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 clay’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; stich 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 clay 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.]
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