Rochester, and others..... Sources of National
Discontent..... Dissension between the Queen and the
Prince’s Anne of Denmark..... The House of Lords vindicate
their Privileges in behalf of their imprisoned Members.....
The Commons present Addresses to The King and Queen.....
They acquit Admiral Russel, and resolve to advise his
Majesty..... They comply with all the Demands of the
Ministry..... The Lords present an Address of Advice to the
King..... The Dispute between the Lords and Commons
concerning Admiral Russel..... The Commons address the
King..... They establish the Land tax and other
Impositions..... Burnet’s Pastoral Letter burned by the
Hangman..... Proceedings of the Lower House against the
Practice of kidnapping Men for the Service..... The two
Houses address the King on the Grievances of Ireland .....
An Account of the Place-bill, and that for triennial
Parliaments..... The Commons petition his Majesty that he
would dissolve the East India Company..... Trial of Lord
Mohan for Murder..... Alterations in the Ministry..... The
king repairs to the Continent, and assembles the Confederate
Army in Flanders..... The French reduce Huy..... Luxembourg
resolves to attack the Allies..... who are defeated at
Landen..... Charleroy is besieged and taken by the
Enemy..... Campaign on the Rhine..... The Duke of Savoy is
defeated by Catinat in the Plain of Marsaglia.....
Transactions in Hungary and Catalonia..... Naval
Affairs..... A Fleet of Merchant Ships under Convoy of Sir
George Rooke attacked, and partly destroyed by the French
Squadrons ..... Wheeler’s Expedition to the West Indies.....
Benbow bombards St. Maloes..... The French King has recourse
to the Mediation of Denmark..... Severity of the Government
against the Jacobites..... Complaisance of the Scottish
Parliament..... The King returns to England, makes some
Changes in the Ministry, and opens the Session of
Parliament..... Both Houses inquire into the Miscarriages by
Sea..... The Commons grant a vast Sum for the Services of
the ensuing Year..... The King rejects the Bill against free
and impartial Proceedings in Parliament; and the Lower House
remonstrates on this Subject..... Establishment of the Bank
of England..... The East India Company obtain a now
Charter..... Bill for a general Naturalization dropped.....
Sir Francis Wheeler perishes in a Storm..... The English
attempt to make a Descent in Camaret Bay, but are repulsed
with Loss..... They bombard Dieppe, Havre-de-Grace, Dunkirk,
and Calais..... Admiral Russel sails for the Mediterranean,
relieves Barcelona, and winters at Cadiz..... Campaign in
Flanders..... The Allies reduce Huy..... The Prince of Baden
passes the Rhine, but is obliged to repass that River.....
Operations in Hungary..... Progress of the French in
Catalonia..... State of the War in Piedmont..... The King
returns to England..... The Parliament meets..... The Bill
for Triennial Parliaments receives the Royal Assent.....
Death of Archbishop Tillotson and of Queen Mary.....
Reconciliation between the King and the Princess of
Denmark._
{WILLIAM AND MARY, 1688--1701.}
THE EARL OF MARLBOROUGH, BISHOP OF ROCHESTER, &c, FALSELY ACCUSED.
While king William seemed wholly engrossed by the affairs of the
continent, England was distracted by domestic dissension, and overspread
with vice, corruption, and profaneness. Over and above the Jacobites,
there was a set of malcontents whose number daily increased. They
not only murmured at the grievances of the nation, but composed and
published elaborate dissertations upon the same subject. These made
such impressions upon the people, already irritated by heavy burdens,
distressed in their trade, and disappointed in their sanguine
expectations, that the queen thought it necessary to check the progress
of those writers by issuing out a proclamation offering a reward to such
as would discover seditious libellers. The earl of Marlborough had
been committed to the Tower on the information of one Robert Young, a
prisoner in Newgate, who had forged that nobleman’s hand-writing, and
contrived the scheme of an association in favour of king James, to which
he affixed the names of the earls of Marlborough and Salisbury, Sprat,
bishop of Rochester, the lord Cornbury, and sir Basil Firebrace. One of
his emissaries had found means to conceal this paper in a certain part
of the bishop’s house at Bromley in Kent, where it was found by the
king’s messengers, who secured the prelate in consequence of Young’s
information. But he vindicated himself to the satisfaction of the whole
council; and the forgery of the informer was detected by the confession
of his accomplice. The bishop obtained his release immediately and the
earl of Marlborough was admitted to bail in the court of king’s bench.
SOURCES OF NATIONAL DISCONTENT.
So many persons of character and distinction had been imprisoned during
this reign upon the slightest suspicion, that the discontented part
of the nation had some reason to insinuate they had only exchanged
one tyrant for another. They affirmed that the _habeas-corpus_ act was
either insufficient to protect the subject from false imprisonment, or
had been shamefully misused. They expatiated upon the loss of ships,
which had lately fallen a prey to the enemy; the consumption of seamen;
the neglect of the fisheries; the interruption of commerce, in which the
nation was supplanted by her allies, as well as invaded by her enemies;
the low ebb of the kingdom’s treasure, exhausted in hiring foreign
bottoms, and paying foreign troops to fight foreign quarrels; and the
slaughter of the best and bravest of their countrymen, whose blood had
been lavishly spilt in support of connexions with which they ought to
have had no concern. They demonstrated the mischiefs that necessarily
arose from the unsettled state of the nation. They observed that the
government could not be duly established until a solemn declaration
should confirm the legality of that tenure by which their majesties
possessed the throne; that the structure of parliaments was deficient
in point of solidity, as they existed entirely at the pleasure of
the crown, which would use them no longer than they should be found
necessary in raising supplies for the use of the government. They
exclaimed against the practice of quartering soldiers in private houses
contrary to the ancient laws of the land, the petition of rights, and
the subsequent act on that subject passed in the reign of the second
Charles. They enumerated among their grievances the violation of
property, by pressing transport ships into the service without settling
any fund of payment for the owners; the condition of the militia, which
was equally burdensome and useless; the flagrant partiality in favour
of allies, who carried on an open commerce with France, and supplied the
enemy with necessaries, while the English laboured under the severest
prohibitions, and were in effect the dupes of those very powers
whom they protected. They dwelt upon the ministry’s want of conduct,
foresight, and intelligence, and inveighed against their ignorance,
insolence, and neglect, which were as pernicious to the nation as if
they had formed a design of reducing it to the lowest ebb of disgrace
and destruction. By this time, indeed, public virtue was become the
object of ridicule, and the whole kingdom was overspread with
immorality and corruption; towards the increase of which many concurring
circumstances happened to contribute. The people were divided into three
parties, namely, the Williamites, the Jacobites, and the discontented
Revolutioners; these factions took all opportunities to thwart, to
expose, and to ridicule the measures and principles of each other, so
that patriotism was laughed out of doors as an hypocritical pretence.
This contention established a belief that every man consulted his own
private interest at the expense of the public, a belief that soon grew
into a maxim almost universally adopted. The practice of bribing a
majority in parliament had a pernicious influence upon the morals of all
ranks of people, from the candidate to the lowest borough elector. The
expedient of establishing funds of credit for raising supplies to defray
the expenses of government, threw large premiums and sums of money into
the hands of low sordid usurers, brokers, and jobbers, who distinguished
themselves by the name of the monied interest. Intoxicated by this flow
of wealth, they affected to rival the luxury and magnificence of their
superiors; but being destitute of sentiment and taste to conduct them
in their new career, they ran into the most absurd and illiberal
extravagancies. They laid aside all decorum; became lewd, insolent,
intemperate, and riotous. Their example was caught by the vulgar.
All principle, and even decency, was gradually banished; talent lay
uncultivated, and the land was deluged with a tide of ignorance and
profligacy.
DISSENSION BETWEEN THE QUEEN AND PRINCESS ANNE.
King William having ascertained the winter quarters of the army, and
concerted the operations of the ensuing campaign with the states-general
and the ministers of the allies, set sail for England on the fifteenth
day of October; on the eighteenth landed at Yarmouth, was met by the
queen at Newhall, and passed through the city of London to Kensington
amidst the acclamations of the populace. He received a congratulatory
address from the lord-mayor and aldermen, with whom he dined in public
by invitation. A day of thanksgiving was appointed for the victory
obtained at sea. The lustring company was established by patent, and
the parliament met on the fourth day of November. The house of lords was
deeply infected with discontent, which in some measure proceeded
from the dissension between the queen and her sister, the princess of
Denmark, which last underwent every mortification which the court could
inflict. Her guards were taken away; all honours which had been paid to
her rank by the magistrates of Bath, where she sometimes resided,
and even by the ministers of the church where she attended at divine
service, were discontinued by the express order of his majesty. Her
cause was naturally espoused by those noblemen who had adhered to her
in her former contest with the king about an independent settlement; and
these were now reinforced by all the friends of the earl of Marlborough,
united for a double tie; for they resented the disgrace and confinement
of that lord, and thought it their duty to support the princess Anne
under a persecution incurred by an attachment to his countess. The earl
of Shrewsbury lived in friendship with Marlborough, and thought he had
been ungratefully treated by the king; the marquis of Halifax befriended
him from opposition to the ministry; the earl of Mulgrave for an
opportunity to display his talents, and acquire that consideration which
he thought due to his merit. Devonshire, Montague, and Bradford, joined
in the same cause from principle; the same pretence was used by the
earls of Stamford, Monmouth, Warrington, and other whigs, though in
effect they were actuated by jealousy and resentment against those
by whom they had been supplanted. As for the Jacobites, they gladly
contributed their assistance to promote any scheme that had a tendency
to embroil the administration.
THE LORDS VINDICATE THEIR PRIVILEGES.
The king, in his speech to parliament, thanked them for their last
supplies, congratulated them upon the victory obtained at sea, condoled
them on the bad success of the campaign by land, magnified the power of
France, represented the necessity of maintaining a great force to oppose
it, and demanded subsidies equal to the occasion. He expressed his
reluctance to load them with additional burdens, which he said could not
be avoided, without exposing his kingdom to inevitable destruction. He
desired their advice towards lessening the inconveniences of exporting
money for the payment of the forces. He intimated a design of making a
descent upon France; declared he had no aim but to make his subjects a
happy people; and that he would again cheerfully expose his life for the
welfare of the nation. The lords, after an adjournment of three days,
began with great warmth to assert their privileges, which they conceived
had been violated in the cases of the earl of Marlborough and the other
noblemen who had been apprehended, committed to prison, and afterwards
admitted to bail by the court of king’s-bench. These circumstances
being fully discussed in a violent debate, the house ordered lord Lucas,
constable of the Tower, to produce the warrants of commitment, and the
clerk of the king’s-bench to deliver the affidavit of Aaron Smith, the
court solicitor, upon which the lords had been remanded to prison. At
the same time the whole affair was referred to a committee, empowered
to send for persons, papers, and records. The judges were ordered to
attend: Aaron Smith was examined touching the evidence against the
committed lords. The committee reported their general resolution,
which produced a vehement dispute. The opinion of the judges was
unsatisfactory to both parties; the debate was referred to a committee
of the whole house, in which it was resolved and declared, as the sense
of that assembly, that in pursuance of the _habeas-corpus_ act, it was
the duty of the judges and gaol-delivery to discharge the prisoner on
bail if committed for high treason, unless it be made appear, upon oath,
that there are two witnesses against the said prisoner, who cannot be
produced in that term, session, or general gaol-delivery. They likewise
resolved it was the intention of the said statute, that in case there
should be more than one prisoner to be bailed or remanded, there must be
oath made that there are two witnesses against each prisoner, otherwise
he cannot be remanded to prison. These resolutions were entered in the
books as standing directions to all future-judges, yet not without
great opposition from the court members. The next debate turned upon
the manner in which the imprisoned lords should be set at liberty.
The contest became so warm that the courtiers began to be afraid, and
proposed an expedient which was put in practice. The house adjourned to
the seventeenth day of the month, and at its next meeting was given to
understand that the king had discharged the imprisoned noblemen. After
another warm debate, a formal entry was made in the journals, importing,
That the house being informed of his majesty’s having given directions
for discharging the lords under bail in the king’s-bench, the debate
about that matter ceased. The resentment of the peers being thus
allayed, they proceeded to take his majesty’s speech into consideration.
THE COMMONS PRESENT ADDRESSES TO THE KING AND QUEEN.
The commons having voted an address of thanks, and another, praying that
his majesty’s foreign alliances should be laid before them, determined
on a bill for regulating trials in cases of high treason. They passed
a vote of thanks to admiral Russel, his officers and seamen, for the
victory they had obtained, and then proceeded to an inquiry, Why that
victory had not been pursued? why the descent had not been made? and why
the trade had not been better protected from the enemy’s cruisers? The
admiral having justified his own conduct, they commanded the lords of
the admiralty to produce copies of all the letters and orders which had
been sent to the admiral; they ordered Russel to lay before them his
answers; and the commissioners of the transports, victuallers, and
office of ordnance, to deliver in an account of their proceedings. They
then presented addresses to the king and queen, acknowledging the favour
of God in restoring him to his people; congratulating him upon his
deliverance from the snares of his open and secret enemies; and assuring
him they would, according to his majesty’s desire in his most gracious
speech, be always ready to advise and assist him in the support of
his government. The queen was thanked for her gracious and prudent
administration during his majesty’s absence; they congratulated her on
their signal deliverance from a bold and cruel design formed for their
destruction, as well as on the glorious victory which her fleet had
gained; and they assured her that the grateful sense they had of their
happiness under her government, should always be manifested in constant
returns of duty and obedience.
After this formal compliment, the house, instead of proceeding to the
supplies, insisted upon perusing the treaties, public accounts, and
estimates, that they might be in a condition to advise as well as to
assist his majesty. Being indulged with those papers, they passed a
previous vote that a supply should be given; then they began to concert
their articles of advice. Some of the members loudly complained of
partiality to foreign generals, and particularly reflected upon the
insolence of count Solmes, and his misconduct at Steenkirk. After some
warm altercation, the house resolved one article of their advice should
be, that his majesty would be pleased to fill up the vacancies that
should happen among the general officers, with such only as were natives
of his dominions, and that the commander-in-chief of the English should
be an Englishman. Their next resolution implied, that many of the great
affairs of the government having been for some time past unsuccessfully
managed, the house should advise his majesty to prevent such mischiefs
for the future, by employing men of knowledge, ability, and integrity.
Individual members inveighed bitterly against cabinet councils, as a
novelty in the British system of government by which the privy-council
was jostled out of its province. They complained that all the grievances
of the nation proceeded from the vicious principles of the ministry:
they observed, that he who opposed the establishment could not be
expected to support it with zeal. The earl of Nottingham was mentioned
by name, and the house resolved that his majesty should be advised to
employ in his councils such persons only whose principles obliged them
to support his rights against the late king, and all other pretenders.
Marlborough’s interest still predominated among the commons. His friend
Russel acquitted himself to the satisfaction of the house, and shifted
the blame of the miscarriage upon his enemy the earl of Nottingham,
by declaring that twenty days elapsed between his first letter to that
nobleman and his lordship’s answer. The earl’s friends, of whom there
was a great number in the house, espoused his cause with great vigour,
and even recriminated upon Russel; so that a very violent debate ensued.
Both parties agreed that there had been mismanagement in the scheme of a
descent. It was moved, that one cause of the miscarriage was the want of
giving timely and necessary orders, by those to whom the management of
the affair was committed. The house divided, and it was carried in the
affirmative by one voice only. At the next sitting of the committee,
sir Richard Temple proposed they should consider how to pay the forces
abroad, by means of English manufactures, without ex porting money. They
resolved that the house should be moved to appoint a committee to
take this expedient into consideration. Sir Francis Wilmington was
immediately called upon to leave the chair, and the speaker resumed his
place. All that had been done was now void, as no report had been made;
and the committee was dissolved. The house however revived it, and
appointed a day for its sitting; but before it could resume its
deliberations, admiral Russel moved for its being adjourned, and all its
purposes were defeated.
The court agents had by this time interposed, and secured a majority
by the infamous arts of corruption. The commons no longer insisted upon
their points of advice. Their whole attention was now centered in
the article of assistance. They granted about two millions for the
maintenance of three-and-thirty thousand seamen, the building of some
additional ships of war, and the finishing of Plymouth dock; and seven
hundred and fifty thousand pounds to supply the deficiency of the
quarterly poll. The estimates of the land-service were not discussed
without tedious debates and warm disputes. The ministry demanded
fifty-four thousand men, twenty thousand of whom should be kept at home
for the defence of the nation, while the rest should serve abroad in the
allied army. Many members declared their aversion to a foreign war,
in which the nation had no immediate concern and so little prospect
of success. Others agreed that the allies should be assisted on the
continent with a proportion of British forces; but that the nation
should act as an auxiliary, not as a principal, and pay no more than
what the people would cheerfully contribute to the general expense.
These reflections, however, produced no other effect than that of
prolonging the debate. Ministerial influence had surmounted all
opposition. The house voted the number of men demanded. Such was their
servile complaisance, that when they examined the treaties by which the
English and Dutch contracted equally with the German princes, and found
that, notwithstanding these treaties, Britain bore two-thirds of the
expense, they overlooked this flagrant instance of partiality, and
enabled the king to pay the proportion. Nay, their maxims were so much
altered, that, instead of prosecuting their resentment against foreign
generals, they assented to a motion that the prince of Wirtemberg, the
major-generals Tetteau and La Forest, who commanded the Danish troops in
the pay of the states-general, should be indulged with such an addition
to their appointments as would make up the difference between the pay of
England and that of Holland. Finally, they voted above two millions
for the subsistence of the land forces, and for defraying extraordinary
expenses attending the war upon the continent, including subsidies to
the electors of Saxony and Hanover.
THE LORDS PRESENT AN ADDRESS OF ADVICE TO THE KING.
The house of lords meanwhile was not free from animosity and
contention. The Marlborough faction exerted themselves with great
vivacity. They affirmed, it was the province of their house to advise
the sovereign: like the commons, they insisted upon the king’s having
asked their advice because he had mentioned that word in his speech,
though he never dreamed that they would catch at it with such
eagerness. They moved, that the task of digesting the articles of
advice should be undertaken by a joint committee of both houses; but
all the dependents of the court, including the whole bench of bishops,
except Watson of St. David’s, were marshalled to oppose this motion,
which was rejected by a majority of twelve; and this victory was
followed with a protest of the vanquished. Notwithstanding this defeat,
they prosecuted their scheme of giving advice; and after much wrangling
and declamation, the house agreed in an address of remonstrance,
advising and beseeching his majesty, That the commanding officer of the
British forces should be an Englishman; that English officers might
take rank of those in the confederate armies, who did not belong to
crowned heads; that the twenty thousand men to be left for the defence
of the kingdom should be all English, and commanded by an English
general; that the practice of pressing men for the fleet should be
remedied; that such officers as were guilty of this practice should be
cashiered and punished; and, lastly, that no foreigners should sit at
the board of ordnance. This address was presented to the king, who
received it coldly, and said he would take it into consideration.
Then the lords resolved to inquire into the miscarriage of the purposed
descent, and called for all the papers relating to that affair; but the
aim of the majority was not so much to rectify the errors of the
government, as to screen Nottingham, and censure Russel. That nobleman
produced his own book of entries, together with the whole
correspondence between him and the admiral, whom he verbally charged
with having contributed to the miscarriage of the expedition. This
affair was referred to a committee. Sir John Ashby was examined. The
house directed the earl to draw up the substance of his charge; and
these papers were afterwards delivered to a committee of the commons,
at a conference by the lord-president, and the rest of the committee
above. They were offered for the inspection of the commons, as they
concerned some members of that house, by whom they might be informed
more fully of the particulars they contained. At another conference
which the commons demanded, their committee declared, in the name of
the house, That they had read and well considered the papers which
their lordships had sent them, and which they now returned: that
finding Mr. Russel, one of their members, often mentioned in the said
papers, they had unanimously resolved, that admiral Russel, in his
command of the fleets during the last summer’s expedition, had behaved
with fidelity, courage, and conduct. The lords irritated at this
declaration, and disappointed in their resentment against Russel,
desired a free conference between the committees of both houses. The
earl of Rochester told the commons, he was commanded by the house of
lords to inform them that their lordships looked upon the late vote and
proceeding of the lower house, in returning their papers, to be
irregular and unparliamentary, as they had not communicated to their
lordships the lights they had received, and the reason upon which their
vote was founded. A paper to the same purport was delivered to colonel
Granville, who promised to present it to the commons, and make a
faithful report of what his lordship had said. Thus the conference
ended, and the inquiry was discontinued.
THE COMMONS ADDRESS THE KING.
The lower house seemed to be as much exasperated against the earl of
Nottingham as the lords were incensed at Russel. A motion was made that
his majesty should be advised to appoint such commissioners of the
board of admiralty as were of known experience in maritime affairs.
Although this was overruled, they voted an address to the king,
praying, that for the future, all orders for the engagement of the
fleet might pass through the hands of the said commissioners; a protest
by implication against the conduct of the secretary. The consideration
of ways and means was the next object that engrossed the attention of
the lower house. They resolved that a rate of four shillings in the
pound, for one year, should be charged upon all lands according to
their yearly value; as also upon all personal estates, and upon all
offices and employments of profit, other than military offices in the
army and navy. The act founded on this resolution empowered the king to
borrow money on the credit of it, at seven per cent. They further
enabled him to raise one million on the general credit of the
exchequer, by granting annuities. They laid several new duties on a
variety of imports. They renewed the last quarterly poll, providing
that in case it should not produce three hundred thousand pounds, the
deficiencies might be made up by borrowing on the general credit of the
exchequer. They continued the impositions on wine, vinegar, tobacco,
and sugar, for five years; and those on East-India goods for four
years. They laid a new imposition of eight per cent, on the capital
stock of the East-India company, estimated at seven hundred and
forty-four thousand pounds; of one per cent, on the African; of five
pounds on every share of the stock belonging to the Hudson’s Bay
company; and they empowered his majesty to borrow five hundred thousand
pounds on these funds, which were expressly established for maintaining
the war with vigour.*
* The French king hearing how liberally William was
supplied, exclaimed, with some emotion, “My little cousin
the prince of Orange is fixed in the saddle--but, no matter,
the last Louis d’or must carry it.”
BURNET’S PASTORAL LETTER BURNED.
The money-bills were retarded in the upper house by the arts of
Halifax, Mulgrave, and other malcontents. They grafted a clause on the
land-tax bill, importing, that the lords should tax themselves. It was
adopted by the majority, and the bill sent with this amendment to the
commons, by whom it was unanimously rejected as a flagrant attempt upon
their privileges. They demanded a conference, in which they declared
that the clause in question was a notorious encroachment upon the right
the commons possessed, of regulating all matters relating to supplies
granted by parliament. When this report was debated in the house of
lords, the earl of Mulgrave displayed uncommon powers of eloquence and
argument, in persuading the house, that, by yielding to this claim of
the commons, they would divest themselves of their true greatness, and
nothing would remain but the name and shadow of a peer, which was but a
pageant. Notwithstanding all his oratory, the lords relinquished their
clause, declaring, at the same time, that they had agreed to pass the
bill without alteration, merely in regard to the present urgent state
of affairs, as being otherwise of opinion that they had a right to
insist upon their clause. A formal complaint being made in the house of
commons against the pamphlet entitled, “King William and Queen Mary
Conquerors,” as containing assertions of dangerous consequence to their
majesties, to the liberty of the subject, and the peace of the kingdom,
the licenser and printer were taken into custody. The book being
examined, resolved that it should be burned by the hands of the common
hangman, and that the king should be moved to dismiss the licenser from
his employment. The same sentence they pronounced upon a pastoral
letter of bishop Burnet, in which this notion of conquest had been at
first asserted. The lords, in order to manifest their sentiments on the
same subject, resolved, That such an assertion was highly injurious to
their majesties, inconsistent with the principles on which the
government was founded, and tending to the subversion of the rights of
the people. Bohun the licenser was brought to the bar of the house, and
discharged upon his own petition, after having been reprimanded on his
knees by the speaker.
Several members having complained that their servants had been
kidnapped and sent to serve as soldiers in Flanders, the house
appointed a committee to inquire into the abuses committed by
press-masters; and a suitable remonstrance was presented to the king,
who expressed his indignation at this practice, and assured the house
that the delinquents should be brought to exemplary punishment.
Understanding however in the sequel, that the methods taken by his
majesty for preventing this abuse had not proved, effectual, they
resumed their inquiry, and proceeded with, uncommon vigour on the
information they received. A great number of persons who had been
pressed were discharged by order of the house; and captain Winter, the
chief undertaker for this method of recruiting the army, was carried by
the sergeant before the lord chief justice, that he might be prosecuted
according to law.
THE TWO HOUSES ADDRESS THE KING.
Before the heats occasioned by this unpopular expedient were allayed,
the discontent of the nation was further inflamed by complaints from
Ireland, where lord Sidney was said to rule with despotic authority.
These complaints were exhibited by sir Francis Brewster, sir William
Gore, sir John Macgill, lieutenant Stafford, Mr. Stone, and Mr. Kerne.
They were examined at the bar of the house, and delivered an account
of their grievances in writing. Both houses concurred in this inquiry;
which, being finished, they severally presented addresses to the king.
The lords observed, That there had been great abuses in disposing of the
forfeited estates; that protections had been granted to the Irish not
included in the articles of Limerick; so that protestants were deprived
of the benefit of the law against them; that the quarters of the army
had not been paid according to the provision made by parliament; that
a mayor had been imposed upon the city of Dublin for two years
successively, contrary to the ancient privileges and charter; that
several persons accused of murder had been executed without proof;
and one Sweetman, the most guilty, discharged without prosecution. The
commons spoke more freely in their address; they roundly explained the
abuses and mismanagement of that government, by exposing the protestant
subjects to the free quarter and violence of a licentious army; by
recruiting the troops with Irish papists who had been in open rebellion
against his majesty; by granting protections to Irish Roman-catholics,
whereby the course of the law was stopped; by reversing outlawries for
high treason not comprehended in the articles of Limerick; by letting
the forfeited estates at undervalue, to the prejudice of his majesty’s
revenue; by embezzling the stores left in the towns and garrisons by
the late king James, as well as the effects belonging to the forfeited
estates, which might have been employed for the better preservation
of the kingdom; and, finally, by making additions to the articles of
Limerick after the capitulation was signed and the place surrendered.
They most humbly besought his majesty to redress these abuses, which had
greatly encouraged the papists, and weakened the protestant interest in
Ireland. The king graciously received both addresses, and promised
to pay a particular regard to all remonstrances that should come from
either house of parliament; but no material step was taken against the
lords Sidney, Athlone, and Coningsby, who appeared to have engrossed
great part of the forfeitures by grants from the crown; and even
commissioner Culliford, who had been guilty of the most grievous acts of
oppression, escaped with impunity.
{WILLIAM AND MARY, 1688--1701.}
ACCOUNT OF THE PLACE AND TRIENNIAL PARLIAMENT BILLS.
The old whig principle was not yet wholly expelled from the lower house.
The undue influence of the court was exerted in such an open scandalous
manner, as gave offence to the majority of the commons. In the midst of
all their condescension, sir Edward Hussey, member for Lincoln, brought
in a bill touching free and impartial proceedings in parliament. It was
intended to disable all members of parliament from enjoying places of
trust and profit, and particularly levelled against the officers of
the army and navy, who had insinuated themselves into the house in such
numbers, that this was commonly called the officers’ parliament. The
bill passed the house of commons, and was sent up to the lords, by whom
it was read a second time and committed; but the ministry employing
their whole strength against it, on the report it was thrown out by a
majority of two voices. The earl of Mulgrave again distinguished himself
by his elocution, in a speech that was held in great veneration by the
people; and, among those who entered a protest in the journals of the
house when the majority rejected the bill, was prince George of Denmark,
duke of Cumberland. The court had not collected themselves from the
consternation produced by such a vigorous opposition, when the earl of
Shrewsbury produced another bill for triennial parliaments, providing
that there should be an annual session; that if, at the expiration of
three years, the crown should not order the writs to be issued, the lord
chancellor, or keeper, or commissioner of the great seal, should issue
them _ex officio_, and by authority of this act, under severe penalties.
The immediate object of this bill was the dissolution of the present
parliament, which had already sat three sessions, and began to be
formidable to the people from its concessions to the ministry. The
benefits that would accrue to the constitution from the establishment
of triennial parliaments were very well understood, as these points had
been frequently discussed in former reigns. The courtiers now objected,
that frequent elections would render the free-holders proud and
insolent, encourage faction among the electors, and entail a continual
expense upon the member, as he would find himself obliged, during the
whole time of the sitting, to behave like a candidate, conscious how
soon the time of election would revolve. In spite of the ministerial
interest in the upper house, the bill passed, and contained a proviso
that the present parliament should not continue any longer than the
month of January next ensuing. The court renewed its efforts against it
in the house of commons, where nevertheless it was carried, with some
alterations which the lords approved. But all these endeavours were
frustrated by the prerogative of the king, who, by refusing his assent,
prevented its being enacted into a law.
It was at the instigation of the ministry that the commons brought in a
bill for continuing and explaining certain temporary laws then expiring
or expired. Among these was an act for restraining the liberty of the
press, which owed its original to the reign of Charles II., and had been
revived in the first year of the succeeding reign. The bill passed the
lower house without difficulty, but met with warm opposition in the
house of lords; a good number of whom protested against it, as a law
that subjected all learning and true information to the arbitrary will
of a mercenary, and perhaps ignorant licenser, destroyed the properties
of authors, and extended the evil of monopolies. The bill for regulating
trials was dropped, and, in lieu of it, another produced for the
preservation of their majesties’ sacred persons and government; but this
too was rejected by the majority in consequence of the ministry’s
secret management. The East India company narrowly escaped dissolution.
Petitions and counter-petitions were delivered into the house of
commons; the pretensions on both sides were carefully examined; a
committee of the whole house resolved, that there should be a new
subscription of a joint stock, not exceeding two millions five hundred
thousand pounds, to continue for one-and-twenty years. The report was
made and received, and the public expected to see the affair brought
to a speedy issue; but the company had recourse to the same expedients
which had lately proved so successful in the hands of the ministry.
Those who had been the most warm in detecting their abuses suddenly
cooled; and the prosecution of the affair began to languish. Not but
that the house presented an address to his majesty, praying that he
would dissolve the company upon three years’ warning, according to
the condition of their charter. He told them he would consider their
address, and they did not further urge their remonstrance. The bill for
ascertaining the commissions and salaries of the judges, to which the
king had refused the royal assent in the last session, was revived,
twice read, and rejected; and another for preventing the exportation and
melting of the coin, they suffered to lie neglected on the table. On the
fourteenth day of March the king put an end to the session, after having
thanked the parliament for so great testimonies of their affection, and
promised the supplies should not be misapplied. He observed that
the posture of affairs called him abroad, but that he would leave a
sufficient number of troops for the security of the kingdom; he assured
them he would expose his person upon all occasions for the advantage of
these kingdoms; and use his utmost endeavours to make them a flourishing
nation. [046] _[See note I, at the end of this Vol.]_
TRIAL OF LORD MOHUN--ALTERATIONS IN THE MINISTRY.
During the course of this session, lord Mohun was indicted and tried
by the peers in Westminster-hall, as an accomplice in the murder of
one Montford a celebrated comedian, the marquis of Carmarthen acting as
lord-steward upon this occasion. The judges having been consulted,
the peers proceeded to give their judgments _seriatim_, and Mohun was
acquitted by a great majority. The king, who from his first accession
to the throne had endeavoured to trim the balance between the whigs and
tories, by mingling them together in his ministry, made some alterations
at this period that savoured of the same policy. The great seal, with
the title of lord keeper, was bestowed upon sir John Somers, who was
well skilled in the law, and in many other branches of polite and useful
literature. He possessed a remarkable talent for business, in which he
exerted great patience and assiduity; was gentle, candid, and equitable;
a whig in principles, yet moderate, pacific, and conciliating. Of the
same temper was sir John Trenchard, now appointed secretary of state.
He had been concerned with the duke of Monmouth, and escaped to the
continent, where he lived some years; was calm, sedate, well acquainted
with foreign affairs, and considered as a leading man in his party.
These two are said to have been promoted at the recommendation of the
earl of Sunderland, who had by this time insinuated himself into the
king’s favour and confidence; though his success confirmed the opinion
which many entertained of his having betrayed his old master. The
leaders of the opposition were sir Edward Seymour, again become a
malcontent, and sir Christopher Mus-grave, a gentleman of Cumberland,
who though an extravagant tory from principle, had refused to concur
with all the designs of the late king. He was a person of a grave and
regular deportment, who had rejected many offers of the ministry, which
he opposed with great violence; yet on some critical occasions his
patriotism gave way to his avarice, and he yielded up some important
points in consideration of large sums which he received from the court
in secret. Others declared war against the administration, because they
thought their own talents were not sufficiently considered. Of these the
chief were Paul Foley and Robert Harley. The first was a lawyer of good
capacity, extensive learning, and virtuous principles; but peevish,
obstinate, and morose. He entertained a very despicable opinion of the
court; and this he propagated with equal assiduity and success. Harley
possessed a good fund of learning; was capable of uncommon application,
particularly turned to politics. He knew the forms of parliament, had a
peculiar dexterity at protracting and perplexing debates; and cherished
the most aspiring ambition. Admiral Russel was created treasurer of
the household; but the command of the fleet was vested in the hands
of Killigrew, Délavai, and Shovel. Sir George Rooke was declared
vice-admiral of the red, and John lord Berkeley of the blue division;
their rear-admirals were Matthew Aylmer and David Mitchel.
THE KING ASSEMBLES THE CONFEDERATE ARMY IN FLANDERS.
The king having visited the fleet and fortifications at Portsmouth,
given instructions for annoying the enemy by sea, and left the
administration in the hands of the queen, embarked on the last day of
March, near Gravesend, and arrived in Holland on the third of April. The
troops of the confederates were forthwith ordered to assemble: but while
he was employed in making preparations for the campaign, the French king
actually took the field, attended by madame de Maintenon, and all the
court ladies. His design was supposed to be upon some town in Brabant:
his army amounted to one hundred and twenty thousand men, completely
armed, and abundantly supplied with all necessaries for every sort of
military operation. King William immediately took possession of the
strong camp at Parke near Lou-vain, a situation which enabled him to
cover the places that were most exposed. Understanding that the French
emissaries had sown the seeds of dissension between the bishop and
chapter of Liege, he sent the duke of Wirtemberg thither, to reconcile
the different parties, and concert measures for the further security
of the place. He reinforced the garrison with nine battalions; and
the elector palatine lay with his troops in readiness to march to its
relief. William likewise threw reinforcements into Maestricht, Huy, and
Char-leroy; and he himself resolved to remain on the defensive, at the
head of sixty thousand men, with a numerous train of artillery.
THE FRENCH REDUCE HUY.
Louis having reviewed his army at Gemblours, and seen his designs upon
Brabant defeated by the diligence of his antagonist, detached Boufflers
with twenty thousand men to the Upper Rhine to join the dauphin, who
commanded in that quarter; then leaving the conduct of his forces in
the Netherlands to the duke de Luxembourg, he returned with his court
to Versailles. Immediately after his departure, Luxembourg fixed his
head-quarters at Mildert; and king William strengthened his camp on
that side with ten battalions and eight-and-twenty pieces of cannon.
The enemy’s convoys were frequently surprised by detachments from the
garrison of Charleroy; and a large body of horse, foot, and dragoons,
being drafted out of Liege and Maestricht, took post at Huy, under the
command of the count de Tilly, so as to straiten the French in their
quarters. These however were dislodged by Luxembourg in person, who
obliged the count to pass the Jaar with precipitation, leaving behind
three squadrons and all his baggage, which fell into the hands of the
enemy. This check however was balanced by the success of the duke of
Wirtemberg, who, at the head of thirteen battalions of infantry and
twenty squadrons of horse, forced the French lines between the
Scheldt and the Lys, and laid the whole country as far as Lisle under
contribution. On that very day, which was the eighteenth of July,
Luxembourg marched towards Huy, which was next morning invested by M.
de Villeroy. The other covered the siege, and secured himself from the
allies by lines of contravallation. Before their batteries began to
play, the town capitulated. On the twenty-third day of the month the
garrison mutined, the castles were surrendered, the governor remained
a prisoner, and his men were conducted to Liege. The confederate army
advanced in order to relieve the town; but the king being apprised of
its fate, detached ten battalions to reinforce the garrison of Liege,
and next day returned to Neer-Hespen.
THE DUKE OF LUXEMBOURG RESOLVES TO ATTACK THE ALLIES.
Luxembourg made a motion towards Liege as if he had intended to besiege
the place; and encamped at Hellecheim, about seven leagues from the
confederates. Knowing how much they were weakened by the different
detachments which had been made from their army, he resolved to attack
them in their camp, or at least fall upon their rear should they retreat
at his approach. On the twenty-eighth day of July he began his march in
four columns, and passed the Jaar near its source, with an army superior
to the allies by five-and-thirty thousand men. The king of England at
first looked upon this motion as a feint to cover the design upon Liege;
but receiving intelligence that their whole army was in full march to
attack him in his camp, he resolved to keep his ground, and immediately
drew up his forces in order of battle. His general officers advised him
to repass the Geete; but he chose to risk a battle, rather than expose
the rear of his army in repassing that river. His right wing extended as
far as Neer-Winden, along the Geete, covered with hedges, hollow ways,
and a small rivulet; the left reached to Neer-Landen; and these two
villages were joined by a slight intrenchment which the king ordered
to be thrown up in the evening. Brigadier Ramsay, with the regiments of
O’Farrel, Mackay, Lauder, Leven and Monroe, were ordered to the right of
the whole army, to line some hedges and hollow ways on the farther side
of the village of Lare. Six battalions of Brandenburgh were posted
to the left of this village; and general Dumont, with the Hanoverian
infantry, possessed the village of Neer-Winden, which covered part
of the camp, between the main body and the right wing of the cavalry.
Neer-Landen, on the left, was secured by six battalions of English,
Danes, and Dutch. The remaining infantry was drawn up in one line behind
the intrenchment. The dragoons upon the left guarded the village of
Donnai upon the brook of Beck, and from thence the left wing of horse
extended to Neer-Landen, where it was covered by this rivulet.
The king having visited all the posts on horseback, and given the
necessary orders, reposed himself about two hours in his coach; and
early in the morning sent for his chaplain, whom he joined in prayer
with great devotion. At sun-rising the enemy appeared drawn up in order
of battle; and the allies began to play their cannon with good success.
About eight in the morning they attacked the villages of Lare and
Neer-Winden with great fury; and twice made themselves masters of these
posts, from whence they were as often repulsed.
The allies still kept their ground; and the duke of Berwick was taken by
his uncle brigadier Churchill. Then the French made an attack upon the
left wing of the confederates at Neer-Landen; and after a very obstinate
dispute, were obliged to give way, though they still kept possession of
the avenues. The prince of Conti, however, renewed the charge with the
flower of the French infantry; and the confederates being overpowered,
retreated from the village, leaving the camp in that part exposed.
Villeroy marching this way with a body of horse, was encountered and
repulsed by the count D’Arco, general of the Bavarian cuirassiers; and
the duke de Chartres narrowly escaped being taken. Meanwhile Luxembourg,
the prince of Conti, the count de Marsin, and the marshal de Joyeuse,
charged on the right, and in different parts of the line with such
impetuosity as surmounted all resistance. The camp of the confederates
was immediately filled with French troops: the villages of Lare
and Neer-Winden were taken after a long and desperate dispute. The
Hanoverian and Dutch horse being broken, the king in person brought the
English cavalry to their assistance. They fought with great gallantry;
and for some time retarded the fate of the day. The infantry were
rallied, and stood firm until all their ammunition was expended. In a
word, they were scarce able to sustain the weight of such a superiority
in point of number, when the marquis D’Harcourt joined the enemy from
Huy, with two-and-twenty fresh squadrons, which immediately turned
the scale in their favour. The elector of Bavaria, after having made
extraordinary efforts, retreated with great difficulty over the bridge
to the other side of the river, where he rallied the troops in order
to favour the retreat of those who had not passed. The king seeing the
battle lost, and the whole army in confusion, retired with the infantry
to Dormul on the brook of Beck, where the dragoons of the left wing were
posted, and then ordered the regiments of Wyndham, Lumley, and Calway,
to cover his retreat over the bridge at Neer-Hespen, which he effected
with great difficulty. Now all was tumult, rout, and consternation; and
a great number of the fugitives threw themselves into the river, where
they were drowned. This had like to have been the fate of the brave earl
of Athlone; the duke of Ormond was wounded in several places, and taken
prisoner by the enemy; and the count de Solmes was mortally wounded.
Ptolemache brought off the greater part of the English infantry with
great gallantry and conduct; as for the baggage, it had been sent to
Liege before the engagement; but the confederates lost sixty pieces of
cannon, and nine mortars, a great number of standards and colours,* with
about seven thousand men killed and wounded in the action. It must be
owned that the allies fought with great valour and perseverance; and
that king William made prodigious efforts of courage and activity to
retrieve the fortune of the day. He was present in all parts of the
battle; he charged in person both on horseback and on foot, where the
danger was most imminent. His peruke, the sleeve of his coat, and the
knot of his scarf, were penetrated by three different musket bullets;
and he saw a great number of soldiers fall on every side of him. The
enemy bore witness to his extraordinary valour. The prince of Conti, in
a letter to his princess which was intercepted, declared that he saw the
prince of Orange exposing himself to the greatest dangers; and that such
valour richly deserved the peaceable possession of the crown he
wore. Yet here, as in every other battle he fought, his conduct and
disposition were severely censured. Luxembourg having observed the
nature of his situation immediately before the engagement, is said to
have exclaimed, “Now I believe Waldeck is really dead;” alluding to that
general’s known sagacity in choosing ground for an encampment. Be that
as it will, he paid dear for his victory. His loss in officers and men
exceeded that of the allies; and he reaped no solid advantage from the
battle. He remained fifteen days inactive at Waren, while king William
recalled the duke of Wirtemberg, and drafting troops from Liege and
other garrisons, was in a few days able to hazard another engagement.
* The duke of Luxembourg sent such a number of standards and
ensigns to Paris during the course of this war, that the
prince of Conti called him the Upholsterer of Notre Dame, a
church in which those trophies were displayed.
CHARLEBOY TAKEN BY THE ENEMY.
Nothing remarkable happened during the remaining part of the
Campaign, until Luxembourg, being rejoined by Boufflers with a strong
reinforcement from the Rhine, invested Charleroy. He had taken his
measures with such caution and dexterity, that the allies could not
frustrate his operations, without attacking his lines at a great
disadvantage. The king detached the elector of Bavaria and the duke
of Wirtemberg, with thirty battalions and forty squadrons, to make a
diversion in Flanders; but they returned in a few days without having
attempted any thing of consequence. The garrison of Charleroy defended
the place with surprising valour, from the tenth of September to
the eleventh of October, during which period they had repulsed the
assailants in several attacks; but at length despairing of relief, the
governor capitulated on the most honourable conditions: the reduction
of the place was celebrated with a _Te Deum_, and other rejoicings
at Paris. Louis however, in the midst of all his glory, was extremely
mortified when he reflected what little advantage he had reaped from
all his late victories. The allies had been defeated successively at
Fleurus, Steenkirk, and Landen; yet in a fortnight after each of those
battles William was always in a condition to risk another engagement.
Formerly Louis had conquered half of Holland, Flanders, and
Franche-Comté, without a battle; whereas, now he could not with his
utmost efforts, and after the most signal victories, pass the frontiers
of the United Provinces. The conquest of Charleroy concluded the
campaign in the Netherlands, and both armies went into winter-quarters.
CAMPAIGN ON THE RHINE.
The French army on the Rhine, under De Lorges, passed that river in the
month of May at Philipsburgh, and invested the city of Heidelberg,
which they took, plundered, and reduced to ashes. This general committed
numberless barbarities in the Palatinate, which he ravaged without even
sparing the tombs of the dead. The French soldiers on this occasion seem
to have been actuated by the most brutal inhumanity. They butchered
the inhabitants, violated the women, plundered the houses, rifled the
churches, and murdered the priests at the altar. They broke open the
electoral vault, and scattered the ashes of that illustrious family
about the streets. They set fire to different quarters of the city; they
stripped about fifteen thousand of the inhabitants, without distinction
of age or sex, and drove them naked into the castle, that the garrison
might be the sooner induced to capitulate. There they remained like
cattle in the open air, without food or covering, tortured between the
horrors of their fete and the terrors of a bombardment. When they were
set at liberty, in consequence of the fort’s being surrendered, a great
number of them died along the banks of the Neckar, from cold, hunger,
anguish, and despair. These enormous cruelties, which would have
disgraced the arms of a Tartarian freebooter, were acted by the express
command of Louis XIV. of France, who has been celebrated by so many
venal pens, not only as the greatest monarch, but also as the most
polished prince of Christendom. De Lorges advanced towards the Neckar
against the prince of Baden, who lay encamped on the other side of
the river; but in attempting to pass, he was twice repulsed with
considerable damage. The dauphin joining the army, which now amounted to
seventy thousand men, crossed without opposition; but found the Germans
so advantageously posted, that he would not hazard an attack; having
therefore repassed the river, he secured Stutgard with a garrison,
sent detachments into Flanders and Piedmont, and returned in August to
Versailles. In Piedmont the allies were still more unfortunate. The duke
of Savoy and his confederates seemed bent upon driving the French from
Casal and Pignerol. The first of these places was blocked up, and the
other actually invested. The fort of St. Bridget that covered the place
was taken, and the town bombarded. Meanwhile Catinat being reinforced,
descended into the plains. The duke was so apprehensive of Turin that
he abandoned the siege of Pignerol, after having blown up the fort,
and marched in quest of the enemy to the plain of Mar-saglia, in the
neighbourhood of his capital. On the fourth day of October, the French
advanced upon them from the hills between Orbasson and Prosasque, and
a desperate engagement ensued. The enemy charged the left wing of the
confederates sword in hand with incredible fury; though they were
once repulsed, they renewed the attack with such impetuosity that the
Neapolitan and Milanese horse were obliged to give way, and disordered
the German cavalry. These falling upon the foot, threw the whole wing
into confusion. Meanwhile the main body and the other wing sustained the
charge without flinching, until they were exposed in flank by the defeat
of the cavalry; then the whole front gave way. In vain the second line
was brought up to sustain them; the horse turned their backs, and the
infantry was totally routed. In a word, the confederates were obliged to
retire with precipitation, leaving their cannon and about eight thousand
men killed or wounded on the field of battle. The duke of Schomberg
having been denied the post which was his due, insisted upon fighting at
the head of the troops maintained by the king of Great Britain, who were
posted in the centre, and behaved with great gallantry under the eye
of their commander. When the left wing was defeated, the count de los
Torres desired he would take upon him the command, and retreat with the
infantry and right wing; but he refused to act without the order of his
highness, and said things were come to such a pass that they must either
conquer or die. He continued to animate his men with his voice and
example, until he received a shot in the thigh. His valet seeing him
fall, ran to his assistance, and called for quarter, but was killed by
the enemy before he could be understood. The duke being taken at the
same instant, was afterwards dismissed upon his parole, and in a few
days died at Turin, universally lamented on account of his great and
amiable qualities. The earl of Warwick and Holland, who accompanied him
as a volunteer, shared his fate in being wounded and taken prisoner;
but he soon recovered his health and liberty. This victory was as
unsubstantial as that of Landen, and almost as dear in the purchase;
for the confederates made an obstinate defence, and yielded solely to
superior number. The duke of Savoy retreated to Moncalier, and threw a
reinforcement into Coni, which Catinat would not venture to besiege,
so severely had he been handled in the battle. He therefore contented
himself with laying the country under contribution, reinforcing the
garrisons of Casal, Pignerol, and Suza, and making preparations for
repassing the mountains. The news of this victory no sooner reached
Paris, than Louis dispatched M. de Chanlais to Turin, with proposals
for detaching the duke of Savoy from the interest of the allies; and the
pope, who was now become a partisan of France, supported the negotiation
with his whole influence; but the French king had not yet touched upon
the right string. The duke continued deaf to all his addresses.
TRANSACTIONS in HUNGARY and CATALONIA.
France had been alike successful in her intrigues at the courts of Rome
and Constantinople. The vizier at the Porte had been converted into a
pensionary and creature of Louis; but the war in which the Turks had
been so long and unsuccessfully engaged, rendered him so odious to the
people, that the grand seignor deposed him in order to appease their
clamours. The English and Dutch ambassadors at Constantinople forthwith
renewed their mediation for a peace with the emperor; but the terms
they proposed were still rejected with disdain. In the meantime general
Heusler, who commanded the imperialists at Transylvania, reduced the
fortresses of Jeno and Villaguswar. In the beginning of July the duc de
Croy assumed the chief command of the German army, passed the Danube and
the Saave, and invested Belgrade. The siege was carried on for some
time with great vigour, but at length abandoned at the approach of the
vizier, who obliged the imperialists to repass the Saave, and sent out
parties which made incursions into Upper-Hungary. The power of France
had never been so conspicuous as at this juncture, when she maintained
a formidable navy at sea, and four great armies in different parts of
Europe. Exclusive of the operations in Flanders, Germany, and Piedmont,
the count de Noailles invested Eoses in Catalonia, about the latter end
of May, while at the same time it was blocked up by the French fleet
under the command of the count D’Etrées. In a few days the place was
surrendered by capitulation, and the castle of Ampurias met with the
same fate. The Spanish power was reduced to such a degree, that Noailles
might have proceeded in his conquests without interruption, had he
not been obliged to detach part of his army to reinforce Catinat in
Piedmont.
{WILLIAM AND MARY, 1688--1701.}
NAVAL AFFAIRS.
Nothing could be more inglorious for the English than their operations
by sea in the course of this summer. The king had ordered the admirals
to use all possible despatch in equipping the fleets, that they might
block up the enemy in their own ports and protect the commerce, which
had suffered severely from the French privateers. They were however so
dilatory in their proceedings, that the squadrons of the enemy sailed
from their harbours before the English fleet could put to sea. About the
middle of May it was assembled at St. Helen’s, and took on board five
regiments intended for a descent on Brest; but this enterprise was never
attempted. When the English and Dutch squadrons joined, so as to form
a very numerous fleet, the public expected they would undertake some
expedition of importance; but the admirals were divided in opinion,
nor did their orders warrant their executing any scheme of consequence.
Killigrew and Délavai did not escape the suspicion of being disaffected
to the service; and France was said to have maintained a secret
correspondence with the malcontents in England. Louis had made
surprising efforts to repair the damage which his navy had sustained.
He had purchased several large vessels and converted them into ships of
war; he had laid an embargo on all the shipping of his kingdom until his
squadrons were manned; he had made a grand naval promotion to encourage
the officers and seamen; and this expedient produced a wonderful spirit
of activity and emulation. In the month of May his fleet sailed to the
Mediterranean in three squadrons, consisting of seventy-one capital
ships, besides bomb-ketches, fire-ships, and tenders.
In the beginning of June, the English and Dutch fleets sailed down the
channel. On the sixth, sir George Rooke was detached to the Straits
with a squadron of three-and-twenty ships as convoy to the Mediterranean
trade. The grand fleet returned to Torbay, while he pursued his voyage,
having taken under his protection about four hundred merchant ships
belonging to England, Holland, Denmark, Sweden, Hamburgh, and Flanders.
On the sixteenth his scouts discovered part of the French fleet under
Cape St. Vincent; next day their whole navy appeared, to the amount of
eighty sail. Sixteen of these plied up to the English squadron, while
the vice-admiral of the white stood off to sea to intercept the ships
under convoy. Sir George Rooke, by the advice of the Dutch vice-admiral
Vandergoes, resolved if possible to avoid an engagement, which could
only tend to their absolute ruin. He forthwith sent orders to the small
ships that were near the land to put into the neighbouring ports of
Faro, St. Lucar, and Cadiz, while he himself stood off with an easy sail
for the protection of the rest. About six in the evening, ten sail of
the enemy came up with two Dutch ships of war commanded by the captains
Schrijver and Vander-Poel, who seeing no possibility of escaping, tacked
in shore, and, thus drawing the French after them, helped to save the
rest of the fleet. When attacked they made a most desperate defence, but
at last were overpowered by numbers and taken. An English ship of war
and a rich pinnace were burned; nine-and-twenty merchant vessels
were taken, and about fifty destroyed by the counts de Tourville and
D’Etrées. Seven of the largest Smyrna ships fell into the hands of M.
de Cotlegon, and four he sunk in the bay of Gibraltar. The value of
the loss sustained on this occasion amounted to one million sterling.
Meanwhile Rooke stood off with a fresh gale, and on the nineteenth sent
home the Lark ship of war with the news of his misfortune; then he bore
away for the Madeiras, where having taken in wood and water, he set sail
for Ireland, and on the third day of August arrived at Cork with fifty
sail, including ships of war and trading vessels. He detached captain
Fairborne to Kinsale with all his squadron except six ships of the
line, with which, in pursuance of orders, he joined the great fleet then
cruising in the chops of the channel. On the twenty-fifth day of August
they returned to St. Helen’s, and the four regiments were landed. On
the nineteenth day of September, fifteen Dutch ships of the line and
two frigates set sail for Holland; and twenty-six sail, with seven
fire-ships, were assigned as guard-ships during the winter.
EXPEDITION TO THE WEST INDIES.
The French admirals, instead of pursuing Rooke to Madeira, made an
unsuccessful attempt upon Cadiz, and bombarded Gibraltar, where the
merchants sunk their ships that they might not fall into the hands of
the enemy. Then they sailed along the coast of Spain, destroyed some
English and Dutch vessels at Malaga, Alicant, and other places, and
returned in triumph to Toulon. About this period sir Francis Wheeler
returned to England with his squadron from an unfortunate expedition in
the West Indies. In conjunction with colonel Codrington, governor of
the Leeward Islands, he made unsuccessful attempts upon the islands of
Martinique and Dominique. Then he sailed to Boston in New England with
a view to concert an expedition against Quebec, which was judged
impracticable. He afterwards steered for Placentia in Newfoundland,
which he would have attacked without hesitation; but the design
was rejected by a majority of voices in the council of war. Thus
disappointed, he set sail for England, and arrived at Portsmouth in a
very shattered condition, the greater part of his men having died in the
course of this voyage.
BENBOW BOMBARDS ST. MALOES.
In November another effort was made to annoy the enemy. Commodore Benbow
sailed with a squadron of twelve capital ships, four bomb-ketches, and
ten brigantines, to the coast of St. Maloes, and anchoring within
half a mile of the town, cannonaded and bombarded it for three days
successively. Then his men landed on an island where they burned a
convent. On the nineteenth they took the advantage of a dark night, a
fresh gale, and a strong tide, to send in a fire-ship of a particular
contrivance, styled the Infernal, in order to burn the town; but she
struck upon a rock before she arrived at the place, and the engineer was
obliged to set her on fire and retreat. She continued burning for some
time, and at last blew up with such an explosion as shook the whole town
like an earthquake, unroofed three hundred houses, and broke all the
glass and earthenware for three leagues around. A capstan that weighed
two hundred pounds was transported into the place, and falling upon a
house, levelled it to the ground; the greatest part of the wall
towards the sea tumbled down; and the inhabitants were overwhelmed
with consternation, so that a small number of troops might have taken
possession without resistance, but there was not a soldier on board.
Nevertheless the sailors took and demolished Quince-fort, and did
considerable damage to the town of St. Maloes, which had been a nest of
privateers that infested the English commerce. Though this attempt was
executed with great spirit and some success, the clamours of the people
became louder and louder. They scrupled not to say that the councils
of the nation were betrayed; and their suspicions rose even to the
secretary’s office. They observed, that the French were previously
acquainted with all the motions of the English, and took their measures
accordingly for their destruction. They collected and compared a
good number of particulars that seemed to justify their suspicion of
treachery. But the misfortunes of the nation in all probability arose
from a motley ministry divided among themselves, who, instead of acting
in concert for the public good, employed all their influence to thwart
the views and blacken the reputations of each other. The people in
general exclaimed against the marquis of Carmarthen, the earls of
Nottingham and Rochester, who had acquired great credit with the queen,
and, from their hatred to the whigs, betrayed the interests of the
nation.
THE FRENCH KING HAS RECOURSE TO THE MEDIATION OF DENMARK.
But if the English were discontented, the French were miserable in spite
of all their victories. That kingdom laboured under a dreadful famine,
occasioned partly from unfavourable seasons, and partly from the
war, which had not left hands sufficient to cultivate the ground.
Notwithstanding all the diligence and providence of their ministry
in bringing supplies of corn from Sweden and Denmark, their care
in regulating the price and furnishing the markets, their liberal
contributions for the relief of the indigent, multitudes perished of
want, and the whole kingdom was reduced to poverty and distress. Louis
pined in the midst of his success. He saw his subjects exhausted by
a ruinous war, in which they had been involved by his ambition. He
tampered with the allies apart, in hopes of dividing and detaching them
from the grand confederacy; he solicited the northern crowns to engage
as mediators for a general peace. A memorial was actually presented by
the Danish minister to king William, by which it appears that the
French king would have been contented to purchase a peace with some
considerable concessions; but the terms were rejected by the king of
England, whose ambition and revenge were not yet gratified, and whose
subjects, though heavily laden, could still bear additional burdens.
The Jacobites had been very attentive to the progress of dissatisfaction
in England, which they fomented with their usual assiduity. The late
declaration of king James had been couched in such imperious terms as
gave offence even to some of those who favoured his interest. The earl
of Middleton therefore, in the beginning of the year, repaired to St.
Germain’s and obtained another, which contained the promise of a general
pardon without exception, and every other concession that a British
subject could demand of his sovereign. About the latter end of May, two
men named Canning and Dormer were apprehended for dispersing copies of
this paper, tried at the Old Bailey, found guilty of not only dispersing
but also of composing a false and seditious libel, sentenced to pay five
hundred marks a-piece, to stand three times in the pillory, and find
sureties for their good behaviour. But no circumstance reflected more
disgrace on this reign than the fate of Anderton, the supposed printer
of some tracts against the government. He was brought to trial for
high treason; he made a vigorous defence in spite of the insults
and discouragement he sustained from a partial bench. As nothing but
presumptions appeared against him, the jury scrupled to bring in
a verdict that would affect his life, until they were reviled and
reprimanded by judge Treby, then they found him guilty. In vain recourse
was had to the queen’s mercy; he suffered death at Tyburn, and left a
paper protesting solemnly against the proceedings of the court, which
he affirmed was appointed not to try but to convict him, and petitioning
heaven to forgive his penitent jury. The severity of the government
was likewise exemplified in the case of some adventurers, who having
equipped privateers to cruise upon the English, under joint commissions
from the late king James and Louis XIV., happened to be taken by the
English ships of war. Dr. Oldys, the king’s advocate, being commanded
to proceed against them as guilty of treason and piracy, refused to
commence the prosecution; and gave his opinion in writing that they
were neither traitors nor pirates. He supported his opinion by arguments
before the council; these were answered by Dr. Littleton, who succeeded
him in the office from which he was dismissed; and the prisoners were
executed as traitors. The Jacobites did not fail to retort those
arts upon the government which their adversaries had so successfully
practised in the late reign. They inveighed against the vindictive
spirit of the administration, and taxed it with encouraging informers
and false witnesses--a charge for which there was too much foundation.
The friends of James in Scotland still continued to concert designs
in his favour; but their correspondence was detected, and their aims
defeated, by the vigilance of the ministry in that kingdom. Secretary
Johnston not only kept a watchful eye over all their transactions, but
by a dexterous management of court liberality and favour, appeased the
discontents of the presbyterians so effectually, that the king ran no
risk in assembling the parliament. Some offices were bestowed upon the
leaders of the kirk party, and the duke of Hamilton, being reconciled
to the government, was appointed commissioner. On the eighteenth day of
April the session was opened, and the king’s letter, replete with the
most cajoling expressions, being read, the parliament proceeded to
exhibit undeniable specimens of their good humour. They drew up a very
affectionate answer to his majesty’s letter; they voted an addition of
six new regiments to the standing forces of the kingdom; they granted
a supply of above one hundred and fifty thousand pounds sterling to his
majesty; they enacted a law for levying men to serve on board the royal
navy; they fined all absentees, whether lords or commons, and vacated
the seats of all those commissioners who refused to take the oath of
assurance, which was equivalent to an abjuration of king James; they
set on foot an inquiry about an intended invasion; they published some
intercepted letters supposed to be written to king James by Nevil Payne,
whom they committed to prison and threatened with a trial for high
treason; but he eluded the danger by threatening in his turn to impeach
those who had made their peace with the government; they passed an
act for the comprehension of such of the episcopal clergy as should
condescend to take the oaths by the tenth day of July. All that the
general assembly required of them was, an offer to subscribe the
confession of faith, and to acknowledge presbytery as the only
government of the Scottish church; but they neither submitted to
these terms, nor took the oaths within the limited time, so that
they forfeited all legal right to their benefices. Nevertheless they
continued in possession, and even received private assurances of the
king’s protection. It was one of William’s political maxims to court his
domestic enemies; but it was never attended with any good effect. This
indulgence gave offence to the presbyterians, and former distractions
began to revive.
THE KING RETURNS TO ENGLAND.
The king having prevailed upon the states-general to augment their land
forces and navy for the service of the ensuing campaign, embarked for
England, and arrived at Kensington on the thirtieth day of October.
Finding the people clamorous and discontented, the trade of the
nation decayed, the affairs of state mismanaged, and the ministers
recriminating upon one another, he perceived the necessity of changing
hands, and resolved to take his measures accordingly. Sunderland,
his chief counsellor, represented that the tories were averse to the
continuance of a war which had been productive of nothing but damage and
disgrace; whereas, the whigs were much more tractable, and would bleed
freely, partly from the terror of invasion and popery, partly from the
ambition of being courted by the crown, and partly from the prospect of
advantage, in advancing money to the government on the funds established
by parliament; for that sort of traffic which obtained the appellation
of the monied interest was altogether a whig-gish institution. The king
revolved these observations in his own mind; and, in the meantime, the
parliament met on the seventh day of November, pursuant to the last
prorogation. In his speech, he expressed his resentment against
those who were the authors of the miscarriages at sea; represented the
necessity of increasing the land forces and the navy; and demanded a
suitable supply for these purposes. In order to pave the way to their
condescension, he had already dismissed from his council the earl
of Nottingham, who, of all his ministers, was the most odious to the
people. His place would have been immediately filled with the earl of
Shrewsbury; but that nobleman suspecting this was a change of men rather
than of measures, stood aloof for some time, until he received such
assurances from the king as quieted his scruples, and then he accepted
the office of secretary. The lieutenancy for the city of London, and all
other commissions over England, were altered with a view to favour the
whig interest; and the individuals of that party were indulged with
many places of trust and profit; but the tories were too powerful in the
house of commons to be exasperated, and therefore a good number of them
were retained in office.
BOTH HOUSES INQUIRE INTO THE MISCARRIAGES BY SEA.
On the sixth day of the session, the commons unanimously resolved
to support their majesties and their government; to inquire into
miscarriages; and to consider of means for preserving the trade of the
nation. The Turkey company was summoned to produce the petitions they
had delivered to the commissioners of the Admiralty for convoy: lord
Falkland, who sat at the head of that board, gave in copies of all the
orders and directions sent to sir George Rooke concerning the Straits
fleet, together with a list of all the ships at that time in commission.
It appeared, in the course of this inquiry, that the miscarriage of
Rooke’s fleet was in a great measure owing to the misconduct of the
admirals, and the neglect of the victualling-office; but they were
screened by a majority. Mr. Harley, one of the commissioners for taking
and stating the public accounts, delivered a report, which contained a
charge of peculation against lord Falkland. Rainsford, receiver of the
rights and perquisites of the navy, confessed that he had received and
paid more money than that which was charged in the accounts; and, in
particular, that he had paid four thousand pounds to lord Falkland
by his majesty’s order. This lord had acknowledged before the
commissioners, that he had paid one half of the sum, by the king’s
order, to a person who was not a member of either house; and that the
remainder was still in his hands. Rainsford owned he had the original
letter which he received from Falkland, demanding the money; and this
nobleman desiring to see it, detained the voucher; a circumstance
that incensed the commons to such a degree, that a motion was made for
committing him to the Tower, and debated with great warmth, but was at
last over-ruled by the majority. Nevertheless, they agreed to make him
sensible of their displeasure, and he was reprimanded in his place. The
house of lords having also inquired into the causes of the miscarriages
at sea, very violent debates arose, and at length the majority resolved,
that the admirals had done well in the execution of the orders they had
received. This was a triumph over the whig lords, who had so eagerly
prosecuted the affair, and now protested against the resolution not
without great appearance of reason. The next step of the lords was to
exculpate the earl of Nottingham, as the blame seemed to lie with him on
the supposition that the admirals were innocent. With a view therefore
to transfer this blame to Trenchard, the whiggish secretary, the earl
gave the house to understand that he had received intelligence from
Paris in the beginning of June, containing a list of the enemy’s fleet
and the time of their sailing; that this was communicated to a committee
of the council, and particularly imparted to secretary Trenchard,
whose province it was to transmit instructions to the admirals. Two
conferences passed on this subject between the lords and commons.
Trenchard delivered in his defence in writing; and was in his turn
screened by the whole efforts of the ministry, in which the whig
influence now predominated. Thus an inquiry of such national
consequence, which took its rise from the king’s own expression of
resentment against the delinquents, was stifled by the arts of the
court, because it was likely to affect one of its creatures; for, though
there was no premeditated treachery in the case, the interest of
the public was certainly sacrificed to the mutual animosity of the
ministers. The charge of lord Falkland being resumed in the house
of commons, he appeared to have begged and received of the king the
remaining two thousand pounds of money which had been paid by Rainsford:
he was therefore declared guilty of a high misdemeanor and breach of
trust, and committed to the Tower; from whence however he was in two
days discharged upon his petition.
VAST SUMS GRANTED FOR THE SERVICES OF THE ENSUING YEAR.
Harley, Foley, and Harcourt, presented to the house a state of the
receipts and issues of the revenue, together with two reports from the
commissioners of accounts concerning sums issued for secret services,
and to members of parliament. This was a discovery of the most
scandalous practices in the mystery of corruption, equally exercised on
the individuals of both parties, in occasional bounties, grants,
places, pensions, equivalents, and additional salaries. The malcontents
therefore justly observed, the house of commons was so managed that the
king could baffle any bill, quash all grievances, stifle accounts,
and rectify the articles of Limerick. When the commons took into
consideration the estimates and supplies of the ensuing year, the king
demanded forty thousand men for the navy, and above one hundred thousand
for the purposes of the land service. Before the house considered these
enormous demands, they granted four hundred thousand pounds by way of
advance, to quiet the clamours of the seamen, who were become mutinous
and desperate for want of pay, upwards of one million being due to them
for wages. Then the commons voted the number of men required for the
navy; but they were so ashamed of that for the army, that they thought
it necessary to act in such a manner as should imply that they still
retained some regard for their country. They called for all the treaties
subsisting between the king and his allies; they examined the different
proportions of the troops furnished by the respective powers; they
considered the intended augmentations, and fixed the establishment of
the year at four-score and three thousand, one hundred, and twenty-one
men, including officers. For the maintenance of these they allotted the
sum of two millions, five hundred and thirty thousand, five hundred and
nine pounds. They granted two millions for the navy, and about five
hundred thousand pounds, to make good the deficiencies of the annuity
and poll bills; so that the supplies for the year amounted to about
five millions and a half, raised by a land-tax of four shillings in the
pound, by two more lives in the annuities, a further excise on beer, a
new duty on salt, and a lottery.
Though the malcontents in parliament could not withstand this torrent of
profusion, they endeavoured to distress the court interest, by reviving
the popular bills of the preceding session; such as that for regulating
trials in cases of high treason, the other for the more frequent calling
and meeting of parliaments, and that concerning free and impartial
proceedings in parliament. The first was neglected in the house of
lords; the second was rejected; the third was passed by the commons, on
the supposition that it would be defeated in the other house. The lords
returned it with certain amendments, to which the commons would not
agree: a conference ensued; the peers receded from their corrections,
and passed the bill, to which the king however refused his assent.
Nothing could be more unpopular and dangerous than such a step at this
juncture. The commons, in order to recover some credit with the people,
determined to disapprove of his majesty’s conduct. The house formed
itself into a committee, to take the state of the kingdom into
consideration. They resolved, that whoever advised the king to refuse
the royal assent to that bill, was an enemy to their majesties and the
kingdom. They likewise presented an address, expressing their concern
that he had not given his consent to the bill; and beseeching his
majesty to hearken for the future to the advice of his parliament,
rather than to the counsels of particular persons, who might have
private interests of their own, separate from those of his majesty
and his people. The king thanked them for their zeal, professed a warm
regard for their constitution, and assured them he would look upon
all parties as enemies who should endeavour to lessen the confidence
subsisting between the sovereign and the people. The members in the
opposition were not at all satisfied with this general reply. A day
being appointed to take it into consideration, a warm debate was
maintained with equal eloquence and acrimony. At length the question
being put that an address should be made for a more explicit answer, it
passed in the negative by a great majority.
ESTABLISHMENT OF THE BANK OF ENGLAND.
The city of London petitioned that a parliamentary provision should be
made for the orphans, whose fortunes they had scandalously squandered
away. Such an application had been made in the preceding session, and
rejected with disdain, as an imposition on the public; but now those
scruples were removed, and the house passed a bill for this purpose,
consisting of many clauses, extending to different charges on the city
lands, aqueducts, and personal estates; imposing duties on binding
apprentices, constituting freemen, as also upon wines and coals imported
into London. On the twenty-third day of March these bills received
the royal assent; and the king took that opportunity of recommending
despatch, as the season of the year was far advanced, and the enemy
diligently employed in making preparations for an early campaign. The
scheme of a national bank, like those of Amsterdam and Genoa, had been
recommended to the ministry as an excellent institution, as well for
the credit and security of the government, as the increase of trade and
circulation. One project was invented by Dr. Hugh Chamberlain, proposing
the circulation of tickets on land security; but William Paterson was
author of that which was carried into execution, by the interest of
Michael Godfrey and other active projectors. The scheme was founded
on the motion of a transferable fund, and a circulation by bill on the
credit of a large capital. Forty merchants subscribed to the amount of
five hundred thousand pounds, as a fund of ready money, to circulate one
million at eight per cent, to be lent to the government; and even
this fund of ready money bore the same interest. When it was properly
digested in the cabinet, and a majority in parliament secured for its
reception, the undertakers for the court introduced it into the house of
commons, and expatiated upon the national advantages that would accrue
from such a measure. They said it would rescue the nation out of the
hands of extortioners and usurers, lower interest, raise the value
of land, revive and establish public credit, extend circulation,
consequently improve commerce, facilitate the annual supplies, and
connect the people the more closely with the government. The project was
violently opposed by a strong party, who affirmed that it would become
a monopoly, and engross the whole money of the kingdom; that, as it must
infallibly be subservient to government views, it might be employed
to the worst purposes of arbitrary power; that instead of assisting it
would weaken commerce, by tempting people to withdraw their money from
trade and employ it in stock-jobbing; that it would produce a swarm of
brokers and jobbers to prey upon their fellow-creatures, encourage
fraud and gaming, and further corrupt the morals of the nation.
Notwithstanding these objections, the bill made its way through the two
houses, establishing the funds for the security and advantage of the
subscribers; empowering their majesties to incorporate them by the name
of the governor and company of the bank of England, under a proviso,
that at any time after the first day of August, in the year one thousand
seven hundred and five, upon a year’s notice, and the repayment of the
twelve hundred thousand pounds, the said corporation should cease and
determine. The bill likewise contained clauses of appropriation for the
services of the public. The whole subscription was filled in ten days
after its being opened; and the court of directors completed the payment
before the expiration of the time prescribed by the act, although they
did not call in more than seven hundred and twenty thousand pounds
of the money subscribed. All these funds proving inadequate to the
estimates, the commons brought in a bill to impose stamp duties upon all
vellum, parchment, and paper, used in almost every kind of intercourse
between man and man; and they crowned the oppression of the year with
another grievous tax upon carriages, under the name of a bill for
licensing and regulating hackney and stage coaches.
EAST INDIA COMPANY’S CHARTER.
The commons, in a clause of the bill for taxing several joint-stocks,
provided, that in case of a default in the payment of that tax, within
the time limited by the act, the charter of the company so failing
should be deemed void and forfeited. The East India company actually
neglected their payment, and the public imagined the ministry would
seize this opportunity of dissolving a monopoly against which so
many complaints had been made; but the directors understood their own
strength; and, instead of being broken, obtained the promise of a new
charter. This was no sooner known, than the controversy between them
and their adversaries was revived with such animosity, that the council
thought proper to indulge both parties with a hearing. As this produced
no resolution, the merchants who opposed the company petitioned, that,
in the meanwhile, the new charter might be suspended. Addresses of the
same kind were presented by a great number of clothiers, linen-drapers,
and other dealers. To these a written answer was published by the
company; the merchants printed a reply, in which they undertook to prove
that the company had been guilty of unjust and unwarrantable actions,
tending to the scandal of religion, the dishonour of the nation, the
reproach of our laws, the oppression of the people, and the ruin of
trade. They observed, that two private ships had exported in one year
three times as many cloths as the company had exported in three years.
They offered to send more cloth and English merchandise to the Indies
in one year than the company had exported in five; to furnish the
government with five hundred tons of saltpetre for less than one half
of the usual price; and they represented, that the company could neither
load the ships they petitioned for in England, nor reload them in the
East Indies. In spite of all these remonstrances, the new charter passed
the great seal; though the grants contained in it were limited in such a
manner that they did not amount to an exclusive privilege, and subjected
the company to such alterations, restrictions, and qualifications, as
the king should direct before the twenty-ninth day of September. This
indulgence, and other favours granted to the company, were privately
purchased of the ministry, and became productive of a loud outcry
against the government. The merchants published a journal of the whole
transaction, and petitioned the house of commons that their liberty of
trading to the East Indies might be confirmed by parliament. Another
petition was presented by the company, praying that their charter
might receive a parliamentary sanction. Both parties employed all their
address in making private application to the members. The house having
examined the different charters, the book of their new subscriptions,
and every particular relating to the company, resolved that all the
subjects of England had an equal right to trade to the East Indies
unless prohibited by act of parliament.
{WILLIAM AND MARY, 1688--1701.}
GENERAL NATURALIZATION BILL.
But nothing engrossed the attention of the public more than a bill which
was brought into the house for a general naturalization of all foreign
protestants. The advocates for this measure alleged, That great part
of the lands of England lay uncultivated; that the strength of a nation
consisted in the number of inhabitants; that the people were thinned by
the war and foreign voyages, and required an extraordinary supply; that
a great number of protestants, persecuted in France and other countries,
would gladly remove to a land of freedom, and bring along with them
their wealth and manufactures; that the community had been largely
repaid for the protection granted to those refugees who had already
settled in the kingdom. They had introduced several new branches of
manufacture, promoted industry, and lowered the price of labour; a
circumstance of the utmost importance to trade, oppressed as it was with
taxes, and exposed to uncommon hazard from the enemy. The opponents
of the bill urged with great vehemence, That it would cheapen the
birthright of Englishmen; that the want of culture was owing to the
oppression of the times; that foreigners being admitted into the
privileges of the British trade, would grow wealthy at the expense of
their benefactors, and transfer the fortunes they had gained into their
native country; that the reduction in the price of labour would be a
national grievance, while so many thousands of English manufacturers
were starving for want of employment, and the price of provisions
continued so high that even those who were employed could scarce supply
their families with bread; that the real design of the bill was to make
such an accession to the dissenters as would render them an equal match
in the body politic for those of the church of England; to create a
greater dependence on the crown, and, in a word, to supply a foreign
head with foreign members. Sir John Knight, a member of the house, in
a speech upon this subject, exaggerated the bad consequences that would
attend such a bill, with all the wit and virulence of satire: it was
printed and dispersed through the kingdom, and raised such a flame among
the people as had not appeared since the revolution. They exclaimed,
that all offices would be conferred upon Dutchmen, who would become
lord-danes, and prescribe the modes of religion and government; and they
extolled sir John Knight as the saviour of the nation. The courtiers,
incensed at the progress of this clamour, complained in the house of
the speech which had been printed; and sir John was threatened with
expulsion and imprisonment. He therefore thought proper to disown
the paper, which was burned by the hands of the common hangman. This
sacrifice served only to increase the popular disturbance, which rose
to such a height of violence, that the court party began to tremble; and
the bill was dropped for the present.
Lord Coningsby and Mr. Porter had committed the most flagrant acts of
oppression in Ireland. These had been explained during the last session
by the gentlemen who appealed against the administration of lord Sidney,
but they were screened by the ministry; and therefore the earl of
Bellamont now impeached them in the house of commons, of which he
and they were members. After an examination of the articles exhibited
against them, the commons, who were by this time at the devotion of the
court, declared, that, considering the state of affairs in Ireland, they
did not think them fit grounds for an impeachment.--In the course of
this session, the nation sustained another misfortune in the fate of
sir Francis Wheeler, who had been appointed commander-in-chief of the
Mediterranean squadron. He received instructions to take under his
convoy the merchant ships bound to Turkey, Spain, and Italy; to cruise
thirty days in a certain latitude for the protection of the Spanish
plate-fleet homeward bound; to leave part of his squadron at Cadiz
as convoy to the trade for England; to proceed with the rest to the
Mediterranean; to join the Spanish fleet in his return; and to act in
concert with them, until he should be joined by the fleet from Turkey
and the Straits, and accompany them back to England. About the latter
end of October he set sail from Saint Helen’s, and in January arrived
at Cadiz with the ships under his convoy. There leaving rear-admiral
Hopson, he proceeded for the Mediterranean. In the bay of Gibraltar he
was overtaken by a dreadful tempest, under a lee-shore, which he could
not possibly weather, and where the ground was so foul that no anchor
would hold. This expedient however was tried. A great number of ships
were driven ashore, and many perished. The admiral’s ship foundered at
sea, and he and all his crew were buried in the deep, except two Moors
who were miraculously preserved. Two other ships of the line, three
ketches, and six merchant ships were lost. The remains of the fleet
were so much shattered, that, instead of prosecuting their voyage,
they returned to Cadiz in order to be refitted, and sheltered from the
attempts of the French squadrons, which were still at sea under the
command of Chateau-Renaud and Cabaret. On the twenty-fifth day of April,
the king-closed the session with a speech in the usual style, and the
parliament was prorogued to the eighteenth day of September. [053]
_[See note K, at the end of this Vol.]_
THE ENGLISH ATTEMPT TO MAKE A DESCENT IN CAMARET-BAY.
Louis of France being tired of the war, which had impoverished his
country, continued to tamper with the duke of Savoy, and, by the canal
of the pope, made some offers to the king of Spain, which were rejected.
Meanwhile he resolved to stand upon the defensive during the ensuing
campaign, in every part but Catalonia, where his whole naval force might
co-operate with the count de Noailles, who commanded the land army.
King William having received intelligence of the design upon Barcelona,
endeavoured to prevent the junction of the Brest and Toulon squadrons,
by sending Russel to sea as early as the fleet could be in a condition
to sail; but before he arrived at Portsmouth, the Brest squadron had
quitted that harbour. On the third day of May the admiral sailed
from St. Helen’s with the combined squadrons of England and Holland,
amounting to ninety ships of the line, besides frigates, fire-ships,
and tenders. He detached captain Pritchard of the Monmouth with
two fire-ships, to destroy a fleet of French merchant ships near
Conquet-bay; and this service being performed, he returned to St.
Helen’s, where he had left Adm. Cloudesley Shovel with a squadron, to
take on board a body of land forces intended for a descent upon the
coast of France. These being embarked under the command of general
Ptolemache, the whole fleet sailed again on the twenty-ninth of May.
The land and sea officers, in a council of war, agreed that part of the
fleet designed for this expedition should separate from the rest and
proceed to Camaret-bay, where the forces should be landed. On the fifth
day of June, lord Berkeley, who commanded this squadron, parted with the
grand fleet, and on the seventh anchored between the bays of Camaret and
Bertaume. Next day the marquis of Carmarthen, afterwards duke of
Leeds, who served under Berkeley as rear-admiral of the blue, entered
Camaret-bay with two large ships and six frigates, to cover the troops
in landing. The French had received intelligence of the design, and
taken such precautions, under the conduct of the celebrated engineer
Vauban, that the English were exposed to a terrible fire from new
erected batteries, as well as from a strong body of troops, and though
the ships cannonaded them with great vigour, the soldiers could not
maintain any regularity in landing. A good number were killed in the
open boats before they reached the shore; and those who landed were
soon repulsed, in spite of all the endeavours of general Ptolemache,
who received a wound in the thigh, which proved mortal. Seven hundred
soldiers are said to have been lost on this occasion, besides those who
were killed on board of the ships. The Monk ship of war was towed off
with great difficulty; but a Dutch frigate of thirty guns fell into the
hands of the enemy.
After this unfortunate attempt, lord Berkeley, with the advice of a
council of war, sailed back for England, and at St. Helen’s received
orders from the queen to call a council, and deliberate in what manner
the ships and forces might be best employed. They agreed to make some
attempt upon the coast of Normandy. With this view they set sail on the
fifth day of July. They bombarded Dieppe, and reduced the greatest part
of the town to ashes. Thence they steered to Havre-de-Grace, which met
with the same fate. They harassed the French troops who marched after
them along shore. They alarmed the whole coast, and filled every town
with such consternation that they would have been abandoned by the
inhabitants had not they been detained by military force. On the
twenty-sixth of July, lord Berkeley returned to St. Helen’s, where he
quitted the fleet, and the command devolved upon sir Cloudesley Shovel.
This officer having received instructions to make an attempt upon
Dunkirk, sailed round to the Downs, where he was joined by M. Meesters,
with six-and-twenty Dutch pilots. On the twelfth of September he
appeared before Dunkirk; and next day sent in the Charles galley, with
two bomb-ketches, and as many of the machines called infernals. These
were set on fire without effect, and the design miscarried; then Shovel
steered to Calais, which having bombarded with little success, he
returned to the coast of England; and the bomb-ketches and machines were
sent into the river Thames.
ADMIRAL RUSSEL RELIEVES BARCELONA.
During these transactions, admiral Russel with the grand fleet sailed
for the Mediterranean; and being joined by rear-admiral Neville from
Cadiz, together with Callemberg and Evertzen, he steered towards
Barcelona, which was besieged by the French fleet and army. At his
approach, Tourville retired with precipitation into the harbour of
Toulon; and Noailles abandoned his enterprise. The Spanish affairs were
in such a deplorable condition, that without this timely assistance the
kingdom must have been undone. While he continued in the Mediterranean,
the French admiral durst not venture to appear at sea, and all his
projects were disconcerted. After having asserted the honour of the
British flag in those seas during the whole summer, he sailed in the
beginning of November to Cadiz, where, by an express order of the
king, he passed the winter, during which he took such precautions for
preventing Tourville from passing the Straits, that he did not think
proper to risk the passage.
CAMPAIGN IN FLANDERS.
It will now be necessary to describe the operations on the continent.
In the middle of May king William arrived in Holland, where he consulted
with the states-general. On the third day of June he repaired to
Beth-lem-abbey near Louvain, the place appointed for the rendezvous of
the army; and there he was met by the electors of Bavaria and Cologn.
In a few days a numerous army was assembled, and every thing seemed to
promise an active campaign. On the third day of June the dauphin assumed
the command of the French forces, with which Luxembourg had taken post
between Mons and Maubeuge; and passing the Sambre, encamped at Fleuras,
but on the eighteenth he removed from thence, and took up his quarters
between St. Tron and Wanheim; while the confederates lay at Roosbeck.
On the eleventh of July, the dauphin marched in four columns to Oerle
upon the Jaar, where he pitched his camp. On the twenty-second the
confederates marched to Romale; then the dauphin took the route to
Vignamont, where he secured his army by entrenchments, as his forces
were inferior in number to those of the allies; and as he had been
directed by his father to avoid an engagement. In this situation both
armies remained till the fifteenth day of August, when king William sent
the heavy baggage to Louvain; and on the eighteenth made a motion to
Sombref. This was no sooner known to the enemy than they decamped; and
having marched all night, posted themselves between Temploux and Masy,
within a league and a half of the confederates. The king of England
resolved to pass the Scheld, and with this view marched by the way of
Nivelle and Soignes to Chievres; from thence he detached the duke of
Wirtemberg, with a strong body of horse and foot, to pass the river at
Oudenarde, while the elector of Bavaria advanced with another detachment
to pass it at Pont de Espieres. Notwithstanding all the expedition
they could make, their purpose was anticipated by Luxembourg, who being
apprised of their route had detached four thousand horse, with each
a foot soldier behind the trooper, to reinforce M. de Valette who
commanded that part of the French line. These were sustained by a choice
body of men, who travelled with great expedition without observing the
formalities of a march. Mareschal de Villeroy followed the same route
with all the cavalry of the right wing, the household troops, and twenty
field-pieces; and the rest of the army was brought up by the dauphin in
person. They marched with such incredible diligence, that the elector
of Bavaria could scarce believe his own eyes when he arrived in sight of
the Scheld and saw them intrenching themselves on the other side of the
river. King William having reconnoitred their disposition, thought it
impracticable to pass at that place; and therefore marched down the
river to Oudenarde, where a passage had been already effected by the
duke of Wirtemberg. Here the confederates passed the Scheld on the
twenty-seventh day of the month; and the king fixed his head-quarters at
Wanneghem. His intention was to have taken possession of Courtray, and
established winter-quarters for a considerable part of his army in that
district; but Luxembourg having posted himself between that place and
Menin, extended his lines in such a manner that the confederates could
not attempt to force them, nor even hinder him from subsisting his army
at the enginse (expense ?) of the castellany of Courtray, during the
remainder of the campaign. This surprising march was of such importance
to the French king, that he wrote with his own hand a letter of thanks
to his army; and ordered that it should be read to every particular
squadron and battalion.
THE ALLIES REDUCE HUY.
The king of England, though disappointed in his scheme upon Courtray,
found means to make some advantage of his superiority in number. He
drafted troops from the garrison of Liege and Maestricht; and on the
third day of September reinforced his body with a large detachment from
his own camp, conferring the command upon the duke of Holstein-Ploen,
with orders to undertake the siege of Huy. Next day the whole
confederate forces passed the Lys, and encamped at Wouterghem. From
thence the king with a part of the army marched to Roselsær; this
diversion obliged the dauphin to make considerable detachments for the
security of Ypres and Menin on the one side, and to cover Furnes and
Dunkirk on the other. At this juncture, a Frenchman, being seized in the
very act of setting fire to one of the ammunition waggons in the allied
army, confessed he had been employed for this purpose by some of the
French generals, and suffered death as a traitor. On the sixteenth day
of the month the duke of Holstein-Ploen invested Huy, and earned on the
siege with such vigour that in ten days the garrison capitulated. The
king ordered Dixmuyde, Deynse, Ninove, and Tirelemont, to be secured for
winter quarters to part of the army; the dauphin returned to Versailles;
William quitted the camp on the last day of September; and both armies
broke up about the middle of October.
The operations on the Rhine were preconcerted between king William and
the prince of Baden, who had visited London in the winter. The dispute
between the emperor and the elector of Saxony was compromised; and this
young prince dying during the negotiation, the treaty was perfected by
his brother and successor, who engaged to furnish twelve thousand men
yearly, in consideration of a subsidy from the court of Vienna. In the
beginning of June, mareschal de Lorges passed the Rhine at Philipsburgh,
in order to give battle to the imperialists encamped at Halibron. The
prince of Baden, who was not yet joined by the Saxons, Hessians, nor by
the troops of Munster and Paderborn, dispatched couriers to quicken the
march of these auxiliaries, and advanced to Eppingen, where he proposed
to wait till they should come up; but on the fifteenth, receiving
undoubted intelligence that the enemy were in motion towards him, he
advanced to meet them in order of battle. De Lorges concluded that this
was a desperate effort, and immediately halted to make the necessary
preparations for an engagement. This pause enabled prince Louis to take
possession of a strong pass near Sintzheim, from which he could not
easily be dislodged. Then the mareschal proceeded to Viseloch, and
ravaged the adjacent country, in hopes of drawing the imperialists from
their intrenchments. The prince being joined by the Hessians, resolved
to beat up the quarters of the enemy; and the French general being
apprised of his design, retreated at midnight with the utmost
precipitation. Having posted himself at Ruth, he sent his heavy baggage
to Philipsburgh; then he moved to Gonsbergh in the neighbourhood of
Manheim, repassed the Rhine, and encamped between Spires and Worms. The
prince of Baden being joined by the allies, passed the river by a
bridge of boats near Hagenbach, in the middle of September; and laid the
country of Alsace under contribution. Considering the advanced season of
the year this was a rash undertaking; and the French general resolved
to profit by his enemy’s temerity. He forthwith advanced against the
imperialists, foreseeing that should they be worsted in battle, their
whole army would be ruined. Prince Louis, informed of his intention,
immediately passed the Rhine; and this retreat was no sooner effected
than the river swelled to such a degree that the island in the middle,
and a great part of the camp he had occupied, was overflowed. Soon after
this incident both armies retired into winter-quarters. The campaign
in Hungary produced no event of importance. It was opened by the new
vizier, who arrived at Belgrade in the middle of August: and about the
same time Caprara assembled the imperial army in the neighbourhood of
Peterwaraden. The Turks passed the Saave in order to attack their camp,
and carried on their approaches with five hundred pieces of cannon; but
made very little progress. The imperialists received reinforcements; the
season wasted away; a feud arose between the vizier and the chain of the
Tartars; and the Danube being swelled by heavy rains, so as to interrupt
the operations of the Turks, their general decamped in the night of
the first of October. They afterwards made an unsuccessful attempt upon
Titul, while the imperial general made himself master of Giula. In
the course of this summer the Venetians, who were also at war with the
Turks, reduced Cyclut, a place of importance on the river Naranta, and
made a conquest of the island of Scio in the Archipelago.
PROGRESS OF THE FRENCH.
We have already observed that the French king had determined to act
vigorously in Catalonia. In the beginning of May, the duke de Noailles
advanced at the head of eight and twenty thousand men to the river Ter,
on the opposite bank of which the viceroy of Catalonia was encamped with
sixteen thousand Spaniards. The French general passed the river in
the face of this army, and attacked their intrenchments with such
impetuosity, that in less than an hour they were totally defeated. Then
he marched to Palamos, and undertook the siege of that place, while at
the same time it was blocked up by the combined squadrons of Brest and
Toulon. Though the besieged made an obstinate defence, the town was
taken by storm, the houses were pillaged, and the people put to the
sword, without distinction of age, sex, or condition. Then he invested
Gironne, which in a few days capitulated. Ostalric met with the same
fate, and Noailles was created viceroy of Catalonia by the French king.
In the beginning of August he distributed his forces into quarters of
refreshment along the river Ter-dore, resolving to undertake the siege
of Barcelona, which was saved by the arrival of admiral Russel. The war
languished in Piedmont, on account of a secret negotiation between the
king of France and the duke of Savoy; notwithstanding the remonstrances
of Rouvigny earl of Galway, who had succeeded the duke of Schomberg in
the command of the British forces in that country. Casal was closely
blocked up by the reduction of Fort St. George, and the Vaudois gained
the advantage in some skirmishes in the valley of Ragclas; but no design
of importance was executed.*
* In the course of this year, M. du Casse, governor of St.
Domingo, made an unsuccessful attempt upon the Island of
Jamaica; and M. St. Clair, with four men of war, formed a
design against St. John’s, Newfoundland; but he was repulsed
with loss by the valour of the inhabitants.
England had continued very quiet under the queen’s administration, if we
except some little commotions occasioned by the practices, or pretended
practices, of the Jacobites. Prosecutions were revived against certain
gentlemen of Lancashire and Cheshire, for having been concerned in the
conspiracy formed in favour of the late king’s projected invasion
from Normandy. These steps were owing to the suggestions of infamous
informers, whom the ministry countenanced. Colonel Parker and one Crosby
were imprisoned, and bills of treason found against them; but Parker
made his escape from the Tower, and was never retaken, though a reward
of four hundred pounds was set upon his head. The king having settled
the affairs of the confederacy at the Hague, embarked for England on the
eighth of November, and next day landed at Margate. On the twelfth he
opened the session of parliament with a speech, in which he observed
that the posture of affairs was improved both by sea and land since they
last parted; in particular, that a stop was put to the progress of
the French arms. He desired they would continue the act of tonnage and
poundage, which would expire at Christmas; he reminded them of the
debt for the transport ships employed in the reduction of Ireland; and
exhorted them to prepare some good bill for the encouragement of seamen.
A majority in both houses was already secured; and in all probability he
bargained for their condescension by agreeing to the bill for triennial
parliaments. This Mr. Harley brought in by order of the lower house
immediately after their first adjournment; and it kept pace with the
consideration of the supplies. The commons having examined the estimates
and accounts, voted four millions, seven hundred sixty-four thousand,
seven hundred and twelve pounds, for the service of the army and navy.
In order to raise this sum they continued the land tax; they renewed the
subsidy of tonnage and poundage for five years, and imposed new duties
on different commodities.* The triennial bill enacted, that a parliament
should be held once within three years at least; that within three years
at farthest after the dissolution of the parliament then subsisting, and
so from time to time for ever after, legal writs under the great seal
should be issued by the direction of the crown for calling, assembling,
and holding another new parliament; that no parliament should continue
longer than three years at farthest, to be accounted from the first day
of the first session; and that the parliament then subsisting should
cease and determine on the first day of November next following, unless
their majesties should think fit to dissolve it sooner. The duke of
Devonshire, the marquis of Halifax, the earls of Weymouth and Aylesbury,
protested against this bill, because it tended to the continuance of the
present parliament longer than, as they apprehended, was agreeable to
the constitution of England.
* They imposed certain rates and duties upon marriages,
births, and burials, bachelors, and widows. They passed an
act for laying additional duties upon coffee, tea, and
chocolate, towards paying the debt due for the transport
ships: and another, imposing duties on glass ware, stone,
and earthen bottles, coal, and culm.
DEATH OF ARCHBISHOP TILLOTSON AND OF QUEEN MARY
While this bill was depending, Dr. John Tillotson, archbishop of
Canterbury, was seized with a fit of the dead palsy in the chapel
of Whitehall, and died on the twenty-second day of November, deeply
regretted by the king and queen, who shed tears of sorrow at his
decease; and sincerely lamented by the public, as a pattern of elegance,
ingenuity, meekness, charity, and moderation. These qualities he must
be allowed to have possessed, notwithstanding the invectives of his
enemies, who accused him of puritanism, flattery, and ambition; and
charged him with having conduced to a dangerous schism in the church, by
accepting the archbishopric during the life of the deprived Sancroft.
He was succeeded in the metropolitan See by Dr. Tennison, bishop of
Lincoln, recommended by the whig-party which now predominated in the
cabinet. The queen did not long survive her favourite prelate. In about
a month after his decease she was taken ill of the smallpox, and the
symptoms proving dangerous, she prepared herself for death with great
composure. She spent some time in exercises of devotion and private
conversation with the new archbishop; she received the sacrament with
all the bishops who were in attendance; and expired on the twenty-eighth
day of December, in the thirty-third year of her age, and in the sixth
of her reign, to the inexpressible grief of the king, who for some weeks
after her death could neither see company nor attend to the business of
state. Mary was in her person tall and well-proportioned, with an oval
visage, lively eyes, agreeable features, a mild aspect, and an air
of dignity. Her apprehension was clear, her memory tenacious, and her
judgment solid. She was a zealous protestant, scrupulously exact in
all the duties of devotion, of an even temper, and of a calm and mild
conversation. She was ruffled by no passion, and seems to have been a
stranger to the emotions of natural affection; for she ascended without
compunction the throne from which her father had been deposed, and
treated her sister as an alien to her blood. In a word, Mary seems to
have imbibed the cold disposition and apathy of her husband; and to
have centered all her ambition in deserving the epithet of an humble and
obedient wife. [056] _[See note L, at the end of this Vol.]_
RECONCILIATION BETWEEN THE KING AND THE PRINCESS OF DENMARK.
The princess Anne being informed of the queen’s dangerous indisposition,
sent a lady of her bed-chamber to desire she might be admitted to her
majesty; but this request was not granted. She was thanked for her
expression of concern; and given to understand, that the physicians had
directed that the queen should be kept as quiet as possible. Before her
death, however, she sent a forgiving message to her sister; and after
her decease, the earl of Sunderland effected a reconciliation between
the king and the princess, who visited him at Kensington, where she was
received with uncommon civility. He appointed the palace of St. James
for her residence, and presented her with the greater part of the
queen’s jewels. But a mutual jealousy and disgust subsisted under these
exteriors of friendship and esteem. The two houses of parliament waited
on the king at Kensington, with consolatory addresses on the death of
his consort; their example was followed by the regency of Scotland, the
city and clergy of London, the dissenting ministers, and almost all the
great corporations in England.*
* The earls of Rochester and Nottingham are said to have
started a doubt, whether the parliament was not dissolved by
the queen’s death; but this dangerous motion met with no
countenance.
[Illustration: 2-056-william3.jpg WILLIAM III.]
CHAPTER V. WILLIAM.
_Account of the Lancashire Plot..... The Commons inquire
into the Abuses which had crept into the Army..... They
expel and prosecute some of their own Members for Corruption
in the Affair of the East India Company..... Examination of
Cooke, Acton, and others..... The Commons impeach the Duke
of Leeds..... The Parliament is prorogued..... Session of
the Scottish Parliament..... They inquire into the Massacre
of Glencoe..... They pass an Act for erecting a Trading
Company to Africa and the Indies..... Proceedings in the
Parliament of Ireland..... Disposition of the Armies in
Flanders..... King William undertakes the Siege of
Namur..... Famous Retreat of Prince Vaudemont..... Brussels
is bombarded by Villeroy..... Progress of the Siege of
Namur..... Villeroy attempts to relieve it..... The
Besiegers make a desperate Assault..... The Place
capitulates..... Boufflers is arrested by order of King
William..... Campaign on the Rhine and in Hungary..... The
Duke of Savoy takes Casal..... Transactions in
Catalonia..... The English Fleet bombard’s St. Maloes and
other places on the Coast of France..... Wilmot’s expedition
to the West Indies..... A new Parliament..... They pass the
Bill for regulating Trials in Cases of High Treason.....
Resolutions with respect to the new Coinage..... The Commons
address the King to recall a Grant he had made to the Earl
of Portland..... Another against the new Scottish
Company..... Intrigues of the Jacobites..... Conspiracy
against the life of William..... Design of an Invasion
defeated..... The two Houses engage in an Association for
the Defence of his Majesty..... Establishment of a Land
Bank..... Trial of the Conspirators..... The Allies burn the
Magazine at Civet..... Louis the Fourteenth makes Advances
towards a Peace with Holland..... He detaches the Duke of
Savoy from the Confederacy..... Naval Transactions.....
Proceedings in the Parliaments of Scotland and Ireland.....
Zeal of the English Commons in their Affection to the
King..... Resolutions touching the Coin and the support of
Public Credit..... Enormous Impositions..... Sir John Fen-
wick is apprehended..... A Bill of Attainder being brought
into the House against him produces violent Debates..... His
Defence..... The Bill passes..... Sir John Fenwick is
beheaded..... The Earl of Monmouth sent to the Tower.....
Inquiry into Miscarriages by Sea..... Negotiations at
Ryswick..... The French take Barcelona..... Fruitless
Expedition of Admiral Neville to the West Indies..... The
Elector of Saxony is chosen King of Poland..... Peter the
Czar of Muscovy travels in Disguise with his own Ambassadors
..... Proceedings in the Congress at Ryswick..... The
Ambassadors of England, Spain, and Holland, sign the
Treaty..... A general Pacification._
{WILLIAM, 1688--1701.}
ACCOUNT OF THE LANCASHIRE PLOT.
THE kingdom now resounded with the complaints of the papists and
malcontents, who taxed the ministry with subornation of perjury in
the case of the Lancashire gentlemen who had been persecuted for the
conspiracy. One Lunt, an Irishman, had informed sir John Trench-ard,
secretary of state, that he had been sent from Ireland with commissions
from king James to divers gentlemen in Lancashire and Cheshire; that he
had assisted in buying arms and enlisting men to serve that king in
his projected invasion of England; that he had been twice despatched by
those gentlemen to the court of St. Germain’s, assisted many Jacobites
in repairing to France, helped to conceal others that came from that
kingdom; and that all those persons told him they were furnished with
money by sir John Friend, to defray the expense of their expeditions.
His testimony was confirmed by other infamous emissaries, who received
but too much countenance from the government. Blank warrants were
issued, and filled up occasionally with such names as the informers
suggested. These were delivered to Aaron Smith, solicitor to the
treasury, who with messengers accompanied Lunt and his associates
to Lancashire, under the protection of a party of Dutch horse-guards
commanded by one captain Baker. They were empowered to break open
houses, seize papers, and apprehend persons, according to their
pleasure; and they committed many acts of violence and oppression. The
persons against whom these measures were taken, being apprized of the
impending danger, generally retired from their own habitations. Some,
however, were taken and imprisoned; a few arms were secured; and in
the house of Mr. Standish, at Standish-hall, they found the draft of
a declaration to be published by king James at his landing. As
this prosecution seemed calculated to revive the honour of a stale
conspiracy, and the evidences were persons of abandoned characters,
the friends of those who were persecuted found no great difficulty in
rendering the scheme odious to the nation. They even employed the pen
of Ferguson, who had been concerned in every plot that was hatched since
the Rye-house conspiracy. This veteran, though appointed housekeeper to
the excise-office, thought himself poorly recompensed for the part he
had acted in the revolution, became dissatisfied, and upon this occasion
published a letter to sir John Trenchard on the abuse of power. It
was replete with the most bitter invectives against the ministry, and
contained a great number of flagrant instances in which the court
had countenanced the vilest corruption, perfidy, and oppression. This
production was in every body’s hand, and had such an effect upon the
people, that when the prisoners were brought to trial at Manchester,
the populace would have put the witnesses to death had they not been
prevented by the interposition of those who were friends of the accused
persons, and had already taken effectual measures for their safety.
Lunt’s chief associate in the mystery of information was one Taaffe,
a wretch of the most profligate principles, who, finding himself
disappointed in his hope of reward from the ministry, was privately
gained over by the agents for the prisoners. Lunt, when desired in court
to point out the persons whom he had accused, committed such a mistake
as greatly invalidated his testimony; and Taaffe declared before the
bench, that the pretended plot was no other than a contrivance between
himself and Lunt in order to procure money from the government. The
prisoners were immediately acquitted, and the ministry incurred a
heavy load of popular odium, as the authors or abettors of knavish
contrivances to insnare the innocent. The government, with a view to
evince their abhorrence of such practices, ordered the witnesses to
be prosecuted for a conspiracy against the lives and estates of the
gentlemen who had been accused; and at last the affair was brought into
the house of commons. The Jacobites triumphed in their victory. They
even turned the battery of corruption upon the evidence for the crown,
not without making a considerable impression. But the cause was now
debated before judges who were not at all propitious to their views. The
commons having set on foot an inquiry, and examined all the papers and
circumstances relating to the pretended plot, resolved that there was
sufficient ground for the prosecution and trials of the gentlemen at
Manchester; and that there was a dangerous conspiracy against the king
and government. They issued an order for taking Mr. Standish into
custody; and the messenger reporting that he was not to be found, they
presented an address to the king, desiring a proclamation might be
published offering a reward for apprehending his person. The peers
concurred with the commons in their sentiments of this affair; for
complaints having been laid before their house also by the persons
who thought themselves aggrieved, the question was put whether the
government had cause to prosecute them, and carried in the affirmative,
though a protest was entered against this vote by the earls of Rochester
and Nottingham. Notwithstanding these decisions, the accused gentlemen
prosecuted Lunt and two of his accomplices for perjury at the Lancaster
assizes, and all three were found guilty. They were immediately indicted
by the crown for a conspiracy against the lives and liberties of the
persons they had accused. The intention of the ministry in laying
this indictment was to seize the opportunity of punishing some of
the witnesses for the gentlemen who had prevaricated in giving their
testimony; but their design being discovered, the Lancashire men refused
to produce their evidence against the informers; the prosecution dropped
of consequence, and the prisoners were discharged.
{WILLIAM, 1688--1701.}
INQUIRY INTO THE ABUSES IN THE ARMY.
When the commons were employed in examining the state of the revenue,
and taking measures for raising the necessary supplies, the inhabitants
of Royston presented a petition, complaining that the officers and
soldiers of the regiment belonging to colonel Hastings, which was
quartered upon them, exacted subsistence-money, even on pain of military
execution. The house was immediately kindled into a flame by this
information. The officers and Pauncefort, agent for the regiment, were
examined: then it was unanimously resolved that such a practice was
arbitrary, illegal, and a violation of the rights and liberties of the
subject. Upon further inquiry, Pauncefort and some other agents were
committed to the custody of the sergeant, for having neglected to pay
the subsistence money they had received for the officers and soldiers.
He was afterwards sent to the Tower, together with Henry Guy, a member
of the house and secretary to the treasury, the one for giving and the
other for receiving a bribe to obtain the king’s bounty. Pauncefort’s
brother was likewise committed for being concerned in the same commerce.
Guy had been employed, together with Trevor the speaker, as the
court-agent for securing a majority in the house of commons; for that
reason he was obnoxious to the members in the opposition, who took this
opportunity to brand him, and the courtiers could not with any decency
screen him from their vengeance. The house having proceeded in this
inquiry, drew up an address to the king, enumerating the abuses which
had crept into the army, and demanding immediate redress. He promised
to consider the remonstrance and redress the grievances of which they
complained. Accordingly, he cashiered colonel Hastings; appointed a
council of officers to sit weekly and examine all complaints against any
officer and soldier; and published a declaration for the maintenance
of strict discipline, and the due payment of quarters. Notwithstanding
these concessions, the commons prosecuted their examinations: they
committed Mr. James Craggs, one of the contractors for clothing the
army, because he refused to answer upon oath to such questions as might
be put to him by the commissioners of accounts. They brought in a bill
for obliging him and Mr. Richard Harnage, the other contractor, together
with the two Paunceforts, to discover how they had disposed of the sums
paid into their hands on account of the army, and for punishing them in
case they should persist in their refusal. At this period they received
a petition against the commissioners for licensing hackney-coaches.
Three of them, by means of an address to the king, were removed with
disgrace for having acted arbitrarily, corruptly, and contrary to the
trust reposed in them by act of parliament.
Those who encouraged this spirit of reformation, introduced another
inquiry about the orphans’ bill, which was said to have passed into an
act by virtue of undue influence. A committee being appointed to inspect
the chamberlain’s books, discovered that bribes had been given to sir
John Trevor, speaker of the house, and Mr. Hungerford, chairman of
the grand committee. The first being voted guilty of a high crime and
misdemeanor, abdicated the chair, and Paul Foley was appointed speaker
in his room. Then sir John and Hungerford were expelled the house: one
Nois, a solicitor for the bill, was taken into custody because he had
scandalized the commons, in pretending he was engaged to give great sums
to several members, and denying this circumstance on his examination.
The reformers in the house naturally concluded that the same arts had
been practised in obtaining the new charter of the East India company,
which had been granted so much against the sense of the nation. Their
books were subjected to the same committee that carried on the former
inquiry, and a surprising scene of venality and corruption was soon
disclosed. It appeared that the company, in the course of the preceding
year, had paid near ninety thousand rounds in secret services, and that
sir Thomas Cooke, one of the directors, and a member of the house, had
been the chief managers of this infamous commerce. Cooke, refusing to
answer, was committed to the Tower, and a bill of pains and penalties
brought in obliging him to discover how the sum mentioned in the report
of the committee had been distributed. The bill was violently opposed
in the upper house by the duke of Leeds, as being contrary to law
and equity, and furnishing a precedent of a dangerous nature. Cooke,
agreeably to his own petition, being brought to the bar of the house of
lords, declared that he was ready and willing to make a full discovery,
in case he might be favoured with an indemnifying vote to secure him
against all actions and suits, except those of the East India company
which he had never injured. The lords complied with his request and
passed a bill for this purpose, to which the commons added a penal
clause, and the former was laid aside.
EXAMINATION OF COOKE, ACTON, AND OTHERS.
When the king went to the house to give the royal assent to the
money-bills, he endeavoured to discourage this inquiry by telling
the parliament that the season of the year was far advanced, and the
circumstances of affairs extremely pressing, he therefore desired they
would despatch such business as they should think of most importance
to the public, as he should put an end to the session in a few days.
Notwithstanding this shameful interposition, both houses appointed
a joint committee to lay open the complicated scheme of fraud and
iniquity. Cooke, on his first examination, confessed that he
had delivered tallies for ten thousand pounds to Francis Tyssen,
deputy-governor, for the special service of the company; an equal sum
to Richard Acton, for employing his interest in preventing a new
settlement, and endeavouring to establish the old company; besides two
thousand pounds by way of interest and as a further gratuity; a thousand
guineas to colonel Fitzpatrick, five hundred to Charles Bates, and three
hundred and ten to Mr. Molinenx, a merchant, for the same purpose; and
he owned that sir Basil Firebrace had received forty thousand pounds on
various pretences. He said he believed the ten thousand pounds paid
to Tyssen had been delivered to the king by sir Josiah Child, as a
customary present which former kings had received, and that the sums
paid to Acton were distributed among some members of parliament.
Firebrace being examined, affirmed that he had received the whole forty
thousand pounds for his own use and benefit; but that Bates had received
sums of money, which he understood were offered to some persons of the
first quality. Acton declared that ten thousand pounds of the sum which
he had received was distributed among persons who had interest with
members of parliament, and that great part of the money passed through
the hands of Craggs, who was acquainted with some colonels in the
house and northern members. Bates owned he had received the money in
consideration of using his interest with the duke of Leeds in favour of
the company; that this nobleman knew of the gratuity; and that the sum
was reckoned by his grace’s domestic, one Robart, a foreigner, who kept
it in his possession until this inquiry was talked of, and then it was
returned. In a word, it appeared by this man’s testimony, as well as by
that of Firebrace on his second examination, that the duke of Leeds
was not free from corruption, and that sir John Trevor was a hireling
prostitute.
THE DUKE OF LEEDS IMPEACHED.
The report of the committee produced violent altercations, and the most
severe strictures upon the conduct of the lord president. At length the
house resolved that there was sufficient matter to impeach Thomas,
duke of Leeds, of high crimes and misdemeanors, and that he should be
impeached thereupon. Then it was ordered that Mr. comptroller Wharton
should impeach him before the lords in the name of the house and of all
the commons in England. The duke was actually in the middle of a speech
for his own justification, in which he assured the house, upon his
honour, that he was not guilty of the corruptions laid to his charge,
when one of his friends gave him intimation of the votes which had
passed in the commons. He concluded his speech abruptly, and repairing
to the lower house, desired he might be indulged with a hearing. He was
accordingly admitted, with the compliment of a chair, and leave to
be covered. After having sat a few minutes, he took off his hat and
addressed himself to the commons in very extraordinary terms. Having
thanked them for the favour of indulging him with a hearing, he said
that house would not have been then sitting but for him. He protested
his own innocence with respect to the crime laid to his charge. He
complained that this was the effect of a design which had been long
formed against him. He expressed a deep sense of his being under the
displeasure of the parliament and nation, and demanded speedy justice.
They forthwith drew up the articles of impeachment, which being
exhibited at the bar of the upper house, he pleaded not guilty, and the
commons promised to make good their charge; but by this time such arts
had been used as all at once checked the violence of the prosecution.
Such a number of considerable persons were involved in this mystery of
corruption, that a full discovery was dreaded by both parties. The duke
sent his domestic Robart out of the kingdom, and his absence furnished
a pretence for postponing the trial. In a word, the inquiry was dropped;
but the scandal stuck fast to the duke’s character.
In the midst of these deliberations, the king went to the house on the
third day of May, when he thanked the parliament for the supplies they
had granted; signified his intention of going abroad; assured them he
would place the administration of affairs in persons of known care and
fidelity; and desired that the members of both houses would be more than
ordinarily vigilant in preserving the public peace. The parliament was
then prorogued to the eighteenth of June. [057] _[See note M, at the end
of this Vol.]_ The king immediately appointed a regency to govern the
kingdom in his absence; but neither the princess of Denmark nor
her husband were intrusted with any share in the administration--a
circumstance that evinced the king’s jealousy, and gave offence to a
great part of the nation. [058] _[See note N, at the end of this Vol.]_
THE SCOTTISH PARLIAMENT.
A session of parliament was deemed necessary in Scotland, to provide new
subsidies for the maintenance of the troops of that kingdom, which had
been so serviceable in the prosecution of the war. But as a great outcry
had been raised against the government on account of the massacre of
Glencoe, and the Scots were tired of contributing towards the expense
of a war from which they could derive no advantage, the ministry thought
proper to cajole them with the promise of some national indulgence.
In the meantime, a commission passed the great seal for taking a
precognition of the massacre, as a previous step to the trial of the
persons concerned in that perfidious transaction. On the ninth day
of May, the session was opened by the marquis of Tweedale, appointed
commissioner, who, after the king’s letter had been read, expatiated
on his majesty’s care and concern for their safety and welfare; and his
firm purpose to maintain the presbyterian discipline in the church of
Scotland. Then he promised, in the king’s name, that if they would pass
an act for establishing a colony in Africa, America, or any other part
of the world where a colony might be lawfully planted, his majesty would
indulge them with such rights and privileges as he had granted in like
cases to the subjects of his other dominions. Finally, he exhorted
them to consider ways and means to raise the necessary supplies for
maintaining their land forces, and for providing a competent number of
ships of war to protect their commerce. The parliament immediately voted
an address of condolence to his majesty on the death of the queen; and
they granted one hundred and twenty thousand pounds sterling for the
service of the ensuing year, to be raised by a general poll-tax, a
land-tax, and an additional excise.
{WILLIAM, 1688--1701.}
THEY INQUIRE INTO THE MASSACRE OF GLENCOE.
Their next step was to desire the commissioner would transmit their
humble thanks to the king for his care to vindicate the honour of the
government and the justice of the nation, in ordering a precognition
to be taken with respect to the slaughter of Glencoe. A motion was
afterwards made that the commissioners should exhibit an account of
their proceedings in this affair; accordingly a report, consisting
of the king’s instructions, Dalrymple’s letters, the depositions
of witnesses, and the opinion of the committee, was laid before the
parliament. The motion is said to have been privately influenced by
secretary Johnston, for the disgrace of Dalrymple, who was his rival in
power and interest. The written opinion of the commissioners, who were
creatures of the court, imported, That Macdonald of Glencoe had been
perfidiously murdered; that the king’s instructions contained nothing
to warrant the massacre; and that secretary Dalrymple had exceeded his
orders. The parliament concurred with this report. They resolved, That
Livingston was not to blame for having given the orders contained in
his letters to lieutenant-colonel Hamilton; that this last was liable
to prosecution; that the king should be addressed to give orders, either
for examining major Duncanson in Flanders, touching his concern in this
affair, or for sending him home to be tried in Scotland; as also, that
Campbell of Glenlyon; captain Drummond, lieutenant Lindsey, ensign
Lundy, and sergeant Barber, should be sent to Scotland, and prosecuted
according to law, for the parts they had acted in that execution. In
consequence of these resolutions, the parliament drew up an address to
the king, in which they laid the whole blame of the massacre upon the
excess in the master of Stair’s letters concerning that transaction.
They begged that his majesty would give such orders about him, as he
should think fit for the vindication of his government; that the actors
in that barbarous slaughter might be prosecuted by the king’s advocate
according to law; and that some reparation might be made to the men of
Glencoe who escaped the massacre, for the losses they had sustained
in their effects upon that occasion, as their habitations had been
plundered and burned, their lands wasted, and their cattle driven away;
so that they were reduced to extreme poverty. Notwithstanding this
address of the Scottish parliament, by which the king was so solemnly
exculpated, his memory is still loaded with the suspicion of having
concerted, countenanced, and enforced this barbarous execution,
especially as the master of Stair escaped with impunity, and the other
actors of the tragedy, far from being punished, were preferred in the
service. While the commissioners were employed in the inquiry, they made
such discoveries concerning the conduct of the earl of Breadalbane, as
amounted to a charge of high treason; and he was committed prisoner
to the castle of Edinburgh; but it seems he had dissembled with the
highlanders by the king’s permission, and now sheltered himself under
the shadow of a royal pardon.
THEY PASS AN ACT FOR ERECTING A TRADING COMPANY.
The committee of trade, in pursuance of the powers granted by the king
to his commissioner, prepared an act for establishing a company trading
to Africa and the Indies, empowering them to plant colonies, hold
cities, towns, or forts, in places uninhabited, or in others with the
consent of the natives; vesting them with an exclusive right, and an
exemption for one-and-twenty years from all duties and impositions.
This act was likewise confirmed by letters patent under the great seal,
directed by the parliament, without any further warrant from the crown.
Paterson, the projector, had contrived the scheme of a settlement upon
the isthmus of Darien, in such a manner as to carry on a trade in the
South Sea as well as in the Atlantic; nay, even to extend it as far
as the East Indies: a great number of London merchants, allured by the
prospect of gain, were eager to engage in such a company, exempted
from all manner of imposition and restriction. The Scottish parliament
likewise passed an act in favour of the episcopal clergy, decreeing,
That those who should enter into such engagements to the king as were
by law required, might continue in their benefices under his majesty’s
protection, without being subject to the power of presbytery. Seventy
of the most noted ministers of that persuasion took the benefit of
this indulgence. Another law was enacted, for raising nine thousand men
yearly to recruit the Scottish regiments abroad; and an act for erecting
a public bank; then the parliament was adjourned to the seventh day of
November.
PROCEEDINGS IN THE IRISH PARLIAMENT.
Ireland began to be infected with the same factions which had broke out
in England since the revolution: lord Capel, lord-deputy, governed in a
very partial manner, oppressing the Irish papists without any regard to
equity or decorum. He undertook to model a parliament in such a manner
that they should comply with all the demands of the ministry; and he
succeeded in his endeavours by making such arbitrary changes in offices
as best suited his purpose. These precautions being taken, he convoked
a parliament for the twenty-seventh day of August, when he opened
the session with a speech, expatiating upon their obligations to
king-William, and exhorting them to make suitable returns to such a
gracious sovereign. He observed, that the revenue had fallen short
of the establishment; so that both the civil and military lists were
greatly in debt; that his majesty had sent over a bill for an additional
excise, and expected they would find ways and means to answer the
demands of the service. They forthwith voted an address of thanks, and
resolved to assist his majesty to the utmost of their power, against
all his enemies, foreign and domestic. They passed the bill for an
additional excise, together with an act for taking away the writ “_De
heretico comburendo_;” another annulling all attainders and acts passed
in the late pretended parliament of king James; a third to prevent
foreign education; a fourth for disarming papists; and a fifth for
settling the estates of intestates. Then they resolved, That a sum
not exceeding one hundred and sixty-three thousand three hundred and
twenty-five pounds, should be granted to his majesty; to be raised by
a poll-bill, additional customs, and a continuation of the additional
excise. Sir Charles Porter, the chancellor, finding his importance
diminished, if not entirely destroyed, by the assuming disposition and
power of the lord-deputy, began to court popularity by espousing the
cause of the Irish against the severity of the administration, and
actually formed a kind of tory interest which thwarted lord Capel in all
his measures. A motion was made in parliament to impeach the chancellor
for sowing discord and division among his majesty’s subjects; but being
indulged with a hearing by the house of commons, he justified himself so
much to their satisfaction, that he was voted clear of all imputation
by a great majority. Nevertheless, they, at the end of the session,
sent over an address, in which they bore testimony to the mild and just
administration of their lord-deputy.
DISPOSITION OF THE ARMIES.
King William having taken such steps as were deemed necessary for
preserving the peace of England in his absence, crossed the sea to
Holland in the middle of May, fully determined to make some great effort
in the Netherlands that might aggrandize his military character, and
humble the power of France which was already on the decline. That
kingdom was actually exhausted in such a manner that the haughty Louis
found himself obliged to stand upon the defensive against enemies over
whom he had been used to triumph with uninterrupted success. He heard
the clamours of his people which he could not quiet; he saw his advances
to peace rejected; and to crown his misfortunes, he sustained an
irreparable loss in the death of Francis de Montmorency, duke of
Luxembourg, to whose military talents he owed the greatest part of his
glory and success. That great officer died in January at Versailles, in
the sixty-seventh year of his age; and Louis lamented his death the more
deeply, as he had not another general left in whose understanding he
could confide. The conduct of the army in Flanders was intrusted to
mareschal Villeroy, and Boufflers commanded a separate army though
subject to the other’s orders. As the French king took it for granted
that the confederates would have a superiority of numbers in the field,
and was well acquainted with the enterprising genius of their chief, he
ordered a new line to be drawn between Lys and the Scheld; he caused a
disposition to be made for covering Dunkirk, Ypres, Tournay, and Namur;
and laid injunctions on his general to act solely on the defensive.
Meanwhile, the confederates formed two armies in the Netherlands.
The first consisted of seventy battalions of infantry, and eighty-two
squadrons of horse and dragoons, chiefly English and Scots, encamped
at Ærseele, Caneghem, and Wouterghem, between Thield and Deynse, to
be commanded by the king in person, assisted by the old prince of
Vaudemont. The other army, composed of sixteen battalions of foot and
one hundred and thirty squadrons of horse, encamped at Zellich and
Hamme, on the road from Brussels to Dendermonde, under the command
of the elector of Bavaria, seconded by the duke of Holstein-Ploen.
Major-general Ellemberg was posted near Dixmuyde with twenty battalions
and ten squadrons; and another body of Brandenburg and Dutch troops,
with a reinforcement from Liege, lay encamped on the Mehaigne, under the
conduct of the baron de Heyden, Lieutenant-general of Brandenburgh, and
the count de Berlo, general of the Liege cavalry. King-William arrived
in the camp on the fifth day of July, and remained eight days at
Ærseele. Then he marched to Bekelar, while Villeroy retired behind his
lines between Menin and Ypres, after having detached ten thousand men
to reinforce Boufflers, who had advanced to Pont d’Espieres; but he too
retreating within his lines, the elector of Bavaria passed the Scheld
and took post at Kirkhoven; at the same time the body under Heyden
advanced towards Namur.
WILLIAM UNDERTAKES THE SIEGE OF NAMUR.
The king of England having by his motions drawn the forces of the enemy
on the side of Flanders, directed the baron de Heyden and the earl of
Athlone, who commanded forty squadrons from the camp of the elector of
Bavaria, to invest Namur, and this service was performed on the third
day of July; but as the place was not entirely surrounded, mareschal
Boufflers threw himself into it with such a reinforcement of dragoons
as augmented the garrison to the number of fifteen thousand chosen men.
King William and the elector brought up the rest of the forces, which
encamped on both sides of the Sambre and the Mose, and the lines of
circumvallation were begun on the sixth day of July under the direction
of the celebrated engineer, general Coehorn. The place was formerly
very strong, both by situation and art; but the French, since its last
reduction, had made such additional works that both the town and citadel
seemed impregnable. Considering the number of the garrison and the
quality of the troops, commanded by a mareschal of France distinguished
by his valour and conduct, the enterprise was deemed an undeniable proof
of William’s temerity. On the eleventh the trenches were opened, and
next day the batteries began to play with incredible fury. The king
receiving intelligence of a motion made by a body of French troops with
a view to intercept the convoys, detached twenty squadrons of horse and
dragoons to observe the enemy.
{WILLIAM, 1688--1701.}
FAMOUS RETREAT OF PRINCE VAUDEMONT.
Prince Vaudemont, who was left at Roselsær with fifty battalions, and
the like number of squadrons, understanding that Villeroy had passed the
Lys in order to attack him, took post with his left near Grammen, his
right by Ærseele and Caneghem, and began to fortify his camp with a
view to expect the enemy. Their vanguard appearing on the evening of the
thirteenth at Dentreghem, he changed the disposition of his camp,
and intrenched himself on both sides. Next day, however, perceiving
Villeroy’s design was to surround him by means of another body of troops
commanded by M. Montai, who had already passed the Scheld for that
purpose, he resolved to avoid an engagement, and effected a retreat
to Ghent, which is celebrated as one of the most capital efforts of
military conduct. He forthwith detached twelve battalions and twelve
pieces of cannon to secure Newport, which Villeroy had intended to
invest; but that general now changed his resolution, and undertook the
siege of Dixmuyde, garrisoned by eight battalions of foot and a regiment
of dragoons, commanded by major-general Ellemberg, who in six-and-thirty
hours after the trenches were opened, surrendered himself and his
soldiers prisoners of war. This scandalous example was followed by
colonel O’Farrel, who yielded up Deynse on the same shameful conditions,
even before a battery was opened by the besiegers. In the sequel, they
were both tried for their misbehaviour; Ellemberg suffered death, and
O’Farrel was broke with infamy. The prince of Vaudemont sent a message
to the French general, demanding the garrisons of those two places,
according to a cartel which had been settled between the powers at war;
but no regard was paid to this remonstrance. Villeroy, after several
marches and countermarches, appeared before Brussels on the thirteenth
day of August, and sent a letter to the prince of Berghem, governor of
that city, importing that the king his master had ordered him to bombard
the town, by way of making reprisals for the damage done by the English
fleet to the maritime towns of France; he likewise desired to know in
what part the electress of Bavaria resided, that he might not fire
into that quarter. After this declaration, which was no more than an
unmeaning compliment, he began to bombard and cannonade the place with
red-hot bullets, which produced conflagrations in many different parts
of the city, and frightened the electress into a miscarriage. On the
fifteenth, the French discontinued their firing, and retired to Enghein.
During these transactions, the siege of Namur was prosecuted with great
ardour under the eye of the king of England; while the garrison defended
the place with equal spirit and perseverance. On the eighteenth day
of July, major-general Ramsay and lord Cutis, at the head of five
battalions, English, Scots, and Dutch, attacked the enemy’s advanced
works on the right of the counterscarp. They were sustained by six
English battalions commanded by brigadier-general Fitzpatrick; while
eight foreign regiments, with nine thousand pioneers, advanced on the
left under major-general Salish. The assault was desperate and bloody,
the enemy maintaining their ground for two hours with undaunted courage;
but at last they were obliged to give way, and were pursued to the very
gates of the town, though not before they had killed or wounded twelve
hundred men of the confederate army. The king was so well pleased with
the behaviour of the British troops, that during the action he laid his
hand upon the shoulder of the elector of Bavaria, and exclaimed with
emotion, “See, my brave English.” On the twenty-seventh the English and
Scots, lander Ramsay and Hamilton, assaulted the counterscarp, where
they met with prodigious opposition from the fire of the besieged.
Nevertheless, being sustained by the Dutch, they made a lodgement on the
foremost covered-way before the gate of St. Nicholas, as also upon part
of the counterscarp. The valour of the assailants on this occasion was
altogether unprecedented, and almost incredible; while on the other hand
the courage of the besieged was worthy of praise and admiration. Several
persons were killed in the trenches at the side of the king, and among
these Mr. Godfrey, deputy-governor of the bank of England, who had come
to the camp to confer with his majesty about remitting money for the
payment of the army. On the thirtieth day of July the elector of Bavaria
attacked Vauban’s line that surrounded the works of the castle. General
Coehorn was present in this action, which was performed with equal
valour and success. They not only broke the line, but even took
possession of Coehorn’s fort, in which however they found it impossible
to effect a lodgement. On the second day of August, lord Cutts, with
four hundred English and Dutch grenadiers, attacked the salient angle
of a demi-bastion, and lodged himself on the second counterscarp. The
breaches being now practicable, and preparations made for a general
assault, count Guiscard the governor capitulated for the town on the
fourth of August; and the French retired into the citadel, against which
twelve batteries played upon the thirteenth. The trenches meanwhile were
carried on with great expedition, notwithstanding all the efforts of the
besieged, who fired without ceasing, and exerted amazing diligence and
intrepidity in defending and repairing the damage they sustained. At
length the annoyance became so dreadful from the unintermitting showers
of bombs and red-hot bullets, that Boufflers, after having made divers
furious sallies, formed a scheme for breaking through the confederate
camp with his cavalry. This however was prevented by the extreme
vigilance of king William.
After the bombardment of Brussels, Villeroy, being-reinforced with all
the troops that could be drafted from garrisons, advanced towards Namur
with an army of ninety thousand men; and prince Vaudemont, being joined
by the prince of Hesse with a strong body of forces from the Rhine, took
possession of the strong camp at Masy, within five English miles of
the besieging army. The king understanding that the enemy had reached
Fleurus, where they discharged ninety pieces of cannon as a signal to
inform the garrison of their approach, left the conduct of the siege
to the elector of Bavaria, and took upon himself the command of the
covering army, in order to oppose Villeroy, who being further reinforced
by a detachment from Germany, declared that he would hazard a battle for
the relief of Namur. But when he viewed the posture of the allies near
Masy, he changed his resolution and retired in the night without noise.
On the thirtieth day of August, the besieged were summoned to surrender,
by count Horn, who in a parley with the count de Lamont, general of
the French infantry, gave him to understand that mareschal Villeroy had
retired towards the Mehaigne; so that the garrison could not expect to
be relieved. No immediate answer being returned to this message, the
parley was broke off, and the king resolved to proceed without delay to
a general assault, which he had already planned with the elector and his
other generals. Between one and two in the afternoon, lord Cutts, who
desired the command though it was not his turn of duty, rushed out
of the trenches of the second line, at the head of three hundred
grenadiers, to make a lodgement in the breach of Terra-nova, supported
by the regiments of Coulthorp, Buchan, Hamilton, and Mackay;
while colonel Marselly with a body of Dutch, the Bavarians, and
Brandenburghers, attacked at two other places. The assailants met with
such a warm reception, that the English grenadiers were repulsed,
even after they had mounted the breach, lord Cutts being for some
time disabled by a shot in the head. Marselly was defeated, taken, and
afterwards killed by a. cannon ball from the batteries of the besiegers.
The Bavarians by mistaking their way were exposed to a terrible fire, by
which their general count Rivera, and a great number of their officers,
were slain: nevertheless, they fixed themselves on the outward
intrenchment on the point of the Coehorn next to the Sambre, and
maintained their ground with amazing fortitude. Lord Cutts, when his
wound was dressed, returned to the scene of action, and ordered two
hundred chosen men of Mackay’s regiment, commanded by lieutenant Cockle,
to attack the face of the salient angle next to the breach sword in
hand, while the ensigns of the same regiment should advance and plant
their colours on the pallisadoes. Coekle and his detachment executed the
command he had received with admirable intrepedity. They broke through
the pallisadoes, drove the French from the covered way, made a lodgement
in one of the batteries, and turned the cannon against the enemy. The
Bavarians being thus sustained, made their post good. The major-generals
La Cave and Schwerin lodged themselves at the same time on the covered
way; and though the general assault did not succeed in its full extent,
the confederates remained masters of a very considerable lodgement,
nearly an English mile in length. Yet this was dearly purchased with
the lives of two thousand men, including many officers of great rank
and reputation. During the action the elector of Bavaria signalised his
courage in a very remarkable manner, riding from place to place through
the hottest of the fire, giving his directions with notable presence
of mind, according to the emergency of circumstances, animating the
officers with praise and promise of preferment, and distributing
handfuls of gold among the private soldiers.
On the first day of September, the besieged having obtained a cessation
of arms that their dead might be buried, the count de Guiscard appearing
on the breach, desired to speak with the elector of Bavaria. His
highness immediately mounting the breach, the French governor offered
to surrender the fort of Cohorn; but was given to understand, that if
he intended to capitulate, he must treat for the whole. This reply being
communicated to Boufflers, he agreed to the proposal: the cessation
was prolonged, and that very evening the capitulation was finished.
Villeroy, who lay encamped at Gemblours, was no sooner apprised of this
event by a triple discharge of all the artillery, and a running fire
along the lines of the confederate army, than he passed the Sambre near
Charleroy with great precipitation; and having reinforced the garrison
of Dinant, retreated towards the lines in the neighbourhood of Mons. On
the fifth day of September the French garrison, which was now reduced
from fifteen to five thousand five hundred men, evacuated the citadel of
Namur. Boufflers, in marching out, was arrested in name of his Britannic
majesty, by way of reprisal for the garrisons of Dixmuyde and Deynse,
which the French king had detained contrary to the cartel subsisting
between the two nations. The mareschal was not a little discomposed at
this unexpected incident, and expostulated warmly with Mr. Dyckvelt,
who assured him that the king of Great Britain entertained a profound
respect for his person and character. William even offered to set him at
liberty, provided he would pass his word that the garrisons of Dixmuyde
and Deynso should be sent back, or that he himself would return in a
fortnight. He said that he could not enter into any such engagement,
as he did not know his master’s reasons for detaining the garrisons in
question. He was therefore reconveyed to Namur; from thence removed
to Maestricht, and treated with great reverence and respect, till
the return of an officer whom he had despatched to Versailles with an
account of his captivity. Then he engaged his word, that the garrisons
of Dixmuyde and Deynse should be sent back to the allied army. He was
immediately released and conducted in safety to Dinant. When he repaired
to Versailles, Louis received him with very extraordinary marks of
esteem and affection. He embraced him in public with the warmest
expressions of regard; declared himself perfectly well satisfied with
his conduct; created him a duke and peer of France; and presented him
with a very large sum, in acknowledgment of his signal services.
CAMPAIGN ON THE RHINE.
After the reduction of Namur, which greatly enhanced the military
character of king William, he retired to his house at Loo, which was
his favourite place of residence, leaving the command to the elector
of Bavaria; and about the latter end of September both armies began to
separate. The French forces retired within their lines. A good number of
the allied troops were distributed in different garrisons; and a strong
detachment marched towards Newport, under the command of the prince of
Wirtemberg, for the security of that place. Thus ended the campaign in
the Netherlands. On the Rhine nothing of moment was attempted by either
army. The mareschal de Lorges, in the beginning of June, passed the
Rhine at Philipsburgh; and posting himself at Brucksal, sent out parties
to ravage the country. On the eleventh of the same month the prince of
Baden joined the German army at Steppach, and on the eighth day of July
was reinforced by the troops of the other German confederates, in the
neighbourhood of Wiselock. On the nineteenth the French retired without
noise, in the night, towards Manheim, where they repassed the river
without any interruption from the imperial general; then he sent off a
large detachment to Flanders. The same step was taken by the prince of
Baden; and each army lay inactive in their quarters for the remaining
part of the campaign. The command of the Germans in Hungary was
conferred upon the elector of Saxony; but the court of Vienna was so
dilatory in their preparations, that he was not in a condition to act
till the middle of August. Lord Paget had been sent ambassador
from England to the Ottoman Porte, with instructions relating to a
pacification; but before he could obtain an audience the sultan died,
and was succeeded by his nephew Mustapha, who resolved to prosecute the
war in person. The warlike genius of this new emperor afforded but an
uncomfortable prospect to his people, considering that Peter, the czar
of Muscovy, had taken the opportunity of the war in Hungary, to invade
the Crimea and besiege Azoph; so that the Tartars were too much employed
at home to spare the succours which the sultan demanded. Nevertheless,
Mustapha and his vizier took the field before the imperialists could
commence the operations of the campaign, passed the Danube, took Lippa
and Titul by assault, stormed the camp of general Veterani, who was
posted at Lugos with seven thousand men, and who lost his life in the
action. The infantry were cut to pieces, after having made a desperate
defence; but the horse retreated to Caronsebes, under the conduct of
general Trusches. The Turks after this exploit retired to Orsowa. Their
navy meanwhile surprised the Venetian fleet at Scio, where several ships
of the republic were destroyed, and they recovered that island, which
the Venetians thought proper to abandon; but in order to balance this
misfortune, these last obtained a complete victory over the pacha of
Negropont in the Morea.
THE DUKE OF SAVOY TAKES CASAL.
The French king still maintained a secret negotiation with the duke of
Savoy, whose conduct had been for some time mysterious and equivocal.
Contrary to the opinion of his allies, he undertook the siege of
Casal, which was counted one of the strongest fortifications in Europe,
defended by a numerous garrison, abundantly supplied with ammunition and
provisions. The siege was begun about the middle of May; and the
place was surrendered by capitulation in about fourteen days, to the
astonishment of the confederates, who did not know that this was a
sacrifice by which the French court obtained the duke’s forbearance
during the remaining part of the campaign. The capitulation imported,
that the place should be restored to the duke of Mantua, who was the
rightful proprietor; that the fortifications should be demolished at the
expense of the allies; that the garrison should remain in the fort
till that work should be completed; and hostages were exchanged for
the performance of these conditions. The duke understood the art of
procrastination so well, that September was far advanced before the
place was wholly dismantled; and then he was seized with an ague, which
obliged him to quit the army.
TRANSACTIONS IN CATALONIA.
In Catalonia the French could hardly maintain the footing they had
gained. Admiral Russel, who wintered at Cadiz, was created admiral,
chief-commander, and captain general of all his majesty’s ships
employed, or to be employed, in the narrow-seas and in the
Mediterranean. He was reinforced by four thousand five hundred soldiers,
under the command of brigadier-general Stewart; and seven thousand
men, Imperialists as well as Spaniards, were drafted from Italy for the
defence of Catalonia. These forces were transported to Barcelona under
the convoy of admiral Nevil, detached by Russel for that purpose. The
affairs of Catalonia had already changed their aspect. Several French
parties had been defeated. The Spaniards had blocked up Ostalric and
Castel-Follit: Noailles had been recalled, and the command devolved to
the duke de Vendôme, who no sooner understood that the forces from Italy
were landed, than he dismantled Ostalric and Castel-Follit, and retired
to Palamos. The viceroy of Catalonia and the English admiral having
resolved to give battle to the enemy and reduce Palamos, the English
troops were landed on the ninth day of August, and the allied army
advanced to Palamos. The French appeared in order of battle; but the
viceroy declined an engagement. Far from attacking the enemy he withdrew
his forces, and the town was bombarded by the admiral. The miscarriage
of this expedition was in a great measure owing to a misunderstanding
between Russel and the court of Spain. The admiral complained that his
catholic majesty had made no preparations for the campaign; that he had
neglected to fulfil his engagements with respect to the Spanish squadron
which ought to have joined the fleets of England and Holland; that
he had taken no care to provide tents and provisions for the British
forces. On the twenty-seventh day of August he sailed for the coast of
Provence, where the fleet was endangered by a terrible tempest; then he
steered down the Straits, and toward the latter end of September arrived
in the bay of Cadiz. There he left a number of ships under the command
of sir David Mitchel, until he should be joined by sir George Rooke
who was expected from England, and returned home with the rest of the
combined squadrons.
{WILLIAM, 1688--1701.}
THE ENGLISH FLEET BOMBARDS ST. MALOES, &c.
While admiral Russel asserted the British dominion in the Mediterranean,
the French coasts were again insulted in the channel by a separate fleet
under the command of lord Berkeley of Stratton, assisted by the Dutch
admiral Allemonde. On the fourth day of July they anchored before St.
Maloes, which they bombarded from nine ketches covered by some frigates,
which sustained more damage than was done to the enemy. On the sixth,
Granville underwent the same fate, and then the fleet returned to
Portsmouth. The bomb vessels being refitted, the fleet sailed round to
the Downs, where four hundred soldiers were embarked for an attempt upon
Dunkirk, under the direction of Meesters the famous Dutch engineer, who
had prepared his infernals and other machines for the service. On the
first day of August the experiment was tried without success. The bombs
did some execution; but two smoke ships miscarried. The French had
secured the Ris-bank and wooden forts with piles, bombs, chains, and
floating batteries, in such a manner that the machine-vessels could not
approach near enough to produce any effect. Besides, the councils of the
assailants were distracted by violent animosities. The English officers
hated Meesters, because he was a Dutchman, and had acquired some credit
with the king; he on the other hand treated them with disrespect. He
retired with his machines in the night, and refused to co-operate with
lord Berkeley in his design upon Calais, which was now put in execution.
On the sixteenth he brought his batteries to bear upon this place,
and set fire to it in different quarters; but the enemy had taken such
precautions as rendered his scheme abortive.
EXPEDITION TO THE WEST INDIES.
A squadron had been sent to the West Indies under the joint-command of
captain Robert Wilmot and colonel Lilingston, with twelve hundred
land forces. They had instructions to co-operate with the Spaniards
in Hispaniola, against the French settlements on that island, and to
destroy their fisheries on the banks of Newfoundland in their return.
They were accordingly joined by seventeen hundred Spaniards raised
by the president of St. Domingo; but instead of proceeding against
Petit-Guavas, according to the directions they had received, Wilmot
took possession of Port François, and plundered the country for his own
private advantage, notwithstanding the remonstrances of Lilingston,
who protested against his conduct. In a word, the sea and land officers
lived in a state of perpetual dissension; and both became extremely
disagreeable to the Spaniards, who soon renounced all connexion with
them and their designs. In the beginning of September the commodore set
sail for England, and lost one of his ships in the gulph of Florida. He
himself died in his passage; and the greater part of the men being swept
off by an epidemical distemper, the squadron returned to Britain in a
most miserable condition. Notwithstanding the great efforts the nation
had made to maintain such a number of different squadrons for the
protection of commerce, as well as to annoy the enemy, the trade
suffered severely from the French privateers, which swarmed in both
channels and made prize of many rich vessels. The marquis of Cærmarthen,
being stationed with a squadron off the Scilly islands, mistook a fleet
of merchant ships for the Brest fleet, and retired with precipitation
to Milford-Haven. In consequence of this retreat, the privateers took
a good number of ships from Barbadoes, and five from the East-Indies,
valued at a million sterling. The merchants renewed their clamour
against the commissioners of the Admiralty, who produced their orders
and instructions in their own defence. The marquis of Cærmarthen had
been guilty of flagrant misconduct on this occasion; but the chief
source of those national calamities was the circumstantial intelligence
transmitted to France from time to time by the malcontents of England;
for they were actuated by a scandalous principle which they still
retain, namely, that of rejoicing in the distress of their country.
A NEW PARLIAMENT.
King William, after having conferred with the states of Holland and the
elector of Brandenburgh who met him at the Hague, embarked for England
on the nineteenth day of October, and arrived in safety at Margate, from
whence he proceeded to London, where he was received as a conqueror,
amidst the rejoicings and acclamations of the people. On the same day he
summoned a council at Kensington, in which it was determined to convoke
a new parliament. While the nation was in good humour, it was supposed
that they would return such members only as were well affected to
the government; whereas the present parliament might proceed in
its inquiries into corruption and other grievances, and be the less
influenced by the crown, as their dependence was of such short duration.
The parliament was therefore dissolved by proclamation, and a new one
summoned to meet at Westminster on the twenty-second day of November.
While the whole nation was occupied in the elections, William, by the
advice of his chief confidants, laid his own disposition under restraint
in another effort to acquire popularity. He honoured the diversions
of Newmarket with his presence, and there received a compliment of
congratulation from the university of Cambridge. Then he visited the
earls of Sunderland, Northampton, and Montague, at their different
houses in the country; and proceeded with a splendid retinue to Lincoln,
from whence he repaired to Welbeck, a seat belonging to the duke of
Newcastle in Nottinghamshire, where he was attended by Dr. Sharp,
archbishop of York, and his clergy. He lodged one night with lord Brooke
at Warwick castle, dined with the duke of Shrewsbury at Ryefort, and by
the way of Woodstock, made a solemn entry into Oxford, having been met
at some distance from the city by the duke of Or-mond, as chancellor of
the university, the vice-chancellor, the doctors in their habits, and
the magistrates in their formalities. He proceeded directly to the
theatre, where he was welcomed in an elegant Latin speech; he received
from the chancellor on his knees the usual presents of a large English
Bible, and book of Common-Prayer, the cuts of the university, and a pair
of gold-fringed gloves. The conduits ran with wine, and a magnificent
banquet was prepared; but an anonymous letter being found in the street,
importing that there was a design to poison his majesty, William
refused to eat or drink in Oxford, and retired immediately to Windsor.
Notwithstanding this abrupt departure, which did not savour much of
magnanimity, the university chose sir William Trumball, secretary of
state, as one of their representatives in parliament.
BILL FOR REGULATING TRIALS IN CASES OF HIGH-TREASON.
The whig interest generally prevailed in the elections, though many even
of that party were malcontents; and when the parliament met, Foley
was again chosen speaker of the commons. The king in his first speech
extolled the valour of the English forces; expressed his concern at
being obliged to demand such large supplies from his people; observed
that the funds had proved very deficient, and the civil list was in
a precarious condition; recommended to their compassion the miserable
situation of the French protestants; took notice of the bad state of
the coin; desired they would form a good bill for the encouragement and
increase of seamen; and contrive laws for the advancement of commerce.
He mentioned the great preparations which the French were making for
taking the field early; in treated them to use despatch; expressed
his satisfaction at the choice which his people had made of their
representatives in the house of commons; and exhorted them to proceed
with temper and unanimity. Though the two houses presented addresses of
congratulation to the king upon his late success, and promised to assist
him in prosecuting the war with vigour, the nation loudly exclaimed
against the intolerable burdens and losses to which they were subjected
by a foreign scheme of politics, which, like an unfathomable abyss,
swallowed up the wealth and blood of the kingdom. All the king’s
endeavours to cover the disgusting side of his character had proved
ineffectual; he was still dry, reserved, and forbidding; and the
malcontents inveighed bitterly against his behaviour to the princess
Anne of Denmark. When the news of Namur’s being reduced arrived in
England, this lady congratulated him upon his success in a dutiful
letter, to which he would not deign to send a reply, either by writing
or message, nor had she or her husband been favoured with the slightest
mark of regard since his return to England. The members in the lower
house, who had adopted opposing maxims either from principle or
resentment, resolved that the crown should purchase the supplies with
some concession in favour of the people. They therefore brought in the
so long contested bill for regulating trials in cases of high treason,
and misprison of treason; and considering the critical juncture of
affairs, the courtiers were afraid of obstructing such a popular
measure. The lords inserted a clause, enacting, that a peer should be
tried by the whole peerage; and the commons at once assented to this
amendment. The bill provided, that persons indicted for high treason, or
misprison of treason, should be furnished with a copy of the indictment
five days before the trial; and indulged with council to plead in their
defence; that no person should be indicted but upon the oaths of two
lawful witnesses swearing to overt-acts; that in two or more distinct
treasons of divers kinds, alleged in one bill of indictment, one
witness to one, and another witness to another, should not be deemed
two witnesses; that no person should be prosecuted for any such crime,
unless the indictment be found within three years after the offence
committed, except in case of a design or attempt to assassinate or
poison the king, where this limitation should not take place; that
persons indicted for treason, or misprison of treason, should be
supplied with copies of the panel of the jurors, two days at least
before the trial, and have process to compel their witnesses to appear;
that no evidence should be admitted of any overt-act not expressly laid
in the indictment; that this act should not extend to any impeachment,
or other proceeding in parliament; nor to any indictment for
counterfeiting his majesty’s coin, his great seal, privy seal, sign
manual, or signet.
{WILLIAM, 1688--1701.}
RESOLUTIONS WITH RESPECT TO A NEW COINAGE.
This important affair being discussed, the commons proceeded to examine
the accounts and estimates, and voted above five millions for the
service of the ensuing year. The state of the coin was by this time
become such a national grievance as could not escape the attention
of parliament. The lords prepared an address to the throne, for a
proclamation to put a stop to the currency of diminished coin; and
to this they desired the concurrence of the commons. The lower house,
however, determined to take this affair under their own inspection. They
appointed a committee of the whole house to deliberate on the state of
the nation with respect to the currency. Great opposition was made to a
recoinage, which was a measure strenuously recommended and supported
by Mr. Montague, who acted on this occasion by the advice of the great
mathematician sir Isaac Newton. The enemies of this expedient argued,
that should the silver coin be called in, it would be impossible to
maintain the war abroad, or prosecute foreign trade, inasmuch as the
merchant could not pay his bills of exchange, nor the soldier receive
his subsistence; that a stop would be put to all mutual payment; and
this would produce universal confusion and despair. Such a reformation
could not be effected without some danger and difficulty; but it was
become absolutely necessary, as the evil daily increased, and in a
little time must have terminated in national anarchy. After long and
vehement debates, the majority resolved to proceed with all possible
expedition to a new coinage. Another question arose, Whether the new
coin, in its different denominations, should retain the original weight
and purity of the old; or the established standard be raised in value?
The famous Locke engaged in this dispute against Mr. Lowndes, who
proposed that the standard should be raised; the arguments of Mr. Locke
were so convincing, that the committee resolved the established standard
should be preserved with respect to weight and fineness. They likewise
resolved, that the loss accruing to the revenue from clipped money,
should be borne by the public. In order to prevent a total stagnation,
they further resolved, that after an appointed day no clipped money
should pass in payment, except to the collectors of the revenue and
taxes, or upon loans or payments into the exchequer; that after another
day to be appointed, no clipped money of any sort should pass in any
payment whatsoever; and that a third day should be fixed for all persons
to bring in their clipped money to be recoined, after which they should
have no allowance upon what they might offer. They addressed the king
to issue a proclamation agreeably to these resolutions; and on the
nineteenth day of December it was published accordingly. Such were
the fears of the people, augmented and inflamed by the enemies of
the government, that all payment immediately ceased, and a face of
distraction appeared through the whole community. The adversaries of
the bill seized this opportunity to aggravate the apprehensions of
the public. They inveighed against the ministry as the authors of this
national grievance; they levelled their satire particularly at Montague;
and it required uncommon fortitude and address to avert the most
dangerous consequences of popular discontent. The house of commons
agreed to the following resolutions: that twelve hundred thousand pounds
should be raised by a duty on glass windows, to make up the loss on
the clipped money; that the recompence for supplying the deficiency
of clipped money should extend to all silver coin, though of a coarser
alloy than the standard; that the collectors and receivers of his
majesty’s aids and revenues should be enjoined to receive all such
monies; that a reward of five per cent, should be given to all such
persons as should bring in either milled or broad undipped money, to be
applied in exchange of the clipped money throughout the kingdom; that a
reward of threepence per ounce should be given to all persons who should
bring wrought plate to the mint to be coined; that persons might pay
in their whole next year’s land-tax in clipped money, at one convenient
time to be appointed for that purpose; that commissioners should be
appointed in every county to pay and distribute the milled and broad
undipped money, and the new coined money in lieu of that which was
diminished. A bill being prepared agreeably to these determinations,
was sent up to the house of lords, who made some amendments which the
commons rejected; but in order to avoid cavils and conferences, they
dropped the bill and brought in another without the clauses which the
lords had inserted. They were again proposed in the upper house and
over-ruled by the’ majority; and on the twenty-first day of January the
bill received the royal assent, as did another bill enlarging the time
for purchasing annuities and continuing the duties on low wines. At the
same time the king passed the bill of trials for high treason, and
an act to prevent mercenary elections. Divers merchants and traders
petitioned the house of commons that the losses in their trade and
payments, occasioned by the rise of guineas, might be taken into
consideration. A bill was immediately brought in for taking off the
obligation and encouragement for coining guineas for a certain time; and
then the commons proceeded to lower the value of this coin, a task in
which they met with great opposition from some members, who alleged
that it would foment the popular disturbances. At length, however,
the majority agreed that a guinea should be lowered from thirty to
eight-and-twenty shillings, and afterwards to six-and-twenty. At length
a clause was inserted in the bill for encouraging people to bring plate
to the mint, settling the price of a guinea at two-and-twenty shillings,
and it naturally sunk to its original value of twenty shillings and
sixpence. Many persons, however, supposing that the price of gold would
be raised the next session, hoarded up their guineas; and upon the same
supposition, encouraged by the malcontents, the new coined silver money
was reserved, to the great detriment of commerce. The king ordered mints
to be erected in York, Bristol, Exeter, and Chester, for the purpose of
the re-coinage, which was executed with unexpected success, so that
in less than a year the currency of England, which had been the worst,
became the best coin in Europe.
At this period the attention of the commons was diverted to an object
of a more private nature. The earl of Portland, who enjoyed the greatest
share of the king’s favour, had obtained a grant of some lordships
in Derbyshire. While the warrant was depending, the gentlemen of that
county resolved to oppose it with all their power. In consequence of
a petition, they were indulged with a hearing by the lords of the
treasury. Sir William Williams, in the name of the rest, alleged that
the lordships in question were the ancient demesnes of the prince of
Wales, absolutely unalienable; that the revenues of those lordships
supported the government of Wales in paying the judges and other
salaries; that the grant was of too large an extent for any foreign
subject; and that the people of the county were too great to be subject
to any foreigner. Sundry other substantial reasons were used against the
grant, which, notwithstanding all their remonstrances, would have passed
through the offices, had not the Welsh gentlemen addressed themselves
by petition to the house of commons. Upon this occasion, Mr. Price, a
member of the house, harangued with great severity against the Dutch in
general, and did not even abstain from sarcasms upon the king’s person,
title, and government. The objections started by the petitioners being
duly considered, were found so reasonable that the commons presented
an address to the king, representing that those manors had been usually
annexed to the principality of Wales, and settled on the princes of
Wales for their support; that many persons in those parts held their
estates by royal tenure under great and valuable compositions, rents,
royal payments, and services to the crown and princes of Wales;
and enjoyed great privileges and advantages under such tenure. They
therefore besought his majesty to recall the grant which was in
diminution of the honour and interest of the crown; and prayed that
the said manors and lands might not be alienated without the consent of
parliament. This address met with a cold reception from the king,
who promised to recall the grant which had given such offence to the
commons, and said he would find some other way of showing his favour to
the earl of Portland.
The people in general entertained a national aversion to this nobleman:
the malcontents inculcated a notion that he had made use of his interest
and intelligence to injure the trade of England, that the commerce of
his own country might flourish without competition. To his suggestions
they imputed the act and patent in favour of the Scottish company, which
was supposed to have been thrown in as a bone of contention between the
two kingdoms. The subject was first started in the house of lords,
who invited the commons to a conference; a committee was appointed
to examine into the particulars of the act for erecting the Scottish
company; and the two houses presented a joint address against it, as a
scheme that would prejudice all the subjects concerned in the wealth and
trade of the English nation. They represented, that in consequence of
the exemption from taxes and other advantages granted to the Scottish
company, that kingdom would become a free port for all East and West
India commodities; that the Scots would be enabled to supply all
Europe at a cheaper rate than the English could afford to sell their
merchandise for, therefore England would lose the benefit of its
foreign trade; besides, they observed that the Scots would smuggle their
commodities into England, to the great detriment of his majesty and
his customs. To this remonstrance the king replied that he had been ill
served in Scotland; but that he hoped some remedies would be found to
prevent the inconveniencies of which they were apprehensive. In all
probability he had been imposed upon by the ministry of that kingdom;
for in a little time he discarded the marquis of Tweedale, and dismissed
both the Scottish secretaries of state, in lieu of whom he appointed
lord Murray, son to the marquis of Athol. Notwithstanding the king’s
answer, the committee proceeded on the inquiry, and, in consequence
of their report confirming a petition from the East India company, the
house resolved that the directors of the Scottish company were guilty
of a high crime and misdemeanor in administering and taking an oath _de
fideli_ in this kingdom, and that they should be impeached for the same.
Meanwhile, Roderick Mackenzie, from whom they had received their
chief information, began to retract his evidence, and was ordered into
custody; but he made his escape and could not be retaken, although the
king at their request issued a proclamation for that purpose. The Scots
were extremely incensed against the king when they understood he had
disowned their company, from which they had promised themselves such
wealth and advantage. The settlement of Darien was already planned and
afterwards put in execution, though it miscarried in the sequel, and had
like to have produced abundance of mischief.
INTRIGUES OF THE JACOBITES.
The complaints of the English merchants who had suffered by the war were
so loud at this juncture, that the commons resolved to take their
case into consideration. The house resolved itself into a committee to
consider the state of the nation with regard to commerce, and having
duly weighed all circumstances, agreed to the following resolutions:
that a council of trade should be established by act of parliament, with
powers to take measures for the more effectual preservation of commerce;
that the commissioners should be nominated by parliament, but none
of them have seats in the house; that they should take an oath
acknowledging the title of king William as rightful and lawful; and
abjuring the pretensions of James, or any other person. The king
considered these resolutions as an open attack upon his prerogative, and
signified his displeasure to the earl of Sunderland, who patronised this
measure; but it was so popular in the house, that in all probability it
would have been put in execution, had not the attention of the
commons been diverted from it at this period by the detection of a new
conspiracy. The friends of king James had, upon the death of queen Mary,
renewed their practices for effecting a restoration of that monarch, on
the supposition that the interest of William was considerably weakened
by the decease of his consort. Certain individuals, whose zeal for James
overshot their discretion, formed a design to seize the person of
king William, and convey him to France, or put him to death in case of
resistance. They had sent emissaries to the court of St. Germain’s to
demand a commission for this purpose, which was refused. The earl
of Aylesbury, lord Montgomery, son to the marquis of Powis, sir John
Fenwick, sir John Friend, captain Charnock, captain Porter, and one
Mr. Goodman, were the first contrivers of this project. Charnock was
detached with a proposal to James, that he should procure a body of
horse and foot from France to make a descent in England, and they would
engage not only to join him at his landing, but even to replace him on
the throne of England.
These offers being declined by James, on pretence that the French king
could not spare such a number of troops at that juncture, the earl of
Aylesbury went over in person, and was admitted to a conference with
Louis, in which the scheme of an invasion was actually concerted. In the
beginning of February the duke of Berwick repaired privately to England,
where he conferred with the conspirators, assured them that king James
was ready to make a descent with a considerable number of French forces,
distributed commissions, and gave directions for providing men, arms,
and horses, to join him at his arrival. When he returned to France, he
found every thing prepared for the expedition. The troops were drawn
down to the sea-side; a great number of transports were assembled at
Dunkirk; monsieur Gabaret had advanced as far as Calais with a squadron
of ships, which, when joined by that of Du Bart at Dunkirk, was judged
a sufficient convoy; and James had come as far as Calais in his way to
embark. Meanwhile the Jacobites in England were assiduously employed
in making preparations for a revolt. Sir John Friend had very near
completed a regiment of horse; considerable progress was made in levying
another by sir William Perkins; sir John Fenwick had enlisted four
troops; colonel Tempest had undertaken for one regiment of dragoons;
colonel Parker was preferred to the command of another; Mr. Curzon was
commissioned for a third; and the malcontents intended to raise a fourth
in Suffolk, where their interest chiefly prevailed.
CONSPIRACY AGAINST THE LIFE OF WILLIAM.
While one part of the Jacobites proceeded against William in the
usual way of exciting an insurrection, another, consisting of the most
desperate conspirators, had formed a scheme of assassination. Sir George
Barclay, a native of Scotland, who had served as an officer in the army
of James, a man of undaunted courage, a furious bigot in the religion
of Rome, yet close, circumspect, and determined, was landed with other
officers in Romneymarsh, by one captain Gill, about the beginning
of January, and is said to have undertaken the task of seizing or
assassinating king William. He imparted his design to Harrison, _alias_
Johnston, a priest, Char-nock, Porter, and sir William Perkins, by whom
it was approved; and he pretended to have a particular commission for
this service. After various consultations, they resolved to attack the
king on his return from Richmond, where he commonly hunted on Saturdays;
and the scene of their intended ambuscade was a lane between Brentford
and Turnham-Green. As it would be necessary to charge and disperse the
guards that attended the coach, they agreed that their number should be
increased to forty horsemen, and each conspirator began to engage
proper persons for the enterprise. When their complement was full, they
determined to execute their purpose on the fifteenth day of February.
They concerted the manner in which they should meet in small parties
without suspicion, and waited with impatience for the hour of action.
In this interval some of the underling actors, seized with horror at the
reflection of what they had undertaken, or captivated with the prospect
of reward, resolved to prevent the execution of the design by a timely
discovery. On the eleventh day of February, one Fisher informed the earl
of Portland of the scheme, and named some of the conspirators; but his
account was imperfect. On the thirteenth however he returned with a
circumstantial detail of all the particulars. Next day the earl was
accosted by one Pendergrass, an Irish officer, who told his lordship he
had just come from Hampshire at the request of a particular friend, and
understood that he had been called up to town with a view of engaging
him in a design to assassinate king William. He said, he had promised
to embark in the undertaking, though he detested it in his own mind, and
took this first opportunity of revealing the secret, which was of such
consequence to his majesty’s life. He owned himself a Roman catholic,
but declared that he did not think any religion could justify such a
treacherous purpose. At the same time he observed, that as he lay under
obligations to some of the conspirators, his honour and gratitude
would not permit him to accuse them by name; and that he would upon no
consideration appear as an evidence. The king had been so much used to
fictitious plots and false discoveries, that he paid little regard to
the informations until they were confirmed by the testimony of another
conspirator called La Rue, a Frenchman, who communicated the same
particulars to brigadier Levison, without knowing the least circumstance
of the other discoveries. Then the king believed there was something
real in the conspiracy; and Pendergrass and La Rue were severally
examined in his presence. He thanked Pendergrass in particular for this
instance of his probity; but observed that it must prove ineffectual
unless he would discover the names of the conspirators; for, without
knowing who they were, he should not be able to secure his life against
their attempts. At length Pendergrass was prevailed upon to give a list
of those he knew, yet not before the king had solemnly promised that
he should not be used as an evidence against them, except with his own
consent. As the king did not go to Richmond on the day appointed, the
conspirators postponed the execution of their design till the Saturday
following. They accordingly met at different houses on the Friday, when
every man received his instructions. There they agreed, that after the
perpetration of the parricide, they should ride in a body as far as
Hammersmith, and then dispersing, enter London by different avenues. But
on the morning, when they understood that the guards were returned to
their quarters, and the king’s coaches sent back to the Mews, they
were seized with a sudden damp, on the suspicion that their plot was
discovered. Sir George Barclay withdrew himself, and every one began
to think of providing for his own safety. Next night, however, a great
number of them were apprehended, and then the whole discovery was
communicated to the privy council. A proclamation was issued against
those that absconded; and great diligence was used to find sir George
Barclay, who was supposed to have a particular commission from James for
assassinating the prince of Orange; but he made good his retreat, and it
was never proved that any such commission had been granted.
DESIGN OF AN INVASION DEFEATED.
This design and the projected invasion proved equally abortive. James
had scarce reach Calais when the duke of Wirtemberg despatched his
aidecamp from Flanders to king William, with an account of the purposed
descent. Expresses with the same tidings arrived from the elector of
Bavaria and the prince de Vaude-mont. Two considerable squadrons being
ready for sea, admiral Russel embarked at Spithead and stood over to
the French coast with about fifty sail of the line. The enemy were
confounded at his appearance, and hauled in their vessels under the
shore, in such shallow water that he could not follow and destroy them;
but he absolutely ruined their design, by cooping them up in their
harbours. King James, after having tarried some weeks at Calais,
returned to St. Germain’s. The forces were sent back to the garrisons
from which they had been drafted; the people of France exclaimed, that
the malignant star which ruled the destiny of James had blasted this and
every other project formed for his restoration. By means of the reward
offered in the proclamation, the greater part of the conspirators were
betrayed or taken. George Harris, who had been sent from France with
orders to obey sir George Barclay, surrendered himself to sir William
Trumball, and confessed the scheme of assassination in which he had been
engaged. Porter and Pendergrass were apprehended together. This last
insisted upon the king’s promise that he should not be compelled to give
evidence; but when Porter owned himself guilty, the other observed he
was no longer bound to be silent, as his friend had made a confession;
and they were both admitted as evidences for the crown.
THE TWO HOUSES FORM AN ASSOCIATION FOR THE DEFENCE OF HIS MAJESTY.
After their examination, the king, in a speech to both houses,
communicated the nature of the conspiracy against his life, as well
as the advices he had received touching the invasion; he explained
the steps he had taken to defeat the double design, and professed his
confidence in their readiness and zeal to concur with him in every thing
that should appear necessary for their common safety. That same
evening the two houses waited upon him at Kensington in a body, with an
affectionate address, by which they expressed their abhorrence of the
villanous and barbarous design which had been formed against his sacred
person, of which they besought him to take more than ordinary care. They
assured him they would to their utmost defend his life, and support
his government against the late king James and all other enemies; and
declared, that in case his majesty should come to a violent death,
they would revenge it upon his adversaries and their adherents. He was
extremely well pleased with this warm address, and assured them in his
turn he would take all opportunities of recommending himself to the
continuance of their loyalty and affection. The commons forthwith
empowered him by bill to secure all persons suspected of conspiring
against his person and government. They brought in another, providing,
that in case of his majesty’s death, the parliament then being should
continue until dissolved by the next heir in succession to the crown,
established by act of parliament; that if his majesty should chance to
die between two parliaments, that which had been last dissolved should
immediately re-assemble, and sit for the despatch of national affairs.
They voted an address to desire that his majesty would banish by
proclamation all papists to the distance of ten miles from the cities of
London and Westminster; and give instructions to the judges going on
the circuits to put the laws in execution against Roman catholics and
nonjurors. They drew up an association, binding themselves to assist
each other in support of the king and his government, and to revenge any
violence that should be committed on his person. This was signed by
all the members then present; but as some had absented themselves
on frivolous pretences, the house ordered, that in sixteen days the
absentees should either subscribe or declare their refusal. Several
members neglecting to comply with this injunction within the limited
time, the speaker was ordered to write to those who were in the country,
and demand a peremptory answer; and the clerk of the house attended such
as pretended to be ill in town. The absentees finding themselves pressed
in this manner, thought proper to sail with the stream, and sign the
association, which was presented to the king by the commons in a body,
with a request that it might be lodged among the records in the Tower,
as a perpetual memorial of their loyalty and affection. The king
received them with uncommon complacency; declared that he heartily
entered into the same association; that he should be always ready to
venture his life with his good subjects against all who should endeavour
to subvert the religion, laws, and liberties of England; and he promised
that this and all other associations should be lodged among the records
of the Tower of London. Next day the commons resolved, that whoever
should affirm an association was illegal, should be deemed a promoter
of the designs of the late king James, and an enemy to the laws and
liberties of the kingdom. The lords followed the example of the lower
house in drawing up an association; but the earl of Nottingham, sir
Edward Seymour, and Mr. Finch, objected to the words rightful and lawful
as applied to his majesty. They said as the crown and its prerogatives
were vested in him, they would yield obedience, though they could not
acknowledge him as their rightful and lawful king.
Nothing could be more absurd than this distinction, started by men
who had actually constituted part of the administration; unless they
supposed that the right of king William expired with queen Mary.
The earl of Rochester proposed an expedient in favour of such tender
consciences, by altering the words that gave offence; and this was
adopted accordingly. Fifteen of the peers, and ninety-two commoners,
signed the association with reluctance. It was, however, subscribed by
all sorts of people in different parts of the kingdom; and the bishops
drew up a form for the clergy, which was signed by a great majority. The
commons brought in a bill, declaring all men incapable of public trust,
or of sitting in parliament, who would not engage in this association.
At the same time the council issued an order for renewing all the
commissions in England, that those who had not signed it voluntarily
should be dismissed from the service as disaffected persons.
ESTABLISHMENT OF A LAND-BANK.
After these warm demonstrations of loyalty, the commons proceeded upon
ways and means for raising the supplies. A new bank was constituted as
a fund, upon which the sum of two millions five hundred and sixty-four
thousand pounds should be raised; and it was called the land-bank,
because established on land securities. This scheme, said to have been
projected by the famous Dr. Chamberlain, was patronised by the earl of
Sunderland, and managed by Foley and Harley; so that it seemed to be a
tory plan which Sunderland supported, in order to reconcile himself to
that party. [067] _[See note O, at the end of this Vol.]_ The bank of
England petitioned against this bill, and were heard by their counsel;
but their representations produced no effect, and the bill having passed
through both houses, received the royal assent. On the twenty-seventh
day of April the king closed the session with a short but gracious
speech; and the parliament was prorogued to the sixteenth day of June.
Before this period some of the conspirators had been brought to trial.
The first who suffered was Robert Charnock, one of the two fellows
of Magdalen-college, who, in the reign of James, had renounced the
protestant religion; the next were lieutenant King and Thomas Keys,
which last had been formerly a trumpeter, but of late servant to captain
Porter. They were found guilty of high treason, and executed at Tyburn.
They delivered papers to the sheriff, in which they solemnly declared,
that they had never seen or heard of any commission from king James for
assassinating the prince of Orange; Charnock in particular observed,
that he had received frequent assurances of the king’s having rejected
such proposals when they had been offered; and that there was no other
commission but that for levying war in the usual form. Sir John Friend
and sir William Perkins were tried in April. The first, from mean
beginnings, had acquired great wealth and credit, and always firmly
adhered to the interests of king James. The other was likewise a man of
fortune, violently attached to the same principles, though he had
taken the oaths to the present government as one of the six clerks in
chancery. Porter and Blair, another evidence, deposed, that sir John
Friend had been concerned in levying men under a commission from king
James, and that he knew of the assassination plot, though not engaged
in it as a personal actor. He endeavoured to invalidate the testimony
of Blair, by proving him guilty of the most shocking ingratitude. He
observed that both the evidences were reputed papists. The curate of
Hackney, who officiated as chaplain in the prisoner’s house, declared
upon oath, that after the revolution he used to pray for king William,
and that he had often heard sir John Friend say that though he could not
comply with the present government, he would live peaceably under it,
and never engage in any conspiracy. Mr. Hoadley, father of the present
bishop of Winchester, added, that the prisoner was a good protestant,
and frequently expressed his detestation of king-killing principles.
Friend himself owned he had been with some of the conspirators at a
meeting in Leadenhall-street, but heard nothing of raising men, or any
design against the government. He likewise affirmed that a consultation
to levy war was not treason; and that his being at a treasonable consult
could amount to no more than a misprison of treason. Lord chief justice
Holt declared, that although a bare conspiracy, or design to levy war,
was not treason within the statute of Edward III., yet if the design or
conspiracy be to kill, or depose, or imprison the king, by the means of
levying war, then the consultation and conspiracy to levy war becomes
high treason though no war be actually levied. The same inference might
have been drawn against the authors and instruments of the revolution.
The judge’s explanation influenced the jury, who, after some
deliberation, found the prisoner guilty. Next day sir William Perkins
was brought to the bar, and upon the testimony of Porter, Ewebank, his
own groom, and Haywood, a notorious informer, was convicted of having
been concerned not only in the invasion, but also in the design against
the king’s life. The evidence was scanty, and the prisoner having been
bred to the law, made an artful and vigorous defence: but the judge
acted as counsel for the crown; and the jury decided by the hints they
received from the bench. He and sir John Friend underwent the sentence
of death, and suffered at Tyburn on the third day of April. Friend
protested before God that he knew of no immediate descent purposed by
king James, and therefore had made no preparations; that he was utterly
ignorant of the assassination scheme; that he died in the communion of
the church of England, and laid down his life cheerfully in the cause
for which he suffered. Perkins declared, upon the word of a dying man,
that the tenour of the king’s commission which he saw was general,
directed to all his loving subjects, to raise and levy war against the
prince of Orange and his adherents, and to seize all forts, castles,
&c, but that he neither saw nor heard of any commission particularly
levelled against the person of the prince of Orange. He owned, however,
that he was privy to the design; but believed it was known to few or
none but the immediate undertakers. These two criminals were in their
last moments attended by Collier, Snatt, and Cook, three nonjuring
clergymen, who absolved them in the view of the populace, with an
imposition of hands; a public insult on the government which did not
pass unnoticed. Those three clergyman were presented by the grand jury
for having countenanced the treason by absolving the traitors, and
thereby encouraged other persons to disturb the peace of the kingdom. An
indictment being preferred against them, Cook and Snatt were committed
to Newgate; but Collier absconded, and published a vindication of their
conduct, in which he affirmed that the imposition of hands was the
general practice of the primitive church. On the other hand, the
two metropolitans and twelve other bishops subscribed a declaration,
condemning the administration of absolution without a previous
confession made, and abhorrence expressed, by the prisoners of the
heinous crimes for which they suffered.
In the course of the same month, Rookwood, Cranborne, and Lowick, were
tried as conspirators by a special commission in the king’s-bench, and
convicted on the joint testimony of Porter, Harris, La Rue, Bertram,
Fisher, and Pendergrass. Some favourable circumstances appeared in the
case of Lowick. The proof of his having been concerned in the design
against the king’s life was very defective; many persons of reputation
declared he was an honest, good natured, inoffensive man; and he himself
concluded his defence with the most solemn protestation of his own
innocence. Great intercession was made for his pardon by some noblemen;
but all their interest proved ineffectual. Cranborne died in a transport
of indignation, leaving a paper which the government thought proper to
suppress. Lowick and Rookwood likewise delivered declarations to the
sheriff, the contents of which as being less inflammatory were allowed
to be published. Both solemnly denied any knowledge of a commission from
king James to assassinate the prince of Orange; the one affirming that
he was incapable of granting such an order; and the other asserting
that he, the best of kings, had often rejected proposals of that nature.
Lowick owned that he would have joined the king at his landing; but
declared he had never been concerned in any bloody affair during the
whole course of his life. On the contrary, he said he had endeavoured
to prevent bloodshed as much as lay in his power; and that he would not
kill the most miserable creature in the world, even though such an act
would save his life, restore his sovereign, and make him one of
the greatest men in England. Rookwood alleged he was engaged by his
immediate commander, whom he thought it was his duty to obey, though the
service was much against his judgment and inclination. He professed his
abhorrence of treachery even to an enemy. He forgave all mankind,
even the prince of Orange, who as a soldier, he said, ought to have
considered his case before he signed his death warrant; he prayed God
would open his eyes, and render him sensible of the blood that was from
all parts crying against him, so as he might avert a heavier execution
than that which he now ordered to be inflicted. The next person brought
to trial was Mr. Cooke, son of sir Miles Cooke, one of the six clerks
in chancery. Porter and Goodman deposed that he had been present at two
meetings at the King’s-head tavern in Leadenhall-street, with the lords
Aylesbury and Montgomery, sir William Perkins, sir John Fenwick,
sir John Friend, Charnock, and Porter. The evidence of Goodman was
invalidated by the testimony of the landlord and two drawers belonging
to the tavern, who swore that Goodman was not there while the noblemen
were present. The prisoner himself solemnly protested, that he was ever
averse to the introduction of foreign forces; that he did not so much
as hear of the intended invasion until it became the common topic of
conversation; and that he had never seen Goodman at the King’s-head. He
declared his intention of receiving the blessed sacrament, and wished he
might perish in the instant if he now spoke untruth. No respect was
paid to these asseverations. The solicitor-general Hawles, and lord
chief-justice Treby, treated him with great severity in the prosecution
and charge to the jury, by whom he was capitally convicted. After
his condemnation, the court-agents tampered with him to make further
discoveries; and after his fate had been protracted by divers short
reprieves, he was sent into banishment. From the whole tenour of
these discoveries and proceedings, it appears that James had actually
meditated an invasion; that his partisans in England had made
preparations for joining him on his arrival; that a few desperadoes of
that faction had concerted a scheme against the life of king William;
that in prosecuting the conspirators, the court had countenanced
informers; that the judges had strained the law, wrested circumstances,
and even deviated from the function of their office, to convict
the prisoners; in a word, that the administration had used the same
arbitrary and unfair practices against those unhappy people, which they
themselves had in the late reigns numbered among the grievances of the
kingdom.
{WILLIAM, 1688--1701.}
THE ALLIES BURN THE MAGAZINE AT GIVET.
The warmth, however, manifested on this occasion may have been owing
to national resentment of the purposed invasion. Certain it is, the
two houses of parliament and the people in general were animated with
extraordinary indignation against France at this juncture. The
lords besought his majesty in a solemn address to appoint a day of
thanksgiving to Almighty God for having defeated the barbarous purpose
of his enemies; and this was observed with uncommon zeal and devotion.
Admiral Russel, leaving a squadron for observation on the French
coast, returned to the Downs; but sir Cloudesley Shovel, being properly
prepared for the expedition, subjected Calais to another bombardment, by
which the town was set on fire in different parts, and the inhabitants
were overwhelmed with consternation. The generals of the allied army in
Flanders resolved to make some immediate retaliation upon the French for
their unmanly design upon the life of king William, as they took it for
granted that Louis was accessary to the scheme of assassination. That
monarch, on the supposition that a powerful diversion would be made
by the descent on England, had established a vast magazine at Givet,
designing, when the allies should be enfeebled by the absence of
the British troops, to strike some stroke of importance early in
the campaign. On this the confederates now determined to wreak their
vengeance. In the beginning of March the earl of Athlone and monsieur
de Coehorn, with the concurrence of the duke of Holstein-Ploen, who
commanded the allies, sent a strong detachment of horse, drafted from
Brussels and the neighbouring garrisons, to amuse the enemy on the side
of Charleroy, while they assembled forty squadrons, thirty battalions,
with fifteen pieces of cannon, and six mortars, in the territory of
Namur. Athlone with a part of this body invested Dinant, while Coehorn
with the remainder advanced to Givet. He forthwith began to batter and
bombard the place, which in three hours was on fire, and by four in the
afternoon wholly destroyed, with the great magazine it contained.
Then the two generals joining their forces returned to Namur without
interruption. Hitherto the republic of Venice had deferred acknowledging
king William; but now they sent an extraordinary embassy for that
purpose, consisting of signiors Soranzo and Venier, who arrived in
London, and on the first day of May had a public audience. The king on
this occasion knighted Soranzo as the senior ambassador, and presented
him with the sword according to custom. On that day, too, William
declared in council that he had appointed the same regency which had
governed the kingdom during his last absence, and embarking on the
seventh at Margate, arrived at Orange-Polder in the evening, under
convoy of vice-admiral Aylmer. This officer had been ordered to attend
with a squadron, as the famous Du Bart still continued at Dunkirk,
and some attempt of importance was apprehended from his enterprising
genius.*
* Some promotions were made before the king left England.
George Hamilton, third son of the duke of that name, was for
his military services in Ireland and Flanders created earl
of Orkney. Sir John Lowther was ennobled by the title of
baron Lowther and viscount Lonsdale; sir John Thompson made
baron of Haversham; and the celebrated John Locke appointed
one of the commissioners of trade and plantation.
LOUIS MAKES ADVANCES TOWARDS A PEACE WITH HOLLAND.
The French had taken the field before the allied army could be
assembled; but no transaction of consequence distinguished this campaign
either upon the Rhine or in Flanders. The scheme of Louis was still
defensive on the side of the Netherlands, while the active plans of
king William were defeated by want of money. All the funds for this year
proved defective: the land-bank failed, and the national bank sustained
a rude shock in its credit. The loss of the nation upon the recoinage,
amounted to two millions two hundred thousand pounds; and though the
different mints were employed without interruption, they could not for
some months supply the circulation, especially as great part of the new
money was kept up by those who received it in payment, or disposed of
it at an unreasonable advantage. The French king having exhausted the
wealth and patience of his subjects, and greatly diminished their
number in the course of this war, began to be diffident of his arms, and
employed all the arts of private negotiation. While his minister D’Avaux
pressed the king of Sweden to offer his mediation, he sent Callieres to
Holland with proposals for settling the preliminaries of a treaty.
He took it for granted that as the Dutch were a trading people, whose
commerce had greatly suffered in the war, they could not be averse to
a pacification; and he instructed his emissaries to tamper with
the malcontents of the republic, especially with the remains of the
Louvestein faction, which had always opposed the schemes of the
stadtholder. Callieres met with a favourable reception from the states,
which began to treat with him about the preliminaries, though not
without the consent and concurrence of king William and the rest of the
allies. Louis, with a view to quicken the effect of this negotiation,
pursued offensive measures in Catalonia, where his general the duke de
Vendome attacked and worsted the Spaniards in their camp near Ostalrick,
though the action was not decisive; for that general was obliged to
retreat after having made vigorous efforts against their intrenchments.
On the twentieth day of June, mareschal de Lorges passed the Rhine
at Philips-burg and encamped within a league of Eppingen, where the
Imperial troops were obliged to intrench themselves, under the command
of the prince of Baden, as they were not yet joined by the auxiliary
forces. The French general after having faced him about a month,
thought proper to repass the river. Then he detached a body of horse to
Flanders, and cantoned the rest of his troops at Spires, Franckendahl,
Worms, and Ostofen. On the last day of August the prince of Baden
retaliated the insult, by passing the Rhine at Mentz and Cocsheim. On
the tenth he was joined by general Thungen, who commanded a separate
body, together with the militia of Suabia and Franconia, and advanced to
the camp of the enemy, who had reassembled; but they were posted in such
a manner that he would not hazard an attack. Having therefore cannonaded
them for some days, scoured the adjacent country by detached parties,
and taken the little castle of Wiezengen, he repassed the river at
Worms on the seventh day of October: the French likewise crossed at
Philipsburgh in hopes of surprising general Thungen, who had taken post
in the neighbourhood of Strasbourg; but he retired to Eppingen before
their arrival, and in a little time both armies were distributed in
winter quarters. Peter, the czar of Muscovy, carried on the siege of
Azoph with such vigour, that the garrison was obliged to capitulate
after the Russians had defeated a great convoy sent to its relief. The
court of Vienna forthwith engaged in an alliance with the Muscovite
emperor; but they did not exert themselves in taking advantage of the
disaster which the Turks had undergone. The Imperial army, commanded by
the elector of Saxony, continued inactive on the river Marosch till the
nineteenth day of July, then they made a feint of attacking Temiswaer;
but they inarched towards Betzkerch, in their route to Belgrade, on
receiving advice that the grand seignor intended to besiege Titul. On
the twenty-first day of August, the two armies were in sight of each
other. The Turkish horse attacked the Imperialists in a plain near the
river Begue, but were repulsed. The Germans next day made a show of
retreating, in hopes of drawing the enemy from their intrenchments. The
stratagem succeeded. On the twenty-sixth the Turkish army was in motion.
A detachment of the Imperialists attacked them in flank as they marched
through a wood. A very desperate action ensued, in which the generals
Heusler and Poland, with many other gallant officers, lost their lives.
At length the Ottoman horse were routed; but the Germans were so roughly
handled, that on the second day after the engagement they retreated at
midnight, and the Turks remained quiet in their intrenchments.
In Piedmont the face of affairs underwent a strange alteration. The duke
of Savoy, who had for some time been engaged in a secret negotiation
with France, at length embraced the offers of that crown, and privately
signed a separate treaty of peace at Loretto, to which place he repaired
on a pretended pilgrimage. The French king engaged to present him with
four millions of livres by way of reparation for the damage he had
sustained, to assist him with a certain number of auxiliaries against all
his enemies, and to effect a marriage between the duke of Burgundy and
the princess of Piedmont, as soon as the parties should be marriageable.
The treaty was guaranteed by the pope and the Venetians, who were
extremely desirous of seeing the Germans driven out of Italy.
King William being apprized of this negotiation, communicated the
intelligence to the earl of Galway, his ambassador at Turin, who
expostulated with the duke upon this defection; but he persisted in
denying any such correspondence, until the advance of the French army
enabled him to avow it without fearing the resentment of the allies whom
he had abandoned. Catinat marched into the plains of Turin at the
head of fifty thousand men, an army greatly superior to that of the
confederates. Then the duke imparted to the ministers of the allies the
proposals which France had made; represented the superior strength
of her army; the danger to which he was exposed; and, finally, his
inclination to embrace her offers. On the twelfth of July a truce was
concluded for a month, and afterwards prolonged till the fifteenth of
September. He wrote to all the powers engaged in the confederacy, except
King William, expatiating on the same topics, and soliciting their
consent. Though each in particular refused to concur, he on the
twenty-third day of August signed the treaty in public which he had
before concluded in private. The emperor was no sooner informed of his
design, than he took every step which he thought could divert him from
his purpose. He sent the count Mansfeldt to Turin with proposals for a
match between the king of the Romans and the princess of Savoy, as well
as with offers to augment his forces and his subsidy; but the duke had
already settled his terms with France, from which he would not recede.
Prince Eugene, though his kinsman, expressed great indignation at his
conduct. The young prince de Commercy was so provoked at his defection
that he challenged him to single combat, and the duke accepted of
his challenge; but the quarrel was compromised by the intervention of
friends, and they parted in an amicable manner. He had concealed the
treaty until he should receive the remaining part of the subsidies due
to him from the confederates. A considerable sum had been remitted
from England to Genoa for his use; but lord Galway no sooner received
intimation of his new engagement, than he put a stop to the payment of
this money, which he employed in the Milanese for the subsistence of
those troops that were in the British service. King William was encamped
at Gemblours when the duke’s envoy notified the separate peace which his
master had concluded with the king of France. Though he was extremely
chagrined at the information, he dissembled his anger and listened to
the minister without the least emotion. One of the conditions of this
treaty was, that within a limited time the allies should evacuate the
duke’s dominions, otherwise they should be expelled by the joint forces
of France and Savoy. A neutrality was offered to the confederates;
and this being rejected, the contracting powers resolved to attack the
Milanese. Accordingly when the truce expired, the duke, as generalissimo
of the French king, entered that duchy and undertook the siege of
Valentia; so that in one campaign he commanded two contending armies.
The garrison of Valentia, consisting of seven thousand men, Germans,
Spaniards, and French protestants, made an obstinate defence; and the
duke of Savoy prosecuted the siege with uncommon impetuosity. But after
the trenches had been open for thirteen days, a courier arrived from
Madrid with an account of his catholic majesty’s having agreed to the
neutrality for Italy. This agreement imported that there should be a
suspension of arms until a general peace could be effected; and that the
Imperial and French troops should return to their respective countries.
Christendom had well nigh been embroiled anew by the death of John
Sobieski, king of Poland, who died at the age of seventy in the course
of this summer, after having survived his faculties and reputation.
As the crown was elective, a competition arose for the succession. The
kingdom was divided by factions; and the different powers of Europe
interested themselves warmly in the contention.
NAVAL TRANSACTIONS.
Nothing of consequence had been lately achieved by the naval force of
England. When the conspiracy was first discovered, sir George Rooke had
received orders to return from Cadiz, and he arrived in the latter
end of April. While he took his place at the board of admiralty, lord
Berkeley succeeded to the command of the fleet, and in the month of
June set sail towards Ushant in order to insult the coast of France. He
pillaged and burned the villages on the islands Grouais, Houat, and Hey
die; made prize of about twenty vessels; bombarded St. Martin’s on the
isle of Ehé, and the town of Olonne, which was set on fire in fifteen
different places with the shells and carcasses. Though these appear to
have been enterprises of small import, they certainly kept the whole
coast of France in perpetual alarm. The ministry of that kingdom were
so much afraid of invasion, that between Brest and Goulet they ordered
above one hundred batteries to be erected, and above sixty thousand men
were continually in arms for the defence of the maritime places. In the
month of May rear-admiral Benbow sailed with a small squadron in
order to block up Du Bart in the harbour of Dunkirk; but that famous
adventurer found means to escape in a fog, and steering to the eastward
attacked the Dutch fleet in the Baltic under a convoy of five frigates.
These last he took, together with half the number of the trading ships;
but falling in with the outward bound fleet convoyed by thirteen ships
of the line, he was obliged to burn four of the frigates, turn the fifth
adrift, and part with all his prizes except fifteen, which he carried
into Dunkirk.
PROCEEDINGS IN THE PARLIAMENTS OF SCOTLAND AND IRELAND.
The parliament of Scotland met on the eighth day of September, and lord
Murray, secretary of state, now earl of Tullibardine, presided as king’s
commissioner. Though that kingdom was exhausted by the war and two
successive bad harvests, which had driven a great number of the
inhabitants into Ireland, there was no opposition to the court measures.
The members of parliament signed an association like that of England.
They granted a supply of one hundred and twenty thousand pounds for
maintaining their forces by sea and land. They passed an act for
securing their religion, lives, and properties, in case his majesty
should come to an untimely death. By another they obliged all persons
in public trust to sign the association, and then the parliament was
adjourned to the eighth day of December. The disturbances of Ireland
seemed now to be entirely appeased. Lord Capel dying in May, the
council, by virtue of an act passed in the reign of Henry VIII.,
elected the chancellor, sir Charles Porter, to be lord justice and chief
governor of that kingdom, until his majesty’s pleasure should be known.
The parliament met in June: the commons expelled Mr. Sanderson, the
only member of that house who had refused to sign the association, and
adjourned to the fourth day of August. By that time sir Charles Porter
and the earls of Montrath and Drogheda were appointed lords justices,
and signified the king’s pleasure that they should adjourn. In the
beginning of December the chancellor died of an apoplexy.
ZEAL OF THE ENGLISH COMMONS IN THEIR AFFECTION TO THE KING.
King William being tired of an inactive campaign, left the army under
the command of the elector of Bavaria, and about the latter end of
August repaired to his palace at Loo, where he enjoyed his favourite
exercise of stag-hunting. He visited the court of Brandenburgh at
Cleves; conferred with the states of Holland at the Hague; and,
embarking for England, landed at Margate on the sixth day of October.
The domestic economy of the nation was extremely perplexed at this
juncture from the sinking of public credit, and the stagnation that
necessarily attended a recoinage. These grievances were with difficulty
removed by the clear apprehension, the enterprising genius, the unshaken
fortitude of Mr. Montague, chancellor of the exchequer, operating upon
a national spirit of adventure, which the monied interest had produced.
The king opened the session of parliament on the twentieth day of
October, with a speech importing that overtures had been made for a
negotiation, but that the best way of treating with France would be
sword in hand. He therefore desired they would be expeditious in raising
the supplies for the service of the ensuing year, as well as for making
good the funds already granted. He declared that the civil list could
not be supported without their assistance. He recommended the miserable
condition of the French protestants to their compassion. He desired
they would contrive the best expedients for the recovery of the national
credit. He observed that unanimity and despatch were now more than ever
necessary, for the honour, safety, and advantage of England. The commons
having taken this speech into consideration, resolved that they
would support his majesty and his government, and assist him in the
prosecution of the war; that the standard of gold and silver should not
be altered; and that they would make good all parliamentary funds. Then
they presented an address in a very spirited strain, declaring, that
notwithstanding the blood and treasure of which the nation had been
drained, the commons of England would not be diverted from their firm
resolutions of obtaining by war a safe and honourable peace. They
therefore renewed their assurances that they would support his majesty
against all his enemies at home and abroad. The house of lords delivered
another to the same purpose, declaring that they would never be wanting
or backward on their parts in what might be necessary to his majesty’s
honour, the good of his kingdoms, and the quiet of Christendom. The
commons, in the first transports of their zeal, ordered two seditious
pamphlets to be burned by the hands of the common hangman. They
deliberated upon the estimates, and granted above six millions for
the service of the ensuing-year. They resolved that a supply should
be granted for making good the deficiency of parliamentary funds, and
appropriated several duties for this purpose.
RESOLUTIONS TOUCHING THE COIN, &c.
With respect to the coin they brought in a bill repealing an act for
taking off the obligation and encouragement of coining guineas for a
certain time, and for importing and coining guineas and half guineas, as
the extravagant price of those coins which occasioned this act was now
fallen. They passed a second bill for remedying the ill state of the
coin; and a third, explaining an act in the preceding session for laying
duties on low wines and spirits of the first extraction. In order
to raise the supplies of the year, they resolved to tax all persons
according to the true value of their real and personal estates, their
stock upon land and in trade, their income by offices, pensions, and
professions. A duty of one penny per week for one year was laid upon all
persons not receiving alms. A further imposition of one farthing in the
pound per week was fixed upon all servants receiving four pounds per
annum as wages, and upwards to eight pounds a-year inclusive. Those who
received from eight to sixteen pounds were taxed at one halfpenny per
pound. An aid of three shillings in the pound for one year was laid upon
all lands, tenements, and hereditaments, according to their true value.
Without specifying the particulars of those impositions, we shall only
observe that, in the general charge, the commons did not exempt one
member of the commonwealth that could be supposed able to bear any part
of the burden. Provision was made that hammered money should be received
in payment of these duties at the rate of five shillings and eightpence
per ounce. All the deficiencies on annuities and monies borrowed on the
credit of the exchequer, were transferred to this aid. The treasury
was enabled to borrow a million and a half at eight per cent, and to
circulate exchequer bills to the amount of as much more. To cancel these
debts the surplus of all the supplies, except the three-shilling-aid,
was appropriated. The commons voted one hundred and twenty-five thousand
pounds for making good the deficiency in recoining the hammered money,
and the recompence for bringing in plate to the mint. This sum was
raised by a tax or duty upon wrought plate, paper, pasteboard, vellum,
and parchment, made or imported. Taking into consideration the services
and the present languishing state of the bank, whose notes were at
twenty per cent, discount, they resolved that it should be enlarged
by new subscriptions, made by four-fifths in tallies struck on
parliamentary funds, and one-fifth in bank-bills or notes; that
effectual provision should be made by parliament for paying the
principal of all such tallies as should be subscribed into the bank, out
of the funds agreed to be continued; that an interest of eight per cent,
should be allowed on all such tallies; and that the continuance of the
bank should be prolonged to the first day of August, in the year one
thousand seven hundred and ten. That all assignments of orders or
tallies subscribed into the bank should be registered in the exchequer;
that before the day should be fixed for the beginning of the new
subscriptions, the old should be made one hundred per cent., and what
might exceed that value should be divided among the old members; that
all the interest due on those tallies which might be subscribed into the
bank-stock, at that time appointed for subscriptions, to the end of the
last preceding quarter on each tally, should be allowed as principal;
that liberty should be given by parliament to enlarge the number of
bank-bills to the value of the sum that should be so subscribed over
and above the twelve hundred thousand pounds, provided they should
be obliged to answer such bills on demand, and in default thereof be
answered by the exchequer out of the first money due to them; that no
other bank should be erected or allowed by act of parliament during the
continuance of the bank of England; that this should be exempted from
all tax or imposition; that no act of the corporation should forfeit
the particular interest of any person concerned therein; that provision
should be made to prevent the officers of the exchequer, and all other
officers and receivers of the revenue, from diverting, delaying, or
obstructing the course of payments to the bank; that care should be
taken to prevent the altering, counterfeiting, or forging any bank bills
or notes; that the estates and interest of each member in the stock of
the corporation should be made a personal estate; that no contract
made for any bank stock to be bought or sold, should be valid in law or
equity unless actually registered in the bank books within seven days,
and actually transferred within fourteen days after the contract
should be made. A bill upon these resolutions was brought in under
the direction of the chancellor of the exchequer: it related to the
continuation of tonnage and poundage upon wine, vinegar, and tobacco,
and comprehended a clause for laying an additional duty upon salt for
two years and three quarters. All the several branches constituted a
general fund, since known by the name of the general mortgage, without
prejudice to their former appropriations. The bill also provided that
the tallies should bear eight per cent, interest; that from the tenth
of June for five years they should bear no more than six per cent,
interest; and that no premium or discount upon them should be taken.
In case of the general funds proving insufficient to pay the whole
interest, it was provided that every proprietor should receive his
proportion of the product, and the deficiency be made good from the next
aid; but should the fund produce more than the interest, the surplus
was destined to operate as a sinking fund for the discharge of the
principal. In order to make up a deficiency of above eight hundred
thousand pounds occasioned by the failure of the land-bank, additional
duties were laid upon leather; the time was enlarged for persons to come
in and purchase the annuities payable by several former acts, and to
obtain more certain interest in such annuities.
Never were more vigorous measures taken to support the credit of
the government; and never was the government served by such a set of
enterprising undertakers. The commons having received a message from the
king touching the condition of the civil list, resolved that a sum not
exceeding five hundred and fifteen thousand pounds should be granted for
the support of the civil list for the ensuing year, to be raised by a
malt tax and additional duties upon mum sweets, cyder, and perry. They
likewise resolved that an additional aid of one shilling in the pound
should be laid upon land, as an equivalent for the duty of ten per
cent, upon mixed goods. Provision was made for raising one million four
hundred thousand pounds by a lottery. The treasury was empowered to
issue an additional number of exchequer bills to the amount of twelve
hundred thousand pounds, every hundred pounds bearing interest at the
rate of fivepence a-day, and ten per cent, for circulation; finally, in
order to liquidate the transport-debt, which the funds established for
that purpose had not been sufficient to defray, a money-bill was brought
in to oblige pedlars and hawkers to take out licenses, and pay for them
at certain stated prices. One cannot without astonishment reflect upon
the prodigious efforts that were made upon this occasion, or consider
without indignation the enormous fortunes that were raised up by usurers
and extortioners from the distresses of their country. The nation
did not seem to know its own strength, until it was put to this
extraordinary trial; and the experiment of mortgaging funds succeeded so
well, that later ministers have proceeded in the same system, imposing
burden upon burden, as if they thought the sinews of the nation could
never be overstrained.
{WILLIAM, 1688--1701.}
SIR JOHN FENWICK IS APPREHENDED, CONDEMNED, AND BEHEADED.
The public credit being thus bolstered up by the singular address of Mr.
Montague, and the bills passed for the supplies of the ensuing year,
the attention of the commons was transferred to the case of sir John
Fen-wick, who had been apprehended in the month of June at New Romney,
in his way to France. He had when taken written a letter to his lady by
one Webber, who accompanied him; but this man being seized, the letter
was found, containing such a confession as plainly evinced him guilty.
He then entered into a treaty with the court for turning evidence, and
delivered a long information in writing, which was sent abroad to his
majesty. He made no discoveries that could injure any of the Jacobites,
who, by his account, and other concurring testimonies, appeared to
be divided into two parties, known by the names of compounders and
non-com-pounders. The first, headed by the earl of Middleton, insisted
upon receiving security from king James that the religion and liberties
of England should be preserved; whereas the other party, at the head
of which was the earl of Melfort, resolved to bring him in without
conditions, relying upon his own honour and generosity. King William
having sent over an order for bringing Fenwick to trial, unless he
should make more material discoveries, the prisoner, with a view to
amuse the ministry until he could take other measures for his own
safety, accused the earls of Shrewsbury, Marlborough, and Bath, the
lord Godolphin, and admiral Russel, of having made their peace with
king James, and engaged to act for his interest. Meanwhile his lady and
relations tampered with the two witnesses, Porter and Goodman. The first
of these discovered those practices to the government; and one
Clancey, who acted as agent for lady Fenwick, was tried, convicted
of subornation, fined, and set in the pillory; but they had succeeded
better in their attempts upon Goodman, who disappeared; so that one
witness only remained, and Fenwick began to think his life was out
of danger. Admiral Russel acquainted the house of commons that he and
several persons of quality had been reflected upon in some informations
of sir John Fenwick; he therefore desired that he might have an
opportunity to justify his own character. Mr. secretary Trumball
produced the papers, which having been read, the commons ordered that
sir John Fenwick should be brought to the bar of the house. There he was
exhorted by the speaker to make an ample discovery; which, however,
he declined, except with the proviso that he should first receive some
security that what he might say should not prejudice himself. He was
ordered to withdraw until they should have deliberated on his request.
Then he was called in again, and the speaker told him that he might
deserve the favour of the house by making a full discovery. He desired
he might be indulged with a little time to recollect himself, and
promised to obey the command of the house. This favour being denied, he
again insisted upon having security; which they refusing to grant, he
chose to be silent, and was dismissed from the bar. The house voted
that his informations reflecting upon the fidelity of several noblemen,
members of the house, and others, upon hearsay, were false and
scandalous, contrived to undermine the government, and create jealousies
between the king and his subjects in order to stifle the conspiracy.
A motion being made for leave to bring in a bill to attaint him of high
treason, a warm debate ensued, and the question being put, was carried
in the affirmative by a great majority. He was furnished with a copy of
the bill, and allowed the use of pen, ink, paper, and counsel. When he
presented a petition praying that his counsel might be heard against
passing the bill, they made an order that his counsel should be allowed
to make his defence at the bar of the house; so that he was surprised
into an irregular trial, instead of being indulged with an opportunity
of offering objections to their passing the bill of attainder. He was
accordingly brought to the bar of the house; and the bill being read
in his hearing, the speaker called upon the king’s counsel to open the
evidence. The prisoner’s counsel objected to their proceeding to trial,
alleging that their client had not received the least notice of their
purpose, and therefore could not be prepared for his defence; but that
they came to offer their reasons against the bill. The house, after a
long debate, resolved, that he should be allowed further time to produce
witnesses in his defence; that the counsel for the king should likewise
be allowed to produce evidence to prove the treasons of which he stood
indicted; and an order was made for his being brought to the bar
again in three days. In pursuance of this order he appeared, when
the indictment which had been found against him by the grand jury was
produced; and Porter was examined as an evidence. Then the record of
Clancey’s conviction was read; and one Roe testified that Deighton, the
prisoner’s solicitor, had offered him an annuity of one hundred pounds
to discredit the testimony of Goodman. The king’s counsel moved, that
Goodman’s examination, as taken by Mr. Vernon, clerk of the council,
might be read. Sir J. Powis and sir Bartholomew Shower, the prisoner’s
counsel, warmly opposed this proposal; they affirmed that a deposition
taken when the party affected by it was not present to cross-examine the
deposer, could not be admitted in a case of five shillings value; that
though the house was not bound by the rules of inferior courts, it was
nevertheless bound by the eternal and unalterable rules of justice; that
no evidence, according to the rules of law, could be admitted in such a
case but that of living witnesses; and that the examination of a person
who is absent was never read to supply his testimony. The dispute
between the lawyers on this subject gave rise to a very violent debate
among the members of the house. Sir Edward Seymour, sir Richard Temple,
Mr. Harley, Mr. Harcourt, Mr. Manly, sir Christopher Musgrave, and all
the leaders of the tory party, argued against the hardship and injustice
of admitting this information as an evidence. They demonstrated that it
would be a step contrary to the practice of all courts of judicature,
repugnant to the common notions of justice and humanity, diametrically
opposite to the last act for regulating trials in cases of high treason,
and of dangerous consequences to the lives and liberties of the people.
On the other hand, lord Cutts, sir Thomas Lyttleton, Mr. Montague, Mr.
Smith of the treasury, and Trevor the attorney-general, affirmed that
the house was not bound by any form of law whatsoever; that this was
an extraordinary case in which the safety of the government was deeply
concerned; that though the common law might require two evidences in
cases of treason, the house had a power of deviating from those rules
in extraordinary cases; that there was no reason to doubt of sir John
Fenwick’s being concerned in the conspiracy; that he or his friends had
tampered with Porter; and that there were strong presumptions to believe
the same practices had induced Goodman to abscond. In a word, the
tories, either from party or patriotism, strenuously asserted the cause
of liberty and humanity by those very arguments which had been used
against them in the former reigns; while the wings, with equal
violence and more success, espoused the dictates of arbitrary power and
oppression, in the face of their former principles, with which they
were now upbraided. At length the question was put, whether or not
the information of Goodman should be read? and was carried in the
affirmative by a majority of seventy-three voices. Then two of the grand
jury who had found the indictment, recited the evidence which had been
given to them by Porter and Goodman; lastly, the king’s counsel insisted
upon producing the record of Cooke’s conviction, as he had been tried
for the same conspiracy. The prisoner’s counsel objected, that if such
evidence was admitted, the trial of one person in the same company would
be the trial of all; and it could not be expected that they who came to
defend sir John Fenwick only, should be prepared to answer the charge
against Cooke. This article produced another vehement debate among the
members; and the whigs obtained a second victory. The record was read,
and the king’s counsel proceeded to call some of the jury who served
on Cooke’s trial to affirm that he had been convicted on Goodman’s
evidence. Sir Bartholomew Shower said he would submit it to the
consideration of the house, whether it was just that the evidence
against one person should conclude against another standing at a
different bar, in defence of his life? The parties were again ordered to
withdraw; and from this point arose a third debate, which ended as the
two former to the disadvantage of the prisoner. The jury being examined,
Mr. Sergeant Gould moved, that Mr. Vernon might be desired to produce
the intercepted letter from sir John Fenwick to his lady. The prisoner’s
counsel warmly opposed this motion, insisting upon their proving it to
be his hand writing before it could be used against him; and no further
stress was laid on this evidence. When they were called upon to enter
on his defence, they pleaded incapacity to deliver matters of such
importance after they had been fatigued with twelve hours’ attendance.
The house resolved to hear such evidence as the prisoner had to produce
that night. His counsel declared that they had nothing then to produce
but the copy of a record; and the second resolution was, that he should
be brought up again next day at noon. He accordingly appeared at the
bar, and sir J. Powis proceeded on his defence. He observed that the
bill under consideration affected the lives of the subjects; and such
precedents were dangerous; that sir John Fenwick was forthcoming in
order to be tried by the ordinary methods of justice; that he was
actually under process, had pleaded, and was ready to stand trial;
that if there was sufficient clear evidence against him, as the king’s
sergeant had declared, there was no reason for his being deprived of the
benefit of such a trial as was the birthright of every British subject;
and if there was a deficiency of legal evidence, he thought this was a
very odd reason for the bill. He took notice that even the regicides had
the benefit of such a trial; that the last act for regulating trials in
cases of treason proved the great tenderness of the laws which affected
the life of the subject; and he expressed his surprise that the very
parliament which had passed that law should enact another for putting
a person to death without any trial at all. He admitted that there
had been many bills of attainder, but they were generally levelled at
outlaws and fugitives; and some of them had been reversed in the sequel
as arbitrary and unjust. He urged that this bill of attainder did not
allege or say that sir John Fenwick was guilty of the treason for which
he had been indicted; a circumstance which prevented him from producing
witnesses to that and several matters upon which the king’s counsel had
expatiated. He said they had introduced evidence to prove circumstances
not alleged in the bill, and defective evidence of those that were; that
Porter was not examined upon oath; that nothing could be more severe
than to pass sentence of death upon a man, corrupt his blood, and
confiscate his estate, upon parole evidence; especially of such a wretch
who, by his own confession, had been engaged in a crime of the blackest
nature, not a convert to the dictates of conscience, but a coward,
shrinking from the danger by which he had been environed, and even
now drudging for a pardon. He invalidated the evidence of Goodman’s
examination. He observed that the indictment mentioned a conspiracy
to call in a foreign power; but as this conspiracy had not been put in
practice, such an agreement was not a sufficient overt-act of treason,
according to the opinion of Hawles the solicitor-general, concerned in
this very prosecution. So saying, he produced a book of remarks which
that lawyer had published on the cases of lord Russel, colonel Sidney,
and others, who had suffered death in the reign of Charles II. This
author, said he, takes notice, that a conspiracy or agreement to levy
war is not treason without actually levying war; a sentiment in which
he concurred with lord Coke, and lord chief-justice Hales. He concluded
with saying, “We know at present on what ground we stand; by the
statute of Edward III. we know what treason is; by the two statutes of
Edward VI. and the late act, we know what is proof; by the Magna Charta
we know we are to be tried _per legem terræ el per judicium parium_,
by the law of the land and the judgment of our peers; but if bills of
attainder come into fashion, we shall neither know what is treason, what
is evidence, nor how nor where we are to be tried.” He was seconded by
sir Bartholomew Shower, who spoke with equal energy and elocution; and
their arguments were answered by the king’s counsel. The arguments in
favour of the bill imported that the parliament would not interpose
except in extraordinary cases; that here the evidence necessary in
inferior courts being defective, the parliament, which was not tied down
by legal evidence, had a right to exert their extraordinary power in
punishing an offender, who would otherwise escape with impunity; that
as the law stood, he was but a sorry politician that could not ruin the
government, and yet elude the statute of treason; that if a plot,
after being discovered, should not be thoroughly prosecuted, it would
strengthen and grow upon the administration, and probably at length
subvert the government; that it was notorious that parties were forming
for king James; persons were plotting in every part of the kingdom, and
an open invasion was threatened; therefore this was a proper time for
the parliament to exert their extraordinary power; that the English
differed from all other nations in bringing the witnesses and the
prisoner face to face, and requiring two witnesses in cases of treason;
nor did the English law itself require the same proof in some cases as
in others, for one witness was sufficient in felony, as well as for the
treason of coining; that Fenwick was notoriously guilty, and deserved
to feel the resentment of the nation; that he would have been brought
to exemplary punishment in the ordinary course of justice, had he not
eluded it by corrupting evidence and withdrawing a witness. If
this reasoning be just, the house of commons has a right to act in
diametrical opposition to the laws in being; and is vested with a
despotic power over the lives and fortunes of their constituents, for
whose protection they are constituted. Let us therefore reflect upon
the possibility of a parliament debauched by the arts of corruption into
servile compliance with the designs of an arbitrary prince, and tremble
for the consequence. The debate being finished, the prisoner was, at the
desire of admiral Russel, questioned with regard to the imputations he
had fixed upon that gentleman and others from hearsay; but he desired
to be excused on account of the risk he ran while under a double
prosecution, if any thing which should escape him might be turned to his
prejudice.
After he was removed from the bar, Mr. Vernon, at the desire of the
house, recapitulated the arts and practices of sir John Fenwick and his
friends to procrastinate the trial. The bill was read a second time;
and the speaker asking, If the question should be put for its being
committed? the house was immediately kindled into a new flame of
contention. Hawles, the solicitor-general, affirmed that the house in
the present case should act both as judge and jury. Mr. Harcourt said he
knew of no trial for treason but what was confirmed by _Magna Charta_,
by a jury, the birthright and darling privilege of an Englishman, or
_per legem terræ_, which includes impeachments in parliament; that it
was a strange trial where the person accused had a chance to be hanged,
but none to be saved; that he never heard of a juryman who was not on
his oath, nor of a judge who had not power to examine witnesses upon
oath, and who was not empowered to save the innocent as well as to
condemn the guilty. Sir Thomas Lyttleton was of opinion that the
parliament ought not to stand upon little niceties and forms of other
courts when the government was at stake. Mr. Howe asserted that to do a
thing of this nature, because the parliament had power to do it, was
a strange way of reasoning; that what was justice and equity at
Westminster-hall, was justice and equity every where; that one bad
precedent in parliament was of worse consequence than an hundred in
Westminster-hall, because personal or private injuries did not foreclose
the claims of original right; whereas the parliament could ruin the
nation beyond redemption, because it could establish tyranny by law. Sir
Richard Temple, in arguing against the bill, observed that the power of
parliament is to make any law, but the jurisdiction of parliament is to
govern itself by the law; to make a law, therefore, against all the laws
in England was the _ultimum remedium et pessimum_, never to be used but
in case of absolute necessity. He affirmed that by this precedent the
house overthrew all the laws of England; first, in condemning a man upon
one witness; secondly, in passing an act without any trial. The commons
never did nor can assume a jurisdiction of trying any person: they may
for their own information hear what can be offered; but it is not a
trial where witnesses are not upon oath. All bills of attainder have
passed against persons that were dead or fled, or without the compass of
the law: some have been brought in after trials in Westminster-hall; but
none of those have been called trials, and they were generally reversed.
He denied that the parliament had power to declare anything treason
which was not treason before. When inferior courts were dubious, the
case might be brought before parliament to judge whether it be treason
or felony; but then they must judge by the laws in being, and this
judgment was not in the parliament by bill but only in the house of
lords. Lord Digby, Mr. Harley, and colonel Granville, spoke to the same
purpose. But their arguments and remonstrances had no effect upon the
majority, by whom the prisoner was devoted to destruction. The bill was
committed, passed, and sent up to the house of lords, where it
produced the longest and warmest debates which had been known since the
Restoration. Bishop Burnet signalized his zeal for the government by a
long speech in favour of the bill, contradicting some of the fundamental
maxims which he had formerly avowed in behalf of the liberties of the
people. At length it was carried by a majority of seven voices; and
one-and-forty lords, including eight prelates, entered a protest couched
in the strongest terms against the decision.
When the bill received the royal assent, another act of the like nature
passed against Barclay, Holmes, and nine other conspirators who had fled
from justice, in case they should not surrender themselves on or before
the twenty-fifth day of March next ensuing. Sir John Fenwick solicited
the mediation of the lords in his behalf, while his friends implored the
royal mercy. The peers gave him to understand that the success of his
suit would depend upon the fulness of his discoveries. He would have
previously stipulated for a pardon, and they insisted upon his depending
on their favour. He hesitated some time between the fears of infamy and
the terrors of death, which last he at length chose to undergo rather
than incur the disgraceful character of an informer. He was complimented
with the axe in consideration of his rank and alliance with the house
of Howard, and suffered on Tower-hill with great composure. In the paper
which he delivered to the sheriff, he took God to witness that he
knew not of the intended invasion until it was the common subject of
discourse, nor was he engaged in any shape for the service of king
James. He thanked those noble and worthy persons who had opposed his
attainder in parliament; protested before God that the information
he gave to the ministry he had received in letters and messages from
France; and observed that he might have expected mercy from the prince
of Orange, as he had been instrumental in saving his life by preventing
the execution of a design which had been formed against it--a
circumstance which in all probability induced the late conspirators to
conceal their purpose of assassination from his knowledge. He professed
his loyalty to king James, and prayed heaven for his speedy restoration.
EARL OF MONMOUTH SENT TO THE TOWER.
While Fenwick’s affair was in agitation, the earl of Monmouth had set on
foot some practices against the duke of Shrewsbury. One Matthew Smith,
nephew to sir William Perkins, had been entertained as a spy by this
nobleman, who finding his intelligence of very little use or importance,
dismissed him as a troublesome dependent. Then he had recourse to the
earl of Monmouth, into whom he infused unfavourable sentiments of the
duke, insinuating that he had made great discoveries which from sinister
motives were suppressed. Monmouth communicated those impressions to
the earl of Portland, who enlisted Smith as one of his intelligencers.
Copies of the letters he had sent to the duke of Shrewsbury were
delivered to secretary Trumball sealed up for the perusal of his
majesty at his return from Flanders. When Fenwick mentioned the duke of
Shrewsbury in his discoveries, the earl of Monmouth resolved to seize
the opportunity of ruining that nobleman. He, by the channel of the
duchess of Norfolk, exhorted lady Fenwick to prevail upon her husband
to persist in his accusation, and even dictated a paper of directions.
Fenwick rejected the proposal with disdain, as a scandalous contrivance;
and Monmouth was so incensed at his refusal that when the bill of
attainder appeared in the house of lords, he spoke in favour of it
with peculiar vehemence. Lady Fenwick, provoked at this cruel outrage,
prevailed upon her nephew the earl of Carlisle to move the house that
sir John might be examined touching any advices that had been sent
to him with relation to his discoveries. Fenwick being interrogated
accordingly, gave an account of all the particulars of Monmouth’s
scheme, which was calculated to ruin the duke of Shrewsbury by bringing
Smith’s letters on the carpet. The duchess of Norfolk and a confidant
were examined and confirmed the detection. The house called for Smith’s
letters, which were produced by sir William Trumball. The earl
of Monmouth was committed to the Tower and dismissed from all his
employments. He was released however at the end of the session, and the
court made up all his losses in private lest he should be tempted to
join the opposition.
INQUIRY INTO MISCARRIAGES BY SEA.
The whigs, before they were glutted with the sacrifice of Fenwick, had
determined to let loose their vengeance upon sir George Rooke, who was
a leader in the opposite interest. Sir Cloudesley Shovel had been sent
with a squadron to look into Brest, where, according to the intelligence
which the government had received, the French were employed in preparing
for a descent upon England; but this information was false. They were
busy in equipping an armament for the West Indies, under the command of
M. Pointis, who actually sailed to the coast of New Spain and took the
city of Carfehagena. Rooke had been ordered to intercept the Toulon
squadron in its way to Brest; but his endeavours miscarried. The commons
in a committee of the whole house resolved to inquire why this fleet was
not intercepted; Rooke underwent a long examination, and was obliged
to produce his journal, orders, and letters. Shovel and Mitchel were
likewise examined; but nothing appearing to the prejudice of the
admiral, the house thought proper to desist from their prosecution.
After they had determined on the fate of Fenwick, they proceeded to
enact several laws for regulating the domestic economy of the nation;
among others they passed an act for the more effectual relief of
creditors in cases of escape, and for preventing abuses in prisons and
pretended privileged places. Ever since the reformation certain places
in and about the city of London, which had been sanctuaries during the
prevalence of the popish religion, afforded asylum to debtors, and were
become receptacles of desperate persons who presumed to set the law at
defiance. One of these places called White-friars was filled with a crew
of ruffians, who every day committed acts of violence and outrage; but
this law was so vigorously put in execution that they were obliged
to abandon the district, which was soon filled with more creditable
inhabitants. On the sixteenth day of April the king closed the session
with a short speech, thanking the parliament for the great supplies
they had so cheerfully granted, and expressed his satisfaction at the
measures they had taken for retrieving the public credit. Before he
quitted the kingdom he ventured to produce upon the scene the earl of
Sunderland, who had hitherto promoted his councils behind the curtain.
That politician was now sworn of the privy council, and gratified with
the office of lord-chamberlain, which had been resigned by the earl of
Dorset, a nobleman of elegant talents and invincible indolence, severe
and poignant in his writings and remarks upon mankind in general, but
humane, good-natured, and generous to excess, in his commerce with
individuals.
NEGOTIATIONS AT RYSWICK.
William having made some promotions * and appointed a regency, embarked
on the twenty-sixth day of April for Holland, that he might be at hand
to manage the negotiation for a general peace.
* Somers was created a baron, and appointed lord-chancellor
of England; admiral Russel was dignified with the title of
earl of Orford. In February the earl of Aylesbury, who had
been committed on account of the conspiracy, was released
upon bail; but this privilege was denied to lord Montgomery,
who had been imprisoned in Newgate on the same account.
By this time the preliminaries were settled between Callieres the French
minister, and Mr. Dykvelt in behalf of the states-general, who resolved,
in consequence of the concessions made by France, that, in concert with
their allies, the mediation of Sweden might be accepted. The emperor and
the court of Spain, however, were not satisfied with those concessions;
yet his imperial majesty declared he would embrace the proffered
mediation, provided the treaty of Westphalia should be re-established;
and provided the king of Sweden would engage to join his troops
with those of the allies, in case France should break through the
stipulation. This proposal being delivered, the ministers of England
and Holland at Vienna presented a joint memorial, pressing his imperial
majesty to accept the mediation without reserve, and name a place
at which the congress might be opened. The emperor complied with
reluctance. On the fourteenth day of February all the ministers of the
allies, except the ambassador of Spain, agreed to the proposal; and
next day signified their assent in form to M. Lillienroot, the Swedish
plenipotentiary. Spain demanded, as a preliminary, that France should
agree to restore all the places mentioned in a long list which the
minister of that crown presented to the assembly. The emperor proposed
that the congress should be held at Aix-la-Chapelle, or Franckfort,
or some other town in Germany. The other allies were more disposed to
negotiate in Holland. At length the French king suggested, that no place
would be more proper than a palace belonging to king William called
Newbourg-house, situated between the Hague and Delft, close by the
village of Ryswick; and to this proposition the ministers agreed. Those
of England were the earl of Pembroke, a virtuous, learned, and popular
nobleman, the lord Villiers, and sir Joseph Williamson: France sent
Harlay and Crecy to the assistance of Callieres. Louis was not only
tired of the war, on account of the misery in which it had involved his
kingdom; but in desiring a peace he was actuated by another motive. The
king of Spain had been for some time in a very ill state of health, and
the French monarch had an eye to the succession: this aim could not
be accomplished while the confederacy subsisted; therefore he eagerly
sought a peace, that he might at once turn his whole power against Spain
as soon as Charles should expire. The emperor harboured the same design
upon the Spanish crown, and for that reason interested himself in the
continuance of the grand alliance. Besides, he foresaw he should in a
little time be able to act against France with an augmented force.
The czar of Muscovy had engaged to find employment for the Turks and
Tartars. He intended to raise the elector of Saxony to the throne of
Poland; and he had made some progress in a negotiation with the circles
of the Rhine for a considerable body of auxiliary troops. The Dutch had
no other view but that of securing a barrier in the Netherlands. King
William insisted upon the French king’s acknowledging his title; and the
English nation wished for nothing so much as the end of a ruinous war.
On the tenth day of February, Callieres, in the name of his master,
agreed to the following preliminaries: That the treaties of Westphalia
and Nimeguen should be the basis of this negotiation; that Strasbourg
should be restored to the empire, and Luxembourg to the Spaniards,
together with Mons, Charleroy, and all places taken by the French in
Catalonia since the treaty of Nimeguen; that Dinant should be ceded to
the bishop of Liege, and all reunion since the treaty of Nimeguen be
made void; that the French king should make restitution of Lorraine,
and, upon conclusion of the peace, acknowledge the prince of Orange as
king of Great Britain, without condition or reserve. The conferences
were interrupted by the death of Charles XI. king of Sweden, who was
succeeded by his son Charles, then a minor: but the queen and five
senators, whom the late king had by will appointed administrators of the
government, resolved to pursue the mediation, and sent a new commission
to Lillienroot for that purpose. The ceremonials being regulated
with the consent of all parties, the plenipotentiaries of the emperor
delivered their master’s demands to the mediator on the twenty-second
day of May, and several German ministers gave in the pretensions the
respective princes whom they represented.
{WILLIAM, 1688--1701.}
THE FRENCH TAKE BARCELONA.
Meanwhile the French king, in the hope of procuring more favourable
terms, resolved to make his last effort against the Spaniards in
Catalonia and in the Netherlands, and to elevate the prince of Conti
to the throne of Poland; an event which would have greatly improved
the interest of France in Europe. Louis had got the start of the
confederates in Flanders, and sent thither a very numerous army
commanded by Catinat, Villeroy, and Boufflers. The campaign was opened
with the siege of Aeth, which was no sooner invested than king William,
having recovered of an indisposition, took the field, and had an
interview with the duke of Bavaria, who commanded a separate body. He
did not think proper to interrupt the enemy in their operations before
Aeth, which surrendered in a few days after the trenches were opened;
but contented himself with taking possession of an advantageous camp,
where he covered Brussels, which Villeroy and Boufflers had determined
to besiege. In Catalonia the duke of Vendôme invested Barcelona, in
which there was a garrison of ten thousand regular soldiers, besides
five thousand burghers who had voluntarily taken arms on this occasion.
The governor of the place was the prince of Hesse d’Armstadt, who had
served in Ireland; and been vested with the command of the Imperial
troops which were sent into Spain. The French general being reinforced
from Provence and Languedoc, carried on his approaches with surprising
impetuosity; and was repulsed in several attacks by the valour of the
defendants. At length the enemy surprised and routed the viceroy of
Catalonia; and flushed with this victory, stormed the outworks, which
had been long battered with their cannon. The dispute was very bloody
and obstinate; but the French, by dint of numbers, made themselves
masters of the covered-way and two bastions. There they erected
batteries of cannon and mortars, and fired furiously on the town, which
however the prince of Hesse resolved to defend to the last extremity.
The court of Madrid, however, unwilling to see the place entirely
ruined, as in all probability it would be restored at the peace,
despatched an order to the prince to capitulate; and he obtained very
honourable terms, after having made a glorious defence for nine weeks;
in consideration of which he was appointed viceroy of the province.
France was no sooner in possession of this important place, than the
Spaniards became as eager for peace as they had been before averse to a
negotiation.
EXPEDITION OF ADMIRAL NEVIL TO THE WEST INDIES.
Their impatience was not a little inflamed by the success of Pointis in
America, where he took Carthagena, in which he found a booty amounting
to eight millions of crowns. Having ruined the fortifications of the
place, and received advice that an English squadron under admiral Nevil
had arrived in the West Indies, with a design to attack him in his
return, he bore away for the straits of Bahama. On the twenty-second day
of May he fell in with the English fleet, and one of his fly-boats was
taken; but such was his dexterity, or good fortune, that he escaped
after having been pursued five days, during which the English and Dutch
rear-admirals sprang their fore-top-masts and received other damage, so
that they could not proceed. Then Nevil steered to Carthagena, which
he found quite abandoned by the inhabitants, who after the departure
of Pointis had been rifled a second time by the buccaneers, on pretence
that they had been defrauded of their share of the plunder. This was
really the case; they had in a great measure contributed to the success
of Pointis, and were very ill rewarded. In a few days the English
admiral discovered eight sail of their ships, two of which were forced
on the shore and destroyed, two taken and the rest escaped. Then he
directed his course to Jamaica, and by the advice of the governor, sir
William Beeston, detached rear-admiral Meeze with some ships and forces
to attack Petit-Guavas, which he accordingly surprised, burned, and
reduced to ashes. After this small expedition, Nevil proceeded to the
Havannah on purpose to take the galleons under his convoy for Europe,
according to the instructions he had received from the king; but the
governor of the place, and the general of the plate-fleet, suspecting
such an offer, would neither suffer him to enter the harbour, nor put
the galleons under his protection. He now sailed through the gulf of
Folrida to Virginia, where he died of chagrin, and the command of
the fleet devolved on captain Dilkes, who arrived in England on the
twenty-fourth day of October, with a shattered squadron half manned, to
the unspeakable mortification of the people, who flattered themselves
with the hopes of wealth and glory from this expedition. Pointis
steering to the banks of Newfoundland, entered the bay of Conceptione,
at a time when a stout English squadron, commanded by commodore Norris,
lay at anchor in the bay of St. John. This officer being informed of the
arrival of a French fleet, at first concluded that it was the squadron
of M. Nesmond come to attack him, and exerted his utmost endeavours to
put the place in a posture of defence; but afterwards understanding
that it was Pointis returning with the spoil of Carthagena, he called a
council of war, and proposed to go immediately in quest of the enemy. He
was however over-ruled by a majority, who gave it as their opinion that
they should remain where they were without running unnecessary hazard.
By virtue of this scandalous determination, Pointis was permitted
to proceed on his voyage to Europe; but he had not yet escaped every
danger. On the fourteenth day of August he fell in with a squadron under
the command of captain Harlow, by whom he was boldly engaged till night
parted the combatants. He was pursued next day; but his ships sailing
better than those of Harlow, he accomplished his escape, and on the
morrow entered the harbour of Brest. That his ships, which were foul,
should out-sail the English squadron, which had just put to sea, was a
mystery which the people of England could not explain. They complained
of having been betrayed through the whole course of the West Indian
expedition. The king owned he did not understand marine affairs, the
entire conduct of which he abandoned to Russel, who became proud,
arbitrary, and unpopular, and was supposed to be betrayed by his
dependents. Certain it is, the service was greatly obstructed by faction
among the officers, which with respect to the nation had all the effects
of treachery and misconduct.
THE ELECTOR OF SAXONY IS CHOSEN KING OF POLAND.
The success of the French in Catalona, Flanders, and the West Indies,
was balanced by their disappointment in Poland. Louis encouraged by the
remonstrance of the abbé de Polignac, who managed the affairs of France
in that kingdom, resolved to support the prince of Conti as a candidate
for the crown, and remitted great sums of money which wore distributed
among the Polish nobility. The emperor had at first declared for the
son of the late king; but finding the French party too strong for his
competitor, he entered into a negotiation with the elector of Saxony,
who agreed to change his religion, to distribute eight millions of
florins among the Poles, to confirm their privileges, and advance with
his troops to the frontiers of that kingdom. Having performed these
articles, he declared himself a candidate, and was publicly espoused
by the Imperialists. The duke of Lorraine, the prince of Baden, and don
Livio Odeschalchi, nephew to pope Innocent, were likewise competitors;
but finding their interest insufficient, they united their influence
with that of the elector, who was proclaimed king of Poland. He
forthwith took the oath required, procured an attestation from the
Imperial court of his having changed his religion, and marched with his
army to Cracow, where he was crowned with the usual solemnity. Louis
persisted in maintaining the pretensions of the prince of Conti, and
equipped a fleet at Dunkirk for his convoy to Dantzick in his way to
Poland. But the magistrates of that city, who had declared for the new
king, would not suffer his men to land, though they offered to
admit himself with a small retinue. He therefore went on shore at
Marien-burgh, where he was met by some chiefs of his own party; but
the new king Augustus acted with such vigilance, that he found it
impracticable to form an army; besides he suspected the fidelity of his
own Polish partizans; he therefore refused to part with the treasure he
had brought, and in the beginning of winter returned to Dunkirk.
THE CZAR OF MUSCOVY TrAVELS IN DISGUISE.
The establishment of Augustus on the throne of Poland was in some
measure owing to the conduct of Peter the czar of Muscovy, who having
formed great designs against the Ottoman Porte, was very unwilling to
see the crown of Poland possessed by a partizan of France, which was in
alliance with the grand seignor. He therefore interested himself warmly
in the dispute, and ordered his general to assemble an army on the
frontiers of Lithuania, which by over-awing the Poles that were in the
interest of the prince of Conti, considerably influenced the election.
This extraordinary legislator, who was a strange compound of heroism and
barbarity, conscious of the defects in his education, and of the gross
ignorance that overspread his dominions, resolved to extend his ideas,
and improve his judgment by travelling; and that he might be the
less restricted by forms, or interrupted by officious curiosity, he
determined to travel in disguise. He was extremely ambitious of becoming
a maritime power, and in particular of maintaining a fleet in the
Black-sea; and his immediate aim was to learn the principles of
ship-building. He appointed an embassy for Holland, to regulate some
points of commerce with the states-general. Having intrusted the care
of his dominions to persons in whom he could confide, he now disguised
himself, and travelled as one of their retinue. He first disclosed
himself to the elector of Brandenburgh in Prussia, and afterwards to
king William, with whom he conferred in private at Utrecht. He engaged
himself as a common labourer with a ship-carpenter in Holland, whom
he served for some months with wonderful patience and assiduity. He
afterwards visited England, where he amused himself chiefly with the
same kind of occupation. From thence he set out for Vienna, where
receiving advices from his dominions, that his sister was concerned
in managing intrigues against his government, he returned suddenly to
Moscow, and found the machinations of the conspirators were already
baffled by the vigilance and fidelity of the foreigners to whom he had
left the care of the administration. His savage nature, however, broke
out upon this occasion; he ordered some hundreds to be hanged all round
his capital; and a good number were beheaded, he himself with his own
hands performing the office of executioner.
CONGRESS AT RYSWICK.
The negotiations at Ryswick proceeded very slowly for some time. The
Imperial minister demanded, that France should make restitution of all
the places and dominions she had wrested from the empire since the peace
of Munster, whether by force of arms or pretence of right. The Spaniards
claimed all they could demand by virtue of the peace of Nimeguen and the
treaty of the Pyrenees. The French affirmed, that if the preliminaries
offered by Callieres were accepted, these propositions could not be
taken into consideration. The Imperialists persisted in demanding a
circumstantial answer, article by article. The Spaniards insisted upon
the same manner of proceeding, and called upon the mediator and Dutch
ministers to support their pretensions. The plenipotentiaries of France
declared, they would not admit any demand or proposition contrary to the
preliminary articles; but were willing to deliver in a project of
peace in order to shorten the negotiations, and the Spanish ambassadors
consented to this expedient. During these transactions the earl of
Portland held a conference with mareschal Boufflers near Halle, in
sight of the two opposite armies, which was continued in five successive
meetings. On the second day of August they retired together to a house
in the suburbs of Halle, and mutually signed a paper, in which
the principal articles of the peace between France and England were
adjusted. Next day king William quitted the camp, and retired to his
house at Loo, confident of having taken such measures for a pacification
as could not be disappointed. The subject of this field negotiation is
said to have turned upon the interest of king James, which the French
monarch promised to abandon; others however suppose that the first
foundation of the partition treaty was laid in this conference. But in
all probability, William’s sole aim was to put an end to an expensive
and unsuccessful war, which had rendered him very unpopular in his own
dominions, and to obtain from the court of France an acknowledgment
of his title, which had since the queen’s death become the subject of
dispute. He perceived the emperor’s backwardness towards a pacification,
and foresaw numberless difficulties in discussing such a complication
of interests by the common method of treating; he therefore chose such
a step as he thought would alarm the jealousy of the allies, and quicken
the negotiation at Ryswick. Before the congress was opened, king James
had published two manifestoes, addressed to the catholic and protestant
princes of the confederacy, representing his wrongs, and craving
redress; but his remonstrances being altogether disregarded, he
afterwards issued a third declaration, solemnly protesting against all
that might or should be negotiated, regulated, or stipulated with
the usurper of his realms, as being void of all rightful and lawful
authority. On the twentieth day, of July the French ambassadors produced
their project of a general peace, declaring at the same time that should
it not be accepted before the last day of August, France would not
hold herself bound for the conditions she now offered; but Caunitz,
the emperor’s plenipotentiary, protested he would pay no regard to this
limitation. On the thirtieth of August, however, he delivered to the
mediators an ultimatum, importing that he adhered to the treaties
of Westphalia and Nimeguen, and accepted of Strasbourg with its
appurtenances; that he insisted upon the restitution of Lorraine to the
prince of that name; and demanded that the church and chapter of Liege
should be re-established in the possession of their incontestable
rights. Next day the French plenipotentiaries declared that the month of
August being now expired, all their offers were vacated; that therefore
the king of France would reserve Strasbourg, and unite it with its
dependencies to his crown for ever; that in other respects he would
adhere to the project, and restore Barcelona to the crown of Spain; but
that these terms must be accepted in twenty days, otherwise he should
think himself at liberty to recede. The ministers of the electors and
princes of the empire joined in a written remonstrance to the Spanish
plenipotentiaries, representing the inconveniencies and dangers that
would accrue to the Germanic body from France being in possession of
Luxembourg, and exhorting them in the strongest terms to reject all
offers of an equivalent for that province. They likewise presented
another to the states-general, requiring them to continue the war
according to their engagements, until France should have complied
with the preliminaries. No regard however was paid to either of these
addresses. Then the Imperial ambassadors demanded the good offices of
the mediator on certain articles; but all that he could obtain of France
was, that the term for adjusting the peace between her and the emperor
should be prolonged till the first day of November, and in the meantime
an armistice be punctually observed. Yet even these concessions were
made on condition that the treaty with England, Spain, and Holland,
should be signed on that day, even though the emperor and empire should
not concur.
THE AMBASSADORS SIGN THE TREATY.
Accordingly on the twentieth day of September, the articles were
subscribed by the Dutch, English, Spanish, and French ambassadors, while
the Imperial ministers protested against the transaction, observing
this was the second time that a separate peace had been concluded with
France; and that the states of the empire, who had been imposed upon
through their own credulity, would not for the future be so easily
persuaded to engage in confederacies. In certain preparatory articles
settled between England and France, king William promised to pay a
yearly pension to queen Mary D’Esté, of fifty thousand pounds, or such
sum as should be established for that purpose by act of parliament. The
treaty itself consisted of seventeen articles. The French king engaged,
that he would not disturb or disquiet the king of Groat Britain in the
possession of his realms or government; nor assist his enemies, nor
favour conspiracies against his person. This obligation was reciprocal.
A free commerce was restored. Commissaries were appointed to meet at
London and settle the pretensions of each crown to Hudson’s bay, taken
by the French during the late peace, and retaken by the English in
the course of the war; and to regulate the limits of the places to
be restored, as well as the exchanges to be made. It was likewise
stipulated, that, in case of a rupture, six months should be allowed to
the subjects of each power for removing their effects; that the separate
articles of the treaty of Nimeguen, relating to the principality of
Orange, should be entirely executed; and that the ratifications should
be exchanged in three weeks from the day of signing. The treaty between
France and Holland imported a general armistice, a perpetual amity, a
mutual restitution, a reciprocal renunciation of all pretensions upon
each other, a confirmation of the peace of Savoy, a re-establishment of
the treaty concluded between France and Brandenburgh in the year I one
thousand six hundred and seventy-nine, a comprehension of Sweden, and
all those powers that should be named before the ratification, or in six
months after the conclusion of the treaty. Besides, the Dutch ministers
concluded a treaty of commerce with France, which was immediately put in
execution. Spain had great reason to be satisfied with the pacification,
by which the recovered Gironne, Eoses, Barcelona, Luxembourg, Charleroy,
Mons, Courtray, and all the towns, fortresses, and territories taken by
the French in the province of Luxembourg, Namur, Brabant, Flanders, and
Hainault, except eighty-two towns and villages claimed by the French;
this dispute was left to the decision of commissaries; or in case
they should not agree, to the determination of the states-general. A
remonstrance in favour of the French protestant refugees in England,
Holland, and Germany, was delivered by the earl of Pembroke to the
mediators, in the name of the protestant allies, on the day that
preceded the conclusion of the treaty; but the French plenipotentiaries
declared in the name of their master, that as he did not pretend “to
prescribe rules to king William about the English subjects, he expected
the same liberty with respect to his own.” No other effort was made in
behalf of those conscientious exiles; the treaties were ratified, and
the peace proclaimed at Paris and London.
A GENERAL PACIFICATION.
The emperor still held out, and perhaps was encouraged to persevere in
his obstinacy by the success of his arms in Hungary, where his general,
prince Eugene of Savoy, obtained a complete victory at Zenta over the
forces of the grand seignor, who commanded his army in person. In this
battle, which was fought on the eleventh day of September, the grand
vizier, the aga of the janissaries, seven-and-twenty pachas, and about
thirty thousand men, were killed or drowned in the river Theysse six
thousand were wounded or taken, together with all their artillery,
tents, baggage, provisions, and ammunition, the grand seignor himself
escaping with difficulty; a victory the more glorious and acceptable,
as the Turks had a great superiority in point of number, and as the
Imperialists did not lose a thousand men during the whole action.
The emperor perceiving that the event of this battle had no effect in
retarding the treaty, thought proper to make use of the armistice,
and continue the negotiation after the forementioned treaties had been
signed. This was likewise the case with the princes of the empire;
though those of the protestant persuasion complained that their interest
was neglected. In one of the articles of the treaty, it was stipulated
that in the places to be restored by France, the Roman catholic religion
should continue as it had been re-established. The ambassadors of the
protestant princes joined in a remonstrance, demanding that the Lutheran
religion should be restored in those places where it had formerly
prevailed; but this demand was rejected, as being equally disagreeable
to France and the emperor. Then they refused to sign the treaty, which
was now concluded between France, the emperor, and the catholic princes
of the empire. By this pacification, Triers, the Palatinate, and
Lorraine, were restored to their respective owners. The countries of
Spanheim and Valdentz, together with the duchy of Deux Ponts, were
ceded to the king of Sweden. Francis Louis Palatine was confirmed in
the electorate of Cologn; and cardinal Furstemberg restored to all his
rights and benefices. The claims of the duchess of Orleans upon the
Palatinate were referred to the arbitration of France and the emperor;
and in the meantime the elector Palatine agreed to supply her highness
with an annuity of one hundred thousand florins. The ministers of the
protestant princes published a formal declaration against the clause
relating to religion, and afterwards solemnly protested against the
manner in which the negotiation had been conducted. Such was the issue
of a long and bloody war, which had drained England of her wealth and
people, almost entirely ruined her commerce, debauched her morals, by
encouraging venality and corruption, and entailed upon her the curse
of foreign connexions, as well as a national debt which was gradually
increased to an intolerable burden. After all the blood and treasure
which had been expended, William’s ambition and revenge remained
unsatisfied. Nevertheless, he reaped the solid advantage of seeing
himself firmly established on the English throne; and the confederacy,
though not successful in every instance, accomplished their great aim
of putting a stop to the encroachments of the French monarch. They
mortified his vanity, they humbled his pride and arrogance, and
compelled him to disgorge the acquisitions which, like a robber, he had
made in violation of public faith, justice, and humanity. Had the allies
been true to one another; had they acted from genuine zeal for the
common interests of mankind; and prosecuted with vigour the plan which
was originally concerted, Louis would in a few campaigns have been
reduced to the most abject state of disgrace, despondence, and
submission; for he was destitute of true courage and magnanimity. King
William having finished this important transaction, returned to England
about the middle of November, and was received in London amidst the
acclamations of the people, who now again hailed him as their deliverer
from a war, by the continuance of which they must have been infallibly
beggared.
CHAPTER VI.
_State of Parties..... Characters of the Ministers..... The
Commons reduce the Number of standing Forces to Ten
Thousand..... They establish the Civil list; and assign
Funds for paying the National Debts..... They take
Cognisance of fraudulent Endorsements of Exchequer
Bills..... Anew East-India Company constituted by act of
parliament..... .Proceedings against a Book written by
William Molineux of Dublin, and against certain Smugglers of
Alamodes and Lustrings from France..... Society for the
Reformation of Manners..... The Earl of Portland resigns his
Employments..... The King disowns the Scottish Trading
Company..... He embarks for Holland..... First Treaty of
Partition..... Intrigues of France at the Court of
Madrid..... King William is thwarted by his now
Parliament..... He is obliged to send away his Dutch
Guards..... The Commons address the King against the
Papists..... The Parliament prorogued..... The Scottish
Company make a Settlement on the Isthmus of Darien; which
however they are compelled to abandon..... Remonstrances of
the Spanish Court against the Treaty of Partition ..... The
Commons persist in their Resolutions to mortify the
King..... Inquiry into the Expedition of Captain Kidd..... A
Motion made against Burnet, bishop of Sarum..... Inquiry
into the Irish Forfeitures..... The Commons pass a Bill of
Resumption, and a severe Bill against Papists..... The old
East-India Company re-established..... Dangerous Ferment in
Scotland..... lord Homers dismissed from his
Employments..... Second Treaty of Partition..... Death of
the Duke of Gloucester..... The King sends a Fleet into the
Baltic, to the Assistance of the Swedes..... The second
Treaty of Partition generally disagreeable to the European
Powers..... The French Interest prevails at the Court of
Spain..... King William finds means to allay the heats in
Scotland ..... The King of Spain dies, after having
bequeathed his Dominions by Will to the Duke of Anjou.....
The French King’s Apology for accepting the Will ..... The
States-general owns Philip as King of Spain..... Anew
Ministry and a new Parliament..... The Commons unpropitious
to the Court---The Lords are more condescending..... An
intercepted Letter from the Earl of Melfort to his
Brother..... Succession of the Crown settled upon the
Princess Sophia, Elect ress Dowager of Hanover, and the
Protestant Heirs of her Body..... The Duchess of Savoy
protests against this Act..... Ineffectual Negotiation with
France..... Severe Addresses from both Houses, in relation
to the Partition Treaty..... William is obliged to
acknowledge the King of Spain..... The two Houses seem to
enter into the King’s Measures..... The Commons resolve to
wreak their Vengeance on the old Ministry..... The earls of
Portland and Oxford, the Lords Sotners and Halifax, are
impeached..... Disputes between the two Houses..... The
House of Peers acquits the impeached Lords ..... Petition of
Kent..... Favourable end of the Session..... Progress of
Prince Eugene in Italy..... Sketch of the Situation of
Affairs in Europe..... Treaty of Alliance between the
Emperor and the maritime Powers..... Death of King
James..... The French King owns the pretended Prince of
Wales as King of England..... Addresses to King William on
that subject..... New Parliament..... The King’s last Speech
to both Houses received with great Applause..... Great
Harmony between the King and Parliament..... The two Houses
pass the Bill of Abjuration..... The Lower House justifies
the Proceedings of the Commons in the preceding
Parliament..... Affairs of Ireland ..... The King recommends
an Union of the two Kingdoms..... He falls from his
Horse..... His Death..... And Character._
{WILLIAM, 1688--1701.}
WHEN the king opened the session of parliament on the third day of
December, he told them the war was brought to the end they all proposed,
namely, an honourable peace. He gave them to understand there was a
considerable debt on account of the fleet and army; that the revenues
of the crown had been anticipated. He expressed his hope that they would
provide for him during his life, in such a manner as would conduce
to his own honour and that of the government. He recommended the
maintenance of a considerable navy; and gave it as his opinion, that
for the present England could not be safe without a standing army. He
promised to rectify such corruptions and abuses as might have crept
into any part of the administration during the war; and effectually to
discourage profaneness and immorality. Finally, he assured them that as
he had rescued their religion, laws, and liberties, when they were in
the extremest danger, so he should place the glory of his reign in
preserving and leaving them entire to latest posterity. To this speech
the commons replied in an address, by a compliment of congratulation
upon the peace, and an assurance, that they would be ever ready to
assist and support his majesty, who had confirmed them in the quiet
possession of their rights and liberties, and by putting an end to the
war fully completed the work of their deliverance. Notwithstanding these
appearances of good humour, the majority of the house, and indeed the
whole nation, were equally alarmed and exasperated at a project for
maintaining a standing army, which was countenanced at court, and even
recommended by the king in his speech to the parliament. William’s
genius was altogether military. He could not bear the thought of being
a king without power. He could not without reluctance dismiss those
officers who had given so many proofs of their courage and fidelity.
He did not think himself safe upon the naked throne, in a kingdom that
swarmed with malcontents who had so often conspired against his person
and government. He dreaded the ambition and known perfidy of the French
king, who still retained a powerful army. He foresaw that a reduction of
the forces would lessen his importance both at home and abroad; diminish
the dependence upon his government; and disperse those foreigners in
whose attachment he chiefly confided. He communicated his sentiments
on this subject to his confidant, the earl of Sunderland, who knew by
experience the aversion of the people to a standing army; nevertheless
he encouraged him with hope of success, on the supposition that the
commons would see the difference between an army raised by the king’s
private authority, and a body of veteran troops maintained by consent
of parliament for the security of the kingdom. This was a distinction to
which the people paid no regard. All the jealousy of former parliaments
seemed to be roused by the bare proposal; and this was inflamed by a
national prejudice against the refugees, in whose favour the king had
betrayed repeated marks of partial indulgence. They were submissive,
tractable, and wholly dependent upon his will and generosity. The
Jacobites failed not to cherish the seeds of dissatisfaction, and
reproach the whigs who countenanced this measure. They branded that
party with apostacy from their former principles. They observed that
the very persons who in the late reigns endeavoured to abridge the
prerogative, and deprive the king of that share of power which was
absolutely necessary to actuate the machine of government, were now
become advocates for maintaining a standing army in time of peace; nay,
and impudently avowed, that their complaisance to the court in this
particular was owing to their desire of excluding from all share in the
administration a faction disaffected to his majesty, which might mislead
him into more pernicious measures. The majority of those who really
entertained revolution principles, opposed the court from apprehension
that a standing army, once established, would take root and grow into an
habitual maxim of government; that should the people be disarmed and the
sword left in the hands of mercenaries, the liberties of the nation
must be entirely at the mercy of him by whom these mercenaries should
be commanded. They might overawe elections, dictate to parliaments, and
establish a tyranny, before the people could take any measures for their
own protection. They could not help thinking it was possible to form
a militia, that, with the concurrence of a fleet, might effectually
protect the kingdom from the dangers of an invasion. They firmly
believed that a militia might be regularly trained to arms, so as to
acquire the dexterity of professed soldiers; and they did not doubt they
would surpass those hirelings in courage, considering that they would
be animated by every concurring motive of interest, sentiment, and
affection. Nay, they argued, that Britain, surrounded as it was by a
boisterous sea, secured by floating bulwarks, abounding with stout and
hardy inhabitants, did not deserve to be free if her sons could not
protect their liberties without the assistance of mercenaries, who were
indeed the only slaves of the kingdom. Yet among the genuine friends
of their country, some individuals espoused the opposite maxims. They
observed that the military system of every government in Europe was now
altered, that war was become a trade, and discipline a science not to be
learned but by those who made it their sole profession; that therefore,
while France kept up a large standing army of veterans ready to embark
on the opposite coast, it would be absolutely necessary for the safety
of the nation to maintain a small standing force, which should be voted
in parliament from year to year. They might have suggested another
expedient which in a few years would have produced a militia of
disciplined men. Had the soldiers of this small standing army been
enlisted for a term of years, at the expiration of which they might have
claimed their discharge, volunteers would have offered themselves from
all parts of the kingdom, even from the desire of learning the use and
exercise of arms, the ambition of being concerned in scenes of actual
service, and the chagrin of little disappointments or temporary
disgusts, which yet would not have impelled them to enlist as soldiers
on the common terms of perpetual slavery. In consequence of such a
succession, the whole kingdom would soon have been stocked with members
of a disciplined militia, equal if not superior to any army of professed
soldiers. But this scheme would have defeated the purpose of the
government, which was more afraid of domestic foes than of foreign
enemies; and industriously avoided every plan of this nature,
which could contribute to render the malcontents of the nation more
formidable.
CHARACTERS OF THE MINISTERS.
Before we proceed to the transactions of parliament in this session, it
may not be amiss to sketch the outlines of the ministry as it stood at
this juncture. The king’s affection for the earl of Portland had begun
to abate in proportion as his esteem for Sunderland increased, together
with his consideration for Mrs. Villiers, who had been distinguished by
some particular marks of his majesty’s favour. These two favourites are
said to have supplanted Portland, whose place in the king’s bosom was
now filled by Van Keppel, a gentleman of Guelderland who had first
served his majesty as a page, and afterwards acted as private secretary.
The earl of Portland growing troublesome, from his jealousy of this
rival, the king resolved to send him into honourable exile, in quality
of an ambassador-extraordinary to the court of France; and Trumball, his
friend and creature, was dismissed from the office of secretary, which
the king conferred upon Vernon, a plodding man of business who had acted
as under-secretary to the duke of Shrewsbury. This nobleman rivalled the
earl of Sunderland in his credit at the council-board, and was supported
by Somers, lord chancellor of England, by Russel now earl of Orford,
first lord of the admiralty, and Montague, chancellor of the exchequer.
Somers was an upright judge, a plausible statesman, a consummate
courtier, affable, mild, and insinuating. Orford appears to have been
rough, turbulent, factious, and shallow. Montague had distinguished
himself early by his poetical genius; but he soon converted his
attention to the cultivation of more solid talents. He rendered himself
remarkable for his eloquence, décemment, and knowledge of the English
constitution. To a delicate taste he united an eager appetite for
political studies. The first catered for the enjoyments of fancy; the
other was subservient to his ambition. He at the same time was the
distinguished encourager of the liberal arts, and the professed patron
of projectors. In his private deportment he was liberal, easy, and
entertaining; as a statesman, bold, dogmatical, and aspiring.
THE NUMBER OF STANDING FORCES REDUCED TO TEN THOUSAND.
The terrors of a standing army had produced such an universal ferment
in the nation, that the dependents of the court in the house of commons
durst not openly oppose the reduction of the forces; but they shifted
the battery, and employed all their address in persuading the house
to agree that a very small number should be retained. When the commons
voted, That all the forces raised since the year one thousand six
hundred and eighty should be disbanded, the courtiers desired the vote
might be re-committed, on pretence that it restrained the king to the
old tory regiments, on whose fidelity he could not rely. This motion
however was overruled by a considerable majority. Then they proposed
an amendment, which was rejected, and afterwards moved, That the sum
of five hundred thousand pounds per annum should be granted for
the maintenance of guards and garrisons. This provision would have
maintained a very considerable number; but they were again disappointed,
and fain to embrace a composition with the other party, by which three
hundred and fifty thousand pounds were allotted for the maintenance
of ten thousand men; and they afterwards obtained an addition of three
thousand marines. The king was extremely mortified at these resolutions
of the commons; and even declared to his particular friends, that he
would never have intermeddled with the affairs of the nation had he
foreseen they would make such returns of ingratitude and distrust. His
displeasure was aggravated by the resentment against Sunderland, who was
supposed to have advised the unpopular measure of retaining a standing
army. This nobleman dreading the vengeance of the commons, resolved
to avert the fury of the impending storm, by resigning his office and
retiring from court, contrary to the entreaties of his friends, and the
earnest desire of his majesty.
CIVIL LIST ESTABLISHED, &c.
The house of commons, in order to sweeten the unpalatable cup they had
presented to the king, voted the sum of seven hundred thousand pounds
per annum for the support of the civil list, distinct from all other
services. Then they passed an act prohibiting the currency of silver
hammered coin, including a clause for making out new exchequer-bills, in
lieu of those which were or might be filled up with endorsements; they
framed another to open the correspondence with France, under a variety
of provisos; a third for continuing the imprisonment of certain persons
who had been concerned in the late conspiracy; a fourth, granting
further time for administering oaths with respect to tallies and orders
in the exchequer and bank of England. These bills having received the
royal assent, they resolved to grant a supply, which, together with the
funds already settled for that purpose, should be sufficient to answer
and cancel all exchequer-bills, to the amount of two millions seven
hundred thousand pounds. Another supply was voted for the payment and
reduction of the army, including half-pay to such commission officers
as were natural born subjects of England. They granted one million four
hundred thousand pounds, to make good deficiencies. They resolved,
That the sum of two millions three hundred and forty-eight thousand one
hundred and two pounds, was necessary to pay off arrears, subsistence,
contingencies, general-officers, guards, and garrisons; of which sum
eight hundred and fifty-five thousand five hundred and two pounds,
remained in the hands of the pay-master. Then they took into
consideration the subsidies due to foreign powers, and the sums owing
to contractors for bread and forage. Examining further the debts of the
nation, they found the general debt of the navy amounted to one million
three hundred and ninety-two thousand seven hundred and forty-two
pounds. That of the ordnance was equal to two hundred and four thousand
one hundred and fifty-seven pounds. The transport debt contracted for
the reduction of Ireland and other services, did not fall short of four
hundred and sixty-six thousand four hundred and ninety-three pounds; and
they owed nine-and-forty thousand nine hundred and twenty-nine pounds,
for quartering and clothing the army which had been raised by one act of
parliament in the year 1677, and disbanded by another in the year 1679.
As this enormous load of debt could not be discharged at once, the
commons passed a number of Arotes for raising sums of money, by which it
was considerably lightened; and settled the funds for those purposes by
the continuation of the land tax, and other impositions. With respect to
the civil list, it was raised by a new subsidy of tonnage and poundage,
the hereditary and temporary excise, a weekly portion from the revenue
of the post-office, the first-fruits and tenths of the clergy, the
fines in the alienation office, and post-fines, the revenue of the
wine-license, money arising by sheriffs, proffers, and compositions in
the exchequer; and seizures, the income of the duchy of Cornwall, the
rents of all other crown lands in England or Wales, and the duty of four
and a half per cent, upon specie from Barbadoes and the Leeward-islands.
The bill imported, That the overplus arising from these funds should be
accounted for to parliament. Six hundred thousand pounds of this money
was allotted for the purposes of the civil list: the rest was granted
for the jointure of fifty thousand pounds per annum, to be paid to queen
Mary d’Esté, according to the stipulation at Ryswick; and to maintain a
court for the duke of Gloucester, son of the princess Anne of Denmark,
now in the ninth year of his age; but the jointure was never paid; nor
would the king allow above fifteen thousand pounds per annum for the
use of the duke of Gloucester, to whom Burnet, bishop of Salisbury, was
appointed preceptor.
COGNIZANCE TAKEN OF FRAUDULENT ENDORSEMENTS OF EXCHEQUER BILLS.
The commons having discussed the ways and means for raising the supplies
of the ensuing year, which rose almost to five millions, took cognizance
of some fraudulent endorsements of exchequer bills, a species of
forgery which had been practised by a confederacy, consisting of
Charles Duncomb, receiver-general of the excise, Bartholomew Burton, who
possessed a place in that branch of the revenue, John Knight, treasurer
of the customs, and Reginald Marriot, a deputy-teller of the exchequer.
This last became evidence, and the proof turning out very strong and
full, the house resolved to make examples of the delinquents. Duncomb
and Knight, both members of parliament, were expelled and committed to
the Tower; Burton was sent to Newgate; and bills of pains and penalties
were ordered to be brought in against them. The first, levelled at
Duncomb, passed the lower house, though not without great opposition,
but was rejected in the house of lords by the majority of one voice.
Duncomb, who was extremely rich, is said to have paid dear for his
escape. The other two bills met with the same fate. The peers discharged
Duncomb from his confinement; but he was recommitted by the commons, and
remained in custody till the end of the session. While the commons
were employed on ways and means, some of the members in the opposition
proposed, that one fourth part of the money arising from improper grants
of the crown, should be appropriated to the service of the public; but
this was a very unpalatable expedient, as it affected not only the whigs
of king William’s reign, but also the tories who had been gratified by
Charles II. and his brother. A great number of petitions were presented
against this measure, and so many difficulties raised, that both parties
agreed to lay it aside. In the course of this inquiry, they discovered
that one Railton held a grant in trust for Mr. Montague, chancellor of
the exchequer. A motion was immediately made, that he should withdraw;
but passed in the negative by a great majority. Far from prosecuting
this minister, the house voted it was their opinion, That Mr. Montague,
for his good services to the government, did deserve his majesty’s
favour.
A NEW EAST INDIA COMPANY CONSTITUTED BY ACT OF PARLIAMENT.
This extraordinary vote was a sure presage of success in the execution
of a scheme which Montague had concerted against the East India company.
They had been sounded about advancing a sum of money for the public
service, by way of loan, in consideration of a parliamentary settlement;
and they offered to raise seven hundred thousand pounds on that
condition: but before they formed this resolution, another body of
merchants, under the auspices of Mr. Montague, offered to lend two
millions at eight per cent, provided they might be gratified with an
exclusive privilege of trading to the East Indies. This proposal was
very well received by the majority in the house of commons. A bill for
this purpose was brought in, with additional clauses of regulation. A
petition was presented by the old company, representing their rights and
claims under so many royal charters; the regard due to the property
of above a thousand families interested in the stock; as also to the
company’s property in India, amounting to forty-four thousand pounds
of yearly revenue. They alleged they had expended a million in
fortifications; that during the war they had lost twelve great ships,
worth fifteen hundred thousand pounds; that since the last subscription
they had contributed two hundred and ninety-five thousand pounds to the
customs, with above eighty-five thousand pounds in taxes; that they had
furnished six thousand barrels of gunpowder on a very pressing occasion:
and eighty thousand pounds for the circulation of exchequer bills, at
a very critical juncture, by desire of the lords of the treasury;
who owned that their compliance was a very important service to the
government. No regard being paid to their remonstrances, they undertook
to raise the loan of two millions, and immediately subscribed two
hundred thousand pounds as the first payment. The two proposals being
compared and considered by the house, the majority declared for the
bill, which was passed, and sent up to the house of lords. There the
old company delivered another petition, and was heard by counsel;
nevertheless the bill made its way, though not without opposition, and
a formal protestation by one-and-twenty lords, who thought it was a
hardship upon the present company; and doubted whether the separate
trade allowed in the bill, concurrent with a joint stock, might not
prove such an inconsistency as would discourage the subscription. This
act, by which the old company was dissolved, in a great measure blasted
the reputation of the whigs, which had for some time been on the decline
with the people. They had stood up as advocates for a standing army;
they now unjustly superseded the East India company; they were accused
of having robbed the public by embezzling the national treasure, and
amassing wealth by usurious contracts, at the expense of their fellow
subjects groaning under the most oppressive burdens. Certain it is, they
were at this period the most mercenary and corrupt undertakers that
had ever been employed by any king or administration since the first
establishment of the English monarchy.
The commons now transferred their attention to certain objects in which
the people of Ireland were interested. Colonel Michelburn, who had been
joint governor of Londonderry with Dr. Walker during the siege of that
place, petitioned the house in behalf of himself, his officers, and
soldiers, to whom a considerable sum of money was due for subsistence;
and the city itself implored the mediation of the commons with
his majesty, that its services and sufferings might be taken into
consideration. The house having examined the allegations contained
in both petitions, presented an address to the king, recommending the
citizens of Londonderry to his majesty’s favour; that they might no
longer remain a ruinous spectacle to all, a scorn to their enemies, and
a discouragement to well affected subjects: they likewise declared
that the governor and garrison did deserve some special marks of royal
favour, for a lasting monument to posterity. To this address the king
replied, that he would consider them according to the desire of the
commons. William Molineux, a gentleman of Dublin, having published
a book to prove that the kingdom of Ireland was independent of the
parliament of England, the house appointed a committee to inquire into
the cause and nature of this performance. An address was voted to the
king, desiring he would give directions for the discovery and punishment
of the author. Upon the report of the committee, the commons in a body
presented an address to his majesty, representing the dangerous attempts
which had been lately made by some of his subjects in Ireland, to
shake off their subjection and dependence upon England; attempts which
appeared not only from the bold and pernicious assertions contained in
a book lately published, but more fully and authentically by some votes
and proceedings of the commons in Ireland. These had, during their last
session, transmitted an act for the better security of his majesty’s
person and government, whereby an English act of parliament was
pretended to be re-enacted with alterations obligatory on the courts of
justice and the great seal of England. The English commons, therefore,
besought his majesty to give effectual orders for preventing any such
encroachments for the future, and the pernicious consequences of what
was past, by punishing those who had been guilty thereof: that he would
take care to see the laws which direct and restrain the parliament of
Ireland punctually observed, and discourage everything which might
have a tendency to lessen the dependence of Ireland upon England. This
remonstrance was graciously received, and the king-promised to comply
with their request.
The jealousy which the commons entertained of the government in Ireland,
animated them to take other measures that ascertained the subjection
of that kingdom. Understanding that the Irish had established divers
woollen manufactures, they in another address entreated his majesty to
take measures for discouraging the woollen manufactures in Ireland,
as they interfered with those of England, and promote the linen
manufacture, which would be profitable to both nations. At the same
time, receiving information the French had seduced some English
manufacturers, and set up a great work for cloth-making in Picardy, they
brought in a bill for explaining and better executing former acts for
preventing the exportation of wool, fullers earth, and scouring clay;
and this was immediately passed into a law. A petition being presented
to the house by the lustring company, against certain merchants who had
smuggled alamodes and lustrings from France, even during the war; the
committee of trade was directed to inquire into the allegations, and
all the secrets of this traffic were detected. Upon the report the
house resolved, That the manufacture of alamodes and lustrings set up
in England had been beneficial to the kingdom; that there had been a
destructive and illegal trade carried on during the war, for importing
these commodities, by which the king had been defrauded of his customs,
and the English manufactures greatly discouraged; that, by the smuggling
vessels employed in this trade, intelligence had been carried into
France during the war, and the enemies of the government conveyed
from justice. Stephen Seignoret Rhene, Baudoin, John Goodet, Nicholas
Santini, Peter de Hearse, John Pierce, John Dumaitre, and David Barreau,
were impeached at the bar of the house of lords; and, pleading guilty,
the lords imposed fines upon them according to their respective
circumstances. They were in the meantime committed to Newgate until
those fines should be paid; and the commons addressed the king, that the
money might be appropriated to the maintenance of Greenwich hospital.
The house having taken cognizance of this affair, and made some new
regulations in the prosecution of the African trade, presented a solemn
address to the king, representing the general degeneracy and corruption
of the age, and beseeching his majesty to command all his judges,
justices, and magistrates, to put the laws in execution against
profaneness and immorality. The king professed himself extremely well
pleased with this remonstrance, promised to give immediate directions
for a reformation, and expressed his desire that some more effectual
provision might be made for suppressing impious books, containing
doctrines against the Trinity; doctrines which abounded at this period,
and took their origin from the licentiousness and profligacy of the
times.
SOCIETY FOR THE REFOrMATION OF MANNERS.
In the midst of such immorality, Dr. Thomas Bray, an active divine,
formed a plan for propagating the gospel in foreign countries.
Missionaries, catechisms, liturgies, and other books for the instruction
of ignorant people, were sent to the English colonies in America. This
laudable design was supported by voluntary contribution; and the bill
having been brought into the house of commons for the better discovery
of estates given to superstitious uses, Dr. Bray presented a petition,
praying that some part of these estates might be set apart for the
propagation of the reformed religion in Maryland, Virginia, and the
Leeward islands. About this period, a society for the reformation of
manners was formed under the king’s countenance and encouragement.
Considerable collections were made for maintaining clergymen to read
prayers at certain hours in places of public worship, and administer the
sacrament every Sunday. The members of this society resolved to inform
the magistrates of all vice and immorality that should fall under
their cognizance; and with that part of the fines allowed by law to
the informer, constitute a fund of charity. The business of the session
being terminated, the king on the third day of July prorogued the
parliament, after having thanked them in a short speech for the many
testimonies of their affection he had received; and in two days after
the prorogation it was dissolved.*
* On the fifth day of January, a fire breaking out at
Whitehall through the carelessness of a laundress, the whole
body of the palace, together with the new gallery, council-
chamber, and several adjoining apartments were entirely
consumed; but the banqueting-house was not affected.
THE EARL OF PORTLAND RESIGNS.
In the month of January the earl of Portland had set out on his
embassy to France, where he was received with very particular marks of
distinction. He made a public entry into Paris with such magnificence
as is said to have astonished the French nation. He interceded for
the protestants in that kingdom, against whom the persecution had been
renewed with redoubled violence: he proposed that king James should be
removed to Avignon, in which case his master would supply him with
an honourable pension; but his remonstrances on both subjects proved
ineffectual. Louis, however, in a private conference with him at Marli,
is supposed to have communicated his project of the partition-treaty.
The earl of Portland, at his return to England, finding himself totally
eclipsed in the king’s favour by Keppel, now created earl of Albemarle,
resigned his employments in disgust; nor could the king’s solicitations
prevail upon him to resume any office in the household, though he
promised to serve his majesty in any other shape, and was soon employed
to negotiate the treaty of partition. If this nobleman miscarried in the
purposes of his last embassy at the court of Versailles, the agents of
France were equally unsuccessful in their endeavours to retrieve their
commerce with England which the war had interrupted. Their commissary,
sent over to London with powers to regulate the trade between the two
nations, met with insuperable difficulties. The parliament had burdened
the French commodities with heavy duties which were already appropriated
to different uses; and the channel of trade was in many respects
entirely altered. The English merchants supplied the nation with wines
from Italy, Spain, and Portugal; with linen from Holland and Silesia;
and manufactures of paper, hats, stuffs, and silks, had been set up and
successfully carried on in England by the French refugees.
THE KING DISOWNS THE SCOTTISH TRADING COMPANY.
By this time a ferment had been raised in Scotland by the opposition
and discouragements their new company had sustained. They had employed
agents in England, Holland, and Hamburgh, to receive subscriptions. The
adventurers in England were intimidated by the measures which had been
taken in parliament against the Scottish company. The Dutch East India
company took the alarm, and exerted all their interest to prevent their
countrymen from subscribing; and the king permitted his resident at
Hamburgh to present a memorial against the Scottish company to the
senate of that city. The parliament of Scotland being assembled by the
earl of Marchmont as king’s commissioner, the company presented it with
a remonstrance containing a detail of their grievances, arising from the
conduct of the English house of commons, as well as from the memorial
presented by the king’s minister at Hamburgh, in which he actually
disowned the act of parliament and letters patent which had passed
in their favour, and threatened the inhabitants of that city with
his majesty’s resentment in case they should join the Scots in their
undertaking. They represented that such instances of interposition had
put a stop to the subscriptions in England and Hamburgh, hurt the credit
of the company, discouraged the adventurers, and threatened the entire
ruin of a design in which all the most considerable families of the
nation were deeply engaged. The parliament having taken their case into
consideration, sent an address to his majesty representing the hardships
to which the company had been exposed, explaining how far the nation in
general was concerned in the design, and entreating that he would take
such measures as might effectually vindicate the undoubted rights and
privileges of the company. This address was seconded by a petition from
the company itself, praying that his majesty would give some intimation
to the senate of Hamburgh, permitting the inhabitants of that city to
renew the subscriptions they had withdrawn; that, as a gracious mark of
his royal favour to the company, he would bestow upon them two small
frigates then lying useless in the harbour of Burnt Island; and that,
in consideration of the obstructions they had encountered, he would
continue their privileges and immunities for such longer time as should
seem reasonable to his majesty. Though the commissioner was wholly
devoted to the king, who had actually resolved to ruin this company,
he could not appease the resentment of the nation; and the heats of
parliament became so violent that he was obliged to adjourn it to the
fifth day of November. In this interval the directors of the company,
understanding from their agent at Hamburgh that the address of the
parliament and their own petition had produced no effect in their
favour, wrote a letter of complaint to the lord Seafield, secretary
of state, observing that they had received repeated assurances of the
king’s having given orders to his resident at Hamburgh touching their
memorial, and entreating the interposition of his lordship that justice
might be done to the company. The secretary in his answer promised to
take the first convenient opportunity of representing the affair to his
majesty; but he said this could not be immediately expected, as the
king was much engaged in the affairs of the English parliament. This
declaration the directors considered, as it really was, a mere evasion,
which helped to alienate the minds of that people from the king’s person
and government.
{WILLIAM, 1688--1701.}
HE EMBARKS FOR HOLLAND.
King William at this time revolved in his own mind a project of far
greater consequence to the interest of Europe--namely, that of settling
the succession to the throne of Spain, which in a little time would
be vacated by the death of Charles IL, whose constitution was already
exhausted. He had been lately reduced to extremity, and his situation
was no sooner known in France than Louis detached a squadron towards
Cadiz, with orders to intercept the plate fleet, in case the king of
Spain should die before its arrival. William sent another fleet to
protect the galleons; but it arrived too late for that service, and
the nation loudly exclaimed against the tardiness of the equipment.
His catholic majesty recovered from his disorder, contrary to the
expectation of his people; but continued in such an enfeebled and
precarious state of health, that a relapse was every moment apprehended.
In the latter end of July king William embarked for Holland, on
pretence of enjoying a recess from business which was necessary to his
constitution. He was glad of an opportunity to withdraw himself for some
time from a kingdom in which he had been exposed to such opposition and
chagrin. But the real motive of his voyage was a design of treating
with the French king remote from the observation of those who might
have penetrated into the nature of his negotiation. He had appointed a
regency to govern the kingdom in his absence; and, as one of the number,
nominated the earl of Marlborough, who had regained his favour and
been constituted governor of the duke of Gloucester. At his majesty’s
departure, sealed orders were left with the ministry directing that
sixteen thousand men should be retained in the service, notwithstanding
the vote of the commons by which the standing army was limited to ten
thousand. He alleged that the apprehension of troubles which might arise
at the death of king Charles induced him to transgress this limitation;
and he hoped that the new parliament would be more favourable. His
enemies, however, made a fresh handle of this step to depreciate his
character in the eyes of the people.
FIRST TREATY OF PARTITION.
Having assisted at the assembly of the states-general, and given
audience to divers ambassadors at the Hague, he repaired to his house at
Loo, attended by the earls of Essex, Portland, and Selkirk. There he was
visited by count Tallard the French minister, who had instructions to
negotiate the treaty concerning the Spanish succession. The earl of
Portland, by his majesty’s order, had communicated to Secretary Vernon
the principal conditions which the French king proposed; he himself
wrote a letter to lord chancellor Somers, desiring his advice with
regard to the propositions, and full powers under the great seal, with
blanks to be filled up occasionally, that he might immediately begin
the treaty with count Tallard. At the same time he strictly enjoined
secrecy. The purport of Portland’s letter was imparted to the duke
of Shrewsbury and Mr. Montague, who consulted with the chancellor and
Vernon upon the subject, and the chancellor wrote an answer to the king
as the issue of their joint deliberation; but before it reached his
majesty, the first treaty of partition was signed by the earl of
Portland and sir Joseph Williamson. The contracting powers agreed,
that in case the king of Spain should die without issue, the kingdom of
Naples and Sicily, with the places depending on the Spanish monarchy,
and situated on the coast of Tuscany or the adjacent islands; the
marquisate of Final, the province of Guipuscoa, all places on the
French side of the Pyrenees, or the other mountains of Navarre, Alva,
or Biscay, on the other side of the province of Guipuscoa, with all
the ships, vessels, and stores,--should devolve upon the dauphin in
consideration of his right to the crown of Spain, which, with all its
other dependencies, should descend to the electoral prince of Bavaria,
under the guardianship of his father; that the duchy of Milan should
he settled on the emperor’s second son, the archduke Charles; that
this treaty should be communicated to the emperor and the elector of
Bavaria, by the king of England and the states-general; that if either
should refuse to agree to this partition, his proportion should remain
in sequestration until the dispute should be accommodated; that in case
the electoral prince of Bavaria should die before his father, then the
elector and his other heirs should succeed him in those dominions;
and should the archduke reject the duchy of Milan, they agreed that it
should be sequestered and governed by the prince of Vaudemont. It may
be necessary to observe that Philip IV., father to the present king of
Spain, had settled his crown by will on the emperor’s children; that the
dauphin was son to Maria-Theresa, daughter of the same monarch, whose
right to the succession Louis had renounced in the most solemn manner;
as for the electoral prince of Bavaria, he was grandson to a daughter of
Spain. This treaty of partition was one of the most impudent schemes
of encroachment that tyranny and injustice ever planned. Louis, who had
made a practice of sacrificing all ties of honour and good faith to
the interest of his pride, vanity, and ambition, foresaw that he should
never be able to accomplish his designs upon the crown of Spain while
William was left at liberty to form another confederacy against them. He
therefore resolved to amuse him with a treaty, in which he would seem
to act as umpire in the concerns of Europe. He knew that William was too
much of a politician to be restricted by notions of private justice;
and that he would make no scruple to infringe the laws of particular
countries, or even the rights of a single nation, when the balance of
power was at stake. He judged right in this particular. The king of
England lent a willing ear to his proposals, and engaged in a plan for
dismembering a kingdom in despite of the natives, and in violation of
every law human or divine.
INTRIGUES OF FRANCE AT THE COURT OF MADRID.
While the French king cajoled William with this negotiation, the
marquis d’Harcourt, his ambassador to Spain, was engaged in a game of a
different nature at Madrid. The queen of Spain, suspecting the designs
of France, exerted all her interest in behalf of the king of the Romans,
to whom she was nearly related. She new-modelled the council, bestowed
the government of Milan on prince Vaudemont, and established the prince
of Hesse Darmstadt as viceroy of Catalonia. Notwithstanding all her
efforts, she could not prevent the French minister from acquiring some
influence in the Spanish councils. He was instructed to procure the
succession of the crown for one of the dauphin’s sons, or at least to
hinder it from devolving upon the emperor’s children. With a view to
give weight to his negotiations, the French king ordered an army of
sixty thousand men to advance towards the frontiers of Catalonia and
Navarre, while a great number of ships and galleys cruised along the
coast, and entered the harbours of Spain. Harcourt immediately began to
form his party; he represented that Philip IV. had no power to dispose
of his crown against the laws of nature and the constitution of the
realm; that, by the order of succession, the crown ought to descend to
the children of his daughter in preference to more distant relations;
that if the Spaniards would declare in favour of the dauphin’s second
son, the duke of Anjou, they might train him up in the manners and
customs of their country. When he found them averse to this proposal,
he assured them that his master would approve of the electoral prince of
Bavaria rather than consent to the succession’s devolving upon a son of
the emperor. Nay, he hinted that if they would choose a sovereign among
themselves, they might depend upon the protection of his most christian
majesty, who had no other view than that of preventing the house of
Austria from becoming too formidable to the liberties of Europe. The
queen of Spain, having discovered the intrigues of this minister,
conveyed the king to Toledo, on pretence that the air of Madrid was
prejudicial to his health. Harcourt immediately took the alarm. He
supposed her intention was to prevail upon her husband in his solitude
to confirm the last will of his father; but his doubts were all removed
when he understood that the count de Harrach, the Imperial ambassador,
had privately repaired to Toledo. He forthwith took the same road,
pretending to have received a memorial from his master with a positive
order to deliver it into the king’s own hand. He was given to understand
that the management of foreign affairs had been left to the care of
cardinal Corduba at Madrid, and that the king’s health would not permit
him to attend to business. The purport of the memorial was, an offer of
French forces to assist in raising the siege of Ceuta in Barbary, which
the Moors had lately undertaken; but this offer was civilly declined.
Harcourt, not yet discouraged, redoubled his efforts at Madrid, and
found means to engage cardinal Portocarrcro in the interests of his
master. In the meantime Louis concluded an alliance with Sweden, under
the pretext of preserving and securing the common peace by such means as
should be adjudged most proper and convenient. During these transactions
king William was not wanting in his endeavours to terminate the war in
Hungary, which had raged fifteen years without intermission. About the
middle of August, lord Paget and Mr. Colliers, ambassadors from England
and Holland, arrived in the Turkish camp near Belgrade, and a conference
being opened under their mediation, the peace of Carlowitz was signed on
the twenty-sixth day of January By this treaty, the emperor remained in
possession of all his conquests; Caminieck was restored to the Poles;
all the Morea, with several fortresses in Dalmatia, were ceded to the
Venetians; and the czar of Muscovy retained Azoph during a truce of two
years: so that the Turks by this pacification lost great part of their
European dominions. The cardinal primate of Poland, who had strenuously
adhered to the prince of Conti, was prevailed upon to acknowledge
Augustus; and the commotions in Lithuania being appeased, peace was
established through all Christendom.
In the beginning of December the king arrived in England, where a new
parliament had been chosen and prorogued on account of his majesty’s
absence, which was prolonged by contrary winds and tempestuous weather.
His ministry had been at very little pains to influence the elections,
which generally fell upon men of revolution-principles, though they do
not seem to have been much devoted to the person of their sovereign; yet
their choice of sir Thomas Lyttleton for speaker, seemed to presage a
session favourable to the ministry. The two houses being convened on the
sixth day of December, the king in his speech observed that the safety,
honour, and happiness of the kingdom would in a great measure depend
upon the strength which they should think proper to maintain by sea and
land. He desired they would make some further progress in discharging
the national debt; contrive effectual expedients for employing the poor;
pass good bills for the advancement of trade, and the discouragement of
profaneness; and act with unanimity and despatch. The commons of this
new parliament were so irritated at the king’s presuming to maintain
a greater number of troops than their predecessors had voted, that they
resolved he should feel the weight of their displeasure. They omitted
the common compliment of an address; they resolved that all the forces
of England, in English pay, exceeding seven thousand men, should
be forthwith disbanded; as also those in Ireland exceeding twelve
thousand; and that those retained should be his majesty’s natural born
subjects. A bill was brought in on these resolutions and prosecuted with
peculiar eagerness, to the unspeakable mortification of king
William, who was not only extremely sensible of the affront, but also
particularly chagrined to see himself disabled from maintaining his
Dutch guards and the regiments of French refugees, to which he was
uncommonly attached. Before the meeting of the parliament, the ministry
gave him to understand that they should be able to procure a vote for
ten or twelve thousand, but they would not undertake for a greater
number. He professed himself dissatisfied with the proposal, observing
that they might as well disband the whole as leave so few. The ministers
would not run the risk of losing all their credit by proposing a greater
number; and, having received no directions on this subject, sat silent
when it was debated in the house of commons.
Such was the indignation of William, kindled by this conduct of
his ministry and his parliament, that he threatened to abandon the
government, and had actually penned a speech to be pronounced to both
houses on that occasion; but he was diverted from this purpose by his
ministry and confidants, and resolved to pass the bill by which he had
been so much offended. Accordingly, when it was ready for the royal
assent, he went to the house of peers, where having sent for the
commons, he told them that although he might think himself unkindly used
in being deprived of his guards, which had constantly attended him in
all his actions; yet, as he believed nothing could be more fatal to the
nation than any distrust or jealousy between him and his parliament, he
was come to pass the bill according to their desire.
At the same time, for his own justification, and in discharge of the
trust reposed in him, he declared that in his own judgment the nation
was left too much exposed; and that it was incumbent upon them to
provide such a strength as might be necessary for the safety of the
kingdom. They thanked him in an address for this undeniable proof of his
readiness to comply with the desires of his parliament. They assured
him he should never have reason to think the commons were undutiful or
unkind; for they would on all occasions stand by and assist him in the
preservation of his sacred person, and in the support of his government,
against all his enemies whatsoever. The lords presented an address to
the same effect; and the king assured both houses he entertained no
doubts of their loyalty and affection. He forthwith issued orders for
reducing the army to the number of seven thousand men, to be maintained
in England under the name of guards and garrisons; and hoping the hearts
of the commons were now mollified, he made another effort in favour of
his Dutch guards, whom he could not dismiss without the most sensible
regret. Lord Ranelagh was sent with a written message to the commons,
giving them to understand that the necessary preparations were made for
transporting the guards who came with him into England, and that they
should embark immediately, unless out of consideration to him, the
house should be disposed to find a way for continuing them longer in the
service; a favour which his majesty would take very kindly. The commons,
instead of complying with his inclination, presented an address, in
which they professed unspeakable grief that he should propose anything
to which they could not consent with due regard to the constitution
which he had come over to restore, and so often hazarded his royal
person to preserve. They reminded him of the declaration, in which
he had promised that all the foreign forces should be sent out of the
kingdom. They observed, that nothing conduced more to the happiness and
welfare of the nation than an entire confidence between the king and
people, which could no way be so firmly established as by intrusting
his sacred person with his own subjects, who had so eminently signalized
themselves during the late long and expensive war. They received a
soothing answer to this address, but remained firm to their purpose,
in which the king was fain to acquiesce; and the Dutch guards were
transported to Holland. At a time when they declared themselves so well
pleased with their deliverer, such an opposition in an affair of
very little consequence savoured more of clownish obstinacy than of
patriotism. In the midst of all their professions of regard, they
entertained a national prejudice against himself and all the foreigners
in his service. Even in the house of commons, his person was treated
with great disrespect in virulent insinuations. They suggested that
he neither loved nor trusted the English nation; that he treated the
natives with the most disagreeable reserve, and chose his confidants
from the number of strangers that surrounded him; that after every
session of parliament, he retired from the kingdom to enjoy an indolent
and inglorious privacy with a few favourites. These suggestions were
certainly true. He was extremely disgusted with the English, whom he
considered as malicious, ignorant, and ungrateful, and he took no pains
to disguise his sentiments.
THE COMMONS ADDRESS THE KING.
The commons having effected a dissolution of the army, voted fifteen
thousand seamen, and a proportionable fleet, for the security of the
kingdom; they granted one million four hundred and eighty-four thousand
and fifteen pounds for the services of the year, to be raised by a tax
of three shillings in the pound upon lands, personal estates, pensions,
and offices. A great number of priests and Roman catholics, who had been
frighted away by the revolution, were now encouraged by the treaty
of Ryswick to return, and appeared in all public places of London and
Westminster with remarkable effrontery. The enemies of the government
whispered about that the treaty contained a secret article in favour
of those who professed that religion; and some did not even scruple to
insinuate that William was a papist in his heart. The commons, alarmed
at the number and insolence of those religionists, desired the king, in
an address, to remove by proclamation all papists and nonjurors from the
city of London and parts adjacent, and put the laws in execution
against them, that the wicked designs they were always hatching might be
effectually disappointed. The king gratified them in their request of
a proclamation, which was not much regarded; but a remarkable law was
enacted against papists in the course of the ensuing session. The old
East India company, about this period, petitioned the lower house to
make some provision that their corporation might subsist for the residue
of the term of twenty-one years granted by his majesty’s charter; that
the payment of the five pounds per cent. by the late act for settling
the trade to the East Indies, might be settled and adjusted in such
a manner as not to remain a burden on the petitioners; and that such
further considerations might be had for their relief, and for the
preservation of the East India trade, as should be thought reasonable.
A bill was brought in upon the subject of this petition, but rejected
at the second reading. Discontents had risen to such a height, that some
members began to assert they were not bound to maintain the votes
and credit of the former parliament; and, upon this maxim, would have
contributed their interest towards a repeal of the act made in favour of
the new company: but such a scheme was of too dangerous consequence to
the public credit to be carried into execution.
That spirit of peevishness which could not be gratified with this
sacrifice, produced an inquiry into the management of naval affairs,
which was aimed at the earl of Orford, a nobleman whose power gave
umbrage, and whose wealth excited envy. He officiated both as treasurer
of the navy and lord commissioner of the admiralty, and seemed to have
forgot the sphere from which he had risen to title and office. The
commons drew up an address complaining of some unimportant articles of
mismanagement in the conduct of the navy; and the earl was wise enough
to avoid further prosecution by resigning his employments. On the fourth
day of May the king closed the session with a short speech, hinting
dissatisfaction at their having neglected to consider some points which
he had recommended to their attention; and the parliament was prorogued
to the first of June.* In a little time after this prorogation, his
majesty appointed a regency; and on the second day of June embarked for
Holland.
* About the latter end of March, the earl of Warwick and
lord Mohun were tried by their peers in Westminster-hall,
for the murder of captain Richard Coote, who had been killed
in a midnight combat of three on each side. Warwick was
found guilty of manslaughter, and Mohun acquitted.
THE SCOTTISH COMPANY MAKE A SETTLEMENT ON THE ISTHMUS OF DARIEN.
In Ireland nothing of moment was transacted. The parliament of that
kingdom passed an act for raising one hundred and twenty thousand
pounds on lands, tenements, and hereditaments, to defray the expense of
maintaining twelve thousand men, who had been voted by the commons of
England; then the assembly was prorogued. A new commission afterwards
arrived at Dublin, constituting the duke of Bolton, the earls of
Berkeley and Galway, lords-justices of Ireland. The clamour in Scotland
increased against the ministry, who had disowned their company, and in
a great measure defeated the design from which they had promised
themselves such heaps of treasure. Notwithstanding the discouragements
to which their company had been exposed, they fitted out two of four
large ships which had been built at Hamburgh for their service. These
were laden with a cargo for traffic, with some artillery and military
stores; and the adventurers embarking to the number of twelve hundred,
they sailed from the Frith of Edinburgh, with some tenders, on the
seventeenth day of July in the preceding year. At Madeira they took in a
supply of wine, and then steered to Crab-island in the neighbourhood of
St. Thomas, lying between Santa-Cruz and Porto Rico. Their design was to
take possession of this little island; but when they entered the road,
they saw a large tent pitched upon the strand, and the Danish colours
flying. Finding themselves anticipated in this quarter, they directed
their course to the coast of Darien, where they treated with the natives
for the establishment of their colony, and taking possession of the
ground, to which they gave the name of Caledonia, began to execute their
plan of erecting a town under the appellation of New Edinburgh, by the
direction of their council, consisting of Patterson the projector, and
six other directors. They had no sooner completed their settlement,
than they wrote a letter to the king containing a detail of their
proceedings. They pretended they had received undoubted intelligence
that the French intended to make a settlement on that coast; and that
their colony would be the means of preventing the evil consequences
which might arise to his majesty’s kingdom and dominions from the
execution of such a scheme. They acknowledged his goodness in granting
those privileges by which their company was established; they implored
the continuance of his royal favour and protection, as they had
punctually adhered to the conditions of the act of parliament, and the
patent they had obtained.
By this time, however, the king was resolved to crush them effectually.
He understood that the greater part of their provisions had been
consumed before they set sail from Scotland, and foresaw that they must
be reduced to a starving condition if not supplied from the English
colonies. That they might be debarred of all such assistance, he sent
orders to the governors of Jamaica and the other English settlements
in America, to issue proclamations prohibiting, under the severest
penalties, all his majesty’s subjects from holding any correspondence
with the Scottish colony, or assisting it in any shape with arms,
ammunition, or provisions; on pretence that they had not communicated
their design to his majesty, but had peopled Darien in violation of the
peace subsisting between him and his allies. Their colony was doubtless
a very dangerous encroachment upon the Spaniards, as it would have
commanded the passage between Porto-Bello and Panama, and divided the
Spanish empire in America. The French king complained of the invasion,
and offered to supply the court of Madrid with a fleet to dislodge the
interlopers. Colonna, marquis de Canales, the Spanish ambassador at the
court of London, presented a memorial to king William, remonstrating
against the settlement of this colony as a mark of disregard, and a
breach of the alliance between the two crowns; and declaring that his
master would take proper measures against such hostilities. The
Scots affirmed that the natives of Darien were a free people, who the
Spaniards had in vain attempted to subdue; that therefore they had an
original and incontrovertible right to dispose of their own lands, part
of which the company had purchased for a valuable consideration. But
there was another cause more powerful than the remonstrances of the
Spanish court to which this colony fell a sacrifice; and that was the
jealousy of the English traders and planters. Darien was said to be a
country abounding with gold, which would in a little time enrich the
adventurers. The Scots were known to be an enterprising and pertinacious
people; and their harbour near Golden Island was already declared a free
port. The English apprehended that their planters would be allured into
this new colony by the double prospect of finding gold and plundering
the Spaniards; that the buccaneers in particular would choose it
as their chief residence; that the plantations of England would be
deserted; that Darien would become another Algiers; and that the
settlement would produce a rupture with Spain, in consequence of which
the English effects in that kingdom would be confiscated. The Dutch
too are said to have been jealous of a company which in time might have
proved their competitors in the illicit commerce to the Spanish main;
and to have hardened the king’s heart against the new settlers, whom
he abandoned to their fate, notwithstanding the repeated petitions
and remonstrances of their constituents. Famine compelled the first
adventurers to quit the coast: a second recruit of men and provisions
was sent thither from Scotland; but one of their ships, laden with
provisions, being burnt by accident, they likewise deserted the place.
Another reinforcement arrived, and being better provided than the two
former, might have maintained their footing; but they were soon divided
into factions that rendered all their schemes abortive. The Spaniards
advanced against them; when finding themselves incapable of withstanding
the enemy, they solicited a capitulation, by virtue of which they were
permitted to retire. Thus vanished all the golden dreams of the Scottish
nation, which had engaged in this design with incredible eagerness, and
even embarked a greater sum of money than ever they had advanced
upon any other occasion. They were now not only disappointed in their
expectations of wealth and affluence, but a great number of families
were absolutely ruined by the miscarriage of the design, which they
imputed solely to the conduct of king William. The whole kingdom of
Scotland seemed to join in the clamour that was raised against
their sovereign, taxed him with double dealing, inhumanity, and base
ingratitude, to a people who had lavished their treasure and best blood
in support of his government, and in the gratification of his ambition;
and had their power been equal to their animosity, in all probability a
rebellion would have ensued.
REMONSTRANCES OF THE SPANISH COURT.
William meanwhile enjoyed himself at Loo, where he was visited by
the duke of Zell, with whom he had long cultivated an intimacy of
friendship. During his residence in this place, the earl of Portland
and the grand pensionary of Holland frequently conversed with the French
ambassador, count Tallard, upon the subject of the Spanish succession.
The first plan of the partition being defeated by the death of the young
prince of Bavaria, they found it necessary to concert another, and began
a private negotiation for that purpose. The court of Spain, apprized
of their intention, sent a written remonstrance to Mr. Stanhope,
the English minister at Madrid, expressing their resentment at this
unprecedented method of proceeding, and desiring that a stop might be
put to those intrigues, seeing that the king of Spain would of himself
take the necessary steps for preserving the public tranquillity in case
he should die without heirs of his body. A representation of the same
kind was made to the ministers of France and Holland; the marquis de
Canales, the Spanish ambassador at London, delivered a memorial to
the lords-justices couched in the most virulent terms against this
transaction, and even appealing from the king to the parliament. This
Spaniard was pleased with an opportunity to insult king William, who
hated his person, and had forbid him the court, on account of his
appearing covered in his majesty’s presence. The regency had no sooner
communicated this paper to the king, than he ordered the ambassador to
quit the kingdom in eighteen days, and to remain within his own house
till the time of his departure. He was likewise given to understand
that no writing would be received from him or any of his domestics. Mr.
Stanhope was directed to complain at Madrid of the affront offered to
his master, which he styled an insolent and saucy attempt to stir up
sedition in the kingdom, by appealing to the people and parliament of
England against his majesty. The court of Spain justified what their
minister had done, and in their turn ordered Mr. Stanhope to leave their
dominions. Don Bernardo de Quiros, the Spanish ambassador in Holland,
prepared a memorial on the same subject to the states-general; which
however they refused to accept. These remonstrances did not interrupt
the negotiation, in which Louis was so eager that he complained of
William as if he had not employed his whole influence in prevailing
upon the Dutch to signify their accession to the articles agreed upon by
France and England; but his Britannic majesty found means to remove this
jealousy.
THE COMMONS PERSIST IN THEIR RESOLUTIONS.
About the middle of October, William returned to England, and conferred
upon the duke of Shrewsbury the office of chamberlain, vacant since the
resignation of Sunderland. * Mr. Montague at the same period resigned
his seat at the treasury-board, together with the chancellorship of the
exchequer; either foreseeing uncommon difficulty in managing a house
of commons after they had been dismissed in ill humour, or dreading the
interest of his enemies, who might procure a vote that his two places
were inconsistent. The king opened the session of parliament on the
sixteenth day of November, with a long speech, advising a further
provision for the safety of the kingdom by sea and land, as well as the
repairs of ships and fortifications; exhorting the commons to make good
the deficiencies of the funds, discharge the debts of the nation, and
provide the necessary supplies. He recommended some good bill for
the more effectual preventing and punishing unlawful and clandestine
trading; and expressed a desire that some method should be taken for
employing the poor, which were become a burden to the kingdom. He
assured them his resolutions were to countenance virtue and discourage
vice; and that he would decline no difficulties and dangers where the
welfare and prosperity of the nation was concerned. He concluded with
these words: “Since then our aims are only for the general good, let
us act with confidence in one another; which will not fail, with God’s
blessing, to make me a happy king, and you a great and flourishing
people.” The commons were now become wanton in their disgust. Though
they had received no real provocation, they resolved to mortify him with
their proceedings. They affected to put odious interpretations on
the very harmless expression of “Let us act with confidence in one
another.” Instead of an address of thanks, according to the usual
custom, they presented a sullen remonstrance, complaining that a
jealousy and distrust had been raised of their duty and affection; and
desiring he would show marks of his high displeasure towards all persons
who had presumed to misrepresent their proceedings to his majesty. He
declared, in his answer, that no person had ever dared to misrepresent
their proceedings, and that if any should presume to impose upon him by
such calumnies, he would treat them as his worst enemies.
* Villers, earl of Jersey, who had been sent ambassador to
France, was appointed secretary of state in the room of the
duke of Shrewsbury. This nobleman was created lord
chamberlain; the earl of Manchester was sent ambassador
extraordinary to France; the earl of Pembroke was declared
lord-president of the council; and lord viscount Lonsdale
keeper of the privy-seal.
{WILLIAM, 1688--1701.}
INQUIRY INTO THE EXPEDITION Of CAPTAIN KIDD.
The house was not in a humour to be appeased with soothing promises
and protestations; they determined to distress him by prosecuting his
ministers. During the war the colonies of North America had grown rich
by piracy. One Kidd, the master of a sloop, undertook to suppress the
pirates, provided the government would furnish him with a ship of thirty
guns well manned. The board of admiralty declaring that such a number of
seamen could not be spared from the public service, Kidd was equipped by
the private subscription of the lord Chancellor, the duke of Shrewsbury,
the earls of Romney, Orford, and Bellamont, sir Edward Harrison,
and colonel Livingstone of New York. The king promised to contribute
one-half of the expense, and reserved to himself one-tenth of the
profits; but he never advanced the money. Kidd being thus equipped, and
provided with a commission to act against the French, as well as to
make war on certain pirates therein mentioned by name, set sail from
Plymouth; but instead of cruising on the coast of America, he directed
his course to the East Indies, where he himself turned pirate, and took
a rich ship belonging to the Moors. Having divided his booty with his
crew, ninety of whom left him in order to join other adventurers, he
burned his own ship and sailed with his prize to the West Indies. There
he purchased a sloop in which he steered for North America, leaving part
of his men in the prize, to remain in one of the Leeward Islands until
they should receive further instructions. Arriving on the coast of New
York, he sent one Emmet to make his peace with the earl of Bellamont,
the governor of that province, who inveigled him into a negotiation,
in the course of which he was apprehended. Then his lordship sent an
account of his proceedings to the secretary of state, desiring that he
would send for the prisoners to England, as there was no law in that
colony for punishing piracy with death, and the majority of the people
favoured that practice. The admiralty, by order of the lords-justices,
despatched the ship Rochester to bring home the prisoners and their
effects; but, after having been tossed for some time with tempestuous
weather, this vessel was obliged to return to Plymouth in a shattered
condition. This incident furnished the malcontents with a colour
to paint the ministry as the authors and abettors of a piratical
expedition, which they wanted to screen from the cognizance of the
public. The old East India company had complained to the regency of the
capture made by Kidd in the East Indies, apprehending, as the vessel
belonged to the Moors, they should be exposed to the resentments of the
Mogul. In the beginning of December, this subject being brought abruptly
into the house of commons, a motion was made, That the letters patent
granted to the earl of Bellamont and others, of pirates’ goods, were
dishonourable to the king, against the laws of nations, contrary to the
laws and statutes of the land, invasive of property, and destructive of
trade and commerce. A warm dispute ensued, in the course of which some
members declaimed with great bitterness against the chancellor and
the duke of Shrewsbury, as partners in a piratical scheme; but these
imputations were refuted, and the motion was rejected by a great
majority. Not but they might have justly stigmatized the expedition as a
little mean adventure, in which those noblemen had embarked with a view
to their own private advantage.
While this affair was in agitation among the commons, the attention of
the upper house was employed upon the case of Dr. Watson, bishop of St.
David’s. This prelate was supposed to have paid a valuable consideration
for his bishopric; and, after his elevation, had sold the preferments
in his gift with a view of being reimbursed. He was accused of simony;
and, after a solemn hearing before the archbishop of Canterbury and six
suffragans, convicted and deprived. Then he pleaded his privilege: so
that the affair was brought into the house of lords, who refused to own
him as a peer after he had ceased to be a bishop. Thus disappointed,
he had recourse to the court of delegates, by whom the archbishop’s
sentence was confirmed. The next effort that the commons made, with
a view of mortifying king William, was to raise a clamour against Dr.
Burnet, bishop of Sarum. He was represented in the house as a very unfit
preceptor for the duke of Gloucester, both as a Scottish man, and
author of that pastoral letter which had been burned by order of the
parliament, for asserting that William had a right to the crown from
conquest. A motion was made for addressing his majesty that this
prelate might be dismissed from his employment, but rejected by a great
majority. Burnet had acted with uncommon integrity in accepting the
trust. He had declined the office, which he was in a manner forced to
accept. He had offered to resign his bishopric, thinking the employment
of a tutor would interfere with the duty of a pastor. He insisted upon
the duke’s residence all the summer at Windsor, which is in the diocese
of Sarum, and added to his private charities the whole income of his new
office.
INQUIRY INTO THE IRISH FORFEITURES.
The circumstance on which the anti-courtiers built their chief hope of
distressing or disgracing the government, was the inquiry into the Irish
forfeitures, which the king had distributed among his own dependents.
The commissioners appointed by parliament to examine these particulars,
were Annesley, Trenchard, Hamilton, Langford, the earl of Drogheda, sir
Francis Brewster, and sir Richard Leving. The first four were actuated
by all the virulence of faction; the other three were secretly guided
by ministerial influence. They began their inquiry in Ireland, and
proceeded with such severity as seemed to flow rather from resentment
to the court, than from a love of justice and abhorrence of corruption.
They in particular scrutinized a grant of an estate which the king
had made to Mrs. Villiers, now countess of Orkney, so as to expose the
king’s partiality for that favourite, and subject him to an additional
load of popular odium. In the course of their examination the earl of
Drogheda, Leving, and Brewster, opposed the rest of the commissioners in
divers articles of the report, which they refused to sign, and sent
over a memorial to the house of commons explaining their reasons for
dissenting from their colleagues. By this time, however, they were
considered as hirelings of the court, and no regard was paid to their
representations. The others delivered their report, declaring that
a million and a half of money might be raised from the sale of the
confiscated estates; and a bill was brought in for applying them to the
use of the public. A motion being made to reserve a third part for
the king’s disposal, it was overruled: then the commons passed an
extraordinary vote, importing that they would not receive any petition
from any person whatsoever concerning the grants, and that they would
consider the great services performed by the commissioners appointed
to inquire into the forfeited estates. They resolved, That the four
commissioners who had signed the report had acquitted themselves with
understanding, courage, and integrity; and, That sir Richard Leving,
as author of groundless and scandalous aspersions cast upon his four
colleagues, should be committed prisoner to the Tower. They afterwards
came to the following resolution, which was presented to the king in
form of an address,--That the procuring and passing those grants had
occasioned great debts upon the nation, and heavy taxes upon the people,
and highly reflected upon the king’s honour; and, That the officers and
instruments concerned in the same had highly failed in the performance
of their trust and duty. The king answered, That he was not only led by
inclination, but thought himself obliged in justice to reward those
who had served well in the reduction of Ireland, out of the estates
forfeited to him by the rebellion in that kingdom. He observed, that
as the long war had left the nation much in debt, their taking just and
effectual ways for lessening that debt and supporting public credit was
what, in his opinion, would best contribute to the honour, interest, and
safety of the kingdom. This answer kindled a flame of indignation in
the house. They forthwith resolved, That the adviser of it had used his
utmost endeavours to create a misunderstanding and jealousy between the
king and his people.
THE COMMONS PASS A BILL OF RESUMPTION.
They prepared, finished, and passed a bill of resumption. They ordered
the report of the commissioners, together with the king’s promise and
speeches, and the former resolutions of the house touching the forfeited
estates in Ireland, to be printed and published for their justification;
and they resolved, That the procuring or passing exorbitant grants by
any member now of the privy council, or by any other that had been a
privy councillor in this or any former reign, to his use or benefit, was
a high crime or misdemeanor. That justice might be done to purchasers
and creditors in the act of resumption, thirteen trustees were
authorized and empowered to hear and determine all claims relating
to those estates, to sell them to the best purchasers; and the money
arising from the sale was appropriated to pay the arrears of the army.
It passed under the title of a bill for granting an aid to his majesty
by the sale of forfeited and other estates and interests in Ireland;
and that it might undergo no alteration in the house of lords, it was
consolidated with the money-bill for the service of the year. In the
house of lords it produced warm debates; and some alterations were made
which the commons unanimously rejected. They seemed to be now more than
ever exasperated against the ministry, and ordered a list of the privy
council to be laid before the house. The lords demanded conferences,
which served only to exasperate the two houses against each other;
for the peers insisted upon their amendments, and the commons were so
provoked at their interfering in a money-bill, that they determined to
give a loose to their resentment. They ordered all the doors of their
house to be shut that no members should go forth. Then they took into
consideration the report of the Irish forfeitures, with the list of the
privy councillors; and a question was moved, That an address should be
made to his majesty to remove John lord Somers, chancellor of England,
from his presence and councils for ever. This however was carried in the
negative by a great majority. The king was extremely chagrined at the
bill, which he considered as an invasion of his prerogative, an insult
on his person, and an injury to his friends and servants; and he at
first resolved to hazard all the consequences of refusing to pass it
into a law; but he was diverted from his purpose by the remonstrances of
those in whom he chiefly confided.* He could not, however, dissemble his
resentment. He became sullen, peevish, and morose; and his enemies did
not fail to make use of this additional ill humour as a proof of his
aversion to the English people. Though the motion against the chancellor
had miscarried, the commons resolved to address his majesty that no
person who was not a native of his dominions, except his royal highness
prince George of Denmark, should be admitted into his majesty’s councils
in England or Ireland. This resolution was levelled against the earls
of Portland, Albemarle, and Galway; but before the address could be
presented, the king went to the house of peers, and having passed the
bill which had produced such a ferment, with some others, commanded
the earl of Bridge-water, speaker of the house in the absence of the
chancellor, who was indisposed, to prorogue the parliament to the
twenty-third day of May.
* Consisting of the lord-chancellor, the lord-president, the
lord privy-seal, the lord-steward of the household, the earl
of Bridge-water, first commissioner of the admiralty, the
earl of Marlborough, the earl of Jersey, and Mr. Montague.
A SEVERE BILL PASSED AGAINST THE PAPISTS.
In the course of this session the commons having prosecuted their
inquiry into the conduct of Kidd, brought in a bill for the more
effectual suppressing of piracy, which passed into a law; understanding
afterwards that Kidd was brought over to England, they presented an
address to the king desiring that he might not be tried, discharged, or
pardoned, till the next session of parliament; and his majesty complied
with their request. Boiling still with indignation against the lord
chancellor, representing the necessity of an immediate parliament. It
was circulated about the kingdom for subscriptions, signed by a great
number of those who sat in parliament, and presented to the king by lord
Boss, who with some others was deputed for that purpose. The king told
them they should know his intention in Scotland; and in the meantime
adjourned their parliament by proclamation. The people exasperated
at this new provocation, began to form the draft of a second national
address, to be signed by the shires and boroughs of the kingdom; but
before this could be finished, the king wrote a letter to the duke of
Queensberry and the privy council of that nation, which was published
for the satisfaction of the people. He professed himself grieved at the
nation’s loss, and willing to grant what might be needful for the relief
and ease of the kingdom. He assured them he had their interest at heart;
and that his good subjects should have convincing proofs of his sincere
inclination to advance the wealth and prosperity of that his ancient
kingdom. He said he hoped this declaration would be satisfactory to all
good men; that they would not suffer themselves to be misled; nor give
advantage to enemies and ill-designing persons, ready to seize every
opportunity of embroiling the government. He gave them to understand
that his necessary absence had occasioned the late adjournment; but as
soon as God should bring him back, their parliament should be assembled.
Even this explanation, seconded by all the credit and address of his
ministers, failed in allaying the national ferment, which rose to the
very verge of rebellion.
LORD SOMERS DISMISSED.
The king, who from his first accession to the throne had veered
occasionally from one party to another, according to the circumstances
of his affairs and the opposition he encountered, was at this period so
incensed and embarrassed by the caprice and insolence of the commons,
that he willingly lent an ear to the leaders of the tories, who
undertook to manage the parliament according to his pleasure, provided
he would part with some of his ministers who were peculiarly odious to
the commons. The person against whom their anger was chiefly directed
was the lord chancellor Somers, the most active leader of the whig
party. They demanded his dismission, and the king exhorted him to resign
his office; but he refusing to take any step that might indicate a fear
of his enemies or a consciousness of guilt, the king sent a peremptory
order for the seals by the lord Jersey, to whom Somers delivered them
without hesitation. They were successively offered to lord chief justice
Holt, and Trevor the attorney-general, who declined accepting such a
precarious office. Meanwhile the king granted a temporary commission to
three judges to sit in the court of chancery; and at length bestowed
the seals, with the title of lord keeper, on Nathan Wright, one of the
sergeants at law, a man but indifferently qualified for the office to
which he was now preferred. Though William seemed altogether attached to
the tories and inclined to a new parliament, no person appeared to take
the lead in the affairs of government; and, indeed, for some time the
administration seemed to be under no particular direction.
SECOND TREATY OF PARTITION.
During the transactions of the last session, the negotiation for a
second partition treaty had been carried on in London by the French
minister Tallard, in conjunction with the earls of Portland and Jersey,
and was soon brought to perfection. On the twenty-first day of February
the treaty was signed in London; and on the twenty-fifth of the next
month it was subscribed at the Hague by Briord, the French envoy, and
the plenipotentiaries of the states-general. By this convention the
treaty of Ryswiek was confirmed. The contracting parties agreed, that,
in case of his catholic majesty’s dying without issue, the dauphin should
possess, for himself and his heirs, the kingdoms of Naples and Sicily,
the islands of St. Stephano, Porto Hercole, Orbitello, Telamone, Porto
Longone, Piombino, the city and marquisate of Final, the province of
Guipuscoa, the duchies of Lorraine and Bar; in exchange for which last,
the duke of Lorraine should enjoy the duchy of Milan; but that the
county of Biche should remain in sovereignty to the prince of Vaudemont;
that the archduke Charles should inherit the kingdom of Spain and all
its dependencies in and out of Europe; but in case of his dying without
issue, it should devolve to some other child of the emperor, excepting
him who might succeed as emperor or king of the Romans: that this
monarchy should never descend to a king of France or dauphin; and that
three months should be allowed to the emperor, to consider whether or
not he would accede to this treaty. Whether the French king was really
sincere in his professions at this juncture, or proposed this treaty
with a view to make a clandestine use of it at the court of Spain for
more interested purposes, it is not easy to determine; at first however
it was concealed from the notice of the public, as if the parties had
resolved to take no step in consequence of it during the life of his
catholic majesty.
In the beginning of July the king embarked for Holland, after having
appointed a regency to govern the kingdom in his absence. On the
twenty-ninth day of the same month the young duke of Gloucester, the
only remaining child of seventeen which the princess Anne had borne,
died of a malignant fever, in the eleventh year of his age. His death
was much lamented by the greater part of the English nation, not only on
account of his promising talents and gentle behaviour, but also, as it
left the succession undetermined, and might create disputes of fatal
consequence to the nation. The Jacobites openly exulted in an event
which they imagined would remove the chief bar to the interest of the
prince of Wales; but the protestants generally turned their eyes upon
the princess Sophia, electress dowager of Hanover, and grand-daughter
of James I. It was with a view to concert the establishment of her
succession, that the court of Brunswick now returned the visit of king
William. The present state of affairs in England, however, afforded a
very uncomfortable prospect. The people were generally alienated from
the person and government of the reigning king, upon whom they seem to
have surfeited. The vigour of their minds was destroyed by luxury and
sloth; the severity of their morals was relaxed by a long habit of
venality and corruption. The king’s health began to decline, and even
his faculties decayed apace. No person was appointed to ascend the
throne when it should become vacant. The Jacobite faction alone was
eager, vigilant, enterprising and elate. They despatched Mr. Graham,
brother of lord Preston, to the court of St. Germain’s, immediately
after the death of the duke of Gloucester; they began to bestir
themselves all over the kingdom. A report was spread that the princess
Anne had privately sent a message to her father, and that Britain was
once more threatened with civil war, confusion, anarchy, and ruin.
A FLEET SENT INTO THE BALTIC.
In the meantime King William was not inactive. The kings of Denmark and
Poland, with the elector of Brandenburgh, had formed a league to crush
the young-king of Sweden, by invading his dominions on different sides.
The Poles actually entered Livonia, and undertook the siege of Riga; the
king of Denmark, having demolished some forts in Holstein, the duke
of which was connected with Sweden, invested Tonninghen. The Swedish
minister in England demanded that assistance of William which had been
stipulated in a late renewal of the ancient treaty between England
and Sweden. The states of Holland were solicited to the same purpose.
Accordingly, a fleet of thirty sail, English and Dutch, was sent to the
Baltic under the command of sir George Rooke, who joined the Swedish
squadron, and bombarded Copenhagen, to which the Danish fleet had
retired. At the same time the duke of Lunenbourg, with the Swedish
forces which happened to be at Bremen, passed the Elhe, and marched to
the assistance of the duke of Holstein. The Danes immediately abandoned
the siege of Tonninghen, and a body of Saxons, who had made an irruption
into the territories of the duke of Brunswick, were obliged to retreat
in disorder. By the mediation of William, a negotiation was begun for
a treaty between Sweden and Denmark, which in order to quicken, Charles
the young king of Sweden made a descent upon the isle of Zealand. This
was executed with great success. Charles was the first man who landed;
and here he exhibited such marks of courage and conduct, far above his
years, as equally astonished and intimidated his adversaries. Then he
determined to besiege Copenhagen; a resolution that struck such terror
into the Danes, that they proceeded with redoubled diligence in the
treaty, which was brought to a conclusion, between Denmark, Sweden,
and Holstein, about the middle of August. Then the Swedes retired to
Schonen, and the squadrons of the maritime powers returned from the
Baltic.
SECOND TREATY OF PARTITION.
When the new partition treaty was communicated by the ministers of the
contracting parties to the other powers of Europe, it generally met with
a very unfavourable construction. Saxony and the northern crowns were
still embroiled with their own quarrels, consequently could not give
much attention to such a remote transaction. The princes of Germany
appeared cautious and dilatory in their answers, unwilling to be
concerned in any plan that might excite the resentment of the house of
Austria. The elector of Brandenburgh in particular had set his heart
upon the regal dignity, which he hoped to obtain from the favour
and authority of the emperor. The Italian states were averse to the
partition treaty, from their apprehension of seeing France in possession
of Naples and other districts of their country. The duke of Savoy
affected a mysterious neutrality, in hopes of being, able to barter
his consent for some considerable advantage. The Swiss cantons declined
acceding as guarantees. The emperor expressed his astonishment that any
disposition should be made of the Spanish monarchy without the consent
of the present possessor, and the states of the kingdom. He observed,
that neither justice nor decorum could warrant the contracting powers
to compel him, who was the rightful heir, to accept a part of his
inheritance within three months, under penalty of forfeiting even that
share to a third person not yet named; and he declared that he could
take no final resolution until he should know the sentiments of his
catholic majesty, on an affair in which their mutual interest was so
nearly concerned. Leopold was actually engaged in a negotiation with the
king of Spain, who signed a will in favour of his second son Charles;
yet he took no measures to support the disposition, either by sending
the archduke with a sufficient force to Spain, or by detaching troops
into Italy.
THE FRENCH INTEREST PREVAILS AT THE COURT OF SPAIN.
The people of Spain were exasperated at the insolence of the three
foreign powers who pretended to parcel out their dominions. Their pride
took the alarm at the prospect of their monarchy’s being dismembered;
and their grandees repined at the thoughts of losing so many lucrative
governments which they now enjoyed. The king’s life became every day
more and more precarious, from frequent returns of his disorder. The
ministry was weak and divided, the nobility factious, and the people
discontented. The hearts of the nation had been alienated from the house
of Austria, by the insolent carriage and rapacious disposition of
the queen Mariana. The French had gained over to their interests the
cardinal Portocarrero, the marquis de Monterey, with many other noblemen
and persons of distinction. These perceiving the sentiments of the
people, employed their emissaries to raise a general cry that France
alone could maintain the succession entire; that the house of Austria
was feeble and exhausted, and any prince of that line must owe his chief
support to detestable heretics. Portocarrero tampered with the weakness
of his sovereign. He repeated and exaggerated all these digestions; he
advised him to consult Pope Innocent XII. on this momentous point of
regulating the succession. That pontiff, who was a creature of France,
having taken the advice of a college of cardinals, determined that the
renunciation of Maria Theresa was invalid and null, as being founded
upon compulsion, and contrary to the fundamental laws of the Spanish
monarchy. He therefore exhorted king Charles to contribute to the
propagation of the faith, and the repose of Christendom, by making a new
will in favour of a grandson of the French monarch. This admonition
was seconded by the remonstrance of Portocarrero; and the weak prince
complied with the proposal. In the meantime the king of France seemed to
act heartily as a principal in the treaty of partition. His ministers
at foreign courts co-operated with those of the maritime powers in
soliciting the accession of the different potentates in Europe.
When count Zinzendorf, the imperial ambassador at Paris, presented a
memorial, desiring to know what part France would act should the king of
Spain voluntarily place a grandson of Louis upon the throne, the marquis
de Torcy answered in writing, that his most christian majesty would by
no means listen to such a proposal; nay, when the emperor’s minister
gave them to understand that his master was ready to begin a separate
negotiation with the court of Versailles, touching the Spanish
succession, Louis declared he could not treat on that subject without
the concurrence of his allies.
The nature of the partition-treaty was no sooner known in England, than
condemned by the most intelligent part of the nation. They first of all
complained, that such an important affair should be concluded without
the advice of parliament. They observed that the scheme was unjust,
and the execution of it hazardous; that in concerting the terms, the
maritime powers seemed to have acted as partizans of France; for the
possession of Naples and the Tuscan ports would subject Italy to
her dominion, and interfere with the English trade to the Levant and
Mediterranean; while Guipuscoa, on any future rupture, would afford
another inlet into the heart of the Spanish dominions; they, for these
reasons, pronounced the treaty destructive of the balance of power,
and prejudicial to the interest of England. All these arguments were
trumpeted by the malcontents, so that the whole kingdom echoed with the
clamour of disaffection. Sir Christopher Musgrave, and others of the
tory faction, began to think in earnest of establishing the succession
of the English crown upon the person of the prince of Wales. They are
said to have sent over Mr. Graham to St. Germain’s with overtures to
this purpose, and an assurance that a motion would be made in the house
of commons, to pass a vote that the crown should not be supported in the
execution of the partition treaty. King William was not ignorant of the
censure he had undergone, and not a little alarmed to find himself so
unpopular among his own subjects. That he might be the more able
to bestow his attention effectually upon the affairs of England, he
resolved to take some measures for the satisfaction of the Scottish
nation. He permitted the parliament of that kingdom to meet on the
twenty-eighth day of October, and wrote a letter to them from his house
at Loo, containing an assurance that he would concur in every thing that
could be reasonably proposed for maintaining and advancing the peace and
welfare of their kingdom. He promised to give his royal assent to
such acts as they should frame for the better establishment of
the presbyterian discipline; for preventing the growth of popery,
suppressing vice and immorality, encouraging piety and virtue,
preserving and securing personal liberty, regulating and advancing
trade, retrieving the losses, and promoting the interest of their
African and Indian companies. He expressed his concern that he could not
assert the company’s right of establishing a colony at Darien, without
disturbing the peace of Christendom, and entailing a ruinous war on that
his ancient kingdom. He recommended unanimity and despatch in raising
competent taxes for their own defence; and told them he had thought fit
to continue the duke of Queensberry in the office of high commissioner.
Notwithstanding this soothing address, the national resentment continued
to rage, and the parliament seemed altogether intractable. By this time
the company had received certain tidings of the entire surrender of
their settlement; and on the first day of the session, they represented
to parliament, that, for want of due protection abroad, some persons
had been encouraged to break in upon their privileges even at home. This
remonstrance was succeeded by another national address to the king, who
told them he could not take any further notice of that affair, since
the parliament was now assembled; and he had already made a declaration,
with which he hoped all his faithful subjects would be satisfied.
Nevertheless he found it absolutely necessary to practise other
expedients for allaying the ferment of that nation. His ministers and
their agents bestirred themselves so successfully, that the heats in
parliament were entirely cooled, and the outcry of the people subsided
into unavailing murmurs. The parliament resolved, that in consideration
of their great deliverance by his majesty, and as next, under God, their
safety and happiness wholly depended on his preservation and that of his
government, they would support both to the utmost of their power, and
maintain such forces as should be requisite for those ends. They passed
an act for keeping on foot three thousand men for two years, to be
maintained by a land-tax. Then the commissioner produced the king’s
letter, desiring to have eleven hundred men on his own account to the
first day of June following; they forthwith complied with this request,
and were prorogued to the sixth of May. The supernumerary troops were
sent over to the states-general; and the earl of Argyle was honoured
with the title of duke, as a recompence for having concurred with the
commissioners in managing this session of parliament.
{WILLIAM, 1688--1701.}
DEATH OF THE KING OF SPAIN.
King William had returned to England on the eighteenth day of October,
not a little chagrined at the perplexities in which he found himself
involved; and in the beginning of the next month, he received advice
that the king of Spain was actually dead. He could not be surprised at
this event, which had been so long-expected; but it was attended with a
circumstance which he had not foreseen. Charles, by his last will, had
declared the duke of Anjou, second son of the dauphin, the sole heir of
the Spanish monarchy. In case this prince should die without issue, or
inherit the crown of France, he willed that Spain should devolve to the
duke of Berry: in default of him, and children, to the archduke Charles
and his heirs; failing of whom, to the duke of Savoy and his posterity.
He likewise recommended a match between the duke of Anjou and one of
the archduchesses. When this testament was first notified to the French
court, Louis seemed to hesitate between his inclination and engagements
to William and the states-general. Madame de Maintenon is said to have
joined her influence to that of the dauphin, in persuading the king to
accept of the will; and Pontchartrain was engaged to support the same
measure. A cabinet-council was called in her apartment. The rest of the
ministry declared for the treaty of partition; the king affected a kind
of neutrality. The dauphin spoke for his son with an air of resolution
he had never assumed before; Pontchartain seconded his argument; madame
de Main-tenon asked, what the duke of Anjou had done to provoke the
king, that he should be barred of his right to that succession? Then the
rest of the members espoused the dauphin’s opinion; and the king owned
himself convinced by their reasons. In all probability the decision
of this council was previously settled in private. After the will was
accepted, Louis closeted the duke of Anjou, to whom he said in presence
of the marquis des Rois, “Sir, the king of Spain has made you a king.
The grandees demand you; the people wish for you, and I give my consent,
remember only, you are a prince of France. I recommend to you to love
your people, to gain their affection by the lenity of your government,
and to render yourself worthy of the throne you are going to ascend.”
The new monarch was congratulated on his elevation by all the princes
of the blood; nevertheless, the duke of Orleans and his son protested
against the will, because the archduke was placed next in succession
to the duke of Berry, in bar of their right as descendants of Anne
of Austria, whose renunciation could be of no more force than that of
Maria-Theresa. On the fourth day of December the new king set out for
Spain, to the frontiers of which he was accompanied by his two brothers.
When the will was accepted, the French minister de Torcy endeavoured to
justify his master’s conduct to the earl of Manchester, who resided
at Paris in the character of ambassador from the court of London. He
observed, that the treaty of partition was not likely to answer the end
for which it had been concerted; that the emperor had refused to
accede; that it was relished by none of the princes to whom it had been
communicated; that the people of England and Holland had expressed their
discontent at the prospect of France being in possession of Naples and
Sicily; that if Louis had rejected the will, the archduke would have had
a double title derived from the former will, and that of the late king;
that the Spaniards were so averse to the division of their monarchy,
there would be a necessity for conquering the whole kingdom before
the treaty could be executed; that the ships to be furnished by Great
Britain and Holland would not be sufficient for the purposes of such a
war, and it was doubtful whether England and the states-general would
engage themselves in a greater expense. He concluded with saying, That
the treaty would have been more advantageous to France than the will,
which the king accepted purely from a desire of preserving the peace
of Europe. His master hoped therefore that a good understanding would
subsist between him and the king of Great Britain. The same reasons
were communicated by Briod, the French ambassador at the Hague, to the
states-general. Notwithstanding this address, they ordered their envoy
at Paris to deliver a memorial to the French king, expressing their
surprise at his having accepted the will; and their hope, that as the
time specified for the emperor’s acceding to the treaty was not
expired, his most christian majesty would take the affair again into his
consideration, and adhere to his engagements in every article. Louis in
his answer to this memorial, which he despatched to all the courts
of Europe, declared that what he chiefly considered was the principal
design of the contracting parties, namely, the maintenance of peace in
Europe; and that, true to his principle, he only departed from the words
that he might the better adhere to the spirit of the treaty.
PHILIP ACKNOWLEDGED KING OF SPAIN.
With this answer he sent a letter to the states, giving them to
understand that the peace of Europe was so firmly established by the
will of the king of Spain, in favour of his grandson, that he did not
doubt their approbation of his succession to the Spanish crown. The
states observed, that they could not declare themselves upon an affair
of such consequence, without consulting their respective provinces.
Louis admitted the excuse, and assured them of his readiness to concur
with whatever they should desire for the security of the Spanish
Netherlands. The Spanish ambassador at the Hague presented them with a
letter from his new master, who likewise notified his accession to all
the powers of Europe, except the king of England. The emperor loudly
exclaimed against the will, as being more iniquitous than the treaty of
partition; and threatened to do himself justice by force of arms.
The Spaniards, apprehending that a league would be formed between
his imperial majesty and the maritime powers for setting aside the
succession of the duke of Anjou, and conscious of their own inability to
defend their dominions, resigned themselves entirely to the protection
of the French monarch. The towns in the Spanish Netherlands and the
duchy of Milan admitted French garrisons: a French squadron anchored in
the port of Cadiz; and another was detached to the Spanish settlements
in the West Indies. Part of the Dutch army that was quartered at
Luxembourg, Mon, and Namur, were made prisoners of war, because
they would not own the king of Spain, whom their masters had not yet
acknowledged. The states were overwhelmed with consternation by this
event, especially when they considered their own naked situation, and
reflected that the Spanish garrisons might fall upon them before they
could assemble a body of troops for their defence. The danger was so
imminent, that they resolved to acknowledge the king of Spain without
further hesitation, and wrote a letter to the French king for that
purpose; this was no sooner received, than orders were issued for
sending back their battalions.
A NEW MINISTRY, AND A NEW PARLIAMENT.
How warmly soever king William resented the conduct of the French king,
in accepting the will so diametrically opposite to his engagements,
he dissembled his chagrin; and behaved with such reserve and apparent
indifference, that some people naturally believed he had been privy to
the transaction. Others imagined that he was discouraged from engaging
in a new war by his bodily infirmities, which daily increased, as well
as by the opposition in parliament to which he should be inevitably
exposed. But his real aim was to conceal his sentiments until he should
have sounded the opinions of other powers in Europe, and seen how far
he could depend upon his new ministry. He now seemed to repose his chief
confidence in the earl of Rochester, who had undertaken for the
tories, and was declared lord-lieutenant of Ireland. Lord Godolphin was
appointed first commissioner of the treasury, lord Tankerville succeeded
lord Lonsdale, lately deceased, as keeper of the privy-seal, and sir
Charles Hedges was declared secretary of state, in the room of the earl
of Jersey; but the management of the commons was intrusted to Mr. Robert
Harley, who had hitherto opposed the measures of the court with equal
virulence and ability. These new undertakers, well knowing they should
find it very difficult, if not impossible, to secure a majority in
the present parliament, prevailed on the king to dissolve it by
proclamation; then the sheriffs were changed according to their
nomination, and writs issued for a new parliament to meet on the sixth
day of February. During this interval, count Wratislaw arrived in
England, as ambassador from the emperor, to explain Leopold’s title to
the Spanish monarchy, supported by repeated entails and renunciations,
confirmed in the most solemn treaties. This minister met with a very
cold reception from those who stood at the helm of affairs. They sought
to avoid all connexions, that might engage their country as a principal
in another war upon the Continent; smarting as they were from the
losses and incumbrances which the last had entailed upon them and their
posterity. They seemed to think that Louis, rather than involve himself
in fresh troubles, would give all the security that could be desired for
maintaining the peace of Europe; or even should this be refused, they
saw no reason for Britain exhausting her wealth and strength to support
a chimerical balance, in which her interest was but remotely concerned.
It was their opinion, that by keeping aloof she might render herself
more respectable. Her reserve would overawe contending powers; they
would in their turn sue for her assistance, and implore her good
offices; and, instead of declaring herself a party, she would have the
honour to decide as arbitress of their disputes. Perhaps they extended
this idea too far; and, in all probability, their notions were inflamed
by a spirit of faction. They hated the whigs as their political
adversaries, and detested the war, because it had been countenanced
and supported by the interest of that party. The king believed that a
conjunction of the two monarchies of France and Spain would prove fatal
to the liberties of Europe; and that this could not be prevented by
any other method than a general union of the other European powers. He
certainly was an enthusiast in his sentiments of this equilibrium; and
fully convinced that he himself, of all the potentates in Christendom,
was the only prince capable of adjusting the balance. The imperial
ambassador could not therefore be long ignorant of his real purpose, as
he conversed with the Dutch favourites, who knew and approved of their
master’s design, though he avoided a declaration until he should have
rendered his ministers more propitious to his aim. The true secret,
however, of that reserve with which count Wratislaw was treated at his
first arrival, was a private negotiation which the king had set on foot
with the regency of Spain, touching a barrier in the Netherlands. He
proposed that certain towns should be garrisoned with English and Dutch
troops, by way of security against the ambitious designs of France; but
the regency were so devoted to the French interest, that they refused
to listen to any proposal of this nature. While this affair was in
agitation, William resolved to maintain a wary distance from the
emperor; but when his efforts miscarried, the ambassador found him much
more open and accessible.*
* This year was distinguished by a glorious victory which
the young king of Sweden obtained in the nineteenth year of
his age. Riga continued invested by the king of Poland,
while Peter the czar of Muscovy made his approaches to
Narva, at the head of a prodigious army, purposing, in
violation of all faith and justice, to share the spoils of
the youthful monarch. Charles landed at Revel, compelled the
Saxons to abandon the siege of Riga, and having supplied the
place, marched with a handful of troops against the
Muscovites, who had undertaken the siege of Narva. The czar
quitted his army with some precipitation, as if he had been
afraid of hazarding his person, while Charles advanced
through ways that were thought impracticable, and surprised
the enemy. He broke into their camp before they had the
least intimation of his approach, and totally routed them
after a short resistance. He took a great number of
prisoners, with all their baggage, tents, and artillery, and
entered Narva in triumph.
The parliament meeting on the sixth, was prorogued to the tenth day of
February, when Mr. Harley was chosen speaker by a great majority, in
opposition to sir Richard Onslow. The king had previously told sir
Thomas Lyttleton, it would be for his service that he should yield his
pretensions to Harley at this juncture; and that gentleman agreed to
absent himself from the house on the day of election. The king observed
in his speech, that the nation’s loss in the death of the duke of
Gloucester, had rendered it absolutely necessary for them to make
further provision for the succession of the crown in the protestant
line; that the death of the king of Spain had made such an alteration in
the affairs of the Continent, as required their mature deliberation. The
rest of his harangue turned upon the usual topics of demanding supplies
for the ensuing year, reminding them of the deficiencies and public
debts, recommending to their inquiry the state of the navy and
fortifications; exhorting them to encourage commerce, employ the poor,
and proceed with vigour and unanimity in all their deliberations. Though
the elections had been generally carried in favour of the tory interest,
the ministry had secured but one part of that faction. Some of the most
popular leaders, such as the duke of Leeds, the marquis of Normanby, the
earls of Nottingham, Seymour, Musgrave, Howe, Finch, and Showers, had
been either neglected or found refractory, and resolved to oppose the
court measures with all their influence. Besides, the French king,
knowing that the peace of Europe would in a great measure depend on the
resolutions of the English parliament, is said to have distributed great
sums of money in England, by means of his minister Tallard, in order to
strengthen the opposition of the house of commons. Certain it is, the
nation abounded at this period with the French coins called louis d’ors
and pistoles; but whether this redundancy was owing to a balance of
trade in favour of England, or to the largesses of Louis, we shall
not pretend to determine. We may likewise observe, that the infamous
practice of bribing electors had never been so flagrant as in the choice
of representatives for this parliament. This scandalous traffic had been
chiefly carried on by the whig party, and therefore their antagonists
resolved to spare no pains in detecting their corruption. Sir Edward
Seymour distinguished himself by his zeal and activity; he brought some
of these practices to light, and, in particular, stigmatized the new
East-India company for having been deeply concerned in this species of
venality. An inquiry being set on foot in the house of commons, several
elections were declared void; and divers persons who had been illegally
returned, were first expelled the house, and afterwards detained in
prison. Yet these prosecutions were carried on with such partiality,
as plainly indicated that they flowed rather from party zeal than from
patriotism.
A great body of the commons had resolved to present an address to his
majesty, desiring he would acknowledge the king of Spain; and the motion
in all probability would have been carried by a considerable majority,
had not one bold and lucky expression given such a turn to the debate,
as induced the anti-courtiers to desist. One Mr. Monckton, in the heat
of his declamation against this measure, said he expected the next vote
would be for owning the pretended prince of Wales. Though there was
little or no connexion between these two subjects, a great many members
were startled at the information, and deserted the measure, which was
dropped accordingly. The king’s speech being taken into consideration,
the house resolved to support his majesty and his government; to take
such effectual measures as might best conduce to the interest and
safety of England, and the preservation of the protestant religion.
This resolution was presented in an address to the king, who received
it favourably. At the same time, he laid before them a memorial he
had received from the states-general, and desired their advice
and assistance in the points that constituted the substance of
the remonstrance. The states gave him to understand, that they had
acknowledged the duke of Anjou as king of Spain; that France had agreed
to a negotiation, in which they might stipulate the necessary conditions
for securing the peace of Europe; and that they were firmly resolved
to do nothing without the concurrence of his majesty and their other
allies. They therefore begged he would send a minister to the Hague,
with necessary powers and instructions to co-operate with them in this
negotiation; they told him that in case it should prove ineffectual,
or Holland be suddenly invaded by the troops which Louis had ordered
to advance towards their frontiers, they relied on the assistance of
England, and hoped his majesty would prepare the succours stipulated by
treaty, to be used should occasion require. The memorial was like-wise
communicated to the house of lords. Meanwhile the commons desired that
the treaties between England and the states-general should be laid
before the house. These being perused, they resolved upon an address,
to desire his majesty would enter into such negotiations with the
states-general, and other potentates, as might most effectually conduce
to the mutual safety of Great Britain and the united provinces, as well
as to the preservation of the peace of Europe, and to assure him of
their support and assistance in performance of the treaty subsisting
between England and the states-general. This resolution however was
not carried without great opposition from those who were averse to the
nation involving itself in another war upon the continent. The king
professed himself extremely well pleased with this address, and told
them he would immediately order his ministers abroad to act in concert
with the states-general and other powers, for the attainment of those
ends they proposed.
AN INTERCEPTED LETTER.
He communicated to the commons a letter, written by the earl of Melfort
to his brother the earl of Perth, governor to the pretended prince
of Wales. It had been mislaid by, accident, and came to London in the
French mail. It contained a scheme for another invasion of England,
together with some reflections on the character of the earl of
Middleton, who had supplanted him at the court of St. Germain’s. Melfort
was a mere projector, and seems to have had no other view than that
of recommending himself to king James, and bringing his rival into
disgrace. The house of lords, to whom the’ letter was also imparted,
ordered it to be printed. Next day they presented an address, thanking
his majesty for his care of the protestant religion; desiring all the
treaties made since the last war might be laid before them; requesting
him to engage in such alliances as he should think proper for preserving
the balance of power in Europe; assuring him of their concurrence;
expressing their acknowledgment for his having communicated Melfort’s
letter; desiring he would give orders for seizing the horses and arms of
disaffected persons; for removing papists from London; and for searching
after those arms and provisions of war mentioned in the letter; finally,
they requested him to equip speedily a sufficient fleet for the defence
of himself and the kingdom. They received a gracious answer to this
address, which was a further encouragement to the king to put his
own private designs in execution; towards the same end the letter
contributed not a little, by inflaming the fears and resentment of the
nation against France, which in vain disclaimed the earl of Melfort as
a fantastical schemer, to whom no regard was paid at the court of
Versailles. The French ministry complained of the publication of this
letter, as an attempt to sow jealousy between the two crowns; and as
a convincing proof of their sincerity, banished the earl of Melfort to
Angers.
SUCCESSION OF THE CROWN SETTLED.
The credit of exchequer bills was so lowered by the change of the
ministry, and the lapse of the time allotted for their circulation, that
they fell nearly twenty per cent, to the prejudice of the revenue, and
the discredit of the government in foreign countries. The commons having
taken this affair into consideration, voted, That provision should be
made from time to time for making good the principal and interest due on
all parliamentary funds; and afterwards passed a bill for renewing the
bills of credit, commonly called exchequer bills. This was sent up to
the lords on the sixth day of March, and on the thirteenth received
the royal assent. The next object that engrossed the attention of the
commons, was the settlement of the succession to the throne, which the
king had recommended to their consideration in the beginning of the
session. Having deliberated on this subject, they resolved, That for the
preservation of the peace and happiness of the kingdom, and the security
of the protestant religion, it was absolutely necessary that a further
declaration should be made of the limitation and succession of the crown
in the protestant line, after his majesty and the princess, and the
heirs of their bodies respectively; and that further provision should be
first made for the security of the rights and liberties of the people.
Mr. Harley moved, That some conditions of government might be settled
as preliminaries, before they should proceed to the nomination of
the person, that their security might be complete. Accordingly, they
deliberated on this subject, and agreed to the following resolutions;
That whoever shall hereafter come to the possession of this crown, shall
join in communion with the church of England as by law established; that
in case the crown and imperial dignity of this realm shall hereafter
come to any person, not being a native of this kingdom of England,
this nation be not obliged to engage in any war for the defence of any
dominions or territories which do not belong to the crown of England,
without the consent of parliament; that no person who shall hereafter
come to the possession of the crown, shall go out of the dominions of
England, Scotland, or Ireland, without consent of parliament; that, from
and after the time that the further limitation by this act shall take
effect, all matters and things relating to the well-governing of this
kingdom, which are properly cognizable in the privy-council, by the laws
and customs of the realm, shall be transacted there, and all resolutions
taken thereupon shall be signed by such of the privy-council as shall
advise and consent to the same; that, after the limitation shall take
effect, no person born out of the kingdom of England, Scotland,
or Ireland, or the dominions thereunto belonging, although he be
naturalized, and made a denizen (except such as are born of English
parents), shall be capable to be of the privy-council, or a member of
either house of parliament, or to enjoy any office or place of trust,
either civil or military, or to have any grant of lands, tenements, or
hereditaments from the crown to himself, or to any others in trust for
him; that no person who has an office or place of profit under the king,
or receives a pension from the crown, shall be capable of serving as a
member of the house of commons; that, after the limitation shall take
effect, judges’ commissions be made _quamdiu se bene gesserint_, and
their salaries ascertained and established; but upon the address of both
houses of parliament, it may be lawful to remove them; but no pardon
under the great seal of England be pleadable to an impeachment by
the commons in parliament. Having settled these preliminaries, they
resolved, that the princess Sophia, duchess dowager of Hanover,
be declared the next in succession to the crown of England, in the
protestant line, after his majesty, and the princess, and the heirs of
their bodies respectively; and, that the further limitation of the
crown be to the said princess Sophia and the heirs of her body, being
protestants. A bill being formed on these resolutions, was sent up to
the house of lords, where it met with some opposition from the marquis
of Normanby; a protest was likewise entered against it by the earls
of Huntingdon and Plymouth, and the lords Guilford and Jeffries.
Nevertheless it passed without amendments, and on the twelfth day of
June received the royal assent: the king was extremely mortified at the
preliminary limitations, which he considered as an open insult on
his own conduct and administration; not but that they were necessary
precautions, naturally suggested by the experience of those evils to
which the nation had been already exposed, in consequence of raising
a foreign prince to the throne of England. As the tories lay under
the imputation of favouring the late king’s interest, they exerted
themselves zealously on this occasion to wipe off the aspersion, and
insinuate themselves into the confidence of the people; hoping that in
the sequel they should be able to restrain the nation from engaging too
deep in the affairs of the continent, without incurring the charge of
disaffection to the present king and government. The act of settlement
being passed, the earl of Macclesfield was sent to notify the
transaction to the electress Sophia, who likewise received from his
hands the order of the garter.
The act of succession gave umbrage to all the popish princes, who were
more nearly related to the crown than this lady, whom the parliament had
preferred to all others. The duchess of Savoy, grand-daughter to king
Charles I. by her mother, ordered her ambassador, count Maffei, to make
a protestation to the parliament of England, in her name, against all
resolutions and decisions contrary to her title, as sole daughter to the
princess Henrietta, next in succession to the crown of England, after
king William and the princess Anne of Denmark. Two copies of this
protest, Maffei sent in letters to the lord keeper and the speaker of
the lower house, by two of his gentlemen, and a public notary to attest
the delivery; but no notice was taken of the declaration. The duke of
Savoy, while his minister was thus employed in England, engaged in an
alliance with the crowns of France and Spain, on condition, That his
catholic majesty should espouse his youngest daughter without a dowry;
that he himself should command the allied army in Italy, and furnish
eight thousand infantry, with five-and-twenty hundred horse, in
consideration of a monthly subsidy of fifty thousand crowns.
INEFFECTUAL NEGOTIATION with FRANCE.
During these transactions, Mr. Stanhope, envoy extraordinary to the
states-general, was empowered to treat with the ministers of France
and Spain, according to the addresses of both houses of parliament. He
represented, that though his most christian majesty had thought fit to
deviate from the partition-treaty, it was not reasonable that the king
of England should lose the effect of that convention; he therefore
expected some security for the peace of Europe; and for that purpose
insisted upon certain articles, importing, That the French king should
immediately withdraw his troops from the Spanish Netherlands; that for
the security of England, the cities of Ostend and Nieuport should be
delivered into the hands of his Britannic majesty; that no kingdom,
provinces, cities, lands, or places, belonging to the crown of Spain,
should ever be yielded or transferred to the crown of France, on any
pretence whatever; that the subjects of his Britannic majesty should
retain all the privileges, rights, and immunities, with regard to their
navigation and commerce in the dominions of Spain, which they enjoyed
at the death of his late catholic majesty; and also all such immunities,
rights, and franchises, as the subjects of France, or any other power,
either possess for the present, or may enjoy for the future; that all
treaties of peace and conventions between England and Spain should be
renewed; and that a treaty formed on these demands should be guaranteed
by such powers as one or other of the contractors should solicit and
prevail upon to accede. Such likewise were the proposals made by the
states-general, with this difference, that they demanded as cautionary
towns, all the strongest places in the Netherlands. Count D’A vaux, the
French minister, was so surprised at these exorbitant demands, that he
could not help saying, They could not have been higher, if his master
had lost four successive battles. He assured them that his most
christian majesty would withdraw his troops from the Spanish Netherlands
as soon as the king of Spain should have forces of his own sufficient to
guard the country; with respect to the other articles, he could give no
other answer, but that he would immediately transmit them to Versailles.
Louis was filled with indignation at the insolent strain of those
proposals, which he considered as a sure mark of William’s hostile
intentions. He refused to give any other security for the peace of
Europe, than a renewal of the treaty of Ryswick; and he is said to have
tampered, by means of his agents and emissaries, with the members of the
English parliament, that they might oppose all steps tending to a new
war on the continent.
{WILLIAM, 1688--1701.}
SEVERE ADDRESSES FROM BOTH HOUSES.
King William certainly had no expectation that France would close with
such proposals; but he was not without hope that her refusal would warm
the English nation into a concurrence with his designs. He communicated
to the house of commons the demands which had been made by him and the
states-general; and gave them to understand, that he would from time
to time make them acquainted with the progress of the negotiation. The
commons suspecting that his intention was to make them parties in a
congress which he might conduct to a different end from that which they
proposed, resolved to signify their sentiments in the answer to this
message. They called for the treaty of partition, which being read,
they voted an address of thanks to his majesty, for his most gracious
declaration that he would make them acquainted with the progress of the
negotiation; but they signified their disapprobation of the partition
treaty, signed with the great seal of England, without the advice of the
parliament which was then sitting, and productive of ill consequences to
the kingdom, as well as to the peace of Europe, as it assigned over to
the French king such a large portion of the Spanish dominion. Nothing
could be more mortifying to the king than this open attack upon his own
conduct, yet he suppressed his resentment, and without taking the least
notice of their sentiments with respect to the partition treaty, assured
them that he should be always ready to receive their advice on the
negotiation which he had set on foot according to their desire. The
debates in the house of commons upon the subject of the partition treaty
rose to such violence, that divers members, in declaiming against it,
transgressed the bounds of decency. Sir Edward Seymour compared the
division which had been made of the Spanish territories, to a robbery
on the highway; and Mr. Howe did not scruple to say it was a felonious
treaty: an expression which the king resented to such a degree, that he
declared he would have demanded personal satisfaction with his sword,
had he not been restrained by the disparity of condition between himself
and the person who had offered such an outrageous insult to his honour.
Whether the tories intended to alienate the minds of the nation from all
foreign connexions, or to wreak their vengeance on the late ministers,
whom they hated as the chiefs of the whig party, certain it is, they now
raised an universal outcry against the partition treaty, which was not
only condemned in public pamphlets and private conversation, but even
brought into the house of lords as an object of parliamentary censure.
In the month of March a warm debate on this subject was begun by
Sheffield marquis of Nonnanby, and carried on with great vehemence by
other noblemen of the same faction. They exclaimed against the article
by which so many territories were added to the crown of France; they
complained, that the emperor had been forsaken; that the treaty was
not communicated to the privy-council or ministry, but clandestinely
transacted by the earls of Portland and Jersey; that the sanction of
the great seal had been unjustly and irregularly applied, first to blank
powers, and afterwards to the treaty itself. The courtiers replied,
that the king had engaged in a treaty of partition at the desire of the
emperor, who had agreed to every article except that relating to the
duchy of Milan, and afterwards desired, that his majesty would procure
for him the best terms he could obtain; above all things recommending
secrecy, that he might not forfeit his interest in Spain, by seeming to
consent to the treaty; that foreign negotiations being intrusted to the
care of the crown, the king lay under no legal obligation to communicate
such secrets of state to his council; far less was he obliged to follow
their advice; and that the keeper of the great seal had no authority for
refusing to apply it to any powers or treaty which the king should
grant or conclude, unless they were contrary to law, which had made no
provision for such an emergency.*
* In the course of this debate, the earl of Rochester
reprehended some lords for speaking disrespectfully of the
French king, observing that it was peculiarly incumbent on
peers to treat monarchs with decorum and respect, as they
derived their dignity from the crown. Another affirming that
the French king was not only to be respected, but likewise
to be feared: a certain lord replied, “He hoped no man in
England need to be afraid of the French king; much less the
peer who spoke last, who was too much a friend to that
monarch to fear anything from his resentment.”
The earl of Portland, apprehending that this tempest would burst upon
his head, declared on the second day of the debate, that he had, by the
king’s order, communicated the treaty, before it was concluded, to the
earls of Pembroke and Marlborough, the lords Lonsdale, Somers, Halifax,
and secretary Vernon. These noblemen owned, that they had been made
acquainted with the substance of it: that when they excepted to some
particulars, they were told his majesty had carried the matter as far
as it could be advanced, and that he could obtain no better terms; thus
assured that every article was already settled, they said they no longer
insisted upon particulars, but gave their advice that his majesty should
not engage himself in any measure that would produce a new war, seeing
the nation had been so uneasy under the last. After long debates, and
great variety as well as virulence of altercation, the house agreed
to an address in which they disapproved of the partition treaty, as
a scheme inconsistent with the peace and safety of Europe, as well as
prejudicial to the interest of Great Britain. They complained, that
neither the instructions given to his plenipotentiaries, nor the draft
of the treaty itself, had been laid before his majesty’s council. They
humbly besought him, that for the future he would, in all matters of
importance, require and admit the advice of his natural born subjects
of known probity and fortune; and that he would constitute a council of
such persons, to whom he might impart all affairs which should any way
concern him and his dominions. They observed, that interest and natural
affection to their country would incline them to every measure that
might tend to its welfare and prosperity; whereas strangers could not be
so much influenced by these considerations; that their knowledge of
the country would render them more capable than foreigners could be of
advising his majesty touching the true interests of his kingdom; that
they had exhibited such repeated demonstrations of their duty and
affection, as must convince his majesty of their zeal in his service;
nor could he want the knowledge of persons fit to be employed in all his
secret and arduous affairs; finally, as the French king appeared to have
violated the treaty of partition, they advised his majesty, in future
negotiations with that prince, to proceed with such caution as might
imply a real security.
WILLIAM IS OBLIGED TO ACKNOWLEDGE THE KING OF SPAIN.
The king received this severe remonstrance with his usual phlegm;
saying, it contained matter of very great moment; and he would take
care that all treaties he made should be for the honour and safety of
England. Though he deeply felt this affront, he would not alter his
conduct towards the new ministers; but he plainly perceived their
intention was to thwart him in his favourite measure, and humble him
into a dependence upon their interest in parliament. On the last day of
March, he imparted to the commons the French king’s declaration, that he
would grant no other security than a renewal of the treaty of Ryswick;
so that the negotiation seemed to be at an end. He likewise communicated
two resolutions of the states-general, with a memorial from their envoy
in England, relating to the ships they had equipped with a view to join
the English fleet, and the succours stipulated in the treaty concluded
in the year 1677, which they desired might be sent over with all
convenient expedition. The house having considered this message,
unanimously resolved to desire his majesty would carry on the
negotiations in concert with the states-general, and take such measures
therein as might most conduce to their safety; they assured him they
would effectually enable him to support the treaty of 1677, by which
England was bound to assist them with ten thousand men, and twenty ships
of war, in case they should be attacked. Though the king was nettled
at that part of this address, which, by confining him to one treaty,
implied their disapprobation of a new confederacy, he discovered no
signs of emotion; but thanked them for the assurance they had given, and
told them he had sent orders to his envoy at the Hague, to continue the
conferences with the courts of France and Spain. On the nineteenth day
of April, the marquis de Torcy delivered to the earl of Manchester, at
Paris, a letter from the new king of Spain to his Britannic majesty,
notifying his accession to that throne, and expressing a desire of
cultivating a mutual friendship with the king and crown of England.
How averse soever William might have been to any correspondence of this
sort, the earl of Rochester and the new ministers importuned him in such
a manner to acknowledge Philip, that he at length complied with their
entreaties, and wrote a civil answer to his most catholic majesty. This
was a very alarming incident to the emperor, who was bent upon a war
with the two crowns, and had determined to send prince Eugene with an
army into Italy, to take possession of the duchy of Milan as a fief of
the empire. The new pope Clement XI., who had succeeded to the papacy in
the preceding year, was attached to the French interest; the Venetians
favoured the emperor; but they refused to declare themselves at this
juncture.
The French king consented to a renewal of the negotiations at the Hague;
but in the meantime tampered with the Dutch deputies, to engage them in
a separate treaty. Finding them determined to act in concert with the
king of England, he protracted the conferences in order to gain time,
while he erected fortifications and drew lines on the frontiers of
Holland, divided the princes of the empire by his intrigues, and
endeavoured to gain over the states of Italy. The Dutch meanwhile
exerted themselves in providing for their own security. They reinforced
their garrisons, purchased supplies, and solicited succours from foreign
potentates. The states wrote a letter to king William, explaining the
danger of their situation, professing the most inviolable attachment
to the interest of England, and desiring that the stipulated number
of troops should be sent immediately to their assistance. The
three Scottish regiments which he had retained in his own pay, were
immediately transported from Scotland. The letter of the states-general
he communicated to the house of commons, who having taken it into
consideration, resolved to assist his majesty to support his allies in
maintaining the liberty of Europe; and to provide immediate succours for
the states-general, according to the treaty of 1677. The house of peers,
to whom the letter was also communicated, carried their zeal still
farther. They presented an address, in which they desired his majesty
would not only perform the articles of any former treaty with the
states-general, but also engage with them in a strict league offensive
and defensive, for their common preservation; and invite into it all
the princes and states that were concerned in the present visible danger
arising from the union of France and Spain. They exhorted him to
enter into such alliances with the emperor as his majesty should think
necessary, pursuant to the ends of the treaty concluded in the year
1689. They assured him of their hearty and sincere assistance, not
doubting that Almighty God would protect his sacred person in so
righteous a cause; and that the unanimity, wealth, and courage of
his subjects would carry him with honour and success through all the
difficulties of a just war. Lastly, they took leave humbly to represent,
that the dangers to which his kingdom and allies had been exposed, were
chiefly owing to the fatal counsels that prevented his majesty’s sooner
meeting his people in parliament.
These proceedings of both houses could not but be very agreeable to the
king, who expressed his satisfaction in his answer to each apart. They
were the more remarkable, as at this very time considerable progress was
made in a design to impeach the old ministry. This deviation therefore
from the tenour of their former conduct, could be owing to no other
motive than a sense of their own danger, and resentment against France,
which, even during the negotiation, had been secretly employed in making
preparations to surprise and distress the states-general. The commons
having expressed their sentiments on this subject, resumed the
consideration of the partition treaty. They had appointed a committee
to examine the journals of the house of lords, and to report their
proceedings in relation to the treaty of partition. When the report was
made by sir Edward Seymour, the house resolved itself into a committee
to consider the state of the nation; after warm debates they resolved,
That William earl of Portland, by negotiating and concluding the treaty
of partition, was guilty of a high crime and misdemeanor. They ordered
sir John Leveson Gower to impeach him at the bar of the house of lords;
and named a committee to prepare the articles of his impeachment. Then,
in a conference with the lords, they desired to know the particulars of
what had passed between the earl of Portland and secretary Vernon, in
relation to the partition treaty, as also what other information they
had obtained concerning negotiations or treaties of partition of the
Spanish monarchy. The lords demurring to this demand, the lower house
resolved to address the king, That copies of both treaties of partition,
together with all the powers and instructions for negotiating those
treaties, should be laid before them. The copies were accordingly
produced, and the lords sent down to the commons two papers containing
the powers granted to the earls of Portland and Jersey for signing both
treaties of partition. The house afterwards ordered, That Mr. secretary
Vernon should lay before them all the letters which had passed between
the earl of Portland and him, in relation to those treaties; and he
thought proper to obey their command. Nothing could be more scandalously
partial than the conduct of the commons on this occasion. They resolved
to screen the earl of Jersey, sir Joseph Williamson, and Mr. Vernon,
who had been as deeply concerned as any others in that transaction; and
pointed all their vengeance against the earls of Portland and Orford,
and the lords Somers and Halifax. Some of the members even tampered with
Kidd, who was now a prisoner in Newgate, to accuse lord Somers as having
encouraged him in his piracy. He was brought to the bar of the house and
examined; but he declared that he had never spoke to lord Somers; and
that he had no order from those concerned in the ship, but that of
pursuing his voyage against the pirates in Madagascar. Finding him unfit
for their purpose, they left him to the course of law; and he was hanged
with some of his accomplices.
{WILLIAM, 1688-1701.}
EARL OF ORFORD, &c, IMPEACHED.
Lord Somers, understanding that he was accused in the house of commons
of having consented to the partition treaty, desired that he might be
admitted and heard in his own defence. His request being granted, he
told the house that when he received the king’s letter concerning the
partition treaty, with an order to send over the necessary powers in the
most secret manner, he thought it would have been taking too much upon
him to put a stop to a treaty of such consequence when the life of
the king of Spain was so precarious; for, had the king died before
the treaty was finished, and he been blamed for delaying the necessary
powers, he could not have justified his own conduct, since the king’s
letter was really a warrant; that, nevertheless, he had written a letter
to his majesty objecting to several particulars in the treaty, and
proposing other articles which he thought were for the interest of his
country; that he thought himself bound to put the great seal to the
treaty when it was concluded; that, as a privy counsellor, he had
offered his best advice, and as chancellor, executed his office
according to his duty. After he had withdrawn, his justification gave
rise to a long debate which ended in a resolution, carried by a majority
of seven voices, That John lord Somers, by advising his majesty to
conclude the treaty of partition, whereby large territories of the
Spanish monarchy were to be delivered up to France, was guilty of a
high crime and misdemeanor. Votes to the same effect were passed against
Edward earl of Orford, and Charles lord Halifax; and all three were
impeached at the bar of the upper house. But the commons knowing that
those impeachments would produce nothing in the house of lords, where
the opposite interest predominated, they resolved to proceed against
the accused noblemen in a more expeditious and effectual way of branding
their reputation. They voted and presented an address, to the king,
desiring he would remove them from his councils and presence for
ever, as advisers of a treaty so pernicious to the trade and welfare
of England. They concluded by repeating their assurance that they would
always stand by and support his majesty to the utmost of their power,
against all his enemies both at home and abroad. The king, in his
answer, artfully overlooked the first part of the remonstrance. He
thanked them for their repeated assurances; and told them he would
employ none in his service but such as should be thought most likely
to improve that mutual trust and confidence between him and his people,
which was so necessary at that conjuncture, both for their own security
and the preservation of their allies.
DISPUTES BETWEEN THE TWO HOUSES.
The lords, incensed at this step of the commons, which they considered
as an insult upon their tribunal, and a violation of common justice,
drew up and delivered a counter-address, humbly beseeching his majesty
that he would not pass any censure upon the accused lords until they
should be tried on the impeachments, and judgments be given according
to the usage of parliament. The king was so perplexed by these opposite
representations, that he knew not well what course to follow. He made
no reply to the counter-address; but allowed the names of the impeached
lords to remain in the council-books. The commons having carried their
point, which was to stigmatize those noblemen and prevent their being
employed for the future, suffered the impeachments to be neglected until
they themselves moved for trial. On the fifth day of May the house of
lords sent a message to the commons, importing, That no articles had
as yet been exhibited against the noblemen whom they had impeached. The
charge was immediately drawn up against the earl of Orford: him they
accused of having received exorbitant grants from the crown; of having
been concerned with Kidd the pirate; of having committed abuses in
managing and victualling the fleet when it lay on the coast of Spain;
and lastly, of having advised the partition treaty. The earl, in his own
defence, declared that he had received no grant from the king except a
very distant reversion, and a present of ten thousand pounds after he
had defeated the French at La Hogue; that in Kidd’s affair he had acted
legally, and with a good intention towards the public, though to his own
loss; that his accounts with regard to the fleet which he commanded had
been examined and passed; yet he was ready to waive the advantage, and
justify himself in every particular; and he absolutely denied that he
had given any advice concerning the treaty of partition. Lord Somers
was accused of having set the seals to the powers, and afterwards to the
treaties; of having accepted some grants; of having been an accomplice
with Kidd; and of having some guilt of partial and dilatory proceedings
in chancery. He answered every article in the charge; but no replication
was made by the commons either to him or the earl of Orford. When the
commons were stimulated by another message from the peers, relating to
the impeachments of the earl of Portland and lord Halifax, they declined
exhibiting articles against the former on pretence of respect for his
majesty; but on the fourteenth of June, the charge against Halifax was
sent up to the lords. He was taxed with possessing a grant in Ireland,
without paying the produce of it according to the law lately enacted
concerning those grants; with enjoying another grant out of the forest
of Deane, to the waste of the timber and the prejudice of the navy; with
having held places that were incompatible, by being at the same time
commissioner of the treasury and chancellor of the exchequer; and with
having advised the two treaties of partition. He answered, that his
grant in Ireland was of debts and sums of money, and within the act
concerning confiscated estates; that all he had ever received from it
did not exceed four hundred pounds, which, if he was bound to repay,
a common action would lie against him; but every man was not to be
impeached who did not discharge his debts at the very day of payment. He
observed, that as his grant in the forest of Deane extended to weedings
only, it could occasion no waste of timber nor prejudice to the navy;
that the auditor’s place was held by another person, until he obtained
the king’s leave to withdraw from the treasury; that he never saw the
first treaty of partition, nor was his advice asked upon the subject;
that he had never heard of the second but once before it was concluded;
and then he spoke his sentiments freely on the subject. This answer,
like the others, would have been neglected by the commons, whose aim was
now to evade the trials, had not the lords pressed them by messages to
expedite the articles. They even appointed a day for Orford’s trial,
and signified their resolution to the commons. These desired that a
committee of both houses should be named for settling preliminaries, one
of which was, That the lord to be tried should not sit as a peer; and
the other imported, That those lords impeached for the same matter
should not vote in the trial of each other. They likewise desired that
lord Somers should be first tried. The lords made no objection to this
last demand; but they rejected the proposal of a committee consisting of
both houses, alleging that the commons were parties, and had no title
to sit in equality with the judges, or to settle matters relating to
the trial; that this was a demand contrary to the principles of law and
rules of justice, and never practised in any court or nation. The lords,
indeed, had yielded to this expedient in the popish plot, because it was
a case of treason, in which the king’s life and safety of the kingdom
were concerned, while the people were jealous of the court, and the
whole nation was in a ferment; but at present the times were quiet, and
the charge amounted to nothing more than misdemeanors; therefore the
lords could not assent to such a proposal as was derogatory from their
jurisdiction. Neither would they agree to the preliminaries; but on the
twelfth day of June resolved, That no peer impeached for high crimes
and misdemeanors should, upon his trial, be without the bar; and that no
peer impeached could be precluded from voting on any occasion except
in his own trial. Divers messages passed between the two houses,--the
commons still insisting upon a committee to settle preliminaries; at
length the dispute was brought to a free conference.
THE IMPEACHED LORDS ACQUITTED.
Meanwhile the king, going to the house of peers, gave the royal
assent to the bill of succession. In his speech he expressed his warm
acknowledgments for their repeated assurances of supporting him in such
alliances as should be most proper for the preservation of the liberty
of Europe, and for the security of England and the states-general. He
observed that the season of the year was advanced; that the posture
of affairs absolutely required his presence abroad; and he recommended
despatch of the public business, especially of those matters which were
of the greatest importance. The commons thanked him in an address for
having approved of their proceedings: they declared they would support
him in such alliances as he should think fit to make in conjunction
with the emperor and the states-general, for the peace of Europe, and
reducing the exorbitant power of France. They then resumed their dispute
with the upper house. In the free conference, lord Haversham happened to
tax the commons with partiality, in impeaching some lords and screening
others who were equally guilty of the same misdemeanors. Sir Christopher
Musgrave and the managers for the commons immediately withdrew; this
unguarded sally being reported to the house, they immediately resolved,
That John lord Haversham had uttered most scandalous reproaches and
false expressions, highly reflecting upon the honour and justice of the
house of commons, tending to a breach in the good correspondence between
the two houses, and to the interruption of the public justice of the
nation; that the said lord Haversham should be charged before the lords
for the said words; that the lords should be desired to proceed in
justice against him, and to inflict upon him such punishment as so high
an offence against the commons did deserve. The commons had now found a
pretence to justify their delay; and declared they would not renew the
conference until they should have received satisfaction. Lord Haversham
offered to submit to a trial; but insisted on their first proving
the words which he was said to have spoken. When this declaration was
imparted to the commons, they said the lords ought to have censured him
in a summary way, and still refused to renew the conference. The lords,
on the other hand, came to a resolution, That there should not be a
committee of both houses concerning the trial of the impeached lords.
Then they resolved, That lord Somers should be tried at Westminster-hall
on Tuesday the seventeenth day of June, and signified this resolution
to the lower house; reminding them, at the same time, of the articles
against the earl of Portland. The commons refused to appear, alleging
they were the only judges, and that the evidence was not yet prepared.
They sent up the reasons of their nonappearance to the house of lords,
where they were supported by the new ministry and all the malcontents,
and produced very warm debates. The majority carried their point
piecemeal by dint of different votes, against which very severe protests
were entered. On the day appointed for the trial, they sent a message
to the commons that they were going to Westminster-hall. The other
impeached lords asked leave, and were permitted to withdraw. The
articles of impeachment against lord Somers, and his answers, being read
in Westminster-hall, and the commons not appearing to prosecute, the
lords adjourned to their own house, where they debated concerning
the question that was to be put. This being settled, they returned to
Westminster-hall; and the question being put, “That John lord Somers be
acquitted of the articles of impeachment against him, exhibited by
the house of commons, and all things therein contained; and, That the
impeachment be dismissed,” it was carried by a majority of thirty-five.
The commons, exasperated at these proceedings, resolved, That the
lords had refused justice to the commons; that they had endeavoured to
overturn the right of impeachment lodged in the commons by the ancient
constitution of the kingdom; that all the ill consequences which might
attend the delay of the supplies given for the preservation of the
public peace, and the maintenance of the balance of Europe, would be
owing to those who, to procure an indemnity for their own crimes, had
used their utmost endeavours to make a breach between the two houses.
The lords sent a message to the commons, giving them to understand that
they had acquitted lord Somers and dismissed the impeachment, as nobody
had appeared to support the articles; and that they had appointed next
Monday for the trial of the earl of Orford. They resolved, That unless
the charge against lord Haversham should be prosecuted by the commons
before the end of the session, the lords would adjudge him innocent;
that the resolutions of the commons on their late votes, contained most
unjust reflections on the honour and justice of the peers; that they
were contrived to cover their affected and unreasonable delays in
prosecuting the impeached lords; that they manifestly tended to the
destruction of the judicature of the lords; to the rendering trials on
impeachments impracticable for the future, and to the subverting the
constitution of the English government; that therefore, whatever ill
consequence might arise from the so long deferring the supplies for
this year’s service, wore to be attributed to the fatal counsel of the
putting off the meeting of a parliament so long, and to the unnecessary
delays of the house of commons. On the twenty-third day of June, the
articles of impeachment against Edward earl of Orford were read in
Westminster-hall; but the house of commons having previously ordered
that none of the members should appear at this pretended trial, those
articles were not supported, so that his lordship was acquitted and the
impeachment dismissed. Next day the impeachments against the duke of
Leeds, which had lain seven years neglected, together with those against
the earl of Portland and lord Halifax as well as the charge against
lord Haversham, were dismissed for want of prosecution. Each house
ordered a narrative of these proceedings to be published; and their
mutual animosity had proceeded to such a degree of rancour as seemed to
preclude all possibility of reconciliation. The commons, in the whole
course of this transaction, had certainly acted from motives of faction
and revenge; for nothing could be more unjust, frivolous, and partial,
than the charge exhibited in the articles of impeachment, their
anticipating address to the king, and their affected delay in the
prosecution. Their conduct on this occasion was so flagrant as to
attract the notice of the common people, and inspire the generality of
the nation with disgust. This the whigs did not fail to augment by the
arts of calumny, and, in particular, by insinuating that the court of
Versailles had found means to engage the majority of the commons in its
interest.
PETITION OF KENT.
This faction had, since the beginning of this session, employed their
emissaries in exciting a popular aversion to the tory ministers and
members, and succeeded so well in their endeavours, that they formed a
scheme of obtaining petitions from different counties and corporations
that should induce the commons to alter their conduct, on the
supposition that it was contrary to the sense of the nation. In
execution of this scheme, a petition signed by the deputy-lieutenants,
above twenty justices of the peace, the grand jury and freeholders of
the county of Kent, had been presented to the house of commons on the
eighteenth of May, by five gentlemen of fortune and distinction. The
purport of this remonstrance was to recommend union among themselves,
and confidence in his majesty, whose great actions for the nation could
never be forgotten without the blackest ingratitude; to beg they would
have regard to the voice of the people; that their religion and safety
might be effectually provided for; that their loyal addresses might be
turned into bills of supply; and that his most sacred majesty might be
enabled powerfully to assist his allies before it should be too late.
The house was so incensed at the petulance of the petition, that they
voted it scandalous, insolent, and seditious; and ordered the gentlemen
who had presented it to be taken into custody. They were afterwards
committed to the Gate-house, where they remained till the prorogation
of parliament; but they had no reason to repine at their imprisonment,
which recommended them to the notice and esteem of the public. They were
visited and caressed by the chiefs of the whig interest, and considered
as martyrs to the liberties of the people. Their confinement gave
rise to a very extraordinary paper, entitled, “A memorial from the
gentlemen, freeholders, and inhabitants of the counties of------, in
behalf of themselves and many thousands of the good people of England.”
It was signed _Legion_, and sent to the speaker in a letter, commanding
him, in the name of two hundred thousand Englishmen, to deliver it
to the house of commons. In this strange expostulation, the house was
charged with illegal and unwarrantable practices in fifteen particulars;
a new claim of right was ranged under seven heads; and the commons
were admonished to act according to their duty, as specified in this
memorial, on pain of incurring the resentment of an injured nation. It
was concluded in these words--“For Englishmen are no more to be slaves
to parliaments than to kings-our name is Legion, and we are many.” The
commons were equally provoked and intimidated by this libel, which was
the production of one Daniel de Foe, a scurrilous party-writer in very
little estimation. They would not, however, deign to take notice of it
in the house; but a complaint being made of endeavours to raise tumults
and seditions, a committee was appointed to draw up an address to his
majesty, informing him of those seditious endeavours, and beseeching him
to provide for the public peace and security.
The house, however, perceiving plainly that they had incurred the
odium of the nation, which began to clamour for a war with France, and
dreading the popular resentment, thought fit to change their measures
with respect to this object, and present the address we have already
mentioned, in which they promised to support him in the alliances he
should contract with the emperor and other states in order to bridle the
exorbitant power of France. They likewise proceeded in earnest upon the
supply, and voted funds for raising about two millions seven hundred
thousand pounds to defray the expense of the ensuing year. They voted
thirty thousand seamen, and resolved that ten thousand troops should be
transported from Ireland to Holland, as the auxiliaries stipulated in
the treaty of 1677 with the states-general. The funds were constituted
of a land-tax, certain duties on merchandise, and a weekly deduction
from the excise, so as to bring down the civil list to six hundred
thousand pounds, as the duke of Gloucester was dead, and James’ queen
refused her allowance. They passed a bill for taking away all
privileges of parliament in legal prosecutions during the intermediate
prorogations; their last struggle with the lords was concerning a bill
for appointing commissioners to examine and state the public accounts.
The persons nominated for this purpose were extremely obnoxious to the
majority of the peers, as violent partizans of the tory faction; when
the bill, therefore, was sent up to the lords, they made some amendments
which the commons rejected. The former animosity between the two houses
began to revive, when the king interrupted their disputes by putting
an end to the session on the twenty-fourth day of June, after having
thanked the parliament for their zeal in the public service, and
exhorted them to a discharge of their duties in their several counties.
He was, no doubt, extremely pleased with such an issue of a session that
had began with a very inauspicious aspect. His health daily declined;
but he concealed the decay of his constitution, that his allies might
not be discouraged from engaging in a confederacy of which he was deemed
the head and chief support. He conferred the command of the ten thousand
troops destined for Holland upon the earl of Marlborough, and appointed
him at the same time his plenipotentiary to the states-general, a choice
that evinced his discernment and discretion; for that nobleman surpassed
all his contemporaries both as a general and a politician. He was cool,
penetrating, intrepid, and persevering, plausible, insinuating, artful,
and dissembling.
PROGRESS OF PRINCE EUGENE.
A regency being established, the king embarked for Holland in the
beginning of July. On his arrival at the Hague he assisted at an
assembly of the states-general, whom he harangued in very affectionate
terms, and was answered with great cordiality; then he made a progress
round the frontiers to examine the state of the garrisons, and gave
such orders and directions as he judged necessary for the defence of the
country. Meanwhile, the French minister D’Avaux, being recalled from
the Hague, delivered a letter to the states from the French king, who
complained that they had often interrupted the conferences, from which
no good fruits were to be expected; but he assured them it wholly
depended upon themselves whether they should continue to receive marks
of his ancient friendship for their republic. The letter was accompanied
by an insolent memorial, to which the states-general returned a very
spirited answer. As they expected nothing now but hostilities from
France, they redoubled their diligence in making preparations for their
own defence. They repaired their fortifications, augmented their army,
and hired auxiliaries. King William and they had already engaged in an
alliance with the king of Denmark, who undertook to furnish a certain
number of troops in consideration of a subsidy; and they endeavoured
to mediate a peace between Sweden and Poland; but this they could not
effect. France had likewise offered her mediation between those powers
in hopes of bringing over Sweden to her interest; and the court of
Vienna had tampered with the king of Poland; but he persisted in his
resolution to prosecute the war. The Spaniards began to be very uneasy
under the dominion of their new master. They were shocked at the
insolence of his French ministers and attendants, and much more at
the manners and fashions which they introduced. The grandees found
themselves very little considered by their sovereign, and resented his
economy; for he had endeavoured to retrench the expense of the court,
which had used to support their magnificence. Prince Eugene, at the head
of the Imperial army, had entered Italy by Vicenza, and passed the Adige
near Carpi, where he defeated a body of five thousand French forces. The
enemy were commanded by the duke of Savoy, assisted by mareschal Catinat
and the prince of Vaudemont, who did not think proper to hazard an
engagement; but mareschal Villeroy arriving in the latter end of August
with orders to attack the Imperialists, Catinat retired in disgust. The
new general marched immediately towards Chiari, where prince Eugene was
intrenched, and attacked his camp; but met with such a reception that
he was obliged to retire with the loss of five thousand men. Towards
the end of the campaign the prince took possession of all the Mantuan
territories, except Mantua itself, and Goito, the blockade of which he
formed. He reduced all the places on the Oglio, and continued in the
field during the whole winter, exhibiting repeated marks of the most
invincible courage, indefatigable vigilance, and extensive capacity
in the art of war. In January he had well nigh surprised Cremona, by
introducing a body of men through an old aqueduct. They forced one of
the gates, by which the prince and his followers entered; Villeroy,
being awakened by the noise, ran into the street where he was taken;
and the town must have been infallibly reduced, had prince Eugene been
joined by another body of troops which he had ordered to march from
the Parmesan and secure the bridge. These not arriving at the time
appointed, an Irish regiment in the French service took possession of
the bridge, and the prince was obliged to retire with his prisoner.
{WILLIAM, 1688-1701.}
SITUATION OF AFFAIRS IN EUROPE.
The French king, alarmed at the activity and military genius of the
Imperial general, sent a reinforcement to his army in Italy, and the
duke of Vendôme to command his forces in that country; he likewise
importuned the duke of Savoy to assist him effectually; but that
prince having obtained all he could expect from France, became cold and
backward. His second daughter was by this time married to the new king
of Spain, who met her at Barcelona, where he found himself involved in
disputes with the states of Catalonia, who refused to pay a tax he had
imposed until their privileges should be confirmed; and he was obliged
to gratify them in this particular. The war continued to rage in the
north. The young king of Sweden routed the Saxons upon the river Danu:
thence he marched into Courland and took possession of Mittau without
opposition; while the king of Poland retired into Lithuania. In Hungary
the French emissaries endeavoured to sow the seeds of a new revolt. They
exerted themselves with indefatigable industry in almost every court of
Christendom. They had already gained over the elector of Bavaria,
and his brother the elector of Cologn, together with the dukes of
Wolfenbuttle and Saxe-Gotha, who professed neutrality, while they levied
troops and made such preparations for war as plainly indicated that they
had received subsidies from France. Louis had also extorted a treaty of
alliance from the king of Portugal, who was personally attached to the
Austrian interest; but this weak prince was a slave to his ministers,
whom the French king had corrupted. During this summer, the French
coasts were over-awed by the combined fleets of England and Holland
under the command of sir George Rooke, who sailed down the channel
in the latter end of August, and detached vice-admiral Benbow with a
strong squadron to the West Indies. In order to deceive the French king
with regard to the destination of this fleet, king William demanded the
free use of the Spanish harbours, as if his design had been to send
a squadron to the Mediterranean; but he met with a repulse, while the
French ships were freely admitted. About this period the king
revoked his letters-patent to the commissioners of the admiralty, and
constituted the earl of Pembroke lord high-admiral of England, in order
to avoid the factions, the disputes, and divided counsels of a board.
The earl was no sooner promoted to this office than he sent captain
Loades with three frigates to Cadiz, to bring home the sea-stores and
effects belonging to the English in that place before the war should
commence; and this piece of service was successfully performed. The
French king, in order to enjoy all the advantages that could be derived
from his union with Spain, established a company to open a trade with
Mexico and Peru; and concluded a new Assiento treaty for supplying the
Spanish plantations with negroes. At the same time he sent a strong
squadron to the port of Cadiz. The French dress was introduced into the
court of Spain; and by a formal edict, the grandees of that kingdom and
the peers of France were put on a level in each nation. There was no
vigour left in the councils of Spain; her finances were exhausted; and
her former spirit seemed to be quite extinguished; the nobility were
beggars, and the common people overwhelmed with indigence and distress.
The condition of France was not much more prosperous. She had been
harassed by a long war, and now saw herself on the eve of another, which
in all probability would render her completely miserable.
TREATY OF ALLIANCE BETWEEN THE EMPEROR AND THE MARITIME POWERS.
These circumstances were well known to the emperor and the maritime
powers, and served to animate their negotiations for another grand
alliance. Conferences were opened at the Hague; and on the seventh
day of September a treaty was concluded between his Imperial majesty,
England, and the states-general. The objects proposed were to procure
satisfaction to the emperor in the Spanish succession, and sufficient
security for the dominions and commerce of the allies. They engaged to
use their endeavours for recovering the Spanish Netherlands as a barrier
between Holland and France, and for putting the emperor in possession of
the duchy of Milan, Naples, and Sicily, with the lands and islands upon
the coast of Tuscany belonging to the Spanish dominions. They agreed
that the king of England and the states-general should keep and possess
whatever lands and cities they should conquer from the Spaniards in
the Indies; that the confederates should faithfully communicate their
designs to one another; that no party should treat of peace or truce but
jointly with the rest; that they should concur in preventing the union
of France and Spain under the same government, and hinder the French
from possessing the Spanish Indies; that in concluding a peace, the
confederates should provide for the maintenance of the commerce carried
on by the maritime powers to the dominions taken from the Spaniards, and
secure the states by a barrier; that they should at the same time settle
the exercise of religion in the new conquests; that they should assist
one another with all their forces in case of being invaded by the
French king, or any other potentate, on account of this alliance; that a
defensive alliance should remain between them even after the peace; that
all kings, princes, and states should be at liberty to engage in this
alliance. They determined to employ two months to obtain by amicable
means the satisfaction and security which they demanded; and Stipulated
that within six weeks the treaty should be ratified.
DEATH OF KING JAMES.
On the sixteenth day of September king James expired at St. Germain’s,
after having laboured under a tedious indisposition. This unfortunate
monarch, since the miscarriage of his last attempt for recovering his
throne, had laid aside all thoughts of worldly grandeur, and devoted his
whole attention to the concerns of his soul. Though he could not prevent
the busy genius of his queen from planning new schemes of restoration,
he was always best pleased when wholly detached from such chimerical
projects. Hunting was his chief diversion; but religion was his constant
care. Nothing could be more harmless than the life he led; and in the
course of it he subjected himself to uncommon penance and mortification.
He frequently visited the poor monks of la Trappe, who were much edified
by his humble and pious deportment. His pride and arbitrary temper seem
to have vanished with his greatness. He became affable, kind, and easy
to all his dependents; and his religion certainly opened and improved
the virtues of his heart, though it seemed to impair the faculties of
his soul. In his last illness he conjured his son to prefer his religion
to every worldly advantage, and even to renounce all thoughts of a crown
if he could not enjoy it without offering violence to his faith. He
recommended to him the practice of justice and christian forgiveness;
he himself declaring that he heartily forgave the prince of Orange, the
emperor, and all his enemies. He died with great marks of devotion,
and was interred, at his own request, in the church of the English
Benedictines in Paris without any funeral solemnity.
LOUIS OWNS THE PRETENDED PRINCE OF WALES AS KING OF ENGLAND.
Before his death he was visited by the French king, who seemed touched
with his condition, and declared that, in case of his death, he would
own his son as king of England. This promise James’ queen had already
extorted from him by the interest of madame de Main-tenon and the
dauphin. Accordingly, when James died, the pretended prince of Wales was
proclaimed king of England at St. Germain’s, and treated as such at the
court of Versailles. His title was likewise recognised by the king of
Spain, the duke of Savoy, and the pope. William was no sooner informed
of this transaction, than he despatched a courier to the king of Sweden,
as guarantee of the treaty of Ryswick, to complain of this manifest
violation. At the same time he recalled the earl of Manchester from
Paris, and ordered him to return without taking an audience of leave.
That nobleman immediately withdrew, after having intimated to the
marquis de Torcy the order he had received. Louis, in vindication of his
own conduct, dispersed through all the courts of Europe a manifesto,
in which he affirmed, that in owning the prince of Wales as king of
England, he had not infringed any article of the treaty of Ryswick, He
confessed that in the fourth article he had promised that he would not
disturb the king of Great Britain in the peaceable possession of his
dominions; and he declared his intention was to observe that promise
punctually. He observed that his generosity would not allow him to
abandon the prince of Wales or his family; that he could not refuse
him a title which was due to him by birth; that he had more reason to
complain of the king of Great Britain and the states-general, whose
declarations and preparations in favour of the emperor might be regarded
as real contraventions to treaties; finally, he quoted some instances
from history in which the children enjoyed the titles of kingdoms
which their fathers had lost. These reasons, however, would hardly have
induced the French king to take such a step, had not he perceived that a
war with England was inevitable; and that he should be able to reap
some advantages in the course of it from espousing the cause of the
pretender.
The substance of the French manifesto was published in London, by
Poussin the secretary of Tallard, who had been left in England as agent
for the court of Versailles. He was now ordered to leave kingdom, which
was filled with indignation at Louis for having pretended to declare who
ought to be their sovereign. The city of London presented an address
to the lords-justices, expressing the deepest resentment of the French
king’s presumption; assuring his majesty that they would at all times
exert the utmost of their abilities for the preservation of his person,
and the defence of his just rights, in opposition to all invaders of his
crown and dignity. Addresses of the same nature were sent up from all
parts of the kingdom, and could not but be agreeable to William. He had
now concerted measures for acting with vigour against France; and
he resolved to revisit his kingdom after having made a considerable
progress in a treaty of perpetual alliance between England and the
states-general, which was afterwards brought to perfection by his
plenipotentiary, the earl of Marlborough. The king’s return, however,
was delayed a whole month by a severe indisposition, during which the
Spanish minister de Quiros hired certain physicians to consult together
upon the state and nature of his distemper. They declared that he could
not live many weeks; and this opinion was transmitted to Madrid. William
however baffled the prognostic, though his constitution had sustained
such a rude shock that he himself perceived his end was near. He told
the earl of Portland he found himself so weak that he could not expect
to live another summer; but charged him to conceal this circumstance
until he should be dead. Notwithstanding this near approach to
dissolution, he exerted himself with surprising diligence and spirit
in establishing the confederacy, and settling the plan of operations. A
subsidiary treaty was concluded with the king of Prussia, who engaged
to furnish a certain number of troops. The emperor agreed to maintain
ninety thousand men in the field against France; the proportion of the
states was limited to one hundred and two thousand; and that of England
did not exceed forty thousand, to act in conjunction with the allies.
On the fourth day of November the king arrived in England, which he
found in a strange ferment, produced from the mutual animosity of the
two factions. They reviled each other in words and writing with all the
falsehood of calumny, and all the bitterness of rancour; so that truth,
candour, and temperance, seemed to be banished by consent of both
parties. The king had found himself deceived in his new ministers, who
had opposed his measures with all their influence. He was particularly
disgusted with the deportment of the earl of Rochester, who proved
altogether imperious and intractable; and, instead of moderating,
inflamed the violence of his party. The king declared the year in which
that nobleman directed his councils was the un-easiest of his whole
life. He could not help expressing his displeasure in such a coldness
of reserve, that Rochester told him he would serve his majesty no longer
since he did not enjoy his confidence. William made no answer to
this expostulation, but resolved he should see him no more. The earl,
however, at the desire of Mr. Harley, became more pliant and submissive;
and, after the king’s departure for Holland, repaired to his government
of Ireland, in which he now remained exerting all his endeavours to
acquire popularity. William foreseeing nothing but opposition from the
present spirit of the house of commons, closeted some of their leaders
with a view to bespeak their compliance; but finding them determined to
pursue their former principles, and to insist upon their impeachments,
he resolved, with the advice of his friends, to dissolve the parliament.
This step he was the more easily induced to take, as the commons were
become extremely odious to the nation in general, which breathed nothing
but war and defiance against the French monarch. The parliament was
accordingly dissolved by proclamation, and another summoned to meet on
the thirtieth day of December.
THE KING’S LAST SPEECH TO BOTH HOUSES.
Never did the two parties proceed with such heat and violence against
each other, as in their endeavours to influence the new elections.
The whigs, however, obtained the victory, as they included the
monied-interest, which will always prevail among the borough electors.
Corruption was now reduced into an open and avowed commerce; and, had
not the people been so universally venal and profligate that no sense of
shame remained, the victors must have blushed for their success. Though
the majority thus obtained was staunch to the measures of the court, the
choice of speaker fell upon Mr. Harley, contrary to the inclination of
the king, who favoured sir Thomas Lyttleton; but his majesty’s speech
was received with universal applause. It was so much admired by the
well-wishers to the revolution, that they printed it with decorations
in the English, Dutch, and French languages. It appeared as a piece of
furniture in all their houses, and as the king’s last legacy to his own
and all protestant people. In this celebrated harangue, he expatiated
upon the indignity offered to the nation by the French king’s
acknowledging the pretended prince of Wales; he explained the dangers to
which it was exposed by his placing his grandson on the throne of Spain;
he gave them to understand he had concluded several alliances according
to the encouragement given him by both houses of parliament, which
alliances should be laid before them, together with other treaties
still depending. He observed, that the eyes of all Europe were upon this
parliament; and all matters at a stand until their resolution should be
known: therefore no time ought to be lost. He told them they had yet
an opportunity to secure for themselves and their posterity the quiet
enjoyment of their religion and liberties, if they were not wanting to
themselves, but would exert the ancient vigour of the English nation;
but he declared his opinion was that should they neglect this occasion,
they had no reason to hope for another. He said it would be necessary to
maintain a great strength at sea, and a force on land proportionable
to that of their allies. He pressed the commons to support the public
credit, which could not be preserved without keeping sacred that maxim,
That they shall never be losers who trust to the parliamentary security.
He declared that he never asked aids from his people without regret;
that what he desired was for their own safety and honour at such a
critical time; and that the whole should be appropriated to the purposes
for which it was intended. He expressed his willingness that the
accounts should be yearly submitted to the inspection of parliament. He
again recommended despatch, together with good bills for employing the
poor, encouraging trade, and suppressing vice. He expressed his
hope that they were come together determined to avoid disputes and
differences, and to act with a hearty concurrence for promoting the
common cause. He said he should think it as great a blessing as could
befal England, if they were as much inclined to lay aside those unhappy
fatal animosities which divided and weakened them, as he was disposed
to make all his subjects safe and easy, even as to the highest offences
committed against his person. He conjured them to disappoint the hopes
of their enemies by their unanimity. As he had always shown, and always
would show, how desirous he was to be the common father of all his
people, he desired they would lay aside parties and divisions, so as
that no distinction should be heard of amongst them, but of those who
were friends to the protestant religion and present establishment, and
of those who wished for a popish prince and a French government. He
concluded by affirming, that if they in good earnest desired to see
England hold the balance of Europe, and be indeed at the head of the
protestant interest, it would appear by their improving the present
opportunity, The lords immediately drew up a warm and affectionate
address, in which they expressed their resentment of the proceedings
of the French king in owning the pretended prince of Wales for king of
England. They assured his majesty they would assist him to the utmost
of their power against all his enemies: and when it should please God
to deprive them of his majesty’s protection, they would vigorously
assist and defend against the pretended prince of Wales, and all other
pretenders whatsoever, every person and persons who had right to
succeed to the crown of England by virtue of the acts of parliament for
establishing and limiting the succession. On the fifth day of January.
an address to the same effect was presented by the commons, and both met
with a very gracious reception from his majesty. The lords, as a further
proof of their zeal, having taken into consideration the dangers that
threatened Europe, from the accession of the duke of Anjou to the crown
of Spain, drew up another address explaining their sense of that danger;
stigmatizing the French king as a violator of treaties; declaring their
opinion that his majesty, his subjects, and allies, could never be
safe and secure until the house of Austria should be restored to their
rights, and the invader of the Spanish monarchy brought to reason; and
assuring his majesty that no time should be lost, nor any thing wanting
on their parts, which might answer the reasonable expectations of
their friends abroad; not doubting but to support the reputation of
the English name, when engaged under so great a prince, in the glorious
cause of maintaining the liberty of Europe.
The king, in order to awake the confidence of the commons, ordered
Mr. secretary Vernon to lay before them copies of the treaties and
conventions he had lately concluded, which were so well approved that
the house unanimously voted the supply. By another vote they authorized
the exchequer to borrow six hundred thousand pounds at six per cent, for
the service of the fleet, and fifty thousand pounds for the subsistence
of guards and garrisons. They deliberated upon the state of the navy,
with the debt due upon it, and examined an estimate of what would be
necessary for extraordinary repairs. They called for an account of that
part of the national debt for which no provision had been made. The
ordered the speaker to write to the trustees for the forfeited estates
in Ireland, to attend the house with a full detail of their proceedings
in the execution of that act of parliament. On the ninth day of January,
they unanimously resolved, That leave be given to bring in a bill for
securing his majesty’s person, and the succession of the crown in the
protestant line, for extinguishing the hopes of the pretended prince
of Wales, and all other pretenders, and their open and secret abettors.
They resolved to address his majesty that he would insert an article in
all his treaties of alliance, importing, That no peace should be made
with France until his majesty and the nation have reparation for the
great indignity offered by the French king, in owning and declaring the
pretended prince of Wales king of England, Scotland, and Ireland. They
agreed to maintain forty thousand men for the sea service, and a like
number by land, to act in conjunction with the forces of the allies,
according to the proportions settled by the contracting powers. The
supplies were raised by an imposition of four shillings in the pound
upon lands, annuities, pensions, and stipends, and on the profits
arising from the different professions; by a tax of two and one-half per
cent, on all stock in trade and money at interest; of five shillings in
the pound on all salaries, fees, and perquisites; a capitation tax of
four shillings; an imposition of one per cent, on all shares in the
capital stock of any corporation or company which should be bought,
sold, or bargained for; a duty of sixpence per bushel on malt, and a
farther duty on mum, cyder, and perry.
THE BILL OF ABJURATION PASSED.
The commons seemed to vie with the lords in their zeal for the
government. They brought in a bill for attainting the pretended prince
of Wales, which being sent up to the other house, passed with an
additional clause of attainder against the queen, who acted as regent
for the pretender. This however was not carried without great opposition
in the house of lords. When the bill was sent back to the commons, they
excepted to the amendment as irregular. They observed that attainders
by bill constituted the most rigorous part of the law; and that the
stretching of it ought to be avoided. They proposed that the queen
should be attainted by a separate bill. The lords assented to the
proposal; and the bill against the pretended prince of Wales passed. The
lords passed another for attainting the queen; however it was neglected
in the house of commons. But the longest and warmest debates of this
session were produced by a bill, which the lords brought in, for
abjuring the pretended prince of Wales, and swearing to the king by the
title of rightful and lawful king, and his heirs, according to the
act of settlement. It was proposed that this oath should be voluntary,
tendered to all persons, and their subscription or refusal recorded
without any other penalty. This article was violently opposed by the
earl of Nottingham, and the other lords of the tory interest. They
observed, that the government was first settled with another oath, which
was like an original contract; so that there was no occasion for a
new imposition; that oaths relating to men’s opinions had been always
considered as severe impositions; and that a voluntary oath was in its
own nature unlawful. During these disputes, another bill of abjuration
was brought into the house of commons by sir Charles Hedges, that should
be obligatory on all persons who enjoyed employments in church or state;
it likewise included an obligation to maintain the government in king,
lords, and commons, and to maintain the church of England, together with
the toleration for dissenters. Warm debates arose upon the question,
Whether the oath should be imposed or voluntary; and at length it was
carried for imposition by the majority of one voice. They agreed to
insert an additional clause, declaring it equally penal to compass or
imagine the death of her royal highness the princess Anne of Denmark,
as it was to compass or imagine the death of the king’s eldest son and
heir. In the house of peers this bill was strenuously opposed by the
tories; and when, after long debates, it passed on the twenty-fourth day
of February, ten lords entered a protest against it, as an unnecessary
and severe imposition.
The whole nation now seemed to join in the cry for a war with France.
Party heats began to abate; the factions in the city of London were in a
great measure moderated by the union of the two companies trading to the
East Indies, which found their mutual interest required a coalition.
The tories in the house of commons having concurred so heartily with the
inclinations of the people, resolved, as far it lay in their power, to
justify the conduct of their party in the preceding parliament. They
complained of some petitions and addresses which had reflected upon
the proceedings of the last house of commons, and particularly of the
Kentish petition. The majority, however, determined that it was the
undoubted right of the people of England to petition or address the
king for the calling, sitting, or dissolving of parliaments, and for the
redressing of grievances; and that every subject under any accusation,
either by impeachment or otherwise, had a right to be brought to a
speedy trial. A complaint being likewise made that the lords had denied
the commons justice in the matter of the late impeachments, a furious
debate ensued; and it was carried by a very small majority that justice
had not been denied. In some points, however, they succeeded: in the
case of a controverted election at Maidstone, between Thomas Blisse and
Thomas Culpepper, the house resolved, That the latter had been not only
guilty of corrupt, scandalous, and indirect practices, in endeavouring
to procure himself to be elected a burgess, but likewise being one of
the instruments in promoting and presenting the scandalous, insolent,
and seditious petition, commonly called the Kentish petition, to the
last house of commons, was guilty of promoting a scandalous, villainous,
and groundless reflection upon that house, by aspersing the members with
receiving French money, or being in the interest of France; for which
offence he was ordered to be committed to Newgate, and to be prosecuted
by his majesty’s attorney-general. They also resolved, That to assert
that the house of commons is not the only representative of the commons
of England, tends to the subversion of the rights and privileges of the
house of commons, and the fundamental constitution of the government of
this kingdom; that to assert that the house of commons have no power
of commitment, but of their own members, tends to the subversion of the
constitution of the house of commons; that to print or publish any books
or libels reflecting upon the proceedings of the house of commons, or
any member thereof, for or relating to his service therein, is a
high violation of the rights and privileges of the house of commons.
Notwithstanding these transactions, they did not neglect the vigorous
prosecution of the war. They addressed his majesty to interpose with his
allies that they might increase their quotas of land forces, to be
put on board the fleet in proportion to the numbers his majesty should
embark. When they had settled the sums appropriated to the several uses
of the war, they presented a second address desiring he would provide
for the half-pay officers in the first place, in the recruits and levies
to be made. The king assured them it was always his intention to provide
for those officers. He went to the house of peers and gave the royal
assent to an act appointing commissioners to take, examine, and
determine the debts due to the army, navy, and the transport service;
and also to take an account of prizes taken during the war.
AFFAIRS OF IRELAND.
The affairs of Ireland were not a little embarrassed by the conduct
of the trustees appointed to take cognizance of the forfeited estates.
Their office was extremely odious to the people as well as to the court,
and their deportment was arbitrary and imperious. Several individuals of
that kingdom, provoked by the insolence of the trustees on one hand, and
encouraged by the countenance of the courtiers on the other, endeavoured
by a circular letter to spirit up the grand jury of Ireland against the
act of resumption: petitions were presented to the king, couched in
very strong terms, affirming that it was injurious to the protestant
interest, and had been obtained by gross misinformations. The king
having communicated these addresses to the house, they were immediately
voted scandalous, false, and groundless; and the commons resolved, That
notwithstanding the complaints and clamours against the trustees, it
did not appear to the house but those complaints were groundless;
nevertheless they afterwards received several petitions imploring relief
against the said act; and they ordered that the petitioners should be
relieved accordingly. Proposals were delivered in for incorporating
such as should purchase the said forfeitures, on certain terms therein
specified, according to the rent-roll, when verified and made good to
the purchasers; but whereas in this rent-roll the value of the estates
had been estimated at something more than seven hundred and sixteen
thousand pounds, those who undertook to make the purchase affirmed
they were not worth five hundred thousand pounds; and thus the affair
remained in suspense.
THE KING RECOMMENDS AN UNION.
With respect to Scotland, the clamours of that kingdom had not yet
subsided. When the bill of abjuration passed in the house of peers, the
earl of Nottingham had declared that although he differed in opinion
from the majority in many particulars relating to that bill, yet he
was a friend to the design of it; and in order to secure a protestant
succession, he thought an union of the whole island was absolutely
necessary. He therefore moved for an address to the king that he would
dissolve the parliament of Scotland now sitting, as the legality of it
might be called in question, on account of its having been originally a
convention; and that a new parliament should be summoned that they might
treat about an union of the two kingdoms. The king had this affair
so much to heart, that even when he was disabled from going to the
parliament in person, he sent a letter to the commons expressing an
eager desire that a treaty for this purpose might be set on foot, and
earnestly recommending this affair to the consideration of the house;
but as a new parliament in Scotland could not be called without a great
risk, while the nation was in such a ferment, the project was postponed
to a more favourable opportunity.
HE FALLS FROM HIS HORSE.
Before the king’s return from Holland, he had concerted with his allies
the operations of the ensuing campaign. He had engaged in a negotiation
with the prince of Hesse D’Armstadt, who assured him that if he would
besiege and take Cadiz, the admiral of Castile, and divers other
grandees of Spain, would declare for the house of Austria. The allies
had also determined upon the siege of Keyserswaert, which the elector
of Cologn had delivered into the hands of the French; the elector of
Hanover had resolved to disarm the princes of Wolfenbuttle; the king of
the Romans, and prince Louis of Baden, undertook to invest Landau; and
the emperor promised to send a powerful reinforcement to prince
Eugene in Italy; but William did not live to see these schemes put in
execution. His constitution was by this time almost exhausted, though
he endeavoured to conceal the effects of his malady, and to repair his
health by exercise. On the twenty-first day of February, in riding to
Hampton-court from Kensington, his horse fell under him, and he himself
was thrown upon the ground with such violence as produced a fracture
in his collar-bone. His attendants conveyed him to the palace
of Hampton-court, where the fracture was reduced by Ronjat, his
sergeant-surgeon. In the evening he returned to Kensington in his coach,
and the two ends of the fractured bone having been disunited by the
jolting of the carriage, were replaced under the inspection of Bidloo,
his physician. He seemed to be in a fair way of recovering till the
first day of March, when his knee appeared to be inflamed, with great
pain and weakness. Next day he granted a commission under the great
seal to several peers, for passing the bills to which both houses
of parliament had agreed; namely, the act of attainder against the
pretended prince of Wales, and another in favour of the quakers,
enacting, That their solemn affirmation and declaration should be
accepted instead of an oath in the usual form.
{WILLIAM, 1688-1701.}
HIS DEATH AND CHARACTER.
On the fourth day of March the king was so well recovered of his
lameness that he took several turns in the gallery at Kensington; but
sitting down on a couch where he fell asleep, he was seized with a
shivering, which terminated in a fever and diarrhoea. He was attended
by sir Thomas Millington, sir Richard Black-more, sir Theodore Colledon,
Dr. Bidloo, and other eminent physicians; but their prescriptions proved
ineffectual. On the sixth he granted another commission for passing the
bill for the malt tax, and the act of abjuration; and being so weak that
he could not write his name, he, in presence of the lord-keeper and the
clerks of parliament, applied a stamp prepared for the purpose. The earl
of Albemarle arriving from Holland, conferred with him in private on the
posture of affairs abroad; but he received his informations with great
coldness, and said, “_Je tire vers ma fin_--I approach the end of my
life.” In the evening he thanked Dr. Bidloo for his care and tenderness,
saying, “I know that you and the other learned physicians have done all
that your art can do for my relief; but, finding all means ineffectual,
I submit.” He received spiritual consolation from archbishop Tennison,
and Burnet bishop of Salisbury; on Sunday morning the sacrament was
administered to him. The lords of the privy-council and divers noblemen
attended in the adjoining apartments, and to some of them who were
admitted he spoke a little. He thanked lord Auverquerque for his long
and faithful services; he delivered to lord Albemarle the keys of his
closet and scrutoire, telling him he knew what to do with them. He
inquired for the earl of Portland; but being speechless before that
nobleman arrived, he grasped his hand and laid it to his heart, with
marks of the most tender affection. On the eighth day of March he
expired, in the fifty-second year of his age, after having reigned
thirteen years. The lords Lexington and Scarborough, who were in
waiting, no sooner perceived that the king was dead, than they ordered
Ronjat to untie from his left arm a black ribbon, to which was affixed a
ring containing some hair of the late queen Mary. The body being opened
and embalmed, lay in state for some time at Kensington; and on the
twelfth day of April was deposited in a vault of Henry’s chapel
in Westminster-abbey. In the beginning of May, a will which he had
intrusted with Monsieur Schuylemberg was opened at the Hague. In this
he had declared his cousin prince Frison of Nassau, stadtholder of
Friesland, his sole and universal heir, and appointed the states-general
his executors. By a codicil annexed, he had bequeathed the lordship of
Breevert, and a legacy of two hundred thousand guilders, to the earl of
Albemarle.
William III. was in his person of the middle stature, a thin body, a
delicate constitution, subject to an asthma and continual cough from his
infancy. He had an aquiline nose, sparkling eyes, a large forehead, and
a grave solemn aspect. He was very sparing of speech; his conversation
was dry, and his manner disgusting, except in battle, when his
deportment was free, spirited, and animating. In courage, fortitude, and
equanimity, he rivalled the most eminent warriors of antiquity; and his
natural sagacity made amends for the defects in his education, which had
not been properly superintended. He was religious, temperate, generally
just and sincere, a stranger to violent transports of passion, and might
have passed for one of the best princes of the age in which he
lived, had he never ascended the throne of Great Britain. But the
distinguishing criterion of his character was ambition. To this he
sacrificed the punctilios of honour and decorum, in deposing his own
father-in-law and uncle; and this he gratified at the expense of the
nation that raised him to sovereign authority. He aspired to the honour
of acting as umpire in all the contests of Europe; and the second object
of his attention was the prosperity of that country to which he owed
his birth and extraction. Whether he really thought the interests of
the continent and Great Britain were inseparable, or sought only to
drag England into the confederacy as a convenient ally, certain it is he
involved these kingdoms in foreign connexions which in all probability
will be productive of their ruin. In order to establish this favourite
point, he scrupled not to employ all the engines of corruption by
which the morals of the nation were totally debauched. He procured
a parliamentary sanction for a standing army, which now seems to be
interwoven in the constitution. He introduced the pernicious practice
of borrowing upon remote funds; an expedient that necessarily hatched a
brood of usurers, brokers, contractors, and stock-jobbers, to prey upon
the vitals of their country. He entailed upon the nation a growing debt,
and a system of politics big with misery, despair, and destruction. To
sum up his character in a few words--William was a fatalist in religion,
indefatigable in war, enterprising in politics, dead to all the warm and
generous emotions of the human heart, a cold relation, an indifferent
husband, a disagreeable man, an ungracious prince, and an imperious
sovereign.
NOTES:
[Footnote 001: Note A, p. 1. The council consisted of the prince
of Denmark, the archbishop of Canterbury, the duke of Norfolk, the
marquises of Halifax and Winchester, the earls of Danby, Lindsey,
Devonshire, Dorset, Middlesex, Oxford, Shrewsbury, Bedford, Bath,
Macclesfield, and Nottingham; the viscounts Fauconberg, Mordaunt,
Newport, Lumley; the lords Wharton, Montague, Delamere, Churchill; Mr.
Bentinck, Mr. Sidney, sir Robert Howard, sir Henry Capel, Mr. Powle, Mr.
Russel, Mr. Hambden, and Mr. Boseawen.]
[Footnote 002: Note B, p. 2. This expedient was attended with an
insurmountable absurdity. If the majority of the convention could not
grant a legal sanction to the establishment they had made, they could
never invest the prince of Orange with a just right to ascend the
throne; for they could not give what they had no right to bestow; and if
he ascended the throne without a just title, he could have no right to
sanctify that assembly to which he owed his elevation. When the people
are obliged, by tyranny or other accidents, to have recourse to the
first principles of society, namely, their own preservation, in electing
a new sovereign, it will deserve consideration, whether that choice is
to be effected by the majority of a parliament which has been dissolved,
indeed by any parliament whatsoever, or by the body of the nation
assembled in communities, corporations, by tribes or centuries, to
signify their assent or dissent with respect to the person proposed
as their sovereign. This kind of election might be attended with great
inconvenience and difficulty, but these cannot possibly be avoided when
the constitution is dissolved by setting aside the lineal succession
to the throne. The constitution of England is founded on a parliament
consisting of kings, lords, and commons; but when there is no longer a
king, the parliament is defective, and the constitution impaired:
the members of the lower house are the representatives of the people,
expressly chosen to maintain the constitution in church and state, and
sworn to support the rights of the crown, as well as the liberties of
the nation; but though they are elected to maintain, they have no power
to alter, the constitution. When the king forfeits the allegiance of
his subjects, and it becomes necessary to dethrone him, the power of
so doing cannot possibly reside in the representatives who are chosen,
under certain limitations, for the purposes of a legislature which no
longer exists; their power is of course at an end, and they are reduced
to a level with other individuals that constitute the community. The
right of altering the constitution, therefore, or of deviating from the
established practice of inheritance in regard to the succession of the
crown, is inherent in the body of the people; and every individual has
an equal right to his share in the general determination, whether
his opinion be signified _viva voce_, or by a representative whom he
appoints and instructs for that purpose. It may be suggested, that the
prince of Orange was raised to the throne without any convulsion, or
any such difficulties and inconveniencies as we have affirmed to be the
necessary consequences of a measure of that nature. To this remark we
answer, that, since the Revolution, these kingdoms have been divided
and harassed by violent and implacable factions, that eagerly seek
the destruction of each other: that they have been exposed to plots,
conspiracies, insurrections, civil wars, and successive rebellions,
which have not been defeated and quelled without vast effusion of blood,
infinite mischief, calamity, and expense to the nation: that they are
still subjected to all those alarms and dangers which are engendered by
a disputed title to the throne, and the efforts of an artful pretenders
that they are necessarily wedded to the affairs of the continent, and
their interest sacrificed to foreign connexions, from which they can
never be disengaged. Perhaps all these calamities might have been
prevented by the interposition of the prince of Orange. King James,
without forfeiting the crown, might have been laid under such
restrictions that it would not have been in his power to tyrannize
over his subjects, either in spirituals or temporals. The power of the
militia might have been vested in the two houses of parliament, as well
as the nomination of persons to fill the great offices of the church
and state, and superintend the economy of the administration in the
application of the public money; a law might have passed for annual
parliaments, and the king might have been deprived of his power to
convoke, adjourn, prorogue, and dissolve them at his pleasure. Had
these measures been taken, the king must have been absolutely disabled
from employing either force or corruption in the prosecution of
arbitrary designs, and the people must have been fairly represented in
a rotation of parliaments, whose power and influence would have been but
of one year’s duration.]
[Footnote 003: Note C, p. 3. The new form of the coronation-oath
consisted in the following questions and answers:--“Will you solemnly
promise and swear to govern the people of this kingdom of England, and
the dominions thereto belonging, according to the statutes in parliament
agreed on, and the laws and customs of the same?”--“I solemnly promise
so to do.”
“Will you, to the utmost of your power, cause law and justice in mercy
to be executed in all your judgments?” “I will.” “Will You, to the
utmost of your power, maintain the laws of God, the true profession of
the Gospel, and the Protestant reformed religion as by law established;
and will you preserve unto the bishops and clergy of this realm, and to
the churches committed to their charge, all such rights and privileges
as by law do or shall appertain unto them or any of them?”--“All this I
promise to do.”
Then the king or queen, laying his or her hand upon the Gospels, shall
say, “The things which I have here before promised, I will perform and
keep. So help me God.”]
[Footnote 008: Note D, p. 8. The lords of the articles, by the gradual
usurpation of the crown, actually constituted a grievance intolerable
in a free nation. The king empowered the commissioner to choose eight
bishops, whom he authorized to nominate eight noblemen: these together
choose eight barons and eight burgesses; and this whole number, in
conjunction with the officers of state as supernumeraries, constituted
the lords of the articles. This committee possessed the sole exclusive
right and liberty of bringing in motions, making overtures for
redressing wrongs, and proposing means and expedients for the relief
and benefit of the subjects.--_Proceedings of the Scots Parliament
vindicated_.]
[Footnote 010: Note E, p. 10. James in this expedition was attended by
the duke of Berwick, and by his brother Mr. Fitzjames, grand prior, the
duke of Powis, the earls of Dover, Melfort, Abercorn, and Seaforth; the
lords Henry and Thomas Howard, the lords Drummond, Dungan, Trendrauglit,
Buchan, Hunsdon, and Brittas; the bishops of Chester and Galway; the
late lord chief justice Herbert; the marquis d’Estrades, M. de Rosene,
mareschal decamp; Mamoe, Pusignan, and Lori, lieutenant-general;
Prontee, engineer-general; the marquis d’Albeville, sir John Sparrow,
sir Roger Strictland, sir William Jennings, sir Henry Bond, sir Charles
Carney, sir Edward Vaudrey, sir Charles Murray, sir Robert Parker,
sir Alphonso Maiolo, sir Samuel Foxon, and sir William Wallis; by the
colonels Porter, Sarsfield, Anthony and John Hamilton, Simon and Henry
Luttrel, Ramsay, Dorrington, Sutherland, Clifford, Parker, Parcel,
Cannon, and Fielding, with about two-and-twenty other officers of
inferior rank.]
[Footnote 016: F, p. 16. The franchises were privileges of asylum,
annexed not only to the ambassadors at Rome, but even to the whole
district in which any ambassador chanced to live. This privilege was
become a terrible nuisance, inasmuch as it afforded protection to the
most atrocious criminals, who filled the city with rapine and murder.
Innocent XI. resolving to remove this evil, published a bull, abolishing
the franchises; and almost all the catholic powers of Europe acquiesced
in what he had done, upon being duly informed of the grievance. Louis
XIV. however, from a spirit of pride and insolence, refused to part with
anything that looked like a prerogative of his crown. He said the king
of France was not the imitator, but a pattern and example for other
princes. He rejected with disdain the mild representations of the
pope; he sent the marquis de Lavarden as his ambassador to Rome, with a
formidable train, to insult Innocent even in his own city. That
nobleman swaggered through the streets of Rome like a bravo, taking all
opportunities to affront the pope, who excommunicated him in revenge. On
the other hand, the parliament of Paris appealed from the pope’s bull to
a future council. Louis caused the pope’s nuncio to be put under arrest,
took possession of Avignon, which belonged to the see of Rome, and set
the holy father at defiance.]
[Footote 021: G, p. 21. The following persons were exempted from the
benefit of this act:--William, marquis of Powis; Theophilus, earl of
Huntingdon; Robert, earl of Sunderland; John, earl of Melfort; Roger,
earl of Castlemain; Nathaniel, lord bishop of Durham; Thomas, lord
bishop of Saint David’s; Henry, lord Dover; lord Thomas Howard;
sir-Edward Hales, sir Francis Withers, sir Edward Lutwych, sir Thomas
Jenner, sir Nicholas Butler, sir William Herbert, sir Richard Holloway,
sir Richard Heath, sir Roger l’Estrange William Molineux, Thomas
Tynde-sly, colonel Townley, colonel Lundy, Robert Brent, Edward Morgan,
Philip Burton, Richard Graham, Edward Petre, Obadiah Walker, Matthew
Crone, and George lord Jeffries, deceased.]
[Footnote 035: H, p. 35. In the course of this session, Dr. Welwood, a
Scottish physician, was taken into custody, and reprimanded at the
bar of the house of commons, for having reflected upon that house in a
weekly paper, entitled _Mercurius Reformatus_; but, as it was written in
defence of the government, the king appointed him one of his physicians
in ordinary. At this period, Charles Montague, afterwards earl of
Halifax, distinguished himself in the house of commons by his fine
talents and eloquence. The privy seal was committed to the earl of
Pembroke; lord viscount Sidney was created lord-lieutenant of Ireland;
sir John Somers appointed attorney-general; and the see of Lincoln,
vacant by the death of Barlow, conferred upon Dr. Thomas Tennison, who
had been recommended to the king as a divine remarkable for his piety
and moderation.]
[Footnote 046: I, p. 48. The other laws made in this session were those
that follow:--An act for preventing suits against such as had acted for
their majesties’ service in defense of this kingdom. An act for raising
the militia in the year 1693. An act for authorizing the judges to
empower such persons, other than common attorneys and solicitors,
as they should think fit, to take special bail, except in London,
Westminster, and ten miles round. An act to encourage the apprehending
of highwaymen. An act for preventing clandestine marriages. An act for
the regaining, encouraging, and settling the Greenland trade. An act to
prevent malicious informations in the court of King’s Bench, and for the
more easy reversal of outlawries in that court. An Act for the better
discovery of judgments in the courts of law. An Act for delivering
declarations to prisoners for debt. An act for regulating proceedings in
the Crown Office. An act for the more easy discovery and conviction
of such as should destroy the game of this kingdom, And an act for
continuing the acts for prohibiting all trade and commerce with France,
and for the encouragement of privateers.]
[Footnote 053: K, p. 53. Besides the bills already mentioned, the
parliament in this session passed an act for taking and stating the
public accounts--another to encourage ship-building--a third for the
better disciplining the navy--the usual militia act--and an act enabling
his majesty to make grants and leases in the duchy of Cornwall. One was
also passed for renewing a clause in an old statute, limiting the number
of justices of the peace in the principality of Wales. The duke of
Norfolk brought an action in the court of King’s Bench against Mr.
Germaine, for criminal conversation with his duchess. The cause was
tried, and the jury brought in their verdict for one hundred marks, and
costs of suit, in favour of the plaintiff.
Before the king embarked, he gratified a good number of his friends with
promotions. Lord Charles Butler, brother to the duke of Ormond, was
created lord Butler, of Weston in England, and earl of Arran in Ireland.
The earl of Shrewsbury was honoured with the title of duke. The earl of
Mulgrave, being reconciled to the court measures, was gratified with a
pension of three thousand pounds, and the title of marquis of Normanby.
Henry Herbert was ennobled by the title of baron Herbert, of Cherbury.
The earls of Bedford, Devonshire, and Clare, were promoted to the
rank of dukes. The marquis of Caermarthen was made duke of Leeds; lord
viscount Sidney, created earl of Romney; and viscount Newport, earl of
Bedford. Russel was advanced to the head of the admiralty board. Sir
George Rooke and sir John Houblon were appointed joint-commissioners in
the room of Killegrew and Délavai. Charles Montague was made chancellor
of the exchequer; and sir William Trumbal and John Smith commisioners of
the treasury, in the room of sir Edward Seymour and Mr. Hambden.]
[Footnote 056: L, p. 56. Her obsequies were performed with great
magnificence. The body was attended from Whitehall to Westminster Abbey
by all the judges, sergeants at law, the lord-mayor and aldermen of the
city of London, and both houses of parliament; and the funeral sermon
was preached by Dr. Tennison, archbishop of Canterbury. Dr. Kenn, the
deprived bishop of Bath and Wells, reproached him in a letter, for not
having called upon her majesty on her death-bed to repent of the share
she had in the Revolution. This was answered by another pamphlet. One
of the Jacobite clergy insulted the queen’s memory, by preaching on the
following text: “Go now, see this cursed woman, and bury her, for she
is a king’s daughter.” On the other hand, the lord-mayor, aldermen, and
common council of London came to a resolution to erect her statue, with
that of the king, in the Royal Exchange.]
[Footnote 058: M, p. 58. In the course of this session, the lords
inquired into the particulars of the Mediterranean expedition, and
presented an address to the king, declaring, that the fleet in those
seas had conduced to the honour and advantage of the nation. On the
other hand, the commons, in an address, besought his majesty to take
care that the kingdom might be put on an equal footing and proportion
with the allies, in defraying the expense of the war.
The coin of the kingdom being greatly diminished and adulterated, the
earls of Rochester and Nottingham expatiated upon this national evil
in the house of lords: an act was passed, containing severe penalties
against clippers; but this produced no good effect. The value of money
sunk in the exchange to such a degree, that a guinea was reckoned
adequate to thirty shillings; and this public disgrace lowered the
credit of the funds and of the government. The nation was alarmed by the
circulation of fictitious wealth, instead of gold and silver, such
as bank bills, exchequer tallies, and government securities. The
malcontents took this opportunity to exclaim against the bank, and even
attempted to shake the credit of it in parliament; but their endeavours
proved abortive--the monied interest preponderated in both houses.]
[Footnote 059: N, p. 58. The regency was composed of the archbishop of
Canterbury; Somers, lord-keeper of the great seal; the earl of Pembroke,
lord-privy-seal; the duke of Devonshire, lord-steward of the household;
the duke of Shrewsbury, secretary of state; the earl of Dorset,
lord-chamberlain; and the lord Godolphin, first commissioner of the
treasury. Sir John Trenchard dying, his place of secretary was filled
by sir William Trumbal, an eminent civilian, learned, diligent, and
virtuous, who had been envoy at Paris and Constantinople. William Nassau
de Zulycrstein, son of the king’s natural uncle, was created baron of
Enfield, viscount Tunbridge, and earl of Rochibrd. Ford, lord Grey of
Werke, was made viscount Glendale, and earl of Tankerville. The month of
April of this year was distinguished by the death of the famous George
Saville, marquis of Halifax, who had survived, in a good measure, his
talents and reputation.]
[Footnote 067: Note 0, p. 67. The commons resolved, That a fund,
redeemable by parliament, be settled in a national land bank, to be
raised by new subscriptions; That no person be concerned in both banks
at the same time; That the duties upon coals, culm, and tonnage of ships
be taken off, from the seventeenth day of March; That the sum of two
millions five hundred and sixty-four thousand pounds be raised on this
perpetual fund, redeemable by parliament; That the new bank should
be restrained from lending money but upon land securities, or to the
government in the exchequer; That for making up the fund of interest for
the capital stock, certain duties upon glass wares, stone and earthen
bottles, granted before to the king for a term of years, be continued to
his majesty, his heirs, and successors; That a further duty be laid upon
stone and earthen ware, and another upon tobacco-pipes. This bank was
to lend out five hundred thousand pounds a-year upon land securities,
at three pounds ten shillings per cent, per annum, and to cease and
determine, unless the subscription should be full, by the first day of
August next ensuing.
The most remarkable laws enacted in this session were these:--An act for
voiding all the elections of parliament men, at which the elected had
been at any expense in meat, drink, or money, to procure votes.
Another against unlawful and double returns. A third, for the more easy
recovery of small tithes. A fourth, to prevent marriages without license
or banns. A fifth, for enabling the inhabitants of Wales to dispose of
all their personal estates as they should think fit: this law was in bar
of a custom that had prevailed in that country--the widows and younger
children claimed a share of the effects, called their reasonable part,
although the effects had been otherwise disposed of by will or deed.
The parliament likewise passed an act for preventing the exportation of
wool, and encouraging the importation thereof from Ireland. An act for
encouraging the linen manufactures of Ireland. An act for regulating
juries. An act for encouraging the Greenland trade. An act of indulgence
to the quakers, that their solemn affirmation should be accepted instead
of an oath. And an act for continuing certain other acts that were near
expiring. Another bill passed for the better regulating elections for
members of parliament; but the royal assent was denied. The question was
put in the house of commons, That whosoever advised his majesty not to
give his assent to that bill was an enemy to his country; but it was
rejected by a great majority.]
CONTINUATION
OF
THE HISTORY OF ENGLAND,
BY TOBIAS SMOLLETT
MAPS:
[Illustration: map9.jpg MAP OF CENTRAL AMERICA AND WEST INDIES]
[Illustration: map10.jpg MAP OF THE EAST INDIAN ISLANDS]
[Illustration: map11.jpg MAP OF IRELAND]
[Illustration: map12.jpg MAP OF THE EASTERN HEMISPHERE]
QUEEN ANNE
CHAPTER VII.
[Illustration: 105.jpg Portrait of Queen Anne]
_Anne succeeds to the Throne..... She resolves to fulfil the
Engagements of her Predecessor with his Allies..... A French
Memorial presented to the States-general..... The Queen’s
Inclination to the Tories..... War declared against
France..... The Parliament prorogued..... Warm Opposition to
the Ministry in the Scottish Parliament..... They recognize
her Majesty’s Authority..... The Queen appoints
Commissioners to treat of an Union between England and
Scotland..... State of Affairs on the Continent.....
Keiserswaert and Landau taken by the Allies..... Progress of
the Earl of Marlborough in Flanders..... He narrowly escapes
being taken by a French Partisan..... The Imperialists are
worsted at Fridlinguen..... Battle of Luzzara in Italy.....
The King of Sweden defeats Augustus at Lissou in Poland.....
Fruitless expedition to Cadiz by the Duke of Ormond and Sir
George Booke..... They take and destroy the Spanish Galleons
at Vigo..... Admiral Benbow’s Engagement with Ducasse in the
West Indies..... The Queen assembles a new Parliament.....
Disputes between the two Houses..... The Lords inquire into
the Conduct of Sir George Rooke..... The Parliament make a
Settlement on Prince George of Denmark..... The Earl of
Marlborough created a Duke..... All Commerce and
Correspondence prohibited between Holland and the two Crowns
of France and Spain..... A Bill for preventing occasional
Conformity..... It miscarries..... Violent Animosity
between the two Houses produced by the Inquiry into the
Public Accounts..... Disputes between the two Houses of
Convocation..... Account of the Parties in Scotland.....
Dangerous Heats in the Parliament of that Kingdom..... The
Commissioner is abandoned by the Cavaliers..... He is in
Danger of his Life, and suddenly prorogues the
Parliament..... Proceedings of the Irish Parliament.....
They pass a severe Act against Papists..... The Elector of
Bavaria defeats the Imperialists at Scardingen, and takes
Possession of Ratisbon..... The Allies reduce Bonne.....
Battle of Eckeren..... The Prince of Hesse is defeated by
the French at Spirebath..... Treaty between the Emperor and
the Duke of Savoy..... The King of Portugal accedes to the
Grand Alliance..... Sir Cloudesley Shovel sails with a Fleet
to the Mediterranean..... Admiral Graydon’s bootless
Expedition to the West Indies..... Charles King of Spain
arrives in England._
{ANNE, 1701--1714}
ANNE SUCCEEDS TO THE THRONE.
William was succeeded as sovereign of England by Anne princess of
Denmark, who ascended the throne in the thirty-eighth year of her age,
to the general satisfaction of all parties. Even the Jacobites
seemed pleased with her elevation, on the supposition that as in all
probability she would leave no heirs of her own body, the dictates of
natural affection would induce her to alter the succession in favour of
her own brother. She had been taught to cherish warm sentiments of the
tories, whom she considered as the friends of monarchy, and the
true sons of the church; and they had always professed an inviolable
attachment to her person and interest; but her conduct was wholly
influenced by the countess of Marlborough, a woman of an imperious
temper and intriguing genius, who had been intimate with the princess
from her tender years, and gained a surprising ascendancy over her. Anne
had undergone some strange vicissitudes of fortune in consequence of
her father’s expulsion, and sustained a variety of mortifications in the
late reign, during which she conducted herself with such discretion
as left little or no pretence for censure or resentment. Such conduct
indeed was in a great measure owing to a natural temperance of
disposition not easily ruffled or inflamed. She was zealously devoted to
the church of England, from which her father had used some endeavours
to detach her before the Revolution; and she lived in great harmony with
her husband, to whom she bore six children, all of whom she had
already survived. William had no sooner yielded up his breath, than the
privy-council in a body waited on the new queen, who, in a short but
sensible speech, assured them that no pains nor diligence should be
wanting on her part to preserve and support the religion, laws, and
liberties of her country, to maintain the succession in the protestant
line, and the government in church and state, as by law established. She
declared her resolution to carry on the preparations for opposing the
exorbitant power of France, and to assure the allies that she would
pursue the true interest of England, together with theirs, for the
support of the common cause. The members of the privy-council having
taken the oaths, she ordered a proclamation to be published, signifying
her pleasure that all persons in office of authority or government
at the decease of the late king, should so continue till further
directions. By virtue of an act passed in the late reign, the parliament
continued sitting even after the king’s death. Both houses met
immediately, and unanimously voted an address of condolence and
congratulation; and in the afternoon the queen was proclaimed. Next
day the lords and commons severally attended her with an address,
congratulating her majesty’s accession to the throne; and assuring
her of their firm resolution to support her against all her enemies
whatsoever. The lords acknowledged that their great loss was no
otherwise to be repaired but by a vigorous adherence to her majesty and
her allies, in the prosecution of those measures already concerted to
reduce the exorbitant power of France. The commons declared they
would maintain the succession of the crown in the protestant line, and
effectually provide for the public credit of the nation. These addresses
were graciously received by the queen, who, on the eleventh day of
March, went to the house of peers with the usual solemnity, where, in a
speech to both houses, she expressed her satisfaction at their unanimous
concurrence with her opinion, that too much could not be done for the
encouragement of their allies in humbling the power of France; and
desired they would consider of proper methods towards obtaining an
union between England and Scotland. She observed to the commons that the
revenue for defraying the expenses of civil government was expired; and
that she relied entirely on their affection for its being supplied in
such a manner as should be most suitable to the honour and dignity of
the crown. She declared it should be her constant endeavour to make them
the best return for their duty and affection, by a careful and diligent
administration for the good of all her subjects. “And as I know my own
heart to be entirely English (continued she) I can very sincerely assure
you, there is not any thing you can expect or desire from me which I
shall not be ready to do for the happiness and prosperity of England;
and you shall always find me a strict and religious observer of my
word.” These assurances were extremely agreeable to the parliament; and
she received the thanks of both houses. Addresses of congratulation were
presented by the bishop and clergy of London; by the dissenters in
and about that city; and by all the counties, cities, towns, and
corporations of England. She declared her attachment to the church; she
promised her protection to the dissenters; and received the compliments
of all her subjects with such affability as ensured their affection.
THE ENGAGEMENTS OF HER PREDECESSOR WITH HIS ALLIES FULFILLED.
William’s death was no sooner known at the Hague, than all Holland was
filled with consternation. The states immediately assembled, and for
some time gazed at each other in silent fear and astonishment. They
sighed, wept, and interchanged embraces and vows that they would act
with unanimity, and expend their clearest blood in defence of their
country. Then they despatched letters to the cities and provinces,
informing them of this unfortunate event, and exhorting them to union
and perseverance. The express from England having brought the queen’s
speech to her privy-council, it was translated and published to revive
the drooping spirits of the people. Next day pensionary Fagel imparted
to the states of Holland a letter which he had received from the earl
of Marlborough, containing assurances, in the queen’s name, of union
and assistance. In a few days, the queen wrote a letter in the French
language to the States, confirming these assurances; it was delivered
by Mr. Stanhope, whom she had furnished with fresh credentials as envoy
from England. Thus animated, the states resolved to prosecute vigorous
measures; their resolutions were still more inspirited by the arrival of
the earl of Marlborough, whom the queen honoured with the order of the
garter, and invested with the character of ambassador-extraordinary and
plenipotentiary to the states-general; he was likewise declared captain
general of her forces both at home and abroad. He assured the states
that her Britannic majesty would maintain the alliances which had been
concluded by the late king, and do every thing that the common concerns
of Europe required. The speech was answered by Dickvelt, president of
the week, who, in the name of the states, expressed their hearty thanks
to her majesty, and their resolutions of concurring with her in a
vigorous prosecution of the common interest.
A FRENCH MEMORIAL PRESENTED TO THE STATES-GENERAL.
The importance of William’s life was evinced by the joy that diffused
itself through the kingdom of France at the news of his decease. The
person who first brought the tidings to Calais, was imprisoned by the
governor until his information was confirmed. The court of Versailles
could hardly restrain their transports so as to preserve common decorum;
the people of Paris openly rejoiced at the event; all decency was laid
aside at Rome, where this incident produced such indecent raptures, that
cardinal Grimani, the imperial minister, complained of them to the
pope, as an insult on his master the emperor, who was William’s friend,
confederate, and ally. The French king despatched credentials to Barré,
whom the count D’Avaux had left at the Hague to manage the affairs of
France, together with instructions to renew the negotiation with the
states, in hope of detaching them from the alliance. This minister
presented a memorial implying severe reflections on king William,
and the past conduct of the Dutch; and insinuating that now they had
recovered their liberty, the court of France hoped they would consult
their true interest. The count de Goes, envoy from the emperor,
animadverted on these expressions in another memorial, which was
likewise published; the states produced in public an answer to the
same remonstrance, expressing their resentment at the insolence of
such insinuations, and their veneration for the memory of their late
stadtholder. The earl of Marlborough succeeded in every part of his
negotiation. He animated the Dutch to a full exertion of their vigour;
he concerted the operations of the campaign; he agreed with the
states-general and the imperial minister, that war should be declared
against France on the same day at Vienna, London, and the Hague; and
on the third of April embarked for England, after having acquired the
entire confidence of those who governed the United Provinces.
QUEEN’S INCLINATION TO THE TORIES.
By this time the house of commons in England had settled the civil list
upon the queen for her life. When the bill received the royal assent,
she assured them that one hundred thousand pounds of this revenue should
be applied to the public service of the current year; at the same time
she passed another bill for receiving and examining the public accounts.
A commission for this purpose was granted in the preceding reign,
but had been for some years discontinued; and indeed always proved
ineffectual to detect and punish those individuals who shamefully
pillaged their country. The villany was so complicated, the vice so
general, and the delinquents so powerfully screened by artifice and
interest, as to elude all inquiry. On the twenty-fourth day of March the
oath of abjuration was taken by the speaker and members, according to an
act for the further security of her majesty’s person, and the succession
of the crown in the protestant line, and for extinguishing the hopes
of the pretended prince of Wales. The queen’s inclination to the
tories plainly appeared in her choice of ministers. Doctor John Sharp,
archbishop of York, became her ghostly director and counsellor in
all ecclesiastical affairs; the earl of Rochester was continued
lord-lieutenant of Ireland, and enjoyed a great share of her majesty’s
confidence; the privy-seal was intrusted to the marquis of Normandy; the
earl of Nottingham and sir Charles Hedges were appointed secretaries
of state; the earl of Abingdon, viscount Weymouth, lord Dartmouth,
sir Christopher Musgrave, Grenville, Howe, Gower, and Harcourt, were
admitted as members of the privy-council, together with sir Edward
Seymour, now declared comptroller of the household. The lord Godolphin
declined accepting the office of lord high-treasurer, until he was
over-ruled by the persuasions of Marlborough, to whose eldest daughter
his son was married. This nobleman refused to command the forces abroad,
unless the treasury should be put into the hands of Godolphin, on whose
punctuality in point of remittances he knew he could depend. George,
prince of Denmark, was invested with the title of generalissimo of all
the queen’s forces by sea and land; and afterwards created lord high
admiral, the earl of Pembroke having been dismissed from this office
with the offer of a large pension, which he generously refused. Prince
George, as admiral, was assisted by a council, consisting of sir George
Rooke, sir David Mitch el, George Churchill, and Richard Hill. Though
the legality of this board was doubted, the parliament had such respect
and veneration for the queen, that it was suffered to act without
question.
WAR DECLARED AGAINST FRANCE.
A rivalship for the queen’s favour already appeared between the earls of
Rochester and Marlborough. The former, as first cousin to the queen,
and chief of the tory faction, maintained considerable influence in
the council; but even there the interest of his rival predominated.
Marlborough was not only the better courtier, but by the canal of his
countess, actually directed the queen in all her resolutions. Rochester
proposed in council, that the English should avoid a declaration of war
with France, and act as auxiliaries only. He was seconded by some other
members; but the opinion of Marlborough preponderated. He observed,
that the honour of the nation was concerned to fulfil the late king’s
engagements; and affirmed that France could never be reduced within due
bounds, unless the English would enter as principals in the quarrel.
This allegation was supported by the dukes of Somerset and Devonshire,
the earl of Pembroke, and the majority of the council. The queen being
resolved to declare war, communicated her intention to the house of
commons, by whom it was approved; and on the fourth day of May the
declaration was solemnly proclaimed. The king of France was, in this
proclamation, taxed with having taken possession of great part of the
Spanish dominions; with designing to invade the liberties of Europe; and
obstruct the freedom of navigation and commerce; with having offered an
unpardonable insult to the queen and her throne, by taking upon him to
declare the pretended prince of Wales king of England, Scotland,
and Ireland. The three declarations of the emperor, England, and
the states-general, which were published in one day, did not fail to
disconcert, as well as to provoke the French monarch. When his minister
De Torcy recited them in his hearing, he spoke of the queen with some
acrimony; but with respect to the states-general, he declared with great
emotion, that “Messieurs the Dutch merchants should one day repent of
their insolence and presumption, in declaring war against so powerful
a monarch;” he did not, however, produce his declaration till the third
day of July.
THE PARLIAMENT PROROGUED.
The house of commons, in compliance with the queen’s desire, brought in
a bill empowering her majesty to name commissioners to treat with the
Scots for an union of the two kingdoms. It met with warm opposition from
sir Edward Seymour and other tory members, who discharged abundance of
satire and ridicule upon the Scottish nation; but the measure seemed so
necessary at that juncture, to secure the protestant succession against
the practices of France and the claims of the pretender, that the
majority espoused the bill, which passed through both houses, and on the
sixth day of May received the royal assent, together with some bills of
less importance. The enemies of the late king continued to revile his
memory. [107] _[See note P, at the end of this Vol.]_ They even charged
him with having formed a design of excluding the princess Anne from the
throne, and of introducing the elector of Hanover as his own immediate
successor. This report had been so industriously circulated, that it
began to gain credit all over the kingdom. Several peers interested
themselves in William’s character, and a motion was made in the upper
house that the truth of this report should be inquired into. The house
immediately desired that those lords who had visited the late king’s
papers, would intimate whether or not they had found any among them
relating to the queen’s succession, or to the succession of the house
of Hanover. They forthwith declared that nothing of that sort appeared.
Then the house resolved, That the report was groundless, false,
villanous, and scandalous, to the dishonour of the late king’s memory,
and highly tending to the disservice of her present majesty, whom
they besought to give orders that the authors or publishers of such
scandalous reports should be prosecuted by the attorney-general. The
same censure was passed upon some libels and pamphlets tending to
inflame the factions of the kingdom, and to propagate a spirit of
irreligion. [108] _[See note Q, at the end of this Vol.]_ On the
twenty-first day of May, the commons in an address advised her majesty
to engage the emperor, the states-general, and her other allies, to join
with her in prohibiting all intercourse with France and Spain; and to
concert such methods with the states-general as might most effectually
secure the trade of her subjects and allies. The lords presented another
address, desiring the queen would encourage her subjects to equip
privateers, as the preparations of the enemy seemed to be made for a
piratical war, to the interruption of commerce; they likewise exhorted
her majesty to grant commissions or charters to all persons who should
make such acquisitions in the Indies, as she in her great wisdom should
judge most expedient for the good of her kingdoms. On the twenty-fifth
day of May the queen having passed several public and private bills,
[109] _[See note R, at the end of this Vol.]_ dismissed the parliament
by prorogation, after having in a short speech thanked them for their
zeal, recommended unanimity, and declared she would carefully preserve
and maintain the act of toleration.
WARM OPPOSITION TO THE MINISTRY IN THE SCOTTISH PARLIAMENT.
In Scotland a warm contest arose between the revolutioners and those in
the opposition, concerning the existence of the present parliament.
The queen had signified her accession to the throne in a letter to her
privy-council for Scotland, desiring they would continue to act in that
office until she should send a new commission. Meanwhile she authorized
them to publish a proclamation ordaining all officers of state,
counsellors, and magistrates, to act in all things conformably to the
commissions and instructions of his late majesty until new commissions
should be prepared. She likewise assured them of her firm resolution
to protect them in their religion, laws, and liberties, and in the
established government of the church. She had already, in presence of
twelve Scottish counsellors, taken the coronation-oath for that kingdom;
but those who wanted to embroil the affairs of their country, affirmed
that this was an irregular way of proceeding, and that the oath ought
to have been tendered by persons deputed for that purpose either by the
parliament or the privy council of the kingdom. The present ministry,
consisting of the duke of Queensberry, the earls of Marchmont, Melvil,
Seafield, Hyndford, and Selkirk, were devoted to revolution principles,
and desirous that the parliament should continue, in pursuance of a
late act for continuing the parliament that should be then in being,
six months after the death of the king, and that it should assemble in
twenty days after that event. The queen had, by several adjournments,
deferred the meeting almost three months after the king’s decease; and
therefore the anti-revolutioners affirmed that it was dissolved. The
duke of Hamilton was at the head of this party which clamoured loudly
for a new parliament. This nobleman, together with the marquis of
Tweedale, the earls Marshal and Kothes, and many other noblemen,
repaired to London in order to make the queen acquainted with their
objections to the continuance of the present parliament. She admitted
them to her presence and calmly heard their allegations; but she was
determined by the advice of her privy-council for that kingdom, who
were of opinion that the nation was in too great a ferment to hazard
the convocation of a new parliament. According to the queen’s last
adjournment, the parliament met at Edinburgh on the ninth day of June,
the duke of Queensberry having been appointed high commissioner. Before
the queen’s commission was read, the duke of Hamilton for himself and
his adherents, declared their satisfaction at her majesty’s accession to
the throne, not only on account of her undoubted right by descent, but
likewise because of her many personal virtues and royal qualities. He
said they were resolved to sacrifice their lives and fortunes in defence
of her majesty’s right against all her enemies whatever; but, at the
same time, they thought themselves bound in duty to give their opinion
that they were not warranted by law to sit and act as a parliament. He
then read a paper to the following effect:--That forasmuch as, by the
fundamental laws and constitution of this kingdom, all parliaments do
dissolve on the death of their sovereign, except in so far as innovated
by an act in the preceding reign, that the parliament in being at his
majesty’s decease should meet and act what might be needful for the
defence of the true protestant religion as by law established, and for
the maintenance of the succession to the crown as settled by the claim
of right, and for the preservation and security of the public peace; and
seeing these ends are fully answered by her majesty’s succession to the
throne, we conceive ourselves not now warranted by law to meet, sit, or
act; and therefore do dissent from anything that shall be done or acted.
The duke having recited this paper, and formally protested against the
proceedings of the parliament, withdrew with seventy-nine members amidst
the acclamations of the people.
THEY RECOGNISE HER MAJESTY’S AUTHORITY.
Notwithstanding their secession, the commissioner, who retained a much
greater number, produced the queen’s letter signifying her resolution
to maintain and protect her subjects in the full possession of their
religion, laws, liberties, and the presbyterian discipline. She informed
them of her having declared war against France; she exhorted them to
provide competent supplies for maintaining such a number of forces as
might be necessary for disappointing the enemy’s designs, and preserving
the present happy settlement; and she earnestly recommended to their
consideration an union of the two kingdoms. The duke of Queensberry and
the earl of Marchmont having enforced the different articles of this
letter, committees were appointed for the security of the kingdom,
for controverted elections, for drawing up an answer to her majesty’s
letter, and for revising the minutes. Meanwhile the duke of Hamilton and
his adherents sent the lord Blantyre to London with an address to
the queen, who refused to receive it, but wrote another letter to the
parliament expressing her resolution to maintain their dignity and
authority against all opposers. They, in answer to the former, had
assured her that the groundless secession of some members should
increase and strengthen their care and zeal for her majesty’s service.
They expelled sir Alexander Bruce for having given vent to some
reflections against presbytery. The lord advocate prosecuted the faculty
of advocates before the parliament for having passed a vote among
themselves in favour of the protestation and address of the dissenting
members. The faculty was severely reprimanded; but the whole nation
seemed to resent the prosecution. The parliament passed an act for
recognising her majesty’s royal authority; another for adjourning the
court of judicature called the session; a third declaring this meeting
of parliament legal, and forbidding any person to disown, quarrel with,
or impugn the dignity and authority thereof, under the penalty of
high treason; a fourth for securing the true protestant religion and
presbyterian church government; a fifth for a land tax; and a sixth,
enabling her majesty to appoint commissioners for an union between the
two kingdoms.
THE QUEEN APPOINTS COMMISSIONERS TO TREAT OF AN UNION.
The earl of Marchmont, of his own accord, and even contrary to the
advice of the high commissioner, brought in a bill for abjuring the
pretended prince of Wales; but this was not supported by the court
party, as the commissioner had no instructions how to act on the
occasion. Perhaps the queen and her English ministry resolved to keep
the succession open in Scotland as a check upon the whigs and house of
Hanover. On the thirtieth day of June the commissioner adjourned
the parliament, after having thanked them for their cheerfulness and
unanimity in their proceedings; and the chiefs of the opposite parties
hastened to London to make their different representations to the
queen and her ministry. In the meantime she appointed commissioners
for treating about the union, and they met at the Cockpit on the
twenty-second day of October. On the twentieth day of the next month
they adjusted preliminaries, importing, That nothing agreed on among
themselves should be binding except ratified by her majesty and the
respective parliaments of both nations; and that unless all the heads
proposed for the treaty were agreed to, no particular thing agreed
on should be binding. The queen visited them in December, in order
to quicken their mutual endeavours. They agreed that the two kingdoms
should be inseparably united into one monarchy, under her majesty, her
heirs, and successors, and under the same limitations according to the
Acts of Settlement; but when the Scottish commissioners proposed that
the rights and privileges of their company trading to Africa and the
Indies should be preserved and maintained, such a difficulty arose
as could not be surmounted, and no further progress was made in this
commission. The tranquillity of Ireland was not interrupted by any new
commotion. That kingdom was ruled by justices whom the earl of Rochester
had appointed; and the trustees for the forfeited estates maintained
their authority.
STATE OF AFFAIRS ON THE CONTINENT.
While Britain was engaged in these civil transactions, her allies were
not idle on the continent. The old duke of Zell, and his nephew,
the elector of Brunswick, surprised the dukes of Wolfenbuttle and
Saxe-Gotha, whom they compelled to renounce their attachments to France,
and concur in the common councils of the empire. Thus the north of
Germany was reunited to the interest of the confederates; and the
princes would have been in a condition to assist them effectually, had
not the neighbourhood of the war in Poland deterred them from parting
with their forces. England and the states-general endeavoured in vain
to mediate a peace between the kings of Sweden and Poland. Charles was
become enamoured of war and ambitious of conquest. He threatened to
invade Saxony through the dominions of Prussia. Augustus retired
to Cracow, while Charles penetrated to Warsaw, and even ordered the
cardinal-primate to summon a diet for choosing a new king. The situation
of affairs at this juncture was far from being favourable to the allies.
The court of Vienna had tampered in vain with the elector of Bavaria,
who made use of this negotiation to raise his terms with Louis. His
brother, the elector of Cologn, admitted French garrisons into Liege and
all his places on the Rhine. The elector of Saxony was too hard pressed
by the king of Sweden to spare his full proportion of troops to the
allies; the king of Prussia was overawed by the vicinity of the Swedish
conqueror; the duke of Savoy had joined his forces to those of France,
and overrun the whole state of Milan; and the pope, though he professed
a neutrality, evinced himself strongly biassed to the French interests.
{ANNE, 1701--1714}
KEISEESWAERT AND LANDAU TAKEN.
The war was begun in the name of the elector-palatine with the siege of
Keiserswaert, which was invested in the month of April by the prince of
Nassau-Saarburgh, mareschal-du-camp to the emperor: under this officer
the Dutch troops served as auxiliaries, because war had not yet been
declared by the states-general. The French garrison made a desperate
defence. They worsted the besiegers in divers sallies, and maintained
the place until it was reduced to a heap of ashes. At length the allies
made a general attack upon the counterscarp and ravelin, which they
carried after a very obstinate engagement, with the loss of two
thousand men. Then the garrison capitulated on honourable terms, and
the fortifications were razed. During this siege, which lasted from
the eighteenth day of April to the middle of June, count Tallard posted
himself on the opposite side of the Rhine, from whence he supplied the
town with fresh troops and ammunition, and annoyed the besiegers with
his artillery; but finding it impossible to save the place, he joined
the grand army commanded by the duke of Burgundy in the Netherlands. The
siege of Keiserswaert was covered by a body of Dutch troops under the
earl of Athlone, who lay encamped in the duchy of Cleve. Meanwhile
general Coehorn, at the head of another detachment, entered Flanders,
demolished the French lines between the forts of Donat and Isabella, and
laid the chatellaine of Bruges under contribution; but a considerable
body of French troops advancing under the marquis de Bedmar, and the
count de la Motte, he overflowed the country, and retired under the
Avails of Sluys. The duke of Burgundy, who had taken the command of the
French army under Bouifflers, encamped at Zanten near Cleve, and laid a
scheme for surprising Nimeguen; in which, however, he was baffled by
the vigilance and activity of Athlone, who, guessing his design, marched
thither and encamped under the cannon of the town. In the beginning of
June, Landau was invested by prince Louis of Baden: in July, the king
of the Romans arrived in the camp of the besiegers with such pomp and
magnificence as exhausted his father’s treasury. On the ninth day
of September the citadel was taken by assault, and then the town
surrendered.
PROGRESS OF THE EARL OF MARLBOROUGH.
When the earl of Marlborough arrived in Holland, the earl of Athlone,
in quality of veldt-mareschal, insisted upon an equal command with
the English general; but the states obliged him to yield this point in
favour of Marlborough, whom they declared generalissimo of all their
forces. In the beginning of July he repaired to the camp at Nimeguen,
where he soon assembled an army of sixty thousand men, well provided
with all necessaries; then he convoked a council of the general officers
to concert the operations of the campaign. On the sixteenth day of
the month he passed the Maese, and encamped at Overasselt, within two
leagues and a half of the enemy, who had entrenched themselves between
Goch and Gedap. He afterwards repassed the river below the Grave, and
removed to Gravenbroeck, where he was joined by the British train of
artillery from Holland. On the second day of August, he advanced
to Petit Brugel, and the French retired before him, leaving Spanish
Guelderkind to his discretion. He had resolved to hazard an engagement,
and issued orders accordingly; but he was restrained by the Dutch
deputies, who were afraid of their own interest in case the battle
should have proved unfortunate. The duke of Burgundy, finding himself
obliged to retreat before the allied army, rather than expose himself
longer to such a mortifying indignity, returned to Versailles, leaving
the command to Boufflers, who lost the confidence of Louis by the ill
success of this campaign. The deputies of the states-general having
represented to the earl of Marlborough the advantages that would
accrue to Holland, from his dispossessing the enemy of the places they
maintained in the Spanish Guelderland, by which the navigation of the
Maese was obstructed, and the important town of Maestricht in a
manner blocked up, he resolved to deliver them from such a troublesome
neighbourhood. He detached general Schultz with a body of troops to
reduce the town and castle of Werk, which were surrendered after a
slight resistance. In the beginning of September he undertook the siege
of Venlo, which capitulated on the twenty-fifth day of the month,
after fort St. Michael had been stormed and taken by lord Cutts and
the English volunteers, among whom the young earl of Huntingdon
distinguished himself by very extraordinary acts of valour. Then the
general invested Euremonde, which he reduced after a very obstinate
defence, together with the fort of Stevensuaert, situated on the same
river. Boufflers, confounded at the rapidity of Marlborough’s success,
retired towards Liege in order to cover that city; but, at the approach
of the confederates, he retired with precipitation to Tongeren, from
whence he directed his route towards Brabant, with a view to defend
such places as the allies had no design to attack. When the earl of
Marlborough arrived at Liege, he found the suburbs of St. Walburgh
had been set on fire by the French garrison, who had retired into the
citadel and the Chartreux. The allies took immediate possession of the
city; and in a few days opened the trenches against the citadel,
which was taken by assault. On this occasion, the hereditary prince of
Hesse-Cassel charged at the head of the grenadiers, and was the first
person who mounted the breach. Violani the governor, and the duke of
Charost, were made prisoners. Three hundred thousand florins in gold and
silver were found in the citadel, besides notes for above one million
drawn upon substantial merchants in Liege, who paid the money.
Immediately after this exploit, the garrison of the Chartreux
capitulated on honourable terms, and were conducted to Antwerp. By the
success of this campaign the earl of Marlborough raised his military
character above all censure, and confirmed himself in the entire
confidence of the states-general, who, in the beginning of the season,
had trembled for Nimeguen, and now saw the enemy driven back into their
own domains.
HE NARROWLY ESCAPES BEING TAKEN BY A FRENCH PARTISAN.
When the army broke up in November, the general repaired to Maestricht,
from whence he proposed to return to the Hague by water. Accordingly
he embarked in a large boat, with five-and-twenty soldiers under the
command of a lieutenant. Next morning he was joined at Ruremonde by
Coehorn in a larger vessel, with sixty men, and they were moreover
escorted by fifty troopers, who rode along the bank of the river. The
large boat outsailed the other, and the horsemen mistook their way in
the dark. A French partisan, with five-and-thirty men from Gueldres, who
lurked among the rushes in wait for prey, seized the rope by which
the boat was drawn, hauled it ashore, discharged their small arms and
hand-grenades, then rushing into it, secured the soldiers before they
could put themselves in a posture of defence. The earl of Marlborough
was accompanied by general Opdam, and mynheer Gueldermalsen, one of the
deputies, who were provided with passports. The earl had neglected this
precaution; but recollecting he had an old passport for his brother
general Churchill, he produced it without any emotion, and the partisan
was in such confusion that he never examined the date. Nevertheless, he
rifled their baggage, carried off the guard as prisoners, and allowed
the boat to proceed. The governor of Venlo receiving information that
the earl was surprised by a party and conveyed to Gueldres, immediately
marched out with his whole garrison to invest that place. The same
imperfect account being transmitted to Holland, filled the whole
province with consternation. The states forthwith assembling, resolved
that all their forces should march immediately to Gueldres, and threaten
the garrison of the place with the utmost extremities unless they would
immediately deliver the general. But, before these orders could be
despatched, the earl arrived at the Hague, to the inexpressible joy of
the people, who already looked upon him as their saviour and protector.
THE IMPERIALISTS ARE WORSTED AT FEIDLINGUEN.
The French arms were not quite so unfortunate on the Rhine as in
Flanders. The elector of Bavaria surprised the city of Ulm in Suabia by a
stratagem, and then declared for France, which had by this time complied
with all his demands. The diet of the empire assembled at Ratisbon were
so incensed at his conduct in seizing the city of Ulm by perfidy, that
they presented a memorial to his Imperial majesty, requesting he would
proceed against the elector according to the constitutions of the
empire. They resolved, by a plurality of voices, to declare war in the
name of the empire against the French king and the duke of Anjou, for
having invaded several fiefs of the empire in Italy, the archbishopric
of Cologn, and the diocese of Liege; and they forbade the ministers
of Bavaria and Cologn to appear in the general diet. In vain did these
powers protest against their proceedings. The empire’s declaration of
war was published and notified, in the name of the diet, to the cardinal
of Limberg, the emperor’s commissioner. Meanwhile the French made
themselves masters of Neuburgh, in the circle of Suabia, while Louis
prince of Baden, being weakened by sending off detachments, was obliged
to lie inactive in his camp near Fridlinguen. The French army was
divided into two bodies, commanded by the marquis de Villars and the
count de Guiscard; and the prince thinking himself in danger of being
enclosed by the enemy, resolved to decamp. Villars immediately passed
the Rhine to fall upon him in his retreat, and an obstinate engagement
ensuing, the Imperialists were overpowered by numbers. The prince having
lost two thousand men, abandoned the field of battle to the enemy,
together with his baggage, artillery, and ammunition, and retired
towards Stauffen without being pursued. The French army, even after they
had gained the battle, were unaccountably seized with such a panic, that
if the Imperial general had faced them with two regiments he would have
snatched the victory from Villars, who was upon this occasion
saluted mareschal of France by the soldiers; and next day the town of
Fridlinguen surrendered. The prince being joined by some troops under
general Thungen and other reinforcements, resolved to give battle to
the enemy; but Villars declined an engagement, and repassed the Rhine.
Towards the latter end of October, count Tallard and the marquis de
Lomarie, with a body of eighteen thousand men, reduced Triers and
Traerbach; on the other hand, the prince of Hesse-Cassel, with a
detachment from the allied army at Liege, retook from the French the
towns of Zinch, Lintz, Brisac, and Andernach.
BATTLE OF LUZZARA, IN ITALY.
In Italy prince Eugene laboured under a total neglect of the Imperial
court, where his enemies, on pretence of supporting the king of the
Romans in his first campaign, weaned the emperor’s attention entirely
from his affairs on the other side of the Alps, so that he left his best
army to moulder away for want of recruits and reinforcements. The prince
thus abandoned could not prevent the duke de Vendôme from relieving
Mantua, and was obliged to relinquish some other places he had taken.
Philip, king of Spain, being inspired with the ambition of putting an
end to the war in this country, sailed in person for Naples, where he
was visited by the cardinal-legate with a compliment from the pope; yet
he could not obtain the investiture of the kingdom from his holiness.
The emperor, however, was so disgusted at the embassy which the pope
had sent to Philip, that he ordered his ambassador at Eome to withdraw.
Philip proceeded from Naples to Final under convoy of the French fleet
which had brought him to Italy; here he had an interview with the duke
of Savoy, who began to be alarmed at the prospect of the French king’s
being master of the Milanese; and, in a letter to the duke de Vendôme,
he forbade him to engage prince Eugene until he himself should arrive in
the camp. Prince Eugene, understanding that the French army intended to
attack Luzzara and Guastalla, passed the Po with an army of about half
the number of the enemy, and posted himself behind the dike of Zero
in such a manner that the French were ignorant of his situation. He
concluded that on their arrival at the ground they had chosen, the horse
would march out to forage, while the rest of the army would be employed
in pitching tents and providing for their refreshment. His design was
to seize that opportunity of attacking them, not doubting that he should
obtain a complete victory; but he was disappointed by mere accident. An
adjutant with an advanced guard had the curiosity to ascend the dike
in order to view the country, when he discovered the Imperial infantry
lying on their faces, and their horse in the rear, ranged in order of
battle. The French camp was immediately alarmed, and as the intermediate
ground was covered with hedges which obliged the assailants to defile,
the enemy were in a posture of defence before the Imperialists could
advance to action; nevertheless, the prince attacked them with great
vivacity in hopes of disordering their line, which gave way in several
places; but night interposing, he was obliged to desist, and in a few
days the French reduced Luzzara and Guastalla. The prince, however,
maintained his post, and Philip returned to Spain without having
obtained any considerable advantage.
THE KING OF SWEDEN DEFEATS AUGUSTUS AT LISSOU.
The French king employed all his artifice and intrigues in raising up
new enemies against the confederates. He is said to have bribed count
Mansfield, president of the council of war at Vienna, to withhold
the supplies from prince Eugene in Italy. At the Ottoman Porte he had
actually gained over the vizier, who engaged to renew the war with the
emperor. But the mufti and all the other great officers were averse to
the design, and the vizier fell a sacrifice to their resentment.
Louis continued to broil the kingdom of Poland by means of the
cardinal-primate. The young king of Sweden advanced to Lissou, where
he defeated Augustus. Then he took possession of Cracow, and raised
contributions; nor could he be persuaded to retreat, although the
Muscovites and Lithuanians had ravaged Livonia, and even made an
irruption into Sweden.
FRUITLESS EXPEDITION TO CADIZ.
The operations of the combined squadrons at sea did not fully answer the
expectation of the public. On the twelfth day of May, sir John Munden
sailed with twelve ships to intercept a French squadron appointed as a
convoy to a new viceroy of Mexico, from Corunna to the West Indies. On
the twenty-eighth day of the month, he chased fourteen sail of French
ships into Corunna.
Then he called a council of war, in which it was agreed that as the
place was strongly fortified, and by the intelligence they had received,
it appeared that seventeen of the enemy’s ships of war rode at anchor in
the harbour, it would be expedient for them to follow the latter part of
their instructions, by which they were directed to cruise in soundings
for the protection of the trade. They returned accordingly, and
being distressed by want of provisions, came into port to the general
discontent of the nation. For the satisfaction of the people, sir
John Munden was tried by a court-martial and acquitted; but as this
miscarriage had rendered him very unpopular, prince George dismissed him
from the service. We have already hinted that king William had projected
a scheme to reduce Cadiz, with intention to act afterwards against the
Spanish settlements in the West Indies. This design queen Anne resolved
to put in execution. Sir George Rooke commanded the fleet, and the duke
of Ormond was appointed general of the land forces destined for this
expedition. The combined squadrons amounted to fifty ships of the line,
exclusive of frigates, fire-ships, and smaller vessels; and the number
of soldiers embarked was not far short of fourteen thousand. In the
latter end of June the fleet sailed from St. Helen’s; on the twelfth of
August they anchored at the distance of two leagues from Cadiz. Next day
the duke of Ormond summoned the duke de Brancaccio, who was governor,
to submit to the house of Austria; but that officer answered he would
acquit himself honourably of the trust reposed in him by the king. On
the fifteenth the duke of Ormond landed with his forces in the bay of
Bulls, under cover of a smart fire from some frigates, and repulsed
a body of Spanish cavalry; then he summoned the governor of Fort St.
Catharine’s to surrender, and received an answer, importing, that the
garrison was prepared for his reception. A declaration was published
in the Spanish language, intimating, that the allies did not come as
enemies to Spain, but only to free them from the yoke of France, and
assist them in establishing themselves under the government of the house
of Austria. These professions produced very little effect among the
Spaniards, who were either cooled in their attachment to that family,
or provoked by the excesses of the English troops. These having taken
possession of Fort St. Catharine and Port St. Mary’s, instead of
protecting, plundered the natives, notwithstanding the strict orders
issued by the duke of Ormond to prevent this scandalous practice; even
some general officers were concerned in the pillage. A battery was
raised against Montagorda fort opposite to the Puntal; but the attempt
miscarried, and the troops were re-embarked.
SPANISH GALLEONS TAKEN and DESTROYED.
Captain Hardy having been sent to water in Lagos bay, received
intelligence that the galleons from the West Indies had put into Vigo
under convoy of a French squadron. He sailed immediately in quest of sir
George Rooke, who was now on his voyage back to England, and falling in
with him on the sixth day of October, communicated the substance of what
he had learned. Rooke immediately called a council of war, in which it
was determined to alter their course and attack the enemy at Vigo. He
forthwith detached some small vessels for intelligence, and received
a confirmation that the galleons and the squadron commanded by Chateau
Renault, were actually in the harbour. They sailed thither, and appeared
before the place on the eleventh day of October. The passage into the
harbour was narrow, secured by batteries, forts, and breast-works on
each side; by a strong boom, consisting of iron chains, top-masts, and
cables, moored at each end of a seventy-gun ship, and fortified within
by five ships of the same strength lying athwart the channel with their
broadsides to the offing. As the first and second rates of the combined
fleets were too large to enter, the admirals shifted their flags into
smaller ships; and a division of five-and-twenty English and Dutch ships
of the line, with their frigates, fire-ships, and ketches, was destined
for the service. In order to facilitate the attack, the duke of Ormond
landed with five-and-twenty hundred men, at the distance of six miles
from Vigo, and took by assault a fort and platform of forty pieces of
cannon at the entrance of the harbour. The British ensign was no sooner
seen flying at the top of this fort than the ships advanced to the
attack. Vice-admiral Hopson, in the Torbay, crowding all his sail, ran
directly against the boom, which was broken by the first shock; then the
whole squadron entered the harbour through a prodigious fire from the
enemy’s ships and batteries. These last, however, were soon stormed and
taken by the grenadiers who had been landed. The great ships lay against
the forts at each side of the harbour, which in a little time they
silenced, though vice-admiral Hopson narrowly escaped from a fire-ship
by which he was boarded. After a very vigorous engagement, the French,
finding themselves unable to cope with such an adversary, resolved to
destroy their ships and galleons, that they might not fall into the
hands of the victors. They accordingly burned and ran ashore eight ships
and as many advice-boats; but ten ships of war were taken, together with
eleven galleons. Though they had secured the best part of their plate
and merchandize before the English fleet arrived, the value of fourteen
millions of pieces of eight, in plate and rich commodities, was
destroyed in six galleons that perished; and about half that value was
brought off by the conquerors; so that this was a dreadful blow to the
enemy, and a noble acquisition to the allies. Immediately after this
exploit, sir George Rooke was joined by sir Cloudesley Shovel, who had
been sent out with a squadron to intercept the galleons. This officer
was left to bring home the prizes and dismantle the fortifications,
while Rooke returned in triumph to England.
BENBOW’S ENGAGEMENT WITH DU CASSE.
The glory which the English acquired in this expedition was in some
measure tarnished by the conduct of some officers in the West Indies.
Thither admiral Benbow had been detached with a squadron of ten sail in
the course of the preceding year. At Jamaica he received intelligence
that monsieur Du Casse was in the neighbourhood of Hispaniola, and
resolved to beat up to that island. At Leogane he fell in with a French
ship of fifty guns, which her captain ran ashore and blew up. He took
several other vessels, and having alarmed Petit-Guavas, bore away for
Donna Maria bay, where he understood that Du Casse had sailed for the
coast of Carthagena. Benbow resolved to follow the same course; and
on the nineteenth of August discovered the enemy’s squadron near Saint
Martha, consisting of ten sail, steering along shore. He formed the
line, and an engagement ensued, in which he was very ill seconded by
some of his captains. Nevertheless, the battle continued till night, and
he determined to renew it next morning, when he perceived all his
ships at the distance of three or four miles astern, except the Ruby,
commanded by captain George Walton, who joined him in plying the enemy
with chase guns. On the twenty-first these two ships engaged the French
squadron; and the Ruby was so disabled that the admiral was obliged to
send her back to Jamaica. Next day the Greenwich, commanded by Wade, was
five leagues astern; and the wind changing, the enemy had the advantage
of the weather-gage. On the twenty-third the admiral renewed the battle
with his single ship unsustained by the rest of the squadron. On the
twenty-fourth his leg was shattered by a chain-shot; notwithstanding
which accident, he remained on the quarter-deck in a cradle and
continued the engagement. One of the largest ships of the enemy lying
like a wreck upon the water, four sail of the English squadron poured
their broadsides into her, and then ran to leeward without paying any
regard to the signal for battle. Then the French bearing down upon the
admiral with their whole force, shot away his main-top-sail-yard, and
damaged his rigging in such a manner that he was obliged to lie by and
refit, while they took their disabled ship in tow. During this interval
he called a council of his captains, and expostulated with them on their
behaviour. They observed, that the French were very strong, and advised
him to desist. He plainly perceived that he was betrayed, and with the
utmost reluctance returned to Jamaica, having not only lost a leg, but
also received a large wound in his face, and another in his arm, while
he in person attempted to board the French admiral. Exasperated at
the treachery of his captains, he granted a commission to rear-admiral
Whetstone and other officers, to hold a court-martial and try them for
cowardice. Hudson, of the Pendennis, died before his trial: Kirby
and Wade were convicted, and sentenced to be shot: Constable, of the
Windsor, was cashiered and imprisoned: Vincent, of the Falmouth, and
Fogg, the admiral’s own captain of the Breda, were convicted of having
signed a paper that they would not fight under Benbow’s command; but as
they behaved gallantly in the action, the court inflicted upon them no
other punishment than that of a provisional suspension. Captain Walton
had likewise joined in the conspiracy while he was heated with the fumes
of intoxication, but he afterwards renounced the engagement, and fought
with admirable courage until his ship was disabled. The boisterous
manner of Benbow had produced this base confederacy. He was a rough
seamen; but remarkably brave, honest, and experienced. [112] _[See note
S, at the end of this Vol.]_ He took this miscarriage so much to heart,
that he became melancholy, and his grief co-operating with the fever
occasioned by his wounds, put a period to his life. Wade and Kirby were
sent home in the Bristol; and, on their arrival at Plymouth, shot on
board of the ship, by virtue of a dead warrant for their immediate
execution, which had lain there for some time. The same precaution had
been taken in all the western ports, in order to prevent applications in
their favour.
{ANNE, 1701--1714}
A NEW PARLIAMENT.
During these transactions the queen seemed to be happy in the affection
of her subjects. Though the continuance of the parliament was limited
to six months after the king’s decease, she dissolved it by proclamation
before the term was expired; and issued writs for electing another,
in which the tory interest predominated. In the summer the queen gave
audience to the count de Platens, envoy-extraordinary from the elector
of Hanover; then she made a progress with her husband to Oxford, Bath,
and Bristol, where she was received with all the marks of the most
genuine affection. The new parliament meeting on the twentieth day
of October, Mr. Harley was chosen speaker. The queen in her speech,
declared that she had summoned them to assist her in carrying on the
just and necessary war in which the nation was engaged. She desired the
commons would inspect the accounts of the public receipts and payments,
that if any abuses had crept into the management of the finances, they
might be detected and the offenders punished. She told them that the
funds assigned in the last parliament had not produced the sums granted;
and that the deficiency was not supplied even by the one hundred
thousand pounds which she had paid from her own revenue for the public
service. She expressed her concern for the disappointment at Cadiz, as
well as for the abuses committed at Port St. Mary’s, which had obliged
her to give directions for the strictest examination of the particulars.
She hoped they would find time to consider of some better and more
effectual method to prevent the exportation of wool, and improve that
manufacture, which she was determined to encourage. She professed a firm
persuasion, that the affection of her subjects was the surest pledge of
their duty and obedience. She promised to defend and maintain the church
as by law established; and to protect her subjects in the full enjoyment
of all their rights and liberties. She protested, that she relied on
their care of her: she said her interest and theirs were inseparable;
and that her endeavours should never be wanting to make them all safe
and happy. She was presented with a very affectionate address from
either house, congratulating her upon the glorious success of her arms,
and those of her allies, under the command of the earl of Marlborough:
but that of the commons was distinguished by an implicated reproach on
the late reign, importing, that the wonderful progress of her majesty’s
arms under the earl of Marlborough had signally “retrieved” the
ancient honour and glory of the English nation. This expression had
excited a warm debate in the house, in the course of which many severe
reflections were made on the memory of king William. At length the
question was put, whether the word “retrieved” should remain? and
carried in the affirmative by a majority of one hundred.
DISPUTES BETWEEN THE TWO HOUSES.
The strength of the tories appeared in nothing more conspicuous than in
their inquiry concerning controverted elections. The borough of Hindon,
near Salisbury, was convicted of bribery, and a bill brought in for
disfranchising the town; yet no vote passed against the person who
exercised this corruption, because he happened to be a tory. Mr. Howe
was declared duly elected for Gloucestershire, though the majority of
the electors had voted for the other candidate. Sir John Packington
exhibited a complaint against the bishop of Worcester and his son, for
having endeavoured to prevent his election: the commons having taken
it into consideration, resolved, that the proceedings of William lord
bishop of Worcester, and his son, had been malicious, unchristian, and
arbitrary, in high violation of the liberties and privileges of the
commons of England. They voted an address to the queen, desiring her to
remove the father from the office of lord-almoner; and they ordered the
attorney-general to prosecute the son, after his privilege as member
of the convocation should be expired. A counter address was
immediately voted and presented by the lords, beseeching her majesty
would not remove the bishop of Worcester from the place of lord-almoner,
until he should be found guilty of some crime by due course of law; as
it was the undoubted right of every lord of parliament, and of every
subject of England, to have an opportunity to make his defence before
he suffers any sort of punishment. The queen said she had not as yet
received any complaint against the bishop of Worcester; but she looked
upon it as her undoubted right to continue or displace any servant
attending upon her own person, when she should think proper. The peers
having received this answer, unanimously resolved, That no lord of their
house ought to suffer any sort of punishment by any proceedings of the
house of commons, otherwise than according to the known and ancient
rules and methods of parliament. When the commons attended the queen
with their address against the bishop, she said she was sorry there
was occasion for such a remonstrance, and that the bishop of Worcester
should no longer continue to supply the place of her almoner. This
regard to their address was a flagrant proof of her partiality to the
tories, who seemed to justify her attachment by their compliance and
liberality.
THE LORDS INQUIRE INTO THE CONDUCT OF SIR GEORGE ROOKE.
In deliberating on the supplies, they agreed to all the demands of the
ministry. They voted forty thousand seamen, and the like number of
land forces, to act in conjunction with those of the allies. For the
maintenance of these last, they granted eight hundred and thirty-three
thousand eight hundred and twenty-six pounds; besides three hundred and
fifty thousand pounds for guards and garrisons; seventy thousand nine
hundred and seventy-three pounds for ordnance; and fifty-one thousand
eight hundred and forty-three pounds for subsidies to the allies.
Lord Shannon arriving with the news of the success at Vigo, the queen
appointed a day of thanksgiving for the signal success of her arms under
the earl of Marlborough, the duke of Ormond, and sir George Rooke; and
on that day, which was the twelfth of November, she went in state to St.
Paul’s church, attended by both houses of parliament. Next day the peers
voted the thanks of their house to the duke of Ormond for his services
at Vigo, and, at the same time, drew up an address to the queen,
desiring she would order the duke of Ormond and sir George Rooke to lay
before them an account of their proceedings: a request with which her
majesty complied. These two officers were likewise thanked by the house
of commons: vice-admiral Hopson was knighted, and gratified with
a considerable pension. The duke of Ormond, at his return from the
expedition, complained openly of Rooke’s conduct, and seemed determined
to subject him to a public accusation; but that officer was such a
favourite among the commons, that the court was afraid to disoblige
them by an impeachment, and took great pains to mitigate the duke’s
resentment. This nobleman was appointed lord-lieutenant of Ireland, and
Rooke was admitted into the privy-council. A motion however being made
in the house of lords, that the admiral’s instructions and journals
relating to the last expedition might be examined, a committee was
appointed for that purpose, and prepared an unfavourable report; but it
was rejected by a majority of the house; and they voted, That sir George
Rooke had done his duty, pursuant to the councils of war, like a brave
officer, to the honour of the British nation.
THE PARLIAMENT MAKE A SETTLEMENT ON PRINCE GEORGE OF DENMARK.
On the twenty-first day of November, the queen sent a message to the
house of commons by Mr. Secretary Hedges, recommending further provision
for the prince her husband, in case he should survive her. This message
being considered, Mr. Howe moved, that the yearly sum of one hundred
thousand pounds should be settled on the prince, in case he should
survive her majesty. No opposition was made to the proposal; but warm
debates were excited by a clause in the bill, exempting the prince
from that part of the act of succession by which strangers, though
naturalized, were rendered incapable of holding employments. This clause
related only to those who should be naturalized in a future reign; and
indeed was calculated as a restriction upon the house of Hanover. Many
members argued against the clause of exemption, because it seemed
to imply, that persons already naturalized would be excluded from
employments in the next reign, though already possessed of the right
of natural-born subjects, a consequence plainly contradictory to the
meaning of the act. Others opposed it, because the lords had already
resolved by a vote, that they would never pass any bill sent up from
the commons, to which a clause foreign to the bill should be tacked;
and this clause they affirmed to be a tack, as an incapacity to hold
employments was a circumstance altogether distinct from a settlement in
money. The queen expressed uncommon eagerness in behalf of this bill;
and the court influence was managed so successfully that it passed
through both houses, though not without an obstinate opposition, and a
formal protest by seven-and-twenty peers.
EARL OF MARLBOROUGH CREATED A DUKE.
The earl of Marlborough arriving in England about the latter end of
November, received the thanks of the commons for his great and signal
services, which were so acceptable to the queen, that she created him
a duke, gratified him with a pension of five thousand pounds upon the
revenue of the post office during his natural life; and in a message
to the commons, expressed a desire that they would find some method to
settle it on the heirs male of his body. This intimation was productive
of warm debates, during which sir Christopher Musgrave observed, that he
would not derogate from the duke’s eminent services; but he affirmed
his grace had been very well paid for them by the profitable employments
which he and his duchess enjoyed. The duke, understanding that the
commons were heated by the subject, begged her majesty would rather
forego her gracious message in his behalf, than create any uneasiness
on his account, which might embarrass her affairs, and be of ill
consequence to the public. Then she sent another message to the house,
signifying that the duke of Marlborough had declined her interposition.
Notwithstanding this declaration, the commons in a body presented an
address, acknowledging the eminent services of the duke of Marlborough,
yet expressing their apprehension of making a precedent to alienate the
revenue of the crown, which had been so much reduced by the exorbitant
grants of the late reign, and so lately settled and secured by her
majesty’s unparalleled grace and goodness. The queen was satisfied with
their apology; but their refusal in all probability helped to alienate
the duke from the tories, with whom he had been hitherto connected.
COMMERCE PROHIBITED BETWEEN HOLLAND, FRANCE, AND SPAIN.
In the beginning of January, the queen gave the house of commons to
understand, that the states-general had pressed her to augment her
forces, as the only means to render ineffectual the great and early
preparations of the enemy. The commons immediately resolved, that ten
thousand men should be hired, as an augmentation of the forces to act
in conjunction with the allies; but on condition that an immediate stop
should be put to all commerce and correspondence with France and Spain
on the part of the states-general. The lords presented an address to the
queen on the same subject, and to the same effect; and she owned
that the condition was absolutely necessary for the good of the whole
alliance. The Dutch, even after the declaration of war, had carried on
a traffic with the French; and at this very juncture Louis found it
impossible to make remittances of money to the elector of Bavaria in
Germany, and to his forces in Italy, except through the channel of
English, Dutch, and Geneva merchants. The states-general, though shocked
at the imperious manner in which the parliament of England prescribed
their conduct, complied with the demand without hesitation, and
published a prohibition of all commerce with the subjects of France and
Spain.
BILL FOR PREVENTING OCCASIONAL CONFORMITY.
The commons of this parliament had nothing more at heart than a bill
against occasional conformity. The tories affected to distinguish
themselves as the only true friends to the church and monarchy; and they
hated the dissenters with a mixture of spiritual and political disgust.
They looked upon these last as an intruding sect, which constituted
great part of the whig faction that extorted such immense sums of
money from the nation in the late reign, and involved it in pernicious
engagements, from whence it had no prospect of deliverance. They
considered them as encroaching schismatics that disgraced and endangered
the hierarchy; and those of their own communion, who recommended
moderation, they branded with the epithets of lukewarm christians,
betrayers, and apostates. They now resolved to approve themselves
zealous sons of the church, by seizing the first opportunity that was in
their power to distress the dissenters. In order to pave the way to
this persecution, sermons were preached, and pamphlets were printed, to
blacken the character of the sect, and inflame the popular resentment
against them. On the fourth day of November, Mr. Bromley, Mr. St. John,
and Mr. Annesley, were ordered by the house of commons to bring in
a bill for preventing occasional conformity. In the preamble, all
persecution for conscience sake was condemned: nevertheless it enacted,
that all those who had taken the sacrament and test for offices of
trust, or the magistracy of corporations, and afterwards frequented
any meeting of dissenters, should be disabled from holding their
employments, pay a fine of one hundred pounds, and five pounds for every
day in which they continued to act in their employment after having been
at any such meeting: they were also rendered incapable of holding any
other employment, till after one whole year’s conformity; and, upon
a relapse, the penalties and time of incapacity were doubled. The
promoters of the bill alleged, that an established religion and national
church were absolutely necessary, when so many impious men pretended to
inspiration, and deluded such numbers of people: that the most effectual
way to preserve this national church, would be the maintenance of the
civil power in the hands of those who expressed their regard to the
church in their principles and practice: that the parliament, by the
corporation and test acts, thought they had raised a sufficient barrier
to the hierarchy, never imagining that a set of men would rise up, whose
consciences would be too tender to obey the laws, but hardened enough
to break them: that, as the last reign began with an act in favour of
dissenters, so the commons were desirous that in the beginning of her
majesty’s auspicious government an act should pass in favour of the
church of England: that this bill did not intrench on the act of
toleration, or deprive the dissenters of any privileges they enjoyed by
law, or add any thing to the legal rights of the church of England: that
occasional conformity was an evasion of the law, by which the dissenters
might insinuate themselves into the management of all corporations: that
a separation from the church, to which a man’s conscience will allow him
occasionally to conform, is a mere schism, which in itself was sinful,
without the superaddition of a temporal law to make it an offence: that
the toleration was intended only for the ease offender consciences, and
not to give a license for occasional conformity: that conforming and
non-conforming were contradictions; for nothing but a firm persuasion
that the terms of communion required are sinful and unlawful, could
justify the one; and this plainly condemns the other. The members
who opposed the bill argued, that the dissenters were generally well
affected to the present constitution: that to bring any real hardship
upon them, or give rise to jealousies and fears at such a juncture,
might be attended with dangerous consequences; that the toleration had
greatly contributed to the security and reputation of the church, and
plainly proved that liberty of conscience and gentle measures were the
most effectual means for increasing the votaries of the church, and
diminishing the number of dissenters: that the dissenters could not be
termed schismatics without bringing a heavy charge upon the church of
England, which had not only tolerated such schism, but even allowed
communion with the reformed churches abroad: that the penalties of this
bill were more severe than those which the laws imposed on papists,
for assisting at the most solemn act of their religion: in a word, that
toleration and tenderness had been always productive of peace and union,
whereas persecution had never failed to excite disorder and extend
superstition. Many alterations and mitigations were proposed, without
effect. In the course of the debate, the dissenters were mentioned and
reviled with great acrimony; and the bill passed the lower house by
virtue of a considerable majority.
The lords, apprehensive that the commons would tack it to some
money-bill, voted, that the annexing any clause to a money-bill was
contrary to the constitution of the English government, and the usage of
parliament. The bill met with a very warm opposition in the upper house,
where a considerable portion of the whig interest still remained.
These members believed that the intention of the bill was to model
corporations, so as to eject all those who would not vote in elections
for the tories. Some imagined this was a preparatory step towards a
repeal of the toleration; and others concluded that the promoters of the
bill designed to raise such disturbances at home as would discourage the
allies abroad, and render the prosecution of the war impracticable.
The majority of the bishops, and among these Burnet of Sarum, objected
against it on the principles of moderation, and from motives of
conscience. Nevertheless, as the court supported this measure with its
whole power and influence, the bill made its way through the house,
though not without alterations and amendments, which were rejected by
the commons. The lower house pretended, that the lords had no right to
alter any fines and penalties that the commons should fix in bills sent
up for their concurrence, on the supposition that those were matters
concerning money, the peculiar province of the lower house; the lords
ordered a minute inquiry to be made into all the rolls of parliament
since the reign of Henry the Seventh; and a great number of instances
were found, in which the lords had begun the clauses imposing fines and
penalties, altered the penalties which had been fixed by the commons,
and even changed the uses to which they were applied. The precedents
were entered in the books; but the commons resolved to maintain their
point without engaging in any dispute upon the subject. After warm
debates, and a free conference between the two houses, the lords adhered
to their amendments, though this resolution was carried by a majority
of one vote only; the commons persisted in rejecting them; the bill
miscarried, and both houses published their proceedings, by way of
appeal to the nation. [114] _[See note T, at the end of this Vol.]_
A bill was now brought into the lower house, granting another year’s
consideration to those who had not taken the oath abjuring the pretended
prince of Wales. The lords added three clauses, importing, that those
persons who should take the oath within the limited time might return to
their benefices and employments, unless they should be already legally
filled; that any person endeavouring to defeat the succession to the
crown, as now limited by law, should be deemed guilty of high treason;
and that the oath of abjuration should be imposed upon the subjects in
Ireland. The commons made some opposition to the first clause; but
at length the question being put, Whether they should agree to the
amendments, it was carried in the affirmative by one voice.
INQUIRY INTO THE PUBLIC ACCOUNTS.
No object engrossed more time, or produced more violent debates, than
did the inquiry into the public accounts. The commissioners appointed
for this purpose pretended to have made great discoveries. They charged
the earl of Ranelagh, paymaster-general of the army, with flagrant
mismanagement. He acquitted himself in such a manner as screened him
from all severity of punishment; nevertheless, they expelled him from
the house for a high crime and misdemeanor, in misapplying several sums
of the public money; and he thought proper to resign his employment. A
long address was prepared and presented to the queen, attributing the
national debt to mismanagement of the funds; complaining that the old
methods of the exchequer had been neglected; and that iniquitous frauds
had been committed by the commissioners of the prizes. Previous to this
remonstrance, the house, in consequence of the report of the committee,
had passed several severe resolutions, particularly against Charles lord
Halifax, auditor of the receipt of the exchequer, as having neglected
his duty, and been guilty of a breach of trust. For these reasons
they actually besought the queen, in an address, that she would give
directions to the attorney-general to prosecute him for the said
offences; and she promised to comply with their request. On the other
hand, the lords appointed a committee to examine all the observations
which the commissioners of accounts had offered to both houses. They
ascribed the national debt to deficiencies in the funds: they acquitted
lord Halifax, the lords of the treasury, and their officers, whom the
commons had accused; and represented these circumstances in an address
to the queen, which was afterwards printed with the vouchers to every
particular. This difference blew up a fierce flame of discord between
the two houses, which manifested their mutual animosity in speeches,
votes, resolutions, and conferences. The commons affirmed, that no
cognizance the lords could take of the public accounts would enable them
to supply any deficiency, or appropriate any surplusage of the public
money; that they could neither acquit nor condemn any person whatsoever,
upon any inquiry arising originally in their own house; and that their
attempt to acquit Charles lord Halifax was unparliamentary. The lords
insisted upon their right to take cognizance originally of all public
accounts; they affirmed, that in their resolutions, with respect to
lord Halifax, they had proceeded according to the rules of justice. They
owned however that their resolutions did not amount to any judgment
or acquittal; but that finding a vote of the commons reflected upon a
member of their house, they thought fit to give their opinion in their
legislative capacity. The queen interposed by a message to the lords,
desiring they would despatch the business in which they were engaged.
The dispute continued even after this intimation; one conference was
held after another, at length both sides despaired of an accommodation.
The lords ordered their proceedings to be printed, and the commons
followed their example. On the twenty-seventh day of February, the
queen, having passed all the bills that were ready for the royal
assent, ordered the lord-keeper to prorogue the parliament, after having
pronounced a speech in the usual style. She thanked them for their zeal,
affection, and despatch; declared, she would encourage and maintain the
church as by law established; desired they would consider some further
laws for restraining the great license assumed for publishing scandalous
pamphlets and libels; and assured them, that all her share of the
prizes which might be taken in the war, should be applied to the public
service. By this time the earl of Eochester was entirely removed from
the queen’s councils. Finding himself outweighed by the interest of
the duke of Marlborough and lord Godolphin, he had become sullen and
intractable; and, rather than repair to his government of Ireland, chose
to resign the office, which, as we have already observed, was conferred
upon the duke of Ormond, an accomplished nobleman, who had acquired
great popularity by the success of the expedition to Vigo. The parties
in the house of lords were so nearly matched, that the queen, in order
to ascertain an undoubted majority in the next session, created four new
peers, [115] _[See note-J, at the end of this Vol.]_ who had signalized
themselves by the violence of their speeches in the house of commons.
{ANNE, 1701--1714}
DISPUTES BETWEEN THE TWO HOUSES OF CONVOCATION.
The two houses of convocation, which were summoned with the parliament,
bore a strong affinity with this assembly, by the different interests
that prevailed in the upper and lower. The last, in imitation of the
commons, was desirous of branding the preceding reign; and it was with
great difficulty that they concurred with the prelates in an address of
congratulation to her majesty. Then their former contest was revived.
The lower house desired, in an application to the archbishop of
Canterbury and his suffragans, that the matters in dispute concerning
the manner of synodical proceedings, and the right of the lower house
to hold intermediate assemblies, might be taken into consideration and
speedily determined. The bishops proposed, that in the intervals of
sessions, the lower house might appoint committees to prepare matters;
and when business should be brought regularly before them, the
archbishop would regulate the prorogations in such a manner, that they
should have sufficient time to sit and deliberate on the subject. This
offer did not satisfy the lower house, which was emboldened to persist
in its demand by a vote of the commons. These, in consequence of an
address of thanks from the clergy, touching Mr. Lloyd, son to the bishop
of Worcester, whom they ordered to be prosecuted after his privilege
as member of the convocation should be expired, had resolved, that they
would on all occasions assert the just rights and privileges of the
lower house of convocation. The prelates refused to depart from the
archbishop’s right of proroguing the whole convocation with consent of
his suffragans. The lower house proposed to refer the controversy to the
queen’s decision. The bishops declined this expedient, as inconsistent
with the episcopal authority, and the presidency of the archbishop. The
lower house having incurred the imputation of favouring presbytery, by
this opposition to the bishops, entered in their books a declaration,
acknowledging the order of bishops as superior to presbyters, and to be
a divine apostolical institution. Then they desired the bishops in an
address to concur in settling the doctrine of the divine apostolical
right of episcopacy, that it might be a standing rule of the church.
They likewise presented a petition to the queen, complaining, that in
the convocation called in the year 1700, after an interruption of
ten years, several questions having arisen concerning the rights
and liberties of the lower house, the bishops had refused a verbal
conference; and afterwards declined a proposal to submit the dispute to
her majesty’s determination; they therefore fled for protection to
her majesty, begging she would call the question into her own royal
audience. The queen promised to consider their petition, which was
supported by the earl of Nottingham; and ordered their council to
examine the affair, how it consisted with law and custom. Whether their
report was unfavourable to the lower house, or the queen was unwilling
to encourage the division, no other answer was made to their address.
The archbishop replied to their request presented to the upper house,
concerning the divine right of presbytery, that the preface to the
form of ordination contained a declaration of three orders of ministers
from the times of the apostles; namely, bishops, priests, and deacons,
to which they had subscribed; but he and his brethren conceived, that
without a royal license, they had not authority to attempt, enact,
promulge, or execute any canon, which should concern either doctrine or
discipline. The lower house answered this declaration in very petulant
terms; and the dispute subsisted when the parliament was prorogued. But
these contests produced divisions through the whole body of the clergy,
who ranged themselves in different factions, distinguished by the names
of high-church and low-church. The first consisted of ecclesiastical
tories; the other included those who professed revolution principles,
and recommended moderation towards the dissenters. The high-church party
reproached the other as time-servers, and presbyterians in disguise; and
were in their turn stigmatized as the friends and abettors of tyranny
and persecution. At present, however, the tories both in church
and state triumphed in the favour of their sovereign. The right of
parliaments, the memory of the late king, and even the act limiting the
succession of the house of Hanover, became the subjects of ridicule.
The queen was flattered as possessor of the prerogatives of the ancient
monarchy; the history written by her grandfather, the earl of Clarendon,
was now for the first time published, to inculcate the principles of
obedience, and inspire the people with an abhorrence of opposition to
an anointed sovereign. Her majesty’s hereditary right was deduced from
Edward the Confessor, and as heir of his pretended sanctity and virtue,
she was persuaded to touch persons afflicted with the king’s evil,
according to the office inserted in the Liturgy for this occasion.
ACCOUNT OF PARTIES IN SCOTLAND.
The change of the ministry in Scotland seemed favourable to the
episcopalians and anti-revolutioners of that kingdom. The earls of
Marchmont, Melvil, Selkirk, Leven, and Hyndford, were laid aside; the
earl of Seafield was appointed chancellor; the duke of Queensberry
and the lord viscount Tarbat, were declared secretaries of state; the
marquis of Annandale was made president of the council, and the earl of
Tullibardin, lord privy-seal. A new parliament having been summoned, the
earl of Seafield employed his influence so successfully, that a great
number of anti-revolutioners were returned as members. The duke of
Hamilton had obtained from the queen a letter to the privy-council in
Scotland, in which she expressed her desire that the presbyterian
clergy should live in brotherly love and communion with such dissenting
ministers of the reformed religion as were in possession of benefices,
and lived with decency, and submission to the law. The episcopal clergy,
encouraged by these expressions in their favour, drew up an address to
the queen, imploring her protection; and humbly beseeching her to allow
those parishes in which there was a majority of episcopal freeholders,
to bestow the benefice on ministers of their principles. This petition
was presented by Dr. Skeen and Dr. Scot, who were introduced by the duke
of Queensberry to her majesty. She assured them of her protection and
endeavours to supply their necessities; and exhorted them to live in
peace and christian love with the clergy, who were by law invested with
the church-government in her ancient kingdom of Scotland. A proclamation
of indemnity having been published in March, a great number of Jacobites
returned from France and other countries, pretended to have changed
their sentiments, and took the oaths, that they might be qualified
to sit in parliament. They formed an accession to the strength of the
anti-revolutioners and episcopalians, who now hoped to out-number the
presbyterians, and outweigh their interest. But this confederacy was
composed of dissonant parts, from which no harmony could be expected.
The presbyterians and revolutioners were headed by the duke of
Argyle. The country party of malcontents, which took its rise from the
disappointments of the Darien settlement, acted under the auspices
of the duke of Hamilton and marquis of Tweedale; and the earl of Hume
appeared as chief of the anti-revolutioners. The different parties who
now united, pursued the most opposite ends. The majority of the country
party were friends to the revolution, and sought only redress of
the grievances which the nation had sustained in the late reign. The
anti-revolutioners considered the accession and government of king
William as an extraordinary event, which they were willing to forget,
believing that all parties were safe under the shelter of her majesty’s
general indemnity. The Jacobites submitted to the queen, as tutrix or
regent for the prince of Wales, whom they firmly believed she intended
to establish on the throne. The whigs under Argyle, alarmed at the
coalition of all their enemies, resolved to procure a parliamentary
sanction for the revolution.
DANGEROUS HEATS IN THE PARLIAMENT.
The parliament being opened on the sixth day of May at Edinburgh, by
the duke of Queensberry as commissioner, the queen’s letter was read, in
which she demanded a supply for the maintenance of the forces, advised
them to encourage trade, and exhorted them to proceed with wisdom,
prudence, and unanimity. The duke of Hamilton immediately offered the
draft of a bill for recognising her majesty’s undoubted right and title
to the imperial crown of Scotland, according to the declaration of
the estates of the kingdom, containing the claim of right. It was
immediately received; and at the second reading, the queen’s advocate
offered an additional clause, denouncing the penalties of treason
against any person who should question her majesty’s right and title to
the crown, or her exercise of the government, from her actual entry
to the same. This, after a long and warm debate, was carried by the
concurrence of the anti-revolutioners. Then the earl of Hume produced
the draft of a bill for the supply; immediately after it was read, the
marquis of Tweedale made an overture, that, before all other business,
the parliament would proceed to make such conditions of government, and
regulations in the constitution of the kingdom, to take place after the
decease of her majesty and the heirs of her body, as should be necessary
for the preservation of their religion and liberty. This overture and
the bill were ordered to lie upon the table; and in the meantime the
commissioner found himself involved in great perplexity. The duke of
Argyle, the marquis of Annandale, and the earl of Marchmont, gave him
to understand in private, that they were resolved to move for an act
ratifying the revolution; and for another confirming the presbyterian
government; that they would insist upon their being discussed before
the bill of supply, and that they were certain of carrying the points at
which they aimed. The commissioner now found himself reduced to a very
disagreeable alternative. There was a necessity for relinquishing all
hope of a supply, or abandoning the anti-revolutioners, to whom he
was connected by promises of concurrence. The whigs were determined to
oppose all schemes of supply that should come from the cavaliers;
and these last resolved to exert their whole power in preventing the
confirmation of the revolution and the presbyterian discipline. He
foresaw that on this occasion the whigs would be joined by the duke of
Hamilton and his party, so as to preponderate against the cavaliers. He
endeavoured to cajole both parties; but found the task impracticable.
He desired in parliament, that the act for the supply might be read,
promising that they should have full time afterwards to deliberate on
other subjects. The marquis of Tweedale insisted upon his overture;
and after warm debates, the house resolved to proceed with such acts as
might be necessary for securing the religion, liberty, and trade of
the nation, before any bill for supply or other business should be
discussed. The marquis of Athol offered an act for the security of the
kingdom, in case of her majesty’s decease; but before it was read,
the duke of Argyle presented his draft of a bill for ratifying the
revolution, and all the acts following thereupon, An act for limiting
the succession after the death of her majesty, and the heirs of her
body, was produced by Mr. Fletcher of Saltoun. The earl of Rothes
recommended another, importing, that after her majesty’s death, and
failing heirs of her body, no person coming to the crown of Scotland,
being at the same time king or queen of England, should as king or queen
of Scotland, have power to make peace or war without the consent
of parliament. The earl of Marchmont recited the draft of an act for
securing the true protestant religion and presbyterian government; one
was also suggested by sir Patrick Johnston, allowing the importation of
wines, and other foreign liquors. All these bills were ordered to
lie upon the table. Then the earl of Strath-more produced an act for
toleration to all protestants in the exercise of religious worship. But
against this the general assembly presented a most violent remonstrance;
and the promoters of the bill, foreseeing that it would meet with great
opposition, allowed it to drop for the present. On the third day of
June, the parliament passed the act for preserving the true reformed
protestant religion, and confirming presbyterian church government, as
agreeable to the word of God, and the only government of Christ’s church
within the kingdom. The same party enjoyed a further triumph in the
success of Argyle’s act, for ratifying and perpetuating the first act of
king William’s parliament; for declaring it high treason to disown the
authority of that parliament, or to alter or renovate the claim of right
or any article thereof. This last clause was strenuously opposed; but
at last the bill passed with the concurrence of all the ministry, except
the marquis of Athol and the viscount Tarbat, who began at this period
to correspond with the opposite party.
THE COMMISSIONER IS ABANDONED BY THE CAVALIERS.
The cavaliers thinking themselves betrayed by the duke of Queensberry,
who had assented to these acts, first expostulated with him on his
breach of promise, and then renounced his interest, resolving to
separate themselves from the court, and jointly pursue such measures as
might be for the interest of their party. But of all the bills that were
produced in the course of this remarkable session, that which produced
the most violent altercation was the act of security, calculated to
abridge the prerogative of the crown, limit the successor, and throw
a vast additional power into the hands of the parliament. It was
considered paragraph by paragraph; many additions and alterations were
proposed, and some adopted; inflammatory speeches were uttered; bitter
sarcasms retorted from party to party; and different votes passed on
different clauses. At length, in spite of the most obstinate opposition
from the ministry and the cavaliers, it was passed by a majority of
fifty-nine voices. The commissioner was importuned to give it the royal
assent; but declined answering their entreaties till the tenth day
of September. Then he made a speech in parliament, giving them to
understand that he had received the queen’s pleasure, and was empowered
to give the royal assent to all the acts voted in this session, except
the act for the security of the kingdom. A motion was made to solicit
the royal assent in an address to her majesty; but the question being
put, it was carried in the negative by a small majority. On the sixth
day of the same month, the earl of Marchmont had produced a bill to
settle the succession on the house of Hanover. At first the import of it
was not known; but when the clerk in reading it mentioned the princess
Sophia, the whole house was kindled into a flame. Some proposed that
the overture should be burned; others moved that the earl might be sent
prisoner to the castle; and a general dissatisfaction appeared in the
whole assembly. Not that the majority in parliament were averse to
the succession in the house of Hanover; but they resolved to avoid
a nomination without stipulating conditions; and they had already
provided, in the act of security, that it should be high treason to own
any person as king or queen after her majesty’s decease, until he or she
should take the coronation oath, and accept the terms of the claim of
right, and such conditions as should be settled in this or any ensuing
parliament.
HE IS IN DANGER OF HIS LIFE.
Andrew Fletcher of Saltoun, a man of undaunted courage and inflexible
integrity, who professed republican principles, and seemed designed by
nature as a member of some Grecian commonwealth, after having observed
that the nation would be enslaved should it submit, either willingly or
by commission, to the successor of England, without such conditions of
government as should secure them against the influence of an English
ministry, offered the draft of an act, importing, that after the decease
of her majesty, without heirs of her body, no person being successor to
the English throne should succeed to the crown of Scotland but under
the following limitations, which, together with the coronation oath and
claim of right, they should swear to observe: namely, that all offices
and places, civil and military, as well as pensions, should for the
future be conferred by a parliament to be chosen at every Michaelmas
head-court, to sit on the first day of November, and adjourn themselves
from time to time till the ensuing Michaelmas; that they should choose
their own president; that a committee of six-and-thirty members, chosen
out of the whole parliament, without distinction of estates, should,
during the intervals of parliament, be vested, under the king, with the
administration of the government, act as his council, be accountable to
parliament, and call it together on extraordinary occasions. He proposed
that the successor should be nominated by the majority; declaring for
himself that he would rather concur in nominating the most rigid papist
with those conditions, than the truest protestant without them. The
motion was seconded by many members; and though postponed for the
present, in favour of an act of trade under the consideration of
the house, it was afterwards resumed with great warmth. In vain the
lord-treasurer represented that no funds were as yet provided for the
army, and moved for a reading of the act presented for that purpose; a
certain member observed, that this was a very unseasonable juncture to
propose a supply, when the house had so much to do for the security of
the nation; he said they had very little encouragement to grant supplies
when they found themselves frustrated of all their labour and expense
for these several months; and when the whole kingdom saw that supplies
served for no other use but to gratify the avarice of some insatiable
ministers. Mr. Fletcher expatiated upon the good consequences that
would arise from the act which he had proposed. The chancellor
answered, that such an act was laying a scheme for a commonwealth,
and tending to innovate the constitution of a monarchy. The ministry
proposed a state of a vote, whether they should first give a reading to
Fletcher’s act or to the act of subsidy. The country party moved that
the question might be, “Overtures for subsidies, or overtures for
liberty.” Fletcher withdrew his act, rather than people should pervert
the meaning of laudable designs. The house resounded with the cry
of “Liberty or Subsidy.” Bitter invectives were uttered against the
ministry. One member said it was now plain the nation was to expect no
other return for their expense and toil than that of being loaded with
a subsidy, and being obliged to bend their necks under the yoke of
slavery, which was prepared for them from that throne; another observed,
that as their liberties were suppressed, so the privileges of parliament
were like to be torn from them; but that he would venture his life in
defence of his birthright, and rather die a free man than live a slave.
When the vote was demanded, and declined by the commissioner, the earl
of Roxburgh declared, that if there was no other way of obtaining so
natural and undeniable a privilege of parliament, they would demand
it with their swords in their hands. The commissioner, foreseeing this
spirit of freedom and contradiction, ordered the foot-guard to be in
readiness, and placed a strong guard upon the eastern gate of the city.
Notwithstanding these precautions, he ran the risk of being torn to
pieces; and, in this apprehension, ordered the chancellor to inform the
house that the parliament should proceed upon overtures for liberty at
their next sitting. This promise allayed the ferment which had begun
to rise. Next day the members prepared an overture, implying, that the
elective members should be chosen for every seat at the Michaelmas head
courts; that a parliament should be held once in two years at least;
that the short adjournments _de die in diem_ should be made by the
parliaments themselves as in England; and that no officer in the army,
customs, or excise, nor any gratuitous pensioner, should sit as an
elective member. The commissioner being apprised of their proceedings,
called for such acts as he was empowered to pass, and having given the
royal assent to them, prorogued the parliament to the twelfth day of
October. [117] _[See note X, at the end of this Vol.]_ Such was the
issue of this remarkable session of the Scottish parliament, in which
the duke of Queensberry was abandoned by the greatest part of the
ministry; and such a spirit of ferocity and opposition prevailed, as
threatened the whole kingdom with civil war and confusion. The queen
conferred titles upon those who appeared to have influence in the nation
[118] _[See note Y, at the end of this Vol.]_ and attachment to her
government, and revived the order of the thistle, which the late king
had dropped.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE IRISH PARLIAMENT.
Ireland was filled with discontent by the behaviour and conduct of
the trustees for the forfeited estates. The earl of Rochester had
contributed to foment the troubles of the kingdom by encouraging the
factions which had been imported from England. The duke of Ormond was
received with open arms as heir to the virtues of his ancestors, who had
been the bulwarks of the protestant interest in Ireland. He opened the
parliament on the twenty-first day of September, with a speech to both
houses, in which he told them that his inclination, his interest, and
the examples of progenitors, were indispensable obligations upon him to
improve every opportunity to the advantage and prosperity of his native
country. The commons having chosen Allen Broderick to be their speaker,
proceeded to draw up very affectionate addresses to the queen and the
lord lieutenant. In that to the queen they complained that their enemies
had misrepresented them, as desirous of being independent of the crown
of England; they, therefore, to vindicate themselves from such false
aspersions, declared and acknowledged that the kingdom of Ireland was
annexed and united to the imperial crown of England. In order to express
their hatred of the trustees, they resolved, that all the protestant
freeholders of that kingdom had been falsely and maliciously
misrepresented, traduced, and abused, in a book entitled, “The Report
of the Commissioners appointed to inquire into the Irish Forfeitures;”
and it appearing that Francis Annesley, member of the house, John
Trenchard, Henry Langford, and James Hamilton, were authors of that
book, they further resolved, that these persons had scandalously and
maliciously misrepresented and traduced the protestant freeholders of
that kingdom, and endeavoured to create a misunderstanding and jealousy
between the people of England and the protestants of Ireland. Annesley
was expelled the house, Hamilton was dead, and Trenchard had returned
to England. They had finished the inquiry before the meeting of this
parliament; and sold at an undervalue the best of the forfeited estates
to the sword-blade company of England. This, in a petition to the Irish
parliament, prayed that heads of a bill be brought in for enabling them
to take conveyance of lands in Ireland; but the parliament was very
little disposed to confirm the bargains of the trustees, and the
petition lay neglected on the table. The house expelled John Asgil, who,
as agent to the sword-blade company, had offered to lend money to the
public in Ireland, on condition that the parliament would pass an act
to confirm the company’s purchase of the forfeited estates. His
constituents disowned his proposal; and when he was summoned to appear
before the house, and answer for his prevarication, he pleaded his
privilege as member of the English parliament. The commons, in a
representation of the state and grievances of the nation, gave her
majesty to understand that the constitution of Ireland had been of
late greatly shaken; and their lives, liberties, and estates, called
in question, and tried in a manner unknown to their ancestors; that
the expense to which they had been unnecessarily exposed by the late
trustees for the forfeited estates, in defending their just rights and
titles, had exceeded in value the current cash of the kingdom; that
their trade was decayed, their money exhausted; and that they were
hindered from maintaining their own manufactures; that many protestant
families had been constrained to quit the kingdom in order to earn a
livelihood in foreign countries; that the want of frequent parliaments
in Ireland had encouraged evil-minded men to oppress the subject; that
many civil officers had acquired great fortunes in that impoverished
country, by the exercise of corruption and oppression; that others,
in considerable employments, resided in another kingdom, neglecting
personal attendance on their duty, while their offices were ill
executed, to the detriment of the public, and the failure of justice.
They declared, that it was from her majesty’s gracious interposition
alone they proposed to themselves relief from those their manifold
grievances and misfortunes. The commons afterwards voted the necessary
supplies, and granted one hundred and fifty thousand pounds to make good
the deficiencies of the necessary branches of the establishment.
A SEVERE ACT PASSED AGAINST PAPISTS.
They appointed a committee to inspect the public accounts, by which
they discovered that above one hundred thousand pounds had been falsely
charged as a debt upon the nation. The committee was thanked by the
house for having saved this sum, and ordered to examine what persons
were concerned in such a misrepresentation, which was generally imputed
to those who acted under the duke of Ormond. He himself was a nobleman
of honour and generosity, addicted to pleasure, and fond of popular
applause; but he was surrounded by people of more sordid principles, who
had ingratiated themselves into his confidence by the arts of adulation.
The commons voted a provision for the half-pay officers; and abolished
pensions to the amount of seventeen thousand pounds a-year, as
unnecessary branches of the establishment. They passed an act settling
the succession of the crown after the pattern set them by England; but
the most important transaction of this session was a severe bill to
prevent the growth of popery. It bore a strong affinity to that which
had passed three years before in England; but contained more effectual
clauses. Among others it enacted, that all estates of papists should be
equally divided among the children, notwithstanding any settlement to
the contrary, unless the person to whom they might be settled should
qualify themselves by taking the oaths, and communicating with the
church of England. The bill was not at all agreeable to the ministry
in England, who expected large presents from the papists, by whom a
considerable sum had been actually raised for this purpose. But as they
did not think proper to reject such a bill while the English parliament
was sitting, they added a clause which they hoped the parliament of
Ireland would refuse: namely, that no persons in that kingdom should be
capable of any employment, or of being in the magistracy of any city,
who did not qualify themselves by receiving the sacrament according
to the test act passed in England. Though this was certainly a great
hardship on the dissenters, the parliament of Ireland sacrificed this
consideration to their common security against the Roman catholics, and
accepted the amendment without hesitation. This affair being discussed,
the commons of Ireland passed a vote against a book entitled, “Memoirs
of the late king James II.” as a seditious libel. They ordered it to
be burned by the hands of the common hangman; and the bookseller and
printer to be prosecuted. When this motion was made, a member informed
the house that in the county of Limerick the Irish papists had begun to
form themselves into bodies, to plunder the protestants of their arms
and money; and to maintain a correspondence with the disaffected in
England. The house immediately resolved, that the papists of the kingdom
still retained hopes of the accession of the person known by the name of
the Prince of Wales in the life-time of the late king James, and now by
the name of James III. In the midst of this zeal against popery and
the pretender, they were suddenly adjourned by the command of the
lord-lieutenant, and broke up in great animosity against that nobleman.
[119] _[See note Z, at the end of this Vol.]_
THE ELECTOR TAKES POSSESSION OF RATISBON.
The attention of the English ministry had been for some time chiefly
engrossed by the affairs of the continent. The emperor agreed with the
allies that his son, the archduke Charles should assume the title of
king of Spain, demand the infanta of Portugal in marriage, and undertake
something of importance, with the assistance of the maritime powers. Mr.
Methuen, the English minister at Lisbon, had already made some progress
in a treaty with his Portuguese majesty; and the court of Vienna
promised to send such an army into the field as would in a little
time drive the elector of Bavaria from his dominions. But they were so
dilatory in their preparations, that the French king broke all their
measures by sending powerful reinforcements to the elector, in whose
ability and attachment Louis reposed great confidence. Mareschal
Villars, who commanded an army of thirty thousand men at Strasburgh,
passed the Rhine and reduced fort Kehl, the garrison of which was
conducted to Philipsburgh. The emperor, alarmed at this event, ordered
count Schlick to enter Bavaria on the side of Saltsburgh, with a
considerable body of forces; and sent another, under count Stirum, to
invade the same electorate by the way of Newmark, which was surrendered
to him after he had routed a party of Bavarians; the city of Amberg met
with the same fate. Meanwhile count Schlick defeated a body of militia
that defended the lines of Saltsburgh, and made himself master of Biedt,
and several other places. The elector assembling his forces near Brenau,
diffused a report that he intended to besiege Passau, to cover which
place Schlick advanced with the greatest part of his infantry, leaving
behind his cavalry and cannon. The elector having by this feint divided
the Imperialists, passed the bridge of Scardingen with twelve thousand
men, and, after an obstinate engagement, compelled the Imperialists to
abandon the field of battle; then he marched against the Saxon troops
which guarded the artillery, and attacked them with such impetuosity
that they were entirely defeated. In a few days after these actions, he
took Newburgh on the Inn by capitulation. He obtained another advantage
over an advanced post of the Imperialists near Burgenfeldt, commanded
by the young prince of Brandenburgh Anspach, who was mortally wounded
in the engagement. He advanced to Ratisbon, where the diet of the
empire was assembled, and demanded that he should be immediately put in
possession of the bridge and gate of the city. The burghers immediately
took to their arms, and planted cannon on the ramparts; but when they
saw a battery erected against them, and the elector determined to
bombard the place, they thought proper to capitulate, and comply with
his demands. He took possession of the town on the eighth day of April,
and signed an instrument obliging himself to withdraw his troops as soon
as the emperor should ratify the diet’s resolution for the neutrality of
Ratisbon. Mareschal Villars having received orders to join the elector
at all events, and being reinforced by a body of troops under count
Tallard, resolved to break through the lines which the prince of Baden
had made at Stolhoffen. This general had been luckily joined by eight
Dutch battalions, and received the French army, though double his
number, with such obstinate resolution, that Villars was obliged to
retreat with great loss, and directed his route towards Offingen.
Nevertheless he penetrated through the Black Forest, and effected a
junction with the elector. Count Stirum endeavoured to join prince
Louis of Baden; but being attacked near Schwemmingen, retired under the
cannon of Nortlingen.
THE ALLIES REDUCE BONNE.
The confederates were more successful on the Lower Rhine and in the
Netherlands. The duke of Marlborough crossed the sea in the beginning of
April, and assembling the allied army, resolved that the campaign should
be begun with the siege of Bonne, which was accordingly invested on
the twenty-fourth day of April. Three different attacks were carried
on against this place: one by the hereditary prince of Hesse-Cassel;
another by the celebrated Coehorn; and a third by lieutenant-general
Fagel. The garrison defended themselves vigorously till the fourteenth
day of May, when the fort having been taken by assault, and the breaches
rendered practicable, the marquis d’Alegre, the governor, ordered a
parley to be beat; hostages were immediately exchanged; on the sixteenth
the capitulation was signed; and in three days the garrison evacuated
the place in order to be conducted to Luxembourg. During the siege of
Bonne, the mareschals Boufflers and Villeroy advanced with an army of
forty thousand men towards Tongeren, and the confederate army, commanded
by M. d’Auverquerque, was obliged at their approach to retreat under
the cannon of Maestricht. The enemy having taken possession of Tongeren,
made a motion against the confederate army, which they found already
drawn up in order of battle, and so advantageously posted, that,
notwithstanding their great superiority in point of number, they would
not hazard an attack, but retired to the ground from whence they
had advanced. Immediately after the reduction of Bonne, the duke
of Marlborough, who had been present at the siege, returned to the
confederate army in the Netherlands, now amounting to one hundred and
thirty squadrons, and fifty-nine battalions. On the twenty-fifth day of
May, the duke having passed the river Jecker in order to give battle to
the enemy, they marched with precipitation to Boekwren, and abandoned
Tongeren, after having blown up the walls of the place with gunpowder.
The duke continued to follow them to Thys, where he encamped, while they
retreated to Hannye, retiring as he advanced. Then he resolved to force
their lines: this service was effectually performed by Coehorn, at the
point of Callo, and by baron Spaar, in the county of Waes, near Stoken.
The duke had formed the design of reducing Antwerp, which was garrisoned
by Spanish troops under the command of the marquis de Bedmar. He
intended with the grand army to attack the enemy’s lines on the side of
Louvaine and Mechlin: he detached Coehorn with his flying camp on the
right of the Scheldt towards Dutch Flanders, to amuse the marquis
de Bed-mar on that side; and he ordered the baron Opdam, with twelve
thousand men, to take post between Eckeren and Capelle, near Antwerp,
that he might act against that part of the lines which was guarded by
the Spanish forces.
{ANNE, 1701--1714}
BATTLE OF ECKEREN.
The French generals, in order to frustrate the scheme of Marlborough,
resolved to cut off the retreat of Opdam. Boufflers, with a detachment
of twenty thousand men from Villeroy’s army, surprised him at Eckeren,
where the Dutch were put in disorder; and Opdam, believing all was
lost, fled to Breda. Nevertheless, the troops rallying under general
Schlangenburg, maintained their ground with the most obstinate
valour till night, when the enemy was obliged to retire, and left the
communication free with fort Lillo, to which place the confederates
marched without further molestation, having lost about fifteen hundred
men in the engagement. The damage sustained by the French was more
considerable. They were frustrated in their design, and had actually
abandoned the field of battle; yet Louis ordered _Te Deum_ to be sung
for the victory; nevertheless Boufflers was censured for his conduct on
this occasion, and in a little time totally disgraced. Opdam presented
a justification of his conduct to the states-general; but by this
oversight he forfeited the fruits of a long service, during which he
had exhibited repeated proofs of courage, zeal, and capacity. The states
honoured Schlangenburg with a letter of thanks for the valour and
skill he had manifested in this engagement; but in a little time they
dismissed him from his employment on account of his having given umbrage
to the duke of Marlborough, by censuring his grace for exposing such a
small number of men to this disaster. After this action, Villeroy,
who lay encamped near Saint Job, declared he waited for the duke of
Marlborough, who forthwith advanced to Hoogstraat, with a view to give
him battle; but at his approach the French general, setting fire to his
camp, retired within his lines with great precipitation. Then the
duke invested Huy, the garrison of which, after a vigorous defence,
surrendered themselves prisoners of war on the twenty-seventh day of
August. At a council of war held in the camp of the confederates, the
duke proposed to attack the enemies’ lines between the Mehaigne and
Leuwe, and was seconded by the Danish, Hanoverian, and Hessian generals;
but the scheme was opposed by the Dutch officers, and the deputies
of the states, who alleged that the success was dubious, and the
consequences of forcing the lines would be inconsiderable; they
therefore recommended the siege of Limburgh, by the reduction of which
they would acquire a whole province, and cover their own country, as
well as Juliers and Gueldres, from the designs of the enemy. The siege
of Limburgh was accordingly undertaken. The trenches were opened on
the five-and-twentieth day of September, and in two days the place was
surrendered; the garrison remaining prisoners of war. By this conquest
the allies secured the country of Liege, and the electorate of Cologn,
from the incursions of the enemy; before the end of the year they
remained masters of the whole Spanish Guelderland, by the reduction of
Gueldres, which surrendered on the seventeenth day of September, after
having been long blockaded, bombarded, and reduced to a heap of
ashes, by the Prussian general Lottum. Such was the campaign in the
Netherlands, which in all probability would have produced events of
greater importance, had not the duke of Marlborough been restricted by
the deputies of the states-general, who began to be influenced by the
intrigues of the Louvestein faction, ever averse to a single dictator.
PRINCE OF HESSE DEFEATED BY THE FRENCH.
The French king redoubled his efforts in Germany. The duke de Vendôme
was ordered to march from the Milanese to Tyrol, and there join the
elector of Bavaria, who had already made himself master of Inspruck. But
the boors rising in arms, drove him out of the country before he could
be joined by the French general, who was therefore obliged to return
to the Milanese. The Imperialists in Italy were so ill supplied by the
court of Vienna, that they could not pretend to act offensively. The
French invested Ostiglia, which, however, they could not reduce; but the
fortress of Barsillo, in the duchy of Beggio, capitulating after a long
blockade, they took possession of the duke of Modena’s country. The
elector of Bavaria rejoining Villars, resolved to attack count Stirum,
whom prince Louis of Baden had detached from his army. With this view
they passed the Danube at Donawert, and discharged six guns as a signal
for the marquis D’Usson, whom they had left in the camp at Lavingen, to
fall upon the rear of the imperialists, while they should charge them
in front. Stirum no sooner perceived the signal than he guessed the
intention of the enemy, and instantly resolved to attack D’Usson before
the elector and the mareschal should advance. He accordingly charged
him at the head of some select squadrons with such impetuosity, that the
French cavalry were totally defeated; and all his infantry would have
been killed and taken, had not the elector and Villars come up in
time to turn the fate of the day. The action continued from six in the
morning till four in the afternoon, when Stirum, being overpowered by
numbers, was obliged to retreat to Norlin-gen, with the loss of twelve
thousand men, and all his baggage and artillery. In the meantime the
duke of Burgundy, assisted by Tallard, undertook the siege of Old
Brisac, with a prodigious train of artillery. The place was very
strongly fortified, though the garrison was small and ill provided with
necessaries. In fourteen days the governor surrendered the place, and
was condemned to lose his head for having made such a slender defence.
The duke of Burgundy returned in triumph to Versailles, and Tallard was
ordered to invest Landau. The prince of Hesse-Cassel being detached
from the Netherlands for the relief of the place, joined the count of
Nassau-Weilbourg, general of the Palatine forces, near Spires, where
they resolved to attack the French in their lines. But by this time
Mons. Pracon-tal, with ten thousand men, had joined Tallard, and enabled
him to strike a stroke which proved decisive. He suddenly quitted his
lines, and surprised the prince at Spirebach, where the French obtained
a complete victory after a very obstinate and bloody engagement, in
which the prince of Hesse distinguished himself by uncommon marks of
courage and presence of mind. Three horses were successively killed
under him, and he slew a French officer with his own hand. After
incredible efforts, he was fain to retreat with the loss of some
thousands. The French paid dear for their victory, Pracontal having been
slain in the action. Nevertheless they resumed the siege, and the place
was surrendered by capitulation. The campaign in Germany was finished by
the reduction of Augsburg by the elector of Bavaria, who took it in the
month of December, and agreed to its being secured by a French garrison.
TREATY BETWEEN THE EMPEROR AND THE DUKE OF SAVOY.
The emperor’s affairs at this juncture wore a very unpromising aspect.
The Hungarians were fleeced and barbarously oppressed by those to whom
he intrusted the government of their country. They derived courage from
despair. They seized this opportunity, when the emperor’s forces were
divided, and his councils distracted, to exert themselves in defence of
their liberties. They ran to arms under the auspices of prince Ragotzki.
They demanded that their grievances should be redressed, and their
privileges restored. Their resentment was kept up by the emissaries of
France and Bavaria, who likewise encouraged them to persevere in their
revolt, by repeated promises of protection and assistance. The emperor’s
prospect, however, was soon mended by two incidents of very great
consequence to his interest. The duke of Savoy foreseeing how much he
should be exposed to the mercy of the French king, should that monarch
become master of the Milanese, engaged in a secret negotiation with the
emperor, which, notwithstanding all his caution, was discovered by the
court of Versailles. Louis immediately ordered the duke of Vendôme
to disarm the troops of Savoy that were in his army, to the number of
two-and-twenty thousand men; to insist upon the duke’s putting him in
possession of four considerable fortresses; and demand that the number
of his troops should be reduced to the establishment stipulated in the
treaty of 1696. The duke, exasperated at these insults, ordered the
French ambassador, and several officers of the same nation, to be
arrested. Louis endeavoured to intimidate him by a menacing letter, in
which he gave him to understand that since neither religion, honour,
interest, nor alliances, had been able to influence his conduct, the
duke de Vendôme should make known the intentions of the French monarch,
and allow him four-and-twenty hours to deliberate on the measures he
should pursue. This letter was answered by a manifesto: in the meantime
the duke concluded a treaty with the court of Vienna; acknowledged
the archduke Charles as king of Spain; and sent envoys to England and
Holland. Queen Anne, knowing his importance as well as his selfish
disposition, assured him of her friendship and assistance; and both she
and the states sent ambassadors to Turin. He was immediately joined by
a body of imperial horse under Visconti, and afterwards by count
Staremberg, at the head of fifteen thousand men, with whom that general
marched from the Modenese in the worst season of the year, through an
enemy’s country, and roads that were deemed impassable. In vain the
French forces harassed him in his march, and even surrounded him in many
different places on the route: he surmounted all these difficulties with
incredible courage and perseverance, and joined the duke of Savoy at
Canelli, so as to secure the country of Piedmont. The other incident
which proved so favourable to the imperial interest, was a treaty by
which the king of Portugal acceded to the grand alliance. His ministry
perceived that should Spain be once united to the crown of France, their
master would sit very insecure upon his throne. They were intimidated by
the united fleets of the maritime powers, which maintained the empire of
the sea; and they were allured by the splendour of a match between their
infanta and the archduke Charles, to whom the emperor and the king of
the Romans promised to transfer all their pretensions to the Spanish
crown. By this treaty, concluded at Lisbon between the emperor, the
queen of Great Britain, the king of Portugal, and the states-general,
it was stipulated that king Charles should be conveyed to Portugal by a
powerful fleet, having on board twelve thousand soldiers, with a great
supply of money, arms, and ammunition; and that he should be joined
immediately upon his landing by an army of eight-and-twenty thousand
Portuguese.
SIR CLOUDESLEY SHOVEL SAILS WITH A FLEET.
The confederates reaped very little advantage from the naval operations
of this summer. Sir George Rooke cruised in the channel, in order to
alarm the coast of France, and protect the trade of England. On the
first day of July, sir Cloudesley Shovel sailed from St. Helen’s with
the combined squadrons of England and Holland: he directed his course
to the Mediterranean, and being reduced to great difficulty by want
of water, steered to Altea, on the coast of Valentia, where brigadier
Seymour landed, and encamped with five-and-twenty hundred marines. The
admiral published a short manifesto, signifying that he was not come
to disturb but to protect the good subjects of Spain, who should swear
allegiance to their lawful monarch the archduke Charles, and endeavour
to shake off the yoke of France. This declaration produced little or no
effect; and the fleet being watered, sir Cloudesley sailed to Leghorn.
One design of this armament was to assist the Cevennois, who had in the
course of the preceding year been persecuted into a revolt on account of
religion, and implored the assistance of England and the states-general.
The admiral detached two ships into the gulf of Narbonne, with
some refugees and French pilots, who had concerted signals with the
Cevennois; but the mareschal de Montrevil having received intimation of
their design, took such measures as prevented all communication; and the
English captains having repeated their signals to no purpose, rejoined
sir Cloudesley at Leghorn. This admiral, having renewed the peace with
the piratical states of Barbary, returned to England without having
taken one effectual step for annoying the enemy, or attempted any thing
that looked like the result of a concerted scheme for that purpose. The
nation naturally murmured at the fruitless expedition, by which it had
incurred such a considerable expense. The merchants complained that they
were ill supplied with convoys. The ships of war were victualled with
damaged provisions; and every article of the marine being mismanaged,
the blame fell upon those who acted as council to the lord high-admiral.
ADMIRAL GRAYDON’S BOOTLESS EXPEDITION.
Nor were the arms of England by sea much more successful in the West
Indies. Sir George Rooke, in the preceding year, had detached from the
Mediterranean captain Hovenden Walker, with six ships of the line and
transports, having on board four regiments of soldiers, for the
Leeward islands. Being joined at Antigua by some troops under colonel
Codrington, they made a descent upon the island of Guadaloupe,
where they razed the fort, burned the town, ravaged the country, and
reimbarked with precipitation, in consequence of a report that the
French had landed nine hundred men on the back of the island. They
retired to Nevis, where they must have perished by famine, had they
not been providentially relieved by vice-admiral Graydon, in his way
to Jamaica. This officer had been sent out with three ships to succeed
Benbow, and was convoyed about one hundred and fifty leagues by two
other ships of the line. He had not sailed many days when he fell in
with part of the French squadron, commanded by Du Casse, on their return
from the West Indies, very full and richly laden. Captain Cleland, of
the Montagu, engaged the sternmost; but he was called off by a signal
from the admiral, who proceeded on his voyage without taking-further
notice of the enemy. When he arrived at Jamaica, he quarrelled with the
principal planters of the island; and his ships beginning to be crazy,
he resolved to return to England. He accordingly sailed through the
gulf of Florida, with a view to attack the French at Placentia in
Newfoundland; but his ships were dispersed in a fog that lasted thirty
days; and afterwards the council of war which he convoked were of
opinion that he could not attack the settlement with any prospect of
success. At his return to England, the house of lords, then sitting, set
on foot an inquiry into his conduct. They presented an address to the
queen, desiring she would remove him from his employments; and he was
accordingly dismissed. The only exploit that tended to distress the
enemy was performed by rear-admiral Dilkes, who in the month of July
sailed to the coast of France with a small squadron; and, in the
neighbourhood of Granville, took or destroyed about forty ships and
their convoy. Yet this damage was inconsiderable, when compared to that
which the English navy sustained from the dreadful tempest that began
to blow on the twenty-seventh day of November, accompanied with such
flashes of lightning, and peals of thunder, as overwhelmed the whole
kingdom with consternation. The houses in London shook from their
foundations, and some of them falling buried the inhabitants in their
ruins. The water overflowed several streets, and rose to a considerable
height in Westminster-hall. London bridge was almost choked with the
wrecks of vessels that perished in the river. The loss sustained by
the capital was computed at a million sterling; and the city of Bristol
suffered to a prodigious amount; but the chief national damage fell upon
the navy. Thirteen ships of war were lost, together with fifteen hundred
seamen, including rear-admiral Beaumont, who had been employed in
observing the Dunkirk squadron, and was then at anchor in the Downs,
where his ship foundered. This great loss, however, was repaired with
incredible diligence, to the astonishment of all Europe. The queen
immediately issued orders for building a greater number of ships than
that which had been destroyed; and she exercised her bounty for the
relief of the shipwrecked seamen, and the widows of those who were
drowned, in such a manner as endeared her to all her subjects.
CHARLES KING OF SPAIN ARRIVES IN ENGLAND.
The emperor having declared his second son, Charles, king of Spain,
that young prince set out from Vienna to Holland, and at Dusseldorp was
visited by the duke of Marlborough, who, in the name of his mistress,
congratulated him upon his accession to the crown of Spain. Charles
received him with the most obliging courtesy. In the course of their
conversation, taking off his sword he presented it to the English
general, with a very gracious aspect, saying, in the French language,
“I am not ashamed to own myself a poor prince. I possess nothing but my
cloak and sword; the latter may be of use to your grace; and I hope
you will not think it the worse for my wearing it one day.”--“On the
contrary,” replied the duke, “it will always put me in mind of your
majesty’s just right and title, and of the obligations I lie under to
hazard my life in making you the greatest prince in Christendom.” This
nobleman returned to England in October and king Charles embarking for
the same kingdom, under convoy of an English and Dutch squadron, arrived
at Spithead on the twenty-sixth day of December. There he was received
by the dukes of Somerset and Marlborough, who conducted him to Windsor;
and on the road he was met by prince George of Denmark. The queen’s
deportment towards him was equally noble and obliging; and he expressed
the most profound respect and veneration for this illustrious princess.
He spoke but little; yet what he said was judicious; and he behaved
with such politeness and affability, as conciliated the affection of the
English nobility. After having been magnificently entertained for three
days, he returned to Portsmouth, from whence on the fourth of January he
sailed for Portugal, with a great fleet commanded by sir George Rooke,
having on board a body of land forces under the duke of Schomberg. When
the admiral had almost reached Cape Finisterre, he was driven back by
a storm to Spithead, where he was obliged to remain till the middle of
February. Then being favoured with a fair wind, he happily performed the
voyage to Lisbon, where king Charles was received with great splendour,
though the court of Portugal was overspread with sorrow excited by the
death of the infanta, whom the king of Spain intended to espouse. In
Poland all hope of peace seemed to vanish. The cardinal-primate, by
the instigation of the Swedish king, whose army lay encamped in the
neighbourhood of Dantzick, assembled a diet at Warsaw, which solemnly
deposed Augustus, and declared the throne vacant. Their intention was to
elect young Sobieski, son of their late monarch, who resided at Breslau
in Silesia: but their scheme was anticipated by Augustus, who retired
hastily into his Saxon dominions, and seizing Sobieski, with his
brother, secured them as prisoners at Dresden.
CHAPTER VIII.
_The Commons revive the Bill against occasional
Conformity..... Conspiracy trumped up by Simon Fraser, Lord
Lovat..... The Lords present a Remonstrance to the Queen.....
The Commons pass a Vote in favour of the Earl of
Nottingham..... Second Remonstrance of the Lords.....
Further Disputes between the two Houses..... The Queen
grants the first Fruits and the tenths to the poor
Clergy..... Inquiry into Naval Affairs..... Trial of
Lindsay..... Meeting of the Scottish Parliament..... Violent
Opposition to the Ministry in that Kingdom..... Their
Parliament pass the Act of Security..... Melancholy Situation
of the Emperor’s Affairs..... The duke of Marlborough
marches at the head of the Allied Army into Germany..... He
defeats the Bavarians at Schellenberg..... Fruitless
Negotiation with the Elector of Bavaria..... The
Confederates obtain a complete Victory at Hochstadt..... Siege
of Landau..... The Duke of Marlborough returns to
England..... State of the War in different parts of
Europe..... Campaign in Portugal..... Sir George Rooke takes
Gibraltar, and worsts the French Fleet in a Battle off
Malaga..... Session of Parliament in England..... An Act of
Alienation passed against the Scots..... Manor of Woodstock
granted to the Duke of Marlborough..... Disputes between the
two Houses on the Subject of the Aylesbury Constables.....
The Parliament dissolved..... Proceedings in the Parliament
of Scotland..... They pass an Act for a Treaty of Union with
England..... Difference between the Parliament and
Convocation in Ireland..... Fruitless Campaign on the
Moselle..... The Duke of Marlborough forces the French lines
in Brabant..... He is prevented by the Deputies of the States
from attacking the French Army..... He visits the Imperial
Court of Vienna..... State of the War on the Upper Rhine, in
Hungary, Piedmont, Portugal, and Poland..... Sir Thomas
Dilkes destroys part of the French Fleet, and relieves
Gibraltar..... The Earl of Peterborough and Sir Cloudesley
Shovel reduce Barcelona..... The Earl’s surprising Progress
in Spain..... New Parliament in England..... Bill for a
Regency in case of the Queen’s Decease..... Debates in the
House of Lords upon the supposed Danger to which the Church
was exposed..... The Parliament prorogued..... Disputes in
the Convocation..... Conferences opened for a Treaty of
Union with Scotland..... Substance of the Treaty._
BILL AGAINST OCCASIONAL CONFORMITY.
When the parliament met in October, the queen in her speech took notice
of the declaration by the duke of Savoy, and the treaty with Portugal,
as circumstances advantageous to the alliance. She told them, that
although no provision was made for the expedition to Lisbon, and the
augmentation of the land forces, the funds had answered so well, and the
produce of prizes been so considerable, that the public had not run in
debt by those additional services; that she had contributed out of her
own revenue to the support of the circle of Suabia, whose firm adherence
to the interest of the allies deserved her seasonable assistance. She
said, she would not engage in any unnecessary expense of her own, that
she might have the more to spare towards the ease of her subjects. She
recommended despatch and union, and earnestly exhorted them to avoid any
heats or divisions that might give encouragement to the common enemies
of the church and state. Notwithstanding this admonition, and the
addresses of both houses, in which they promised to avoid all divisions,
a motion was made in the house of commons for renewing the bill against
occasional conformity, and carried by a great majority. In the new
draft, however, the penalties were lowered and the severest clauses
mitigated. As the court no longer interested itself in the success of
this measure, the house was pretty equally divided with respect to the
speakers, and the debates on each side were maintained with equal spirit
and ability; at length it passed, and was sent up to the lords, who
handled it still more severely. It was opposed by a small majority of
the bishops, and particularly by Burnet of Sarum, who declaimed against
it as a scheme of the papists to set the church and protestants at
variance. It was successively attacked by the duke of Devonshire, the
earl of Pembroke, the lords Haversham, Mohun, Ferrars, and Wharton.
Prince George of Denmark absented himself from the house; and the
question being put for a second reading, it was carried in the negative;
yet the duke of Marlborough and lord Godolphin entered their dissent
against its being rejected, although the former had positively declared
that he thought the bill unseasonable. The commons having perused a copy
of the treaty with Portugal, voted forty thousand men, including five
thousand marines, for the sea service of the ensuing year; and a like
number of land forces, to act in conjunction with the allies, besides
the additional ten thousand: they likewise resolved, that the proportion
to be employed in Portugal should amount to eight thousand. Sums were
granted for the maintenance of these great armaments, as well as for the
subsidies payable to her majesty’s allies; and funds appointed equal
to the occasion. Then they assured the queen, in an address, that they
would provide for the support of such alliances as she had made, or
should make with the duke of Savoy.
CONSPIRACY OF SIMON FRASER, LORD LOVAT.
At this period the nation was alarmed by the detection of a conspiracy
said to be hatched by the Jacobites of Scotland. Simon Fraser, lord
Lovat, a man of desperate enterprise, profound dissimulation, abandoned
morals, and ruined fortune, who had been outlawed for having ravished a
sister of the marquis of Athol, was the person to whom the plot seems to
have owed its origin. He repaired to the court of St. Germain’s, where
he undertook to assemble a body of twelve thousand highlanders to act in
favour of the pretender, if the court of France would assist them with a
small reinforcement of troops, together with officers, arms, ammunition,
and money. The French king seemed to listen to the proposal; but
as Fraser’s character was infamous, he doubted his veracity. He was
therefore sent back to Scotland with two other persons, who were
instructed to learn the strength and sentiments of the clans,
and endeavour to engage some of the nobility in the design of an
insurrection. Fraser had no sooner returned, than he privately
discovered the whole transaction to the duke of Queensberry, and
undertook to make him acquainted with the whole correspondence between
the pretender and the Jacobites. In consequence of this service he was
provided with a pass, to secure him from all prosecution; and made
a progress through the highlands, to sound the inclination of the
chieftains. Before he set out on this circuit, he delivered to the
duke a letter from the queen dowager at St. Germain’s, directed to the
marquis of Athol: it was couched in general terms, and superscribed in a
different character; so that, in all probability, Fraser had forged the
direction with a view to ruin the marquis, who had prosecuted him for
the injury done to his sister. He proposed a second journey to France,
where he should be able to discover other more material circumstances;
and the duke of Queensberry procured a pass for him to go to Holland
from the earl of Nottingham, though it was expedited tinder a borrowed
name. The duke had communicated his discovery to the queen without
disclosing his name, which he desired might be concealed: her majesty
believed the particulars, which were confirmed by her spies at Paris,
as well as by the evidence of sir John Maclean, who had lately been
convoyed from France to England in an open boat, and apprehended at
Feldstone. This gentleman pretended at first that his intention was to
go through England to his own country, in order to take the benefit of
the queen’s pardon; and this in all probability was his real design;
but being given to understand that he would be treated in England as
a traitor, unless he should merit forgiveness by making important
discoveries, he related all he knew of the proposed insurrection. From
his informations the ministry gave directions for apprehending one
Keith, whose uncle had accompanied Fraser from France, and knew all the
intrigues of the court of St. Germain’s. He declared that there was no
other design on foot, except that of paving the way for the pretender’s
ascending the throne after the queen’s decease. Ferguson, that veteran
conspirator, affirmed that Fraser had been employed by the duke of
Queensberry to decoy some persons whom he hated into a conspiracy, that
he might have an opportunity to effect their ruin; and by the discovery
establish his own credit, which began to totter. Perhaps there was too
much reason for this imputation. Among those who were seized at
this time was a gentleman of the name of Lindsay, who had been
under-secretary to the earl of Middleton. He had returned from France to
Scotland in order to take the benefit of the queen’s pardon, under
the shelter of which he came to England, thinking himself secure from
prosecution. He protested he knew of no designs against the queen or her
government; and that he did not believe she would ever receive the least
injury or molestation from the court of St. Germain’s. The house of
lords having received intimation of this conspiracy, resolved, that
a committee should be appointed to examine into the particulars; and
ordered that sir John Maclean should be next day brought to their house.
The queen, who was far from being pleased with this instance of their
officious interposition, gave them to understand by message, that she
thought it would be inconvenient to change the method of examination
already begun; and that she would in a short time inform the house of
the whole affair. On the seventeenth day of December the queen went to
the house of peers, and having passed the bill for the land-tax, made a
speech to both houses, in which she declared that she had unquestionable
information of ill practices and designs carried on by the emissaries
of France in Scotland. The lords persisting in their resolution to
bring the inquiry into their own house, chose their select committee by
ballot; and, in an address, thanked her majesty for the information she
had been pleased to communicate.
{ANNE, 1701--1714}
A REMONSTRANCE PRESENTED TO THE QUEEN.
The commons, taking it for granted that the queen was disobliged at
these proceedings of the upper house--which indeed implied an insult
upon her ministry, if not upon herself--presented an address, declaring
themselves surprised to find that when persons suspected of treasonable
practices were taken into custody by her majesty’s messengers in order
to be examined, the lords, in violation to the known laws of the land,
had wrested them out of her hands, and arrogated the examination solely
to themselves; so that a due inquiry into the evil practices and designs
against her majesty’s person and government, might in a great measure be
obstructed. They earnestly desired that she would suffer no diminution
of the prerogative; and they assured her they would, to the utmost of
their power, support her in the exercise of it at home, as well as in
asserting it against all invasions whatsoever. The queen thanked them
for their concern and assurances; and was not ill pleased at the nature
of the address, though the charge against the peers was not strictly
true; for there were many instances of their having assumed such a
right of inquiry. The upper house deeply resented the accusation. They
declared, that by the known laws and customs of parliament, they had an
undoubted right to take examinations of persons charged with criminal
matters, whether those persons were or were not in custody. They
resolved, That the address of the commons was unparliamentary,
groundless, without precedent, highly injurious to the house of peers,
tending to interrupt the good correspondence between the two houses, to
create an ill opinion in her majesty of the house of peers, of dangerous
consequence to the liberties of the people, the constitution of
the kingdom, and privileges of parliament. They presented a long
remonstrance to the queen, justifying their own conduct, explaining the
steps they had taken, recriminating upon the commons, and expressing the
most fervent zeal, duty, and affection to her majesty. In her answer to
this representation, which was drawn up with elegance, propriety, and
precision, she professed her sorrow for the misunderstanding which had
happened between the two houses of parliament, and thanked them for
the concern they had expressed for the rights of the crown and the
prerogative; which she should never exert so willingly as for the good
of her subjects, and the protection of their liberties.
Among other persons seized on the coast of Sussex on their landing from
France, was one Boucher, who had been aidecamp to the duke of Berwick.
This man, when examined, denied all knowledge of any conspiracy: he
said, that being weary of living so long abroad, and having made some
unsuccessful attempts to obtain a pass, he had chosen rather to cast
himself on the queen’s mercy than to remain longer in exile from
his native country. He was tried and condemned for high treason, yet
continued to declare himself ignorant of the plot. He proved that in
the war of Ireland, as well as in Flanders, he had treated the English
prisoners with great humanity. The lords desisted from the prosecution;
he obtained a reprieve, and died in Newgate. On the twenty-ninth day
of January, the earl of Nottingham told the house that the queen
had commanded him to lay before them the papers containing all the
particulars hitherto discovered of the conspiracy in Scotland; but that
there was one circumstance which could not yet be properly communicated
without running the risk of preventing a discovery of greater
importance. They forthwith drew up and presented an address, desiring
that all the papers might be immediately submitted to their inspection.
The queen said she did not expect to be pressed in this manner
immediately after the declaration she had made; but in a few days the
earl of Nottingham delivered the papers, sealed, to the house, and all
the lords were summoned to attend on the eighth day of February, that
they might be opened and perused. Nottingham was suspected of a design
to stifle the conspiracy. Complaint was made in the house of commons
that he had discharged an officer belonging to the late king James, who
had been seized by the governor of Berwick. A warm debate ensued, and
at length ended in a resolve, That the earl of Nottingham, one of her
majesty’s principal secretaries of state, for his great ability and
diligence in the execution of his office, for his unquestionable
fidelity to the queen and her government, and for his steady adherence
to the church of England as by law established, highly merited the trust
her majesty had reposed in him. They ordered the speaker to present this
resolution to the queen, who said, she was glad to find them so well
satisfied with the earl of Nottingham, who was trusted by her in so
considerable an office. They perused the examinations of the witnesses
which were laid before them, without passing judgment or offering advice
on the subject; but they thanked her majesty for having communicated
those particulars, as well as for her wisdom and care of the nation.
When the lords proceeded with uncommon eagerness in their inquiry, the
lower house, in another address, renewed their complaints against the
conduct of the peers, which they still affirmed was without a precedent.
But this was the language of irritated faction, by which indeed
both sides were equally actuated. The select committee of the lords
prosecuted the inquiry, and founded their report chiefly on the
confession of sir John Maclean, who owned that the court of St.
Germain’s had listened to Lovat’s proposal; that several councils had
been held at the pretender’s court on the subject of an invasion; and
that persons were sent over to sound some of the nobility in Scotland.
But the nature of their private correspondence and negotiation could not
be discovered. Keith had tampered with his uncle to disclose the whole
secret; and this was the circumstance which the queen declined imparting
to the lords until she should know the success of his endeavours, which
proved ineffectual. The uncle stood aloof; and the ministry did not
heartily engage in the inquiry. The house of lords having finished these
examinations, and being warmed with violent debates, voted that there
had been dangerous plots between some persons in Scotland and the
courts of France and St. Germain’s; and that the encouragement for this
plotting arose from the not settling the succession to the crown of
Scotland in the house of Hanover. These votes were signified to the
queen in an address; and they promised, that when the succession should
be thus settled, they would endeavour to promote the union of the two
kingdoms upon just and reasonable terms. Then they composed another
representation in answer to the second address of the commons touching
their proceedings. They charged the lower house with want of zeal in
the whole progress of this inquiry. They produced a great number
of precedents to prove that their conduct had been regular and
parliamentary; and they, in their turn, accused the commons of
partiality and injustice in vacating legal elections. The queen, in
answer to this remonstrance, said, she looked upon any misunderstanding
between the two houses as a very great misfortune to the kingdom;
and that she should never omit anything in her power to prevent all
occasions of them for the future.
DISPUTES BETWEEN THE TWO HOUSES.
The lords and commons, animated by such opposite principles, seized
every opportunity of thwarting each other. An action having been brought
by one Matthew Ashby against William White and the other constables of
Aylesbury, for having denied him the privilege of voting in the last
election, the cause was tried at the assizes, and the constables were
cast with damages. But an order was given in the queen’s bench to quash
all the proceedings, since no action had ever been brought on that
account. The cause being moved by writ of error into the house of
lords, was argued with great warmth; at length it was carried by a great
majority, that the order of the queen’s bench should be set aside, and
judgment pronounced according to the verdict given at the assizes. The
commons considered these proceedings as encroaching on their privileges.
They passed five different resolutions, importing, That the commons
of England, in parliament assembled, had the sole right to examine and
determine all matters relating to the right of election of their own
members; that the practice of determining the qualifications of electors
in any court of law would expose all mayors, bailiffs, and returning
officers, to a multiplicity of vexatious suits and insupportable
expenses, and subject them to different and independent jurisdictions,
as well as to inconsistent determinations in the same case, without
relief; that Matthew Ashby was guilty of a breach of privilege, as
were all attorneys, solicitors, counsellors, and sergeants-at-law,
soliciting, prosecuting, or pleading, in any case of the same nature.
These resolutions, signed by the clerk, were fixed upon the gate of
Westminster-hall. On the other hand, the lords appointed a committee
to draw up a state of the case; and, upon their report, resolved, That
every person being wilfully hindered to exercise his right of voting,
might maintain an action in the queen’s courts against the officer by
whom his vote should be refused, to assert his right, and recover damage
for the injury; that an assertion to the contrary was destructive of
the property of the subjects, against the freedom of elections, and
manifestly tended to the encouragement of partiality and corruption;
that the declaring of Matthew Ashby guilty of a breach of privilege of
the house of commons, was an unprecedented attempt upon the judicature
of parliament, and an attempt to subject the law of England to the votes
of the house of commons. Copies of the case, and these resolutions, were
sent by the lord-keeper to all the sheriffs of England, to be circulated
through all the boroughs of their respective counties.
THE QUEEN’S BOUNTY to the POOR CLERGY.
On the seventh day of February, the queen ordered secretary Hedges
to tell the house of commons that she had remitted the arrears of
the tenths to the poor clergy; that she would grant her whole revenue
arising out of the first fruits and tenths, as far as it should become
free from incumbrance, as an augmentation of their maintenance; that if
the house of commons could find any method by which her intentions to
the poor clergy might be made more effectual, it would be an advantage
to the public, and acceptable to her majesty. The commons immediately
brought in a bill enabling her to alienate this branch of the revenue,
and create a corporation by charter, to direct the application of it to
the uses proposed; they likewise repealed the statute of mortmain, so
far as to allow all men to bequeath by will, or grant by deed, any sum
they should think fit to give towards the augmentation of benefices.
Addresses of thanks and acknowledgment from all the clergy of England
were presented to the queen for her gracious bounty; but very little
regard was paid to Burnet, bishop of Sarum, although the queen declared
that prelate author of the project. He was generally hated, either as a
Scot, a low-churchman, or a meddling partisan.
INQUIRY INTO NAVAL AFFAIRS.
In March, an inquiry into the condition of the navy was begun in the
house of lords. They desired the queen in an address to give speedy
and effectual orders that a number of ships, sufficient for the home
service, should be equipped and manned with all possible expedition.
They resolved, that admiral Graydon’s not attacking the four French
ships in the channel, had been a prejudice to the queen’s service, and
a disgrace to the nation; that his pressing men in Jamaica, and his
severity towards masters of merchant vessels and transports, had been
a great discouragement to the inhabitants of that island, as well as
prejudicial to her majesty’s service; and they presented an address
against him, in consequence of which he was dismissed. They examined
the accounts of the earl of Oxford, against which great clamour had been
raised; and taking cognizance of the remarks made by the commissioners
of the public accounts, found them false in fact, ill-grounded, and of
no importance. The commons besought the queen to order a prosecution on
account of ill practices in the earl of Ranelagh’s office; and they
sent up to the lords a bill for continuing the commission on the public
accounts. Some alterations were made in the upper house, especially in
the nomination of commissioners; but these were rejected by the commons.
The peers adhering to their amendments, the bill dropped, and the
commission expired. No other bill of any consequence passed in this
session, except an act for raising recruits, which empowered justices of
the peace to impress idle persons for soldiers and marines. On the third
day of April the queen went to the house of peers, and having made
a short speech on the usual topics of acknowledgment, unity, and
moderation, prorogued the parliament to the fourth day of July. The
division still continued between the two houses of convocation; so that
nothing of moment was transacted in that assembly, except their address
to the queen upon her granting the first fruits and tenths for the
augmentation of small benefices. At the same time, the lower house sent
their prolocutor with a deputation to wait upon the speaker of the house
of commons, to return their thanks to that honourable house for having
espoused the interest of the clergy; and to assure them that the
convocation would pursue such methods as might best conduce to the
support, honour, interest, and security of the church as now by
law established. They sent up to the archbishop and prelates divers
representations, containing complaints, and proposing canons and
articles of reformation; but very little regard was paid to their
remonstrances.
TRIAL OF LINDSAY.
About this period the earl of Nottingham, after having ineffectually
pressed the queen to discard the dukes of Somerset and Devonshire,
resigned the seals. The earl of Jersey and sir Edward Seymour were
dismissed; the earl of Kent was appointed chamberlain, Harley secretary
of state, and Henry St. John secretary of war. The discovery of the
Scottish conspiracy was no sooner known in France, than Louis ordered
Fraser to be imprisoned in the Bastile. In England, Lindsay being
sentenced to die for having corresponded with France, was given to
understand that he had no mercy to expect, unless he would discover
the conspiracy, He persisted in denying all knowledge of any such
conspiracy; and scorned to save his life by giving false information. In
order to intimidate him into a confession, the ministry ordered him
to be conveyed to Tyburn, where he still rejected life upon the terms
proposed; then he was carried back to Newgate, where he remained some
years; at length he was banished, and died of hunger in Holland. The
ministers had been so lukewarm and languid in the investigation of the
Scottish conspiracy, that the whigs loudly exclaimed against them as
disguised Jacobites, and even whispered insinuations, implying, that the
queen herself had a secret bias of sisterly affection for the court of
St. Germain’s. What seemed to confirm this allegation was the disgrace
of the duke of Queensberry, who had exerted himself with remarkable zeal
in the detection; but the decline of his interest in Scotland was the
real cause of his being laid aside at this juncture.
{1704}
THE SCOTTISH PARLIAMENT.
The design of the court was to procure in the Scottish parliament the
nomination of a successor to the crown, and a supply for the forces,
which could not be obtained in the preceding session. Secretary
Johnston, in concert with the marquis of Tweedale, undertook to carry
these points in return for certain limitations on the successor, to
which her majesty agreed. The marquis was appointed commissioner. The
office of lord-register was bestowed upon Johnston; and the parliament
met on the sixth day of July. The queen, in her letter, expressed her
concern that these divisions should have risen to such a height, as
to encourage the enemies of the nation to employ their emissaries for
debauching her good subjects from their allegiance. She declared her
resolution to grant whatever could in reason be demanded for quieting
the minds of the people. She told them she had empowered the marquis of
Tweedale to give unquestionable proofs of her determination to maintain
the government in church and state, as by law established in that
kingdom; to consent to such laws as should be found wanting for the
further security of both, and for preventing all encroachments for the
future. She earnestly exhorted them to settle the succession in the
protestant line, as a step absolutely necessary for their own peace and
happiness, the quiet and security of all her dominions, the reputation
of her affairs abroad, and the improvement of the protestant
interest through all Europe. She declared that she had authorized the
commissioners to give the royal assent to whatever could be reasonably
demanded, and was in her power to grant, for securing the sovereignty
and liberties of that her ancient kingdom. The remaining part of
the letter turned upon the necessity of their granting a supply, the
discouragement of vice, the encouragement of commerce, and the usual
recommendation of moderation and unanimity.
VIOLENT OPPOSITION TO THE MINISTRY.
The duke of Hamilton presented a resolve, that the parliament would not
name a successor to the crown, until the Scots should have concluded a
previous treaty with England in relation to commerce and other concerns.
This motion produced a warm debate, in the course of which Fletcher of
Saltoun expatiated upon the hardships and miseries which the Scots had
sustained since the union of the two crowns under one sovereign, and the
impossibility of bettering their condition, unless they should take
care to anticipate any design that tended to a continuation of the
same calamities. Another resolve was produced by the earl of Rothes,
importing, that the parliament should proceed to make such limitations
and conditions of the government as might be judged proper for
rectifying the constitution--for vindicating and securing the
sovereignty and independency of the nation; and that then parliament
would take into consideration the other resolve offered by the duke of
Hamilton, for a treaty previous to the nomination of a successor. This
proposal was seconded by the court party, and violent heats ensued. At
length sir James Falconer of Phesdo offered an expedient, which neither
party could refuse with any show of moderation. He suggested a resolve,
that the parliament would not proceed to the nomination of a successor
until the previous treaty with England should be discussed; and that it
would make the necessary limitations and conditions of government before
the successor should be nominated. This joint resolve being put to
the vote, was carried by a great majority. The treaty with England was
neglected, and the affair of the succession consequently postponed. The
duke of Athol moved, that her majesty should be desired to send down the
witnesses and all the papers relating to the conspiracy, that, after due
examination, those who were unjustly accused might be vindicated,
and the guilty punished according to their demerits. The commissioner
declared, that he had already written, and would write again to the
queen on that subject. The intention of the cavaliers was to convict
the duke of Queensberry of malice and calumny in the prosecution of that
affair, that they might wreak their vengeance upon him for that instance
of his animosity, as well as for his having deserted them in the former
session. He found means however to persuade the queen, that such an
inquiry would not only protract the session, but also divert them from
the settlement of the succession, and raise such a ferment as might be
productive of tragical consequences. Alarmed at these suggestions, she
resolved to prevent the examination, and gave no answer to the repeated
applications made by her parliament and ministers. Meanwhile the duke
of Queensberry appeased his enemies in Scotland, by directing all his
friends to join in the opposition.
THEY PASS THE ACT OF SECURITY.
The duke of Hamilton again moved, that the parliament should proceed to
the limitations, and name commissioners to treat with England previous
to all other business, except an act for a land tax of two months
necessary for the immediate subsistence of the forces. The earl of
Marchmont proposed an act to exclude all popish successors; but this was
warmly opposed, as unseasonable, by Hamilton and his party, A bill of
supply being offered by the lord justice Clerk, the cavaliers tacked to
it great part of the act of security, to which the royal assent had been
refused in the former session. Violent debates arose; so that the house
was filled with rage and tumult. The national spirit of independence
had been wrought up to a dangerous pitch of enthusiasm. The streets were
crowded with people of all ranks, exclaiming against English influence,
and threatening to sacrifice as traitors to their country all who
should embrace measures that seemed to favour a foreign interest. The
commissioner and his friends were confounded and appalled. Finding it
impossible to stem the torrent, he, with the concurrence of the other
ministers, wrote a letter to the queen, representing the uncomfortable
situation of affairs, and advising her majesty to pass the bill
encumbered as it was with the act of security. Lord Godolphin, on whose
council she chiefly relied, found himself involved in great perplexity.
The tories had devoted him to destruction. He foresaw that the queen’s
concession to the Scots in an affair of such consequence, would furnish
his enemies with a plausible pretence to arraign the conduct of her
minister; but he chose to run that risk rather than see the army
disbanded for want of a supply, and the kingdom left exposed to an
invasion. He therefore seconded the advice of the Scottish ministers;
and the queen authorized the commissioner to pass the bill that was
depending. The act provided, that in case of the queen’s dying without
issue a parliament should immediately meet and declare the successor to
the crown, different from the person possessing the throne of England,
unless before that period a settlement should be made in parliament of
the rights and liberties of the nation, independent of English councils;
by another clause they were empowered to arm and train the subjects, so
as to put them in a posture of defence. The Scottish parliament having,
by a laudable exertion of spirit, obtained this act of security, granted
the supply without further hesitation; but not yet satisfied with
this sacrifice, they engaged in debates about the conspiracy, and the
proceedings of the house of lords in England, which they termed an
officious intermeddling in their concerns, and an encroachment upon the
sovereignty and independency of the nation, They drew up an address to
the queen, desiring that the evidence and papers relating to the plot
might be subjected to their examination in the next session. Meanwhile,
the commissioner, dreading the further progress of such an ungovernable
ferocity, prorogued the parliament to the seventh day of October.
The act of security being transmitted to England, copies of it were
circulated by the enemies of Godolphin, who represented it as a
measure of that minister; and the kingdom was filled with murmurs and
discontent. People openly declared, that the two kingdoms were now
separated by law so as never to be rejoined. Reports were spread that
great quantities of arms had been conveyed to Scotland, and that the
natives were employed in preparations to invade England. All the blame
of these transactions was imputed to lord Godolphin, whom the tories
determined to attack, while the other party resolved to exert their
whole influence for his preservation; yet, in all probability, he
owed his immediate support to the success of his friend the duke of
Marlborough.
SITUATION OF THE EMPEROR’S AFFAIRS.
Nothing could be more deplorable than the situation to which the emperor
was reduced in the beginning of the season. The malcontents in Hungary
had rendered themselves formidable by their success; the elector of
Bavaria possessed all the places on the Danube as far as Passau, and
even threatened the city of Vienna, which must have been infallibly
lost, had the Hungarians and Bavarians acted in concert. By the advice
of prince Eugene, the emperor implored the assistance of her Britannic
majesty; and the duke of Marlborough explained to her the necessity
of undertaking his relief. This nobleman in the month of January had
crossed the sea to Holland, and concerted a scheme with the deputies
of the states-general for the operations of the ensuing campaign. They
agreed that general Averquerque should lie upon the defensive with a
small body of troops in the Netherlands, while the main army of the
allies should act upon the Rhine, under the command of the duke of
Marlborough. Such was the pretext under which this consummate general
concealed another plan, which was communicated to a few only in whose
discretion he could confide. It was approved by the pensionary and
some leading men, who secured its favourable reception with the
states-general when it became necessary to impart the secret to that
numerous assembly. In the meantime, the preparations were made on
pretence of carrying the war to the banks of the Moselle.
MARLBOROUGH MARCHES WITH THE ALLIED ARMY INTO GERMANY.
In the month of April, the duke, accompanied by his brother general
Churchill, lieutentant-general Lumley, the earl of Orkney, and other
officers of distinction, embarked for Holland, where he had a long
conference with a deputation of the states concerning a proposal of
sending a large army towards the Moselle. The deputies of Zealand
opposed this measure of sending their troops to such a distance so
strenuously, that the duke was obliged to tell them in plain terms
he had received orders to march thither with the British forces. He
accordingly assembled his army at Maestricht, and on the eight day of
May began his march into Germany. The French imagined his intention was
to begin the campaign with the siege of Traerbach, and penetrate into
France along the Moselle. In this persuasion they sent a detachment to
that river, and gave out that they intended to invest Huy, a pretence
to which the duke paid no regard. He continued his route by Bedburgh,
Kerpenord, Kalsecken; he visited the fortifications of Bonne, where he
received certain advice that the recruits and reinforcements for the
French army in Bavaria had joined the elector at Villigen. He redoubled
his diligence, passed the Neckar on the third of June, and halted at
Ladenburgh; from thence he wrote a letter to the states-general, giving
them to understand that he had the queen’s orders to march to the relief
of the empire, and expressing his hope that they would approve the
design, and allow their troops to share the honour of the expedition By
the return of a courier he received their approbation, and full power
to command their forces He then proceeded to Mildenheim, where he was
visited by prince Eugene; and these two great men, whose talents were
congenial, immediately contracted an intimacy of friendship, Next day
prince Louis of Baden arrived in the camp at Great Hippach, He told
the duke, his grace was come to save the empire, and to give him an
opportunity of vindicating his honour, which he knew was at the last
stake in the opinion of some people. The duke replied he was come to
learn of him how to serve the empire: that they must be ignorant indeed
who did not know that the prince of Baden, when his health permitted
him, had preserved the empire and extended its conquests.
Those three celebrated generals agreed that the two armies should join,
that the command should be alternately vested in the duke and prince
Louis from day to day, and that prince Eugene should command a separate
army on the Rhine, Prince Louis returned to his army on the Danube,
prince Eugene set out for Philipsburgh; the duke of Marlborough being
joined by the imperial army under prince Louis of Baden at Wastertellen,
prosecuted his march by Elchingen, Gingen, and Landthaussen. On
the first day of July he was in sight of the enemy’s entrenchments at
Dillingen, and encamped with his right at Amerdighem, and his left at
Onderin-gen. Understanding that the elector of Bavaria had detached the
best part of his infantry to reinforce the count D’Arco, who was posted
behind strong lines at Schellenberg near Donawert, he resolved to attack
their entrenchments without delay On the second day of July he advanced
towards the enemy, and passed the river Wermitz; about five o’clock in
the afternoon the attack was begun by the English and Dutch infantry,
supported by the horse and dragoons. They were very severely handled,
and even obliged to give way, when prince Louis of Baden marching up
at the head of the imperialists to another part of the line, made a
diversion in their favour. After an obstinate resistance they forced
the entrenchments, and the horse entering with the infantry, fell so
furiously upon the enemy, already disordered, that they were routed with
great slaughter. They fled with the utmost trepidation to Donawert and
the Danube, leaving six thousand men dead on the field of battle, The
confederates took sixteen pieces of cannon, thirteen pairs of colours,
with all the tents and baggage. Yet the victory was dearly purchased;
some thousands of the allies were slain in the attack, including many
gallant officers, among whom were the generals Goor and Beinheim,
and count Stirum was mortally wounded. Next day the Bavarian garrison
abandoned Donawert, of which the confederates took immediate possession,
while the elector passed the Danube in his march to the river Leche,
lest the victors should cut off his retreat to his own country. The
confederates having crossed the Danube on several bridges of pontoons,
a detachment was sent to pass the Leche, and take post in the country of
the elector, who had retired under the cannon of Augsburgh. The garrison
of Neuburgh retiring to Ingoldstadt, the place was secured by the
confederates, and the count de Frize was detached with nine battalions
and fifteen squadrons to invest the town of Rain. Advice arriving from
prince Eugene that the mareschals Villeroy and Tallard had passed the
Rhine at Fort Kehl, with an army of five-and-forty thousand men, to
succour the elector of Bavaria, the generals of the allies immediately
detached prince Maximilian of Hanover with thirty squadrons of horse as
a reinforcement to the prince. In a few days Rain surrendered, and Aicha
was taken by assault. The emperor no sooner received a confirmation of
the victory of Schellenberg, than he wrote a letter of acknowledgment
to the duke of Marlborough, and ordered count Wratislau to intimate his
intention of investing him with the title of prince of the empire, which
the duke declined accepting until the queen interposed her authority at
the desire of Leopold.
{ANNE, 1701--1714}
FRUITLESS NEGOTIATION WITH THE ELECTOR.
The allies advanced within a league of Augsburgh, and though they found
the elector of Bavaria too securely posted under the cannon of that city
to be dislodged or attacked with any prospect of success, they encamped
with Friedburgh in the centre, so as to cut off all communication
between him and his dominions. The duke of Marlborough having reduced
him to this situation, proposed very advantageous terms of peace,
provided he would abandon the French interest, and join the imperialists
in Italy. His subjects seeing themselves at the mercy of the allies,
pressed him to comply with these offers rather than expose his country
to ruin and desolation. A negotiation was begun, and he seemed ready to
sign the articles, when hearing that mareschal Tallard had passed the
Black Forest to join him with a great body of forces, he declared that
since the king of France had made such powerful efforts to support him,
he thought himself obliged in honour to continue firm in his alliance.
The generals of the allies were so exasperated at this disappointment,
that they sent out detachments to ravage the country of Bavaria as far
as Munich: upwards of three hundred towns, villages, and castles were
inhumanly destroyed, to the indelible disgrace of those who countenanced
and conducted such barbarbous practices. The elector, shocked at these
brutal proceedings, desired, in a letter to the duke of Marlborough,
that a stop might be put to acts of violence so opposite to true glory.
The answer he received implied, that it was in his own power to put
an end to them by a speedy accommodation. Incensed at this reply, he
declared that since they had obliged him to draw the sword, he
would throw away the scabbard. The duke and prince Louis finding it
impracticable to attack the elector in his strong camp, resolved to
undertake the siege of Ingoldstadt, and for that purpose passed the Paer
near the town of Schrobbenhausen, where they encamped, with their left
at Closterburgh. On the fifth day of August the elector of Bavaria
marched to Biberach, where he was joined by Tallard. He resolved to pass
the Danube at Lawingen to attack prince Eugene, who had followed the
French army from the lines of Bichi, and lay encamped at Hochstadt.
Next day, however, he made a motion that disappointed the enemy.
Nevertheless, they persisted in their design of passing the Danube and
encamping at Blenheim. The allies resolved that prince Louis should
undertake the siege of Ingoldstadt, whilst prince Eugene and the duke
should observe the elector of Bavaria. Advice being received that he had
actually crossed the Danube at Lawingen, the duke of Marlborough joined
the forces of prince Eugene at the camp of Munster on the eleventh day
of August, prince Louis having by this time marched off towards the
place he intended to besiege. Next day the duke of Marlborough and
prince Eugene observed the posture of the enemy, who were advantageously
posted on a hill near Hochstadt, their right being covered by the Danube
and the village of Blenheim, their left by the village of Lutzengen, and
their front by a rivulet, the banks of which were steep, and the bottom
marshy.
THE CONFEDERATES OBTAIN A COMPLETE VICTORY AT HOCHSTADT.
Notwithstanding these difficulties, the generals resolved to attack them
immediately, rather than lie inactive until their forage and provisions
should be consumed. They were moreover stimulated to this hazardous
enterprise by an intercepted letter to the elector of Bavaria, from
mareschal Villeroy, giving him to understand that he had received orders
to ravage the country of Wirtem-berg, and intercept all communication
between the Rhine and the allied army. The dispositions being made for
the attack, and the orders communicated to the general officers, the
forces advanced into the plain on the thirteenth day of August, and
were ranged in order of battle. The cannonading began about nine in
the morning, and continued on both sides till one in the afternoon. The
French and Bavarians amounted to about sixty thousand men, Mareschal
Tallard commanded on the right, and posted twenty-seven battalions, with
twelve squadrons, in the village of Blenheim, supposing that there the
allies would make their chief effort: their left was conducted by the
elector of Bavaria, assisted by Marsin, a French general of experience
and capacity. The number of the confederates did not exceed fifty-five
thousand: their right was under the direction of prince Eugene, and
their left commanded by the duke of Marlborough. At noon the battle was
begun by a body of English and Hessians under major-general Wilkes, who
having passed the rivulet with difficulty, and filed off to the left
in the face of the enemy, attacked the village of Blenheim with great
vigour; but were repulsed after three successive attempts. Meanwhile the
troops in the centre, and part of the right wing, passed the rivulet
on planks in different places, and formed on the other side without any
molestation from the enemy. At length, however, they were charged by the
French horse with such impetuosity, and so terribly galled in flank by
the troops posted at Blenheim, that they fell in disorder, and part of
them repassed the rivulet; but a reinforcement of dragoons coming up,
the French cavalry were broke in their turn, and driven to the very
hedges of the village of Blenheim. The left wing of the confederates
being now completely formed, ascended the hill in a firm compacted body,
charged the enemy’s horse, which could no longer stand their ground,
but rallied several times as they gave way. Tallard, in order to make a
vigorous effort, ordered ten battalions to fill up the intervals of his
cavalry. The duke, perceiving his design, sent three battalions of the
troops of Zell to sustain his horse. Nevertheless, the line was a little
disordered by the prodigious fire from the French infantry, and even
obliged to recoil about sixty paces: but the confederates advancing to
the charge with redoubled ardour, routed the French horse; and their
battalions being thus abandoned, were cut in pieces. Tallard, having
rallied his broken cavalry behind some tents that were still standing,
resolved to draw off the troops he had posted in the village of
Blenheim, and sent an aidecamp to Marsdin, who was with the elector of
Bavaria on the left, to desire he would face the confederates with some
troops to the right of the village of Oberklau, so as to keep them in
play, and favour the retreat of the forces from Blenheim. That officer
assured him he was so far from being in a condition to spare troops,
that he could hardly maintain his ground. The fate of the day was now
more than half decided. The French cavalry being vigorously attacked
in flank, were totally defeated. Part of them endeavoured to gain the
bridge which they had thrown over the Danube between Hochstadt and
Blenheim, but they were so closely pursued, that those who escaped the
slaughter threw themselves into the river, where they perished. Tallard,
being surrounded, was taken near a mill behind the village of Sonderen,
together with the marquis de Montperouz, general of horse, the
major-generals de Seppeville, de Silly, de la Valiere, and many other
officers of distinction. While these occurrences passed on the loft
wing, Marsin’s quarters at the village of Oberklau, in the centre, were
attacked by ten battalions under the prince of Holsteinbeck, who passed
the rivulet with undaunted resolution; but before he could form his men
on the other side, he was overpowered by numbers, mortally wounded,
and taken prisoner. His battalions being supported by some Danish and
Hanoverian cavalry, renewed the charge, and were again repulsed: at
length the duke of Marlborough in person brought up some fresh squadrons
from the body of reserve, and compelled the enemy to retire. By this
time prince Eugene had obliged the left wing of the enemy to give
ground, after having surmounted a great number of difficulties,
sustained a very obstinate opposition, and seen his cavalry, in which
his chief strength seemed to lie, three times repulsed. The duke of
Marlborough had no sooner defeated the right wing, than he made a
disposition to reinforce the prince, when he understood from an aidecamp
that his highness had no occasion for assistance; and that the elector,
with monsieur de Mar-sin, had abandoned Oberklau and Luteingen. They
were pursued as far as the villages of Morselingen and Teissenhoven,
from whence they retreated to Dillingen and Lawingen. The confederates
being now masters of the field of battle, surrounded the village of
Blenheim, in which, as we have already observed, twenty-seven battalions
and twelve squadrons were posted. These troops seeing themselves cut off
from all communication with the rest of their army, and despairing of
being able to force their way through the allies, capitulated about
eight in the evening, laid down their arms, delivered their colours and
standards, and surrendered themselves prisoners of war, on condition
that the officers should not be rifled. This was one of the most
glorious and complete victories that ever was obtained. Ten thousand
French and Bavarians were left dead on the field of battle: the greater
part of thirty squadrons of horse and dragoons perished in the river
Danube: thirteen thousand were made prisoners: one hundred pieces of
cannon were taken, with twenty-four mortars, one hundred and twenty-nine
colours, one hundred and seventy-one standards, seventeen pair of
kettle-drums, three thousand six hundred tents, thirty-four coaches,
three hundred laden mules, two bridges of boats, fifteen pontoons,
fifteen barrels and eight casks filled with silver. Of the allies, about
four thousand five hundred men were killed, and about eight thousand
wounded or taken. The loss of the battle was imputed to two capital
errors committed by Tallard; namely, his weakening the centre by
detaching such a number of troops to the village of Blenheim, and his
suffering the confederates to pass the rivulet, and form unmolested.
Certain it is, these circumstances contributed to the success of the
duke of Marlborough, who rode through the hottest of the fire with the
calmest intrepidity, giving his orders with that presence of mind and
deliberation which were so peculiar to his character. When he next day
visited Tallard, he told that general he was sorry such a misfortune
should happen personally to one for whom he had a profound esteem. The
mareschal congratulated him on having vanquished the best troops in the
world; a compliment to which the duke replied, that he thought his own
the best troops in the world, seeing they had conquered those upon whom
the mareschal had bestowed such an encomium.
SIEGE OF LANDAU.
The victorious generals having by this decisive stroke saved the house
of Austria from entire ruin, and entirely changed the face of affairs
in the empire, signified their opinion to prince Louis of Baden, that it
would be for the advantage of the common cause to join all their forces
and drive the French out of Germany, rather than lose time at the
siege of Ingoldstadt, which would surrender of course. This opinion was
confirmed by the conduct of the French garrison at Augsburg, who quitted
that place on the sixteenth day of August. The magistrates sent a
deputation, craving the protection of the duke of Marlborough, who
forthwith ordered a detachment to take possession of that important
city. The duke having sent mareschal de Tallard under a guard
of dragoons to Frankfort, and disposed of the other prisoners of
distinction in the adjacent places, encamped at Sefillingen, within half
a league of Ulm. Here he held a conference with the princes Eugene
and Louis of Baden, in which they agreed that, as the enemy retreated
towards the Bhine, the confederate army should take the same rout,
excepting three-and-twenty battalions and some squadrons to be left for
the siege of Ulm, under general Thungen. They began their march on
the twenty-sixth day of August, by different routes, to the general
rendezvous at Bruschal near Philipsburgh. Then they resolved that prince
Louis of Baden should undertake the siege of Landau, in order to secure
the circle of Suabia from the incursions of that garrison. Considering
the consternation that prevailed all over France, nothing could be more
impolitic than this measure, which gave the enemy time for recollection,
and recruiting their forces. It was a proposal on which the prince
of Baden insisted with uncommon obstinacy. He was even suspected of
corruption: he was jealous of the glory which the duke of Marlborough
had acquired, and such a bigoted papist, that he repined at the
success of an heretical general. On the twelfth day of September he
marched towards Landau with the troops destined for the siege; and the
duke of Marlborough, with prince Eugene, encamped at Croon Weissenburgh
to cover the enterprise. By this time Ulm had surrendered to Thungen,
even before the trenches were opened. Villeroy advanced with his army
towards Landau, as if he had intended to attack the confederates; but
retired without having made any attempt for the relief of the place,
which was defended with the most obstinate valour till the twenty-third
day of November, when the besiegers having lodged themselves on the
counterscarp, the breaches being practicable, and the dispositions
made for a general assault, the garrison capitulated upon honourable
conditions. The king of the Romans had arrived in the camp, that he
might have the credit of taking the place, the command of which he
bestowed on the count de Frize, who had before defended it with equal
courage and ability.
MARLBOROUGH RETURNS TO ENGLAND.
The next enterprise which the confederates undertook was the siege of
Traerbach. The hereditary prince of Hesse-Cassel, being intrusted with
the direction of the attacks, invested the castle in the beginning of
November. Though it was strongly fortified and well defended, he carried
on his operations with such spirit and assiduity, that in about six
weeks the garrison surrendered the place on honourable terms. In the
meantime the duke of Marlborough repaired to Berlin, where he negotiated
for a reinforcement of eight thousand Prussians, to serve under prince
Eugene in Italy during the next campaign. Thence he proceeded to the
court of Hanover, where, as in all other places, he was received with
particular marks of distinction. When he arrived at the Hague, he was
congratulated by the states-general on his victories at Schellenberg and
Blenheim, and as much considered in Holland as if he had been actually
stadt-holder. He had received a second letter from the emperor couched
in the warmest terms of acknowledgment, and was declared prince of the
empire. In December he embarked for England, where he found the people
in a transport of joy, and was welcomed as a hero who had retrieved the
glory of the nation.
STATE OF THE WAR IN EUROPE.
In Flanders nothing of moment was executed, except the bombardment of
Bruges and Namur by baron Spaar, with nine thousand Dutch troops; and
two attempts upon the French lines, which were actually penetrated by
Auverquerque, though he was not able to maintain the footing he had
gained. The elector of Bavaria, who had retired to Brussels after his
defeat, formed a scheme for surprising the Dutch general at the end of
the campaign, and assembled all his troops at Tirlemont: but the French
court, apprehensive of his temerity, sent Villeroy to watch his conduct,
and prevent his hazarding an engagement, except with a fair prospect of
advantage. The mareschal finding him determined to give battle at all
events, represented the improbability of succeeding against an enemy
so advantageously posted; and the ill consequences of a repulse: but
finding the elector deaf to all his remonstrances, he flatly refused to
march, and produced the king’s order to avoid an engagement. In Italy
the French met with no opposition. The duke of Savoy, being unable to
face the enemy in the field, was obliged to lie inactive. He saw the
duke de Vendome reduce Vercelli and Ivrea, and undertake the siege of
Verac; while he posted his little army on the other side of the Po, at
Crescentino, where he had a bridge of communication by which he supplied
the place occasionally with fresh troops and provisions. The place
held out five months against all the efforts of the French general: at
length, the communication being cut off, the duke of Savoy retired to
Chivas. He bore his misfortunes with great equanimity, and told the
English minister that though he was abandoned by the allies, he would
never abandon himself. The emperor had neglected Italy that he might act
with more vigour against Ragotzki and the Hungarian malcontents,
over whom he obtained several advantages; notwithstanding which they
continued formidable, from their number, bravery, and resolution. The
ministers of the allies pressed Leopold to enter into a negotiation for
a peace with those rebels, and conferences were opened; but he was
not sincerely disposed to an accommodation, and Ragotzki aimed at the
principality of Transylvania, which the court of Vienna would not easily
relinquish. The emperor was not a little alarmed by a revolution at the
Ottoman porte, until the new sultan despatched a chiaus to Vienna, with
an assurance that he would give no assistance to the malcontents of
Hungary. In Poland, the diet being assembled by the cardinal-primate,
Stanislaus Lezinski, palatine of Posnania, was elected and proclaimed
king, and recognised by Charles of Sweden, who still maintained his army
by contributions in that country, more intent upon the ruin of Augustus
than upon the preservation of his own dominions; for he paid no regard
to the progress of the Muscovites, who had ravaged Livonia, reduced
Narva, and made incursions into Sweden. Augustus retreated into his
Saxon dominions, which he impoverished in order to raise a great army
with which he might return to Poland; the pope espoused the interest of
this new convert, so far as to cite the cardinal-primate to appear at
Rome, and give an account of the share he had in the Polish troubles.
The protestants of the Cevennois, deriving courage from despair, became
so troublesome to the government of France, that Louis was obliged to
treat them with lenity: he sent mareschal Villars against them with
a fresh reinforcement, but at the same time furnished him with
instructions to treat for an accommodation. This officer immediately
commenced a negotiation with Cavalier, the chief of the revolters; and a
formal treaty was concluded, by which they were indulged with liberty
of conscience: but these articles were very ill observed by the French
ministry.
CAMPAIGN IN PORTUGAL.
In Portugal, the interest of king Charles wore a very melancholy aspect.
When he arrived at Lisbon, he found no preparations made for opening
the campaign. The Portuguese ministry favoured the French in secret; the
people were averse to heretics; the duke of Schom-berg was on ill terms
with Fagel, the Dutch general; the Portuguese forces consisted of raw
undisciplined peasants; and the French ambassador had bought up the
best horses in the kingdom; so that the troopers could not be properly
mounted. The king of Portugal had promised to enter Spain with Charles
by the middle of May; but he was not ready till the beginning of June,
when they reached Santaran. By this time they had published their
respective manifestoes; Charles displaying his title to the crown of
Spain, and promising pardon to all his subjects who would in three
months join his army; and the king of Portugal declaring, that his sole
aim in taking up arms was to restore liberty to the Spanish nation,
oppressed by the power of France, as Avell as to assert the right of
Charles to that monarchy. The present possessor, whom they mentioned by
the name of the duke of Anjou, had already anticipated their invasion.
His general, the duke of Berwick, entering Portugal, took the town
of Segura by stratagem. The governor of Salvaterra surrendered at
discretion; Cebreros was reduced without much opposition; Zode-bre was
abandoned by the inhabitants; and the town of Lhana la Viella was taken
by assault. Portugal was at the same time invaded in different parts by
the marquis de Jeoffreville, prince Tserclas de Tilly, and the marquis
de Villadarias. Two Dutch battalions were attacked and taken by the duke
of Berwick at Sodreira Formosa. Then he passed the Tagus, and joined
prince Tserclas. King Philip arriving in the army, invested Portalegre;
and the garrison, including an English regiment of foot commanded by
colonel Stanhope, were made prisoners of war. The next place he besieged
was Castel Davide, which met with the same fate. On the other hand,
the marquis Das Minas, in order to make a diversion, entered Spain
with fifteen thousand men, took Feuenta Grimaldo in Castile, by assault,
defeated a body of French and Spaniards commanded by Don Ronquillo, and
made himself master of Manseinto. The weather growing excessively hot,
Philip sent his troops into quarters of refreshment; and the allies
followed his example. Duke Schomberg finding his advice very little
regarded by the Portuguese ministry, and seeing very little prospect of
success, desired leave to resign his command, which the queen bestowed
upon the earl of Galway, who, with a reinforcement of English and Dutch
troops, arrived at Lisbon on the thirtieth day of July. About the latter
end of September, the two kings repaired to the camp near Almeida,
resolving to invade Castile; but they found the river Aguada so well
guarded by the duke of Benvick, that they would not attempt a passage.
They therefore retired into the territories of Portugal, and the army
was put into winter quarters. The Spaniards were now so weakened by
detachments sent with the marquis de Villadarias towards Gibraltar, that
the duke of Berwick could not execute any scheme of importance during
the remaining part of the campaign.
SIR GEORGE KOOKE TAKES GIBRALTAR.
The arms of England were not less fortunate by sea than they had been
upon the Danube. Sir George Rooke having landed king Charles at Lisbon,
sent a squadron to cruise off Cape Spartell, under the command of rear
admiral Dilkes, who on the twelfth of March, engaged and took three
Spanish ships of war, bound from St. Sebastian’s to Cadiz. Rooke
received orders from the queen to sail to the relief of Nice and Villa
Franca, which were threatened with a siege by the duke de Vendôme; at
the same time he was pressed by king Charles to execute a scheme upon
Barcelona, projected by the prince of Hesse d’Armstadt, who declared his
opinion, that the Catalonians would declare for the house of Austria,
as soon as they should be assured of proper support and protection.
The ministry of England understanding that the French were employed in
equipping a strong squadron at Brest, and judging it was destined to act
in the Mediterranean, sent out sir Cloudesley Shovel with a considerable
fleet, to watch the motions of the Brest squadron; and he was provided
with instructions how to act, in case it should be sailed to the
Mediterranean. Meanwhile, sir George Rooke, in compliance with the
entreaties of King Charles, sailed with the transports under his convoy
to Barcelona, and on the eighteenth of May appeared before the city.
Next day the troops were landed by the prince of Hesse, to the number
of two thousand, and the Dutch ketches bombarded the place; but by this
time the governor had secured the chiefs of the Austrian party; and the
people exhibiting no marks of attachment to king Charles, the prince
re-embarked his soldiers, from an apprehension of their being attacked
and overpowered by superior numbers. On the sixteenth day of June, sir
George Rooke, being joined by sir Cloudesley Shovel, resolved to proceed
up the Mediterranean in quest of the French fleet, which had sailed
thither from Brest, and which Rooke had actually discovered, in the
preceding month, on their voyage to Toulon. On the seventeenth day of
July the admiral called a council of war in the road of Tetuan, when
they resolved to make an attempt upon Gibraltar, which was but slenderly
provided with a garrison. Thither they sailed, and on the twenty-first
day of the month the prince of Hesse landed on the isthmus with eighteen
hundred marines; then he summoned the governor to surrender, and was
answered, that the place would be defended to the last extremity. Next
day the admiral gave orders for cannonading the town; perceiving that
the enemy were driven from their fortifications at the south mole-head,
he commanded captain Whi-taker to arm all the boats, and assault that
quarter. The captains Hicks and Juniper, who happened to be nearest the
mole, immediately manned their pinnaces, and entered the fortifications
sword in hand. The Spaniards sprung a mine, by which two lieutenants,
and about a hundred men were killed or wounded. Nevertheless, the two
captains took possession of a platform, and kept their ground until they
were sustained by captain Whi-taker, and the rest of the seamen, who
took by storm a redoubt between the mole and the town. Then the governor
capitulated; and the prince of Hesse entered the place, amazed at the
success of this attempt, considering the strength of the fortifications,
which might have been defended by fifty men against a numerous army.
A sufficient garrison being left with his highness, the admiral returned
to Tetuan to take in wood and Water; and when he sailed, on the ninth
day of August, he descried the French fleet, to which he gave chase with
all the sail he could spread. On the thirteenth he came up with it,
as it lay in a line off Malaga ready to receive him, to the number
of two-and-fifty great ships, and four-and-twenty galleys, under the
command of the count de Tholouse, high-admiral of France, with the
inferior flags of the white and blue divisions. The English fleet
consisted of three-and-fifty ships of the line, exclusive of frigates,
but they were inferior to the French in number of guns and men, as well
as in weight of metal, and altogether unprovided with galleys, from
which the enemy reaped great advantage during the engagement. A little
after ten in the morning the battle began, with equal fury on both
sides, and continued to rage with doubtful success till two in the
afternoon, when the van of the French gave way; nevertheless, the fight
was maintained till night, when the enemy bore away to leeward. The wind
shifting before morning, the French gained the weather-gage; but they
made no use of this advantage; for two successive days the English
admiral endeavoured to renew the engagement, which the count de Tholouse
declined, and at last he disappeared. The loss was pretty equal on both
sides, though not a single ship was taken or destroyed by either; but
the honour of the day certainly remained with the English. Over and
above the disadvantages we have enumerated, the bottoms of the British
fleet were foul, and several large ships had expended all their shot
long before the battle ceased; yet the enemy were so roughly handled,
that they did not venture another engagement during the whole war.
The French king, in order to raise the drooping spirits of his people,
claimed the victory, and published an account of the action, which, at
this distance of time, plainly proves that he was reduced to the
mean shift of imposing upon his subjects, by false and partial
representations. Among other exaggerations in this detail, we find
mention made of mischief done to French ships by English bombs; though
nothing is more certain than that there was not one bomb vessel in the
combined fleet. The French academy, actuated by a servile spirit of
adulation, caused a medal to be struck on the occasion, which, instead
of perpetuating the glory of their prince, served only to transmit their
own shame to posterity. After the battle, sir George Rooke sailed to
Gibraltar to refit, and leaving a squadron with sir John Leake, set sail
for England on the twenty-fourth day of August. He arrived in September,
and was received by the ministry, and the people in general, with those
marks of esteem and veneration which were due to his long services and
signal success; but he was still persecuted with a spirit of envy and
detraction. Philip king of Spain, alarmed at the reduction of Gibraltar,
sent the marquis de Villadarias with an army to retake it. The siege
lasted four months, during which the prince of Hesse exhibited many
shining proofs of courage and ability. The place was supplied with men
and provisions by convoys from Lisbon, until monsieur de Pointis put a
stop to that communication, by entering the bay with a strong squadron;
but he was obliged to retire at the approach of sir John Leake and
admiral Vanderdussen; and the marquis de Villadarias, having made
little or no progress on land, thought proper to abandon the enterprise.
SESSION OF PARLIAMENT IN ENGLAND.
The parliament of England meeting on the twenty-ninth day of October,
the queen in her speech, observed, that the great and remarkable
success with which God had blessed her arms, produced unanimous joy
and satisfaction through all parts of the kingdom; and that a timely
improvement of the present advantages would enable her to procure a
lasting foundation of security for England, as well as a firm support
for the liberty of Europe. She declared her intention was to be kind and
indulgent to all her subjects. She expressed her hope that they would do
nothing to endanger the loss of this opportunity; and that there would
be no contention among them, but an emulation to promote the public
welfare. Congratulatory addresses were voted and presented by both
houses. They were equal in their professions of duty and affection to
the queen; but the addresses imbibed a very different colour from the
different sanctions by which the two houses were influenced. The lords
congratulated her on the great and glorious success of her arms under
the command of the duke of Marlborough, without deigning to mention sir
George Rooke, who had defeated the French navy at sea, and added the
important fortress of Gibraltar to the British conquests. On the other
hand, the commons affected to mention the battle of Blenheim, and
Rooke’s naval victory, as events of equal glory and importance. However
they might be warped by prejudice against individuals, they did not
suffer the war to languish for want of supplies. Having taken into
consideration the services of the army and navy, they voted that the
queen should be desired to bestow her bounty on the seamen and land
forces who had behaved themselves so gallantly. Then they deliberated
upon the different articles of national expense, and granted four
millions six hundred and seventy thousand nine hundred and thirty-one
pounds, for the occasion’s of the ensuing year, to be raised by a land
tax, by the sale of annuities, and other expedients. These measures were
taken with such expedition, that the land tax received the royal assent
on the ninth day of December; when the queen, in a short speech, thanked
the commons for their despatch, which she considered a sure pledge of
their affection.
AN ACT OF ALIENATION PASSED.
The high church party took this occasion to promote the bill against
occasional conformity, which was revived and brought into the house in
a new model by Mr. William Bromley, who moved that it might be tacked to
the land-tax bill, and sent up to the lords for their concurrence.
The court no longer espoused this measure, and the violent party was
weakened by defection. After a warm and tedious debate, the tack was
rejected by a great majority. The bill, however, passed the house of
commons, and was sent up to the lords on the fourteenth day of December,
when it would hardly have excited a debate had not the queen been
present, and desirous of hearing what could be said on both sides of
the question. For the information and satisfaction of her majesty the
subject was again discussed, and all the arguments being repeated,
the bill was rejected by a majority of one-and-twenty voices. The next
subject on which the house of lords employed their attention, was the
late conduct of the Scottish parliament. The lord Haversham, in a set
speech, observed, that the settlement of the succession in Scotland had
been postponed, partly because the ministry for that kingdom were weak
and divided; partly from a received opinion that the succession was
never sincerely and cordially intended by those who managed the
affairs of Scotland in the cabinet-council. He expatiated on the bad
consequences that might attend the act of security, which he styled a
bill of exclusion, and particularly mentioned that clause by which the
heritors and boroughs were ordained to exercise their fencible men every
month. He said the nobility and gentry of Scotland were as learned and
brave as any nation in Europe, and generally discontented: that the
common people were very numerous, very stout, and very poor; and he
asked who was the man that could tell what such a multitude, so armed,
and so disciplined, might do under such leaders could opportunities suit
their intention. He recommended these circumstances to the consideration
of the house, and concluded with these words of Lord Bacon, “Let men
beware how they neglect or suffer matter of troubles to be prepared,
for no man can forbid the sparks that may set all on fire.” The lords
resolved to consider these subjects on the twenty-ninth day of November,
when the queen repaired to the house of peers to hear the debates,
and by her presence moderate the heat of both parties. The earl of
Nottingham reflected so severely on the memory of king William, that he
would have been sent to the Tower, had not the lords declined any such
motion out of respect to her majesty. After much declamation on the
Scottish act of security, the grand committee of the peers, by the
advice of lord Wharton, resolved that the queen should be enabled by
act of parliament on the part of England, to name commissioners to treat
about an union with Scotland, provided that the parliament of Scotland
should first appoint commissioners on their part for the same purpose;
that no Scotsmen should enjoy the privileges of Englishmen, except such
as were settled in England, Ireland, and the plantations, and such as
were or might be in the sea or land service, until an union could be
effected, or the succession settled as in England: that the traffic
by cattle from Scotland to England should be prevented: that the lord
admiral should issue orders for taking such vessels as should be found
trading from Scotland to France, or to the ports of any of her majesty’s
enemies: and that care should be taken to prevent the exportation of
English wool into Scotland. On these resolutions a bill was formed for
an entire union, and passed the house on the twentieth day of December.
The lords presented an address to the queen, representing that they had
duly weighed the dangerous and pernicious effects that were likely to
be produced by divers acts of parliament lately passed in Scotland: that
they were of opinion the safety of the kingdom required that speedy
and effectual orders should be given to put Newcastle in a posture of
defence, to secure the port of Tynemouth, and repair the fortifications
of Hull and Carlisle. They likewise advised her majesty to give
directions for disciplining the militia of the four northern counties;
for providing them with arms and ammunition; for maintaining a competent
number of regular troops on the northern borders of England, as well as
in the north of Ireland; and for putting the laws in execution against
papists. The queen promised that a survey should be made of the places
they had mentioned, and laid before parliament, and that she would give
the necessary directions upon the other articles of the address. The
commons seemed to concur with the lords in their sentiments of the
Scottish act of security. They resolved that a bill should be brought
in for the effectual securing the kingdom of England from the apparent
dangers that might arise from several acts lately passed in the
parliament of Scotland, and this was formed on nearly the same
resolutions which had been taken in the upper house. The bill sent down
by the lords was thrice read, and ordered to lie on the table, but they
passed their own, to take effect at Christmas, provided before that time
the Scots should not settle the succession. When it was offered to the
lords they passed it without any amendment, contrary to the expectation
and even to the hope of some members who were no friends to the house of
Hanover, and firmly believed the lords would have treated this bill with
the same contempt which had been manifested for that which they had sent
down to the commons.
The duke of Marlborough, at his first appearance in the house after
his return to England, was honoured with a very extraordinary eulogium,
pronounced by the lord-keeper, in the name of the peers of England; and
a compliment of the same nature was presented to him by a committee
of the house of commons. Doctor Delaune, vice-chancellor of Oxford,
accompanied by the principal members of the University, attended the
queen with an address of congratulation upon the success of her arms in
Germany, under the admirable conduct and invincible courage of the duke
of Marlborough; and at sea, under the most brave and faithful admiral
sir George Booke. He received a civil answer from her majesty, though
now she took umbrage at Booke’s being raised upon a level with the duke
of Marlborough, whose great victories had captivated her administration,
and whose wife had alienated her affection from the tories. The commons
perceiving how high he stood in her majesty’s esteem, and having been
properly tutored for the purpose, took into consideration the great
services of the duke; and, in an address, besought her majesty to
consider some proper means to perpetuate the memory of such noble
actions. In a few days she gave them to understand, by a message that
she was inclined to grant the interest of the crown in the honour and
manor of Woodstock and hundred of Wooton, to the duke of Marlborough and
his heirs; and that as the lieutenancy and rangership of the parks, with
the rents and profits of the manors and hundreds, were granted for
two lives, she wished that incumbrance could be removed. A bill was
immediately brought in, enabling the queen to bestow these honours
and manors on the duke of Marlborough and his heirs, and the queen was
desired to advance the money for clearing the incumbrances. She not only
complied with this address, but likewise ordered the comptroller of her
works to build in Woodstock-park a magnificent palace for the duke, upon
a plan much more solid than beautiful. By this time sir George Rooke was
laid aside, and the command of the fleet bestowed upon sir Cloudesley
Shovel, now declared rear-admiral of England. Mareschal de Tallard, with
the other French generals taken at Hochstadt, arrived on the sixteenth
of December in the river Thames, and were immediately conveyed to
Nottingham and Lichfield, attended by a detachment of the royal regiment
of horse guards. They were treated with great respect, and allowed the
privilege of riding ten miles around the places of their confinement.
{ANNE, 1701--1714}
DISAGREEMENT ON THE SUBJECT OF THE AYLESBURY CONSTABLES.
While the house of commons, in two successive addresses, thanked the
queen for the treaty which the duke of Marlborough had concluded with
Prussia concerning the troops to be sent to the duke of Savoy, and
desired she would use her interest with the allies that they might next
year furnish their complete proportions of men by sea and land; the
lords examined into all the proceedings at sea and all the instructions
of the admiralty, and presented an address to the queen, explaining all
the different articles of mismanagement. She promised to consider them
particularly, and give such directions upon them as might be most for
the advantage of the public service. The remaining part of the session
was consumed in disputes and altercations between the two houses on
the subject of the Aylesbury constables, who were sued by five other
inhabitants for having denied them the right of voting at the election.
These five persons were committed to Newgate by order of the house of
commons. They moved for a _habeas-corpus_ in the King’s Bench, but
the court would take no cognizance of the affair. Two of the prisoners
petitioned the queen that their case might be brought before her majesty
in parliament. The commons, in an address, besought the queen to
refuse granting a writ of error in this case, which would tend to the
overthrowing the undoubted rights and privileges of the commons of
England. She assured them she would not do any thing to give them just
cause of complaint, but this matter relating to the course of judicial
proceedings being of the highest importance, she thought it necessary to
weigh and consider very carefully what might be proper for her to do in
a thing of so great concern. They voted all the lawyers, who had pleaded
on the return of the _habeas-corpus_ in behalf of the prisoners, guilty
of a breach of privilege, and ordered them to be taken into custody.
They likewise ordered the prisoners to be removed from Newgate into the
custody of their serjeant-at-arms, lest they should have been discharged
by the queen’s granting writs of error. The prisoners, finding
themselves at the mercy of the exasperated commons, petitioned the lords
for relief. The upper house passed six different resolutions against the
conduct of the commons, as being an obstruction to justice, and contrary
to Magna Charta. The lower house demanded a conference, in which they
insisted upon the sole right of determining elections: they affirmed
that they only could judge who had a right of voting, and that they
were judges of their own privileges, in which the lords could not
intermeddle.
THE PARLIAMENT DISSOLVED.
The upper house demanded a free conference, which proved ineffectual.
New resolutions were taken by the commons, diametrically opposite to
those of the peers; who, on the other hand, attended the queen with
along representation of all the particulars relating to this affair.
They affirmed that the proceedings of the house of commons against
the Aylesbury men, were wholly new and unprecedented: that it was the
birthright of every Englishman, who apprehended himself injured, to seek
for redress in her majesty’s courts of justice: that if any power could
control this right, and prescribe when he should, and when he should
not, be allowed the benefit of the laws, he ceased to be a freeman, and
his liberty and property were precarious. They requested, therefore,
that no consideration whatever should prevail with her majesty to suffer
an obstruction to the known course of justice, but that she would be
pleased to give effectual orders for the immediate issuing of the writs
of error. The queen assured them that she would have complied with their
request, but finding an absolute necessity for putting an immediate end
to the session, she knew there could be no further proceedings on that
matter. On the very day, which was the fourteenth of March, she went to
the house of lords and passed the bills that were ready for the royal
assent. Then she thanked the parliament for having despatched the public
business: she warned them to avoid the fatal effects of animosity and
dissension: and ordered the lord keeper to prorogue them to Thursday
the first of May; but on the fifth of April they were dissolved by
proclamation, and another was published for calling a new parliament.
The queen, accompanied by the prince of Denmark, made an excursion to
Newmarket, and afterwards dined by invitation with the university of
Cambridge, where she conferred the honour of knighthood upon Dr. Ellis
the vice-chancellor, upon James Montague, counsel for the University,
and upon the celebrated Isaac Newton, mathematical professor. The two
houses of convocation still continued at variance. The lower house
penned petulant representations, and the archbishop answered them by
verbal reprehension and admonition. The tory interest was now in the
wane. The duke of Buckinghamshire was deprived of the privy-seal, and
that office conferred on the duke of Newcastle, a nobleman of powerful
influence with the whig party. The earl of Montague was created marquis
of Mounthermer and duke of Montague; the earl of Peterborough and lord
Cholmondeley were chosen of the privy-council; and lord Cutts was sent
to command the troops in Ireland under the duke of Ormond.
PROCEEDINGS IN THE SCOTTISH PARLIAMENT.
The ministry of Scotland was now entirely changed. The marquis of
Tweedale and Johnston having been found unequal to the undertaking, were
dismissed. The duke of Queensberry resumed the management of affairs
in that kingdom under the title of lord privy-seal, and the office of
commissioner was conferred upon the young duke of Argyle, who succeeded
to his father’s influence among the presbyterians. He was a nobleman
possessed of good natural talents, which had not been neglected; candid,
open, and sincere; brave, passionate, and aspiring; had he been endued
with a greater share of liberality, his character would have been truly
heroic. At this juncture he was instructed to procure an act of the
Scottish parliament, settling the protestant succession, or to set on
foot a treaty for the union of the two kingdoms. At the opening of the
session in June, the members were divided into three parties, namely,
the cavaliers or Jacobites, the revolutioners, the squadrone volante, or
flying squadron, headed by the marquis of Tweedale, who disclaimed the
other two factions, and pretended to act from the dictates of conscience
alone. The parliament was adjourned to the third day of July, when her
majesty’s letter was read, earnestly recommending the settlement of the
succession in the protestant line, and an act for a commission to treat
of an union between the two kingdoms. The marquis of Annandale proposed
that the parliament should proceed on the limitations and conditions
of government: that a committee should be appointed to consider the
condition of the coin and the commerce of the nation. The earl of Mar
moved that the house would, preferable to all other business, consider
the means for engaging in a treaty with England. After a long debate
they resolved to proceed on the coin and the commerce. Schemes for
supplying the nation with money by a paper credit were presented by Dr.
Hugh Chamberlain and John Law, but rejected. The house resolved that
any kind of paper credit, by the circulation of bills, was an improper
expedient, and appointed a council to put the laws relating to trade in
execution. The duke of Hamilton proposed that the parliament should not
proceed to the nomination of a successor until the treaty with England
should be discussed, and the limitations settled. This proposal being
approved, a draft of an answer to her majesty’s letter was presented by
the marquis of Tweedale. Two different forms of an act for a treaty
with England were offered by the earl of Mar and the marquis of Lothian:
others were produced concerning the elections of officers of state, and
the regulation of commerce.
{1705}
ACT PASSED FOR A TREATY OF UNION.
The chief aim of the cavaliers was to obstruct the settlement of the
succession, and with that view they pressed the project of limitations,
to which they knew the court would never assent. A motion being made
to grant the first reading to an act of commission for a treaty with
England, the duke of Hamilton insisted on the limitations, and a vote
being stated in these terms, “Proceed to consider the act for a treaty
of limitation,” the latter was carried in favour of the cavaliers. On
the twenty-second day of August an act for this purpose was approved;
and next day an act for a triennial parliament, which the courtiers
were enabled to defeat. They likewise passed an act, ordaining, that the
Scottish ambassadors representing Scotland should be present when the
sovereign might have occasion to treat with foreign princes and states,
and be accountable to the parliament of Scotland. Fletcher of Saltoun,
presented a scheme of limitations that savoured strongly of republican
principles. He afterwards enlarged upon every article, endeavouring to
prove that they were absolutely necessary to prevent the consequences
of English influence; to enable the nation to defend its rights and
liberties; to deter ministers of state from giving bad advice to their
sovereign; to preserve the courts of judicature from corruption, and
screen the people from tyranny and oppression. The earl of Stair having
argued against these limitations, Fletcher replied, “It is no wonder he
opposed the scheme; for, had such an act subsisted, his lordship would
have been hanged for the bad counsel he had given to king James; for the
concern he had in the massacre of Glencoe; and for his conduct since the
revolution.” The next subject on which the parliament deliberated was
the conspiracy. A motion being made that the house might know what
answer the queen had returned to their address in the last session, the
chancellor delivered to the clerk register the papers relating to the
plot, that they might be perused by the members: but these being copies,
and the evidences remaining at London, no further progress was made
in the affair. Yet the duke of Athol, in a distinct narrative of the
pretended conspiracy, boldly accused the duke of Queensberry of having
endeavoured to mislead the queen by false accusations against her good
subjects. When the act for a treaty of union fell under consideration, a
draft for that purpose, presented by the earl of Mar, was compared with
the English act, importing, that the queen should name and appoint not
only the commissioners for England, but likewise for Scotland.
Fletcher did not fail to inveigh against the imperious conduct of the
English parliament in this affair. He exhorted the house to resent such
treatment, and offered the draft of an address to her majesty on the
subject, but this the house rejected. Duke Hamilton proposed that a
clause might be added to the act, importing, that the union should
nowise derogate from any fundamental laws, ancient privileges, offices,
rights, liberties, and dignities of the Scottish nation. This occasioned
a long debate; and a question being put, was carried in the negative.
Another clause was proposed, that the Scottish commissioners should not
begin to treat until the English parliament should have rescinded their
clause enacting that the subjects of Scotland should be adjudged and
taken as aliens after the twenty-fifth day of December. The courtiers,
considering the temper of the house, would not venture to oppose this
motion directly, but proposed that the clause should be formed into a
separate act, and the expedient was approved. Though the Duke of Athol
entered a vigorous protest, to which the greater part of the cavaliers
and all the squadrone adhered, comprehending four-and-twenty peers,
seven-and-thirty barons, and eighteen boroughs, the act for the treaty
of union was, after much altercation, finished, empowering commissioners
to meet and treat of an union; but restraining them from treating of any
alterations of the church government as by law established. Whilst this
important subject was under consideration, the duke of Hamilton, to
the amazement of his whole party, moved that the nomination of the
commissioners should be left to the queen. Fourteen or fifteen of the
cavaliers ran out of the house in a transport of indignation, exclaiming
that they were deserted and basely betrayed by the duke of Hamilton.
A very hot debate ensued, in the course of which the duke was severely
handled by those whom he had hitherto conducted: but at length the
question being put whether the nomination should be left to the queen
or to the parliament, the duke’s motion was approved by a very small
majority. He afterwards excused himself for his defection, by saying he
saw it was in vain to contend, and that since the court had acquired a
great majority, he thought he might be allowed to pay that compliment to
his sovereign. He was desirous of being in the commission, and the duke
of Argyle promised he should be nominated. The queen refusing to honour
him with that mark of distinction, Argyle would not suffer himself to
be named, and threatened to oppose the union, but means were found to
appease his resentment. Two drafts of an address being presented by the
earl of Sutherland and Fletcher of Saltoun, beseeching her majesty to
use her endeavours with the parliament of England to rescind that part
of their act which declared the subjects of Scotland aliens; and
an overture of a bill being offered, ordaining that the Scottish
commissioners should not enter upon the treaty of union until that
clause should be repealed; the courtiers moved that the parliament
should proceed by way of order to their commissioners, and by address
to her majesty. After some debate, the house assenting to this proposal,
the order and address was drawn up and approved. The great and weighty
affair of the treaty being at length happily transacted, though not
without a protest by Athol and his adherents, the parliament granted
a supply of fifty thousand pounds, and the house was adjourned to the
twentieth day of December; then the queen declaring the earl of Mar
secretary of state in the room of the marquis of Annandale, who was
appointed lord president of the council.
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE PARLIAMENT AND CONVOCATION IN IRELAND.
In Ireland, the parliament met at Dublin on the fifth day of March,
and voted one hundred and fifty thousand pounds for the support of the
necessary branches of the establishment. A dispute arose between the
commons and the lower house of convocation, relating to the tithes
of hemp and flax, ascertained in a clause of a bill for the better
improvement of the hempen and flaxen manufactures of the kingdom. The
lower house of convocation presented a memorial against this clause as
prejudicial to the rights and properties of the clergy. The commons
voted the person who brought it in guilty of a breach of privilege,
and ordered him to be taken into custody. Then they resolved that the
convocation were guilty of a contempt and breach of the privilege of
that house. The convocation presuming to justify their memorials, the
commons voted that all matters relating to it should be razed out of
the journals and books of convocation. The duke of Ormond, dreading the
consequences of such heats, adjourned the parliament to the first day
of May, when the houses meeting again, came to some resolutions that
reflected obliquely on the eon-vocation as enemies to her majesty’s
government and the protestant succession. The clergy, in order to acquit
themselves of all suspicion, resolved in their turn that the church
and nation had been happily delivered from popery and tyranny by king
William at the revolution: that the continuance of these blessings were
due, under God, to the auspicious reign and happy government of her
majesty queen Anne: that the future security and preservation of the
church and nation depended wholly, under God, on the succession of the
crown as settled by law in the protestant line: that if any clergyman
should by word or writing declare anything in opposition to these
resolutions, they should look upon him as a sower of divisions among
the protestants, and an enemy to the constitution. They levelled another
resolution against the presbyterians, importing, that to teach or to
preach against the doctrine, government, rites, or ceremonies of the
church, or to maintain schools or seminaries for the education of
youth, in principles contrary to those of the established church, was
a contempt of the ecclesiastical laws of the kingdom; of pernicious
consequence; and served only to continue and widen the unhappy schisms
and divisions in the nation. In June the parliament was prorogued to the
same month of the following year: then the duke of Ormond embarked for
England, leaving the administration in the hands of sir Richard Cox,
lord chancellor, and lord Cutts, the commander-in-chief of the queen’s
forces, who were appointed lords-justices during the duke’s absence.
CAMPAIGN ON THE MOSELLE.
During these transactions in Great Britain and Ireland, the allies had
not been remiss in their preparations for the ensuing campaign. The duke
of Marlborough had fixed upon the Moselle for the scene of action; and
magazines of all sorts were formed at Triers. On the thirteenth day
of March the duke embarked for Holland, where he prevailed upon the
states-general to contribute their troops for the execution of his
project. Having concerted with the deputies of the states and the Dutch
generals the necessary measures for opening the campaign, he set out for
Maestricht in order to assemble his army. On the fifth day of May the
emperor Leopold died at Vienna, and was succeeded on the imperial throne
by his eldest son Joseph, king of the Romans, a prince who resembled his
father in meekness of disposition, narrowness of intellect, and bigotry
to the Romish religion. On the fifteenth of June the English troops
passed the Maese, and continued their march towards the Moselle, under
the command of general Churchill; and the duke set out for Cruetznach,
to confer with prince Louis of Baden, who excused himself on pretence
of being much indisposed. Marlborough visited him at Castadt, where in
a conference they resolved that a sufficient number of German troops
should be left for the security of the lines of Lauterburg and
Stolhoffen, under the command of general Thungen, and that prince Louis
of Baden should march with a large detachment towards the Saar, to act
in concert with the duke of Marlborough. The confederate army passed the
Moselle and the Saar in the beginning of June, and encamped at Elft in
sight of the enemy, who retired with great precipitation, and intrenched
themselves in the neighbourhood of Coningsmarcheren. The duke’s design
was to besiege Saar-Louis; but prince Louis failed in the performance
of his engagement: he feigned himself sick, and repaired to the bath at
Schlangenbacle, leaving the small number of imperial troops he conducted
as far as Cruetznach, under the command of the count de Frize. He was
suspected of treachery; but probably acted from envy of the duke’s
military reputation.*
* The duke of Marlborough finding himself obliged to
retreat, sent a note with a trumpeter to Villars, containing
an apology for decamping:--“Do me the justice, said he, to
believe that my retreat is entirely owing to the failure of
the prince of Baden; but that my esteem for you is still
greater than my resentment of his conduct.”
THE DUKE OF MARLBOROUGH FORCES THE FRENCH LINES IN BRABANT.
While this nobleman sustained such a mortifying disappointment on the
Moselle, the French did not fail to take advantage of their superiority
in the Netherlands, where general d’Auverquerque was obliged to stand
on the defensive. They invested Huy, and carried on their operations so
vigorously, that in a few days the garrison were obliged to surrender
themselves prisoners of war; then Villeroy undertook the reduction of
Liege, and actually began his works before the citadel. Marlborough was
no sooner informed of the enemy’s progress than he marched to Triers,
where, in a council, it was resolved that the army should return to the
Netherlands. The troops were in motion on the nineteenth of June, and
marched with such expedition that they passed the Maese on the first
day of July. Villeroy having received advice of the duke’s approach,
abandoned his enterprise, and retired to Tonegren, from whence he
retreated within his lines, that reached from Marche aux Dames on the
Mouse, along the Mehaigne as far as Lenuive. Marlborough having joined
d’Auverquerque, sent general Scholten with a detachment to invest Huy,
and in a few days the garrison surrendered at discretion. The English
general, resolving to strike some stroke of importance that should atone
for his disappointment on the Moselle, sent general Hompesch to the
states, with a proposal for attacking the French lines; and obtained
their permission to do whatever he should think proper for the good
of the common cause. Then he explained the scheme in two successive
councils of war, by which at length it was approved and resolved upon,
though some Dutch generals declared themselves against the undertaking.
The enemy were posted along the lines, amounting to one hundred
battalions, and one hundred and forty-six squadrons. The allied army
did not much exceed that number. In order to divide them, d’Auverquerque
made a false motion, and passed the Mehaigne as if he had intended to
attack the lines about Messelin. The stratagem succeeded. The French
weakened the other parts by strengthening that which was on the side
of the Gerbise towards Namur. The duke of Marlborough having made
the disposition, the army began to march in the night between the
seventeenth and eighteenth of July, in order to force a passage of
the French lines at Heylesem, the castle of Wauge, and the villages
of Wauge, Neerhespen, and Oostmalen. These posts were taken with very
little difficulty; but before the infantry could come up, the enemy
advanced with fifty squadrons and twenty battalions, and began to fire
from eight pieces of cannon with triple barrels, which did considerable
execution. The duke perceiving that they were continually reinforced
from the other parts of the lines, ordered the horse to charge their
cavalry, which were soon broken and routed; but rallying behind their
infantry, interlined with foot, and joined by fresh squadrons, they
advanced again towards the allies, who were now sustained by their
infantry, and moved forward to renew the charge. After a warm though
short engagement, the enemy’s horse were defeated with great slaughter.
The infantry, seeing themselves abandoned in the plain, retreated in
great disorder, between the villages of Heylesem and Golsteven, where
they were joined by the rest of their army, and formed again in order
of battle. Meanwhile the duke of Marlborough ordered all his troops to
enter the lines; and extended his right towards the great Geete before
Tirlemont, where the enemy had left the battalion of Montluc, which
surrendered at discretion. In this action the confederates took the
marquis d’Alegre and the count de Home, lieutenant-generals, one
major-general, two brigadier-generals, with many other officers, and
a great number of common soldiers; a large heap of standards, four
colours, one pair of kettle-drums, and ten pieces of cannon. In the
action, as the duke of Marlborough advanced to the charge at the head
of several squadrons, a Bavarian officer rode up to attack him sword in
hand; but in raising himself on his stirrups to strike with the greater
advantage, he fell from his horse and was immediately slain.
The body of troops commanded by monsieur d’Alegre being thus defeated
with little or no loss to the confederates, the elector of Bavaria and
the mareschal de Villeroy passed the great Geete and the Deule, with
great expedition, and took possession of the strong camp at Parck, their
left extending to Eoselser, and their right to Winselen against the
height of Louvain. Next day the duke of Marlborough, marching through
the plain of Parck, took twelve hundred prisoners, who could not keep
pace with the rest of the enemy’s forces; and in the evening he encamped
with the right at the abbey of Vliersbeck, and the left before Bierbcek,
under the cannon of Louvain. He detached lieutenant-general Henkelum,
the duke of Wirtemberg, and count Oxienstiern, with a considerable
body of forces, to attack some posts on the Deule which were slenderly
guarded. Their advanced guard accordingly passed the river and repulsed
the enemy; but for want of timely support, they were obliged to pass
it and retire. On the third of August baron Spaar, with a body of Dutch
troops, marched to Raboth on the canal of Bruges, forced the French
lines at Lovendegen, and took four forts by which they were defended;
but receiving advice that the enemy were on their march towards him, he
retired to Mildegem, and carried with him several hostages as security
for the payment of the contributions he had raised. On the fifteenth the
duke moved from Mildert to Corbais; next day he continued his march
to Genap, from whence he advanced to Fischer-mont. On the seventeenth
general d’Auverquerque took the post of Waterloo; and next day the
confederate army was drawn up in order of battle before the enemy, who
extended from Overysche, near the wood of Soignies, to Neerysche,
with the little river Ysche in their front, so as to cover Brussels and
Louvain. The duke of Marlborough proposed to attack them immediately,
before they should recollect themselves from their consternation; and
d’Auverquerque approved of the design; but it was opposed by general
Schlangenburg and other Dutch officers, who represented it in such a
light to the deputies of the states, that they refused to concur in the
execution. The duke being obliged to relinquish the scheme, wrote an
expostulatory letter to the states-general, complaining of their having
withdrawn that confidence which they had reposed in him while he acted
Germany. This letter being published at the Hague, excited murmurs among
the people, and the English nation were incensed at the presumption of
the deputies, who wrote several letters in their own justification to
the states-general; but these had no effect upon the populace, by whom
the duke was respected even to a degree of adoration. The states being
apprised of the resentment that prevailed over all England, and that
the earl of Pembroke, lord-president of the council, was appointed
as envoy-extraordinary to Holland, with instructions to demand
satisfaction, thought proper to anticipate his journey by making
submissions to the duke, and removing Schlangenburg from his command.
The confederate army returned to Corbais, from whence it inarched to
Perwitz, where it encamped. The little town of Sout-Leeuwe, situated
in the middle of a morass, and constituting the chief defence of
the enemy’s lines, being taken by a detachment under the command of
lieutenant-general Dedem, the duke ordered the lines from this place to
Wasseigne to be levelled, and the town of Tirlemont to be dismantled;
then passing the Demer, he encamped on the nineteenth day of
September at Aerschot. About the latter end of the month he marched to
Heventlials; from hence the duke repaired to the Hague, where he had
several conferences with the pensionary. In a few days he returned to
the army, which decamping from Heventlials, marched to Clampthout.
On the twenty-fourth day of October, the count de Noyelles invested
Santvliet, which surrendered before the end of the month.
{ANNE, 1701--1714}
HE VISITS THE COURT OF VIENNA.
At this period the duke, in consequence of pressing letters from the
emperor, set out for Vienna in order to concert the operations for
the ensuing campaign, and other measures of importance, in which the
concerns of the allies were interested. In his way he was magnificently
entertained by the elector Palatine, and him of Triers, and complimented
by the magistracy of Frankfort, where he conferred with prince Louis
of Baden. On the twelfth of November he arrived at Vienna, where he was
treated with the highest marks of distinction and cordial friendship by
their imperial majesties. His son-in-law, the earl of Sunderland,
had been sent thither as envoy-extraordinary; and now they conferred
together with the emperor and his ministers. They resolved to maintain
the war with redoubled vigour. The treaties were renewed, and
provision made for the security of the duke of Savoy. The emperor, in
consideration of the duke’s signal service to the house of Austria,
presented him with a grant of the lordship of Mindel-heim in Suabia,
which was now erected into a principality of the Roman empire. In his
return with the earl of Sunderland he visited the courts of Berlin and
Hanover, where he was received with that extraordinary respect which was
due to his character; and arrived at the Hague on the fourteenth day of
December. There he settled the operations of the next campaign with
the states-general, who consented to join England in maintaining an
additional body of ten thousand men reinforcement to the army of
prince Eugene in Italy. While the allies were engaged in the siege of
Santvliet, the elector of Bavaria sent a detachment, under the command
of don Marcello de Grimaldi, to invest Diest, the garrison of which were
made prisoners of war.
STATE OF THE WAR ON THE UPPER RHINE, IN HUNGARY, &c.
On the Upper Rhine, mareschal Villars besieged and took Homburgh, and
passed the Rhine at Strasburgh on the sixth day of August. Prince Louis
of Baden arriving in the camp of the Imperialists at Stolhoffen, not
only obliged him to retire, but having passed the river, forced the
French lines at Hagenau; then he reduced Drusenheim and Hagenau, but
attempted no enterprise equal to the number of his army, although the
emperor had expostulated with him severely on his conduct, and he had
now a fair opportunity of emulating the glory of Marlborough, upon
whom he looked with the eyes of an envious rival. In Italy a battle was
fought at Casano, between prince Eugene and the duke de Vendôme, with
dubious success. The duke de Feuillade reduced Chivas, and invested
Nice, which, after an obstinate defence, surrendered in December. All
the considerable places belonging to the duke of Savoy were now taken,
except Coni and Turin; and his little army was reduced to twelve
thousand men, whom he could hardly support. His duchess, his clergy, and
his subjects in general, pressed him to submit to the necessity of his
affairs; but he adhered to the alliance with surprising fortitude. He
withstood the importunities of his duchess, excluded all the bishops and
clergy from his councils; and when he had occasion for a confessor, he
chose a priest occasionally either from the Dominicans or Franciscans.
The campaign in Portugal began with a very promising aspect. The allies
invaded Spain by the different frontiers of Beyra and Alentejo. Their
army, under the command of the Condo das Galveas, undertook the siege
of Valencia D’Alcantara in May, and took it by assault; Albuquerque
surrendered upon articles, and then the troops were sent into quarters
of refreshment. The marquis de las Minas, who commanded the Portuguese
in the province of Beyra, reduced the town of Salva-terra, plundered and
burned Sarca, but was obliged to retire to Panamacos at the approach
of the enemy. Towards the end of September the confederates, being
reassembled, invested Badajox, by the advice of the earl of Gal-way, who
lost his right hand by a cannon ball, and was obliged to be carried off;
so that the conduct of the siege was left to General Fagel. He had
made considerable progress towards the reduction of the place, when the
marquis de Thessé found means to throw in a powerful reinforcement, and
then the confederates abandoned the enterprise. The war continued
to rage in Hungary with various success. Ragotzki, though frequently
worsted, appeared still in arms, and ravaged the country, which became a
scene of misery and desolation. In Poland the old cardinal-primate owned
Stanislaus, but died before the coronation, which was performed by the
bishop of Cujavia. In the beginning of winter king Augustus had passed
through Poland in disguise to the Muscovite army, which was put under
his command in Lithuania; and the campaign was protracted through the
whole winter season, notwithstanding the severity of the weather in that
northern climate. In the spring the Swedish general, Reinchild, obtained
a complete victory over the Saxon army, which was either cut in pieces
or taken, with their camp, baggage, and artillery; yet the war was
not extinguished. The king of Sweden continued obstinately deaf to all
proposals of peace, and was become as savage in his manners, as brutal
in his revenge.
THE FRENCH FLEET DESTROYED, &c.
At sea the arms of the allies were generally prosperous. Philip of
Spain, being obstinately bent upon retaking Gibraltar, sent mareschal de
Thessé to renew the siege, while de Pontis was ordered to block up the
place by sea with his squadron. These French officers carried on the
siege with such activity, that the prince of Hesse despatched an express
to Lisbon with a letter, desiring sir John Leake to sail immediately to
his assistance. This admiral having been reinforced from England by sir
Thomas Dilkes, with five sail of the line and a body of troops, set sail
immediately; and on the tenth day of March descried five ships of war
hauling out of the bay of Gibraltar. These were commanded by de Pontis
in person, to whom the English admiral gave chase. One of them struck,
after having made a very slight resistance; and the rest ran ashore to
the westward of Marbella, where they were destroyed. The remaining part
of the French squadron had been blown from their anchors, and taken
shelter in the bay of Malaga; but now they slipped their cables and made
the best of their way to Toulon. The mareschal de Thessé, inconsequence
of this disaster, turned the siege of Gibraltar into a blockade, and
withdrew the greater part of his forces. While sir John Leake was
employed in this expedition, sir George Byng, who had been ordered to
cruise in soundings for the protection of trade, took a ship of forty
guns from the enemy, together with twelve privateers, and seven vessels
richly laden from the West Indies.
BARCELONA REDUCED BY SIR C. SHOVEL AND LORD PETERBOROUGH.
But the most eminent achievement of this summer was the reduction of
Barcelona, by the celebrated earl of Peterborough and sir Cloudesley
Shovel, who sailed from St. Helen’s in the latter end of May with the
English fleet, having on board a body of five thousand land forces; and
on the twentieth day of June arrived at Lisbon; where they were joined
by sir John Leake and the Dutch admiral Allemonde. In a council of war,
they determined to put to sea with eight-and-forty ships of the line,
which should be stationed between cape Spartel and the bay of Cadiz,
in order to prevent the junction of the Toulon and Brest squadrons. The
prince of Hesse-d’Armstadt arriving from Gibraltar, assured king Charles
that the province of Catalonia and the kingdom of Valencia were attached
to his interest; and his majesty, being weary of Portugal, resolved to
accompany the earl of Peterborough to Barcelona. He accordingly
embarked with him on board of the Ranelagh; and the fleet sailed on the
twenty-eighth day of July, the earl of Galway having reinforced them
with two regiments of English dragoons. At Gibraltar they took on board
the English guards, and three old regiments, in lieu of which they left
two new raised battalions. On the eleventh day of August they anchored
in the bay of Altea, where the earl of Peterborough published a
manifesto in the Spanish language, which had such an effect that all
the inhabitants of the place, the neighbouring villages, and adjacent
mountains, acknowledged king Charles as their lawful sovereign.
They seized the town of Denia for his service; and he sent thither a
garrison of four hundred men under the command of major-general Ramos.
On the twenty-second they arrived in the bay of Barcelona: the troops
were disembarked to the eastward of the city, where they encamped in a
strong situation, and were well received by the country people. King
Charles landed amidst the acclamations of an infinite multitude from
the neighbouring towns and villages, who threw themselves at his feet,
exclaiming, “Long live the king!” and exhibiting all the marks of the
most extravagant joy. The inhabitants of Barcelona were well affected
to the house of Austria, but overawed by a garrison of five thousand
men under the duke de Popoli, Velasco, and other officers devoted to the
interest of king Philip. Considering the strength of such a garrison,
and the small number of Dutch and English troops, nothing could appear
more desperate and dangerous than the design of besieging the place; yet
this was proposed by the prince of Hesse d’Armstadt, who served in the
expedition as a volunteer, strongly urged by king Charles, and approved
by the earl of Peterborough and sir Cloudesley Shovel. The city was
accordingly invested on one side; but, as a previous step to the
reduction of it, they resolved to attack the fort of Montjuic, strongly
situated on a hill that commanded the city. The out-works were taken
by storm, with the loss of the gallant prince of Hesse, who was
shot through the body, and expired in a few hours: then the earl of
Peterborough began to bombard the body of the fort; and a shell chancing
to fall into the magazine of powder, blew it up, together with the
governor and some of the best officers: an accident which struck such
a terror into the garrison, that they surrendered without further
resistance.
THE EARL’S PROGRESS IN SPAIN.
This great point being gained, the English general erected his batteries
against the town, with the help of the Miquelets and seamen; the bomb
ketches began to fire with such execution, that in a few days the
governor capitulated, and on the fourth day of October king Charles
entered in triumph. [136] _[See note K, at the end of this Vol.]_ All
the other places in Catalonia declared for him, except Roses; so that
the largest and richest province of Spain was conquered with an army
scarce double the number of the garrison of Barcelona. King Charles
wrote a letter with his own hand to the queen of England, containing
a circumstantial detail of his affairs, the warmest expressions of
acknowledgment, and the highest encomiums on her subjects, particularly
the earl of Peterborough. In a council of war it was determined that
the king and the earl should continue in Catalonia with the land
forces; that sir Cloudesley Shovel should return to England; that
five-and-twenty English and fifteen Dutch ships of war should winter at
Lisbon under the command of sir John Leake and the Dutch rear-admiral
Wassenaer; and that four English and two Dutch frigates should remain at
Barcelona. Don Francisco de Velasco was transported to Malaga with about
a thousand men of his garrison; the rest voluntarily engaged in the
service of king Charles, and six other regiments were raised by
the states of Catalonia. The count de Cifuentas, at the head of the
Miquelets and Catalans attached to the house of Austria, secured
Tar-ragonia, Tortosa, Lerida, San-Mattheo, Gironne, and other places.
Don Raphael Nevat, revolting from Philip with his whole regiment of
horse, joined general Ramos at Denia, and made themselves masters of
several places of importance in the kingdom of Valencia. Flushed with
such unexpected success, they penetrated to the capital of the same
name, which they surprised, together with the marquis de Villa-Gracia,
the viceroy, and the archbishop. These advantages however were not
properly improved. The court of Charles was divided into factions,
and so much time lost in disputes, that the enemy sent a body of six
thousand men into the kingdom of Valencia, under the command of the
conde de las Torres, who forthwith invested San-Mattheo, guarded by
colonel Jones at the head of five hundred Miquelets. This being a
place of great consequence on account of its situation, the earl of
Peterborough marched thither with one thousand infantry, and two hundred
dragoons; and by means of feigned intelligence artfully conveyed to the
conde, induced that general to abandon the siege with precipitation,
in the apprehension of being suddenly attacked by a considerable army.
Peterborough afterwards took possession of Nules, and purchasing horses
at Castillon de la Plana, began to form a body of cavalry which did good
service in the sequel. Having assembled a little army, consisting of ten
squadrons of horse and dragoons, and four battalions of regular troops,
with about three thousand militia, he marched to Molviedro, which was
surrendered to him by the governor, brigadier Mahoni. Between this
officer and the duke d’Arcos, the Spanish general, he excited such
jealousies by dint of artifices, not altogether justifiable even in war,
that the duke was more intent upon avoiding the supposed treachery of
Mahoni than upon interrupting the earl’s march to Valencia, where the
inhabitants expressed uncommon marks of joy at his arrival. About this
period a very obstinate action happened at St. Istevan de Litera, where
the chevalier d’Asfeldt, with nine squadrons of horse and dragoons, and
as many battalions of French infantry, attacked colonel Wills at
the head of a small detachment; but this last being supported by
lieutenant-general Cunningham, who was mortally wounded in the
engagement, repulsed the enemy, though three times his number, with the
loss of four hundred men killed upon the spot. The troops on both sides
fought with the most desperate valour, keeping up their fire until the
muzzles of their pieces met, and charging each other at the point of
the bayonet. The only misfortune that attended the English arms in the
course of this year, was the capture of the Baltic fleet homeward-bound,
with their convoy of three ships of war, which were taken by the Dunkirk
squadron under the command of the count de St. Paul, though he himself
was killed in the engagement. When an account of this advantage was
communicated to the French king, he replied with a sigh, “Very well, I
wish the ships were safe again in any English port, provided the count
de St. Paul could be restored to life.” After the death of the famous du
Bart, this officer was counted the best seaman in France.
NEW PARLIAMENT IN ENGLAND.
The kingdom of England was now wholly engrossed by the election of
members for the new parliament. The tories exerted themselves with great
industry, and propagated the cry of the church’s being in danger; a cry
in which the Jacobites joined with great fervour; but, notwithstanding
all their efforts in words and writing, a majority of whigs was
returned; and now the lord Godolphin, who had hitherto maintained a
neutrality, thought proper openly to countenance that faction. By his
interest, co-operating with the influence of the duchess of Marlborough,
sir Nathan Wright was deprived of the great seal, which was committed to
Mr. William Cowper, with the title of lord-keeper. This was a lawyer of
good extraction, superior talents, engaging manners, and eminence in his
profession. He was staunch to whig principles, and for many years had
been considered as one of their best speakers in the house of commons.
The new parliament meeting on the twenty-fifth day of October, a violent
contest arose about the choice of a speaker. Mr. Bromley was supported
by the tories, and the whigs proposed Mr. John Smith, who was elected
by a majority of forty-three voices. The queen in her speech represented
the necessity of acting vigorously against France, as a common enemy
to the liberties of Europe; she commended the fortitude of the duke of
Savoy, which she said was without example; she told them her intention
was to expedite commissions for treating of an union with Scotland; she
earnestly recommended an union of minds and affections among her people;
she observed, that some persons had endeavoured to foment animosities,
and even suggested in print that the established church was in danger;
she affirmed that such people were enemies to her and the kingdom,
and meant only to cover designs which they durst not publicly own, by
endeavouring to distract the nation with unreasonable and groundless
distrusts and jealousies; she declared she would always affectionately
support and countenance the church of England, as by law established;
that she would inviolably maintain the toleration; that she would
promote religion and virtue, encourage trade, and every thing else that
might make them a happy and flourishing people.
BILL FOR A REGENCY.
The majority in both houses now professed the same principles, and
were well disposed to support the queen in all her designs. They
first presented the usual addresses in the warmest terms of duty and
affection. Then the commons drew up a second, assuring her they would,
to the utmost of their power, assist her in bringing the treaty of union
to a happy conclusion. They desired that the proceedings of the last
session of parliament, relating to the union and succession, might be
laid before the house. The lords had solicited the same satisfaction;
and her majesty promised to comply with their request. The lower house
having heard and decided in some cases of controverted elections,
proceeded to take into consideration the estimates for the service of
the ensuing year, and granted the supplies without hesitation. In the
house of lords, while the queen was present, lord Haversham, at the end
of a long speech, in which he reflected upon the conduct of the duke of
Marlborough, both on the Moselle and in Brabant, moved for an address
to desire her majesty would invite the presumptive heir to the crown
of England to come and reside in the kingdom. This motion was earnestly
supported by the duke of Buckingham, the earls of Rochester, Nottingham,
and Anglesea. They said there was no method so effectual to secure the
succession as that of the successor’s being upon the spot, ready to
assume and maintain his or her right against any pretender; and they
observed, that in former times, when the throne of England was vacant,
the first comer had always succeeded in his pretensions. The proposal
was vehemently opposed by the whigs, who knew it was disagreeable to
the queen, whom they would not venture to disoblige. They argued, that
a rivalry between the two courts might produce distractions, and be
attended with very ill consequences; and observed, that the princess
Sophia had expressed a full satisfaction in the assurances of the queen,
who had promised to maintain her title. The question being put, was
carried in the negative by a great majority. The design of the tories
in making this motion, was to bring the other party into disgrace either
with the queen or with the people. Their joining in the measure would
have given umbrage to their sovereign; and, by opposing it, they ran
the risk of incurring the public odium as enemies to the protestant
succession: but the pretence of the tories was so thin, the nation saw
through it; and the sole effect the motion produced was the queen’s
resentment against the whole party. Burnet, bishop of Sarum, proposed,
that provision might be made for maintaining the public quiet in the
interval between the queen’s decease and the arrival of her successor;
the motion was seconded by the lord-treasurer, and a bill brought in for
the better security of her majesty’s person and government, and of the
succession to the crown of England. By this act a regency was appointed,
of the seven persons that should possess the offices of archbishop
of Canterbury, lord-chancellor, or lord-keeper, lord-treasurer,
lord-president, lord privy-seal, lord high-admiral, and the lord
chief-justice of the queen’s bench. Their business was to proclaim the
next successor through the kingdom of England, and join with a certain
number of persons named as regents by the successor, in three lists
to be sealed up and deposited with the archbishop of Canterbury, the
lord-keeper, and the ministry residentiary of Hanover. It was enacted,
that these joint regencies should conduct the administration; that the
last parliament, even though dissolved, should reassemble, and continue
sitting for six months after the decease of her majesty. The bill met
with a warm opposition from the tories, and did not pass the upper
house without a protest. It was still further obstructed in the house
of commons even by some of the whig party, who were given to understand
that the princess Sophia had expressed an inclination to reside in
England. Exceptions were likewise taken to that clause in the bill,
enacting, that the last parliament should be reassembled. They affirmed,
that this was inconsistent with part of the act by which the succession
was at first settled; for among other limitations, the parliament had
provided, that when the crown should devolve to the house of Hanover, no
man who had either place or pension should be capable of sitting in the
house of commons. After tedious disputes and zealous altercations,
they agreed that a certain number of offices should be specified
as disqualifying places. This self-denying clause, and some other
amendments, produced conferences between the two houses, and at length
the bill passed by their mutual assent. Lord Haversham moved for an
inquiry into the miscarriages of the last campaign, hoping to find some
foundation for censure in the conduct of the duke of Marlborough; but
the proposal was rejected as invidious; and the two houses presented an
address to the queen, desiring she would preserve a good correspondence
among all the confederates. They likewise concurred in repealing the
act by which the Scots had been alienated, and all the northern counties
alarmed with the apprehension of a rupture between the two nations.
The lord Shannon and brigadier Stanhope arriving with an account of
the expedition to Catalonia, the queen communicated the good news in a
speech to both houses, expressing her hope that they would enable her to
prosecute the advantages which her arms had acquired. The commons
were so well pleased with the tidings, that they forthwith granted two
hundred and fifty thousand pounds for her majesty’s proportion in the
expense of prosecuting the successes already gained by king Charles III.
for the recovery of the monarchy of Spain to the house of Austria. On
the fifteenth day of November, the queen gave the royal assent to an act
for exhibiting a bill to naturalize the princess Sophia, and the issue
of her body.
These measures being taken, the sixth day of December was appointed for
inquiring into those dangers to which the tories affirmed the church was
exposed; and the queen attended in person, to hear the debates on this
interesting subject. The earl of Eochester compared the expressions in
the queen’s speech at the beginning of the session, to the law enacted
in the reign of Charles II. denouncing the penalties of treason against
those who should call the king a papist; for which reason, he said, he
always thought him of that persuasion. He affirmed that the church’s
danger arose from the act of security in Scotland, the absence of the
successor to the crown, and the practice of occasional conformity. He
was answered by lord Halifax, who, by way of recrimination, observed
that king Charles II. was a Roman-catholic, at least his brother
declared him a papist after his death; that his brother and successor
was a known Roman-catholic, yet the church thought herself secure; and
those patriots who stood up in its defence were discountenanced and
punished: nay, when the successor ascended the throne, and the church
was apparently in the most imminent danger by the high commission court
and otherwise, the nation was then indeed generally alarmed; and every
body knew who sat in that court, and entered deeply into the measures
which were then pursued. Compton, bishop of London, declared that
the church was in danger, from profaneness, irreligion, and the
licentiousness of the press. He complained, that sermons were preached
wherein rebellion was countenanced, and resistance to the higher powers
encouraged. He alluded to a sermon preached before the lord mayor by Mr.
Hoadly, now bishop of Winchester. Burnet of Sarum said, the bishop of
London was the last man who ought to complain of that sermon; for if
the doctrine it contained was not good, he did not know what defence his
lordship could make for his appearing in arms at Nottingham. He affirmed
the church would be always subject to profaneness and irreligion, but
that they were not now so flagrant as they usually had been; he said
the society set up for reformation in London and other cities, had
contributed considerably to the suppression of vice; he was sure the
corporation for propagating the gospel had done a great deal towards
instructing men in religion, by giving great numbers of books in
practical divinity; by erecting libraries in country parishes; by
sending many able divines to the foreign plantations, and founding
schools to breed up children in the christian knowledge; though to
this expense very little had been contributed by those who appeared so
wonderfully zealous for the church. The archbishop of York expressed
his apprehension of danger from the increase of dissenters, particularly
from the many academies they had instituted; he moved, that the judges
might be consulted with respect to the laws that were in force against
such seminaries, and by what means they might be suppressed. Lord
Wharton moved, that the judges might also be consulted about means of
suppressing schools and seminaries held by non-jurors, in one of which
the sons of a noble lord in that house had been educated. To this
sarcasm the archbishop replied, that his sons were indeed taught by
Mr. Ellis, a sober virtuous man; but that when he refused the oath of
abjuration, they were immediately withdrawn from his instructions. Lord
Wharton proceeded to declare, that he had carefully perused a pamphlet
entitled “The Memorial,” which was said to contain a demonstration that
the church was in danger; but all he could learn was, that the duke of
Buckingham, the earls of Rochester and Nottingham, were out of place;
that he remembered some of these noblemen sat in the high commission
court, and then made no complaint of the church’s being in danger.
Patrick, bishop of Ely, complained of the heat and passion manifested
by the gentlemen belonging to the universities, and of the undutiful
behaviour of the clergy towards their bishops. He was seconded by
Hough of Litchfield and Coventry, who added, that the inferior clergy
calumniated their bishops, as if they were in a plot to destroy the
church, and had compounded to be the last of their order. Hooper of Bath
and Wells, expatiated on the invidious distinction implied in the terms
“high church,” and “low church.” The duke of Leeds asserted, that the
church could not be safe without an act against occasional conformity.
Lord Somers recapitulated all the arguments which had been used on both
sides of the question: he declared his own opinion was, that the nation
was happy under a wise and just administration; that for men to raise
groundless jealousies at that juncture, could mean no less than an
intention to embroil the people at home, and defeat the glorious designs
of the allies abroad. The debate being finished, the question was put,
Whether the church of England was in danger? and carried in the negative
by a great majority: then the house resolved, that the church of
England, as by law established, which was rescued from the extremest
danger by king William III. of glorious memory, is now, by God’s
blessings under the happy reign of her majesty, in a most safe and
nourishing condition; and that whoever goes about to suggest
or insinuate that the church is in danger, under her majesty’s
administration, is an enemy to the queen, the church, and the kingdom.
Next day the commons concurred in this determination, and joined the
lords in an address to the queen, communicating this resolution,
beseeching her to take effectual measures for making it public, and also
for punishing the authors and spreaders of the seditious and scandalous
reports of the church’s being in danger. She accordingly issued a
proclamation containing the resolution of the two houses, and offering
a reward for discovering the author of the memorial of the church of
England, and for apprehending David Edwards, a professed papist, charged
upon oath to be the printer and publisher of that libel.
{ANNE, 1701--1714}
THE PARLIAMENT PROROGUED.
After a short adjournment, a committee of the lower house presented the
thanks of the commons to the duke of Marlborough, for his great services
performed to her majesty and the nation in the last campaign, and for
his prudent negotiations with her allies. This nobleman was in such
credit with the people, that when he proposed a loan of five hundred
thousand pounds to the emperor, upon a branch of his revenue in.
Silesia, the money was advanced immediately by the merchants of London.
The kingdom was blessed with plenty; the queen was universally beloved;
the people in general were zealous for the prosecution of the war; the
forces were well paid; the treasury was punctual; and, though a great
quantity of coin was exported for the maintenance of the war, the paper
currency supplied the deficiency so well, that no murmurs were heard,
and the public credit flourished both at home and abroad. All the funds
being established, one in particular for two millions and a-half by way
of annuities for ninety-nine years, at six and a-half per cent., and all
the bills having received the royal assent, the queen went to the house
of peers on the nineteenth day of March, where, having thanked both
houses for the repeated instances of their affection which she had
received, she prorogued the parliament to the twenty-first day of May
following.*
* Among other bills passed during this session, was an act
for abridging and reforming some proceedings in the common
law and in chancery.
The new convocation, instead of imitating the union and harmony of
the parliament, revived the divisions by which the former had been
distracted, and the two houses seemed to act with more determined
rancour against each other. The upper house having drawn tip a warm
address of thanks to the queen for her affectionate care of the church,
the lower house refused to concur, nor would they give any reason for
their dissent. They prepared another in a different strain, which was
rejected by the archbishop. Then they agreed to divers resolutions,
asserting their right of having what they offered to the upper house
received by his grace and their lordships. In consequence of this
dissension the address was dropped, and a stop put to all further
communication between the two houses. The dean of Peterborough protested
against the irregularities of the lower house. The queen, in a letter to
the archbishop, signified her resolution to maintain her supremacy, and
the due subordination of presbyters to bishops. She expressed her hope
that he and his suffragans would act conformably to her resolution, in
which case they might be assured of the continuance of her favour and
protection: she required him to impart this declaration to the bishops
and clergy, and to prorogue the convocation to such time as should
appear most convenient. When he communicated this letter to the lower
house, the members were not a little confounded: nevertheless, they
would not comply with the prorogation, but continued to sit in defiance
of her majesty’s pleasure.
CONFERENCES OPENED FOR A TREATY OF UNION WITH SCOTLAND.
The eyes of Great Britain were now turned upon a transaction of the
utmost consequence to the whole island; namely, the treaty for an union
of the two kingdoms of England and Scotland. The queen having appointed
the commissioners [139] _[See note 2 A, at the end of this Vol.]_ on
both sides, they met on the sixteenth day of April, in the council
chamber of the Cockpit near Whitehall, which was the place appointed
for the conferences. Their commissions being opened and read by the
respective secretaries, and introductory speeches being pronounced by
the lord-keeper of England, and the lord chancellor of Scotland,
they agreed to certain preliminary articles, importing, that all the
proposals should be made in writing; and every point, when agreed,
reduced to writing; that no points should be obligatory, till all
matters should be adjusted in such a manner as would be proper to be
laid before the queen and the two parliaments for their approbation;
that a committee should be appointed from each commission, to revise the
minutes of what might pass, before they should be inserted in the books
by the respective secretaries; and that all the proceedings during
the treaty should be kept secret. The Scots were inclined to a federal
union, like that of the United Provinces; but the English were bent upon
an incorporation, so that no Scottish parliament should ever have power
to repeal the articles of the treaty. The lord-keeper proposed that the
two kingdoms of England and Scotland should be for ever united into one
realm, by the name of Great Britain: that it should be represented by
one and the same parliament; and that the succession of this monarchy,
failing of heirs of her majesty’s body, should be according to the
limitations mentioned in the act of parliament passed in the reign of
king William, intituled, an act for the further limitation of the crown,
and the better securing the rights and liberties of the subject. The
Scottish commissioners, in order to comply in some measure with the
popular clamour of their nation, presented a proposal implying that the
succession to the crown of Scotland should be established upon the same
persons mentioned in the act of king William’s reign; that the subjects
of Scotland should for ever enjoy all the rights and privileges of the
natives in England, and the dominions thereunto belonging; and that
the subjects of England should enjoy the like rights and privileges in
Scotland; that there should be a free communication and intercourse of
trade and navigation between the two kingdoms, and plantations thereunto
belonging; and that all laws and statutes in either kingdom,
contrary to the terms of this union, should be repealed. The English
commissioners declined entering into any considerations upon these
proposals, declaring themselves fully convinced that nothing but an
entire union could settle a perfect and lasting friendship between
the two kingdoms. The Scots acquiesced in this reply, and both sides
proceeded in the treaty without any other intervening dispute. They were
twice visited by the queen, who exhorted them to accelerate the articles
of a treaty that would prove so advantageous to both kingdoms. At length
they were finished, arranged, and mutually signed, on the twenty-second
of July, and next day presented to her majesty, at the palace of St.
James’s, by the lord-keeper, in the name of the English commissioners;
at the same time a sealed copy of the instrument was likewise delivered
by the lord chancellor of Scotland; and each made a short oration on the
subject, to which the queen returned a very gracious reply. That same
day she dictated an order of council, that whoever should be concerned
in any discourse or libel, or in laying wagers relating to the union,
should be prosecuted with the utmost rigour of the law.
SUBSTANCE OF THE TREATY.
In this famous treaty it was stipulated, that the succession to the
united kingdom of Great Britain should be vested in the princess Sophia,
and her heirs, according to the acts already passed in the parliament of
England: that the united kingdoms should be represented by one and the
same parliament: that all the subjects of Great Britain should enjoy a
communication of privileges and advantages: that they should have the
same allowances, encouragements, and drawbacks; and be under the same
prohibitions, restrictions, and regulations, with respect to commerce
and customs: that Scotland should not be charged with the temporary
duties on some certain commodities: that the sum of three hundred and
ninety-eight thousand and eighty-five pounds ten shillings, should be
granted to the Scots, as an equivalent for such parts of the customs and
excise charged upon that kingdom in consequence of the union, as would
be applicable to the payment of the debts of England, according to the
proportion which the customs and excise of Scotland bore co those of
England: that, as the revenues of Scotland might increase, a further
equivalent should be allowed for such proportion of the said increase
as should be applicable to the payment of the debts of England: that
the sura to be paid at present, as well as the monies arising from the
future equivalents, should be employed in reducing the coin of Scotland
to the standard and value of the English coin; in paying off the capital
stock and interest due to the proprietors of the African company, which
should be immediately dissolved; in discharging all the public debts of
the kingdom of Scotland; in promoting and encouraging manufactures and
fisheries, under the direction of commissioners to be appointed by her
majesty, and accountable to the parliament of Great Britain: that the
laws concerning public right, policy, and civil government, should be
the same throughout the whole united kingdom; but that no alteration
should be made in laws which concerned private right, except for evident
utility of the subjects within Scotland: that the court of session
and all other courts of judicature in Scotland, should remain as then
constituted by the laws of that kingdom, with the same authority
and privileges as before the union; subject, nevertheless, to such
regulations as should be made by the parliament of Great Britain: that
all heritable offices, superiorities, heritable jurisdictions, offices
for life, and jurisdictions for life, should be reserved to the owners,
as rights and property, in the same manner as then enjoyed by the laws
of Scotland: that the rights and privileges of the royal boroughs in
Scotland should remain entire after the union: that Scotland should
be represented in the parliament of Great Britain by sixteen peers
and forty-five commoners, to be elected in such a manner as should
be settled by the present parliament of Scotland: that all peers of
Scotland, and the successors to their honours and dignities, should,
from and after the union, be peers of Great Britain, and should have
rank and precedency next and immediately after the English peers of the
like orders and degrees, at the time of the union; and before all peers
of Great Britain of the like orders and degrees, who might be created
after the union: that they should be tried as peers of Great Britain,
and enjoy all privileges of peers, as fully as enjoyed by the peers
of England, except the right and privilege of sitting in the house of
lords, and the privileges depending thereon, and particularly the right
of sitting upon the trials of peers: that the crown, sceptre, and sword
of state, the records of parliament, and all other records, rolls, and
registers whatsoever, should still remain as they were, within that part
of the united kingdom called Scotland: that all laws and statutes in
either kingdom, so far as they might be inconsistent with the terms
of these articles, should cease and be declared void by the respective
parliaments of the two kingdoms.--Such is the substance of that treaty
of union which was so eagerly courted by the English ministry, and
proved so unpalatable to the generality of the Scottish nation.
CHAPTER IX.
_Battle of Ramillies, in which the French are defeated.....
The Siege of Barcelona raised by the English fleet..... Prince
Eugene obtains a complete victory over the French at
Turin..... Sir Cloudesley Shovel sails with a reinforcement
to Charles king of Spain..... the king of Sweden marches
into Saxony..... The French King demands Conferences for a
Peace..... Meeting of the Scottish Parliament..... Violent
Opposition to the Union..... The Scots in general averse to
the Treaty, which is nevertheless confirmed in their
Parliament..... Proceedings in the English Parliament.....
The Commons approve of the Articles of the Union..... The
Lords pass a Bill for the Security of the Church of
England..... Arguments used against the Articles of the
Union, which, however, are confirmed by Act of
Parliament..... The Parliament revived by Proclamation.....
The Queen gives audience to a Muscovite Ambassador.....
Proceedings in Convocation..... France threatened with total
Ruin..... The Allies are defeated at Almanza.....
Unsuccessful Attempt upon Toulon..... Sir Cloudesley Shovel
wrecked on the Rocks of Scilly..... Weakness of the Emperor
on the Upper Rhine..... Interview between the King of Sweden
and the Duke of Marlborough..... Inactive Campaign in the
Netherlands..... Harley begins to form a Party against the
Duke of Marlborough..... The Nation discontented with the
Whig Ministry..... Meeting of the first British
Parliament..... Inquiry into the State of the War in
Spain..... Gregg, a Clerk in the Secretary’s Office,
detected in a Correspondence with the French Ministry.....
Harley resigns his Employments..... The Pretender
embarks at Dunkirk for Scotland..... His design is
defeated..... State of the Nation at that Period.....
Parliament dissolved..... The French surprise Ghem and
Bruges..... They are routed at Oudenarde..... The Allies
invest Lisle..... They defeat a large Body of French Forces
at Wynendale..... The Elector of Bavaria attacks
Brussels..... Lisle surrendered..... Ghent taken, and Bruges
abandoned..... Conquest of Minorca by General Stanhope.....
Rupture between the Pope and the Emperor..... Death of
Prince George of Denmark..... The new Parliament
assembled..... Naturalization Bill..... Act of Grace.....
Disputes about the Muscovite Ambassador compromised._
THE FRENCH DEFEATED AT THE BATTLE OF RAMILLIES.
While this treaty was on the carpet at home, the allied arms prospered
surprisingly in the Netherlands, in Spain, and in Piedmont. The French
king had resolved to make very considerable efforts in these countries;
and, indeed, at the beginning of the campaign his armies were very
formidable. He hoped that, by the reduction of Turin and Barcelona, the
war would be extinguished in Italy and Catalonia. He knew that he could
out-number any body of forces that prince Louis of Baden should assemble
on the Rhine; and he resolved to reinforce his army in Flanders, so as
to be in a condition to act offensively against the duke of Marlborough.
This nobleman repaired to Holland in the latter end of April, and
conferred with the states-general. Then he assembled the army between
Borschloen and Groes Waren, and found it amounted to seventy-four
battalions of foot, and one hundred and twenty-three squadrons of horse
and dragoons, well furnished with artillery and pontoons. The court of
France having received intelligence that the Danish and Prussian troops
had not yet joined the confederates, ordered the elector of Bavaria
and the mareschal Villeroy to attack them before the junction could
be effected. In pursuance of this order they passed the Deule on
the nineteenth day of May, and posted themselves at Tirlemont, being
superior in number to the allied army. There they were joined by the
horse of the army, commanded by mareschal Marsin, and encamped between
Tirlemont and Judoigne. On Whitsunday, early in the morning, the duke of
Marlborough advanced with his army in eight columns towards the village
of Ramillies, being by this time joined by the Danes; and he learned
that the enemy were in march to give him battle. Next day the French
generals perceiving the confederates so near them, took possession of a
strong camp, the right extending to the tomb of Hautemont, on the side
of the Mehaigne; their left to Anderkirk; and the village of Ramillies
being near their centre. The confederate army was drawn up in order of
battle, with the right wing near Foltz on the brook of Yause, and the
left by the village of Franquenies, which the enemy had occupied. The
duke ordered lieutenant-general Schultz, with twelve battalions and
twenty pieces of cannon, to begin the action by attacking Eamillies,
which was strongly fortified with artillery. At the same time
velt-mareschal d’Auverquerque on the left commanded colonel Wertmuller,
with four battalions and two pieces of cannon, to dislodge the enemy’s
infantry posted among the hedges of Franquenies. Both these orders
were successfully executed. The Dutch and Danish horse of the left wing
charged with great vigour and intrepidity, but were so roughly handled
by the troops of the French king’s household, that they began to give
way, when the duke of Marlborough sustained them with the body of
reserve, and twenty squadrons drawn from the right, where a morass
prevented them from acting. In the meantime, he in person rallied some
of the broken squadrons, in order to renew the charge, when his own
horse falling, he was surrounded by the enemy, and must have been either
killed or taken prisoner, had not a body of infantry come seasonably to
his relief. When he remounted his horse, the head of colonel Brienfield,
his gentleman of the horse, was carried off by a cannon ball while he
held the duke’s stirrup. Before the reinforcement arrived, the best part
of the French mousquetaires were cut in pieces. All the troops posted in
Ramillies were either killed or taken. The rest of the enemy’s infantry
began to retreat in tolerable order, under cover of the cavalry on their
left wing, which formed themselves in three lines between Ossuz and
Anderkirk; but the English horse having found means to pass the rivulet
which divided them from the enemy, fell upon them with such impetuosity,
that they abandoned their foot, and were terribly slaughtered in the
village of Anderkirk. They now gave way on all sides. The horse fled
three different ways, but were so closely pursued that very few escaped.
The elector of Bavaria and the mareschal de Villeroy saved themselves
with the utmost difficulty. Several waggons of the enemy’s van-guard
breaking down in a narrow pass, obstructed the way in such a manner
that the baggage and artillery could not proceed; nor could their troops
defile in order. The victorious horse being informed of this accident,
pressed on them so vigorously that great numbers threw down their
arms and submitted. The pursuit was followed through Judoigne till
two o’clock in the morning, five leagues from the field of battle, and
within two of Louvaine. In a word, the confederates obtained a complete
victory. They took the enemy’s baggage and artillery, about one hundred
and twenty colours or standards, six hundred officers, six thousand
private soldiers, and about eight thousand were killed or wounded.*
* The French impute the loss of this battle to the
misconduct of Villeroy, who, it must be owned, made a most
wretched disposition. When he returned to Versailles, where
he expected to meet with nothing else but reproaches, Louis
received him without the least mark of displeasure, saying,
“Mr. Mareschal, you and I are too old to be fortunate.”
Prince Maximilian and prince Monbason lost their lives; the
major-general Palavicini and Mizieres were taken, together with the
marquasses de Bar, de Nonant, and de la Beaume, (this last the son of
the mareschal de Tallard,) monsieur de Montmorency, nephew to the duke
of Luxembourg, and many other persons of distinction. The loss of the
allies did not exceed three thousand men, including prince Louis of
Hesse, and Mr. Bentinck, who were slain in the engagement. The French
generals retired with precipitation to Brussels, while the allies took
possession of Louvaine, and next day encamped at Bethlem. The battle of
Eamillies was attended with the immediate conquest of all Brabant.
The cities of Louvaine, Mechlin, Brussels, Antwerp, Ghent, and Bruges,
submitted without resistance, and acknowledged king Charles. Ostend,
though secured by a strong garrison, was surrendered after a siege
of ten days. Menin, esteemed the most finished fortification in the
Netherlands, and guarded by six thousand men, met with the same fate.
The garrison of Dendermonde surrendered themselves prisoners of war;
and Aeth submitted on the same conditions. The French troops were
dispirited. The city of Paris was overwhelmed with consternation. Louis
affected to bear his misfortunes with calmness and composure; but the
constraint had such an effect upon his constitution, that his
physicians thought it necessary to prescribe frequent bleeding, which
he accordingly underwent. At his court no mention was made of military
transactions: all was solemn, silent, and reserved.
THE SIEGE OF BARCELONA RAISED.
Had the issue of the campaign in Catalonia been such as the beginning
seemed to prognosticate, the French king might have in some measure
consoled himself for his disgraces in the Netherlands. On the sixth
day of April king Philip, at the head of a numerous army, undertook the
siege of Barcelona, while the count de Thoulouse blocked it up with a
powerful squadron. The inhabitants, animated by the presence of king
Charles, made a vigorous defence; and the garrison was reinforced
with some troops from Gironne and other places. But, after the fort of
Montjuic was taken, the place was so hard pressed, that Charles ran
the utmost risk of falling into the hands of the enemy; for the earl of
Peterborough, who had marched from Valencia with two thousand men, found
it impracticable to enter the city. Nevertheless, he maintained his
post upon the hills; and, with surprising courage and activity, kept
the besiegers in continual alarm. At length, sir John Leake sailed
from Lisbon with thirty ships of the line; and on the eighth day of May
arrived in sight of Barcelona. The French admiral no sooner received
intelligence of his approach, than he set sail for Toulon. In three
days after his departure, king Philip abandoned the siege and retired in
great disorder, leaving behind his tents, with the sick and wounded.
On the side of Portugal, the duke of Berwick was left with such an
inconsiderable force as proved insufficient to defend the frontiers. The
earl of Galway, with an army of twenty thousand men, undertook the siege
of Alcantra; and in three days the garrison, consisting of four thousand
men, were made prisoners of war. Then he marched to Placentia, and
advanced as far as the bridge of Almaris; but the Portuguese would
penetrate no farther until they should know the fate of Barcelona.
When they understood the siege was raised, they consented to proceed to
Madrid. Philip guessed their intention, posted to that capital, and sent
his queen with all his valuable effects to Burgos, whither he followed
her in person, after having destroyed everything that he could not carry
away. About the latter end of June, the earl of Galway entered the city
without resistance; but the Spaniards were extremely mortified to see
an army of Portuguese, headed by an heretic, in possession of their
capital. King Charles loitered away his time in Barcelona, until his
competitor recovered his spirits, and received such reinforcements as
enabled him to return to Madrid with an army equal to that commanded by
the earl of Galway. This general made a motion towards Arragon, in order
to facilitate his conjunction with Charles, who had set out by the way
of Saragossa, where he was acknowledged as sovereign of Arragon
and Valencia. In the beginning of August this prince arrived at the
Portuguese camp with a small reinforcement; and in a few days was
followed by the earl of Peterborough, at the head of five hundred
dragoons. The two armies were now pretty equal in point of number; but
as each expected farther reinforcements, neither chose to hazard an
engagement. The earl of Peterborough, who aspired to the chief command,
and hated the prince of Lichtenstein, who enjoyed the confidence of king
Charles, retired in disgust; and embarking on board an English ship of
war, set sail for Genoa. The English fleet continued all the summer
in the Mediterranean; they secured Carthagena, which had declared for
Charles; they took the town of Alicant by assault, and the castle by
capitulation. Then sailing out of the Straits, one squadron was detached
to the West Indies, another to lie at Liston, and the rest were sent
home to England.
PRINCE EUGENE OBTAINS A COMPLETE VICTORY OVER THE FRENCH.
Fortune was not more propitious to the French in Italy than in Flanders.
The duke de Vendôme having been recalled to assume the command in
Flanders after the-battle of Ramillies, the duke of Orleans was placed
at the head of the army in Piedmont, under the tutorage and direction of
the mareschal de Marsin. They were ordered to besiege Turin, which was
accordingly invested in the month of May, and the operations carried on
till the beginning of September. Great preparations had been made for
this siege. It was not undertaken until the duke of Savoy had rejected
all the offers of the French monarch, which were sufficient to have
shaken a prince of less courage and fortitude. The duke de la Feuillade
having finished the lines of circumvallation and contravallation, sent
his quarter-master-general with a trumpet to offer passports and a
guard for the removal of the duchess and her children. The duke of
Savoy replied, that he did not intend to remove his family, and that the
mareschal might begin to execute his master’s orders whenever he should
think fit; but, when the siege began with uncommon fury, and the French
fired red-hot balls into the place, the two duchesses, with the young
prince and princesses, quitted Turin, and retired to Quierasco, from
whence they were conducted through many dangers into the territories of
Genoa. The duke himself forsook his capital in order to put himself at
the head of his cavalry; and was pursued from place to place by five
and forty squadrons, under the command of the count d’Aubeterre.
Notwithstanding the very noble defence which was made by the garrison of
Turin, which destroyed fourteen thousand of the enemy during the course
of the siege, the defences were almost ruined, their ammunition began to
fail, and they had no prospect of relief but from prince Eugene, who
had numberless difficulties to en-counter before he could march to their
assistance. The duke de Vendôme, before he left Italy, had secured all
the fords of the Adige, the Mincio, and the Oglio, and formed such lines
and intrenchments as he imagined would effectually hinder the Imperial
general from arriving in time to relieve the city of Turin. But the
prince surmounted all opposition; passed four great rivers in despite of
the enemy, and reached the neighbourhood of Turin on the thirteenth day
of August. There, being joined by the duke of Savoy, he passed the Po
between Montcalier and Cavignan. On the fifth day of September they took
a convoy of eight hundred loaded mules: next day they passed the Doria,
and encamped with the right on the bank of that river before Pianessa,
and the left on the Stura before the Veneria. The enemy were intrenched,
having the Stura on their right, the Doria on their left, and the
convent of Capuchins, called Notre Dame de la Campagne, in their centre.
When prince Eugene approached Turin, the duke of Orleans proposed to
march out of the intrenchments and give him battle; and this proposal
was seconded by all the general officers, except Marsin, who, finding
the duke determined, produced an order from the French king commanding
the duke to follow the mareschal’s advice. The court of Versailles was
now become afraid of hazarding an engagement against those who had so
often defeated their armies; and this officer had private instructions
to keep within the trenches. On the seventh day of September the
confederates marched up to the entrenchments of the French in eight
columns, through a terrible fire from forty pieces of artillery, and
were formed in order of battle within half cannon-shot of the enemy.
Then they advanced to the attack with surprising resolution, and met
with such a warm reception as seemed to stop their progress. Prince
Eugene perceiving this check, drew his sword, and putting himself at
the head of the battalions on the left, forced the entrenchments at the
first charge. The duke of Savoy met with the same success in the centre,
and on the right near Lucengo. The horse advanced through the
intervals of the foot, left for that purpose; and breaking in with vast
impetuosity, completed the confusion of the enemy, who were defeated on
all hands, and retired with precipitation to the other side of the
Po, while the duke of Savoy entered his capital in triumph. The duke
of Orleans exhibited repeated proofs of the most intrepid courage, and
received several wounds in the engagement. Mareschal de Marsin fell into
the hands of the victors, his thigh being shattered with a ball, and
died in a few hours after the amputation. Of the French army about
five thousand men were slain on the field of battle; a great number of
officers, and upwards of seven thousand men were taken, together with
two hundred and fifty-five pieces of cannon, one hundred and eighty
mortars, an incredible quantity of ammunition, all the tents and
baggage, five thousand beasts of burden, ten thousand horses
belonging to thirteen regiments of dragoons, and the mules of the
commissary-general, so richly laden that this part of the booty alone
was valued at three millions of livres. The loss of the confederates did
not exceed three thousand men killed or disabled in the action, besides
about the same number at the garrison of Turin, which had fallen since
the beginning of the siege. This was such a fatal stroke to the interest
of Louis, that madame de Main-tenon would not venture to make him folly
acquainted with the state of his affairs. He was told that the duke of
Orleans had raised the siege of Turin at the approach of prince Eugene,
but he knew not that his own army was defeated and ruined. The spirits
of the French were a little comforted in consequence of an advantage
gained about this time by the count de Medavigrancey, who commanded a
body of troops left in the Mantuan territories. He surprised the prince
of Hesse in the neighbourhood of Castiglione, and obliged him to retire
to the Adige with the loss of two thousand men; but this victory was
attended with no consequence in their favour. The duke of Orleans
retreated into Dauphiné, while the French garrisons were driven out
of every place they occupied in Piedmont and Italy, except Cremona,
Valenza, and the castle of Milan, which were blocked up by the
confederates.
{ANNE, 1701--1714}
SIR C. SHOVEL SAILS WITH A REINFORCEMENT TO CHARLES.
Over and above these disasters which the French sustained in the course
of this campaign, they were miserably alarmed by the project of an
invasion from Britain, formed by the marquis de Guiscard, who, actuated
by a family disgust, had abandoned his country and become a partisan of
the confederates. He was declared a lieutenant-general in the emperor’s
army, and came over to London, after having settled a correspondence
with the malcontents in the southern parts of France. He insinuated
himself into the friendship of Henry St. John, secretary of war, and
other persons of distinction. His scheme of invading France was approved
by the British ministry, and he was promoted to the command of a
regiment of dragoons destined for that service. About eleven thousand
men were embarked under the conduct of Earl Rivers, with a large train
of artillery; and the combined squadrons, commanded by sir Cloudesley
Shovel, set sail from Plymouth on the thirteenth day of August. Next day
they were forced into Torbay by contrary winds, and there they held a
council of war to concert their operations, when they discovered that
Guiscard’s plan was altogether chimerical, or at least founded upon such
slight assurances and conjectures as could not justify their proceeding
to execution. An express was immediately despatched to the admiralty
with the result of this council; and, in the meantime, letters arrived
at court from the earl of Galway, after his retreat from Madrid to
Valencia, soliciting succours with the most earnest entreaties. The
expedition to France was immediately postponed, and sir Cloudesley
Shovel was ordered to make the best of his way to Lisbon, there to take
such measures as the state of the war in Spain should render necessary.
Guiscard and his officers being set on shore, the fleet sailed with
the first fair wind, and towards the latter end of October arrived at
Lisbon. On the twenty-eighth day of the next month the king of Portugal
died, and his eldest son and successor being but eighteen years of age,
was even more than his father influenced by a ministry which had private
connexions with the court of Versailles. Nevertheless, sir Cloudesley
Shovel and Earl Rivers, being pressed by letters from king Charles and
the earl of G-alway, sailed to their assistance in the beginning of
January; and on the twenty-eighth arrived at Alicant, from whence the
earl of Rivers proceeded by land to Valencia, in order to assist at a
general council of war. The operations of the ensuing campaign being
concerted, and the army joined by the reinforcement from England, earl
Rivers, disliking the country, returned with the admiral to Lisbon.
THE KING OF SWEDEN MARCHES INTO SAXONY.
Poland was at length delivered from the presence of the king of Sweden,
who in the beginning of September suddenly marched through Lusatia
into Saxony; and in a little time laid that whole electorate under
contribution. Augustus being thus cut off from all resource, resolved
to obtain peace on the Swede’s own terms, and engaged in a secret treaty
for this purpose. In the meantime the Poles and Muscovites attacked the
Swedish forces at Kalish in Great Poland, and by dint of numbers routed
them with great slaughter. Notwithstanding this event, Augustus ratified
the treaty, by which he acknowledged Stanislaus as true and rightful
king of Poland, reserving to himself no more than the empty title of
sovereign. The confederates were not a little alarmed to find Charles
in the heart of Germany, and the French court did not fail to court
his alliance; but he continued on the reserve against all their
solicitations. Then they implored his mediation for a peace; and he
answered, that he would interpose his good offices as soon as he
should know they would be agreeable to the powers engaged in the grand
alliance.
THE FRENCH KING DEMANDS CONFERENCES FOR A PEACE.
The pride of Louis was now humbled to such a degree as might have
excited the compassion of his enemies. He employed the elector of
Bavaria to write letters in his name to the duke of Marlborough and
the deputies of the states-general, containing proposals for opening
a congress. He had already tampered with the Dutch, in a memorial
presented by the marquis d’Alegre. He likewise besought the pope to
interpose in his behalf. He offered to cede either Spain and the West
Indies, or Milan, Naples, and Sicily, to king Charles; to give up a
barrier for the Dutch in the Netherlands; and to indemnify the duke of
Savoy for the ravages that had been committed in his dominions. Though
his real aim was’ peace, yet he did not despair of being able to excite
such jealousies among the confederates as might shake the basis of their
union. His hope was not altogether disappointed. The court of Vienna was
so much alarmed at the offers he had made, and the reports circulated
by his emissaries, that the emperor resolved to make himself master of
Naples before the allies should have it in their power to close with the
proposals of France. This was the true motive of his concluding a treaty
with Louis in the succeeding winter, by which the Milanese was entirely
evacuated, and the French king at liberty to employ those troops
in making strong efforts against the confederates in Spain and the
Netherlands. The Dutch were intoxicated with success, and their
pensionary, Heinsius, entirely influenced by the duke of Marlborough,
who found his account in the continuance of the war, which at once
gratified his avarice and ambition; for all his great qualities were
obscured by the sordid passion of accumulating wealth. During the whole
war the allies never had such an opportunity as they now enjoyed to
bridle the power of France effectually, and secure the liberties of
the empire; and indeed, if their real design was to establish an equal
balance between the houses of Austria and Bourbon, it could not have
been better effected than by dividing the Spanish monarchy between these
two potentates. The accession of Spain, with all its appendages, to
either, would have destroyed the equilibrium which the allies proposed
to establish. But other motives contributed to a continuation of the
war. The powers of the confederacy were fired with the ambition of
making conquests; and England in particular thought herself intitled to
an imdemnification for the immense sums she had expended. Animated
by these concurring considerations, queen Anne and the states-general
rejected the offers of France; and declared that they would not enter
into any negotiation for peace, except in concert with their allies.
MEETING OF THE SCOTTISH PARLIAMENT.
The tories of England began to meditate schemes of opposition against
the duke of Marlborough. They looked upon him as a selfish nobleman, who
sacrificed the interest of the nation, in protracting a ruinous war
for his own private advantage. They saw their country oppressed with an
increasing load of taxes, which they apprehended would in a little time
become an intolerable burden; and they did not doubt but at this period
such terms might be obtained as would fully answer the great purpose of
the confederacy. This indeed was the prevailing opinion among all the
sensible people of the nation who were not particularly interested in
the prosecution of the war, either by being connected with the general,
or in some shape employed in the management of the finances. The tories
were likewise instigated by a party spirit against Marlborough, who, by
means of his wife, was in full possession of the queen’s confidence,
and openly patronized the whig faction. But the attention of people in
general was now turned upon the Scottish parliament, which took
into consideration the treaty of union lately concluded between the
commissioners of both kingdoms. On the third day of October the duke of
Queensberry, as high commissioner, produced the queen’s letter, in which
she expressed her hope that the terms of the treaty would be acceptable
to her parliament of Scotland. She said, an entire and perfect union
would be the solid foundation of a lasting peace: it would secure their
religion, liberty, and property; remove the animosities that prevailed
among themselves, and the jealousies that subsisted between the two
nations: it would increase their strength, riches, and commerce:
the whole island would be joined in affection, and free from all
apprehensions of different interests: it would be enabled to resist all
its enemies, support the protestant interest everywhere, and maintain
the liberties of Europe. She renewed her assurance of maintaining
the government of their church; and told them, that now they had an
opportunity of taking such steps as might be necessary for its security
after the union. She demanded the necessary supplies. She observed, that
the great success with which Almighty God had blessed her arms, afforded
the nearer prospect of a happy peace, with which they would enjoy the
full advantages of this union: that they had no reason to doubt but the
parliament of England would do all that should be necessary on their
part to confirm the union: finally, she recommended calmness and
unanimity in deliberating on this great and weighty affair, of such
consequence to the whole island of Great Britain.
VIOLENT OPPOSITION TO THE UNION.
Hitherto the articles of the union had been industriously concealed from
the knowledge of the people: but the treaty being recited in parliament,
and the particulars divulged, such a flame was kindled through the
whole nation as had not appeared since the restoration. The cavaliers or
Jacobites had always foreseen that this union would extinguish all their
hopes of a revolution in favour of the pretender. The nobility found
themselves degraded in point of dignity and influence, by being excluded
from their seats in parliament. The trading part of the nation
beheld their commerce saddled with heavy duties and restrictions, and
considered the privilege of trading to the English plantations as
a precarious and uncertain prospect of advantage. The barons, or
gentlemen, were exasperated at a coalition by which their parliament
was annihilated, and their credit destroyed. The people in general
exclaimed, that the dignity of their crown was betrayed; that the
independency of their nation had fallen a sacrifice to treachery and
corruption; that whatever conditions might be speciously offered, they
could not expect they would be observed by a parliament in which the
English had such a majority. They exaggerated the dangers to which the
constitution of their church would be exposed from a bench of bishops,
and a parliament of episcopalians. This consideration alarmed the
presbyterian ministers to such a degree, that they employed all their
power and credit in waking the resentment of their hearers against the
treaty, which produced an universal ferment among all ranks of people.
Even the most rigid puritans joined the cavaliers in expressing their
detestation of the union; and laying aside their mutual animosities,
promised to co-operate in opposing a measure so ignominous and
prejudicial to their country. In parliament, the opposition was headed
by the dukes of Hamilton and Athol, and the marquis of Annandale. The
first of these noblemen had wavered so much in his conduct, that it is
difficult to ascertain his real political principles. He was generally
supposed to favour the claim of the pretender; but he was afraid of
embarking too far in his cause, and avoided violent measures in the
discussion of the treaty, lest he should incur the resentment of the
English parliament, and forfeit the estate he possessed in that kingdom.
Athol was more forward in his professions of attachment to the court of
St. Germain’s; but he had less ability, and his zeal was supposed to
be inflamed by resentment against the ministry. The debates upon the
different articles of the treaty were carried on with great heat and
vivacity, and many shrewd arguments were used against this scheme of
incorporating the union. One member affirmed, that it would furnish a
handle to any aspiring prince to overthrow the liberties of all Britain;
for if the parliament of Scotland could alter, or rather subvert its
constitution, this circumstance might be a precedent for the parliament
of Great Britain to assume the same power: that the representatives for
Scotland would, from their poverty, depend upon those who possessed
the means of corruption; and having expressed so little concern for the
support of their own constitution, would pay very little regard to that
of any other. “What!” said the duke of Hamilton, “shall we in half
an hour give up what our forefathers maintained with their lives and
fortunes for many ages? Are here none of the descendants of those worthy
patriots who defended the liberty of their country against all invaders;
who assisted the great king Robert Bruce to restore the constitution,
and revenge the falsehood of England and the usurpation of Baliol? Where
are the Douglasses and Campbells? Where are the peers, where are
the barons, once the bulwark of the nation? Shall we yield up the
sovereignty and independency of our country, when we are commanded by
those we represent to preserve the same, and assured of their assistance
to support us?” The duke of Athol protested against an incorporating
union, as contrary to the honour, interest, fundamental laws, and
constitution of the kingdom of Scotland, the birthright of the peers,
the rights and privileges of the barons and boroughs, and to the
claim of right, property, and liberty of the subjects. To this protest
nineteen peers and forty-six commoners adhered. The earl-marshal entered
a protest, importing, that no person being successor to the crown
of England should inherit that of Scotland, without such previous
limitations as might secure the honour and sovereignty of the Scottish
crown and kingdom, the frequency and power of parliament, the religion,
liberty, and trade of the nation, from English or any foreign influence.
He was seconded by six-and-forty members. With regard to the third
article of the union, stipulating, that both kingdoms should be
represented by one and the same parliament, the country party observed
that, by assenting to this expedient, they did in effect sink their own
constitution, while that of England underwent no alteration: that in all
nations there are fundamentals which no power whatever can alter: that
the rights and privileges of parliament being one of those fundamentals
among the Scots, no parliament, or any other power, could ever legally
prohibit the meeting of parliaments, or deprive any of the three estates
of its right of sitting or voting in parliament, or give up the rights
and privileges of parliament: but that by this treaty the parliament of
Scotland was entirely abrogated, its rights and privileges sacrificed,
and those of the English parliament substituted in their place. They
argued that though the legislative power in parliament was regulated and
determined by a majority of voices; yet the giving up the constitution,
with the rights and privileges of the nation, was not subject to
suffrage, being founded on dominion and property, and therefore could
not be legally surrendered without the consent of every person who had a
right to elect and be represented in parliament. They affirmed, that the
obligation laid on the Scottish members to reside so long in London in
attendance on the British parliament, would drain Scotland of all its
money, impoverish the members, and subject them to the temptation of
being corrupted. Another protest was entered by the marquis of
Annandale against an incorporating union, as being odious to the people,
subversive of the constitution, sovereignty, and claim of right, and
threatening ruin to the church as by law established. Fifty-two members
joined in this protestation. Almost every article produced the most
inflammatory disputes. The lord Belhaven enumerated the mischiefs which
would attend the union in a pathetic speech, that drew tears from the
audience, and is at this day looked upon as a prophecy by great part
of the Scottish nation. Addresses against the treaty were presented to
parliament by the convention of boroughs, the commissioners of the
general assembly, the company trading to Africa and the Indies, as well
as from several shires, stewartries, boroughs, towns, and parishes, in
all the different parts of the kingdom, without distinction of whig or
tory, episcopalian or presbyterian. The earl of Buchan for the peers,
Lockhart of Camwarth for the barons, sir William Stuart in behalf of
the peers, barons, boroughs, the earls of Errol and Marischal for
themselves, as high-constable and earl-marshal of the kingdom, protested
severally against the treaty of union.
While this opposition raged within doors, the resentment of the people
rose to transports of fury and revenge. The more rigid presbyterians,
known by the name of Cameronians, chose officers, formed themselves
into regiments, provided horses, arms, and ammunition, and marching to
Dumfries, burned the articles of union at the Market-cross, justifying
their conduct in a public declaration. They made a tender of their
attachment to duke Hamilton, from whom they received encouragement
in secret. They reconciled themselves to the episcopalians and the
cavaliers: they resolved to take the route to Edinburgh, and dissolve
the parliament; while the duke of Athol undertook to secure the pass of
Stirling with his highlanders, so as to open the communication between
the western and northern parts of the kingdom. Seven or eight thousand
men were actually ready to appear in arms at the town of Hamilton,
and march directly to Edinburgh, under the duke’s command, when that
nobleman altered his opinion, and despatched private couriers through
the whole country, requiring the people to defer their meeting till
further directions. The more sanguine cavaliers accused his grace of
treachery, but in all likelihood he was actuated by prudential motives.
He alleged, in his own excuse, that the nation was not in a condition
to carry on such an enterprise, especially as the English had already
detached troops to the border, and might in a few days have wafted over
a considerable reinforcement from Holland. During this commotion among
the Cameronians, the cities of Edinburgh and Glasgow were filled with
tumults. Sir Patrick Johnston, provost of Edinburgh, who had been one
of the commissioners for the union, was besieged in his own house by
the populace, and would have been torn in pieces had not the guards
dispersed the multitude. The privy-council issued a proclamation against
riots, commanding all persons to retire from the streets whenever the
drum should beat; ordering the guards to fire upon those who should
disobey this command, and indemnifying them from all prosecution for
maiming or slaying the lieges. These guards were placed all round the
house in which the peers and commons were assembled, and the council
received the thanks of the parliament for having thus provided for
their safety. Notwithstanding these precautions of the government, the
commissioner was constantly saluted with the curses and imprecations of
the people as he passed along: his guards were pelted, and some of his
attendants wounded with stones as they sat by him in the coach, so that
he was obliged to pass through the streets on full gallop.
Against all this national fury the dukes of Queensberry and Argyle, the
earls of Montrose, Seafield, and Stair, and the other noblemen attached
to the union, acted with equal prudence and resolution. They argued
strenuously against the objections that were started in the house.
They magnified the advantages that would accrue to the kingdom from the
privileges of trading to the English plantations, and being protected
in their commerce by a powerful navy; as well as from the exclusion of
a popish pretender, who they knew was odious to the nation in general.
They found means, partly by their promises, and partly by corruption, to
bring over the earls of Roxburgh and Marchmont, with the whole squadron
who had hitherto been unpropitious to the court. They disarmed the
resentment of the clergy, by promoting an act to be inserted in the
union, declaring the presbyterian discipline to be the only government
in the church of Scotland, unalterable in all succeeding times, and a
fundamental article of the treaty. They soothed the African company with
the prospect of being indemnified for the losses they had sustained.
They amused individuals with the hope of sharing the rest of the
equivalent. They employed emissaries to allay the ferment among the
Cameronians, and disunite them from the cavaliers, by canting, praying,
and demonstrating the absurdity, sinfulness, and danger of such a
coalition. These remonstrances were reinforced by the sum of twenty
thousand pounds, which the queen privately lent to the Scottish
treasury, and which was now distributed by the ministry in such a manner
as might best conduce to the success of the treaty. By these practices
they diminished, though they could not silence, the clamour of the
people, and obtained a considerable majority in parliament, which
out-voted all opposition. Not but that the duke of Queensberry at one
time despaired of succeeding, and being in continual apprehension for
his life, expressed a desire of adjourning the parliament, until by time
and good management he should be able to remove those difficulties that
then seemed to be insurmountable. But the lord-treasurer Godolphin, who
foresaw that the measure would be entirely lost by delay, and was no
judge of the difficulties, insisted upon his proceeding. It was at this
period that he remitted the money, and gave directions for having forces
ready at a call, both in England and Ireland. At length the Scottish
parliament approved and ratified all the articles of the union with some
small variation. Then they prepared an act for regulating the election
of the sixteen peers and forty-five commoners to represent Scotland in
the British parliament. This being touched with the sceptre, the three
estates proceeded to elect their representatives. The remaining part
of the session was employed in making regulations concerning the coin,
in examining the accounts of their African company, and providing
for the due application of the equivalent, which was scandalously
misapplied. On the twenty-fifth day of March the commissioner adjourned
the parliament, after having, in a short speech, taken notice of the
honour they had acquired in concluding an affair of such importance to
their country. Having thus accomplished the great purpose of the court,
he set out for London, in the neighbourhood of which he was met by above
forty noblemen in their coaches, and about four hundred gentlemen on
horseback. Next day he waited upon the queen at Kensington, from whom
he met with a very gracious reception. Perhaps there is not another
instance upon record of a ministry’s having carried a point of this
importance against such a violent torrent of opposition, and contrary
to the general sense and inclination of a whole exasperated people. The
Scots were persuaded that their trade would be destroyed, their nation
oppressed, and their country ruined, in consequence of the union with
England, and indeed their opinion was supported by very plausible
arguments. The majority of both nations believed that the treaty would
produce violent convulsions, or at best prove ineffectual. But we
now see it has been attended with none of the calamities that were
prognosticated; that it quietly took effect, and fully answered all the
purposes for which it was intended. Hence we may learn that many great
difficulties are surmounted, because they are not seen by those who
direct the execution of any great project; and that many schemes, which
theory deems impracticable, will yet succeed in the experiment.
PROCEEDINGS in the ENGLISH PARLIAMENT.
The English parliament assembling on the third day of December, the
queen, in her speech to both houses, congratulated them on the glorious
successes of her arms. She desired the commons would grant such supplies
as might enable her to improve the advantages of this successful
campaign. She told them that the treaty of union, as concluded by the
commissioners of both kingdoms, was at that time under the consideration
of the Scottish parliament; and she recommended despatch in the public
affairs, that both friends and enemies might be convinced of the
firmness and vigour of their proceedings. The parliament was perfectly
well disposed, to comply with all her majesty’s requests. Warm debates
were presented by both houses. Then they proceeded to the consideration
of the supply, and having examined the estimates in less than a
week, voted near six millions for the service of the ensuing year.
Nevertheless, in examining the accounts some objections arose. They
found that the extraordinary supplies for the support of king Charles
of Spain, amounted to eight hundred thousand pounds more than the sums
provided by parliament. Some members argued that very ill consequences
might ensue, if a ministry could thus run the nation in debt, and expect
the parliament should pay the money. The courtiers answered, that if
anything had been raised without necessity, or ill applied, it was
reasonable that those who were in fault should be punished; but as this
expense was incurred to improve advantages, at a time when the occasion
could not be communicated to parliament, the ministry was rather to
be applauded for their zeal, than condemned for their liberality. The
question being put, the majority voted that those sums had been expended
for the preservation of the duke of Savoy, for the interest of king
Charles against the common enemy, and for the safety and honour of the
nation. When the speaker presented the money-bills, he told her, that as
the glorious victory obtained by the duke of Marlborough at Ramillies,
was fought before it could be supposed the armies were in the field, so
it was no less surprising that the commons had granted supplies to
her majesty, before the enemy could well know that the parliament was
sitting. The general was again honoured with the thanks of both houses.
The lords in an address besought the queen to settle his honours on
his posterity. An act was passed for this purpose; and, in pursuance of
another address from the commons, a pension of five thousand pounds out
of the post-office was settled upon him and his descendants. The lords
and commons having adjourned themselves to the last day of December, the
queen closed the year with triumphal processions. As the standards and
colours taken at Blenheim had been placed in Westminster-hall, so now
those that had been brought from the field of Ramillies were put up in
Guildhall, as trophies of that victory. About this time the earls of
Kent, Lindsey, and Kingston, were raised to the rank of marquisses. The
lords Wharton, Paulet, Godolphin, and Cholmondeley, were created earls.
Lord Walden, son and heir-apparent to the earl of Suffolk, obtained the
title of earl of Bindon. The lord-keeper Cowper, and sir Thomas Pelham,
were ennobled as barons.
{ANNE, 1701--1714}
THE COMMONS APPROVE OF THE ARTICLES OF THE UNION.
The parliament being assembled after their short recess, the earl of
Nottingham moved for an address to the queen, desiring her majesty would
order the proceedings of the commissioners for the union, as well as
those of the Scottish parliament on the said subject, to be laid
before them. He was seconded by the duke of Buckingham and the earl of
Rochester; and answered by the earl of Godolphin, who told them
they needed not doubt but that her majesty would communicate those
proceedings, as soon as the Scottish parliament should have discussed
the subject of the union. The lords Wharton, Somers, and Halifax
observed, that it was for the honour of the nation that the treaty of
union should first come ratified from the parliament of Scotland; and
that then and not before, it would be a proper time for the lords to
take it into consideration. On the twenty-eighth day of January, the
queen in person told both houses that the treaty of union, with some
additions and alterations, was ratified by an act of the Scottish
parliament: that she had ordered it to be laid before them; and hoped
it would meet with their concurrence and approbation. She desired the
commons would provide for the payment of the equivalent, in case the
treaty should be approved. She observed to both houses, that now they
had an opportunity of putting the last hand to a happy union of the two
kingdoms; and that she should look upon it as a particular happiness
if this great work, which had been so often attempted without success,
could be brought to perfection in her reign. When the commons formed
themselves into a committee of the whole house, to deliberate on the
articles of the union, and the Scottish act of ratification, the
tory party, which was very weak in that assembly, began to start some
objections. Sir John Packington disapproved of this incorporating union,
which he likened to a marriage with a woman against her consent. He said
it was a union carried on by corruption and bribery within doors, by
force and violence without; that the promoters of it had basely betrayed
their trust, in giving up their independent constitution, and he would
leave it to the judgment of the house, to consider whether or not men
of such principles were fit to be admitted into their house of
representatives. He observed that her majesty, by the coronation oath,
was obliged to maintain the church of England as by law established;
and likewise bound by the same oath to defend the presbyterian kirk of
Scotland in one and the same kingdom. Now, said he, after this union is
in force, who shall administer this oath to her majesty? It is not the
business of the Scots, who are incapable of it, and no well-wishers to
the church of England. It is then only the part of the bishops to do it,
and can it be supposed that those reverend persons will, or can act a
thing so contrary to their own order and institution, as thus to promote
the establishment of the presbyterian church government in the united
kingdom? He added, that the church of England being established _jure
divino_, and the Scots pretending that the kirk was also _jure divino_,
he could not tell how two nations that clashed in so essential an
article could unite; he therefore thought it proper to consult the
convocation about this critical point. A motion was made, that the
first article of the treaty, which implies a peremptory agreement to
an incorporating union, should be postponed; and that the house should
proceed to the consideration of the terms of the intended union,
contained in the other articles. This proposal being rejected, some
tory members quitted the house; and all the articles were examined and
approved without further opposition. The whigs were so eager in the
prosecution of this point, that they proceeded in a very superficial
manner, and with such precipitation as furnished their enemies with a
plausible pretence to affirm, that they had not considered the treaty
with the coolness and deliberation which an affair of this importance
required.
Before the lords began to investigate the articles of the union, they,
at the instance of the archbishop of Canterbury, brought in a bill for
the security of the church of England, to be inserted as a fundamental
and essential part of that treaty. It passed through both houses without
opposition, and received the royal assent. On the fifteenth day of
February, the debates concerning the union began in the house of
lords, the queen being present, and the bishop of Sarum chairman of
the committee. The earls of Rochester, Anglesea, and Nottingham, argued
against the union; as did the bishop of Bath and Wells. Lord Haversham,
in a premeditated harangue, said the question was, whether two nations
independent in their sovereignties, that had their distinct laws and
interests, their different forms of worship, church-government, and
order, should be united into one kingdom? He supposed it a union made up
of so many mismatched pieces, of such jarring incongruous ingredients,
that should it ever take effect, it would carry the necessary
consequences of a standing power and force to keep them from falling
asunder and breaking in pieces every moment. Pie repeated what had
been said by lord Bacon, that an unity pieced up by direct admission
of contrarieties in the fundamental points of it, is like the toes of
Nebuchadnezzar’s image, which were made of iron and clay---they may
cleave together, but would never incorporate. He dissented from the
union for the sake of the good old English constitution, in which he
dreaded some alteration from the additional weight of sixty-one Scottish
members, and these too returned by a Scottish privy-council. He took
notice, that above one hundred Scottish peers, and as many commoners,
were excluded from sitting and voting in parliament, though they had
as much right of inheritance to sit there as any English peer had of
sitting in the parliament of England. He expressed his apprehension of
this precedent; and asked what security any peer of England had for this
right and privilege of peerage, which those lords had not. He said, If
the bishops would weaken their own cause, so far as to give up the two
great points of episcopal ordination and confirmation; if they
would approve and ratify the act for securing the presbyterian
church-government in Scotland, as the true protestant religion and
purity of worship; they must give up that which had been contended for
between them and the presbyterians for thirty years, and been defended
by the greatest and most learned men in the church of England. He
objected to the exempting articles, by which heritable offices and
superiorities were reserved. He affirmed that the union was contrary
to the sense of the Scottish nation; that the murmurs of the people had
been so loud as to fill the whole kingdom; and so bold as to reach even
to the doors of the parliament; that the parliament itself had suspended
their beloved clause in the act of security for arming the people;
that the government had issued a proclamation pardoning all slaughter,
bloodshed, and maiming committed upon those who should be found in
tumults. From these circumstances he concluded, that the Scottish nation
was averse to an incorporating union, which he looked upon as one of
the most dangerous experiments to both nations. Lord North and Grey
complained of the small and unequal proportion of the land-tax imposed
upon Scotland. The earl of Nottingham said it was highly unreasonable
that the Scots, who were by the treaty let into all the branches of the
English trade, and paid so little towards the expense of the government,
should moreover have such a round sum by way of equivalent. The
same topics were insisted on by the lords North and Grey, Guernsey,
Granville, Stawel, and Abingdon. The earl of Nottingham, after having
opposed every article separately, concluded with words to this effect;
“As sir John Maynard said to the late king at the revolution, that
having buried all his contemporaries in Westminster-hall, he was afraid,
if his majesty had not come in that very juncture of time, he might have
likewise outlived the very laws; so, if this union do pass, as I have no
reason to doubt but it will, I may justly affirm I have outlived all the
laws, and the very constitution of England: I, therefore, pray to God
to avert the dire effects which may probably ensue from such an
incorporating union.”
These arguments and objections were answered by the lord-treasurer
Godolphin, the earls of Sunderland and Wharton, the lords Townshend,
Halifax, and So-mers, the bishops of Oxford, Norwich, and Sarum. They
observed that such an important measure could not be effected without
some inconveniences; but that these ought to be borne in consideration
of the greatness of the advantage: that the chief dangers to which the
church was exposed arose from France and popery; and this union would
effectually secure it against these evils: that Scotland lay on the
weakest side of England, which could not be defended but by an expensive
army. Should a war break out between the two nations, and Scotland be
conquered, yet even in that case it would be necessary to keep it under
with a standing army, which any enterprising prince might model for
his ambitious purposes, and joining with the Scots, enslave his
English dominion; that any union after a conquest would be compulsive,
consequently of short duration; whereas now it was voluntary, it would
be lasting; that with regard to ecclesiastical affairs, all heats and
animosities might be allayed by soft and gentle management. The cantons
of Switzerland, though they professed different religions, were yet
united in one general body; and the diet of Germany was composed of
princes and states, among whom three different persuasions prevailed;
so that two sorts of discipline might very well subsist under one
legislature. If there was any danger on either side, it threatened the
Scots much more than the English, as five hundred and thirteen members
could certainly be too hard for forty-five; and in the house of lords,
six-and-twenty bishops would always preponderate against sixteen peers
from Scotland. Notwithstanding all the opposition made by the lords
of the tory interest, every article was approved by a great majority,
though not without a good number of protestations; and a bill of
ratification was prepared in the lower house by sir Simon Harcourt, the
solicitor-general, in such an artful manner as to prevent all debates.
All the articles, as they passed in Scotland, were recited by way
of preamble, together with the acts made in both parliaments for the
security of the several churches; and, in conclusion, there was one
clause by which the whole was ratified and enacted into a law. By this
contrivance, those who were desirous of starting new difficulties found
themselves disabled from pursuing their design. They could not object to
the recital, which was barely matter of fact; and they had not strength
sufficient to oppose the general enacting clause. On the other hand,
the whigs promoted it with such zeal that it passed by a majority of one
hundred and fourteen, before the others had recollected themselves from
the surprise which the structure of the bill had occasioned. It made
its way through the house of lords with equal despatch; and, when
it received the royal sanction, the queen expressed the utmost
satisfaction. She said she did not doubt but it would be remembered and
spoke of hereafter to the honour of those who had been instrumental in
bringing it to such a happy conclusion. She desired that her subjects of
both kingdoms should from henceforward behave with all possible respect
and kindness towards one another, that so it might appear to all the
world they had hearts disposed to become one people.
{1707}
PARLIAMENT REVIVED BY PROCLAMATION.
As the act of union did not take place till the first of May, a great
number of traders in both kingdoms resolved to make advantage of this
interval. The English proposed to export into Scotland such commodities
as entitled them to a drawback, with a view to bring them back after the
first of May. The Scots, on the other hand, as their duties were much
lower than those in England, intended to import great quantities of
wine, brandy, and other merchandise, which they could sell at a greater
advantage in England after the union, when there would be a free
intercourse between the two nations. Some of the ministers had embarked
in this fraudulent design, which alarmed the merchants of England
to such a degree, that they presented a remonstrance to the commons.
Resolutions were immediately taken in the house against these practices,
and a bill was prepared; but the lords apprehending that it in some
measure infringed the articles of the union, and that it might give
umbrage to the Scottish nation, it was dropped. The frauds had been in a
good measure prevented by the previous resolutions of the house; and
the first day of May was now at hand; so that the bill was thought
unnecessary. On the twenty-fourth day of April the queen prorogued
the parliament, after having given them to understand that she would
continue by proclamation the lords and commons already assembled, as
members in the first British parliament on the part of England, pursuant
to the powers vested in her by the acts of parliament of both kingdoms,
ratifying the treaty of union. The parliament was accordingly revived
by proclamation, and another issued to convoke the first parliament of
Great Britain for the twenty-third day of October. The Scots repaired
to London, where they were well received by the queen, who bestowed
the title of duke on the earls of Roxburgh and Montrose. She likewise
granted a commission for a new privy-council in that kingdom, to be in
force till the next session of parliament, that the nation might not be
disgusted by too sudden an alteration of outward appearances. The first
of May was appointed as a day of public thanksgiving; and congratulatory
addresses were sent up from all parts of England; but the university of
Oxford prepared no compliment; and the Scots were wholly silent on this
occasion.
THE QUEEN GIVES AUDIENCE TO A MUSCOVITE AMBASSADOR.
In the course of this session the commons, in an address to the queen,
desired she would resettle the islands of St. Christopher’s and Nevis
in the West Indies, which had been ravaged by the enemy. They likewise
resolved, that an humble address should be presented to her majesty,
praying she would concert measures for suppressing a body of pirates
who had made a settlement on the island of Madagascar, as also for
recovering and preserving the ancient possessions, trade, and fishery in
Newfoundland. The French refugees likewise delivered a remonstrance to
the queen, recapitulating the benefits which the persecuted protestants
in France had reaped from the assistance of her royal progenitors,
acknowledging their own happiness in living under her gentle government,
among a people by whom they had been so kindly entertained when driven
from their native country; and imploring her majesty’s interposition
and good offices in favour of their distressed and persecuted brethren
abroad. She graciously received this address, declaring she had always
great compassion for the unhappy circumstances of the protestants in
France; that she would communicate her thoughts on this subject to her
allies; and she expressed her hope that such measures might be taken as
should effectually answer the intent of their petition. In the month of
May she granted an audience to an ambassador-extraordinary from the
czar of Muscovy, who delivered a letter from his master, containing
complaints of king Augusts, who had maltreated the Russian troops sent
to his assistance, concluded a dishonourable peace with Charles king
of Sweden, without the knowledge of his allies, and surrendered count
Patkul, the Muscovite minister, as a deserter, to the Swedish monarch,
contrary to the law of nations, and even to the practice of barbarians.
He therefore desired her Britannic majesty would use her good offices
for the enlargement of the count, and the other Russian prisoners
detained at Stockholm; and that she would take into her protection
the remains of the Russian auxiliaries upon the Rhine, that they might
either enter into the service of the allies, or be at liberty to return
in safety to their own country. The queen actually interposed in behalf
of Patkul; but her intercession proved ineffectual, and that unhappy
minister was put to death with all the circumstances of wanton
barbarity. As many severe and sarcastic writings had lately appeared in
which the whigs and ministry were reviled, and reflections hinted to
the prejudice of the queen’s person, the government resolved to make
examples of the authors and publishers of these licentious productions.
Dr. Joseph Browne was twice pilloried for a copy of verses, intituled
“The Country Parson’s Advice to the Lord-Keeper,” and a letter which
he afterwards wrote to Mr. Secretary Hailey. William Stevens, rector of
Sutton in Surrey, underwent the same sentence, as author of a pamphlet
called “A Letter to the Author of the Memorial of the Church of
England.” Edward Ward was fined and set in the pillory, for having
written a burlesque poem on the times, under the title of “Hudibras
Redivivus;” and the same punishment was inflicted upon William Pittes,
author of a performance, intituled “The Case of the Church of England’s
Memorial fairly stated.”
PROCEEDINGS IN CONVOCATION.
The lower house of convocation still continued to wrangle with their
superiors; and though they joined the upper house in a congratulatory
address to the queen on the success of her arms, they resolved to make
application to the commons against the union. The queen being apprised
of their design, desired the archbishop to prorogue them for three
weeks, before the expiration of which the act of union had passed in
parliament. The lower house delivered a representation to the bishops,
in which they affirmed no such prorogation had ever been ordered during
the session of parliament. The bishops found in their records seven or
eight precedents of such prorogations, and above thirty instances of the
convocation having sat sometimes before, and sometimes after, a session
of parliament; nay, sometimes even when the parliament was dissolved.
The queen, informed of these proceedings, wrote a letter to the
archbishop, intimating that she looked upon the lower house as guilty
of an invasion of her royal supremacy; and that if any thing of the same
nature should be attempted for the future, she would use such means
for punishing offenders as the law warranted. The prolocutor absenting
himself from the convocation, the archbishop pronounced sentence of
contumacy against him. The lower house, in a protestation, declared this
sentence unlawful and altogether null. Nevertheless the prolocutor made
a full submission, with which the archbishop was satisfied, and the
sentence was repealed. About this period the earl of Sunderland was
appointed one of the secretaries of state, in the room of sir Charles
Hedges. This change was not effected without great opposition from
Harley, who was in his heart an enemy to the duke of Marlborough and
all his adherents; and had already, by his secret intrigues, made
considerable progress in a scheme for superseding the influence of the
duchess.
FRANCE THREATENED WITH TOTAL RUIN.
The French king at this juncture seemed to be entirely abandoned by
his former good fortune. He had sustained such a number of successive
defeats as had drained his kingdom of people, and his treasury was
almost exhausted. He endeavoured to support the credit of his government
by issuing mint-bills, in imitation of the bank-notes of England;
but, notwithstanding all his precautions, they passed at a discount of
three-and-fifty per cent. The lands lay uncultivated; the manufactures
could be no longer carried on; and the subjects perished with famine.
The allies, on the other hand, seemed to prosper in every quarter.
They had become masters of the greatest part of the Netherlands, in
consequence of the victory at Ramillies; the army of king Charles was
considerably reinforced; a scheme was formed for the conquest of Toulon,
by the troops of the emperor and the duke of Savoy, supplied with a
large sum of money by queen Anne, and assisted by the combined fleets
of England and Holland, under the command of sir Cloudesley Shovel. In
a word, France seemed to be reduced to the verge of destruction, from
which nothing in all probability could have saved her but the jealousy
and misconduct of the confederates. Louis, by virtue of his capitulation
with the emperor in Italy, was enabled to send such reinforcements
into Spain as turned the fortune of the war in that country; while the
distractions in the council of king Charles prevented that unanimity
and concurrence without which no success can be expected. The earl
of Peterborough declared against an offensive war, on account of the
difficulty of finding subsistence in Castile; and advised Charles to
trust to the expedition against Toulon. This opinion he sent from Italy,
to which he had withdrawn.
THE ALLIES ARE DEFEATED AT ALMANZA.
Charles, however, was persuaded to penetrate once more to Madrid, and
give battle to the enemy wherever they should appear. On the thirteenth
day of March the army was assembled at Caudela, to the number of sixteen
thousand men; under the auspices of the marquis das Minas, to whom the
earl of Galway was second in command. They marched towards Yecla, and
undertook the siege of Vilena; but having received intelligence that
the duke of Berwick was in the neighbourhood, they advanced on the
fourteenth day of April in four columns towards the town of Almanza,
where the enemy were drawn up in order of battle, their number being
considerably superior to that of the confederates. The battle began
about two in the afternoon, and the whole front of each army was fully
engaged. The English and Dutch squadrons on the left, sustained by the
Portuguese horse of the second line, were overpowered after a gallant
resistance. The centre, consisting chiefly of battalions from Great
Britain and Holland, obliged the enemy to give way, and drove their
first upon their second line; but the Portuguese cavalry on the right
being broken at the first charge, the foot betook themselves to flight;
so that the English and Dutch troops being left naked on the flanks,
were surrounded and attacked on every side. In this dreadful emergency
they formed themselves into a square, and retired from the field of
battle. By this time the men were quite spent with fatigue, and all
their ammunition exhausted: they were ignorant of the country, abandoned
by their horse, destitute of provisions, and cut off from all hope
of supply. Moved by these dismal considerations, they capitulated and
surrendered themselves prisoners of war, to the amount of thirteen
battalions. The Portuguese, and part of the English horse, with the
infantry that guarded the baggage, retreated to Alcira, where they
were joined by the earl of Galway, with about five and twenty hundred
dragoons which he had brought from the field of battle. About three
thousand men of the allied army were killed upon the spot, and among
that number brigadier Killegrew, with many officers of distinction.
The earl of Galway, who charged in person at the head of Guiscard’s
dragoons, received two deep cuts in the face. The marquis das Minas was
run through the arm, and saw his concubine, who fought in the habit of
an Amazon, killed by his side: the lords Tyrawley, Mark Ker, and colonel
Glayton, were wounded: all their artillery, together with an hundred and
twenty colours and standards, and about ten thousand men, were taken; so
that no victory could be more complete; yet it was not purchased
without the loss of two thousand men slain in the action, including some
officers of eminence. The duke of Berwick, who commanded the troops
of king Philip, acquired a great addition of fame by his conduct and
behaviour before and during the engagement; but his authority was
superseded by the duke of Orleans, who arrived in the army immediately
after the battle. This prince seemed to entertain some private views of
his own; for he took no effectual step to improve the victory. He began
a private negotiation with the earl of Galway, during which the two
armies lay inactive on the banks of the Cinca; and he concluded the
campaign with the siege of Lerida, which was surrendered by capitulation
on the second day of November: then the troops on both sides went into
winter quarters. The earl of Galway and the Marquis das Minas embarked
at Barcelona for Lisbon, and general Carpenter remained commander of the
English forces quartered in Catalonia, which was now the only part of
Spain that remained to king Charles.
UNSUCCESSFUL ATTEMPT UPON TOULON.
The attempt upon Toulon by the duke of Savoy and prince Eugene
might have succeeded, if the emperor, notwithstanding the repeated
remonstrances of the maritime powers, had not divided his army in
Italy, by detaching a considerable body through the ecclesiastical state
towards Naples, of which he took possession without any difficulty.
Besides, ten thousand recruits destined for the Imperial forces in Italy
were detained in Germany, from an apprehension of the king of Sweden,
who remained in Saxony, and seemed to be upon very indifferent terms
with the emperor. With the assistance of the English and Dutch fleets,
the duke of Savoy and prince Eugene passed the Var [149] _[See note 2 B,
at the end of this Vol.]_ on the eleventh day of July, at the head of
an army of thirty thousand men, and marched directly towards Toulon,
whither the artillery and ammunition were conveyed on board of the
combined squadrons. The French king was extremely alarmed at this
attempt, as five thousand pieces of cannon, vast magazines, and the best
part of his fleet, were in the harbour of Toulon, and ran the greatest
risk of being entirely taken or destroyed. The whole kingdom of France
was filled with consternation when they found their enemies were in the
bosom of their country. The monarch resolved to leave no stone unturned
for the relief of the place, and his subjects exerted themselves in
a very extraordinary manner for its preservation. The nobility of the
adjacent provinces armed their servants and tenants, at the head of whom
they marched into the city: they coined their plate, and pawned their
jewels for money to pay the workmen employed upon the fortifications;
and such industry was used, that in a few days the town and harbour,
which had been greatly neglected, were put in a good posture of defence.
The allies took possession of the eminences that commanded the city, and
the ordnance being landed, erected batteries. From these they began to
cannonade and bombard the city, while the fleet attacked and reduced
two forts at the entrance of the Mole, and co-operated in the siege
with their great guns and bomb-ketches. The garrison was numerous, and
defended the place with great vigour. They sunk ships in the entrance
to the Mole: they kept up a prodigious fire from the ramparts: they made
desperate sallies, and even drove the besiegers from one of their posts
with great slaughter. The French king, alarmed at this design of his
enemies, ordered troops to march towards Toulon from all parts of his
dominions. He countermanded the forces that were on their route to
improve the victory of Almanza: a great part of the army under Villars
on the Bhine was detached to Provence, and the court of Versailles
declared, that the duke of Burgundy should march at the head of a strong
army to the relief of Toulon. The duke of Savoy being apprized of
these preparations, seeing no hope of reducing the place, and being
apprehensive that his passage would be intercepted, resolved to abandon
his enterprise. The artillery being re-embarked, with the sick
and wounded, he decamped in the night, under favour of a terrible
bombardment and cannonading from the English fleet, and retreated to
his own country without molestation.* Then he undertook the reduction of
Susa, the garrison of which surrendered at discretion. By this conquest
he not only secured the key to his own dominions, but also opened to
himself a free passage into Dauphiné.
* Had the duke of Savoy marched with expedition from the
Var, he would have found Toulon defenceless; but he
lingered in such a manner as gives reason to believe he was
not hearty in the enterprise; and his operations were
retarded by a difference between him and his kinsman prince
Eugene.
SIR CLOUDESLEY SHOVEL WRECKED.
Sir Cloudesley Shovel having left a squadron with sir Thomas Dilkes for
the Mediterranean service, set sail for England with the rest of the
fleet, and was in soundings on the twenty-second day of October. About
eight o’clock at night his own ship, the Association, struck upon the
rocks of Scilly, and perished with every person on board. This was
likewise the fate of the Eagle and the Romney: the Firebrand was dashed
in pieces on the rocks; but the captain and four-and-twenty men saved
themselves in the boat: the Phoenix was driven on shore: the Royal Anne
was saved by the presence of mind and uncommon dexterity of sir George
Byng and his officers: the St. George, commanded by lord Dursley, struck
upon the rocks, but a wave set her afloat again. The admiral’s body
being cast ashore, was stripped and buried in the sand; but afterwards
discovered and brought into Plymouth, from whence it was conveyed to
London, and interred in Westminster-abbey. Sir Cloudesley Shovel was
born of mean parentage in the county of Suffolk; but raised himself to
the chief command at sea, by his industry, valour, skill, and integrity.
On the upper Rhine the allies were unprosperous.[150] _[See note C, at
the end of this Vol.]_ The prince of Baden was dead, and the German army
so inconsiderable, that it could not defend the lines of Buhl against
the mareschal de Villars, who broke through this work, esteemed the
rampart of Germany, reduced Rastadt, defeated a body of horse, laid the
duchy of Wirtemberg under contribution, took Stutgard and Schorndorf;
and routed three thousand Germans intrenched at Lorch, under the command
of general Janus, who was made prisoner. In all probability, this active
officer would have made great progress towards the restoration of the
elector of Bavaria, had not he been obliged to stop in the middle of
his career, in consequence of his army’s being diminished by sending off
detachments to Provence. The Imperial army retired towards Hailbron, and
the command of it was, at the request of the emperor and allies, assumed
by the elector of Hanover, who restored military discipline, and
acted with uncommon prudence and circumspection; but he had not force
sufficient to undertake any enterprise of importance.
{ANNE, 1701--1714}
INTERVIEW BETWEEN THE KING OF SWEDEN AND THE DUKE OF MARLBOROUGH.
In the month of April, the duke of Marlborough set out from the Hague
for Leipsic, with a letter from the queen to Charles XII. of Sweden,
whose designs were still so mysterious, that the confederates could not
help being alarmed at his being in the heart of Germany. The duke was
pitched upon as the most proper ambassador, to soothe his vanity and
penetrate into his real intention.*
* When the duke arrived in his coach at the quarters of
count Piper, of whom he had demanded an audience, he was
given to understand that the count was busy, and obliged to
wait half an hour before the Swedish minister came down to
receive him. When he appeared at last, the duke alighted
from his coach, put on his hat, passed the count without
saluting him, and went aside to the wall, where having staid
some time, he returned and accosted him with the most polite
address.
He found this original character not simple, but sordid in his
appearance and economy, savage in his deportment, ferocious, illiterate,
stubborn, implacable, and reserved. The English general assailed him
on the side of his vanity, the only part by which he was accessible.
“Sire,” said he, “I present to your majesty a letter, not from the
chancery, but from the heart of the queen my mistress, and written
with her own hand. Had not her sex prevented her from taking so long a
journey, she would have crossed the sea to see a prince admired by the
whole universe. I esteem myself happy in having the honour of assuring
your majesty of my regard; and I should think it a great happiness, if
my affairs would allow me, to learn under so great a general as your
majesty, what I want to know in the art of war.” Charles was pleased
with this overstrained compliment, which seems to have been calculated
for a raw unintelligent barbarian, unacquainted with the characters of
mankind. He professed particular veneration for queen Anne, as well as
for the person of her ambassador, and declared he would take no steps to
the prejudice of the grand alliance. Nevertheless, the sincerity of this
declaration has been questioned. The French court is said to have gained
over his minister, count Piper, to their interest. Certain it is, he
industriously sought occasion to quarrel with the emperor, and treated
him with great insolence, until he submitted to all his demands. The
treaty being concluded upon the terms he thought proper to impose, he
had no longer the least shadow of pretence to continue his disputes with
the court of Vienna; and therefore began his march for Poland, which was
by this time overrun by the czar of Muscovy.
INACTIVE CAMPAIGN in the NETHERLANDS.
The duke of Marlborough returning from Saxony, assembled the allied army
at Anderlach near Brussels, about the middle of May; and, understanding
that the elector of Bavaria and the duke de Vendôme, who commanded the
French forces, had quitted their lines, he advanced to Soignies with
a design to engage them in the plain of Fleuras. But receiving certain
intelligence that the enemy were greatly superior to the allies in
number, by the help of drafts from all the garrisons, he retreated
towards Brussels, and took post at Mildert; while the French advanced
to Gemblours. Both armies lay inactive until the enemy sent off a large
detachment towards Provence. Then the duke of Marlborough and general
D’Auverquerque resolved to attack them in their fortified camp at
Gemblours. But they retreated with such celerity from one post to
another, that the confederates could not come up with them until they
were safely encamped with their right at Pont-a-Tresin, and their left
under the cannon of Lisle, covered with the river Schelde, and secured
by intrenchments. The allies chose their camp at Helchin, and foraged
under the cannon of Tournay, within a league of the enemy; but nothing
could induce them to hazard an engagement; and both armies went into
winter quarters in the latter end of October. The duke of Marlborough
set out for Franckfort, where he conferred with the electors of Mentz,
Hanover, and Palatine, about the operations of the next campaign: then
he returned to the Hague, and having concerted the necessary measures
with the deputies of the states-general, embarked for England in the
beginning of November.
A PARTY FORMED AGAINST MARLBOROUGH.
The queen’s private favour was now shifted to a new object. The duchess
of Marlborough was supplanted by Mrs. Masham, her own kinswoman, whom
she had rescued from indigence and obscurity. This favourite succeeded
to that ascendancy over the mind of her sovereign which the duchess had
formerly possessed. She was more humble, pliable, and obliging than her
first patroness, who had played the tyrant, and thwarted the queen in
some of her most respected maxims. Her majesty’s prepossession in favour
of the tories and high-churchmen was no longer insolently condemned and
violently opposed. The new confidant conformed to all her prejudices,
and encouraged all her designs with assent and approbation. In political
intrigues she acted as associate, or rather auxiliary, to Mr. Secretary
Harley, who had insinuated himself into the queen’s good graces, and
determined to sap the credit of the duke of Marlborough and the earl
of Godolphin. His aim was to unite the tory interest under his own
auspices, and expel the whigs from the advantages they possessed under
the government. His chief coadjutor in this scheme was Henry St. John,
afterwards lord Bolingbroke, a man of warm imagination and elegant
taste, penetrating, eloquent, ambitious, and enterprising, whose talents
were rather specious than solid, and whose principles were loose and
fluctuating. He was at first contented to act in an inferior capacity,
subservient to the designs of the secretary; but, when he understood
the full extent of his own parts and influence, he was fired with the
ambition of eclipsing his principal, and from the sphere of his minister
raised himself to the character of his rival These politicians, with the
assistance of sir Simon Har court, a colleague of uncommon ability and
credit, exerted their endeavours to rally and reconcile the disunited
tories, who were given to understand that the queen could no longer bear
the tyranny of the whigs: that she had been always a friend in her
heart to the tory and high-church party; and that she would now
exhibit manifest proof of her inclination. She accordingly bestowed
the bishoprics of Chester and Exeter upon sir William Dawes and Dr.
Blackall, who though otherwise of unblemished characters, had openly
condemned the revolution.
The people in general began to be sick of the whig ministry, whom they
had formerly caressed. To them they imputed the burdens under which they
groaned; burdens which they had hitherto been animated to bear by
the pomp of triumph and uninterrupted success. At present they were
discouraged by the battle of Almanza, the miscarriage of the expedition
against Toulon, the loss of sir Cloudesley Shovel, and the fate of four
ships of the line, destroyed or taken by a squadron under the command
of messieurs Forbin and Du Guai Trouin, two of the most enterprising
sea-officers in the French service. No new advantage had been obtained
in the Netherlands: France, instead of sinking under the weight of the
confederacy, seemed to rise with fresh vigour from every overthrow: the
English traders had lately sustained repeated losses for want of proper
convoys; the coin of the nation was visibly diminished, and the public
credit began to decline. The tories did not fail to inculcate and
exaggerate these causes of discontent, and the ministry were too remiss
in taking proper steps for the satisfaction of the nation. Instead of
soothing, by gentle measures and equal administration, the Scots, who
had expressed such aversion to the union, they treated them in such a
manner as served to exasperate the spirits of that people. A stop was
put to their whole commerce for two months before it was diverted into
the new channel. Three months elapsed before the equivalent was remitted
to that kingdom, and it was afterwards applied with the most shameful
partiality. Seizures of wines and other merchandise imported from thence
into England, were made in all the northern parts with an affectation
of severity and disdain: so that the generality of the Scottish nation
loudly exclaimed against the union and the government. The Jacobites
were again in commotion. They held conferences: they maintained a
correspondence with the court of St. Germains: a great number of the
most rigid whigs entered so far into their measures as to think
a revolution was absolutely necessary to preserve the liberties,
independence, and commerce of their country: the pretender’s birth-day
was publicly celebrated in many different parts of the kingdom, and
everything seemed to portend an universal revolt. Ireland continued
quiet under the administration of the earl of Pembroke, whom the queen
had appointed lord-lieutenant of that kingdom. A parliament having met
at Dublin in the month of July, presented addresses of congratulation
to her majesty on the late union of the two kingdoms. The commons having
inspected the public accounts, resolved, that the kingdom had been put
to excessive charge, by means of great arrears of rent returned by the
late trustees, as due out of the forfeited estates, which returns were
false and unjust; and that an humble representation should be laid
before her majesty on this subject. They passed another laudable
resolution in favour of their own manufactures. They granted the
necessary supplies, and having finished several bills for the royal
assent, were prorogued on the twenty-ninth day of October.
MEETING OP THE FIRST BRITISH PARLIAMENT.
It was on the twenty-third of the same month that the first parliament
of Great Britain assembled at Westminster, when the queen in her speech
to both houses palliated the miscarriages in Provence and in Spain:
represented the necessity of making further efforts against the common
enemy; and exhorted them to be upon their guard against those who
endeavoured to sow jealousies in the commonwealth. The commons in their
address expressed the continuance of their former zeal and devotion
to her majesty’s government; but, in the house of lords, the earl of
Wharton expatiated upon the scarcity of money, the decay of trade, and
the mismanagement of the navy. He was seconded by lord Somers and the
leaders of the tory party, who proposed that, previous to every measure,
they should consider the state of the nation. The design of Wharton
and Somers was to raise the earl of Orford once more to the head of the
admiralty; and the tories, who did not perceive their drift, hoped, in
the course of the inquiry, to fix the blame of all mismanagement upon
the whig ministers. A day being fixed for this examination, the
house received a petition from the sheriffs and merchants of London,
complaining of great losses by sea for want of cruisers and convoys,
and the complaints were proved by witnesses. The report was sent to the
lord-admiral, who answered all the articles separately: then the tories
moved for an address, in which the blame of the miscarriages might
be laid upon the ministry and cabinet-council; but the motion was
overruled: the queen was presented with a bare representation of
the facts, and desired that she would take the proper measures for
preventing such evils for the future. The commons made some progress
in an inquiry of the same nature, and brought in a bill for the better
securing the trade of the kingdom. They cheerfully granted the supplies
for the service of the ensuing year. They prepared another bill for
repealing the Scottish act of security, and that about peace and war,
which had excited such jealousy in the English nation. They resolved
that there should be but one privy-council in the kingdom of Great
Britain: that the militia of Scotland should be put on the same footing
with that of England: that the powers of the justices of the peace
should be the same through the whole island: that the lords of
justiciary in Scotland should go circuits twice in the year; that the
writs for electing Scottish members to serve in the house of commons
should be directed, and returns made, in the same manner as practised
in England. An act being formed on these resolutions, they brought in
a bill for preserving the trade with Portugal: then they considered the
state of the war in Spain.
INQUIRY INTO THE STATE OF THE WAR IN SPAIN.
When the queen passed these bills, she recommended an augmentation in
the aids and auxiliaries granted to the king of Spain and the duke of
Savoy. This intimation produced a debate in the house of lords on the
affairs of Spain. The services of the earl of Peterborough were extolled
by the earl of Rochester and lord Haver-sham, who levelled some oblique
reflections on the earl of Galway. Several lords enlarged upon the
necessity of carrying on the war until king Charles should be fully
established upon the throne of Spain. The earl of Peterborough said they
ought to contribute nine shillings in the pound rather than make peace
on any other terms: he declared himself ready to return to Spain, and
serve even under the earl of Galway. The earl of Rochester repeated
a maxim of the old duke of Schom-berg, that attacking France in the
Netherlands was like taking a bull by the horns. He therefore proposed
that the allies should stand on the defensive in Flanders, and detach
from thence fifteen or twenty thousand men into Catalonia. He was
seconded by the earl of Nottingham; but warmly opposed by the duke of
Marlborough, who urged that the great towns in Brabant which he had
conquered could not be preserved without a considerable number of men;
and that if the French should gain any advantage in Flanders from their
superiority in point of number, the discontented party in Holland, which
was very numerous, and bore with impatience the burden of the war, would
not fail crying aloud for peace. Being challenged by Rochester to show
how troops could be procured for the service of Italy and Spain, he
assured the house that measures had been already concerted with the
emperor for forming an army of forty thousand men under the duke of
Savoy, for sending powerful succours to king Charles. This declaration
finished the debate, which issued in an affectionate address to her
majesty. The lords resolved, that no peace could be safe and honourable
for her majesty and her allies, if Spain and the Spanish West Indies
were suffered to continue in the power of the house of Bourbon. They
presented an address, in which they desired she would press the emperor
to send powerful succours to Spain under the command of prince Eugene,
with all possible expedition, to make good his contract with the duke of
Savoy, and strengthen the army on the Rhine, which was now happily
put under the conduct of that wise and valiant prince, the elector of
Hanover. The commons concurred in this remonstrance, in consequence of
which the queen desired the emperor to bestow the command in Spain upon
prince Eugene. The court of Vienna, however, did not comply with this
request, but sent thither count Staremberg, who, of all the German
generals, was next to the prince in military reputation. The commons now
proceeded to consider of ways and means, and actually established
funds for raising the supply, which amounted to the enormous sum of six
millions.
At this period Mr. Harley’s character incurred suspicion, from the
treachery of William Gregg, an inferior clerk in his office, who was
detected in a correspondence with monsieur Chamillard, the French king’s
minister. When his practices were detected he made an ample confession,
and pleading guilty to his indictment at the Old Bailey, was condemned
to death for high-treason. At the same time, John Bara and Alexander
Valiere were committed to Newgate for corresponding with the enemy;
and Claude Baud, secretary to the duke of Savoy’s minister, was, at the
request of his master, apprehended for traitorous practices against her
majesty and her government. A committee of seven lords being appointed
to examine these delinquents, made a report to the house, which was
communicated to the queen, in an address, importing, that Gregg had
discovered secrets of state to the French minister: that Alexander
Valiere and John Bara had managed a correspondence with the governors
and commissaries of Calais and Boulogn; and, in all probability,
discovered to the enemy the stations of the British cruisers, the
strength of their convoys, and the times at which the merchant ships
proceeded on their voyages; that all the papers in the office of Mr.
Secretary Harley had been for a considerable time exposed to the view of
the meanest clerks, and that the perusal of all the letters to and from
the French prisoners had been chiefly trusted to Gregg, a person of a
very suspicious character, and known to be extremely indigent. The queen
granted a reprieve to this man, in hope of his making some important
discovery, but he really knew nothing of consequence to the nation. He
was an indigent Scot, who had been employed as a spy in his own country,
and now offered his services to Chamillard, with a view of being
rewarded for his treachery; but he was discovered before he had reaped
any fruits from his correspondence. As he had no secrets of importance
to impart, he was executed at Tyburn, where he delivered a paper to the
sheriff, in which he declared Mr. Harley entirely ignorant of all his
treasonable connexions, notwithstanding some endeavours that were made
to engage him in an accusation of that minister.
The queen had refused to admit the earl of Peterborough into her
presence until he should have vindicated his conduct, of which king
Charles had complained in divers letters. He was eagerly desirous of a
parliamentary inquiry. His military proceedings, his negotiations,
his disposal of the remittances, were taken into consideration by both
houses; but he produced such a number of witnesses and original papers
to justify every transaction, that his character triumphed in the
inquiry, which was dropped before it produced any resolution in
parliament. Then they took cognizance of the state of affairs in Spain,
and found there had been a great deficiency in the English troops at
the battle of Almanza. This, however, was explained so much to their
satisfaction, that they voted an address to the queen, thanking her
for having taken measures to restore the affairs in Spain, and provide
foreign troops for that service. The bill for rendering the union more
complete, met with a vigorous opposition in the house of lords from the
court-party, on account of the clause enacting, that, after the first
of May, there should be but one privy-council in the kingdom of Great
Britain. The ministry, finding it was strenuously supported by all
the tories and a considerable number of the other faction, would have
compromised the difference, by proposing that the privy-council of
Scotland should continue to the first day of October. They hinted this
expedient, in hope of being able to influence the ensuing elections;
but their design being palpable, the motion was overruled, and the bill
received the royal assent: a court of exchequer, however, was erected in
Scotland upon the model of that in England. The execution of Gregg, and
the examination of Valiere and Bara, who had acted as smugglers to the
coast of France, under the protection of Harley, to whom they engaged
for intelligence, affected the credit of that minister, who was
reviled and traduced by the emissaries of the whig party. The duke of
Marlborough and the earl of Godolphin, being apprised of his secret
practices with Mrs. Masham, wrote to the queen that they could serve her
no longer, should Mr. Harley continue in the post of secretary. Being
summoned to the cabinet-council, they waited on her in person, and
expostulated on the same subject. She endeavoured to appease their
resentment with soft persuasion, which had no effect; and when they
retired from court, to the astonishment of all the spectators, she
repaired in person to the council. There Mr. Secretary Harley began to
explain the cause of their meeting, which was some circumstance relating
to foreign affairs. The duke of Somerset said, he did not see how they
could deliberate on such matters while the general and treasurer were
absent: the other members observed a sullen silence; so that the council
broke up, and the queen found herself in danger of being abandoned by
her ministers. Next day her majesty sent for the duke of Marlborough,
and told him that Harley should immediately resign his office, which
was conferred upon Mr. Henry Boyle, chancellor of the exchequer; but she
deeply resented the deportment of the duke and the earl of Godolphin,
from whom she entirely withdrew her confidence. Sir Simon Harcourt,
attorney-general, sir Thomas Mansel, comptroller of the household, and
Mr. St. John, relinquished their several posts upon the disgrace of
Harley.
THE PRETENDER EMBARKS AT DUNKIRK FOR SCOTLAND.
The kingdom was at this period alarmed with a threatened invasion from
France. The court of St. Germain’s had sent over one colonel Hook with
credentials to Scotland, to learn the situation, number, and ability
of the pretender’s friends in that country. This minister, by his
misconduct, produced a division among the Scottish Jacobites. Being a
creature of the duke of Perth, he attached himself wholly to the duke
of Athol, and those other zealous partisans who were bent upon receiving
the pretender without conditions; and he neglected the duke of Hamilton,
the earl-marshal, and other adherents of that house, who adopted the
more moderate principles avowed by the earl of Middleton, At his return
to France, he made such a favourable report of the disposition and power
of the Scottish nation, that Louis resolved to equip an armament, and
send over the pretender to that kingdom. His pretence was to establish
that prince on the throne of his ancestors; but his real aim was to make
a diversion from the Netherlands, and excite a revolt in Great Britain,
which should hinder queen Anne from exerting herself against France
on the continent. He began to make preparations for this expedition
at Dunkirk, where a squadron was assembled under the command of the
chevalier de Fourbin; and a body of land forces were embarked with
monsieur de Gace, afterwards known by the appellation of the mareschal
de Matignon. The pretender, who had assumed the name of the chevalier
de St. George, was furnished with services of gold and silver plate,
sumptuous tents, rich clothes for his life-guards, splendid liveries,
and all sorts of necessaries even to profusion. Louis at parting
presented him with a sword studded with valuable diamonds, and repeated
what he had formerly said to this adventurer’s father: “He hoped he
should never see him again.” The pope contributed to the expense of this
expedition, and accommodated him with divers religious inscriptions,
which were wrought upon his colours and standards. Queen Anne being
informed of these preparations, and the design of the French monarch,
communicated to the commons the advices which she had received from
Holland and the Netherlands, touching the destination of the Dunkirk
armament; both houses concurred in an address, assuring her they would
assist her majesty with their lives and fortunes against the pretended
prince of Wales, and all her other enemies. Then they passed a bill,
enacting, that the oath of abjuration should be tendered to all persons,
and such as refused to take it should be in the condition of convicted
recusants. By another, they suspended the _habeas-corpus_ act till
October, with relation to persons apprehended by the government on
suspicion of treasonable practices. The pretender and his adherents were
proclaimed traitors and rebels; and a bill was passed, discharging the
clans of Scotland from all vassalage to those chiefs who should take up
arms against her majesty.
Transports were hired to bring over ten British battalions from Ostend;
a large fleet being equipped with incredible diligence, sailed from Deal
towards Dunkirk, under the conduct of sir John Leake, sir George Byng,
and lord Dursley. The French imagined that Leake had sailed to Lisbon,
and that Britain was unprovided of ships of war; so that they were
amazed and confounded when this fleet appeared off Mardyke: a stop was
immediately put to the embarkation of their troops; frequent expresses
were despatched to Paris; the count de Fourbin represented to the French
king the little probability of succeeding in this enterprise, and the
danger that would attend the attempt; but he received positive orders to
embark the forces, and set sail with the first favourable wind.
The British fleet being forced from their station by severe weather
on the fourteenth day of March, the French squadron sailed on the
seventeenth from the road of Dunkirk; but the wind shifting, it anchored
in Newport-pits till the nineteenth in the evening, when they set sail
again with a fair breeze, steering their course to Scotland. Sir George
Byng having received advice of their departure, from an Ostend vessel
sent out for that purpose by major-general Cadogan, gave chase to the
enemy, after having detached a squadron, under admiral Baker, to convoy
the troops that were embarked at Ostend for England. On the tenth day of
March the queen went to the house of peers, where, in a speech to both
houses, she told them that the French fleet had sailed; that sir George
Byng was in pursuit of them; and that ten battalions of her troops were
expected every day in England. This intimation was followed by two very
warm addresses from the lords and commons, in which they repeated their
assurances of standing by her against all her enemies. They exhorted her
to persevere in supporting the common cause, notwithstanding this petty
attempt to disturb her dominions; and levelled some severe insinuations
against those who endeavoured to foment jealousies between her majesty
and her most faithful servants. Addresses on the same occasion were sent
up from different parts of the kingdom; so that the queen seemed to look
with contempt upon the designs of the enemy. Several regiments of foot,
with some squadrons of cavalry, began their march for Scotland; the earl
of Leven, commander-in-chief of the forces in that country, and governor
of the castle of Edinburgh, hastened thither to put that fortress in a
posture of defence, and to make the proper dispositions to oppose the
pretender at his landing. But the vigilance of sir George Byng rendered
all these precautions unnecessary. He sailed directly to the Frith of
Edinburgh, where he arrived almost as soon as the enemy, who immediately
took the advantage of a land breeze, and bore away with all the sail
they could carry. The English admiral gave chase; and the Salisbury,
one of their ships, was boarded and taken. At night monsieur de Fourbin
altered his course, so that next day they were out of reach of the
English squadron. The pretender desired they would proceed to the
northward, and land him at Inverness, and Fourbin seemed willing to
gratify his request; but the wind changing, and blowing in their
teeth with great violence, he represented the danger of attempting to
prosecute the voyage; and, with the consent of the chevalier de St.
George and his general, returned to Dunkirk, after having been tossed
about a whole month in very tempestuous weather. In the meantime sir
George Byng sailed up to Leith road, where he received the freedom of
the city of Edinburgh in a golden box, as a testimony of gratitude for
his having delivered them from the dreadful apprehensions under which
they laboured.
STATE OF THE NATION AT THAT PERIOD.
Certain it is, the pretender could not have chosen a more favourable
opportunity for making a descent upon Scotland. The people in general
were disaffected to the government on account of the union; the regular
troops under Leven did not exceed five-and-twenty hundred men, and even
great part of these would in all probability have joined the invader;
the castle of Edinburgh was destitute of ammunition, and would in all
appearance have surrendered at the first summons; in which case the
Jacobites must have been masters of the equivalent money lodged in that
fortress: a good number of Dutch ships, loaded with cannon, small arms,
ammunition, and a large sum of money, had been driven on shore in the
shire of Angus, where they would have been seized by the friends of the
pretender, had the French troops been landed; and all the adherents of
that house were ready to appear in arms. In England, such a demand was
made upon the bank, by those who favoured the invasion, and those who
dreaded a revolution, that the public credit seemed to be in danger.
The commons resolved, that whoever designedly endeavoured to destroy
or lessen the public credit, especially at a time when the kingdom was
threatened with an invasion, was guilty of a high crime and misdemeanor,
and an enemy to her majesty and the kingdom. The lord treasurer
signified to the directors of the bank, that her majesty would allow
for six months an interest of six per cent, upon their bills, which was
double the usual rate; and considerable sums of money were offered
to them by this nobleman, as well as by the dukes of Marlborough,
Newcastle, and Somerset. The French, Dutch, and Jewish merchants, whose
interest was in a peculiar manner connected with the safety of the bank,
exerted themselves for its support; and the directors having called in
twenty per cent, upon their capital stock, were enabled to answer
all the demands of the timorous and disaffected. All the noblemen and
persons of distinction in Scotland, suspected of an attachment to the
court of St. Germain’s, were apprehended, and either imprisoned in the
castle of Edinburgh, or brought up to London to be confined in the Tower
or in Newgate. Among these was the duke of Hamilton, who found means to
make his peace with the whig ministers; and, in a little time, the other
prisoners were admitted to bail. [153] _[See note 2 D, at the end of
this Vol.]_
{ANNE, 1701--1714}
PARLIAMENT DISSOLVED.
On the first day of April the parliament was prorogued, and afterwards
dissolved by proclamation. Writs were issued out for new elections,
together with a proclamation commanding all the peers of North Britain
to assemble at Holyrood-house in Edinburgh, on the seventeenth day of
June, to elect sixteen peers to represent them in the ensuing British
parliament, pursuant to the twenty-second article of the treaty of
union. After the dissolution of the parliament, the lords Griffin and
Clermont, two sons of the earl of Middleton, and several Scottish and
Irish officers who had been taken on board the Salisbury, were brought
to London and imprisoned in the Tower or in Newgate. Lord Griffin being
attainted by outlawry, for high treason committed in the reign of king
William, was brought to the bar of the court of king’s bench, and a rule
made for his execution; but he was reprieved from month to month, until
he died a natural death in prison. The privy-council of Scotland was
dissolved; the duke of Queensberry was created a British peer, by the
title of baron of Ripon, marquis of Beverley, and duke of Dover; and the
office of secretary at war, vacant by the resignation of Henry St. John,
was bestowed upon Robert Walpole, a gentleman who had rendered himself
considerable in the house of commons, and whose conduct Ave shall have
occasion to mention more at large in the sequel. About the same time
a proclamation was issued for distributing prizes, in certain
proportions, to the different officers and seamen of the royal navy; a
regulation that still prevails.
THE FRENCH SURPRISE GHENT AND BRUGES.
The French king, not at all discouraged by the miscarriage of his
projected invasion, resolved to improve the advantages he had gained on
the continent during the last campaign, and indeed he made efforts that
were altogether incredible, considering the consumptive state of his
finances. [154] _[See note 2 E, at the end of this Vol.]_ He assembled
a prodigious army in the Netherlands, under the command of the duke of
Burgundy, assisted by Vendôme, and accompanied by the duke of Berry and
the chevalier de St. George. The elector of Bavaria was destined to the
command of the troops on the Rhine, where he was seconded by the duke of
Berwick; and the mareschal de Villeroy was sent to conduct the forces
in Dauphiné. About the latter end of March, the duke of Marlborough
repaired to the Hague, where he was met by prince Eugene: these two
celebrated generals conferred with the pensionary Heinsius, and the
deputies of the states-general. Then they made an excursion to Hanover,
where they prevailed upon the elector to be satisfied with acting upon
the defensive in his command on the Rhine, and spare part of his forces,
that the confederates might be enabled to make vigorous efforts in the
Netherlands. The prince proceeded to Vienna, and the duke immediately
returned to Flanders, where he assembled the army towards the latter
end of May. On the twenty-fifth day of that month, the duke de Vendôme
marched to Soignies, and posted himself within three leagues of the
confederates, who were encamped at Billinghen and Halle. The duke of
Marlborough having received intelligence that the enemy were on their
march by Bois-Seigneur-Isaac to Braine-la-Leuwe, concluded their
intention was to take post on the banks of the Deule, to hinder the
allies from passing that river, and to occupy Louvaine. He, therefore,
commanded the army to march all night, and on the third day of June
encamped at Terbank, general d’Auverquerque fixing his quarters in the
suburbs of Louvaine, while the French advanced no farther than Genap and
Braine-la-Leuwe. As they were more numerous than the confederates, and
headed by a prince of the blood, the generals of the allies at first
expected that they would hazard a battle; but their scheme was to
retrieve by stratagem the places they lost in Flanders. The elector of
Bavaria had rendered himself extremely popular in the great towns;
the count de Bergeyck, who had considerable interest among them, was
devoted to the house of Bourbon; the inhabitants of the great cities
were naturally inconstant and mutinous, and particularly dissatisfied
with the Dutch government. The French generals resolved to profit by
these circumstances. A detachment of their troops, under the brigadiers
la Faile and Pasteur, surprised the city of Ghent, in which there was no
garrison; at the same time the count de la Motte, with a strong body
of forces, appeared before Bruges, which was surrendered to him without
opposition; then he made a fruitless attempt upon Damme, and marched to
the little fort of Plassendhal, which he took by assault. The duke of
Marlborough was no sooner apprised of the enemy’s having sent a strong
detachment towards Tabize, than he marched from Terbank, passed the
canal, and encamped at Anderlach. The French crossed the Senne at Halle
and Tabize, and the allies resolved to attack them next morning; but the
enemy passed the Dender in the night with great expedition; and the duke
of Marlborough next day encamped at Asche, where he was joined by prince
Eugene, who had marched with a considerable reinforcement of Germans
from the Moselle. The enemy understanding that this general was on his
march, determined to reduce Oudenarde, the only pass on the Schelde
possessed by the confederates; and invested it on the ninth day of July,
hoping to subdue it before the allies could be reinforced. The duke of
Marlborough was immediately in motion, and made a surprising march from
Asche, as far as Herselingen, where he was joined by the reinforcement.
Then he took possession of the strong camp at Lessines, which the French
had intended to occupy in order to cover the siege of Oudenarde.
Thus disappointed, the French generals altered their resolution,
abandoned Oudenarde, and began to pass the Schelde at Gavre. The
two generals of the confederates were bent upon bringing them to an
engagement. Cadogan was sent with sixteen battalions and eight squadrons
to repair the roads, and throw bridges over the Schelde below Oudenarde.
The army was in motion about eight o’clock, and marched with such
expedition, that by two in the afternoon the horses had reached the
bridges over which Cadogan and his detachment were passing. The enemy
had posted seven battalions in the village of Heynem, situated on the
banks of the Schelde, and the French household troops were drawn up
in order of battle on the adjacent plain, opposite to a body of troops
under major-general Bantzaw, who were posted behind a rivulet that ran
into the river. The duke de Vendôme intended to attack the confederates
when one half of their army should have passed the Schelde; but he
was thwarted by the duke of Burgundy, who seemed to be perplexed and
irresolute. This prince had ordered the troops to halt in their march to
Gavre, as if he had not yet formed any resolution; and now he recalled
the squadrons from the plain, determined to avoid a battle. Vendôme
remonstrated against this conduct, and the dispute continued till three
in the afternoon, when the greater part of the allied army had passed
the Schelde without opposition. Then the duke of Burgundy declared
for an engagement, and Vendôme submitted to his opinion with great
reluctance, as the opportunity was now lost, and the army unformed.
Major-general Grimaldi was ordered to attack Rantzaw with the horse
of the king’s household, who, finding the rivulet marshy, refused to
charge, and retired to the right. Meanwhile Cadogan attacked the village
of Heynem, which he took, with three of the seven battalions by which it
was guarded. Bantzaw, passing the rivulet, advanced into the plain and
drove before him several squadrons of the enemy. In this attack the
electoral prince of Hanover, his late majesty George IL, charged at
the head of Bulau’s dragoons with great intrepidity. His horse was
shot under him, and colonel Laschky killed by his side. Divers French
regiments were entirely broken, and a good number of officers and
standards fell into the hands of the Hanoverians. The confederates
continued still passing the river, but few or none of the infantry were
come up till five in the afternoon, when the duke of Argyle arrived with
twenty battalions, which immediately sustained a vigorous assault from
the enemy. By this time the French were drawn up in order of battle;
and the allies being formed as they passed the river, both armies were
engaged through the whole extent of their lines about seven in the
evening. Europe had not for many years produced two such noble armies:
above one hundred general officers appeared in the field, and two
hundred and fifty colonels fought at the head of their respective
regiments. The number of the French exceeded that of the allies
by twelve thousand; but their generals were divided, their forces
ill-disposed; and the men dispirited by the uninterrupted success
of their adversaries. They seemed from the beginning averse to an
engagement, and acted in hurry and trepidation. Nevertheless, the
action was maintained until general d’Auverquerque and count Tilly, who
commanded on the left of the allies, obliged the right of the enemy to
give ground; and the prince of Orange, with count Oxienstern, attacked
them in flank with the Dutch infantry. Then they began to give way,
and retired in great confusion. The duke de Vendôme, alighting from
his horse, rallied the broken battalions, called the officers by name,
conjured them to maintain the honour of their country, and animated the
men with his voice and example. But notwithstanding all his endeavours,
they were forced back among the enclosures in great confusion. Some
regiments were cut in pieces; others desired to capitulate; and if the
darkness had not interposed, their whole army would have been ruined.
The night coming on, so that it became impossible to distinguish friends
from enemies, the two generals ordered the troops to cease firing, and
the enemy took this opportunity of escaping by the road which leads from
Oudenarde to Ghent. The duke de Vendôme seeing the French forces flying
in the utmost terror and precipitation, formed a rear-guard of about
five-and-twenty squadrons, and as many battalions, with which he secured
the retreat. To this precaution the safety of their army was entirely
owing; for at day-break the duke of Marlborough sent a large detachment
of horse and foot, under the lieutenant-generals Bulau and Lumley, to
pursue the fugitives; but the hedges and ditches that skirted the road
were lined with the French grenadiers in such a manner, that the cavalry
could not form, and they were obliged to desist. The French reached
Ghent about eight in the morning, and marching through the city,
encamped at Lovendegen on the canal. There they thought proper to cast
up intrenchments, upon which they planted their artillery, which they
had left at Gavre with their heavy baggage. About three thousand were
slain on the field of battle; two thousand deserted; and about seven
thousand were taken, including a great number of officers, together with
ten pieces of cannon, above an hundred standards and colours, and four
thousand horses. The loss of the allies did not amount to two thousand
men; nor was one officer of distinction killed on their side during the
whole engagement.*
* Among the officers who were engaged in this battle, old
general d’Auverquerque and the duke of Argyle distinguished
themselves by the most extraordinary valour and activity.
After the confederates had rested two days on the field of battle, a
detachment was ordered to level the French lines between Ypres and
the Lys; another was sent to raise contributions as far as Arras; they
ravaged the country, and struck terror even into the city of Paris.
While the allies plundered the province of Picardy, a detachment from
the French army, under the chevalier de Rozen, made an irruption into
Dutch-Flanders, broke through the lines of Bervilet, which had been left
unguarded, and made a descent upon the island of Cadsandt, which they
laid under contribution.
THE ALLIES INVEST LISLE.
The generals of the allies now undertook an enterprise, which, in the
opinion of the French generals, savoured of rashness and inconsiderate
self-sufficiency. This was the siege of Lisle, the strongest town in
Flanders, provided with all necessaries, stores of ammunition, and a
garrison reinforced with one and twenty battalions of the best troops
in France, commanded by mareschal de Boufflers in person. But these were
not the principal difficulties which the allies encountered. The enemy
had cut off the communication between them and their magazines at
Antwerp and Sas-Fan-Ghent; so that they were obliged to bring their
convoys from Ostend along a narrow causeway, exposed to the attack of an
army more numerous than that with which they sat down before Lisle. On
the thirteenth of August it was invested on one side by prince Eugene,
and on the other by the prince of Orange-Nassau, stadtholder of
Friesland; while the duke of Marlborough encamped at Hel-chin, to cover
the siege. The trenches were opened on the twenty-second day of August,
and carried on with that vigour and alacrity which is always inspired by
victory and success. The dukes of Burgundy and Vendôme being now joined
by the duke of Berwick, resolved, if possible, to relieve the place; and
made several marches and counter-marches for this purpose. Marlborough
being apprized of their intention, inarched out of his lines to give
them battle, being reinforced by a considerable body of troops from the
siege, including Augustus king of Poland, and the landgrave of Hesse,
as volunteers; but the enemy declined an engagement, and the allies
returned to their camp, which they fortified with an intrenchment.
On the seventh day of September, the besiegers took by assault the
counterscarp of Lisle, after an obstinate action, in which they lost a
thousand men. The French generals continued to hover about the camp
of the confederates, which they actually cannonaded; and the duke of
Marlborough again formed his army in order of battle; but their design
was only to harass the allies with continual alarms, and interrupt the
operations of the siege. They endeavoured to surprise the town of
Aeth, by means of a secret correspondence with the inhabitants; but the
conspiracy was discovered before it took effect. Then they cut off all
communication between the besiegers and the Schelde, the banks of which
they fortified with strong intrenchments, and a prodigious number of
cannon; so that now all the stores and necessaries were sent to the camp
of the confederates from Ostend. On the twenty-first day of September,
prince Eugene, who was in the trenches, seeing the troops driven by
the enemy from a lodgement they had made on the counterscarp of the
tenaille, rallied and led them back to the charge; but being wounded
over the left eye with a musket-shot, he was obliged to retire, and for
some days the duke of Marlborough sustained the whole command, both in
the siege and of the covering army. On the twenty-third the tenaille was
stormed, and a lodgement made along the covered way. Mareschal Boufflers
having found means to inform the duke de Vendôme that his ammunition was
almost expended, this general detached the chevalier de Luxembourg, with
a body of horse and dragoons, to supply the place with gunpowder,
every man carrying a bag of forty pounds upon the crupper. They were
discovered in passing through the camp of the allies, and pursued to the
barrier of the town, into which about three hundred were admitted; but a
great number were killed by the confederates, or miserably destroyed by
the explosion of the powder which they carried.
The next attempt of the French generals was to intercept a convoy from
Ostend. The count de la Motte marched from Ghent, with about two and
twenty thousand men, to attack this convoy, which was guarded by six
thousand of the allies, commanded by major-general Webb. This officer
made such an admirable disposition by the wood of Wynendale, and
received the enemy with such a close fire, that, after a very warm
action that lasted two hours, they retired in the utmost confusion,
notwithstanding their great superiority in number, leaving six thousand
men killed upon the field of battle; the loss of the allies not
exceeding nine hundred and twelve officers and soldiers. This was the
most honourable exploit performed during the whole war, and of such
consequence to the confederates, that if the convoy had been taken,
the siege must have been raised. The duke de Vendôme ordered the dikes
between Bruges and Newport to be cut, so as to lay the whole country
under water, in hopes of destroying the communication between Ostend
and the camp of the confederates; and, after a regular siege, he took
colonel Caulfield, and a body of British troops posted in the village of
Leffinghen, by whose means the convoys had been forwarded to the duke
of Marlborough. On the twenty-second of October, mareschal Boufflers
desired to capitulate for the town of Lisle: next day the articles were
signed: on the twenty-fifth the allies took possession of the place, and
the mareschal retired into the citadel with the remains of his garrison,
which, from twelve thousand, was reduced to less than the half of that
number. A negotiation was begun for the surrender of the citadel; but
Boufflers made such extravagant demands as were rejected with disdain.
Hostilities were renewed on the twenty-ninth day of the month; and the
earl of Stair was detached to provide corn for the army in the districts
of Fumes and Dixmuyde. During these transactions, veldt-mareschal
D’Auverquerque died at Roselser, in the sixty-seventh year of his age,
after having, in above thirty campaigns, exhibited innumerable proofs of
uncommon courage, ability, and moderation. The duke de Vendôme did not
despair of obliging the confederates to abandon their enterprise: the
French ministers at Rome and Venice publicly declared the allied army
was cooped up in such a manner, that it must either raise the siege or
be famished. The elector of Bavaria, with a detachment of ten thousand
men, marched to Brussels, and attacked the counterscarp with incredible
fury; but was repulsed by the garrison, under the command of general
Paschal, and retired with precipitation, when he understood that the
duke of Marlborough was in motion to relieve the place. This nobleman
and prince Eugene no sooner understood the danger to which Brussels was
exposed, than they marched with the covering army to the Schelde,
which they passed in pontoons without opposition, notwithstanding the
formidable works which the French had raised. They now abandoned them
with precipitation, to the surprise of the confederates, who had laid
their account with the loss of a thousand men in the attack. Having
passed the river between Eskenaffe and Hauterive, as well as at other
places, they marched to Oudenarde, where they received intelligence that
the elector had retreated. Then prince Eugene returned to Lisle, and the
duke of Marlborough proceeded to Brussels, where he was received with
joy and acclamation. He afterwards took post at Oudenarde, so as to
maintain a communication with prince Eugene.
LISLE SURRENDERED, GHENT TAKEN, AND BRUGES ABANDONED.
The besiegers having made lodgements and raised batteries on the second
counterscarp of the citadel, sent a message to Boufflers, intimating,
that if he would surrender before the opening of the batteries, he
should have an honourable capitulation; otherwise he and his garrison
must be made prisoners of war. He chose to avoid the last part of the
alternative: hostages were exchanged on the eighth day of December, and
the articles signed on the tenth; when the mareschal and his garrison
marched out with the honours of war, and were conducted to Douay. In
this great enterprise, spirit and perseverance made amends for want of
foresight and skill, which was flagrant on the side of the confederates;
yet their success was owing in a great measure to the improvidence and
misconduct of the besieged. The French generals never dreamed that the
allies would attempt any thing of consequence after the reduction of
Lisle, considering the advanced season of the year, and therefore they
returned to Paris, after having distributed their army into winter
quarters. But their indefatigable antagonists were determined to strike
another stroke of importance before their forces should separate. On the
twentieth day of December they invested the city of Ghent on all sides;
and on the thirtieth, when the batteries were ready to open, the count
de la Motte, who commanded the garrison, desired to capitulate. On the
third day of January, 1708, he marched out with thirty battalions and
sixteen squadrons, which were conducted to Tournay; while the duke of
Argyle, with six British battalions, took possession of the town and
citadel. Then the enemy abandoned Bruges, Plassendahl, and Leffengen;
and the generals of the allies, having settled the plan of winter
quarters, repaired to Holland, leaving their forces under the command
of count Tilly. The French king was confounded and dismayed at these
conquests in the Netherlands. Nor was he easy on the side of Dauphiné:
in spite of all the vigilance and activity of Villars, the duke of Savoy
made himself master of the important fortresses of Exilles, La Perouse,
the valley of St. Martin, and Fenestrells; so that by the end of the
campaign he had secured a barrier to his own frontiers, and opened a way
into the French provinces, after having made a diversion in favour of
king Charles, by obliging the enemy to send a strong detachment from
Rousillon to the assistance of Villars.
{1708}
CONQUEST OF MINORCA.
The campaign in Catalonia was productive of a great event. Count Guido
de Staremberg arrived at Barcelona on the last day of April; but the
Imperial troops brought from Italy by admiral Leake did not land in
time to relieve Tortosa, which the duke of Orleans besieged and took,
together with Denia, the garrison of which were made prisoners of war,
contrary to the articles of capitulation. These losses, however,
were abundantly made up to the allies by the conquest of Sardinia and
Minorca. Sir John Leake, having taken on board a handful of troops,
under the conduct of the marquis d’Alconzel, set sail for Cagliari, and
summoned the viceroy to submit to king Charles. As he did not send
an immediate answer, the admiral began to bombard the city, and the
inhabitants compelled him to surrender at discretion. The greater part
of the garrison enlisted themselves in the service of Charles. The
deputies of the states being assembled by the marquis d’Alconzel,
acknowledged that prince as their sovereign, and agreed to furnish
his army with thirty thousand sacks of corn, which were accordingly
transported to Catalonia, where there was a great scarcity of
provisions. Major-general Stanhope having planned the conquest of
Minorca, and concerted with the admiral the measures necessary to put
it in execution, obtained from count Staremberg a few battalions of
Spaniards, Italians, and Portuguese; at the head of these he embarked
at Barcelona with a fine train of British artillery, accompanied by
brigadier Wade and colonel Petit, an engineer of great reputation. They
landed on the island about ten miles from St. Philip’s fort, on the
26th of August, with about eight hundred marines, which augmented their
number to about three thousand. Next day they erected batteries; and
general Stanhope ordered a number of arrows to be shot into a place, to
which papers were affixed, written in the Spanish and French languages,
containing threats, that all the garrison should be sent to the mines
if they would not surrender before the batteries were finished. The
garrison consisted of a thousand Spaniards, and six hundred French
marines, commanded by colonel la Jonquire, who imagined that the number
of the besiegers amounted to at least ten thousand, so artfully had they
been drawn up in sight of the enemy. The batteries began to play, and
in a little time demolished four towers that served as out-works to
the fort; then they made a breach in the outward wall, through which
brigadier Wade, at the head of the grenadiers, stormed a redoubt, with
such extraordinary valour as struck the besieged with consternation.
On the second or third day they thought proper to beat a parley, and
capitulate, on condition that they should march out with the honours of
war: that the Spaniards should be transported to Murcia, and the French
to Toulon. These last, however, were detained, by way of reprisal for
the garrison of Denia. The Spanish governor was so mortified when he
learned the real number of besiegers, that on his arrival at Murcia, he
threw himself out of a window in despair, and was killed upon the spot.
La Jonquire was confined for life, and all the French officers incurred
their master’s displeasure. Fort St. Philip being thus reduced, to
the amazement of all Europe, and the garrison of Fort Fornelles having
surrendered themselves prisoners to the admirals Leake and Whitaker, the
inhabitants gladly submitted to the English government, for king Philip
had oppressed and deprived them of their privileges: general Stanhope
appointed colonel Petit governor of Fort St. Philip, and deputy-governor
of the whole island. After this important conquest he returned to
the army in Spain, where an unsuccessful attempt to surprise Tortosa,
finished the operations of the campaign.
RUPTURE BETWEEN THE POPE AND THE EMPEROR.
The British fleet not only contributed to the reduction of Minorca, but
likewise overawed the pope, who had endeavoured to form a league of the
princes in Italy against the emperor. This pontiff had manifested his
partiality to the house of Bourbon in such a palpable manner, that his
Imperial majesty ordered monsieur de Bonneval to march with the troops
that were in Italy, reinforced by those belonging to the duke of Modena,
and invade the duchy of Ferrara. He accordingly took possession of
Comachio and some other places, pretending they were allodial estates
belonging to the duke of Modena, and fiefs of the emperor, to which the
holy see had no lawful claim. The viceroy of Naples was forbid to
remit any money to Rome; and the council of the kingdom drew up a long
memorial, containing the pretensions of his catholic majesty, which
struck at the very foundation of the pope’s temporal power. His holiness
wrote a long remonstrance to the emperor on the injustice of those
proceedings, and declared that he would assert his cause though he
should lose his life in the contest. He forthwith began to raise an
army, and revived a plan of forming a league among the princes and
states of Italy for their mutual defence. Sir John Leake had received
orders to bombard Civita-Vecchia, in resentment for the pope’s having
countenanced the pretender’s expedition to Great Britain; but as the
emperor and duke of Savoy hoped to effect an accommodation with the
court of Rome, they prevailed upon the English admiral to suspend
hostilities until they should have tried the method of negotiation. The
marquis de Prie, a Piedmontese nobleman, was sent as ambassador to Rome;
but the pope would not receive him in that quality. Elated with the
promises of France, he set the emperor at defiance; and his troops
having surprised a body of Imperialists, were so barbarous as to cut
them all in pieces. The duke of Savoy having ended the campaign, the
troops of the emperor, which had served under that prince, were ordered
to march into the papal territories, and drove the forces of his
holiness before them, without any regard to number. Bologna capitulated;
and Rome began to tremble with the apprehension of being once more
sacked by a German army. Then the pope’s courage failed; he was glad
to admit the marquis de Prie as envoy from the emperor. He consented to
disband his new levies; to accommodate the Imperial troops with winter
quarters in the papal territories; to grant the investiture of Naples to
king Charles; and to allow at all times a passage to the Imperial troops
through his dominions. On the Upper Rhine the electors of Bavaria
and Hanover were so weak, that they could not undertake any thing of
consequence against each other. In Hungary the disputes still continued
between the emperor and the malcontents. Poland was at length delivered
from the oppression exercised by the king of Sweden, who marched into
the Ukraine against the czar of Muscovy, notwithstanding the submission
with which that monarch endeavoured to appease his indignation. During
the course of this year the English merchants sustained no considerable
losses by sea: the cruisers were judiciously stationed, and the trade
was regularly supplied with convoys. In the West Indies, commodore Wager
destroyed the admiral of the galleons, and took the rear-admiral on the
coast of Carthagena. Had the officers of his squadron done their duty,
the greatest part of the fleet would have fallen into his hands. At his
return to Jamaica, two of his captains were tried by a court-martial and
dismissed from the service.
DEATH OF PRINCE GEORGE OF DENMARK.
The court of England was about this time not a little disquieted by
the consequences of an outrage committed on the person of the count de
Matueof, the Muscovite ambassador. He was publicly arrested at the suit
of a laceman, and maltreated by the bailiffs, who dragged him to
prison, where he continued until he was bailed by the earl of Feversham.
Incensed at this insult, he demanded redress of the government, and was
seconded in his remonstrances by the ministers of the emperor, the king
of Prussia, and several other foreign potentates. The queen expressed
uncommon indignation against the authors of this violence, who were
immediately apprehended, and orders were given to prosecute them with
the utmost severity of the law. Matueof repealed his complaints with
great acrimony; and Mr. Secretary Boyle assured him, in the queen’s
name, that he should have ample satisfaction. Notwithstanding this
assurance, he demanded a pass for himself and family; refused the
ordinary presents at his departure; and retired to Holland. From thence
he transmitted a memorial, with a letter from the czar to the queen,
insisting upon her punishing with death all the persons concerned in
violating the law of nations upon the person of his ambassador. Such
punishment being altogether inconsistent with the laws of England,
the queen and her ministry were extremely perplexed, and held several
councils to deliberate upon the measures proper to be taken on such an
occasion. On the twenty-eighth day of October, prince George of Denmark
died of an asthma and dropsy, with which he had been long afflicted.
He was a prince of an amiable rather than a shining character, brave,
good-natured, modest, and humane, but devoid of great talents and
ambition. He had always lived in harmony with the queen, who, during the
whole term of their union, and especially in his last illness, approved
herself a pattern of conjugal truth and tenderness. At his death the
earl of Pembroke was created lord-high-admiral, the earl of Wharton
promoted to the government of Ireland, and lord Somers appointed
president of the council. Notwithstanding these promotions of the whig
noblemen, the duke of Marlborough declined apace in his credit with the
queen, who privately consulted and reposed her chief confidence in Mr.
Harley, though he had no visible concern in the administration.
THE NEW PARLIAMENT ASSEMBLED.
The new parliament, in which the whig interest still preponderated,
was assembled on the sixteenth day of November, when they were given to
understand by a commission under the great seal, that the archbishop of
Canterbury, the chancellor, the lord-treasurer, the lord steward, and
the master of the horse, were appointed to represent the person of her
majesty, whom decency would not permit to appear in the house so soon
after the death of her consort. Sir Richard Onslow being chosen speaker
of the lower house with the queen’s approbation, the chancellor, in a
speech to both houses, recommended the vigorous prosecution of the
war, telling them her majesty hoped they would enable her to make a
considerable augmentation for preserving and improving the advantages
which the allies had gained in the Netherlands; that she desired
they would prepare such bills as might confirm and render the union
effectual; and that if they would propose means for the advancement
of trade and manufacture, she would take pleasure in enacting such
provisions. Both houses having presented addresses of condolence and
congratulation, on the death of prince George, and the success of her
majesty’s arms during the last campaign, the commons took cognizance of
controverted elections, which were decided with shameful partiality for
the whig faction. Then they proceeded to consider the different branches
of the supply; they approved of an augmentation of ten thousand men,
which was judged necessary for the more vigorous prosecution of the war;
and they voted above seven millions for the service of the ensuing year.
The bank agreed to circulate two millions five hundred thousand pounds
in exchequer bills for the government, on condition that the term of
their continuance should be prolonged for one-and-twenty years; and that
their stock of two millions, two hundred and one thousand, one hundred
and seventy-one pounds, should be doubled by a new subscription. The
two-thirds subsidy was appropriated for the interest of the money raised
by this expedient.
{ANNE, 1701--1714}
NATURALIZATION BILL.
Great debates having arisen about Scottish elections, the house
considered the petitions and representations that were delivered,
touching the incapacity of the eldest sons of Scottish peers, excluded
from sitting in the parliament of Great Britain. Counsel being heard
upon the subject, that incapacity was confirmed; and new writs were
issued, that new members might be elected for the shires of Aberdeen and
Linlithgow, in the room of William lord Haddo, and James lord Johnston.
Petitions were likewise presented to the house of lords by some Scottish
peers, concerning their right of voting and signing proxies. After warm
debates, the house, upon a division, determined that a Scottish lord
created a peer of Great Britain should no longer retain his vote in
Scotland; and that the noblemen who were in the castle of Edinburgh had
a right to sign proxies, after having taken the oaths to the government.
The Scottish peers and commoners that sat in the British parliament were
divided into two factions. The duke of Queensberry was in great
credit with the Queen and the lord-treasurer, by whose interest he was
appointed secretary of state for Scotland. His influence in elections
was so great, that all offices in that kingdom were bestowed according
to his recommendation. He was opposed by the dukes of Hamilton,
Montrose, and Roxburgh, who were supported by the earl of Sunderland and
lord Somers; so that the whole interest in that country was engrossed by
one or other member of the ministry. A bill for a general naturalization
of all protestants was brought into the house, and notwithstanding
violent opposition from the tories, both among the lords and commons,
was enacted into a law. The whigs argued for this bill, as a measure
that would encourage industry, improve trade and manufacture, and repair
the waste of men which the war had occasioned; but one of their chief
motives was to throw an addition of foreigners into the balance against
the landed interest. The tories pleaded that a conflux of aliens might
prove dangerous to the constitution; that they would retain a fondness
for their native countries, and, in times of war, act as spies and
enemies; that they would insinuate themselves into places of trust and
profit; become members of parliament; and by frequent intermarriages
contribute to the extinction of the English race: that they would add
to the number of the poor, already so expensive; and share the bread of
the labourers and tradesmen of England.
ACT OF GRACE.
An inquiry being set on foot in both houses concerning the late
intended invasion in Scotland, lord Haversham and the other tory members
endeavoured to demonstrate, that proper precautions had not been taken
for the security of that kingdom, even after the ministry had received
undoubted intelligence of the pretender’s design; that since the
attempt had miscarried, many persons of quality had been apprehended and
severely used by the government, on pretended suspicion of high treason;
though in all probability the aim of the ministry, in confining those
persons, was to remove all possibility of their opposing the court at
the ensuing elections for members of parliament. These assertions
were supported by many incontested facts and shrewd arguments,
notwithstanding which, the majority were so little disposed to find
fault, that the inquiry issued in a joint address to the queen,
containing resolutions, that timely and effectual care had been taken
to disappoint the designs of her majesty’s enemies, both at home and
abroad. A bill, however, was brought into the house of lords, under
the title of “An act for improving the union of the two kingdoms.”
It related to trials for treason in Scotland, which by this law were
regulated according to the manner of proceeding in England, with some
small variation. The Scottish members opposed it as an encroachment upon
the form of their laws; and they were joined by those who had laid it
down as a maxim to oppose all the court measures; nevertheless, the bill
passed through both houses, and received the royal assent. Yet, in order
to sweeten this unpalatable medicine, the queen consented to an act of
grace, by which all treasons were pardoned, except those committed on
the high seas; an exception levelled at those who had embarked with the
pretender. Major-general Webb, who had been defrauded of his due honour,
in a partial representation of the battle of Wynendale, transmitted by
Cardonnel, secretary to the duke of Marlborough, was now thanked by
the house of commons for the great and eminent services which he had
performed in that engagement. This motion was made by the tories; and
the whigs did not fail to procure a compliment of the same nature to the
duke of Marlborough, even before he returned to England. When the news
of Ghent’s being taken arrived, the lords and commons congratulated the
queen on this last effort of a glorious campaign; and the duke at his
arrival was thanked, in the name of the peers, by the lord chancellor.
As he was supposed to have brought over proposals of peace, the two
houses, in an address, desired the queen would insist on the demolition
of Dunkirk, which was a nest of pirates that infested the ocean, and
did infinite prejudice to the commerce of England. The queen promised
to comply with their request. But she was not a little surprised at the
next address they presented, humbly entreating, that she would have
such indulgence to the hearty desires of her subjects, as to entertain
thoughts of a second marriage. She told them, that the provision she had
made for the protestant succession would always be a proof how much she
had at heart the future happiness of the kingdom; but the subject of
this address was of such a nature, that she was persuaded they did not
expect a particular answer.
{1709}
DISPUTES ABOUT THE MUSCOVITE AMBASSADOR COMPROMISED.
The laws having been found insufficient to punish capitally the authors
of the insult offered to the Muscovite ambassador, a bill was brought
into the house of commons for preserving the privileges of ambassadors
and other foreign ministers; and passed through both houses, as did
another, to prevent the laying of wagers relating to the public, a
practice which had been carried to a degree of infatuation; and by
which many unwary persons fell a sacrifice to crafty adventurers. On the
fourteenth day of March, the commons voted the sum of one hundred and
three thousand, two hundred and three pounds, for the relief of the
inhabitants of Nevis and St. Christopher’s, who had suffered by the
late invasion; and on the twenty-first day of April, the parliament was
prorogued. The Muscovite ambassador continued to write expostulatory
letters to Mr. Secretary Boyle, who at last owned that the laws of the
kingdom did not admit of such punishment as he demanded. An information
was tried in the court of king’s bench for her majesty against Thomas
Morton, laceman, and thirteen other persons concerned in the insult, of
which they were found guilty; and the special matter of the privileges
of ambassadors was to be argued next term before the judges. Meanwhile,
the queen, by way of satisfaction to the czar, condescended to make
solemn excuses by her ambassador; to repair Matueof’s honour by a
letter, and indemnify him for all his costs and damages: concessions
with which the czar and his ambassador declared themselves well
satisfied. The convocation had been summoned, chosen, and returned with
a new parliament; but as the old spirit was supposed to prevail in
the lower house, the queen, by writ to the archbishop, ordered him.
to prorogue it from time to time, until the session of parliament was
finished.
CHAPTER X.
_Negotiation for Peace ineffectual..... The Allied Army
besieges and takes Tour-nay..... The French are defeated at
Malplaquet..... Mons surrendered..... Campaign in Spain.....
The French King’s Proposals of treating rejected by the
States-general..... Account of Dr. Sacheverel..... He is
impeached by the Commons..... His Trial..... Debates upon it
in the House of Lords..... He is silenced for three
Years..... Conferences at Gertruydenburgh..... Pride and
Obstinacy of the Dutch..... Douay besieged and taken by the
Confederates, as well as Bethune, Aire, and St. Venant.....
King Charles obtains a Victory over Philip at Saragossa, and
enters Madrid..... Battle of Villaviciosa..... The Whig
Ministry disgraced..... The Parliament is dissolved.....
Meeting of the New Parliament..... The Duke of Marlborough
insulted and reviled..... Inquiry into the Conduct of the
War in Spain..... Severe Votes in the House of Commons
against those who invited over the poor Palatines.....
Harley stabbed at the Council Board by Guiscard; and
created Earl of Oxford..... Death of the Emperor Joseph.....
Representation by the Commons to the Queen..... Proceedings
in the Convocation..... The Duke of Marlborough continues
to command the Allied Army..... He surprises the French
Lines..... Reduces Bouchain..... The Duke of Argyle commands
the British Troops in Spain..... King Charles elected
Emperor..... Expedition to Canada..... Insolence of the
Jacobites in Scotland..... A Negotiation set on Foot between
the Courts of France and England..... Prior is sent to
Fountainbleau..... Ménager arrives privately in England.....
The French King’s Proposals disagreeable to the Allies.....
Violent Debate upon them in the House of Lords..... The Duke
of Hamilton’s Title of Duke of Brandon disallowed..... Bill
against occasional Conformity passes..... Duke of
Marlborough dismissed from all his Employments..... Twelve
new Peers created..... Prince Eugene of Savoy arrives in
England..... Walpole expelled the House of Commons.....
Votes against the Duke of Marlborough..... Resolutions
against the Barrier-treaty and the Dutch..... Acts
unfavourable to the Presbyterian Discipline in Scotland._
NEGOTIATION FOR PEACE INEFFECTUAL.
The French king was by this time reduced to such a state of humiliation
by the losses of the last campaign, and a severe winter, which completed
the misery of his subjects, that he resolved to sacrifice all the
considerations of pride and ambition, as well as the interest of his
grandson, to his desire of peace, which was now become so necessary and
indispensable. He despatched the president Rouillé privately to Holland,
with general proposals of peace, and the offer of a good barrier to the
states-general, still entertaining hopes of being able to detach them
from the confederacy. This minister conferred in secret with Buys and
Vanderdussen, the pensionaries of Amsterdam and Gouda, at Moerdyke,
from whence he was permitted to proceed to Woerden, between Leyden and
Utrecht. The states immediately communicated his proposals to the courts
of Vienna and Great Britain. Prince Eugene and the duke of Marlborough
arrived at the Hague in April, and conferred with the grand pensionary
Heinsius, Buys, and Vanderdussen, on the subject of the French
proposals, which were deemed unsatisfactory. Rouillé immediately
despatched a courier to Paris, for further instructions; and the duke of
Marlborough returned to England, to make the queen acquainted with the
progress of the negotiation. Louis, in order to convince the states
of his sincerity, sent the marquis de Torcy, his secretary for foreign
affairs, to the Hague, with fresh offers, to which the deputies would
make no answer until they knew the sentiments of the queen of Great
Britain. The duke of Marlborough crossed the seas a second time
accompanied by the lord Townshend, as ambassador-extraordinary and
joint plenipotentiary; prince Eugene being likewise at the Hague, the
conferences were begun. The French minister declared that his master
would consent to the demolition of Dunkirk; that he would abandon the
pretender, and dismiss him from his dominions; that he would acknowledge
the queen’s title and the protestant succession; that he would renounce
all pretensions to the Spanish monarchy, and cede the places in the
Netherlands which the states-general demanded for their barrier; that he
would treat with the emperor on the footing of the treaty concluded
at Rys-wick, and even demolish the fortifications of Strasburgh. The
ministers of the allies, rendered proud and wanton by success, and
seeing their own private interest in the continuation of the war,
insisted upon the restitution of the Upper and Lower Alsace to the
empire; upon the French monarch’s restoring Strasburgh in its present
condition; upon his ceding the town and castellany of Lisle, demolishing
Dunkirk, New Brisac, Fort-Louis, and Hunningen. In a word, their
demands were so insolent, that Louis would not have suffered them to be
mentioned in his hearing, had not he been reduced to the last degree
of distress. One can hardly read them without feeling a sentiment of
compassion for that monarch, who had once given law to Europe, and
been so long accustomed to victory and conquest. Notwithstanding the
discouraging despatches he had received from the president Rouillé,
after his first conferences with the deputies, he could not believe
that the Dutch would be so blind to their own interest, as to reject the
advantages in commerce, and the barrier which he had offered. He could
not conceive that they would choose to bear the burden of excessive
taxes in prosecuting a war, the events of which would always be
uncertain, rather than enjoy the blessings of peace, security, and
advantageous commerce: he flattered himself that the allies would not so
far deviate from their purposed aim of establishing a balance of power,
as to throw such an enormous weight into the scale of the house of
Austria, which cherished all the dangerous ambition and arbitrary
principles, without the liberality of sentiment peculiar to the house of
Bourbon. In proportion as they rose in their demands, Louis fell in his
condescension. His secretary of state, the marquis de Torcy, posted
in disguise to Holland, on the faith of a common blank passport. He
solicited, he soothed, he supplicated, and made concessions in the
name of his sovereign. He found the states were wholly guided by the
influence of prince Eugene and the duke of Marlborough. He found these
generals elated, haughty, overbearing, and implacable. He in private
attacked the duke of Marlborough on his weakest side: he offered to
that nobleman a large sum of money, provided he would effect a peace
on certain conditions. The proposal was rejected. The duke found his
enemies in England increasing, and his credit at court in the wane; and
he knew that nothing but a continuation of the war, and new victories,
could support his influence in England. Torcy was sensible that his
country was utterly exhausted, that Louis dreaded nothing so much as the
opening of the campaign; and he agreed to those articles upon which
they insisted as preliminaries. The French king was confounded at
these proposals; he felt the complicated pangs of grief, shame, and
indignation. He rejected the preliminaries with disdain. He even deigned
to submit his conduct to the judgment of his subjects. His offers
were published, together with the demands of the allies. His people
interested themselves in the glory of their monarch. They exclaimed
against the cruelty and arrogance of his enemies. Though impoverished
and half-starved by the war, they resolved to expend their whole
substance in his support; and rather to fight his battles without
pay, than leave him in the dire necessity of complying with such
dishonourable terms. Animated by these sentiments, they made such
efforts as amazed the whole world. The preliminaries being rejected by
the French king, Rouillé was ordered to quit Holland in four-and-twenty
hours; and the generals of the confederates resolved to open the
campaign without further hesitation.
THE ALLIED ARMY TAKE TOURNAY.
Prince Eugene and the duke of Marlborough proceeded to Flanders, and
towards the end of June the allied army encamped in the plain of Lisle,
to the number of one hundred and ten thousand fighting men. At the same
time, the mareschal Villars, accounted the most fortunate general in
France, assembled the French forces in the plain of Lens, where he began
to throw up intrenchments. The confederate generals having observed his
situation, and perceiving he could not be attacked with any probability
of success, resolved to undertake the siege of Tournay, the garrison of
which Villars had imprudently weakened. Accordingly, they made a
feint upon Ypres, in order to deceive the enemy, and convert all their
attention to that side, while they suddenly invested Tournay on the
twenty-seventh day of June. Though the garrison did not exceed twelve
I weakened battalions, and four squadrons of dragoons, the place was
so strong, both by art and nature, and lieutenant de Surville,
the governor, possessed such admirable talents, that the siege was
protracted contrary to the expectation of the allies, and cost them a
great number of men, notwithstanding all the precautions that could be
taken for the safety of the troops. As the besiegers proceeded by the
method of sap, their miners frequently met with those of the enemy under
ground, and fought with bayonet and pistol. The volunteers on both sides
presented themselves to these subterraneous combats, in the midst of
mines and countermines ready primed for explosion. Sometimes they were
kindled by accident, and sometimes sprung by design; so that great
numbers of those brave men were stifled below, and whole battalions
blown into the air, or buried in the rubbish. On the twenty-eighth day
of July, the besiegers having effected a practicable breach, and made
the necessary dispositions for a general assault, the enemy offered to
capitulate: the town was surrendered upon conditions, and the garrison
retired to the citadel. Surville likewise entered into a treaty
about giving up the citadel: the articles being sent to the court of
Versailles, Louis would not ratify them, except upon condition that
there should be a general cessation in the Netherlands till the fifth
day of September. Hostilities were renewed on the eighth day of August,
and prosecuted with uncommon ardour and animosity. On the thirtieth,
Surville desired to capitulate on certain articles, which were rejected
by the duke of Marlborough, who gave him to understand that he had
no terms to expect, but must surrender at discretion. At length, his
provisions being quite exhausted, he was obliged io surrender himself
and his garrison prisoners of war, though they were permitted to return
to France, on giving their parole that they would not act in the field
until a like number of the allies should be released.
THE FRENCH ARE DEFEATED.
The next object that attracted the eyes of the confederates was the city
of Mons, which they resolved to besiege with all possible expedition.
They passed the Schelde on the third day of September, and detached
the prince of Hesse to attack the French lines from the Haisne to the
Sombre, which were abandoned at his approach. On the seventh day
of September, mareschal de Boufflers arrived in the French camp at
Quievrain, content to act in an inferior capacity to Villars, although
his superior in point of seniority. The duke of Marlborough having
received advice that the French were on their march to attack the
advanced body under the prince of Hesse, decamped from Havre in order
to support that detachment. On the ninth the allies made a motion to
the left, by which the two armies were brought so near each other that a
mutual cannonading ensued. The French army, amounting to one hundred
and twenty thousand men, were posted behind the woods of La Merte and
Tanières, in the neighbourhood of Malplaquet. The confederates, nearly
of the same number, encamped with the right near Sart and Bleron, and
the left on the edge of the wood of Lanière; the head quarters being
at Blaregnies. The enemy, instead of attacking the allies, began
to fortify their camp, which was naturally strong, with triple
intrenchments. In a word, they were so covered with lines, hedges,
intrenchments, cannon and trees laid across, that they seemed to be
quite inaccessible. Had the confederates attacked them on the ninth, the
battle would not have been so bloody, and the victory would have proved
more decisive; for they had not then begun to secure the camp; but
Marlborough postponed the engagement until they should be reinforced by
eighteen battalions which had been employed in the siege of Tournay;
and in the meantime, the French fortified themselves with incredible
diligence and despatch. On the eleventh day of September, early in the
morning, the confederates, favoured by a thick fog, erected batteries
on each wing and in the centre; and about eight o’clock, the weather
clearing up, the attack began. Eighty-six battalions on the right,
commmanded by general Schuylemburgh, the duke of Argyle, and other
generals, and supported by two-and-twenty battalions under count Lottum,
attacked the left of the enemy with such vigour, that, notwithstanding
their lines and barricadoes, they were in less than an hour driven from
their intrenchments into the woods of Sart and Tanières. The prince of
Orange and baron Fagel, with six-and-thirty Dutch battalions, advanced
against the right of the enemy, posted in the wood of La Merte, and
covered with three intrenchments. Here the battle was maintained with
the most desperate courage on both sides. The Dutch obliged the French
to quit the first intrenchment; but were repulsed from the second with
great slaughter. The prince of Orange persisted in his efforts with
incredible perseverance and intrepidity, even after two horses had been
killed under him, and the greater part of his officers either slain or
disabled. The French fought with an obstinacy of courage that bordered
on despair, till seeing their lines forced, their left wing and centre
giving way, and their general, Villars, dangerously wounded, they made
an excellent retreat towards Bavay, under the conduct of Boufflers, and
took post between Quesnoy and Valenciennes. The field of battle they
abandoned to the confederates, with about forty colours and standards,
sixteen pieces of artillery, and a good number of prisoners; but this
was the dearest victory the allies had ever purchased. About twenty
thousand of their best troops were killed in the engagement; whereas the
enemy did not lose half that number, and retired at leisure, perfectly
recovered of that apprehension with which they had been for some years
inspired and overawed by the successes of their adversaries. On the side
of the allies, count Lottum, general Tettau, count Oxienstern, and
the marquis of Tullibar-dine, were killed, with many other officers
of distinction. Prince Eugene was slightly wounded in the head;
lieutenant-general Webb received a shot in the groin. The duke of
Argyle, who distinguished himself by extraordinary feats of valour,
escaped unhurt; but several musket-balls penetrated through his clothes,
his hat, and periwig. In the French army, the chevalier de St. George
charged twelve times with the household troops, and in the last was
wounded with a sword in the arm. The mareschal de Villars confidently
asserted, that if he himself had not been disabled, the confederates
would certainly have been defeated.
MONS SURRENDERED.
Considering the situation of the French, the number of their troops, and
the manner in which they were fortified, nothing could be more rash and
imprudent than the attack, which cost the lives of so many gallant men,
and was attended with so little advantage to the conquerors. Perhaps
the duke of Marlborough thought a victory was absolutely necessary
to support his sinking interest at the court of Great Britain. His
intention was to have given battle before the enemy had intrenched
themselves; but prince Eugene insisted upon delaying the action until
the reinforcement should arrive from Tournay. The extraordinary carnage
is imputed to the impetuosity of the prince of Orange, whose aim
through this whole war was to raise himself into consideration with the
states-general by signal acts of military prowess. The French having
retired to Valenciennes, the allies were left at liberty to besiege
Mons, which capitulated about the end of October; and both armies were
distributed in winter quarters. The campaign on the Rhine produced
nothing but one sharp action, between a detachment of the French army
commanded by the count de Borgh, and a body of troops under count Merci,
who had passed the Rhine in order to penetrate into Franche-compte. The
Imperial officer was worsted in this encounter, with the loss of two
thousand men; obliged to repass the river, and retire to Fribourg. In
Piedmont, velt-mareschal Thaun commanded the confederates in the room of
the duke of Savoy, who refused to take the field until some differences,
which had arisen between the emperor and him, should be adjusted.
Thaun’s design was to besiege Briançon; but the duke of Berwick had
taken such precautions as frustrated his intention, though part of
the troops under the French general were employed in suppressing an
insurrection of the Camisars, and other malcontents in the Vivaraz.
These were entirely defeated in a pitched battle; and Abraham, one
of their leaders, being taken, was broke alive upon the wheel;
three-and-twenty were hanged, and the other prisoners sent to the
galleys. The pope delayed acknowledging king Charles under various
pretences, in hopes that the campaign would prove favourable to the
house of Bourbon; till at length the emperor giving him to understand
that his army should take up their winter quarters in the ecclesiastical
state, his holiness solemnly owned Charles as king of Spain, Naples, and
Sicily.
CAMPAIGN IN SPAIN.
The military operations in Spain and Portugal were unfavourable to the
allies. On the seventh of May, the Portuguese and English were defeated
at Caya by the Spaniards, under the command of the mareschal de Bay. The
castle of Alicant, guarded by two English regiments, had been besieged,
and held out during a whole winter. At length the chevalier d’Asfeldt
ordered the rock to be undermined, and having lodged two hundred barrels
of gunpowder, gave Syburg the governor to understand, that two of his
officers might come out and see the condition of the works. This offer
being accepted, Asfeldt in person accompanied them to the mine: he told
them he could not bear the thoughts of seeing so many brave men perish
in the ruins of a place they had so gallantly defended, and allowed them
four-and-twenty hours to consider on the resolution they should take.
Syburg continued deaf to his remonstrances; and, with an obstinacy
that savoured more of stupidity than of valour, determined to stand the
explosion. When the sentinels that were posted on the side of the hill
gave notice, by a preconcerted signal, that fire was set to the mine,
the governor ordered the guard to retire, and walked out to the parade
accompanied by several officers. The mine being sprung, the rock opened
under their feet, and they falling into the chasm, it instantly closed,
and crushed them to death. Notwithstanding this dreadful incident,
colonel d’Albon, who succeeded to the command, resolved to defend the
place to the last extremity. Sir Edward Whitaker sailed from Barcelona
to the relief of the place; but the enemy had erected such works as
effectually hindered the troops from landing. Then general Stanhope, who
commanded them, capitulated with the Spanish general for the garrison,
which marched out with all the honours of war, and was transported to
Minorca, where the men were put into quarters of refreshment. On the
frontiers of Catalonia, general Starem-berg maintained his ground,
and even annoyed the enemy. He passed the Segra, and reduced Balaguer;
having left a strong garrison in the place, he repassed the river, and
sent his forces into winter quarters. The most remarkable event of
this summer was the battle of Poultowa, in which the king of Sweden was
entirely defeated by the czar of Muscovy, and obliged to take refuge
at Bender, a town of Moldavia, in the Turkish dominions. Augustus
immediately marched into Poland against Stanislaus, and renounced his
own resignation, as if it had been the effect of compulsion. He formed
a project with the kings of Denmark and Prussia to attack the Swedish
territories in three different places; but the emperor and maritime
powers prevented the execution of this scheme, by entering into a
guarantee for preserving the peace of the empire. Nevertheless, the king
of Denmark declared war against Sweden, and transported an army over the
Sound of Schonen; but they were attacked and defeated by the Swedes,
and obliged to re-embark with the utmost precipitation. The war still
continued to rage in Hungary, where, however, the revolters were routed
in many petty engagements.
FRENCH KING’S PROPOSALS OF TREATING REJECTED BY THE STATES-GENERAL.
Though the events of the summer had been less unfavourable to France
than Louis had reason to expect, he saw that peace was as necessary as
ever to his kingdom; but he thought he might now treat with some freedom
and dignity. His minister, Torcy, maintained a correspondence with Mr.
Petkum, resident of the duke of Holstein at the Hague: he proposed to
this minister, that the negotiation should be renewed; and demanded
passes, by virtue of which the French plenipotentiaries might repair in
safety to Holland. In the meantime, the French king withdrew his troops
from Spain, on pretence of demonstrating his readiness to oblige
the allies in that particular; though this measure was the effect of
necessity, which obliged him to recall those troops for the defence of
his own dominions. The states-general refused to grant passes to
the French ministers; but they allowed Petkum to make a journey to
Versailles. In the interim king Philip published a manifesto, protesting
against all that should be transacted at the Hague to his prejudice. Far
from yielding Spain and the Indies to his competitor, he declared his
intention of driving Charles from those places that were now in his
possession. He named the duke of Alba and count Bergheyck for his
plenipotentiaries, and ordered them to notify their credentials to the
maritime powers; but no regard was paid to their intimation. Philip
tampered likewise with the duke of Marlborough; and the marquis de Torcy
renewed his attempts upon that general; but all his application and
address proved ineffectual. Petkum brought back from Versailles a kind
of memorial, importing, that those motives which influenced the French
before the campaign was opened, no longer subsisted; that the winter
season naturally produced a cessation of arms, during which he would
treat of a general and reasonable peace, without restricting himself to
the form of the preliminaries which the allies had pretended to impose;
that, nevertheless, he would still treat on the foundation of those
conditions to which he had consented, and send plenipotentiaries to
begin the conference with those of the allies on the first day of
January. The states-general inveighed against this memorial, as a proof
of the French king’s insincerity; though he certainly had a right
to retract those offers they had formerly rejected. They came to a
resolution, that it was absolutely necessary to prosecute the war with
rigour; and they wrote pressing letters on the subject to all their
allies.
{ANNE, 1701--1714}
ACCOUNT OF DE SACHEVEREL.
The parliament of Great Britain being assembled on the fifteenth day of
November, the queen in her speech told both houses that the enemy had
endeavoured, by false appearances and deceitful insinuations of a desire
after peace, to create jealousies among the allies: that God Almighty
had been pleased to bless the arms of the confederates with a most
remarkable victory and other successes, which had laid France open to
the impression of the allied arms, and consequently rendered peace more
necessary to that kingdom than it was at the beginning of the campaign.
She insisted upon the expediency of prosecuting the advantages she had
gained, by reducing that exorbitant and oppressive power which had so
long threatened the liberties of Europe. The parliament were as eager
and compliant as ever.. They presented congratulatory addresses: they
thanked the duke of Marlborough for his signal services; while great
part of the nation reproached him with having wantonly sacrificed so
many thousand lives to his own private interest and reputation. In less
than a month the commons granted upwards of six millions for the service
of the ensuing year, and established a lottery, with other funds, to
answer this enormous supply. On the thirteenth day of December, Mr.
Dolben, son to the late archbishop of York, complained to the house of
two sermons preached and published by Dr. Henry Sacheverel, rector
of St. Saviour’s in Southwark, as containing positions contrary to
revolution principles, to the present government, and the protestant
succession. Sacheverel was a clergyman of narrow intellects, and an
overheated imagination. He had acquired some popularity among those who
had distinguished themselves by the name of high-churchmen, and took all
occasions to vent his animosity against the dissenters. At the summer
assizes at Derby, he had held forth in that strain before the judges;
on the fifth day of November, in Saint Paul’s church, he, in a violent
declamation, defended the doctrine of non-resistance; inveighed against
the toleration and dissenters; declared the church was dangerously
attacked by her enemies, and slightly defended by her false friends: he
sounded the trumpet for the church, and exhorted the people to put
on the whole armour of God. Sir Samuel Garrard, the lord mayor,
countenanced this harangue, which was published under his protection,
extolled by the tories, and circulated all over the nation. The
complaint of Mr. Dolben against Sacheverel, was seconded in the house of
commons by sir Peter King and other members. The most violent paragraphs
were read: the sermons were voted scandalous and seditious libels.
Sacheverel, being brought to the bar of the house, acknowledged himself
the author of both, and mentioned the encouragement he had received from
the lord mayor to print that which was entitled, “The Perils of False
Brethren.” Sir Samuel, who was a member, denied he had ever given him
such encouragement. The doctor being ordered to withdraw, the house
resolved he should be impeached of high crimes and misdemeanors; and Mr.
Dolben was ordered to impeach him at the bar of the house of lords, in
the name of all the commons of England. A committee was appointed to
draw up articles, and Sacheverel was taken into custody. At the same
time, in order to demonstrate their own principles, they resolved that
the reverend Mr. Benjamin Hoadly, rector of St. Peter-le-Poor, for
having often justified the principles on which her majesty and the
nation proceeded in the late happy revolution, had justly merited the
favour and recommendation of the house; and they presented an address
to the queen, beseeching her to bestow some dignity in the church on Mr.
Hoadly, for his eminent service both to the church and state. The
queen returned a civil answer, though she paid no regard to their
recommendation. Hoadly was a clergyman of sound understanding,
unblemished character, and uncommon moderation, who, in a sermon
preached before the lord mayor of London, had demonstrated the
lawfulness of resisting wicked and cruel governors, and vindicated the
late revolution. By avowing such doctrines, he incurred the resentment
of the high churchmen, who accused him of having preached up rebellion.
Many books were written against the maxims he professed. These he
answered; and, in the course of the controversy, acquitted himself
with superior temper, judgment, and solidity of argument. He as well as
Bishop Burnet and several other prelates, had been treated with
great virulence in Sacheverel’s sermon, and the-lord treasurer was
scurrilously abused under the name of Volpone. The doctor being
impeached at the bar of the upper house, petitioned that he might be
admitted to bail; but this indulgence was refused, and the commons
seemed bent upon prosecuting him with such severity as gave disgust to
men of moderate principles. Meanwhile the tories were not idle. They
boldly affirmed that the whigs had formed a design to pull down the
church, and that this prosecution was intended to try their strength
before they could proceed openly to the execution of their project.
These assertions were supported, and even credited by great part of
the clergy, who did not fail to alarm and inflame their hearers; while
emissaries were employed to raise a ferment among the populace, already
prepared with discontent, arising from a scarcity which prevailed in
almost every country of Europe. The ministers magnified the dangers
to which the church was exposed, from dissenters, whigs, and lukewarm
prelates. These they represented as the authors of a ruinous war, which
in a little time would produce universal famine; and as the immediate
encouragers of those Palatine refugees who had been brought over, to the
number of six thousand, and maintained by voluntary contributions, until
they could be conveniently transported into Ireland and the plantations
of America. The charity bestowed upon those unhappy strangers
exasperated the poor of England, who felt severely the effects of the
dearth, and helped to fill up the measure of popular discontent.
The articles against Dr. Sacheverel being exhibited, his person was
committed to the deputy-usher of the black rod, but afterwards the lords
admitted him to bail. Then he drew up an answer to the charge, in
which he denied some articles, and others he endeavoured to justify or
extenuate. The commons having sent up a replication, declaring they were
ready to prove the charge, the lords appointed the twenty-seventh day of
February for the trial in Westminster-hall.
HIS TRIAL.
The eyes of the whole kingdom were turned upon this extraordinary trial.
It lasted three weeks, during which all other business was suspended;
and the queen herself was every day present, though in quality of a
private spectator. The managers for the commons were sir Joseph Jekyl,
Mr. Eyre, solicitor-general, sir Peter King, recorder of the city of
London, lieutenant-general Stanhope, sir Thomas Parker, and Mr. Robert
Walpole, treasurer of the navy. The doctor was defended by sir Simon
Harcourt and Mr. Phipps, and assisted by Dr. Atterbury, Dr. Smallridge,
and Dr. Friend. A vast multitude attended him every day to and from
Westminster-hall, striving to kiss his hand, and praying for his
deliverance, as if he had been a martyr and confessor. The queen’s sedan
was beset by the populace, exclaiming, “God bless your majesty and the
church. We hope your majesty is for Dr. Sacheverel.” They compelled all
persons to lift their hats to the doctor as he passed in his coach to
the temple, where he lodged; and among these some members of parliament,
who were abused and insulted. They destroyed several meeting houses;
plundered the dwelling houses of eminent dissenters; and threatened to
pull down those of the lord chancellor, the earl of Wharton, and the
bishop of Sarum. They even proposed to attack the bank, so that the
directors were obliged to send to Whitehall for assistance. The horse
and foot guards were immediately sent to disperse the rioters, who fled
at their approach. Next day the guards were doubled at Whitehall, and
the train bands of Westminster continued in arms during the whole
trial. The commons entreated the queen, in an address, to take effectual
measures for suppressing the present tumults, set on foot and fomented
by papists, nonjurors, and other enemies to her title and government.
She expressed a deep sense of their care and concern, as well as a just
resentment at these tumultuous and violent proceedings. She published
a proclamation for suppressing the tumults; and several persons being
apprehended, were afterwards tried for high-treason. Two of them were
convicted and sentenced to die, but neither suffered. The commons
presented another address of thanks to her majesty for her gracious
answer to their first remonstrance. They took this occasion to declare,
that the prosecution of the commons against Dr. Henry Sacheverel
proceeded only from the indispensable obligation they lay under to
vindicate the late happy revolution, the glory of their royal deliverer,
her own title and administration, the present established and
protestant succession, together with the toleration and the quiet of
the government. When the doctor’s counsel had finished his defence, he
himself recited a speech, wherein he solemnly justified his intentions
towards the queen and her government, and spoke in the most respectful
terms of the revolution and the protestant succession. He maintained the
doctrine of “non-resistance” in all cases whatsoever, as a maxim of
the church in which he was educated, and by many pathetical expressions
endeavoured to excite the compassion of the audience. He was surrounded
by the queen’s chaplains, who encouraged and extolled him as the
champion of the church; and he was privately favoured by the queen
herself, who could not but relish a doctrine so well calculated for the
support of regal authority.
DEBATES UPON IT IN THE LORDS.
On the tenth day of March, the lords being adjourned to their own house,
the earl of Nottingham proposed the following question:--“Whether,
in prosecutions by impeachments for high crimes and misdemeanors, by
writing or speaking, the particular words supposed to be criminal are
necessary to be expressly specified in such impeachments?” The judges
being consulted, were unanimously of opinion, that, according to law,
the grounds of an indictment or impeachment ought to be expressly
mentioned in both. One of the lords having suggested that the judges had
delivered their opinions according to the rules of Westminster-hall, and
not according to the usage of parliament, the house resolved, that in
impeachments they should proceed according to the laws of the land, and
the law and usage of parliament. On the sixteenth day of the month, the
queen being in the house incognita, they proceeded to consider whether
or not the commons had made good the articles exhibited against Dr.
Sacheverel. The earl of Wharton observed, that the doctor’s speech was
a full confutation and condemnation of his sermon: that all he had
advanced about non-resistance and unlimited obedience was false and
ridiculous: that the doctrine of passive obedience, as urged by the
doctor, was not reconcileable to the practice of churchmen: that if the
revolution was not lawful, many in that house, and vast numbers without,
were guilty of blood, murder, rapine, and injustice; and that the queen
herself was no lawful sovereign, since the best title she had to the
crown was her parliamentary title, founded upon the revolution. He was
answered by the lord Haversham in a long speech. Lord Ferrers said, if
the doctor was guilty of some foolish unguarded expressions, he ought
to have been tried at common law. The earl of Scarborough observed,
the revolution was a nice point, and above the law; he moved that they
should adjourn the debate, and take time to consider before they gave
judgment. Dr. Hooper, bishop of Bath and Wells, allowed the necessity
and legality of resistance in some extraordinary cases; but was of
opinion, that this maxim ought to be concealed from the knowledge of the
people, who are naturally too apt to resist; that the revolution was
not to be boasted of, or made a precedent; but that a mantle ought to be
thrown over it, and it should be called a vacancy or abdication. He said
the original compact were dangerous words, not to be mentioned without
great caution; that those who examined the revolution too nicely were no
friends to it; and that there seemed to be a necessity for preaching up
non-resistance and passive obedience at that time, when resistance was
justified. The duke of Argyle affirmed, that the clergy in all ages had
delivered up the rights and privileges of the people, preaching up the
king’s power, in order to govern him the more easily; and therefore they
ought not to be suffered to meddle with politics. The earl of Anglesea
owned the doctor had preached nonsense; but said, that was no crime. The
duke of Leeds distinguished between resistance and revolution; for had
not the last succeeded, it would have certainly been rebellion, since he
knew of no other but hereditary right. The bishop of Salisbury justified
resistance from the book of Maccabees; he mentioned the conduct of queen
Elizabeth, who assisted the Scots, the French, and the states-general,
in resisting their different sovereigns, and was supported in this
practice both by her parliaments and her convocations. He observed
that king Charles I. had assisted the citizens of Rochelle in
their rebellion; that Manwayring incurred a severe censure from the
parliament, for having broached the doctrine of the divine right
of kings; and that though this became a favourite maxim after the
restoration, yet its warmest asserters were the first who pleaded for
resistance when they thought themselves oppressed. The archbishop of
York, the duke of Buckingham, and other leaders of the tory interest,
declared that they never read such a piece of madness and nonsense as
Sacheverel’s sermon; but they did not think him guilty of a misdemeanor.
Next day, Dr. Wake, bishop of Lincoln, accused Sacheverel of having made
a strange and false representation of the design for a comprehension,
which had been set on foot by archbishop Sancroft, and promoted by the
most eminent divines of the church of England. He was of opinion that
some step should be taken for putting a stop to such preaching, as, if
not timely corrected, it might kindle heats and animosities that
would endanger both church and state. Dr. Trimnel, bishop of Norwich,
expatiated on the insolence of Sacheverel, who had arraigned archbishop
Grindal, one of the eminent reformers, as a perfidious prelate, for
having favoured and tolerated the discipline of Geneva. He enlarged
upon the good effects of the toleration. He took notice of Sacheverel’s
presumption in publishing inflammatory prayers, declaring himself under
persecution, while he was prosecuted for offending against the law, by
those who in common justice ought to be thought the fairest accusers,
and before their lordships, who were justly acknowledged to be the
most impartial judges. In discussing the fourth article, the bishop
of Salisbury spoke with great vehemence against Sacheverel, who, by
inveighing against the revolution, toleration, and union, seemed to
arraign and attack the queen herself; since her majesty had so great a
share in the first, had often declared she would maintain the second,
and that she looked upon the third as the most glorious event of her
reign. He affirmed that nothing could be more plain than the doctor’s
reflecting upon her majesty’s ministers; and that he had so well marked
out a noble peer there present, by an ugly and scurrilous epithet which
he would not repeat, that it was not possible to mistake his meaning.
Some of the younger peers could not help laughing at this undesigned
sarcasm upon the lord-treasurer, whom Sacheverel had reviled under
the name of Volpone; they exclaimed, “Name him, name him;” and in all
probability the zealous bishop, who was remarkable for absence of mind
and unguarded expressions, would have gratified their request, had not
the chancellor, interposing, declared that no peer Was obliged to say
more than he should think proper.
After obstinate disputes, and much virulent altercation, Sacheverel
was found guilty by a majority of seventeen voices; and four-and-thirty
peers entered a protest against this decision. He was prohibited from
preaching for the term of three years: his two sermons were ordered to
be burnt by the hands of the common hangman, in presence of the lord
mayor and the two sheriffs of London and Middlesex. The lords likewise
voted that the executioner should commit to the same fire the famous
decree passed in the convocation of the university of Oxford, asserting
the absolute authority and indefeasible right of princes. A like
sentence was denounced by the commons upon a book intituled,
“Collections of Passages referred to by Dr. Sacheverel, in his Answer to
the Articles of Impeachment.” These he had selected from impious books
lately published, and they were read by his counsel, as proofs that the
church was in danger. The lenity of the sentence passed upon Sacheverel,
which was in a great measure owing to the dread of popular resentment,
his friends considered as a victory obtained over a whig faction, and
they celebrated their triumph with bonfires and illuminations.
{1710}
On the fifth day of April, the queen ordered the parliament to be
prorogued, after having, in her speech to both houses, expressed her
concern for the necessary occasion which had taken up great part of
their time towards the latter end of the session. She declared that no
prince could have a more true and tender concern for the welfare and
prosperity of the church than she had, and should always have; and she
said it was very injurious to take a pretence from wicked and
malicious libels, to insinuate that the church was in danger by her
administration.
CONFERENCES AT GERTRUYDENBURGH.
The French king, seeing the misery of his people daily increase, and all
his resources fail, humbled himself again before the allies, and by the
means of Petkum, who still corresponded with his ministers, implored
the states-general that the negotiation might be resumed. In order to
facilitate their consent, he despatched a new project of pacification,
in which he promised to renounce his grandson, and to comply with all
their other demands, provided the electors of Cologn and Bavaria should
be re-established in their estates and dignities. These overtures
being rejected, another plan was offered, and communicated to the
plenipotentiaries of the emperor and queen of Great Britain. Then Petkum
wrote a letter to the marquis de Torcy, intimating, that the allies
required his most christian majesty should declare, in plain and
expressive terms, that he consented to all the preliminaries, except the
thirty-seventh article, which stipulated a cessation of arms, in case
the Spanish monarchy should be delivered to king Charles in the space
of two months. He said the allies would send passports to the French
ministers, to treat of an equivalent for that article. Louis was even
forced to swallow this bitter draught. He signified his consent,
and appointed the mareschal D’Uxelles and the abbé Polignac his
plenipotentiaries. They were not suffered, however, to enter Holland,
but were met by the deputies Buys and Vanderdussen, at Gertruydenburgh.
Meanwhile, the states desired the queen of England to send over the duke
of Marlborough to assist them with his advice in these conferences. The
two houses of parliament seconded their request in a joint address to
her majesty, who told them she had already given directions for his
departure; and said she was glad to find they concurred with her in
a just sense of the duke’s eminent services. Both the letter and the
addresses were procured by the interest of Marlborough, to let the queen
see how much that nobleman was considered both at home and abroad.
But she was already wholly alienated from him in her heart, and these
expedients served only to increase her disgust.
PRIDE AND OBSTINACY OF THE DUTCH.
The French ministers were subjected to every species of mortification.
They were in a manner confined to a small fortified town, and all their
conduct narrowly watched. Their accommodation was mean: their letters
were opened; and they were daily insulted by injurious libels. The Dutch
deputies would hear of no relaxation, and no expedient for removing
the difficulties that retarded the negotiation. In vain the
plenipotentiaries declared, that the French king could not with decency,
or the least regard to his honour, wage war against his own grandson:
the deputies insisted upon his effecting the cession of Spain and the
Indies to the house of Austria; and submitting to every other article
specified in the preliminaries. Nay, they even reserved to them selves
a power of making ulterior demands after the preliminaries should be
adjusted. Louis proposed that some small provision should be made for
the duke of Anjou, which might induce him to relinquish Spain the
more easily. He mentioned the kingdom of Arragon; and this hint being
disagreeable to the allies, he demanded Naples and Sicily. When they
urged that Naples was already in possession of the house of Austria, he
restricted the provision to Sicily and Sardinia. He offered to deliver
up four cautionary towns in Flanders, as a security for Philip’s
evacuating Spain; and even promised to supply the confederates with a
monthly sum of money, to defray the expense of expelling that prince
from his dominions, should he refuse to resign them with a good grace.
The substance of all the conferences was communicated to lord Townshend,
and count Kinzendorf, the Imperial plenipotentiary; but the conduct of
the deputies was regulated by the pensionary Heinsius, who was firmly
attached to prince Eugene and the duke of Marlborough, more averse than
ever to a pacification. The negotiation lasted from the nineteenth day
of March to the twenty-fifth of July, during which term the conferences
were several times interrupted, and a great many despatches and new
proposals arrived from Versailles. At length the plenipotentiaries
returned to France, after having sent a letter to the pensionary, in
which they declared that the proposals made by the deputies were unjust
and impracticable; and complained of the unworthy treatment to which
they had been exposed. Louis resolved to hazard another campaign, not
without hope that there might be some lucky incident in the events of
war, and that the approaching revolution in the English ministry, of
which he was well apprized, would be productive of a more reasonable
pacification. The states-general resolved, that the enemy had departed
from the foundation on which the negotiation had begun, and studied
pretences to evade the execution of the capital points, the restitution
of Spain and the Indies: and, in short, that France had no other view
than to sow and create jealousy and disunion among the allies. Lord
Townshend, in a memorial, assured them that the queen entirely approved
their resolution, and all the steps they had taken in the course of the
negotiation; and that she was firmly resolved to prosecute the war with
all possible vigour, until the enemy should accept such terms of peace
as might secure the tranquillity of the christian world.
DOUAY, BETHUNE, AIRE, &c. TAKEN BY THE CONFEDERATES.
The conferences did not retard the operation of the campaign. Prince
Eugene and the duke of Marlborough set out from the Hague on the
fifteenth day of March for Tournay, in order to assemble the forces
which were quartered on the Maese, in Flanders, and Brabant. On the
twentieth of April, they suddenly advanced to Pont-a-Vendin, in order to
attack the lines upon which the French had been at work all the winter,
hoping by these to cover Douay and other frontier towns, which were
threatened by the confederates. The troops left for the defence of the
lines retired without opposition. The allies having laid bridges over
the scarp, the duke of Marlborough with his division passed the river
and encamped at Vitri. Prince Eugene remained on the other side and
invested Douay, the enemy retiring towards Cambray. Mareschal Villars
still commanded the French army, which was extremely numerous and well
appointed, considering the distress of that kingdom. Indeed, the number
was augmented by that distress; for many thousands saved themselves from
dying of hunger, by carrying arms in the service. The mareschal having
assembled all his forces, passed the Schelde, and encamped at Boucham,
declaring that he would give battle to the confederates: an alteration
was immediately made in the disposition of the allies, and proper
precautions taken for his reception. He advanced in order of battle; but
having viewed the situation of the confederates, he marched back to
the heights of St. Lawrence, where he fixed his camp. His aim was, by
continual alarms, to interrupt the siege of Douay, which was vigorously
defended by a numerous garrison, under the command of monsieur
Albergotti, who made a number of successful sallies, in which the
besiegers lost a great number of men. They were likewise repulsed in
several assaults; but still proceeded with unremitted vigour until
the besieged, being reduced to the last extremity, were obliged to
capitulate on the twenty-sixth of June, fifty days after the trenches
had been opened. The generals finding it impracticable to attack the
enemy, who were posted within strong lines from Arras towards Miramont,
resolved to besiege Bethune, which was invested on the fifteenth day of
July, and surrendered on the twenty-ninth of August. Villars marched
out of his intrenchments with a view to raise the siege; but he did not
think proper to hazard an engagement: some warm skirmishes, however,
happened between the foragers of the two armies. After the reduction
of Bethune, the allies besieged at one time the towns of Aire and St.
Venant, which were taken without much difficulty. Then the armies broke
up, and marched into winter quarters.
KING CHARLES, OBTAINING A VICTORY AT SARAGOSSA, ENTERS MADRID.
The campaign on the Rhine was productive of no military event; nor was
anything of consequence transacted in Piedmont. The duke of Savoy being
indisposed and out of humour, the command of the forces still continued
vested in count Thaun, who endeavoured to pass the Alps, and penetrated
into Dauphiné; but the duke of Berwick had cast up intrenchments in the
mountains, and taken such precautions to guard them, as baffled all
the attempts of the Imperial general. Spain was much more fruitful of
military incidents. The horse and dragoons in the army of king Charles,
headed by general Stanhope, attacked the whole cavalry of the enemy
at Almennara. Stanhope charged in person, and with his own hand slew
general Amessaga, who commanded the guards of Philip. The Spanish horse
were entirely routed, together with nine battalions that escaped by
favour of the darkness; and the main body of the army retired with
precipitation to Lerida. General Starem-berg pursued them to Saragossa,
where he found them drawn up in order of battle; and an engagement
ensuing on the ninth day of August, the enemy were totally defeated:
five thousand of their men were killed, seven thousand taken, together
with all their artillery, and a great number of colours and standards.
King Charles entered Saragossa in triumph, while Philip with the wreck
of his army retreated to Madrid. Having sent his queen and son to
Vittoria, he retired to Valladolid, in order to collect his scattered
forces so as to form another army. The good fortune of Charles was of
short duration. Stanhope proposed that he should immediately secure
Pampeluna, the only pass by which the French king could send troops to
Spain; but this salutary scheme was rejected. King Charles proceeded
to Madrid, which was deserted by all the grandees; and he had the
mortification to see that the Castilians were universally attached to
his competitor.
BATTLE OF VILLAVICIOSA.
While his forces continued cantoned in the neighbourhood of Toleda, the
king of France, at the request of Philip, sent the duke de Vendôme
to take the command of the Spanish army, which was at the same time
reinforced by detachments of French troops. Vendôme’s reputation was so
high, and his person so beloved by the soldiery, that his presence was
almost equivalent to an army. A great number of volunteers immediately
assembled to signalize themselves under the eye of this renowned
general. The Castilians were inspired with fresh courage, and made
surprising efforts in favour of their sovereign; so that in less than
three months after his defeat at Saragossa, he was in a condition to go
in quest of his rival. Charles, on the other hand, was totally neglected
by the courts of Vienna and Great Britain, which took no steps to supply
his wants, or enable him to prosecute the advantages he had gained. In
the beginning of November his army marched back to Saragossa, and
was cantoned in the neighbourhood of Cifuentes, where Staremberg
established his head-quarters. General Stanhope, with the British
forces, was quartered in the little town of Brihuega, where, on the
twenty-seventh day of the month, he found himself suddenly surrounded
by the whole Spanish army. As the place was not tenable, and he had
very little ammunition, he was obliged, after a short but vigorous
resistance, to capitulate and surrender himself and all his forces
prisoners of war, to the amount of two thousand men, including three
lieutenant-generals, one major-general, one brigadier, with all the
colonels and officers of the respective regiments. He was greatly
censured for having allowed himself to be surprised; for if he had
placed a guard upon the neighbouring hills, according to the advice of
general Carpenter, he might have received notice of the enemy’s approach
in time enough to retire to Cifuentes. Thither he had detached his
aide-camp with an account of his situation on the appearance of the
Spanish army; and Staremberg immediately assembled his forces. About
eleven in the forenoon, they began to march towards Brihuega; but the
roads were so bad that night overtook them before they, reached the
heights in the neighbourhood of that place. Staremberg is said to
have loitered away his time unnecessarily, from motives of envy to the
English general, who had surrendered before his arrival. The troops lay
all night on their arms near Villaviciosa, and on the twenty-ninth were
attacked by the enemy, who doubled their number. Staremberg’s left wing
was utterly defeated, all the infantry that composed it having been
either cut in pieces or taken; but the victors instead of following up
the blow began to plunder the baggage; and Staremberg with his right
wing fought their left with surprising valour and perseverance till
night. Then they retired in disorder, leaving him master of the field of
battle and of all their artillery. Six thousand of the enemy were killed
on the spot; but the allies had suffered so severely that the general
could not maintain his ground. He ordered the cannon to be nailed up,
and marched to Saragossa, from whence he retired to Catalonia. Thither
he was pursued by the duke de Vendôme, who reduced Belaguer, in which he
had left a garrison, and compelled him to take shelter under the walls
of Barcelona. At this period the duke de Noailles invested Gironne,
which he reduced notwithstanding the severity of the weather; so that
Philip, from a fugitive, became in three months absolute master of the
whole Spanish monarchy, except the province of Catalonia, and even that
lay open to his incursions. Nothing of consequence was achieved on the
side of Portugal, from whence the earl of Galway returned to England by
the queen’s permission. The operations of the British fleet, during this
summer, were so inconsiderable as scarce to deserve notice. Sir John
Norris commanded in the Mediterranean, and with a view to support the
Camisars, who were in arms in the Cevennois, sailed to Port Cette,
within a league of Marseilles, and at the distance of fifteen from the
insurgents. The place surrendered, without opposition, to about seven
hundred men that landed under the command of major-general Suissan, a
native of Languedoc. He likewise made himself master of the town and
castle of Eyde; but the duke de Noailles advancing with a body of
forces to join the duke de Roquelaire, who commanded in those parts, the
English abandoned their conquests, and re-embarked with precipitation.
After the battle of Poultowa the czar of Muscovy reduced all Livonia;
but he and king Augustus agreed to a neutrality for Pomerania. The king
of Sweden continued at Bender, and the grand seignor interested himself
so much in favour of that prince, as to declare war against the emperor
of Russia. Hostilities were carried on between the Swedish and Danish
fleets with various success. The malcontents in Hungary sustained
repeated losses during the summer; but they were encouraged to maintain
the war by the rupture between the Ottoman Porte and Russia. They
were flattered with hopes of auxiliaries from the Turks; and expected
engineers and money from the French monarch.
{ANNE, 1701--1714}
THE WHIG MINISTRY DISGRACED.
In England, the effects of those intrigues which had been formed against
the whig ministers began to appear. The trial of Sacheverel had excited
a popular spirit of aversion to those who favoured the dissenters.
From all parts of the kingdom addresses were presented to the queen,
censuring all resistance as a rebellious doctrine, founded upon
anti-monarchial and republican principles. At the same time
counter-addresses were procured by the whigs, extolling the revolution
and magnifying the conduct of the present parliament. The queen began
to express her attachment to the tories, by mortifying the duke of
Marlborough. Upon the death of the earl of Essex, she wrote to the
general desiring that the regiment which had been commanded by that
nobleman should be given to Mr. Hill, brother to Mrs. Masham, who had
supplanted the duchess of Marlborough in the queen’s friendship, and
was, in effect, the source of this political revolution. The duke
represented to her majesty in person, the prejudice that would redound
to the service from the promotion of such a young officer over the heads
of a great many brave men, who had exhibited repeated proofs of valour
and capacity. He expostulated with his sovereign on this extraordinary
mark of partial regard to the brother of Mrs. Masham, which he could not
help considering as a declaration against himself and his family, who
had so much cause to complain of that lady’s malice and ingratitude. To
this remonstrance the queen made no other reply, but that he would do
well to consult his friends. The earl of Godolphin enforced his friend’s
arguments, though without effect; and the duke retired in disgust to
Windsor. The queen appeared at council without taking the least notice
of his absence, which did not fail to alarm the whole whig faction.
Several noblemen ventured to speak to her majesty on the subject, and
explain the bad consequences of disobliging a man who had done such
eminent services to the nation. She told them his services were still
fresh in her memory; and that she retained all her former kindness for
his person. Hearing, however, that a popular clamour was raised, and
that the house of commons intended to pass some votes that would be
disagreeable to her and her new counsellors, she ordered the earl of
Godolphin to write to the duke to dispose of the regiment as he should
think proper, and return to town immediately. Before he received this
intimation, he had sent a letter to the queen desiring she would permit
him to retire from business. In answer to this petition, she assured him
his suspicions were groundless, and insisted upon his coming to
council. The duchess demanded an audience of her majesty, on pretence
of vindicating her own character from some aspersions. She hoped to work
upon the queen’s tenderness, and retrieve the influence she had lost.
She protested, argued, wept, and supplicated; but the queen was too
well pleased with her own deliverance from the tyranny of the other’s
friendship, to incur such slavery for the future. All the humiliation
of the duchess served only to render herself the more contemptible. The
queen heard her without exhibiting the least sign of emotion, and all
she would vouchsafe, was a repetition of these words--“You desired no
answer, and you shall have none;” alluding to an expression in a letter
she had received from the duchess. As an additional mortification to the
ministry, the office of lord chamberlain was transferred from the duke
of Kent to the duke of Shrewsbury, who had lately voted with the tories,
and maintained an intimacy of correspondence with Mr. Harley. The
interest of the duke of Marlborough was not even sufficient to prevent
the dismissal of his own son-in-law, the earl of Sunderland, from the
post of secretary of state, in which he was succeeded by lord Dartmouth.
The queen was generally applauded for thus asserting her just
prerogative, and setting herself free from an arbitrary cabal, by which
she had been so long kept in dependence. The duke of Beaufort went to
court on this occasion, and told her majesty he was extremely glad that
he could now salute her queen in reality. The whole whig party
were justly alarmed at these alterations. The directors of the bank
represented to her majesty the prejudice that would undoubtedly accrue
to public credit from a change of the ministry. The emperor and the
states-general interposed in this domestic revolution. Their ministers
at London presented memorials, explaining in what manner foreign affairs
would be influenced by an alteration in the British ministry. The
queen assured them, that, whatever changes might be made, the duke of
Marlborough should be continued in his employments. In the month
of August the earl of Godolphin was divested of his office, and the
treasury put in commission, subjected to the direction of Harley,
appointed chancellor of the exchequer and under-treasurer. The earl
of Rochester was declared president of the council in the room of
lord Somers; the staff of lord steward being taken from the duke of
Devonshire, was given to the duke of Buckingham; and Mr. Boyle was
removed from the secretary’s office to make way for Mr. Henry St. John.
The lord chancellor having resigned the great seal, it was first put
in commission, and afterwards given to sir Simon Harcourt. The earl of
Wharton surrendered his commission of lord-lieutenant of Ireland, which
the queen conferred on the duke of Ormond. The earl of Orford withdrew
himself from the board of admiralty; and Mr. George Granville was
appointed secretary of war in the room of Mr. Eobert Walpole. The
command of the forces in Portugal was bestowed upon the earl of
Portmore; the duke of Hamilton was appointed lord-lieutenant of the
county palatine of Lancaster. In a word, there was not one whig left
in any office of state, except the duke of Marlborough, who would
have renounced his command, had not he been earnestly dissuaded by
his particular friends from taking such a step as might have been
prejudicial to the interests of the nation. That the triumph of the
tories might be complete, the queen dissolved the whig parliament,
after such precautions were taken as could not fail to influence the new
election in favour of the other party.
To this end nothing so effectually contributed as did the trial of
Sacheverel, who was used as an instrument and tool to wind and turn the
passions of the vulgar. Having been presented to a benefice in North
Wales, he went in procession to that country with all the pomp and
magnificence of a sovereign prince. He was sumptuously entertained
by the university of Oxford, and different noblemen, who, while they
worshipped him as the idol of their faction, could not help despising
the object of their adoration. He was received in several towns by the
magistrates of the corporation in their formalities, and often attended
by a body of a thousand horse. At Bridgenorth he was met by Mr.
Creswell, at the head of four thousand horse, and the like number of
persons on foot, wearing white knots edged with gold, and three leaves
of gilt laurel in their hats. The hedges were for two miles dressed with
garlands of flowers, and lined with people; and the steeples covered
with streamers, flags, and colours. Nothing was heard but the cry of
“The church and Dr. Sacheverel.” The clergy were actuated by a spirit
of enthusiasm, which seemed to spread like a contagion through all ranks
and degrees of people, and had such an effect upon the elections for the
new parliament, that very few were returned as members but such as had
distinguished themselves by their zeal against the whig administration.
Now the queen had the pleasure to see all the offices of state, the
lieutenancy of London, the management of corporations, and the direction
of both houses of parliament, in the hands of the tories. When these
met on the twenty-fifth day of November, Mr. Bromley was chosen
speaker without opposition. The queen, in her speech, recommended the
prosecution of the war with vigour, especially in Spain. She declared
herself resolved to support the church of England; to preserve the
British constitution according to the union; to maintain the indulgence
by law allowed to scrupulous consciences; and to employ none but such
as were heartily attached to the protestant succession in the house
of Hanover. The lords, in their address, promised to concur in all
reasonable measures towards procuring an honourable peace. The commons
were more warm and hearty in their assurances, exhorting her majesty to
discountenance all such principles and measures as had lately threatened
her royal crown and dignity--measures which, whenever they might
prevail, would prove fatal to the whole constitution, both in church and
state. After this declaration they proceeded to consider the estimates,
and cheerfully granted the supplies for the ensuing year, part of
which was raised by two lotteries. In the house of peers, the earl of
Scarborough moved that the thanks of the house should be returned to the
duke of Marlborough; but the duke of Argyle made some objections to* the
motion, and the general’s friends, dreading the consequence of putting
the question, postponed the consideration of this proposal until the
duke should return from the continent. The earl of Peterborough was
appointed ambassador-extraordinary to the Imperial court; the earl of
Rivers was sent in the same quality to Hanover; Mr. Richard Hill was
nominated envoy-extraordinary to the United Provinces, as well as to
the council of state appointed for the government of the Spanish
Netherlands, in the room of lieutenant-general Cadogan. Meredith,
Macartney, and Honey wood, were deprived of their regiments, because
in their cups they had drank confusion to the enemies of the duke of
Marlborough.
DUKE OF MARLBOROUGH INSULTED.
This nobleman arrived in England towards the latter end of December. He
conferred about half an hour in private with the queen, and next morning
assisted at a committee of the privy-council. Her majesty give him to
understand that he needed not expect the thanks of the parliament as
formerly; and told him she hoped he would live well with her ministers.
He expressed no resentment at the alterations which had been made; but
resolved to acquiesce in the queen’s pleasure, and retain the command of
the army on her own terms. On the second day of January, the queen sent
a message to both houses, intimating that there had been an action in
Spain to the disadvantage of king Charles; that the damage having fallen
particularly on the English forces, she had given directions for sending
and procuring troops to repair their loss, and hoped the parliament
would approve her conduct. Both houses seized this opportunity of
venting their spleen against the old ministry. The history of England
is disgraced by the violent conduct of two turbulent factions, which,
in their turn, engrossed the administration and legislative power. The
parliamentary strain was quite altered. One can hardly conceive how
resolutions so widely different could be taken on the same subject,
with any shadow of reason and decorum. Marlborough, who but a few months
before had been so highly extolled and caressed by the representatives
of the people, was now become the object of parliamentary hatred and
censure, though no sensible alteration had happened in his conduct or
success. That hero, who had retrieved the glory of the British arms, won
so many battles, subdued such a number of towns and districts, humbled
the pride and checked the ambition of France, secured the liberty of
Europe, and, as it were, chained victory to his chariot wheels, was in
a few weeks dwindled into an object of contempt and derision. He
was ridiculed in public libels, and reviled in private conversation.
Instances were every where repeated of his fraud, avarice, and extortion;
his insolence, cruelty, ambition, and misconduct; even his courage was
called in question; and this consummate general was represented as the
lowest of mankind. So unstable is the popularity of every character that
fluctuates between two opposite tides of faction.
INQUIRY INTO THE CONDUCT OF THE WAR IN SPAIN.
The lords, in their answer to the queen’s message, declared, that as
the misfortune in Spain might have been occasioned by some preceding
mismanagement, they would use their utmost endeavours to discover it,
so as to prevent the like for the future. They set on foot an inquiry
concerning the affairs of Spain; and the earl of Peterborough being
examined before the committee, imputed all the miscarriages in
the course of that war to the earl of Galway and general Stanhope.
Notwithstanding the defence of Galway, which was clear and convincing,
the house resolved, that the earl of Peterborough had given a faithful
and honourable account of the councils of war in Valencia: that the earl
of Galway, lord Tyrawley, and general Stanhope, in advising an offensive
war, had been the unhappy occasion of the battle of Almanza, the source
of our misfortunes in Spain, and one great cause of the disappointment
of the expedition to Toulon, concerted with her majesty. They voted that
the prosecution of an offensive war in Spain was approved and directed
by the ministers, who were therefore justly blameable, as having
contributed to all our misfortunes in Spain, and to the disappointment
of the expedition against Toulon; that the earl of Peterborough, during
his command in Spain, had performed many great and eminent services;
and if his opinion had been followed, it might have prevented the
misfortunes that ensued. Then the duke of Buckingham moved, that the
thanks of the house should be given to the earl for his remarkable and
eminent services; and these he actually received from the mouth of the
lord-keeper Harcourt, who took this opportunity to drop some oblique
reflections upon the mercenary disposition of the duke of Marlborough.
The house, proceeding in the inquiry, passed another vote, importing,
that the late ministry had been negligent in managing the Spanish war,
to the great prejudice of the nation. Finding that the Portuguese troops
were posted on the right of the English at the battle of Almanza, they
re solved, that the earl of Galway, in yielding this point, had acted
contrary to the honour of the imperial crown of Great Britain. These
resolutions they included in an address to the queen, who had been
present during the debates, which were extremely violent; and to
every separate vote was attached a severe protest. These were not the
proceedings of candour and national justice, but the ebullitions of
party zeal and rancorous animosity.
While the lords were employed in this inquiry, the commons examined
certain abuses which had crept into the management of the navy; and some
censures were passed upon certain persons concerned in contracts
for victualling the seamen. The inhabitants of St. Olave’s and other
parishes presented a petition, complaining that a great number of
Palatines, inhabiting one house, might produce among them a contagious
distemper; and in time become a charge to the public, as they were
destitute of all visible means of subsistence. This petition had been
procured by the tories, that the house of commons might have another
handle for attacking the late ministry. A committee was appointed to
inquire upon what invitation or encouragement those Palatines had come
to England. The papers relating to this affair being laid before them
by the queen’s order, and perused, the house resolved, that the inviting
and bringing over the poor Palatines of all religions, at the public
expense, was an extravagant and unreasonable charge to the kingdom, and
a scandalous misapplication of the public money, tending to the
increase and oppression of the poor, and of dangerous consequence to the
constitution in church and state; and that whoever advised their being
brought over was an enemy to the queen and kingdom. Animated by the heat
of this inquiry, they passed the bill to repeal the act for a general
naturalization of all protestants; but this was rejected in the house
of lords. Another bill was enacted into a law, importing, that no person
should be deemed qualified for representing a county in parliament,
unless he possessed an estate of six hundred pounds a-year; and
restricting the qualification of burgess to half that sum. The design of
this bill was to exclude trading people from the house of commons,
and to lodge the legislative power with the land-holders. A third act
passed, permitting the importation of French wine in neutral bottoms: a
bill against which the whigs loudly exclaimed, as a national evil, and a
scandalous compliment to the enemy.
HARLEY STABBED AT THE COUNCIL BOARD.
A violent party in the house of commons began to look upon Harley as a
lukewarm tory, because he would not enter precipitately into all their
factious measures; they even began to suspect his principles, when his
credit was re-established by a very singular accident. Guiscard, the
French partisan, of whom mention hath already been made, thought himself
very ill rewarded for his services, with a precarious pension of four
hundred pounds, which he enjoyed from the queen’s bounty. He had been
renounced by St. John, the former companion of his pleasures; he had
in vain endeavoured to obtain an audience of the queen, with a view to
demand more considerable appointments. Harley was his enemy, and all
access to her majesty was denied. Enraged at these disappointments, he
attempted to make his peace with the court of France, and offered his
services, in a letter to one Moreau, a banker in Paris. This
packet, which he endeavoured to transmit by the way of Portugal, was
intercepted, and a warrant issued out to apprehend him for high-treason.
When the messenger disarmed him in St. James’s Park, he exhibited marks
of guilty confusion and despair, and begged that he would kill him
directly. Being conveyed to the cockpit, in a sort of frenzy, he
perceived a penknife lying upon a table, and took it up without being
perceived by the attendants. A committee of council was immediately
summoned, and Guiscard brought before them to be examined. Finding that
his correspondence with Moreau was discovered, he desired to speak in
private with secretary St. John, whom in all probability he had resolved
to assassinate. His request being refused, he said, “That’s hard! not
one word!” St. John being out of his reach, he stepped up to Mr. Harley,
and exclaiming, “Have at thee, then!” stabbed him in the breast with
the penknife which he had concealed. The instrument broke upon the bone,
without penetrating into the cavity; nevertheless he repeated the blow
with such force that the chancellor of the exchequer fell to the ground.
Secretary St. John, seeing him fall, cried out, “The villain has killed
Mr. Harley!” and drew his sword. Several other members followed his
example, and wounded Guiscard in several places. Yet he made a desperate
defence, until he was overpowered by the messengers and servants, and
conveyed from the council-chamber, which he had filled with terror,
tumult, and confusion. His wounds, though dangerous, were not mortal;
but he died of a gangrene occasioned by the bruises he had sustained.
This attempt upon the life of Harley, by a person who wanted to
establish a traitorous correspondence with France, extinguished the
suspicions of those who began to doubt that minister’s integrity. The
two houses of parliament, in an address to the queen, declared their
belief that Mr. Harley’s fidelity to her majesty, and zeal for her
service, had drawn upon him the hatred of all the abettors of popery
and faction. They besought her majesty to take all possible care of her
sacred person; and, for that purpose, to give directions for causing
papists to be removed from the cities of London and Westminster. A
proclamation was published, ordering the laws to be strictly put in
execution against papists. When Harley appeared in the house of commons
after his recovery, he was congratulated upon it by the speaker, in a
florid and fulsome premeditated speech. An act was passed, decreeing,
that an attempt upon the life of a privy-counsellor should be felony
without benefit of clergy. The earl of Rochester dying, Harley became
sole minister, was created baron of Wigmore, and raised to the rank of
earl by the noble and ancient title of Oxford and Mortimer: to crown his
prosperity, he was appointed lord-treasurer, and vested with the supreme
administration of affairs.
DEATH OF THE EMPEROR JOSEPH.
The commons empowered certain persons to examine all the grants made
by king William, and report the value of them, as well as the
considerations upon which they were made. Upon their report a bill was
formed and passed that house; but the lords rejected it at the first
reading. Their next step was to examine the public accounts, with a
view to fix an imputation on the earl of Godolphin. They voted that
above five-and-thirty millions of the money granted by parliament
remained unaccounted for. This sum, however, included some accounts in
the reigns of king Charles and king William. One half of the whole was
charged to Mr. Bridges, the pay-master, who had actually accounted for
all the money he had received, except about three millions, though
these accounts had not passed through the auditor’s office. The commons
afterwards proceeded to inquire into the debts of the navy, that
exceeded five millions, which, with many other debts, were thrown into
one stock, amounting to nine millions four hundred and seventy-one
thousand three hundred and twenty-five pounds. A fund was formed for
paying an interest or annuity of six per cent, until the principal
should be discharged; and with this was granted a monopoly of a
projected trade in the South Sea, vested in the proprietors of
navy-bills, debentures, and other public securities, which were
incorporated for this purpose. Such was the origin of the South Sea
Company, founded upon a chimerical supposition that the English would
be permitted to trade upon the coast of Peru in the West Indies. Perhaps
the new ministry hoped to obtain this permission, as an equivalent
for their abandoning the interest of king Charles, with respect to his
pretensions upon Spain. By this time the emperor Joseph had died of the
small-pox without male issue; so that his brother’s immediate aim was to
succeed him on the Imperial throne. This event was, on the twentieth day
of April, communicated by a message from the queen to both houses. She
told them that the states-general had concurred with her in a resolution
to support the house of Austria; and that they had already taken such
measures as would secure the election of Charles as head of the empire.
The house of commons, in order to demonstrate their attachment to
the church, in consequence of an address from the lower house of
convocation, and a quickening message from the queen, passed a bill for
building fifty new churches in the suburbs of London and Westminster,
and appropriated for this purpose the duty upon coals, which had been
granted for the building of St. Paul’s, now finished. This imposition
was continued until it should raise the sum of three hundred and fifty
thousand pounds. At the close of the session, the commons presented a
remonstrance or representation to the queen, in which they told her that
they had not only raised the necessary supplies, but also discharged the
heavy debts of which the nation had so long and justly complained.
They said that, in tracing the causes of this debt, they had discovered
fraud, embezzlement, and misapplication of the public money; that they
who of late years had the management of the treasury, were guilty of a
notorious breach of trust and injustice to the nation, in allowing above
thirty millions to remain unaccounted for; a purposed omission that
looked like a design to conceal embezzlements. They begged her majesty
would give immediate directions for compelling the several imprest
accountants speedily to pass their accounts. They expressed their hope
that such of the accountants as had neglected their duty in prosecuting
their accounts, ought no longer to be intrusted with the public money.
They affirmed, that from all these evil practices and worse designs of
some persons, who had, by false professions of love to their country,
insinuated themselves into her royal favour, irreparable mischief would
have accrued to the public, had not her majesty, in her great wisdom,
seasonably discovered the fatal tendency of such measures, and removed
from the administration those who had so ill answered her majesty’s
favourable opinion, and in so many instances grossly abused the trust
reposed in them. They observed, that her people could with greater
patience have suffered the manifold injuries done to themselves, by the
frauds and depredations of such evil ministers, had not the same men
proceeded to treat her sacred person with undutifulness and disregard.
This representation being circulated through the kingdom, produced the
desired effect of inflaming the minds of the people against the late
ministry. Such expedients were become necessary for the execution
of Oxford’s project, which was to put a speedy end to a war that
had already subjected the people to grievous oppression, and even
accumulated heavy burdens to be transmitted to their posterity. The
nation was inspired by extravagant ideas of glory and conquest, even
to a rage of war-making; so that the new ministers, in order to dispel
those dangerous chimeras, were obliged to take measures for exciting
their indignation and contempt against those persons whom they had
formerly idolized as their heroes and patriots. On the twelfth day of
June, the queen, having given the royal assent to several public and
private bills, made an affectionate speech to both houses. She thanked
the commons, in the warmest expressions, for having complied with all
her desires; for having baffled the expectations of her enemies in
finding supplies for the service of the ensuing year; in having granted
greater sums than were ever given to any prince in one session; and in
having settled funds for the payment of the public debts, so that the
credit of the nation was restored. She expressed her earnest concern
for the succession of the house of Hanover; and her fixed resolution to
support and encourage the church of England as by law established. Then
the parliament was prorogued.
PROCEEDINGS IN THE CONVOCATION.
Of the convocation which was assembled with the new parliament, the
lower house chose Dr. Atterbury their prolocutor. He was an enterprising
ecclesiastic, of extensive learning, acute talents, violently attached
to tory principles, and intimately connected with the prime minister
Oxford; so that he directed all the proceedings in the lower house of
convocation in concert with that minister. The queen, in a letter to
the archbishop, signified her hope that the consultations of the clergy
might be of use to repress the attempts of loose and profane persons.
She sent a license under the broad seal, empowering them to sit and
do business in as ample a manner as ever had been granted since the
reformation. They were ordered to lay before the queen an account of the
excessive growth of infidelity and heresy, as well as of other abuses,
that necessary measures might be taken for a reformation. The bishops
were purposely slighted and overlooked, because they had lived in
harmony with the late ministers. A committee being appointed to draw
up a representation of the present state of the church and religion,
Atterbury undertook the task, and composed a remonstrance that contained
the most keen and severe strictures upon the administration, as it had
been exercised since the time of the revolution. Another was penned by
the bishops in more moderate terms; and several regulations were made,
but in none of these did the two houses agree. They concurred, however,
in censuring some tenets favouring Arianism, broached and supported by
Mr. Whiston, mathematical professor in Cambridge. He had been expelled
the university, and wrote a vindication of himself, dedicated to the
convocation. The archbishop doubted whether this assembly could proceed
against a man for heresy: the judges were consulted, and the majority of
them gave in their opinion that the convocation had a jurisdiction. Four
of them professed the contrary sentiment, which they maintained from the
statutes made at the reformation. The queen, in a letter to the bishops,
said, that as there was now no doubt of their jurisdiction, she expected
that they would proceed in the matter before them. Fresh scruples
arising, they determined to examine the book, without proceeding
against the author, and this was censured accordingly. An extract of the
sentence was sent to the queen; but she did not signify her pleasure on
this subject, and the affair remained in suspense. Whiston published a
work in four volumes, justifying his doctrine, and maintaining that the
apostolical constitutions were not only canonical, but also preferable
in point of authority to the epistles and the gospels.
{ANNE, 1701--1714}
THE DUKE OF MARLBOROUGH CONTINUES TO COMMAND THE ALLIED ARMY.
The new ministry had not yet determined to supersede the duke of
Marlborough in the command of the army. This was a step which could
not be taken without giving umbrage to the Dutch and other allies. He
therefore set out for Holland in the month of February, after the queen
had assured him that he might depend upon the punctual payment of the
forces. Having conferred with the deputies of the states about the
operations of the campaign, he, about the middle of April, assembled
the army at Orchies, between Lisle and Douay; while mareschal de Villars
drew together the French troops in the neighbourhood of Cambray and
Arras. Louis had by this time depopulated as well as impoverished his
kingdom; yet his subjects still flocked to his standard with surprising
spirit and attachment. Under the pressure of extreme misery they uttered
not one complaint of their sovereign; but imputed all their calamities
to the pride and obstinacy of the allies. Exclusive of all the other
impositions that were laid upon that people, they consented to pay the
tenth penny of their whole substance; but all their efforts of loyalty
and affection to their prince would have been ineffectual, had not
the merchants of the kingdom, by the permission of Philip, undertaken
repeated voyages to the South Sea, from whence they brought home
immense treasures; while the allies took no steps for intercepting these
supplies, though nothing could have been more easy for the English than
to deprive the enemy of this great resource, and convert it to their
own advantage. Had a squadron of ships been annually employed for this
purpose, the subjects of France and Spain must have been literally
starved, and Louis obliged to submit to such terms as the confederates
might have thought proper to impose. Villars had found means to assemble
a very numerous army, with which he encamped behind the river Sanset, in
such an advantageous post as could not be attacked with any prospect of
success. Meanwhile the duke of Marlborough passed the Scarpe, and formed
his camp between Douay and Bouchain, where he was joined by prince
Eugene on the twenty-third day of May. This general, however, did not
long remain in the Netherlands. Understanding that detachments had been
made from the army of Villars to the Rhine, and that the elector of
Bavaria intended to act in the empire, the prince, by order from the
court of Vienna, marched towards the upper Rhine with the Imperial and
Palatine troops, to secure Germany. The Duke of Marlborough repassing
the Scarpe, encamped in the plains of Lens, from whence he advanced
towards Aire, as if he had intended to attack the French lines in
that quarter. These lines beginning at Bouchain on the Schelde, were
continued along the Sanset and the Scarpe to Arras, and thence along the
Upper Scarpe to Canché. They were defended by redoubts and other works
in such a manner, that Villars judged they were impregnable, and called
them the _Ne plus ultra_ of Marlborough.
This nobleman advancing within two leagues of the French lines, ordered
a great number of fascines to be made, declaring he would attack them
the next morning; so that Villars drew all his forces on that side, in
full expectations of an engagement. The duke, on the supposition that
the passage of the Sanset by Arleux would be left unguarded, had ordered
the generals Cadogan and Hompesch to assemble twenty battalions and
seventeen squadrons from Douay and the neighbouring garrisons, to march
to Arleux, where they should endeavour to pass the Sanset. Brigadier
Sutton was detached with the artillery and pontoons, to lay bridges over
the canal near Groulezen and over the Scarpe at Vitry, while the duke
with the whole confederate army began his march for the same place about
nine in the evening. He proceeded with such expedition, that by five in
the morning he passed the river at Vitry. There he received intelligence
that Hompesch had taken possession of the passes on the Sanset and
Schelde without opposition, the enemy having withdrawn their detachments
from that side just as he had imagined. He himself, with his vanguard of
fifty squadrons, hastened his march towards Arleux, and before eight of
the clock arrived at Bacá-Bachuel, where in two hours he was joined
by the heads of the columns into which he hadj divided his infantry.
Villars being certified of his intention, about two in the morning
decamped with his whole army, and putting himself at the head of the
king’s household troops, marched all night with such expedition, that
about eleven in the forenoon he was in sight of the duke of Marlborough,
who had by this time joined count Hompesch. The French general
immediately retreated to the main body of his army, which had advanced
to the high road between Arras and Cambray, while the allies encamped
upon the Schelde, between Oisy and Estrun, after a march of ten leagues
without halting, scarce to be paralleled in history. By this plan, so
happily executed, the duke of Marlborough fairly outwitted Villars, and,
without the loss of one man, entered the lines which he had pronounced
impregnable. This stroke of the English general was extolled as a
masterpiece of military skill, while Villars was exposed to the ridicule
even of his own officers. The field-deputies of the states-general
proposed that he should give battle to the enemy, who passed the Schelde
at Crevecoeur in order to cover Bouchain; but the duke would not hazard
an engagement, considering how much the army was fatigued by the long
march; and that any misfortune, while they continued within the French
lines, might be fatal. His intention was to besiege Bouchain; an
enterprise that was deemed impracticable, inasmuch as the place was
situated in a morass, strongly fortified, and defended by a numerous
garrison, in the neighbourhood of an army superior in number to that of
the allies. Notwithstanding these disadvantages, and the dissuasions
of his own friends, he resolved to undertake the siege; and, in the
meantime, despatched brigadier Sutton to England with an account of his
having passed the French lines; which was not at all agreeable to his
enemies. They had prognosticated that nothing would be done during this
campaign, and began to insinuate that the duke could strike no stroke of
importance without the assistance of prince Eugene. They now endeavoured
to lessen the glory of his success; and even taxed him with having
removed his camp from a convenient situation to a place where the troops
were in danger of starving. Nothing could be more provoking than this
scandalous malevolence to a great man who had done so much honour to his
country, and was then actually exposing his life in her service.
BOUCHAIN REDUCED.
On the tenth day of August Bouchain was invested, and the duke of
Marlborough exerted himself to the utmost extent of his vigilance and
capacity, well knowing the difficulties of the undertaking, and how much
his reputation would depend upon his success. Villars had taken every
precaution that his skill and experience could suggest, to baffle the
endeavours of the English general. He had reinforced the garrison to
the number of six thousand chosen men, commanded by officers of known
courage and ability. He made some efforts to raise the siege; but they
were rendered ineffectual by the consummate prudence and activity of the
duke of Marlborough. Then he laid a scheme for surprising Douay, which
likewise miscarried. If we consider that the English general, in the
execution of his plan, was obliged to form lines, erect regular forts,
raise batteries, throw bridges over a river, make a causeway through a
deep morass, provide for the security of convoys against a numerous
army on the one side, and the garrisons of Condé and Valenciennes on the
other, we must allow this was the boldest enterprise of the whole war;
that it required all the fortitude, skill, and resolution of a great
general, and all the valour and intrepidity of the confederate troops,
who had scarce ever exhibited such amazing proofs of courage upon any
other occasion as they now displayed at the siege of Bouchain. In
twenty days after the trenches were opened, the garrison were obliged
to surrender themselves prisoners of war; and this conquest was the last
military exploit performed by the duke of Marlborough: the breaches
of Bouchain were no sooner repaired than the opposite armies began to
separate, and the allied forces were quartered in the frontier towns,
that they might be at hand to take the field early in the spring. They
were now in possession of the Maese, almost as far as the Sambre; of the
Schelde from Tournay; and of the Lys as far as it is navigable. They
had reduced Spanish Guelderland, Limburg, Brabant, Flanders, and the
greatest part of Hainault; they were masters of the Scarpe; and by the
conquest of Bouchain, they had opened to themselves a way into the very
bowels of France. All these acquisitions were owing to the valour and
conduct of the duke of Marlborough, who now returned to the Hague, and
arrived in England about the middle of November.
DUKE OF ARGYLE COMMANDS THE BRITISH TROOPS IN SPAIN.
The queen had conferred the command of her forces in Spain upon the
duke of Argyle, who was recalled from the service in Flanders for that
purpose. He had long been at variance with the duke of Marlborough; a
circumstance which recommended him the more strongly to the ministry.
He landed at Barcelona on the twenty-ninth of May, and found the British
troops in the utmost distress for want of subsistence. The treasurer had
promised to supply him liberally; the commons had granted one million
five hundred thousand pounds for that service. All their hopes of
success were fixed on the campaign in that kingdom; and indeed the army
commanded by the duke de Vendôme was in such a wretched condition, that
if Staremberg had been properly supported by the allies, he might have
obtained signal advantages. The duke of Argyle, having waited in vain
for the promised remittances, was obliged, to borrow money on his
own credit, before the British troops could take the field. At length
Staremberg advanced towards the enemy, who attacked him at the pass of
Prato del Key, where they were repulsed with considerable damage. After
this action the duke of Argyle was seized with a violent fever, and
conveyed back to Barcelona. Vendôme invested the castle of Cardona,
which was vigorously defended till the end of December, when a
detachment being sent to the relief of the place, defeated the
besiegers, killed two thousand on the spot, and took all their
artillery, ammunition, and baggage. Staremberg was unable to follow the
blow; the duke of Argyle wrote pressing letters to the ministry, and
loudly complained that he was altogether unsupported; but all his
remonstrances were ineffectual: no remittances arrived; and he returned
to England without having been able to attempt any thing of importance.
In September, king Charles, leaving his queen at Barcelona, set sail for
Italy, and at Milan had an interview with the duke of Savoy, where all
disputes were compromised. That prince had forced his way into Savoy and
penetrated as far as the Rhine; but he suddenly halted in the middle of
his career, and after a short campaign repassed the mountains. Prince
Eugene, at the head of the German forces, protected the electors at
Frankfort from the designs of the enemy, and Charles was unanimously
chosen emperor; the electors of Cologn and Bavaria having been excluded
from voting, because they lay under the ban of the empire. The war
between the Ottoman Porte and the Muscovites was of short duration.
The czar advanced so far into Moldavia, that he was cut off from all
supplies, and altogether in the power of his enemy. In this emergency,
he found means to corrupt the grand vizier in private, while in public
he proposed articles of peace that were accepted. The king of Sweden,
who was in the Turkish army, charged the vizier with treachery, and that
minister was actually disgraced. The grand seignor threatened to renew
the war; but he was appeased by the czar’s surrendering Azoph.
EXPEDITION TO CANADA.
The English ministry had conceived great expectations from an expedition
against Quebec and Placentia, in North America, planned by colonel
Nicholson, who had taken possession of Nova Scotia, and garrisoned Porte
Royal, to which he gave the name of Anapolis. He had brought four Indian
chiefs to England, and represented the advantages that would redound
to the nation in point of commerce, should the French be expelled from
North America. The ministers relished the proposal. A body of five
thousand men was embarked in transports, under the command of brigadier
Hill, brother to Mrs. Masham; and they sailed from Plymouth in the
beginning of May, with a strong squadron of ships commanded by sir
Hovenden Walker. At Boston in New England, they were joined by two
regiments of provincials; and about four thousand men, consisting of
American planters, Palatines, and Indians, rendezvoused at Albany, in
order to march by land into Canada, while the fleet sailed up the river
of that name. On the twenty-first day of August they were exposed to a
violent storm, and driven among rocks, where eight transports perished,
with about eight hundred men. The admiral immediately sailed back to
Spanish-river bay, where it was determined, in a council of war, that as
the fleet and forces were victualled for ten weeks only, and they could
not depend upon a supply of provisions from New England, they should
return home without making any further attempt. Such was the issue of
this paltry expedition, intrusted to the direction of an officer without
talents and experience.
In the Irish parliament held during the summer, the duke of Ormond and
the majority of the peers supported the tory interest, while the commons
expressed the warmest attachment to revolution principles. The two
houses made strenuous representations, and passed severe resolutions
against each other. After the session, sir Constantine Phipps, the
chancellor, and general Ingoldsby, were appointed justices in the
absence of the duke of Ormond, who returned to England in the month of
November. In Scotland the Jacobites made no scruple of professing their
principles and attachments to the pretender. The duchess of Gordon
presented the faculty of advocates with a silver medal, representing the
chevalier de St. George; and on the reverse the British islands, with
the motto “_Redditte._” After some debate, it was voted, by a majority
of sixty-three voices against twelve, that the duchess should be thanked
for this token of her regard. This task was performed by Dundas of
Arnistoun, who thanked her grace for having presented them with a medal
of their sovereign lord the king; hoping, and being confident, that her
grace would very soon have an opportunity to compliment the faculty
with a second medal, struck upon the restoration of the king and royal
family, upon the finishing rebellion, usurping tyranny, and whiggery.
An account of this transaction being laid before the queen, the
lord-advocate was ordered to inquire into the particulars. Then the
faculty were so intimidated that they disowned Dundas, and Home his
accomplice. They pretended that the affair of the medal had been
transacted by a party at an occasional meeting, and not by general
consent; and, by a solemn act, they declared their attachment to the
queen and the protestant succession. The court was satisfied with this
atonement; but the resident from Hanover having presented a memorial to
the queen, desiring that Dundas and his associates might be prosecuted,
the government removed sir David Dalrymple from his office of
lord-advocate, on pretence of his having been too remiss in prosecuting
those delinquents; and no further inquiry was made into the affair.
NEGOTIATION BETWEEN THE COURTS OF FRANCE AND ENGLAND.
For some time the negotiation for peace had been carried on between
the court of France and the new ministers, who had a double aim in this
measure; namely, to mortify the whigs and the Dutch, whom they detested,
and to free their country from a ruinous war, which had all the
appearance of becoming habitual to the constitution. They foresaw the
risk they would run by entering into such measures, should ever the
opposite faction regain the ascendency; they knew the whigs would employ
all their art and influence, which was very powerful, in obstructing the
peace, and in raising of popular clamour against the treaty. But their
motives for treating were such as prompted them to undervalue all those
difficulties and dangers. They hoped to obtain such advantages in point
of commerce for the subject of Great Britain, as would silence all
detraction. They did not doubt of being able to maintain the superiority
which they had acquired in parliament; and perhaps some of them
cherished views in favour of the pretender, whose succession to the
crown would have effectually established their dominion over the
opposite party. The earl of Jersey, who acted in concert with Oxford,
sent a private message to the court of France, importing the
queen’s desire of peace, representing the impossibility of a private
negotiation, as the ministry was obliged to act with the utmost
circumspection, and desiring that Louis would propose to the Dutch a
renewal of the conferences, in which case the English plenipotentiaries
should have such instructions that it would be impossible for the
states-general to prevent the conclusion of the treaty. This intimation
was delivered by one Gualtier, an obscure priest, who acted as chaplain
to count Gallas the Imperial ambassador, and had been employed as a
spy by the French ministry, since the commencement of hostilities. His
connexion with lord Jersey was by means of that nobleman’s lady,
who professed the Roman catholic religion. His message was extremely
agreeable to the court of Versailles. He returned to London with a
letter of compliment from the marquis de Torcy to the earl of Jersey, in
which that minister assured him of his master’s sincere inclination for
peace, though he was averse to a renewal of the conferences with the
states-general. Gualtier wrote a letter to Versailles, desiring, in
the name of the English ministry, that his most christain majesty would
communicate to them his proposals for a general peace, which they would
communicate to the states-general, that they might negotiate in concert
with their allies. A general answer being made to this intimation,
Gualtier made a second journey to Versailles, and brought over a
memorial, which was immediately transmitted to Holland. In the meantime,
the pensionary endeavoured to renew the conferences in Holland. Petkum
wrote to the French ministry, that if his majesty would resume the
negotiation, in concert with the queen of Great Britain, he should
certainly have reason to be satisfied with the conduct of the Dutch
deputies. This proposal Louis declined, at the desire of the English
ministers.
The states-general having perused the memorial, assured queen Anne that
they were ready to join with her in contributing to the conclusion of
a durable peace; but they expressed a desire that the French king would
communicate a more particular plan for securing the interest of the
allied powers, and for settling the repose of Europe. Gualtier was once
more sent to Versailles, accompanied by Mr. Prior, who had resided
in France as secretary to the embassies of the earls of Portland and
Jersey. This gentleman had acquired some reputation by his poetical
talents; was a man of uncommon ability, and insinuating address, and
perfectly devoted to the tory interest. He was empowered to communicate
the preliminary demands of the English; to receive the answer of the
French king; and demand whether or not king Philip had transmitted
a power of treating to his grandfather. He arrived incognito at
Fontainbleau, and presented the queen’s memorial, in which she demanded
a barrier for the Dutch in the Netherlands, and another on the Rhine
for the empire; a security for the Dutch commerce, and a general
satisfaction to all her allies. She required that the strong places
taken from the duke of Savoy should be restored; and that he should
possess such towns and districts in Italy as had been ceded to him in
treaties between him and his allies: that Louis should acknowledge
queen Anne and the protestant succession; demolish the fortifications of
Dunkirk; and agree to a new treaty of commerce; that Gibraltar and Port
Mahon should be yielded to the crown of England; that the negro trade in
America, at that time carried on by the French, should be ceded to the
English, together with some towns on that continent, where the slaves
might be refreshed. She expected security that her subjects trading
to Spain should enjoy all advantages granted by that crown to the most
favoured nation; that she should be put in possession of Newfoundland
and Hudson’s Bay, either by way of restitution or cession; and that
both nations should continue to enjoy whatever territories they might be
possessed of in North America at the ratification of the treaties. She
likewise insisted upon a security that the crowns of France and Spain
should never be united on the same head. Her majesty no longer insisted
upon Philip’s being expelled from the throne of Spain by the arms of
his own grandfather. She now perceived that the exorbitant power of the
house of Austria would be as dangerous to the liberty of Europe as ever
that of the family of Bourbon had been, in the zenith of its glory. She
might have remembered the excessive power, the insolence, the ambition
of Charles V. and Philip II. who had enslaved so many countries, and
embroiled all Europe. She was sincerely desirous of peace, from motives
of humanity and compassion to her subjects and fellow-creatures; she
was eagerly bent upon procuring such advantages to her people as
would enable them to discharge the heavy load of debt under which they
laboured, and recompense them in some measure for the blood and treasure
they had so lavishly expended in the prosecution of the war. These
were the sentiments of a christian princess; of an amiable and pious
sovereign, who bore a share in the grievances of her subjects, and
looked upon them with the eyes of maternal affection. She thought she
had the better title to insist upon those advantages, as they had been
already granted to her subjects in a private treaty with king Charles.
MENAGER ARRIVES PRIVATELY in ENGLAND.
As Prior’s powers were limited in such a manner that he could not
negotiate, Mr. Ménager, deputy from the city of Rouen to the board of
trade, accompanied the English minister to London, with full powers to
settle the preliminaries of the treaty. On his arrival in London, the
queen immediately commissioned the duke of Shrewsbury, the earls of
Jersey, Dartmouth, Oxford, and Mr. St. John, to treat with him; and the
conferences were immediately begun. After long and various disputes,
they agreed upon certain preliminary articles, which, on the eighth day
of October, were signed by the French minister, and by the two
secretaries of state, in consequence of a written order from her majesty.
Then Ménager was privately introduced to the queen at Windsor. She told
him she was averse to war; that she would exert all her power to
conclude a speedy peace; that she should be glad to live upon good terms
with the king of France, to whom she was so nearly allied in blood; she
expressed her hope that there would be a closer union after the peace
between them, and between their subjects, cemented by a perfect
correspondence and friendship. The earl of Strafford, who had been
lately recalled from the Hague where he resided as ambassador, was now
sent back to Holland, with orders to communicate to the pensionary the
proposals of peace which France had made; to signify the queen’s
approbation of them, and propose a place where the plenipotentiaries
should assemble. The English ministers now engaged in an intimate
correspondence with the court of Versailles; and mareschal Tallard being
released from his confinement at Nottingham, was allowed to return to
his own country on his parole. After the departure of Ménager, the
preliminaries were communicated to count Gallas the emperor’s minister,
who, in order to inflame the minds of the people, caused them to be
translated, and inserted in one of the daily papers. This step was so
much resented by the queen, that she sent a message desiring he would
come no more to court; but that he might leave the kingdom as soon as he
should think proper. He took the hint, and retired accordingly; but the
queen gave the emperor to understand, that any other minister he should
appoint would be admitted by her without hesitation.
THE FRENCH KING’S PROPOSALS DISAGREEABLE TO THE ALLIES.
The states of Holland, alarmed at the preliminaries, sent over Buys, as
envoy-extraordinary, to intercede with the queen that she would alter
her resolutions: but she continued steady to her purpose; and the
earl of Strafford demanded the immediate concurrence of the states,
declaring, in the queen’s name, that she would look upon any delay, on
their part, as a refusal to comply with her propositions. Intimidated by
this declaration, they agreed to open the general conferences at Utrecht
on the first day of January. They granted passports to the French
ministers; while the queen appointed Robinson, bishop of Bristol, and
the earl of Strafford, her plenipotentiaries at the congress. Charles,
the new emperor, being at Milan, when he received a copy of the
preliminaries, wrote circular letters to the electors and the princes of
the empire, exhorting them to persist in their engagements to the grand
alliance. He likewise desired the states-general to join councils
with him in persuading the queen of England to reject the proposals
of France, and prosecute the war; or at least to negotiate on the
foundation of the first preliminaries, which had been signed by the
marquis de Torcy. He wrote a letter to the same purpose to the queen of
Great Britain, who received it with the most mortifying indifference.
No wonder that he should zealously contend for the continuance of a
war, the expense of which she and the Dutch had hitherto almost wholly
defrayed. The new preliminaries were severely attacked by the whigs,
who ridiculed and reviled the ministry in word and writing. Pamphlets,
libels, and lampoons, were today published by one faction, and to-morrow
answered by the other. They contained all the insinuations of malice
and contempt, all the bitterness of reproach, and all the rancour of
recrimination. In the midst of this contention, the queen despatched
the earl of Rivers to Hanover, with an assurance to the elector that his
succession to the crown should be effectually ascertained in the treaty.
The earl brought back an answer in writing; but, at the same time, his
electoral highness ordered baron de Bothmar, his envoy in England,
to present a memorial to the queen, representing the pernicious
consequences of Philip’s remaining in possession of Spain and the West
Indies. This remonstrance the baron published, by way of appeal to the
people, and the whigs extolled it with the highest encomiums; but
the queen and her ministers resented this step as an officious and
inflammatory interposition.
The proposals of peace made by the French king were disagreeable even to
some individuals of the tory party; and certain peers, who had hitherto
adhered to that interest, agreed with the whigs to make a remonstrance
against the preliminary articles. The court being apprised of their
intention, prorogued the parliament till the seventh day of December, in
expectation of the Scottish peers, who would cast the balance in favour
of the ministry. In her speech, at the opening of the session, she told
them that notwithstanding the arts of those who delighted in war,
the place and time were appointed for a congress; and that the
states-general had expressed their entire confidence in her conduct.
She declared her chief concern should be to secure the succession of
the crown in the house of Hanover; to procure all the advantages to the
nation which a tender and affectionate sovereign could procure for a
dutiful and loyal people; and to obtain satisfaction for all her allies.
She observed, that the most effectual way to procure an advantageous
peace, would be to make preparations for carrying on war with
vigour. She recommended unanimity, and prayed God would direct their
consultations. In the house of lords, the earl of Nottingham, who
had now associated himself with the whigs, inveighed against the
preliminaries as captious and insufficient, and offered a clause to be
inserted in the address of thanks, representing to her majesty that, in
the opinion of the house, no peace could be safe or honourable to Great
Britain or Europe, if Spain and the West Indies should be allotted to
any branch of the house of Bourbon. A violent debate ensued, in the
course of which the earl of Anglesea represented the necessity of easing
the nation of the burdens incurred by an expensive war. He affirmed that
a good peace might have been procured immediately after the battle of
Ramillies, if it had not been prevented by some persons who prolonged
the war for their own private interest. This insinuation was levelled at
the duke of Marlborough, who made a long speech in his own vindication.
He bowed to the place where the queen sat incognito; and appealed to
her, whether, while he had the honour to serve her majesty as a general
and plenipotentiary, he had not constantly informed her and her council
of all the proposals of peace which had been made; and had not desired
instructions for his conduct on that subject. He declared, upon his
conscience, and in presence of the Supreme Being, before whom
he expected soon to appear, that he was ever desirous of a safe,
honourable, and lasting peace; and that he was always very far from
entertaining any design of prolonging the war for his own private
advantage, as his enemies had most falsely insinuated. At last the
question being put, whether the earl of Nottingham’s advice should
be part of the address; it was carried in the affirmative by a small
majority. The address was accordingly presented, and the queen, in her
answer, said she should be very sorry any one could think she would not
do her utmost to recover Spain and the West Indies from the house of
Bourbon. Against this advice, however, several peers protested, because
there was no precedent for inserting a clause of advice in an address
of thanks; and because they looked upon it as an invasion of the royal
prerogative. In the address of the commons there was no such article;
and, therefore, the answer they received was warm and cordial.
The duke of Hamilton claiming a seat in the house of peers, as duke
of Brandon, a title he had lately received, was opposed by the
anti-courtiers, who pretended to foresee great danger to the
constitution from admitting into the house a greater number of Scottish
peers than the act of union allowed. Counsel was heard upon the
validity of his patent. They observed that no objection could be made to
the queen’s prerogative in conferring honours; and that all the subjects
of the united kingdom were equally capable of receiving honour. The
house of lords had already decided the matter, in admitting the duke of
Queensberry upon his being created duke of Dover. The debate was managed
with great ability on both sides; the Scottish peers united in defence
of the duke’s claim; and the court exerted its whole strength to support
the patent. Nevertheless, the question being put, whether Scottish
peers, created peers of Great Britain since the union, had a right to
sit in that house; it was carried in the negative by a majority of
five voices; though not without a protest signed by the lords in the
opposition. The Scottish peers were so incensed at this decision, that
they drew up a representation to the queen, complaining of it as an
infringement of the union, and a mark of disgrace put upon the whole
peerage of Scotland. The bill against occasional conformity was revived
by the earl of Nottingham, in more moderate terms than those that had
been formerly rejected; and it passed both houses by the connivance of
the whigs, upon the earl’s promise, that if they would consent to this
measure, he would bring over many friends to join them in matters of
greater consequence. On the twenty-second day of December, the queen,
being indisposed, granted a commission to the lord-keeper and some
other peers to give the royal assent to this bill, and another for the
land-tax. The duke of Devonshire obtained leave to bring in a bill for
giving precedence over all peers to the electoral prince of Hanover, as
the duke of Cambridge. An address was presented to the queen, desiring
she would give instructions to her plenipotentiaries to consult with the
ministers of the allies in Holland before the opening of the congress,
that they might concert the necessary measures for proceeding with
unanimity, the better to obtain the great ends proposed by her majesty.
{ANNE, 1701--1714}
DUKE OF MARLBOROUGH DISMISSED FROM ALL HIS EMPLOYMENTS.
The commissioners for examining the public accounts having discovered
that the duke of Marlborough had received an annual present of five or
six thousand pounds from the contractors of bread to the army, the queen
declared in council that she thought fit to dismiss him from all
his employments, that the matter might be impartially examined. This
declaration was imparted to him in a letter under her own hand, in which
she took occasion to complain of the treatment she had received. She
probably alluded to the insolence of his duchess; the subjection in
which she had been kept by the late ministry; and the pains lately taken
by the whigs to depreciate her conduct, and thwart her measures
with respect to the peace. The duke wrote an answer to her majesty,
vindicating himself from the charge which had been brought against his
character; and his two daughters, the countess of Sunderland and the
lady Railton, resigned their places of ladies in the bed-chamber.
The ministry, in order to ascertain a majority in the house of lords,
persuaded the queen to take a measure which nothing but necessity could
justify. She created twelve peers at once, [173] _[See note 2 F, at the
end of this Vol.]_ and on the second of January they were introduced
into the upper house without opposition. The lord-keeper delivered to
the house a message from the queen, desiring they would adjourn to the
fourteenth day of the month. The anti-courtiers alleged, that the queen
could not send a message to any one house to adjourn, but ought to have
directed it to both houses. This objection produced a debate, which was
terminated in favour of the court by the weight of the twelve new peers.
PRINCE EUGENE ARRIVES IN ENGLAND.
At this period prince Eugene arrived in England with a letter to the
queen from the emperor, and instructions to propose a new scheme for
prosecuting the war. His errand was far from being agreeable to the
ministry; and they suspected that his real aim was to manage intrigues
among the discontented party who opposed the peace. Nevertheless, he
was treated with that respect which was due to his quality and eminent
talents. The ministers, the nobility, and officers of distinction,
visited him at his arrival. He was admitted to an audience of the queen,
who received him with great complacency. Having perused the letter which
he delivered, she expressed her concern that her health did not permit
her to speak with his highness as often as she could wish; but that
she had ordered the treasurer and secretary St. John to receive his
proposals, and confer with him as frequently as he should think
proper. He expressed extraordinary respect for the duke of Marlborough,
notwithstanding his disgrace. The lord-treasurer, while he entertained
him at dinner, declared that he looked upon that day as the happiest
in the whole course of his life, since he had the honour to see in
his house the greatest captain of the age. The prince is said to have
replied, “If I am, it is owing to your lordship.” Alluding to the
disgrace of Marlborough, whom the earl’s intrigues had deprived of
all military command. When bishop Burnet conversed with him about the
scandalous libels that were every day published against the duke, and in
particular mentioned one paragraph, in which the author allowed he
had been once fortunate, the prince observed, it was the greatest
commendation that could be bestowed upon him, as it implied that all
his other successes were owing to his courage and conduct. While the
nobility of both parties vied with each other in demonstrations of
respect for this noble stranger; while he was adored by the whigs, and
admired by the people, who gazed at him in crowds when he appeared
in public; even in the midst of all these caresses, party riots were
excited to insult his person, and some scandalous reflections upon his
mother were inserted in one of the public papers. The queen treated him
with distinguished marks of regard; and, on her birth-day, presented him
with a sword worth five thousand pounds. Nevertheless, she looked upon
him as a patron and friend of that turbulent faction to which she owed
so much disquiet. She knew he had been pressed to come over by the
whig noblemen, who hoped his presence would inflame the people to some
desperate attempt upon the new ministry; she was not ignorant that
he held private conferences with the duke of Marlborough, the earl of
Sunderland, the lord Somers, Halifax, and all the chiefs of that party;
and that he entered into a close connexion with the baron de Bothmar,
the Hanoverian envoy, who had been very active in fomenting the
disturbances of the people.
WALPOLE EXPELLED.
Her majesty, who had been for some time afflicted with the gout, sent
a message to both houses on the seventeenth day of January, signifying
that the plenipotentiaries were arrived at Utrecht; and that she was
employed in making preparations for an early campaign; she hoped,
therefore, that the commons would proceed in giving the necessary
despatch to the supplies. The lord-treasurer, in order to demonstrate
his attachment to the protestant succession, brought in a bill which had
been proposed by the duke of Devonshire, giving precedence to the whole
electoral family, as children and nephews of the crown; and, when it was
passed into an act, he sent it over to Hanover by Mr. Thomas Harley.
The sixteen peers for Scotland were prevailed upon, by promise of
satisfaction, to resume their seats in the upper house, from which they
had absented themselves since the decision against the patent of the
duke of Hamilton; but whatever pecuniary recompence they might have
obtained from the court, on which they were meanly dependent, they
received no satisfaction from the parliament. The commons, finding Mr.
Walpole very troublesome in their house, by his talents, activity, and
zealous attachment to the whig interest, found means to discover some
clandestine practices in which he was concerned as secretary at war,
with regard to the forage-contract in Scotland. The contractors, rather
than admit into their partnership a person whom he had recommended for
that purpose, chose to present his friend with five hundred pounds.
Their bill was addressed to Mr. Walpole, who endorsed it, and his friend
touched the money. [174] _[See note 2 G, at the end of this Vol.]_ This
transaction was interpreted into a bribe. Mr. Walpole was voted guilty
of corruption, imprisoned in the Tower, and expelled the house. Being
afterwards re-chosen by the same borough of Lynn-Begis, which he had
before represented, a petition was lodged against him, and the commons
voted him incapable of being elected a member to serve in the present
parliament.
Their next attack was upon the duke of Marlborough, who was found to
have received a yearly sum from sir Solomon Medina, a Jew, concerned in
the contract for furnishing the army with bread; to have been gratified
by the queen with ten thousand pounds a-year to defray the expenses of
intelligence; and to have pocketed a deduction of two and a half per
cent, from the pay of the foreign troops maintained by England. It
was alleged, in his justification, that the present from the Jew was a
customary perquisite, which had always been enjoyed by the general
of the Dutch army; that the deduction of two and a half per cent, was
granted to him by an express warrant from her majesty; that all the
articles of the charge joined together did not exceed thirty thousand
pounds, a sum much inferior to that which had been allowed to king
William for contingencies; that the money was expended in procuring
intelligence, which was so exact that the duke was never surprised;
that none of his parties were ever intercepted or cut off; and all
the designs were by these means so well concerted, that he never once
miscarried. Notwithstanding these representations, the majority voted
that his practices had been unwarrantable and illegal; and that the
deduction was to be accounted for as public money. These resolutions
were communicated to the queen, who ordered the attorney-general to
prosecute the duke for the money he had deducted by virtue of her own
warrant. Such practices were certainly mean and mercenary, and greatly
tarnished the glory which the duke had acquired by his military talents,
and other shining qualities.
RESOLUTIONS AGAINST THE BARRIER-TREATY AND THE DUTCH.
The commons now directed the stream of their resentment against the
Dutch, who had certainly exerted all their endeavours to overwhelm the
new ministry, and retard the negotiations for peace. They maintained
an intimate correspondence with the whigs of England. They diffused
the most invidious reports against Oxford and secretary St. John. Buys,
their envoy at London, acted the part of an incendiary, in suggesting
violent measures to the malcontents, and caballing against the
government. The ministers, by way of reprisal, influenced the house of
commons to pass some acrimonious resolutions against the states-general.
They alleged that the states had been deficient in their proportion of
troops, both in Spain and in the Netherlands, during the whole course of
the war; and that the queen had paid above three millions of crowns in
subsidies, above what she was obliged to advance by her engagements.
They attacked the barrier-treaty, which had been concluded with the
states by lord Townshend after the conferences at Gertruydenburgh. By
this agreement, England guaranteed a barrier in the Netherlands to the
Dutch; and the states bound themselves to maintain, with their whole
force, the queen’s title and the protestant succession. The tories
affirmed that England was disgraced by engaging any other state to
defend a succession which the nation might see cause to alter; that,
by this treaty, the states were authorized to interpose in British
councils; that, being possessed of all those strong towns, they might
exclude the English from trading to them, and interfere with the
manufactures of Great Britain. The house of commons voted, that in the
barrier-treaty there were several articles destructive to the trade and
interest of Great Britain, and therefore highly dishonourable to her
majesty; that the lord viscount Townshend was not authorized to conclude
several articles in that treaty; that he and all those who had advised
its being ratified were enemies to the queen and kingdom. All their
votes were digested into a long representation presented to the queen,
in which they averred that England, during the war, had been overcharged
nineteen millions; a circumstance that implied mismanagement or fraud
in the old ministry. The states, alarmed at these resolutions, wrote a
respectful letter to the queen, representing the necessity of a barrier
for the mutual security of England and the United Provinces. They
afterwards drew up a large memorial in vindication of their proceedings
during the war; and it was published in one of the English papers. The
commons immediately voted it a false, scandalous, and malicious libel,
reflecting upon the resolutions of the house; and the printer and
publisher were taken into custody, as guilty of a breach of privilege.
ACTS UNFAVOURABLE TO THE PRESBYTERIAN DISCIPLINE IN SCOTLAND.
They now repealed the naturalization act. They passed a bill granting a
toleration to the episcopal clergy in Scotland, without paying the
least regard to a representation from the general assembly to the queen,
declaring that the act for securing the presbyterian government was an
essential and fundamental condition of the treaty of union. The house,
notwithstanding this remonstrance, proceeded with the bill, and inserted
a clause prohibiting civil magistrates from executing the sentences
of the kirk-judicatories. The episcopal, as well as the presbyterian
clergy, were required to take the oaths of abjuration, that they might
be upon an equal footing in case of disobedience; for the commons well
knew that this condition would be rejected by both from very different
motives. In order to exasperate the presbyterians with further
provocations, another act was passed for discontinuing the courts of
judicature during the Christmas holidays, which had never been kept by
persons of that persuasion. When this bill was read for the third
time, sir David Dalrymple said, “Since the house is resolved to make no
toleration on the body of this bill, I acquiesce; and only desire it may
be intituled, A bill for establishing jacobitism and immorality.” The
chagrin of the Scottish presbyterians was completed by a third bill,
restoring the right of patronage, which had been taken away when the
discipline of the kirk was last established. Prince Eugene having
presented a memorial to the queen touching the conduct of the emperor
during the war, and containing a proposal with relation to the affairs
of Spain, the queen communicated the scheme to the house of commons, who
treated it with the most contemptuous neglect. The prince, finding all
his efforts ineffectual, retired to the continent, as much displeased
with the ministry, as he had reason to be satisfied with the people of
England. The commons having settled the funds for the supplies of the
year, amounting to six millions, the treasurer formed the plan of a bill
appointing commissioners to examine the value and consideration of all
the grants made since the revolution. His design was to make a general
resumption; but, as the interest of so many noblemen was concerned, the
bill met with a very warm opposition; notwithstanding which it would
have certainly passed, had not the duke of Buckingham and the earl of
Strafford absented themselves from the house during the debate.
CHAPTER XI.
_The Conferences opened at Utrecht..... The Queen’s Measures
obstructed by the Allies..... Death of the Dauphin and his
Son..... The Queen demands Philip’s Renunciation of the
Crown of France..... The Duke of Ormond takes the Command of
the British Forces in Flanders..... He is restricted from
acting against the Enemy..... Debate in the House of Lords
on this Subject..... A loyal Address of the Commons.....
Philip promises to renounce the Crown of France..... The
Queen communicates the Plan of the Peace in a Speech to both
Houses of Parliament..... Exceptions taken to some of the
Articles in the House of Lords..... A motion for a Guaranty
of the Protestant Succession by the Allies rejected in the
House of Commons..... The Duke of Ormond declares to Prince
Eugene, that he can no longer cover the siege of
Quesnoy..... Irruption into France by General
Grovestein..... The Foreign Troops in British pay refuse to
march with the Duke of Ormond, who proclaims a Cessation of
Arms, and seizes Ghent and Bruges..... The Allies defeated
at Denain..... Progress of the Conferences at Utrecht.....
The Duke of Hamilton and Lord Mohun are killed in a
Duel..... The Duke of Marlborough retires to the
Continent..... The States-general sign the Barrier-
treaty..... The other Allies become more tractable..... The
Peace with France signed at Utrecht..... Both Houses of
Parliament congratulate the Queen on the Peace.....
Substance of the Treaty with France..... Objections to the
Treaty of Commerce..... Debates in the House of Lords on the
Malt-tax for Scotland..... The Scottish Lords move for a
Bill to dissolve the Union..... Address of the Commons about
Dunkirk..... Violence of Parties in England..... Proceedings
of the Parliament of Ireland..... New Parliament in
England..... Writers employed by both Parties..... Treaty of
Rastadt between the Emperor and France--Principal Articles
in the Treaty between Great Britain and Spain..... Meeting
of the Parliament..... The House of Lords takes Cognizance
of a Libel against the Scots..... Mr. Steel expelled the
House of Commons..... Precautions by the Whigs for the
Security of the Protestant Succession..... Debates in the
House of Lords concerning the Pretender and the
Catalans..... They Address the Queen to set a Price on the
Head of the Pretender..... A Writ demanded for the Electoral
Prince of Hanover, as Duke of Cambridge..... Death of the
Princess Sophia..... Bill to prevent the growth of
Schism..... Another against all who should list, or be
enlisted, in a Foreign Service..... The Parliament
prorogued..... The Treasurer disgraced..... Precautions
taken for securing the Peace of the Kingdom..... Death and
Character of Queen Anne._
In the month of January the conferences for peace began at Utrecht.
The earl of Jersey would have been appointed the plenipotentiary for
England, but he dying after the correspondence with the court of France
was established, the queen conferred that charge upon Robinson, bishop
of Bristol, lord privy-seal, and the earl of Strafford. The chief of the
Dutch deputies named for the congress, were Buys and Vanderdussen; the
French king granted his powers to the mareschal D’Uxelles, the abbot
(afterwards cardinal) de Polignac, and Menager, who had been in
England. The ministers of the emperor and Savoy likewise assisted at
the conferences, to which the empire and the other allies likewise sent
their plenipotentiaries, though not without reluctance. As all these
powers, except France, entertained sentiments very different from those
of her Britannic majesty, the conferences seemed calculated rather to
retard than accelerate a pacification. The queen of England had foreseen
and provided against these difficulties. Her great end was to free her
subjects from the miseries attending an unprofitable war, and to restore
peace to Europe; and this aim she was resolved to accomplish in spite of
all opposition. She had also determined to procure reasonable terms of
accommodation for her allies, without, however, continuing to lavish
the blood and treasure of her people in supporting their extravagant
demands. The emperor obstinately insisted upon his claim to the
whole Spanish monarchy, refusing to give up the least tittle of his
pretensions; and the Dutch adhered to the old preliminaries which Louis
had formerly rejected. The queen saw that the liberties of Europe would
be exposed to much greater danger from an actual union of the Imperial
and Spanish crowns in one head of the house of Austria, than from a bare
possibility of Spain’s being united with France in one branch of the
house of Bourbon. She knew by experience the difficulty of dethroning
Philip, rooted as he was in the affections of a brave and loyal people;
and that a prosecution of this design would serve no purpose but to
protract the war, and augment the grievances of the British nation.
She was well acquainted with the distresses of the French, which she
considered as pledges of their monarch’s sincerity. She sought not the
total ruin of that people, already reduced to the brink of despair. The
dictates of true policy dissuaded her from contributing to her further
conquest in that kingdom, which would have proved the source of
contention among the allies, depressed the house of Bourbon below the
standard of importance which the balance of Europe required it should
maintain, and aggrandize the states-general at the expense of Great
Britain. As she had borne the chief burden of the war, she had a right
to take the lead, and dictate a plan of pacification; at least, she had
a right to consult the welfare of her own kingdom, in delivering, by a
separate peace, her subjects from those enormous loads which they could
no longer sustain; and she was well enough aware of her own consequence,
to think she could not obtain advantageous conditions.
THE QUEEN’S MEASURES OBSTRUCTED.
Such were the sentiments of the queen; and her ministers seem to have
acted on the same principles, though perhaps party motives may have
helped to influence their conduct. The allies concurred in opposing with
all their might any treaty which could not gratify their different views
of avarice, interest, and ambition. They practised a thousand little
artifices to intimidate the queen, to excite a jealousy of Louis,
to blacken the characters of her ministers, to raise and keep up a
dangerous ferment among the people, by which her life and government
were endangered. She could not fail to resent these efforts, which
greatly perplexed her measures, and obstructed her design. Her ministers
were sensible of the dangerous predicament in which they stood. The
queen’s health was much impaired; and the successor countenanced the
opposite faction. In case of their sovereign’s death, they had nothing
to expect but prosecution and ruin for obeying her commands; they
saw no hope of safety, except in renouncing their principles, and
submitting to their adversaries; or else in taking such measures as
would hasten the pacification, that the troubles of the kingdom might be
appeased, and the people be satisfied with their conduct, before death
should deprive them of their sovereign’s protection. With this view
they advised her to set on foot a private negotiation with Louis, to
stipulate certain advantages for her own subjects in a concerted plan of
peace; to enter into such mutual confidence with that monarch, as would
anticipate all clandestine transactions to her prejudice, and in some
measure enable her to prescribe terms for her allies. The plan was
judiciously formed; but executed with too much precipitation. The
stipulated advantages were not such as she had a right to demand and
insist upon; and without all doubt better might have been obtained, had
not the obstinacy of the allies abroad, and the violent conduct of the
whig faction at home, obliged the ministers to relax in some material
points, and hasten the conclusion of the treaty.
DEATH OF THE DAUPHIN AND HIS SON.
The articles being privately regulated between the two courts of London
and Versailles, the English plenipotentiaries at Utrecht were furnished
with general powers and instructions, being ignorant of the agreement
which the queen had made with the French monarch touching the kingdom
of Spain, which was indeed the basis of the treaty. This secret plan of
negotiation, however, had well nigh been destroyed by some unforeseen
events that were doubly afflicting to Louis. The dauphin died of the
small-pox in the course of the preceding year, and his title had been
conferred upon his son the duke of Burgundy, who now expired on the last
day of February, six days after the death of his wife, Mary Adelaide
of Savoy. The parents were soon followed to the grave by their eldest
offspring the duke of Bretagne, in the sixth year of his age; so that
of the duke of Burgundy’s children, none remained alive but the duke of
Anjou, the late French king, who was at that time a sickly infant. Such
a series of calamities could not fail of being extremely shocking to
Louis in his old age; but they were still more alarming to the queen of
England, who saw that nothing but the precarious life of an unhealthy
child divided the two monarchies of France and Spain, the union of which
she resolved by all possible means to prevent. She therefore sent the
abbé Gualtier to Paris, with a memorial representing the danger to which
the liberty of Europe would be exposed, should Philip ascend the throne
of France; and demanding that his title should be transferred to his
brother the duke of Berry, in consequence of his pure, simple, and
voluntary renunciation.
THE QUEEN DEMANDS PHILIP’S RENUNCIATION OF THE CROWN.
Meanwhile the French plenipotentiaries at Utrecht were prevailed upon to
deliver their proposals in writing, under the name of specific offers,
which the allies received with indignation. They were treated in England
with universal scorn. Lord Halifax, in the house of peers, termed them
trifling, arrogant, and injurious to her majesty and her allies. An
address was presented to the queen, in which they expressed their
resentment against the insolence of France, and promised to assist her
with all their power in prosecuting the war until a safe and honourable
peace should be obtained. The plenipotentiaries of the allies were not
less extravagant in their specific demands, than the French had been
arrogant in their offers. In a word, the ministers seemed to have been
assembled at Utrecht rather to start new difficulties, and widen the
breach, than to heal animosities and concert a plan of pacification.
They amused one another with fruitless conferences, while the queen of
Great Britain endeavoured to engage the states-general in her measures,
that they might treat with France upon moderate terms, and give law to
the rest of the allies. She departed from some of her own pretensions,
in order to gratify them with the possession of some towns in Flanders
She consented to their being admitted into a participation of some
advantages in commerce; and ordered the English ministers at the
congress to tell them, that she would take her measures according to the
return they should make on this occasion. Finding them still obstinately
attached to their first chimerical preliminaries, she gave them to
understand that all her offers for adjusting the differences were
founded upon the express condition, that they should come into her
measures, and co-operate with her openly and sincerely; but they had
made such bad returns to all her condescension towards them, that she
looked upon herself as released from all engagements. The ministers of
the allies had insisted upon a written answer to their specific demands;
and this the French plenipotentiaries declined, until they should
receive fresh instructions from their master. Such was the pretence
for suspending the conferences; but the real bar to a final agreement
between England and France, was the delay of Philip’s renunciation,
which at length however arrived, and produced a cessation of arms.
{ANNE, 1701--1714}
THE DUKE OF ORMOND TAKES THE COMMAND OF THE BRITISH FORCES.
In the meantime the duke of Ormond, who was now invested with the
supreme command of the British forces, received a particular order that
he should not hazard an engagement. Louis had already undertaken for
the compliance of his grandson. Reflecting on his own great age, he was
shocked at the prospect of leaving his kingdom involved in a pernicious
war during a minority; and determined to procure a peace at all
events. The queen, knowing his motives, could not help believing his
protestations, and resolved to avoid a battle, the issue of which might
have considerably altered the situation of affairs, and consequently
retarded the conclusion of the treaty. Preparations had been made for an
early campaign. In the beginning of March the earl of Albemarle, having
assembled a body of thirty-six battalions, marched towards Arras,
which he reduced to a heap of ashes by a most terrible cannonading and
bombardment. In May the duke of Ormond conferred with the deputies of
the states-general at the Hague, and assured them that he had orders to
act vigorously in the prosecution of the war. He joined prince Eugene at
Tournay; and on the twenty-sixth day of May, the allied army passing the
Schelde, encamped at Haspre and Solemnes. The Imperial general proposed
that they should attack the French army under Villars; but by this time
the duke was restrained from hazarding a siege or battle; a circumstance
well known to the French commander, who therefore abated of his usual
vigilance. It could not be long concealed from prince Eugene and the
deputies, who forthwith despatched an express to their principals on
this subject, and afterwards presented a long memorial to the duke,
representing the injury which the grand alliance would sustain from
his obedience of such an order. He seemed to be extremely uneasy at his
situation; and in a letter to secretary St. John, expressed a desire
that the queen would permit him to return to England.
Prince Eugene, notwithstanding the queen’s order, which Ormond had
not yet formally declared, invested the town of Quesnoy, and the duke
furnished towards this enterprise seven battalions and nine squadrons
of the foreign troops maintained by Great Britain. The Dutch deputies
at Utrecht expostulating with the bishop of Bristol upon the duke’s
refusing to act against the enemy, that prelate told them that he had
lately received an express, with a letter from her majesty, in which she
complained, that, as the states-general had not properly answered her
advances, they ought not to be surprised if she thought herself at
liberty to enter into separate measures in order to obtain a peace for
her own conveniency. When they remonstrated against such conduct as
contradictory to all the alliances subsisting between the queen and the
states-general, the bishop declared his instructions further imported,
that considering the conduct of the states towards her majesty, she
thought herself disengaged from all alliances and engagements with
their high mightinesses. The states and the ministers of the allies were
instantly in commotion. Private measures were concerted with the elector
of Hanover, the landgrave of Hesse-Cassel, and some other princes of the
empire, concerning the troops belonging to those powers in the pay of
Great Britain. The states-general wrote a long letter to the queen, and
ordered their envoy at London to deliver it into her own hand. Count
Zinzendorf, the emperor’s plenipotentiary, despatched expresses to his
master, to prince Eugene, and to the Imperial ambassador at London. The
queen held a council at Kensington upon the subject of the letter; and a
fresh order was sent to the duke of Ormond, directing him to concur with
the general of the allies in a siege.
On the twenty-eighth day of May, lord Halifax, in the house of peers,
descanted upon the ill consequences of the duke’s refusing to co-operate
with prince Eugene, and moved for an address, desiring her majesty would
order the general to act offensively in concert with her allies. The
treasurer observed, it was prudent to avoid a battle on the eve of a
peace, especially considering they had to do with an enemy so apt to
break his word. The earl of Wharton replied, this was a strong reason
for keeping no measures with such an enemy. When Oxford declared that
the duke of Ormond had received orders to join the allies in a siege,
the duke of Marlborough affirmed it was impossible to carry on a siege
without either hazarding a battle, in case the enemy should attempt to
relieve the place, or shamefully abandoning the enterprise. The duke of
Argyle having declared his opinion, that since the time of Julius
Caesar there had not been a greater captain than prince Eugene of Savoy,
observed, that, considering the different interests of the house of
Austria and of Great Britain, it might not consist with prudence to
trust him with the management of the war, because a battle won or
lost might entirely break off a negociation of peace, which in all
probability was near being concluded. He added, that two years before,
the confederates might have taken Arras and Cambray, instead of amusing
themselves with the insignificant conquests of Aire, Bethune, and St.
Venant. The duke of Devonshire said he was, by proximity of blood, more
concerned than any other in the reputation of the duke of Ormond; and
therefore could not help expressing his surprise, that any one would
dare to make a nobleman of the first rank, and so distinguished a
character, the instrument of such proceedings. Earl Paulet answered,
that nobody could doubt the duke of Ormond’s courage; but he was not
like a certain general, who led troops to the slaughter to cause a great
number of officers to be knocked on the head, that he might fill his
pockets by disposing of their commissions. The duke of Marlborough was
so deeply affected by this reflection, that though he suppressed his
resentment in the house, he took the first opportunity to send lord
Mohun to the earl with a message, importing, that he should be glad to
come to an explanation with his lordship about some expressions he had
used in that day’s debate; and desiring his company to take the air in
the country. The earl understood his meaning; but could not conceal his
emotion from the observation of his lady, by whose means the affair was
communicated to the earl of Dartmouth, secretary of state. Two sentinels
were immediately placed at his lordship’s gate: the queen, by the canal
of lord Dartmouth, desired the duke of Marlborough would proceed no
farther in the quarrel; and he assured her he would punctually obey
her majesty’s commands. The earl of Oxford assured the house, that a
separate peace was never intended; that such a peace would be so base,
so knavish, and so villanous, that every one who served the queen knew
they must answer it with their heads to the nation; but that it would
appear to be a safe and glorious peace, much more to the honour and
interest of the nation, than the first preliminaries insisted upon by
the allies. The question being put for adjourning, was, after a long
debate, carried in the affirmative; but twenty lords entered a protest.
The earl of Strafford, who had returned from Holland, proposed that
they should examine the negotiations of the Hague and Gertruyden-burgh,
before they considered that of Utrecht. He observed, that in the
former negotiations the French ministers had conferred only with the
pensionary, who communicated no more of it to the ministers of the
allies than what was judged proper to let them know; so that the Dutch
were absolute masters of the secret. He asserted that the states-general
had consented to give Naples and Sicily to king Philip; a circumstance
which proved that the recovery of the whole Spanish monarchy was looked
upon as impracticable. He concluded with a motion for an address to her
majesty, desiring that the papers relating to the negotiations of the
Hague and Gertruydenburgh should be laid before the house. This was
carried without a division.
In the house of commons Mr. Pulteney moved for an address, acquainting
her majesty that her faithful commons were justly alarmed at the
intelligence received from abroad, that her general in Flanders had
declined acting offensively against France in concurrence with her
allies; and beseeching her majesty that he might receive speedy
instructions to prosecute the war with the utmost vigour. This motion
was rejected by a great majority. A certain member having insinuated
that the present negotiation had been carried on in a clandestine and
treacherous manner, Mr. secretary St. John said, he hoped it would
not be accounted treachery to act for the good and advantage of Great
Britain; that he gloried in the small share he had in the transaction;
and whatever censure he might undergo for it, the bare satisfaction of
acting in that view would be a sufficient recompence and comfort to
him during the whole course of his life. The house resolved, that
the commons had an entire confidence in her majesty’s promise, to
communicate to her parliament the terms of the peace before it should
be concluded; and that they would support her against all such
persons, either at home or abroad, as should endeavour to obstruct the
pacification. The queen thanked them heartily for this resolution, as
being dutiful to her, honest to their country, and very seasonable at
a time when so many artifices were used to obstruct a good peace, or
to force one disadantageous to Britain. They likewise presented an
address, desiring they might have an account of the negotiations and
transactions at the Hague and Gertruydenburgh, and know who were then
employed as her majesty’s plenipotentiaries.
PHILIP PROMISES TO RENOUNCE THE CROWN OF FRANCE.
The ministry, foreseeing that Philip would not willingly resign his
hopes of succeeding to the crown of France, proposed an alternative,
that, in case of his preferring his expectation of the crown of France
to the present possession of Spain, this kingdom, with the Indies,
should be forthwith ceded to the duke of Savoy; that Philip, in the
meantime, should possess the duke’s hereditary dominions, and the
kingdom of Sicily, together with Montserrat and Mantua; all which
territories should be annexed to France at Philip’s succession to that
crown, except Sicily, which should revert to the house of Austria. Louis
seemed to relish this expedient, which, however, was rejected by Philip,
who chose to make the renunciation rather than quit the throne upon
which he was established. The queen demanded that the renunciation
should be ratified in the most solemn manner by the states of France;
but she afterwards waived this demand, in consideration of its being
registered in the different parliaments. Such forms are but slender
securities against the power, ambition, and interest of princes. The
marquis de Torcy frankly owned, that Philip’s renunciation was of itself
void, as being contrary to the fundamental laws and constitution of the
French monarchy; but it was found necessary for the satisfaction of the
English people. Every material article being now adjusted between
the two courts, particularly those relating to the king of Spain, the
commerce of Great Britain, and the delivery of Dunkirk, a suspension
of arms prevailed in the Netherlands, and the duke of Ormond acted in
concert with mareschal de Villars.
THE QUEEN COMMUNICATES THE PLAN OF THE PEACE TO PARLIAMENT.
On the sixth day of June, the queen going to the house of peers
communicated the plan of peace to her parliament, according to the
promise she had made. After having premised that the making peace
and war was the undoubted prerogative of the crown, and hinted at the
difficulties which had arisen both from the nature of the affair, and
numberless obstructions contrived by the enemies of peace, she proceeded
to enumerate the chief articles to which both crowns had agreed,
without, however, concluding the treaty. She told them she had secured
the protestant succession, which France had acknowledged in the
strongest terms; and that the pretender would be removed from the French
dominions; that the duke of Anjou should renounce for himself and his
descendants all claim to the crown of France; so that the two monarchies
would be for ever divided. She observed, that the nature of this
proposal was such as would execute itself; that it would be the
interest of Spain to support the renunciation; and in France, the
persons entitled to the succession of that crown upon the death of the
dauphin, were powerful enough to vindicate their own right. She gave
them to understand that a treaty of commerce between England and France
had been begun, though not yet adjusted; but provision was made, that
England should enjoy the same privileges that France granted to the most
favoured nation; that the French king had agreed to make an absolute
cession of the island of St. Christopher’s, which had hitherto been
divided between the two nations, that he had also consented to
restore the whole bay and straits of Hudson; to deliver the island
of Newfoundland, with Placentia; to cede Annapolis, with the rest of
Arcadia or Nova Scotia; to demolish the fortifications of Dunkirk; to
leave England in possession of Gibraltar, Port-Mahon, and the whole
island of Minorca; to let the trade of Spain in the West Indies be
settled as it was in the reign of his late catholic majesty; she
signified that she had obtained for her subjects the assiento, or
contract, for furnishing the Spanish West Indies with negroes for the
term of thirty years, in the same manner as it had been enjoyed by the
French. With respect to the allies, they declared, that France offered
to make the Rhine the barrier of the empire; to yield Brisac, Fort Kehl,
and Landau, and raze all the fortresses both on the other side of the
Rhine, and in the islands of that river; that the protestant interest in
Germany would be re-settled on the footing of the treaty of Westphalia;
that the Spanish Netherlands, the kingdoms of Naples and Sardinia,
the duchy of Milan, and the places belonging to Spain on the coast of
Tuscany, might be yielded to his Imperial majesty; but the disposition
of Sicily was not yet determined; that the demands of the states-general
with relation to commerce, and the barrier in the Low Countries, would
be granted with a few exceptions, which might be compensated by
other expedients; that no great progress had yet been made upon the
pretensions of Portugal; but that those of Prussia would be admitted by
France without much difficulty; that the difference between the barrier
demanded by the duke of Savoy in the year one thousand seven hundred
and nine, and that which France now offered, was very inconsiderable;
that the elector palatine should maintain his present rank among the
electors; and that France would acknowledge the electoral dignity in the
house of Hanover. Such, were the conditions which the queen hoped would
make some amends to her subjects, for the great and unequal burden they
had borne during the whole course of the war. She concluded with saying,
she made no doubt but they were fully persuaded that nothing would be
neglected on her part, in the progress of this negotiation, to bring the
peace to a happy and speedy issue; and she expressed her dependence upon
the entire confidence and cheerful concurrence of her parliament. An
address of thanks and approbation was immediately voted, drawn up, and
presented to the queen by the commons in a body. When the house of lords
took the speech into consideration, the duke of Marlborough asserted,
that the measures pursued for a year past were directly contrary to her
majesty’s engagements with the allies; that they sullied the triumphs
and glories of her reign, and would render the English name odious to
all nations. The earl of Strafford said, that some of the allies would
not have shown such backwardness to a peace, had they not been persuaded
and encouraged to carry on the war by a member of that illustrious
assembly, who maintained a secret correspondence with them, and fed them
with hopes that they would be supported by a strong party in England.
In answer to this insinuation against Marlborough, lord Cowper observed,
that it could never be suggested as a crime in the meanest subject, much
less in any member of that august assembly, to hold correspondence with
the allies of the nation; such allies especially whose interest her
majesty had declared to be inseparable from her own, in her speech at
the opening of the session; whereas it would be a hard matter to justify
and reconcile either with our laws, or with laws of honour and justice,
the conduct of some persons in treating clandestinely with the common
enemy without the participation of the allies. This was a frivolous
argument. A correspondence with any persons whatsoever becomes criminal,
when it tends to foment the divisions of one’s country, and arm the
people against their sovereign. If England had it not in her power,
without infringing the laws of justice and honour, to withdraw herself
from a confederacy which she could no longer support, and treat for
peace on her own bottom, then was she not an associate but a slave to
the alliance. The earl of Godolphin affirmed, that the trade to Spain
was such a trifle as deserved no consideration; and that it would
continually diminish until it should be entirely engrossed by the French
merchants. Notwithstanding these remonstrances against the plan of
peace, the majority agreed to an address, in which they thanked the
queen for her extraordinary condescension in communicating those
conditions to her parliament; and expressed an entire satisfaction with
her conduct. A motion was made for a clause in the address, desiring her
majesty would take such measures in concert with her allies, as might
induce them to join with her in a mutual guarantee. A debate ensued: the
question was put, and the clause rejected. Several noblemen entered
a protest, which was expunged from the journals of the house by the
decision of the majority.
In the house of commons, a complaint was exhibited against bishop
Fleetwood, who, in a preface to four sermons which he had published,
took occasion to extol the last ministry at the expense of the present
administration. This piece was voted malicious and factious, tending
to create discord and sedition amongst her majesty’s subjects, and
condemned to be burned by the hands of the common hangman. They
presented an address to the queen, assuring her of the just sense they
had of the indignity offered to her, by printing and publishing a letter
from the states-general to her majesty; and desiring she would so far
resent such insults, as to give no answer for the future to any letters
or memorials that should be thus ushered into the world as inflammatory
appeals to the public. Mr. Hampden moved for an address to her majesty,
that she would give particular instructions to her plenipotentiaries,
that in the conclusion of the treaty of peace, the several powers
in alliance with her majesty might be guarantees for the protestant
succession in the illustrious house of Hanover. The question being put,
was carried in the negative. Then the house resolved, that they had
such confidence in the repeated declarations her majesty had made of her
concern for assuring to these kingdoms the protestant succession, as by
law established, that they could never doubt of her taking the proper
measures for the security thereof; that the house would support her
against faction at home and her enemies abroad; and did humbly beseech
her, that she would be pleased to discountenance all those who should
endeavour to raise jealousies between her majesty and her subjects,
especially by misrepresenting her good intentions for the welfare of her
people. The queen was extremely pleased with this resolution. When
it was presented, she told them that they had shown themselves honest
asserters of the monarchy, zealous defenders of the constitution, and
real friends to the protestant succession. She thought she had very
little reason to countenance a compliment of supererogation to a
prince who had caballed with the enemies of her administration. On the
twenty-first day of June the queen closed the session with a speech,
expressing her satisfaction at the addresses and supplies she had
received; she observed, that should the treaty be broke off, their
burdens would be at least continued, if not increased; that Britain
would lose the present opportunity of improving her own commerce, and
establishing a real balance of power in Europe; and that though some of
the allies might be gainers by a continuance of the war, the rest
would suffer in the common calamity. Notwithstanding the ferment of
the people, which was now risen to a very dangerous pitch, addresses
approving the queen’s conduct, were presented by the city of London and
all the corporations in the kingdom that espoused the tory interest. At
this juncture the nation was so wholly possessed by the spirit of party,
that no appearance of neutrality or moderation remained.
During these transactions the trenches were opened before Quesnoy, and
the siege carried on with uncommon vigour under cover of the forces
commanded by the duke of Ormond. This nobleman, however, having received
a copy of the articles signed by the marquis de Torcy, and fresh
instructions from the queen, signified to the prince Eugene and the
Dutch deputies, that the French king had agreed to several articles
demanded by the queen, as the foundation of an armistice; and among
others to put the English troops in immediate possession of Dunkirk;
that he could therefore no longer cover the siege of Quesnoy, as he was
obliged by his instructions to march with the British troops, and those
in the queen’s pay, and declare a suspension of arms as soon as he
should be possessed of Dunkirk. He expressed his hope that they would
readily acquiesce in these instructions, seeing their concurrence would
act as the most powerful motive to induce the queen to take all
possible care of their interests at the congress; and he endeavoured to
demonstrate that Dunkirk, as a cautionary town, was a place of greater
consequence to the allies than Quesnoy. The deputies desired he would
delay his march for five days, that they might have time to consult
their principals, and he granted three days without hesitation. Prince
Eugene observed, that his marching off with the British troops, and the
foreigners in the queen’s pay, would leave the allies at the mercy of
the enemy; but he hoped these last would not obey the duke’s order. He
and the deputies had already tampered with their commanding officers,
who absolutely refused to obey the duke of Ormond, alleging, that they
could not separate from the confederacy without express directions from
their masters, to whom they had despatched couriers. An extraordinary
assembly of states was immediately summoned to meet at the Hague. The
ministers of the allies were invited to the conferences. At length the
princes, whose troops were in the pay of Britain, assured them that they
would maintain them under the command of Prince Eugene for one month at
their own expense, and afterwards sustain half the charge, provided the
other half should be defrayed by the emperor and states-general.
IRRUPTION INTO FRANCE BY GENERAL GROVESTEIN.
The bishop of Bristol imparted to the other plenipotentiaries at Utrecht
the concessions which France would make to the allies; and proposed a
suspension of arms for two months, that they might treat in a friendly
manner, and adjust the demands of all the confederates. To this proposal
they made no other answer but that they had no instructions on the
subject. Count Zinzendorf, the first Imperial plenipotentiary,
presented a memorial to the states-general, explaining the danger that
would result to the common cause from a cessation of arms; and exhorting
them to persevere in their generous and vigorous resolutions. He
proposed a renewal of the alliance for recovering the Spanish monarchy
to the house of Austria, and a certain plan for prosecuting the war with
redoubled ardour. Prince Eugene, in order to dazzle the confederates
with some bold enterprise, detached major-general Grovestein with
fifteen hundred cavalry to penetrate into the heart of France. This
officer, about the middle of June, advanced into Champaigne, passed the
Noire, the Maese, the Moselle, and the Saar, and retired to Traerbach
with a rich booty and a great number of hostages, after having extorted
contributions as far as the gates of Metz, ravaged the country, and
reduced a great number of villages and towns to ashes. The consternation
produced by this irruption reached the city of Paris; the king of France
did not think himself safe at Versailles with his ordinary guards; all
the troops in the neighbourhood of the capital were assembled about
the palace. Villars sent a detachment after Grovestein, as soon as he
understood his destination; but the other had gained a day’s march of
the French troops, which had the mortification to follow him so
close, that they found the flames still burning in the villages he
had destroyed. By way of retaliation, major-general Pasteur, a French
partisan, made an excursion beyond Bergen-op-zoom, and ravaged the
island of Tortola belonging to Zealand.
FOREIGN TROOPS IN BRITISH PAY REFUSE TO MARCH WITH ORMOND.
The earl of Strafford having returned to Holland, proposed a cessation
of arms to the states-general, by whom it was rejected. Then he
proceeded to the army of the duke of Ormond, where he arrived in a few
days after the reduction of Quesnoy, the garrison of which were made
prisoners of war on the fourth day of July. The officers of the foreign
troops had a second time refused to obey a written order of the duke;
and such a spirit of animosity began to prevail between the English and
allies, that it was absolutely necessary to effect a speedy separation.
Prince Eugene resolved to undertake the siege of Landresy: a design is
said to have been formed by the German generals, to confine the duke on
pretence of the arrears that were due to them, and to disarm the
British troops lest they should join the French army. In the meantime,
a literary correspondence was maintained between the English general and
the mareschal de Villars. France having consented to deliver up Dunkirk,
a body of troops was transported from England under the command of
brigadier Hill, who took possession of the place on the seventh day of
July; the French garrison retired to Winoxberg. On the sixteenth of
the same month prince Eugene marched from his camp at Haspre, and
was followed by all the auxiliaries in the British pay, except a few
battalions of the troops of Holstein-Gottorp, and Walef’s regiment of
dragoons, belonging to the state of Liege.
Landresy was immediately invested; while the duke of Ormond, with
the English forces, removed from Chateau-Cambresis, and encamped at
wensne-le-Secq, proclaimed by sound of trumpet a cessation of arms
for two months. On the same day the like armistice was declared in
the French army. The Dutch were so exasperated at the secession of the
English troops, that the governors would not allow the earl of Strafford
to enter Bouchain, nor the British army to pass through Douay, though in
that town they had left a great quantity of stores, together with their
general hospital. Prince Eugene and the Dutch deputies, understanding
that the duke of Ormond had begun his march towards Ghent, began to be
in pain for that city, and sent count Nassau Woodenburgh to him with a
written apology, condemning and disavowing the conduct and commandants
of Bouchain and Douay; but, notwithstanding these excuses, the English
troops afterwards met with the same treatment at Tournay, Oudenarde,
and Lisle: insults which were resented by the whole British nation.
The duke, however, pursued his march, and took possession of Ghent and
Bruges for the queen of England; then he reinforced the garrison of
Dunkirk, which he likewise supplied with artillery and ammunition. His
conduct was no less agreeable to his sovereign, than mortifying to the
Dutch, who never dreamed of leaving Ghent and Bruges in the hands of the
English, and were now fairly outwitted and anticipated by the motions
and expedition of the British general.
THE ALLIES DEFEATED AT DENAIN.
The loss of the British forces was soon severely felt in the allied
army. Villars attacked a separate body of their troops, encamped at
Denain, under the command of the earl of Albemarle. Their intrenchments
were forced, and seventeen battalions either killed or taken. The earl
himself and all the surviving officers were made prisoners. Five hundred
waggons loaded with bread, twelve pieces of brass cannon, a large
quantity of ammunition and provisions, a great number of horses, and
considerable booty fell into the hands of the enemy. This advantage they
gained in sight of prince Eugene, who advanced on the other side of the
Schelde to sustain Albemarle; but the bridge over that river was broke
down by accident, so that he was prevented from lending the least
assistance. Villars immediately invested Marchiennes, where the
principal stores of the allies were lodged. The place was surrendered on
the last day of July; and the garrison, consisting of five thousand men,
were conducted prisoners to Valenciennes. He afterwards undertook the
siege of Douay; an enterprise, in consequence of which prince Eugene
abandoned his design on Landresy, and marched towards the French in
order to hazard an engagement. The states, however, would not run the
risk; and the prince had the mortification to see Douay reduced by the
enemy. He could not even prevent their retaking Quesnoy and Bouchain,
of which places they were in possession before the tenth day of October.
The allies enjoyed no other compensation for their great losses, but the
conquest of Fort Knocque, which was surprised by one of their partisans.
PROGRESS OF THE CONFERENCES AT UTRECHT.
The British ministers at the congress continued to press the Dutch
and other allies to join in the armistice; but they were deaf to the
proposal, and concerted measures for a vigorous prosecution of the war.
Then the earl of Strafford insisted upon their admitting to the congress
the plenipotentiaries of king Philip; but he found them equally averse
to this expedient. In the beginning of August, secretary St. John, now
created lord viscount Bolingbroke, was sent to the court of Versailles
incognito, to remove all obstructions to the treaty between England and
France. He was accompanied by Mr. Prior and the Abbé Gualtier, treated
with the most distinguished marks of respect, caressed by the French
king and the marquis de Torcy, with whom he adjusted the principal
interests of the duke of Savoy and the elector of Bavaria. He settled
the time and manner of the renunciation, and agreed to a suspension of
arms by sea and land for four months between the crowns of France
and England; this was accordingly proclaimed at Paris and London.
The negotiation being finished in a few days, Bolingbroke returned to
England, and Prior remained as resident at the court of France. The
states-general breathed nothing but war; the pensionary Heinsius
pronounced an oration in their assembly, representing the impossibility
of concluding a peace without losing the fruits of all the blood and
treasure they had expended. The conferences at Utrecht were interrupted
by a quarrel between the domestics of Ménager and those of the count de
Rechteren, one of the Dutch plenipotentiaries. The populace insulted the
earl of Strafford and the marquis del Borgo, minister of Savoy, whose
master was reported to have agreed to the armistice. These obstructions
being removed, the conferences were renewed, and the British
plenipotentiaries exerted all their rhetoric, both in public and
private, to engage the allies! in the queen’s measures. At length the
duke of Savoy was prevailed upon to acquiesce in the offers of France.
Mr. Thomas Harley had been sent ambassador to Hanover, with a view to
persuade the elector that it would be for his interest to co-operate
with her majesty; but that prince’s resolution was already taken.
“Whenever it shall please God,” said he, “to call me to the throne of
Britain, I hope to act as becomes me for the advantage of my people;
in the meantime, speak to me as to a German prince, and a prince of the
empire.” Nor was she more successful in her endeavours to bring over the
king of Prussia to her sentiments. In the meantime, lord Lexington was
appointed ambassador to Madrid, where king Philip solemnly swore to
observe the renunciation, which was approved and confirmed by the
Cortez. The like renunciation to the crown of Spain was afterwards
made by the princes of France; and Philip was declared incapable of
succeeding to the crown of that realm. The court of Portugal held out
against the remonstrances of England, until the Marquis de Bay invaded
that kingdom at the head of twenty thousand men, and undertook the siege
of Campo-Major, and they found they had no longer any hope of being
assisted by her Britannic majesty. The Portuguese minister at Utrecht
signed the suspension of arms on the seventh day of November, and
excused this step to the allies as the pure effect of necessity. The
English troops in Spain were ordered to separate from the army of count
Starem-berg, and march to the neighbourhood of Barcelona, where they
were embarked on board an English squadron commanded by sir John
Jennings, and transported to Minorca.
{ANNE, 1701--1714}
THE DUKE OF HAMILTON AND LORD MOHUN ARE KILLED IN A DUEL.
The campaign being at an end in the Netherlands, the duke of Ormond
returned to England, where the party disputes were become more violent
than ever. The whigs affected to celebrate the anniversary of the late
king’s birth-day, in London, with extraordinary rejoicings. Mobs were
hired by both factions; and the whole city was filled with riot and
uproar. A ridiculous scheme was contrived to frighten the lord-treasurer
with some squibs in a band-box, which the ministers magnified into
a conspiracy. The duke of Hamilton having been appointed
ambassador-extraordinary to the court of France, the whigs were alarmed
on the supposition that this nobleman favoured the pretender. Some
dispute arising between the duke and lord Mohun, on the subject of a
lawsuit, furnished a pretence for a quarrel. Mohun, who had been twice
tried for murder, and was counted a mean tool, as well as the hector
of the whig party, sent a message by general Macartney to the duke,
challenging him to single combat. The principals met by appointment in
Hyde Park, attended by Macartney and colonel Hamilton. They fought with
such fury, that Mohun was killed upon the spot, and the duke expired
before he could be conveyed to his own house. Macartney disappeared,
and escaped in disguise to the continent. Colonel Hamilton declared upon
oath before the privy-council, that when the principals engaged, he
and Macartney followed their example; that Macartney was immediately
disarmed; but the colonel seeing the duke fall upon his antagonist,
threw away the swords, and ran to lift him up; that while he was
employed in raising the duke, Macartney, having taken up one of
the swords, stabbed his grace over Hamilton’s shoulder and retired
immediately. A proclamation was issued, promising a reward of five
hundred pounds to those who should apprehend or discover Macartney,
and the duchess of Hamilton offered three hundred pounds for the same
purpose. The tories exclaimed against this event as a party-duel; they
treated Macartney as a cowardly assassin; and affirmed that the whigs
had posted others of the same stamp all round Hyde Park, to murder the
duke of Hamilton, in case he had triumphed over his antagonist, and
escaped the treachery of Macartney. The whigs, on the other hand,
affirmed that it was altogether a private quarrel; that Macartney was
entirely innocent of the perfidy laid to his charge; that he afterwards
submitted to a fair trial, at which colonel Hamilton prevaricated in
giving his evidence, and was contradicted by the testimony of divers
persons who saw the combat at a distance. The duke of Marlborough,
hearing himself accused as the author of those party mischiefs, and
seeing his enemies grow every day more and more implacable, thought
proper to retire to the continent, where he was followed by his duchess.
His friend Godolphin had died in September, with the general character
of an able, cool, dispassionate minister, who had rendered himself
necessary to four successive sovereigns, and managed the finances
with equal skill and integrity. The duke of Shrewsbury was nominated
ambassador to France in the room of the duke of Hamilton; the duke
d’Aumont arrived at London in the same quality from the court of
Versailles; and about the same time the queen granted an audience to
the marquis de Monte-leone, whom Philip had appointed one of his
plenipotentiaries at the congress.
THE STATES-GENERAL SIGN THE BARRIER-TREATY.
In vain had the British ministers in Holland endeavoured to overcome
the obstinacy of the states-general, by alternate threats, promises,
and arguments. In vain did they represent that the confederacy against
France could be no longer supported with any prospect of success; that
the queen’s aim had been to procure reasonable terms for her allies; but
that their opposition to her measures prevented her from obtaining such
conditions as she would have a right to demand in their favour,
were they unanimous in their consultations. In November, the earl of
Strafford presented a new plan of peace, in which the queen promised to
insist upon France’s ceding to the states the city of Tournay, and some
other places which they could not expect to possess should she conclude
a separate treaty. They now began to waiver in their councils. The first
transports of their resentment having subsided, they plainly perceived
that the continuation of the war would entail upon them a burden which
they could not bear, especially since the duke of Savoy and the king of
Portugal had deserted the alliance; besides, they were staggered by the
affair of the new barrier, so much more advantageous than that which
France had proposed in the beginning of the conferences. They were
influenced by another motive, namely, the apprehension of new mischiefs
to the empire from the king of Sweden, whose affairs seemed to take a
favourable turn at the Ottoman Porte, through the intercession of
the French monarch. The czar and king Augustus had penetrated into
Pomerania; the king of Denmark had taken Staden, reduced Bremen, and
laid Hamburgh under contribution; but count Steenbock, the Swedish
general, defeated the Danish army in Mecklenburg, ravaged Holstein with
great barbarity, and reduced the town of Altena to ashes. The grand
seignor threatened to declare war against the czar, on pretence that
he had not performed some essential articles of the late peace; but
his real motive was an inclination to support the king of Sweden. This
disposition, however, was defeated by a powerful party at the Porte, who
were averse to war. Charles, who still remained at Bender, was desired
to return to his own kingdom, and given to understand that the sultan
would procure him a safe passage. He treated the person who brought this
intimation with the most outrageous insolence, rejected the proposal,
fortified his house, and resolved to defend himself to the last
extremity. Being attacked by a considerable body of Turkish forces, he
and his attendants fought with the most frantic valour. They slew some
hundreds of the assailants; but at last the Turks set fire to the house,
so that he was obliged to surrender himself and his followers, who were
generally sold for slaves. He himself was conveyed under a strong guard
to Adrianople. Meanwhile the czar landed with an army in Finland, which
he totally reduced. Steenbock maintained himself in Tonningen until all
his supplies were cut off; and then he was obliged to deliver himself
and his troops prisoners of war. But this reverse was not foreseen when
the Dutch dreaded a rupture between the Porte and the Muscovites, and
were given to understand that the Turks would revive the troubles in
Hungary. In that case, they knew the emperor would recall great part of
his troops from the Netherlands, where the burden of the war must lie
upon their shoulders. After various consultations in their different
assemblies, they came into the queen’s measures, and signed the
barrier-treaty.
Then the plenipotentiaries of the four associated circles presented a
remonstrance to the British ministers at Utrecht, imploring the queen’s
interposition in their favour, that they might not be left in the
miserable condition to which they had been reduced by former treaties.
They were given to understand, that if they should not obtain what they
desired, they themselves would be justly blamed as the authors of their
own disappointment; that they had been deficient in furnishing their
proportion of troops and other necessaries, and left the whole burden of
the war to fall upon the queen and the states in the Netherlands; that
when a cessation was judged necessary, they had deserted her majesty
to follow the chimerical projects of prince Eugene; that while she
prosecuted the war with the utmost vigour, they had acted with coldness
and indifference; but when she inclined to peace they began to exert
themselves in prosecuting hostilities with uncommon eagerness; that,
nevertheless, she would not abandon their interests, but endeavour to
procure for them as good conditions as their preposterous conduct would
allow her to demand. Even the emperor’s plenipotentiaries began to talk
in more moderate terms. Zinzendorf declared that his master was very
well disposed to promote a general peace, and no longer insisted on
a cession of the Spanish monarchy to the house of Austria. Philip’s
ministers, together with those of Bavaria and Cologn, were admitted
to the congress; and now the plenipotentiaries of Britain acted as
mediators for the rest of the allies.
{1713}
PEACE WITH FRANCE.
The pacification between France and England was retarded, however, by
some unforeseen difficulties that arose in adjusting the commerce and
the limits of the countries possessed by both nations in North America.
A long dispute ensued; and the duke of Shrewsbury and Prior held many
conferences with the French ministry; at length it was compromised,
though not much to the advantage of Great Britain; and the English
plenipotentiaries received an order to sign a separate treaty. They
declared to the ministers of the other powers, that they and some other
plenipotentiaries were ready to sign their respective treaties on the
eleventh day of April. Count Zinzendorf endeavoured to postpone this
transaction until he should be furnished with fresh instructions from
Vienna; and even threatened that if the states should sign the peace
contrary to his desire, the emperor would immediately withdraw his
troops from the Netherlands. The ministers of Great Britain agreed with
those of France, that his Imperial majesty should have time to consider
whither he would or would not accept the proposals; but this time was
extended no farther than the first day of June; nor would they agree
to a cessation of arms during that interval. Meanwhile the peace with
France was signed in different treaties by the plenipotentiaries of
Great Britain, Savoy, Prussia, Portugal, and the states-general. On the
fourteenth day of the month, the British plenipotentiaries delivered to
count Zinzendorf, in writing, “Offers and demands of the French king for
making peace with the house of Austria and the empire.” The count and
the ministers of the German princes exclaimed against the insolence of
France, which had not even bestowed the title of emperor on Joseph; but
wanted to impose terms upon them with relation to the electors of Cologn
and Bavaria.
The treaties of peace and commerce between England and France being
ratified by the queen of England, the parliament was assembled on the
ninth day of April. The queen told them the treaty was signed, and that
in a few days the ratifications would be exchanged. She said, what
she had done for the protestant succession, and the perfect friendship
subsisting between her and the house of Hanover, would convince those
who wished well to both, and desired the quiet and safety of their
country, how vain all attempts were to divide them. She left it entirely
to the house of commons to determine what force might be necessary
for the security of trade by sea, and for guards and garrisons. “Make
yourselves safe,” said she, “and I shall be satisfied. Next to the
protection of the Divine Providence, I depend upon the loyalty and
affection of my people. I want no other guarantee.” She recommended
to their protection those brave men who had exposed their lives in the
service of their country, and could not be employed in time of peace.
She desired they would concert proper measures for easing the foreign
trade of the kingdom, for improving and encouraging manufactures and the
fishery, and for employing the hands of idle people. She expressed her
displeasure at the scandalous and seditious libels which had been lately
published.
She exhorted them to consider of new laws to prevent this
licentiousness, as well as for putting a stop to the impious practice of
duelling. She conjured them to use their utmost endeavours to calm the
minds of men at home, that the arts of peace might be cultivated; and
that groundless jealousies, contrived by a faction, and fomented by
party rage, might not effect that which their foreign enemies could not
accomplish. This was the language of a pious, candid, and benevolent
sovereign, who loved her subjects with a truly parental affection. The
parliament considered her in that light. Each house presented her with
a warm address of thanks and congratulation, expressing, in particular,
their inviolable attachment to the protestant succession in the
illustrious house of Hanover. The ratifications of the treaty being
exchanged, the peace was proclaimed on the fifth of May, with the usual
ceremonies, to the inexpressible joy of the nation in general. It was
about this period that the chevalier de St. George conveyed a printed
remonstrance to the ministers at Utrecht, solemnly protesting against
all that might be stipulated to his prejudice. The commons, in a second
address, had besought her majesty to communicate to the house in due
time the treaties of peace and commerce with France; and now they were
produced by Mr. Benson, chancellor of the exchequer.
THE TREATY WITH FRANCE.
By the treaty of peace the French king obliged himself to abandon
the pretender, and acknowledge the queen’s title and the protestant
succession; to raze the fortifications of Dunkirk within a limited time,
on condition of receiving an equivalent; to cede Newfoundland, Hudson’s
Bay, and St. Christopher’s to England; but the French were left
in possession of Cape Breton, and at liberty to dry their fish in
Newfoundland. By the treaty of commerce a free trade was established,
according to the tariff of the year one thousand six hundred and
sixty-four, except in some commodities that were subjected to new
regulations in the year sixteen hundred and ninety-nine. It was agreed
that no other duties should be imposed on the productions of France
imported into England than those that were laid on the same commodities
from other countries; and that commissaries should meet at London to
adjust all matters relating to commerce; as for the tariff with Spain,
it was not yet finished. It was stipulated, that the emperor should
possess the kingdom of Naples, the duchy of Milan, and the Spanish
Netherlands; that the duke of Savoy should enjoy Sicily, with the title
of king; that the same title, with the island of Sardinia, should
be allotted to the elector of Bavaria, as an indemnification for
his losses; that the states-general should restore Lisle and its
dependencies; that Namur, Charleroy, Luxembourg, Ypres, and Newport,
should be added to the other places they already possessed in Flanders;
and that the king of Prussia should have Upper Gueldre, in lieu of
Orange and the other states belonging to that family in Franche Compté.
The king of Portugal was satisfied; and the first day of June was fixed
as the period of time granted to the emperor for consideration.
A day being appointed by the commons to deliberate upon the treaty of
commerce, very just and weighty objections were made to the eighth and
ninth articles, importing, that Great Britain and France should mutually
enjoy all the privileges in trading with each other that either granted
to the most favoured nation; and that no higher customs should be
exacted from the commodities of France, than those that were drawn from
the same productions of any other people. The balance of trade having
long inclined to the side of France, severe duties had been laid on all
the productions and manufactures of that kingdom, so as almost to
amount to a total prohibition. Some members observed, that by the treaty
between England and Portugal, the duties charged upon the wines of that
country were lower than those laid upon the wines of France; that should
they now be reduced to an equality, the difference of freight was so
great, that the French wines would be found much cheaper than those of
Portugal; and, as they were more agreeable to the taste of the nation in
general, there would be no market for the Portuguese wines in England;
that should this be the case, the English would lose their trade with
Portugal, the most advantageous of any traffic which they now carried
on; for it consumed a great quantity of their manufactures, and
returned a yearly sum of six hundred thousand pounds in gold. Mr.
Nathaniel Gould, formerly governor of the bank, affirmed, that as France
had since the revolution encouraged woollen manufactures, and prepared
at home several commodities which formerly they drew from England; so
the English had learned to make silk stuffs, paper, and all manner of
toys, formerly imported from France; by which means an infinite number
of artificers were employed, and a vast sum annually saved to the
nation; but these people would now be reduced to beggary, and that money
lost again to the kingdom, should French commodities of the same kind
be imported under ordinary duties, because labour was much cheaper in
France than in England, consequently the British manufactures would be
undersold and ruined. He urged, that the ruin of the silk manufacture
would be attended with another disadvantage. Great quantities of woollen
cloths were vended in Italy and Turkey, in consequence of the raw silk
which the English merchants bought up in those countries; and, should
the silk manufacture at home be lost, those markets for British
commodities would fail of course. Others alleged, that if the articles
of commerce had been settled before the English troops separated from
those of the confederates, the French king would not have presumed to
insist upon such terms, but have been glad to comply with more moderate
conditions. Sir William Wyndham reflected on the late ministry, for
having neglected to make an advantageous peace when it was in their
power. He said that Portugal would always have occasion for the woollen
manufactures and the corn of England, and be obliged to buy them at all
events. After a violent debate, the house resolved, by a great majority,
that a bill should be brought in to make good the eighth and ninth
articles of the treaty of commerce with France. Against these articles,
however, the Portuguese minister presented a memorial, declaring, that
should the duties on French wines be lowered to the same level with
those that were laid on the wines of Portugal, his master would renew
the prohibition of the woollen manufactures and other products of Great
Britain. Indeed, all the trading part of the nation exclaimed against
the treaty of commerce, which seems to have been concluded in a hurry,
before the ministers fully understood the nature of the subject. This
precipitation was owing to the fears that their endeavours after
peace would miscarry, from the intrigues of the whig faction, and the
obstinate opposition of the confederates.
THE SCOTTISH LORDS MOVE FOR A BILL TO DISSOLVE THE UNION.
The commons having granted an aid of two shillings in the pound,
proceeded to renew the duty on malt for another year, and extended this
tax to the whole island, notwithstanding the warm remonstrances of the
Scottish members, who represented it as a burden which their country
could not bear. They insisted upon an express article of the union,
stipulating, that no duty should be laid on the malt in Scotland during
the war which they affirmed was not yet finished, inasmuch as the
peace with Spain had not been proclaimed. During the adjournment of
the parliament, on account of the Whit-sun-holidays, the Scots of both
houses, laying aside all party distinctions, met and deliberated on this
subject. They deputed the duke of Argyle, the earl of Mar, Mr. Lockhart,
and Mr. Cockburn, to lay their grievances before the queen. They
represented that their countrymen bore with great impatience the
violation of some articles of the union; and that the imposition of such
an insupportable burden as the malt-tax would in all probability
prompt them to declare the union dissolved. The queen, alarmed at this
remonstrance, answered, that she wished they might not have cause to
repent of such a precipitate resolution; but she would endeavour to make
all things easy. On the first day of June, the earl of Findlater, in the
house of peers, represented that the Scottish nation was aggrieved
in many instances: that they were deprived of a privy-council, and
subjected to the English laws in cases of treason: that their nobles
were rendered incapable of being created British peers; and that now
they were oppressed with the insupportable burden of a malt-tax, when
they had reason to expect they should reap the benefit of peace: he
therefore moved, that leave might be given to bring in a bill for
dissolving the union, and securing the protestant succession to the
house of Hanover. Lord North and Grey affirmed, that the complaints
of the Scots were groundless; that the dissolution of the union was
impracticable; and he made some sarcastic reflections on the poverty of
that nation. He was answered by the earl of Eglinton, who admitted the
Scots were poor, and therefore unable to pay the malt-tax. The earl of
Hay, among other pertinent remarks upon the union, observed, that when
the treaty was made, the Scots took it for granted that the parliament
of Great Britain would never load them with any imposition that they had
reason to believe grievous. The earl of Peterborough compared the union
to a marriage. He said that though England, who must be supposed the
husband, might in some instances prove unkind to the lady, she ought not
immediately to sue for a divorce, the rather because she had very much
mended her fortune by the match. Hay replied, that marriage was an
ordinance of God, and the union no more than a political expedient.
The other affirmed, that the contract could not have been more solemn,
unless, like the ten commandments, it had come from heaven: he inveighed
against the Scots, as a people that would never be satisfied; that would
have all the advantages resulting from the union, but would pay nothing
by their good will, although they had received more money from England
than the amount of all their estates. To these animadversions the duke
of Argyle made a very warm reply. “I have been reflected on by some
people,” said he, “as if I was disgusted, and had changed sides; but
I despise their persons, as much as I undervalue their judgment.” He
urged, that the malt-tax in Scotland was like taxing land by the acre
throughout England, because land was worth five pounds an acre in the
neighbourhood of London, and would not fetch so many shillings in the
remote countries. In like manner, the English malt was valued at four
times the price of that which was made in Scotland; therefore, the tax
in this country must be levied by a regiment of dragoons. He owned
he had a great share in making the union, with a view to secure the
protestant succession; but he was now satisfied this end might be
answered as effectually if the union was dissolved; and, if this step
should not be taken, he did not expect long to have either property left
in Scotland, or liberty in England. All the whig members voted for the
dissolution of that treaty which they had so eagerly promoted; while
the tories strenuously supported the measure against which they had
once argued with such vehemence. In the course of the debate, the
lord-treasurer observed, that although the malt-tax were imposed,
it might be afterwards remitted by the crown. The earl of Sunderland
expressed surprise at hearing that noble lord broach a doctrine
which tended to establish a despotic dispensing power and arbitrary
government. Oxford replied, his family had never been famous, as
some others had been, for promoting and advising arbitrary measures.
Sunderland, considering this expression as a sarcasm levelled at the
memory of his father, took occasion to vindicate his conduct, adding,
that in those days the other lord’s family was hardly known. Much
violent altercation was discharged At length the motion for the bill was
rejected by a small majority, and the malt-bill afterwards passed with
great difficulty.
Another bill being brought into the house of commons for rendering the
treaty of commerce effectual, such a number of petitions were delivered
against it, and so many solid arguments advanced by the merchants who
were examined on the subject, that even a great number of tory members
were convinced of the bad consequences it would produce to trade,
and voted against the ministry on this occasion; so that the bill was
rejected by a majority of nine voices. At the same time, however, the
house agreed to an address thanking her majesty for the great care she
had taken of the security and honour of her kingdoms in the treaty of
peace; as also for having laid so good a foundation for the interest of
her people in trade. They likewise besought her to appoint commissioners
to treat with those of France, for adjusting such matters as should
be necessary to be settled on the subject of commerce, that the treaty
might be explained and perfected for the good and welfare of her people.
The queen interpreted this address into a full approbation of the
treaties of peace and commerce, and thanked them accordingly in the
warmest terms of satisfaction and acknowledgment. The commons afterwards
desired to know what equivalent should be given for the demolition of
Dunkirk; and she gave them to understand that this was already in the
hands of his most christian majesty: then they besought her that she
would not evacuate the towns of Flanders that were in her possession,
until those who were entitled to the sovereignty of the Spanish
Netherlands should agree to such articles for regulating trade as might
place the subjects of Great Britain upon an equal footing with those
of any other nation. The queen made a favourable answer to all their
remonstrances. Such were the steps taken by the parliament during this
session with relation to the famous treaty of Utrecht, against which the
whigs exclaimed so violently, that many well-meaning people believed it
would be attended with the immediate ruin of the kingdom; yet under the
shadow of this very treaty, Great Britain enjoyed a long term of peace
and tranquillity. Bishop Burnet was heated with an enthusiastic terror
of the house of Bourbon. He declared to the queen in private, that any
treaty by which Spain and the West Indies were left in the hands of
king Philip, must in a little time deliver all Europe into the hands of
France: that, if any such peace was made, the queen was betrayed, and
the people ruined: that in less than three years she would be murdered,
and the fires would blaze again in Smithfield. This prelate lived to
see his prognostic disappointed; therefore he might have suppressed this
anecdote of his own conduct.
VIOLENCE OF PARTIES IN ENGLAND.
On the twenty-fifth day of June the queen signified, in a message to
the house of commons, that her civil list was burdened with some debts
incurred by several articles of extraordinary expense; and that she
hoped they would empower her to raise such a sum of money upon the funds
for that provision as would be sufficient to discharge the incumbrances,
which amounted to five hundred thousand pounds. A bill was immediately
prepared for raising this sum on the civil list revenue, and passed
through both houses with some difficulty. Both lords and commons
addressed the queen concerning the chevalier de St. George, who had
repaired to Lorraine. They desired she would press the duke of that
name, and all the princes and states in amity with her, to exclude from
their dominions the pretender to the imperial crown of Great Britain.
A public thanksgiving for the peace was appointed and celebrated with
great solemnity; and on the sixteenth day of July the queen closed the
session with a speech which was not at all agreeable to the violent
whigs, because it did not contain one word about the pretender and the
protestant succession. From these omissions, they concluded that the
dictates of natural affection had biassed her in favour of the chevalier
de St. George. Whatever sentiments of tenderness and compassion she
might feel for that unfortunate exile, the acknowledged son of her
own father, it does not appear that she ever entertained a thought of
altering the succession as by law established. The term of Sacheverel’s
suspension being expired, extraordinary rejoicings were made upon the
occasion. He was desired to preach before the house of commons, who
thanked him for his sermon; and the queen promoted him to the rich
benefice of St. Andrew’s, Holborn. On the other hand the duke d’Aumont,
ambassador from France, was insulted by the populace. Scurrilous ballads
were published against him both in the English and French languages. He
received divers anonymous letters, containing threats of setting fire to
his house, which was accordingly burned to the ground, though whether
by accident or design he could not well determine. The magistracy of
Dunkirk, having sent a deputation with an address to the queen, humbly
imploring her majesty to spare the port and harbour of that town,
and representing that they might be useful to her own subjects, the
memorial was printed and dispersed, and the arguments it contained were
answered and refuted by Addison, Steele, and Maynwaring. Commissioners
were sent to see the fortifications of Dunkirk demolished. They were
accordingly razed to the ground; the harbour was filled up; and the duke
d’Aumont returned to Paris in the month of November. The queen, by her
remonstrances to the court of Versailles, had procured the enlargement
of one hundred and thirty-six protestants from the galleys:
understanding afterwards that as many more were detained on the same
account, she made such application to the French ministry that they too
were released. Then she appointed general Ross her envoy-extraordinary
to the king of France.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE IRISH PARLIAMENT.
The duke of Shrewsbury being nominated lord-lieutenant of Ireland,
assembled the parliament of that kingdom on the twenty-fifth day of
November, and found the two houses still at variance, on the opposite
principles of whig and tory. Allan Broderick being chosen speaker of the
commons, they ordered a bill to be brought in to attaint the pretender
and all his adherents. They prosecuted Edward Lloyd for publishing a
book entitled, “Memoirs of the chevalier de St. George;” and they agreed
upon an address to the queen, to remove from the chancellorship sir
Constantine Phipps, who had countenanced the tories of that kingdom.
The lords, however, resolved that chancellor Phipps had, in his several
stations, acquitted himself with honour and integrity. The two houses
of convocation presented an address to the same purpose. They likewise
complained of Mr. Molesworth for having insulted them, by saying, when
they appeared in the castle of Dublin, “They that have turned the
world upside down are come hither also:” and he was removed from the
privy-council. The duke of Shrewsbury received orders to prorogue this
parliament, which was divided against itself, and portended nothing but
domestic broils. Then he obtained leave to return to England, leaving
chancellor Phipps, with the archbishop of Armagh and Tuam, justices of
the kingdom.
{ANNE, 1701--1714}
NEW PARLIAMENT IN ENGLAND.
The parliament of England had been dissolved; and the elections were
managed in such a manner as to retain the legislative power in the hands
of the tories; but the meeting of the new parliament was delayed by
repeated prorogations to the tenth day of December; a delay partly
owing to the queen’s indisposition; and partly to the contests among her
ministers. Oxford and Bolingbroke were competitors for power, and rivals
in reputation for ability. The treasurer’s parts were deemed the more
solid; the secretary’s more shining; but both ministers were aspiring
and ambitious. The first was bent upon maintaining the first rank in
the administration, which he had possessed since the revolution in the
ministry; the other disdained to act as a subaltern to the man whom he
thought he excelled in genius, and equalled in importance. They began
to form separate cabals, and adopt different principles. Bolingbroke
insinuated himself into the confidence of lady Masham, to whom Oxford
had given some cause of disgust. By this communication he gained ground
in the good opinion of his sovereign, while the treasurer lost it in the
same proportion. Thus she who had been the author of his elevation,
was now used as the instrument of his disgrace. The queen was sensibly
affected with these dissensions, which she interposed her advice and
authority, by turns, to appease; but their mutual animosity continued to
rankle under an exterior accommodation. The interest of Bolingbroke was
powerfully supported by sir Simon Harcourt, the chancellor, sir William
Wyndham, and Mr. Secretary Bromley. Oxford perceived his own influence
was on the wane, and began to think of retirement. Meanwhile the earl of
Peterborough was appointed ambassador to the king of Sicily, and set
out for Turin. The queen retired to Windsor, where she was seized with
a very dangerous inflammatory fever. The hopes of the Jacobites visibly
rose; the public funds immediately fell; a great run was made upon the
bank, the directors of which were overwhelmed with consternation, which
was not a little increased by the reports of an armament equipped in
the ports of France. They sent one of their members to represent to the
treasurer the danger that threatened the public credit. The queen being
made acquainted with these occurrences, signed a letter to sir Samuel
Stancer, lord-mayor of London, declaring, that now she was recovered
of her late indisposition, she would return to the place of her usual
residence, and open the parliament on the sixteenth day of February.
This intimation she sent to her loving subjects of the city of London,
to the intent that all of them, in their several stations, might
discountenance those malicious rumours, spread by evil-minded persons,
to the prejudice of credit, and the eminent hazard of the public
peace and tranquillity. The queen’s recovery, together with certain
intelligence that the armament was a phantom, and the pretender still
in Lorraine, helped to assuage the ferment of the nation, which had been
industriously raised by party-writings. Mr. Richard Steele published a
performance, intituled, “The Crisis,” in defence of the revolution and
the protestant establishment, and enlarging upon the danger of a popish
successor. On the other hand, the hereditary right to the crown of
England was asserted in a large volume, supposed to be written with
a view to pave the way for the pretender’s accession. One Bedford was
apprehended, tried, convicted, and severely punished, as the publisher
of this treatise.
TREATY OF RASTADT BETWEEN THE EMPEROR AND FRANCE.
While England was harrassed by these intestine commotions, the emperor,
rejecting the terms of peace proposed by France, resolved to maintain
the war at his own expense, with the assistance of the empire.
His forces on the Rhine commanded by prince Eugene, were so much
out-numbered by the French under Villars, that they could not prevent
the enemy from reducing the two important fortresses of Landau and
Fribourg. His imperial majesty hoped that the death of Queen Anne, or
that of Louis XIV. would produce an alteration in Europe that might be
favourable to his interest; and he depended on the conduct and fortune
of prince Eugene for some lucky event in war. But finding himself
disappointed in all these expectations, and absolutely unable to support
the expense of another campaign, he hearkened to overtures of peace that
were made by the electors of Cologn and Palatine; and conferences were
opened at the castle of Al-Rastadt, between prince Eugene and mareschal
de Villars, on the twenty-sixth day of November. In the beginning of
February these ministers separated, without seeming to have come to any
conclusion; but all the articles being settled between the two courts
of Vienna and Versailles, they met again in the latter end of the month:
the treaty was signed on the third day of March, and orders were sent
to the governors and commanders on both sides to desist from all
hostilities. By this treaty, the French king yielded to the emperor old
Brisac, with all its dependencies, Fribourg, the forts in the Brisgau
and Black Forest, together with Fort Khel. He engaged to demolish the
fortifications opposite to Huningen, the fort of Sellingen, and all
between that and Fort Louis. The town and fortress of Landau were ceded
to the king of France, who acknowledged the elector of Hanover. The
electors of Bavaria and Cologn were restored to all their dignities and
dominions. The emperor was put in immediate possession of the Spanish
Netherlands; and the king of Prussia was permitted to retain the high
quarters of Guelders. Finally, the contracting parties agreed that a
congress should be opened on the first of May, at Baden in Switzerland,
for terminating all differences; and prince Eugene and mareschal de
Villars were appointed their first plenipotentiaries.
The ratifications of the treaty between Great Britain and Spain being
exchanged, the peace was proclaimed on the first day of March, in
London; and the articles were not disagreeable to the English nation.
The kingdoms of France and Spain were separated for ever. Philip
acknowledged the protestant succession, and renounced the pretender. He
agreed to a renewal of the treaty of navigation and commerce concluded
in the year one thousand six hundred and sixty seven. He granted an
exclusive privilege to the English for furnishing the Spanish West
Indies with negroes, according to the assiento contract.*
* The assiento contract stipulated that from the first day
of May, 1713, to the first of May, 1743, the company should
transport into the West Indies one hundred forty-four
thousand negroes, at the rate of four thousand eight hundred
negroes a year; and pay for each negro thirty-three pieces
of eight and one third, in full for all royal duties.
He ceded Gibraltar to England, as well as the island of Minorca, on
condition that the Spanish inhabitants should enjoy their estates and
religion. He obliged himself to grant a full pardon to the Catalans,
with the possession of all their estates, honours, and privileges, and
to yield the kingdom of Sicily to the duke of Savoy. The new parliament
was opened by commission in February, and sir Thomas Hanmer was chosen
speaker of the house of commons. On the second day of March, the queen
being carried in a sedan to the house of lords, signified to both houses
that she had obtained an honourable and advantageous peace for her
own people, and for the greatest part of her allies; and she hoped
her interposition might prove effectual to complete the settlement of
Europe. She observed, that some persons had been so malicious as to
insinuate that the protestant succession, in the house of Hanover,
was in danger under her government; but that those who endeavoured to
distract the minds of men with imaginary dangers, could only mean to
disturb the public tranquillity. She said, that after all she had
done to secure the religion and liberties of her people, she could not
mention such proceedings without some degree of warmth; and she hoped
her parliament would agree with her, that attempts to weaken her
authority, or to render the possession of the crown uneasy to her,
could never be proper means to strengthen the protestant succession.
Affectionate addresses were presented by the lords, the commons, and the
convocation; but the ill-humour of party still subsisted, and was daily
inflamed by new pamphlets and papers. Steele, supported by Addison and
Halifax, appeared in the front of those who drew their pens in defence
of whig principles; and Swift was the champion of the ministry.
THE LORDS TAKE COGNIZANCE OF A LIBEL AGAINST THE SCOTS.
The earl of Wharton complained in the house of lords of a libel,
intitled, “The public spirit of the whigs set forth in their generous
encouragement of the author of the Crisis.” It was a sarcastic
performance, imputed to lord Bolingbroke and Swift, interspersed with
severe reflections upon the union, the Scottish nation, and the Duke of
Argyle in particular. The lord-treasurer disclaimed all knowledge of the
author, and readily concurred in an order for taking into custody John
Mor-phew the publisher, as well as John Barber, printer of the gazette,
from whose house the copies were brought to Morphew. The earl of Wharton
said it highly concerned the honour of that august assembly, to find
out the villain who was author of that false and scandalous libel, that
justice might be done to the Scottish nation. He moved, that Barber and
his servants might be examined; but next day the earl of Mar, one of
the secretaries of state, declared, that, in pursuance to her majesty’s
command, he had directed John Barber to be prosecuted. Notwithstanding
this interposition, which was calculated to screen the offenders, the
lords presented an address, beseeching her majesty to issue out her
royal proclamation, promising a reward to any person who should discover
the author of the libel, which they conceived to be false, malicious,
and factious, highly dishonourable and scandalous to her majesty’s
subjects of Scotland, most injurious to her majesty, and tending to the
ruin of the constitution. In compliance with their request, a reward of
three hundred pounds was offered; but the offender remained safe from
all detection.
MR. STEELE EXPELLED THE HOUSE.
The commons having granted the supplies, ordered a bill to be brought
in for securing the freedom of parliaments, by limiting the number of
officers in the house of commons, and it passed through both houses with
little difficulty. In March, a complaint was made of several scandalous
papers, lately published under the name of Richard Steele, esquire, a
member of the house. Sir William Wyndham observed, that some of that
author’s writings contained insolent injurious reflections on the
queen herself, and were dictated by the spirit of rebellion. Steele was
ordered to attend in his place; some paragraphs of his works were
read; and he answered them with an affected air of self-confidence and
unconcern. A day being appointed for his trial, he acknowledged the
writings, and entered into a more circumstantial defence. He was
assisted by Mr. Addison, general Stanhope, and Mr. Walpole; and attacked
by sir William Wyndham, Mr. Foley, and the attorney-general. Whatever
could be urged in his favour was but little regarded by the majority,
which voted, that two pamphlets, entitled, “The Englishman, and the
Crisis,” written by Richard Steele, esquire, were scandalous and
seditious libels; and that he should be expelled the house of commons.
WHIGS’ PRECAUTION FOR SECURING THE PROTESTANT SUCCESSION.
The lords taking into consideration the state of the nation, resolved
upon addresses to the queen, desiring they might know what steps had
been taken for removing the pretender from the dominions of the duke of
Lorraine; that she would impart to them a detail of the negotiations for
peace, a recital of the instances which had been made in favour of the
Catalans, and an account of the monies granted by parliament since the
year one thousand seven hundred and ten, to carry on the war in Spain
and Portugal. They afterwards agreed to other addresses, beseeching
her majesty to lay before them the debts and state of the navy, the
particular writs of Noli Prosequi granted since her accession to the
throne, and a list of such persons as, notwithstanding sentence of
outlawry or attainder, had obtained licenses to return into Great
Britain, or other of her majesty’s dominions, since the revolution.
Having voted an application to the queen in behalf of the distressed
Catalans, the house adjourned itself to the last day of March. As the
minds of men had been artfully irritated by false reports of a design
undertaken by France in behalf of the pretender, the ambassador of that
crown at the Hague disowned it in a public paper, by command of his most
christian majesty. The suspicions of many people, however, had been too
deeply planted, by the arts and insinuations of the whig leaders, to be
eradicated by this or any other declaration; and what served to rivet
their apprehensions, was a total removal of the whigs from all the
employments, civil and military, which they had hitherto retained. These
were now bestowed upon professed tories, some of whom were attached at
bottom to the supposed heir of blood. At a time when the queen’s views
were maliciously misrepresented; when the wheels of her government were
actually impeded, and her servants threatened with proscription by
a powerful, turbulent, and implacable faction; no wonder that she
discharged the partisans of that faction from her service, and filled
their places with those who were distinguished by a warm affection
to the house of Stuart, and by a submissive respect for the regal
authority. Those were steps which her own sagacity must have suggested;
and which her ministers would naturally advise, as necessary for their
own preservation. The whigs were all in commotion, either apprehending
or affecting to apprehend that a design was formed to secure the
pretender’s succession to the throne of Great Britain.
{1714.}
Their chiefs held secret consultations with baron Schutz, the resident
from Hanover. They communicated their observations to the elector; they
received his instructions; they maintained a correspondence with the
duke of Marlborough; and they concerted measures for opposing all
efforts that might be made against the protestant succession upon the
death of the queen, whose health was by this time so much impaired, that
every week was believed to be the last of her life. This conduct of the
whigs was resolute, active, and would have been laudable, had their
zeal been confined within the bounds of truth and moderation; but they,
moreover, employed all their arts to excite and encourage the fears and
jealousies of the people.
The house of peers resounded with debates upon the Catalans, the
pretender, and the danger that threatened the protestant succession.
With respect to the Catalans, they represented, that Great Britain had
prevailed upon them to declare for the house of Austria, with promise of
support; and that these engagements ought to have been made good. Lord
Bolingbroke declared that the queen had used all her endeavours in their
behalf; and that the engagements with them subsisted no longer than
king Charles resided in Spain. They agreed, however, to an address,
acknowledging her majesty’s endeavours in favour of the Catalans, and
requesting she would continue her interposition in their behalf. With
respect to the pretender, the whig lords expressed such a spirit of
persecution and rancorous hate, as would have disgraced the members of
any, even the lowest assembly of christians. Not contented with
hunting him from one country to another, they seemed eagerly bent upon
extirpating him from the face of the earth, as if they had thought it
was a crime in him to be born. The earl of Sunderland declared, from
the information of the minister of Lorraine, that, notwithstanding
the application of both houses to her majesty during the last session,
concerning the pretender’s being removed from Lorraine, no instances had
yet been made to the duke for that purpose. Lord Bolingbroke affirmed
that he himself had made those instances, in the queen’s name, to that
very minister before his departure from England. The earl of Wharton
proposed a question: “Whether the protestant succession was in danger
under the present administration?” A warm debate ensued, in which the
archbishop of York and the earl of Anglesea joined in the opposition to
the ministry. The earl pretended to be convinced and converted by the
arguments used in the course of the debate. He owned he had given his
assent to the cessation of arms, for which he took shame to himself,
asking pardon of God, his country, and his conscience. He affirmed, that
the honour of his sovereign, and the good of his country, were the rules
of his actions; but that, without respect of persons, should he find
himself imposed upon, he durst pursue an evil minister from the
queen’s closet to the Tower, and from the Tower to the scaffold. This
conversion, however, was much more owing to a full persuasion that a
ministry divided against itself could not long subsist, and that the
protestant succession was firmly secured. He therefore resolved to
make a merit of withdrawing himself from the interests of a tottering
administration, in whose ruin he might be involved. The duke of Argyle
charged the ministers with mal-administration, both within those walls
and without: he offered to prove that the lord-treasurer had yearly
remitted a sum of money to the Highland clans of Scotland, who were
known to be entirely devoted to the pretender. He affirmed that the
new-modelling of the army, the practice of disbanding some regiments out
of their turn, and removing a great number of officers, on account of
their affection to the house of Hanover, were clear indications of the
ministry’s designs: that it was a disgrace to the nation to see men, who
had never looked an enemy in the face, advanced to the posts of several
brave officers, who, after they had often exposed their lives for their
country, were now starving in prison for debt, on account of their pay
being detained. The treasurer, laying his hand upon his breast, said he
had on so many occasions given such signal proofs of affection to
the protestant succession, that he was sure no member of that august
assembly did call it in question. He owned he had remitted, for two or
three years past, between three and four thousand pounds to the Highland
clans; and he hoped the house would give him an opportunity to clear his
conduct in that particular: with respect to the reformed officers,
he declared he had given orders for their being immediately paid. The
protestant succession was voted out of danger by a small majority.
Lord Halifax proposed an address to the queen, that she would renew her
instances for the speedy removing the pretender out of Lorraine; and
that she would, in conjunction with the states-general, enter into a
guarantee of the protestant succession in the house of Hanover. The earl
of Wharton moved, that in the address her majesty should be desired
to issue a proclamation, promising a reward to any person who should
apprehend the pretender dead or alive. He was seconded by the duke of
Bolton, and the house agreed that an address should be presented. When
it was reported by the committee, lord North and Grey expatiated upon
the barbarity of setting a price on any one’s head: he proved it was
an encouragement to murder and assassination; contrary to the
precepts of Christianity; repugnant to the law of nature and nations;
inconsistent with the dignity of such an august assembly, and with the
honour of a nation famed for lenity and mercy. He was supported by lord
Trevor, who moved that the reward should be promised for apprehending
and bringing the pretender to justice, in case he should land or attempt
to land in Great Britain or Ireland. The cruelty of the first clause was
zealously supported and vindicated by the lords Cowper and Halifax; but
by this time the earl of Anglesea and some others, who had abandoned
the ministry, were brought back to their former principles by promise of
profitable employments, and the mitigation was adopted by a majority of
ten voices. To this address, which was delivered by the chancellor and
the whig lords only, the queen replied in these words: “My lords, it
would be a real strengthening to the succession in the house of Hanover,
as well as a support to my government, that an end were put to those
groundless fears and jealousies which have been so industriously
promoted. I do not at this time see any occasion for such a
proclamation. Whenever I judge it to be necessary, I shall give my
orders for having it issued. As to the other particulars of this
address, I will give proper directions therein.” She was likewise
importuned, by another address, to issue out a proclamation against all
Jesuits, popish priests, and bishops, as well as against all such as
were outlawed for adhering to the late king James and the pretender. The
house resolved that no person, not included in the articles of Limerick,
and who had borne arms in France and Spain, should be capable of any
employment, civil or military: and that no person, a natural born
subject of her majesty, should be capable of sustaining the character
of a public minister from any foreign potentate. These resolutions were
aimed at sir Patrick Lawless, an Irish papist, who had come to England
with a credential letter from king Philip, but now thought proper to
quit the kingdom.
A WRIT DEMANDED FOR THE ELECTORAL PRINCE OF HANOVER.
Then the lords in the opposition made an attack upon the treasurer,
concerning the money he had remitted to the Highlanders; but Oxford
silenced his opposers, by asserting, that in so doing he had followed
the example of king William, who, after he had reduced that people,
thought fit to allow yearly pensions to the heads of clans, in order to
keep them quiet. His conduct was approved by the house; and lord North
and Grey moved that a day might be appointed for considering the state
of the nation, with regard to the treaties of peace and commerce. The
motion was seconded by the earl of Clarendon, and the thirteenth day of
April fixed for this purpose. In the meantime, baron Schutz demanded of
the chancellor a writ for the electoral prince of Hanover, to sit in the
house of peers as duke of Cambridge, intimating that his design was
to reside in England. The writ was granted with reluctance; but the
prince’s design of coming to England was so disagreeable to the queen,
that she signified her disapprobation of such a step in a letter to the
princess Sophia. She observed, that such a method of proceeding would be
dangerous to the succession itself, which was not secure any other way,
than as the prince who was in actual possession of the throne maintained
her authority and prerogative: she said a great many people in England
were seditiously disposed; so she left her highness to judge what
tumults they might be able to raise, should they have a pretext to begin
a commotion; she, therefore, persuaded herself that her aunt would
not consent to any thing which might disturb the repose of her and her
subjects. At the same time she wrote a letter to the electoral prince,
complaining that he had formed such a resolution without first knowing
her sentiments on the subject; and telling him plainly that nothing
could be more dangerous to the tranquillity of her dominions, to the
right of succession in the Hanoverian line, or more disagreeable to her,
than such conduct at this juncture. A third letter was written to the
elector, his father; and the treasurer took this opportunity to assure
that prince of his inviolable attachment to the family of Hanover.
The whig lords were dissatisfied with the queen’s answer to their
address concerning the pretender, and they moved for another address
on the same subject, which was resolved upon, but never presented. They
took into consideration the treaties of peace and commerce, to which
many exceptions were taken; and much sarcasm was expended on both sides
of the dispute; but at length the majority carried the question in
favour of an address, acknowledging her majesty’s goodness in delivering
them, by a safe, honourable, and advantageous peace with France, from
the burden of a consuming land war, unequally carried on, and become
at last impracticable. The house of commons concurred in this address,
after having voted that the protestant succession was out of danger; but
these resolutions were not taken without violent opposition, in which
general Stanhope, Mr. Lechmere, and Mr. Walpole, chiefly distinguished
themselves. The letters which the queen had written to the electoral
house of Hanover were printed and published in England, with a view to
inform the friends of that family of the reasons which prevented
the duke of Cambridge from executing his design of residing in Great
Britain. The queen considered this step as a personal insult, as well
as an attempt to prejudice her in the opinion of her subjects: she
therefore ordered the publisher to be taken into custody. At this period
the princess Sophia died, in the eighty-fourth year of her age; and
her death was intimated to the queen by baron Bothmar, who arrived in
England with the character of envoy-extraordinary from the elector
of Hanover. This princess was the fourth and youngest daughter of
Frederick, elector Palatine, king of Bohemia, and Elizabeth daughter of
king James I. of England. She enjoyed from nature an excellent capacity,
which was finely cultivated; and was in all respects one of the most
accomplished princesses of the age in which she lived. At her death the
court of England appeared in mourning; and the elector of Brunswick
was prayed for by name in the liturgy of the church of England. On the
twelfth day of May, sir William Wyndham made a motion for a bill to
prevent the growth of schism, and for the further security of the church
of England as by law established. The design of it was to prohibit
dissenters from teaching in schools and academies. It was accordingly
prepared, and eagerly opposed in each house as a species of persecution.
Nevertheless, it made its way through both, and received the royal
assent; but the queen dying before it took place, this law was rendered
ineffectual.
Her majesty’s constitution was now quite broken; one fit of sickness
succeeded another; what completed the ruin of her health was the anxiety
of her mind, occasioned partly by the discontents which had been
raised and fomented by the enemies of her government; and partly by the
dissensions among her ministers, which were now become intolerable. The
council chamber was turned into a scene of obstinate dispute and bitter
altercation. Even in the queen’s presence the treasurer and secretary
did not restrain from mutual obliquy and reproach. Oxford advised
moderate measures, and is said to have made advances towards a
reconciliation with the leaders of the whig party. As he foresaw it
would soon be their turn to domineer, such precautions were necessary
for his own safety. Bolingbroke affected to set the whigs at defiance;
he professed a warm zeal for the church; he soothed the queen’s
inclinations with the most assiduous attention. He and his coadjutrix
insinuated, that the treasurer was biassed in favour of the dissenters,
and even that he acted as a spy for the house of Hanover. In the midst
of these disputes and commotions the Jacobites were not idle. They
flattered themselves that the queen in secret favoured the pretensions
of her brother; and they depended upon Bolingbroke’s attachment to the
same interest. They believed the same sentiments were cherished by the
nation in general. They held private assemblies both in Great Britain
and in Ireland. They concerted measures for turning the dissensions of
the kingdom to the advantage of their cause. They even proceeded so
far as to enlist men for the service of the pretender. Some of these
practices were discovered by the earl of Wharton, who did not fail to
sound the alarm. A proclamation was immediately published, promising a
reward of five thousand pounds for apprehending the pretender, whenever
he should land or attempt to land in Great Britain. The commons voted
an address of thanks for the proclamation; and assured her majesty,
that they would cheerfully aid and assist her, by granting the sum of a
hundred thousand pounds, as a further reward to any who should perform
so great a service to her majesty and her kingdom. The lords likewise
presented an address on the same subject. Lord Bolingbroke proposed a
bill, decreeing the penalties of high treason against those who should
list or be enlisted in the pretender’s service. The motion was approved,
and the penalty extended to all those who should list or be enlisted in
the service of any foreign prince or state, without a license under the
sign manual of her majesty, her heirs, or successors.
{ANNE, 1701--1714}
THE PARLIAMENT PROROGUED.
On the second day of July, the lords took into consideration the
treaty of commerce with Spain; and a great number of merchants being
examined at the bar of tha house, declared that unless the explanation
of the third, fifth, and eighth articles, as made at Madrid after
the treaty was signed, were rescinded, they could not carry on their
commerce without losing five and twenty per cent. After a long debate,
the house resolved to address the queen for all the papers relating to
the negotiation of the treaty of commerce with Spain, with the names of
the persons who advised her majesty to that treaty. To this address she
replied, that understanding the three explanatory articles of the treaty
were not detrimental to the trade of her subjects, she had consented to
their being ratified with the treaty. The earl of Wharton represented,
that if so little regard was shown to the addresses of that august
assembly to the sovereign, they had no business in that house. He
moved for a remonstrance, to lay before her majesty the insuperable
difficulties that attended the Spanish trade on the footing of the late
treaty; and the house agreed to his motion. Another member moved, that
the house should insist on her majesty’s naming the person who advised
her to ratify the three explanatory articles. This was a blow aimed at
Arthur Moore, a member of the lower house, whom lord Bolingbroke had
consulted on the subject of the treaty. He was screened by the majority
in parliament; but a general court of the South Sea company resolved,
upon a complaint exhibited by captain Johnson, that Arthur Moore, while
a director, was privy to and encouraged the design of carrying on a
clandestine trade, to the prejudice of the corporation, contrary to
his oath, and in breach of the trust reposed in him; that therefore,
he should be declared incapable of being a director of, or having any
employment in, this company. The queen had reserved to herself the
quarter-part of the assiento contract, which she now gave up to the
company, and received the thanks of the upper house; but she would not
discover the names of those who advised her to ratify the explanatory
articles. On the ninth day of July, she thought proper to put an end to
the session with a speech on the usual subjects. After having assured
them that her chief concern was to preserve the protestant religion, the
liberty of her subjects, and to secure the tranquillity of her kingdom,
she concluded in these words--“But I must tell you plainly, that
these desirable ends can never be obtained, unless you bring the same
dispositions on your parts; unless all groundless jealousies, which
create and foment divisions among you, be laid aside; and, unless you
show the same regard for my just prerogative, and for the honour of my
government, as I have always expressed for the rights of my people.”
After the peace had thus received the sanction of the parliament, the
ministers, being no longer restrained by the tie of common danger, gave
a loose to their mutual animosity. Oxford wrote a letter to the queen
containing a detail of the public transactions; in the course of which
he endeavoured to justify his own conduct, and expose the turbulent and
ambitious spirit of his rival. On the other hand, Bolingbroke charged
the treasurer with having invited the duke of Marlborough to return from
his voluntary exile, and maintained a private correspondence with the
house of Hanover. The duke of Shrewsbury likewise complained of his
having presumed to send orders to him in Ireland, without the privity of
her majesty and the council. In all probability his greatest crime was
his having given umbrage to the favourite, lady Masham. Certain it is,
on the twenty-seventh day of July, a very acrimonious dialogue passed
between that lady, the chancellor, and Oxford, in the queen’s presence.
The treasurer affirmed he had been wronged and abused by lies and
misrepresentations, but he threatened vengeance, declaring that he would
leave some people as low as he had found them when they first attracted
his notice. In the meantime he was removed from his employment; and
Bolingbroke seemed to triumph in the victory he had obtained. He
laid his account with being admitted as chief minister into the
administration of affairs; and is said to have formed a design of a
coalition with the duke of Marlborough, who at this very time embarked
at Ostend for England. Probably, Oxford had tried to play the same
game, but met with a repulse from the duke, on account of the implacable
resentment which the duchess had conceived against that minister.
PRECAUTIONS TAKEN FOR SECURING THE PEACE OF THE KINGDOM.
Whatever schemes might have been formed, the fall of the treasurer
was so sudden, that no plan was established for supplying the vacancy
occasioned by his disgrace. The confusion that incessantly ensued at
court, and the fatigue of attending a long cabinet-council on this
event, had such an effect upon the queen’s spirits and constitution,
that she declared she should not outlive it, and was immediately seized
with a lethargic disorder. Notwithstanding all the medicines which the
physicians could prescribe, the distemper gained ground so fast, that
next day, which was the thirtieth of July, they despaired of her life.
Then the committee of the council assembled at the Cockpit adjourned to
Kensington. The dukes of Somerset and Argyle, informed of the desperate
situation in which she lay, repaired to the palace; and, without being
summoned, entered the council-chamber. The members were surprised at
their appearance; but the duke of Shrewsbury thanked them for their
readiness to give their assistance at such a critical juncture, and
desired they would take their places. The physicians having declared
that the queen was still sensible, the council unanimously agreed to
recommend the duke of Shrewsbury as the fittest person to fill the place
of lord-treasurer. When this opinion was intimated to the queen, she
said they could not have recommended a person she liked better than the
duke of Shrewsbury. She delivered to him the white staff, bidding
him use it for the good of her people. He would have returned the
lord-chamberlain’s staff, but she desired he would keep them both; so
that he was at one time possessed of the three greatest posts in the
kingdom, under the titles of lord-treasurer, lord-chamberlain, and
lord-lieutenant of Ireland. No nobleman in England better deserved such
distinguishing marks of his sovereign’s favour. He was modest, liberal,
disinterested, and a warm friend to his country. Bolingbroke’s ambition
was defeated by the vigour which the dukes of Somerset and Argyle
exerted on this occasion. They proposed that all privy-counsellors in or
about London should be invited to attend, without distinction of party.
The motion was approved; and lord Somers, with many other whig members,
repaired to Kensington. The council being thus reinforced, began
to provide for the security of the kingdom. Orders were immediately
despatched to four regiments of horse and dragoons quartered in remote
counties, to march up to the neighbourhood of London and Westminster.
Seven of the ten British battalions in the Netherlands were directed to
embark at Ostend for England with all possible expedition; an embargo
was laid upon all shipping; and directions given for equipping all the
ships of war that could be soonest in a condition for service. They sent
a letter to the elector of Brunswick, signifying that the physicians had
despaired of the queen’s life; informing him of the measures they had
taken; and desiring he would, with all convenient speed, repair to
Holland, where he should be attended by a British squadron to convey
him to England, in case of her majesty’s decease. At the same time
they despatched instructions to the earl of Strafford, to desire the
states-general would be ready to perform the guarantee of the protestant
succession. The heralds-at-arms were kept in waiting with a troop of
horse guards, to proclaim the new king as soon as the throne should
become vacant. Precautions were taken to secure the sea-ports; to
overawe the Jacobites in Scotland; and the command of the fleet was
bestowed upon the earl of Berkeley.
DEATH AND CHARACTER OF ANNE.
The queen continued to doze in a lethargic insensibility, with very
short intervals, till the first day of August in the morning, when she
expired in the fiftieth year of her age, and in the thirteenth of her
reign. Anne Stuart, queen of Great Britain, was in her person of the
middle size, well proportioned. Her hair was of the dark brown colour,
her complexion ruddy; her features were regular, her countenance was
rather round than oval, and her aspect more comely than majestic. Her
voice was clear and melodious, and her presence engaging. Her capacity
was naturally good, but not much cultivated by learning; nor did she
exhibit any marks of extraordinary genius or personal ambition. She was
certainly deficient in that vigour of mind by which a prince ought
to preserve his independence, and avoid the snares and fetters of
sycophants and favourites; but whatever her weakness in this particular
might have been, the virtues of her heart were never called in question.
She was a pattern of conjugal affection and fidelity, a tender mother,
a warm friend, an indulgent mistress, a munificent patron, a mild and
merciful princess, during whose reign no subject’s blood was shed
for treason. She was zealously attached to the church of England from
conviction rather than from prepossession, unaffectedly pious, just,
charitable, and compassionate. She felt a mother’s fondness for her
people, by whom she was universally beloved with a warmth of affection
which even the prejudice of party could not abate. In a word, if she was
not the greatest, she was certainly one of the best and most unblemished
sovereigns that ever sat upon the throne of England, and well deserved
the expressive, though simple epithet, of “The good queen Anne.”
NOTES:
[Footnote 107: Note P, p. 107. In their hours of debauch, they drank to
the health of Sorrel, meaning the horse that fell with the king; and,
under the appellation of the little gentleman in velvet, toasted the
mole that raised the hill over which the horse had stumbled. As the
beast had formerly belonged to sir John Fenwick, they insinuated
that William’s fate was a judgment upon him for his cruelty to that
gentleman; and a Latin epigram was written on the occasion.]
[Footnote 108: Note Q, p. 107. Doctor Binkes, in a sermon preached
before the convocation, on the thirtieth day of January, drew a parallel
between the sufferings of Christ and those of king Charles, to which
last he gave the preference, in point of right, character, and station.]
[Footnote 109: Note R, p. 107. During this short session, the queen
gave her assent to an act for laying a duty upon land; to another
for encouraging the Greenland trade; to a third for making good the
deficiencies and the public credit; to a fourth for continuing the
imprisonment of Counter, and other conspirators against king William; to
a fifth for the relief of protestant purchasers of the forfeited estates
of Ireland; to a sixth, enlarging the time for taking the oath of
abjuration; to a seventh, obliging the Jews to maintain and provide for
their protestant children.]
[Footnote 112: Note S, p. 112. When one of his lieutenants expressed
his sorrow for the loss of the admiral’s leg, “I am sorry for it too
(replied the gallant Benbow), but I had rather have lost them both than
have seen this dishonour brought upon the English nation. But, do you
hear? If another shot should take me off, behave like brave men, and
fight it out.” When Du Casse arrived at Carthagena, he wrote a letter to
Benbow to this effect:
“Sir, I had little hope on Monday last but to have supped in your
cabin; but it pleased God to order it otherwise. I am thankful for it.
As for those cowardly captains who deserted you, hang them up; for, by
God they deserve it.--Yours, “Du Casse.”]
[Footnote 114: Note T p. 114. While this bill was depending, Daniel
De Foe published a pamphlet, intituled, “The Shortest Way with the
Dissenters; or, Proposals for the Establishment of the Church.” The
piece was a severe satire on the violence of the church party. The
commons ordered it to be burned by the hands of the common hangman, and
the author to be prosecuted. He was accordingly committed to Newgate,
tried, condemned to pay a fine of two hundred pounds, and stand in the
pillory.]
[Footnote 115: Note U, p. 115. These were John Granville, created baron
Granville of Potheridge, in the county of Devon; Heneage Finch, baron
of Guernsey, in the county of Southampton; sir John Leveson Gower, baron
Gower of Sittenham, in Yorkshire; and Francis Seymour Conway, youngest
son of sir Edward Seymour, made baron Conway of Bagley, in the county
of Warwick. At the same time, however, John Harvey, of the opposite
faction, was created baron of Ickworth, in the county of Suffolk;
and the marquis of Normanby was honoured with the title of duke of
Buckinghamshire.]
[Footnote 117: Note X, p. 117. Though the queen refused to pass the act
of security, the royal assent was granted to an act of limitation on the
successor, in which it was declared, that no king or queen of Scotland
should have power to make war or peace without consent of parliament.
Another law was enacted, allowing French wines and other liquors to be
imported in neutral bottoms. Without this expedient, it was alleged that
the revenue would have been insufficient to maintain the government. An
act passed in favour of the company trading to Africa and the Indies;
another for a commission concerning the public accounts; a third for
punishing slanderous speeches and writings. The commission for treating
of a union with England was vacated, with a prohibition to grant any
other commission for that purpose without consent of parliament; and no
supply having been provided before the adjournment, the army and expense
of government were maintained upon credit.]
[Footnote 118: Note Y, p. 117. The marquis of Athol, and the marquis of
Douglas, though this last was a minor, were created dukes. Lord Tarbat
was invested with the title of earl of Cromarty; the viscount Stair and
Roseberry were promoted to the same dignity; lord Boyle was created
earl of Glasgow; James Stuart of Bute, earl of Bute; Charles Hope
of Hopetoun, earl of Hopetoun; John Crawford of Kilbirnie, viscount
Garnock; and sir James Primrose of Carrington, viscount Primrose.]
[Footnote 119: Note Z, p.118. They had, besides the bills already
mentioned, passed an act for an additional excise on beer, ale, and
other liquors; another encouraging the importation of iron and staves;
a third for preventing popish priests from coming into the kingdom;
a fourth securing the liberty of the subject, and for prevention of
imprisonment beyond seas; and a fifth for naturalizing all protestant
strangers.]
[Footnote 136: Note K, p. 136 Voltaire, upon what authority we know not,
tells us, that during the capitulation the German and Catalonian troops
found means to climb over the ramparts into the city, and began
to commit the most barbarous excesses. The viceroy complained to
Peterborough that his soldiers had taken an unfair advantage of the
treaty, and were actually employed in burning, plundering, murdering,
and violating the inhabitants. The earl replied, “They must then be
the troops of the prince of Hesse: allow me to enter the city with my
English forces; I will save it from ruin, oblige the Germans to retire,
and march back again to our present situation.” The viceroy trusted his
honour, and forthwith admitted the earl with his troops. He soon drove
out the Germans and Catalonians, after having obliged them to quit the
plunder they had taken; and by accident he rescued the duchess of Popoli
from the hands of two brutal soldiers, and delivered her to her husband.
Having thus appeased the tumult, and dispelled the horrors of the
citizens, he returned to his former station, leaving the inhabitants of
Barcelona amazed at such an instance of magnanimity and moderation in
a people whom they had been taught to consider as the most savage
barbarians.]
[Footnote 139: Note 2 A, p. 139. The English commissioners were, Thomas
lord archbishop of Canterbury; William Cowper, lord-keeper of the
great seal; John lord archbishop of York; Sidney lord Godolphin,
lord-high-treasurer of England; Thomas earl of Pembroke and Montgomery,
president of the council; John duke of Newcastle, keeper of the
privy-seal; William duke of Devonshire, steward of the household;
Charles duke of Somerset, master of the horse; Charles duke of Bolton,
Charles earl of Sunderland, Evelyn earl of Kingston, Charles earl of
Carlisle, Edward earl of Orford, charles viscount Townshend, Thomas lord
Wharton, Ralph lord Grey, John lord Powlet, John lord Somers, Charles
lord Halifax, William Cavendish marquis of Harrington, John Manners
marquis of Grandby; sir Charles Hedges and Robert Harley, principal
secretaries of state; John Smith; Henry Boyle, chancellor of the
exchequer; sir John Holt, chief justice of the Queen’s Bench; sir
Thomas Trevor, chief justice of the Common Pleas; sir Edward Northey,
attorney-general; sir Simon Harcourt, solicitor-general; sir John Cook;
and Stephen Waller, doctor of laws.--The Scottish commissioners were,
James earl of Seafield, lord-chancellor of Scotland; James duke of
Queensberry, lord-privy-seal; John earl of Mar, and Hugh earl of Loudon,
principal secretaries of state; John earl of Sutherland, John earl of
Morton, David earl of Wemys, David earl of Leven, John earl of Stair,
Archibald earl of Eoseberry, David earl of Glasgow, lord Archibald
Campbell, Thomas viscount Duplin, lord William Eoss, sir Hugh Dalrymple,
president of the session; Adam Cockbum of Ormistoun, lord-justice-clerk;
sir Eobert Dundas, of Arnistoun, Eobert Stuart of Tillieultrie, lords
of the session; Mr. Francis Montgomery, one of the commissioners of
the treasury; sir David Dalrymple, one of her majesty’s solicitors; sir
Alexander Ogilvie, receiver-general; sir Patrick Johnston, provost of
Edinburgh; sir James Smollet of Bonhill; George Lock-hart of Carwath;
William Morrison of Petgongrange; Alexander Grant; William Seton of
Pitmidden, John Clerk of Pennycook, Hugh Montgomery, Daniel Stuart, and
Daniel Campbell.]
[Footnote 149: Note 2 B, p. 149 This passage was effected to the
astonishment of the French, who thought the works they had raised on
that river were impregnable. The honour of the enterprise was in a
great measure owing to the gallantry of sir John Norris and the English
seamen. That brave officer, embarking in boats with six hundred sailors
and marines, entered the river, and were rowed within musket shot of the
enemy’s works, where they made such a vigorous and unexpected attack,
that the French were immediately driven from that part of their
in-trenchments; then sir John landed with his men, clambered over the
works that were deemed inaccessible, and attacking the defendants sword
in hand, compelled them to fly with the utmost precipitation. This
detachment was sustained by sir Cloudesly Shovel in person. The duke of
Savoy, taking advantage of the enemy’s consternation, passed the river
almost without opposition.]
[Footnote 150: Note 2C, p. 149. In the month of May, three ships of the
line, namely, the Royal Oak, of seventy-six guns, commanded by commodore
baron Wyldo; the Grafton, of seventy guns, captain Edward Acton; and
the Hampton-Court, of seventy guns, captain George Clements, sailed as
convoy to the West India and Portugal fleet of merchant-ships, amounting
to five-and-forty sail. They fell in with the Dunkirk squadron,
consisting of ten ships of war, one frigate, and four privateers, under
the command of M. de Forbin. A furious action immediately ensued,
and notwithstanding the vast disproportion in point of number, was
maintained by the English commodore with great gallantry, until captain
Acton was killed, captain Clements mortally wounded, and the Grafton and
Hampton-Court were taken, after having sunk the Salisbury, at that time
in the hands of the French; then the commodore, having eleven feet water
in his hold, disengaged himself from the enemy, by whom he had been
surrounded, and ran his ship aground near Dungenness; but she afterwards
floated, and he brought her safe into the Downs. In the meantime,
the French frigate and privateers made prize of twenty-one
English merchant-ships of great value, which, with the Grafton and
Hampton-Court, Forbin conveyed in triumph to Dunkirk. In July, the same
active officer took fifteen ships belonging to the Eussian company, off
the coast of Lapland; in September, he joined another squadron fitted
out at Brest, under the command of the celebrated M. du Guai Tronin,
and these attacked, off the Lizard, the convoy of the Portugal fleet,
consisting of the Cumberland, captain Richard Edwards, of eighty guns;
the Devonshire, of eighty; the Royal Oak, of seventy-six; the Chester
and Ruby, of fifty guns each. Though the French squadron did not fall
short of twelve sail of the line, the English captains maintained the
action for many hours with surprising valour. At length the Devonshire
was obliged to yield to superior numbers; the Cumberland blew up; the
Chester and Ruby were taken; the Royal Oak fought her way through the
midst of her enemies, and arrived safe in the harbour of Kinsale; and
the Lisbon fleet saved themselves, by making the best of their way
during the engagement. Since the battle off Malaga, the French king had
never dared to keep the sea with a large fleet, but carried on a kind of
piratical war of this sort, in order to distress the trade of
England. He was the more encouraged to pursue these measures, by
the correspondence which his ministers carried on with some wretches
belonging to the admiralty, and other officers, who basely betrayed
their country in transmitting to France such intelligence concerning the
convoys appointed for the protection of commerce, as enabled the enemy
to attack them at advantage. In the course of this year the French
fishery, stages, ships, and vessels in Newfoundland were taken, burned,
and destroyed, by captain John Underdown, of the Falkland.]
[Footnote 153: Note 2 D, p. 153. Three Camisars, or protestants,
from the Cevennois, having made their escape, and repaired to London,
acquired about this time the appellation of French prophets, from their
enthusiastic gesticulations, effusions, and convulsions; and even formed
a sect of their countrymen. The French refugees, scandalized at their
behaviour, and authorized by the bishop of London, as superior of the
French congregations, resolved to inquire into the mission of these
pretended prophets, whose names were Elias Marion, John Cavalier,
and Durand Rage. They were declared impostors and counterfeits.
Notwithstanding this decision, which was confirmed by the bishops, they
continued their assemblies in Soho, under the countenance of sir Richard
Bulkeley and John Lacy. They reviled the ministers of the established
church; they denounced judgments against the city of London, and the
whole British nation; and published their predictions, composed of
unintelligible jargon. Then they were prosecuted at the expense of the
French churches, as disturbers of the public peace, and false prophets.
They were sentenced to pay a fine of twenty marks each, and stand twice
on a scaffold, with papers on their breasts, denoting their offence; a
sentence which was executed accordingly at Charing-Cross, and the Royal
Exchange.
In the course of this year, Mr. Stanhope, who was resident from the
queen at the court of Charles, concluded a treaty of commerce with
this monarch, which would have proved extremely advantageous to Great
Britain, had he been firmly established on the throne of Spain. It was
stipulated that the English merchants should enjoy the privilege of
importing all kinds of merchandise from the coast of Barbary into the
maritime places of Spain, without paying any higher duty than if that
merchandise had been the produce of Great Britain; and that even these
duties should not be paid till six months after the merchandise should
be landed and sold, and merchants giving security for the customs. It
was agreed that the whole commerce of the Spanish West Indies should be
carried on by a joint company of Spanish and British merchants; and in
the interim, as the greater part of that country was in the hands of
Philip, his competitor consented that the British subjects should
trade freely in all the ports of the West Indies with ten ships of five
hundred tons each, under such convoy as her Britannic majesty should
think fit to appoint.]
[Footnote 154: Note 2 E, p. 154. Before the opening of the campaign, a
very daring enterprise was formed by one colonel Queintern, a partisan
in the Imperial army. This man laid a scheme for carrying off the
dauphin of France from the court of Versailles. He selected thirty men
of approved valour for this undertaking. He procured passes for
them, and they rendezvoused in the neighbourhood of Paris. On the
twenty-fourth day of March, in the evening, he and his accomplices
stopped a coach and six, with the king’s liveries, and arrested the
person who was in it, on the supposition of his being a prince of the
blood. It was, however, M. de Barringhen, the king’s first equerry.
This officer they mounted on a spare horse, and set out for the Low
Countries; but, being little acquainted with the roads, they did not
reach Chantilly till next morning, when they heard the tocsin, or
alarm-bell, and thence concluded that detachments were sent out
in pursuit of them. Nevertheless, they proceeded boldly, and would
certainly have carried the point, had not Queintern halted three
hours for the refreshment of his prisoner, who complained of his being
indisposed. He likewise procured a chaise, and ordered the back of it to
be lowered for his convenience. These acts of humanity retarded him
so much, that he was overtaken by a detachment of horse at Ham, within
three hours’ ride of a place of safety. Finding himself surrounded, he
thought proper to surrender, and M. de Berringhen treated him with
great generosity, for the civilities he had experienced at his hands.
He carried him back to Versailles, and lodged him in his own apartments.
Madame de Berringhen made him a considerable present; and the king
ordered him and his companions to be discharged, on account of the
courage and humanity they had displayed.]
[Footnote 173: Note 2 F, p. 173. Lord Compton and lord Bruce, sons of
the earls of Northampton and Aylesbury, were called up by writ to the
house of peers. The other ten were these: lord Duplin of the kingdom of
Scotland, created baron Hay of Bed warden, in the county of Hereford;
lord viscount Windsor of Ireland, made baron Mountjoy, in the Isle of
Wight; Henry Paget, son of lord Paget, created baron Burton, in the
county of Stafford; sir Thomas Mansel, baron Mansel of Margam, in
the county of Glamorgan; sir Thomas Willoughby, baron Middleton, of
Mittleton, in the county of Warwick; sir Thomas Trevor, baron Trevor of
Bronham, in the county of Bedford; George Granville, baron Lansdown of
Bidde-ford, in the county of Devon; Samuel Masham, baron Masham of Oats,
in the county of Essex; Thomas Foley, baron Foley of Kidderminster,
in the county of Worcester; and Allen Bathurst, baron Bathurst of
Bathels-den, in the county of Bedford. On the first day of their being
introduced, when the question was put about adjourning, the earl of
Wharton asked one of them, “Whether they voted by their foreman?”]
[Footnote 174: Note 2 G, p. 174. The commissioners appointed for taking,
stating, and examining the public accounts, having made their report
touching the conduct of Mr. Walpole, the house, after a long debate,
came to the following resolutions: 1. That Robert Walpole, esq., a
member of this house, in receiving the sum of five hundred guineas, and
in taking a note for five hundred more, on account of two contracts for
forage of her majesty’s troops, quartered in North Britain, made by him
when secretary at war, pursuant to a power granted to him by the late
lord-treasurer, is guilty of a high breach of trust and notorious
corruption. 2. That the said Robert Walpole, esq., be, for the said
offence, committed prisoner to the Tower of London, during the pleasure
of this house; and that Mr. Speaker do issue his warrant accordingly.
3. That the said Robert Walpole, esq., be, for the said offence, also
expelled the house, and that the report of the commissioners of public
accounts be taken into further consideration this day se’nnight. It
appeared from the depositions of witnesses, that the public had been
defrauded considerably by these contracts. Very severe speech was made
in the house, and next day published, reflecting upon Mr. Walpole, as
guilty of the worst kind of corruption; and sir Peter King declared in
the house, that he deserved hanging as well as he deserved imprisonment
and expulsion.]
CONTINUATION
OF
THE HISTORY OF ENGLAND,
BY TOBIAS SMOLLETT, M.D.
Volume IIc, GEORGE I.
MAPS:
[Illustration: map1.jpg MAP OF ENGLAND AND WALES]
[Illustration: map2.jpg MAP OF EUROPE]
[Illustration: map3.jpg MAP OF AUSTRALIA]
[Illustration: map4.jpg MAP OF BRITISH COLONIES IN NORTH AMERICA]
GEORGE I.
[Illustration: 189.jpg GEORGE I.]
CHAPTER I.
GEORGE I.
_State of Parties in Great Britain..... King George
proclaimed..... The Civil List presennted to his Majesty by
the Parliament..... The Electoral Prince created Prince of
Wales..... The King arrives in England..... The Tories
totally excluded from the Royal Favour..... Pretender’s
Manifesto..... New Parliament..... Substance of the King’s
first Speech..... Lord Bolingbroke withdraws himself to
France..... Sir William Wyndham reprimanded by the
Speaker..... Committee of Secrecy..... Sir John Norris sent
with a Fleet to the Baltic..... Discontent of the
Nation..... Report of the Secret Committee..... Resolutions
to impeach Lord Bolingbroke, the Earl of Oxford, the Duke of
Or-mond, and the Earl of Strafford..... The Earl of Oxford
sent to the Tower..... The Proclamation Act..... The King
declares to both Houses that a Rebellion is begun..... The
Duke of Ormond and Lord Bolingbroke attainted..... Intrigues
of the Jacobites..... Death of Louis XIV..... The Earl of
Marsets up the Pretender’s Standard in Scotland..... Divers
Members of the Lower House taken into custody..... The
Pretender proclaimed in the North of England by the Earl of
Derwentwater and Mr. Forster..... Mackintosh crosses the
Frith of Forth into Lothian and joins the English
Insurgents..... who are attacked at Preston, and surrender
at Discretion..... Battle at Dunblane..... The Pretender
arrives in Scotland..... He retires again to France.....
Proceedings of the Irish Parliament..... The Rebel Lords are
impeached, and plead Guilty..... The Earl of Derwentwater
and Lord Kenmuir are beheaded..... Trials of Rebels..... Act
for Septennial Parliaments..... Duke of Argyle
disgraced..... Triple Alliance between England, France, and
Holland..... Count Gyllenburgh, the Swedish Minister in
London, arrested..... Account of the Oxford Riot..... The
King demands an extraordinary Supply off the Commons.....
Division in the Ministry..... The Commons pass the South Sea
Act, the Bank Act, and the General Fund Act..... Trial of
the Earl of Oxford..... Act of Indemnity..... Proceedings in
the Convocation with regard to Dr. Hoadley, Bishop of
Bangor._
{GEORGE I, 1714--1727}
STATE OF PARTIES.
It may be necessary to remind the reader of the state of parties at this
important juncture. The Jacobites had been fed with hopes of seeing the
succession altered by the earl of Oxford. These hopes he had conveyed
to them in a distant, undeterminate, and mysterious manner, without any
other view than that of preventing them from taking violent measures to
embarrass his administration. At least, if he actually entertained at
one time any other design, he had, long before his disgrace, laid it
wholly aside, probably from an apprehension of the danger with which it
must have been attended, and seemed bent upon making a merit of his zeal
for the house of Hanover; but his conduct was so equivocal and unsteady,
that he ruined himself in the opinion of one party without acquiring
the confidence of the other. The friends of the pretender derived fresh
hopes from the ministry of Bolingbroke. Though he had never explained
himself on this subject, he was supposed to favour the heir of blood,
and known to be an implacable enemy to the whigs, who were the most
zealous advocates for the protestant succession. The Jacobites promised
themselves much from his affection, but more from his resentment; and
they believed the majority of the tories would join them on the
same maxims. All Bolingbroke’s schemes of power were defeated by the
promotion of the duke of Shrewsbury to the office of treasurer; and all
his hopes blasted by the death of the queen, on whose personal favour
he depended. The resolute behaviour of the dukes of Somerset and Argyle,
together with the diligence and activity of a council in which the
whig interest had gained the ascendancy, completed the confusion of the
tories, who found themselves without a head, divided, distracted, and
irresolute. Upon recollection, they saw nothing so eligible as silence
and submission to those measures which they could not oppose with any
prospect of success. They had no other objection to the succession in
the house of Hanover but the fear of seeing the whig faction once more
predominant; yet they were not without hope that their new sovereign,
who was reputed a prince of sagacity and experience, would cultivate
and conciliate the affection of the tories, who were the landholders and
proprietors of the kingdom, rather than declare himself the head of a
faction which leaned for support on those who were enemies to the church
and monarchy, on the bank and the monied interest, raised upon usury
and maintained by corruption. In a word, the whigs were elated and
overbearing; the tories abashed and humble; the Jacobites eager,
impatient, and alarmed at a juncture which, with respect to them, was
truly critical.
KING GEORGE PROCLAIMED.
The queen had no sooner resigned her last breath than the privy-council
met, and the archbishop of Canterbury, the lord-chancellor, and the
Hanoverian resident, Kreyenburgh, produced the three instruments in
which the elector of Brunswick had nominated the persons * to be added
as lords-justices to the seven great officers of the realm.
* These were the dukes of Shrewsbury, Somerset, Bolton,
Devonshire, Kent, Argyle, Montrose, and Roxburgh; the earls
of Pomfret, Anglesea, Carlisle, Nottingham, Abingdon,
Scarborough, and Or-ford; lord viscount Townshend, and lords
Halifax and Cowper.
Orders were immediately issued for proclaiming king George in England,
Scotland, and Ireland. The regency appointed the earl of Dorset to carry
to Hanover the intimation of his majesty’s accession, and attend him
in his journey to England. They sent the general officers in whom they
could confide to their respective posts; they reinforced the garrison
of Portsmouth; they appointed Mr. Addison their secretary; while
Bolingbroke was obliged to stand at the door of the council-chamber with
his bag and papers, and underwent every species of mortification. On
the whole, king George ascended the throne of Great Britain in the
fifty-fifth year of his age, without the least opposition, tumult, or
sign of popular discontent; and the unprejudiced part of the nation was
now fully persuaded that no design had ever been concerted by Queen
Anne and her ministry in favour of the pretender. The mayor of Oxford
received a letter, requiring him to proclaim the pretender. This being
communicated to the vice-chancellor, a copy of it was immediately
transmitted to Mr. secretary Bromley, member of Parliament for the
university; and the vice-chancellor offered a reward of one hundred
pounds to any person who should discover the author. It was either the
production of some lunatic, or a weak contrivance to fix an odium on
that venerable body.
THE CIVIL LIST GRANTED TO THE KING.
The parliament having assembled pursuant to the act which regulated
the succession, the lord chancellor, on the fifth day of August, made a
speech to both houses in the name of the regency. He told them that the
privy-council appointed by the elector of Brunswick had proclaimed
that prince under the name of king George, as the lawful and rightful
sovereign of these kingdoms; and that they had taken the necessary care
to maintain the public peace. He observed, that the several branches of
the public revenue were expired by the demise of her late majesty; and
recommended to the commons the making such provision, in that respect,
as might be requisite to support the honour and dignity of the crown. He
likewise expressed his hope that they would not be wanting in anything
that might conduce to the establishing and advancing of the public
credit. Both houses immediately agreed to addresses, containing the
warmest expressions of duty and affection to their new sovereign,
who did not fail to return such answers as were very agreeable to the
parliament of Great Britain. In the meantime the lower house prepared
and passed a bill, granting to his majesty the same civil list which the
queen had enjoyed, with additional clauses for the payment of arrears
due to the troops of Hanover which had been in the service of Great
Britain; and for a reward of one hundred thousand pounds, to be paid
by the treasury to any person who should apprehend the pretender in
landing, or attempting to land, in any part of the British dominions.
Mr. Craggs, who had been despatched to Hanover before the queen died,
returning on the thirteenth day of August with letters from the king to
the regency, they went to the house of peers; then the chancellor,
in another speech to both houses, intimated his majesty’s great
satisfaction in the loyalty and affection which his people had
universally expressed at his accession. Other addresses were voted on
this occasion. The commons finished the bill for the civil list, and
one for making some alterations in an act for a state-lottery, which
received the royal assent from the lords-justices. Then the parliament
was prorogued.
THE ELECTORAL PRINCE CREATED PRINCE OF WALES.
Mr. Prior having notified the queen’s death to the court of Versailles,
Louis declared that he would inviolably maintain the treaty of peace
concluded at Utrecht, particularly with relation to the settlement of
the British crown in the house of Hanover. The earl of Strafford having
signified the same event to the states of Holland, and the resident of
Hanover having presented them with a letter, in which his master claimed
the performance of their guarantee, they resolved to perform their
engagements, and congratulated his electoral highness on his succession
to the throne of Great Britain. They invited him to pass through their
dominions, and assured him that his interests were as dear to them as
their own. The chevalier de St. George no sooner received the news of
the queen’s death, than he posted to Versailles, where he was given
to understand that the king of France expected he should quit his
territories immediately; and he was accordingly obliged to return to
Lorraine. By this time Mr. Murray had arrived in England from Hanover,
with notice that the king had deferred his departure for some days.
He brought orders to the regency to prepare a patent for creating the
prince-royal prince of Wales; and for removing lord Bolingbroke from his
post of secretary. The seals were taken from this minister by the dukes
of Shrewsbury and Somerset, and lord Cowper, who at the same time sealed
up all the doors of his office.
THE KING ARRIVES IN ENGLAND.
King George having vested the government of his German dominions in a
council, headed by his brother prince Ernest, set out with the electoral
prince from Herenhausen on the thirty-first day of August; and in fire
days arrived at the Hague, where he conferred with the states-general.
On the sixteenth day of September he embarked at Orange Polder, under
convoy of an English and Dutch squadron, commanded by the earl of
Berkeley, and next day arrived at the Hope. In the afternoon the yacht
sailed up the river; and his majesty, with the prince, were landed from
a barge at Greenwich about six in the evening. There he was received by
the duke of Northumberland, captain of the life-guards, and the lords of
the regency. From the landing place he walked to his house in the park,
accompanied by a great number of the nobility and other persons of
distinction, who had the honour to kiss his hand as they approached.
When he retired to his bed-chamber, he sent for those of the nobility
who had distinguished themselves by their zeal for his succession; but
the duke of Ormond, the lord-chancellor, and lord Trevor, were not of
the number. Next morning the earl of Oxford presented himself with an
air of confidence, as if he had expected to receive some particular
mark of his majesty’s favour; but he had the mortification to remain
a considerable time undistinguished among the crowd, and then was
permitted to kiss the king’s hand without being honoured with any other
notice. On the other hand, his majesty expressed uncommon regard for the
duke of Marlborough, who had lately arrived in England, as well as for
all the leaders of the whig party.
{GEORGE I, 1714--1727}
THE TORIES TOTALLY EXCLUDED FROM THE ROYAL FAVOUR.
It was the misfortune of this prince, as well as a very great prejudice
to the nation, that he had been misled into strong prepossessions
against the tories, who constituted such a considerable part of his
subjects. They were now excluded from all share of the royal favour,
which was wholly engrossed by their enemies; these early marks of
aversion, which he was at no pains to conceal, alienated the minds of
many from his person and government, who would otherwise have served
him with fidelity and affection. An instantaneous and total change was
effected in all offices of honour and advantage. The duke of Ormond
was dismissed from his command, which the king restored to the duke of
Marlborough, whom he likewise appointed colonel of the first regiment
of foot guards, and master of the ordnance. The great seal was given to
lord Cowper; the privy seal to the earl of Wharton; the government
of Ireland to the earl of Sunderland. The duke of Devonshire was made
steward of the household; lord Townshend and Mr. Stanhope were appointed
secretaries of state; the post of secretary for Scotland was bestowed
upon the duke of Montrose. The duke of Somerset was constituted master
of the horse; the duke of St. Alban’s captain of the band of pensioners;
and the duke of Argyle commander-in-chief of the forces in Scotland.
Mr. Pulteney became secretary at war; and Mr. Walpole, who had already
undertaken to manage the house of commons, was gratified with the
double place of paymaster to the army and to Chelsea-hospital. A
new privy-council was appointed, and the earl of Nottingham declared
president; but all affairs of consequence were concerted by a
cabinet-council, or junto, composed of the duke of Marlborough, the
earls of Nottingham and Sunderland, the lords Halifax, Townshend,
and Somers, and general Stanhope. The regency had already removed sir
Constantine Phipps and the archbishop of Armagh from the office of
lords-justices in Ireland, and filled their places in the regency of
that kingdom with the archbishop of Dublin and tire earl of Kildare.
Allan Broderick was appointed chancellor; another privy-council was
formed, and the duke of Ormond was named as one of the members. The
treasury and admiralty were put into commission; all the governments
were changed; and, in a word, the whole nation was delivered into the
hands of the whigs. At the same time the prince-royal was declared
prince of Wales, and took his place in council. The king was
congratulated on his accession in addresses from the two universities,
and from all the cities and corporations in the kingdom. He expressed
particular satisfaction at these expressions of loyalty and affection.
He declared in council his firm purpose to support and maintain the
churches of England and Scotland as they were by law established; an aim
which he imagined might be effectually accomplished, without impairing
the toleration allowed by law to protestant dissenters, and so necessary
to the trade and riches of the kingdom; he, moreover, assured them he
would earnestly endeavour to render property secure; the good effects of
which were no where so clearly seen as in this happy nation. Before the
coronation he created some new peers, and others were promoted to higher
titles.* On the twentieth day of October he was crowned in Westminster
with the usual solemnity, at which the earl of Oxford and lord
Bolingbroke assisted.**
* James lord Chandos, was created earl of Carnarvon; Lewis
lord Kockingham, earl of that name; Charles lord Ossulton,
earl of Tankerville; Charles lord Halifax, earl of Halifax;
Heneage lord Guernsey, earl of Aylesford; John lord Hervey,
earl of Bristol; Thomas lord Pelham, earl of Clare; Henry
earl of Thommond, in Ireland, viscount Tadcaster; James
viscount Castleton, in Ireland, baron Sanderson; Bennet lord
Sherrard, in Ireland, baron of Har-borough; Gervase lord
Pierrepont, in Ireland, baron Pierrepont in the county of
Bucks; Henry Boyle, baron of Carleton in the county of
York; sir Richard Temple, baron of Cobham; Henry lord Paget,
earl of Uxbridge.
** In the month of October the princess of Wales arrived in
England with her two eldest daughters, the princesses Anne
and Amelia.
On that very day the university of Oxford, in full convocation,
unanimously conferred the degree of doctor of civil law on sir
Constantine Phipps, with particular marks of honour and esteem. As the
French king was said to protract the demolition of Dunkirk, Mr. Prior
received orders to present a memorial to hasten this work, and to
prevent the canal of Mardyke from being finished. The answer which he
received being deemed equivocal, this minister was recalled, and the
earl of Stair appointed ambassador to the court of France, where he
prosecuted this affair with uncommon vigour. About the same time
general Cadogan was sent as plenipotentiary to Antwerp, to assist at
the barrier-treaty, negotiated there between the emperor and the
states-general.
PRETENDER’S MANIFESTO.
Meanwhile the number of malcontents in England was considerably
increased by the king’s attachment to the whig faction. The clamour
of the church’s being in danger was revived; jealousies were excited;
seditious libels dispersed; and dangerous tumults raised in different
parts of the kingdom. Birmingham, Bristol, Chippenham, Norwich, and
Reading, were filled with licentious riot. The party cry was, “Down with
the whigs! Sacheverel for ever!” Many gentlemen of the whig faction were
abused; magistrates in towns, and justices in the country, were reviled
and insulted by the populace in the execution of their office. The
pretender took this opportunity to transmit, by the French mail, copies
of a printed manifesto to the dukes of Shrewsbury, Marlborough, Argyle,
and other noblemen of the first distinction. In this declaration he
mentioned the good intentions of his sister towards him, which were
prevented by her deplorable death. He observed that his people, instead
of doing him and themselves justice, had proclaimed for their king a
foreign prince, contrary to the fundamental and incontestable laws of
hereditary right, which their pretended acts of settlement could never
abrogate. These papers being delivered to the secretaries of state, the
king refused an audience to the marquis de Lamberti, minister from the
duke of Lorraine, on the supposition that this manifesto could not have
been prepared or transmitted without the knowledge and countenance of
his master. The marquis having communicated this circumstance to
the duke, that prince absolutely denied his having been privy to the
transaction, and declared that the chevalier de St. George came into
Lorraine by the directions of the French king, whom the duke could not
disoblige without exposing his territories to invasion. Notwithstanding
this apology, the marquis was given to understand that he could not be
admitted to an audience until the pretender should be removed from
the dominions of his master; he therefore quitted the kingdom without
further hesitation. Religion was still mingled in all political
disputes. The high churchmen complained that impiety and heresy daily
gained ground from the connivance, or at least the supine negligence,
of the whig prelates. The lower house of convocation had, before the
queen’s death, declared that a book published by Dr. Samuel Clarke,
under the title of “The Scripture Doctrine of the Trinity,” contained
assertions contrary to the catholic faith. They sent up extracts from
this performance to the bishops, and the doctor wrote an answer to
their objections. He was prevailed upon to write an apology, which he
presented to the upper house; but apprehending it might be published
separately, and misunderstood, he afterwards delivered an explanation
to the bishop of London. This was satisfactory to the bishops; but
the lower house resolved that it was no recantation of his heretical
assertions. The disputes about the Trinity increasing, the archbishops
and bishops received directions, which were published, for preserving
unity in the church, the purity of the christian faith concerning the
holy Trinity, and for maintaining the peace and quiet of the state. By
these every preacher was restricted from delivering any other doctrine
than what is contained in the holy scriptures with respect to the
Trinity, and from intermeddling in any affairs of state or government.
The like prohibition was extended to those who should write, harangue,
or dispute on the same subjects.
{GEORGE I, 1714--1727}
NEW PARLIAMENT.
The parliament being dissolved, another was called by a very
extraordinary proclamation, in which the king complained of the evil
designs of men disaffected to his succession; and of their having
misrepresented his conduct and principles. He mentioned the perplexity
of public affairs, the interruption of commerce, and the heavy debts of
the nation. He expressed his hope that his loving subjects would send up
to parliament the fittest persons to redress the present disorders; and
that in the elections, they would have a particular regard to such as
had expressed a firm attachment to the protestant succession when it was
in danger. It does not appear that the protestant succession was ever
in danger. How then was this declaration to be interpreted? People in
general construed it into a design to maintain party distinctions,
and encourage the whigs to the full exertion of their influence in the
elections; into a renunciation of the tories; and as the first flash of
that vengeance which afterwards was seen to burst upon the heads of the
late ministry. When the earl of Strafford returned from Holland, all his
papers were seized by an order from the secretary’s office. Mr. Prior
was recalled from France, and promised to discover all he knew relating
to the conduct of Oxford’s administration. Uncommon vigour was exerted
on both sides in the elections; but, by dint of the monied interest,
which prevailed in most of the corporations through the kingdom, and the
countenance of the ministry, which will always have weight with needy
and venal electors, a great majority of whigs was returned both in
England and Scotland.
THE KING’S FIRST SPEECH.
When this new parliament assembled on the seventeenth day of March, at
Westminster, Mr. Spencer Compton was chosen speaker of the commons. On
the twenty-first day of the month, the king appeared in the house of
lords and delivered to the chancellor a written speech, which was read
in presence of both houses. His majesty thanked his faithful and loving
subjects for that zeal and firmness they had shown in defence of the
protestant succession, against all the open and secret practices which
had been used to defeat it. He told them that some conditions of the
peace, essential to the security and trade of Great Britain, were not
yet duly executed; and that the performance of the whole might be
looked upon as precarious, until defensive alliances should be formed to
guarantee the present treaties. He observed, that the pretender
boasted of the assistance he expected in England, to repair his former
disappointment; that great part of the national trade was rendered
impracticable; and that the public debts were surprisingly increased
ever since the fatal cessation of arms. He gave the commons to
understand that the branches of the revenue, formerly granted for the
support of the civil government, were so far encumbered and alienated,
that the produce of the funds which remained, and had been granted to
him, would fall short of what was at first designed for maintaining the
honour and dignity of the crown; that as it was his and their happiness
to see a prince of Wales who might in due time succeed him on the
throne, and to see him blessed with many children, these circumstances
would naturally occasion an expense to which the nation had not been for
many years accustomed; and, therefore, he did not doubt but they would
think of it with that affection which he had reason to hope from his
commons. He desired that no unhappy divisions of parties might divert
them from pursuing the common interests of their country. He declared
that the established constitution in church and state should be the rule
of his government; and that the happiness, ease, and prosperity of
his people should be the chief care of his life. He concluded with
expressing his confidence, that with their assistance he should
disappoint the designs of those who wanted to deprive him of that
blessing which he most valued--the affection of his people.
Speeches suggested by a vindictive ministry better became the leader of
an incensed party, than the father and sovereign of a divided people.
This declaration portended measures which it was the interest of the
crown to avoid, and suited the temper of the majority in both houses,
which breathed nothing but destruction to their political adversaries.
The lords, in their address of thanks, professed their hope that his
majesty, assisted by the parliament, would be able to recover the
reputation of the kingdom in foreign parts, the loss of which they hoped
to convince the world by their actions was by no means to be imputed to
the nation in general. The tories said this was an invidious reflection,
calculated to mislead and inflame the people, for the reputation of the
kingdom had never been so high as at this very juncture. The commons
pretended astonishment to find that any conditions of the late peace
should not yet be duly executed; and that care was not taken to form
such alliances as might have rendered the peace not precarious. They
declared their resolution to inquire into these fatal miscarriages; to
trace out those measures whereon the pretender placed his hopes, and
bring the authors of them to condign punishment. These addresses were
not voted without opposition. In the house of lords, the dukes of
Buckingham and Shrewsbury, the earl of Anglesea, the archbishop of York,
and other peers both secular and ecclesiastical, observed, that their
address was injurious to the late queen’s memory, and would serve only
to increase those unhappy divisions that distracted the kingdom. In the
lower house, sir William Wyndham, Mr. Bromley, Mr. Ship-pen, general
Ross, sir William Whitelock, and other members, took exceptions to
passages of the same nature in the address which the commons had
prepared. They were answered by Mr. Walpole, Mr. Pulteney, and Mr.
secretary Stanhope. These gentlemen took occasion to declare, that
notwithstanding the endeavours which had been used to prevent a
discovery of the late mismanagements, by conveying away several papers
from the secretary’s office, yet the government had sufficient evidence
left to prove the late ministry the most corrupt that ever sat at the
helm; that those matters would soon be laid before the house, when it
would appear that a certain English general had acted in concert with,
if not received orders from, mareschal de Villars. Lord Bolingbroke, who
had hitherto appeared in public, as usual, with remarkable serenity, and
spoke in the house of lords with great freedom and confidence, thought
it was now high time to consult his personal safety. He accordingly
withdrew to the continent, leaving a letter which was afterwards printed
in his justification. In this paper, he declared he had received certain
and repeated informations, that a resolution was taken to pursue him to
the scaffold; that if there had been the least reason to hope for a fair
and open trial, after having been already prejudged, unheard, by the
two houses of parliament, he should not have declined the strictest
examination. He challenged the most inveterate of his enemies to produce
any one instance of criminal correspondence, or the least corruption in
any part of the administration in which he was concerned. He said, if
his zeal for the honour and dignity of his royal mistress, and the true
interest of his country, had any where transported him to let slip
a warm and unguarded expression, he hoped the most favourable
interpretation would be put upon it. He affirmed that he had served her
majesty faithfully and dutifully in that especially which she had most
at heart, relieving her people from a bloody and expensive war; and that
he had always been too much an Englishman to sacrifice the interest of
his country to any foreign ally whatsoever.
{1715}
In the midst of all this violence against the late ministers, friends
were not wanting to espouse their cause in the face of opposition; and
even in some addresses to the king their conduct was justified.
Nay, some individuals had courage enough to attack the present
administration. When a motion was made in the house of commons to
consider the king’s proclamation for calling a new parliament, sir
William Whitelock, member for the university of Oxford, boldly declared
it was unprecedented and unwarrantable. Being called upon to explain
himself, he made an apology. Nevertheless, sir William Wyndham rising up
said, the proclamation was not only unprecedented and unwarrantable,
but even of dangerous consequence to the very being of parliaments. When
challenged to justify his charge, he observed, that every member was
free to speak his thoughts. Some exclaimed, “The Tower! the Tower!”
A warm debate ensued; sir William being ordered to withdraw, was
accompanied by one hundred and twenty-nine members; and those who
remained in the house resolved, that he should be reprimanded by the
speaker. He was accordingly rebuked, for having presumed to reflect on
his majesty’s proclamation, and having made an unwarrantable use of the
freedom of speech granted by his majesty. Sir William said he was not
conscious of having offered any indignity to his majesty, or of
having been guilty of a breach of privilege; that he acquiesced in the
determination of the house; but had no thanks to give to those gentlemen
who, under pretence of lenity, had subjected him to this censure.
COMMITTEE OF SECRECY.
On the ninth day of April, general Stanhope delivered to the house of
commons fourteen volumes, consisting of all the papers relating to the
late negotiations of peace and commerce, as well as to the cessation
of arms; and moved that they might be referred to a select committee
of twenty persons, who should digest the substance of them under proper
heads, and report them, with their observations, to the house. One more
was added to the number of this secret committee, which was chosen
by ballot, and met that same evening. Mr. Eobert Wal-pole, original
chairman, being taken ill, was succeeded in that place by Mr. Stanhope.
The whole number was subdivided into three committees. To each a certain
number of books was allotted; and they carried on the inquiry with great
eagerness and expedition. Before this measure was taken, Dr.
Gilbert Burnet, bishop of Sarum, died of a pleuritic fever, in the
seventy-second year of his age. Immediately after the committee had
begun to act, the whig party lost one of their warmest champions, by the
death of the marquis of Wharton, a nobleman possessed of happy talents
for the cabinet, the senate, and the common scenes of life; talents
which a life of pleasure and libertinism did not prevent him from
employing with surprising vigour and application. The committee of the
lower house taking the civil list into consideration, examined several
papers relating to that revenue. The tories observed, that from the
seven hundred thousand pounds granted annually to king William, fifty
thousand pounds were allotted to the late queen, when princess of
Denmark; twenty thousand pounds to the duke of Gloucester; and twice
that sum, as a dowry, to James’ queen; that nearly two hundred thousand
pounds had been yearly deducted from the revenues of the late queen’s
civil list, and applied to other uses; notwithstanding which deduction,
she had honourably maintained her family, and supported the dignity of
the crown. In the course of the debate, some warm altercation passed
between lord Guernsey and one of the members, who affirmed that the
late ministry had used the whigs, and indeed the whole nation, in such
a manner, that nothing they should suffer could be deemed a hardship.
At length the house agreed that the sum of seven hundred thousand pounds
clear should be granted for the civil list during his majesty’s life. A
motion being made for an address against pensions, it was opposed by Mr.
Walpole, and over-ruled by the majority. The lords passed the bill for
regulating the land forces, with some amendments.
SIR JOHN NORRIS SENT WITH A FLEET TO THE BALTIC.
On the eighteenth day of May, sir John Norris sailed with a strong
squadron to the Baltic, in order to protect the commerce of the nation,
which had suffered from the king of Sweden, who caused all ships trading
to those parts to be seized and confiscated. That prince had rejected
the treaty of neutrality concerted by the allies for the security of
the empire; and considered the English and Dutch as his enemies. The
ministers of England and the states-general had presented memorials to
the regency of Sweden; but finding no redress, they resolved to protect
their trade by force of arms. After the Swedish general, Steenbock, and
his army were made prisoners, count Wellen concluded a treaty with the
administrator of Holstein-Gottorp, by which the towns of Stetin and
Wisma were sequestered into the hands of the king of Prussia; the
administrator engaged to secure them, and all the rest of Swedish
Pomerania, from the Poles and Muscovites; but as the governor of
Pomerania refused to comply with this treaty, those allies marched
into the province, subdued the island of Eugen, and obliged Stetin to
surrender. Then the governor consented to the sequestration, and paid to
the Poles and Muscovites four hundred thousand rix dollars, to indemnify
them for the expense of the siege. The king of Sweden returning from
Turkey, rejected the treaty of sequestration, and insisted upon Stetin’s
being restored, without his repaying the money. As this monarch likewise
threatened to invade the electorate of Saxony, and chastise his false
friend; king George, for the security of his German dominions, concluded
a treaty with the king of Denmark, by which the duchies of Bremen and
Verden, which had been taken from the Swedes in his absence, were made
over to his Britannic majesty, on condition that he should immediately
declare war against Sweden. Accordingly he took possession of the
duchies in October, published a declaration of war against Charles in
his German dominions; and detached six thousand Hanoverians to join the
Danes and Prussians in Pomerania. These allies reduced the islands of
Rugen and Uledon, and attacked the towns of Wismar and Stralsund, from
which last place Charles was obliged to retire in a vessel to Schohen.
He assembled a body of troops with which he proposed to pass the Sound
upon the ice, and attack Copenhagen; but was disappointed by a sudden
thaw. Nevertheless he refused to return to Stockholm, which he had not
seen for sixteen years; but remained at Carlscroon, in order to hasten
his fleet for the relief of Wismar.
DISCONTENT OF THE NATION.
The spirit of discontent and disaffection seemed to gain ground every
day in England. Notwithstanding proclamations against riots, and orders
of the justices for maintaining the peace, repeated tumults were raised
by the malcontents in the cities of London and Westminster. Those who
celebrated the anniversary of the king’s birth-day with the usual marks
of joy and festivity, were insulted by the populace; but next day, which
was the anniversary of the restoration, the whole city was lighted up
with bonfires and illuminations, and echoed with the sound of mirth
and tumultuous rejoicing. The people even obliged the life-guards, who
patroled through the streets, to join in the cry of “High-church and
Ormond!” and in Smithfield they burned the picture of king William.
Thirty persons were imprisoned for being concerned in these riots. One
Bournois, a schoolmaster, who affirmed that king George had no right to
the crown, was tried and scourged through the city, with such severity
that in a few days he expired in the utmost torture. A frivolous
incident served to increase the popular ferment. The shirts allowed to
the first regiment of guards, commanded by the duke of Marlborough, were
so coarse that the soldiers could hardly be persuaded to wear them. Some
were thrown into the garden of the king’s palace, and into that which
belonged to the duke of Marlborough. A detachment, in marching through
the city, produced them to the view of the shop-keepers and passengers,
exclaiming, “These are the Hanover shirts.” The court being informed
of this clamour, ordered those new shirts to be burned immediately;
but even this sacrifice, and an advertisement published by the duke
of Marlborough in his own vindication, did not acquit that general of
suspicion that he was concerned in this mean species of peculation. A
reward of fifty pounds was offered by the government to any person
that would discover one captain Wight, who, by an intercepted letter,
appeared to be disaffected to king George; and Mr. George Jefferies was
seized at Dublin with a packet directed to Dr. Jonathan Swift, dean of
St. Patrick’s. Several treasonable papers being found in this packet,
were transmitted to England; Jefferies was obliged to give bail for his
appearance; and Swift thought proper to abscond.
REPORT OF THE SECRET COMMITTEE.
The house of lords, to demonstrate their abhorrence of all who
should engage in conspiracies against their sovereign, rejected with
indignation a petition presented to them in behalf of Blackburne,
Casils, Barnarde, Meldrum, and Chambers, who had hitherto continued
prisoners, for having conspired against the life of king William. On
the ninth day of June, Mr. Walpole, as chairman of the secret committee,
declared to the house of commons that the report was ready; and in
the meantime moved, that a warrant might be issued by Mr. Speaker, for
apprehending several persons, particularly Mr. Matthew Prior and Mr.
Thomas Harley, who being in the house, were immediately taken into
custody. Then he recited the report, ranged under these different heads:
the clandestine negotiation with monsieur Ménager; the extraordinary
measures pursued to form the congress at Utrecht; the trifling of the
French plenipotentiaries, by the connivance of the British ministers;
the negotiation about the renunciation of the Spanish monarchy; the
fatal suspension of arms; the seizure of Ghent and Bruges, in order to
distress the allies and favour the French; the duke of Ormond’s acting
in concert with the French general; the lord Bolingbroke’s journey to
France to negotiate a separate peace; Mr. Prior’s and the duke of
Shrewsbury’s negotiation in France; the precipitate conclusion of the
peace at Utrecht. The report being read, sir Thomas Hanmer moved that
the consideration of it should be adjourned to a certain day; and that
in the meantime the report should be printed for the perusal of the
members: he was seconded by the tories: a debate ensued; and the motion
was rejected by a great majority.
This point being gained, Mr. Walpole impeached Henry lord viscount
Bolingbroke of high treason, and other high crimes and misdemeanors. Mr.
Hungerford declared his opinion, that nothing mentioned in the report,
in relation to lord Bolingbroke, amounted to high treason; and general
Eoss expressed the same sentiment. Then lord Coningsby standing up, “The
worthy chairman,” said he, “has impeached the hand, but I impeach the
head: he has impeached the clerk, and I the justice; he has impeached
the scholar, and I the master. I impeach Eobert earl of Oxford and earl
Mortimer of high treason, and other high crimes and misdemeanors.”
Mr. Auditor Harley, the earl’s brother, spoke in vindication of that
minister. He affirmed he had done nothing but by the immediate command
of his sovereign; that the peace was a good peace, and approved as such
by two parliaments; and that the facts charged to him in the report
amounted only to misdemeanors; if the sanction of a parliament, which is
the representative and legislature of the nation, be not sufficient to
protect a minister from the vengeance of his enemies, he can have no
security. Mr. Atiditor Foley, the earl’s brother-in-law, made a speech
to the same purpose; sir Joseph Jekyll, a staunch whig, and member of
the secret committee, expressed his doubt whether they had sufficient
matter or evidence to impeach the earl of high treason. Nevertheless the
house resolved to impeach him without a division. When he appeared in
the house of lords next day, he found himself deserted by his brother
peers as infectious; and retired with signs of confusion. Prior and
Harley having been examined by such of the committee as were justices of
the peace for Middlesex, Mr. Walpole informed the house that matters of
such importance appeared in Prior’s examination, that he was directed
to move them for that member’s being closely confined. Prior was
accordingly imprisoned, and cut off from all communication. On the
twenty-first day of June, Mr. Secretary Stanhope impeached James duke
of Ormond of high treason, and other high crimes and misdemeanors. Mr.
Archibald Hutchinson, one of the commissioners of trade, spoke in favour
of the duke. He expatiated on his noble birth and qualifications; he
enumerated the great services performed to the crown and nation by his
grace and his ancestors; he observed, that in the whole course of his
late conduct, he had only obeyed the queen’s commands; and he affirmed
that all allegations against him could not in the rigour of the law be
construed into high treason. Mr. Hutchinson was seconded by general
Lumley, who urged that the duke of Ormond had on all occasions given
signal proofs of his affection for his country, as well as of personal
courage; and that he had generously expended the best part of his
estate, by living abroad in a most noble and splendid manner, for the
honour of his sovereign. Sir Joseph Jekyll said, if there was room
for mercy, he hoped it would be shown to that noble, generous, and
courageous peer, who had in a course of many years exerted those great
accomplishments for the good and honour of his country; that, as the
statute of Edward III., on which the charge of high treason against him
was to be grounded, had been mitigated by subsequent acts, the house
ought not, in his opinion, to take advantage of that act against the
duke, but only impeach him of high crimes and misdemeanors. General
Ross, sir William Wyndham, and the speakers of that party, did not
abandon the duke in this emergency; but all their arguments and
eloquence were lost upon the other faction, by which they were greatly
out-numbered The question being put, was carried for the impeachment of
the duke of Ormond, who perceiving every thing conducted by a furious
spirit of revenge, and that he could not expect the benefit of an
impartial trial, consulted his own safety by withdrawing himself from
the kingdom. On the twenty-second day of June, the earl of Strafford
was likewise impeached by Mr. Aislaby, for having advised the fatal
suspension of arms, and the seizing of Ghent and Bruges; as well as
for having treated the most serene house of Hanover with insolence and
contempt. He was also defended by his friends, but overpowered by his
enemies.
EARL OF OXFORD SENT TO THE TOWER.
When the articles against the earl of Oxford were read in the house, a
warm debate arose upon the eleventh, by which he was charged with having
advised the French king in what manner Tournay might be gained from the
states-general. The question being put, whether this article amounted to
high-treason; sir Robert Raymond, formerly solicitor-general, maintained
the negative, and was supported not only by sir William Wyndham and the
tories, but also by sir Joseph Jekyll. This honest patriot said it was
ever his principle to do justice to every body, from the highest to
the lowest; and that it was the duty of an honest man never to act by a
spirit of party; that he hoped he might pretend to have some knowledge
of the laws of the kingdom; and would not scruple to declare, that in
his judgment the charge in question did not amount to high-treason. Mr.
Walpole answered with great warmth, that there were several persons
both in and out of the committee, who did not in the least yield to
that member in point of honesty, and who were superior to him in the
knowledge of the laws, yet were satisfied that the charge specified in
the eleventh article amounted to high-treason. This point being decided
against the earl, and the other articles approved by the house, lord
Conningsby, attended by the whig members, impeached the earl of Oxford
at the bar of the house of lords, demanding at the same time that he
might be sequestered from parliament, and committed to safe custody.
A motion was made, that the consideration of the articles might be
adjourned. After a short debate the articles were read; then the
tory lords moved that the judges might be consulted. The motion being
rejected, another was made, that the earl should be committed to safe
custody. This occasioned another debate, in which he himself spoke to
the following purpose: that the whole charge might be reduced to the
negotiations and conclusions of the peace; that the nation wanted a
peace, he said, nobody would deny; that the conditions of the peace
were as good as could be expected, considering the backwardness and
reluctancy which some of the allies showed to come into the queen’s
measures; that the peace was approved by two successive parliaments;
that he had no share in the affair of Tournay, which was wholly
transacted by that unfortunate nobleman who has thought fit to
step aside; that for his own part, he always acted by the immediate
directions and commands of the late queen, without offending against any
known law; and, being justified by his own conscience, was unconcerned
for the life of an insignificant old man; that, if ministers of state,
acting by the immediate commands of their sovereign, are afterwards to
be made accountable for their proceedings, it might one day or other be
the case with all the members of that august assembly; that he did not
doubt their lordships, out of regard to themselves, would give him an
equitable hearing; and that in the prosecution of the inquiry it would
appear he had merited not only the indulgence, but even the favour of
his government. “My lords,” said he, “I am now to take my leave of your
lordships, and of this honourable house, perhaps for ever; I shall lay
down my life with pleasure in a cause favoured by my late dear royal
mistress. When I consider that I am to be judged by the justice,
honour, and virtue of my peers, I shall acquiesce, and retire with great
content; and, my lords, God’s will be done.” The duke of Shrewsbury
having acquainted the house that the earl was very much indisposed with
the gravel, he was suffered to remain at his own house in custody of the
black-rod; in his way thither he was attended by a great multitude of
people crying, “High-church, Ormond and Oxford for ever!” Next day he
was brought to the bar; where he received a copy of the articles, and
was allowed a month to prepare his answer. Though Dr. Mead declared that
if the earl should be sent to the Tower his life would be in danger, it
was carried, on a division, that he should be conveyed thither on the
sixteenth day of July. During the debate, the earl of Anglesea observed,
that these impeachments were disagreeable to the nation, and that it was
to be feared such violent measures would make the sceptre shake in the
king’s hands. This expression kindled the whole house into a flame. Some
members cried, “To the Tower!” some, “To order!” The earl of Sunderland
declared, that if these words had been spoken in another place, he
would have called the person that had spoken them to an account; in the
meantime he moved that the noble lord should explain himself. Anglesea,
dreading the resentment of the house, was glad to make an apology;
which was accepted. The earl of Oxford was attended to the Tower by a
prodigious concourse of people, who did not scruple to exclaim against
his persecutors. Tumults were raised in Staffordshire, and other parts
of the kingdom, against the whig party, which had depressed the friends
of the church and embroiled the nation. The house of commons presented
an address to the king, desiring that the laws might be vigorously
executed against the rioters. They prepared the proclamation-act,
decreeing, that if any persons to the number of twelve, unlawfully
assembled, should continue together one hour after having been required
to disperse by a justice of peace or other officer, and heard the
proclamation against riots read in public, they should be deemed guilty
of felony without benefit of clergy.
{GEORGE I, 1714--1727}
THE KING DECLARES TO BOTH HOUSES THAT A REBELLION IS BEGUN.
When the king went to the house of peers on the twentieth day of July,
to give the royal assent to this and some other bills, he told both
houses that a rebellion was actually begun at home; and that the nation
was threatened with an invasion from abroad. He therefore expected that
the commons would not leave the kingdom in a defenceless condition, but
enable him to take such measures as should be necessary for the public
safety. Addresses in the usual style were immediately presented by
the parliament, the convocation, the common-council and lieutenancy of
London, and the two universities; but that of Oxford was received in the
most contemptuous manner; and the deputies were charged with disloyalty,
on account of a fray which had happened between some recruiting officers
and the scholars of the university. The addresses from the kirk of
Scotland, and the dissenting ministers of London and Westminster, met
with a much more gracious reception. The parliament forthwith passed a
bill, empowering the king to secure suspected persons, and to suspend
the _habeas-corpus_ act in that time of danger. A clause was added to a
money-bill, offering the reward of one hundred thousand pounds to such
as should seize the pretender dead or alive. Sir George Byng was sent to
take the command of the fleet. General Earle repaired to his government
of Portsmouth; the guards were encamped in Hyde-park; lord Irwin was
appointed governor of Hull, in the room of brigadier Sutton, who,
together with lord Windsor, the generals Ross, Webb, and Stuart, were
dismissed from the service. Orders were given for raising thirteen
regiments of dragoons, and eight of infantry; and the trained bands
were kept in readiness to suppress tumults. In the midst of these
transactions, the commons added six articles to those exhibited against
the earl of Oxford. Lord Bolingbroke was impeached at the bar of the
house of lords by Mr. Walpole. Bills being brought in to summon him and
the duke of Ormond to surrender themselves by the tenth of September,
or, in default thereof, to attaint them of high treason, they passed
both houses and received the royal assent. On the last day of August,
the commons agreed to the articles against the earl of Strafford, which
being presented to the house of lords, the earl made a speech in his
own vindication. He complained that his papers had been seized in an
unprecedented manner. He said, if he had in his letters or discourse
dropped any unguarded expressions against some foreign ministers, while
he had the honour to represent the crown of Great Britain, he hoped they
would not be accounted criminal by a British house of peers; he desired
he might be allowed a competent time to answer the articles brought
against him, and have duplicates of all the papers which had either
been laid before the committee of secrecy, or remained in the hands of
government, to be used occasionally in his justification. This request
was vehemently opposed by the leaders of the other party, until the
earl of Hay represented that, in all civilized nations, all courts of
judicature, except the inquisition, allowed the persons arraigned all
that was necessary for their justification; and that the house of peers
of Great Britain ought not, in this case, to do any thing contrary to
that honour and equity for which they were so justly renowned throughout
all Europe. This observation made an impression on the house, which
resolved that the earl should be indulged with copies of such papers as
he might have occasion to use in his defence.
DUKE OF ORMOND AND LORD BOLINGBROKE ATTAINTED.
On the third day of September, Oxford’s answer was delivered to the
house of lords, who transmitted it to the commons. Mr. Walpole, having
heard it read, said it contained little more than a repetition of what
had been suggested in some pamphlets and papers which had been published
in vindication of the late ministry; that it was a false and malicious
libel, laying upon his royal mistress the blame of all the pernicious
measures he had led her into, against her own honour, and the good of
his country; that it was likewise a libel on the proceedings of the
commons, since he endeavoured to clear those persons who had already
confessed their guilt by flight. After some debate, the house resolved,
that the answer of Robert earl of Oxford should be referred to the
committee appointed to draw up articles of impeachment, and prepare
evidence against the impeached lords; and that the committee should
prepare a replication to the answer. This was accordingly prepared and
sent up to the lords. Then the committee reported, that Mr. Prior had
grossly prevaricated on his examination, and behaved with great contempt
of their authority. The duke of Ormond and lord viscount Bolingbroke
having omitted to surrender themselves within the limited time, the
house of lords ordered the earl-marshal to raze out of the list of
peers their names and armorial bearings. Inventories were taken of their
personal estates; and the duke’s achievements, as knight of the garter,
were taken down from St. George’s chapel at Windsor. A man of candour
cannot, without an emotion of grief and indignation, reflect upon the
ruin of the noble family of Ormond, in the person of a brave, generous,
and humane nobleman, to whom no crime was imputed but that of having
obeyed the commands of his sovereign. About this period the royal assent
was given to an act for encouraging loyalty in Scotland. By this law the
tenant who continued peaceable while his lord took arms in favour of the
pretender, was invested with the property of the lands he rented; on the
other hand, it was decreed that the lands possessed by any person guilty
of high treason should revert to the superior of whom they were held,
and be consolidated with the superiority; and that all entails and
settlements of estates, since the first day of August, in favour of
children, with a fraudulent intent to avoid the punishment of the law
due to the offence of high treason, should be null and void. It likewise
contained a clause for summoning suspected persons to find bail for
their good behaviour, on pain of being denounced rebels. By virtue of
this clause all the heads of the jacobite clans, and other suspected
persons, were summoned to Edinburgh; and those who did not appear were
declared rebels.
INTRIGUES OF THE JACOBITES.
By this time the rebellion was actually begun in Scotland. The
dissensions occasioned in that country by the union had never been
wholly appeased. Ever since the queen’s death, addresses were prepared
in different parts of Scotland against the union, which was deemed a
national grievance; and the Jacobites did not fail to encourage this
aversion. Though the hopes of dissolving that treaty were baffled by the
industry and other arts of the revolutioners, who secured a majority of
whigs in parliament, they did not lay aside their designs of attempting
something of consequence in favour of the pretender; but maintained a
correspondence with the malcontents of England, a great number of whom
were driven by apprehension, hard usage, and resentment, into a system
of politics which otherwise they would not have espoused. The tories
finding themselves totally excluded from any share in the government and
legislature, and exposed to the insolence and fury of a faction which
they despised, began to wish in earnest for a revolution. Some of them
held private consultations, and communicated with the Jacobites, who
conveyed their sentiments to the chevalier de St. George, with such
exaggerations as were dictated by their own eagerness and extravagance.
They assured the pretender that the nation was wholly disaffected to the
new government; and indeed the clamours, tumults, and conversation of
the people in general countenanced this assertion. They promised to take
arms, without further delay, in his favour; and engaged that the tories
should join them at his first landing in Great Britain. They therefore
besought him to come over with all possible expedition, declaring that
his appearance would produce an immediate revolution. The chevalier
resolved to take the advantage of this favourable disposition. He had
recourse to the French king, who had always been the refuge of his
family. Louis favoured him in secret; and, notwithstanding his late
engagements with England, cherished the ambition of raising him to the
throne of Great Britain. He supplied him privately with sums of money to
prepare a small armament in the port of Havre, which was equipped in
the name of Depine d’Anicaut; and, without all doubt, his design was to
assist him more effectually in proportion as the English should manifest
their attachment to the house of Stuart. The duke of Ormond and lord
Bolingbroke, who had retired to France, finding themselves condemned
unheard, and attainted, engaged in the service of the chevalier, and
corresponded with the tories of England.
DEATH OF LOUIS XIV.
All these intrigues and machinations were discovered and communicated
to the court of London by the earl of Stair, who then resided as English
ambassador at Paris. He was a nobleman of unquestioned honour and
integrity, generous, humane, discerning, and resolute. He had signalized
himself by his valour, intrepidity, and other military talents, during
the war in the Netherlands; and he now acted in another sphere with
uncommon vigour, vigilance, and address. He detected the chevalier’s
scheme while it was yet in embryo, and gave such early notice of it
as enabled the king of Great Britain to take effectual measures for
defeating the design. All the pretender’s interest in France expired
with Louis XIV., that ostentatious tyrant, who had for above half a
century sacrificed the repose of Christendom to his insatiate vanity and
ambition. At his death, which happened on the first day of September,
the regency of the kingdom devolved to the duke of Orleans, who adopted
a new system of politics, and had already entered into engagements with
the king of Great Britain. Instead of assisting the pretender, he amused
his agents with mysterious and equivocal expressions, calculated to
frustrate the design of the expedition. Nevertheless, the more violent
part of the Jacobites in Great Britain believed he was at bottom a
friend to their cause, and depended upon him for succour. They even
extorted from him a sum of money by dint of importunities, and some
arms; but the vessel was shipwrecked, and the cargo lost upon the coast
of Scotland.
THE EARL OF MAR SETS UP THE PRETENDER’S STANDARD.
The partisans of the pretender had proceeded too far to retreat with
safety, and therefore resolved to try their fortune in the field. The
earl of Mar repaired to the Highlands, where he held consultations with
the marquasses of Huntley and Tullibardine, the earls Marischal and
Southesk, the generals Hamilton and Gordon, with the chiefs of the
Jacobite clans. Then he assembled three hundred of his own vassals,
proclaimed the pretender at Castletown, and set up his standard at
Brae-Mar, on the sixth day of September. By this time the earls of Home,
Winton, and Kinnoul, lord Deskford, and Lockhart of Carnwath, with
other persons suspected of disaffection to the present government,
were committed prisoners to the castle of Edinburgh; and major-general
Whetham marched with the regular troops which were in that kingdom to
secure the bridge at Stirling. Before these precautions were taken, two
vessels had arrived at Arbroath from Havre, with arms, ammunition, and a
great number of officers, who assured the earl of Mar that the pretender
would soon be with them in person. The death of Louis the XIV. struck a
general damp upon their spirits; but they laid their account with being
joined by a powerful body in England. The earl of Mar, by letters and
messages, pressed the chevalier to come over without further delay.
He, in the meantime, assumed the title of lieutenant-general of the
pretender’s forces, and published a declaration, exhorting the people
to take arms for their lawful sovereign. This was followed by a shrewd
manifesto, explaining the national grievances, and assuring the people
of redress. Some of his partisans attempted to surprise the castle of
Edinburgh; but were prevented by the vigilance and activity of colonel
Stuart, lieutenant-governor of that fortress. The duke of Argyle set out
for Scotland, as commander-in-chief of the forces in North Britain: the
earl of Sutherland set sail in the Queen-borough ship-of-war for
the North, where he proposed to raise his vassals for the service of
government; and many other Scottish peers returned to their own country
in order to signalize their loyalty to king George.
In England the practices of the Jacobites did not escape the notice of
the ministry. Lieutenant-colonel Paul was imprisoned in the gate-house
for enlisting men in the service of the pretender. The titular duke of
Powis was committed to the Tower; lords Lansdown-e and Duplin were taken
into custody; and a warrant was issued for apprehending the earl of
Jersey. The king desired the consent of the lower house to seize and
detain sir William Wyndham, sir John Packington, Mr. Edward Harvey of
Combe, Mr. Thos. Forster, Mr. John Anstis, and Mr. Corbet Kynaston, who
were members of the house, and suspected of favouring the invasion. The
commons unanimously agreed to the proposal, and presented an address
signifying their approbation. Harvey and Anstis were immediately
secured. Forster, with the assistance of some popish lords, assembled a
body of men in Northumberland’ sir John Packington being examined before
the council, was dismissed for want of evidence: Mr. Kynaston absconded;
sir William Wyndham was seized at his own house in Somersetshire, by
colonel Huske and a messenger, who secured his papers: he found means,
however, to escape from them; but afterwards surrendered himself: and,
having been examined at the council-board, was committed to the Tower.
His father-in-law, the duke of Somerset, offered to become bound for
his appearance; and being rejected as bail, expressed his resentment
so warmly that the king thought proper to remove him from the office of
master of the horse. On the twenty-first day of September, the king went
to the house of lords and passed the bills that were ready for the royal
assent. Then the chancellor read his majesty’s speech, expressing his
acknowledgment and satisfaction, in consequence of the uncommon marks
of their affection he had received; and the parliament adjourned to the
sixth day of October.
The friends of the house of Stuart were very numerous in the western
counties, and began to make preparations for an insurrection. They
had concealed some arms and artillery at Bath, and formed a design
to surprise Bristol; but they were betrayed and discovered by the
emissaries of the government, which baffled all their schemes, and
apprehended every person of consequence suspected of attachment to that
cause. The university of Oxford felt the rod of power on that occasion.
Major-general Pepper, with a strong detachment of dragoons, took
possession of the city at day-break, declaring he would use military
execution on all students who should presume to appear without the
limits of their respective colleges. He seized tenor eleven persons,
among whom was one Lloyd, a coffee-man; and made prize of some horses
and furniture belonging to colonel Owen and other gentlemen. With this
booty he retreated to Abingdon; and Handasyde’s regiment of foot was
afterwards quartered in Oxford to overawe the university. The ministry
found it more difficult to suppress the insurgents in the northern
counties. In the month of October the earl of Derwentwater and Mr.
Forster took the field with a body of horse, and being joined by some
gentlemen from the borders of Scotland, proclaimed the pretender in
Warkworth, Morpeth, and Alnwick. The first design was to seize the town
of Newcastle, in which they had many friends; but they found the gates
shut upon them, and retired to Hexham; while general Carpenter having
assembled a body of dragoons, resolved to march from Newcastle and
attack them before they should be reinforced. The rebels retiring
northward to Woller, were joined by two hundred Scottish horse under the
lord viscount Kenmuir, and the earls of Carnwath and Winton, who had set
up the pretender’s standard at Moffat, and proclaimed him in different
parts of Scotland. The rebels thus reinforced advanced to Kelso, having
received advice that they would be joined by Mackintosh, who had crossed
the Forth with a body of Highlanders.
MACKINTOSH JOINS THE ENGLISH INSURGENTS.
By this time the earl of Mar was at the head of ten thousand men
well armed. He had secured the pass of the Tay at Perth, where his
head-quarters were established, and made himself master of the whole
fruitful province of Fife, and all the sea-coast on that side of the
Frith of Edinburgh. He selected two thousand five hundred men, commanded
by brigadier Mackintosh, to make a descent upon the Lothian side, and
join the Jacobites in that county, or such as should take arms on
the borders of England. Boats were assembled for this purpose; and
notwithstanding all the precautions that could be taken by the king’s
ships in the Frith to prevent the design, about fifteen hundred chosen
men made good their passage in the night, and landed on the coast of
Lothian, having crossed an arm of the sea about sixteen miles broad, in
open boats that passed through the midst of the king’s cruisers. Nothing
could be better concerted, or executed with more conduct and courage,
than was this hazardous enterprise. They amused the king’s ships with
marches and counter-marches along the coast, in such a manner that they
could not possibly know where they intended to embark. The earl of Mar,
in the meantime, marched from Perth to Dumblane as if he had intended
to cross the Forth at Stirling bridge; but his real design was to divert
the duke of Argyle from attacking his detachment which had landed in
Lothian. So far the scheme succeeded. The duke, who had assembled some
troops in Lothian, returned to Stirling with the utmost expedition,
after having secured Edinburgh and obliged Mackintosh to abandon his
design on that city. This partisan had actually taken possession of
Leith, from whence he retired to Seaton-house, near Prestonpans, which
he fortified in such a manner that he could not be forced without
artillery. Here he remained until he received an order across the Frith
from the earl of Mar to join lord Kenmuir and the English at Kelso,
for which place he immediately began his march, and reached it on
the twenty-second day of October, though a good number of his men had
deserted on the route.
The lord Kenmuir, with the earls of Winton, Nithsdale, and Carnwath,
the earl of Derwentwater, and Mr. Forster with the English insurgents,
arriving at the same time, a council of war was immediately called.
Winton proposed that they should march immediately into the western
parts of Scotland and join general Gordon, who commanded a strong body
of Highlanders in Argyleshire. The English insisted upon crossing the
Tweed and attacking general Carpenter, whose troops did not exceed nine
hundred dragoons. Neither scheme was executed. They took the route
to Jedburgh, where they resolved to leave Carpenter on one side and
penetrate into England by the western border. The Highlanders declared
they would not quit their own country, but were ready to execute the
scheme proposed by the earl of Winton. Means however were found to
prevail upon one half of them to advance, while the rest returned to the
Highlands. At Brampton, Forster opened his commission of general, which
had been sent to him by the earl of Mar, and proclaimed the pretender.
They continued their march to Penrith, where the sheriff, assisted
by lord Lonsdale and the bishop of Carlisle, had assembled the whole
posse-comitatus of Cumberland, amounting to twelve thousand men, who
dispersed with the utmost precipitation at the approach of the rebels.
From Penrith, Forster proceeded by way of Kendal and Lancaster to
Preston, from whence Stanhope’s regiment of dragoons and another of
militia immediately retired, so that he took possession of the place
without resistance. General Willis marched against the enemy with six
regiments of horse and dragoons, and one battalion of foot commanded
by colonel Preston. They had advanced to the bridge of Ribble before
Forster received intelligence of their approach. He forthwith began to
raise barricadoes, and put the place in a posture of defence. On the
twelfth day of November the town was briskly attacked in two different
places; but the king’s troops met with a very warm reception, and were
repulsed with considerable loss. Next day general Carpenter arrived
with a reinforcement of three regiments of dragoons, and the rebels were
invested on all sides. The Highlanders declared they would make a sally
sword in hand, and either cut their way through the king’s troops or
perish in the attempt, but they were over-ruled. Forster sent colonel
Oxburgh with a trumpet to general Willis, to propose a capitulation. He
was given to understand that the general would not treat with rebels;
but in case of their surrendering at discretion, he would prevent his
soldiers from putting them to the sword until he should receive further
orders. He granted them time to consider till next morning, upon
their delivering the earl of Derwentwater and Mackintosh as hostages.
When Forster submitted, this Highlander declared he could not promise
the Scots would surrender in that manner. The general desired him to
return to his people, and he would forthwith attack the town, in which
case every man of them should be cut to pieces. The Scottish noblemen
did not choose to run the risk, and persuaded the Highlanders to accept
the terms that were offered. They accordingly laid down their arms,
and were put under a strong guard. All the noblemen and leaders were
secured. Major Nairn, captain Lockhart, captain Shaftoe, and ensign
Erskine, were tried by a court-martial as deserters, and executed. Lord
Charles Murray, son of the duke of Athol, was likewise condemned for the
same crime, but reprieved. The common men were imprisoned at Chester and
Liverpool, the noblemen and considerable officers were sent to London,
conveyed through the streets pinioned like malefactors, and committed
to the Tower and to Newgate.
BATTLE AT DUMBLANE.
The day on which the rebels surrendered at Preston was remarkable for
the battle of Dumblane, fought between the duke of Argyle and the
earl of Mar, who commanded the pretender’s forces. This nobleman had
retreated to his camp at Perth, when he understood the duke was returned
from Lothian to Stirling. But being now joined by the northern clans
under the earl of Seaforth, and those of the west commanded by general
Gordon, who had signalized himself in the service of the czar of
Muscovy, he resolved to pass the Forth in order to join his southern
friends, that they might march together into England. With this view he
advanced to Auchterarder, where he reviewed his army, and rested on the
eleventh day of November. The duke of Argyle, apprised of his intention,
and being joined by some regiments of dragoons from Ireland, determined
to give him battle in the neighbourhood of Dumblane. On the twelfth day
of the month, Argyle passed the Forth at Stirling, and encamped with his
left at the village of Dumblane, and his right towards Sheriffmuir. The
earl of Mar advanced within two miles of his camp, and remained till
day-break in order of battle; his army consisted of nine thousand
effective men, cavalry as well as infantry. In the morning the duke,
understanding they were in motion, drew up his forces, which did not
exceed three thousand five hundred men, on the heights to the north-east
of Dumblane; but he was outflanked both on the right and left. The
clans that formed part of the centre and right wing of the enemy, with
Glengary and Clanronald at their head, charged the left of the king’s
army sword in hand, with such impetuosity that in seven minutes both
horse and foot were totally routed with great slaughter; and general
Whetham, who commanded them, fled at full gallop to Stirling, where he
declared that the royal army was totally defeated. In the meantime the
duke of Argyle, who commanded in person on the right, attacked the left
of the enemy, at the head of Stair’s and Evan’s dragoons, and drove them
two miles before him, as far as the water of Allan; yet in that space
they wheeled about and attempted to rally ten times; so that he was
obliged to press them hard that they might not recover from their
confusion. Brigadier Wightman followed in order to sustain him with
three battalions of infantry; while the victorious right wing of the
rebels having pursued Whetham a considerable way, returned to the field
and formed in the rear of Wightman to the amount of five thousand men.
The duke of Argyle returning from the pursuit, joined Wightman, who had
faced about and taken possession of some enclosures and mud wails in
expectation of being attacked. In this posture both armies fronted each
other till the evening, when the duke drew off towards Dumblane, and the
rebels retired to Ardoch, without mutual molestation. Next day the duke
marching back to the field of battle, carried off the wounded, with
four pieces of cannon left by the army, and retreated to Stirling. Few
prisoners were taken on either side: the number of the slain might be
about five hundred of each army, and both generals claimed the
victory. This battle was not so fatal to the Highlanders as the loss
of Inverness, from which sir John Mackenzie was driven by Simon Fraser,
lord Lovat, who, contrary to the principles he hitherto professed,
secured this important post for the government; by which means a free
communication was opened with the north of Scotland, where the earl of
Sutherland had raised a considerable body of vassals. The marquis of
Huntley and the earl of Seaforth were obliged to quit the rebel army, in
order to defend their own territories; and in a little time submitted
to king George: a good number of the Frasers declared with their chief
against the pretender: the marquis of Tullibardine withdrew from the
army to cover his own country; and the clans, seeing no likelihood of
another action, began to disperse according to custom.
THE PRETENDER ARRIVES IN SCOTLAND.
The government was now in a condition to send strong reinforcements to
Scotland. Six thousand men that were claimed of the states-general,
by virtue of the treaty, landed in England, and began their march for
Edinburgh: general Cadogan set out for the same place, together with
brigadier Petit, and six other engineers; and a train of artillery was
shipped at the Tower for that country, the duke of Argyle resolving to
drive the earl of Mar out of Perth, to which town he retired with the
remains of his forces. The pretender having been amused with the hope
of seeing the whole kingdom of England rise up as one man in his behalf;
and the duke of Ormond having made a fruitless voyage to the western
coast, to try the disposition of the people, he was now convinced of
the vanity of his expectation in that quarter; and, as he knew not what
other course to take, he resolved to hazard his person among his friends
in Scotland, at a time when his affairs in that kingdom were absolutely
desperate. From Bretagne he posted through part of France in disguise,
and embarking in a small vessel at Dunkirk, hired for that purpose,
arrived on the twenty-second day of December at Peterhead with six
gentlemen in his retinue, one of whom was the marquis of Tynemouth,
son to the duke of Berwick. He passed through Aberdeen incognito, to
Fetterosse, where he was met by the earls of Mar and Marischal, and
about thirty noblemen and gentlemen of the first quality. Here he was
solemnly proclaimed: his declaration, dated at Com-mercy, was printed
and circulated through all the parts in that neighbourhood; and he
received addresses from the episcopal clergy, and the laity of that
communion in the diocese of Aberdeen. On the fifth day of January he
made his public entry into Dundee; and on the seventh arrived at Scone,
where he seemed determined to stay until the ceremony of his coronation
should be performed. From thence he made an excursion to Perth, where he
reviewed his forces. Then he formed a regular council; and published
six proclamations: one for a general thanksgiving on account of his
safe arrival; another enjoining the ministers to pray for him in the
churches; a third establishing the currency of foreign coins; a fourth
summoning the meeting of the convention of estates; a fifth ordering
all sensible men to repair to his standard; and a sixth, fixing the
twenty-third day of January for his coronation. He made a pathetic
speech in a grand council, at which all the chiefs of his party
assisted. They determined, however, to abandon the enterprise, as the
king’s army was reinforced by the Dutch auxiliaries, and they themselves
were not only reduced to a small number, but likewise destitute of
money, arms, ammunition, forage, and provision; for the duke of Argyle
had taken possession of Burntisland, and transported a detachment to
Fife, so as to cut off Mar’s communication with that fertile country.
Notwithstanding the severity of the weather, and a prodigious fall
of snow which rendered the roads almost impassable, the duke, on the
twenty-ninth of January began his march for Dumblane, and next day
reached Tullibardine, where he received intelligence that the pretender
and his forces had, on the preceding day, retired towards Dundee.
He forthwith took possession of Perth; and then began his march to
Aberbrothick, in pursuit of the enemy. The chevalier de St. George being
thus hotly pursued, was prevailed upon to embark on board a small French
ship that lay in the harbour of Montrose. He was accompanied by the
earls of Mar and Melfort, the lord Drummond, lieutenant-general Bulkley,
and other persons of distinction, to the number of seventeen. In order
to avoid the English cruisers, they stretched over to Norway, and
coasting along the German and Dutch shores, arrived in five days
at Grave-line. General Gordon, whom the pretender had left
commander-in-chief of the forces, assisted by the earl Marischal,
proceeded with them to Aberdeen, where he secured three vessels to sail
northward, and take on board the persons who intended to make their
escape to the continent. Then they continued their march through
Strathspey and Strathdown, to the hills of Badenoch, where the
common people were quietly dismissed. This retreat was made with such
expedition, that the duke of Argyle, with all his activity, could never
overtake their rear-guard, which consisted of a thousand horse commanded
by the earl Marischal. Such was the issue of a rebellion that proved
fatal to many noble families; a rebellion which in all probability would
never have happened, had not the violent measures of a whig ministry
kindled such a flame of discontent in the nation, as encouraged the
partisans of the pretender to hazard a revolt.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE IRISH PARLIAMENT.
The parliament of Ireland, which met at Dublin on the twelfth day of
November, seemed even more zealous, if possible, than that of England,
for the present administration. They passed bills for recognizing the
king’s title; for the security of his person and government; for setting
a price on the pretender’s head; and for attainting the duke of
Ormond. They granted the supplies without opposition. All those who had
addressed the late queen in favour of sir Constantine Phipps, then lord
chancellor of Ireland, were now brought upon their knees, and censured
as guilty of a breach of privilege. They desired the lords-justices
would issue a proclamation against the popish inhabitants of Limerick
and Gal-way, who, presuming upon the capitulation signed by king
William, claimed an exemption from the penalties imposed upon other
papists. They engaged in an association against the pretender, and all
his abettors. They voted the earl of Anglesea an enemy to the king and
kingdom, because he advised the queen to break the army, and prorogue
the late parliament; and they addressed the king to remove him from his
council and service. The lords-justices granted orders for apprehending
the earls of Antrim and Westmeath, the lords Natterville, Cahir, and
Dillon, as persons suspected of disaffection to the government. Then
they adjourned the two houses.
{GEORGE I, 1714--1727}
THE REBEL LORDS ARE IMPEACHED.
The king in his speech to the English parliament, which met on the ninth
of January, told them he had reason to believe the pretender was
landed in Scotland; he congratulated them on the success of his arms
in suppressing the rebellion; on the conclusion of the barrier-treaty
between the emperor and the states-general, under his guarantee; on a
convention with Spain that would deliver the trade of England to
that kingdom, from the new impositions and hardships to which it was
subjected in consequence of the late treaties. He likewise gave them to
understand, that a treaty for renewing all former alliances between the
crown of Great Britain and the states-general was almost concluded;
and he assured the commons he would freely give up all the estates that
should become forfeited to the crown by this rebellion, to be applied
towards defraying the extraordinary expense incurred on this occasion.
The commons, in their address of thanks, declared that they would
prosecute, in the most vigorous and impartial manner, the authors of
those destructive councils which had drawn down such miseries upon the
nation. Their resolutions were speedy, and exactly conformable to this
declaration. They expelled Mr. Forster from the house. They forthwith
impeached the earls of Derwentwater, Nithsdale, Carnwath, and Winton;
lords Widdrington, Kenmuir, and Nairn. These noblemen being brought to
the bar of the house of lords, heard the articles of impeachment read
on the tenth day of January, and were ordered to put in their answers on
the sixteenth. The impeachments being lodged, the lower house ordered
a bill to be brought in for continuing the suspension of the
_habeas-corpus_ act; then they prepared another to attaint the marquis
of Tullibardine, the earls of Mar and Linlithgow, and lord John
Drummond. On the twenty-first day of January, the king gave the royal
assent to the bill for continuing the suspension of the _habeas-corpus_
act. He told the parliament that the pretender was actually in Scotland
heading the rebellion, and assuming the style and title of king of these
realms; he demanded of the commons such supply as might discourage any
foreign power from assisting the rebels. On Thursday the nineteenth
day of January, all the impeached lords pleaded guilty to the articles
exhibited against them, except the earl of Winton, who petitioned for a
longer time on various pretences. The rest received sentence of death
on the ninth day of February, in the court erected in Westminster-hall,
where the lord-chancellor Cowper presided as lord high-steward on that
occasion. The countess of Nithsdale and lady Nairn threw themselves at
the king’s feet, as he passed through the apartments of the palace,
and implored his mercy in behalf of their husbands; but their tears and
entreaties produced no effect. The council resolved that the sentence
should be executed, and orders were given for that purpose to the
lieutenant of the Tower, and the sheriffs of London and Middlesex.
EARL OF DEEWENTWATER AND LORD KENMUIR ARE BEHEADED.
The countess of Derwentwater, with her sister, accompanied by the
duchesses of Cleveland and Bolton, and several other ladies of the first
distinction, was introduced by the dukes of Richmond and St. Alban’s
into the king’s bed-chamber, where she invoked his majesty’s clemency
for her unfortunate consort. She afterwards repaired to the lobby of the
house of peers, attended by the ladies of the other condemned lords, and
above twenty others of the same quality, and begged the intercession
of the house; but no regard was paid to their petition. Next day they
petitioned both houses of parliament. The commons rejected their suit.
In the upper house, the duke of Richmond delivered a petition from the
earl of Derwentwater, to whom he was nearly related, at the same time
declaring that he himself should oppose his solicitation. The earl of
Derby expressed some compassion for the numerous family of lord Nairn.
Petitions from the rest were presented by other lords, moved with pity
and humanity. Lord Town-shend and others vehemently opposed their being
read. The earl of Nottingham thought this indulgence might be granted;
the house assented to his opinion, and agreed to an address, praying
his majesty would reprieve such of the condemned lords as should seem to
deserve his mercy. To this petition the king answered, that on this and
all other occasions, he would do what he thought most consistent with
the dignity of his crown and the safety of his people. The earl of
Nottingham, president of the council, his brother the earl of Aylesbury,
chancellor of the duchy of Lancaster, his son lord Finch, one of
the lords of the treasury, his kinsman lord Guernsey, master of the
jewel-office, were altogether dismissed from his majesty’s service.
Orders were despatched for executing the earls of Derwentwater and
Nithsdale, and the viscount of Kennruir, immediately; the others were
respited to the seventh day of March. Nithsdale made his escape in
woman’s apparel, furnished and conveyed to him by his own mother. On the
twenty-fourth day of February, Derwentwater and Kenmuir were beheaded
on Tower-hill. The former was an amiable youth, brave, open, generous,
hospitable, and humane. His fate drew tears from the spectators, and was
a great misfortune to the country in which he lived. He gave bread
to multitudes of people whom he employed on his estate; the poor, the
widow, and the orphan rejoiced in his bounty. Kenmuir was a virtuous
nobleman, calm, sensible, resolute, and resigned. He was a devout member
of the English church; but the other died in the faith of Rome: both
adhered to their political principles. On the fifteenth day of March,
Winton was brought to trial, and being convicted, received sentence of
death.
{1716}
TRIALS OF REBELS.
When the king passed the land-tax bill, which was ushered in with a
very extraordinary preamble, he informed both houses of the pretender’s
flight from Scotland. In the beginning of April a commission for trying
the rebels met in the court of common-pleas, when bills of high
treason were found against Mr. Forster, Mackintosh, and twenty of their
confederates. Forster escaped from Newgate, and reached the continent
in safety; the rest pleaded not guilty, and were indulged with time
to prepare for their trials. The judges appointed to try the rebels
at Liverpool, found a considerable number guilty of high treason.
Two-and-twenty were executed at Preston and Manchester; about a
thousand prisoners submitted to the king’s mercy, and petitioned for
transportation. Pitts, the keeper of Newgate, being suspected of having
connived at Forster’s escape, was tried for his life at the Old-Bailey,
and acquitted. Notwithstanding this prosecution, which ought to have
redoubled the vigilance of the jailors, brigadier Mackintosh, and
several other prisoners, broke from Newgate, after having mastered the
keeper and turnkey, and disarmed the sentinel. The court proceeded with
the trials of those that remained, and a great number were found guilty;
four or five were hanged, drawn, and quartered, at Tyburn; and among
these was one William Paul, a clergyman, who, in his last speech,
professed himself a true and sincere member of the church of England,
but not of the revolution schismatical church, whose bishops had
abandoned the king, and shamefully given up their ecclesiastical rights,
by submitting to the unlawful, invalid, lay-deprivations authorized by
the prince of Orange.
ACT FOR SEPTENNIAL PARLIAMENTS.
Though the rebellion was extinguished, the flame of national
dissatisfaction still continued to rage: the severities exercised
against the rebels increased the general discontent; for now the danger
was blown over, their humane passions began to prevail. The courage
and fortitude with which the condemned persons encountered the pains of
death in its most dreadful force, prepossessed many spectators in favour
of the cause by which those unhappy victims were animated. In a word,
persecution, as usual, extended the heresy. The ministry, perceiving
this universal dissatisfaction, and dreading the revolution of a new
parliament, which might wrest the power from their faction, and retort
upon them the violence of their own measures, formed a resolution
equally odious and effectual to establish their administration. This was
no other than a scheme to repeal the triennial act, and by a new law
to extend the term of parliaments to seven years. On the tenth day of
April, the duke of Devonshire represented, in the house of lords, that
triennial elections served to keep up party divisions; to raise and
foment feuds in private families; to produce ruinous expenses, and give
occasion to the cabals and intrigues of foreign princes; that it became
the wisdom of such an august assembly to apply proper remedies to
an evil that might be attended with the most dangerous consequences,
especially in the present temper of the nation, as the spirit of
rebellion still remained unconquered. He therefore proposed a bill for
enlarging the continuance of parliaments. He was seconded by the earls
of Dorset and Rockingham, the duke of Argyle, Lord Townshend, and the
other chiefs of that party. The motion was opposed by the earls
of Nottingham, Abingdon, and Paulet. They observed, that frequent
parliaments were required by the fundamental constitution of the
kingdom, ascertained in the practice of many ages; that the members of
the lower house were chosen by the body of the nation, for a certain
term of years, at the expiration of which they could be no longer
representatives of the people, who, by the parliament’s protracting
its own authority, would be deprived of the only remedy which they have
against those who, through ignorance or corruption, betrayed the trust
reposed in them; that the reasons in favour of such a bill were weak and
frivolous; that, with respect to foreign alliances, no prince or state
could reasonably depend upon a people to defend their liberties and
interests, who should be thought to have given up so great a part of
their own; nor would it be prudent in them to wish for a change in
that constitution under which Europe had of late been so powerfully
supported; on the contrary, they might be deterred from entering into
any engagements with Great Britain, when informed by the preamble of
the bill, that the popish faction was so dangerous as to threaten
destruction to the government; they would apprehend that the
administration was so weak as to want so extraordinary a provision for
its safety; that the gentlemen of Britain were not to be trusted; and
that the good affections of the people were restrained within the
limits of the house of commons. They affirmed that this bill, far from
preventing the expense of elections, would rather increase it, and
encourage every species of corruption; for the value of a seat would
always be in proportion to the duration of a parliament, and the
purchase would rise accordingly; that a long parliament would yield
a greater temptation, as well as a better opportunity to a vicious
ministry, to corrupt the members, than they could possibly have when
the parliaments were short and frequent; that the same reasons urged for
passing the bill to continue this parliament for seven years, would be
at least as strong, and, by the conduct of the ministry, might be made
much stronger before the end of that term, for continuing and even
perpetuating their legislative power, to the absolute subversion of the
third estate of the realm. These arguments served only to form a decent
debate, after which the bill for septennial parliaments passed by a
great majority, though twenty peers entered a protest. It met with the
same fate in the lower house, where many strong objections were stated
to no purpose. They were represented as the effects of party spleen;
and, indeed, this was the great spring of action on both sides. The
question for the bill was carried in the affirmative; and in a little
time it received the royal sanction.
DUKE OF ARGYLE DISGRACED.
The rebellion being utterly quelled, and all the suspected persons of
consequence detained in safe custody, the king resolved to visit his
German dominions, where he foresaw a storm gathering from the quarter
of Sweden. Charles XII. was extremely exasperated against the elector
of Hanover, for having entered into the confederacy against him in his
absence, particularly for his having purchased the duchies of Bremen and
Verden, which constituted part of his dominions; and he breathed nothing
but revenge against the king of Great Britain. It was with a view to
avert this danger, or prepare against it, that the king now determined
upon a voyage to the continent. But as he was restricted from leaving
his British dominions by the act for the further limitation of the
crown, this clause was repealed in a new bill that passed through both
houses without the least difficulty. On the twenty-sixth day of June,
the king closed the session with a speech upon the usual tonics, in
which, however, he observed, that the numerous instances of mercy he
had shown served only to encourage the faction of the pretender, whose
partisans acted with such insolence and folly, as if they intended to
convince the world that they were not to be reclaimed by gentle methods.
He intimated his purpose of visiting his dominions in Germany; and gave
them to understand, that he had constituted his beloved son, the prince
of Wales, guardian of the kingdom in his absence. About this period
general Macartney, who had returned to England at the accession of
king George, presented himself to trial for the murder of the duke of
Hamilton. The deposition of colonel Hamilton was contradicted by two
park-keepers; the general was acquitted of the charge, restored to his
rank in the army, and gratified with the command of a regiment. The
king’s brother, prince Ernest, bishop of Osnabruck, was created duke of
York and Albany, and earl of Ulster. The duke of Argyle, and his brother
the earl of Hay, to whom his majesty owed, in a great measure, his
peaceable accession to the throne, as well as the extinction of the
rebellion in Scotland, were now dismissed from all their employments.
General Carpenter succeeded the duke in the chief command of the forces
in North Britain, and in the government of Port Mahon; and the duke of
Montrose was appointed lord-register of Scotland in the room of the earl
of Hay.
THE TRIPLE ALLIANCE.
On the seventh day of July, the king embarked at Gravesend, landed on
the ninth in Holland, through which he passed incognito to Hanover,
and from thence set out for Pyrmont. His aim was to secure his German
dominions from the Swede, and Great Britain from the pretender. These
two princes had already begun to form a design, in conjunction, of
invading his kingdom. He knew the duke of Orleans was resolved to ascend
the throne of France, in case the young king, who was a sickly child,
should die without male issue. The regent was not ignorant that Philip
of Spain would powerfully contest that succession, notwithstanding
his renunciation; and he was glad of an opportunity to strengthen his
interest by an alliance with the maritime powers of England and Holland.
The king of England sounded him on this subject, and found him eager to
engage in such an association. The negotiation was carried on by general
Cadogan for England, the abbé du Bois for France, and the pensionary
Heinsius for the states-general. The regent readily complied with all
their demands. He engaged that the pretender should immediately depart
from Wignon to the other side of the Alps, and never return to Lorraine
or France on any pretence whatsoever; that no rebellious subjects of
Great Britain should be allowed to reside in that kingdom; and that the
treaty of Utrecht, with respect to the demolition of Dunkirk, should be
fully executed to the satisfaction of his Britannic majesty. The
treaty contained a mutual guarantee of all the places possessed by
the contracting powers; of the protestant succession on the throne
of England, as well as of that of the duke of Orleans to the crown of
France, and a defensive alliance, stipulating the proportion of ships
and forces to be furnished to that power which should be disturbed at
home or invaded from abroad. The English people murmured at this treaty.
They said an unnecessary umbrage was given to Spain, with which the
nation had great commercial connexions; and that on pretence of an
invasion, a body of foreign troops might be introduced to enslave the
kingdom.
COUNT GYLLENBURGH ARRESTED.
His majesty was not so successful in his endeavours to appease the
king of Sweden, who refused to listen to any overtures until Bremen and
Verden should be restored. These the elector of Hanover resolved to keep
as a fair purchase; and he engaged in a confederacy with the enemies of
Charles, for the maintenance of this acquisition. Meanwhile his rupture
with Sweden was extremely prejudicial to the commerce of England, and
had well nigh entailed upon the kingdom another invasion, much more
formidable than that which had so lately miscarried. The ministers
of Sweden resident at London, Paris, and the Hague, maintained a
correspondence with the disaffected subjects of Great Britain. A
scheme was formed for the Swedish king’s landing on this island with
a considerable body of forces, where he should be joined by the
malcontents of the united kingdom. Charles relished the enterprise,
which flattered his ambition and revenge; nor was it disagreeable to the
czar of Muscovy, who resented the elector’s offer of joining the Swede
against the Russians, provided he would ratify the cession of Bremen
and Verden. King George having received intimation of these intrigues,
returned to England towards the end of January, and ordered a detachment
of foot-guards to secure count Gyllenburgh, the Swedish minister, with
all his papers. At the same time, sir Jacob Bancks and Mr. Charles
Caesar were apprehended. The other foreign ministers took the alarm, and
remonstrated to the ministry upon this outrage committed against the law
of nations. The two secretaries, Stanhope and Methuen, wrote circular
letters to them, assuring them that in a day or two they should be
acquainted with the reasons that induced the king to take such an
extraordinary step. They were generally satisfied with this intimation;
but the marquis de Monteleone, ambassador from Spain, expressed his
concern that no other way could be found to preserve the peace of the
kingdom, without arresting the person of a public minister, and seizing
all his papers, which were the sacred repositories of his masters’s
secrets; he observed, that in whatever manner these two facts might seem
to be understood, they very sensibly wounded the law of nations. About
the same time baron Gortz, the Swedish residentiary in Holland, was
seized with his papers at Arnheim, at the desire of king George,
communicated to the states by Mr. Loathes, his minister at the Hague.
The baron owned he had projected the invasion, a design that was
justified by the conduct of king George, who had joined the princes
in confederacy against the king of Sweden, without having received the
least provocation; who had assisted the king of Denmark in subduing the
duchies of Bremen and Verden, and then purchased them of the usurper;
and who had, in the course of this very summer, sent a strong squadron
of ships to the Baltic, where it joined the Danes and Russians against
the Swedish fleet.
ACCOUNT OF THE OXFORD RIOT.
When the parliament of Great Britain met on the twentieth day of
February, the king informed them of the triple alliance he had concluded
with France and Holland. He mentioned the projected invasion; told them
he had given orders for laying before them copies of the letters which
had passed between the Scottish ministers on that subject; and he
demanded of the commons such supplies as should be found necessary for
the defence of the kingdom. By those papers it appeared that the
scheme projected by baron Gortz was very plausible, and even ripe
for execution; which, however, was postponed until the army should be
reduced, and the Dutch auxiliaries sent back to their own country. The
letters being read in parliament, both houses presented addresses, in
which they extolled the king’s prudence in establishing such conventions
with foreign potentates as might repair the gross defects, and prevent
the pernicious consequences, of the treaty of Utrecht, which they termed
a treacherous and dishonourable peace; and they expressed their
horror and indignation at the malice and ingratitude of those who had
encouraged an invasion of their country. He likewise received an address
of the same kind from the convention; another from the dissenting
ministers; a third from the university of Cambridge; but Oxford was not
so lavish of her compliments. At a meeting of the vice-chancellor and
heads of that university, a motion was made for an address to the king,
on the suppression of the late unnatural rebellion, his majesty’s safe
return, and the favour lately shown to the university, in omitting, at
their request, the ceremony of burning in effigy the devil, the
pope, the pretender, the duke of Ormond, and the earl of Mar, on the
anniversary of his majesty’s accession. Dr. Smallridge, bishop of
Bristol, observed, that the rebellion had been long suppressed; that
there would be no end of addresses should one be presented every time
that his majesty returned from his German dominions; that the late
favour they had received was overbalanced by a whole regiment now
quartered upon them; and that there was no precedent for addressing a
king upon his return from his German dominions. The university
thought they had reason to complain of the little regard paid to their
remonstrances, touching a riot raised in that city by the soldiers there
quartered, on pretence that the anniversary of the prince’s birthday had
not been celebrated with the usual rejoicings. Affidavits had been sent
up to the council, which seemed to favour the officers of the regiment.
When the house of lords deliberated upon the mutiny-bill, by which the
soldiers were exempted from arrests for debts, complaint was made of
their licentious behaviour at Oxford; and a motion was made that they
should inquire into the riot. The lords presented an address to the
king, desiring that the papers relating to that affair might be laid
before the house. These being perused, were found to be recriminations
between the Oxonians and the officers of the regiment. A warm debate
ensued, during which the earl of Abingdon offered a petition from the
vice-chancellor of the university, the mayor and magistrates of Oxford,
praying to be heard. One of the court members observing that it would
be irregular to receive a petition while the house was in a grand
committee, a motion was made that the chairman should leave the chair;
but this being carried in the negative, the debate was resumed, and the
majority agreed to the following resolutions:--That the heads of the
university, and mayor of the city, neglected to make public rejoicings
on the prince’s birth-day; that the officers having met to celebrate
that day, the house in which they had assembled was assaulted, and the
windows were broken by the rabble; that this assault was the beginning
and occasion of the riots that ensued. That the conduct of the mayor
seemed well justified by the affidavits produced on his part; that
the printing and publishing the depositions upon which the complaints
relating to the riots at Oxford were founded, while that matter was
under the examination of the lords of the committee of the council,
before they had time to come to any resolution touching the same, was
irregular, disrespectful to his royal highness, and tending to sedition.
An inquiry of this nature, so managed, did not much redound to the
honour of such an august assembly.
{1717}
The commons passed a bill prohibiting all commerce with Sweden, a branch
of trade which was of the utmost consequence to the English merchants.
They voted ten thousand seamen for the ensuing year; granted about a
million for the maintenance of guards, garrisons, and land-forces; and
passed the bill relating to mutiny and desertion. The house likewise
voted four-and-twenty thousand pounds for the payment of four battalions
of Munster, and two of Saxe-Gotha, which the king had taken into his
service, to supply the place of such as might be, during the rebellion,
drawn from the garrisons of the states-general to the assistance of
England. This vote, however, was not carried without a violent debate.
The demand was inveighed against as an imposition, seeing no troops
had ever served. A motion was made for an address, desiring that the
instructions of those who concluded the treaties might be laid before
the house; but this was over-ruled by the majority. The supplies were
raised by a land-tax of three shillings in the pound, and a malt-tax.
What the commons had given was not thought sufficient for the expense
of the year; therefore Mr. secretary Stanhope brought a message from his
majesty, demanding an extraordinary supply, that he might be the better
enabled to secure his kingdoms against the danger with which they were
threatened from Sweden; and he moved that a supply should be granted
to his majesty for this purpose. Mr. Shippen observed it was a great
misfortune that the king was as little acquainted with the parliamentary
proceedings as with the language of the country: that the message was
unparliamentary and unprecedented; and, in his opinion, penned by some
foreign minister: he said he had been often told that his majesty
had retrieved the honour and reputation of the nation; a truth which
appeared in the flourishing condition of trade; but that the supply
demanded seemed to be inconsistent with the glorious advantages
which his majesty had obtained for the people. He was seconded by Mr.
Hungerford, who declared that for his part he could not understand what
occasion there was for new alliances; much less that they should be
purchased with money. He expressed his surprise that a nation so lately
the terror of France and Spain should now seem to fear so inconsiderable
an enemy as the king of Sweden. The motion was supported by Mr.
Boscawen, sir Gilbert Heathcote, and others; but some of the whigs spoke
against it; and Mr. Robert Walpole was silent. The speaker, and Mr.
Smith, one of the tellers of the exchequer, opposed this unparliamentary
way of demanding the supply: the former proposed that part of the army
should be disbanded, and the money applied towards the making good
such new engagements as were deemed necessary. After several successive
debates, the resolution for a supply was carried by a majority of four
voices.
* This year was rendered famous by a complete victory which,
prince Eugene obtained over the Turks at Peterwaradin upon
the Danube. The battle was fought upon the fifth day of
August. The Imperial army did not exceed sixty thousand men;
that of the infidels amounted to one hundred and fifty
thousand, commanded by the grand vizier, who was mortally
wounded in the engagement. The infidels were totally
defeated, with the loss of all their tents, artillery, and
baggage, so that the victors obtained an immense booty.
{GEORGE I, 1714--1727}
DIVISION IN THE MINISTRY.
The ministry was now divided within itself. Lord Townshend had been
removed from the office of secretary of state, by the intrigues of the
earl of Sunderland; and he was now likewise dismissed from the place
of lord-lieutenant of Ireland. Mr. Robert Walpole resigned his posts of
first commissioner of the treasury and chancellor of the exchequer: his
example was followed by Mr. Pulteney, secretary at war, and Mr. Methuen,
secretary of state. When the affair of the supply was resumed in the
house of commons, Mr. Stanhope made a motion for granting two hundred
and fifty thousand pounds for that purpose. Mr. Pulteney observed, that
having resigned his place, he might no w act with the freedom becoming
an Englishman: he declared against the manner of granting the supply, as
unparliamentary and unprecedented. He said he could not persuade himself
that any Englishman advised his majesty to send such a message; but he
doubted not the resolution of a British parliament would make a German
ministry tremble. Mr. Stanhope having harangued the house in vindication
of the ministry, Mr. Smith answered every article of his speech: he
affirmed, that if an estimate of the conduct of the ministry in relation
to affairs abroad was to be made from a comparison of their conduct
at home, they would not appear altogether so faultless as they were
represented. “Was it not a mistake,” said he, “not to preserve the
peace at home, after the king had ascended the throne with the universal
applause and joyful acclamations of all his subjects? Was it not
a mistake, upon the breaking out of the rebellion, not to issue a
proclamation, to offer pardon to such as should return home peaceably,
according to the custom on former occasions of the same nature? Was it
not a mistake, after the suppression of the rebellion and the trial and
execution of the principal authors of it, to keep up animosities, and
drive people to despair, by not passing an act of indemnity, by keeping
so many persons under hard and tedious confinement; and by granting
pardons to some, without leaving them any means to subsist? Is it not
a mistake, not to trust a vote of parliament for making good such
engagements as his majesty should think proper to enter into; and
instead of that, to insist on the granting this supply in such an
extraordinary manner? Is it not a mistake, to take this opportunity to
create divisions, and render some of the king’s best friends suspected
and obnoxious? Is it not a mistake, in short, to form parties and cabals
in order to bring in a bill to repeal the act of occasional conformity?”
A great number of members had agreed to this measure in private, though
at this period it was not brought into the house of commons. After
a long debate the sum was granted. These were the first-fruits of
Britain’s being wedded to the interests of the continent. The elector
of Hanover quarrelled with the king of Sweden; and England was not only
deprived of a necessary branch of commerce, but even obliged to support
him in the prosecution of the war. The ministry now underwent a new
revolution. The earl of Sunderland and Mr. Addison were appointed
secretaries of state; Mr. Stanhope became first commission of the
treasury and chancellor of the exchequer.
THE COMMONS PASS THE SOUTH-SEA ACT, &c.
On the sixth day of May, the king, going to the house of peers, gave the
parliament to understand that the fleet under sir George Byng, which had
sailed to the Baltic to observe the motions of the Swedes, was safely
arrived in the Sound. He said he had given orders for the immediate
reduction of ten thousand soldiers, as well as directions to prepare
an act of indemnity. He desired they would take proper measures for
reducing the public debts with a just regard to parliamentary credit;
and that they would go through the public business with all possible
despatch and unanimity. Some progress had already been made in
deliberations upon the debt of the nation, which was comprehended under
the two heads of redeemable and irredeemable incumbrances. The first had
been contracted with a redeemable interest; and these the public had
a right to discharge: the others consisted of long and short annuities
granted for a greater or less number of years, which could not be
altered without the consent of the proprietors. Mr. Robert Walpole had
projected a scheme for lessening the interest and paying the capital of
those debts, before he resigned his place in the exchequer. He proposed,
in the house of commons, to reduce the interest of redeemable funds,
and offer an alternative to the proprietors of annuities. His plan was
approved; but, when he resigned his places, the ministers made some
small alterations in it, which furnished him with a pretence for
opposing the execution of the scheme. In the course of the debate,
some warm altercation passed between him and Mr. Stanhope, by which it
appeared they had made a practice of selling places and reversions. Mr.
Hungerford, standing up, said he was sorry to see two such great men
running foul of one another; that, however, they ought to be looked
upon as patriots and fathers of their country; and since they had by
mischance discovered their nakedness, the other members ought, according
to the custom of the East, to turn their backs upon them, that they
might not be seen in such a shameful condition. Mr. Boscawen moved that
the house would lay their commands upon them, that no further notice
should be taken of what had passed. He was seconded by Mr. Methuen: tha
house approved of the motion; and the speaker took their word and honour
that they should not prosecute their resentment. The money corporations
having agreed to provide cash for such creditors as should be willing to
receive their principal, the house came to certain resolutions, on which
were founded the three bills that passed into laws, under the names
of “The South-Sea act, the Bank act, and the General Fund act.” The
original stock of the South-Sea company did not exceed nine millions
four hundred and seventy-one thousand three hundred and twenty-five
pounds; but the funds granted being sufficient to answer the interest
of ten millions at six per cent., the company made up that sum to the
government, for which they received six hundred thousand pounds yearly,
and eight thousand pounds a-year for management. By this act they
declared themselves willing to receive five hundred thousand pounds,
and the eight thousand for management. It was enacted, that the company
should continue a corporation until the redemption of their annuity,
towards which not less than a million should be paid at a time. They
were likewise required to advance a sum not exceeding two millions,
towards discharging the principal and interest due on the four lottery
funds of the ninth and tenth years of queen Anne. By the Bank act the
governors and company declared themselves willing to accept an annuity
of eighty-eight thousand seven hundred and fifty-one pounds, seven
shillings and tenpence halfpenny, or the principal of one million seven
hundred and seventy-five thousand and twenty-seven pounds, seventeen
shillings and tenpence halfpenny, in lieu of the present annuity,
amounting to one hundred and six thousand five hundred and one pounds,
thirteen shillings and fivepence. They also declared themselves willing
to discharge, and deliver up to be cancelled, as many exchequer-bills
as amounted to two millions, and to accept of an annuity of one hundred
thousand pounds, being after the rate of five per cent, redeemable after
one year’s notice; to circulate the remaining exchequer-bills at
three per cent, and one penny per day. It was enacted, that the former
allowances should be continued to Christmas, and then the bank should
have for circulating the two millions five hundred and sixty-one
thousand and twenty-five pounds remaining exchequer-bills, an annuity of
seventy-six thousand eight hundred and thirty pounds, fifteen shillings,
at the rate of three pounds per cent, till redeemed, over and above the
one penny a-day for interest. By the same acts the bank was required to
advance a sum not exceeding two millions five hundred thousand pounds,
towards discharging the national debt, if wanted, on condition that they
should have five pounds per cent, for as much as they might advance,
redeemable by parliament. The General Fund act recited several acts of
parliament, for establishing the four lotteries in the ninth and tenth
years of the late queen, and stated the annual produce of the several
funds, amounting in all to seven hundred and twenty-four thousand eight
hundred and forty-nine pounds, six shillings and tenpence one-fifth.
This was the General Fund; the deficiency of which was to be made good
annually out of the first aids granted by parliament. For the regular
payment of all such annuities as should be made payable by this act, it
was enacted, that all the duties and revenues mentioned therein should
continue for ever, with the proviso, however, that the revenues
rendered by this act perpetual should be subject to redemption. This
act contained a clause by which the sinking fund was established. The
reduction of interest to five per cent, producing a surplus or excess
upon the appropriated funds, it was enacted, that all the monies arising
from time to time, as well for the surplus, by virtue of the acts for
redeeming the funds of the hank and of the South-Sea Company, as also
for the surplus of the duties and revenues by this act appropriated to
make good the general fund, should be appropriated and employed for
the discharging the principal and interest of such national debt as was
incurred before the twenty-fifth of December of the preceding year, in
such a manner as should be directed and appointed by any future act
of parliament, to be discharged out of the game, and for no other use,
intent, or purpose whatsoever.
TRIAL OF THE EARL OF OXFORD.
The earl of Oxford, who had now remained almost two years a prisoner in
the Tower, presented a petition to the house of lords, praying that his
imprisonment might not be indefinite. Some of the tory lords affirmed
that the impeachment was destroyed and determined by the prorogation of
parliament, which superseded the whole proceedings; but the contrary was
voted by a considerable majority. The thirteenth day of June was fixed
for the trial; and the house of commons made acquainted with this
determination. The commons appointed a committee to inquire into the
state of the earl’s impeachment; and, in consequence of their report,
sent a message to the lords demanding longer time to prepare for trial.
Accordingly the day was prolonged to the twenty-fourth of June; and the
commons appointed the committee, with four other members, to be managers
for making good the articles of impeachment. At the appointed time
the peers repaired to the court in Westminster-hall, where lord Cowper
presided as lord steward. The commons were assembled as a committee of
the whole house; the king, the rest of the royal family, and the foreign
ministers, assisted at the solemnity; the earl of Oxford was brought
from the Tower; the articles of impeachment were read, with his answers,
and the replication of the commons. Sir Joseph Jekyll standing up to
make good the first article, lord Har-court signified to their lordships
that he had a motion to make, and they adjourned to their own house.
There he represented that a great deal of time would be unnecessarily
consumed in going through all the articles of the impeachment; that if
the commons would make good the two articles for high treason, the earl
of Oxford would forfeit both life and estate, and there would be an end
of the matter; whereas to proceed on the method proposed by the commons,
would draw the trial on to a prodigious length. He therefore moved that
the commons might not be permitted to proceed until judgment should be
first given upon the articles of high treason. He was supported by the
earls of Anglesea and Nottingham, the lord Trevor, and a considerable
number of both parties; and though opposed by the earl of Sunderland,
the lords Coningsby and Parker, the motion was carried in the
affirmative. It produced a dispute between the two houses. The commons,
at a conference, delivered a paper containing their reasons for
asserting it as their undoubted right to impeach a peer either for
treason, or for high crimes and misdemeanors; or, should they see
occasion, to mix both in the same accusation. The house of lords
insisted on their former resolution; and, in another conference,
delivered a paper wherein they asserted it to be a right inherent in
every court of justice, to order and direct such methods of proceeding
as it should think fit to be observed in all causes that fell under its
cognizance. The commons demanded a free conference, which was refused.
The dispute grew more and more warm. The lords sent a message to the
lower house, importing that they intended presently to proceed on
the trial of the earl of Oxford. The commons paid no regard to this
intimation; but adjourned to the third day of July. The lords, repairing
to Westminster-hall, took their places, ordered the earl to be brought
to the bar, and made proclamation for his accusers to appear. Having
waited a quarter of an hour, they adjourned to their own house,
where, after some debate, the earl was acquitted upon a division; then
returning to the hall, they voted that he should be set at liberty.
Oxford owed his safety to the dissensions among the ministers, and to
the late change in the administration. In consequence of this, he
was delivered from the persecution of Walpole; and numbered among his
friends the dukes of Devonshire and Argyle, the earls of Nottingham and
Hay, and lord Townshend. The commons, in order to express their sense
of his demerit, presented an address to the king, desiring he might be
excepted out of the intended act of grace. The king promised to comply
with their request; and in the meantime forbade the earl to appear at
court. On the fifteenth day of July, the earl of Sunderland delivered
in the house of peers the act of grace, which passed through both houses
with great expedition. From this indulgence were excepted the earl of
Oxford, Mr. Prior, Mr. Thomas Harley, Mr. Arthur Moore; Crisp, Nodes,
O’Bryan, Redmarne the printer, and Thompson; as also the assassinators
in Newgate, and the clan of Macgregor in Scotland. By virtue of this
act, the earl of Carnwath, the lords Widrington and Nairn, were
immediately discharged; together with all the gentlemen under sentence
of death in Newgate, and those that were confined on account of the
rebellion in the Fleet, the Marshalsea, and other prisons of the
kingdom. The act of grace being prepared for the royal assent, the king
went to the house of peers on the fifteenth day of July, and having
given his sanction to all the bills that were ready, closed the session
with a speech on the usual topics.
PROCEEDINGS IN THE CONVOCATION WITH REGARD TO DR. HOADLEY.
The proceedings in the convocation turned chiefly upon two performances
of Dr. Hoadley, bishop of Bangor. One was intituled, “A Preservative
against the Principles and Practices of the Nonjurors;” the other was a
sermon preached before the king, under the title of “The Nature of the
Kingdom of Christ.” An answer to this discourse was published by
Dr. Snape, master of Eton college, and this convocation appointed a
committee to examine the bishop’s two performances. They drew up a
representation in which the Preservative and the Sermon were censured,
as tending to subvert all government and discipline in the church of
Christ; to reduce his kingdom to a state of anarchy and confusion; to
impugn and impeach the royal supremacy in causes ecclesiastical, and the
authority of the legislature to enforce obedience in matters of religion
by civil sanctions. The government thought proper to put a stop to these
proceedings by a prorogation; which, however, inflamed the controversy.
A great number of pens were drawn against the bishop, but his chief
antagonists were Dr. Snape and Dr. Sherlock, whom the king removed from
the office of his chaplains; and the convocation has not been permitted
to sit and do business since that period.
CHAPTER II.
_Difference between King George and the Czar of Muscovy.....
The King of Sweden is killed at Frederickstadt.....
Negotiation for a Quadruple Alliance..... Proceedings in
Parliament..... James Shepherd executed for a Design against
the King’s Life..... Parliament prorogued..... Nature of the
quadruple Alliance..... Admiral Byng sails to the
Mediterranean..... He destroys the Spanish Fleet off Cape
Passaro..... Remonstrances of the Spanish Ministry.....
Disputes in Parliament touching the Admiral’s attacking the
Spanish Fleet..... Act for strengthening the Protestant
Interest----War declared against Spain..... Conspiracy
against the Regent of France..... Intended Invasion by the
Duke of Ormond..... Three hundred Spaniards land and are
taken in Scotland..... Account of the Peerage Bill.....
Count Merci assumes the Command of the Imperial Army in
Sicily..... Activity of Admiral Byng..... The Spanish Troops
evacuate Sicily..... Philip obliged to accede to the
quadruple Alliance..... Bill for securing the Dependency of
Ireland upon the Crown of Great Britain..... South Sea
Act..... Charters granted to the Royal and London Assurance
Offices..... Treaty of Alliance with Sweden..... The Prince of
Hesse elected King of Sweden..... Effects of the South Sea
Scheme..... The Bubble breaks..... A Secret Committee
appointed by the House of Commons..... Inquiry carried on by
both Houses..... Death of Earl Stanhope and Mr. Craggs, both
Secretaries of State..... The Estates of the Directors of
the South Sea Company are confiscated..... Proceedings of the
Commons with respect to the Stock of the South Sea Company._
{1717}
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE KING AND THE CZAR OF MUSCOVY.
During these transactions, the negotiations of the north were continued
against the king of Sweden, who had penetrated into Norway, and advanced
towards Christianstadt, the capital of that kingdom. The czar had sent
five-and-twenty thousand Russians to assist the allies in the reduction
of Wismar, which he intended to bestow upon his niece, lately married
to the duke of Mecklenburgh-Schwerin: but before his troops arrived
the place had surrendered, and the Russians were not admitted into the
garrison; a circumstance which increased the misunderstanding between
him and the king of Great Britain. Nevertheless, he consented to a
project for making a descent upon Schonen, and actually took upon him
the command of the allied fleet; though he was not at all pleased to
see sir John Norris in the Baltic, because he had formed designs against
Denmark, which he knew the English squadron would protect. He suddenly
desisted from the expedition against Schonen, on pretence that the
season was too far advanced; and the king of Denmark published a
manifesto, remonstrating against his conduct on this occasion. By this
time baron Gortz had planned a pacification between his master and the
czar, who was discontented with all his German allies, because they
opposed his having any footing in the empire. This monarch arrived at
Amsterdam in December, whether he was followed by the czarina; and he
actually resided at the Hague when king George passed through it, in
returning to his British dominions, but he declined an interview with
the king of England. When Gyllenburgh’s letters were published in
London, some passages seemed to favour the supposition of the czar’s
being privy to the conspiracy. His minister at the English court
presented a long memorial, complaining that the king had caused to be
printed the malicious insinuations of his enemies. He denied his having
the least concern in the design of the Swedish king. He charged the
court of England with having privately treated of a separate peace with
Charles, and even with having promised to assist him against the czar,
on condition that he would relinquish his pretensions to Bremen and
Verden. Nevertheless, he expressed an inclination to re-establish the
ancient good understanding, and to engage in vigorous measures for
prosecuting the war against the common enemy. The memorial was answered
by the king of Great Britain, who assured the czar he should have reason
to be fully satisfied, if he would remove the only obstacle to their
mutual good understanding; in other words, withdraw the Russian troops
from the empire. Notwithstanding these professions, the two monarchs
were never perfectly reconciled.
THE KING OF SWEDEN IS KILLED.
The czar made an excursion to the court of France, where he concluded
a treaty of friendship with the regent, at whose earnest desire he
promised to recall his troops from Mecklenburgh. At his return to
Amsterdam, he had a private interview with Gortz, who, as well as
Gyllenburgh, had been set at liberty. Gortz undertook to adjust all
difference between the czar and the king of Sweden within three months;
and Peter engaged to suspend all operations against Sweden until that
term should be expired. A congress was opened at Abo, between the
Swedish and Russian ministers, but the conferences were afterwards
removed to Aland. By this convention, the czar obliged himself to assist
Charles in the conquest of Norway; and they promised to unite all their
forces against the king of Great Britain should he presume to interpose.
Both were incensed against that prince; and one part of their design
was to raise the pretender to the throne of England. Baron Gortz set out
from Aland for Frederickstadt in Norway, with the plan of peace: but,
before he arrived, Charles was killed by a cannon ball from the town, as
he visited the trenches, on the thirtieth of November. Baron Gortz
was immediately arrested, and brought to the scaffold by the nobles of
Sweden, whose hatred he had incurred by his insolence of behaviour. The
death of Charles was fortunate for king George. Sweden was now obliged
to submit; while the czar, the king of Denmark, and the elector of
Hanover, kept possession of what they had acquired in the course of the
war.
NEGOTIATION FOR A QUADRUPLE ALLIANCE.
Thus Bremen and Verden were secured in the house of Hanover; an
acquisition towards which the English nation contributed by her money,
as well as by her arms; an acquisition made in contradiction to
the engagements into which England entered when king William became
guarantee for the treaty of Travendahl; an acquisition that may be
considered as the first link of a political chain by which the English
nation were dragged back into expensive connexions with the continent.
The king had not yet received the investiture of the duchies; and, until
that should be procured, it was necessary to espouse with warmth the
interests of the emperor. This was another source of misunderstanding
between Great Britain and Spain. Prince Eugene gained another complete
victory over a prodigious army of the Turks at Belgrade, which was
surrendered to him after the battle. The emperor had engaged in this war
as an ally of the Venetians, whom the Turks had attacked and driven
from the Morea. The pope considered it as a religious war against the
infidels, and obtained repeated assurances from the king of Spain
that he would not undertake any thing against the emperor while he was
engaged in such a laudable quarrel. Philip had even sent a squadron of
ships and galleys to the assistance of the Venetians. In the course of
this year, however, he equipped a strong armament, the command of which
was bestowed on the marquis de Lede, who sailed from Barcelona in July,
and landing at Cagliari in Sardinia, which belonged to the emperor,
made a conquest of the whole island. At the same time, the king of Spain
endeavoured to justify these proceedings by a manifesto, in which he
alleged that the archduke, contrary to the faith of treaties, encouraged
and supported the rebellion of his subjects in Catalonia, by frequent
succours from Naples and other places; and that the great inquisitor
of Spain had been seized, though furnished with a passport from his
holiness. He promised however to proceed no further, and suspend all
operations, that the powers of Europe might have time and opportunity
to contrive expedients for reconciling all differences, and securing
the peace and balance of power in Italy; nay, he consented that this
important affair should be left to the arbitration of king George and
the states-general. These powers undertook the office. Conferences
were begun between the ministers of the emperor, France, England, and
Holland; and these produced, in the course of the following year, the
famous quadruple alliance. In this treaty it was stipulated, that the
emperor should renounce all pretensions to the crown of Spain, and
exchange Sardinia for Sicily with the duke of Savoy; that the succession
to the duchies of Tuscany, Parma, and Placentia, which the queen of
Spain claimed by inheritance as princess of the house of Farnese, should
be settled on her eldest son, in case the present possessors should die
without male issue. Philip, dissatisfied with this partition, continued
to make formidable preparations by sea and land. The king of England
and the regent of France interposed their admonitions to no purpose. At
length his Britannic majesty had recourse to more substantial arguments,
and ordered a strong squadron to be equipped with all possible
expedition. [206] _[See note 2 H, at the end of this Vol.]_
PROCEEDINGS IN PARLIAMENT.
On the third day of November, the princess of Wales was delivered of
a prince, the ceremony of whose baptism was productive of a difference
between the grandfather and the father. The prince of Wales intended
that his uncle, the duke of York, should stand godfather. The king
ordered the duke of Newcastle to stand for himself. After the ceremony,
the prince expressed his resentment against this nobleman in very warm
terms. The king ordered the prince to confine himself within his own
apartment; and afterwards signified his pleasure that he should quit the
palace of St. James’. He retired with the princess to a house belonging
to the earl of Grantham; but the children were detained at the palace.
All peers and peeresses, and all privy-counsellors and their wives, were
given to understand, that in case they visited the prince and princess
they should have no access to his majesty’s presence; and all who
enjoyed posts and places under both king and prince, were obliged to
quit the service of one or other at their option. When the parliament
met on the twenty-first day of November, the king, in his speech, told
both houses that he had reduced the army to very near one half, since
the beginning of the last session: he expressed his desire that all
those who were friends to the present happy establishment, might
unanimously concur in some proper method for the greater strengthening
the protestant interest, of which, as the church of England was
unquestionably the main support and bulwark, so would she reap the
principal benefit of every advantage accruing from the union and mutual
charity of all protestants. After the addresses of thanks, which
were couched in the usual style, the commons proceeded to take into
consideration the estimates and accounts, in order to settle the
establishment of the army, navy, and ordnance. Ten thousand men were
voted for the sea service. When the supply for the army fell under
deliberation, a very warm debate ensued upon the number of troops
necessary to be maintained. Sir William Wyndham, Mr. Shippen, and Mr.
Walpole, in a long elaborate harangue, insisted upon its being reduced
to twelve thousand. They were answered by Mr. Craggs, secretary at war,
and sir David Dalrymple. Mr. Shippen, in the course of the debate, said
the second paragraph of the king’s speech seemed rather to be calculated
for the meridian of Germany than for Great Britain; and it was a
great misfortune that the king was a stranger to our language and
constitution. Mr. Lechmere affirmed this was a scandalous invective
against the king’s person and government; and moved that he who uttered
it should be sent to the Tower. Mr. Shippen, refusing to retract or
excuse what he had said, was voted to the Tower by a great majority;
and the number of standing forces was fixed at sixteen thousand three
hundred and forty-seven effective men.
On account of the great scarcity of silver coin, occasioned by the
exportation of silver and the importation of gold, a motion was made to
put a stop to this growing evil, by lowering the value of gold specie.
The commons examined a representation which had been made to the
treasury by sir Isaac Newton, master of the mint, on this subject. Mr.
Caswel explained the nature of a clandestine trade carried on by the
Dutch and Ham-burghers, in concert with the Jews of England and other
traders, for exporting the silver coin and importing gold, which being
coined at the mint yielded a profit of fifteen pence upon every guinea.
The house, in an address to the king, desired that a proclamation might
be issued, forbidding all persons to utter or receive guineas at a
higher rate than one-and-twenty shillings each. His majesty complied
with that request: but people hoarding up their silver in hopes that the
price of it would be raised, or in apprehension that the gold would be
lowered still farther, the two houses resolved that the standard of the
gold and silver coins of the kingdom should not be altered in fineness,
weight, or denomination, and they ordered a bill to be brought in to
prevent the melting down of the silver coin. At this period, one James
Shepherd, a youth of eighteen, apprentice to a coachmaker, and an
enthusiast in jacobitism, sent a letter to a nonjuring clergyman,
proposing a scheme for assassinating king George. He was immediately
apprehended, owned the design, was tried, condemned, and executed at
Tyburn. This was likewise the fate of the marquis de Palleotti, an
Italian nobleman, brother to the duchess of Shrewsbury. He had, in a
transport of passion, killed his own servant; and seemed indeed to be
disordered in his brain. After he had received sentence of death, the
king’s pardon was earnestly solicited by his sister the duchess, and
many other persons of the first distinction; but the common people
became so clamorous, that it was thought dangerous to rescue him from
the penalties of the law, which he accordingly underwent in the most
ignominious manner. No subject produced so much heat and altercation
in parliament during this session, as did the bill for regulating the
land-forces, and punishing mutiny and desertion: a bill which was looked
upon as an encroachment upon the liberties and constitution of England,
inasmuch as it established martial law, which wrested from the civil
magistrate the cognizance of crimes and misdemeanors committed by the
soldiers and officers of the army; a jurisdiction inconsistent with the
genius and disposition of the people. The dangers that might accrue from
such a power were explained in the lower house by Mr. Hutchinson, Mr.
Harley, and Mr. Robert Walpole, which last, however, voted afterwards
for the bill. In the house of lords, it was strenuously opposed by the
earls of Oxford, Strafford, and lord Harcourt. Their objections were
answered by lord Carteret. The bill passed by a great majority; but
divers lords entered a protest. This affair being discussed, a bill was
brought in for vesting in trustees the forfeited estates in Britain
and Ireland, to be sold for the use of the public; for giving relief to
lawful creditors by determining the claims, and for the more effectual
bringing into the respective exchequers the rents and profits of the
estates till sold. The time of claiming was prolonged; the sum of twenty
thousand pounds was reserved out of the sale of the estates in Scotland,
for erecting schools; and eight thousand pounds for building barracks
in that kingdom. The king having signified, by a message to the house
of commons, that he had lately received such information from abroad,
as gave reason to believe that a naval force employed where it should be
necessary, would give weight to his endeavours; he therefore thought fit
to acquaint the house with this circumstance, not doubting but that
in case he should be obliged, at this critical juncture, to exceed the
number of men granted this year for the sea-service, the house would
provide for such exceeding. The commons immediately drew up and
presented an address, assuring his majesty that they would make good
such exceedings of seamen as he should find necessary to preserve the
tranquillity of Europe. On the twenty-first day of March, the king went
to the house of peers, and having passed the bills that were ready for
the royal assent, ordered the parliament to be prorogued.*
* Earl Cowper, lord chancellor, resigned the great seal,
which was at first put in commission, but afterwards given
to lord Parker, as high chancellor. The earl of Sunderland
was made president of the council, and first commissioner of
the treasury. Lord Stanhope and Mr. Craggs were appointed
secretaries of state. Lord Stanhope and lord Cadogan were
afterwards created earls.
{1718}
NATURE OF THE QUADRUPLE ALLIANCE.
The king of Spain, by the care and indefatigable diligence of his prime
minister, cardinal Alberoni, equipped a very formidable armament, which,
in the beginning of June, set sail from Barcelona towards Italy; but the
destination of it was not known. A strong squadron having been fitted
out in England, the marquis de Monteleone, ambassador from Spain,
presented a memorial to the British ministry, importing that so powerful
an armament in time of peace could not but give umbrage to the king his
master, and alter the good intelligence that subsisted between the two
crowns. In answer to this representation, the ministers declared that
the king intended to send admiral Byng with a powerful squadron into
the Mediterranean, to maintain the neutrality in Italy. Meanwhile,
the negotiations between the English and French ministers produced the
quadruple alliance, by which king George and the regent prescribed a
peace between the emperor, the king of Spain, and the king of Sicily,
and undertook to compel Philip and the Savoyard to submit to such
conditions as they had concerted with his Imperial majesty. These powers
were allowed only three months to consider the articles, and declare
whether they would reject them, or acquiesce in the partition. Nothing
could be more contradictory to the true interests of Great Britain than
this treaty, which destroyed the balance in Italy, by throwing such
an accession of power into the hands of the house of Austria. It
interrupted the commerce with Spain; involved the kingdom in an
immediate war with that monarchy; and gave rise to all the quarrels and
disputes which have arisen between England and Spain in the sequel. The
states-general did not approve of such violent measures, and for some
time kept aloof; but at length they acceded to the quadruple alliance,
which indeed was no other than a very expensive compliment to the
emperor, who was desirous of adding Sicily to his other Italian
dominions.
{GEORGE I, 1714--1727}
ADMIRAL BYNG SAILS.
The king of England had used some endeavours to compromise the
difference between his Imperial majesty and the Spanish branch of the
house of Bourbon. Lord Stanhope had been sent to Madrid with a plan of
pacification, which being rejected by Philip as partial and iniquitous,
the king determined to support his mediation by force of arms. Sir
George Byng sailed from Spithead on the fourth day of June, with
twenty ships of the line, two fire-ships, two bomb-vessels, and ample
instructions how to act on all emergencies. He arrived off Cape St.
Vincent on the thirtieth day of the month, and despatched his secretary
to Cadiz, with a letter to colonel Stanhope, the British minister
at Madrid, desiring him to inform his most catholic majesty of the
admiral’s arrival in those parts, and lay before him this article of his
instructions: “You are to make instances with both parties to cease from
using any further acts of hostility: but in case the Spaniards do still
insist, with their ships of war and forces, to attack the kingdom of
Naples, or other the territories of the emperor in Italy, or to land
in any part of Italy, which can only be with a design to invade the
emperor’s dominions, against whom only they have declared war by
invading Sardinia; or, if they should endeavour to make themselves
masters of the kingdom of Sicily, which must be with a design to invade
the kingdom of Naples; in which case you are, with all your power,
to hinder and obstruct the same. If it should so happen that at your
arrival with our fleet under your command, in the Mediterranean, the
Spaniards should already have landed any troops in Italy in order
to invade the emperor’s territories, you shall endeavour amicably to
dissuade them from persevering in such an attempt, and offer them your
assistance to help them to withdraw their troops, and put an end to all
further acts of hostility. But in case these your friendly endeavours
should prove ineffectual, you shall, by keeping company with, or
intercepting their ships or convoy; or if it be necessary, by openly
opposing them, defend the emperor’s territories from any further
attempt.” When cardinal Alberoni perused these instructions, he told
colonel Stanhope, with some warmth, that his master would run all
hazards, and even suffer himself to be driven out of Spain, rather
than recall his troops, or consent to a suspension of arms. He said the
Spaniards were not to be frightened; and he was so well convinced that
the fleet would do their duty, that in case of their being attacked
by Admiral Byng, he should be in no pain for the success. Mr. Stanhope
presenting him with a list of the British squadron, he threw it upon the
ground with great emotion. He promised, however, to lay the admiral’s
letter before the king, and to let the envoy know his majesty’s
resolution. Such an interposition could not but be very provoking to the
Spanish minister, who had laid his account with the conquest of
Sicily, and for that purpose prepared an armament which was altogether
surprising, considering the late shattered condition of the Spanish
affairs. But he seems to have put too much confidence in the strength
of the Spanish fleet. In a few days he sent back the admiral’s letter
to Mr. Stanhope, with a note under it, importing that the chevalier Byng
might execute the orders he had received from the king his master.
HE DESTROYS THE SPANISH FLEET.
The admiral, in passing by Gibraltar, was joined by vice-admiral
Cornwall with two ships. He proceeded to Minorca, where he relieved the
garrison of Port-Mahon. Then he sailed for Naples, where he arrived
on the first day of August, and was received as a deliverer; for the
Neapolitans had been under the utmost terror of an invasion from the
Spaniards. Sir George Byng received intelligence from the viceroy, count
Daun, who treated him with the most distinguishing marks of respect,
that the Spanish army, amounting to thirty thousand men, commanded by
the marquis de Lede, had landed in Sicily, reduced Palermo and Messina,
and were then employed in the siege of the citadel belonging to this
last city; that the Piedmontese garrison would be obliged to surrender
if not speedily relieved; that an alliance was upon the carpet
between the emperor and the king of Sicily, which last had desired the
assistance of the Imperial troops, and agreed to receive them into the
citadel of Messina. The admiral immediately resolved to sail thither,
and took under his convoy a reinforcement of two thousand Germans for
the citadel, under the command of general Wetzel. He forthwith sailed
from Naples, and on the ninth day of August was in sight of the Faro
of Messina. He despatched his own captain with a polite message to the
marquis de Lede, proposing a cessation of arms in Sicily for two months,
that the powers of Europe might have time to concert measures for
restoring a lasting peace; and declaring, that should this proposal be
rejected, he would, in pursuance of his instructions, use all his force
to prevent further attempts to disturb the dominions his master had
engaged to defend. The Spanish general answered, that he had no powers
to treat, and consequently could not agree to an armistice, but should
obey his orders, which directed him to reduce Sicily for his master the
king of Spain. The Spanish fleet had sailed from the harbour of Messina
on the day before the English squadron appeared. Admiral Byng supposed
they had retired to Malta, and directed his course towards Messina,
in order to encourage and support the garrison in the citadel. But in
doubling the point of Faro, he descried two Spanish scouts, and learned
from the people of a felucca from the Calabrian shore, that they had
seen from the hills the Spanish fleet lying to in order of battle. The
admiral immediately detached the German troops to Reggio, under the
convoy of two ships of war. Then he stood through the Faro after the
Spanish scouts that led him to their main fleet, which before noon he
descried in line of battle, amounting to seven-and-twenty sail large
and small, besides two fire-ships, four bomb-vessels, and seven galleys.
They were commanded in chief by don Antonio de Castanita, under whom
were the four rear-admirals Chacon, Mari, Guevara, and Cammock. At
sight of the English squadron they stood away large, and Byng gave
chase all the rest of the day. In the morning, which was the eleventh
of August, rear-admiral de Mari, with six ships of war, the galleys,
fire-ships, and bomb-ketches, separated from the main fleet, and stood
in for the Sicilian shore. The English admiral detached captain Walton
with five ships in pursuit of them; and they were soon engaged. He
himself continued to chase their main fleet; and about ten o’clock the
battle began. The Spaniards seemed to be distracted in their councils,
and acted in confusion. They made a running fight; yet the admirals
behaved with courage and activity, in spite of which they were all
taken, except Cammock, who made his escape with three ships of war and
three frigates. In this engagement, which happened off Cape
Passaro, captain Haddock of the Grafton signalized his courage in an
extraordinary manner. On the eighteenth the admiral received a letter*
from captain Walton, dated off Syracuse, intimating that he had taken
four Spanish ships of war, together with a bomb-ketch, and a vessel
laden with arms: and that he had burned four ships of the line, a
fire-ship, and a bomb vessel.
* This letter is justly deemed a curious specimen of the
laconic style. “Sir,--_We have taken and destroyed all the
Spanish ships and vessels which were upon the coast; the
number as per margin. I am, &c._
G. WALTON.”
Had the Spaniards followed the advice of rear-admiral Cammock, who was a
native of Ireland, sir George Byng would not have obtained such an easy
victory. That officer proposed that they should remain at anchor in the
road of Paradise, with their broadsides to the sea; in which case the
English admiral would have found it a very difficult task to attack
them; for the coast is so bold, that the largest ships could ride with a
cable ashore; whereas farther out the currents are so various and rapid,
that the English squadron could not have come to anchor, or lie
near them in order of battle; besides the Spaniards might have been
reinforced from the army on shore, which would have raised batteries to
annoy the assailants. Before king George had received an account of this
engagement from the admiral, he wrote him a letter with his own hand,
approving his conduct. When sir George’s eldest son arrived in England
with a circumstantial account of the action, he was graciously received,
and sent back with plenipotentiary powers to his father, that he might
negotiate with the several princes and states of Italy, as he should
see occasion. The son likewise carried the king’s royal grant to
the officers and seamen, of all the prizes they had taken from the
Spaniards. Notwithstanding this victory, the Spanish army carried on
the siege of the citadel of Messina with such vigour, that the governor
surrendered the place by capitulation on the twenty-ninth day of
September. A treaty was now concluded at Vienna between the emperor
and the duke of Savoy. They agreed to form an army for the conquest of
Sardinia in behalf of the duke; and in the meantime this prince engaged
to evacuate Sicily; but until his troops could be conveyed from that
island, he consented that they should co-operate with the Germans
against the common enemy. Admiral Byng continued to assist the
Imperialists in Sicily during the best part of the winter, by scouring
the seas of the Spaniards, and keeping the communication open between
the German forces and the Calabrian shore, from whence they were
supplied with provisions. He acted in this service with equal conduct,
courage, resolution, and activity. He conferred with the viceroy of
Naples and the other Imperial generals, about the operations of the
ensuing campaign, and count Hamilton was despatched to Vienna to lay
before the emperor the result of their deliberations; then the admiral
set sail for Mahon, where the ships might be refitted and put in a
condition to take the sea in the spring.
REMONSTRANCES OF THE SPANISH MINISTRY.
The destruction of the Spanish fleet was a subject that employed the
deliberations and conjectures of all the politicians in Europe. Spain
exclaimed against the conduct of England, as inconsistent with the
rules of good faith, for the observation of which she had always been
so famous. The marquis de Monteleone wrote a letter to Mr. secretary
Craggs, in which he expostulated with him upon such an unprecedented
outrage. Cardinal Alberoni, in a letter to that minister, inveighed
against it as a base unworthy action. He said the neutrality of Italy
was a weak pretence, since every body knew that neutrality had long been
at an end; and that the prince’s guarantees of the treaty of Utrecht
were entirely discharged from their engagements, not only by the
scandalous infringements committed by the Austrians in the evacuation
of Catalonia and Majorca; but also because the guarantee was no longer
binding than till a peace was concluded with France. He taxed the
British ministry with having revived and supported this neutrality, not
by an amicable mediation, but by open violence, and artfully abusing
the confidence and security of the Spaniards. This was the language of
disappointed ambition. Nevertheless it must be owned that the conduct of
England, on this occasion, was irregular, partial, and precipitate.
The parliament meeting on the eleventh day of November, the king in his
speech declared that the court of Spain had rejected all his amicable
proposals, and broke through their most solemn engagements for the
security of the British commerce. To vindicate, therefore, the faith of
his former treaties, as well as to maintain those he had lately made,
and to protect and defend the trade of his subjects, which had in every
branch been violently and unjustly oppressed, it became necessary for
his naval forces to check their progress; that notwithstanding the
success of his arms, that court had lately given orders at all the
ports of Spain and of the West Indies to fit out privateers against the
English. He said he was persuaded that a British parliament would enable
him to resent such treatment; and he assured them that his good brother,
the regent of France, was ready to concur with him in the most vigorous
measures. A strong opposition was made in both houses to the motion
for an address of thanks and congratulation proposed by lord Carteret.
Several peers observed that such an address was, in effect, to approve
a sea-fight, which might be attended with dangerous consequences, and
to give the sanction of that august assembly to measures which, upon
examination, might appear either to clash with the law of nations or
former treaties, or to be prejudicial to the trade of Great Britain;
that they ought to proceed with the utmost caution and maturest
deliberation, in an affair wherein the honour as well as the interest
of the nation were so highly concerned. Lord Strafford moved for an
address, that sir George Byng’s instructions might be laid before the
house. Earl Stanhope replied, that there was no occasion for such an
address, since by his majesty’s command he had already laid before
the house the treaties of which the late sea-fight was a consequence;
particularly the treaty for a defensive alliance between the emperor and
his majesty, concluded at Westminster on the twenty-fifth day of May,
in the year one thousand seven hundred and sixteen; and the treaty of
alliance for restoring and settling the public peace, signed at London
on the twenty-second day of July. He affirmed that the court of Spain
had violated the treaty of Utrecht, and acted against the public faith
in attacking the emperor’s dominions, while he was engaged in a war
against the enemies of Christendom; that they had rejected his majesty’s
friendly offices and offers for mediating an accommodation. He explained
the cause of his own journey to Spain, and his negotiations at Madrid.
He added, it was high time to check the growth of the naval power of
Spain, in order to protect and secure the trade of the British subjects
which had been violently oppressed by the Spaniards. After a long
debate, the motion was carried by a considerable majority. The same
subject excited disputes of the same nature in the house of commons,
where lord Hinchinbroke moved that, in their address of thanks, they
should declare their entire satisfaction in those measures which the
king had already taken for strengthening the protestant succession,
and establishing a lasting tranquillity in Europe. The members in the
opposition urged that it was unparliamentary and unprecedented, on the
first day of the session, to enter upon particulars; that the business
in question was of the highest importance, and deserved the most mature
deliberation; that, before they approved the measures which had been
taken, they ought to examine the reasons on which those measures were
founded. Mr. Robert Walpole affirmed that the giving sanction, in the
manner proposed, to the late measures, could have no other view than
that of screening ministers, who were conscious of having begun a
war against Spain, and now wanted to make it the parliament’s war. He
observed, that instead of an entire satisfaction, they ought to express
their entire dissatisfaction with such conduct as was contrary to the
law of nations, and a breach of the most solemn treaties. Mr. secretary
Craggs, in a long speech, explained the nature of the quadruple
alliance, and justified all the measures which had been taken. The
address, as moved by lord Hinchinbroke, was at length carried, and
presented to his majesty. Then the commons proceeded to consider the
supply. They voted thirteen thousand five hundred sailors; and twelve
thousand four hundred and thirty-five men for the land service. The
whole estimate amounted to two millions two hundred and fifty-seven
thousand five hundred eighty-one pounds, nineteen shillings. The money
was raised by a land-tax, malt-tax, and lottery.
ACT FOR STRENGTHENING THE PROTESTANT INTEREST.
On the thirteenth day of December, earl Stanhope declared, in the house
of lords, that in order to unite the hearts of the well affected to the
present establishment, he had a bill to offer under the title of “An
act for strengthening the protestant interest in these kingdoms.” It was
accordingly read, and appeared to be a bill repealing the acts against
occasional conformity, the growth of schism, and some clauses in the
corporation and test acts. This had been concerted by the ministry in
private meetings with the most eminent dissenters. The tory lords were
astonished at this motion, for which they were altogether unprepared.
Nevertheless they were strenuous in their opposition. They alleged that
the bill, instead of strengthening, would certainly weaken the church of
England, by plucking off her best feathers, investing her enemies with
power, and sharing with churchmen the civil and military employments
of which they were then wholly possessed. Earl Cowper declared himself
against that part of the bill by which some clauses of the test and
corporation acts were repealed; because he looked upon those acts as the
main bulwark of our excellent constitution in church and state, which
ought to be inviolably preserved. The earl of Hay opposed the bill,
because, in his opinion, it infringed the _pacta conventa_ of the treaty
of union, by which the bonds both of the church of England and of the
church of Scotland were fixed and settled; and he was apprehensive,
if the articles of the union were broke with respect to one church, it
might afterwards be a precedent to break them with respect to the other.
The archbishop of Canterbury said the acts which by this bill would be
repealed, were the main bulwark and supporters of the English church;
he expressed all imaginable tenderness for well-meaning conscientious
dissenters; but he could not forbear saying, some among that sect made a
wrong use of the favour and indulgence shown to them at the revolution,
though they had the least share in that happy event; it was therefore
thought necessary for the legislature to interpose, and put a stop to
the scandalous practice of occasional conformity. He added, that it
would be needless to repeal the act against schism, since no advantage
had been taken of it to the prejudice of the dissenters. Dr. Hoadley,
bishop of Bangor, endeavoured to prove that the occasional and schism
acts were in effect persecuting laws; and that by admitting the
principle of self-defence and self-preservation in matters of religion,
all the persecutions maintained by the heathens against the professors
of Christianity, and even the popish inquisition, might be justified.
With respect to the power of which many clergymen appeared so fond and
so zealous, he owned the desire of power and riches was natural to all
men; but that he had learned both from reason and from the gospel, that
this desire must be kept within due bounds, and not intrench upon the
rights and liberties of their fellow-creatures and countrymen. After a
long debate, the house agreed to leave out some clauses concerning the
test and corporation acts: then the bill was committed, and afterwards
passed. In the lower house it met with violent opposition, in spite of
which it was carried by the majority.
WAR DECLARED AGAINST SPAIN.
The king on the seventeenth day of December, sent a message to the
commons, importing that all his endeavours to procure redress for
the injuries done to his subjects by the king of Spain having proved
ineffectual, he had found it necessary to declare war against that
monarch. When a motion was made for an address, to assure the king they
would cheerfully support him in the prosecution of the war, Mr. Shippen
and some other members said, they did not see the necessity of involving
the nation in a war on account of some grievances of which the merchants
complained, as these might be amicably redressed. Mr. Stanhope assured
the house that he had presented five-and-twenty memorials to the
ministry of Spain on that subject without success. Mr. Methuen accounted
for the dilatory proceeds of the Spanish court in commercial affairs, by
explaining the great variety of regulations in the several provinces
and ports of that kingdom. It was suggested that the ministry paid very
little regard to the trade and interest of the nation, inasmuch as it
appeared by the answer from the secretary of state to the letter of the
marquis de Monteleone, that they would have overlooked the violation
of the treaties of commerce, provided Spain had accepted the conditions
stipulated in the quadruple alliance; for it was there expressly said,
that his majesty the king of Great Britain did not seek to aggrandize
himself by any new acquisitions, but was rather inclined to sacrifice
something of his own to procure the general quiet and tranquillity of
Europe. A member observed, that nobody could tell how far that sacrifice
would have extended, but certainly it was a very uncommon stretch of
condescension. This sacrifice was said to be the cession of Gibraltar
and Port Mahon, which the regent of France had offered to the king
of Spain, provided he would accede to the quadruple alliance. Horatio
Walpole observed, that the disposition of Sicily in favour of the
emperor was an infraction of the treaty of Utrecht; and his brother
exclaimed against the injustice of attacking the Spanish fleet before a
declaration of war. Notwithstanding all these arguments and objections,
the majority agreed to the address; and such another was carried in the
upper house without a division. The declaration of war against Spain was
published with the usual solemnities; but this war was not a favourite
of the people, and therefore did not produce those acclamations that
were usual on such occasions.
CONSPIRACY AGAINST THE REGENT OF FRANCE.
Meanwhile cardinal Alberoni employed all his intrigues, power, and
industry, for the gratification of his revenge. He caused new ships to
be built, the sea ports to be put in a posture of defence, succours to
be sent to Sicily, and the proper measures to be taken for the security
of Sardinia. He, by means of the prince de Cellamare, the Spanish
ambassador at Paris, caballed with the malcontents of that kingdom, who
were numerous and powerful. A scheme was actually formed for seizing the
regent, and securing the person of the king. The duke of Orleans owed
the first intimation of this plot to king George, who gave him
to understand that a conspiracy was formed against his person and
government. The regent immediately took measures for watching the
conduct of all suspected persons; but the whole intrigue was discovered
by accident. The prince de Cellamare intrusted his despatches to the
abbé Portocarrero, and to a son of the marquis de Monteleone. These
emissaries set out from Paris in a post-chaise, and were overturned.
The postillion overheard Portocarrero say, he would not have lost his
portmanteau for a hundred thousand pistoles. The man, at his return
to Paris, gave notice to the government of what he had observed. The
Spaniards, being pursued, were overtaken and seized at Poictiers, with
the portmanteau, in which the regent found two letters that made
him acquainted with the particulars of the conspiracy. The prince de
Cellamare was immediately conducted to the frontiers: the duke of Maine,
the marquis de Pompadore, the cardinal de Polignac, and many other
persons of distinction, were committed to different prisons. The regent
declared war against Spain on the twenty-ninth day of December; and an
army of six-and-thirty thousand men began its march towards that kingdom
in January, under the command of the duke of Berwick.
INTENDED INVASION BY ORMOND.
Cardinal Alberoni had likewise formed a scheme in favour of the
pretender. The duke of Ormond repairing to Madrid, held conferences
with his eminence; and measures were concerted for exciting another
insurrection in Great Britain. The chevalier de St. George quitted
Urbino by stealth; and embarking at Netteno, landed at Cagliari in
March. From thence he took his passage to Roses in Catalonia, and
proceeded to Madrid, where he was received with great cordiality, and
treated as king of Great Britain. An armament had been equipped of
ten ships of war and transports, having on board six thousand regular
troops, with arms for twelve thousand men. The command of this fleet was
bestowed on the duke of Ormond, with the title of captain-general of his
most catholic majesty. He was provided with declarations in the name of
that king, importing, that for many good reasons he had sent part of his
land and sea forces into England and Scotland, to act as auxiliaries to
king James. His Britannic majesty, having received from the regent
of France timely notice of this intended invasion, offered, by
proclamations, rewards to those that should apprehend the duke of
Ormond, or any gentleman embarked in that expedition. Troops were
ordered to assemble in the north, and in the west of England: two
thousand men were demanded of the states-general: a strong squadron was
equipped to oppose the Spanish armament; and the duke of Orleans made a
proffer to king George of twenty battalions for his service.
THREE HUNDRED SPANIARDS LAND AND ARE TAKEN IN SCOTLAND.
His majesty having communicated to both houses of parliament the
repeated advices he had received touching this projected descent, they
promised to support him against all his enemies. They desired he would
augment his forces by sea and land, and assured him they would make good
the extraordinary expense. Two thousand men were landed from Holland,
and six battalions of Imperialists from the Austrian Netherlands.
The duke of Ormond sailed from Cadiz, and proceeded as far as Cape
Finisterre, where his fleet was dispersed and disabled by a violent
storm, which entirely defeated the purposed expedition. Two frigates,
however, arrived in Scotland, with the earls Marischal and Seaforth, the
marquis of Tullibardine, some field-officers, three hundred Spaniards,
and arms for two thousand men. They were joined by a small body of
Highlanders, and possessed themselves of Donan castle. Against these
adventurers general Wightman marched with a body of regular troops from
Inverness. They had taken possession of the pass at Glenshiel; but, at
the approach of the king’s forces, retired to the pass at Strachell,
which they resolved to defend. They were attacked and driven from one
eminence to another till night, when the Highlanders dispersed; and next
day the Spaniards surrendered themselves prisoners of war. Marischal,
Seaforth, and Tullibardine, with some officers, retired to one of the
western isles, in order to wait an opportunity of being conveyed to the
continent.
ACCOUNT OF THE PEERAGE BILL.
On the last day of February the duke of Somerset represented, in the
house of lords, that the number of peers being very much increased,
especially since the union of the two kingdoms, it seemed absolutely
necessary to take effectual measures for preventing the inconveniences
that might attend the creation of a great number of peers to serve a
present purpose; an expedient which had been actually taken in the late
reign. He therefore moved that a bill should be brought in to settle
and limit the peerage, in such a manner that the number of English peers
should not be enlarged beyond six above the present number, which, upon
failure of male issue, might be supplied by new creations: that instead
of the sixteen elective peers from Scotland, twenty-five should be
made hereditary on the part of that kingdom; and that this number, upon
failure of heirs-male, should be supplied from the other members of the
Scottish peerage. This bill was intended as a restraint upon the prince
of Wales, who happened to be at variance with the present ministry.
The motion was supported by the duke of Argyle, now lord-steward of the
household, the earls of Sunderland and Carlisle. It was opposed by the
earl of Oxford, who said, that although he expected nothing from the
crown, he would never give his vote for lopping off so valuable a branch
of the prerogative, which enabled the king to reward merit and virtuous
actions. The debate was adjourned to the second day of March, when earl
Stanhope delivered a message from the king, intimating, that as they had
under consideration the state of the British peerage, he had so much at
heart the settling it upon such a foundation as might secure the freedom
and constitution of parliaments in till future ages, that he was willing
his prerogative should not stand in the way of so great and necessary
a work. Another violent debate ensued between the two factions. The
question here, as in almost every other dispute, was not whether the
measure proposed was advantageous to the nation? but, whether the tory
or the whig interest should predominate in parliament? Earl Cowper
affirmed, that the part of the bill relating to the Scottish peerage,
was a manifest violation of the treaty of union, as well as a flagrant
piece of injustice, as it would deprive persons of their right, without
being heard, and without any pretence or forfeiture on their part.
He observed, that the Scottish peers excluded from the number of the
twenty-five, would be in a worse condition than any other subjects in
the kingdom; for they would be neither electing nor elected, neither
representing nor represented. These objections were overruled; several
resolutions were taken agreeably to the motion, and the judges were
ordered to prepare and bring in the bill. This measure alarmed the
generality of Scottish peers, as well as many English commoners, who saw
in the bill the avenues of dignity and title shut up against them; and
they did not fail to exclaim against it as an encroachment upon the
fundamental maxims of the constitution. Treaties were written and
published on both sides of the question; and a national clamour began to
arise, when earl Stanhope observed, in the house, that as the bill had
raised strange apprehensions, he thought it advisable to postpone the
further consideration of it till a more proper opportunity. It was
accordingly dropped, and the parliament prorogued on the eighteenth
day of April, on which occasion his majesty told both houses that the
Spanish king had acknowledged the pretender.
{1719}
COUNT MERCI ASSUMES THE COMMAND OF THE IMPERIAL ARMY
The king having appointed lords-justices to rule the kingdom in his
absence, embarked in May for Holland, from whence he proceeded to
Hanover, where he concluded a peace with Ulrica, the new queen of
Sweden. By this treaty Sweden yielded for ever to the royal and
electoral house of Brunswick the duchies of Bremen and Verden, with
all their dependencies; king George obliged himself to pay a million
of rix-dollars to the queen of Sweden; and to renew, as king of Great
Britain and elector of Hanover, the alliances formerly subsisting
between his predecessors and that kingdom. He likewise mediated a peace
between Sweden and his former allies, the Danes, the Prussians, and the
Poles. The czar, however, refused to give up his schemes of conquest. He
sent his fleet to the Scheuron, or Bates of Sweden, where his troops
landing to the number of fifteen thousand, committed dreadful outrages:
but sir John Norris, who commanded an English squadron in those seas,
having orders to support the negotiations, and oppose any hostilities
that might be committed, the czar, dreading the fate of the Spanish
navy, thought proper to recall his fleet. In the Mediterranean, admiral
Byng acted with unwearied vigour in assisting the Imperialists to finish
the conquest of Sicily. The court of Vienna had agreed to send a strong
body of forces to finish the reduction of that island; and the command
in this expedition was bestowed upon the count de Merci, with whom sir
George Byng conferred at Naples. This admiral supplied them with
ammunition and artillery from the Spanish prizes. He took the whole
reinforcement under his convoy, and saw them safely landed in the bay of
Patti, to the number of three thousand five hundred horse, and ten
thousand infantry. Count Merci thinking himself more than a match for
the Spanish forces commanded by the marquis de Lede, attacked him in a
strong camp at Franca-Villa, and was repulsed with the loss of five
thousand men, himself being dangerously wounded in the action. Here his
army must have perished for want of provisions, had they not been
supplied by the English navy.
{GEORGE I, 1714--1727}
ACTIVITY OF ADMIRAL BYNG.
Admiral Byng no sooner learned the bad success of the attack at
Franca-Villa, than he embarked two battalions from the garrison of
Melazzo, and about a thousand recruits, whom he sent under a convoy
through the Baro to Scheso-bay, in order to reinforce the Imperial army.
He afterwards assisted at the council ol war with the German generals,
who, in consequence of his advice, undertook the siege of Messina.
Then he repaired to Naples, where he proposed to count Gallas, the new
viceroy, that the troops destined for the conquest of Sardinia should
be first landed in Sicily, and co-operate towards the conquest of that
island. The proposal was immediately despatched to the court of Vienna.
In the meantime, the admiral returned to Sicily, and assisted at the
siege of Messina. The town surrendered; the garrison retired into the
citadel; and the remains of the Spanish navy, which had escaped at
Passaro, were now destroyed in the Mole. The emperor approved of the
scheme proposed by the English admiral, to whom he wrote a very gracious
letter, intimating that he had despatched orders to the governor of
Milan to detach the troops designed for Sardinia to Vado, in order to be
transported into Italy. The admiral charged himself with the performance
of this service. Having furnished the Imperial army before Messina with
another supply of cannon, powder, and shot, upon his own credit, he set
sail for Vado, where he surmounted numberless difficulties started by
the jealousy of count Bonneval, who was unwilling to see his troops,
destined for Sardinia, now diverted to another expedition, in which he
could not enjoy the chief command. At length admiral Byng saw the forces
embarked, and convoyed them to Messina, the citadel of which surrendered
in a few days after their arrival. By this time the marquis de Lede had
fortified a strong post at Castro-Giovanne, in the centre of the
island; and cantoned his troops about Aderno, Palermo, and Catenea.
The Imperialists could not pretend to attack him in this situation,
nor could they remain in the neighbourhood of Messina on account of the
scarcity of provisions. They would, therefore, have been obliged to
quit the island during the winter, had not the admiral undertaken to
transport them by sea to Trapani, where they could extend themselves
in a plentiful country. He not only executed this enterprise, but even
supplied them with corn from Tunis, as the harvests of Sicily had been
gathered into the Spanish magazines. It was the second day of March
before the last embarkation of the Imperial troops were landed at
Trapani.
THE SPANISH TROOPS EVACUATE SICILY.
The marquis de Lede immediately retired with his army to Alcamo, from
whence he sent his mareschal de camp to count Merci and the English
admiral, with overtures for evacuating Sicily. The proposals were not
disagreeable to the Germans: but sir George Byng declared that the
Spaniards should not quit the island while the war continued, as he
foresaw that these troops would be employed against France or England.
He agreed however with count Merci, in proposing that if the marquis
would surrender Palermo and retire into the middle part of the island,
they would consent to an armistice for six weeks, until the sentiments
of their different courts should be known. The marquis offered to
surrender Palermo, in consideration of a suspension of arms for three
months; but, while this negotiation was depending, he received advice
from Madrid that a general peace was concluded. Nevertheless, he broke
off the treaty in obedience to a secret order for that purpose. The king
of Spain hoped to obtain the restitution of St. Sebastian’s, Fontarabia,
and other places taken in the course of the war, in exchange for the
evacuation of Sicily, Hostilities were continued until the admiral
received advice from the earl of Stair, at Paris, that the Spanish
ambassador at the Hague had signed the quadruple alliance. By the same
courier packets were delivered to the count de Merci and the marquis
de Lede, which last gave the admiral and Imperial general to understand
that he looked upon the peace as a thing concluded, and was ready to
treat for a cessation of hostilities. They insisted on his delivering
up Palermo; on the other hand he urged, that, as their masters were in
treaty for settling the terms of evacuating Sicily and Sardinia, he
did not think himself authorised to agree to a cessation, except on
condition that each party should remain on the ground they occupied, and
expect further orders from their principals. After a fruitless interview
between the three chiefs at the Cassine de Rossignola, the Imperial
general resolved to undertake the siege of Palermo; with this view he
decamped from Alcamo on the eighteenth day of April, and followed the
marquis de Lede, who retreated before him and took possession of the
advantageous posts that commanded the passes into the plain of Palermo;
but count Merci, with indefatigable diligence, marched over the
mountains, while the admiral coasted along shore, attending the motions
of the army. The Spanish general perceiving the Germans advancing into
the plain, retired under the cannon of Palermo, and fortified his camp
with strong entrenchments. On the second day of May the Germans took one
of the enemy’s redoubts by surprise, and the marquis de Lede ordered
all his forces to be drawn out to retake this fortification: both armies
were on the point of engaging, when a courier arrived in a felucca with
a packet for the marquis, containing full powers to treat and agree
about the evacuation of the island, and the transportation of the army
to Spain. He forthwith drew off his army; and sent a trumpet to the
general and admiral, with letters, informing them of the orders he had
received: commissioners were appointed on each side, the negotiations
begun, and the convention signed in a very few days. The Germans
were put in possession of Palermo, and the Spanish army marched to
Tauromini, from whence they were transported to Barcelona.
PHILIP OBLIGED TO ACCEDE TO THE QUADRUPLE ALLIANCE.
The admiral continued in the Mediterranean until he had seen the islands
of Sicily and Sardinia evacuated by the Spaniards, and the mutual
cessions executed between the emperor and the duke of Savoy, in
consequence of which four battalions of Piedmontese troops were
transported from Palermo to Sardinia, and took possession of Cagliari
in the name of their master. In a word, admiral Byng bore such a
considerable share in this war of Sicily, that the fate of the island
depended wholly on his courage, vigilance, and conduct. When he waited
on his majesty at Hanover, he met with a very gracious reception. The
king told him he had found out the secret of obliging his enemies as
well as his friends; for the court of Spain had mentioned him in
the most honourable terms, with respect to his candid and friendly
deportment in providing transports and other necessaries for the
embarkation of their troops, and in protecting them from oppression. He
was appointed treasurer of the navy, and rear-admiral of Great Britain:
in a little time the king ennobled him, by the title of viscount
Torrington: he was declared a privy-counsellor, and afterwards
made knight of the bath at the revival of that order. During these
occurrences in the Mediterranean, the duke of Berwick advanced with the
French army to the frontiers of Spain, where he took Port-Passage and
destroyed six ships of war that were on the stocks; then he reduced
Fontarabia and St. Sebastian’s, together with Port Antonio in the bottom
of the bay of Biscay. In this last exploit the French were assisted by a
detachment of English seamen, who burned two large ships unfinished, and
a great quantity of naval stores. The king of England, with a view to
indemnify himself for the expense of the war, projected the conquest
of Corunna in Biscay, and of Peru in South America. Four thousand men,
commanded by lord Cobham, were embarked at the Isle of Wight, and sailed
on the twenty-first day of September, under convoy of five ships of war
conducted by admiral Mighels. Instead of making an attempt upon Corunna,
they reduced Vigo with very little difficulty; and Point-a-Vedra
submitted without resistance: here they found some brass artillery,
small arms, and military stores, with which they returned to England. In
the meantime captain Johnson, with two English ships of war, destroyed
the same number of Spanish ships in the port of Ribadeo, to the eastward
of Cape Ortegas, so that the naval power of Spain was totally ruined.
The expedition to the West Indies was prevented by the peace. Spain
being oppressed on all sides, and utterly exhausted, Philip saw the
necessity of a speedy pacification. He now perceived the madness of
Alberoni’s ambitious projects. That minister was personally disagreeable
to the emperor, the king of England, and the regent of France, who had
declared they would hearken to no proposals while he should continue in
office: the Spanish monarch, therefore, divested him of his employment,
and ordered him to quit the kingdom in three weeks. The marquis de
Beretti Landi, minister from the court of Madrid at the Hague, delivered
a plan of pacification to the states; hat it was rejected by the allies;
and Philip was obliged at last to accede to the quadruple alliance.
BILL FOR SECURING THE DEPENDENCY OF IRELAND UPON THE CROWN.
On the fourteenth day of November, king George returned to England, and
on the twenty-third opened the session of parliament with a speech, in
which he told them that all Europe, as well as Great Britain, was on the
point of being delivered from the calamities of war by the influence
of British arms and councils. He exhorted the commons to concert proper
means for lessening the debts of the nation, and concluded with a
panegyric upon his own government. It must be owned he had acted with
equal vigour and deliberation in all the troubles he had encountered
since his accession to the throne. The addresses of both houses were
as warm as he could desire. They in particular extolled him for having
interposed in behalf of the protestants of Hungary, Poland, and Germany,
who had been oppressed by the practices of the popish clergy, and
presented to him memorials containing a detail of their grievances. He
and all the other protestant powers warmly interceded in their favour,
but the grievances were not redressed. The peerage bill was now revived
by the duke of Buckingham; and, in spite of all opposition, passed
through the house of lords. It had been projected by earl Stanhope,
and eagerly supported by the earl of Sunderland; therefore, Mr.
Robert Walpole attacked it in the house of commons with extraordinary
vehemence. Here too it was opposed by a considerable number of whig
members; and, after warm debates, rejected by a large majority. The next
object that engrossed the attention of the parliament was a bill for
better securing the dependency of Ireland upon the crown of Great
Britain. Maurice Annesley had appealed to the house of peers in England,
from a decree of the house of peers in Ireland, which was reversed. The
British peers ordered the barons of the exchequer in Ireland to put Mr.
Annesley in possession of the lands he had lost by the decree in that
kingdom. The barons obeyed this order; and the Irish house of peers
passed a vote against them, as having acted in derogation to the king’s
prerogative in his high court of parliament in Ireland, as also of the
rights and privileges of that kingdom, and of the parliament thereof;
they likewise ordered them to be taken into custody of the usher of
the black rod: they transmitted a long representation to the king,
demonstrating their right to the final judicature of causes: and the
duke of Leeds, in the upper house, urged fifteen reasons to support the
claim of the Irish peers. Notwithstanding these arguments, the house of
lords in England resolved that the barons of the exchequer in Ireland
had acted with courage, according to law, in support of his majesty’s
prerogative, and with fidelity to the crown of Great Britain. They
addressed the king to confer on them some marks of his royal favour,
as a recompence for the ill usage they had undergone. Finally, they
prepared the bill, by which the Irish house of lords was deprived of all
right to pass sentence, affirm, or reverse any judgment or decree, given
or made in any court within that kingdom. In the house of commons it was
opposed by Mr. Pitt, Mr. Hungerford, lords Molesworth and Tyr-connel;
but was carried by the majority, and received the royal assent.
SOUTH-SEA ACT
The king having recommended to the commons the consideration of proper
means for lessening the national debt, was a prelude to the famous
South-Sea act, which became productive of so much mischief and
infatuation The scheme was projected by sir John Blunt, who had been
bred a scrivener, and was possessed of all the cunning, plausibility,
and boldness requisite for such an undertaking. He communicated his plan
to Mr. Aislaby, the chancellor of the exchequer, as well as to one of
the secretaries of state. He answered all their objections; and the
project was adopted. They foresaw their own private advantage in
the execution of their design, which was imparted in the name of the
South-Sea company, of which Blunt was a director, who influenced all
their proceedings. The pretence for the scheme was to discharge
the national debt, by reducing all the funds into one. The bank and
South-Sea company outbid each other. The South-Sea company altered
their original plan, and offered such high terms to government, that
the proposals of the bank were rejected; and a bill was ordered to be
brought into the house of commons, formed on the plan presented by the
South-Sea company. While this affair was in agitation, the stock of
that company rose from one hundred and thirty to near four hundred, in
consequence of the conduct of the commons, who had rejected a motion
for a clause in the bill, to fix what share in the capital stock of the
company should be vested in those proprietors of the annuities who might
voluntarily subscribe; or how many year’s purchase in money they should
receive in subscribing, at the choice of the proprietors.
{1720}
In the house of lords, the bill was opposed by lord North and Grey, earl
Cowper, the dukes of Wharton, Buckingham, and other peers; they affirmed
it was calculated for enriching a few and impoverishing a great
number: that it countenanced the fraudulent and pernicious practice of
stock-jobbing, which diverted the genius of the people from trade and
industry: that it would give foreigners the opportunity to double and
treble the vast sums they had in the public funds; and they would be
tempted to realize and withdraw their capital and immense gains to other
countries; so that Great Britain would be drained of all its gold and
silver; that the artificial and prodigious rise of the South-Sea stock
was a dangerous bait, which might decoy many unwary people to their
ruin, alluring them by a false prospect of gain to part with the fruits
of their industry, to purchase imaginary riches; that the addition of
above thirty millions capital would give such power to the South-Sea
company, as might endanger the liberties of the nation; for by their
extensive interest they would be able to influence most, if not all the
elections of the members; and, consequently, over-rule the resolutions
of the house of commons. Earl Cowper urged, that in all public bargains
the individuals of the administration ought to take care, that thay
shall be more advantageous to the state than to private persons; but
that a contrary method had been followed in the contract made with the
South-Sea company; for, should the stocks be kept at the advanced price
to which they had been raised by the oblique arts of stock-jobbing,
either that company or its principal members would gain above thirty
millions, of which no more than one-fourth part would be given towards
the discharge of the national debts. He apprehended that the re-purchase
of annuities would meet with insuperable difficulties; and, in such
case, none but a few persons who were in the secret, who had bought
stocks at a low rate, and afterwards sold them at a high price, would in
the end be gainers by the project. The earl of Sunderland answered their
objections. He declared that those who countenanced the scheme of the
South-Sea company, had nothing in view but the advantage of the nation.
He owned that the managers for that company had undoubtedly a prospect
of private gain, either to themselves or to their corporation; but, he
said, when the scheme was accepted, neither the one nor the other could
foresee that the stocks would have risen to such a height; that if they
had continued as they were, the public would have had the far greater
share of the advantage accruing from the scheme; and should they be kept
up to the present high price, it was but reasonable that the South-Sea
company should enjoy the profits procured to it by the wise management
and industry of the directors, which would enable it to make large
dividends, and thereby accomplish the purpose of the scheme. The bill
passed without amendment or division; and on the seventh day of April
received the royal assent. By this act the South-Sea company was
authorised to take in, by purchase or subscription, the irredeemable
debts of the nation, stated at sixteen millions five hundred forty-six
thousand four hundred and eighty-two pounds, seven shillings and one
penny farthing, at such times as they should find convenient before the
first day of March of the ensuing year, and without any compulsion on
any of the proprietors, at such rates and prices as should be agreed
upon between the company and the respective proprietors. They were
likewise authorised to take in all the redeemable debts, amounting to
the same sum as that of the irredeemables, either by purchase, by taking
subscriptions, or by paying off the creditors. For the liberty of taking
in the national debts, and increasing their capital stock accordingly,
the company consented that their present, and to be increased annuity,
should be continued at five per cent, till Midsummer, in the year one
thousand seven hundred and twenty-seven; from thence to be reduced to
four per cent, and be redeemable by parliament. In consideration of
this, and other advantages expressed in the act, the company declared
themselves willing to make such payments into the receipt of the
exchequer as were specified for the use of the public, to be applied to
the discharge of the public debts incurred before Christmas, in the year
one thousand seven hundred and sixteen. The sums they were obliged to
pay for the liberty of taking in the redeemable debts, four years and
a half’s purchase for all long and short annuities that should be
subscribed, and one year’s purchase for such long annuities as should
not be subscribed, amounted on the execution of the act to about
seven millions. For enabling the company to raise this sum, they were
empowered to make calls for money from their members; to open books of
subscription; to grant annuities redeemable by the company; to borrow
money upon any contract or bill under their common seal, or on the
credit of their capital stock; to convert the money demanded of their
members into additional stock, without, however, making any addition
to the company’s annuities, payable out of the public duties. It was
enacted, that out of the first monies arising from the sums paid by the
company into the exchequer, such public debts, carrying interest at five
per cent, incurred before the twenty-fifth day of December, in the year
one thousand seven hundred and sixteen, founded upon any former act
of parliament, as were now redeemable, or might be redeemed by the
twenty-fifth day of December, in the year one thousand seven hundred and
twenty-two, should be discharged in the first place: that then all the
remainder should be applied towards paying off so much of the capital
stock of the company as should then carry an interest of five per cent.
It was likewise provided, that, after Midsummer in the year one thousand
seven hundred and twenty-seven, the company should not be paid off in
any sums being less than one million at a time.
CHARTERS GRANTED TO THE ROYAL AND LONDON ASSURANCE OFFICES.
The heads of the Royal-Assurance and London-Assurance companies,
understanding that the civil-list was considerably in arrears, offered
to the ministry six hundred thousand pounds towards the discharge of
that debt, on condition of their obtaining the king’s charter, with
a parliamentary sanction, for the establishment of their respective
companies. The proposal was embraced; and the king communicated it in a
message to the house of commons, desiring their concurrence. A bill
was immediately passed, enabling his majesty to grant letters of
incorporation to the two companies. It soon obtained the royal assent;
and, on the eleventh day of June, an end was put to the session. This
was the age of interested projects, inspired by a venal spirit
of adventure, the natural consequence of that avarice, fraud, and
profligacy, which the monied corporations had introduced. This of
all others is the most unfavourable era for an historian. A reader of
sentiment and imagination cannot be entertained or interested by a dry
detail of such transactions as admit of no warmth, no colouring, no
embellishment, a detail which serves only to exhibit an inanimate
picture of tasteless vice and mean degeneracy.
TREATY OF ALLIANCE WITH SWEDEN.
By this time an alliance offensive and defensive was concluded at
Stockholm between king George and the queen of Sweden, by which his
majesty engaged to send a fleet into the Baltic to act against the czar
of Muscovy, in case that monarch should reject reasonable proposals of
peace. Peter loudly complained of the insolent interposition of king
George, alleging that he had failed in his engagements, both as elector
of Hanover and king of Great Britain. His resident at London presented
a long memorial on this subject, which was answered by the British and
Hanoverian ministry. These recriminations served only to inflame the
difference. The czar continued to prosecute the war, and at length
concluded a peace without a mediator. At the instances, however of king
George and the regent of France, a treaty of peace was signed between
the queen of Sweden and the king of Prussia, to whom that princess ceded
the city of Stetin, the district between the rivers Oder and Pehnne,
with the isles of Wollin and Usedom. On the other hand, he engaged
to join the king of Great Britain in his endeavours to effect a peace
between Sweden and Denmark, on condition that the Danish king should
restore to queen Ulrica that part of Pomerania which he had seized; he
likewise promised to pay to that queen two millions of rix-dollars in
consideration of the cessions she had made. The treaty between Sweden
and Denmark was signed at Frederickstadt in the month of June, through
the mediation of the king of Great Britain, who became guarantee for the
Dane’s keeping possession of Sleswick. He consented, however, to restore
the Upper Pomerania, the isle of Rugen, the city of Wismar, and whatever
he had taken from Sweden during the war, in consideration of Sweden’s
renouncing the exemption from toll in the Sound and the two Belts, and
paying to Denmark six hundred thousand rix-dollars.
THE PRINCE OF HESSE ELECTED KING OF SWEDEN.
Sir John Norris had again sailed to the Baltic with a strong squadron
to give weight to the king’s mediation. When he arrived at Copenhagen he
wrote a letter to prince Dolgorouki, the czar’s ambassador at the court
of Denmark, signifying that he and the king’s envoy at Stockholm were
vested with full powers to act jointly or separately in quality of
plenipotentiaries, in order to effect a peace between Sweden and
Muscovy, in the way of mediation. The prince answered that the czar
had nothing more at heart than peace and tranquillity; and in case his
Britannic majesty had any proposals to make to that prince, he hoped the
admiral would excuse him from receiving them, as they might be delivered
in a much more compendious way. The English fleet immediately joined
that of Sweden as auxiliaries; but they had no opportunity of acting
against the Russian squadron, which secured itself in Revel. Ulrica,
queen of Sweden, and sister to Charles XII., had married the prince of
Hesse, and was extremely desirous that he should be joined with her in
the administration of the regal power. She wrote a separate letter
to each of the four States, desiring they would confer on him the
sovereignty; and after some opposition from the nobles, he was actually
elected king of Sweden. He sent one of his general officers to notify
his elevation to the czar, who congratulated him upon his accession
to the throne: this was the beginning of a negotiation which ended in
peace, and established the tranquillity of the North. In the midst of
these transactions, king George set out from England for his Hanoverian
dominions; but before he departed from Great Britain, he was reconciled
to the prince of Wales, through the endeavours of the duke of Devonshire
and Mr. Walpole, who, with earl Cowper, lord Townshend, Mr. Methuen,
and Mr. Pulteney, were received into favour, and re-united with the
ministry. The earls of Dorset and Bridgewater were promoted to the title
of dukes; lord viscount Castleton was made an earl; Hugh Boscawen was
created a baron, and viscount Falmouth; and John Wallop baron, and
viscount Lymington.
{GEORGE I, 1714--1727}
EFFECTS OF THE SOUTH-SEA SCHEME.
While the king was involved at Hanover in a labyrinth of negotiations,
the South-Sea scheme produced a kind of national delirium in his English
dominions. Blunt, the projector, had taken the hint of his plan from the
famous Mississippi scheme formed by Law, which in the preceding year had
raised such a ferment in France, and entailed rain upon many thousand
families of that kingdom. In the scheme of Law there was something
substantial. An exclusive trade to Louisiana promised some advantage;
though the design was defeated by the frantic eagerness of the people.
Law himself became the dupe of the regent, who transferred the burden
of fifteen hundred millions of the king’s debts to the shoulders of the
subjects, while the projector was sacrificed as the scape-goat of
the political iniquity. The South-Sea scheme promised no commercial
advantage of any consequence. It was buoyed up by nothing but the folly
and rapaciousness of individuals, which became so blind and extravagant,
that Blunt, with moderate talents, was able to impose upon the whole
nation, and make tools of the other directors, to serve his own purposes
and those of a few associates. When this projector found that the
South-Sea stock did not rise according to his expectation upon
the bill’s being passed, he circulated a report that Gibraltar and
Port-Mahon would be exchanged for some places in Teru; by which means
the English trade to the South-Sea would be protected and enlarged. This
rumour, diffused by his emissaries, acted like a contagion. In five days
the directors opened their books for a subscription of one million,
at the rate of three hundred pounds for every hundred pounds capital.
Persons of all ranks crowded to the house in such a manner that the
first subscription exceeded two millions of original stock. In a few
days this stock advanced to three hundred and forty pounds; and the
subscriptions were sold for double the price of the first payment.
Without entering into a detail of the proceedings, or explaining the
scandalous arts that were practised to enhance the value of the stock,
and decoy the unwary, we shall only observe, that by the promise of
prodigious dividends and other infamous arts, the stock was raised
to one thousand; and the whole nation infected with the spirit of
stock-jobbing to an astonishing degree. All distinction of party,
religion, sex, character, and circumstances, were swallowed up in this
universal concern, or in some such pecuniary project. Exchange-Alley was
filled with a strange concourse of statesmen and clergymen, churchmen
and dissenters, whigs and tories, physicians, lawyers, tradesmen, and
even with multitudes of females. All other professions and employments
were utterly neglected; and the people’s attention wholly engrossed by
this and other chimerical schemes, which were known by the denomination
of bubbles. New companies started up every day under the countenance of
the prime nobility. The prince of Wales was constituted governor of the
Welsh copper company; the duke of Chandos appeared at the head of the
York-buildings company; the duke of Bridgewater formed a third, for
building houses in London and Westminster. About an hundred such schemes
were projected and put in execution, to the ruin of many thousands. The
sums proposed to be raised by these expedients amounted to three hundred
millions sterling, which exceeded the value of all the lands in England.
The nation was so intoxicated with the spirit of adventure, that people
became a prey to the grossest delusion. An obscure projector, pretending
to have formed a very advantageous scheme, which, however, he did not
explain, published proposals for a subscription, in which he promised
that in one month the particulars of his project should be disclosed. In
the meantime he declared that every person paying two guineas should be
entitled to a subscription for one hundred pounds, which would produce
that sum yearly. In one forenoon this adventurer received a thousand of
these subscriptions; and in the evening set out for another kingdom.
The king, before his departure, had issued a proclamation against these
unlawful projects; the lords-justices afterwards dismissed all the
petitions that had been presented for charters and patents; and the
prince of Wales renounced the company of which he had been elected
governor. The South-Sea scheme raised such a flood of eager avidity and
extravagant hope, that the majority of the directors were swept along
with it, even contrary to their own sense and inclination; but Blunt and
his accomplices still directed the stream.
The infatuation prevailed till the eighth day of September, when the
stock began to fall. Then did some of the adventurers awake from their
delirium. The number of the sellers daily increased. On the twenty-ninth
day of the month the stock had sunk to one hundred and fifty; several
eminent goldsmiths and bankers, who had lent great sums upon it, were
obliged to stop payment and abscond. The ebb of this portentous tide
was so violent, that it bore down everything in its way; and an infinite
number of families were overwhelmed with ruin. Public credit sustained
a terrible shock; the nation was thrown into a dangerous ferment; and
nothing was heard but the ravings of grief, disappointment, and despair.
Some principal members of the ministry were deeply concerned in these
fradulent transactions; when they saw the price of stock sinking daily,
they employed all their influence with the bank to support the credit of
the South-Sea company. That corporation agreed, though with reluctance,
to subscribe into the stock of the South-Sea company, valued at four
hundred per cent., three millions five hundred thousand pounds, which
the company was to repay to the bank on Lady-day and Michaelmas of the
ensuing year. This transaction was managed by Mr. Robert Walpole, who,
with his own hand, wrote the minute of agreement, afterwards known by
the name of the bank contract. Books were opened at the bank to take in
a subscription for the support of public credit; and considerable sums
of money were brought in. By this expedient the stock was raised at
first, and those who contrived it seized the opportunity to realize. But
the bankruptcy of goldsmiths and the sword-blade company, from the fall
of South-Sea stock, occasioned such a run upon the bank, that the money
was paid away faster than it could be received from the subscription.
Then the South-Sea stock sunk again; and the directors of the bank,
finding themselves in danger of being involved in that company’s ruin,
renounced the agreement; which indeed they were under no obligation to
perform, for it was drawn up in such a manner as to be no more than the
rough draft of a subsequent agreement, without due form, penalty, or
clause of obligation. All expedients having failed, and the clamours
of the people daily increasing, expresses were despatched to Hanover,
representing the state of the nation, and pressing the king to return.
He accordingly shortened his intended stay in Germany, and arrived in
England on the eleventh day of November.
A SECRET COMMITTEE APPOINTED BY THE HOUSE OF COMMONS.
The parliament being assembled on the eighth day of December, his
majesty expressed his concern for the unhappy turn of affairs, which had
so deeply affected the public credit at home: he earnestly desired the
commons to consider of the most effectual and speedy methods to restore
the national credit, and fix it upon a lasting establishment. The
lower house was too much interested in the calamity to postpone the
consideration of that subject. The members seemed to lay aside all party
distinctions, and vie with each other in promoting an inquiry, by which
justice might be done to the injured nation. They ordered the directors
to produce an account of all their proceedings. Sir Joseph Jekyll moved
that a select committee might be appointed to examine the particulars
of this transaction. Mr. Walpole, now paymaster of the forces, observed,
that such a method would protract the inquiry, while the public credit
lay in a bleeding condition. He told the house he had formed a scheme
for restoring public credit; but, before he would communicate this
plan, desired to know whether the subscriptions of public debts and
incumbrances, money-subscriptions and other contracts made with the
South-Sea company, should remain in the present state. After a warm
debate, the question was carried in the affirmative, with this addition,
“Unless altered for the ease and relief of the proprietors, by a general
court of the South-Sea company, or set aside in due course of law.” Next
day Walpole produced his scheme,--to ingraft nine millions of South-Sea
stock into the bank of England, and the like sum into the East India
company, on certain conditions. The house voted, that proposals should
be received from the bank, and those two companies on this subject.
These being delivered the commons resolved, that an engrossment of nine
millions of the capital stock of the South-Sea company into the
capital stock of the bank and East-India company, as proposed by these
companies, would contribute very much to the restoring public credit.
A bill upon this resolution was brought in, passed through both houses,
and received the royal assent. Another bill was enacted into a law, for
restraining the sub-governor, deputy-governor, directors, treasurer,
under-treasurer, cashier, secretary, and accountants, of the South-Sea
company, from quitting the kingdom till the end of the next session
of parliament; and for discovering their estates and effects, so as to
prevent them from being transported or alienated. A committee of secrecy
was chosen by ballot, to examine all the books, papers, and proceedings
relating to the execution of the South-Sea act.
The lords were not less eager than the commons to prosecute this
inquiry, though divers members in both houses were deeply involved in
the guilt and infamy of the transaction. Earl Stanhope said the estates
of the criminals, whether directors or not directors, ought to be
confiscated, to repair the public losses. He was seconded by lord
Carteret, and even by the earl of Sunderland. The duke of Wharton
declared he would give up the best friend he had should he be found
guilty. He observed, that the nation had been plundered in a most
flagrant and notorious manner; therefore, they ought to find out and
punish the offenders severely, without respect to persons. The sub and
deputy-governors, the directors and officers of the South-Sea company,
were examined at the bar of the house. Then a bill was brought in,
disabling them to enjoy any office in that company, or in the East-India
company, or in the bank of England. Three brokers were likewise
examined, and made great discoveries. Knight, the treasurer of the
South-Sea company, who had been entrusted with the secrets of the
whole affair, thought proper to withdraw himself from the kingdom. A
proclamation was issued to apprehend him; and another for preventing any
of the directors from escaping out of the kingdom. At this period, the
secret committee informed the house of commons that they had already
discovered a train of the deepest villany and fraud that hell ever
contrived to ruin a nation, which in due time they would lay before the
house; in the meanwhile, they thought it highly necessary to secure the
persons of some of the directors and principal officers of the South-Sea
company, as well as to seize their papers. An order was made to secure
the books and papers of Knight, Surman, and Turner. The persons of sir
George Caswell, sir John Blunt, sir John Lambert, sir John Fellows,
and Mr. Grigsby, were taken into custody; sir Theodore Janssen, Mr.
Sawbridge, sir Robert Chaplain, and Mr. Eyles, were expelled the house
and apprehended. Mr. Aislaby resigned his employments of chancellor of
the exchequer and lord of the treasury; and orders were given to remove
all directors of the South-Sea company from the places they possessed
under the government.
The lords, in the course of their examination, discovered that large
portions of South-Sea stock had been given to several persons in the
administration and house of commons, for promoting the passing of the
South-Sea act. The house immediately resolved, that this practice was a
notorious and most dangerous species of corruption: that the directors
of the South-Sea company having ordered great quantities of their stock
to be bought for the service of the company, when it was at a very high
price, and on pretence of keeping up the price of stock; and at the
same time several of the directors, and other officers belonging to the
company, having, in a clandestine manner, sold their own stock to the
company, such directors and officers were guilty of a notorious fraud
and breach of trust, and their so doing was one great cause of the
unhappy turn of affairs that had so much affected public credit. Many
other resolutions were taken against that infamous confederacy, in
which, however, the innocent were confounded with the guilty. Sir John
Blunt refusing to answer certain interrogations, a violent debate arose
about the manner in which he should be treated. The duke of Wharton
observed, that the government of the best princes was sometimes rendered
intolerable to their subjects by bad ministers: he mentioned the example
of Sejanus, who had made a division in the imperial family, and rendered
the reign of Cladius hateful to the Romans. Earl Stanhope conceiving
this reflection was aimed at him, was seized with a transport of anger.
He undertook to vindicate the ministry; and spoke with such vehemence as
produced a violent headache, which obliged him to retire. He underwent
proper evacuations, and seemed to recover; but next day, in the evening,
became lethargic, and being seized with a suffocation, instantly
expired. The king deeply regretted the death of this favourite minister,
which was the more unfortunate as it happened at such a critical
conjuncture; and he appointed lord Town-shend to fill his place of
secretary. Earl Stanhope was survived but a few days by the other
secretary Mr. Craggs, who died of the small-pox on the sixteenth day of
February. Knight, the cashier of the South-Sea company, being seized at
Tirlemont by the vigilance of Mr. Gandot, secretary to Mr. Loathes the
British resident at Brussels, was confined in the citadel of Antwerp.
Application was made to the court of Vienna, that he should be delivered
to such persons as might be appointed to receive him; but he had found
means to interest the states of Brabant in his behalf. They insisted
upon their privilege granted by charter, that no person apprehended for
any crime in Brabant should be tried in any other country. The house
of commons expressed their indignation at this frivolous pretence;
instances were renewed to the emperor; and in the meantime Knight
escaped from the citadel of Antwerp.
SEVERE RESOLUTIONS AGAINST THE SOUTH-SEA COMPANY.
The committee of secrecy found, that, before any subscription could
be made, a fictitious stock of five hundred and seventy-four thousand
pounds had been disposed of by the directors, to facilitate the
passing the bill. Great part of this was distributed among the earl of
Sunderland, Mr. Craggs, senior, the duchess of Kendal, the countess
of Platen and her two nieces, Mr. Secretary Craggs, and Mr. Aislaby
chancellor of the exchequer. In consequence of the committee’s report,
the house came to several severe, though just, resolutions against the
directors and officers of the South-Sea company; and a bill was prepared
for the relief of the unhappy sufferers. Mr. Stanhope, one of the
secretaries of the treasury, charged in the report with having large
quantities of stock and subscriptions, desired that he might have an
opportunity to clear himself. His request was granted; and the affair
being discussed, he was cleared by a majority of three voices. Fifty
thousand pounds in stock had been taken by Knight for the use of the
earl of Sunderland. Great part of the house entered eagerly into
this inquiry; and a violent dispute ensued. The whole strength of
the ministry was mustered in his defence. The majority declared him
innocent: the nation in general was of another opinion. He resigned his
place of first commissioner in the treasury, which was bestowed upon Mr.
Robert Walpole; but he still retained the confidence of his master. With
respect to Mr. Aislaby, the evidence appeared so strong against him,
that the commons resolved, he had promoted the distinctive execution
of the South-Sea scheme, with a view to his own exorbitant profit, and
combined with the directors in their pernicious practices to the ruin
of public credit. He was expelled the house, and committed to the Tower.
Mr. Craggs, senior, died of a lethargy, before he underwent the censure
of the house. Nevertheless they resolved that he was a notorious
accomplice with Robert Knight, and some of the directors, in carrying on
their scandalous practices; and therefore, that all the estate of which
he was possessed, from the first day of December in the preceding year,
should be applied towards the relief of the unhappy sufferers in the
South-Sea company. The directors, in obedience to the orders of the
house, delivered in inventories of their estates, which were confiscated
by act of parliament, towards making good the damages sustained by the
company, after a certain allowance was deducted for each according to
his conduct and circumstances.
{1721}
The delinquents being thus punished by the forfeiture of their fortunes,
the house converted their attention to means for repairing the
mischiefs which the scheme had produced. This was a very difficult task,
on account of the contending interests of those engaged in the South-Sea
company, which rendered it impossible to relieve some but at the expense
of others. Several wholesome resolutions were taken, and presented with
an address to the king, explaining the motives of their proceedings. On
the twenty-ninth day of July, the parliament was prorogued for two days
only. Then his majesty going to the house of peers, declared that he
had called them together again so suddenly, that they might resume the
consideration of the state of public credit. The commons immediately
prepared a bill upon the resolutions they had taken. The whole capital
stock, at the end of the year one thousand seven hundred and twenty,
amounted to about thirty-seven millions eight hundred thousand pounds.
The stock allotted to all the proprietors did not exceed twenty-four
millions five hundred thousand pounds; the remaining capital stock
belonged to the company in their corporate capacity. It was the profit
arising from the execution of the South-Sea scheme; and out of this
the bill enacted, that seven millions should be paid to the public. The
present act likewise directed several additions to be made to the stock
of the proprietors, out of that possessed by the company in their own
right; it made a particular distribution of stock, amounting to two
millions two hun dred thousand pounds; and upon remitting five millions
of the seven to be paid to the public, annihilated two millions of their
capital. It was enacted, that, after these distributions, the remaining
capital stock should be divided among all the proprietors. This dividend
amounted to thirty-three pounds six shillings and eight-pence per cent,
and deprived the company of eight millions nine hundred thousand pounds.
They had lent above eleven millions on stock unredeemed; of which the
parliament discharged all the debtors, upon their paying ten per cent.
Upon this article the company’s loss exceeded six millions nine hundred
thousand pounds, for many debtors refused to make any payment. The
proprietors of the stock loudly complained of their being deprived of
two millions; and the parliament in the sequel revived that sum which
had been annihilated. While this affair was in agitation, petitions
from counties, cities, and boroughs, in all parts of the kingdom, were
presented to the house, crying for justice against the villany of
the directors. Pamphlets and papers were daily published on the same
subject; so that the whole nation was exasperated to the highest pitch
of resentment. Nevertheless, by the wise and vigorous resolutions of
the parliament, the South-Sea company was soon in a condition to fulfil
their engagements with the public; the ferment of the people subsided;
and the credit of the nation was restored.
CHAPTER III.
_Bill against Atheism and Immorality postponed..... Session
closed..... Alliances between Great Britain, France, and
Spain..... Plague at Marseilles..... Debates in the House of
Lords about Mr. Law the Projector..... Sentiments of some
Lords touching the War with Spain..... Petition of the
Quakers..... The Parliament dissolved..... Rumours of a
Conspiracy..... The Bishop of Rochester is committed to the
Tower..... New Parliament..... Declaration of the
Pretender..... Report of the Secret Committee..... Bill of
Pains and Penalties against the Bishop of Rochester..... Who
is deprived and driven into perpetual Exile..... Proceedings
against those concerned in the Lottery at Hamburgh.....
Affairs of the Continent..... Clamour in Ireland on account
of Wood’s Coinage..... Death of the Duke of Orleans..... An
Act for lessening the Public Debts..... Philip King of Spain
abdicates the Throne..... Abuses in Chancery..... Trial of
the Earl of Macclesfield..... Debates about the Debts of the
Civil List..... A Bill in favour of the late Lord
Bolingbroke..... Treaty of Alliance between the Courts of
Vienna and Madrid..... Treaty of Hanover..... Approved in
Parliament..... Riots in Scotland on account of the Malt-
tax..... A small Squadron sent to the Baltic..... Admiral
Hosier’s Expedition to the West Indies..... Disgrace of the
Duke de Ripperda..... Substance of the King’s Speech to
Parliament..... Debate in the House of Lords upon the
approaching Rupture with the Emperor and Spain..... Memorial
of Mr. Palms, the Imperial Resident at London.....
Conventions with Sweden and Hesse-Cassel..... Vote of
Credit..... Siege of Gibraltar by the Spaniards.....
Preliminaries of Peace..... Death and Character of George I.
King of Great Britain._
{GEORGE I., 1714-1727}
BILL AGAINST ATHEISM.
During the infatuation produced by this infamous scheme, luxury, vice,
and profligacy, increased to a shocking degree of extravagance. The
adventurers, intoxicated by their imaginary wealth, pampered themselves
with the rarest dainties, and the most expensive wines that could be
imported; they purchased the most sumptuous furniture, equipage, and
apparel, though without taste or discernment; they indulged their
criminal passions to the most scandalous excess; their discourse was the
language of pride, insolence, and the most ridiculous ostentation; they
affected to scoff at religion and morality, and even to set heaven at
defiance. The earl of Nottingham complained in the house of lords of the
growth of atheism, profaneness, and immorality; and a bill was brought
in for suppressing blasphemy and profaneness. It contained several
articles seemingly calculated to restrain the liberty granted to
nonconformists by the laws of the last session: for that reason it
met with violent opposition. It was supported by the archbishop of
Canterbury, the earl of Nottingham, lords Bathurst and Trevor, the
bishops of London, Winchester, and Litchfield and Coventry. One of
these said, he verily believed the present calamity occasioned by
the South-Sea project, was a judgment of God on the blasphemy and
profaneness of the nation. Lord Onslow replied, “That noble peer must
then be a great sinner, for he has lost considerably by the South-Sea
scheme.” The duke of Wharton, who had rendered himself famous by his wit
and profligacy, said he was not insensible of the common opinion of
the town concerning himself, and gladly seized this opportunity of
vindicating his character, by declaring he was far from being a patron
of blasphemy, or an enemy to religion. On the other hand, he could not
but oppose the bill, because he conceived it to be repugnant to the holy
scripture. Then pulling an old family bible from his pocket, he quoted
several passages from the epistles of St. Peter and St. Paul;
concluding with a desire that the bill might be thrown out. The earl of
Peterborough declared, that though he was for a parliamentary king,
yet he did not desire to have a parliamentary God, or a parliamentary
religion; and, should the house declare for one of this kind, he would
go to Rome and endeavour to be chosen a cardinal; for he had rather
sit in a conclave than with their lordships upon those terms. After a
vehement debate, the bill was postponed to a long day, by a considerable
majority. The season was far advanced before the supplies were granted;
and at length they were not voted with that cheerfulness and good humour
which the majority had hitherto manifested on such occasions. On the
sixteenth day of June, the king sent a message to the house of commons,
importing, that he had agreed to pay a subsidy to the crown of Sweden,
and he hoped they would enable him to make good his engagements. The
leaders of the opposition took fire at this intimation. They desired to
know whether this subsidy, amounting to seventy-two thousand pounds, was
to be paid to Sweden over and above the expense of maintaining a strong
squadron in the Baltic? Lord Molesworth observed, that, by our late
conduct, we were become the allies of the whole world, and the bubbles
of all our allies: for we were obliged to pay them well for their
assistance. He affirmed that the treaties which had been made with
Sweden at different times, were inconsistent and contradictory; that
our late engagements with that crown were contrary to the treaties
subsisting with Denmark, and directly opposite to the measures formerly
concerted with the czar of Muscovy. He said, that in order to engage the
czar to yield what he had gained in the course of the war, the king
of Prussia ought to give up Stetin, and the elector of Hanover
restore Bremen and Verden; that, after all, England had no business to
intermeddle with the affairs of the empire; that we reaped little or
no advantage by our trade to the Baltic, but that of procuring naval
stores; he owned that hemp was a very necessary commodity, particularly
at this juncture; but he insisted that if due encouragement were given
to some of our plantations in America, we might be supplied from thence
at a much cheaper rate than from Sweden and Norway. Notwithstanding
these arguments, the Swedish supply was granted; and, in about three
weeks, their complaisance was put to another proof. They were given
to understand, by a second message, that the debts of the civil list
amounted to five hundred and fifty thousand pounds; and his majesty
hoped they would empower him to raise that sum upon the revenue, as he
proposed it should be replaced in the civil list, and reimbursed by a
deduction from the salaries and wages of all officers, as well as from
the pensions and other payments from the crown. A bill was prepared for
this purpose, though not without warm opposition; and, at the same time,
an act passed for a general pardon. On the tenth day of August, the king
closed the session with a speech, in which he expressed his concern
for the sufferings of the innocent, and a just indignation against the
guilty, with respect to the South-Sea scheme. These professions were
judged necessary to clear his own character, which had incurred the
suspicion of some people, who whispered that he was not altogether free
from connexions with the projectors of that design; that the emperor
had, at his desire, refused to deliver up Knight; and that he favoured
the directors and their accomplices.
ALLIANCE BETWEEN GREAT BRITAIN, FRANCE, AND SPAIN.
Lords Townshend and Carteret were now appointed Secretaries of state;
and the earl of Hay was vested with the office of lord privy-seal of
Scotland. In June the treaty of peace between Great Britain and Spain
was signed at Madrid. The contracting parties engaged to restore
mutually all the effects seized and confiscated on both sides. In
particular, the king of England promised to restore all the ships of the
Spanish fleet which had been taken in the Mediterranean, or the value of
them, if they were sold. He likewise promised, in a secret article, that
he would no longer interfere in the affairs of Italy: and the king of
Spain made an absolute cession of Gibraltar and Port Mahon. At the same
time a defensive alliance was concluded between Great Britain, France,
and Spain. All remaining difficulties were referred to a congress at
Cambray, where they hoped to consolidate a general peace, by determining
all differences between the emperor and his catholic majesty. In the
meantime the powers of Great Britain, France, and Spain, engaged, by
virtue of the present treaty, to grant to the duke of Parma a particular
protection for the preservation of his territories and rights, and
for the support of his dignity. It was also stipulated that the
states-general should be invited to accede to this alliance. The
congress at Cambray was opened; but the demands on both sides were so
high, that it proved ineffectual. In the meantime, the peace between
Russia and Sweden was concluded, on condition that the czar should
retain Livonia, Ingria, Estonia, part of Carelia, and of the territory
of Wyburg, Riga, Revel, and Nerva, in consideration of his restoring
part of Finland, and paying two millions of rix-dollars to the king of
Sweden. The personal animosity subsisting between king George and the
czar seemed to increase. Bastagif, the Russian resident at London,
having presented a memorial that contained some unguarded expressions,
was ordered to quit the kingdom in a fortnight. The czar published a
declaration at Petersburgh, complaining of this outrage, which, he
said, ought naturally to have engaged him to use reprisals; but as he
perceived it was done without any regard to the concerns of England,
and only in favour of the Hanoverian interest, he was unwilling that the
English nation should suffer for a piece of injustice in which they had
no share. He, therefore, granted to them all manner of security, and
free liberty to trade in all his dominions. To finish this strange
tissue of negotiations, king George concluded a treaty with the Moors of
Africa, against which the Spaniards loudly exclaimed.
PLAGUE AT MARSEILLES.
In the course of this year pope Clement XI. died; and the princess
of Wales was delivered of a prince, baptized by the name of
William-Augustus, the late duke of Cumberland. A dreadful plague raging
at Marseilles, a proclamation was published, forbidding any person to
come into England, from any part of France between the Bay of Biscay and
Dunkirk, without certificates of health. Other precautions were taken
to guard against contagion. An act of parliament had passed in the
preceding session, for the prevention of infection, by building
pest-houses, to which all infected persons, and all persons of an
infected family, should be conveyed; and by drawing trenches and lines
round any city, town, or place infected. The king, in his speech at
opening the session of parliament on the nineteenth day of October,
intimated the pacification of the north, by the conclusion of the treaty
between Muscovy and Sweden. He desired the house of commons to consider
of means for easing the duties upon the imported commodities used in
the manufactures of the kingdom. He observed, that the nation might be
supplied with naval stores from our own colonies in North America; and
that their being employed in this useful and advantageous branch of
commerce, would divert them from setting up manufactures which directly
interfered with those of Great Britain. He expressed a desire that, with
respect to the supplies, his people might reap some immediate benefit
from the present circumstances of affairs abroad; and he earnestly
recommended to their consideration, means for preventing the plague,
particularly by providing against the practice of smuggling.
DEBATES IN THE HOUSE OF LORDS ABOUT MR. LAW.
One of the first objects that attracted the attention of the upper house
was the case of John Law, the famous projector. The resentment of the
people on account of his Mississippi scheme had obliged him to leave
France. He retired to Italy; and was said to have visited the pretender
at Rome. From thence he repaired to Hanover; and returned to England
from the Baltic, in the fleet commanded by sir John Norris. The king
favoured him with a private audience; he kept open house, and was
visited by great numbers of persons of the first quality. Earl Coningsby
represented in the house of lords that he could not but entertain some
jealousy of a person who had done so much mischief in a neighbouring
kingdom; who, being immensely rich, might do a great deal more hurt
here, by tampering with those who were grown desperate, in consequence
of being involved in the calamity occasioned by the fatal imitation
of his pernicious projects. He observed, that this person was the more
dangerous, as he had renounced his natural affection to his country, his
allegiance to his lawful sovereign, and his religion, by turning Roman
catholic. Lord Carteret replied, that Mr. Law had, many years ago, the
misfortune to kill a gentleman in a duel; but, having at last received
the benefit of the king’s clemency, and the appeal lodged by the
relations of the deceased being taken off, he was come over to plead his
majesty’s pardon. He said there was no law to keep an Englishman out of
his country; and, as Mr. Law was a subject of Great Britain, it was
not even in the king’s power to hinder him from coming over. After some
dispute, the subject was dropped, and this great projector pleaded his
pardon in the king’s bench according to the usual form.
SENTIMENTS OF SOME LORDS TOUCHING THE WAR.
The ministry had by this time secured such a majority in both houses,
as enabled them to carry any point without the least difficulty. Some
chiefs of the opposition they had brought over to their measures, and
among the rest lord Harcourt, who was created a viscount, and gratified
with a pension of four thousand pounds. Nevertheless they could not
shut the mouths of the minority, who still preserved the privilege of
complaining. Great debates were occasioned by the navy debt, which was
increased to one million seven hundred thousand pounds. Some members in
both houses affirmed, that such extraordinary expense could not be for
the immediate service of Great Britain; but, in all probability, for the
preservation of foreign acquisitions. The ministers answered, that near
two-thirds of the navy debts were contracted in the late reign; and the
parliament acquiesced in this declaration; but in reality the navy debt
had been unnecessarily increased, by keeping seamen in pay during the
winter, and sending fleets to the Mediterranean and Baltic in order to
support the interests of Germany. The duke of Wharton moved that the
treaty with Spain might be laid before the house. The earl of Sunderland
said it contained a secret article which the king of Spain desired
might not be made public until after the treaty of Cambray should be
discussed. The question was put, and the duke’s motion rejected.
The earl of Strafford asserted, that as the war with Spain had been
undertaken without necessity or just provocation, so the peace was
concluded without any benefit or advantage; that, contrary to the law of
nations, the Spanish fleet had been attacked without any declaration
of war; even while a British minister and a secretary of state were
treating amicably at Madrid; that the war was neither just nor politic,
since it interrupted one of the most valuable branches of the English
commerce, at a time when the nation groaned under the pressure of heavy
debts, incurred by the former long expensive war. He therefore moved for
an address to his majesty, desiring that the instructions given to sir
George Byng, now lord Torrington, should be laid before the house.
This motion being likewise, upon the question, rejected, a protest was
entered. They voted an address, however, to know in what manner the king
had disposed of the ships taken from the Spaniards. Disputes arose from
the bill to prevent infection. Earl Cowper represented, that the removal
of persons to a lazaret, or pest-house, by order of the government,
and the drawing lines and trenches round places infected, were powers
unknown to the British constitution; inconsistent with the lenity of
a free government, such as could never be wisely or usefully put in
practice; the more odious, because copied from the arbitrary government
of France; and impracticable, except by military compulsion. Those
obnoxious clauses were accordingly repealed, though not without great
opposition. Indeed, nothing can be more absurd than a constitution that
will not admit of just and necessary laws and regulations to prevent
the dire consequences of the worst of all calamities. Such restrictions,
instead of favouring the lenity of a free government, would be the most
cruel imposition that could be laid on a free people, as it would act in
diametrical opposition to the great principles of society, which is the
preservation of the individual.
PETITION OF THE QUAKERS..
The quakers having presented a petition to the house of commons, praying
that a bill might be brought in for omitting in their solemn affirmation
the words “In the presence of Almighty God,” the house complied with
their request: but the bill gave rise to a warm debate among the peers.
Dr. Atterbury, bishop of Rochester, said he did not know why such a
distinguishing mark of indulgence should be allowed to a set of people
who were hardly christians. He was supported by the archbishop of York,
the earl of Strafford, and lord North and Grey. A petition was presented
against the bill by the London clergy, who expressed a serious concern
lest the minds of good men should be grieved and wounded, and the
enemies of Christianity triumph, when they should see such condescension
made by a christian legislature to a set of men who renounce the divine
institutions of Christ; particularly that by which the faithful are
initiated into his religion, and denominated christians. The petition,
though presented by the archbishop of York, was branded by the ministry
as a seditious libel, and rejected by the majority. Then, upon a motion
by the earl of Sunderland, the house resolved that such lords as might
enter protestations with reasons, should do it before two o’clock on
the next sitting day, and sign them before the house rises. The supplies
being granted, and the business of the session despatched as the court
was pleased to dictate, on the seventh day of March the parliament
was prorogued. In a few days it was dissolved, and another convoked by
proclamation. In the election of members for the new parliament, the
ministry exerted itself with such success as returned a great majority
in the house of commons, extremely well adapted for all the purposes of
an administration. *
* The earl of Sunderland died in April, after having
incurred a great load of popular odium, from his supposed
connexions with the directors of the South-Sea company. He
was a minister of abilities, but violent, impetuous, and
headstrong. His death was soon followed by that of his
father-in-law, the great duke of Marlborough, whose
faculties had been for some time greatly impaired. He was
interred in Westminster-abbey, with such profusion of
funeral pomp, as evinced the pride and ostentation, much
more than the taste and concern, of those who directed his
obsequies. He was succeeded as master of the ordnance, and
colonel of the first regiment of foot guards, by earl
Cadogan.
{1722}
In the beginning of May, the king is said to have received from the duke
of Orleans full and certain information of a fresh conspiracy formed
against his person and government. A camp was immediately formed
in Hyde-Park. All military officers were ordered to repair to their
respective commands. Lieutenant-general Macartney was despatched to
Ireland, to bring over some troops from that kingdom. Some suspected
persons were apprehended in Scotland: the states of Holland were desired
to have their auxiliary or guarantee troops in readiness to be embarked;
and colonel Churchill was sent to the court of France with a private
commission. The apprehension raised by this supposed plot affected
the public credit. South-Sea stock began to fall, and crowds of people
called in their money from the bank. Lord Townshend wrote a letter to
the mayor of London, by the king’s command, signifying his majesty’s
having received unquestionable advices that several of his subjects had
entered into a wicked conspiracy, in concert with traitors abroad, for
raising a rebellion in favour of a popish pretender; but that he was
firmly assured the authors of it neither were nor would be supported
by any foreign power. This letter was immediately answered by an
affectionate address from the court of aldermen; and the example of
London was followed by many other cities and boroughs. The king had
determined to visit Hanover, and actually settled a regency, in which
the prince of Wales was not included: but now this intended journey was
laid aside; the court was removed to Kensington, and the prince retired
to Richmond. The bishop of Rochester having been seized with his
papers, was examined before a committee of the council, who committed
him to the Tower for high-treason. The earl of Orrery, lord North and
Grey, and Mr. Cockran and Mr. Smith from Scotland, and Mr. Christopher
Layer, a young gentleman of the Temple, were confined in the same
place. Mr. George Kelly, an Irish clergyman, Mr. Robert Cotton of
Huntingdonshire, Mr. Bingly, Mr. Fleetwood, Neynoe, an Irish priest, and
several persons, were taken into custody; and Mr. Shippen’s house was
searched. After bishop Atterbury had remained a fortnight in the Tower,
sir Constantine Phipps presented a petition to the court at the Old
Bailey, in the name of Mrs. Morris, that prelate’s daughter, praying
that, in consideration of the bishop’s ill state of health, he might be
either brought to a speedy trial, bailed, or discharged: but this was
over-ruled. The churchmen through the whole kingdom were filled with
indignation at the confinement of a bishop, which they said was an
outrage upon the church of England, and the episcopal order. Far from
concealing their sentiments on this subject, the clergy ventured to
offer up public prayers for his health, in almost all the churches and
chapels of London and Westminster. In the meantime, the king, attended
by the prince of Wales, made a summer progress through the western
counties.
NEW PARLIAMENT.
The new parliament being assembled on the ninth day of October, his
majesty made them acquainted with the nature of the conspiracy. He said
the conspirators had, by their emissaries, made the strongest instances
for succours from foreign powers, but were disappointed in their
expectations. That nevertheless, confiding in their numbers, they had
resolved once more, upon their own strength, to attempt the subversion
of his government. He said they had provided considerable sums of money,
engaged great numbers of officers from abroad, secured large quantities
of arms and ammunition; and, had not the plot been timely discovered,
the whole nation, and particularly the city of London, would have been
involved in blood and confusion. He expatiated upon the mildness and
integrity of his own government; and inveighed against the ingratitude,
the implacability, and madness of the disaffected, concluding with an
assurance that he would steadily adhere to the constitution in church
and state, and continue to make the laws of the realm the rule and
measure of all his actions. Such addresses were presented by both
houses, as the fears and attachment of the majority may be supposed to
have dictated on such an occasion. A bill was brought into the house of
lords for suspending the _habeas-corpus_ act for a whole year, but they
were far from being unanimous in agreeing to such an unusual length of
time. By this suspension they, in effect, vested the ministry with a
dictatorial power over the liberties of the people.
DECLARATION OF THE PRETENDER.
The opposition in the house of commons was so violent, that Mr. Robert
Walpole found it necessary to alarm their apprehensions by a dreadful
story of a design to seize the bank and exchequer, and to proclaim the
pretender on the Royal Exchange. Their passions being inflamed by this
ridiculous artifice, they passed the bill, which immediately received
the royal assent. The duke of Norfolk being brought from Bath, was
examined before the council, and committed to the Tower on suspicion
of high-treason. On the sixteenth day of November, the king sent to the
house of peers the original and printed copy of a declaration signed by
the pretender. It was dated at Lucca, on the twentieth day of September,
in the present year, and appeared to be a proposal addressed to the
subjects of Great Britain and Ireland, as well as to all foreign princes
and states. In this paper, the chevalier de St. George having mentioned
the late violation of the freedom of elections, conspiracies invented to
give a colour to new oppressions, infamous informers, and the state of
proscription in which he supposed every honest man to be, very gravely
proposed, that if king George would relinquish to him the throne of
Great Britain, he would, in return, bestow upon him the title of king
in his native dominions, and invite all Other states to confirm it; he
likewise promised to leave to king George his succession to the British
dominions secure, whenever, in due course, his natural right should take
place. The lords unanimously resolved that this declaration was a false,
insolent, and traitorous libel; and ordered it to be burned at the Royal
Exchange. The commons concurred in these resolutions. Both houses joined
in an address, expressing their utmost astonishment and indignation at
the surprising insolence of the pretender; and assuring his majesty they
were determined to support his title to the crown with their lives and
fortunes. The commons prepared a bill for raising one hundred thousand
pounds upon the real and personal estates of all papists, or persons
educated in the popish religion, towards defraying the expenses
occasioned by the late rebellion and disorders. This bill, though
strenuously opposed by some moderate members as a species of
persecution, was sent up to the house of lords; together with another
obliging all persons being papists in Scotland, and all persons in Great
Britain, refusing or neglecting to take the oaths appointed for the
security of the king’s person and government, to register their names
and real estates. Both these bills passed through the upper house
without amendment, and received the royal sanction.
REPORT OF THE SECRET COMMITTEE.
Mr. Layer being brought to his trial at the king’s bench, on the
twenty-first day of November, was convicted for having enlisted men for
the pretender’s service, in order to stir up a rebellion, and received
sentence of death. He was reprieved for some time, and examined by a
committee of the house of commons: but he either could not, or would
not, discover the particulars of the conspiracy, so that he suffered
death at Tyburn, and his head was fixed up at Temple-bar. Mr. Pulteney,
chairman of the committee, reported to the house, that, from the
examination of Layer and others, a design had been formed by persons of
figure and distinction at home, in conjunction with traitors abroad, for
placing the pretender on the throne of these realms: that their first
intention was to procure a body of foreign troops to invade the kingdom
at the time of the late elections; but that the conspirators being
disappointed in this expectation, resolved to make an attempt at the
time that it was generally believed the king intended to go to Hanover,
by the help of such officers and soldiers as could pass into England
unobserved, from abroad, under the command of the late duke of Ormond,
who was to have landed in the river with a great quantity of arms
provided in Spain for that purpose; at which time the Tower was to have
been seized. That this scheme being also defeated by the vigilance of
the government, they deferred their enterprise till the breaking up of
the camp; and, in the meantime, employed their agents to corrupt and
seduce the officers and soldiers of the army: that it appeared from
several letters and circumstances, that the late duke of Ormond, the
duke of Norfolk, the earl of Orrery, lord North and Grey, and the bishop
of Rochester, were concerned in this conspiracy; that their acting
agents were Christopher Layer and John Plunket, who travelled together
to Rome; Dennis Kelly, George Kelly, and Thomas Carte, nonjuring
clergymen; Neynoe the Irish priest, who by this time was drowned in
the river Thames in attempting to make his escape from the messenger’s
house; Mrs. Spilman, alias Yallop, and John Sample.
BILL OF PAINS AND PENALTIES AGAINST THE BISHOP OF ROCHESTER.
This pretended conspiracy, in all likelihood, extended no farther than
the first rudiments of a design that was never digested into any regular
form; otherwise the persons said to be concerned in it must have been
infatuated to a degree of frenzy: for they were charged with having made
application to the regent of France, who was well known to be intimately
connected with the king of Great Britain. The house of commons, however,
resolved, that it was a detestable and horrid conspiracy for raising
a rebellion, seizing the Tower and the city of London, laying violent
hands upon the persons of his most sacred majesty and the prince of
Wales, in order to subvert our present happy establishment in church and
state, by placing a popish pretender upon the throne: that it was formed
and carried on by persons of figure and distinction, and their agents
and instruments, in conjunction with traitors abroad. Bills were brought
in and passed, for inflicting pains and penalties against John Plunket
and George Kelly, who were by these acts to be kept in close custody
during his majesty’s pleasure, in any prison in Great Britain; and that
they should not attempt to escape on pain of death, to be inflicted upon
them and their assistants. Mr. Yonge made a motion for a bill of the
same nature against the bishop of Rochester. This was immediately
brought into the house, though sir William Wyndham affirmed that there
was no evidence against him but conjectures and hearsay. The bishop
wrote a letter to the speaker, importing, that, though conscious of his
own innocence, he should decline giving the house any trouble that day,
contenting himself with the opportunity of making his defence before
another, of which he had the honour to be a member. Counsel being heard
for the bill, it was committed to a grand committee on the sixth day of
April, when the majority of the tory members quitted the house. It
was then moved, that the bishop should be deprived of his office
and benefice, and banished the kingdom for ever. Mr. Lawson and Mr.
Oglethorpe spoke in his favour.
{1723}
The bill being passed, and sent up to the lords, the bishop was brought
to his trial before them on the ninth of May. Himself and his counsel
having been heard, the lords proceeded to consider the articles of the
bill. When they read it a third time, a motion was made to pass it, and
then a long and warm debate ensued. Earl Paulet demonstrated the danger
and injustice of swerving in such an extraordinary manner from the fixed
rules of evidence. The duke of Wharton having summed up the depositions,
and proved the insufficiency of them, concluded with saying, that, let
the consequences be what they would, he hoped such a hellish stain
would never sully the lustre and glory of that illustrious house, as to
condemn a man without the least evidence. Lord Bathurst spoke
against the bill with equal strength and eloquence. He said, if such
extraordinary proceedings were countenanced, he saw nothing remaining
for him and others to do, but to retire to their country houses,
and there, if possible, quietly enjoy their estates within their own
families, since the least correspondence, the least intercepted letter,
might be made criminal. He observed, that cardinal Mazarin boasted, that
if he had but two lines of any man’s writing, he could, by means of a
few circumstances, attested by witnesses, deprive him of his life at
his pleasure. Turning to the bench of bishops, who had been generally
unfavourable to Dr. Atterbury, he said he could hardly account for the
inveterate hatred and malice some persons bore the learned and ingenuous
bishop of Rochester, unless they were intoxicated with the infatuation
of some savage Indians, who believe they inherited not only the spoils,
but even the abilities of any great enemy whom they had killed in
battle. The bill was supported by the duke of Argyle, the earl of
Seafield, and Lord Lechmere, which last was answered by earl Cowper.
This nobleman observed, that the strongest argument urged in behalf of
the bill was necessity; but that, for his part, he saw no necessity that
could justify such unprecedented and such dangerous proceedings, as the
conspiracy had above twelve months before been happily discovered, and
the effects of it prevented: that, besides the intrinsic weight and
strength of the government, the hands of those at the helm had been
still further fortified by the suspension of the _habeas-corpus_ act,
and the additional troops which had been raised. He said the known rules
of evidence, as laid down at first and established by the law of the
land, were the birth-right of every subject in the nation, and ought to
be constantly observed, not only in the inferior courts of judicature,
but also in both houses of parliament, till altered by the legislature;
that the admitting of the precarious and uncertain evidence of the
clerks of the post-office, was a very dangerous precedent. In former
times, said he, it was thought very grievous that in capital cases a
man should be affected by similitude of hands; but here the case is much
worse, since it is allowed that the clerks of the post-office should
carry the similitude of hands four months in their minds. He applauded
the bishop’s noble deportment in declining to answer before the house of
commons, whose proceedings in this unprecedented manner, against a
lord of parliament, was such an encroachment on the prerogative of the
peerage, that if they submitted to it, by passing the bill, they
might be termed the last of British peers, for giving up their ancient
privileges. The other party were not so solicitous about answering
reasons, as eager to put the question, when the bill passed, and a
protest was entered. By this act the bishop was deprived of all offices,
benefices, and dignities, and rendered incapable of enjoying any for the
future: he was banished the realm, and subjected to the pains of death
in case he should return, as were all persons who should correspond with
him during his exile. Dr. Friend, the celebrated physician, who was a
member of the house of commons, and had exerted himself strenuously
in behalf of the bishop, was now taken into custody on suspicion of
treasonable practices.
PROCEEDINGS AGAINST THOSE CONCERNED IN THE LOTTERY AT HAMBURGH.
The next object that excited the resentment of the commons was the
scheme of a lottery to be drawn at Hamburgh in the king’s German
dominions. The house appointed a committee to inquire into this
and other lotteries at that time on foot in London. The scheme was
published, on pretence of raising a subscription for maintaining a trade
between Great Britain and the king’s territories on the Elbe; but it
was a mysterious scene of iniquity, which the committee, with all their
penetration, could not fully discover. They reported, however, that it
was an infamous fraudulent undertaking, whereby many unwary persons had
been drawn in, to their great loss: that the manner of carrying it
on had been a manifest violation of the laws of the kingdom: that the
managers and agents of this lottery had, without any authority for so
doing, made use of his majesty’s royal name, thereby to give countenance
to the infamous project, and induce his majesty’s subjects to engage or
be concerned therein. A bill was brought in to suppress this lottery;
and to oblige the managers of it to make restitution of the money they
had received from the contributors. At the same time the house resolved,
That John lord viscount Barrington had been notoriously guilty of
promoting, abetting, and carrying on their fraudulent undertaking;
for which offence he should be expelled the house. The court of Vienna
having erected an East-India company at Os-tend, upon a scheme formed by
one Colebrooke an English merchant, sir Nathaniel Gould represented to
the house of commons the great detriment which the English East-India
company had already received, and were likely further to sustain,
by this Ostend company. The house immediately resolved, That for the
subjects of this kingdom to subscribe, or be concerned in encouraging
any subscription, to promote an East-India company now erecting in the
Austrian Netherlands, was a high crime and misdemeanor; and a law
was enacted for preventing British subjects from engaging in that
enterprise. By another act, relating to the South-Sea company, the two
millions of stock which had been annihilated were revived, added to the
capital, and divided among the proprietors. A third law passed, for the
more effectual execution of justice in a part of Southwark called
the Mint, where a great number of debtors had taken sanctuary, on the
supposition that it was a privileged place. On the twenty-seventh day
of May the session was closed, with a speech that breathed nothing
but panegyric, acknowledgment, and affection to a parliament which had
complied with all his majesty’s wishes.
{GEORGE I, 1714--1727}
AFFAIRS OF THE CONTINENT.
His majesty having ennobled the son of Mr. Robert Walpole, in
consideration of the father’s services, made a good number of church
promotions. He admitted the imprisoned lords and gentlemen to bail;
granted a pardon to lord Bolingbroke; and ordered the bishop of
Rochester to be conveyed to the continent. Then he himself set out for
Hanover, leaving the administration of his kingdoms in the hands of a
regency, lord Har-court being one of the justices. The king was attended
by the two secretaries, lords Townshend and Carteret, who were counted
able negotiators. The affairs of the continent had begun to take a new
turn. The interests and connexions of the different princes were become
perplexed and embarrassed; and king George resolved to unravel them
by dint of negotiation. Understanding that a treaty was on the carpet
between the czar and the king of Sweden, favourable to the duke of
Holstein’s pretensions to Sleswick, the possession of which the elector
of Hanover had guaranteed to Denmark, his majesty began to be in pain
for Bremen and Verden. The regent of France and the king of Spain had
now compromised all differences; and their reconciliation was cemented
by a double marriage between Philip’s sons and the regent’s daughters.
The former proposed new treaties to England; but insisted upon the
restitution of Gibraltar and Port-Mahon, as well as upon the king’s
openly declaring against the Ostend company. His Britannic majesty was
apprehensive, that, should the emperor be hard pressed on that subject,
he might join the czar and the king of Sweden, and promote their designs
in favour of the duke of Holstein. On the other hand, all the Italian
powers exclaimed against the treaty of London. The pope had protested
against any thing that might have been decided at Cambray to the
prejudice of his right. Memorials to the same effect had been presented
by the king of Sardinia, the dukes of Tuscany, Parma, and Modena. France
and Spain were inclined to support these potentates against the house
of Austria. Europe seemed to be on the eve of a new war. King George was
entangled in such a variety of treaties and interests, that he knew not
well how to extricate himself from the troublesome engagements he had
contracted. By declaring for the emperor, he must have countenanced the
new establishment at Ostend, which was so prejudicial to his British
subjects, and incurred the resentment of France, Spain, and their allies
of Italy. In renouncing the interest of the emperor, he would have
exposed his German dominions. In vain he exhorted the emperor to relax
in his disputes with Spain, and give up the Ostend company, which was so
detrimental and disagreeable to his faithful allies; the court of Vienna
promised in general to observe the treaties which it had concluded,
but declined entering into any particular discussion; so that all his
majesty’s endeavours ended in contracting closer connexions with Prussia
and Denmark. All those negotiations carried on, all those treaties
concluded by king George, with almost every prince and state in
Christendom, which succeeded one another so fast, and appear at first
view so intricate and unaccountable, were founded upon two simple and
natural principles, namely, the desire of ascertaining his acquisitions
as elector of Hanover, and his resolution to secure himself against
the disaffection of his British subjects, as well as the efforts of the
pretender.
CLAMOUR IN IRELAND ON ACCOUNT OF WOOD’S COINAGE.
Great Britain at this period enjoyed profound tranquillity. Ireland was
a little ruffled by an incident which seemed to have been misrepresented
to the people of that kingdom. William Wood had obtained a patent for
furnishing Ireland with copper currency, in which it was deficient.
A great clamour was raised against this coin. The parliament of that
kingdom, which met in September, resolved, that it would be prejudicial
to the revenue, destructive of trade, and of dangerous consequence
to the rights of the subject; that the patent had been obtained by
misrepresentation; that the halfpence wanted weight; that, even if the
terms of the patent had been complied with, there would have been
a great loss to the nation; that granting the power of coinage to a
private person had ever been highly prejudicial to the kingdom, and
would at all times be of dangerous consequence. Addresses from both
houses were presented to the king on this subject. The affair was
referred to the lords of the privy-council of England. They justified
the conduct of the patentee, upon the report of Sir Isaac Newton and
other officers of the Mint, who had made an assay and trial of Wood’s
halfpence, and found he had complied with the terms of the patent. They
declared that this currency exceeded in goodness, fineness, and value
of metal, all the copper money which had been coined for Ireland, in the
reigns of king Charles II., king James II., king William and queen Mary.
The privy-council likewise demonstrated, that his majesty’s predecessors
had always exercised the undoubted prerogative of granting patents for
copper coinage in Ireland to private persons: that none of these patents
had been so beneficial to the kingdom as this granted to William
Wood, who had not obtained it in an unprecedented manner, but after a
reference to the attorney and solicitor-general, and after Sir Isaac
Newton had been consulted in every particular: finally, they proved, by
a great number of witnesses, that there was a real want of such money in
Ireland. Notwithstanding this decision, the ferment of the Irish nation
was industriously kept up by clamour, pamphlets, papers, and lampoons,
written by dean Swift and other authors; so that Wood voluntarily
reduced his coinage from the value of one hundred thousand to forty
thousand pounds. Thus the noise was silenced. The commons of Ireland
passed an act for accepting the affirmation of the quakers instead of
an oath; and voted three hundred and forty thousand pounds towards
discharging the debt of the nation, which amounted to about double that
sum.
DEATH OF THE DUKE OF ORLEANS.
In the month of October, England lost a worthy nobleman in the death
of earl Cowper, who had twice discharged the office of lord-chancellor,
with equal discernment and integrity. He was profoundly skilled in the
laws of his country; in his apprehension quick and penetrating; in his
judgment clear and determinate. He possessed a manly eloquence; his
manner was agreeable, and his deportment graceful. This year was
likewise remarkable for the death of the duke of Orleans, regent of
France, who, since the decease of Louis XIV., had ruled that nation
with the most absolute authority. He was a prince of taste and spirit,
endowed with shining talents for empire, which he did not fail to
display, even in the midst of effeminate pursuits and idle debauchery.
From the infirm constitution of the infant king, he had conceived hopes
of ascending the throne, and taken his measures accordingly; but the
young monarch’s health began to be established, and all the duke’s
schemes were defeated by an apoplexy, of which he died, in the
fiftieth year of his age, after having nominated the duke of Bourbon as
prime-minister. King George immediately received assurances of the good
disposition of the French court, to cultivate and even improve the good
understanding so happily established between France and Great Britain.
The king arrived in England on the eighteenth day of December; and on
the ninth day of January the parliament was assembled. His majesty, in
his speech, recommended to the commons the care of the public debts; and
he expressed his satisfaction at seeing the sinking fund improved and
augmented, so as to put the debt of the nation into a method of being
speedily and gradually discharged.
AN ACT FOR LESSENING THE PUBLIC DEBTS.
This was the repeated theory of patriotism, which unhappily for the
subjects, was never reduced to practice; not but that a beginning
of such a laudable work was made in this very session, by an act for
lessening the public debts. This law provided that the annuities at five
per cent, charged on the general fund by a former act, except such as
had been subscribed into the South-Sea, together with the unsubscribed
blanks of the lottery in the year one thousand seven hundred and
fourteen, should be paid off at Lady-day of the year next ensuing, with
the money arising from the sinking fund. The ministry, however, did not
persevere in this path of prudent economy. The commons granted all the
supplies that were demanded. They voted ten thousand seamen; and the
majority, though not without violent opposition, agreed to maintain four
thousand additional troops, which had been raised in the preceding
year; so that the establishment of the land-forces amounted to eighteen
thousand two hundred and sixty-four. The expense of the year was
defrayed by a land-tax and malt-tax. The commons having despatched the
supply, took into consideration a grievance arising from protections
granted by foreign ministers, peers and members of parliament, under
which profligate persons used to screen themselves from the prosecution
of their just creditors. The commons resolved, That all protections
granted by members of that house should be declared void, and
immediately withdrawn. The lords made a declaration to the same purpose,
with an exception to menial servants, and those necessarily employed
about the estates of peers.*
* The duke of Newcastle was now appointed secretary of
state; the duke of Grafton, lord-chamberlain; and lord
Carteret, lord-lieutenant of Ireland.--The king instituted a
professorship for the modern languages in each university.--
In the month of May died Robert Harley, earl of Oxford and
earl Mortimer, who had been a munificent patron of genius
and literature; and completed a very valuable collection of
manuscripts.--The practice of inoculation for the small-pox
was by this time introduced into England from Turkey. Prince
Frederic, the two princesses Amelia and Carolina, the duke
of Bedford and his sister, with many other persons of
distinction, underwent the operation with success.--Dr.
Henry Sacheverel died in June, after having bequeathed five
hundred pounds to the late bishop of Rochester.
{1724}
On the twenty-fourth day of April, his majesty closed the session in
the usual manner, made some alterations in the disposition of the
great officers of state, and sent Mr. Horatio Walpole as
ambassador-extraordinary to the court of France.
PHILIP, KING OF SPAIN, ABDICATES THE THRONE.
In the beginning of this year, Philip king of Spain, retiring with his
queen to the monastery of St. Ildefonso, sent the marquis of Grimaldi,
his principal secretary of state, to his son Louis prince of Asturias,
with a solemn renunciation of the crown, and a letter of advice in
which he exhorted him to cultivate the Blessed Virgin with the warmest
devotion, and put himself and his kingdoms under her protection. The
renunciation was published through the whole monarchy of Spain; and
the council of Castile resolved, That Louis might assume the reins of
government without assembling the Cortez. The English minister at Paris
was instructed to interpose in behalf of the French protestants, against
whom a severe edict had been lately published; but his remonstrances
produced no effect. England, in the meantime, was quite barren of such
events as deserve a place in history. The government was now firmly
established on the neck of opposition; and commerce flourished even
under the load of grievous impositions.
ABUSES IN CHANCERY.
The next parliament, which met on the twelfth day of November, seemed
to be assembled for no other purpose than that of establishing funds for
the expense of the ensuing year; yet the session was distinguished by
a remarkable incident--namely, the trial of the earl of Macclesfield,
lord-chancellor of England. This nobleman had connived at certain
venal practices touching the sale of places, and the money of suitors
deposited with the masters of chancery, so as to incur the general
reproach of the nation. He found it necessary to resign the great seal
in the beginning of January, 1725. On the ninth day of the ensuing
month, the king sent a message to the commons, importing, That his
majesty having reason to apprehend that the suitors in the court of
chancery were in danger of losing a considerable sum of money, from
the insufficiency of some of the masters, thought himself obliged, in
justice and compassion to the said sufferers, to take the most speedy
and proper method the law would allow for inquiring into the state of
the master’s accounts, and securing their effects for the benefit of the
suitors; and his majesty having had several reports laid before him, in
pursuance of the directions he had given, had ordered the reports to be
communicated to the house, that they might have as full and as perfect
a view of this important affair as the shortness of the time, and the
circumstances and nature of the proceedings, would admit.
TRIAL OF THE EARL OF MACCLESFIELD.
These papers being taken into consideration, sir George Oxenden
observed, that enormous abuses had crept into the high court of
chancery; that the crimes and misdemeanors of the late lord-chancellor
were many and various, but might be reduced to the following heads
--that he had embezzled the estates and effects of many widows, orphans,
and lunatics; that he had raised the offices of masters in chancery
to an exorbitant price; trusting in their hands large sums of money
belonging to suitors, that they might be enabled to comply with his
exorbitant demands, and that in several cases he had made divers
irregular orders. He therefore moved, That Thomas earl of Macclesfield
should be impeached of high crimes and misdemeanors. Mr. Pulteney
moved, That this affair might be left to the consideration of a select
committee. Sir William Wyndham asserted, That in proceeding by way
of impeachment upon reports from above, they would make a dangerous
precedent; and seem to give up the most valuable of their privileges,
the inquest after state criminals. The question being put, it was
carried for the impeachment. The earl was accordingly impeached at the
bar of the upper house; a committee was appointed to prepare articles;
and a bill was brought in, to indemnify the masters in chancery from the
penalties of the law, upon discovering what consideration they had paid
for their admission to their respective offices. The trial lasted twenty
days; the earl was convicted of fradulent practices; and condemned in a
fine of thirty thousand pounds, with imprisonment until that sum should
be paid. He was immediately committed to the Tower, where he continued
about six weeks; but upon producing the money he was discharged; and sir
Peter King, now created baron of Oakham, succeeded him in the office of
chancellor.
DEBATES ABOUT THE DEBTS OF THE CIVIL LIST.
His majesty, on the eighth day of April, gave the house of commons to
understand, that having been engaged in some extraordinary expenses, he
hoped he should be enabled to raise a sum of money, by making use of the
funds lately established for the payment of the civil list annuities,
in order to discharge the debts contracted in the civil government.
Mr. Pulteney, cofferer of the household, moved for an address, That an
account should be laid before the house of all monies paid for secret
service, pensions, and bounties, from the twenty-fifth day of March, in
the year one thousand seven hundred and one, to the twenty-fifth of the
same month in the present year. This address being voted, a motion
was made to consider the king’s message. Mr. Pulteney urged, that this
consideration should be postponed until the house should have examined
the papers that were the subject of the address. He expressed his
surprise that a debt amounting to above five hundred thousand pounds
should be contracted in three years; he said, he did not wonder that
some persons should be so eager to make good the deficiencies of the
civil-list, since they and their friends enjoyed such a share of that
revenue; and he desired to know whether this was all that was due, or
whether they should expect another reckoning? This gentleman began to
be dissatisfied with the measures of the ministry; and his sarcasms
were aimed at Mr. Walpole, who undertook to answer his objections. The
commons took the message into consideration, and passed a bill, enabling
his majesty to raise a sum, not exceeding one million, by exchequer
bills, loans, or otherwise, on the credit of the deductions of sixpence
per pound, directed by an act of parliament of the seventh year of his
majesty, and of the civil-list revenues, at an interest not exceeding
three pounds per cent, till repayment of the principal.
BILL IN FAVOUR OF THE LATE LORD BOLINGBROKE.
On the twentieth day of April, a petition was presented to the house
by lord Finch in behalf of Henry St. John, late viscount Bolingbroke,
praying that the execution of the law with respect to his forfeitures
might be suspended, as a pardon had suspended it with respect to his
life. Mr. Walpole signified to the house, by his majesty’s command,
that, seven years before, the petitioner had made humble application
and submission to the king, with assurances of duty, allegiance, and
fidelity; that, from his behaviour since that time, his majesty was
convinced of his being a fit object of his mercy, and consented to his
petitioning the house. The petition being read, Mr. Walpole declared
himself fully satisfied that the petitioner had sufficiently atoned for
his past offences; and therefore deserved the favour of that house, so
far as to enable him to enjoy the family inheritance that was settled
upon him, which he could not do by virtue of his majesty’s pardon,
without an act of parliament. Lord Finch moved, That a bill might be
brought in for this purpose, and was warmly opposed by Mr. Methuen,
comptroller of the household, who represented Bolingbroke as a monster
of iniquity. His remonstrance was supported by lord William Paulet and
Mr. Onslow; nevertheless, the bill was prepared, passed through both
houses, and received the royal assent. An act being passed for disarming
the highlanders of Scotland, another for regulating elections within
the city of London, a third for reducing the interest of several bank
annuities, together with some bills of a private nature, the parliament
was prorogued in May, after the king had, in the warmest terms of
acknowledgment, expressed his approbation of their conduct. Then he
appointed lords-justices to govern the nation in his absence; and set
out in June for his German dominions.*
* On the fifth day of December the princess of Wales was
delivered of a princess, christened by the name of Lotvisa,
and afterwards married to the king of Denmark. She died
December the nineteenth, one thousand seven hundred and
fifty-one.--Immediately after the session of parliament, the
king revived the order of the Bath, thirty-eight in number,
including the sovereign.--William Bateman was created baron
of Calmore in Ireland, and viscount Bateman; and sir Kobert
Walpole, who had been one of the revived knights of the
Bath, was now honoured with the order of the Garter.
TREATY OF ALLIANCE.
The tide of political interest on the continent had begun to flow in a
new channel, so as to render ineffectual the mounds which his Britannic
majesty had raised by his multiplicity of negotiations. Louis, the
Spanish monarch, dying soon after his elevation to the throne, his
father Philip resumed the crown which he had resigned, and gave himself
up implicitly to the conduct of his queen, who was a princess of
indefatigable intrigue and insatiate ambition. The infanta, who had been
married to Louis XV. of France, was so disagreeable to her husband,
that the whole French nation began to be apprehensive of a civil war in
consequence of his dying without male issue; he therefore determined,
with the advice of his council, to send back the infanta, as the
nuptials had not been consummated; and she was attended to Madrid by the
marquis de. Monteleone. The queen of Spain resented this insult offered
to her daughter; and, in revenge, dismissed mademoiselle de Beaujolois,
one of the regent’s daughters, who had been betrothed to her son don
Carlos. As the congress at Cambray had proved ineffectual, she offered
to adjust her differences with the emperor, under the sole mediation
of Great Britain. This was an honour which king George declined. He was
averse to any undertaking that might interrupt the harmony subsisting
between him and the court of Versailles; and he had taken umbrage at the
emperor’s refusing to grant the investiture of Bremen and Verden except
upon terms which he did not choose to embrace. The peace between the
courts of Vienna and Madrid, which he refused to mediate, was effected
by a private negotiation, under the management of the duke de Ripperda,
a native of the states-general, who had renounced the protestant
religion, and entered into the service of his catholic majesty. By
two treaties, signed at Vienna in the month of April, the emperor
acknowledged Philip as king of Spain and the Indies, promised that he
would not molest him in the possession of those dominions that
were secured to him by the treaty of Utrecht. Philip renounced all
pretensions to the dominions in Italy and the Netherlands, adjudged to
the emperor by the treaty of London; Charles granted the investiture of
the dukedoms of Tuscany, Parma, and Placentia, to the eldest son of
the queen of Spain, in default of heirs in the present possessors, as
masculine fiefs of the empire. Spain became guarantee of the Austrian
succession, according to the pragmatic sanction, by which the dominions
of that house were settled on the emperors’s heirs general, and declared
to be a perpetual, indivisible, and inseparable feoffment of the
primogeniture. By the commercial treaty of Vienna, the Austrian subjects
were entitled to advantages in trade with Spain, which no other nation
enjoyed. His catholic majesty guaranteed the Ostend East India company;
and agreed to pay an annual subsidy of four millions of piastres to the
emperor. Great sums were remitted to Vienna; the Imperial forces were
augmented to a formidable number; and other powers were solicited to
engage in this alliance, to which the court of Petersburgh actually
acceded.
TREATY OF HANOVER.
The kind of Great Britain took the alarm. The emperor and he had for
some time treated each other with manifest coolness. He had reason to
fear some attempts upon his German dominions, and projected a defensive
treaty with France and Prussia. This alliance, limited to the term of
fifteen years, was negotiated and concluded at Hanover in the month of
September. It implied a mutual guarantee of the dominions possessed by
the contracting parties, their rights and privileges, those of commerce
in particular, and an engagement to procure satisfaction to the
protestants of Thorn, who had lately been oppressed by the catholics,
contrary to the treaty of Oliva. The king having taken these precautions
at Hanover, set out on his return for England; embarked at Helvoetsluys
in the middle of December; and after having been exposed to the fury of
a dreadful storm, was landed with great difficulty at Rye, from whence
he proceeded by land to London. The parliament meeting on the twentieth
day of the next month, he gave them to understand that the distressed
condition of some of their protestant brethren abroad, and the
negotiations and engagements contracted by some foreign powers, which
seemed to have laid the foundation of new troubles and disturbances in
Europe, and to threaten his subjects with the loss of several of the
most advantageous branches of their trade, had obliged him to concert
with other powers such measures as might give a check to the ambitious
views of those who were endeavouring to render themselves formidable,
and put a stop to the further progress of such dangerous designs. He
told them that the enemies of his government were already very busy, by
their instruments and emissaries in those courts whose measures seemed
most to favour their purposes, in soliciting and promoting the cause of
the pretender. One sees, at first sight, that the interests of Germany
dictated the treaty of Hanover; but, in order to secure the approbation
of Great Britain, upon which the support of this alliance chiefly
depended, it was judged necessary to insert the articles relating to
commerce and the protestant religion, as if the engagement had been
contracted purely for the advantage and glory of England. In a word, the
ministry began now to ring the changes upon a few words that have been
repeated ever since, like cabalistical sounds, by which the nation has
been enchanted into a very dangerous connexion with the concerns of the
continent. They harangued, they insisted upon the machinations of the
disaffected, the designs of a popish pretender, the protestant interest,
and the balance of power, until these expressions became absolutely
terms of ridicule with every person of common sense and reflection. The
people were told that the emperor and the king of Spain, exclusive
of the public treaties concluded at Vienna, had entered into private
engagements, importing that the Imperialists should join the Spaniards
in recovering Gibraltar and Port-Mahon by force of arms, in case the
king of England should refuse to restore them amicably, according to
a solemn promise he had made: that a double marriage should take place
between the two infants of Spain, and the two archduchesses of Austria;
and that means should be taken to place the pretender on the throne of
Great Britain.
When the treaties of Vienna and Hanover fell under consideration of the
house of commons, Horatio Walpole, afterwards termed in derision,
“the balance master,” opened the debate with a long unanimated oration,
giving a detail of the affairs of Europe since the treaty of Utrecht. He
enumerated the barrier-treaty, the convention for executing that
treaty, the defensive alliance with the emperor, the other with the most
christian king and the states-general, another convention, the quadruple
alliance, the congress at Cambray, the treaty of Hanover, and that of
Vienna. He explained the nature of each engagement. He said the main
design of the treaty of commerce concluded between the emperor and the
king of Spain, was to countenance and support the East-India company
established at Ostend, which interfered so essentially with the
East-India companies of England and Holland, and was directly contrary
to several solemn treaties still in force. He enlarged upon the danger
to which the balance of power would be exposed, should the issue male
of this projected marriage between the houses of Austria and Spain ever
possess the imperial dignity and the kingdom of Spain together.
The reader will take notice that this very man was one of those who
exclaimed against that article of the treaty of Utrecht, which prevented
the power of those two houses from being immediately united in the
person of the emperor. He did not forget to expatiate upon the pretended
secret engagement concerning Gibraltar and Minorca, and the king’s pious
concern for the distressed protestants of Thorn in Poland. In vain did
Mr. Shippen urge that the treaty of Hanover would engage the British
nation in a war for the defence of the king’s German dominions, contrary
to an express provision made in the act of limitation. These arguments
had lost all weight. The opposition was so inconsiderable, that the
ministry had no reason to be in pain about any measure they should
propose. An address was voted and delivered to his majesty, approving
the alliance he had concluded at Hanover, in order to obviate and
disappoint the dangerous views and consequences of the treaty of peace
betwixt the emperor and the king of Spain: and promising to support his
majesty against all insults and attacks that should be made upon any of
his territories, though not belonging to the crown of Great Britain. An
address of the same kind was presented by the house of lords in a body.
A bill was brought in, empowering the commissioners of the treasury
to compound with Mr. Richard Hampden, late treasurer of the navy, for a
debt he owed to the crown, amounting to eight-and-forty thousand pounds.
This deficiency was occasioned by his embarking in the South-Sea scheme.
The king recommended his petition; and the house complied with his
request, in consideration of his great-grandfather, the famous John
Hampden, who made such a noble stand against the arbitrary measures of
the first Charles.
{GEORGE I, 1714--1727}
RIOTS IN SCOTLAND.
The malt-tax was found so grievous to Scotland, that the people refused
to pay it, and riots were excited in different parts of the kingdom. At
Glasgow, the populace, armed with clubs and staves, rifled the house of
Daniel Campbell, their representative in parliament, who had voted for
the bill, and maltreated some excisemen who attempted to take an account
of the malt. General Wade, who commanded the forces in Scotland, had
sent two companies of soldiers, under the command of captain Bushel,
to prevent or appease a disturbance of this nature. That officer drew
up his men in the street, where they were pelted with stones by the
multitude, which he endeavoured to disperse by firing among them without
shot. This expedient failing, he ordered his men to load their pieces
with ball, and at a time when the magistrates were advancing towards him
in a body, to assist him with their advice and influence, he commanded
the soldiers to fire four different ways, without the sanction of the
civil authority. About twenty persons were killed or wounded on this
occasion. The people seeing so many victims fall, were exasperated
beyond all sense of danger. They began to procure arms, and breathed
nothing but defiance and revenge. Bushel thought proper to retreat to
the castle of Dumbarton, and was pursued above five miles hy the enraged
multitude. General Wade being informed of this transaction, assembled a
body of forces; and being accompanied by Duncan Forbes, lord-advocate,
took possession of Glasgow. The magistrates were apprehended and
conveyed prisoners to Edinburgh, where the lords justiciary having taken
cognizance of the affair, declared them innocent; so that they were
immediately discharged. Bushel was tried for murder, convicted, and
condemned; but instead of undergoing the penalties of the law, he was
indulged with a pardon, and promoted in the service. Daniel Campbell
having petitioned the house of commons, that he might be indemnified
for the damage he had sustained from the rioters, a bill passed in his
favour, granting him a certain sum to be raised from an imposition laid
upon all the beer and ale brewed in the city of Glasgow. The malt-tax
was so sensibly felt in Scotland, that the convention of the royal
burghs presented a remonstrance against it, as a grievous burden,
which their country could not bear: petitions to the same purpose were
delivered to the commons from different shires in that kingdom.
{1726}
On the twenty-fourth day of March, the king sent a message to the house
by sir Paul Methuen, desiring an extraordinary supply, that he might be
able to augment his maritime force, and concert such other measures as
should be necessary in the present conjuncture. A debate ensued, but
the majority complied with the demand. Some members in the upper house
complained that the message was not sent to both houses of parliament,
and this suggestion gave rise to another debate, in which lord
Bathurst and others made some melancholy reflections upon the state of
insignificance to which the peers of England were reduced. Such remarks,
however, were very little minded by the ministry, who had obtained
a complete victory over all opposition. The supplies, ordinary and
extraordinary, being granted, with every thing else which the court
thought proper to ask, and several bills passed for the regulation of
civil economy, the king dismissed the parliament on the twenty-fourth
day of May.
A SQUADRON SENT TO THE BALTIC.
By this time Peter the czar of Muscovy was dead, and his empress
Catharine had succeeded him on the Russian throne. This princess had
begun to assemble forces in the neighbourhood of Petersburgh, and to
prepare a formidable armament for a naval expedition. King George,
concluding that her design was against Sweden, sent a strong squadron
into the Baltic, under the command of sir Charles Wager, in order to
anticipate her views upon his allies. The English fleet being joined
at Copenhagen by a Danish squadron, alarmed the court of Russia, which
immediately issued orders for reinforcing the garrisons of Wilbourg,
Cronstadt, Revel, and Riga. The English admiral, having had an audience
with his Swedish majesty, steered towards Revel, and sent thither a
lieutenant, with a letter from the king of Great Britain to the czarina.
This was an expostulation, in which his majesty observed, that he and
his allies could not fail of being alarmed at her great preparations by
sea and land. He complained that measures had been taken at her court in
favour of the pretender; that his repeated instances for establishing
a lasting friendship with the crown of Russia had been treated with
neglect; and he gave her to understand, that he had ordered his admiral
to prevent her ships from coming out of her harbours, should she persist
in her resolution to execute the designs she had projected. The czarina,
in her answer to the king, expressed her surprise that she had not
received his majesty’s letter until his fleet was at anchor before
Revel, since it would have been more agreeable to the custom established
among sovereigns, and to the amity which had so long subsisted between
her kingdoms and the crown of Great Britain, to expostulate with her on
her armament, and expected her answer before he had proceeded to such
an offensive measure. She assured him that nothing was farther from her
thoughts than any design to disturb the peace of the North; and with
regard to the pretender, it was a frivolous and stale accusation, which
had been frequently used as a pretext to cover all the unkind steps
lately undertaken against the Russian empire. Sir Charles Wager
continued in his station until he received certain intelligence that the
Russian galleys were laid up in their winter harbour; then he set sail
for the coast of Denmark, from whence he returned to England in the
month of November.
ADMIRAL HOSIER’S EXPEDITION.
King George, that he might not seem to convert all his attention to the
affairs of the North, had equipped two other squadrons, one of which was
destined for the West Indies, under the command of admiral Hosier:
the other, conducted by sir John Jennings, having on board a body of
land-forces, sailed from St. Helen’s on the twentieth day of July,
entered the bay of St. Antonio, then visited Lisbon, from whence he
directed his course to the bay of Bulls near Cadiz, and cruised off
Cape St. Mary’s, so as to alarm the coast of Spain and fill Madrid with
consternation. Yet he committed no act of hostility: but was treated
with great civility by the Spanish governor of Cadiz, who supplied him
with refreshments. Rear-admiral Hosier, with seven ships of war, had
sailed in April for the Spanish West-Indies, with instructions to block
up the galleons in the port of that country; or should they presume to
come out, to seize and bring them to England. Before his arrival at the
Bastimentos, near Porto-Bello, the treasure, consisting of above six
millions sterling, had been unloaded and carried back to Panama, in
pursuance of an order sent by an advice-boat which had the start of
Hosier. This admiral lay inactive on that station, until he became the
jest of the Spaniards. He returned to Jamaica, where he found means to
reinforce his crews; then he stood over to Carthagena. The Spaniards
had by this time seized the English South-Sea ship at La Vera Cruz,
together with all the vessels and effects belonging to that company.
Hosier in vain demanded restitution: he took some Spanish ships by way
of reprisal, and continued cruising in those seas until the greater
part of his men perished deplorably by the diseases of that unhealthy
climate, and his ships were totally rained by the worms. This brave
officer, being restricted by his orders from obeying the dictates of
his courage, seeing his best officers and men daily swept off by an
outrageous distemper, and his ships exposed to inevitable destruction,
is said to have died of a broken heart; while the people of England
loudly clamoured against this unfortunate expedition, in which so many
lives were thrown away, and so much money expended, without the least
advantage to the nation. It seems to have been a mean piratical scheme
to rob the court of Spain of its expected treasure, even while a peace
subsisted between the two nations. The ministry of Great Britain indeed
alleged, that the Spanish king had entered into engagements in favour of
the pretender.
DISGRACE OF THE DUKE DE RIPPERDA.
The dukes of Ormond and Wharton,* and the earl Marischal, were certainly
at Madrid; and the duke de Ripperda, now prime-minister of Spain,
dropped some expressions to the English envoy that implied some such
design, which however the court of Madrid positively denied.
* The duke of Wharton having consumed his fortune in riot
and extravagance, repaired to the court of Vienna, from
whence he proceeded to Rome, and offered his service to the
pretender. There he received the order of the garter, and
the title of duke of Northumberland. He was sent by the
chevalier de St. George with credentials to the court of
Madrid, where he abjured the protestant religion, married a
lady of the queen of Spain’s bed-chamber, and obtained the
rank and appointment of a lieutenant-colonel in the Spanish
service.
Ripperda, as a foreigner, fell a sacrifice to the jealousy of the
Spanish ministers. He was suddenly dismissed from his employments, with
a pension of three thousand pistoles. He forthwith took refuge in
the house of Vandermeer the Dutch ambassador, who was unwilling to be
troubled with such a guest. He therefore conveyed the duke in his coach
to the house of colonel Stanhope, the British minister, whose protection
he craved and obtained. Nevertheless, he was dragged from thence by
force, and committed prisoner to the castle of Segovia. He afterwards
made his escape, and sheltered himself in England from the resentment of
his catholic majesty. Colonel Stanhope complained of this violation of
the law of nations, which the Spanish ministers endeavoured to excuse.
Memorials and letters passed between the two courts, and every thing
tended to a rupture. The king of Spain purchased ships of war; began to
make preparations for some important undertaking; and assembled an army
of twenty thousand men at St. Roch, on pretence of rebuilding the old
castle of Gibraltar. Meanwhile the states-general and the king of Sweden
acceded to the treaty of Hanover: but the king of Prussia, though his
majesty’s son-in-law, was detached from the alliance by the emperor,
with whom he contracted new engagements.
SUBSTANCE OF THE KING’S SPEECH.
On the seventeenth day of January, the British parliament was opened
with a long elaborate speech, importing that the proceedings and
transactions of the emperor and king of Spain, and the secret offensive
alliance concluded between them, had laid the foundation of a most
exorbitant and formidable power; that they were directly levelled
against the most valuable and darling interests and privileges of
the British nation, which must either give up Gibraltar to Spain, and
acquiesce in the emperor’s usurped exercise of commerce, or resolve
vigorously to defend their undoubted rights against those reciprocal
engagements, contracted in defiance and violation of all national faith,
and the most solemn treaties. He assured them, that one of those secret
articles was the placing the pretender on the throne of Great Britain;
and another the conquest of Gibraltar and Port Mahon. He affirmed that
those combinations extended themselves into Russia; and that the English
fleet seasonably prevented such designs as would have opened a way to
the invasion of these kingdoms. He exhorted the commons to grant such
supplies as should be necessary for the defence of then-country, and for
making good his engagements with the allies of Great Britain. He told
them that the king of Spain had ordered his minister residing in England
to quit the kingdom; and that he had left a memorial little short of a
declaration, in which he insisted upon the restitution of Gibraltar.
He did not fail to touch the energetic strings which always moved their
passions: the balance of power in Europe, the security of the British
commerce, the designs of a popish pretender, the present happy
establishment, the religion, liberties, and properties of a protestant
people. Such addresses of thanks were penned in both houses as the
ministers were pleased to dictate; yet not without opposition from a
minority, which was far from being formidable, though headed by chiefs
of uncommon talents and resolution. The commons voted twenty thousand
seamen, besides six-and-twenty thousand three hundred and eighty-three
men for the land service; and, to defray the extraordinary expense, a
land-tax of four shillings in the pound was granted.
{GEORGE I, 1714--1727}
DEBATE IN THE HOUSE OF LORDS.
The house of lords having taken into consideration the letters and
memorials between the ministers of Great Britain, France, and Spain, and
the papers relating to the accession of the states-general to the treaty
of Hanover, a warm debate ensued. Lord Bathurst took notice that the
accession of the states-general to the treaty was upon condition that
this their act should be approved and ratified by the king of Great
Britain, the most christian king, and the king of Prussia; but that
the minister of his Prussian majesty had refused to sign the act of
accession, which was therefore of no effect: that if the court of France
should, for the same reason, think itself disengaged from the Hanover
alliance, Britain alone would be obliged to bear the burden of an
expensive war against two of the greatest potentates of Europe. He said
he could not see any just reason for a rupture with Spain; that indeed
the duke de Ripperda might have dropped some indiscreet expressions;
he was known to be a man of violent temper; and he had been solemnly
disavowed by his catholic majesty; that, in the memorial left by the
Spanish ambassador, he imputed the violent state of affairs between the
two crowns to the ministers of England; and mentioned a positive promise
made by the king of Great Britain for the restitution of Gibraltar; that
methods of accommodation might be tried before the kingdom engaged in a
war which must be attended with dangerous consequences; that the nation
was loaded with a debt of fifty millions; and, in order to maintain such
a war, would be obliged to raise seven millions yearly; an annual sum
by which the people would soon be exhausted. He observed, that in some
papers laid before the house, mention was made of great sums distributed
in divers places, to bring certain measures to bear. He declared, that
for his own part, he had touched neither Spanish nor English gold; he
was neither a Spaniard nor a Frenchman, but a true Englishman, and so
long as he had the honour to sit in that house, he would speak and
act for the good of his country. He therefore desired their lordships
seriously to consider the matter before them, which was of the last
consequence and importance to the whole nation. He said nothing could be
gained by the war, should it prove successful: and every thing would be
lost should it be unprosperous. He was answered by lord Town-shend, Who
affirmed that his majesty had received positive and certain information
with respect to the secret article of alliance between the courts of
Vienna and Madrid, in favour of the pretender, though the safety of the
state did not permit him to lay these advices before the parliament.
After much altercation, the majority resolved, that the measures his
majesty had thought fit to take were honourable, just, and necessary
for preventing the execution of the dangerous engagement entered into in
favour of the pretender; for preserving the dominions belonging to the
crown of Great Britain by solemn treaties, and particularly those of
Gibraltar and the island of Minorca; and for maintaining to his people
their most valuable rights and privileges of commerce, and the peace and
tranquillity of Europe. Seventeen lords entered a protest against this
resolution. Disputes of the same nature arose from the same subject in
the lower house. Lord Townshend had affirmed in the house of peers,
that no promise of restoring Gibraltar bad been made: sir Kobert Walpole
owned such a promise in the house of commons: a motion was made for
an address, desiring these engagements might be laid before the house;
another member moved for a copy of the memorial presented by Mr. Pointz
to the king of Sweden, and for the secret offensive article between the
courts of Vienna and Madrid; a third motion was made to address the king
for such memorials and representations from the courts of Sweden and
Denmark, as induced him, in the course of the preceding year, to send
a squadron to the Baltic. In the account of the money granted for
the service of the last year, there was an article of one hundred and
twenty-five thousand pounds charged in general terms as issued out for
other engagements and expenses, over and above such as were specified.
Mr. Pulteney moved for an address on this subject; but each of these
motions was rejected on a division: and the majority concurred in an
address of thanks to his majesty, for the great wisdom of his conduct.
They expressed the most implicit confidence in his goodness and
discretion: they promised to support him in all such further measures as
he should find necessary and expedient for preventing a rupture, as well
as for consulting the honour and advantage of these kingdoms.
His majesty’s speech gave such umbrage to the court of Vienna, that Mr.
Palms, the Imperial resident at London, was ordered to present a warm
memorial to the king, and afterwards to publish it to the whole nation.
In this bold remonstrance, the king was charged with having declared
from the throne, as certain and undoubted facts, several things that
were either wrested, misrepresented, or void of all foundation. The
memorialist affirmed, that the treaty of Vienna was built on the
quadruple alliance; that the treaty of commerce was calculated to
promote the mutual and lawful advantages of the subjects of both
parties, agreeably to the law of nations; and in no respect prejudicial
to the British nation. He declared that there was no offensive alliance
concluded between the two crowns; that the supposed article relating
to the pretender was an absolute falsehood; that the insinuation with
respect to the siege of Gibraltar was equally untrue, his master having
made no engagements with the king of Spain, but such as were specified
in the treaty communicated to his Britannic majesty. He said, however,
the hostilities notoriously committed in the West Indies, and elsewhere,
against the king of Spain, in violation of treaties, seemed to justify
that prince’s undertaking the siege of Gibraltar. Finally, he demanded,
in the name of his Imperial majesty, suitable reparation for the injury
his honour had sustained from such calumnious imputations. Both houses
of parliament expressed their indignation at the insolence of this
memorial, in an address to his majesty; and Mr. Palms was ordered
to depart the kingdom. Virulent declarations were presented by the
ministers of the emperor and the king of Great Britain to the diet of
the empire at Ratisbon; and such personal reflections retorted between
these two potentates, that all hope of reconciliation vanished.
CONVENTIONS WITH SWEDEN AND HESSE-CASSEL.
King George, in order to secure himself against the impending storm,
entered into more strict engagements with the French king; and agreed
to pay fifty thousand pounds for three years to the king of Sweden,
in consideration of that prince’s holding in readiness a body of ten
thousand troops for the occasions of the alliance. He concluded a fresh
treaty with the king of Denmark, who promised to furnish a certain
number of auxiliaries, on account of a large subsidy granted by the king
of France. The proportions of troops to be sent into the field in
case of a rupture were ascertained. His Britannic majesty engaged for
four-and-twenty thousand men, and a strong squadron to be sent into
the Baltic. He made a convention with the prince of Hesse-Cassel, who
undertook to provide eight thousand infantry, and four thousand horse,
in consideration of seventy-four thousand pounds, to be paid by Great
Britain immediately, and fifty thousand pounds more in case the troops
should be required, besides their pay and subsistence. Such was the
fruit of all the alliances so industriously planned since the accession
of king George to the throne of Great Britain. In the day of his
trouble the king of Prussia, who had espoused his daughter, deserted his
interest; and the states-general stood aloof. For the security of his
German dominions, he had recourse to the king of France, who was
a precarious ally; to the kings of Sweden and Denmark, and the
principality of Hesse-Cassel: but none of these powers would contribute
their assistance without being gratified with exorbitant subsidies,
though the danger was common, and the efforts ought to have been equal.
Instead of allies, they professed themselves mercenaries. Great Britain
paid them for the defence of their own dominions: she, moreover,
undertook to maintain a powerful fleet for their safety. Is there any
Britain so weak as to think, or so fool-hardy as to affirm, that this
was a British quarrel?
{1727}
VOTE OF CREDIT.
For the support of those expensive treaties, Mr. Scroope, secretary of
the treasury, moved in the house of commons, that in the malt-tax bill
they should insert a clause of appropriation, empowering the king to
apply such sums as should be necessary for defraying the expenses and
engagements which had been, or should be made before the twenty-fifth
day of September, in concerting such measures as he should think most
conducive to the security of trade, and restoring the peace of Europe.
To little purpose did the members in the opposition urge that this
method of asking and granting supplies was unparliamentary; that such a
clause would render ineffectual that appropriation of the public money,
which the wisdom of all parliaments had thought a necessary security
against misapplication, which was the more to be feared as no provision
was made to call any person to account for the money that should be
disposed of by virtue of this clause; that great sums had already been
granted; that such an unlimited power ought never to be given in a
free government; that such confidence in the crown might, through
the influence of evil ministers, be attended with the most dangerous
consequences; that the constitution could not be preserved, but by a
strict adherence to those essential parliamentary forms of granting
supplies upon estimates, and of appropriating these supplies to services
and occasions publicly avowed and judged necessary; that such clauses,
if not seasonably checked, would become so frequent as in time to lodge
in the crown and in the ministers an absolute and uncontrollable power
of raising money upon the people, which by the constitution is, and
with safety can only be, lodged in the whole legislature. The motion was
carried, the clause added, and the bill passed through the other house
without amendment, though not without opposition. Notwithstanding this
vote of credit, sir William Yonge moved, that towards the supply granted
to the king, the sum of three hundred and seventy thousand pounds should
be raised by loans on exchequer bills, to be charged on the surplus of
the duties on coal and culm, which was reserved for the parliament’s
disposal. Though this motion was vigorously opposed by sir Joseph Jekyll
and Mr. Pulteney, as a dangerous deviation from several votes and
acts of parliament, by which the exceed-ings of the public funds were
appropriated to the discharge of the national debt, or to the increase
of the sinking fund, it was carried by the majority.
SIEGE OF GIBRALTAR
On the fifteenth day of May the parliament was prorogued, after the king
had acknowledged their zeal, liberality, and despatch; and given them to
understand that the siege of Gibraltar was actually begun. The trenches
were opened before this fortress on the eleventh day of February, by the
Conde de las Torres, at the head of twenty thousand men. The place
was well provided for a defence; and the old earl of Portmore, who was
governor, embarked with a reinforcement from England, under convoy of
a fleet commanded by sir Charles Wager. He arrived at Gibraltar in the
beginning of April, where he landed the troops, with a great quantity of
ammunition, warlike stores, and four-and-twenty pieces of cannon. At the
same time, five hundred men arrived from Minorca; so that the garrison
amounted to six thousand, plentifully supplied with fresh provisions
from the coast of Barbary, and treated the efforts of the besiegers with
great contempt. The states-general, being apprehensive of an attempt
upon their barrier in the Netherlands, desired the king would hold in
readiness the ten thousand auxiliaries stipulated in the treaty. These
were immediately prepared for embarkation, and the forces of England
were augmented with thirty new raised companies. Sir John Norris set
sail with a powerful fleet for the Baltic, and was joined by a Danish
squadron; but the czarina dying on the seventeenth day of May, he had no
occasion to commit hostilities, as the Russian armament was laid aside.
PRELIMINARIES OF PEACE.
Meanwhile the powers at variance, though extremely irritated against
each other, were all equally averse to a war that might again embroil
all Europe. The king of France interposed his mediation, which was
conducted by the duke de Richlieu, his ambassador at Vienna. Plans and
counterplans of pacification were proposed between the two crowns and
the allies. At length all parties agreed to twelve preliminary articles
which were signed in May at Paris, by the ministers of the Hanoverian
alliance, and afterwards at Vienna, by the Imperial and Spanish
ambassadors. These imported, that hostilities should immediately cease;
that the charter of the Ostend company should be suspended for
seven years; and that a congress should in four months be opened at
Aix-la-Chapelle, for adjusting all differences, and consolidating the
peace of Europe. This congress was afterwards transferred to Soissons,
for the conveniency of the French minister, whose presence was
necessary at court. The siege of Gibraltar was raised, after it had
lasted four months, during which the Spaniards lost a great number of
men by sickness, while the garrison sustained very little damage. The
court of Madrid, however, started some new difficulties, and for some
time would not consent to the restitution of the South-Sea ship, which
had been detained at La Vera-Cruz, in the West Indies; so that sir
Charles Wager continued to cruise on the coast of Spain: but these
objections were removed in the sequel.
DEATH AND CHARACTER OF GEORGE I.
King George, having appointed a regency, embarked at Greenwich on the
third day of June, and landing in Holland on the seventh, set out on his
journey to Hanover. He was suddenly seized with a paralytic disorder on
the road: he forthwith lost the faculty of speech, became lethargic, and
was conveyed in a state of insensibility to Osnabruck. There he expired
on Sunday the eleventh day of June, in the sixty-eighth year of his age,
and in the thirteenth of his reign.--George I. was plain and simple in
his person and address, grave and composed in his deportment, though
easy, familiar, and facetious in his hours of relaxation. Before he
ascended the throne of Great Britain, he had acquired the character of a
circumspect general, a just and merciful prince, a wise politician, who
perfectly understood, and steadily pursued, his own interest. With these
qualities, it cannot be doubted but that he came to England extremely
well disposed to govern his new subjects according to the maxims of
the British constitution, and the genius of the people; and if ever he
seemed to deviate from these principles, we may take it for granted that
he was misled by the venal suggestions of a ministry whose power and
influence were founded on corruption. [229] _[See note 2 I, at the end of
this Vol.]_
NOTES:
[Footnote 206: Note 2 H, p. 206. The pretender, who resided at Urbino,
having received intelligence from Paris, that there was a design formed
against his life, pope Clement XL gave directions that all foreigners in
that neighbourhood, especially English, should be arrested. The earl of
Peterborough arriving at Bologna, with a few armed followers, was seized
with all his papers. Being interrogated, he said he came to pass some
time in Italy for the benefit of the air. He was close confined for
a whole month in fort Urbino, and his attendants were sent to prison.
Nothing appearing to justify the suspicion, he was dismissed with
uncommon civility. The king demanding reparation for this insult, the
pope wrote with his own hand a letter to an ally of Great Britain,
declaring that the legate of Bologna had violently and unjustly, without
the knowledge of his holiness, caused the earl of Peterborough to be
seized upon suspicions which proved to be ill-grounded. The cardinal
legate sent a declaration to the English admiral in the Mediterranean,
that he had asked forgiveness of his holiness, and now begged pardon of
his Britannic majesty, for having unadvisedly arrested a peer of Great
Britain on his travels.]
[Footnote 229: Note 2 I, p. 229. George I. married the princess Sophia
Dorothy, daughter and heiress of the duke of Zell, by whom he had king
George II. and the late queen of Prussia. The king’s body was conveyed
to Hanover, and interred among his ancestors. From the death of Charles
II. to this period, England had made a considerable figure in every
branch of literature. Dr. Atterbury and Dr. Clarke distinguished
themselves in divinity--Mr. Whiston wrote in defence of Arianism--John
Locke shone forth the great restorer of human reason--the earl
of Shaftesbury raised an elegant, though feeble, system of moral
philosophy--Berkeley, afterwards bishop of Cloyne in Ireland, surpassed
all his contemporaries in subtle and variety of metaphysical arguments,
as well as in the art of deduction--lord Bolingbroke’s talents as
a metaphysician have been questioned since his posthumous works
appeared--great progress was made in mathematics and astronomy, by
Wallis, Halley, and Flamstead--the art of medicine owed some valuable
improvements to the classical Dr. Friend, and the elegant Dr. Mead.
Among the poets of this era, we number John Philips, author of a
didactic poem, called Cyder, a performance of real merit; he lived and
died in obscurity--William Congreve, celebrated for his comedies, which
are not so famous for strength of character and power of humour, as for
wit, elegance, and regularity--Vanburgh, who wrote with more nature and
fire, though with less art and precision--Steele, who in his comedies
successfully engrafted modern characters on the ancient drama--Farquhar,
who drew his pictures from fancy rather than from nature, and whose
chief merit consists in the agreeable pertness and vivacity of his
dialogue--Addison, whose fame as a poet greatly exceeded his genius,
which was cold and enervate; though he yielded to none in the character
of an essayist, either for style or matter--Swift, whose muse seems to
have been mere misanthropy; he was a cynic rather than a poet, and his
natural dryness and sarcastic severity would have been unpleasing, had
not he qualified them, by adopting the extravagant humour of Lueian and
Rabelais--Prior, lively, familiar, and amusing--Rowe, solemn, florid,
and declamatory--Pope, the prince of lyric poetry; unrivalled in
satire, ethics, and polished versification--the agreeable Parnel--the
wild, the witty, and the whimsical Garth--Gay, whose fables may vie with
those of La Fontaine, in native humour, ease, and simplicity, and whose
genius for pastoral was truly original. Dr. Bentley stood foremost in
the list of critics and commentators. Sir Christopher Wren raised some
noble monuments of architecture. The most remarkable political
writers were Davenant, Hare, Swift, Steele, Addison, Bolingbroke, and
Trenchard.]
CONTINUATION
OF
THE HISTORY OF ENGLAND,
BY TOBIAS SMOLLETT, M.D.
[Illustration: 229.jpg GEORGE II.]
GEORGE II.
{1727}
CHAPTER I.
_George II. ascends the Throne of Great Britain.....
Characters of the principal Persons concerned in the
ministry..... Debates in Parliament concerning the Civil-
list..... Changes and Promotions..... New Parliament.....
Violent Dispute concerning the National Debt..... Vote of
Credit..... A double Marriage between the Houses of Spain
and Portugal..... liberality of the Commons..... Debates on
the Subsidies of Hesse-Cassel and Wolfenbuttle.....
Committee for inspecting the Gaols----Address touching the
Spanish Depredations..... A Sum voted to the King on account
of Arrears due on the Civil-list Revenue..... Proceedings in
the House of Lords..... Wise conduct of the Irish
Parliament..... Abdication of the King of Sardinia.....
Death of Pope Benedict XIII..... Substance of the King’s
Speech to both Houses..... Objections to the Treaty of
Seville in the House of Lords..... Opposition in the Lower
House to a standing Army..... Bill prohibiting Loans to
Foreign Princes or States..... Charter of the East-India
Company prolonged..... The Emperor resents the Treaty of
Seville..... Seven Indian Chiefs arrive in England.....
Revolution at Constantinople..... England infested with
Robbers, Assassins, and Incendiaries..... Bill against
Pensioners sitting as Members in the House of Commons.....
Treaty of Vienna..... Death of the Duke of Parma..... Don
Carlos takes Possession of his Territories--France
distracted by religious Disputes..... The Ministry violently
opposed in Parliament..... Debate on a standing Army.....
Account of the Charitable Corporation..... Revival of the
Salt-tax..... Mr. Pulteney’s name struck out of the List of
Privy-counsellors..... The King sets out for Hanover_
{GEORGE II. 1727-1760}
GEORGE II. ASCENDS THE THRONE.
At the accession of George II. the nation had great reason to wish for
an alteration of measures. The public debt, notwithstanding the boasted
economy and management of the ministers; notwithstanding the sinking
fund, which had been extolled as a growing treasure sacred to the
discharge of national incumbrances, was now increased to fifty millions
two hundred and sixty-one thousand two hundred and six pounds, nineteen
shillings and eightpence three farthings. The kingdom was bewildered in
a labyrinth of treaties and conventions, by which it stood engaged in
pecuniary subsidies to many powers upon the continent, with whom its
real interests could never be connected. The wealth of the nation had
been lavished upon those foreign connexions, upon unnecessary wars, and
fruitless expeditions. Dangerous encroachments had been made upon the
constitution, by the repeal of the act for triennial parliaments;
by frequent suspensions of the _habeas-corpus_ act upon frivolous
occasions; by repealing clauses in the act of settlement; by votes of
credit; by habituating the people to a standing army; and, above all, by
establishing a system of corruption, which at all times would secure
a majority in parliament. The nature of prerogative, by which the
liberties of the nation had formerly been often endangered, was now so
well understood, and so securely restrained, that it could no longer be
used for the same oppressive purposes; besides, an avowed extension of
the prerogative required more ability, courage, and resolution, than the
present ministry could exert. They understood their own strength, and
had recourse to a more safe and effectual expedient. The vice, luxury,
and prostitution of the age, the almost total extinction of sentiment,
honour, and public spirit, had prepared the minds of men for slavery
and corruption. The means were in the hands of the ministry; the public
treasure was at their devotion; they multiplied places and pensions, to
increase the number of their dependants; they squandered away the money
of the nation without taste, discernment, decency, or remorse; they
enlisted an army of the most abandoned emissaries, whom they employed
to vindicate the worst measures, in the face of truth, common sense, and
common honesty; and they did not fail to stigmatize as Jacobites, and
enemies to the government, all those who presumed to question the merit
of their administration.
CHARACTERS OF THE PRINCIPAL PERSONS CONCERNED IN THE MINISTRY.
The supreme direction of affairs was not yet engrossed by a single
minister. Lord Townshend had the reputation of conducting the external
transactions relating to treaties and negotiations. He is said to have
understood that province, though he did not always follow the dictates
of his own understanding. He possessed an extensive fund of knowledge;
and was well acquainted with the functions of his office. The duke
of Newcastle, his colleague, was not remarkable for any of these
qualifications; he owed his promotion to his uncommon zeal for the
illustrious house of Hanover, and to the strength of his interest
in parliament, rather than to his judgment, precision, or any other
intellectual merit. Lord Carteret, who may be counted an auxiliary,
though not immediately concerned in the administration, had
distinguished himself in the character of envoy at several courts in
Europe. He had attained an intimate knowledge of all the different
interests and connexions subsisting among the powers of the continent;
and he infinitely surpassed all the ministers in learning and capacity.
He was indeed the only man of genius employed under this government. He
spoke with ease and propriety, his conceptions were just and lively; his
inferences bold; his counsels vigorous and warm. Yet he depreciated his
talents, by acting in a subordinate character to those whom he despised;
and seemed to look upon the pernicious measures of a bad ministry with
silent contempt, rather than with avowed detestation. The interior
government of Great Britain was chiefly managed by sir Robert Walpole, a
man of extraordinary talents, who had from low beginnings raised himself
to the head of the treasury. Having obtained a seat in the lower house,
he declared himself one of the most forward partisans of the whig
faction. He was endued with a species of eloquence, which, though
neither nervous nor elegant, flowed with great facility, and was so
plausible on all subjects, that even when he misrepresented the truth,
whether from ignorance or design, he seldom failed to persuade that part
of his audience for whose hearing his harangue was chiefly intended. He
was well acquainted with the nature of the public funds, and understood
the whole mystery of stock-jobbing. This knowledge produced a connexion
between him and the money-corporations, which served to enhance his
importance. He perceived the bulk of mankind were actuated by a sordid
thirst of lucre; he had sagacity enough to convert the degeneracy of the
times to his own advantage; and on this, and this alone, he founded the
whole superstructure of his subsequent administration. In the late
reign he had by dint of speaking decisively to every question, by
boldly impeaching the conduct of the tory ministers, by his activity
in elections, and engaging as a projector in the schemes of the monied
interest, become a leading member in the house of commons. By his
sufferings under the tory parliament, he attained the rank of a martyr
to his party. His interest, his reputation, and his presumption daily
increased; he opposed Sunderland as his rival in power, and headed a
dangerous defection from the ministry, which evinced the greatness
of his influence and authority. He had the glory of being principally
concerned in effecting a reconciliation between the late king and the
prince of Wales; then he was re-associated in the administration with
additional credit; and, from the death of the earls of Sunderland and
Stanhope, he had been making long strides towards the office of prime
minister. He knew the maxims he had adopted would subject him to the
hatred, the ridicule, and reproach of some individuals, who had not yet
resigned all sentiments of patriotism, nor all views of opposition;
but the number of these was inconsiderable, when compared to that which
constituted the body of the community; and he would not suffer the
consideration of such antagonists to come in competition with his schemes
of power, affluence, and authority. Nevertheless, low as he had humbled
anti-ministerial association, it required all his artifice to elude,
all his patience and natural phlegm to bear, the powerful arguments that
were urged, and the keen satire that was exercised against his measures
and management, by a few members in the opposition. Sir William Wyndham
possessed all the energy of elocution; Mr. Shippen was calm, intrepid,
shrewd and sarcastic; Mr. Pulteney inherited from nature a good
understanding, which he had studiously cultivated. He was one of the
most learned members in the house of commons, extremely well qualified
to judge of literary productions; well read in history and politics;
deeply skilled in the British constitution, the detail of government,
and the nature of the finances. He spoke with freedom, fluency, and
uncommon warmth of declamation, which was said to be the effect of
personal animosity to sir Robert Walpole, with whom he had been formerly
connected.
DEBATES IN PARLIAMENT CONCERNING THE CIVIL LIST.
An express arriving on the fourteenth day of June, with an account
of the king’s death, his late majesty king George II. repaired from
Richmond, where he received this intelligence, to Leicester-house; and
the members of the privy-council being assembled, were sworn a-new. The
king declared his firm purpose to preserve the constitution in church
and state, and to cultivate those alliances which his father had made
with foreign princes. At the same time, he took and subscribed the oath
for the security of the church of Scotland, as required by the act of
union. Next day he was proclaimed king of Great Britain. The parliament
assembled in pursuance of the act made for that purpose; but was
immediately prorogued by commission to the twenty-seventh day of the
month. All the great officers of state continued in their places;
sir Robert Walpole kept possession of the treasury; and the system
of politics which the late king had established underwent no sort of
alteration. The king, in his speech to both houses at the opening of the
session, professed a fixed resolution to merit the love and affection of
his people, by maintaining them in the full enjoyment of their religious
and civil rights. He promised to lessen the public expense as soon as
the circumstances of affairs would permit: he observed to the commons,
that the grant of the greatest part of the civil list revenues was
now determined; and that it would be necessary for them to make a new
provision for the support of him and his family: lastly, he recommended
it to both houses to dispatch the business that should be necessarily
brought before them, as the season of the year and the circumstances of
time required their presence in the country. Addresses of condolence and
congratulation being drawn up and presented, the commons, in a committee
of the whole house, took into consideration a motion for a supply to
his majesty. Sir Robert Walpole having observed, that the annual sum of
seven hundred thousand pounds granted to, and settled on, the late king,
had fallen short every year; and that his present majesty’s expenses
were likely to increase, by reason of the largeness of his family,
moved, that the entire revenues of the civil list, which produced about
eight hundred thousand pounds per annum, should be settled on the king
during his life. Mr. Shippen opposed this motion, as inconsistent with
the trust reposed in them as representatives of the people, who ought to
be very frugal in exercising the right of giving away the public money.
He said, the sum of seven hundred thousand pounds was not obtained for
his late majesty without a long and solemn debate; and every member who
contended for it at that time, allowed it to be an ample royal revenue:
that, although his majesty’s family should be enlarged, a circumstance
which had been urged as one reason for the motion, he presumed the
appointments of prince Frederick would not be much inferior to those
settled on his present majesty when he was prince of Wales: besides, it
was to be hoped that many personal, many particular expenses in the
late reign, especially those for frequent journeys to Hanover, would
be discontinued, and entirely cease. He observed, that the civil list
branches in the queen’s reign did not often exceed the sum of five
hundred and fifty thousand pounds; nevertheless, she called upon her
parliament but once, in a reign of thirteen years, to pay the debts
contracted in her civil government; and these were occasioned by
the unparalleled instances of her piety and generosity. She gave the
first-fruits and tenths, arising to nineteen thousand pounds a-year, as
an augmentation of the maintenance of the poor clergy. She bestowed
five thousand pounds per annum, out of the post-office, on the duke of
Marlborough: she suffered seven hundred pounds to be charged weekly on
the same office, for the service of the public: she expended several
hundred thousand pounds in building the castle of Blenheim: she
allowed four thousand pounds annually to prince Charles of Denmark:
she sustained great loses by the tin contract: she supported the
poor Palatines: she exhibited many other proofs of royal bounty: and
immediately before her death she had formed a plan of retrenchment,
which would have reduced her yearly expenses to four hundred and
fifty-nine thousand nine hundred and forty-one pounds. He affirmed,
that a million a-year would not be sufficient to carry on the exorbitant
expenses, so often and so justly complained of in the house of commons:
that over and above the yearly allowance of seven hundred thousand
pounds, many occasional taxes, many excessive sums were raised, and all
sunk in the bottomless gulf of secret service. Two hundred and fifty
thousand pounds were raised in defiance of the ancient parliamentary
methods, to secure the kingdom from a Swedish invasion; then the two
insurance offices were erected, and paid near three hundred thousand
pounds for their charters: our enmity with Sweden being changed into
an alliance, a subsidy of seventy-two thousand pounds was implicitly
granted, to fulfil some secret engagements with that crown: four and
twenty thousand pounds were given for burning merchant ships arrived
from infected places, though the goods which ought to have been
destroyed for the public safety were afterwards privately sold: a sum of
five hundred thousand pounds was demanded, and granted, for paying the
debts of the civil list; and his majesty declared by message, he was
resolved to retrench his expenses for the future. Notwithstanding this
resolution, in less than four years, a new demand of the like sum was
made and granted to discharge new incumbrances: the Spanish ships of
war which admiral Byng took in the Mediterranean, were sold for a
considerable sum of money: one hundred and twenty-five thousand pounds
were granted in the last session, to be secretly disposed of for the
public utility; and there was still a debt in the civil government,
amounting to above six hundred thousand pounds. He took notice,
that this amazing extravagance happened under the conduct of persons
pretending to surpass all their predecessors in the knowledge and care
of the public revenue: that as none of these sums had been accounted
for, they were, in all probability, employed in services not fit to be
owned. He said, he heartily wished that Time, the great discoverer of
hidden truths and concealed iniquities, might produce a list of all such
as had been perverted from their public duty by private pensions: who
had been the hired slaves and the corrupt instruments of a profuse and
vain-glorious administration. He proposed, that instead of granting
an addition to the civil list, they should restrict that revenue to
a certain sum, by concluding the question with these words, “in like
manner as they were granted and continued to his late majesty, so as to
make up the clear yearly sum of seven hundred thousand pounds.” To these
particulars, which were indeed unanswerable, no reply was made. Even
this mark of decency was laid aside, as idle and superfluous. The house
agreed to the motion; and a bill was brought in for the better support
of his majesty’s household. The commons having received a message from
the king, desiring they would make further provision for the queen his
consort, resolved, That in case she should survive his majesty, the
sum of one hundred thousand pounds should be settled upon her for life,
charged upon the revenues of the civil list, together with his majesty’s
palace of Somerset-house, and Richmond Old-park. A bill was formed on
this resolution, which, as well as the other, passed both bouses, and
received the royal assent on the seventeenth day of July, when the
king, in a speech to both houses, expressed his satisfaction with their
conduct, and congratulated them on the wealth and glory of the nation,
by which they had acquired such weight in holding the balance of Europe.
Then the lord-chancellor prorogued the parliament to the twenty-ninth
day of August; but on the seventh day of that month a proclamation was
issued for dissolving this, and convoking another.
In the interim some changes were made in different departments of
civil economy. Lord viscount Torrington was placed at the head of
the admiralty; the earl of Westmoreland was appointed first lord
commissioner of trade and plantations. Philip Dormer Stanhope, earl of
Chesterfield, a nobleman remarkable for his wit, eloquence, and polished
manners, was nominated ambassador to the Hague. The privy-council being
dissolved, another was appointed of the members then present. The duke
of Devonshire was dignified with the place of president; and the duke
of St. Alban’s was appointed master of the horse. On the eleventh day
of October, the coronation of the king and queen was performed at
Westminster-Abbey, with the usual solemnity.* By this time the courts
of France and Spain were perfectly reconciled; all Europe was freed
from the calamities of war; and the peace of Great Britain suffered no
interruption, except from some transient tumults among the tinners of
Cornwall, who, being provoked by a scarcity of corn, rose in arms and
plundered the granaries of that county.
* King George II. ascended the throne in the forty-fourth
year of his age. On the second day of September, 1705, he
espoused the princess Wilhelmina Charlotte Caroline,
daughter to John Frederick, marquis of Brandenburgh Anspach,
by whom he had two sons, Frederick Louis, prince of Wales,
born at Hanover on the thirty-first day of January, 1707,
and William Augustus, born at London on the fifteenth day of
April, 1721. She had likewise borne four princesses, namely,
Anne, Amelia, Caroline, Mary, and was afterwards delivered
of Louisa, married in the sequel to the king of Denmark.
NEW PARLIAMENT.
The elections in England and Scotland for the parliament having
succeeded on the new system, according to the wishes of the ministry,
the two houses met on the twenty-third day of January, when the commons
unanimously chose for their speaker Arthur Onslow, esquire, knight of
the shire for Surrey, a gentleman of extensive knowledge, worth, and
probity; grave, eloquent, venerable, and every way qualified for the
discharge of that honourable and important office. The king, in his
speech to this new parliament, declared, that by the last advices
from abroad, he had reason to hope the difficulties which had hitherto
retarded the execution of the preliminaries, and the opening of
the congress, would soon be entirely removed; in the meantime, he
represented the absolute necessity of continuing the preparation which
had hitherto secured the nation, and prevented an open rupture in
Europe. He promised, that his first care should be to reduce, from
time to time, the expense of the public, as often, and as soon as
the interest and safety of his people would permit such reduction.
He expressed an earnest desire of seeing the foundation laid of an
effectual scheme for the increase and encouragement of seamen in
general, that they might be invited rather than compelled into the
service of their country. Finally, he recommended unanimity, zeal, and
despatch of the public business. Those speeches, penned by the minister,
were composed with a view to soothe the minds of the people into an
immediate concurrence with the measures of the government; but without
any intention of performing those promises of economy, reformation,
and national advantage. The two houses seemed to vie with each other
in expressions of applause and affection to his majesty. The lords, in
their address, hailed him as the best of kings, and the true father of
his country. The commons expressed the warmest sense of gratitude for
the blessings they enjoyed in his reign, though it was not yet eight
months old. They approved of all his transactions; they promised to
support him in all his undertakings; and declared they would cheerfully
grant whatever supplies should be wanted for the public service. Having
considered the estimates which were laid before them by order of his
majesty, they voted two-and-twenty thousand nine hundred and fifty-five
men for guards and garrisons; and fifteen thousand seamen for the
service of the ensuing year. They granted two hundred and thirty
thousand nine hundred and twenty-three pounds, for the maintenance of
twelve thousand Hessian troops; a subsidy of fifty thousand pounds
to the king of Sweden; and half that sum to the duke of Brunswick
Wolfenbuttle.* The expense of the year amounted to four millions,
raised by a land-tax of three shillings in the pound, a malt-tax, and
by borrowing of the bank one million seven hundred and fifty thousand
pounds, for which annuities to the amount of seventy thousand pounds,
to be raised by duties on coals imported into the city of London, were
granted to that corporation.
* Nothing could be a greater burlesque upon the negotiation
than this treaty of alliance concluded with the petty duke
of Wolfenbuttle, who very gravely guarantees to his
Britannic majesty the possession of his three kingdoms, and
obliges himself to supply his majesty with five thousand
men, in consideration of an annual subsidy of five-and-
twenty thousand pounds for four years.
{GEORGE II. 1727-1760}
VIOLENT DISPUTE CONCERNING THE NATIONAL DEBT.
All these sums, however, were not granted without question. The number
of land-forces occasioned a debate; and the Hessian auxiliaries were
not allowed without dispute and opposition. When they deliberated on the
loan of the bank, Mr. Pulteney observed, that the shifting of funds
was but perpetuating taxes, and putting off the evil day; that
notwithstanding the great merit which some persons had built on the
sinking fund, it appeared that the national debt had been increased
since the setting up of that pompous project. Some warm altercation
passed between him and sir Robert Walpole on this subject. The
lord-mayor, aldermen, and common-council of London, presented a
petition, setting forth, that the duties already laid upon coals and
culm imported into London, affected the trade of that city only;
that the inequality of the burden was a great discouragement to their
manufactures, and a hardship upon all the trading inhabitants. The
petition was rejected, and the tax imposed. The house having addressed
the king for a particular and distinct account of the distribution of
two hundred and fifty thousand pounds, charged to have been issued for
securing the trade and navigation of the kingdom, and preserving and
restoring the peace of Europe, he declined granting their request,
but signified in general that part of the money had been issued and
disbursed by his late majesty, and the remainder by himself, for
carrying on the same necessary services, which required the greatest
secrecy. Such a message in the reign of King William would have raised a
dangerous flame in the house of commons.
{1728}
Mr. W. Pulteney inveighed against such a vague and general way of
accounting for the public money, as tending to render parliaments
altogether insignificant, to cover embezzlements, and to screen corrupt
and rapacious ministers. The commons having taken into consideration the
state of the national debt, examined the accounts, and interrogated the
proper officers. A motion was made by a court member, that it appeared
the monies already issued and applied towards discharging the national
debts, together with a sum to be issued at Lady-day, amounted to six
millions six hundred and forty-eight thousand seven hundred and sixty
two pounds, five shillings and one penny one farthing. In vain did the
leaders of the opposition expose the fallacious tendency of this motion.
In vain did they demonstrate the fraudulent artifice used in drawing up
the accounts; the motion was carried; and several resolutions were taken
on the state of the national debts. In the particular account of these
debts, upon which the house resolved to form a representation to his
majesty, an article of three hundred thousand pounds relating to the
duty upon wrought plate was totally omitted. This extraordinary omission
being discovered, gave rise to a very warm debate, and to very severe
reflection against those who superintended the public accounts. This
error being rectified, a committee appointed for the purpose drew up
the representation, containing a particular detail of the national debts
discharged and incurred since the twenty-fifth day of December, in the
year one thousand seven hundred and sixteen, with a state of the sinking
fund and of the public credit. The draft being approved by the house,
was presented to the king-, who received it graciously. He took this
opportunity of saying, that the provision made for gradually discharging
the national debts was now become so certain and considerable, that
nothing but some unforeseen event could alter or diminish it; a
circumstance that afforded the fairest prospect of seeing the old debts
discharged without any necessity of incurring new incumbrances.
This answer, fraught with many other expressions of fatherly tenderness
for his people, paved the way for a message to the house, demanding
a vote of credit to fulfil certain engagements entered into, and
concerted, with the advice and concurrence of the last parliament, for
securing the trade and navigation of the kingdom, and for restoring
and preserving the peace of Europe. Though a debate ensued upon this
message, the majority resolved that an address should be presented
to his majesty, declaring the duty and fidelity of the commons, their
entire confidence in his royal care and goodness, and their readiness
to enable his majesty to fulfil his engagements, A vote of credit passed
accordingly. During this session, the peers were chiefly employed
in examining copies of several treaties and alliances which the king
submitted to their perusal; they likewise prepared a bill for amending
the statute of limitation, which, however, did not pass into a law;
they considered the state of the national debt, a subject fruitful of
debates; they passed the mutiny bill, and those that were sent up from
the commons touching the supplies; together with an act obliging ships
arriving from infected places, to perform quarantine; and some others of
a more private nature. These bills having received the royal assent, the
king closed the session on the twenty-eighth day of May, when he
thanked the commons for the effectual supplies they had raised, and,
in particular, for having empowered him to borrow five hundred thousand
pounds for the discharge of wages due to the seamen employed in the
navy.
A DOUBLE MARRIAGE BETWEEN THE HOUSES OF SPAIN AND PORTUGAL.
England was at this period quite barren of remarkable events. The king’s
uncle, Ernest Augustus, prince of Brunswick, duke of York, and bishop
of Osnabruck, died on the third day of August, and was succeeded in
the bishopric by the elector Cologn, according to the pactum by which
Osnabruck is alternately possessed by the house of Brunswick and that
elector. In the beginning of December, his majesty’s eldest son prince
Frederick arrived in England from Hanover, where he had hitherto
resided, was introduced into the privy-council, and created prince of
Wales. Signior Como, resident from the duke of Parma, was ordered to
quit the kingdom, because his master paid to the pretender the honours
due to the king of Great Britain. The congress opened at Soissons, for
determining all disputes among the powers of Europe, proved ineffectual.
Such difficulties occurred in settling and reconciling so many different
pretensions and interests, that the contracting parties in the alliance
of Hanover proposed a provisional treaty, concerning which no definitive
answer was given as yet by the courts of Vienna and Madrid. The fate of
Europe, therefore, continued in suspense; the English fleet lay inactive
and rotting in the West-Indies; the sailors perished miserably, without
daring to avenge their country’s wrongs; while the Spanish cruisers
committed depredations with impunity on the commerce of Great Britain.
The court of Spain, at this juncture, seemed cold and indifferent
with regard to a pacification with England. It had renewed a good
understanding with France, and now strengthened its interests by a
double alliance of marriage with the royal family of Portugal. The
infanta of this house was betrothed to the prince of Asturias; while the
Spanish infanta, formerly affianced to the French king, was now matched
with the prince of Brazil, eldest son of his Portuguese majesty. In the
month of January, the two courts met in a wooden house built over
the little river Coya, that separates the two kingdoms, and there the
princesses were exchanged.
LIBERALITY OF THE COMMONS.
The parliament of Great Britain meeting according to their last
prorogation on the twenty-first day of January, the king in his speech
communicated the nature of the negotiation at the congress. Pie demanded
such supplies as might enable him to act vigorously in concert with
his allies, provided his endeavours to establish an advantageous peace
should miscarry; and he hinted that the dilatory conduct of the courts
of Vienna and Madrid proceeded in a great measure from the hopes that
were given of creating discontents and divisions among the subjects of
Great Britain. This suggestion was a ministerial artifice to inflame
the zeal and resentment of the nation, and intimidate the members in the
opposition. Accordingly the hint was pursued, and in the addresses from
both houses, that could not fail of being agreeable, considering the
manner in which they were dictated, particular notice was taken of
this article; both peers and commons expressed their detestation
and abhorrence of those, who, by such base and unnatural artifices,
suggested the means of distressing their country, and clamoured at
the inconveniencies which they themselves had occasioned. In these
addresses, likewise, the parliament congratulated his majesty on the
arrival of the prince of Wales in his British dominions; and the commons
sent a particular compliment to his royal highness on that occasion,
The estimates having been examined in the usual form, the house voted
fifteen thousand seamen for the ensuing year; but the motion for
continuing the same number of land-forces which had been allowed in
the preceding year, was not carried without dispute. All the arguments
against a standing army in time of peace, as inconsistent with the
British constitution, and dangerous to the liberties of the people, were
repeated with great vivacity by Mr. Shippen and Mr. W. Pulteney. These,
however, were answered, and represented as absurd, by Mr. Horatio
Walpole and Mr. D., two staunch adherents of the minister. The first
had, in despite of nature, been employed in different negotiations;
he was blunt, awkward, and slovenly, an orator without eloquence, an
ambassador without dignity, and a plenipotentiary without address. The
other had natural parts and acquired knowledge; spoke with confidence;
and in dispute was vain, sarcastic, petulant, and verbose.
DEBATES ON THE SUBSIDIES OF HESSE-CASSEL AND WOLFENBUTTLE.
The subsidies to Sweden, Hesse-Cassel, and Wolfen-buttle were continued,
notwithstanding the remonstrances of sir Joseph Jekyll, Mr. Lutwyche,
and Mr. Pulteney; which last observed, that as the landgrave of
Hesse-Cassel, and the duke of Brunswick-Wolfen-buttle, usually
maintained a certain number of troops in their pay, it was but
reasonable that Great Britain should defray no more than the expense of
the additional forces which those powers had raised, in consequence
of their conventions with the king of England. Sir Robert Walpole
perceiving that this remark made an impression on the house, thought it
necessary to vindicate his measure. He expatiated upon the wisdom of
the late king, in concluding the Hanover alliance. He affirmed, that
the convention with Hesse-Cassel had prevented a war in the empire, for
which the court of Vienna had made great preparations; that the emperor
had not only augmented his own forces by the help of Spanish subsidies,
but also retained the troops of three electors; and if he had not
been overawed by the Hessians, would certainly have rejected the
preliminaries, and all other advances towards a pacification; that,
therefore, they ought not to grudge an expense which had already proved
so beneficial to the tranquillity of Europe. Sir Joseph Jekyll replied,
that whatever gloss might be put upon such measures, they were repugnant
to the maxims by which England in former times had steered and squared
its conduct with relation to its interest abroad; that the navy was the
natural strength of Great Britain--its best defence and security; but
if, in order to avoid a war, they should be so free-hearted as to buy
and maintain the forces of foreign princes, they were never like to see
an end of such extravagant expenses. This gentleman, who exercised the
office of master of the rolls, had approved himself a zealous defender
of whig principles, was an able lawyer, a sensible speaker, and a
conscientious patriot. The supplies were raised by a continuation of
the land-tax, the duties upon malt, cyder, and perry, an additional
imposition on unmalted corn used in distilling, and by sale of annuities
to the bank not exceeding fifty thousand pounds per annum.
COMMITTEE FOR INSPECTING THE GAOLS.
Petitions were delivered to the house of commons from the merchants of
London, Liverpool, and Bristol, complaining of the interruptions they
had suffered in their trade for several years, by the depredations of
the Spaniards in the West Indies. These being considered, the house
ordered the lords of the admiralty to produce the other memorials of the
same kind which they had received, that they might be laid before the
congress at Soissons: then they addressed his majesty for copies of all
the letters and instructions which had been sent to admiral Hosier, and
those who succeeded him in the command of the West-India squadron. Mr.
Oglethorpe, having been informed of shocking cruelties and oppressions
exercised by gaolers upon their prisoners, moved for an examination into
these practices, and was chosen chairman of a committee appointed to
inquire into the state of the gaols in the kingdom. They began with the
Fleet-prison, which they visited in a body; there they found sir William
Rich, baronet, loaded with irons, by order of Bambridge the warden, to
whom he had given some slight cause of offence. They made a discovery of
many inhuman barbarities which had been committed by that ruffian, and
detected the most iniquitous scenes of fraud, villany, and extortion.
When the report was made by the committee, the house unanimously
resolved, That Thomas Bambridge, acting warden of the Fleet, had
wilfully permitted several debtors to escape; had been guilty of the
most notorious breaches of trust, great extortions, and the highest
crimes and misdemeanors in the execution of his office; that he had
arbitrarily and unlawfully loaded with irons, put into dungeons, and
destroyed prisoners for debt, under his charge, treating them in the
most barbarous and cruel manner, in high violation and contempt of the
laws of the kingdom. John Huggins, esquire, who had been warden of the
Fleet-prison, was subjected to a resolution of the same nature. The
house presented an address to the king, desiring he would direct
his attorney-general forthwith to prosecute these persons and their
accomplices, who were committed prisoners to Newgate. A bill was brought
in, disabling Bambridge to execute the office of warden; another for
the better regulating the prison of the Fleet, and for more effectually
preventing and punishing arbitrary and illegal practices of the warden
of the said prison.*
* It afterwards appeared that some of the members of this
inquest were actuated by other motives than those they
professed; and the committee was suffered to sink into
oblivion.
ADDRESS TOUCHING THE SPANISH DEPREDATIONS.
Other merchants complained by petition of the losses they sustained
by the Spaniards. The house, in a grand committee, deliberated on this
subject, inquired into the particulars, examined evidence, and drew up
an address to the king, desiring his majesty would be graciously pleased
to use his utmost endeavours for preventing such depredations; for
procuring just and reasonable satisfaction; and for securing to his
subjects the free exercise of commerce and navigation to and from the
British colonies in America. The king assured them he would use his best
endeavours to answer the desires and expectations of his people, in an
affair of so much importance; and they, in another address, thanked
him for his gracious answer. They did not, however, receive such a
satisfactory reply to a former address, touching the sum of sixty
thousand pounds that had been stated in the public account, without
specification of the particular uses to which it was applied. His
majesty gave them to understand that the money had been issued and
disbursed for secret services; and that a distinct and particular
account of the distribution of it could not be given without a manifest
prejudice to the public. A bill was prepared for the more effectual
preventing bribery and corruption in elections for members of
parliament; and it passed through the house without opposition; but
their attention was chiefly employed upon the Spanish depredations,
which had raised a great clamour through the whole kingdom, and excited
very warm disputes in parliament; for they were generally reputed the
fruits of negligence, incapacity, or want of vigour in the ministers..
The commons having made further progress in the inquiry, and received
fresh petitions from the merchants, passed some resolutions, in which
the Spaniards were accused of having violated the treaties subsisting
between the two crowns; and with having treated inhumanly the masters
and crews of ships belonging to Great Britain. They justified the
instructions given to admiral Hosier, to seize and detain the flota and
galleons of Spain, until justice and satisfaction should be rendered to
his majesty and his allies; nay, even declared that such seizure would
have been just, prudent, and necessary, tending to prevent an open
rupture, and to preserve the peace and tranquillity of Europe. They
again addressed the king to use his endeavours to procure satisfaction;
and he promised to comply with their request.
Mr. Scroope, member for Bristol, moved for an address entreating his
majesty to order an account of the produce of the civil list revenues
for one year to be laid before the house. The address was presented, the
account produced, and the house, in a grand committee, took this affair
into consideration. The courtiers affirmed that they fell short of the
eight hundred thousand pounds settled upon his majesty; and Mr. Scroope
proposed that the sum of one hundred and fifteen thousand pounds should
be granted to the king, on account of those deficiencies and arrears.
The motion was vigorously opposed by Mr. Pulteney and other members.
They expressed their surprise that it should be made so late in the
session, when no further demand of money could be reasonably expected;
and they said it was the more extraordinary, because it appeared in the
former session, from the examination of the accounts then before the
house, that the revenues of the civil list produced yearly a much
greater sum than that for which they were given. Mr. Pulteney moved,
that the accounts and papers should be referred to the examination of
a select committee, properly empowered to investigate the truth. The
ministers opposed this motion; and the question being put, it passed
in the negative. The majority voted the sum demanded; and in a bill for
settling the price of imported corn, they inserted the resolution for
granting to his majesty the sum of one hundred and fifteen thousand
pounds, on account of arrears due on the civil list revenues.
PROCEEDINGS IN THE HOUSE OF LORDS.
The house of lords having prepared a bill for the more effectual
punishment of forgery, which was passed into a law, and ordered the
judges to bring in another on the report of a committee appointed to
consider the case of imprisoned debtors, at length deliberated upon the
state of the nation, particularly the positive demand made by the court
of Spain for the restitution of Gibraltar, grounded in a letter written
by the late king to his catholic majesty. From a copy of the letter laid
before the house, it plainly appeared that king George I. had consented
to this restitution. A motion being made for a resolution, importing,
that for the honour of his majesty, and the preservation and security of
the trade and commerce of the kingdom, effectual care should be taken in
the present treaty that the king of Spain should renounce all claim and
pretension to Gibraltar and Minorca, in plain and strong terms; a debate
ensued, and the question being put, passed in the negative, though
not without a protest. Then the majority resolved, that the house did
entirely rely upon his majesty, that he would, for maintaining the
honour and securing the trade of this kingdom, take effectual care in
the present treaty to preserve his undoubted right to Gibraltar and
Minorca. When the house examined the papers relating to the Spanish
depreciations, many severe reflections were uttered against the conduct
of the ministry; and a motion was made, to resolve that Hosier’s
expedition was an unreasonable burden on the nation; but this too was
rejected, and occasioned another protest. Nor did the clause in the
corn-bill, for granting one hundred and fifteen thousand pounds to his
majesty, pass through the house of peers without warm opposition. Divers
lords alleged, that, instead of a deficiency in the civil list revenues,
there was a considerable surplus; that this was a new grant, and a new
burden on the people; that the nation was loaded, not to complete but
to augment the surplus designed for the civil list; and this at a time
when the public debts were increased; when the taxes were heavily felt
in all parts of the country; when the foreign trade of Britain was
encumbered and diminished; when her manufactures were decayed, her poor
multiplied, and she was surrounded by many other national calamities.
They observed, that if the produce of the civil list revenue should not
amount to the yearly sum of eight hundred thousand pounds, the
deficiency must be made good to his majesty by the public; whereas no
provision was made, by which, if the produce of these revenues should
exceed that sum, the surplus could accrue to the benefit of the public;
that, by this precedent, not only real deficiencies were to be made
good, but also supplies were to be given for arrears standing out at the
end of the year, which should come on before the supplies could be
granted, though the supply given to make good arrears in one year would
certainly increase the surplusages in another; that the revenues of the
civil list were variable in their own nature, and even when there is a
deficiency in the produce, there might be arrears in the receipt; these
might be easily increased by the management of designing ministers, by
private directions to receivers, and by artful methods of stating
accounts. All these arguments, and other objections equally strong and
plausible, against this unconsionable and unparliamentary motion, served
only to evince the triumph of the ministry over shame and sentiment,
their contempt of public spirit, and their defiance of the national
reproach.*
* The peers that distinguished themselves in the opposition
were Beaufort, Strafford, Craven, Foley, Litchfield,
Scarsdale, Grower, Mountjoy, Plymouth, Bathurst,
Northampton, Coventry, Oxford and Mortimer, Willoughby de
Broke, Boyle, and Warrington.
{1729}
WISE CONDUCT OF THE IRISH PARLIAMENT.
The king had, on the twenty-fourth day of March, given the royal assent
to five bills; and on the fourteenth day of May the same sanction was
given to thirty other bills, including an act enabling the queen to be
regent in the kingdom during his majesty’s absence without taking the
oaths, and another for the relief of insolvent debtors. At the same time
two-and-thirty private bills were passed: then the king expressed his
approbation of the parliament, signified his intention to visit his
German dominions, and ordered the chancellor to prorogue both houses.
His majesty having appointed the queen regent of the realm, set out
for Hanover on the seventeenth day of May, in order to remove a petty
misunderstanding which had happened between that electorate and the
court of Berlin. Some Hanoverian subjects had been pressed or decoyed
into the service of Prussia; and the regents of Hanover had seized
certain Prussian officers by way of reprisal. The whole united kingdom
of Great Britain at this juncture enjoyed uninterrupted repose;
and commerce continued to increase, in spite of all restriction and
discouragement. The people of Ireland found themselves happy under the
government of lord Carteret; and their parliament, assembling in the
month of September, approved themselves the fathers of their country.
They established funds for the discharge of their national debt, and for
maintaining the expense of government: they enacted wholesome laws for
the encouragement of manufactures, trade, and agriculture; and they
formed wise regulations in different branches of civil economy. Some
time after this session, which was conducted with so much harmony and
patriotism, lord Carteret returned to England; and was succeeded by the
duke of Dorset in the government of that kingdom. In the month of May,
Charles lord Townshend resigned the seals, which were given to colonel
Stanhope, now created earl of Harrington; so that sir Robert Walpole
now reigned without a rival. James earl of Waldegrave was appointed
ambassador to the court of France, which about that time was filled with
joy by the birth of a dauphin.
ABDICATION OF THE KING OF SARDINIA.
In the month of September, Victor Amadeus king of Sardinia, resigned
his crown to his son Charles Emanuel, prince of Piedmont. The father
reserved to himself a revenue of one hundred thousand pistoles per
annum, retired to the castle of Chamberry, and espoused the countess
dowager of St. Sebastian, who declined the title of queen, but assumed
that of marchioness of Somerive. Though the congress at Soissons
proved abortive, conferences were begun at Seville between the
plenipotentiaries of England, France, and Spain; and a treaty was
concluded on the ninth day of November, not only without the concurrence
of the emperor, but even contrary to his right, as established by
the quadruple alliance. On this subject he communicated an imperial
commissorial decree to the states of the empire assembled in the diet
at Eatisbon, which was answered by the French minister de Chavigny. In
October, Peter II., czar of Muscovy and grandson of Peter I., died
in the fifteenth year of his age, at Muscow, and was succeeded on the
Russian throne by the princess Anne Ivanowna, second daughter of John
Alexowitz, elder brother of the first Peter, and widow of Frederic
William duke of Courland. The following month was rendered remarkable
by the death of pope Benedict XIII., in whose room cardinal Laurence
Corsini was raised to the pontificate, and assumed the name of Clement
XII.
SUBSTANCE OF THE KING’S SPEECH.
The British parliament assembling on the thirteenth day of January,
the king gave them to understand that the peace of Europe was now
established by the treaty of Seville, built upon the foundation
of former treaties, and tending to render more effectual what the
contracting powers in the quadruple alliance were before engaged to see
performed. He assured them that all former conventions made with
Spain in favour of the British trade and navigation were renewed and
confirmed: that the free uninterrupted exercise of their commerce was
restored: that the court of Spain had agreed to an ample restitution
and reparation for unlawful seizures and depredations: that all rights,
privileges, and possessions, belonging to him and his allies, were
solemnly re-established, confirmed, and guaranteed; and that not one
concession was made to the prejudice of his subjects. He told them he
had given orders for reducing a great number of his land-forces, and for
laying up great part of the fleet; and observed ‘that there would be
a considerable saving in the expense of the current year. After both
houses had presented their addresses of thanks and congratulation to
the king on the peace of Seville, the lords took that treaty into
consideration, and it did not pass inquiry without severe animadversion.
OBJECTIONS TO THE TREATY OF SEVILLE.
The lords in the opposition excepted to the article by which the
merchants of Great Britain were obliged to make proof of their losses
at the court of Spain. They said this stipulation was a hardship upon
British subjects, and dishonourable to the nation: that few would care
to undertake such a troublesome and expensive journey, especially as
they had reason to apprehend their claims would be counterbalanced by
the Spaniards; and after all they would have no more than the slender
comfort of hoping to obtain that redress by commissaries which they
had not been able to procure by plenipotentiaries. They thought it very
extraordinary that Great Britain should be bound to ratify and guarantee
whatever agreement should be made between the king of Spain and the duke
of Parma and Tuscany, concerning the garrisons once established in their
countries; that the English should be obliged to assist in effectuating
the introduction of six thousand Spanish troops into the towns of
Tuscany and Parma, without any specification of the methods to be taken,
or the charge to be incurred, in giving that assistance: that they
should guarantee for ever, not only to Don Carlos, but even to all
his successors, the possession of the estates of Tuscany and Parma;
a stipulation which in all probability would involve Great Britain in
endless quarrels and disputes about a country with which they had no
concern. They affirmed that the treaty of Seville, instead of
confirming other treaties, was contradictory to the quadruple alliance,
particularly in the article of introducing Spanish troops into Tuscany
and Parma in the room of neutral forces stipulated by the former
alliance; and agreeing that they should there remain until Don Carlos
and his successors should be secure and exempt from all events. They
complained that these alterations from the tenor of the quadruple
alliance, were made without the concurrence of the emperor, and even
without inviting him to accede; an affront which might alienate his
friendship from England, and hazard the loss of such an ancient,
powerful, and faithful ally; they declared that throughout the whole
treaty there seemed to be an artful omission of any express stipulation
to secure Great Britain in her right to Gibraltar and Minorca. Such was
the substance of the objections made to the peace: then lord Bathurst
moved for a resolution that the agreement on the treaty of Seville, to
secure the succession of Don Carlos to the duchies of Tuscany, Parma,
and Placentia, with Spanish troops, was a manifest violation of the
fifth article of the quadruple alliance, tending to involve the nation
in a dangerous and expensive war, and to destroy the balance of power in
Europe. The question was put, and the motion rejected. Such too was
the fate of two other motions, to resolve that Great Britain’s right of
sovereignty, dominion, possession, and claim to Gibraltar and Minorca,
were not ascertained by the treaty of Seville: and that the stipulations
in that treaty for repairing the losses of the British merchants were
insufficient and precarious. The majority, far from stigmatizing
this transaction, resolved, that the treaty did contain all necessary
stipulations for maintaining and securing the honour, dignity, rights,
and possessions of the crown: that all due care was taken therein for
the support of the trade of the king dom, and for repairing the losses
sustained by the British merchants. On these resolutions an address of
approbation was founded: but when a motion was made for an address to
his majesty, that he would order to be laid before the house a list of
all pensions payable to the crown, it was immediately resolved in the
negative. Divers contests of the same kind arose upon the mutiny-bill,
the pension-bill, and the maintenance of twelve thousand Hessians;
but the ministry bore down all opposition, though their triumphs were
clogged with vigorous protests, which did not fail to make impression
upon the body of the people.
OPPOSITION TO A STANDING ARMY.
Nor was the success of the court interest in the house of commons
altogether pure, and free from exception and dispute. When the charge
of the land forces fell under the consideration of the commons, and Mr.
Henry Pelham, secretary at war, moved that the number of effective men
for the land service of the ensuing year should be fixed at seventeen
thousand seven hundred and nine, Mr. Pulteney insisted upon its being
reduced to twelve thousand. Mr. Shippen affirmed that Mr. Pelham’s
motion was a flat negative to the address for which he voted on the
first day of the session, as it plainly implied a distrust of the
validity of the late treaty, which he then assured the house would
immediately produce all the blessings of an absolute peace, and deliver
the kingdom from the apprehensions and inconveniences of a war. He said
the motion tended directly towards the establishment of an army in Great
Britain, which he hoped would never be so far germanized as tamely to
submit to a military government. He observed, that the nation could
have no occasion for all the troops that were demanded, considering the
glorious scene of affairs which was now opened to all Europe. “They are
not necessary,” said he, “to awe Spain into a firm adherence to its own
treaty; they are not necessary to force the emperor into an immediate
accession, nor are they in any sort necessary for the safety of his
majesty’s person and government. Force and violence are the resort
of usurpers and tyrants only; because they are, with good reason,
distrustful of the people whom they oppress; and because they have
no other security for the continuance of their unlawful and unnatural
dominion, than what depends entirely on the strength of their armies.”
The motion, however, was carried in the affirmative.
BILL PROHIBITING LOANS.
Another warm debate was excited by a bill which the courtiers brought
in, to prevent any subjects of Great Britain from advancing sums of
money to foreign princes or states, without having obtained license from
his majesty, under his privy-seal or some great authority. The minister
pretended that this law was proposed to disable the emperor, who
wanted to borrow a great sum of the English merchants, from raising
and maintaining troops to disturb the tranquillity of Europe. The bill
contained a clause empowering the king to prohibit by proclamation
all such loans of money, jewels, or bullion: the attorney-general was
empowered to compel, by English bill, in the court of exchequer, the
effectual discovery, on oath, of any such loans; and it was enacted,
that in default of an answer to any such bill, the court should decree a
limited sum against the person refusing to answer. Mr. Daniel Pulteney,
a gentleman of uncommon talents and ability, and particularly acquainted
with every branch of commerce, argued strenuously against this bill, as
a restraint upon trade that would render Holland the market of Europe,
and the mart of money to the nations of the continent. He said that
by this general prohibition, extending to all princes, states, or
potentates, the English were totally disabled from assisting their best
allies: that, among others, the king of Portugal frequently borrowed
money of the English merchants residing within his dominions; that while
the licensing power remained in the crown, the licenses would be issued
through the hands of the minister, who by this new trade might gain
twenty, thirty, or forty thousand a-year: that the bill would render
the exchequer a court of inquisition: and that whilst it restrained our
merchants from assisting the princes and powers of Europe, it permitted
our stockjobbers to trade in their funds without interruption. Other
arguments of equal weight were enforced by Mr. Barnard, a merchant of
London, who perfectly understood trade in all its branches, spoke with
judgment and precision, and upon all occasions steadily adhered to
the interest and liberties of his country. After having explained his
reasons, he declared he should never consent to a bill which he deemed
a violation of our fundamental laws, a breach of our dearest
liberties, and a very terrible hardship on mankind. Sir William Wyndham
distinguished himself on the same side of the question: the bill was
vindicated by sir Robert Walpole, Mr. Pelham, and sir Philip Yorke,
attorney-general; and being supported by the whole weight of ministerial
influence, not only passed through the house, but was afterwards enacted
into a law.
{GEORGE II. 1727-1760}
CHARTER OF THE EAST-INDIA COMPANY.
The subsidies were continued to the landgrave of Hesse-Cassel and the
duke of Brunswick-Wolfenbuttle, in spite of all that could be urged
against these extraneous incumbrances; and the supply for the ensuing
year was granted according to the estimates which the ministry thought
proper to produce, amounting to about two millions two hundred and
eighty thousand pounds. It must be owned, however, for the credit of the
session, that the house appropriated one million of the surplusses
arising from the sinking fund towards the discharge of the national
debt; and by another act extinguished the duties upon salt, by which
expedient the subject was eased of a heavy burden, not only in being
freed from the duty, but also from a considerable charge of salaries
given to a great number of officers employed to collect this imposition.
They likewise encouraged the colony of Carolina with an act, allowing
the planters and traders of that province to export rice directly to any
part of Europe southward of Cape Finisterre; and they permitted salt
from Europe to be imported into the colony of New York. The term of the
exclusive trade granted by act of parliament to the East India company
drawing towards a period, many considerable merchants and others made
application forbeing incorporated and vested with the privilege of
trading to those countries, proposing to lay that branch of trade open
to all the subjects of Great Britain on certain conditions. In
consideration of an act of parliament for this purpose, they offered to
advance three millions two hundred thousand pounds, for redeeming the
fund and trade of the present East India company. This proposal was
rejected; and the exclusive privilege vested in the company was, by act
of parliament, protracted to the year one thousand seven hundred and
sixty-six, upon the following conditions: That they should pay into the
exchequer the sum of two hundred thousand pounds towards the supplies of
the year, without interest or addition to their capital stock: that the
annuity or yearly fund of one hundred and sixty thousand pounds, payable
to them from the public, should be reduced to one hundred and
twenty-eight thousand: that after the year one thousand seven hundred
and sixty-six, their right to the exclusive trade should be liable to be
taken away by parliament, on three years’ notice, and repayment of their
capital.
{1730}
THE EMPEROR RESENTS THE TREATY OF SEVILLE.
On the fifteenth day of May, the king went to the house of peers
and closed the session. In his speech he expressed his joy, that,
notwithstanding all the clamours which were raised, the parliament had
approved of those matters which, he said, could not fail to inspire
all mankind with a just detestation of those incendiaries, who, by
scandalous libels, laboured to alienate the affections of his people;
to fill their minds with groundless jealousies and unjust complaints,
in dishonour of him and his government, and in defiance of the sense of
both houses of parliament.*
* In the course of the session the commons passed a bill for
making more effectual the laws in being, for disabling
persons from being chosen members of parliament who enjoyed
any pension during pleasure, or for any number of years, or
any offices holden in trust for them, by obliging all
persons hereafter to be chosen to serve the commons in
parliament to take the oath therein mentioned. In all
probability this bill would not have made its way through
the house of commons, had not the minister been well assured
it would stick with the upper house, where it was rejected
at the second reading, though not without violent
opposition.
The emperor was so much incensed at the insult offered him in the treaty
of Seville, with respect to the garrisons of Tuscany and Parma, that he
prohibited the subjects of Great Britain from trading in his dominions:
he began to make preparations for war, and actually detached bodies of
troops to Italy with such despatch as had been very seldom exerted by
the house of Austria. Yet the article of which he complained was not so
much a real injury as an affront put upon the head of the empire; for
eventual succession to those Italian duchies had been secured to the
infant, Don Carlos, by the quadruple alliance; and all that the emperor
required was, that this prince should receive the investiture of them as
fiefs of the empire.
ARRIVAL OF SEVEN INDIAN CHIEFS.
In Great Britain, this year was not distinguished by any transaction of
great moment. Seven chiefs of the Cherokee nations of Indians in America
were brought to England by sir Alexander Cumin. Being introduced to the
king, they laid their crown and regalia at his feet; and by an authentic
deed acknowledged themselves subjects to his dominion, in the name of
all their compatriots, who had vested them with full powers for this
purpose. They were amazed and confounded at the riches and magnificence
of the British court: they compared the king and queen to the sun and
moon, the princes to the stars of heaven, and themselves to nothing.
They gave their assent in the most solemn manner to articles of
friendship and commerce, proposed by the lords commissioners of trade
and plantations; and being loaded with presents of necessaries, arms,
and ammunition, were re-conveyed to their own country, which borders on
the province of South Carolina. In the month of September, a surprising
revolution was effected at Constantinople, without bloodshed or
confusion. A few mean Janissaries displayed a flag in the streets,
exclaiming that all true Mussulmen ought to follow them, and assist
in reforming the government. They soon increased to the number of
one hundred thousand, marched to the seraglio, and demanded the grand
vizier, the kiaja, and captain pacha. These unhappy ministers were
immediately strangled. Their bodies being delivered to the insurgents,
were dragged through the streets, and afterwards thrown to the dogs to
be devoured. Not content with this sacrifice, the revolters deposed the
grand seignor Achmet, who was confined to the same prison from whence
they brought his nephew Machmut, and raised this last to the throne,
after he had lived seven-and-twenty years in confinement.
England was at this period, infested with robbers, assassins, and
incendiaries, the natural consequences of degeneracy, corruption, and
the want of police in the interior government of the kingdom. This
defect, in a great measure, arose from an absurd notion, that laws
necessary to prevent those acts of cruelty, violence, and rapine, would
be incompatible with the liberty of British subjects; a notion that
confounds all distinctions between liberty and brutal licentiousness, as
if that freedom was desirable, in the enjoyment of which people find no
security for their lives or effects. The peculiar depravity of the
times was visible even in the conduct of those who preyed upon the
commonwealth. Thieves and robbers were now become more desperate and
savage than ever they had appeared since mankind was civilized. In the
exercise of their rapine, they wounded, maimed, and even murdered the
unhappy sufferers, through a wantonness of barbarity. They circulated
letters demanding sums of money from certain individuals, on pain of
reducing their houses to ashes, and their families to ruin; and even
set fire to the house of a rich merchant in Bristol, who had refused to
comply with their demand. The same species of villany was practised in
different parts of the kingdom; so that the government was obliged to
interpose, and offer a considerable reward for discovering the ruffians
concerned in such execrable designs.
BILL AGAINST PENSIONERS SITTING AS MEMBERS IN THE HOUSE OF COMMONS.
In the speech with which the king opened the session of parliament on
the twenty-first day of January, he told them that the present critical
conjuncture seemed in a very particular manner to deserve their
attention; that as the transactions then depending in the several courts
of Europe were upon the point of being determined, the great event of
peace or war might be very much affected by their first resolutions,
which were expected by different powers with great impatience. He said,
the continuance of that zeal and vigour with which they had hitherto
supported him and his engagements, must at this time be of the greatest
weight and importance, both with regard to his allies, and to those
who might be disposed before the season of action to prevent, by an
accommodation, the fatal consequences of a general rupture. The former
scene was repeated. Both houses, in their addresses, promised to support
his majesty in all his engagements; yet the members of the opposition
demonstrated the absurdity of promising to fulfil engagements before
they could possibly know whether or not they were for the service of
Great Britain. Another bill was brought into the house of commons, to
prevent pensioners from sitting as members of parliament; and, after a
third reading, carried up to the lords for their concurrence. When
the supply fell under consideration, the debates were renewed upon the
subsidies to the landgrave of Hesse-Cassel and the duke of Wolfenbuttle,
which, however, were continued; and every article was granted according
to the estimates given in for the expense of the ensuing year. Two
petitions being presented to the commons, representing the delays of
justice occasioned by the use of the Latin tongue in proceedings at law,
a bill was brought in for changing this practice, and enacting, that all
those processes and pleadings should be entered in the English language.
Though one would imagine that very little could be advanced against
such a regulation the bill met with warm opposition, on pretence that
it would render useless the ancient records which were written in that
language, and introduce confusion and delay of justice, by altering the
established form and method of pleading: in spite of these objections
it passed through both houses, and obtained the royal assent. A great
number of merchants from different parts of the kingdom having repeated
their complaints of depredations and cruelties committed by the
Spaniards in the West Indies, their petitions were referred to the
consideration of a grand committee. Their complaints upon examination
appeared to be well founded. The house presented an address to the
king, desiring his majesty would be graciously pleased to continue his
endeavours to prevent such depredations for the future; to procure full
satisfaction for the damages already sustained; and to secure to the
British subjects the full and uninterrupted exercise of their trade and
navigation to and from the British colonies in America. The hill against
pensions produced a warm debate in the house of lords, where it was
violently opposed by the dukes of Newcastle and Argyle; the earl of
Hay, and Dr. Sherlock, bishop of Bangor. This prelate, in a remarkable
speech, represented it as a scheme to enlarge the power of the house of
commons, and to break the balance between the powers essential to the
constitution, so as sooner or later to prove the ruin of the whole.
The great barrier provided against bribery and corruption by this bill,
consisted in an oath to be imposed on all members of the lower house,
by which they must have solemnly sworn and declared, that they had not
directly, nor indirectly, any pension during pleasure, or for any number
of years, or any office in part, or in the whole, held for them, or for
their benefit, by any persons whatsoever; and that they would not accept
any such pensions or offices, without signifying the same to the house
within fourteen days after they should be received or accepted. The
bill was vindicated as just and necessary by the earls of Winchelsea and
Strafford, lord Bathurst, and lord Carteret, who had by this time joined
as an auxiliary in the opposition. [237] _[See note 2 K, at the end of
this Vol.]_
{1731}
TREATY OF VIENNA.
The house of peers proceeded to consider the state of the national debt:
they read a bill for the free importation of wool from Ireland into
England, which was fiercely opposed, and laid aside, contrary to all the
rules of sound policy. They passed the bill for carrying on proceedings
at law in the English language; and a fruitless motion was made by lord
Bathurst for an address, to desire his majesty would give directions for
discharging the Hessian troops that were in the pay of Great Britain. On
the seventh day of May the parliament was prorogued, after the king had
given them to understand that all apprehensions of war were now happily
removed, by a treaty signed at Vienna between him and the emperor. He
said it was communicated to the courts of France and Spain, as parties
to the treaty of Seville, the execution of which it principally
regarded; and that it likewise was submitted to the consideration of the
states-general. He observed, that the conditions and engagements into
which he had entered on this occasion were agreeable to that necessary
concern which the British nation must always have for the security and
preservation of the balance of power in Europe; and that this happy
turn, duly improved with a just regard to former alliances, yielded a
favourable prospect of seeing the public tranquillity re-established.
DEATH OF THE DUKE OF PARMA.
In the month of January the duke of Parma died, after having made a
will, in which he declared his duchess was three months advanced in her
pregnancy; entreating the allied powers of Europe to have compassion
upon his people, and defer the execution of their projects until his
consort should be delivered. In case the child should be still-born, or
die after the birth, he bequeathed his dominions and allodial estates to
the infant Don Carlos of Spain; and appointed five regents to govern
the duchy. Notwithstanding this disposition, a body of Imperial troops
immediately took possession of Parma and Placentia, under the command
of general Stampa, who declared they should conduct themselves with
all possible regularity and moderation, and leave the administration
entirely to the regents whom the duke had appointed. They publicly
proclaimed in the market-place, that they took possession of these
duchies for the infant Don Carlos; and that if the duchess dowager
should not be delivered of a prince, the said infant might receive the
investiture from the emperor whenever he would, provided he should come
without an army. Though these steps seemed to threaten an immediate
war, the king of Great Britain and the states-general interposed their
mediation so effectually with the court of Vienna, that the emperor
desisted from the prosecution of his design; and on the sixteenth day of
March concluded at Vienna a treaty with his Britannic majesty, by which
he consented to withdraw his troops from Parma and Placentia. He agreed,
that the king of Spain might take possession of these places in favour
of his son Don Carlos, according to the treaty of Seville. He likewise
agreed that the Ostend company, which had given such umbrage to the
maritime powers, should be totally dissolved, on condition that the
contracting powers concerned in the treaty of Seville should guarantee
the pragmatic sanction, or succession of the Austrian hereditary
dominion to the heirs female of the emperor, in case he should die
without male issue. The Dutch minister residing at the Imperial court
did not subscribe this treaty, because, by the maxims received in that
republic, and the nature of her government, he could not be vested with
full powers so soon as it would have been necessary: nevertheless
the states-general were, by a separate article, expressly named as a
principal contracting party.
DON CARLOS TAKES POSSESSION OF HIS TERRITORIES.
On the twenty-second day of July, a new treaty was signed at Vienna
between the emperor and the kings of Great Britain and Spain, tending to
confirm the former. In August, a treaty of union and defensive alliance
between the electorates of Saxony and Hanover was executed at Dresden.
The court of Spain expressing some doubts with regard to the pregnancy
of the duchess of Parma, she underwent a formal examination by five
midwives of different nations, in presence of the elder duchess dowager,
several ladies of quality, three physicians and a surgeon; and was
declared with child: nevertheless, after having kept all Europe in
suspense for six months, she owned she had been deceived; and general
Stampa, with the Imperial forces, took formal possession of the duchies
of Parma and Placenta. Spain and the great duke of Tuscany having
acceded to the last treaty of Vienna, the crown of Great Britain engaged
to equip an armament that should convoy Don Carlos to his new dominions.
Accordingly, sir Charles Wager sailed with a strong squadron from
Portsmouth on the twenty-sixth day of August; and in September arrived
at Barcelona, where-, being joined by the Spanish fleet and transports,
they sailed together to Leghorn; from whence the admiral returned to
England. Don Carlos passed through part of France, and embarking
at Anti-bes on board of the Spanish galleys, arrived at Leghorn in
December. Then the Imperial general withdrew his forces into the
Milanese; and the infant took possession of his new territories.
FRANCE DISTRACTED BY RELIGIOUS DISPUTES.
During these transactions France was distracted by religious disputes,
occasioned by the bull Unigenitus thundered against the doctrines of
Jansenius; a bull which had produced a schism in the Gallican church,
and well nigh involved that country in civil war and confusion. It was
opposed by the parliaments and lay tribunals of the kingdom; but many
bishops, and the Jesuits in general, were its most strenuous assertors.
All the artifices of priestcraft were practised on both sides to inflame
the enthusiasm, and manage the superstition of the people. Pretended
miracles were wrought at the tomb of abbé Paris, who had died without
accepting the bull, consequently was declared damned by the abettors
of that constitution. On the other hand, the Jesuites exerted all
their abilities and industry in preaching against the Jansenists; in
establishing an opinion of their superior sanctity; and inspiring a
spirit of quietism among their votaries, who were transported into the
delirium of possession, illumination, and supernatural converse. These
arts were often used for the most infamous purposes. Female enthusiasts
were wrought up to such a violence of agitation, that nature fainted
under the struggle, and the pseudo saint seized this opportunity of
violating the chastity of his penitent. Such was said to be the case of
mademoiselle la Cadiere, a young gentlewoman of Toulon, abused in this
manner by the lust and villany of Père Girard, a noted Jesuit, who
underwent a trial before the parliament of Aix, and very narrowly
escaped the stake.
THE MINISTRY VIOLENTLY OPPOSED.
The parliament of Great Britain meeting on the thirteenth day of
January, the king in his speech declared, that the general tranquillity
of Europe was restored and established by the last treaty of Vienna;
and Don Carlos was actually possessed of Parma and Placentia; that six
thousand Spaniards were quietly admitted and quartered in the duchy of
Tuscany, to secure, by the express consent and agreement of the great
duke, the reversion of his dominions; and that a family convention was
made between the courts of Spain and Tuscany for preserving mutual
peace and friendship in the two houses. He told the commons, that the
estimates for the service of the current year would be considerably less
than those of former years. He recommended unanimity; he observed that
his government had no security but what was equally conducive to their
happiness, and to the protection of his people: that their prosperity
had no foundation but in the defence and support of his government. “Our
safety,” said he, “is mutual, and our interests are inseparable.”
The opposition to the court measures appears to have been uncommonly
spirited during the course of this session. The minister’s motions were
attacked with all the artillery of elocution. His principal emissaries
were obliged to task their faculties to their full exertion, to
puzzle and perplex where they could not demonstrate and convince, to
misrepresent what they could not vindicate, and to elude the arguments
which they could not refute. In the house of commons, lord Hervey,
lately appointed vice-chamberlain of his majesty’s household, made a
motion for an address of thanks, in which they should declare their
entire approbation of the king’s conduct, acknowledge the blessings they
enjoyed tinder his government, express their confidence in the wisdom
of his councils, and declare their readiness to grant the necessary
supplies. This member, son to the earl of Bristol, was a nobleman
of some parts, which, however, were more specious than solid. He
condescended to act as a subaltern to the minister, and approved himself
extremely active in forwarding all his designs, whether as a secret
emissary or public orator; in which last capacity he appears to have
been pert, frivolous, and frothy. His motion was seconded by Mr.
Clutterbuck, and opposed by sir Wilfred Lawson, Mr. Shippen, Mr. W.
Pulteney, sir William Wyndham, and Mr. Oglethorpe. They did not argue
against a general address of thanks; but exposed the absurdity and bad
tendency of expressions which implied a blind approbation of all
the measures of the ministry. Sir Wilfred Lawson observed, that
notwithstanding the great things we had done for the crown of Spain, and
the favours we had procured for the royal family of that kingdom,
little or no satisfaction had as yet been received for the injuries our
merchants had sustained from that nation. Mr. Pulteney took notice, that
the nation, by becoming guarantee to the pragmatic sanction, laid itself
under an obligation to assist the Austrian family when attacked by
any potentate whatever, except the grand seignor; that they might be
attacked when it would be much against the interest of the kingdom to
engage itself in a war upon any foreign account; that it might one day
be for the interest of the nation to join against them, in order to
preserve the balance of Europe, the establishing of which had already
cost England such immense sums of money. He insisted upon the absurdity
of concluding such a number of inconsistent treaties; and concluded
with saying, that if affairs abroad were now happily established, the
ministry which conducted them might be compared to a pilot, who, though
there was a clear, safe, and straight channel into port, yet took it in
his head to carry the ship a great way about, through sands, rocks, and
shallows; who, after having lost a great number of seamen, destroyed
a great deal of tackle and rigging, and subjected the owners to an
enormous expense, at last by chance hits the port, and triumphs in
his good conduct. Sir William Wyndham spoke to the same purpose. Mr.
Oglethorpe, a gentlemen of unblemished character, brave, generous,
and humane, affirmed that many other things related more nearly to
the honour and interest of the nation, than did the guarantee of the
pragmatic sanction. He said he wished to have heard that the new works
at Dunkirk had been entirely razed and destroyed; that the nation had
received full and complete satisfaction for the depredations committed
by the natives of Spain; that more care was taken in disciplining the
militia, on whose valour the nation must chiefly depend in case
of invasion; and that some regard had been shown to the oppressed
protestants in Germany. He expressed his satisfaction to find that the
English were not so closely united to France as formerly; for he had
generally observed that when two dogs were in a leash together, the
stronger generally ran away with the weaker; and this he was afraid
had been the case between France and Great Britain. The motion was
vigorously defended by Mr. Pelham, paymaster of the forces, and brother
to the duke of Newcastle, a man whose greatest fault was his being
concerned in supporting the measures of a corrupt ministry. In other
respects he was liberal, candid, benevolent, and even attached to the
interest of his country, though egregiously mistaken in his notions
of government. On this occasion, he insisted that it was no way
inconsistent with the honour or dignity of that house to thank his
majesty in the most particular terms, for every thing he had been
pleased to communicate in his speech from the throne; that no
expressions of approbation in the address could be any way made use of
to prevent an inquiry into the measures which had been pursued, when the
treaties should be laid before the house. He said, at the opening of a
session the eyes of all Europe were turned towards Great Britain, and
from the parliament’s first resolves all the neighbouring powers
judged of the unanimity that would ensue between his majesty and the
representatives of his people; that their appearing jealous or diffident
of his majesty’s conduct, would weaken his influence upon the councils
of foreign states and potentates, and perhaps put it out of his power to
rectify any false step that might have been made by his ministers. His
arguments were reinforced by a long speech from Mr. H. Walpole. The
question was put, the motion carried, and the address presented.
DEBATE ON A STANDING ARMY.
The next subject of debate was the number of land-forces. When the
supply fell under consideration, sir W. Strickland, secretary at war,
moved that the same number which had been maintained in the preceding
year should be continued in pay. On the other hand, lord Morpeth having
demonstrated the danger to which the liberties of the nation might be
exposed, by maintaining a numerous standing army in time of peace, made
a motion that the number should be reduced to twelve thousand. A warm
debate ensuing, was managed in favour of the first motion by lord
Hervey, sir Robert Walpole and his brother, Mr. Pelham, and sir Philip
Yorke, attorney-general. This gentleman was counted a better lawyer than
a politician, and shone more as an advocate at the bar than as an orator
in the house of commons. The last partisan of the ministry was sir
William Yonge, one of the lords commissioners in the treasury; a man
who rendered himself serviceable and necessary by stooping to all
compliances, running upon every scent, and haranguing on every subject,
with an even uninterrupted tedious flow of full declamation, composed
of assertions without veracity, conclusions from false premises, words
without meaning, and language without propriety. Lord Morpeth’s motion
was espoused by Mr. Watkin Williams Wynne, a gentleman of an ancient
family and opulent fortune in Wales, brave, open, hospitable, and warmly
attached to the ancient constitution and hierarchy; he was supported by
Mr. Walter Plummer, who spoke with weight, precision, and severity;
by sir W, Wyndham, Mr. Shippen, Mr. W. Pulteney, and Mr. Barnard. The
courtiers argued that it was necessary to maintain such a number of
land-forces as might defeat the designs of malcontents, secure the
interior tranquillity of the kingdom, defend it from external assaults,
overawe its neighbours, and enable it to take vigorous measures in case
the peace of Europe should be re-embroiled. They affirmed, the science
of war was so much altered, and acquired so much attention, that no
dependance was to be placed upon a militia; that all nations were
obliged to maintain standing armies, for their security against the
encroachments of neighbouring powers; that the number of troops in Great
Britain was too inconsiderable to excite the jealousy of the people,
even under an ambitious monarch; that his majesty never entertained the
least thought of infringing the liberties of his subjects; that it could
not be supposed that the officers, among whom were many gentlemen of
family and fortune, would ever concur in a design to enslave their
country; and that the forces now in pay could not be properly deemed a
standing army, inasmuch as they were voted and maintained from year to
year by the parliament, which was the representative of the people. To
these arguments the members in the opposition replied, that a standing
force in time of peace was unconstitutional, and had been always thought
dangerous; that a militia was as capable of discipline as a standing
army, and would have more incentives to courage and perseverance; that
the civil magistrate was able to preserve the peace of the country; that
the number of the malcontents was altogether contemptible, though it
might be considerably augmented by maintaining a standing army, and
other such arbitrary measures; that other nations had been enslaved by
standing armies; and howsoever they might find themselves necessitated
to depend upon a military force for security against encroaching
neighbours, the case was very different with regard to Great Britain,
for the defence of which nature had provided in a peculiar manner; that
this provision was strengthened and improved by a numerous navy, which
secured her dominion of the sea; and, if properly disposed, would render
all invasion impracticable, or at least ineffectual; that the land-army
of Great Britain, though sufficient to endanger the liberties of an
unarmed people, could not possibly secure such an extent of coast, and
therefore could be of very little service in preventing an invasion;
that though they had all imaginable confidence in his majesty’s regard
to the liberty of the subjects, they could not help apprehending, that
should a standing army become part of the constitution, another prince
of more dangerous talents, and more fatal designs, might arise, and
employ it for the worst purposes of ambition; that though many officers
were gentlemen of honour and probity, these might be easily discarded,
and the army gradually moulded into quite a different temper. By these
means, practised in former times, an army had been new modelled to such
a degree, that they turned their swords against the parliament for whose
defence they had been raised, and destroyed the constitution both in
church and state; that with respect to its being wholly dependent on the
parliament, the people of England would have reason to complain of
the same hardship, whether a standing army should be declared at once
indispensable, or regularly voted from year to year, according to the
direction of the ministry; that the sanction of the legislature granted
to measures which in themselves are unconstitutional, burdensome,
odious, and repugnant to the genius of the nation, instead of yielding
consolation, would serve only to demonstrate that the most effectual
method of forging the chains of national slavery, would be that of
ministerial influence operating upon a venal parliament. Such were the
reasons urged against a standing army, of what number soever it might be
composed; but the expediency of reducing the number from about
eighteen thousand to twelve thousand, was insisted upon as the natural
consequence of his majesty’s declaration, by which they were given to
understand that the peace of Europe was established; and that he had
nothing so much at heart as the ease and prosperity of his people. It
was suggested, that if eighteen thousand men were sufficient on the
supposed eve of a general war in Europe, it was surely reasonable
to think that a less number would suffice when peace was perfectly
re-established. Whatever effect these reasons had upon the body of the
nation, they made no converts in the house, where the majority resolved
that the standing army should be maintained without reduction. Mr.
Plummer complained that the country was oppressed by an arbitrary method
of quartering soldiers, in an undue proportion, upon those publicans who
refused to vote in elections according to the direction of the ministry.
Mr. Pulteney asserted, that the money raised for the subsistence of
eighteen thousand men in England, would maintain sixty thousand French
or Germans, or the same number of almost any other people on the
continent. Sir William Wyndham declared, that eighteen thousand of the
English troops in the late war were maintained on less than two-thirds
of the sum demanded for the like number; but no regard was paid to these
allegations.
THE CHARITABLE CORPORATION.
The next object of importance that attracted the notice of the house,
was the state of the charitable corporation. This company was first
erected in the year one thousand seven hundred and seven. Their
professed intention was to lend money at legal interest to the poor
upon small pledges; and to persons of better rank upon an indubitable
security of goods impawned. Their capital was at first limited to thirty
thousand pounds, but, by licenses from the crown, they increased it to
six hundred thousand pounds, though their charter was never confirmed
by act of parliament. In the month of October, George Robinson, esquire,
member for Mar-low, the cashier, and John Thompson, warehouse-keeper
of the corporation, disappeared in one day. The proprietors, alarmed at
this incident, held several general courts, and appointed a committee to
inspect the state of their affairs. They reported, that for a capital of
above five hundred thousand pounds no equivalent was found; inasmuch
as their effects did not amount to the value of thirty thousand, the
remainder having been embezzled by means which they could not discover.
The proprietors, in a petition to the house of commons, represented that
by the most notorious breach of trust in several persons to whom the
care and management of their affairs were committed, the corporation had
been defrauded of the greatest part of their capital; and that many
of the petitioners were reduced to the utmost degree of misery and
distress; they therefore prayed, that as they were unable to detect the
combinations of those who had ruined them, or to bring the delinquents
to justice, without the aid of the power and authority of parliament,
the house would vouchsafe to inquire into the state of the corporation,
and the conduct of their managers; and give such relief to the
petitioners as to the house should seem meet. The petition was
graciously received, and a secret committee appointed to proceed on the
inquiry. They soon discovered a most iniquitous scene of fraud, which
had been acted by Robinson and Thompson, in concert with some of the
directors, for embezzling the capital, and cheating the proprietors.
Many persons of rank and quality were concerned in this infamous
conspiracy; some of the first characters in the nation did not escape
suspicion and censure. Sir Robert Sutton and sir Archibald Grant were
expelled the house of commons, as having had a considerable share in
those fraudulent practices; a bill was brought in to restrain them and
other delinquents from leaving the kingdom, or alienating their effects.
In the meantime, the committee received a letter from signior John
Angelo Belloni, an eminent banker at Rome, giving them to understand,
that Thompson was secured in that city, with all his papers, and
confined to the castle of St. Angelo; and that the papers were
transmitted to his correspondent at Paris, who would deliver them up, on
certain conditions stipulated in favour of the prisoner. This letter
was considered as an artifice to insinuate a favourable opinion of the
pretender, as if he had taken measures for securing Thompson, from
his zeal for justice and affection for the English people. On this
supposition, the proposals were rejected with disdain; and both houses
concurred in an order that the letter should be burned at the Royal
Exchange, by the hands of the common hangman. The lower house resolved,
that it was an insolent and audacious libel, absurd and contradictory;
that the whole transaction was a scandalous artifice, calculated to
delude the unhappy, and to disguise and conceal the wicked practices of
the professed enemies to his majesty’s person, crown, and dignity.
REVIVAL OF THE SALT-TAX.
No motion during this session produced such a warm contest, as did that
of sir Robert Walpole, when, after a long preamble, he proposed that the
duties on salt, which about two years before had been abolished, should
now be revived and given to his majesty, his heirs and successors, for
the term of three years. In order to sweeten this proposal, he declared
that the land-tax for the ensuing year should be reduced to one shilling
in the pound. All the members of the country party were immediately
in commotion. They expressed their surprise at the grossness of the
imposition. They observed, that two years had scarcely elapsed since the
king, in a speech from the throne, had exhorted them to abolish some of
the taxes that were the most burdensome to the poor: the house was then
of opinion, that the tax upon salt was the most burdensome and the most
pernicious to the trade of the kingdom, of all the impositions to which
the poor was subjected, and therefore it was taken off; but that no good
reason could be produced for altering their opinion so suddenly, and
resolving to grind the faces of the poor, in order to ease a few rich
men of the landed interest. They affirmed, that the most general taxes
are not always the least burdensome: that after a nation is obliged to
extend their taxes farther than the luxuries of their country, those
taxes that can be raised with the least charge to the public are the
most convenient and easiest to the people: but they ought carefully to
avoid taxing those things which are necessary for the subsistence of the
poor. The price of all necessaries being thus enhanced, the wages of the
tradesman and manufacturer must be increased; and where these are high
the manufacturers will be undersold by those of cheaper countries. The
trade must of consequence be ruined; and it is not to be supposed that
the landed gentlemen would choose to save a shilling in the pound from
the land-tax, by means of an expedient that would ruin the manufactures
of his country, and decrease the value of his own fortune. They alleged
that the salt-tax particularly affected the poor, who could not afford
to eat fresh provisions; and that, as it formerly occasioned murmurs and
discontents among the lower class of people, the revival of it would, in
all probability, exasperate them into open sedition. They observed, that
while it was exacted in England, a great number of merchants sent their
ships to Ireland, to be victualled for their respective voyages; that
since it had been abolished, many experiments had been successfully
tried with salt for the improvement of agriculture, which would be
entirely defeated by the revival of this imposition. They suggested
that the land-tax was raised at a very small expense, and subject to no
fraud, whereas that upon salt would employ a great number of additional
officers in the revenue, wholly depending upon the ministry, whose
influence in elections they would proportionably increase. They even
hinted, that this consideration was one powerful motive for proposing
the revival of an odious tax, which was in effect an excise, and would
be deemed a step towards a general excise upon all sorts of provisions.
Finally, they demonstrated that the salt-tax introduced numberless
frauds and perjuries in different articles of traffic. Sir Robert
Walpole endeavoured to obviate all these objections in a long speech,
which was minutely answered and refuted in every article by Mr.
Pulteney. Nevertheless, the question being put, the minister’s motion
was carried in the affirmative, and the duty revived; yet, before the
bill passed, divers motions were made, and additional clauses proposed
by the members in the opposition. New debates were raised on every new
objection, and the courtiers were obliged to dispute their ground by
inches.
{GEORGE II. 1727-1760}
MR. PULTENEY’S NAME STRUCK OUT OF THE LIST OF PRIVY-COUNSELLORS.
The pension-bill was revived, and for the third time rejected in the
house of lords. A bill for the encouragement of the sugar colonies
passed through the lower house with great difficulty, but was lost among
the peers: another, for the better securing the freedom of parliaments,
by further qualifying members to sit in the house of commons, was read
the third time, and thrown out upon the question. A committee had been
appointed to inquire into a sale of the estate which had belonged to the
late earl of Denventwater. It appeared by the report, that the sale
had been fraudulent; a bill was prepared to make it void; Dennis Bond,
esquire, and Serjeant Birch, commissioners for the sale of the forfeited
estates, were declared guilty of notorious breach of trust, and expelled
the house, of which they were members: George Robinson, esquire,
underwent the same sentence on account of the part he acted in the
charitable corporation, as he and Thompson had neglected to surrender
themselves, according to the terms of a bill which had passed for that
purpose. During this session, five members of parliament were expelled
for the most sordid acts of knavery; a sure sign of national degeneracy
and dishonour. All the supplies were granted, and among other articles,
the sum of two-and-twenty thousand six hundred and ninety-four pounds,
seven shillings and sixpence, for the agio or difference of the
subsidies payable to the crown of Denmark, in pursuance of the treaty
subsisting between the late king and that monarch; but this was
not obtained without a violent dispute. Mr. Pulteney, who bore a
considerable share in all these debates, became in a little time so
remarkable as to be thought worthy of a very particular mark of his
majesty’s displeasure. The king, on the first day of July, called for
the council-book, and with his own hand struck the name of William
Pulteney, esquire, out of the list of privy-counsellors; his majesty
further ordered him to be put out of all the commissions of the peace.
The several lord-lieutenants, from whom he had received deputations,
were commanded to revoke them; and the lord-chancellor and secretaries
of state were directed to give the necessary orders for that purpose.
THE KING SETS OUT FOR HANOVER.
Nor did the house of peers tamely and unanimously submit to the measures
of the ministry. The pension-bill being read, was again rejected, and a
protest entered. A debate arose about the number of standing forces; and
the earl of Chesterfield argued for the court motion. The earl of Oxford
moved that they might be reduced to twelve thousand effective men. The
earl of Winchelsea observed, that a standing army rendered ministers
of state more daring than otherwise they would be, in contriving and
executing projects that were grievous to the people; schemes that could
never enter into the heads of any but those who were drunk with excess
of power. The marquis of Tweedale, in reasoning against such a number as
the ministry proposed, took occasion to observe, that not one shilling
of the forfeited estates was ever applied to the use of the public;
he likewise took notice, that the eighteen thousand men demanded as
a standing force, were modelled in such a manner, that they might be
speedily augmented to forty thousand men on any emergency. The duke of
Argyle endeavoured to demonstrate the danger of depending for the safety
of the kingdom upon an undisciplined militia, a fleet, or an army of
auxiliaries. Then he represented the necessity of having recourse to a
regular army in case of invasion; and, after all, acknowledged that
the number proposed was no way sufficient for that purpose. All his
arguments were answered and refuted in an excellent speech by lord
Carteret; nevertheless, victory declared for the minister. The
parliament having granted every branch of the supply, towards the
payment of which they borrowed a sum from the sinking fund, and passed
divers other acts for the encouragement of commerce and agriculture, the
king, on the first day of June, gave the royal assent to the bills that
were prepared, and closed the session, after having informed both houses
that the states-general had acceded to the treaty of Vienna; that he had
determined to visit his German dominions, and to leave the queen regent
in his absence. He accordingly set out for Hanover in the beginning of
June. By this time the pragmatic sanction was confirmed by the diet
of the empire, though not without a formal protest by the electors
Palatine, Bavaria, and Saxony.
{GEORGE II. 1727-1760}